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very fortunate to have an office in which one may legitimately

accumulate the largest fortune in France。 〃 … Cf。 Rocquain; 〃état de

la France au 18 Brumaire。〃 (Reports by Lacuée; Fourcroy and Barbé…

Marbois。)



'18' Charlotte de Sohr; 〃Napoléon en Belgique et en Hollande;〃 1811;

vol。 I。; 243。 (On a high functionary condemned for forgery and whom

Napoleon kept in prison in spite of every solicitation。) 〃Never will I

pardon those who squander the public funds。 。 。 。 Ah ! parbleu! We

should have the good old times of the contractors worse than ever if I

did not show myself inexorable for these odious crimes。〃



'19' Stourm; ibid。; I。; 177。 (Report by Gaudin; Sep。 15; 1799。) 〃A few

(tax) rolls for the year V; and one…third of those for the year VII;

are behindhand。〃 … (Report by the same; Germinal I; year X。)

〃Everything remained to do; on the advent of the consulate; for the

assessment and collection of direct taxes; 35;000 rolls for the year

VII still remained to be drawn up。 With the help of the new office;

the rolls for the year VII have been completed; those of the year VIII

were made out as promptly as could be expected; and those of the year

IX have been prepared with a dispatch which; for the first time since

the revolution; enables the collections to be begun in the very year

to which they belong。〃



'20' 〃Archives parlementaires;〃 VIII。; p。11。 (Report by Necker to the

States…General; May 5; 1789。) 〃These two…fifths; although legitimately

due to the king; are always in arrears。 。 。 。 (To…day) these arrears

amount in full to about 80 millions。〃



'21' De Foville; 〃la France économique;〃 p。354。



'22' 〃The Ancient Régime;〃 p。 354。 (Laff。 I。 p。 263。)



'23' Necker; 〃De l'administration des finances;〃 I。; 164; and 〃Rapport

aux états…généraux;〃 May 5th; 1789。 (We arrive at these figures; 179

millions; by combining these documents; on both sides; with the

observation that the 3rd vingtième is suppressed in 1789。)



'24' Charles Nicolas; 〃les Budgets de la France depuis le commencement

du XIXème siècle〃 (in tabular form)。 …  De Foville; ibid。; 356。In

the year IX; the sum…total of direct taxes is 308 millions; in the

year XI。 360; and in the year XII; 376。 The total income from real…

estate in France towards 1800 is 1;500 millions。



'25' It is only after 1816 that the total of each of the four direct

taxes can be got at (land; individual; personal; doors and windows)。

In 1821; the land…tax amounts to 265 millions; and the three others

together to 67 millions。 Taking the sum of 1;580 millions; estimated

by the government as the net revenue at this date in France; we find

that; out of this revenue; 16。77 % is deducted for land; and that;

with the other three; it then abstracts from the same revenue 21 % …

On the contrary; before 1789; the five corresponding direct taxes;

added to tithes and feudal privileges; abstracted 81。71 % from the net

income of the taxable party。 (Cf。 〃The Ancient Régime;〃 pp。346; 347;

351 et seq。 Laff。 I。 pp。 258; 259; 261 and following pages。 )



'26' These figures are capital; and measure the distance which

separates the old from the new condition of the laboring and poor

class; especially in the rural districts; hence the tenacious

sentiments and judgments of the people with respect to the Ancient

Régime; the Revolution and the Empire。 … All local information

converges in this sense。 I have verified the above figures as well as

I could: 1st; by the 〃Statistiques des préfets;〃 of the year IX and

year XIII and afterwards (printed); 2nd; by the reports of the

councillors of state on mission during the year IX (published by

Rocquam; and in manuscript in the Archives nationales); 3rd; by the

reports of the senators on their sénatories and by the prefects on

their departments; in 1806; 1809; 1812; 1814 and 1815; and from 1818

to 1823 (in manuscript in the Archives nationales); 4th; by the

observations of foreigners travelling in France from 1802 to 1815。  …

For example (〃A Tour through several of the Middle and Western

Departments of France;〃 1802; p。23): 〃There are no tithes; no church

taxes; no taxation of the poor。 。 。 。 All the taxes together do not go

beyond one…sixth of a man's rent…roll; that is to say; three shillings

and sixpence on the pound sterling。〃 … (〃Travels in the South of

France; 1807 and 1808;〃 by Lieutenant…Colonel Pinkney; citizen of the

United States; p。162。) At Tours a two…story house; with six or eight

windows on the front; a stable; carriagehouse; garden and orchard;

