jii!!|i!P^^^ UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES POLITICAL SURVEY O F BRITAIN: BEING A SERIES OF REFLECTIONS O N T H E SITUATION, LANDS, INHABITANTS, REVENUES COLONIES, AND COMMERCE OF THIS ISLAND. INTENDED TO SHEW That we have not as yet approached near the Summit of Improvement, but that it will afford Employment to many Generations before they pufh to their ntmofl: Extent the natural Advantages of Great Britain. IN ¥ W O VOLUMES. By JOHN C A M P B E L L, L. L. D, VOL. L LONDON: PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR; And Sold by Richardson and Urquhart, at the Royal Exchange ; J. WiLKrr» in St. Paul's Church-yard ; T. Cadell, P. Elmslev, aiui T. BiicicET, in the Strand; J. Walter, and T.Durham, at Charing-crols ; J. Do-dslev, Pall- mall; and L. Davis, Holborij. M DCC I.XXIV, 65 15 1"^ '^X>A 6^0 c 15 y v.. THE PREFACE. l^ ^nr^HE Contemplation of a magnificent Strudure and of an M extenlive Work are Objedls exceedingly pleafing to the Imagination, Plans of both may without much Difficulty be (ketchcd out, and if thefe are fo fortunate as to meet with I Approbation the Profped becomes more flattering, and the Exe^ ? cution feems the more eafy. In a little Time however a new ej and a very different Scene prefents itfelf. The Conftrudion fa p. both Cafes is found full of Difficulties unexpeded, and embai- g rafled with Impediments that were unforefeen, all requiring much Thought and Labour to remove. Sometimes the necef- .^ fary Materials are wanting, fometimes thofe that had been pro- cured arc difcovered to be defective, fometimes this happens after they have been employed, when it becomes neceffary to look out for frefli and to build anew ; fometimes they lie at a great Dii- tance, and often depend upon others, which of courfe occa- fions frequent Difippointments and unavoidable Delav. To all this the poor Architect hath nothing to oppole but Patience and Perfeverance, fupported by the Confcioufnefs of the Redi- tude of his own Intentions, and of his proceeding with a!l the Expedition thatunder fuch Circumftances is in his Power. Happy A if ^^.7 0i.Mi n R E F A C E. if at laft his Endeavoiu-s meet with a favourable Reception, and the Public is difpofed to afford their Sandioii to the Pains and Toil he has taken to merit their Efteem, the Hopes of v/hicli alone fupported him in the Execution of his Talk. In the Firft Book the Bafis of this Work is eftablifhed. In that an Enquiry hath been made as to the natural Advantages from which fome Countries have been rendered fertile, and their In- habitants profperous and potent, and into the Caufes why others have either never rifen into fuch Confequence or have quickly declined. Thefe Principles being fupported by Fads, and from thence recommended to the Reader's Judgment, the natural Prerogatives of thefe Iflands have been largely examined, their Excellencies pointed out, confirmed by Inftances perfcdlly well known, and as Occafion offered fome new Improvements fuggefted. If in refpect to thefe we had been lefs explicit or not attentive in bringing Proofs for every Thing that is advanced, the remaining Part of this Performance would have been fome- times doubtful, and frequently obfcure. But the Reader being previoufly acquainted with thefe Matters will be able to apply them without Difficulty, fo as to prevent the Neceffity of Repe- titions and Digreffions which might have embarraffed the fub- fequent Subjects of which we treat. In this Book all imagin- able Pains hath been taken to (hew that all Things effential to the Welfare and Grandeur of a People, the Inhabitants of thefe Iflands have in their Power; and that if their Numbers fhould be greatly increafed, which, confidering the Extent of our Em- pire, is a Thing much to be wifhed ; there are no Grounds to apprehend their Want either of Subfiftence or Employment. We have been particularly copious in refpe6l to the lefs known or at leaft lefs confidered Dependencies on thefe Iflands, that by making their Confequences appear they might be thought worthy of more Notice for the future, and this the rather, be- caufe R E F A C E. Ill caufe the bringing them into a clofer Conneclion with our Two great Iflands would prevent the Emigrations of their In- habitants from Necefhty, and thereby incrcafe the Body of the Nation by an AccefTion of adive and indufliioiis Subjedls, which is a Point of the highefl: pohtical Importance, and vvhich, from a Variety of Circumftances, we have Reafon to think will ap- pear more and more manifed: every Day. This broad Foundation being thus laid, we have proceeded to a more minute Inquiry into the Extent of this Country, and to render this more uleiul and fatisfadory, to compare it with the other great States of Europe, in order to fl:iew, that with the Advantage of our infular Situation, we have juft Grounds to prefume, that by a prudent and fteady Management we may be able to fuftain that vvide expanded Empire vvhich Providence hath been pleafed to befiow. A curfory Difculiion of the Na- tive Commodities, the Produdions vvhich Skill and Induflry have drawn forth, and the Means by which all thefe may be preferved and improved, became our next Care. In treating thefe Subjeds we have been peculiarly attentive to the numerous Helps and Inftruments that Science, fupported by public Spirit, hath furnilhed, for promoting the Skill and rewarding the Toil of our People, fo as to render their Emoluments equivalent to their Pains. The -various States of this Country in different Pe- riods have been brought to the Reader's View, and their Caufes traced through the different Modes of Government which in thole different Periods have prevailed. The gradual Growth of our prefent excellent Conftitution hath been explained, or at leaft endeavoured to be explained, its beneiicial Confequences de- fcribed, and the Reafons (hewn why we may hope it will conti- nue for Ages, and during its Continuance be produdiveot the like good Effeds. This is chiefly founded in the rendering it evi- dent that the Happinefs of the People is and muft be its primary A 2 Objed, IV R E F A ObjcifV, and that while they arc true to tliclr own IntercHs, it nuifl from thence remain unOiaken and feciire. In this diffi- cult Undertaking \vc have dircftcd our Courle not by any pre- conceived political Syftem of Opinions, but by the Evidence af- forded us by Facts, confidering public Dleffings, and the flou- lifhing State of the Community as tlic eflential and incontro- vertible Marks of a good Government, and much more to bcL relied on than any fpeculative Sentiments whatever. As a very noble and fhining Inflance of that Profperity •which hath attended the full Ertablifhment of our free Con- {litution, Vv^e have laboured to give a comprehenfive, though a fuccinft Account of our PoileiTions, Colonies, and Settlements in all the different Parts of the Globe, and to fhew how far they have contributed to the Grandeur and Opulence, of the Britifh Empire. A Subjed in itfelf equally pleafing, entertaining, and inftrudlive, as it proves the InHuence of Commerce and mari- time Power, by which Dominions fo extenfive and at fo great a Diftance have been acquired and united to us by the Ties of mutual Interefis and a reciprocal Communication of Benefits,, whereas other great Empires have been ufually founded in Vio- lence, and the Succefs of Armies from whence they carried in themfelves the Seeds of their owa Deftrudion from the na.tural Repugnance of human Nature to a ilavifh Subjedion, from which the Subjedls of Britain wherever feated are free. This naturally leads to the Confideration of our foreign Commerce,, the interior Trade of the Kingdom, and thofe different Na- vifrations which are, and muft ev^er be, the Support of our Ma- ritime Power, as that is of our Empire. Thefc we have care- fully endeavoured to render as plain, diftind", and obvious as poffible, that it might clearly appear we have not over-rated either the Advantnres of our infular Situation or their Effects in fecuring to us all the Benefits that can be derived from 6 the PREFACE. V the different Branches of Traffic that human Wifdom hath hi- therto been able to devife. This is a concife Account of what hath been attempted in a Political Survey of Britain : An At- tempt in which, on the Plan here purfucd, we had no Guide, though many Helps and Informations, without which, what- ever it may be, it could never have been performed, and for which, where it was in our Povv'cr, and we were permitted, we have paid our grateful Acknowledgments, and muft reft all our Hopes on the Reader's Candour, and the Confideration of the numerous and great Difficulties that neceffarily lay in the Way of an Undertaking of fuch Extent, and which, as might be eafily fhewn, was both altering and extending while in our Hands. In a Work, which from its Nature, required the Inveftiga- tion and Difcuffion of fuch a Variety of arduous and difficult Subjeds, it would be very great Prefumption to fuppofe that the Author, in Spite of all his Care and Attention hath not com- mitted a Multitude of Miftakes, which, no Doubt, will appear to fuch as are better acquainted with particular Subjedls, than, he is or pretends to be ; this put him under the Neceffity of applying to the Candour of the judicious Reader, and this flatters him with the Expectation, that his Appeal will not be in vain. In proportion as Men are judicious, they are ufually impartial and compaffionate, difpofed to excufe involun- tary Errors, and thofe Miftakes that a,rife Vvithout any ill Defign. The Truth is, that fuch an Attempt was almoft beyond the Reach of any One Man's Abilities, of 'which none could be more confcious than himfelf. If it fliould be alked. Why then did you undertake it, or perfift in your Under- taking ? To this it is ingcnuoufly anfvvered, from a full Con- viction, that a V/ork of this Kind might be of the greateft Pub- lie Utility, and that it had better be imperfcdly performed than. not VI R E F A C E. not performed at all. The Scnfe of this he expreffed when he ojffered his Propofals to the Public, and the kind Reception they met with leaves him no Room to doubt that his Imperfec- tions, whatever they may be, will not cancel the only Merit to which he pretends, that of having a ftudious Regard to Truth, and as far as his Underftandiug could direct him, to the public Good. It may be expeded that he fhould make fome Apology for fo long a Delay ; but the principal Part of his Defence in that Refpe6l is already couched in the Firll Paragraph of this Pre- face. He alfo hopes it will be conlidered that the moffc inte- refting War in which thefe Kingdoms were ever involved broke out while he was writing, and that it was impoilible to finifh feveral Parts of this Work till that War was happily con- cluded by a Peace. He may alfo plead that in fuch a Period fo many and fo great Alterations perhaps never occurred in our Concerns, to which it was likewife his Duty to pay a due Re- gard. He may add to all this, that it was equally his Willi and his Intereft to have finifhed it fooner, but he trufts that many Circumftances in the Book itfell will fliew, that for the Sake of obtaining neceffary Informations he was frequently conftrained to delay. It is the favourite Labour of his Life, and he hopes that Indulgence which upon other Occalions he hath fo frequently and gratefully experienced v/ill be likewife extended to this, and thereby render the Evening of his Day fcrene. T H E THE POLITICAL SURVEY O F EAT BR-IT AIN. BOOK I. C II A P T E R L nr'HE great Object of true Policy is, to render the Society as happy as the -^ Situation and Circiimjlances of it will allow. • This proves no very eafy 'Tajk, where ynany Advantages feem to concur: Tet is not impqffible, even ivhere thofe are infome meafure ivanting. '•Thefe 'Truths beji illujirated by FaSls, as deli- vered to us by Hrfory. Grandeur, Opulence, Order, Magnificence, and Hap- pinefs of the ancient Inhabitants of Egypt. Fate of that Country; Variety of Majiers; fill retains the Veftigcs of better Times. Cbitiefe held by fome very judicious Men to be defended from the Egyptians. There is a very great Re- femblance in the Principles ofGovermnent in theje Nations, and ?io lefs in their Conditions. The riding Maxim of both Countries the fame : viz. univerfal Obedieyice to the Laws. Spain in ancient Times a very fruitful Country., in- habited i>y a numerous, brave, andindufrious People. Now, thro the i'cr- VoL, L B dinaie 2 The POLITICAL SURVEY dlnate Ambition ofitsMonarchs, become poor, thinly peopled, and the Shadow of 'what itoticewas. Italy, the Garden of Europe, and full of Plenty, lohen under a right Form of Rule. The pajl and prefent Condition of the Repub- lics in that Country defcribed. The Nature and Circumjlances of the Helvetic Body, and the Territories they pofj'cfs. Highly improved, exceedingly popu- lous, andy comparatively [peaking, very rich. The Caifes of the Grandeur andWealth of the Loiv Countries. The Manner of their Fall, and the Confe- quences. The ivonderfid Rife and Progrefs of the Dutch Republic. The true Caufes of their firm EJlabliJhment, and rapid Advancement. Some of their capital Maxims. The Ufe of thefe Hijiorical Reprefentations. A Sketch of the P:ints of great efi Importance in national and genuine Policy. Infinitely preferable to thofe Intrigues which in the prefent Age ifurp this Title. TH E Modern?, in exalting the Quality, have ftrangely debafed the Nature, of P O L I C Y, by ufing that Term to exprefs Intrigues of State, the Secrets of the Cabinet, or the Skill of managing Affairs in a Court; which confequently implies great Imperti- nence in private men, to meddle uncalled, in fuch Bulinefs ; and that fupe- rior Parts, and peculiar Genius, are requifite to fuch as are initiated into thefe Myfteries. But the original Meaning of the Term, and what may be fliled its genuine Signification, is, the Art of ordering all Things for the common Benefit of the Citizens in a free State; which plainly leaves every Man at lead the Liberty to ftudy it, if, as Occafion ferves, it does not prefcribe it as a Dutyi the Will or Intention of doing which, is what we call Public Spirit ». The Perfedion of POLICY, confidered in this Light, and I mean to meddle with it in none but this, is fo to improve the natural Advantages in the Pofief-- fion or in the Power of the Society to which it is applied, as to make all with- out Diilin(5tion, who compofe that Society, as happy as it is poflible; and to place this Ilappinefs on the firmeft Bafis, fo as that neither the ever-mutable Tempers of Men, or the inevitable Viciffitudes of Time, fhould affect it''. We know, that in this World Perfedlion is not to be attained; but it ought notwithftanding to be aimed at, becaule, without keeping this unattainable Perfection fteadily in View, we cannot proceed far in what is to be attained; and for this Purpofe, perhaps. Providence indulged to us fuch an Idea^. Where a Country is favourably difpofed, in refpefl to Sun and Soil ; where her Produdtions are equally numerous and valuable; where Inhabitants abound, and all things feems to promife Plenty and Grandeur; we Ihould fuppofe that fmall Skill might fuffice, and that, with the Exuberance of the Golden Age, its Innocence alfo would return, and Mankind enjoy Abun- bance, with little Labour, and an happy State of Tranquility, almoft without a Aiiftotells Politicoium, lib.iii. cap. i. et lib. vii, cap. i. *> Ciccr. de Leg. lib. iii. de Fiiiib. lib. v. Senec. de Clement, lib. 1. ' Cicer. de Offic. lib. ii. 85, 86. Eplft. ad Quint, i. Lamprid- in Alex. Sev. cap. 45. La\V3. of GREAT BRITAIN. 3 Laws. But Experience fliews quite the contrary. The finefl Countries are often Delarts; Nature's Indulgence is frequently negleftedj and thofe, who might, with a little Attention, be the Mafters, at leaft the Envy, become, thro' their own OmifTions, the Subjefts or the Scorn of their wifer, and of confequence their happier Neighbours d. In the mofl fertile, in the beft fitCiated Countries, Prudence is rather more requifite, than where thefe Blelhngs are wanting; fince, in fuch, Necellity fupplies her Place, and, tho' a harfher, is frequently found to be a Miftrefs better obeyed. It is with Na- tions, as with private Men : Thofe who fet out with the ampleft Stock, and the fairelt Profped:, do not always meet with the greateft Succcfs; tho' gene- rally this, in both Cafes, fprings from their own Fault e. Plenty may be very eafily abufed; and as it is an old, it is alfo a very juft Maxim, that whenever the beft Things are corrupted, they become the worlh It is from hence, that in whatever Country, blelled with Advantages by Nature, the Inhabitants once degenerate, they are rarely, if ever, recovered out of that low and defpicable State, but remain, like Monuments of felf-wrought Mifery, fet up by Providence, for the Information of the rell: of Mankind f. But in Places where the common Neceffaries of Life are hardly obtained, where the Soil is ingrateful, and the Climate fcarce tolerable, it ihould feem that even VVifdom, at leaft human Wifdom, could do little, except figgeft- ing the fhort Mealure of quitting the Place. However, we plainly fee this is not fo. Such Countries as thefe, or at leaft fuch as have been in this Condi- tion, are fo far from being uninhabited, that they fwarm with People, who, by a due Exercife of their Heads and their Hands, remove, or at leaii qualify, all Hardfliips, procure unlooked-for Conveniences, improve what feemed in- capable of any Improvement, invent, vary, and adopt foreign Inventions, till, in the Clofe, they fo fir alter their own Condition, and in doing this that of their Country, as to leave us no Evidence but Hiftory, compared with the Lights of Reafon, to fliew what they and it once were g. Amongft fuch Nations, the Maxims of that Prudence, by which they are directed, ftreng- then in a Courle of Years into Habits, and ferve to maintain that beautiful Strudlure, which, whenfirft pradifed, theyraiied. Thus Governmentsfpring- ir/g out of common Diftrefs, and which receive their original Confiftence from the concurrent Neceffities of their Subjedls, proceed flowly; but refift all Op- pofition, knit clofely, and become gradually fo compadl, as to defend them- felves better againft Time and Accidents, than Empires eftablilhed in finer ■' Herodot. lib. i. Juftin. lib. ii. cap. 13. . SaluHr. Orationci. de Republica ordinnnda. •= Cicer. pro Rofc. Amer. ii. 75. Valer. Max. lib. ix. Sil. Italic, lib. xv. Pell. Punic. f Juftin. lib. x.xxvi. cap. 4. Claudian. lib. iii. in Stilicoa. laud. Machiavel. de Republica, lib. i. cap. 17 et 55. g Tacir. de moribus Germanonim, cap. ii. Simlcr. de Republica Helvet. Sir William Temple's Obfervations on the Netherlands. B 2 Countries, 4 The POLITICAL SURVEY Countries, quicker in Growth, and much more promifing in Appearance Ji. Luxuriant Plains produce Trees for Shade; but on the bleak Alountains rife the Pine, the Oak, and the Cedar >. Thus then it appears that Policy, which is the common Senfe of Govern- ment, or rather common Senfe applied to Government, is every-where re- quifitc, ferving in fomc Nations to rcftrain, in others to excite, in all to methodize and dired, the Endeavours of a Nation ^. But to under/land this thoroughly and pradlically, the bed: Way is to confider the Evidence of Fads, which, of all others, affords the clearert, founded:, and moft imitable Infl:ru(ftion, as propofing nothing to our Attempt, but what others have ac- complilhed. We learn from thence, in the mod: pleafmg and in the moft convincing Manner, from our own Obfervations and Reflcdions i. We are apt to doubt the Validity even of the mod; conned^ed Reafonings, when they do not concur with our own Notions, and to efteem them at bed: but probable Conjedures. Experience is a more prevailing Guide; (he brings her Witneffes with her, whom we may examine in the ftrided: Manner; and, when we have their concurrent Teltimonies, we cannot refufe our Affentm. We know, that the Powers and Abilities of Mankind are nearly the fame in all Countries, and therefore cannot difpute, that what they have been able to effedl in one Place, they may likewife bring about in another. The mod: celebrated Nation among the Ancients, in point of Wifdom, Power, and Manners, were the Egyptians ; and they were defervedly famous in all rcfpedls. The Country of Egypt derived great Advantages from Nature, but her earlied: Inhabitants had been very miferable, if they had not derived many more Advantages from Art ". The Nile was their only River; and its annual Overflowings, inllead of a Bleding, might have been a Curfe, if the Rulers of this Country had been lefs attentive and fagacious than they were, or the People lefs obedient. All the Cities and Towns were placed upon Eminences, raifed by the Labour, and difpofed by the Prudence, of Man. The Waters were conduced to them by Canals, from whence, at the proper Seafon, the whole flat Country was flooded ; but to a proper Degree only, and for a proper Time °. Many fine Cities were eredled at convenient Di- ftances, ftrong Fortreffes covered their Frontiers, Ports were opened on the Mediterranean and on the Red Sea; there was nothing fo extenfive as their h Ritratti della Cofi d'Alcraagna, di Nicolas Machiavelli. Georgii Hornii Ulyfifes peregrinans, lib. i. Burnet's Letters. ' Evelyn's Sylva, Book ii. Ch.ip. 2, 3. '• Ariflot. iv. Ethic, cap. 5. Demofthencs, Orat. i. contra Ariflog. Cicer iv. ad Herreninm. 1 Ariftot. i. Rhetor, cap. 5. Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. lib. i. Polyb. Hid. lib. r. ra Plutarch in Timoleonte. Liv. Hift. lib. i. Iftorie Florentine di Nicol. Machiavelli, lib. viii. " Herodot. lib. ii. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. p. 787. Voyages de Thevenot. " Herodot. lib. ii. Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. lib. i. Plutarch, de Fac. in Orb. Lun. Commerce, of GREAT BRiTAIIsr. 5 Commerce, except their Reputation p. Their Laws were very fevere, but they were excellently contrived; and their Kings obferved them as punctually as the loweft of their Subjedls. If a Citizen was injured, the Conflitution armed every Citizen for his Defence ; and a Malefadtor, as foon as he be- eame fo, had for his Profecutors the whole Nation q. Every Man had his Calling and his Refidence affigned ; fo that none knew how or where to be idle. They had Laws todifcourage borrowing; but the Law firft provided, that there Ihould be Plenty '". They had Armies, and they were well dif- ciplined ; but they adled chiefly on the Defenfive. The Egyptians were known to Foreigners by theirColonies. They fent their People abroad to pro- pagate Science and Morals, not to confound or deflroy «. This great Em- pire fublifled lixteen hundred Years. It fell at laft ! Ambition, Luxury, and Fadlion, were the Caufes of that Fall, from which it never recovered t. Tho' the Nation was thus enflaved, and fpent her little remaining Strength in fruitlefs Endeavours to regain her Liberty, when Ihe had loft her Virtue, yet all the natural and acquired Advantages of the Country remained to the Conquerors, and Egypt was the principal Jewel in the Perfian Diadem ". It was the favourite Province of Alexander, when his Flatterers ftiled him the Mafter of the World w. Ptolemy Philadelphus, the moft famous of the Greek Monarchs who ruled here, kept up an Army of three hundred thoufand Foot, and twenty thoufand Horfe, exclufive of the greateft Maritime Force the World could then boaft ; ereded Cities ; made new Havens ; lived in prodigious Splendor and Magnificence ; and yet left upwards of one hun- dred and ninety Millions Sterling in his Coffer-s at his Deceafe^. His Suc- cefTors were firft vanqui{htd by Luxury, and next by the Romans. Egypt became then the Staff of that Empire, as it afterwards was of the Greeks,. while they held with the like Title Conflantinople y. It fell, through their ill Management, into the Hands of the Saracens ; and, after being lubjedl to two Dynafties of Mamalukes, was at length conquered by the Turk?, in whofe Power it now is ^. In fpite of a SuccelTion of barbarous Mafters, it ftill retains the Veitiges of its ancient Grandeur, and appears majeftic even in Ruins ''. Thofe Ruins, that bear inconteftible Evidence to die P Strabon. Ceograph. lib. xvii. Diod. Siciil. Biblioth. lib. i. cap. 5. Euripid. Troad. "i Herodot. lib. ii. Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. lib. i. Plat, in Tim. ' Herodot. lib. ii. p. 62. Didor. Sicul. Biblioth. lib. i. cap. 6. ^ Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. Pompon. Mela, lib. i. c. 9. Tacit. Ann. lib. ii. ' Herodot. lib. iii. Diodor. Sicul. lib. xi. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. " Herodot. lib. vli. p. 167. Diodor. Sicul. lib. xv. c. 11. Xenophon. "" Diod. Sicul. Biblioth. lib. xvii. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. Plutarch, iu Alexandro. X Appian. Alexand. in Prsefat, '' Cod. Theodof. lib. xiii. tit. 5. kg. 32. "^ Elmacin.Hift Saracen. lib. ii. cap. 16, 17. Pocockii Snpplementum Hill:. Dynaft. p. 29. * Petri Bellonii Obfervationes. P. Vanfleb, r.ouvcl'.e Rtlatiou d'ur. Voyage tr.it en Egypte en 1672 et 1673, Voyages de Thevenor, Lucas, &c. TrutJi 6 The POLITICAL SURVEY Ti luh of ancient Hirtory, and leave us without Scruple, as to the Veracity of wliat is recorded of the Wifdom of its ancient Princes, and the amazing Docility, and yet more amazing Induflry, of their Subjedls '>. This Coun- try of Wonders, this primary Seat of Science, Arts, and Commerce, ex- celling all other Lands in Plenty, and in the Number of Lihabitants, in point of Extent is not altogether twice as large as Britain. Some of the rnDfl judicious among the Learned have fuppofed, that the Chineie are defccndcd from the Egyptians. Tradition, Similarity of Man- ners, and the Events that have happened to both Governments, ftrongly favour this Conjedf ure <^. One of the darkeft Points of the Egyptian Hirtory, is the Expedition of Ofn-is, or Bacchus, into the Indies. The Origin of the Chincfe cannot well be more obfcure "^. The Spirit of the Laws, in both Countries, is precifely the fame, being calculated to regulate even the minut- elt Aftions of Man, to promote Induftry, to preferve Juftice, and to place the JVIajeily of the Empire in the Happinefs of the Subjedl, rather than in fo- reign Conquells «. If there was a Defedt in the Egyptian Policy, it lay in their Militia : They were fine Troops, exadily difciplined, ever ready for Service j but when they came to Adtion they wanted Spirit. This is the Cafe of the Chinefe : They fhould be Soldiers, and they are Machines. But in boih Countries the Frame of the Conftitution has been fo admirable, that they have changed Mafters without changing their Cuftoms : So the Ethi- opian Monarchs ruled Egypt ; fo, at this Day, the Tartars govern China, Mafters of the People, but fubmilFive to their Laws ^. At this Day China is, in a great meafure, what Egypt was; and this from the fame Caufes, and from a flrong Refemblance in the Nations. The Chinefe are, from their very InAxncy, trained to Indufcryand Labour: Such Principles as are neceflary to the Well-being of Society are fo inculcated from their Childhood, as, when they grow up, to ftrengthen into Habits g. Perfonal Merit is the only Road to Preferment, and the fole Title to Nobility. The Welfare of the People is the declared Objed: of the Government ; and there are fo many ieen and unfeen Checks upon the Adminiftration, that no great Error can pafs without Notice, no Crime of any Magnitude remain long unpuniflied. The Emperor himfelf is accountable, bccaufe he prefers, to the Pomp and Pleafures of the Imperial Dignity, his Reputation. Where '' Melton, Kircher, Maillet, Shaw, Pococke, Templeman's Survey. <= Huet, Hilloire du Commerce et de la Navigation des Ancicns, Chap. x. ■• Herodot. lib. ii. p. 46, 64. Diodor. Skul. lib. i. cap. 2. Strabon. Geojraph. lib. xi. ' Marci Pauli Veneti, Relat. de Regionibus Orleiitalibus. Gruberi, Taitarica et Sinica. Adr. Miilleri, de Sinenfium rebus Epirtola. ' Hiftoiie de la Conquete de la Chine paries Tartares, traduite de I'Efpagnol de M. de Palafox. ° Tratados Hiftoricos, Politicos, Ethicos y Religiofos, de la Monaichia de China, con de- fcripcion bieve de aquel Imperio, y exemplos raros, de Emperadores y Magiftrados en cl, por Do- mingo Fernandez Navaiette. Madrid, 1676. Folio. 3 every of GREAT BRITAIN. 7 every Man does his Duty, every thing will profper. The Provinces of China are in the moil flourilhing Condition ; their Lands exad:ly cultivated ; even their Mountains dilpofed into Terraces, and the Rocks themfelves fcarce fuf- fered to be barren ; Public Roads every-v/here kept in perfect Order, at the Public Expence ; Canals fo judicioufly difpofed, that the mofi; dillant Parts of the Empire correfpond by Water-carriage ; Colleges, Bridges, Triumphal Arches, and whatever regards the Publick, ftable and ftately ; while Neat- nefs and Convenience charafterize private Dwellings. Our European Trad- ers reproach thefc People with Fraud, Timidity, and Treachery : But as they converfe only with the Scum of a trading Town, it is unfair, from fuch a Sample, to judge of a great Nation : And befides, thefe are Drawbacks; for, without Doubt, fuch Qualities cannot either recommend them, or conduce to their Profperity. Domeftic Commerce, that is, the Trade carried on be- tween the feveral Provinces and Dependencies of this Empire, is the great Source of its Wealth, and a due Diftribution of that the Caufe of univerfal Plenty ^\ But then China is Fifteen times larger than Great Britain and Ire- land ; and, tho' not half the Size of Europe, contains full as many People K These Empires are mentioned, not only from the Notoriety of tlie Fadls that regard them ; but becaufe, in Reality, there are fcarce any other, at leaft of tolerable Extent, that can. be mentioned as Inftances of a judicious and fuccefsful Policy, under which the Country has been fully peopled, compleatly cultivated, and Mankind made happy, or at leaft fur- nifhed with the Means of being fo, as far as the Means of Happinefs regard this Life. Before we draw nearer home, it may not be amifs to infift oa one Circumftance common to the Egyptian and to the Chinefe Conftitution, and which may poffibly be confidered as the fecret Spring keeping thefe great Machines of Government in Motion. Amongll the former it was, amongft the latter People it is, an inviolable Maxim, that their Laws fliall be known and obeyed !<. There are no fuch Things as dormant Statutes, different and perplexed Liftitutions, fome prevailing here, and fome there, but one uniform Plan of Government pervades all, is univerfaily underftood, devoutly revered, and generally pradlifed. It is not eafy to conceive a Monarchy more compa<3:, or a Country better fituated, than Spain; furrounded on three Sides by the Ocean and the Me- diterranean, fortified on the fourth by the Pyrenees ' ; feated in an excellent Climate, finely diveriified with Mountains and Valleys, producing ufeful and '■ P. !e Corapte, Mcmoires de la Chine, vol. ii. let. i. Defcription of Chma by Dlonyfiiis Kao,. a Native of that Empire, in Harris's Voyages, vol. ii. p. 988. P. du Halde, Defcription de I'Em- pire dc la Chine, Tom. ii. p. 172, 186. ^ Tern pieman's Survey, pi. 23. ^ HeroJot. lib. ii. Diod. Sicul. lib. i. Plat, de I cgibu?, lib. ii. Nav.ireUe Tratados hifto- ricos, S:c. de la Monarchia de China, lib. ii. c. 3. ' Ccllarius, Cluverius, Luyts in Hifp<.n. Defcript, valuable 8 The POLITICAL SURVEY valuable Commodities, ?nd in every Part open to Commerce. In ancient Times, when divided into .runy Princip.ilities, the Inhabitants of this Coun- try were brave, were rich, and numerous, defended thcmfelves gaUantly againll the Carthaginians and Romans, were efteemed even by their Con- querors, and celebrated for their Virtues by their Hiftorians m. In ],\ter Ages the Goth c Monarchy in Spain was extremely flourilhing and potent, till it fell by its own Weight, that Luxury which Wealth introduced, and that Corruption of Morals which naturally attends it ". Yet nearer our own D.iys, when divided into many Chrirtian and MooriQi Principalities, the Whole was thoroughlv peopled, and fully cultivated, and was, in all Refpedls, one of the richeft and moft fruitful Countries In Enrope. If we read tKe Hillory of the Wars of Granada, we (hall ftand amazed, to find what mighty Forces were in the Field on both Sides, tho' the Provinces under the Dominion of the Crown of Arragon took no Share in the Quarrel". While this War lafted, -America was difcovered ; fince which Period more Gold and Silver have been poured into Spain, than ever came into any other Part of the World p. BotrNDLESs Power, and immenfe Treafures, infplred the Princes of the Houfe of Aultria with an Ambition fatal to themfelves and to their Subjefls. Unlatisfied with' the greatell Empire that perhaps Men ever governed, and believing Supplies derived from the Mines of America to be inexhauftible, they kept nothing in View but the gratifying their own Pailions, to which, tho' coloured with many fpecious Pretences, without Scruple, they facrificed the Interefts and the Lives of their Subjefts q. In confquenceof this, Spain is no longer what it was; the Bulk of the Inhabitants are lazy, poor, and proud; the Country itfelf deformed, as well as depopulated; Sands and Defarts, where formerly grew the moft luxuriant Harvells ; and there is not now, in the Kingdom of Granada, a Spot of Ground, however favourably fituated, fo rich and fertile as the moft rocky and inacceffible Mountains were in the Time of the Moors ^ There is no Doubt that the Expulfion of this Nation who were naturally frugal and induftrious, was one great Caufe of this Revo- lution. The Multitudes that have tranfported themfelves to America is faid to be another. More penetrating Judges always thought otherwife ; and tl;e Spaniards themfelves are now of that Mind, convinced by a Point of Facl:, that the Provinces privileged to fend People to America are the moft populous, and that Inch as have not that Privilege, the moft thinly inhabited of any in ■" Strabon. Geogniph. lib. iii. Tit. Liv. Hift. Rom. ap. Roder. Sant. Juftin. flirt, lib. xllv. » Rodericus Toietanus, de Rebus Hifpanicis. Vafstus, in Chron. Hifp; Garibay. " Mariana, Tiirquette, Feireras. P Moncada, Navarctte, Urtaritz. •i Memoires de la Coui- d'Efpagne, vol. ii. p. 193. V,iyrac, Etat prefent de I'Effagne, tOTi. i. liv. I. Hilloiy of Spanifli America, p. 294, 295, 296. ' Voyage de I'Efpigne, p. 365. D. Diego de Saavcdra, Idea de un Principe Poliuca Chriftiano Eropr. Lxvii. Vayrac, Etat prefent de I'Efpagae, lorn. iv. liv. 6. Spain. of GREAT BRITAIN. 9 Spain 5. The true Caufes are, that the Number, the Weight, and the Per- plexity of Taxes, in a great meafure dellroyed their TVlanuhdures : Tliis, to avoid llarving, drove away Multitudes of People, which unavoidably Icfiencd the Confumption of Corn, and other Neceflaries, and by difcouraging Agri- culture, rendered many fine Provinces Defarts. From thefe Difa 'ers their Commerce was entirely changed; Foreigners of different Nations fupplied them with all Kinds of Neceffaries, and coming at certain Seafons, reaped their fmall Harvefts, did other laborious work, and in return received hard Silver, which the Spaniards could not eat, drink, or wear*:. To thefe may be added, the excefiive Power and Revenues of the Clergy, the Severity of the Inquifition, the Perverfion of Juftice, the Obftinacy of the Court in pur- fuing foreign Objedls and Interefts, while they neglefted thofe of Spain ; Caufes clearly adequate to the Confequences afcribed to them, and which will certainly have the fame EfFedl in other Countries that we fee they have already had in this ". In point of Extent, Spain is about thrice as big as South Britain, though the latter is above four Times as populous as the for- mer, all Circumftances confidered w. Italy, the Garden of Europe in point of Situation and Soil, once the Seat of Empire, afterwards the Nurfe of Arts, when they revived in the Weft, the Mother of Manufadlures and of Commerce, what was, and what is her Condi- tion ! While fl^e enjoyed Liberty, or was governed by wife Princes, who con- fulted the Welfare of their Subjects, fhe was either the Miltrefs or the Envy of her Neighbours : But when both the Eaftern and Weftern Empires de- cayed, and this noble Country came to be divided into a Variety of Domini- ons, and thofe of different Kinds, flie experienced, as was natural, Diverffty of Fortunes. Under Commonwealths tolerably conftituted, all her natural Advantages appeared in their former Luftre x. But when Luxury corrupted thefe, or when Facflions opened the Way to Tyranny, all was thrown again into Confufion, and not the Cities and People only, but the very Country fuffered. The beft Part of the Territories of the Church, from fruitful and pleafant Plains, are become fteril and noifome Marlhes r. Tufcany, the Beau- ties of which inchanted Flannibal, is no more what it was, but a rude moun- tainous Region, that here and there however feems to reiift this Change of Fortune, and gives Evidence to the Truth of ancient Story, by fliewing what might ffill be done if under an equal Government, and thoroughly peopled '•. ^ Uflaritz, cap. xli, xiii. ' Caufes of the Decline of the Spanifh Monarchy, p. 193. Diftionn.iire de Corameixc, toai. ii. col. 31;. Etat prefent d'Efpagne, chap, i, xx. " Montefquieu de I'efprit desLoix, liv. xxu chap. 18. Wood's Survey of Tiad Relation du Sieur Fcrrand, touchant la Krimec, &c. Sir Philip Skippou's Account of the States of Italy, Addifon's Travels, p. 7. <: Martlnclli, Iftoria Critica della Vita civile, cap. 9. '' Hiftoire dc la Republiqu: de Genes, 1696. 13". Diif^Ionnaire de Commerce, torn. 5i. col. 490, 491. Ad Jifon's Travels, p. 6, 7. ' Ray's Travels, vol. 3. p. 221. Di(^nonnalrc de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 502. Gronden cnMaxi- mcn van de Republicck ,var. Holland,, iii. deel. cap. 3. ' Hoffman, de Republica, lib. vi. cap. 17. Addilbn's Travels, p. 7. Martinelli, Ifloria Critica della Vita civile, cap. 9. ^ Templeman's Survey, pi. 9. ii M. Zei!leri, To;-ographia Helvetiae, &c. Dclices dela Sulffe, a Leyde, 4 vol. 12". Ray's Tra- veb, vol. i. p. 375, 376. 5 every of GREAT BRITAIN. ii =every Side between it and the Ocean: Yet, with all this, it has its Advantages, which however had never been difcovered, but in confequenct of the Inhabit- ants recovering their Liberty in the Beginning of the fourteenth Century'. At prefent, the thirteen Swifs Cantons, the Grifons, their Allies, the Stipendiary Cities, and their Subjects, are a very formidable People, and compofe what is lliled the Helvetic Body. This is a Confederacy of the moft perplexed Kind ; for it is not only made up of many different Republics, each polTelfed of fo- vereign Authority in its own little Territory, and thofe Republics too of dif- ferent Religions; but fo various alio in the Form of their Governments, that it would demand a very able Head, and require a very confiderable Volume, barely to defcribe them. In this they all agree, that their Citizens enjoy a large Proportion of Liberty, with perfeft Security, at a fmall Expence k. Under thefe Governments, this Country has been improved to a Miracle. "Where the Lands are fertile and happily fituated, as in fome Places they are, they have been cultivated with the utmofl Skill and Succefs ; no Labour is fpared, no Art left untried, to meliorate the moft ungrateful': The very Mountains, where-ever it is poffible, are improved to their Summits, Corn, Wine, Oil, Silk, Flax, and Cotton, are produced in different Parts of their Territories, and vaft Quantities of the two laft Commodities are brought in, from other Parts, to be manufactured by their Subjeds. Thefe Manufactures again, are difperfed to different Parts of Europe, for which the Situation of their Country is extremely'proper, as it lies encompaffed by Germany, Italy, and France, and may be faid to have a Communication with the Ocean and the Mediterranean by the Rivers Rhine and Rhone ■". Several great Lakes facili- tate the inland Navigation, and thefe together with every Rivulet, are turned to fome advantageous Purpofe. In no Part of the known V/orld are the People, in general, more efteemed for their Courage, Candour, andFidehty, than here: Induftrious in the higheft Degree, very ingenious, more efpecially in all their Manufactures; diftinguifhed by their Probity in their Dealings, and owing the Fortunes they acquire in Trade, rather to Length of Time and conftant Fruga- lity, than great Profits ". This Country being, as we may eaiily fuppofe, much ever-peopled, a great Part of their Youth are bred to Arms ; but, inftead of fuffering this martial Turn to difturb either themfelves or their Neighbours, they let out their Troops by Capitulation, which brings various and great Emo- ' Plaiitlni, Helvetia antiqua et novn, Bernte 8". Abrege de rHiftoIre des Suifles. Bifliop Bur- net's Travels, Letter i. ' k Thefaurus Hiftoris Helvetia, Tiguri, Fol. Hiftoire de Geneve par M. Spon. 4 vol. 12°. Pre- fent State of SwifTerland. ' Heylin's Cofmography, p. 134. D'Andiffret Geogrr.phie ancienne et moJerne, torn. ii. p. 579 — 630. Memoirs de Bruys, vol. i. p. 99. ™ Luyt's Introd. ad Geographiam, p. 136 — 147. Johnfon"s Relations of the moH famous King- doms in Europe, p. 203. Du Bois, Geographic Moderne, vol. i. p. 223. » Diftionnarie de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 304. Sir Philip Skippon's Account of the States ia Italy. Addifon's Travels, p. 155 — 17S. C 2 luments 12 The POLITICAL SURVEY laments to tlie Nation ; thcfe diftiiigiufli thenifelves in the German, Spanifli,- Sardinian, Sicilian, and Dutch Services, but more efpecially in the French, where they have always made the Flower of the Infantry, and, exclufive of- very high'Pav, enjoy all the Privileges of Natives as the Reward of the im- portant, and indeed ineflimable Services, which in civil as well as foreign Wars, they have rendered that Crown ". Tliis whole Country is not above a fixth Part as large as the Ifle of Britain ; and the Canton of Bern, which is not more than half as big as Yorkshire, is able to bring into the Field one hundred Thoufand well difciplined Troops, at the fliorteft Warning p. In our Part of Europe, about the Time that the Normans fixed themfelves here, or it may be a little earlier, the Flemings began to alter their Charadler,- and, from being a fierce and unruly, became a civilized and commercial Peo- pled. The Fertility of their Lands furnifhed them ^vith a Superfluity of Commodities which they firft bartered and fold to their Neighbours; and thea the Trade of Weaving being fet up amongfl: them, their Labour increafed their Plenty to fuch a Degree, as drew Multitudes of People into thofe Provinces, where to facilitate this Growth of Inhabitants, and confequently of Wealth, the Sovereigns granted great Privileges ; fo that we need not at all wonder, that States fmall in Extent, became, in no very long Space, formidable to their Neighbours, where Freedom and Induftry had produced fuch amazing Abun- dance r. It is true, that thefe Countries were likewife fubjedl to great Incon- veniences, which however were only fuch as Iprang from the Abufeof Hap- pinefs, and confifting in popular Tumults, when the Fermentation fubfided,. Thine;s returned nearly into the old Channel. The immediate Cauies of thefe Diforders, were Taxes imprudently impofed by their Princes, or Re- flridlioiis in Trade, whjch had very bad Effeifi:s, though devifed by Traders themfelves s. For, whether owing to the Malignity of human Nature, or to feme other latent Source, fo it is, that Traders arc equally jealous of their, own' Liberties, and ready, when they, have it in their Power, . to circumfcriba the Freedom of other Men. In Procefs of Time, and through a Variety of Revolutions, Antwerp be- came the Center of the Trade of thefe Provinces, and out of Comparifon,. the moft wealthy and commercial City in all Europe. The Merchants of the Hans, or Confederated Towns in Germany, and the North, had their. ° Dirtionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 308. Johnfon's Relations of the moll famous King- doms of Europe, p. 206. P Tempkman's Survey, pi. 10. Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 375. Addifon's Travels, p. 167. 1 Petri Kaevii, Germatiia iuferior, Amflelodami, 1722. Fol. Delices des Pays Bas 1720, 4 vol. Crimfton's Hiftory of the Low Countries. r L. Guicciardini, Defcrittione di tutti Paefi Bafs. Fol, Auberti Mirxi, Rerum Belgicarum Chronicon. Heyiin's Cofmography. ' Francifci Harai, Annales Ducum Brabantii totiufquc Belgii, Fol. Maline's Lex Mercatoria. Cronden en Maximeii van de Republieck van Holland, i. deel. cap. 2. Staple of GREAT B R I T A I K. i j Staple there, and brought an immenfe Quanity of rough and grofs Goods to employ the A.'Tiduity of the laborious Flemings '. Thither likewife the Sub- jefts of the Italian Trading States carried their fineft Goods, and all the rich Produce of the Eaft. There likewife we fixed our Staple of Wool and Cloths, and, in a word. Accumulation of Wealth, and the Concourfe of Merchants, produced Banking; fo that almoft all the Sovereigns of Europe had Recourfe to the Money Merchants here, and paid largely for their Credit". It is in- credible to what a Height of Magnificence this City grew; with what State the principal Traders lived ; to how great a Degree all the neighbouring Po- tentates were interefted in their Safety and Prefervation ; and yet th'p very fame. Spirit of Avarice, Ambition, and Bigotry, led the fame Princes, who had. ruined Spain, in f;-ite of all her natural Advantages, to dellroy Antwerp alfo,. and to impoverhli the Inh.ibitants of the Low Countries, that fcr a Courfe of Ages had been improving a fruitful and excellent Country by all the Arts. of Indufiry and Commerce ". Thefe Provinces, excluding the Seven, which, in thefe Tim.es were but inconiiderable, in Point of Extent, are about Zi fixth Part of the lile of Britain ^. The Datcl> Commonwealth, or as we ufually call it from the largefc of its. Provinces, the Republic of Holland, is fcarce two hundred Years old, notwith- ilanding which the World perhaps does not, or ever did, produce an Inftance-- more to our Purpofe. The Foundation was laid m the midft of Storm.s and' Tempefis, and yet with great Prudence and Judgment. It was in efteft no., more than this, that in a Seafon of Religious Diicord and Civil Opprefiion, their- Governors declared fuch as would take; Shelter in thefe Provinces, fliould. live under a Government. attentive only to- the Good of its Subjedlsy. This. Promife was as fteadily kept as it was v.ikly made ; in confequence of which, a Country poor in itidf, and at that Time far enough from being pleafant,, became in a very fliort Space the richefl, the moft .flourilldng, and the mcfi:. potent, for its Extent, in all Europe, The People, or rather their Gov-ernors, availed themfelves not fo much of natural Advantages as of NecelTities,. and by a firm and wi;'e Condud, drew Security out of Danger, Opulence out o£ Diflrefs, and the Power of giving Laws to, fsom the Affiftance given them by. their Neighbours. This we fpeak, not with any Vie Vvf of reproaching, but, oii. the contrary, doing Honour to tliis Peo])le, who have certainly puflied that ' Sandei-i, Choi-ograp-hia Brabantica. . Scribauii, Origlnes Antwerpienfium.- Travels of Doftor . Gemelli Carreri, Letter 24. " Wheeler's Treadfe of Commei-cs> p. 36. Johnfon's Relations of the mod- famous Kingdom& and Suites in Ecrope, p. 128. See the Article of Gresham, 5ir Thomas, ia Biographia Britaniiica,^ w Strada, Guicciardini, IMeteren, Sec. Gronden en Maximen van dc Republieck vaa Holland,, i. Deel. cap. 2. Diftionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. col. zSJ^, 285^ " Templeman's Survey, pi. 6. '' Eman. Meterani,; Hifloria Bdgica. Hugonis GrotiJ, Annales. Leo van Aitzemn, SaLsavaa- Staet en Oorlogh, . Folic v,. 14 The P O L I T I C A T, S U P. V E Y Policy, which we arc recommencliiig, mutji iarthcr than any other we find mentioned in Hiilory ''. The Territory of tins RcpubUc, though extremely well cultivated, cannot be filled iVuitful. Its Meadows indeed are beautiful, and furnilh Pafturc in abundance ; but in refpedl; to Cora it has been faid, perhnps with no great Injury to Truth, that all they grow will fcarce main- tain the Labourers employed upon their Dykes. Its Commodific; are very few ; Madder, V/oad, and Flax, are perhaps the chief. Its M-nufadtures from Home-produce, not much more remarkable ; Tiles of difierent Sorts, Rape and Linfeed Oil, fine Linnen, fome Woollen, and Silks, arc the mofl confidcrablc 1. Amftcrdam, by the Means chieliy of an Inundation, became a Port, and by the Ruin of that of Antwerp, acquired a great Trade. There are befidcs, throughout all the Provinces, very few commodious Havens, and thofe there are, fland more indebted to Art, feconded by a great Ex- pence, th;m to Nature ''. Yet fome Advantages ot which we ihall prefently fpeak thefe Countries have, and by turning thefe to the beft Lib, together with the indefatigable Induftry, fagacious Conduct, and prudent Parfimony, of the whole Nation, the Dutch became what they are, or rather what they were, to the Aflonilhment of all Mankind c. TiiEiR natural Prerogative confifts entirely in their Situation. As they h*e pretty near the Middle of Europe, they are able to carry on, with great Faci- lity, their Commerce to all Parts. Their Fiflieries, which ever owe their Rife to NecefTity, firfl furniflied them with able Seamen j and their Captures at Sea, made with very fmall Vefl'els at iirft, foon procured them Shipping, which, after they embarked in a Trade with the northern Nations, increafed continually <^. This enabled them to bring in vaft Quantities of Goods, even from the moft diftant Countries, and enabled them to raile prodigious Maga- zines, and to take, on every Side, the Advantage of fiivourable Markets. The other Benefits refulting from their Situation, arofe from the great Rivers be- hind them, more efpecially the Rhine, the Mafe, the Elbe, the Wefer, and the Embs, by which they fupplied the greatefl Part of Germany, Lorrain, and Part of France, with Goods and Manufadures, and in return took theirs, which they afterwards exported into other Countries, with great Profits on ^ Auberi de Maurier, Memolres pour ftrvira ITIiftoire de Holland, i2'>. Sir William Temple's Obfervations, 8'''^. GronJen en Waximen van dc Republieck van Holland. ' Memoiies fur le Commerce des Hollandois, chap. ii. Diiflionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. coL 394. Sir William Temple's Obferva;ions. b Gabriel Richardfon"s Prefent S;. t'; of Europe, book 13. p. 29, 30. Ricard, Negoce d'Amfler- dara, chap. i. L'Etat dcs Provinces Jnies, & par-iculleicment de celle de Holland, 1690. 12°. c Barclaiiis, in Icone Animaruni. Sir Walter Ralegh's Difcourfe of a War with Spain, and pro- tefting the Netherlands. Bibliotheque ancienne et moderne, torn. vii. p 415, 416. '' Diftourfe of the Invention of Ships, &c. with the Caufe of the Greatnefs of the Hollanders, by Sir Walter Ralegh Gronden en Rr^vimen van dt Republieck van Holland, i. deel. cap. 6. Me- Eoires fur k Commerce des Hollanuois, chap. 3. both of GRE AT BRI TA IN. 15 both Sides «". The Spaniards, by labouring to fhut them out, obh'ged them to force Paflages into the Eati and Weft Indies ; and,, in ord-. r to this they erefted two great Companies ; that, for a Time at leaf!:, were equally uleful to the Pubhck, and brought in thofe immenfe SuppUes of Wealth, which raifed them from a weak and tender, to a firm and flourifhing State, capable of defending themfelves againft all Enemies, and made their Alliance courted, and Re- fentment feared, even by the greateft Potentates in Europe and Afia <". As this is the lafl Inftance we fliall mention, it may not be amifs to infift sl little more upon it, the rather, becaufe, in other Inftances at Icaft, as much was due to the Country as the Teople ; in regard to this it is the Reverfe, fince whatever Advantages are derived from the Country, are clearly cv^dng to the People. The Province of Holland, the moft confiderable of them all, being a dead Flat, the Soil moift, and in many Places endangered by the Sea, feemed, of all other, the leail capable of being fully inhabited, with a free and con- ftant Communication between its Parts. Labour however has done this j Dykes, Caufeways, and Canals, facilitate Carriage more than in any other Coun- try S. The Humidity of the Air, and the loofe Texture of the Earth, render it unfit for great Towns ; But thefe Inconveniencies are fo counterafted by habitual Neatnefs, and ibuna Pavements, that nothing like this is either felt or {ten. In the Winter, it is true, their Ports are blocked up, their Rivers frozen, and the whole Countrv expofed to a Severity of Weather, with which our ov/n, though in the ftme Latitude, is rarely acquainted. Even this Seafon. they turn to their Advantage, by applying thefparc Hands that it occafions to different Kinds cf Work, which could not be done'fo cheap in any other Part of the Year, and at the fame time travel and carry Goods on the Ice, as fpeedily at leaft as on the Water in the Summer'-. By keeping their Cuftoms low, they have their Vv^arehoufts always full of Goods and Manufoftures of every kind. By their Excifes, levied chiefly upon Strangers who pafs through, and. live according to their own Manner in their Country, they raife immenie Suras, of Money, and create a Nece^iity of Frugality, amongll: their own Subjedls ; fo that they are not impoverished by importing the richetl: Goods from other Countries, and, though the greatcil Dealers in Luxuries, are the fartheft from, being luxurious i. Rough and raw Materials they cleanfe and fort ; grofs and bulky Commodities they import in one Kind of VeiTels, divide and export them. ' Dii5Vionnair£ de Commerce, tom.il. col. 400,401. Ker's Remarks on the Trade of Koliand. Memoires fur le Commerce de Holiaudois, chap. 3. ■' S. viin Leeuwen, Batavia iiluftrata. Bafnagc Annales de Provinces Unles. Sir Wlili.'.in TempleV Obfervatioiis on the Netherlands. 3 Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 23, 35, 41. Voyages de Miflbn, vol. i. p. 3, 4, 5. Jaoigon Etai prefent de la Republique de Provinces Unies 1739, 12°. h Obfervations upon Trade and Commerce, addrefTed to King James I. Traite du Commerce de Hollande. Gemelli Carreri's Travels. ' ilcpublica Uatavica 1689, 12". Intereft van Hollandt de v.d. H. i. e. Tan den HovCj Amfierd, l66z, u". Memoires pour ieivir riiifloiix de Hollande. in- i6 The POLITICAL SURVEY tin others. A low 'Interefl keeps the Bulk of their Ca(h in Trade j working cheap, and felling at a fm all Profit, fecures them continual Employment j •and, in fliort, their Gains refulting from the Induftry, Ingenuity, and Indefa- 'tigablenefs of different Ranks of People, keep them thoroughly connecfted, and binds every Man, by his private Intereft, to the publick Service k. These dcfcriptive Hiftories, thefe Affemblages of Fa£ts, lead us to the experimental Knowlege of the Principles of found Policy. They fhew us, that natural Advantages are in themfelves of very little Confequence, if not improved in a right Method, and with affiduous Application. Then indeed they come out with irrefifiible Force, and, while thus diredled, carry national :Power, and national Happinefs, as far as they can be carried. They fhcw us alfo, that there are Advantages, of very different Kinds, which certainly re- quire a Difference in Direftion, and yet not fo great as might be imagined ; •for how dif^imilar foever the Faces of Countries may be, the fame, or very near the fame Principles, may be applied with good Effeifl. They likewife -make us fenfiblc, that though natural Advantages without a found Policy will do little, yet a wife and fleady Policy, where there are very few Advantages, will avail rrfuch, and that, as in the Body Natural, fo in the Body Politic, a right Difciplinc will work even upon Nature, and extradt beneficial Confe- /juences from, real Inconveniencies. But in all Cafes Relaxations are danger- ous, or, not to mince the Matter, and write below the Truth, Relaxations &re deflrudlive ; and all thefe Dodtrincs come to us with fuch a Weight of •Evidence, that vve cannot avoid feeing and acknowledging their Truth. A GovERNNTT.NT Wifely conflitutcd, fo as to leave nothing wanting, either to neceffary Authority, or rational Liberty ; a fiiccindl Syftem of Laws, eafily underflood, pundtually executed, and calculated folely for the Public Good ; regular Manners in a Nation, founded on folid Principles, and diredled to the -promoting the Common Weal j an iiivariable Regard to Merits an inflexible Juflice againft Crimes detrimental to the Society; a genuine public Spirit, ren- dered the Charade riltic of the People in private and in public Tranfadtions j Induftry made the fole Bafis of Wealth ; and Service done to the State, the fingle Road to Titles and Honour ; Splendour in whatever regards the Public ; -Piety, and true Devotion, fupported by Purity of Manners, and unoftentatious Charity, in all that regards Religion; and a fober Frugality, fecuring an equal and comfortable Subfiflence to the Bulk of a contented People, is the Way to render them peaceable and potent at Home, refpefted and beloved Abroad, and fafe from every Danger while they keep out Corruption. In fuch a State Povi^er would not be defired or declined ; the Public Income would be regu- ■' Sir Walter Rakgh, in feveral of his Political EfTays ; the Penfionary John de Witt, in his Tiafts nnder the Name of van den Hove, or de la Cour ; Sir Wiiliain Teinpk s ObCerva'ions ; Bafnage, Le Ckfc, Jani^on, Sir Peter Pett, Sir William Petty, and Doctor Diuxnaut lu their Political Trc-atifes. lated of G R E A T BRIT A 1 N. 17 Hated by the Public Intereft; the Adniiniftration would pique themfelvcs on ^fking little; and the Nation, knov/ing the Source of its own Felicity, would Xupport the Government at the Expence of All. There may be, and there certainly are, a Kind of Arts, (forgive me Reader ,if I write the Word at full length) a kind of Artifices, by which the State of .a Nation may be difguifed, and its Ruin a little protracted; but of thefe my Lord Verulam faid truly, that, like llrong Cordials, they may help at a Pang, but they increafe inftead of eradicating the Difeafe. The only rational and folid Method of improving and exalting a Nation, is to give them right Notions of their own Interells, and thereby engage them to purfue thofe Interefts with Vigour: This will exxite in them a Defire to cultivate their Country to the utmoft, and to fubmit, for their own Sakes, to fuch Laws as have a vihble and a real Tendency to this End; this will prompt their Rulers to enforce their Laws, not only by aitrift and fevere Execution, but by what will do the Bufinefs more effedlually, and with lefs Difficulty, by their own E ^ ample. Am- bition will not be extinguiflied, but it will change its Views; and Men of aftivs Spirits, inilead of aiming at making themfelves great in a declining and impo- veriflied Country, which is never delirable, aiid feldom pofhble, will exert thofe Spirits in aggrandizing their Country, and become great by Confequence rather than by Choice. There want not the Materials in mod; Countries ; and certainly they are not wanting in this, to raife as ftrong, as lading, and as beautiful Strudlures, as any that we fee in Hitlory, the true and genuine Ufe of which is to infpire us with fuitable Inclinations, and, in the firfh place, to furnilh us with the Lights requifite to exhibit a proper Plan. C H A P T E R IL SlTUATlONfumifies the greateji Facility, or is found to he thejirongeft Obf.acl' to the Improvement of any Count ty, and confeqiiently to the Happinefs of the Inhabitants. The Tatars or Tartars ajlrong In/lance of this. The like '/nay be faid oj the jinmerous Natio7is inhabiting the interior Parts cf ulfrica. The Sa- vages of America afford as clear Evide?ice. The Cafe of the Ruffians detno?i- frati've, that a People jhut in, and "without Intercoiirfe tvith the reji of the World, muft of Neceffity remain ab}e&, poor, and barbarous. An advanta- geous Situation of any Country has cofnmonly a good Effedt upon its hihah- tants. The Pentnfula of Arabia, in early Times rich, well inhabited, and highly i?nproved, of 'which fame Vejiiges fill remain. Phxnicia, the great Mother of Arts, Induftry and Mamfaclures. The remarkable Advantages of Carthage, and how extenfvely and wonderfully cidtivated; her immenfe Poii-er, amazing Grandeur, Fall, Recovery, andprefent Condition. The U/'es that may be jnade of thefe Reflections. VoL.L D SITUA- i8 The POLITICAL SURVEY SITUATION is the Circumftance that mofl: obftrudls or contributes- moft to promote the flourilliing State of any Country. Where-ever this labours under great Defedls, human Ingenuity or Induftry, though by- Vigour and Perfeverance it may, yet can very hardly overcome them. This is a Circumllance worthy of attentive Confideration, which will more clearly and certainly appear if we take a View of the Countries where this is moft remarkable, and contemplate the vifible Effects on them, and of confequence upon their Inhabitants. That valT: Tra6l of Country between the Cafpian Sea and the Frontiers- of China, inhabited by the Khalmuc, Ufbec, and other Tartars, which makes little lefs than One-eighth of the great Continent of Alia, and is al- moll: Two- thirds as big as Europe ■' ; though a great Part of it be wonderfully pleafant, and in fome degree fruitful, as lying in fome of the fineft Climates on the Globe, yet being all within Land, and having only a fmall Number,, and thofe too but indifferent Rivers, is almoft every-where rude and unculti- vated, having very few, and thefe, in comparifon of our Cities in Europe, but snconliderable Towns, and its Inhabitants living in a State of Nature, fierce and intra(rtable, little vifited by others, without any Defire of altering or bet- tering their Condition; and having wafted Ages in this kind of Life, are like to perfifi in it to the End of the World t". Though there wants not either in their Country, in fome Parts of which are found precious Stones, Gold, Mu{k, and. other rich Commodities, or in themfelves, who with great Strength and Afti- vity of Body, are far from being deficient in Underftanding, a Capacity of Improvement; if their being thus fliut out, or rather fhut in, from any Com- munication with politer Nations, did not hinder their being awakened to a proper Senfe of the Advantages that might arife from more rational Notions in refpedl to Humanity, Religion, and Government c,. This Method of Reafoning is confirmed and enforced by the Conqucfts formerly made by thefe warlike Nations, who have commonly fat down in the conquered Countries, as in many refpedts preferable to their own, and adopted more or lefs the Laws, Cuftoms, and Manners of the ancient Inha- bitants, as we fee in Perfia, India, China, and other Countries d. From the a Templeman's Survey, pi. 23. •> Luyts, iQtrod. ad Geographiam, § 3. cap. 11. p. 508. Relation de la Grande Tartaric, drcC- itc fur les Memoires originaux, des Suedois, Prifonniers ea Siberie, pendant la Guerre de la Suede,, avec la Ruffie, chap. i. Strahlenbergh's Account of the North-eaft of Afia. ' Hifloire gcnealogique des Tatares, p. 55. Voyage de Mofcou a la Chine, par Mr. Everard ]{bran;s Ides, chap. 8. Les Moenrs et Ufages des OfHackcs, par Jean Bernard Muller, Capitaine de Diagons au Service de la SueJe, pendant fa captivite en Siberie. <^ Hiftoire de Timur-Bec, connn fous le nom du Grand Tamerlan, Empereur de Mogols et Tar- hires, ecrite en Perfan, par Chercfeddin Alt nstif d' Yezd, Auteur contcmporain, liv. 2, 3, 5. Hiftoire jjcnerale del'Empirc du Mogol, depuis fa Fondation, fur les Mejnoircs de M. Manouciii, p. 12, 13. {iiiioii-c des deus^Coutjueraas Tartares, qui oat fubjugue la Chine, par le Pere d'Orlcaus, very of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 19 Tery fame Caufe, and the gradual Improvements in the Policy of neighbour- ing Nations, their Incurfions are lefs fatal than in paft Times and many of thole to whom they were in former Ages terrible, are now become fo to them, as particularly the Ruflians, who were once their Tributaries, and now, purely by the Alteration in their Manners, and the Changes this has produced iu their Territories, are in a Condition, if it was at all their Objedl, to become their Mafterse. By thefe Variations they are now confined, if that Term may be nfed for fo vaft a Tradl of Country, to what we have defcribcd as their prefent Pofiefiions, where they lead their old vagabond erratic kind of Life, of which, like all barbarous People,' they are extremely proud ; and pleafing, or rather cheating themfelves with fpecious Notions of Liberty and Independance, fuf- fer Hardfhips they might avoid, and lofe Conveniences they might obtain *". For though the Difadvantages before Ifated are very great, yet it is their own Blindnefs and Obllinacy, the Confequences, but not necefiary or fatal Confe- quences, of thefe natural Difadvantages, that render them invincible. All the interior Part of Africa is, from the fame Caufe, in the fame Con- dition; fo that it may be truly afrirmed that a Country, at leall twice as big as Europe, in which there are many large Regions, both fertile and populous, lies hidden and obfcu re, though abounding with many rich Commodities : And this is always to the Prejudice of the Inhabitants; of whom indeed we know little, and what little we do know is from their Mifery, in being fold from the very Heart of that great Continent, gradually, from Country to Country, till at length, being brought down to the Coall, they fall into the Hands of the Europeans S.' What is ftiil more wonderful, we know at this Day, when in all other refpecfls our Science is fo much extended, lefs of the interior of Africa than the Ancients h ; and all we know, and all that has been tranfmitted to us by thofe who knew more, gives us a moft melancholy Idea of thefe Nations that are thus ihut up and fecluded from the reft of the World. But this feems to be more their own Fault than that of the Tartars, Imce there are many large navigable Rivers by which they might correlpond '■ Fr. Rogerl Bacon, Opus tnnjus, p. 231, 232, 233. Itineiaiium fiatris Odoiici fratiiim mino- rum, de Mirabilibus Orientalium Tartaroriim, apiid Hackluyt, vol. ii. p. 39. Joannes Mandevill militaris ordinis, de diverfis Patriis, Regionibus, Provinciis & Infulis, cap. 39, 40, 4 r . Joiiin:d du Sieur Lange, contenant fes Negociatlons a la Cour de la Chine, en 1 72 1 & 1722. Prefent State of Ruffia, vol. ii. p. 212,425. f Relation du Voyage de I. Duplan Carpin, en Tartarie. Relation de Tart.ires Percopites, No- gaies, CircalTies, &c. par de Luca. Lettre a Monfeigneur le Marquis de Tovcy Miniitie S: Secre- taire d'Etat, fur le ncuvel EtablifTement de la Million des Peres Jefuites dans la Krimce. g Joan. Leonis, de totius AfricsR defcriptione, libri novem, Antverpise, 1550. 8°. Joan. Bapt. Grammaye, Africa illuilrata, Tornaci 1622, 4". Defaiption of Africa by Ogilby, miking one Part of Mofes Pitt's Atlas, tranflated chiefly from a Work in Dutch of the fame Tide, by Doftor Oliver Dapper. h Herodot. lib. iv, Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hlft. lib. ill. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. Piinii Hift. Natnr. lib. v. Pomp, Mclse de Situ Orbis, lib. i. Qu'ot. Curt. lib. iv. Salull. in Bell. Jugurth, D 2 ^vith 20 The POLITICAL SUP. VEY with each other, and by degrees, through a proper Exertion of Induflry, \vltii'< the moft difhant Nations '. For, notwithftunding this is the State of the in- land Parts, yet taking Africa altogether, it is perhaps the richeft and hell: fitu- ated, and not the Icall pleafuit Part of the Globe, though tho worlt culti- vated, becaule inhabited by the worft Sort of People ^. In America, which is near thrice as big as Europe, the only civilized and cultivated Countries which the Europeans found upon the Continent, were the Empires of Mexico and Peru. The former moft happily fituated, as ex- tended between the North and the South Seas, under a regtdar Government, and well improved '. The latter llretchcd along the South Sea, and defended as it were with a Wall, by a long Chain of Mountains at the Back. Happy under the Government of its Ynca's, by whom their Snbjedls were taught to reap, in a Degree of Pcrfcftion, all the comfortable EfFe(fts that a fine Cli- mate and a rich Soil could produce'". But in the inland Parts, amongft tho Mailhes, Mountains, and Forefts, the Inhabitants, like their Country, were intra Sir W.ilter Ralegh's Dlfcovery of the large, rich, and beautiful Empire of Guiana, in the third Volume of Hackluyt's Voyages, p. 627. Relation de la Miffion des Moxes, dans le Perou, im- fa-lmee a Lima, par Ordre de Monfcigneur Urbain de Matha, Evcvjue dc la Ville dela Paix. Voyage- dt M. de la Condaminc. apprehend of GREAT BRITAIN. 21 apprehend which thoroughly, there will be nothing farther neceflary than to contemplate carefully the Superiority of F.urope, the Subjedtion of America, the Caufes and the Confequences of both. But we have referved, for therlafrlnftanceof that extreme Difficulty with which a Nation, inclofed and illut in from the reft of the World, avails herfelf even of the greatelf Force, or of the moll: valuable natural Advantages, that, the Sovereign of which is now one of the mofi: confiderable Potentates of Europe. By this I mean the great Empire of Ruffia, that Empire, which extends from the northern Ocean to the Black Sea, and from the Baltic to the Sea of Japan. This, with regard to us, and moll of our Neighbours, is a later Difcovery than even that of America, and perhaps it would not be difficult tO' prove that the one led to the other". Chrillopher Columbus went to the former in 1492 j and it was in 1553 that Richard Chancellor arrived at Kol- mogorod, not far from Archangel, by vvhich a direft Communication was opened between other Countries and thofe under the Dominion of the Czars ^. It was not by Accident tlat the People of Rufiia were, thus circumfciibcd and confined, but through the Policy of the Swedes, the Danes, and the People of Lubeck, who took all poffible Precaution that this great and power- ful Nation ffiould not know or feel their own Strength, but be kept as it were' in a State of Tutelage and Dependence, rightly forefeeing what a mighty Change it would make in the Syftem of Things whenever they came to exert themfelves, and to fliake off that Barbarifm which was the inevitable Effedl of that Situation in which they held them. On juft Grounds therefore wxre thofe extenfive Privileges granted to the Engliih Nation, by the Monarchs of Ruffia, in Reward of this Difcovery, and conlidering the farther Advantages they drew from the Mediation of King James the Firfl, in concluding that Peace which delivered them from the Oppreffion of their Neighbours .- tha^'j- 22 The POLITICAL SURVEY that, fooner or later, in a larger or in a leffer Proportion, they recover out o-f their Ruins. In other Words; this Advantage is fo apparent and flriking, that, however funk or undone, however altered in their exterior Circumllances, as to Religion or Government, yet in Procefs of Time the Inhabitants of fuch a Country recur to the Expedients it points out, fliake oft" their Barbarity and Diftrefs, and return, once more, to fome Degree of Civility and Plenty. The Peninfula of Arabia is one of the cleareft and ftrongeft Proofs of this. It was perhaps the earliell: Seat of Induftry, and of the Opulence refulting from thence in the World, to which Authorities, facred and prophane, bear indubitable Teflimony ■''. It is true, this Country could never boail much of its Fertility ; but, in point of Situation, no Country in ancient Times, Egypt alone excepted, could enter into Competition with it. On one Side it was walhed by the Perfian Gulf, on the other by the Red Sea, having the Indian Ocean in Front, and the fineft Countries in Afia behind it f. This enabled the Inhabitants to maintain an extenfive Commerce by Sea, with Egypt and .(Ethiopia one Way, with Perlia on the other, and with different Parts of the Indies. The Commodities they received by this means, they carried by Land into Phoenicia, Syria, Mefopotamia, and even as high as the Countries bordering on the Pontus Euxinus, carrying back into their own Country the moft valuable Goods and Manufadlures of thefe diftant Regions". In confe- quence of the imn^.enfe Benefits refulting from fo lucrative a Trade, the Coun- try became every- where rich and populous. Labour fupplying Plenty, and Art Magnificence. Hence Ports, not very commodious in themlelves, were ren- dered fafe and capacious, their Cities large, and well inhabited, their public Buildings, in the higheft Degree, rich and fplendid, the Country finely adorn- ed, and rendered fertile even in fpite of Nature w. To fuch a Fleight were thefe Advantages carried, that Alexander the Great, whofe military Virtues were not at all fuperior to his political Genius, intended this Country for the Seat of that Empire which he meant to render univerfal -'^. Auguftus Ca;far, after he became A'Taffer of Egypt, fent iElius Gallus to fubdue Arabia; and the Inhabitants endeavouring to revolt from the Roman Yoke, were again humbled by Trajan). In Procefs of Time Subjeftion wore out Induftry, to which Barbarifm, Indolence, and Poverty fucceeded ^. Yet fome Degree both of Commerce and of Traffic they had in the Time of Mohammed, ' Gen. xxxvil. 25, aS. Ezek. xxvli. 21 — ij. KcroJot. lib. lii. Agatharchides apud Photlum. Diod. Sicul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. iii. ' Herodot. Hift. lib. i, iii. Oionvfii Periegefis feu Poema dc Situ Orbis, v. 925, & fcq. PJiu. •Hift. N.-it. lib. vi. " Diod. Sicul. Biblioth. Hifb. lib. iii. Agntharchides apud Photium. Pomponii Mclas i% Situ Orbis, lib. i. cap. \q. lib. iii. cap. 8, 9. "■ Diodor. Sicul. lib. iii. S'rabonis Geograph. lib. xvi. C. Julii Solini Polyhiftor, cap, 36, '^ Strabon. Gcogiapli. lib. xvi. p. 785. 1 Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. lib. xv. cap. 12. Strabonis Geograph. lib. xvi. Eutiop. lib. vii. cap. 4. pio. lib. Ixviii. Ammiaii. Marcel, lib. xiv. ^ Ockley's Hifloryof the Saracens, vol. i, p. 19. who of G R E A T BRITAIN. 23 who roufed the Ileeping Spirit of his Countrymen, not to reflore the prifline Glory of their own Country, but to conquer others ••'. Yet, even at this Day, under the two fierceft Nations, Turks and Arabs, this Peninfula exhibits fomc faint Marks of what it once was. Judda, poffeffed by the Turks, is a Port of great Trade; fo is Zibet. Mocha, in confcquence of its being the Staple of the Coffee Trade, is llill a Place of great Refort. Aden, which, in the Language of the Natives, fignifies Delight, fo famous in Antiquity, from whence the Coaft was ftiled Arabia the Happy, and which celebrated Mait was called afterwards the Roman Port, is ftill frequented ''. Some little Ports are yet open in that Part of the Country which fronts the Indian Ocean ; and on the Side towards Perfia, though not within the Gulph, lies Mufcat, once in the Hands of the Portugueze, now of the Arabs, and a Place of great Trade, the Inhabitants being reputed as civil, as jufl, and as moral a People, as any on the Face of the Globe *-". The Country of Phoenicia is of very fmall Extent, bounded on the Eaft and South by Paleftine, on the North by Syria proper, and on the Weft by the Mediterranean Sea, fo narrow and confined, that it fcarce contains more Land than one of our Counties, and yet no Country makes a greater Figure, or with greater Reafon, in ancient Hiftory, and no Country could boaft of fo many great and rich Cities, fo many commodious and well frequented Ports, within^ fo very fmall a Compafs f'. Of thefe the nioft early was Sidon, feated in a fertile and delightful Soil, defended on one Side by the Sea, and on the other by the Mountains, lying between it, and that which bears the Name of Libanus e : The Diftridt about it but fmall, yet excellently cultivated, producing Corn. Oil, and Silk in abundance. The Inhabitants are celebrated by the Greeks as the Inventors, or at leaft the great Improvers of every ufeful Art and Science. They rendered Aftronomy beneficial to Mankind; they reduced Navigation to Rules; they perfected the Art of Ship-building; they invented GLUs ; they introduced Dyeing; in fine, they fo fiir cvxelled in Mafonry, and in whatever regarded ArchiteSlure, that Solomon had recourfe to them, or to their De- fcendants the Tyrians, for building the Temple'". This Fame, acquired more early than any profane Hiftories reach, continued down to far later Times, as appeared by their being ftiled by one of the Prophets the wife Sidonians S. In them began the Glory of Phcenicia ; and by the Inhabitants of this Country, Science, Manufactures, jand Commerce, v/ere carried to the " Abulfeda, de Vita et Rebus geAis Mohammedis.- Hlftolie dc Mahomet, tirees dej Aiiteun Arabes, par Mr. Gagnier. Dean Prideaux's Life of Mahomet. '' Du Bois Geographic Moderne, P. ii. chap, 8. Di6>ionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 701 — 706. Hamilton's Account of the Eaft Indies, vol. chap. i. 4, 9. ' AtlasMaritimus et Commercialis, p. 2-5:!, 235. Ovington's Voyage to Surat. •■ Herodot. Hift. lib. v. Diod. Sicul. Biblioth. Hifi. lib. v. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvi. ' Jofiiua xix. 28. Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. lib. i. Juftin. e Trogo, lib. xviii. c. 3. ' Diodor Sicul. Bib. Hift. lib. xvi. Dionyfius Perieg. ver, 904. Plia. Hi-ft. Nat, lib. v>i. c. 56. 3 Zechariah ix. 2. Weft, t± The POLITICAL SURVEY Weft. Eo;ypt was in PolTcfnon of the Trade of the Eafl:, which fufficientty employed her Indullry; but the Phoenicians traded both to the Eaft and with Egypt j and accumuhiting the rich Commodities of thofe Countries, and im- proving them by her own Manufadlure, (he carried them to the moft diflant "Nations, and from them brought alfo very rich Returns ''. Thefe People, fo far as Hirtorycan inform, were the firll who moulded Commerce into a Science, and framed to themfelves the glorious Defign of making Mankind known and ufeful to each other, how different foever in Manners, and feated at what- ever Diilance. They knew that all Countries were rich by Nature, or might be.»5iade fc by Induftry and Art, and therefore they did not only vifit remote ■Regions for what they could bring away, or obtain from the barbarous Inha- bitants for Gewgaws and Trifles, but they endeavoured to propagate Senfe, Civility, and the Art of Living, and, in Ihort, where-ever they came, fought to make the People as knowing and as induflrious as themfelves '.. With this View they fent Colonies to Africa, to Spain, and many fay hither j but what- ever becomes of that Notion^ which fome have taken great Pains to maintain, it might be eafily proved, that from the gradual Extenfion of Lights derived from them, ipring all the Politenefs and Profperity of the wellern World ^. Yet in this once flourirtiing Country, fo crouded with Cities, and each of them almoll a Kingdom, a Country maintaining it-s Grandeur under all the four ancient Monarchies, there is little left except Ruins under the Dominion of the Turks. However, the nafivelnduftry of the People, who hayeftill great Qinntities of Silk, and other valuable Goods, pr<;ferves Sidon a Port, though but a poor one '. Yet Tripoli, which derives its Name from being built at the joint Expence of the Sidonians, Tyrians arid Arabians, is ll:;ll a very con- iiderable Place, as being the Port to Aleppo; and all the adjacent Country, carries apparent and diftingulHiing Marks of the Wealth, the Skill, the La- bour, the Magniiicence, and the Tafte, of its ancient Inhabitants "i. Carthage was amongft the Number of the Phoenician Colonies, be-- ing the Daughter of Tyre, as Tyre was of Sidon. There are many Reafons to evpedt that a Colony (hould he better feated than a Mother City, becaufe the one is often the Efte6t of Chance, and the other of Judgment ". Car- thage was a pregnant Inftance of this : It was built on the Coalt of Africa, in '*' Strabon. Geograph. Hb. i. xvl. Pomnon. Mel^e de Situ Orbls, lib. i..cr.p. 12, Amaiian. M.-\r- cel. lib. xiv. i Dioi.ior. Sicul. Riblioth. Hiil. lib. v. P!in. Hift. N.it. lib. v. cap. 12. Pomp. Melx de Situ Drbis, lib. i. cap. 12. ^ Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvi. Ani.in deExpeditione Alex. Mag. lib. ii. Applan. de Belloliifpan. ' Diiftionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 574. Mcmqires de ChEvalier d'Arvieux, tom. i. p. 231. Arias Maiitimus ct Commeicialis, p. 185. "^ Herbclot, Bibliotheque Oiientale, p. 736, 758. Voyages de Thevenot, torn. ii. p. 699, 700. ?TaandrcU's Travds, p- 2'- '• Piin Plifl. N-t. Jib. V. c. 19. Juftic. .eTiogo, lib. xviii. cap. 5. SaU'ft. in J'ugurth, a Country of GREAT BRITAIN. 25 a Country remarkably rich and fertile, at an equal Diftance from the Extremi- ties of the Mediterranean ; its Inhabitants were frugal and induftrious, cele- brated alike for Arts and for Arms; laborious, in cultivating and improving a line Territory, which they gradually extended and adorned on every Side ; univerfally famous for their wife Choice in founding new Cities, and in forti- fying them, and their Capital, with the greatefh Care ; fkilful beyond all others in the Art of Navigation ; equally addidled to Manufactures and Commerce ; alliduous in Difcoveries ; adlive in making Colonies, and attentive to them when made; prudent in Matters of Government ; exadl in military Difci- pline ; admirable in raifmg, maintaining, and conducing a naval Power; and affcfting above all things, the Empire of the Sea". In their moft flou- rifliing Condition, they boafted of {even hundred thoufand Inhabitants in their Capital, which was at once the fineft, the ftrongeft, and the moft com- modious City in thofe Times, pofTeirmg an extenlive Coaft of three thoufand Miles, and therein three hundred large Towns, exclufive of their Conquells in Spain and Sicily, and of whatever they held in that Atlantic lile, which fome have furmifed to be America p. Thefe wonderful Advantages were the Fruits of a fteady Adherence to wife and well weighed Principles, for the Space of feven hundred Years and upwards. After three long and bloody Wars their Country was fubdued, and their City fubverted, by the Romans, who gave this Teftimony of their Senfe of its excellent Situation, that they never reckoned themlelves fecure i'o long as this rival City floods. They knew from how fmall a Beginning it had rifen to fuch amazing Greatnefs, and they could not conceive any Affiirance ot Safety, after all their Viclories, till they law it in Ruins, and this, notwithftanding they had already detl:royed their Fleet, and had the Heirs of all their noble Families in their Hands as Hoftages '. The dying Efforts of Carthage were prodigious ; deprived of their Fleet and their Port, they ftill ilruggled for the Prefervation of their City, and, inftigated by Defpair, dug a new Haven, out of which they fent a Fleet of one hundred and twenty armed Vefiels, all built in the Space of two Months =. Pvome herfelf, when Ihe had time to re- colled:, repented of this Adion ; and the youngeft of the Gracchi fent a Co- lony of lix thouland men, to raife a new Town out of the Rubbiih ot the old. But fome Accidents, which their reviving Fears took for Prodigies, o Diodor. SIcul. Biblioth. Hlft. lib. xi, xiv, xix. Fragment, e lib. xxiv, xxt. Strabon. Geo- graph. lib. i, ii, xii. Tit. Liv. Hift. Rom. lib. x. Polyb. lib. xvi. JnlUn, lib. xviii. P Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. Tit. Liv, Epitom. li. Pompon. Melx-, de fitu Orbis, lib. i. cap. 7. Appi.in. de Bellis Punicis, cap. 40. Polyb. lib. ii, iii, x. "i Salufl:. in Jugurch. Horat. Epod. vii. Plutarch, in Cat. Ccnf. ■■ Polyb. Excerpt, lib. xxxiii. Liv. Epitom. lib. xlix. C. Vel. Patercul. Hift. lib. i. ' Appian de Bellis Punicis, cap. 51, 52. Liv.Epitoai.lib.il. Flor. lib. ii. cap. 15. Procop. lib. i. cap. 20. Orof. lib. iv. cap; 22. Vol. I. E defeated 26 The POLITICAL SURVEY ^ defeated this Defign c. Julius Cxfar, whofe Prudence was not inferior to liis Valour, meditated the ReiUtution of Carthage; and Augullus meeting with this, amongft other Schemes, in the Papers he left behind him, executed that Projed fomewhat more than a hundred Years after its Subverfion by Scipio". It remained famous long after, under a Variety of Mafters, till it fell into the Hands of the Saracens ^'••. It is now totally ruined, and the City of Tu- nis is rifen up in its ftead ", which, with the other piratical States on that Coafl, ftill remain unpolifhed Monuments of what was once the greateft ma- ritime State upon the Globe >, and which, in wifer and better Hands, might be rendered formidable again z. Pr will appear to the attentive Reader, from thefe fuccinft Remarks, how fliong, and almofl; invincible Bars, natural Impcrfettions are to the Improve- ment of a Country or its Inhabitants. On the other Side, how natural Ad- vantages encourage and folicit a People to apply themfelves to draw from them, by Induflry and Application, all the Benefits they promife from their Appearance. This derives ftill a fuperior Weight, from the Inftances given, of their recovering in a greater or lefs degree, from the Ruin brought upon them by interior Corruption or external Force. We may likewife draw from thefe Remarks a general Idea of the Progrefs of ufeful Knowlege, and the Arts fubfervient to civil Life, which are not bounded by any Limits, or con- fined to particular Climates, but may be transferred where-ever Virtue, Wif- dom, and Fortitude, are found amongft Mankind. Hence they may be confidered as fo many general Principles on which our Syflem is founded, and to which, in the Courfe of this Work, we fhall frequently have occafion to refer, in order to flicw that every thing is poflible that has been any-where attained, if Men will exert that Spirit and Diligence that is requifite to the Acquifition. ' Appian.de Bellls Punicis, cap 56. Et dc Bellis Civllibus, lib. i. cnp. 6. Plutarch, in Grac- chis. Liv. Epitom. Ix. u Sriabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. p. 833. Applan de Bellis Punicis, cap. 56. Plin. Hift. Nat. lib. V. cap. 4. w Heyliii's Cofmography, p. 880. Luyt's Introd. ad Geographiam, feft. 4. cap. ip. Chcvreau, Hidoire du Monde, liv. vii. cap. 10. " Cluver. Introd. in univerfam Geographiam, lib, vi. cap. 8. Peritfol. Itinera Mundi, cap. 6. Ogilby's Africa, p. 251. ' Herbelot, Bibliothcque Orientale, p. 66. Robbe, Geographic, torn, ii, p. 169. La peogra- phie univerfelle, par le Sieur de la Croix, torn. iv. p. 179. ^ Doftor Shaw's Travels, vol. i. p. ii. chap. 1,2. Memoires du Chevalier d'Arvieux, torn. iv. p. 33. Saint-Gervais, Memoires Hiftoriques du Royaume de Tunis, p- 352. CHAPTER of GREAT BRITAIN. 27 CHAPTER III. An Injular Situation preferable to all others, and the Reafons on which this Ajfer- tion is founded. A fuccinSl Hijlory of Crete, the firjl Maritime Po-iver in Greece : This, however extraordinary, furpaJJ'cd by Tyre. A brief Hi floiy of the Tyrian Commonwealth, and a View of its extenjive hifluence. A morefin- gular Account of the IJland and Republic of Rhodes, the Nature of their Go- vernment, the Source of their imtnenfe Riches, and the Caufes of their Declenfon. A Review of the p7'incipal Points of their Hijlory, till through their own Error they became a Roman Province. Gallant Defence of this fmall IJland againjl the whole Force of the Ottoman Empire. Other Lijlances of the like kind in reference to Candia, Malta, and Corfu. Motives for infijling further on the Superiority of this Situation in refpetl to Commerce. A jlvrrt Sketch of the Rife and Progrefs of the State of Venice. The IJland and City of Ornius de- J'cribed ; how it came to be the Cejiter of Commerce between the JVeftern Parts of the World and the Eajl. Conquered by Shah Abbas, with the Afjijlance of the Englif:, and dejiroyed. The happy Situation and fmgular Advantages of the IJland Mauritius, J'ettled by the Dutch, after being Jlightcd by the Portu- gueze and Englijh : afterwards dej'ertcd, rejettled, and again abandoned by the Dutch : Is thereupon poJJ'effcd by the French Eaji India Company, who beftow on it the Name oj Ifle de France, under which it is granted to the pre fen t Cotn- pany oJ the Indies by the Crown, who notwithf anding were inclined to quit it. Mr. de Bourdennaye, in five Years, rendered it the mofi important Place they have. The Hijlory of the Dutch I/land of Curacao, one of the mojl fiou- rijljing in the IV efi Indies. The Application, and Coticlufion. AN infular Situation, amonglt thofe recommended by the ableft and moft capable Judges, has been reprefented as preferable to any, as en- joying fome Benefits infeparably peculiar thereto, and being at the fame time free from many Inconveniencies to which Countries feated on the Continent are, from that very Situation, neceffarily expofed. The Soil of Illands, more efpecially if of any great Extent, is commonly rich and fertile, and the Cli- mate rather milder than, under the fame parallel of Latitude, upon the mnin Land i. The Sea being the fafeft and moil natural Boundary, affords the Li- habitants great Security in lettling, cultivating, and improving dieir Country; and a good Government being once eilablilhed, the Inhabitants of an Illand rnuft, for thefe Reafons, thrive quicker than their Neighbours, and, being na- turally prone to Navigation, fupply their Wants, export their own Commo- dities, eflablifh an exteniive Communication with the Countries round them, and thereby attain an Influence over their Neighbours, strengthen themfelves at Home, augment their Riches by Trade, and, in confequence of that naval Power, of which Commerce only is the natural Bafis, commonly enjoy a greater Proportion of Freedom, Affluence, and Grandeur, than can well be attained, ' HeroJot. lib. iii. p. 8i. Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hiftor. lib. v. Stiabon. Gcograph. lib. i. E 2 or. 28 The POLITICAL SURVEY or, if attained, be for any Length of Time preferved, by Inhabitants of Coun- tries of the fame Extent on the Continent''. As thefe are Points of Fadt, they are bcft eftabhihcd from Hiftory ; and the Reader, when he carefully refledls on thofc InlVances that may and fliall be produced from thence, will find hinifelf much better enabled, than by any other Method he could have been, to judge of the Propriety of the Reafons and Remarks that will occur in a particular Application c. Befides, he will alfo fee, and be convinced, that many Things which he niight have otherwife miftaken for the bold Flights of a luxuriant Fancy, or the chimerical and delufive Inventions of a fertile Imagination, are really fober and folid Truths, fuggelled from the Writings of Men of found Judgment, and which may at any Time, in any like Place, be certainly ^-educed to Praftice, becaufe the Light of Experience fliews us that tiiey have been aftually praftifed already d. A Manner of Writing in refped: to the Utility of which we may cite the Authority of the celebrated John de Witt, th.m whom, in Things of this Nature, a better cannot be mentioned, whether ancient or modern <;. The moft ancient maritime Power, recorded by the Greek Hiftorians, is that of Crete ; and indeed they could not well go higher, fince this is one of the firft Fads in what ought to be ftiled credible Hiftory. For Minos, King of Crete, Son of Jupiter and Europa, obferving that the Subjefts of all the little Principalities of Greece, as well as the Inhabitants of the Iflands in the Archi- pelago, perverted the very Ufe of Navigation in committing Piracies upon each other, having firft reduced the whole liland he governed into Order, and eftablifhed fo complete a Syftem of Laws, that the wifeft Men have thouglit them worthy of perpetual Memory, he began to affume the Domi- nion of the Sea ; and having a fuperior naval Force, employed it in fuppreffing Pirates, and eftablilhing a free and open Trade, which is the moft ftable Bafis of maritime Empire f. Crete, in the Situation that Things then were, was the moft natural Seatof fuch an Empire, enjoying a happy, temperate, or ra- ther warm Climate, at the Diftance of about thirty Leagues from Pelopon- nefus, about the like Diflance from leiTer Alia, and not above fifty Leagues from Africa, from whence it is celebrated by Virgil as lying in the Middle of the Sea, It may be ftiled confiderable in point of Size, being about fix hun- dred Miles in Circumference, and yet not a twentieth Part fo large as Great Britain S : Exceedingly fruitful in rich and ftaple Commodities, fuch as Silk, Wine, Oil, Honey, Wax, the finelt Fruits, many valuable Gums, and other ' Apiilciu?, ex Ai iflot. de Rliinclo. Cic. dc Nat. Deor. lib. ii. Plin. Hift. Nat. lib. ix. cap. 2, ' Tk. Liv. Hill. lib. xlv. Tacit, lib. xiv. Flor. Epitom. lib. ii. c. 8. ■' Aiiftot. Hift. Animal, lib. v. Alex, ab Alexand. Genial. Dier. lib. iv. Polyd. Virgil, de In- vent. Renim. lib. iii. c. 6. ■^ Gronden en Maximea, van de Republieck van Holland, en Rotterdam, 1671, 8°. f Aiiitot. Ethic, lib. i. cap. 13. Plato, de Legibus, lib. i. Thucydid. de BelioPelopoo. lib. i. Dlodor. Sicul. Blblioth. Hiflor. lib. v. c. 85. Apollod. lib. iii. p. 163. i Diod. Siciil. lib. V. Strabon. Geograph. lib. x. Plin. Hift. Nut. lib. iv. c, 1,2. Ptolem. Geo- graph. lib. iii. Solini Polyhift. c. 1 1. 3 Drugs of GREAT BRITAIN. 29 Drugs of Price, and not deficient in Wool, Corn, and other NecefTaries j abounding, for thofe early Times, with capacious and commodious Ports, and inhabited by a fenfible and warlike People h. After the Death of Minos, they eltablillied a Republican Government, retaining however their old Laws, and improving their Wealth and Power to fuch a degree, as to acquire their Coun- try the Epithet of Hecatompolis, from its having no-fewer than a hundred well built and populous Cities, retaining its Liberty, and with it that Prero- gative, from whence Ariflotle ftiles this Ifland the Emprefs of the Sea, up- wards of thirteen hundred Years ; and at length overwhelmed, after a glo- rious Struggle, by the all-grafping Power of the Romans', who, as Florus truly acknowleges, had no better Title, or rather could devife no fairer Pre- tence to make this Conqueft, than the Defire of being pofTeffed of fo noble an Ifland ; as the only Method to fecure which, they moft barbaroufly ex- terminated the far o-reatefl: Part of its ancient Lihabitants k. i3 It may feem not a little Grange, that the Cretans being confined within fuch very narrow Bounds, and having in procels of Time fo many powerful Princes and States in their Neighbourhood, fliould neverthelefs maintain their Wealth, their Commerce, and their Superiority at Sea, for fuch a Length of Time, and this, notwithflanding the great Corruption of their Manners, their frequent civil Wars, and their interfering too much with the Affairs of the Continent, which in the End however proved their Ruin : But it will ap- pear much more ftrange, that a People inhabiting an Ifland, which contained fewer fquare Yards than Crete did Miles, fhould flill make a greater Figure at Sea than the People of Crete; fhould oppofe themfelves with more Firmnefs than even the great King, as the Greeks ftiled the Monarch of Perfia, againfl the Macedonian Conqueror ; flop the Progreis of his Arms longer, and ren- der the Difpute between them more doubtful than with any of the other Na- tions, whom, in the rapid Courfe of his Vidories, he fubdued. Yet for thia we have all the Evidence that the Nature of fo extraordinary a Fad: can de- mand, an Evidence fo clear and irrefiftable, that, flrange as tlie Fad is, the Truth of it has never been called in Queflion. These were the Tyrians, who, after their old City, built upon the Coafl of Phoenicia, had been facked and deflroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, retired to an Ifland lefs than two Miles diftant, and not full three in Compafs, where they fettled themfelves, and, in the Space of leventy Years, fo far recovered their former Grandeur as to ered a City, which had indeed precifely the Ume l> Arift. de Republic, lib. ii. c. lo. Strabon. Geograph. lib> x.. Ptolem- lib. ili^ Viig; .Ene:d-. lib. iii. V. 104. Piin. Hid. Nat. lib. iv. ' Herodot. lib. vii. Homeri Iliad, g. Paufr.n. lib. vii. Athen. Dtip. lib. xiv. Clem. Alex.. Pacd. lib. u. " Liv. lib. xcix. c. Appiaa. legat. x.'ix. Fbr. lib. iii.. cap. 7. Veil- Fatcrcul. lib. ii. c. 3?. Eutrop. Bicviar. lib, vL Boundi 35 The POLITICAL SURVEY Bound? with the Ifland, compleatly fortified, having a fpocious Port in the Bay, between them and the Continent, adorned with elegant Buildings mnny Sto- ries in Height, the want of Earth obliging them to trefpafs on the Air, and enriched with immenfe Magazines of every Kind of Merchandize that either the Eaftern or the WeRern World could furnifh '. They were fometimes go- verned by Judges, afterwards by Kings, who paid a kind of Tribute or Ac- knowlegement to the Perfian Monarch, but, after all, were rather refpeftedas Allies, than treated as Subjefts. This was owing to the Superiority of their maritime Power, and their clofe Connexion with the Carthaginians, a Colony of their own, and the many Services which they rendered to thofe great Kings, and in which alfo they found their own Account'". This Situation was fo agreeable to them, and the Conjunction of their Interefts united them fo effec- tually to the Periians, that, in their Quarrel, they llood a Siege of no lefs than feven Months againfi: Alexander the Great, whofe Fortune had been here put to a {land, if his military Skill had not fuggefted to him the Means of depriving them of the great Source of their Strength, their Situation; through the Con- ftruftion of an axtiliciallfthmus, by whicli, with incredible Labour, and with no fmall Lofs, after many Months arduous Endeavour, he rendered himfelf Mafter of the Place; and having flaughtered thoufands, crucified thoufands, and fold thirty thoufand for Slaves, his Fury at length relenting, he fuifered it to be again peopled; and, in the Space of twenty Years, fuch was the Spirit and Induftry, fuch the Genius and the Refources of this trading People, that it was become again a wealtjiy and potent City, capable of holding out a much longer Siege againft one of his SuccelTors 1. In fucceeding Times, convert- ing even their Misfortunes into Benefits, they united both the old and the new Towns into one City, and, by the Addition of fome farther Works, procured two good Havens on the different Sides of the Ifthmus. They met with Fa- vour and indulgence from the Romans, who paid a very high Refpeift to all Cities eminent for Commerce, and dillinguiflied them by the Name of Navar- chides ", and continued, through a fteady Perfeverance, in the Improvement of thofe Arts by which they rofe, to make a great Figure till towards the Clofe of the thirteenth Century, when they fell under the Dominion of their prefent Mailers, the Turks, who compleated that Deftruftion with which they were threatened fo long before by the Prophets; fo that there are nothing now remaining of both Cities but Duft and Rubbifli, to atteft, as they do in the ftrongeft and molt convincing Manner, all the extraordinary Events that are recorded in Hiftory for fuch a Series of Years, and which fufficiently demon- ftrate, that Induftry, Commerce, and naval Power, are the natural Pillars of a ' Herodot. Hift lib. ii. Dio.Ior. Sicul. lib. xvii. p. 58-^. Strabon. Geogiaph. lib. xvi. Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. lib. viii. c. 10. Jiilliii. lib. xviii. cap. 3. Plin. Hift. Nat. lib. v. "" Diodor Sicul. lib. xvii. Strabon. Gcograph. lib. xvl. Jofeph. contr. Apion, lib. i. Arrian de Expt'd. Alex. Magn. lib. ii. Jiiftin. lib. xi. c. 10. ° Diodor. Sicul. lib. xvii. xi.x. c. 4. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvi. p. 757. Q^ Curt, lib. iv. Plntarcli in Alexandro. JuOin. lib. xi. cap. lo. ° Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvi. p. 757. lading, of GREAT BRITAIN. 31 lading, equal, and temperate Government; which, though under different Forms, they all along pofTefled, and the Lofs of which has reduced this Ifland to what it now is, a confufed Heap of fhattered Remains of ancient Magni- ficence, without any Inhabitants fave a few Filhermen, whom the Conveni- ency of itsCoafls inclines to lodge in thefe fqualid Ruins p. After thefe, let me have Leave to mention Rhodes, v/hich, though lefs than Crete, and yet much bigger than Tyre, furpafied them both in the Ex- tent of her Dominion, and in the Continuance of her Power. This Ifland, as defcribed by the ancient Geographers, lies in the Carpathian Sea, over- againft the Coafl: of that Country which bore the Name of Lycia, and made a Part of Afia Minor, from whence this Ifland was diftant about twenty Miles q. According to the Greek Etymology of its Name, it might be fliled the Ifland of Rofes ; and we may form an Idea of the Excellency ot its Climate from its being reputed the Favourite of the Sun, and faid to be watered, in the Language of the Poets, with golden Showers. Temperate it was, and ferene, equally free fromFroflrs and Exhalations, fo thatitsTrees and its Meadows were ever green, rich in Pafliures and in Fruits, but more efpecially celebrated for high flavoured and deliciousWines, abounding with limpid Streams, and blefl'ed with a I'afe, capacious, and commodious Haven : In Extent but forty Leagues, exceedingly populous, governed by Kings before the Trojan War, that is, before profane Hifl:ory records any thing with Certainty ; celebrated after- wards for being the Seat of an ingenious, learned, and martial Nation, verfed in all the Arts, and carrying the moft ufeful and the moil; ornamental to the highefl: Degree of Excellence; allowed a Place amongfl: thole to whom the Dominion of the Sea was jufl:ly afcribed, not as confining and controuling the Navigation of other Nations, but as prefcribing Laws beneficial to all ; fo jufb, that they were adopted by the Romans, and wrought into their Pandedl"". Hif- tory has not recorded, nor indeed is it eafy to conceive, a Country better cul- tivated, or a People more efteeraed. Every Spot of this delightful Ifland was improved, feveral rich Towns adorned its various Diftrifts, and many agree- able Villages; while its Capital, Rhodes, was equally diftinguiQied as the Seat of Commerce, and of the Mufes: In ooint of Trade it vied with Crete and Tyre; and, next to Athens, the Univerfity of Rhodes was rnofl frequented in thofe Ages, when Learning was in the highefl: Credit s. In refpedl to their Government they tried all the Forms, of Monarchy, Democracy, and Ariftocracy; and at length, like moft wife Nations, framed a P F.zekiel xxvi, xxvli, xxviii. Herbelot, Bibllotli. Oilentale, p. 829. Mcmoiics du Chevalier d'Arvicux, torn. i. p. 250. Maundtcl's Travels, p. 49, 50, Dr. Shaw's Travels, vol. il. p. 273. H Herodot. lib. ii. cap. 182. Diod. Sicul. lib. v, Plia. Ilift. Nat. lib. v. cap. 6. Strab. lib. xiv. AthensEUS, in Deipnofoph. lib. viii. r Homeii Iliad |2. Herodot. lib. ii. Diod. Sicul. lib. v. Plin. lib. v. Strabon. Geograph. lib.xiv, • Diod. Sicul. lib. V. Ariftid. in PJiodiac. Plin, lib. iv. cap, 7. Dio. ChryfoHoai in RhodLic. SuetOQ, in Tiber. new 32 The P O L [ r I C A L SURVEY new Conftitution for themfelves out of them all'. A fupreme Magiftratc they had, who was cledled every fix Months, but, if Occafion required, might he continued longer in Otftce; with a Senate, compofed of the wiled Citizens, who appointed Generals, Admirals, and other public Officers of the Com- monwealth. They were extremely remarkable for the Care of their Poor, laying it down as a Rule that every Man fliould work, while he was able, for his own Maintenance, but fliould be as well maintained, when he was no longer able, at the Expence of the State". They were admirably {killed in Ship-building, the only Kind of Science of which they made a Myftery, or ra- ther a Secret of State ; thoroughly verfed in Navigation, and the Arts relating thereto, and this fo univerfally, that Florus calls them a Nation of Seamen ". As they built and navigated, fo they likewife fought their Veflels better than any other Nation, and were, for many Ages, looked upon as invincible oa their own Element -"f. Some ill Qualities they had, and amongft thefe, too Itrong an Appetite for Gain might be reckoned one of the worft. They were alfo very high fpirited, treated the Countries that were fubjedt to them upon the Continent with too much Aufterity, and affe<51:ed high Living, more than was confiflent with the Dictates of Prudence and true Policy y. Their Build- ings, fays an ingenious Writer, " give us an Idea of a People who thought themfelves immortal; whereas the Luxury of their Tables declares them care- lefsof Life /". But thefe, and all their other Vices, were the EfFedls of that Opulence which an extended Traffic, a free Government, and a long Series of Profperity, had produced. In Bodies Politic, as well as natural, the Seeds of Death are in the moil wholfome Nutriment, and fooner or later end in Diflblution. The Hiftory of the Rhodians is very imperfetflly related; and no Wonder, fince the Works of all thofe who treated this Subjedl exprefsly, are long ago loft. Yet their Concerns with other Nations (hew them to have been an ac- tive and powerful People, from Times as early as Records can reach. Homer tells us, they fent Forces to the Siege of Troy: We find in fucceeding Ages the Names of many, and the Characters of fome of their Princes, who were alfo Philofophers a. When Xerxes invaded Greece, they w'ere become a Republicj they made a confiderable Figure in the Peloponnefian War; they fided afterwards with the Macedonians. They courted Alexander, and were in. as much Efteem with him as any of the Greek States b. When his Empire ' Strabon. Geof;r. lib. xiv. Polyb. Legat. 60, 61, 62. T. Liv. lib. xlii. u Herodot. lib. il. cap. 178. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xiv. Flor. Hifl. lib. ii. cap. 7. w Diodor. Sicul. lib. v. Strabon. Gtograph. lib. xiv. p. 357. T. Liv. lib. xlvii. ^ Tit. Liv. lib. xlvii. Polyaen. Strateg. lib. iv. cap. vi. §. 16. >■ Diodor. Sicul. lib. v. Athen Dcipn. lib. xiv, xv. Tacit. Anna!, xii. ^ Stratoiiicus npud Plutarchiim de ctipiJitatc Divitiarum. ' Homeri Iliad (3. Pindar. Olyiup. Od. vii. Laert. in vit. Ckobul. Paufan. lib. vi. Aul. Geil. Nu(5t. Attic, lib. iii. •" Diodor. Sicul. lib. xi. Strabon. Geograph. lib. xiv. Juflia. lib. xi. cip. 2. caniis of GREAT BRITAIN. 3.-; came to be divided, their commercial Interefts united them to Ptolemy ; and they were lb fleady in their AlHance, that, rather than break their Faith, they flood the Shock of Antiochus's Refentment, who lent his Son Demetrius to reduce them, with a Fleet and Army that feemed more than equal to the Tall; c. The Siege of Rhodes is one of the moft remarkable in ancient Hillory ; it lafted long, and ended for them in the mod honourable manner. Demetrius, charmed with their Spirit and Intrepidity, renounced his Defign, demanded their Friendlhip, and made them a Prelent of all his military Engines d. They were the moll: faithful, and the moll confidered amongll the Allies of Rome : They deferved it by the Afiiftance of their Fleets, and they were rewarded with Provinces upon the Continent e. It was then that they began to think too highly of themlelves, and of their Power ; they interpofed as Mediators, or rather as Arbitrators, between that haughty Republic and the Monarch of Macedon, which the Romans confidered as Impertinence, and puniihed, by taking away thofe Provinces they had bellowed ''. The Alli- ance fubfilled notwithllanding. The Rhodians adled as their AuxiUaries againfl Mithridates, and afted therein againll their own Intereft. They fuffered for this Complailance, and were frequently made fenfible that they had contri- buted too much to the Grandeur of their Ally g. However, they kept their Liberty till the Reign of Vefpafian, when their Ifland became a Part, and the City of Rhodes tlie Metropolis, of a Roman Province '-^ If the Reader conliders the fmall Extent of this Country, the Source of its Great- nefs, and the Continuance of its Freedom, little, if at all, Ihort of two thou- fand Years, his own Refleftions will teach him what to think of the im- proved Advantages of an infular Situation. What has been already faid, fufficiently demonllrates the internal Strength of the Inhabitants of an Illand, who can never be attacked but by a Power fuperior at Sea, from whom Succours can be very rarely lliut out, and where the People, from their ordinary Courle of Life, not only acquire an aclive and a martial fpirit, but are fo addi6led to their own Culloms, and fo zeal- ous for their Liberties, that their Efforts are always vigorous, and often irre- fiftible. To fettle and confirm this Opinion, we need only to refleft, that when the Knights of St. John were in Poflellion of this very Illand of Rhodes, though, from many Circumftances of their Order, they flood deprived of fome capital Advantages for the Defence of this Country, yet they behaved themlelves fo gallantly againll the Forces of the Ottoman Empire, under the ■^ Dioder. Sicul. lib. xx. Stiabon. Geograph. lib. xiv. Plutarch, in vit. Demet. Polysn. Strateg, lib. iv. cap. 6. Plin. Hift. Nat. 1. vi. cap. 4. i Diodor. Sicul. lib. xx. Plut. in vita Demet. Aul. Gt'll. Noft. Att. lib. xv. cap. 31. ' Tit. Liv. lib. xxxiii. xxxvii, xxxviii. Polyb. xvi. Appian in Syriucis. ^ Tit. Liv. lib. xliv, xlv. Polvb. Legat. 86. 93. Appian in Syriacis. g Liv. Epitom. lib. Ixxviii. Diodor. Sicul. in excerpt. Valef. Appian in Mitbridat. cap. ix. b Sueton. in Vefpafian. Eufeb. in Chron. Orol". lib. vii. Vol. I. F Reign 34 The POLITICAL SURVEY Reign of Mohammed the Second, who had made himfclf Mailer of Conftan- tinople, over-ran Greece, and added feveral of the Provinces of the Perfian Empire to his own, that his Fleet and Army were at length obliged to ret re, much diminiOied by their Loffcs K Afterwards the Wand was reduced by Soliman the Firlt, who brought a greater Force, and came thither in Pcrfon ; but the Difpute lafted feveral Months, the Defence was prodigious, and, after all, the Capitulation honourable ^. We may likewife remember that CretCj under the modern Name of Can- dia, was defended, for many Years by the Venetians, againft all the Strength of the Turkifli Empire, in the Zenith of its Powers and perhaps that wife Republic got more by the Diminution of the Enemy's maritime and military Force, which fome judicious Authors think the Turks have never recovered, than they fuffered by the Cellion of the Illand, which was, notwithftanding, the greatefl Lofs that State ever felt '. We might mention to the fame Pur- pofe the War of Cyprus, and the leveral Defeats the Turks have fuftained in their Attacks upon Malta ; and in our own Times, their Repulfe at Corfu, which was in a manner wholly owing to its Situation, if we except the intre- pid Valour and great military Skill of General Count Schuylembergh, who rendered his Name immortal by defending it m. This proved alfo fatal to the Ottoman Power, which from that Time has given little Umbrage to Chrif- tendom by Sea j and mofh evident it is, that if a very few of thofe numerous Iflands that formerly belonged to the Greek Empire, had been properly for- tified, or, which had been ftill better, left under a free Government, which is the bed: of all Fortifications, the Turks had never grown lb potent as they now are, and many pleafant, rich, and fruitful Countries, which under their Tyranny have been depopulated, and rendered Deiarts, might have been preferved in that State of Beauty and Fertility in which they ftill bloom in Hiftory; Theatres of Happinefs to their own Inhabitants, and, by their Com- merce, of univerfal Utility to the human Species ". We have now fufficiently difculTcd the Advantages given to thofe who In- habit Iflands, from that very Situation, to maintain their Governments longer, and in greater Purity, by which 1 would be underflood to mean Freedom, than Nations feated on the Continent; and we have alfo pointed out the many Benefits arifing from this Situation, in refpeit to the Capacity of De- ' Turfellini Hift. Univerfalis, ]ib. X. KnoIIes's Hiftory of theTurks, p. 432. Vanel, Hiflolre generale des Tiircs, torn. ii. p. 164. k Do£lor Blair's Chronological' Tables, pi. 51. Fontaine dc Bcllo Rhodio, libri tres. Can- temir Hiltoire de I'Empire Othomaii. liv. iii. chap. i. ' Vite e Katti d'alcuni Imperatori Ottomaniii, p. 179. Hiftoiic du Siege de Candie, Amfter- dam, 1671, 12°. Cantemir Hiilcire de ITmpire Othomaii. torn. iii. p.. in. 114. ■" The Wars of Cyprus by R. Midgley. Etat du la Puiliancc Othomaiie, avcc les Caufes de foa AcroiiTenient, et celles de fa Decadence, p. 96, 97. Mercure Ililtoik^ue, vol. ki. p. 374. " 2ee the Voyages of Wheeler, Spoji, and Tourncfoit. of G RE AT BRITAIN, 35 fence, againft even the greateft Superiority of Force : 'We will now endea- vour to illullrate the fiipericr Advantages they have in refped to Commerce, which, it may be, the R.eader will think fuperfluous, confidering that the States we have already mentioned, owed the Beginning and Continuance of their Grandeur to this Caufe, and from thence alfo, in a great meafure, acquired that Power of defending and iupporting themfelves, for which they have been already celebrated. But, in order to underftand a Subjeft thoroughly, we cannot confider it in too many diiferent Lights : For thefe Reafons, and that we may at the fame time diverfify our Remarks as much as poffible, we will fucciuftly defcribe the Advantages arifuig fimply from this Situation, to fome particular Ifland in every Quarter of the Globe, and m.ake fuch a Choice of thele Inftances as that they may leaf! rcfemble each other, and have flill lefs Affinity with thofe that we have already confidered. Venice, the eldeft Commonwealth in Europe, is an Ifland, but an Ifland of a very fingular kind, being an artificial Coniunftion of upwards of feventy natural Iflands, none of them of any great Confequence taken iingly, but when thus united, make the Bafis of a very confiderable Cityo. They lie in the Sea, divided from each other by Shallows, or, as they ftile them, 'Lagunes, fome fo clofe as to be united by Bridges j others at fuch a Diftance, that the Channels between them ferve as a kind of Streets, through which the Inha- bitants pafs, not in Carriages, but by Boats p. This City is five Miles diftant from the Continent, and about the fame Diflance from the Caufeway that defends them from the Sea, almofl forty Miles in Extent, which they call the Lido, through which there are feveral Openings that admit Boats, and one on the grand Canal, well fortified at Malamoco, which may be from thence iYiled the Port of Venice q. It is well enough known that thefe Iflands were gradually fettled, by People who took Shelter in them from the Invafion of the Huns, and who, for their Subiiflence, had recourfe to fifhing, and to a Coafl Trade, on both Sides the Gulph, which lay open before them. By their great Induftry and Addrefs they quickly became eafy, and by degrees they grew confiderable. That Navigation, which was always neceffary, and that Cbrrefpondence, which was ever commodious, became firft Sources of their Wealth, and then of their Power ; for they were long diftinguifhed by their Diligence and Dexterity as Seamen and Traders, before they became at all formidable as a Republic '•. Their Safety and their Grandeur were the Effedts of their adhering fleadily to a few wife Maxims, to guarding againft untoward Events, as much as they were able, and availing themfelves ot luch • Spon Voyage d'ltalie, torn. i. p. 54, 55. Delia Repiiblica e Maglflrati di VcnetJa libri cinque da Gafp.'Contarini, in Venetia, 1650, ' 12°. Sanfovino Venetia Defcritta. P Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 126. Voyages de Max. Miffon. LaflcU's Travels. ^ Sir George Wheeler's Travels, p. 2. Atlas Maritimus ct Cominercialis, p. 166. St. Di- dier, Ville et Republique de Venife. ' Marcolinl dell'origine di Venetia. Flavius Blondiss, dc orlgine et geftis Vexietorum. J. Bap- tift Veri, rerum Venetorum libri quatuor. F 2 as 36 The POLITICAL SURVEY as were favourable as far as it was poffible. In procefs of Time they gained a Footing on both Sides of the Continent ; their Situation exempted them from the Dangers and Calamities that befel their Neighbours, and they profited equally by the Fall of the Weftern Empire, and that of the Ball. They became poffefled of many confiderable Iflands, of which Cyprus and Candia were the chief; they drove a prodigious Traffic on all Sides, and with all Nations s; they fetched Spices, and other Commodities of the Indies, from the Black Sea, after the Fall of Conllantinople, and afterwards from Alexan.- dria; they difperfed thefe, and all the rich Merchandize of the Levant, through the relt of Europe, to this Illand of ours in particular, fo late as the Reign of Qu_een Elizabeth f. In a word, they became what Tyre was, the common Center of Traffic ; but at length loft a great Part of what their Wif- dom had attained, by thofe Viciliitudes which no Wil'dom could prevent. Their Force was broken by an Alliance of almoft all the Princes of Europe againft them, in the League of Cambray ; in their mercantile Capacity they fuffered ftill more, by the Difcovery of the new Route to the Eaft Indies by the Cape of Good Hope ; and being thus weakened, they were the lefs able to defend themfelves againft the Power of die Ottomans, v;ho ftripped them of one Country, and of one Illand after another, till, towards the End of the laft Century, they were reduced to what they are at prefent ". In fpite of fo many Difficulties, and the Malice of fuch potent Enemies, that they have continued a free State, their Government unaltered, and their Capital unat- tacked, for thirteen hundred Years, is fufficient to render them venerable in our Eyes, and to recommend the Steadinefs of their Condudf to our moft ferious Attention. Asia formerly offered us an Inftance, in many refped:s, not unworthy of being compared to Venice. Directly in the Mouth of the Bay, which feparates Arabia from Perf.a, lies a fmall Ifland called Ormus, more properly Hormuz, which divides that Inlet into two Parts, one ufually ftiled the Gulph of Ormus, commencing at Port Guadel in Perlia, and Cape Ras al Gat in Arabia, and extending to this Ifland, about one hundred Leagues ; the other is named the Gulph of Bafrali,. as reaching from Ormus to the Mouth of the River Tigris, near which that City is feated, the Space of almoft two hundred Leagues ^^. In Extent this * AndreseMauroceni Senatoris Hifloriae Venetae, libri xviii, fol. 1623. Hiftoria dellaRepiiblica Veneta, da Batiita Nani, 1662 — 1679, 4°. Grauani Hifloiiar. Venetariim, libri xxxii, 4°. 1 728. f Coronelli iiiigolarita di \'cneti;i e del luo Dominio. Ellkis de I'Hiftoiie du Commerce de Venife in 12°. ^ir William Monfon's Naval Tradb, in Churchill's Collection. " Garzoni, Storia della Republica di Venezia, 40. Amelot de la Houffaie, Hiftoirc du Govern- ment de Venife. Addifon's Remarks on feveral Parts of Italy. Beawes's Lex Mercatoria Redi- viva, p. 712. Di£tionnaire de Commerce, tom. ii. col. 481. w Periifol Itinera Mundi, cap. 26. Luyt's Introdui^. ad Geographjam, ^3. cap. 18. Hcrbe- kt Bibliotheque Oricntalc, p. 457, ', Ifie of GRE AT B R ITAIN. 37 file is computed at about feven Englifh Miles, diflant about five from the Con- tinent of Perfia, and fomewhat more than twenty-five from that of Arabia. Thus inconfiderable in Size, it may be, without Exaggeration, (liled, in all other refpedls, of all Iflands the mofl difagreeable. A high Mountain that runs thwart it from Eaft to Weft, is believed to have been anciently a Vul- cano, and on its Extindlion has been left little better than a Heap of Rubbifti, compofed of uncouth Rocks, dark. Caves, and difmal Precipices -<. Though in the Latitude of twenty-feven Degrees and thirty Minutes North, the rever- berated Rays of the Sun render it one of the hotteft Places on the Globe; The Soil, if it deferves that Name, is a Mixture of Salt and Sulphur; the- very Scones are a mineral Salt; and though there are three pretty clear Rivulets that run from the Bottom of the Mountain, yet their Water is as fait as that of the Sea into which they fall Y. At the North Point, from the Foot of the Hill to the Sea, lies- a Plain about a Mile in Extent, on which ftood the City and Callle of Ormus, the Pride and Glory of the Eaft, the Magnificence of which was exprelled after the oriental Manner in this Phrafe, " That the World, being round as a Ring, Ormus might be confidered as its Jewel ?." It was the Capital of an Arab Monarch, who had Dominions on both the Perfian and Arabian Continents, till the Portugueze rendered him their Vaftal; and knowing the Value of the Place, improved, as well as preferved it. Hi- ther, at the proper Seafon of the Year, reforted the Merchants from Perfia,., Arabia, Turky, and all Parts of the Indies, where they were met by Caravans from Aleppo and Tripoli, and by Faftors from Venice, and other Parts of Europe 3. At thefe Seafons, which were from Januaiy to March, and from the Beginning of Septem.ber to the Clofe of October, the City wore a new Face ; the Outfides of the Houfes were adorned with Cabinets of China, and beautiful Paintings ; their Shops were lb covered as to exclude the fcorch- ing Beams of the Sun ; all the Riches of the Eaft blazed in the Eyes of the captivated Sped:ator; and in a Country producing nothing, and where the. People received even the V/ater they drank from the oppofite Shore, all the Necefi^aries, Conveniences, and even Luxuries, the intlamed Appetites of Men could defire, were furniftied in Profufion, and fuccefiive Scenes of Bulinefs and Pleafure, rendered it at once the richeft and moil delightful Place in that Part of the World b,. 'f Relationes de Pietro Tcxeira, cap. z. G. Batt. RarniifioRncohi delle Navigation! et Viaggr, torn. i. fol. 187, 291, 337, 338. Mr. Newberry's Travels, preferved in the ibcond Vohnne of: Purchas's Pilgrims. y Hacicluyt's Colleftion of Vo3fages, London, 1589, p. 47, 211, 214. Voyajes de Thevencf^ torn. iv. p. 479. Recueil des Voyages de la Compagnie des Indcs Oricntales, torn i.\. p. 337- ^ Viaggi di Pietro della Valle, torn. ii. p. 524 — 538. a Voyage de Schouten, torn. i. p. 465. Voyages d-e J- B. Tavernier, P. i. liv. v. chop. 23, P. Lafitau, Hiitoire des Decouyertes et Conqueftes des Portiigais, torn. i. p. 355, 360, 368. *> Atlas Maritimus et Commercial is, p. 193. Didionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. coi. 7C6, 707, 708. Deflimdcs Efluic fur Ic Marine et fur le Coini2icrce, p. iS.j, (85, 1S6... The. a.%V^320 38 The POLITICAL SURVEY The fettling this celebrated Mart in this Iflc, was not the Effeft of Chance, but Choice. The Princes who poflcfTed it reigned formerly in the City of Ormus, on the Coaft of Periia ; but the mercantile Turn of their Sub^efts having rendered them exceeding wealthy, expofed them fo frequently to the Ravages of their barbarous and rapacious Neighbours, that they voluntarily abandoned an agreeable Country to fix themfelves in this defolate Ifle ; where, by the Help of two tolerable Ports, they maintained an extenfive Commerce, and, under the Shelter of their Fortifications, and by the Strength of their maritime Power, lived fecure from thofe Plunderers to whom they had for- merly been a Prey <=. This City was founded at the Entrance of the four- teenth Century; and the famous Perfian Monarch, Shah Abbas, with the Afiiftance of the Englirti, deilroyed it in 1622, in hopes of transferring the Trade to Gambroon or Bander- Abafii, i. e. the Port of Abbas j the Moiety of tl\e Cufloms of which Port he granted the Englilh for their good Service. But this proved no very good Bargain to us ; and Gambroon is far from being what Ormus was d. So much does Succefs, in fuch Deligns, depend upon Circumftances, and, in all Refpefts, upon a commodious Situation, as this Inftance plainly Ihews us. Within the Seas of Africa we fhall likewife meet with an Ifland that falls in exiidtly with our Purpofe, It lies in the Latitude of twenty and twenty-one Degrees South, the Cli- inate warm, but very whollbme, the Soil ilony, and encumbered with high Rocks and lofty Mountains along the Coafts, Jbi-it within Land tolerably flat and fertile, exceedingly well watered, abounding with Fifli, Fowl, and Cattle, plentifully ftored with Ebony, and other valuable Woods, and, in Point of Extent, large enough to invite and fupport a confiderable Colony e. In the Beginning of the fixteenth Century it was difcovered by the Portugueze, who knowing that Pliny, and other ancient Writer?, had mentioned the liland of Cerne in thefe Seas, took it for granted that this muft be it, and accordingly we find it ftiled Cerne, or Sirne,.in their Maps^ ; but notwithftanding this, they did not think fit to fettle it; and indeed their Force was fo fmall, in comparifon of the vatf Dominions they grafpcd, that it was very excufable. However, according to their laudable Cuftom, they put fome Hogs, Goats, and other Cattle upon it, that in cafe any of their Ships either going to the Indies, or jreturning to Portugal, fliould be obliged to touch there, they might meet with " Chioti. Regum Ormuzii, cap 2. Manuel tie Faiia y Soafa Afia Portuguefa, torn. i. p. ii, cap. 2. Maff'ei Hifioriar. Indicar. p. i. lib. iii. cap. 9. ■' Mr. Monoux's large Account of the Taking of Ormus. Voyage de G. Schouten, torn. i. p. 464, 465, 66. Otter Voyage en Turquie et en Perfe, torn. i. chap. 20. ' Luyt's introduiSl. ad Geograph. feft. iv. cap. 5. Ogilby's Defcription of Africa, p. 715. Du ^ojs Geographie Modernc, p. iii. ch. 18. f §ce tke Maps and Charts in Vander Aa's Colleflion of Voyages. Refrefliments. of GREAT BRITAIN. 39 Refrelliments g. The Dutch, in the fecond Voyage they made to the Eaft Indies under their Admiral James CorneHus Vanneck, came thither with five Ships on the 15111 of September, 1568, anchored in a commodious Port, to which they gave the Name of Warwick Haven, and gave a very good Account of the Place in their Journals l'. Captain Samuel Caftleton, in the Pearl, an Englifli Eaft India Ship, arrived there on the 27^!' of March, 16 12, and taking it to be an Ifland undifcovered before, beftowed upon it the Name of England's Foreft, though others of his Crew called it Pearl Ifland, and in the Account of their Voyage, written by John Tatton, the Mafler of the Ship, celebrated it as a Place very convenient for Shipping, either outward or homeward bound, to refrefli at. This they fometimes accordingly did, and brought fome Cargoes of Ebony and rich Wood from thence, but without fixing any Settlement '. At length, in 1638, the Dutch feated themfelves here^ and it is highly remarkable, that at the very Time they were employed in making their firfl Settlement, the French fent a Veflel to take PoflefTion of it, who found the Dutch before-hand with them, and refufed the AfTiftance of an Englifh India- man, wooding and watering in another Port of the Ifland, who very frankly offered it, to drive the Dutch from their half-fettled Pofts k. They continued for fome Time in quiet Poifeflion of the Places they fortified in this Ifland, to . which they gave the Name of Mauritius j but having engaged the French, who were fettled on Madagafcar, to fteal fifty of the Natives, and fell them for Slaves, for the Improvement of the Dutch Settleihents here, this proved the Ruin of both Colonies ; for the Negroes furprifed and maflacrcd the French in Madagafcar; and the Slaves in Mauritius fled into the Center of the Ifland, from whence they fo much and fo inceflantly molefted thofe who- had been formerly their Mafters, that they chofe to quit a Country where they could no longer remain in any tolerable degree of Safety '. The Eaft India Company however, from Motives of Conveniency, and a very imper- feft Notion of its V^alue, difiipproved this Meafure, and therefore ordered it to be refettled ; which was accordingly done, and three Forts eredled at the prin- cipal Havens. Things now went on fomevvhat better than they did before > but they were ftill very much difturbed by the revolted Negroes in the Fleart of the Ifle, whom they could never fubdue. One principal Ufe that the Company made of this Place, v^as to fend thither State Prifoners, who, as they were not Men of the beft Morals, quickly corrupted the reft of the Inhabit- _S Purchas'sPilgiimage, p. 780. F. Valentyn, owdennicw Ocft Indien^ torn. i. p. 175. Mar- tiniere Diftlonnaire Geograpiiique, torn. iv. p. 180. ^ Recueil des Voyages de la Compagnie des Indies Orienti.los, torn. ii. p. 157. ' Piiichas's Pilgrims, vol. i. p. 331. * Relation du Voyage de Francois Cauche de Rouen, &c. p. 3. ' Leguat Voyage aux Indes Orientales, torn. ii. p. 75. Hamilton's rlew Acccimt of iVjC Eaft Indies, vol. i. p. 19. Gentil de ia Barbinais Tour du Mondc; torn. lii. p. 203. ants. 40 The POLITIC /VL SURVEY ants, and rendered them fuch a Race of outrageous Smugglers, the Situation of •the Place concurring with their bad Difpofitions, that after various inefFe<£tual Attempts made to reform them, Orders were at length given to abandon Mau- ritius a fecond time, which, after fome Delays, were put in Execution in the Year 17 lo "'., In this deferted Situation, it was occupied as a Derelid:, we cannot precifely fay when, by the old French Eafl India Company, who beftowed upon it the Name of the Isle of France, by which, amongft their other PoflelTions, .it was granted to the prefent perpetual Company of the Indies, who caufed it to be fettled, and, as if it had been a Place of great Significancy, pro- .cured an Edict for eHablifliing a provincial Council there, dependant upon that in the Ille of Bourbon ; both which Councils however were, in all refpefts, below the very meaneft Corporation in this Country, yet that of the Ifle of France was by much the meaner of the two ". In truth it had coil: fo much, and was conlidered in every Light worth fo little, that it had been more than once under Deliberation, whether, after the Example of the Dutch, they fhould not leave it again to its old Negro Inhabitants ; which fooner or later in all likelihood would have been its Fate, if, in 1735, the famous Mr. de la Bourdonnaye had not been fent thither, with the Title of Govwnor General of the French Iflands °. He found this Ifle in the worft State pofllble, thinly inhabited by a Set of jazy People, who equally hated Induftry and Peace, and who were continually flattering this Man to his Face, and belying him where-ever, and as far as they durll. He gave himfelf no Trouble about this, having once found the Means to make himfelf obeyed ; he faw the vaft Importance of the Ifland ; he con- ceived that it might be fettled to great Advantage ; and, without fo much as expedling the Thanks of thofe for whom he laboured, he began to execute this ^reat Delign ''. His firft Step was to bring over black Boys from Madagafcar, whom he carefully trained up in good Principles, and in continual Exercife; by which he rendered them fo good Soldiers, that he very quickly obliged the Marones, or wild Negroes, either to fuhmit or to quit the Ifland : He taught the Planters to cultivate their Lands to Advantage ; he, by an Aque- dudl, brought frefli Water to the Sea Side ; and whereas they had not fo much as a Boat at his coming thither, he made a very fine Dock, where he not only built Sloops and larger VeflTels, but even a Ship of the Burthen of five hun- " Martiniere DitSlionnaireGeographiqiie, torn. iv. p. 180. Barbinais Tour du Monde, torn. iii. 4). 115. Guyon Hiftoire des Indes Oricntales, torn. iii. p. 203. ° Hiftoire de la Compagnie des Indes, p. 145. 358. Uid^ionnaire de Commerce, tem. ii. £©1. 1069. Memoire de Mr. de laBourdonnais, torn. i. p. 14. " Provifion do Governeur General des Ifles de France et de Bourbon pour le Sr. Mahe de la Sourdonnais. f A'lemoire de Mr. de la Bourdonnais, torn. i. p. 15, Supplement au Didionnaire de Com- ;jnercc5 col. 135. Relation de la Ifle dc France. dred of GREAT BRITAIN. 