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Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc.. peuvent dtre film6s d des taux de reduction diff^rents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clich6. il est film6 k partir de Tangle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche d droite. et de haut en bas. en prenant le nombre d'images n6cessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. errata ito t a peiure. on A n 32X 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 I' ■ - A N ESTIMATE OF THE COMPARATIVE STRENGTH J e F QREAr-BRl'TAlN, &c. . • ' - • W 1 ■^ "^ ■ « ) 4^ ' ' ' • ' •, • V ..»., ^ - i -5 / ; f 1 / -" . ■ . - .. ■ ,-■ ' •■■" :: ■ • . ' - • - '' • ,; ■ - * ■ \ ■ » 1 9 A N E S T I M A T E OF THE COMPARATIVE STRENGTH ;n OF , . ■» ■ * G R E A^-B RIl' A I N, DURING THE PRESENT AND FOUR PRECEDING REIGNS; A N D r T H B LOSSES OP HER TRADE F R O M E V E R y W A R 8 I N C S THE REVOLUTION* GEORGE CHALMERS. L O N D O Ni Pkintio for JOHN STOCKDALE, opposite Burlington- Hov8z> Piccadilly. M.DCCLXXXVI. -*«p**»«l **-»-».. ^ .J. M ^fx%h -v 'i ■''■ja jf '?'-'•■ t Y ■: -.-«rrR#"^****'S'^^^**'^'*Bs^i^8i«0ii'^Ra**»^^ ^t^; ;.>i't>.-<.i'ViI 'i> J % a^ ^% ^ THE PREFACE. DURING the druggies of a great nation for her fafety, or renown, conjunAares often arife, when the citizen* whofe ftation does not admit of his giving advice, ought to offer his informations. The prefent [1782] feemed to be fuch a time. And the Compiler of the following iheets, having collefled for a greater work various documents wit^ regard to the national refources, thought it his duty to make an humble tender to the public of that authentic intelli- gence, which, amidll the wailings of defpondency, had brought conviAlon and comfort to his own mind. Little have they iludied the theory of man, or obfcrved his familiar life, who have not remarked, that the individual finds the higheft gratification in deploring the felicities of the paft, even amidft the pleafures of the prefent. Prompted thus by temper, he has in every age complained of its decline and depopulation, while the world was the mod populous, and its affairs the mod profperous. Yet, is there reafon to hope, that as found philofophy triumphs over ilUfoundeii ^Tcjudices, the people of thefe iflands will become lefs fubjefl lo the do- minion of periodical apprehenfions, far lefs to the lading impredlons of fancied mifery, 1;. -j • • The reader, who honours the following Iheets with an at- tentive perufal, may probably find, that theughwe have ad- vanced, by wide deps, during the lad century, m the fcience of politics, we have dill much to learn ; but that the fummit can only be gained, by fubdituting accurate refearch for de- lufive fpeculationj^ and by rejeAing zeal of paradox, for mo- deration of opinion * A3 Mankind Vr . P A E f A C fi. Mankind are now too enlightened to admit of confident ait. lertion, in the place of fa tji f a fl ory proof, or plaufible novel- ty , for conclnfive evidence. He, confeqnently, who propofes new modes of argament« muft expe£^ contra'tiAion, and he who draws novel condufions from uncommon premifes, ought to enable the reader to examine his reafonings ; becanfe it is jttft inquiry « which can alone ciahliiK the certainty of truth on the degradation of error. And little therefore is afierted in the following IheetSj without the citation of fufficient au- . thoritieS) or the mention of authentic documents, which it ia Bow proper to explain. ,\*i^7vi As early as the reign of James I. ingenuity exerted iti J^owers to difcover, through the thick- clovd which then en-* veloped an interefting fubjeft, the value of our exports and of our imports ; and thence, by an eafy deduAion, to find, whether we were gainers, or loferi, by our traffic. Diligent inquirers looked into the entries at the cuftom^houfe, becaufe liuy knew, that a dufy of five in the hundred being coUefted on the value of commodities, which were fent out and brought in, it wonld require no difficult calculation, toafcertain nearly tiicamount of both. And, during that reign, it was eftablilhed aa a rule, not only among merchants, but ftatefmen, to mul- tiply the general vaJue of the cuftoms, inwards and outwards, by twenty, in order to find the true amount of the various articles, which formed the aggregate of ourcfbreign trade. Exceptionable as this mode was, it furniihed, thi-ough feve- tiA years of darknefs, the only light that our anceftors had to direA their inexperienced fteps, notwithftanding the impa- tience of politiciane, and even the efforts of minifters. It is difficult to induce the old to alter the modes of their youth. When the committee of the privy council for trade, urged the commiffioners of the cuftoms, about the end of Charlesil.'s ' reign,-^*' to enter the feveral commodities, which formed die exports and> imports, to affix to each its ufual price, and to form a general total, by calculating the value of the whole/'— -the cuftom-honft officers infifted,— *' that, to com- ply with fuch direAions, would require one half of the clerks of PREFACE. v& •f London.*'-i«And the theo.iHi of thofe timtt eontinocd t» fatiify their euriofity, and to alarm the nation on the fide of her commercial jealoufy ; fince there exifted no written evi- dence, by which their ftatements could be proved^ or their declamations confuted. It wai to the liberality, no left than to the perfevcrance, of the Houfe of Peers, that the public were at laft indebted, in 1696, for the eftablifliment of the Infpeftor-General of tht Imports and Exports, and for tht Cuftcm-keu/e LeJgtrt which contains the particulars «nd value of both ; and which forms, therefore, the moft ufcful record, with regard to trade, that any country poflTefles. From this authentic regifter, the parliament was yearly fupplied with details, either for argument or deliberation, and fpeculatifts were furniflied with extraAs for the exercife of their ingenuity ,^ or the formation of their projedls. And it is from this commercial regifter, that/i# valui of cargoes export- eJ, which will be fo often mentioned in this work, was alfo taken. But, as aftual enjoyment feldom enfures continued fatisfac* tion, what had been demanded for a century, when it was re* garded as unattainable, was ere long derided as defedive, when it was poflefled. And theorifts, who punted out th« defeAs of an eftablifhment, that could not be made perfe£t, found believers enow, becaufe men's pride is gratified, by feeing imperfcAion in all things. Againft objedlors, who thus eafily found abettors, it was jnftly remarked, that a record, containing each fpedfic article of our imports and exports, with the mercantile value affixed to each, would give us, as it was originally intended, by a calculation tedious yet certain, the true value of both, at leaft with as much exaAnefs as a vaft detail admits, or public utility demands ; that, it was not probably perceived, how impoffible it is to fet bounds to human vanity, caprice, and deceit, but, that as man, when engaged in fimilar purfuits, t&i nearly a fimilar part, it was reafonable to infer, that the I a fame viti PREFACE. fim« vanity, caprice, or deceh, which, in one age, incited tlie trader to make exaggerated entries at the cuftom-houfe, •rged liim, in ever/ period, to gratify hia rating paflion, when he was not carried from his bias by the dread of a for- feitare or a tax t fo that the average of error, during one fea« Ion, would be nearly equal to the average of error at any other epoch. When the comvittee of Peers originally aiSxed the pric^, whereby each article of export and import fhould in future be fated, they probably knew, that the fucceillve fluAuation of demand, ariilng from the change of fafhion, would neceflarily raife the value of fp.ne articles, and fink the prke of others i but, that the fame fluduation of taile, which, in One age, oc- cafioned an apparent error, would in the next re.eftabliih the rale. Nor, did the Peers probably expeA to afcertain the real iralue of the exports, or of imports, of the current year i as the prodigioas extent of the calcalation did not admit of a ijpeedy deduAion. Bnt, they aimed with a laudable fpirit to eftablifli a ftandard, whereby a juft comparifon might be made, between any two given periods of the paft ; and thereby to infer, whether our manufaAures and commerce profpered or declined, prior to the prefent year. This inftrnation fit ItJgtraftbe In/peaor-CtHerat Aott certainly convey, with fnffi. cient accuracy, for the ufes of practice, or the fpeculations of tbecny. And, by con trading, in the following work, the ave, rage exports of diftant years, we are by this means enabled to trace the rife, the decline, or the progrefs of traffic, at differ-^ ent periods, -even in t\ery reign. It is to the fame age that we owe the eftabliHiment hoafe, in refpeft to their merchandixei, rather too m«ch, incited them, with regard to their vefleli, to re- gifter the burden rather too low, becaufe a tonnage-dotjr, they knew, would be often required of them at many poru ; in the firft operation they were governed by their vanity i in the ferond by their intereft : and if the one furnilhei ai| evidence too flattering, the other givei a teftimony too de- grading. Thtti have we, in the entries of the Ihipping at the Cttftom-houfe, all the certainty that the entries of mer- chandise has been fuppofed to want. And in the following work the quantity of tonnage, rather than the number of fliipt, has been always ftated, at diflTerent periods, with the value of cargoes, which they were fuppofed to tranfporty as being the moft certain : when to the value of cargoes th« tonnage is added, in the following pages, the reader is fur-' niflied with a fupplemental proof to the ufefnl notices, which each feparately convey. Of the tonnage of veflfels, which will fo often occur in the fubfcquent (heets, it muft be always remembered, that they do not denote fo many diftlndl fhips, which performed fo many fingle voyages : for, it frequently happens, that one veflel enters and clears at the Cuftom*houfe fevera! times in one year, as the colliers of Whitehaven and NTewcaftle : but, thefe repeated voyages were in this manner always ' made, and will conftantly continue; fo that, being always' ' included in the annual tonnage, we are equally enabled to ' form a comparative eftimate of the advance, or decline, of ' our navigation, at any two given epochs of the paft. It is to be moreover remembered, that the Britiih vefTels enter at the Cuftom-houfe by the regiftered tons, and not by the meafured burden of the (hip, which is fuppoicd to be gene-! * Charles Godolphin's Memorial to the Treafury, Dec. 1717. .<.r,.' o rally. i PREFACE. rdly ofl^rthud more; fo that the reader may in every year, throagh the following Hatements, calculate the tonnage at one-third more, than the regiftered tonnage has given it. The office of infpeftor-general of imports and exports for Scotland, was eftabliflied only in 1755. And no diligence coald procure authentic details of the Scots commerce from .any other fource of genuine information. The blank, which appears, in the preceding period, as to the Scots traffic, fuf- ficiently deroonftrates, that imperfeft evidence, with regard to an important fubjeA, is preferable to none ; as' the glim> merings of the fainteft dawn is more invigorating than the gloom of total opacity. ConneAed accounts of the fhippi'ng of Scotland cannot be given before 1759 ; becaufe it is only from this year, that they have been regularly entered at the Cuftom-houfe, at leaft conftantly kept. In refpeft to thefe, the fame allowance muft be made for repeated *t)oyagest and the fame augmentation for t&e real burden more than the re- giftered tonnage. It is not pretended, that the before* ihentioned Cuftom- houfe books convey the certainty of mathematical demon- ftration. It is fufficient, that they contain the heft evidence nubich the nature of the cafe admits. They have aifuredly the credibility, which belongs to authentic hiftory, though not the conviAion, that is fometimes derived from the evidence of the fenfes. He who, in fuch inquiries, afts for more con- vincing proofs, ought t6 be regarded as a perfon, who, in. dulging a fceptical mind, delights to walk through the mazes of uncertainty. The fubjeA of population is fo intimately conneAed with every eftimate of the ftrength of nations, that the compiler was induced to enquire into the populoufnefs of England, at different periods, from the earlieft times to the prefent. In this difficult difcuffion, men, at once candid and able, have fpoken a language, often contradidlory to each other, and fometimes inconflftent with their own premifes. The PREFACE. xi The Lord Chief Juftice Hale, and Gregory King, in the laft century, and DoAor Campbel and Doctor Price, in the prefent age, maintained opinions direflly the reverfe of each other,' in refpeft to the queilion. Whether the people of this ifland have not gradually increafed, during every age/ or Sometimes diminifhed, amid public convulfions and pri- vate mifery. The two firft — the one a great mafter of the rules of evidence, the other equally (kilful in calculation—- have agreed in maintaining the affirmative of that queftion. DoQor Campbel has laboured to ihew, that the inhabitants of England diminiihed in their numbers under the mifrule of feudal fovereigns. And Doftor Price has equally con. tended, that the people have decreafed, fince a happier go- vernment was introduced at the Revolution, and that they continue to decreafe. It is propofed to review hiftorically the fentiments of each, with defign rather to afcertaip the authenticity of their fa£\8, than to eftablifli, or overturn, their feveral fyftems. The candid inquirer may perhaps fee caufe for lamenting, in his progrefs, that the learned are fometimes too confident, and the unlettered always too credulous. And he will have an opportunity, as he advances, of liftening to the fentiments of his anceftors, on various topics of legiilation, and of ob* ferving the condition of different ranks of men, previous to the period, at which this estimate properly begins. >■ . ^ . . - ■'■'fciH -'- - 'I V ••; vujK^g .;.'0 ■;)..« j ,• , AN ■ give I ways I the! m fitioi 1 T '^1 Jam m fider m tura ■ moti 1 ware 1 It 1 luftr 1 it is m lates 1 behc 1 fea, ■ whic I the fl ' nurr A N ESTIMATE, &c. OF the exifting numbers of mankind, in fuc- cedive ages of the world, various writers have given diflimikr accounts, bccaufe they did not al- ways acknowledge the fame fa£ts, or often adopt the fame principles, in their mofl: ingenious difqiii^ fitions. The Lord Chief Juftice Hale formerly, and Sir James Stuart and the Count de BufFon lately, con- fidered men, as urged, like other animals, by na- tural inftinfts ; as directed, like them, by the fame motives of propagation; and as fubiifted after- wards, or deftroyed, by fimilar means. It is inftind then, which, according to thefe il- luftrious authors, is the caufe of procreation ; buc it is food, that keeps population full, and accumu- lates numbers. The force of the firft principle we behold in the, multitudes, whether of the fi(h of the fea, the fowls of the air, or the beafts of the field, which are yearly produced : we perceive however the cffential confequence of the laft, from the vaft numbers that annually perifli for want. M Experience ( 2 ) Experience indeed evinces, to what an immenfe extent domeftic animals may be multiplied, by pro- viding abundance of food. In the fame manner, mankind have been found to exift and increafe, in every condition, and in every age, according to the ftandard of their fubfiftence, and to the meafure of their comforts. Hence Mr. Hume juftly concludes, that if we vrould bring to fome determination the queftion concerning the populoufnefs of ancient and modern times, it will be requifite to compare the demefiic und political lituations of the two periods, in or- der to judge of the fa^ls by their moral caufes i becaufe, If every thing elfe be equal, it feems rea- sonable to exped, that where there are the wifefl: inftitutions, and the moft happinefs, there will alfo be the moft people. Let us run over the hjftory of England, then, ,with a view to thefe reafonings and to theie fads. Settled probably about a thoufand years before the birth of Chrift, England was found, on the arrival of Caefar, to contain a great multitude of people. But this rcyal and nohk author tranfmitted notices, with regard to the modes of life, which preyailed among thofe whom he came to conv- quer, whence we may judge of their numbers with greater certainty, than from the accuracy of his language* or the weight of his authority. And he fubmits to our judgment fufficient data^ when he informs us, that the inhabitants of the inland country fubfiHed by feeding of flocks> while their .1 neighboun ( 3 ) neighbours along the (hores of the o^ean were maintaioed by the more produdtive laboprs. of agriculture* Having already arrived, fome of the tribes in the fecond, and others of them in the third ftage of fociety, in its progrefs to reBnement, the Bri- tons were foon taught the arts of manufadlure, and the purfuits of commerce, by their civilizing con- querors. A people who annually employed eight hundred vefTels to export the furplus produce of their hufbandry, muft have exerted great induftry at home, and enjoyed fufficient plenty from it. Ro- man Britain, of confequence, muft have become ex- tremely populous, during that long period, from the arrival of the Romans, g^ years before the birth of Chrift) to the abdication of their govern- ment, in 446 of our asra*. From this event commenced a war of fix hun- dred years continuance, if we calculate the (ettle- ment of the Saxons, the ravages of the Danes, and the conqueft of the Normans. A courfe of hoftilities, thus lengthened beyond example, and wafteful beyond defcription, changed completely the political fituation of the people, by involving them in ages of wrctchednefs. It was to thefe caufes owing, that the inhabitants became divided^ at the epoch of ^he Cofiquefly into five fevcral clafles •, the barons, the free tenants, the free foe- cagers, together with the villains and the (laves, who formed the great body of the people t« • Mr. Whitakw's Hiftoryof Manchefter, f M. • B a A con* ( 4 J A conHderation of the foregoing events, it pro^ bably was, with the wretched condition of every order of men, which induced the Lord Chief Juftice Hale and Mr. Gregory King to agree in aflerting *, " that the people of England, at the ** arrival of the Normans, might be fomewhat *' above two million" And the notices of that mod: inftrudtive record, the Domefday Book, feem to juftify the conjectures of both, by exhibiting fatisfadory proofs of a very fcanty population in the country, as well as in the townst The annals of England, from the epoch of the Conqueft to the date of the Great Charter (from 1066 to 1215) are filled with revolutions in the government, and infurredtions of the people s with domeftic war and foreign ravages ; with fre- quent famines, and their attendant pellilence. Dodtor Campbel has enumerated j: various cir- cumftances to demonftrate the unhappinefs of the nation, during thofe times, equally ferocious and unfettled ; and, by neceifary confequence, th^ conftant decline of their numbers. Few revolutions, faid he, even when achieved by the mod wafteful conquerors, appear to have been attended with fo fudden a revolution, both of property and of power, as that which Wil- liam I. unhappily introduced into England. The conftitution, from being limited and free, btcame at once arbitrary and fevere. While thq. * Origination of Mankind ; and Davcnant's Works. X PpUtical S«rvey^ < ancient ( i y ancient nobility feemed to be annihilated,- the Saxon people were afTuredly reduced to viU laihage. And thofe revolts enfued Aicceflive- ly* which neceflarily arife, when a gallant peo- ple are defpifed, at the fame time that they are oppreiTed. The Conqueror, urged partly by re-^ venge, perhaps more by policy, was provoked, by the infurredtion of the northern counties, to pre- fcribe remedies as fevere as they were barbarous* He fo efFedtually depopulated the extenfive coun- try from the HumheruXo the Tees, that it lay for years' uncultivated, whereby multitudes perilhed for want. The pleafures of fVilliam too vicrc as deftru6tive to the people as his anger. In form-* ing the New Foreft, he laid wafte an extent o£ thirty miles in Hampfhire, without regarding the cries of villagers, or the facrednefs of churches* And his gratitude to his fupporters, though attend- ed with lefs violence, produced, in the end, confe- quences ftill more fatal, with regard to the depo- pulation of England, than had refulted either from his refentment, or his fport. He diftributed the whole kingdom to about feven hundred of his principal officers, who afterwards divided among their followers the fpoils of the vanquifhed, on fuch precarious tenures as fecured the fuSmiiTioa of the lower .orders, though not their happinefs. The Conqueror's meafures, thus harflily execut- ed, continued to influence all ranks of men, long after the terrors of his government had ceafed i and while they neither fecured the quiet, nor pro- B3 mpte^ C 6 ) mdtecl the pleAty of the nation, his r^ours pro* bably added yery few to its nombers. The great charter of John made no alteration in public law. Or any innovation in private rights : and though it conferred additional Tecurity on the frecy h gave little fi^eedom to the flave. Yet, the barbarous licence both of kings and nobles being thenceforth fomewhat reftrained, government, fays Mr. Hume, appitKi^h^d by degrees nearer to that endibr which it was inftituced, the equal protec- tion of cvc^ order in the ftatc. this general reafoning, however jufft, ^d not Impofe on the fagacity of Doctor Caitipbel, who niinutely examined every drcuniftance in our fubfeqUMt atinals, tha« tended either to retard or protfiote an e'fieAive population. He found no event in the long reign of Henry III. filled as ic ^as^ith diftradion, proceeding from weaknefs, dnd iH^ith civil war, therefult of turbulence, which could have idded one man to our numbers. Though hiftorians have celebrated the following feigns of our Edwards, as the moft glorious in our (innah; yet he remarked, that, during a period wherein' there were fcarecly ten years of peace, the eclat of viftorics, the fplendour of triumphs, or the acquificion of dtftant territories, did not com* peitfatethe lofs of inhabitants, who coiftinually de- creafed, from the wafte of forefgn and civil wars, and fi^om the ddbility of peftilential diftempers, jirifing from a wretdhed huibandry, as much as from anoxious ftate of the aitmofphere. It was a 2 flirewd pro- ( 7 ) fhrewd remark of Major Graunt, when he wai re* fieAing over" tbefitklinefs^ tbebealtbfuJnefSyM fruit* *^fitlnefs of feafons^** that " the more Jickfy fbeyeari «• are, the lefs fruitful of children tbe^ alfo be,** The firft notice, which the Parliament Ibem (6 have taken of the paucity of inhabitants, may be feen in the Statute of Labourers^ that was enafted ih 1349* This law recites—** That whereas a great pare of the people, and efpecially of workmeh and iervants, late died of the peftilence, many, feeing the neceflity of mafters and great fcarcity of fer- vants, will not fervea unlefs they receive exceflive wages, feme being rather willing to beg in idle- nefs, than by labour to get their living.*' Cond- dering therefore ** the grievous incommodities which of the lack, efpecially of ploughmen and fuch labourers, may hereafter come," Edward III. with the afliftanceof the^rf/tf/«, the nobles, and- the learned men, ordained a variety of regufationst unjuft in their theory, and violent in their execu- tion *. This edi£t of the King in council Was en« forced * Thefe regulations may be feen in Cay*s ColIeAion o( Statutest vol. i. p. 261—3 t and fufficiently evince to what a deplorable flate offlaverythc coHeilive mafsof the.peoplewas then reduced. " Every able-bodied perfon, under fixty years of age, not having fnfficient to live oti, being required* fliall be bound to ferve him that doth require him, or elfe ihall be committed to gaol, till he finds fecurity to ferve. If a fervan^ or .workman, depart from fervice before the time agreed upon, he (hall be imprifoned. If any artificer take more wages thaa were wont to be paid^ he (hall be committed to gaol,*' The " . B 4 feverity ( 8 ) forced by the legidature in the fubfequent year— ~ '* on the petition of the commonalty, that the faid fervants, having no regard to the faid ordinance, but to their eafe and fingular covetife, do with- draw to ferve great men and other, unlefs tbey have Vfages and living to the double and treble of that they ^ere wont to take the twentieth year of the king that now is" Yet, after adjufting minutely the prices of la- bour, of natural produfls, and even of manufac- tures, the ftatute of the 23d Edward III. directed, ** that the artificers (bould be fworn to ufe their crafts as they did in the twentieth year of the fame king*" (1346), under the penalty of imprifon- ment, at the difcretion of the Jufticesl The Par- liament bufied themfelves, year after year, in re- gulating labour, which had been defrauded of its jull reward, by confiderable defalcations from the coin f . During an adminiftration lefs adive, and vigorous, ftverity of thefe penalties was foon greatly increafed bj the 34th Bdward III. which direAs, ** That if any labourer or fervant flee to any town, the chief officer (hall deliver him up: and if they depart to another county, they fliall be burnt in the forehead with the letter F." Thus, fays Ander- ioDy they Jivcdi till manufaAures drove flavery away. Chron. Ac. of Com. v. i. p. 204* • Chap. I— >7. f From the value of th pounJ, or twenty (killings in pre- (fent money, as eftablifhed by Edward I. in 1300, there were dedufted by Edward III. in the 18th of his reign, 4/. 1 1 Vigorous, ^nd refpeAed, than Edward's, fuch regu* lacions had produced cumulc and revolt. Scarce- ly indeed was that great monarch laid in his grave, when the confirmation of the fame datutet, by hit feeble fucceflbr, gave rife to the memorable rebel- lion of Tyler and Straw, fo de(lru6tive in its im- mediate eflfe^ts, fo beneficial in its ultimate con- fequences I The common people acquired im- plied liberty from infurreflion, while the Parlia- ment were enabling*, " that foreed manumfffions Jhould he conjidered as vcid,". And fuch are the re- volutions, which infenfibly take place, during ages of darknefs, before the eyes of chronicler^, who are carried away by the found of words, without regarding the efficacy of things. The declamatory recitals of fuch ftatutes ought generally to be regarded as (light proofs of the authenticity of fa^s, unlefs where they are fup- ported by collateral circumllances. From the re- iterated debafement of the coin, which proceeded from the expenfive wars of Edward III. we might be apt to infer, that the recited deflruAion of the peflilence was merely a pretence to palliate mo- tives of avarice, or to juftify the rigours of op^ preffion. . On the other hand, DoAor Mead afTures us, that the greateft mortality, which has happened in been taken no lefs than five fhillings and nine pence from the Aandard poand,' fettled in 1300, oi £.t. i-jt. 51/. Harris Qn Coins, part ii* ch. ^ • By the 5 th Richard II. 4 later ( to ) liter ages, was tbeut the imddle of the Anir« teeath ceoturjr » when the plague tktt feized Eng« land, Scotland, and Irelaiid, in 1349, is fmd to hare di^seopled the earth of more than ha^ of its inhabitants *. The Commons petitioned, during the Parliament t of 1364, that, in confideration of the preceding pcllilencf , the King would allow perfons, who held lands of him in chief, to let leafes without a licence, as had been lately prac* tifed, till thi country were buomo more populous* From the 23d of Edward I. when the cities and boroughs are faid to have been firft formally fum- moned to Parliament, to the demife of Edward IV. the (hcriiFs often returned, ^bat there were no eities or boroughs in their counties^ whence reprefenta* tivis could be fent. This form of expreifion Doc- tor Brady :|: has very juftly explained to mean, That the towns were fo depopulated and poor, as to be unable to pay the accuftomed expences of delegates. The truth of this reprefentation, and of this commentary, is indeed confirmed by a law of Henry VII. § ; which recites. That where, in fome towns, two hundred perlbns lived by their lawful labours, now they are occupied by two or three herdfmen, and the refidue fall into * Difcourfe concerning Peft. Contag. p. s4-^5« f Cott. Abt. of Records, p. 97. I Of Boroughs, p. 125, &c. § 4tb Henry VII. ch. 19 ;. which is pnbliihed in the Ap- pendix to Pickering's Statutes, vol. xxiiit - r' idlenefs. Eng. ( «t ) idlenefs. And from the foregoing fads we m§f furely infer, chit there muft have been a great pau- city of people in England, during thofe good old tims^ at leaft towards the conclufion of the cele- brated reign of Edward III. From incontrovertible evidence we can now eftablilh the whole number of inhabitants, with fuf* ficient exafbnefs to anfwer all the praAical pur- poles of the ftatefman, and even to fatisfy all the fcrupulous doubts of the fceptic. A poll-tax of four pence having been impofed by the Parlia- ment of the 5 ift of Edward III. (1377) on every lay perfon, as well male as female* oifeurUin years and upwards, real mendicants only excepted, an official return of the perfons who paid the tax, in each county, city, and town, has been happily pra- fefved ^. And from this fubfidy-roU it appears* * This record, To inftruAive as to the (late of England it the denife Af Edward III. was laid before the Antiquary So- ciety, in December 1784, by Mr. Topham of the Paper- Office ; a gentleman, whofe curious refearch with regard to the jurifprndence and hiftory of his country, at well as com- municative difpofition, merits the greateft praife. Mr. Top* ham obferved, that the fum collected, in confeqoence of the fubfidy of 1377, being j^.22,607. -tt* 8/. contained-, only 1,356,488 groats,' wltich. ought to have been the amount of thofe who were fourteen years of age and upwards. Bnt I have chofen to ftate the number of perfons, who are mentioned in the roll as having paid, in each county and town, amount^ ing to 1,367,239, though the total miftakingly added en the ncord is.i,37irf4'> • (hit ( " ) that the lay perfofls who paid this tax imduntect to - " . ■ i»367>239' When we have afcertaincd what proportion the perfons paying bore to the whole^ we ihall be abh to form a fufHcient eftimace of the total popula- tion. It appears from the Table formed by Doc- tor Halley, according to the Bredaw births and burials \ from the Northampton Table ; from the Norwich Table i and from the London Table, conftruded by Mr. Simpfon j as thefe Tables are publiihed by Dodor Price *, That the perfons at any time living under fourteen years of age are a good deal fewer than one third of the co-exifting lives. And the lay perfons, who paid the tax in i3;7, muft confequently have been a good deal more than tivo thirds of the whole. But» fince there may have been omif- • fions of the perfons paying - i>3^7j239 Add one third - - - - 455^746 Add the number of beneficed clergy paying the tax - - 159229 And the non- beneficed ' clergy - t.- - - i3*93^ 1, 822,985 29,16s 1,852,146 • Qbferv. on Revcrf. Payments, vol. ii. p. 35—6, 39—40. > But { X3 ) But Wales, not being included in this roll, is placed on a footing with Yorklhire *» at - - - 1 74*720 Chefhire and Durham, having had their own receivers, do not appear on the roll ; the firft is ranked with Corn- wall, at - - - - - 45*700 The fecond with Northumberland, at 20,412 The whole people of England and Wales - - - 2,092,978 We can now build upon a rock 5 having before us proofs almoft equal in certainty to adual enu- merations. Yet what a pidure of public mifriile, and private mifery, does the foregoing ftatement difplay, during an unhappy period of three hun- * From Davenant's Table (in his EfTay on Ways and Means, p. 76.) it appears, that Wales paid a much fmaller fonable allowance for the ufual omiflions of taxable perfons. drcd ( *4 ) dred years^ We here behold the powerful ope- ration of thofe caufes of depopulation, which Doc- tor Campbel collected, in order tot fupport his hy- pothefis of adecreaHng population, in fiudat times. But were we to admit that one half of the people bad been carried off by the defolatkig plague of '349> as Doflor Mead fuppofe&i or even one third, as Mr* Hume reprefents with greater pro- bability ; we fliould find abundant rcafon to ad- mire the folidity of Lord Hale's argument, in fa- vour of a progreilive population ; becaufe this circumftance would alone evince, that there had been, during that long effluxion of time, a confi- derable increafe of numbers, in different ages of tranquillity or of healthinefs. A comparifon too of the notices of Domefday Book with the ilate- inents of the Subfidy Roll, would (hew a much Inferior populoufnefs foon after the Conqueft in 1077, than at the demife of Edward III. in 1377. ■• u,:, --; ';^*V ?,,, ^ „^,J .y ii^ We ( 15 ) We (ball find additioiMl proofs, perhaps fome atnufeinent, from taking a view of our principal towns, as they were found, and are reprefented by the tax-gatherers, in 1377. London paid for - 231314 lay contained confequently about - Weftminller for - 7,389 - York for - - 7,248 - Briftol for - - 6,345 - Plymouth for - 4*837 - Coventry for - 4*817 Norwich* for - 3>952 Lincoln for - 3>4i2 Sarum (Wilts) for 3*226 - I^nn for - - 3*127 - Colchefter for - 2,955 - Beverley for - 2,663 Newcaftle on Tyne for 2,647 Canterbury for - 2,574 St. Edmondfbury for 2,442 Oxford for - 2,357 Gloceiler for - 2,239 Leicefter for - 2,101 Salop for •. " 2,082 perfons ; and 33,000 fouls* 10,000 10,000 9,000 6,500 . 6,500 5.300 4»6oQ 4,400 . 4,200 4,000 3.600 3,600 3.500 3*300 3*200 3,000 3.000 3,000 * Dr. Pi-ice; talks of Norwich having been a great city^r* rntrljf* The Domefday Book (hews fufficiently the diminuf ttvenefs of our towns in 1077 : and Mr. Topham's Subfidy Roll puts an end to conjeAare with regard to the populouf* liefs of any of them anterior to 1377. Thc(e ( 46 ) Thefc are the only towns, which'then paid the poll-' tax of a groat for more than two thoufand lay per- fons, of fourteen years of age and upwards. And their inconnderablenefs evinces a marvellous depo- pulation in the country, and a lamentable want of manufafturcs and commerce every where in Eng- land. Yet, Domefday Book reprefents our cities to have been little fuperior to villages at the Con- qweft *, and (lill more inconfiderable than they certainly were at the demife of Edward III, The informations of contemporary writers would, neverihelefs, lead us to confider thofe ear- ly reigns as times of overflowing populoufncfs. Aniidft all that depopulation, Edward III. is faid to have fuddenly colleded, in 1360, a hundred thoufand rpen, whom he tranfported in eleven hundred veflels to Francef. It did not, how- ever, efcape the fagacity of Mr. Hume, when he reflc.dled on the high pay of the foldiers, that the numerous armies mentioned by the hiftorians of thofe days, confifted chiefly of raggamuffins, who followed the camp for plunder. In 1382, the re- bels, fays Daniel J, fuddenly marched towards lyondon, under Wat. Tyler and Jack Straw, and nmfl:ercd on Blackheath fixty thoufand itrong, or, as others fay, an hundred thoufand. In 141 5, Henry V. invaded France with a fleet of fixteen hundred failfl, and fifty thoufand combatants, who • See Brady on Boroughs. • f Arder. Cbron. Ac. of Com. v. I. p. 191. I HiHory of Richard, in Kennet, p. 245. iH And. Cbron. Ac. of Com. v. i. p. 245. 1^9t < '7 ) no^ long after won the glorious battle of Azin- court. Hiftory is filled with fuch inftances of vaft armies, which had been haftily levied for tem- porary enterprizes : yet, we ought not thence to infer, that the country was overftocked with in- habitants. The ftatute of the 9th Henry V. re- cites, '* That whereas, at the making of the aft of •' the 14th of Edward III. (1340) there were fuf- ** ficient of proper men in each county to execute •* every office j but that, owing to peftilence and " wars, there are not now (142 1) a fufficiency of •* refponfible perfons to aft as fherifFs, coroners, '* and efcheators." The laurels which were gained by Henry V. are well known, fays the learned ob- ferver on the ancient ftatutes ; but he hath left us, in the preamble of one of his ftatutes, moft irre- fragable proof, that they were not obtained, but at the deareft price, the depopulation of the country. The facility with which great bodies of men werecollefted, in thofe early ages, exhibits then, for cur inftruftion, a pifture of manners, idle and li- centious *, and (hews only, for our comfort, that the mod numerous clafies of mankind exiiled in a condition, which is not to be envied by thofe, who, in belter times, enjoy either heakh or eafc. The period from the acceflion of Henry IV. in 1399, to the proclamation of Henry VII. in 1485, may be regarded as the moft difaftrous in our latter annals •, becaufe, a civil war, remarkable for the in- veteracy of the leaders, and for the wafte of the people, began with the one event, and ended with j'/^ C the ( x8 ) the other. Do^of Campbel has colledled the va^ rious circumfiames ef 4epopuMou \ tending to prove, that the number of inhabitants, which, before the bloody contetis between the Lanc^rjans and Yorki(];-3 , began, had been already much leflened, wa3 in the en^ greatly reduqed, by a fcries of the moft defl:'ru<5i;ive calamities. The monuments of niore fettled ^imes were c^moliflied ; the c;oun. try was ia^ waAe i cities fuok jntp towns> while towns dwindled into villages: and univerfal de- flation is fjMd to have enfued. If« indeed, \ve could implicitly eredit the , recitals of the laws of Henry VH, we ihould find fufiicient evidenp*", •' That great defolation? daily do increafe, by puU- ** ing down and wilful wafte of houfes and towns, and by laying to pafture lands which cuftornably have been ufcd in tillage." , j^r^^m mv^^. An importanjc change had certainly taken place mean while, in the condition of the great body of the people, which fortunately promoted their hap- pinefs, and which confequently proved favourable to the propagation of the fpecies. There exiiled in England, at the Conquefl, no free hands, or freemen, who worked for wages j fince the fcanty labour of times, warlike and unin- duflrious, was wholly performed by villains, or by flaves. The latter, who compofed a very nume- rous clafs, equally formed an objeft of foreign trade, for ages after the arrival of the Conqueror, who only prohibited the fale of thcin to infidels*. «( which, adding the compul^ fion of law to the calls of necefllty, created op- prelTion for ages, while they ought to hav^ given relief. It is extremely difficult to afcertain the time when villainage ceafed in England, or even to trace its decline. The Edwards, during the pref- fure of their foreign conqucfts, certainly manu- mitted many of their villains for money. Owing • Intereft of Holland. "' , ' t See the 12th Richard 11. ch. 3, 4, 5. 6, 9. By thefe, no artificer, labourer, fervant, or vi6lualier, ihall depart from one hundred to another, without licence under the king's feal. Thefe laws, fays Anderfon, arefufHcient proofs of the flavifh condition of the common fcrvants ia thofc times (1388). 5 ta ( 21 ) CO the previous fewncfs of inhabitants, the nume* rous armies, which for almofl: a century defolated the nation amidft our civil wars, muft have been nece(rarily compofed of the lower ranks : and we may reafonably fuppofe, that the men, who had been brought from the drudgeries of flavery to contend as foldiers, for the honour of nobles and the rights of kings, would not readily relinquifh the honourable fword for the meaner ploughfhare. The church, even in the darkefl: ages, remonftrated againft the unchriftian practice of holding fellow« men in bondage. The courts of jullice did no:: willingly enforce the mafter's claim to the fervi- tude of his villains, till, in the progrefs'of know-" ledge, interefl: difcovered, that the purchafed la*, bour of freemen was more productive than the liftlefs and ignoble toil of (laves. Owing to thefe caufes, there were certainly few villains in Eng-' land at the acceflion of Henry VII.* 5 and the great body of the people having thus gained greater freedom, and with it greater comfort, thenceforth acquired the numerous blcffings, which every where refult from an orderly adminiftration of eftablilhed government. * During almofl a century, before the accefTion of Henry VII. in 1485, the manufacturers of wooU ♦ The ftatute of 23 Henry VI. chap^, 12. mentions only fer- vants, artificers, workmen^ and labourers; and there is a dilUndion made between hufbandry fervants and domeftic fervants. Yet villains are fpoken of, even in our courts of juftice, though feldon, as late as the time of James I. „i^r""- '■ ' -^' ' C3 :^ with ( 22 ) ttrith their attendant artiHcera, had fixed the feat of their indullryr» in every county in England. Tho principle of the adb of navigation had been i^^tro. duccd into our legtflation« as earljr as 13811 by the law declaring \ **• That none of the king's *' fubjedts (hall carry forth« or bring merchandizes, ** but only in (hips of the king's allegiance." The jfiiheries too had been encouraged f* Agricul- ture had been moreover promoted, by the law ivhich declared |, ** That all the king's fubjedls ** may carry com out of the realm when they ♦' will." And guildsy fraternities^ and othir icmpa^ niest having foon after their creation itnyoied mo- nopolizing reftraints> were corrected by a law of Henry VI. § •, though ow legiflators were not vtfry fieady, during an unenlightened age, in th6 appli- cation of fo wife a policy. .i,1i^j?k/j- ©r^cvrf!^ In reading the laws of Edward IV. we think ourfelves in modern times, while the fpirit of the mercantile ly Hem was in its full vigour, before it had been fo perfpicuouily explained and fo ^ly ex* plodcd |. It is however in the laws** of Richard III. that we fee more clearly the commcfcial ftate of England, during the long period, wherein the Englifh people were unhappily too much engaged in king-making. In thofe inaufpicious times was • 5 Richard II. ch. 3.