Letter 4019: King Theodoric to Gemellus, Vir Spectabilis [Most Respectable].
Cassiodorus→Gemellus, a|c. 522 AD|Cassiodorus
property economicstravel mobility
King Theodoric to Gemellus, Vir Spectabilis [Most Respectable].
[The siliquaticum was a sales tax on goods brought to market, originally set at 1/24th of the sale price -- one siliqua per solidus.]
It is fitting for a prince's foresight to relieve the exhausted, so that the harshness of misfortune may be softened by the gentleness of royal commands. A hardship ceases to be felt when what was clearly crushed by adversity is visibly lifted up by a grant of prosperity.
We therefore order that the siliquaticum tax, which ancient foresight imposed on all goods brought to market, shall not for the present time be levied on grain, wine, or oil -- so that this remission may bring abundance to the provinces and the weary may find some relief in the present decree. Who would not be encouraged to sell more freely when the customary charges are removed? Let ships approaching our ports have no cause for fear, so that the harbors may be a certain refuge for sailors -- if the hands of tax collectors do not fall upon them. Sailors are often more damaged by these levies than they are stripped bare by shipwrecks. Perhaps this could be endured in quiet times, but now, while we seek to help the provincials, let us also look after the interests of those who bring their goods to market.
XVIIII. GEMELLO V. S. THEODERICUS REX.
[1] Decet principalem providentiam fessa refovere, ut asperitatem casuum mitiget lenitas iussionum. non enim sentitur incommodum, si, quod per adversitatem constat oppressum, concessa prosperitas ostenderit sublevatum. [2] Siliquatici namque praestationem, quam rebus omnibus nundinandis provida definivit antiquitas, in frumentis, vino et oleo dari praesenti tempore non iubemus, ut haec remissio solutionis copiam possit praestare provinciis et respirent aliquatenus fessi praesentis salubritate decreti. [2] Quis enim ad vendendum non incitetur largius, cui solita dispendia subtrahuntur? portus nostros navis veniens non pavescat, ut certum nautis possit esse refugium, si manus non incursarint exigentum, quos frequenter plus affligunt damna, quam solent nudare naufragia. sit hoc forsitan sub quiete tolerandum: nunc autem, dum provincialibus praestare cupimus, mercium dominis interim consulamus.
◆
King Theodoric to Gemellus, Vir Spectabilis [Most Respectable].
[The siliquaticum was a sales tax on goods brought to market, originally set at 1/24th of the sale price -- one siliqua per solidus.]
It is fitting for a prince's foresight to relieve the exhausted, so that the harshness of misfortune may be softened by the gentleness of royal commands. A hardship ceases to be felt when what was clearly crushed by adversity is visibly lifted up by a grant of prosperity.
We therefore order that the siliquaticum tax, which ancient foresight imposed on all goods brought to market, shall not for the present time be levied on grain, wine, or oil -- so that this remission may bring abundance to the provinces and the weary may find some relief in the present decree. Who would not be encouraged to sell more freely when the customary charges are removed? Let ships approaching our ports have no cause for fear, so that the harbors may be a certain refuge for sailors -- if the hands of tax collectors do not fall upon them. Sailors are often more damaged by these levies than they are stripped bare by shipwrecks. Perhaps this could be endured in quiet times, but now, while we seek to help the provincials, let us also look after the interests of those who bring their goods to market.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.