41 dred Ton. However incredible it may feem, yet it is certainly Matter of Fa£t, that in the Space of five Years he rendered this Country a Paradife, that had been a Defart for five thoufand, and this in fpite of the Inhabitants, and of the Company, who being originally prejudiced by them, behaved ill to him at his Return q. He foon made the Cardinal de Fleury, however, fenfible of the true State of Things, and compelled the Company to aclcnowlege, though they did not reward, his Services. He afterwards returned, as all the World knows, into the Indies, and perfected the Work he had begun ; and to him it is owing that the Isle of France is at prefent one of the fineli, as it was always one of the moft important and improveable Spots upon the Globe r, America ftiall yield us our lafl Inftance. CURA9A0, or Curraffaw, lies in the Latitude of twelve Degrees forty Mi- nutes North, and is an liland near thirty Miles long, and about half as many broad. The Soil is far enough from being fruitful, and the Climate is not either wholfome or agreeable. There were however, formerly, fome pretty tolerable Pafture Grounds, which fed a vafl: Quantity of Cattle, but thefe have been long ago deftroyed, in order to make way for Sugar and Tobacco s. At pre- fent it is confidently afiirmed, that the whole Produce of the Ifland would not fubfift the Inhabitants twenty-four Hours ; yet fuch is the Wifdom of the Dutch Government, that there is no Place in the Weft Indies where Want is lefs felt than here t. On the South Side there is a very fine Town, and a veiy fafe and commodious Haven, though a little troublelbme at the Entrance, which does not hinder it from being one of the moft frequented Ports in America, and if fo figurative an Exprefilon may be allowed, notwithftanding Nature feems to have done as little in favour of diis Ille as flie ever did for any, yet the Dutch have not only fupplied all her Deficiencies by Art, but have likewife converted many natural Defedls into Advantages ; fo tliat where one would realbnably exped: to meet with a poor and neceflitous People, hold- ing very little Correfpondence with their Neighbours, we in reality find a rich and populous City, full of Magazines of all Sorts of Goods, and a Port where Ships not only ride in the greateft Safety, but by the Help of a Variety of Engines are lifted into convenient Docks, where they are careened with won- derful Expedition, and furnifiied with Rigging, naval Stores, and even Artil- lery, if they are wanting ". The Vicinity of the Spanifli Main is the principal Source of their Wealth and Trade j and, in former Times, the fingle Article ■*! Memoire de Mr. de la Bourdonnais, torn. i. p. 29 37. ' Relation de la Ifle de France. Memoire de Mr. de la Bourdonnais, torn. i. p. 23. Supple- ment au Diiftionnaire de Commerce. ' Luyts, Introd. ad Geographiam. feft. v. cap. 7. Robbe Methode poi^r apprendre la Geogia- j)hie, vol. ii. p. 378. Salmon's Geographical Grammar, p. 638. ' The Importance of the Britifli Plantations in America, p. 49. ^ Harris's Voyages, vol, ii. p. 370. Vol. I G ef 42 llie POLITICAL SURVEY of Slaves has produced a Million. At prefent they deal more in Goods, of whicli they have immenfe Quantities lying by them, that, from Day to Day, find their Way to the moft proper Markets ", In the mean time, Englifh, French, Danifh, Portugueze, and Spanilh Ships, are as welcome as- Dutch, and as well treated. Of this we had an Inftance when the prefent Admiral Knowles attacked La Guira and Porto Cavallo, when they very kindly fup- plied us with Cables, Ammunition, and even with Men ; fo that we had infallibly fucceeded in our Defign, if, with the fame Liberality, influenced by the fame Motive, a very liigh Price, they had not furniflied the Enemy previoufly with fuch Quantities of military Stores, as rendered our Attempt abortive x j and thus gaining by every Way, and from every Hand, they draw annually immenfe Sums into Holland, from a Country, that, to any other Mafters, had been ufelefs y. Thus the Reader fees many Things in thefe which did not appear from the former Examples ; and that my Meaning may be apprehended ftill more clearly, I thall on both make a few general Obfervations. The firft is, that thefe Places derive all thofe amazing Advantages, in refpedt to Strength, Security, and Conveniency, from this fmgle Circumftance of their being Iflands. This^ Situation fuggefted the Pofllbility of making them what they were, or are j. and Gripping them of this, they muft appear in a Light not difadvantageous only, but even contemptible. In the next place, it deferves particular No- tice, that deriving this fole Benefit from Nature, thefe Places ftood indebted for all their other Improvements, to the diftinguilhing Sagacity, the conilant Attention, and the indefatigable Diligence of Men ; fo that whatever wonder- ful and furprizing Changes any of thefe Illes may have undergone, they were: perfeftly natural and imitable ; and of courfe the like falutary Alterations may be brought about any-where, and at any Time, and in any Iflands, fuppofing them only to be inhabited by honefl:, prudent, induftrious People, enjoying abfolute Freedom, or, which is fl:ill better, the Blefling of a mild and equit- able Conftitution. Let me add to all this, that feeming Defentain Three hundred one way, ' Cker. de Oiaror; lib. i.' Senec. Epifiol. lib. Hi. *' Allowing for thi refpeftive Differences ia the Degrees of Latitude and Longitude, as they approach towards the Pole, agreeable to the bell geographical Writers. and 46 The POLITICAL SURVEY and Six hundred the other ; yet there wanted not fome amongft the Learned who thought thel'e Dimenfions rather too large. Orofius computes the Length of Britain at Eight hundred Miles, and the Breadth at Two hundred, in which he is followed by Venerable Beda, and many of our old Hiftorians. In like manner, Robert of Glouceftcr fixes the Length at Eight hundred; but then, in moft Copies, the Breadth is computed at Four hundred ; though in fome .it. is, as perhaps it fliould be in all, only Two hundred. Polydore Vergil, >vho really took a great deal of Pains, informs us, that from Dover to the Extremity of the North of Scotland, might be Seven hundred Miles ; from Dover to St. Michael's Mount in Cornwall, Three hundred ; from St. Mi- ciiael's Mount to the North of Scotland, Eight hundred ; making the Cir- ■ cumference One thoufand eight hundred Miles. It is an Error worth remark- ing, that tliis Writer makes the Length of England, from South to North, but Three hundred and twenty Miles, and Scotland Four hundred and eighty; but at the fame time he obferves, that though it be longer than England, yet it is rnuch narrower f-. The accurate Mr. Camden, who fpeaks of this Matter as if he iiad weighed it thoroughly, admits the Wand to be of a triangular Forni, as the Ancients affert, and therefore compares it to Sicily ^. That he may .explain himfelf more clearly, he begins with afcertaining the three Angles. Belerium, as it was called by the Romans, which is probably the Anti- veftaeum (more truly Antiveftrium) of Ptolemy, that is, in the Language of the old Natives, an divez Tir, i. e. Finis Terras, or the Land's End g in the Weft ; Cantium, the Kentifh Foreland in the South ; Tarvifium, or Orcas, in the Language of the old Inhabitants, Tar iiifion, i. e. Venter Aquarum, Faro Head, or rather Duncfbay, that is, Duncans-bay-head in Cathnefs, in the North. He then tells us, that from Cathnefs to the Land's End, reckon- ing tlie Windings and Turnings of the Shores, along the Weft Side, are com- puted Eight hundred and twelve Miles; from thence, along the Southern Coaft to the Kentifli Foreland, Three hundred and twenty Miles ; from die Kentifti Foreland, coafting the German Ocean to Cathnefs, Seven hundred and four Miles ; fo that, by this Computation, the whole Ifland is in Circuit One thou- fand eight hundred thirty-fix Miles, which falls much fhort of Pliny's, and is alfo fomevvhat lels than Casfar's Account. We will add to thefe, which are not Matters of mere Curiofity or Speculation, but which will hereafter have their Ufe, a more modern Computation, that pretends to geometrical Cer- tainty. The Author of this was the famous Dodor Nehemiah Grew ^, who, in Oppofition to what he lays was the prevailing Opinion, that England, or South Britain, mcafured Three hundred and five Miles in length, and Two ' JrJ. Cccfar, de Bel'.p G.illico, lib. v. Strabon. Geograph. lib. iv. p. 199, 200. Plin. fli/l. Nat. lib. iv. cap. 16. Bed. H.ift. Ecclef. lib. i. cap. i. P. Orofius, Hiftor. lib. i. cap. 2. Poly- dor. Vergil. Hift. Angl. lib. i. Robert of Gloucefler's Chronicle, p. L f Cair.dcn. Britan. Lond. 1607, p. 2. g Baxtcri, GlofTar. Antiquitat. Britan. p. 19, 36. 224. * Phliofophicai Tninfaftions, N°- cccxsx. J5. 266. Jiundred ofGREATBRITAIN. 47 hundred and ninety in breadth ; aflerts, that from Newhaven in Suflfex, which lies in the South of England, to London, are Fifty-fix meafured Miles, by the Wheel ; and from London to Berwick, Three hundred thirty-nine Miles ; fo that the true Length is Three hundred ninety-five meafured Miles, and the true Breadth, from the South Foreland to the Land's End, Three hundred fixty-fevcn Miles of the like Meafure. According to this Method of Computation, the Length of Scotland mull be about Two hundred thirt)'- feven Miles, and confequently the true Length of the Ifland Six hundred thirty-two fuch meafured Miles. The Climate, though we Ibmetimes hear it cenfured, as being fubjedl to frequent and confi^derable Alterations, is, upon the whole, both temperate and wholfome, infomuch that we feldom ftand in any Need of Furs to defend us from the Severity of the Cold in Winter, and have more feldom Reafon to complain of any infupportable Heat in Summer i. If therefore our Weather be, as is commonly alleged, in general lefs fteady and ferene than in fome other Countries of Europe, it is not fo fultry in one Sealbn, or io rigorous in another.- We are fubjedl in a fmaller Degree to Storms of Thunder and Lightning; to long piercing Frofts, and deep Snows ; and though we have a full Proportion of Rain, in Ireland particularly, yet it falls moderately, and not with fuch' Weight and Violence as to produce fudden and dangerous Inundations. Our- Seafons are fo kindly as to ripen all Sorts of Grain, and of fome fort or other, in all the different Parts of the Ifland k ; to furnifh us with a great Variety of excellent Fruit, and to afford us the moft luxuriant Paftures, by the Confeflion ■ of mofl of our Neighbours ; fo that what was heretofore faid ', ftill conti- nues true, that, except Wine, Oil, and a few rich Fruits, that are the peculiar BlefTings of hotter Climes, this Country derives from Warmth and Vegeta-- tion all that its Inhabitants can be jullly faid to want, or indeed that they can. Teafonably wifh or defire. But, not to deal entirely in Generals, there are fome particular Cir- cumftances, which are juflly held to be Charadleriftics of the Excellency of the circumambient Fluid. Of thele, the firft is Longevity, which is the cleareft Proof of a Climate's being wholfome ; and, with a reafonable Pro- portion of Trouble, we might give Examples of this in almoft every Part of thefe Iflands. For Inflance, Mr. Carew "^ tells us, that there lived in his Time, in Cornwall, one Polzew, who reached the Age of One hundred and thirty i a Kinfman of his lived to One hundred and twelve ; one Mr. Beauchamp, to ' Cxfar. de Bello Gal. lib. v. Cicer. de Natura Deornm, lib. ii. Strabon. Geograph. lib. iv. Corn. Tacit, in Vit. Agric. Cefcenius Getuliciis. k Jul. Solini Polyhift. c. 24. Joan. Boemus Aubanus, deMoribus omnium Gentium, lib. iil. cap. 26. Jul. Scaliger. Exercit. 140 et 200. • ' Panagericus Conltantio diftus. '^ Survey of CornwaU, fol. 63, One 4-8 The POLITICAL SURVEY One hundred and fix ; and which is ftill ftronger, that there died in his own Parifh, in the fhort Space of fourtecii Weeks, four Perfons, whofe Years made together Three hundred and forty. The famous Thomas Parr, who was born at Alderbury in Shropfliirc, lived to One hundred fifty-two Years ". In Oxfordlhire, Dodlor Plott tells us of Richard Clifford, living, at Bolfcot, to One hundred and fourteen ; Brian Stevens, at Woodftock, and two or three •Perfons then living at Oxford, above One hundred o. Dodlor Willet informs .us of a Man who lived at Everiden, in Bedfordfhire, to the Age of One hun- dred and twenty-four p. Doctor Hakewili obferves of William, Marquis of Winchefter, that he reached One hundred and feven q. Dodlor Plott tells us, (that Mr. Biddulph, of Biddulph in Staffordfhire, had twelve Tenants living, whofe Ages, put together, made a thoufand >■. Henry Jenkins, of Yorklliire, died at One hundred and fixty-eight s. In Scotland alfo, fome Perfons have attained to very great Ages. Buchanan mentions one, who at a Hundred and forty, was able to go out to filh, in a tempeftuous Sea, in his own little Boat t; and Mr. Martin aifirms, that one Tairville lived, in Shetland, to One .hundred and eighty u. The Countefs of Defmond, in Ireland, who was known to Sir Walter Ralegh and Lord Bacon, lived to One hundred and forty w j and many more Inrtances might be given from that liland, if that noble Author had not cut tlie Matter iliort, by affirming, that there is not a confi- .derable Village almoft any-where, in which there is not at leaft One Perfon of Ninety or upwards x. Whatever therefore can be deduced from this Point of Evidence, we may boldly afiTert, is fully proved in behalf of thefe Iflands ; and though it may be doubted whether thib will give us any Superiority over .fome Parts of Germany, Denmaik, Sweden, Norway, or Ruflia, yet, in ■the next Inflance perhaps, we may have as much Advantage of the North, as, in this, of fome of the Southern Countries in Europe. This fecond Inflance is in regard to Fecundity ; for in Climates remarkably unwholfome, one of the clearell and moft apparent Teftimonies, is the Bar- rennef. of Women. But in England, we have many memorable Examples of Perfons, of all Ranks, and in all Parts of both Iflands, that have been :difi:inguiflied by their very numerous Progeny, and fo much the more diftin- guiflied, as perhaps One-half, or even a Third, would have been efteemed " Philofophical Tranfaftions, No- xliv. p. 886. ° Natural Hifloiy of Oxt'ordrtiiie, chap. il. p. ip. '' Doftor Andrew Willct's Hexapla in Gen. chap^ v. §. 5. p. 6^. q Hakewill's Apology, lib. iii. p. 183. ■■ Natural Hiftory of Stafford/liire, chap. vili. p. 3:9. » Philofophical Tranfaftions, N^" ccxxi. p. 266. ' Renim Scot. Hift. lib. i. Robert! Sibbaldi. Prodr. H^ft. Nat. Scot. lib. i. cap. 20. f . 44. u Dcfcription of the Weftern Iflands of Scotland, p. 373. " Sir Walter Ralegh's Hiftory of the World, b. i. chap. 5. § 5. Lord B.icon's Works, Edit. J753, vol. i. p. 241. See alfo Dr. Baynard's Appendix to Sir J. Floyer's Trcatife on Cold Baths, " Hift. Vit. et Mort. apud Baconi Opera, vol. iii. p. 348. very of GREAT BRITAIN. ' 49 very wonderful in fome other Countries that might be named. Lcjticc, Counters-Dowager of Eflex and Leiceller, Mother to the unfortunate Earl who was beheaded in the Reign of Queen Ehzabeth, lived to lee the Grand- children of her Grand-children >'. Jane, the Wife of Doctor Phineas Hud- fon, Chancellor of York, died in the thrty-ninth Year of her Age, of her twenty-fourth Cliild; as did Dorothy, th ; Wife of Mr. Jofeph Cooler, of Leeds, of licr twenty-fixth'^. Mr. William Greerhill, of Abbots-Langley, in Hertfordlhire, had tliirty-nine Children byoneV/ifea. Mrs. Heyrick, of Leicefter, lived to fee fpringing from herfelf, one hundred forty-three De- fcendants 1>. Mrs. Fenton, of Huntflett, in Yorkfliire, one hundred thirty- eight -. Mrs. lioneywoi.d, three hundred and fixty-feven ^ ; and many more might be collefted, if it was at all neceflary. In North Britain, and in Ire- land, this Bleffing of a numerous Progeny, though not greater, is more fre- quent, becaufe Luxury hitherto has lefs prevailed. If it be objefted that this is improbable, becaufe both Counties are tliinly peopled in comparilon of Eng- land, we have a very fhort and conclufive Anfwer; That Multitudes, from both thefe Countries, annually withdraw themfelves into different Parts of the World, from whence they but rarely retu n; which is the more inex- cuiable, fince, with equal Induftry, and far lefs Hazard, they might live in both Countries happily and honourably at Flome. It is evident from hence, how verv populous thefe Iflands might be, if the Policy of the State fully co- operated' with the Excellency of the Climate ; and it follows, as a neceflary Confequence, that if any confiderable Diminution appears in the Number of Births, without apparent Caufes, this is never to be attributed to any Variation in our Climate ; which, for Reafons that will be hereafter affigned, r?.ther im- proves than otherwife, but to fome vicious Alterations in the Manners of the People, againft which it becomes the Wifdom of the Government to provide. The Stature, Strength, Adlivitv, and other corporal Advantages of our People in general, are a third Te[limony=. It would not be confident with the Defign of this Work, to point out particular Infliances of extraordinary Stature, wonderful Strength, or amazing Adivity, which yet, if it was necef- fary or proper, might be very eafily done; but it feems wholly futiicicnt for my Purpofe, to obferve that our Troops have been ever allowed, even by our Enemies, equal, in all refpeds, to thofe of other Nations ; and that, with regard to our Seamen, there are fcarce any who can enter into a Competition y Ex Chartularia honoratifllmi D»'. Vicecomitis de Wey month, D'. Manerii do Drayton. == Thorefty's Hiftory of Leeds, p. 608. » Id. ibid. *• See the Infciiptlon on the Family Tomb, in the Church of St. Martin, inLciccfVcr. ' Thorefby's Hiflory of Leeds, p. 581. '' Deiham's Phyfiro-Theology, B. iv. chap. x. p. 179, 180. • The Reader may find numberlcfs Inftanics in Carcw's Smvey of Cornwall; in P!o'..'5 OKford- /hire and Statfordlliire; Thcieiby's Leeds, 5cc. Vol. I. H ^vith 50 The POLITICAL SURVEY with them. Our Sawyers, Mafons, Keelmen, Miners, Smiths, Porters, Chairmen, and, in a word, all who excrcife Trades that require robuft and vigorous Conftitutions, arc as remarkable in their feveral Stations here, as irr any Country throughout the World. Our Filhermen, in all Parts of the Ifland, are as hardy and as dexterous as any ; our Horfe-Courfers and Grooms, diilin- guidied for their Proficiency in the Management of that noble Animal ; and our Labourers and Hulbandmen, inferior to none in point of Skill, or Dili- gence, or Application. In all our mechanic Arts, and in that valt Variety of different Manufactures which flourifli in this Ifland, the Induftry and Spirit of thofe who are employed in them, are eminently confpicuous ; and in all their, ruflic Divcrfions, through the three Kingdoms, the lower Sort of People- afford incontefliblc Evidence, of as hale and vigorous Conftitutions as in any Nation that can be mentioned; in reference to which, whoever (hall give him- felf the Trouble to enquire minutely, will find Evidence fromFacls to a Degree of Satisfadion, perhaps beyond his Expectation, and which will leave him not the leaft room to doubt of the Weight and Propriety of this Argument. The Genius of the People is another Charadteriftic of the Climate ; by which we do not mean the fanciful Effedls that Altrologers have afcribed tO' the Influence of the heavenly Bodies, but the Confequences of a certain Dif- pofltion of the Air, altered in the proper Seafons by the Impreflions of Heat and Cold, and other Viciflitudes of Weather, upon the Bodies, and thereby on the Minds of Men, which the foundefl: Philofophy has acknowleged, and which the Appearance of many great Genii in one Country, while few or none are to be found in others, confirms by Experience f . Upon this the Temper and Strength of human Minds depend; and as we fee fome Men capable of one thing, fome of another, we obferve the like Diverfity in Na- tions, afcribe both to the fame Caufe, and form our Notions of the Perfeftion or Imperfection of that Caufe, from the Nature of its Eflredts. If therefore Genius be the Effeft of Climate, we have not tranfgrelled the Bounds of Juftice in commending that of Britain, flnce there is hardly any Study fo' elevated, any Science fo profound, any Art fo difficult, or fo nice, that the Inhabitants of thefe Iflands have not, in the Judgment of the mofl; candid and impartial Connoiffeurs, invefligated with Patience and Succefs. In The- ology, and all the Learning depending upon it, what greater Names than Ufher, Pierfon, Stillingfleet, Barrow, Clarke, and many others. In Philofo- phy, Bacon the Monk, his Namefake the Vifcount of St. Albans, the cele- brated Mr. Boyle, the fagacious Dodtor Hooke, the acute and accurate Doftor Edmund Halley. In mathematical Knowledge, befides fome of the learned already mentioned, we may boafl: of the great Dodtor Wallis, the judici- ous Oughtred, the penetrating Harriot, the Lord Merchifton, Sir Chriltopher ^ Tit. Liv. lib. V. Csef. de Bello Galileo, lib. iii. iv. Juvenal. Sat. x. Amtni.m. Marcel, lib. XV. Alex, ab Alex, Genial. Dies, lib. iv. Boilini Repub. lib. v. Scaliger. lixerclt. lo et 174. Wren, of GREAT BRITAIN. 51 Wren, Profefibr Gregory, the ingenious Mr. Machin, ProfeiTor Sanderfon, •and, to conclude with the greateft, the incomparable Sir liaac Newton. Amongft our Poets ; Shakefpeare, Milton, Butler, Dryden, and Pope, have iecuied to themfelves a Reputation as lafting as our Language. In what are iHled the Belles Lettres; Sir Philip Sydney, Sir William Temple, the clear and corredl Mafter of the Charter-Houfe, Doftor Burnet, the elegant Mr. Addifon, the Iprightly and acute Dean of St. Patrick's, the late benevolent Bifliop of Cloyne, and many others, v/ill be read and admired as long as Men have any Reluh for good Senfe, and a juit Delight in feeing it happily ex- prelfed. To thele we might add a long Catalogue of Names, diftinguidied by their Writings of various other kinds, fuch as the wife and weighty Sir Walter Pvalegh, "the deepfighted Sir William Petty, the profound Mr. Hobbs, the mOil able and dilinterefted Mr. Locke; and every Reader's Memory will fuggell to him many more as ftriking and conclufive Examples. The Variations in our Climate, which fome have reprefented as fuch terri- ble Inconveniences, are, if more clofely confidered, very fingular Advantages. Our Seafons, though it muft be confelfed they do not very nearly refemble thofe on the Continent, yet are not fo difcordant to the Health of Strangers, as to hinder them from coming over hither, or from ftaying here, when other Circumftances invite. On the other f land, it gives fuch Mvacity and Vip-our to the Natives, and fo habituates them to thofe Chan8;es that are inci- dent to a Life of Travel, that no People are more addidled to it, perform long Voyages or Jourpies with greater Eafe, or are lefs affected by the Plard- lliips to which, in fuch Expeditions, they are almoft necefiarily expofed. Let any Man read the Dutch Voyages 3 to Nova Zembla, and Pelham's Stay in Spitzbergen, or Greenland '•, in a much higher Latitude, and it will fully confirm the Truth of what I have advanced. This Deiire of enquiring into, and correfponding with the Inhabitants of the mofb diftant Countries, has been ever the Chara-Tterillic of the Britiih Nation. So early as the Times of King Alfred, the penetrating into the moft rem.ote Northern Countries was not only meditated bv his Suhjcfts, and approved by that Prince, but acluallv attempted i. The fame Monarch fent one of his Prelates as far as the Gulpli of Perfia, partly on a religious, partly on a political Errand k. Whether Ame- rica vt'as originally diicovered by a Prince of VVaks, is indeed very uncer- tain; but that a Welch Prince undertook, and made fome extraordinary Difco- veries, before fuch Things were endeavoured by other Nations, admits of little » Recueil cles Voyages, qui ont fervi a rEtabllfTeraent et aux Progrez de la Comp3g;uc des Ii> des Orientales, premier Tome. h God's Power a'nd Providence fully (hewed, in the rairaculous Deliverance of ciglit Englifbmcn left by Mifchance in Greenland, A. D. 1630, for nine Months and tv>-elve Days, faiihtuiiy rccord!.d by Edward Pelham, one of the faid eight Men. Chnrchill's Colleftion, vol. iv. ' Giiliel. Malmeftmrienf. deGeftis Pontific. Anglor. lib. ii. p. 247, 248. ^ Sir John Spelnuas Life of JCmg Alfred, a .MS. ia the Bodkiun Library, B. il. \. 81. II 2 Djubt. 52 The POLITICAL SURVEY Doubt '. The Portugneze Writers acknowlcge, that the Ifland of Madeira was difcovered by one Macham, an EngHlhman, who carried thither a Lady he had ilolen; and, a'fter her Death, endeavouring to efcapc, lie was taken by the Inhabitants of Africa, who, on account of his being over-grown with Hair, by living long in a defolate Place, fent him as a Prefent to Don Pedro, then King of Caflilc ; and to his Reports they afcribe all their own, and the Spaniards fubfequent Dilcoveries '". In all the military Expeditions to the Holy Land, none had a larger Share, or acquitted themfelvcs with greater Reputation, than the Monarchs, Princes, and Nobility of this Illnnd ". The Englilh had a principal Hand in recovering the City of Lifbon from the Moors, and thereby eitabliihed the Portugucze Pvlonarchy, for which they are very honourably mentioned in the Pliltories of that Country, and had very great Privileges beflowed upon them °. Several Britifli Princes and Noblemen diftinguiilied themfelves amongit the Teutonic Knights, in the Conquefl of Pruirra p. John of Gaunt laid Claim to the Crown of Catl;ilc ; made an Expe- dition to recover it; obtained an ample Compenf^ition for refigning liis Title; faw the Crown, which he relinquifhed, placed on the Brow of one Daughter, (Catherine, Confort to Don Henry III.) as that of Portugal had been before en the other q. To the AlTiftanceof the Englifh thePortugueze owed the tak~ ing of Ceuta, which is the fingle Evidence of their having once pofTeiTed the Dominions of Portugal, that is remaining in the Hands of the Spaniards ^ The facking of Cadiz by the Lord High Admiral Howard, and the Earl of ElTex, put an End to the Spanifli Dreams of univerflil Monarchy s. We were once very near fixing Don Antonio on the Throne of Portugal t. It was the Englifj-i Succours gained the decifive Battle of Evora ", and thereby eflabliflied the reigning Houlc of Braganfa, whofe Title to the Crown of Portugal was ' Powel's Hiriory of Wales, p. 227, 228, 229. This Voyage was A. D. 1 170. "> Afia, de Joan, dc Barros, dos fletos que os Portuguefes Hzeram, no de cobrimento, e conqiii/la dos mares e terras, do oriente, Decada prima, lib. i. cap. 3. Don Antonio Galvano's Difcoveries of the World, tranflated out of Portngueze by Richard Hakluyt, London, 1601. 4^*. p. 2. Pur- char's Pilgrims, cxtraftcd from Galvano's Difcoveries, vol. it. p. 1671, 1672. " Chronicon Hierofolymitaniun, lib. ill. ix, x. Gul. Malmefbur. Hill. lib. iii. Nic.Triveti, An- nalcs. Gul. Neubrigenf. Hift. lib. f . Rogeri Hoveden, Annales. " Nic. Trivet. A.D. 1 147. De laNeufWlle Hiftoire G^ ..lale de Portugal, torn. i. p. 89. Ma- goel de Faria y Soufi, Epitome de las Hiftorias Portuguefas, lib. iii. cap. 2. P The Reader may find thefe Hiftorics, drawn from original Author."., in the firft Volume of HakUiyt's valuable Colleiflion of Voyages. 1 Hlftoria vi[,T2 et regni RichardiU. Anglla: Regis, a Monncho de Eveftiam confignata, p. 1 19, 120. Don Juan de Ferreras, Hifroria de Efpana, A. D. 1387. Manoel deFaria y Soufa, Epitome de las Hiftorias Portnguefas, 1. iv. c 2. >■ Thorn. Walfingham. Hift. A, D. 14 15. Marmol. lib. iv. cap. 55. Manoel de Faria y Soufa,. ubi fupra, c. 3. ' Camdcni Annal. Elizabeth, p. 723, 778. A brief and true Report of the Honourable Voyage ■ unto Cadiz, A. D. 1596, at the End of Hakluyt's firft Volume, though wanting in many Copies. Birth's Memoirs of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, vol. ii. p. 45. ^ ' Manoel de Faria y Soufa, Epitome de las Hiftorias Portuguefas, 1. v. c. 4. "^ MJfcellftjaea Aulica, p. 292, 293. Steven's Hillory of Portugal, p. 513, 514. acknowleged of GREAT BRITAIN. 53 acknowleged by Spain, in a Treaty negotiated under the Mediation of Great Britain"'. In a word, there has hardly been any great Event, in any Part of Europe, in which the Briti(h Crown, by its Minittcrs, of tlie Inliibitants of Britain, by their Valour, have not had aconfiderable Part. Sir Thomas Cha- loner attended the Emperor, Charles the Fifth, in his African Expedition^. The Earl of Ellex commanded thcEngliih Auxiliaries, in the Service of Flenry the Fourth of France/. To fay nothing of our many hoftile Invafions, in fupport of the Claim of our Monarchs to the Crown of that Kingdom ; or of the Affiftances given to the French Kings, in oppofition to that Claim by the Scots ^•. The Earl of Leicertcr was Governor of tlie Dutch Provinces ^ j the Vere's, the Norris's, and the Sidney's, gained immortal Reputation in thofe Low Country Wars ^; and tliere were whole Brigades of our Countrymen in the Service of that great Proteftant Hero, Gullavus Adolphus'-". If Colum- bus difcovered a new World for Spain, it was becaufe the Shipwreck of his Brother hindered his Knowlege of the favourable Reception that his Propofi- tions met with from Henry the Seventh d. If Francis Magellan muft be allowed the Honour of firil attempting the Circumnavigation of the Globe, yet Sir Francis Drake was the firfl Captain who had the good Fortune to atchieve it ^. Out of fifteen Circumnavigations, nine have been performed by the Englidi f. The fame heroic and indefatigable Spirit, is viiible in the feveral Trials that have been made to difcover the North-Eaft and North- Welt Paffages to the Indies S. If we have been lefs famous for Inventions than fome other Nation?,. we are on all hands allowed to have perfected thofe that we have profecuted with any Degree of Attention; witne's tbe feveral Fire-Engines for raifmg Water out of Mines, and the great Improvements in Clocks and Watches by Dodlor Hooke, Mr. Tompion, Mr. Quare, and the late accurate and ingenious, ■«' Corps Univerfel Diplomatique du Droit dcsGciis, torn. vii. P. i. p. yo; ^ Thom. Chaloner. de Repiiblica Angloriini inftuuianda. Lloyd's State Wortliies, p. 534. '' Camdeiii Annal. Eliz. p. 628. Davila, Hilloiia ddle guerre civili, liy. xii. P. Daniel, Hi-- ftoiie de France, torn. ix. p. 549. ^ Waheri Hemingford, HiAoria de Rebus geftls Edvardi I, Edi'ardi II, & Edvardi II[. Thomas: de Elmham, Vita & Gefta Henrici Quinti, Anglorum Regis. Gulielmi Ntiibrigcnfis, Hiftoria five Chronica. Abercromby's Atchievemtnts of the Scots, vol. i. P.Daniel. Mczeiay. a Rymeri Foeder.i, tom. xv. p. jgc). Grimftone's Hiftory of the Wars of the Low Countries, b.. jjiii. p. 910, t" CaraJeni Annal. Eliz. p. 461, 462.. Vere's Commentaries. ■^ Bifliop Burnet's Hilfory of the two Dukes of Hamilton, book i. p. 7. whtre is the origir.al In-- ftrument between hisSwedifh Majelly, and James, then Marquis, afterwards Duke, of Hamilton. ^ Hiftorie di Ftrnando Colombo, nelle quali s'ha porticolarc e vera relatione dellavita e de' fattil dell' Ammiroglio di Chiifloforo Ctiloml'o fuo padie, c JlUo fcuoprimento chcgli fece dclle Indie Occi- dental! dette mundo nuovo, tradotte dal Spagnuolo in Ital. da Alfonfo Ulloa Veiiet, 1571, 8''. capj. xi. Lord Bacon's Works, vol. ii. p. 336. Hakhiyt's Voy.ages, vol. ii. p. 2 and 3. ' Hakluyt's Voyages, vol. iii, p. 742, Piirchas's Pilgrims, vol. i. book ii. chap. 3. p. .46. f Harris's Voyages, Edit. 1744, Vol. i. chap. i. * Recueil de Voiapes au Nord, Amfttrdam, 1715, 12""°. Ellis's Voyage to Hudfon's-Eay, fcr.- difcovering a North- Weft Pailiige, in the. Years J 746, and 1747.. 54 The POLITICAL SURVEY Mr. George Graham. We may therefore, from fuch numerous Inilanccs, con- chidc, tlrat there is nothing infuperable to the Genius, Induftry, and Appli- cation of the Natives of thefe Iflands, prorcrly directed and fuitably encou- raged, that lies within the reach of human AbiHties. How far indeed thefe juay be aflcclcd by Lux:uryand Indolence, is hard to il\y ; but we may, with Truth, affirm, that thefe are unnatural Vices, to which our Climate does not at all lead, and which, as they can be no otherwife introduced, fo they may be at any time removed and extirpated by Example. This ought in a very parti- cular manner to weigh with Pcrfons of Diftindtion, in point of Quality and Fortune, whofe Duty it certainly is to rcflecl by their Behaviour, which will ever influence the many, that Honour upon their Country, which by its Con- ftitution they derive from it, and this from Motives of Interefl and Policy, a-, well as of Piety and Prudence, fince their Precedence, and even their Pro- perty, depends upon this Temper of the Populace, as a Circulation of Corrup- tion mult confound all Characflers, and," by reducing Men to be little better than Beafts, muR: neceffarily 'and effectually level them with each other. If, after all that has been faid, it fliould flill be objefted, that there are more ferene and healthy Climates than ours j and if farther it ihould be urged tliat there are forae Difeafes peculiar to, and many that arc more comn^on her.e than in fome Countries on the Continent, a very fuccindt, and yet a very fatisfa£tory Anfwcr may be given. In thofe happier Climates, as they are called, it will be found that there are much greater Numbers of indolent. Ignorant, and indigent People, than with us; .which plainly fliews, that by fuiting our Manners to our Climate, all thofe fo much magnified Inccnvcni- encies are avoided, and we poffefs, in greater Perfection, thofe Pleafures that dillinguifli a free, adlive, and fenfible People, from Bigots or Drones. In re- fpedt to Difeafes, w^hat Country is free from them ? Or what Country freer than this ? If any fuch can be named, I dare fay it will not be found under wh;:t is ufually called a better, that is, a milder Climate. In reference to Difeafes, that are fuppofcd to be peculiar to, or frequent in, this Country, I am perfuaded that, uj-on a ftridt Enquiry, the Objc6tion v/ill not hold. The Rickets is one of thefe ; and yet, it may be truly affirmed, that wherc-ever there is bad Nurfmg, a Difeafe like this will be common, not perhaps precifely with the fame Symptoms, for, in refpedl to them, the Climate may have a Share. But if, by taking away the Caufe, this Evil may be prevented here, as well as in other Places, there is no Colour for the Imputation !'. The Scurvy we have only in common with other Northern Nations ; the Symptoms are more violent, and the Difeafe Icfs curable in rnany Countries that may be mentioned, than in this ; {o that no Rcliedion on the Climate can be drawn ^ Fnm. GlifToni de Rachitide, London, 1650. Carol! Claroxontii, de Aere, Locis, ct Aquis Terrx Ang^lise ; deque MoibisAngloium veinaculis, London, 1672, 12". p. 42. Sir John Floyei's Hiliory of Cold Bathing, p. 10, 336, from of GREAT BRITAIN. 55 from hence '. As to Confumptioiis, they arife from many differen t Caufes ; in Ibme, no doubt, the Climate may be one, and to others it may flrongly con- tribute; but, in regard to the firfl:, it will, on a clofe Enquiry, be generally found, that one or both of the Parents were unhealthy, and yet, from the Excellence of this Climate derived Strength enough to beget confumptive Children ; whereas, in any other, they would have had none k. But, for one Confumption of this Kind, there are many more produced by Indifcrction or Exceffes, and then it comes to be no more than the long Struggle of a good natural Conftitution againll a Difeafe, which, in another Country perhaps, had difpatched the Patient at once. Add to all this, that in no Country the com- mon Rank of Men have a greater Bloom of Health in their Countenances, or are more exempt from contagious Difiempers, or where, with the Al'^flanct; of Prudence, Temperance, and Exercife, People ftand lefs in need of Phy- ficians; though where they are needful, their Writings clearly dcmonflrate, that none more diligent or more fkilful are to be found '. In refpedl to that boafted Samenefs and Serenity, with the Want of which we are fo much re- proached, it was fo handfomely and fully anfwered by Charles the Seconc!» that I cannot do better than repeat his Majefty's Word"^. " After all the Com- ** plaints," faid he, " againft the Inclemency and Uncertainty of our Wea- " ther, it may be, with Truth, affirmed, that there is no Country in Europe <' where a Man can be out of Doors with Pleafure fo many Hours in a Day,. " or lo many Days in a Year, as in this." When we conlider that the Mon- arch who fpoke it had been in Holland, Flanders, Germany, France, and Spain, and had alfo viiited moft Parts of his own Dominions, his Remark,, with every judicious and impartial Reader, will have the greater Weight. As, upon a clear and comprehenlive View of the Advantages derived to us from our Climate, we cannot but acknowlege the fingular Bounty of Pro- vidence in that refpecfl ; fo, when we turn our Eyes from contemplating the Benefits thus derived from the Air tliat furrounds us, we naturally look upon the Eafth that fuftains us, and there again we meet with innumerable and in- exhauftible Sources of Eafe and Happinel's. We may truly pronounce our Soil excellent, if we take only a hafty and curfory View of its Contents, fuch as Vegetable Mould, black, grey, brown, and red ; Clays of various Kinds, Brick-Clay, Ti!e-Clay, Potters-Clay, Tobacco-Pipe-Clay, Clay for making Crucibles, and Glafs-houfe Pots : Marl of many different; Sorts, and evcry- « C. Claromontii, ubi fupra. Doftor Sydenham's Works, p. 275. M.irtini Lifter, Traflatus dc^ quibufdam Morbis chronicis, Exercitatio v. Doctor Mead's Treatife of the Scurvy. A Ticatife of ihe Scurvy, in three Parts, by Doftor James Lir.d, Ediiibargh. 1753. A Work eq!u!ly curious, fatisfacSlory, and ufeful. ^ C. Claromontii, ubi fupra. SirJ.Floyer, of Cold Bathing, p. 157. Bennet. ' Gothofred. Moebii, Fundament. Med. Phifiolog. Jena:, 1661,40. p. 275. Plempiii Eiinde- ment. Med. p. 128. Coutingiana, p. to. Heiileri, Apologia pro Medicis, §. xix, xx. Sam. Par- kcri Hifloria I'ui Temporis, p. 35. where. 56 The POLITICAL SURVEY where difperled; Loam of feveral Kinds i Sands of different Sorts; Sand- lloiic, Freell:one, Grindflone, Whetftone, Limeflone ; blue Slate ; Flag- Marble of many Rinds; Alabarter, exceedingly rich and beautiful; Porphyr)', Granite, Pebbles, Flints, Agates; Talcs of .feveral Kinds ; Chryllals, Diver- lity of Spars, Pitch Stone, Cannel-coal, Pit coal, Jet, Amber; Salts of almoll every Species ; Alom, Vitriol, Saltpetre, Sulphur, Arfenic, Pyrites, Marca- fites. Antimony, Lapis Calaminaris, Blacklead, Copper Ore of very different Kinds; Tin Ores in great Variety, Lead Ores, Iron Ores, Loadilone, &:c'". One cannot conclude this Part of the Subjedl better, than with the Obferva- tion of the learned and laborious Dodtor Woodward ". " As to Gold and " Silver, England affords both, and in greater Quantities too than is com- " monly imagined, which feveral late Trials have taught me. Then we have " Cornelians, Agates, Mochoes, Onyx's, and Jafpers ; as alfo Topazes, Eme- " raids, and Saphires, though they are not fo hard as the Oriental, The *' Diamond indeed we want, and fome few others of the Gem Kind. But, ** excepting thefe, and Cinnabar, which is the Ore of Mercury, 1 know no ** Metal, Mineral, or Foflil whatever, that England does not yield ; fo very *' fertile and happy is it in its Producftions under Ground." Its natural Pro- dudlions alfo are not at all inferior to thofc of other Nations " ; our Fields arc cloathed with the moft agreealle Verdure, our Hills abound with falutiferous Herbs; our Meadows are painted with elegant and fragrant Flowers; our Mountains (haded by Groves of different Kinds of Trees ; fo that, if the Ex- prellion may be allowed, the Patrimony we derive from Providence is plenti- ful in a very high Degree, and may be extended, without Fear of offending Truth, or tlie leafl Sufpicion of Flattery, to all the three Kingdoms p. There is another Circumflance highly advantageous, flightly touched by moft Authors, as if a Matter rather of Beauty and Conveniency, than of any great Confequence, but which in Reality is of very high Importance. This is the Diverfity of Situations throughout both lilands, the Country ftretching in many Places into wide Levels, fuch as Newmarket, Lincoln-Heath, Salifbury- Plain, railing itfelf elfewhere up into Hills, which fometimes gently fink down again, and at others run on irregularly, rifing and falling in a Ridge of " Sir John Pettus's Fodinae Regales. Doftor Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancafliire. Waller's EIHiy on the Value ot Mines. Additions to the EnglKh Trand.ition of Camden's Britannia. Ful- ler's Worthies. Shier's \\vo Difcourfes on the Mine Adventure. Account of Englifli Minerals, by Doaor Ray. n Woodward's Natural Hiflory of Fofiils, London, 1729, 80. p. 6. See alfo the Appendix to Thorefby's Hiftory of Leeds. Duiftor Stukeley's Itincrarium Curiofum, p. 35, 51, 54, 55, 60, 65, 71. ° Thorax Chaloneri, de Repub. Anglor. Inftauranda, lib. i. W. Harrifon's Defcription of Bri- tain. Drayton's Polyolbion. Evelyn's Sylva. P Carndeni Britannia, Lond 160;', Fol. Robert! Sibbaldi, Scotia lUufirata, Edinburgi, 1684, FoL Natural Hiftory of Ireland, by Doftor Gerard Boate, publifhed by Samuel Hardib, Efq; London, 1652, 8". a very of GREAT BRITAIN. 57 -a very confiderable Extent, in fome Places having one Direiftion, and taking in others quite a contrary CourleT. It is owing to this Dirpolition of Mountains, that Springs, Rivulets, and Rivers, are fo frequently to be found, and are withal fo happily difperfed. In Scotland, where the Hills are high, and the Country beneath them floping, the Rivers run very ftiarp; but in the North, where the Country, though high by Situation, is neverthelefs on the Surface plain, the Waters fettle into Lochs, or Lakes, of which but few, though fome, there are in England, and ftill more in Ireland r. Hence arifes not only an agreeable Mixture of very diftinct Kinds of Soil and Country in different Parts of the Ifland, but even within the fame County ; fo that if we take Staffordfhire s for Example, it will afford us a competent Sample of the whole, which at the fame time that it is exceedingly agreeable, is alfo of wonderful Ufe, and is the principal Source of that perpetual Plenty which, in comparifon of other Countries, reigns here; fo that real Scarcity is feldom known, and no Famine, or remarkable Diftrefs for neceffary Food, has been felt for fome Centuries. But this will be better underftood, if we cafl our Eyes upon the improved Produce of thefe Countries t, if we refleft on the vaft Variety and amazing Abundance of all edible Roots, fuch as Onions, Turnips, Carrots, Parfnipsj- Radilhes, Potatoes, Sec. our Sallads and Greens, in which no Country exceeds this; our Liquorice, Saffron, and other Phyfical Roots and Herbs ; our Pulfe, and Grain of every Sort, fuch as Tares, Peas, Beans, Oats, Rye, Barley and Wheat of different Kinds ; our Fruit-bearing Shrubs and Trees of all Sorts, from our Blackberries, Bilberries, Cranberries, Strawberries, Ralberries, Goofe- berries. Currants, up to our Apples, Pears, Plumbs, Cherries, Peaches, Apricots, Nectarines, and, of late Years, even the Fruits of the warmeft Southern Cli- mates. Timber of all Sorts, fit for all Ufes, and applicable to all the Purpofes of Plcafure, Ornament, and Profit u ; our Gardens as elegant as any in Eu- rope; our Groves and Woods beautifully difpofed, and ferving to recreate the Eye of the Traveller in almolt every Part of thefe Iflands;. and if, notwith- ftanding all this, there may be, as undoubtedly there is, a Scarcity of lubftantial Timber perhaps in all the three Kingdoms, tliis is owing to a triple Cauie, the vaft Confumption of it in Building beyond what is pradifed ellewhere, or what was praftiled here in former Times ; the Eafe with which we have 'i Speed's BritliTi Empire, London, Fol. Doftor J. Childrey's Biirannla Baconica, London, 1661, So. Doftor Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofiim, p. 169, 171, 185, 186, 187. ' Hilloiiola Elienfis, apud Camdeni Biitan. p. 368. Heftor. Boetli. Scotorr.m Regni Defciipiio. Ancient and modern State of tlie County of Down, Dublin, i 744, 8°. chap. viii. ' See the three firft Chapters of Do(5f or Plot's Natural Hiflory of tliis County. ' Worlidge's Syftem of Hulbandry, London, 1687, Fol. Evelyn's Sylva, Pomona, and Acetaria. Bradley's, Lawrence's, and Switzer's Treatiies. " Bliih's Hulbandry, London, 1649, 4°. Auflen, of Fruit Trees. London, 1652,4°. Smith's England's Improvement revived, London, 1673,4°. Cook, of Forelf and of Fruit Trees, London, 1679,4". J. Worlidge's Syftema Horti-culturx, or the Art of Gar-Jening, London, 1719,8°, Mafcall's new Art of Planiing .and Grafting, London, 1656, 4°. Vol. I. I hitherto 58 The POLITICAL SURVEY hitherto fupplied ourfelves with it from foreign Parts ; and our unaccountable Negled of our Forefts, not from any Defed in our Soil, or the Want either of Room or Capacity to have it in the greatcft Abundance through England, Scotland, and Ireland, in each of which, v/ith proper Care, Timber enough might be jiroduced of all Sorts to fcrve plentifully all three; though perhaps the Growth of all three at prefent, would very fcantily anfwer the manifold Wants, «nd continually increafing Demands of England alone, and that too (which is at once a melancholy and important ExJiection) but lor a fliort Time w. It is in confequence of the Mildnefs of our Climate, and the admirable Nature of our Soil, that all ufeful Animals thrive to fuch a Degree of Perfedion in Britain. As for Inilance our Sheep, from the Flcfli of which we derive fuch Plenty of wholfome Food, and fo high a Profit from their Fleeces ^. Thefe we have in almoft every Corner of both Iflands, in very many in the greateft Abundance; and if every-where more equid in point of Flefli tlian of Fleece, this perhaps may be lefs owing to Nature tl:an the Want of Care, as we mayelie- M'here have occafion to explain. To thefe we may add Goats, which in Wales, North Britain, and Ireland, as well as in fome Parts of England, are common enough, ihough perhaps their Management, and the Advantages that might be derived from them, have not bten fufficiently confidered r. In few Coun- tries are there greater Numbers of black Cattle, or more improved than in thefe; fo that they are one great Source of our Riches, furnifliing every thing here which they furnilh in any other Country, in as great Plenty, and in no lefs Perfedlion. Horfes we have of all Sorts, and for all Kinds of Service, for the Saddle, the Race, and the Carriage, all equally good, though of very dif- ferent Natures; fome fmall and hardy, others large and flrong; fo that Afles are but little, and Mules fHll lefs ufed ; though it is certain we might have both, if this Plenty of our Horfes did not hinder our feeling any Need of them^. Our Dogs are no lefs famous, admirable in their Natures, and excel- w Evelyn's Sylva, book iii. chap. 7. Yairanton's England's Improvement, London, 1677, 4*. p. 58, 59, 60. Sibbaldi, Scotia ilkiHrata, lib. i. p. i. cap. 13. lib. i. p.ii. Boate's natural Hiftorjf of Ireland, chap. xv. Propofal for improving and adorning the Iflaad of Great Britain, by paro- chial Plantations of Timber, and other Trees, upon the Forelts, Chaces, Commons, and waflc Grounds, thoughout the Kingdom, by Edward Wade, Efq; 1755,4°. " A brief Examination of certain ordinary Complaints of divers of our Countrymen, Src. by W.S.I 58 I. England's Intereft confidered, in the Incrc-afe of the Trade of this Kingdom, 1663, by S. Tortrey. Sir Robert Atkins's Hiftory of Cloucellcrlhire, p. yj. Sir William Petty's Political Anatomy of Ii-e!and, p. 67, 63. Plan of Englifh Commerce, p. 156 — 164. y V.irro de RcRullica, lib. ii. cap. 3, ii- Columella, lib. vii. cap. 6, 7. Polydor. Vergil. An- glicjE Hiflor. lib. i. Giles Markham's Way to Wealth, part i. p. ^6. Doftor Be;d's Obfervations upon Hulbandry. Sibbaldi, Scotia illuftrata, p. ii. lib. iii. §. 2. cap. 2. Worlidge's Syftem of Hufbandiy, p. 172 ^ Sir William Hope's Horferaanfliip improved, chap. vi. C. Markham's cheap and good Huf- bandry, book i. Worlidge's Sylleni of Hulbandry, p. 170. Mortimer's Hufbandry, book vi. chap. 2. Maitland's liiftory of London, p. 339. D'Audiffiet, Hiftoue et Geographic ancienne et moderne, vol. i. ^ 141. lently of GREAT BRITAIN, ' 59 lently trained; fomc diflinguilhed through the Quicknefs of their Scent; others, from the Swiftnefs of their Feet; a third Kind, from their Sagacity; a fourth from their Spirit and Courage ; and feveral Sorts, from their Gentle- nefs and Beauty ^ Our Game Cocks are thought pecuHar to this Ifland. To thefe we may add the great Plenty of Bees, and many other Animals, if it was neceffary; and it becomes us to own, that though we are not altoge- ther free from Vermin, or, excepting Ireland, from venomous Animals, yet we are not infeiled with Beafts of Prey; and if ever we were plagued with Wolves, they are long fince extirpated. It may indeed be faid, that the choicefl Produftions of the Earth, and the moft beautiful and ferviceable of our Beafts, are to be attributed rather to Art than Nature, as being originally imported, and with great Skill and Induftry cherilhed and maintained ; which muft be admitted, and is in itfelf one of the greatell Advantages that we enjoy; for our Climate and our Soil receive, cm- brace, and with due Obfervation and Attention meliorate, whatever the inqui- fitive Temper, the ingenious Difpoiition, the laudable Induftry, the profound Attention, and the indefatigable Labour of its Inhabitants, difcover ufeful or defirable in other Countries, in order to introduce and eftablilh here L>. It is this reciprocal Correfpondence between the Capacity of the Natives, the Clemency of the Air, and the Fertility of the Soil, that completes the fuperior Excel- lence of this Country, and renders thefe Iflands a World within themfelves, where almoft all Things delightful in their Appearance, grateful to the Senfes, or profitable in their Ufes, may be colledted, preferved, and very often im- proved. It is upon this Maxim, taught us by Nature, enforced by Reafon, and confirmed by daily Experience, that the Superltrudture muft reft which we are endeavouring to raife; and whoever attentively confiders what we al- ready poffefs, and the Means by which the various Sources of our Riches were acquired, will eafily difcern, that there are very few Things of which we are ftill in want, which by the fame Methods we may not with equal Certainty and Facility obtain c. But that thefe fingular Prerogatives, derived from the Wifdom of Providence, may be the better comprehended, and reduced to a greater Degree of Evidence, it is requifite we {hould fliew that they are derived from, and depend chiefly upon, the peculiar Situation of thele Countries. Geographers, ancient and modern, in order to defcribe the different Degrees of Heat and Cold, and to give us a general Notion of the SuccelTion a Strabon. Geograph. lib. iv. p. T99. J. Cuius, de C.mibus Rrit.nnnicis, Lond. iS7^. S°- Cam- deni Britannia, p. 190, 191. Hector Boeth. Scotor. Rtgn. Dekiipt. p. 7. Sibb.vUi Scotia iilu- flrata, p. ii. lib. iii. j. n cap. 5. ^ W. Harrifon's Defcription of England, cap. xviii. Speed's Biitilh Empire. Stow's Chronicle, p. I — 6. Bacon's Works. Evelyn's Sylva. Boyle's Works. Honghtoa's CoUciTtions on Hui- bandry and Trade. * S^e this more largely treated in the fucceeding Book. I 2 of 6o The POLITICAL SURVEY of Seafons in the feveral Parts of t!ie World, have divided it into Climates <3. In thisSenfe thefelflandsliein the eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth, becaufe the longeft Day in the moft Southern Part of England is about fixteen Hours and a Quarter ; and the longell Day in the moil: Northern Part of Scotland eighteen Hours «. We are tauglit however, by Experience, the fureft, and indeed the only Guide, that, except the Length of the Day, and that Degree of Heat which is derived direftlv from the Sun- beams, there is little or nothing that can be concluded with Certainty from the Latitude-; or, in other Words, Experience fliews us, that Places litoated in the lame Latitude may, in all other refpedls, fave thofe that are above-mentioned, ditter exceedingly in point of Climate f". The City of Mofcow is feated in the Latitude of fifty-five Degrees, thirty- fix Minutes, that is, about half a Degree more to the South than Edinburgh, and yet one can fcarce imagine any two Climates more difcordant ?. In the Winter, the Cold in the firlt mentioned City is fo extremely fliarp, that many People perilli by it; freezingof the Nofe, Ears, and other Extremities, is com- mon ; Water thrown out of a Bafon, falls in Ice upon the Ground ; the Spit- tle, and even the Breath, freezes. The Earth is frozen above two Feet deep ; whereas, in this Ifland, the lliarpeft Frofts are never found to penetrate above half as farli. Yet in April the whole Face of Nature is changed at Mofcow in a very few Days; the Fields and Woods are covered with Verdure, and the Country produces a great Variety of fine Fruits ; infomuch that thofe who havevifited this Place only in the Summer, tell us there is no Capital in Europe more beautifully or pleafantly fituated than this. It lies indeed in a very ca- pacious Plain, watered by two fi.ne Rivers ; fo that the Bridge over the Mofqua is faid to be a third Part longer than London Bridge i. Our Countryman, Cap- tain Perry, has explained the Caufes of this exceflive Cold : He tells us that the North-Eaft Winds blow much colder than anv other in the Beginning of Winter, coming over vaft Tracks of Land covered with Snow and Ice ; but when the Snows are fallen in the South, which is a little later, the Wind from that Quarter becomes equally cold k. If we add to this, that Mofcow ftands d Cnir:deni Britannia, p. 2, where he places Britain under the eighth Climate, and between the eighteenth and twenty-fixih Parallels. ' Varenii Geograph. iiniverf. lib. ii. §. 6. cap. 25. Martiniere, Diftionnaire Geographique et Critique, torn. iii. p. 678. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 238. ' Varenii Geograph. uni^erfal. lib. ii. cap. 6, 26. P. J. Acofla. Hiftoria natural y moral de las Indias, lib. ii. c. 9, 12. Purchas's Pilgrims, vol. iii. p. 571. Recueil de Voyages au Nord, torn, vlii. p. 391, 392. Perry's State of Ruffia, p. 70 — 77. g Cluverii Introd. Geograph. lib. iv. cap. 28. Luyt's Introd. ad Geograph. feft. ii. cap. 35. Du Bois Geographie moderne, p. 479. " Hackluyt's Colleflion of Voyages, vol. i. p. 476. Boyle's Works, vol. ii. p. 29 j, 318, 3r9. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 456. ' Doftor Giles Fletcher's Obfervations during his Stay in Ruflia. Prefent State of Ruffia, p. 124, 150. Sienr de la Croix Geographie univerfelle, torn. ii. p. 310. " Perry's State of Ruffia, p. 73. Hiftoire genealogique des Tartares, p. 479, 480. Sieurdela Cioix Geographic uaivcifelle, tooi. ii. p. 31c. alnroft of GREAT BRITAIN. 6i almoft five hundred Miles from the neareft Sea, all that is related of the Se- verity of its Climate, becomes equally credible and confiflent '. Stockholm, and the Countiy of Sweden in its Vicinity, though lying more than four Degrees to the North of Mofcow, yet having the Bothnia Gulph on the North, the Baltic on the South, and the German Ocean, though with the whole Breadth of Sweden and Norway between it, on the Weft, is far lefs cold ; and yet a French Ambaffador faid they had only nine Months Winter there, and that all the reft was Summer m. In this ihort Summer, however, they have a Variety of Flowers, Strawberries, Raft)erries, and Cur- rants, in great Plenty and Perfedion ; Apples, Pears, and Plumbs, that are tolerable; Apricots that, when the Summer is favourable, are excellent j and, in very dry Years, Melons ". But at Tobolflcy, which is the chief Place in Siberia, and full two Degrees South of Stockholm, there is nothing like this, becaufe it lies fo far within Land, and the Winds blowing over great Tra6tsof Snow and Ice, maintain, in comparifon of other Countries, almoft a perpetual Winter o, Copenhagen, the Capital of Denmark, lies in thelHand of Zealand,, in the Latitude of fiftv-iive Degrees forty Minutes, which is very near that of IMofcow, and fomething more than a Degree North of Dublin ''. The liland is about one hundred and eighty Miles in Compafs, but the Climate and Soil very ind ffcrent^ There are, properly fpeaking, but two Sealbns, Winter and. Summer; the fcrmer long and rigorous, infomuch that the Duke of Rich- mond, the laft of that Branch of the Royal Family, died there Ambafiador ia the Reign of Charles the Second, by the Severity of the Seafon ^i : the latter, which comprehends the Months of June, |uly, and Auguft, is very clofe and iultry, the Nights more efpecially ^ As to the Produce of the Illand, the- only Corn they have is Rye, and of that, feldom more than is fufficient for their own Ufe: Roots and Greens in Abundance; and in their Gardens, about which Perfons of Diftinftion are very nice, fome very good Fruits. Tiie* ' Luyi's Iiitrod. ad Geograph. p. 374. Sir Jerom Bowes's Remarks on the Goiiatry of Ruffia. Hiinway's Tiavels, vol. ii. p. 13. •^ Cluverii Iiitrod. Geograph. lib. iii. cap. 20. Liiyt's Introd. ad Geograph. feft. ii. cap. 34. Dui Bois, Geographic moderne, p 445. ° Gothofredus in Defcriptione Suecife, p. 131. Bifliop RobiRion's Account cf Sweden, p. 17,, 18. Martiniere, Diftionnaire Geographique et Critique, vol. ix. p. 114. ° Recueil des Voyages qui ont fervi a 1' eftablKTemeat de la Compagnie des Indes Oi ientales, vol. r. p. 236, 237. Strahlenbergh's DefcrJptioa of Ruffia and Siberia, p. 122. Les Moeurs et Uf.ige des Oftiackes, p.ir J. B. Muiler, p. 19. P Luyt's Introd. ad Geographiam, feft. Ii. cap. 32. Du Bois Geographis moderne, p. i. cap. 14.- feifl. 2. Martiniere, Diftionnaire Geographique et Critique, vol. iii. p. 778. 1 Lord Molelworth's Account of Denmark, p. 6, 7. Philip's Continuation of Heath's Chro Bicle, p. 589 Dugdale's Baronage, vol. ii. p. 427. >■ Aubery deMautier Memoires do Danncmark. p. 1 39. Lord Molefworth's A'Ccounr of DtGrnark',. g. 8, y. Ccographie de Kobbe, p. 334. Inhabitants^ 62 The POLITICAL SURVEY Inhabitants are lefs expofed to Rheums and Coughs than other Northern Na- tions ; but they are more fubjed: to Epilepiies and Apoplexies than in mod other Places, which is attributed to their poor Livings. Yet the Illand of Funen, which lies between Zealand and Jutland, is much more temperate, and very fruitful ; as is alio the Promontary of Jutland itfelf, being furrounded by the Sea on the Eaft, North, and Well; and the fmall Ifland of Laland, w'hich lies but a little South of Zealand, produces a vail Quantity of Wheat. All which ihews, that it is the particular Circumftances that attend the Situa- tion of Places, and not their lying in this or that geographical Climate, that operates upon the Air and Soil t. It is a Point of fuch Notoriety, there is no need of our infifting upon it, that, in regard to Mildnefs of Air, or of Richnef? of Soil, the Inhabitants of Great Britain and Ireland have no reafon to envy thofe of Normandy, the Low Countries, Germany, or Denmark, or any of the Countries that lie behind thefe, PruiTia, Poland, Ruffia, and Siberia". Though, after all that has been laid, it muft be alfo allowed, that thefe Coun- tries have their Advantages, and abound in many Commodities of great Value. But then we have this Confolation, that, without being expofed either to their fevere Winters, the fultry Heat of their Summers, the Inundations that happen from their Rivers, the dellrudtive Flights of Locurts, and other Inconveniencies to which they are expofed, we may, with a little Care and Induftry, have thofe Advantages, or mofl of them, in equal Perfedion in our own Country w. But to come now to the material Point, in refpedl to which all the reft were but preparatory. The Britilh Iflands owe the numerous and invaluable Bleffings which they enjoy to their Situation. They have the German Ocean on the Eall, the Britilh Channel on the South, the great Atlantic Ocean on the Weft, and on the North. Our Air therefore is continually mixed with warm and humid Vapours, which temper the Severity of Cold, and allay the piercing Heat of the Sun Beams. That the Is>:halations from the Ocean are really warm, we may conclude from its coiillmt Motion, from its never freezing, ' and from its being always expofed to the Adlion of the Sun ; and that thefe Vapours are railed very copiouily, the learned, judicious, and accurate Dodor Halley has fully demonftrated •■'•. The Means by which they are brought and » Defcription of the Northern Kingdoms ia Put's Atlas, vol. i. p. 62. Ceographie modernc, p. 436. Boyle's Works, vol. ii. p. 3S9. ' D'AuJiffret Hiftoire et Geographic ancienne et modcrne, torn. i. p. 320, 321, 322. Heylin's Cofinography, lib. i. p 434. " Tacitus in Julio Agricola, Annmiau M.ircellin. lib. xviii. Polydor. Vergilii Anglicx Hiflor. lib. i. L'Ifole piu famofe del Mondo, dcfcritte da Thoranfo Poicacchi da Caftiglione, lib. i. p. 16. D'Audiffret Hiftoire et Geographic ancienne et modernc, torn. i. p. 140. w Csefar. de Beilo Galiico, lib v. Dio CalTuis, hb, Ixii. Strabonis Epitomater, lib. iii. J. BoeiTius Aubanus, de Moribus omnium Gentium, lib. iii. Thomas Gaiasford's Glory of England, London, 1618, 40. * Cicer. de Nat. Deor. lib.ii. Minntius Fe'.Ix in Oftavio, cap. xix. See Doftor Hallcy's incom- parable Treatife in the fir.H: V'olume of Mifcellanea Cuiiofa, publiflied by Doiflor Derham, 5 J^^t of GREAT B R I T A I N. 63 kept in our Atmofphere, are the Prevalence of the Weft Winds, which blow here for fo conliderable a Part of the Year, and can be charged only with thefe genial and fdubrious Vapours ; whereas the Eaft Winds that blow over the Continent, come to us piercing cold in the Winter, or clofe and hot in the Summer > . From the Sea Vapours, brought by the Weftern Breezes, we have thofe gentle plealant Showers that fo much promote Vegetation ; thofe. copious Dews, loaded with invigorating Salts, that leave fuch Supplies of fine fertilizing Matter, as repair what our Grafs, Herbs, and Flowers confume ; and thofe innumerable Springs, Brooks, running Streams, Rivulets, and, when collefted, navigable Rivers, which every- where feed, cherifli, and adorn this Country.. That thefe I'hings are really fo, and that thefe are not philofo- phical Fancies, retailed to flatter the Inhabitants of thefe Iflands, will moil evidently and inconteftibly appear by comparing their different Parts with each other, and attending to Fadis relating to them fo convincing, that they admit of no Reply, arid of fuch Notoriety that they cannot be controverted. In Ire- land, which lies farther to the Vv^'eft, thefe Etfefts, fuppofing this Reafoning juft, ought to be difcovered in a ftill ftronger Degree than in Great Britain, and fo they really are. Do^ltor Gerard Boate, who wrote the natural Hiftory of that Ifland, tells us that it is much lefs fubjeil: to Cold than other Countries in the fame Latitude, and even than many that he farther to the South ; that they have not commonly above three or four Frofts in a Winter,, and thefe rarely of three Days ftanding ; that a Frofl of ten Days does not happen in fo many Years ; but that many Winters they have no Froft at all. He complains of the wet Weather, more efpecially in Summer; he fays, they feldom have a Week without it ; that now and then they have a dry Summer, but never one which is too dry, which he attributes to the Weft and South- Weft Winds; but afferts that, notwithftanding this extraordinary Moifture, the Country is every-where very healthy 3. Sir William Petty fays, that the Wind blows between the Weft and South-Weft Points three Parts in five of the whole Year; that Snow lies not long upon the Ground; and that, in general, the. Country of Ireland (and no Man knew it better) is fertile and pleaiant '\ Mr. Smith, in his Hiftory of the City and County of Waterford, obfcrves, that in the very fevere Winter of 1736 f, when the Inland Country was entirely locked up, yet within fix Miles of the Ocean (obferve too, that though we ufe tlie Author's own Words, he means the Channel between Great Britain, and Ireland) the Country was free and open, and the Cattle grazed in the ^ Doctor flichols's Conference with a Thelil, p. li. p. 191. Dei ham's Phyfico-The.ology, book. ji. chap. 5. Perry's State of Ruflin, p. 76. ^ W. Harrifon's Defcription of England. Drayton's Polyolbion. Rkhardfon's State of Europe. ^ Irehmd's natural Hiftory, by Doctor Gerard Boate, London, 1652, 8'^. diap. x.\i, >;iiii, xxliii There is an improved Edition of this Book printe,d in Ireland. '' The Politic&l Anatomy of Ireland, p. 50. « The ancient and prefcut State of the City and County of Waterford, by Charles Smith, Dublin^ 1746, 8°. chap. xiii. Fields- 64 The P O L 1 1 1 C A L SURVEY Fields as ulual; which he attributes to the wann Vapours of the Sea. All Writers admit, that Thunder and Lightning are very rare in this Country ; and that in proportion as their Bogs aic drained, and the Soil cultivated, the Weather becomes better, and their Summer drier, correl'ponding to the old Remark of Pliny'. The County of Cornwall agrees, in all refpecfts, very much with Ireland ; the Winters there are milder than in moft Parts of Eng- land ; Snow feldom lies upon the Ground; and Myrtles grow in the open Air, without any Inconvenience e. In Pembrokefliire the Climate is alfo re- markably fine, and their Seafons are earlier than in the Inland Counties. In- deed the whole Wefl Coafl of Britain very much refemblcs, in point of Cli- 'anate, that of Ireland, except that it is not quite fo moift, as the Humidity of the Vapours mull be in Ibme meafure abated in their Paflage over that Country, before they reach Britain. If this Reafoning be juft, then it will alfo follow, that the Northern Parts of Great Britain muft be lefs cold than the Southern, the Height of their Latitude coniidered, becaufe they have the German Ocean between them and the Continent; whereas the Southern Parts have only a narrower Strait. As for Inftance, the Space between Dover and Calais is but feven Leagues, or one and twenty Miles ; from the North Foreland to Flufliing is but feventy-five Miles: and from Harwich to Helvoetfluys no more than ninety Miles; but from Newcaftle'to the neareft Part of Jutland, is one hundred Leagues, or three hundred Miles ; from Edinburgh it is ftill more; but farther North the Diftance lelTens, lb as not to be full two' hundred Miles removed from Norway K Let us fee next how the Cafe ftands in point of Fadl. The Win- ter of 1708 was one of the moft intenfe, in point of Cold, that had been felt in the Memory of Man : and we have a very large Account of this in the Philo- fophical Tranfad:ions, publiflied by the ingenious and accurate Mr. Derham, in which there is a Letter from the very knowing and obferving Doftor Wil- liam Nichollon, then Bidiop of Carlifle, in which he fiys, that he had fuHi- cient Opportunity to obferve the Froft and Cold being more intenfe in the Southern Parts, fo that his Horfes fcarce trod on Snow till they reached the Confines of Yorklhire, where it lay pretty thick upon the Ground, and ftill deeper as they came farther South ; neither were t!ie Rivers or Lakes in Cum- berland or Weftmoreland frozen, which made the Swans repair thither in prodigious Numbers S. Sir Robert Sibbald wrote a like Account from Edin- burgh, affirming that he could hear of no extraordinary Eftedls of the cold '' Hift. Nat. lib. xvli. cap. 4. ' Carew's Survey of Cornwall. Do^or ChllJrey's Britannia Baconica. Additions to Camden. Richardfon's State of Europ?, book iii. p. 7, 8. Heath's Account of Cornwall, joined to that of the Scilly Iflands, p. 307. ' In order to conceive this clearly, fee Senex's large M.ip, where what is afTcrteJ in the Text ap- pears to the Eye. 8 Philofophical Trandiftions, N". 324, where, as hinted in the Text, there is a curious and ac- curate Account of this hard Winter by the ingenious and judicious Mr. W. Derham. Seafon of GREAT BRITAIN. 65 Seafon tliere ; the Winter indeed was long, beginning early in Odlobcr, and continuing till May, and a great deal of Snow lay upon their Southern Ililhi. This made the cnluing Harveft late, but it was very plentiful; and the fame is related by Mr. Molineux with regard to Ireland ''. We have now made the Tour of thefe Iflands, and, by Arguments drawn from Reafon, and confirmed by Experience, have eilablifhed the Propofition wealfertcd; fo that perhaps no farther Evidence is, ftriftly fpcaking, neceffary. But to leave the Matter without any Shadow of Doubt, and that the Reader may have a clearer Idea of its Importance, let us obferve that the Ifiand of Newfoundland, which alfo belongs to this Crown, lies for the moll Part in a lower Latitude than Britain ; and yet the rigorous Cold in Winter, and the excelTive Heats in Summer, render it hardly habitable '. The true Reafon of this was given long ago to the great Sir F'rancis Bacon, Vifcount St. Albans, by a Perfon who had carried over Settlers, and had fpent the Winter there ; he laid, the principal Caufe of Cold in Newfoundland, was the very fune that produced the Warmth of the BritiQi Iflands, that is, the conftant blowing of the Weft Wind. For there, continued he, it blows cold, and here warm ; and he added very pertinently, that if the Eaft Wind blew as long here, Bri- tain would be then as cold as Newfoundland is, and the Climate of New- foundland become as good as ours k. As to the Country of New Britain, or Labradore, to which this Crown has alfo an indubitable Title, and which receives its Name from its lying nearly under the fame Latitude with this Ifland, it is yet colder, and more inhofpitable than Newfoundland ; and we know not whether it is inhabited, or only vifited in the Summer by the Elk.i- maux Indians '. Captain James, who wintered in Hudfon's Bay, and who has left us ftronger Teftimonies of the Power of Cold, from his own Experience, than any other Writer whatever, allures us that Charlton liland, the Place in which he felt this terrible Weather, lay in the lame Degree of Latitude with Cambridge, and that the South Wind was the moll piercing, whi.h with us is commonly attended with Heat '". We will add only one Obiervatioa more, which is, that Cape Horn, where the Weather in their Winter Seafon, as all Navigators agree, is excelfively cold, is in the Latitude of fifty-live Degrees, forty-five Minutes South ", whereas Edinburgh is in the Latitude of ^ Sir Robert's Letter is dated November the 5'\ i 709. ' Sir Humphry Gilbert's Account of Newfoundland in Hackluyt's original Edition, p. 637. Purchas's Pilgrimage, p. 821. Briiifli Empire in America, vol. i. p. 15, 16, 17. Voyages an Kord, torn. iii. p. i . '' Bacon's Works, vol. iii. p. 30S. Sh.aw's Abridgment of Bacon, vol. iii. p. 455, 456. Boyle's Works, vol. ii. p. 352. ' Luyi's Introduft. ad Gecgraph. fcil:. v. cap. 2. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 950. Da Bois Geographie moderne, p. iv, cap. 5. ■" Captain James's Voyage for the difcovering a ncv/ PafCigc to the South Se.n, p. 50. " Captain Cowley's Voyage round the World, p. 6. AVood's ."Account of Sir John N.^rboroiigh's Voyage, chap. i. Frezier Relatioa du Voyage de la Mer du Slid, p. 506, 507. Vol. 1. K iiftv- 66 TJ^e POLITICAL SURVEY fifty-five Degrees, fifty-eight Minutes North ; fo that we may truly affirm, that in no Part of the World could thefe Iflands have been fixed in fo advan- tageous a Temperature, as that in which they lie. As the Situation of the Britifh Ifles is inconteftibly happy in regard to the numerous Benefits that it produces to their Inhabitants ; lo this Situation will appetir to th»^ full as admirable, when we confider the innumerable Conveni- encies that likewife arife from thence in refpedl to Commerce. The Ocean and of courfe the World are open to us on every Side. All the Northern Kingiioms, the great Empire of Rufna, and the Countries that border on the Baltic, feem to folicita Correfpondence with the Eaftern Coaft of our Ifland j while for the Trade of America in general, nothing can lie fairer, Ireland only excepted, than the Weft of Britain. The Bafis of this Ifland, if we be- hold it as the Ancients did, in the Form of a Triangle, is very commodioully feated for Intercourfe with the Southern Parts of Europe, and all the Well- ern Shore of the wide Continent of Africa. The Commerce of the Medi- terranean is in fome Degree removed, but will neverthelefs continue as much in our Power as the relf, while thofe Ports remain to Britain, which Hie ob- tained at fuch immenfe Expence of Blood and Treafure, and were confirmed to her by the Guaranty of the moft refpeftable Potentates in Europe. In re- ference to the Trade of the Eaft Indies, we are certainly as conveniently feated as any other Nation ; and for the Space of about a Century and a half that we have opened our Eyes to thefe Advantages, Experience has juflified all that Speculation could promife, and we have gradually become, in regard to the World in general, fuch a naval Power as Tyre, Crete, and Rhodes, were, in refpedl to all the Countries thoroughly peopled and known in earlier Times. But with all the Commerce of which we are now in Polleffion, per- haps we have a Title in Reverlion to what may prove of at lead equal Value.. For if ever a PalTage ihould be opened to the North, in fuppofing whicb practicable, from many Years Confideration, I am fully fatislied there is no- thing chimerical, our Voyages to Japan, and to the South Seas, would be as; fliort, as fafe, and incompTrably more wholfome, than they are at prcfent to the Cape of Good Hope. We may therefore upon the whole conclude, that, as far as the W^ifdom of Man can dillinguifh, there is no Situation fo favour- able for obtaining, conducing, or prelerving univerfal Commerce, as that of the Britifh llles : An Allertion fo bold, and which will found fo difagree~ able ii. ''he Ears of fome of our Neighbours, that I fliould ha.ve been very cautious in making it, if I was not thoroughly convinced, that, as I only^ echo what Providence has pronounced, the glorious Truth mufl be even by them, however reludlantly, if not confeffed, at leail believed. But all thefe Bleffings, great and numerous as they are, receive no fmalL AccelTion from tliat Security which is alfo the Refult of our Situation. Alfc the Parts of thefe Iflands are fo fortuaately difpoied, or rather fo wifely ordered by. of GREAT BRITAllsr. &; by the Hand of our Creator, that they can very eafily fu.l^in each other, and, by the mutual Exertion of their refpecflive Forces, contribute to the Defence oi the whole. As an Illand, we have no need of a Multitude of expenfu'e, and fometimes dangerous Fortrefles, which, in Times paH:, have been more deftrudive to domeftic Peace, than ufeful againft foreign Invaders. A few ftrcng Places upon the Coaft, large and commodious Ror.ds, by which Suc- cours may arrive with Eafe and Expedition from all Sides, and a Multitude of populous Places on and near the Sea Shore, are the fecurefl Means of repel- ling, and therefore the moft likely to avert Invafions. But befides, the Nature of our own Coafts, and the Polition of thofe of our Neighbours, afford us many Advant.iges, and free us from the ApprehcnGon of Surprize. But, after all, our nazal Force is our principal, moft natural, and ftrongeft Guard. A Force that has arifenfrom, and muft be always maintained by, our Commerce, which, in proportion as it extends itfelf, mult improve every ncgleifted Spot of our Country, augment the Number of its Inhabitants, and produce other be- neficial Confequences that will continually add to the Power that muft pro- ted: us, and which when exerted with Vigour and Unanimity, may, with the Bletiing of God, defend us from the Envy of our Rivals, and the Malice of our Enemies; thofe Enemies, which a rej^ining Scnfeof this natural and na- tional Profperity will never fail to provoke. CHAPTER V. 'THE peculiar Felicity of Great Britain, ift a copious Dijlribution of excellent Water ; dijiinguified, in this refpcB, not only from Countries on the Continenti but alfofi-om many Ifands : Yet, with all this IVater, little expofed to Inun- dations. Our Rains equally produilive of Verdure and Fertility, being purer, and more impregnated isjith Salts, than in other Countries. The dif- ferent Opinions of Pbilofophers as to the Origin of Springs, alike favourable to this Argument. The various Properties of Sprin:;s davonfrate a propor- tionable Variety of Soils. The Frequency of Springs in this ij'and proved from Authorities, and an Attempt to account for it. Such as have been judged icon- dcrful in other Countries, aremojl of them found here. This Point made appa- re7it from many other Infidnces. Salt Springs in fever nl Counties in EngLmd. The celebrated Wiches in Chejlnre, and immenfe Sluantities of Salt drawn from them. A fuccinSl Account of the Salt Springs at Droitnoich, in Worcefter- Jhire. A coneife Detail oj the Medicinal and Mineral Waters in South Bri- tain The Baths ivhich are in this Part of the Ifland. Meers and Lakes, th 1 1 Advantages and Inconveniencies. The mojl confiderable ''piings. Baths, anil Lakes, which are in North Britain. Fountains and Lochs remarkable in Ireland. The DefeSls and Santinefs of this f.^ort Survey. Objervations on the Utility of this Plenty and happy Dijlribution of Waters. Conclufion. K 2 AS 6S The POLITICAL SURVEY AS wc have afcribed the fingular Mildnefs and acknowlcged Pleafantnefs of our Climate, to the warm Vapours conftantly exhaled from the Ocean that furrounds us ; fo to the fame Caufe we mull refer that amazing Abundance of f re Hi and wholfomc Water, from whence the Fertility of our Soil, the vivid Luftre of our Plains, the deeper Tindlure of our Groves and Forefls, and fo manv other valuable BleiTni'js proceed. Wc have touched this SubjeiSl generally in the lall: Chapter j but our Superiority to moll other Countries, in this refped, is too remarkable, though perhaps too little confi- dered, their Benefits too numerous, and their Confequences too exten five, not to defcrve a more particular Difcufilon. In order to have a clear Idea of the Importance of the Subjedl:, wc need only recoUeil what has been already flic! of the Situation of the Tartars, who, in one of the moft extenfive, and none of the worfl Countries in Europe or Afia, were originally taught, and are llill in a manner perpetually compelled, to purfue the wandering kind of Life they lead, bv the fparing Diftribution of Water in that vaft Region which they inhabit 3. The Map of Africa will afford us a convincing Proof of the fame Thing, where the Geography of a large Country, and the Hiftory of its- Inhabitants, are very frequently comprifed in a tew Lines; which carry in tliem this evident Teftimony of Truth, that, had it been otherwife, and tliefe People been bleffed with any tolerable Degree of Correfpondence in the Courfeof Ages, we muft have heard it b. In Poland again, which is a very noble Kingdom, and derives its Name from the Flatnefs of its Surface, Plofka, in the Language of the Natives, fignifyinga Champaigne, is fo ftridly fuch, that, except on their Frontiers, they have but one remarkable Eminence, which is called the Bald Mountain s and fcarce any River that, by rifing in,. and pafhng folely through, their Territory, can be properly ftiled tiieir own ; which, though no Bar to the Fertility of their Soil, and a Kind of inelegant Plenty, is the efl'ential Caufe of their Want of Science, Arts, Commerce, and of the beneficial Confequences that neceflarily attend them ^^ But it maybe perhaps furmifed that we poflefs this Privilege only in com- mon with all other Iflands ; which however is not fo, fince, in this refpe(5t, t-herearemany indifferently provided, and fome, through the Want of it, very much diilrefied. The Ifiand Lipara, orLipari, on the Coaft of Sicily, enjoys a foft Climate, is equally pleafant and fruitful, was anciently famous for its hot ^ Itlnerar. F. Jchan. de Piano Carpini. cap. in. Anth. Jenkinfon's Travels in Hackluyt's Collec- tion, vol. i. p. 328. Hiftoire Genealogique de Tatars, p. 48, 49. b Confult the general Hiftories oi Africa, or rather geographical Defcripticns, particubrly Dap. per's ; and Sanfon's and De Lifle's Maps. c Connor's. Eliftory of Poland, vol. i. p. 216, 217. D'AudifFret Hifloire et Geographic ancienne «t moderne, torn. i. p. 404, 405. La Geographic moderne par Du Bois, p. 457. «• Philip. Cluver. Introduft. Geograph. lib. ir. cap. 23, 24. Richardfon's State of Europe, book. xiy. p. 4j4., 45.. Luyts Introduft. adCcographiam, §. ii. cap.. 3,6. Baths,, of GREAT BRITAIN. 69 Hatha, but, except thefe, depends upon Rain, and Supplies from the adjacent Iflands, for Water e. The greater and the lelTer Delos have but one Spring between them f\ The Ifland of Afcenlion, though.it might be of great Uti- lity from its Situation, remains naked and uninhabited in the Neighbourhood of St. Helena, which is crowded with People, from the very fame Defeats. The Ifland of Marguerite, Margareta, Margaritta, or, as fome call it, Pearl Ifland, in South America, heretofore famous for its rich Filliery, fuffered ex- tremely from the fame Caulel'j and the noble, fruitful, and opulent Ifland of Cyprus, though it has fcveral Streams which bear the Name of Rivers in the Maps, yet are they, properly fpeaking, rather Torrents, which in warni Summers are commonly low, and fumetimes abiolutely dry'. In the Reiga of the Emperor Conftantine the Great, they had no Rain for thirty-fix Yearsj by which the Country was burnt up, and, in a great meafure, depopulated ^^^ Thefe Inllances are fufficient to fliew how much, in this Particular, we (land indebted to Providence. In the midfl: of this Abundance of Water, which is of fo great Confequence to the Health, the Eafe, the Commerce, and the Delight, as well as indifpen- fably neceflary to the Subfiflence of Mankind, we are little, and but rarely,, expofed to any of thofe dreadful Inconveniences from it, which are equally frequent and dangerous ui fome of the neighbouring Countries upon the Con- tinent. In Germany the Rhine, the Oder, and the Maine, often overflow their Banks; and not only drown the adjacent Country, but lay large Towns> and fometimes Parts of Cities under Water, to the great Detriment of the Inhabitants, and the Lofs of many Lives '. In like manner the Southern Provinces of France fuffer by the fudden Floods of the Rhofne, and other Rivers, as fell out within thefe few Years, to the Lofs of Millions "i. With us indeed, fome Accidents happen from the falling of great Rains and violent LandFloodsi but they are Deluges inMiniature, in comparifon of thofe before- mentioned; and yet we may learn from what is recorded of Cyprus, and the fad Eifedts of immenfe Rains there, as well as Droughts; or, if we perufe the « Cicer. Verrinn, Hi. Siiius Italicus, lib. xiv. Lu3't's Introduft. ad Gcograph. §. ii. cap. 19. f Ifolario di Thom-iro Porchetti, lib. ii. p. 77. Voyage du Levant, par Tourncfort, torn, i- Wheeler's Travels, p. 62. 6 Pnrchas'b Pilgrims, vol. i. lib. iii. p. 124. Ovington's Voyage to Suraf, p. 512. Kecueil da Voyages ^ui ont fervir a rErablifltment de la Comp.ignie des Indes, torn. ii. p. 25J, Navarette Trat.-idos Hiftoricos de la Monarchia de China, lib. vi. cap. 27. Voy.ige aux Indes Orientales, par Monf. Duquefne, chap, xlvii. '> Laet Defciip;. Indix Occident, lib. xviii. cap. i. p. 688. Dc Nieuwe en Onbckende Wecrcld,, of Befchryving van America en 't Zuid-land, door Arnoldus Montanus, p. 548. Heylin's Cofmo- graphy, lib. iv. p. 11 15. ' Strabon. Geograph. lib. xiv. Ifolario di Thomafo Porcacchi, lib. ii. p. 149. Robbe MethoJe pour apprendre la Geographic, lib. iii. chap. (. '' Sandys's Travels, lib. iv. p. 222. Heylin's Cofmography, lib. iii. p. 6^0. ! Varenii Geograph. univerdilis, 5- iv. cap. 16. prop. 20. Hiftorical Regifter, vol. iii. f. 2(5^ "• Mercure Hiftorique, torn. lx.\vi. p. 89. and the Gazettes during the. Winter of 17S.S.- belE 70 The POLITICAL SURVEY bell: Accounts of the Ifland of Borneo n, wefliall find, that it is not barely our being an Ifland exempts us, but the infinite Wifdom and Goodnefs of the Supreme Being, who liath fo dilpofed all things in this happy Country, that none enjoys more folid Advantages or is expofed to fewer untoward Accidents from this, otherwife at leall: in refped to Men, indomitable and irrefiftible Element. The firft in the natural Order of difcourfing upon Waters, is that which defcends from the Firmament, and of which the wifeft and greateft Men have wilhed, and with much Reaibn, that we had a full and complete philofophic Hiftory ". Since we have not, and it is very uncertain when we may, I think ft necefiary, or at leall: not improper, to take notice of fome Points, which otherwife I Ihould not have mentioned. In certain Countries, as particularly on the Coafl: of Peru, it does not rain at all, but the Land is fupplied, in con- fequence of its Climate and Situation, with Moifture by Dews p. In other Countries it rains but feldom, and there, in fact, the Land is fufficiently moift- ened by the Redundance of Rain, or, which is the fame thing, the melting of Snows, and overflowing of Lakes from other Countries q. Thus the annual Inundations of the Niger refrelh the parched Plains of Africa'; and thus the periodical Overflowings of the Nile, aflifted by the Labour, and regulated by the Skill of the ancient Egyptians fecure Plenty to the prefent Inhabitants of Egypt, in fpite of the fdlenefs and Lnorance in which they lives. If in this Ifland they are more frequent, and more copious, than in many others, we ought to conclude that Providence is wile and generous, but not profufe. We fliall be clearly informed, and thoroughly convinced of this, if weconfi- der the Subjecfl with any tolerable degree of Attention. The far greater Part of our Rains, as wc have fhewn in the former Chapter, come to us from the Ocean, and in that refpedl are not only greater in Quantity, as being derived from fo inexhauftible a S urce of Vapours, more being evaporated from thence in frofl:y, than are exhaled in warm Weatherj but likewife in their Nature; for, evcluflve of their being warmer, from the Caufes that have been before alligned, thev mull be likewife purer than if they came from the Land, though at the fame Time loaded with Oil, Bitumen, Sulphur, Salts of various Kinds, and more efpecially Bittern '. This, as we have already faid, renders them highly inftrumental in Vegetation, and is the great Source of that almofl: per- " A Voyage to and from the Ifland of Borneo in the Eafl Indies, by Captain Daniel Beeckman, London, 1718, 8". ° Shaw's Abridgment of Bacon, vol. iii. p. 492. P Frezier, Relation dii Voyage de la Sud, p. 369, 370. Relaclon del Viage al Reyno del Peru, por D. Joige [uar, ib. i. cap. 6. 1 Hernandez cic Oviedo Hifl:. Gen des Indias, lib. ii. cap. 9. •■ Ma, mol. Africa, torn. i. lib. i. cap. 17. p. 53. Plin. Hifl. Nat. lib. v. cap. 4. P. Labat, Nouvelle Relation de AfFiique, torn ii. p. 161 » AiifliJes in oratione i^gypt, torn. iii. p. 615. ' Ph;.ofoph Tranfaft N'. cl-vxxix. Derham's Phyfico-Theology, lib. ii. chap. 5. p. 48. Varenii Geograph. uuiverfalis, §. iv. cap. 16. petual of GREAT BRITAIN. yr petual Verdure with which thefe Iflands are fo hiftingly cloathed ", Euf, belldes thele, our Rains have another very great and important Quahty, which is, that from this Mixture they become a perfedt Lixivium, by which they are enabled to melt and diflblve whatever Kind of Particles they have Force enough to abrade or tear away^; and hence, as we fhall prefently fliew, they become pollelied of fuch a Variety of Properties f, conducive to the Suf- tenance. Health, and Pleafure of Man j Qualities which, though, generally fpeaking, they efcape our Senfes, have neverthelefs fuch remakable, as well as apparent Eifecfls, as futiiciently diftinguifli, and make them known to the. Underftanding. There have been very different Opinions as to the Origin of Springs j fbme have afcribed them to Vapour and grofs Air, condenfed into Water, in' the Caverns of the Earth, gliding in that Form through very Imall Paflages, till by an Accumulation of Weight and Bulk they enlarge them as they approach the Surface, and then force an Outlet where the Crufl is thinnefl; y. Others have thought that there is a Circulation of Water through the Globe, in ibme fuch manner as of Blood through the human Body, fo that the Waters of the Sea, by fubterraneous Channels, afcending the higheft Hills, as we evidently perceive Moillure is fucked through a Heap of Sand, a Spono-e. or a Sugar-Loaf, becoming perfectly frefli by this Percolation, break forth again- on the Sides, and, as they can accumulate Strength, diredl their Courfe- back to the Parent Deep z. A third Opinion attributes the Produdion of Springs to Rains, which very frequently fall upon, and Vapours, which are continually attracted by. Hills and rifing Grounds, into which foaking deep,, they gradually open themfelves Channels through fo porous a Body as the Earth commonly is, tUl at length, by their collected Weight, they make their Way through the Soil, according to their Strength, and either burit with Vio- lence, or gently ouze out and trickle down its Surface ^ It is not at all necelfary that we fhould enter into this Controverfy, fmce it is allowed, even by thofe who contend that Springs come froni the Sea, that this is to be con- fined only to thofe that are perennial, or fuch as always tiow, and that tempo- rary Fountains may very probably arife from condenfed Vapours, and the Fall «| Philofophical TranAiflions, N=>. cxxvii. Boyle's Works, vol. ii. p. 498, 499. w Boyle's Works, vol. ii. p. 519—522. Mul]chenbroek"s Elements of N.-itural Philofophy, voL. ihp. 247. * 01. Rudbeck. Atlantica, p. 128. Derham's Phyfico-Theology, lib. iii. chap. 4. '' Ariftot. Optra, torn. i. Meteorol. lib. i. cap 13, 14. Kircher. de . 4. cap. 17. Doftor Blondel's Difcourfe on the Baths ot'.*\ix la Chapelle, and incidentally of Baths and mineial Springs in general. ' Plot's Natural Jliftory of Stafford (hi re, p. 61 — 103. Fuller's Worthies in Staffordniire. ■* Plot's Natural Hiftory of Oxfordlhire, chap. ii. §. 17. ' Strabouis Geograph lib. iii. p. 172. Piin. Hift. Nat. lib. ii. cap. 97 — 103. * Camden's Britannia, vol. ii. col. 737. S Les Dclices du I'Efpngne et du Portugal, par Don Juan Alvarez de Colmenar, torn. i. p. 1.10, J41. Tour through Spain and Portugal, by Udal ap Rhys, p. 28. i» Andr. de Chcnc Antii]. des Viiks de France, p. 735, 736. 3 at of GREAT BRITAIN. 73 at Bourdeaux. In Wales, near the Mouth of the River Severn, there is a Pool, called Linliguna, which fwallows up the Water of the Flood Tides as Jong as they iiovv (hut is not apparently incre.ifed therehy) ; yet when they begin to ebb, then the Lake begins to rife, and to eject the \\ ater with great Violence on all Sides over its Banks '. Lay well, near Torbay, ebbs and liows very often in an Hour, fometimes fixteen, fometimes twenty times l'- At Gigglefwick, in Craven, which is a Diih-ift in Yorkfhire, therj are leve- ral fmall Springs, the middlemofl of which ebbs and flows four times in an Hour. The famous Zirchnitzer Sea, in Carniola, is a Curiolity to which we can fliew nothing equal i. Yet fomething like it appears at Gips, upon the Woulds in Yorkfhire, where there are Springs which rife five or fix Yards in Height, and fail into the Dales, and form a little River when moil; other Springs are dry '". Li Guienne, near the Church of St. Jean d'Angeli, there is a Lake, that hath next to no Water in it in Winter, but abundance in Summer ". At Lambourne, in Berkfiiire, the Springs, from which flow a little Stream, called Lambourn River, fail about the Middle of September; but, about February, they return, and remain high all the Summer". It was obfervcd, as a Thing very extraordinary, that they were rather higher than ufual in the great Drought of i68 i p. At Claydon, in Oxfordfhire, on the South Side of the Town, there is a fmall Spring, that riles in the Street, which runs all the Year, but is obferved to run moft in dry Weather. The like at Ewelme, the Springs of which are low in Winter, and in Summer remarkably high, like thofe of Lambourn q. There is a Fountain near Grenoble, in Dauphine ; another near Herman- fladt, in Tranfylvania; a third near Chermay, a Village in Switzerland; a fourth in the Canton of Friburg ; and a fifth not far from Cracow, in Poland, the Waters of which take fire, and burn''. There is or was a famous Spring of the fame Kind nearWigan in Lancafhire, which, upon the Approach of a lighted Candle, would take Fire, and burn like Spirits of Wine, the Flame continuing fometimes for a v/hole Day ^ Another, more lingular, was difco- ' Additions to Camden's Britannia, '' I'hilofophical Tianfaftions, vol.xvii. p. 908 — 911. Chlldrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 157. ' Travels of Doftor Edward Brown in divers Parts of Europe, p. Go, 81. Edit. 1685. "' England defcribed by Edward Leigh in Yorkfliire, p. 219. " Andrew Du Chene, Antiquitez des Villes de France, p. 729. ° Afhmole's Antiquities of Berklhire, vol. ii. p. 244. Sylvefter's TranPiation of Du Bartas, the third Day of the firfi: Week, p. 55. See alfo a very fenfibie Account of the Caufe of this, and other Springs oi the like Kind, in the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. xiii. p. 585. ? Plot's Natural Hlllory of Staffordfliire, chap. ii. §. 46. •i Plot's Natural Hiflory of Oxtordfliire, p. 29. ' Nouvelle Defcription de la France, parMonf. Piganiol de la Force, torn. iii. p. 240, 241. Fhi- lofophical Tranfidlions, N''. clxxii. p. 1036. ' Philofophical Tranfaftions, N^. xxvi. p. 482, 483, Mx, Bluiiden's Obfervations relating to Lancafhire. Vol. I. L vered 74 The POLITICAL SURVEY vered in 1711 at Brofeley, near Wenlock, in Shropfliire, which had an Iron Ciflern placed over it, with a Hole in the Middle, through which you might fee the Water. This not only took Fire, but burned lb brifkly as to flioot up Flames eighteen or twenty Inches ; fo that in a Kettle of Water put over the Ciftern, a Joint of Meat was boiled fooner than over any other Fire ; and yet (as is alfo obferved at the Well near Wigan), the Water was exceedingly cold the Moment before it was lighted, and the Moment after, that by covering the Well, this Fire was put out. After fome Years this Fountain ceafed burning, but in 1747 broke out again, and continued till 1755, when, by finking a Coal Pit in its Neighbourhood, it was totally extinguifhed t. In the Province of Las Charcas, in Peru, there is a Fountain, out of which iflucs aconfider- able Current, of a Colour almoft as rc^d as Blood ". Near Yeoville, in Somer- fetfhire, there is a Pool, which contains Water of a green Colour, fuppofed to receive this Tinclure from fome latent Veins of Vitriol "'. At Haul there is a Spring of a bluilh Colour «. At Eglingham, in Northumberland, there is Water comes from an old Drift, formerly made to drain Coal Pits, which has an atramentous Quality, and is turned as black as common Ink by an Infufion of Galls y. At the Foot of Mount Zibba, in the Duchy of Modena, and at Gabian, in the Road from Montpellier to Beziers, in Languedoc, there are Springs, the Waters of which are mixed with Oil, that floats upon the Surface. The Inhabitants take care to feparate this bituminous Matter, by firft putting the Water into a Barrel, and then drawing it at a Tap till the Oil begins ta appear, when they flop 7. Of this Kind there is a very remarkable Spring Rt a Village in Shropihire, which from thence derives the Name of Pitch- ford !<; and another, much celebrated for medicinal Ufes, at Moffat, in the Shire of Annandale, in North Britain •'. There are feveral Springs in France, and in other Countries, fuppofed to have a petrifying Quality <^ ; of this Kind is the dropping Vv^ ell atKnarefborough, in Ycrkfliire, feveral in Scotland, and in Ireland, and one near Mendip Hills, in Somerfetfhire^. It is reported of thofe Springs in France, that the Waters of them are drank without any vi- ' Philofophical Tranfaflions, N'. cccxxxiv. p. 475, 476. See alfo Mr. Perry's complete Hiftory of this Spring, in the Gentleman's Mag-azine, vol. xxv. p. 302, 303. H Frampton's Ciiriofities from the Newfound World, chap. ix. * Additions to Camden's Britannia. * Philofophical Tranfaftions, N". viii. p. 135. y Doflorjurin's Notes upon Varenlus's Geography, p 3C6. " Ray'9 Travels, vol. i. p. 202, 396. Nouvelle DefcriptioQ de la France, par la Force, torn, iv. p. II. » Camden's Britannia, vol. i. p. 650. Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, p. 64. ^ Robert! Sibbaldi Prodr. Flirt Nat. Scot lib. i. cap. 10. p. 24, 25. <: Nouvelle Defcription de la Fr:iiice, par la Force, torn. v. p. 314. Ray's Travels, vol. i. p, 183. Tour through Spain and Pi;rtng.Tl, by Udal ap Rhys, p. 192. d Short's liiftory of Mineral Waters, p 105. Camden's Britannia, vol. i. p. 83. Robert! Sib- baldi Prod. Hiftor. Nat. Scot, lib. i. c. ^. p. 21. The ancicntand prefect State of the County of Down, chap, viii. p. 165. fible cf GREAT BRITAIN. 75 fible ill EfFeils ^ ; and the fame is affirmed of thefe*". We might have mul- tiplied Inilances under every Head, and our Colledlions would enable us te enumerate many more Singularities of a like nature, if what have been pro- duced were not abundantly fufficictit to fupport all that wc propofe to deduce from them, which is, that as their fevcral Properties, of what Nature foever they be, are accounted for from the VVaters being impregnated by the Par- ticles of different Soils through which they pafs, the fame Reafon will hold with regard to ours, and confequcntly prove, that there is hardly any Kind of Soil, even in the moft diftant Parts of the Globe, which we have not, or at leafl fomething that is very like it, in thefe Iflands. The clear and convincing Evidence arifing from what has been, and will be further faid in this Chapter, in refped: to the vaft Variety of Soils in this Idand, joined to what was advanced in the former, as to the Diverfity of our Climate, afford jufl Grounds to expedt that many things may be produced here, which perhaps would not fucceed in fome Countries very near us upon the Continent. We fhould be able to fpeak with more Certainty and Preci- fion to this Point, if we had any accurate and diflindl Accounts of the Trees, Shrubs, Grain, Herbs, Flowers, and whatever elfe could be remarked, in the Neighbourhood of thefe extraordinary Springs in foreign Countries, and more efpecially in thofe mcft remote from our own s. In order to explain my Meaning more clearly, to juftify the Pains I have taken, and to render it cer- tain this is no chimerical Notion, let me obferve, that, from the Relejm- blance of the Leaves and Roots of Oaks and Vegetables about Gifborough, in Yorklliire, to thofe about Puteoli, in Italy and the Vicinity of a medicinal Spring, the original Owner was induced to look for, and eiliablifli thofe va- luable Alloni Works in its Neighbourhood 'i. I will add, that an ingenious Correfpondent of mine, Mr. Charlton, of Whitby, informs me, that what the Vulgar call Snake Stones, and the Learned Cornu-Ammonis, and many other lingular Petrifaftions, the Curious in thofe Parts attribute to the pene- trating ErBuvia of AUom ; this is the more likely, as thefe Stones are alfo met with at the AUom Works not far from Rome, at thofe near Rochellc, at thofe near Lunenburgh, and in fome Places where Allom has been dilcovered in Virginia i. If therefore the fame Kind of Soil produces nearly the fame Sorts of Things wherever it is found and mineral, and other extraordinary Springs, are the furefl Indications of like Soils, then the Profecution of this Inquiry may be probably attended with fome Advantages. Let us now return to the Bulinefs of this Chapter. But before we quit this Subjedl: of Springs, their great Utility and apparent Benefit to thefe Nations, conftrains us to inlill: more ' Hifloire de rAcademie Royal des Sciences, A. D. 1720. f Short's Hiftory of Mineral VVaters, P. i. p. 109, no. ^ Childrcy's Britannia Baconica, p. 7^, 159. Hook's Pofthumous Works, p. 285, 286, 287. •• Camdeni Britannia, p. 587. ' Doftor Johnfon's Notes, relating to the Natural Hiftory of Yorkfhire. h 2 particularly 76 The POLITICAL SURVEY particularly on the Brine, or Salt Springs in South Britain which, though not peculiar to this liland, are, however, in the Countries on the Continent (fome few excepted), far from being common. There are fome of thefe in feveral different Counties; and perhaps, upon a due Search, others alfo might be difcovered in many more. There is a Salt Spring at Eaft Chennock k, in SomerfetHiire, about twenty Miles from the Sea. Another at Leamington, in Warwicklhire, very near the River Learn, which, however, is but weak'. Such a Spring likewife runs into the River Cher- well, in Oxfordlhire '" ; and feveral more in Weftmoreland and Yorkfliire, which as they are but poor, and in moft of thefe Countries Fewel being fcarce or dear, are not wrought, but, however, ought to be remembred. At Bar- rowdale, near Grange, three Miles from Kefwick, in Cumberland, a pretty flrong Spring rifes in a Level, near a Mofs, fixteen Gallons of the Waters of which yield one of pure Salt; which is the more remarkable, when it is con- fidered that the fame Quantity of Salt cannot be obtained by boiUng lefs than twenty-two Gallons of the Water of the German Ocean ". At a Place called Salt-water-haugh, near Butterby, in the Biilioprick of Durham, there are a multitude of Salt Springs, which rife in the midft of the River Weare, for the Space of about forty Yards in Length, and ten in Breadth; but particu- larly one out of a Rock, which is fo llrong, that, in a hot Summer's Day, the Siu-face wnll be covered with a pure white Salt". One would imagine that this lingular Tender of Nature's Kindnefs might be very beneficially im- proved by the Affiftance of Art. At Wefton, in Staffordfhirc, there are Brine Pits which afford about a ninth Part of very fine white Salt. There are others at Enfon St. Thomas, and in the Parifli of Ingeftre, but fo weak that they are not wrought; though it is believed that, by boring, flronger Springs might be found in the Neighbourhood p. In LancaflTire there are feveral Salt Springs'', but (if we except that of Barton, which is as rich as the Spring at. Northwich) by no means fo famous as thofe of Chelhire, called in general by theName of thcyWicHES, which feems to be of Saxon original, though the Meaning of the Term, is not well known i. Namptwich, upon the River Weever, has a noble Spring not far from the River, fo rich, that it yields one-fiixth Part of pure white Salt «. At fix Miles v " Philofophical Tranfaftions, N°. Ivi. p. 1130. ' Camden's Britannia, vol. i. col. 599. Short's Iliftory of Mineral Waters, p. 187. '=' Plot's Natural Hiftory of Oxforddiire, chap. ii. §. 13. " Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, p. 85. " Philofophical Tranfaftions, N°. clxiii. p. 726. Ciidrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 165. '' Plot's Natural Hiftory of StafFordfliire, chap; ii. §. 103, U2. *) Short's Hillory of Mineral Waters, p. 85. !■ SpelmanniGlofrarium, p. 571. Lambard's Topographical Defcription of Britain, p. 446. * Doiflor Jackfon's curious AccouQt of the Salt Springs at Nantwieh, in the Philofophical Tranf-- aftions, N°. liii. p. 1063. Diilance of GREAT BRITAIN. 77 Diftance ftands Northwich, at the Confluence of the Weever and the Dan, where the Brine is ftill richer than the former, fince they obtain fix Ounces of Salt from fixteen Ounces of Water. There are, even at this Day, fome vifible Remains of a Roman Caufeway between thefe two Towns f. The Inhabit- tants of Wales, who, before that Country was incorporated into England, were fupplied chiefly, if not only, with that neceflary Commodity fiom thefe two Towns, called the former Hellath Wen, and the latter Hellath Du, i. e. the White and the Black Salt Pit". In 1670, a Rock of Salt was difcovered at a fmall Diftance from Northwich, which has been fince wrought to a great Depth, and to a vaft Extent, fo as to be juftly efteemed one of the greatelt Curiofities in England 5 and it is, with the higheft Probability believed, that" there is an immenfe Body of Foffil Salt in the Bowels of the Earth, under this- whole Traft of Country, fince, upon boring, Brine Pits have been found in' many Places on both Sides of the River Weever ^v. This is the more likely, becaufe at Middlewich, which fi:ands at the Confluence of the Croke and the Dan, there are Salt Springs, with a frelh Brook running between them ^'. The Brines from thefe Pits are of unequal Strength, but, when mixed, they commonly obtain four Ounces of Salt from a Pound of Brine. Experience fliews that, in thefe Springs, the Water is ftrongelT: neareft the Bottom, richer in dry Weather than in wet, and when long drawn than when firfi: wrought. But thefe are no Rules in refpedl to other Salt Springs, fince in thofe of Franche Compte, the Brine is fi:rongefl: in wet Weather)'. There are divers other Bodies difibWed in thefe Brines bcfides Salt; in fome a fulphurecus Subftance, which fublime?, as the Brine heats, a Sort of dirty Ocher, which difcolours the Brine, but, if fuffered to fiand, fpeedily fubfides ; and, in mod Brines, a Kind of calcarious Earth, which fettles to the Bottom of the Pans z. ThaSize of thefe Pans is not always the fame, but generally fpeaking, they are fo made as to hold about eight hundred Gallons. They refemble in Form the Pans ufed for Sea Water, are of confiderable Length and Breadth, but very fliallcw. It has been thought, that if thefe Pans were of a circular Make, it v/ould be, in many refpccfls, more advantageous, as well as more convenient. But the bell Salt of this Kind that is any-where made in Eng- land, is at Droitwich, anciently Dyrtwich, or Dirtwich, in Worcefterfhire, which are wrought only from Midfummer to Chriftmas ; not, as fome have: imagined, becaufe the Brine then fails, but that the Proprietors may keep up t Camdeni Britannia, p. 460, 461. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 129. Doftor Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 54, 55. " King's Vale Royal of England, p. (38. Camdeni Britannia, p. 461. * Philofophical Tranfa6lions, N° Ixvi. p. 2015. Doftor Stukeley's Itiner. Curiofum, p. 54. '^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 462. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 130. 5' Nouvelle Defcription de la Franche Compte, p. 363. According to their Calculation, the Brine mufl; yield a fifth Part pure Salt, or it is not worth working. 2- Dodlor Jackfon's Account before cited. Doiftor Lifter's Obfervations on the midland Salt Springs; Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancafliire, p. 44. . the." 78 The POLITICAL SURVEY the Market a. It appears clearly from the highefl: Authority, that of Doomef- day Book, the Brine Pits here, as well as ihe other Wiches in Chefiiiie, were wrought, and to great Advantage too, before the Norman Conquell: ^ ; which confirms the Opinion the befl; Antiquaries have entertained, that, as well as for rr.any others, fo for the Difcovery of this natural Benefit, we lland indebted to the Romans. In other Places they make ufe of Butter, Blood, Ale, and various Kinds of Seafonings, as they call them, in order to make the Salt grain properly ; but here they ufe only the Whites of Eggs, and thofe alfo but in very fmall Quantities '. They obtain commonly four Ounces of Salt from a Pound of Water j and in order to gain fome Idea of the Value of thofe Salt Works, we fliall obferve, that, if we have been rightly informed as to the Medium of the Duty at Droitwich, they make upwards of two hun- dred and eighty thoufand Bufliels annually J. Great Improvements have been made, and much greater might be iiill made in the Management of thefe Works, as is evident from a very learned, ingenious, and folid Performance upon this Subjetlf, than which perhaps there is not any Thing more concife, or more correal, iji any Language e. In refpedl to the Medicinal, as they are called, from their Effedls, or Mine- ral Waters, as they are filled from their Contents, there are few Countries in Europe that can boaft of more j and, the Compafs of our Iflands confidered, it maybe, very few, of fo many, fo falutary, and the Virtues of which have been fo well eflablilhed, not from vulgar Experience only, but from the re- peated Examinations of the mofl ll:ilful rhyficians. We may rationally attri- bute the uncommon Frequency of thefe healing Springs, to the lixivious Quality of our Rain Water, for which we have already accounted; to the Variety of rich Soils, with the Spoils of which, from their Property of dif- folving, they muft be fraught; and the wonderful and inimitable Chemiftry of Nature, by which they are lb happily impregnated as to become the ealieft, fureft, and moft acceptable Remedies of the mofl grievous, and of fome, which otherwife might prove incurable Difeafes K If we (hould attempt fo a CamJeni Britannia, p. 433. Childiey's Britannia Baconica, p. 115, 116. Lambard's Topo- graphical Dcfcription of Britain, p. 446. •" Camdeni Biitannia, p 433. Mr. Squire's Tranfcript of Doomfday Book at the Clofe of Sir P. Leicefter's Hiftory of Chefhire, p. 427. 13oftor Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p 54. ' Doftor Thomas Raftell's accurate Account of the Droitwich Salt Springs, in the Phiiofophi- cal Tranfa(5l:!ons, N^. cxiii. p. 1059. ■" From private Information. ' This excellent Piece is intituled, " The Art of making common Salt, as now praftifed in mofl " Parts of the World, with feveral Imp.'-ovements propofed in that Art for the Ufe of the Britifh *' Dominions, by William Brownrigg, M. D F. R S. London, 1748, 8." ^ Boyle's eads for the Natural Hiftoiy of Mineral Waters, in the fourth Volume of his Works, and in the third of DotTior Shaw"s Abridgment. Martini Lifleii Exercitationes duo de Fontibns medicatis Anglise. Doftor Real's Obfervations in the Tranfaftions. Doftor Allen's Preface to his Natural Hifti^ry. Doftor Shaw's Traullation of HofFmau's Treatife, and his owa DifTertation on the iame fubjeft. much of GREAT BRITAIN. 79 much as to enumerate thefe, it would require a moderate Volume, But, in Support of this AfTertion, to mention a few of the mofl: celebrated, and in dirt'erent Parts of thefe Iflands, feems to fall within the Bounds of our De- iign, and of confequence to become our Duty. In England there are, Adlon g, in Middlefex, a purging Water. Ailwefton, or Hailwefton, in Huntingdonshire, enjoys tlie Benefit of two Springs, one brackiflu, found to be very efficacious in all cutaneous Difeafesl^; the other frefli; and very ferviceable in the Recovery of weak Eyes i. Aftrope Wells, in Northamptonshire, which have been, for many chronic Difcafes, in great Efteem for above fourfcore Years k. Barnet, in Hertfordlhire, a purging Wa- ter, formerly, when fewer of thefe falubrious Springs were known, as a very gentle and fafe Chalybeate, defervedly in great Efteem '. Benthal, near Wen- lock, in Shropfliire, an excellent chalybeate Spring'". Briftol hot Wells, in So- merfetlhire, fo much, andfojuftly, celebrated for innumerable Cures ". At Brockhole, near Prefton, in LancaOiire", there are two chalybeate Springs, the upper and lower; the latter efpecially much commended. Buxton Welis, in Derbyfliire "^ ; Cheltenham, in Gloucefterlhire ^, at prefent in very high Repute. At Comnor, or Cumner, in Berklhire, there is a very wholfome purging Spring the Waters of which are fent twice a Week to Oxford, where they are in good Credit >■. Croft, in Yorkfliire, on the Borders of the Bifliop- rick of Durham, of the fame Nature % and little inferior to thofe of Harro- gate. Clifton, near Dedington, in Oxfordfliire, within a few Yards of the River Charvvell, faid to contain the moil of an alkaline Salt of any Spring in England'. At Doefield, in Derbyfliire, there are four chalybeate Springs, that rife within a fmall Diftance of each other ". Dulwich, in Kent, has been famous, for more than a Century, for a purging Spring, which has per- formed great Cures in fcrophulous, fcorbutick, paralytick, and other llubborn g Boyle's Works, vol. iv. p. 246. Allen's Natural Hiftory of chalybeat and purging Waters Id England, p. 127. Hoffman's Treatife on Mineral Waters, p. 82. •^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 366. ' Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 107. '' Short's Hiilory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 45. * Boyle's Works, vol. iv. p. 247. Allen's Natural Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters iti England, p. 149. Chauncey's Hiftory of Hertford.liire, p. 6. n> Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 39. » Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p 36. Sir John Floyer's HiHory of Cold Bathing, p. 239. • Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 39. P Camdeni Britannia, p. 421. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 112. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 53. Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 37 — 43. 1 Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 77. r Afhmole's Hiflory and Antiquities of Berkfliire, vol. i. p, 143. Sl;crt"s Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 80. ' Ibid. P. i. p. 209. ' Plots Natural Hiltory of Oxfoidflure, chap. Ii. ^. 4c — 43 . Short's Hill-iry of Micfral Water*, ?, ii. p. 81. ." Ibid. P. i. p. 276, 277. Difeafea, 8o The POLITICAL SURVEY J)ireares. There is a new Spring, with the fame Qualities, lately difcovered en this Side of Dulwich, and much efteemed. Epfotn, or Ebbelliam, in Surry, which was found in 1630, fuppofcd by fome (though, as we Ihall fee hereafter, this is a Mi(hake) to be the hrft purging Water difcovered in Eng- land w. In a marfhy Meadow, called Fi(h-pool Flit, near Wiikfworth, in Derbyddre, fprings a Chalybeate little known, highly commended, elfeemed the only one of its Kind, and much rcfembling Pyi mont Water ^. At Gran- tham, in Lincolnfliire, there is a pleafant cha!ybv.ate Spring, which might be alfo beneticially ufed as a Cold Bath .^■. At Guile Thwait, or Gillfoot, near Rotherham, in YorkHiire, is a Spring flimous for relloring the Ufe of their Limbs, to fuch as have lofh them by working in Metals'''. Hamftead Spaw, though not mentioned by Do<5lor Allen, or indeed by any ether emi- nent Author, was once in very great Credit, upon the Recommendation of Doftor Gibbons, who thought it not inferior to any of our chalybeate Springs, and coming very near to Pyrmont in the Quality of its Waters. The PvC- putation of the Spring did not long furvive its Patron ; fo powerful is Fafliion as to a Point, in which, of all others, Fafldon ought to have no Influence. In vain the ingenious Doftor Soame laboured to retrieve their Fame j and yet the beft Judges of this Subjeft have allowed there w.as Merit in his Perform- ance, and that thefe Waters are really excellent in their Kind, and retain their mineral Spirit furprizingly. At lilington, in Middlefex*, highly com- mended on his own Knowlege, and from his own Experience, by a very learned and candid Phyfician. At Kedlefton, in Derbyfliire, in the Middle of the Park belonging to Sir Nathaniel Curzon, rifes an excellent Spring, which has performed amazing Cure, in fcrophulous Cafes, Lamenefs, White Swell- ings, v/eak Joints, and Worms, though of an unpleafant Scent '', At Knarefborough, in Yorkfhire, there are many admirable Springs, the Virtues of which have been celebrated by many able Writers. They are better known at prefent by the Name of Harrogate, which is but two Miles diftant, and near which one of the principal Springs lies. They are faid to have been difcovered in 1571, and are ftill in as great Credit as everc. In the Parifli of Lambeth, in the County of Surry, there are two purging Springs, ftiled from the adjacent Fields, St. George's Spaw; and from a public Houfe ^ Additions to Camden's Britannia. Aubrey's Antiquities of Surry, vol. ii. p. 190, 191. Al- len's Natural Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters In England, p. 122. X Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 276. ^ Idem. ibid. p. 278, =• Idem ibid. p. 269. " Allen's Natural Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters in England, p. 27. Mortoui Phthi- Holog. lib. ii. cap. 2. Hoffinan on Mineral Waters, tranflated by Shaw, p. 142. ^ Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 305. <= Allen's Natural Hiflory of chalybeate and purging Waters in England, p. 19. Hoffman on Mi- neral Waters, tranllated by Shaw, p. 55. Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 236, 242, 246, 259, 286. Additions to Camdcu. 3 in of GREAT BRITAIN. 8i in the Neighbourhood, the Dog and Duck Water, the Virtues of which, long ago difcovcred and experienced, but, as happens very frequently in Things of this Kind, in fonie Degree forgot, till of late Years revived and applauded, troni having been as ftridtly examined, and confequently their Nature and Efficacy as thoroughly afcertained, as perhaps any in this Ifland d. They are excellent for cutaneous Foulnefles, and fcrophulous Difeafcs ; have been affirmed to cure, but are certainly known to retard, the Progrefs of a Cancer ". Latham Spaw, in Lancaihirc, was formerly called Maudlin Well, and has been famous for near a Century, being celebrated for the Cure of the Dropfy, Gravel, Stone, Scurvy, and Worms '. Lincomb Water, near Bath in Somerfetfliire, difco- vered lately, but is thought to have Ibme peculiar Virtues in refpeil to a Stran- gury, fcrophulous Cafes, and White Swellings g. At the Weft End of the Town of New Malton, in Yorklhire, rifes a Spring, which has been, by the beft Judges, allowed to come the neareft to the German Spaw of any of our Engliili Waters J and is alfo found, by Experience, to retain its Virtues, and bear Carriage better, than moft of its Kind h. We ought therefore to try whe- ther, by exporting this celebrated Water, the Virtue of which would quickly recommend it in any Country, we might not be able to balance the Account for Spaw, Pyrmont, and other foreign Mineral Waters, to which we have done fo much Juftice and Honour here. On Malvern Hills, which divide Worcefterffiire from Hereford(hire, there are feveral medicinal, though not mineral Springs, which, through a long Courle of Years (indeed longer than moll Mineral Waters) have been famous for healing cutaneous Eruptions, ob- flinate old Sores, Warts, Tetters, and for flrengthening the Eyes '. It was long lince very carefully obferved, and perhaps ought ftill to be remembered, that the Virtues of thefe Springs, though held not to be mineral, are ilrong- eft and moft efficacious in dry Summers ^. At Maudlley, near Prefton, in Lancaihirc, there is a Spring, approaching clofely in its Virtues to the Har- rogate Water ; and thefe Virtues are faid to have been tirft difcovered by the Obfervation of the Country People, that Pigeons reforted thither, in great Flocks, to pick up the candied Salt on the Margin of the Fountain in very hot Summers '. ■' Allen's Natural Hiftory of the chalybeate and purging Waters of England, p. 138 — 143. ' Doftor Hales's accurateObfervations on thele Waters, in Philolbphical Traniacflioiis, N''. 405. f Doftor Leigh's Natural Hiltory of Lam-adiire, p. 34. Doftor Boi"iaie, in his Treatile, intitled Latham Spaw, publilhed in 1670. Short's Hillory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 34, 35. ^ An Inquiry into the Contents and medicinal Virtues of Lincomb Spaw Water near Bath, by W. Hillary, M. D. 1742. •■ Simpfoni Hydrologia Chemlca, p. 134, 135. Martini Lilleri de Fontibus medicatis Ang'in; Exercitationes, p. 32. King's Malton Spaw. Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, vol. i. p. 196 2to. ' Boyle's Works, vol. v. p. 464. Philofophical Tranfaftions, N°. xLx. p. 35S, 350. ^ Doftor John Beai's Obfervations, in tlie Philofophical Tranfa(5lions, N". Ivii. p. 1 161. ' Leigh de medicatis Fontibus iu A^ro Lancafl. p. 1 26. Short's Hillory of Mineral Waters, vol. U. p. 68, 6g. Vol. L M Nevile 82 The POLITICAL SURVEY Nfvile Holt, in LeicefterHiire, on the Borders of Northamptonfliire and Rutland, derives its Name from the noble Family of Nevile, by whom it was long poffefled '". The Spring, which is fuppol'ed to be the only one of its Kind in Britain ", was accidentally difcovered, in the Year 1728, by a Far- mer, who thought to have made a Fond for the Ufe of his Cattle ; but as they could not be brought, by any means, to drink the Waters in it, they remained about two Years longer before they were confidered in a medicinal Light ; in which, however, they were no fooncr Confidered, than the fpeedy and fur- prizing Cures they made, in fome of the moft ftubborn Diforders, rendered Holt Springs very famous in the Neighbourhood, and, quickly after, through the whole Kingdom. The bell Judges, and thofe who have been mofl con- verfant with Mineral Waters, agree in treating them as equally lingular and powerful. Applied externally, they cure mod; Difeafes of the Eyes, heal frefli Wounds faddenly, cleanfe and dry up old ones. Taken inwardly, they have done Wonders, not only in reltoring Appetite, and removing all Symptoms of the Scurvy, but in curing the Rheumatifm, Stone, and Gout. In the Bloody Flux, fpitting of Blood, and other Diftempers of that Kind, they are pecu- liarly fuccefsful j and Nevile Holt is, in fhort, one of the noblefl mineral Springs we have to boaft o. Newnham Regis, or King's Newnham, in Vv^ar- wickfhire, five Miles from Coventry, has three beautiful and celebrated Springs,, alike commended for external Application, as Vulneraries; and for performing great Cures in the Stone, and other Diflcmpers, inwardly taken p. Thele Waters may difpute, in point of Antiquity, with moft T ; and honefl John Speed tells us, they have apetrefying Quality, as himfelf obferved in certain Twigs, that were Part of them AHi, and Part become Stone. He likewife adds, that being drank with Salt, they are laxative ; but that, if Sugar be put into them, they bind •■. They Hill keep up their Reputation in the Country,, more efpecially for green and old Wounds ; from the Cure of which they firft became famous. North Hall, in Hertfordfhires, is of the fame Nature with Epfom Water, but not half fo naufeous, or fo powerful ^ At Queen's Camel, in Somerfetfhire, there is a very remarkable Spring, exceedingly cold to the Touch, and very offenfive to the Smell ". It does not appear to be in any great Credit with the Learned ; but the Experience of ■" It is not improbable that the Mount.iins behind Holt contain Minerals of feveral Kinds. ■■■ Doctor Sliort's Trcatife of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 8r, 82. " A Difcomfe of the Virtues and Ufes of Nevile Hole Water, London, 1742, 8°. P Short's Treatife of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 41. •i A brief Difcourfe of certain Baths, or medicinal Waters, in the County of Warwick, near untO; a certain Viihige, called Newnham Regis, by Walter Bailey, London, 1582. He was Phyfic-Pro- feflbr in the Univerfity of Oxford. ' Speed's Britifh Empire, fol. 53. Sir John Floyer's Hiftory of Cold Bathing, p. 21. « Chauncey's Hiftory of Hertfordrtiire, p. 6. ' Allen's Natural Hiflory of the chalybeate and purging Waters in Englaod, p. 174. " Additions to Camden's Britannia, the of G R E A T BRITAIN. 83 the Country, which Is good Evidence in thefe Cafes, declares it generally efficacious in the King's Evil. Roiigham Springs, about three Miles from Cartmall, in Lancalhire"', rife from the Bottom of a rocky Mountain, af- fording both Marble and Limeftone, and on its Surface producing Samphire, and other maritime Plants. Thefe Springs front towards the Weft, and are chiefly impregnated with marine and Bittern Salt. They have very good Ef- fects in the Gravel, Stone, and Scurvy ; as alfo in the Jaundice, and Quartan Agues ; and are looked upon as a certain Remedy for Worms ^. Scarborough Spaw, in Yorkiliire y, is (b well known, fo much efteemed, and has already exercifed fo many able Pens in difplaying its Virtues, that barely to mention it is all that comes within my Defign ?. Stoke, or Jeflbp's Well, is a very remarkable Spring, not long fince difcovered, in Stoke Common, about three Miles from Claremont, in the County of Surry a. It is confidered as a ni- trous purging Water, and fuperior to any other of the Kind, that has been difcovered in this Part of the World. In a Field lying Eaft from the Green at Streatham, another Village in the fime County of Surry, medicinal Springs were difcovered near a Century ago, though they were not drank before 1670 b. At that Time they were judged more purgative than Epfom Waters : They were long, and are ftill, in great Repute ; but in thefe Things Humour, and the reigning Whim, do more than Reafon or Obfervation. Experience has ftiewn, that thefe Waters are very efficacious in deftroying Worms, and may therefore not be improper in Cafes where People are much emaciated, without the Symptoms that com- monly attend a Confamption ; they are alfo much efteemed for ftrengtheni ng the Eye-fight. I call them Springs, for there were originally three, and the middle one wrought as an Emetic <^. In thofe that are commonly called Sun Tavern Fields, on the other Side the Tower of London, in the County of Middlefex, there is a mineral Spring of a very fingular Kind, which, from its lying in the Parilh of St. Paul's, Shadwell, is commonly called Shadwell Water d. It is very powerful in outward Applications, in the Cure of moft cutaneous Diftempers, being both outwardly and inwardly ufed; has been thought a Specific for the Scurvy, and even for the Leprofy. It became ■w Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, p. 54, 55. Lcigli's Natural Hiftory of Lancifliire and Chcdure, p. 45. * Leigh Tentam. de Fonlibus medicatis in Agro Lancafir. p. 123. ^ Allen's Natural Hiftory of clialybeate and purjjing Waters in England, p. 151 — i 57. Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, p. 112 195. ^ Doftors Witty, Simpfon, Highmore, Tonffall, Foot, &c. Shaw's Inquiry into the Contents, Virtues, &c. of Scarborough Spa-.v Waters, p. 87 — 166. ' Doftor Stephen Hales's Examination of the Strength of feveral purging Waters, efpecially Jef- fop's Well, in the Philofophical Tranfaftions, N". ccccxcv. p. 446. b Aubrey'sHiftory and Antiquities of Surry, vol. i. p. 215. « Allen's Natural Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters in England, p. 1 51— 1 57. ^ Maitland's Hiftory of London, p. 783. M 2 famous, 84 The POLITICAL SURVEY famous, at firft, from its being found a fovcreign Remedy for fome Sorts of fore Eyes ; and its other (^alities were gradually made evident, partly by Experi- ence, and partly from the Obfervation and Sagacity of fome learned Phyli- cians. It is fuppofed to derive thcfe Virtues from its running through a Bed of Pyrites ^. Near Thor, Thowr, or, as it is commonly called, Kirkby Thowr, a Town three Miles from Appleby, iji Weftmoreland, there are two fine Springs of a mild chalybeate Water, jiot inferior to many that are at pre- fent in high Eltecm ; and if there were Conveniencies for drinking them, probably thefe Waters would be found very beneficial in fcorbutic Cafes ;. and, as the Place is pleafant, the Air whollbme, ?nd Provifions cheap, one would think fuch neceffary Improvements might be eafily made . On the Top of a Hill, near a Farm Ploufe at Weft Tilbury in Eilex, there rifes a ce- lebrated Spring, which fome have thought little, if at all, inferior to the Ger- man Pouhon Waters. It has a very fof t agreeable Tafte, as if it was mixed with IVlilk. It has been found of great Service in the Gravel, Afthma, aud fome Kind of Scurvies, and is confidcred as a Specific in Diarrhea's, Dyfen- terics, and the Piles ''. The Waters of Tunbridge, like thofe of Epfom and Scarborough, are too well known to need any Commendation, and yet could not be omitted in our Catalogue i. Upminster, near Horn Church, in EiTex", affords us a Spring of fome fm- gular, as well as folutary Qnalities, which in obflinate Agues and Dropfies (the common Difeafes of this County) are very etiicacious ; and the Salt of thefe Waters may, in any proper Liquor, be taken at any Dillance, with as much; Benefit as the Waters at the Spring ; which is a Circumftance of Confe- quence, and ought to recommend them ^. In DerbyQiiie, at Weftwood,. there is a Spring, which is reprefented as very nearly refemhling the Sun- Tavern Fields, or Shadwcll Water, and healing, chiefly by outward Applica- tion, the foulell and moil ftubborn Ulcers, and this too in a furprizing fl^ort Space of Time, and when other Methods, and other Mineral Waters alfo> have proved altogether ineffedlual '. In Staffordfliire, than which no Cojn.- try is better watered, tl^iere are feveral medicinal Springs, and thofe likewife 06 cUfterent Kinds; amongft which there is a very famous one at Willowbridge^ that has done extraordinary Cures in the moft deplorable Cafes, fuch as Rickets,, diftorted Limbs, Lamenelfes, heftic and confumptiv-e Habits ; and yet, upoa; the fi:ri(fl:efi:Examination, nothing of a mineral Subilance has been difcovered'*^;. Thefe Waters therefore, as v/ell as fome others, maintain their Title to Healings « Hoffman's Treatife upon JllneranVatn-s, by Doftor Shaw, p. 102, in the Notes, f Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, vol. ii. p. 56, 57. f Treatife on the Virtues of Tilbury Waters. '■ Allen's Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters in England, p. 26, 27. • Boyle's Works, vol. i. p. 552 ; ii. 297 ; iv. p. 238, 242, 243, 244, 247; v. p. 38(3-. ^ Allen's Natural Hiftory of chalybeate and purging Waters of England, p. 148. ' Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 183. " PlofsHiftory of Staffoidftiii-e, p. 102, 103. Short's liiftory of Mineral Waters, P. il. p. ns.. rather of GREAT BRITAIN. 85 rather by Prefcription than phyfical Evidence -, and yet this ought not to tura to their Prejudice with the Learned or the Unlearned. Not with the for- mer, becaufe they know, better than otliers, that many Fa be rendered ferviceable in retaining the Gentry in their own Country, pro- moting Society amongft the politeft and beft educated Part of a People, di- ftinguifhed by their natural Endowments, and, by degrees, perhaps, attradl ■Company from the bordering Counties, in order to fliarc not only the Bene- fits of the Waters, but in the Converfation and Amufements of thofe who frequented them ; which would be in many refpefts beneficial to the Coun- try, as well as to the Inhabitants. There are, however, even at prefent, Inftances enough to encourage fuch a Search. A very good chalybeate Spring has been found in the Garden ' Itiner.1 per Helvetia Alpinas Regioncs fa(fla ab A. D. 1700 ad 17 11, a Joanne Scheutzero, Lugd. Batav. 1725, 4°. '' See the laft Edition of Camden's Britannia, with tiie Additions ; Doflor Childrey's Britannia Raconica; and other Works of this Nature. ' short's liillory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 86, 87. 5 belonging of G R E A T BRITAIN. 87 belonging to the Epifcopal Palace of Bangor, in Carnarvonfliire" ; and by the way, this is a County where, in all Probability, many fuch Waters might be eafily dilcovered, and it may be, fomeof a very different Nature, fince many Fragments of Roman Baths have been found iiere (which, though commonly artificial, were alfo fomctimes Improvements of naturally warm Springs), as alfo fome Veillges of a Copper Mine, wrought by the fune People ^v. At Caergyrle, in Flintfliire, about twelve Miles fromChefler, there are two Salt Springs, one of which is in great Credit for curing obftinate Scurvies, and even Leprofies, by drinking the Water, and wafhing with it ^. About half a Century ago there was a Projeft of eredting a Salt Work hercj but, upon boring, fome frefli Water Springs broke into the Well, which ruined all their Hopes''. It is however, likely, that there might be formerly Brine Springs difcovered in Flintfnire, fince there are two Villages 7, one called Over, and. the other Nether Droitwich, which feems to me to point out fome fuch thing, Llandrindod, in the County of Radnor, twenty-five Miles from Aberyftwith (the neareft Sea Port) in Cardiganfiiire, thirty Miles from Shrewfbury, and twenty- four from Hereford, is of late Years become famous for feveral cha- lybeate and other Springs, which have done extraordinary Cures in a Variety ©f chronic Diilempers, of which the Public has lately received a very copious Account 3. At Llanwrft, in Denhighfliire, there is a Spring, which the Country People have found by Experience to have very falutary Effefts in ■ fcrophulous and fcorbutic Cafes ; and if fome Accounts that have been given of it be true !', it certainly deferves to be more carefully examined, when perhaps it will be found of a very fingular Nature e. In the Road, about a Quarter of a Mile South of Rhuthyn, in the fame County, in the Way to Denbigh, which is about five Miles farther, there is. a very fine medicinal Spring, called St. Peter's Well d, which, at the P.ecom- mendation of Dofior Fowkes, an eminent Phyfician at that Place, was fe- curedby a Wall built round it, and a Bafon placed to receive the Water. But thefe are of late faid to be decayed, and the Spring difregarded ^ ; though there cannot be, if we confider the natural. Beauties of the Situation, the Neatnefs of the Town, and the Cheapnefs of the Country adjacent, a more commo- dious Place than this for the Reception of fuch as might be inclined to make * Appendix- to the Account of Llandrindod Waters. * Camdeni Britannia, p. 53;. Additions to the Englifti Tranflation of -the Britannia. . ^- Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 86, 87. y Doflor Thomas Tylftone's Account of the Springs at Cacr Gyrle. ^ Speed's Rritiflr Empire, fol. 122. a A Treatife of the three medicinal Mineral V7aters at LLmdrlndod, by Dr, WcifTcl Liaden, IvI. E/^ . Loidon, 1756, 8^. ^ Sir John Floyer's Hiflory of Cold Bathing, p. 85. '■ See the Appendix to the Account of Llandrindod Waters. ' From particular Information. * Piobably by an Irruption of common Water, the Spring is for the prefent fpoiled. a.* ^.tiaIx 88 The POLITICAL SURVEY a Trial of the Virtues of thelc Waters. On Troefellyne Hill, (or Tryfylwiii Hills, for there are two of that Name) ia the North Part of the Ilknd of An- glefey, there rifes a medicinal Spring, the Waters of which have a very plea- iing Acidity, and are found to be of great Service in Agues, in Dropfies, at the Beginning of Confumrtions, and alfo in the Jaundice f. At Swanzy, in Glamorgani'hire, Mineral Waters have been difcovercd, which relcmble thofc St Shadwell, and have done great Cures in Palfies, Rheumatilms, and Con- iumptionp, but are particularly remarkable for reflraining Haemorrhages, and Hopping Fluxes of all Kinds ; ■which have drawn to them a Concourfe of People, and are likely to maintain their Credits. These, as before obferved,are enough to encourage a Search for more of fuch falutary Waters in a Countrv which, from its exterior Appearance, promifes as many, and of as diiierent Natures, as any of the iame Compafs in Europe. Thcfe, when difcovered, and their Virtues duly examined and authentically eflablilhed, for which v/e want not as learned Phylicians, and as able Chemills, as are any-where to be found, might very eafily fubllitute a Journey into Wales, inllead of Voyages to Germany, I'rance, Italy, or Portugal, with much Benefit to Health, and (which at this Juncture merits fome Attention) a great Saving to the Nation ''. The very Search alfo would be unqueilionably recom- penfed with the bringing to Light a V^ariety of mineral and other Treafures, which have long lain neglected, and may otherwife never be revealed. A Spring or Bath of ertablilhed Reputation, would fpeedily draw a Refort of People J the providing Conveniencies for them, would immediately form a Village, which would rife, in the Space of a few Years, into a Town ; occa- lion the inhabiting and Cultivation of the adjacent Country ; promote neigh- bouring Manufadlures ; produce the repairing old, and opening new Road? ; enlarge the Correfpondence, and quicken the Ciixulation in all the adjoining Counties; and excite new Branches of Induilry, by the Profped: of Rewards unknown before, fo as to facilitate exceedingly thofe Improvements, v/hich the public-fpirited Gentlemen in this Part of Britain, to their immortal Ho- nour, are fo much difpofed to encourage K Thus mucli I thought it requifite to fay, in order to fliew how elfentially this Subjeil; is connected with my Plan, and how eafily and certainly the natural Bounties beftowed by Provi- dence, may, by a little Care and Attention, be converted into political Advan- tages. I freely acknowlege, or rather am proud to own, I borrowed this Doc- ' Speed's Biitilh Empire, fol. 125. Appendix to the Account of Llandrindod Waters. * From particular Information. *> Conlider the Sums fpent by iheEnglifli at Aix la Chapelle, Schwalbach, Spa, Pyrmont, Mont- pellier, Naples, Lifbon, Sec. as alfo the Advantages which thefe Places draw from the high Repu- tation of their Baths, Springs, and Air. ' From the Information of feveral Perfons of Worth, and efpccially the Right Reverend and Ho- iiourable Do6lor Robert Drummond, the prefent worthy Bifliop of St. Afaph. trine of GREAT B R 1 T A I N. 89' trine from the wife Lord Bacon '<; and I have opened it the more fully here that I may not be obliged to apply the fame kind of Reafoning, as otherwife I muft be conilrained to do, upon many fubfequent Occafions. We are next to proceed to another Inflance of the Kindnefs of Providence, nearly allied to the former, by which I mean Baths ; and in refpeft to thefe, it will be found, upon a very curfory Survey, we are in Britain not at all defi- cient; and the Number might, without queftion, as our late Difcoveries, in comparifon of thofc formerly known, manifelUy prove, be, with a little Inqui- ry, greatly augmented. The Ufe of Water in cleanfing and purifying the Body, in a natural, and, metaphorically, in a religious Senfe, was very early praftifed in all, as well barbarous as civilized Nations ; and it is highly likely that from hence they came, by Experience and Obfervation, (the Eyes of human Science) to difcern its great Utility in Medicine. At leaft this is a plain and probable Account of the Thing; for as Bathing has evident and conftant Effeds upon the human Body, fo, where-ever this was commonly the Cuflom, as amongft all the Northern Nations it was, and amongf l the remotell of the Northern Nations it ftill is, thefe Effedls were moft likely to be ob- ferved- In this therefore I agree with a learned and judicious Phyfician ', that the Ufe of Cold Baths, more efpecially in Northern Countries, is to be afcribed to natural good Senfe, for many Reafons, and particularly thefe three. Cold Bathing, or Imm-crfion in cold Water, is the bed Prefervative againft the Senfe of Cold, and confequently of eminent Service to the naked Britons, in defending them from the Rigor of the Climate. Cold Bathing affords a certain and immediate Relief from Wearinefs, which mull have recommended it to People continually in Adtion. The third is a Confequence from the other two, the Univerfality of this Pradice amongft thofe Nations who have fcarce any other Lights than fuch as they derive from Nature and Experience "'. Learned Men, and more efpecially learned Phyficians, in fucceeding Times fpeculated upon this, as well as other Cufloms; and explaining the Caufes of thofe Etfedls which at firlt introduced the Pradlice^ made that a Subjedl of Science, and an Inftrument in Tvledicine, which had been before ufed at ran- dom, and of courfe with lefs Certainty and Benefit; that is, in regard to the Cure, or Prevention of Difeafes, for even to this common Senfe liad diredled Men, as well as to the ordinary Ufe of Immerfions for the Sake of Pleafure or Conveniency^ The great Father of Phyfic, Hippocrates, well underftood the Ufe of Cold Baths; and on this, as well as all other Suhjedls, has written very amply, as well 1^ See his Specimen of the Perfian Magic ; his Sapientia Vcteium ; feveral Parts ofhis great Work, de Augmentis Scientiaium, and other Pieces. 