An Historical and Chronological Deduction of the Origin of Commerce
660
Acerca de este libro Esta es una copia digital de un libro que, durante generaciones, se ha conservado en las estanterías de una biblioteca, hasta que Google ha decidido escanearlo como parte de un proyecto que pretende que sea posible descubrir en línea libros de todo el mundo. Ha sobrevivido tantos años como para que los derechos de autor hayan expirado y el libro pase a ser de dominio público. El que un libro sea de dominio público significa que nunca ha estado protegido por derechos de autor, o bien que el período legal de estos derechos ya ha expirado. Es posible que una misma obra sea de dominio público en unos países y, sin embargo, no lo sea en otros. Los libros de dominio público son nuestras puertas hacia el pasado, suponen un patrimonio histórico, cultural y de conocimientos que, a menudo, resulta difícil de descubrir. Todas las anotaciones, marcas y otras señales en los márgenes que estén presentes en el volumen original aparecerán también en este archivo como testimonio del largo viaje que el libro ha recorrido desde el editor hasta la biblioteca y, finalmente, hasta usted. Normas de uso Google se enorgullece de poder colaborar con distintas bibliotecas para digitalizar los materiales de dominio público a fin de hacerlos accesibles a todo el mundo. Los libros de dominio público son patrimonio de todos, nosotros somos sus humildes guardianes. No obstante, se trata de un trabajo caro. Por este motivo, y para poder ofrecer este recurso, hemos tomado medidas para evitar que se produzca un abuso por parte de terceros con fines comerciales, y hemos incluido restricciones técnicas sobre las solicitudes automatizadas. Asimismo, le pedimos que: +Haga un uso exclusivamente no comercial de estos archivos Hemos diseñado la Búsqueda de libros de Google para el uso de particulares; como tal, le pedimos que utilice estos archivos con fines personales, y no comerciales. +No envíe solicitudes automatizadas Por favor , no envíe solicitudes automatizadas de ningún tipo al sistema de Google. Si está llevando a cabo una investigación sobre traducción automática, reconocimiento óptico de caracteres u otros campos para los que resulte útil disfrutar de acceso a una gran cantidad de texto, por favor, envíenos un mensaje. Fomentamos el uso de materiales de dominio público con estos propósitos y seguro que podremos ayudarle. +Conserve la atribuciónLa filigrana de Google que verá en todos los archivos es fundamental para informar a los usuarios sobre este proyecto y ayudarles a encontrar materiales adicionales en la Búsqueda de libros de Google. Por favor, no la elimine. +Manténgase siempre dentro de la legalidadSea cual sea el uso que haga de estos materiales, recuerde que es responsable de asegurarse de que todo lo que hace es legal. No dé por sentado que, por el hecho de que una obra se considere de dominio público para los usuarios de los Estados Unidos, lo será también para los usuarios de otros países. La legislación sobre derechos de autor varía de un país a otro, y no podemos facilitar información sobre si está permitido un uso específico de algún libro. Por favor, no suponga que la aparición de un libro en nuestro programa significa que se puede utilizar de igual manera en todo el mundo. La responsabilidad ante la infracción de los derechos de autor puede ser muy grave. Acerca de la Búsqueda de libros de Google El objetivo de Google consiste en organizar información procedente de todo el mundo y hacerla accesible y útil de forma universal. El programa de Búsqueda de libros de Google ayuda a los lectores a descubrir los libros de todo el mundo a la vez que ayuda a autores y editores a llegar a nuevas audiencias. Podrá realizar búsquedas en el texto completo de este libro en la web, en la páginahttp://books.google.com
An Historical and Chronological Deduction of the Origin of Commerce
Acerca de este libro
Esta es una copia digital de un libro que, durante generaciones, se
ha conservado en las estanterías de una biblioteca, hasta que
Google ha decidido
escanearlo como parte de un proyecto que pretende que sea posible
descubrir en línea libros de todo el mundo.
Ha sobrevivido tantos años como para que los derechos de autor
hayan expirado y el libro pase a ser de dominio público. El que un
libro sea de
dominio público significa que nunca ha estado protegido por
derechos de autor, o bien que el período legal de estos derechos ya
ha expirado. Es
posible que una misma obra sea de dominio público en unos países y,
sin embargo, no lo sea en otros. Los libros de dominio público son
nuestras
puertas hacia el pasado, suponen un patrimonio histórico, cultural
y de conocimientos que, a menudo, resulta difícil de
descubrir.
Todas las anotaciones, marcas y otras señales en los márgenes que
estén presentes en el volumen original aparecerán también en este
archivo como
testimonio del largo viaje que el libro ha recorrido desde el
editor hasta la biblioteca y, finalmente, hasta usted.
Normas de uso
Google se enorgullece de poder colaborar con distintas bibliotecas
para digitalizar los materiales de dominio público a fin de
hacerlos accesibles
a todo el mundo. Los libros de dominio público son patrimonio de
todos, nosotros somos sus humildes guardianes. No obstante, se
trata de un
trabajo caro. Por este motivo, y para poder ofrecer este recurso,
hemos tomado medidas para evitar que se produzca un abuso por parte
de terceros
con fines comerciales, y hemos incluido restricciones técnicas
sobre las solicitudes automatizadas.
Asimismo, le pedimos que:
+ Haga un uso exclusivamente no comercial de estos archivos
Hemos diseñado la Búsqueda de libros de Google para el uso de
particulares;
como tal, le pedimos que utilice estos archivos con fines
personales, y no comerciales.
+ No envíe solicitudes automatizadas Por favor, no
envíe solicitudes automatizadas de ningún tipo al sistema de
Google. Si está llevando a
cabo una investigación sobre traducción automática, reconocimiento
óptico de caracteres u otros campos para los que resulte útil
disfrutar
de acceso a una gran cantidad de texto, por favor, envíenos un
mensaje. Fomentamos el uso de materiales de dominio público con
estos
propósitos y seguro que podremos ayudarle.
+ Conserve la atribución La filigrana de Google que
verá en todos los archivos es fundamental para informar a los
usuarios sobre este proyecto
y ayudarles a encontrar materiales adicionales en la Búsqueda de
libros de Google. Por favor, no la elimine.
+ Manténgase siempre dentro de la legalidad Sea
cual sea el uso que haga de estos materiales, recuerde que es
responsable de asegurarse de
que todo lo que hace es legal. No dé por sentado que, por el hecho
de que una obra se considere de dominio público para los usuarios
de
los Estados Unidos, lo será también para los usuarios de otros
países. La legislación sobre derechos de autor varía de un país a
otro, y no
podemos facilitar información sobre si está permitido un uso
específico de algún libro. Por favor, no suponga que la aparición
de un libro en
nuestro programa significa que se puede utilizar de igual manera en
todo el mundo. La responsabilidad ante la infracción de los
derechos de
autor puede ser muy grave.
Acerca de la Búsqueda de libros de Google
El objetivo de Google consiste en organizar información procedente
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programa de
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libros de todo el mundo a la vez que ayuda a autores y editores a
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audiencias. Podrá realizar búsquedas en el texto completo de este
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FRIMIDIOI J. WHITE, E L EET-STREET ; J. PAYNE, MEWS-GATE; 1.
SEWELL, ANDW. J. AND J. RICHARDIONI,
CORNH1LL J J. ANDA. ARCH, CRA C E C HURCH-STR E E T ; J. CUTHRLL,
MIDDLE-ROW, HOLBORNi AND
VIRNOR AND HOOD, 31, POULTRY ; AND SOLD BY J. ARCHER, DUBLIN.
1301.
theless, Mr. was left to strugglewiththeinterest
ofsome,andtheprejudiceofothers,and
thoughhe honoureby theprotectionofseveral personsofhighrank, it
happenedinhis predi
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generallyhappensinpredicamentsofasimilarnature,thathisfoesweremoreactivethan
Mr.alt however,hasat lengthtriumphedoverthe salsehoodandmalignity
ofhisoppo
nents; grap Printing,aster havingproducedsuchaWorkas
this,whichhenewpre
sentstothePublic, withmanyexcellentpublications
thathehasalreadyprinted, cannolongerbe
considered as anidle speculation: onthecontrary, it is proved to
Lea practicalimprovement, that
promises, undera dueencouragement, to produceagreat
nationalbenesit. Toadvance it to th
persectionofwhichit is
capable,Mr.Wlterengages,toemployisutmostexertions, andhe
wehaveadheredcloselytothe rentintentionoftheoriginal
ticles, ve wehaveveuretoamplify,whilethrsrecei
nothingmorethanabarestatement,andmanyre re into
partialrelation. Inmakingsuchanarrange wehaveactedto
tainedbyhisresearc hemayetiretohis andursuenia
whichhelives,mustwriteinthe ustl ofit. ofhisinfor
mationmu result hisenquiriesamongthelivingworld and,
frequentlyrefuseto thosechannelsofcommunication,which
ationsfromthe ulseof iscontent,butas heare unde in
fact. Weaveonlystoodinthat inwhichanywriter
disappointreasonab expectation. Thatpartofthehistorywhichis
friars-road
Drake,Wm.un.Esq.M.P.Portman-square
Duche,Jacob,Esq.Lambeth
Durand,Mr.Grocers-hall,Poultry-court
Dutens,Rev.Mr.Davies-street,Berkeley-square
E.
Ellis,JohnMorse,Esq.Temple
Leptrap, John, Esq. Whitcchapel
Robson
street, 12 sets
street
W.
Walsingham,Rt.Hon.Ld.PostMasterGeneral
whohavehonourcdthisWorkwiththeir patronage. This, however,
arisesfromhis not beingsuffici
ently acquaintedwiththe wijJjes ofthose Gentlemen onthis head
since, however highly he might be
gratifiedbythisstutteringmarkofapprobation, heis toosensible ofthe
obligations alreadyconferrcd, to
urgeanyfurtherextension ofthem.
rang whicharetheosfspringof administration. hes
b
neverbeforeknown;and eshasbeenas rprising, the
asford, an otherpartswant,maybetrulyffirm
tobeprincipallycommu
andknowledge
and,ingeneral,forthegreatbulkofitssolidcomfortsand
onvenie ies
therewithconnected.
foulofHistory, aChronologicalandeneralHijloryofCommerceis, tothis
day,
culture,andtheirrelativeartsandranches
cannotfail to meetwith a favourab reception
fromboththelandedand
tradings interests ofBritainand reland andfor whom he
nsing,work
ismostprincipallyadapted somuchtherather,as thereis
notextant,inany
language,awork ch extensiv andcomplicatedontexture.
inthe entitled, OrbisMartimus,is indeedsufficiently
methodical,
butdoesnot, byanymeans,sullycomeupev to its
titlepagealone,though
somuchhortofourmuchmore tens plan.
Progress,&c.tendingto illustrate, ratherinthemannerofanharangu
th
ofhistory,thatwithinthelast enhundredyears, ceandnavigation
eventheleastusewhatever,toourundertaking.
ticular ranhe commerce.
MonsieurHuet,Bishop Avrach inisryofthegreat
toryoftheCommeceandNavigation'oftheAncient in sounmethodi
graphy it ha thereforesupplieduswithverysewmaterialsfor
oumain
purpose.
Beside
ix
ject; such, for instance, asJoannisAngeliia de ebufpubliis
anseaticisTractatus i. e.
Areatise,orHistoryoftheRepublicsofthe
others,sornootherpurposebuttoexitethezealan
emulationoftheirown
writers.
both peculativ and practical commerce,wecold fail to
behereand
here pplie withmanyimportantmaterials. Comprehensive,ho ver,
as ou undrtaingis, it is butjusticeinthisplacetoremark,thatits
prin
cipal opehasamoreespecialandimmediateregardto theComme His
may add, as asull cople neofanyothernation not
hereinto expecte soneitheris it at all practicable,withrespectto
most
ofthenations in hritendom.Weave,howeer,indefatigablylaboured
give a general andsufficiently omprehens id
thref,moreespecially
and lyrespecting, thosenationswithwhomurowncountryhashadthe
Hans-towns,Flanders,&c.
