EOYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY, 



195 



Profits and Gains. 

 The third source of local revenue arose from profits on 

 a few articles of produce such as Cinnamon, Betel-nut, Coir, 

 Cloths, &c, and these were chiefly in the Colombo and Galle 

 Collectorates. The articles in which the Government traded 

 were all monopolized ; that is, they were received from the 

 Native Cultivators or Collectors at low fixed rates, and resold 

 at other fixed rates. Betel-nut appears to have yielded the 

 highest profit varying between £1,000 £1,800. Cloths left but 

 a small gain to the Treasury, seldom exceeding a few hundred 

 pounds. There were however some large profits realized on 

 sundry articles of European merchandize : these, added to the 

 gains on Coir, Timber, &c, yielded as much as £6,000 or £7,000. 

 In the year 1791-2, the profitsmade within the Colony stood thus, 



Colombo and Calpentyn £5874 3 2 



Jaffnapatam and Manaar 625 6 



Galle and Matura 1525 17 2 



Trincomalie and Batticaloa 1162 13 2 



• £9187 19 6 



Having thus enumerated the various sources from which 

 the Dutch Government derived its income, I will now shew 

 by the following Table, the total amounts of Income and Ex- 

 penditure in the Colony during six years ending 1791-2. 



Table C. 



Abst. of the Col. 

















income and Expen. dur- 



Expenditure. 



Revenue. 





Excess of 



ing the &ix years 1791-2. 















Expenditure 



In the years. 



£ 



s. 



d. 



£ 



s. 



d. 



£ 5, d. 



1786-7 - - - - 



58066 



10 







30066 



4 







28000 6 



1787-8 - ;. - - - 



63534 



16 







31147 



2 







32387 14 



1788-9 - - - - 



68952 



9 







31504 



4 







37448 5 



1789-90 - - - - 



57716 



17 







33934 



1 







23782 16 



1790-1 - - - - 



63461 



6 







37099 



19 







26361 7 



1791-2 - - - - 



72006 



18 







36158 



2 







35848 "16 



£ - - . 



383738 



16 







199909 



12 







183829 4 



2 c 