1 Sir John Floyer's Hiftory of Cold Bathing, p. 85. "■ Doctor Giles Fletcher's Obferva'.ions on the Manners of the RuiGans. Oleaiius, in hi- Em- bafTy, p. ()6. Ellis's Voyage to Hudfoa's Bay, p. 18 3. Vol-. I. . N as 90 The POLITICAL SURVEY as very judicloufly ". They were alio known and highly efteemed by the Ro- mans. Antonius Mufa cured Auguftus by this Method, for which he was- niunihcently rewarded by the Senate, and his Statue, at the Public Expence, placed next to that of Efculapiuso. The Emperor Alexander Severus, who lived to old Age, ufcd them frequently, or rather conllantly Pj and as he re- fided long in this Illand, his Example probably recommended them to the Bri- tons, who by this Time were become a very poliflied People, afFedled the Ro- man Manners, and pra6ifed, on a very different Principle, what, in earlier Times, had been in daily Ufe among their ruder Anceflors. It was alio com- mon in the Days of the Saxons, who very probably had been accuflomcd to it in their own Country «1. In Procefs of Time, Religion came to have a Share in this Ufage; and thofe Places in which the firfl Preachers of Chriflianity to that Nation, who in the next Ages were all canonized, had commonly baptized their Converts, were fuppofed to have a certain Degree of Sandf ity, and were from thence flilcd Holy Wells fj of which there are many in all the three Kingdoms. The Monks improved upon this, and, in their fid:itious Legends, attributed miraculous Properties to certain Springs, in fome of which perhaps they had diftinguifhed medicinal Virtues s. A very learned Prelate, who had long fludied this SubjedV, wrote a Difcourfe upon it, which no doubt would have given great Satisfaction had it been publiflied '. At the Reformation, as if all Things introduced, or commended by Papifls, were infedted with Popery, the Ufe of thefe Wells was unaccountably run down ", till Men's Minds being fettled by Degrees, Reafon again recom- mended what had been difcredited by Supcrftition j for undoubtedly there was not lefs Folly in refufingto make ufe of Springs and Baths, becaufe their Virtues were attributed to falfe Caufes by Divines, than to decline their Afiift- ance becaufe Phyficians difagree about their Contents. The all- wife Creator has given us Waters for Drink and for Phylic; and it is an Adt of Religion to point out and preferve the Memory of thefe Ble-nngs"'. On the whole, we may, with great Propriety, diilinguilli Cold Baths into three ClalTes. The firft is, Rivers rendered moderately warm by the Rays of the Sun. The fecond, common Water, moderately cold, in which the whole Body is bathed, or par- " See his Doftrlne largely flated from his feveral Tre.uifes, by Sir John Floyer, in liis Letter to Dofh3T Gibbons. " Sueton. in Auguflo, c.ip. 59, Si. Dion. CafT. lib. liii. p. 517. Plin. Hill. Nat. lib. xxxv. P Lamprid. in Alex. Sever. "i Camdeni Britannia, p. 96. r Beds Hift. lib. ii, iii, iv. " Concilia Magnfe Britannia:, vol. I. p. 389. Plot's Natural Hiftory of Cxfordflilre, chnp. ii. §. 70. Hearn's Preface to Robert of Gioucefier, p. xlvii. ' Dotftor William Fleetwood, firll: Billiop of St. Afaph, then of Ely, in his Addrefs to the Reader, before the Life of St. Winnefrede, p. 18. mentions a Difcourfe of the Super lUtion of Wa- ters, which he had written, and intended to publilh. " Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, chap. xxi. " Fhilofophical Tranfaaions, N^ Ii. ticular of GREAT BRITAIN. 91 ticukr Parts of it waflied ; and in regard to thefe we have already made it evident, that no Country can be better fuppHed than Britain. The third are frigid Springs, impregnated with fome cold Mineral, and thefe are, ftriiftly fpeaking, what is meant by Cold Baths, of which we have many, very juftly efteemed for their falubrious Effedls x. We might, to cut this Matter fliort, aflert, that at leaft every Spring remark- ably cold, may be accounted very properly a Cold Bath. But to fpeak more particularly, many of our mineral Springs are, in this refpeift, peculiarly adapted to medicinal Purpofes. Such, for Example, as are ftiled Vitriolic Waters, of which there are fome in almofl: every County. Brine Springs, and Sea Water, are likewife ufeful; and bathing in them has been recom- mended by the moll: able Phyficians 7. The Tinners in Cornwall obferve, that the Water which runs from Mundick Ore, cures any Wounds, Cuts, or Sores furprizingly '-. Nitrous purging Waters, and fmooth oily bituminous Waters, effedl great Cures by bathing. Alabailer Waters, Marie Waters, and fuch as run through Chalk and Limeflone, heal Ulcers, and are in other refpedls highly falutary ■•. We will next mention fome of the many Cold Baths in England, that have Experience, as well asReafon, on their Side; and though perhaps difcovered by Chance, and brought into Credit by accidental Cures b, are now known and acknowledged^ from a ftridl Examination of their Con- tents, to be exceedingly powerful, as well as the cheapefl: Remedies, in many of the moft grievous Diftempers to which the Bodies of Men are fubjedt, and therefore cannot be too much commended ^. At Afkeron, five Miles from Doncafter, and feven from Pontefract, in Yorkfliire d, there is a Sulphur Spring, which is now inclofed, and falls into a fine Bafon. It rifes within a few Yards of a Pool, the Soil on one Side £>£ which is Limeftone, and on the other a white Clay, lying upon white Sand-. This Pool is not ever dry, or ever overflows. The Virtues of the Water were firft difcovered by Farriers and Farmers, who drove their Horfes and Cattle thither in the molt ilubborn Maladies, and this v/ith all imaginable Succefs; and thefe Waters are now famous for curing the moft inveterate ftrumous Sores by bathing. Croft Spaw, in the fame County, upon the Edge of the Bilhoprick of Durham", fpringing through Linieftone, is no Icfs remarkable for the fime Pror. perties, and, by drinking and bathing, cures moil cutaneous Dillempers. Near " Sir John Fioyer's Hiflory of Co! J Bathing, p. 91. y DifTcrtatioa concerning the Ufe of Sea VVater ia Difeufes of the GlanJs, &C. by Doi^or Riif- fell, 175-i, 8\ ^ Additions to Camden's Britannia. a Sir John Fioyer's Hiftory of Cold Bathing, p. 2i> '« Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. i. = Leigh, de Balneis frigidis. d Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 303. ■= Speed's Britilh Empire, fol. 32. Short's Hiflory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. ;iJ9. N 2 ' CoIe(h;i 92 The POLITICAL SURVEY ColefliiK, in Warwickfliire, there is an excellent Cold Bath, which has done Wonders even in leprous Calls. Holy Well s, near Hinckley, in Lci- cefterllure, is likewiic famous in Caies of the fame Nature. At Hunwick, near Bilhops Aukland, in the Biflioprick of Durham h, there is an excellent cold Spring to which People rel'ort commonly in the Months of June and July with their Children, from its Efficacy in curing the Rickets. Kedlefton, in Derbylhire i, in the midll of Sir Nathaniel Curzon's Park, furniihes an admirable Cold Bath, from the Sprhig that has been before mentioned, which, bv drinking and bathing, cures Wcaknefs of the Joints, fixed and wandering Pains, Swellings, Lamenefs, and even the King's Evil. St. Mongah's Well k isone of thofe, at Knarefborough, in Yorkshire, celebrated for above a Century for curing old Aches, Swellings, hard Tumours, Agues, and many other Diftempers. Newnham Regis, in Warwickfliire, already mentioned ', is alfo confidered with good Reafon in the fame Light. At Newton Dale "^, nine Miles from Whitby, in Yorkfliire, there is a petrifying cold Spring, which cures Hemorrhages of every Kind, weak Joints, and even diflorted Limbs, if ufed at the Beginning. Near Tutbury ", in Staffordlliire, there was formerly a cold Spring in great Reputation; another at Wallhall; and a third at Willow- bridge, in the fame County, which has done prodigious Cures by drinking and bathing; as to which, if the Reader will confult the Treatifes mentioned at the Bottom of the Page ", or any Perfon well acquainted with that County, he will learn much more than is proper to be inferted here. In Wales they have, in Flintfliire, one of the moft famous, and it may be, orje of the mod fingular Cold Baths in this liland, near a little Town, which from hence is called Holy Well ''. As to the Legend of St. Wenefrede, it is more than enough to difcredit it, that Girald, who fcldom mifles either a mira- culous Well, or an extraordinary Story, when they come in, or lie but a little out of the Way, {hould yet be filent as to both j and this too, though he palled a Night at a Religious Houfe near the Place. But, befides his, there is alfo as deep a Silence amongfl: all our ancient Hiftorians De Pontif. Angl lib. ii. ^ Commentar. in Cygnseum Cantioncm, p. 34. 35. ' Polyhiflor, cap. xxv. '" Britannia, p. 1 70. " Scriptorum Britannlae, Centiiria prima, fol. 31. In the original Edition in Quarto, pnQtedat Ipfwich, 1548. o Lelandi Colleflanca, torn, ii. p. 277. I" Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 3^, 121. •i Lambard's Topographichai Dictionary of Britain, p. 22. ' Ecclefiaflics HilloriaGeiitis Anglorum, lib. i. cap. i. » Hemingi Chartularium EcclefiCE Wigornicnfis, p. 64, 108. ' Langtoff's Chronicle, p. 43. « Cibloui Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 193, Lelandi Colkftanea, torn. ii. p. 318. could of GREAT BRITAIN. 97 could not be removed or injured, as appears by the Epigram of Alexander Necham ^v, who fiourilhed near fix hundred Years ago, that vail: Numbers of lame and infirm People crowded thither for, and received, Relief; and he like- wife hints at the Tradition of thefe Baths being made by Art, whicli he treats as a Fable. Gilbertus Anglicus -s who was a Phyfician, and not unlearned for the Time in which he lived, which probably might be in thcRcign of Edward I. commends the fulphureous Baths very much, and gives the Cafe of a younp- Man, of a melancholy Difpofition, and of a broken Conliitution, who wa^ cured by them. The celebrated Dodlor Freind y was of Opinion, that this Cure muit have been done, not by bathing, but by drinking the Waters; a Prailice which, according to his Notion, was revived three hundred Years after by Dodtor Guidot, or at lead: with his Approbation. Robert of Gloucef- tcr ', in his old rhiming Chronicle, makes Bath Waters the firft of the three Wonders in England; Stonehcnge, and the Peak of Derby, being the other two. We find a vei'y particular Account of the City and the Baths, as they ftood in his Time, in the Works of our indefatigable and accurate Antiquary, John Leland ^: Every Writer of any Note who has touched our Iliilcry, or mentioned the Singularities of this Idand, believing it his Duty to celebrate thefe fdutary Streams. The Nature of their Contents ; their medicinal Qualities ; the jroper Method of uiing them; the Seafons for coming hither; the Dif- eafes in which they are fuccef&ful; the Manner of applying them by bathing, drinking, or pumping; the Cafes in which Rcafon and Experience fliew them to be improper; and, in a Vv'ord, whatever elfe the moil curious Inquirer could contrive to ai]<: about them, may be found in the very nunie- rous Pieces the Learned have written on the Subjeit of thefe famous Baths'', Hill in as high Credit as ever. ■ As to any other Particulars which regard the Hiftory of the Place, and may tend to fupport and eltablifh what I have advanced; in refped; to the numerous Advantages flowing to the Inhabitants from the high and juft Reputation of thefe Waters, it would not be difHcult to affemble a Cloud of Witneiles^. We have xnentioned feveral of the mincralFountains a fecond time, in fpeak- ing of Cold Baths; and v/e mull do the fame in regard to Briftol Hot Well, now we are treating of warm Waters. The warm Spring at St. Vincent's Rock was taken Notice of about the beginning of the lail Century^*, and at tb.at Time was covered witli the Sea at every high Tide : The Spring, notwith- '^' Camdcni Britaniii.i, p. 171. ^ Compenuiiun Medkiiiic, p. 250. >' Hlftory of Phyfic, vol. ii. p. 271. ^ In his Introdiiftion, vol. i. p. 7. ' Itinerary, vol. ii. p. 35 — 40. vol. vii. p. 74. '' The Baths of Batiie, by Doflor Thomas Venner, London, 1637, 4". Mayo, Giiidor, Waiter, Pierce, &c. ' Stukeley's Itincrarinm Curiofum, p. 138. Salmon's Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 854 — 3 it. An ElTixy towards a Hiflory of Bath, by John Wood, Architeft, London, 1749, 2vo!. S-". '' Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 36. Vol. I. O llanding, g8 The POLITICAL SURVEY i'^anding, preferved its Ilcat and its Virtues. At firfl it was a popular Medicine f"( r fore Eyes; by which I mean that Vi'c and Experience rcconmicnded it to the common People, who loon extended it to Icorbutic and fcrophulous Dif- eafes with equal Succels. We muft obferve, that in thefe Cafes they walhed j and, in Procef- of Time, both wafhed with, and drank the Waters, whicli they found equally falutary and pleafant; Qualities perhaps no-where fo thoroughly united. Dodor Venner published their Fame to the V/orld^; and when they came to be examined by the Learned, their Virtues were acknowleged, their Effedts particularly explained, and highly commended. Some inclined to think, that except their being lefs hot, they differed not in Kind from Bath Waters. But Experience, and the farther Confidcration which it produced, quickly proved this was a Miftake; and indeed it is now known and confelfed, that Briftol Waters fucceed heft in thofe Cafes for which the Waters of Bath arc found prejudicial J and for this Reafon, fince the Operations of thofe Waters have been more attentively confidered, difufed C In fcorbutic Cafes their happy Effedls are undeniable; all Excoriations in the Dyfentery, with Ulcers in the Inteftines, Kidneys, and Bladder, they heal beyond Expedlation, almofl: beyond Credit; they check all immoderate Secretion in fuch a Manner, and with fo great Safety, that fome regard this as the Charafteriftic of Briftol Waters; in all Haemorrhages they are admirable; in the Strangury, Gravel, and Stone, they do all that can be dcfired ; and even in fcrophulous Cafes they are very fuccefsful. In Coughs, nay, and in Confumptions of the Lungs, Cures have been effefted by thefe Waters, when all Medicines failed; and the fame is alfo faid in regard to cancerous Sores. But in the two laft Cafes more efpecially, the Perfons affedled (bould be fent as early as pofTible, before the Difeafe has been irritated, or the Patient's Strength weakened by other Methods g. Thefe are ufually ftiled the Hot Wells, becaufe, befide St. Vincent's, there has been another warm Spring difcovered about a Mile lower, on the fame Side the Avon. It may be, upon a ftridl Examination of, and a clofe Attention to their Effedts, greater Difference in their Qualities may be developed than even the Learned are at prefent willing to allow. As in the Neighbourhood of thefe falutiferous Springs the Air is excellent, the Country plealant, and all Kind of Accommodations to be had with Eafe, we cannot wonder at the great Rcfort of People of all Ranks hither in the Summer, which is the proper, or rather the ufual Seafon; but in Cafes of Neceflity, there is no doubt, they may be fafely and fuccefsfully ufed at any Time l\ Buxton Baths, inDerbyfliire, near the River Wye, lie ten Miles from Chatf- vvorth, lixteen from Chefterfield, and twenty from Derby, in the wildeftPart of ^ Ccnfurc concerning the Waters at St. Vincent's Rock, near Briftol, at the End of his Baths of Bathe. ' See the Modern Writers upon both Waters. « Wynter's EfTay on Chronical Difeafes, p. 41, 42, 54, 55. Randolph, Bnynard, Owen, &c. *' From particular Information. •:; the of GREAT B R I T A I N. gq the Country, which derives it Name from the Peak'. It was always Kelieved bv ovs Antiquaries, that thefe Baths were known to, and much frequented by, the Romans, becaufe of a mihtary Way, called the Bath Gate, from Burgii to this Place, v/hich is ftill vifible '••'. This Conjecture was verified about fifty Years ago, when .Sir Thomas Delves, of Chefhire, in Memory of a Cure he received here, caufed an Arch to be eredcd ; in digging the Foundation for which, they came to the Remains of a folid and magnificent Structure of Roman Work- manlliip i and in other Places in the Neighbourhood very capacious Leaden Cillerns, and a Variety of other Utenfils, which evidently appear to be alfo uf Roman Workmanihip, have been difcovered'. That thefe Baths were lefs famous than thofe in Somerfetftire, muft be admitted ; but that they were ever totally difufed, there is fomeReafon to doubt. They are mentioned by Leland'". as well known two hundred Yeai's agoj but it is certain they were brought into higher Credit by Doflor Jones's Book ", and by George Earl of Shrewf- bury's ered'ing a Building over the Bath, then compofed of nine Springs <^'. This Building was afterwards pulled down, and a new and more commodious Edifice railed at the Expence of the Earl of Devonfliire. Yet, in receiving this Favouu, the Baths of Buxton fuffered no fmall Detriment, by the Lofs of the ancient Regifter of Cures, drawn up by the Bath- Warden, or Phyfician attend- ing the Baths, and fubfcribed by the Parties own Hands r. A Circumftance that deferves to be remembered and revived, not only here, but at every re- markable Spring or Bath in the Kingdom, for Reafons fo evident, that they need not be enumerated. The Baths of Buxton, which are warmer than the hot Well at Bri{1:ol, are yet in all refpeCts milder than thofe in Somerietlhirc; and though of confequence lefs powerful in fome Diftempers, yet in ieveral others are ufeful and falutary, both inwardly taken, and outwardly applied, where Reafon and Experiment have taught, that the latter are to be forborne. To give barely a Lift of the Difeafes, amongil which Kheumatifms, Gouts, Scurvies, Cramps, Convuliions, Contractions, and Afthmas, are included, which, by the fure Teft of Experience, thefe Springs have been found to cure, would take up too much Room q. It is fufiicient therefore to fiy, th.u the ' Lambarde's Topographical Di61:ionary, p. 48. Speed's Britifii Empire, fo!. 67. "^ Camdeni BritannU, p. 421. Stukel^y's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 52,53- Salmon's Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 543. ' Short's Hiflory ot Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 23 — 70. " Commentarii in Cygneam Cantionem, p. 35. Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. p. 45. " The Benefit of the ancient Bathes otBuckftones, which cure mofl: giicvous Sicknefles, never before publhhed, compiled by John Jones, Phyfitiaii at King's Mead, near Derby, Anno Salutis 1572, London, 4'^. " Camdeni Britannia, p. 421. Cliildrey's Britannia Bacouica, p. 112. Bromc's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 84. P Short's Hiffory of Mineral Waters, P.i. p. 49. "i The bed: way of coming at this would be, as hinted in the Text, to revive the Regifter, print the Ca'es every ten Years, and engage every Perfon, at their firft coming, to purchafe the Book. 1 his would eflablifli the Faffs, circulate the Reputation of the Water?, and prevent any fuch Ac- cidents as that by which the old Regi.^er was deftroved. O 2 he.l ICO The POLITICAL SURVEY befl; Judges have moft highly commended them f ; and that, upon the ririclert Examinations, the EPceem of" tiieir Virtues, inRead of being difcrcdited or lelicued, hatli been not only admitted but increafed^ At the Diftance of fomewliat more than thirty-two Yards North-Eaft from the B.uh at Bnxton, riles St. Anne's Well, which is chiefly fupplicd from ■•a Spring on the North Side, out of a Ro.'k of black Limeftone, or baflard Marble f. It formerly rofe into a Stone Bafon, ihut up within an ancient Roman Brick Wall, a Yard fquare within, and a Yard high on three Sides, open on the fourth; till, in 1709, Sir Thomas Delves erccfled, as wc before obferved, an Arch over it, which is twelve Feet long, and as many broad, fet round with Stone Steps on the Infide ". In tlie midll: of this Dome the Water fprings up now into a Stone Bafon two Feet fquare. This Water is not fo light or lb warm as the Water in the Baths; and yet this may be termed the Mother -Spring ; for here the Romans had ere6ted their noble Works, and here was the ancient Chapel dedicated to St. Anne, by which Buxton was preferved in Reputation w. That the Waters of thefe Springs (for there is a fmall one on the Weft Side, as well as a large one on the North) diiler very little in their perceptible Qualities from the Springs in the Baths, thofe who have examined them with the greateft Care, feem to agree; but that they, notwithftanding, vary in their Elfedis, Experience has (hewn; and of this Sir Thomas Delves's Arch, as a Monument of his Cure, remains a very re- markable, as well as inconteftible. Proof. About twenty Yards South-Eaft of St. Anne's, in another Clofe, lies Bing- ham, or St. Peter's Well, called alfo Leigh's Well, from a memorable Cure received by a Gentleman of that Name from this Spring, which rifes out of a black Limeftone, in a very dry Ground, and is not fo warm as St. Anne's Well. In the very fame Clofe there are a hot and a cold Spring, that now into the fame Receptacle ; and, at no great Diftance, there are other fmall Springs of warm Water, all of which, if ftricliy evamined, may poiilbly be found to have very different Effefts, and may from thence be able to anfwcr very different Intentions-^. Thefe are Circumftances of very great Confequence in the Cure of ft ubborn chronic Difeafes; and the Concurrence of fuch a Variety r Mart. Lifter de Thermis & Fontibus medicatis Angliae, p 36. Leigh, book i. p. 31. Allen's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, p. 39. Sec alfo Mr. J. Martyn's Obfervations in a Journey to the Peak, in the Philofophical Tranfadfiop.s, N^. ccccvii. p. 22. \ See Doftor Baynard's Appendix to the Hillory of Cold Bathing. ' Lirter de Therrais et Fontlbus medicatls Anglix, p. 37. Short's Hiftory of Mineral Wateis, P. i. p. 39. " Speed's Britilli Empire, ful. 67. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p- 52, 53. Short's fliflory of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 23. " Leiand's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. p. 45. See alfo Do<^or Jones's Book before cited. ' Short's Hillory of Mineral Waters, P. i, p. 4.(. of oF GREAT BRITAIN. lor of Waters within fo narrow a Conipafs, when their fcveral Quahties (hall be once thoroughly underilood, may render Buxton as jullly famous as any Place in Europe, and of courfe create as great a Refort thither ; fince the medicinal Virtues of itsWaters are only exerted on tiic Spot, where all imaginable Conve- niencies either already are, or on fuch Encouragement might be very ealily provided. About fourteen Miles South from Buxton, ten from Derby, and fevcnteen from Nottingham, lies Matlock Bath, the laft of the warm Waters that we Ihall mention. The Waters of Matlock are lighter, but not fo warm as thofe of Buxton y. In its Operations, Matlock comes very near to the Briftol Waters, and, like them, agrees perfedly with a Milk Diet. In the Scurvy, Rheumatifm, Weaknefs, and wandering Pains, as well as in all cutaneous Diftempers, it has been found highly beneficial, ufed as a Bath. When taken internally, as well ns ufed externallv, it has done Wonders in cancerous Sores, and the Kings Evil; but in refpect to bloody Urine, and indeed Iia?inor- rhages of every Kind, it is held a fovereign Remedy." In (liort, it is the gentlell of all our tepid Waters, may be taken in the largell: Quantity, ai.d, generally f[ eaking, may be ufed without any previous Preparation. We may add to this, that the Air is wonderfully pure, the Situation remarkably pleafant, and every thing that renders a rural Scene agreeable, adorns the Profpeft. South- Weft from Matlock, lies Middleton Bath ; and about two Miles from thence Wirkfuorth, which has two warm Brooks, the one on the Eaft, the other on the Weft Side of the Town, which ferve as Baths, but arc not ufed inwardly. Nine Miles from Matlock lies Stony Middleton ;. and at the Foot of a high Mountain, on the North Side of the Town, there rifes a fine warm Spring, the Water of which is drank with great Benefit. Eight Yards from thence is the Batli, in which there rifes as ftrong a Spring as that at Buxton 2 i and there are fome other warm Springs in the Neighbourhood,, which in any other Country, would be thought worthy of a particular De- fcription ; but the Plenty of fuch falutary Springs, ixi this Part of Derby- fliire, occafions theie being but little regarded. If, in treating this Subjeft, I may, as the Thing is very potable, have com- mitted any Miftiikes, expreflcd myfelf with any Impropriety, or been guilty of any material Omifiion, I hope I ihall be excufed, from the Uprightnefs of ir.y intention •>. I am perfuaded that, in a political, as well as a phylical, Senfe, it would be of the highcft Importance to h.ave at leaft the moll conti- derable of thefe Springs examined, and, as far as may be, thtir^Nature and y .Additions to Camden's Britnnnia. ^ I eigh's Hiftory of Lancafliiie, book ili. p. ■]y LiAcr de FoiUibtis mtilicatis Anglix, p. .(;. ; h 'U's Hiftory of Mineral Waters. ^ It is poffible there might have been lefs Oi-ound for this Apology, if I h;id bfcn cnrl'er nc- ni ainted with that aecnratt: and moft iifefuLPv^rfonnar.ce, .An Ei'hy on WattD, in throe Pai ;s, by l.o!l:tor Charles Lucas. CoQtcsts 102 The POLITICAL SURVEY Contents eftablKhed by public Authority l^. This would be a Charity of the iTiolb elevated and cxtenlive Nature, and produdive of nuir.berlefs good 'Ef- fedb, more efpecially if, by the fame Authority, a pubHc Regifter of Cafes and Cures was fixed at every Spring or Bath, the Warden fworn into his Ser- vice, and impowcred to adminifter an Oath in Cafes wlicre he Ihould think it neceffary. This if any thing polhbly could, muft demolifli the dan- gerous, as well as abfard, Dominion of Fafliion, and put the Reputation of thefe Places upon the proper Bafis of their refpeftive Merits. It would fecure to the Patients a Certainty of Accommodation upon reafonable Terms, and at the fame Time prove a laudable and indubitable Method of raifing Tovvns, and drav/ing Inhabitants into thofe Parts of the Country which are at prefcnt thinly peopled. In a Series of Years, the TranOation of the Rcgiflcrs into Latin, under the Sancflion and Approbation of the Royal College of Phyfi- clans, would diffufe the Knowlegc of thefe fingular Blefiings over all Europe, and be inftrumental in the noblclt of all Works, exalting the Glory of God, by doing Good to his Creatures. There are, in fome Countries, Abundance of Lakes and flanding Waters of confiderable Extent; but in South Britain there are very few, and none of thefe of any great Size. In Huntingdonlhire, from the low Situation of the Country, and near Neighbourhood of the Fens, we find feveral ; but the moft remark- able are five, viz. Brick- meer, Ug-mcer, Wittlefcy-meer, Ramfay-meer, and Benwick-meer ". Of thefe Wittlefcy-meer is by much the largellj and an- ciently there was a Navigation from Peterborough, by the River to this Meer, and from thence to Ramfay f*. But now, fince fome Part of the Country is drained, the Bounds of thefe little Lakes are very much reduced. It has been obferved, that the great Plenty of Fifli in thefe Pools, the luxuriant Pafiures in their Neighbourhood, and the Conveniency of cutting Turf, have made the Inhabitants lefs induftrious in this Particular, as affording them a Com- penfation even for the Unhealthinefs of their Situation e. In Chcfliire, we likewife find many of thefe Pools, but of no great Extent ; and amongft the moftdilHnguifhcd are, Bag-meer, Comber-meer, Oakhanger-meer, and Pick-meer ^ Thefe are finguhr in three Refpedls, that a River, or at lead a Rivulet, runs out of each of them ; that they are plentifully llored with excellent Fifli ; and that their Banks fupply the richefl Pafturesj fo that here likewife the Inhabitants have no ftrong Temptations to Draining S. In *= If there be any ufeful Regulations, real Improvements, or more convenient Accommod.itlons, at any foreign Springs or Baths than at our own, thefe too fhould be adopted. <: See the Account of this Shite, by the learned Sir Robert Cotton, in Speed's Britifh Empire, fol. 57. '' Hiftoriola Elienfis, apud Caradcni Rritanniam, p. 36S. ' See the Additions to Camden's Britannia, the lafl: Edition of the Englifh Tranflation. f Speed's Britifli Empire, (o\. y^. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 1-51. g Norden's Defcription of this County. King's Vale Royal of Chefliiie. Sir Peter Leycefler's AntiquitiesofBuclvlow Hundred, p. 314, 339. Lancai]}ire, of GREAT BRITAIN. 103 LancalLire there were two conliderable Colle(flions of Water of this Kind, each known by the Name of Martin-meer ''. The largeft, which was leven Miles long, two broad, and eighteen in Circumference, was completely drained at tlie folc Charge of Thomas Fleetwood, Efq; and tb.is miift have been a Work of very great Labour and Expence, fince it is aiTerted, tjiat he employed more than two thoufand Perfons at once. In all Probability it very well anfwered,. fince the Soil not only proved very rich and fat, but there was likewifo found a valuable Marie Pit, fufficient to fupply any JVIanure that might be want- ing i. It may not be amifs alio to remember, that there were likewife difco- vered, at the Bottom of the Meer, no lefs than eight Canoes, refembling thofe of the Indians through all North America, which are fuppofed to have been, the Veffels of the ancient Britons. But to avoid being deceived by this, it might be proper to enquire whether the Ufe of this Kind of Boat, upon fuch inland Pieces of Water, was not continued long beyond thefe Times k. The other Meer of the fame Name, but lying feveral Miles dirtant, is about two Miles in Length, and one in Breadth, equally ferviceable in furniiliing the Inhabitants with great Plenty both of Fifl:i and Fowl K The largeft,. and indeed the mofi: fiimous of a1I our Lakes, is Winder, or Windal-meer, in Weftmoreland, being eleven Miles long, and about two broad "'. Yet, ftridlly fpeaking, this ought not to be reputed a Meer, or at leaft it is not a ftanding -Water, fmce it is only the Expanfion of a River that iffues out of a little Lake, called Gres-meer, and having, from the Situation of the Country, diffufed itfelf to this Extent, afterwards runs on into the Sea with a full Stream, not many Miles farther ". Winder- meer abounds with Salmon, Pike, Bafs, Perch, Eels, &c. and it is only in fome Part of it, where the Char is taken, afferted by many to be found no-where elfe. This delicate Fifti, which is, generally fpeaking, about nine Inches in Length, and in fomc degree refem- bles a Trout, is thus diftinguiilied : The Male, or Mihing Char, has a red Belly, but the FleQi is generally white. The Female, called the Roeing Char, has a paler Belly, but theFlefli is of a brighter Red, and the Fifli is commonly larger. The third Sort, called Gelt Char, and frequently, though it may be corruptly, the Gilt Char, is without Roe o. Thefe Fifh are not to be caught by Bait ; but feeding in deep Water, are taken only in Nets. It is, however, *■ Camdeni Britanni.i, p. 6i r, 612. ' Leigh's Natural Hlftory of Lancafliire, Chefliiie, and Derbyfhlre, book i. p 17, 1 8, 19. '' The ancient Boats, made of Willow T^'igs, covered with Leatlier, called Coracles, in Ii.llv Coraghs, are riill, or were very lately, ufed on the Meers in Cheftiire. ' Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 75. ■n Camdeni Britannia, p. 624, 625. •> Lambarde's Topographical Dictionary, p. 460 (Windeandermer). Childrey's Britannia Bjco- nica, p. 167. Salmon's Survey of England, p. 635. Brome's Trnveis over England, Scotland,, and Wales, p. 230. But the bell .'\ccoimt is in the Gentleman's M.-.gazine, vol sviii. p. 562, 56;. o Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancaftiire, book i. p. 141. W.illoughbeii, Hill. Pifc. p. 197. Hill's Natural Hiftory, vol. iii. p. 221, 222. affirmed. 1 04 Tl.e POLITICAL SURVEY ainniied, that there is as fine Char in Coningfton Water, formerly called Thur- ilon-nieer, in LancalLire, at five Miles Diftance from Winder-meer, as iji that Mecr itfelf. There arc likewife feme Waters, as particularly Ulfes or IJlles Water, in which there is alfo Char, or a Fifli not eafily diilingiiiflied iVom it n, that bear the Name of Meers in Cumberland, and in other Northern Countries; as alfo many, though but of a finall Size, in Staffordfiiire '■ j but as there is nothing in them very particular it is not neceffary to mention them. In Wales, as one might reafonably expccft, there are many Lakes ; and one may, with Truth, alfirm, there is not afingle County without them; but, in tliis refpeft, Cardiganlliire and Carnarvonfhire exceed the reft. We fliall here take notice of a few only of the moft remarkable. Lhyn Savadhan, in Breck- nockfliire, has been always efteemed, and is indeed, truly fingular. It lies about two Miles Eaft of Brecknock, and is two Miles in Length, and nearly the fame in Breadth, though Leland fays but one. When the Spring advances, and the Ice breaks, it makes fo great a Noife, not unlike long and repeated Claps of Thunder, as to be heard at a confiderable Diftance s. There i". a Tradition con- cerning this, and feveral other Lakes in Wales, that Cities formerly ftood where we now fee Water. Our great Antiquary Camden intimates, that, if there be any Truth in this current Report, it mull: have been the City of Loventium, mentioned by Ptolemy, led to this from the Similitude of Names, becaufe the River Lheweny runs out of this Lake ^ If this Conjecture has any Founda- tion, that City muft have periQied by an Earthquake; and perhaps the Noife inade by the breaking of the Ice, may proceed from the hollow Caverns in tlie adjacent Country, which are very common in Places fubject to Earthquakes ". The Englilh call this Brecknock-meer ; and it is commended for having great Store of Tench, Perch, and Eels ^v. Boiherton-meer, not far from Stackpole, in Pembrokeshire, is famous for certain rumbling Noifes in dif- ferent Parts, from whence the People who live near, or even within fome Miles of it, in confequence of repeated Obfervations, are able to predidt the Weather, and more cfpecially Storms, as they alfo do from the Roar- ing of tlie Sea, a Day or two before-hand '•<. Lyhn Tegld, in Merionyd- fliire, called by the Englilli Pemble-meer, celebrated (if I millake not) by our great Antiquary Leland in Verfe, and by Camden in Profe ;•'. The latt.;r P Leigh's Natural Hiflcry of Lanc.nfliire, book 1. p. 141. ■5 Speed's Britidi Empire, fol. 87. Additions to Camdea's Lanc.iQilre. ■■ See a large Account of thefe Lakes or Pools in Doftor Plot's Nat. Hilt, of this County, chap. vii. * Camden s Britannia, p. 432. Speed's Britifn Empire, fol. 109. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 25. ' Otheri, with as little Ground, place Loventinum in Caermardenfliire. See his Britannia, p. 505. " Childrey's Britannia Haconica, p. 136. w Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 67. " From a MS. of the Reverend Mr. Nicholas Roberts, late Reifbor of Lhan Dhewi Velfrey. y Britannia, p. 531. where the Latia Verfes of the antiquarian Poet (fo Camden calls him) .ue infened. obferves. of GREAT BRITAIN. 105 obferves, that the River Dee paffes through this Lake without mixing with its Waters ; but the Proof produced is not fiitisfacftory. It is faid that the Gwiniad, a Fi(h peculiar to the Lake, is never found in the River; or Salmon, for which the River is famous, in the Lake; which may be, and per- haps is true ; but this ought rather to be afcribed to the Nature of the Fifli, than to any fuch Property in the River '. The Gwiniad, though this Name might be well enough tr inilnted the Whiting, is indeed of the Trout Kind, and thought to be precifely the fame with the Albelen, or Alberlin ; and by the Germans Weifs-fifch, common in many of the Lakes of Swiflerland ; as alfo with the Fifh that bears the Name of Ferra, in the Lake of Geneva a. The fame Kind of Fifh is alfo found in fome of our Lakes in the North of England, and is there known by the Name of the Schelley ; which, with great Probability, is accounted for, from the Gwiniad's delighting in deep Waters, and feedmg chieliy on the Water Gladiol, the Gladiolus lacullris of Clufius, a Plant peculiar to thefe Alpine Lakes, and found very plentifully in them all 1'. On the other hand, the Salmon delights in a fiiarp Water, and confequently pafles direftly through the Lake. But if upon the Authority of fuch great Men as Camden and Sir John Prife, we {hould admit the Fact, we may at the fame time deny that it is a Wonder either here or in the Lhyii Savadhan, through which the Lheveney is laid to run without mixing its Waters, in the fame manner as the Dee through this Lake. For when we are told that both thefe Rivers are very rapid, and that the Colour of their Streams diftinguiflies them in their Paffage through the Lakes, one mull: be mightily in love with the Marvellous, to be at all furprized at it. Befides, there is a known Difference in the Weight of Waters ; ana thofe of Rivers are univerfaliy allowed to be lighter than the Waters of Lakes. There is a third Singularity infifted upon by Camden in regard to this Lake, which is, that though Land Floods, heavy Rains, or melting of Snows, never raife it above its Banks, yet Storms of Wmd commonly, if not conftantly, make it overflow. If, as we have before obferved, the Soil adjacent to thefe Lakes be, generally fpeaking, hollow, and communicating with Caverns under the neighbouring Mountains, then very probably the Winds may pafs through thefe with Force enough to lift the Waters over the Banks of the Lake. It may not be amifs to remark, that Leland •", though he vifited this Country, and mentions this Lake, is filent as to thefe Particulars, unlefs he is the Author of thofe Latni Vcrfes before- mentioned. * Speed's Britifli Empire, foi. 117. Childrey's Britannia TJaconica, p. 145. Sir John Prife's Defcription of Wales, with Additions, by Humphry Lloyd, p. 9- > Annotations on Camden's Britannia, (fo fur as re2,ards W Jcs) by Mr. Lhvvyd. Willoughbcii Hift. Pii'c. p. 183. Doctor Ray's Travels, vol. i. pT 386. *> ee the Additions to Camden ; and Catalogues of Plants in Cumberland and Weftmore'. nd. ■ Itinerary, vol. v. p. 44. Vol. L P Lhyn io6 The POLITICAL SURVEY Lhyn Peris, or St. Peter's Lake, in Carnarvonlliirc, is alfo flamous for a remarkable Kind of Fifli called theTuigoch, tluit is, the Red Belly cf. This fome have fancied peculiar to the Lake. Others take it to be the fame with the HalTler in the Lakes of Switzerland, and alfo with the Gilt Char f . We are afTured by Dodlor Leigh that it is not the Char, but the Cafe, which is a Filh extremely like it, and is found in feveral Rivers in Lancalhire and Weil- moreland, but fpawns at a different Time of the Year from the Char ^\ The Turgoch comes into Seafon in the Beginning of November, and lafls about a Month S. This Fiih is likewife very common in fome of the Lakes of Italy^ and, as we Ihall fliew more at large hereafter, by fome of the greateft Natu- raliits in that Country fuppofed to be no-where elfe li. Giraldus Cambren- fis tells us of two Lakes in this County, in one of which there is a floating Illand, and in the other Fifli of various Kinds, fuch as Trout, Perch, and Eel, but all of them blind of the left Eye i. No fuch Lakes, or rather none with thefe Charadteriftics, on the ftriftefl Inquilition, are now to be met with ;. but in refpeft to the laft, which is certainly the moft wonderful of the two,, fomething very like it has been eflablifhed on good Authority in France, as to Pikes with the right Eye blind ; though in the River Lillone, into which the Water of the Lake overflows, the fame Kind of Fifli are perfedlly founds This Lake, which is very fmall, lies near Gabard in Angoumois J=. It feems to be agreed by the beft Writers, that the Waters of Lakes are lefs wholfome than thofe of Springs or of Rivers i : Yet this ought to be con- fined to fuch as do not receive or difcharge Rivers, of which we have but few^ But, notwithftanding this Inconvenience, Lakes are in many refpedls ufefiiL The Vapours that arife from them, being warm, ferve, more efpecially ia Northern Countries, to temper the Rigour of the Winter Seafon ". They abound exceedingly with Filli, and frequently with fuch as are not to be had elfewhere; perhaps any Kind of Fifh that are found in foreign Lakes,, might thrive in moft of ours, if by any means they could be tranfported hither. The Waters of Lakes are commonly of a great Depth ; and it feems as if, even in the moft oppolite Climates, the Temper of this Element remains pretty near the lame, and therefore we may naturally enough fuppofe, that all Fifli delighting in deep Waters will live and breed in them> even in remote ^ Leland's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 48. Camdeni Britannia, p. 524. Speed's Britifli Empire^ fol. 123. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 149. " Do£tor Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 368. See alfo Mr. Lhwyd's Annotations on Camden. f Natural Hiftory of Lancalhire, Chefhire, &c. book i. p. 142. 8 This we are told by Mr. Lhwyd, in his Annotations on Camden. h Aldrovandus de Pifcibus, Francof. 1610, fol. » Itinerarii Cambris, lib, ii. cap. 9. Mr. Lhwyd's Annotations on the Welch Counties lit Camden. Jt Hiftoire de I'Academie Royale des Sciences, pour I'Anne 1747, p. 37,. 1 Boerhaave's Chemiftry, tranflated by Dr. Shaw, vol, i, p. 439, 44O. «> Derhani's Phyfico-Theology, book iv. chap. 12. and of GREAT BRITAIN. no and very difcordant Climates. But if, at firfl Sight, this fl:ouId feem not onlv" a little lingular, but fomewhat chimerical, I delire that the Reader will bs pleafed to refleft, that what is done in one Country, is always, under like Circiimftances, prafticable in another. Now, in Switzerland, where they have Lakes of all Sizes, they have one or more Towns upon every Lake; and it is generally computed an eighth Part of the Inhabitants live upon the Pro- duce of their FilLing ". In the Lake of Zugh, which is not very confiderable, we are affured by one of our own Countrymen, whofe Authority in this Point is indifputable, that there were at leafl fifty feveral Kinds of eatable Fifli, all in great Plenty, and fome of the moll delicate Sorts, fuch as Trouts, Grayling, Char, Perch, Eel-Pouts, and many others " ; fo that he was extremely at a Lofs to conceive how all this Fifli got thither, thinking it hardly poffible that they fliould come againft the Stream five hundred Miles up the Rhone ; whereas, in truth, fuch as were not Natives of the Lake, were brought there J and we have therefore very little Reafon to doubt (fince, as we have already flievvn, the fame Fifli are to be found in the Lakes of different Coun- tries) that moil Kinds of Fifli which live in Lakes in one Country, will alfo live in another, becaufe they, as we remarked before, delight in deep Water, and in the Plants that commonly grow on the Sides of fuch Lakes p. It is the Vanity arifing from the Pofleflion of Rarities, that has been the Support of a contrary Opinion, which appears clearly from the Char, of which we have for this very Reafon faid fo much. At Verona it is extolled as the greatefl Delicacy under the Name of Carpione, in Latin, Carpio Benaci Lacus. Gei- ner calls it Salmo, vel Trutta Benaci Lacus ; for out of the Lago di Garda it was not to be found ''. We had the fame Notion v/ith refpeil to Winder- meer, with juft as much Foundation. Other Writers have defcribed this Fifli under the Name of Umbla lacuftris minor; and th'S peculiar Fifli, w^e are affured by the great Linn;Eus, is the common Food of the Laplanders, being found in the utmoft Plenty in thofe Lakes, that are fo cold, as not to nouriih any living Creature in them but this '■. Whoever refledis upon what has been faid with Attention, and at the fime time remembers, that mofl '^orts of Fifli have been imported % and that thofe brought from Chaia and the Ball Indies thrive and produce their Kind here as well as in their native W:ters, can never look upon the Improvement which I have offered as impradlicable ; though, at the fame time, I muft take the Liberty of obfcrving, that, if I had Room, I could add a great deal more upon this Subje6t, which would fully dcmonflratc that it is not ony pofTible and prafticable, but very eafy to be accompliflied. " Biihop Burnet's Travels through SwilTerland, Let. ii. ° Ray's Travels, or Obfervations Topographical, Sec. vol. i. p. 368. P See Ivlr. Lhwyd's Annotations on Camden's Defcriptlons of Merj'onnedfiiire r.nd Caernar- vonftiire. 1 Willoughbeii Hiit. Fife, p. 183, 184. Doflor Brown's Travels, p. 2C4. «• Fauna Suecica, n. 310. Hill's Natural Hiftory, vol. iii. p, 22 1, 227. s Houghton's Colledions on Hufbandry and Trade. P 2 But, io8 The POLITICAL SURVEY But I fhould be wanting to myfelf, and to the Satisfadlion of the inquifi- tive Reader, fliould I negledt to inform him, that this Method of improving is already pra^ltifed in China, where their Pedlars carry Jars of Spawn about from one Province to another through the whole Empire, for this very Pur- pofe of llocking every Lake with all the different Kinds of Lake Fifli t. A Circumflance that certainly demands the Notice of an Age and Nation that feem fo much difpofcd to do the Subjedls of this Empire Juftice in every other Refpedl. We already imitate the Chinefe in a Multitude of Things; why not in this ? We adopt their grotefque Paintings; we are proud of imitating their Porcelaine ; we are daily quitting our own Principles of Architedlure, in order to follow theirs; why not copy them in a Matter of fuch apparent Benefit? We might then have all the Lake Fi£h of this Ifland in every Lake, with as much Eafe as they tranfport them from this Province of their Empire to that. We might then procure the Streamling, which is the prime Fifli in thcSwediih. Lake Maeler " ; the Rheinlacker, or Rhine Salmon, which are two Ells long, and forty Pounds Weight, from the Lake of Conilance w ; and thofe enormous- Trouts, that are the Glory of the Geneva Lake^, with as little Trouble, with-- out queftion, as the Chinefe carry their Jars even from the remoteft Diftridls of their extenfive Empire. We might imitate them alfo^ when our Lakes were thus flocked (for that of courfe would bring us Water-Fowl of every Kind), in making ule of Birds of Prey to fifh for us, before they were permitted to feed themfelves > . And thus Employment and Subfiftence too being found for an Acceflion of People, every little Lake would quickly have its Village ; every larger one, in Procefs of Time, would have its Town, as well in the rough Parts of Britain, as in Switzerland. In order to effeft many Things of this kind, there is nothing more requifite, than to convert that relllefs Paffion of Curiofity, which is the Charadferiific of the prefent Age, into a laudable View to Utility^ which, by a few exalted and confpicuous Examples,, might certainly be done, Vv'e had heard that Gold and Silver Fifh ferved to amufe the Idle in China -. We longed for them here. Experience has fhewn that this Longing might be gratified; and the fame Experience has fhewn us, that this is a mere Piece of Anu:fement. Surely the Trouble would not have been greater, or the Acqui- iition lefs fatisfadtory, if it had produced us Fifli that were fit to eat. We: very readily admit that this, as it flands, was a very innocent Experiment ; and, on the other hand, we hope it will be allowed that our Propoial is more ufeful, and that there is not the fmallcft room to doubt that it may be at-- tended with as much Succefs t. ' D. F. Navarette, TratadosHiftoiicas de la Monarchia de China, lib. i. cap. 19. " Biftiop Rohinfon's Account of Sweden, p. 5. ■w Gelner, de Pifc. p. 1220. Addifon's Travels, p. 177. Dclices de la SuifTc, torn. i. p. 52, X Aldrovand. de Pile. 585. Delices de la Suifle, torn. iv. p. 306. y D. P". Navarettc, Tiatados Hiftoricas de la Monaichia de China, lib. i. cap. 18. ■'• Du Halde Defcripiion de la Empire de Chine, torn. i. p 43. » Might not fome of the fmall Jars, filled with Spawnj be as eafily obtained as the Gold Fifh ? We of GREAT BRITAIN. 109 We may with great Probability prefume, that Lakes, as well as Springs, and other Colled:ions of Waters, have their particular Properties ; and though they may be lefs palatable, or wholfome, have, notvvithllanding. Qualities that may in Ibme meafure compenfate thefe Defeifls. We are told, that in the very Empire of which we are Ipeaking, there is a certain Lake ^ furrounded with. Villages, full of Lihabitants, drawn thither by an abfolute Aflurance, that the Silk wafhed in it derives from thence a Luftre, not to be obtained any other way. We can have no Hopes, it is true, of repeating this Operation ; but pof- libly fome of our Lakes may be found as ufeful in bleaching, or in fome Cip- cumftance regarding our Woollen Manufadture, which might prove as benefi- cial to us as that is to them. Nature is faid to be a Mother to fome People, and a Step-dame to others ; but the real Truth is, that Providence is kind .dike to all, and it is Induftry only that makes a Difference between Nations; and thofe who contemplate her Gifts, and fludy how to make ufe of them, ver/ rarely fail of finding their Pains rewarded, even beyond their Expectations. We know that though hard Waters are unfit for many Ufes, yet there are alfb- many Ufes for which they are more fit than others <:. There are therefore good Grounds to believe that thefe, as well as other Waters, have Qualities of great Utility, if we could diftinguifli them. We haveReafon to think that they might be tried, with very confiderable Advantage, in the ftriking difi^er- ent Kinds of Dyes, which is a Point that deferves to be examined. We have a Hint given us by Leland, of which no Notice has been taken by other Writers, of a Salt Lake in Chefliire d. He fiys, that about a Mile from Cum- ber-meer Abbey, Part of a Hill, with Trees upon it, funk down fuddenly, and was covered with Salt Water ; of which the Abbot being informed, caufed it to be wrought ; but the Proprietors^ of the Wiches compound- ing with him, he left off working. He adds, that this Salt Pool Hill remained in his Time, but that no Care was taken of it. This merits the greater Attention, becaufe we have a particular Account of an Accident of the fame kind that fell out near Bickly, in the fame County, in 1657 ^. We may at leall from thefe Tnflances perceive, how fome fmall Lakes are formed ; and it is very polTible that the Traditions relating to larger Lakes,, formed in the fame manner, are not fo totally void of Foundation as is com- monly imagined. It is more than probable that the great Lord Bacon never heard any thing of the firft ; it is certain he could know nothing of the latter ; and yet in a V/ork of his, which is far from being the lead valu- able amongfl his many admirable Performances, he has touched upon this Head, and treated it in a Manner as if he had been led to it by thefe very Inllances f. It was his Talent to conceive whatever might be poffible, and b Du Ha'.de, Defcripticn de la Empire de Chine, torn. i. p. 127. ' In boiling Fifh, making Plaifter, and in preparing Cloth for receiving certain Dyes. '' Itinerary, vol. i. p. 82. e Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 131, 132. * See bis New Atlantis, § 8. See alfo the Title FiSK in his Sylva Sylvarum. 107 'l^J^e POLITICAL S U Pv V E Y to point out the Ufes of Things even before they were difcovered. It is oar more humble Endeavour to borrow from the Ditloverles of others, and to aim at the Improvement of thofe Thmgs which, in Whole or in Part, have Ifecn negledled, though fufticiently known. It may with great Juftice be afierted, that no Coimtry can be more plen- tifully or agreeably fopplied with Water, than North Britain, in wiiich there were anciently a xVIultitude of Springs, in high Repute for their fanative Vir- tues ; and fince the Qualities of Waters have been more rationally, as well as rigorouHy examined, there have been Abundance of medicinal and mineral Fountains difcovered, of which we fliall only mention a few. That which bears the Name of Aberbrothock, or, as commonly pronounced, Arbroth Spaw, in the County of Angus, rifes in a gravelly Soil, tiirough a Bed of Peb- bles, intermixed with Sand, at a fmall Dillance from that Town, and is appa- rently impregnated with Steel S. The W^ater has a brillc fpirituous Tafte at the Well, and yet bears Carriage to fome Diftance tolerably. It is found, by Experience, to give great Relief in gravelly and nephritic Cafes ; to purify the Blood in the Scurvy, and to remove Acidity in the Stomach; but its greateft Effefts are in nervous Cafes, and broken Conftitutions, from what in that Country is ftiled faft Living, in which it has done very great and unexpedled Cures. On the Side of a round Hill, at a very fmall Diftance Weft from that City, fprings the Aberdeen Spaw, the Virtues of which, in many chronic Dillempers, have been celebrated by Dodtor William Barclay, Profeffor of Phyfic in that Univerfity ''. At a fmall Diftance from Cortachie, the Earl of Airly's Seat, on the River of Southelk i, there rifes a Steel Water at the Foot of a Hill, amonglt rocky Stones, that fparkle like Marcalites when they are broken. Thefe Waters refemble in a great meafure, and have much the fame Virtues, with thofe of Aberbrothock Spring; and they are both drank with the greateft Succefs immediately after the ccafing of the Spring Rains, that is, in the Months of May and June, or before thofe of the Autumn, in the Months of Auguft and September. The Dunfe Spaw in the Merfe, of which Notice was fint taken in the Year 1747, rifes in a Valley, about a Mile on the South Side of that Town, at a very fmali Diltance from a Brook. It appears, upon a ftrift Examination, to be a very pure chalybeate Spring ; but, notwithftanding the Simplicity of its Con- tents, of very powerful Virtues when drank upon the Spot. The Scum that fettles on the Surface has been applied with Succefs to weak Eyes. The Water taken under proper Direftion, to the Amount of two Quarts in twenty-four 8 Do(Slor Alexander Thompfon's Account of the mineral Springs in the Neighbourhood of Montrofe, being the fixth Artii-le in the fecond Volume of the Edinburgh Medical Effays. ^ R. Sibbaldi, Prodrom. Naturalis Hirtorise Scotiae, P. i. lib, i, cap. 10. p. 25. Additions to Camden's Britannia. ' Medical Effays, Edinburgh, 1747, 12". vol. ii. p. 45. Hours, of GREAT BRITAIN. iii Hours, removes Flatulencies in the Stomach, flrengthens the Bowels, cures Indigeftion, frees Children from the Worms, is of lignal Service in the Scurvy,, and even in fcrophulous Cafes. In nervous Diforders it has been ufed with Benefit, as alfo in fpafmodic Cafes ; and there are Inlbmces of its curing PaU fies, even in old People. The Credit therefore of this Spring may be conli- dered as thoroughly eflabliihed ^<. Glendy Spaw rifes at a very fmall Ui- flance from the famous Kairn on the Top of the Grampion Flills ', in a Bog, with Mofs round about, and no Rock near it : It mounts up in Bubbles, as if boiling, through the Mofs, which is loaded with Ochre. 1 he Virtues of the Waters are very remarkable ; they may be drank with little or no previous Preparation, and are very ferviceable in relieving gravelly Complaints, in moft Scurvies, and cutaneous Difhempers j but are particularly beneficial in nervous Cafes, and in a general bad Habit of Body. In the Year 1748 Mr. John Williamfon difcovered a very valuable mineral Spring, from thence ftiled at firft Williamfon's Water, on the Hartfell Moun- tain, three Miles diftant from Moffat, which, upon a flrisfl Examination, is affirmed to contain in its Waters a native fixed Vitriol of Iron ; whence it appears to be aperient and ftrengthening, and muft be of great Ufe where the Solids are relaxed, and the Blood grown watery and weak m. It is very certainly known to cure hot tetterous Eruptions, obflinate Ulcers, Bloody Flux, bloody Urine, Spitting of Biood, rheumatic Pains, and WeaknefTes of every Kind, more elpecially thofe arihng from long Illneffes. But what mull appear very fingular, and which nothing could fupport but the Evidence of Fadls, thefe Waters have done mofh lurprizing Cures in Coiifumptions of the Lungs in a very fhort Timej and what renders the Hartfell Spaw ftill more valuable, its Waters bear Carriage as well, if not better, than any of like Vir- tues, and may be drank with very near the fame Advantage at any Dillanca as upon the Spot ". Kincardine Spaw rifes in the Neighbourhood of a pleafant Rivulet, tlarough a Bed of Flintflone and Sand. It is a pure Chalybeate, and has very near the fame Properties with the Spaw at Aberbrothock. There flows out of a Rock, not far froni the Town of Kinghorn », a clear pleafant Spring, remarkably cold, which was formerly in great Repute for curing Inflannna- tions of the Eyes, removing Eruptions on the Skin, alTuaging nephritic Com- ^ See a very methodical and ingenious Account of thefe Waters, entitled, " An Eflay on the " Contents and Virtues of the Dunfe Spaw, by Francis Home, M. D. Edinburgh, 1751, S"" 1 Medical EiTays and Obfervationc, vol. ii. p. 45. m Effays and Obfervations Phyfical aad Literary, Edinburgh, 1754, vol. i. p. 341 — 371. n It may be proper to give the Title of the whole twelfth Article from the Book lalt cited;, " Experiments and Obfervations en the Hart'el! Spaw, made at Moffat; and an Account of its. ♦' medicinal Virtues, fo far as they have hitherto been difcovered from Experience, by W. Horfs-- " burgh, M. D." • Medical Eflays and Obfei-vatioriS, vol, ii. p. 44. plamts» 112 The POLITICAL SURVEY plaints, refloiing loft Appetite, and many other Virtues, which were celebrated in a Trcatife written on purpofe to recommend it, by Doclor Anderfon, who, in the laft Century, was a very eminent Phyfician p. Lentretham Spaw, near the Mouth of Glcnifla, not far from Montrofe ^ is amongft the Number of the chalybeate Springs mentioned by Do£tor Alexander Thomfon, who far- ther obferves, that in this Fart of Scotland they are fo common, that there is fcarce a Parifh without t)iem. But, like all the other BlefTings afforded us by Providence, this is liable to fome Abufes, by the common People drinking at all Seafons indifcriminately, for every, fometimes without any, Com- plaint, and in fuch prodigious Quantities, that it is no Wonder if it does more Harm than Good. The Waters of Moffat in the Steuarty of Annandale (for there are two Springs, feparated by a fmall Rock) at about a Mile Diftance North from that 1 own, and thirty-fix South-Eaft from Edinburgh, were as early known, in as much Efteem, and have maintained their Credit as well as any in Great Bri- tain '". They fmell very ftrong, not unlike the Barrel of a foul Gun, are of a bluilh milky Caft, and are reputed fulphureous «. They are taken in large Quantities, are efleemed very ilrengthening and balfamic, eafe all Pains in the Stomach, and Gripings in the Bowels, cleanfe all cutaneous Eruptions, and are fovereign in fcrophulous Cafes, if perfifted in for a proper Time. They are likewile Angularly lerviceable in all Kinds of Cholics ' ; but they are not to be meddled with by Perfons who have Coughs, Diftempers in the Lungs, or hedlical Heats ; all which is no EHfparagement to the Waters, fince the very Qualities that render them falutary in fome Diftempers, make them very unfit to be drank by fuch as are afHidled with Difeafes of another Nature ". Montrose Spaw "' rifes to the Air from a black mofs-coloured Earth, having firft penetrated through feveral Beds of fmooth Clay and Sand. It is of a whitifh Colour, foft Taile, and difcovers but very little of the mineral. It is very diuretic, and if drank in a fufiicient Quantity, purgative. It greatly relieves Pains in the Stomach, WeaknelTes of all Kinds, the Strangury, Gravel, P The Title of this learned Phyfician's Book was " The Cold Spring of Kinghorn." q Medical Eflays and Obfervations, vol. ii. p. 45. r R. Sibbaldi, ProJrom. Natural. Hiltoriae Scotis, P. i. lib, i. cap. ic. p. 25. Additions to Camden's Britannia. s A Topographico-fp.igyrical Defcription of MofFat Wells, by Mr. Matthew Mackaile, Apo- thecary. ' Short's Hiftory of Mineral Waters, P. ii. p. 72 — 75. Experiments on the medicinal Waters of Moffat, by Andrew Plummer, M. D. Fellow of the Royal College of Phyf.cians, and ProfeiTor of Medicine in the Univedky of Edinburgh, being the eighth Article of the lirft Volume of Medi- cal Effays, &c. " Ah Account of the Virtues of the Mineral Waters near Moffat, by Mr. George Milligen, Surgeon at Moftat, Art. vii. of A'ledical Effays, vol. i. p. 54 — 69. * Doctor Alexander Thomfon's two Differtations on the Virtues of Montrofe Well, Medical Effays, vol. iii. p. 53 — 90. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 113 and Stone; Scurvies, even in their worfl; Condition ; Spitting of Blood, and all the Diforders incident from undue Secretions. Peterhead Spring ^, in the Shire.of Aberdeen, celebrated as a vitriolic Water, in thelall: Century, by Doc- tor Moor, an eminent Phyfician, and ProfefTor of Medicine in that ancient Uni- verfity, is pretty much of the fame Nature with the Spring of Aberbrothock, except that in too great Relaxation of the Solids, this is very much to be pre- ferred. St. Katherine's Well in Lothian-', at a fmall Diflance from Edin- burgh, has been long remarkable for an Oil, of a black Colour, and pleafant Smell, floating on the Top of the Waters, which had been ufed medicinally, with great Succefs, for old Aches, and wandering Pains. At Slains in the Shire of Buchan ^, there is a petrifying Spring, the Water of which,, when expofed to the Air, very fpeedily turns to a kind of friable Stone. As to the Pradice of Cold Bathing, it never fell into Difufe in North Bri- tain; but for the Sake both of Plealure and Health, in the Northern Parts more efpecially, was frequent among Men of all Ranks, and rarely omitted in refped: to Children of both Sexes ^ ; which might perhaps be the Reafon that particular Cold Baths were not much known, or confidered. It is, however, allowed by the beft Judges, that mineral Springs may, thus applied, have falutary EfFedls, and perform Cures that could not be expected from common Water h. Sir Robert Sibbald takes Notice of Arthrey, within two Miles of Stirling, which being in the Neighbourhood of a Copper Mine, he judged from thence muft derive more than ordinary Virtues <^. The cold Spring of Kinghorn, very probably in this refpedl, falls little fhort of Holy Well, in Wales d. The ingenious Dodtor Home, having experienced the Benefits of ex- ternal Application in various Difeai'es, exprefles fome Regret that, at the Time he wrote, they had no Conveniencies for bathing in the Water of Dunfe e ; and Doctor Thomfon, for the like Reafon propofed an Improvement of the fame Kind at Montrofe^. No hot Baths have yet been difcovered in this Part of the Ifland. But it was always the Pradice to ufe the extremely fetid Waters of the upper Well at Moffat in this Way S. In earlier Times they heated thefe to as high a Degree as they could be well borne ; but at prefent their Baths are no more than tepid '' ; and at Hartfell the greateil; Cures are found * Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hiftorlx Scotia:, P. i. lib. i. c:ip. lo. p. 25. Medical Ena)'s, vol. ii. p. 52, 56. y Heft. Boeth. Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 6. Varenii Geograph. §. iv. cap. 1 7. Prop. rii. * Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hifloriae Scotias, P. i. lib. 1. cap. 10. p. 25. a Sir John Floyer's Hillory of Cold Bathing, p. 171, 172. b Wainwright's mechanical Account of the Non-natprals, p. 118, 119, 120. c Prodrom. Naturalis Hiftorix Scotlae, P. i. lib. i. cap. jo. p. 25. * Sir John Floyer's Hiftory of Cold Bathing, p. 165. « EflTayon the Contents and Virtues of Dunie Spaw, p. 204. ' Medical Effays and Obfervations, vol. iii. p. 89. B Mr. George Milligen's Account of Moffic Wells, in the Medical Edi^ys, vol. i.p. 5S, h This .Alteratloa is of much greater Importance than ic feems at firll Sight. Vol. I. Q^ to 114 The POLITICAL SURVBY to be efFedled, more efpecially in ftubborn Diforders, by applying them e.vter-- nally as well as internally i. Sir Robert Sibbald mentions the dilTolving the;;" black Oil of St. Katherine's Well inMoffat Waters made hot, and rubbing them- into the Parts affefted, as a Praftice which, in his Opinion, might be ufcd with; much Benefit, and which, for that very Reafon,. deferves to be remembered k. It would be a Work, of Wifdom, Policy, and Charity, to put all the(e Springs.- into the bed Condition poffible, for drinking and bathing, at the public Ex- pence, with a com.petent Salary for a Phyfician ofeflabliihed Charadter and Experience to attend each of them, diredl their Ufe, and regiiler their Cures. This would be more efpecially requifite in fuch as are fituated in obfcure Places, . and ditiicult of Accefs, fince it might be an effcdual Means of raifmg . Towns, and creating Society, where moft wanted. As there is already a Bo.ird* of Police in North Britain, I fpeak with the greater Confidence ; for certainly they could not do a better Office to their Country, than to promote by this, . and every other Method, Eftablifliments where as yet there are none, Jt is certain that the Number of Lakes in North Britain milch exceeds. • thofe in the South, even if we include the Lakes in Wales; and yet the Lochs- in that Part of the Ifland appear to be more numerous than they really are;, lince not a few that pafs currently under this Appellation, .are at this Time properly fpeaking. Arms of the Sea. It would be very eafy to give many Inftances ; but as we have little Room to fpare, one that clearly points the Thing out to be as we have fuggefted, fhall fuffice. The County of Galloway" ftretches itfelf in a very fingul.ir Form into the IriHi Sea, not very unlike aa Anchor. On the South Side lies the .Bay of Glenluce j yet the Inlet on the North is called Loch Ryan, or Lochrain, though it is as much an Arm of the Sea as the other'. But, notwithflanding the. apparent Impropriety of this. Diftinftion, perhaps 'it may be accounted for. On the North-Eaft Side of the Ifland there is fuch another Arm of the Sea, which is called Loch Beau- - lieu ; and it is very certain that aU this was once dry Land, the Roots and Re- mains of Oak Trees being ftill vifible at low Water 'Jij and polhbly, though Hifbory is filent as to the Fa6l, this might be alfo the Cafe of Loch Ryan, Loch Strevan, Loch Fyn, and other Arms of the Sea that bear this Denomination. Others, again, are mere Expanfions of Rivers, which from that Circumftance . only are ftiled Lochs j and- of this there is a very remarkable Infiance in the Shire of Invernefs, where, at a fmall Diftance from Dalwhine, there rifes ai Spring, which running a little Way North-Eaft, fpreads its Waters abroad, and is then diftinguifiied by the Name of Loch Doun ; out of which proceed- ing again, with no very confiderable Current j and prefently diffufing itfelf a » ElTays and Obfervations Phyfical and Literary, vol. i. p. 371. '' Prodrom. Naturalis Hifloiia; Scotis, P.-j. lib. cap. 10. p. 25. ' Buchanan. Hift. Scot. lib. i. » Philofophical Tranfaflion?, N''. ccliv. p. 231, fccond of GREAT BRITAIN. ^15 •Kcond time, aflumes the Name of Loch Wrodin ; palling thence in the Fornfi of a Rivulet for the Space of half a Mile, it fprcads a third Time, and then ta]ccs the Name of Loch Gaich ; on its Exit from the latter, it is ftiled the River Trommy ; and running feven Miks more, under that Denomination, falls at length into the Spey, at a Place called from thence Inver-trommy ". As to the large Lochs, moll:, if not all of them, are fed by Brooks or Rivulets, and .-commonly ifTue in a confiderable River of the fame Name, as Loch Tay, Loch Ern, Loch Levin, Loch Dee, 6cc. ". Some great Rivers illue alfo from fmall Lakes, as the River Spey from Loch Spey '' ; and Loch Lomond, which is held the mofl copious Bcdy of frelh Water in North Britain, being twenty- four Miles Long, eight broad, and having in it thirty Iflands, of which three are well inhabited, fends forth two Rivers, Lomond and Levcn ''. Thus it appears that the far greater Part of the Lakes or Lochs of North Britain are not, as is • commonly apprehended, {landing Waters, but either admit the Tide from the Sea, or have Streams of frefli Water running through them; and yet fome there- are, though not many of this laft Sort, of which if I m.iilake not, is Loch Maben, in Annandale, which is live Miles long and four broad, plentifully .flocked with many different Kinds of FiOi^, We may from hence colled:, pretty clearly, the Caufe why there are fo many Lakes in this Part of the Ifland. As it abounds with Mountains and Hills, in like manner with Wales, and the ■Northern Counties of Lancafliire, Cumberland, and Weflmoreland, fo from •the Sides, aiid tov/ards the Bottom of thefe, break out Springs, the Waters Jrom which palling along till they meet with deep Vales, mull fill up them before they can open a Pallage farther ; and, according to the different Sizes of fuch Vallie§, the Lochs are of larger or leffcr Extent, out of which the Water ilTuing, in a Country of more regular Defcent, continues its Couric -either into fome larger River, or till it falls into the Sea s. Some of thefe Lochs or Lakes in North, as well as thofe in South Britain, ..are diftinguillied by their particular Qualities ; as, for Inftance, Loch Neffc, ,which is twenty-four Miles in Length, near four in Breadth in fome Places, and in others two, of lb great a Depth, that as yet it has not been nfcertained; and ,its Waters. lb warm, that they never freeze ; nay the River Neffe, which runs about fix Miles from the Loch into the Sea,. is obferved in the coldcll Winters .to fmoak *. Some have afcribed this to the Vicinity of the Sea on both Sides the Illand ; which is very improbable, fince the Lakes betv/een it and the Welltni " See Dorret's larg.e M?.p of Scothnd, and the Survey of the military Roads. " H. Bocthii, Scotorum Regni Defcriptio. Buchanaa Hul- Scot. lib. i. Slbbaldi ProdroM. Jsaturalis Hiftorije Scotise, P. i. lib. i. cap. 9. f Camdeni Britannia, p. 714. H Buchanan. Hift. Scot. lib. 1 . Slbbaldi Prodroiti. Naturalis Hiftoriae Scoiia;, P. i. lib. i, cap. 9. ' Hefloris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 3. * Varenii Geograph. §.iv. cap. 15. ' Boeth. Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 4, 5. Buchanan. Hill. Scot. lib.L 0^2 Ocean ii6 Tlie POLITICAL SURVEY Ocean are known to freeze ; and at no great Diftance there is a little Lake,, called Loch Wyn, i. e. Green, covered with Ice Winter and Summer ". There are other Lakes, as well as Loch Nefle, that very feldom, if ever, freeze j fuch as LochTaie, and Loch Ern ^^j and fome, that like the green Loch, continue, either in Whole or in Part, frozen through the Year 'f. Some,, as particularly Loch Lomondj feem affedied by fubterraneous Winds, being tolled and put into MotiOji when the exterior Air is very calm >', It will appear, from what has been (aid, that the Number of Lochs in this Part of Britain cannot be fliled injurious to the Health of the Inhabitants from their Effluvia, as very few are filled with ftanding Waters, the Vapours of which are known to be very unwholfome. On the contrary, thefe Lochs, or at leafl: moft of them, from their Nature and Difpofition, are exceedingly beneficial to fuch as dwell- near them, by furnifhing them with Fifh and Fowl, and, when the Country (hall be better cultivated, and more fully inhabited, are capable of being rendered fo in a much higher Degree. They abound with Filli, fome of them in a Manner almoft incredible, and with Fifli of very different Kinds, the Sizes of the fime Species differing alfo even in neighbouring Lochs ; to fay nothing of thofe that are fuppoled to be peculiar to particular Lakes,, which probably may depend upon Accident, and to pafs over likewile the Pearl and Purple MulTels, which are Curiofities both here and in Wales, they are Sources likewife of many other Advantages?; they fupply the Place of Rivers, and enable People to correfpond with each other with much greater Convenlency than they otherv/ife could do, with far lefs Fatigue, and at all' Scafons. I'his might be very much improved, fo as to open a Communica- tion between the Seas, on the Eaft and Weft Sides of the Ifland,, and with; very little Trouble. The Shire of Invernefs, even taking it in the floping. Direftion of the Loughs, is not above fixty Miles broad. Of thefe the River Neffe and the Lough take up one half; to the Weft ward lie Loch Oichj Loch Lochy, Luch Eil, which opens intoLinhe Loch, that is in facfl an Arm of the Sea J fo that, in all this Space, tiiere is not above eight Miles of Land- Carnage ; and, as to the Depth of Water, it is fufficient to obferve, that,, in: Crymwell's Time, there was an armed Veffel upon Loch Neffe pafiing conti- nually between Inverlochy and Invernefs, and confequently there might be fo again ». The Land in the Neighbourhood of thefe Lochs is obferved to be more fertile, the Grafs on their Banks to be richer and more nutritive; and the warm Vapours of the Lakes alfo improve the Climate, fo that Rofemary has " See the Reverend Mr. JameS Frazer's Lerter in the Philofophical TranfafHons, N'. ccliv. ^' Sibbaldi Prodroni, Naturalis Hiftmias ScotuT, P.i. iib. i. cap. q. p. 22. » Sir George Mackenzie, afterwards Earl of Cromarty's, Letter in the Philofophical Tranfac- tions, No. cxiv. p 307. }' Boethii, Scotorum Regni Defcrlptio, fol. 3. liiichan. IM. Scot. lib. i.. ^ Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hifiorlse Scotijc, P. i. lib. i, cap. 9. ^ Mr. James Frazer's Letter before cited, who was well acquainted with Captain Orton, who commanded that VdTcl, and I am alfo informed there has been fuch a one lince. efcaped- of GREAT BRITMN. 1x7 efcaped in the Gardens near the River NefTe, in very fevere Winters, that have killed and deftroyed it in thole many M.ks South ". Hence, in Caithnefs and Sutherland, where there are many more, and fome of theie larger Lakes than in all Wales, the Climate is foft, and the Country is fruitful to a Degree fcarce to be expected, confidering how far it lies to the North; and this Number of Lakes furniflies the Inhabitants with fuch Quantities of Fifli and Fowl, that they adtually live in a State of Eafe; and if they had Trade, and were accu- flomed to Improvements, might very foon add Elegance to Plenty c. Our Snbjedl now leads us into Ireland, where, if we had as diflindl a Hiftory of the Waters of every Kind throughout the Ifland^ as we have of fome particular Counties ''j we fliould certainly find a larger Field, the Extent of Territory confidered, than even in Britain. As it is, we have fufficient Materials to anfwer our Intention, and to demonftrate that Providence, amidll- that Redundance of Waters of which fome have complained e, without any good Reafon perhaps, if we refledl that moil of the Inconveniencies vi'hich liow from them, are not fo properly attributed to Nature as to Accident ; not fo juflly to the Country, as to the Revolutions to which it has been fubjedl; there are, notwithftanding, all the Advantages derived inother Countries from this neceflary Fluid, found, and found in great Perfedlion, as will be evident even from thofe few Inftances that, through the Length of this Chapter, we are obliged to content ourfelves with producing, and which may futfice, till the natural Hiftory of Ireland, from the Encouragement given by the learned Societies in that Country, fliall appear in' a complete Body, and reprefent that noble Kingdom as it dcfcrves. A Work long delired,. otten attempt-ed, and, whenever accompliflied, will fhew that, Brir J.n exxepted, there exifts not a better fituated, or a fairer Ifland upon the Globe f'. To begin then with a Specimen of the fingular, medicinal, and mineral- Springs, that have been difcovered in Ireland. At Ballymurtogh, on the South Bank of the River Arklow, at a fmall Diflance from Newbridge, in the County of Wicklow, there iffues a Water from a Copper Mine (now no longer wrought), fo highly faturated with Vitriol, that it produces what was formerly called, though with great Impropriety, a Tranfmutation of Iron into Cop; ers^ in relation to which we fliall lay fomething more, in fpeaking of another Water that poffeffes this Property in a ftill higher Degree. At Bally- nahinch, on the Skirts of a Mountain, called Slieve Croob, in theDiocefe o£ *■ Sir George Mackenzie afTerts this from liis own Knowlege. ' Atlas maritimus et cotnmercialis, p. 1 3. * Such as Cork, Down, Wareiford, &c. ' Girald. in Topograph. Hiberaicr, cap. v, vi, vii. Id. de Mirabilibus 5c jMirr.cuIis Hibernise,. cap. ix. ' Bcdre Hift. ecclefiafV. Gentis A.iglornm. Ub. i. c.ip. i. '^ Philofophlcal TranfadlionE,, vol. xlviii N°. Ix.'uclv. p. 500, Dromore,. II 8 The P O L I T I C A L S U R V ^E Y Dromore, and Barony of Kinelearty, .therc.is a mineral Spring li, which in Brightnefs of Colour is inferior to none, but very difagreeable in Tafte .and Smell, relembling. in both the Vv'aters of Moffat, and efleemednot inferior to them in Virtue, more efpecially in.fgorbutic and fcrophulous Cafes; with this further Advantage, that it bears Carriage, even to a confiderable Diilance, without lofmg its falutary Qualities. Ballyfpellan, about eight Miles from Kilkenny, has been .many Years in Repute, and fometimes ililed, though perhaps improperly, .the Irifh Sp.aw. Itjs an excellent. Chalybeate, as we have been informed, has done great Service in Diibrders of the Stomach, in hypochondriac Maladies, Cholics, and the moft Ifubborn Eruptions of the Skin, have been removed by drinking, for a fliort Time, thefe Waters. Clon- .mell Spring iffues out of the Side of a rifing Ground^ that is, notwithftand- ing, overlooked by a pretty fteep Hill, on that Side of the .River Suir which is in the County of Waterford i. The, Cures performed by drinking of this Water in the Scurvy, and other chronic Diftempers, drew thither, fome Years ago, a great Refort of People ; but Fafl^on, which rules in Ireland a^ xvell as Britain, has brought other Waters. of late into higher. Credit, Cronebaun ^ is in the Neighbourhood of Ballymurtogh, but on the other Side of the River Arklow, and near forty Miles from Dublin, and, like that, .flows from a Copper Mine, which is ftill wrought. It is fo much ifronger .than the Spring before-mentioned, that they make ufe of the Water for the fame Purpofe that renders the famous Springs of Ziment, in Hungary, a con- tinual Fund of Riches'; that is, they conduft its Waters. to certain Fits, in .which Bars of foft Iron are placed, which, covered with this Water, gradually jdiflblve; a Copper Ruft is thence formed, which retains the Shape of the Iron Bars. In order to expedite the Work, thisRuftis from time to time rubbed away, and links to the Bottom of the Pit. A Tun of Iron produces very near twice the, Quantity of this Ruft, from which ,they fmelt .Above a Tun and a, half of fine Copper, much more valuable than what is derived frorn the Ore of the Mine, though that is alfo wrought to great Profit. Thefe Waters are likewife uled medicinally both externally and internally; but per- diaps the former is the fafer Praftice. It is held to be a great Specific in the 'Cure of Worms ;". At Crofs, near Crofs Town, in the County of Waterford ", feveral Springs :were difcovered in a Bog, which are faid to be of a vitriolic Nature, h^t ver,y h The ancient and prefent State of the County cf Downe, ehap. ix. P-.IJ.J. ' Philofophicai Tranfaftions, vol. xlvii. N°. Ixxxiv. p. 500 — 50'^. " Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, by Charles Smith, chnp. ix. ' Kircheri Mundus Subterraneus, torn. ii. p. 185. Doftor Edward Brown's Travels, p. 68,63. Jacob! Toliii EpKl. Itincr. p. 191. ^ Philofophicai Tranfaftions, vol. xlviii. N". xii, p. 94 — 9^ ; N°.:5Xviii..p. i8i — 190. ,° The jyicicat aad prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, chap. ix. mildj of GREAT BRITAIN. 119 jtfird, and efFedling great Cures in the Jaundice, and other Diftempers arifing from Obftrudlions, when drank in fmall Quantities; and thefe Waters are like- wife faid to bear Carriage without Injury to their Virtues. The Spring at Dro- naore riles in the Town of that Name, by the River Side, covered by an Archj it appears, upon Examination, to be a Chalybeate, has been drank with Suc- cefs for gravelly Complaints, and fometimes, more efpecially in dry Seafons, purges °. Grangee, or Granfliav/ Mineral Spring, in the County of Down, lies in a little Valley, furrounded on all Sides by Hills of eafy x'^.fcent j it has an Afped: to the Eaflj and on the South there is a large Bog. It has on proper Trials been found, that the Waters are not inferior in Strength to the beflof the Britifh Chalybeates, fit eafy. on the Stomach, and have done great Service in the Gravel p, KanturkSpring, about half a Mile North Weftof aTownof the fame Name, in the County of Cork, rifes on the Banks of the River Alia, by which in great Floods it is overflowed. It is efteem.ed a chalybeate fulphureous Water, ■ as well from Experiment as from its Smell and Tafte. Many have been relieved by thefe Waters in fcorbutic Diforders, Lofs of Appetite, and in the Gravel ; they have been alfo of Service in the King's Evil ; and there have been twolnflancesof their curingDropfies'^. Killaghee Water, near three Miles North from Grangee, in the County of Down, is a Water of much the fame Nature; and Experience has fhewn, that put into new Bottles carefully corked and relined upon the Spot, it bears Carriage tolerably r. Kilmeadan, in the County of VVaterford, breaks out in the high Way between two riling Grounds, with fuch Force, thatin crofling the Road it becomes a little Brook. It is a light Chalybeate, very diuretic, and was drank about forty Years ago with much Succefs ; but, in order to experience its Virtues, it nv^d be taken upon the Spots, Macroomp Spaw, at the Diftance of half a Mile from that Town, in thc-County of Cork, rifes on the very Brink of a Bog, is a • mild Chalybeate, has done great Service in hypochondriacal Cafes, in cuta- neous liruptions, in the Sciirvy, and everi in fcrophulous Cafes, when all other Means have failed t, Newry Spaw, in the County of Down, is a weaker Chalybeate, which at the Spring may be drank with great Advantage by Per- fons of a tender and delicate Conftitutionn. Tierkelly, two Miles North- Eaft from Rathfryland, in the fame County, is a more potent Chalybeate w, and has been ufed both externally (that is by wafliing the Parts aftedled) and Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, chap. ix. p. 167. P Ibid. p. 168. 1 Ancienr and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, p. 269. 270.' ' Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, chap. ix. p. 169, " Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, chap. ix. p. 24.I, « Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, p. 275. " Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, chap. ix. p. 167. "This renders the Advice of a fkilfui Phyfician more necelTary in the Choice and Management of Mineral V/aters, than in any other Branch of Medicine. internally*" 120 The POLITICAL SURVEY internally with great Succefs in fcorbutic Cafes x. Thefe Inftances are chiefly given from three Counties, viz. Cork and Wuterford in Munfter, and Dowa in Ulfter Province; in which Counties many more of thefe falutary Waters have been difcovered, and therefore we have good Reafon to believe there are Numbers of fuch valuable Spring;-, and thofe too of various Kinds in all Parts of the Ifland ; which Abundance cannot in the lead depreciue the Value of the Blelling, fince to have the Means of removing Pain and Difeafc every- \vhcre at Hand, is perhaps the greateil that any Nation can polfefs. When there are fo many mineral Springs, and of very difterent Natures, tliere cannot be any Want of Cold Baths; and thefe either are, or no doubt may be, improved in fuch a Manner, as, in Cotijundion with the internal Ufe of the Waters, to render the Cures performed by them more fpeedy, and more .certain. As to warm Waters, the moft celebrated is that of Mallo\\4, in the County of Cork, anciently in high Efteem as a holy Well, and dedicated to St. Patrick, but difufed till about thirty Years ago, that its Virtues by Accident were again made known, and its Credit confequently recovered. This famous Spring is fituated on the South Side of the Town, one of the pleafantell: in the Province of Munfter y, and on the North Side of the Black Water River. A rifing Hill of Lirneflone Rocks defends it on the South, from the Bottom of which it arifes perpendicularly, bubbling up a living Spring immediately to the Day. Hence it is not improbable but it may have in the Rock about it, fome hollow Cavern for its natural Receptacle, where it receives its Impregnation, and from which the Spring is continually fupplied '. A few Yards more to the Weft is another Spring, which is not either warm, or affords any other Appearance than that of good Fountain Water. But there is a third Spring, a little to the Eaft, which is warm, and of the fame Nature as the firll:, but lying open and uncovered, is never ufed medicinally. From the Spaw ilfues a plerttiful •Current of Water ; the Quantity that it affords is not eafily calculated, but it rnay be computed to difcharge twenty Gallons in a Minute, or twelve hundred Gallons in an Hour. On the Rocks in the Neighbourhood, as well as on the Roof of an adjacent Grotto, feveral flony Subllatices hang like Icicles. The Soil on the Top of thefe ivocks is a thin, warm, dry Turf, abounding with aro- jmatic Herbs, which ptrhaps may render the Milk of the Cattle feeding on them wholfome in an extraordinary Degree, as the Air is likewife accounted, the Town being fheltered by Mountains at a Diftance, a River running brifkly through the Vale, and lying open towards the North. Thefe Waters are drank with grcatSuccefs v/here Secretions are redundant; are very ferviceable in ema»- jciated Conflitutions, after long Fevers; cure Ulcers in the Bladder, and Dif- orders in the urinary Paffages ; fome Cholics; Dropfies in particular Stages, ^ Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, chap. ix. p. 170. ^ Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Code, book ii. chap. vli. p. 335. ^ The Header will difcern, that there is a great Refemblacce ia the Situation of warm Springs, and in the Produce of the Lands about them. Cancers, of GREAT BRITAIN. i2i Cancers, Strums, fcorbutic and cutaneous Eruptions, and mofl Diforders v/hich imply Obftrud:ions of the VefTels a. It is not a little ftrange that, as far as we know, this Water has not been ufed externally for any Purpofe ; and yet one would be apt to imagine that the healing Virtues might be as great from Bath- ing as from Drinking. This liland, however, is not deftitute even in that refpefl ; for on the Weft Side of Lough Neagh there is a conliderable Portion of the Lake in the County of Tir-Oen, which is called Fifhing Bay, about half a Mile broad, v/ith a fine fandy Bottom, and with fuch an ealy Declivity, that Perfons may walk with Safety and Facility Three hundred Yards, till the Water reaches up to their Chin ; and repeated Trials fhew, that in fcrophulous Cafes this Bathing has performed complete Cures, when all other Methods, ordinary and extraordi- nary, had been ufed without Succefs 1\ This healing Quality of the Lake has been known now about fourfcore Years, has maintained its Credit upon the ftridteft Enquiry ; and a very learned and ingenious Perfon in that Illand has given fo fair, and fo probable an Account of the Caufes whence thefe fana- tive \'irtues are derived, as may latisfy the mod: rigid Enquirer c • fo that the Evidence of Reafon being now added to the Teftimony of Experience, we may reafonably hope that, the Credit of thefe Waters being thoroughly efta- bliflied, their falutary Etfeds will become more and more extenlive. To this we muft join, as nearly related in Virtues, the Waters of Lough Lheighs, in the County of Cavan, and Province of Ulfter d, formerly in very high Credit for curing the Scurvy, and all Kinds of Eruptions on the Skin, by bathing only. It is very remarkable that the Waters of both thefe Loughs, upon the flrideft Examination, difcover nothing in them peculiar or different from the Waters of other Loughs ; which, as we have before hinted, ought not to dilparao-e them, fince Experience is the only proper Teft of their V'irtues ; and if they aftually heal, though we cannot at prefent tell how they heal, this ought to excite our further Enquiry; and, if there be no Defed: in the Proof, fliould by no means induce us to dilpute the Faft. It may not be amifs here to remark, that the fkilful in Irifh Etymologies tell us, that Lough Neagh (of which we fhall have Occafion to fpeak again), lignifies tlie Ulcer Lough, and Lou^h Lheighs, the medicinal or healing Lough f. Undoubtedly Tradition, more efpe- -cially popular Tradition, is very far from being convincing Evidence ; but at tJie " Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, book iv. chap. ii. p. 277. '' Mr. Nevile's Obfervations upon Lough Neagh, added to Boat's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, p. 120. = Leflures in natural Philofophy, defigned to be a Foundation for reafoning pertinently upon the PetrifaftionSj^Gems, Chryftals, and fanative Quality of Lough Neagh in Ireland ; and intended to be an Introduction to the natural Hiftory of ftveral Counties contiguous to that Lake, particu* larly the County of Ardmagh, by Richard Barton, B. D. Dublin, 1751, 4°. Lefture v. d Ancient and prefent State of the County of Down, chap. viii. p. 159. « This we are very modeflly told by Mr. Charles Smith, in his Hiftory of the County of Down before cited, p. 159. Vol. I. R lame 122 The POLITICAL SURVEY fame time it is good Ground for Enquiry, and more efpecially in the prefent Cafe ; for the old Iriili had a great Turn to Phyfic, were diligent, if not fkil- ful, Obfervers of the Properties of Waters, and tranfmitted their Notions about them to Pofterity, by the Impofition of fuitable Names in their own Lan- guage t'. It is not improbable that the Monks, availing themtelves of this Kind of Knowlege, converted it to their own Profit, by the Invention of idle Legends ; and when this Superftition was fecn through, it is alfo not at all impoflible, that even learned and fenfible Perfons were too hally in rejefting in the grofs, and, without fifting, the fanative Virtues afcribed to certain Waters 3, which will appear ftill the more likely, if wc confider, that in this Country, as well as in England and Scodand, it has been found that Springs, which upon Experiment have proved to be impregnated with Minerals, were anciently in high Efteem under the Title of Holy Wells, and their Virtues afcribed to the Interceffion of particular Saints. The Number of Lakes, or of Loughs, as they are called in this Country, is indeed very great ; and there are enough in every Province, though more in Uifter and Con naught than in the other two. The Divifion of them into fait Water and frefli Water Loughs, is liable to the fame Objedion, in refpedl to the former, that has been mentioned, as to thofe in North Britain ; fince they are plainly Arms of the Sea, fuch as Lough Swiliie, Lough Foyie, and Lough Conne, in the Province of Uifter ; which very probably might be at firft only Breaches into the Land, by which the Vallies were left full of fait Water, when they were very properly ftiled Loughs ; and this Appellation they have fince retained, notwithftanding the Sea Banks being broken, or worn away, by which they have now an open Communication with the Ocean 'i. The frefli Water Lakes, are fome of them alfo, no more than Expanfions of Rivers, of which one remarkable Inftance fliall fuffice. The Shannon, rifing in the County of Leitrim, after running a few Miles, diffufes itfelf fo as to alTume the Name of Lough AUyn 5 iffuing from thence, with a much fuller Stream than it enter- ed, after a Progrefs of feveral Miles, it again expands its Waters fo as to form Lough Eike, which, though of confiderable Length, is not very broad. Paff- ing from thence, it forms another Lake, called Lough Ree, fifteen Miles long, and five broad. On its Exit from this Lough, it appears a large and beautiful River J till breaking forth again, between the Counties of Tipperary and Clare, its forms Lough Derg, or Derke, eighteen Miles long, and four broad. Leav- ing this, it rolls with. a full and mighty Stream for many Miles, and falls at length into the Sea, about fifty Miles below Limerick ', at a Place called Knock f Helmontii confeffio Authoris, Amftelodam. Elziv. 1648, p. 13. s See the fecond Seftion of the feventh Chapter of Doftor Gerard Boat's Ireland's Natural Hillory. * Camdeni Hibernia, p. 762. Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ix. §. 3. Baxter! Glofla- rlum Aniiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 23. I Speed's Britilh Empire, fol. 143. Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. viii. §. i. Bax- ter! GlofTarium Afltiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 125. Patrick, of GREAT BRITAIN. 123 Patrick, with fo vaft a Body of Water, that this alfo has been fliled a Lough, tliough it is now fimply called the Shannon, or the Water of Shannon ; which Camden interprets Shan awn, the old River ; but Baxter inclines rather to Seen aim, in the old Britifli Synn avon, i. e. the flow Paver. The whole Courfe of the River is upwards of Two hundred Miles, and it is faid to be feven Miles broad at the Mouth k. This agrees exaftly witli what we hinted as to the Origin of Lakes, in fpeaking of thofe in North Britain ; nor would it reft, at leaft in tliis Country, on the mere Probability of the Conjecfture, if we could place any Dependence on the traditionary Memoirs of the ancient Irifli, which exprefly fay, that, when this Ifland was firft inhabited, there were but three Lakes and ten Rivers, the Names of which are preferved in certain old Verfes in their own Language '. However that Matter might be, there are at prefent fo many, that the bare Hiftory of them may make a confiderable Volume, the Contents of which would be equally curious and ufeful ; and as the Spirit of Enquiry is at prefent fo ftrong, and there are fo many induftrious and judicious Writers in that Country, we have Reafon to hope that it will be fpeedily undertaken, and none at all to doubt, that it will be perfeilly well executed. Some of thefe are diftlnguilhed by their extraordinary Size. Lough Neagh is twenty-four Miles long, fifteen broad, in lome Places ; in others from ten to twelve, and fixty in Compafs, covering, according to the beft Computation, One hundred thoufand Acres "i. This Lough lies in the Heart of Ulfter, furrounded by the Counties of Tyrone, Armagh, Down, Antrim, and Cole- raine. It is fed by fix very confiderable Rivers, four of leffer Note, and feveral Brooks ; fo that it is an immenfe Body of Water, and is yearly enlarg- ing itfelf, as in the Winter Seafon it overflows the Bogs round it, acquires Part ot them, and extends alfo its marihy Dominion on every Side n. Loch Cor- bes, in the Province of Connaught, and County of Galway, is held by fome to be, in this refped:, the next. It is twenty Miles long from North and South, and at the upper End of it ten Miles broad, but grows narrower, fo that its mid- dle Breadth is about four Miles o. Lough Erne, in the Province of Ulfl;er, and County of Fermanagh p, is alfo very large ; but, properly fpeaking, here are two Loughs, the one lying North and South, joining the other, which lies Eaft and Wefl:, by a fmall Canal ; and from this lafl: there runs a River into the Sea. The firft of thefe Loughs is full twenty Miles long ; the latter about '' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 755. Boat's Ireland's Naturnl Hiftory, chap. viii. §. i; chap. ix. §. 4. 5. Baxter! Gloirarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 215. ' Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, p. 157. Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ix. §. 4. " Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, p. 155. A Dialogue concerning fome Things of Importance to Ii eland, p, 1 1 . " Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. i.x. §. 4. ^ Camdeni Hibernia, p. 763. R 2 fifteen ; 124 The POLITICAL SURVEY fifteen ; their Breadth, at a Medium, about ten. Lough Fingarrow, in the fame Province of Connaught, dividing the Counties of Mayo and Rofcommon, is a mofl: noble Piece of Water, being tweh'e Miles long, and almoft every- where eight Miles broad q. The laft we fhall mention of thefe large Lakes^ is Lough Mefk, in the fame Province, lying between Lough Fingarrow and Lough Corbes, and at a very fmall Diftance from each. Lough Mefk is ten Miles long, and fix broad >" ; but there is a large Tongue of Land which runs into it from the South, and divides it for feveral Miles into two Parts, which Tract of Land, in Procefs of Time perhaps, may become an Ifland. There are feveral of thefe Loughs that deferve Notice, from the Number of Iflands that are in them. Lough Erne is held, in this refpeft, to exceed the reft, as having fo many fmall and great that they are fcarce to be reckoned. Some of thefe are well inhabited j and mofl of them afford excellent Pafture for Cattle, with which they are well flocked. Lough Dirg and Lough Ree, which have been already mentioned, have alfo many of thefe, and fome of them finely cultivated. Lough Conne, which we have before obferved^ is, properly fpeaking, an Arm of the Sea, was reputed to have no lefs than Two hundred and fixty fuch Iflands s; at prefent there are fifty-four known by particular Names, befide others that have none ; fome of the former are very confiderable, one of a hundred Acres of Land ; and in the whole upwards of a thoufand Acres f. The moft celebrated, however, of this Clafs is Lough Lene, near the Town of Killarny, in the County of Kerry, and Province of Munfter, of which we have two particular Defcriptions that reprefent it as a Paradife in the midfl of Defarts ". This Lake is of a regu- lar oval Form, eight Miles long, and four broad, furrounded by fome of the his;hefl: Mountains in Ireland. But moft of thefe are covered with Trees of different Kinds, and afford the mofl delightful and romantic Profpe. in die Barony of Carbery, and County of Cork f, there are two finall Lakes, that in the hardeft Winters never freeze. They are very deep, and produce likewife Trout of an unufual Size. We may add to thefe the two Cumme Loughs in the mountainous Part of the County of Waterford g, in which we are afliired there are very fine Char. The fame thing is affirmed of Lough AUua in the County of Cork li, and of many other Loughs in Ireland, which,, from the Defcription of the Filli, the Nature of the Places, and the Water Gladiol being found plentifully in thefe Loughs, and more efpccially in Lougli Neagh, renders it highly probable ; and this very much ftrengthens what has y Arbutus Ger. Park. Arbutus Comarus Theophrafli J. B. Arb. folio ferrato C. B. The Straw- berry Tree. ^ Nenuius de mirabilibus Hiberniae. O Flaherty, Ogygia, P. iii, cap. l. " See Mr. Molineux, Mr. Nevile, and Mr. Smith's Papers on this Subjcft, at the End of Boat's- Hiftory, Dublin, 1727, 4°. p. 116 — 123. ° Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, p. 160 — 166. ^ Barton's Ledtures in Natural Philofophy, more efpecially the fifth. •■ Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Corke, book 11. chap. 4. p. 289.. ' Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, chap. vHi. p. i 50. * Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, book li. chap. 4. p. 264. g Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, chap. vi. p. 209. *> Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, book ii. chap. 2. p. ir^j. hccn. 126 The POLITICAL SURVEY been before advanced upon this Subicift. It is true, we are told from Expe- rience, that thefe Fifti will not live in a running Water, and that they die before they can be tranfportcd to any Diftance i. Yet thefe are no unfur- mountable Obftacles, lince it was not propofed to propagate this delicate Fifli in any other than deep Lakes, and carrying their Spawn thither might anfwcr this End, if properly and carefully managed: But it mufl: be expedfed that thofe who have them from the Gift of Nature, will reprefent every thing of this Kind, if not as abfurd, at leafl as fcarce pradicable. We have before mentioned the Utility of Lakes in furnifliing FiHi and Fowl, which may be reckoned NeceiTaries in fome Cafes, and in all Conve- niencies. The Senfe of this has ever been ftrong in Ireland ; for near thefe Loughs the ancient Inhabitants fixed their Habitations ; to thefe they reforted in Time of Peace, for Pleafure ; in Times of Danger, for Protedlion k. Their Conquerors feem to have adopted their Notions, by building Towns on tlie Sides, or in the Neighbourhood of great Loughs, and their Country Seats at a competent Diftance from fmall ones '. They have had a View alfo to their Ufe in Manufa<5lures. It has been propofed, and with great Propriety, to take Advantage of thofe Inlets of the Sea, improperly called Loughs, to facilitate the making of Salt. What Wonder indeed, when, in the open Cavities of the Pillars that form the Giants Caufeway, they every Summer's Day find fmall Quantities of Salt, made by the mere Operation of the Sun's Heat upon the Sea Water ^i ? Suppofing this pracfticable, as no doubt it is, they have juftly thought that it would promote the curing thofe immenfe Quantities of Fifli which are continually taken in their Lakes, particularly Eel and Salmon ; of both which they already- export a great Quantity. They have likewife expe- rienced the Excellence of Lake Water in Bleaching ; and this has turned highly to the Advantage of Armagh, and other Places n. The like Practice occafioned the Fields near Lithgow, in North Britain, to become famous on that Account. But, exclufive of thefe fmaller Advantages, the capital Point of rendering Lakes ufeful to inland Navigation, has been always, at leaft in Theory, confefled and confidered here. The great Earl of Strafford had in View the Improvement of the Shannon, by removing the Difficulties ariiing from a Rock fix Miles above Limerick ; and though his Defign, upon Examination, appeared very prailicable, and the Expence within the Compafs of Eight thou- fand Pounds, yet as the Public only was to be the Gainer, his Plan could not be carried into Execution ". The Canal of Newry, made within thefe few ' Mr. Charles Smith, in the Place lalT referred to. '' Some of thefe old Caftles are yet ftanding, and the Remains vifible of many more. ' Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ix. ^ 5. ■" Doflor Samuel Foley's Account of the Giants Caufeway, in the Appendix to Boat's Hiftory. " See the Dialogue on fome Matters of Importance to Ireland. " Boat's Ireland's Natur.il Hiilory, chap. viii. 5. 2. Years, of GR E A T BR ITA IN. 127 Years, at the Expence of upwards of Fifty thoufand Pounds r, by which Veffels of the Burthen of fixty Tons have been brought into Lough Neagh, is a mol]: noble Work '^ ; and if, what was long ago recommendedj the faci- litating the Communication of the fame Lough with the Ocean, by rendering the lower Ban navigable, could be accompliflied at a much larger Expence, the Benefits that would refult to Ulfter in particular, and to Ireland in general, would be very cheaply purchafed r. The Truth of the Matter is, and this Truth will occur to any judicious Perfon who confiders the Map of the Ifland, that by the Help of a little Induftry, an inland Navigation, by enlarging the Channels of fome Rivers, cutting a few Canals, and by the Junction in confe- quence of fuch Helps of thefe deep Loughs, might be brought about as com- modious in its own Nature, and as advantagious to the Inhabitants, as any thing of the like Kind in Flanders, or indeed (China not excepted) in any Part of the World s. This, we are told, the Parliament have at prefent in their View ; and this, whenever it fliall be thoroughly accomplilhed, will juflify the Length of this Chapter, and Ihcw that the Pains we have taken upon this Subjedl have not been ill-bellowed, or improperly applied t. A Circumftance that will amply compenfate fuch, and even greater Labours. For altliough thefe are Points that may be already fiifficiently known to many there, and to fome here, yet it is of very great Confequence they fliould be concealed from none, fince tlie Profpe- rity of the three Kingdoms moft certainly depends upon every Man's forget- ting that he is a Native of one, and embracing with equal Ardour the Interell of any of the reft, promoting, as far as in him lies, the Improvement of each of them, becaufe, in the Iffue, whatever Advantages arife from thence, mull arife to the common Intercft, which belongs alike to All. There is, however, an Objedlion that may be made, and made with fuch plaufible Colours, that I think it my Duty to ftate it fairly, and anfwer it clearly. It may be laid that there is Ibmething of Contradiction in treating of Lakes as Bleffings, which are generally confidered in quite another Light, and which, in fome Refpedts, we have confidered likewife in that Light, and attributed them, fo confidered, to Inundations from the Sea, the Want of Induftry in the Peo- ple, their rude uncivilized Way of Living, and other Accidents. This we can- not but in fome Degree admit. But then, the different Circumftances col- lected, the Matter Hands thus : Thefe Accidents have happened long ago by the Permiffion of Providence; and however detrimental they might be to fuch as in thofe Days inhabited the Countries where they happened, if indeed they were then inhabited at all ; yet, notwithilanding this, all Circumftances confidered, r Barton's Leftures in Natural Philofophy, p. 146. 1 Ancient and prefent State oF the County of Downe, chap. iv. ' See the State of the Cafe of Lough Neagh and the Bann, 1733, by Do(ftor Hutchinfon, then Lord Bifhop of Downc and Connor. ' This Point will be more largely confidered in a fucceeding Chapter. ' Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downc, chap. iv. p. 1 19. they 128 The POLITICAL SURVEY they may be, and certainly are, Conveniencies as they ftand at prefent u. In a Country but thinly inhabited, and where of confequence it is dithcult for the Indiiftry of Men to procure a comfortable Subfiflcncc, Lakes, as we have obfcrved, by furnifliing Filh and Fowl, and very ottcn Irom the Marlhes round them. Fuel alfo, may contribute to it w. As the Number of People increafes, and with it the Strength and Power of the Society, they may, as we have fhewn, by a proper Application of Force, diredted by Wifdom, draw from them farther and much greater Conveniencies ^ : And wlien, by doing this, their Condition is become ftill better, and their Numbers greater, where-ever the lelier Lakes are found, upon fuch a Change of Circumftances, to be no longer Conveniencies, they may be drained, and the dry Land thus recovered, will not be found the worfe for having been in that State ; for, on the con- trary. Experience fliews us, that where Lakes have been drained, there have been found in the Soil itfelf Materials neceflary for improving them y. Thus it appears that the whole Reprelentation of this Point, when taken toge- ther, and the Connexion of its Parts confidered, is very confident ; and that, as the Circumftances of Mankind alter, Induftry and Application enables them to extradl new Benefits, from the Difpofidons made by the Supreme Being in the Countries where he has placed them. As to Fens, Moraffes, and Bogs, which, though attended with fome trifling Ad\'antages, are real Evils, they will be conlidered in their proper Place, and in their proper Light too, as the Punilliment, if not the Effects, of human Idlenefs, and which as it is in the Power, fo is it alfo the Duty of Men to remove z. This we have all the Reafon in the World to expedl will in this Country be efFefted, gradually indeed, but in no very long Traft of Time j fince the Methods of doing it are perfeftly well underftood, the Profits arifing from it known from many Inftances 3, moft of theObftacIes removed that for- merly difluaded fuch Attempts, other collateral Improvements encouraging by rendering them more requifite, and, as there never was an Age in which Men were more awake to their own Interefts, we cannot imagine they will o'.'er- look what will turn fo immediately, fo certainly, and fo exceedingly, to their Advantage. But, exclufive of thofe Benefits that will arife to Individuals, and which are the ftrongeft Motives to fuch Improvement, there are many national Conveniencies that will neceftarily attend them, fuch as increafing the Number of Villages and Towns, introducing new Methods of Cultivation, and, in confe- ,quence of this, mending not only the Water (which however would be an " See Barton's Dialogue concerning fome Things of Importance to Ireland. * Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ix. '' Of which fome Inftances have been, and many more might be given. '' See Archbifhop King's excellent Difcourfe of the Bogs and Loughs in Ireland, prefented to the Dublin Society. * Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. xiv. ' EITays by the D,ublia Society, p. -j^ 85. ineftimable of G R E A T BRITAIN. 1 2q ineftimable BlelTing) but alio the Weather and the Climate ''. Things of fuch Confequence, and fo deiirable, that, without queftion, public Afliftance will be given in Cafes where private Emolument may not invite, or where the neceflary Expences may be too large for private Fortunes. But we nuift not conclude from thefe Remarks, which are applicable to the Northern Part of our own Ifland, as well as Ireland, that thefe Countries are fuller of Lakes than any other ; for the very contrary is certainly true. A German Writer - has reckoned upwards of two thoufand in Prulfia only; and in the Ifland of Hifpaniola there are even above that Number d ; befides that, in both thefe, and in many other Places, the greater Part of them are abfolutely ftanding Waters, of which we h:ive very few, and therefore are not expofed, even as Things are at prefent, to the malignant Vapours which rife from fuch ftag- nant Pools; with the Idea of which the Imagination is naturally flruck, upon the very mention of Lakes ; and from ah Attention to which we thought it neceliary to obferve, that moft of ours have either Rivers running from or running through them, and very frequently both. Whatever Errors, Omiffions, or Defefts, maybe difcovered in this fuccintfl EfTay, as I am but too fenfible there are many, I flatter myfelf they will not difcredit the Dclign of making it. I am thoroughly convinced, that, however copious it may at tirfl Sight feem, many more Heads might have been added. Inftances on all that have been treated might have been multiplied, and per- haps better chofen, at leaft better explained, and a Variety of incidental Ad- vantages introduced, and ftated in a Wronger Light. But my Purpofe was to make good my Propofition, by producing Fa6tsj to this I principally attend- ed, and have fupported thofe Fadls by the beft Authorities I could meet with. What Helps I have borrov/ed from Natural Hiliory are to be tonfidercd in this View, as Auxiliaries only, in which I have no Deiire of obtruding Syftems or Opinions, but barely to reprefent Things as they appear to me. If my Readers are inclined to enquire farther, the Authors I have cited will furniOi them with the Means; and from thofe Lights perhaps they will be able to Judge better. If it is allowed mc, that I have effeiftually proved thefe three Kingdoms are moft admirably and abundantly fupplied with Water; (for it is one thing to af- firm, and another to prove) if Ihavefliewn, from the Qualities of very remark- able Springs, that it is highly probable there is a great Diverfity of Soils, and confequentlyRoom for a Multitude of Improvements ; if what I have fuggefted has any Weight with regard to the beneficial Confcquences that may follow from a circumfpedl Obfervation of the Countries about mineral Springs, and their Produce, which may lead us to form at Icaft more probable Conjec^tures, as to what is contained in the Bowels of the Earth, than can be done at prefent; ^ Plin. Hift. Nat. lib. xvii. cap. 4. Boat's Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. xxl. J. 6. "^ Chriflopher Hartknoch's Hiftory of Pruflla, ancient and motlern. p. 11, <• Charlevoix Hlftolre de St, Domingue, liv. j. Vol. I. S if 1 30 The POLITICAL SURVEY if I have in any degree vindicated thofe natural Refervoirs, that have been' generally fpeaking, looked upon in a bad light, and have made it evident' that, under Ibme Circunillances, and in a certain State of Things, even ftaa;- nant Pools have their Conveniencies, which, whenever they ceale to have, or greater Benefits can be from thence propofed, they may be removed ; if, I lay, thefe, or any of thefe, be in fome meal'ure effected, I am entirely fatif- lied, from a thorough Pcrfuafion that I have been ufefuUy employed. But, after all, this important Point will be very imperfecflly treated, if we do not put the Reader in mind, that the vaft Benefits refidting from the copious Diftribution of this neceflary Fluid, are not to be collected from Inflances ei- ther of particular or local Advantages, but mull; be farther purfued, and con- templated in its freed State; for what Comparifon is there between all the Con- veniencies already mentioned, though, 'fimply confidcrcd, immenfcly great, and thofe that are derived from Water diffufed, and taking its Pail'age through the Earth in all the various Ways that different Situations lead it f ? Water, in the common Acceptation of an Element, has numerous excellent Qualities that are inexpreflibly beneficial ; and thefe perhaps are augmented even in regard to common, as well as medicinal Ufes, by their being blended and tindlured with the Contents of mineral Springs ; for though the fubtile Spirits of thefe Waters fhould efcape, as very probably they do, foon after their coming abroad, and being expofed to the open Air, yet fome of their conftituent Parts they Ifill retain, and carry along with them ; fo that when we remember the Num- ber of thefe falutary Waters ; when we refleft that mofl of them have been difcovered by Accident, and that confequently, though fo many be known, there may be many more ftill latent, even to the moft ddigent Enquirers j when we meditate on their Nature and Properties, and the Caufes from wlMch thefe arife, we may eafily conceive that they preferve many of their dithnguilliing Qualities in their Paflage to other Repofitories of Water; and that of courfe, therefore, every little Rill and Brook will have its Share of thefe, in Proportion to the Quantity of fuch Water that it receives. In fome Cafes alfo this may prove much more confiderable than one could eafily ima- gine, fince we are told by an inquifitive and diligent Author, from his own immediate Obfervation *, that St. Ann's Well, at Buxton, throws out no lefs than three hundred and ninety Gallons in an Hour; or three millions, four hundred fixteen thoufand, and lour hundred Gallons, that is, upwards of thir- teen thoufand, five hundred and fifty-feven Tons, in a Year. He farther af- fines us, that in this Quantity of Water there are fix hundred feventy-one Gallons of Salt; and as much cakarious Powder. In like manner he com- ' Theotogie de I'Eau, ou EfTai fur la Bonte, I.1 Sagede et la Puidmce de Dieu, manifeflces dans h. Creation de I'Eau. Tradult de TAllcmand de Mr. Jean Albert Fabriclus, Dofteur en Theologie, & Prot'efTeur an College de Hambourg. Avec de nouvelles Remaiques tommuuiq^uees au Traduc- tenr. A la Haye, 1741, 8\ » Sboit's HUlpry of Mineral Waters, P. i. p. 48, 49. putes of G RE AT BR I T AI N. 131 putes the Quantity of Salts ejeded from the Baths at the fame Place, to be very nearly feventy thoufand Pounds Weight in the Compafs of a complete Year. Hence we may eafily apprehend what Difference there may be in the Weight of Waters. Hence we may account for their Hardnefs or Sofvnefs, and other different Qualities j fuch as their Difpofition to ferment or not fer- ment, and their Fitne.^s or Unfitnefs for all Kinds of domellic Ufes, fuch as Drinking, Wafhing, and Brewing. As all Kinds of Vegetables are nourillied by Water, fo from its inherent Properties it will contribute more or lefs to Fertility, and all the Purpofes of Culture. Hence alio, according to their feveral Natures, Waters become peculiarly beneficial in various Kinds of Manufiftures, fuch as Cleanling of Wool, or Bleaching of Linen ; in refpeft to which laft, we have a mofl: ptrfpi- cuous Treatife, which does Honour to its Author, and our Country?. Tiius the abflerfive Quality of a certain Stream is fo highly ferviceable in the Manu- factory of Blankets at Witney, in Oxfordfliire '' ; and thus a great Variety of Waters have been found, by Experiment, to have very lingular, and, to thofe acquainted with them, advantageous Effedts in Dyeing ; and this may likevvife be much heightened by Art, as is evident in regard to the flriking fome particular Colours, with remarkable Beauty, at Leyden, in Holland '. To all this we may add the innumerable Benefits that refult from fmall Rivulets, merely through the progrellive Force of their Waters in refpedt to Engines of all Kinds, fuch as Mills, Forges, with an Infinity of other Inventions which le'ilen the Labour of Men, lave the maintaining Beafls, and yet do as much as could be done by both 3 and therefore we cannot fail of difcerning what prodigious Conveniencies are derived from an Abundance of thefe lelf-moving Streams ^ ; and that we may apply fuch Arguments more immediately to thelc Kingdoms, it may not be amifs to obferve, that in fome Editions of Camden ^ there is a Table, from which it appears, that in the feveral Counties of South Britain only, tliere are upwards of five hundred and fifty Rivulets and Rivers diflinguilhcd by particular Names; and though not exadly in the fame manner, yet in regard to fuch a copious Supply of V/ater as may, in all the Methods hitherto mentioned, contribute to Utilitv, North Britain and Ireland fall little, if at all, Ihort. To conclude, it is with refpeft to Countries as with the Fortunes of pri- vate Men, we can form no jull Notion of them cither from common Report, or from a halfy and lliperficial View ; if we will really know any thing fo as ^ The Tide of this ingenious Performance runs thns, " Experiments on Bleaching, by Francis •' Home, M. D. Fellow of the Royal College of Phyficians ill Euinburgh, Edinburgh 1756, 8\" h Doft^or Plott's Natural Hiftory of this County, chap.ii.p 26. ' Boerhaave's Chemiftry, tranflated by Doftor Shaw, vol. i. p. 464. *" Harrilon's Defcription of Britain, book i. chap. 1 1— ^r 6. ' More e^ecially that in Folio of 1 605, which was the luft puoliftied by hunfdf. S 2 to 132 The POLITICAL SURVEY to reafon with tolerable Certainty concerning either, it is necefiary to enter into a rtridl and particular Examination ■". A ftrong InijirelVion tiiat a Coun- try is immcnlely fruitful, rich, and opulent, and has many and vaft Refourcesj taken up without due Confidcration, has ju(l the fame fad Effecls in reference to the People who inhabit fuch a Country, as it would have in regard to an Individual fuppofed to poflefs a prodigious Eflate. It leads headlong to every exorbitant Expence ; and, in confequence of this, in Procefs of Time to a general Diffipation, on a Suppofition that Care is unneceffiry, and that there is lomething aie.in and contemptible in a minute Infpedtion into every Branch and Article of our Pofleliions. This Error, when it once prevails, gains a Degree of Credit very furprifing; for whoever endeavours, from a true Prin- ciple of public Spirit (and no Spirit but this can induce any Man) to endeavour to correal it; fubjeds himfelf immediately to be tliought officioufly induftrious in enquiring into what is perfedtly well known ; though in Reality the Dif- like arifes from the Fear of his difcovering Motives for a Change of Mea- fures, and the Introdudlion of Caution, Prudence, and Oeconomy. To fpeak candidly, the Humours of Men are not more irrational or whimfical than the Difpoiitions of Nations". There is a Forwardnefs to look Abroad, and a Backwardnefs to Attention at Home, difcernable alike in both Cafes. We all efteem the vifiting foreign Countries as a very neceflary Part of Education ; but we hardly ever think, at lealt in this Light, of travelling through our own o. So eafy a Matter it is to deceive ourfelves in great, as well as in little Things, to afcribe to fomc noble Principle a very idle Pradtice, and to attribute to the Defire of Inifrudlion, what in Reality is following the Bent of Inclination p. • Knowing ourfelves, is the leading Principle, and the great Foundation, of Morality; knowing our Country, is the folid Bafis of true Policy. Providence has fo ordered, that fuch Enquiries as contribute to practical and ufeful Know- lege are the eafieft made; and hath placed the Means of making them at hand. V/e muft be acquainted with Things, and have a jult Conception of their Natures, before we can pretend to compare them ; and when the former is once obtained, the latter may be performed with Eafe and Certainty. Atten- tion to thefe Maxims renderedfo ifrid: an Enquiry into the Plenty and Diftribu- tion of Water through the Britifli Dominions our firfb Care. The having it, and having it in Abundance, is the Gift of Providence, which merits national Gratitude and Thankfulnefs ; for the Want of it, not either human Power or " See the preliminary Difcourfe to Marfhal Vauban's Propofal for .1 Royal Tythe, n The learned Barclay has fliewn this in feveial of his Works, but more efpeclally in his Icon Animarum. ° Confult thofe excellent Inftruftions to Travellers, v/hich have been lately given to- the Public by the ingenious and candid Dodtor Tucker. ^ The great Lord Treafurer Burleigh was fo well aware of this, that during his Adminiflration, no Men of Family were fufFered to travel without a fpecial Licence, which he never granted till he had examined, and knew, that they were thoroughly acquainted with England. Skill of GREAT BRITAIN. 133 Skill can fupply. The Regulation of it indeed is fomewhat more under the Dominion of Mankind; as the Works that fiill remain in Egypt, of thofe who with infinite Labour rendered that Country fruitful, which had been otherwife fcarcely habitable, evidently (hew '1. The modern Huibandry in Lombardy is another Proof of the fame Kind''; and the almolt innumerable Ufes to which Water is applied in fome of the Seven Provinces, is a flill ftronger Inftance of the Benefits that may be drawn from it =. But where this Labour is faved by fuch a natural Diflribution of Water as places it every- where within our Reach, and yet reftrained within proper Bounds, fo that we ftand alike excufed from the laborious Taflc of bringing it from great Dif- tances, and the perilous as well as arduous TaiTc of guarding againfl: its Ra- vages, from its natural Situation, greatly enhances this Blefhng, fets the Hap- pinefs of thefe Countries in a much ftronger Point of Light, and juflifies our Endeavours to fliew from Fadis that this is really the Cafe, and that we do not, in this Refpecl at leaft, amufe ourfelves with imaginary Advantages. To be acquainted with what we really have, is the firft and moft necelfary Step to making a right Ufe of it; and to have an. adequate and juft Notion of the Value of the natural Prerogatives of our Country, is the next ; for not to know the Value, is in fome Degree to lofe the PolTeiilion; and not to improve it, is the certain and deftrudtive Confequence of fuch a forgetful Indolence. The PofTefhon of this, of which we have been fpeaking,. is equally requifite to the fhialleft Family, and to the greatelt State : The former cannot live, the latter cannot fubfilf without it. It is the great Principle of FertiUty ; one of the moft potent Inftruments of Art ; the Bafis of Society and Commerce ; the Subjedl that operates the moft effeftually in giving Ornament, Beauty, and Delight : In a Word, this Fluid is the pregnant Source of Convenience or Inconvenience, according as it is in the Power or not in the Power ot human; Induftry to command ; and therefore, in a Political Survey, it will ever lay Claim to the earlied and to the clofeft Attention. ^ Deuteron. xi. lo, ii. Diodor. Skul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. i. p. 21. Sandys's Trr.ve's, book ii,. p. I 20, 121. Voyages de Thevenot, torn. ii. p. 390, 391. Voyage du Siciir Paul Lucas, torn. i.. p. 328,329.^ ' Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 176, 191, 205, 213, 333. Addifon's Travels, p. 130, 131^ It is by the judicious Management of Water the Meadows about Parma and Lodi are rendered fo lux-- uriant, that the Cattle fed in them produce rather Cream than Milk, of which that Cheefe is made,, which, if not fuperior, is at leaft equal to any in Europe. ^ The Inhabitants of thefe Countries not only employ Water to drive Mills for grinding Com, Rapefeed, Gunpowder, &c. but alfo for fawing Deals, threfliing Corn, and many other Ufes. The. Women too have Machines for wringing wet Clothes, &c. and this not through Idlenefs, but be-- eaufe the Dearnefs of Labour obliges them to make it go as far as poffible, by adding to it tht cheap and eafy AITiftance of Engines driven by fmall Streams. CPIAPTERl J3^ The POLITICAL SURVEY CHAPTER VI. NAVIGABLE Rivers the Sources of Power and Plenty. By them, in their Coiirjl', domejUc Tirade is fujlained. T'he Mouths ofthemfuppJy Havens that nttratl foreign Commerce. The Number of Juch Rivers becomes therefore a Meafure of national Grandeur. Parallel in this RefpeSl of England with Prance. SuccinSl Account of the four great Rivers in that Kingdom, and a Comparifon of them ivith four Brit ijh Rivers. Apology for, and fuftif cation of, this Parallel. A concife Account of the fix great Rivers in Spain. An Account of Englijli Rivers and Ports, ivhich, in point of Improvement, Navi- gation and Cojnmerce, 7nay be oppofed to thefe. The Remainder of the Rivers 'on theWif and South Coajts of this If and, and their principal Ports, enumerated. Obfervations upon thefe concife Catalogues of Rivers and Harbours. The like Detail of Rivers and Havens in the Principality oj' Wales, with fo?ne }iecef- fary Remarks arifing from this Review. The navigable Rivers, and Ports which they afford in North Britain, briefy fated and conjidered. The fame Subjc^ in refpccl to Ireland fuccinSlly reprcfented, with a few occafional Notices as to the natural Advantages and vaf Importance of that Ifand. The Application of the whole to the Dcfgn of this Work. TH E numerous Benefits rcfulting from a Country being every-whcre well watered, which have been infifted upon in the foregoing Chap- ter, are in fome meafure of a private Nature, in comparilbn of thofe which are to be the Subjecft of this. Large, fair, and navigable Rivers, are in general the Refult of accumulated Streams, which meeting in their Frogrefs to the Deep, roll on in a common Channel, and thereby afford new, and, beyond Comparifon, greater BlelTings to Society, than in their feparate State. Of thefe, it may be proper to mention two or three Inllances, which though in themfelves obvious enough, yet are fo rcquifite to render the Scope of this Work perfpicuous and fatisfaclory, that we ought not to pafs them by. In the firft Place, thefe Rivers conduce exceedingly to Health, Cleanlinefs, and an Infinity of domefticUfes ; for which Reafon, invited by the Defire of enioying thefe Conveniencies, moft great Towns and populous Cities are feated on the Banks of fuch Rivers j and very frequently the Experience of thofe Advantages arifing from fuch a Situation, gradually fwell a imall Place into a great onea. It is partly from the Number, partly from the Difpofition and Qualities of fuch Rivers, that a fpeedy and a commodious Communication is made between different and diflant Parts of a Country, by which the Inha- bitants receive reciprocally the Comfort of their refpeftive PoiTeflions, whether ' Straboais Geograph. lib. v. p. 235. M. Vitruv. in Praf. lib. ii. de Architeifl. Aul. Gel.Noifl. Aicic. lib. X. cap. 7. flowing of GREAT BRITAIN. 135 flowing from the Bounty of Providence or the Effefts of Induftry ; and by an Exchange of Commodities, render partial and particular Improvements the Source of univerlal Abundance. This Circulation of Goods and Manufadlure?, through the whole Extent of a large Country by navigable Rivers, conftitutes inland Navigation. An eminent national Prerogative, which, as we fliall copiouily explain in its proper Place, is of infinite Confequence, and, where properly attended to, and encouraged, produdive of numberlefs Emoluments to a People; as, at the fame time that it excites their Indurtry, it mitigates their Labour, and invites them to the Exercife of Manufactures of every Kind, by offering fo cheap and fo expeditious a Metliod of conveying them, even to the moil diftant Markets t>. There is yet anotlier Point which we mud bring to the Reader's Memory ». which is, that for the moll Part where tiiefe great Rivers fall into the Sea, or frequently where they begin to open and expand themfelves, when drawing towards it, they furniili capacious and convenient Ports for Ships of great Burthen, and conduce thereby as much to foreign Commerce, as in their long and winding Courfe they had before contributed to domefHc Trade, or tlie Intercourfe of the Natives with each other <^. It appears from hence, that the beft Method of eftimating the Advantages which any Country en- joys in this refpeft, is by confidering them in a comparative View with thole of its Neighbours and Competitors ; fince, thus conlidered, it mult not only be fet in a fair and full Point of Light, but in fuch a one alio as will render it undeniably manifefl. In this therefore, for thele Reafons, we will en- deavour to confider it with all the Candour and Impartiality poTible, and with as much Brevity as the Nature of fuch a Method, and our Intention in purfuing it, will pofllbly or properly admits We find the French Writers infifting warmly,, and' with jufl Reafon, on the happy and favourable Situation of their fpacious and fertile Country, and on the Circumftances which render it particularly advantageous for domefHc Trade, and foreign Commerce, as havhig the Britilli Ch;innelon the North, tlie Ocean on the Weft, and the Mediterranean on the South. They boalllikewjfe, that no Country in the World is better watered ; and this Papire Maffon, a learned Frenchman, wrote a Book to prove, in the laft Century, in which he defcribes all the Rivers of that Kingdom d. There cannot therefore be any thing more to our Purpofe than to examine this Point fuccindrly, in order to. fee how well the Claims of both Countries in reference to Rivers conducive to Commerce are fupported, due RefpecTt being had to the Size of the one, and of the other. In France, as their own Writers fay, there are four great b Bacon's Works, vol. i. p. 724. Varenil Geograph. univerfalis, §. iv. cap. 16. " P. Foiiinicr Hydrographie, lib. iv. chap. 14. Bacon's Woiks, vol. i. p. 724. Montefqiiieu,, ie TEfprit Jes Loix, P. ii. lib. xxi. chap. 4. '' Defcriptio Fluminum GalliXj opera P. Maflbni, cum Notis A.M. Baudrand, Parifiis, 16S5, Rivers,, 136 The POLITICAL SURVEY Rivers, that in their Paffage through their numerous Provinces abforbing mofl; of the red:, carry immenfe Supphes of Water to the betore-mentioned Seas «^. The firft of thefe is the Loire, efteemed the largefl: River in France, and fo dividing it, that on this, and on the other Side of the Loire, is an Expref- fion common, more efpecially in their ancient Hiftorians f. The Source of this River is in the Mountain of Gerbier le joux, on the Confines of the Vi- verais and Velaie, it runs through the GeneraUties of MontpelHer, Lyons, Mouhns, Orleans, Tours, and falls into the Sea in Bretagne, forty-five Miles below Nantes, which is its principal Port. In its Courfe it receives fix large, and manv fmall. Rivers, runs in a diredt Courfe three, and by its Windings and Turnings, as it is computed, about five hundred Miles g. To this we oppofe the Trent, which rifcs out of New Pool, in Conjuuiftion with two Springs, near Mole Cap and Harton Hay, in Stafi'ordOiire ; after receiving no fewer than fixteen Rivers in that County only, pafles into Dcr- byfliire ; and coafting the Edge of Leicellerlhire, runs with a copious pieafant Stream the whole Length of Nottinghamlhire ; and crofiing over a Corner of Lincolnfinre, falls into that great Receptacle of Waters called the Humber'', twelve Miles above Kingfton upon Hull, a Town and County of itfelf, ftand- ing on a little River of the fame Name, which makes its prefent Port -, though an Application is expedted to Parliament for one more commodious; and, in point of inland Trade, and foreign Commerce, not at all inferior to that emi- nent Port of France to which we have compared it '. It derives thefe Advan- tages, which it would require fome Pages to fet in a full Light, from the Influx of fo many great Rivers into this Firth from fome of the Counties mofl; po- pulous, beft cultivated, moft noted for Manufadtures, of any in thefe Iflandsj which confequently bring down immenfe Quantities of bulky, and yet valu- able Goods, that require much Shipping to tranfport, and produce inconceiv- able Returns from other Countries. The diredi Courfe of the River Trent is about one hundred Miles; what its Turnings and Windings may be we have not computed. This River divides England into two Parts of unequal Size, and has thereby created the Diftindtion of South and North of Trent !«. = Philippl Cliiverii IntroJuft. Geogrnph. lib. ii. cap. 12. ' Luyt'i IiUrodu(ft. ad Geograph. p. 127. g Straboiiis Geograph. lib. Iv. p. 189. Cfufar. lib. vii. cap, 55. Gregor. Turonenf. liv. v. cap. 42. Papir. MalFon. dcfcrip. flum. GalJix. Nouvclle Defcription de la France, par M. Piganiol de la Force, torn i. p 3. Coulon Rivieres de France, torn. i. p. 241. h Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. fol. 37. Lambard's Topographical and Hiftorical Diiflionary, p. 370. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. gd. Plot's Natural Hiftory of Staffordlhire, chap. ii. p. 42. Drayton's Polyolbion, twelfth Song. ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. i. fol. 53, 54. Camdeni Britannia, p. 578. Additions to Camden ia the Englilh Tranflation. * Plot's Natural HiAory of Staffordrtaire, chap. ii. p. 42. The of GR E AT BRITAIN. 