a fad the light of a rag dipped in grease, without paying what he has not to pay, or being guilty of perjury. However upright originally, poverty and anxiety about her infants, will tempt her to conceal the truth, and to deny upon oath leffon to her poor children ought they to be punished for copying after their mother, whom they loved and revered? whatever fhe did appears right in their eyes. The manner of levying the falt-tax in France is indeed arbitrary; but it has not an immoral tendency: an oath is avoided; and every master of a family pays for the quan tity he is prefumed to confume. French wine is often imported into Britain as Spanifh, which pays lefs duty. To check that fraud, the importer's oath is required; and if perjury be fufpected, a jury is fet upon him in exchequer. This is horrid: the importer is tempted by a high duty on French wine to commit perjury; for which he is profecuted in a fovereign court, open to all the world: he turns defperate, and lofes all fenfe of honour. Thus cuftom-houfe oaths have become a proverb, as meriting no regard; and corruption creeping on, will become univer fal. fal. Some goods imported pay a duty ad valorem; and to afcertain the value, the importer's oath is required. In China, the books of the merchant are trufted, without an oath. Why not imitate fo laudable a practice? If our people be more corrupted, perjury may be avoided, by ordaining the merchant to deliver his goods to any who will demand them, at the rate ftated in his books; with the addition of ten per cent. as a fufficient profit to himself. Oaths have been greatly mul-. tiplied in Britain fince the Revolution, without referve, and contrary to found policy. New oaths have been invented against those who are difaffected to the government; against fictitious titles in electing parliament members; against defrauding the revenue, &c. &c. They have been fo hackney'd, and have become fo familiar, as to be held a matter of form merely. Perjury has dwindled into a venial tranfgreffion, and is fcarce held an imputation on any man's character. Lamentable indeed has been the conduct of our legislature: instead of laws for reforming or improving morals, the imprudent multiplication of oaths has not only spread corruption through every rank, but, by annihilating the authority of an oath over confcience, has rendered it entirely ineffectual. SECT. VI. Taxes examined with respect to their effects. No other political fubject is of greater importance to Britain, than the prefent a whole life might be profitably bestow'd on it, and a large volume: but hints only are my task. Confidering taxes with regard to their effects, they may be commodiously distinguished into five kinds. First, Taxes that encrease the public revenue, without producing any other effect, good or bad. Second, Taxes that encrease the public revenue; and are alfo beneficial to manufactures and commerce. Third, Taxes that encreafe the public revenue; but are hurtful to manufactures and commerce. Fourth, Taxes that are hurtful to manufactures and commerce, 3 D VOL. II. without without encreafing the public revenue. Fifth, Taxes that are hurtful to manufactures and commerce; and alfo leffen the public revenue. I proceed to instances of each kind, drawn chiefly from British taxes. Our land-tax is an illustrious inftance of the first kind: it produces a revenue to the public, levied with very little expence: and it hurts no mortal; for a landholder who pays for having himself and his estate protected, cannot be faid to be hurt. The duty on coaches is of the fame kind. Both taxes at the fame time are agreeable to found principles. Men ought to contribute to the public revenue, as far as they are benefited by being protected: a rich man requires protection for his poffeffions, as well as for his person, and therefore ought to contribute largely a poor man requires protection for his perfon only, and therefore ought to contribute little. A tax on foreign luxuries is an instance of the fecond kind. It encreases the public revenue and it greatly benefits individuals; not only by reftraining the confumption of foreign luxuries, but by encouraging couraging our own manufactures. Britain enjoys a monopoly of coal exported to Holland; and the duty on exportation is agreeable to found policy, being paid by the Dutch. This duty is another inftance of the fecond kind: it raifes a confiderable revenue to the public; and it enables us to cope with the Dutch in every manufacture that employs coal, fuch as dying, diftilling, works of glass and of iron. And thefe manufactures in Britain, by the dearnefs of labour, are entitled to fome aid. A tax on horses, to prevent their increafe, would be a tax of the fame kind. The incredible number of horses used in coaches and other wheel-carriages, has raifed the price of labour, by doubling the price of oat-meal, the food of the labouring poor in many parts of Britain. The price of wheat is alfo raifed by the fame means; because the vast quantity of land employ'd in producing oats, leffens the quantity for wheat. I would not exempt even plough-horfes from the tax; becaufe in every view it is more advantageous to ufe oxen *. So little regard is paid to these * They are preferable for husbandry in feveral 3 D 2 refpects. |