The petition above this one is dated Oct. 1766 >From Chalkey: "In 1738 Act was passed for giving incouragement for the settling the Frontiers by which the Inhabitants of Frederick and Augusta were allowed to Pay off and discharge the Public County and Parish Levies and all officers' fees in money for Tobacco at 3 farthings per pound. This Act was made perpetual. In 1748, Act passed allowing every minister then, or that should be thereafter, preferred to and Parish 16,000 pounds tobacco and Cask. In 1752, or thereabouts, the Minister of Augusta Parish Petitioned the Assembly setting forth the allowance made by the Act of 1738 was too small to maintain him and Family, for till then he only received his tobacco at 3/4d. per pound, amounting to L50 per annum, ...... Now the Question is whether the Act made in 1738, or that made in 1748, is in Force. And if the latter, how is the tobaccos to be levied and collected. As the Inhabitants pays all their fees and levies in money." We learned in Economics that if coinage or paper money is not available a population will use any readily available but valuable comodity for barter. Many prisons had cigarette economies. Susan in Oregon -----Original Message----- From: macbd1 <macbd1@arthur.k12.il.us> To: VAAUGUST-L@rootsweb.com <VAAUGUST-L@rootsweb.com> Date: Monday, January 25, 1999 8:44 AM Subject: [VAAUGUST-L] Re: Tobacco, hemp and liquor... >To answer one question, it appears that taxes assessed in terms of 'pounds of tobacco' were often actually paid with tobacco.