Intelligentpersnsgenerallyknow,thatthedates,
andothercircumstan
ingofmistakes, uchis humanfrailty) authors, ve
goodaccount,are
not
of odfreyofBouillon,callsBouillonatownofCha neontheEng-
andthus, continuesFuller, Canterburyis putfor
ambrige,notonly
in tian inister's osmography,butalso inourprintedStatut
ook
ofthetwlftheaofKingRichardII.
theSpanish hy asserted, abouttwohundredyearsago, ** Thatthe
** kingdomofFrancecontainedonehundredandfisty
millionsofpeople.
herpresent ofpeopletoexeedtwentymillions rs particu
ton,asbeingon ubcttooofwhichonewouldhaveimaginedhimaper
howtheKingsofEnglandhave,from to supportedand
notpublishedtill theyear1651,after thedeathofth thr,bytheonce
smalloctavo olume entitled, CottoniPosthuma wherein, p. 200,it is
as
serted, ThatLondon,whichis nota
twenty-fourthpartofthekingdom
ofEngland,inpeople,hadin it foundabov
eighthundredthoufandsouls,
byalate enquiry,byorderofthelate Queen. Inwhichassertion
are
three onsiderab is r, first, as far as any appears, there
neverwasanysuchenquirydirectedbyQueenElizabeth or,
isanysuchwas
all
containtwohundredandsifty thoufandsouls :
andtheaccurateandmostju
diciousItalian author,GiovnanniBotero,whowroteabouttwenty rs
noadmit ndo tocontainab onehundredandsixtythousandsouls.
whether,eveninourpresentage,withall thegreatadditionsto
itssuburbs,
boundsoftheweeklymortality-bills. Thirdly, did in160
whereas,byhiscomputation, it
shouldhavecontainednineteenmillionstwo
evenhundredthoufand,withinthebars.
hesgreatmiscomputations
translatedandpublishedinEnglish,byagentlemanofLincoln's-Inn,in
the
ofMortalityofLondon, for theYear1631, hemakesthe offouls
inthe eralwardsandliberties, takenbyspecial commandof privy
council,tohaveamountein all butto
onehundredandthirtythoufand,
which wasundoubtedlyverynearthetruth;moreespecially, as the
catalogueofall thehouseswithinthecity, includingthereinallit
privileged
sixhundredandforty-ninehoues greatandsmall. Now,isthis be
multipliedbysix, foreachhouse, it
willmakethetotalwithinthebarsof
thoufand ev hundredandeighteen and ifby en, it willmakeone
hundred
,too ig considring presentstateofthecity.
ofdisjunct,andnotseldomheterogeneousparts, collectedoutofso
of ariou countries,abilities, biasses, andprepossessions, from
ariou ma
nuscriptsalso, andfromanalmostendles ofsmaller tracts and
pamphlets,fromthereignofQueen izabethdownward,andsomeeven
possible careandextnes endeaoured;although,for thereasons
abe-mentioned, it canbynomeansbeexpected,thateitherthe ct
theperiodsshouldalwaysrunso unisormly, en,orsmoothas
mightother
mostindispenfableruleofa chronologicalsuccession,
mattersofaveryhe
nowconfinedto theprivatecollections
ofasewcuriouspersons,wehave
generallybeencaresultoquotethem,andsuchalso are
ormaybethought
publishedin twentyfolio olumes commonlyknownbythenameofRy-
very aresul to quotetherepectivereign,andthe statute, olume
year,
and thelatter, as their
authority,beyonddoubt,authenticatesthe
manynumerouspointsextractedfromthem.
newinventionsandprojects, for theancientsalaries ofoffices, for
the
dailypayofartificers, soldiers, failors, andlabourers,moreorless,
for near
caio threin stoodonthesole credit ofcommonhistorians ;
aswellas
fortherectisication of
ariousmistakesinotherlessauthenticmemoirs.
hehadpainsullycollectedfromouroldhistorians, publishedinoc
tavo, in17
Inmakingextractstherefrom.
Thirdly,Indigestingandmethodisingsuch
chronological,but,likewise,aystematic andpoliticalSurveyof
rce
mayjustlybetermedanunaccountablystupidcontemptofCommercialHis
flagrantinstancehereofwefind, in
neCaptinSteens'sngliflitranslatio
inthethirdvolumewhereof,cap.vi.
hemakesthePortuguesehistorianof
maybefoundsundrypositions,
formerlythoughttobesowellgroundedas
sonbetweenthemaritimestrengthofEnglandandthatofFrance,laysdown
dedthatposition? Thelikemaybefaidofsomeothersof imilakind,
dependingmuchmoreonthe upinene ofsomenations,andonthemore
mostarbitrarygovrnmentsareobtructiv ofthefreedomof rceyet
exception. France,weknow,is
undoubtedlyagreatarbitrarygovrnment
ministry,attendedwithsteadycounselsin
hercommercialpursuits,sheat
beallowedtohave,inourdays, tremelyprosperousin rce
andtohavehadaverylarg hareofnavalgreatness
and,evenherdespotic
all arbitrarygovernments considerableadantagesover flower
timethatwaspartlythecafe. Yetwehavesincehadthemostinteresting
ofourformergreatre-exportationofsugars;besidesthe
menseincreaseof
c2 ogmatical
whatthelast-namedAuthorobservesconcerningSpainandPortugalbeat
terestfor
nedocontinue;andthatforthefakeofworkingtheirgold
thepriva domestic ustoms andufagesofld tim Fromallwhich,
collectively onsidered
moreustandadequateideasmaybeobtainedofthe
fierceandbarbarousubduersofthatempire,the de uris monarchy
legendary,orevenbarely
piious,althoughthelaboriousandotherwise
requisitetogivesomebriefmemoirs.
ende ouredto givesucha omprehensiv viewthereofas it is
hopedmay
befatisfactory.
Andwehavelargelytracedtheorigin,progress,andde
inourcommercialworld its riousre
lutionsandontroversietakingup
without,howeer,neglectingourlaterandalsoourlesser
societiesorcom
logu thoseairy hemesmayprovemoreinstructivetosome,than ay
at first glance,beapprehended
moreespeciallyconsideringthatsomeof
hereafter
imperialcrownofGreatBritain asubject, which,thoughatprent
uite
ourAuthoresteemsit aselicity, thatalearnedandjudioussummaryof
thatnowobsoletesubject, waspublishedbySirPhilip intheyear
Ancients,inagriculture,domesticandmanualarts for
theconvenience
andtransplantations;
oftheoriginandrevolutionsofancientcommercial
nationsandcities:
andoccasionallyofthedatesortimesoftheflourishing
ofcertaineminentpersonsin ariousages.
fixed
thePolitico-Commercial graphyofEurope,ora ompendiousand
portations,populousness,and oftheseveral potentates,repub
tude,andpeopleoftheirmostonsiderab citiesandtowns.
as to enabletheReader,withease, andinsomemeasurebyamerein
stantaneousinspection,to forma usid ofthevalue,nature,andex
tentofthis entirework,wene nlyto resertheretoforaconvincing
annexedIntrodution,asalready ntione ndanothertotheAppendix;
asthematterscontainedin hecouldno properlybereducibletoany
chronologicalorderor th ndthereforecouldnotbecomprehended
in, norincorporatedwiththgenera chronologicalIndex.
othernations; who,it is said, werewont.to leavetheirmerchandize in
a private place, onthe
frontiersofthenationwithwhomtheywantedtodeal,andwhoweretotakeitaway,inexchangefor
waytoadirectcommercialcorrespondencebyproperbarter.
graduallyimprovedintovessels ofsuchcapacity,
asembdenedmentolaunchintothewide ocean)
wasaprincipalmeansoftheadancementofcommerce,arts, andsciences;
andtheinventionof
writinggreatlyimprovedthemutualcorrespondenceofnations.
Suchancientcities and countries
inwealthandpower. £ >ulmaretenet, cumncceffe ejl rcrumpotiri.
CiceroadAtticum.
AtlengthRomeswallowedupall other commercial states adcities,
andthereby gavesucha
mortalwoundtothecommerceoftheancients,as nevercould behealed
theRomansthem
selves,whowere moreaddictedtowarand commerce
theirdisinclinationto
conquestsoftherichestprovincesofthethenknownworld,
wherebyimmensetreasures werecon
especiallyeastward,
theirproconsuls,&c.werecontinuallysendingorbringinghomeimmenseriches,
preciousstones,exquisitepaintings,andwhateverelse
wasrareandexcellent, eitherfor theirtables,
twothousandpounds. Somearesaid
tohavepaidtotheamountofthreethousandpoundsforone
suchanextortionatemanner,andsoundherselfat
lengthunabletoholdtogether,inquiet,anymore
tosustainthevastexpenceofhercivil andmilitaryestablishments,
without recurringto the revival
ofthenever-sailingresourcesofcommerce,as wellathomes
inherremoterprovinces; as, inpart,
richeditselfby its victories. Italy,
inthefourteenthcentury,owedher wealthentirelytocom-
merce. Hollandwouldhavesubsistedbutavery shorttime, hadshe
lookednosurther thanthe
seizureoftheSpanishplate-fleets, andhadneglectedtohavelaid
thefoundationof herpowerin
powerofFrance; andsheowesall her grandeur to commerce.
TheAlgerines, whosupport
themselvessolelyby piracies, arca verywretchedpeople.
commercelikewisesusfereda long,andalmosttotal suspensionintheWest
therevivalandincrease
subjectostheensuingwork.
lmoseveryhabitablecountryoftheterraqueousglobehasasuperfluitymoreorless,
ofnaturalpro
occasionally ;
whichunmanusacturedmaterials,we,formanyages,contentedourselves to
exchange
linen, ndFrenchndheniswines.
ThecountriesofFlandersandBrabanthadoriginally but
very little superfluityoftheirownnaturalproductforexportation ;
whichdesect obliged themto
accordingtothegreatPensionaryDeWitt'sInterestof Holland,
therewerenomerchants inall
*' Levant or,possibly,
theremighthavebeensoundsomemerchantselsewhere, thoughbutinsew
** arms, for nt provisions, and topreventthe effects ofbadseasons,
or hunger, toconquer
** moreland.
SuchcircumstancesproducedtheirruptionsoftheCclt,Cimbri,
Scythians,Goths,
were
exchanged their superfluities, notformoney,but, as it is
related, thus, viz. twohens fora
** goose, twogeesefor a hog, threelambs for a sheep, three calves
fora cow, such aquantity of
oatsforbarley, barley for rye, andryeforwheat,
whentheywantedthem so that, excepting
foreatables, therewasneitherbarternor trassic. TheFlemings
lying nearest to France, were
thesirst thatbegantoearntheirlivingsbyweaving,
andsoldthesameinthatfruitsul land,where
places, withoutlayingonany toll orduty for
goodseitherimportedorexported. Whichjudi
ciousaccountofthewest, north,andnorth-eastpartsofEurope,
beforethetenthcentury,willhelp
tothrowmuchandusesullightuponourhistory ofthosetimes.
zation.
