Note 45 — Chapter III
Reading edition
During the reign of Henri IV. the prisons of Normandy were full of prisoners unable to pay the tax on salt. So many died, that 120 corpses were taken out at a time. The Parliament of Rouen begged his Majesty to take pity on his people; but the king, who had been informed that the tax was very productive, said he wished it to be continued, and seemed as though he would make a joke of the rest—‘Semblait qu’il voulût tourner le reste en risée.’—Lavallée, iii. 57.