Free Practice Question
RC · Reading Comprehension
605-655
Short Passage - Social Science
Reading Passage
Most business historians give the impression that Marseilles, a French Mediterranean city, was in dire economic straits from 1700 to 1715, when France was at war in the Mediterranean area. Their conclusions are based partly on a documented 30 percent decline in revenue generated by the cottimo, an import tax collected on the cargo of ships returning to Marseilles from various Middle Eastern ports. The decline in revenue from this particular tax could hypothetically have been caused by a massive drop in levels of commercial activity in Marseilles. However, during the war years Marseilles' role as a grain importer grew, and most foodstuffs had always been—and remained—exempt from the tax. Also, due to a shift in trading patterns caused by the war, the city's merchants did more business with those Middle Eastern cities on whose trade the cottimo had always been collected at a lower rate. Moreover, during this period, a change occurred in the thinking of Marseilles merchants, who, in response to the war's challenges, displayed a new sense of daring. They sent some ships outside the Mediterranean and began to engage in trade in the Atlantic and Pacific. This was significant, since the cottimo was collected only on goods entering the city from Mediterranean ports in the Middle East.
If the information in the passage is accurate, which of the following must be concluded?
Answer Choices
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Most business historians are wrong in believing that France's war in the Mediterranean had adverse effects on commercial activity in the Mediterranean.
B
The decline in tax revenues in Marseilles during the period 1700–1715 was only temporary, since it was due to short-term shifts in trade patterns.
C
Merchants in Marseilles paid less in total taxes to the city during the period 1700–1715 than they did in earlier periods.
D
Decreases in cottimo revenue in Marseilles during the period 1700–1715 do not necessarily indicate concurrent decreases in the city's overall commercial activity.
E
Losses in Marseilles due to shifts in trading patterns in the Mediterranean during the period 1700–1715 were adequately balanced by the expansion of the city's trade in other areas of the world.
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Difficulty
605-655
Type
RC
Category