TheunmanusacturedcommoditiesancientlyexportedbyEngland,
formanycenturiesbeforeshe
withwhatevershewantedfrom foreignparts, andalso to bringina
yearlybalanceincash ; whereby
wewereenabledtocarryonsomeothersmallforeigntrade, tosupply
likewiseourhonietrade, and
greatbulkofourforeigntradewasforseveral centuriesengrofsedby the
Germanmerchants ofthe
a susficientnumberofmerchants, nor proper shippingofourown until
our people, andmore
especiallythoseoftheCinquePorts, lyingoppositeto Franceand
Flanders, began, bydegrees, to
buildshipsoftheirown,withwhichtheymadeaprettygoodappearance,
particularly inthetime
monarchiescontinuedtocontemnthepursuitofmercantileadvantages,whichtheyentirely
leftto
Thekingdomsand principalities were in the world
likethenoblemenandgentlemen ina
country ; thefreeslatesandcities likethemerchantsandtraders :
these, atsirst, despisedbythe
others ; theothersservedandreveredbythem till,
bythevariouscourseofeventsintheworld,
someofthesecametogrowrichandpowersul,by industry
andparsimony,andsomeoftheothers
gentlemen, andthegentlemenbegintotakeasancyof sallinginto
trade. ThegreatMonarchs
** quarrelsoftheHolyLand, inthosebetweenthePopesandEmperors
(bothofthesameforge,
presses it, ratheranaristocracythanamonarchy
thegovernorsofmostof its provinceshaving
renderedtheir offices hereditaryintheirownsamilies,wherebythey
amelords ofthe countries
theygoverned. Itwasthen, therefore, thatEngland,
thoughwithoutanyconsiderablecommerce,
butevenfoolishlytobeled, byherambitiousKings,
intoconquestsonthecontinent, tohergreat
impoverislimentanddepopulation. France,sincethosetimes,
hasgraduallyrecovered her vigour,
Germanempire.
county ofBurgundy
andwrestedfromtheGermanempirethegreatandnobleprovinceofAlsace,
andhowjustly oughtit toalarmtherest ofEurope moreespecially,
whentheprodigious increase
ofthecommerceofFrance, inthespaceofaboutacentury past, is
additionallyconsidered ; as also
its richandnumerousmanusactures,andits still
extensiveforeigncoloniesandsactories.
wereonthenorth andnorth-west side ofthat great river,
evenmanyyearsasterwehadplanted
Virginia ; beyondwhichriver southwardalltheirpossessionsin
anadweredirectencroachments
ontheboundariesoftheEnglishcolonies. Besides,
theFrenchmadenoattemptsfor colonizing
TotheEastIndies,Francemadesomeearlyvoyages;
yettheyhadnosettledandregularcommerce
establishacompanyforthatend.
hope, thatawatchsuleyewill everbekeptuponthatpart ofourpossessions,
intimesofpeace, as
dangerousthantimesofopenhostilities. OfthatFrenchsettlementof
theMissisippi colony,we
who,inthesecondpartofhisDiscoursesonthePublic
enuesandTradeofEngland, published
intheyear 1698, hasthefollowingjudiciousandpropheticremark.
ShouldtheFrenchsettle at
thedisemboguingofthe river Missisippi,
theywouldnotbelongbeforetheymadethemselves
** masters of that rich province whichwouldbe an addition to their
strength very terrible to
Europe butwouldmoreparticularlyconcernEngland for,
bytheopportunity ofthatsettle-
Missisippi; and although it wasandis equally the interest
ofEngland1andSpainto oppose that
dangerousencroachment,
yettheywerethenpermittedtonestlethere,andtheyhavesincegradually
JoshuaGee, who,in the year 1729,
publishedaningeniousdiscourseontrade, therein earnestly
urgedourplantingwestwardtotheMissisippi, andonthe rivers salling
into it, within ourown
undoubtedlimits, thoughsincedisputed with us, till now,thatourpast
successhasputanendto
suturedisputesonthis point.
days,somethink, thebalanceofthattradewasinoursavour. But,
bythemanagementofthetwo
CardinalMinisters, RichlieuandMazarine, andstill
moreasterwardsbytheincessantapplicationof
variablyseizesonall advantagesfromeveryotherstate,
withoutgivingorreturningany at all. Yet
toomanyofourpeoplearestill soregardlessofourpalpableinterest, as
totakeoffverygreatquan
France, withinabout littlemorethan ninetyyearspast, by
thevastimprovementsinhermanu
sactures,colonies,andsisheries, is at lengthpossessed
ofanactiveandvery extensivecommerce her
mercantileshipping is , or lately was, very numerous and her
navalpowerwas, till very lately,
omegreatandformidable, andwill, withoutdoubt, soonrecoveritselfby
asewyearsofpeace.
oftheOstendCompanyconsidered, secondedition 1726,)
therebeingscarcely any,orbutverysew,
also ingreatquantities. Yett is noparadox tosay, thattheirsaid
greattradewithus is also very
prositable tothem seeing, bymeansof the various
merchandizewhichwesend them, theyarc
enabledtosupplythe populous and extensive countries
behindthemofGermany,Switzerland,
Hungary,&c.andalso countriessurtheroffbysea carriage
bywhichtheyaresaid togetagreater
annualbalancethanwegetbythem. Yet, thereis
nodoubtbutthegreatincreaseoftheScotsand
benesitsoftheirtradewith us. Ingeneral,hercomrce,thghtill atruly
active one, andher
navalpower, (especially thelatter) havedeclinedoflate years.
Therearethousands still alive, who
rememberher in thezenithofglory, notonlycoveringtheseas (as she
still doesinsomemeasure)
withhermerchantships, but also striking terrorwithherpotentnaval
armaments. Aeverse, so
muchlamentedbymany,can be best accountedfor by
herownmagistratesandparty leaders. If
thisdeclensionshouldgoontoincrease, it is toomuchtobeapprehended,
thatBritain'shereditary
passagetoChinaandIndia: and, though
theyprovedunsuccesssulinthatproject, it led theminto
thenorthseaandwhalesisheries, andintotheircommercewithRussia.
Theyhavemadenodisco
leastintimeofpeace)theirdiscoveryofapassageintothesouthsea
ofAmerica, roundCapeHorn.
partimprovedby others. Theyalso still holdthesmallistes ofCuracoa,
Aruba, andBonaire, near
thecoasts ofSpanishAmerica, andEustatiaamongtheVirginIsles.
Francehsseizedandsettledonneartheirisle ofCayenne, where, is
theysinditworththeirkeep
oftheFrenchLouisiana ; aterrible neighbour:
who,unlessnarrowlywatched,mayonedayproba
Spain
whatis still called Florida, adjoiningtoourGeorgiaonthenorth,
andtoLouisianaonthe west:
shelikewiseholdsthegreatand mostimportantisle of ub
suchpartoftheisle of Hispaniolaas
Francehasnotas yetthoughtsit toseizeon andalso theisles of
St.JohndePortoRico, &c. in
thatsea, thoughoflittle benesittothem. Spain, inshort, stillholds
morepofsessionsinAmerica,
thanpossibly a moreindustriouspeoplecouldwellmanage. She has,
however, drained herselfof
people,bysettlingcolonies,andbyexpellingoftheMoorsandJews,whileherpeopleathome,in
yetgonenogreatlengthinanymaterialmanusactures, (thoughsheis
atthistimemakingconsider*
thosedrains.
aspiring neighbour, and thereby would omesensible
ofherownsolidweight andinterest, by
keepingingoodtermswith us,
andbysuchmeanshelptopreservethejustequilibriumofEurope.,
wondersulimpulse, Spain, as beforementioned, laid
openanewandextensivewesternworld, richer
intreasurethanthe oldone. YetPortugal, by hersubsequent pride-,
luxury, andnegligence, has
lost, to theHollandersandIndians, bysar the greatest part ofwhatshe
had with such rapacity
ravishedfromthelatter ; soas at present to have
scarcelyanythingintheEastIndiesworthcon
tendingfor, viz. GbacityontheMalabarcoast, andasewless
considerableplacesintheneighbour
toryonthewestcoastofAfrica,
ofgreatuseforsupplyingherAmericancolonieswithslaves.
sent centres in her very extensiveandimmenselyrichcolony ofBrasil
inSouthAm ca
whenceshehasher vast treasures ofgold and diamonds,
besideimmensequantities of excellent
sugars, hides,drugs,tobacco,sineredwood,&c.
YetPortugal,beingbuta smallcountry,having
vastcountryofBrasil, sheis
innodangerofbecomingformidabletotherestofEurope, eitherbyan
esfects.
She;
voyages ; andalso oneortwoother almostinsignissicant little isles
aboutorneartheEquator. Her
true interest, therefore, (andwhichhitherto she
haswiselycultivated) is, beyondall otherconsi
derations, to keepmeasureswithGreatBritain, andtoconcur
inpreserving thegeneralbalanceof
power.
For,notwithstandingallherextensivepofsessionsinAfricaandAmerica,herindependence,
Caribbec Isle oj St. homas andoftwoother less
considerableonesamongsttheVirginIsles, where
shehassomesugarplantations,whicharesuppliedwithnegroesfromherfort
ofChristiansburghon
tures, &c. Yetthegreatestbenesitshereapsfromthemis, their
beingneutral inwarsbetweenus
andFranceorSpain,fro hencethey havetoooftenprovedascreenforour
enemies ships and
merchandize. Denmarkhasmoreo been long in possession of ranqueb in
theEastIndies,
whithershcsends one or twoships annually. Denmark,therefore,
(including herkingdomof
orwaymaybesaid tohavesomewhatmorethanamerepassive
commerce,thoughnota general
activecommerce,which, properlyspeaking, belongsin
anationalsensesolely toBritain, Holland,
bulkofherownproductandmanusactures ; and, inlikemanner,to import,
mostlyin herown
shipping, theproduceofforeignparts. YetnonationinEuropecanbeso
totally possessed ofsuch
anactivecommerce,as nottoreceive at
leastsomepartofforeignmerchandizefromtheshipsand
merchandize. Ontheotherhand, thereisnomaritimecountryso
entirelypassive inacommercial
sense, as nottobepartlyservedby theirownstripping;
althoughRussiaandurkebothapproach
. toamounttoaboutthirty-sixshipsofthelineofbattle,
besidefrigates, sireships, &c. all lyingin
increasedandImprovedsince hewrote. HadDenmarkandNorwayany
reasonableproportionof
butthewantofhomeonsumptionforthe merchandizewhichthey
bringfromtheEastandWest
notsufsiciently cultivatingofhomemanusactures; inwhich,
however,theyareoflatemakingcon
critical conjunctures, is ofconsiderableinfluence.
century,shehadmadesomesettlementsonthenorthendofwhatwathendeemedVirginia,though
3 Gold
forigncolony,norotheracquisition,withouttheBalticSea ;
although,oflate years, shehascarried
onatradetoChina, fromhersineportofGottenburg, with
oneortwoshipsannually,whosecar
thoughshedeesnotcarryona greatcommerceinherownpropershipping,
yetherironandcopper
consistoffortyships, mostlyfromsifty o nehundregunseach, inhersins
port ofCarlescroon.
Denmark,however, is said to haveof late so sar improvedhernavy,
manusactures, and general
commerce,thatSwedenis notat presentjudged to be amatchfor her ;
yetformerly, and atsome
certainconjunctures, Sweden'snavalforcehasbeenveryconsiderable.
Swedentherefore,uponte
whole, haslittlemorethanapassivecommerce.
frequentedonaccountoftheiroaktimber, pipestaves, navalstores,
linen, flax,hemp,caviar,amber,
YetthatMonarch,having butsewmerchantshipsbelongingtohisownsubjects,
hasnotso muck
asbarelyattemptedto beamaritimepower;neitherhas heat
presentanyforeignacquisitions, al
thatat theportof Archangel, thoughentirelya passive one.