-^6 Richard, ch. 8< + By 6 Richard II. ch. 1 1, u. , , t; . - , J 17 Richard II, ch, 7. ' '- ,4 15 Hen. VI. ch, 6. . ^ ^ \\ By pr. Smith's Eflay dn the Wearth of NaVionif ^ •• I Richard HI. ch. $, 8, 9, ii, u, 13. , * . . , the pofed moftly of Flemingav ivho, under the encou- tagemeot of Edward UL h«d M from tht dift fac- tions of the Netherlands, for repofe and employ- imnt in England. And the perufal of the pream- ble of one of Richard's bws \ will furnifli a con- vincing proof of this : '* Moreover) a great nunv> ** ber of artificers and other ftr^ngers, not born under the king's Obeifancei do daily re(brt to London, and to other cities, boroughs, and ** towfiS) and much more than t^iey ^ere wont to ** do in times pal^, and inhabit by themfelves iA *' this realm, with their wives, childtien, and *' houfehold i and will not take upon them any la^ borious occupation, as going to plough and cart, and other like buHnefs, but ufe the making of cloth, and other handicrafts and eafy occupa- tions ; and bring from the pMU beyOnfd the fea ** great fubftance of wares and merchandizes to ** fairs and markets, and other places, at their pleafure, to the impoverifhmetit of the king's fubjefls i and will only take into their fervice «' people bom in their own countries 5 -whereby *' the king's fubjeds, for lack of occupation, fall •* into idlenefs and vicious living, to the great pcr- • I Richard III. ch. g. But Henry WIL, upon the fupfU' cation oftho Italian mirchantt, repealed the greater part of this law, which iropofed reftraints on alitits ; yet retained the for* feitures incarred, in the true fpiric of hia avaricious govern- ment. C( <( C( c« c( neUber to en- €Ouragi foreigners to come* nor to drive them away. When manufacturers have been thoroughly fet- tled, nothing more is wanting to promote the wealth and populoufnefs of a country from their labour, than the protection of their property and freedom, by the impartial adminiftration of juf- tice } while their frauds are reprefled, and their combinations prevented, by doing equal right to every order in the ftate. roj«/! ♦?: The policy of Henry VII. has b^en praifed by hiilorians fully equal to its worth. Anderfon re- ^^*, that this prince, *' finding the woollen ma- •* n^ufaftures declining, drew over fome of the bcft ** Netlierland clothmakers, as Edward III. had ** done 1 50 years before." This is probably faid without authority ; fince the law of the preceding reign, concurring with the temper of the times, did not permit the eafy execution of fo unpopular a meafure^ ..Hen^y VII. like his two immediate predecelTors, turned the attention of the Parlia- ,ment to.agriculture and manufadure, to commerce .and lOavigatipn, becaufe he found the current of the national fpirit already running toward all thefe falutary objeCls : hence, fays Bacon, it was no ' hard matter to difpofe and aflfe(5t the Parliament -fli*. * Chron. Aec. of Com. t. !< p. 306. »» iQ i- ( as ) in thi» bufiners. And the legiflature ena£^ed a variety of laws, which that illuftrious hiftorian ex* plains, with his ufual perfpicuity * *, all tending, fays he, in their wife policy, towards the populatitn apparent^^ , and the military forces of the realm cet' tainly. That monarch's meafures for breaking the op- preflive power of the nobles ; for facilitating the alienation of lands j for keeping within reafonabU bounds the bye-laws of corporations ; and, above all, for fupprefling the numerous bodies of men, who were then retained in the fervice of the great ■, all thefe deferve the highefl commendation, becaufe they were attended with efFcdls, as lafling as they ivere efficacious. It may be however doubted, whether his pid- dling hufbandry of petty farms, which has been oftentatioufly praifed by Dodlor Price, can pro- duce a*fufficiency of food for a manufaduring country, or even prevent the too frequent returns of famine. Agriculture mud be pradlifed as a trade, before it can fupply fuperabundance. Cer- tain it is t, however, that till the reign of Henry VIII. we had in England no carrots, turnips, cab- bages, or fallads s and few of the fruits, which now ornament our gardens, or exhilarate our tables. The fpiritof improvement, however, which had taken deep root, before the acceffion of Henry VIII, continued to fend forth vigorous (hoots dur- * Hiflory in Kennet, v. i. p. 504— 7. t And. Chron. Com. v. i. p. 338. ing ( t6 ) hg hh reign: This wt inight infer fbm the frt^ queiit proclamations againft the prafHce of incb- fmg« t^ich was faid to create a decsy of bujimidry. On the other hand, a ftatute was erta€bed td en- force the fowing of flax-feed aiid hemp. The^na- tion is rcprcfentcd fo have hem over-run by foreign fitdnufaSlurerSi whole ilkperim diligence and ceco- nomy occalioned popular tumuhs. While the kingdom was gradually filling with peOp]e> it Was the yearly pradice to grant money to repair towns^ which were fuppoitfd t*i> be falling into ruins« Yet the numerous laws, that were ena€ted by the Par- liaments of Henry VHI. for the paving of ftreett in various cities and villages, evince how much in* duftry had gained ground of idlenefs \ how much 'Opulence began to prevail over penury ; and how far a deiire of comfort had fu^eeded to the lati^ guors of floth. Thus much might indeed be dKf- covered> from the numerous lawd, which were d^- ing this period paflTed, for giving a monopoly of manufa^ure to different towns ; and whi^h pro^Nr, that a. great adivity prevail^!, by the frequent de- fire of felfifh enjoyment, contrary to the real inte- reft of , the tradefmen themfelve^* >»»' L^mi^pirm^ vt Th^ ftatute, however, which limited the intereft of n^ney to lo per cent, demonflrates, that much rM^y fwmey had not yet beeil brought into the cQffFers of lenders •, While a greater number of bor- rowers defired to augment their wealth, by cm- ploying the money of others in the operations of trade. The kings of Englandi both before and after «fcer this epdch* borrowed Urge Tunis in tienosi and the Netherlands^ A pariitihentai^ debate of «hc yeir ijigj exMbitis iirveJy pi^fure of the opi- ' nio6s that we^e at this Hvne entertained ais w tintt" iatimi "which^ in modera lint^, has fi> ^eat ati cfie& On the ftrength of micions. A fuppljr of eight hundred thoufand pbunds beittgi^ed by Cai-dmiil Wblfey for the frdnch w^j Sir Tho- jnas Mdre» the Speaker of Klhe Commons^ end^a^ .vonredtx) convince rhe'H^ufe^ T^at // wa^fidtumch^ en this occiifitn, to fay fmer finlUngs in thi pound. But to this lihe Commons objeded^ That thdugd true it was ibme perfohi were well monied^ yer» in general, the fifth part iof« iiDen^s goods i^aa not in plate oir moneyi but inftockoreattle*, and that to pay away all their coin w^ld alter tht- ivhole intercourfe of things, and there would be a ft6p in all traffick ; and confequently the (hipping of the kingdom would decay. To this grave objec- tion it was however gravely anfwered. That the money otight not to be accounted afs loft, or taken away, but only as transferred into othet- hinds of their kindred or nation *, fo that* no miore wafs abotit to be done than we fee ordinarily in n^arkets, Where, though the money change mailers, yet every one is aecommodattd. Nor need you fear this fcarcettefs of money ; the intercourfe of things being fo eftablifhed throughout the world, thc^ there is a prpetu^l circulation of all that can be m' (ejfary to mankind. Thus your commodities will ever lind out money } while our own merchants '■rW''^ / : ' ' ^ will Will be as glad of your corn and catc1e» as you caii be of any thing they can bring you *. v Such is the argument of Sir I'homas More i wHb has thus left a proof to pofterity of how much he knew, with regard to modern oeconbmy, without the aid of modern experience. No ohe at prcfent can more clearly explain the marvellous accommoda- tion of money, when quickly palTed from hand to hand, or the great facility in raifing public fupplies, when every one can eafily convert his' property, either fixed or moveable, into the metals, which are the commpdious meafure of all things* And this is circulation^ of which we fhall hear fo much in later times ; and which creates fo mo- mentous a ftrength, when it exifts in full vigour ; yet leave?, when it difappears, fo great a debi- lit)^ But the fuppreflion of monafteries, and the re- formation of religion, are the meafures of Henry yill.'s reign, which were attended with confe- quences the moft happy and the moft lading. Fifty thoufand perfons are faid to have been main-* tained in the convents of England and Wales, who were thus forced into the adtive employments of life. And a hundred and fifty thoufand perfons are equally fuppofed to have been reftrained from marriage ft which can alone produce efi7.6live population* • Lord Her'bert*s Hiftory of Henry VIII. in Kennet) v* ii. f And. Chron. Com. r. i. p. 368% While ( 29 5 . While tKc numbers of our people were thu« augmented from various fources, Edward VI. is faid to have brought over, in 1549* many tboufands of foreign manufacturers, who greatly improved our own fabricks of various kinds. Yet, they were not invited into a country, where the lower orders were even then very free, or very happy.' The aft * for the punijhtnent of vagabonds and the relief of the poor^ recites, " Forafmuch as idlenefj *' and vagabondrie is the mother of all thefts and *' other mifchiefs, and the multitude of people ' '* given thereto has been always here, within this *' kingdom, very great, and more in number than '* in other regions, to the great impoverifhment of " the realm." This law therefore enafted, That if any perfon fhall bring before two juftices any runagate fervant, or any other which liveth idly and loiteringly by the fpace of three days, the fame juftices fhall caufe the faid idle and loitering fer* vant or vagabond to be marked on the breaft with the mark of V by a hot iron, and fhall ad-^ judge him to be 2iflave to the perfon who brought him, and who may caufe him to work, by beating, chaining, or otherwife. The unenlightened makers of this difgraceful effort of legiflation became foon fo afhamed, as to repeal the law, which they ought to have never made. And were it not, that it fhews the condition of the country, and the modes of thinking of the higher orders, in 1547, • I Edward VI. ch. 3. \ It «c which is faid to j^aye given rife to Kct's rebellion in 1549. This even^ ^lone fufficieqtiy proves, that the people had eonri(}ei;abIy increased* but had not ye^ applied ftea- dily to labour. ,; 'h ,^ ' v^'r ^ ■ ' . While the abfurd pra&ice continued* during the reign of Maryt of promoting manufa£tures by monopoly, indead of competition, one law alone appears to have been attended with effects, conti- nual and falutary. It is the a6): * '' for the mend- ing of highways i" being now, fays the law, both very noifome and tedious to travel in, and *^ dangerous to paflengers and carriages." The «c •• , • 2 & 3 Philip and Mary, ch. 8. liril: vi'aiS.i ;iv/ ( 3' ) firil effort of Englifh legidation, on a fubjefb To much connected with the profperit/ of every people, is the aA of Edward !• for enlarging the breadth of highways from one market town to another. This |aw» which was enadbed in 12851 was however in- tenc^ed rather to prevent robbery, than to promote faciHty in travelling* The roads of particular diftridb were amended by feveral laws of Henry VIII. But this of Philip and Mary is the Bril ge- neral law, which obliged every parifha by four days labour of its people, to repair its own roads. The reign of Charles II. merits the praife of having firft eftablilhed turnpikes s whereby thofe, who en- joy the benefits of eafy conveyance, contribute the neceflary expence. Before the commencement of the celebrated reign of Elizabeth, a confiderable change had doubtlefs taken place in our policy, and in the numbers of our people. Agriculture, manufac- titres, filheries, commerce, diftant voyages, had all been begun, and made fome progrefs, from the fpirit that had already been incited. And all thefe muft aiTuredly have flourifhed, during the do- meftic tranquillity of a fteady government, through half a centuryf as well as afterwards, from the example of oeconomy and prudence, of adivity and vigour, which Elizabeth, on all occafions, fee before her fubjeds.' The a6k of Elizabeth *, containing orders for artificers^ labourers^ fervants of hujhandryi and ap' * 5 Elias, ch. 4.* % prmicesi jt- <« «< <« ( 32 ) . prenticeSy merits ronfideration ; becaufe we may learn from it the flare of the country. Villains^ we fee, from this enumeration, had ceafcd, before 1562, to be objeds of legiflation. And we may perceive from the recital, ** That the wages and '* allowances, rated in former (latuces, are in divers places too fmall, and.xr^/ anJwerabU to this time^ refpcdting the advancement ofalUbingSt belonging to the faid fervants and labourers,*'-— a favoura- ble change had taken place in the fortunes of this numerous clafs. This law, particularly where it requires apprenticefhips, ought to be repealed} be> caufe its tendency is to abridge the liberty of the fubjeA, and to prevent competition among work- men. The fame obfervation may be applied to the a6l " againft the crcfting of cottages *." If wc may credit the affertion of the legiflature, ** great ** multitudes of cottages were daily more and more *' increafing, in many parts of this realm." This ftatement evinces an augmentation of people : yet, the execution of fuch regulations, as this law contains, by no means promotes the ufeful race of hufbandry fervants. The principle of the poor laws, which may be faid to have originated in this reign, as far as it neceflTarily conBnes the labourer to the place of his birth, is at once deftrudlive of freedom, and of the true interefts of a manufadluring community, that can alone be effectually promoted by competition \ • ijEUz. ch. 7. w hich ( 33 ) which hinders the rife of wages among workmen, and promotes at once the goodnefs and cheapnefs of the manufacture. A few falutary laws were doubtlefs made during the reign of Elizabeth. But her legiflation will be found not to merit generally much praife. Her a£ks for encouraging manufactures by monopoly ; for promoting trade by prohibition ; and for aid- ing hufbandry, by preventing the export of corn, alone juftify this remark. Her regulations, for . punifhing the frauds, which arife commonly in manufactures when they are encouraged by mono- poly, merit commendation. Having thus (hewn the commencement of an increafing population, amidft famines and war, and traced a coniiderable progrefs, during ages of healthfulnefs and quiet, it is now time to afcertain the precife numbers, which probably exided in England, towards the end of Queen Elizabeth's reign. From the documents, which ftill remain in the * Mufeum, it is certainly known, that very 'accu* rate accounts were often taken of the people, by the intelligent minifters of that great princefs. '] Harrifon, who has tranfmitted an elaborate de- fcription of England, gives us the refuk of the mutters of 1575, when the number of fighting men was found to be — 1,172,674 : * Adding withal, that it was believed a full third had'* been omitted. Notwithftanding the greatnefs of- this number, fays Mr. Hume, the fame author com- plains much of the decay of popukufnefs ; a vulgar • P complaint ( 34 ) complaint in all ages and places*. Sir Walter Raleigh however alTerts, that there was a general review, in 1583, of all the men in England, ca- pable of bearing arms, who were found to amount to — — 1,172,000 Here then are two credible evidences to an im- portant fadl : That, in 1575, or 1583, the fighting men of Elngland, according to enumerations, amounted to — — 1,172,000 Which, if multiplied by 4, would prove the nien, women, and children to have been -^ 4,688,000 Without comparing minutely the numbers, which we have already found, in 1377, with the people, * who thus plainly exifted in 1577, it is apparent, that there had been a vaft increafe in the interme- diate two hundred years. Such then were the • Hill. vol. V. p. 481. — vi. p. 179. By endeavoaring to col- left every thing that could throw light on the popalation of Eli* zabeth's reign, Mr. Hume has bewildered himfeif and his rea- der. Peck'has preferved a paper, which, by proving that there were muders in is75> confirms Harrifon's account. [Defid. Curiofa, v. i. p. 74.] It is a known faft, that there was an enumeration of the mariners, in 1582, which correfponds with Raleigh's account. [Campbel's Pol. Survey, v. i. p. 161.] That there were feveral feveral farveys then, is a fa£l incon- trovertible ; as appears indeed from the Harl. MSS. in Brit. Muf. Nos. 412 and 6,839. The Privy' Council having re- quired the Bifliops, in July 1563, to certify the number of/4- milies in their feveral dioctfes, were informed minutely of the particulars of each. Some of the Bifhops returns may be feen in MSS. Harl. No. 595. Brit. Muf. From the Bi- fliops certificates, as well as from the 31 Eliz. ch. 7. it ap- pears, that the words families and bvu/eboldt were then ufed fynonymoufly. • h numbers C 35 ) numbers of the Hghting men, and of the inhabi- tants of England, during the reign of Elizabeth: and fuch was the power* wherewith that illuftrious Queen defended the independence of the nation* and fpread wide its renown *. But, it is the ardour with which a people are infpired, more than their numbers, that conftitutes their real force. It was the enmity wherewith the armada had infpired England againil Spain, which prompted the Englifli people, rather than the Engiifh court, to aid the baftard Don Antonio to conquer Portugal : and twenty thou/and volunteers engaged in this romantic enterprize, under thofe famous leaders Norris and Drake.—- An effort, which (hewed the manners of the age more than its populoufnefs, ended in difappointment, as * The particular number of the eommunieants and retti- >«»//, in each diocefe and pariih of England, was certified to the Privy Council, by the Bifiiops, in 1603.— MSS:Harl. Brit. Muf. No. 280. And the number of communicants was - 2,057,033 Of recufants . . . > 8,465 ■ ■ ' 4"'.<%'-2V-. - x^vlia all - 2,065,498 By the 33d Eliz. chftp. i. all perfons upwards of fixteen years of age were required to go to church, under the penalty of twenty pounds. If the 2,065,498 contained all the perfons, both male and female, who were thus required to frequent the church, this number would correfpond very well with the fighting men lately ftated ; and (hew the people of England and Wales to have been between four and five millions, du- ring Elizabeth's reign, though approaching nearer to the laft number than the firft. ^ , ,;vY, ..r D 2 -..,-sv*ii'ft-.j^t=--s might ( 36 ) might have been forefeen, tf enthufiafm and rea- ion were not always ac variance. An alarm be- ing given of an invafion by the Spaniards, in 1 599i the Queen equipped a fleet, and levied an army, in a fortnight, to oppofe them. Nothing, we are told, gave foreigners a higher idea of the power of England than this fudden armament. Yet, it is not too much to aflert, that Lanca(hire alone, confidering its numerous manufa&ories and extenHvc commerce, is now able to make a more . fteady exertion*, amidft modern warfare, than the whole kingdom in the time of Elizabeth. ,h> The accefllon of James I. was an event aufpi- cbus to th« profperity and the populoufneis of Great Britarn. The tranquillity of the Northern ' counties of England, which it bad been the ob- jeft of fo many of Elizabeth's laws to fettle, was * The trader* of Liveqp eol alone fitted oat, at the com- jneocement of the late war with France, between the ff6th of • Auguft 1778 and the 17th of April 1 779, a hundred aftd twea- ty privateers, armed each with ten to thirty gam, hut moftly ' with fourteen to twenty. From an accurate lift, containing the n«me and appointment of each, it appears, that thefe privateers meafured 3^0,787 tons, carrying 1,986 guns, and 8,754 mc"' I'hc fl^t ^»( againft the armada, in 1588, meafured 31198^ tons, and was navigated by i^tzyz feamen. And, from the.effbrts of a fingle town we may isfer, that the private {hips of war formed a greater force, daring the war ef die Colonies, than the nation, with all its unanimity and zeal, '5 waft able to equip ander the potent government of Elizabeth. . There was an enumeration, in 1581, of the ihipping and fai* lors of England, which arooanted to 7S>450 ton«, and 14,295 mariners. To this ftatement. Doctor Campbel adds. That the feamen of the fliips regiftered in the port of Lon- don, in 1732, were 21,797. [Pol. Survey, vol. i. p. 161.] .2 at ( S7 ) at once reftored : and the two-and-twenty years of uninterrupted peace* during the prefent reign, muft have produced the noofl: fakicary effefk on the induftry of the people, though this circum- ftance has caft an unmerited ridicule on the King. The various laws which were paiTed by this monarch, for fupprefling the frauds of manufac- turers, evince at once, that they had increafed in confiderable numbers, and mufl have continued to increafe. The a£bs for reformation of al*e- houfes, and repreflTing of drunkennefs, as they plainly proceeded from the puritanifm of the times, mud have promoted fobriety of manners, and at- tention to bufmefs. .The a£t for the relief and regulation of perfons infcdted with the plague mud have had its effed, in preventing the fre- quent return of this deftruf^iv^ evil. Domedic induftry was doubtlefs promoted by the aft againft monopolies : and foreign commerce was aflfuredly extended by the law, enabling all perfons to trade with Spain, Portugal, and France. Bur, above all, the agricultural interefts of the nation were enfured by the aA for confirming the poiTelTion of copyholders i and dill more, by the law for the general quiet of the fubjed, againd all pretences of dormant claims on the lands, which had de- fcended from remote ancedors to the then poflef- fors. Of this falutary law the principle was adopted, and its efBcacy enforced, by a legiflative adt of the prefent reign. -^ . »- p 2 , A com- 1 J •t* J ( 38 ) A comparifon of the laws, which were ena£Ved by the parliaments of Elizabeth and of James, would leave a decided preference to the parlia- mentary leaders of the lad period, both in wif- dom and in patriotifm. The private a^s of par- liament, in Elizabeth's time, were made chiefly to reftore the hkod of thofe, who had been attainted by her predecefTors : the private a^s of James were almoft all made for naturalizing fonigners* One of the laft parliamentary grants of this reign was j£. 1 8,000 for the reparation of decaying cities and towns, though it is not now eafy to tell how the money was adtuaily applied. ^^^ Elizabeth had begun the pradlice of giving bounties to the builders of fuch (hips as carried ene hundred tons. James I. merits the praife of giving large fums for the encouragement of this moft. important manufadture. And while Charles I, patronized every ornamental art, he gave from a very fcanty revenue a bounty of five Ihillings the ton for every veffel of the burthen of two hun- dred tons. Thefe notices enable us to trace the fize of our merchant- (hips through a very aftive century of years. The minifters of Elizabeth had confidered a velTel of one hundred tons as fuffi- cient for the purpofes of an inconfiderable com- merce ; the adviicrs of Charles I. were not fatis- fied with fo fmall a fize. It was to this wife po- licy, that the trading (hips of England were em- ployed, ere long, in protefting her rights, and even in extending her glory. The ( 39 ) ^ The adV which, in 1623, reduced the intercft of money to eight per cent, from ten, (hews fuffi- ciently, even againd the preamble, that complains of decline, how much the nation had profperedt and was then advancing to' a higher (late of im- provement. Such laws can never be fafely en- aded till all parties, the lenders as well as the borrowers, are properly prepared to receive them. The chearfulnefs of honed Stowe led him to fee, and to reprefent, the (late of England, during the reign of James, as it really was. He fays, as Camden had faid before him in 1580, that Ic would in time be incredible, were there not due mention made of it, what great increafe there is, within thefe few years, of commerce and wealth throughout the kingdom \ of the great building of royal and mercantile (hips ; of the repeopling of cities, towns, and villages \ befide the fudden aug* mentation of fair and coHly buildings. The great meafure of the prefent reign, which was produc- tive of efFedts, lafting and unhappy, was the fcttle- ment of colonies beyond the Atlantic. ^ i Lord Clarendon exhibits a pidture equally (lat* tering, of the • condition of England, during the peaceful years of Charles I. Apd the rcprcfcnta- tion of this great hiftorian is altogether confident with probability and experience. The vigorous fpi- rit, which Elizabeth had bequeathed to her people, continued to operate, long after (he had ceafed to delight them by her prefence, or to proted them by her wifdom. The laws of former legiQators produced fucccffivcly their tardy e(Fc(fls. And \t P 4 o^g^t < 40 ) ought to be; reip/B0)ber^, tt^f i^ckher difp^tes among the great, parliaipj^ptarjr aJtercations, nor even civil <;onte(^s, tiU they^pfocce^ the length of tumult iind blQodflie$],,e^ef-prQd4^e,,,ai|;' bad confequettces to the induftry.or .cou^fort pf. t^ gp- vernea.,|.^,»^^^,^^.jj,,|., . .. ^-.-/^ .^f|*»?sjfii; »ri;!! -io ■'^••s ■ The eivjl warst which brgan in .|64o^.JMnhappy as they were while they co^itinui^^^^ both to ^j^^g and people, produced in the end the mo^ fdu- tary influences, by.feringing the higher and. lower Tanks clofcr together, and by qontinuipg^in all a vigour of defign, and adivity of pi^a^ice, that in prior ages had no example. One of the Brfl: confequences of real hoililities was the cftablifiiment of taxes, to which the peo- ple had feldom cQntributed> and which produced, before the conclufion of warfare, the enormous fum of £. 95,51 2,095 *. The gallant fupporters of Charles I. gave the fovereigni whom they loved amidO^his diilrefles, large fiuns of money, while confifcations left them any thing to give. Here then, were the mines of Potofi opened in England. The opulence, which induftry had been coliedling for ages, wai now brought into adion» by the arts of the tax-gatherer : and the country- gentlemen, who had long complained of a fearcity $f moneyt contributed greatly, by unlocking their • Stevens's Hift, of Taxes, p. 296. But Stevens inclodes the Oites of confifcated lancli, compofitiohs for eftates, and fuch other more pppreffive modes of raifinf money. There were collefled, by fxd/ts only, £, 10,200,000 j and by tonage and poundage /^. 5,700,000. coffers, ( 4» ) coffers,* to temove the evity thse they had tfiem-2 fclves cr«i«ed by hoarding. Otit of the iirft eflfc^s of c'fvil cotntnodon wa^ the placing^ of prmte money in the (hops of gold* foiitbs, M its better fecirriey, arsd for the advan- tage of the intereft, which', at the commencement of bank'mg, was allowed the fyrop^letoFs. By fa- cHitattng the rendy transfer of property, and the eafy payment of private d)sbts, as well g& public impofts, banking may be regarded as the fmitfut mother of cinuktiion, I'he COlleAing of taxes; arid the fubfequtnt expendieure, raiifed ere long the price of all things. Owfttg tb thofe caofits chiefly, tht legal interefll of money was reduced, in i65r, to fix per eem. And^ the rcdbftion Of inter^ft is at otCte a proof of previous acqulfition,; and a means of future pro(J)«ri«y. ^be Rejiordthn of Charles II. indtacitfdthe pco- pfc to transfer the energy, which they had exerted during twenty years hoftilities, to the various ope- rations of peace. The f^verkl manufafbories, and new productions of husbandry, that were intro- duced from fbrergn cOuntf its, before the Revolu- tion formed a new epoch, alone' evince a vigorous application ta the ufeful arts, in the intermediate period. Thd common highways were enlarged and repaired, while turnpikes were placed on the. great Northern road, in the counties of Hert- ford, Huntingdon^ and Caoibridge. Rivers were deepened for tfhe purpofes tof internal conveyance by water. The afts of navigation created (hip- carpenters and failorsr Foreign trade was in- creafcd ( ♦» ) crcafcd by opening new markets, and by withdraw^ ing the alien duties, which had> always obftrufted the vent of native mahufaftures. Thofe meafures alone, that at once made internal coitimunications caCy and fafe, would have promoted the profpe- rity and population of any country. But, above a^l^ the change of mannerj^ and the intermixture of the higher and middle ranks, by maf riages, induced thd gentry, and even the younger branches of the nobility, to bind their ions apprentices to merchants, and thereby to eno- blc a profeflion, that was before only gainful ; to invigorate traffic by their greater capitals, and to extend its operations by their fuperior knowledge. Hence Child, Petty, and Davenant agreed in af- letting*, in oppcdtion to the party writers of the times, that the commerce and riches of England did never, in any former age, encreafe fo fad as in the bufy period from the Reitoration to the Revo* lution. From the foregoing circumftances we may in- fer a confiderable augmentation of inhabitants, the mote important to the ftate, becaufe they were * The Board of Trade reprefented in December 1697: **■ We have made ioquiry into the ftate of trade in general, ** from the year 1670 to the prefent time : and from the be(( «< calculations we can make, by the duties paid at theCuftom- ** houfe, we are of opinion, that trade in general did confi- *' derably increafe, from the end of the Dutch war in 1673, to " 168^9, when the late war began/' Yct» the Board feem not to have attended to the 2$ Cha. II. ch. 6» which wifely enafted. That Dentzeiu and jilitHs fliould p^y no qnore taxes for the naiivi eommoJhiet of this kingdom, or for ffi caught in Bnglifit fliipsi when exported* than fubjedtt. - ' the ( 43 ) the mod induftrious. But many emigrated, it has been faid, to the colonies, and many perifhed by peftiknce. Yet, the Lord Chief Juftice Hale in- fifts, '* That mankind hath ftill increafed, even to «♦ manifeft fenfe and experience :" and becaufe, fays he, this is an aflertion of faft, it is impolT^ble to be made out, but by in((ances of faft. If how- ever, he adds, we (hould inftitute a compariibn'be^ tween theprefent time (1670), and the beginning of Qiieen Elizabeth's reign (1558), and compare the number of trained foldiers then and now, the number of fubfidy men then and now> they wiU eallly give an account of a very great increafip of {People within this kingdom, even to admiration-^w A mere quellion of faA, with regard to the . ber of births at any two diftant periods, maf ^ :.judtlers be either confirmed, or difproved, by aa.^ !■» * See Lord Hale's convincing argument, in 7*he Orighatin of Mankind tonfidtrtdt ch. lo. Sir John Dalrymple found, vx. King William's cabinet, a minute account of the number of frttholitrt in England, which was taken by order of that mo- narch, in order to find oat the proportion between church«> men, difTenters, and papifts ; and which Sir John has pub; bcqsMCe he was ftruck with the force of their evidenee* 'That they give a greater demmjira^ ti^nt\f the gr(kM inertaft cf mankindy than a bun- 4figd.wtmHil arguments tan either evince or eenfute, For, s gi^eater nunnbev of brrtks, in any one period mere than in any other, muft proceed from a gfttater mimber of breeders ; which evinces a more immerous population. Artd from an attentive f xamination of fueh proofs, Graunc proceeded*, in i.#62, tolhew, with greater ability, the progreflive ioc^eafe of the people, and to prove how eafily the coonrry could fupply the capital with numerous recruits, without any fenfible diminution. t> Having thus traced a gradual progrefs in popu- lation, it is now time to afcertain the precife num- bers at the Revolution. And Gregory King, who has been praifed by Davenane for his refearcb and his ikilfulnefs, has left us documents, from which we may iotm an eftimate fufficiently accurate. From an infpedion of the hearth books, and the * See The Obfervationi on the Bills of Mortality. Dodlor Price has quoted TIndal, for the fad. That there appeared, by the hearth books of 1665, in England and Wale$» 1,230,000 houfes. The acknowMged number in 1690 — i ,300,000 Thii, if we may credit Tindal, .is fufficient evidence of a rapid increafe in no lottg pniod. draunt calculated the peo** pie <^ England and Wales, in 1662, at 6,440,000 perfons. J f . , aflclTmcnts ( 45 ) aflcflhientson marriages, births, and burials, King formed calculations of the nunjbers of fiirtlilies* houfes, tod people ; which, according to Divc- nant, ** were perhaps -morfc to be relied updn, t#»«h ** any thing that had been -ever done of the hkc It had been the/afhtofi of the preceding lige t6 ftate the riunibersof tnankthd-tn every country too high : from this period rflgenious men 'wetc <:ar- ricd awayby areprcfhenftblefelf-fufficiency to cal- culate them too low. Of dw ftatements of King, it was remarked by Sir Robeit Hatley *, ici 1-69^, ** Thefe afleflments aretio-good foundafion ; beads " at a mediimi being (accordiflg to t^e oomptita- •*tion) fir houfe in London only jfi;^: omiffions ** in the coimtry are probably greater than m Lori- ** don, becaufe numtiering the people is there more '•terrible. The polls are inftances: families of •* feven or eight perfons, being not numbered at *' aibove three or four perfons in fonie remote ** counties.** Yet, by thus calculating 4-^, iti- ftead of 5, in every family; which was ftill confi- dered as fynonymous with boufehold, this would demonHrate an increafe of a million, during the foregoing century. Davenant, by publifhing only extrads from King's obfervations, and by fpeaking confufedly of families and boufesy has done an injury to King, and to truth. All will appear confiftent and clear. Harl. MSS. in the Mufeum, Nos. 6,837—7,021. »'«*-f(^j»>.p* ■when (46) when this ingenious calculator is allowed to fpeak for bimfelf. The number of boufes in the kingdom* as charged, fays he, in the books of the Hearth Office at Lady Day 1 690, were, — 1 13 1 9»2 1 5 : But, whereas the chimney money being charged on the tenant, or inhabitant, the divided houfes (land as jR> many diftinft dwellings, in the accounts of the faid Hearth Office. And whereas the empty houfes, fmith's (hops, &c. are included in the faid ac- count, all which may very well amount to i in 36 or 37, (or near ^pr r^/.) which, in the whole, may be about 36,000 houfes 1 it follows, that the true number oiinbabited boufes is not above 1,290,000; which, however, we (hall call, -'n round numbers, — — 1,300,000 Having thus adjulled the number of houfes, we come now, continues he, to apportion the number of fouls to each, according to what we have ob- ferved from the faid afieiTnients on marriages, births, and burials. iiaf;L/;.,>^'*.,-?j3£-.liiw i!. 03 hh^ '■. 'V a;ii ;.j A'iH ^^^^^ London ( 47 ) JK^OQdon within the walls produced < ^^ almoft - - - 54- ^^1" houfe. Sixteen parifties without, full - 44- The reft of the bills of mortality al- ,, moft ^ - - - 4x H. The other cii;ies an^ market cowns 4t The villages and hamlets - 4 So) London and * Inhabited /rrhoafe. Sotils. mortality con- hoafes. . tained • - 105,000 at 4,57 479,600 The cities and market towns 195,000 4,3 838,500 The villages and „^ . . hamlets - 1,000,000 4 4,000,000 In all - 1,300,000 4,9 5,318,100 But, confidering that the omifTions in the faid affeflments may well be, In London and the bills of morta- lity - - - ' - 10 per cent, or 47,960 fouls In the cities and market towns - 2 per cent, or 16,500 In the villages and hamlets - - i per cent, or 40,000 In all 1 04,460 fouls: It ( 48 ) It follows, that the true number of people, dwdling in the i'>300,ooo inhabited hcufes, fhould be - - - 5»42 2,560. Laftly ; whereas the number of trtnfuory peo« pie, as feamen and foldiers, may be accounted 140,000} whereof nearly one half, or 60,000, have no place in the faid afTtirmehts : and that the number of vagrants, as hawkers, pedlars, crate car- riers, gipfies, thieves, and beggars, may be rec- koned 30,000 } whereof above one half, or 20,000, may not be taken notice of in the faid af- feffments, making in all 8o,ooc perfons : It fol- lows, that the whole number of people in Eng- land and Wales is much about 5*500,000, viz. In London . - - 530,000 fouls In the other cities and towns - 870,000 In the villages and hamlets - 4,100,000 In all 5,500,000 The number of inhabited houfis being about - • 1,300,000 The number of families about 1,^60,000 The people anfwer at 4rpir houfe, and 4 /^r fa- mily. Thus much from Gregory King's Political Ob- fervations •. And his ftatements are doubtlcfs ve- ry curious, andt:ven exaft, though we now know. • There is a very fair copy of King's ObfervatiOBs, in MSS. H«rl. Bfit«^uf. No. 1,898. ^ that { 49 ) that the number of dwellers, which he allowed to every houfe, and to every family, was a good deal under the truth, as Sir Robert Harley at the time fufpcdtcd. Subftquent inquirers have enumerated the houfes and the inhabitants of various villages, towns, and cities, inftead of relying on the defe^ive returns of tax-gatherers. Doftor Price is now difpofcd to ad- mit, from the enumerations which he-had fcen, that five perfons and a fixth, refide in every honfe*. Mr. Howler, from a ftill greater number of enumera- tiorts, infifts f for five and two-fifths. It will at laft be found, perhaps X^ that five and two-fifths are the irvations, in * Reverfionary Payments^ v. ii. p. 288. , f Examination of Price, p. 145. , X In 1773, Dr. Price Infifted, that there wpre not quite five in every bou/e* CObfervations on Reverfionary Payments, 3d edi^ tioD, p. 184.] In 1783, theDodlor Teemed willing to allow five one-fixth in every houfe : But he ftill contends, That jf yoa throw out of the calculation Liverpool, Manchefter, Birming- ham, and other populous towns, the number in every houfe eiigbt to be left than five. [Obfervations on Reverfionary Pay- ments, 4th edit,, v.ii. p. 288— 9.] The Rev. Mr. New made a very accurate enumeration of the pariih of St. Philip and St. jacobin the city of Briftol, during the year 1781, and found 1*529 inhabited houfes, and therein 9,850 fouls. Thefe numbers prove, that more than fix one-third dwell in every houfe. And from this enumeration we may"1nfer. That in the full inhabited city of Briftol, fix at leail reiide in every houfe. If, in thefpirjt ofDodlor Price, we throw cut of the calculation all populous places, and ftudioufly collefi fnch decaying towns as Sandwich, the proportion to every houfe muft be limited to five. ■'% E fmalleft ( 50 ) fmalleft number, which, on an average of th9 whole kingdom^ dwells in every houfe. Little doubt can furely now remain of there having been in England and Wales 1,300,000 in- habited houfcs at th^ Revolution. Were we to multiply this number by ^vct it would demon- ilrate a population of fix millions and a half: were we to multiply by five and two-fifths, or even by five and one-fifth, this operation would carry the number up nearly to feven millions : and feven millions were confidered, by fome of the moft intelligent men of that day, as the people of this kingdom at the Revolution. But, if we take the loweft number, of fix mil- lions and a half, and compare it with five millions, the highefl: number afiliredly in 1588, this compa- rifon woulc) evince an increafe of a million and a half in the fubfequent century, and nearly four inillions and a half from 1377. Yet, Dodtor Price regards the epoch of the Reformation (15 17) as a period of greater population than the prefent. In giving an account of the reign of King WiU iiam. Sir John Dalrymple remarks. That three and twenty regiments were compleated in fix weeks. This is doubtiefs an adequate proof of the ardour of the times, but it is a very Oight evide*nce of an overflowing populoufnefs. Want of employment often fends recruits to an army, which, in more in* duftrious years, would languifh withftut hope of reinforcements. We may learn, indeed, from Sir Jofiah Child, That it was a queftion agitated, dur- ing ( 5« ) ing the reign of Charles If. ** If we have more ** people now than m former ages, how came it to '* pafs, that in the cimes of Henry IV. and V. and " even in prior times, we could raife fuch great ar- " mies, and employ them in foreifgn wars, and ** yet retain a fufficient number to defend the *' kingdom, and to cultivate our land% at home ? " I anfwer firft," fays this judicious writer, *• that? ** bignefs of armies is not a certain indication of ** the nvmeroufnefs of a nation, but fometimes of ** the government and diftribution of the lands ; *^ where the prince and lords are owners of the ** whole territory : altho\iigh the people be thin; <* the armies upon occafion may be very great) as *' in Fe2 and Morocco. Secondly, princes sr- ** mies in Europe are become more proportion- *< able to their purfes, than to the numbers of their " people. Thus much it was thought proper to premife^ with regard to the previous condition and policy of England) as well as its anterior populoufnefs to The Revolution^ when this Estimate begins* THEORISTS are not agreed, in refpea to thofc circumftances, which form the ftrength of na- tions, either adual or Comparative. One confiders the power of a people " to confift in their num- bers and wealth." Another infills, " that the force of every community moft cffentially depends E 2 on ( 52 ) on the capacity, valour, and union of the lead- ing charadters of the ftate." And a third, adopt- ing partly the fentiments of both, contends, ** that though numbers and riches are highly important, and the refourccs of war may decide a conteft v'here other advantages are equal *, yet the re- fources of war, in hands that cannot employ them, are of little avail, fince manners are as elTential as cither people or wealth." It is not the purpofe of this Eftimate to amufe the fancy with uninftruAive definitions, or to be- wilder the judgment with verbal difputations, as unmeaning' as they are unprofitable. The glories of the war of 1755 have caft a continued ridicule on the far-famed EJiimator of the manners andprin- eif Us cf the times* Recent ftruggles have thrown equal ridicule on other calculators of an analogous fpirit. And we may find reafon in the end to conclude, that the qualities of the mind, either vigorous or effeminate, have undergone no un- happy change, whatever alteration there certainly js in the labour of the hands of our people, from the epoch of the Revolution to the prcfent mo- ment. But from general remark, let us defcend to mi- nute inveftigations, with regard to the progrefTive numbers of the people, to the extent of their in- duftry, and to the fucceflive amount of their traf- fic and accumulations ; becaufe our refources arofe then, as they arife now, from the land and labour bf this ifland alone* The ad- ( 53 ) . The infult offered by France to the fovercignty of England, by giving an afylum to an abdicated monarch, and by difputing the right of a high- minded people to regulate their own affairs, forced King William into an eight years war with that potent country, >vhich he perfonally hated, and with which he ardently wiihed to quarrel. He had therefore no inclination to weigh in very fcrupu- lous fcales the wealth of his fubjedts againfl; the greater opulence of their rivals, who were in thofe days more induftrious, and were further advanced in the pra^lice of manufacture, and knowledge of traffic. Yet the defire of that warlike monarch being feconded by the zeal of a people, whofe re- fources were not then equal to their bravery, he was enabled to engage in an arduous difpute for the moll honourable end. Happy ! had hoftilities ended, as foon as the independence of the nation was vin- dicated from infult. We may form a fufficient judgment of the flrength of England at that aera from the folr lowing detail : The number of fighting men, according to the calculation of Gregory King, as cited with appro- bation by Davenant, was 1,308,000 ; yet the one fourth of the people formed the men fit for war, whatever may have been the real population of l^ngland, daring the reign of King Wllliari^ E3 The <( 54 ) The yearly income of the nation from its land and labpur amount- ed, if we may credit the ftatement of King, to - - - The yearly cxpence of the people for their necefiary fubfiftence - - 41,700,000 j£'43»5<^o,ooo The yearly accumulation of profit £* 1,800,000 The value of the -whole kingdom, according to King, jC*650,ooo>ooo**, which, forming thecapi- tal whence income arofe, was no proper fund for taxation. ' Davenant Hates, from various eonje^ures and cal- tulationSi the circulating money at £* 1 8,500,000 1, -while there yet exifted in the nation no papers money, and little circulation ; which, by facilita- ting the eafy transfer of property, is fo favourable to the levying of taxes. <" Sec King's PoUt. Obfenr. in MSS. Harl. Brit. Maf. No. 1,898. t Gregory King having ftated the filver coin at eight mil- lion and a half in 16881 and the gold coin at three million, Sir Robert Harley thereupon remarked, *' That the mint ac- counts would make us believe there is more geld coin than three million ; but both accounts together would make a good efti mare."