You put your finger on it when you said we didn't have individual taxes. People still paid the taxes indirectly because those taxes (tariffs, customs duties, fe

You put your finger on it when you said we didn't have individual taxes. People still paid the taxes indirectly because those taxes (tariffs, customs duties, fees, etc.) were built into the price of the goods and services they bought. You can argue that those were somehow "voluntary" taxes because people had the choice not to buy the goods or services, but that argument breaks down when you talk about essentials (however one defines that), so that you're indirectly paying the tax whether you like it or not.