tenance.

minifters of ftate, are feldom opulent; and to make fuch men ferve without pay, would be in effect to ease the rich at the expence of the poor. With refpect to the military branch in particular, the bulk of those who compose an army, if withdrawn from daily labour, muft ftarve, unless the public which they ferve afford them mainA republican government, during peace, may indeed be supported at a very small charge, among a temperate and patriotic people. In a monarchy, a public fund is indifpenfable, even during peace: and in war it is indifpenfable, whatever be the government. The Spartans carried all before them in Greece, but were forced to quit their hold, having no fund for a ftanding army; and the other Greek flates were obliged to confederate with the Athenians, who had a public fund, and who after the Perfian war became mafters at fea. A defect fo obvious in the Spartan government, did affuredly not efcape Lycurgus, the moft profound of all legiflators. Forefeeing that conqueft would be deftructive to his countrymen, his fole purpofe was to guard them from being conquered; which in Sparta

required

required no public fund, as all the citizens were equal, and equally bound to defend themselves and their country.. A ftate, it is true, without a public fund, is ill qualified to oppose a standing army, regularly difciplined, and regularly paid. But in political matters, experience is our only fure guide; and the hiftory of nations, at that early period, was too barren to afford inftruction. Lycurgus may well be excufed, confidering how little progress political knowledge had made in a much later period. Charles VII. of France, was the first in modern times who established a fund for a ftanding army. Against that dangerous innovation, the crown-vaffals had no refource but to imitate their fovereign; and yet, without even dreaming of a refource, they fuffered themselves to be undermined, and at laft overturned, by the King their fuperior. Thus, on the one hand, a nation however warlike that has not a public fund, is no match for a standing army enured to war: extenfive commerce, on the other hand, enables a nation to fupport a ftanding army; but by introducing luxury it eradicates manhood, and renders that army an

unfit match for any poor and warlike invader. Hard may feem the fate of nations, laid thus open to deftruction from every quarter. All that can be faid is, that fuch viciffitudes feem to enter into the fcheme of Providence,

The ftability of land fits it, above all other fubjects, for a public patrimony. But as crown-lands lie open to the rapacity of favourites, it becomes neceffary, when these are diffipated, to introduce taxes; which have the following properties, that they unite in one common intereft the fovereign and his fubjects, and that they can be augmented or diminished according to exigencies.

The art of levying money by taxes was fo little understood in the fixteenth century, that after the famous battle of Pavia, in which the French King was made prifoner, Charles V. was obliged to disband his victorious army, tho' confifting but of 24,000 men, because he had not the art to levy, in his extenfive dominions, a fum neceffary to keep it on foot. So little knowledge was there in England of political arithmetic in the days of Edward III. that L. 12: 4 on each parish was com

puted

puted to be fufficient for raifing a fubfidy of L. 50,000. It being found, that there were but 8700 parishes, exclufive of Wales, the parliament, in order to raise the faid fubfidy, affeffed on each parish L. 5, 16 s.

In impofing taxes, ought not the expence of living to be deducted, and to confider the remainder as the only taxable fubject? This mode was adopted in the ftate of Athens. A rent of 500 measures of corn, burdened the landlord with the yearly contribution of a talent: a rent of 300, burdened him with half a talent a rent of 200, burdened him with the fixth part of a talent; and land under that rent paid no tax. Here the tax was not in proportion to the eftate, but to what could be fpared out of it; or, in other words, in proportion to the ability of the proprietor. At the fame time, ability must not be eftimated by what a man actually faves, which would exempt the profufe and profligate from paying taxes, but by what a man can pay who lives with oeconomy according to his rank. This rule is founded on the very nature of government: to tax a man's food, or the fubject that affords him bare neceffaries, is worse than

the

the denying him protection: it starves him. Hence the following propofition may be laid down as the corner ftone of taxation-building, "That every man ought to contribute to the public re

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venue, not in proportion to his fub"ftance, but to his ability." I am forry to observe, that this rule is little regarded in British taxes; though nothing would contribute more to fweeten the minds of the people, and to make them ford of their government, than a regulation fraught with fo much equity.

Taxes were long in ufe before it was discovered, that they could be made fubfervient to other purpofes, befide that of fupporting government. In the fifteenth century, the states of Burgundy rejected with indignation a demand made by the Duke, of a duty on falt; tho' they found no other objection, but that it would opprefs the poor people, who lived moftly on falt meat and falt fish. It did not occur to them, that fuch a tax might hurt their manufactures, by raifing the price of labour. A tax of two fhillings on every hearth, known by the name of hearthmoney, was granted to Charles II. his heirs

and