137 The fecond, which b reputed the moft rapid River in France, is the Rhone, which however rifes witliout the Bounds of that Kingdom, in the Country of Valais, connefted by AHiance with the Swifs ; and having pafled through the Lake of Geneva, after rolhng over a Precipice, by whicn it feems diflipated into a Milt, at length enters France j and having waflied the City of Lyons, and received the gentle Saone within its Banks, continues its Progrcfs through Provence J and being joined in its PafTage by feveral other confiderablc Stream^;, falls into the Mediterranean, about twenty Miles below Aries, by three Mouths, which are Ibled le Gras de Sauze, le Gras de Sainte Anne, and le Grand Grab. It runs about two hundred and fifty Miles in France. The Navigation is hazardous v/ith flight Boats, which are very frequently taken to Pieces again when the Voyage is over, becaufe of its being exceedingly difficult, if not impradlicable, for fuch to remount the Stream I. Against this we will venture to fet the Northern River Tine, which, to fpeak with greater Propriety, is a River compofed of two Streams of the fame Name, viz. North Tine, which rifmg at a Village called Tinehead, on the Frontiers of North Britain, runs South-Eaft about thirty Miles, and is then joined by the South Tine; which having its Source in Cumberland, almoft on the Borders of the Bifhoprick of Durham, runs North-Eafl about forty Miles. From their Jundtion a little above Hexham, each being fwelled by feveral little Rivers in the Way, the Tine paffing near the great Town of Newcaflle, which ftands upon its North Bank, falls into the Sea at Tin- mouth, the two Rivers having run together about thirty Miles m. The Coal Trade of Newcaftle, which is a rich, populous, and thriving Place, joined to its Dependencies North and South Shields, and taking in likewife the foreign Commerce carried on from thence, makes it fcarce, if at all, in- ferior to the French Mart, though that is alfo very opulent " ; and thefe Places are the more fit to be compared, becaufe both have been for fome Time paft, and are yet continually improving. The Garonne is the third River in France. It rifes out of the Mountains of Aure, near the Valley of Aran in the Pyrenees, and palling through the Generalities of Montauban, Touloufe, and Bourdeaux, it receives in its Courfe (even confiderable Rivers, and the two laft Cities are waflied by its Stream. At the Point of Ambez it joins the Dordogne, a long, large, and deep River, which however runs by no Place of very great Note ; and from the Time ot this Junftion the River takes the Name of Garonne; and running with a ' Strabonis Geograph. lib. iv. p. 189. Liv. Hift. lib. xxi. cap. 32. Plin. Hift. N.it. lib iii. cap. 4. Papir. iMaflbn. defcrip. flum. Gallix. Coulon. Rivieres dc France, toni. ii. p. 6. Etat el Dclices dc la Suifle, torn. i. p. 63. m Leiand's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. fo]. 65. 74. Harrilbn's Defcription of Britain, p. 9c. Drayton's I'olyolbion, twenty-ninth Song. » Leiand's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 103, 104. Camdeni Britannia, p. 667, Additions to Camden. Vol. L T full 1 38 The POLITICAL SURVEY full broad Stream, falls into the Bay of Biicay, near the Tour dc Cordouan» by two Mouths, the one called le Pa;; des Ancs, and the other le I'as de Grave, between forty and fifty Aiilcs below Bourdeau.Y, after a Courfe of about one hundred and eighty Miles o. We will compare with this the Oufe, which rifing near Fretwell, in Oxfordlhire, proceeds thence into Buckinghamlliire ; and pafling by that Town, which gives Name to the County, goes on to Bedford, where it becomes navigable j then having watered this County, it proceeds through Hantingdonlhire, Cambridgelhire, and the Ifle of Ely, into the County of Norfolk, where with a full fraught Tide it falls into the Sea at Kings, for- merly, till exchanged by the Bi(hop of Norwich with Henry VIII. called Eilhops Lynn. It receives in its Courfe the River Nene from Northampton and Peterborough ; the Cam from Cambridge ; the LefTer Oufe from Nor- folk j iind the Mildenhall from Suffolk; all of them navigable Rivers; by which mofl convenient, and, in all Seafons, valuable Situation, Lynn became, even in early Times, a very confiderable Place in refpedt to Strength and Trade r. Yet was it nothing then to what it is now, comprehending, accord- ing to the beft Computation that can be formed, two thoufind four hundred Families, and in a very thriving Condition, deriving from many rich Counties behind it all their valuable Produce and Manufadlures, which are from thence fent to London; and fupplying them in return with Goods from that great City, Coals from Newcaftle, and whatever elfe they want from the Ports on the Eaft Side of the Ifland ; and having befides an extenfive, and in a great nieafure (in refpedt to London) an independent foreign Commerce, not only with Spain and Portugal, which has fucceeded that which the Merchants of this Place once had with France, but alfo to Holland and the Baltic. The Entrance of its Port, which is fo capacious as to hold two hundred Sail of Veffels, is fomething difficult and dangerous, but when entered, it is fafe and commodious; and for its Defence, exclulive of the Fortifications round the iMace, has St. Anne's Fort, by which it is at the fame time equally com- manded and protected. The entire Courfe of this River may be about one hundred Miles ay fubjoin another Remark, that all thefe trading Towns are in a thriving t Additions to Camden, A-las Maritimus, p. 19, 20. Maitland's Hiftory of London, p. 621. « ^uch as the Cities of Touloufe, Bourdeaicc, Dijon, and Rolien, each of which is the Seat of a Parliament. " Harrifon's. Defer! ption of Britain, p. 92. Camdeni Britannia, p- 577- " Lel.ind's Itinerary, vol. i. fol. 79. 81, 82, 83. 91. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 91. I.acnbard's 1 opog,raphical and Hiftorical Dictionary, p. 84. 259. Camdeni Britannia, p. 602. 603. Robinfoii's Natural Hiftory of Weftmoreland and Cumberland, chap. vii. p. 40 y Itinerary, vol. i. fol. 32. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 100. Brome's Travels over F.o.:jIand,. P. iii. p. 138. ConditiDHj. of GREAT BRITAIN. 141 Condition, and that feveral of them, we fpeak not at random or by guefs, are increafed to double what they were in the Space of the current Century z. We have, in a former Chapter, admitted that the Situation of Spain is, in a Multitude of Circumftances, as happy and commodious, in refpedt more efpe- cially to foreign Commerce, as could well be defired \ It is ahiiofl, but it is not quite, an Ifland ; and neverthelels we find there are in this Kingdom but fix large Rivers that empty themfelves, with thofe few lefler ones which they abforb, into the Sea. The firft of thefe is the Ebro, which rifes on the Fron- tiers of Old Caltile, towards the Principality of Afturias; it palTes through, both thofe Countries, and then enters into Navarre; it becomes navigable, that is for Boats, at Tudel.i ; and having divided this Kingdom from Arragon, and palTed through Saragolia, which is its Capital, it then traverfes Catalonia, and falls into the Mediterranean a little below Tortofa. It is in all Refpeds a very fine River, of great Utility, but not navigable for Ships higher than the laft mentioned City, and not even thither by thofe of a very large Size b. The fecond is the Qmver, or, as it is commonly called, the Guadal Quiver, that is, the Great River; it rifes in the Eaflern Extremxity of Andaliifia, and running South-Weft through that rich and beautiful Country, it vifits Cor- dova, Seville, and St. Lucar, and then falls into the Bay of Cadiz ■. It is navigable by large Ships, but not without Danger, as high as Seville; from thence to Cordova by Boats only; and not higher even by thefe d. The Ana, or the Guadiana, rifes in New Caftile, in a Country called La Mancha ; its Courfe is from Eaft to Weft ; and having watered Badajos, in the Spanifti Eftramadura, it pafles into the Kingdom of Portugal ; and having feparated Algarve from Andalufia, f.Uls at length into the Bay of Cal^s, near Ayamonte ; but neither that or St. Lucar de Guadiana are Ports of any Con- fequence '-'. * From certain Information, which I am not at Liberty to mention. a See Political Survey of Great Britain, chap. i. p. 7. b StrabonLj Geograph. lib. iii. p. 156. 158. 175. Plin» Hifl. Nat. lib. iii. cap. 3. Tib. iv., eap. 12. 20. Lucan, lib. iv. Vayrac Etat Tfefent de TEfpagne, torn. i. p. 84. Les Delices de TEfpagne et du Portugal, par Don Juan Alvarez de Colmenar, torn. i. p. 16, 17. Robbe Geo- graphic, torn. i. p. 418. ■^ btrabonis Geograph. lib. iii. p. 139, 140. 14-?. I iv. Hift. lib. xxviiu cap. 30.. Flin. Hift. Nat. lib. iii. cap. i. Vayrac Etat Prelisnt de TEfpagne, tom. i. p. 87. d Colmenar Delices de I'Efpagne, tom. i. p. 2D, 21. Le Grand Didljonnaire Geographique et Critique, par M. Bruzen la Alartinicre, tom. iii. p. 353. ' Strabonis Geograph. lib. iii. p. 139, 14?, 141. Flin. Hift-. Nat. lib. iii. cap. i. Fomponii Melas de fitu Orbis, lib ii. cap. 6. lib. iii. cap. I. Vayrac Etat Prefent de rEip.igne, tom. i. p. go. Garibay Hill. Hii'pan. lib. iii. cap. 2. Nonius in defer. Hiip. p. 313^. Martinicre Di■ Lelaad's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 48. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 58. Coker "s Survey of the County of Dorfet, p. 33, 34. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 151 and much expofed to the Infults and Depredations of the French, in pur- -fuance of which, all the Privileges of Melcomb were by a Statute made in the Reign of Henry VI. transferred to the Town of Pool, which thence, from a few Fifners Huts, commenced a Ports. But, by a fubfequent Aft in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, confirmed by another in the Beginning of that of her Succeflbr, it was united to Weymouth ; and they are at prefent one Cor- poration, returning, however, four Members to Parliament, as being com- pofed of two Boroughs f. Thefe two Towns contain between five and fix hundred Houfes; and about five thoufand Inhabitants, amongft whom are feveral wealthy Mi^rchants, who have a tolerable Share in the Newfound- land Fifhery, and Trade to the Plantations, particularly Virginia j fo that it is a neat thriving Place, with a good Num-ber of Ships belonging to it " ; and a moft remarkable Inftance, that even the fmaUeft Rivers may be made of Confequence, with proper Care and Attention. At the Influx of the Alaun, commonly called the Avon, and the Stour, almofi: at the Entrance of Hampfhiie, ilands Chrift Church, a populous Mar- ket Town, and eminent for a Manufaflure of Gloves and Silk Stockings j yet very inconfiderable as a Port, though fo well fitcatedw. Lymington, cele- brated for its Salt Works, ibinds alio at the Influx of a River, and is a Port of much greater Note ; though both, in the Cuftom Hoiife Accounts, but Creeks to Southampton -■''. The Tife, or Anton, rifes in the North of Hampfliire, near Church Okeley, and running firft Weft, then South, near thirty Miles, falls into what is ufually filled by Seamen, Southampton Water, on the Weft j as the River Aire, or, as it is commonly called. Itching, having run twenty, and watered W^inchelter, does on the Eaft of Southampton y. This is an ftucient and beautiful, was heretofore opulent and populous, but now a de- clining,Town-; which, if we regard its admirable Situation, Ships of great Burthen coming up to the Key, and fuch as are built in the Place being launched indifferently into either River, is amazing. It retains ftill the farrie majeftic Appearance v/hich it made in better Times, and fome Trade in V/ines to Guernfey and Jerfey. Befides the malignant Source of its Misfor- tunes, which we are told, by an intelligent Author, was the Pique of P^obert Dudley, Earl of Leicefter, in high Credit with Queen Elizabeth, there have ^ Leiand's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 48, 49, 97. Willis's Notitia Pariiamcntaria, vol. ii. p. .152. 453. Coker's Survey of the County of Dorilr, p. 35, 85. ' Camdeni Britannia, p. 155. Willis's Notitia Padiannentaria, vol. ii, p. 436. Coker's Survey of the County of Dorfet, p. 34. " Additions to Camden. Coker's Survey of the County of Dorft-t, p. 35, 36. "■" Leiand's Intinerary, vol. iii. fcl. 79. Harrifon's Defcjiption of Britain, p. 57^ Camdeul Bri- tannia, p. 187, ]88. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Waics, p. 264. " Magna Britan. etHibern. vol. ii. p. 849. Atlas Mnritimus et Comtnercialis, p. 12. * Camdeni Britannia, p. 188, 1S9. Speed's Briti(h Empire, fol. 13. Brady of Boroughs, p. 12. been 152 The POLITICAL SURVEY "been other concurrent Caufes of much later Date, which have at leaft hin- dered it from reviving, as might have been expedled. The Decay of Tim- ber in New Foreft, the Dechnc of our Commerce with France, the rapid Growth of For tfmouth, and the Removal to Pool, and other Places, of fome Merchants concerned in the Newfoundland Trade, are amongft the moft ob- vious of thefc Caufes. But as it ftill retains all its former Adviuitages, and, in fpite of thefe Accidents, a competent Share of Commerce, Pofterity, in confe- quence of other, and in refpeifl to it more fortunate Changes, may fee it in as good a State as our Anceftors faw it heretofore z. The Lavant, a pretty pleafant Stream, almoft inverts tlie neat City of CifTa's- cefter, now Chichefter, in Suflex, anciently the Capital of the South Saxon Kingdom, and falling into the Sea at Dell Kay, about four Miles below it, af- fords, though not without the Aflillance <;f Art, a pretty good Port, from which fome foreign Commerce, and a large domeftic Trade, is carried on a by Mcr- 'chants refiding there; to which we may add with Truth, that both are daily increafing. The Arun rifes in the Wefb Part of Suffex, on the Confines of Hampfliire, runs direftly Eall to Pulboro, from whence it is now rendered navigable ; and there turning diredly South, falls into the Sea a little below Arundel, which has a tolerable Port for fmall Veflels ; and as there is Abun- dance of good Timber in this County, many Ships are built here, and at Shoreham, which ftands at the Mouth of the Adur, and, though the River ■(except in bringing down Timber) contributes little, is as good a Harbour as Shoreham ^. The Oufe, v/hich after a Conrfe of between twenty and thirty Miles fiiUs into the Sea about eight Miles below Lewes, makes a little conve- nient Port at Newhaven, which, in virtue of an A£t of Parliament palled in 173 I, is fo repaired and revived, as to become very thriving both in Com- merce, and in Ship-building c. The River Rother rifes in the Northern Part of Sull'ex ; and running firft Eaft, till, by dividing its Stream, it encompaffes the Ifle of Oxncy, then turning South, it falls into a Bay of the Sea near Rye, once a noble Harbour, and (till a Member of one of the Cinque Ports ; yet, by gaining Land, through the Covetoufnefs of its former Inhabitants, on the Sea, and on the River, in imminent Danger of being utterly fpoiled. But, by repeated A6ts of Parliament in its Favour, is now, at leaft in fome meafure, recovered ; and, as great Encouragement is ilill given, we may hope, will in ^ Leland's Itinerary, vol. Hi. fol. 74, 75, 76,77. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 13. Lambnrd's Topogiahical and Hillorical Dictionary, p. 139, 140. Additions to tiie laft Edition of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritiinus et Commercialis, p 12. a Camdeni Britannia, p. 220. ' Lainbard's Topographical and Hiftorical Didionary, p. 72. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 272. I" Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 54. Camdeni Britannia, p. 220, 223. Lambard's To- pographical and Hirtorical Diftionary, p. y, 346. * Stat. iv. Geo. II. chap, xvii, §. i. Time of GREAT BRITAIN. 15.^ Time be pcrfeftly reftored d. It may not be amifs to note here, that, fo long ago as 1570, the immediate Detriment, and the future Ruin, of this Port, was, under Colour of private Advantage, concerted and carried into Execution, by the ill-judged gaining, or, as the old technical Phrafe is. In- ning, of two thoufand Acres of Marlh out of the Seaj which Anti-improve- ment has fmce coft the Public, in many n:iore Shapes than is commonly con- ceived, fo very dear ^'. The next River I fliall mention is the Stour, in Kent, which, in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, was made navigable as high as Canterbury. In ancient Times there appear to have been two Rivers of this Name, which are fup- poled to have fallen into the Wantfume, at a Place called the Stourmouth *". There are two Rivers ftill, one called the Greater, the other the Lefler Stour, and both, as far as I can judge, were anciently navigable, but never as a joint Sircam, the former running into the Wantfume, at Stourmouth, and the latter at fome Diftance from its. In reality, there have been great and manifefh Changes in the Face of the Country, and the Courfe of the Rivers, in this Part of Kent; of which we have a mofl: curious, elegant, and inftrudive Chart, by a late learned Phyfician, from which we are enabled to difcern plainly hov/ Things ftand at prefent, and to form a probable Conjeclure how they might have flood in Times part ^ ; when, as clearly appears from the con- current Lights of all Hiftories, they muft have been in a very different Situa- tion ' ; which, though we have not Room particularly to difcufs, yet the Nature of our Subjert obliges us to mention, and, how dangerous foever that may be, after fo many great Men have claOied in their Opinions ^, to exprefs ours alfo. But, as neither of thefe Rivers ever admitted Veflels of any Size, or communicated with the Sea, otherwife than by that Arm of it, which, as we have alreadv obferved, was called the Wantfume ', what we have toofter upon this Head, belongs properly to the next Chapter. ^ Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 53. Lambard's Topographical and Hiftorical Dklion:ir_v, p. 193. 194. Camdenl Britannia, p. 227. Harris's Hifiory of Kent, b. i. P. iii. p. 361. Atiai Maritimus ct Commercialis, p. 11. ' Lambard's Topographical and Hiflorica! Dlflionary, p. 312. ' Appendix to vol. vil. of Leland's Itinerary, fol. 144. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 259, 264. Somner's Antiquities of Canterbury, chap. v. Canideni Britannia, p. 239. 5 Drayton's Folyolbion, Song 18. See Holland's Tianflation ot Camden's Biitanuia. H.'.rris's HiHory of Kent, p. 361. " ANKOrPA^'IA, five Conval'.ium Defcriptio. In which are briefly, but fully, expounded, the 'Origin, Courfe and Infertion, Extent, Elevation, and Congruiiy, of all the Vallies and Hills, Brooks and Rivers (as an Explanation of a new PhiJofophico-Chorogiaphical Chart), ot Eaft Kent. Octa- fionally are interiperfed fome tranficnt Remarks that relate to the Natural Iliflory ot the Country, and to the mili-ary Marks and Signs of Ca;far's Route through it, to his decifue Battle in Kent, l)y Chrldopher Packe, M.D.Canterbury, 1743, 4°. ' C;Tfar de Btllo Gall. lib. v. Tacit, in Vita Agricote. Juvenal. Sat. iv. Ammian. Marcellin. lib. XX. cap. I ; lib. xxvii. tap. 8. V. Fortunatusin Vita Sii. Martini. •^ Such as Leland, Camden, Lairbard, Somner, Rattely, &c. 1 Bcdae Eccleiiafliea Hiftoris Gentis Anglorum, lib. i. cap. 26. Lambard's Topographical and Kiftcrital Didionary, p. 398. Harris's Hifiory of Kent, p. 361. Vol. I. X Thf 15+ The POLITICAL SURVEY The lad: River, of which in this Survey, and in purfuanceof our Principle, we flvall take notice, is the Medway, which runs through the Heart of Kent, and is one of the faircll and hnell Streams in this llland "', agreeable to the learned Anticpary's Britifti Etymology ", Mad iiog iiifc, that is, a beautiful Body of Water. It is generally fl\id to have four Heads ; the firft at Crowherll; in Surryj the fecond from two Springs, one at Fant, the other at Steward's Mead, in Suflex ; the third at Goldwell, in great Chart; the fourth at Biggenheath, in Lenham, both in Kent". This lafl: joins the Body of the River in Maid- flone, a very ancient Town, deriving its Name, its Beauty, and its Wealth, from this River p. There is not perhaps in this liland, a Place that more ef- fectually fliews the permanent Advantages that arife from a favourable Situa- tion, than this does. It was chofen by the Britons'^, improved by the Ro- mans >", made a great Figure in the Time of the Saxons ^, and is a populous well-built flouriihing Town at this Day t. The Tide flows up hither, and the River is navigable for Barges, and other Velfels, of the Burthen of upwards of tifty Tons. It is not only a Corporation, and a Borough, returning two Members to Parliament, but likewife the County Town, where the Knights for the Shire are eleded, and the Aflizes ufually held ". There is alfo a very confiderable Manufadiure of Thread fettled by the Wallons ; and upon the Ri- ver, and the Streams that fall into it, there are atprefent many Mills, employed in feveral Manufiidlures; as indeed, in different Times, there have been of almoft all the various Kinds that perhaps were ever ufed in this Country w. At the Diftance of eight Miles, upon the fame River, {lands the City of Rcchefter, indifputably a Roman Station'^, and which, though it has fuffered ■" Camdeni Britannia, p. 233, 234, 235. Spencer's Fair}- Queen, book iv. cant. xi. Draytun's Poiyolbion, Song 18. " Baxteii Gloflarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 162. • Lnmbard's Peiambulatioii of Kent, p. 219, 220. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, p. 360. P Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. ii. fol. 126. Camdeni Britannia, p. 234. Larabard's Topo- graphical and Hillorical Dictionary, p. 220. ■> Nennii Iliftoria Britonum. He calls it in his Catalogue of Cities, in the printed Copies, Caep Megiiid. Camden reads it in his MS. Caer Megwad, corruptly (as he fuppofes) for Medwag.. Baxter aflcrts it fliould be read Caer Medhiiag. But that it was inhabited by the Britons, appears from the div'ging up fome of their little Boats or Canoes, in the Marflies near it, in 1720. See- Doftor Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 114. ' Camden, B.ixter, and moA of our Antiquaries agree, that this is the 'Vagniacae of the Itinerary, and that Durobrova:, is Rochefter. Mr. N. Salmon is for making them change Places, but allows them to have been both Roman Stations. s Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 133, 149, has Medwaege, fome later Writers, Medewcagcflun, i. e. Medway 's Town. ' Harris's Hlftory of Kent, p. 190 — 193. Additions to the laft Edition of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Mnritimus et Commercialis, p. 20. " See the Article Maidftone in Collier's great Hiftorical Di(^ionary. The Hiftory and Antiquities ofMaidftone, by William Newton, London, 1741, 8>^. * Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 20., Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 114. Addi- tions to Camden's Britannia. ' Lelandi Commentaril in Cygnenm Cantionem, p. 53. Camdeni Britannia, p. 235. Baxter! Cloirarluia Antiquitatum Brit;innic3rum, p. 112. exceedingly of GREAT BRITAIN. 155 exceedingly from a Variety of Enemies and Accidents, is in our Times, though a fmall, a thriving City, with a Port, having an increafing Trade, and in its Neighbourhood from Chatham to GilHngham the greatcft Ships of the Royal Navv are ufually laid up/; which is alone a fufficicnt Commendation of the River Medway, that falls into the Sea, or rather into the Mouth of the Thames, about ten Miles lower, after a Courfe of about forty Miles ; and is perhaps, all Things duly weighed, one of the deepeft and moft beautiful Rivers in Eu- rope 7. This is a very fiiccinft, but at the fame time a very particular Account of the mod remarkable Rivers in this Part of the Ifland, in fupport of the ge- neral Allertions advanced at the Beginning of this Chapter. Thus then we have unfolded one of the principal Caufes of the Grandeur and Happinefs of South Britain, which unqueftionably confill in this large Number of her navigable Rivers, the Extent and Difpofition of the Country confidered, from whence fo many commodious Situations for pleafant and popu- lous Towns were ever afforded, and more or lefs occupied, as Hillory informs us, even from the earliell: Times a. Such EftablilLments fupply the greateft and moft effciflual Encouragements to Agriculture, in the moft extenlive Senfe of that very comprehenfive Term. Neceffity will oblige Men to cultivate, where-ever they are placed ; and the pleafmg Profpedl of living at E.ife, may carry this a little farther ; but the Mifchief is, that Men cannot any-where, or by any Means, fecure to themfelves Plenty, without accumulating Supertiui- ties ; for which they would never be tempted to labour, if they had not a Pro- fpedt of obtaining other Things for thefe, which they look upon either as NeceiTaries, or as Things delirable at leall ; and thefe, whatever they are. Commodities, Curiofities, or Conveniencies, can be only rea/bnably expelled, from an Accefs with thofe Superfluities, to quick and certain Markets ; the lirll and moft immediate Advantage derived from navigable Rivers '>. Hence the Country is fo much better improved, and Lands bear the higher Price, from their lying near them ". A Circumllance this of very obvious Benefit, but at the fame time productive of many more Benefits; fince, after all, the thorough Cultivation of any Region, and the turning every Spot of it Ibme way or other to the Ufe of Man, is the infallible Charadteriftic of a thriving Coun- try, the ultimate Objeft of all rational and genuine Policy, and the true Source of real and lading Happinefs to the People who poilefs it (''. y Lambard's Topop;raphical and Fliftorical Diiflionary, p. 287. AJJicions to Camden's Britan- nia. S.ilmon's New Survey of England, P. i. p. 35. ^ Harris's Hiftory of Kent p. 360. Atlas Maritimus ct Commerci.ilis, p. 20. Stukcley's Itiner Camdeni Britannia, p. 443, 444. Childrey's Britannica Baconica, p. 117, ii3. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. i. p. 235 — 285. ' Yarranton's England's Improvement, p. 179 — 193. Houghton's Hii!l>andry and Trade im- proved, vol. ii. p. 284, 285. * See the very ingenious Mi". Wallace's learned Dlfiertatien upon the Numbers of M;uikind. X 2 Tins 156 the POLITICAL SURVEY This will appear more fully, and in a ftill clearer and more convincing Light, if we reflect on the great Ditliculty, or rather Impollibility, of at- tempting many Kinds of Improvements, at a Dillance from navigable Rivers ; at lealf till turning both thofe Rivers, and the Countries near them, to their proper Ufes, remove thofe natural Impediments, and fo render luch Improve- ments prarticable ; from whence it comes to pafs, that here, and in other Countries, immenfe Tracts of Wood-Land, have in Procefs of Time degene- rated into Moors and Moralies ; and where Forefts once flood, which might have been of the highell Utility, we find nothing but unprofitable Moffesc. Alountains pregnant with the richeft mineral Trealares, it there are no Rivers near them, remain unwrought and unconiidered ; and what, in other Places more happily lituated, afford Employment, Subfifience, Wealth, to Multi- tudes of induifrious Peiibns, rell undilturbed in thefe remote Receptacles, and become ablblutcly ulclefs, and of no Value *'. A pregnant Ijiftance of this may be derived from the Collieries in the Northern Counties, and in Wales. The Ports of Newcallle and Sunderland, on the Eaft Side of this Ifland, to- gether with thofe of Whitehaven and Swanzey on the Well, llipply not only this, but foreign Countries, with a Commodity of the moif general Ufe, and confequently of the quickeft Sale, and greatelt V'alueg, Not that they are wanting in other Places, but becaufe the Means of tranfporting them is wanting ; and of what prodigious Conlequence thefe black Indies, as fome have humouroufly called them, really are, let the Number of People con- cerned in digging and railing them, the expenlive Engines, the much more expenfive Roads, for bringing them foonelf to the Water Side, the Multi- tude of Ships employed in tranfporting, the Number of Seamen who navi- gate thefe, the vaft Revenue ariling to the Public, and the immenfe Eftates which have accrued from them to private Perfons, when they Ihall be duly and deliberately weighed, moll inconteftibly declare li. It is chiefly in the great Towns, feated on navigable Rivers, that manual Arts and Manufactures are moll effectually managed j by which a comfort- able Subfillence is fupplied in fo vail a V^ariety of Ways to the Multitudes who fpend their Time, and beftow their Labour, in carrying them on i. Li ' All this will appear plain and inconteflible, upon confulting what Dofbor Plott has (iiid in his Natural Hiftory of StaiTbrdlhire ; the Earl of Cromarty's Letters in the Philofophical Tranfnftions of the Royal Society ; and Archbilhop King's Papers, at the Clofe of the Irifli Edition of Boat's Na- tural Hiflory of that Ifland ; by which the Proofs extend to all the three Kingdoms. ' Heton's Difcourfe on Mines in England. Select EfTiys on Commerce, Agriculture, Mines, and Fifhcries, p. 107. Robinfon's Natural Idiftory of Weftmoreland and Cumberland. g See, the Additions to Camden, in the Counties of Northumberland, Cumberland, and Durham. *■ The Hiftory of Newcartle upon Tyne, by Henry Bourn, M. A. chap. xiii. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. i. p. 184. Atlas Maritimus ct Commercialis, p. 5. ' AvoNA, or a tranfient View of making Rivers in this Kingdom navigable, occafioned by ob- ferving the Situ.ition of the City of Salilbury upon the Avon, by R. S. 1675, 8^. truth, o[ GREAT BRITAIN. 157 truth, it is the Conveniency arifing from the Cheapnefs of Water-Carriage, that may be laid to invite, to maintain, to augment, to propagate, and to multiply, thefe admirable and ufeful Inventions, which do fo much Honour to the human Undcrftanding, and contribute fo evidently to the Felicity of the human Race, as to become the elTential Marks in diflinguilhing more or lefs civilized Nations •''. To render this more obvious, it may not be amifs to mention, as the firft Inftance occurring to my Mind, the Salt Pans at Newcaftle, Lymington, and Swanzey, which enable thofe Places to dil- tribute fuch immenfe Quantities of a capital Article in continual Demand,, becaufe they have great Plenty of Fewel, and can fend it cheapeft to the moft diftant Markets'. It is from thefe Improvements of natural Blellings, by the Skill, the Labour, and the indefatigable Induflry, of Man, that a. long Series of valuable, though temporary Advantages, arife to Individuals, and a conitant SuccefTion of never-ending Benefits to the Nation which they Gompole'^j as, by purfuing thefe rude Hints, will abundantly appear to every judicious Reader's kiious Refledtion ; and furely his Thoughts can- not be employed on a more profitable or plealing Subjcdl. In order to facilitate thefe Meditations, let us impartially confider the pre- fent Condition of South Britain, how near Hie approaches in moil Things,, and in fome excels,. Countries that, from the Nature of their Producftions, are- fuppofed to have richer Soils, and a warmer Climate ; it will appear that thefe Advantages flow in no fmall Degree from the Number of thefe lar^je and nav igable Rivers, which enable the Inhabitants not only to cultivate to a wide Extent, but to improve alfo to a very great Height, the feveral Parts of the Country in which they dwell ". It is by no Means my Intention to magnify this Ifland, by depreciating other Countries ; and it is for this Realbn that L avoid naming any ; but what I aim at, is lb to explain the true Caufe of our Improvements, as that it may prevent all PoRlbility ofa Mirtake, and thereby fix the Attention of my Countrymen to Methods that never will deceive, them". Look into the Defcription of any of thofe Countries which are allowed to be lefs populous, lefs thriving, and have lefsCommerce, than South Britain, and you will find that even in diefe, the Soil is at leail tolerably cul- tivated, and confequcntly v.xil inhabited on the Sides of great Rivers; which' fliews their Importance every where, and the great Indulgence of Providence in the copious Diftribution of tlicm in this Country, which fo niuch alleviates. Ic Fratris Rogeri Bacon Opus Maj lis Lond. 1733. fol. See alfc the New Atlantis of Loicl Baconj and Doftor Plott's Natural Hillory of Oxford lliire, chap. ix.. ' See the Additions to the laft Edition of Camden's Britannia. Doftor Browniig's Art of- making common Salt, p. 49, 50. Adas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 5, 6, 12. ■" Bacon's Works abridged by Doflor Shaw, vol. ii. p. 193. D. dc Sully, Occonoinies Royales- et Servitudes Loyales, Rouen, 1642, 12°. torn. vji. p. -.'73, 27.}. Gronden cnMa.-iiracn van de Republieck van Holland, i. deel, cap. 9. n The Glory of England, by Thomas Gainsford, London, 161 8, 4°. ° SeeLordBucoa'sPrudeutStatefman in Shaw's .■Vbrdgcmeut of his \Yoiks, vol. ii. p. 139.. the; 158 The POLITICAL SURVEY the Toil of our Peafants, and puts it in their Power, with fo much lefs La- bour, to accomphll:! all that they can reafonably defire p. But methinks I hear it objeded, that I not only pufli tliis Matter too far, but even contradict myfclf, by giving at prefent the Palm to South Britain, after having already bcltowed it upon the Dutch, in this very Particular, or at leafi: confelied, that, in point of inland Navigation, they were fecond to none but the Chinefe q. Whatever I faid in refped: to either of thefe Nations, was certainly advanced upon juft Grounds, and at the fame time intended to ■awaken our Attention ; and with the lame View I ftate this Objedlion. But allowing it to be well founded, as to the Benefits which are derived from it by the Dutch, the Extent of their Country being compared with ours, yet it no way contraditfts what in this Chapter I have advanced ; for, in the firlt Place, thouo-h the inland Navigation, which the Inhabitants of the United Provinces carry on, is in itlelf very great, and the Profits arifing from it prodigious, yet few of thofe Rivers lie in their own Country; and therefore evidently, with refpedl to them, this is a foreign Commerce ■•. In the next Place, give me Leave to fay, that in thefe Provinces, and even in China itfelf, a great Part of their Water-Carriage is managed by the Help of artificial Canals s; fo that, all Circumflances confidered, the Advantages they derive from thence very ftrongly lupports, inrtead of detrading in the leaft from, the Doftrine that I labour to eflablilh : and this I think is lb evident from Matters of Fad, that there is no Necellity for my infixing upon it further. If there were, I could very eafily ihew, from the concurrent TelHmonies of the moll: efteemed Authors, that the Dutch, or the Chinefe, cannot polTibly excel us more in their indefatigable Indullry in making and navigating fuch a Multitude of Canals, than England does Holland and China both, in the Number of her navigable Rivers; which confequently puts all the Advantages of fuch Commerce and Communication into the Hands of the Natives of this Country, on Terms fo much the more eafy. Th ATreal, as well as apparent Superiority, which this Kingdom has attained over the reft of the European Branches of the Britiili Empire, arifes from no Caufe (the Seat of Government excepted) lo much as this; all the other Parts being vifibly much inferior to England in the Number, Difpofition, and P It is not meant thct onr Hufbnndmen take lefs Pains in their Occupation than in other Coun- tries, for the contrary is true ; but then this Labour is in their Occupation, the Produce of it comes to Market, and they thrive and live well. 1 See Political Survey of Great Britain, chap. i. p. 15. f Gronden en Maximen van de Republieck van Holland, i. deel, cap. 7. Sir Willinrn Temple's Obfervations on the United Provinces, chap. iii. Jani^on Etat prefent de la Republique des Pro- vinces Unies, torn. i. p. 4, 5,6, 7. s P. Le Comte, Nouveaux Memoires fur Ic Etat prefent de la Chine, torn. i. p. 149 — 156. Du ■Halde Defcripti jn de I'Empire de la Chine, torn. ii. p. iSo — lyo. Atlas Maritimus et Commerci- .clis, p. 120, 121, 221. Nature, of GREAT BRITAIN. 159- Nature, of their navigable Rivers r. Mence the Inhabitants of this Country can, with lo much Eafe, bring fo great a Part of it into Cultivation; which furnilhing in Plenty the Materials for Trade and Commerce, lead Men here to what thev are driven in other Places by Neceffity". Plence Art attrads Art, one Manufadure begets another, and Dili:;ence fpreads on every Side ; for Induilry, as well as Idlenefs, may be communicated ; and it is eafy to dif- cern, that, in a thriving Country, all Degrees of People have a Vivacity, that is not feen ehewhere. Jt is owing to this Spirit;^ and the Profperity that natu- rally attends it,, that in Ibme Places inland Navigation and foreign Commerce have in South Britain been puilied fo far, that there is more Bulinefs done, and more Seamen employed, in a fingle Port, than in a whole Country, and by a whole Nation, elfewhere, who yet have fome Trade and Commerce too''^'. I could he particular, that is, I could name the Port, nay, more than one, and the Country alio ; but I fee no End this would anfvver, and fliall content myfelf therefore with adding farther, that there are Counties in South Britain very capable of carrying on as great a Commerce as fome potent States. As for Inl^ancc, Devonfliire, which looking on one Side towards the Briitol and St. George's, and on the other towards the Britifh Channel, hath many convenient, and fome capacious. Harbours upon both ■^. Belides, as this fpacious pleafant County hath an e^ cellent Soil, a very mild Climate, and is alio a fourth Part more m Extent than the Province of Holland Y, endowed with moft of thofe Advantages by Nature, that have been in that Country attained by much Labour, and at great Coft, without being tied to any of thofe Expences that are indilpenfably requilite there, for the Prefervation of fuch dear-bought Benefits, we may reafonably prefjme that it is capable of' maintaining the like, or a greater Number of Inhabitants, and that too in as good, or better Condition '. If this be fairly alleged of a fingle County, and? that it is fo I fubmit to the Judgment of the candid Reader, what Improve- ments is the Whole able to receive ? And how much greater, and more po- pulous, may its other Counties become, by barely attending, to their own In- tcrelts, and turning the vaft Conveniences that invite, or rather follicit, them, on every Side, to their proper Ules ? To this, whenever they ferioufly apply their Talents, none are more able or acute, none more afiiduous or indefa- tigable, than themfelves ; as might be very eafily fhewn from numberlefs Examples; the very wonderful Things already performed in fome Places, prov- ing what hereafter maybe done in all, by fuchanadive,fuchaiagacious People'. ' Hiirrifon's Defciiption of Britain, book i. clinp. ii — 16. Sir WilliamMonron's Naval TraiHis,.. lj.)ok iii. Doftor Boat's Ireland's Natunil Hslloiy, chap. viii. " Gee's Trade and- Navigation of Great Britain confidered, p. 5, 6, 7. ^'' See all thde Points farther illurtrated, and feveral convincing Proofs alledged in. fupport of them, in the fubfequent Part of this Chapter. " Rifdon's Survey of Devonfture, vol. i. p. 68, 69, 90, 100; vol. ii. p. 163, 187, 190. j: Camdcni Britannia, p. 144. Speed's Britifh Empire, fol. I y. Vviiliss Notitia Parliamcntaria,, Vol. ii. p. 937. 2- Templeman's Survey, pi. i, vi. » Evelyn's Sylva, chap, viii. 1 6o The POLITICAL SURVEY This being the Cafe, as moft certainly it is, we mud: fee plainly why this Part of thefe Iflands hath tlirivcn more than the rcfl:, attrailed Strangers to fwcll the Number of her Inhabitants, while North Britain and Ireland, from ■the Want of thefe Benefits, not only contributed to augment thofe Numbers, but poured continually, and arc llill pouring, their Offspring into other Coun- tries ; it being natural for Individuals to feek Subiiilence where it feems eafieft to be acquired, rather than to attempt the double TalTc of improving their own nnd their Country's Fortune at the fame time''. As foon as Leifure and Atten- tion to the Arts of Peace excited a Spirit of Cultivation in South Britain, her natural Advantages, amongft them this particularly, repaid their Labours fo fpeedily, and fo abundantly, that People went on chearfully, and foon acquired that Plenty and Independance that endeared their Country to them, and attracled ingenious and indulirious Perfons from all Quarters; which added Manufafvhich the true State of our Towns in ancient Timc.= plainly appears. h Nathaniel Bacon's Difcourfe on the Laws and Government in England, P. i. chap. 58. ' He ftrenuoufly recommended Trade and Manufactures to the (Jure of Parliament. Bacon's ^eign of Henry VII. p. 59. " In A. D. 1582, Mariners of all Sorts in England were 14,295- In A. D. X7.?2, that is, one ■hondrcd and fifty Years after, the Seamen of the Ships regiftereJ in the Poit ol London were .21,797. ' According to the Survey in A.D. 1582, the whole amounted to 77,450 Tons. In A. D. 1732, the regiflered Shipping in the Port of London amounted to 178,557 Tons. Vol. I. Y bouf?- i62 The POLITICAL SURVEY bonrs ^. This very Circumftance proved the Occafion of its Ruhi, when • thofe warlike, though unpoliAicd People, overturning that Barrier, poured like nn Inundation into thele Parts. The Saxons, who refpcfted extremely the Situations cholen by the Romans, eredcd a Town on the other Side of tlie Pviver, to which, from the Number of Convents, and other religious Edifices therein, they gave the Name of Monkchefter ; and this in Procefs of Time became a confiderablc Place ", Robert, the eldcft Son of the Conqueror, being fent by his Father whh a great Army into this County againll Malcolme King of Scots, eafily difcerned with what incomparable Advantage a Fortrefs might be built here ; and executed his Defign fo completely, that, from his Work, it took thenceforward the Name of New Castle ".. Tlie Town was afterwards fortified for the fame Realbn ; in confequcnce of which it: grew large and populous, by the Rclort of People from all the Countries ad- iacent, v/ho were defirous of living under the Protedlion of a flrong Place. . Such war. the Genius of thofe Times, when War was the principal Objedl of all the Northern Nations; and the Value of Places eftimated according as they were lituatcd or difpofed to be more or lefs applicable to that State. . And as no Town in thole Parts could enter into Competition with this, in ; ferving as a Defence to the Country behind it, and giving an immediate Check . to Invaders, it grew every Day more and more confpicuous, .efpccially when Experience in many Inftances had juftificd its Capacity of anfwering all the Purpofes of fuch a Fortrefs. By degrees, however, in the Intervals of Peace, , the Beauty and Convenience of the River forced its Inhabitants to obferve how well their Town ftood for Trade ; and thus it became gradually eminent in Quality of a Port, as well as a Barrier; and in all thefe Capncitiei we find it was highly favoured by our Norman IVIonarchs p. The Difcovery of Coal Mines in its Neighbourhood, about the Beginning of the fifteenth Century, ■ was a new Acceflion of Wealth to the People of Newcaftid, turned alfo to the Benefit of the Crown, and procured them frefh Privileges. Henry VL made them independent of the County of Northumberland, by allowing the • Townfmen to chufe Sheriffs, and fo it became a County of itfelf ''. After the AccefTion of King James the Firft to the Crown of England, it flouriflied more than ever; but the Civil War in the fucceeding Reign reduced its Lu- flre ; and the Advantages taken by fome, who were powerful in thole diibr- dered Times, to promote their private Interefls at the Expence of the Public, m Camdeni Britannia, p. 6c6, 607. Lcl.-indi Collectanea, torn. i. p. 540. Baxter! Gloflarium • Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 125. n Chion. Lindisfarn. (Munccacaeaftre) Simon of Durham allures us, that Monkchcfter was the Name of the Plate, now called Newcaftle. ° Aluiedi Beverlaceiifis Annales, lib. ix. p. 67. Lelandi Colleftanea, torn. ii. p. 308. Poly- dor. Virgil. Hift. Angl. p. 2c8. Johan. de F"6rdun Scotichronicon. fol. 140, 141. P Mag. Rot. 3 Joh. Rot. )8. a tit. Northumb; Leland's Itinerary, torn. v. fol. 104. Cotton's Abridgement of the Records in the Tower of ondon, p. 134. 408. 596. 60c. C79. 1 Lambard's Hiftorical and Topographical Dictionary, p. 207. 225. Caindeni Britannia, p. 667. Z brought of GREAT B R I T A I N. 163 brought confiderable Detriment to the Navigation of the River, the Effeds of which are flill felt r. After the Reftoration of King Charles the Second, the Town received many Marks of Royal Favour ; and alio in the fucceeding Reign, which the Inhabitants very gratefully acknowledged, as they alfo very ailiduoufly, as well as fuccefsfully improved -, and the Confumption of Coals becoming much more general, that Trade augmejited amazingly, Perfons of great Fortune embarked in the Management of the Mines, and at a prodigious Expence, .rendered the Carriage of them to the River eafy and cheap, by bringinj^ vail: Quantities thither in a fmall Space of Time. All which, by drawint:, into this Neighbourhood an immcnl'e Concourie of People, who were to be fed, clothed, and lodged, out of the Fruits of their own Induflry, occa- iioned the Lands on every Side to be cultivated ; their Produce brou<^ht to a quick and beneticial Market, caufed their Rents to be well paid ; and raifed the Value of Land far above what it had been in Times part:, or could ever have been, but in confequence of thefe Improvements, and the Profpect of their Continuance s. In this, and in fucceeding Reigns, various Statutes ^vere made for regulating and improving this Trade, the Profits ariling from which en- abled the Iniiabitants to embark in many others, fuch as Salt Works, Glaf. Works, manufacturing of Iron, befides their old Trade in Grindl'tones f. In confequence of thefe Advantages, not only the ancient Suburb of Gatelhead, which lies in the Bilhoprick of Durham^ increafed exceedingly, but alfo the Towns of North and South Shields, and many Villages along the River Side, which may be properly ftiled the Port of Newcaflle ". About the Clofe oi" the lall Century it was computed that the Trade had doubled in fifty Years, as it was certainly double even at that Period to what it was at the Danife of Queen Elizabeth ; and we have very good Grounds to believe that it is now double in all refpeiCls, that is, in the Tonnage of Ships, Number of Seamen, and Amount of its Trade, to what it was at the Beginning of this Century w. We will add, that this is, as indeed it always has been, one of the moll lefpedl- able and beil governed Corporations in Britain, to which in a great mea- fure its conftant and very remarkable Flow of Profperity may be afcribed. The Ma}or Ii\-es in a Manfion-Houfe, with all necelTary Otiicers and Attendants, at the Town's Expence, with an annual Allowance of fix hundred Pounds; and the Corporation Elhte is held to be of the Value of nine thoufind "■ Bourne's Hiftory of the Town and County of Newcaflle upon Tyne, p. ir?. ' Chorographia, or a Survey of Newcaftk upon Tyne, hy WilJiiim'Grey, i6 19, 4°. Roberts's Map of Commetce, p. 292. England's Cirievances in lelpcct to the Coal Trade, 1649, •^°- ■ Stat. 30 Car. II. cap. 8. § 2. -6 & 7 Will. III. cap. 15. § i. i Anne, cap. o. ^ <. 3. Geo. II. cap. .10. § 2. 5 Geo. II. cap. 20. § 2. " Grey's Survey of Newcaflle upon Tyne. Gardiner's England's Grievances in the Coal Trade. Bourne's Hiftory of the Town and County of Ncwcaftle, chap. xiii. " Houghton's Collections on Huibandry and Trade, \ol.ii. p- 153- Complete Englifli Tradd- Dian, chap. xlvi. Y 2 Pounds i64 The POLITICAL SURVEY Pounds a Year, The Merchants Exchange is a very noble Edifice, frequented^ by Traders of fair Charadcrs, as well as fair Fortunes j the Quay, if we except Yarmouth, is ecjual to any thing of the like Nature in this Illand ; the Churches here are capacious and bcautiiul ; and in refpedt to ptdilic Charities,, whether we regard their Extent or Dillribution, they are inch as do Honour to the Place, and aftord Perlbns unfortunate,, though indullrious, a very com- fortable Retreat «. This Ihews that it was not without Reafon we ventured to compare Newcaftle with Lyons y j and- it proves at the MackreU's .Account of iCin.2'^ LynnCj P- 2- Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Cam- den's Britannia. See the Articles of Lynne and Hull in Collier's large Hiftorical and Geographi- jCal DiftiQnary. 1 Camdeni Britannia, p. 612. p. 85. 270, 271. ,.ra See the Preface to the firll Volume of Browne Willis's Notitia Parli.imentaria, p. 21. n Magna Britannia et Hibernia, vol. ii. p. 1281. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, 2,nd Wales, p. 232. ' Camden's Britanijia, JEdition of A, D. J695, in the Additions, col. 301. fliire. of GREAT BRITAIN. 167 £hire, which proved very beneficial to this new Port p. The long Rebellion in Ireland rendered it Aill more Hourifhing, as a great Part of the Succours- from England were fent from thence. After the Reftoration, the Inhabitants began to flrike into the Plantation Trade, for which they lay very commodi- oully. Before the End of the lafl Century, it was computed, and with great Probability, that Liverpool was poffeffcd'of ten times the Commerce it had at the Beginning; which was an amazing Progref';, and makes it one of the faircfi: Inllances that could be brought for our Purpofe ''. At the very Entrance of tlie prefent Century, Liverpool was held to be the third Sea Port m Eng- land ■', was fuppofed to have augmented its Commerce greatly in the next twenty Years S and we can from good Authority affirm, that in Point of Ships, Seamen, and the public Revenue, this Port has doubled fince that Time. The principal internal Caufes, which, as I have been informed, and they feem adequate to the Eifeft, have contributed to the quick Grov/th of Commerce here, which in other Places rifes fo flowly, were thefe : The Traders of this Place have been ever remarkable for a Frugality in jVTana2;ement, v/hich en- ables them to do every thing upon the cheapeft Terms, and to fell at the loweft Prices. They admit all Degrees of People, even their own Servants, to employ the imalleft Sums in Trade, by which they become interefled in the' Event, and are the fooner in a Condition to fet up for themfelves. Lafbly, . They have fhewn furpriling Spirit in Works of large Expence for the Improve- ment of the Town and Port ; and, in a word, whatever may contribute to ■ the public Intereft. Arts truly laudable, and which will never fail of Succefs. The Reader will judge from hence, what numerous Benefits may be deduced from the natural Advantage of a good navigable River, with a Port at the Mouth of it t ; fince, as the Trade increafes, it continually draws Supplies of Gomniodities and Manufaclures from the adjacent Country, and, in the Space oxa few Years, equally changes the Spirit of the People, and the Appearance of the Places " which they inhabit ; Plenty and Neatnefs being the immediate Defcendants of Indultry ; Wealth and Magnificence, in Procefs of Time, fpringing from the fame Stock, and thefe, very frequently, in Places that have been for a long Time difregarded, decayed, or negledled. Truths which, however plain aiid obvious in themfelves, can never be too ferioufiv, too much, or too often confidered. As Liverpool Is a Port of prodigious Commerce, raifcd to its prefent flou- rifhing Condition, fince Trafiick was thought a Point worthy of being re- ■" Plan of the Britifh Commerce, p. 35. 270. 271. 1 Additions to the Englifh 'Iranflatlon of Camden, in the Edition before recited. r Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancafhire, Chefhirc, &c. book i. p. 21. ' Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. i". ' The Reader will be pleafed to remember, that ever)' Improvement of a navigable River, fhews how all fuch Rivers may be improved. " All the great Manufafturcs in Lancalhirc and Chcfhire, are to be afcribed to the Ports oT Li- verpool a.nd Chefter. corded i6S The POLITICAL SUTLVEY corded in HiiWy ; fo to conclude this Argument, Stockton upon Tees, wlilcU ^ve have already mentioned ";, is a Port of no defpicable Trade, that has ftarted np almofi: within Memory. At the Reftoration, it was a Village fo defpi- c-ible, that the bcft Houfe in it could hardly boaft of any thing better than Chy Walls, and a thatched Roof; and yet, near thirty Years ago, there came m one Year to the Port of London, feventy-five Veflcls from tlience >' ; and the Trade is much increafed fince. We mi|)ht add a great many other Exam- .ples to flicw the unexpected Ef^edts of Induftry, as excited, encouraged, and rewarded, by the almoft innumerable Conveniencies afforded from this natural Advantage of fo many navigable Rivers, and which, notwithftanding, were lb long before they were improved at all, and are perhaps but very little improved, in comparilbn of what they may be, even in our Times ^, But this leads us to another.Pointof as much, if not more Importance, than any of the reft- Whatever Benefits we derive from Art, are commonly obtained with much Labour, require at the Beginning conflant Attention, much Coft to jireferve them, and are eafily forfeited by Negled: ; whereas .the Advantages We receive from Nature, though far more valuable when improved, are not fo liable to the Vicillitudes of Time ; but after being overlooked, and that even for Ages, remain ilill capable of being turned to great Profit ; of which many Inilances have been already given, and in the Courle of the Work many more will appear. -We havejlcafon to hope, therefore, that jiotwithftanding what has been done by our immediate Anceftors in the Improvement of lb many Rivers, which, had been little, or not at all, attended to in Ages preceding theirs, there are flill enough left by them, in a State ,of being allifted, to exercife our Induftry, and perhaps that of our Pofterity, for a long Series of Years to come. For the Illuflration of this Remark, a tew Hints from the mofl remote, and of courfe leaft improved, Counties in South Britain, (hall fuffice. There are on the Coaft of Northumberland five .or fix Rivers, which, though they make at prefent but a fmall.Figure, will here- , after, without doubt, rife into higher Notice, and perhaps become as memo- .rable as many that have been already confide'red \ Not to'infifi: on one or two that fall into the German Ocean, between Holy Ifland and Fame Ifland, we will begin with Warnemouth, or, as it is filled in the Cuftom Houie Books, •w Sec Political Siirvc)'. of Great Btitaiii, p. 143. " Add tions to Cnirnlcn's Britannia, the Edition printed A. D. 169J, cdl. 782, 783. y The Truth of thlj Fa£f appears from the Cullom Houfe I'ooics. - It would have been thought Madnefs in Qiicen ' lizabeth's Reign, to have furmized that the (Commerce of Liverpool (hould approach that of IJriftol ; but now, when we arc, or {hould be, better acquainted with commercial Caufcs and Eftcifts, we may form more probable Conjc*Slures of what Induftry, properly fupportcd, may produce. a Camdeiii Britannia, p. 658. Speed's iJiitilh Empire, f(^J. 89. N. Salmon's New Survey of ^ngland, vol. ii. p. 6co. Warnewater, of GREAT BRITAIN. 169 Warnewater, and is a Creek to the Port of Berwick i\ Aylmouth, which Vies a few Miles to the South of this, is another Creek to the lame Port ; at the Mouth of the River Ahi, upon which a httle higher ftands the Town of Alnwick ; which little Port of Aylmouth, though fcarce heard of fome Years ago, has now feveral VefTels belonging to it <^. . The River Cocket feems to be more improveable, as it is larger, and runs a longer Courfe^. The River Wanfere, or Wanfbeck, is not inferior to that '^■, and what Credit is due to our Conjediures, as to thefe Streams becoming gradually ufeful as well to inland Trade as foreign Commerce, the Reader will the better judge, when he has feen what we have to offer in relation to Blythe Nook in the next Chapter. On the oppofite Side of the Ifland we find at lead as many Rivers that might make a remarkable Figure, and yet are, at this Jun6ture, very little, if at all, regarded. We have already mentioned Sol way Firth f, which though very fit for Commerce, enioys no other Trade than what arifes from the fmuggling Sloops, which continually pafs to and from the Ifland of Man. There lies near it a very confiderableBay, into which the River Wample falls on the North; and receives on the South the joint Streams of Waver and Wiza s. Some think this Bay- is that which Ptolemy ftiled Moricamba % a very founding W^ord, which being refolved into the Britifli Tongue, becomes Mor in Camva, and fignifies the hollow or crooked Sea h. This might be either made a tolerable Port, or, by running a Dyke acrofs it, might be turned into dry Land i. As little as we feem to confider this rough and rugged Part of the World, it is certain no Diftrid; of the Ifland was either better known to, or had more Care taken of it by, the Romans. They fortified it both with Sea and Land Walls ; and, amongii other Stations, had one called Volantium, near the Village of EUenburg i<, at the Mouth of the little River Eln, where, if I am not mifinformed, there is fomething like a Port rtiled Ellenfoot, or Elnfoot. Not far to the South of this, where the Darwent and the Cocker fall into the Sea, there is a Place, called formerly Darwentfoot Haven, upon which flands the Town of Work- ington ', where within thefe few Years there has been a little Trade ; and it is "' Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 90. Croiich'b Book, of Rates, p. 383. •^ Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. fol. •] i, 79. Crouch ubi fupra. Gentleman's Magazine, vol. xxvi. p. 74. ^ Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. i. fol. 74, Tj. Camdeni Britannia, p. (iG(). He calls this Ri- ver Coqueda. " Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. P. fol. 78. Camdeni Britannia, p. 668. f The Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 144. * At the Beginning of the eighteenth Volume of the Gentleman's Magazine, there is a Survey of the North Weft Coaft of England, performed at the Expence of the Proprietors of that Work; and for the Afiiflance derived fiom thence, I return them my hearty Thanks. h Baxteri GlofFarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 179. ' Gentleman's Magazine, vol xviii. p. 291. '' Camdeni Britannia, p. 633, 635. Speed's Britifh Empire, fol. 87. Magn. Britan. et Hibern, vol. i. p. 373. Baxter! GlofTarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 253. ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. fol. 71. Magn. Britan. et Hibern. vol. i, p. 372. Vol. I, Z faid I TO The POLITICAL SURVEY laid to have now fifty VelTels belonging to it '". At a very fmall Expcncc this River iiiight be made navigable up to Cockermouth, a Place at prelcnt of ibmc Note, exceedingly well fcated for fcveral Branches of the Woollen Manufac- ture, this River running through it, which would, if Boats came up thitlier, be of incvprellible Benetit to this Borough, and at the fame time would prove of no fmall Convcnicncy to the County in general". Near Morelhy, fup- pofed to be the Morbium of the Romans, is the Harbour of Parton, in favour of which there have been two A6ls of Parliament ". At the Mouth of the Pviver Irt, there were formerly Hopes of a Pearl Fifliery ""i but there might certainly be a Harbour made there, which would be of much more Coiife- quence. There are three Rivers, of which the Efk is the moft remarkable, and navigable feveral Miles by Vefiels of tolerable Burthen, that in falling into the Sea, funound Ravenglafs, and make it a Kind of PeninCula. This has now a few Ships, and is a Creek to Whitehaven, the Merchants refiding in which Town have fometimes built Ships there, becaufe Materials and La- bour are cheaper, but will in Time, pofTibly, become of more Confequenceq. We have many Etymologies of this remarkable Name ; but the moil: pro- bable is that of the judicious Baxter, who fays, that in the Britifli Language it is Yr avon glafs, that is, the Yellow River ■■. The River Dudden, which ftparates Cumberland from Lancafliire, is certainly capable of being rendered icrviceable to both Countless. To the South of this lies a great Bay, made by the Breach of the Sea, which fome learned Perfons are more inclined to think the Moricamba of Ptolemy than that before-mentioned, into which falls the River Ken, or Can, where, I think, there is a fmall Port, called Miln- thorp, the only one in the County of Weflmoreland. This River, notwith- flanding its Falls or Cataradls, might unqueflionably, with no very great Ex- pence, be much improved, and, confidering that the great manufadturing Town of Kendall, called alfo Kirkby Kendall, that is, the Church in the Vale of Can, to diftinguifli it from Kirkby Londfdale, or the Church in the Vale of Lon, or Lun in the fame County, ftands upon it, would be of no fmall Advantage to a very large Traft of Country ^. •" Gentleman's Magnzine, vol. xvlii. p. 4. " Leland's Itincrnry, vol. vii. p. 71. Camdeni Britannia, p. 672. Willis's Notitia Parliamen- taiia, vol. li. p. 211. " Baxter! Glolfarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 179. Stat. 4 Ann. cap. 18. §. i. 2 Geo. I. cap. 16. § I. P Magn. Britan. et Hibern. vol. i. p. 371, 372. Thefe Pearls arc bred in a particular Kind of MnfTels, and the common People call them Shell Berries. '• Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. fol. 68. Camdeni Britannia, p. 630. Gentleman's Magazine, vol. xviii. p. 292. ' Baxter! GlofTarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 164, 165. » Leland's Itip.crary, vol. v. fol. 85; vol. vii. fol. 71. Camdeni Britannia, p. 630. Speed's Britifh Empire rol. 76. ' Leland's I uierary, vol. vii. P. i. fol. 6i, 62. Lombard's Hiftorical and Top~giaphicial DicfHo- nary, p. 166. Camdeni Britannia, p. 624. It of GREAT BRITAIN. 171 It is more than probable, that the Importance of thefe Inftances may not, at the hrit Reading, be perfedly underftood, and therefore it is fit that I fliould explain it a little farther. In confultins; Authors, from whom it was reafonable to have expected the beft Account of thefe Coafts, we found them, but more efpecially the North- Weft, treated as Countries of fo little Hopes, as well as of fo little Confequence, that they are faid not to have been furveyed at all ". It was therefore high time to fet this Matter in a proper Light, and to fhew that there cannot well be a greater Miftake. The Counties of North- umberland, Cumberland, and Weftmoreland, with that fmall Part of Lanca- fliire called Fournefs Fells, contain an Extent of Land double to that of the Province of Holland '■''; but taking the People in this Country at their higheft Eftimation, they have never amounted to above One-eighth Part of the Inha- bitants of that Province •«. Yet it is univerlally allowed, that the Air of thefe Northern Countries is clear and wholfome, (o that the People in general enjoy good Health, and live to a great Age. The Country is indeed in many Places rocky and mountainous ; but, notwithftanding that, it produces a great deal of Corn, and Grals enough to nouriih Abundance of Cattle of a good Size, as well as a prodigious Quantity of Sheep 7. If we fhould allow one-third of the whole Country to be abfolutelv barren, there would be above a Million and a half of Acres of profitable Land left. The Inhabitants, in point of Parts, are very ingenious; in point of Morals, fober and frugal ^ in point of Indu- ftry, hardy, robuft, and indefatigable. The Woollen Manufafture was fet up in thefe Counties as foon as in any Part of England, and ftill flouriflies there in feme Degree 7; but the true Reafon why the Numbers of People are here fo thin, the Country fo little improved, and thefe Mountains, which thofe v/ho are the beft Judges confefs to be full of Metals of all Kinds, remain, in a great meafure, though not totalb', unwrought, is not becaufe Rivers are want- ing, but becaufe thofe Rivers have never been hitherto fo eft-ectually improved, or rendered navigable, as far as they might be a. This, whenever performed, would immediately bring their Manufaiftures to a quick Market, and, by making ic eafv for the Iiiliabitants to get a Livelihood on their native Soil, " Atlas Maritimiis et Commercialism p. 17. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 18. Salmon's New Sur- vey of England, vol. ii. p. 6^6. w Templeman's Survey, PI. i, il, vi. where he computes thefe Counties to contain four thoudind, arid the Province of Holland one thonfand eight hundred, fquare Miles. '^ The Penfionary De Witt computed the Inhabitants of Holland at two Millions and a half. Mr. Burrifn, in his Batavia illuftrata, puts them at three Millions. But Mr. Templeman taking the Me- dium, fixes them at two Millions. The People in thefe Counties are reckoned two hujidred and fifty t.hcufand Souls ; though this may be fomewhat (in my own Opinion) below the Truth. y See Speed, Camden, and the Additions to the Englifh Traiillation of the Biitannia ; as alfo Bourne's Hillory of Newcaftle ; and Robinfon's Natural Hiftory of Weftmoreland and Cumberland. ^ Stat. 13 Ric. cap. 10. ^ Robinfon's N.atural Hiftory of Weftmoreland and Cumberland. Cutler's Coafting Pilot. The New Survey of the North-Weft Coaft of England, in the eighteenth Volume of the Gentleman's Magazine. Z 2 contribute 172 The POLITICAL SURVEY contribute thereby to keep them at home. In proportion as the Number of People increafed, the Lands would be better cultivated, their Produce conlumed upon the Spot, and their Mines opened, in order to enable them to acquire what would then appear in their Conceptions greater Conveni- encies ^. Thus the Importance of what I have been fo ftrenuoufly recom- mending evidently appears ; and though it be true, that all the Skill and Labour of Man could never fo alter the Face of this Country as to render it a Paradisk, yet if there were a Million of People in it, which it could very comfortably maintain, they, by bringing to Light the hidden Trea- fures of their defpifed Mountains, would foon make it the Land of Ophir; and that, if we retledl on the Ellimation Wealth is in at prefent, would do full as well. As great and as evident as the Benefits refulting from navigable Rivers are, yet we find they have been often negledled through an indolent Ignorance, and ftill more frequently injured and impeded through the Self-intereft, Ma- lice, or Avarice, of Men ; and, where-ever this has been done, it ought to be repaired and guarded againft for the future. The City of York, in the Reign of Edward the Third, was looked upon as a Sea Port, and furniflied one Vefiel to his great Fleet, with nine Men ; and though it is not confidered in that Light now, yet, I prefume, it has ftill as good a Title, fince Vefiels of the Burthen of feventy Tons come up the Oufe, from the Humber, to this City, in confequence of many good Laws, fome of them very late ones, for preferving the Navigation of this River d ; which, as the Preambles of the old Statutes recite, has been often in very great Danger of being totally ruined, by Contri- vances for the Catching of Fi(h e j and it is to be hoped, and indeed hardly to be doubted, the Intereft of the whole County being concerned in the Preferva- tion of that Stream, that the public Advantage will ever take place, as it ought,, of private Views. This will be fully fufficient to thofe who are well acquainted, with this County; but my Subjecfl requires that I fliould make itlHU plainer. The River Darwent pafi^es by Malton, above which it is navigable, in confe- quence of a late Statute f". The Swale, from Richmond ; the Eure, from, Rippon and Boroughbridge ; the Wherfe from Wethcrby and Tadcafter ; the Aire from Leeds ; the Calder, from Wakefield gj and the Don, from Don- cafter and Rotheram''; all carry their Waters into the Bed of the Oufe, and '' Caradeni Britannia, p. 631. Hctoii's Account of Mines, and the great Benefit of them to this Nation, p. 153, 154. Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancafliire, &c. p. 82. <: Roll of the great Fleet of Edward the Third before Calice, extant in the King's great Ward- robe, tranfcribed into Hackluyt's Collertion of Voyages, vol. i. p. 118. •* Stat. 13 Geo. I. cap. 33. Drake's Hiftory of York, b. i. cap. 7. « Lcland's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 91. 23 Hen. VIII. cap. 18. Stat. I Ann. St. i. cap. 20. f « Stat. 10 & II W. III. cap. 8. ^ Stat. 12 Geo. I. cap. 38. 13 Geo. I. cap. 20. 6 Geo. II. cap. 9. §. i. travel of GREAT BRITAIN. 173 travel with that River into the Humber j whence the prodigious Importance of its Navigation becomes manifeft, though to exhaull: this Subjeft, and to give the Reader a comprehenfive View of the Value of the Trade carried on by thefe Rivers, and the Profits arifing from the Manufadures, upon which this Trade in a great meafure depends, and the Alteration that all this has made, in raifing furprizingly the Price of Lands in that moft noble and exten- five County, might make a confiderable Trcatife as ufeful and inftrudlivc, as curious and entertaining. But this general Idea being enough to fet in a true Point of Light, how the Improvement of a .Country neceffarily follows the Improvement of its Rivers, we proceed. The Uke Injuries have been done to the Rivers that form the Port of Southampton, and many Laws have been made for redrefling and putting the Fifl:ieries in them under proper Regulations'. In point of Trade, this Port has received equal Benefit, from the Favour, and Prejudice from the finifler Arts, of great Men. King Philip landed there when he came to efpoufe Queen Mary ^, and, out of Affedlion to the Place, procured them large and very advantageous Privileges; which were wrelled from them again by the Ambition and Avarice of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leiceiler, as has been before hinted ; and I mention it once more as a Caution againft all Influence of this Kind, which is utterly inconfiftent with the Views of a wife Govern- ment, and the Interefts of a free People. Nor will it be amifs to obferve,. that if we had Room, other Inftances of this Sort might be produced, par- ticularly the fpoiling the Port of Exeter by Hugh Courtney, a potent Earl of Devonlhire, in order to benefit the Town of Topfham, where he was Lord of the Manor'. But it is not barely the Influence of great Men that ought: to be guarded againft,. but even the felfifh Views of Bodies of Men, as appears from what has been already faid of the River Rother, the Navigation of which,, though of the utmoft Confequence to the Trade of two great Counties "', has been extremely prejudiced, in order to add a few Acres of Meadow Land to private Property. The public Neceflities, indeed, may well warrant the Sacrifice of any Conveniency; but, even then, the Milchief ought to be repaired as foon, and as efl-'edually, as poflible, and not left unattended to for Ages, as was the Cafe of the River Lea, or Lee, once navigable for Ships as. high as Hertford ", to which the Danes came by this River, in the Reign of » Stat, a Hen. VII. cap. 5 ; 14 and i 5. Hen. VIII. cap. 13. §. 2. " Lainbard's Topographical and Hiftorical Dictionary, p. 140. ' Izack's remarkable Antiquities of the City of Exeter, p. 27, 38, 40, 44. =" Leiandi, Comment, in cygneam Caniionem, p. 75. Lambard's Topographical and Hiftorical. Di^Lionary, p. 312. Magna Britannia et Hibarnia, vol. v. p. 500. " There is an entertaining Accoujit of this Ri\er in an old Treatife, entitled, " A Tale of two Swanncp, wherein is comprehended the Original and Increafe of the River Lee, commonly calltd Ware River: Together wkh the Antiquitie of fnndrie Places and Townes feated upon the fame,, PleaTrat to be read, and not altogether iinpio.'itable to be underffood, by W. Vallans, London,, 15^0, 40." Reprinted by Mr. Hsarne, in the fifth. Volr.me of Leland's Itiuerary. ICing^ 1 74 The POLITICAL SURVEY King Alfred, who having blocked them up in the Fortrefs which they haftily erefted there, deprived them of tlieir Ships, either by damming up the Stream, fo as to force it to flow over all the llat Country adjacent, as fume fay "", or by cutting three new Channels, as others report?. But in whatever Way it was done, the River was fpoiied, till within fomewhat more than a Century pad: ". Therk is another Circumftance in regard to Rivers, which ought not to be pafi'ed over in Silence, becaufe, though hitherto pradlifed in few Inftances, it may polhbly be found ufeful and imitable in others. The ancient Town of Beverley, in Yorklhire, derived to itfelf a very beneficial Trade by a Cut or Canal, commonly called Bevekley Bf.ck, of fometliing more than three Quarters of a Mile, into the River Hull s. At what Time this was made does not appear. It was regarded as a Work of Antiquity in the Reign of Henry tlie Eighth, when Vellcls of confiderable Burthen failed up through it from the Humbcr, taking their Cargoes on board, and unloading thofe Cargoes, at the Staiths of the rcfpeftive Traders to whom they were configned, and this to the no fmall Emolument of the Inhabitants of Beverley t. But through the Alteration of Times, and the Want of a prop^n- Fund, this Cut or Canal not only became in a manner ufelefs, but was in danger of becoming a Nufance" ; till, by an Act of Parliament, within our own Memory, it was cleanfed, made navigable again, and, in confequenceof this, the Trade of the Town reftored, not only to the Benefit of the F-'eople of this Place in particu- lar, but in general of the Country alfo in its Neighbourhood w. We have al- ready remarked forncthing of the fame Kind in relped: to the City of Chiche- ller, which has been equally fuccefsful s and the Precedent therefore de- ferves to be recommended. But where-ever this Ihall be found pradiicable, it will be alfo found expedient to provide Funds for the Support of fuch navigable ° Chronicon Saxoniiim, p. 96, 97. Floicnt. Wigorn. P Henr. Huntingt. Spelman's Life of Alfred, publirtied by T. Hearne, p. 88. Seidell's Notes on the twelfth Canto of Drayton s Polyolbion. 1 Drayton's Polyolbion, Canto 16, where we have the Complaint of the River Lee, for this In- jury, very pathetically told. r Chauncey's Hiftory of Hertfordlhire, p 3. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden. * Lambard's Topographical and Hidorical Didlionary, p. 28. Camdeni Britannia, p. 573. Drayton's Polyolbion, Song 28. ' Lel.md's Itinerary, vol. i. fol. 50 —53 ; voL vli. fol. 54. " Additions tojhe Englifh Tianllation of Camden's Britannia. Magna Britannia et Hibernia, vol. vi. p. 549. Brome's Travels over England, ^Votland, and Wales, p. 147. " Stat. 13 Geo. I. cap. 4. By vihich not only the necefTary Powers are granted for clcanfing and widening the Cur, but Tolls alfo are given for keeping Itinconftant Repair. " Stat. 27 Ellz. (ap. 2. §. 2. Magna Britannia et Hibernii, vol. v. p. 536. Brone's Travels •ver Eng'and, Scotland, and Wales, p. 271. Atlas Maritimuo et Commercialis, p. 11. Canals, of GREAT BRITAIN. 175 Canals, which are, in truth, a kind of artificial Rivers, as for the original Coft of making them; fince, like all other Works of Art, through the natural Indolence of Men, and their Inclination to enjoy the prefent Profit, and throw the Burthen on Pofterity, they will foon fall to Decay, and all the Advantages that were procured by, will fink with them. After all that has been laid in reference to augmenting the Number, and removing Obll:ruftions in any of our navigable Rivers, we will clofe this Part of our Subjed: with obferving, that fome Improvements may be made even in thofe that are in the bcft Condition, and, of confequencc, new Helps furniflied to their Commerce. The Tyne, though fo beautiful, and, in other refjxdls, fo commodious a River, as to afford a fafe Harbour for a thoufand Sail of large Ships }', yet has a Bar of Sand at the Mouth of it, on which there is not above two Fathom at Low Water, and about three and an half at High ; which renders it difficult and dangerous at the Entrance, more efpecially as there lie near it certain Rocks, called the Black Middens, which' add not a little to this Inconvenience ^. It is true, the Trinity-PIoul'e of Newcafile maintain Lights for the Diredlion of Vtffels; and the Seamen are fb expert, that fometimes feveral hundred Ships that lie waiting for a Wind, unmoor, and fail over the Bar, without the leafl Accident ■'. But, notwithflanding this, it would be an inexprefTible Advantage if, through the Exertion of Art, La- bour, and Expence, thele Impediments could be either wholly, or in a great meafure removed. We have before hinted that fomething is requifite to ren- der the Navigation of the Tees more fafe and convenient, which would be attended with very lignal Benefits, fince, in all Probability, Yarom, which was once a very flourifliing Place, might again revive; nor would this be lefs advantageous for Darlington, which is one of the greatefl Markets for the Linen Manufadlure in England ^. The rendering complete the Navigation of the Dee has been long expedled, feveral Laws have been pafled to encourage, and alfo to fadlitate, the Endea- vours of the Undertakers f, and there is at prefent good Reafon to hope, that, as it is now carried on, it will in Time, and that no long Time either, be crowned with Succefs. There was, in the Reign of King Charles the Second, an Act of Parliament pafled for improving the Navigation of the Medway, above the Town of Maidflone, in order to bring with greater Eale to the Koyal Yards, Ship Timber, Iron Ordnance, and other Naval Stores, from the Wealds ot SufTex and Kent clj and for explaining, amending, and carrying, of this y Atlas Marititnuset Commercialis, p. 5. i Bourn's Hiftoiy of Newcaftle, p. 178. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 7. " Magna Britannia et Hibernia, vol. iii. p. 608. Atlas Maritimiis ct Commercialis, p. 5. •' Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 6. Additions to the EiigHni Ttanflation of Camden's Biitaonia. .' Stat. 6 Geo. 11. cap. 30. «. 2 ; 26 Ceo. II. ^ This A6t of 16 & 17 of Charks II. appears to have bcca a private Aift. Law 1 76 Tlie POLITICAL SURVEY Law into Execution, there was another Statute, made almoft twenty Years ugo ; and indeed the Thing is of fuch great Confequence, that it ought to be kept as much as polhble in pubhc View, till it can be fully accomplifhed. In regard even to the River of Thames, there have been Sufpicions, that, through Want of Attention, the Bottom hath been fuffered to rife, and the Stream of C'ourfe to become Icfs deep *'. King Charles the Second, who was very intel- ligent in, and very attentive to Things of this Nature, is faid to have had two very exad Surveys made, one of the feverai Depths of the River below Bridge, which was executed by Sir Jonas Moore ; the other, of the Encroach- ments made upon it, by Mr. Collins, both very able Men :l ; which Surveys were probably lodged with the Brethren of Trinity Houfe. From the former of thcie it appeared, that, between the Reftoration and the Year 1676, the Bed of the River had rileu above four Feet '\ Tlie many Inconveniences that mufl follow from the Continuance of this Mifchief, even to fo noble a River as this is, may be eafily apprehended, and with far greater Facility prevented by timely Remedies, than they could be removed by any, when Experience comes •to give Teftimony of their bad Effedls '. We fee, therefore, in how many Refpedls the Rivers of South Britain ftill demand the Care, and of confequence, are capable of rewarding the Attention, of the prefent Age k, as well as they did thofe of our Anceftors ; and that there is no doubt to be made, the Bene- fits derived from them may be pufhcd much farther than at prefent, as well as many new ones added to their Number, by our Indullry and Perfeverance. The Kindnefs of Providence, in this plenteous Difpofition of ufeful and pleafant Rivers through the Kingdom of England, or South Britain, though, limply confidered, very confpicuous, is neverthelefs as remarkable tlirough the Principality of Wales, which, for its Extent, enjoys, in this refpeft, what- ever is capable of exciting a prudent Induftry, to improve, by Labour and Skill, the Bounties beftowed by Nature to the moft beneficial Purpofes. The County of Monmouth being anciently and naturally a Welch, though now reckoned anEnglifh County, we will begin with that, and fo pafs round from the Severn Sea, to what is called by Seamen the Water of Chefter, and with us, the Influx of the Dee. Both in their Origin Welch Streams, though South Britain enjoys them in their nobleft State, and is enriched by the commodious « The Title of this which was a public Statute, was, " An Aft to revive, explain, and amend, an Aft of the 16 5c 17 of Charles II.- entitled, An Aft for rendering the River Medway navigable through the Counties of Kent and SufTcx." * Harris's Hiftory of Kent, B. i. P. iii. p. 358. « Seethe Life of the Right Honourable Francis North, Lord Guilford, p. 2S9. *" The King, by his own Experiments, is faid to have found it fome Years before, rlfcn above three Feet, which probably produced thofe Surveys. ' Several Engines have been invented for cleanfing Rivers, and fome have been encouraged here by Parliament. '' Another, and very cogent Argument, is the great Eafe with which, on proper Application, Laws of this Kind arc now obtained. Ports, of GREAT BRITAIN. 177 Ports, formed by their Paffage into the Sea ; though, in doing this, tliofe Rivers look again u^ion the Land from which they fprung. The Wye, which the Natives call the Gwy, or Gouwy, in Latin Vaga, has its Source within a Mile of thofe of the Severn, in Montgomeryfliire ; and divid- ing Radnorfliire from Brccknockrtiire, pafles into Herefordlhire, and then enters Monmouthfliire, where it receives the Munnow, a little below Monmouth, and rolls with an augmented Stream to Chepftow, which in Saxon figniiies the Market, and two Miles below falls into the Severn Sea, after a Courfe of more than fifty Miles i. Chepftow, called by the Britons Caillewent, is a good Town, and has a confiderable inland Trade, a tolerable Port, in which the Tide rifes to an extraordinary Height. The Inhabitants being remarkably adlive and induflrious, draw to themfelves a large Share of Trade from the adjacent Counties, which abound in Corn and Provifions, and have a great Intercourfe, by the Diftribution and Exportation of what they thus receive, with Gloucelter and Briilol m. The Uiks, by the Natives Uyfc, in Latin Ifca, and Ifcelegia, rifing on the Weft Side of Brecknockfliire, runs a South-Eafi Courfe through that County and IVIonmouthihire ; and having wafbed Aber- gavenny, Ufke, and Carleon, at length turning dircftly South, reaches the Severn Sea below Newport, by the Britons named Y Caftelh Newydh, where the River Ebwith alfo difcharges its Waters, which together make a commodious Haven for Veflels of a moderate Size n. There are, befides thefe, at leaft five very confiderable Rivers that fall into the Sea on the Coaft of Monmouthlhire. The River Rhymny, or Rompney, as we find it commonly written, divides Monmouth from Glamorganfliire. Caerdiff, which the Britons call Caer. Dyv, or Caer Dydh, ftands a little above the Mouth of the River Tafl-', and has a tolerable Port, in which more Bufinefs is done than in any of the former, which, in the Cuftom Houfe Dialedl, are Creeks to this ". A little farther to ' Giraldi Cumbrenfis, Itinerarium Cambria', lib. ii. cip. 2. Leiand's Itinerary, vol. iv. fol. 176 a, V. 9, 10. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 68. Lambard's Topographical Diftiou- ary, p. 426. Drayton's Polyolbion, Song 4. Camdeni Britannia, London, 1607, p. 437. Cam- bria Triumphans, or Britain in its perfeft Luftre, fticwing the Origin and Antiquity of that illu- ftrious Nation ; the Succeffion of their Kings and Princes, from the firit to King Charles of happy Memory ; the Defcription of the Country ; the Hiilory of the ancient and modern Effate ; the IManner of the InveiUture of the Princes ; with the Coats of Arms of the Nobility ; by Percy Enderbie, London, 1661, Fol. p. 215. Rogers's Memoirs of Monmouthfhire, chap. i. 11 Leiand's Itinerary, vol. v. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 16. Rogers's Mem.olrs of Monmoutii- fliire, chap. i. " Leiand's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 7. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 74,75. Sir John Prife's Defcription of Wales, p. 20. Camdeni Britannia, p, 492. Enderbie's HiAory of Wales, p. 216. Rogers's Memoirs ofMonmoiuhfliire, chap, i and ii. " Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis Cambrias, p. 29. CamJcai Britannia, p. 497. Crouch's Complete View of the Britilh CuHoms, p. 3S3. Vol. L a a ' the ,78 The POLITICAL SURVEY the Weft, the Hluy falls into the Sea, near Pcnnarth, which is alio a Creek p. Cowbridge, in the Language of the Natives, Y vont baen, that is, the Stone Bridge, is a Place of fome Note, a few Miles above the Haven, made by the Thawe, which falls into the Sea between Eall Aberthawe and Weft Aber- thawe '1. Oginorc, perhaps for Eogmor, that is, Salmon-Water, is a River of confiderable Size and Coiirfe, which, before it falls into the Sea, is joined by the Ewenny r. The Avon, at no great Dillance, meets the Sea a very little below Aberavon s. Several Rivers uniting with the Neath, or, as the Natives call it, Nethe ; by Leland ftiled in Latin, Nidus, pafiing by the old Town of that Name, which of late begins once more to flouriih, form a little Maven at Briton Ferry t. The principal Place of Trade, however, in this County, is what by the Britons was called Aber Tawi, the Mouth of the River Tawi; by the Saxons, Swinefea, from Porpoifes, or Sea Hogs, common in thefe Parts ; and in our Days Swanfey, or Swanzy, from an ill-caught Sound, without any Meaning at all ; where Ships refort from different Parts -, and, on Account of Coal and Culm lent to Briftol, and its having a conftant Intercourfe with London, Buiincfs is very brilTc ". It is a Member of the Port of Caerdiff, and has fome Creeks belonging to it w. As foon as we proceed into Caermarthenfliire, or, as the Britons call it, Caermardynfliire, we meet with Llanclthy, at the Mouth of a little River, which afrbrds a tolerable Haven. The County Town, Caermardhyn, whidi Leland calls in Latin, Maridunum, is juftly efteemed the politeft Place in South Wales ; and is at the fame time celebrated for Induftry and Attention to Trade, lies on the Towy ; and Veftels of the Burthen of an hundred Tons come up to the Town, which is healthy, neat, and thriving x. We are affured by Speed, that in this County there are no lefs than twenty-eight Rivers and Rivulets wortliy of Notice y. In Penbrokefliire w^e meet with every thing fuitable to its ancient Britifh Name, implying that it is a maritime County ; and fo, without Diipute, it is, if there be one in the World. Of the Bay of Tenby, mention will be made '' Edvardi Luidii Advcrfaria, p. 3. Crouch's Complete View of the Britifh Cuftoms, p. 38-?. ^ Camdenl Britannia, p. 497. Sir John Prlfe's Defcription of Wales, p. 19. Lambard s Topographical and Hiflorical Diftionary, p. 78. »■ Edvardi Luidii Adverfaria, p. 4. Drayton's Polyolbion, Song 4. » Sir John Prife's Defcription of Wales, p. 19. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 75. ' Giraldi Cambrenfis, Itiuerarium Cambrix, lib. cap. 8. Lelandi, Genethliacou Eadverdi Prin- cipls Cambrite, p. 36. Lambard's Topographical Diftionary, p. 236. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. j6. Camdeni Britannia, p. 497, 498. " Giraid Cambriac Itinerar. Lelandi, Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis Cambria, p. 36. Lam- bard's Topographical Dictionary, p. 340. Camdeni Britannia, p. 500. * Crouch's Complete View of the Briti(h Cuftoms, p. 383. ' Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis Cambria-, voce, MiU-idumim. Lambard's Topographical Diiftionary, p. 57. Camdeni Britaunia. ' Cijtler's Coafting Pilot, p. 16. in of GREAT BRITAIN. 179 in Its proper Place. The Weflern Cledheu rifes in the midft of the Shire, and running South-EafI:, joins the Kollel, or, as it fliould be written, Cylhclh ; after which it continues its Courfe, and, with a copious Stream, vifits Haver- fordwefl, by the Britons called Hurlforth, which, though roughly feated, and built irregularly, on the Defcent of a Hill, is, neverthelefs, a fiiir and flourifh- ing Town, and for this Reafon made a County of itfelf, and daily increafing in domeftic Trade, and foreign Commerce z. It may not be amifs to remark (becaufe it is not commonly known), tliat this is on good Grounds held to have been the very Cradle of our Woollen Manu- fafture. We have two diftindl Accounts of the fettling of the Flemings in this Diftridl of Rofs, in Penbrokefliire. The one is, that efcaping from a fud- den Inundation of tlie Sea, which fwallowed up that Fait of Flanders in which they dwelt, Henry tlie Firft invited them over hither, and fent them to inhabit this Part of Wales. The other, which feems to be the more probable of the two, and related by a contemporary Hiftorian, is, that they came o\'er at differ- ent Times with the Conqueror, and that his Son, Henry the Firft, partly out of pique to the Earl of Flanders, and partly to make Court to the Englifli Nation, refolved to drive thefe Flemings, though they had ferved his Father well, out of England ; but was at lengtli prevailed upon by his Mother, Queen Matilda, to defift from this Defign, and to fix tliem here in Wales. It is agreed on all hands, that thefe Flemings were hearty Friends to the Englifli Intereft ; and our old Autliors unanimoudy concur in giving them an excellent Charafter. They fay, that they were hardy in the Field, indefatigable in improving their Lands, alTiduous in Trade, diligent in their Manufadures ; and that the fimc Spirit" which they difcovered in improving the Country during a Timeof Peace, theymanifefled in defending it when attacked by the Welch ; and their Wri- ters lay the fame thing, and that, from their Language and their Complexions, the Inhabitants of Rofs plainly lliewed themfelves to be a diftind: People, and not of the fame Race with the other Inhabitants of this County k Thence this River rolling on, meets with the Eaftern Cledheu, which rifing on the Defcent of Wrenny-vaur, or Wrenny-vair Hill, by a South- Weft Courfe blends its Waters with thofe of its Sifter River, and running firft South, and then South-Weft, rufli together through Milfordhaven, which Giraldus Ililes in Latin, Milverdicus Portus, into the hilh Sea h. This famous Port the ^ I.ehnd's Itinerary, vol. v. foL 28. LambarJ's Topographical Diiflionar}', p. 147. Harri- fon's Defcriptioii of Britain, p. 78. E. Liiidti Advcrfaria, p. 14. Sir John Priie's DciCiiption of Wales, p. 18. ' Giraldi Cambrenlls, Itinerar. Cambrix, lib. i. cap. il. Gulielm. Mahnfbur. lib. v. H. Lhuyd, Dcfcript. Britan. fol. 47. See alfo Doftor Powel'sNote on GiralJ's Account. Lambard's Topographical and Hiftorical Diclionaiy, p. 147. '' Drayton's Polyolbion, Song 5. Camdeni Britannia, p. 510, 51 1. Sir John Piife's Defcrip- tion of Wales, p. 18. A a 2 Britons i8o The POLITICAL SURVEY Britons called Abcrdoygledheu, which is as much as to fay, The Mouth of the two Swords (for Cledlieu ligniiics a Sword), thereby plainly and truly attributing it to thefe two Rivers. We arc told, that within its Bolbni there are five large Bays, thirteen good R.oads, and fixteen'fafe Creeks, in which, without a iMgurc, a thouland Ships of any Size may lie, and not difturb each other c. It is commonly allowed, nor indeed can tJie Truth of it be dilputcd, that the Haven of iVIilford is the moft capacious, the moll: commo- dious, and the mofl fecure Port, in the Britilh Ulands. But, even in this fingular and wonderfid Place, there are many Harbours that want Repair j and feme very ufeful Improvements might be made in odiers. As for Inftance, in Nangle Road, in Milfordhaven, at abcut half Flood, all Nangle Slutch is covered ; about the Middle of which Slutch, or Ooze, there lie a Parcel of draggling Stones, called the Oyfter Reck?, moft of them loofe, and about four Foot high, which render the Place very dangerous for Vefiels that are obliged to run in there when it blows too hard in the Road ; and the more fo, becaufe they do not appear at Low Water Nep-Tides, being Quarter-tide Stones. Thefe, and the Stones on Nangle Point, may be removed at the Expence of One hundred Pounds. Dale Road and Harbour is a ready Outlet for fmall Veffels, where they may ride in two or three Fathom at Low Water. The Pier, which lies now in Ruins, would be very ufeful if repaired. In the Time of Queen Elizabeth, before the Spaniil) Invafion, there were two Forts, begun at the Entrance of Milford, one' on each Side, as may be feen in Speed's Maps, called Nangle and Dale Block Houfes, but were never finifiied. The Situation of thefe Block Houfes was very ill chofen, fmce a Veffel being obliged to bring to, before (he is well in the Mouth of the Haven, may either drive afliore on the Rocks, and be loft, or at leaft mifs the Harbour. A fmall Fort might be built on the Stack, and another on Sandy Haven Point, which would command the Entrance of Milford Haven, and not be liable to the former Objedion, or in any Degree prejudice our own Shipping. Pennarmouth, is tlie Opening of that Branch of the Haven upon which Penbroke Town lies, where the Cuftom Houfe of Milford is kept. The Entrance or Breadth between Rock and Rock, is but Two hundred Yards at High Water, and One hundred and twelve Yards at Low Water, and from nine to twelve Foot deep. The Navigation up this River to Penbroke Town is much impeded, by tlie Rubbifh of the Limeftone Quar- ries b>eing thrown into the River j which ought to be prevented, or the Place, in Procefs of Time, will be flopped up. Within Pennarmouth a Dock might be made, which would contain all the Veffels in England, and which would bcj perhaps, the greateft Thing in the whole World of that Kind. "^ Harrifon's Defcriptioa of Biitain, p. 78. Camdeni Britannia, p. 51Q. Cutler's Coafling Piiot, p. 1 6. The of GREAT BRITAIN. i8i The Carrs form a Ridge of rocky Ground, that runs almofl crofs Milford- haven, from Paterchurch, towards Llanftadvvell, where it makes the Channel narrow and difficult for Strangers to follow ; and as it doth not appear at Low Water Nep-tides, it renders the Place more hazardous. A Pier of Stones might be made upon that Ridge, which would make to the Eaftward of it a Harbour not to be equalled in Great Britain. Nayland is the Place where Sugars from Ireland are difcharged, and pay the Englifli Duty at Penbroke ; and here Woollen Yarn from Ireland was imported, when Milfordhaven was one of the Ports allowed by A(ft of Parliament, but now all are open. At this Place there is alfo a Salt Refinery, which fupplies the whole Country. Here might be made a Dock a Mile and a Quarter in Length, and Veflels might lie at the Dock Head in four, fix, or eight, Fathom Water. Laurenny is a Creek where large Ships take in Coal and Culm, which are brought them in Baro-es from Creflwell, and they may lie here fafe in three Fathom at Low Water ; but the Place will be inevitably fpoiled in a few Years, unlefs Care is taken to prevent Veflels throwing their Ballads out in the Channel. Blacktar Key, Lanllaipping, Hook, Little Milford, Blackhill Key, &c. are alfo Creeks hiLrher up in Milfordhaven, where fmall Velfels load Coal, Culm, and Corn d. This maridme County affords us two more fine Rivers. The firft of tiiefe is the Gwyne, which falls into the Sea below Fifcard, by the Inhabitants called Abergwayne, where a fmall dry Harbour might be made for the Fifliery, and other Velfels, by repairing the upper Pier, and extending it twenty Yards, at the Charge of perhaps two or three hundred Pounds. But a very excel- lent Road might be made, by filling up the Sound between the Rocks called the Cow and Calf, and the Shore; the Expence would not be above five thoufand Pounds, there being Plenty of large loofe Stones near at hand. The other is the Newerne, which falls into the Sea at Newport, named by the Bri- tons, Trafdraeth, in Latin, Neveria. This was formerly a very fafe Port; at prefent it is jufl the contrary, from the Rivers being drove to the Rocks on the South Side. There are many old Piles to be feen at Low Water Mark, where the Bar has formerly been, and where it Hill ought to be, which by drawing Porcupines, that is, large Rollers armed with Iron Spiked, towed by Boats over the Sand Bank, which might be done, would reduce the River into its old Channel, and reflore the Port e. The County of Penbroke abounds in many ufeful Commodities,- parti- cularly in great Quantities of that Sort of Coal called Stone Coal, the fmall Pieces of which are fliied Culm, which is very uieful in drying Malt, and is the cheapeft and beff Firing in the World for Hot-houfes or Garden d Stat. xxvi. Geo. II. Morris's Obfervations on the Harbours in Wales, p. 14,1 5. ' Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis CambrisE, p. 36. Hanifon's Defciipiiorftif Erirsin, p. 79. Camdeni Britannia, p. 518. Sir John Prifes Defcriptlon of Wales, p. I7- Morris's Obfervations on the ILubours ia Wales, p. 1 2, 1 3. Stoves, ,82 The POLITICAL SURVEY Stoves, burning long with a bright red Colour, and with very little Flame or Smoak, affording at the fame time a ftrong and equal Heat. There is alfo near Newport a good Quarry of Slate. In the Sea Cliffs, about Milfordhaven, appears Veins of Copper Ore, of grey and purple, which are commonly very rich, and alfo of the yellow or fulphurous Kind. Limeftone is in fuch plenty, tliat the Inhabitants ufe great Quantities in the Improvement of their arable Land, which produces Wheat, Barley, Oats, and Rye, fo that they export about Twenty-five thoufand Quarters yearly, and poflibly as many Chaldrons of Coal. At Milfordhaven there are excellent Oyfters, which are exported to Hol- land, and other Places; and on the Porgus Bank, which lies about two Leagues South-Weft of St. Anne's Light-houfes, Turbot and Cod were for- merly taken in vaft Quantities, and may be ffill taken, as I was informed by a very worthy Gentleman of this Country, who had a Seat near the Sea Coaft ^ The Tyvye feparates Penbroke from Cardiganfliire. This River flowing from a Lake on the Eaft Side of the County, after running a South-Welt Courfe of between thirty and forty Miles, rolls into the Irifli Sea two Miles below Cardigan, called from thence by the Britons, Aberteivi ; to which it yields a good, and, on account of the valuable Lead Mines in this Country, a well frequented Haven. The Rheidiol is another copious Stream, iflliing out of that great Storehoufe of Waters, Plinillimon Hill, riling within a Mile of the Wye, and within thrice that Diftance of the Severn's Source. After a moderate Progrefs to the South-Weft, having the Yftwyth running the fame Courie, at no great Diftance, they fall, yet without joining, fo near toge- ther into the Sea, as to afford, or at leaft to have once afforded, a tolerable Haven to Aberyftwyth, which, though ftanding on the former of thofe Rivers, takes its Name from the latter, and is ftiU a Port of fome little Trade, but at the fame time if a fmall Expence was beftowed, capable of much more than it has g. I will take the Liberty, therefore, of adding here fome farther Account of this, at prefent, almoft ufelefs Haven, and the Means that have been propofed for reftoring it. There is in the Neighbourhood, as we ihall prefently fee, one of the greateft Fiftieries in Wales ; but there is at leaft One-half of the Seafon commonly loft for want of a good Harbour; which alfo would be very convenient in this Bay for the fake of fuch of our Shipping as are many times drove in here by Strefs of Weather, and through the Defefts and Decay of this Port, are too commonly either ftranded or loft. Aberyftwyth Bar is often choaked up, fo that the fmalleft V^eilel cannot either pafs or repafs ; and all the Veffels in the Harbour are obliged to lie there till ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 74. Cimdeni Britannia, p. 510. Speed's Britifi-i Empire, fol. loi. Mr. Edward Lliwyd's Annotations on the Englifh Tranllation of Camden. Morris's Obfervatipns on the Harbours in Wales, p. 16. 8 Leifnd's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 79, 80. Harrifon's Defcrlption of Britain, p. 79. Drn]'- ton's Polyolbion, Song 6. Enderbie's Hiftoiy of Wales, p. 216. Baxter! GlofFarium Antiqui- tatuoi Britancicaruin, p. 220. Crouch's Complete View of the Britifli Cufioms, p. 384. 3 a Land- of GREAT BRIT A IN. 183 a Land-Flood from the Rivers Rheldiol and YlT:\vith fet them at Libert)'. A Pier Head of Timber carried into the Sea on the VV^eft Side of the River, would, probably keep it within its Bounds. But if a PalTage was cut for the River Rheidiol through the Beach, under, or near, the Caftle, where it feems to have been in ancient Times, it would make here a very convenient Harbour ; but this muft be aUb defended by a wooden Pier on the Weft Side of the Entrance. At the VVeege, or, as the true Britilh Name is, Wig, on the North Side of the Town, a Pier of Stones might be run out on the Ridge of Rocks there, and a good Harbour made, at the Expence of about Four thoufand Pounds. The River Reidiol may be brought there with verj' fmall Chaige, to fill a Bafon for Back Water h. The Herring Fifliery here is in moft Years fo exceedingly abundant, that a thoufand Barrels have been taken in one Night ; and it is computed that thev fend, even to the Middle Counties of England, a Quantity of Herrings frefo, equal to what they cure. Their Fifliing begins in September, or a- little earlier, and lafts three or four Months. During this Seafon they have ilich a Glut of Cod, Pollack Whiting, common Whiting, Ray, and other Filli, that they fet but httle Value upon them. Bottlenofes and Porpoifes fometimes run on Shore in Shoals ; and blue Sharks are frequently caught upon the Coaft ; from all which they make confiderable Quantities of Oil. About one hundred fmall Veffels are employed in this Fifliing Trade, as long as the Seafon lafts, the remaining Part of the Year, either in the Coaft or in the Irifti Trade. There are alfo a few larger Veffels that carry Lead Ore, Tim- ber, and Bark ; all which is nothing in comparifon of what could be done, if the Port was once rendered, as it might be, fafe and commodious i. The Dov/y divides Cardigan from Merionethfliire, becoming thereby the Boundary between South and North Wales, and is a River of long Courfe, falling into the Irifti Sea below Aberdowy, which is a Member of Milford- haven, and though like the reft, from the Channel of the River being altered much decayed, and grown far lefs convenient than it once was, yet is it ftil]> a Place of fome Note in the Lifh, Fifliing and Coafting, Trade k. But, before we proceed farther, it will be proper to look back a little upon Cardiganftiire, in order to obferve how probable it is, that if fome of thefe Ports v.'ere thoroughly repaired, they vvould foon attradl a Trade, poflibly far greater than could be expected. For it it is the fame with refpe(ft to the Iniprovement * Morris's Obfervations on the Harbours in Wales, p. lo. ' Speed's Britilh Empire, fol. loi. Mr. Edward Lhwyd's Annotations on the EngHlh Tranf- lation of the Britannia Atlas Maritimus, p. 9, 10. Cutler's CoaI\ing Pilot, p. 17. Morris's Obftr- vations on the Harbours in Wales, p. lo. k Sir John Prife's Defcription of Wales, p. 16. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 80. Baxteri GlofTarium Antiquitatum Britanuicarum, p. 105, 106. Croudi's Complete View of tJie Eritilh Cuftoms, p. 384, of 1 «4 The POLITICAL SURVEY of Countries as to the raifing of private Eftates, the firft Steps are always tlie hardcft ; and as he who is once worth Money may eafily become rich, fo when a little foreign Commerce comes to be added to Fifliing and the Coaft Trade, the Progrefs is furprifingly quick, and the Succefs amazingly great. We iiave feen that a profperous Herring Fifliery might be eafily cftabliflied j we have heard of different Kinds of Copper Ore, and of Coal : But the Mountains, and even the Marflies, of Cardigan, retain in their Bowels Mine- rals of flill greater Value, which, if they had good Roads to bring them by, and convenient Havens to bring them to, would be certainly wrought, as in Times pail, with at leaft as great, if not greater Profit. It has been believed, that both the Romans and the Saxons were acquainted with the Mine at Confumblock. In fucceeding Ages there were Attempts to work it made by the Patentees from the Crown. In Queen Elizabeth's Reign ibme Germans began frcih Refearches ; and a Man of great Reputa- tion, and in high Favour with her, one Mr. Smith, who, from his taking the Cuiloms to farm, has been known to Pofterity by the Name of Cuftomer Smith, wrought thefe Mines with Effedt ; and, at a great Expcnce, fent the Silver that was dravv'n out of them to the Tower of London to be coined. After him came the famous Sir Hugh Middleton, who farmed them from the Society for Royal Mines, for an annual Rent of Four hundred Pounds. He was fo fortunate as to make Two thoufand Pounds a Month, and acquired here, in a fliort Space, the greateft Part of that vail: Wealth which he buried in the Projedt for bringing the New River to London. Upon his Demife Sir Francis Godolphin, and Thomas BuHiel, Efq; undertook the working of thefe Mines ; and King Charles the Firfl: gave them Leave to fet up a Mint at Aberyftwyth, where they coined Shillings and Half Crowns marked with tlie Ofcrich Feathers, which is the Device of the Prince of Wales. After the Deceafe of Sir Francis Godolphin, Mr. Buflicl went on, and with fuch Suc- cefs, that, in return for the great Favours conferred upon him by that Monarch, who appointed him Governor of the We of Lundy to fecure his Shipping ; made him a Prefent of the Duty arifing from the Lead of his own Mines, and let him the Duties upon all other Lead Mines to farm, to encourage the Undertaking, he railed a Regiment of Horfe for his Majefty's Service, at his own Expence, furnifhed Clothing for his whole Army, and lent him Forty thoufand Pounds. This Gentleman finking at length in the general Ruin, thefe Mines were buried under Water, thou"^h not in Oblivion. The Mine Adventurers wrought them next, and wrought them to Profit as long as they could agree. Since that Period, fome private Adventurers have wrought with fmaller Profit, becaufe they had a fmaller Stock. Yet thefe are far from being the only Mines, or perhaps the richert Mines, in this County j though, at fome Seafons, they have yielded iorty-four Ounces of fine Silver, out of eveiy Tun of Metal made from this Ore. Without queftion, if a large Capital were employed, and the Works honeftly managed, immenfe Sunis mi2:ht of GREAT BRITAIN. 185 might yet be raifed from the Mines in Cardiganfliire ; and nothing fb likely to bring this to pafs, as the fpeedy and eifeftual Amendment of the Ports in the Manner which has been recommended '. Merioneth is the firfl maritime County in North Wales ; and thou8:h very deficient in Ports, has many fine Rivers very capable of Improvement. To fay nothing of the Drauydh and the Dee; the Avon, runs through the n^ik of it, and falls into the Sea at Barmouth. The Mountains are fo high aboiit this fmall Harbour, that no Land Marks would be of any Ufe in foggy Weather ; and therefore two Buoys are much wanted, to be placed one upon each Bar. In all the Defcriptions we have of this Principality, we find the Shire of Merio- neth reprefented as the moft unpleafant, the moil unprofitable, and the moft unimprovable. If it be fo, it is a good Inflance of the Truth of our gene- ral Do<3:rine, that where there are few navigable Rivers, or, which with refped: to immediate Effedls is all one, where Rivers are neglefted and defpifed, tlie Country mufl: remain uncultivated, and of courfe the Inhabitants poor, and without the Necefi'aries of Life j for certainly, if this was not the Cafe, Merionethfliire, notwithflanding the Sharpnefs of its Air, and the Height of its Mountains, is very far from being a delpicable Country. There were for- merly feveral Mines wrought with confiderable Profit ; there are indifputable Marks of Iron, Lead, and Copper Mines, well iituated, that is, at no great Dillance from Rivers, that were never wrought at all. The Country abounds with black Cattle and Sheep ; and thole Mountains fo much contemned, beiides their invilible Riches, bear great Quantities of good Timber ; which, with Butter, Cheefe, and Bark, make the principal Commodities that are exported from hence. There is indeed a Woollen Manufadure of white Cloth and Stockings, which, from their having but one Market, was for a long time but of little Ufe to the Inhabitants, but by their Perfeverap.ee ib become profitable. On the Coall they have fome Years an advantageous Herrin^ Fiihery; but at all Times they have Abundance of Salmon, Cod, Pollack, Mullet, Sand Eels, and moft Kinds of flat Fifti. Upon the whole, here are all the NeceiTaries of Life in the utmoft Plenty ; the Materials for a Variety of Manufadlures ; Labour cheap ; the Harbour of Barmouth, that might be rendered tolerable; that of Aberdovey, where, by rolling the South Bar to bring the River into its old Channel, and eredting a Pier to run South from Bryn v Celwydd, which would keep the South Bar always open, there might be an excellent Haven made ; and then what would there be wanting to render this Country rich and populous ? Induftry and Attention only ». Vol. I. B b Carnar- ' Mr. Edward Lhwyd's Additions to the Englifh Tranr.ritioii of Camden. Doctor Fuller's Worthies in Wales, p. 3, 4. Sir John Pettus's fodins Regales, p. 33. 34. Mr. Waller's Maps and Accounts of the Mines in Cardiganftiire, p. S. Shier's fecond Familiar Difcourfe concerning the Mine Adventure, p. 50. " Giraldi Itinerarium Cambria, lib. ii. cap 5. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 82. Cam- deni Britannia, p. 530. Sir Johu Trifc's Defcription of Wales, p. 51. King's Vale Royal of EaglanJ, i86 The POLITICAL SURVEY Carnarvonshire, by the Natives called Sir Cacr ar von, that Is, the Diftrift of the City over-againfl Mona, from its chief Town, lies next; and that Part of it which projcds into the Sea, and feems to anfwer the like pro- jeding Part of Penbrokefhire, is both fertile and plealant ". There are, as we have before obferved, Abundance of Lakes in this County, which, never- thelefs, has many Rivers. Pwlhcly, commonly called Pullhely, that is, the Salt Pool, lies between the Earch and another fmall River, where, with a third called the Gerck, they all pour their Waters into the Sea, and thereby make a fafe and fpacious Port ; which, however, is rather fitted, than famous, for Trade ^. The County Town is plcafantly fituated between two fmall Rivers, of which one is the Sejont, on which flood the ancient Scgontium, out of the Ruins of which role Carnarvon, built and fortified by Edward the Firft ; which being thus feated, has a very commodious Haven, though impeded by a Bar ; but the Tides rife fo high here, that, with proper Attention, Ships almoft of any Size may either go in or out in great Safety p. The FalTage through the River Mcnai, which is, (Iridly fpeaking, the Strait between the Continent and the Illand of Anglefey, is not a little dan- gerous, from the Oppofition of Rocks and Iflands, and the Narrownefs of the Channel, which occalion great Overfalls, violent Currents, and a kind of Whii 1- pools, while the Tide of Flood or of Ebb runs ftrong. Some have thought that it is not impofl'ible to conftrudl a Bridge to join the two Counties ; but what is more wanted, and certainly pradtlcable, at the Expence of Two or Three thouland Pounds, is to make a better Pallage for Ships ; which would be of infinite Service to the Trade of Chefliire, Lancafhire, Cumberland, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, as is well known to the Inhabitants of thefe maritime Ports. The Conwy, in the Language of the Natives Kenwy, that is, the great River, which divides this County from that of Denbigh, has fcarce its Equal. For, rifing out of a Lake where the three Shires of Carnarvon, Den- bigh, and Merioneth meet, it runs with a North- Weft Courfe, receiving in the fliort Space of twelve Miles more than as many Rivers j fo that at Aberconwy, ■ where it difcharges its Waters into the Irilh Sea, it is a full Mile broad, and capable of bringing Ships of almoft any Size up to that pleafant and beautiful Town ; which, however, has nothing to boaft, but that it may be made as England, P. i. p. 20. Leigh's Natural Hiftory of Lancafliire, Chefhire, &c. p. 22. Doftor Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 145. BaxteriGlofTarium Aaiiquitatum Britanuicarum, p. 106. Morris's Obfervations on the Harbours in Wales, p. 9. " Girakli Itinerarium Cambrics, lib. ii. cap. 6. Leland's Itinerary, vol. v. p. 47, 48. Sir John Prife's Dcfcription, p. 9. " Camdtni Britannia, p. 534. Cutler's Coalling Pilot, p. 17. Crouch's Complete View of the Britifh Cuftoms, p. 383. P Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi PrincipisCambrise, p. 26. Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 49. Camdeni Britannia, p. 535. Speed's Britilh Empire, fol. 123. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 17. Crouch's Complete View of the Britilh Cuftoms, p. 383. Morris's Obfervations ou the Harbours ia Wales, p. 6. fine of GREAT BRITAIN. 187 fine a Place, and as commodious an Haven, as any on this Side the liland q. At prcfcnt the Port is as mucli fpolled, and is as far decayed as it can be, but yet might be eafily recovered by rolling the Sand, and piling the Entrance of the old Bar j but, till this is done, a Buoy on the prefent Bar, which would coft a Trifle, is abfolutely neceflary. Thus, as we have often obferved, the Gifts of Nature are permanent, and refill furprizingly even the word Ufage. We learn from the Itinerary of Antoninus, that the Romans had a Town here called Conovium, as the River was Conovius ; but we cannot fay that this was precifely the fame, for that feems rather to have been where now there is a fmall Village, called Caerhyn, that is, the old City. Edward the Firfi:, vAio raifed Aberconway out of the Ruins of Conovium (though at fome Difi:ance), furrounded it with a fair Stone Wall, intending that the Grandeur of his new Strudlure fiiould, in fome meafure, anfwer to the Beauty of its Situation. It is true, that a great Part of Carnarvonfiiire is a rugged, and not over fruitful Count' y ; but tlie Sea Coafi: is plain, and very pleafant. In relpeilt to the Fertility of the whole, fomething may be collefled from the little Trade that is left to this Port, which, with Timber and Oak Bark, confifis chiefly of Corn, of which about Fifteen hundred Quarters are exported annually. There was, Ibme Years ago, a Pearl Fifliery here, but, as in other Places, it was not found to merit Attention, though Pearl Muflels are ftill plenty. There was alfo, formerly, a noble Copper Mine at Llandudno, near this Harbour, ■which now lies under Water ; but it might, without much Difficulty, be recovered by proper Engines, until a great Level be brought up, tor which the Place is well fituated. Mine Works lying thus on the Sea Side, are, upon many Accounts, much preferable to thofe in the inland Parts of a Country, for Reafons fo very obvious, that they need not be mentioned r. The Shire of Denbigh contains little to the Point we have in View ; lor, notwithflanding three Rivers run within the Bounds of this County into the Sea, yet they procure not fo much as one Port ; and though the clear and gentle Clwyd riles in Denbighfliire, and bellows its Name on one of the finell Vallies in Europe, and the Elwy has its Source in this Shire likewife, yet they both pafs on to the next County ; and the Dee too only crcfles it in its Pafiage, and continues its Courfe ; fo that, though this be in general Elli- mation a maritime County, it cannot boaft fo much as of a fingle Haven ; "5 Giraldi Itinerarium Catnbrire, lib. ii. cap. 8. Leiandi Genethliacon Eudverdi Principis Cain- briae, p. 30. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 8r. Camdeni Britannia, p. 535. Enderbie's Hiflory of Wales, p. 214. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 17. Crouch's Complete View of the Eritifh Cuftoms, p. 383. Baxteri Glofftrium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 86, 87. Morris's Obfervations on the Harbours in Wales, p. i. ' Leiandi Geneth'iacon Eadverdi Principis Cambriae, p. 16, 30. Lambnrd's Hiflorical and Topographical Dictionary, p. 71. Camdeni Britannia, p. 535. Speed's Britiih Empire, foi. 123, Baxteri Glodarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 86, 87. Cutler's CouAiug Pilot, p. 17. Morris's Obfervations on the Harbours in Wales, p. 2 . B b J and ,88 The POLITICAL SURVEY and yet fomc Parts of it arc very fertile, and others are exceedingly plea- fa nt *. Flintshire is nearly in the fame Condition. The Clwyd paffing by St. Alaph, and having received many leflcr Streams, rolls into the Irilh Sea, without making any Port. Flint has indeed the Benefit of a little River, which falls there into the Firth, or Eftiiary of the Dee, and from thence an Haven, but of no Confequence ; fo that the Trade of this County, which, from its Coal and Lead Mines, both very rich, and fome Manufadlures in Wrex- ham, cftecmed to be the largeft Town in North Wales, mufi: be by no- means dcfpicable, is carried on by the Dee, which is the Eaft Boundary of this Shire, and fo centers in Chefter f. The Defis;n of this fuccinft Survey of the Rivers and Havens of Wales,. is to Ibew its natural Capacity for a much greater domefllc Trade, and, beyond' all Comparifon, a larger Proportion of foreign Commerce, than the Inhabit- ants of this valuable Country at prefent poflefs, or, in the vulgar Apprehen- fion, are ever likely to poflefs. The Objeftions that are commonly raifed* from the Ruggednefs of the Soil, the Sharpnefs of the Air, and the Want of a Variety of Atlvantages which other Parts of the Britifh Iflands enjoy, are veiy trivial and inconclufive, v/hen compared with the many, and thofe too very valuable Benefits that may be drawn from thefe natural Privileges, if they were once maturely confidered, and, in confequence of that, thoroughly underfliood. For if there be fuch Things as firft Principles in Policy, it is fimply impoflible that, in a Country where there are Half a Million of Peo- ple, under a free Government, and above ten Acres of Land to every Head, v/ith Two hundred and thirty Rivers and Rivulets, and many good Ports,, they fliould be otherwife than eafy, opulent, and in full Poffeflion of ail the Conveniencies of Life, except through fome Miftakes in their own Condudl. These Miftakes being attended with Effed:s fo very confpicuous, as the prefent Condition of the common People in Wales, cannot lie mighty deep, fo as to efcape the Penetration of any Perfon who has been accuftomed to think on thefe Subjeds at all, holds it his Duty to think on tliem attentively, and will allow himfelf to think with Freedom. It feems to be no judicious Oeco- nomy here, or indeed any-where elfe, for the People of the Country to live hardly, and to fare poorly, that they may raife Provifions of difl^erent Kinds for Exportation ; for Countries, as well as Lands, are beft improved by Ipend- ing upon them their own Produce. That this is not bare Reafoning, or a ' Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis Cambritc, p. 37- Harrifon's Defcription of Bri- tain, p. 8i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 546. Endcrbie's Hiftory of Wales, p. 214. Speed's Bri- tifli Empire, fol. 1 19. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. ' Sir Jolin Prife's Defcription of Wales, p. 10, it. Camdeni Britannia, p. 55a. Speed's Britifh Empire, fol. 121. Doiftor Cjiildrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 153. probable of GREAT BRITAIN. i8g probable Conjedlure only, will appear from hence, that Multitudes of the meaner Sort of People diiliking the Hardfhips they fuifer, leave their Coun- try, in order to live better, by their Labour and Induftry, elfewhere. It is therefore felf-evident, that if proper Employment were found at home to enable them to purchafe, they would willingly remain, and confume a great Part of thofe Provifions that are now exported. This would anfwer much better, that is, would produce a larger Profit than can be produced by thus exporting them. It is true, there are already feveral Manufaftures in Wales, but there might be many more. Thofe Manufaftures, more efpecially of late Years, increafe, but they increafe very flowly ; and the Reafon of this is alfo evident ; they have not Markets enough for thofe Manufadures, which confequently do not fetch the Price they ought ; moft of thofe Markets are not in tlais Principality, and confequently the Welch have the Labour, and Strangers have the Profit. It has been long ago obferved, even by a Writer u of their own Nation, that the Inhabitants of this Country, from falfe Notions of Gentility, are little inclined to breed their Children to manual, which they account froni thence to be fervile Occupations ; but chufe rather to o-ive them a flender Education, and, as their Phrafe is, to fend them abroad to feek their Fortune. Now what is this, but to fend them to be Servants in other Places, to People who are wifer, in this refpeft, than themfelves, and futfering them, through a falfe Pride, to become the Inftruments of procuring Plenty to other Countries, which, with an equal, perhaps with a lefs Degree of Toil, they might procure at home ? It is alio faid, and perhaps not without fome Degree of Truth, that though the moft hofpitable Nation upon Earth to Strangers, yet they do not love to fee them fettle and thrive amongll theni j from a narrow, and at the fame time a falfe Notion, that whatever Wealth is acquired amongll, muft be taken from them ; whereas a Stranger's Profperity can never happen, but with great Advantage to themfelves. If therefore thefe Evils were corredled, and tlieir Thoughts in general red:ified, enlarged, and turned to the Cultivation and Improvement of their native Soil, it would quickly repay all their Pains. I am very fenfible, that in fuggelting thefe Hints, I have undertaken a very invidious Oflice. But to what End i* The rendering Service to a generous, honeft, well-meaning People, who have been fo long, and fo very much hurt, by little Prejudices, that it is high Time they were removed. It is very pofiible, I may not make my Court to them by thefe Obfervations, nor indeed have I this at all in View ; for I fpeak it with great Sincerity of Heart, I had rather be of real Service to one Welch Village, than receive the Applaufe of this whole liland. Some perhaps may lay, that if I had known the Country and the People better, I fhould have been con- vinced that thefe are but chimerical Notions, plaufible in themlelves, but not, ^t leafl not here, reducible to Pradice ; that the Inhabitants are much better " Commentarioli Britannicse Difcriptionis Fragmeutura, AuftoreHurafiedo LhuyJ,. Denbvg- hienfe, Cambro Britatnao. Colon. Agrip. 1572, p. 50. 3 Jutiges, igo The POLITICAL SURVEY Judges, than any Stranger poffibly can be, of the Nature of their own Soil, and the fitted Methods for improving it; and that, after all, large Cities, numerous Towns, populous Villages, navigable Rivers, and Ports abounding with Bufinefs and Trade, may be eafily eftablifhed in fome Countries, while at the fame time it would be little fliort of Madnefs to think of raifing them in others j and that therefore it is to no Purpofe to publifli Vifions that can never come to pafs, or to wafte one's Thoughts and Time, how honeft foever one's Intentions may be, in reafoning to no End, and propagating fme-fpun Notions tliat will do no Good. But to meet common Apprehenfion with its mod conclufive Anfwer, Mat- ter of Fadt. This Country has been heretofore in a much better Condition than it is, and therefore it may be fo again. It was already gone to Decay when vifited by Giraldus ; funk lower (till when viewed by the induflrious Leland ; and in a much worfe State when Camden pafTed through it. Yet they all agree in acknowledging the Remains of Palaces, Cities, and Fortreffes, which had been eredted in, and continued Monuments of, better Times. Caerphilly Caflle, in Glamorganfliire, is now nothing more than an Heap of Ruins ; yet thofe Ruins fiiew that there was a Time when it was not infe- rior, in any refpeft, to that of Windfor w. Here are the Veftigia of Cities, Towns, Caftles, which Time has not only devoured, but almoft digefled. Some of the Places, that are ftill fubfifting, are but Shadows of what they were. St. David's, which was once the metropolitan See of Wales, and ftill remains a Biflioprick, ha"s a Cathedral half in Duft, few Houfes, and is, though a City, without a Market «. Bangor, diflinguiflied formerly by the Epithet of Great, is in a little, and but a little, better Condition >'. Llandaff, fuppofed to be the firft Place of Chrifhan Worfliip in our Ifle, is mean, and mar- ketlefs J and would be ftill in a worfe State, if it was not for a fmall Matter of Trade t-. Flint has a Caflle and a Haven, with the Name of a County Town, but no Market a. There are the Remains of feveral ancient Roads b, which prove that Things were once much better than they now are in this Country j and why may they not be fo again .'' ^ Camden! Britannia, p. 496. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. Baxteri Glofla- rium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 56. " Lambard's Topographical and Hlfiorical Diftionary, p. 87. GodwinI de Prsefulibus Anglise Commentarius, p. 574, 575. Camdeni Britannia, p. 510. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. 1 Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis Cambriac, p. 26. Camdeni Britannia, p. 535. Speed's Britilh Empire, fol. 123. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. ^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 497. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. » Lambard's Topographical and Hiftorical Diftionary, p. 121. Camdeni Britannia, p. 532. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. * Camdeoi Britannia, p. 530. Annotations on, and Additions to Camden. If of GREAT BRITAIN. 191 If It be demanded, whence thefe Hopes arife ? let it be remembered, that Wales is very happily diverfified ; for though there may be a vaft Trail of mountainous and barren Country, yet this is every-where interfperfed with fruitful and pleafant Spots ; and in many Counties there are large Diftrids of fertile and delightful Plains, which, in point of Situation, and Climate too, are not excelled by any Diftridls in Britain. The Produce in all Kinds of Necef- faries is a Proof of this, as it makes the greateft Part of their Exports. Sheep, Goats, black Cattle, Horfes, they have in Abundance. Fifh excellent, and in vail Variety ; Game, and all Sorts of tame Fowl, in Plenty. Neither are they deficient in Metals ; Silver, Copper, and Lead efpecially, are drawn from their Mountains. But the chief Means of changing the Face of Wales, and bringing it on a Level with the neighbouring Counties of England, is to intro- duce new, and remove Obftrudions from old Manufaftures. For this, no Quar- ter of this Ifland, no Country in Europe, more fit. In Wales the People are robuft, healthy, adive, indefatigable, ftout, fober, and, in leveral Counties, remarkably long-lived. Provifions are here in Abundance ; and if there were more Markets, would be ilill more abundant ; of confequence, Labour would be for a long Time cheap. Add to all this, that the two potent Inftruments, Water and Fuel, are no-where in greater Plenty than here, or better dilpofed j. fo that, inftead of pointing out what Manufacture would, we may juftly affert it muft be no eafy Talk to fix on any, that, with due Attention, and a mode- rate Fund for its Support at firft, would not fucceed. If it fhall ftill be demanded, when this is to be looked for ? the Anfwer is ready j When the Benefits arifing from Induflry are thoroughly underfbod by the better Sort, and confequently generoufly encouraged, and prudently directed, among the meaner. This will produce a true Spirit of Improvement. Woods will be planted. Mills eredted ; every Brook, every Rivulet, will be adapted to fome ufeful Purpofe ; Labour will produce Wealth, Wealth will attract Strangers ; the Lands already cultivated will let dear, others, which have been for Ages ufelefs, will be tilled ; the Hills will be covered with Sheep, the Rocks receive new Colonies of Goats ; old Towns will be rebuilt, new ones founded, and every little Creek will gradually become an Haven,- The prefent Coaft Trade, the Fifheries excepted, will be defpiled, and Places at prelent fcarce known, the Fruits of Commerce fliall, amongfl our Poikrity, fet on the fame foot with Chefter, with Liverpool, and with Briftol. That Portion of this Ifland which, fince the Union, is ftiled North Britain,, has received from the bountiful Hand of Providence a very copious Dillribu- tion of Waters, and thole too very happily difpoled for the Ufe and Bencht of its Inhabitants, infomuch that it may be with Truth affirmed, there is fcarce any Part, at leaft any confiderable Part, lb lituated, as not to have its Share of thefe 192 The POLITICAL SURVEY thclc Blcflings c. Springs of clear and wholfome Water are every-where In Plenty, not only on the bides, but even on the Tops, of many of the Moun- tains, and fometimes alfo of bare Rocks, as in the Ifland of Bafs, in the Firth of Forth . Many of thefe, a? we have already obferved, meeting with hollow Places in their Pafllige, expand themfelves into Lochs, till, finding a proper Channel, they refume their Form of Rivers, and, as the Nature of the Soil direfts, fometimes expand themfelves again and again, or continue their Progrefs in the fame Form to the Sea ^. Some having a diredt, though not a very fliort Courfe, roll on with the Rapiditv of Torrents ; fome are impeded in their Paffage by Rocks, and form Catarads by their Falls ; fome force large Stones and Sand along with them by the Strength of their Current ; and others haften to the Ocean with a Velocity that renders them unfit for Navigation •• It is very probable that, in feveral of thefe Inftances, Methods might be found to remove fuch Inconveniencies ; and to qualify them, would not, perhaps, be difficult in many more; but thefe are not to be expefted for the prefent ; the Country muft be firft improved, the People perfuaded to live at home, and, when Induftry has fur- niflied Wealth, Attention to fuch Matters will arife of courfe ; and various Things may be attempted then, and performed too, which at this Jun<5lure it would be thought little lefs than Madnefs to mention. But, notwithftanding this, we muft take the Liberty of obferving, that if from heace it ihould be underftood, that inland Navigation is a thing utterly impoffible in North Britain, the Conclufion would be too hafty ; as the Sur- mife, that, from its having fo few navigable Rivers, it muft be utterly unfit for foreign Commerce, would be void of all Foundation ^. Nature, that is, Divine Wifdom, arrives at the fame End by very different Means ; and, where Men are not wanting to themfelves, feldom puts it out of their Power to procure all the Conveniencies that can render Life happy, provided thev are fought with Diligence, and profecuted with Perfeverance ". We have fliewn, in & former Chapter, from one remarkable Inftance, that by a judicious Manage- ment of their Lochs, a Communication might be eafily eftabliftied between the German and Atlantic Oceans, through the County of Inverncfs ° ; and it will v.ery fpeedily appear, that tliis is full as pradicable in the South ; and perhaps ■it would not be difiicult to point out other Communications of lefs Extent, that might be ftill more eafy. But, till thefe are accomplift:ied, very great ' Heftoris Boethii ScotoruKi Regp/i Defcriptio, fol. 3, 4. Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hif^o- ria; Scotise, P. i. lib. i, cap. 9. A true Defcription and Divifion of the whole Country of Scot- land, &c. •^ Political Survey of Great Britain, voh i. p. 115. * Luyts Introduft. ad Geograph. §. ii. cap. 23. p. 242. ■* Sir William Monfon's Naval Trafts, book iv. " Cic. de Ofhciis, lib. i. cap. 42. Aanwyfmg dcr Hellfame, Politique Gronden, P. i. cap. 14, 15. Sir William Temple's Obfervations on the United Provinces of the Netherlands, chap. vi. • Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 116. Vol. L C c Advantage? 194 The POLITICAL SURVEY Advantages from Commerce may be obtained from the immediate Bounty of Nature, which, though fparing in navigable Rivers, has abundantly fupplied tliat Defedt, with regard to this Point, by many large Firths, or Eiluaries, as the Ancients called them p, wiiich abound with Ports, whicli either are, or with little Difficulty might be made, very commodious, and which are fo dif- pofed, that, if the whole Country was once thoroughly peopled and culti- vated, they would eafily find the Means of fending their Commodities and Manufactures abroad, and receiving Returns from other Parts of the World ;, "tthich will be conceived without Difficulty, when it is alTerted, that in very few Parts of Scotland the Inhabitants are thirty Miles from the Sea <■] ; fo that they can no-where be without Trade merely from the Defedl of Situation ;, a Circumflance that takes from Indolence every Excufe, and renders Poverty criminal, either in the People themfelves, or in thofe that govern them '•. Thefe Points premifed, we will now proceed to the Hillory of the navigable- Rivers they have, and the Advantages that are, or may be,, drawn from thein. The Forth is one of the mofl noble and commodious Rivers in Scot- land ; and v/ould indeed merit that Appellation in any Country. It takes its Rife near the Bottom of Leimon Hills, and running from Weft to Eaft, receives in its PafTage many confiderable Streams, deriving their Waters fronv the Eminences in the midland Counties of North Britain s. The ancient and famous Town of Stirling, once the Boundary of the Roman Conquefts, flands upon the Forth, which is overlooked by its Caille ; and here is a fine Stone Bridge of four Arches, to which Vellels of tolerable Burthen may come up with the Tide ; which flows, and the River is navigable only for a few Miles above it t. From Stirling, the Forth winds in a moft beautiful and furprizing Manner to Alloa, or Alloway ; fo that, though it be but four Miles by Land, it is twenty-four by Water, between thefe two Places, Below Alloway it expands itfelf to a great Breadth, between the rich Countries of Lothian and Fife, till, at Queen's Ferry, it is contradted by Promontories fhooting into it from both Coails ; fo that, from being four or five, there it is V Strabonis Geographia, lib. iji. p. 140. Varenii Geographia generalis, §. iv. cap. 12. Bax- tcri Glodiirium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 235. "• R. Sibbaldi Prodromi Naturalis HiftorisE Scoriae, lib. i. cap. 7. Richardfon's State of Europe, book iv. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 268. ' Robert's Merchants Map of Commerce, p. 285, 286. An Account current between Scot- land and England balanced ; together with an EfTay of a Scheme of the Produft of Scotland, and z few Remarks on each ; as alfo a View of the Produce of the feveral Ports or Nations we trade to, by comparing and holding forth how our Produ(5f s and Manufafhires may balance theirs with Returns; by John Spruel, Edinburgh, 1705. The Interefl of Scotland coniidered, London 1736,80. s He'floris Boethli, Scotorum Regni Defcriptio. Buchanani, Rerum Scotkarum Hiftoria, lib. i. Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hiftorix Scotise, P. i. lib. i. cap. 9. ' A true Defcriptioaand DiviiioQ of Scotlaftd. Camdcni Biit.innia, p. 683. Atlas Maritimus €t Commercialis, p. 6. not of G R E A T BRITAIN. 