6 gl young's travels in trance.

in pays. Land-tax, 2 livres the catnpo : and a poll-tax of two livres a head, on all abovefeven years old.

Padua . —The land-tax, 20f the catnpo-, and 1 of or 15/. for the expences on ri-vers ; but this tax uncertain.

Venice.— No tax on cattle in the Polefine. The land-tax on all the Terra Firrna ;arable, 2 livres the catnpo: meadow, 1 livre 10/.; woods, tof. The fale of meat inthe city is a monopoly, no other perfons but thofe appointed being allowed to fell. En-trees are paid on every thing that comes in; on wine it is heavy. Tobacco is a monopoly,at a heavy price, referved by the State throughout all the Venetian territory, producing50,000 ducats a month, and guarded by the fame infamous feverities, that are found inother defpotic countries. Salt the fame. Inheritances, except from a father, pay 5 percent, on the capital; a woman pays this cruel impofition, even upon her receipt from afather, or a hufband. Infamous tyranny! The city of Venice pays about one-fixth ofthe whole revenue.

Ecclesiastical State. — Bologna. —Taxation at Bologna is one of the moll re-markable circumltances I met in Italy . I had often read, and had been generally givento underhand, that the government of the church was the word; to be found in Italy ;what it may be in the Roman State I know not, but in the Bolognefe it is amongft thelightelt to be found in Europe . There are four objedts of taxation : — 1. The Pope,a. The municipal government of the city. 3. The fchools in the univerfity. 4. Thebanks, &c. of the riyers, againft inundations. Of all thefe, there is fome reafon to be-lieve that the Pope receives the leaft fliare. The common land-tax is only 2 baiocchithe tornatura ; this is about 2d. the Englilh acre. Lands fubjedt to inundations, pay 5baiocchi more. Among the imports levied in the city, wine only, and a few trifles, belongto his Holinefs. Salt, fifh, meat, cocoons (for there is a fmall duty upon them,) andgrinding corn, thefe are municipal; and among the heavieft articles of the cities ex-pence, is the intereft of about a million fterling of debt. In general, the revenue of thedogana , or cuftom-houfe, is applied towards fupporting the ledtures in the public fchools,and the botanical garden. There is a light capitation, which is paid in the country, aswell as in the city. Upon the whole the amount of the taxes of every kind is fo incon-fiderable, that the weight is felt by nobody, and was efteemed to be exceedingly light byevery perfon I converfed with.

Tuscany. — Florence . —Every circumftance concerning taxation, in the dominions ofthe moft enlightened Prince in Europe , muft neceflarily be interefting. If the reader isat all converfant with the works of the ccconomijles , with which France was fo delugedfome years ago, he will know, that when they were refuted in argument, upon the theoryof a univerfal land-tax to abforb all others, they appealed to practice, and cited the ex-ample of Tufcany, in which dominion their plan was executed. I was eager to knowthe refult; the detail I fhall give, imperfedt as it is, will fliew on what fort of foundationsthofe gentlemen built, when they quitted the fields of fpeculation and idea. I was notidle in making inquiries ; but the Grand Duke has made fo many changes, no yearparting without fome, and all of them wife and benevolent, that to attain an accurateknowledge is not fo eafy a bufinefs as fome perfons may be inclined to think. The fol-lowing particulars I offer, as little more than hints to inrtigate other travellers, whofelonger refidence gives them better opportunities, to examine a fubjedt of fo much im-portance to the bottom.

The eftimation on which the prefent land-tax is colledted is fo old as 1394; ofcourfeit can bear no proportion with the value or with the produce of the land ; whatever im-provements are made, the tax remains the fame 5 much of it has been bought off in

payments