— MSS. Harl. Brit. Muf. 1,898. The circu- lating coin may therefore be taken at eleven million and a half during King William's reign. It is one of the tenets of Doflor Price, to maintain, that we had more coins in circu- lation, during thofe times than at prcfent* King i ss y King Jameses annua) income amounted only to £^2,061,856. ys, 9l034,oi8; Of this debt there remained due at — Lady-day, 1702 * -r - £'10,066,777 So unfruitful had each branch of taxes proved, during every year of the war, that the reve- nue, which had exifted before it began, fell above one half in five years t ; and the deficien- cies appeared to have fwelled, before the fef- fion of 1696, to the then enormous fum of £.6,000,460; which greatly enfeebled every ex- ertion of the government, by the advance in the price of all things. The annual collection of -'axes, to the amount of two million and a half, more than had been levied on the country in pre- ceding times, while their foreign trade was cut off, was alone fufHcient to embarrafs a people of greater powers of induftry and circulation. It is an in- flrudive fad, which is tranfmitted by Davenant, that impofts did not then enhance the price of the commodity to the confumcr, when in its highcft * Mr. Aftle's Tranfcript, Ways ^nd Means f Davcnant's EfTay oa ftate I S7 ) ilate of improvement, but fell on the grower^ who fold the article in its rudeft condition : the excife did not raife the price of malt, but lowered the price of barley. And this evinces how much confumption was embarralTdd, :iiid circulation ob- llru^ed, during the diftrefTes of the Revolution war. The annual value of the furplus produce of the land and labour of England, which was then ex- ported to foreign countries, amounted only to jC«4*o86,o87. Had the coins of England been as numerous as Davenant fuppofes them, they could not long have carried on a war beyond the limits of the empire. And the cargoes, which were thus fent abroad, could not, from their in- coniiderablenefs, have filled a mighty void for any Jcngth of years. The tonnage of Englifli (hipping, which were annually employed for the exportation of the be* fore- mentioned cargoes, amounted only to 1909533 tons } which, if we allow them to have been navi- gated at the rate of twelve mariners to every two hundred tons, required only 11,432 failors*, yet this was the principal nurfery, whence the navy of England could alone be manned) during the wars of King William. The { 58 ) The following ftatcmcnt will give us idfcas fuf- ,ficiently accurftte of the progrefllve force of the royal fleet i Which in 1660 carried In 1675 In 1688 In 1695 Tone. 694681 101,032 1124400 Sailors. 30*951 45,coo Such, then^ was the naval force that, during the hoftilities of William, could be Tent into the line againft the potent navy of France^ which, in one bufy reign, had been created, and raifed to greatnefs. It wa^ found almoft impofiible to man the fleet, though the admiralty were empowered by Parliament to lay (IriA embargoes On the nner- chants (hips *. And this alone ought to give us a leflbn of what importance it is to the ilate to augment the native race of carpenters and failors by every poflible means. The * Sir J. Dalrymple has publiflied a paper [Appendix, p. 242.J in order to juftify King William from the charge-^ ** of not exerting the natural itrength of England in a fea- war agnnft France, after the battle of La Hogne ;" which proves, that his miniflers thought it impoflible to increafe the fleet ;— " as not having ihips enough, nor men, unlefs we Aop even the craft- trade." There are a variety of documents in the Plantation-office, which demonArate the fame pofition. And fee the following comparative view of the fleets of France and England in 1693. ( 59 ) The great debility of England, during the war of the Revolution> arofe from the praAice of hoarding in times of diftrull, which prevented cir- culation ; from the diforders of the coin, that only augmented the former evil, while the government iJTued tallies of wood for the fupplying of fpecie } from the inability of the people to pay taxes* while they could find no circulating value, either for their labour or property : add to theie, the turbulence of the lower orders, and the treachery of the great. And above all, if we may believe the minifters of William *, Nobody knew one day what a Houfe of Commons would do the next. It is now time to enquire into the lofTes of our trade, during that diftrefsful war. A more con- The following "Comparifon of the French and EngU/h fleets in 1693, fennel from lifts brought into the Houfe of Commons by Secretary Trenchard/^ iiriU fliew how nearly «qual they were in force, even fubfsquent to the vic- tory of La Hogue in the preceding year. [Bibl. Harley, Brit. Mufeum, fJo, 1,898.] French Fleet. Engliih Fleet. Difl^rence. At At In. Build . Ships ftom Breft. Toulon . Total. being. ing. Total. More. Lefs 40 to 50 guns - 3 8. - 3« 3». - as 0. 50 to 60 - 10 14. - 7 I ^ 8. - 6. 60 to 70 - »3 ^^. - 14 3 17. -' *S' 70 to 80 - »3 j6. - 23 a »S' » 9 o. 80 to 90 - 7 8. - 8 6 14. -• 6 0. go to 100 . 6 10. - II II. - I 0. joQ to 108 . 6 ?• - 5 s« • 2. •M ^M m^ ^m tmm mm mm 68 27 95- - 99 IX III. m 39 %Z' f Dal. Mem. Appendix, p. 240. firmed ( 6o ) firmed commerce could not have flood fo rude a fhock as our manufadtures and commerce received, from the imbecility of friends, no lefs than from the vigour of foes, amidd a difaflrous courfe of hoflilities of eight years continuance. And the clamours, which were in the end raifed againft the managers of the marine, were affuredly founded in prodigious lofles. An examination of the follow- ing proofs will evince this melancholy truth : Ships cleared outwards. Years. Tons £ng. D** foreign. i6?8 — 190,533 — 95,267 — 1696 — 91,767 —- 83,024 — Value of their cargoes. Total. £. 285,800 — 4,086,087 174,791 — 2,729,520 Annuallofs 98,766 — 12,243 — 111,009 £, 1.356,567 The nett revenue of the pufls ia — 1688^^.76,318 1697 5 8,672* Dr. Davenant took a different way to go to the fame point, becaufe he had not accefs to a better. Having' flated the yearly amount of the cuftoms, from 1688 to 1695 inclufive, he inferred from the annual defalcations : " So that it appears fulH- ciently, that in general, iince this war, our trade is very much diminifhed, as by a medium of feven years the cuftoms are Itdened about jf. 138,707. y s. a year." Dr. Davenant juftly complained of the breaches of the A<5t of Naviga^ tion, *' during the (lack adminiftration of this " war i" fo that ftrangers feem to have beaten us « «c cc <( Mr. Aftle'a Tranfcript, PUl ( 6i ) out of our own ports. For it was obfcrved, that there were, in the port of London, Tons Do. £ngli(h. foreign. Total. During the year 1695* — 65,788 — 83,238 -* 149,026 It would be injurious to conceal, that the fame able author, who feems, however, to have fome- times complained without a caufe, acknowledged,' ** That perhaps no care nor wifdom in the world j " could have fully protcfted our trade during this ** laft war with France." An attentive examination of the numbers of our (hips cleared outwards, and of the cargoes export- ed in them, will convince every candid mind, that in every war there is a point of depreffion in trade, as there is in all things, beyond which it does not decline 5 and from which it gradually rifes beyond * If with the year mentioned by Davenant, we contraft the following years, we (hall fee an aftonifhing increafe of the na- vigation and commerce of London. Thus, there were entered in this great port. Tons Englifli. D" foreign. Total, In 1710 — 70*9 'S — 40,280 — 110,195 19 — 187,122 — 11,468 — 198,590 58 — 125,086 -— 69,060 — 194,146 82 — 210,656 — 125,248 — 335-904 83 — ' 277.797 — 169,170 — . 446,967 8+ — 372.775 . — 92'043 — 464,81? the ( 62 ) eke cktent of its former greatnefs, unlefs it meets with additional checlcs. And the year 1694* marked, probably> the loweft ftate to which the * The Mlowiag dttaji, from die PIaiktatioii>office» win fiv* iWfCfcdMP ft ftUl clearer view of the navigation of Eog- landj during the cmbarraiTmenti of the Revolution war. »«93j Ship* cleared outwards* Tons Do Bn^A. fordgn. Total. London, 44«9i» - S9»7So - »04»66» OatportSy- 731176 - s8»75« - 101,9x8 Tota^ 118,088 •> 88,501 - 2oS,59o I London, 39,648-41,500- 81,148 *^*lOutports, 33,408 - z8,xa4 - 61,632 Total, 73PS6 - 69,724 - 142,780 Balance of Trade, 5 7,260 20,040 Ships entered inwards. Tons Do EngllA. foreign. Total. 36,312 - 80,875 - "7»3*7 32,616 - 27,876 - 60,492 69,128-108,751 - 177,879 Balance ofTrade^ 28,6 1 1 206,590 S9»47» - 7«i50o - *35»97* 35,158 - 28,910 - 64,068 ^^^m^mam' mmmmi^amm ^■■mi^hh 94,630-105^.10 - 200/>4a Of the foregoing detail it ought to be obferred, that it does not appear in the Plantation-oiEce altogether in thia form : the number of fhips, Englifli and foreign, entered ei- ther in London or the outports, is only fpecified, and the average tonnage of each thus particularly given : the Englifli ihips in the port of London were eftimated at 1 1 2 ton* each ; the foreign at 125 tons each : the Engiiflu fliips at the out- ports at 72 each} the foreign at 98 tons each. Whence the editor was enabled, by an eafy calculation, to lay before the public a more precife account of the commerce of Eng- land, during the war of the Revolutionf than has yet been done. S hoftilities .lo •> ioo>04« ( 63 ) JioftUittes of WilUam beat down the national traffic. But the commerce of England,^ fuftalnedi by immenfe capitals, and infpired by a happy fkiU and diligence, may be aptly compared to a fpring of mighty powers, which always exertai its, force in proportion to thewejght of itsxompreflion^ and which never fails to rebound with augmented energy* when the pre0are is remoived by the re- turn of peace. It is neverthelefs s^ fa£l equally true, that hpweyer the cefTation of war may give frefh ardour to our induftrious claOes ax homei and enable our merchants to export cargoes of une3t« anapled extent i yet» there atte never wanting wri- ters, who, during this profperous. moment* cons- plain of the decline of our manufaj5torie% and the ruin of our trade. . It is propofed to illuftrate both thefe fa6ts, in the following (beets,; becaufe, from the illuftration we niay derive both inteUigeo(;e and amufement. Let us then attend to the following proofs i Wtloe of car- Ships cleared Qutwar4t. goes exportcil«> PeaceofRyf. I '^'"»*^"«* 0" foreign. Total. £. wick, 1697 ^'++.264 " *°^*524 - 244»788 - 3»S2S'9or 1699 J 1700 V 293,703 - 43,625 - 337»3*8 - 6,709,8?! 1701 J ' " ■ ' ' ■■ ■■ * '■ " '' "■ ■ i - ' i>. ' In addition to this fatisfa^ry (detail, let us con- fider the revenue of the poft-office, which, (hew- ing the extent of correfpondence at different pe-« riods. ( 64 )■ t I • risd#» furnifliet txr btd* proof of the progrefs o^ commerce. The nettincomeof the pofts, accord* ing to an average of the eight yew^of King Wil- liam's wars i> - - ^n-^r-iC. 67i222 D" of the four 'years of fobftqutnr^ peace - - • ^r:*^- .. * 82,3i9«» Yet, arkiidft all this profperity, Polexfen, one of the Board of Trade, publiflied a difceurfi-ft in 1 697, in order tofhew,*' That, fo great had been the lolTes of a feven years war, if a great (lock be abfolutely necelTary to carry on a great trade, we may reafon- ably conclude the (tock of this natk)n is fodiminifli- e4, it will fall ihprt ; and that, without prudence ^od Miduftry, we (hall rather confume what is left, thaxK recover What we have loft." Davenant, the ahtagonift of Polexfen, (tunned evei'y cofFee-houre at the &me time with his declamations on the de- cay of commerce.. ** It will be a great matter for •' the prefcnt," fayshet " if we can recover the ^roui^d. our trade has loft during the laft war." But we have feen, that we had already gained y2^- Pfrier ground at the precife moment wherein he, in this manner, lamented our .recent \offe% both of pipping an^ trjuie. , Sp different are the deduc- tions of theory^ -from the- informations, of expe- rience^, th|t ^e^i^Qiarj^ Jntert^ptions are conftancly *"* Mr. Aftlc'sTrahfcript; CttMf and Paper Credit, ^4;?: 53* >4i»- f Dlfcoarfe on Trade^ t Difcourfe on Trade, 1698. niiftaken ( 65 ) tniilaken for fymptoms of hftl^iu^] Recline. Andl our cofumercial writers, owing to this caufe, are full of well-meaning falfehood, while they fome- times propagate purpofed deception* The {^evolution may jullly be regarded as an event in our annals, the moft memorable and in- terel^ing *> bccaufe its effedts have been the hap- pieft, in refped to the iecurity, the comfort, and profperity of the people. Yet, it has for fome years been iofifted, with a plaufibility, which pre- cludes the charge of intended paradox, that every caufe of depopulation— tf devouring capital^ tht wafte cfwarst thi drain «f fianding armies^ emigra-' iions /« the colonitit the engr^ng offamuy the inclqfing ^fcommonSi the high price cf provifionsy and unhounied luxury — all have concurred, fince that fortunate sra, to difpeople the nation; the numbers of which, it is pretended, have decreafed a mUlion and a half, and (till continue to decreaie. In oppofition to fuch controvertiils it is not fuf- ficient to argue. That, having traced a gradual advance in population, during fix centuries of political diftradion and domeftic mifery, and proved an addition of almoft five millions to the original (lock, in 1066, notwithftanding waftefui wars, defolating famines^ and habitual debility ; we ought thence to infer, that the pofition of a ds- tj^st could have either carried on the former pro^refs of our population^ or have promoted f ||ri^i^,ual decline* The Revolution did not indeed produce To i)[iuch any alteration in the forms of the conftitution, ^s it changed the maxims of adn^tniftration $ which have every where fo great an influence on the condition of the governed. Yet, from thence a new aera is (aid* to have commenced, in which the bounds of prerogative and liberty have been bet- ter defined, the principles of government more thoroughly examined and undcrllood, and the rights of the fubjeA more explicitly guarded by legal provifions, than in any other period of the Englilh hiftory. One article alone, in the Decla- ration of Rights, was worth, on account of the confolation which it adminiftered to the lower or- ders, the whole expence of the enfuing war: ** That excefBve bail ihall not be required, or exceifive fines be impofed, or cruel and unufual punifhments be infiidted. '* Philofophers have juftly remarked, that feverity of chaftifement has as natural a tendency to debafe mankind, as mild- liefs to elevate them. It was not fo much from the declaration, thai the levying money witboui fonftnt of Parliament is unlawful^ that private * , Blacl^ft. Com. tol, i. p. s 1 3. ^*^ .^ . . - . • property •♦. '{ 67 ) |>ft>perty wis fecured, m frdm the imptrtial ad- miniftrtcion of juftice, whieK ha4re|;Qlarly flowed from the independence of vhii Judges. Ahder- fon* did ttot forget to give "'a brief viefw of the eftablilhment of that free corifttttitkNfh as it did certainly contribute greatly^ in its cohfequerrces, to the advancement df our iiidufti*y, tiDaiitlfvAures* commerce, and Ihipptng, as well as of oW riches and people, hotwithftahding feveral estpenHire iind bloody wars." '^ 3£aixo! :T-,nw ..^3»r.pf«n The hearch-nioney was foon after taken awa^r i •* being a great oppreflion (fay the Parliament) of the poorer fort, and a badg^ of flaviery upon the whole." During the fame feflion, the firft bounty was given on the exportation of com : •• How much," fays that laborious writer, ** this bounty has contributed to the improvement of hufbandry, is too obvious to be difputed :" and accordingly, the year 16^9 has been noticed as the epoch of the laft great dearth of corn in Eng- land. A flourifliing agriculture mult haVe nedef*- farily promoted populoufnefs in tWo refpei^s i by offering encouragement to labour ; by furhilhing a fupply of provifions at once conflant aM cheap* which were both extremely irregular ift former times. The aft of toleration, which Was at the fame time palled, by ** giving eafe to fcrupulous confciences," tended to promote our induftry a^d traffic> and confequently the progrefs of popuU' f Chron. Acc.of Com.^ vol. il. p. 189—9;, ( 68 ) tion : for, we may learn of Sir Jofiah Child how many people had been driven out of Eng- land, from the rife of the Puritans in the reigo of Elizabeth^ to the blefled asra of toleration/ : : r On theoti :r hand, it has been already (hewn how much the eight-years war, which grew out of the Revolution, diftreflcd the foreign trade of England. As King William employed chiefly the troo^a of other nations v as the profligate and the idle principally recruited the army ; as humanity now (oftcned the rigours of war j it may be juft- ly doubted, if we loft a greater number by the mi- feries of the camp, than were acquired by the ar- rival of refugees, who fought fecurity in Eng- land. And of thi& opinion was Dodor Dave- D ant *, who was no unconcerned fpeftator of thofe eventful times. Yet, it is a known fad, that the taxes, which were fucceffively impofed, did not produce in proportion to their augmentations. And if we attribute this unfavourable circum- ftance to the inability and preflures of the people, more than to the novelty of contributions, to the enmity of many againft the new government, and to the diforders of the coin, we ought undoubted- ly to infer, that the impofition of additional bur- dens neceflarily ftopped the progrefs of num- ■^*T'5it''K ■/r'*rtT nf> vT»4a ot ?.b't-,i.A htm; }v2£yi l.m>^ .^ Neverthelefs, internal traffic flourifhed in the mean time. In 1689, the manufa6tures of cop- '.0'- n " u.i. a-d'.f"* in .■j*»t .";iOjiD m^- Vol. ill, p. 369. -va* ^ <■*■ per ptif ktia braft mtf^vivcd, riM'Win'^t)^ duced. The Sword-bhde company, t^hich ftt-^ tied in Yorkfhire, " brought* over foreign work- men^" The French refugees ihnproved the fa-^ brics of paper and of filk, efpecially the lute- firings and alamodes ; which wer^ ib mil^ch encou*'^ raged by Parliament, that the weavers, being greatly increafed in numbers, as well as in itifo- Icnce, before the year 1697, raifed a tumult in London agalnft the wearers of Eaft India manu- faftures f, .The eftablilhment of the Bank of England in 1694, by facilitating public and pri- vate circulation, produced all the falutary effeftv that were originally foretold, bccaufe it has been conftantly managed with a prudence, integrity, and caution beyond example. By giving encou- ragement to fifheries, in 1695, a hardy race muft have been greatly multiplied ; and by encouraging, in 1696, the making of linens, fubfiftence was given to the young and the old. ' , The conclufion of every lengthened war de- prives many men of fupport, who are therefore obliged to re-enter once more into the competitions of the world. Yet, Doftor Davenant J: aflured the Marquis of Normanby, in 1699, " that we really want people and hands to carry on the woollen and linen manufaAories together." Admitting the • And. Chron. Acc ©f Com. vol. ii. p. 192. " * t Id. p. 220. t Eflay on Eaft India Trade, p. 46, ' F '? truth {> truth of ftr> aflertion> of which indeed there is no reafon to doubt, the obfervation is altogjcther con- (iftent with fa^s and with principles. In lefs than two years from the peace of Ryfwick, the dif- bai^ded. idlers had been all engaged in the manu- fa^ori^^s^^^ich we have feen eftablifhed) and in th^ foreign traffic, that has been fliewn to have flovri{hed fo greatly from this epoch to the de- mife of King William. Now, what does the pofi- tion of Davenant prove, more than that uncomqion demand never fails to produce remarkable fear- city, till a fufficient fupply has been found ? And Sir Jofi^h Child was therefore induced, a hundred years ago, to lay it down as a maxim ; Such as cur employment is for people, fo many will our people he. Were we now to compare the circumftancc ^lentioned by Sir John Dalrymple, of the raifing of three-and-twenty regiments in fix weeks, du- ring the year 1 689, with the fafl dated by Doc- tor Davenant, *' of the fcarciry of hands" in 1699, we ought to infer, that an alteration of manners, owing to whatever caufe, had in the mean time taken place % and that the lower orders of men had learned from experience, to prefer the gainful em- ployments of peace to the Icfs profitable and more dangerous adventures of war. Yet, admitting that the moral eaufes before- mentioned had naturally produced an augmenta- tion of numbers, during the reign of William, we ©ught here to remark, that the people who chiefly * J fharcd fljared ih: the felicicies, or v/ctfi irtcQmmodcd by thp factions of thofe times, muft fiave drawn their firft breath prior to the keyoiution : the: middle-aged, and tHe bid, who enacted the laws, and as miniijbers or niagiftrates carried them into execution, miiit: have been born, during the dif- tradions of th'e civil wars, or amid the contefts of the adminiftratioh of Charles I. : and the gil- lant youth, who fougtit by the fidie of that wiirlik6 monarch, muHt have firfl: feen the light foon alfter the Relloration. But, it ought here' to be ftated, as "a circum- stance, which may be fup'pofed to have checked the progrefs pf population, that there had been actually raifed, though with fome difficulty, on nearly (even millions of people, in thirteen years* - - j£. 58,698,688; igs. Bd.: If we average this fum by the number of years, we ihall gain a pretty exaft idea of King William's annual income - - £'4Ai 3*3^0 ', And if from this we dedud King . James's revenue .^-,^,„^.^t.,:^,..- 2,061,856; The balance, of - - - . 2,453,504, will fhew how much more the people were bur- dened in the latter, than in the forrtier reign. It has neverchelefs been (hewn, that manufair- ^, • Mr. Aftle's Tranrcrfp't, '■)mi>Li 1.*. .- tikires ( 72 )'i tures flounihed in the mean tin;>e> that there was a, great demand for labour* that the foreign traf^ fie and navigatiop of £i;igland doubled,' from the peace of Ryfwicfe to the accefllon of Q^een Anne. For, the re-coinage of the fjlver mean time pro,, duced an exhilarating effe^ on indultry, in th^ fame proportion as the debafement of the current . coin is always difadvantageous to the low^r or- ders, and dilhonourable to the (late. The revi. val of public credit* after the peace of Ryfwick, and the rifing of the notes of the Bank of Eng- land to par, Clrengthened private confidence, at the fame time that thefe caufes invigorated our manufactures and our trade. And the fpirit of population was ilill more animated by the many adls of naturalization, which were readily paiK^ ed, during every feflion, in the reign of Wil- liam ; and which clearly evince, how many in- duftrious foreigners found (helter in England, from the perfecution of countries, lefs tolerant and free., \i ^tl^ilJi! 'm r-h ■ JA NEW war» ftill more bloody and glorious than the former, enfued on the acceflion of Queen Anne. All Europe cither hated the impcrioulnels, or dreaded at length the power, of Lewis XIV. But it was his " owning and declaring the pretended princ? of Wales to be king of England, Scotland, and {' 73 )^ and Ireland," which was the avowed caiifc of Ae hodilities of Great-Britain againft France; though private motives have generally more influence than public pretences. When her trcafurer fat down to calculate the coft, he found refources in his own prudence. Her general faw armies and alli- ances rife out of his own genius for war and negb* tiation. And both eflimated right, fince a favour- able change had gradually taken place in tbt fpirit, a$ well as in the abilities of the people;^' If we inquire more minutely into the natiohai flrength, we (hall 6nd, that England and Wales now contained about - V i, 700*000 fighting men. The union with Scotland added to thefe about - 325*000 So the united kingdom ' . contained -^ •; - 29025,000 lit < np^i i^tuqoq biik' i'mail f-'':^ -ft But troops, without funds to carry them to war, , with all that foldiers require, are of little avail. And happy is it for this nation, at lead, that there is a fuccedive rife in the accumulations of our wealth, in the fame manner as we have already feen a continual progrefs in our population s owing to the various means, which individuals conftantly ufe, to meliorate their own condition. There can be little doubt then, though Gregory King fuppofed the contrary, that the produftive capital and annual gains of the people were greater at the acceflion of Anne, than they had been during ( 74 ) diirthg the preceding reign ', of in any fo(m«r ' Godoiphin and Marlborough had not to con-i ttfnd w'ith the embarrafTments of their predecefibr!!; The diforders of the coin, >vhich had ib enfeebled the late adminiftration, had been perfeftly cured by a re-cbinage. The hi^K iritdreft, which had been given, and the fliU higher profit, that Was made, by purehafing govei'hmeht-fecurities, had drawin mean- while much of th^ hoarded c^/fi^ within the circle of commerce* NO lefs than £, 3,460,000 of ham- mered money, Which had been equally locked up, were brought into adlion, according to P^veMUt, by the z6k for fupprefTing it, in 1697. '^^^ Bsink of England now lent its aid, by facilitating loans, and circulating exchequer bills. And the public debts and additional taxes filled circulation at pre* fent, and gave it aftivity; as they had equally produced fimilar efifeds, when the Long Parlia- mtot opened the coffers of England. Owing to all tbefe caufes, the ftatefmen of the reign of Anne bor- ""^ After fo expenfive a war juft ended, fays ^^nderfon, it gave foreigners a high idea of the wealth and grandeur of Englaadt to fee fnvo millions Jitrling fubfcribed for io thret A^ys, (by the new Eaft-lndiaCompany in 1698) and there were per- Ibni ready to fubfcribe as much more : For» although fince that timfe higher probfs hate appeared of the great riches of this nation, becanfeour wealth is very vifibly increafed ; yet, till then, there had never been fo illuftrioui an inflance of England's opulence. [Cbron. Com. vo). ti« p. 223.] K>' rowed ( 75 y rowed money at five per cent* in 1702, and never, gave more than iix during the war ; which alone (hews how the 'condition of this country had hap- pily changed, from the time that feven and ei^ht per cent, were paid, only a few years before^ The taxes yielded nctt into the ex- chequer, during the year 1 70 1 £'h7^9t37S* Of this inconfiderable revenue the current fervices for the navy ab- forbed — £, i>046$397 ^ the land fcrvice — 425,998 ^3i,^;lthe ordnance — 49>940 the civil lift — 704,339 ■ :?/\l T — — — 2,2 26)674 There were applied to the 'M*jQ? i^;;ioy}- pal and intereft of debts 1^41 1,912 ^'* ^ > ^k«fwv'* 3,638,586 Balance remaining unapplied p— ' 1309789 ».i;.' i. ■^•)v :■'. 1«( * I' 3^7^9rS75» (I The nctt lums paid into the exche- "^*'' ''*'*"^^'''^ ^ qucr during the year 1703, from ^^^^^ V the cuftoms, excife, poft-ofiice, .4^ V land, and mifcellaneous duties - £» 5»56iv944: • Mr. Aftle'i Tranfcxipt. ' ^^ Of .rtnirrn '^r'l hrxk 01 i 7(> )/ of this fum there were ifluedforcar- ' rying on the war- ^.3,665,430 For paying the civil lift 589,98 1 the intereft of loans 430,30^ Balance remaining for i|i,^i ^..a^; .... the payment of loans, \k,mm^^ and other fcrvices - 875,126 V^vf^^i • *^-5»56i»944 The taxes, which were annually levied on the people, during the prefent reign, may be calcu- lated from the nett fums paid into the exchequer in the years 1707—8 — 9—10, amounting yearly to £• 5>272>758. This gives us an idea fufflciently precife of the pecuniary powers, which could then be exerted by Britain. But the military opera- tions of the government were more extenfivc than the annual fupplies of the parliament. So that before Chriftmas 171 1, unfunded debts were con- traiSled to the amount of £, 9>47 1,325. This fum was then too large, as it is faid, to be bor- rowed at any rate. The public creditors agreed to convert their claims into a capital, at a fpeci- fied intereft, with charges of management. And here is the origin of the South Sea Company apd South Sea Stock, The fupplies granted, during the prefent reign, amounted to - - ;C»69> 8 15,457. lu, ^\d. The expcnces of the war, as they were ftated by the commifTioners of public accounts, amount- ed to £-65,853,799. 8j. 7l-(^.t • Mr. Aftlc's Tranf. t Camp. Pol. Survey, vol. ii. p. 543, And { 17 ) A,nd the national debt fwellcd, before the 3Ift^ December I7i4» to - 1. 50,644,306. i^j. 6\d. % on which was paid an intcreft of* ^. 2,811,903., 10;. sii4. and whfch were all more than counter- balanced by the Icgiflative encouragements, that were given in this reign to domeftic induftry and foreign trade. The furplus produce of our land and labour, which was yearly exported, had mean time rifen to C. 6,045,432 i which equally evinces, that we had not yet much to fpare, and confequentjy no vail remittance, which could be annually fent abroad for carrying on the war. The tonnage of Englilh Ihips, which from time to time tranfported this cargo, and which at that epoch formed the principal nurfery for the royal navy, had increafcd to - 273,693 tons j j, which muft have been navigated. ^^.^^^ ^,^^^^, , if we allow twelve men to every >, ..j two hundred tons, by - - - 16,422 failors. By an enumeration f of the trading veflcls of England, in January 170 1, it appeared, that^ ^, -'- London had - - 84,882 cons. The out- ports had 176,340 3301 yyii 7 1 .'.«,* ^ I H i»;^ '"i — '' 261,222 ♦, and that they were navigated by 16,471 men, and 120 boys, or 16,591 failors. The inconfiderable difference between the enu* merated tonnage and mariners, and the tonnage * Hift. of Debt, p. 80 ; which gives a particular ftatement. f A detail in the Plantation-office. w.*.'.. '* '■■•-i>! and (/ ( 7« ) and marioers cleared at the cu(lom-houfe» only marks, that feveral (hips had entered more than once, and that a greater number of men were then allowed to every veilel than chere are now } whence we may infer, that the calculation and the enumeration prove the accuracy of each other* The royal niivy, which in Tom. Mco. 1695 had carried — 112,000 and 45,000, had mouldered before 1704*10 — — 104,754 — 41,000 Its real force will, however, more clearly ap pear from the following detail : f 'T ■ * An admiralty* lift of all her Majefty's lliipa and veflels ia fta-pay, at home and abroad, on the 27 th of February 1703-4, with the higheft complement of men, and the numbers borne, nuftered, and wanting. [From the Paper-ofKce.] Number cf fhipi. Rates. 5 40 57 33 16 — of — 2 3 4 5 — — — 6, befides fire-fliips, bombs, and fmaller veflels, all which Complement of men. Borne. Muflered. , Contained 461745 — 39,720 — 30,778 ^ Wanting — — 7,0*5 ~ 15.967 fcv t Philips'^ State of the Nation, p. 35. r'f iVr Shi ( Ti ) • Ships of the line cmpjoy- ■ ;c ed in -r 170a - 74 in 1707 m 7a 1703 . 79 — 1708 m 69 w 1704 - 74 — 1709 - 67 1705 - 79 — 1710 - 62 1706 - 78 — 1711 - 59 iSuch then was the ftrength of the nation under Queen Anne. Let us now enquire into the lofTes of our trade during her glorious, but unproduc- tive, war. ^::i^. * - The efFort of the belligerent powers was made chieily by land *, and the foreign trade of Eng- land feems to have rather languifhed, than ta have been overpowered, as it had been for a fcafon, during the preceding conteft. Let us cKamine the following proofs : f Yean. Shlpi cleared outwards. Value of cat;gocs. 1700^ TonsEnjlifli. D* foreign. Total. ^» 1 [ 273,693 - 43*635 - 3<7>328 - 6,045,432 1705 1709 1711 1712 — — 5,308,966 243»693 - 45.625 - 289,318 - 5.9i3»357 266,047 - 57,890 - 323*937 - 5»962,988 326.620 - 29,115 - 355,735 - 6,868,840 The revenue of the poft-ofHce *, on an average of the four laft years of William, yielded nett — — ^.82,319 Ditto of the four firft years of the war - 61,568 Mr. Aftle*9 Tranfcript. Thus, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) V r.% f/. ^ I.V/ ISO ^i" I.I 125 m m ■ 2.2 1^ I4£ 12.0 IL25 i 1.4 I I 1.6 HiotograpJiic Sciences Corporalion 23 WEST MAIN STRIET WCBSTIt.N.Y. 145S0 (716)872-4503 ) s 4r In Tbui, the ft^ 1 705^ iQirkdl tbe 1o#cft Ib^ 6f tlb^^cprr$^ of iHMiMnet0Ev dM^ Qoceft'kWs W9fi> ^yAu^o^h^^s^ kilt 'y^af.W bpuHltifi/. wli^ our innri^ti^viMl mBt %| gti^ i mtaifr^ ^periotify 0?ir thofe W iojr ^^i|i|^ nylieii ..^tkm fetum of trim{uiUity had !««• m^ft^^J^^r^ P9 coniMftHifetbi: ^tcrage of th(i'&i|>$ ckfred outwards* 4md of th6 i^ahi« ^,|f}ek QHigqetb duQ^ v'thc' three ipeactful y^ars p^c<;edi!)g ihR war,,9ilh bbth»dliriiig the three fe«r« lmf|iedi«td|y IbtlowiBg the tratty ^ Vtmhi* < t.|^gQ%i.Tqnt,Bo|^. \l|f l»r iT5«t.,05i Dtho on an average t of the years l>ii— II— i3--i4 — . . — _ :, 99,ai3 • Mr. Aftle'j Tttdferip-t. ■ - r-^^*-%>**^^t ^ ' ■- t And. Ckfon. Con. vol. ii* p. 266 : Bat* the office had fcteii uom cxt«i4«4 i9^)Ml0W iilfiMfiKi^as the ihlaod jlbsles^ 'i^'^^ cife, aol the cui^cm^, tndinti^jnmd^ graiUf^ ^ the malt and the |ind ^x. The i^|»id^^ies^^c9^ fiftinift the draiife of theQ|ielnr of fifteen ^if"- tinft hdu]s« wer&aiijaanae^d^i^^^ doners, and oialy be cftimated ^ .the. ;ear|^ aihodnt of jC*453«o62, fmm an average of the years 1 707-^8— 9-r-i o. The«teift^ {lfd|(^rl^fo W4«4,tr#l rewjv^fiwtthtliriwttiK il^ pe^jCf* w^Mv pKciifid y' SIrifrf ' and With what was of morrcifai fitiie, '^«ffic« 6rS«crtoir^ "^ to the CommiffiOficn olf tbftCttftomi. Q called. ■%., ( 8. ) called^ ind^leAfd under the- peculiar mimage. mtntqf the cofntmifnonerR^ of excH*e, confi(bd< of twcnt^c^ different avdcltt; and majr jlje calcu* hiodt iBbttif-^Stimt average, at iiti^i^^^^ inclttding che'diity ^:mal& >l!VAd we rhay th^e^ deteripitMr iiow tmieh it fts, and the immenfity of our debts. ,.And» when we confider too, that the taxes had produced abuAdantly, we may frota thefe decifiyc ^ircum- ilances certainly conclude, that the war had little incommoded the induftrious cla0ess and that the principle of procreation exerted its powers, while an attentive diligence preferved a numer9us pro- » Philips's State of the Nation, j. «6r^ ■ ^ ' gcny^ .^^' ( 83 ) geny« by. furnifhing the con(tant means of fub- fiftcncc. ; . ; , . Whoever examines the laws of Qiiee.0 Anne, with a view to this fqbje^, muft be of opioiooi that they; all tended tO' promote the cominercial intereftf of the nation, as fuchinterefla were then underftpod. ; ..:,,,....,,. ^^^ But, the union of the two kingdoms . is the glory, and ought to be the boaft • of her > reigp. The incorporation of two independent, ieg^natur^,!^ has proved eqqally advantageous to both cpun. tries, whether we regard the intereii of the (late, or the happinefs of the governed* When we confi- der the weaknefs, whiehrefulted fronnhe ancient inroads of the Scotch, and the danger of future feparation, we muft allow, that this conjun^oi^ was worth to England almofl: ai^y price. Ancf the comprefllon of the hearts and hand» of two divided, nations, ; gave an dafticity ^d vigour, t^ the united kingdoms, which feparately neither ha4 ever attained. If as communities f(> muioh Arength and felicity were derived from the j(JAion» the Scotch, as individuals' at 1eaft,wereii]tiUv greater gainers from this a'fTooiation of interefts aod aflfec-> tions. Freed from the tyranny of the nobles, by being admitted into a political fydem mof^ liberal than their own, the people of Scotlan^d thence^ forth enjoyed tfie-fame privilegeSv as;; (imilar r?nk4 in England had long .derived from fprtuoatie events, or wife inftitutions. And, inveftcd with the fame benefits of commerce, the Scotclj melio- G 2 rated ( 84 ) rated their agrtcukurc, improved their niAnufaC' tures» extended their trade, and acquired ah opu- lence, which, as a people, feparate and overiha- dowed, thejT had not for ages accompliflied. The acquifitions of both happily proved advantageous to each. And while the Englilb bufily cultivated the peculiar arts of peace, the Scotch were brought, by a wife policy, from mountains, the natural nurfe'ry of warriors^ to fight the national battles of both. From the epoch of the Union, the fame falu- tary regulations promoted equally the profperity and popubufnefs of Great-Britain. Among thefe Anderlbn * has recorded the ufeful revifal, in 1710, of the ancient aflize. of bread and ale [i266Ji becaufe '* it was fo neceiTary for oui* labourers and artificerst as well as for all other people." Whatever number of lives were loft during the wars o( William and Anne, it feems certain, fays that induftrious compiler, ** that the artificers of England did irreparable damage in the mean time to the French, by robbing them of liiany of their beft manufadlures, wherewith they had before fupplied almoft all Europe.'* The foregoing details caft a jufl cenfure on the furious party-contefls, during the laft years of Quee* Antie, in refp^^ to the condition of our commerce r as if the profperity, or the ruin of manufa£tories and trade, were influenced by the * ChroOt Com* vol. ii. p* 251. continuance ( 8s ) conttnuatice of ftateftnen in the pofl^flioh, or ifi^the expedation, of emolument and power. Thefiuf- bandman and the failor only look for etnployitieift, the mechanic and the merchant only inqUiift fbr ctiftomers, ti^ithout caring who are the rulers, from whom they enjoy protection, fince they feldoiti gain from the contefts of the great. ■^ v^.. UH-rt^f '>.. WHILE George I. was in feci^t little an3^?0tis about the ftabiHty of his throne, amid the dafli of domeftic parties, he engaged fucceflively i^ contefts with almdft every European power^ be- caufe each in its turn had given protedfcion tO the Pretender to his crown. ^* * '" ' '^* ^ ' ^ But, the foreign difputes of this reign werie iHdrt, as well as unexpenfive. And they did not, there- fore, call forth the whole force of the kingdbni ; which may be deduced tn the following mahhei'i If the current of population cbhtinii^litipro- grefs, as we hav6 Teen it did to the Commence^ ment of the prefent reign, the fij^htbg men muft have aniounted, during the time oif Gedrge I. to two millions and fifty thoufaiid. And the effeCiiVe wealth of the country^ there is realon' to ihink» had accumulated ifiean while in a fiiH greater pro- portion. '. .; Owing to the encreafe of circulation, Wnicli enables the opulent to convert To eaHiy land into coin, or coin into land, and to the accumulation too of moveable property, the incereft of money G 3 began ( 86 ) Z, '>^Pl'»*'^^'rSl;iBbcr *« five p«r ,.gdi„tereftfc^«^'*'jf\,„. England. „nt. after S=P'"»'r J/'* -^^ ^h, „,ver-fail- ment of mjereftby »»«, preceding rtther too fpndly '"f^^f ' ^ffits to hi. eoon- ^e. -uW produce fom^yb^ncfi.^^^^ «, ; The ^<"^' 'f f f"" ';^,, ,, y^„, , the '*'^r'''::?r.r fhct/5ii«/-^- ,»,f ;<;,».«» 0/ '*'/7' .^„ ,„A, and the tug- rowed « more than fo^r. ^. ,f „f ,h. The praa.ce ofJJ>^°^2 preffure, of King fta,e had comtnenccd juh * P^ ^^_^^._^^^^ ^, V/iUiam', re.gn. Tb« ^^^^ ^^^^ -^ ^, extended, duruig the V»"o»" ^he "■»'°''^''rSrinden» not fo much government and the lep^e ^^ „^ ^„ of the prmcipaJi » ^o"^ ^'^ JT ' ierpft. 'Vi ftt>1^f^,9" aK)3 10 tJ^iO--' j-^tftr ■1-jft. 'VS '. The ( 97 ) Thenatbn hiad ihtts comro^ted ii.4cbt;i before the^iftof Dl}cemb«^^7f4iof - . ^S^)* 644*307 ( ; q; i^auj.;;; to pay the interefto£. which re-»-;:. ifuif cd;, from the lahd . and' labour : ' of thii kiiigd9Ri:?>c :•• ..• * ' £, 1,81.1,904. It ought to be remembered, however, that this debt was due by the nuion: in its coUedUve capa^ city \ but, chat individoai creditors Jiad acquired a vaft capital in it, oS the moreitiiporhince to them and the public i asv befides yielding an an the induftrious claiTcs deciyed,^ probably* ffomtf a4vancage, from the a^jve amotion, which was thereby given to thi^ circulating value ofj^ll. things. -Yett if the p|?o- pie received nq poltcive beneH^ they were- at Jek^ enabled,. ;by this ^ci(ity, |o/uftjMn:S^^jil iHn;dens with greater; e^(?. 5 -f. Hduiti js yh:t^n oj h%:,. J While, t^xes y^re^ ;w|thout .r|gp^r» co^le^ed from annua; income,::^ndjiot fromt jprq^Mjaiye.ca^ pital, a financial operation was performed, in 1716, which gritduallyMlitved €he embarraiTmeAts of G 4 the ( 88 ) .iIm (hXt^Mfd%%f€ fitiCb vigour to tiradgtiw^ that , cfiergciii) prioQiplcof comnatersial timei. All thofe ti^xKjh which hfd frocn tiine to time beco granted for the payment of various annuitiei, wf re at once made perpetual* and direded to be paid into three great ^nds. The intereft of the public debts was reduced from fiiir per cent, to five. And whatever furplufes might remaiii, after paying this liqui- dated iatereft» were ordered to be thrown into a fourth fund, which was thenceforth called tht finhngfund^ becaufe it was defigned to p^iy off the principal and intereft of fuch debts as had been contraded before Chriftnias lyiiSi^ So produAive were the taxes, owing, to the profperity of the people, that thefe furplufes amounted, before the end of the reign of George I. to iC* 19083,190 *• And thefe furplufes would have made the country ftiU more profperous* had the finking fund been conftantly applied, as it was ^|I^U8 originally defigned; by keeping circulation full and Overflowing, and thereby preventing what ,il^807, * 9zfli^9cr ac^vBt, in th^ Hiftory of Pebtn Wc ( H ) Wc ihall however gain A HMie ade^fOiM tdea* not only of the pab)ic revenue arid burdem* but of the refources of the nation, from chefbUow- ing detail :'?i'"«w. The nett cxdre* according to a me- dium of four yean, ending at Mi- ' chaelmas 1726 (exclufive of the mah-tajt) - - if. 1,927,354 The hett annual cuflfoms 1 95309361 :>n" «,,!