Carl Clausewitz - The Strategy of Warfare – Boxed Set

Measures of rations for elephants and horses will be described in connection with the "Duties of Their Respective Superintendents."

For bullocks, one drona of masha (Phraseolus Radiatus) or one drona of barley cooked with other things, as prescribed for horses, is the requisite quantity of food, besides the special and additional provision of one tula of oilcakes (ghánapinyaka) or ten ádhakas of bran (kanakuttana-kundaka).

Twice the above quantity for buffaloes and camels.

Half a drona for asses, red spotted deer and deer with white stripes.

One ádhaka for an antelope and big red deer.

Half an ádhaka or one ádhaka of grain together with bran for a goat, a ram and a boar.

One prastha of cooked rice for dogs.

Half a prastha for a hamsa (goose), a krauncha (heron) and a peacock.

From the above, the quantity of rations enough for one meal for other beasts, cattle, birds, and rogue elephants (vyála) may be inferred.

Charcoal and chaff may be given over for iron smelting and lime-kiln (bhittilepya).

Bran and flour (kánika) may be given to slaves, labourers, and cooks. The surplus of the above may be given to those who prepare cooked rice, and rice-cakes.

The weighing balance, weights, measures, mill-stone (rochani), pestle, mortar, wooden contrivances for pounding rice, etc., (kuttakayantra), contrivances for splitting seeds into pieces (rochakayantra), winnowing fans, sieves (chálani) grain-baskets (kandoli), boxes, and brooms are the necessary instruments.

Sweepers; preservers; those who weigh things (dharaka); those who measure grains, etc.; those who supervise the work of measuring grains (mápaka); those who supervise the supply of commodities to the store-house (dápaka); those who supply commodities (dáyaka); those who are employed to receive compensation for any real or supposed error in measuring grains, etc. (sálákáipratigráhaka); slaves; and labourers;—all these are called vishti.

Grains are heaped up on the floor; jaggory (kshára) is bound round in grass-rope (múta); oils are kept in earthenware or wooden vessels; and salt is heaped up on the surface of the ground.

[Thus ends Chapter XV, “The Superintendent of Storehouse,” in Book II, “The Duties of Government Superintendents” of the Arthasástra of Kautilya. End of the thirty-sixth chapter from the beginning.]

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THE Superintendent of Commerce shall ascertain demand or absence of demand for, and rise or fall in the price of, various kinds of merchandise which may be the products either of land or of water and which may have been brought in either by land or by water path. He shall also ascertain the time suitable for their distribution, centralisation, purchase, and sale.

That merchandise which is widely distributed shall be centralised and its price enhanced. When the enhanced rate becomes popular, another rate shall be declared.

That merchandise of the king which is of local manufacture shall be centralised; imported merchandise shall be distributed in several markets for sale. Both kinds of merchandise shall be favourably sold to the people.

He shall avoid such large profits as will harm the people.

There shall be no restriction to the time of sale of those commodities for which there is frequent demand; nor shall they be subject to the evils of centralisation (sankuladosha).

Or pedlars may sell the merchandise of the king at a fixed price in many markets and pay necessary compensation (vaidharana) proportional to the loss entailed upon it (chhedánurúpam).

The amount of vyáji due on commodities sold by cubical measure is one-sixteenth of the quantity (shodasabhágo mánavyáji); that on commodities sold by weighing balance is one-twentieth of the quantity; and that on commodities sold in numbers is one-eleventh of the whole.

The superintendent shall show favour to those who import foreign merchandise: mariners (návika) and merchants who import foreign merchandise shall be favoured with remission of the trade-taxes, so that they may derive some profit (áyatikshamam pariháram dadyát).

Foreigners importing merchandise shall be exempted from being sued for debts unless they are (local) associations and partners (anabhiyogaschárthesshvágantúnámanyatassabhyopakári bhyah).

Those who sell the merchandise of the king shall invariably put their sale proceeds in a wooden box kept in a fixed place and provided with a single aperture on the top.

During the eighth part of the day, they shall submit to the superintendent the sale report, saying "this much has been sold and this much remains;" they shall also hand over the weights and measures. Such are the rules applicable to local traffic.

As regards the sale of the king's merchandise in foreign countries:---

Having ascertained the value of local produce as compared with that of foreign produce that can be obtained in barter, the superintendent will find out (by calculation) whether there is any margin left for profit after meeting the payments (to the foreign king) such as the toll (sulka), road-cess (vartaní), conveyance-cess (átiváhika), tax payable at military stations (gulmadeya), ferry-charges (taradeya), subsistence to the merchant and his followers (bhakta), and the portion of merchandise payable to the foreign king (bhága).

If no profit can be realised by selling the local produce in foreign countries, he has to consider whether any local produce can be profitably bartered for any foreign produce. Then he may send one quarter of his valuable merchandise through safe roads to different markets on land. In view of large profits, he (the deputed merchant) may make friendship with the forest-guards, boundary-guards, and officers in charge of cities and of country-parts (of the foreign king). He shall take care to secure his treasure (sára) and life from danger. If he cannot reach the intended market, he may sell the merchandise (at any market) free from all dues (sarvadeyavisuddham).

Or he may take his merchandise to other countries through rivers (nadípatha).

He shall also gather information as to conveyance-charges (yánabhágaka), subsistence on the way (pathyadana), value of foreign merchandise that can be obtained in barter for local merchandise, occasions of pilgrimages (yátrakála), means that can be employed to ward off dangers (of the journey), and the history of commercial towns (panyapattanacháritra).

Having gathered information as to the transaction in commercial towns along the banks of rivers, he shall transport his merchandise to profitable markets and avoid unprofitable ones.

[Thus ends Chapter XVI, “The Superintendent of Commerce” in Book II, “The Duties of Government Superintendents” of Arthasástra of Kautilya. End of thirty-seventh chapter from the beginning.]

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THE Superintendent of Forest Produce shall collect timber and other products of forests by employing those who guard productive forests. He shall not only start productive works in forests, but also fix adequate fines and compensations to be levied from those who cause any damage to productive forests except in calamities.

The following are forest products.

Sáka (teak), tinisa (Dalbergia Ougeinensis), dhanvana (?), arjuna (Terminalia Arjuna), madhúka (Bassia Latifolia), tilaka (Barleria Cristata), tála (palmyra), simsúpa (Dalbergia Sissu), arimeda (Fetid Mimosa), rájádana (Mimosops Kauki), sirisha (Mimosa Sirísha), khadira (Mimosa Catechu), sarala (Pinus Longifolia), tálasarja (sal tree or Shorea Robesta), asvakarna (Vatica Robesta), somavalka (a kind of white khadíra), kasámra (?), priyaka (yellow sal tree), dhava (Mimosa Hexandra), etc., are the trees of strong timber (sáradáruvarga).