INTRODUCTION. 



curious in the system of government adopted for the 

 Indies. It is roundly asserted by Herera, that the 

 king contributed nothing towards the magnificent con- 

 quests effected by his enterprising subjects; but thesfr 

 were no sooner accomplished, than not satisfied with 

 the dominion and the advantages of trade, he became 

 the master and owner of every thing. The royal por- 

 tions of gold and silver, and of every other metal, the 

 avails of the customs, the appointments to office, and 

 the numerous other incidents of supreme authority 

 were not sufficient; but after imposing all the taxes 

 and burthens to which the metropolis was subject, 

 many others were devised exclusively for the Indies. 

 The king set up various oppressive monopolies, the 

 popes granted him the ecclesiastical tythes, he exact- 

 ed tributes from the unfortunate natives, he introduced 

 the odious alcavala, or tax on sales and purchases, 

 and in the early periods of the conquest, he was not 

 ashamed to claim a portion of the spoils taken from 

 unoffending nations, attacked and butchered with no 

 other pretext that that of possessing their wealth. 



In noticing these different sources of revenue, I 

 shall begin with the royal fifths of gold and silver, 

 as the most important branch. There was in the first 

 instance, a duty paid for the privilege of working the 

 precious metals, but the duties at present received by 

 the crown are, first, one and a half per cent, cohos, an 

 old established duty to the king; second, six per cent. 

 real diesmos, or king's portion of the tythes; third, the 

 derechps defundicion, to defray the expences of smelt-^ 

 ing and refining; and lastly, one rial for every mark 

 of silver, to pay the salaries of the officers of the tri- 

 bunal of the mines: the whole amount, is about four- 