HerlateCzar, justly ctiled Peterthe
Great, madegreatefforts forestablishinganactivecommerceaswella
anavalpowermisempire,
emporiumof St. Petersburg, towhichlastnamedporttfeere is
agreatresortofshippingfromBri
tain, Holland, France, thetwoother
northerncrowns,andtheHans-towrts; whence, as wellas
at Archangel,andother later
conqueredportsinLivonia,immensequantitiesofnaval stores,
linen
and, inpeaceabletimes, alsofrom
Persiaconsiderablequantitiesofrawsilk areexported: neverthe
Brandenburg-Prussia, andofCourlandandLivonia, havea
considerabletradewiththeinlandparts
vol.1. e notwith
all Europe. Dantzic is also an eminentemporiumfor flax, hemp,linen,
distillery, timber of
variouskinds, &c. Andthelikemaypartly besaid, thoughina
smallerdegree,oftheotherHans-
townsontheBalticshoresof ermany viz.-Lubeck, Wisinar,
Rostock,andStraclsund, although
theyhavelostmuchoftheirancientlustre, wealth, andcommerce.
already said ofthe
portofEmbden,andthelastnamedfourportsontheBaltic, thereproperly
re
quentedbyships fromall parts,
ofanyemporiuminEurope;hersituationontheElbeenabling
ofAmerica, fromBritain, Holland, andFrance ; woollenclothsinvast
quantities, hardware, lead,
tin, leather, fcc. mostly fromGreat Britain ; spices, silks,
cloths, sish, andmanyother articles,
fromHolland ; wines, brandies, silks, paper, fruits, &c.
fromFrance, Spain, and Italy. And
HamburgbringsdowntheElbe, as wellas bylandcarriage,
fromthebeforenamedcountries,im
foreignnations, intheir partly foreignshipping.
Thesamemaybesaid ofthecity ofBremen,thoughina
considerablysmallerdegree, frsupply
ing, by theriverWeser, thecountriesofWestphalia, Heslc,
&c.
It ishowe obvious, that ermany in general, can never omeamaritime
power, whilst
dividedintosomanyindependentsovereignties andfree cities.
aremuchfrequentedbyforeign shipping,whichsupply
themwithwoollengoods, sish, hardware,
EastIndiaandAmericanmerchandize, fromEngland, France, Holland,
andfromHamburg,(and
rallydeemeda partofItaly, has hesine portofMessina,wellfrequentedby
foreignshipping. And
thereturnsfrom all suchand other Italian portsinto foreignparts,
aregreatquantitiesofrawand
thrownsilk, oils, wines, drugs, fruits, &c.
Ofll thesovereigntiesin Italy,
theancientvirgincityandrepublicofVenicemostjustly merits,
Sea ; yet, inmoreancienttimes, shemadeasirst
ratesigureinthecommercialworld: andalthough
shehassincesuffereda
two-folddiminutionofhercommerceandformernavalpower sirst,
bythe
herentiretradefor EastIndia merchandize,whenthe routetoIndiaby sea
wassirst discoveredat
thecloseofthesiisteenth century ; yetshestill
prudentlysupportsherancient dignity andindepend
ence,andeven at this day
retainsaconsiderableshareofforeigncommerce,withvariousnations
navy, ofwhoseexertions, she has, inmoderntimes, givensussicient
testimonyagainsttheTurks.
Ourcommercial researches being principally limited to Europe,
orrather to EuropeanChris
tendom,weshall, inthenextplace,
takeasuccinctviewofthegradualmeanswhichhave brought
westernRomanempireintoseveralnewandseparate monarchies, most
ofwhichtill exist, though
greatalterations, untothis day ; conquerors, beinga andwarlike
gave
themselves upentirely to military atchievements; and,
havingnootherrightto theirnewdomi
nionsbutthatofthelongestsword, they remained constantly ina
warlikeposture, regardlesscither
ofarts orcommerce.
theirforeignorintestinebroils, orelse
withtheirMonkishandecclesiastical histories, legends, and
any thingthatreally deservedthatappellation existed any
wherewithoutor west oftheMediter
raneanSea.
seawithothercountries,mayneverthelesscomeunderthedesinitionoftheoneortheotherofthem.
othercountries oftheirownproductandmanusactures, thantheyimportfrom
allother countries,
then theirs is , inproportion, as trulyanactivecommerceas that of
any of the countriesalready
named and, insuchcase, is undoubtedlyincreasing theirnationalwealth
; as, ontheotherhand,
thereversewilldecreasethesame. Yetwemayherelikewiseremark,
inthecontemplationevenof
anygreatdegree of navalpower, (sincenothingcanesfectually
supportthatbuta superiornumber
ofpractisedmariners,whichnothingshortofanactivecommercecanpermanentlysupply)yetsuch
nations as, in general, mayenjoy anactive, verygreat,
andgainsulcommerce as is plainlythe
caseofRussia, as wellas
ofSwedenandDenmark,withrespecttoGreatBritain, andperhapsalso
IndiaandChina, whichsendsannually tothoseeasterncountries a
iargebalancein bullion. Yeta
nation, like Great Britain, enjoying an
extensiveactivecommerce,mustundoubtedlybea gaincr
upontheultimateresultorentirebalanceof ll its foreigncommerce as,
besideits superiormaritime
strengthandsecurity, (which, tousmostespecially, is of
insiniteconsideration)muchprosit will
ever accrue, as wellfromtheout-set, freights, &c.
ofhernumerousshipping, as fromthe vast
employmentgiventoherpeopleintheirmanusacturesandproductexported ;
(exceptinthecaseof
2
France) whereby, suchanactive commercemaynot-unsitly merit
thesinecharacterputroundthe
vergesorrimsofourbeautisulsilvercrownpieces, viz. dccuset tutamen,
i. e. dignityandsasety.
Towardthelatterendoftheeighteenthcentury, Charlemagne,
KingofFrance, asterwardsEm
greaterpartofthewestandnorthendsofGermanythanat present,
foundedmanynewities there
embraceChristianity,helaid thefoundationoftheiraster
acquaintancewiththerestof hritendo
orofFrance.
Inthemeantime, andprobablyevenpriortoCharlemagne'sconquests,
thegreaterandmorean
cient cities of Italy, whichhad not been quite ruined
bytheBarbarians, as particularlyGenoa,
Florence, Pisa, andVenice-,hadopenedacommercewith
heportsoftheEasternorGreekempire
intheLevantseas ; fro
hencetheybroughthometherichmerchandizeofGreece, Syria,Persia,
theirownverygreatenrichment: towhichcorrespondencethegreat resort
oftheclergytoRome,
littlemeansfortradeEnglandthenhad, wasentirelycarriedon
beforetheGermanmerchantshad
sixedtheirresidenceat theSteel-yardinLondon.
beingcountrieswheretheRomanarmshad never triumphed ; so
thatacommunicationwas aster
wardtherebygraduallyopenedbetweenthosetill thenbarbarous
andunknowncountries, andthe
•
becommunicated,tothegreatsutureadancementofnavigationandcommerce.
Normanconquest,
thelayrepresentativesofthenationinParliamentwerestiled theBaronage,
/'. e.
times, thatthefreeholdscametobe split into smaller parcels.
Moreover, fo wantofcommerce
andmanusactures, thelandswerewithdifficulty alienable,
andwerethereforeof a very lowvalue
forwantofpurchasers : theirowners, therefore,unabletoraise
portionsfortheiryoungerchildren,
equally discouraged.
actually
couldnotsail
tobegreatlyconducivetotheincreaseofcommerceandnavigation in
thewestparts
notapppearthattheywereofanydirectorimmediateservice fortheadanc
entofcommerce.
city of ambalu,orCambalik,wastheverycitywenowcall Pekin, thecapital
ofChina?Or,that
hewhomMarcoPolo
stilestheGreatCham,wasnootherthantheKingorEmperorofChina?
storiesoftheGreatChamofTartary,whowasnootherthantheMonarchofChina
andwehadno
ningto havecertainpeculiarprivilegesgrantedtothembytheirPrinces, as
particularlyinEngland, .
porations, inlieu ofthearbitrary
assessmentswhichbeforeweremadebythecrownosficersoneach
thoseinhabitants,andparticularlyof th'e Ports, amethereby gradually
encouraged to
entersurtheruponsisheries, &c.forexportation ;
whichledthemintothebuildingof shipsofsome,
towns,who,as Senecalongsinceobserved, areas
benesicialtocities as physiciansaretothesick.
smercator urbibusprodejl, utmtdicusagrotis.) hos exclusive
privileges, or municipal restraints,
grantedby ourKingsto thefreemen, as theywerethen beginningto be
called, ofsuch towns,
werecertainly, intheinsancyoftrade, ameansofsettingit forward;
although, sincecommerceis
sogenerallyestablished, andbetter undenftood, they are, in
thejudgmentofalmostall wisemen,
howesteemed a, real
obstructiontothefreedomandextensionofcommerce.
Yetduring all this time,andlongasterwards,Englandwasentirely
suppliedwiththemerchandize
whohad, inveryearly times, sixedtheirresidenceat
theplacetowhichtheygavethenameofthe-
ThewondersuldiscoveryoftheMariner's ompass at
thecloseofthethirteenth, orbeginning
proved.
ofhops, forpreservingberat sea ; — oftheuseof stock-sish, invoyages
ofgreat length; — ofthe
improvementofhavens, rivers, andhighways ; — ofthediscovery
ofnewmanusactures,mines, &c.
mostofwhichwillbetreatedofmoresullyintheirrespectiveplaces.
WestIndies,Mexico,Peru,Chili, and OtherpartsofAmerica,bythe
Spaniards, haveproved, in
sincethosetwogranddiscoveries, manyusesul, thoughlesser and
collateral ones, havebeenconse
quentlymade.
twohithertoimpracticablenorth-west north-eastpassagestoChina
India,have,nevertheless,
attemptsareowingthe Greenland sishery, the Hudson'sBaytrade, and
the trade to Russia and
Lapland. Whichnaturallybringsto mindthefollowing beautisul
simileofthepoet, thoughon
anothersubject, viz.
** (Forneither that in artnornatureis)
Anddoes his chargeandlabourpay,
Withgoodunsoughtexperimentsby theway. Cowlej'sMistress.
ments,bysuperstitiousandnonsensicalholidaysandprocessions:
and,
theirown,so thatmultitudesofusesulpeoplehavebeen, at
differenttimes, preventedfromsettling
Nevertheless,Englandhasformerlybeenblameableforsomeobstructions,
oversights,ormistakes,
maybeinflictedonanyquiet,sober,andindustrioussubjects,merelyfordissentingfromthemajority
aboutwhichDivineRevelationis absolutely silent, are
undoubtedlysomanyreal obstructions to
commerceandindustry.
HadArchbishopLaudbeenpermittedtogooninhismadcareerofbigotry,hewouldhavedriven
conniveda intheiropinions, yetitwasnot sit thatsuchaschism
should beperpetuated : their
children, therefore, shouldandmustbeeducatedin the
established religion. Bythesame ill-
judgedand unchristian spirit, weregreatnumbersof
BrownistsandIndependents, ofourown
nation, driventothewildernessesofAmerica;where,however, they and
their descendantsproved
a verygreatblessingto Britain, byextendingitscommerce,andin
settling nd peopling ofNew
England, themost industrious, potent, and hitherto mostpopulous, of
all theNorthAmerica
provinces. Andthesamemaybesaid ofthe Quakers,whohave been so
instrumental in sinely
improvingandpeoplingofthesertile provinceofPennsylvania.
relentless crueltiestoProtestantshasbeen equallyhurtsul to the
persecutors, as benesicial to the
Protestantpartstowhichthepersecutedwere forcedto retire. Howmuchhas
that ancient,and
oncemostpopulouscity ofCologne, sufferedfrombeing guidedbythe
diabolical spirit oftheir
Jesuits, inexpellingall their Protestantinhabitants, whothereupon
settled mostly at msterdam,
Bremen,andHamburg,totheenrichingosthosecities,
andthedepopulatingaswellasimpoverish
its Protestant merchants much the dominions
Silesia, Austria, andHungary,sufferedal ro bytheJesuit councils of
a blindandbigotted set of
Princes? Theignorantenthusiastsof
Polandhavebeenguiltyofsimilarmadness. Andhavenot
JewsToinstancenomore,
didnotLouisXIV.ofFranceforcemanyhundredthousands (some
manusacturers,andartisicers, totakeshelter
inEngland,Holland,Switzerland, ermanyPrussia,Sec
totheverygreatemolumentofthosecountries, thedraining
ofhisownkingdomofmuchwealth
policyandcommerce as,
VanArtevilleagainstFranceandtheEarlofFlanders, contraryto the
wiseconduct ofhisgrand
soconvenientforEngland'scomrce
ndforkeepingFranceinperpetualaweofEngland.
