BY
J. H. BROWN
VOLUME I
NEW YORK: 1800
PRINTED BY
J. H. BROWN
AND
OTHERS
IN
THE
STATE OF
NEW YORK
1800
PRINTED
BY
J. H. BROWN
AND
OTHERS
IN
THE
STATE OF
Denmark, month. The marine artillery consists of 800 men, in four divisions.
31 The Danish navy was formerly estimated at 38 ships of the line, besides frigates. It may be doubted, however, whether the whole of these were at any one time fit for service. Seventeen ships of war were destroyed in Admiral Parker's attack in 1801; and Lord Gambier brought away, in 1807, 16 ships of the line and 15 frigates. No authentic account of the strength of the Danish navy has been published since the late peace.
32 The population of Denmark in 1811 was stated to be 1,800,000; and that of Iceland is estimated at 53,000. The revenue of the country is estimated at 1,700,000l. sterling. Norway, when Denmark lost it, contained 950,000 inhabitants.
The revenue of his Danish majesty arises from taxes laid on his own subjects, from the duties paid by foreigners, from his own estate, crown lands, and confiscations. The taxes are altogether arbitrary, and therefore fluctuating; but they are always grievous to the subject. They commonly consist of customs or toll, for export and import; of excise upon the consumption of wine, salt, tobacco, and all kinds of provisions; of taxes upon marriages, paper, brewing, or grinding, and the exercise of different professions; of impositions on land, poll-money, ground-rent for all houses in Copenhagen and elsewhere; of money raised for maintaining fortifications, and for a portion to the king's daughter when she happens to be married; but this seldom exceeds 100,000 rix dollars. One considerable article in the revenue is the toll paid by foreign ships that pass through the Sound, or Ore Sound (the strait between Schonen and Zealand), into the Baltic. This was originally no other than a small contribution, which trading nations agreed to make for maintaining lights at certain places, to direct their course through the passage in dark and stormy weather. In process of time the Danes converted this voluntary contribution, into an exorbitant toll, and even exacted arbitrary sums in proportion to the weakness of the nation whose ships they visited. These exactions sometimes involved them in quarrels, and the toll was regulated in repeated treaties. See DENMARK, SUPPLEMENT.