FRANCE. 127 



neceflary for carrying on their farms and 

 vineyards, which they could not afford to 

 do, as the taille would be levied on the in- 

 creafe, and the colle&ors come for money 

 when they had none to give them. Such 

 is the efFecl: of ill-judged taxes ; not do I fee 

 how an exchequer is to flourifli, that is filled 

 by the deftrudion of good hufbandry. Sup- 

 pofe the 3!. 8s. 8d. be deducted, for manu- 

 ring and othsr general expences, there then 

 remains a clear profit of 4!. an acre, which 

 is ten or twelve times more than they make 

 by common hufbandry ; and near as much 

 as a vineyard produces. The peafant who 

 gave me this information was ftrongly fen- 

 fible of the importance of lucerne, if it was 

 not for the taille. Upon my afking him 

 what he thought would be the advanta- 

 geous fyftem, if that tax did not exift, he 

 replied, that the lucern of a farm fhould be 

 fo increafed, as to maintain a fufficiency- of 

 cattle for dunging the vines itfelf, and all 

 the wheat and turneps; that if this was done 

 for the vines and lucern every fourth year, 

 it would do ; fo that a fourth of the vines, a 

 fourth of the lucern, all the wheat, and all 

 the turneps, if they are fown, fliould be 



dunged 