III. OliverCromwell'sjoiningwith Franceagainst Spain,
alreadytoomuchdepressed, for his
ownparticular interests ; as KingCharles II. asterwards did, in
order to supply his voluptuous
appetites,andfortheestablishmentofarbitrarypower.
greatriverMissisippi; andourtoolong
neglectingtoputaduevalueonoursugarislands. Yetto
werethenwidelydifferentfro ha theyareat present,manypoints
seemnowtobepracticable*
occasioniteveryyearto ecommoredifficult,
formanyobviousreasons.
temperinwhichtoomanypeoplestill remain; viz.
townscorporate, buteven in thesubordinatemechanical corporation
societies withinthose cities
andtownscorporate; bywhichthe mostingeniousandindustrious artisans
areoftenexcluded,
part (someevengoso sar as tosaynotone-sifthpart) sopopulous as it
canwellbear, support, or
maintain ; it isthoughttobeapointofstate policywell
omingtheregardof the legislature, to
makethenaturalizationofall foreignProtestantsas easy as is
consistentwith thesullemployment
ofourownpeople; moreespeciallyas bothourlandandnavalwars,
ourmercantilenavigation,and
X.It is a melancholy consideration, thatalthough so
manyablepenshavebeenso oftenengaged
inproposingplansforessectually employing all our ablepoor, andat
thesametimeremovingthe
scandalousnuisancesinourstreetsandroads,bysupportingallthedisabled;
bothwhichgreatpoints,
it is thought, might be esfected, with thegreat additional benesit
of saving, according to some,
abouthalfa millionofmoney,partofmorethandoublethatsum, annually
raisedon peoplet
solittlegoodeffect ; yetnothinghaseffectually beendonetherein by
tholewhoalonehave it in
theirpowertoset aboutit, especially
intimeofpeaceandtranquillity.
sure, andpofsiblytoo, thefamecoinsin stamp, standard,andweight,
withtheir sub-divisions, it
wouldgreatly
sacilitatethecorrespondencesandcommercebetweenthedifferentnationsofEurope
moreespecially is all thesub-divisions thereof wereto be decimal.
But, as such an harmonious
agreementis rathertobewishedforthanexpected,ho chsoever it maybeall
Europe'scom
mercial interest to haveit so, weshall contentourselveswith justly
blamingthe negligenceofthe
Britishnation, innothavingoneonly weightandmeasurethroughout all
parts ofGreatBritain,
Ireland, andourforeignplantations, thewantofwhichhasbeen,
andeverwill be, attendedwith
greatinconveniencies. SirJamesWare,in his Annalsof Ireland,
observes, undertheyear 1498,
thatin Irelandeverycountyhadadifferentmeasure,
notwithoutevidentdetriment to thepublic;
Oneaith, oneweight,onemeasure,andonecoin,
ouldll theworldinharmonyconjoin.
thegeneralannualbalanceofawholenation'scommerce;a pointbut little
understood, and very
workupinourownmanusactures, aresar frombeinghurtsul to ourcommerce
andmayeven, in
manyrespects, bedeemedofequalbenesitwithourownnativecommodities.
Suchmerchandize,
housebooksanuncertainguide.
tobeagainstacountry in itscommerceto several foreignparts,
although, nevertheless, a trade,
prositableuponthewhole, maybecarried onbythat country.
Thus,forinstance, in England's
exchangewithHolland,muchofthetreasurereceivedbytheDutchmerchantsinSpainandPortugal,
toanswerthebalanceoftrade,whichis
greatlyintheirsavourwithrespecttoboththosenations, is
oftenbroughtthenceinourshipstoLondon,andtransmittedtoHolland,makinga
mutualdemand
foreignPrinces,andourappointmentstoourministersat foreigncourts ; —
thedrasts ofou nobility
demandsonus fromthe northern crowns, Russia, the Hans-towns,
andindeed from all other
countriestowhomweusually pay anannualbalance. These,
andothersimilar causesoccasionally
occurring, may,anddofrequently, turn againstus theexchangewith
msterdam,thecentreof
exchangeforallEurope, evenalthough it maybe universallyallowed, as
already observed, thatwe
carryonaveryprositablecommercewithHollanditself,
separatelyconsidered,as wellaswithseveral
bothtogether,which s disadvantageousto, andwill, in
theend,bringonpovertyonanycountry;
andnotsuchimportationsas, likemanyofours, consistofrawsilk,
Spanimwool,cottonwooland
usedinourshipbuilding, orworkeupin our manusactures, and mostly
also for exportation:
Neitherareourimportations of EastIndiaandPlantationgoods, designed
to be re-exported, nor
theforeignlinens,&c. forsupplyingour
ownAmericanplantations,andourAfricantrade, to be
deemedunprositable, butare,onthecontrary, quitebenesicialto
us.
do,andmoreespeciallyas certainFrenchauthorsdo,who,oflate,
havevainlypretendedtoascertain,
areso manystronglyconcurring evidences of ourbeing very
considerablegainersbyour general
foreigncommerce,as, ineffect,amountto demonstration. It must,
indeed, beacknowledged, that
hadwenotso vasta nationaldebt, occasioninga terrible
loadofheavytaxes and burdens ontrade
andmanusactures, as well asonalmostall thenecessariesoflise,
ournationalwealthwouldincrease
muchsaster than it canpossiblybeexpectedtodoinsuchcircumstances:
whichgeneralobservation
averyprosperousstate,
inrespecttotheirgeneralcomrce,ndtheirpeculiarmanusactures.
see thelargestridesweformerlytookintheincreaseofcommerceand
wealth,moreespeciallyfrom
haveverymuchretardedtherapid increase of our wealth.
Nevertheless,wemust strangely and
wilsullyshutoureyes, notplainly to perceive, byvariousinsallible
marks, agradualincreaseofour
commerce,wealth, andpeople, sincethatmosthappyperiod, viz.
sincetherevocationoftheedictofNantz, intheyear 1685, as wellas
bythenaturalaugmentation
ofourownpeople.
also theshippingofLondon,as wellas ofmost oftheout-ports,
areconsiderablyincreased , as is
also thenumberofreal merchants, as wellas of wholesaleandretail
dealers; our shops and ware
housesmorenumerous, andmuchbettersilled ;
andthesuburbsofLondonarecontinuallyexpand
ingthemselveseveryway,bynewandsiner builtstreets.
IV.Moneys in greater plenty; and, as an insallible
consequencethereof, its interest lower
thanever.
housholdsurniture,&e. greaterstocksofcattle, — lands better
improved, as are also mines and
sisheries, — andthelike still morein respect of our manusactures ;
— greater portions givenbyall
rankstochildren; — and, ingeneral, peopleof all degrees, both
intownandcountry, live much
betterthanformerly.
ineachofits rates thanattheRevolution, in 1688. .
Allwhich, andnumerousotherinstances, that, forbrevity'ssake,weomit,
havenotbeensud
solely fromanincreaseofluxury or prodigality ; bothwhichwemu ho
allow, will ever'
increaseinsomeproportiontotheinsluxofnationalwealth.
England,therefore, isnowundoubt
Europeat presenthas, orperhapseverhad.
creditis aprincipalcauseofthespeciousappearanceof wealth,
moreespecially in ourgreatmetro
polis; where, say they, thereis not so greata
plentyofrealmoneyorcoinasmanywouldhave us
believe. Bywhichtheobjectorswouldseemtoinsinuate, that
papercreditmaybearbitrarily, and
moreabsurdandsalse insact. For, were therenoother demonstrative
evidencethereofthan the
f2 samous
France, thataloneis susficient to evince, that
thenationalpapercredit in everycountry, thatis,
itspublicassignabledebtsorsunds, as well as
thatofeverybankandbanker, in order to its per
manentdurationandsupport, mustever bear, at least, adue
proportiontothereal intrinsicability
orwealthofsuchnation, bank, orbanker. Or, in otherwords,
withparticularregardtonational
credit, thatsuchpapercreditcannolongerpoflbss a solid duration than
whilstmenare persuaded
thatproportionableorsufficient realities exist orremainfor
circulatingoransweringthesame. Or,
thatcouldbenamed,tocontractso largea public debt as ours, their
whole revenuewouldnot
suffice merely forpayingtheannual interest ofevenafourthpartofit :
wherefore,therewould, in
suchakingdom,remainnopubliccreditat all, buteverythingwouldsoon
tend toageneralna
National, or publicpaper credit, therefore, is notthe cause, but
purelythe effect ofnational
ability orwealth: whichpositionwillequally holdgoodwith respectto
thepapercredit of banks,
and.also ofprivatebankers ; whomustever have, is they wouldalways
be sase, a real and solid
bottom, foranswering, ina reasonable time, all demandsfrom their
papercreditors, in caseof
whatis usually stiled a runuponthem. Willanyone, forinstance,
imagine, thatthetwoincor
banksat Edinburgh, eachofwhosecapitals does
onehundredthousandpounds
sterling, would,ordurstprudently orsasely ventureto issue
calh-notes, to theamountof a bank,
supposeourbankofEngland, havinga capitaloftenmillionssterling ?
Since,- probably, even the
wholecashofScotlandwouldscarcelybesufficient to circulatethe notes
ofthelast namedbank
yetboththesaidEdinburghbanks are, andeverhavebeen,
ingreatcreditoverallthatoftheunited
kingdom anddomake, and ever have made, considerableannual dividends
of their prosits by
banking. Boththey,
andlikewiseourprivateLondonbankers,verywellknowtheirownstrength,
existingcapital.
banker; andthatalthoughboththeoneandthe othermaybe, andhavebeen,
often brought into
distress incalamitoustimes,
sothatthecreditoftheformerhssometimessunkso sar inthemarket
price, as tohurtveryconsiderablysuchproprietors as
hadimmediateoccasionforrealizing ; andthe
creditorsofthelatter, onsuch anoccasion,by temporarystopofpayment,
havebeenobligedto
veredtheirformercredit whereas theFrenchRoyalBankand
Missisippistocks, and the English
SouthSeastock, screwedup, in1720, to theenormousprice of
onethousandpercent. suddenly
shrunk ; th formertonothing, ineffect, andthelatterto less
thanone-tenthpartof thenominal
valueit hadattained : andthesame, orworse, at thattime, besell
suchprivatebankersas ventured
sar outoftheirdepth,andlost
sightofthenecessaryprecautionofkeepingwithinthslimitsoftheir
is inthatrespectsosarfrombeingamisfortune, assomehaveinsinuated,
thatit is a realandvery
considerable
tallic manufacturesofiron, .steel, tin, copper, lead, andbrass,
areoflatertimesso vastlyimproved
andincreased, as justly to beesteemedthesecond to it, and arealso
the sinest in theworld, being
exportedto almosteverypart,inimmensequantities: so
thatsomethinktheyemployhalfamillion
withstandingsuchunpromisingappearances. Thelinenmanusacturesand
sine sabrics ofScotland
manyhandsas ourmetallicmanusacturesinEngland. .
twomillionssterling; andwhenmanusactured it costs or is valued at
six millions more;and is
thought to employupwards ofone millionof ourpeopleinits
manusacture5 whereas in former
timesallourwoolwasexportedunmanusactured,
ndourownpeopleremainedunemployed.
therental is
nowincreasedtoaboutfourteenmillions,andsomethinkconsiderably
higher:ofwhich
putation, viz.
yieldedtenyearspurchase, or — — — — 50
inlands, (copyholds, &c. included)onanaverage, at
orneartwentyyearspurchase 200
III. Andfourmillionsinhouses,nowso vastly improvedandincreased, at
eightyears
purchase,onamedium, - — — — — ,
It is quiteimmaterialwhether this increased computation be minutely
exact: for, as it is not
probablv very widefromthemark, it
willwellenoughservefortheillustrationofourgeneralposi
Yetthis so vast anincreaseof our rental is sar frombeingall
thebenesitaccruingfromourin
creasedcommerce. Theimmenseincreaseofourpersonalestates
arisingtherefrom, inplate, jewels,
Thesemayat leastbesupposedtohavekeptpacewiththeincreasingvalueof
our rents. Tothese
Astothemoneyoutat interest,
eitherduebyprivatepersonsorinthepublicsunds ; itmaypro
our computation: andyetits increase, couldit bediscovered,wouldbea
collateral proofofour
increasedliches.
commercewouldinsallibly
sinkthevalueandrentsoflandsinasimilarproportion. Ourcities
and
manusacturingtownswhichdonowconsumesuchimmensequantitiesoftheproductofour
lands,
mightintimescarcelybesufficient tosupportthenumberless poor, then
destitute ofemployment.
