This effect of excises Davenant saw; from which he, and since him many more have concluded, that all excises fall ultimately upon the land. This circumstance, together with a feeling for the interest of the great number of _idle_ poor at that time, who must constantly suffer by excises, engaged Davenant to propose having recourse to the land-property and poll-taxes, for raising, within the year, the sums required for carrying on the war. According to his proposal, there was to be no less than 3 millions raised by a land tax, besides half a million by a quarterly poll, which was, at that time, above 100,000_l._ more than all the permanent taxes of England put together. A proposal of this kind coming from Davenant, shews the difference of situation between those times and the present. On this subject more is to be learned by comparing facts, than by all the reasoning in the world. We have seen how credit stood in England during the reign of William III. It was then in its infancy, and was set upon the principles of a free and limited authority, exercised by ministers of state at all times responsible to parliament at the risk of their heads, in case of any open violation of the public faith. This is the best of all securities against the bad exercise of power. Whoever reads the admirable writings of Davenant, and compares his ideas with what experience has since taught us, concerning the nature of taxes and public credit, will plainly discover that the great distress of England at that time, proceeded from the following causes. The enterprize they were engaged in, was far beyond their power to support, although they had the greatest part of Europe to assist them. The bravery of the British nation was ill supported with money, the sinews of war. The coin soon after the revolution fell into the greatest disorder, which sent it away; and no expedient was found to supply its place for the uses of domestic circulation; and, consequently, the fixed revenue could not be paid, nor industry carried on. The people were unaccustomed to taxes: tunnage and poundage, the branch with which they were best acquainted, and which they bore with the least murmuring, because it was little felt by individuals, together with the excise upon beer and ale, the hearth money, the post-house, and wine-licences, composed the whole of the permanent revenue of the state, and amounted to about one million and a half sterling: besides which, the parliament had granted new customs (all to cease before 1690) to the amount of about half a million more, upon wines, tobacco, sugar, and French linnen. This was the state of the revenue at the revolution. One would imagine that England, under so small a burthen, might have been able to make the greatest efforts.