195 not above two Miles broad ". In the midft of the Channel lies a fmall Illand, called Inchgary, which has a Spring of freih Water i and upon it tiiere was anciently a Fort ; and if that was thoroughly repaired, or a new one eredl:ed, and there v/ere either Forts or Block-houfes on tlie oppofite Promontories, that Part of the River, which lies between Alloway and Queen's Ferry, would be as fecure and convenient an Haven, for any Number of Ships, as could be delired. Below Queen's Ferry, the North and South Shores receding, the Body of Water gradually enlarges till it becomes two or three Leagues broad, affording feveral fafe Harbours on both Sides, and excellent Roads through- cut, unembarrafled with latent Rocks, Shoals, or Sands, and allowing fecure Anchorage to the largeft Ships within a League of the Coail, in almoft any Part of the Firth ; and, to Veflels of a fmaller Size, within a Mile, or lefs »■. The populous and plentiful Countries on each Side of the Forth, furn'fli vari- ous Commodities and Manufad:ures ; Corn, Coal, and Lead, may be reckoned among the former ; Shalloons, and other woollen Stuffs, Thread, Linen, and Salt, among the latter j to which we may add Fifh, which is a very profit- able Article x, Alloa, or Alloway, may, with Propriety enough, be regarded as the Port of the Forth, and though not very large, is a well-built, pleafant, and thriving Town. There is a very handfome Street that leads down to the Haven, which is very fafe and convenient for Ships of any Size. Here are Ware- Jioufes for all Sorts of Commodities, with two Rope-Walks, Saw-Mills 'for flitting Fir Timber, with Magazines of Hemp, Tar, Deal, and other naval Stores y. The Merchants of Glafgow have always had their Eyes upon this Place, as lying very commodioufly for augmenting their Commerce ; of •which we Ihall fay more when we come to treat of that, which is unqueflion- ably the moll: flourishing Sea Port in this Part of the Illand ; and where, as the Merchants have larger Fortunes, they are able, as well as inclined, to ilrike out into great Schemes, at leaft for this Country, where the principal Impediment to their Commerce is the Want of fufficient Funds, and the Praftice of withdrawing thefe, and verting them in Land, inllead of conti- nuing them in Trade, as foon as they grow any thing confiderable ?. Leith, or rather the two Towns of North and South Leith, which deriv? their Name from the River that feparates them, ifand on the South Side of the Firth of Forth, and may be looked upon aa the Port to the City of Edin- " Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hi/loris Scotia?, P. i. lib. ccip. 9. Jor.Aon's Epigram. prelciTCid in Camden. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of the Britannia. w Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 8. * A true Defcription and Divifion of Scotland. Atlas Mailtimus et Coinmeiciall^. p. 6. Addi- tions to the Englilii Traallation of the Britannia. y Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 8. Stat, xxvii. Geo. 11^. cap. 35. J. i. » Lindfey's Interdl of Scotland conlldered, p. 1 1 5. C c 2 burgli, 196 The POLITICAL SURVEY burgh, from which tliey are diftant about a Mile, with an admirable Caufe- way for Foot-PalTengers, and a very commodious Road in all Weathers, between them ^ Thefe Towns of North and South Leith are joined by a very handfome Stone Bridge, of a fingle Arch, over the River, which forms the Harbour. Here is alio a Stone Quay for the Landing of Goods; and a Stone Pier, whicli is carried a great way out into the Sea, which defends the Harbour, notwithllanding the Flatnefs of the Shore, from being filled up with Sand, as by North-Eaft Winds it would but for this Precaution ; and there are Break-Waters alio on the other Side. There has been within thefe few Years much Money expended in the Improvement of this Port, and ftill greater Improvements are under Confideration, which flievvs that their Trade is increafed, and ftill increafing h. The Merchants of Edinburgh have very capacious Warehoufes, and whatever elfe is requilite to accommodate either their Trade or Shipping, in thefe Towns, much enlarged of late; and the Legl- flature alfo have afforded them what Afliftance they have applied for to Par- liament, towards accomplifliing whatever fliould be found expedient for aug- menting, deepening, or fecuring, the Harbour, or might contribute to its Safety and Convenience c. The Firth is here fomewhat more than two Leagues broad ; and at the Mouth of the Harbour there is a Road, where the largefl Ships may ride with Security. The Firth, or, as we find it fometimes written, the Frith of Forth, is at the Mouth of it, from North Berwick to Fifenefs, full tive Leagues broads- having the little Ifland of May, on which there is a Lighthoufe, and there might be a Fort, in the midll of it ; and to the Weft of this the rocky Illand of Bafs, notwithftanding which, the largeft Fleet may enter and fail up it many Miles with the utmoft Facility, and in the greateft Safety d. From its Mouth to Stirling Bridge it is twenty Leagues in Extent. It was known to the Ancients by the Name of Bodotria e, or, as Ptolemy calls it> Boderia, and has been ever famous for the Number of its Havens, fome of which indeed are, in their prefent Condition, fcarce worthy of that Name ; but, however, moft of them are very capable of being put in a much better State than that into which they are fallen, whenever the Commerce of this Country fliall require it *'. In our Cuftom-Houfe Accounts they reckon three Ports on the South. * Camdeni Biitannk, p. 690. A fiiort Account of Scotland, p. 89. Cutler's Coafilng Pilot, p. 8. b Brome's Travels through England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 213, 214. Additions to Cam- den's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus er Commercialis, p. 6. c Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 8. Maitland's Hiitory of Edinburgh, book viii. p. 500. Stat, xxvii. Ceo. II. cap. 8. §. i. "■ Short Account of Scotland, p. 21. Atla« Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 6. • Tacit, in vita Julii Agricolae. Camdeni Britannia, p. 688. Baxteri Gloflarium Antiquitatum Bvitannicarum, p. 42. ' Additions to Camdeu's Britannia. Atlas Maritjjnus et Commercialis, p. 8. Cutler's Coaft- ing Pilot, p. 6. Si(k» of GREAT BRITAIN. 197 Side. The firft of thefe is Borrowftonnefs, of which Alloa is a Member, and to which there belong belides fixteen Creeks ; as Prefton Pans has five g. On the North Side there is the Port of Kircaldie, which is a pretty well-built Town, about a Mile in Length, and by the Affiftance of an A6t of Parlia- ment, its Port is now in a pretty good Condition, with a Yard for build- ing and repairing Ships, Collieries, Salt Works, and a Linen Manufaftory in its Neighbourhood li. To this the Anftruthers Eaft and Weft are Members; and there belong to it befides, fifteen Creeks within the Limits of the Firth. Thefe are fome in a better, fome in a worfe Condition, but, as we have before remarked, are all very fulceptible of Lnprovements ; and of courfe this muft fully fhew how exceedingly commodious the Firth is for foreign Commerce. We have, in fpeaking of the Ports of Lynn and FIull, fo very fully explained the numerous Advantages that nccefi"arily attend Succefs in foreign Trade i, that the Reader will eafily conceive what mighty Benefits may be drawa from between thirty and forty Creeks and Havens, that he within this Firth, and at the fame time, even the moft remote of them, within the Compafs of about thirty Englilh Miles one of the other. In treating of thofe Ports, we mentioned the Original of their Com- merce to have been their dealing in Iceland Cod ; it is therefore fit we fhould obferve here, that the Inhabitants 611 both Sides this Firth, exclufive of many other valuable Branches of the Fifliing Trade, and efpecially of Oyfters, not inferior perhaps to any, have an Advantage equivalent to this at their very Doors k. The Herring Filhery in the Forth lafts annually about two Months ; and is, or might be, of very great Service. They commonly employ about eight hundred Boats, and in them between five and fix thoufand Men and Boys at leaft. It is computed that about forty thoufand Barrels of Herrings are caught and cured in a Seafon ' ; thefe, though lean, are very firm, found Fifli ; came formerly to a very good Market in Sweden, and are ftill fold with confiderable Profit iu, the Canaries, the Weftern Iflands, and in feveral Parrs< of America. About one-fixth of thele Plerrings may be fpent at home ; and the Value of what is exported is modeftly computed at twenty thoufand Pounds. The Manner in which this Filhery is carried on, renders it exceed- ingly beneficial to the Country, The Boats belong partly to the Fiftiermen,, who employ the reft of the Year in catching of White Fifh ; but the greateft Part are commonly the Property of Ship-carpenters, and other Perfons, on- t Ports of North Britain, with their Members and Creeks, Edinburgh 1714, 8^. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 385, 386, 387. •" Additions to Camden's BritaBnia. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 387. Stat. xv. Geo. II, cap. 8. ' Political Survey of Great Britain, vel. i. p. 1 65. '' Spruell's Account current between England and Scotland, p. 20, zi. Atlas Marltimus et Commercialis, p. 9, 10. ' The latcreft of Scotland cooCdered, p. 195, Stat. xiii. Geo.. I. cap. 30. §. i. ShoFs, igS The POLITICAL SURVEY Shore m, who build and equip them in the way of Adventurers j and the Hiftory of this Fifhery being very curious and entertaining, as well as perti- nent to our Purpofe, the Reader cannot but be pleafed that we enter into it. An Adventure of this kind is called a Drave ; and is thus managed. Two or three Fiihermen affociate five or fix Landmen n > for there are commonly eight or nine Men to a Boat. Each Fifherman has a Net of his own ; the lefl: are taken up of the Nctmakers, who by this means enter likewife into ihe Adventure. A Perfon is appointed in the Nature of a Purfer », who lays in Provifion, and other Neceffaries, and receives the Money for which the Herrini^s are fold. When the Seafon is over, the Account is made up ; and all the Expences being firft difcharged, what remains is divided into eight or nine Shares, or, as they call them. Deals. The Proprietor of the Boat draws one Deal; every Fiflierman half a Deal ; every Net half a Deal ; every Land- man, who has never been in the Trade before, a Quarter Deal p. Thus all Parties are Lnterefled in Profit and Lofs ; and by this Fifliery it is plain, that feveral thoufand good Seamen are made every Year, who work the other ten Months as Labourers, Farmers Servants, or Artificers q. It is befides a Fund of Bufinefs for Ship-carpenters, Coopers, Spinners of Twine, Netmakers, and ,o*her Mechanics, for tlie better Part of" the Year. It is to be regretted that a Fifliery fo ufeful to the Country, fliould be under any Difcouragements ; and yet fome there are. In ancient Times there was a certain Quantity of Herrings •taken for the King's Kitchen ; and, as Impofitions never wear out, this has been .converted into a Tax of ten Shillings upon every fizeable Boat, that is, every Boat that takes three thouland Herring ; which Duty being long fince granted away by the Crown, is become a Tax upon the Indufirious for the Support of the Idle i'. When this Filbing is profitable, the poor People pay it chearfully .enough ; but when, as it too often happens, this proves not to be the Cafe, they complain bitterly, and it puts them out of Humour with the Bufinefs s. There is a Duty ILkewife to be paid to the High Admiral's Deputy, who pre- >n This is exa(fHy on the Plan of fii€«W Dutch Fiflier\', and is at once the moft frugal, the jnoft fuccefsful, and the beA calculated for the public BenLhr. " By engaging in thefe Adventures, and going tlirougii all Parts of the Herring Fifhery, flcer- 4ng and rowing the Boat from Place to Place, Night and Day, and in all Winds and Weathers, theie Landmen, in three or four Year;, become a^ive and able Seamen, and are fo efteemed on •board Men of War. " In a pretty good Year the Provifions, and other NccelTarles, may amount to about a third of ^e Produce of the Herrings, and very fcldom to lefs. p Such a Landman, whatever his Age may be, is filled a Eoy, in the fame Senfe that we ufe the Word Youngftcr. q Over all this CoafV, wl^n Servants hire themfelves to Places, they commonly bargain to have .the Drave free. ' r This is one, among many Inftancei;, of our old Confiitution (utterly unfavourable to Indu- itry) not being fo thoroughly rooted out as we imagine. * The Grantee of the Crown is in the Cafe of a Partner, who, without contributing either J^abour or Money, is always entitled to Profit, even where thofe who contribute both are fubjcft ^o Lofs. fides of GREAT BRITAIN. 199 fides over this Fifhery ; which, as it was long ago obfcrved, ought to be taken away, and the Eiforts of thefe poor, but adlive and indurtrious Men, always precarious in their Nature, left as free as poffible. How far a late Law, for encouraging this Coaft Filliing, has operated in thefe Particulars, we cannot fay t} but if either of them remain, one would wiHi it was removed. In former Times the People of Fife carried on a more extenlive, and, by very far, a more lucrative Fifliery, which we fhall have occafion to mention in anodier Place ; but in the Civil Wars they received fo heavy a Blow, that this Bufinefs, which was the great Support of the Coaft Towns, has been difcon- tinued ever fince u. The River Tay, called by the Romans Tavus, or Taus, is indifputably the largeft in North Britain. It rifes in Braidalbin, on the Frontiers of Lorn; and having in the Paffage of a few Miles augmented its Stream, by the Accef^ fion of feveral fmall Rills, fpreads itfelf into a little Lake, called Loch Doch-^ art; out of which having run but a little Space, it expands itfelf again. Leaving this fecond Lake, it rolls fome Miles with a confiderable Body of Water, and then difFufes itfelf abroad in the fpacious Loch Tay ; which, rec- koning from the Sources of the River, is twenty-four Miles in Length x, though, ftridily fpeaking, the Lake is but thirteen; almoft as foon as it ilTues from hence, it receives the River Lion, coming out of Loch, and running through Glen Lion ; whicK having travelled in a manner parallel to it, from its Source, for the fpace of twenty-five Miles, at length joins the Tay as it enters Athol, which it next traverfes, and dire to other Places, befides thefe, fome Lead, and great Quantities of pickled Salmon. The Tide flows hither, and Ships of tolerable Burthen ride in the Harbour ; but thole of a larger Size remain at Dundee ^. As Things ftand at prefent, Perth may be confidered not only as a Town in good Condition, but as one in a riling State, the Trade of which will certainly increafe in proportion as the Country about it improves, of which, in confequence of the Peo- ple's coming to underftand, the only effeftual Means, of engaging them to purfue theii- own Interefls, there are very flrong and well-founded Expec- tations. The Tay continuing flill a South-Eaft Courfe, receives a few Miles below Perth the River Erne, which iflliing from a Loch of the fame Name, traverfes the Country of Strathern, and pafles by Abernethy, once the Capital of the Pidlifli Kingdom i; fwelled by the Waters of this laft River, the Tay run- ning next diredlly Eaft, enlarges itfelf till it becomes about three Miles broad ; but contrads again before the Town of Dundee; loon after which it opens into the German Ocean k. At the Entrance of the Firth there are Sands both on the North and on the South Side ; the former ftiled Goa, the latter Aberlay and Drumlan ; and before thele, in the very Mouth of the Firth, thofe which are called the Crofs Sands. At Buttonnefs, which is the Northern Promontory, there are two Light-houfes. The Space between the North and the South Sands may be near a Mile, with about three Fathoms Water ; but being within the Firth, it grows deeper ; and in the Road of Dundee, is full fix Fathoms '. The Firth of Tay is not indeed fo large, or lb commodious, as that of Forth, but from Buttonnefs to Perth it is not lefs than forty Miles ; and the whole may be, without any great Impropriety, ftiled a Harbour, which S Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 7, Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 388. Cutler's Coafl- ing Pilot, p. 8. h Spruel's Account current between England and Scotland. Short Account of Scotland, p. 90. Additions to the Englilli Tranllation of the Britannia. Gordon's Itinerarium Septentrionale, P. i. cap. iv. p. 34. _ > Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Hifloria, lib. x. Buchanani Reruin Scoticarum Hifloiia, liD. v. Camdeni Britannia, p. 705. Gordon's Itinerarium Septentrionale, P. ii. p. 164. '' A true Defcription of Scotland. ' Short Account of Scotland, p. 90. Atlas Maritimus & Commercialis, p. 7. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 8. Vol. I. Da has 202 The POLITICAL SURVEY has Fife on one Side, and the Shires ot Perth and Angus on the other, very fertile and pleafant Countries both m. It is impofllble to fay this without reflefting a little upon the Situation of Fife, which lies between thefe Urths, and has, or rather had, bcfides thofe in thefe two Firths, fome other, and thofc not contemptible Harbours, immediately upon the Sea ". One would be apt to imagine that, from fo excellent a Situation, this Country muft have been diftinguiflied by being wonderfully populous, crouded with Towns, and thefe Towns abounding with Commerce. Anciently it feems it was fo ° ; and if it be not in this Condition now, the Reafons may, without Difficulty, be afligned ; it would be well if they were as eafily removed. After the Acceffiou of King James the Sixth to the Throne of England, the Court Lords extended what they called the Power of the Crown, but which refting in their Hands, was in reality theirs beyond meafure ; and this was oppofed, for Purpofes merely their own, by others, who, in Right of their Popularity, exercifed alfo a Power more detrimental to the public Peace, and not at all more direcSted to the public Good ; and thus the true Principles of Policy were in a manner loft. On the other hand, an unreafonable and ill-timed Zeal for Fopms, pro- duced as unreafonable an Averfion to Things indifferent in themfelves ; and thus, while Religion was all the Cry, the true Spirit of the Chriftian Faith was in a manner extinguiHied. Party Difputes in Church and State deftroy- ing, as they ever will do, all Senfe of public Spirit, made way for a Civil War,, which ruined the fmall Remains of paft Profperity. After the Reftoration,. an oppreffive Government in one Part of the Country, which connived, for its own Support, at the Eftablifliment of a more oppreffive Ariftocracy in the other, extirpated all Seeds of Induftry, and brought on that general Decay in Agriculture ,Manufaftures, and Commerce, which, however vifible, was, till very lately, rather to be lamented, even by the moft difinterefted Patriots, than, with any rational Hopes of Succefs to be put in any Train of being reco- vered. However diftafteful in one Light the Contemplation of its former Great- nefs may be, it cannot but afford us Satisfadlion in another ; for what has once been, may moft certainly be again.> The Country and the Climate, without qucftion, are as good as ever j and though the fame thing cannot be faid of its Ports, yet, with fome Labour, and a little Expence, even thefe may be made fo ; after which, if any Metliod can be found to employ in Manu- fadures, and thereby engage the Youth to remain at home, there is no Doubt that an indefatigable Application may quickly reftore what a Series of unfortu- nate Accidents, fucceeded by lupine Negledt, have brought into fo melancholy a Condition. _ ™ Ailditions to the Englifli Tranfiatlon of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus et eommer* tia'is, p. 7. " The Reader will meet with a fuccinft Account of thefe Ports in the fucceeding Chapter. " Joannis Leflai Regionum et Infularum Scotire Defcriptio, p. 22, 23. Buchanan! Rerum Sco- ticarum Hiftoria, lib. i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 704 ; and particularly johiiHon's elegant and excel- lent epigrammatitk Defcription, The of GREAT BRITAIN. 203 The AUedlum or Taiodunum of die Ancients, now the Town of Dundee, which is aUb a Royal Burgh, ftands at the Diftance of two Leagues within the Mouth of the Firth, upon which it has a convenient Harbour, joined to the Town, by a Caufeway, neatly planted with Trees p. This Place is very ele- gantly built, the Houfes of Stone, though not very high, with four large open Streets, and a very fpacious Market Place q. The rich Countries of Gowry and Merns, which lie behind it, fupply great Quantities of Corn, that are laid up in convenient Granaries there, and may be confidered as the flaple Commodity of the Place, The Inhabitants had formerly a very extenfive inland Trade, and an advantageous Commerce to the North, by which they grew very opulent, and, as the Cuftom of that Country is, diJ'played it alike in their public, and in their private Buildings r. Their Harbour was well fecured, admitted Ships of large Burthen ; and they had very fubilantial and capacious Wareboufes to receive their Cargoes. All this Grandeur, however, ferved only to bring on it a very fevere Calamity ; for in the Civil Wars, after the fatal Defeat of King Charles the Second's Forces, the fuppofed Strength, and great Extent of the Place, induced many to take Shelter here, and many more to fend their Effects hither, vshich quickly drew the Engliih Army before the Town ; and though Major-General Lumfden made a gallant Defence, it was carried by Storm September i, i65r, and all that were in Arms put to the Sword. The Plunder here was prodigious, and the Lofs the heavieft that the Trade of Scotland ever received. There were then in this Harbour threefcore Sail of Ships, a Circumflance fufKcient to demonftrate the Truth of what has been faid. We need not wonder, therefore, that Dundee is no more what it was. The Truth is, that though the Inhabitants flruggled for a Time, and made their utmofl Ej&rts to repair this Difafler, yet they found their Endeavours vain, and their Affairs ever after on the decline. So that, even before the Union, their Commerce began to decay, and, in conle- quence of that, their Harbour and public Works ; and this to fuch a Degree, that they were obliged to apply to the Legillature for Relief, and in tlie lafl Parliament held in Scotland, obtained a Grant of a fmall Excife Duty, of one- third of an Englifli Penny, upon every Gallon of Ale or Beer fold in the Town r, for the Term of twenty-five Years, payable to the Provoft, Magi- iirates, and Town Council of the Place, who were appointed Trullees for paying the public Debts of the Town^ and for clearing or improving tlie P Camdeni Britannia, p. 710. True Defcription and I>ivif;on of Scotland. Atlas Maritimus et CGmmercialis, p. 7. Gordon's Itineiarium Septentrionale, P. i. chap. iv. p. 33. q Short Account of Scotland, p. 104, 105. Cutler's Coafliag Pilot, p. 8. Additions to tli« lafl: Edition of the Britannia in Englifli, col. 952. ' See the Defcription of this Place by Johnifon (who was born near it}, in Camden. See alio the Article of Dundee, in Dodfor Jeremy Collier's Geographical and Hiftorical Diftionary. " Sir Philip Warwick's Memoires, p. 361. Hiftory of the Civil Wars, p. 3:5, 326. Heath's Chronicle, p. 301. ' This Aift was never printed, but the Title appears in the third 'V'olume of the Scots Afts, p. 782, and the SubHance recited in the fubfequent Afts of the Britillr PailiameiU. D d 2 ' Harbour j 504 The POLITICAL SURVEY Harbour j and for rebuilding the common Hall and Gaol ; and for maintain- ing od^cr public Works of the Town, and paving the Streets ; and for giving Salaries to Mailers for inftrudting ^'outh. This Duty lias been continued to them for the fame, and other like Purpofes of public Utility, by two fubfe- quent Adls, and has been highly ferviceable ". I HAVF. infifled on this the more particularly, and tranfcribed the very Words of the Statute, that it may ferve to explain what is intended by thefe Grants, which are often mentioned elfewhcre, and that I might have an Opportunity of obl'erving how much better a Method this is of fupporting a decayed Town, and repairing Harbours w, than laying Duties upon the Ships that come to the Port, which is really counteracting the very Defign of fuch Grants, as every additional Burthen upon Trade mufl: C(;ntribute rather to 'lelfen than increafe it ; whereas this very light, and almoll iniignificant, Tax upon the common Drink, anfwers the Purpofe much more effedlually. It is alfo neceflary to remark, that in all thefe Laws there are Pcrfons of great Diftinftion appointed as Overfeers x, and a Day fixed for the Truftees to make up their annual Accounts ; fo that it is very difficult, if not impoffible, that any Frauds ftiould be committed, or the Ends for which the Relief was given, fruftrated or negledled ) . The River of Southefk rifes amongfl: the Mountains in the North of Angus, called Binchichins ; running diredlly South for many Miles, till, near the Seat of the Earl of Airly, it makes an Angle, and direfts its Courfe Eaftward through the County of Forfar, and, after vilidng Brechin, once a Bifliop's See, where there is a noble Stone Bridge of two Arches over it t-^ falls at length into the Ger- man Ocean a little below Montrofe. This is faid to have been the Manturum of the Romans, and confcquently there was no Foundation for latinizing it, as fomc of our Antiquaries have done, by Mons Rofeus, or Mons Rofarum, the Mount of Rofes ;'. The new, it feems, being only a Recovery of the ancient Britifli Name, Mant er ofc, which is no more than the Mouth of the Stream Ij. The Town is tolerably well built, making one long Street parallel to the River, « Stat. iv. Geo. II. cap. i. xx. Ceo. II. cap. 17. §. i. " Taxes, even upon the NecefTaries of Lifb, when for neceffary Ufes, prudently impofed, and frugally expended, are never regretted, and, inflead of dUcouraging, promote Induflry. * In thefe Acts the Earl of Strathmore, and other Perfons of Qnality and Diftuiftion, who have Property in the Neighbourhood, are appointed to audit the annual Accounts. i' By fuch Accounts it appears how Repairs and Improvements are gradually made, and fome» times (as in the prefe nt Cafe) the Truftees are impowered to borrow on the Fund conceded by the Acl:. ^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 71 1. Gordon's Itinerarium Septentrionale, P. ii. p. 165. Additions to the Englifh Tranllation of the Britannia. » Joan. Lellaei, Regionum et Infularum Scotiae Defcriptio, p. 33. Heftoris Boethii, ScotoruiQ Regni Defcriptio, fol. 5, 6. Camdeni Britannia, p. 711. " Baxter! GlofTarium Aatitjuitatnm Britanuicarum, p. 170. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 205 and another (horter one, that crofles It. At the Entrance there is a Rock on the North, called the Stcie, and a Sand Bank on the South, called the Annot j but the Port is tolerably good, when a Ship is once in, and will be better when the Improvements are made, for which the Burghers obtained a Grant of the fame Nature widi that before-mentioned to the Town of Dundee, which cannot but be favourable to the Trade of its Inhabitants <=. The Paver Dee has its Sources on the Sides of the Mountains, or, as they are ftiled in this Country, the Braes of Mar. It runs almoft a diredl Eaft Courfe of fifty Miles ; is a clear fharp Stream, gradually augmented by many Brooks and Rivulets, and celebrated from all Antiquity for breeding great Quantities of mofl: excellent Salmon <^. Ti:ie River Don rifes fome Miles farther to the North ; and declining to the South-Eaft, falls, as well as the Dee, into the German Ocean. Both of thefe Rivers have Bridges over them, at no great Diftance from their Fall ; that over the Dee confifls of feven Arches, and is efteem.ed a Work of much Magnificence ; that upon the Don is only of a fingle Arch, fuftained on each Side by a Rock, and is a moft noble and furprizing Piece of Workmanfhip e. The Salmon Fishery has been a con- ftant Ohiedt of Government in this Kingdom for upwards of three hundred Years ; for by a Law in the Reign of King James the Firft f, the killing of Salmon in forbidden Time, is prohibited under the Penalty of forty Shillings for the firft Offence ; and for the third^ the Ofi-ender was to lofe his Life, or to ranfom it. This forbidden Time was from the Feaft of Aflumption to that of St. Andrew ; that is, from the fifteenth of Auguft to the thirtieth of November g. By another Statute in the fame Reign, it was provided, that Merchants felling of Salmon in fore'gn Parts, fhould bring back its Value, one Moiety in ready Money, and the other in Gafcoigne Wine !'. By a Law in the Reign of King James the Fifth, the former Statutes are direded to be put into ftricl Execution i ; and in the Reign of King James the Sixth, there is another Law for enforcing thefe Penalties, as alfo for regulating the Size of Cafks, according to the Standard kept at Aberdeen ^ -, and by a Statute in the Reign of Charles the Second 1, it is direcfled that each Barrel fliall contain ten Stirling Gallons ; and the better to afcertain this, thofe Barrels were to be •^ Stat. vi. Geo. i. cap. 7. vli. Geo. II. cap. 5. ^ Heftoris Boethii, Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 5. Hanifon's Defcription of Britain, P. i. p. 88. Camdeni Britannia, p. 712. « See the Article of Aberdeen iu Collier's Dl£lionary. Atlas Maritimus Commerci.-i]ls, p. 8. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden. * Stat. Jac. i. par. i. cap. 10. pag. 3. 8 Stat. Jac. i. p. 2. c. 35. pag. 9. ^ Stat. jac. i. p. 10. cap. 132. pag. 41. This was the ufual Strain of Policy in thofe Times ; and the like Provifion was made fometimes in refpefl to Engli/h Wool. ' Stat. Jac. V. p. 4. c. 16. p.'g. 206. * Stat. Jac. 6. p. 8. c. 141. pag. 491. ' Stat. Car. ii. p. i. felT. i. c. 33. pag. 191. marked 2o6 The POLITICAL SURVEY marked by tlae Coopers who made, and alfo by the Merchants who exported them, under certain Penalties. There are, beiides thefe, feveral later Laws for regulating the Manner of taking Salmon in Rivers ; for enforcing the former Laws, with new and milder Penalties ; and for other Purpofes, that were efteemed likely to promote this Fifliery ; and to. fupport the Credit of the Sal- mon caught and cured in Scotland, and fent from thence to foreign Parts "'. The Rcafons have been already afligned why Salmon are fuppofed to delight in thefe Ri\'ers ; but there may be alio otlier Caufes, with which we are not acquainted, fince in North Britain, and in other Countries, thefe Filh are found in great Abundance in fome Rivers ; while in others, that are very near them, and that differ not in any difcernable Quality, Salmon are never caught at all. They diflinguifti thefe Fifh according to their Sizes ; the fmallcr are called Cirils, which fome fuppofe to be a Kind of Sahnon-Trout, and the larger, which pafs fimply under the Name of Salmon. In fome Places the larger, in others, the lefs are efleemed; but in relped: to both Sorts it is allowed, that jheir Excellency in a great meafure depends upon the Packing and Curing ; and therefore jiothing can be of fo high Importance to the promoting and fupporting this Branch of Commerce, as the putting thofe Laws, that were fo prudently made in reference to this Matter, ftridtly in Execution ", which has been the great Merit of the Magiflrates of Aberdeen, and, as will ever happen in iuch Cafes, hath en.ablifl:eQ«-an Opinion of fuperior Value, and con- fequently procured a fuperior Price at foreign Markets. So that this Fifliery, more Specially in thefe Rivers, is llill of great Confequence ; and, by a very late Law, the Inhabitants are allowed to export either pickled or dried Sal- mon, on certain Terms, into South Britain, eitlier for home Confumption or Re-exportation, which cannot fail of proving a flrong Encouragement to this Branch of the North Britifh Fifhery, and was an Indulgence long delired, as well as very much wanted ». On the Banks of the Don flands the City of Aberdeen, better known by the Name of Old Aberdeen, fo clofe to the Sea Side, that fome Part of it is fuppoled to have been walhed away. It was a Bifliop's See, the Cathedral being dedicated to St. Macher. Towards the Clofe of the fifteenth Century the King's College was founded there, and the Privileges of a Univerfity granted in the moll ample Terms, though, as a Place of public Study, it had been a Seat of the Mufes long before p. This Cathedral and College are very handfome Buildings, and the chief Ornaments of the Place. At the ■" St;\t. W & M. cap. V. png. 335. \V. III. cap. xii. png. 492 ; cap. xxili. pag. 510. " Dedandes Recueil de different Traitez dc Phyftque, p. 169. Diftionnaire Univcrfelle de Commerce, torn. iii. col. 695, 696. Spruel's Account current between Scotland and England. " Stat. xxix. Geo. II. P Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcrlptio, fol. 5. Buchanani Reriim Scotlcarum Hiftoria, Ub. i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 712. Diflance of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 207 Diftance of a Mile South ftands New Aberdeen, upon the River Dee, the County Town, feated on three Hiils, and ftretching itfelf every Way. In the Beginning of the fixteenth Century the Marfhal College was q eredled and endowed, has all the Privileges of a Univerfity ; and has received lately con- fiderable Additions, as well from the Benevolence of its own Members, as the well-judged Generofity of the Town. Here is a very fpacious Market-Place , the Houfes in general very well built, and public Edifices, particularly two Churches, very fpacious and beautiful Strudures r. Few Cities are in Poffel- fion of more, or of greater natural Advantages than Aberdeen ; the Air is pure and wholfome, the Climate remarkably mild ; excellent Water, and, as we have before obferved, a medicinal Spring. Provifions of all Sorts, good in their Kind, and very cheap ; and the People of the Place diftinguifhed ior their courteous Behaviour *. These Circumftances premifed, we need not wonder that this is a popu- lous Place, or that it fhould be accounted the third in North Britain, having lb many different Methods to attradl, and not fewer Means to prsferve and main- tain, its Inhabitants ; as enjoying a great inland Trade, and drawing Irom the adjacent Countries Commodities and ManufadL:res of very confiderable Va- lue f. In the Shire of Aberdeen there are Quarries of fpotted Marble, and alfo fome of very good Slate. Grain of all Sorts, and from Counties at a confiderable Diftance, are brought thither, as to the beft Market. There are vaft Plantations of fine Fir Trees in its Neighbourhood, which in Time muft prove very beneficial, more efpecially if by any means Pot-aflies, Pitch, and Tar, could be made to Advantage u. The Salmon Fifliery is, as we have before obferved, of very great Confequence. From the Clofe of January, and during the three fucceeding Months, there are fent to the London Market, to the Value of two or three thouland Pounds. After that Time, they are cured in fuch a manner as to have the Reputation of being the befl in the World > and the annual Export is ahcut one hundred Lafts w. Some Attempts have been made in the Herring and Whale Fifherits ; and, fooner or later, there are good Grounds to prefume the Inhabitants of thefe Places muft fuc- ceed in both ^. They likewife export large Quantities of pickled Pork, which is remarkably fweet and firm, and admirably cured. They make here •i A true Defcrlpt'ron and Divifion of Scotland. Additions to the Englifh Tranllation of the Bjitannia. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P. iii. p. 185. ' Additions to the Englifh Ti-anflation of Camden. Atlas Maritimus el Commercialis, p. 8. « Sibbaldi Prodrom. Naturalis Hiftorice Scotix, P. i. lib. i. cap. 9. ' Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. Beawes's Merchants Direflory, p. 587. " The moft effeftual Method, perhaps, for obtaining this, is firft to give a Bounty for the aftiial making, and publilhing the Method of making, Pitch, Tar, and Pot-afhes, at a low Price ; and then granting a fmall Bounty, for a certain Term of Years, for futh Quantities of thefe Mamifaftures as (hall be made and fold at, or below, that Price. '* Diftionnaire Univerfelle de Commerce, torn. iii. col. 695. Spruel's Account current betweea Scotland and England. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. < ftveral 2o8 The POLITICAL SURVEY feveral Kinds of Woollen Manufadiircs, particularly Stockings, coarfe and fine ; which Trade was very great before the Union, declined afterwards, and is of late Years recovered, and that chiefly from their ufing and manufadluring of their own Wool ) . They likewife made Plaids, Fingrams, and fome other coarfe Goods. The Linen Manufadturc aUb flouriflied exceedingly ; and there were moft excellent Ofnabrugs made, fo called from their refembling the Ger- man Linens of that Name, till the Sufpenfion of the Bounty upon the Linen Manutadture gave a Check to that Species of Induftry, which, however, it is hoped will revive. There have been alfo large Quantities of Yarn fpun here, exported to South Britain, and wrought up at Manchefter and other Places; which is a Ibong Proof as well of the Induftry of the People, as of the Chcapnefs of Labour ; two Circumftances that afford us the beft Grounds to hope, that whatever new Improvements may be attempted either in Woollen or Linen, will have a very fair Chance of lucceeding in Aberdeen. There is alfo a Manufadfure of Sail-Cloth here, and a confiderable Trade is likewife driven in the finell Sorts of Linen. Of late, in confequence of thefe, and other fach-like Etfbrts of Liduftry, they have carried on fome Trade to tlie Northern Plant;itions, which in Procefs of Time may prove very beneficial to the People z. The Port of Aberdeen, which has a great Extent of Coaft, and not fewer than twenty Creeks dependant upon it, is no more than a Tide Haven, with a Bar that fometimes fhifts a. But with fome Expence might be rendered not bare fafe, but capacious alio, and very commodious. In the Year 1 695 '', the Inhabitants of this Place obtained from the Parliament of Scotland, not only fuch an Impofition upon Ale, as has been before-mentioned, in refpedf to the Town of Dundee, but likewife upon feveral Kinds of Goods imported into the faid Town, and fold there, to pay off" the Debts of the Town, and to make good the Lolles fuffaincd during the intefhine Commotions in Scotland after the Revolution ; which Impofitions were to continue for thirteen Years. This Term was enlarged by an Ad: in 1707 for twenty-five Years; and has been further prolonged, by a late Statute, for tlie like Tmie c. But, however ufe- ful, however adequate. Grants of this Sort may be, to the Repair or Support .of decaying Burghs, or Havens injured by Time, yet there are particular Cafes, and particular Seafons too, in which fomething more ought to be done d. The '' Spruel's Account current between Scotland and England, Chnp. 87, 89, 120. Smith's Mcmoires of Wool, Edit. 1747, B°, vol. ii. chap. 90. p. 68. ' Inccreft of Scotland confidered, p. 100. Beawes's Merchants Direftory, p. 587. The Pro- grefsand Improvement of the Linen Manufafture of North Britain confidered. « Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 385, 386. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 8. l" See the Titles of thefe .\(\s, for they are not printed, in the Scots A£ls of Parliament, vol. iii. p. 460. 782. ' Stat. iv. Geo. II. cap. 13.$. i. * The granting a rcafonable Sum, to a particular Place, for Purpofes afligned, and thofe too pub- lic Purpofes, can never be thought an improper Application of public Money. Situation of GREAT BRITAIN. 209 Situation of Aberdeen at this Juncture, is of the utmofl: Confequence to the Commerce and Manufadlures of North Britain ; and if a Sum was given at once by Parliament, for putting the Haven into the beft Condition polliblc, it might be very prudently laid out, and would produce a very large Augmen- tation of the Cuftoms of that Port, from the Time it was completed c. It is already the Harbour upon this Coaft where the moft confiderable Bufmefs is tranfadled. But if it was enlarged, rendered fafer, and more convenient, there might be much more Bufmefs done than there is, which would not only be a local Benefit to the Town and Shire of Aberdeen, but to all the Counties in the North-Eaft of Scotland ; as might be very eafily proved if that fhould ever become necelTary, or rather is fo apparent, that it flands in no Need of laboured Arguments to fupport, or rhetorical Flourilhes to recommend it. The River Devon, or Dovern, rifes not many Miles North from the Don ; and running through Strath Bogie in a winding Courfe, declining however con- ftantly to the North-Eaft till it reaches the Town of Strathbogie, and then runs for a few Miles diredly North, turns afterwards due Eaft, at length turns again to the North ; and pafling many Miles on one Side of a beautiful Country, which from thence derives the Name of Strathdevon, bending a lit- tle to the Weft, falls at length into that Part of the German Ocean which is ftiled Murray Firth f. This pleafant and beautiful River contributes, in tlie Difcharge of its Waters, to form two little Harbours for the Town of BamfF, which is a royal Burgh, and the chief Place in the Shire to which it gives Name s. It is not either large or rich, but neat, and tolerably well-built. What little Trade there is, confifts in the Exportation of Corn, and fait Sal- mon. The Linen Manufacture begins to fpread in its Neio;hbourhood ; but as its Ports can only receive Vefl'els of fmall Burthen, there is not much to be expedted from its Commerce, though the Country adjacent is far from being infertile, and there is Plenty of Alom Stones, which, with fome Expence, and, under judicious Management, might turn to good Account ''. The River of Spey, which is fuppofed to be the Tuefis of Ptolemy, is a River of as long Courfe as moft in North Britain i. It rifes in the Mountains of Badenoch, according to the modern Divifion of this Kingdom, in the Heart of the Shire of Invernefs. Its Waters quickly fpread themfelves to fuch an Extent, as to become a fmall Lake, called Loch Spey; from which, reluming « If we confider the Thing in this Light, it would, inftead of an cleetnofynary Grant, be in reality, making a good Puixhafe for the Revenue. f Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriplio. fol. 5. Joannis LefiKi Regionum et Infularum Scotiae Dufcriptio, p. 29, 30. Additions to the Englifti Tranllation of Camden's Britannia. g Buchanani Rerum Scoticarum Fliiloria, lib. i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 714. •> This is a fignal Inrtance, that, according to the Situation of Places, and Circunnftances of their Inhabitants, what is Wealth in one Country, may be worthlefs in another. ' Claudii Ptolomxi Ceograph. lib. viii. cap. z. Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Rcgni Defcriptio. fol. 4. Baxter! GloITariuin Aiuit^uitatum Biitannicaruni, p. 232. Vol. I. E e the 2IO The POLITICAL SURVEY the Form of a River, it proceeds leveral Miles South-Eaft. Then fetching a Compafs, it turns North-Eaft, and in that Direftion runs many Miles, till it reaches Ruthvcn ; from whence digrefling more to the Eaft, and receiving many Rivulets by the Way, it rolls on with a rapid Stream to Rothes ; and from thence direding its Courfe Northwards, falls into the Firth of Murray, at a Place called Garmach, or Garmouth, which is a Creek of no great Import- ance, frequented only by fmall Veflel?, the Ladings of which, confifting chiefly of lalted and pickled Salmon k, amount annually to about fourfcore or a hundred Lafls. There are very fine Woods on the Banks of this River, through the grcateft Part of its Courfe, the Value of which would be very much increafed, if the Navigation of the Spey could be rendered more pradlicable than it is ; though of late Years fomething of this kind has been done, yet much more, I fpeak of what may by Induftry and Application be cfFedled, is yet left to do '. The LofTy, called by Ptolemy Loxa, rifes not many Miles above the royal Burgh of Elgin, which is the chief Town of the Shire, diftinguifhed by its Name, in the pleafant and plentiful Country of Murray, and falls into Murray Firth a few Miles below it, at a Place called Loffy Mouth, or New Port Elgin "". This Burgh, which is ftill a very handfome Town, was anciently a Birtiop's See ; and the fine old Cathedral is ftill vifible, though much of it in Ruins n. The Beauty of its Situation, the Conveniency of the River, and the Abundance of all Kind of Provifions in its Neighbourhood, has made it the Winter Refort of the numerous Families of Gentry round about, which cre- ates a great Confumption of the Necefi^aries of Life, and is the chief Support of the Place o. But how flender and infufficient a Support this vi^ill always prove, when unconneded with other Advantages, appears from the Applica- tion made to the Legiflature upwards of thirty Years ago, fetting forth the declining State of the Place, the Decay of their Port, and the Mouth of the River filling up with Sand ; in confequence of which tliey obtained the ufual Relief for the Term of nineteen Years p, which has put Things into fome- wliat better Order, and the Improvement of the Linen Manufadlure has done, and will do, much more. ■^ A true Defcription and Divifion of Scotland. Additions to the Englifh Tranllation of the- Erit.innla. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 387. ' Upon this River the old Briti(h Boats, compofed of Twigs and Leather, and of which Ne- cham fpeaks in his Epigram on the Spey, are yet in Ufe, and, under the Name of Curraghs, managed by the Natives with great Dexterity. m Claudii PtolomsEi Geograph. lib. vii. cap. 2. Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio. fol. 5. Ba.Kteri Gloffarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 157. " Joannis Lcllaei Regionum et Infularum Scotias Defcriptio. p. 29. Buchanan! Rerum Scoti- carum Hiftoria, lib. i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 714. o By joining the Manufafture of Lace, or any of a like Kind, the Circumftance of fuch a Refort, as it would certainly fecure a Confumption, might turn effectually to its Maintenance. f Additions to the Englilh, Traoilation of the Britannia. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 3,87, Slat, viii, Geo. I. cap. ■', Tiifi of GREAT BRITAIN. 21 r The River of Findorn rifes, as I apprehend, in the Phils of Monchrollcy, where its Waters quickly fpread into a Lake ; paffing out of which, and running South- Weft, they loon form a larger, which is called Loch Moy,. wherein is a confiderable Ifland, upon which ftands Moy Hall, the Seat of Mackintofli. The River iffuing from thence, takes a wide Compafs, and pafP- ing by Conbrugh, through which runs the great military Road to Invernefs, turns gradually to the North-Eaft, becoming the Boundary of the two Shires into which Murray is divided, viz. Elgin and Nairn q. After receiving many fmaller Streams, croffing the Wood of Tornaway, belonging to the Earl of Murray, and running at a fmall Diftance from the ancient Town of Forres, declining a little to the North- Weft, it falls into a Bafon, which receives like- wife a lelfer River that runs through Forres, and two other little Streams, which make altogether, a better Harbour than any of the former, though dry when the Tide is out, and with a Bar at the Mouth of the River, which, however, is lefs apt to fliift, ^nd of confequence the Harbour is fafer than moft of the reft. Not far from this Bay ftood anciently the rich and famous Abbey of Kinlofs r. The Town of Nairn is feated on a River of the fame Name, which falls into Murray Firth. On the Banks of this River there are Abundance of Gentle- rnen's Houfes, and a very handlbme Stone Bridge over it, of one Arch. The Port is capable of receiving only fmall Veflels ; and though there are very fine Woods in the Neighbourhood, yet they turn to lefs Profit than could be wifli- ed ; and therefore here, if any- where in this Ifland, Furnaces might with Propriety be fet up for melting the Iron Ores, of which there are faid to be no inconliderable Quantities within a reafonable Diftance ; and by this means even the Loppings of thofe Woods would be rendered of more Value than the Woods themfelves are, as Things now ftand ?. According to Ptolemy, the Murray Firth was the Eftuarium Vararis, and he ftiles the Inhabitants of the Country Vacomagi ; for to this Place the Romans feem to have penetrated, and perhaps fomewhat farther f. At the Bottom of the Firth, and on the South Bank of the River Nefie, ftands the Town of Invernefs, fometimes, as ancient Writers affirm, the Refidence of the Kings of Scotland «. The great Importance of Invernefs on one Side, s Thefe Defcriptions are according to the beft Maps I could procure, and agreeable to the bell Lights I could obtain from the Perfons moft acquainted with the Country. ' Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 4, Joannis Ledari Regionum et Infularum Scotiae Defcriptio, p. 28. Buchanan! Rerum Scoticarum Hiftoria, lib. i. Camdeni Britannia, p. 714. Additions to the Englilh Tranflation of the Britannia. ' Something of this fort was aftually done by the Agents of the York Buildings Company, fo that there is nothing imprafticable in the Propofal. ' Claudii Ptolem^i Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Camdeni Britanni, p. 714. Baxteri GIofTa- rlum Antlquitatum Brltannicarum, p. 233. He very unaccountably places them in Fife. » Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 4, 5. Joannis Lcflaei, Regionum et Infu- Urum Scotix Defcriptio, p. 2p. Buchanaui Rerum Scoticarum Hiftoiia, lib. i. £ e a and 212 The POLITICAL SURVEY and of Inverlochy on the otlicr, fcems to have been known even in the ear- heft Times, and to have been confidered in the fame Light through fucceeding Ages w. The River NelTe, we have before obferved, is about four Miles long, with a fair Stone Bridge over it of feven Arches. The Town is clean, well feated, tolerably built, with two Churches, and is the Head of a very Jarge County «. As there are always regular Troops in its Neighbourhood, there is a great Air of Politencfs, a plentiful Market, and more Money and Buunefs rtirring than could be expcdled in fo remote a Part of the Wand. The Country in its V^icinlty is remarkably cultivated, and its produce clearly fliews that the Soil and Climate are not defpicable. There is a profit-able Salmon Fifliery, which, however, might be improved in many rcfpedls. They have alfo fome Branches both of the Woollen and Linen Manufafture; and, m confequence of their excellent military Roads, a great Proportion of inland Trade y. But, befides all this, Inverncfs is a Port, with twenty Creeks depend- ant on it, Part on the Murray Firth to the Eaft, and Part to the North of Inver- nefs, even to the' South Border of the County of Caithnefs ; yet the foreign Correfpondence here is far from being extcnfive. Some Merchants indeed there are in the Town, and fome Ships belonging to it, but tliey arc fmall ii> Size, as well as few in Number. Tlie Harbour too is none of the beft, whick/ induced the Inhabitants to apply to the Legiflature near forty Years ago, when they obtained a Grant of the Nature fo often fpecified, for nineteen Years, to commence from the firfi: of June, 1719, which has been by a later Law con- tinued for a farther Term of twenty-one Years, in confequence of which they have made, and are ftill making, very confiderable Improvements z. One may reafonably hope, that, in Procefs of Time, the Commerce of this Part of the Country will wear an Afpect very different from what it does at pre- fent, fmce between Invernefs and the Firth the Sea makes a fpacious Bar, ten Miles in Length, fix in its greatcfl Breadth, and about two at its Entrance » j which is eftectually fecured by the new Fort of Arderlier, a very large and commodious Fortrefs, to fay nothing of Loch Beaulieu, which communicates with tliat Bay on the North-Weft. Before we leave the Firth of Murray, we will take the Liberty of adding a few Remarks that poflibly may not feeni unworthy of the public Notice. This differs from other Firths, in that it has, properly fpeaking, Land only on one Side, prefenting an Extent of feventy Miles at leait in a full Front w Walter! Hemingford Chronicon Edvardi Tertii, p. 278. Johannis de Fordun Scotiehronici Continuatio, p. 1283. Camdeni Britannia, p. 714. ' Additions to the Englifli Tranflatbn of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus ct Commer- cialls, p. a. ^ There is no Place in North Britain more generally known than this, and confequently no need of multiplying Authorities In regard to its prefent Condition. '■" Stat V. Geo. I. cap. 17; xi. Geo. II. cap. 1 6. ' According to the hd\ Maps I could obtain, which were very cautioudy compared in order to afcertain thefe Dimenfioas, to of GREAT BRITAIN. 213 to the North. Yet is all this Country, more efpecially where it borders on the Ocean, remarkably rich and fruitful, and wonderfully pleafant, as the belt Writers ancient and modern, acknowlege, and at the fame time admit, that the Harvefts are as abundant, and at leaft as early, as in the Neighbour- hood of Edinburgh, though that City lies almoft a Degree and three Quarters more to the South b. This very ftrongly corroborates what has been advanced in a former Chapter in reference to Situation c ; and what goes fhll farther. Experience fhews that the Climate alters within the Space of a few Miles to the Vv^efl: of Invernefs, which may with great Probability be attributed to the North Wind blowing there, not from the Sea, but over the Countries of Rofs, Caithnefs, and Sutherland ; and it may be, this Difference of Climate would be ftill more feverely felt, if the Sharpnefs of thefe Winds was not checked by the warm \apours ariling from many intervening Lochs, and particularly Loch Neffe d. The Herring Fifliing is carried on in the fame manner in the Mur- ray Firth as in the Firth of Forth, except that the Number of Boats is fmaller, and each of the Boats employs fewer Hands e. There may be, one Seafon with another, five hundred Boats, and, allowing fix to a Boat, about three thoufand Men f". The Herrings caught here are lean ; but, notwithflanding that, are very found and firm, and therefore fitteflifor the Conflimption of the People in the Sugar Illands, and other Countries in very warm Latitudes ; for though the large fat FiHi are infinitely more delicate, and confequently fetch a high Price at their proper Markets, yet, though ever fo fkilfuUy and carefully cured, they are apt from their Oilynefs to become rancid in fultry Climates, and in that State are not either palatable or wholibme g. This Herring Fifhery there- fore deferves public Notice and Encouragement for many Realbns. It ferves in the home Confumption of both frefh and falted Herrings, to furnifh a Food, which Experience fliews to he both nourifliing and cheap, to the poor People in general, and confequently, which is a Matter of great importance fb long as tlie principal Trade of the Country conflffs in the Export of Provl- fions, to keep down tlie Rate of other Kinds of Vidua! . It is, or at leafl: it might be, an Encouragement to the Undertaking of other Fifheries, fuch as Cod, Ling, Hake, and would in Time lead us to the almofl entire PoflefTioa b Heifiioris Boethii Scotorum Rcgnl Defcriptio, fol. j. Joannis Leflsei Regionum et lafularuni Scotire Defcriptio, p. 28, 29. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. <: Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 64. ^ Thisfeems to bejuftified from Sir George Mackenzie's (afterwards Earl of Crorriarry) Obfer- vation, that Rofcmary efcaped in Gardens near the River Nefs in Winters, when it periihed in Gar- dens farther South, as we have remarked before ia fpeaking of Loch Nefle. <= Spriiell's Account current between Scotland and England. Atlas Maritimns et Commer- cialls, p. 9. f Lindfey's Irttereft of Scotland confidered, p. 194. There are many Laws direcling the Man- ner of curing thefe Herrings, and Officers appointed for infpefting thefe Fifheries, and therefore it is hoped they arrive in fuch a Condition at foreign Markets, as to relleft Credit on the Countrj" they come frorTi. 8 See the feveral Treatifes on the Importance of the Herring Fifhery. lately publiihed, in which the various Sorts of Herrings, and their different Markets, are diAinguill.ed. 3 *^^ 214 The POLITICAL SURVEY of the Whale Firtiing, which, frugally carried on, would be more beneficial than any ; and Fifliciies in general are known to breed the greateft Num- ber, and' thole too of the beft Seamen. Add to all this, that whatever Encou- ragements are hereafter given, mull operate entirely on the pickled Herrings exported, and confequently turn the Sea into a Mine, and by bringing more Money amongfl: the Inhabitants, enable them to increafe and extend their other Improvements ''. But to do this eftedtually, there ought to be at leall one good Port made at the public Expence ; and, from what has been hinted before, as to the Bay that lies Eaftward from Invernefs, this Expence need not be very large ; which Aft of public Beneficence would raife the Spirits of the People, and put an enlarged Commerce more immediately in their Power i. Such a Port would be very convenient for our Men of War ; and perhaps it might not be found very difficult to conftrud Docks and Yards in the fame Place, or at leafl within the Compafs of the Bay, or in the Firth of Cro- marty, which would quickly excite Endeavours to bring down, and at the fame time to plant Timber of all Sorts, and turn the Thoughts of the Inha- bitants to the producing naval Stores of every kind, which would be very pradlicable when they had a Market at hand, and in a very fhort Space ren- der the Public Gainers, by the oum it rtiould appear neceffary to lay out towards carrying fuch an Undertaking as this into Execution k. In confequence of fuch a Condefcenfion, there is certainly nothing impro- bable, at leaft nothing impofTible, in fuppofing, that in a Country where Labour is fo cheap, and where, however thinly peopled, the greateft Part of the Inhabitants are glad to do any thing for Bread, the Conjundtion of the Lochs, fo as to make an eafy and diredl Communication between the two Seas, might be undertaken and accompliflied '. This would have a great "\"arietv, and amongfl thefc, no doubt, many unforefeen good EfFedls ; but feme are lb obvious, that mcthinks they cannot well be diiputed. In the firft place it would bring, or rather it would keep, many thoufands of People in thefe Diftridts, which ftand in fo much Need of Inhabitants. It would ren- der the fupplying them with Corn fo eafy and expeditious, that Induftry would then lurnilh immediate Subfiftence, and of courfe raife Towns where now there are only miferable Villages, and Villages where-ever there are at prefent only, a few Huts. It would by degrees, as Experience increafed, bring a Country into Cultivation, that has been barren for Ages through Negledl, and *' Diiflionnaire de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 765. Where it is acknowledged that Scots Herrings well cured, and carefully packed, equal, and even excel, the Dutch. ' It is allowed that here is already a very good Road, iafe Anchorage, and Room for Abun- dance of Ships ; fo that where Nature has done fo much, Art would eafily r'o the reft. k Whoever adverts to the natural, and therefore ncccflary Conr^cciion ot Caufes and EfTefts, will fee that this Method would as certainly produce Shipping and Naval Stores, as the Encourage- ment of Fidieries furnifhes Seamen. ' See what has been already hinted as to the Praflicability of fuch a Communication. Politi- cal Survey of Britain, voi. i. p. 116, Art of GREAT BRITAIN. 215 Art and Induftry would, in half a Century, difcover Advantages, of which we have at prefent no Conception ">. For fnch a Canal would enable the adlive and aliiduous Merchant to tranfport the Returns of his Trade with the Weft Indies to the Eaft Side of the Ifland, which would not only augment, but vary, the Affortment of the Cargoes fent from the Ports in the Firth of Murray into the Northern, and other Parts of Europe, and the Returns which thefe would produce, could not but be reciprocally advantageous to the Traders on the Weft Side of the Ifland n j and every Year would ftrengthea and enlarge this Intercourfe, to the mutual Benefit, not only of the Inhabitants on both Sides of North Britain, but become likewile the Source of a com- fortable Subfiftence to the new Colonies fettled on the Banks of the conjoined Lochs. Smile not, Reader, at thefe vifionary Settlements ! or treat as chime- rical Schemes thefe Profpedls of diftant Advantages ! for there was a Time, when all that now refults from our American Plantations, the almoft innu- merable Commodities we bring from them, and the prodigious Produce of thole Manufadlures, which the Eftablilhment of theie new Markets gave Being to in Britain, were as arrant Vilions; and in the Light of chimerical Pro- jects, ridiculed to the full as much, by thofe who could look no farther than their Nofes, and made it a high Point of their fliort-fighted Sapience, to treat as idle and imaginary whatever they either did not, or would not comprehend o. But we live furely in more enlightened Times, are better acquainted with com- mercial Effeds, that Revelation of the Divine Will which is derived to us thro' the Light of Reafon, and inftructs us? to enlarge our own Happinefs by fup- plying the Wants, and taking oft" the Superfluities of other Men, even in the remoteft Countries, and by llich a Communication extending Notions of Civi- lity, and theKnowlege of true Religion, even to the Ends of the Earth p. If thefe are Villous, they are the Viiions of public Spirit ; if they are Dreams,^ they are tlie Dreams of one who has nothing more at Heart than the univer- fal Felicity of Mankind. But why Vifions, why Dreams, why Projedls ? Is there no Evidence to fup- port the Credibility of thefe Conjedlures ? Is it impoffible to convince rational Men that they are fomething more than Vifions, Dreams, or Projedls ? Surely there is. In the fliort Account that we have given of the Coaft of Murray Firth, it appears to be full of declining Burghs, decayed Harbours, ruined ■" Thefe People, whether drawn hither or kept, mufl remain upon a Principle of Induftry j and confequently, in proportion as their own Circumflances improved, private Intereft would bind them the fiionger to be good Subjefts. " To fuggeft particular Advantages before they are adlually produced, might occafion Difputes, \vhich are endlefs ; but that in moll Countries the fame Caufes will produce the fame Effeifls, is a Maxim cannot be difpiited. ° In order to be convinced how long this Humour lafted, fee the City Madam, a Comedy by Philip Maffinger, in the eighth Volume of Dodflcy's Colleftion of old Plays. t' By adopting thefe Principles, Portugal and Holland, though very fmall in point of Territory, became, tlie former tke mofl flouriihing Monarchy, the latta the mofl potent Republic, in Europe. Churches, 2 3 16 1 he POLITICAL SURVEY Churches, fallen Monaflcries, and the Remnants of Caftles that were Palaces at the Time they were built q. All this Country, tliercfore, was once better peopled thcin it now i?, and thofc People were in better Circumftances too ; that is, they hud more Arts, more Manufadlures, and more Commerce, amongft them, than they now have ; and to clofe this Demonftration, they confumed thofc Provifions, the Exportation of which conftitutes the little Trade that is left. Hiflory attefts the Truth of all this ; it fliews us, at Icaft in a great mea- fure, what the ancient State of this Country was, and the Period of Time in which it funk to what it is. We cannot, indeed, produce the fame Autho- rities to (liew that the remaining Part of the Breadth of North Britain was once in as fiourilhing a Condition ; and what does this prove i^ Not that it never v.as in fuch a State, or ever can be put into fuch a State, but that it was decayed long ago : Yet there are fome Veftiges of former Greatnefs. The Caftle of Urqhuart was hicretofore a large magnificent and coftly Fortrcfs. There are, befides the Ruins of feveral others, particularly near the Weft Coaft, the wretched Remains of a Fort, attributed by Tradition to King Fergus r. Thefe, fure, were not ereiSled to cover a wafte and uncultivated Country. Defarts are a Species of Fortification, and will protedl themfclves. But, to put the Matter beyond all Doubt, a very judicious Hiftorian tells us, that Inverlochy was defigncd by Nature for a commodious Harbour, and, if properly improved, muft become a Place of great Commerce s. Was he too, as well as I, troubled with Vifions ? No, fertainly, for a much more ancient Hifto- rian affures us, that it adlually was fo, though in a Period very remote, and that it was deftroyed by the Norwegians and Danes t ; from whence we may con- clude, that either this Place, or fome other in its Neighbourhood, may, in peaceable and fettled Times, be rendered a Place of Trade again. We muft do great Injury to the Age in which, and the Government under which, we live, not to acknowlege that they are much more favourable to fuch Under- takings than any within the Reach of credible Hiftory u. We cannot but be latisfied, that there are many Places in Britain, and the Reader will recoiled fome Inftances, even within the Compafs of this Chapter, that have recovered from Circumftances very little better, which may certainly plead for fome Degree of Attention to a Spot, that, though it has loft the Effeds, retains, however, the Capacity of Improvement. The true Queftion then comes to be this, What Intereft has Government in adverting to Schemes of this kind .f* 1 True Defcriptlon and Divjfion of Scotland. Additions to Camden's Britannia. Theatrum ScotiK. ' Joannis LeflKi Regionum et Infularum Scotia: Defcriptio, p. 29. The Ruins of King Fer- gus's Caftle are marked in the Map of General Wade's Roads. s Buchanani Rerum Scoticarum Hifloria, lib i. « Heiftoris Boethii Scotoruin Regui Defcriptio, fo!. 4. Camdeni Britannia, p. 716. " To be convinced of the Truth of this, in regard to North Britain, the Reader need only coafult, Selcdt Tran{;i(5tions of the Improvers of Agriculture in Scotland, p. 389 — 443. i anfwer. of GREAT BRITAIN. 217 I anfwer, many and great. If fuch a Communication could be eflabliflied, and the Delcendants of the People now refiding kept in the Country, whicli would of courfe attradl others ; they would find the Means of fubfifting, and inland Trade and foreign Commerce would gradually increafe. The Com- mons would then live better, they would raife more of their own Produce, they would confume that Produce, and, by confuming it, they would pay Taxes ^v. In Countries where the People live very hardly, that is in plain Englifli, are half-ftarved, their Landlords may have pretty good Eflates, and their Rents be tolerably well-paid, from the Exportation of their Produce ■<. But the Revenue will reap little from hence, and the Money that fuch a Com- merce brings in may befpent any-where ; whereas, if Arts and Manufaftures are introduced, and a great Proportion of the common People, who now either lift for Soldiers in our own, or in foreign Service, or go abroad in other Capa- cities to feek Bread ) , find the Means of maintaining themfelves, and ftayinc- at home, they will, by their Induftry, help each other to live at a diiferent Rate, and repay thereby largely in Excifes and Cuftoms, that Government, which has the Goodnefs to excite, fupport, and encourage, their firft Endeavours, and by fuch a falutary Attention, put it in their Power fo to live z. In proceeding ftill farther on the North-Eaft Coaft of Scotland, we meet with feveral Rivers of no inconfiderable Courfe, which, however, are not of any great Service in point of Navigation. The River Beaulieu abforbs the Water of five Lakes, runs many Miles, and then falls into the Loch of the fame Name. Both River and Loch derive their Appellation from a ftately Abbey, of Ciftercian Monks, founded by John Lord Billet, plentifully endowed, and which was fo called from the remarkable Pleafantnefs of its Situation ^ In my own Opinion, the Romans penetrated thus far, and little, if at all, far- ther ; and to them I attribute a great Part of thofe Remains which have been difcovered at Low Water, and from whence it is very probably conjedlured, that what is now a Loch was once dry and habitable. The Cairns, or huge Heaps of Stones, that are {ten under Water, are molt likely to be Danilh ; but the Urns found likewife, feem Monuments of the Romans having had here, at leali, a temporary Fortrefs b. There is Abundance of fine Timber, though chietiv Fir, on the Banks of this River ; but the Falls in it are fo many, as to prevent * Plutarch. In Solone, et in Catone. Reflexions politlques fur !e Finances, torn. i. p. 426, 427. Wallace's Diflertation on the Numbers of Mankind, p. 88. * See, as to this Point, the Interell of Scotl.tud conlidered, p. 35, 36, 37. y Sully Oeconomies Ro5ale5 et Servitudes Loyales, torn. vii. p. 273, 274. Sir William Tem- ple's Obfervations on the United Provinces, chap. vi. '^ Idea de un Principe Politico-Chriftiano, Emprefa Ixvii. M. Vauban, Projet d'une Dime lovale. Houghton's Colleftions for the Improvement ot Hulbandry and Tr.ade, vol. i. p. 83, 84. ^ Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 4, 6. An Appendi.K to Spoti\vood's Hif- tory of tlie Church of Scotland, p. 14. Additions to the Euglilli Tranflation of Canuica's Bri- tannia. ■b Philofophical Tranfaiftions of the Royal Society, N"- ccliv. p. 231. Vol. L F f its 2i8 The POLITICAL SURVEY its being brought to an advantageous Market ^ The River Connel is fwcUed by the Water of no lefs than fix Lakes, and rolls with a copious Stream into Cromarty Firth, palling by Dingwall, an old royal Burgh, near its Fall, and on the South Side, at the^Mouth of the Firth, ftands Cromarty d. Of the River there is little or nothing to be faid, except that it is famous for producing Pearls ; but the Firth is one of the fineft Harbours in this Illand, and by ancient Geographers therefore ftiled juftly Portus Salutis. Narrow indeed at its Entrance, yet very Me within, two Miles broad, and fifteen in Length, not- withftanding which, it is, in a great meafure, without Ships, and without Trade f. There is a large River runs out of Loch Shin, in the County of Sutherland, which Loch is twelve or fifteen Miles long, and which River empties its Waters into the Firth of Dornok, or Tayne, royal Burghs, or ancient Corporations, both ; the latter ftanding on the South, the former on the North Side of the Firtli f". A few Miles farther North the River Vynes falls into Murray Firth ; and, a little beyond that, the River Helmfdale forms a fmall Creek at its Mouth, which is the laft dependant on the Port of Inver- nefs g. All thefe Rivers abound with Fifli ; and the People arc very indu- ftrious in making the beft Ufe they can of the feveral Inlets along the Coaft, and of the few, and thofe linall V^efTels, they have. Yet furely, with a Utile Kncouragement, they might be put into a way of doing fomething better for themfelves, and becoming thereby of more Confequence to the Community, confidering that they have immenfe Quarries of white Marble, Corn, Salt, Salmon, Beef, Wool, Hides of various Kinds, and Tallow ; to fay nothing of Silver, Lead, Copper, and Iron Mines, that are known to be in the Countries behind them, or of the Report, that there is Gold found in fome of the Streams of Dourneffe ; and yet, perhaps, if thefe Countries were at a much greater Diflance, we might be inclined to vifit and fearch them more ftridly h. On the Coaft of Caithnefs tliere are alfo feveral Rivers, that running an Eaft Courl'e, fall into the Firth, and, amongft theie, the molT: diftinguifliable is that, at the Mouth of which fl:ands the Burgh of Weick i, the chief Place in the County, and from which we fometimes find it ftiled the Shire of Weick. ' As I have been informed by Perfons well acquainted with this Country. *' CamdenLRntannia, p. 717. Atlas Mimtimus ct Commercialis, p. 8. Ports of North Bri- tain, with their Members and Creeks. « Joannis Leflsi Regionum et Infularum Scotise Defcriptio, p. 27. Camdeni Britannia, p. 717. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. *' Buchanan! Rcrum Scoticarum Hiftorla, lib. i. Additions to the Engli(h Tratiflation of Cam- den's Britannia. 8 Heiftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, foi. 4. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 387. '■ Joannis Leda?! Regionum ct Infularum Scotise Defcriptio, p. 28. Additions to the Tranfla- tion of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 8. ' Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Rcinii Defcriptio, fol. 4. Joannis Leliaei Rcgioaum et Infularum Scotix Defcriptio, p. 29. Camdeni Britannia, p. 717. Tke of GREAT BRITAIN. 219 Thk greater Piu-t of the Rivers in this County of Caitlinefs, and in tliat of Stratlinaver alfo, run almoll: in a diredl Line from South to Nortli, which ren- ders it manifell that the Scite of thefe two Counties is a kind of an inclining Plain, which may in fome meafure account for their being, as we have elfe- where obferved they are, much milder and more fertile; tlian from the Prin- ciple of judging of Climates by their Latitudes, is commonly imagined ^. The River Thurfo, in Caithnefs, does not run above twenty Miles, and then falls into a Bay, upon which flands the Town of Thurfo, where there is a Cuftom-Houfe, a fmall Port, a few VelTels, and a little Trade K Weft from hence runs the River of Fors, at the Mouth of \\'hich there is alfo a little Town of the fame Name. In the County of Strathnaver, the firft Stream of Con- fequence that we meet with, is the River Strathy, which runs out of a Loch of the fime Denomination, and, after a Courfe of between twenty and thirty Miles, falls into a little Creek, which is called Strathy Bay. Armfdale River, a large Stream, but of a much fliorter Courfe, is the next ; and to the Weft of this lies the Water of Navern m, flowing from a Loch of the fame Name, the greateft Body of Water in this County, and from which, in truth, it derives the Appellation of Strathnaver, or Strathnavern. There are, befides thefe, two other Rivers, running out of the Lakes Loyal and Dournefs. There are few or no Rivers of any Note in thefe Counties that run into the Weftera Ocean ; but there are many noble Bays, and large Inlets of the Sea, which are of fome, and might be of much greater Benefit, as well in refpedl to the Subfiflence of the Inhabitants, as in regard to Commerce and Navigation n. But thefe belong properly to the next Chapter, though very little can be faid of them in the manner that might be wiflied, till we obtain thofe accurate Charts, and authentic Informations, of which the Public is in Expedlation, from a Gentleman who has already given the moft fatisfadory Account of our Illands «>. After detaining the Reader ib long, upon Subjedls that may very probably feem to be equally dry and unentertaining, it is but juft that we fliould affign fome Reafon for their taking up fo much of his Time, and of our o\^-n ; and, it is prefumed, that the Reafon, when given, will appear futticiently weight^^ and prove a very full Apology for all the Pains that have been beftowed about * Camdeni Britannia, p. 718. Heylin's Cofmography, book I. p. 263. D'Audifrct Hifloire et Geographic Ancienne et Moderne, torn. i. p. 260, 261 . ' Luyts, Introduft. ad Geographiam, §. ii. cap. 23. Additions to the Englifli Trannation of Camden's Britannia. The Ports of North Biitain, with their Members and Creeks. " Joannis Leflaei Regionum et Infulanim Scotis Defcriptio, p. 27. Huchanani Rcrnm Scoti- carum Hiftoria, lib. i. Additions to theEiigliih TranQation of Camden's Britannia. ° It is from thefe Bays that the Inhabitants derive ail the Conveniencies they enjoy, which are as it were an Earneft of what might be drawn fiom them, if properly attended to and improved. o Mr. Murdoch Mackenzie, who has publilhcd a moft admirabk Account of the Orkney and X,e%vis lilands. F f ? them. 220 The POLITICAL SURVEY them p. The Wealth of this, and indeed of every other Nation, arifcs chiefly from the Number of the People, their Induftry, and the Wifdom of die Government, in rendering both properly fubfervient to the Intereft of the Com- monwealth. The Counties of Invernefs, Rofs, Cromarty, Sutherland, Strath- naver, Caithnefs, and their Dependencies, comprehend very near four Tenths of the Continent of North Britain q, and, it may be, three Tenths of the Inhabitants, that is, upwards of four hundred thoufand Souls; and whoever con- fiJers this, and at the fame time colleds, from the Laws paffed at and fince the Union, how very fmall a Share they pay towards the public Revenue of that Country r, though there is great Probability it is as much as in their prefent Circumftances they can bear; will eafily comprehend, how great an Advantage would arife to the State, from their being put into a Condition to live in an eafier and better Manner than they do s, which can only arife from their Country being better known, and, together with all the natural Advantages it pofleffes, put into a way of Improvement, for which, moft certainly, the People want not Genius or Abilities, or, I will venture to add, Inclination. What the particular Impediments are we can never know, at leafl with that Degree of Certainty which is neceflary to remove them, till we are better acquainted with thefe Places, and with every thing that regards them and their Inhabit- ants ; and if, by fetting the Neceffity and Importance of this in a proper Point of Light, I can any way contribute to the Happinefs of Individuals, and the Welfare of the Public, I hope it will be allowed that the Labour of myfelf, and Attention of my Readers, hath not been ill bellowed. The River Clyde, ftiled by the modern Writers in Latin, Cluda ; by Taci- tus called Glotta ; and by Ptolemy, Clota, rifes out of Tinto Hill, near a Place called Arrick Stone, on the Confines of the two Shires of Peebles and La- nerk '. It runs at firft North -Weft ward, till, being joined by another Stream, it pafles by Crawford, and runs almoft direcSlly North, through the famous Moor of the fame Name, anciently renowned for producing no defpicable Quantities of Gold Duft, and Lapis Lazuli ; as it fWl is for the rich Mines of Lead belonging to the Earl of Hopton, which are faid to have been difco- vered through the Endeavours ufed by Sir Bevis Bulmer, in the Beginning p It very often happens, more efpecially in Works of this Nature, that what cofts tlie greatefl Puins is not read with the greateft Plcafure. 'i It has been computed there are upwards of twenty-three thoufand fqtiare Miles in North Britain, and of thefe thofe Counties comprehend upwards of nine thoufand. ' When the Cefs in North Britain (which is in the Nature of our Land Tax) amounts to two thoufand nine hundred ninety-feven Pounds a Month, thefe Counties pay one hundred fixty-three Pounds odd Money. ' It ought to be confidered that, from the Circumftances of the Inhabitants, and the Cheapnefs of Labour, great Improvements may be made at a fmall Expence in thefe Places. ' Tacit, in Vit. Julii ,^gricolsE. CJaudii rtolerasei Geograph. hb. viii. tap. 2. Joanuis Lellaei Regionum tt luluhurum Stotise Defcriptio, p. 12. of of GREAT BRITAIN. 221 of the laft Century, to lind a Gold Mine ". After traverfing this Moor, the River declines Eaftward, and fetching a confiderablc Compafs, turns again to the North-Weft, when receiving a large Supply of Water from the River Douglafs, it comes to Laiicrk, a royal Burgh, the Name contradled from Lan e rig, that is, the Bank of the River, by the Romans called Ugrulentum, which is the chief Place in the Shire ; and here there is a Bridge over it, of fuch Conveniency to the adjacent Counties, that Tolls were granted for its Sup- port upwards of fifty Years ago, which by repeated A(fts of Parliament are liill fubfifting w. The Clyde then leaving Hamilton at a fmall Diftance, about which there is as good Oak Timber as any in the Illand, proceeds to Giafgow, which it reaches after travelling about fifty Miles from its Source x. Here being become both broad and deep, it continues its Progrefs, dividing the Shires of Renfrew and Dunbarton, and having paffed the Town of Ren- frew, and foon after received the two Rivers of the Name of Cart, it moves majeftically on till it abforbs alfo the River Levin, iffuing from Loch Lomund, being overlooked from the North by the Caflle and Town of Dunbarton, which ftand on that River ; and thus fwelled with fublidiary Streams, having palfed New Port Giafgow, and Greenoch, and wafhed a Part of Argylefliire, it joins its Waters to thofe of the Sea, after a Courfe of feventy Miles > . The great Glory of the Clyde is the ancient and noble City of Giafgow, indifputably allowed to be the fecon^ in North Britain. The Bifhoprick is faid to have been founded towards the Clofe of the fixth Century by St. Mun- go, in fucceeding Times reputed its Patron ^■. Many Centuries after it became the See of an Archbifl^iop, Dodor John Blaccader being the firft honoured with that Title, in 148 1 . Before this, a Univerfity was founded and endowed by Dodlor William Turnbull, then Biihop of Giafgow in 1453, under the Aufpice of King James the Second, and with the Participation of Pope Nicho- las the Fifth. It was protedted, and in a peculiar Manner favoured, by the fucceeding Princes, down to James the Sixth, who laved it from Ruin, re-founded, and re-endowed it j fublequent to which it has been alfo honoured with diftinguifliing Marks of tlieir Attention by all our Monarchs, and occa- fionally alfo by the Legiflature ^. This Univerlity confifts of a fingle College, regularly built, formerly feparated from the Town by a Wall, and of late °'° Buchanani Rerum Scoticarum Hiftoria, lib. i. Camdeni Biitanni:i, p. 6^)6. Additions to the Engllfh Tranflation of Camden. * Baxteri GlofTarium Antiquitatiim Britannicarum, p. 247. Stat. x. Geo. II. c.np. 20. 5. i. * Hectoris Boetliii Scotorum Regni Defcriptio, fol. 3. Camdtni Britannia, p. 696. Baxteri Gloffuium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 82. ' Buchanani Renim Scoticarum Hiftoria, lib. i. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Cam- den. Atlas Maritimus et Commereialis, p. 18. T- Joannes Leilsi Regionum et Infularum Scotiie Defcriptio, p. 12. Appcndui to Archbifliop Spotlwood's Hiflory of the Church of Scotland. ■■ Hectoris Boethii Scotca-um Hiftoria lib. xviii. p. 378. Additions to the Englifli Tranflation of Camden. Appendix to Archbifhop Spotfwood's Hillory of the Church of Scotland. Years 222 The POLITICAL SURVEY Years coiifiderably enlarged. At prcfent juftly diftinguilhed by a {ivlA and accu- rate Method of educating Youth, lb as to qualify them for all the OlHces of adive Life, and to render the Fruits of their Studies confpicuous in tlieir Con- dud, as ufeful Members of Society. In one point they are fingular, as being enabled, by the Munificence of a generous Bcncfadtor, to fend Exhibitioners to the Univcrfity of Oxford. A Thing worthy of Imitation j fince a Union of Principles and Interefts is the higheil Benefit that can accrue to both Nations ; the promoting of which, for the common Benefit, will ever, and, in every Part of the Illand, be the Aim of all true Patriots l>. Glasgow is, in other refpefts, a large, well-built, regular, neat, and com-' modious City, with two, or rather four wide Streets meeting in a fpacious Area, which forms the Market-Place, all the Houfes of a jull: Height, and nearly of die fame AfpecSf. The ancient and the modern Buildings for public Ufes, feem to vie with each other ; the former arc venerably magnificent ; the latter elegantly fubltantial <^. The Cathedra! is a ftupendous Piece of Archi- tecture, w hich has been admired for Ages. The new Church is a noble Struc- ture ; the College has a fine Free-Stone Front towards the City. The Town- Houfe, as it would be called in South Britain, is folid, fpacious, and conve- nient ; and there is a noble Bridge, confining of eight Arches, over the Clyde, the Source of all this Grandeur, with a pretty large Suburb on the other Side of it. As to the Shape of the City it is nearly fquare ; and, befides thofe already mentioned, it has other public Edifices of lefs Importance, all kept in good Order and pcrfedl Repair, which is owing to a true Spirit of Com- merce which prevails amongft the Inhabitants, and is properly fuftained by indefatigable Induflry, and fupported by a laudable Frugality d. Before the Union this City made a remarkable Figure, as having fome natural Advantages, which enabled her Inhabitants to carry on a confiderable Trade to the Weftern Parts of Europe. But it was not till after the Union, that her Merchants had it in their Power to dilplay, in an extenfive Degree, the Benefits derived to them from their convenient Situation, by embracing the Trade of tjie Plantations. They very foon faw what might be done, and they have ever fince been very vigorous in their Endeavours e. The Profits arihng from hence encouraged a true mercantile Spirit ; and at the fame time that it enabled them to live by, inftruded them in the neceffary Means, and the proper Inftruments, for augmenting and rendering this Commerce i^ill *• From private Information, ' Additions to tlie EngliQi Tranfliuicn of Camden's Britannia. Short Account of Scotland, p. 107 — 115. See the Article of Glafgow in Collier's Hiftorical and Geographical Diftionary, vol. j. d Camdeni Britannia, p. 696. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 18. Broome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 215. ' Additions to the Englifli Traaflation of Camden. Short Account of Scotland > ? ' more of GREAT BRITAIN, 223 more extenfive, and of courfe more beneficial f. In confcqucnce of this, and of tlieir having Countries on every Side capable of Cultivation, and not deftitute of People, properly inclined, fit for Labour, and willing to be intruded, they undertook, and perfeded, Variety of Improvements, and, in a verj- fliort Space of Time, introduced a Diverfity of Woollen, Linnen, Leather, Iron, and Earthen-ware Manufactures j letup a Slitting-mill, Rope-walks, Soap-works, Sugar and Glafs-houfes ; and thus laid the true and broad Foundation of a lucrative Commerce, in the encouraging of Art and Induftry on every Side, chuling to fix the Hopes of their own Profperity on being the Authors and Patrons of the Profperity of others. As their Materials were coUeded, aug- mented, and improved, their Commerce grew daily more extenfive, which cre- ated new Demands, and confequently produced a Want of new Materials, and new Inftruments, to fupport it, which they have gradually procured ; and all thefe new Efiiablifhments have been proiecuted with great Diligence and Attention, as is evident from the Spirit of the People, and the Condition of the Country round them. The Town of Pailley, in particular, is a Ifriking Inflace of this ; where, within the Period before-mentioned, every Loom for weaving Linnen has produced at Icafi: twenty ; and the People are continually turning their Thoughts to new Inventions. The fame thing might be faid of other Places ; but I propofe a Portrait rather than a Hiftory ; and in this Light one Inrtance ferves as well as many, and the Reader's Attention is not diftracted by a Multiplicity of Objeds, but keeps the principal Point always in V^iew &, But, though the Succefs attending that commercial Spirit which charac- terifes the People of Glafgow, and other Places in her Neighbourhood, has been very great, and may very properly ferve as an Example of what that Spirit may effedl, even in North Britain, yet I am inclined to think, that, as ?s ufual in fuch Cafes, common Opinion has magnified it beyond the Truth ''. Neither has her Profperity maintained a continual Flow ; but, on the con- trary, met with fome, and thofe very untoward. Interruptions. For, not to mention the Difafters brought upon her by popular Tumults, or the Calami- ties (lie has experienced from Civil War, even her Trade has felt fome Incoa- veniencies '. The Baltic Market is not what it once was, in reipedt to her Fiflieries ; fome Checks have been likewife felt in the Linnen Trade ; and the deilrudlive, as well as infamous, Pracftice of Smuggling has, I am afraid, cramped one of the principal Branches of her American Commerce, by which I mean that of Tobacco. For it is impofiible, however necefl'arv, to multiply Precautions againft foul Dealing, without doing, tiiough it may be, f Atlas MaiitifDUS et Commercialls, p. 1 8. S Thefe are Fafts, received fiom feveral particular Informations. * Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden. Atlas Maritiraus et Commercialism p. r/, Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P. iii. p. 215, 216. i Tliefe Hiais have been chiefly received from pi ivate Iiiloi-aiatioa. both 224 The POLITICAL SURVEY both unwittingly and unwillingly, fome Prejudice even to the fairefl Trader '^ If Freedom be not the very ElTcnce, it is at leaft lb eflential to Trade, there is no rcftraining the one without injuring the other; and, if we rcfledl how much it indiljputably turns to the mutual Benefit of the Colonics, and their Mother-Country, that the Commerce between them ihould be as extenfive as puilible, it is certainly to be wiihed, that inftcad of difcouraging Smuggling by accumulated and accumulating legal Limitations, we ihould rather endeavour to extirpate it by lelTening the Duties ; which would not only take away the Temptation from the fraudulent, and increafe the Bufinefs of the fair Trader, but would likewife augment tlie Correfpondcnce between the Mother-Country and her Plantations, to the reciprocal Benefit of both. But, in otiicr relpedls, tlic City of Glafgow has received frequent Marks of Favour and Prote", and this Term, from time to time, larther enlarged by fubfequent Acts ", vvhich have been of extraordinary Benefit to thi.. Place. Renfrew, which is an ancient royal Burgh, and the chief Town of the Shire of the fame Name, ftands on the oppofite Side of the Clyde, a few Miles below Glafgow ; and, though it is not a very confiderable Place, is improving, as well in Manufadhires as in Commerce. The ancient Ciianel of the Clyde into which the Tide flows, furnilhes it with a veiy convenient Flarbour, called Pud- doch ; and, by Spring Tides, Veffels of tolerable Burthen are brought up to the Bridge. The Inhabitants addid: themfelves pretty much to the Irifh Trade ; and having the Benefit of a public Ferry, draw no fmall Advantage from being the Centre of Correfpondcnce between the Counties on both Sides the Firth. Dunbarton, or Dumbritton, as anciently fhled, is alfo a royal Burgh, and a Shire Town, a Place of great Antiquity, and very famous for its impregnable Caftle, is feated on the fame Side of the Clyde with Glafgow, fourteen Miles to the Weft, where the River Levin falls into the Firth of Clyde, from whence it derives a finall, but fafe Port o. In the Year 1668, '' This, in the Eye of fmcere Parriots, is one of the moft aggravating Circun:iflances attending the Crime of Smuggling, that it introduces Laws for the Secuiity of the Revenue, which are detrimental to Commerce. And what is this in effecf but fubmitting to take a flow Poifon, in order to cure a cut Finger ? i W. & M. par. i. feir. 2. cap. i ^. Scots AE AT BR I TA I N. 225 the City of Glafgow purchafed from Sir Patrick Maxwell a Village near the Bay of Newark, which, by the Favour of King Charles the Second, was erected into a Burgh of Barony, under the Name of Port Glafgow, where there is a large commodious Haven, to v\-hich Ships of any Burthen may be brought, with all Kind of Conveniencies for the Accommodation of Com- merce, and a good Town daily incrcafing, which belongs to, and is, pro- perly fpcaking, the Harbour of, G.algow. For here is a Cullom-Houfe, which is a handfome Building, and has a fair Eftablilhment of Officers, and the Tur:*di(ftion of the whole Firth and River on both Sides p. It may not be amils to observe, that the laft Giant of the Duty upon Ale to the City of Gl^igow, extends to this Place, and to the Village of Gorbels, which is on the South Bank of the Clyde, directly oppofice to Glafgow. At a Imail Dif- tance from Porr Giafgow llands the Town of Greenock, which above a Cen- tury paft was eredted in-o a Burgh of Barony, in favour of the ancient Family of Shaw. Abdut hfiy Years ago, the then Proprietor, Sir John Shaw, to his immortal Honour, began, at his own Expence, to form a convenient Haven here, which wa- a'"-erwards, by Subfcription of the Inhabitants, rendered very large and commodious, fo as to be at length very little inferior to Port Glaf- gow q. For tlie Support and Improvement of this Burgh and Harbour, build- ing a Town-Houfe, and other Works of a public Nature, a Grant has been obtained of tlie ufual Duty upon Ale, by a late Statute, for thirty-one Years r. Befioes thefe, there are feveral other little Harbours on the Firth, which are all in a thriving Condition, owing to that Spirit of Indulfry and Commerce which reigns more here than almofl: in any other Part of North Britain s j a Spirit which, if properly promoted, and fuitably encouraged, will not fail of producing, in Time, Effedls much fuperior to thole which it has already pro- duced, and thereby convince their Southern Neighbours, that the natural Defeats of North Britain, how great foever they may be imagined, will, not- witbflanding, yield to Induftry and Perfeverance ; and being once overcome, not the Face, but the Nature of the Country- will be fo changed, that Pollo- rity may poiTibly difpute whether thofe Defedls ever exifted. There are fome farther Remarks relating to the Firth of Clyde, -which, in a Work of this Nature, ought not to be palled over in Silence. The Herrino- Fifhery here is very confiderahle, not barely in refpecR: to the Quantities of Her- ring caught, but alfo from the Excellence of the Filh, little inferior to thofe taken in deep Waters, and the particular Skill and Care in the Packing and Curing them, fo that Glafgow Herrings have come to foreign Markets with as y Crav/furd's Defcription of the Shire of Renfrew, p. 86. Atlas Marltimus et Commercialis, p. 17. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 388. 1 Additions to the Englirti Traadation of Camden. Crawfurd's Defcription of the Shir^' of Renfrew, p. 90. Beawes's Merchants Direiftory, p. 1^91. ' Stat. xxiv. Geo. II. c.ip. 38. » Atnongft thefe we may particularly reckon Gourock, at prefent a Creek to Greenock. Vol. I. G g ^ much £26 The POLITICAL SURVEY much Reputation ;\s the Dutch t. That this is in itfelf a Matter of great Im- portance, the Reader will cafily conceive, when he is told that upwards of thirty thoufand Barrels have been exported in a Seafon. The Glafgow Merchants, many Years ago, attempted what would be of the utmoft hnportance to this Country, the joining this to the other I'^iflieries ; and with that View endeavoured to ftrikc into the Whale Fifhery, but they were not fo fortunate at that Time to bring this about ". If by any means they could be enabled to carry this great Delign thoroughly into Execution, lb as to embrace the Herring Trade in its utmoft Extent, and to purfue it in the deep Waters, and on the Lewis Coaft, as vv'ell as their own, there would very valuable Confequences follow from it, and particularly this, that it would be then, eftedually and for ever, fecurcd to the Subjecfts of Britain, to whom it naturally belongs ; and though hitherto we have not been able fo to avail ourfelves of the Advantages we pof- fefs, as fully to accompliih this Point, yet there is nothing clearer, than that if it was once accomplifhed by the Merchants at Glafgow, or the Inhabitants of the Ifles, it never could be again wrefted from us w. Another Point is, the happy Situation of all the Ports upon this Firth for the Trade of America, the Weft Indies, and alfo for Spain and Portugal, which, as we before obferved, has been within half a Century paft cultivated with great Care and Succefs : Neither ought the Benefits arifing from hence to be envied, when it is remembered, that from Glafgow prodigious Numbers of young People have been fent into Virginia, and the other Colonies, where by their Indulhy they have made confiderable Improvements, and raifed immenfe Returns to Great Britain in general ; and it is very natural that thofe who thus, at the Expcnce of their own Inhabitants, have contributed to people the Plantations, fliould reap a Share in the Profits arifing from thofe Returns which the Labour and Induftry of thefe People produced. But to augment the Value, as well as to enlarge the Extent of this important Commerce, it were to be wiftied that the Weftern Part of North Britain was more cultivated and better peopled ^. For the Inhabitants of thofe Countries when more nume- rous, would be able to confume great Quantities of American and Weft India Commodities, which muft be paid for in their own Manufadures ; and, what- ever may be thought of it by fuch as have been only converfant in praftical * Diftionnalre dc Commei-ce , torn. ii. col. 765. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p, 112. Beawes's Merchant's Dire<5tory, p. 590. " Lindiay's Intereft of Scotland confidered, p. 209. ■" Becaufe we rtwuld then carry it on cheaper than any other Nation could. * This may feem to be arguing in a Circle, fuppofing a Benefit to arife from fending People to cultivate Lands in the Colonies, and then making the Advantages derived from this, depend upon increafmg the Number of People in the Mother-Country. However, the Faft is (o, and may be very eafily explained. Multitudes leave their Mother-Country to go elfewhere than to the Plantations; and it is thefe we recommend to be kept at home, to render the Correfpondence with the Colonics more extenfive, and to prevent their Countrymen there, from feeling a Neccflity of fceking other Markets.. 3 Commerce^ of GREAT BRITAIN. 227 Commerce, if this cannot be effedled, Experience will fliew, that in fpitc of all the Diligence and Induftry that can be exerted in other refpeds, tliis Com- merce will find its Limits, beyond which it will be very difficult, if iiot impof- fible, to carry it, but by recurring to this certain Method. About the Time of the Union there was much Difcourfe of uniting the Firths of Forth and Clyde, and great Advantages, then fufficiently explained, were propofed from it '^. We have not Room here to enter into a Difcuflion of this Point, or into a Detail of thofe Conveniences, with a View to which the Merchants at Glafgow have Warehoufes at Alloa, as we before hinted ; but there is no Reafon to queftion that they would have been very confiderable, and might be fo ftill. As to the Pradicability of making fuch a Canal, there can be very little, if any, Doubt about it. The Space of Ground intervening is not above twenty Miles ; and a moft commodious Communication by Water might be made for as many thoufand Pounds ; according to fome Computa- tions, for much lefs ^ j and therefore this is a Matter that well deferves to be kept in Memory. The River Irwin rifes on the Border of the Shire of Lanerk; and running a North- Weft Courfe for about twenty-three Miles, makes the Boundary of what was called the Bailiwick of Cunningham. As it falls into the Sea, it meets with another confiderable River from the South- Weft ; and by the Jundion of both their Waters there is formed a convenient Harbour, upon which ftands the ancient royal Burgh of Irvin, or Irvine, a Place cele- brated long ago for the Beauty of its Situation, fair Buildings, and great Trade a. But this being a barred Port, and the Sands gradually choaking it- up, we find its Decay mentioned at the Diftance of one hundred and fifty years b. The Inhabitants, however, were always diftinguiflied for their Indu- ftry ; and tlierefore taking the Advantage of every Con:und:ure, and availing, tliemfelves of all the Helps in their Power, and being of late Years aflifted by the Legiflature c, they have fo far revived their Trade as to have the Efta- blifhment of a Port, with three Creeks under its Jurifdidion, and have alfo Officers appointed to overlook the Salt Duties d. Their chief Trade is to Ireland with Coals, of which they have great Plenty, and very good, in their Neighbourhood ; and, befides this, they have an Inland and Coaft Trade, y See the Pamphlets pnblj(hej at that Junflure, and compare tlie Advantages propofed by the Union with the Confeqiiences that have attended it. 2 It has been carried fo low as kvQW thoufand Pounds, and that too grounded on the aftual Expence of Canals of the like Kind made in South Britain. '■ Joannis Leflsei Regionum et Infularum Scotise Defcriptio, p. lo. Buchanan! Rerum Scoti- carum Hiftoria, lib. i. Appendix to Archbilfiop Spotfwood's llillory of ScotLind, p. 39. '' Camdeni Britannia, p. 694. <^ Stat. ix. Geo. II. cap. 27. d Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 387. Eflablilliment of the Officers for the Salt-Duty in North Britain. G g 2 with 228 The POLITICAL SURVEY with fome Concern in the Herring Fifliing in the Firth of Clyde <■ ; fo that, however inferior to what they once were, they are at ieaft recovering, and in Procefs of Time, perlaaps, may become much more confiderable. The River Air rifes on the Edge of Lanerkfliire, and running through the County of its own Name in a Weft: Courfe, near twenty Miles, in which Space it receives many auxiliary Streams, falls at length into what is commonly called the Firth of Clyde ('. This River is with great Probability fuppofed to be the Vandcgar-J, or VVldogara, of Ptolemy g. On the South Side of it flood tlie ancient royal Burgh of St. Johnflown, with a Bridge over the River, con- lifting of four Arches ; but the new Town of Aire, which is the Head of the Phirc, ftands on the North Side •'. It was formerly very famous for the Beauty of its Situation, the Elegance of its public Buildings, a very large Jurixdidlion, the greateft Market in thefe Parts, a good Port, and a flourifhing Commerce k After the fatal Battle of Dunbar, Cromwell built here one of his Citadels for bridling North Britain, between the Town and the Sea, of which there are ftill vifible fome, tliough very fmall Remains ^. This might pro- bably be injurious to its Commerce, but as at Invernefs, fo here, was very bent-ficial to the Inhabitants in another refpeft ; for Cromwell's Soldiers taught them to inclofe their Grounds, and to improve them according to the Methods then in Ufe in England. There is not only Tradition to fupport this, but we fee by Books dedicated to Cromwell, that he was really a Patron of thefe Arts, and that his Ofiiccrs made their Court to him by diftinguiftiing themfe'ves in this kind of Knowledge ', However, we find the Town of Aire declined to fuch a Degree, that in 1690 they had an Adl of Parliament in their Favour ">, which, notwithftanding, was fo indifferently executed, that at the Diftance of ten Years, or thereabouts, the Place was in a very fad Condition. Their Harbour was fo much decayed, that no Bark or Veftel could come over the Bar, or lie at the Quay ; their Bridge was ruinous, fo were their Highways ; their Talbooth was falling down, and all other public Strudures in a like perilous * Additions to the Englifti Tranflation of tlie Britannia. Beawes's Merchants Dirertory, p. 587. ' Buchanani Rerum Scoticaium Hifloiia, lib. i. ' Claudii Ptolemsi Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Camdeni Britannia, p. 694. Baxteri Gloflli- rium Antiquitatiim Britannicaruin, p. 235. '' Additions to the Englilh Tranllation of Camden. Short Account of Scotland, p. 115. ' Joannis Leflxi Regionum et Infularinn Scotise Defcriptio, p. 10. ^ Additions to the Englilh Tranflation of Camden. ' The Englifh Improver improved, or the Survey of Hufljandry furveyed ; difcovering the Improveablenefs of all Lands ; fome to be under a double and treble, others under a five or fix fould, and many under a ten fould ; yea, fome under a twenty fould Improvement, by Captain Walter Blith, London, 1 653. 4°. Befides the Dedication to the Lord General Cromv. ell, and the Council of State; there is an Addrefs, to the Honourable the Soldiery of thefe Natioas of Eng- land, Scotland, and Ireland. » Scots Afts of Parliament, vol. iii. p. 406, 2 State. of GR E AT BR I TA I N. 229 State n. Soon after the Unioa, however, the Face of their Affairs began to change, and their inland Trade reviving, the Inhabitants by degrees relumed their Commerce ; fo that their Port, which has four Creeks dependant upon it, is as much frequented as that of Irvin, and, befides the Filhing and Coafting, carries on fome Trade to Ireland, and to other Places, which is every Day increafing o. It may not be amifs to obferve, that, at a fmall DIflance from the Town of Aire, there is a Bridge over the River Dun, of a fingle Arch, which is ninety Feet in Length, and confequently not inferior to the famous Rialto at Venice p. The Town of Glenluce ftands at the Mouth of the River Luce, or, as fome write it, Lufs, and beftows its Name on that great Bay of the Sea, which bounds Galloway on this Side q. It is, notwithftanding, a Place of very little Importance, and only a Creek to the Port of Stanrawer, which will be men- tioned in the next Chapter. There is no doubt that this, and fome other Places, are capable of being rendered of much more Importance than they are at prefent ; but we muft remark, in refpeift to almofl all Regions, where the Wealth of the Inhabitants confills chiefly in Cattle and Sheep, it very feldom happens that they are either very populous, or that the People apply themfelves, at leaft with any Afliduity, to Manufadures ; on the contrarj^, a certain Num- ber find a Way to get their Livelihooc^ in what they efteem an eafier Manner, and the reft go elfewhere to fcek it, from Labour or Art, which is the prin- cipal Reafon that, upon this Coaft, we meet with fo few Places that clain:i our Notice in a Work of this Nature. The River Blainoch rifes amongft the Mountains that divide the Shire a? Aire from the Country of Galloway, and running a South-Eaft Courfe ten or twelve Miles, turns then almoft diredlly Eaft, and receiving in its Paflage two other pretty large Streams, falls into the Sea at Wigton, where it meets alfo with the Waters of the River Cree, and the Opening of the Shore between them, conftitutes what is called Wigton Bay '-. This Place, the Name of which is a Compound of Britilh and Saxon, fignifying a Town upon the Waters, is an ancient royal Burgh, with a tolerable Harbour, and was for- merly a Place of great Trade s. At prefent it is the Head of one of the Divifions of Galloway, ftyled from thence the Shire of Wigton, has a Cuftom- " From a Manufcript Memorial of the Inhabitants of this Borough, aJdrefled to their Magi- flrates, which is in my PolTeflion. ° Additions to the Englifti Tranflatlon of Camden. Beawes's Merchant's Direiflory, p. 587. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 386. P Additions to the Englifli Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Itinerario d'ltalia di Fran- cefco ScotO; P. i. p. 25. Fynes Moryi'on's Travels, B. 11. P. i. chap. i. p. 88. St. Difdler De- fcript. dela Vllle & de laRepub. de Venife, p. 17. IMilTon Voyage d' Italic, torn. i. lettre 17. q Biichanani Rerum Scoticarum Hiftorl^, Hb. 1. - Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 388. ' Joannis Leflasi Reglonum et Infiilariim Scotiae Defcriptlo, p, 8, 9. Camdeui Britannia, p. 692. ' Uax.teri Glollwium Antk|uitatuiii Biitannlcarum, p. 78. Ilcufe, 230 The POLITICAL SURVEY Houle, with a proper Eflablirtiment, and nine Creeks dependant upon it ; but its Commerce at preicnt, though increafmg, is by no means fo conliderable as inioht be e'xpected from its Situation, which with great Probability may be alcnbed to the Caufes that in the former Paragraph have been affigned r. The River Dee riles out of Loch Dee, which lies at the Foot of the Hills, that, as we before remarked, divide the Shire of Aire from Galloway ; and, after running many Miles in a terpentine Courfe, and receiving the Waters of the <^reat River Ken, declining more to the South-Eaft, fails at length into the Sea, with a very copious Stream, on the Eaft Side of which rtands the Town of Kirkcoubright, or, as it is now written, Kircudbright, which, as fome think, was known to the Romans by the Name of Benutium ". It is cer- t:\inlv a very ancient royal Burgh, and was heretofore a Place of great inland Trade, and had a good Share of Commen, a, for which it is very well fitu- ated ^v. It is at prefent a Member of the Port of Dumfries, and has feven Creeks dependent upon it. If not in a flourilhing, it may be at Icaft affirmed to be, in comparifon of its Neighbours, in a thriving Condition, and, coiifi- dering the natural Advantages it enjoys, will in Time, as the Spirit of Indu- ftry, Manufadure, and Trafiick increafes, become in all Probability a Place of much greater Significance, more efpecially when Manufadures of difterent Kinds (hall be improved in thefe Parts ^, The River Nethe, Nid, or Nithe, which in the Britidi Tongue fignifies crooked, or full of Turnings, and from which River the Country derives the Name of Nithfdale, rifes in the South Part of the Shire of Aire ; and run- ning in a winding, but conftantly in a South-Eaft Courfe, receives in its Paflage feveral Rivers, the principal amongfl: which are the Scar and the Kairn, falls at laft with a very full Tide into the Sea, fome Miles below the Town of Dum- fries y. This is an ancient royal Burgh, and the chief Town of a Shire, which is compofed of the Country of Nithfdale and the Stewartry of Annandale i. It was formerly famous for a great Manufafture of Woollen Cloth, now decayed; notwithftanding that, there are more Sheep bred in this Shire than in any other in North Britain, fome Sheep-Mafters, fo they are called here, having Stocks of thirty thoufand, Sheep, and rent Farms of a thoufand Pounds a Year a. The Town of Dumfries is admirably well fituated: The Caftle and the ' Atlas Maritimus p. 112, 113. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 388. u Heftoris Boetl^ii Scotorum Rcgnl Defciiptio, fol. 3. Caradeni Britannia, p. 692. Baxter! Gloffarium Antiquitatum Britannicariim, p. 40. w Joannis Lcllaei Regionum et Infularum Scotix, Defciiptio, p. 8, 9, Camdeni Britannia, p 692. » Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 386. y Joannis Leilaei R-.'gionum et !nfularam Scotine Defcriptio, p. 8. Buchanani Rerum Scotica- rum Hil^oi'ia, lib. i. Camdeni Hrininnia, p. 691. * Additions to Camden's Brita;ini;i. a This, if my ln{ormaiioo be ri^ht, is a Matter certain, and of public Notoriety. Church of GREAT BRITAIN. 231 Church are very handfome Strudlures ; the Streets are wide, and in general well-built. Here is an Exchange for Merchants, a Cuftom-Houfe, and a ftately Bridge of nine Arches over the River. The Inhabitants have been always an adtive and induftrious People, by which they have preferved a great inland Trade, fupported chiefly by three annual Fairs for Cattle, which are much more frequented than any in the South Part of Scotland b. They have alfo availed themfelves of their Situation, the Tide flowing, and bringing Vef- fels of conliderable Burthen up. to their Bridge, though above fix Miles from the Sea, fo that they have a good Share of Commerce, and have imported three thoufand Hogflieads of Tobacco in a Year from Virginia c. It is indeed, in companion of its Neighbours, a Port of great Bufinefs, and has {even Creeks dependent upon it, exclufive of thole belonging to Kircudbright, which, as we have already remarked, is a Member of the Port of Dumfries. This Burgh has great Obligations to the Legiflature, vv'hich granted them the ufual Duty upon Ale for nineteen Years, from the fiift of June 171 7, to ena- ble them to pay the Debts of the Town, to build a new Church, to maintain their Minifters, and to repair their Harbour d. This Grant was not only con- tinued for the further Term of twenty-five Years, but a new Duty of Ton- nage has been likewife granted for cleanling the River Nid, rebuilding their public School, and maintaining other Edifices in good Repair Seafonable Remarks on Trade, with fome Reflexions on the Adfantages that might accrne to Great Britain, by a proper Regulation of the Trade of Ireland, printed in 1729; with a Dedication to his Excellency John Lord Carteret (the prefent Earl of Granville) Loid Lieutenant of Ireland, p- 23. " In order to be convinced of this, we need only confider, howvery late the Praflice of render- ing Rivers navigable by Art has prevailed In South Biitain, notwithftanding the numberlefe Advantages derived from thofe many and deep Streams whi^h were navigable by Nature, and which notwithflanding, have been alfo much improved by the fame Means. Vol. L H h tcr 234 The POLITICAL SURVEY ^er employed. But even in the Way in which it is employed, the Correfpond- ence between the moft diftant Parts of the Kingdom is very much facili- tated ; and, while it was better peopled, there were more Arts, Manufadlures, and Commerce, than there are at prelent ; and the great Number of decayed Burghs and Ports plainly fhew, that there was a Time when they were in a flourilhing Condition o ; and therefore it is not only unrealbnable, but againft the Light of Evidence, to aifcrt that there is any natural Incapacity, which renders it impolliblc for the People who inhabit it to carry on Manuladures, domeftic Trade and foreign Commerce, as well as their Neighbours, though the Want of navigable Rivers may be, and certainly is, a great Hindrance to their arriving at fo defirable a State p. But, bcfidcs the Amendment of thofe natural Defcds which have been before ftated, the Conjunftion of Lochs, which we have fliewn to be in many Places pradlicable, would facilitate Communication extremely, as they are many of them of a confiderable Ex- tent, molt of them very deep, and as they lie either in the Heart of the Coun- try, or very near thofe Inlets of the Sea, which are called Lochs likewife q. It ought alfo to be confidered, that the Narrownefs of this Country would enable its Inhabitants to avail themfelves of all their natural Advantages, with the AfTillance of a very few of thefe Connexions >' : Poffibly if the Jundlion of the two Firths of Forth and Clyde, and of the Lochs between Invernefs and Fort William were once effedted, they would either be fufficient, without further Helps, or increafe the Number of People, and render their Cir- cumllances lb much better, as to put fuch Improvements more in their Power s. At all Events, there is an ealy and a very practicable Remedy, by making. o The Hlftory of Commerce in North Brkain has not been much attended to ; but, notwith- ftanding this, it would be no difficult thing to prove it was once much more extenllve, and incom- parably more lucrative, than at prefeut ; otherwife the Nobility could not have erefted fo many Palaces, or endowed fo many Convents ; neither could fo many Burghs royal, and of Barony,, been built in fo ftately a Manner. f We attribute the flow Progrefsof Commerce in North Britain, and its fpeedy Decline from the Height to which it was advanced, through the Courfe of fo many Ages, in the Reign of James V. to the Want of navigable Rivers, wliich made a Multitude of different Methods requi- fite to fupply that Defefl ; and as all thefe were countenanced and protected, if not contrived and fupported by Government, as that relaxed, they failed. "J As Things iland at prefent, fomewhat of this Kind might be done in more than one Inftance to very great Advantage, fo as to open at once a Sea Port in the filt Water Loch, communicating with what would become a kind of navigable River, by being let into it, and very often a great military Road running by the Side of the frefh Water Loch, which explains the Commodioufnefs of fuch Operations. ' The Conjunftions propofed in the Text might be effcifled, fuppofing the Military to be chiefly employed at a very fmuU Expence to the Government. They would, confidered in the Light of making the Country thoroughly pervious, anfvver better than the Roads which already fubfift. The Improvements and Increafe of People might be made, without any Apprehenfion of their behaving otherwife than becomes quiet and induflrious Subjefts. ' In the Space of very few Years the Face of the Country, and the Difpofition of the Inha- bitants, would be entirely altered. The Improvements which fuch Communications would ren- der facile, as well as prafticable, would be of dlifeient Sorts, viz. Mines, Agriculture, and Manu- taftures. of GREAT BRITAIN. 235 making great Roads vvhere-ever they are necefliiry. We have fcen this adiially performed for the fake of keeping this Countiy j and, next to this, there can- not be a flronger, or more weighty Motive, than making the Country worth keeping, which by this Means might be alfo brought about. It may not be amifs to add, in order to fliew tliat thefc are no wild or chi- merical Notions, that fomething has been already done, or is at prefent doing, in every one of thefe Methods. The rendering the Clyde navigable up to Glal- gow for VelTels of confiderable Burthen, if I am not mifmformed, has been under Confideration t. The Lead Ore from Clifton Mines is carried by Land a few Miles to Loch Lomond, and there embarked, dilembarked again, loaded on Carriages, and, after pafling only a Mile, is again fliipped on board Veffels in Loch Long, which opens into the Firth of Clyde «. The Roads on which tliis Ore is carried, are military Roads, which are extended every Year j and if occafionally the Objed: was a little changed, and the Circumllance of afillHng Mines, Manufadlures, and inland Correfpondence, taken into the Syilem of continuing thefe Roads, and carrying them even to the remotefl Parts of the liland w, vvhich is far from being impradlicable, and would not be very expen- five, we lliould find all Obftacles gradually overcome, and North Britain freed from thofe Reproaches that have been too haftily thrown upon her. This will ' more clearly appear from the additional Arguments offered in the next Chap- ter. Thefe Remedies, lb far as they have operated, fliew plainly their natu- ral Efhcacy, and that, if judicioufly and vigoroufly purfued, they are very capa- ble of producing all the Effcfts that can be reafonably expedied from them. The pulhing thefe, therefore, fteadily, and with Judgment, ib as to be con- llantly proceeding, and at the fame time proceeding in Inch a Manner as may turn mofl to the public Benefit, is a Point of the utmoft Importance to the Inhabitants of North Britain, and, whatever it may feem, will in its Confe- quences be found the firil; and greatefi: of all Improvements ^. This will be failures, and the Correfpondence too of a very mixed Nature, requiring ftrong Horfes, various Carriages, and neceflary Accommodations for thefe in a great many Places. ' If this {hould never be undeitaken, it muft arife from fome real or fuppofed Incompatibility between the Interefts of different Burghp, and not from any natural Obflacles ; fo that whether brought to bear, or not, my Argument is not in the leail aife". The Harbour is very commodious, and perfedlly fecurc ; fo large, that the Englifli and Dutch Smyrna Fleets have anchored therein at the fame time T-. There is a Dock and Yard for repairing Ships of War, and a Crane and Gun-Wharf for landing and fhipping heavy Artillery, with a Hulk in Time of War, for laying down and careening Ships of great Size, with the pro- per Eftablifliment of a royal Yard, the more remarkable, as this is hitherto the only one in the Ifland ^. In Time of War it is exceedingly frequented, home- ward and outward-bound Eaft India and Weft India Fleets often putting in here, as well as the largeft Squadrons of the royal Navy. On this Account it is provided in their Leafes, that the Inhabitants ihall pay double Rent in fuch a Seafon. As a Place of Trade it has a Cuftom-Houfe, with a proper Provifion of Officers, and fome rich Merchants, who trade to France, Holland, Flanders, and moft of the Plantations in America; but lying in the Neighbourhood of Cork, its Commerce is very far from being confiderable t>. The River Lee, ftiled anciently Luvius, though Camden thinks it the Daurona of Ptolomy c, rifes out of a Lake in the Weft of Mufker}% called Gaugane Barra ; and running with a fmall Stream and gentle Current by feve- ral high Mountains, fwelling gradually from the Acceffion of many Rills, at length expands itfelf in Lough Allua > and being much contradted at its Exit from thence, runs very brifkly to Inchigreelagh, where there is now a Stone Bridge over it d. It may not be amifs to remark here, that this is a clear Inftance of one of the Emendations that have been already propofed e j for here there was anciently a Ford by breaking down the Banks of the River, and it was con- fidered as a very ftrong Pafs ; but now the Bank is repaired, and the Lofs of the Ford fupplied by a good Bridge, the River paffing under five more before it arrives at Cork, where there are two Bridges upon it. In its whole Courfe it may run about twenty-fix Irifh Miles : And as in this Courfe it receives many Rivulets, and fome pretty large Rivers, both from the North and South, it y Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, p. 225. ^ In July, A. D. 1673, forty Eafl India Company Ships, and forty Me chant-men, were there together. In 1677 Sir Jeremy Smith, with an Englifh Sijuadronot ivien of War, In 1691, the Fleets mentioned in the Text. » This Improvement is but modern, in confequence of repeated Suggeftions of its Utility, and it is hoped will be confidered as a Precedent in Time to come. * Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 2j. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. i. p. 223 235. ' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 739. Baxteri Gloffarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 99, 100, Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. ii. p. 153, 154. '' Spencer's Fairy Queen, book iv. canto 1 1 . flanza 44. Ireland's Natural Hilfory, by Doftor Gerrard Boate, chap. ii. §. 10. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. ' The ancient inhabitants were not to be blamed for making Fords, and eftabli(hing ftrong PalTes. Thefe were right enough, upon their Syftem, which confidered the Country merely as a Theatre of War, which in a greater or lefs Degree fubfifted continually. But are utterly repug- nant to Notions we recommend of univerfal Quiet, inland Trade, and the Cultivation of the whole Ifland, under a mild and well regulated Government. Vol. I, I i becomes 242 The POLITICAL SURVEY becomes a broad, ftrong, and deep, Stream, which however is not navigable any higher than Corlc, on account of the Wears already mentioned, which are a prodigious Detriment to tliis ftately River, that might otherwiie admit, for upwards of ten Irifla Miles, Veflels of a pretty large Size C. But, in all Pro- bability, the Time is not far dlltant, when the great Importance of freeing their Rivers from fuch Incumbrances, will become equally a Point of private Oeconomy, and an Obied: of public Attention. The Lee being joined by the River Glanmire, a little below Cork, diffufes itfelf in fuch a Manner as to form a fpacious and moil; commodious Haven, falling at length into the Sea about fifteen ^^Ies below that City g. The largell Veflels come to a Place called Paffage, which is within fix Miles of the City, to which their Cargoes are brought in Barges that carry about thirty Tons ; but, notwithflanding this, Veflels of confiderable Burthen may proceed to the City in great Safety, and be deli\cred at the very Quays h.. Cork is an ancient and famous City, a Bifliop's See, a County Town, a Town and County of itfelf, a Garrifon, and a Sea Port. It was built, or to ipeak more precifely, was walled and fortified, by the Danes, in the ninth Cen- tury i. It ftands, at leafl; the greatefl; Part of it, on a marfliy Ifland, furrounded by the River Lee, that alfo runs through the City, which is divided in feve- ral Places by Canals. Some have thought the Air on this Account very moift and unwholfome ; and ibme have likewife complained of the Water as none of the pureft. But Experience, and die Comparifon of the Bills of Mortality,, fliew, tiiat in reality the City is far from being unhealthy, which, with much Probability, is attributed to the Influx of the Tide, by which the Stagnation of the Air is certainly prevented k. The firfl: Charter of Cork was beflowed by King Plenry the Third, ratified afterwards by King Edward the Firfl;,, Edward the Second, and Edward the Third. Edward tlie Fourth granted a new Charter ; and the City received many Favours from the fucceeding Monarchs.. King James the Firfl gave the Citizens a new and ample Charter j and King Charles the Firfl, what is called the Great Charter, by which, among others, that Claufe in King James's Charter is confirmed and enforced, by which it is made a County of itfelf K Though a Garrifon, it was never a ' Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. Atlas Mailtlmus et Commercialis, p. 25. Smith's aneieat and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. ii. p. 257. ^ When we confider how late the Value of the Ports in this Ifland has been undcrflood, we /hall wonder the lefs at the Negleft of their Rivers. h Ireland's Natural Hiftory, by Doftor Gerard Boate, chap. ii. §. 2. p. 23.. Atlas Maritimus et -Commercialis, p. 25. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. ' There is ftill, or was within thefe few Years, an ancient Steeple Handing in the Churchward of the Cathedral, fuppofed to be built by the Ooflmen or Danes of Cork, and to have fcrved origi- nally as a Watch-tower. See the ingenious Mr. Harris's Edition of iir James Ware's Works, vol. i. p. 555. ■^ Doftor Rogers' Ertay on the Difeafes of Cork, p. 36, 37. Smith's ancient and present State of the County and City of Cork, vol.i. p'. 376, 377. ' Theiirfl Charter of this City being granted A. D. 1242, it appears that this Corporation is upwards of five hundred Years Ibvading, Place of GREAT BRITAIN. 243 Place of much Strength, as appeared at the Revolution, when, after a fhort Difpute, it was reduced by the Earl of Marlborough, and the Troops that were then in it, to the Number of between four and five thoufand Men, made Pri- foners of War m. The laft royal Charter was granted in 1735, by which all the Aldermen who had palled the Chair, were impowered to ad: as Juftices of the Peace n. In the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, it was not only inferior to Dublin, but alfo to Waterford and Limerick ° ; whereas it is now indifputably the fecond City in the Kingdom, being enlarged two Thirds within thefe laft fifty Years. According to a moderate Com.putation, the Number of its prc- fent Inhabitants is about fixty thouiand p. Befides a ftately Cathedral, built from the Foundation, between 1725 and ly^Sy ^Y ^^^ Produce of a Duty upon Coals, it is adorned with many handfome Parifh Churches. It has alio an elegant Exchange for the Merchants, a new and beautiful Cuftom-Houfe, a Town-Hall, feveral fine Hofpitals, and various other public Strudures H. The City pofleffes an annual Revenue of about thirteen hundred Pounds, out of which the Mayor enjoys for his Salary and the Support of his Dignity, about five hundred. The Inhabitants in general are adive and induftrious j they have various Manufadures, and a great inland Trade, more efpecially for live Cat- tle, as clearly appears from that Branch of the City Revenue which is called Gateage, every Beaft that enters the Gates paying no more than one Penny per Head, and which amounts neverthelefs, one Year with another, to fix hundred Pounds r. Cork differs from Kinfale in this, that it fuffers remarkably in a Time of War, and is continually im^proving in a Time of Peace ; notwithfland- ing that it is fomedmes expofed, among other lefi*er Inconveniencies arifing from its Situadon, to confiderable LofiTes by Inundations s. The Wealth and Grandeur of Cork arifes from its capacious and commo- dious Haven, where almoft any Number of Ships may lie with Eafe and Safety f. According to fomc Accounts, when there has been no War, twelve hundred Vefi^els have reforted hither in a Year. Ships from England, bound to all Parts of the Wefl Indies, take in here a great Part of their Provifions ; and on the fame Account the Haven of Cork is vifited by thofe alio of moft other "> In the Month of September, 1690, as appears by Sir Richard Cox's MS. Narration, cited by Mr. Smith in his Hiftory of Cork, vol. ii. p. 204. ° Prefent State of Ireland. o Camdeni Hibernia, p. 739. Stanihurfl de rebus Hibernicis, cap. iii. Defcription of Ireland prefixed to Hollingthed's Hiftory, vol. i. p. 25. P As I have been informed by Perfons who took great Pains to inquire, and which coirefponds alfo with Mr. Smith's Account. q Ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. i. p. 401 — 409. r This fhews the Utility of fmall Taxes difcreetly impofed, which ferve at once toraife a Reve- nue, and to furnifh a political Regifter. "• The laft, and tlie higheft that has happened in the Memory of Man, was on January 28 and 29, 1750. ' Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. il. p. 28^ — 2S7. I i 2 Nations. 244 The POLITICAL SURVEY Nations ". The flaughtcring Scafon continues from the Month of Auguft to the latter End of January, in which Space it has been computed, that they kill and cure feldom fewer than one hundred thoufand Head of Black Cattle w. The reft of their Exports confift of Butter, Candles, Hides raw and tanned, Linnen Cloth, Pork, Calves, Lambs, and Rabbit-fkins, Tallow, Wool for England, Linnen and Woollen Yarn, and Worftedj the whole to a very large Amount ^. The Merchants of Cork carry on a very extenfive Trade to almoft all Parts of the known World, are very induftrious and expert, fo that their Commerce is annually increafing )'. The Produce of the Cuftoms, fome Years fince, exceeded fixty thoufand Pounds ; and the Number of Ships that they employ, is very near double to what it was five-and-twenty Years paft i. The only thing that feemed to be wanting to the Security of the Port of Cork, was fupplied in the Earl of Chefterfield's memorable Adminiftration, by building a Fort on the great Ifland to command the Entrance of the Haven. The Head of the Black or Broadwater, called by the Natives Avonmore, and, notwithftanding Camden's Opinion, moft probably Ptolemy's Daurona a, is in a fvvampy Bog, near Caftle Ifland in Kerry, from whence it runs toBlackwater Bridge, being ftill but a fmall Stream ; proceeding forward about fix Miles farther to Cullin, thence to Ballydawly, Drifliane, and fo Eafterly to Mallow, ■where there is a fair Stone Bridge over it, and then rolls forward to Fermoy, where it has a fecond Bridge; and thus purfuing a Courfe due Eafterly till it enters the County of Waterford ; pafling by Lifmore, at prcfent only a plea- fant Village, formerly a great City, adorned not only with an Univerfity, but a Cathedral alfo, and twenty other Churches, of which there are fcarce now lb much as the Ruins ^. Thence having run in the whole near fifty Miles due Eaft, it comes to Cappoquin, a pleafant and very thriving Town, where there is a Bridge over it ; and there making an Angle, it turns to the South, proceeding in a pretty ftrait Courfe ten Miles farther, till it falls into the Sea at Youghall c. The Blackwater is now navigable no higher than Cappoquin, by Veffels of any tolerable Burthen ; but we learn from the Writings of a noble Author, that it was formerly navigable, at leaft by Boats of an ordinary Size, as high as Mallow d, which is forty Miles from its Mouth. The Bed of the River, it " Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 25. EtTay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, p. 19. Prefent State of Ireland. " Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. i. p. 4 1 1 . " As appears tiom Extra(5f s made from their Cuflom-Houfc Books for many Years. y Prefent State of Ireland. ^ As I have coUefted from Informations that may be depended upon. =■ Claudii Ptolemaei Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Camdeni Hibernia, p. 739. Baxter! Glofla- rium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 99. " Uflerii Antiquitat. Britan. p. 471. Camdeni Hibernla, p. -40. Sir James Ware's Works, Tol. i. p. 547. ' Smith's Natural and Civil Hiffoi7 of Waterford, p. 58. Speafer's Fairy Queen, book Lv canto. 1 1 . f^anza 42. Ireland's Natural Hiflory, chap. viii. §. 2. d Earl of Orrery's Letters, p. 134. lecms. of GREAT BRITAIN. 245 feems, has rifen fo, that it overflows and fpoils great Quantities of Meadow Land on both Sides e j there are befides Salmon Wears, and other Impedi- ments, but none which might not be removed, and the River reftored to its former Utility, with a very reafonable Proportion of Labour and Expence ; which, confidering how much Things are changed in that Country, and how beneiicial this would be to the Landholders and Inhabitants in general, we have juft Grounds very fpeedily to expedl f". YouGHALL was incorporated by King Edward the Fourth, and inverted with great Privileges, which were confirmed and augmented by fucceeding Monarchs ; notw ithftanding which it would probably have funk into Decay, if the firil and great Earl of Cork, to whom the Province of Munfter in general, and this County in particular, owe fo many Obligations, had not interpofed, preferved, and reiiored it g. At prefent it is about a Mile in Length, fituated on the Side of a Hill, the lower Part of which is laid out into pleafant Gardens. Towards the Sea the Town is defended by a fmall Fort, with a Mole for the Security of Shipping, and a Quay to load and dif- charge Goods, an Exchange and Cuftom-Houfe at a fmall Diftance ti. The Inhabitants have a tolerable inland Trade; and a Manufacture of Earthen- ware, lately fet up, in a thriving Condition J. There is a Bar at the Entrance of the Port, which makes it difficult, and fometimes dangerous ; but Ships, when they are once in, lie very fafely, and it is equally convenient and capacious k. With thefe Advantages, and that of a navigable River, capable of many Im- provements, it has been wondered that Youghall, fo much the Care of the wife and provident Nobleman before-mentioned, who, underflood Situations the befl of any Man of his Age, has not made a much greater Figure, more efpecially as in diftant Times it was a kind of Rival to Cork '. But the Growth of that City very poflibly occafioned the Decay of this Place, which is how- ever, at prefent reviving, and its Commerce has increafed pretty confiderably within thefe few Years ; and, in all Probability, when Manufactures are fet up in the Towns upon the Blackwater, which will of courfe bring the Coun- try more into Cultivation, this Town and Port will feel the good EfFcds of « Smith's Natural and Civil Hiflory of Waterford, p. 236. ^ There is hardly any Country fo improveable as Ireland, where Improvements are more eaflly Made, or where fo few Attempts to improve have mifcarried. 8 The Charter of Incorporation, 'gi'anted at the Requcft of Thomas Earl of Defmond, bors Date A. D. 1462. '' Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 25. Prefent State of Ireland. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. i. p. 126. ' It is fuprifing that more Manufuftures of this Kind are not fet up, fiuce there is fcarce a County which does not abound with Earths of different Kinds, exceedingly fit for Potteries>: every Sort. '^ Ireland's Natural Hlftory, by Do(rtor Gerard Boatc, chap. ill. §. 