THE 13ta AND 1l4tH CENTURIES 33 
strong incentive to rebellion. It is easy then to believe that 
the Chiefs, or some of them, were in fact ready to throw off 
the Moslem yoke whenever an opportunity should occur, 
and that they employed their surplus income largely in 
strengthening themselves in the traditional ways, by main- 
taining troops and accumulating weapons; but, however 
this may be, the view accepted by Alauddin led directly to 
a change in agrarian policy, designed to deprive the Chiefs of 
a large part of their resources. The measures taken were: 
I. The standard of the revenue-Demand! was fixed at 
one-half of the produce without anv allowances or deduc- 
tions. 
2. The Chiefs’ perquisites were abolished, so that all 
the land occupied by them was to be brought under assess- 
ment at the full rate. 
3. The method of assessment was to be Measurement, the 
charges being calculated on the basis of standard yields. 
4. A grazing-tax was imposed apart from the assess 
ment on cultivation. 
These measures were in themselves well suited to achieve 
the object in view. A Demand of half the produce cannot 
have left the ordinary peasant with any substantial surplus, 
and would thus strike at the private revenue which the 
Chiefs were suspected of levying; while the assessment of the 
Chiefs’ holdings at full rates would reduce them practically 
to the economic position of peasants, and the grazing-tax 
would operate to diminish their income from uncultivated 
land. The economic result would be to draw the bulk, if 
not the whole, of the Producer’s Surplus of the country into 
the treasury; to stereotype the standard of living of the 
ordinary peasants; and to reduce the standard of living of 
the Chiefs, who would not be in a position to maintain 
troops, or accumulate supplies of horses and other military 
requirements. The only question that arises is whether 
such a policy was, or could be, carried out effectively. 
On this question we have the definite statement of the 
chronicler that the regulations were strictly enforced, and 
! The word “Demand” is used to denote the claim actually made bv 
the State, as distinguished from the other senses borne by ‘‘revenue.’ 
The latter ambiguous term is analvsed in Appendix A.