Inwhichlamentablesituation, it is noexaggerationto assert,
thatthelandedinterestwouldbemore
sensiblyaffectedthaneventhemerchants, traders,
andmanusacturersthemselves; as thelattercould,
barepossibilityof so sadadeclensionoughtsurely tokeepusperpetually
watchsul;moreespecially
nusactures, oursisheries, ourplantations, orournavalpower.
Solongagoas theyeir 1680, Sir illia Temple in his Miscellanies,
observes, that trade
isgrownthedesignof all
thenationsinEuropethataepossessedofanymaritimeprovinces ; as
AndLordVerulam,(thatgreatglory ofourisle) treating,
inhisAdvancementofLearning, ofthe
advantagesofmaritimegreatness, sinelyobserves, (onehundredandsifty
yearsago), that hethat
proper : whereas, Potentateswhoaremerelystrongat land, are,
notwithstandingtheirlandfupe-
riority, frequently reduced togreatdifficulties :
andtherichesof boththeIndiesseem in a great
degreebuttheconsequenceofthecommandofthesea. It is
almostunnecessary toobserve,how
Ourgreatrivalsonthecontinent, it is true, think themselves
obligedto keepupvast standing
armies, intimeofpeaceas wellas inwar butthen,
beingsurroundedoneveryside b adoubleor
treblechain ofstrongfortresses, theyhavethereby sufficient
timeandmeansto preventa surprize.
Thisis sarfrombeingourcase, whosegreatresource forsasety is ,
tobeconstantlyandvery consi
derablysuperiorinnraritimestrengthto every other nation whatever.
Thissuperiority ofnaval
power, necessarily requiring-orimplyinga
proportionablesuperiorityofmaritimecommerce,sets be
stantsuperiorityontheocean, it
willbeabsolutelyimpossibleforBritaintopreserveits externalin
add, that, is ever Britain'sexternalindependenceshouldbe lost,
thatoftherest of thenationsof
Europethatshall dareto opposeanyorer-growntyrant, willbealso soonat
anend.
With
tain(as hasgenerallybeensaid, and nearlyproved) containsabove
(butwewillnowonlysuppose
thatnumber)eightmillionsoffouls ; andthat, as is also thought,
every soul, onewithanother,or
richandpoor, youngandold, onanaverage, spendsannuallysevenpounds
thentheirwholean
nualexpencewill bea least sifty-sixmillions.
(cxportationsincluded)tothevalueof — — — — 48
to all foreigncountrie doesnotexceed, inourownproduct
andmanusactures,andthose
ofburplantations andforeignsactories, — — — — 8
(Mr.WallaceandMr.Hume)uponaquestion, Whethertheancientworld wasor
wasnotmore
Afillions.
makesthepeopleofFrancebutseventeenmillions).
(LordWhitworth'saccountofRussia, as it
wasintheyear1710,makesthepeople
Denmark,Sweden, andNorway,areover-ratedconsiderably).
VI.InItaly andtheisles adjacent, i. e. Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica,
Malta, &c. — n
VII.InEngland — f — — — — 8
earth,whichprobablyinducedtheFrenchmanto display histalents
incomputation.
WithrespecttoGreatBritainandIreland, jointlyconsidered, surely
Deslandesis mistaken,and
millionsofpeople whichprobablymaybethusdistributed, viz.
II. InScotland — — — — i
books, he. viz.
Protestants, verynear — — — 600,000 )
year 1699, quotesa manuscriptofone,whomhestiles
theingeniousMr.GregoryKing,exhibiting
thenumbersofpeopleinEngland, at thefollowingperiods, viz.
II. AttheIncarnationofourSaviour, increasedto — — 400,000
III. AttheNormanconquest, to — — — — 2,000,000
V.Inaboutfourhundredandtwenty-sive yearsmore, accordingto him,
thepeople
ofEnglandmayhavedoubledthelast-recitednumber,viz. in1685, about
5,500,000
theBishop'ssurvey, in1676, the peopleofEnglandwerereckoned nearsix
milhons, eighty-six
yearsago.
themtobeabouteightmillionsofpeople, whichmayperhapsbetoohigh.
only for preservingwhatweareinpossession of,
butforavailingourselvesofthemistakesor negli
China, shouldonedaycomethemselvestobesuppliedwiththoseandother
articles bytheremote
msterdamandaeemshouldgradually lose (as in
parthasalreadyhappened,andlikelymoreand
at Venice, Florence, Pisa,-andLucca,uponthe early revival
ofcommerceaster the sall of the
westernempire fromwhencethebulk of it removed,
abouteighthundredyearsago, totheNe
therlands; ndfrotheNetherlands,abouttwhundredyearsago,intoEngland
orthatthegreat
fromLondonto theports of France; sinetoys, haberdashery, jewels,
watches, hardware, hats,
stockings, &c. from andGermanyinto Thevarious removes of
herring-
sishery, also, areremarkable, as willbeseeninitsplace. These,
andmanymoreinstances,which,
were it necessary, mightbegiven, render several oftheaxiomsand
dogmatical opinionsofsomeof
ourolderwritersuponcommerceunsaseto be relied on, as
moresullyremarkedin our presace.
enthatexcellenttreatise of Sir Jofiah Child, is already
somewhatliable to this caution; espe
ciallywhenwritingontheDutchcommerce,thenin its sull persection,
thoughsinceconsiderably
Italy, andsewornonewithregardtothe ans-towns,Hamburgexcepted.
Suchchangeshavein
thefoundingofRome,whoobserves, thatseveralofthecities of
Phenicia,whichwereformerly
large, hadformerlybeenlittle.
Russia : theonlycrimesofmostofwhichplaces, in ermany seeming to
havebeen theirgreat
wealth,andtheirunhappyvicinitytosomeall-aspiringtyrant.
vol.1. g supplied
this reason,ouroldcommercialwritersarealmostwholly
takenupwiththeimportanceofourwool
cles, wereallwepretendedto call ourstaple commodities.
Withrespecttoourimportations, Venice sirst, andLisbonnext,
supplieduswiththemerchan
withthebest ofourshipping. Germanyalso, withlinen, tinplates,
andhardware, evenso lowas
to nails themselves. France suppliedus, ingreat abundance,
withsilks, linen, wines, brandies,
paper, toys, and srippery. Howhappy then is the
changeinournationalcircumstances, sincewe
havehadAmericanplantations, thedemandfromwhence, of allkindsof
merchandize, havingso
greatly excitedourpeopleathometotheimprov
entandincreaseofcuroldmanusactures, andto
riousdependenceonother nations,
forwhatwenoweithermanusacturemuchbetter athome,or
else aresuppliedwithfromourownplantationsandforeignsettlements,
inexchange forournative
areourcustomsthereby increased, fromthirty-six
thousandpoundsatQueenElizabeth'sdeath, to-
fourtimesasmanyt present.
OurAmericanplantations, therefore,bythevast
increaseoftheirpeople,andofthecommodities
home,manyhundredsofstoutships,
andmanythousandsofmariners,constantlyemployed much
sincegivenalarmingapprehensionstoall theirneighbours.
equalin quantity,andtoexceedin prosit,
alltheothercommercewehavewiththerest oftheworfd.
moreespecially inthesine continentalcoloniesof CarolinaandGeorgia ;
which, intheopinionof
veryknowingpersons, arecapable, withproperindustry,
ofraisingthesinest productionsofail the
threedivisionsofthsoldworld, as wellas thatofthenewone.
ofKingGeorgeI. andwhichhe asterwards printed,
in1724,uponhisapplicationforcarrying
intoCarolina a colony ofProtestant Switzers , he lays it downas a
pojlulatum, Thatthereis a
** certainlatitudeonourglobe, so
happilytemperedbetweentheextremesof heatand cold, as to
bemorepeculiarly adaptedthanany other for all thesaid
riohproductions: andheseems, with
judgment, tohavesixed nthe latitude ofthirty-three degrees,
whethersouthornorth, being
thatofCarolina, as
theidenticaloneforthatpeculiarcharacter.
Thatsensibleman,anativeofSwitzerland,whomtheauthorof thisworkonce
conversedwith,
heendeavouredtopersuadethemtoplantnewcoloniesohthe coastofCasfrcs,
neartheircolony at
plants ; wherebythe
ompanywouldbeenabledtosupplytheirEastIndiasettlementswithwines,
** peans. But in this memorial, Purry, it seems,
touchedonsomepointswhichtheCompany
judgedimproperto be published,
andwhichconstrainedhimtoleaveHolland. Hisnextapplica
Thattheycouldnotjudgeofcountrieswhichtheyhadneverseen.
putablesacts, Thattheidenticallatitudeo
SouthCarolina,whichthencomprehendedthecoun-
willeverbefoundtobeproductiveoftherichest plants, fruits,
drugs, &c. ofanypartwhatever
ontheterraqueousglobe, all otherthingsbeingsupposedequal, i.
e. providedtherebenonatural
< impediments, such as rocks, marshes, sandy defarts, &c.
Alatitude, sayshe, which,by
themoderationofits heat, andtemperature fits air,
shedsfruitsulnessontheearth, andhappi-
nessonmankindingeneral ; who,thesurtherthey
aredistantfromthis degree, areonlysomuch
tries arefoundtoexcel,inproportion, thenearertheyapproachto
thisdegreeoflatitude. Upon
Plataonits southside, mustbecountriespreserableto any in all
America, as being all situated
aboutornearthesaid thirty-thirddegree. It is,
continuedhe, aconsequencethatneversails.
ThusAndalusia isthebestofall theprovincesofSpain,
ascomingneartoourthirty-thirddegree
silk in theworld, as beingsitter forthe breeding of
silkworms,thaneither France, Spain, or
Italy ; as it is also for wines, oils, cotton, indigo, wax,
fruits, cocoa nuts, timber, tar, flax,
hemp,rice, wheat, &c.
ThePresaceoftheEnglishtranflationofthesaid Memorialalleges,
tiutourgreatSirIsaac ewto.did, ingeneral,
agreetotheprinciplesofthis sameopinion.
