the spirit of laws-第147节

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es；　clothes；　and　flocks　in　abundance；　and　you　shall　remove　all　the　people　into　your　own　country。〃

After　the　conclusion　of　the　peace　between　Gontram　and　Chilperic；　the　troops　employed　in　the　siege　of　Bourges；　having　had　orders　to　return；　carried　such　a　considerable　booty　away　with　them　that　they　hardly　left　either　men　or　cattle　in　the　country。＇29＇

Theodoric；　King　of　Italy；　whose　spirit　and　policy　it　was　ever　to　distinguish　himself　from　the　other　barbarian　kings；　upon　sending　an　army　into　Gaul；　wrote　thus　to　the　general：＇30＇　〃It　is　my　will　that　the　Roman　laws　be　followed；　and　that　you　restore　the　fugitive　slaves　to　their　right　owners。　The　defender　of　liberty　ought　not　to　encourage　servants　to　desert　their　masters。　Let　other　kings　delight　in　the　plunder　and　devastation　of　the　towns　which　they　have　subdued；　we　are　desirous　to　conquer　in　such　a　manner　that　our　subjects　shall　lament　their　having　fallen　too　late　under　our　government。〃　It　is　evident　that　his　intention　was　to　cast　odium　on　the　kings　of　the　Franks　and　the　Burgundians；　and　that　he　alluded　in　the　above　passage　to　their　particular　law　of　nations。　Yet　this　law　of　nations　continued　in　force　under　the　second　race。　King　Pepin's　army；　having　penetrated　into　Aquitaine；　returned　to　France　loaded　with　an　immense　booty；　and　with　a　number　of　bondmen；　as　we　are　informed　by　the　annals　of　Metz。＇31＇

Here　might　I　quote　numberless　authorities；＇32＇　and　as　the　public　compassion　was　raised　at　the　sight　of　those　miseries；　as　several　holy　prelates；　beholding　the　captives　in　chains；　employed　the　treasure　belonging　to　the　church；　and　sold　even　the　sacred　utensils；　to　ransom　as　many　as　they　could；　and　as　several　holy　monks　exerted　themselves　on　that　occasion；　it　is　in　the　Lives　of　the　Saints　that　we　meet　with　the　best　explanations　on　the　subject。＇33＇　And；　although　it　may　be　objected　to　the　authors　of　those　lives　that　they　have　been　sometimes　a　little　too　credulous　in　respect　to　things　which　God　has　certainly　performed；　if　they　were　in　the　order　of　his　providence；　yet　we　draw　considerable　light　thence　with　regard　to　the　manners　and　usages　of　those　times。

When　we　cast　an　eye　upon　the　monuments　of　our　history　and　laws；　the　whole　seems　to　be　an　immense　expanse；　a　boundless　ocean；＇34＇　all　those　frigid；　dry；　insipid；　and　hard　writings　must　be　read　and　devoured　in　the　same　manner　as　Saturn　is　fabled　to　have　devoured　the　stones。

A　vast　quantity　of　land　which　had　been　in　the　hands　of　freemen＇35＇　was　changed　into　mortmain。　When　the　country　was　stripped　of　its　free　inhabitants；　those　who　had　a　great　multitude　of　bondmen　either　took　large　territories　by　force；　or　had　them　yielded　by　agreement；　and　built　villages；　as　may　be　seen　in　different　charters。　On　the　other　hand；　the　freemen　who　cultivated　the　arts　found　themselves　reduced　to　exercise　those　arts　in　a　state　of　servitude；　thus　the　servitudes　restored　to　the　arts　and　to　agriculture　whatever　they　had　lost。

It　was　a　customary　thing　with　the　proprietors　of　lands；　to　give　them　to　the　churches；　in　order　to　hold　them　themselves　by　a　quit…rent；　thinking　to　partake　by　their　servitude　of　the　sanctity　of　the　churches。