rents at £20 sterling per annum; with the taxes which are from £1;10;

to £2; for the state and about ten shillings for the commune。 …

(〃Notes on a Journey through July; August and September; 1814;〃 by

Morris Birkbeck; p。23。) Near Cosne (Orléanais); an estate of 1;000

acres of tillable land and 500 acres of woods is rented for nine

years; for about 9;000 francs a year; together with the taxes; about

1;600 francs more。 … (Ibid。; p。91。) 〃Visited the Brie。 Well cultivated

on the old system of wheat; oats and fallow。 Average rent 16 francs

the acre with taxes; which are about one…fifth of the rent。〃 …

Roederer; III。; 474 (on the sénatorerie of Caen; Dec。。 1; 1803): 〃The

direct tax is here in very moderate proportion to the income; it being

paid without much inconvenience。 … The travellers above quoted and

many others are unanimous in stating the new prosperity of the

peasant; the cultivation of the entire soil and the abundance and

cheapness of provisions。 (Morris Birkbeck; p。11。) 〃Everybody assures

me that the riches and comfort of the cultivators of the soil have

been doubled since twenty…five years。〃 (Ibid。; p。43; at Tournon…sur…

le…Rh?ne。) 〃I had no conception of a country so entirely cultivated as

we have found from Dieppe to this place。〃 … (Ibid。; P。51;; at

Montpellier。) 〃From Dieppe to this place we have not seen among the

laboring people one such famished; worn…out; wretched figure as may be

met in every parish of England; I had almost said on almost every

farm。 。 。 。 A really rich country; and yet there are few rich

individuals。〃 … Robert; 〃 De l'Influence de la révolution sur la

population; 1802;〃 p。41。 〃Since the Revolution I have noticed in the

little village of Sainte…Tulle that the consumption of meat has

doubled; the peasants who formerly lived on salt pork and ate beef

only at Easter and at Christmas; frequently enjoy a pot…à…feu during

the week; and have given up rye…bread for wheat…bread。〃



'27' The sum of 1 fr。 15 for a day's manual labor is an average;

derived from the statistics furnished by the prefects of the year IX

to the year XIII; especially for Charente; Deux…Sèvres; Meurthe;

Moselle and Doubs。



'28' 〃The Ancient Régime。〃 p。 353。 (Laff。 I。 p。 262)。



'29' Arthur Young; II。; 259。 (Average rate for a day's work throughout

France in 1789。)



'30' About 15 millions out of 26 millions; in the opinion of Mallet…

Dupan and other observers。 … Towards the middle of the 18th century;

in a population estimated at 20 millions; Voltaire reckons that 〃many

inhabitants possess only the value of 10 crowns rental; that others

have only 4 or 5; and that more than 6 millions of inhabitants have

nothing。〃  (〃L'homme aux quarante écus。〃)… A little later; Chamfort

(I。; 178) adds: 〃It is an incontestable truth that; in France; 7

millions of men beg; and 12 millions of men are incapable of giving

anything。〃



'31' Law of Floréal 3; year X; title II; articles 13; 14; § 3 and 4。



'32' Charles Nicolas; ibid。 … In 1821; the personal and poll tax

yields 46 millions; the tax on doors and windows; 21 millions: total;

67 millions。  According to these sums we see that; if the recipient of

100 francs income from real…estate pays 16 fr。 77 real…estate tax; he

pays only 4 fr。 01 for his three other direct taxes。 … These figures;

6 to 7 francs; can nowadays be arrived at through direct observation。

… To omit nothing; the assessment in kind; renewed in principle after

1802 on all parish and departmental roads; should be added; this tax;

demanded by rural interests; laid by local authorities; adapted to the

accommodation of the taxpayer; and at once accepted by the

inhabitants; has nothing in common with the former covée; save in

appearance; in fact; it is as easy as the corvée was burdensome。

(Stourm; I。; 122。)



'33' They thus pay between 2 and 6% in taxes; a very low taxation if

we compare with the contemporary industrial consumer welfare society;

where; in Scandinavia; the average worker pay more than 50% of his

income in direct and indirect taxes。 (SR。)



'34' Charles Nicolas; 〃Les Budgets de la France depuis le commencement

du XIXe Siècle;〃 and de Foville; 〃La France économique;〃 p。 365; 373。

… Returns of licenses in 1816; 40 millions; in 1820; 22 millions; in

1860; 80 millions; in 1887; 171 millions。



'35' The mutation tax is that levied in France on all property

tran

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