6. Smith's ancient and pre- fent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. ii. p. 284. ' Camdeni Britannia, p. 739. Moryfon's Itinerary, P. iii. p. 1 57. Ireland's Natural Hinory, chap. iii. §.6, tliem, 2 246 The POLITICAL SURVEY them, fince to balance the Difficulty in its Entrance ; outward-bound Ships arc no fooner under Sail then they find themlelves in the open Sea, and at Liberty to prol'ecute tlieir Voyage with the lame Wind "'. It may not be amifs to oblerve here, that in the Gardens belonging to this Place, the Potatoe was firll planted ". This Improvement is alcribed to Sir Walter Raleigh with much Probability, for this was a Part of that Eftate, which he fold to tlie Earl of Cork f. It fccrns, however, that no proper Inftrudions were given to the Perfon who cultivaetd it, lince, upon its coming up and growing pretty high, he attempted to cat the Apple, which he took to be the Fruit of the Plant. But finding it unplealant, confidered his Pains as loll:, and utterly negleded it. At fonie Difbnce of Time, when they came to turn up the Earth, they found the Roots fprcad to a great DIftance, and increafed into great Quantities ; and from hence the whole Kingdom was gradually furnillied p. These three Rivers are all in the County of Cork, and Province of Mun- ■fter, running in a manner parallel to each otlier; the Bandon River about fcven Miles South from the Lee, and the Blackwater fourteen Miles to the North of that River 'l. Into each of thefe fall feveral Streams that might be made navi- gable, at leafl: for middlc-fized Boats ; and from hence the intelligent Reader will eafily conceive how much they may contribute to render the Country fer- tile, and to facilitate all Kinds of Cultivation. In confequence of this, if Manu- ladures were introduced into the Towns that ftand on the Sides of thefe Rivers, where Labour might be as reafonable, and yet the People live as well as in any Country in Europe, there is nothing could hinder their becoming extremely populous ; and, through the Advantages refulting from an eafy and cheap Communication with each other, their Goods come on the loweft Terms to Market '■. We may with the more Probability expedl this, from the Conve- niency of three fuch Ports as lie at the Mouths of thefe Rivers, more efpe- cially when we retieft that, notwitliflanding the little Care taken of the inland "" This Facility of putting to Sea is of prodigious Confequence to a Harbour to which Ships of all Nations refort chiefly for Provifions. " Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Cork, vol. i. p. 128. Bea. Johnfon in the fecond Ail of Every Man out of his Humour, mentions Potatoes as but lately introduced. Houghton's Colle'ould fupply the Country with another navigable River, improve the Port, and be of great Ser- vice to the Town y j which is only one Inftance, out of many, that might be ' In the Philofophical Tranfaiflions of the Royal Society, N''- cclxi. %ve have an exzO. Lift of all the feafaring Men, including Fifl^erme^, Boatmen, Lightermen, &c. in the Kingdom of Ire- land, taken by Captain South in 1697; according to which there were in Cork one hundred eighty-three; in Kinfale, two hundred twenty-five ; and in Youghall, two hundred. In the iliree,- fix hundred and eight. t Stanihurft's Defcription of Ireland, chap, iii. Ireland's Natural HiAor}-, by Doftor Gerard Boate, chap. iii. §. 6. " It was incorporated by an Aft of Parliament A. D. 1463, and declared to be one of the ancienteft Honours belonging to the Crown ot England in Ireland. " See the Map of the County of AVaterford, prefixed to Smith's Hiftofy of that County. ^- The Hake is a large Fifh, which is very mucheftetmed, when properly diied. It fiems to refemble a Haddock, in the fame manner as a Cod does a Whiting. y Ireland's Natural Hillory, chap. iii. §. 6. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. Smith's an- cient and prefent Stateof the County and City of Wateiford, chap. x. p. 25.7. given- 248 The POLITICAL SURVEY given of the great Benefits that Art may add, to thofe ahxady beftowed by Nature, upon thi.^ llland ^. The River Suir, or, as it is fometimes fpelt, Shure, or Showr, rifes at the Foot of BandufF Mountains, in the County of Tipperary, where alfo rifes the Nore ; but they quickly part ; and the Suir taking a South-Weft Courfe, comes to Cionecanny ^ ; thence proceeding due South, it pafles through Thur- les ; and being now grown a confidcrablc, and very beautiful Stream, there is a good Stone Bridge over its Waters. From Thurles it rolls on to Holy Crofs, where there is another Bridge, and a fourth a little farther, called Golden Bridge h. About ten Miles beyond this, at a Place called Ardfinane, there is a fifth, and yet mere ftately Bridge, confifhng of feveral Arches. A little beyond Ardfinane, the River begins to turn Eaft, feparating thenceforward the two Counties of Waterford and Tipperary ; and having received the River Nyre, or Nier, it winds North-Eaft to the pleafant, and now thriving Place, that Spenfer juflly celebrated by the Name of Sweet Clonmell c. After a Pro- grefs of eight Miles more, it comes to Carrick, having very handfome Bridges o\'er it at both Places. Towards the North End of this lalt-mentioned Town there are feveral Rocks, or, as fome conceive, the Remains of an old Bridge, being navigable from hence to Waterford, which lies lowerj at the Diftance of about ten or twelve Miles d. The Barrow, which is probably the Birgus of Ptolemy, is a noble River, and of a very long Courfe. It rifes in the King's County; and running for a fiiort Space North-Eaft, makes a kind of Elbow ; and continuing afterwards a South-Eaft Courfe, divides the King's and Queen's Counties from that of Kildare t'. Proceeding next through the Heart of the County of Catherlogh, it afterward feparates the Counties of Kilkenny and Wexford : Till a little before it reaches the Town of Rofs, it receives the River Nore before-men- tioned, which is fometimes written Our ; and then varying its Courfe fomewhat to the Weft, mingles its Waters with thofe of the Suir, in making the right Arm of Waterford Haven f, from thence defervedly efteemed one of the finefl * The Defign of this Work is to (hew, that as there are many natural Advantages unemployed, fo new Conveniencies in regard to Commerce might be, without Difficulty, almoft every-where contrived for the fpeedy Tranfportation of the Produce of this fertile Country, were it ever fo populous, or ever fo highly improved. » Camdeni Hibernia, p. 740. Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ii. §. i. p. 10, 11. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. •" Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, chap. Tiii. p. 233. « Fairy Queen, book iv. canto 1 1 . ft.inza 43. '' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 740. Moryfon's Itine/'ary, P. iii. book. 3. chap. v. p. 157. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. * Camdeni Hibernia, p. 744. Spencer's Fair) Q^een. Baxteri GlofFarium Antiqultatum Bri- tannioirum, p. 41. f Ireland's Natural Hiflory, chap. ii. §. i. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p, 25. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vii. in of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 249 in this Ifland, and which indeed has fo many Advantages, that it might alone ferve to fupport the Comm_erce of a large Province, or of a fmall Kingdom. The Town of Carrick is remarkable for its Inhabitant* having carried one Branch of the Woollen Manufadlory, that of Ratteens, to the higheft Degree of Perfe(5lion, of which Manufadure there is a vaft Confumption in the Kingdom ; and, if the Laws would permit, their Ratteens might be alfo exported in great Quantities s. The Country round about is chiefly turned to Grazing, v/hich furnifhes a large inland Trade to Waterford, which, by the Afliflance of the Suir, the Barrow, and thcNore, receives by Water-carriage the Commodities of no Icfs than feven Counties. This is a very ancient, ftrong, and famous City, a Bifliop's See, a Town and County of itleif, in which are, befides a Cathedral, feven Parifh Churches, a very handfome Guildhall, an Exchange for Merchants, a Cuftom-Houfe, many other public Buildings, daily improve- ing, well lituated, and, though expofe3 to the North and Eaft, is, from Expe- rience, known to be very healthy '\ The Commerce of Waterford is alfo very flourifhing, more elpecially to Newfoundland, and to Great Britain ; and, according to the beft Lights I am able to obtain, it is clearly the third Port in the Kingdom, though, in point of Buildings, and Number of People, Limerick is efteemed the third City. There are very profitable Salt- Works here, as alfo a large Quantity of Woad prepared for Dyers ; and there was, if there be not ftill, a flourifhing Manufadure of Frizes i. But if the Country about it were brought more into Tillage ; new Manufa> An EfEiy on theTrade and Improvement of Ireland, by Arthur Dobbs, Efq^; P. ii. p. 9. doubled, \ of GREAT BRITAIN. 253 doubled, and with it the Number of People likewife " ; though that is not always the Cafe, as the Augmentation of Houfes fometimes lerves only to lodge the fame, or even a lefs Number of Inhabitants, more commodioufly. As to the Harbour of Dublin it is but indifferent, fince Veffels of confider- able Burthen, and that draw a great Depth of Water, have come into \5it.. For all along this Coaft, from Wexford, there lie Shoals of Sand, divided into the South, Middle, and North Grounds ; and at the Mouth of Dublin Har- bour there is a Bar, occafioned by two Banks of Sand, called the South and North Bulls, flretching from the oppoiite Sides of the Haven, upon which, at High Water, there is not above feventeen Feet, and at Low, there is no going over it : Belides, when the Tide is out, except in two Places, Ships lie dry d. Great Pains, and much Money, have been imployed in ftreighteninT the Chanel, in order to remove thefelnconveniencies, but hitherto not with thofe Effedls which were hoped. Without the Bar indeed, in Dublin Bay, there are tolerable good Roads on both Sides ; and the Ladings of large Ships are very conveniently carried up to the City by Lighters and other Craft, fmall Veffels- proceeding to the very Qiiay. With all thefe Impediments, and in fpite of all thefe Obftrudions, the Merchants of Dublin extend their Correfpondence daily j fo that if we were to affert one Plalf of the foreign Commerce of Ireland is carried on at this Port, we fliould not be much in the Wrong e. But, when- ever thofe new and noble Works lliall be executed, which are now under Con- fideration, there is very little Realbn to doubt that it will be hereafter oreatly increafed, and then probably, by new Methods, and larger Difburfements, perhaps by making Docks, as at Liverpool, the Port may be much further improved * i which is the rather to be expedied from tliat Spirit the Nation has fliewn, for fome Years paft, in promoting every Work of public Utility with fuch Steadlnefs, Prudence, and V^igour, as, fooner or later, mull; intitle them to Succefs.. ' According to an authentic Account, taken in the fiift of thefe Periods, there were fomewhat more than fix; and, according to a like Account, taken in the laft, confiderably more than twelve- thoufand Houfes. It is alfo to be confidered, that from Experience there are known to be ten, if not twelve Perfons, under every Roof in Dublin. ti Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. iii. §. 2. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 22. Cu»» kr's Coafling Pilot, p. 21 . « As I colleft from feveral Extraifls from the Cuftom-Houfe Books, and (.nlier authentic Vouchers. ' Whatever can be done of this Nature is a vaft Acquifition to any Country ; and the Situation of this City deferves any Expence it m;iy require. 8 Claud. Ptolem»i Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Girald. Cambrenf. Topog-aph. Hibejn. dirtiii>.'^,i. cap. 6. Camdeni Hibernia, p. 753. Riv«r 254- The POLITICAL SURVEY River in its Paffage through the County of Kildare, and ftill ftronger in its Courfe, and more beautiful in its Appearance, when it enters the rich County of Eaft Meath, where it waters Trim, the County Town, a neat and popu- lous Place, and then palfes on to Navan and Slane, both good Towns li. From the latter of thefe, purfuing an Eaft Courfe for about feven Miles, it reaches Droghedah, which it divides, and falls into the Sea about two Miles below it. The Boyne is not only a River of long Courfe, and navigable a confiderable Way up into the Country, but is alfo of fuch a Depth, and has fo ftrong a Body of \\''ater, that, with very fmall Afllftance, it might be rendered much iiiore ufeful than it is, more efpecially if we confider how fine a Territory it runs through, and what a Number of good Towns are upon, or very near it i. The Boyne will be ever famous for the decifive Battle, July i, 165)0, when it was pafled by King William, and the Army of King James being routed on the other Side, retired precipitately to Dublin k. The Town of Droghedah, called by the Englilli Tredah, was formerly very remarkable from its Situation and Strength. In confequence of this, its Inhabitants had great Favours beftowed upon them by our old Monarchs ; for inftance, Edward the Seconii, at the Requeft of Theobald Vernon, granted themi a IVIarket and a Fair : Other great Privileges were added to thefe in fuc- ceedino- Times, particularly the Right of Coinage '. It is at this Day a Town nnd County, fending as fuch two Reprefentatives to Parliament. But being taken by Storm September 10, 164.^, by Oliver Cromwell, it fuffered fo much, the Buiidines being exxeedingly fliattered, and not only the Garrifon, with their worthy Governor, Sir Arthur Afton, but the Inhabitants, Men, Women, and Children, put to the Sword, that for a long time it remained almoft in Ruins "^ By degrees, however, it has recovered, and is at prefent a large and populous Place, and, befides a great Share of inland Trade, has an advantageous Com- merce with England ; and though the Port be but indifferent, narrow at its Entrance, and with a Bar, over which Ships of Burthen cannot pals, but at hioh Water, yet there are fome rich Merchants here, and a great deal of Bufi- nefs done ; fo that from a low and declining Port it is now become rich and thriving, more efpecially within thefe ten or twelve Years ". This is one of ^ Ireland's Natural Hiflory, chap. viii. §. 3. p. 65. Atlas Maritimus et Comnjercialis, p. 22. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vi. ' Moryfon's Itinerary, P. iii. b. 3. cap. 5. p. i 58. Eflay on the Trade of Ireland. Additions to the Englifh TranHation of Camden's Britannia. " See the Article Boyne in Collier's Diftionary. Life of King WlUiam, p. 269—273. Point- er's Chronological Hiflorian, vol. i. p. 377. ' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 762. Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap, iii. §. 3. p. 2.j. Spencer's View of the State of Ireland, "> The Hiftory of the execrable Irifli Rebellion, London, 1680, p. 223. The Hiflory of the Civil Wars in Great Britain and Ireland, p. 297. Earl of Clarendon's Hiftorical View of the AfFaiis ,q{ Ireland, p. 131. " Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 22. Additions to the Engliih Editioa of Camden. Pre- jfei;t Sutc of Ireland, ch.ap. viii. the of GREAT BRITAIN. 255 the ftrongeil Inftances that can be perhaps mentioned of the ineflimabic Bene- fit of a River, navigable in any degree ; for though the Boyne is not capable of carrying Vellels bigger than Barges, or pretty large Boats, yet the Conveni- ency that this affords of conveying Coals, by Water-carriage, through a great Extent of Country, introduced a Correlpondence between this Race, and Whitehaven, in Cumberland, to which the Revival of its Commerce has been in a great meafure owing ; lb that from being poor, and in Ruins, there are not now above feven or eight larger Towns in this Ifland ". But it does by no means follow, that if, through the Difcovery of Coals in Ireland, the Inter- eourfe between this Place and Whitehaven Ihould leffen, or even entirely ceafe, that the Commerce of Drogheda muft decay. Becaufe this being once efta- bliilaed, naturally attracfts inland Trade, excites Manuiactures, and produces an adlive,. induftrious, and enterpriling. Kind of People, who will always find Refources, but who would never have found them here, if the Advantages arifing from their River had not Ihewed them the way p. Newry River, or, as they commonly call it in this Country, the Water of Newry, in the County of Down, and Province of Ulfter, promifed, and for many Ages performed as little, as any Stream in Ireland. It is not conlider- able from the Length of its Courfe, there being but a very fmall Number of Miles from its Source to its Fall. It is lels conliderable in point of Size ; and,- with refpedl to its Body of Water, we might plead Authority for calling it a Brook, fince it was navigable only in confequence of the Tide's flowing up,, and of confequence fo long, and fo far, as it fiowed . This River rifes in two fmall Streams, out of the Ridge of Moun- tains called Slieve Croob, in the Barony of Upper Iveagh, which unite about two Miles South-Eaft of Dromore, a Bifliop's See, but not a Place of Confe- ' Camdeni Hlhernia, p. 766. Moryfon's Itinerary, P. ii. b. i. chap. 2. p. 59. Defciiption of Ireland, printed 1642. ' Hiftory of the execrable ReteHion in Ireland, Appendix, p. 113. Sir Jolyi Temple's Hiflcry •of the Irifh Rebellion, p. 96, 97. Hiftory of the County of Downe, p. 93. " Life of King William, p. 240, 241. Pointer's Chronological Hiitory, vol. i. p. 369. Me- tnoires de la derniere Revolution d'Angleterre, torn. ii. p. 595. w Englifli Trandation of Camden's Britannia. HiHory of the County of Downe, p. 88--94. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. viii. " Ireland's Natural Hillory, chap. viii. §. 5. Efiiiy on the Trade and Improvement of IrelatyJ, p. i. p. 16; P. ii. p. 6. Private Informations. '' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 768. Sir James Ware's Antiquities of Ireland, chap, vl. Baxter! sGlolTarium Anti : But it is ftill a Corporation, and fends two Members to Par- liament. It is of a tolerable Size, and very elegantly built, fituated on the Eafl Side of the Bann, about four Miles from the Sea ; but the Port is very indif- * Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ii. §. 3. Atlas Marititnus et Commercialis, p. 23. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 22. g Camdeni Hibernia, p. 770. Girald. Cambrenf. Topograph. Hibern. dift. i. cap. 6. Mory- fon's Itinerary, P. iii. b. 3. chap. 5. p. 159. •■ Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. viii. §. 4. p. 6^, 66. Ancient and prefent State of the County of Downe, p. 145, 146. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. iv. ' Baxter! Gloflarium Antiquitat. Britannicarum, p. 33, 201. Hlftory of the County of Downe, p. 146. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 23. '' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 770. Effay on the the Trade of Ireland. Prefent State of Ireland^, chap. ix. ' Moryfon's Itinerary, Part. iii. book 3. chap, 5. p. 159. Sir James 'Ware's Works, vol. ii.p- 3^^ See the Article Colraln in Collier's Dlftioaary. ferentj, of GREAT BRITAIN. 259 ferent, occafioned by the extreme Rapidity of the River, which repels the Tide> and makes the Coming-up to the Town difficult ; fo that it has but little Trade, and might perhaps have lefs if it was not for the valuable Salmon Fifhery, which amounts to fome thoufand Pounds a Year m. If the Navigation of the Bann could be opened, which is totally obftrudled by the Ridge of Rocks before-mentioned, it would quickly change the Face of Things ; for then by the Help of this River, and the Newry Canal, there would be a direift Com- munication crofs the Ifland, and, with the Affiflance of the Blackwater River, which likewife falls into Lough Neagh, almofl: all the Counties of the Pro- vince of Ulfter might have a Correlpondence with each other by Water- carriage, to their reciprocal and no fmall Emolument n. The River Derg, fuppofed to be fo called from the Oaks growing about it, flows out of a Lough of the fame Name, in the County of Donegal, rolling on many Miles in a North-Eaft Dirediion, till it receives the River Finny, which runs alfo out of a Lough of the fame Name in the Northern Part of the County, and which, proceeding with a South-Eafl-Courfe, joins the Derg, as alfo a third River, called, if I miflake not, the Mourne, purfuing an Eaft Courfe between them, near the Town of Strabane «. Thefe Waters, thus collected, take the Name of the River Foyle, and proceeding ftill North-Eafl, move on to LifFord, which is the Shire Town of the County of Donegal, pafs afterwards by St, Johnftown, and the ancient City of Derry, below which, at the Diftance of about four Miles, they expand themfelves, and, uniting with the Sea, produce that large Salt-water Lake, known by the Name of Lough Foyle p, which, though llridly fpeaking, a Bay, or Arm of the Sea, we {hall defcribe in few Words here, becaufe what follows vi^ould be obfcure without fuch a Defcription. It is, in effedl, an immenfe oval Bafon, twelve Miles in Length, and between five and fix in its greateft Breadth. Between Magilions and Greencaille, where it opens into the Ocean, it is not above a Mile and a half broad q. Before this Entrance there is a large Sand, called the Tunns, on which the Sea lometimes beats with a prodigious Noife, but with a broad and deep Chanel between it and the Land, where there is at all Times not under fourteen or fifteen Fathoms Water, and in the very Entrance of the Lough, from eight to ten f. On the Eaft Side of the Bay there are alfo large Shoals ■" Ireland's Natural Hlftor)', chap. iii. §. 4. p. 23. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 22. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. viii. n Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. vlii. §. 4. p. 66. Hlftory of the County of Downe, chap. vii. Biftiop Hutchinl'on's Cafe of Loch Neagh, and the Lower Bann. ° Camdeni Hibernia, p. 772. Hiuris's Hiftory of Irilli Bilhops, p. 286. Baxteri Gloflarium Antlquitatuna Britannicarum, p. 99. p ^Ioryfon's Itinerary, iii. Part. book. 3. chap. 5. p. 1 1;^. Atlas Marilltnus et Commerciaiis, p. 23. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. iv. §. 4. "■ Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. ii. §. 4. Speed's Map of the Province of Ulfter. D' Au- diffret Hifloire et Geographie ancienne et moderne, torn. i. p. 272. ' Atlas Maritimus et Commerciaiis, p. 23. Heylin's Cofmogiraghy, P. i. p. 277. Additions to the TraoflatioQ of Camden. L 1 2 or 26o The POLITICAL SURVEY or Bank of Sands, and Ibine of finallcr Dinicnfions on the Weft Side; bu* the two Chanels between tliein are wide, and for the moft at Icaft four Fathom deep. At the Entrance of the River the Water is ten or twelve Fathom, and before the Town of Derry between four and five Fathom ; fo that, upon the whole, it is a very fafe, capacious, and commodious Haven. There are on the Weft Side three old Fortrefles, called the Green, Red, and White Caftles, and on the fame Side, near the Entrance of the River, a Caftle or Fort, called Cul- more, moft of them built for the Defence of the Englifli in this County againft the Natives, when it was firft planted s. The City of Derry js far from being what fome have called it, a Place, or even a City, of modern Eredion, lince it has been a Bilhop's See near fix hundred Years t. It was in the laft long Rebellion againft Queen Elizabeth, that the Lord-Deputy Montjoy faw the Importance of making Settlements and Garri- fons on the Side of Lough Foyle, which was often, though without Succefs attempted, till it was at length effxdled by Sir Henry Dockwra, at the very Beginning of the feventeenth Century, who built a Fort at Culmore, and put an Englifii Garrifon into Derry ". Upon the Earls of Tyrone and Tyrconnel breaking out into Rebellion, and retiring into Spain, fome of their Accom- plices furprized Derry, A. D. i6c6, of which Sir George Pawlet was Governor, murdered him, with all his Garrifon, and committed many other cruel and deteftable Adions. Upon the fupprefling this Infurredion, upwards of half a Million of Acres, Plantation Meafure, in fix contiguous Coundes, were for- feited to the Crown ; and feveral Projeds were formed to enable King James the Firft to fettle them w. Amongft others, near two hundred and ten thou- fand Acres were granted to the City of London, and the great Companies, in confequence of an Agreement figned with the Crown January 28, 1609, by which they undertook to plant thefe Lands, and to build and fortify Cole- rain and Derry x. Thefe Preparations fo alarmed the Iriih, that to keep them in Awe, and to put Ulfter immediately into a fafe Condition, the heredi- tary Order of Knighthood, called Baronets, was devifed, who purchafed their refpedive Patents (were Honours ever better acquired?) by the Payment of a large Sum to fupport Troops, and to defray other Expences incident to the civilizing this Part of Ireland. Hence thefe Knights bear in their Coats of Arms, either in a Canton, or on an Efcutcheon, the armorial Enfign of • Caller's Coafting Pilot, p. 22. Speed's Map of the Province of Ulfter, in his Theatre of the Britifii Empire. Prefent Slate of Ireland, chap, xi. ' Camdeni Hibcrnia, p. 772. O Flahcrti Ogygia, P. iii. cap. 21. p. 196. Harris's Hiftory of the Bifliops of Ireland, p. 286. Ware! Aniiquiiates Hibcrnica;, p. 215, 288, 299. " Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, P. ii. book i. chap. 2. See the Article of Londonderry in Col- lier's Dictionary. Sec alfo the Article of Derry in the faine Bo<;k. '*' Fcedera &c. five A£la Pablica, torn. xvi. p. 500, 604. G. Camdeni, regni Regis Jacobi^ Annalium Apparatus, p. 6. Roberti Johnftoni, Rerum Britannicarum HiflorijE, lib. xiii. p. 440. « Stowe's Annals, p. 1004, 1005. Additions to Camden 'b Britannia, by Doflor Philcmoa Holland, in his Tranflation. Sir Richard Co.\'s Hiltory of kdaad, vol. ii. p.. 14, i j.. the of GREAT BRITAIN. 261 the Province of Ulster v, viz. Apgent, a Hand finifler, couped at the Wrift, extended in Pale, Gules. The Grant of this Tra6l of Country to the Citizens of London, was quickly attended with fome Difputes, on Pretence that they had not fulhlled their Agreement; but thefe being pacified, and the Place found exceedingly com- modious in point of Situation, as being a Peninfula, having the River, or Lake rather, on three Sides, and the fourth eafily fortified, they began to build and ftrengthen it with much Diligence ; and a new Charter being fent over to the Corporation, and a gilt Sword to the Mayor in 1615, this City afllimed the Name of LONDONDERRY. Doftor John Tanner was then Bifhop, and the firft buried in the new Cathedral z. In fucceeding Times, as the Value of their Grant more clearly appeared, new Complaints were raifed againfl the Managers for the City of London, and the Companies, which produced feve- ral royal Commifiions of Inquiry in this and in the fucceeding Reign, particu- larly one to Sir Thomas Philips, whofe Report thereon is extant s. At length, on a Suit commenced in the Star-Chamber, Judgment was given in 1 656 againft the Londoners, and their Eftates thereupon fequeftered. In 1637, Sir Thomas Fotherley and Sir Ralph Whitfield were impowered by the Crown to let Leafes of thefe Lands. In 16^40 the Parliament, by their Refolutions, declared all thefe Proceedings illegal, null, and void. The City, however, did not recover PolIefTion till 1 6 5-5, and held it, as all Property was then held, in a very precarious Manner h. But, foon after the Reftoration, 1662, his Majefty King Charles the Second granted a new Charter, under which this noble Colony quickly began to raife its Head again, and has ever fince moll: profper- oufly proceeded c. It is no way neceffary to enter into a particular Defcription of this fmall City, becaufe it has been veiy often, and very accurately, done alreadv. It is fufhcient to fay, that though not large, it is very neat and beautiful, built for tlie moil part of Free Stone, with a large Church, Ipacious Market-PIace, and a beautiful Stone Quay, to which come up Veffels of conliderable Burthen d. y Seidell's Titles of Honour, P. ii. chap. v. p. 679 — 687. Frankland's Annals of King James's Reign, p. 8. Markham's Book of Honor, or live DcciiJes of Epiltles of Honor, A. D. 1695, Decad. iii. Epift. 8. p. ii2. ^ Strype's Edition of Stowe's Survey of London, A. D. 161 6. Roberti Johnfloni, Rerum Britannicarum, Hiftorise, lib. xiv. p. 456. Harris's Hiftory of the Billiops of Ireland, p. 492. a See the original CommiiTions, with Pinnar's Survey, Sir Thomas Philips's Report, and ot;ier curious Papers on this Subject:, in Mr. Harris's Colleiftion, intltled Hibernica, Dublin, 17. 17, Folio. '■ Earl of Strafford's Letters, vol. ii. p. 8, 25, 41, 53, 65, 78, 91, 96. Rufhworth's Collec- tions, vol. i. P. iii. p. 379. Sir Richard Cox's Hiftory of Ireland, vol. ir. P. ii. p. 2. <: This noble Eftate is under the Diieftion of a Governor, Deputy, and AfTiftants, annually eledeJ. by the Common Council of London. ■* Ireland's Natural iJiftory, chap. ii. §. 4. p. 14, 15, Defcription of the Place, prefixed to Doclor Walker's Account of the Siege. Atlas Maritimus et Coinmcicialis, p. 23. It 262 The POLITICAL SURVEY It is famous for having refilled the coUeded Strength of the Irifli in the Year 1649, when the whole Kingdom was in their Hands, this City and Dublin only excepted, and both beficged <^, as well as for the noble Defence it made at die' Revolution, for one hundred and five Days, under the fevereft Famine, againft a numerous Army *". It is in all refpedls wonderfully well feated in regard to the adjacent Counties, for commanding an inland Trade, which has increafed amazingly fince the Eftabliihment throughout the County, now one of the mofl: flouriHiing and populous in Ireland of the Linnen Manufadlory. It alfo enjoys, or rather might enjoy, a moft advantageous Fiftiery, and ifands ex'ccedingly well for carrying on a very extenfive foreign Commerce with New England, and the Northern Colonies more efpecially ; notwithftanding all which, and its being a County Town, it is far from having at prefcnt fo large a Proportion of Shipping and Commerce as might be wifhed, and as in all Probability it muft acquire in Ibcceeding Times g. In order to prevent thefe Remarks from appearing either intricate or inconfiftent, it is requifite to obferve, that the Commerce of Ireland at prefent depends chiefly upon Provi- fions, which cannot be fupplied from a manufadluring County, where the induftrious Natives purchafe and confume all that are railed ; but in Procefs of Time, that Manufadlure which hasralready produced Plenty in the Place of Indigence, will alfo, with the lame Certainty, and in the fame Proportion, fupply Materials for Commerce, and, by making the People in general wealthy, enable them to profit by all the Advantages which their admirable Situation affords ''. We have now made the Tour of three of the Provinces of Ireland, and we can only fpeak in general Terms of the fourth. Con naught, though the leaft, is notwithftanding a very large Country ; and though it may be deficient in Grain, and in fome other refpeds, yet upon the whole it may be very juflly efteemed a rich and fruitful Province, and, from the Produce of fome Parts of it, there are juft Grounds to fuppofe that the reft might be improved, and fpeedily too, with a moderate Share of Induftry, to a State far beyond its pre- fent Condition ». But, except the Shannon, which divides it from the Pro- • The Hiftory of the execrable Irifli Rebellion, London, 1680, Foi. p. 217. Heath's Chro- nicle of the Civil Wars, p. 239, 242. Clarendon's Hiflorical View of the Affairs of Ireland, p. 118. ' A true Account of the Siege of Londonderry, by the Reverend Mr. George Walker, 1689, 40. Life of King William, p. 238, 239. Pointer's Chronological Hiftorian, vol. i. p. 367, 368. 8 Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 23. ElTay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. v. •■ In moft Countries where Commerce confifts chiefly in Provifions, there will be a few, who from their Property in Land, may be luxurious and expenfive, while the People in general are low, illiterate, and miferable. But where the Produce of the Country is confumed by Labourers and ManufaiTturers, Property is more equally divided, few are exorbitantly rich, and fewer flill are wretchedly poor. ' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 755, 756. Sir James Ware's Antiquities of Ireland, chap, v. Hey- lia's Colxnography, p. 2^7. vinces of G R E A T BRITAIN. 263 vinces of Leinfler and Munfter, and the Suck, which falls into the Shannon, there are no large Rivers in this Province k. It is indeed true that it has a ver)' extenfive Sea Coaft, and, as will be feen in the next Chapter, many con- venient Bays, and fome very good Ports, with a Situation very favourable for a Correfpondence with different Parts of the World ; notwithftanding which, inland Trade is, in Comparifon of other Parts of the Ifland, but very languid, and foreign Commerce nothing comparable to what might be expeded. This renders it another very capital Inftance of the Truth of our Dodtrine, that a Country is more or lefs improveable, according to tlie Number, the Nature, and the Difpofition of its Rivers j which will, with far greater Probability and Perfpicuity appear, if we enter a little deeper into fome Particulars concern- ing it K There are in this Province but very few large Towns ; and it is only in the Neighbourhood of thefe that the Country is in any tolerable Degree culti- vated. Manufad:ures have fcarce been introduced ; and, in confequence of this, the Country, or the greateft Part at leaft, is but very thinly peopled «". This will be rendered clear to a Demonflration, if we confider, that in Con- naught are contained upwards of twoTmillions and two hundred thoufand Irifh Plantation Acres, and yet perhaps throughout this extenfive Space, the Numbtr of Houfes are not quite five times fo many as there are in the City of Dublin. In (hort, we may reckon in Connaught about forty-feven Acres to a Family, which is more than twice as many as there are in the Provinces of Leinfter or Ulfter. To reduce thefe Calculations ftill more, and make the Proportion as evident and inconteflible as pofiible, though the Province of Connaught contain one-fifth of the whole Ifland, yet it has not one-eighth of the Houfes or Inhabitants ; and there is no queftion that the Value of Property is alfo at, or much below, the fame Rate n. But, notwithfl;anding all this, it is far from being impoffible that this Province fhould be improved in fucceeding Times, not only very much beyond what it now is, but alfo, which would be of infinite Confequence to Britain, as well as to Ireland, nearly, if not equal, to any of the reft o. For there are feveral fmall Rivers, and fome very large Lakes, which, by the Afiiftance of Canals, might be made very ferviceable to Trade, that i?, to the fettling a general and eafy Communication between all Parts of the Country, which would foon attradl Manufadures of different Kinds ; and in k Ireland's Natural Hiflory, chap, viii, §. 2. Spenfer's View of the State of Ireland. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. iv. §. i. 1 Sir William Monfon's Naval Trafts. Sir William Patty's Anatomy of Ireland. Lawrence's Intereflof Ireland. m Additions to the Engli/h Trandation of Camden. See the Article Connaught in Collier's Geographical and Hifloiical Dictionary. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. v. n Thefe Computations are made by the Help of Tables framed from thofe of Arthur Dobbs, Efq; and other later Writers, on this Subjedf. o This is the Province in which the People retain moft of their ancient Manners, and at the fame time lies moft open to foreign Invafions. 3 the 264 The POLITICAL SURVEY the Mountains of this Country there are Mines of feveral Sorts, that might be wrought to Profit p, and no doubt will be fo, when tliat Spirit of Induftry, which has done fo much in other Places, having fewer Materials to work upon in them, begins to exert itfelf here, and the firft Undertakers find their Ac- count, in employing their Endeavours to bring fo vail a Diftridt to yield its due Proportion to the public Income. We have already defcribed the Courfe of the noble River Shannon, the largefl: in this Illand, and, all Circumftances confidered, one of the fineft in the Britilh Dominions, not only on account of its rolling two hundred Miles, but alfo of its great Depth in moft Places, and the Gentlenefs of its Current, by which it might be made exceedingly fei-viceable to the Improvement of the Country, the Communication of its Inhabitants, and of Confequence to the promoting inland Trade through the greateft Part of its long Courfe q. But the peculiar Prerogative of the Shannon is its Situation, running from North to South, and feparating the Province of Connaught from thofe of Lein- fler and Munfter, and of Confequence dividing the greatefl Part of Ireland, into what lies on the Eaft, and what is fituated on the Weft of that River, watering in its Paffage the valuable, though unimproved County of Leitrim, the plentiful Shire of Rofcommon, the fruitful Country of Galway, and the plealbnt County of Clare, in Connaught "•; the fmall, but fine Shire of Long- ford, Kings County, and the fertile County of Weftmeath, in Leinfter; the populous County of Tipperary, the fpacious Shire of Limerick, and the rough, but pleafant, County of Kerry, in Munftcr ; vifiting ten Counties in its Paf- fligc, and having on its Banks at prefent (which I mention, that Pofterity may remark more cafily fucceeding Improvements) the following remarkable Places, viz. Leitrim, Jameftown, Lancfborough, Athlone, Clonefert, Killaloe, and the City of Limerick s ; at full twenty Leagues below which Place, fpreading gra- dually feveral Miles in Extent, fo that lome have confidered this Expanlion as a Lake, it at laft joins its Waters to the Sea, being navigable all that Way, for the largeft VefTels. It may perhaps be doubtful whether, even in this Country, where fuch Communications are to be made with more Eafe than in moft others, any Canal could be fo contrived as to connedl its Navigation with that of the Northern Counties t. But this is evident, that when the propofed P Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. xvi. §.5. A Profpeifl of the State of Ireland, by Peter Walfti, p. 443. Difcourfe of the Mines in Ireland, ainongft the Bidiop of Clogher's MS. in Trinity-College Library, at Dublin. 1 Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 122, 123. Girald. Cambrenf. Topograph. Hibernia, dill. i. cap. 6. Cnmdcni Hibernia, p. 775. ' See the Article Shannon in Collier's Dictionary. Additions to the Englirti Tranflation of Camden. • Ireland's Natural Hiftory, chap. viii. §. i, Spenfer's Fairy Queen, book. iv. canto 11. ftanza 41. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. xi. ' But we muft alfo remember, that the Communication by Sea is fo Ihort and eafy, between the Northern and Wcftcrn Parts of Ireland, that fuch a Canal would be lefs neceffary. Communication of GREAT BRITAIN. 265 Communication fhall be effefled between the Counties on botii Sides of this River and Dublin, and all the neceflary Improvements made of which the Shannon is capable, the Weftern Counties of Ireland will receive prodigious Advantages, and the whole domeftic Trade of the Ifland be rendered far eaficr, greater, and more advantageous, than it is at prefent u. This would afford fuch Encouragement to the Cultivation of thofe four Counties in Connaught, that enjoy the Benefit of this River, as could not fail of bringing them very fpeedily into a flourifliing Condition ; as this again would undoubtedly operate in favour of the maritime Counties, by fuppiying Materials for foreign Commerce, which would then become alike pradlicable and profitable ; to which we may add, that the Southern Part of the Ifland muft be alfo greatly benefited, and new Towns arife on both Sides of that immenfe Harbour, for in efteft it is all an Harbour, from the Mouth of the Shannon up to the City of Limerick, in which, though there are many Iflands, yet there are few or no Rocks, Shoals, or other Impediments, to that extenfive Navigation, which would neceffarily arife from this Country's being thus improved w. The ancient and noble City of Limerick, called, by the Iriili, Lumneach, is generally looked upon as the Capital of the rich and fpacious Province of Munfter, and has been always regarded as one of the principal Marts, and at the fame time as one of the ftrongeft Places in die whole Kingdom x. It ftands partly on an Ifland in the Shannon, and is divided into the Upper and Lower Town, united by a'ftately Bridge y. In the former is the Cathedral ; but both have been, in all Times to which Hiftory reaches, well built, well inhabited, and well fortified ; fo that the Pofieflion of this City was conflantly looked upon as a Point of great Confequence, in all the intefiine Wars with which this poor Kingdom has been fo frequently and terribly afflifted ^ The Irifh pofleffed themfelves of it early in the grand Rebellion, and held it the longeft of any except Galway, being furrendered to Lieutenant-General Ire- ton, then filled Deputy of the Kingdom of Ireland, on the 27^^ of October, 1651, after the Defeat of the lafl: Army the Irifli could bring into the Field for its Relief a. In the War which followed the Revolution, it was befieged by King William in Perfon, uho, by a Series of unfortunate Accidents, was u See what is hereafter faid of the Schemes of the Legiflature in Ireland on this Head, and the Meafures they have taken, in order to carry thefe Schemes into Execution. " Ireland's Natural Hiflory, chap. ii. §. 7. Earl of Orrery's State Letters, p. 147, E/Tay on the Improvement of the Trade of Ireland. ^ Camdeni Hibernia, p. 742. Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, P. iii. book 3. chap. 5. p. 157. Warei Antiquitates Hibernicse, p. 322, 323, 324, 325. y Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, P. iv. fol. 139, wirii a Print of the old City. See the Article of Limerick in Collier's Diftionary. Earl of Orrery's State Letters, p. 144. z Giraldi Cambreofis Hibernia Expugnata, lib. ii. cap. 36. Dodlor Keating 's General Hiflory of Ireland, p. 544. Gratiani Lucii Cambrenfis, Fverfus, p. 328. » Earl of Clarendon's Hiftorical View of the Affairs of Ireland, p. 237. Ludlow's Memoirs, vol. i. p. 372. Morrice's Memoirs of Roger, Earl of Orrery, p. i8, 19. Vol. I. Mm obliged 266 The POLITICAL SURVEY obliged to raife the Siege Augufl: 3c, 1690 b, It was, however, at length reduced by General Ginkle, to whom it lurrcndered in October, 1691, when two Capitulations were hgned, one with the Lords Juftices, Sir George Porter, Knight, and Thomas Koningihy, Efq; and Baron Ginkle, in relpedl to civil Affairs ; and the other, regarding military Affairs only, with the General, Baron Ginkle, alone, which opened a Way to the intire Settlement of the King- dom c. At this Time Limerick, enjoying all its ancient Privileges and Prerogatives, is a large, elegant, and populous City, juftly reputed the third in Ireland, is the chief Place in the County of its ov/n Name, one of the fineft and the beft peopled in the Province, well fortified, and having conflantly a good Garrifon ; and the Governor is commonly a General Officer ^. For the farther Security of this very important Place, it lias been provided by Statute, that no Papifts, except Labourers and Fiihermen, fliall refide therein as Houfekeepers ; nor are thefe to rent any Tenement of above forty Shillings a Year e. In refpedl: to Com- merce, there is a Cuftom-Houie, with a proper Eflablifliment, and a fine Quay. .But, notwithflanding all this, and though the City has thriven very much during the lafl: Centuiy, and increafed a feventh Part in the Number of Houles within thefe twenty-five Years, yet the inland Trade, and much more the foreign Commerce of Limerick, is, at prefent, nothing comparable to what in fucceeding Times may be juflly expedted, from the Excellence of its Situa- tion, and thofe eminent national Improvements, which, in confequence of true Principles of Policy, fincerely embraced and fteadily purfued, are now not barely propofed, but adtually carrying on f. For this being, at leafl, the com- mercial Center of thefe two great and wealthy Provinces, Munfter and Con- naught, and, with refpedl to the latter, lying very commodioufly for carry- ing on an Intercourfe between it and the Country to the South of Dublin, there is no Doubt to be made, as that large Province is gradually, and in its Turn, cultivated and improved, the Trade and Correlpondence of Limerick mufl in virtue thereof prodigioufly increafe, and from thence, in Procefs of Time alio, its foreign Commerce, by the Export of all thofe Commodides and IVlanufiiiturcs which the Encouragement of Induftry, and the many good Laws for the Amendment of the Roads in this Part of the Kingdom, and to this * Bithop's Kennel's Complete Hiftory of England, vol. iii. p. 605. Bi/hop Burnet's Hillory of his own Times, vol. ii. p. 59. Life of King William III. p. 282. ' Thefe Particulars are drawn from the following authentic Piece, " A Diary of the Siege and " Surrender of Limerick, with the Articles at large, both civil and military. Publiflicd by Au- " thority, London, 1692, 4°." ■^ Sir William Petty's .'inatomy of Ireland, p. 186. Lawrence's Interefl of Ireland, P. ii. p. 161. Civil and Military Ellabliihrnent in Ireland. ' Stat ii. Ann. cap. 6. §. 24. & 31. f See what is already faid, and alfo what follows, in regard to the Arts paflcd in Ireland, for promoting Tillage and inland Navigation. very of GREAT BRITAIN. 267 very City in particular, will certainly produce g. A Circumfiance the rather to be regarded, as the Advantages that might be derived from this Port were long ago forefeen 'i, though prevented by that Series of inccitine Confufion, to which this Ifland has been expofed; and referved for our Times, or at leaft in confequence of Laws palled in our Times, to be at length fully accomphrhed. A Thing fo much the more to be wiflied, as this would turn to abundantly greater Benefit than the Conqueft of any Diftrid: in Europe, or the Acquifition of vaft Countries in remoter Parts of the World. To conclude this Subjedl in fo plain and perfpicuous a Manner, as that the Reader may be fully convinced of the Truth of all that we have advanced, wc muft obferve, that almoft from the iEra of the Englifh firft fettling in Ire- land, they faw well enough the value of navigable Rivers, the improving thofe that were, and the attempting to render navigable fuch as were not. In order to this, they procured feveral good Laws to be made i ; and there were, no doubt, Seafons in which they endeavoured to carry thefe into Execu- tion. But, on the one hand, fo long as they were Conquerors only of differ- ent Parts, and not Mafters of the Whole, the Natives had a counter Intercft, which induced them not only to negledl fuch Improvements themfelves, but to prevent them likewile as far as lay in their Power, becaufe the Freedom of Communication, and the penetrating eafily into all Parts of the Country, was what they confidered as direftly oppofite to the Meafures necefl'ary for their own Defence, and the Support of that Independence which they always affefted k. On the other hand, the Wars that fo frequently difturbed this Illand, and the many Alterations which thefe occafioned, made the Englifh them- felves, during fuch Scenes of Confufion, lofe Sight of this Advantage, or at leaft hindered them from profecuting effedually the Schemes that, in more quiet Times, they had formed for that Purpofe '. But, whenever thefe Sea- fons of Tranquillity returned, we find them conftantly refuming fuch Inten- tions ; and as it fometimes happened that Men of patriot Dilpofitions, and who really wiflied well to the Interefts of the Country and its Inhabitants, were either intrufted with Power, or acquired fuch a Meafure of Pro- perty as enabled them to carry thefe Intentions, in fome Degree, into Execu- tion I" ; here and there, at different Times, fo much was done in tliis Matter B See the following Statutes, 5 Geo. II. cap. 22. 1 1 Geo. II. cap, 18. 15 Geo. II. cap. 1 1, 17 Geo. II. cap. 13. 25 Geo. II. cap. 15. h Earl of Strafford's Letters, vol. i. p. 105. Earl of Orrery's State Letters, p. 84, 81;. ' Stat. XXV. Edw. III. Stat. iv. cap. 4. 45. Edw. III. cap. iii. i. Hen, IV. cap. .xii. 12, Edw. IV. cap. vii. §. 3. 28. Hen. VIII. cap. xxii. §. i, 2. ^ Confult, as to the Cuftoms and Manners of the old Irifli, Stanihurft, Spcnfcr, Camden, Mory- fon, O Flaherty, Walih, and Keating. ' In the Civil Wars in the Reigns of Queen EIiz.abeth and King Charles I. the Englifli Protef- tJUits were obliged to deftroy fome, aud fufpend all Improvements. "> Such as the Sidneys, St. Johns, Boyle.s, VVandesfords, Careys, Bagnals, Tichbounies, and many more that might be mentioned. M z as 268 The POLITICAL SURVEY as plainly fettled the Point, from the Light of Experience as well as Reafon ; for, whenever this happened, the Benefits that followed it were fo fudden and fo apparent, and the State of the Countries, thus improved, fo very different, when compared with others where it could not be effedled, that the Doctrine was alike confirmed by the Succefs with which it was attended, and by the Inconveniencies that evidently flowed from the want of it in other Cafes. Such, however, were the mifchievous Efl'ecSs of the untoward Viciflitudes to which the Attairs of this Nation for a long Series of Years were expofed, that, after all the Endeavours in the Reigns of James and Charles the Firft, and the feveral like Attempts after the Refloration ", in both which Periods the Advantages of Ireland were fometi^nes very attentively confidercd, fo it fell out, that by an authentic Account, taken almoft at the Clofe of the laft Century °, all the Seafaring People, including alfo fuch as were engaged in the inland Navigation, fell fliort of four thoufand five hundred, and we may fay, with Truth, not a little fliort of what are now employed in and about the lingle Port of Dublin. Such an amazing Progrefs has been made in little more than half a Centurj', fince this Ifiand enjoyed uninterrupted Tranquillity, and the Arts of Peace and civil Improvement have been cultivated by Men of Pro- perty, acquiring daily, from Experience, more and more Skill in both. In the Beginning of his late Majelly's Reign, this important Point came to be exprefly and maturely confidered, in the Place and by the Perfons who could alone command all the Lights that are neceffary to judge of it with Pro- priety, and liad at the fame time the Power of doing what ought to be done, to carry what, upon obtaining thofe Lights, and judging of their Utility, they thought reafonable, into Execution p. In confequence of this, and, which was very natural, fixing their Eyes firft on the Navigation of the Shannon, the Legiflature pafled an Aft q, with a view to remove every Impediment in the Paffage by that River between the Town of Carrick DrumrulTc, in the County of Leitrim, and the City of Limerick. In order to which they appointed cer- tain Commiffioners or Undertakers, who are named in the Aft, armed them with large Powers, who were (at their own Coft and Charges) with all poffible Diligence, to profecute this great and good Defign widi Efi-eft, and, by the fame Law, enabled them to fix certain Tolls and Duties for the Repayment of the Expence, and for the Support of the Works, that for this Purpofe fhould be requifite. But, after all this was done, and, notwithftanding any unforefeen " By the Lords Montjoy and Grandifon, the Earls of Cork and Strafford, the Duke of Ormond, and the Earls of EfTcx and Orrery. ' Captain South's Return of the Seafaring People in Ireland, A. D. 1697, in the Philofophical Tranfaftions, N'J- cclxi. p. 519. P This A6t was grounded upon the Advantages that would immediately arife to fo many differ ent Counties, by rendering the Shannon navigable above Limerick. q Stat. ii. Geo. L cap. 12. extremely full and plain in icieience to the great Objeft, and no lefs tender, in many Refpefts, of the Liberty of the Subjeft. Defefts of GREAT BRITAIN. 269 Defedls in the firft Law, were amended by fubfequent Adls r, planned with great Care and Deliberation, and which manifefted much Zeal and public Spi- rit, yet all this Vigour and Diligence proved ineffecitual, and they law at lafl, that with the beft Intentions poflibie, and with all the Skill and Pains that could be employed, private Men, and private Purfes, though aflifted and fup- ported by the higheft Authority, were Inftruments altogether inadequate to an Undertaking of this Kind j which Ihews that Things the mofl: laudable in their Nature, even when conduced by national Wifdom, are not always with Faci- lity to be brought about s. It redounds, therefore, to the jufl and immortal Honour of the Senate of Ireland, that they were not difcouraged by thefe Dif- ficulties, or deterred by the repeated Difappointments they met with, in endea- vouring to remove them, but from a full Perfuafion of the great Importance and public Utility of the Scheme they had formed, and having a iuft Con- fidence in their own Power, perfilled fieadily in their Efforts to bring it to that Perfedlion which was originally propofed, and which the whole Nation fo earneftly defired to fee accompliilied f. It was, however, by a Concurrence of unlucky Accidents, delayed for many Years, and, after all, referved for the prefent Reign to fee this excellent Scheme put into a proper Method, and thereby rendered as effecftual towards national Happinefs, as the Conception of it was an indubitable Proof of true Patriotism, and genuine public Spirit. It is of the greater Confequence for me to fet this Matter in a full Light, becaufe thefe repeated Adls of the Irilh Legiflature, are fo many authentic Tefli monies of the Truth of that Dodtrine which I have been labouring to maintain ". They fiw, and were convinced of its public Utility, and were i'rom thence defirous of feeing it carried into Prac- tice; which they likewife knew mufh be within the Compafs of their own Power, when properly applied. If they failed more than once in their Effors, this ought to be attri'uuced to their having no Precedent to follow, which is a Circumfcance that deferves to be regarded w. By their inflexible Perfeverance and conflant Inquiries, they drew from thofe very Difappointments the neceflary.. Lights they originally wanted, and, by adhering to their firft Principle, but ' Stat. vtii. Geo. I. cap. 6. repealed by the fucceeding Statutes, which, inflead of Under- takers, eftabliftied a Coiporation. " It is not the Plainnefs and general Utility of a Defign, that contributes, always, to render it prafticable, as appears by our Laws in relation to Wool, for regulating the Militia, and in refer- ence to draining the Fens. • As foon as a Law paffed for removing the Obftruftions which prevented tlie Navigation of the Shannon above Limerick, the Eyes of the whole Nation were opened in regard to the general Doftrine, and this produced an Extenfion of the Scheme. " It is in this refpedl, that thefe Laws are to be confidered, as fo many Attempts, to carry one great Point of genuine Policy, as far as it will go. w This is not fpoken in regard to the Scheme for improving the Shannon, but of the more extended Plaa which that Defign, as we ftiall fee, produced. varying, ^^o Hie POLITICAL SURVEY ■Viirymg, as Reafon and Experience taught them, from their primary Plan, they gradually arrived at that Ferfedtion which they always had in view, :and:have not only acconiplilhcd tlicir Point, and overcome all Obftacles, but ,have likewile lupplied that Precedent to others which was wanting to them- felves, and have eftabliihcd a Model for the Improvement of all Countries, that Nature has rendered capable of being improved in this Refpedl, which will be of univerlal Utility ; and therefore, though Ireland (as indeed /he ought) reaps the immediate Benefit of thefe excellent Laws, yet, in their Na- ture, Spirit, and Method, they may be juftly confidered as fo many inftrudlive Leflbns to Mankind x. Under a full Perfuafion of this, I thought it my Duty :to place the Defign in fo ftrong a Point of View, and from a very fuccindt Account of the Subftancc of thefe Laws, I entertain no Doubt that the judi- tcious Reader will, upon that Evidence, be of my Opinion y. Instead of the Commiffioners or Undertakers who were at firft appointed for completing the Navigation of the Shannon z, they have created a new and perpetual Council, to fuperintend the moft important national Improve- ments, under the Title of " The Coi-jioration for promoting and carrying on *' an Inland Navigation in Ireland," compofed of the Lord Lieutenant or Chief Governor, the Archbifhop of Armagh, the Lord Chancellor or Lord Keeper, the three other ArchbiOiops, and the Speaker of the Houfe of Com- mons for the time being, and twenty Commiflioners from each of the four Provinces in Ireland, with a Power of filling up Vacancies, as they fhall hap- pen, by Eledlion ^ They have next provided a Fund, which, being renewed hy the fecond Aft in the prefent Reign, is to continue to Lady Day 1772, arifing from new Duties impofed by the former Adl on Cards and Dice, Coaches and other Carriages, and Plate wrought or imported b -, and being inftrudted by Experience, as to the necelfary Connexion of ufeful Defigns, which are -often, if not always, cramped by particular Dircdlions, they have very pru- ■" The very fame EmbarafTments, may probably be felt where-ever any general Scheme of this Sort is undertaken, and then the fame Remedies may be applied. y The Operation of the legirtativ^ Power, and the Efficacy of the Means, being fo exaftly pro- portioned to the Nature and Utility of the End propofed. ^ Stat. iii. Geo. II. cap. 3. 25. Geo. JI. cap. x. But by both thefe Laws, whatev£r was found light in the former Adf s, was continued and confirmed ; whatever appeared improper, or was dif- cerned to be imprafticable, was repealed. » The Names of thefe Truftees are annually printed in the Dublin Almanack, and are the mofl rcfpeiftable Peers and Commoners refident in the refpeftive Provinces, who are by this Means acquainted, not only with the Managen;ient and Progrefs of this, but alfo initiated into the Know- lege of every other national Improvement. b Thefe new Duties are, fix Pence on every Pack of Cards made, and twelve Pence on every Pack imported ipto Ireland ; twenty Shillings on every Coach, and other Carriage with four Wheels ; aud five Shillings on Carriages with two Wheels ; and fix Pence per Ounce Troy on all fjate wrought or imported into Ireland ; Books, containing the Produce of which, are to be iicpt feparatcly, ^nd accounted for annually to the Commifiioners. dently of GREAT BRITAIN. 271^ Gently taken away all Limitation c, and impov/ered thefe ConimifTioners, or rather public Truilees, or the major Part of them, no fewer than eleven being prefent, to apply the Monies arifing from the Duties impofed by this Aft, or any Part thereof, for the Encouragement and Improvement of Tillage, Employment of the Poor, draining and improving Bogs, and unprofitable low Grounds, making of the feveral Rivers navigable, and making of Canals, for the eafing and difpatching the inland Carriage and Conveyance of Goods from one Part to another within this Kingdom, by luch Means, and in fuch Manner and Proportion, and at fuch Times as they lliall think moil convenient, except by giving any Premium upon the Exportation of Corn out of the Kingdom d. Befides this ftanding Provilion, confiderable Sums have been occafionally given to quicken and promote this laudable Work, which is now laid to be advancing with great Rapidity e. We may therefore faiely aver, that if the whole of this expenlive Undertaking fliall be as honeftly and uprightly executed as thefe Laws are wifely framed, and honourably intended ', Ireland will be very fpeedily one of the beft watered Countries in Europe, the manifol-d Advantages flowing from which will inconteftably demonftrate the Pufitions we have laid> down, and vindicate the Length of this Chapter from all Objettions. « By giving thefe general and extenfive Power , the Tiuftees are exempted from reforting per- petually to Parliament on every little Incident, which would have been attended with many Delays, and other Inconveniencies. d Thefe, which are the very Words of the Aft, fliew evidently how thoroughly the Plan has been digefted, and all its Confequences confidered. ' Ellabliftiing a permanent Board of Truftees, was not a wiler Step than limitting the Fund, and fecuring thefe occafional Applications for AlTiflance. f If any Errors (hould be difcovered in the Execution of this Defign, they muft fall immedi- - ately under the Correftion of the Legiflature, CHAPTER Vn. THE various benefcial Confequences o.rifmg to the Britijh Domhiions, from the' large Extent and peculiar Figure of their Coafis. A general View of this Sub- jeSl, and an Explanation of the Adva?itages attcnditig a great Extent of Coajl. Thefe Advantages njuell imderflood, and juftly celebrated by Authors ancient and modern. Tet fuch Advantages not eittirely due to the Size, but depend alfo in a greet meafure on the Form of a Coaft. The great Excellence in both RefpeBs of the Coaft of Great Britain. Reafons that make the diftitiB and accurate Survey ef the Benefits that already are, or hereafter may be, deduced from hence, necefjhy: in this Work. View of the principal Ports on the Eaft Side of South Britain;, their Hiflory, with occafional Obfervations on their Conveniencies and Defeats. - The Weft and South Coafts of this Part of the Ifland, conftdcred in like tnanner. Re- marks on the Bays, Roads, and Havens, on the Coafts of Wales. The fame Sur- vey continued in regard to the Inlets, Ports, and Harbours, in North Bri- taiuy : 272 The POLITICAL SURVEY tain, and the ImprcKscments pointed out of which they are capable from their Situation. 'The Coajls of Ireland furveyed, their Advantages, and the much greater Advantages that might be drawn frctn them. The Conchfton, in which all that has been before alledged, is confirmed from Reafon and Authority. WE may, with eqnal Truth and Propriety, place the large Extent of its Coafl: among the principal Prerogatives of Great Biitain. We mean by this fomething more, than what, in Comparifon of maritime Countries on the Continent, belongs to it as an Illand, becaufe, as we fhall fliew hereafter; this beneficial Extent of Coafl: refults chiefly from the peculiar and advantageous Figure of this Illand, and is already and apparently in many, and in a Multitude of other Inftances, may be rendered fingularly commodious to its Inhabitants in that refpedt ». By this means our own are fent out, foreign Veflels are invited from all Quarters, go and return by every Wind, and are received and entertained in fafe and convenient Ports on every Side ^'. The conftant, copi- ous, and cojivenient, Diftribution of the Goods they bring from foreign Parts, along the Shores of fo large an Ifland, exclufive of all tiiat is fent by Land, to which thefe alfo very largely contribute ; and the carrying the Super- fluities of our own Growth, and Manm'adlures from rough Materials, imported from one Part of fuch a Country as this to another, gradually produces a prodigious Coafl: Trade, which is of inexpreflible Value, as it occafions Settlements near to, or immediately on the Sea Coafl: ; and, in confequence of this, the Cultivation of adjacent Lands, the Iniprovement of Harbours, the Increafe of Shipping, and the Augmentation of Seamen, which are Circum- fl:ances of no fmall Importance to the People of every Country, but more efpecially to be fought for and cheriflied, as proper and peculiar Bleflings to the Inhabitants of an Ifland c. Befides thefe, it produces another very happy Effedl, as it afi"ords inexpreflible Conveniencies for many different Sorts of Filhing, and facilitates the Diftribution of the Produce of thofe Fifheries, which is eveiy- where the natural Parent of Trade and a naval Power; and hence it is that in this, and indeed in almoft every other maritime Country, of which we have any tolerable Hiftory, we find that the mofl: famous Sea Ports have rifen by degrees, and a Concurrence of fortunate Circumfl:ances, up to that Rank, from being originally no better than fifhing Towns d; into which, from a Series of untoward Accidents, or from the Elfedls of any fudden Cala- a Strabonis Geograph. Kb. iv. p. 199. Diodor. Sicul Riblioth. Hiftor. lib. v. cap. 2. p. 209. Dionyfuis Afer in Peiiegcfin. Panegyricus ConAautio diftus. L'lfole piu famofe del Mondo defcritte da Thomafo Porcacchi, lib. i. b Paulus Joviiis in Defcriptionem Magnae Biitanniae. De Witte, Gronden en Maximen, \'an de Republieck van Holland, ii. deel. cap. 9. D'Audiffrct Hiftoire et Geographic ancienne ct moderne, torn. i. p. 140. c Herodot. lib. i. Thucyd. Hift. lib. i. Dirdor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hifl. lib. iv. v. Strabon. Geograph. lib. iv. Elmacin. Hift. Saracen, lib. ii cap. 17. ■' As forliiftaiice, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Venice, Amllerdam, Dublin, and many others. i niity, of GR E AT BR ITAIN. 273 mity, they as naturally dwindle again ; of which we have already given fo many Inflances, that it is not at all requifite we fliould repeat, or make any Additions to them here e. For thefe, and for a Variety of other Reafons, we find the beneficial Con- fequences that ncceflarily refult from fuch an extenfive Sea Coaft, have been coiiftantly celebrated by all the intelligent Authors, who have treated of fuch Countries as were pofi^efled in any remarlcable Degree of this BlelTing f. This was the genuine Source of Induftry, Wealth, and Splendour, to the ancient Arabians g ; this was the Inftrument of Egypt's Greatnefs li ; it was this rendered the Phenicians confpicuous through a long Courfe of Ages ' ; and where-ever this Advantage is thoroughly improved, from a proper Atten- tion, it is fimply impoflible that its Inhabitants fliould not thrive fafler, and be in all Refpefts in a better Condition, than their Neighbours k. It is indeed true, that the Wifdom and Induilry of Man, taking hold of fome pecu- liar Circumflances, may have rendered a few inland Cities and Countries very fair and flourifliing. In ancient Hiftory we read of Palmyra ', and the Diftridl round it, becoming a luxuriant Paradife in the midft of inholpi- table Defarts. But this was no more than temporary Grandeur; and it has now lain for fome Ages in Ruins, which, to the general Satisfadion of the Republic of Letters, and the peculiar Honour of this Country, have been lately refcued from the Rage of Time, and the mercilefs Ignorance of barbarous Nation?, by the Skill and Care of the learned and ingenious Mr. Wood m. The City and Principality of Kandahar was, in like manner, rendered rich and famous, in confequence of its being made the Center of the Indian Com- merce ; but long ago declining, its Defi:rudlion has been completed, in our Days, from that dreadful Defolation which Thamas Kouli Khan fpread through Perfia and the Indies ". Here in Europe, many of the large Cities in Ger-^ many, which for a Time made a great Figure, from the Fiieedom and Indu- liry of their Inhabitants, and diffufed Eafe, Plenty, and Profperity, through the • The Political Survey of Britain, vol, i. p. 24, 25, 31, 150, 1 51, 152, 175. f Strabonis Geograph. lib. iii. Arrian. Peripl. Pont. Euxin. Polyb. Hift. lib. vi. Hornii Dif- fcrtationes Hiftoricre et Politics, DilT. x. Deflandes Efliii fur la Commerce et fur le Marine, p. i o i . « Diod. Sicul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. iii. Plin. Hifi. Nat. lib. vi. Huet Hifloire du Commerce et de la Navigation des Anciens, chap. xiii. *■ Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvii. Appian. in Praefat. Athen. Deipnofophifi. lib. iii. Elm.ic'n. Hiftor. Saracen, lib. ii. cap. 16. Sanudo, Stcreta Fidelium Crucis, 157. ' Herodot. lib. i. Plin. Hill:. Natur. lib. vii. Jofeph. contra Apion. lib. i. ^ Strabon. Geograph. lib. xvi. DioJor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hifi:. lib. v. Plutarchus in So'one. ' 2 Chron. viii. 1 6. Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. lib. viii. Appian. de Bellis civil, lib. v. Plin. X.it. Hift. lib. V. Trebell. Pollio in Gallieni?. Vopifc. in Aureiiano. " The Title of this elegant Work runs thus : " The Ruins of Palmyra, otherwife Ted.iior, " in the Defart, London, 1753. Folio." ° Claud. Ptolem. Geogiaph. Ai\x, tab. vii. Hiftoire Ju Grand Genghifcan, lib. i^'. chap. 7. Voyages de Tavernier, lib. v. chap. 24. D'Herbelot Biblioth. Orientale, p. 243. Voyage en Turquic et en Perfe, par M. Otter, torn. i. chap. 35. Vol. I. N n Diftrict 274 The POLITICAL SURVEY Diflridts dependant upon them, which of courfc rendered them populous, are now fo much funk, from inevitable Accidents, as to be but Shadows of what they were ; and, though they flill continue to fubfift, fubfiit only as the melancholy Monuments of their own Misfortunes ". We may there- fore, from hence, with great Certainty difcern, that all the Pains and Labour that can be bellowed in fupplying the Defedl: of Situation in this refpedt, proves, upon the whole, but a tedious, difficult, and precarious Expedient. But, however, we muft at the fame time admit, that it is not barely the PolTelTion even of an extended Coaft, that can produce all thefe delirable Effects. That Coaft muft be likewife diltinguilhed by other natural Advan- tages, fuch as Capes and Promontories, favourably difpofed to break the Fury of the, Winds, deep Bays, fafe Roads, and convenient Harbours p. For, with- out thefe, an extended Coaft is no more than a maritime Barrier againft the naval Force of other Nations, as is the Cafe in many Parts of Europe % and is one of the principal Reafons why Africa derives fo little Benefit from a Situa- tion, which, as we have already obferved, has fo promifing an Appearance, there being many conliderable Tradis upon its Coafts equally void of Havens and Inhabitants, and which afford not the fmalleft Encouragement to the attempting any thing that might alter their prefent defolate Condition r. It is, howevever, a lefs Inconvenience, and in fome Cafes no Inconvenience at all, if, in the Compafs of a very extended Coaft, there fhould be fomc Parts diffi- cult or dangerous of Accefs, provided they are not altogether inaccefhble s. The Sea Coaft of Britain, from the Figure in fome meafure of the Ifland, but chieriy from the Inlets of the Sea, and the very irregular indented Line which forms its Shore, comprehends, allowing for thole Sinuoiitles, at leaft eight hundred Marine Leagues t. We may from hence, therefore, with Safety affirm, that, in this refpedt, it is fuperior to France, tliough that be a much larger Coun- try ; and equal to Spain and Portugal in this Circumftance, though Britain is not half the Size of that noble Peninllila, which, as we have already remarked, is alfo Angularly happy in this very Particular ". From the fame Caufes that render our Sea Coaft fo extenfive, it is likewife rendered lb much the more • MifTon Voyage d'ltalie, torn. i. lettre 8. p. 56. Bui-net's Travels, letter v. Ray's Travels, Tol. i. p. 68, 69. f Varcnii Geograph. General. §. iv. cap. 12. Hydrographie du P. G. Fournier, lib. ii. 1 Sir William Monfon's Naval Trai^h, book v. Deflandes, Eflai fur la Marine et fur je Com- meice, p. 105. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 50. ' Diflionnaire Univerfelle de Commerce, torn. xi. p. 631. Hamilton's Account of the Eafl Indies, vol. i. p. 5, 1 1, 23. Atlas Maritimus et Commerctalis, p. 263. ' bee Yarranton's England's Improvement by Sea and Land, p. 3, where he fliews the Advan- tages the Dutch reap by the Shoals and Shallows on their Coafts. ' It is very difficult, if not impoflible, to make an e.xaft Computation ; however, in the Courfe ef this Chapter it will appear, we have kept within Pounds. " political Sarvey of Britain, vol. i. p. 7. commc- of GREAT BRITAIN. 275 commodious, infomuch that, exclufive of thofe Havens, which are formed by the Mouths of navigable Rivers, which were the Subje<5t of the lafl Chapter, we have as many large and fife Bays, fecure Roads, and convenient Ports, of different Sizes, arifing from fuch Diipofitions of Sea and Shore, as any other Country in Europe w. This, in Conjundion with our other Advantages, cer- tainly completes the Felicity of our Country, fince it puts it mofl: inconteftibly in the Power of its Inhabitants to cultivate and improve every Part of it, almoft in an equal Degree, which can only be the Lot of an Illand i and, if we refieiSt on the Size of ours, is not a little extraordinary x. But Affertlons of this kind will go but a very little way with Foreigners, and would indeed, if unfupported and unimproved, by a Difplay of their Utility, be full as little to the Purpofe in regard to ourfelves. In order therefore to obviate every Objeftion, and not only to put the Matter of Fadt out of all doubt, but alfo to drive from thence fome neceflary and important Lights, we will in this Chapter enter into a fuccind: Defcription of our Coaft, ftriftly in tliis View, from whence it will appear, that we have not either taken up this Senti- ment hailily, or at all exaggerated the numerous Benefits that may be reafon- ably expeded, and, in Proceis of Time, and in confequence of gradual Improve- ments, actually will from this Circumftance accrue y. If this Attempt of ours iliould only ferve to excite a brifker Curiofity in the inquilitive Perufer, and awaken an ardent Defire in him to be more particularly informed as to thofc Points, which, from the Bounds prefcribed to this Work, we but briefly men- tion, it will anfwer a very valuable Intention ?, fmce there is nothing that can contribute fo much to the Improvement of this Country, and of courfe to the Welfare of this Nation, as the being thoroughly apprized of all its natural Advantages, and the Confequences with which they may be attended, which will appear inexpreffibly clearer, upon a ftrift and minute Infpedion, than tliey could be conceived from any general Encomiums that are to be found in the Works either of ancient or modern, of our own or of foreign Writers, who yet have taken a PJeafure in expatiating in very ftrong Terms upon this Subjeft, and who perhaps may have fometimes complemented us upon imaginary Blef- fings, while at the fame time they omitted many of which we are already pof- leffed, and many more which, from thele that ai-e iiduaily in our Hands, it may be in our Power to obtain ». We ^ See Templeman's Survey of the Globe, Plate xxx. and compare its Contents with thofe of Plate xxxi. X Thus, as well from the Soil as the Climate, a great Part of Ifeland is uninhabited. In Java, •oiherwife fuUy peopled, the hilly Country in the Centre is a mere Defart. In the Ille of 15oui- bon, though exceeding pleafant and fertile, there is a Dillrifl parched and burnt up. The Blue Mountains in Jamaica are as intenlely cold, as the reif of the Country is hot. y Suppofing that we do as much in the next Century as was done in the laft. i This kind of Curiofity is natural, fenfible, and uferul ; it ought therefore to be chcriflied. a Strabo places Gold and Silver amongft the ProduiTts of Britain. Cicero denies that either of thefe Metals are to be found in this Illand. Cvfar is filent. Britifli Pear's ^\cre once famous. N n 2 Tacitus 276 The POLITICAL SURVEY We have already obferved that the North Fore-land in the County of Kent, and the Naze in Eflex, bound the Mouth of the River Thames 1\ Sailing Northward from the latter, when we have pafled by Harwich, which has been before mentioned c, we come next to Bav/dfcy Haven, lb called from a Vil- lage of that Name, on the North Side of the River Deben, which here falls into the German Ocean d. The Entrance is but (hallow at Low Water, yet being once over the Bar, the River becomes deeper ; upon which ftands Woodbridge, a populous growing Tovi'n, driving a confiderable Trade, and at which Ibme good Ships have been built c. The next is Orford, flieltered by a low Beach running out into the Sea, called Orford Nefs. It was anciently a very good Haven, fined in the Reign of Richard the Firft for tranfporting Corn to the King's Enemies in Flanders ; furnilhing three Ships and fixty-two Sea- men in that of Edward the Third, for the King's Service t'. It was long before this a Parliamentary Borough, as it ftill continues ; though the Sea, by with- drawing from its Harbour, which was formerly both commodious and capa- cious, has in fome meafure deprived it of that Trade, which, in thofe Days, was its Support ; fo that now it is confidered, in our Cuftom-Houfe Accounts, as a Creek, dependant upon Aldeborough, or Aldburgh, which is itfelf a Mem- ber of the Port of Yarmouth g. This, which is, properly fpeaking, no more now than a filhing Town, fends alfo Members to Parliament, though not before the Reign of Elizabeth, who granted the Duke of Norfolk, to whom it then belonged, a Fair at Aldburgh ''. The Place is ftill in a pretty good Condition, though the Sea, which injured Orford by withdrawing, has com- mitted alio great Depredations upon this Coaft, for want of a proper Dike, or Sea-Wall, that might proted: the Shore from its Encroachments ; and this Remark delerves the more Attention, as the whole Valley of Slaughden, in which this Town is feated, feems not to be otherwife fecure from the future Ravages of this mercilefs Element^ though from fuch Precautions as are ufed. in other Countries, they might here alfo doubtlefs be reftrained >. Tacitus allows us all Sorts of Fruit but the Vine and Olive, which, he fays, belong to warmer Climates. Others admit that Wine may be made here. Pofterity, perhaps, may introduce both Wine and Oil. " Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 139. Atlas Marltiinus et Commercialis, p. 1. Cutler's Coailing Pilot, p. 3. ' Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 144. "^ Camdeni llritannia, p. 338. Speed's Theatre of the Britirti Empire, fol. 34. , "^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 338. According to fome Accounts there are four or five Docks in this Town, with fevcral Manutadfures. ' Stc the authentic Roll of this mighty naral Armament, published in Hackluyt's Colledlion of Voyages, vol. i. p. 118. Madox, Firma Burgi, cap. vi. §. 5. p. 124. K Molloy ds Jure Maritimo et Navali, p. 322. Prefent State of London and the Outports.. Crouch's complete View of the Cufloms, p. 385. i' Camdeni Britannia, p. 339. Willis s Notitia Parliamentaria, vol. i. Preface, p. 25. ' Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 34. Additions to Camden's Britannia. Chil- ■ Speed s Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 34. CamdeniBritanni-i, p. 339. Mac'ox, Firma Burgi, p. 296. Town of GREAT BRITAIN. 279 Town and Country about it a. The Free Britifh FiHiery, eftablillied by Adt of Parliament, revived the Courage of the Inhabitants, and has been in many Refpedls ferviceable to the Place, more particularly in recommending it to the Notice of the Legiflature, in confequence of which an Adt palled lor repair- ing and improving the Port; and to this Purpofe fomething has been done, and, from the Charafter and Induftry of the Truftees, much more is expedit- ed b, Southwold is a Member of the Port of Yarmouth ; and VValberlwick, commonly written VV^alderfwick, is a Creek to Southwold c. At preient thefe Places are little regarded ; but cur Pofterity will, from Experience, difcover, that a navigable River and a good Harbour deferve to be purchafed here, though at a confiderable Expence. The Bay before the Town, anciently called from thence Souibav, now commonly, though corruptly, Solebay, was a fre- quent Station of the royal Navy during the Dutch Wars, and is memorable for two famous Sea Fights, the former June 3, 1665, and the latter May a8, 1672, both to the Dilad vantage of the Dutch d. This Bay was formerly bounded by Eafton Nefs, fo called, becaufe fuppofed to be the moflEaftern Point of this Coaft, and another Cape to the Soutli Eaft of Dunwich ; but the Sea having removed thefe Marks, it may now be faid to have Covehith Nefs, with the Burnet, a Sand lying before it, on the North, and Thorp Nefs on the South, a Road very commodious for Ships, and juftiy famous for its Filhery, particu- larly of Soals, which, in point of Size and Flavour, are not inferior to any caught upon the Coafts of this Illand e. The Coaft Northward from hence, is much emharralTed v/ith Sands and Shoals, and affords but one Place more worth mentioning till you come to Yarmouth, which is Leofloff, a Creek belonging to that famous Port '". This Town is as varioufly written as any that I have met with, Layfloif, Lowefloffe, and in Records fometimes Lov/eftoke s ; it flands, as moft of the Towns before-mentioned, do, upon an Eminence, or, as Camden exprelfes it, hangs over the Sea, v/hich affords it a tolerable Haven for Barks and fmall Velfels K The Inhabitants fublifl: chiefly from their great Induflry in fifliing Cod, Lob- fters, and Mackrcl, on their own Coafts; which, with the Iceland Fifhing, the Commerce ariling from thence, and the carrying the Provilions, Commo- =■ Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus et Comnp.er- cialis, p. I. Cutler's Coafting Fiiot. p. 4. " Gardner's Hiftoiy of Dunwich, &c. p. 195, 196, 197, *= Molloy, de Jure Maritime et Navali, p. 322. Crouch's complete View of the Cuftoms, p. 385. ' Echard's Hirtory of England, p. 820, 883. Burchet's Naval Hiflory, p. 398, 403. Lives of the Admirals, vol. ii. p. 243, 2S9. e Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. i. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 4. Gardner's Hiilory of Dunwich, p. 197, 258, 259. ' Molloy de Jure Maritiino et Navali, p. 322. t Camdeni Britannia, p. 340. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fo). 134. '' Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 4. Gardner's HiAoiy of Piinwich, p. 258, 259. Much alfo »poa this Subjeft from private Information. 8 dities. 28o The POLITICAL SURVEY dities, and Manufadlures, of their own Country, fupported alfo the other Places on this Coaft, Harwich and Yarmouth are now the great Marts, from their being capacious and commodious Harbours ; but one may, notwithftanding, txke the Liberty to doubt, whether it would not have been an A<5t of national Policy to have preferved (while pradicable) thefe Ports by a Sea Dike '. Here is thepleafant, fruitful, wholfome, populous, and maritime County of Suffolk, which has at leaft twenty Leagues of Sea Coaft, a million of Acres, moft of it rich Laiid, producing a great Variety of valuable Crops, and abounding with all the Conveniencies requifite to almoft every Kind of Manufadlure, to the forwarding of which nothing could fo much contribute as the opening a few Harbours, by which the Fruits of the People's Induftry might be carried fpeedi- ly, and at a fmall Expence, to different Markets ^. Whether it is yet too late, by an extenfive Sea-Wall, to retrieve thefe Ports, and recover a Part at leaft of the Lands the Ocean has devoured, and of courlc reftore her Port to the Town of Orford, is a Queflion I venture to propofe, but mud leave it to wifer Heads to determine '. To the North of Yarmouth runs a Point into the German Ocean, called Winterton Ncfs, beyond which the Coaft tends Weft North-Weft, then Weft, the Shore low and flat, befieged with dangerous Sands, which are reputed to have been as fatal to Shipping as any that deform the Coaft of this our Ifland "1. It is not ftrange that few Places of any great Note fliould be found on fo inhofpitable a Shore ; and yet it feems there were Times in which it made a much better Figure. Their remaining Ruins fhew there were Roman Stations in leveral Places, which we know were to accommodate their Cavalry, pofted to defend the Country againft Invafions ". There muft have been in thofe Times, if not more., at leaft better Ports than there are now, or there could fcarce have rifen any Fear of fuch Invafions. But in this refpecft, how- ever it might happen here, the Ancients unqueftionably excelled the Moderns, if not in Science, for that I dare not aflirm, or indeed incline to believe, yet in Induftry and public Spirit, which enabled them to guard againft the Milchiefs ariling from, and remedy the Defedls incident to, fo unpieafing, and at the fame time untoward and unpromifmg a Situation «. They knew how, by ' This arofe probably from not having a jufT: Notion of the Benefits arifing from Commerce, from the Difficulty of eftablifliing an adequate Fund, and from the great Uncertainty and Confu- fion of the Times. '' Speed's Theatre of the Britirti Empire, fol. 33. Fuller's Worthies under Suffolk. Addi- tions to Camden. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 3. ' But if this be attempted in any future Period, it ibould be at the public Expence, and not by Taxes on the Trade and Navigation of particular Place?. *" Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 3. Brome's Travels through England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 128. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 5. ' Camdeni Britannia, p. 346,348,3,0. Icenia, five Norfolcia; Defcriptio Topographica. Ab H Spelmanno, Eq. Aur. Baxter! GlofTirium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 45. o Icenia, in Sir Henry Spelman's Pofthumous Works, P. li. p. 144, 147, 148. Salmon's new Survey of England, vol. i. p. 185. Labour of GREAT BRITAIN. 281 Labour and Art, to make, where Nature had omitted, Havens ; and they per- formed thefe ufeful Works with fo much Skill and Strength, that Time and Tides made but Uttle Impreffion upon them, fo long as they continued under tlieir Infpedion p. Thefe artificial Harbours they ftiled Cothon es ; and as they were endrely in tlieir own Power, their Conftrudion was equally folid and commodious j with Entrances fafe and wide, and where the Support of Commerce required it, they were fo capacious, as to be able to contain the whol,e Britilh Navy q. It may be colleded from Camden's Expreflion, who was both'a careful and correft Writer, that he took the Port at Cromer (for a Port was once diere) to be of this kind, and very probably a Roman Edifice '•. The Inhabitants ftruggled long, and with much Expence, to fupport fomething of this nature but to little purpofe; even fo late as 1736 they attempted to raife a fort of Shelter ; after much Money fpent however, their Piers were born down and carried away. But though they now land their Goods upon the bare Beach, the People ftill preferving an hereditary Inclination to Commerce, have yet no lefs, and with Sorrow I fpeak it, no more, than two VefiTels of about feventy Tons each, and twenty-four fifliing Boats, employing together about fixty Men ; and yet, which fliews Succefs attends their Spirit, this very Header Bufmefs is increafing?. Some of the Villages upon the Coafts have alfo a few fifliing Barks ; but nothing more till you come to Clay and Blackney, lying Weft North-Weft four Leagues, which carry their Pretenfions fomevvhat higher, being regarded jointly as a Member of the Port of Yarmouth f. Clay is looked upon as the principal Place ; tho' Blackney gives Name to that Creek which fupplies them both with an Harbour. They have between them fifteen Sail of fmall Veffels, and it may be threefcore fifliing Boats. It is thought they export twenty thouland Quarters of Malt and hard Corn, and carry at leaft as much Coaft-wife. They bring in about fix thoufand Chaldrons of Coals ; and the remainder of their Trade confifts in Deals, Balks, Fir Tim- ber, Pantiles, and Iron ". One would imagine that Clay was in a better Con- dition in Anno Domini 1406, when James, Son of Robert the third, King of Scots, and himfelf afterwards King James the Firft, was brought in Prifoner there, being taken at no great Diftance by a Ship of Force ^v. P Dlodor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. ilL Appiaa. inPunicis, lib. i. Feflus in voce Cothoius. Serv. in Virg. jlLneid. lib. i. P. Fournier, Hydiographie, lib. ii. cap. 2. 1 Shaw's Travels, p. 262. Bochart. Chan. lib. i. cap. 24. Buxtorf. in voce katam. ' Britannia, p. 349. Icenia, p. 1 52. ' Thefe Particulars I was furnilhed with, in the moft obliging Manner, by Gentlemen upon tlic Spot, who had the befl: Opportunities of knowing them. ' Additions to the Euglilh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. MoUoy, de Jure Maritimo et Navali, p. 322. u Thefe Particulars I had alfo from private Informatior, for which, as te-comes me, I return my moft grateful Acknowlegements. * Thom. Walfinghami Ypodigma Neuflria, p. 566. Jc! annis de Fordun Scjti chronici Conti- nuatio, p. 1 162- Thomx Otterbourfle Chronica Regum i^nglise, f . 259. Vol. I. O o Wells, 282 The POLITICAL SURVEY Wells, three Leagues Weft by North of Clay, is a Member of the Port of Lynn, and much more confidcrable than any of the foregoing Places », its Inhabitants having at prefent about thirty VefTels, three of which are up- wards of an hundred Tons ; and, befides thefe, at leaft a Dozen Fifliing Boats, employing in the whole not fewer than two hundred Men, and yet this Place feems to be but reviving, there being evident Marks that it was larger and of greater Confequence in former Times y. Burnham Overy, two Leagues further Weft by South, is accounted a Creek to Wells, and is a little growing Place, having fix Veftels belonging to it. But Brancafter, which is very near, and is alfo a Creek to Wells, is now, and was formerly, much fupe- rior to it. This, as the beft and moft accurate Critics agree, was a Roman Station, called by them Brannodunum, and was the head Quarters of the Colo- nel of the Dalmatian Horfe, pofted here under the Command of the Count of the Saxon Shore, for the Proteftion of the Country. All Circumftances con- cur in the Support of this Opinion ; the Name fignifies a Camp or Fortrefs, feated on a Hill, overlooking the Sea ; there have been Coins, Urns, and other Antiquities, frequently found in the Neighbourhood ; but what is moft to be relied on, is the admirable Situation of the Place at the Elbow, where the Coaft runs away South, and where the Province was expofed to the Depredations of Pirates, dreaded in thofe, though unheard of in our Days, on both Sides z. After a long Period of Oblivion, Branchefter or Brancafter again lifts up her Head, and has at this Time thirteen Sail of Veffels, befides two or three fifli- ing Boats. Litcham, in Lynn Channel, is a Creek dependant upon that Port^ find the laft on this Shore we fhall mention, having fix Sail of Vefi"els, and is in a very thriving way. The Corn and Malt Trade, to Holland particularly, for which they lie very conveniently, may be laid to have preferved thefe Ports, long declining, and fome of them almoft expiring. The Land from Winterton Nefs to Hapfburgh is very low, and has the Appearance of a Sea Wall to defend itj though very probably it may be no more than an Appearance. At all Events, it is of very fmall Service, the Sea gain- ing little, if any thing, within this Tradl. But from Hapsft)urgh, North-Weft to Cromer, and thence to Sheiingham, there are fteep and high Cliffs, from, forty to an hundred Feet perpendicular ; againft thefe (as againft Dunwich) the Ocean made its Attacks, and with the fame Succefs ». For, infinuating its. Waters at the Bottom of thefe Cliffs, diffolving the Earth mixed with the Stones, and thereby undermining the Foundation, the Port of Cromer was * Molloy de Jure Maritimo et Navali, p. 322. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 384. '' Thefe, with the Particulars relating to the reft of the Ports, were received from the fam« Perfons, whofe Affiftance has been acknowleged. * Camdeni Britannia, p. 350. Icenia, as before cited, p. 147, 148. Baxter! GlorTarium Anti- quitatum Britannicarum, p. 45. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. i. p. 1 8 j. » Camdeni Britannia, p. 349. Icenia, as be'ore cited, p. I5Z, Gardner's Hiftory of Dunwich^ p. 513. .Additioas to the Eajjliih riaullatiou of Camden. ^ long of GREAT BRITAIN. 283 long fince eaten up, and much of the adjacent Shore demolifhed ''. In a Series of Years however this Evil, inftead of augmenting, is in a great mea- fiire redrefled, not by Induftry or Art, but by the fettled Laws of Nature. For, in fapping this Line of Rocks, the large Stones being too cumberfome for the Waves to remove, they remain in Heaps along the Beach, by which the Force of the ftrongeft Tides is broken in fuch a manner, that they ferve as a Wall, and proted: the Cliffs before which they lie from any farther Depreda- tions, except about Mundefly, and fome other Places, where the Sea ftill fome- times borrows an Acre or more at once c. Proceeding Weftward from Wey- burn Hope, and even after doubling the Point, and turning South, the Shore is low and flat, and the Sea does them no Harm. But about Hunftanton the Cliffs appear again, and the Land fuffers in the Manner before defcribed d. Along tlie whole Coaft, at convenient Diflances, Lighthoufes are eredted for the Benefit of Navigation, and the greater Security of Shipping, more efpeci- ally Colliers, which being deep laden, are in the utmofl Peril, in cafe, while pafTing thefe perillous Flats, the Wind blows from the Sea, of which the very Fences of their inclofed Grounds (made commonly of Timber coming alliore from Wrecks) afford too flrong and frequent Tefhmonies ®. It was very truly obferved by the learned Sir Henry Spelman, that the noble County of Norfolk is, in effecfl, an Ifland, feparated on the South from Suffolk by the Rivers Waveney and the LefTer Oufe, having the German Ocean on the Fall, the North, and in Part alfo to the Wefl, being, for the refl:, divided on that Side from Cambridgefliire by the larger Oufe, and, from Lincolnfhire, by fo much of the River Nene as runs from Wifbech into the Waflies t'. The great Extent of this County is fuch, that we may affirm it equal in Size to the Illand of Majorca, larger than the Duchy of Parma, and not inferior in Bulk to that of Modena. It has been remarked, that, in the Compafs of this Ille, which is of an oval Form, and its Towns excellently well difpofed, there are all the different Sorts of Soil that are to be found in England, perhaps, on this Evidence, we might add in Europe j that of confequence all the Variety of Improvements which have been made elfewhere, have been gradually intro- duced, and moft of them fucceeded here; and that, by a judicious Conjunc- tion of thefe feveral Hufbandries, Norfolk is, at this Day, confidered as one of b This Account is fo reafonable in itfelf, fo confillent with EfFefls in both Suffolk and Norfolk, and fliews fo plain a Remedy to be pointed out by Nature, that there feems rather Attention thaa Art requifite, to apply it fuccefsfully both here and elfewhere. "^ Thefe Circumftances have been confirmed, by private Informations, from Perfous living on tliis Coaft, and attentive to fuch Affairs. 1 Camdeni Britannia, p. 350. kenia, as before cited, p. 147, Sahnon's New Survey of Eng- land, p 191. « Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 3. f See the Account of Norfolk, inferted in Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, which was written by Sir Henry Spelman ; and the Additions to the Englilh Camden, drawn out of his Writ- ings by Bifhop Gibfon, who alfo publiibcd the Icenia amougll Sii" Henry's pofthumous Works. O o :? the 284 The POLITICAL SURVEY the beft cultivated Counties in the Kingdom g. Some fay that there are Ellates, the Income of which, by mere Dint of judicious Induftry, (the true philofophic Extenfion of Man's Dominion as a rational Being) ha^ been more than doubled within Memory, while the Lands in general in this Country have, in their Value, greatly increafed^i ; neither are the Inhabitants Gainersonly by the Management of their Lands j Manufadlures and the Herring Fifliery are alfo profecuted with like Succefs, which have rendered the City of Norwich and the Port of Yarmouth defervedly famous. After maturely weighing thefe Circumftances, one cannot but wonder fo little Care has been taken of this extenfive Coaft, or its Ports left in fo negledled a Condition. It feems alike irreconcileable to the general Maxims of Policy, and to the particular Spirit of Improvement, by which the People of Norfolk are fo much diflinguifhed. It is indeed true, that the Ports of Lynn and Yarmouth, as we have already fhewn, carry on a prodigious Commerce i, and may be therefore prefumed to have in a great meafure abforbed the Bufmefs of thofe little Havens, as Yar- mouth hath evidently engroffed from them the Herring Fifhery ; and it may be concluded from thence, that if the Commodities and Manufactures of Norfolk be but exported, it is all one if this be done from two Ports or twenty. I will, however, freely own, that I am not of this Opinion j on the contrary, I am perfuaded that the Revival and Recovery of thefe Ports, would be in many refpedts as beneficial to Norfolk, as all the great Acquifitions they have been lately making, and this without any Detriment to Yarmouth or Lynn. For, if we contemplate the Situation of this County in general, as it is before laid down, and of thofe two great Ports in particular, as lying at the Mouths of large navigable Rivers, it will evidently appear that they may, and indeed doj draw an immenfe Trade from feveral other Counties, as well as from thofe Parts of this that lie upon thefe Rivers, and therefore can fuffer very little by the Revival of thofe Ports. On the other hand, we know that the Commerce at prefent poflefled by them, though fmall, is neverthelefs in- creafingj which proves that the Confequences of modern Improvements have, in a certain Degree, fhewn the Utility of thefe Ports K But if they were (as whenever this is done they mull be) efFedlually opened and repair- ed, at the Expence of the Public, all the Difl:rid:s about them would be imme- diately cultivated to the utmoft, and their inland Trade and foreign Exports quickly repay, in Excife and Cuftoms, any Sums that their Recovery might coft. Befides, putting the immediate though certain and large Profit of this County « Icenia, as before cited, p. 137. Fuller's Worthies in Norfolk, p. 246. Childrcy's Britannia Baconica, p. 103. ^ Alferted by feveral Authors who have written upon the Norfolk Hufbandry, and confiimed to jne, by private Information, from Perlons in this County. • The Political Survey of Britain, vol. i. p. 13S, 143. •^ By this, I mean the Ufe that may be made of tliem, which certainly would be far greater, if thefe Havens were more coaimodious than they now are. of GREAT BRITAIN. 285 cut of the queftion, the having a few Sea Ports here capable of receiving Ships of Burthen, would be in many Refpe(Ss very convenient, and is in regard to the deep laden Colliers, who cannot avoid paiTingthefeCoaftsj ablblutely ncccflary '. After crolTmgthat large Bay or Firth which we flile the Waflies, called by the Ancients Metaris ^ftuarium, tho' a learned Critic, to bring it nearer the Britiih Words^from which he thinks it derived, would have us read Mentaris ; the main Land of Lincolnfliire, prefents its extended Coaft, in the Form of a Bow, to the German Ocean, upon which it gains in many, and in fome Places lofes m. In general it lies low and flat, or with a ftnall Declivity to the Eaft,- for which an ingenious and probable Account has been given by an intelligent Writer, who is a Native of this County, and has been very attentive and affi- duous in his Obfervations n. In the Opinion of Bifliop Gibfon, Sir William Dugdale (tho' hedid notintendit) has proved, that the Part of this County called Holland, is an Acquifition from the Ocean, made fince the Romans quitted Bri- tain °. But the inquilitive Author before mentioned, having eftabliflied the contrary Opinion, that the Romans were aftualiy Inhabitants here, from the numerous Relicks of that glorious Nation, fuch as Urns, Medals, and other inconteftible Evidences, declares it as his Sentiment, that they recovered and fecured this Country, and that no very long time before they abandoned Bri- tain p. However this may be, moft certainly this Coaft has luffered great Changes in fucceeding Ages, of which fome Inftances may not be improper, or unacceptable to the curious Reader. Wrangle or Wrangel (in the Wapentake of Skirbeck, in Holland), now a Village, between tv\'o and three Miles from the Sea, was an Haven in the Reign of Edward the Third, of Note fufficient to fend one Veflel to that Monarch's Fleet q. Waynfleet, in Candlertioo Wapentake, in Lindfey, was a more confiderable Port, of which we have ftill many Notices >■, and fome Vcftiges are faid to be vifible ; from whence we might be tempted to think it was conftrudled by the Romans, and of the Kind which we have already defcribed. But the Current of frefli Water from the Fens, which palled through, and fcoured their Haven, being diverted to Bof- ton, that became thencetorward the famous Sea Port, to which, while it remained any thing, Waynfleet contniued a Creek j but ftill retains thus much ' Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 3. >" Claudii PtolemsEiGeograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Camden'i Britannia, p. 398. Baxteri GlolIIi- rium Antiquitatum Britannicarum p. 176. He thinks it a Contraftion of ^IeIlt ar ifc, i. e. the Mouth of the River. " Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 3. where he afcribes it to the diurnal Rotation of the Earth. ° Additions to the Englifli Trandation of Camden's Britannia. P Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 2. Philofophical Tranfaftions of the Royal Societyj N°' cclxxix. p. 1 1 56 1 1 59. Ray's Phyfico-Theological Difcourfes, p. 21 "T- ^ Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 204. See the Record fo frequently cited from Haklnyt, ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 204. Madox Firma Burgi, 64. See alfo the LiA of King Edward's Navy. 286 The POLITICAL SURVEY of its former Grandeur, that it is the neatcft and mofl: compacft Town there- abouts s. A plain Indication of what Commerce would etied, if, Induftry, Skill, and public Spirit concurring, this was rellored, and fomc other tolerable Ports could be opened upon this Coafl. TuEDDLKTHORPE, Numby Chappel, and Saltfleet, are yet ftiled Creeks to Bofiion t. This laft, Saltfleet, was, in the fo frequently mentioned Reign of Edward the Third, and much later, a very confidtrable Haven ", though now gone to Decay ; notwithllanding which they ought to be remembered, that fome time or other they may be recovered. Grimefby is the firlf, indeed (after Borton and Spalding) the only Place ot Note upon the Coait, but by no means of that Note it once was j for, lying as it does, at the very Entrance of the Humber, being one of the oldcft Corporations in the Kingdom, and having for- merly a large and good Pore, the Inhabitants held it in Eee Farm at the annual Rent of iifty Pounds, which, in thofe Days, was far from being a contempti- ble Sum w. la the fo much celebrated Reign of Edward the Third, it made a great Figure among the Northern Ports, and furnifhed eleven Ships to that Monarch <. But, lince that Time, the Port, through Want of Care, or, more probably, through Want of Ability in the Inhabitants to dilhurfe the Sums necefliiry to preferve it, is quite choaked up. Piowever, there is ftill a pretty good Road before this Town, which has faved it from finking to the Degree that other Places have done. It lends two LJurgefles to Parliament, and is depen- dant, as Member, upon the Port of Hull > . Barton was anciently an Haven, though now it is remarkable only for the Ferry fixed here over the Hum- ber, which is computed to be about fix Miles broad ?. We have obferved that the Sea has encroached, as well as been incioached upon, in this County, of which one Inftance is SkegnefiTe, now dwindled into a very fmall Village, once a large walled Town, with a good Harbour, till, as my Author very emphatically expiefles it, Walls, Town, Church, and all, were eaten up by the Sea^ ; from whn.h it ftuads at prefent notw thflauding, fom.ewhat more than a Mile. The Reader may think thele are Reproaches, rather than Recom- mendations, of an infular Situation ; but let him remember, thefe Inconyeni- ■ Stukely's Ttlnerarium Curiofum, p. 27. * Speed's Theatre of the Bvitini Empue, fol. 64. Molloy de Jure Maritimo et Navali, p. 32J. Crouch's View of the Biiiilh Cuftoms, p. 383, u LtLiiid's Itineiarv, vol, vii. P. ii, p. 204. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, foJ. 64. Hakluyt's Col!e Lincolnlhire has few Manufadhires, and not many People. As extenfive at leaft as the Provinces of Holland and Zealand, taken together ; it may have about One-fiith of the Inhabitants, tho' in itfelf perhaps, all Circumflances duly coniidered, very capable of fup- * Camdeni Britannia, p. 398. Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 63. Fuller's Wor- thies oF England, p. 144. ' Doftor Fuller, in his Worthies, p. 151, has very well remarked, that Doflor John Whitgift, Archlilhop of Canterbury ; William, Lord Burleigh, Lord High Treafurer ; Edward, Lord Ciintonj High Admiral ; Peregrine, Lord Willoughby of Erelby, who commanded the Englllh Troops ia the Low Countries ; were Contemporaries, and all Natives of Lincolnftiire. <* See Mr. Chriftopher Merret's large Account in the Philofophical Tranfaif^ions of the Ro;a] Socie-y, N<" ccxxiii. p. 343 353. Additions to Camden's Britannia. Stukcley's lunerary Ci'r:o- fum, p. 16, 17, 18. poptinT 288 The POLITICAL SURVEY porting as many as in both thofe Provinces, in a better Manner, and incom- parably more at their Eafe e. In regard to this Thinnefs of People, and Defed in reference to poflible Improvements, both feem wholly, or at lead in a great meafure, to be owing to this Want of Ports upon the Coaft. Lincolnfhire is extremely well watered by fome deep and commodious Rivers ; fo that, from the very middle Parts of the County, all Sorts of bulky Goods may be conveyed down the Witham or the Welland, to Bofton and Spalding, or by the Trent, to the Humber; that is, to the great Port in the Humber, which is Hull f. Bofton and Spalding are in Lincolnfliire, but (the latter more efpecially) in a Corner. Hull is not in the County at all. Thus a very large Proportion of the Trade of Lincoln- fliirc centers elfewhere ; and this Trade being moftly carried on in raw and grofs, though very valuable Commodities, the chief Profit arifing from them falls into the Hands of thofe by whom they are manufadured s. Hence in thofe Parts, which do not lie fo advantageoufly for this kind of Carriage, we find the Inhabitants apply themfelves to breeding Black Cattle, Sheep, and Horfes hj and, in fadl, what are thefe, or the Produce of their Decoys, or FiOi-ponds, but Inventions to ferve other (but ftill domeftic) Markets with Goods eafy of Car- riage, or which can carry themfelves i ? This arifes purely from an Attention tO' immediate Conveniency and prefent Profit, which will be always the Objects of private Perfons, and indeed muft be fo ; it is the Bufinefs of the Public, as the Public is toxeap a large Share of the Benefit which will necelfarily follow from Applications of another kind, to put the proper Means of fucceding in them, as much as polfible, at leall: as much as the Means before-mentioned, in the Po- wer of private Perfons k. As it is, all thefe Improvements are already purfued in a Manner agreeable enough to die Intcrefts of Individuals ; that is, with little Labour beftowed on much Land by few People '. But this certainly is not the public Intereft ; for if, in this Country, there were twice or thrice the Number of People there now are, the Price of Provifions would not be at all ^augmented j the V^alue of Land would be much raifed, becaufe all Sorts of * D'AudifFiet Hiftolre et Geographic Ancienne et Moderne, liv. iii. chap. 3. Sir William Petty's Political Arithmetic, p. 163. Teinpleman's Survey of the Globe, plate vi. f Additions to Camden's Britannia. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum. p. 89, 90, 91. Atlas Itlaritimus et Commercialis, p. 3. £ It will appear hereafter, that what is faid in the Text does not arife from any Partiality to Lincolndure, or Prejudice to any other County, but from a View of fhewing what may be further ,done for improving the Land, and increafing its Inhabitants, .•• Fuller's Worthies of England, p. 149. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Beawes's Merchant's Direftory, p. 581. i Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 16, 17, 18. Additions to the Englifli Tianflation of i^amden's Britannia. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 137. " Georgii Hornii, Hift. Natural, lib. iv. De Wltte Gronden en Maximen van de Repiibliek vaD Holland, j. deel cap 17, 24. Sir William Pctty's Political Anatomy of Ireland, p. 120 — 131, ' The greateft Secret, in true Policy, is to direft the Stimulus of private Intereft to the Accom- clifnment of public Purpofes. Lands of GREAT BRITAIN. 289 Lands would be exceedingly improved ; and the very Excifes, and other Taxe?, which fuch an Increafe of Inhabitants mufl pay (and earn too before thev could pay) would amount to more than the whole Land-rents of this lar'^e Country, as they fland at prefent ; and, in refpecfl to thefc, inftead of being endangered or decreafed, thofe now precarious would be fecured, and the reft very foon doubled L In remoter Ages this County was more considered, and, regard being had to the Number of People in this Part of the Ifland, more fully inhabited m. The Britons either found or made it a very fit Place for their Retreat. I fav this, becaufe I fee nothing that cnn be called certain as to the Origin of the Fens : They might be fuch naturally, which would invite the Britons to retire into thefe Parts, as to an effedlual Shelter : Or the Britons might retire to this as a woody Country, and by cutting down Timber, and impeding the Courfe of feveral great Rivers, procure thofe extenfive Marfhes, which were the only Fortifications that entered into their Syftem f. Which ever was the Fact, it brought the Romans under a Neceflity of fettling a great many FortrelTes in, and taking a great many unufual Precautions for the Security of this Country, and maintaining themfelves in all Parts of it, as from inconteftible Proofs, drawn from their Remains, it is moft unqueftionable they did °. From thefe Views, they not only carried, as their ufual Cuftom was, military Roads through it, but by an inland Navigation alfo, with incredible Pains provided that Corn might by tliis Method be conftantly and commodioufly fupplied to their remoteli; northern Garrifons p. All this however did not hinder their great Attention to the Coafts ; where they conftrufted Ports, had feveral ftrong Places, and took the fame prudent Preparations to refifl: any Invafions from the barbarous Nations abroad, as they had done wife Meafures to be rid of the perpetual Inroads of the unfubdued Britons at home q. When tliey had performed all this, they applied themfelves to recover Lands overfpread by the Ocean in Ages long before, and to their Labour in that Point, we owe thofe Treafures which have been digged up in Places, from whence if they had not J To prove this by Dediiftion would be long and tedious ; but if the Reader wll! reflect: on ■what has been faid in a former Chapter of the Improvements made in the United Provinces, he will difcern that it is not only a Thing in its Nature poffible, but alfo that it is very prafticable. » Camdeni Britannia, p. 403. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 7, 8, 11, 13. Salmon's .New Survey of England, p. 237 — 276. " Cxfar de Bello Gallico, lib. v. Strahonis Geograph. lib. iv. p. 200. Diod. Sicul. Blblioth. Hifb. lib. V. cap. y. p. 209. Pompon. Mela cc Situ Orbis, lib. iii. cr.p. 6. Dio Kicaeus, ex Xi- philini Epitome. o Camdeni Britannia, p. 401, 403, 405. Baxter! GloITariumAntiquitaium Biitannicaruin, p. 65, 66, 92, 149, 239. Salmon's New Survey of England, p. 237. P Camdeni Britannia, p. 404. Stukely's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 7, 8, 11. Sal.T.on's New :Survey of England, p. 259, 268, 275. q Roman Urns, Arms, Coins, Altars, and other Remains, have been difcovered at Whaplode, ■Spalding, Fleet, Bofton, and fo along the Coaft Northward quite to the Humber. i* p expelled 2^0 The POLITICAL SURVEY expelled the Sea, they could not have been fettled r. The Reader will exeul% my carrying him fo far back, not with any View, I dare aflure him, of making a Parade of Learning, but that he might fee what a regular Scheme of Policy muft once have prevailed in thefe Parts, and, at the fame Time, have a clear Notion how, in a Series of Ages, and by a Concurrence of Ibme unfbrefeen, and it may be unavoidable Events, Things came into the Situation in which our immediate Anceftors beheld, and we at prefent behold them. But neither is this all, for by purfuing this Mediod, we avoid both the Pro- lixty and Uncertainty of Argument, and learn concifely and clearly, from the Teftimony of Fads, what a tedious Chain of reafoning would fcarce ever per- fuade us to believe. But to proceed: The Saxons, who never failed to pay a due Regard to the Choice made by the Romans of Cities, Ports, and fortified Polls, took the fame Care the Ro- mans had done, to the utmoft of their Power, of the moft confiderable Places in this Country, which made Part of their Kingdom of Mercia, and were particularly attentive to Lincoln s ; which, in fpite of the Mifchiefs done by the Danes, they left, as a grave Hiftorian tells us, a noble, rich, and populous Town, when the Normans fubverted their Conftitution ; and the Record of Doomfday confirms this, and that it was then a Place of great Trade by Land and Water, having nine hundred Burgeffes, and enjoying extraordinary Prerogatives *. But tho' favoured by many of their Monarchs, the very Genius of the Norman Government was fatal to this City and County v. A Multitude of Houfes were demolifhed to make Room for a Caftle, which, inftead of de- fending, brought Ruin on the City by frequent Sieges -, fo that it gradually be- came the melancholy Monument of its own Splendor j and it feems fcarce cre- dible now, that here were in antient Times more than fifty Parifh Churches, tlio' the fpacious Cathedral yet Handing, the apparent Ruins of fome, and the Fragments of other Churches, which have been long decayed, give fome Evi- dence to the Talew. The fame Calamities, natural Concomitants of military Go- vernment, produced like Scenes in other Parts of the Shire ; and as all its adventitious Grandeur depended abfoiutely on fuch a due Circulation of Pro- ' See Mr. Abraham de la Pryme's Account of Roman Antiquities in Lincolnfhire. Philofophical Tranfiiftions of the Royal Society, vol. xxiii. no. 279. p. 1 156. Stukeley's Itinerarium Cuiioi'um. p. I I. 1" Chron. Saxon, p. 28, 114. Bedas Hift. Ecclef. lib. ii. cap. 16, lib. iv. cap. 12. Aluredi Be- verlacenlis Annal. lib. vi. « Guliel. Malmelbur. Hift. lib. iii. Henr. Huntindon Hift. lib. vii. Camdeni Britannia, p. V Chron. Saxon, p. 227, 238. L.imbard's Hiftorical and Topogr.-iphical Diftionary, p. 181. Leland's Itineraiy, vol. '^'■' Girald. Cambrenf. de Vitis Epifcoporum Lincolnienfinm, cap. iv, xxiii, xxvi. Leland's Itinerary, vol. i. p, 32, 33, 34. See the Article Lincohi, in Collier's Geographical and Hiftorical PiiftionarY. Perty, of GREAT BRITAIN. 291 •pcrty, as fupported Induflry generally and in every Corner, when the Attention necelTary to lliilain this ceafed, or aded but by Starts, that uniform Syftem gave way. The Ports on the Coaft were, thro' Want of Attention, or Power in the Inhabitants to prevent the Milchief, choaked up; the Land Wa- ters overflowed j and our learned and induflrious Antiquary's particular Ac- count of the fenny Part of Lincoln fliire, ihews us what it was in his Days x. In the Reign of Charles the firft tlie Roman Syftem revived, and the illuf- trious Family of Bedford projefted the noble and national Scheme of eitedually draining the Fens ; from whence, if an unnatural Oppofition of mifguided People had not prevented it, this had been rendered a Land of Gofhen ; as it was, from thence all the llibfequent Improvements, fuch as they are, have fprung y. But to compleat thefe, and to render this County as rich and Sourilliing as Nature has deligned it, public Wealth muft be dilburfed, and public Authority employed, to perfect the Draining, fecure the recovered Lands when drained, and by reftoring fome of the decayed Ports, and con- neding them with the principal Market Towns through the whole County, by fubftantial Roads, open the Eyes of the People to thofe advantao-eous Purluits, which, by rewarding their Induftry, would quickly attra<^t Numbers to ih&re m their Felicity z. In order to eftablifli this very important Point, let me farther obferve ■: The greater Number of the moil ancient, and, in their Day, the mod con- fiderable Towns in this County are within ten or twelve Miles of the Sea. This Choice could he only made from the Trade wliich was in tliofe Times carried on, from. Ports that are now loil. Some of thefe Places, low and defpicable as they are, have Veftiges and Ruins, which evince their former Prolperitv, of v/hich leveral bear, in their public Bvildings (particularly in their Churches) more lafting Remains ^. While Cominerce continued, thefe Towns near the Sea iiourimed ; and gradually funk, as it decayed. The better fort of the In- habitants, as being in a Condition to live elfewhere, when this was firft felt retired ; the ruder fbid in the declining Villages, and being intent only on obtaining a Subfiftence, let Cuts, Draijis, Sewers, Sluices, and every thiiig • x The beft Way to form a Judgment of the miferable Change of this Country, is to confult the Defcriptiop. of Thorney Abbey by William of Malmelbury, cited by Camden himfeif, and then compare.it with his own. Defcription of the Fens. y See Sir WiilLim Dugdale's Kiftory of Imbanking. The Hiftory of the Great Level, with Sir Jonas Moore's Map ; And the fevej-al StiUiites for draining the Fens. ^ See a little Poem, intitled, "A true and natural Defcription of the Great Level of the Fens;" in which, tho' the Poetry be very indiffk-ent, the ¥a.0is are dearly rcprefented, and the Improve- Kients fet in a true and jufi: Light. " Camdeni Britannia, p. 401. Fuller's Worthies of England, p. iji. Tanner's Noticia Mo- ^aftica, p. 117 — 134' Stukely's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 3, 11,12, 13, Salmon's New Sur- vey of Engla.nd, p. 237. P p a clfe, 292 The POLITICAL SURVEY eife, fill up, fall down, or moulder away '>. Their Tempers altered with their Condition ; indolent, in the J«idft of a rough Plenty, they ridiculed thofe Improvements for which they had no Relifh ; were the firftwho fhrred in the Civil Wars, anddcftroyed the nobleft and moft coftly Works ever undertaken in the Fens : And when national Madnefs fubfided, they were the laft who were reclaimed, and then all was to begin again c. Much has been fince done, yet there remains much more to do. Grazing and Decoys may retain thofe there are, but they will not attra5t. thefe 310 The POLITICAL SURVEY thefe Pui-pofes in a lefs Degree b. We fee what a Commodity with thefe Ad- vantages has done, and from hence we know what another fuch Commodity would do. But inftead of fearching for Coal Mines in every County, the finding which is the only Event that can leflcn the Value of thole we have. It is our Bufineid, having thefe diftindt Marks, to look out for other Com- modities, that may be beneficial at leaft, if not as beneficial, in every mari- time County ; and having either found or planted them (for this fometimes is in our Power) to turn them, as foon and as far as may be, to die bed and molt extenfive Ui'es c. It may pofliby be thought very difficult, if not impradicable, to execute this Tailc. But in order to difible in fome degree this Objedtion, let it be remembred, that the Britons, Romans, Saxons, Danes, and Normans, were long in PoflefTion of thofe Countries which abound with Coals, Carbones fof- files, as the learned Camden calls them, without finding or ufing them; and therefore we may have many valuable Produdls, as certainly as they had Coals, in our Power, tho' not in our Poflefiion d. Let us reflect, how long a Time after they were difcovered it was before they came to be confidered as iiny thing more than a mere local Conveniency. Let us advert to the numerous, indeed almofl infuperable, Difficulties, when they were known and bore a Price, that were to be overcome in working the Mines to any Profit, and how many popular Prejudices were raifed againft Works of this Nature, as the moll; hazardous and dangerous Undertakings, calculated rather to fink Gentlemens Fortunes than to advance them e. Let us likewife remark, that it is little more than a Century, fince they became in any degree the Bafis of the northern Coaft Trade, the Caufe of opening new Ports, increafing the Number of our Ships, and raifing and maintaining by this alone many more Seamen, than, before that Period, were fupportcd by the whole Trade and Commerce of this Nation *'. One cannot affirm that thefe Refiedtions will lead us to the ^diredl: Difcovery of thefe latent Commodities. But neverthelefs there are many, and thofe too no infignificant Points of Knowlege, to which they will iinqucfiionably bring us, that may have a firong Lifluence upon fuch an Inquiiy. -. •> A diie Confideratlon of this, -will iTicw that we have not over-rated the Pra-ogatives of Britain. '^ In different Parts of this Work, as OccaJions offered, fomcthing to this Piu-pofe has bcea done. <• Britannia, p, 389, 600. The firft Statute which relates to Coals, is 9 Hen. V. A. D. 1421. « Grey's Survey of Newcaflle upon Tyne, §. xix. in which it appears, the fame Infinuatious vere urged againft thefe as againll: Silver IMines. '' As extraordinary as this may appear, yet beyond all Doubt, the AfTertion extending to all the P£>rts Ihipping Coal, is not onlj flriftly true, but alio very much within liounJs. They of G R E AT BRIT AIN. 311 TiiEY will teach us not to judge of Countries by their Superficies, any more than we ought to judge ot' ^len merely by Appearance. The roughed Countries have their Riches, as well as the fairell; tho' perhaps they lie deeper, and ccft fomewhat more Trouble in bringing them to Light; for which they pay amply in the End s. They will inftrudt us not to be difcouraged with the Want ci Succefs in the Beginning, or the Expence with which fucli Attempts mull, from the Nature of tliem, be always attended, and which neverthelefs are certainly to be overcome ''. They will point out to us the Neceffity of the Public's taking them early under their Protedlion, when it once appears they may be very advantageous, without waiting till they become fo, and thereby conligning to Pofterity the Profits we fo much need, and by timely Precautions, may reap ourleives. In fine, they will excite us to be afliduous in our Refearches, awake to what imports us moll, our na- tional Interells, and equally cautious in abetting fmciful and precarious Pro- jects, and in luffering well-laid and prafticable Deligns, which in their Con- fequences may prove beneficial to the Public, to be, as has been often the Cafe, the Bane and Ruin ot private Men i. I will not fay, that this llriftly Ipeaking, is an Act of Jullice; but I dare affirm it is a Point of true Policy,, and that a few Examples of Perfons bountifully rewarded for Services of this fort done, tho' perhaps not intended, would turn highly to the Honour and Emolument of the State ; nay, would prove the moll efi^edlual Inllrument towards accomplilhing the Difcovery of fuch Equivalents to Coals as we have propofed,. The particular Point however which from all this Dedudlion I would chiefly recommend, is a fleady as well as timely Attention to every Attempt of this kind on the Part of the Public ; that is, of fuch as are entrufted witii the Management of public Afiairs k. There is a critical Conjundlure in all fuch Undertakings, when the fmalleft unforefeen Difcouragement finks them, at leall for that Age, as the lighteft additional Afiillance would have let them on float. But, above all, the opening fecure and commodious Har- bours, in well-chofen Situations, and making good Roads to them on every Side, will quicken every Enterprize of this Sort, and bring it forward a Cen- tury or more 1. If it be allced, what will the Public get by this ? I anfwer,. ^ Thcophrafl:. Hift. Plant, lib. ili. cap. 4. 01. Magn. Hif>. Gent. Septent. lib. vi. Kircheri Mun- dus Siibter. lib. ii. Sibbaldi ProJr. Nat. Hift. Scot. P. i. lib. i. cap. 12. Scheuch. Iter. Alpin. 2. ■> Confider the Salt Mines in Poland; the Jumflion of the Ocean and Mediterranean in France; and the numerous defenfive Dikes in the United Provinces. i However unfnccefsful in the firft Attempts, whenever a Scheme of great Utility trikes Effeifr, at any Diftance of Time, the Public, as reapir.g the Benefit, is bound in Equity to reward the Projeftor, or even his Family, who were probably Sufferers by his Attempts. •^ Thefe were the Notions of the Earl of Leiceffer and Loid Burleigh in England; C;irdln;'J Richlieu and M. Colbert in France ; MelTieurs Barnevelt and De Witte in Holland. 1 This Computation is grounded on the Comparifon of the Time ehpHng between the firft Opening of Ports, and their Applications to Parliament, which by an early and adetjuatip Aihflance. might be faved. more When the Inhabitants of any Country have reached the Summit of Improvement, which is far from being our Cafe, they muA naturally decline. <: Produce and Situation are the Pillars on which the (irmeft commercial Structures have ever fatenerefled, and on thefe our Hopes rclt here. ° Additions to the Englidi Tr.inQation of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus et Commer^, -cialis, p. U4. Beawes's Merchaat's Directory, p- 577, S7^> 5^°- 8 which of GREAT BRITAIN. 329 which are Points of infinite Confequence to the Public in general, ami, on thi-. Account, deferve the utmoft Attention, and all the Encouragement that can be beftowcd upon them e. The firft of the South- Weft Counties, of which our prefent Dcfign leads us to take Notice, is that of Somerfet ; which enjoys from the Bounty of Providence, almoft as many and as fignal Advantages as an intelligent ^^mi could wilh f". It is fair, rich, and fpacious, two hundred Miles in Circunii'e- rence, containing, according to the ufual Computations, upwards of a Million of Acres ; almoft equal in Point of Size to the Ifland of Majorca, which was once a Kingdom; as large as all the Proteftant Cantons of Switzerland, exclu- five of Berne; and but very little inferior to Saxony Propers. The Climate every-where exceedingly mild, in the higher Parts remarkably liealthy. The Soil admirably fruitful. The Face of the Country, beautifully diverlihed with Hills and Plains, and except on the Confines of Devonfirire (which neverthelefs may hereafter become fo), in moft Places more or lefs profitable h. Hence arifes a Variety of valuable Produdls, and Scenes of fuch Abundance, as are very rarely to be met with together : For Inftance, great Tracts of Land wonder- fully fertile in fine Corn ; feveral diftinguilhed by their luxuriant Herbage ; fo that, tho' nothing is more common in regard to moft Shires, it is difiicult how- ever to fay as to this, whether it excells in arable or in pafture Lands i. Some, again, are fit for other Purpofes, fuch as the Produdion of Hemp and Woad. Thofe Ridges of Mountains which feem to promife leaft, from their rough and craggy Surfaces, are, notwithftanding, rich in Metals and in Coals k. In thole of Mendip Lead and Copper, as alfo immenfe Stores of Lapis Calami- minaris. There have been Lead Mines likewife found, in the very oppofite Part of the County, near Dulverton ; and it is highly probable, notwithftanding the Numbers known, and vaft Profits already made, there may be as confiderable Mines in Places not yet wrought, or lb much as fufpedted i. We may add to all thefe another natural Prerogative which this County enjoys, of being watered by many fine Rivers, fuch as the Avon, the Parrat, the Thone, &c which conduce alike to its Fertility, Convenience in carrvin 2; on va-'icus « I came to the Knowlege of thefe P.irticulars by comparing fo-.ne Extracts from the Cuftom- Houfe Books in both Kingdoms. t Leland's Itinerar)', vol. ii. fol. 50, 64. Camdeni Britannia, p. i6i. Speed's Theatre of th.: Briti(h Empire, fol. 23. g Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, Part iii. Book 3. p. 137. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 32. Templcman's Survey, Plate i, xi, xiii. h Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 23. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 32 45. Broome's Travels thro' England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 34. ' Additions to the Englidi Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Robert's Merchant's Map of Commerce, p. 289, 290. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 801 — C05. k Camdeni Britannia, p. 169. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 801 — S05. 1 Lambsrd's Hiftorical and Topographical Di Gulielm. Malmefburienfis de Antiq. Gkflon. p. iii. MonaA Anglican, torn. i. p. 197. T.nn- ner's Noiitia ^lonaftica, p. 196. In Burton's Catalogue, which is comn\only called Speed's, the Lands of this Abbey are valued at 498 163. I have fetn fome Extracts from the Rigilkr of this religious Houfe, by which it appears, the Monks, or their Tenants, cultivated V.'ciad, or, as they call it, Wode, and a curious Account of their Method in managing of it. Glaftonbury 334 The POLITICAL SURVEY sGlaftoribury, which is faid to have been the firfl:, and came by Degrees to be one of the richefl Abbies in England '. An Abbot of Glaftonbury ran a Caufeuay of Stone and Gravel eight Miles over the Morafs, extending from Somerton to Bridgwater, which to this Day bears his Name, and is called Oraylock's Fofle l<. Another Abbot, at infinite Expence, ere£ted a fair Stone Church on the high Mountain that overlooks Glailonbury, and is called the Torr; which, tho' nov/ fallen to Ruin, yet the Spire, as high as the Church was long, being (till prelerved, fliews plainly to what End it was built, being an ^emincnt and molt ufeful Sea-mark '. A third Abbot raifed the great Sluice, by \\'hich a large Diftrift is defended from the Waters, with which it would other- wife have been overflowed m. There might be much Wcaknefs, Wicked- nefs, and Superftition among thefe Monks, mere efpecially in later Times, but thefe mighty and magnificent Works, raifed and maintained for public Udlity, are not Marks of Weaknefs, Wickednefs, or Superfhdon, and therefore .deferve to be commended ". For the fame Purpofe of recovering, or at leaft preferving the Lands, there were, from time to time. Royal CommiiTions granted, and, in confequence of thefe, Inquifitions and Prefentments made. In the Reign of King James the firfl: a Scheme was formed for draining the Midland Moors, but it was never executed ; and yet furely there is nothing impolTible or impradlicable in fuch an Undertaking ". On the contrary, an ingenious and judicious Author, whofe Candour and public Spirit are alike .confpicuous in all his Writings, has fliewn, and it is expefted will more fully ihew, that it may be done eafily, certainly, and at fmall Expence p. We come now to what is our proper Bufinefs, but to which we could not have fpoken intelligibly, if we had treated this Subjedl in another manner than • Monafl. Anglican, torn. i. p. i. torn. ii. p. 837. Reyner. Apoft. benedlft.tom. i. p. 2. Tanner's Notitia Monaftica, p. 193. In Burton's Catalogue, the Revenue is computed at 1. 3508 13 4 per Annum. In Dugdale's Catalogue, 1. 3311 74. This was the Sum certified by the Commif- iioners to King Henry VIII. as the true Value. But upon a fubfeqfuent Survey by Richard Pol- lard and Thomas Mpyle, Efqrs; which I have carefully perufed, they were tound to amount to 1. 4085 6 8. ^ Sir William Dugdale's Hillory of Embanking and Draining, p. 3. Dr. Stukeley's Itinera- rium Curiofum, p. 145, 146. 1 Johannis Glaftonieniis Hiftoria de Rebus Gl.tftonienfibus. p. 245. Adami de Domerham Hifforia dc Rebus geftis Glaftonienfibus, p. 598. Monaft. Anglican, torn. i. p. 11. It appears that this Chapel, which was dedicated to St. Michael, v,-as overthrown by an Earthquake, A. D. 1275. and that there was, by a royal Charter, an annual Fair on the Torr, which began five Days before, and ended on the Feaft of St. Michael. ■n Leland's Itinerary, vol. ii. fol. 42. Sir William Dugdale's Hiftory of Emb;uiking and Draining, p. 104. Dr. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 146. ° It appears from the Survey before-mentioned, that the Lands of this great Monaffery at the Time of the Diirolution were well let, thoroughly improved, and their Parks, Woods, Coppices, Meadows, Commons, Fifhponds, &c. in the mod: regular Order. " Leland's Itinerary, vol. ii. fol. 42. Regiftrura de Glafton. Sir William Dugdale's Hiftory .of Imbiinking and Draining, chap. x.k. P Dr. Tucker, in his folid and feniiblc Specimen of the Elements of Com.merce. 4. that of GREAT BRIT A IN. 335 that we have hitherto followed. The Coafl of Somerfetfhire receives tlie JBriflol Channel into an extenfivc Bay, which forms a kind of Semicircle, and, if we confidcr the indented Outline of the Shore, extends twenty Leagues q. At the northern Extremity is the famous Port of Briftol, but between that and Bridgwater there is not, if I remember right, fo much as a Creek. A few iVIiles to the Weft of Bridgwater ftands Watchett, called by the Saxons We- ced or Wechedport, an ancient, and once a confiderable Port, but now in a very indifferent State, notwithftanding feveral A6ls of Parliament for repair- ing and reftoring if. M'inehead, antiently written Munihved, is in a much better Condition ; the Town is neat and well-built ; and tho' the Harbour is not large, yet it is very fafe and convenient, capable of receiving large Ships, and much improved from repeated Affiftance given by the Legillature s. Weft from hence lies Porlock Bay, and the Town of Porlock, which was heretofore a Haven of fome Note; tho' at prefent it is little regarded f. But if ence the Marflies and Fens were well drained, the lefs profitable Grounds inclofed, or odierwife turned to Advantage, and firm fubftantial Roads made to thefe Towns, by which the Communication between all Parts of the County, in all Seafons, was rendered perfectly open and commodious for Carriages of every kind, there is no doubt that they would again revive; and in proportion as the Country near them became thoroughly cultivated, well-peopled, and the Produce of their Mines and Manufactures, for there are fome in this Neieh- bourhood, and might be more, tranfported diredlly to foreign Markets, inftcad of being conveyed, as now they moftly are, Coaft-wife to Briftol, and the Manu failures from fome of their bufieft Towns by Land Carriage, (mark the Benefit of good Roads) to London as well as Exeter, from whence they arc •exported, the Face of Affairs would quickly change, and this Part of Somer- fetftiire wear as florid a Complexion as any other". It is therefore hardly to be conceived that in a County where the Inhabitants poffefs fo many and fo great Biefiings ; know experimentally the prodigious Benefits arifing from Induftry, as well when applied to Improvements as to Manufactures ; Jiave fuch a Senfe of the Importance of Trade ; and from the Weight of Taxes and Poor-Rates, where-ever it withdraws, feel the Lofs of it fo heavily ; many Arguments ftiould be necellary to perfuade them to the very few Undertakings <5 Speeds Theatre of the BritHh Empire, fol. 23. CamJeiii Britannia, p. 161. Childrey's' Britannia Baconica, p. 32. r Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 105, 126, 129. Lambard's Hiftorical and Topographical Diflio- naiy, p. 483. Camdeni Britannia, p. 161. Stat. 6 Anna-, a private Aft. 7 Geo. I. cap. 14. s Sir Robert Cotton's, commonly cited as Prynne's Records, p. 454, 455, 460. Camdeni Britannia, p. 161. Stat. 12 Will. III. cap. 9, 10. 10 Anns cap. 24. 