The Inner Conflict of Tradition: Essays in Indian Ritual, Kingship, and Society c15.s1.15

c15.s1.15

Now "peasant" is a reputedly vague category—in fact, something of an abominable snowman of Indian history, ubiquitous but elusive. But so much is clear, the actual tiller or cultivator could hardly be called upon to make revenue payments in cash. The evidence is scanty, but what we know clearly indicates an utterly depressed condition of the country people.²² As a Dutch observer noted about 1614, "When travelling through the country, I have often wondered whence so much money could be collected, for they live extremely poorly and meanly."²³ Even the growers of an important crop like indigo near the great center Agra were "constrained to sell to engrossers at very low prices for want of money to supply the needful."²⁴ The cultivator, then, appears to be generally unable to deal with the revenue demand by himself, nor can he have been an interesting target for the revenue authorities. So both "peasant" and administrator needed an intermediary class of financiers and merchants, such as the indigo engrossers, who had sufficient liquid capital at their disposal to handle the cash nexus. Although the sources have little but disparaging remarks to offer on merchants and moneylenders, it seems safe to infer that they actually were the pivot of the imperial enterprise.