350 



TAXES. 



Chap. XXT. 



mentioned trees, the upland or dry cultivation of rice and 

 sesame or gingelee oil-seed is assessed on an annual inspec- 

 tion: forty per cent, of the gross produce of the former 

 being deducted, on account of the peculiar labour and pro- 

 bable loss, and twenty per cent, of the remainder being the 

 Government share. The sesame cultivation has no deduction 

 from the gross j^roduce ; and ginger, pepper, and some other 

 dry crops are free of land-tax. The pepper cultivation is 

 chiefly carried on in northern Malabar, and ginger in the 

 Shernaad district, south of Calicut, by the Moplahs.^ 



The other taxes are abkarry, or the privilege of selling 

 hquors, which is either farmed by public sale, or levied from 

 the toddy-drawers, when it is called hutty-chatty (knife and 

 pot) tax ; moJiturfa on houses, shops, fishing-boats, oil-mills, 

 and looms ; licences, stamps, and the salt monopoly ; the 

 whole revenue of Malabar in 1859 having been 266,860?. The 

 income-tax had not yet been levied at the time of our visit, 

 but its nature had been carefully explained to the people, it 

 had been stripped of everything tliat was offensive or inquisi- 

 torial, and no difficulty was anticipated in its introduction, 

 although it was very generally considered that it was un- 

 wise and impolitic, and that it would be unproductive. In 

 the matter of taxes there was a striking contrast between 

 Peru, whence we had just come, and where they are scarcely 

 known, and this land of manifold imposts. 



On the whole, however, Malabar is a splendid possession ; 

 the people are very flourishing, the population increasing. 



7 The best soil for ginger-cultivation 

 is red earth free fi-om gravel. At the 

 commencement of the monsoon beds 

 of 10 or 12 feet by 3 or 4 are formed, in 

 which holes are dug a foot apart, wliich 

 are iilled with manm-e. The roots, 

 hitherto carefully buried under sheds, 

 are dug out, chipped into suitable 

 sizes for planting (Ij to 2 inches long), 

 and buried in the holes. The bed is 

 then covered with a thick layer of 



green leaves, which serve as manure, 

 while they keep the beds from too 

 much dampness. Eain is requisite, 

 but the becls must be kejit from inun- 

 dation, and ib-ains are therefore cut 

 between them. The roots or rhizomes, 

 when old, are scalded, scraped, and 

 dried, and thus form the white ginger 

 of commerce. — Drury's Useful Plants 

 of India. 



