Note 41 — BOOK V. OF TAXES, AND OF THE PROPER APPLICATION OF THEIR AMOUNT.

The gabelle is a branch of the general farms, and consists of an excise upon salt. The manufacture of the commodity is in the hands of the farmers; and they, for a liberty to sell salt at a certain price, far above the expence of the manufacture, pay to the King an annual revenue of 28 millions of livres.

This I call a proportional tax, relatively to consumers; although in reality no tax-gatherers are employed for the collection of it, contrary to what is the case of all excises; which are never farmed by government to the manufacturers of the commodity taxed.

The traittes, or, as they are otherwise called, the five great farms, were established by Colbert, when he took away a multitude of customs paid upon the transportation of goods from one province to another. They answer very much to our customs, or to the duties of tunnage and poundage, and are let to the farmers general for the sum of 12 millions.

The tobacco is of the same nature with the salt tax. The farmers general have the exclusive privilege of selling it at a price fixed by the King.

For the farm of the tobacco is paid 15 millions. The aides resemble our excises more than those we have mentioned. They consist in duties upon liquors, either brought into towns, or sold by retail in public houses; and upon all articles of food sold in corporations, except grain of every kind, which is free. They comprehend also a multitude of other duties superfluous to enumerate. They are collected by tax-gatherers at the gates of every town, who also have access to all public houses, where retail is laid under additional rates. The aides are farmed at 38 600 000 livres. These were the rates in the farms let in 1755. They have been since augmented in 1762, as has been observed.