s of France,
and of the countries which were subjected to her control.

As a single instance of this distress, we may just notice the situation
of the city of Amsterdam during the time that Holland was incorporated
with France. Out of 200,000 inhabitants of that city, more than one
half, during the whole of that time, were absolutely deprived of the
means of subsistence, and lived merely on the charity of the remainder,
who were, for the most part, unable to engage in any profitable
business, all foreign commerce being at an end, and supported themselves
therefore on the capital which they had previously acquired; and, lest
that capital should escape, two-thirds of the national debt of Holland
were struck off by a single decree of Napoleon. The population of the
town fell off about 20,000 during the time of its connection with
France; the taxes, while the two countries were incorporated, were
enormous; the income-tax, which was independent of the droits reunis, or
assessed taxes, having been stated to us at one-fifth of every man's
income. It was during the pressure of these burdens that the tremendous
system of police which we have described was enforced; and to add to the
miseries of the unfortunate inhabitants of this and the other commercial
towns of Holland, they were not allowed to manifest their sufferings.
Every man who possessed or inhabited a house was compelled to keep it in
perfect repair; so that even at the time of their liberation, these
towns bore no external mark of poverty or decay. The consequence of that
decree, however, had been, that persons possessing houses at first
lowered their rents, then asked no rents at all; happy to get them off
their hands, and throw on the tenants the burden of paying taxes for
them and keeping them in repair; and lastly, in many instances, offered
sums of money to bribe others to live in their houses, or even accept
the property of them.

The taxes of France, under Napoleon, it would have been supposed, were
alone sufficient to exasperate the people against them. They were
oppressive, not merely from their amount, but especially from the
arbitrary power which was granted to the prefects of towns and
_arrondissements_, and their agents, in collecting them. A certain sum
was directed to be levied in each district, and the apportioning of this
burden on the different inhabitants was left almost entirely to the
discretion of these officers.

It is quite obvious, therefor