A relatively common local tax in mediaeval England was a 'Scott' charge on property and/or land, used to fund some locally necessary common good. Because the ch

A relatively common local tax in mediaeval England was a 'Scott' charge on property and/or land, used to fund some locally necessary common good. Because the charge was most often area-based, landowners/householders just outside of the charging area were said to get away 'Scott free' - a phrase still frequently encountered in UK English. For instance in the area where I grew up (Romney Marshes, Kent) a Scott tax used to be levied on local householders and landowners to help pay for the local sea defences (because: most of the Romney Marshes is below sea level). People living on land above sea level were exempt from the charge, thus 'Scott free'. The levy was paid in cash or thorn bushes; failure to pay led to an ear being nailed to the church door[1]. And the tax is still - apparently - alive today ... according to a brief report in the UK's Law Society's Gazette[2]. [1] - https://theromneymarsh.net/newhall https://theromneymarsh.net/newhall [2] - https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/unearthing-history/68506.article https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/unearthing-history/68506.a...