BRITISH NATIVE POLICY FIAT JUSTITI A. 121 



this contribution be obtained by money, or in kind 1 In 

 semi-civilised regions or countries like India or China, where 

 the science of political economy is almost unknoAvn, the system 

 of payment in kind largely prevails. This mode of paying 

 taxes is doubtless a bad one, for experience teaches that public 

 revenue derived from such a source usually suffers so much 

 from the mismanagement and peculation of the collectors, that 

 little of what is contributed by the people ever finds its way 

 into the treasury. 



For these and many other reasons the collecting of the 

 public revenue in money is to be preferred. It may however 

 occur that countries exist, the people of which tenaciously 

 adhere to the antiquated customs of their race ; and where, as 

 they have no money, they must either pay in produce or not 

 at all. 



Fiji is certainly one of these places. Its people have no 

 money among themselves, and the European trading and 

 planting population (under 900 persons) is too small to pro- 

 vide the bulk of them with work or any other means of gain- 

 ing money. There can be no doubt also that, if it were- 

 possible to collect revenue in money, the same objection would 

 be taken as is made above to the levying of taxes in kind. In 

 a young colony like Fiji, with a large native population, the 

 collection of revenue must in a great measure be entrusted to 

 native chiefs. There are two temptations which many Fijian 

 chiefs find it difficult to withstand : one is that of getting into 

 debt with traders; the other is that of looking upon taxes 

 paid to them by their tribe, on account of the Government, as 

 in part a sort of ' benevolence ' to themselves. The facility 

 with which they can accumulate debt upon debt, together with 

 the constant pressure of petty creditors, is the primary cause 

 of their appropriating public money to their own uses. ' This 



