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henry_flower) wrote2016-11-08 10:42 pm
henry_flower) wrote2016-11-08 10:42 pm
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Chancellor Morton's fork In the reign of Henry VII, Archbishop Morton, as Lord Chancellor, was task
Chancellor Morton's fork
In the reign of Henry VII, Archbishop Morton, as Lord Chancellor, was tasked w/ imposing a new tax. To collect the money, he deployed a device, later called by some Chancellor Morton's fork or Morton's crutch:
"If the subject is seen to live frugally, tell him because he is clearly a money saver of great ability, he can afford to give generously to the King. If, however, the subject lives a life of great extravagance, tell him he, too, can afford to give largely, the proof of his opulence being evident in his expenditure."
Such a beauty.
In the reign of Henry VII, Archbishop Morton, as Lord Chancellor, was tasked w/ imposing a new tax. To collect the money, he deployed a device, later called by some Chancellor Morton's fork or Morton's crutch:
"If the subject is seen to live frugally, tell him because he is clearly a money saver of great ability, he can afford to give generously to the King. If, however, the subject lives a life of great extravagance, tell him he, too, can afford to give largely, the proof of his opulence being evident in his expenditure."
Such a beauty.
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