Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Interlude: Two
First day, Fifth Moon, 237 AC
"And that is the final report from the western shore Master Jeor."
I nodded, "The western shore, below Sea Dragon Point, is showing still larger than usual taxes. Why?"
Roose shifted nervously. Honestly, I know he is new to this, but he still acts like a child. What a disappointment. His father is such a good man too, but I suppose that is why he is the third son. Maybe some additional duties to toughen him up? Something to think on to be sure.
Roose spoke up, "Well Master Jeor, after the flooding a few villages came together, and with so many people they can pay more taxes."
I raise an eyebrow at that faulty logic. I looked at the papers again and said, "Well, the overall tax is down from previous years which is to be expected." I put the papers down again and looked him in the eye and said, "But, how does people coming together mean more tax?"
"It's just more people Master Jeor. I've seen the village myself, they've got new buildings and such."
He still was not addressing my point, but I let it go. I doubted he would understand, so I tried a new direction. "Did you get a count of the people in this village?"
He nodded enthusiastically, "Yes Master Jeor! I made sure that there was a lot of people there. Some are trappers and the like, so I could not get an accurate count, but I made sure that they weren't trying to cheat on their taxes!"
"Cheat on their taxes? What do you mean?" I asked.
Roose straightened up a bit and replied, "I thought it suspicious Master Jeor, that there were more taxes after the flooding. I thought they might be cheating on previous tax collections. So, I performed interviews with many different villagers to get to the bottom of it. There were just more people in the village, and they were helping each other more than they did before the flood. Nothing to show they were cheating."
I tried to reign in a sigh. The fool boy was finding reasons to explain something, but they weren't really connected. Like as not, Master Rickard, the previous tax collector for the region, had been pilfering the taxes. Damn shame he died over the winter, so I would never get to the bottom of that. The taxes collected seemed a bit higher than other regions, but nothing to suggest the peasants were cheating on their taxes.
"And who did you talk to?" I asked him.
He shifted in his seat a bit, "Oh, some farmers and fishermen. Oh, and someone called Michael Ragnar." He said the last word in amusement.
"That southern merchant that became the farmer?" Roose nodded. "Ah, yes I remember him." I said whimsically. It seems like forever since he came here. "How long as that been I wonder? Ten years? Oh well, he still living out there then?"
Roose replied, "Yes, but he's a bit uppity for a peasant. A peasant having a last name like that?" Roose chuckled, "Yes, uppity is the right word. Well spoken, but uppity."
I scratched my chin at that, "Seemed pleasant enough for a peasant when I saw him. Likely gotten grumpy as he's gotten older. Keep note of that Roose, age will do that to you. Mark my words."
He seemed to nod uncertainly. I contained my laugh, the young never want to think about growing old. "Very well Roose, thank you for your report. That will be all for now."
Roose made a short bow of the head and exited the room. I leaned back in my chair and let out an audible sigh. A disappointment for sure, but hopefully he would grow into a man soon. The higher tax in that village is certainly odd, and Roose does not seem capable enough to determine the cause.
It is certainly possible that Master Rickard had been cheating Lord Stark, but there is nothing to prove it. And I will not besmirch the honor of a dead man who served Lord Stark for years. I went over to the shelves along the wall and pulled out a detailed map of the region and laid it out on my desk.
I looked over the area with the large increase, and I noted it was near the coast with lots of rivers. Hmm, sounds like fertile land. I tried to imagine it in my head: the flooding wiping out entire villages, people moving to the remaining villages and one of those villages had extremely fertile land. More people farming the land means more crops produced and a higher tax. A twist of fate. Yes, a small pre-flood number of peasants would mean it would be hard for Master Rickard to determine the fertility of land, especially with most of those likely being fishermen.
Good. Master Rickard's honor is intact, all that is left is Roose's wits. More people, means a higher portion of tax for no reason? That boy. Still, that land might be useful in the future. Fertile land is hard to come by, especially along the western shore. Another thing to consider.
With a sigh, I pulled out the report from the Cerwyn lands and compared it to the western shore report. Cerwyn lands had always been some of the most fertile and had not been too badly hurt by flooding from the Red Spring.
Yes, looking at the two reports the western lands are still not near as fertile as the Cerwyn lands. More people likely survived the flooding and moved to this new village. Maybe a count of the peasants is needed? The tax from the western shore is minimal at best, and it would be too expensive to conduct a thorough count.
Having Roose talk to people and –
A loud crash sounded from outside. An argument erupted, with the sound of many men shouting.
I muttered to myself, "What fool thing happened now?" With another sigh, I heaved myself out of my chair and went to go deal with more fools.
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