11 Geo. II. cap. 8. t Chron. Saxon, p. 105, 166. Leland's Itinerary, vol. ii. fol. 63. Lambaid's Hiljorjcal and Topographical Diiflionary, p. 276. u This would very iittle, if at all, afTeft the Trade of Briftol ; for this would be- carrying on -a new Trade thro' nev/ Channels, and only fuch a Trade as could not be co.iveniently carried on by the old. which 336 The POLITICAL SURVEY \vhich are requUite to make them ftill happier than tliey are w. But Inflead of multiplying thefe I will conclude with this Remark ; that by the propoll-d Improvement of their Country, their Staple Commodities will be certainly increaied; more Room afforded for the Cultivation of Woad, Hemp, Flax, Rfipe, Teazels, &c. and thefe Commodities being, as far as may be, ufed ar.d wrought up bv their own People ; carried either by their Boats or Wag- gons to their own Havens ; their Commerce muft from thence become the mofl gainful, and, which is of as great Confequencc, the heft fixed, and its Continuance moft effectually fecured. We have already mentioned the happy Situation of Devonfliire, as lying between two Seas, and in that very effential Circiwiiftance unrivalled by any, except Cornwall, which however it far furpaffes in regard to Size, being, next to Yorklhire, the largeft in South Britain », It is in this refpeft, indeed, very remarkable, containing in Extent, as much Land as forms the Dominion ■of the Republic of Genoa on the Continent ; not inferior to all the Balearic Iflands, which wer-e once a Monarchy ; and twice the Size of Algarve, which is ftill fo ^ . In Point of Climate, the Vicinity of the Sea prelerves it from piercing Cold, and yet, in the Winter, the Weather is frequently iharp, and more frequently windy. The Country is very beautifully interfperfed with Hills and Vales ; and the Soil is no lefs various, in fome Places naturally fer- tile, made fo in others by the Labour and Skill of the Hufbandman '. Yet in this, as well as in the former County, are fome Heaths and Moors, the Surface of which being pared off by the Inhabitants, is firft dried, then burnt, and. the AHies, fometimes mJxed with Lime, ploughed into the Earth ; which Method of Cultivation, from its being firft: pradtifed here, has received the Name of Devonftieerfng or Denfhering ■•'. Upon the whole, we mayjuftly ftile it a rich and pleafant Country ; lince, in different Parts, it abounds in all forts of Grain, produces Abundance of Fruit, feeds great Numbers of Cattle and Sheep, has Mines of Lead, Iron, and Silver, but chiefly of Tin, in which formerly it excelled Cornwall, tho' now far its inferior, becaufe, perhaps, the People are fallen into Methods of labouring to more Advantage^ w It is now a proper Seafon for this Undertaking, which would find abundant Employmenc- tor all the fpare Hands; and thefe Improvenients, once made, fAi^u^d fupply inimenfe Materials, and give thereby frefh Spirit to their Manuf.i(ftur|g. •■< Camdeni Britannia, p. 144. Speeds Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 19. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 28, 29. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 247. y See TempJeman's Survey of the Globe, PI. i, vili, ix. i Camdeni Britannia, p. 144. Rifdon's Survey of Devonfliire, vol. i. p. 4. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 19. » Rifdon's Survey of Devonthire, vol. i. part ii. p. 7. Markham's Farewell to Huflibandry, p. 2:;. Gabriel Reeves's ?'ather's Le(7acy to his Son, for the Improvement of barren and waifc L.:inds, p. 18. Mortimer's Art of Hufbandry, book iv. chap. 2. p. 79. But in reality this was f.'c.p Roman M?thod, and is admirably delcribed by X'irgil, Geoi-g. lib. i. ver. 84. & feq. for, of GREAT BRITAIN. 337 for, as we have elfewhere Hiewn, Manufadures thrive here, and upon the Coaft alio they have the Herring and Pilchard Fifherics b. The County of Devon is bounded on the North by the Briftol Channel, being direftly oppofitc to the Coafl of South Wales, and open to the South- Eaft Part of Ireland. The Shore, proceeding from Somerfetfliiire, extends at firll: in a Manner due Weft, for about five Leagues, to Mort Bay ; then, turning South, the Land is very irregularly indented, fo as to fovm Barn- ftaple Bay and Biddeford Sound, and continues that Courfe to Porlidge ; and turning again Weftward, and afterwards advancing North, forms that Bay which is called Porlidge Mouth, at the Extremity of which lies Hartland Point, making in the whole fomething more than twelve Leagues c. The Country on fnis Side is not eftecmed the moft fertile Part of Dcvonfliire, but is exceedingly pleaiant, finely interlperfed with lofty Hills and verdant Vallies, in which are many large and well-peopled Villages. It is thought the Sea in paft Ages, made fome confiderable Encroachments, a Tree, thirty Feet high, having been found under a Hill of Sand which the Inhabitants had undermined, for the fake (as is cuftomary with them) of" manuring their Land, till it fell down and produced this unexpedted Dilcovery d. As the Situ- ation is very favourable for Commerce, fo the Means of maintaining it, as we (hall hereafter fliew, are not wanting; and the numerous Bays and leffer Creeks afford all the Advantages that can be dcfired for Velfels of everv Size, and to whatever Purpofes deftmed. But it muft be confefi^ed, that very few of thele, fpeaking comparatively, are at preient employed as they miglit be, or as they probably will be in lucceeding Times, when our national Councils fhall be fteadily turned to cultivate vigoroully the Arts oi Peace f. The firft Port on this Coaft is Ilfarcombe, a Place of very great Antiquity; being called in the Days of Edward theConfelfor AHrincombe or Ilfndcombe, that is, the Vale of Alfrin. Combe, in the Weft Country, is oppoled to Down or Don, which implies an Eminence ; fo that, by thefe Additions, the Situation of the Place is declared *'. It is a commodious Haven from its natural Advan- tages, but, for its greater Security, a Pier was long ago built, and a Light- houfe erefted, which were of much Service. But thefe, and other Conve- b Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, Part iii. Book iii. p. 137. Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 19. Robert's Merchant's Map of Commerce, p. 289. >: Camdenl Britannia, p. 149, 150. Rifdon's Survey of Devonfliire, vol. i. p. 78 — 131. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 14. ^ Rifdon's Survey of Devonfliire, vol. i. p. ill. where he obferves, the Lands thus covered with SaiKi are called BurroM's, and the Place where the Tree was found Santon, i. e. Sand Town. e Robert's Merchant's Map of Commerce, p. 2S9. Addirfous to the EnglifliTranflation of Cam- den's Ijritannia. Atlas Maritimus et Commeicialis, p. 14. f Camdeni Britannia, p. 151. Rifdon's Survey of Devonfliire, vol. i. p. lil. Speed's The- atre of the Britifli Empire, fol. 20. Vol. I. X X niencies 338 The POLITICAL SURVEY niencies, were made entirely at the Expcnce of the Owner of the Soil ; and indeed moft of thele VVcftern Ports were fupported in this Manner. As for Inftance, that of Watchett, by the noble Houfe of Wyndham ; that of Minehead, by the antient Family of Luttrel j and this, of which we are fpeaking, by the Wreys, or, as it it alfo written, Wray g. Ilfarcombe is a Corporation and a Borough, tho' it does not, or ever did, fend Members to Parliament ; confifts chiefly of one good Street, from the Church to the Sea-fide, upwards of a Mile long, and is a neat, well-built, populous, and thriving Place, which is principally owing to its Pofition, ftanding clofe upon the Sea, fo that Ships can run in there when it would be dangerous to enter the Mouth of the Taw, in order to go up to Biddeford or Barnftaple ; and, for this Rcafon, feveral of the Traders in the lafl-mentioned Town do a great Part of their Port Bufinefs here 1'. In our own Times, fome Dlfputes ariling about the fmall cuflomary Dues paid to the Lord of the A-Ianor, it was found neceflary to apply to the Legiflature for fettling thofe Duties, that were now become requiiite for raaintainin'g and improving this Haven ; which was accordingly done by A&. of Parliament. By this falutary Law they are very prudently, as well as clearly fettled, and made payable to Sir Bourchier Wray, his Heirs and Affigns, being Lords of the Manor of Ilfarcombe : And it is provided, that all the Money raifed by them, or recovered for For- feitures given by the Adl, fliall be laid out in repairing and fupporting the Piers, Quay, Light-houfe, Warp, Warp-houfe Boats, and Harbour ; i'o that it is not only in a very good Condition, the Quay being upwards of eight hundred Feet long, but a fufficient Fund is eflablilhed for its conftant Main- tenance in that Condition i. A little' to the eaftward of this Place lies Combe Martin, or, according to the Cuftom of this Country, as it is fometimes called, Martin's Combe ; fo iiamed from its antient Owners the Martins ; which at prefent has only a Cove for Boats, but is very capable of being improved ; yet is chiefly remarkable for a Lead Mine difcovered in the Reign of Edward the fiift, and out of the Contents of which confiderable Quantities of Silver were extrai5led ^ ; but by degrees, or through ill Management, it was in no very long Time exhaufled. However, in the Reign of Edward the third, it was again wrought, and that to larger Profit than before. In fome fhort Space alter this, thro' the Civil Wars, thefe Works were difcontinued, but revived with flrong Hopes in the Reign of Queen Elizabedi, by Sir iievis Bulmer, a fkiUful Engineer, in great g Latnbardcs Topographical and Hiftorical Diftionary, p. 438." Additions to the Engllfli Tranfiation of Camden's Britannia. Beawes's Merchant's Dheflory, p. i.i- 150, 1^7. h- Collier's Hiftorical and Geopvaphical Dliflio'^rv. Brown Willis's Nc tia Parliamentaria, vol. ii. p. 245. , All the modern DeCcriptions of England. i Stat. 4 Geo. II. cap. 19. ^ Camdeni Britannia, p. 151. Collier's HiHorical and Geographical Diftlonary. Sir John Pettus's Fodince Regales. Credit, of GREAT BRITAIN. 339 Credit with that Princefs and her Minifters '. Mr. Bufliel, who valued him- felf on being Servant and Pupil to the famous Lord Bacon, made fome Propo- fals for recovering it a fourth Time, a little before the Reftoration : And towards the Clofe of the laft Century, it was actually opened with mighty Expeftations ^, but I doubt with little Effeft, becaufe we have heard no- thing of it fince. We have, in a former Chapter, given an Account of Bid- deford and Barnftaple on the Rivers Taw and Tov/ridge "j and are, therefore, next to take Notice of Clovelly, which is a fmall Place, dependant as a Creek upon the laft-mentioned Port. It has a Pier fupported by the antient Family of Cary, to whom the Place belongs, and might be made of far more Con- fequence than it is, with fome Expence o. Hartland, or Hertey Point, is a Promontory running about three Miles into the Sea, and is generally agreed to be what Ptolemy called Plerculis Promontorium p, or, as the Seamen of our Times would ftile it. Cape Hercules. There has been much Difpute how it rtiould come by this Appellation. An antient Writer tells us, that there was a Pharos of admirable Workmanlliip ereded at Corunna, named by the Romans Brigantium, on the Coaft of Gallicia in Spain q, (ad Speculum Bri- tannicE) for the Diredtion of Ships bound thither from Britain : It may be that there might, in very early Ages, be fomething of the fame kind here ; and either dedicated to Hercules as the Patron of Sailors, or honoured with his Name, as looking towards that Place where his Pillars were once fuppofed to ftand. On this Promontory there is a Town called Hertcn, which, very probably, is a Contradlion of Hercules Town, where it is prafticable to make a convenient Port J and a Bill for this Purpofe was brought into the Houfe of Commons, in the Reign of Qaeen Elizabeth, but it does not appear that it palfed :". TJiere were in tliofe Days feveral eminent Patriots of this County, who had Scats in Par- liament, and who took a great deal of Pains to obtain fome public Encourage- ments for this Part of the Shire, which they very juftly thought capable of I Rlfdon's Survey of Devonfhire, vol. I. p. 125 Heton's Account of Mines, and the Advan- tages of them to this Kingdom, p. 2, 3. Fuller's Worthies of England, p. 24^. '" Bulhell's Abridgment of Lord Bacon's PhUofophical Theory in Mineral Profecutions, 4'». 1659. Heton's Account of Mines, p. 2, 3. Additions to the Englilh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. " Political Survey of Great Britain, vol, i. p. 148. ° Rifdon's Survey of Devonlhire, vol. ii. p. 308. Speed's Survey of the Britilli Empire, fol. 20. Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 384. P Claiidii PtolceiT.ei Geographia, lib. ii. cap. 3. Camdeni Britannia, p. 150. Baxteri Glof- farium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 145. 1 Pauli Orolii adverfus Paganos Hiflor. lib. i. p. 17. Les Delices de I'F.fpagne, p. 126. This Pharos, by fome Authors, is laid to have been erefted by Hercules ; and being Ailed in Latin Co- lumna, was, in fucceeding Times, corrupted into Corunna ; and, being yet more corrupted by our Engliili Sailors, is called, at this Day, The Groin. r Sir Simonds Dewes's Journal of the Parliaments during the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, p. 132. Additions to the Englilh Tranllation of Camden's Britannia. X X a great 34<5 The POLITICAL SURVEY great Improvement, as producing excellent Hemp about Combe Martin and the Sea Coaft, the Manufadure of which might have been of great Utility ; rich Mines, for the working of which with lels Expence it was prcpofcd to employ Perfons condemned for capital Offences ; and the Herring and Pil- chard Fiflieries, for which their Ports either were, or could have been, ren- dered extremely convenient s. But it is not evident that their Endeavours met with any great Succefs ; which, however, is no Pveafon why they fliould not be remembred with Honour, or that thefe Bounties, beflowed by Pro- vidence, fliould not be kept ftill in View; in order that they may, at a proper Seafon, be further turned to the Bcnelit of the Inhabitants tlian they have hitherto been. A Matter of infinite Confequence to the Nation, in this and every Countv, fince the finding new Commodities of great Value, is not of fuperior Advantage, to the Diicovery of Means to improve thofe we have t, and therefore in common Prudence, as well as from a^ Principle of Public- ipirit, we fhould be alike afliduous in refpedt to both. The Land declining, when we leave the Coafcs of Devonfliire, to the South -Wefl, the firft Place we meet with on the Cornilli Shore is Bude Ha- ven, in all the old Maps called Beed's Haven ; novv^ not fo much as a Creek in the Cuflom-Houfe Account, and barely fo in the Conception of the common People, who fometimes flicker their Boats there". It was in Ages paft, no doubt, a much more ufelul Place ; but, as in many other Parts of Cornwall the Sea has encroached upon the Land, fo here that Element has been driven out, as appears plainly from the marfhy Grounds, through which the River Bude runs, below Whalefborough ; which Marfli was evidently the old Ha- ven \v. It might not perhaps be found a Thing imprafticable, by cutting a Canal from t!ie Tamar to the Place lafl-mentioned, to bring fuch a Body of Water into this diminiflied River, as would once more efteftually fcour this Haven, which mull: piove of inexprelfiblc Importance to the County, tho' the gaining it rtiould be attended with large Expence x. For this being once done, the little River Attery, and the Brooks which fall into it, upon which Laun- s Sir William Courtney, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Drake, S'r John Hawkins, Serjeant Heal, Mr. Champernoun, Mr. Martin, and ieveral others. t We fhould have a moft convincing, tho', at the fame time, a mofl mortifying Proof of this, if we could entirely rely on what Mr. Bufliell fet forth, in a Remonftiance to the Long Pailiament, after the Dtath oi Oliver, that from the Couqueft to that Time, lefs than fix hundred Ye:irs, ue had cxpoi icd, as appeared by Records, feventy Millions of Tons of Lead, out of which might have been extrafted Silver to the Value of five Pounds per Ton, and had thereby loft three hun- dred and fifty Millions flerling. " Camdeiii Biltannta, p. 133. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 21. Carew's Sur- vey of Cornwall, fol. 118. b. w This very prohably might, in a preceding Age, be confidered as an lmpi-o%'ement ; for there were Times w hen Inning of Land, that is, gaining a Marfh at the Expence of a Port, was. fo efieemed. ^ The Cut propofed, if the Situation will allow it, would not exceeded three Miles, and before ihe Canal was begnr,, all thenectfli-ry Works at the Sea-Side, might be previouily finifhed. 2 eeftoo of G R E A T BRITAIN. 341 cefton is feated, being alio made navigable to the Tamar, which furely is very pollible, that Capital of the County, which even now is a fpacious and populous^ tho' an inland Place, would have a diredl and commodious Corrcfpondcnce both with the North and South Seas, or in other Words with the Briftol and Britirti Channels ; whereas," at prefent, it has no Communication with either. Bofcaftle, corruptly for Botreaux Caftle, is the next Creek, and of no greater Significance than the former y. We may fay the fame of Porti- fick, the Creek that runs up to Carantack, and feveral others ; none of which ferve for any thing more confiderable than Fifhing Boats ; owing all to the fame Caufes, the Sands filling them up, and the Soil choaking the Rills that run into them, fo that they are gradually (tho' not irreparably) diminiihed in Size and Strength z. But as thefe were all once naturally better, fo by the AfTiftance of Art, and with a moderate Charge, there is liirely fcarce any of them that may not be made Harbours again. St. Ives, or rather St. les, fometimes written St Ithes, upon a Bay of the fame Name, is in reality the firil: Port now in any Efteem that we meet with 3 and this not very remarkable, tho' heretofore it was a Place of great Note. It has a few fmall Veflels, and fubfifts chiefly by the Coafl: Trade and Pilchard Fifhery t. Faffing round by the Land's End, we come next to Mount's Bay, on which is feated the Town of Penzance, populous^ and indif- ferently well-built, having fome Ships and a little Share of Trade ; and, as it very eafily may, in Procefs of Time probably will, be rendered, in many refpecls, of much greater Con fequence than it is b. As to Helrton, Hellford, Falmouth, Fowey, Eafi: and Weft Loo, and Saltafli, as they lie all either immediately upon navigable Rivers, or on fome of the Creeks made by them ; they belonged to the former Chapter, in which the moft confider- able have been deicribed c. What we have therefore to fay is no more, than that as Things are circumftanced at this Tundlure, Cornwall is not altogether without Havens on either Side j and when her foreign Commerce and do- meftic Trade fliall increafe, is, in that Circumftance, capable of receiving many Improvements. I ought perhaps in Prudence to flop here, and leave all farther Difcuffions to thofe who have a nearer Connection with, and a better Knowlege of, this County : But I cannot forbear adding, that tho' no 7 Leliind's Itinerary, vol. ill. fol. 95. Camdeni Britannia, p. 141. Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 21. - Lelands Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 96. Camdeni Britannia, p. 141, Carew's Survey of Corn- Tvall, fol. 120. Speed's Theatre of the Britifli Empire, fol. 21. John Norden's Topographical and Hiftorical Defcription of Cornwall, p. 74, 77. a Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 7. Dr. Boardcs's Peregrinations, under the Title of Harens, Camdeni Britannia, p. 140. Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 154. Norden's Topographical and Hiftorical Defcription of Cornwall, p. 36, 37. ^ Lel.md's Itinerary, vol. vil. fol. 119. Camdeni Britannia, p. 137, Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 156, I Poliucai Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 148, 149, Country 342 The POLITICAL SURVEY Country In the World ftands more in need of Water-Caniage than this, fincc the Succefs of their Mines, their Manufadture-, and their Tillage, equally depend upon it, and Land-Carriage, by realon of their rough Roads, is bur- . denfome, or to fpeak. out, oppreflive ; tho' Nature has here done as much or more than almoft any-where elfc, towards facilitating every kind of Com- munication by Water; and, which ought to weigh with the prefcnt Age, tho' no Province of this Ifland would make more ample or more quick Re- turns for what might be laid out, yet fo it is and I can call a Cloud of Witnefles to prove it '\ this has been hitherto overlooked. The Sea in fome Places fuf- fered, not violently but gradually, to wafh away, in others to choak up and render ufelefs, Creek after Creek ; at the fame Time that their Rivers, by their very Polition inviting Improvements, foUicit them in vain; while thele Nations arife and expend fuch immenfe Sums to procure doubtful Advantages, and promote fpecious Views, often precarious, and fometimes at an amazing Diftance. This County, or, with more Propriety, this noble Duchy, which makes the South- Weft Extremity of Britain, deferves, for many weighty Reafons, great Attention. It is, like Spain, a Peninfula, furrounded on all Sides by the Sea, except on the Eaft, where it is bounded by Devonfliire, from which it is divided by the River Tamar, a broad and beautiful Stream, tlie Outfall of w'hich affords various Harbours and Creeks to both Counties ^. In Point of Size, Cornwall, tho' it has been certainly diminiflied, notwithftanding the Silence of Pliftory, either by the fubfiding of the Land, or Encroachments of the Sea, and per- haps by both f, is, as any one may coUedl from the moft accurate Maps, ftiil confiderably larger than our Accounts commonly make it, and, in my Opinion, muft in that relpeft be at leaft equal to the Duchy of Parma, and but little, if at all, inferior to the Ifland of Majorca a. Some have thought the Shape of this County to refemble that of the whole Ifland of Britain, the Eaft and broadeft Side being accounted the Bafe, and the Land's End reprefenting the Northern Extremity of our Ifland ; and if we view it in this Light, the Coaft ^ Stat. 23 Hen. VIII. cap. 8. Lelnnd's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 1 19. et feq. Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 27, 154, 157. Norden's Topographical and Hiflorical Defcription of Cornwall, p. 36, 37, 41, 42, 68, 75. Philofophical Tranfiiftions of the Royal Society, vol. x. n'. cxiii. p. 293. where Dr. Daniel Cox affirms, the Land-carriage of Sea-fand, ufed as Mannre for Land in this County, was then computed at thirty two thoufand Pounds per Annum. ° Lambardes Hiftorical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 368. Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 98, 99. Rifdon's Survey of Devonfhire. ^ The conrtant Tradition in this Country is, that there was formerly a Traifl: of Land called the Lionefs, extending towards the Scilly Iflands, now either funk into, or fw allowed up by the Sea. Camdeni Britannia, p. 136. Carew's Survey of Cornv.-all, fol. 3. Fuller's Worthies, p. 214. The learned and ingenious Mr. Borlafe's two Difcourfes in the Philofophical Tranfaftiors, vol. xlviii. p. 55, 67. See aifo his ancient and prefent State of the Ifles of Scillv p. 94, 95, 96, This Tradition feems to receive fome Countenance from the Padage hereafter cited from Diodo- rus Siculus, who, in all Probibility, drew his Lights from very ancient Writers. 6 Templeman's Survey of the Globe, PI. viii, ix. The Maps of Cornwall, if the Longitude be truly laid do An, make it too fhort by the Scale of Miles. in of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 243 in proportion of its Size, is as much if not more indented ''. It is from hencs as wc may eafily conceive, that it enjoys moft of the Advantages, and is Tub- jeft likewiie to lome of the laconveniencies of an infular Situation; is of greaj Conlequence in regard to the Variety and Value of its Produdls, and very- capable of being rendered of much greater Confequence, if, as we have before fuggefted, it was favoured by the Public with a moderate Degree of Attention, ibme AlFillance, and a few necellary Indulgencies, which it would certainly, fpeedily, and very largely repay. The Climate of Cornwall, as v/e have already obferved, is remark- ably mild, fubjedl however to wet Seafons,^ and often difturbed with hi^h Winds, which nevertheiefs purge the Air, and render it extremely healthy i. The middle Part of the County is high and rough, which is apt to give Tra- vellers a worfe Opinion of the whole than it delerves, for the low Lands to- wards the Sea, or at leaft the greaceft Part of them, are equally pleafant and fertile. As it lies at fo great a Diftance from the Capital, it was late before Improvements were made here ; and, from a Variety of Caufes, thofe Im- provements were at firfl rather languid than vigorous, but iince they have been prolecuted ' Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. v. p. 209. Strabon. Geograph. lib. iii. p. 147, 175, 176. Pomp. Mete de Situ Orbis, lib. iii. cap. 6. To thefe we may add the Authority of Tima;us, as cited by Pliny. It feeais therefore, in fome meafure, certain, that it was the Riches drawn trom the Tin Mines which g-.ve the Romans the firfi: Notice of Britain, and it would have been Itrauge, if, when Mafters of the Ille, this fhould be the lalt Corner vUited, flranger Itill, if not vifited at all. 8 ' doubt 344- The POLITICAL SURVEY doubt whether that celebrated People extended their Conquefts hither, yet of late, the frequent Difcoveries of great Quantities of their Coin, Urns, and other Remains, I'eem to have put this out of all Quelfion ". Thefe Mines have been ever fince wrought, as they ftill are, with great Advantage. Since the Beginning of the prefent Century, a Thing forefeen by John Norden, and jvhich James the firll: might have anticipated, if he had taken that inquifitive and indefatigable Man's Advice f, their Copper Mines are become of an equal Value. Befide thefe they have Lead M'nes rich in Silver; and no contempti- ble Parcels of Gold aie fometimes found amongft their Tin; to which we may add almoft all kinds of Semi-metals ; Variety ol beautiful Stones that refemble Gems ; and an innumerable Diverlity of Siates, Clays, Earths, &c. highly worthy of Note, and which are capable of being applied to many Ufes \\ The Manufa(fliH-es of Leather and of Wool are, within thefe few Years, become very confpicuous and profitable ; to which we may join the Pilchard and other Fifheries; of Cod, Hake, Lyng, Salmon, Herring, &c. which are alio Arti- ticles of Confequence ''. There is no relying entirely even upon the moft iudicious Calculations, otherwife I think I fliould depend upon a Computation that has been made of the Produdts ct Cornwall, as coming in the whole to about half a Million per Annum. Three fifths of this are fuppofed to arife from their Tin and Copper Mines ; another from the refl of their Mines and native Commodities ; and the remaining filth is held to be about the Value of their Manufadures and Fiflieries r. " Camdeni Britannia, p. 13S. where he makes the Uzella of Ptolemy, Loflwithiel ; as he had bef(jrc made theVolubaof the fame Writer Volemoiuh, i. e. Falmouth. Baxter (p. 254) makes Voliba or Voluba, Grampound; and Uxella, fo he writes it (p. 257), Saltafli, the true Name of vhichisEiTe, and, from its Situation near the Sei, Salt-elTe, vulgarly Saltafh. See Dr William's Account of Roman Antiquities found in Cornwall, in the Philofophical Tranfaftions, vol. xli. n". cccclviii. p. 465: — 484. ° At theClofe of his Dcfcription of this Country, addrefled to that Monarch, he fubjoins a Pofl- fcript touching his Majcfly's Minerals in Cornwall, in which he informs him of what has been ■found fince exactly true, and of which he might then have availed himfelf, which is one Inflance out of many of the Folly of poflponing. P Camdeni Britannia, p. 134. Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, Part iii. Book iii. chap. 3. p. 136. Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol 6 — 19. Norden's Topographical and Hillorical Deftription of Cornwall, p. 11 — 18. Woodward's Natural Hiftory of Englilh Foilils, vol. i. p. 5. where he' afferts, that the Tin found in this one County of Cornwall, to fay nothing of tlie Fxtellency of 5t, is fuperior in Quantity to all that is got in the whole AVorld befides. Of thi?, from his con- fummate Knowlege in thefe Matters, as we'l as from his extenfive Correfpondence in relation to them, he may be efteemed to have been a competent Judge. 1 Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 28 — 35. Norden's Topojrraphical and Hiflorical Dcfcrip- tion of Cornwall, p. 22. Childrey's Britannia Bacoiica, p. 16 — 20, 26. Houghton's Collec- tion for the improving Hulbandry and Trade, vol. iii. p. 307, 328. Atlas Marltimus et Com- mercialis, p. 104. r Norden in his Topographical and Hiftorical Dcfcription of Cornwall, p. 14. tells us, the Tin Mines in his Time (James I) produced betv.ten thirty and forty thoufand Pounds per Annum, at Ijetween twenty and thirty Pounds the thoufand. In 1692 they produced feventy thoufand Pounds, at twenty-five Pounds a thouftnd. It would be no c'ijTi'~ult TvTatter both fo increafe tlrc (Quantity anj vaife the Price^ which is now, however, upwards of thirty Pounds a thoufand. As of G R E A T B R I T A I K. 545 As great a Sum as this may appear, I conceive it to be rather below the real Income, and that, in a very few Years, the annual Produce of this very rich and yet very improveable County, might be at leaft doubled, by a few eafy, and none of them very expenfive, Eflablilliments : Such as the crefting an Office of Aflay in each of the Coinage Towns, viz. Lefkard, Lolhvithiel, Truro, Helflon, and Penzance, or in more Places if it fliould be found convenient, where the Worth of their Ores might be fettled with Certainty, and their Values certified by Authority s : By the founding a School, and en- dowing a fingle College, for educating Youdi in Mechanics and Metallurgy, and giving a comfortable Maintenance to a few Perfons capable of teaching thefe Branches of Knowlege, or who may diftinguilli themfelves by new In- ventions in regard to Machines, or for Difcoveries in refpeft to Minerals and Metals t: By putting the Expoctation of Tin under a proper Regulation, or encouraging the manufad;uring of it here, which might be done with vaft Ad- vantage both to the Inhabitants of Cornwall and to the Nation in general": By the allowing Coals to be imported from Wales Duty free, or under a fmall Duty ; which would enable the People in this Country to melt their own Cop- per, and to make innumerable other Improvements from which they are now precluded. If this fliould be objected to as injurious to the Revenue, let it be confidered, whether fome hundred Acres, in proper Parts of the Country, might not be affigned out of the Duchy Lands, for maintaining Wood for this Service only, the Profits of which Woods would defray the Expence of the two former Eftablifliments. It may be objeded, the Soil or the Air of Cornwall is unfriendly to Timber ; to which I reply, it may be Ihewn from Record that it was disforefted by King John w ■ and there is no Fear that Trees will grow, if thofe v/ho arc to be paid their Salaries out of their Produce are appointed Ovcrfeers of thefe Woods. This would un- queftionably encourage and put it in the Power of the People of Cornwall to erect Salt- Works alio, which would be very beneficial to their Fiflieries ^ ; and turn many of their Minerals to vaft Profit, which are now ufelefs, or if any thing be drawn from them, it goes into the Pockets of Foreigners. I * This is fo natural and fo very plain and obvious a Benefit, that we need not wonder it was long fince pointed out, but rather, that It has not yet been carried into Execution. ^ We are told by Mr. Bufhell, tliat he was injoined by his Mafter Lord Bacon, in cafe he fuc- ceeded by the Inilruftlons he gave him, to ereft and endow luch a College ; and this, he fays, he fully intended, and to have placed it in the City of Wells at the Foot of Meadip Hills, thofc great Magazines of Metals, in Somerfetfhire. " This has been often propofed, and, if I am not mifinformed, was fome Years ago maturely confidered, and not rejected on the Merits, but difconcerted by a melancholy Event. w Camdeni Britannia, p. 142. Bifhop Gibfon, in his curfory Annotations on the Englifli Tranflation, informs us, that the Faft is unqueltionabie, and that the Infirument is dated March 22, in the Fifth Year of King John, beginning, Johannes Dei Gratia, Sec. and reciting, Sciatis DOS deforeflaffe totam Cornublam, &c. " Hinted firft by Mr. John Collins in his DIfcourfe on Salt, and would be produftive of many Advantages, and fince alluwed by the ingcaious Dr. Brownrigg tg be very pr.ititicable, even by •the Heat of the Sun. Vol. I, Y y muft 346 The POLITICAL SURVEY muft beg leave to add to thefe what I believe was never before fuggeffeJ, that tho' there is no great Hopes of having, with the utmoft Care, any rich Wines from Cornwall, yet it is far from being improbable that the Juice of their Grapes might be employed in turning their own Copper to Verdigris with very great Profit y. In this, as well as in fome other Cafes, we are apt to under-rate our own Produftions, and having once found them not fo good as we previoufly expeded they fliould be, very prepofteroully conclude B:om thence they cannot be good for any thing 7.. As we pafled from the North Side of Devoniliire to the Coafl of Cornwall, fo now we proceed from thence to the fouthern Coafl of the County of Devon. From the Mouth of Plymouth Plarbour to the Start Point, there are feveral Inlets or Creeks, which with fome Coft and Care might be rendered advan- tageous, that at prefent ferve only for Fifliing Boats. Amongft thefe there are two that were formerly reputed Ports of fome Note. The firfl is that of Armouth, which however was always dangerous on account of Rocks at the Entrance, into which Philip King of Caftile was driven in the Reign of Henry the Seventh a. The other is Salcombe, that is the Salt Vale, now fo choaked up as to be in a manner ufelels '\ Between the Start and Combe's Point there is a deep and fpacious Bay. A little beyond this lies the Harbour of Dartmouth. The Coafl, winding from thence to the North-Eall, flioots out into a Promontory called Berry Point, which makes one Side of Torbay, where there is a good Road, but, except the Creek of Brixham, no Port^. Beyond this lies Tingmouth, a Creek of no great Significance except in the French Hiflories, where it is defcribed as a great Port, and a few Fifliing Barks that were burnt there in 1690 are converted into Frigates and Men of War. This Accident proved an Advantage to the Place which was fpeedily rebuilt by the Money ariiing from a Brief d. In the former Chapter we have fpoken of Exeter, and Ibme of the Creeks dependant upon it, lying on the River Ex. To thefe we muft add Sidmouth, which was anciently a Port, at prefent a Creek, to which belong the mofl '' Plganiol dc h Force Defciiption de la France, toni. iv. p. 60. Dicflionahe Unlverfcile dc Commerce, tom. iv. col. 1 178, •• Dr. John Beak's Nurferies, Orchards, profitable Gardens, and Vineyards encouraged, Lon- don, 1677, 4". p. 21. a Ldand's Itinerary, vcJ. iir. fol. 25, 30. Polyd. Virgil. Anglic. Hill, libv xxvi. Bacon's Works, fol. li. p. 349. This Event happened A. D. 150J. b Leiand's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 30. Ilildon's Survey of Devon, vol. ii. p. 225. Additions to Camden's Britannia. « Leiand's Itinerary vol. iii. fol. 31. The Dutch Fleet rode here, A. D. 1688. d M. dc Qnincey Hiftoire Militaire de Louis XIV, tom. ii. p. 330. Hiftoiie de Miiice Eran- jois, toBi. iL p. 4y ». P. Daaicl Hiftoire de France, tom, x. p. 155. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 347 and the befl; Fifhing Veffels on this Side of Devonfliire e. Seaton is yet le.Cs conliderable, tho' efteemed by Camden and the ablefl of our Antiquaries to be the Moridunum of the Antients f". Baxter indeed is inclined to beflow that Honour upon Topfliam, drawn thereto perhaps by contemplating the prefent State of both Places g. But without all Doubt Seaton was once a very capacious Port, fince the Danes entered it with a very powerful Navy, and landed from thence a numerous Army, which were foon after totally routed by the Saxon Monarch Athelftan ; and no fewer than feven of their Princes, whom our old Hiftorians honour with the Title of Kings, were flain in this Fight, and buried at Axminfter 1'. The Truth leems to be, that the Port is overwhelmed by the Ruins of the old Town, undermined by die Sea. The Inhabitants of the two Villages, Bear and Seaton, ftruggled hard to recover it, at leaft in fome Degree; and when they found this furpafled the Strength of their Purfes, they applied for and obtained a Brief, which however did not bring in a Sum fufficient to enable them to compafs their Defign i. Thefe are Circumftances fome of our moll judicious Writers have preferved, and that ought not to be buried in Oblivion. The Commerce driven hither from the great Ports of Plymouth, Dartmouth, and Exeter, occafions no Doubt the lefs Attention to be paid to Places daat would be thought of great Con- fequence in other Countries; and fome of them might, without Queftion, he rendered fo in this ; the Produce of which opulent Province, if d:icle Ports were all open^ is very able to fupport them K The Land along the South Coafl: is rich, well managed, and fo beautifully planted, that it has obtained, as it well deferves, the Tide of the Garden of Devonfliire. A Country fruitful in itfelf, much improved, and continually im- proving. The Southams, v/hich lie between Torbay and Exmouth, are par- ticularly famous for a moil vinous and llrong-bodied Cyder, that fells upon the Spot for as much as moft foreign Wines l To die various I\ianufa(5tures Qf Wool, and to the mod valuable Manufa<5ture of Flax, asid that of Lace, e Leland's Itinerary, vol. Hi. fol. 42. Speaking of Ottermoiith, BuJely, or Siilternc Haven, ^vl^icll lies a little to the South of this, he fays, that wlihia Icfs than an hundred Years it haiS been well frequented by Ships, but then it was clean gone. f Britannia, p. 149. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 836. 8 Baxter! GlolFarium Antiquitatum Brit.-i,nnicarujn, p. 18,0. He fuppofes Moridunum to cxprefs the Britiili .Appellation, Mur hi dun, i. e. Magna: Alaris Oppidum, which anfwers cxaftly ta Seatoa. i> Chronicon Saxon, p. 112. Leland's Itinerary, vol. ili. fol. 4 ^. RifJons Survey of Devon vol. ii. p- 59- This Battle was fought A. D. 938, upon Brunefdcnvn haid-by. i Leland's Itinerary vol. iii. p. 42. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 59. Rifdon's Survey of Devon, vol.ii. p. 59. " This appears manifcftly from the very laft Inftance, both Seaton and Bear being far more iConfideraWe Places before they loff .their Port. ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 31. where he tells us the South-hams are the fruitfulcfl; Lands in Devonlhire; but Cyder was not kuowa iu his Time, and many like Inaprovcments miy t)C made in ours. Y y 1 for 348 The POLITICAL PURVEY for whicli the Inhabitants of Devon have been long confpicuous, they have lately added that of Tapcftry and Carpets, exquifitely beautiful in their Kind, and tho' hitherto thefe rich Pieces of Furniture are very expenlive, as the beft Manufactures ever mufl: be when introduced, yet they bid fair in due Time for a general Reception, which will enable them to give Bread to a Multitude of People of both Sexes and of all Ages, as well as in various Ways "'. Belides thefe and their Fiflieries, which are confiderable, and many other Ar- ticles, the People of Devonfliire have great Refources in their Mines of Iron, Tin, and Lead which is exceedingly rich in Silver ". Thefe, tho' at prefent little attended to, will probably in the next Age, when thofe whom Com- merce hath enriched come to find a Difficulty in employing their Money, be wrought, and wrought effed:ual!y, as they were heretofore dropped chiefly on the Score of Expence, and becaufe there were many and thofe more certain Means of niaking Wealth turn to an immediate Profit o. But the more Manufactures there are in any County, efpecially if the raw Materials be there, or can poifibly be planted there, as is the Cafe in refpeCt of Wool, Flax, and Tin, in regard to Devonfliire, the better for the Inhabitants, who are always fecure of Employ in fome or other of themj confequently equal Induftry will be continually exerted. Goods will come to Market fo much the cheaper, and, where there are Ports, be lent even to foreign Markets upon fuch Terms as will fecure their Commerce againil all Competitors, and there- by conciliate private Gain with national Intereflj a Point ever to be fought, and here, if any-where, to be obtained. The next County, proceeding ftill Eaftvvard, is that of Dorfetlliire, alike happy in a mild, pleafant, and whollome Air, and not lefs fo in a deep, rich, and fertile Soil, finely diverfified, as being level towards the North under the high Lands which divide it from SomerfetOnre, where there is fine arable Grounds that will yield large Crops of different Kinds of Grain : But on the South, from the Borders of Hampfliire, by the Sea-Coaft, almoft as high as Dorchefter, that is, twenty Miles in Length, and four, or in fome Places five in Breadth, is a heathy Common, which renders this delightful County lefs populous than it otherwife would be. Between thefe, from Eafl to Weft, run a Ridge of Hills, abounding with fweet and fliort Herbage, which nouriflies an infinite Number of Sheep, equally efteemed for their Flefii and Fleece, and which Ridge of rifing Grounds, after our Saxons An^- °' By particulir Information, which the Render may depend upon- "■ The Mines at Bearfenis hold a great Quantity of Silver, and were wrought by Sir John Maynard : Befides thefe there were Mines ;U Ziras Newton, near Exeter, which held tliirty Ounces in a Ton of Lead, and others little inferior to thefe, whidi, when the Myflery of Mine- working comes to be better underflood, will certainly invita Adventurers hither. o When the People in this County fell into Manufaftures, the Tinners going into Cornwall, the Mines there were quickly wrought to more Advantage than ever; and for the fame Rea- fon, whenever the Number of People increafes beyond the Demaadfor MaDUfa6lures, the Mines vill be again opened, and theii" Pioduse inaflufa(^ured bere^ ceilors. of GREAT BRITAIN. 349 ceftors, we ftill call Downs p. It is alfo very plentifully watered, and in all relpefts fo admirably fliited both to Pleafure and Proiit, that we need not wonder it was fo particularly diftinguiflied by the Romans, or to find it fo filled with elegant Towns, fpacious Cimrches, and well-feated Villages by the Weft-Saxons q. It afforded to thofc judicious, attentive, and indefatio-able Nations all the Necelfaries and Conveniencies of Life, and appeared at the fame time of an Extent fufficient, as well as in its Nature capable, of receiving almoft every Species of Cultivation that can with Propriety be ftiled an Im- provement r. In order to make this more perfpicuous, it may not be amifs to obferve that this fair and fruitful Province is confiderably bigger than the Duchy of Mantua in Italy, nearly equal to the Dutch Province of Guelder- land, and exactly of the fame Size with the Illand of Madeira ^ ; and, as we fliall prefently fee, in regard to its Produce, by no means inferior to any, I had like to have faid, and perhaps even then 1 fliould not have been very much miftaken, to all of thefe. Dorsetshire yields many, and thofe too Commodities of great Value. The Quarries in Purbeck and in Portland fupply Stones of ditFerent Qualities," fuited to various Ufes, and in prodigious Quantities, with fome, and that too very rich. and beautiful Marbled The beft Tobacco-pipe Clay is foundwithin two Miles of CorfF Caftle in Purbeck, and likewife in Hungerfton Hill in the Neigh- bourhood of Poole ; Copperas Stones upon the greateft Part of the Coaft, of which Alum was made, under the Direftion of a noble Family, in the earlier Part of the laft Century, tho' now negleded. Wild Madder, of whicli little Notice has been taken, grows freely about Blandford, Somervile, and feveral other Places > which is a plain Indication that this valuable and ufeful Dye' might be raifed with the utmoft Facility here u. Betv/een Bemitler and Bridport the Land produces the beft Hemp in England. Flax alfo thriver. exceedingly well in many Places w. There was formerly great Store, and even P Leland's Itinerary, voL iii. fol. 43. Camdeni Britannia, p. 154. Speed's Theatre of the Britllh Empire, fol. 17. Cokcr's Survey of Dorfctiliire, p, 2 — 5. Stukeley's Itineraiium Cu- rlofum, p. 352 — 168, 181 — 183. q The Romans had in this County many more Stations and Siimmer-Cnmps than thofe of which we have any Notice in the Itinerary or elfe-where, as appears incontefiably from their Remains, The Kindnefs the Saxon Monarchs always preferved for it is no lefs clear, from the Number of. Palaces they had in it, the ftately Minlfers which they built, and the exprefs Directions given by them that their Bodies (honld be interred in thofe Monuments of their Piety. ' Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 29, Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. S;i. Wiliis's Nctitia Parliamentaria, vol.ii. p. 426. ' See TempJeman's Survey of the Globe, PI. i, vi, ix, xix. ' Coker's Survey of Dorfet, p. 39. Houghton's Colleiffions for the laiprovement of Huibandry and Trade, vol. ii. p. 26. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. i 2. " Fuller's "Worthies of England, p. 278. Woodward's Catalogue of Englifli Foiuls. vol. ii, p. 63. Additionb to the Englifh Tranihuion of Camden's Britannia. w FuUei's Worthies of England, p. 27S. Childrey's Britannia Baccilica, f, 25. Willis's No- titia Parliamentaxia, vol. ii. p. 24.6. £ now; 350 The POLITICAL SURVEY now there is no Want of Timber ^. Grain of all Sorts they have In much Abundance y. There may be Counties where they feed more, but few breed better Cattle, and fcarce any, how much larger foever in Extent, ap- proach any thing near it in the Number of Sheep ; and there are fome Paf- tures faid to be fo falubrious, that in them thele ufeful but delicate Creatures are never known to be feized with the Rot z. To this, if we add that moft Kinds of Fruit come here to as full Maturity as in any Part of the Illand, it will juftify all we have faid in Commendation of this County. As this Shire i-; fo very bountifully endowed by Nature, the Benefits by her bellowed have been likewile gratefully improved by Art ; and, being fruitful iii Commodities, it is far from being deficient in Manufailures. Salt was anciently, and tho' now praftifed only near Ppole, might be made with great Eafe and to vafi: Advantage, upon the whole Coall a. Thread and Linen are the Sources of a comfortable Maintenance to the Inhabitants of feveral Vil- lages and little Towns, as Lace alfo was formerly. That is now removed into Devonfliire; and at Blandford, where it once flourifhed, and in the Neighbour- ing Villages, the common People gain their Living chiefly by Button making, which is a thriving Trade 1'. Dorcheftcr was diftinguiflied in the lafl Cen- tury for its fine Broad-Cloth, as it flill is for Its Serges, for the beft kind of Malt, and for excellent Malt Liquor, which renders It known in almofl: all Parts of Europe c. Sturminfter, and the Country about it. Is celebrated for its Stockens, which induflrious, tho' now lefs lucrative Employment, Is like- wife carried on in Wareham and the Villages about it d. Shaftefhury and Sherborne flouriflied bv the Cloth Alanufadoiy, which, as we have faid, was once the main Support of Dorcheflcr, but is now in a great meafure re- moved into Somcrfetfliire e. The Fifliery upon the Coafts is very confiderable, ^ Coker's Survey of Dorfetfliire, p. j, 87, 117. Additions to the Engllfli Tranfiation of Cam- den's Biitannia. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 82;:. y Camdeni Britannia, p. 154. Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 17. Fuller's Wor- thies of England, p. 277. ' Coker's Survey of Dcvonfliirc, p. 4, 5. Speed's Theatre of the Rritifli Empire, fol. 17. Fuller's Worthies of England, p. 277. Stnkeky's Itinerarium Curiufum, p. iGi. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 832, S33. 1 Camdeni Britannia, p. 154. Coker's Survey of Dorfetfliire, p. 10. Fuller's 'Worthies of . England, p. 277. ^ The Linen Manufacture flouriilicd here in Dr. Fuller's Time ; now the Peoplp of Somerftt- /hireand Wilts interfere; but, according to my Information, Lace, amongft other Manufafture:, was formerly made to a large Value at Blandford and near it. c Coker's Survey of Dorfetfhiie, p. 5, 6(). Fuller's Worthies of England, p. 277. • Since the Invention of the Stocken-Frame, it h.-is put, in a great mealare, Knit-Stockcns, ■tthich employed a Multitude of People, out of Ufe. But, if other Means of gaining their Bread can be found for fuch Pcrfons, as in former Times earned it by this, as furely there mfty, then is there no Hurt, but ;i great deal of C'ood done by this ingenious Invention. e See all the modern .Accounts of both Places; tho' my Informations were from Perfons who bad' themfelves examined into their pref&nt State very particularly. 8 of GREAT BRITAIN. 351 of Mackrel more efpecially about Br!dport'^, where they were fomeiimex Caught in fuch Plenty, as is faid to have tempted the Farmers to manure their Land with them ; but that Pradlice is now difcouraged, as being thought to corrupt the Air. We have, in the former Chapter, mentioned feveral Ports in this County, fo that there remain but two which claim our Notice here, each of which however is very extraordinary in its kind. Lyme, Lyme Regis, or King's Lyme, may be accounted a Place of great Antiquity, lince it appears that Salt was boiled out of Sea-water there near a thoufand Years ago g. It appertained then unto, and continued long in the Pofleflion of, the Convent of Sher- borne, but came into the Hands of the Crown about the twelfth Year of the Reign of Edward the Firft, who granted it to his Queen Eleanor, having iibme Years before cnfranchifed and made it a Parliamentary Borough h. Li Edward the Thirds Time the Fee-Farm of this Place was fettled at thirty- two Marks; and Lyme, in his Reign, was fo eminent a Port, that it fur- nifhed the King with four Ships i in his Expedition againfl Calais. In the Reigns of Henry the Fourth and Fifth it had fuffered fo much by the French, that upon an Application to thole Princes fucceflively in Parliament, their Fee-Farm was reduced to five Pounds k ; and, in the Time of Edward the Fourth, their Trade being impaired, and their Port decayed, it was brought down to three Pounds fix Shillings and eight Pence '. In the Reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James the Firft, Provilion w;;s made by the Legiflature for the Repair and Support of their Harbour ™ j and their Char- ters have been confirmed by fubfequent Monarchs. The Town of Lyme ftands on the Declivity of a craggy Hill, which gives it a fair Appearance at a Dirtance, tho' the Inhabitants feel fome In- conveniencies from this Situation. It may certainly be faid to owe the Fi- gure it has made, and iHll makes, to a Harbour, which, as from the De- scription will be cleaily ieen. is fuch art one as is not to be found in this, or perhaps in any other Kingdom, and feems to have been of the Inhabitants ' Fuller's Worthres of" England, p. 277. Additions to the Engli/h Tranflation of Camden's Biitannia. Atlas Maritknus et Commercialls, p. 12. 6 MS. ill Biblioth. Cottoniana, Faustin. A. 2. fol. 23 a. Camdeni Britannia, p. 154. Coker's Survey of Dorfetfhire, p. iq. where Part of King Kinwulf's Charter, A. D. 774. is cited. , '' Rot. Patent. Anno 12 Edw. I. m. 14. where the fame Liberties are granted to the Freemen cf Lyme, that thofe of Melcombe had lately obtained. ' Rot. Patent. Anno 5 Edw. IIL m. 29. n. 76. Hackluyt's Voyages, vol. i. p. 1 19. Mado.x'i yirma Burgi, cap. ii. §.xii. p. 44. '' Rot. Patent. Anno i Hea. IV. p. 8. m..2Q. Ibid. An. i Hen. V. p. 4. m. 12. Cotton's Abridgment of Records, p. 468, 475. 1 Rot. Patent. An. 22 Edw. IV. p. 2. m. 11 . The fame Year the Parliamenl appropriated Cx. thoufand Pounds out of the Supply for the Repair of decayed TownSi » Willis's No litia Parliamemaria, vol. ii. p. 429, 430.^ 52 The POLITICAL SURVEY ^s n O own Contrivance ". It was originally conftrudted, tho' at what Time we know not, by weighing up vaft Rocks out of the Sea with empty Cafks, which being placed in a regular Order to a confiderable Breadth, and carried out a great Way, fome fay more than three hundred Yards, the Interftices being lilled up with Earth, the heavieft Carriages fafely pafs, and large Buildings, amongll others a handfome Cuflom-Houle upon Pillars, with a Corn-Market under it, and Warehoufes, have been eredcd thereon ". This fingular Woik, which anivvers the Intention of a Pier, is called the Cobbe ; and, for the keeping it in conilant Repair, which is done at the Expence of the Town, and proves fometimes very chargeable, there arc annually chofen two Cobbe- Wardensp. The Port it makes is fafe and decpj the Veffels, being defended from all Winds, lie as quiet as in a Bafon. In Leland's Time it was in a o-ood Condition ; but Camden fpeaks of it contemptibly, and as ferving only for Fifhing Barksq. The Trade liowever revived in the Reign of King James, and o-radually increafed, chiefly by the Inhabitants falling into the principal Management of the Newfoundland Fiflieryr. The unfortunate Duke of Monmouth, having with him a Frigate of thirty Guns and two Merchant Ships, landed here in 1685 =. It fuffered by the French War in the Reign of Queen Anne, but is recovered fince, many handfome Stone Houfes being lately built by Merchants reiiding there ' ; and might be rendered of much greater Im- portance than it is, if any new Manufadlure could be introduced in the Country behind it, which is certainly plentiful enough to admit not only of one, but of many Improvements. It is not however unlikely, that if the Inhabitants of this Port recurred to that very Art, from which, according to the befl Authorities, the Town derived its Exiftence, that is, the making of Salt, it might very fpeedily and efteftually anfwer their Purpofe: Since by the help of lliallow Marlhes (into which the Sea- Water being admitted, the reft of the Work would be eafijy performed by the Heat of the Sun, as it is done on tlie oppofite Coaft of France^ ") as good Salt as any might be n Ldand's Itinerary, vol. 111. fol. 4^. Andrew Borde's Perigrinations in the C.italogue of Havens. Hairlfon's Defcription of iJritain, chap. xii. p. 58. Camdeni Britannia, p. 154. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 152. o Coker's Survey of Doifetdiire, p. ii. Willis's Notitia Parliamentaria, vol. ii. 'p. 429. Atlas Maritimns et Commercialis, p. 12. p Keble's Statutes, p. 913. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 259. Cutler's Ceafting Pilot, p. 12. « Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 43. Camdeni Britannia, p. T54. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, chap. xii. p. 58. >■ Coker's Survey of Dorfetfhire, p. il. Willis's Notitia Parliamentari.i, vol. ii. p. 429. ^tlas Maritimuset Commercialis, p. 12. s See the Article of Lyme in Collier's Geographical and Hiflorical Diftlonary. Stukeley's Itine- xarium Curiofum, p-iS2. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 259. ' Willis's Notitia Parliamentaria, vol. ii. p. 429. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 12. and all the jnodern Defcriptions. u Agricola de Re Metallica, lib. xii. Piganiol de la Force Nouvelle Defcription de la France, vol. iv. p. 242. Dii5lioa.aire Univerfelle de Commerce, torn, iv. col. 727, 728, 729. produced i of G R E A T BR ITA I N. 353 produced, for which this Place feems to be exceedingly well fituated, and to have very uncommon Advantages, as their Concern in the Fifheries, would furnifh an immediate Market for all they could poflibly make ^v. Before wc leave this Subie(fl it may not be amifs to mention, that notvvithftanding modern as v.'ell as ancient Writers fpeak of the ConftruClion of this Port as fome- thing veiy fingular and extraordinary, yet none have propofed the Imitation of it ; tho' there cannot be a more pregnant Inftance than this, of the Pof- fibility of making, tho' it may be in a better Mariner, a Port on almoft any Part upon cur Ccaft, where the Conveniency of the Country required, or the opening fuch a Port fliould appear the rnoft probable Means of improving it; one or otlier cf which Circumftances would turn fuch Ports to the Advan- tage of moft of the maritime Counties in this Illand. The Eaflern Ex^remity of the Coafl: of Dorfetftiire is called Peverel Point, between which and another Promontory lying to the North, called Handlafl Point, is included Sandwich Bay. To the Northward of this there is another, which is larger, and efteemed a good Road for Ships, being fafe from all but South and South-Eaft Winds, and the Current fetting out of the Bay fecures them in fome meafure from their Effedts ; this is ftiled Studland Bay, the remotell: Headland of which extends to the Mouth of the Harbour of Pool X, This Tongue of Land, is a long narrow Promontory rifing out of the Iile of Purbeck, the Termination of which is called South Haven Point. Oppolite to this fuch another Promontory, but not quite lb long, fhoots from the Main Land of Dorfetfliire, the very End of which is termed North- Haven Point y. The Entrance between 'thefe is about a Quarter of a Mile broad. Immediately within this lies Brankfey, or Brunkfey Ifland, upon which there was formerly, and indeed there ftill is, a Caftle, but there are no Guns; and to the South and Welt of this four others, two of which are dillinguifiied by proper Names, the one being called Furfey or Burfey, the other Saint Helen's Ifland. On every Side of thefe the Sea forms a vail Body of Water, the Coaft round it, taking in all the Indentures, was formerly computed at tvvent)' Miles, but being actually meafured, has been found fixty-three, by which it is fo well defended from all Winds, and fo much confined, that it is perfedlly fhU and calm, and is thought from thence to derive its Name ; and on a Pen- infula in the North-Eall: Corner of this large Bay ftands the Town of Poole, fo denominated from the Port '. * Brownrigg's Art of making common Salt, Part i. chap, Lv. p. 31. uhere the whole Method IS laid down with the utmoft Preciilon and Perfpicuity. In a Fortniglit's Time, in a dry Sum- mer, they make as much Salt in France as furniihes the whole Confumption of the Kingdom, and fupplies foreign Markets befidts. '• Camdeni Britannia, p. 155. Lambard's Hiflorical and Topographical Didioaary, p. 28*. Speeds Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 17. y Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol- 17, Broome's Travels thro* England, Scot* land, and Wales, p. 259. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 12. 1 Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 53. Harrifon's Defcriptioa of Britaia, chap. xii. p. 58. Drayton's Polyolbioii, Song the fccond. Vol. I, , Za Theri n^^.^ The POLITICAL SURVEY There have been fome Miftakcs iu the Hiftory of this Port, which wer will endeavour to remove. It was known to the Saxons, by the Name of Fromouth ; and one of the oldeft and mod relpedable of our Hiftories acqiiaints us that the Danes twice landed here, A. D. 998 and 10 if, and from hence rivaled the County of Dorfet 1. It was, in all probability, by thefe Invafions that^he Place was in a manner deftroyed, and, from a Town of Note, funk into a Hamlet dependant upon the Manor of Caaford, which is the Reafon that it does not appear in Domefday. This Manor feems, amongft many other large Eftates, to have been granted' by William the Conqueror to Walter de Ewrus, as the old Writers call him, or Walter de Eureux, Earl of Rofmar in Normandy. His Son, Edward of Saluflaury was poffelfcd of it, as appears by the Record of Domefday, at the Time of making that Survey •'. His Son, Walter of Salufbury, was the- Founder of a Priory of Black-Canons at Bradenftoke in the County of Wilts, to which he gave the Church of St. James in Pool c. Upon the Dif- folution of Monafteries the Patronage vefted in the Crown, and there remained till Charles the Firft granted it, in the ninth Year of his Reign, to the Countefs of Anglefea, who conveyed it to Thomas Smithfby, of London, Efq; and, for one hundred Pounds, it was conveyed by him, in trull: for the Inhabi- tants of the Town of Poole. Patrick, the Son of this Walter, was advanced to the Dignity of Earl of Salulbury ; and his Son William, leaving only one Daughter, Ela, fhe married William Longfpe, natural Son to King Henry the Second by the famous Rofamond Clifford ; from which WilHam the In- habitants purchafed the Liberty of pafturing their tame Cattle, and of takino- I'-ewel in his Pleaths and Commons, which they enjoy at this Day. This William had a Son of the fame Name, from whom Henry the Third took, the Earldom of Salulhui-)^. He was the Father of a third William, who, by Matilda Daughter to Walter Baron Clifford, had an only Child, Margaret his Heirefs. This Lady married Henry de Lacy Earl of Lincoln, by whom (lie had an only Daughter Alice, born in 1281. Henry Earl of Lincoln died in 131a, poifeffed, by the Courtely of England, of the Manor of Canford, which then devolved to Thomas Earl of Lancafter, who had eipoufed his » Cliron. Saxon, p. 129, 36, 146, 24. In the old Abbey Chronicles called in Latin Fro- muda and Fromutha. The learned Baxter carries it yet higher, and afTtrts it to be the Bolue- lauuiiim of the Antients. *> Liber Domefday, fol. 80. b. col. i. Rogeri Hoveden Hifl. fol 436. Mat. Paris, p. c Ex Libre riibco in Scaccario, fol. 90. Wilts. Liber Lacokenfif, MS. fol. 18, 19. Efc.de Anno 15 Edw. IIL n. 69. Camdeni Britannia, p. 187. Speed's Theatre rf the Britifti Empire, fol. 13. Fuller's Wor- thies in Hant{hire,?p. i- ' Salmon's New Survey of England, to!, ii. p. 768. where he very jufily obferves, tliat if the Belgse had not been more numerous than the original Natives, they mull foon have been driven out of their Conquefts, and forced to quit the Ill.md. * Camdeni Britannia, p. 160. Wufgravli Belgium Britannicum, cap ix. Stukclcy's ItLnera- rlum Curiofum, p. 1 3 1 . *" Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. ii. p. 767. * Chroniccn Sixonicum, p. 56, 28. "3, 8. 85, 8. which is the true Name. It is remarkable that in this County there were no lefs than forty Hundreds ; whereaf, in Warwickfhire, which is more than half as big, there were but four, or, in including the Liberty of Coventry, at molt but five. As Hundreds were Divihons founded in the }v!umber of Families, fo by comparing, thefe with the Territory tiuit contained thera^ we may judge of the Proportion, comparatively at leaft, in which they were peopled. 6 Gulielm Malmtburienf. Hiftor. lib. iii. Gualterus ^lapxus, apud Camdeni Biitanniam, p. 188. Robert of Gloucelfcr's ChroBiclc, p. 375. whichj o,6o The POLITICAL SURVEY which, if the Inhabitants were not better employed, might turn toAccount^. In the Bowels of the Earth, and even under the Bed of the Sea, Stones which hold the moft profitable Iron Ore are to be obtained ». It was heretofore juftly celebrated for its Timber, which, tho' much decreafed, is yet far from being exhauftcd ; and the Stock of which might be eafily recruited and augmented, not more to the Advantage of Plamplliire in particular, than to the Benefit of the Nation in general k. Fertile in all Kinds of Grain, but more efpe- cially fiimous for fine Wheat, as well as for admirable Hops '. Well fur- nillicd with black Cattle ; abounding in Sheep, and confequently in Wool ; to fay nothing of Bacon and Honey, reputed the bcfi: in the Kingdom; tho' that which is made near Heaths is commonly excepted, to the Wax of which, notwithftanding, there can be no Objcdfion; and yet this certainly is an Article that deferves Notice m. The Size of this County is hkewife worth regarding, fince it contains about a million of Acres, exclufive of the Ille of Wight ; fo that it is larger than the Duchy of Juliers, twice as big as that of Mantua, and containing thrice as much Land as the Ifland of Minorca ", Inferior certainly to none of thefe even in its prefent Prociadlions, and, as we fliall take Occafion to fhew, ftill lefs fo in refpedl to its Capacity of admitting further Improvements. It will however be proper to obferve firft what has been done in this refpedt already. The making Salt, by boiling of Sea-water, was performed to great Profit and Perfection at Lymington and in Portfca Tfiand ; but is faid to have de- clined in fome meafure by the Exportation of the CheHiire Foffile-Salt, brought to, then boiled at, and after all ihipped from Liverpool o. Large Quantities of Malt are made at Andover and Bafingftoke. Silk Stockens and Leather are the Support of the Inhabitants of Ringwood. Narrow Cloths, Druggets, and Shalloons, are wrought in many Places. Broad Cloth at Rumfey. Tiiere are a very confiderable Number of Wheelwrights, and other Mechanics, who h Philofophical Tranfaiftions of the Royal Society, N°. cxlii. p. 1056. communicated by Da- niel Colwall Kfq. i Yarranton's England's Improvement, p. 41. which if the curious Reader confults he will find many things worth)' of Notice. ^ Samuel Hartlib's Legacy on Hufbandry, p. 58. et feq. Evelyn's Silva, or a Difcourfe on Foreft-trees, chap. vii. Propofal for improving and adorning the Ifliind of Great Britain, &c. by parochial Plantations of Timber and other Trees, by Edward Wade Efq; p. 13. ' Thofc in the Parifh of Crundal, have been efteemed as fine as any in this Kingdom, and immenfe Quantities are made in favourable Seafons there, and in other Parts of the County. " Fuller's Worthies in Hantfhire, p. 2. See the Article of Hampfhiie, in Collier's Hiftorical and Geographical Diftionary. Samuel Hartlib's Legacy on Hulbandry, p. 63. » Templcman's Survey of the Globe, PI. i, ix, xiii, xxxv. ° Childrey's tiitaania Baconica, p. 50. Atlas Maritimus et Commeicialls, p. 12. Brown- rigg's Art of making Salt, p. 88, 124, 126, 129, 131, 166, 167, 269. P All the modern Dcfcriptions will juflify what is faid in the Text; and I have Reafon to think, on a ftrift Survey, we might iiaJ many more; what is iaicrted being intended as little more than a Specimen only. 2 work of GREAT BRITAIN. . 56? work in Timber at Stockbridge. However Ship-building was and is the ca- pital Manufadlure of this County, and employs Multitudes at Soutliampton, Lymington, Portlmouth, Buftleton, and Redbridge n. The great Demands, more elpecially in Time of War for Provifions of all Kinds at Portfmoutli, is a conftant Source of Wealth to the induftricus Farmers in Hampfhire r, who likewife vend vaft Quantities of Grain and Hops at the Fairs in, and upon the Edge of the County, befides what are weekly carried to Farnhain Market, formerly one of the mofl confiderable in the Kingdom 5. I F any- where in Britain, one would imagine that in this County a fair Experiment m.ight be tried as to the Poflibility of cultivating Olive Trees ; which, notwithftanding the Doubts of fome and thofe too able Judges, would perhaps be found more pradlicable than is generally apprehended r. But if upon fuch an Experiment, which might be eafily made in fome convenient Place, at a fmall Diflance from the Sea, ^\^th a juft Expofition, and under pro- per Shelter, it fliould neverthelefs fail, then let me have leave to mention the Beech. This Tree grows no-where to a larger Size, and in higher Per- fedlion, than in Hamplhire ", and therefore immenfe Quantities of Mart, in favourable Seafons efpecially, might be colleded, which yields excellent Oil, lit for all Purpofes, and that would be a great Saving to the Nation w. It is very poiTible that the Benefits which would accrue from hence were over- valued, in the Propofils which were offered upon this Subject near forty Years ago ; but becaule it was once exaggerated, or the Propoiition perhaps came out in an unhappy Year, it by no means follows that this Improvement is ab- folutely chimerical, or that no Attempt towards an Improvement of this kind fhould be again made «, q If we may rely on what Capt, Yarranton aflerts, Things may be ftill carried much farther, by eflablifliing a Royal Yard for building fifth and fixth Rate Ships at Chriit-Church, r Whoever confiders the prodigious Quantities of Timber that have been, and may be con- tinually produced in this County ; the Conveniency of bringing it by Water to the very Docks ; the Numbers employed there, and the Provilions requifite for their Sublicence; will have a competent Idea of the Importance of Hamplhire, and of the additional Advantages of v^'hich it is capable. ' Markets frequently vary ; and from being inconfiderable, grow to a vaft Height, and fome- times decline again in the fame Age, without any real or extraordinary Change in the Qnantity oi" CoiTimodities, which Alterations Ipring only from various Accidents chat happen in their Manner of Carriage, « This was the Notion of a Perfon of great Rank, who had a Seat in this County, and fupe- rior Skill in whatever related to Agriculture, Gardening, or Planting. u Woolridge's Syflem of Hulbandry, p. 92. Mortimer's An ot Hulbandry, vol. ii. p. 16. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 169, 170, 171. " Great Quantities ot this Oil are aftually made and ufcd in fevcral Part3 of France and Switzerland, where Oil of Olives is much cheaper than here. And if there, with this Circum- ft..Dce, why not in England ? X The late ingenious Aaron Hill Efq; wrote a Treatife on this Subjed, in which there are many curious and ufeful Obfervations : But Becth-Malt-Oil being the Title of a Bubble in 1710, has .{the' fure that is no juil Reafon) aever been elkemed worthy of the leaA Nyiicc fiucc. Vol. L a a a We. 362 The POLITICAL SURVEY We may fpeak with fomewhat more Confidence as to the raifing Vine- yards, fince Hiimpfhire does not lie above three Degrees to the North of thofe Countries which produce the fineft Wines in France ; and we bring many Fruits that are Natives of warmer Climates than thofe to great Perfedion y. But certainly if we would be content with Wines of another Kind, we might have them as good as any in the Palatinate •'. Befides, we know by Experience, that is, from written Experience, Record and Hiftory, that we have had Wines in England, in different Places, and in large Quantities a. The Reafon of mentioning them fo particularly in this Place is, from the prevailing Opinion, that when the Emperor Probus licenfed the Cultivation of Vineyards, tliey were lirft planted in this County, at a Place which Hill bears the Name of The Vine b. I will venture to fuggeft: what has occurred to me upon this Subie(5t, tho' it fliould make the Reader fmile c. If our Wines in Ilamprtiire may not reach that Perfedtion, which is requifite to pleafe our Palates, or become fafliionable here, they might pofllbly be exported with great Profit to our Plantations, and derive from their Paflage into warmer Cli- mates that Excellence which Cultivation could not give : And this, perhaps, may alfo make them worth fending home again; nor would tlie Accumulation of Freight render them dearer then to the Confumer, than the Duties that are now laid upon Wines of Foreign Growth d. There is yet another Improvement that might with ftill greater Probabi- lity be attempted, and, if properly conducted, I dare affirm may be accom- pliflied alfo in this County ; and that is, the Introduction of that ufeful Tree the White Mulberry, which the ingenious, and' judicious Evelyn, whofe Writings ought to recommend him to the veneration of his Countrymen, afilires us may be readily propagated, and cultiv^cd with equal Facility, and y The Pench , which, in the Time of Galen, was thought too tender for the Air of Italy, grows all over England, and properly cultivated, to great Perfeftion. The Myrtle, brought from Greece, fiourifhes in Cornwall, Devonfhire, and the Ifle of Wight, without Care. The commoa Potatoe came from Mexico, and yet thrives in every Part of the three Kingdoms. » The Duchies of Juliers and Bergues, and indeed the whole Palatinate, lie nearly in the fame Climate with Hampfhire, and the Soil of thefe Countries is not unlike. ' That Wine was made in EfTex before the Conqueft we have the exprefs Teftimony of the Domefday Record. As to Glouccfterfhire, William of Malmfbury informs us, that the Wines, on his own Experience, made there, were fuperior to all other Englifli Wines, and little inferior to the French. The Wines made in the Parks of Windfor Caftlc were of confiderable Value, and Tythes were puid for them to the Abbot of Waltham. Beiides thefe, we could produce Proofs as to a great many other Places. b Canideni Britannia, p. 194. In his Time it was the Seat of Lord Sandes ; it now belongs to the Family of Chute. ^ Whoever tonfiders the great Improvement of Malt Liquor by fhort Voyages ; of Claret car- ried to the Eafl-Indies ; and of Madeira by going either to the Ealf or Wefl-Indies before it is brought hither, will perhaps fee no Caufe to fmile. «i Whatever Lofs the Revenue might fiiffer in the Cuftoms, would, in the fame Proportion, and in the fane Space of Time, be recovered in the Excife, nom the Number of Perfons that muft iiectifarily be employed in the Cultivation of the propofed Vineyards. in of GREAT BRITAIN. 363 in every refpeft with as much Succefs here, as in any other Part of Europe '"• If this, which is fo eafy, were effedually done, and the making of Silk vigoroufly carried on, it would unqueftionably prove the mofl important Ac- quilition this Nation has ever feen ; for in Piedmont the Leaves of every Tree in full Growth are certainly worth twenty Shillings a Year f", many fay three or four times that Sum. There is a Circumftance which, at this Jundlure, renders the Experiment mofl evidently worth making, becaufe it would provide at once for all the Children which the Public maintains in the Foundling Hofpital ; fince fioni the Moment this Defign was brougljt to Perfedtion, it would enable thofe who were fit to be employed therein, to get not orly a competent Liveli- hood for themfelves, but for the reft likewife g. It would alfo undoubtedly af- ford a comfortable Subiiftence, without any hard working, to aged and infirm Perfons of both Sexes, and prove thereby a great Relief to the County h. Many of thofe worthy Perfons who have fo fleadily and honourably employed their Time, and taken fuch laudable Pains in the Management of that ule- ful Charity, are very competent Judges of the Propriety of this Propofal ; and would, I am perfuaded, exert themfelves in carrying fuch an Under- taking (if it appeared fealible) into Execution; and confidering the reafonable Hope we might entertain of the BleiTing of Providence on lo good a Work, under their prudent and difinterefted Condudl, I cannot help flattering mv- felf it would effedlually fucceed i. The Crown, no doubt, would gracioully beftow Land in New Foreft fufficient for the Eflablifliment and imme- diate Support of a Manufadure in its Nature fo truly glorious, and which, at the fame time, would become fo fpeedily and fo highly beneficial to the Nation. The Trial might be quickly made, and at a very fmall Expence, indeed at no Expence at all j for if the Scheme, upon fuch a Trial, fliould e See the Proclamation of King James the Firft, with the Advice of his Council, dated No- vember 1 6th, in the Sixth Year of his Reign. Samuel Hartlib's Legacy of Hu/bandry, p. 60. 70. Evelyn's Silva, or Difcourfe on Foreft Trees, Bookii. chap. i. ^ Jolliua Gee's Trade and Navigation of Great Britain confidered, chap. xxx. His Sardinian Majefty draws two hundred thoufand Pounds per Annum from us in ready Money for Silk; liaving laid fuch Duties on our Commodities as amount to a Prohibition; and large Sums from the Dutch and other Nations. Piedmont is not five times as large as Hampshire. 6 This Circumftance deferves to be particularly regarded ; for, on the one hand, as the taking care of deferted Infants is a very wifeand well inftituted Charity, fo, on the other, the putting them in a 'Way, as foon as polTible, of effeiflually providing for themfelves, is a Piece of Juftice due t»> the People at whofe Expence, a great Part of which arifes from their Labour, thefe unhappy Orphans have hitherto been, and are flill fupported. " The great Advantage of this Manufacture is, that Man, Woman, or Child, may work at if, and be fully inrtrufled in a Day as to what they are to pei-form. * The having the Weight of fuch a Body of public-fpirited refpeflable and judicious Perfons "Ss have the Conduft of this Charity ; the Intereff of the whole County of Southampton, founded on the apparent Advantages arifing from it to themfelves; together with the Countenance and Ttafdnabie AlTilbnce of the Legiflature ; are Circumllances whicli ought to baoiih Defpair. A a a 2 be 364. The POLITICAL SURVEY be found clo2;ged with infupcrabic, tho' unforefeen Difficulties, the White Mul- berry is an excellent Kind of Timber, fit for a vafl Variety of Ufes; and, parti- cularly in Ship-building, is very little inferior to Oak k. In order, however, to prevent Delay, to bring the Matter to the Tefl: at once,, without Rifle or Charge to the Public, another Method may be propofed, which is this. If the Legiflature offered a Bounty of one hundred thoufand Pounds to any Society who fhould eftablifh the Manufadlure, upon finding. Security, when fo eftabliflied, to take and maintain fuch a fettled Number of Children annually, as the Foundling Ciiarity (hould fend, above a fixed Age, for the Space of feven or fourteen Years, the Largenefs of the Sum would probably excite an Experiment; and if the Defign was brought to bear, the Undertakers would have a noble Reward, the Public an excellent, that is, a very cheap Bargain, and the Nation inexprefTible Benefit '. On the whole, this moft plainly appears to be an Improvement of much too great Confequence to be overlooked ; much better fupported, than to be accounted a Commercial Chimera ; and much more eafily tried, than to be rejecTted without Experi- ment by a wife Nation : I will go farther, and add, a Nation which has hardly attempted the Introdudlion of any Improvement with Spirit and Stea- dinefs, in which flie has not fucceeded ; of which, if it was not altogether unneccflary, many Inflances might be without Difficulty produced. But I have been pofitive flie may accomplifla this. — I repeat it — Let thc- judicious Reader confider. In point of Fa6l ; fome Quantities of good Silk, but with much Trouble, have been lately made in the Dominions of the King of Denmark, and alfo in the Province of Scania in Sweden. Before the War, feveral Hundred- weight was raifed annually about Berlin. A much larger Quantity in the Neighbourhood of Drefd«n, and in other Parts of Saxony m. Why not ia« En^^land ? It will be faid, that for Curiofity it has been and may ftill be made. I fay fo too; and will likewife add, has been made ^to as great Pror- fit, and with as little Trouble, as any- where in. Europe ; and for this I can k Evelyn's Silva, or Difcourfe of Foreft Trees, Bookii. chap. iJ. p. 110. Worlidge's Syf- tem of Hufbandry, p. 115. Mortimer's whole Art of Hufbandry, vol. ii.[chap. xi. p. 35. If the Trees were referved to the Crown, and, after thirty-one Years, a Reat impofed of cultivating' in an adjacent Part of the Fored a certain Quantity of Oak-Timber, it would be a vafl Advan- tage to the Public, and make this Forell of much more Ufe, than, in fpite of the Laws for that Purpofc, it ever hitherto has been. 1 Either of thefe Methods would efftiflually determine the Point, in the Space of ten or a dozea Years at fartheft. >n If it has not fucceeded, or fliould not fucceed in thcfe Countries, that Failure arifes from Caufes that do not fubhft here, and coafe^uently proves nothing againll our Succefe. Bring of GREAT BRITAIN, 365 trir.g indubitable Proofs n. Farther ftill ; this Silk made here, not forty Years ago, was as good in Quality as the Piedmontefe ^ ; and we have now two Engines, one at Derby,, the other at Sherborne, where this Silk might be converted into Organzine, or rather Organcine p. This County, tho' but a fifth of Piedmont in point of Size, yet from the Circumflance of its having fo large a Foreft, one fourth of which might well be thus applied; may, in this Light, be confidered as equal at leall to a third Part of what is there appropriated to the Cultivation of Mulberries; and' as we take a third Part of their Silk, fo, from thefe Premifcs, it will appear no improbable Ex- ped:ation, that we may, even in Hampfliire, make as much of that Commo-- dity as cofls us at prefent two hundred thoufand Pounds annually, and m.ore"." But fome will yet alk, could we make Silk as cheap r If the Crown furniihcs the Land in New Foreft, the Trees will colt nothing : If Children, infirm and old People, whom the Public already maintain, can manage it, the La- bour will cofl nothing ^. Is not this working cheap ? We may lofe our fo- reign Trade in Silk, and this will prejudice our Navigation. No fuch thing ;; it will increafe both. We can never hope to make more than will fuffice for the Warp of our Manufaftures j in which, from the Dearnefs chiefly of the Pied-- montefe Organcine, we are at prefent cramped ; and the having this, would, enable us to employ, and confequently induce us to import, immenfe Quan- tities of China and Levant Silk for Woof, which would augment our India,, and revive our Turkey Trade s. But would not this difcourage our Colonics - in raifing Silk ? The very reverfe. They would probably double their En- deavours upoii this; and, being fure. of a Market for all they could make, ^ Philofophical Tranfaftions of the Royal' Society, n^. cxxxiiT. Dr. Beal, a very ingenious worthy Clergyman, the HALES of thofe Times, affirms, that before A. D. 1677, Silkworms had been tried in the County of Huntingdon, and in the North of Chefhire, in England, as alfo jin the County of Cavan in the Province of Uliler, in Ireland, and did perfeftly well: They made ^^lttens, Stockens, and Waiftcoats, but failed thro' Want of Mulberry Trees. o Philofophical Tranfaftions of the Royal Society, n°. ccclxii. Mr. Henry Barhatn -acquaints Sir Hans Sloane, that in the Months of May, June, and July, 17 19, he had made with much Eafe, at Gheliea, as good Silk, in the Judgment of the Dealers in the Commodity, as any from Piedmont. He fays farther, that thaWorms produced from an Ounce of Eggs will make fifteen ■ Pounds of fine Silk, which is twice as much as they make in Languedoc and Provence, and more than they make even in Calabria, where the Worm is ftronger than in any Part of It.aly. He adds. Experience has taught him that we may have. Silkworms twice a Year, and that the Mul^ berry will bear Leaves twice without Prejudice to Trees or Fruit. f This is another Advantage we had not formerly, and, as the Invention was purchafed very, wifely by the Public, we confequently may have many of them. q The King of Sardinia is a wife and good Prince ; yet he compels us to purchafe Silk, and '. takes Cloth from the French; not that he either hates us, or has any Predikiftion for them; but becaufe he loves his own Subjects better than either. In this he is certainly right, and tho' we cannot have his Silk without parting with our Silver, yet,, from his Example, we may learn a. LelTon worth them both' To ftudy our own Intereft, and improve our own Country. ' This is another Advantage ; as from being a Burthen upon, it makes thefe (otherwife hclpicfe Perfons) become a great Benefit to the Public. • The Reader will obferve China Silk is much cheaper than the Piedmont, and the Levant Sillt. is purchafed with our own Commodities and Manufactures. . 4. ^'». 366 The POLITICAL SURVEY do their utmoft, that in Time they might undcrfell the Chinefe and Turks : And as our Silk Manufactures, or radicr Manufaftures made of Silk, arc aheady efteemed, even in Italy, except as to Cheapnefs, the very heft in Europe t, we fliould, in the next Century, become as fully poffefTed of this, as ever we were of the Woollen Manufa<5ture. When the candid and judicious Reader fliall have maturely weighed the Arguments, Fadts, and Authorities, which, in as narrow a Compals as it is poflible, have been laid before him, I perfuade my. elf he wilt join with me in wifliing, tliat, upon fuch Evidence of Pi'obability, fome erFedual Trial may be made whether this great Improvement might not be profecuted with Succefs ; and in the mean time, I proteft againft Inattention and Indolence urging the Negledt, or even the Delay, cf this Trial, as Proofs of my being a falfe Prophet. Reflcd on our Slov/nefs, Errors, and political Miflakes, in regard to our natural Staple, Wool : Remember hov/ lately, and, except in Ireland, with what Difficulty, any Encouragements have been procured for Linen, which might be as much our own ; and then a right Judgment may be formed as to Silk. Thefe are Things of a public Nature, which nothing but true Public-Spirit can fupport. National Advantages, which, by fupplying Employment and Subfiftcnce to many, v>ould augment our Numbers, and render our People, however numerous, happy ". Party or partial Views have no room in fuch Propofals; fmcc it is evident that if ail, or any of thefe Im- provements fhould be introduced, and found to thrive here, they could not long be confined to Hampfliire : But it is of great Confequence that they fliould be begun where they are mod likely to fucceed, and where they would bell: deferve that Encouragem.ent, which it would be equally neccflary and ex- pedient for the Public to give. In the former Chapter we have fpoken of all the Harbours in this County except Portfmouth, which was relerved for this Place. The Romans arc believed to have bellowed a Name on this Harbour, which many of our mofl: learned Andquaries (tho' fome are of another Opinion) take to be the Por- tus Magnus of Ptolemy, or Portus Adurni, or Madurni, of the Notitia w. But then the Town to which the Harbour belonged was not Portfmouth, but Caer Peris, or Port Chefter, {landing on the main Land a little to the Weft of Portfmouth, which was anciently a very remarkable and very ftrong Place, ' If this Faft is difpiued, any intelligent Perfon, who has been in It.ily, will give Teflimony for tne, that to put off their own Goods, the Natives call them Englifh. u It was againli the popular Opinion, and, -which is much mere, againil the Sentiments of fome very able Men, that Silk was, by that incomparable Monarch Henry IV. introduced into France by a kind of Force ; and was, after all, not brought to that State of Perfeftion in which it now ^ands but thro' the indefatigable Attention of Colbert fupported by the iirefiflible Power of Lewis the XIV. So rcgardiefs area People under defpotic Government of iheir own Interefls. " Camdeni Britannia, p. ig^ Lambard's Hiflorical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 26S. E^.\teri Gloflarium Autii-iuitatum Britiinoicaium, p. lyS, un- of GRE AT BR I T A IN. 367 undoubtedly Roman, and in far later Times a Parliamentary Borough. But being gradually left by the Sea has been long, dcclining.having nothing to dif- tinguifli it but an old and flrong Caflle built for its Defence, when it was of greater Confequence than it is now :<. On the Eafl Side of the Harbour lies the Illand of Portfea, about fourteen Miles in Compafs, fertile in Corn, and very pleafant, furrounded at High-water on all Sides by the Sea; but united to the Continent at the northern Extremity by Portbridge, which was formerly defended by a Fortrefs } . At the South-Weil Extremity of the Ifland flands the Town of Portf- mouth, fuppofed to receive its Name from Port, a famous Saxon Chieftain, who, A. D. 501, landed here with his two Sons t-. It made a confiderable Figure in the Time of the Saxons ; and from the Utility of its Situation, was highly favoured by all our Monarchs of the Norman Line ; was incor- porated, and became alfo a' Parliamentary Borough ^. In the Reign ofEd- ward the Third it was in a very flourilhing State; but, A. D. 1338, in the very fame Reign, was burned by the French, when that Monarch, which was afterwards ratified by King Richard the Second, forgave the Inhabitants a Debt, and remitted their Fee-farm for ten Years, within which Space they fo recovered themfelves as to equip a Squadron, which failed into the Mouth of the River Sein, funk two Ships, and brought away a great Booty h. The lingular Excellence of its Port, and the Convenience of fitting out Fleets from thence in the Time of a French War, induced Edward the Fourth to think of fortifying it, as he adually, in fome mealure, did ; which Fortifications were farther carried on by Richard the Third. But King Henry the Seventh w^as^ the firft who fettled a Garrifon therein; which was increafed, and the Place made ftill ftronger, in the Reign of Henry the Eighth, who had a great Dock there, wherein was built the Henry Grace de Dieu, which was the largeft Ship in the Navy of his Time. The fame Monarch, remarkably * Nennil Hiftoria Britonum, apud Gaki Script, vol. i. p. 115. Ldandi Colleftanea, torn. ii. p. 26, 43. Browne Willis's Notltia Parliaraeniaria, vol. i. in his Preface, p. 37. y Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 82. Collins's Difcourfe on Salt and Fifhery, p. 69. How- ever Cuflom may reconcile us to it, Portfea Ifland is a Pleonafm, for, in the Saxon, Portfea llgnifies the Ifland of Port. Baxter derides the Story of Port, and treats the Saxon Hiflory as uncertain and confufed. But when we con!'ider Portland, Portfea, Portfmouth, Portdowne, &c. they plainly confirm what the Saxon Chionicle and all our antie.: Writers affert, that they derived thefe Names from that Saxon Captain, who, landing here wiih his Forces, fettled and polFelTed all thefe Places and the Country adjacent. ^ Chronicon Saxoniciim, p. 17, 23. 209, 33. 218, 40. Robert of Gloucef^er's Chronicle, p. 164, 227. Lainbardes Hiil0ric.1l and Topographical Dclrionary, p. 268, 269. » Triveti Annales, torn. i. p, 279, 280. LelanJi CoUeclanea, vol. ii. p. 43, 292. Cotton's Abridgement of the RecorJs, p. 20. Lamb.trdes Hilforical and Topographical Diiftionary, p. "iti. Willis's Notitia Parliamentaria, vol i. p. 12. in the Preface. ^ See the Roll of King Edward's Fleet in flacklayt, vol. i. p. 119. Walteri Hemingford Chro- nicon, p. 282. Mag. Rot. 2 R. II. Suthamtefliire, m. 2. where it appears he only coalirmed his Grandfather's Remifllon. 8 attentive 368 The POLITICAL SURVEY attentive to the Security of all maritime Places, built what is now called South-Sea Caftle, for the Protedioa of this^. The Improverments made here in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth were much fuperior to all thefe. King Charles the Second, after his Reftoration, diredled great Alterations, eftablifhed new Doclcs and Yards, railed feveral Forts, and fortified them after the modern Manner ; which Works were augmented under his Brother's Reign d. Not- withftanding this, King William diredled likewife frefti Alterations and Addi- tions } and fuccceding Princes, following his Example, have, at a large Ex- pence, extended thefe Fortifications, and taken in a vaft deal of Ground; fo that it is at prefent, as the Importance of the Place deferves, the moft regular Fortrefs in Britain ; and, as it cannot be effedually attacked by Sea, may iuftly be efleemed impregnable e. This Haven is fo well known as to require no particular Defcriptipn ia a Work of this kind : Yet from its Excellency, and that we may jufliify what has been advanced in regard to the Superiority of fome of our Ports, we. will examine it by the Charadlerillics of a perfect Harbour, laid down from.the ableft Writers on naval Affairs ; premifing, that they give thefe only as ideal Marks of what, according to their Conceptions, fliould belong to a Place deferving that Title, and that the comparative Value of thofe that really exift, may be the better underftood f". The firft then is, that it be fo fituated, and of fuch a Figure, as to be fecure from all, or at leall from moft; Winds 3. The Harbour of Portfmouth is fo covered by the Towns of Portf- niouth and Gofport, the Common, the Block-Houfe, Gun-Wharf, Dock- Yard, Plantations, and the high Hill of Portfdown, that the Wind cannot blow from any Point of the Compafs to the Detriment of Ships at Anchor therein. The fecond Rule is, that it be of a proper Depth, fo that Ships of iiny Size may lie fecurely without raking their Bottoms''. This Port is fo deep that a firll: Aate can ride at the loweft Ebb without touching the Ground ; ^nd as flie lies at Anchor, ilie can take in her Sea-Stores and Guns, and be at Sea in Half aji Hour. The third is, that the Bottom be found and fit for Anchorage'. In refped: to this, no Harbour can more exadlly anfwer the Defcription than that of « Inland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 80. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 186. d Camdcni Britannia, p. 193. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Atlas Maritimus ct Commercialis, p. 12. e Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 186, 187. and all the modern Defcriptions of this cele- brated Place, not excepting thofe of the French Writers. f Joan. Bapt. Riccioli Geographice & ^ydrographis, lib. xii. in Folio, Bononiae 1661, Ru- berto Dudleo del ."Ircano del Mare, &c. Firenze, 2 torn. 1630, 1646. Bernardi Varenii Geogra- ^hia generalis, ifi qua .'\ffertiones generales Telluris explicantur, edita et illuftrata ab If. New- tOHj Oftcivo, Cantabrigis 1672. g Hydrographie du P. Fournier, liv. ii. chap. 3. p. 47. •> Finckleri Qnadripartita Manduftio, p. 40. ^ Georgii Horuii DiHenutiones Hlftoricx et i'^liticac, Di/Tert, x. p. 64. Portf- of GREAT BRITAIN. 369 Portfmouth. The next requires that there be no hidden Rocks, Shelves, Sands, or other troublefome Impediments''. From all thefe this Haven is in- tirely exempt. The fifth demands that it fhould be capacious, fo as to hold a large Number of Ships with Eafe and Safety -, and, if poihble, divided into feveral Branches '. This noble Port is fo fpacious, that it can con- veniently contain the whole Royal Navy, or at leaft as great a Part thereof as is ever laid up in ordinary. The main Harbour runs up diredtly two Miles in Length from South to North, and then feparates into two Branches, one running North-North-Weft, and the other North-Eafl, each of them nearly of the fame Extent. The fixth requifite is, that there be no Bars or other Obftrudions to embar- rafs its Entrance, and which may render the Accefs difficult or dangerous m. Portfmouth Harbour is not broader at the Mouth than the Thames at Weft- minfter ; and as the Water flows feven, and ebbs but five Hours, the Flux is greater out than in, fo that the Bottom is always fcouring, and the Water running out at an Angle throws the Bar to t!ie South-Weft, which is called the Spit, and leaves a deep Chanel, clofe under Shore, to South-Sea Caftle. The next demands, that the Sides, or the Mouth, be well pro- tefted by Forts, Blockhoufes, and other Fortifications, more elpecially if it be feated immediately upon the Sea n. There is fcarce any thing in this refpe Hydrographie du P. Fouinier, liv. ii. chap. 3. p. 40. n Georgii Hornii DifTertationes Hiftoricse et Politicce, DifTert. x. p. 6^. <^ Hydrographie du P.Fournier, liv. ii. chap. 3. p. 40. Finckleri Quadrufariita ManuJuflio, p. 40. P Georgii Hornii Diflertatioaes Hiftoricae et Politica;, Differt. x. p. 65, Vol. I. B b b fuch 370 The POLITICAL SURVEY fuch as would demand a long Deftription. The next is, that there be Plen- ty of naval Stores, Ammunition, and Provifions of every Sortq. It may be affirmed, that there is no Place in Europe where thefe arc to be found bet- ter in their refpedtive Kinds, in larger Quantities, or in fnore complete Order ? infomuch, that they aftoniih ordinary Spedlators, and yet are moft admired by thofe by whom they are beft underftood. It is farther required, that in tlie Night Seafon, or in Time of Danger, there may be a Boom or Chain in Readinefs to fecure the Entrance r. This there alfo is at Portfmouth, lying at the Bottom of the Harbour's Mouth, which can be raifed and faflened im- mediately on both Sides, lb as to ftop any naval Force, which muft be ex- pofed to the Artillery of the Town, Block-Houfe, and Gun-Wharf; which laft contains all the Cannon of the Ships in ordinary, and where a moil deflrudive Battery may be raifed at Pleafurc. The lafl is, that there be a confhant and fufficient Garrifon for the Secu- rity of the Port, againft any fudden Attempt to furprize, or any Defcent that may be made in order to reduce it s. This alfo there is at Portfmouth j which is now a Town regularly fortified in the modern Stile ; and the Corrt- mon, Dock- Yard, and Gun-Wliarf, are likewife fo efFedtually fecured, that it would neceflarily require a very numerous Army to inveft and befiege it; nor could it then be taken without affording Time fufficient for its Relief. But how fuch a Defcent fliould be made, at leaft in our Days, is not eafy to conceive t. Thus it appears that Portfmouth. derives from Nature all the Prerogatives the moft fertile Wits, and moll: intelligent Judges could devife or defire ; and that thele have been feconded by Art, without Confideration of Expence, which, in national Improvements, is little to be regarded. Add to all this, the ilriking Excellence of its Situation, which is fuch, as if Provi- dence had exprefsly determined it for that Ufe to which we fee it applied, the bridl'ng the Power of France, and, if I may fo fpeak, the peculiar Refi- dence of N E P T U N E. A' FURTHER, indeed a very capital Convenience to the Harbour of Portf- mouth, is the fafe and fpacious Road of Spithead, which lies between the Continent of Hampfhire and the Ifle of Wight, and is about twenty Miles in Length, and, in fome Places, no lefs than three in Breadth ; fo that it is capable of holding a thouland Ships at a Time, without the leafk Diffi- 1 Hydrographie du P. Fournier, llv. ii. chap. 3. p. 40. Finckleri Qiradrupartlta Manudu(fli(?, p. 40. '■ Georgii Hornii Dinertationes Hifloricae et Politicce, DiiTert. x. p. 65. s Hydrographie du P. Fournier, liv. ii. chap. 5. p. 40. Georgii Hornii Diirertationcs Hiftoricse et Politicae, Dilfert. x. p. 65. Finckleri QuadrupartitaManuduftio, p. 40. ' Camden's Britannia in Englifh, the ] aft Edition, by Biflaop Giblbn, vol. i. col. 145. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 1 1 . Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. ji. Stukeley's ItJnerarium Cu- riofum, p. 186. All the modera Defcriptlons of Portfmouth. culty of GREAT BRITAIN. 371 culty or Danger ". It is defended from all Winds blowing from the Weft to the Soutli-Eaft, by the high Lands of the Ifle of Wight ; and from the Winds of the oppofite Quarter by the main Land of Hampfliire, the Town of Portfmouth fronting the middle of the Road. The very Sands in its Neighbourhood contribute to its Safety j as, for Inftance, the Spit, lying to the North, breaks the Sea on that Side, as the Horfes Bank does to the Eaft, and No-Man's-Land and the Mother Bank on the South. As to the Bot- tom, it is perfectly found and good, and the Flux and Reflux of the Sea repairs all the Injuries done by the Anchors w. The Reader will be pleafed to remark, that the Limits of this Road are exadlly diftinguifhed by Buoys properly placed ; fo that here, as well as in refpedt to the King's Yard and the Harbour, the fingular Security and admirable Congruity of every thing has induced the Sailors, a fenllble tho' not a ceremonious Sort of People, to exprefs the Eafe and Safety they enjoy, by calling it the King's Bed-chamber x. The Reader, I fay, will remark, that all this arifes from the Additions to, and Improvements made by Art, on the Advantages bountifully beftowed by Nature ; and this in a long Series of Years, after much Obfervation, and with a large Expence. This ought to difpofe a wife Nation not to negledl natural Benefits in other Places; not to be difcouraged by temporary Difappointmentsj and, above all, not to grudge the ifluing, for a fliort Space, great Sums to a fmall Number of People who labour for the Benefit of the whole. Public Spi- rit and extenfive Views, are the Wings, upon which free States foar, to bound- lefs, and till thefe extinguilli, endlefs Empire. The County of Suflex next demands our Notice. It is thought to have been but thinly peopled in antient Times, a great Part of it being taken up by that prodigious Foreft, called, in the Britilli Language, Coid Andred, and, in the Saxon Tongue, Andredes-wald y. The Inhabitants on the Sea-Coaft feem to have fubmltted early to the Romans, who ftiled them the Regni, which, a very learned and judicious Antiquarian thinks, ought rather to be u Cutler's Coaffing Pilot, p. ii. Stukdey's Itlnerarjum Curlofum p, 187. See alfo Plate 8z in the fame Book. Gentleman's Magazine, vol, xviii. p. 497, 498. to which I have been more obliged than to all other Accounts whatever. ^ The Road of St. Helen's is very good, and our Fleets in Time of War frequently ride there; but when the Wind blows from certain Points it is not altogether fecure, and then they repair to Spithead. X It cannot be expefted, indeed it is not in Nature, that anyone Place (hould enjoy all Advan- tages without being fubjeft to fome Inconvenience; and yet it was long ago objeifled to Spithead, and that Objection has been of late revivcJ, that a Ifrong Wefl: Wind will not fuffer a Squa- dron to fail from thence. It feems to be no great Difcovery that Ships cannot fail againll the Wind : The only Remedy therefore is to improre and fortify other Parts, where Squadrons may ride unexpofed to this Difficulty. y Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 14, 21. 15, 2. 57, i. Hen. Hunting. Hill. lib. v. Baxter! Glof- ferium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. ij. B b b 2 wrote 372 The POLITICAL SURVEY wrote Renci ^ The prefent Appellation is plainly derived from its Situation^ and its Conquerors the Saxons. Under all its different Maftcrs this Country altered its Appearance lefs than any, continuing to be but in a manner half inhabited till the Norman Conqueft, when, in the Partition of Manors, a certain Quantity of this Weald, or wild Country, was added to each, not for the Habitation of Men, but for the Feeding of Swine and other Purpofes a. This feems to have been copied from the Saxon Divifion, that was, into fix Rapes, which were fo many Stripes of Land, from North to South, parallel . to each other, from the Edge of Hampfliire to the Borders of Kent, in each of which there was a Forelt, a Caftle, a great Town, and a River ^. Thefe Remarks fufficiently dcmonflrate that our Anceftors acfled with great Pru- dence in the Diftribution of Shires, and the Dillri(5ts into whicli they were fubdividcd. They liisewife fliew, that as the Fitnefs of Things was their Rule, fo the Conveniency of it being apparent, it came from thence to be fol- lowed in all fucceeding Changes c. It alfo proves, that the Soil has a peculiar Tendency to produce Wood, which has flouriflied here even from the remoteft Times, and for which it is ftill better adapted than for any other Produdtion. It feems reafonable therefore to argue from hence, that where Land is natu- rally apt to caftWood, the Attempt is vain and unprofitable to force it either into Arable or Paflure ; more efpecially confidcring the many Ufes we have for Timber, the growing Scarcity of it, and the vaft Sums that are annuallv carried into foreign Countries in order to purchafe it, the Price rifing, and we in fbme meafure obliged to come up to the Price, be that what it will d. The Sea-Coafts of Sufi'ex are flat, the Climate fomewhat heavy, and the Soil fertile. The Country, elevating itfelf from the Sea, rifes into what are called the Downs, which are rich Chalk-Hills, upon which the Air is admi- rably pure and wholfome, and thefe are continually covered with fine fvveet Grafs. The Profpedl from thence is wonderfully pleafant, over wide fpread Meadows, arable Ground, and lovely Groves, every-v.'here intermingled with living Streams. Farther to the North lie thofe numerous Woods, the fur\'iving Remains of that vail Foreft with which a much greater Part of Suf- >■ Camdeni Britannia, p. 219. Baxter! GlofTarlum AntLquitatum Britannicarum, p. 202. he deriires it from the Britifh Word Rheng, which anfwers to our Rank, and, as he thinks, alludes to their being fettled in a Line along the Sea Shore. Sahnon, in his New Survey of England, p. 52, approves this Etymology. » Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 211. The Enrichment of the Weald of Kent, by G. Markham, London 1683, 4°. Additions to Camden's Britannia. •> Camdeni Britannia, p. 2.19. Speed's Theatre of the Biitiih Empire, fol. 9. Fuller's Wor- thies in Sudex, p. 97. c See the Difcourfe of James Ley Efq; afterwards Earl of Marlborough, publiflied by Mr., Hearne. d Drayton's Polyolblou, Song the fevcQth.. Evelyn's Silra, chap.. viL Smith on Hufbandrj SBd Trade, p. 9. f« of GREAT BRITAIN. • 373' fex was once overfpread e. The Commodities which are here to be found in ' the Bowels of the Earth, are. Talc, Chalk, excellent Free-ftone, Iron Ore of different Sorts, and in great Exuberance f". They have alfo, upon the Surface, plentiful Harvefts of every kind of Grain j but more elpccially prodigious Crops of Oats ; infomuch, tliat a Century ago, there were annually fold near thirty thouland Quarters of Wheat, Barley, Malt, and Oats, at Chichefler Market g. Add to thefe Hops, which grow to great Perfedion ; and we might alfo add Hemp, for which no Soil is fitter. Ox the Downs feed innumerable Flocks of Sheep, in refpecfb of which it is liard to fay, whether their Fleece or their Flefli be mod delicate. Horfes and Black-Cattle they have in Abundance, and employ them both in drawing Car- riages of feveral Sorts, particularly thofe which are ufed in conveying Timber, and which are faid to require fometimes a Team of twenty Oxen or more ". Their Rivers abound with moft admirable Filli ; and, in this refpedt, the Sea upon their Coafls is not lefs famous, more efpecially for many Kinds of Shell- Fifh, in the taking of which Numbers are employed, and from whofe Labours no defplcable Profits ariie. Upon the whole, we may, without exceeding Truth, afiirm, that this is a rich, pleafant, and fruitful County ; w"hich, not- withftanding, is capable of very great Improvements, and thofe too fuch, as would render it far fuperior to what it now is, and be at the fame Time highly ufeful to the whole Nation i. As to the Manufadlures of SuiTex they depend principally upon its Timber, which is excellent in its Nature, has been here formerly in immenfe Quanti- ties, and, tho' now confiderably diminillied, is flill plentiful, in comparifon of fome other Parts of the Kingdom ^. Small Veffels of different Sizes are built at Newhaven ; and, in proportion as that Port improves, this Trade will increaie. At New Shoreham Veffels of a larger Size, fome for the Ufe of the Navy, but moft for the Merchants Service, are conftruded. The Demand of late for thefe is fo great, and the People here ib induftrious, that it is aflerted, there is fometimes not fo much as a fingle Perfon who receives Alms, a Circum- - fiance worthy not only of Praife, but Attention and Imitation. Tliis lliews e Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 57. Salmon's Nev/ Survey of England, %-ol. i. p. 51 91. Stukeley's Iiiiierarium Curiofiim, p. 195. *■ Fuller's Worthies in Suflex, p. 97. Additions to Camden's Britannia. Beawes's Mer- chant's Direftory, p. 583. g Fuller's Worthies in Suffex, p. 97. Broome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. HI. p. 274. I" Speed's Theatre of the Britlfli Empire, fol. 9. Additions to the Engliih Tranilation of Camden's Britannia. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. i. p. 51 — 62 i Camdeni Britannia^ p. 219 — 22. Fuller's Worthies in Suflex, p. 98. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 59. ^ Samuel Hardib's Legacy, p. 46. Stukeley's Iiinerarium Curlofum, p. ^95. All- the modern Pefcriptions of SiilTex. "V\'hat 374 The POLITICAL SURVEY what might be farther done, in cafe, from the Afllftance given by the Public which we have mentioned in a former Chapter, thofc Harbours can be gra- dually brought into a better State than they now are i; or, which would be iViU more beneficial, if a larger and deeper Port could be, at any Expence, made in any other Part of the County. The other great Manufa'hich is a common Thing) good Ground for other Ufes, when the Wood is grubbed. They may farther confider the Expediency of augmenting Hop-grounds, or intro- ducing other Improvements, which may be affiJbnt, and fupply any unfore- feen Deficiency which Time and Chance may occafion in the reft:. All toge- ther will form a Rule of Conducfl, which thus founded on FacTts, and con- firmed by Computations, will hardlybe liable toContradiftion from Experience, but, on the contrary, turn highly to every Planter's own Satibfadlion, from the Pjofpecl of thofe Bleinngs which, by his Attention and Application, will be derive4 to Pofterity 5. ' Rut, after all that has been faid, perhaps a ju II: Calculation in this way may fet this coniefied- Point in the cleareft Light. Let us Aippofe with Mr. Houghton, the Lami worth three Shilling? an Acre; the Fee-fimple of the whole three Acres, at fix per Cent, will be worth fixteen Years and eiffht Months Purthafe, that is, feven Pounds ten Shillings. This, at fix per Cent, compound Intereft, amounts in fixty Years to near two hundred forty-feven Pounds. Mr. Houghton then feems to me the ablcft Advocate that Planting ever had ; fmcc, from his reafoning,")t appears this kind of innocent Improvement will really bring an' honeil Man more, than to the verieft Mitlr the moft griping Ufury canpromife. 4 The 382 The POLITICAL SURVEY The great, indeed the only Objcftion to this Syftcm, is, that the Profit of VVoodlands depending altogether upon a regular Management, and there being as Things now ftand, no Security for this, there is a kind of a moial Certainty that, for want of it, this Scheme mufl; in a great meafure, if not wholly, fiiil : For if Indigence and Avarice meet, a Bargain will foon be ftruck, at a Price equally injurious to private Property and to the Intereft of the Public. Men prejudiced againft their Heirs, or who have no Regard to Pofterity, will commonly conlult only their own Profit. Such as have precarious or uncertain Tenures will be fure to do it. On the other hand, the flow Growth of Timber promifing, in mofl: Cafes, but little to the prefent Poffeffor, few in an Age like this will from thence ever think of Planting. To find Remedies for thefe Evils, and many others which might be enumerated, is very difii- cult ; thofe that have been hitherto applied proving alfo InefFedual is not a little difcouraging ; and yet, after all, perhaps the Thing is not impoflible. The Public having fo great an Intereft in raifing large Quantities of Timber fit for Ship-building, it might not be amifs to exempt wafte Lands, converted into Plantations, from paying any Land-tax ; provided the Timber, when fit for Ufe, was fold at a fair Price for the Service of the Navy t. It might be alio expedient to grant every Copyholder a Right to vote at County Eledtions, who had Timber fit for Ufe upon his Eftate, to the Value of fifty Pounds ". As wife and prudent Men only are Planters, and as fuch may be difluaded, and jullly too, from Planting, from the Fear of having their honeft Views fruftrated by improvident Heirs, the Legillature might enable them to devife Woods and Coppices of their own planting, under fuch reafonable Reftridions as the Court of Chancery Ihould approve ; and prohibit the cutting them, or dil'pofing of them, in any other manner, by thofe (o whom the Inheritance devolved w. Thefe, or any other Provifions of a like Nature, duly obferved, would ob- viate many, if not all the Difcouragements that hinder, and are ftill likely to hinder, this kind of Improvement} and tho' Faults might be found with them at firfl:, yet the Advantages that muft attend them, would, in the Space of Half a Century, fo clearly and fo efixdually refute every Cavil that could be invented, as to prevent thofe Laws from being ever repealed x. On thefe Principles, one tenth Part of the Land in the County of Suffex, pro- perly planted, would be more beneficial to the Nation than the Difcovery of ♦ Here the Public, lofing nothing, acquires a Title to the Pre-emption of Timber, which, without this Conccflion, had never exifled ; and which, without fome fuch Conceflion, is not liiie ever to exift. u In this Cafe the Public gains the Growth of (o much Timber, without being at any Ex- pence ; and purchafes a public Benefit by beflowlng a public Privilege, "w In mofl Cafes this Indulgence would be certainly reafonable ; w here it proved othcrwife. Chancery would interfere. ^ As fuch a Law would be chiefly in Favour of Pofterity, fo Pofterity judging, from Effefls, would beft difcern the Utility of fuch a Law, a Mine of GREAT BRITAIN. 383 a Mine that produced half a Million fterling annually y, without taking into Confideration the Number of People deitroyed in working Miner-, or even the Confequence of thofe numerous Manufultures the Produdt of fuch Wood- lands would fupport, which, as will be eafily conceived, mufl: exceed that Sum many Times told z. The noble and fruitful County of Kent makes the South-Eaft Extremity of ^i? Ifland, and from thence enjoys, in many Refpedis, a moft advantageous Situation. The capacious /Eftuary of the Thames wafhes its Northern Parts,- as the Sea does the South and the South-Eafl ; whence fome, with no great Impropriety, have ftiled it a Peninfula a. In point of Extent, this is the Fifth Shire in South Britain, little lefs in its Dimenfions than the Province of Hol- land ; larger in Size than the beautiful Duchy of Juliers in Germany ; and almoft exadly equal to that of Modena in Italy b. Kent is, with great Ap- pearance of Truth, fuppofed to be fo filled from the antient Britlfh Word. Kant, fignifying a Corner, or, when applied to a Country, an Head-land.. It is certain, that the Romans bellowed the Name of Cantlum on the Province,, and on its moft confpicuous Promontory, the North Foreland ; and, from the- Diftridl they inhabited, the People were called Cantii ; which has prevailed even to our Times, when Kent, and the Men of Kent, are the common Ap- pellatives c. It is, however, probable, that thefe Cantii were not the original. Inhabitants, but a later Colony from the oppofite Continent, eftablilhed here, like the Belgae, not long before the Roman Invafion d. At the Time of Casfar's Coming, this fpacious and fertile Region was divided into four Principalities, or, as they are, according to the Manners of thofe Days, commonly called, Kingdoms. It was his Obfervation of thefe People, that they were narticularly diftinguiflied by their Civility and Politenefs; a Charadrer which their Defcen- dants have preferved ^ When that wife People became Mafters of the Southern y There are many Circumftances in which Woods refemble Mines ; but, in fome, the former have manifeflly the Advantage of the latter, i. They are the Effefts of human Prudence, and not of Accident. 2. They are cultivated and cut down by a few Hands, and at a finall E.x- pence. 3. They yield a lalling and certain, and, under proper Direcfbion, a perpetual Profit. i The Reader may alfo confult, if he pleafes, Mafcall's New Art of Planting, 1656, 4to.: Dr. Beal of Hereford/hire on Orchards, 1657, lamo. Charles Cotton's Planter's Manual, 1675, 8vo. Williain Lawfon's New Orchard and Garden, 1683, 4to. 6th Edit. Timothy Nourfe's Carapmia, 1700, 8vo. » Speed's Theatre of the Britlfh Empire, fol. 7. Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 56. Chiid- re^''s Britannia Baconica, p. 60 — 70. b Templeman's Survey of the Globe, Plates i. vi, ix. xili. c Csf. de Bello Gallico, lib. v. Camdeni- Britannia, p. 230.. Baxteri GlorEirium Antiqui- tatum Erltannicarum, p. 66. d The learned and judicious Baxter mentions, that, in fome Copies of Ptolemv, this Country is called Nucantion, de Nucantiis, five novis Cantiacis Belgici generis ; which Salmon alfo thinks not improbable. If fo, the antient Inhabitants, now driven withia Land, were called Cantii, as well as thefe new Settlers, and botii from the Country in which they dwelt. e Ccef. de Bello Galileo, lib. v. Gulielin. Mdmdbur. in Prologo libii primi de Gellis Pomif. . Anglor. Camdeui Mtaunia, p. 230, P^rts 384. The POLITICAL SURVEY Parts of the liland, this Province received the moft confpicuous Marks of" their Attention, as appears from the Stations which they fo prudently cftabUflied, while in it full Vigour, their Government liouriflied. 1 he Care they took of the Ports on the Sea-Coaft, as foon as.it came to be in Danger, and the fevcral tortrelTes which they eredled, for the Defence of their Subjeds, againft the fuddcn Attempts of barbarous Invaders, are Evidences of the fame kind f". l-hefe Forts, fo prudently difpoled, and fo well fecured, were under the Di- redtion of a particular great Officer, whom we have already mentioned more than once, called Littoris Saxonici Comes, . i. e. the Count of the Saxon. Shore ; which Office feems to have been preferved by the Britifh Monarchs who go- verned here, after the Romans quitted the llle. The Saxon Kings of Kent difcharged this Trufl in their Regal Capacity, from the Middle of the fifth to the Beginning of the ninth Century. Under our Northern Princes, this Pofl was again revived, though with a Change of Title, in the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports g. Indeed, under all Governments, the People of Kent have been efpecially confidercd, as appears from their Claim to the Pofl of Honour in our Land Armies, and the Privileges granted to their Havens, in Conildcia- tionof their .undertaking the Defence of our Channel ''. As to the Climate of this County, it varies, according to the Situation of : Places. In the low fiat Lands, and efpecially in tlac Marflics, the Air is heavy, moifl, and unhealthy ; and yet not to fuch a Degree as it has been fome times reprefented; and, with a little Care and Caution, Strangers, as well as Natives, quickly reconcile their Conftitutions to the Temperature, even of -thefe Parts, and live in them, without much Inconveiiiency or apparent Dan- ger. But, in reference to the refl of the County, the Air is as thin, pure, and ,\vholfome, as in any Part of Britain 1. There is no Region more liappily or Xnove beautifully diverfified in regard to Soil, fo that every Kind tliereof is, fomewhere or other, to be met with in its Bounds; and in no Shire are any of thefc Soils more fertile than they are in this k. The Weald yields Variety of fine Timber,' particularly of Chefnut; the middle Part has very rich arable Land, annually bearing every Species of Grain in immcnfe Plenty, and thcfe excellent in their feveral Sorts 1. There are alfo many beautiful Orchards, f Ex Notitia Dlgnitntnm Imperil Romani, circa Tempora Arcadii et Honorii. Camdeni Bri- tannia, p. 230. 1 winiis de Rebus Albionicis, p. 50. .i Gildse Hiftoria, fc^. xvi. p. 12. Edit. Oxon. Bedae Hift. Ecclef. lib. i. cap. 12. Scun- ner's Roman Ports and Forts in Kent. Oxf. 1693. 8vo. •■ Joannis Sarcibcricnfis Policiaticus, lib. vi. cap. iH. Fuller's V/ortliies in Kent, p. 63, Drayton's Polyolbion, Songvthe i8th. • Speed's Britifh Empire, fql. 7. Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 56. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 60. 1' Lainbixd's Perambulation of Kent, p. 9, 10. Camdeni Britannia, p. 230. Drayton's Po- lyolbion, Song. the .i^Sth ; where the natural Products of this Shire are moft elegantly defcribed. 1 Fuller's Worthies iu Kent, p. 56. Stukcly's Itinerarivun Cmiofum, p. 123. .Childrey's Eritann^a .Baconica, p. 60. which of G RE AT BR I T A IN. 385 which produce a Variety of fine Fruits, and more e/pecially Apples and Cherries, which were introduced here from Flanders, by one Richard Har- ris, who was the King's Fruiterer, in the Reign of Henry the Eighth '». The flat Country is renowned for its Meadows ; and Rumney Marfli has hardly its Equal. We may, from this concile Delcription, very eafily colledt, that the natural Products of Kent are numerous, and of great Value. In the Bowels of the Earth they iind, in feveral Places, a rough hard ferviccable Stone for Paving, which turns to fome Advantage ; but not to fo much as their exqui- fite Fullers-earth, rich Marie, and fine Chalk, which are there in abundance. If we except Iron-ore, indeed, they have no Mines ; but there are prodigious Heaps of Copperas Stones thrown on the Coafl ". The Ille of Shepey, and all the adjacent Shore as far as Reculver, is juftly famous for its Wheat. Thanet is in no lefs Credit for its Barley, or rather was fo ; for now it pro- duces, through the painful Indultry, and ikilful Hufbandry, of its Inhabitants, copious Crops of good Wheat, as well as Barley o. Florfes, Black Cattle, and Sheep, they have in great Numbers, and remarkable in point of Size. Hop-grounds in all Parts of the County, which turn to very confiderable Ac- count. To which we may add, Weld, or, as fome call it, Dyers- weed, which is a very profitable Commodity, of which diere grows much in the Neigh- bourhood of Canterbury, and Madder, which is, or has been, occafionaliy cultivated. The Rivers and Sea-Coafts abound with Fifh of different Kinds p. The Excellency of its Oyfters on the Eaftern Shore, is celebrated by the Roman Poets q. Thole of Feverfliam and Milton arc not only in great Efteem at the London Market, but are likewile lent in great Quantities to Holland r. And, in a Word, take this ample Territory in general, and we may truly atHrm, that, in regard to Plenty, Kent is another Canaan, fruitful in all good m Dr. Holland's Infertions in the Text of Mr. Camden's Brit.mnla, in Kent. Kilburne's Sur- vey of the County of Kent, p. 6, 7. Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 56. Samuel Hartlib's Le- gacy of Hufbandry, p. 15; where he fays, a Cherry-Orchard, near Sittingbourne, of thirty Acres, produced a thoufand Pounds a Year, Evelyn's Sylva, p. 64. •> Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 1 1 . Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 7. SiV William Dugdale's Hiftory of Draining and Imbanking, chap. x. Childrey's Britannia Ba- conica, p. 67. Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. ° Kilburne's Survey of the County of Kent, p. 6, 7. Brome's Travels over England, Scot- land, and Wales, p. 280. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, p. 280. The Hiftory and Antiquities, Ecclefiaflical and Civil, of the Ifle of Thanet in Kent, by John Lewis, M.A. LonJ. 1723, 4to. p. 7, 8- P Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 57. Blith's Englifti Improver improved, chap, xxxiii. xxxvi, Mortimer's whole Art of Hufbandry, book v. chap. 17. 1 Juvenal, Sat. iv. The Scholiaft informs us, that thefc were very large Oyfters, and that their Excellence had made this Coaft very famous. In dredging for OyfVers, at this Day (the Sea having prevailed in fome Places), the FilTiermtn often bring up VefTels of icveral Kinds, Re- mains of Roman Magnificence ; and confequently, pregnant Proofs of the Opulence of their Sta» tions, when they were po/TefTed of Kent. r Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 259. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, p. 123. 207, Dr, Chrillophsr Packe's Ancognaphy, or DcfcriptioQ of Eaft Kent, p. 12. D d d ' Things, oS6 The POLITICAL SURVEY Tilings, and in which there are fewer Forefls and wafle Lands, than In mcfl other Counties. The many rich Commodities produced in this fair County,, is the Reafon wliy mod of our Writers have reprefented it as in a manner void of Manii- fadurcs; which, however, as appears upon a ftridt and impartial Examina- tion, is very far from being the Cafe. Iron Works there were antiently i«any j and there are ftill Ibme, where Kettles, Bombs, Bullets, Cannon.> and fuch-likc, are made s. At Deptford, Sir Nicholas Crifpe had, in hi& Life-time, a very famous Copperas Work; as, indeed, there that ingenious Gentleman, one of the greateft Improvers, and one of the moft public-fpiritcd Perfons, this Nation ever bred, introduced feveral other Inventions. Copperas was alfo formerly made, together with Brimftone, in the Idc of Shepey '. But the original, and, for many Ages, the principal Manufadure of this County, was Broad Cloth, of different Colours, eftabliflied chiefly at Cran- brook, by King Edward the Third, who brought over Flemings, to improve and perfedl (the Trade being introduced long before) his Subjedts in that im- portant Art u. At this and other Places it flouriflied fo much, that, even as the Clofc of Queen Elizabeth's Reign, and, according to fome Accounts, inuch later, the beft for home Confumption, and the largeft Quantities for Exportation, were wrought here ; manyFulling-MiUs being eredted upon almoft every River, and the greatell Plenty of excellent Fullers-earth affording thenx fmgular Affiftance « ; infomuch, that it is flill a Tradition, the Yeomanry of this County, for which it has been ever famous, were moftly theDefcendants of rich Clothiers, v.'ho laid out the Money acquired by their Induftry in the Purchace of Lands, which they tranfmitted, with their free and independent Spirit, to their Pofterity x. The Duke of Alva's Perfecution of the Proteft ants in the Low Countries drove a Multitude of Walloons over hither, who brought with them that Ingenuity and Application for which they had been always dilTiinguilhed y. Thefe diligent and adtive People fettled a Manufadtory of Flannel, or Baize, at Sandwich. By them the Silk-Looms were fet up at Canterbury, where they flill iubfifi: ; and they alfo introduced the Making of » Harrifoa's Defcription of Britain, B. iii. cb. xi. p. 238. Stat. 23 Eliz. cap. 5. feft. 11., 27 Eliz. cap. 12. fe6l. I. Speed's Theatre of the Brltifh Empire, fol. 7. ' Philofophical Tranfa>fHon3 of the Royal Society, No. 142. p. 1056 — 1059. See the Article of Crifpe, Sir Nicholas, ia Biographia Brltannica, vol. iii. p. 1522. Childrey's Britannia Ba- conira, p. 67. u Rymer's Fcedera, torn. i. p. 496. A.D. 1331. Stowe's Annals, p. 233. Cotton's Records, p. 76. Dr. Holland's fnftrtions in the Text of Mr. Camden's Britannia, in Kent. ■w Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 15. Kilbv.rne's Survey of the County of Kent, p. 6. Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 58. Jt Lambard's Perambulation, p. »2, 13, 14. Fuller's Worthies In Kent, p. 62. Verfiegan's Rcfliiution of decayed Intelligence, p. 259. y Camdeni Annales Elizabeihse, vol. i. p. 174. Fuller's Church Hiflory, book iii. cent. xiv. f. III. 112. Strype's Annals of the Reformation, vol. i. p. 554. Thread of GREAT BRITAIN. 387 Thread at Maidltone, where it yet remains, and merits more Notice and En- couragement, than hitherto it has met with ^. Upon the River Dart, at the Confluence of which with the Thames ftands the Town of Dartford ; was fet up, in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, the firfl: Mill for making white Paper, by Mr. John Spilman, a German, upon whom, long after, King James conferred the Honour of Knighthood ; but King Charles, more fenfibly, beftowed upon tliis Sir John Spilman a Patent, and a Penfion of Two hundred Pounds a Year, as the Reward of his Inven- tion, and for the Support of the Manufafture a. About the Year 1590, God- frey Box, a German, eredted upon the fame River the firft Slitting-Mill which was ever ufed for making Iron Wire ; and alfo the firft Batterj'-Mill for making Copper-plates b. Other new Inventions, requiring the Afliftance of Water, have been fet up on other Streams ; and a great Variety of Machines of this fort ftill fubfill in different Parts of this County. But thefe things are now fo common, that it would be both tedious and ufelefs to infifl: upon them. Amongft thefe, we may reckon the making Gunpov/der, in feveral Places c. That Manufafture, however, which is now the Glory of this County, and, indeed, of Britain, is Ship-building; more efpecially at the Royal Yards : As at Woolwich, which was fettled by Henry the Eighth, and fome confiderable Ships built there. At prefent, there is not only a moil complete Eftablifliment for the building and equipping Men ef War, a Rope- walk, Foundery, and Magazines, but alfo many private Bocks, in which prodigious Bufmefs is carried on, and Multitudes of People employed d. Deptford, which from a fiiLing Village of a few Hotiles, called Weft Greenwich, the fame Monarch ralfed to a flouriihing Town, by building Ships there, and eftablKhing the Trinity-Houfe. This alio has been much enlarged, improved, and rendered more convenient, in fucceeding Times «. Chatham was made a Royal Yard by Queen Elizabeth, and owed its full Eftabliiliment to that great Seaman Sir John Hawkins, who, with Sir Francis Drake, -deferves to be ftiled the Father of our Mariners, for fettling that in- cftimable Fund of Charity there, denominated from tlience the Ciiicsr at ^ Dr. Holland's Infertions in the Text of Mr. CamJen's Britannia, in Kent. Somner's Antiqui- ties of Canterbury, p. 175. flarris's Hiftory of Keut, p. 63. Newton's Hiftory of M.nldff one, chap. viii. p. 10 1. ■a Stowe's Annals, p. 1040. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 70. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, P- 93- ^ Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 453. Stowe's Annnls, p. 1040. Harris's Hiltory of Kent, p. 93. = 'Carnderil Annales EJizabethrr, vol. i. p. 86. Houghton's Colleftions for the Improvement of Hufb.indry and Trade, No. ccxxviii, ccxxix. Burcl-xt's Naval lliiViry, p. 343. d Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 6. Fuller's Worthies in Kent, p. 59. Additions to Gam- ma's Britarinia. « Lelandi Commentar. in Cygaeam Cantionem., p. S9. Lambard's Perambulation of KcHt, J). 428, 429. Kilborne's Survey of Kent, p. 73. D d J 2 Chatham 388 The POLITICAL SURVEY Chatham ^. Sheernefs, or Shircnels, 13 the lateft of thefe Yards, which- came to be confidercd, from the Fort ereded by King Charles the Second, to cover the Mouth of the Medvvay. It is now very much augmented, and rendered in all refpedts fb comnuidious, that Ships of great Force are built there g. It requires no great Penetration to difcern how beneficial all thefe Eflablifhments muft be to this County. In fpeaking of the Sea-Ports in this County, we will begin from the Bor- ders of Suffcx, and with that which the learned Somner will have to be the PoRTus Lfmanis of the Romans h. I will not prefume either to defend or difpute his Opinion ; becaufe I am fatisfied he was, in all refpedls, a much better Judge than I. This, however, I think is certain, that he has proved the River Rother was antiently called Limene; that it ran into an i^iftuary of the Sea, below Appledore ; that this ^ftuary had at its Mouth, which con- fequently was more than two Miles broad, Lyd on one Side, and Old Romney on the other J. This laft was antiently a very great Place, and the original Cinque Portj having a noble and capacious Harbour, by which it was fo much enriched, that, at the Time of the Conqueft, it had twelve Wards, a Priory, and an Hofpital, and feveral, fome affirm feven, Parifh-Churches k. But, in Procefs of Time, the Sea falling, or rather being driven, from it. New Romney, which lies about a Mile and half to the Weft, came in its Place, Old Romney becoming a Member thereto j and, in the Reign of Edward the Third, furniflied to his Fleet four Ships, and fixty-five Men I. In the Reign of Henry the Eighth, it was confidered as a Port (that which in Mcmor)' had been fo, being then become a Church-yard) almoft gone, the Sea lying about two Miles from it m. At prefent, it has loft all Pretenfions of that kind, except that it continues to fend two Barons to Parliament, as one of the Cinque Ports. HiTH, or, as it is fometimes v/rote, Hethe, is another of the Cinque Ports,, rifen, as is fuppofed, out of the Ruins of Weft Hithe, as that again fprang ^ Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 365. Camdeoi Annales Eiizabethse, vol. i. p. 86, Sir William Monfon's Naval Trafts, book v. p. 454. g Additions to the Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Dr. E. Chamberlayne's Prefent State of England, A. D. 1687. 8to. p. 182. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 281. h Treatife of the Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 37 —75 ; where the Point is fully difcufled, with equal Induflry and Learning. » Annal. Saxon, p. 165. 26 A. D. 1052. Gulielm. Piftavienf. Gul. Ducis, p. 204. Twini Comment, de Rebus Albion, p. 31. k Domefd. f. 4. a col. i. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 197. Kilburne's Survey of Xent, p. 232. 1 Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. in the Appendix, p. 143. Hackluyt's ColIeiTtion of Voyages, rol. i. p. 119. Madox Firma Bnrgi, p. 139, »" Additions to Camden's Britannia, in the Englifli Tranflation. Brome's Travels over Eng- land, Scotland, and Wales, p. 284, 285. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, p. 264, from of GREAT BRITAIN. 3^9 from the Decay of Lyme-Hill, which many of our great Antiquaries cfteem the true Portus Lemanis j the rather, becaufe at that Place there are many antient Ruins, fome Roman Coins, and other Antiquities, found ". To this it may be added, that there is a dired Roman Road from hence to Canterbury, now called Stoney-Street o. Befides thefe, there is alfo another Reafon, which is, that Shipway, lying near it, was the Court of the Lord Warden of thefe Ports ; where he was fworn into his Office 3 where his Court of Pleas was held ; and where the Records of the five Towns were kept p. Hith was an- tiently a great Tow», as Leland acquaints us ; had four Parifhes, though now there is only a Chapel, dependent upoa the Parifh-Church of Saltwood q. Hence it appears, that the Welfare of all thefe Places, fpiinging from their Ports, {hifted as thofe did ; and as this of Hith is now in a manner utterly loft, notwithftanding fome chargeable Attempts to prevent it, this Place, ex- cept the Privilege ot fending Members, retains nothing of its former Great- " nefs >■. FoLKSTONE, in the Opinion of fome great Antiquaries, was honoured with a Roman Fort ; and, if Ruins and Remains are Sufficient Proofs, this Con- jedure will hardly admit of any Dilpute s. The learned and judicious Somner, however, is not altogether convinced even by thefe ; yet he thinks that this,. raiher than Stonar in the Illand of Thanet, is the Lapis Tituli, mentioned by one of our ancient Hiftorians f. Be thefe things as they will, it is very certain- that Folkftone had once a good Port, and was a far more confiderable Place than it is at prefent. It was Part of the Poileirions of that famous Saxon:- Nobleman Earl Godwin ; had, at the Conqucft, five Parilli-Churches, and paid a- Rent of One hundred and ten Pounds per Annum ". But it is now long- ago, fince four of thofe Pariffi-Churches, a Nunnery, and a Fortreis, have n Leiand's Itinerary, in the Appendix, vol. vii. p. 141. Roberti Talboti Annot. in Antonin^ Itiner. Brit, itin iv. Camdeni Britannia, p. 246. o Leiand's Itinerary, in the Appendix to vol. vii. p. 141. Baxteri Gloflarium Antlquitatum- Britannicarum, p. 149. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol. i. p. 21. P Robert! TalbotiAnnotat. in Antonini Itinei-. ubi fupra. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 183. