178 CEYLON BRANCH— ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY* 



heads of Farmed Revenues, Collected Revenues and Profits* 

 Of the Farmed Revenues the Import Duty on Cloth appears to 

 have formed a most prominent item, and it may well have done 

 so when we know that the annual value of the Indian Cloths 

 Imported into Ceylon at that time was not less than £40,000. 

 The importations of these goods were chiefly from Bengal, one 

 or two ports on the Coromandel Coast and from Madura. The 

 duty levied was nominally 20 per cent on their value, but as 

 I have already remarked, this exorbitant rate was not levied by 

 the farmer who found it to his interest to make a much more 

 moderate demand. The different regulations and rules of Go- 

 vernment in respect to this duty, were very numerous and com- 

 plicated, and as a consequence were of but little use. 



All other Import Duties which came under the head of Farmed 

 Revenues were included in what was termed the " Aljandigo" 

 or General Farm. A very complex scale of articles chiefly of 

 Import from Holland, existed, which left a great deal in the 

 hands of the Farmer of the taxes : the generality of the goods 

 were rated at 5 per cent. Paddy and Rice however appear 

 to have been admitted free of duty and in addition to this, for- 

 eigners were permitted to expose both these articles for sale in 

 the public bazaars, which was not the case with any other goods. 

 The produce of the Jlfandigo was usually about £2,000 

 for the whole island, so that allowing for fair profit to the renters 

 over and above this sum, and assuming the whole duties to be 

 at 5 per cent, we find the total annual value of the Imports 

 which were farmed, to be about £50,000. From the liability 

 to this tax none were exempted who imported goods, not even 

 the ships of the Government. 



Licenses and Rents formed the 2d division of these taxes. 



The Fish Rents were not inconsiderable in value and toge- 

 ther with the renting of the various Fish Markets amounted to £4,000 

 or £5,000. These rents were levied on Fish caught in Lakes and 

 Rivers, as well as those from the Sea. It varied in amount in 



