Tax Collector - 1790s

[Whipby]

I've just discovered that one of my ancestors may have been an Exciseman, or Tax Collector, in the 1790s.  Can anyone tell me what this would have entailed?

This same man had been declared bankrupt in the early/mid 1780s, having been a merchant of some sort in London.  Is it feasible that he could have then gone on to become a Tax Collector, which I am assuming was a responsible and prestigious job?

He seems to have landed on his feet!