Carolina ; as havealso
beentheexcellentproductionsofthewinesandfruitssinceraisedonthecoast
eighty thousand to one hundredand four thousand
barrelsforexportation; so thatit grewtobe
morethan could be vendedto advantage; which, it seems,
wasoneoccasionoftheirengagingin
thecultivationofindigo,nowalso broughtto a greatdegreeof
persection. Theproductionofrice
at Carolinawasas accidentalas wasthatof sugarlongbeforea Barbadoes,
(ofwhichinits place)
and therefore deserveslikewiseto be ommemoratedfor
theencouragementof similarattemptsin
future. Itseems, thecaptainofa snipfrom Madagascar, touching at
Carolina, inthereignofthe
lateQueenAnne,left, witha planterthere, a smallbag, notexceedinga
peckof seedrice, byway
of experiment: and, soon aster, Mr.DuBois, thenTreasurerof
ourEastIndia ompany,sent
thitherfromhence, for thesameexperiment, a bag of anothersort
ofseedrice: and, aster several
trials ofboththosesorts, theplantersat
lengthfoundoutthetruemethodofcultivatinganddressing
is broughtfromSweden yet,
byasurthercontinuanceofthebountiesthereon, and other
newproductions,
theymayprobablybebroughttopersectioninareasonabletime.
country-people, onthe river Savannah,
whichpartsCarolinafromGeorgia;wherehe hasper
petuated hisname,byfounding hetownofPurrysburg,
inwhichtheposterityofthoseProtestant
Switzersremainat this time.
androots :
inCarolinaandVirginia,theyhavefoundseveralexcellentoriginally-nativeproductions
sohighlycelebratedinChina.
published in 1729, entitled, TheTradeand Navigationof
GreatBritainconsidered, assuresus,
thatthehempofVirginiahas, upontrial, beenfound toequal,
ingoodnessandstrength, that of
AnconainItaly, allowedtoexceedanyotherhempinEurope.
toEurope, innearthreehundredsail ofourownshipping, bringingina
revenueofaboutornear
nually re-exportedtootherEuropeancountries. Ironalso
isnowbroughtfromthenceinconsider
exchange
asit is said, aboveonethirdpartof the ironweuse; and as
Swedenmaysometimeorothertake
thesameunreasonableadvantageof usinthis ommoity,as theydid in the
article of tar, inthe
year1703, it is therefore surely the highestwisdom,to have all
suchcommoditiesentirelyfrom,
ourowncolonies.
It is almost impossible, says the said ingenious Mr.Gee,
to sindoutsive such necessary
articles ashemp,flax, silk, iron, andpotash,
forcarryingonthemanusacturesofthiskingdom,
thatcanbedonewithso little trouble.
Moneyoughttobeadvancedbythenation, forthepro-
plantations, thereneedsnot obeone idle person in Great
Britain and Ireland; though, it is
said, thereis nownearonemillionidle, ofonefort orother.
Notonefourthpart, continues
he, oftheproductofour plantationsredounds totheprosit of
theplantersthemselves: for, out
ofallthatcomeshither,theyonlycarrybackcloathingandother
ommodationsfortheirsami-
it is laiduphere ; andtheirchildrenaresenthitherforeducation.
Thereareverysewtradingor
Geealso thought, that tea, coffee, and produced in see
pre
miumsofthetrulyhonourablesociety fortheencouragementofarts,
manusactures, andcommerce,
inthe years1759, ll , anc I7I, which, with wildolivetrees,
rosin, turpentine, iron-stone*
boards, lumber, pipe-staves, masts, yards, hides, tallow,
surs, beef, pork, butter,cheese,buck-
wheat, oats, barley, andtheother before-namedproductions
ofour several colonies, is sucha
catalogueofmost excellentandusesulmerchandizeas cannoteasily
bematchedinanycultivated
country ofChristendom.
Byallwhichmeanstogether,wemightsaveabovetwomillionsan-
nually,whichwenowpay to foreignnations,andtoourownpoor.
medicines,somematerialsforbuildings, toys, andother
curiosities.
thetradewiththemis notlike thosecarriedonwithforeignnations,
whichundoubtedlymay,from
mittingtheshipsofforeignnationsinto their ports,
stressofweatherexcepted,andalso fromtaking
sindsemploymentforfourtimes asmanyathome. Now,supposingthat,
sincehistime,theremay
betwhundredandsifty thousandwhitemeninall ourcolonies,
(exclusiveofwomenandchildren,
thousandvessels
oftheirown,greatandsmall)thenisemploymentgiventonoess
thanonemillion
may
whetherbysetting rksuchimmensnumbersofourmanusacturers
andartissicers ofall kinds,
year 1735, ina memorialandpetition t theprivy council, clearly,
thoughina bluntmanner, re
presentthethenunsettledandveryhazardousconditionofNovaScotia,
andits imminentdanger
hisplanwaspuisued; bywhichdelay,
ourenemieshadsomanymoreyearsofleisure tomakesur-
America, notby its sertility, butsituation;
andhowmuchbloodandtreasurehasthatsatal neglect
• since costus.
disinterestedly undertakento ascertainandset outthejust
southboundariesofCarolina,bysoliciting
• the Britishensignsaredisplayed.
naturalandincurablesterility, it
doesnotpromisetoberenderedconsiderablemerelyas a plantation
thousandpoundssterling,
addedannuallytothenationalbalanceorstockinoursavour, it is
ofvery
ofLouisiana, andall thecountry of Florida,
toprotectourCompany'sforts, andtheir tradeand
boundaries ; whither also, in theopinion ofsomeintelligentpeople,
amoreextensivecommerce
withthesavagesmightbecarriedonwithourcoarserwoollen,
metallic,andlinenmanusactures, 5ec.
presentCompany'*capitalstockof
littlemorethanonehundredthoufandpoundmighb thereby
fourshipshitherto ; wereanothercompanyto
makeupaproportionablecapital, withthesanctionof
an act of Parliament, anda royal charter, which, without doubt, his
Majesty, for thebenesitof
comrce, ldbegraciouslypleasedto grant: for
thepresentHudson'sBayCompanys notan
exclusiveone. Yetas this Company'sforts, such as they are,
wereerectedat theirownexpence,
they haveanundoubtedrighttoexcludeall othersfromtakingthebenessit
oftheirprotection, with
ewn,inotherpartsofthewidely-extendedcountriesroundthat vast bay,
.andmighttradewiththe
savagesthereof, withoutinterseringwiththepresentcompany or
elsemightbeenabled,fora valu
wellbesupported,forall his
Majesty'ssubjectsfreelytotrafficinthatBay,
andupintotheadjoining-
likelytosindthesomuchandso longsoughtfornorth-west passageto
ChinaandJapan, thanthe
mayhere, observe,thatour latekindneighbourstheFrenchof
anadhaveformerly encroachedon
ofthetreaty ofUtrecht;whichboundaries, it is tobehoped,
therewillnotnowbeanymoreocca
sionexactlytoascertain.
theisle ofCapeBreton, thenesteemedofvery little value..
TheBermudasorSommersIsles, aresomeofou earliest
possessionsintheWesternSeas, sarre*
whattheypickupamongourSugarIslands. Yetas itwouldbeverydangerous
toBritainforany
sonableencouragement.
modiousintimeofwar, onaccountof prizesbroughtin thither. It has,
however, very littleof
productforexportation,exceptsomeambergris,certainsine
timbers,oranges,andsomeother fruits,,
andthatitwouldbedangeroustobeinany othernation'shands.
benotonlyabridleagainstCanada, iseverthatshouldagain omeFrench,
butmayalsoinesfect
besaid tobeacurbonallothernationssailing inthoseseas.
Thirdly, It isextremelyhappyforus, thatit is sowellstocked
withtimber, masts, &c. forthe
useoftheroyalnavy moreespecially as it omesevery year moredisficult
to be suppliedwith
thosearticleselsewhere.
theroyaldockyards,
andtimberforthebuildingofmanygoodmerchantships.
andalso pipe staves, lumber, &c. for thatend. Forall which, the
islanderspaytheminsugar,
jrielasses, rum, andSpanishcoin ; withwhich, again,
thosecontinentalcolonies pay GreatBritain
andIrelandfor every thing they ntfro us,
andwithwhattheygetfromtheFrench, Dutch,
andSpanishcolonies, as also withwhattheygetfromPortugal, Spain,
Italy, andsometimes as sar
asfromtheLevant,whomthey supply, in theirownshipping, with
sishcaughtintheAmerican
seas, andoccasionallylikewisewiththeircorn.
is hithertopeculiartous; therebeingas
yetnootherEuropeannationwhateverthathascoloniesin
Americacapableofsupplying their mother-country withthecorn,
andotherexcellentproviiions,
whichours, in caseof necessity, can do, as well as with naval
stores; with whichlast-named
great article, it i nowearnestly to be hoped, weshall, byall
pofsible means, endeavour to
supply ourselves entirely fromthem, and our vast newacquisitions
onthe same continent
of America,andthereby save theimmensesumshithertopaidto
theDanes,Swedes, Poles,and
Ruffians.
Whathasbeenalreadyobservedofthe,productandgreatbenesitsoftheprovincesofVirginiaand
Marylands sufficient to illustrate their vast importance; and,
particularly, thevervgreatemploy
mentthey give to our ships, mariners, and manusacturers, and to
almost all otherbranchesof
business.
ports,
Americancolonies, publishedin1757, asfollows, viz.
wax,myrtle,somerawsilk andcotton.
NorthCarolinaexportedintheyear 1753,
silk, andtoexportsomecornandlumbertotheWestIndies.
Theyhavealsosometradewiththe
muchmorenumerousnegroesneed, butlikewiseonaccountof the vast
quantityoftheveryrich
kinds,andmahoganytimber ; therebygreatly augmentinghis
Majesty'scustoms, ndmploing
greatnumbersofourships, mariners, manusacturers, &c.
tonolessthanonemillionthreehundredthousandpoundssterling ; andthat,
till theFrenchsup
sogeneralalmostoverall Europe, theconsumptionof sugar has
sogreatlyincreased, that it is, at
thisday, oneofthegreatestarticles incommerce.
at leastknowninAmerica, till transplanted thither bytheEuropeans.
Its originwasfromthe
inlandcontinentofAsia, veryprobablyas sar east as China, whereit
still greatlyabounds. Itwas
fromthatcontinentsirst transplanted toCyprus andthence, according
to various authors, into
Sicily, wherenofootstepsofit nowremains ; thenceit
wastransplanted'totheMadeiraandCanary
foretheydiscovered,orat least plantedinBrasil,
beinginpofsessionofthecoastofAngola,inAfrica,
FromBrasil it wastransplanted, asweshall see, sirst to our isle
ofBarbadoes, andthenceto our
otherWestIndia isles ; asfromBrasil also it wascarried to
theSpanishWestIndia isles, andalso
totheSpanishdominionsinMexico, Peru,andChili; and, lastly, to
theFrench,Dutch, andDa
nishcolonies. Moreofthehistoryandtransplantationsof this
mostuniversalmerchandizewillbe
judiciousObservationsontheconductoftheFrench, and their
ncroachments our American
Colonies: (-Bostonprinted,andLondonre-printed, in1755) viz.
Thatourannualexportsto
allthepresentshippingofGreatBritain. Besides, that this
tradewill enableher, with greater
advantage, toextendhercommercewith other countries. Ourannual
importsfromall our
Americanplantations,areconjecturedto
amounttonearthricethevalueofoursaid exports ; which,
contrarytothenatureofourimportsfromforeignnations, constitutesa
real balanceinoursavour
tiongoodstoforeignparts, viz. oftobacco, rice, sugar,
peltry,&c. is one very great, is not the
greatest,
meansofbringingthegeneralannualbalanceoftradetobesomuchinoursavour.
discouraged, beinggreatlosers bytheiryearlyembarkations thither, as
appearsbythe histories of
Virginia,Barbadoes,Bermudas,&c.whichwereindeed, fora
longtime,mereunprositabledrains
ofourpeopleandsubstance, until, bypatienceandperseverance,
theyhadclearedandplantedthose
ploying, encreasing, andenrichingtheirsellow-subjectsathome sothat,
isforoursins, anygreat
settlementofmanymoremillionsofpeoplethanthewholeBritishempirenowcontains.
