866 
TAX 
TA'WDRINESS, s. Tinsel finery; finery ostentatious 
without elegance.—A clumsy beau makes his ungracefulness 
appear the more ungraceful by his tawdriness of dress. 
Richardscm, 
TA'WDRY, adj. [from Stawdrey, Saint Awdrey, or 
Saint Etheldred, as the things bought at Saint Etheldred’s 
fair. Henshaw, Skinner.] Meanly shewy; splendid with¬ 
out cost; fine without grace; shewy without elegance. It is 
used both of things and of persons wearing them. 
Old Romulus and father Mars look down, 
Your herdsman primitive, your homely clown, 
Is turn’d a beau in a loose tawdry gown. Dry den. 
TA'WDRY, s. A slight ornament; a kind of necklace 
worn by country wenches. 
Not the smallest beck, 
But with white pebbles makes her tawdries , for her neck. 
Drayton. 
TA'WED, part. adj. Of the colour of tan ; embrowned. 
His knuckles knobb’d, his flesh deep dented in. 
With tawed hands and hard ytanned skin. Sackvil/e. 
TAWEETAWEE, the chief of a cluster of islands, 56 in 
number, composing part of the Sooloo archipelago. There 
is a lake in the centre, abounding in crocodiles, and an island 
near the shore, which affords refuge to fugitive slaves. Few 
inhabitants dwell in Taweetawee. The other islands are of 
various size, some high, others merely rocks; and all these 
have inhabitants, though but thinly peopled. Fish are very 
plentiful in the sea ; and in the channels separating them are 
valuable pearl oysters. Most of the islands are named after 
the different parts of the human body, from a supposed 
resemblance. 
TA'WER, s. [from taw; tapepe; 
leather. Barret. 
TA'WNY, adj. {tane, tanne , Fr.] 
tanned. 
This child of fancy that armado hight, 
For interim to our studies shall relate. 
In high-born words, the worth of many a knight 
From tawny Spain, lost in the world’s debate. Shakspeare. 
TAWSTOCK, a parish of England, in Devonshire; 3 
miles south-by-west of Barnstaple. Population 1136. 
TAWTON, Bishop’s, a parish of England, in Devon¬ 
shire, situated on the river Taw. It was the first bishop’s see 
TAX 
times_/ur, before the fault imputed, and is used both of per¬ 
sons and things.—How many hath he killed; I promised to 
eat all of his killing.-Niece, you tax signior Benedick too 
much; but he’ll be meet with you. S/ia/ispeare. 
TA'XABLE, adj. That may be taxed. Sherwood. 
TAXAMALCA, a town of Mexico; 60 miles south of 
Mexico. 
TAXAMARCA, a town of Mexico, in the province of 
Mechoacan ; 40 miles east of Mechoacan. 
TA'XATION, s. {taxaiio, Lat., ] The act of load¬ 
ing with taxes; impost; tax.—I bring no overture of war, 
no taxation of homage; my words are as full of peace 
as matter. Shakspeare. —Accusation; scandal.—My fa¬ 
ther’s love is enough to honour; speak no more of him, 
you'll be whipt for taxation one of these days. Shakspeare. 
Taxation. —Taxes should properly imply that money 
which a nation pays to its servants for the management of 
its business. This money is to be expended in protecting 
the state against other nations, or otherwise establishing fo¬ 
reign relations; in the expenses necessary for the administra¬ 
tion of the laws; or, lastly, in paying these servants for their 
labour. The necessity of these disbursements is as great as it 
is obvious; and hence, while they are properly managed, no 
good citizen or reasonable man can for an instant demur to 
contribute his portion of them. But since, by a very excellent 
provision of nature, men, while uncivilized, are less governed 
by decisions founded on reason than by the powers of terror 
and authority, the servants to whom these important powers 
belonged, were originally rulers, and imposed a tribute 
rather than received a reward. In more advanced states of 
civilization it might appear that this supremacy would no 
longer be allowed; but when it is considered that we can 
never expect any state to exist in which force may not be 
A dresser of required to compel the refractory to pay their taxes; that 
authority pays for those devoted services which money never 
can obtain, but which a state perpetually requires. It is per¬ 
ceived that the union of servant and ruler is natural and 
proper, and must always continue to a certain extent. , 
The above being our definition of taxation, it follows that 
a scheme of taxation is to be sought for and adopted, which 
will at once serve the ends in view, at the least possible 
expenditure, and require as little delegation of arbitrary 
power as is absolutely essential. But this being stated, who 
is to fix how much, either absolutely or relatively, is neces- 
Sax.] 
Yellow, like things 
sary for preventing the aggression of foreign states, for repel¬ 
ling invasion, for making war, for obtaining commercial ad- 
in the county, from whence it was removed to Crediton, and vantages, for preventing dangerous coalitions, and for admi- 
afterwards to Exeter. Population 978; 2] miles south-by- muring justice with impartiality, for giving her all the pomp 
east of Barnstaple necessary to authority, and her officers the fortune necessary 
TAWTON, North, a parish of England, in Devonshire ; to ensure incorruptibility. Or again, how can we lay down 
6h miles north-east of Oakhampton. Population 1417. the „ exact de S ree of P ower whlch 13 absolutely necessary to 
"TAWTON, South, a parish in the same county; 4| 
miles east of Oakhampton. Population 1516. 
TAWY, a river of Wales, in Brecknockshire and Glamor¬ 
ganshire, which runs into the Bristol Channel, at Swansea. 
TAX, s. [ tasg , Welsh ; taxe, Fr., taxe, Dutch.] An 
impost; a tribute imposed; an excise; tallage.—He, says 
Horace, being the son of a tax gatherer or collector, smells 
everywhere of the meanness of his birth. Dryden. — {taxo, 
Lat.] charge; censure. 
All private taxes, and immodest phrases. 
Whatever may but shew like vicious; 
For wicked mirth never true pleasure brings, 
But honest minds are pleas’d with honest things. Beaum. 
{tax a, low Lat.] Task; lesson to be learned. Obsolete. 
—At the archdeacon’s visitation, the archdeacon shall appoint 
the curate to certain taxes of the New Testament, to be 
conned without book; and at their next synod to exact a 
rehearsal of them. Articles of Eccl. Visitation and In¬ 
quiry. 
To TAX, v. a. {taxer, Fr.] To load with imposts.—Je- 
hoiakim gave the silver and gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed 
the land to give the money. 2 Kings. {Taxo, Lat.] To 
charge; to censure: to accuse.—It has of or with, and some- 
enforce the payment of contributions, or to give consequence 
to public servants whether at home or abroad. These great 
questions are not to be settled without much information and 
deep reflexion, even in the most general way. And every 
rule must be essentially modified by the peculiar circum¬ 
stances of different nations. As we have not the materials 
necessary to settle those questions, we shall not enter upon 
them, and have merely stated them in order to establish the 
problem that is to be solved, leaving its solution to time and 
abler hands. 
But if we cannot decide how much taxation is exactly 
required, there are some points which are of great importance 
to human happiness, and have received the consideration of 
enlightened men. In all these investigations, we conceive 
writers have been too much led away by a narrow economy; 
but, nevertheless, economy is of so much importance, that it 
deserves from states, as well as individuals, every attention; 
The following maxims are laid down by Dr. Smith with 
regard to all taxes, and are drawn up with great judgment 
and comprehension: — 
First maxim. “ The subjects of every state ought to con¬ 
tribute towards the support of the government, as nearly as 
possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, 
in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy 
under 