12。　That　the　Lands　belonging　to　the　Division　of　the　Barbarians　paid　no　Taxes。　A　people　remarkable　for　their　simplicity　and　poverty；　a　free　and　martial　people；　who　lived　without　any　other　industry　than　that　of　tending　their　flocks；　and　who　had　nothing　but　rush　cottages　to　attach　them　to　their　lands；＇36＇　such　a　people；　I　say；　must　have　followed　their　chiefs　for　the　sake　of　booty；　and　not　to　pay　or　to　raise　taxes。　The　art　of　tax…gathering　was　invented　later；　and　when　men　began　to　enjoy　the　blessings　of　other　arts。

The　temporary　tax　of　a　pitcher　of　wine　for　every　acre；＇37＇　which　was　one　of　the　exactions　of　Chilperic　and　Fredegonda；　related　only　to　the　Romans。　And　indeed　it　was　not　the　Franks　that　tore　the　rolls　of　those　taxes；　but　the　clergy；　who　in　those　days　were　all　Romans。＇38＇　The　burden　of　this　tax　lay　chiefly　on　the　inhabitants　of　the　towns；＇39＇　now　these　were　almost　all　inhabited　by　Romans。

Gregory　of　Tours　relates＇40＇　that　a　certain　judge　was　obliged；　after　the　death　of　Chilperic；　to　take　refuge　in　a　church；　for　having　under　the　reign　of　that　prince　ordered　taxes　to　be　levied　on　several　Franks　who　in　the　reign　of　Childebert　were　ingenui；　or　free…born：　Multos　de　Francis；　qui　tempore　Childeberti　regis　ingenui　fuerant；　publico　tributo　subegit。　Therefore　the　Franks　who　were　not　bondmen　paid　no　taxes。

There　is　not　a　grammarian　but　would　turn　pale　to　see　how　the　Abbé　du　Bos　has　interpreted　this　passage。＇41＇　He　observes　that　in　those　days　the　freedmen　were　also　called　ingenui。　Upon　this　supposition　he　renders　the　Latin　word　ingenui；　by　the　words　〃freed　from　taxes〃；　a　phrase　which　we　indeed　may　use　in　French；　as　we　say　〃freed　from　cares；〃　〃freed　from　punishments〃；　but　in　the　Latin　tongue　such　expressions　as　ingenui　a　tributis；　libertini　a　tributis；　manumissi　tributorum；　would　be　quite　monstrous。

Parthenius；　says　Gregory　of　Tours；＇42＇　had　like　to　have　been　put　to　death　by　the　Franks　for　subjecting　them　to　taxes。　The　Abbé　du　Bos　finding　himself　hard　pressed　by　this　passage＇43＇　very　coolly　assumes　the　thing　in　question；　it　was；　says　he；　a　surcharge。

We　find　in　the　law　of　the　Visigoths＇44＇　that　when　a　Barbarian　had　seized　upon　the　estate　of　a　Roman；　the　judge　obliged　him　to　sell　it；　to　the　end　that　this　estate　might　continue　to　be　tributary；　consequently　the　Barbarians　paid　no　land　taxes。＇45＇

The　Abbé　du　Bos；＇46＇　who　would　fain　have　the　Visigoths　subjected　to　taxes；＇47＇　quits　the　literal　and　spiritual　sense　of　the　law；　and　pretends；　upon　no　other　indeed　than　an　imaginary　foundation；　that　between　the　establishment　of　the　Goths　and　this　law；　there　had　been　an　augmentation　of　taxes　which　related　only　to　the　Romans。　But　none　but　Father　Harduin　are　allowed　thus　to　exercise　an　arbitrary　power　over　facts。

