In the Church of England, both before and after the Reformation, the tithe 
(or 'tythe' before c. 1800) was that portion of the farmers' crop 
(putatively one tenth) due to the 'Rector' of the parish church. Where the 
incumbent was appointed by some other person or corporation legally entitled 
to the tithe, such as a bishop, a monastic foundation or a cathedral 
chapter,  he was called a 'Vicar' and received only a portion of the revenue 
of the living.

By the time of Malthus (who became Rector of Walesby in 1803)  the 'tithe' 
payable to the Rector had become a customary sum of money. Malthus received 
rather more than L300 p.a. from his cure. Because he chose to be 
non-resident -- because of his chair at Haileybury -- he appointed a 
'Curate' to perform his duties for a small salary (about L80), visiting 
Walesby himself only a few times a year.

In the 1820s, reformist opinion in Britain -- abetted by Tory landowners --  
brought about legislation for the commutation of tithes into cash payments 
based on the market price of corn. This had already been anticipated in many 
parishes, including Malthus's.

Some of the classical political economists, such as James Mill, Ricardo and 
M'Culloch, held strong opinions about tithes.

Anthony Waterman