« -jC-4*"4>i?5 Various and promi(cuous , ' v- ' % / internal taxei . - 666,45d . Total appropriated The land-tax at 2/. in ^"■^■'^"^''^'\^ the pound is given for ^. i ,occ,ooo . ^ Malt - duty bringi ifi ."'\^\ -J- -{^ h jC.68o,ooo» but 18 gi- , . ^ ^ > , ^ V " venfor, - - „ t 750.000 , - , ■ toifid byiotter^ "v^'S "• ^o 000 '':';:'^f ■ ■ Totar.nftuilpat.te'/;';™^;-^;'^'^;' for current fcrvices ' ^^ Netc annual revenue - • £, 6,614^1 75 ■ :^ . . Chargea_ of cdle6lion '■ i*|^f ^hfraib-f 5i ^/^p^ooo adab* JFhc gfo^fum ntifed yeiirly on . >5 vrf .'w'sriJ J^;:p«OpI« ' '■■• '-^ --'•v:^e:^ £*7%tHftys 2.500^^00 fc'J (4 .^ V a .-f? '■ * . . i vj5t| ^c T"?fJfn en* Tif i,* ";«;■.- The ( ^ ) .I'ibiriNr public cxpcmditttre wii ii foftows t hltirtW t£ k 6tbt dfjf. 50,79^,555, HUili^ftg th^ furi^lus of the civil lift» which is 31678 per annum. The civil lift -c^: n r.i^; 800,000 Surplus of the finking fund The current feryices of the army, navy, &c. - - .. . - The annual charges with current . ler vices - - - ; - Salaries and other charges, at lct»(t 3,040,985 1,083,190 - 3,500,000 6,624,175 600,000 Grofs fum annually Applied - ^C* 7*224,1 75 The value of the furplai products of the land and labour of England, after domedic ^Onlbnfip. ition was fully fupplied, amounted yearly, at the acceflion of George I. to £. 8,008^668 1 which fbtthed A much larger cargo than had ever been exported before. And from this circumftance we ihrght infer, that there was now employed a greater capital in trade than, by means' of its pro* duiflive employment, had, in any prior ager,pro> moted the wealth and greatnefs of Britiin, The ( 91 ) The Englifli fliippingi which exported tbit vaft cargo, ac the acceflTion of George L had then in- creafedto -i - -J t< J-444<843 tonsj which muft have been navigated, if we allow twelve mariners to every two hundred toni« by - 26,691 men. The royal navy, which had been principally left by Queen Anney carried, in 1715 " • " 167,596 tons. Wood ftated* the amount of the ,.^, navy, in 1 72 1, at - - - 1589233 tons; whfch,^ farid hfe, is more thin in , 1688, by 57,201 tOASi and more , ' thaif in 1 660, by 95i^5^. 1'. :!• • Notwithifitnding the beafts of .Si )W Wood, aiifd the glory ac(juired by defeating th^'Spanifh fleet in' 17169 it is apparent, that thif navy had lately fuftained a di- minution of - - " - ■ ' *. - '9,^63 ton^: Having faid thus much with rt^rd fO th« ftrengch of Brrcaiffr let us now examine the tofles of our trade, from the petty wars of the ])r6(ent reign •, which feem not indeed to have milch lA* (crrupted the foreign commerce of the kingdom. * Survey of Trade, p. 5;. while ( 9^ ) n^itrfaluraiyregulttibAs iodted die'ddmiftie in. dtifttf of tbepcbple. ^i992 y4ve of cargoes. Total. £, 1714 "''is' 16 1718 427,962 - 16,809- 444»77' -6i3^'i39o . »3 392.643 - a7»040 - 419*683 - 7.395*908 WMMBMMava MspiMMaiiv «MBM«a«aaMB im'i^mmammtmm^m. We ihall fee however a progrefs, if we comraft the averages of our navigation and trade, at the beginning and &t the end of George I's reign •, and if we alfo recoUeft, that the bufinefs of 1726 and 1727 was fomewhat intercepted by war, or by preparations for war, SlUpa cleared; outwards. Value of car{oes< Ton* £ii|Ullb Doforrign, TotaL '',C*V'> 4aif43t - a6,573 . 448.004 ^ 7,696,573 Yeari. »7i3 1726 27 ^18 } ip,^32' 93,651 7 456.483 - 7>89i.739 During ( 93 ) Daring thii progrefs there were, howev 4»ere made for i^it^^ ingidomeftictfld|iftry, were^oubtlefs more effica- cious in the Aibfequentreignr thaiv they were felt in any great degree, during the* prefent. Theima* nufadories of icon^ of bnafi; iknd of copper, being confidered^as the jchird in extent, fince they' em^ ployed, tfi^ iV. is^faidi in 17 I9y two hundred -and thirty thbtifand perlbns, were promoted with the atteJitiony which was due to their importatJce. The continued encouragement, that had been g$- ven to the fabrics of filler and the ere^on of the vaft machine 6f Lamb, in 1719, bad raifed the annual value <>f this manufa^ure to j^. 700,000, in 17 2^, rnore^ as it is ftated, than it had yield* ed at the fievolution^ - Butythc year 1722 muft always form an epbeh, as memorable fop a great operation in comnnerGial policy, as the. edabliniment of the linking fund had been in finance, a few years before. ThePar' liament had indeed, in 1672, withdrawn the duties, which were then payable by a/rVvi, on the expor- tation of 9ur t^a^n manufa^ures. This ialutary principle was ft ill more extended, in 1700, by removing the impofts on every kind of woollen goods, that (hould be thereafter fent abroad. It was however by the Uw for the further encouragt- 8 mint .( 9^ ) mm •f mn^faOwi, tha(every one WisulliMie^ to export duPf'frtf »U incrchniidigfi, die pfodwp of Gicat J9riuin> except, qofy iiicb arcjdef i* ihould be deemed MMPlifMilf of nuuiiif^Aiirei w^ drags, and other goods uibd focdjriQg* ntfie final- ly |)ermitted to be imported iK{jr#j&iflr«..Aii«l(M;iM» £u;iltttes were at the ^me time .given ta tnde^ wbilft the fiiheries were incited by bounties* Afterenumeratl|}gj|ll pcecediDg^meafurei of en- couragemeht* Anderfon * remarks,, in 172 7» that nofijUng can AiQKe o^vioufly demonfinite the ama- zing increaie of England's commense, in kfs than iwo^centunes paft, t^an the great groT/th of its maniifaAuring tiQwnft^fMch as Liverpoo], Man- cheftery Birmingham* and others I which are ftill increafing in wealth, people, bufinefs, and build« inga* Yet, Lord ; Molefworth t complained, in 17214 .'* that we ace nofi pne-ihird peopled, and our &ock of men daily decreafea tluough our w#fip, plantations, aiid lea^^oyagesi^ His lord- ifaip was arguing, when bejoiade tlus obferva- tioiiK % %gai»ral naiuf^xtam^ a policy of very doubtful m.erit, be<»uie in all fudden change there is Gonfiderable inconvenience} and he may have therefore been biased .by his principle. If this nobtesjian intended tO: add, his teftimony to an ap- parent fad, that he law no labourers to hire, his ,*g[ • -ilK * Chrda. Com. vol. U. p. 314* ; t P^; (JB his traf)fl|tldA of Hottoman'c Franco-Gallii, 2d c4lc; p. SI— '4; evidence ( 9^ ) evidence would onty provt, that the indujirim tUfts itfere fklfy tmfioyed ; and employment never f«i)s to promote popolttion. If his lord(hip only meAnt to give vent to his laudable anxieties for his country, this circumftance would lead us to iflfefj that- great as Well al little minds are too apt to complain of the nfiiferies of the prefent. THfl reign of George 11. with whatever finifter events it opened, will be found to have pro- moted greatly, before its fuccefsful end, the in- ' duftry and productive capital of the nation ; and confequently, the efficient numbers of the people. He found his kingdom burdened with a fund* edd^btof rather more than fifty millions •, which required, from the land and labour of the nation, taxes to the amount df two millions and upwards, to pay the creditOFS* annuity. .But, as his predeceifor reduced, ten years be- fore,, the iotereft. payable on the public debts, from fix j^«r cent, to five, the adminiftration of the pFcfent: King made a further redudion, with the confent o£ all parties^ from fiytp& cehU to four, in 1727. ' Thefc meafores, which the fortunate circumftances of the times rendered eafy and fafe» not only ftre.ngthened public and private credit, but, by' reducing the natural intereft of money ilill niore, mud have thereby facilitated every ope- H racioa ( 9« ) ration of domcftic manufafturest aft well as evety effort of foreign traffic. Tlit faimcs of ^vool were at the Tame time freed from f^aud^ And the peace with Spain, in 1728, muft have invigo. rated our exportations to the Mediterranean } the more, as a 'truce was then alfo made with Mo^ rocco. Yet, party-rage ran fo high, in 1729, fays An- derfon *, that the friends of the minifter found themfelves obliged to prove by faSls^ what was before generally known to be true, that Britain te?^j then in a thriving condition : the low interett of money, laid they, demontVrates a greater plen- ty of ctflh than formerly ;' this abundance of ttio- hey has raifed the price of 4aftd8 from twenty and twenty-one years purchafe to twenty and twenty, five ; which proves, that there were tttart peflbns able and ready to buy than formerly :-** And the great Turns of late expended in the inclofing and improving of lands, and in opening mines, are proofs of an augmentation of opulence und pea- pie J while the im^rtttfed vahsc of <>ur exports (hews an increafe of mamafaAores'} and the greater • Chron. Cop. vol. ii. p. 322.— The caufe of the «bove> taeationcji fartyragt is now fufficiencly known. Sir Spencer Compton outwitted biaifelf in the bargain for p/aee, about Queen Caroline's jointure. SlrR. Walpole did not higgle tnth h«f Majeity aboot a bnndKd thoufand pODtids : and he was, in fet4krn, t^A^tia^ii the ' minijler. Bat, the profperitjr qf the people ii no lyife bonneted with the itntereiled contells among the great, . number ( 99 ) number of fhipping cleared outwards marks the greater extent of our navigation. If we compare the averages of our vcflels and cargoes, in the firft years of the prefent reign, with thofe of the three years of peace, which pre- ceded the war of 1739, we (hali fee all thefe truths in a ftill more pleafing light. Yean. 1726 1736 31 26] 27 > 28 i Ship* deered outwards. Value of cargoes. TonsEng. D" foreign. Total. £. 432,832 - 23,651 . 456,483 - 7*918,406 476,941 - 26^627 - 503,565 . 9,993,232 It was at this nK>ment of tinexaflrlpletf^^t^rpe'- rlty, that the elder Lord Lyttehon wrote Con- ^deraticHt on the prefent State tf Jfairsy {i'^^9), "In moft parts of England,** fays he, •' gentle,- men's rents are fo ill paid, and the weight of taxes Mes fo he»vy upon them, that thofe who have nothing from the Court can fcarce fupport their families.— Such is the ftate of our manufac- tures, fuch is that of our colonies ; both Ihould be enquired into, that the nation may know, whe- ther the former can fupport thcmfclves much longer under their various prcflures." The edi- tor of his lordihip's works would have done no difiervice to the memory of a worthy man, had he configned this faftious effufion to anonymous obfcurity. Animated by a congenial fpirit. Pope H 2 too ( '®® llpo wrote Confidtrations on tie Stafe tf •4ff^rp io his (WO dialogues^ entitled thirty-sight, he jeprcfents, in moft energetic language, and exqul- fite numbers, the nation as totally rwnfd\ as over- vibHmt^ with corrupUan* Ic was about the lame time alfo, tha^ Sir Mathew Depker compofed his eflay ** On the Caufu of tiff Decline (f Foreign ^rade" But, it is not eafy to conceive any dif- quifition more depraved, thsin a treatife tp ex- j}lain the caufes of an effeSi which di4 not mfi* nn ! .It was the evident purpofe of fome of thefe writers to drive the nation headlong into war, .without thinking of any oclKrconfequences, than acquiring power, or gratifying fpleen ; and: with- out caring how much a people* reprefented as un- lable to pay their rents, might be burthened with taxes ',1 or' a eountryt painted as feeble froni djSi- |>ati(OD, might be difgraced, or conqi^ered. •• im. ' <)i ^if the. nation^ had thus profpered in her affairs, .dnd the peof^e thus increafed in their numbers, Great Britain. muft have contained, when flie was fadiouHy forced, into war with Spain, a greater it)umber of fighting men, than ivid every fought her battles before. r And fiie rnufl havepoiTened a mafs of productive capit^]> and a greatnefs of annual income* far fuperi^r to thofe of former ,f< iXhecourle of circulation had filled, and even overflowed. The natural intereft of money ran ftcadily at three per cent. The price of all the pub- ( toi ) fie fecurities Had rifen fo much higher than they had been in any other period, that the three ^er cent, ftocks fold at a premium on 'Change *. And the annual furplufes of the (landing taxes, as they were paid into the finking-fund, amounted, in 17389 to no lefs a fum than £. 1,231,127. Of this fund it has been very properly obferved, that while it contributes to the liquidation of former -debts, it ftill more facilitates the contraft- ing of new ones. But, the great contefl; among the public creditors at that fortunate epoch, was not fo much who (hould be paid his capital, but who (hould be fuffered to remain creditors of the ftatet- The value of the furplus produce of our land and labour, which were then exported, amounted yearly to {,. 9,993,232 *, and which might have been applied, when fent to foreign countries, as ^ remittances for carrying on the war at the greateft diftance. It is indeed an acknowledged fa^, that during no effluxion of time was there ever fuch confiderable balances paid to England, as there were tranfmitted in the courfe of the war of 1739, on the general ftateof her payments. ' la^i The Englifh (hipping, which actually tran(^ ported that vaft cargo, amounted annually to 476,941 tons ; which were navigated probably by 26,616 men, who might have been all engaged ia the public fervice, either by influence, or force. #-. * Sir J. Barnard's fpeech for the reduction of intereft. f Id* H 3 There ( loa ) There had mean while been an equal progrels in the royal navy ; which carried ^^^^ in 1717 — — 170,86a in 1741 — — 198,387 in 1749 — - — 228,215 * Thus much being premifed, as to the (late of •ur (ftrength, we (hall gain a fufficienc knowledge of the condition of our nayigation and commerce, during the war of 1739* by attending to the fub- joincd detail : * An adoiiralty-lift, ia the Paper-office, fives na die fol- lowing detail of the Kiog*ft flslps in fea^pay, on the 19th July >738. Shift, Sutioned in the Plantations • 24 carrying in the Mediterranean, 17 - at Newfoundland, Ordered home. On the Iriih tbail, - At home, • • . 3 4 41 95 5,045 men, 5,011 690 720 550 9,602 33.418 mariners. "By preparations for a nnval war, the foregoing Hft had been fweiled, before March 1739, to 147 Aipt, carrying 3^,849 men. Bat their numbers were defefVivc, in 4,758 borne, and in^,6i8 oinQered.-— From the fame authority, we have the following abftraft of the royal navy in June 1 748 ; which, when compared with the lift of 1738, gives us an ideafaffi- ciently precik of ibi^tet of England, during the war of 17^9, It coniiflcd of - - - 89 (hips o( the line, of - - - 153 frigates. men was 60,654, 242 ; whofe complement of Yiaj;u ( m ) Yean, 1736 Hi Sblpt clea)re4 outwcrdi. Valife of cargoct, ToniEngUA. D" foreign. Total. £. 476,941 . 26,627 - 503,568 - 9*993*232 1739] 40 > 384,191 - 87,^60.- 47ii45' - 8.870,499 4»J J744 373»8i7 - 72.849 - 44^66 - 9,190,621 J747 394.57'- ioif^7« - 49^42 - 9.775*340 1748 479.236 - 75*^77 ' 554.713- ? 1,141.202 Thus the year 1 744 marked the ultimate point of commercial depreflion, if we judge from the tonnage y and 1 740, if we draw our inference from the value of exports : Yet, whether we argue from the one or the other, we muft con- clqde, that the intereft of merchants was little afFeAed by this naval war. But, we (hall at once fee how little our induf- trious clafles were aflfefled, by the war, at home, and with what elafticity the fpring of foreign trade rebounded on the removal of warfare, by comparing the averages of our navigation and com (Tierce, during the peaceful years before hofti- lities began, and after they ende4 : Ships cleared outward,. V^ittC of cargoes* j^flg"] TonsEnglifli. D* foreign, ToWV £' 37 [ 476>94i - 26,627 - 503.568 - 9«993.232 38J 1749] 50 f 609,798 - 51,386-661,184-12,599,112 H 4 During ( 104 ) During the foregoing fifty years of uncommon profpcrity, as to our agriculture * and maoufac- ture, our navigation, and traffic, and credit, the incumbrances of the public, and the burdens of the people, equally continued to increafe. The debt, which was left at the demife of Queen Anne, remained undiminiihed in its capital at the de« mife of George I. though the annuity payable on it had been lefliened almoft a million. The ten years of fubfequent peace having made little al- teration, the public debt amounted, on the 31ft of December 1738, to - ,£.46,314,829. loj. old. on the 3 1 ft of Decem- ber 1749 to * - t74«92i>686. los. Hid.: -—whence we perceive, by an eafy calculation, that an additional debt had been mean while in- curred, of )C* 27,906^857. Oi. lid. befides un- * Tt appears, by an account laid before the Parliament, that there had been exported inj!ve years, from 1744 to 1748, torn from England to the amoant of 3,768,444 quarters} which, at a medium of prices, was worth to this nation, £. 8,007,948. Now, the average of the five years is 753*689 quarters yearly, of the value of jC* 11601,589. The expor- tatioA of 1749 ^"<1 '75^ rofe ftill higher. " This is an im- nenfc fam,'- fays the compiler of the Annual Regifter, [177'* P* '97] *' to ^ow immediately from the prodoceof the. earth, and the labour of the people ; enriching our mer- chants, and increafing an invaluable breed of feamen." He might have added, with equal propriety, enriching our jto- manry, and incrtafing tbt u/tful brted ef lnhunrt depmdant en tbtm. t Hiilory of Debts. , funded ( 'OS ) fisnded debts to a confiderable amount, But» the nine years war of 1739 cod this nation up. wards of (ixty-four millions, without gaining an objeft I becaufe no valuablr obje^ can be gained by any war. It is to be lamented, when hoO^ilities ceafe, that the party, which forces the nation to begin them, without adequate caufe, is not com- pelled to pay the expence. The current of wealth, which had flowed into the nation, during the obftruAions of war, con- tinued a ftill more rapid courfe, on the return of peace. The taxes produced abundantly, becaufe an induftrious people confumed liberally. And the furplufes of all the impofts, after paying the intereft of debts, amounted to ^.1,274,172*. The coffers of the rich began to overflow* Cir- culation became ftill more rapid. The intereft of money, which had rifen during the prefTures of war to four per cent, fell to three, when the ceC- fation of hoftilies terminated the loans to govern- ment. The adminiftration feized this profperous moment to reduce, with the confent of the pro- prietors, the intereft of almoft fifty-eight million of debts from four per cent, to three and a half, for feven years, from 1750, and afterwards to three per cent, for ever. And by thefe prudent mea- fures, the annuity payable to the creditors of the ftate was leflened, in the years 1750 and I75r» from £• 2,966,000 to £. 2,663,000 f. * Hiilory of Debts from an Exchequer account. t )' Poftlethwayt*s Hiftory of the Revenue, p. 238. It ( io6 ) It was At this fortunate epoch, thtt Lord Bo- lingbroke wrote Seme Confiderathns $n the State pf the Natteu ; in which he reprefents the public as w the verge ef hankruptey, and the peepk as ready f$ fall ini^ eenfuftont ' from their MJlrefs ^nd danger* Little did that illuftrious party-man know, at l^^^ little was he willing to own, how nnuch both the public and the people had advanced, from the time when he had been driven from power, jn all that can make a nation profperous and great. Doddington at the fame time*—*** faw the country in fo dangerous a condition, and found himfelf fo incapable to give it relief ^y^'r*- that he rcngned a lucrative office from pure difintereftednefs. And the fccond edition of Decker's £lfay on the Caufis ef the Decline of Foreign Trade, was opportunely publilhedy with additional arguments, in 1750, to evince to the world the eaufes of an effe^^ thi^t did not exift. Notwithftanding all that apparent profperity and augmentation of numbers, we ought to men- tion, OS circumflances, which probably may have retarded the progrefs of population, the Spanilh war of i7«7« that was not, however, of long continuance. The fettlement of Georgia, in 1733, carried off a few of the loweft orders, the idle and the needy. The real hoftilities that be- gan in 1739* were probably attended with much more baneful confcquences. The rebellion of 1745, introduced a temporary diforder, though * Diary, March 1749—50, &c* there ( 107 ) there were drawn from its confafions, meafurtf the moft falucaryi in refped to indufiry and popur lation. ** Let the country gentlemen/' fays Cor-r byn Morrill when fpeaking on the then mortality of London [March 1 750-1] ** be called forth and declare— Have they not continually felt, for many years paft» an incrcafing want of huiband* men and day-labourers ? Have the farmera throughout the kingdom no juft complaints of the atceffivi itunqfing prices of workmen, and of the im« poflibility of procuring a fufficient number at an/ price?" Now, admitting the truth of thefe pregnant a& firmationst they may be (hewn to have been alto* gether condftent with fa^s and with principleis,' Allowing his many years to reach to the demiie of George I* k may be afierted, becaufe it has beea proved, that our agriculture had been ib much improved, as not only to fupply domeftic wantSt but even to furniih other nations with the meana of fiibfiftence ( and every branch of our manufac* tures kept pace with the fiouriihing Aatc of our huibandry. It is furely demonft^able, that it re- quired a greater number of artificers to manufac'- ture commodities of the value of £. 11,141,902, ^nd to navigate 554,713 toi^ of lbipping» in 1748, than to fabricate goods of the value of £•7^95^77«» *nd to navigate 456,483 tons of fhipping, in 1728. But, great demand creates a fcarcity of all things •, which in the end procures an abundant fupply. And, that the excejftve prices of ( xo8 i ef workmen did in fa£b produce a reinforcetneht of workmefiy may be inferred- from the numbers which, in no long period, were brought into ac- tion, by public and private encouragement. HWc fee in familiar life, that when money is ex- pended upon works of uncommon magnitude, in any village, or parilb> labourers are always colle£k- ed> in proportion to the augmentation of employ, ments. Experience fbews, that the fame increafe of the induftrious clafTes never fails to enfue in larger diftri£ts ; in a town, a county, or a king, dom, when proportional dims are expended for labour. And it is in this manner, that manufac* tures and trade every where augment the numbers of mankind, by the adive expenditure of produc. ttve capitals. He, then, who labours to evince, that the lower orders of men decreafe in numbers, while agriculture, the arts (both ufeful and orna* mental) with commerce, are advancing from in- confiderable beginnings, to unexampled greatnefs, is only diligent to prove. That caufes do not pro- duce their effeSis. To thofe' reafons of profperity, that, having for years exifted, had thus produced the mod beneB- cial effefts, prior to the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, new encouragements were immediately added. The rcduftion of the intercft of the national debtls, by meafures altogether confident with judice and public faith, (hewed not only the flouriuung con- dition of the kingdom, but alfo tended to make it flourifh ft ill more. And there ncceflarily followed ail ( 109 ) all thofe falutary confequences, in refpedb to do^ medic diligence and foreign commerce, whichy Sir Jofiah Child infilled a century before, would re- i\x\t from the lownefs of intereji. An additional incitement was at the fame time given to the whale-filhery, partly by the naturali- 2ation of ikilful foreigners, but more by pecuniary bounties. The eftablifliment of the corporation of The Free Britijh Fijhery^ in 1750, muft have pro- moted population, by giving employment to the induftrious clafles, however unprofitable the project may have been to the undertakers, whofe fuccefs was unhappily fo unequal to their good intentions and unrecompenfed expences. The voluntary fociety, which was entered into in 1754,/^r the Encourage-r tfient of ArtSy Manufactures^ andCommerce^ muft have been attended with ilill more beneficial effe(5ts, by animating the fpirit of experiment and perfeve- ranee. And the laws, which were fucceffively enabl- ed, and meafures purfued, from 173a to 1760, /or preventing the excejfive ufe offpirituous liquors ^ muft have promoted populoufnefs, by preferving the health, and inciting the diligence of the lower or- ders of the people. Yet, thefe (latutes, falutary as they muft have been, did promote the health and numbers of the people, in a more eminent degree, than the laws which were palTed, during the fame period, for making more eafy communications by the im- provement of roads. We may judge of the necef- ficy of thefe a6ls of legidation from the penalties annexed ( no ) arinexed to tfietn. Of the founderous eondrtion of the rOadii of England, whife they were amended by the compuKive labour of the poor, we may judge indeed from the wretched ftate of the ways, which, in tne prefent times, are kept in repair by the ancient mode. Turnpikes, which we ikw firft introduced foon after the Reftoration» were erected flowly, in oppofition to the prejudices of the people. 7he a£t, which for a time made it felony, at the beginning of the reign of George II. to puU down a toll-gate, was continued as a perpetual law, be** fore the conclufion of it. Yet, the great roads of England remained almoft in their ancient condi- tion, eren as late as 1752 and 1754, when the traveller feldom faw a turnpike for two hundred miles, after leaving the vicinity of London*. And we now know from experience how much the making of highways and bridges advances the po- pulation of any country, by extending correfpond- enee, by facilitating communications, and, confe- quently, by promoting interqai traffic, which was thereby rendered greater than our foreign 5 fince the heft cuftomers of Britain are the ptopk of Britain* AFTER a captious peace of very (hort dura- tion, the flames of war, which for feveral years had burnt unfeen among the American woods, broke Qut at length in 1755, Unfortunate as f Sec the Gentleman's Magazine 1752— •54. thcfc thcfe ( I" ) fhefe hoftilitiei were at the beginning, they yet proved fuccefsful in the end, owing to cau&s* that it is the province of hiftory to cxplaio. However fafliionable it then was for difcontent* ed ilacefff)en to talk * of the^tnfuming cotidifmof the country^ it might have been inferred beibro- hand, that we had prodigious relburces, if die ruling powen had been animated by any genius. The defeats, which plainly followed from miibon* dud, naturally brought talents of every kind intcft adion. And the events of the war of 1755 ton-' vinced the world, notwithllanding every ^'w«/^ of the manntrs and prineipks of the iimes, that ^he ftrength of Great Britain is irreliftible, when it -ia conduced with fecrecy and difpatch, with w^om and energy. When Brackcnridgc was upbraided by Forfter, for making public degrading accounts of our po- pulation, at the commencement of the war of 17559 he aiked, juftly enough, " fFifdt encottrogmeni tan it give to the enemy to kncw^ that we have t'j^ mil- lions of fighting men in our Britijh iflands ?*' But we had a^Turedly in our Britifh iQands a million more than Brackenridge unwillingly allowed. The natural intcreft of money, Which had been 3 per cent* at the beginning of this reign, never rofc higher ilian ^^.3. 13J. 6d, at the conclufion of it, after an expenfive courfe of eight years hoftili- ties. During the two firft years of the war, the mi- nifters borrowed money at 3 per cent. But, five millions being lent to the adminiftration in 1757, the lenders required 44- per cent. And from the * See Dodding ton's Diary, J 75 5— 6 — 7. former ( «>* y former punduality of government, and prefeHteafcf ^ith which taxes were found to pay the ftipulated intereft. Great Britain commanded the money of Europe, wiien the prefTures of war obliged France tq ftop the payment of intereft on fome of her funded debts. Mcrn time the furplufes of the (landing taxes of Great Britain amounted, at the commencement of the war, to one million three hundred thoufand pounds, which, after the reduction of the intereft of debts in 1757* fwelled to one million fix hun- dred thoufand pounds. And from this vaft cur- rent of income, the more fcanty dreams, which (lowly flowed from new impofts, were continually fupplied. It is the expences, more than the (laughter, of modern war, which debilitate every community. The whole fupplies granted by Parliament, and raifed upon the people, during the reign of George II. amounted * to £. 183,976,624. The fupplies granted, during the Hve years of the war, before the deceafe of that cd to - - - The fupplies voted, during the three firft years of his fucccITor, amounted f to - - - The principal expences of a war, which, having been undertaken to drive the French from North America, has proved unfortu- nate in the iffue Ditto 1>m6 prince, amount- 1-5^*3^9*3^5 Ditto Ditto At aecefll ab inc cbnieq too, til ingto Ditto £' 105.756,639 Camp. Fol. Sur. vol. ii. p. 55 1< fid. Yet, ( "3 ) Yet> none of th6 taxes that had been eKablilhed, in order tb raife thofe traft fucns, bore heat7 bn th^ ihduftriom claflcfsi if we eicept th^ additional ex-'^ dfe of three (hillings a barrel oh beei**. Attd, whatever burdetas ihay havebeeh impbiTed, internd induftry purfued its occupations, and' the ehter- prize of our traders f^nt tO every tiuarter of the glob6, itietchandiaies to an extent, beyond all est* ample. - ?wttle Was liot lefitned in confequence of the war, we may ceftaiqiy infer from the official detaihi io the Appendix toTheQbfcr* vationi on the State of tke Nation : The average of eight year* nett produce of tlie doty on foap* Sec, ending With 1754 Ditto • - tnding with 1767 - Ditto on candles, - endbg with i7S4 ^u^. Ditto on diito, - ending With 1767 • ])itto on hides, - ending with 1754 • Ditto on ditto, - ending; with 1767 - 264,90:^ 189,21$' Ab no new duties had been laid on the before«inentionfcd neceflaries of life, the augmentation of the revenue evincea ab increafe.of confamption ; confequently of comforts ; and cbnfeqnbntly of people. In confirmation, let it be confidered too, that the ienJitaty aXLd imparary txtj/i produced* accord* ing to an eight years average, ending with 1754 - £*S*S*i^7' Diuoending with 1767 - > - - 538,54:?. to ( "4 ) to the amount of 1, 11.708,515*1 which Wing fent abroad from time to time, tp different ma^. kets, as demand required, might have been all applied, (as fpme of them v^doubtedly were) in paying the iieets and armies, that (pread terror Over every hoftile nation. The Englifh (hipping, which after expprtipg that vaft cargo might have been ei;nployed by government as tranfports, and certainly furnifKed the fleet with a hardy ra,(;e, amount^ to 609,798 topsj which muft have be^n nayig^ted, if we allow twelve men to every 200 tons burden, by - - 36,588 men. We may determine, with regard to the progrefs and magnitude of the royal navy, from the follow- In 1749 T 228,zi5 - i7fpoQ - 1754 - 226,246 - 10,000 - 1760 - 300,416 - 70,000 - Their wages, Sk, £. 839,800 494,000 3,458,000 It is the bpaft pf Britain, *- th^t while other countries fuffered innumerable calamities, during that long period of hoftiltties, this happy ifland efcaped them all s and cultivated, unmolefted, her i^anufadlures, her Hfheries, and her commerce, tp a|^ amount, which has been the wonder ar\d envy of the world.** This flattering pidure of Dodlior Campbell will, however, appear to be ex- * There were moreover exported from Scotland, according taaa average of 1755— 6-— 7, -- - - j^. 663,401. trcmdy ( "5 ) tremcly like the original, from an examination of the rubfeqiient details *, which are more accurate in their notices, and ftiil ippre juft in their con- cluHons. Compare, then, the following averages of ouir navigation and traffick, during the fubjoin- ed years, both of peace and war : Ycus, Sbipi cleared outwards. . Value of cargon. I^^Ql'TonsEnglidi. D" foreign. TotaL-- ' £, 50 i 609,798 - 5 1 ,386 - 66 1, 1 84 - 1 2,599, 1 1 z 5i3 17557 5^\ 45i>254- 73»456- 5H.7" - ^^^70^*5^5 57^ 1760 47^*41-112,737-573,978- 14,693,270 61 508,220-117,835-626,055- 14,873,194 ^2 480,444- i2Q,ia0 - 600,570 - 13,546,171 Thus, the year 1756 marked the lowed point of the depreflion of commerce ; whence it gra- dually rofe, till it had gained a fuperiority Qver the unexampled traffick of the tranquil years 1749-50- 51, if we may judge from the value of exports ; and almofl: to an equality, if we draw our infer- ences from the tonnage* The Spanilh war of 1762 impofed an additional weight, knd we have feen the confequent decline. When, by the treaty of Paris, entire freedom was again reftored to foreign commerce, the traders once more fent out adventures of a (till greater amount to every quarter of the globe, though the nation was fuppofed to be ftrained by too great an exertion of its powers. The falutary cfFsfts of I 2 more imore exten(ive manufaflures and a larger trade were irrftaqtly feen in the commercial fuperiority of the three years following the pacification of 1765, over thofe enfuing the peace of 1748, tho* theie have been celebrated juftly as times of un- common profperity. We (hall be folly convinced of this fatisfadtory truth, if we examine the fol- lowing proofs : Venn. Ships cletred outwarcft. Value of cargoes. ' 749 7 ''"°"' ^"8"*' ^ foreign. Total." ,C» So> 609,798 - 5i>386 - 661,184-12,5991112 ^15^ 389,842-116,002 - 505,844-12,618,335 1759 406,335-121,0x6-527,351-13,947,788 17647 ^5\ 639,872 . 6^,136 - 708,008- 1 4,925»950 663 — The grois income of the Poft-oi2i.:e, foreign and domeftic, wbicb^ it is fa id, €an ahne demonftrate the extent efour cerrefpondence^ amounted. In 1754, to - - if. 210,663 In 1764, to - X 281,535*. IT was at this fortunate epoch, that Great Britain, having carried conqueft over the hoilile powers of the earth, by her arms, laved Europe from bankruptcy, by the fuperiority of her opu- lence, and ^y the difintereftednefs of her fpiric. * The accoQBt of die Poft^officerevenae is dated, by the Annnal Rcgifter 177^1 much higher, niftakingly. . . Thie / ( "7 ) The failures, which happened at Berlin, at Ham* burgh, and in Holland, during July 1763, com- municated difma/ and diftruft to every commer- cial town, on the European continent *. Wealth, it is faid, no longer procured credit, or connec- tion any more gained confidence : The merchants of Europe remained for fome time in confter- nation, becaufe every trader feared for himfelf, amidft the ruins of the greateft houfes. It was at this crifis, that the BrrciOi traders (hewed the greatnefs of their capitals, the extent of their cre- dit, and how little they regarded either lofs or gain, while the mercantile world feemed to pafs away as a winter's cloud: They trufted corre- fpondents, whofe (ituations were extremely unlia- ble, to a greater amount than they had ever ven- tured to do, in the mod profperous times : And they made vaft remittances to thofe commercial cities, where the deepeft diftrefs was fuppofed to prevail, from the determination of the wealthieft bankers to fufpend the. payment of^heir own ac- ceptances. At this crifis the Bank of England dif- counted bills of exchange to an incredible amount, while every bill was doubted. And the Bricifli government, with a wife policy, aftuated and fupported allf. * See the defpondent letter from the bankers of Hamburgh to the bankers of Amfterdam, dated the 4th of Auguft 1763, In the Gentleman's Magazine of this year, p. 422. t 3ee Confidcration* on (he Trade and Fiaances of the Kingdom* I 3 On ( "8 ) On thii proud day was publifhed, however, •' An Alarm to the Stockholders** By another writer the nation was remembered of '* the deereafe of the current coint asM tnoft dangerous drcumjlance** And by an author, dill more confiderable than either, we were inftruflcd— ** How the abilities of the country were (Iretched to their utmoil extent, and beyond their natural tone, whilft trade fufFered in proportion : For, the price both of labour and materials was enhanced by the number and weight of the new taxes, and by the extraordinary demand which the ruin of the French navigation brought on Great Britain ( whereby rival nations may be now enabled to under-fell us at foreign markets, and rival us in our own : That both public and private credit were at the fame time oppreiTcd by the rapid increafe of the national debt, by the fcarcity of money, and the high rate of intereft, which aggravated every evil, and afFefled every money tranfaftion." — Such is the melancholic pic- ture, which was exhibited of our fituation, foon af- ter the peace of 1763, by the hand of a mailer \ who probably meant to (ketch a caricature, rather than to draw a portrait. If, however, the resources of Britain arife chiefly from the labour of Britain, it may be eafily (hewn, that there never exifted in this ifland fo many induf^ trious people, as at the return of peace in 1763. It is not cafy, indeed, to calculate the numbers, who * Confiderationt on the Trade and Finances of the King- doni> p« 3« flie ( ti9 )c die in the camp> or in battle, more than would otherwife perilh from want, or from vice, in the city or hamlet. It is fome confolation, that tlie laborious clafles re too wealthy to covet the pit- tance of the foldier, or too independent to court the dangers of the failor. And though the for> faken lover, or the rcftlefs vagrant, may look for rc;- fuge in the army or the fleet, it may admit of fome doubt, how far the giving of proper employment to both, may not have freed their parilhes from dif- quietudc and from crimes. There is, therefore, no room, to fuppofe, that any one left the anvil, or the loom, to follow the idle trade ofwar^ during the hoftilitics of 1755, or that there wee lefs pri- vate income and public circulation, after the re- eftabliihment of peace, than at any prior epoch. For, it mufl undoubtedly have required a greater number of artificers to prodoce merchandizes for foreign exportation, after feeding and cloathing the Inhabitants, to the value of - - £,14,694,970 - in 1760^ than it did to fabricate the value of - 12,599,112 - in 1750. It muft have demanded a ftiil greater number of handstowork up goods for exportation of the value of - - 16,512,404 -in 1764, than it did to manufacture the value of - 14,873,191 - in 1761. 14 A grener ( |2P ^ greater number of feamen muft furely hayc been cm- ployed to navigate and re- pair - r than - r - And a dill greater nuniber to man find repair than - r r ) Tom of ttationaf Aippieg. 471,241 - in 17^0, ^5U^54^ - in 17561. ^5i,4Q2 - in 1755, 609,798*- in 175Q. * It is ackaowledged, that Scotland furnifhed a greater Banber of recruits for the fleets and armies of Britain^ during the war of ly^iS* ^\^^^ Engl§nd, confidering the fmaller num- ber of her fighting men. Yet, by this drain, the induftrioi^s clafles feem not to have be^n in the leaft diminifhed. Fpr of linen there were mad^ for fale, in 1758 - - 10,^24,43; yards, ip 1 7^0 - - 11,747,728. Of the aogmentation of the whole produds of Scotland dor. ing the war, we may jodge from the following detail : Thp value of merchandizes exported from Scotland, in I7f6 - - £' 663,401, ' 60 - - 1,086,20^ 64 - - 1,243,927 ^here were exported y^^rly, of Briiifif-mitnufailured linens, according to an average of fevfn years of peace, from 1749 w J7S!? - : - - - S76»37J yards. Ditto, according to an average of feven years of fabfeqaent war, from 1756 to 1762 i.3(;(;,226. Having thus difcovered that the fword had not been put Into uftful hands, let us take a view of the great woollen ma* liafaAories of England, with an afpeA to the fame exhilarat- ing fubjed. The value of nmollen goods exported. 