I am well aware, that the important queftion concerning
'th e Ruffian finances is no lefs difficult than that which relates
to the population ; and all the intelligence which I can
pretend to give amounts to the following particulars:
The revenues of Ruffia, befide the impofts paid by the
Ukraine, and the provinces conquered from Sweden, chiefly
arife from the poll-tax, the duties o f import and export, the
excife upon fait, the crown and church lands, the mint, and
the fale o f fpirituous liquors, &c.
The poll-tax was introduced in 1721 by Peter I. s and, at the acceffion o£
the prefent emprefs, - it was exafled from all perfons, excepting! the nobles
and gentry, the clergy, the navy, the army, the coffacs, the inhabitants of
the Ukraine and conquered provinces. All who were liable to this tax were
rated in different proportions, as they .were merchants, burghers, or
peafants. By the manifefto of 1775, promulgated after ' the conclufion of
the Turkiih war, the merchants were exempted from"this tax;, afld" it now
includes only the burghers and. peafants.
Every fifteen or twenty years the number of inhabitants throughout the
empire is ufualiy taken ; and, in- each diflrifil fubjeft to the poll-tax, all males,
infants as well as adults, under the defcription of a burgher or peafant, are
afleffed*;. .from .that period the fame affeffment is regu larly paid till the
next revrfion, whether the population of that diftrift increafes or diminiflies;
in the latter cafe, the inhabitants, o r 'thé landholders are bound' to make up
the deficiency ; in the former, the tax is-not augmented, and of courfe falls
- much
mates th e pop u la tion o f Ruffia. at aovfail- C o p e s , on ly at 300,000. H e adds, hoiv-
lions ; S u efs lich, V o l . II. p .' * r j , a t 2 4 ; . ev er , « M a is la plupa rt des felgndurs affus
M o n f. L e C le r c , Hifr. M o d ; p.. 17 7; 8fc. “ ten t q u e - la population eft confiderablo-
u pon the feme grounds as thofe aU e t fg e tfb jf “ men« augmentée dans leurs-wllages-depuis
the auth or o f the Eiîa i fu r le Comme rce de 14 la derniere révifiôni
Ruffle, a t i p ; but he fa lls Into th e feme * I t is no ca fy m a t te r to convey a clear
e r ro r b y enumera ting th e caufes which ten d n o t io n o f this ta x , a s 1 w ell from ' the
to dimlnilli the p opu la tion , w ith o u t ta k in g compHca ted'tne thod 'of irapoftng it, as from-.
into confideratlon thofe w h ic h h e lp to' in - the diffèrent Changes Which; are occaiion-
c r e a fe it. L 'E v e fq iie , in v o l. I V . p . 480, a lly made in- th é mode o f affeffment.— A
da te s th e number at 1.9,050,000.; bu t then b u rgh e r pa ys u fu a liy 4s: 9<#; per annum ;- »
h e is evid ently deficient in p u tt in g th e in h a - pea fant o f th e crown in feme ihftarices; 84 ;
bitants of th e U k ra in e , Sibe ria, and the - in oth ers, 41. ; » p e a fa n t o f an indivimuch
eafier upon a larger nurtvber of perfons. The landholders are anfwcr- C H A P .
able for the payment of the money at which their peafants are rated; - f '
According to the laftrevifion in- 1764, this irnpoft produced a clear fum' * *'
of ¿ r->363<935- At the beginning of the Turkiih war it was augmented
to near ¿"2,000,000; but, asit was again reduced at the eonclufion of
the fame war, we will ftate its net produce at the original fum ¿1,363,935 ;
though this eftimate is rather below than above its value, fince the merchants,
inftead of the poll-tax; now pay one per cent, of their capital employed ia
trade.
The governments of Mohilef and Polotlk, difmembered from Poland, are
afleffed at ¿74,460, in the following manner. Each male in thofe provinces
is rated at is. ¡d .; and the landholder, for the liberty of diftilling and
felling fpirituous liquors, pays alfo to the crown 1 od. for each pealant. As
thefe provinces contain 730,000 males liable to the poll-tax, its revende in
this article amounts to the above-mentionedfum of ¿74,460.
The average duties upon imports and exports amount to ¿760,000.
The excife upon fait, which is appropriated to the empreffes privy purfe,
produces upon an average ¿400,000. Her majefty has twice diminilhed the
price of fait nearly 30 per cent.
The mines, * and coinage, and duties upon iron at the forge, yield
¿679,184, exclufive of the profits from the coinage of gold and filver
imported into Ruffia.
The church lands, which are now annexed to the crown, produce about
¿400,000 : part of this money is allotted to pay the falaries of the arch-
bifhops, bifhops, and regular clergy, for the maintenance of the feveral mo-
nafteries, and for the penfions of officers and foldiers difmiffed from the fervice.
The remainder, which belongs to the p r ivy purfe, amounts to about 300,000
roubles rr ¿30,000.
dual,- 9^.-L_Ev e r y p e r fo n e x e r c if in g t h e p o l l - t a x . S om e b u r g h e r s a rid p e a f a n ts ,
ra a e o í a t a y jo r , im jth , ih o em a k e r , m a fo n , fu c h as, th e y am fliic s w h o fin d p o f t-h o r f e s ’
ny im jí á r h a n d i c r a f t t r a d e , a n d wh o * a n d o th e r s , a r é e x em p te d f r o m th e p o l l - t a x ;
rois h im fe lf in th e c om p a n y o f a n y to w n , o th e r s p a y i t in la b o u r j fom e in - f u r s , &e!
E v lr W P f t beflC]e t h e P o l i *t a x > " • / . 1 fo u n d it im p o ffib Je to g iv e e q u a l a t t e n t io n
a t P t P ! f la n ^ w h o § § i h is v i l la g e to t r a d e to e v e ry objeiSt j a n d I f r a n k ly ow n ," t h a t
cd r r r^ Mg1covY, o r e lf ew h e r e , p a y s ^ m i d i l t h e v a r ie ty o f in t e llig e n c e w h i c h I
a n d 8 r f°.r his PafsP o r t* T h e f e p r o c u r e d in R u ffia , I d o n o t p e r f e a i y com -'
lin d a r 0 t n6 r ‘*a r ta x e s a r e 1 r a n g e d p r e h p n d e a c h m o d e o f a f le ifm e n t in th e p o l l -
binder th e .p p l l - t a x . T h e d ilT e n te rs, o r o ld t a x , r
e »evers in th e R u ffia n ' c h u r c h , 'p a y d o u b le - * S ee C h a p . VI. o f th i s B o o k .
M f * 1 The