1.Direct management of public finance or public works by agents of the government for government account; opposed to the contract system.
2.Specif.: The system of collecting taxes by officials who have either no interest or a very small interest in the proceeds, as distinguished from the ancient system of farming them out.
3.Any kind of government monopoly (tobacco, salt, etc.) used chiefly as a means of taxation. Such monopolies are largely employed in Austria, Italy, France, and Spain.
