1. A tax on people who fit within a designated class; a poll tax. See capitation tax, poll tax under TAX. [Cases: Taxation 106. C.J.S. Taxation §§ 1671–1672.]
2. A bounty offered by a government for a prisoner taken at sea during a naval engagement. • This bounty is divided among the officers and crew in the same manner as prize money. See PRIZE MONEY .
3. A tax or duty on shipowners, imposed by an 1882 federal statute, for every immigrant brought into the United States. — Also termed head tax.
4. Hist. A bounty or reward paid to a person who killed a bandit or outlaw and produced the head as evidence. See BOUNTY(1); REWARD.