Joseph Wilmot, or, The Memoirs of a Man-Servant — page 270: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

a TS JOSEPH WILMOT; OR, THE MEMOIRS OF A MAN-SERVANT. 257 : wy \\ \\ 7 \\\\ WA \\ \ ona —SS== —LLLSSs>= = DW estates the most fertile and productive in all the | well that if they attempted resistance against the island. Doubtless the Abbot and his monks felt it | levying of the tax, he would invoke the succour of very hard that they should now be subjected to so | the Genoese troops—in which case an overwhelm- outrageous a plunder under the fiction of a eal ing force would be brought to bear against the taxation. They knew full well that whatsoever | community of St. Bartholomew. The Lord Abbot they might pay in the form of impost, would not and his monks therefore resolved to submit to a be conducive to the purposes of legitimate govern- | certain extent.” ment—but that the greater portion of the collected | ‘“ How to a certain extent ?” I asked, not com- taxes would be intercepted by the rapacious hands | prehending the phrase in the sénse in which it of their sworn enemy, the Count of Monte! was now used. d’Oro.” “They made up their minds,” returned the “ And to what resolution did they come?” I in- | farmer, “to surrender up as little as possible to quired, much interested in the tale. the rapacity of the Count of Monte d@’Oro. They “The holy father saw no possible means of| assembled their principal tenants—to whom they evading or resisting the payment of such taxes as| granted leases on terms so exceedingly moderate might be levied upon them according to the | as to be far below the real value of the lands so ap- newly-published tariff. They had shown them-| portioned ; and thus they reduced their rent-roll selves quite able, by means of their armed re-| by one-half. Thev pulled down a number of out- tainers, to resist the predatory incursions of the | buildings which could be easily spared; and thus Count of Monte d’Oro: but they now knew full! they reduced the dimensions of the edifice. As 85 A LCR sar EE tooo SE ee Sem s oe 2 SE EEE Hn nee teed Sie ent) eee Se EORMNICLO@ S (c@ AA