Mezzadro or share-cropper. He may also own land of his own. Even in the absence of an explicit title, a peasant may be identified as a mezzadro if he is described as having an 'oste', to which he owes money prestanza), but which the tax officials refuse to recognize as a deductable liability. It was quite common for mezzadri to be in debt to their landlords, but these debts were usually excluded by the tax officials in computing liabilities.