This　learned　author＇48＇　has　rummaged　Justinian's　Code＇49＇　in　search　of　laws　to　prove　that；　among　the　Romans；　the　military　benefices　were　subject　to　taxes。　Whence　he　would　infer　that　the　same　held　good　with　regard　to　fiefs　or　benefices　among　the　Franks。　But　the　opinion　that　our　fiefs　derive　their　origin　from　that　Institution　of　the　Romans　is　at　present　exploded；　it　obtained　only　at　a　time　when　the　Roman　history；　not　ours；　was　well　understood；　and　our　ancient　records　lay　buried　in　obscurity　and　dust。

But　the　Abbé　is　in　the　wrong　to　quote　Cassiodorus；　and　to　make　use　of　what　was　transacting　in　Italy；　and　in　the　part　of　Gaul　subject　to　Theodoric；　in　order　to　acquaint　us　with　the　practice　established　among　the　Franks；　these　are　things　which　must　not　be　confounded。　I　propose　to　show；　some　time　or　other；　in　a　certain　work；　that　the　plan　of　the　monarchy　of　the　Ostrogoths　was　entirely　different　from　that　of　any　other　government　founded　in　those　days　by　the　other　Barbarian　nations；　and　that　so　far　from　our　being　entitled　to　affirm　that　a　practice　obtained　among　the　Franks　because　it　was　established　among　the　Ostrogoths；　we　have　on　the　contrary　just　reason　to　think　that　a　custom　of　the　Ostrogoths　was　not　in　force　among　the　Franks。

The　hardest　task　for　persons　of　extensive　erudition　is　to　seek　their　proofs　in　such　passages　as　bear　upon　the　subject；　and　to　find；　if　we　may　be　allowed　to　express　ourselves　in　astronomical　terms；　the　position　of　the　sun。

The　same　author　makes　a　wrong　use　of　the　capitularies；　as　well　as　of　the　historians　and　laws　of　the　barbarous　nations。　When　he　wants　the　Franks　to　pay　taxes；　he　applies　to　freemen　what　can　be　understood　only　of　bondmen；＇50＇　when　he　speaks　of　their　military　service；　he　applies　to　bondmen　what　can　never　relate　but　to　freemen。＇51＇

13。　Of　Taxes　paid　by　the　Romans　and　Gauls　in　the　Monarchy　of　the　Franks。　I　might　here　examine　whether；　after　the　Gauls　and　Romans　were　conquered；　they　continued　to　pay　the　taxes　to　which　they　were　subject　under　the　emperors。　But；　for　the　sake　of　brevity；　I　shall　be　satisfied　with　observing　that；　if　they　paid　them　in　the　beginning；　they　were　soon　after　exempted；　and　that　those　taxes　were　changed　into　a　military　service。　For；　I　confess；　I　can　hardly　conceive　how　the　Franks　should　have　been　at　first　such　great　friends；　and　afterwards　such　sudden　and　violent　enemies；　to　taxes。

A　capitulary＇52＇　of　Louis　the　Debonnaire　explains　extremely　well　the　situation　of　the　freemen　in　the　monarchy　of　the　Franks。　Some　troops　of　Goths　or　Iberians；　flying　from　the　oppression　of　the　Moors；　were　received　into　Louis'　dominions。　The　agreement　made　with　them　was　that；　like　other　freemen；　they　should　follow　their　count　to　the　army；　and　that　upon　a　march　they　should　mount　guard　and　patrol　under　the　command　also　of　their　count；　and　that　they　should　furnish　horses　and　carriages　for　baggage　to　the　king's　commissaries；＇53＇　and　to　the　ambassadors　in　their　way　to　or　from　court；　and　that　they　should　not　be　compelled　to　pay　any　further　impost；　but　should　be　treated　as　the　other　freemen。

It　cannot　be　said　that　these　were　new　usages　introduced　at　the　commencement　of　the　second　race。　This　must　be　referred　at　least　to　the　middle　or　to　the　end　of　the　first。　A　capitulary　of　the　year　864　＇54＇　says　in　express　terms　that　it　was　the　ancient　custom　for　freemen　to　perform　military　service；　and　to　furnis