1 m in 1755 57 58 00 iC- 3.575.297 4'758.095 4,673,46* 5'352»*99 5'4S3.I72 Yet, ( 121 ) Yet, it muft be confeiTed, thzthdwcver the peeph individual]/ may have been employed, the ftate icorporately was embarralTed in no ftriall degree, by the debts, which had been contrafted by a war, glorious* but unprofitable. Upwards of fifty- eight millions had been added to our funded debts, before we began to negociate for peace in 1762. When the unfunded debts were afterwards brought to account, and alTigned an annual intereft, frpm a fpecific fund, the whole debt, which was incurred, by the hoftilities of 1755, fwelled to j£*72,i i i,ooo. And when every claim on the public, for the war's expencesy was honeftly fatisfied, the national debt amounted to r - r £,i^6,6B2tB^4» which yielded the creditors, to whom it was due« an annuity of - - * iC*4935o»82i. Though it is. the intereft, and not the capital *, that conftitutes the real debt of the ftate, yet this annuity * Writer! have been carried of late, by their zeal of pa- triotifm» to demand the payment of the principal of the debt^ though the intereft be pun£taal1y paid ; as if the nature of the contract between thi hJiviJual and the /ate had ftipulated for the payment of both* The fa£fc is, that few lenders, iince King William's days, have expected repayment oi tbi eapittls, which they lent (0 the government. Theftocks^ as- the public fecurities of the Britilh nation are called, may be compared to the money tranfaAions of the Bank of Amfterdam, as they have been explained by Sir James Stewart. No man who lodges tria/urt in this Bank, ever experts to fee it again : 19wt he may trtrnfir tkf Bank mtipt for i^ The Dircftors of ( 122 ) 'annuity v/as, doubtlcfs, a heavy incumbrance on the land and labour of this idand : And however burdenfome, it was not the only weight that ob- ftruded, in whatever degree, the induftrious claffes, in adding accumulation to accumulation. The charge of the civil gdvernment was then calculated as an expence to the people of a million. And the peace eftablilhment, for the army, navy, and mif- ceilaneous fervices of lefs amount, though of as much ufe, may be ftated at three hiillions and a half, without entering into the controverfy of that changeful day, whether it was a few pounds more, or a few pounds lefs. If it aftonilhed Europe to fee Great Britain borrow, in one year, twelve mil- lions, and to find taxes to pay the intereft of fuch a loan, amidft hoftilities of unbounded expence, this Bank difcovered from experience, that if the number of /elUrs of thefe receipts fhould at any time«be greater than the liuytrs of them, the value of a^uai treafure Jafely lodged woald depreciate. And it is fuppofed, that thefe prudent managers employ brokers to buy up the Bank receipts, when they be- gin to fall in their value, from the fuperabundance of them on 'Change. Apply this rational explanation to the Britifli funds. No creditor of a funded debt can alk payment of the principal at the Treafury ; but, he may difpofe of his Hock in the Alltf. The principles, which regulate demand and fupply, are equally applicable to the Britiih funds, as to/|^< treafure in the Amilerdam Bank. If there are more fellers than buyers, the price of (locks will fall : If there arc more buyers than fellers, they will as naturally rife. And the time is now come, when the Britifh government ought to employ every pound, which can poflibly be faved, in buying up the frincifaloi fuch public debts as prefs the nivyil. * • It jy '■.i u^ ( 123 ) it might have given the Europeah woHd ftill higher ideas of the refources of Britain, to fee her fatisfy every claim, and re-eftablilh her financial affairs, in no long period after the conclufion of war. But, the acquifirions of peace proved, unhap- pily, more embarrafTing to the colledive mafs of an indoftrious nation, than the impofls, which were conftantly col!e6ted, for paying the interefl of debts, and the charges of government. The treaty of 1763 retained Canada, Louifiana, and Florida, on the American continent*, the Gra- nades, Tobago, St. Vincent, and Dominica, in the Weft Indies •» and. Senegal in Africa. With- out regarding other objefts, here was a wide field opened for the attention of intereft, and for tlie operations of avarice. Every man, who^had credit with the minifters at home, or influence over the go- vernors in the colonies- ran for the prize of Ame- rican territory. And many land-owners in Great Britain, of no fmall importance, neglefted the pofTcflionS of their fathers, for a portion of wilder- nefs, beyond the Atlantic. This was the fpirit, which formerly debilitated Spain, more than the Peruvian mines ; becaufe the Spaniards turned their affcdtions from their country to the Indies. With a fimilar fpirit, millions of produftive capital were withdrawn from the agriculture, and manu- fadlures, and trade of Great Britain, to cultivate the ceded iQands, in the other hemifphere. Do- meftic occupations were obftru£led confequently, and circulation was (topped, In proportion to the ftocks ( «4 ) /locks withdrawn, to the indullry enfeebled, and to the ardour turned to lefs falutary objedfcs. While the colledive mafs of the people were jthus individually injured in their affairs, the (late fuffered equally in its finances. The new acqui- sitions required the charge of civil governments, iwhich was provided for in the annual fupplies, but froip taxes on the land and labour of this idand. To defend thefe acquifitions, larger and more expenfive military e^ablifbments became l)ow nece^ary, though our conquefts did not yield a penny in return*. And an additional drain being thus opened for the circulating mo- liey, the opulent men, who generally lend to go- vernment, enhanced the price of a commodity, which was thus rendered more valuable, by the inceffant demands of adventurers, who oflTered the ufurious intereft of the Indies f. The coins did not confequently overflow the coffers of the rich } the price of the public funds did not rife as at the former peace, when no fuch drain exifted ; and the government was unable to make bargains for the public, in 1764, equally advantageous, as at the lefs fplendid epoch of 175P. In thefe views of an interefling fubjefl, the true objedlion to the peace of 1763 was not, that * There were Tome fmall fuips broaght Into the annual fupplies from the fale of lands in the ceded iflands. f It was a wife policy* therefore, to encourage foreigners to lend money on the fecurity of Weil India eftatest we we had ritained too little^ but that we had retained Poo much. Had the French been altogether exciud-^ ed from the fiOieries of Labrador and Newfound- land, and wholly reftored to every conqueft, the peace had been perhaps more complete. Whe- ther the minifters could have juftified fuch a trea- ty, within the walls of Parliament, or without, is a confideration perfonai to them, and is an ob- jeA, quite diftindt in argument. Unhappy f that a Bricilh minifter, to defend himfclf from cla- mour, mull generally adl againft the geniime inte- reft of his country. Fortunate it is, however, for Britain, that there is a fpirit in her indullry, an increafe in the accu- mulations of her induftrious claiTes, and la pru- dence in t^e economy of her individual citizens, which have raifed her to greatnefs, and fuftain her power, notwithftanding the wafte of wars, the blunders of treaties, and the tumults in peacd. The people profpered at the commencement of the prefent reign. They profpered (till more, when our colonies revolted. And this mod energetic nation continues to profper ftill. If this marvellous profperity arifes, from the confcioufnefs of every one, that his perfon U free and bis property fafe^ owing to the fteady opera- tion of laws, and to the impartial adminiftration of juftice, one of the firft afts of the prefent rciga tnuft be allowfd to have given additional force to the falutary principle, A young Monarch, with ( 146 ) with an attachment to freedom, which merits the commendations that poilerity will not withhold, recommended from the throne to make the judges ^ommidions lefs changeful, and their falaries more beneficial. The Parliament feconded the zeal of their Sovereign, in giving efficacy to a. mca* rure> which had an immediate tendency to fecuro every right of individuals, and to give ardour to all their purfuits. If we continue a brief review pf the laws of the prefent reign, we fha^ proba- bly find, that, whatever may have been negle^ed, much has been done, for promoting the profpe- Tity and populoufnefs of this ifland. Agriculture ought to be the great objedb of our care, becaufe it is the broad foundation of every other eftablifhment. Yet,^ awing in fome meafure to the fcarcity of feafons, but much to the clamour of the populace, we departed, at the end of the late reign, from the fyftem which, being formed at the Revolution, is faid to h^ve then g;iven ver- dure to our fields. During every felTion, from the demife of George II. a law was palled for al- lowing the importation of fah proviCions from Ire- land ; for difcontinuing the duties on tallow, but- ter, hogs -lard, and greafe from Ireland*, till, in the progrefs of our liberality, we made thofe re- gulations perpetual, which were before only tem- porary. We prohibited the export of grain, while we admitted the importation of iti till, in 1773, W9 fettled by 9 compromife, between the growers and ( 127 ) ind confumers, a ftandard of prices, at which both fliould in future be free *. If by the foregoing meaf^res tke markets were better fupplied, the induftrious clafTes muft have been more abun- dantly fed : if prices were forced too low, the farmeifs, and with them hulbandry, muft have bot[i equally fuffered. A fteady market is for the in- terell pf aU partiesi and ought therefore to be the aim of the legiflature. On this principle the Parlia- ment ieems to have afled, when, by repealing the laws againft engroQers, it endeavoured, in 1772, to give a free circulation to the trade in corn. On the other hand, various laws were pafledt* ^^^ pi'C' ierving timber and underwood *, for encouraging the culture of fhrubs and trees, of roots and pknts. And additional law^ were pafled for fecuring the property of the hufbandman in the produce of his fields, and confequently for giving force to his, diligence. The dividing of commons, the inclofing of waftes, the draining of marfhes, are all conne£^ed with agriculture. Not one law, for any of thefe valuable ends, was paiTed in (he warlike reign of King William. During the hoftilities of Queent Anne one law indeed was ena6ted. In the reign of George I. feventeen laws were enaded for the faime falutary purpofe. In the three-and- thirty years of George II.'s reign, there were paffed a • 10 Geo. III. ch. 39 ; 13 Geo. III. ch. 43. t 6 Geo. m. ch.'36— 48 ; 9 Gfo. HI. ch. 41. hundred ( li8 ) iiuncired and eighty-two laws, with the fame Wife' deHgti. Bur, during the firft fourteen fefTions df the ^refent reigti, ilo lefs than fev^ hundred and two a£ts were obtained> for dividing of conl- mons, inclofing of waftes, and draining of marlhes; In this manner was more ufeful territory added to the eriipire, at the expence of individuals, than had been gained by every war fince the Revolu- tion. Iti acquiring diftant dominions, through Conque(b, the ftate is enfeebled^ by the charge of their eftablilhments in peace, and by the ftill more enormous debts, incurred in War, for their defence. In gaining additional lands, by reclaiming the vvild, improving the barrel^, and appropriating the common, you at once extend the limits of our ifland, and make its foil more productive. Yet# a certain clafs of writers have been ftudious to prove, that, by making the common fields more fruitful, the legiflature has impoverifhed the poor; Connected with agriculture too is the making of roads. The highways of Britain were not equal in goodnefs to thofe of foreign countries, when the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle was concluded* From this epoch to the demife of George II. great exer-^ tions were certainly ufed to fupply the inconve* nient dcfeft. The firft fourteen feflions of the prefent reign are diftinguifhed, not only for c6l* letting the various road-laws into one, but for enacting no fewer than four hundred and fifty-two aCts for repairing the highways of different dif' triCts. If) by this employment of many hands, no* thing ( "9 ) thing was added to the extent of our country, every field, and every village, within it, were brought, by a more eafy conveyance, nearer to each other. In the fame manner canals facilitate agriculture, and promote manufadlures, by offering a mode of carriage at once cheaper and more certain* A very early attention had been paid to the navi- gation of our rivers : from the Revolution to the demife of George IL many flreams had been made navigable. But, a dill greater number have been rendered more commodious to commerce, in the prefent reign, exclufive of the yet more valua- ble improvement of canals. And, during the firflf fourteen felTions of this reign, nineteen ads were pafled for making artificial navigations, includ- ing thofe flupendous works, the Bridgewater, the Trent, and the Forth canals •, which, by joining the Eaftern and Weftern feas, and by connedling almoll every manufafluring town with the capital, emulate the Roman labours. In this period too, many of our harbours were enlarged, fecured, and improved : many of our cities, including the metropolis of our empire and our trade, were paved, cleanfed, and lighted. And, without including the bridges that have been built, an(i public edifices created, the foregoing eflrbrts for domeftic improvement can, with no truth, or propriety, be deemed the works of an inaiflive age, or of a frivolous people. - : ^■■' ' ■ ■• " 'if ( 130 ) If from agriculture we turn our attention to tnanufa^ures, we (hall find many laws enafled for their encouragement, fome with greater efficacy and fome with lefs. It was a wife policy to pro- cure the materials of our manufa6tures at the cheapefl: rate. A tax was laid on foreign linens, in order to provide a fund, for raifing hemp and flax at home \ while bounties were given on thefe neceflary articles from our colonies, and the boun. ty on the exportation of hemp was withdrawn. The impofts on foreign linen yarn were withdrawn. Bounties were given on Britifli linen cloth export- ed } while the making of cambricks was promoted, partly by prohibiting the foreign, and partly by giving frelh incentives, though without fuccefs, to the manufacture of cambricks within our ifland. Indigo, cochineal, and log-wood, the necefTaries of dyers, were allowed to be freely imported. And the duty on oak-bark imported was lowered, in order to accommodate the tanners. It is to be lamented, that the ftate of the public debts does not admit the abolition of every tax on materials of manufacture, of whatever country : this would be a meafure fo much wifer, than giving prohibi- tions againft foreign manufactures, which never fail CO bring with them the mifchiefs of mono- poly i a worfe commodity, at a higher price. The importation of filks and velvets of foreign countries was however prohibited, while the wages and combinations of filk-weavers were reftrained, , - Y."A though ( 13' ) though the price of the goods was not regulated* in favour of every confumer. The workers in leather were equally favoured, by fimilar means. The plate-glafs manufadture was encouraged, by creeling a corporation for carrying it on. The making of utenfils from gold and filver was fa« voured, by appointing wardens to detedl every fraud. And the law, which had been made, dur- ing the penury of King William's days, for pre- venting innkeepers from ufing any other plate than filver fpoons, was repealed in 1769, when we had made a very extenlive progrefs in the ac- quifition of wealth, and in the tafte for enjoy- ing it. The mod ancient ftaple of this ifland was» by prudent regulations in the fabricks of wool, fenc to foreign markets, better in quality, and at a lower price. General induftry was incited by various means, which probably had their efFeft. Apprentices, and workers for hire, were placed under the juriC- diftion of magiftrates, who were empowered to enforce by corredion the performance of con- trafts. Sobriety was at the fame time prcferved," by reftraining the retail of fpirituous liquors. But, above all, that law muft have been attended with the mod powerful efFeft, which was made " for the more cfFedtual preventing of abufes by per- ions employed in the manufacture of hats, wool* len, linen, fuftian, cotton, iron, leather, fur, hemp, flax, mohair, and fiik ; for reftraining un- K 2 lawful (^32) lawful combinations of every one working in fuch manufidlures j and for the better payment of ihcir wages." This law mnft be allowed to contaio the mod powerful incitements of the human heart j when we confider too, that the aflize of bread was ac the Dime time regulated. If from a review of manufactures we infpcft pur (hipping, we Ihall perceive regulations equally vfeful. The whale-fifheries of the river St. Law- rence and Greenland were encouraged by boun- ties, together with the white herring fiftiery along the coafts of our ifland. Foreigners were ex- cluded, by additional penalties, from holding ihares in Britifli (hips. And oak-timber was pre- ferved, by new laws, for the ufc of the royal navy. The voyages of difcovery, which do fo much ho- nour to the prefent reign, though they did not proceed from any aft of the legiflature, may be regarded as highly beneficial to navigation, whe- ther we confider the improvement of nautical fcience, or the prcfervation of the mariner's health. But, all thefe encouragements had been given in vain, had not the courfe of circulation been kept full and current, and the coin timcfuUy reformed. New modes were prefcribed by Parliament for the recovery of fmall debts in particular diftridls. Additional remedies were adminiftered for reco- vering payment on bills and other mercantile fecu- rities in Scotland. And the ifTuing of the notes of bankers was rendered more commodious and fafe. ;^^ /4- ( 133 ) faff. The importation of the light filver coin 6f this realm was prohibited ; and what was of more importance, every tender of Britifh filver coin, in the payment of any fum more than five-and- twenty pounds, otherwife than by weight, at five fliillings and two pence per ounce, was declared unlawful. This admirable principle, fo juft in its theory, and fo wife in its pradice, was, about the fame time, applied to the gold coin. And the gold coins were recalled, and re-coined to an unexpeded amount, and ordered to pafs current by weight. This meafure, which does equal honour to the contriver, to the advifcr, and to the executor^ has been attended with all the falutary efFedls, that were foretold, as to our domellic circulation, our foreign trade, and to our money-exchanges with the commercial world. The laws, which were thus paflcd, from the acceflion of his prefent Majefty to the sra of the colonial revolt, had produced the mod beneficial effedts on our agriculture and manufadures, on our commerce and navigation, had not the ener- getic fpirit, that actuated our affairs at the peace of 1763, continued to incite the induftrious clafles, and to accumulate their daily acquifitions. If any one choofes to appeal from general reafonings to particular fads, let him examine the following proofs: iV- l< ■t:^^ ? Shipi ( 134 ) Vwu Ship! d^iwd oatwardf. Value of ctf|oe». SyCj^'^ Tom %a%\Hb. D« foreign. TetaL £. ^5 f ^39i^7^ ' 68,136 - 708,008 - 14,925,950 '772] 73 \ 795^943 • ^4*232 - 860,175 - 15,613,003 74J Thus, our navigation had gained, in the interve- nlenc period, more than a hundred and fifty thou- fand tons a year, and our foreign traffic had rifen tlmoft a million in annual worth. The grofs re- venue of the poft-office, which, arifing from a greater or lefs correfpondence, forms, according to Anderfon, a politico-CQtnmercial index, amounted in 1764 - to - ,£.281,535, m 1774 - to - 345»32i. Yet, profperous as our affairs had been, during the fhort exiftence of the peace of 1763, they were reprefenced, by an analogous fpirit to that of 1738, either of defigning fadlion, or of unin- formed folly, as in an alarming fituatim. The ftate of things, it was faid, is approaching to an twful crifis. The navigation and commerce, by which we rofe to power and opulence, are much §n the decline,. Our taxes are numerous and hea- vy, and provifions are dear. An enormous na- * Bot the franking of letters had been now regulated, and other iinprovefflente had been meantime made. ( 135 ) clonal debt threatens the ruin of public credit. Luxury has fpread its baneful influence among all ranks of people } yet, luxury is neceffary "(q raife a revenue to fuppiy the exigencies of the ftate. Our labouring poor are forced by hard ne- ceflfity to feek that comfortable fubfiftence in dif- tant climeSf which their induftry at home cannot procure them. And the mother-country holds the rod over her children* the colonies, and, by her threatening afped, is likely to drive them to defperace meafures *• WHEN, owing to the native habits and ac- quired confidence of her colonies ; to the ancient neglefts, and continued indulgence of Britain *, to the incitements of party-men, and to the im- becility of rulers i the nation found herfelf at length obliged to enter into a ferious conteft with her tranfiatlantic provinces, (he happily enjoyed all the advantages of a bufy manufaflure, of a vi- gorous commerce, of a moft extenlive navigation, and of a produfbive revenue. Of thefe animat- ing truths we (hall receive fufficient convidion, by examining the following particulars : After liquidating every claim fubfequent to the peace of 1763, and funding every debt, by af- (igning an half-yearly intereft for every principal. * See Gent. Mag. 1774, p. 313, &€• K ♦ the ( »36 ) • the public enjoyed an annual furplus from the pub- He impofts of two millions two hundred thoufand pounds, in 1764. From 1765 to 1770, this fink- ing fund accumulated to £. 2,266,246. And from 1770 to 1775* the furplufcs of all our taxes amount- ed annually to the vaft fum of ]£• 2,651,455; which having rifpn, in 1775 and 1776, to three millions and upwards, proved a never-failing re- fource, amid the financial embarralTments of the enfuing war. Thefe fads alone furnifh the moft fatisfadlory evidence of the great confumption of the coUeAive mafs of the people, and of their ability to confume, from their adive labours and ' accumulating opulence. Tfet, during the profperous period of the peace, there were only difcharged of the capital of the national debt ---;£• io>739>793. And there remained, notwithftanding every di- minution, when the war of the colonies began, in 1775 - - - - )C-i35»943.05ii ;W hereon was paid to the public • creditors an annuity of - ;£. 4,440,821.* The ftock of the Bank of England rofe mean while from 113 per cent, in July, 1764, to 143 per cent, in July 1774: and difcounts on the bills of the navy fell from 6 I per cent, at the firft epoch) xo I \ 2X the fecond. The reform of the coin eurned the nominal exchanges on the fide of * Dr* Price, and Mr. Sinclair. fin-^fs^ f- Britain, ( 137 ) Britain, which were in fadk favourable before hof- tiilcics began, owing to the flourifhing ftate of our trade, and the advantageous courfe of our general payments. And the price of bullion fell, becaufe the fupply was fuperior to the demand. From the foregoing notices, an able ftatefman might have inferred beforehand, that Great Britain never poflefled fuch refources for a vigorous war. And this truth may be aflerted without fear of contra- didtion, and without appealing to the immenfity of fubfequent fupplies, for unanfwerable proofs oithefa^. The furplus produce of the land and labour of Eng^ • id alone, which, being exported to foreign cou. ' ^ might have been applied to the ufes of w»»., amounted to £. i, -5,61 3,003, according to an average of the years 1772 — 3 — 4*. The Britifh (hipping^* which were chiefly em- ployed in exporting this immenfe cargo, and which were eafily converted into tranfports, to armed fhips, and to privateers, amounted annually to 795,943 tons : and this extenflve nurfery furnifhed the royal navy with mariners of unequalled (kill and bravery, during a naval war, in the laft year of which, the Parliament voted a hundred and ten thoufand feamen. We may calculate from the continual progrefs in population, arifing from additional employ- ^ There was moreover fent by fea from Scotland^ at the fame time, an annual cargo of the value of;^. 1)515,025, if we may believe the Cuftom-houfe books. . inentSy ( 138 ) ments, that there were in this ifland, at the epoch of the colonial revolt, full 2,350,000 fighting men. By examining the following details, we (hall acquire ideas fufHciently precife of the royal navy, both before and after the war of the colonies be- gan :— The reyalfeef czrrlcd in 1754 — 226,246 tons. in 1760 — 300,416. in 1774 — 276,046. Of the king's Ihips, exifting in 1774, feveral were found, on the day of trial, unfit for a£Vual fervice. By an effort, however, which Britain alone could have made, there were added to the royal navy, during fix years of war, from 1775 ^^ 1781:— Veflels. Guns. Tom. Of the line, with fifties, 44 carrying 3,002 and 56,144 Twenties to forty-fours, no — 3»33i — S3»3S^ Sloops - - 1 60 — 2,555 — 37»i6o 314 8,888 146»654 By a fimilar effort, during fix years of the Re- volution-war, England was only able to add to her naval force 1 1,368 tons. And thus was there a greater fleet fitted out, during the uncommon embarralTments of the colony -war, than King William, or Queen Anne, or even than King George I. perhaps ever poffeffed. Of feveral of thefe we were unhappily deprived, either by the misfortunes incident to navigation, or by the good 2 fortune ( 139 ) fortune of our enemies. Yet, we had in connmif- fion, in January 1783» the fleet, whofe power will be mod: clearly perceived from the following de- tail*; when it is remembered, that there were voted for the fervice of this year a hundred and ten thoufand feamen^ Ships. Guns. JntU» 20 of - 80 to 108 carrying ^5^27^ 44 of - - 74 - 26,112 45 of - 60 to 68 ^ H^3^o 18 of - - 50 - 5.468 64 Frigates above 30 - ^3*7^5 51 Ditto under 30 - 8,581 no Sloops of - 18, and under, - I it36o 15 Firefhips and bombs. 26 Armed fhips, hired. ' 393 - Navigated by - - 104,978 Such was the naval force of Great Britain, which, after a violent ftruggle, broke, in the end, the con- joined fleets of France, Spain, and Holland. The privateers of Liverpool, which have been already Hated, alone formed a greater fleet than the armed colonies were ever able to equip. Owing to whdt fatality. L '■ * The above ftatement» though in a different form* was officially laid before the Hoafe of Commons, at the debate oa the ptatt* Befides the ihips in the lift of the Navy-board, there were feventeen* from 60 to 98 guns, jeady to be com- niffioned. Steel ftates, v^ his Naval Chronology, the force •f ( HO ) fatality, or to what caufci it was, that the vaft ftrength of Britain did not beat down the colonial infurgents, not in one campaign, but in three, it is the buHnefs of hiftory to explain. It may be mean- time obferved, that a war carried on injeji, with- out any dejirahle objeA, ought naturally to meet obftrudions, and to end in difappointment. It is now time to enquire into the lofTes of our trade from the war of thofe colonies, which had been planted and nurfed with a mother's care, for the exclufive benefit of our commerce. If it was not much interrupted by the privateers of the malcontents, we loft whole mercantile fleets to our enemies. And it muft be admitted, that in the courfe of no war, fmce that oi the Revo- lution, were our (hipping fo much deranged, or our traffic fo far driven from its ufual channels, of tht fleets of Great Britain, France, Spain, and Holland, at the end of the war, ai under : Of the line. Guns. Britilh fhlpi ... i^^ carrying 10,132 Dednft thofe wanting repairs, a8 — 1,948 Britilh effeaive French Spaniih « Dutch — 8,184 117 - 82 — 5,848 67 — 4,720 ^ - 33 — *»oo^ Dedud thofe wantihg repairs, 49 —- 2,928 :\ I ■ Ji ■; (■■•■ American war More than Great Britain 16 — 1,462 But, ( HI ) But, we (hall fee the precife ftate of both^ tending to the following details : Years. Ships cleared outwards. In' the peaceA American war C'7757 ^ ■I 76 V 760, Tons Eng. 795*943 ■ D" foreign. Total. 64,2 3» - 860,175 by at" Value of cargoes. 15,613,0*3 798 - 73>*34 - 834,031 - i3,86i,8i» French war Spaniih war Dutch wa;- - 1778 - 1779 1780 - 1781 178a 657,138 590,911 619,461 S47«9S3 551,851 98.113 »39.»*4 >34.S»S 163,410 108,511 7S5»3S« 730,03 s 753.977 711,363 761,361 n,55i,o7<» 11,693,430 11,611,333 10,569,187 "»3SS.7So If we review this fatisfaftory evidence, we Ihali probably find, that there were annually employed, when the colony-war began, more than one hun- dred and Hfty thoufand tons of Britifh (hipping, than had been yearly employed during the prof- perous years 1764 — 5 — 6; and that we annually exported of merchandizes, in the firft- mentioned period more than in the laft, little lefs than a mil- lion in value : That the colonial contefl: little af- fedled our foreign commerce, if we may judge from the decreafed ftate of our (hipping * $ bur, if we draw our inference from the dimini(hed va- lue of cxport*'d cargoes, wc feem to have loft £.1,751,190 a year; which formed, probably, the real amount of the ufual export to the difcon- tented provinces : And the inconfiderable decreafe in the numbers of our outward (hipping, with the * There were entered inwards of (hips belonging to the revolted colonies, 34,587 tons, according to an average of the years 1771 — 2 — 3 — 4. ( 142 ) , fall in the value of manufactures, whereof their cargoes conHfted, juftify a ihrewd remark of Mr. Eden's, *' that, in the latter period, it may be doubted, whether the dexterity of exporters, which, in times of regular trade, occafions oftentatious entries, may not, in many inftances, have operated to under-valuations.*' It was the alarm created by the interference of France, that firft interrupted pur general commerces though our navigation and trade, in 1778, were ftill a good deal more, than the average of both, in iJSS'^O — 7. The pro- fperity of oi^r foreign traffic, during the war of 1755, at leaft from the year 1758, is a fad, in our commercial annals, which has excited the a- mazement of the world. Yet, let us fairly con- trail both our fhipping and our trade, great as they were alTuredly, during the firft period, and little as they have been fuppofed to be, during the laft : Ships cleared outwards. Value of cargoes. Years. TonsEng. D° foreign. Total. £. 1758 - 389»M - 116,002 - 505,844- 12,618,335 1778 - 657,238 - 98,113 • 755^35^ • ii»55i»07o 1759 - 406,335 - i2i,oi6 - 527,351 - 13,947,788 1779 - 590,9" - i39»'24- 730,035 - 12,693,430 1760 - 471,241 - 102,737 - 573*978 1780 - 619,462 - i34,5»5 - 753»977 1761 - 508,220 - 117,835 - 626,055 1781 - 547»953 - 163,410 - 7",363 1762 - 480,444- 120,126- 600,570 '782 - 552,851 - 208,511 - 761,362 i4>639,970 11,622,333 14,873,191 10,569,187 ■ i3»545»J7i 12.355.750 What ( i43 ) What had occurred from the interruptions of all our foregoing wars, equally occurred from the ftill greater embarralTments of the colony-war. Temporary defalcations were, in the fame manner, faid to be infallible fymptdms of a fatal derliue. In the courfe of former hoililities, we have feen our navigation and commerce prefTed down to a certain point, whence both gradually rofe, even be- fore the return of peace removed the incumbent prcffure. All this an accurate eye may perceive, amid the commercial diftrelTes of the laft war. There was an evident tendency in our traffic to rife in 1779, till the Spanilh war impofed an ad- ditional burden. There was a fimilar tendency ia 1780, till the Dutch war added, in 1781, no in- confidcrable weight. And the year 1781, accord- ingly, marks the lowed degree of depreilion, both of our navigation and our commerce, during the war of our colonies. But, with the fame vigorous fpirit, they both equally rofe, in 1782, as they had rifen in former wars, to a fuperiority over our navigation and commerce, during the year, where- in hoililities with France began. We have beheld, too, on the return of complete peace, the fpring of our traffic rebound with mighty force;. A confiderate eye may fee this in 1783 and 1784, though the burdens of war were then removed with a much more tardy hand. Twenty years before, the preliminaries of peace were fettled, in November 1762, and the defini- tive treaty with France and Spain was figned on the ( «44 ) the tenth of February thereafter: fo that com* plete tranquillity was reilored early in i yS^. But, owing to the greater number and variety of belli* gerent powers, the lad peace was fully eftabliflied by much flower fteps. The provifional articles were fettled with the feparated colonies in Novem- ber 1782. The preliminaries with France and Spain were adjufted in January 1783. The de- finitive treaty with both, and with the United States of America, was flgned on the third of Sep- tember 1783. Though an armiftice was agreed on with Holland, in February 1783, preliminaries were not fettled till September thereafter, yet the definitive treaty was not figned till the twenty- fourth of May 1784. And with Tippoo Saib, who was no mean antagonift, peace was not concluded till March 1784. It was not however till July 1784, that we offered thanks to the Almighty, for reltoring to a harafled, though not an exhaufied nation^ the greateft blefllng, which the Almighty can bellow. To thefe dates, and to thefe circumftances, we muft carefully attend, in forming comparative efti- mates of our navigation and commerce, of the price of the public (locks, or of the progrel's of our financial operations. With thefe recolledlions con- ilantly in our mind, we fhall be able to form Tome accurate refiediions, from the following details : ^ Ifoehi ( 145 ) Epochi> Ships doared outwards. Value ortargoei* ]^4q'1 Tons£ng. D« fortign. Total? £» 50 [609,798- 51,386-661,184- 12,599,112 5>J 17647 ^5 K39i87* - 68,136 - 708,008 - 141925,950 66J, 17727 74J 195^9^Z ^ ^4»«3?>- 860,175 ^ I5»^I3^0O3 ^783 795i6^9- 157*9^9 "953^^3^ - I3»85»»^7» 84 846,355^.113,064-959,419- 14,X7J«§75 I — i — ^' — — — - ' . ■'■ ' ■ ■ — _-- . If we examine the fubjoined k^ate of the Poft-of- fice revenue, we (ball find fupplemental proofs. The grofs income of the pofts amounted, in the year, ending the 25 March 1755, to - £• 210,663, :*the 5 April 1765,10- 281,535, the 5 April I775» «<> - 345»32i> the 5 April 1784,10- 452,404. The foregoing (latements will furely furnilh every honeft mind with comfortable thoughts. From thefe accurate details we perceivie, with fuf- » ■ -- . ficient convidion, how fuperior both our navigft- tion and our commerce were, in 178^^1^ t^S^, when peace had fcarcely returned, to the extent of both, after the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, an epoch of boafted proipcrity. We employed in out traf- fic, in the year 1784, TrikEE hundred THou«©t TONS more than we employed, according to' ali/^ average of 1 749 — 50 — 51, exclujivg of tbejhippin^ cfScotlandf to no fmall amount. Of Britijb ihips. m • ( '46 ) we happily employed, in 1784, two hundred THOUSAND TONS, Riorc than our navigation em- ployed in 1764, though theveflels of our revolted colonies, amounting yearly to 35,000 tons, had been juftly excluded from our traffic, in the laft period, but not in the Hrft : The value of exported cargoes from England was, at both epochs, nearly equal ; though 1784 can fcarcely be called a com- plete year of peace, and every induftrious people had been admitted within the circle of a commerce, which we had almoft ruined the Jiate^ to make cxclufively ours. The value of our exportations, in 1784, was not indeed equal to the amount of our exports in 1764, but they were fuperior to the va- lue of exported cargoes in 1 766, 1 767, and 1 769 *. If we compare 1784, when wc had hardly reco- vered from a war, avowedly carried on agalnfl com- merce, with 1774, when we had enjoyed uncom- mon profperity during feveral years of peace, we ihall fee no caufe of apprehenfion, but many reafons of hope *, the number of Britifli (hips was much greater, in 1784, than they had been in 1774, after wc had wifely excluded the American veflels from the protcftion of the Britifh flag, of which the revolted colonifts had Ihewn themfelves un- worthy. The value of cargoes exported at both pepods are fo nearly equal, as not to merit much cdnfideration, far lefs to excite our fears. Yet the government was about the fame time * See the Chronological Table for a proof of the faff, confidently confide pingw( ftop fo years, \ pendens at once, downfal It wa chiefly g many cv brought the falia( flicwn, ai of our ( foretold. fa£f. For ientcd col ports to I their ind< lowing dj nufadlure mofl: proj In 177 7 7 In i78f Yet, tl were bey| • By the t From ( '47 ) confidently told *, that unlcfs the American fliip- ping were allowed to be our carriers, our traffic mufb flop for want of tranfports : And the nation, for years, had been faftioudy informed, that the inde- pendence of the maltcontent colonies muft prove, at once, the deftruftion of our commerce, and the downfall of our power. It was the prevalence of this fentiment, that chiefly generated the colony war, fo productive of many evils, which, like the other evils of life, have brought with them a happy portion of good. Yet^ the fallacy of this fentiment had been previoufly Ihewn, and the effeifts of the abfolute independence of our tranfatlantic provinces had been clearly foretold. Experience has at length decided fbe fa£i. For, by comparing the exports to the difcon- tented colonies, before the war began, with the ex- ports to the United States, after the admiflion of their independence, it will appear, from the fol- lowing detail, that we now fupply them with ma- nufactures to a greater amount, than even in the mod profperous times : Thus, Exports. Imports. — 3,064,843 — l,322>532 5 — 3*3591864 1— 701.189. Yet, the exportatlons of the years 1771—2—3 were beyond example great, becaufe the colonifts • By the Committee of Weft-India Merchants, in 1783. t From the Cuftona-houfe books. '"J' L 2 w«rc ( H8 ) were even then preparing for fubfequent events, and the exporters were induced to make their entries at the cuftom-houfc, partly by their va- nity, perhaps as much by their fadtioufnefs. We may rcafbnably hope then, to hear no more of our having loft the American commerce, by the independence of the United States. From the epoch that we have met induftrious competitors in their ports, we have had too much reafon to com- plain of having rather traded too much with a peo- ple, who attempt to be great traders without great capitals. ConneAed with the American trade is the New- foundland fifhery. Of this Doftor Price aflerts, in his ufual (lyle of depreciation and defpondence, that wefeem to have totally lofi it. The fubjoined detail, by eftabliihing fome authentic fadls, will give rife, however, to more animating concludons. Con- trail the Newfoundland fifhery, as it was annually dated, fubfequent to the peace of 1763, by Ad- miral Pallifer, and as it was equally reprefented, after the peace of 1783, by Admiral Campbell : CoMPAKATivi State of the Newfoundland Fishbrt. 1111764- 1784 — 1765- 1785 There were Britiihy^r'ff; ihips - 141 - 236— 177 - 29s Bririfli rrtf^fff^ fliipt - 97 - 60 — I16 - 85 Cohny Aipi - - . 205 - 50 — X04 - 58 Tonnage of Britifliy^iVj^ibipt - 144819 - 22,535 — 17,268 - 26,528 of Britifh rr«85^»542s of which £* 151694,1 12 were fo far liquidated as to carry an intereft, that continually augmented the capitals, exclufive of other claims, equally cogent» but of lefs amount. - ...'»>> The public fecurities, which always rife in va* lue on the return of peace, gradually fell* when thefe vaft debts were expofed to the world in ex- aggerated figures } when the ftockholders were terrified by declamations on the defe<5ls of their fecurity, which is, in fa6b, equal to the liability of the Britilh State ; and when all claimants on thi: public were daily alTured of a truth, which had then too much exiftencej that the annual income of the public was not equal to the annual ex- penditure. The nation was mortified, at the fame time, by the events .of a war, the mifmanage* ments and ^xpences of which had made peace ab- folutely neceflary. And the government was at once enfeebled, by diftra6lions> and unhinged, by the competitions of the great for pre-eminence and power. • > , ' ' 'It was at this crifis of unufual difficulty, that the prefent minifter was called into office, nearly as much by the fuffrages of his country, as by the appointment of his fovereign. Were we to inftitute a comparifon of the ftate of the nation, in 1764 and 1765, with that of 1784 and 1785, we fhould b? enabled to form a proper judgment, not only of the incumbrances and refources of theBritifh government, but of themea- lures. ( '56 ) ftircs, which were at both periods adopted for difchilrging our debts by applying our means. The war of 1755 augmented the public debt of 1775 - - - •: 110,279,341. In 1 764* the unfunded debts, including German claims, navy and ordnance debt, army extraor- dinaries, deBciencies of grants and funds, ex- chequer bills, and a few fmaller articles, amount- ed to ------ - £. 9,975,oi8i In 1784, the unfunded debts, inclu- ding every article of the fame kind, amounted to - - - 24,585,157. The navy bills fold, in 1 764, at 9-g- per- cent, dif- count ; in J 784, at 20 per cent. The value of 3 per cent, confolidated docks, from which t! e moft accurate judgment of all (locks may be formed, was in 1764 at 86 per cent, but, in 1784, the va- lue may be calculated at 54 per cent. In the iirft period, our agriculture and manufafturcss our commerce and navigation, were faid to be in the moft profperous conditon; in the lafl:^ to be al- moft undone. With the foregoing data before us, we (hall be able, without any minute calculations, or tedious inquiry, to form an adequate judgment of the re- fources of the nation, and of the condu6t of mi- nifters, in applying thefe rcfources to the public fervice, at the conclufion of our two laft wars. II In » '-' ( 111 ) In 1764—65, there were paid off and provided for * - - - - i. 6,192,059; In 1784— 85 . - - ta8.i39»448. There remained unprovided for in 1765, — in 1785- German claims C* 156,044 — jC* Navy debt - 2,4a6,9i5— Exchequer bills - 1,800,000 — 4,500,000 Total in both £. 4,382,959*— ^ 4,500,000 But, let us carry this comparifon one ftep far- ther. There were paid off and provided for (as we have feen) in 1764 and 6^^ oi unfunded debts I* 6,192,159. There were afterwards paid off be- jfore 1776, , - - 10,739,793; Total paid off in eleven years - jC* 16,93 1,952. There were paid off and provided for in two years, 1784^-85 - 28,139,448. * Confid. on tradb and finances, p. 41. f The following are the particolars, from the annual grants and appropriation a£ts: i,-;i^ii. Debts fanded in 1784, - - • C' ^>^79»Z\** Debts paid off* and otherwife provided for, in 1784, - - - - 5,728,615. Debts funded. \nxy^^-^imi%-nii!n-nnsiji,^ 10,990,651. Debts paid off and otherwife provided for, ia^i £>:> . ^'tri^cu' Total of <3ebts paid oiF, funded, and other> 1 /. -g ,,„ ^^ wife provided for, in 1784— 85. ;•; - J " . .„. Yet, { IS8 ) Yet, i from this laft fum muft be dedudled the if. 4,500,000 of Exchequer bills, which, being continined ^t the end of 1785, were cither circu- lated by the Bank, or were in the courfc of pub- lic bi^finefs lockc up in the Exchequer. Thofe bills indeed, that pafled into circulation, were of real ufe to the Bank, and to individuals, without depreciating funded property, as they continually pafled from hand to hand at a premium. There was no purpofe, when the foregoing com- ' parifons were inftituted, of exalting the charader of the prefent miniftcr for wifdom and energy, by the degradation of any of his predeceflbrs. The able men, who managed the national finances from 1763 to 1776, afted like all former ftatefmen, from the circumftances wherein they were placed, atid probably made as great exertions in difcharg- ing the national debts, as the fpirit of the times admitted. Greater efforts have, fince the laft peace, been made, becaufe every wife man declared, that there was no efFedlual mode of fecuring all that the nation holds dear, than by making the ptfblic income larger than the public expenditure. The before-mentioned operations of finance, in 17B4 and 85, it had been impoflible to perform, without impofing many taxes, which all parties de- manded as ncceffary. Were any defence required for a conduA, which, if the faithful difcharge of duty, ^t no fmall rifque of perfonal credit, is •'laudable, merits the greateft praifc, the pre- vious { 159 ) vious neceflity would furnifh ample judifica* cion. What had occurred at the conclufion of every war fince the revolution, happened in a ftill greater degree fince the re-eftablifhment of the lad peace* Lee us make hafte to lighten the public debts, which fo much enfeeble the date, and embarrafs individuals, was the univerfal cry. It was the judgment of the wifeft ment that, confidering the magnitude of the national incumbrances, thefe debts could neither be paid off, nor greatly leiTen- cd, except by a fmking-fund, which fhould be in« variably applied to this mod ufeful purpofe. And, great as the national debts were, amounting to £-239,154.880 principal, which, for intereft and charges of management, required an annuity of £. 