Neither
ourcontinentalcolonies dueencouragement, prove sopotentandpopulous,
as tobewell
abletosuccourtheirmothercountry, bothwithtroopsandshipping, incase
ofan unequalwar
againstencroachmentsinAmerica. Atimetoo,wehope, is still morelikely
to come, and less
remote, he
shallnolongerdependonthenorthernnationsofEuropeforevenanypartofour
norperhapsonanyotherEuropeancountryforwines,drugs,ordriedfruits.
Whitepeople.
to SouthAmerica,bycommandoftheKingof Spain, between the years
1735and
1746, quotesamemorialdrawnfromthepapers of
theMarquisdelaMaisonforte,a
thespaceofasinglecentury, thepeople ofNewEnglandwill be
asnumerousas
asthoseofOldEngland,andinaconditiontogivelawtoallthenationsinNorth
America. ]
thethreetocontain, at least, — . . _
hundredthousandwhiteinhabitants,exclusiveofournewandveryimportantacquisitionofCanada,
andofFlorida, andagreatpartofLouisiana.
quotedanonymousauthor.
Whites.
however,
besidethetwosmallgarrisons,wehavebutverysewwhitepeople.
Grenadines, obago,St. Vincent,
andDominica,wehavegoodgroundtohopethey will allbe
soonplantedandcultivated,and omevery usesulsugarislands.
coloniesintoonekindofgovernmentorconstitution,
soasthepublicexigencies, intime ofcom
mondanger,mightbemoreeffectuallysuppliedthanhashithertobeenthecase,
theybeing at pre
lina, Virginia,NewYork,NewHampshire, (beingpartofwhatis
usuallycalledNewEngland)
andNovaScotia; inallwhichprovinces, boththegovernmentandalso the
propertyofthelands,
orDominumdirectum, (/. e. ofthequit-rents)are inthecrown,
exceptingEarlGranville'sundi
Fourthly, Inthebest peopledandbestcultivatedprovince ,
calledMassachuset'sBay, morepecu
retainingtheirabsolutedependenceontheirmothercountry,
theymightundoubtedly berendered
upwardsofa millionofwhitepeople, andperhapsof near halfa millionof
negroesanddependent
Indians; anumberofsubjectssuperiorto
thatossomeentirekingdomsinEurope possessed also-
ofaterritoryextendedinlengthforat least sifteen hundredmiles,
Floridaincluded,alongtheDeu-
beenalreadyextendedandsettledmorethanperhapshalfasmanymiles in
breadth, ardto
ravagedb ahandsulofcloselyunitedenemies. Allwhichis,
andmustbesolely submittedtothose,
inwhosepoweraloneit is to rectisy, as sar asis possible,
whateverhas beenthus formerly so su-r
pinclyneglected.
leastdegreeofrestraint, andmuchmoreofpersecution formerereligious
differences, is themost,
consistingofpersonsofall persuasionsofProtestants,whoall
undoubtedlyhaveanequalandna
sionaries.
ofwhich, ofthesirst orsecondrate, inourdays,
exceedsthecostofperhapsanhundredofthebest,
soexcessive, thatthepotentatesofEuropeareindispensibly obliged to
endeavour at an increaseof
theirrevenues, by all pofsiblemeans money,andnot
merelymultitudesofmen,as inoldtimes,
beingnowthemeasureofpower. Andas
therearebuttwonationalmeansforpeaceablyobtaining
tation ; thatKing's
revenueswere,therefore,comparativelyveryinconsiderable for,
inthetwenty-
secondvearofhisreign, in1348,wheninahotwarwithFrance, thewhole
subsidyonwoolex
ported, at forty shillings persack, (a very heavytax) was but sixty
thousandpoundsof theirthen-
money,oronehundredandeightythousandpoundsof ours. Intheyear1371,
hecouldraiseno
threehundredthousandmarks, or twohundredthoufandpounds, nearly
equal in weightto four
huridredthousandpoundsofourmoney. Sir RobertCotton,inhisPosthuma,
makesthatPrince's
oneshilling
andeight-penceofourmoney,beingthewholerevenueofhiscrownlands,onwhich,
inthos days, our Princes entirely subsisted in peaceable times,
without applying to their Par
liaments.
inthis Introduction, treatedofourverylosingtradewith France, and of
our still prositableone
withHolland,weshallnowgoonwitha briefviewofourpresentcommercewith
other nations,
poundsyearly : yetfromthosepartswemuststill continueto be
suppliedwith immensequantities
ofnavalstores, shipandhousetimber, pipe-staves, copper,hemp,flax,
andtheirseeds, iron,pot
ash,&c. untilwe omewiseand happyenoughto be suppliedwith
everyoneofthese articles
fromourownAmericancolonies:
foralthoughthesenorthernpeoplecannottakeoffanequalvalue
tures,&c.
offgreatquantitiesofourwoollenmanusactures, Plantation
andEastIndiagoods,moreespecially
plyustherewith: they also sendusoaktimber,jpipe-staves,
battery,&c. It isthereforemuchtobe
apprehended, thatwearestill indebtedtothemforanannualbalance;
though, it is to be hoped,
notaveryconsiderableone.
But
somehundredthousand poundsannuallyagainstus, for theirnavalstores,
linen, andlinenyarn,
flax, hemp,andtheir seeds, drugs, bees-wax, timber, Russia leather,
andsometimesrawsilkfrom
Persiawhenina peaceablestate,
&c.whichwetakeofthemingreatquantities, overandabove all
ofourtakingoffsuchgreatquantitiesoflinenyarn, spuninRussia, Poland,
and ermany,where
ourLegislature, asmuchas possibletoencouragethespinningof it
inBritainandIreland. Asthe
dressingandspinningofthe flax
givesforeignerstoomuchofthemanusacture; it issurthertobe
theirlinenyarnis saidto be imported inforeign bottoms ;
weevidentlylyeundertwoverycon
siderabledisadvantages.
whilsttheSevenUnitedProvincescanpreserve theirindependence:
theformer, therefore, mustbe
although, in all butthe
wines,wehopeintimetobecompleatlysuppliedfromScotlandandIre
land. Atpresentourtradethither, andespeciallytoFrenchFlanders, is
alosingonetous,though
woollen and linen goods, forthe foreignplantations: yet, as
Francehasof late years verymuch
encroachedonusinthetradetoPortugal, withtheirflightwoollen, silk,
andlinen stuffs, &c. and
itismuchmoretheinterest
ofbothSpainandPortugaltoencourageusratherthanFrance, sincewe
whichlast-namedkingdomtakesnoneoftheirwines:
sothatprobablyFrancegainsagreaterbalance
withSpainis still aprositableonetous.
&c. manusactures, tin, lead, sish, corn, &c.
Ontheotherhand,wetakeofthemsine velvetsand
brocades, sineGenoapaper, Florence and other wines, oils,
rawandthrownsilk, drugs, fruits,
&c. all ormostoftheminconsiderablequantities ; so thatperhapsit
is notvery easytodetermine
onwhichside thebalancelies. Yet, aswetradethitheralmostentirely
inourownshipping, and
however, herebrieflyandproperlyremark, That,
notwithstandingtheGrandSeignior'svastdomi
littlecommercebutwhatis entirelypassive, broughtto their
portsbytheshippingofChristendom;
yarn, galls, andotherdyingdrugs, &c. as also medicinaldrugs,
coffee, carpets,&c. inwhichtrade
we, theDutch,andtheVenetians,havestill a considerableshare
althoughthe FrenchfromMar
seilleshavegreatly gainedgroundonus, andall others,oflate
years,inthattrade, bythevastquan
tities of theirsinewoollencloths, stusfs, &c.andtheir
AmericanandEastIndiagoods, carriedto
Constantinople, Smyrna,Aleppo, Alexandria, and other ports.
We,however, still carry ona
considerabletradethither,
bothwithrespecttothebefore-mentionedexported, imported,
andother
urkey thebalancemaybeprobably, ina literal sense, againstus;
yetthegreatestpartofoursaid
importsbeingemployedinourownsilk, &c. manusactures,
wecanbynomeans,uponthewhole,
ands, whileweretainoursuperiorityontheMediterraneanSeas,weshall
generallybeabletocom
pelall theBarbary piratical states to beat peacewith us; it is,
therefore, evidentlyadvantageousto
us, thatthey remain, asat present, at warwithotherChristianpowers,
in consequenceofwhich
wenotonlyundisturbedlycarryonourowncommercen thoseseas, butaremoreo
become, in
somemeasure,thecarriers
ofboththemerchandizeandtreasureofotherstates
atenmitywiththem.
&c. isnowmostlylodged inwarehouses at ourportofGibraltar,
fromwhencethosegoodsaresaid
tobesenthometoBritainandIreland,nearlyonas easytermsas
theywereformerlybroughtdirect
scarcelythoughtconsiderableenoughtobringthebalanceinoursavour.
fortsonits shores, for theprotectionofourtradewith
itswretchednatives; whichindeedwould
beoflittleimportanceto us, wereitnotfor thegreatan
constantsupplieswegetfrom thenceof
negro slaves forourAmericanplantations, purchased entirely with
ourownBritish produceand
manusactures
tools, lead, andsomeEastIndia articles ;
withwhichalsowepurchasesomegolddust, gums,ivory,
andGuineapepper; beinginesfect all theproductto
behadonthatbarbarouscoast. Sosar, there
fore, this trademaybe said to be benesicial to us. TheLegislature,
oslateyears, haslaid this
Africantradeinsomesort open, undercertainregulations; wheresoreit
is to behoped, thatit may
intimebebroughttoflourishmorethanever.
ing work, than perhaps any other single branch ofourcommerce.Wehall
thereforereser<hc
readerthither, aster just remarking,whatmanyhavedonebefore, That,
althoughourownpresent
East IndiaCompanyenjoys an extensive trade, and is seemingly
inaveryprosperous condition,
havingmanysine forts andsactories, and considerableterritorial
property, inIndia;makingalso
athomeconsiderabledividends, andsuchimmensesales, too, as
wereneverknowninformertimes;
withsuchspacious and numerouswarehouses as perhaps
arescarcelyequalledinany othernation :
allwhichaielikewisetheirownproperty.
Yet,withrespecttoallEuropecomplexlytaken, it seems
tobeuniversally agreedto bea pernicioustrade; a trade, draining it
of all or most of the silver
whichAmericabringsto it.
single, thoughindeedgreat, article of saltpetre, andsomemedicinal,
dyers, and paintersdrugs, all
ormostofwhichalsoAmericacansupply,wecanhardly recollect
anynecessarily-useful ommodity
doubtedly, in our stead, supply all theneighbouringnationswithEast
Indiamerchandize, should
no atanytimedropthattrades to theirownverygreatadvantage ; andas,
byour allthe
richandnumerousIndianmanusactures,directly interseringwithoursilk,
woollen,andlinenones,
is annuallygainedtothiskingdom
which,onsuppositionofdroppingallcommercetoIndiawould
judgment,andalsoas saltpetre is so absolutely necessary
forournationalandprivatemagazinesfor
gunpowder,for whichwemustotherwisebe atthemercyofdangerous rivals ;
wemustever beof
opinion, thatourEast India trade, under its presentcircumstances,
is really abenesicialonefor
GreatBritain; andthat, moreover,onthesamesupposition, it
ishighlyforthenation's as wellas
forthecompany'sinterest, tosupport, improve,
andincreaseourEastIndiacommerces muchas
thinkap