9,275,769, after all the financial operations of 1784 and 85, a finking-fund of a million was faid to be fully fufHcient, if thus facredly applied } as the produdtive powers of money at compound intered are almod beyond calculation. Animated by thefe reprefentations, and urged by fcnfe of duty, the minider, though druggling with the embarrafling effe^s of a tedious and un- fuccefsful war, which, in the judgment of very experienced men, had almod exhaudcd every na- tional refource, has edabliflied a finking- fund of a million. Whatever might have been the univerfal wid), no one, at the re-edablidimenc of the peace, had any reafonable expe^atton that fo large a , finking- ( *6o ) iSnking-fund would be thut early fettled by adfc (jf pariiament* on principles, which at once promote the intcreft of the public, by diminilhing the na- ttooal debt, and the advantage of individuals, by Cfcaciog a rapid circulation* s Of other finking-funds it has been remarked, that they did not arife fo much from the furplufes of taxes, after paying the annuity, which they had been eftablilhed to pay, as from a redudion of the fiipulated intereft. The finking-funds eftablifhed in Holland during 1655, and at Rome in 1685, were thus created. The well-known finking-fund, -mhkh had its commencement here in 1716, was equally created by the reduAion of intereft on many (locks* And hence has been inferred the infuf&ciency of fuch funds. But, the foundation of Mr. Pitt's finking-fund is firmly laid on a clear iiirplus of a permanent revenue, made good by new taxes, and on the conftant appropriation of fuch annuities as will revert to the public from the effluxion of years. The fufficiency and facrednefs of this fund may be however inferred, not fo much from any arti- ficial reafoning, as from the nature of the trufts, and from the fpirit of the people, which ever guards with anxiety what has been dedicated to their conftant fecurity and future glory. The finking-fund of 17 16 was left to the management of minifters, who found an intereft in mifapplying it. Mr. Pitt's finking-fund has been entrufted to fix commifiloners, holding offices, which are no way ( i6i ) way connected with each other, and to the pof- feflbri of which the people look for fidelity, know- ledge, and refponfibility. From fuch truftees no miliipplicationa or jobbing, can reafonably be ap- prehended. Add to this, that the commiflioners, being required by law to lay out the appropriated money in a fpecified manner, and to give an an- nual account of their tranfa^tions to Parliament, aA under the eye of a jealous world, and under the cenfure of an independent prefs, which, in a free country* has an efficacy beyond the penalties of the legiflature. Butt the ad itfelf, which creates this fund, and makes thefe provifions, may be repealed, it is feared, by the rapacity of future minifters, or by the diftrefs of fubfequent wars. It is however no fmall fecurity of the prefent finking-fund, that the impolicy of mifapplying the former is admitted with univerfal conviction and regret. Under this public opinion, no minifter^ whatever his principles or his power nKiy be, will ever attempt the repeal of a law, which, in fade, contains a virtual contradb with the public credi- tors, and on the exiftence of which the public cre- dit muft in future depend : For the repeal of this ad, and the feizurt of this fund, during the pref- fures of any war, would be a manifeft breach of this contrad ; and would amount to a bankrupt- cy, becaufe it would be a declaration to the world, that the nation could no longer comply with her moft facred engagements. And what evil is to be . M ' . feared. ( l"^ > feared, or goodcxpeftcd, from ari^ war, whicfi ought to ftand in competition with the evils of bankruptcy, or the good that muft iieceflarily refult from the invariable application of fuch n fund ? A million, thus applied, wil(a(rured]y free the public from vaft debts, and in no long period yield a great public revenue : It is demonfflrable, that a fihking-fund of a million, with the aid of fuch annuities as muft meanwhile fall in, will fetfree four milHons annually, at the end of twenty^feven years: It has been demonftrated by ingenious calculators, that the invariable application of a million to the annual payment of debts, would, in lixty years, difcharge )£. 317,000,000 of 3 per cent, annuities, the price being at 75 per cent. This meafure, then, is of more importance to Great Britain than the acquifition of the Ameri- can mines. And, this meafure, thus facred in its principles} and falutary in its effects, will not pro- bably be fooA repealed by any minifter, becaufe every order in the ftate are pledged to fupport ir, while the property of every man in the commu- nity is bound for pay mem of the Jiatiooal debt. -* - Without inquiring minutely, whether a furplus of ^. 900,000 appeared in the exchequer on any given day, it is fufficiently apparent, that all the purpofes of this meafure of finance will be amply anfwered, by the pun6tual payment of >£. 250,000 a quarter to the truftees, as the law requires j be- caufe the Parliament are engaged by the a£t to tfiake good the deficiency, if the furplus of the }0 finking- t6 lets tlti^il flHkfni^ftincJ Aibuld In ariy ycaV i ^''Little fluftuation in the funds will be ^f^afed hf I^ri^iig tilt'd thfc Siiock ^xctiahge a certain rum,on t'AVtiln' ^Ayi, during every quarter. It is the greafe fifeL'ihdtHe t)ropoftiohat iall, hi the vatuc of the ftoctcsi which enables jobbers to gain fortunes* Arid of cohfe^uencc ^tie commidlohers Will hardly Bnd it (heir intfcrei¥,'i^ they had th^ incliAation, tb dtfdl In t)UbIit Securities with a view to great pro- fits *'. If the gfacfual and fteady rife of the ftbcfes be /of i\ii ifttci^cft of ^he pubfic, as Well as of iri- dividuaUt thb Quarterly jippircatioh of the new fUrid nittlt be deemed a great improvement of the 6id, Which W45 fekrdrh Ifelt irt the ftock rharket, and; gliVe iitd^ liibtioA to gi^ner al cii*cu1atiori. 6y Mi liiiini Will the eapltals of the JDubtic debts bi rtfidered tatte riiahageable, in no long jDeriod } the pto 'of ftdcJks muft neecflafily rife; the fi- nance operations of govefnmeht will thereby be performed with Itill gt'eatar advantage to tide ftate} * The purchtfcB beiDg confined to the in'Mter days* Htth more than ^.5^000 can be brooght to market on sny one day, which of confequence can niake no rapid rife of any one flock: Andf when the fin king-fund amounts to the greatef^ poflible AihA ttf£. 4^00,606, the pdrchafe-money oti ftny Aifcihohly b« foRitthing nore thatij^. io,ooo.<^Tlle gradual a^pikdtien of rhii finking-fund ii an exoelleMt quaHty of itj b(c«uijs fudden changes in the ftock market are. not for the inceveft of real buyers, or fellers. The commiflioners therefore can gain liittft profit ff6m thetr filperior knowledge of the ilbck liit« wKich they itt«nd to purchtfe. ' :*'*' Ml and and induftriQUS in^iyicluals will,^ ji^ thjC fapnc^ bj^ii; lier, be more ealily accommodated wit;h discounts and loans. ■ ., ,, ^ .T,'m.r^;.^: ,,r:i -^.r.--' The eftablilhment of fuch a fund, and tlie icrea- tion of luch a truft, are doubtlefs very important fervices to the people colleftively, as they form a corporation* or community. But it may be eafily (hewn, that the people individually will be (till greater gainers, by the hey/ frnVrng-fund, as it has been thus judicioufly formed. And* in this view of the fubjeA, its fteady operation wUl be of ftill greater utility to the nation than even the p.ayment of deb^s, becaule it is the profperlty of ^diyidu- als which forms the ftability of the ftate. Xhe ingenious theories, who oblige the world with projedls for paying the national debt, conGder merely the intereft of the corporation, or public, without attending to what is of more real impor- tance, the advantage of the private p^ribtis^ of ^hom the public confift. ^^» ^, ,..,?-.' • ./ .. . A new order of buyers being thus introduced, and a new demand thereby created, the price of ftocks muft neceffarily rife, notwithftanding the arts of the (lockjobbcrs ; bccaufe the public fccurities be- come in fadb of more real value. In proportion as the money ^ fent from the finking-fund to the Scock'cxchange, the price of ftocks mull gradually rife itill higher. And a rife of (locks, when gra- dual and fteady, never fails to produce the moft falutary eft'efts on univerfal circulation, by facilitate ing transfers of property, and by aiding the per- L&u^^ilf^ ■ ^ ^f^ formance I iii y kaiiqe of fornDed (iohtr^£l8; are the mtrchiefs,,whichdir- ^refs every Mividual and embarrafs the commo. infy, while circulation is innpeded. The com- '^erce of England was well nigh ruined, during King Williatti*s reign, by the diforders in the ic\)in, the want of confidence, arid the high price of money. The foreign bankruptcies, in 1 764^ re- duced the value of cargoes, which were exported in this year, from fixteen millions to fourteen, during feveral years, owing to th^ decline of general cre- dit. How much the domeftic bufinefs of Great Britain was affe&ed by the home bankruptcies of 1772*, is ftill remembered. The complaints, which Were at thofe periods made of a decline of commerce, were alone owing to an obftruiftcd cir- culation, as fubfequent experience hath amply evinced* ^ vflJ f ^« yaaiijtem -iiiT WdTs, then, in modern times, are chiefly de- ftrudire, as they incommode the induftrious claf- fesj by obftrufting circulation. Yet, general in- duftry was riot much retarded, however individual perrons> or particular communiues, may have been -1 *~ The^following detail is alone fuflicient to demonftrate how the manufa^ftures of a coantry tnay be rained by a lan« guid circulation. Of linen doth there were ftamped for fale an Scoiland, * ..;, , during 1771 — 13, 466,274 yards. ''" * 1772 — 13,089,006. viva 1773 — 10,748,110. -H^'V't .^, "• '774 — ii,4".»«5' ^•^;C\^.« *-■ . „ • deranged. Wf. vH, (169 ) dtratiged, or injured, by the colony war.' The people were able to confutne abundantly, fince they a£tually paid vaft contribution!, by their dai- ly confumption of excifeable commodities*. And though they purfued their accuftomcd occupations, and thus paid vaft impofts, the eftabliflied income of the ftate fuftained confiderable defalcations from various caufes }. from the abules, which war never fails to introduce into certain branches of the revenue ; from the illicit traffic, that generally prevails in the courfe of hoftilities ; and from the new impofitions, which fomewhat Icflen the ufuHl produce of the old. „ Thefe diforders in the public revenue have been at leaft palliated, if they have not been altoge- 'ther cured, fince the re-eftablilhment of peace* The meafures, which were vigoroufly adopted, for theeffeAual prevention of fmuggling; the altera- tions, which have been made in the colle^on of "III liimi in 178 * Of malt tlitre were coAfaned* ■^ ..al Boih. OldDotiet: 72,588,010 •- £, i,8i4»7oo. 1 87.343.083 — «.i83.577» in 1780— I— 2 '■■■Mf in 1773—4—5 in 1780—1-^ Of low wines fnaa corn, , ,.^, 5,4, ^,^^ Gal, Old Duties. ,^. 9.974.«37 — jC-4«S.5y3*j|- 11,757,499 — . 4«q.895. Of Soap, .\ lb. '' Old Duties. 93,190,140 — £. 582,438, ' 98,076,806 — 612,980* fome • ' (( I70 ) fon^ departments of the public income \ and the improvement thw h^ been happUyi cflfcdi:cd in all ; haye brought and continue to bring| vaft fums into the Exchequer *. The public expenditure con- tinually diftribute$ this vaft revenue among the creditors* or fervants of the State, who return it to the original contributors, either for the ne- ceflTari^s, or the luxuries of life. The Exchequer, which thus conftantly receives and difpenfes this immenfe incomes has been aptly compared to the human heart, that unceafingly carries on the vi- tal circulation, fo in.vip;orating while it flows, fo fa- tal when it ftops. Thus it is, that modern taxes, which are never hoarded but always expended, may even promote the employments and induftry, the profperity and populoufnefs, of an induilrious people. The conteft, which had been carried on during the war of 1755, between Dodlor Brackenridge and Dofkor Forfter, with regard to the efFcdls of our policy» both in war and peace* on popula- tion, was revived amidft our Colony conteils by Dr. Price and his opponents. By taking a wider range, and eftablifhing many new fa6ls, this lad * Tha whole public revenue paid into the Exchequer^ from Michaeljraf 1783 ) / . to ditto .78a--^- '^W»Si9,v,. ^ - Bitto, from Michaelmas 17847 .. ,_ -^ to ditto ,7851— "^ »5.379»>82. Pitto, from 5 January 1785 W controverfy ( «7I ) controverfy furtiilhes much more inftruAion, on a^ very interefting fubjeft, than the laft. Do^or Price revived the difpucet by contributing an Ap- pendix to Mr. Morgan's EITay on Annuities, ^\ herein the Do^or attempts to prove* by inge- nious remarks on births and burials, a gradual de- cline in the populoufnefs of Great Britain. He was foon encountered by Mr. Arthur Young, who juftly inferred, from the progrefs of improvements in agriculturci in manufa6tures, in commerce, an augmentation in the number of people. Mr. Eden publilhed, in 1779* elegant criticifms* on Doftor Price j by which he endeavours to inva- lidate the arguriient, drawn from a comparifon of the number of houfes at the Revolution, and at prefent *, infifting that the firfl: muft have been lels, and the lafl; much greater, than the text had allow- ed. The DoAor (hewed fome miftakes in his an- tagonilt, without adding much to the force of his own argument by his reply. Yet, if we may cre- dit his coadjutor, he confidered bis fjuftem as more firmly eftal/lijhed than ever t« This long-continued controverfy now found other fupportcrs. Mr. Wales publilhed his Accu^ rate Inquiry in 1781. With confiderable fuccefs he overthrows Doftor Price's fundamental argu- ment, from the comparifon of houfes at diifferent pe- riods J by (hewing, that the returns of houfes to the * In his Letters to Lord Carlifle* f UDcertaiaty of PopalatioD« p. 9. tax- tiy-office are not always prccifc ; by proving, from adbuarenumeraVionsqfleveral towns at didanc pe- riods, that they had certainly increafed ; by evin- cing, from the augmented number of births, that there muft be a greater number of bree()ers. This iibie performance was immediately followed by Mr. Howlet's ftill more extenfive examination of Doflor Price's eflay. Mr. Howlet expands the arguments of Mr. Wales ; he adds feme illuftrations ; and, what is of ftill greater importance, in every inqui- ry^ be eftablilhes many additional fa£ls. ' The treatifes of MefT. Wales and Howlet made a great impreflfion on the public. At the mo- ment, when they had gained^ — a confiderahle fiare ef popular belief , it was deemed prudent on the fide of Doftor Price to publilh— C7»f^/tfi/r/y of the prefent population. This writer frankly declares that be is convinced bjf neither party ^ and that he muft cOnlequently remain in a fate of doubt and fceptical fufpenfe* His apparent purpofe is to (hew, in op- pafition to tbep^puk^ belief that after all our re« fearchtrsv^^ really know nothing witb-any certainty, z^ to this important part of our political oeconomy* In the fceptical arithmetic bf this dubious com- puter, 1,300,000, multiplied by 5, produce 6,250,006. Dod^r Price and his coadjutors feemed unwilling to adrriit. tl^at if there were, ia England ahd Wales, at Lady day 1690, 1,300,000 inhabited hou/est and Jive perfons in each, there muft neceiTarily have been, at the fame time, 6,500^000 ibuls. For, they feared the charge of abfurdity, ( 173 ) in fuppofing a decreafe of a millien and a half of ' peopkt during ninety yearl of augmenUd emfiey- ments: And, they perceived, that by admitting there were in 1690, fix million and a half of peo- ple, they would thereby be obliged to admit, that there had been an augmentation of a million and a half, during the foregoing century, notwithlUnd- ing the long civil wars, and the vaft emigratiofii.' The Do^or published, in 1783, Remarks on tbefe traAs of Meflf. Wales and Howlet *. And, with his uCual acutenefs, he detedsfome miftakes \ but, with his accuftomed pertinacity, he adheres to his former opinions. The matter in difpute, we are told f , muft be djeteripined, not by vague declamation^ or fp^- cula(ive ^rgi|ment, bi|t by welUauihenticated fa£ts;, Fort *'.th^ grand argjMment of pr* Pjice \a at once extreipely clear, and comprehended in a very narrow compafs." . The following is the ftate, of this^r»/i^>ir;?««w|i/;^^^^^^,^,^^j^.^^, ^^j, ^^^^^^^^ TJhat there appeared by the Heaifh-books, at Lady i-^ day 1690, to be in England kod^-v* ^i Houfo, :^- Wales ^ p .. - 1,300,000 \ That there appeared by thcTax- u-j ;^:^ r?Ht if ? office books, in 1777, only <6o€ .v 952,734- Whence, the Doctor inferred, as a neceffary con- fequence, that there had been a proportipna) di- minution of people, fincc x 600. ly^k^hh |ju?|i :->*'»^)>T>.i«*» l»' .««v\V.^ iiVriVi^i**, -^^-iM-t'-i lA«V^*^^»;!- -i. - ■_-^..:\ 5 Confidering ^^ \T ^. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 tarn i^i |iO "^^ M^^ Vi fSi 12.2 :? 144 ■" :g u£ 12.0 ?? Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRUT WItSTIR.N.Y. t4S«0 (716)«73-4S03 (• ^ 1 Cpnu^ering how impfi^it^nt this, fubje^l^is td the itite, andlfiow muoh, ic 13 conneded witli the mencFai purjkyrc ojf thl^Efti^^, I was looo. for thofe not paying to chwdh'«nS i^r flOfUbd"-"-^ at *¥!. 4()t 44,000. lor ooiiflioiu> frauds, and defattltH» • 40yO«o ' ' ' ■ kt 411 S|00o. £, 85,000. ]f,300jOOO IttfeWtnt Sotnnt 750,000. '}5d,oeoj However miny ififohiffi hodfes Wdi'e tlius de- ducted from the i,30o>00o InhabiUd houJeSfGrcgoty M. Obfenr. trit. Mof. kart MSS. 1898^ King King tfi ) King atfi^i^ieiaft «(Jq iiiirji^ >/tkf ^r: >thik' com <^M tho%;^)i)^H tA^mit^'i^mi i7oi,1for t^ebefbrewin^hdof^ed'^tfx of k^'iM Ac ' aflifflhithis !6f tadf-dky i(^bo, iriiS 4i&^ ^tticm^ i6' '^^'; " ^''* -^ • ' --"'"' f. i»5,W«i But, the okilfeft'lift of houftfit, i^^eh' l)}fe^tfr^tt^ ]is(td' thtitthfiG$6fy is *^ aii aet^Ufit mask Itp^f^ ftiifaictits : And this account ftaikfs tW f ^J-- Houfes at ai.' r:; 448,7^4, prodilced C* i^%^jti • los. — 93,876, — 46*398* 508,5i6,producing£.i2 i,£r73. ^.aj* He wild ^ hot l^(i tf VhiTiV^Mi'^^ctdene^ f^^ betwecfh thii otmsA docurnehtiffd the pre^Bthcak edition of Gregory Kihgrti^tttjfcblifld^hldte^di^'rt^ fihenf houfes 6f King, aAd they;&,ceo^ t Kat he is aoC lb p,' both tiic old and th^ new du^y Cyflfere^^ fi^ thisc^fc, as therc%? ng ff^t^^^ ' iipjo&a in ii7^J •i^,i^ th$t jfiM I^|j^ d^"»747» to^ Ladyrday 1748, the whole du]^ yielded jf. ^08,093 * ^d^ an explanatCHr;^ ^&, h^x^ ing^^^ed in 11^489 the duties yieldied* for the j^^^^ ending at Lady-day 1749, £, 220,890 : But, othei^, mod^j^ or evading the law being fooa.j&aaiBditl^^ duiwt ikereafed year after year.— And thus much frdffth^ intelligent Mr. Henry Rcid, who never dreitned bf hbUflfs fklRi^g into nbn-c3^ence^ The*firft accbuht'df hbUfes, #hic1i 'nbw appcari to Have been mtde op, fub#'qucnt tb* that W ijtSB^ is thi* account of 1756, and the Taft is ifih of lySt.^? IVithttiiS foregoing data Wm uS, #^ \^y,^ Gto, lU ch. 3 i which recit(M« that wtotai It^ hath often been found from experiencf * that the 4.utie» grapf^ ed by former ads of parliament have been greatly leflened by meaiit df perfons frequently ftopping up windows in their dwettSag houfet, in ordiftr to evade payment ; andl it 'hath often happened, that feveral affiriTmcnta have net been toide in due time ; and that perfpni remove to other pariflies with* out paying the dntyfor the houfes fo quitted, to the prejudice of the RevenHC. fint the liigiflature do mt recite, that hontea daily fell down, or that the numben of the peopk yearly cto- clincd. N - may -may now form • ju^gmertt fuMciintly pVcSfe, in Tcfpeft to the progrefs oiP piir ,]iQures« cbarged\nd ■tbahedblt with the houle aiid whido w taW. the chargcd,in.i 696, according to King, 5.jo48* I 39,048 508,516 IAO,000 608,516 - 112,535. Tlere tl^en is a folution of the difficult problem, in political oeconomy, which has engaged fo many able pens, Whether there exilt as many houfes, at prefent, as there certainly w?rc, in England and Wales, at the Revolution ; at leaft, the qucftion is decided, as to the number of houfes, cb.irged and chargeable with the window and houfetax: And of confequence the middling and higher ranks of men muft, with the number of their dwellings, liave neceifarily increafed. ^ * This high number, in 1750, was probably owing to the «A of parliament, 20 Geo II, which had juft paft, when new •ffiodfs of circumvention iiad not yet taken place* A great '( 79 ) A great ;difl|culty„ it muft be admitted, ftili remains, which cannat be altogether removedt though many obftrgdtions may be cleared away. The difficulty confifts, in afcertaining, with equal precifion, the. number of dwelling8,wht<;h have beea exempted, by law, froih every tax fince 1690, on account of the occupiers poverty. The litigated point muft at lafl be determined by aq aofwer to the queftion, Whether the lower orders are more numerous in the prefent day than in the for- mer. A modern fociety has been compared, with equal elegance and truth, to a pyramid, having the high* er ranks for its point, and the lower orders for its bafe. Gregory King left us an account of the people, minutely divided into their feveral clafTes, which, though formed for a different purpofe, contains fufficient accuracy for the prefent argument *. * Daveaant's work*. N2 |l A N K S, ( iSo ) %.A HiK. 9. Peers — — . Knight! -f- *- Bfirondti'' ,;*•« — •EmifMMt'Okrgy men - ^Eminent mtrchance -* Eiqutrds . - . - Military ofiioeri — Naval officers n - ftrCota '. in lefler of- 7 . ficcs - 3 'Peribns in higher? offices - 3 LeiTer clergymen * Lefller n^rchancs - Perfons in the law - Perfons of the libc- 7 ral arts - J Freeholders of the? better fort - I Shopkeepers and 7 tradefmen - i Artizans - - Freeholders of the? Icflcr fort - 5 Farmers - - Common foldiers - Common failors <^ Labourers and out- 7 fervants - y NiunberoftHMtlA rtaillti. I tMh. a^ • ^86 «- go — ^^00-15 — a,ooo - 6 - ^,000 - 8 *• 5,000 - 10 - 41000 - 4 - 5,000- 4 - 5,000- 6 - 1 NumMr (^ i 'P«il«m. 6,^80 7^800 t'2«8oo 11*000 16^000 ^,000 16,000 ao,ooo 3b,6ob 5,000 - 8,000 - 8,000 - 10,000 - 15,000* 6 — 40,000 5 6 7 5 40,000- 7 - 40,000 48iOoo 79sOoo 75,000 28o,oco 50,000 - 60,000 - 120,000 - 150,000 - 35,000 - 50,000 - 364,000 - 4f- 225,000 4 - 240,000 5s - 660,000 5 - 750,000 2 - 70,000 3 -^ 150,000 3» "" i>275»ooo ^"^J^TvlTg?^^^^^^^^ 400,000- 3i • i^mooo 5*550^520 ~ If ( lAi ) ^f tHi» divifion of eh* people (hould be deemed, only probablei it would prove, with fufficient con- vidion, how many dwellings the two laft cUfles, jre^ned to- &clter them, fince they contained no fewer than tw» mUUn^ hundred and five tboufand. perfins, Gregory King allotted for them, as we- have icen, 550,000 houfes. And it it apparent^ that if the two lower orders of men ht?e augmented^ with the progrefs, wKich has been traced in our agriculture and manufaflures, in our traffic and navigation, they muft neceflarily dwell in addi- tional houfes. Davenant has (hewn, that the poor-rates of England and Wales amounted, towards the end of Charles II.*s reign, to - - £, 665,302. By an account given in to parliament, in 1776, the poor-rates amounted to 1,556,804'. However this raft fum, which is probably under the truth, may have been mifappHed, or wafted, yet every one MPho received his ppoportiOa of it, as alms, was exempted from the tax on chargeable houfes, and nraift have c ^nfequently fwelled the number of cottages. Whatever the term cottage may have fig«ified formerly, it was defcribed, by the ftatute of the aoGeo. II. as a houfe, having nine windows, or under, whofe inhabiunt either receives alms, or does not p&y to church and, poor. But^ we are not inquiring about the wordy but ihitbing % whe- ther the dwellings of the lower orders, of whatever dettomination, have increafed, or diminiflied, ftnce N 3 the ( i«i ) the Revt>}ot}6ti i and the t)id of this inquiry ii to find» whether' the lowdr^^rdet^ of mc»i have de- creafed or augmented. ' '^^f-uuw**) The al'guMeHt for a decreinfed nomber of cot- tages is this : Gregory Kittg, from a view of the hearth-books of 1690, (#hic1i yet did* not contain the cottage, (ince they^Were not chargeable with the hearth-tait) dilciilated the dwellings of rhofe, who either received alms^ or did' not give any; tt - ^ i. '- ' . 550*000. The furveyors of houfes' returricd the number of cottages, in 1759*1 at - 282,429; and in 1781 * - '^ - 284,459. ^|i*or(ler, the antagonift of Brackenridge, was the ^rfti probably, who objcAed to the accuracy of the furveyors returns, with regard tp all houfcs. Having obtained the collegers rolls^ he had counted^ in i757» the number of houfes in nine contiguous pariCbes i whereby he. fpq^d, that, out of 588 houfes, only 177 pajd the tax ; that Lambourn pari{h, wherein there is a market>town, contains 445 hpufes, pf which 229 only pay the tax^ When it was objected to Forfter, that this furvey was too narrow for a general average, he added afterwards nine other parities, in diftant counties ; * This is the firft year, fays DoAor Price, that an order was given to return the cottages excufed for poverty. I have in my |)ofleffion fome returns which were made of cottages in 1757, and which, having efctped thedeftrudion of time, evince previous orders and previous performance. There was, in faQ, |La aecount of the cottages made up at the tax-office in 1756. a whereby ( «»3 ) wiiert bf ir ipp«ftrecl, that of 1,045 boufieiyOnly^ ^47 were charged with the duty v whence he in- ferred, that the cottages are to the tw^hle bcufu.2A more than twoxo one** Mr. Wales equally, ob- jeOed' to the truth of the furveyora retUrof) In^ iheinfoU extent. And Mr. Howlet endeavoured,, with na fcnall fuccefs, to calculate the average of their errors^ in order to evince what 4>ught proba- bly co have been the true amount of the genuine numbers. ^ In this cakulaiion, Dodtor Price haih doubtlefs (hewn petty faults; yet is there fufficienD reafon to conclude, with. DoAor Foclbcf ,and Mr. Howlet, that the houfes returned to the tax-office are: to the whole, as 17. are to 29, nearly. It will at laft be found, that the returns of taxable houfes are very near the truth*, but that the re- ports of exempted houfes cannot poffibly be true : for 380,000, or even goo,ooo cottages, would not contain the two lower orders who exifted in Eng- land and Wales at the Revolution ; and who, with the greatcft aid of machinery, could not perform the annual labour of the fame copntries at prefent. - Our agriculture has at all times employed the greateft number of hands, becaufe it forms the fup- port of our manufaftures, our traffic, and our na- vigation. Ic admits of little difpute, whether our . * Forfter'j letter, in December 1760, which the Royal So- ciety declined to publiih. [MSS. Birch, Brit* Maf. N0.4440.] The algebraical fophifms of Brackenridge were printed ia the foreign gazettes : the true phibfophy of Forfter, by ixfitrim mtM/ andy««s ) i* s>97i*94<* >nd confumed at home/^.9oi»759*« We know, with fufficient certamty» from the cof- tom-houfe booksi that after clothing the inhabi- tants, there were exported of the value of vMMlknsB iccording to an average of the years 169^-^ 1700— f, the value of - - jC* 2,561,6151 from average of 1 769— 70'— 7 1 - 4,3a 3,463. And this manufadure, which has been always rc^ garded j^ the greaceft, continues to flourifli, and to employt as it is faid, a million and a half of people. ^ Since the epoch of the Revolution, we may be faid to have gained the manufadfcures of lilkay of linen, of cotton, of paper, of iron, and the potte- ries, with glafsi befidea other ingenious > fal|ries» which all employ a very numerous and ufeful race. We may indeed determine, with regard to the augmentation of our manufactures, and to the in- ereafe of our ardzans, from the following detail : There were exported, according to an average of the years 1699—1700 — 1701, produfts, exclu- Jive ef the wtollens before mentioned^ of the value of - - - if. 3»863,8io. Ditto in 176 —70—71 - • 10,565,196. Thus have we demonftration, that while our woolr len manufadtories nearly doubled in their extent, during feventy years, our other manufactures had more than trebled in theirs. And therefbre it is e(|uaUy demonftrable, that the great bi;dy of i^ilft^i ^ The Council Report, how yi/ho were conftantty employed in all th^fe tnanai fa^ories, muft have increafed nearly in the fame proportion* during, the fame bufy period. The whole Tailors, who were found in Engl'ahidi by enumeration, in January 1700— i, amounted ■» ''.r* . •' By a calculation, which agreed nearly with the accuracy of this enumeration, there appeared to have been annually employed in the merchants fervice, be- tween the years 1 764 and 74 i^,59'i» 59,565. - 230^441 tofts. - 992*754 mage of E/igtilh 'thipping during King William's reign, a- mounted only to D* during the prefent reigrt We may thence certainly determine, with regard to the^number of uieful artificers, who mufl: have beea employed during the latter period more than in the former,, in building and repairing our (hips. It is husbandry, then, and manufafbures, com- merce, and navigation, which every where, in later ages, employ and maintain the great body of the people. Now, the labour demanded during the prefent reign, to carry forward the national bufi- jieOi, agricultural and commercial, could not by any poflibility have been performed by the infe- rior numbers of the induilrious claiTes, who doubt- lefs t^\&^d in, the reigp of King William. And * Tkere is ftafea ta beKe?e, however, that tlie above enu- tOfiMixon did not contain the Tailors of the port of London. from merce v (187) from the foregoing reafooings and fa£ls, we may certainly conclude, with one of the ablefl: writers . of any age on political ceconomy : ** The liberal reward of labour, as it is the effe^ of increafing wealthy fo it is the caufe of increafing population : To complain of it [high wages] is to lament over the necelTary efFed and caufe of the greatefl public profperity*. In calculating the numbers of people, we muft attentively confider the ftate of fociety in which they exifl: \ whether as filhers and hunters, as fhepherds and huibandmen, as manufadturers and traders i or as in a mixed condition, compofed partly of each. The American tribes, who re- prefent the fird, are found to be inconfiderable in numbers ; becaufe they do not eafily procure fub- fiftence from their vaft lakes and unbounded fo- refts, by fifhing and hunting. The Afiatic Tar- tars, who reprefent the fecond ftage of fociety, are. much more populous i fince they derive conti-/ nual plenty from their multitudinous flocks. But, ^ven thefe are by no means equal in population i to the Chinefe, who acquire their comforts from an unremitting induftry, which they employ ia.t agriculture, in manufadfcure, in the arts, in fiflieries, | though not in navigation. It was foreign com*^ merce which peopled the marflies of the' Adriatic * See the Inquiry into the Caufes of the Wealth of Na- tions, ch. 8 ; wherein Dr. Adam Smith treats 0/th Wagtsof Labour^ and incidentally 'of population, with a perfpicuity, an elegance, and a force, which have been feldon eq^ualled. •nil ( IM ) a^d the BiMe, during the middle ages ; hence arole 'Venice and the Hsinfe towns, with their en* vktf 6p\i\ttkc and navaf power, k was the con- juf^tdn of agriculture, mannfadtdres, and traffic, which ftlkd^ ibe Low Countries with populoas t&Wtrsi with unexampled wealth, and with marvel- loas^ energy; The hmc caufes that produced all thole etle6tSi which hiftory records, as to induftry, nches> atid ftrength, contimie to produce fimilar cfieds at prefent. When England was a country of (hepherds and warriors, we have beheld her inconfiderable in ituihbers. When manufadturers found their way into the country, when hufbandmen gradually acquired greater (kill, and when the fpirit of com- merce at length actuated all; people, we have ieen, grow out of the earth, amidft convulfions, famine, and warfare. He who compares the po- pulation of England and Wales at the Conqueft, at the diemife of Edward III. at the year 1588, with our population in i689, muft trace a vaft progrefs in the intervenient centuries. But Eng- hnd can fcarcely be regarded as a manufaduring and commercial country at the Revolution, at leaft when contrafte^ with her prefent profperity. The theOk ilt, then, who inlifts, that our numbers have thinned, as our employments have increafed, and pur population declined, as our agriculture and manufaiflures, our commerce and navigation, ad- vanced, argues againft fadts^ experience* and even ;igainft daily obfervation* I s Yet, { >89 ) Yet, Do£):or Pf ice and his followers contend, that pur induftrious claiTes have dwindled the moft finoe i749,becaufe it is from this epoch that the profpe- rity of the people. has been the greatei^ however they msiy have, at any time, been governed. And the following argument is faid to amount to demonftra- tion, becaufe il contains as ftrong aproofofptQgri^i depopulation as aSlual furveys can give * : The number of houfes returned to the tax-office, as charged and ciargeaklCf wsis, — in 1750 — 729,048 in 1756 — 715,702 in 1759. — 704.053 in 1 761 -^ 704.543 in 1777 — 7QJ,473 For a moment Doftor Price would not liften to the fug- geftion, that the houfes may have exijledf though they were not included in the re- turns of the intermediate years. But, lo! additional .. returns have been made up at the taX'OfHce, amounting, in 178 1 tj yiit^^u • ■ ■ ■ i » * Dr. Price** Eflky on Popol. p. 38. As . ( >9o ) As a fupplemental proof*, which may giveiatif. fadion to weU-metmng tntnds, there is annexed 4 comparative view of the number of boufes in each eounty, as they appeared to Davenant^ in the hearth- hooks of 1690 *, of the charged houfes in 1 708, with the duties aSiually paid by them \ of the chargeable houfes in 1 750 ; with the houfes of the fame defcription, in 1781. The chargeable houfes, in 1781} unJer 10 windows, are uHJtr 21 windows, — sievt 20 windows, — 497 » 80 1 i7«»i77 52.373 7"»35i 284,459 Cottages - - - • Total houfes and cottages, in 1781, 1,005,810 The houfes in 1750 — 729,048 The cottages in 1756 — 274,755 1,003,803 Increafe fince 1750 — — 2,007 The account of cottages, in 1756, was completed, as appears from the tax-office books, on the 20th of November 1756- And thas, by adopting the mode and the materials of DoAor Price's argument, it is ihewn, that he has been extremely niftakea, •I to the depopulation of England, fince 1750. Norihumbeila A CoM' ( '91 ) A CoMPARATivB ViEw of thc Nombcr of Housbs* la each County of England and Wales, as they appeared in the Hearth-books bf Lady-Day i$9Q> and »^ they were made.i^p at the Taxroffice in 1708-- 175c— and ia it8i. CovNTiia*. BedfordAire - Berk* - - - Bucki . . Cambridge Chefter - - Cornwall . . - Cumberland - Derby - . - Devon - • Dorfet • • Durham - - York - - - Tiffex - - . Gloucefter Hereford - - Hertford - • Huntingdon - Kent ... Lancalhire Leicefter - - Lincoln - - London, Sec, • Norfolk ■ - Northampton - Norihumbetland Nottingham Oxtord - • . Ruthnd - - - Salop . - . . Somerset - - - Southampton, Sec, Stafford - . - Suffolk - . - Surrey, &c. - j SuHex . . . . Warwick - - - Wellmorland - - Wilts - . . - Worcefter - - Anglefea - - - Brecon . . . Carri'gtn - - - Carmarthen - . Carnarvon - . Denbigh - - - Flint - - - _ Glamorgan - - IVIerioneih - - Monmouth - - Montgomery Pembroke Hadnor No of Houfet^ 1690. I1.170 i6,9c6 i8,68g 18,629 as. 59a ac,6i3 15,279 34,94+ 56,20a 17,859 53-345 111,0^1 40,545 34»476 16,744 17,483 46,674 46.961 20,448 - 45-.0'9 111,215 56.579 - _ 26,904 C included in I Durham 17,818 19,627 3,661 27,471 45,900 28.557 26,278 47^537 40,610 *3.4S» 22,400 6,691 27,418 24,440 I No of Houfes charged, 1708. r-— " • S.479 • 7.558 • 8,604 • 7,2 lO • 11.656 - 9.05* - 2.5^9 - 8,260 . 16,686 ■ ^'^U • 6,298 - 44i779 - 16,250 - i3.«85 - 6,913 - 7.447 " 399* - 21,871 - 22,588 - 8.584 - »7.S7i - 47.031 - 12,097 - 9,218 nj~ 6,787 7.755 8,502 1,498 11.452 19,043 »4.33« io,8ie 15.301 I4«07i 9,429 9,461 1,904 11.373 9,178 1,040 3.370 2,04a 3.985 1.583 4.753 a,653 5,020 1,900 3.289 4,047 2,764 2,092 Money paid, by the charged Houfet, 1708. - (A . «. O - e* - _ M " ft. ' - 2; - — - O - ^m -I rt - p. - m^ - ^ - fc, - — 77,921 — 2,211 2,216 1.635 ' a, 68a ' 1.649 513 1,669 • 3.4*0 980 1.114 • 7.788 5,046 ' 3.723 ■ 1.546 ■ »>I3» • 5.883 • 4.332 ■ 1,889 • 3.392 • 16,210 ■ 3.495 a,3i6 979 ■ 1,528 2.278 310 - 2,358 - 4.813 • 3.585 - 2,372 • 4.97° - 3*972 - 2,898 - »»440 349 - 2.959 - a,5i9 147 478 237 475 -• 211 709 - 400 707 - 2|6 7'?i 583 347 327 14 4 8 16 o o 18 4 8 6 4 14 4 14 10 a o a la 4 2 H 14 4 18 6 12 8 8 18 18 8 14 18 iS 10 12 10 8 8 8 12 2 18 18 10 12 12 14 6 12 8 No of Houfes, charged and chargeable, 1750. — 6,9oa — — 9,76a — — 10,687 — — 9.334 ^ — 16,000 — — 14,520 — — . 11,914 - -^ 13,91a — — 30,049 - — 11,711 - — 10.475 - — 70816 •- — 19,057 - — 16,251 — — 8,771 - — 9,251 — — 4.363 — — 30.029 — • — 33.273 — — 12,957 — — 24,999 — — 71,977 — — 20,697 — — 12,464 — — 10.453 — — • 11,001 — » — 10,362 — — 1,873 — — 13,33a — — 27,82s — — 18,045 — . — 15.917 — — 18,834 — — 20,037 — — 11,170 — — 12.759 — — 4,937 — — 14,303 — — 9.967 — — 1.334 — — 3.234 — — 2,542 — — 5.020 — — 2,366 — — 6,09 1 — — 3,520 — — 6,290 — — 2,664 — — 4,980 — i — • 4,R9o — — 2,803 — . — 2,425 — N« of Houfes, charged and chargeable, I78I. 5.360 8.277 8,670 9,o8S 17,201 15.274 13,419 14,046 28,61a 11,13a 12,418 76,224. 18,389 14,950 8,09a 8,628 3.847 30,975 30,956 12.545 »4.S9i 74.704 20,056 10,350 12.43 « 10,872 8,698 1,445 12,895 26,407 15,828 16,483 19,589 19,381 10,574 13,276 6,144 12,856 8.791 2 264 3.407 2,444 5,1^6 2,675 5,678 2,090 ■ 5.146 ■ 2,97a ■ 4'454 • 5.421 ' 3>2»4 2,076 1,319,215 508,516 ;C'i2i.S73 4 719.048 711.351 ( I9« ) From tills inftrudtive document it appears, that twenty counties, induding London, Weftminfter* •nd Middlciex, havea^ualiy lnereafed« fincei750. But it is an abufc of mords to ^jj^cak of houftis tsvitig affualfy inereefed : the proper language isjf* that in twenty counties the furvt^s hareiseeii' more diligent, and made more accurate returnii'^ than in other diftri^s. Let us take the examp]c>«^^ of Surrey and LancalKire, which are ftated, as hav-;' ing decreafed in houfes,*and coi^equentl'y in peo- pie, fince 1 750 *. It is appar,thirty years f* And of LancaQiire, confider- ing the vaft augnnentations of its domeflic manu- fa^ures and foreign trade, it is not too much to aOert, that it muft have added to its houfes and people one-fourth, firtce 17^0 J. * i;^;- ■ •■■6ut, • The country comniflioBcrs oftco ^khargt oa appeal, bonfes, as not properly chargeable. This may occafion an apparent decrease. f In the villagtt ftround ItonJcfi, there were baptifed, da* . ring a period of twr^enty years, beginning with the Revo* lation - - .^R,.j - 20,78z Dariag 20 years, begi^ining with 1758—60, or 61 39*383 X la fixteen pariflies tft Lancafiiire, exdufiveof Manchefter and Liverpool, there were baptifed in twenty years, about the Revoltttion * • 18*389, Ditto, from 1758 - - • 47.919 Thefe p/oofs of a rapid increafe of natural population are from Mr* Howlet*s Examination. It is an acknowledged faA, that Liverpool has doubled its inhabitants every five-and- twenty yean* fince the year lyoo* ( '93 ) Butt it is faid to be idle and impertinent to argue from the ftate of population in Yorkfliire, or in Lancaihire, fince Dod^or Price is ready to admit, that ibefe have added many to their numbers *. Yet, owing to what moral caufe is it, that York and Lancalhire, Chefter and Derby, have acquired fo many people P I« it owing to their manufa£tories» and traffic, and navigation, which augmented em- ployments ? Now, the lame caiifes have produced the fame effe^ls, in the other counties of this for« Of hovfes it contained, in 175) — 31700 in 1773 — 5,929 in 1783 — 6,819 Yet werv its honfei returned to the tax-office, .J in 1777 «t 3,974. and in 1784 at 4*489 Manchefter with Salfnd have «qoalIy increafed. Of houfes there were in both, in 1773 — 4,268 in 1783 — 6,178 ; Of which there were returned to the tax-office, in 1777 — 2,519 in 1784 — 3,665 And it might be eafily (hewn, that the fmaller towns and villages of Lancafliire have grown nearly in the fame prc« portion ; and this moft profperous county has, during the lalt ninety years, increafed in the numbers of people with the boafted rapidity of the American ftates. Bofton (in New- England) was fettled in 1633 ; yet, it did not contain twenty thoufand inhabitants in I775< Philadelphia was planted in 1683 ; yet, in its happieft days, it did not comprehend forty thoufand fouls. The other towns of the American ftates, be- ing much inferior to thefe, can ftill lefs be compared to the manufaAuring villages of Eagland, or to Paiiley, in Scotland* • Uncertainty of Population, p. 14—19. '.'■%;' jtunat? ( 194 ) tunate iiland, id proportion as thefc caufes have prevailed in each. ^u^A It is pretended, however, that the aftoni(hinf» augmentation of our cities did not arife from births amidft profperity and happine(3, lince many peo- * pie were brought from other diftri^s by the allure- ments of gain. The additional; labourers could not afiuredly have come, in conliderable numbers, from thofe counties, which have fuftained no di- minution of people themfelves : and in no Euro- pean country is there lefs migration from one pa- ri(h to another, than in England. The principle of the poor laws checks population, by preventing the laborious poor from looking for better employ- ment beyond the limits of their native parilhcs. ^ Every one knows with what tyrannic rigour the law of fettlements is enforced, by fending to their proper pariftes thc^ adventurous perfons, who had found noemploy ment at home. It is not therefore the migration of the adult from the country to the town, that continually fwells the amount of the - bufy multitudes, which are feen to fwarm where the fpirit of diligence animates the people : and it is the employment and habits of indudry, which are given to children in manufafturing towns, that add to the aggregate of dwellers in them, more than ^ the arrival of ftrangers. Having, in the foregoing manner, traced a gra- dual progrefs from The Conqueji to The Revolutm -, having thus eilablifhed, by the belt proofs which fuch an inquiry, without enumerations, admits, . -r that ( »95 ) that the foi'tner cutirent of t>opulation not only con- tinued to run, but acquired a rapidity and a ful- nefs as it flowed } we (hall not find it difHcuIr, fince th6 chief objeftions are removed, to afcertain th^ probable amount of the prefent inhabitants. Hd who ihfifts, that there were in £ngland and Wales 1,300,000 inhabited hbufes in 1688, mult: equally allow, fince it has been proved, that of thcfe there were 7 1 1,000, which were inhabited by perfons, who either received alms, or gave none $ and it has been equally fhewn, that the necefTary labour of the prefent day could not, by any pofii- ble exertions, be performed by the lower orders, who certainly exifled in 1688. Hence, it is rea- fonable to conclude, that, fince the 590,000 charge- able houfes, in 1690, were accompanied with 710,000 diuellings of the poor, the 721,000 charge- able houfes of 1 78 1, muft confequently be accom- panied with 865,000 dwellings of the poor* For, fuch is the inference of juft proportion. The dif- tindl dwellings in England and Wales, when both claflbs are added together, muft be 1,586,000; which, if multiplied by 5t, for the number of per- fons in each, would difcover the whole numbers to be 8,447,200 : But, there ought flill to be an ade- quate allowance for empty houfes, and for other circumffances of diminution \ which, after every deduction, Would fhew the prefent population of England and Wales to be rather more than eighc million. And fuch an augmentation, as this would evince, fince the Revolution, is altogether O 2 confident «c tax may be traced its gradual rife, as in the fabjoined detail, which evinces the piogrcfs of popula- tion. . ( 197 ) land has fufTered, during this period, the miferies of civil war, whiph ended in the forfeiture and ex- puliion of thoufands. In this period alio muhi- tudes conftantly emigrated, either to exercife their induftry, or to draw the fword in foreign climes. Yet, are there abundant reafons to believe, that this proliHc ifland has much more than doubled its in- habitants in the laft hundred years. Sir William Petty, who poiTcflfed very minute details with regard to the condition of Ireland, from the Reftoration to the Revolution, ftates the number of hpufes, in 1672*, at - - 200,020 The number returned by the tax-gather- --rrr crs, in 1781 t>was - i? , r ^ 477f6oa At the fird epoch, the Irifli nation had fcarcely re- covered from a long and dellrudlive civil war* It is fufficiently known, that in the accounts of 1781, there ^re nnany houfes omitted, which often hap- pens, when Intereft may be promoted by qonceal- It yielded, according to a five yean average, ending ■r- ,^ , -, 1687 •-— £. 3«,4i6 *7it 42>4S6 n 176^ 55.189 ^777 •■ — " 59*869 1781 •— 60,648 tion. with -r^ ,^ , — , Three years average, with D* — ^ with Seven years — . d" •— Five years -— d» — In 178 I 63,820 See Bibl. Harl. Brit. Muf. N« i|.7o6— M'' 4- Yo(ing'9 Tour ii^ Ireland, the Appendix— ^nd Mr. Howlet's Eflay on the Popq- lation of Ireland, jaft publiihed, p. 19. • Pol. Anatomy, p. 7-ii-i7-ii6. t Mr. Hovylet's Eflay on the Population of Ireland, p. 13. O 3 ment. ( 19,8 ) ment. Sir William Petty dates the whole popu- lation of Ireland, in 1672, at - 1,100,000 fouls. Were we to multiply 478,000 houfes of the prefent day, at 54- in each, this would carry the number up to - - 2,550,000 And the mod intelligent perfons in that kingdom fuppofe Ireland to contain about two millions and a half of fouls *. Were we to admit this as mere- ly an approximation to truth, this would evince a dill more confiderable increafe of people, than, as we have fo many reafons for believing, took place during the lad hundred years in England, which enjoyed, more productive advantages. This ex- ample ought to be more convincing than many ar- guments. The fame principles, which in every age influ- enced the population of England, produced limilar effects on the populoufnefs of Scotland. When England was poor and depopulated, we may eafily conjecture, that Scotland could not have been very opulent or populous. And, as England gradually acquired inhabitants, we may prefume Scotland followed her track, though at a great diflance be- hind. An intelligent obferver might form a fatif. fadtory judgment of the previous condition of the two kingdoms, from the accurate datements whereon their union was formed. .^nv ■••3« * Mr. A. Young** Toorin Ireland, the Appendix. ■-*« The .Li.U ( 199 ) Tiie public revcnuf of England ffM C 5»69i«8og of Scotland •f^, f^ r , 1 60,000 •"^ ?r Of the trade of both we may determine from the cuftom-houfe duties, which in England were • - - ,f. 1,341,559 in Scotland - - • -' 34,000 The grofs income of ehe pofts was, in England • • . £. 101,101 in Scotland * • - 1*194 Of the circulation of both we may form - an opinion from the re-coinage of both. There were re-coined in Eng- land, during King William's reign £. 8,400,00a In Scotland, foon after the Union - 4 1 1 , 1 1 & We may decide with regard to the con- , fump'tion of both from the excife* ^ •t^iV .'-¥1«v.%b&' -. 'TiBw ■:}:.■■ ' 'tr'^'.a - - o 4 ^ _■'''' -/■ prcccding ( ^06 ) preceding centuries. ** Numbers of people, the ** greateft riches of other nations," faid Mr. Law *, in 1 705, ^' are a burden to us } the land is not *' improved ; the produd is not manufaftured ; *' the fi(hing, and other advantages of foreign trade •' are neglected." Such was the deplorable ftate of Scotland at the epoch of its hap^^y union with England. The Scots were for years too much engaged in religious and political controverfy, to derive from chat fortunate event, ail the advantages which, at length, have undoubtedly flowed from it. Their misfortunes, arifing chiefly from thefe evils, have, however, conferred on them the mofl: invigorating benefits. The laws that a wife policy enaded, created greater perfonal independence, and efla- bliflied better fafcguards for property, which have produced the ufual effedts of a more animating in- duftry. Of the intermediate improvements of their tillage we may form fome judgment from the rife of rents, and the advance of the purchafe money for land, which muft have neceflarily proceeded from a better hulbandry, or a greater opulence. The ma- nufactures, which the Scotch doubtlefs poflefled, in 1707, though to no confiderable excent, have not only been greatly enlarged f, but to the old, new . u . ones U'i -i-i^... * Confiderations on Money and Trade. f ^he quantity of linen made for fale in Scotland, during 1728, was only 2,000*000 yards ; but, in 1775, 12,000,000. The linen it the chier maaufgiture of Scotland ; and, were ( 201 ) Ones have mean while been added. The value of the whole exports by fea, amounted, at the epoch of the Union, if we may believe Mr. Law, to about jf , 300,000 : The whole of thefe exports were car- ried upjbefore the colony war began, to £, i ,800,000, if we may credit the cuftom-houfe books. The tonnage of (hipping, which annually entered the ports of Scotland, at the firil: sra, was only io,ooo*; but, at the laft, 93,000 tons. The foregoing ftatements, general as they are, will evince to every intelligent mind, how much the we to regard this at a proper reprefentative of the whole, wt might from this infer a very coniiderable aagmentation ii) every other manufadure. * In the Harl. MSS. No. 6269, Brit. Muf. there is a lift of the fliips belonging to Scotland, (as they were entered in the Regifter General kept at London) and Tradingin the ports of that kingdom, from Chriftmas 1707, to Chriftmas 17 12, dif- tinguiihing thofe belonging to Scotland, prior to the Union, as follows : 1 > rt rvrf irs'>r?1t>Hf/l fjiVQt i no^eflcli. Tons: Total - - - - 1,123 — 50,232 * *^ Prior to the Union - - 21c — 14.48 c , 1 -, .. Increafe - There belonged to Scotland, in 1784, of vefiels, which entered only once > - 9P8 — 3S»747 1,649 — 92,349; Of which were employed Veflels. Tons. in foreign trade - 643 — 50,386 Coaft trade - - 709 — 31,542 FifhingihalIops,&c. 297 — 10,421 :ii\.ovi ^^'■•yf cy 1,649 -— 9»»349' Thefe comparative ftatements evince undoubtedly a very confiderable ihcreafe of fliipping in the intermediate period. ' commerce ( 20^ ) commerce and navigation of Scotland have in-> creafedt fince the hearts and hands of the t^yo kingdoms were fortunately joined together. ;, Of the traffic of Scotland, it ought to be howcvct' remarked, that it is more eatilv driven from its courfe than the £ngliih« either by internal misfor- tunes, or by foreign warfare ; becaufe it is Icfs firmly eilablifhed ; it is fupported by fmaller ca- pitals ; and its range is lefs extenfive. The bank- ruptcies of 1772 dedufted nearly £. 300,000 from the annual exports of Scotland. The commercial events of our two laft wars would alone juftify this remark.. Let us compare, then, the exports of Scotland, when they were the lowcft, during the war of 1755, with the loweft exports of the cO' lony-war, and the highefl exports of the Hrft, with the higheft of the fecond ; becaufe we (hall there- by fee the depreffions and elevations of both : »».» in 17 SB in 1756 in 1757 The Value of Exports, £-535^577 — in 1782 -^f. 653,709 628,049 — in 1778 - 702,820 828,577 — in 1781 - 763,809 in 1760 - 1,086,205 — in 1776 - i>025,973 ini76i- 1,165,722 — in 1777 - 837,643 101762 - 998,165 — in 1780 - 1,002,039 *>(. <;-^' '-''•)-i n-hi-i t "When we recollcft, that Great Britain was cn- gaged, during the laft war with her colonies, which occupied fo much of the foreign trade of Scot- hf^dy with Francci with Spgin, ^pd with Hplland, ■.'■;•' 9k we (203) we ought not to be rurprifed, that Co much Ihould be loft, 9S that fo mujch ihould remain, after feven years hoftilities. (t was deranged, but it was not ruined, as had been predifted, in 1774. And, when the various prfffijrcs of this moft dlftrefsful war were removed, though with a tardy hand, it began to rife, yet not with the elafticity of 1763, becaufe the colony commerce, which fur- nifhed fo nfany of the exports of Scotland, had been turned into other channels. But, the follow- ing detail will enable us to form a more accurate judgmenc, with regard to this interefting fubjed : •«3tt' The Value of Exports from Scotland, in 1762 -£.998,165 — in 1782 -,£.653,709' in 1763 - 1.091,436 -r in 1783 - 829,824 in 1764 - 1,243,927 — in 1784 - 929,900.. It ought however to be remembered, that in the firft period, complete peace was eftablilhed in 1763 i but, in the laft, it was not fully reftored till the middle of 1784. Yet, the (hipping of Scotland will be found, as we have already per- ceived them to be in England, our moft infallible guides ; becaufe, the entries of fhips are more sic- curately taken than the value of Cargoes, api^ trade can fcarcely be faid to decline while our veflels increafe. Let us attend, then, to the following detail of ftiips, which entered in the ports of Scot- land, during th.e fqllomm years, both before and after war: •' 'W"^' -" -^'^ f^-^^: '''■ '^^'' 35(W':C. l.^W j'^iJClt^rJ r\';4ii tons. in 1763 — 33,352 — in 1764 — 41,076 Whence we may undoubtedly conclude, that Scotland pofTcfTes a mach greater navigation at prefent, than at the peace of 1763, or at any prior epoch. If: ^^V.'^^ Ipftead ( 205 ) Inftead of promoting the labour of other countries^ thefe capitals furniihed employment to many handst within the kingdom. And Scotland has by this.means extended her valuable manufacture of gauzes i (he has augmented the number of her print-fields ; (he has acquired every branch of the cotton bufinefs ; and (he has greatly increafed her linens *. Thus it is, that an active people may be even enriched, by throwing obftruftions in the way of their foreign commerce. And, if pro- ductive labour conftitutes genuine wealth, the Scots may be regarded at prefent as a nation more in- duftrious and opulent than they were before the colony-war began. -fmii-itiy; Thefe obfervations apply equally to England. Every occurrence, which at any time turned addi- tional capitals into domeftic employments, n^ef- farily contributed to improve the agriculture, to augment the manufactures, and to increafe the wealth of the country, by yielding a greater quantity of productive labour. A review of the foregoing documents would illuftrate this fubjeCt. As a fupplemental proof, I have annexed a cbrono' • Of Linens there were made for fale ; in 1772 - 13,089,006 yards. - in 1782 - 15,348,744 yards. 1773 - 10,748,110 — 1783 - i7»074»777 , 1774 - 11,423,115 ' '^' — 1784 - i9»t38»S93 '^ The greater number of fhipping, which are at prefent em* ployed, than before the war, in the coaft- trade of Scotland, feeois alfo to evince an augmentation of domeftic commerce. «. \: logical , , ..:'.r H. '>T 0/ij ci^ncf^.: yi \rii mo logical account of commtrcii in this ifland, from the Reftoration to the year 1785, with dcfjgn to exhibit a more conoedcd view of the ^veaknefs of its com- mencement, the ftrtogglcs of iej progreffion, and the grcatneft of its maturity, than has yet been ):*(!;S49.» ■- ■ -■■■■■' l^nmifm^^ I idi^xH'^ ■ tiU!*i,: -..^ • ''^ i.' iVMiii nw tur-ir - -~-~' >?>* . .11! . ■■•.■». • ■ • « ••if \ tv - » .*i,M «;..S - * O ■ 1 " *■' f. » A CHRO- [To front p. tof» I A CHRCom thcRcftoration to the Year 1785. Efocht, nu ReftoratJoflt [he Revolution, fu« pf Ryfwick, [iitYfars of Wii I liim 111. TotaL il- % 1,386,83a Nrtt Cufimt paid intt tht Excbefuer, — £' 39o»ooo ; — - SS**^' 1 — — 694»89» (. lit of Anne, trii of George I j2,ii6,4Si — Jj3»o»4ii7S hf George aceful Years, lirof -~ bctful Years, lirof •-« 1,904,151 4,768 4,642,50a {^ 4*642.50* — I MSM'S 1*474,861 J »»»S7»33*J By Anne, 1,588,16* Bj George I. r,6ai,73i 1,492,009 1,399,865 JM!m9 ^m'm/i By Charlet 11. . . £. 7,544*105 By Jaroei II. - - »,7t7»6|y £. io,i6i,74« By William III. - - jf. 10,51 1,965 ' £' aiC9i»626 • £• 8,7»S»9*« 1' P, 4,046.46s — '.763.314 »yC"'seii.Jfi,°;f;^f ."'5J^*jJ 6,5x1,964 i,56S.94* JJof George III. ~j S»98i.68z f 7»*39.'33 f S**; 5 3.098 !• 4,682,691 F 6,505,671 • 3»9i9»»3o !• 2,73 '»904 k 1,992,848 - 3.504.8a3 - 1,867,199 r 2.564>»7» - 4,810,156 r 3»»".453 ' K 3,852.783 - 3.058,544 r 2,475,003 ^ 3.24i,7J6 - 1,508,385 . ,379,653 - I - *»' 54,634 - 1,787,809 h «.823.»43 h '.737,0*7 ».969.934 1,366,1 52 1,858,417 2,249,604 «. 1 6947 J 2,271,231 2,448,280 2,355,850 2,445,016 2,630,086 2.546.144 2,642,129 2.525,556 2,439.017 2>S.67,770 2,481,031 2,480,403 2,229,106 2.162,681 2.502.274 2.723,920 2.791,428 2.861,563 2,848,320 3.326,639 304*360 £: "1966.576 By George III. f j!?"'^'3O.457,«0s before the 3iftJ *"""■» " 7,i2« ofDec. 1780. 1 -"^" *. *• 30,464 ,931 From 31 Dec. r in Gold, ^. 2,614,07; 1780, ^ in Silver,. -3' to 1 Jan. 1785. (^ \ £• »,6a4, 34| Total to I January, X785;C73.o89,27i Uttcntf* S07. A CHRONOLOGICAL ACCOUNT of COM^tERCE in this •'^'Hx' ■ i w i. - t im - M ^MWWBW Mfocbs, I Reftoradon» T 1663 J 1 1669 J ilUwIution, 1688 — iccft'Kyfwick, 1697 ^^ of Anne, JJJJ? Z • i :t} r 17x6-1 11} tof George I I of George Years, Ships cUarei outtvards, < — ; -*^ ' " ■' ^ Tons Engiifli. D" foreign. Total. 9S,»66 — 47,634 — 14^)900 »9o»533 — 95»a*7 -" 185,800 — — 144*264 — ioo,5»4 — 044,788 — — 173,693 — 43,63s — 3»7»3** — 143,693 — 4S»*aS — »89,3i8 — — 326,620 — 29,115 — 355,735 — — 421,431 — »6,573 — 448.004 — - VeJitt rf CargMs txpwtii. EngUft. Scotch. .^.*,o43,©4S — — . 4,086,087 — — — • 3»S»Si9«7 — — 6»04S»43» — — S»9»3»357 — — 6,868,840 — — — 7.69«»573 — — ■ kof — 1 Years, 739^ 40 > < 40 I. 41 ^'7491 M ^ ?/ |of George III. 1760 •— ei — 62 ^ 63- 64- 65- 66 — 67- 68 — 69- 1770 — 71 — 72 — 73 — 74 — 75 - 76- . 77 - 78- 79 - 1780- 81 . ?2- 83- 84- 432,832 476,941 384,191 609,798 451.454 471,241 - 508,220 « 480,444 . 561,724 . S83>934 ■ 651,402 - 684,281 ■ 645.S35 - 66S,7S6 - 700,855 . 703.49 s ■ 773.390 ■ 8i8,ic8 . 77M83 798,240 783,226 ' 778,878 ■ 736,234 657,238 • 590.9" • 619,462 • 547,953- ■ 552,851 ■ 795,669 Total. — 3>*5« — 4SM3 — 7.891.739 — — 16,627 •— 503,568 — — 87,260 — 47145* — — . 5T1386 — 661,184 — « i2i599iii» — — — — is.599.ixs 9»993>»3» — — 8,870,499 — «— 9»993.»3» 8,870499 — 73*456 — 5»4.7»o — 11,708,515 — 663,401 — . 11,371,916 — 102,737 - 117,835 - 120,126 - 87,293 - 74,800 - 67,855 - 6»,753 - 63,206 - 7*.734 - 63,020 • 57476 - 63.53a • 72,603 . ■ 54.830 . • 65,273 . ■ 64,860 ■ . 72,183 . ■ 83,468 • 98,113 • i39»»*4 • n4»5i5 - 163,410 - 208,51 1 ■ 157,969 . 113,064 573.978 626,055 600,570 649,017 658,734 7 '9.* 57 746,034 709,041 741,520 772,875 760,971 836,922 890,711 ■ 826,303 • 863,513 • ^48,086 • 851,066 . 819,702 • 7S5>35' • 730,035 ■ 753,977 - 711,363 - 761,362 • 953,638 ■ 9 59.4' 9 14.694.970 - 14.873.19> ■ »3.545.i7i • 14,487,507 . 16,512,404 ■ 14,550,507 . 14,024,964 • 13,844.5" • i5»"7,983 " 13438,236 . 14,266,654 . 17,161,147 . 16,159^413 . 14,763,253 15,916,344 i5,2C2,366 13,729,726 12,653,363 11,551,070 12,693,430 11,622,333 10,569,187 ",355,750 13,851,671 »4.i7>»375 1,086,105 • 1,165,711 . 998,165 ■ 1,091,436 ■ 1,243,927 . 1,180,867 ■ 1,163,704 ■ 1,245,490 • 1,502,150 1,563,053 i.7=9»9i5 1,857,334 1,560,756 ' 1,612,175 ■ 1,372.143 ■ 1,123,998 ■ i»o2S,973 ■ 837,643 702,820 • 837,273 ■ 1,002,039 • 763,109 • 653,709 829,824 • 929.900 »S»78i,i75 5,746,270 16,038,913 —— 6,822,051 »4.543.336 5,263,853 15.578,943 4495.14^ 17.756.331 — 6,148,096 15.731.374 3,660,764 15,188,668 2,549,185 15,090,001 1,770.555 16,620,133 3,239,32: 15,001,289 i,529,67( 15,996,569 2,049,7 1( 19,018,481 '4,339,15 17,720,169 2,860,96 16,375428 3,356,41 17,288,487 2,888,67 16,326,364 2,275,00 14,755,699 2,962,42^ 13,491,006 — . i472,99< 12,253,890 1,379.65 13.530,703 2,092,13 12,624,372 1,688,49 11,332,296 1 3.009,459 2,823,14 14,681,495 1,737,02 15,101,275 — — • 52,20 ^ERCE in this Iiland, from the Rcftoration to the Year 1785. ■■ tpmrtti. Total. 4^86,087 3»5»5»907 7»69*»573 Balanet of Trade, EngUa. ,1 Unfa- I '{vourable. J —— Doubtful. — £-43»3»o — •— 1,386,83a •— — »,ii6,45« — "— 3»0'4»'7S — 1,904,151 1 Scotfdu TotaL 1,386,83* — —2,116451 — —. 3,014,17s — — >,904.»S« VrtiCuJhm fmd imf tk* Exthtfutr* — ^.390,000 — 694l«9* j. i*474.«6ij aUnrfc^md* By Charles 11. • By Jamet 1I« - By William UI. . 94**9> '*474.«6i i,*57.33*J ByAnne* 1,588,16a By George I. • I' 7»5«4f J05 ».717»6iT /. io,»6i,74s ' £' io,sii,94S - £. a,69i,6tS - X* 8,7»$»9»« 7»89»»739 3»S'4»768 — — - — 3.S«4>76* — ',6»i,73« 9>993t»3» 4,64a,sox— -— — 4«64».SO* • '•49*»oo9 8,870499 — i2,599,na M55»3«3 — 6,521,964 ^- — «>4SS>3«$ — 6,521,964 1,399,865 i,S65»94» »»>37»»9«^ 4»o46»465 — -— — — 4*046,465 i,763»3«4 ■yC«>'«*"i Silver, - - 304.360 »S»78>>»75 16,038,913 »4.S43»336 »S»578,943 »7»756»33» 15.731.374 i5,iS8,668 15,090,001 16,620,133 15,001,289 15,996,569 19,018,481 17,720,169 '6,3754*8 17,288487 16,326,364 14.755.699 13491,006 12,253,890 13.530.703 12,624,372 "»332.*96 '3.009,459 14,681,495 »5»JO'>*75 5,746,270 - 6,822,051 - 5,263,858 - 4495,146 - 6,148,096 - 3,660,764 - 2,549,189 - 1.770,555 - 3,239,322 . 1,529,676 . 2,049,716 . ■4.3 39.1 5 « ■ 2,860,961 • 3.35641* ■ 2,888,678 . 2,275,003 . 2,962424 ' '.472.996 ■ '»379.653 ■ 2,092,133 1,688494 23541a • 417,082 ■ 289,240 • 187,545 . 357.575 • 258,466 \ 182,715 . 222,293 ' • 265,501 • 337.533 ■ S'4.556 • 471.005 • 35049» - 496.376 • 169,866 . 279,292 - 35.389 - 62,501 - 99.3 '5 5,981,68a 7.*39.'33 5.553.098 4,682,691 6,505,671 3,919,230 2,731,904 1,992,848 • 3.5041823 • 1,867,199 " 2,564,272 . 4,810,156 ■ 3.a".453 - 3,852,78s - 3.058,544 - 2,275,003 ■ 3.»4'.7i6 • '.508,385 ■ '.379.653 • a»i 54*634 - ',787»8o9 *,823,i43 — '»737.027 — 52,209 — — — 2,823,143 — — i»737.oa7 ■^ — 52,209 1.969.934 1,866,1 5a 1,858417 2,249,604 2,169473 , 2,271,231 2448,280 2,355.850 2,445,016 2,639,086 2,546,144 2,642,129 2.5*5.596 a.439»o»7 2.567.770 2481,031 2,480,403 2,229,106 2,162,681 2,502,274 2,723,920 2,791428 2,861,563 2,848,320 3,326,639 £. 1 1, 966,576 before the 3ift< '»'*" of. Dec. 1780. (_ ^.30,464,93. From 31 Dec. r in Gold, ^. 2,624,079 From 31 Dec.r 1780. \ to I Jan. 1785.^ in Stiver, a64 £. 2,624,34s Total to I January, »785/C-33.o89,274 ■ • .n ( r , ' t i . . f n ( 207 ) Of the annexed table, the eye inftantly perc* vc$ the difpofition of the parts and the arrangem jc of the whole. In the firfl: column may be feen the vari- ous epochs, beginning with the Reftoration, whence certainty may be faid to commence, and ending with the year 1784, becaufe here our documents fail, as the public accounts are yet brought no lower down. The fecond column gives the ton- nage of the Ihipping that fucceffivcly failed from England, diflinguiihing the Englifh from the fo- reign, in order to find, in the amount of each, the falutary efFefls of the aft of navigation. The third column contains the value of the merchan- dize fent our, that the extent of the cargoes may be compared with the quantity of tonnage which carried them : and, though the Scotch tonnage could not be adjoined, the value of the Scotch ex- ports is added, becaufe every one finds a gratifica- tion in extending his views. The fourth column exhibits the relult of our exports and imports compared, which forms what has been denomi- nated the balance of trade. The fifth column ftates the nett cuftoms, which our foreign com- merce has yielded at different periods, becaufe, while the detail gratifies curioficy, it furnifhes no inconfiderable proof of the profperity or decline of our traffic. And the lad column contains, what may be regarded as the refult of the whole, the fums which have been coined in England, during every reign fubfequent to the Reftoraiion j be- caufe the mint, as Sir Robert Cotton exprefles it, is the puife of the commonwealth. That ( 268 ) That the progrefs of our traffic and navigttron, from the commencement of the fevcnteenth cen- tury to the acra of the Reftoration, had been re- markably rapid, all mercantile writers feem to ad- mit. The navigation aft contributed greatly to carry this advance up to the Revolution. Sir William Petty ftated, in 1670, «« that the (hip- ping of England had trebled in forty years." Dodtor Davcnant afterwards aflcrted *, " that ex- perienced merchants did agree, that we had, in 1688, near double the tonnage of trading (hip- ping to what we had in 1 566. AndAnderfonf inferred, from the concurring teftimony of authors on this interefting fubjeft, *' that the Englifi) nfttion was in the zenith of commercial profperity at the Revolution." We have already examined how much the commercial gain of our traders was taken away by the war which immediately fol- lowed that mo(t important event in our annals. But the eye mud be again thrown over the chrono- logical table, if the reader wi(hes for a more com- prehenfive view of the continual progrefs of navi- gation, from the ftation of eminence to which Ai>- derfon had traced it ; its temporary interruptions i and its final exaltation, fince the independence of the American ftates. If we compare the greatnefs of 1688, with the amount of 1774 and 1784, we (hall diicover that the navigation of the latter epochs had reached a point of the mercantile hea- vens fo much more exalted than the former, as to • Vol. ii. p. 29. f Commerce, vol. ii. p. 187. i.. rcverfe i < ( ao9 ) rtverfe iti poHtion t as to convert what was once the zenifb into the nadir now. Contraft 1688 • with 1774' with 1784 Toni En|U(h. -798,240- -846,355 D* foreign. 95,167 65**73 113,064 Totnl. 185,800 863,513 959.419 'li The famous Mr. Gregory King cal- culated *, " that we gained annually on the freight of Englifhfhipping^ in ] 1688, — — —£. 810,000." ^ If the " national profit on the naval ' trade of England^ in 1688," amounted to J^» 810,000, what ought Co have been the national profit on our naval trade in 1774? If 1 90,000 tons gained £. 8 1 o,c ;0, 790,000 tons muft have gained - £'Z*Z^T*^^9* 940,000 tons, including the Scots ^,^, ,^/ ihips, muft alfo have gained, in '' ' ^ ^ 1784 , .— ? — — iC.4>o6o,ooo. " "t • *^ 'J,-ft94^t»J. This is doubtlefs a vaft fum to be annually ^"^ gained from our outward freights; but, great as t> it appears, when the fame fum is added for ouir ^^ inward freights, in a mere mercantile light, the-- immenfe navigation, from whence it arifes, mud be confidered as ftill more advantageous to ihi t.d* (late, as a never-failing fource, from which iisamem -^t • Dav. Work*, vol. vi. p. I46. and , ( «•«> ) and tranfports may be conftantly drawn fpr the ufes of war. If from the tonnage, which may be moft fafely followed in difcovering the benefits of our navigation and commerce, during every age, we look into the column of cargoes ^ in the "chronological table, we fhall find an excellent auxiliary, in the ledger of the infpedtor-general, for condutSling pur inquiries and informing oisr judgments. To inveftigate the value of our exports and of our imports, during thedifturbed times of ourEd- wards and Henries, or even in the placid days of Elizabeth, would be a refearch of curiofity rather than of ufe. On a fubjeft of fuch difficult difcuf- fion, as no fufficient data had yet been eftablifhed, the moft judicious calculators could only fpeak in terms indefinite, and therefore unfatisfa6lory : yet. Sir WilUam Petty, Sir Jofiah Child, Dr.Dave- nant> and Mr. Locke, all agreed in afierting, that our commerce flourifhed extremely from *666 to i68S, when it had increafed beyond all former examples and when its general growth, in the opinion of the moft experienced merchar^ts, was double in its magnitude at the Revolution, to its ufual fize at the Reftoration. In the chronolo* gical table, the value of exported commodities i was adjufted for both thefc periods, by a ftandard, which feems to be thus admitted as equal, by the . wifeft men in England. , During that day of commercial darknefs, the experienced Sir Philip Meadows, whofe prefencc for fo many years did honour to the Board of Trade, ( 211 ) Trade, fat down to form " a general ejiimate ef th( trade of England" from the amount of the duties paid at the cuftom-houfe on our importations and on our exports. DiiciSted by his native faga- city, he produced a ftatement of our commerce oa «n average of the three years of war 1694 — 5 — 6; which appears now, from a ccmparifon with the entries in the ledger of the infpeftor-general, to have been wonderfully exa6t. ., * ; Value of exports *, according to Sir Philip's ■^- calculation, — — aC.3j 124*000 '. D°, according to the ledger, from - Michaelmas 1696 toD" 1697, 3,525,90^ ,■■? ym . I Value of imports, according to him, ' — — — ;£. 3,050,000 ' D% according to the ledger, — 3,482,587 favourable balance of trade, ac- ■ cording to him, — - — ;f. 74,000 i: ;' D% according to the ledger, — 43j34I In the foregoing detail, from which we afcer- tain by comparifon nearly the truth, we behold », - , -^ -• : > -, • ^ ,■ ■ ■ > ; . . ' V) - » ;> \'t ''^71 ; ' .. " ■ . . 1 ■ i _ . %■■ I -^^ * But Sir P. Meadows excluded from his calculation the value of butter, cheefe, candles, beef, pork, and other pro- vifions exported to the Plantations, and the value of their produfts imported into England, which were afterwards con- fumed ; ** being in the nature of our coaft-trade among our own people.** Had he included thefe, his ftutement had been ftill nearer In ila amount to the ledger of the infpcdlor- gcneral. ' '«■ - ^ V /:-;- v iK' Pa the ( 212 ) the inconfiderablc extent of the national com«ierce at the t)cace of Ryfwick. If^ ftid that able ftattf^ man, the prefent condition of England be not JatisS faSiory to the puhlict from the general account of it here mentioned, various ways may be followed to im- prove it : And his fuggcftions having been gradxi- ally adopted in after times, produced at length the wifhed-for efFefts of an adive induftry at home, and a profperous navigation abroad. From that epoch, we have in the books of the infpc^lor-general all the certainty, with regard to the annual Amount of our exports and our imports, which the nature of fuch compli- cated tranfacflions eafily admit. But, fhould the nation wifli for more fatisfaftory evidence, on a fubjeft fo interefting, becaufe it involves in it the welfare of the ftate, the fame motion, which was made in the Houfe of Commons by Mr. Lownds *, during the reign of Queen Anne, to oblige the traders to make true entries of their cargoes, may be again propofed, and, if it can be freed from objcftion, carried into effect by par- lamentary regulations. ' ^' ^ Mean time, the tonnage of (hipping, which tranfported the fuperfluous produds of England, has been adjoined, in the foregoing table, to the value of cargoes, in order to fupply any dcfed of * *'In order to prevent thismifchief [of exaggerated entries] fays Davenant, a daufe was offered, and very much infifted on by Mr. Lownds* but obftrudled by the merchants, for ends not ?ery juftifiabie, and the daufe was not received." — Dav. vol. V. Whitwoxth's edit. p« 443. " ="^^-- proof; Uu. :. »"<'.'>• C «i3 ) proof, and to corroborate the certainty of oach by a fair comparifon of both. When Sir Philip Meadows confidered, with (o much attention^ our commercial affairs, he gave it as his opinion, " that the advantage of trade cannot be computed by any general meafure better than by that of the navigation." It requires not, indeed, the grafp of Sir Philip's mind to perceive, that the tonnage is naturally the evidence the moft to b«' relied on, where there is any doubt : in this mode of proof there is no fi6tion : the entries are made at the Cuilom-houfe, on the oath of the mafters ; yet the tonnage is fuppofed to contain about one- third lefs than the truth : but, the general ave- rage being once known and admitted, we may argue from the apparent amount, with no more dread of deception, than we fhould expert from the notices of the mofl: authentic record. In comparing the value of the cargoes with the ex- tent of the tonnage, as both are dated in the foregoing table^ we ought to infer that the firft muft always be fuperior in its rilings and deprei^ (ions to the lafl:. It was with a view to this comparifon and correfpondence, that the bullion, whofe annual exportation for fo many years frightened the graved politicians, was dedudled from the value of the tranfported merchandizes iince it occupied little room in the tonnage, yet fwelled confiderably the calculation of the general cargo : But, the exported bullion was retained in forming the balances of trade, becaufe, though it cannot properly be confidered as a manufacture, it P 3 ought ( 214 ) ought ncverthclefs to be deemed a very valuable part of our aftual wealth, which wc fend abroad ia cxpcftation of a profitable return. ,..^„^j^. Thus, we fee in the foregoing documents //&tf hafi evidetifg, with regard to our navigation and our trade, tbaf the nature of the enquiry admits. He who wiihes to fatisfy his doubts, or to gain infor- mation, by throwing his eye over the ftate of our exports from 169610 1774, as it has been pubr lilhed by Sir Charles Whitworth j or the value of cargoes which have been exported during the pre- fent reign, as they have been arranged in the foregoing table j muft perceive, that when one year furnifhes i great exportation, the next fup- plies the foreign markets with lefs j the third vfually fends a cargo fuperior to the firft j and the fourth gives often a fmaller quantity than the laft, whofe amount however is feldom below the level of. the firft. This ftriking variation arifes chiefly " from the irregularities of univerfal oemand, fince foreign fairs are fometimes empty and fpmetimes full i and partly from the fpeculations, perhaps the caprice, of traders. And it has been (hewn from the moft fatisfadory proofs, that the year of profound peace, which immediately fucceeds the conclufion of a lengthened war, always furnifhes a great exportation, becaufe every merchant makes hafte to be rich ; Thus, 1698, 17 14, X749, 1764, and 1784, form epochs of great relative traffic. But it is from the averages of diftant years, at given periods, that we can only form a decided opinion with regard to the real profperity or de- cay ( 2^5 ) cay cither of commerce, or of navigation : Thus^ from the Reftoration to the Revolution, the fo- reign trade of England had doubled in its amount: from the peace of Ryfwlck to the demife of King William, it had nearly rifen in the fame propor- tion. During the firft thirty years of the current century, it had again doubled : and from the year 1750 to 1774, notwithftanding the interruptions of an eight>years intervenient war, it appears to have gained more than one-fourth, whether we de- termine from the table of tonnage *, or the va- lue of exports. Though the late war feems to have been le- velled rather againft the induftry of the manufac- turer and the projedls of the merchant, than againft the force of our fleets or the power of our armies j though repeated blows of unufual feverity have been given to our navigation and our trade ; yet, our domeftic diligence purfues with unabated ardour its ufual occupations 5 the number of our Ihipping at prefcnt is great beyond example j and our trade, which was i^jid to be almoft undone, ft ill rifes fuperior to its various oppreflions. Let; thefe confiderations comfort every lover of his ^country, fince it is as difficult to animate the de- fpondent, as it is to convince the incredulous. Jf from thefe exhilarating topics, we turn to the column in the chronological table, which is occu- pied by the balance of trade, we ftiall find rather ii more melancholy topic. No difquifition has 9 See the annexed Table. P4 engaged "to* ^ ( 21^ ); engaged the pens of a more numerous clafs of writers than that fruitful fubjedt $ who all com- plained of the difficulty of their labours, as they were each directed by feeble lights; and who warn- ed their readers of the uncertainty of their conclu- iionsj becaufe their calculations had been formed on very difputable data, l£ba(io1i «2: ar >ijsa-v um In reviewing their performances, how amuHng is it to obferve, that though the fagacious Petty, and the experienced Child, the profound Temple, and the intelligent Davenant, had all taken it for grant- ed, as a pollulate which could not be difputed, that a balance of trade, either favourable or difadvan- tageous, enriched or impoverijhed every commercial country — a writer, as able as the ableft of them, ihould have at length appeared, who denied the truth of its exiftence, at leaft of its efficacy ! The late Mr. Hume feems to have written his fine Effay on the Balance of l!rade, partly with defign to throw a difcredit on the declamations of Mr. Gee> '* which hadjlruck the nation with an univerfal panic,'* perhaps more with the laudable purpofe of convincing the public " of the impojftbility of our loftng our money by a wrong balance, as long as we preferve our people and our indufiry" Whatever wife men may determine with regard to this curious, perhaps important fpeculation, rcafon mean while aflferts, what experience feems to confirm, " that there is a certain quantity of bul^ lion Jent by one nation to another -t to pay for what they have not been able to compenfate by the barter §f commodities i or by the remittance of bills of ex-^ ; ^ V f changi an to ( 217 ) change y which may be therefore deemed the balatut of trade" And a writer on political oeconomy* equal to Mr. Hume in reach of capacity, and fu-^ perior to him in accuracy of argument, the late Sir James Stewart, has examined his reafoningSr and overturned his fyftem, elegant in its (trufturci but weak in its foundation. It behoves us, there- fore, to look a little more narrowly into the date of the traffic which Britain carries on with the world, in order to difcover, if poffible, how much bullion ihe pays to each of her commercial corre- fpondents, or how much (he receives from them. Admitting that the apparent tide of payments flowed againft this ifland anterior to the Revolu- tion, it does not feem eafy to difcover the exaft point of time when it began to ebb in a cpncrary: direftion, ^»- V v^, f : = ^ - -^ -> B-jj-io Hjui^ Sir Philip Meadows, we have feen, }{ ./M '.n^i found a balance in our favour, on an average of the bufinefs of 1694 —5— 6, of — — The ledger of the infpedor-general fhewed a balance, on the traffic of 1697, of The re-eftablifhment of peace gave us a return, in 1698, of But, an increafe of imports reduced the balance, in 1699, to — And an augmentation of exports again raifed the balance, in 1700, £. 74>oo(Xi •\ — — — 43,34i* — i>789.744. i>o8o,497« ^•,(.-xi\ yt^, r.r^\ Wc ( «ia ) bfWc now behold the dawn of knowledge^ in re« fyt^ to this interefting part of our oeconomy, which has »t all times been the moft anveloped Iki darknefsy which fometimes introduced all the iinplearantnefs of uncertainty, and entailed too often the gloom o( defpondence^ But, it ought to be remembered, that whether we import more than we export, is a mere queftion of fa6b, which ^depends on no one's opinion, (ince, like all other dilutable fads, it may be proved by evidence. ■''? We muft recur once more to the ledger of the infpedor-general of our foreign trade, as the beft evidence which the nature of the inquiry can fur- mft)> or perhaps oyght to be required. After ad- mitting the force of every objcdion that has been made againll the entries at the cud^om-houfe, we may apply to that curious record of our traffic, what the Lord Chief Juftice Hale ♦ aflcrted, with regard to the parifh regifters of births and burials, ** tkai it gives a greater demonftratien than a bun- drii notional arguments can either evince or confute,*^ It was from that fource of accurate information, that the balances were drawn which are inferted in the foregoing chronological table : and it re- quires only " ajnatch of fight ** to perceive all the fluctuations of our mercantile dealings with the world, as they were dire^cd by oi|r activity, or our caprice, or remiflncfs, and to decide with re- gard CO the extent of our gains at every period, by the fcttlcnnent of our grand account of profit altid lofs on every commercial adventure. One * Origin of Mankind, p. 207. truth ( 219 ) truth mufl: be admitted, which has been confidered by fome as a melancholy one, becaufe they in<* fcrrcd from it, " that we were driving a hfing trade^'* that the apparent balance has been lels favourable in the prefenc than in the preceding reign. In order to account for this unwelcome notice, it has been infifted, that, as we grew more opulent, we became more luxurious, and, as our voluptuoufnefs increafed, our induftry diminifhed^ till, in the progrefs of our folly, we found a de-« light in facriBcing our diligence and ceconomy to the gratifications of a pleafurable moment, dur« ring a diflipated age. But, declamation is oftener ufed to conceal the bewitching errors of fophiftry, than to inveftigate the inftru^ive deduftions of truth. Confidering the balance of trade as an interefl:ing fubjeft to a commercial nation, it muft be deemed not only of ufe, but of importance, to enquire minutely which of our mercantile correfpondents are our debtors, and which are our creditors ; and to ftate which country remits us a favourable balance, and to which we are obliged in our turn to pay one. ,Nor, is it fatisfadory to contrail the general ba« lances of different periods, in order to form gene* ral conclufions, which may be either juft or falla- cious, ascircumftances are attended to or neglected* From a particular (latement it will clearly appear, that we trade with the greater number of the na- tions of Europe on an advantageous ground $ with few of them on an unfavourable one ; that fomc ilates, as Italy, Turkey, and Venice, may be con- fidcred ( 120 ) fidered as of a doubtful kind, becaufc they are not, in. their balances, either conftantly favourable or unfavourable. To banifh uncertainty from dif- quifition is always of inriportance. With this de- ^gn, it is propofed to ftate an average of the ba- lance of apparent payinents, which were made during the years 1771—2—3 to England by each correfponding community, or which ihe made to them : and the averages of thefe years are taken, in'order to difcover the genuine balance of trade on the whole, fince they Teemed to be the lead affcdked by the approaching ftorm. Whce the feale of remittance vibrates in fufpence, between the countries of doubtful payments, an average of i!x years is taken, deducing the adverfe excefles of import and of export from each other. ' Let us examine the following detail of our Eu- ropean commerce : Countries of favourable balanctt Denmark and Norway — £, 7^,478 Countries of unfavourable balances* £aft country [doubtful] £, 100,23a \ -- - Fbaders France Germany Hellasd Italy {doubtful] Portugal Madeira Spiin \ —' — Canaries J — — • Streights — — Ireland — — « Jfle of Man » — AUem^ — • — Cuernfey [doubtful] >— Jcrfey [doubtful] — 780,088 190,605 695,484 1,464,149 43.289 2741 » 3* 9>S»4 44*. 5 39 *3.347 XT3,3TO 663,516 »3»773 i>"9 6,169 8,850 Kuflia Sweden •— — Turkey [doubtful] — Venice [doubtful] — £' Favourable balance 8x2,607 " 7.3^5 1*0,497 iii3<»9 1,172,068 3,636,50^ ^.4,808,572 ^. 4,808,57a Havinw ( aai ) Having thus fairly dated the countries of Eu- rope, from which we receive yearly a balance on our trade, againft thofe to which we annually make unfavourable payments ; and having found, upon llriking the difference, that we gained, at the com- mencement of the prefent war, a nctt balance of £,• 3)636,504, let us now enquire what we gained or loft by our faSlories in Africa and in Ada. OAlHe*' ^ — — ,C. 656, 599 Unfavourable balance 448,91a Eaft Indies — ^, I»l05,si| . :»tifii5 io y wt »os»5" ■.)vt^ C' i»ios,5ii Having thus found an unfavourable balance on the traffic of our fadories, of ;(|. 448,912, it is now time to examine the trade of our then colonies, ^ which has too often been confidered as the only commerce worthy of our carej as if we had gained every thing, and loft nothing by it. Favcurahle ba lancet. UnfavturaUt balancth Newfoundland [doubtfulj £. 29,484 Antigua — -c . 44,168 Canada — — 187,974 Barbadoes — ■ mm 44,9^9 Nova Scotia -^ -~ 34>434 Carolina [doubtful] — 108,050 New England « — 790,244 Hudfon'8 Bay — — »»50i New York — ■ ~ 343,991 Jamaica -^ — 753,77»» Penfylrania — — . 521,900 Montferrat — ■ — 46,6s f !> Virginia and 7 Maryland [doubtful] J "* »^5.230 Nevis — — 47»»3*'^ St. Chriftopher's -. i*9»*59 I Georgia [doubtful] — « 360 Grenades — • — 288,96s Florida •— — 37,966 Dominica -« mm 158.447 Bermudas mm — . 9,541 St, Vincent — . mm I04,»3S ^.2,121,125 Tobago — mm 16,064 New Providence — 2,094 .."'." ■'.' ,'-'■■'' ' ^'■' [ Tortola — « — »3»o3« ^ ' ' ' - ' ". St. Croix — mm Ji.697 . ' 5,096 Spaniflx Weft Indies mm- 35.35* .-' .. ., ': ^,. . . ' -• :'. ■ . Greenland — ■ mm i8.»74 ' ' ' T',-^ Balance 9 261,291 . ' * ,C'*»"i,i*5 .WMaS Let ( 222 ) Let us now recapitulate the foregoing balances t Gained on our Earopean commerce — £, 3*636,504 DedoA the lofs on the trade of our faAoriea — 448,9 1 2 £• 3»»87,596 Gained on the balance of our colony commercv - a6i ,291 Nett balance gained on the trade of England £. 3,448,887 Nett balance gained on the trade of Scotland, I according to an average of 1771— .2— 3 - 1 ^3S»957 Nett gain on the firitiih commerce — £. 31884,844 ^ Of an cxtcnfivc building, we vainly attempt to form an accurate judgment, of the proportion of the parts> or the beauty of the whole, without meafuring the fize of the columns, and examining the congruity of the refult, by the fuitablenefs of every dimenfion. Of the Britifh commerce, fo luxuriant in its ihoots, and fo interwoven in its branches, it is equally impolTible to difcover the total or relative produ6ts, without calculating the gain or lofs, that ultimately refults to the nation from every market. Thus, in the foregoing ftate- ment we perceive, which of our European cuf- tomers pay us a balance, favourable and conftant; which of them are fometimes our debtors, and at other times our creditors ; which of them conti- nually draw an unfavourable balance from us : and, by oppofing the averages of the profits and loflTes of every annual adventure to each other, we at length difcovcred, from the refult, the vaft amount of our gains. The mercantile tranfaftiona at our faftories in Africa and Afia, were ftated ^'^ ; 7 againft . ( ^23 ) . Igaind each other, becaufe they Teemed to be of a finiilar nature. But, whether we ought to confider the balance of ^. 448,912 as abfolutely loft, muA depend on the elfential circunnflance, whether we confume at home the merchandizes of the Esdkt or, by exporting them for the confumption of Grangers, we draw back with intereft wli^C we had only advanced : fhould the nation prefer the beau^- tiful manufactures of the Indian to her own, we ought to regard her prudence as on a level wltli the indifcretion of the milliner, who adorns her own perfon with the gaudy attire, which (he had prepared for the ornament of the great and thus gay« Our then colonies were iVated againd each other* in order to (hew the relative advantage of cach^ as well as the real importance of the whole. Of the valuable products imported from them, whids feem to form fo great a balance againll the nation* we ought to obferve, that they are either gainful. Or difadvantageous, as we apply them: we gain by the tobacco, the fugars, the fpirits, the drugs, the dying-woods, which we re-export to our neigh- bours: we lofe by what we unneceflarily wafte. The colony war has added greatly to our an- cient ftock of experience, by exhibiting the ftate of our commerce in various lights, as it was forced into different channels. The balance of trade has thence aiTumed a new appearance, as it is fhewn by the cuftom-houfe books. While the exports were deprelTed for a time, as they had been ftill more by former wars, the imports rofe in the fame V - > ■' " * proportioa. i 224 ) proportion. The value of both* from England^ were, E«port«» Imports* 15 in 1781 — £. 10,569,187 — £, 11,918,991 82 — i2>355»75o — 9>i32>6o7 S3 — I3>85i»67i — 12,114,644 84 — i4»i7i>375 — I4»"9»i6^ $' ■ ■ ^, The number of (hips, which, durirg thefc years, Entered inwards, have alfo increafed f i^lly equal to the au|;mented value of cargoes. But, were we to' form a judgment of the balance of trade from the difference which thus appears from the cuftom- houie books, we fhould be led to manifeft error. %jct us take the year 1784 for an example. Thus ftood IS Exports. Imports. Balance. "file Eaft India trade £. 730,858 £. 2,996,548 £, 2,265,690 TEe Weft India trade - 1,160,070—- 3»37«»785 — 2,212,715 l^ Greenland trade — — 54>050 — 54.050 M jC. 1,890.928 jC'6.4«3t383 ^•4.532.455 Yet, this £, 4,532,455, confiding of the import- atioM from our fadlories, our colonies, and fifliery, forms no legitimate balance, however much this vail fum may dedu6b from the apparent balance of . the cuftom-houfe account. The fame (tatement, - and the fame obfervation, may be made with re- gard to the trade of Scotland. To this may be added, a melancholy truth, that we have loft the export of corn, to the annual value of a mil- ; lion, which is faid to be owing rather to an in- creafe ( as ) crcafe of pcfople, than to a decline of agriculture, and which entered with fo much advantage into the balance of 1749 — 50— fi. In years of fear- city we now import large quantities of corn ; and when fo great a fum is taken from the one fcale, and thrown into the other, the difference on the apparent balance muft neceffarily be immenfe* • Of the truth of thefe reafonings, and of thef6 fafts, the general exchanges, which are uhiverfally admitted to have been, for feme years, extremely favourable to Great Britain, are a fufficient con- firmation. When there exifts no diforder in the coin, the exchange is no bad teft, though it is no abfolute proof on which fide the balance of payments turns, whether againft a commercial country, or for it. The vaft importations of fo- reign coin and bullion, lince the eftablifhment of peace, prove how much and how generally the exchanges had run in favour of this entcrprizing nation. And the price of bullion, which, during this period, has been much lower than had ever been known, leads us to infer, that the extent of thefe importations has been proportionally great. In cpnfidering the balance of trade, it is to be lamented, that we cannot obtain, from the ton-^ nage of vcflcls entering inwards, the fame fatif- faftory information, as we have already gained from the numbers of (hipping, which having car- ried out the merchandizes, were brought as a confirmation of the value of exported cargoes: for, the materials of manufadure, being much bulkier than the manufaftures themfclves, require r Q^ a greater ( 226 > a greater number of tranfports. It may, however, gUrc k new view of an engaging fubjeft, to fee the tonnage of veflels, which entered inwards at (ditercnt periods, compared with the fuppofcd ba- lance of trade. Ships cleared oatwards.— 1^09. —Ships entered in wardt. TonsEng. Do foreign.- Total. 89,298 — 33,901 — 113,199 Favourable balance of tonnage 166,1 19 289,3 it Balance of merchandize 94» — a6>6a7 — 503*568 lii cb( 503.568 lot 'J' gtu.vit- 'VWl ■fir;.: -'.. ■. i ,ng{5!Cft Tons Eng. D» foreign. Total. 374.593 — 45.409 — 420,002, Favourable balance of tonnagei 83,566 -^^ 503,568 Balance of merchandize fient out, exdutire of • buirion. --• ^^ £' 3.008,705 sit? ^«,iv ■ vfnob- ,?ir*3' Ship» . ( «^ ) Ships cleared outwards.-^ I ^51.2-3. — Ships entered iawardi. Tons Eng. 612,485 • D" foreign. Total. ' 4*>593 — 655.078 655,078 Tons Eng. D" foreign. Tpfbl. 435,091 — 61,303 — 496>394> Favourable balance of tonnage 1 58,684 655,078 Balance of merchandize ' ' ' fent ouV exelufive of bullion — — jC» 3>97^7*7 Ships cleared outwards.— 177 |.2>3.^^Ships entered inwards* Tons Eng. D© foreign. Total. 711,730-- 63,294 — 775,024 775,024 Tons Eng. D" foreign^ Total. 608,066 — 123,870 — 73i»9^6 Favourable balanceof tonnage 43,088 775,024 Balance of iherchandize -—.■-■ fent out, exdufive of bullion — ^ C' 3>5iM5S Ships cleared outwards. ^— 1784. — Ships entered inwards. Tons Eng. D" foreign. Total. 846.35s — 113.064 — 959.419 Unfavourable balance — 67,008 1,026,4*7 Balance of merchandize — — — fent out — '— £• S^>^°9 Tons Eng. D** foreign. Total. 869,259 •— 157,168— •1,026,427 1,026,427 From the foregoing fa<5ls, men will probably draw their inferences, with regard to our debility and decline, or to our healthfulnefs and advance- ment, according to their ufual modes of thinking, to their accuftomed gloortjinefs or hilarity of mind, or to the efFufions of the company which they commonly keep. One party, taking it for granted, amid their anxieties, that the national commerce, domeftic and foreign, h in the lait ( 2l8 ) ft^g^pf a confumption, may poflibly attribute a fuppofed idlenefs and inattention to the excelTive luxury, in kind the moft pernicious, in extent the mod extravagant, which deeply pervades every. order: the other party, directed in their enquiries by an habitual chearfulnefs, may per- haps determine, from the bufy occupations which they fee in the ihop and the field, of an aftivityf and attention, the natural forerunners of profpe- rity and acquifition, thinking that they perceive^ in the heavy-loaded fhips, as they arrive, the materials of a manufadture, excenfive and encreaf- , iiig. If any one wifhes for the aid of experience iri fixing his judgment, he need only examine the ^fiairs of the American States, and of Ireland, during the effluxion of the laft hundred years. . A great balance of trade flood conflantly againfl both thefe countries} yet, both have more than* doubled the numbers of their people, the amount of their produftive labour, the value of their ex- ported merchandize, and the extent of their real wealth. ■ j''-r ' . .... . •'"' ■': •: ':v ~^ - '^'l. 'From the balance of trade, which, as an in- teref^ing fubjedfc» leemcd to merit ample difcuf- ! fion, it is proper to advert to the column of cufrl iepis in the chro/iological table, becaufc we may derive a fupplemcntal proof of the fucceffive iii- cr^afe of our trade, of our commercial knowledge* and of our real opulence. Thefe duties had their commencement from the a6fe of tonnage and poundage, at the Rcftoration, when the whole cuftoms dicf not amount to >C. 400,000. This ■ II law. ■ V < 229 ) law, which impofcd 5 percent, of the value on' goods exported^ as well as on goods imported, on domejiic manufaSfureSy as well as on foreign nner- chandizes j which laid particular taxes on our own woollens^ and double taxes on all goods when lent out by aliens ; was furely franned by no very Judici- ous plan, though two and a half percent, of the va- lue were allowed to be drawn back on goods, which having been imported (hould befent out inatwelve- month. The publications of Mun, of Fortrey, and of Child, foon after the Reftoration, difFu fed more univcrfal acquaintance with commercial legiflation, ' The alien duties on the export of native commodi- ties and domeftic manufadlures were judicioufljr repealed, in 1673 : The taxes on the exportation of woollens, of corn, meal, and bread, were hap-^ pily removed in 1700 : Yet, it was not till 1722 that, on a fyftematic confideration of burdens oa trade, all duties on the export of Britifh manu- faftures were withdrawn, except a few articles^' which being regarded as materials^ were ftill to^ be fent out with difcouragement. Thefe were doubtlefs confiderable incentives to exportation| by fending the goods fo much cheaper to market** But the irriports were difcou'raged then, and have been fucceflively burdened with new fubfidies and additional per cents, till the revenue of cuf* toms fwelled to £. 3,226,639, in 1784. This fyf- tem adniits of further improvement, which the moft intelligent men are preparing to make. A ftiachine, however, of very complicated parts, re* Qv3 ' ';.. quires Wtitnl V » • .' ( 230 ) quires very attentive labour before it can be re*- duced to fewer movements of a fimpler form. The column of coinage was introduced in the lad place, as its proper (lation, becaufe the in- creafe of coins, by means of the operations of the mint, arife generally from the profits of commerce, at leaft from the demand of traders: and of con- fequencc the quantity of circulating money muft in every country be in proportion nearly to rhc extent of bufinefs or frequency of transfers. The fears of men, with regard to a wrong balance of trade, have not been at any time greater than the continual dread of a total deprivation of our coins. And both have produced a numerous clafs of writers, who have publiftied their theories, not fo much, perhaps, to enlighten the world, as to give vent to their lamentations. While the rents of the land were paid in its pro- dufti while the freemen contributed perfonal fer- vice inftead of a fpecified tax; and while the arts hsd not yet beep divided into their clafles, there would be little ufe for the convenient meafure of coins. The cpnverfion of almoft every fervice and duty into a payment of money marks a coi}- fiderable change in our domedic affairs. And iq proportion as refinement gained ground of rude- nefs, as induftry prevailed over idlenefs, as manu- facture found its way into the nation, and as com- merce extended its operations and its influence, coins muft h^ve become more numerous in the fiibfequent ages, (jecaufe they were more neceflary, prom the happy accefHon of Elizabeths we may ip .. !;•< »-'•.■• '--^ ' . '"" ■ tracflj < 231 ) with fufiicicnt certainty the progrcrs and of our pubhc coinage. ex- trace tent of our public coinage. Coined by Queen ElUabeth, including the debated ftlver of the three preo^dl^f reigns, — — In gold — ^. i,«oo,ooo "'^^'H ■'^■' in filver — • 4,63>>93i By King James — — in gold —A. 800,000 •• in filver "» 1,700,000 By Charles I. .,,^. w"ni "" '« RoW — ^. 1,7*3,000 vJrff^iH.3.^ in filver- 8,776,544, ^ ?!. — —- ■ By the Parliament and Cromwell — in filver — — — ■ Total coined during a century, from 1558, U 1659 S —in gold — ,C' 3»7*3>o<'o !>. in filver— 16,109,476 onev/KplTirHiJO' — — — _________ Coined by Charles II. — g b'jSwf — C* 7»5«4»i0S ' - - by James II. — — a,7 37,637 iO" — — — b^. io,i6i,7i» by William III. (including die re-coinage) x^ »- c 10,511,963 '^' .by Anne •— — »— d 2,691,626 .by George L — — _ ' « 8,7a5,9M "'.f from X7a47>ngold — ^. ii,66»,sf6 — $ in filver — 104.160 576 2,500,000 io>+99»544 1,000,000 £,, i9,83t,476 .by George L — — _ '« 8,745,5 ^ (by George Il.f from X7a4 7 in gold >~ ^.11,669,2 f 6 /* 101760 — 3 in filver -V 304,360 ■ ' i»»966,l„- ToUl coined during a century, from 1659 1« 1760 — — ,^.44,157,828 CoinedbyGeorgelll.gbeforetheViB gold — j^. 33,081,884 jft Tanuar]ri78s — J in filver — 7,390 ^i"' hhjf^^V ■; -',]'•■■•' ^ . \ J, ^•33.o89.*74 It did not, hojvever, cfcape the penetration of Davcnant, or perhaps the fagacity of preceding writers, — " that all this money was not eo-exifting at any one time." And he therefore endeavoured, with his ufual induftry, to afcertain the probable amount of our circulation, or the nuntiber of our coins during every period, to which cither his con- jeSlure or his calculation could reach. - -4^4 • And. Com. vol. ii. p. 105, *> Ralph. Hift. vol. i, p. 1078. « Camp- J)cU'8 Survey. ' Ibid. • Ibid. f Tower Records. t Mint account. ( 232 ) In 1600, hp ftatei*, that there probably exiftol, in gold £. 1,500,000 in filver 3,500,000 — — — — j^.4,000,000: * Vibich Wirt tht tooh, faid he* ivt bad to nuork luitbtubeii fwtfirft bigan totnakt a Jigurt in tbt commircial tuorU, In l66c, there were only, in all likelihood, co-ex- ; ifting, of every preceding coinage —j^. 1 4,000,000, Sir William Petty f, who lived nearer the time, and had better information, af- ferta, ** that the re'Coinage at the happy Reftoration amounted to £. 5,600,000; whereby it u probable (fome allowance being given for hoarded money) that the whole caih of England was then about £. 6,000,000; which he conceived was AiiEcient to drive the trade of England.'* And from the progrefs of our commerce from 1 600 to 1660, and from the extent of our mer- cantile tranfadions, we may decide, which of the calculators was moft accurate in his ftatement, and moft fatisfaftory in his inference. Sir Jofiah Child, indeed, remarked, in 1665 J, ** fbaf all forts cf men complain much of the Jcar city of money j yet, that men did complain as much of a fcarcity of money ever fince I knew the world : for, that this humour of complaining proceeds from the frailty of our natures^ it being natural for mankind to complain of the prefent, and to commend the times paft.** That experienced merchant attributed ^' the pref- fing necejjity for money j Jo vifihle throughout the king" '\* Whit. edit. vol. i. p. 364, f Pol. Arith. p. zjS, X And. Com. vol* ii. |>, 142, , tdm» ( 2J3 ) dom, to the trade of hankering, which obftrufts circulation, and advances ufury." And from Child's State of the Nation, during feveral years fubfcquent to the Reftoration, we may infer, that Petty was nearer the truth in his reprefentatioa than Davenant, If the amount, of our traffic, foreign and domef- tic, had doubled in the aflive period between the Reftoration and the Revolution, we ought to con- clude that the quantity of circulating coin ought to have been in the proportion of fix to twelve i confequently. If there had been in 1660 - - jf . 6,000,000, There ought to have been in 1688 - 12,000,000: Yet, after a variety of conjeSlures and (alculaiiofts, Davenant ftates* it at 18,500,000; which, he infifted, was altogether neceffary for carrying on our foreign and domeftic traffic. But, the refult of thofe conje<5tures, and of thofe calcij- lations, derives little fupport, and lefs authenticity, from the fafts before-mentioned i which (hewed, that a country, which for fo many years paid con-, fiderable balances to the world, could not abpund in coins. And there was a circumftance of ftill greater weight, that feems to have been little at^ tended to by hiftorians, or by theoriils : a rife in the intereft of money evinces a fcarcity of fpeciej at leaft it demonftrates that the fupply is not fuf- ficient for every demand, , The natural iiuercft of i^ri • Whit, edit, vol. i. p. 367. money ( 234 ) monejr was eight per cent, from 1624 to 1645 1 and it from this year gradually fell to fix per cent, before the Reftoracions Co that the Parliament were enabled, in 1650, to fix by ordinance the legal intereft at fix per cent.* ; which was confirm- ed by ftatute at the Reftoratipn f . But, the natural intereil of money gradually rofe again, from fix per cent, in 1660, to feven pounds fix fliillings and fix pence in 1690 ; and from this year to feven pounds ten fiiillings per cent, before the peace of Ryfwick. From 1697, the natural intereil of money gradually funk, before the year 1706, to fix per cent. ; and continuing to fall, the Parlia- ment were thereby induced [17 13] to fix by iljatute the legal intereft at five per c^nt. Yet, Jn 1711, Davenant fi^ates, " that there might he of gold aniftlver coin in being" to the amount of — £* 1 2,000,000 In 1688, he had already found — 18,500,000 Dfe^cafc in three and twenty years £, 6,500,000 Yet, it is highly probable, that the value cf the circulating coins might amount to £, 1 2,000,000 in 17 1 1. The gradual advance of our domeftic induftry and foreign trafJic, the reform of the fil- ver, the confequent augmentation of taxes and circulation, the greater credit both public and pri- vate, the finking of the natural intereil of money i * Apd. Com. vol. ii. p. 85. f 12 Cb. II. c. 13. all ( 235 ) all demonftrate the impoITibilicy of any diminu' tion of our coins, during the period from the Re- volution to the year 17 ii. Anderfon*, having given his fuffrage to Davenant*s ftatemenc of 171 1, fays, " that we may reafonably conclude, as our trade is confiderably increafed in fifcy-one years, the gold and (ilver a<5tually exi(ling in Bri- tain [1762] cannot be lefs than ^. i6>ocx)4O00 1". And we may fairly infer from the reafonings of Anderfon, that the gold luix-q and Giver coins actually cxifting now [1786J amount to about — £,, 20,000,000/' We have feen, during the prefent reign, an ex- traordinary augmentation of our manufafturcs and our trade, a quicker transfer of property, a vflft credit, a produdbive revenue, an unexampled demand at the mint for its coins; which all evince a greater ufe for money, and confequently a pro- portional fupply. And fpeculation has been ac- tually confirmed by fafts and experience. When, by an admirable operation, a falutary reform was made of the gold coin, there appeared fixteen mil* Jion of guineas. ... -. ./ irrtji'i Ix * Commerce, vol. ii. p. 105. \i\Tt J*i»j i J.** ^^- ■nq b<:u. '.Mir'f ^B iiO^i t '■ W 'i kl .5:^;>. -:^ti .fei The ( 236 .) The three proclamations— of 1773— of 1774— and 177^, brought in, of dcfeftivc gold coin, the value in tale of - j£. 151563,593 lo 8 There moreover appeared of guineas 'purchafed by the bank, and of light gold which fell as a lofs on the holders of it, to the amount* of — — 1,380,643 — — £' i7»944>236 10 8 There remained confequcnt- *? ly in the circle, heavy guineas of the former reigns and the prefent, light guineas which were not brought in,and filver £. 2>055,763 9 4 £. 20,000,000 •— — If, from the amount of the coinage of the prefent reign •— — 33*089,274* the fum of light gold re-coined is de- duced, — — ^ I5>5^3>594. we Ihall fee in the refwlt the fum which the increafing demand of the .j prefent reign required at the mint, ^^ exclufive of the re- coinage —;{. 17*525,680. , * Mr. Eden's Letters, p. 215. ( m ) Ic is not eafy to difcover, becaufe data cannot be readily found, what proportion of the coins* which conftituced in tale this vad balance, was af- terwards melted or exported. If one-fourth only continued in the circle of commerce, this circum- ilance alone, when compared with the quantity of money which, in 1776, was adually found in cir- culation, would demondrate the exiftenoe of a greater number of coins, and confequently a greater amount in tale, than has been thus evinced. One truth is however clear, " that evety community^ which has an equivalent to give, may always pro* cure as many of the precious metals, wherever they may exift, as it wants i in the fame manner as the individual, who has labour, or any other property* to offer in exchange, may at all times fill his cof- fers with medals, or with coins. Hence, we may conclude with Mr. Hume, and with fubfequenc writers on political oeconomy, equal in judgment to him, that while we preferve our people, our fkill, and our induftry, we may allow the fpecie to find its own way in the world, without any other protcdbion than what is due to the juftnefs of our flandard in finenefs and weight, or without any other care than to give continual notice to the cre- dulous to beware of the tricks of the clipper, the fweater, and the coiner. SUCH ( 23« ) SUCH then is thccftimatcofour comparative refources, of the loffes and revivals of our trade during every war, and of the numbers of our peo- ple, both before and fince the Revolution. He who has honoured the foregoing documents with an attentive perufal, may probably be induced to aflc. What valid reafon is there for dcfpairing of the commonwealth, by relinquifhing hope ? — The individual who defponds, indulges a paHion the moli to be deplored, bccaufe it is the mod incur- able. The nation, which, in any conjundlure, en- tertains doubts of her own abilities, is already conquered, fince Ihe is enflaved by her irrelblution or by her fears. The foregoing difcuffions would prove, if recent experience did not confirm the truths that never ought we to have entertained a jufter confidence in our own powers than in the prefent moment; though no reafon, furely, exifts, for adopting cxpcnfive projedls, much lefs for run- ning into imprudent enterprizes. ;.? ?r- :lfl- .I'-ih'i ■ I'l: '^^ <^^- <'A>'\' '■' v^. ■ - «^ * UO^'^K) :>' '' IN D E X^ Agriculture, promoted in 1381, 22. *— • little nnderftood before the time of Henry VIII. 2tf. . I advantages to be derived from the encouragement of it, 126. ..._ progrefs of inclofures of wailes and commons, from the time of Q^ Anne, 1 27. America, difadvantages to Great Britain from the increafed territory in, 123. ^ ■ falfe alarms from the war with, 146, — - advantages to England from the independence of, 147. Authors, fome always ready to perfuade us that the nation is ruined, 99. 106. 118. Bahnce of Trade, flate of opinions on, 215. ■ ■ ■■' tableof, with the different nations of Europe, in 17719 220. •->— - table of, with Africa and the Eaft Indies, 221. ■ » -" ■ table of, with America and the Weft Indies, 221. Bank'of Amfierdam, account of, 121. Bank of England, eftabliihed in 1694, 69. Banking Houfes, the origin of, 41. Britain, Greats See England, ' i BoUngbroke, Lord, and others, wrote on the dillreffed ilatc of the nation 1750, when the contrary was the cafe, 106. Bujcn, Count de, fuppofed man urged to procreation by in- itin£l, I. Charles INDEX. Charles II. King, turnpikes eftabliflied in his reign, 31* I .11 encouragement given to manufaflories, commerce^ and hufbandry, in his reign« by turnpikes and inland naviga- tion, 41. >?i<;f t.:< Clarmkut Lordt gtyetift pleafiBg accoant of the cominerceof < £ngland'in the reign of Charles I. 40. Coin, See Money, -.i.* ^,v %/^^,*«* • Commerce, not encouraged by monopoly, prohibitions, or preventing the exportation of c<)rn, 33. ^, >^ ^^ ^ataw***- ■ tEeconftant increafing ftate of, from 1580, 39. ■ canfes of the loi^ of trade in the war of the Revolution, 59' ■. (iate of Ihips cleared at the port of London in variout years, from 161J8 to 1784, 60. , ,,^4^j^,,^4 ^ — encouragemtot^ given to it fince the Revolution, 69. :^;; ,::£ .~- encicaTed to double from the peace of Ryfwick to the ». acdeffion of Queen Anne, 7a. » . ■ flourifhing ftate of, at the death of Queen Anne, 9o, . ^^^ — — falfely rept'efented by Wood at the acceflion of George I. . ■. 81. —— ftate of, in the reign of George I. 93. s».yt -« -- —— value of the exports 1738, loi, — — - chronological table of the commerce of Great Britaia .~ froittthe^Reftoration te 1785, 207. ■ general progrefs of, after a vtrai*, 214. -- Comptottf Sir Spencer, anecdote of him, 98, ii*i-* "-' ^" '" Corn, the bounty on exportation, given in the firft parliament " after the Revolution, 67. — — annual export, from 1744 to 1748, 753,689 quarters, IOa* 5« ■*?«.• *^-«»- f - ....■■ ■■*■' Cuftomh arguments from them, of the profperity of the coun- -^ try, 228i Dtomfdaj Book fhews the fcanty population of England, 4. Dutch, their unneighbourly interference in the American war, 152. "■*»«*{'* . Aff%:i '' ii- Edward III, King, deplorable fiate of labourers in his^ reign, 7. . .^ ,. ....... •-■^H' . Edward '^^W-^' "• ofefSfc^"' t N D E Xi Mdwardllli King, produce of a poll-tax in the 51ft year of his reign, ii. — — in 1360, coliedea 100,000 men to invade France, 16. ■— — invited foreigners to initrud^ his faisje^s id the nfeful arts, 19. — — in I33'» n J wOol to be exported, 19I. Edivard IF. King, his laws fliew a niercantile fyftem, 22. idward VI. King, brought over mahy thonfand ihanufiM:* turers, 29. -* " - ■ a^ refpefting vagabonds, 29. EUxaheth, ^lueen, her aA refpe£Ung labourers and their wages^ 32- — — a few faltttary laws made in her reign, 33. England, fettled probably 1000 years before Chrift, 2; ■ ■ ■ '■ found by Caefar to contain a great multitude of peopIe» who fubfifted by feeding of flocks, 2. '■ the Britons foon taught manufactures and commerce, 3^ •-— Romans continued from 55 years before Chrift> till 446 after, 3. — — from this time in war for 600 yeai's, 3. II at the Conqueft divided into five cla^s, 3. . fuppofed by Juftice Hale and Gregory King to contain two million of inhabitants at the Conqueft, 4. — — a fcene of infurreAions and foreign ravages to the iimd of the Great Charter, 4« -~ ill effeAs of the Conqueft on the popiilatloii, 4. — — the plague of 1349 faid to have taken off half Its in*^ habitants, 10. . . . — number of inhabitants in 1377, 2,092,9^8^ ijj. — <^ the tax paid by moft of the principal towns in Eiigland in 1377* >5- —— Edward III. raifed IOO,o<3o meh to invade France, i6i attention to the trade, navigatioui and cdmmerc6i from 1381, 22. —— the trade, in thferejgnof Richard III. carried on chiefly by Italian*, 23^ . , i— — the number of fighting men in I57^i 1,172,674^ 33* -•— in 1583, i,i72,ooo*-**the number of inhabitants^ 4,688,000, 344 R EngUkd, I N E X* jW^iKm/tCommnnicantsandrecufkiitsin 1603, 1,06^^4(^9, je* — navy in 1581, 72,450 tons, and 14,295 men, 36. «-^ 21,797 fcamcn regiftered ill London in 1732, 36. m-.^ the conftant increafing ftate bf<^oihm^rce from 1580, 39. •— ^.95,512,095, raifed by taxes, confifcations, and con- tributions, during the great rebellion, 40. «— • Conformifts, Non-conformills, ahd Papilts, iii 1689, 2,sgg,72&, 45. — — >i hou^i in England and Wales in 1665, i,230>ooo— ia 1690, 1,300,000, 44. wV —— number of inhabitants, according to Greigory King> 5,500,000, 48. «-». 7 ,ooo,coo of inhabitants at the Revolution^ 50. .^-> the quick raifing of armies no proof of population, 51. __ the number of fighting men at the Revolution, 1,308,000, 53. - :MacI —— income of the nation, jf. 45, 500,000, 54. — — yearfy expence of the people, ^.41,700,000, 54, •— — value of the kingdom, j^.650,000,000, 54. ■I circulatingmoney , according toDavenant,;^.! 8,500,000; . • according to King, X* ' * ,500,000, 54. —«- annual income of James II. j^. 2,06 1, 856. 7/. g^J, 55. —i— I income of the exchequer in 1691, jf. 4,249,757, 55. -.i.-* fopplies during the war, £'S>^05»S^5* 55< .i-i—. dillrefles during the Revolution war, 57. ,„«^ in the reign of Queen, Avn.e cpn^ed 2^025,000 ^ viig^ting men,, 73. ^ ' "^•" "': : ■■'^':l.''J^^'i{^i ' — - taxesin 1701, j{;. 3,769,375, 75. .,.,..;, — .« paid into the exchequer, in 1703, iC*5»5^i'944* 75v — in 1707, 8, 9, lo, each year, £'S>^7^»S7^» 7^* . . ^— revenue in 1726,^.7,224,175, 89. «-» proved to be in a thriving condition in 1719, 98. .— .i- falfely reprefented by Lord Lyttelton, Pope, and Sir M. Decker, in 1738, to have been in a diftrefled ftate, 99. ..— f(irplus of taxes paid into the finking fund in 1738, ;f. 1,231, 127, ioi. mmmmm iu 1750, rcprcfeHted by Lord BoUngbrokc, and others, to be in a diftrefled ftate, when the contrary was the cafe. 106. England, ■•»ifi'tt f Index. Engfimit, difadvantages from the increafed territory !n Af- rica and the Weft Indies, 1 23. fj^^ — — > retained top much territory by the peace pf 1762, 125. -^-— ftill continues to prqfper, 1 25 > . ^ ^., ^ ■ I t ... advantages from the encouragement of agriculture, 127* \ from improving the roads, and making, na- vigable canals, 129. ■■ t improvem6nts in our harbours and great towns, 1.29. '■I nil, eocouragfnicnt given to manufaAures, 130. ■ ufeful regulation of our (hipping, 132. -^-i—i filiitary elftft)i of reforming the coin, 132. ...«., fc i- falfely feprefented as on the decline after the peace of 1763 ; the real ftate at that time, 134. — "-^ fti^pl us produce of land and labour exported, on. .an ; . average, in 1772, 3, 4, ^(^.15,613,003, 137. v „ _^, ■' r. ■ at the colonial revolt, fnppofed to contain 2,350,000 fighting men, 138. — — falfe alarms on account of the American war, 146. — - ftate of the commerce lyitH AnieJ!;ica, in 1771, 2, 3, and 1784, 447. .;» „.^, ' ^— — fufFered no lofs from the independence of America. 148. »-■... derives many benefits flrom the independence of Ame- rica, 152. — — chronological table of the commerce of, frpm the Reflo- ration to 1785, 207I ^ " ^ — — fum total of furplus granted in his reign^^^j 8^)976,6249 Greeulami Fijhery, state of, in 1772-5, compared wi'tE I782>5a 150. . -■- ■< ■> - •'JO?! hzoiiit»n ,rtrj. —'-«'■ Hales, Lord Chief yujf ice, fuppofed man urged to procreatioft by inllindl, i . .1 — fuppofed England to contain tvim million of inhabi- tants at the Conqueft, 4. 4 Haarth-Tax 0/ i6g6, account of, ^'7^ ■; ^ *•'-• ' ■ — Gregory King's calculation of, with obfervations, 175. ilenry V. King, the want of inhabitants in his reign« occa- fioued by the wars and by the plagae, 17. n£.nrf,r.4 Henry VII, King, drew over woollen manufadnrers from the Netherlands, 24. Henry Vllh King, agriculture and gardening much improved in his reign, 25. I — — intereft of money at 10 per cent. 26. -^/^ Htgh'ways, the firftaA for their repair in the time of Queeu Mary, 30. — — turnpikes eftablifhed in the reign of Charles II. 31. »> ^-—- advantages of turnpike roads to population, 1 10. \ theprogrefsof; 128. ' •' ^^^'^ ^^> ^■ — — greatly improved fince the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, Houfes in England, the number returned to the tax-dffi^e at different periods, from 1750 to 1 78 1, 189. — — number of houfes chargeable in 1756 and 1781, 190. »-i— the number of houfes charged to taxes in each county, in England and Wales, in 1690, 1 708, 1750, and 178 r« 191. '"^2i^>T /; iifM^, 'his i^iign aufpiciouB to profperity and popu- loufnefs, 36. —— falutary laws paired in his reign, 37., ;^u^^3 J .: ^v- hi* .-. •■ ■ . - ■..---- -r .:'?,: '.:l%jt. INDEX. yamts It. Kingt his annual income, /, 2,061,85 6, 7^* 9K* Inckfuru, proclamations againft, as a decay of hufbandry, 26. . — — progrefs of, from the time of Q^ Anne, 127, InftinSt the caufe of procreation, i^ Tntereft of Money, 10 per cent, in time of Hen. VIII. %^, ^ — — in 1623, reduced from 10 to 8 per cent. 39. r— — in 1651, reduced to 6 per cent. 41. — — of the national debt, reduced to 4 per cent, in 1 727, 97. -•— in 1750, to 3} for feven years, after that to 3 per- cent. 105. Judgti, advantages froip the^increafe of Salaries, itS* .•i""« »r»«I*™»^..„*» J,.. '-J.4. ^ ," • - ' *■• • King, Gregory, fuppofed Enetand to contain two million of inhabitants at the conqueff; 4,,^ jj„j, ^^^ ^^ ^-^ ;;^^'^- "■■■* extrafts from his (calculations on population, a6. u' Labourers, Statute of, temp, E. III. account of it, 7. <**^** •— — other regulations in the fame reign« 8. .j„^^^ . «— >-* the ftatutes being confirmed by Rich. II. cau(e the rft,- bellion of Tyler ana Straw, 9. •— >7 revifed ia the reign of Eliz. 3a. f,iaenMam^a4ftiywt}ui quantity ftamped for fale in Scotland,, in the years 1771, 4, 3, 4, 168. ^ "'^'^ . / / [*'l'^ ~": ' II II fiateof, jin Scptland, in 172& and 1775, 260,' ""~™ —— of Scotland, in 1772, 3, 4, compared with 1792^ 3,4, Liverpool, between A'Jguft *6, 1778, and April 17, 1779, ,c>o lotted put i^oju-ivateers, of 30,787 ton?, 1,9^6 guns, an4 8,754 "™?"» 3^' Lyttekon, Z««r^, i|i 1738, wfQte on tl^e diftrefTed ft^teof Eng. land, 99. Magna Ciarta* added fecurity to the free* but Uttle freedoof to the fiave, 6. Malt, comparifon of the quandty confiiroed in 1773* 4* 5> 7:WJtH.»78p» !»»» ^^9' R 3 Manufaaurtrff •Ik an. lie the 1 J N n E 3?, AiaH/jfaaurgrs, Walloon man ufadlurcrs come to England, 19;^ — ^ came oyer from the Netherlands, 23. — — England over*run with foieign manufaADreri, z6, r — -T many thoufands brpught over in 1549, 29. ManufaSli/.res, the g|-eat encoufagement given to them, 150. .. .— value of the exports (exdufive of the wqollen) ii| 1699, 1700, 1701, compared with 1^769, 70, 71, 18$. ^aryt ^een, in her reign the firft aft for repair of highways, 3»- . " Money, intereft 19 per cent, in the time of Henry VIII. 26. , fubftance of a parliamentary 4ebate qn the circulation in the reign of Henry Vlll. 27. • the intereil reduced, in 1623, from 10 to 8 per cent. 39. ■ ■'— in 1651, reduced to 6 per cent. 41. — — in circulation, according to Davenant,jf.i8,50o,6oo«r? according to King, £. 1 1 ,jjoo,ppo, 54. — ~— £, 3,400,009 brought into commerce by fuppreHing o'^ hammered money 1697, 74. borrowed by government, in 1702, at 5 and 6 percent* — — intereft fix?d ^t 5 per cent, in 1714, 86. ' ■ intereft, in the reign of G- . I. 3 per cent. 9^, ii , , I falutary effefts of reform' g the foin, ,132. —— advantages of an increafing circulation, 165* • m . ■ evils of an obftruft^d circulation, 167. «■ advantages of a well-regulated coinage^ 230. — . — value of, coined by Q^Eliz. to Jan. i, 1785, 231. ^ ■1 ii j quantity in circulation at various periods, 233. — — intereft of, a criterion of the plenty or fc^rcity, 233. National Deh, at Lady-day 1702, J^. 10,066,777, 56, --— firft funded 1711,^^.9,471,325, 76. , Jo -■ - .?: . ^.. in 17 1 4, j^. 50,644,306. 13/. 6J«/. 77, J I _ ■ advantages of a national debt, 87. — ~~ at the acce0ion of Geo, II. more than 50 millions, 97* ;... ..... the intereft reduced to 4 per cent, in 1727, 97. —7 Dec. 31, 1738, j^. 46,314,829, 104. :rr-- Dec. 31, 1749, £,';^»Ui,6S6, 104. 't • Ndtienal 75" INDEX. National Dtbt, the intereft reduced to i\ and 3 per (eat. 1750, 105. -^ — — > in I762> j^. 146,682,844, 121. '■'■ " nature of it explained, 121. — ^ in 1783. jC. 212,302,429, 154. — — unfunded debt at that time, £. i8,856,$42, 154. — -— difficulties arifing from unfunded debts, 155. ■ ■ — flate of, at the end of the wars of 1764 and 1784, com- pared, 156, — in 1785, jf. 239,154,880, 159. ««— r- a finking fund of 1 million eflabli(h6d for the dlf- charge of it, 159. Navigation AS, the principle of the aft introduced in 1381* 22. Navigations t Inland, advantages of, 129^ ;. II . the great attention paid to them fince the Revotiitipn* 129. Navy of England, in 1 58 1, 72,450 tons, and 14,295 mariners^ 36. — r- feamen regiftered in London in 1732, 21,797, 36. — -rr the bounty given by different kings for building large ihips, 38. ^ ,. J .I 11 flate of in 1660— 62,594 tons 1675 — 69,6?! -- I 1688:-^ 101,032 - . u;l. v. ;; '■-^■^^:;v 1695 — II2,4£)0, 58. '»'■■■'■•" "^^M -->— comparifon of the Englilh and French fleets in 1693, ,59. — — in 1701, ?6i,222tons, 16,591 failors, 77. afterwards, in Q^ Anne's reign, 273,693 tons^ 16,422^ failors, 77. -— flate of, at various periods in that reign, 79. ^~—^ at the acceffibn of Geo. I. 444,843 tons, 26,691 nieb, 9«- — I. ■■ flate of, at whrious periods in that reign, 92^ ^ ^^ — i- fliateof, in 1727, 1741, I749» IQ?. --.-• ftate of, in 1749, i754» 1760, 114. ;ij,i "V INDEX. Vv^tfEniland, ftareof, in 1754, 1760, 1774, '3'' — — additions made from 1775 ^^1^}» >39* — >;r7 ftate of, in 1783, 139. Newfoundland Fifltery, comparative fiate of, in 1764, 5, with 1784, s, 148. Poor Laws, originated in tlie reign of EUx. 32. Poor Rates, at the end of the reign of Ch. II. jf .665,302— as given in to parliament 1776, £. 1,556,804, 181. Pope, A. wrote on the diflrefled ftate of England in 1738, 99. Population ofEngland^ the infloence of plenty of provifionf, 2* •^17-— ill efFeAs of the Conqueft on, 4* •--*— civil war and peftilence alfo greatly a/FeAed it, 6. '■ ■'■ obfervations on the ftatute of labourers, temp. Edward III. 7. — — half the inhabitants of England died in the plague of 1349, 10. — ' - the number of people in England and Wales in 1377, calculated at 2,092,978, 13. .— the tax paid.b/ mpft. of the jprincip»l tpwns in i377» 'I- Edward III. raifed 100,000 men to invade France in 1360, 16. — -^ fnch great armies no propf of population, 17. .^^^^ m^m^ various circumftances of depopulation, 18. — — the advantage to pppula(ip|i by the difiblution of iqo- iiaitert^s, t^. .^;'w^-...,v-• ■'''<^i'!^t ..■ »»«.-^ - - the number of fighting m<;n in England in 1575, 1,172,674, 33. _— in 1583, i,i72,o9&--thjg ^Qinb^r o^ inhabitants, 4,688,000, 34:. *:''""":.; w^ -— communicants and recufants in 1603, 2,065,498, 35^ ^— Conformifts, Non-conformifts. and Papifts, in 1689, '2,599.786, 43. ^ ^^^^. .»> the evidence of parifhregiilers confidered, 44. —.^ houfes in England and Wales in 1665, i4Je30,opo— "1650,1,300,000, 44. * ' " " '*' ' 3 Pofulatitn FN D E X. fopulmiien of England , number of inliabitant$» according t« Gregory King, 5,500,000, 48. — ■— various calculation! on the number to be allowed to each houfe, 49, --« ■ 7,000,000 inhabitants at the Revolution, 50. t— -— the quick raifing of armies no proof of, 50. •— — fuppofed by fome to have decreafed from tha Revolo? tion, but the contrary fhewn, 65. -r— an uncommon demand for mannfaAHres caufes an apt* parent decreafe of population, 7*. — — in the reign of Q^ Anne Great Britain contunei 2,035,000 fighting men, 73.. — — . various temporary caufes of a decay of, 106.*' " "" — — a want of labourers a proof of profperity and popufii* tion, 107. rr— - encouraged by the free Britifli Fifliery and the Society ofArts, Aec. 109. ——. by turnpikes and navigation, no. ■ ''^' r-— an increafe, proved by a comparifon of the dutiea m foap, candles, and hides, 113. ■— — proved by increafed exportation^ 119. •— - review of the controverfies conc^tning, 270. — — account of the hearth- tax of 16^, 174. 2;-— Gregory King^s calculation of the number of inhala^- tants, according to their plaflps, |8c^ ;,^. 1 .^^;,,y! , .^ — -- enquiry whether the number of cottages are increafed or decreafed, 182. — i- number of cottages returned in 1759 and 1781, 182. «... ftages of, as afFeAed by the employment of the people, 187. ' . ' ' ''^ 1' • ^ • " — «— progrefs of, from the conqucJH to the prefent time, ac- cording to the employment, 18S. _-. arguments of an encreafed, from the regifteri of bap- tifms, 192^ *- ^ ».^^ no arguments to be drawn from fome counties being faid to have decreafed, which is in general owing to the -A;' '^f. Mgle{k of making accurate returnsj 192 3c;*; Pofulatim •? *:: •A' INDEX. ftpuUtion •f EngUntl, law of fettlementi detrimental to, 194. 9P»— increafed in Lancafhire, within 90 years, more than with the boafted rapidity of the American ftates, 195. ■ — a' prefent more than eight millions, 196. P$pmIat$tnc/JrtLndt increafe in, 196. V— i— (late of the hearth-tax at vafious periods, from 1687 to I78if I97* •— — ftate of, in 1672, and at prefent, 198. Population of Seotlandt ftate of, at the Union, compared with England, from the revenue, the caftom«hoofe duties, poll. ages, re-coinage, and excife, 199. •-— at the Union, the number of people complained of as a burthen^ 30O1. •»— advantages derived to it from the Union, 200. Pojl Offife, average revenue, four 1^ years of W. Ill, iC.82,319, 79. -— firft four of Q^ Anne's war, ^^.6 1,568, 79, , ' — 1707, 8, 9, 10, average, j^.58,052, 80. - — 171 1, la, 13, 14, average, £.go»2il, 80, ■■ ■ I income of, in 1754 and 1764, 116. ■ »•« >. > nrv m revenue of, 1764 and 1774, compared, 1 34, ->— •-~. revenue of, in 1755, 1765, 1775, >784» »45» - - Pre/st indipinitnt^ of more efficacy than penalties, 161. Preereatiettt Judge Hale, Sir James Stuart, and Buffbn, con- iider men as urged to it by natural inilind, 1. ■f — ^ RevolutioH, advantages and dlfadvantages of, 65. ^ ■II ■ changed the maxims of adminiftration, 66, Richard III. King, during his reign the trade carried on chiefly by Italians, 22. Romattit continued in England from 55 years before Chrift to the year 446 after, 3. ,^ ' "'_ Sailors, the number employed In 17Q0, i, compared with thofe employed between 1764 and 74, 186. Scotland, advantages derived to that country from the Union, 200. .^pwc ftate of the linen manufaftory in 1728 and 177(1* ^°°' -v . , Scotland, INDEX. fifotkud, ftate of the (hipping and commerce in 17 1 a and 1 784^ 201. r— r- improvement! in the manufaAures of, 205. ^hippingt in 1702, 190,533 tons, and 11,432 failori, 57. rr— comparifon of the export! of 1726, 7, 8, with 1731(9 7, 8, 99. >— — ftate of, at variou! periods, from 1736 to 175 1, 10^ g — — from 1749 to 176a, 115. ri — — to 1766, 116. ^>*>'' — — ufeful regulations of, 132. •-~— a comparifon of the (hips cleared outwards in 1764, 5, 6, with 1772, 3, 4, 134. r— — (late of the (hips cleared outward from 1772 to 1782, 141. --— comparifon of the (hips cleared outward in 1758, 91 60, I, 2, with 1778, 9, 80, 1, 2, 142. r-— (hips cleared outwards atdi(Ferent epochs, fro|a 174910 1782, 145. ■!■ '■ of K. William's re|gn, compared with that of the pre* fen t reign, 186. •— '^ (late of that of Scotland before the Union, in 1712, an4 in 1784, 201. •-»— comparifon of the (hips cleared optward and entered inward in 1709, 18, 37, 51, 2, 3, 71, 2, 3, and 1784, ' 226, fi/ii(/)g;j'^»a *i 'r-.tt^VtU- *.;>l^:itra■ mrt ;c»'«^y.tr..v>:- ^' ^-'- ?t»^.::. ■;;^«.«,{5 ^iifllf