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 144. q Leiand's Itinerary, in the Appendix to vol. vii. p. 141. Lambard's Hiflorical and Topo- graphical Diiflionary, p. 152. Brome's Tr.avels over England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 292. ' Dr. Wallis, in the Philofophical TranfltcTtions of the Royal Society, No. clxxv. p. 978. Samuel Jeakes'b Charters of the Cinque Ports, Lond. 1728, fol, p. 109, Additions to the Eng- lilh Tranllation of Camden's Britannia. * Camdeni Britannia, p. 246. Kilburne's Survey of the County of Kent, p. 103, 104. Ad- ditions to the Englllb Tranllation of Camden's Britannia. Leland fpeaks of a Boot almoft full' of Gold and Silver Roman Antiquities, found by a Peafanc here. ' Nennii Hilteria Britonum, cap. xlvl: Somner's Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 94, Archbilhcp Ulher, however, places this Lapis Titul't at Stonar. Baxter follows him ; but Sal- mon will have it at Richborrow, and calls it the Pharos of Rutupium. The learned Bifliop Stillingfleet, the judicious Dr. Gale, and the inquifitive Dr. Siukeley, follow Somner. u Lambard's Hiftorical and Topographical Diiftionarv, p. 116. Kilburne's Survey of the County cf Kent, p. 103, 104. Additions to the EnglifliTranflation of Camden's Britannia. been. 393 The POLITICAL SURVEY been fwallovved up by the Sea : Which Misfortune, great as it is, Folkftone fliews us is ftill lefs than being abfolutely delerted by it ; for, having yet a frnall Creek, it is, though a little, a thriving Place -, has Abundance of Barks, Cutters, and Fifliing-Boats, belonging to it ; and, tliough nothing in Compa- rifon of what it once was, is, however, merely from the Circumftance beforo- mentioned, in a much better Condition than moft of its Neighbours ". It v^'as this that gave it a Place here, as ferving as the ftrongeft Inftance of what we are labouring to eftablifli, and proving beyond Contradidlion, that even the mofl inconfiderable Port (for even the Pier, raifed almoft within Memory, by Sir Rafil Dixwell, in hopes of retrieving it, is deftroyed) is of Confcquence, and may (lop a Place from dwindling into a Village, as more than one of the Cinque Ports have done, though Folkftone never had that Honour, being only (as it is ilill) a Member of the Port of Dover ^, of which we are next to fpeak. DtTBRis is the Latin Name beftowcd, in the Itinerary of Antoninus, upon Dover, anotlier of the Cinque Ports, which the Saxons called Dofra, both veiy probably derived from the Britiih Word Dour, which fignities Water >'. The Convenience of its Situation drew the Attention of the Roman Governors, who ruled here, while they poflelled this Part of the Illand ; and there ftill remain indubitable Teftimonies of their Care and Refpedl for this important Place 7. In order to the Defence of which, either tJiey, or, as fome affirm, Arviragus, a Britifli King, their Confederate, by cutting out Walls, with in- finite Labour, in the folid Rock, conftrudted a ftony Fortrefs ; and, as its veriCrable Remains ftill prove, erefted alfo a Pharos, or Light-houfe, for tlie Benefit of Navigation i. The Saxons, Danes, and Normans, had a very high Opinion of this Place b j and when the Barons invited over that young Prince, who was afterwards Lewis the Eightli of France, under Colour of delivering the People from the Tyranny of King John, hut, in reality, to eftabliHi their own, his Father, Philip Auguftus, conceived a bad Opinion of the Expedition ; becaufe, though in Poffelfion of a great Part of the Kingdom, " Leiand's Itinerary, in the Appendix to vol. vii. p. 141. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 103. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 124, 125, 126. * Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 125. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, aiul Wales, p. 296. Stukeley's Itinerarlurei Ciiriotum, p. 12:?. y Talboti Annotat. in Antonini ^iiner. itin. iii. Lelandi Commentar. in Cypneam Cantionem, p. 49. Somncr's Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 30. The learned and judicious Dean Gale, howe\er, takes the Roman Name to have been Dubra;, fignifying between two Hills, from the Biitilh Words dwy, two, and Bre, or Bryn, a Hill. ' Camdeni Britannia, p. 242. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 49. Salmon's New Survey of England, p. 1 9. » Ex Chronico Dovarencis Monaflcrii, apud Lelandi ColleiTtan. torn. ii. p. 50. J. Rofs's Hi- Aoria Regnm Anglite, p. 45. 47. Stuktley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 122. I- Eadmeri Hirtoriae novorum, lib. i. Liber Niger Scaccarii, p. 340. Simeon Dunelmenfis HlUoria, A. D. 1066. Matth. Paris Hift. Angl. vol.!. p. 286, V/a!:erl de Hemipgfoid liilt. Jidvardi L p. 59. Annales dc Duuftaple, A. D. 1295. ^ the of GREAT BRITAIN. j^t the Caflle and Port of Dover were itill held for King John, hy Hubert de.. Burgh c. In its moft flourifliing State, this impregnable Fortrcfs, and then opulent Emporium, had twenty-one Wards, each of which furniflied a Ship for the public Service, ten Gates, feven Parifli-Churches, many religious Houfes, Hofpitals, and other public Edifices «!. The Decay of the Town was brought on by that of the Harbour ; to recover which, Henry the Eighth, of all our Monarchs the moft attentive to Things of this Nature, fpent no lefs than fixty-three thoufand Pounds in building of Piers, and five thoufand Pounds more in conftruding a Caftle between this Place and Fclkftone, called Sandgate, where the Shore was fiat, and the Landing was eafy e. But, not- withftanding all the Pains and Expence thus employed for the Succour of this Port, it was, in a manner, choaked up in tP^e Reign of Queen Elizabeth, by whofe provident Care, however, it was once more, at a great Charge, and with vaft Labour, fo recovered, that Ships of Ibme hundred Tons entered the Port ; and feveral A(5ls were palled in that, and in the fucceeding Reign, for the Amendment and Support of this important Haven f. Since that Time it has again declined, notwithftanding many Efforts made, more efpecially in. the Reigns of King Charles the Second and of William the Third, and great AfTiftance given, from time to time, by the Authority of Parliament, for its Reliefs. But as the poor Haven, fuch as it is, remains ftill capable of re- ceiving Veffels of fmall Burden, and as the Packets to France and Flanders are ftationed here in the Time of Peace, it is, though in the Cuftom-houfe Books but a Member of the Port of Sandwich, by much the Place of moft Trade and Bufinefs upon all this Coaft, and the People the moft adive and induftrious. Deal, perhaps, only excepted. The Town, in its prefent State, may be a Mile in Length. It has two Parifli-Churches remaining ; and the Caftle, fo formidable in antient Days, being now become of little Confequence, there are two Block-Houfes for its Defence ^ : But both the Fortrefs and the Town retain their old Honours ; the former has its Conftable, and the latter its Mayor, and other Magiftrates : And may they retain them ! that thele Infignia « Thomae Sprotti Chronica, p. 119. Hen. de Knyghton de Eventibus Anglis, apud x. Scrlpf„ col. 2427. Lambard's Hi florical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 91, 92, 9^. . Sandwich, in the Opinion of fome, and thofe too of our greateft: Anti- quaries, is thought to be the Portus Rhutupinus (called Portus Ritupis in the Itinerary) of the antient Romans, and in their Timec the moft: celebrated Port in Britain p. But, though in effedl the Thing is really fo, yet one may, > Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. no, iii. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 120 — 123. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 100 — 105. 371 — 374. ** The learned Dr. Halley has proved, Mifcellanea Curiofa, vol. iii. p. 426, that Julius Caefar landed here, Augufl: 26th, in the Year before the Coming of Chrift 55. It appears Perkin War- beck landed here, July 3, 1495. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p- 71. As did alfo the Lady Anne of Cleves, when ftie came to marry Henry VIII. December 27th, 1540, Holingfhed's Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 948. 1 Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 71. Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 125. Crouch's View of the Britifh Cuftoms, p. 385. ■" Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 25. 120. 125. Stukeley's Itinerarium Curiofum, p. 119. Salmon's New Survey of England, vol.i. p. 19. " Lelandi Commentar. in Cygneam Cantionem, p. 49, Itinerar)', vol. vii. in the Appendix, p. 127. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 143, 144. " Brome's Travels over England, Seotland, and Wales, jj. 303. Atlas Maritimus et Com- mercialis, p. 10. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 95, 96. P Antonini Itlnerar. iter. ii. Ptolemsci Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. C. Taciti in Vita Agri- coliC. Ammian. Marcel. Hi/t. lib. xx. cap. i, P. Oiofii Hiflor. lib. i. cap. z.^ 1 with of G RE AT BR IT A IN. 393 with more Propriety, fay, that Sandwich is all that is now left of the Roman Port, than that it is the Port. The farther this Matter has been inquired into, the {lri(iter the Care with which it has been examined, and the clofer it has been fifted, by the ablefl: Critics, the plainer Truth has gradually appeared^.- It grew evident, upon their firfl Refearches, that, in antient Times, when there were far better Opportunities of coming at Certainty, Richborough, or rather Ratefborough, or, as Beda calls it, Reptaceaflre, and not Sandwich, was taken for Rhutupium r. The very learned, fagacious, and indefatigable 8omner, thought to fettle this Point, by feparating the Roman Fortrels from the City ; he allows that Richborough was the former, but maintains, that we are to look for the latter at Sandwich s. Other able and diligent Antiquaries, perceived that Richborough, though it is now, had not been always on the Kentifh Side of the Wantfume, and thence concluded, that it muft have been once in the Ifland of Thanet t. On a yet deeper Difquifition, it was con- ceived, from the antient Defcriptions, there were certainly two Places of this Name ; and, therefore, the ingenious and judicious Mr. Horfley chufes rather to call them Ritupia?, or Rhutupia-, than Rhutupium ; in which he is juftified by Ptolemy ". All thefe Enquiries tended finally to fliew, that this was, when, the Romans poffelfed the Country, and long after, a Port of very great Extent; and which muft, confequently, have been very different from what Sandwich now is, or, indeed, ever was, fince that very little Part of the Port, which is ftill left, received its Denomination from that Place w. Upon comparino-, therefore, all thefe Paffages together, and attending to the Dilcoveries of a very diligent Obferver of the Face of the Country, to whofe Care we owe a philo- fophic Chart of this Part of Kent ^, we fee pretty clearly how Things mufl have ftood in thofe remote Times, and, of courfe, the Condition of this Port, which, as- 1 formerly promifed, I will now, though not without fome Appre- henfion of Cenfure, do my beft to explain y. 1 See Talbot's, Burton's, and Gale's Commentaries on the Itinerary. Confult Larabarc! and Camden, as alfo Somner, Gibfon, and Plot ; but, above all, the ingenious, elci'ant, and learned Antiquitates Rutupinse of the late Dr. John Battely, Archdeacon of Canterbury, where every Point is difcuffed with equal Perfpicuity and Erudition. f Bedse Hift. Ecclef. lib. i. cap. i. Alured. Beverl. Annales, lib. 1. Lambard's Hiftoricai and Topographical Didtionary, p. 287. = In his Difcourfe on the Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 4. 87. But Orofius afibrcs us. the City, Fortrefs, and Port, were all together. t Leiandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Princlpis, p. 38. Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. III. " I fubmit to the judicious Re.ader's Judgment, M-hether, for the fake of Perfpicuity, the City and Fortrefs at the one Extremity fliould not be Ailed Rhutupium ; that at the other, Regulbiiim ; the Haven, Portus Rhutupinus, or Rhutupix, as lying between thefe Forts, and the whole Ex- tent of the Shore, Littus Rhutupinum, the Rhutupian Coaft. '^ It was for this Rcafon, that Twine places it at Dover ; Talbot, and others, at Stonar ; and fome foreign Geographers at Canterbury, and even at Rochclkr. X Dr. Packe's .-Oncography, or Explanation of his philofophical Chart of Eaft Kent, p. 44. y Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p, 153. Vol. I. E e e Thanet, 94 The POLITICAL SURVEY 1 o Thanet, which is fcarce at this Day a Peninfula, was formerly a complets liland, and nearly, as I take it, of a circular Figure z. In the Time of the Ro- mans, the Sea on the South-Wcfl Side of the Ifland, between that and the main Land of Kent, was at leafl four Miles broad, and gradually decreafing as it pafled along the South Side of the Ifland, became at length lefs than two Miles, and at Sarr, which was the narroweft Part, might be about a Mile and a half. Thus far flowed the South, which there met the North Sea: That entered at what was from thence ftiled Normutha, that is North Mouth, where Remains of every kind. Bricks, domeftic Utenfils, Coins, &c. plainly fliow there was a Roman Station, not at all inferior in Splendour to the otlier at Ritupium ; and to cover this City, as well as to defend the Entrance of the fafefl: and mofl: important Port then in the Ifland, they conflirudted on a rifing Ground a ftrong and noble Fortrefs, which was called Regulbium, by the Saxons Raculfcefter, now Reculver-i. At the oppofite Entrance, on the South- Wejft Side of Thanet, in a fmall Ifland, which thefe Buildings almofl; entirely occupied, fl:ood the City and Fortrefs of Ritupium, which is now, with fonie indelible Charafters of ancient Strength and Luftre, Hiled Rich- borough '\ This, as it gives a fatisfadtory V^iew of a deep, lecure, and extenfive Harbour, flievvs why thofe Stations and Fortrcfl*es were eredled at each Ex- tremity, accounts for their being named Ritupias, and affords us a jufl: Idea of the wife Policy and admirable Contrivance of the Romans, to render this Province of Cantium rich and well peopled, by making this commodious Haven and its Emporia the Centre of Commerce between Britain and the: Countries round it. It would be no difiicult Taflc, if both the external and internal Charaders- of Veracity were lefs apparent, to maintain all that has been advanced from the mofl authentic Writers. Vv'e have the Teftimony of an unexceptionable Author, that through this Port lay the direct and accuflomed Paflage to London by Sea, beyond the middle of the fourth Century c. It remained in its natural and perfeft State, lb long as the Romans enjoyed Britain, and no doubt for fome Time after. But in Beda's time, and perhaps an Age before that, the Port began to decline by diminilhing its Breadth : For he tells us that it was then but three Furlongs wide, fordable in two Places,- z Artemidorus, apud Strabonis Geograph. lib. iv. p. 198. C. J. Solini Polyhiftor, cap, xxv. Ammian. Marcel, lib. 18. cap. 2. a We find no mention made of Regulbium, cither in Antonlnus's Itinerary, or in Ptolem)% but in the Notitia it occurs ; and we are told the Tribune of the firft Cohort of the Vetafians, or Beta- fians Was ported there; from whence the judicious Batteley infers, that at firft both the Roman Stations bore the fame Name (Ilutupice), and that under Theodofius this was called Regulbium. '' Bedas Hift. Ecclef. lib. i. cap. i. xxvi. iLeland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 138. Lambard's Hifto- rical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 287. In an old Charter it is called Rifburg. « Ammiani Marcellini Hift. lib. x\. cap. i. where he mentions Lupicinus failing through this Streight toLoEdoa. See alfo lib. xxvii. cap. vii. and of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 395 and was called Wantfume, or the deficient Water c). It continued however a paffable Streight, for Ships of fome Burthen, till about the Norman Con- queft e J a little after which what had been already begun was profecuted with Diligence. For, as we are told, when it was once perceived that tlie Tides no longer flowed with any confiderable Vigour, fo that this Element, which is naturally irrefiftible, feemed lefs able to keep what it )xt retained of its antient Polleflions, the Inhabitants on both Sides began to dyke out the Sea, fo that gradually they brought on thofe great Changes which now appear*'. The Stream that originally ran, into the Arm of the North Sea, which divided Thanet from the Continent, runs now, which fliews in fome meafure the Breadth of the old Channel, a Mile and a half Eaft of Reculver, while the Stour makes its way into the South Sea at Sandwich g. The Diftance between thefe two Streams is fomething better than a Mile ; which Ifthmus however is cut by an artificial Current of Water, called the Mile-Stream, over which there is a Bridge in the Road to Sarr ; fo that the lile of Thanet, v\hich was formerly feparated from the Continent, by the entire Channel of the old Portus Rhutupinus, or Ritupenfis, and was then, as in its natural State, all high Land, is now a Peninfula, or at bell a River Ille only, with the Stour- W^antfume on the South, the Mile-Stream on the South-Weft, and the Ne- thergong- Wantfume on the Weft h. The reft of the Illand looks to the Eaft and North Seas as heretofore j but the Figure (for which the Reafon will be hereafter given) is altered from a circular to an irregular oval; which Cir- cumftance, as we fhall likewife (hew, is a very ftrong Confirmation of the Reality of 'that Opinion which is here advanced. It is very pofiible that an inquifitive and judicious Reader may exped fome- thing more diftindl and particular, as to the precife Time when, and the Manner in which, this famous Port was thus ruined and loft i : But in tracing thefe Points I cannot pretend to the fame Certainty as with regard to tlie general Fads already mentioned, which I think too well fupported to ad- ■J Beds Hift. Ecclef. Gent. Anglor. lib. i cap. xxvi. Lambaid's Perambulation of Kent, p. ()7, Lewis's Hil^or)' and Antiquities of the Ifle of Thanet, or Tenet, p. 27. e It was feveral times pafled by the Danes ; and, as we learn from the Saxon Chronicle, p. 137. was ^fo paffed b)' Earl Goodwin, A. D. 1052, with a numerous Squadron, and, for thofe Days, large Ships likewife. t Sir Thomas Moore's Dialogues, fol. 119. a, Edit. 1559. Sir William Dugdale's Hiftory of Imbanking and Draining, cap, xii. Lewis's Hiftory and Antiquities of the Illc of Tenet, p. 5. g Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 264. Dr. Philemon Holland's Trandation of the Britannia. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 369. h Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 313, 314. Lewis's Hiftory and Antiquities of the Ifle of Tenet, p. 5. Dr. Packe's Ancography, or Defcription of his Chart of Eaft-Kent, p. 13. i It is obferved by our moft induftrious and intelligent Antiquaries, that the Roman Road (which certainly once led to the Port) is no longer to be traced ; which is eafily accounted foi-, now we know the City, Fortrefs, and Port, were in an Ifland : And this too removes the Objec- tion as to Diftaacc. E e e 2 mit 396 The POLITICAL SURVEY mit of any Controverfy. However I will fpeak my private Sentiment, and leave it either to be confirmed or refuted by fome abler Pen k. It feenis then very probable to me, that the firft Encroachments were made by the Monks or gther Ecclefiaftics, to whom, as I take it, both the Ritupiae were given by the Kings of Kent ; and they having, at leaft in thofe Days, no Notion of Trade, but being great Improvers of Land, thought every Addition of this nature a mighty Acquifition i. The Saxons had probably deftroyed the Roman Fortrefs, though not the City of Ritupium, during their Wars with the Bri- tons ; and I apprehend the fiift Step taken of this kind, was the annexing the Illand upon which it flood to the Continent of Kent m. This was adually accomplilhed before Beda's Time, for he does not fcem fo much as to have heard that it ever was an Illand ". I will here take the Liberty of mention- ing a Sufpicion of my own ; which is this, that even our ableft Antiquaries are mifl'aken, in fuppofing that the ancient Britons gave the Name of InniS' Ruyni to the Illand of Thanet, and this for the very Reafon they aHlgn in S^ipport of their Opinion, that it referred to the Roman Port of Rutu- pium ; whereas it feems much more likely, that this Appellation belonged to the little Illand on which that City flood, and not to the Mand of Thanet,, upon which it never flood at all '^. After the Junction of the IHe to Kent, the Sea no longer flowing with the fame Freedom, began to throw up immenfe Quantities of Beach on the -oppofite Side, which produced Stonar, more properly Eflanore, that is, the Eaft Stone Shore, originally an Itle by itfelf, but quickly united by the Monks,. wlio made a Caufeway for that Purpofe to the Ifle of Thanet p. Here there was a very confpicuous Town, though now there is only a Farm Houfc} and a- kind of Port, about which, in later Times, there were great Difputes between the Inhabitants of Sandwich and the Abbots of St. Auftin in Canterbury, the former claiming it as dependent upon their Port, and the latter as belong- ^ According to fome Authors, the Roman Road lay through, or very near, the Town of Woodenlborough, now Winfbury, where many Coins and other Remains, indubitably Roman, have been found ; and thence proceeding to the Sca-fide, to the Port where the Ships rode, was cxaftly tv/elve Miles, agreeable to tire Itinerary. ' Monafticon Anglican, torn. i. p. 2i, 86. Evident. Ecclcf. Chrifli Cant, inter x. Script, p. 2207, 2220. Tanner's Notitia Monaftica, p. 97. *" Our moil intelligent Antiquaries think the S;utons on their firft infefling.this Coafl defiroyed' this City and Fortrefs ; but others afcribe, and I apprehend with more Probability, theDeilrudfion ■ of the former to the Danes : The demolifting the Caltle might be neccflary to Conquerors, the plundering the City moft likely to be done by Pirates. n It probably was flill an Illand when Augulline a Monk came hither, but was connefted to the Continent before Beda's Time, and belonged to the See of Canterbury. Simeonis Dunelmenfis Hifloria, inter x. fcript. col. 120. Innis Ruym, orRuim, feems to be; the Roman liland, tho' it mufl be allowed the Word is differently written. P Lewis's Hilfory of the Ifle of Tenet, p. 132, 133. Our judicious Antiquary Talbot fcfs down Stonar for the Roman Port, and Dr. Stukeley is of the fame Opinion ; but Lewis, and all. •who are well acquaiuteJ with the PLice, agree as to the Point Ifated in the TejLt. bg of GREAT BRITAIN. 397 iiig to them in virtue of royal Grants q. This warm Conteft is commonly faid to have been between the Citizens of London and the Abbots of St. Auftin, but that arifes from the Denomination that Sandwich once had of London- wic J becaufe while the Rutupian Road remained in a tolerable Degree free and open, it was the constant Station, as the Downs now is, of the Shipping belonging to the Port of London, then, as at prefent, the greatefl- trading City in this Ifland. After all, Sandv/ich, though at the Diflance of a long Series of Years, came in the Place of Rutupium ; that is, when the Roman City was deftroyed, and the Port of Ebbesfleet, properly Wippedsfieet, on the Side of Thanet began to fill up, a new Town was neceflarily built on the Con-- tinent, and the Correfpondence which had fo long fubfifled between the old Port and the oppolite Coaft was gradually transferred thither s. But that Sandwich, though it came thus in the Place, could never be the Roman Rutupium, will appear from a few fhort Remarks. It does not anfwer the Defcription given of that Place by antient Hiftorians. It rtands low, in an unhealthy Situation, which no Roman City ever did. There have been no Coins, or other Reliques of Antiquity, found in or near it. Laftly, the' Name is plainly Saxon, and fliews that the Coaft was expofed to Drifts of Sand when this Place was built t. It is impoflible to fix the Date of its Foundation ; but about the middle of the ninth Century, Athelftan King of Kent beat a Danifti Fleet here 3 and from that Period to the Norman Conqueft • it was reputed the beft Port in England 5 for till then, and a confiderable Time after, the PalTage, though mucli diminiflied in Breadth, was open u ; fince we find that Earl Goodwin, after ravaging the Coaft of SufTex, lailed behind - the Ifle of Thanet and came up tlie Thames w, ■! Chron. W. Thorn, inter x. Script, col. 1794,' 1S89, 1933, 2130, 2143. Lewis's HiTiory- sad Antiquities of the Ifle of Tenet, p. 133 — 139. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 299. ' The learned and judicious Somner, in his Difcourfc on the Rom.'ia Ports and Forts in Kent, - p. 9. clearly proves that Sandwich (or it may be Richboroiigh) h.ad the Name of Lunden-wic, i. e. the Port of London, being fo filled in the Laws of Lothair King of Kent. My Notion, par- don me Reader for mentioning it, is this, That the Londoners acquired Richborough, which • from thence was called Lundcn-wic, in oppofilion to which the Village on the adjacent Shore- ■was, from its Situation, called Sand-wic ; and that the former decaying, the latter came in its room. ' Lelandi Genethliacon Eadverdi Principis, p. 37, 38. " Lambard's Hiflorical and Topo- graphical Diftionary, p. 332, 333. Batteley Antiq. Rutupins?, p. 9, 16. ' Vitruvii Archited-. i. 4. Camdeni Britannia, p. 240. Stukclcy's Itincrarium Curlofum, • p. 1 17, 118. " Simeonis Dunelmenfis Hiftoria, int. x. Script, col. 122. Encomium Emmx, inter Scriptorci Kiftoriae Normanicae, p. 168. Florent. Vigorn. ad A. D. 1009. ^' Chron. Saxon, p. 167, 4, Chron. J. Bromton, inter x. Script, col. 943. Ahnedi Bcver- lacenfis Annales, p. 59, King; 9 8 The POLITICAL SURVEY King Kiiute, or Canutus, gave this Town and Poit by a very memorable Charter to the Monaftery of Chrift-Church in Canterbury ^. In the Reign of Edward the Confeffor, as we find in Domefday-book, there were in this Borough three hundred and feven Houfes. In King John's Time it was burned by Lewis of France. Edward the firft, to reftorc the Place, removed the Staple thither, and acquired the beft Part of it from the Monks y. His Grandfon Edward the third completed the Exchange, and recovered this Town from them entirely, for the Manor of Borly in ElTex ^. The Wars with France in that and in the fucceeding Reigns, particularly thofe of Henry the fifth, contributed very much to the Benefit of the Place, and to enriching -its Inhabit;.nts. ]n the Reign of Henry the fixth it had a very flourilLing Trade, fo that the Cufloms amounted to between fifteen and twenty thoufand Pounds per Annum ; and in the next Reign it had ninety-five Ships, and upwards of fifteen hundred Seamen a : But not long after it began to decay. Leland tells us, that a great Ship belonging to Pope Paul the third, being lofl: in the Harbour, in the Reign of Henry the eighth, a Bank came in the Place, by the gradual Acceffion of Sands ^ ; and fince that Time it has been .continually growing worfe and worfe, notwithflanding all the Endeavours that have been ufcd for its Recovery c, and notwithftanding the Flemings, who fettled here in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth, not only ftt up a Ma- nufacture, but alfo taught the Inhabitants feveral Methods of improving their Land, particularly by the Cultivation of Carrots, and other Vegetables, in high Perfedion ; on account of which Sandwich has been long celebrated d. It retains, hovcever, the Honour of being one of the Cinque Ports, and is ftill the only legal Port in this County, with a Cuftom-houfe, and proper Of- jficers ; though, in all other Relpedls, but the Shadow of what it was ^. * Textus RofTenfis, p. 37. Evidentis Ecclefire Chrifli Cantuar. inter x Script, col. 2225, 2226. Monaft. Anglican, torn. i. p. 21. f Kilbtirne's Survey of Kent, p. 238. Our Kings often exchanged Lands in this Manner, in order to recover their Ports out of the Hands of the Monks. * Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 130. Cotton's Abridgment of the Records in the Tower, p. 157. Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 110,111. " Cotton's Abridgment, p. 650. 659. Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 1 1 1. Har- ris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 273. ^ Itinerary, vol, vii. p. 127. Camdeni Britannia, p. 241. Harris's Hiflory of Kent, p. 273- c Stat. 22 Geo. II. p. 827, for enablidiing an Haven at Ramfgate, in the Ide ofThanct, gives two hundred Pounds per Annum out of the Duties granted by that Ad for the Support of Sandwich Haven, and impowers the Commiflioners to raife ten thoufand Pounds, if they flrould judge it poffible to recover that Port. ■' Hartlib's Legacy, p. 90. Houghton's Colleflions for the Improvement of Hufbandry and Trade, vol. ii. p. 461. Mortimer's Hufbandry, vol. i. p. 201. Brome^s Travels, p. 304. Har- ris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 273. ' Additions to the Englilh Trandation of Camden's Britannia. Molloy de Jure marltimo et navali, p. 328. Crouch's complete View of the Britilh cuiloais, p. 385. 7 Among of GREAT BRITAIN.- 399 Among the Members belonging to Sandwich, as a Cinque Port, were Fordwich, Sarre, and Pveculver. A few Remarks, in regard to each of thei'e, will contribute to fet this whole Matter in a clearer Light. Fordwich flands two Miles and a half North-eaft from Canterbury, upon the River Stour. It is a very old, and was formerly a very confiderable Place. Eadbert, King of Kent, granted it, A. D. 747, to the Monaflery of St. Auftin in Canterbury, which Grant was afterwards confirmed by Edward the Confellor ^ . In Domef- day we find it called the little Burgh of Fordwich. There is Rcafon to think it was once much nearer the Sea ; and very probably the Portus Trutulenfis was that Part of this large Haven, where the Stour entered it, and derived its Name from thofe excellent Trouts, for which this Place yet continues famous g. Barges, Lighters, and other fmall Craft, flill come up hither from Sandwich. Sarre, though now the great Highway from Canterbury into Thanet runs through it diredbly, was once a tiourifhing Place, lying in the middle of this noble Road, and confequently a Port ; of which there is not barely credible Tradition, authenticated in the laft Age, from the Mouths of competent Witnefl'es, who had themfelves feen not only Boats, but even Barks of a tolerable Size, pafs quite througli to the North Mouth : But both here and in other Places in Thanet are vilible Marks remaining, of the little Creeks and Havens, in which Vefiels formerly lay ; and their antient Char- ters prove this, beyond the Power of doubting, as to its Certainty 1'. Re- culver, the Regulbium of the Notitin, feems to have llood originally in an Ifland furrcunded by the Yenlade. Ethelred retired hitlier, when he gave his own Palace at Canterbury to Auguflin, whence it came to be called Re- culfcefter; but being granted to the Monks, who built a Convent there, it then took the Name of Reculfminfter. It is at prefent joined to Kent, without any Sign of its having been ever feparated, and is divided from Thanet only by a little Brook, which falls into the S^a in that Ifland'. Thus we plainly difcern how, though not exadlly when, thefe fingular Changes were brought to pafs, and with what View j the true Senfe in which Sandwich Haven is faid to be that of Rutupium ; whence thefe feveral Places, once Members of this Cinque Port, are all decayed, and fome loft ; as alfo what the prefent Condition is of the two Rutupiosj and by what means Land now lies where once was Sea between them. , f Chron. W. Thorn, inter x Script, col. 1777. 1940, 1941. 2138. 2211. Camdeni Bri- tannia, p. 239. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 105. g Tacitus in Vita Agricote. Camdeni Britannia, p. 239, 240. Antiqiiit. Rutnp. p. 20. *> Annal. Monafter. S" Auguftin. MS. fol. 20. Jounnis Twini iie Rebus Albionicis Com- mentar. p. 25. 27. Lewis's Antiquities of tfie Ifle of Tenet, p. 27. 29. 49. ' Chron. Saxon, p. 40. 21. Evidential Ecclefise Chrifii Cant, inter x Scriptor. col. 2207. 221 1. 2220. Twini de Rebus Albionicis Comment, p. 26, 27. Somner's Difcourfe on Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 77 - 87. Antiquit. Rutup. p. 39, 40, 41. It is remarkable, as it retaining fomething of the Rutupiae, this i'lace, by the People of Kent, is ahv.iys called i.a the Plural Number, the Rectilvers. We 400 The POLITICAL SURVEY We have before obferved, that the Cinque Ports, or as we find thetn .very frequently called limply, The Ports, by way of Excellence, feem to have been copied from the Roman Inftitution ; and though there is now no Charter extant, earlier than the Reign of Edward the firft, yet in that there is mention made of Immunities granted them by William the Conqueror ; -and the Cufloms of particular Places extend ftill higher, which fhew they are derived from immemorial Prcfcription k. The Five Ports are Hastings, "New Romnev, Hithe, Dover, and Sandwich. The two additional Towns, Rye and Winchelsea. Each of thefe Head-Ports had feveral Members, the Inhabitants of which participated of their Privileges, and bore a Share in their Expences '. They were bound, in lieu of all other Services, to exert their naval Force, for maintaining and proteding the free Navigation of the Channel, by preventing Piracies, and all Impediments or Interruptions thereto. They were, amongft them, to furnifh fifty-feven Ships, every Ship to be manned with twenty Men and a Boy, at their own Cofts, for the Space of fifteen Days, and fo long after as the King fliould pleale to appoint ; but then they were to be in his Pay m. The Honours, Privileges, and Prerogatives granted to them, in Confide- ration of thefe Services, were many and great. Amongft others, they were each of them to fend two Barons to reprefent them in Parliament ; were, by their Deputies, to bear the Canopy over the King's Head at his Coronation, and to dine at the uppermoft Table, in the great .Hall, on his right Hand ; to be exempted from Subfidies, and other Aids ; their Heirs to be free from perfonal Wardiliip, notwithftanding any Tenure; to be impleaded in their own Towns, and not elfewhere ; to hold Pleas and Adlions real and perfonal ; to have Conufance of Fines ; to have the Power of enfranchifing of V^illains ; not to be liable to Tolls, and to have a full Liberty of buying and felling ; to appoint their Bailiff to have Jurifdiflion with the Magiftrates of Yarmouth, during the Fifliing Fair ; and many others of lefs Importance f. It was to direct and enforce the due Performance of thefe important Ser- vices, and to fuperintend the punctual Prefervation of thefe extraordinary Privileges, that the Conftable of Dover Caflle, ftiled alfo Lord W'arden, Chancellor, and Admiral of the Cinque Ports, was appointed ; which high Office has been fometimes executed by the Heirs apparent of the Crowiij ^ Eraflon, lib. iii. cap. 2. Fleta, lib. ii. cap. 55. Hen. de Knyghton, inter x Scriptor. col, 2424- 1 Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 127. Lambard's Hiflorical andTopographiical Dif^ionary, p. 282. Coke's Inftitutes, b. iv. chap. 42. »" Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 114. Camdeni Britannia, p. 230, 231. Hen. Spel- manni GlofTarium, p. 476. " 9 Hen. III. Magn. Chart, cap. ix. Lib. Iz^(rat Tit. Challing, fol. J 1 56. Trin. Status et Vifus Compotorum, 3 Hen. W. rot. 7 . b. often of GREAT BRITAIN. 401 often by Princes of the Royal Blood, and always by Perfons of the firil Rank in the Kingdom «. In confequence of this Eftablilhment, the Ships of thefq, in Conjundion with thofe of other Ports, were the Navy of the Realm; and, as our Hiftories fhew, in almofl every Reign, difcharged this Trufl: with great Honour and Reputation : Neither v/ere the Cinque Ports reftrained to the Number of Veffels before-mentioned, but have fometimes fitted out double the Number ; and, when larger Ships were thought neceflary, have equipped fewer of thefe, at an Expence equivalent to that which their Services by Tenure would have occafioned p. At the Clofe of Queen Elizabeth's Reign they had five Ships, of one hundred and fixty Tons each, at Sea for five Months, at their own Charges ; and in the Beginning of the Reign of Charles the firfl:, they fitted out two large Ships, which ferved for two Montlis, and coil them upwards of eighteen hundred Pounds q. As we have thus fliewn what their Force once was, let us now examine the Caufes that have been afiigned for their Decay. The firfl: is, the failin* of their refpedive Havens, fome by the Defertion, fome by the Impetuofity, and fome by the Beach thrown out of the Sear; as to which we have already faid fomewhat, and fliall hereafter fay more. In the next place, the Change in the Navy is alleged, and with good Reafon. While the Ports were en- trufted with the Sea Force of England, they were well enabled to build and maintain many ftout Ships, according to the Notions of thofe Days, fi-om the Certainty of their being taken into the Pay of the Crown in Time of War, which, inftead of impoverilliing, ferved to enrich them, almoft as much as Trade, in Time of Peace ; and was likewife, while fuch a Method of main- taining a naval Strength was adequate to the Wants of the Public, advan- tageous alfo to the Nation s. The third Caule of their finking, was from tlic Invafion of their Privileges in refpedl to Trade, not by laying them open for the common Good, but by transferring them to others. Firll, m regard la foreign Commerce, the Charter granted by James the firll to the Merchant- Adventurers, excluded them from trading to Germany and the Low Coun- tries, which was the principal Source of their Wealth ; and by their lono- Intercourfe with the Inhabitants, they had procured to themfelves Advan- tages and Immmunifies, which, by this Interruption of their Correfpondence, o See the Catalogues of the Lords Wardens, in Lambard, Jeakc, and Harris. f Lambard's Perambulation of K<:nt, p. 122, where the Reader will find a fiimmary Acco-ant, ifrom our moft aiuhentlc Hiftoiians, of the great Anions performed by the Fleets of the Ports. q Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 29, where many other curious Particulars relating ^to this SubjecT: are to be met wich. ' Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 112. 145. 176. Camdeni Britannia, p. 240. 243. 246. Kilburne'-s Survey of Kent, p. 104. 144. 2:53. ' Thefe Ships were to be equipped at any Time, upon Forty Days Notice; their Pay, when in the King's Service, was afcertained, the Oown might difmifs them when they pleafed, their ^ay then ccafed, and no Expente was incurred in Thne of Pcice. Vol. I. F f t were 402 The POLITICAL SURVEY were loft f. Next, in reference to their common Tranfadions in domeftic Trade. The Citizens of London, though the Charter of the Cinque Ports be near an hundred Years older than theirs, difputed their R.ight of buying and felling freely their Cloths in Blackwell-Hall, and in the Clofe prevailed ". This induced the Manufadurers and the Mafters of trading Vclicls to re- move, and of courfe the Merchants followed them ; and being thus unhap- pily ftripped of thole Advantages, whence arofe their Opulence and Splendor in former Ages^ it is no great Wonder that even the Traces of both are almoft worn out in ours w. But though the Wonder is not great, yet we cannot liiy thv^ lame as to the Lois, which certainly is much to be regretted. The difcovering fome Acquaintance with the Antiquities of this County, the recalling fome forgotten Truths to Remembrance, or bringing Ibme Me- morial of the Importance, Grandeur, and Decline, of the Cinque Ports, to the public View, though veiy laudable Endeavours in themfelves, were not the Motives of my entering lb deep into, or dwelling fo long upon, this Sub- jed. My true Deiign is, to place in a proper Light, what I take to be the ftrongeft Inftance that can be produced in fupport of the general Dodrine this Chapter is intended to ellablilli. As high in Point of Time as we have any Lights from authentic Hiftory, this Territory was the principal Seat of our foreign Commerce. For in this, by the clcareft Evidence, we have fliewii the Romans had a Conveniency we have loft, an Haven between Kent and Thanet, which, all Circumftances confidered, of Situation, Size, and Safety, may be perhaps affirmed fuperior to any we have left ^. Belides this, they had alio feveral other good Ports, which they fortified, fecured, and pre- ferved, that are now fome totally gone, others become very inconiiderabk, ail miohtily impaired. We have no dired or pofitive Proofs, indeed, of their carrying on a lucrative Trade ; but the Probability of this is fo ftrong, that it cannot be doubted. For as they made their firft ImprefTion, fo they extended their Dominion, in this Illand, by tlieir naval Force ; and we know that could only be fuf- taincd by Commerce. In this, it is moft likely, thofe immenfe Sums were employed, which Seneca is reputed to have lent at Intereft. Caraufius aiid ' This Monopoly was cenfured as fuch in Parliament, in the twenty-third Year of the fame Rsign, upon v\ hich the Trade was laid open. In the next Reign the Company prevailed again, and the Long Parliament, for the Sake of a Loan, confirmed them. " Additions to the EngliQi Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 9, 10, II. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 481. * See all the modern Defcriptions, confider the many Laws aiade for the Recovery of their Havens, tlie Reafons afligned for obtaining the Afliflance of the Legiflature for making a new Harbour at Ramfgate, and the Importance of the Subjeft, will juftify thefe Refledions. X It appears, from indubitable Teftimony, that the Rutupian Port was land-locked on both Sides, open both to the North .and to the South, full feveu Miles in Extent, with Inlets and coiivenient Creeks on both Sides, Alkdus of G R E A T BRITAIN. 403 Alledlus held the Title of Emperors ten Years, from the Power given them by the maritime Force of Britain r. After this, we find the fame People raifing FortrefTes to cover the Ports, on this Coaft efpecially, from the Pira- cies of the northern Nations, and putting into them competent Garrifons for their Defence, in cafe they proceeded to make any Defcents ; which are ftrong Indications of their having a rich, well-cultivated Country to protect : And we can conceive no Means of its becoming fo, but from tlie TrafHck of its Inhabitants, the natural Source of Wealth and Prdfperity to fuch People as are feated in an Ifland. Our Saxon Anceftors, who were the next Pof- feffors of this Region, while all its Ports were open and in good Condition, adopted the fame Maxims, and purfjed them with fuch Efteft, that Etliel- bert, King of Kent, extended his Dominions from the Banks of the Thames to thofe of the Humber ■2^. Himfelf and his Succeflbrs founded, or at lead beftowed Names on, many great Towns, adorned them with ftately Struc- tures, leaving fuch a Variety of Monuments of Prudence, Piety, and Policy, as inconteftibly prove their Subjefts muft have been numerous, indulbious, and opulent. After the Danifli Wars, felt no-where more feverely than in this County a, when the Normans came to be quietly fettled, the People of Kent, retailing their original Liberties, their antient Cuftoms, and their ac- quired Trade, made a great Figure. The Woollen Manufaiflure, being on(K introduced, throve exceedingly, and fpread itfelf amongll: them on every Side. By this, Cranbrook, Artiford, Sevenoak, Sittingbourn, and many otlier Places, were rendered confpicuous. But above all Canterbury, which from this, and various other Funds of Induftrv, maintained its antient Splendor, having a Guild of Merchants, a Staple, Mint, Exchange, and many fpacious and beautiful Markets b. The Cinque Ports, enjoying their Privileges, were well built, fully inhabited, drove an extenfive Commerce, abounded with Sea- men, had many, and for that Age ftout and large. Ships in conflant Employ- ment c. Thus Agriculture, Handicrafts, and Trade, being equally and every- where diffufcd, mutually fupported each other ; and the People, numerous, aftive, and indefatigable, kept up a Spirit of Emulation, from which all Parts of the County were in the lame flourifliing Condition. 7 Xiphilin in Nerone. Dig. de lege RhoJia, leg. Ix. tit. z. lib. xiv. Eutropii Hill. Rom. Breviar. lib. ix. cap. 54. ^ Cliron. Saxon, p. 23, 24. Beda; Eccl. Gent, Anglor. Hill. lib. ii. cap. 5. Chron. Johan, Bromton, inter x Script, col. 729. 1 Chron. Saxon, p. 56. 140. Alurcd. Beverhc. Ann.^1. lib. viii. p. ^6. Hen. Huntingdon Hifl. lib. vi. p. 361 . b Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 137. , Lambard's.Peiambnlation of Kent, p. 290. 317. Soni- ner's Hiftory ot Canterbury, p. 121. 123. 133. 147. 209. ": Thcfe Remarks are not to be iinderlteod- 'TIS Gommendations of t!ie Norinsa Government, which certainly had no higher Merit than allowing the Men of Kent to puil'ue their old Way of living, and to inake u(e of thole Advantages Providence had bellowed upon thtai. F I f 2 We 404 Tlie POLITICAL SURVEY We have no diftinft Account of the Time when the firft Attempts were made to gain upon that yEftuaiy, into which the River Rother, antiently called Limene, difcharged itfelf into the Sea, between Lyd and Romney d. But as there were Marfhes there in the Time of the Saxons, we have good Grounds to believe, that the Pradlice of Inning, that is, wrefting Land froni the River and the Sea, was introduced by tlieir Clergy, to whom the Pro- perty in thcle Parts chiefly belonged c. By this means they at length drove the River into another Chanel, and built a ftrong Fence, called the Ree, i. e. the River Bank, to keep it from ever returning. The Archbifhops of Canterbury, looking upon this as an admirable Method of improving, left their Names to thofe Parcels of the Marfh which were procured in their Times, whence we read of Becket's, Baldwin's, Boniface's, Peckham's In- nings f J fo that gradually this Trad of Level Ground fwelled to an immenfe Extent, and, taken altogether, has been computed at upwards of fifty thou- fand Acres ; all become, in a long Courfe of Time, from dreary fickly Maiflies, very fine and fruitful Meads, affording excellent Paflure, and of courfe yielding a high Rent g. But notwithftanding this, and though it muft be acknowledged the greateft Acquifition of its Kind, and under the beft Regulations, yet one may reafonably queflion, whether the County of Kent has really reaped from thence thofe Advantages that are commonly be- lieved ? For to lay nothing ef the Labour thefe ilupendous Banks, Drains,., Guts, &c. have originally coft ; the vafl Expence which the making and keeping them in Repair conftantly demands ; the Hazard in preferving that always attends them ; the LofTes to which they have been often expofed ;-. and the Unwholibmenefs of the Air, much greater formerly than at prefent ;. we will confider what has been abfolutely g.ivcn up, in order to fecure this- mighty Conquefl h. Before any of thefe Invafions were made, there feems to have been no- Contention whatever between the Sea and the Shore. But when once they encroached on that turbulent Element, or, to fpeak with greater Propriety,, diflurbed the fettled Order of Nature, they foon felt the EfFefts, if we may. •^ Chron. Saxon, p. 91. 93. 97. Mentioned likewife in many antient Charters, which dearly prove its Courfe, and Fall into the Sea, in this County. ^ See Somner's Difcourfe concerning Roman Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 43, where he pro-- duces a Charter of Mar(h-Land by Plegmund, who was Archbiftiop of Canterbury from A. D, 889 to 915. t Liber Eeclef. Cantuar. where it appears, that Appledore Marfh was gained A. D. 1349, at the Expence of three hundred and fifty Pounds. This is alfo evident from various other Pa/Tages. in Tliorne's Evidences of the Church of Canterbury. See likewife Soraner'a Difcourfe of Romaa Ports and Forts in Kent, p. 61,. g Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 199. Sir William Diigdale's Hiflory of Draining and Imbanking, chap. xi. Harris's Hiftory of Kent, p. 348. ^ Joan. Twini de Rebus Aibionicis Comment, lib. i. p. 31- Kilburne's Survey of the County of Kent, p. 231. 364. Biome's Travels over Eoglaad, Scotland, and Wales, p. 284, 285. fo of G R E A T B R r T A I N. 40^ fo rpeak, of its impetuous Refentment. Sometimes it retired from vvher * they meant it fhould remain ; at others it^ overflowed, and wafhed away Places grown opulent by its Bounty. Here it fretted the Shore, till it fell in ; there it threw up Beach and Sand, till a new Soil was formed, that was equally difagreeable and ufelefs i. In fliort, from being the Source of In- duftry and Plenty, it grew dangerous and deftrudtive. Rye, Wincheifea^ Haftings, Hithe, and Romney, with their Dependencies, are in a Manner totally gone. The fecond of thefe Places has been twice ruined, being ©nc& overwhelmed by the Fury of thofe Waves, by which it is now abfolutely deferted. The prefent Winchelfea, raifed by the wealthy Inhabitants of the old Town, or rather its Remains, appeared lb majeftic, even in that State of Decay, to Queen Elizabeth, who faw it not till in this Condition,, that (lie could not help calling it. Little London I-. Thefe once large, well-built^ and well-peopled Towns, have been brought into the piteous Plight they- now are, by this Contelf between thofe obftinate Improvers and this boifte- rous Element '. In the Courfe of the Difpute, though the Multitude were for Inning, yet fome more prudent Perfons faw and protefted againft its Con- fequences ; which is the true Senfe of the old Saying, " that Tenterden Steeple was the Occafion of Goodwin Sands mj" that is, the Rents of Romney Marfh, which were partly laid out on that Structure, arofe from. thofe Encroachments, which produced an Inundation about the Time the Steeple was erefted ; foon after which, a vail Trad; in the Low Countries being fwallowed up, thofe Sands firft appealed, Thefe, hideous and horrid as they are, prove the great Defence of the Downs ; and, in con- junftion with the South and North Foreland, render ihem a tolerable Road, though fometimes, through the Ignorance and Careleffnefs of Pilots, more frequently from the Fury of South-eaft or Eaft-north-ealt Winds, Ships are driven, and of courfe wrecked, upon them " ; which makes fome fafe Port • Where thefe Stones are call up by the Sea, on the CoaHs of Kent and SufTex, there is a; Horfe Road, but very uneafy travelling; and this Acceflion (if it can be fo called) is altoge- ther ufelefs. k Jeakes's Charters of the Cinque Ports, p. 115. The Queen made this Tour into Suflex^ A. D. 1573 ; and as the Grandeur of this Winchelfea lay in its being built exaiflly on the Model of the old Town, it remains a Proof of its Wealth and Magnificence. ' It is a material and indeed a deelfive Proof, in regard to v\ hat is aflerted in the Text, that thefe Storms, Inundations, and Retirings of the Sea, happened p^ecifely within the Period in. which thefe Innings were made. «n Sir Thomas Moore's Dialogues, fol. 119. a. Edit. 1592. Sandys's Notes on his Englirtt Tranflation of Ovid's Metamorphofes, book xiii. p. 282. Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 263,.. where the Storm is fixed to November 3.d, 1099 ; but the Saxon Chronicle places it on the i ith of the fame Month. n In the London Gazette, N° 3971, there is an Account, that, in the Storm of Nov. 27th,. J703, t'le Stirling-caftle, Refiauration, Northnrriberland, and Mary, on board which was Rear Admiral Beaumont, were loft upon the Goodwin Sands, when upwards of eleven hundred Sea- men perifhed. 8 itt 4o6 The POLITICAL SURVEY in their Neighbourhood fo dcfirable, and the Lofs of thofc we had on both vjides heretofore fo much to be regretted. In refpefl to that Arm of the Sea which divided Kent from Thanet, now turned into firm Land, the Abbots Wall, which formerly kept out the Flood, the old Charters, and fublequent Tenures, clearly fhew when, how, and by whom, this fuppofed Improvement was begun, continued, and completed. Befides the conllant Tradition, and the apparent Marks of its once diftercnt Condition, put all this out of Doubt, and, which is more to the Purpofe, flicw that it was not the declining or defertlng of the Sea, but the continued Ef- forts of Men, from the Clofe of the fixth to the Beginning of the Sixteenth Century, ufing all their Skill to expel it, which produced this amazing Change. But here again the Qucftion is, what has been got by this Alteration, con- tri\cd \\ithVo much Deliberation, and prolecuted with fuch Application ? The Fens, or the Salts as they are called, are efteemed unwhollbme, though vciy fertile ; but, fince the Lofs of their Channel, Towns are dwindled to Vil- lages, feme Villages to a lonely Farm-Houfe, feveral Churches are decayed, others difuled, the Number of People diminiflied, and of the many Fami- lies of Gentlemen who formerly refided in this Ifland, and were both the Credit and Support of it, there is hardly one left f. What is yet ftronger and llranger, the very End aimed at, fo difficult or rather io imprudent a Thing it is to contend with Nature by Force, is by no means accomplilhed. The Ifland, in the Time of Beda, as is exprefly delivered in his Writings, was twice as big as at prefcnt, which antient Deeds clearly confirm ; and, which is no lefs extraordinary, from Domefday-book it ajipears, Thanet was then of near the fame Size that it is now \\ It is therefore inconteftible, that pre- cifely in the fime Period, when the Inhabitants of both the Continent and Ifle were bufied in m.aking what they thought Improvements, by encroaching on the Wantfume on the South and Weft, the Sea was filently and eftedtually making double Reprifals, and fpoiling all their Ports at the fame time on the North and Eail P. Daniel Hirtoue de France, tom.iv. p. 358. the 4oS The POLITICAL SURVEY the Condition of this Part of Kent then was. We may from hence alfo infer, the State ought to adopt the Roman Policy, and take all Havens into her im- mediate Care and Protedtion ; regarding at the fame Time whatever refpei^s Navigation, fuch as Rivers, Friths, Bays, &c. as belonging inconteftibly to the Public, and therefore not to be touched, much lefs diverted or deftroyed, from private Caprice, Lucre, or Rcfentment ; but to be improved on ma- ture Deliberation, for the common Benefit, as the fupreme Wifdom of the Nation fhall diredl. Laflly, it is more than probable no Method will be found effectual for recovering the Ports of Rye or Sandwich, till we recur to the Principles of Nature, and abate the Violence of the Sea, by admitting its Waters in a full Body, allowing them Room to fpread, and depending on the Force of the Ebb for a Back-water, which alone has Strength enough to keep Ports free and open. A Step diat would not fimply anfwer the End, in giving us thofe two important Havens, but would alfo either render prac- ticable the retrieving feme of the reft, or put it in our Power to open new and fafe Harbours, in the Vicinity of the old. If, after all that has been faid, any further Arguments fhould be either neceffary or expedient, thefe might be copioully drawn from the different State of the North Side of Kent. Whitftaple, a Place of little Confequence in former times, is now, from its being a kind of Port to Canterbury, be- come a Town of biifk Trade, and a great deal of Bufinefs x. Feverfliam was indeed of Note in early times, but would probably have fhared the Fate of other Towns, and funk in confequence of the Lois of its famous Abbey, but for its commodious Creek, by which it is not barely fuftained, but is in a very thriving Condition, exporting (when they are plenty) large Quan- tities of Oyfbers to Holland. The fame may be affirmed of Milton, and Queenborough in the Ifle of Shepey ; and if we take in Rochefler, and its Dependencies on the Medway, we may, without Injury to Truth, affert, there come annually from theie Places to London, from leven to nine hun- dred Vefiels of all Sizes y. To lay nothing of the CoafI: Trade above Gravef^ end, which, though carried on in fmall Craft, taken altogether is very con- fidenible ; or the Ship-building and other naval Manufadfures, by which Multitudes are employed and maintained, in all the great yet flill growing Towns on that Side the Thames. It is to thefe Ports chiefly, that the Ob- fervation of the wife and worthy Defcriber of this Shire is to be referred ^, that it enjoyed in Perfedion thole Advantages, lb much commended by the Antients, viz. the Vicinity of the Sea, the Convenience of a fine River, with « Kilburne's Survey of Kent, p. 286. Harris's Hifloiy of Kent, p. 331. Atlas maritimus et commerrialis, p. 20. y This I have had from good Authority ; and, as I am informed, the Faft may be at any time verified from the Cuftom-houfe Books. 2i Lambard's Perambulation of Kent, p. 13. the of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 409 the Neighbourhood alfo of a great Road, and a vail; City. It is true that M. Cato fpeaks loudly in favour of fuch a Situation ; but then it is in refpeft to a Farm : Mr. Lambard is much too humble in applying this to fo cxtenfive and noble a County, which was fome Time in Name, continued longer ftill in point of Strength, equal to a Kingdom ; and might moft certainly become {o again, if its Ports were thoroughly reftored, its Manufadtures revived, afid that adive Spirit of Induftry once more awakened, which was the original Source, and, while it fubfilled, the fleady Support, of all its prifline Gran- deur. We have treated fo fully of the Ports made by Bays on all the Coafts of Eng- land, that it might appear how much every maritime County in this Kingdom is, in this refpeil, fhll capable of Improvement ; and without doubt, when we refledl on the Extent, the rich Produce, and the numerous Manufactures, in the inland Parts, we cannot but be fatisfied, that it would be very praclica- ble to fupply Materials for Trade and Commerce to every one of thefe Ports, when they Ihall be thus improved ; fo that an Attention to them, fpeaking from the Principles advanced at the Beginning of this Work, is really a very high Point of Policy. In the next place it is apparent, that this Part of the Ifland is already fo far advanced in the Knowlege and Practice of all com- mercial Arts, that there is the greatefl: Reafon to hope every Advantage of this Kind will in Procefs of Time be taken, as the Means are already in a great meafure in our Hands ; fo that the pointing them out is become a Labour not only expedient but neceflary. Belides all this, the Inftances we have given of the prodigious Changes that have been made, and the almoft incredible Profits that have accrued, from the Improvements of Ports long neglected and overleoked, are fo many and fo convincing Evidences of the Truth of this Doctrine, as cannot, if we love, and who can help loving, fo admirable a Country ! but excite us to profecute our Endeavours in tl:iis Relpeit effedtually, in order to reap all thofe Benefits that may be derived to us from this our unrivalled and incomparable Situation. But as this confifiis not with the Bounds prefcribed to this Work, and as the prefent Abilities of tlie Inhabitants, in the other Parts of the Britifli Dominions, do not require that we fliould be fo minute in the Defcription of their Coafis, as we have in the former Chapter fufliciently fliewn that they have already Ports enough of an- other Kind to cany on a much greater Trade than they have hitherto com- pafi!ed, we fhall content ourfelves therefore with mentioning only thofe that are moft remarkable, and are vifibly capable of being turned to immediate Advantage. Tenby, fometlmes written Temby, or Tynby, in PembrokeHiire, on a Promontory, which extends into what is commonly called the Severn Sea, an antient, well feated, walled Town, formerly flrengthened with a Callle, belonging to the Earls of Pembroke, from whence Earl Jafper, and his Vol. I, G g g Nephew 410 The POLITICAL SURVEY Nephew Henry Earl of Richmond, afterwards Henry the fevcqth, made their Efcnpe beyond the Seas, in the Reign of Edward the fourth, with- fome Dirticulty ». It was then, and continued for many Years after, a very confiderable Place, having a good Harbour, defended by a Pier, and a large Share of foreign Commerce. It was indebted for its Rife to its Fiftiery, which was exceedingly beneficial, and is fronr thence ftiled in the old Britilh Language Dimbilli y Pifgod, which implies as much l\ As- the People grew wealthy, they came to contemn this laborious and dangerous Occupation, fo that in the lall Century the Place on which they caught great Quantities of God, Hake, Ling, Conger, and Bream, v/as no longer known ; the Name, of it only, \'\'i. Wills-Mark, being preferved by Tradition c. The Port is but fmall ; the Road, which bears the Name of the Town, is good j but if a propter Sea-Mark was placed on Woolhoufe Rocks, which arc covered at high Water, the Read between the main Land and the Ifle of Caldey, called by the Natives Ynis Pyr, i. e. Pyrrhus's Ifland, might be equally fafe and commodious for Men of War. Some thoufand Chaldrons of Coals and . Culm are annually fliipped from hence : On the Shore there are very large Quantities of Iron-Stone, and Plenty of black Marble, of which Stackpool Houfe, or Stackpool Court, is entirely built d. We are now to pafs round Milford PTaven, of which we have already fpoken in the former Chapter, in order to enter that large Body of Water which is called St. Bride's Bay, into which Ships are often forced by Strsfs of Weather, and where they might meet with more Safety, if fome fmall Sums were properly laid out, in perfedling what Nature has begun, and profeeuted pretty far too, in feveral Places. A good Pier, carried out a fuf- iicient Diftance from the Promontory called Burrow Head, would make Goldtop Road very fafe, in between three and four Fathom Water e. To the North-weft lies Solvach Bay, which might be converted into an excellent Harbour for fmall Veffels, though now dangerous, hardly known, and of little Ufe. The placing Sea-Marks on thofe hitherto terrible Rocks the Horfe and Horfeftioe, would make the Pafllige fafe through Ramfey Sound, aird poffibly all thefe Advantages might be procured for lefs than, a thoufand Founds f. Thefe would not only prove a great Benefit to Navigation, and remove the Reproaches caft in general on this Coafl:, but be likewife very fer- a Polyd. Virgil. Hift. Angl. lib. xxrv. p. 674. Lambard's Topograpliical and HiAorical Diit, p. 376. Dr. Andrew Boarde's Peregrination over England. i- Leland's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 26. H; Liiyd Britan. Defcript. fol. 64. a. Camdeni Bri- tannia, p. 510. <: Sir John Prife's Defcription of Wales, p. 18. Dr. Holland's Tranflation of Camden inPem- broke/hire. Morris's Obfervations on the Ports of Wales, p. 15. d The Seat of John Campbell of Calder, Efq; E Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 17. Morris's Obfervations on the Ports of Wales, p. 17. f My Authority for this is Mr. Lewis Morris, who made his Sur\cy by DireifVions from the Admiralty, and puhliflied his Remaj-ks for the luformaiioa of the World, vkcabls of GREAT BRITAIN. 41 r viceable to the adjacent Country, where Coal Mines adtually are, and Lend and Copper Mines may and would be wrought, if thefe Harbours were in better Order ; to lay nothing of what might probably arife from taking Seals, Porpoifes g, &c. which are here in abundance ; and not to dwell upon an- other obvious Topic, that this whole Bay lies in the Bofom of a Country which has Plenty of Provifions, and where the People are naturally inclined enough to Induflry, if Induftry would produce any-thing, which is the very End that by thefe Emendations would be certainly attained '•. Cridach Road, lying to tlie Eaft of Cardigan Ifland, is tolerable for fmall Veflels, with a good Outlet, which is the Reafon it has been fometimcs fre- quented in Time of War by French Privateers. A fmall Pier at Cridach might make a fafe Port for Veflels employed in the Flerring Fifliery. The Coaft is very foul, and confequently extremely dangerous, along the Shore of Merioneth fli ire, as high as Sarn Badrig, or Patrick's Caufevvay, which is a Ledge of Rocks, very narrow and fteep, and being many Years ill laid down in the Charts, occalioned many Wrecks i. This feeins to countenance the Tradition of the Natives, that all this Bay was formerly Land, and was de- nominated Cantreff Gwaelod, but was fwallowed by the Sea in the Begin- ning of the Sixth Century k. About two Leagues to the North-eaft of this Ledge of Rocks commences that famous Road, held inferior to none in Britain, called St. Tudwals, from an llland on which are the Remains of an old Chapel, dedicated to that Saint. This Road, corruptly called Stid- wells, in a very antient Author ' filled the fair and pleafant Studdals, is in reality a very extraordinary and commodious Place, fo extenfive as to hold any Number of Ships, well defended by the high Lands of Caernarvonfliire on one Side, and by Ynys Tudwall and a Imaller Ille from the Sea on the other, the Water deep, and the Outlet eafy. By running a Pier of Stone from Penrhyn Du Point to the Northward, a good dry Harbour might be made for fmall Veflels ; and tliere are Veins ot Lead and Copper Ore on tlie adjacent Coaft "k Keiriad, Aberdaron, and Porthorion Roads lie on the fame Coaft, and afford nothing remarkable. Porthdinlleyn and Nevyn arc two fknall Ports defended by Piers, which are ufeful for covering llich Vcflcis e when the Greenland Fifliery has proved deficie^r. the Dutch have applied to this Kind of Filhing in thofe Se.is, and made more by it than Ly the Whals-flihing. Strange! that it Ihould not be worth our while at our own Doors, and with (o plentiful a Country at hand. <» This turns mo(^ to the Prejudice of the landed Intereft. 1 he riling Cleueratiou remove to Places where Labour is rewarded, ami the Land remains of its old Value, becaufe it continues, and till this Humour changes muft continue, unimproved. i See Mr. F,J. Lhwyd's Annotations on Merior,eth(hire, in the Englilh Camden. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 17. Morris's Obi'ervatidns on the Ports of Wales, p. 8. '^ Many Parts of Wales have been overflowed bv the Sea, which makes the Shore foul, ani renders the Conftruflion of Piers, fctting up Sea- Marks, and building Lighthoules, DeccfTiT)'. 1 Dr. Andrew Bjar ie's Peregrination over England, uuder the Title ot liavscs. » if orris's Obfervations on the Ports of Wales, p. 8. G g g 2 a> 412 The POLITICAL SURVEY as are employed in the Herring Fifhery ". There is little room to doubt that if Commerce once flouriflied, and the Inhabitants grew wealthy, it would be found very pradticable to help the Defeds of Nature by Art, fo as to render feveral of thefe Havens capable of receiving Ships of Burthen. In the former Chapter we have exprefTed a full Perfuafion, that this^ fpacious Region might be improved much beyond what it is, and of confe- quence the People who inhabit it rendered more numerous, and withal more happy, than they are ; let us prefume to fay fomething mwc upon fo inte- refting a Subjedl. Wales, including Monmouthfhire, which naturally be- longs to, though politically detached from it o, and excluding Anglefey, which, as an Illand, will be confidered in the next Chapter, is larger than the noble Duchy of Milan, the rich Principality of Piedmont, reputed to affbrd its Sovereign an annual Revenue of three hundred thoufand Pounds Sterling ; or than the intire Ifland and Kingdom of Sardinia p. But it will be faid, that, in comparifon of thefe, Wales is deficient in point of Climate and Fertility. It may be fo ; and yet I have heard of Fruits ripening in Mon- mouth ihire, Pembrokefliirc, and in fome other Parts of this Country, in a Degree of Perfedion little inferior to any of thofe that have been mentioned : And, with regard to all the Neceflaries of Life, which is much more effen- tial, I doubt whether it yields to them or not q. But in this I am very clear, that its natural Commodities are to the full as valuable, and that it has or might have many Advantages from its Situation, which they have not. I am farther fatisfied, that there have been Ages when it was equal to them in all Refpedls ; that is, had as many Inhabitants, as great a Number of fair Cities and Towns, and furnifhed as comfortable a Subfiftence to thofe who lived in them, as the People in any of thefe Countries enjoy at prefent r. Neither are there, at leail in my Conception, any infuperable Difficul- ties, to prevent it from becoming again what it was ; and fome things I will take the Liberty to hint, in Support of this Opinion. The Propagation of Timber generally through this Principality, would be attended with the greatefl Benefit, and might be done at a very fmall Ex- ° Thefe are not barely inconfiderable, but alfo decaying ; though the Piers for their Preferva- tion were conftruftcd to cover the Fifhery, which will be loA with them. " Stat. 27 Hen. VIII. cap. 26, ere Dallington's Survey of the Great Duke of Tufcany's State and Dominions, London, i6oj^. liiihop Burnet's Travels into Italy, letter iii. Addlfon's Travels, in his Works, vol. i. p. 136 — ' An Increafe of Commerce would extend Navigation ; this would afford Employment for f5eamcn ; and for thefe the Firt'ieiies would fcrve as a Seminary, from whence they might be drawn, and alfo a Retreat, when not in Pay, as is the Cafe in the North, and in other Fartft of England. ^ This we know has frequently or rather conftantly happened in other Places, and therefore v/e run no great Hazard in predi<2ing the fame Confequences would attend fuch Encouragement given here. ' The Plenty of thofe valuable Commodities mentioned in the Text might, and certainly would, be greatly increafed, by creating a new, conflant, and regular Demand. ■" The Truth of this will appear, from the Periifal of any Land-Tax A(fl, and the Schemes flf the Poor's Rate, as levied in tlic refpeftive Counties, one of which I have procured. There of GREAT BRITAIN. 4.17 There has been, fince Part of this Work was committed to the Prefs, (for having fo long and fo many Journies to make, my Progrefs has indeed been flow,) a Society inftituted in Brecknockfliire, which is an inland County of this Principality, for Purpofes fo rational in themfelves, fo laudable, be- caufe fo public-fpirited, in their Intention, that I cannot eafily find Words to teftify that Satisfadion their Ellablilliment has given me, as I make not any Doubt of tlieir Succefs, or in confequence of that of other Societies rifing gradually up, with like Views, in all the different Counties ". It is formed on a Plan that at once preferves Equality, and excites Emulation amongfl its Members, all of whom prefide in their Turns, and contribute to the Ex- pence employed in the Advancement of the general Intereft. Their Views are, to encourage Agriculture in all its Branches, to introduce the Linen, to extend the Woollen Manufadlure, amend and make new Roads, and, in a Word, to cherifh and fupport Induftry of every Kind o. If we confider this in one Light, it is not only a well-judged but a moft extenfive Charity, reaching not limply to the prefent Generation, but to latert: Pofterity : If viewed in another, it is a moft profitable Academy, where, by a Communi- cation of their feparate Lights, the whole Body gradually acquires a Treafure of folid and practical Science. At the fame time it may, and in Truth ought, to be regarded, as an admirable Inftrument of genuine Policy, calculated to advance the Welfare of the Community p. Look upon it in any Way, confider it in what Light you will, on the firfi: Appearance, and the clofefl Infpedion, it is ftill prudent, ufeful, and amiable. It holds out Encouragement and Pro- teftion to the Poor ; it rewards Afi'iduity and Application in the adtive ; it vifi- bly promotes the Extenfion and Increafe of Property, by the furefi: Means ; it provides for the Inftrudiion even of the moft learned, by bringing every probable Propofal to the Teft of Experiment, which can alone fecure Certainty ; and it guards fuch as are lefs knowing from injuring themfelves by improper Purfuits, through the Premiums they give upon fuch Methods of improving as they know may be carried on to Profit. May Providence profper their Endeavours! May Mankind pay a proper Refpedt to their Condudt ! And may others follow their excellent Example ! I N the former Chapter we have difcourfed pretty copioufly of fuch Ports as lie in the Firths of North Britain j though confidering thole Firths as Bays, o All Enterprizes of this Sort, though flow, doubtful, and difficult in their Beginnings, yet when once their Foundations are well laid, Prejudices OTCrcome, and Numbers fet to work, pro- ceed amazingly faft. o Thefe Views are exceedingly well adjnfled : Cheapnefs of Provifions is an eOential Article towards the Suppoi't of Manufacftures ; and going eaiily to Market is all that is farther waniir.g to render Labour and Manufaftures thoroughly fuccefsful. P Voluntary Subfcriptions are the fureA Teflimonies of public Spirit : Thofe on'y who give, direft, which fecures Frugality ; and both taken together, will, if any thing can, exclude Corruption. Vol. L H h h theft 4.18 The POLITICAL SURVEY thelc Ports might many of them, without Impropriety, have been placed In this. But having been once Ipokcn to, we will confine ourielvcs now to fuch as lie immediately on the Sea. There are, in the common Opinion, a greater Number of theie, on both Sides of this Part of the Illand, than, even in their prefcnt State, the fcanty Commerce of North Britain feems to require q. But yet wefhall find feveral of them, on the Eaft Side more eipccially, upon a cloler Examination, fo much injured by Time and Neglect, that it is no fmall Hindrance to the Induftry of the Inhabitants, who would certainly export more of\ their Commodities and Manufactures, and of Confequence would employ a much larger Proportion of Labour and Skill in procuring both, if their Harbours were in a better Condition ^. It is with the Bulk of a People as it is with particular Men, if they have not Tools they cannot work ; or even if they have they will not, without the Profpeft of a Market ; and therefore it is the Intereft of the Public to give them AlTillance in this Pvcfpcd ; becaufe without it, they remain lefs profitable Members of Society, or are induced to defert their own Country, in order to feck that Encouragement elfewhere which thev would have readily embraced, if they could have met with it at heme s. What therefore is prcpofed in this Place, is no more than toinfift on a few of the mofl: remarkable, and which, in their prefent Situation, are attended with particular Circumftances, that fccm to recommend them to pub- lic Notice, fo far as to procure thofe Amendments that are requifite, to render them of much greater Utility than formerly, or than, without luch Attention fhewn them, they are ever likely to be. The Flrft of thefe thus recommended fivall be the Port of Dunbar, near the Entrance of the Firth of Forth t. It is a Royal Burgh, and was heretofore a ftrong Place, defended alfo by a Caftle or Fortrefs, which was much ftronger, and the principal Caufe of its fuftering extremely in the Civil War ; fince which its Fortifications have been partly neglefted, and partly demolidied «. As it lies in the Shire of Haddington, or Eaft Louthian, which, in point of Beauty and Fertility, is not inferior to any in North Britain, and as there have long been, and ftill are, \¥ool!en and other Manufadures carried on in that Shire, fo, from its Vicinity to the Places where thofe Manufactures are fettled, it is become a Town of good Trade, and, in virtue of its Harbour, of fome q See the feveral modern Defcriptions of this Country, which .ill fuggeft, that there .arc Harbours enough, and but few VefF.;ls belonging to them ; which is, gener.nlly fpeaking, the Truth. r It is not barely the Number, but the Situation alfo, in refpeft to Havens, that renders them beneficiai to a Countty, by affording equal Means of Improvement in all its Fans. s la every Country one of the principal Objcfts of Government fiiould be, to retain its Sub- jefts ; becaufe the Lofs of them is not onlyjan irreparable Misfortune, but an indelible Reproach. ' Joan. Leflaei Rcgionum et Infularum Scotix Defcriptio, p. 15. Ruchanan, lib. i. p. 13. u Camdeni Britannia, p. 687. Sir James Dalrymple's Defcription of Scotland, chap. vii. p. 29. The Prefent State of Scotland, London, 1682, 12°, p- 131. foreign of GREAT BRITAIN. 419 foreign Commefce w. This Haven, however, is not either lar»e or commo- dious, and is, at its Entrance, alio embarrafled v/ith Rocks. Two Ads of Parliament, the Firfc for Nineteen, 'the Second for Twenty-five Years, now near expired, were obtained, granting the ufual Allowance for the Improve- ment of the Port, and other Purpofcs ; lince which, and more efpecially after 'the Peace, of Aix ia Chapelle, it began to thrive x. The Herring Fifhery is fonictimes very profitable} thefe Herrings, in point of Quality, as well as Size, being generally efteemed fuperior to thofe caught by the Dutch. Some public-fpirited Perfons have alfo fet up Whale-fiPning here, with Succcfs y. But from the Commencement of the prefent War, Dunbar has fuffered in commoni with other Harbours on this Side of the Illand. It continues, ne- verthelefs, in a tiourifhing, though not in the fame flourifhing State, and has five Creeks dependent upon it, in the Cuftom-houfe Accounts ^. This Place, if the Port was once improved as far as it is capable, fo as to receive more Ships, and tliofe of larger Burthen, and that Allowance to maintain thofe Improvements, whicli they now enjoy, continued for a farther Term, would, from the Convenience of its Pofition, and the induftrious Temper of the People in the Country about it, become, in all human Probability, much more coniiderable than we now find it. St. Andrews is an ancient City, once the Glory of Fife. In refpeft to Situation, it has been juftly celebrated, by foreign as well as domeftic Writers ; lying in a fweet Plain, admirably watered, enjoying a pure and wholefome Air, a rich and fertile Soil, and having a fine Profoedt of the Sea ^. It was a Place of Note, when poflefled by the Pidls, became an Epifcopal See in the ninth Century, and the Seat of an Archbilhop, Metropolitan of Scotland, in the fifteenth ''. AnUniverfity had been founded here a little before, which {hU fubfifis, and is now compofed of two, though, till very lately, of three Colleges c. There was alfo a Caftle, built for its Proteftion, the Vefiio-es of which, at this Time, are fcarce vifible. In its flourifhing State it confiiicd of ■w Englifh Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. Brome's Travels through England, Scotland, ■and Wales, p. 191, 192. Cutler's CoaAing Pilot, p. 7. « Stat. 5 Georg. I. cap. 16. 10 Georg. II. cap. ii. This laft Statute determines in 1763, or the Clofe of the next SelTions of Parliament. y Spruel's Scheme of Scotland's Produfls and Manufachires, p. 25. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 9. Lindfey's Interefl of Scotland coniidered, p. 182. ■>■ Crouch's Book of Rates, p. 286. I have taken all the Pains I could to afcertaia thefe Facts, as well from Extrafts out of the Cuftom-houfe Books, as pri-.ate Information. 3 Cardan de vita propria, cap. 29. 40. Ifolario di Thomafo Porcacchi, lib. i. p. 24. Arihuri Johnftoni Eulogium Fani S'i. Andrea?, apud Camdeni Britanniam. fa Johannis de Fordun Scotichronicon, lib. ii. fol. 37, b. 38, b. Major de Guftis Scotorum, lib. i. cap. 15. fol. 22. a. Leflaei Reglonum et Infularum Scotia Defcriptio, p. 24. ' Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Hiftoriie, lib. xvi. fol. 342. Camdeni Britannia, p. 703. SpotfwooJ's Hiftory of the Church of Scotland, p. 57, 58. Prefent State of Scotland, p. 197. Stat. 20 Geo. II. cap. 32. H h h 2 four 420 The POLITICAL SURVEY four large Streets, handfomely built, with fmaller Streets and Lanes crofling them, containing in the whole about two thoufand Floufes; of which Streets two are Hill pretty intire, and there remain in them about the fourth Part of that Number of habitable Houfes '1. The Cathedral and Caftle are ruinous, other public Edifices decaying, fome utterly confumed e. The Religious Houfes ; the Revenues of the Clergy, who compofed the Chapter ; the Stu- dents of the Univerfity, once very numerous ; the Dependents and Officers of the Archbilhops ; and the Refort of Pilgrims from all Parts, and even from beyond the Seas, drawn by the Fame of the Relics of the tutelar Saint, fup- pofed to be lodged therein, proved the great Support of this City, which was then rich and populous, with excellent Roads on every Side, which ftill in fome meafure remain, and its Fairs are much frequented, with a good Fi{hcry, and a confiderable foreign Commerce f. It would have been happy, if when thofe Funds arifing from Superftition were taken away, fome Methods had been concerted, both here and in other Places, that might have prevented the Decay and Depopulation of the City, which, in Confequence of fo great a Change, and the fudden Exclufion of fuch a Number of Perfons, as from the Caufes before-mentioned, were obliged, and in Confequence of that Obligation, had alfo the Means affigned them of living in St. Andrews, immediately declined, and has continued gradually finking ever fince g. It had probably funk much fooner, if King James the Sixth had not re- formed and reftored the Univerfity, to which its Revenues were effeftually fecured h. It remained ftill poffcffed of a good Harbour, though rendered orio-inally fuch by Art, capable of receiving an Hundred Sail of as large Vef- fels as were then commonly ufed. The Merchants and Owners of Ships had handfome and fpacious Houfes, with Cellars, and other Conveniencies fuitable, in the North Street, now totally demolilhed and gone, and were wont to em- ploy Dufi"c3, to fiih for Herring in deep Water, and alfo for Cod and Ling on the Banks, which furnilhed many FamiHes with a comfortable Subfiflence. Befides this, they had ftill a competent domeftic Trade, and fome Share of d Dr. Sibbald's Hiftory of Fife, p. 134, 135. Additions to Camden's Britannia. Atlas Ma- ritimus et Commercialis, p. 7. e Sir James Dalrymple's Defcription of Scotland, chap. xx. p. 119, 120. Brome's Travels through England, Scotland, and Wales, p. 183. All the modern Dcfcriptions. f See the Appendix to Archbifliop Spotfwood's Hiftory, and the Accounts given of the Mag- nificence of this City in the Time of Cardinal Ueton and Archbifliop Hamilton. B In fuch Revolutions as thefe private IntereA commonly prevails ; and the Welfare of the Public, though made the Inftrument to effeift fuch Changes, is, in cfTefting them, very little regarded. •> Johnftoni Rerum Britannicarum Hifl;. lib. vii. p. 229. Spotfwood's Hiftory of the Church of Scotland, p. 447. 455- Moyfes Memoirs of the Affairs of Scotland, p. 253. foreign of GREAT BRITAIN. 421 foreign Correfpondence'. At the Beginning of the Troubles in the Reign of Charles the Firft, which is a Proof of what has been faid, there were about Fifty Sail belonging to the Place. The fatal Blow at Dundee reduced the far greater Part of the Traders of this City, who, as to a Place of Security, had fent the beft of their Effects thither. A convincing Evidence of this arifes from their Manner of railing Five hundred Pounds, being the Compofition for a Thoufand, demanded by General Monk foon after ; which being by Way of Loan, on Intereft, has remained a Debt upon the Corporation ever fince ^. In the Reign of Charles the Second fomewhat was done for theUni- verfity, but nothing for the City, which is alfo an ancient Royal Burgh ; or the Port, which was then decaying daily, as their Fifliery, for want of Money to repair thofe Defeats, was likewife gradually declining, till in the end it was quite loft. At the Union of the two Kingdoms, St. Andrews was fo fallen, that in the Affeflment then made of the Royal Boroughs to the Cefs, cor- refponding to the Land Tax in South Britain, flie pays about an Eighth of what is charged upon Glafgow '. By the Inhabitants being thus impoverillied, though they have conftantly ftruggled, as far as they were able, to maintain their Port, in which they have received alfo fome little Affiftance from the other Royal Boroughs, and from the generous Spirit of one of their Pro- vofls "1, yet Time and Storms had fo deftroyed it Thirty Years ago, that Peter Lord King being Chancellor of Great Britain, they petitioned him for a Brief, fetting forth, that their Haven might be thoroughly repaired, for lefs than the Sum of Nine thoufand Pounds ; which Brief produced little : And now, as may be reafonably expefted, it is become fo much worfe, as to be in effeft no Port at all ; the Sand having filled it up, and thereby deprived the Inha- bitants of Hope, and of courfe put an End to their Endeavours ". The reviving the Luftre of this once fplendid City; the recovering to it& former Utility this once commodious Haven, and thereby refloring to its an- cient Profperity the happily feated Peninfula of Fife, would be fuch a noble Teftimony of the Wifdom and public Spirit of the prefent Generation, as could not fail of exciting the Emulation, as well as commanding the Refpeft,, of latefl Pofrerity ^. This certainly, though fo long ncgleded, is very prac- ' It appears from hence, that without fome Equivalent for the Archiepifcopal See, and oth.tr Ecclefiaflical Endowments, the City coidd not fupport itfclf, whith was a great Lofs to the whole- County of Fife, where Lands, even at this Time, fell at a lower Rate than in fome more remote- Shires. ^ Hiftorical Remarks on the ancient City of St. Andrews in North Britain. London, 1728'. Svo. Addreffed to Peter Lord King, then Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain. 1 Stat. Car. IL p. 3. c. 23. pag. 562. Prefent State of Scotland, chap. xi. p.- 196. — zoO. See alfo the Hiftorical Rem.arks before cited, and all the modern Accounts of the Place. m Hlftorical Remarks on the City of St. Andrews in North Britain, p. 26, 27. "^ According to the beft Information I have been able to procure. '' As the Sight of ancient Ruins naturally excites Veneration for paft Times, fo fiich Renova*- tions of decayed Cities, have been ever julfly regarded, not only as Works of true Policy (as they certainly arc), but alfo as Monuments of public Piety. ticable^ 422 The POLITICAL SURVEY licAble, witl^ a fmall Degree of Attention, and without demanding any large Expence. The Country about it abounds in Grain, as alfo in Coals and Salt; lb that Provifions being plenty. Labour is of courfe cheap,. There are like wife in its Neighbourhood great Flocks of Sheep, producing large Quantities of Wool, v.'hich is of fuch a Staple asmay be very eafily fpun and wove into a Sort of light pleafant Stuff, refcmbling the Etamines of Rheims, Amiens, Mans, Lude, Nogent le Rotru, and other Places in France, which are uled for the Nuns Veils, tlie cloathing the fccular Clergy in moil Popiih Countries, and many other Purpofes ; or the Stametes of the Low Countries, not much unlike them, but of all Colours, and of which there is in the Levant a great Confumption ; which Manufadures might, widiout Difficulty, be brought to, and eflabliflied in St. Andrew?, where there are fpare Hands enough to be eniployed p. The Port, though fallen into fo low and deplorable a Condition, ftill retains aCapa- , city of being made full as good or better than ever it was, by removing thofe .Heaps of Sand which entirely choak the Bafon ; repairing the Breaches made ;,in the old Works ; and, which is moft material, by running a Stone Pier as far ..as -the Beacon, which would hinder Vefiels from being driven on Rocks at the .Entrance, and enable them to ride fafe in the Harbour q. The Beach is as proper as any for drying Cod and other Filli in the bcft Mediod ; and if the Port, become in a manner ufelefs, was once put into a proper State, with thefe Additions, the Herring Fifliery, now no longer carried on, as requiring bet- ter Veffels than at prefent belong to the Place, would be very foon retrieved f. Allow me to fay ftill farther, that if one of the decayed Edifices was con- verted into what in South Britain is called a Trinity Houfe, of which Captains of Men of War coming thither occafionally, and experienced Mafters of Ships in any of the Ports on the Coaft, might be Members, with a Power to examine and fwear Pilots, and to infpedl the other Harbours on this Side of North Britain, and the Management of the Fiflieries, reporting annually their Obfervatlons to tlie Truflees, it would be of .Service to the Place, and at the fame time a Benefit to the Public. If under their View alfo a School or Col- lege for inftrufting Youth in AAronomy, Cofinography, Geography, Natural Hiftory, thepaft and prefent State of Commerce, with the Theory of Navi- gation in .all its Branches, were added to the Univerfity, for both which Foundations the City is adm.irably feated, all thefe defirable Ends would be yP DlcTionnaii e Unlverfel de Commerce, vol. iii. col. 312. vol. iv. col. 846. This would be fo f.ir from injuring, that it would be no difficult Thing to (hew, th.it it would be ferviceable to the Woollen Manufaftures of South Britain, and that in many Refpe(fls. q As this .Haven |.Ies in the Middle between the Two Firths of Forth and Murray, it would be very ufeful, in bad Weather, to Veflels bound to either, and not able to make the Entrances of thofe Firths. r A late A. Both FilTieries are to be obtained, perhaps I ihould fay recovered, and kept too, if again made ours, no otherwife than by con- itant Application, extreme Diligence, and the flrideft Frugality. Thefe, and none but thefe, are the Chains by which the Dutch have hitherto retained them, in fpite of all the Means that at different Periods have been ufed to di- veft them of what are our natural, and their acquired, Sources of Wealth, Navigation, and People j and will certainly continue to do fo, till thefe Me- thods are employed for making the moft of all our Harbours; in whick, through the Benevolence of Providence, we are fo much their Superiors b. As to the remaining Ports on the Eaft Side of North Britain, I have no- thing to add to what I faid in the laft Chapter. In the Front of our Ifland, to the North, lies Loch Eribol in Strathnaver, which runs fome Miles into the Land, and thereby affords,, whenever the Inhabitants fhall have any Com- mercej a convenient and a capacious Haven. On the Weft, as I have been " If, in its prefent Condition, it is thought expedient to have, in Time of War, a Battery on the Ifland ; a Fort and a fmall Ganifon would be both ufeful and necefli^ry, in cafe it was, for the Purpofes above-mentioned, thus improved. ^ The great Benefit the Dutch derived from this Trade, was by exporting Bone, Oil, and Spermaceti. If we ferve ourfelves, we certainly fave what we formerly paid for thefe Commo- dities ; but in order to gain, we mui\ alfo vend all, or fome of them at lead, to other Nations. a It is apparent, that One-third, at leaft, of the Expences might be faved to the Owners at London ; and, at the fame time, the Money fpent at Peterhead would render ii a thriving Place. ■> Much Wonder has been made how the Dutch could work us out of thefe FiHieries, which lie fo near to us, and fo far from them ; whereas in truth we have always neglei^ed our capital and decifive Advantages, and thereby have in faifl worked out ourfelves. f very of GREAT BRITAIN. 425 -Vtry lately informed by that intelligent and diligent Perfon, from whom the Public is to expeft a clear Account of thofe hitherto unfurveyed Coafts, they abound with very fafe and noble Ports, fuch as are to be looked for in vain on any Part of the Continent c. Of thcfe, as my Subjedt feems to require it, I prefume to mention a few. Loch Laxford in Edra Chulis, which is the Well: Side of Strathnaver, a Country far from being inhofpitable, or 'even un- pleafant, though in fo northern a Climate. Loch Dow, and Loch Einnard, in Allynt. Loch Broom runs many Miles eaftward into the Land, upon which there was formerly a Cuftom-houie. Loch Ewe, in which, at its Opening into the Sea, is a pretty Ifland of the fame Denomination. Gare Loch, and Loch Torrindon, all in the old Shire of Rofs, are large Bays of the Sea, which might accommodate feveral good Towns, if fliey were built on their Shores. Loch Duich feparates Kintail and Glenelg, two Diflridhs of the fame Country, anciently called Rofs, and is a very beautiful Body of Water d. LoGH Sun ART in Argylefliire is Twenty-four Miles in Extent, having an Illand at the Mouth, which divides it into Two narrow Channels; thou'^h above this Illand it opens again, fo as to become upwards of an Englifli Mile in Breadth e. To the South of this, at a fmall Diftance from DunrtafFnage, once a Royal Caftle, lies a fmall, fafe, commodious Port, called Oban Bay, covered by the Illand of Kerrera, which is in Length about three Miles, by xvhich it is efredually defended from Wefl Winds, as it is, in like manner, fecured, by high Lands on the Continent, from all other Winds f. On the North Side of this Bay there are Ele\en, on the South Twenty-fix, in the Middle about Twenty Fathom Water. Add to all this, that the whole Sound is in effedl an Harbour, or at leaft a commodious Read, with Twenty Fadiom Water, and good Anchorage almofl every where. There are, belides, two = The Perfon meant in the Text is the ingenious Mr. Murdoch Mackenzie, to whom we al- ready owe the following ufeful Performance, the Title of which at large runs thus .- " Orcades • " or a Geographic and Hydrographlc Survey of the Orkney and Lewis Iflands, in Eight Maps • *' exhibiting the Rocks, Shoals, Soundings, Quality of the Bottom, Diverfities of the Coaft, " Flowings, Setting of the Tides, and dillant Views of the Land : Alfo an Account of the " Orkney Iflands, the Manner of taking the Survey, the State of the Tides, and a particular " Defcription of the Rocks, Shoals, Channels, Harbours, Anchoring-places, the Direftions. Ir- *' regularities, and Velocities, of the feveral Streams of Tide round each liland. Interfpcrfed " with fuitable Direftions for Sailors.'' London, 1750. Folio. d The Situation of thefe Ports is fo defcribed in the Text as to be moft eaiily found in the large Maps of this Country, till thofe Charts fliall appear, in which they will be iiiore correcVlv delineated. e Letter to a Member of Parliament, concerning the Free Britifli Fillieries, p. 40. ConErmed to me by many Perfons who are well acqusinted with the Country. '' The Account in the Text I take from an accurate Draught of this convenient Harbour, made rpon the Spot with all pofTible Care and Attention, and in order to fupport the Appiication for eftablifhing a Cufiora-houfe here, as is alfo mentioned in the Text. Vol. I. I i i Havens 426 The POLITICAL SURVEY Havens in the Ifle, one from it? Shape called the Horfe-fl-soe, the other Ar- dintraive; with Two fair Outlets, one to the North-Eaft, the other to the South-Weft ; fo that Veffels may enter and depart, without Inconveniency or Danger g. The Situation of this Place, in the very Track of Ships bound to or from the northern Parts of Europe, feems to demand Attention ; and upon this Account, as I have been informed. Application has been lately made with Succefs for eftablifliing a Cuftom-houfe at the little Town called Oban, which ftands immediately upon it ; and this will undoubtedly be not only ufeful to the Town, and ferviceable to the Country, but beneficial alfo, in many Rcfpedls, to the Navigation of the North-Weft Side of Britain in. general ''. Circumftances which, in an Age like this, when the Emoluments arifing to the Public from bringing a Country into Cultivation, introducing Trade, and thereby augmenting the Number and Subftance of the People who inhabit it, are fo well underftood, muft have their Weight i. We will con- clude this Subjedt with mentioning Loch Fyne, incomparably the faireft Inlet of them all, which is fixty Miles long, and from two to four broad at the upper End, where ftands the Town of Inverara, which occafions Argyle, and all its Dependencies, to be fometimes called the Shire of Inverara 1^, This Royal Burgh is the Refidence of his Grace the Duke of Argyle, who has built a ftatciy Palace there, on purpofe to indicate, what in fo advantageous a Situation, Pofterity may do for enlarging and embelliftiing the Town, when Induftry ihall have improved the Country round about ; and the Inhabitants, from its Produce and its Fifliery, for which it is already very juftly famous, have made it what Nature feems to have defigned, the Centre of the Commerce of the weftern Coaft, and of the Illes '. An Objedion may poflibly be ftarted, from the Account I have given of this Country, againft the general Doftrine I have fo much laboured to eftablifli. It may be faid. If this Diftndl pclTels in reality fo many fine Havens, and yet continues in fo rude a Situation, with few Towns, and little or no Commerce, g There are Two Iron Furnaces in the Vicinity of this Port; but the Ore wrought there is brought from Lancafhire, though there is enough in that Country, if the Inhabitants, infVead of letting their Woods, were wealthy enough to work their own Mines, and manufafture their own Iron. *■ The only Port on this Coaft at prefent is Fort William, upon Loch Eil, which, though very commodious for the Garrifon, is of little Service to Commerce; becaufe Ships once at Anchor there are liable to be long detained, for want of the Winds neceflary to bring them out. i Whatever brought Ships and Commerce into this Country, would of courfe excite Induflry ; and in proportion to the Amendment of their private Conditions, the Inhabitants would become much more aftive as Members of Society, and more ufeful Subjefts to the State. " See the Statutes, 20 Geo. II. cap. 43. feifi:. 33. & 22 Geo. II. cap. 29. feft. i. ' The Commerce of the North-Weft of South Britain, and of the North of Ireland, with this Part of North Britain and the Illes, might be very beneficial to them all j and the Haveu of Inverara may well intitle the Place to become their principal Emporium, Z what of G R E A T BRITAIN. 427 what becomes of your Propofition, that Places having thefe Advantages are the moft valuable of any upon the Globe ? m A fliort Account of the Caufes of its being in this diflreiled State, will unravel this Myflery, and place Things in their true Light. The Inhabitants of the Countries to the North of Ar- gyle(hire live in the very fame manner, and under the fame Tenures their Anceflors did ; and their Landlords, or at leaft many of them, preferring their own certain and immediate Intereft to the uncertain though greater Benefits that might refult to them from the Profperity of their Tejiants, are content that in this Condition they (hould for ever live ". They lie at a vaft Diftance from England, and befides fpeak no Language but a Dialed of the old Britifh, unintelligible as Arabic to their fouthcrn Neighbours ; and under thefe Circum- ftances, as Things have continued for Ages, fo probably they might continue for Ages Hill, and the Capacity of the Country for the moft beneficial Improve- ments fubfift notwithftanding intire and unimpeached, A People who live hardly, have little Correfpondence with thofe who live better, and are not en- couraged by their Superiors to exert themfelves for the Change of their Si- tuation, are not like to make ufe of Ports, however convenient; and to thofe who from Experience thoroughly know the Value of fuch natural Advantages, they have hardly been yet properly difcovered. But after all, thefe, though very untoward, are but accidental Impediments, which may be eafily removed. In moft Parts the Mountains give evident Marks of Iron, Lead, and Copper j in fome, as I have been informed, of Coals. In other Parts good Timber, fuch as Oak and Witch-elm, is not at all fcarce ^. Some Grain they have, but it is often obtained by digging of fmall Pieces of tolerable Soil, which they could render far more profitable, than with all their Labour they now do, if either their own Mines were opened, or they allowed to import Coals Duty-free, to burn Lime-ftone, for meliorating thofe Lands ; of which Stone they have plenty p. Black Cattle, Sheep, and Goats, are the fole Riches of the Inha- bitants ; and thefe indeed are there in Abundance. Their Lochs would afford them very lucrative Filheries, more elpecially if they were inftrudted to make their own Boats, Sails, Ropes, Iron-work, Nets, Cafks, and Salt ; all of which are certainly in their Power. The People are robuft, adtive, patient of Fatigue, and though hitherto unacquainted with Induitry, becaufe Strangers ■" The tru-e extent of the Propofition maintained by me is, that if fuch Places are not fully and compleatly improved, the Fault muft lie in the Inhabitants, or their Government ; but then this Fault may be certainly removed. i' This Difpofit'on, however, is by no means general, having been affiled in this very Part of my Work by Memoirs for promoting'induflry to the utmoft Extent in thofe Countries, drawn by Gentlemen of diAinguifhed Families, and independent Fortunes. o J. LeQ^i Regionum et Infularum Scotix Defcriptio, p. 24—27. Sir James D.ilrymple's Edition of Camden's Defcription of Scotland, p. 187 — 199. D'Audiirrct Hirtolre et Geogruphie ancienne et moderne, tom. i. p. 258 — 261. P This, from his own Obfervation, and the Information alfo given him by the Natives, was very kindly communicated to me by Mr.^Iackenzie, whom I have before cited. I i i 2 to 428 The POLITICAL SURVEY to the Fruits of it, yet by no means of a lazy Difpofition. We propofe no- thing impradicable, therefore, in recommending thefe Regions to a thorough Cultivation, from the Attention and Afliftance of the Legiflature ; and that the Public would be fufficient Gainers, by any Expence that might be requifite for that Purpofe, we have already fhewn 4 j fo that we need not repeat it here. The Diftridl of Cantire, which is often, though improperly, written Kin- tire, is, as the Word in the old Language of the Country fignifies, a Renin - fula, and is plainly the Promontory called Epidion by Ptolemy >■. In point of Form and Situation it is truly fingular. It is very near fifty Englidi Miles in Length, from North to South ; its greateil: Breadth at the northern Extremity ten ; its leaft at the fouthern between three and four Miles. At the northern Extremity it is connected with Knapdale (another Diftri(5l of the Shire of Ar- gyle), by a narrow rocky Ifthmus, called the Tarbat, about a Mile broad. On the Eafl lie the Illands of Bute and Arran, between it and the Continent of North Britain, from which it is removed about feven Leagues. On the Weft the Illands of Jura and Jlay, at the Dillance of four or five Leagues, and Ireland to the South, but rather nearer s. On the Eafl: Side of Cantire, a few Miles from its Ibutliern Extremity, the Sea forms a deep commodious Bay, covered by a fmall Ifland, and thereby offers a very fafe and convenient Harbour to the fmall Capital of this Region, called Campbelltown. It is^ notvvithlfanding its admirable Situation, the youngefl of the Royal Burghs, and till of late but very inconliderable t. About ten Years ago the Inha- bitants, encouraged by the Bounties given, and the Attention Ihewn by the Legiilature to the Filheries, began ferioully to regard the lingular Circum- fiances of Advantage arifuig from the Pofition of their Town and Port ; and in Confequence of this, applied themfelves to the Herring, Cod, and Salmon Filheries, with fuch indefatigable Diligence, that in the Years 1752, 1753, 1754, they, one with another, acquired annually, by the Sale of the fevcral kinds of FiHi before-mentioned, and the Bounties to which they became in- t'.tled, ten thoufand Pounds » ; which has given fuch a Sparit to the People, tha2 they have raifed feveral public Edifices, and made a Quay at their own Ex- pence 3 and have built, and are building, laiany new Stone Houfes, and ' The Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. I. p. 217. r Chiud. Ptolema-i CJeoginph. lib. viii. Camdcni Britannia, p. 706. Baxtcri GIoITariuni Aiitiquitatum Brirannicanim, p. 19:;. where we arc told the true Word is Pepidion. * Buchanani rerom Scoticarum Hitl lib. i. wliere he cbfervcs the Tarbat is fo low and fiar, that the Inhabitants draw their little VelTels, called Birlrngs, over it, from Sea to^ Sea ; whitii fiiews, that with moft of the Advantages of an hifular Situation, it has alfo a Communication by. Land with the Continent ; which, in fbme Cafes, may be a great Conveniency alfo. I It became u Royal Burgh towards the latter End of the laft Century. " I would not have a/Terted this, U 1 liaj not before me authcatic Certificates of the Faefls,' from, the CiiHom-houfe Books. extending of GREAT BRITAIN. 429 extending their Commerce daily. This is mentioned particularly, tofhew the good Effedts thofe excellent Laws have had, and how foon, when People are put into a right Train, and have a reafonable Profpe(rt of being made Gainers, they are excited to Induftry; which is lefs an Advantage to themfelves than to the Community w. This Town is accounted a Port in the Senle of the Cuftom-houfe, and has a proper Ellablifhment of Officers in that Capacity, and eight Creeks dependant upon it, as alfo Officers for collecting the Revenue arifing from Salt x. It is not fimply the Inhabitants of this Royal Burgh, or, as we would ftile it in England, Corporation, who have found their Account in this Introdudioa of Commerce ; thofe who live in the adjacent Country feel, as in fuch a Cafe muft ever happen, equal, if not fuperior Benefits. The Convenience of a cheap and eafy Carriage to diftant Markets, has ad:ually, within this fliort Period, brought large Tradls of Land into Cultivation, and has even pro- duced fome new Hulhandries ; that is, new with refpedt to this Region, and to thefe People ; infomuch that, if I have not been greatly mifinformed, the very Freight of Potatoes from Cantire, has amounted in fome Years to feveral hundred Pounds. It will, however, be proper to remark, that in refped; to every Port like this, where the Bafis of the Bufinefs carried on is Fifhing, their Profperity will be for fome time precarious ; fince, if they are unlucky in that for a few Years fucceffively, which may very well fall out, they are fure to be dillreffedj and in no fmall Danger of feeing the Prcduill of their paft Endeavours, as well as the Bloom of diflant Hopes, blafted before their In- duftry has laid a Foundation wide enough to fuftain their L^ndertakings, inde- pendant of the original Fund. To prevent this, which would be a real Injury to the Communiiy, which is the cliief Gainer by their Improvements, and mufl reap the Profits of all their Succefs, give me Leave to fuggeft, that diough now neglected, becaufe they cannot be wrought to Advantage, Coals have been, and might be, raifed herein great Quantities. If therefore, for afhort Term, they were allowed to fliip thefe Duty-free to the North- Weft Coaft, where, as we have before obferved, they might be employed in burning Litne for meliorating the Soil, this would be infinitely advantageous to both Coun- tries, without coftingtlie Public a fingle Farthing. The People of Campbell- town could, and no doubt very foon would, boil Salt llifficient for their own Fifheries ; and as in the North of England, where one Species of Induftry has excited, and one rvlanufafture made vvav for another, fo here the Navi- gation and Commerce of this Haven might be very fpeedily put on a fecure Foot, the Example would unqueftionabiy operate where it is moft v/anted i * They have adventured ia the Whale-fifhing, and have fiiewn fuch a commercial Spirit as deferves to be fupporred. Jf Addirions to the Englifh TraaIl:uioa of Caaibdea's Brit.anma. Crouch's Complett: Tiew of the Brjtilh Cuflou.s, p. 3S6. and 430 The POLITICAL SURVEY and of confequence the Happinefs of the People, and the Revenue of tlie Government, would increafe together. The vifible Augmentation of the latter proving, as in every well governed State it mufl ever prove, the deareft and the mofl authentic Evidence of the former. There is only one Port more, that on the Plan of this Chapter, it will be requifite to mention in this Part of our Ifland. The weftern Extremity of the Shire of Wigton, which Shire Is only the Wefl; Part of the Country of Galloway, forms a Peninfula refembling a Cref- cent, or rather, as we before obfervcd, an Anchor, which is connected with the Continent by an Ifthmus, about fix Miles in Breadth from North to South; and this Peninfula feems to be v/hat Ptolemy called Novantum Cherfonefus, having on one Side Loch Rian, and on the other the Bay of Glenluce ) . Upon the former of thefe Bays (for fuch they are both) flands Stranraer, a Royal Burgh, and that Port of which we promifed to fpeak. It has a moft conve- nient Pofition, in refpe£l to the great Body of Water it commands, and the Country lying round on every Side ; fo that from the latter it derives a reafon- able Share of domeftic Trade ; and fome foreign Commerce, as alfo a fmali Intercourfe with our North American Colonies, from the former. Port Pa- trick, flianding at a little Diftance to the Weft, immediately on the Sea, is a Member of this, with Eight Creeks belonging to it j and exclufive of thefe, there are two, which immediately depend on Stranraer, with aCuftom-lioufe, and a proper Eftablifhment, and fome Officers alfo for the Receipt of the Revenue arifing from Salt z. The Peninfila before defcribed, on which are Port Patrick, and all its Creeks, may be from its northern Horn, which is called Fairland Point, to the Mull of Galloway, its fouthern Extremity, about thirty Englifh Miles in Length, and from three to fix in Breadth, containing in the whole ninety fquare Miles at leaft. In the old Language of the Na- tives it was called the Rinnes of Galloway ; and though no way extraordinary in refpedl to Soil, being hilly rather than mountainous, yet is not deficient in Grain, abounds in Grais, and confequently in Sheep and Black Cattle *. But if any Manufadiures were introduced here, as there is room for many, and raw Materials for feveral, the Excellence of its Situation, which is alike favour- able for fiOiing, coafting, and foreign Commerce, would quickly appear, and render this Diilrifb, which is equal in Size to Jerfey andGuernfey, not inferior to them in Cultivation, Produce, or Number of People ; to accomplifh which falutary Change, there are no other Inftrumtnts requifite than Liduftry and y See the Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 114. ^ Additions to the Englilh Tranflation of Caraden's Britannia. Crouch's Complete View of the Britiih Cuftoms, p. 388. * Jean. Ledaei Regionum et Infularum Scotis Defcriptio, p. 8, 9. Buchanan! Rerum Scoti- carum Hiil, lib. i. Sir James Dalr) mple's Defcrlption of Scotland, p. 60. Perfeverance ; of GREAT BRITAIN. 431 Perfeverance ; for were thefe once prefent, Experience and Emulation would quickly effed the reft. It has been already obferved in regard to Ireland, that it abounds with Bays or Harbours, made by the Indentures of its Coaft ; of which, or at leaft of the moft remarkable, we are to take Notice. Let us then begin at the Mouth of the Shannon, which is formed by Two Promontories ; that on the North called Cape Leane, or Loups Head ; this on the South Bally- heigh, or Kerry Head a. On the Kerry Side, about Twenty-five Miles from the Sea, the Shannon being there near a Mile broad, lies the Tarbet, a fmall but very fafe and commodious Bay, behind a little Illand, where Ships may ride in about twelve Fathom, fafe out of the Reach of the Tide, take in their Water, and be accommodated with Pilots to Limerick b. Without the Mouth of the River, having doubled Kerry Head, we meet with a large wide Body of Water, one Side of which bears the Name of Ballyheigh, and the other that of Tralee Bay. The former a very dangerous, the latter by no means a fafe Station ; though from its Appearance, and miftaking Kerry Head for Cape Lean (which is much lower Land), Ships enter here fometimes, at their great Rifque, fuppofing it the Shannon <:. At the Bottom of this Bay, at the Diftance of a Mile, ftands the Town of Tralee or Traleigh, on a fmall River, as the Name lignifies; Tra implying Strand, and Leigh is the name of the Stream ; which, though the chief Place in this County, has a Port only for fifhing Sloops, and is of no great Confequence, A LITTLE to the Weft lies Brandon Bay, which derives its Name from a very high Mountain on the Weft Side. On the Eaft is a flat low Land, called Magheriebeg, off which are feven fmall Illands, called the Hogs. There is not either fafe Anchorage or tolerable Shelter in this Bay for any Veflcl, and therefore it ought to be carefully avoided d. The next is Smerewick, con- tracfted, or rather corrupted, from St. Mary Wyck's Bay, which lies from North to Soutli, which is deep, and there is good Anchorage every-where; but it is open to North and to Well: Winds. The Spaniards landed here in 1579, and for their own Security eredled Ibme Works, to which they gave tiie Name of the Fort del Ore, and from which they were driven by the Earl- a Camdeni Hibernia, p. 736. Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap, ii, feft. vii. p. 18. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County of Kerry, p. 209. 362. This Place, formerly a Village, has now a Market and Fairs ; and being admirably fituated for Commerce, is of late much embelliftied, and is improving every Day. c Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. feft. vi. p. 29. Prefent State of Ireland, p, 29. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County of Kerry, p. 361, 362. ". The Promontory which forms the Weft Side of the Inlet, of which we have been laft fpeaking, terminates in a kind of Half Moon ; of which, as Three Caftle Head makes one Point, fo Mizen Head, the Notium, that is, the South Cape of Ptolemy, makes the other ; which is now very juftly reputed the South- Weft Extremity of the Con- tinent of Ireland ^. A little within this lies Crook Haven, whicli, in any other Country except Ireland, and one might perhaps add, in any other Part of Ireland than the County of Corke, would be efteemed an admirable Port, being of a tolerable Size, land-locked on every Side, and having from eighteen to twenty Feet Water before the Town (which, with all thefe Ad- vantages, is no more than a fifffing Village), having an eafy Outlet for Ships, and good anchoring Ground, and much deeper Water in the Road at its En- trance a. From the Mizen Head to Cape Clear, the Courfe is Eaft by North, " It was in this Bay Admiral Herbert, afterwards Earl of Torrington, engaged a French Fleet of twenty-eight Sail, exclufive of Firelhips, April 29th 1689, with great Bravery and Conduift, and, though much inferior in Strength, with very fmall Lofs. ^ Boatg's Natural Hiltory of Ireland, chap. ii. feff. ix. p. 2 1 . Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 24. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County of Corke, vol. i. p. 294. y Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Empire, fol. 139. Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. ii. feift. 10. p. 21. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County of Cjrke, vol. i. p. 284. vol. ii. p. 295. •^ Camdeni Hibernia, p. 738. Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap, ii. fetft. vi. p. 39, Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County of Corke, vol. i. p. 284. » Camdeni Hibernia, fol. 139. Boate's Natural Hilfory of Ireland, chap. ii. fe5l. x. p. 22. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Corke, vol. i. p. 284. vol. ii. p. 295. K k k 2 four 43^ The POLITICAL SURVEY four Leagues. This Cape is an Illand of the fame Name, though it or.ghttc ' be ftiled the Ifle of St. Clara ; and this Headland is the moft fouthern Point of Ireland 1\ Eaft from this Cape lies the Peninfula of Baltimore, which makes one Side of a fpacious Bay, in which there are many Inlets and- little Ports, feveral of which are capable of being rendered ufeful, which it would detain us too long to ccnfider in detail. It may fufficc therefore to fay, that Baltimore Plaven, in its prefent State, is not in that Capacity very confider- able, or of much Confequence to the Town, which however was once in far better Circumftances, till by a moft extraordinary Event, that of being taken and plundered on the 20th of June 1631, by the Algerines, this un- fortunate Mart was fo thoroughly ruined, and the Terror fprcad thereby fub- fifted fo long, and deterred People from fettling there fo muchj that the Place never recovered c. The next is Caftlehaven, called by the Irilh Glanbaraffane, and by the ' Spaniards Porto Cnftello, the weftern Entrance of which is called Galleon : Point, from fome Spanilli Galleons that were deftroyed there by Admiral Le~ vifon, December 6, 1601. It is about Half a Mile over, the Channel bold and deep, gradually decreafing from thirty to about fourteen Feet Water, at low Tide d. To the Eaftward of this lies the Haven of Glendore, the weftern Point of which is Ringreney, and the eaftern Point CariguUy ; be- - tween both is a fmall Ifland called Adam's Ifle, and beyond it another, called • Hurdle Ifle. In the Channel, which runs by the Weft Side of the Ifland, there are from thirty to fourteen Feet Water 3 and a Ship being once in, may bring to, and lie fafe from all Winds <=. The Harbour of Rofs, to the Eaft of this, was formerly very famous ; fo that Rofs-Carbery became both a > Bifliop's See, and a celebrated Univerfity. But the Port being gradually filled • up with Sand, the Place funk from its former Grandeur ; and though it ftill retains the Title of a Bifliopric, it is in reality no more than a decayed or de- caying Monument of its deferted Harbour f. Court Maciherry is a barred Port, in a Bay of the fame Name, on which there are not above ten Feet Water. It was, in early Times, deeper and fafer, much frequented by the Spaniards ; and the Towns that lie about it were then, in a better Condition # ^ Atlas Mariumus et Commercialis, p. 25. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 24.. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. x. = Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. ii. feft. x. p. 22. Earl of Strafford's Letters, vol, ii. p. 25. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Corke, vol. i. p. 278. •i Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. ii. feft. ii. p. 23. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 25. Moryfon's Itinerary, P. ii. B.ii. chap. ii. p. 168. « Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Corke, vol. i. p. 270. vol. ii. p. 290. f Camdeiii Hibernia, p. 738* Hanmet's Chronicle, p. 53, It is now a Market Town, and of very little Note. than of GREAT BRITAIN. 437 than now they are g. We have pafled by many Creeks and Coves that might have been defcribed ; and we have fpoken of feme, that in their prefent Si- tuation are not very remarkable. It is however to be confidered, that they are all in a rude State of Nature ; fo that many of them are in a Capacity of being improved h. If at the fame time that he reflcds on this, the Reader will alfo be pleafed to recolledl: the feveral noble and commodious Ports which are defcribed in the former Chapter, he will fee how flirong an Inftance the County of Corke affords of the numerous maritime Advantages refulting from the peculiar Difpofition of its Coaft, which reaches upwards of an hundred Miles i. The Extent of the Sea Coafl of the County of Waterford, which, from Ardmore Head to Hooke Tower, may be about twelve Leagues, is in effeft a fpacious Bay, and the Ground moflly clean and fandy, which, with the Gen- llenefs of the Tides and Currents, has been, with fome Probability, affigned as the Reafon why the Fifliing thereon is as good as in any Part of Ireland k. There are however few or none of thofe Ports which, in this Chapter, it is our Bulinefs to defcribe, though many Headlands and Inlets between, that feem to promife them. Whiting Bay is fm.all and convenient, but frequented only by Fifliing Boats. Ardmore is a bold high Promontory, and gives Name to a Bay, where there is a good Road in feven or eight Fathom \'^'ater 1. Between Minehead and Helvock Head there is a pretty Bay for Fifliing Boats. Between Ballyvoil Head and Dungarvan Harbour lies a moderately deep and broad Opening, called Clonea Bay, from a Caftle of the lame Name, ftanding a little within it. This has a fandy Bottom, with a Bar at its Entrance, quite dry at low Water, and can be of little or no Service to any kind of VelTeL The Coafl from hence eaftward is high and rockv, with very fmall Bays, of Ufe only to iifhing Craft m. Between Newtown and Brownftown Head^ which are about two Englifli Miles afunder, lies the wide open Bay of Tra- m'ore, which is remembred here only that it may be avoided ; for in hazy Weather, when Hooke Tower cannot be feen, this, to the Deflrudlion of S Smith'3 ancient and prefent State of the Coimt)' and City of Corke, vol, i. p. 245 — 254. -vol. ii. p. 288. *" As the Spirit of Improvement prevails flrongly in this Country, and as all Improvements in an Ifland naturally terminate in Commerce, there is no doubt that Perfons of Property v.Ul by degrees fee the Neceflity of reftoring old Harbours, and the Expediency of opening new, as the only Means that can render fuch Improvements univerfally advantageous. ' Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Corke, vol. ii. p. 2S3 — 298, ^ Camdeni Hibernla, p. 740, 741. Boatc's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. feifi. viii. p. 32. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 25: t Speed's Theatre of the Britifli "Empire, fol. 139. Prefent State cf Ireland, chip. vii. p. 453. Ware's Antiquities of Ireland, chap. xxxi. p. 202. ni Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iv. feft. yi. p. 40. Cutler's Coaftlng Pilot, p. 2?. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, chap. x. 4 mT.Ry 438 The POLITICAL SURVEY many Veflels, has been miftaken for the Mouth of Waterford Haven ". We have given an Account of this Harbour in the lormer Chapter ; and have no- thing to add farther, than that in Conjundlion with Youghall, at the other Ex- tremity of the County, it may very well anfwer all the Purpofes of foreign Commerce in rcfpecT: to this County, and thoroughly improve it o ; More cfpecially as the Port of Dungarvan is extremely well feated for becoming the Staple of the filhing Trade; which, if the Informations we have received of the Nymph Bank be true, and the i'iihcries here were put under proper Re- gulations, and efFeftuallv encouraged, might afford fuch a Reward to the In- duftry of the Inhibitants, as woald leave them no room to envy the Lot of any of their Neighbours p. The large, fruitful, and populous Province of Leinfter, though it con- tains five maritime Counties, and thirty Leagues of Coaft, can hardly boaft: of one good Port q. The Bay of St. Margaret's, which lies a little to tlie North of Waterford Haven, is fixquented only by Fiflier Boats. Beyond this lies Carnefore, or, as Ibme call it, Carneroot Point, which is thought the moft to the South-Eaft of any Land in Ireland : To the North of which we find Greenore or Grenore Bay, which is of no great Confequence, and lies a very little South of Wexford Haven, which has been defcribed in the former Chapter r. Arklow is the next, upon a little River of the fame Name, which is thought to be the Oboca of Ptolemy s. In ancient Times, it feems, this was a confiderable Port ; and even in the laft Age it was in fome Eflimadon, though at prefent it fcarce deferves that Name t. There is a fmall River, which polTibly niight, with fome Expence, be made to contribute to its Im- provement ". Wicklow is under the fame Circumftances, though in a little, and but a little, better Condition ; yet having a tolerable inland Trade, it is probable, that whenever Induflry fliall render its Inhabitants wealthy, they " Above the Bay lies what is called the Strand of Tramore, containing about two thoufand Acres, which might be recovered, by running a Bank or Dyke acrofs it ; and if this was once done, polTibly a Port might be made by Art. " Almoft the whole Commerce of this County at prefent confifls in the Exportation of Provi- fions and raw Commodities ; but when Manufadlures Ihall be once introduced, and brought to thrive, Things will foon change their Face. p Doyle's Account of the Nymph Bank. Dobb's EfTay on the Trade of Ireland, P. ii. p. 125. Smith's ancient and prefent State of the County and City of Waterford, p. 249 —259- S Camdeni Hibernia, p. 744. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 140, Boate's Na- tural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. iv. feft. iii. p. 36. ' Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, P. iii. B. iii. chap. v. p. 157. Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ire- land, chap. iii. feft. vii. p. 31. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 19, 20. ' Camdeni Hibernia, p. 749. Baxteri GlolTarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 186. ' Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. iii. feft. vi. p. 29. Cutler's Coarting Pilot, p, 20. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. vi. " If by this, or any other Means, the Haven could be rendered more commodious, there ar» fome fafe fandy Roads near it where Ships of confiderable Burthen might ride. may of GREAT BRITAIN. 439 may difcover the Means, and be able to afford the Charge, of improving their Port. The County of Dublin has only the Bay of the fame Name ; which has been already defcribed. Diogheda Bay, which is in truth the Mouth of the River Boyne, and which has been likewife already mentioned, lies be- tween the Counties of Eaftmeath and Louth ; though the Town which gives Name to it, belongs to neither "'. The broad open Bay of Dundalk may, when it is high Water, be confidered in the Light of a Harbour, and as fuch, is of fomeUle to the Town of the fame Name; of late, we are told, rendered more fo than formerly, and in a fair Way of meeting with ftill farther Improvements. But when the Tide is out it is abfolutely dry, and may be p'afled on Foot, without either Difficulty or Danger «. The Town of Carlingford, which has a good inland Trade, and fome Commerce, (lands upon a Bay of the fame Name, which not only divides the Counties of Louth and Down, but the Provinces alfo of Leinfter and Ulfter. This is a fafe, large, and convenient Port, though not much frequented, on account of its trou- blefome Entrance, having foul Ground and dangerous Rocks on both Sides, but with a fair Channel between, Half a League over. On the Bar there are ten Feet at low Water ; but within, from feven to twenty Fathom. In the Road before the Town there is fafe Riding, in almoffc any Depth ; neither does a Ship rifque any thing by running on the foft Ooze, where {he may fit fafe, without Anchor or Cable. There is Plenty of Cod, and excellent Oyfters are caught here ; and there are alfo fome Salt-works y. Thus it appears, that thefe Ports, fuch as they are, are very equally divided amongfl: the feveral Counties ; and as the Spirit of Cultivation, and the Defire of making the moffc of natural Advantages, prevails flrongly amongll their Inhabitants, as they have more Acquaintance with, and better Opportunities of knowing the Value of Commerce, than in other Parts of this Illand ; and as they have alfo the Seat of Government in their Center, we may rationally expedt, that in Procefa of Time feveral of thele may be rendered better, and fome new ones perhaps opened z. The Pi"ovince of Ulfler comprehends four maritime Counties, and has a Sea Coall of a hundred Leagues. Point Cranfield m^akes ths Eaft Side of Carlingford Bay j and from thence to Bealachaneir, coalfing along the mountainous Country of Mourne, there are only a few Creeks, capable ot ^ See the Political State of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 253, 254. * Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. feci:, iii. p. z6. Atlas Marltimns ct Comincns cialis, p. 23. See the ingenious Mr. Wright's Preface to the LOUTH EANA. 7 Caindeni Hibcrnia, p. 762. Boate's Natural flillory or' Ireland, chap. ii. ftft ii. p. 11, Atlas Maritimus et Commerclalis, p. 23. i Camdeni Hibernia, p. 744 — 755. Atlas Maritimus etCommcrcialis, p. 2 J. Dobbs's ElTay on the Trade of Irelaad, P. i. p. 16, 17. P. ii. p. 5. 7. c receiving 440 The POLITICAL SURVEY receiving nothing beyond the Size of a fifliing Boat a. Between that and St. John's Point lies the Bay of Dundrum ; fpacious indeed, being fix Miles broad, but Ihallow and fandy. The inner Bay, which is three Miles in Ex- tent one Way, and a full Mile the other, is a very fafe convenient Port, but then only fmall Veffels.can come thither; and Dundrum is no more than a pleafant Village i'. In the outer Bay there is very good Fifhing for flat Fifli of all kinds, Sea Trout, and Lobflers, which might be managed to great Profit c. The Foreland, or Point of St. John, which is the Ifam- nium Promontorium of Ptolemy, ftands a Mile fouth of a little Bay, which is now called Port St. Anne, and is come in the Place of the old Haven of Ardglafs. This has been, widi great Care and Expence, improved with a Key and Bafon, by Michael Ward, Elq; one of the Jurtices of his MajelTiy's Court of King's Bench, and thereby rendered a fecure and commodious Har- bour for Veflels of one hundred and liity Tons J. In confequence of this, the Village of Killough is rifen, in the Space of a few Years, into a thriving well- built Town, in which feveral Merchants refide ; while Ardglafs, about a Mile diftant from it, over the Strand, which was not only an ancient Corpo- ration, but the fecond Town at leaftin Ullter, is funk into a miferable Hamlet, and is now remarkable for nothing but a icw wretched Remains of its former Magnificence e. This fliews what may be done, even by private Perlbns of opulent Fortune, not only for their own Benefit, and that of their Fa- milies, but for the public Emolument, and the Advantage of the whole Country. The Land ftretching from Ardglafs North-North-Eaft, for about five Miles or thereabouts, we there find Killard Point, which is the South-Weft Extre- mity, as Quintin Point is the oppofite Extremity of Strangford Bay *'. This Bay, or rather Strait (for the Sea runs through it with great Rapidity like a Sluice), is upwards of five Miles long, and fomewhat more than Half a Mile , broad. On the South Side lies tlie Town and Harbour of Strangford, where Ships may lie fafe out of the Reach of the Current, as they may likewife in Audley Bay, which is direftly under Caftle Ward, a fine Seat belonging to the a Camdeni Hibernia, p. 762. Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, P. Hi. B. iii. chap. v. p. 1 58. Pre- ifent State of Ireland, chap. iv. " Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. ili. feci. iv. p. 27. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 21. The ancient and prefent State of the County of Down, p. 139. * It may deferve fome ConGderation, whether this Bay has been alwa)'s in the fame Condition. For though it is ever dangerous to encroach upon the Sea, yet to recover what it has over- whelmed, is fafe and advantageous. Boate's Natuml Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. §. vii. p. 31. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 21. The ancient and prefent State of the Count of Down, p. 65. 135. 269. ™ The Duke of Schomberg landed, Augufl 13, 1 689, in Graham's or Groom's Port Bay, with ten thouHind Men for theReduftion of Ireland. » The County of Down contains 558,289 Engli(h Acres, Leicefter and Nottingham about 560,000 Acres each. Prefent State of Ireland.chap. vili. Dobbs's EfTay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, Part i. p. 32. The ancient and prefent State of the County of Down, chap. iii. §. ix. p. 107. P Camdeni Hibernia, p. 768. Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, Part iii, b. iii. chap. v. p. 159. Dobbs's Eflay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, Partii. p. 5. '1 Camdeni Hibernia, p. 76S. Baxteri Gloflarium Antiqiiitatum Britannicarum, p. 251. Vin- derius, the latinifing thefe Bfiti(h Words Vind e Riii, the Head of the River, the j^Ituarium, or Firth. 1 Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. ii. §. il. p. 13. Cutler's CoaAing Pilot, p. 21. The ancient and prefent State of the County of Down, p. 127. 8 but of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 443 but a County of itfelf, and fending, in that Capacity, two Members to the Irifli Houfe of Commons s. Two Leagues North from Carrickfergus lies the fmall Port of Oldfleet, little frequented at prefent. Beyond this there is a bold Coaft and fafe Anchor- ing to the Height of Fairland Point, filled in fome Charts Fair Head, the North-Eafl: Cape of Ireland ; and there is good Anchorage round the Ifland of Rathlin, and alfo between it and the Continent c, A little to the South of this lies Ballycaftle, a new Port, which deferves peculiar Attention. It owed its Rife to a Vein of Coal, difcovered and wrought here by Hugh Boyd Efq; who, in 1749, after feveral Years Labour, finilhed a Harbour and Dock, at his own Expence, capable of receiving Veflels of one hundred and fifty Tons ; which however in a few Years was ruined by Worms eating the Wood Work under Water u. At firlt Colliers were procured from England and Scotland ; but this being attended with many Inconveniencies, the Klethod of engaging Men to labour, by beltowing Premiums, was tried, and fucceeded with the Natives, of whom about one hundred and fixty arc now employed, and about feven thoufand Ton of Coal raifed in a Year. In confequence of this Dif- covery and thele Improvements, a Glafs-houfe, Bleach-houfe, Salt-works, Brewery, Tan-yard, and Iron-works, were eftabliflied there in feven or eight Years ; and feveral Merchants fettled in the Place, who drove a great Trade, and had many VeiTels of their ownw. Upon the Ruin of the Pier and. Dock, in the manner before-mentioned, Mr. Boyd began new Works of Stone, cramped with Iron, which indeed promifed Security, but were very expenfive. This produced an Application to Parliament, where, upon a ftrid Examination, all thefe Facts v/ere reported by a Committee, and that the Haven might be again rendered complete and commodious for lefs than ten thoufand Pounds X. Belletree, Ballintay, or Ballintoy, lies a little to the South- Weft of the iaft-mentioned Port, is a fmall Bay, and, in its natural State, not altogether fafe from feveral Winds y : But fmce the Year 1756, that a Vein of Coals was difcovered near it, which is now v/rought with fuch EfFedf, as not only to fupp'y a Salt- work l:iere, but two others, one at Portrufli, and the other * Political Survey of Great Britain, p. 257. Earl of Strafford's Letters, vol. ii. p. 103. 20?. Additions to the Englifli Tranflation of Camden's Britannia. '^ Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. §. vti. p. 31. chap. v. §. v. p. 46. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 22. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. xi. " The Reader will difcern from this Inftance, how numerous the Havens on this Coaft may become, whenever Commerce prevails. ' The fame EiFeifts follow the Difcovery of Coals in Antrim as in Northumberland, Cumber- iand, and in Wales. " From the Report made to the Ploufe of Commons in Irel.md by Mr. Lowther, February 3d, J758. y Boate's Natural Hillory of Ireland, chap. iii. §. iv. p. 27. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 22. L I 1 2 at 444- The POLITICAL SURVEY at Colerain, it is fomewhat improved, and more confidered ; infomuch that, in the Sefiions of the Parliament of Ireland, in 175-8, the State of this little Haven Ve'ng brought before a Committee, it appeared that it was capable of receiving Barks of fifty Tons, and for the Expence of two thoufand Pounds might be rendered a good Harbour for Veflels of much larger Burthen z. The Giants Caufeway is a Curiofity fo very remarkable in its Nature, that it ought not to be paffcd by in Silence ^ though the Defcription of it is not requifite in a Work of this kind, and has been already the Subjedl of feveral learned Writers, to whofe Labours we refer •'. Belfaft, as {landing on the Lagon Water, belonged to the former Chapter f, and in that has been accordingly treated, as are alfo the Ports of Colerain and Londonderry d. The County of Donegal is equal in Size to thofe of Down and Antrim taken together, and yet docs not contain half the Number of People there is in either*-'. There are fome black Rocks, called Enfterhull, over againfl Enifthon, a Promontory which fhoots out into the Sea, the Extremity of which, called Caledagh Point, is the North Cape of Ireland ''. To the Weft-South- Weft lies Lougli Swilly, with great Probability thought to Ve the Argita of Ptolemy, at this Day one of the nobleft Ports in Ireland, or indeed in Europe, near twenty Miles long, and a full Mile broad, good Anchorage and deep Water ; fo that a whole Fleet might lie there with Eafe and Safety g. Weft-South- Weft of Lough Swilly lies Sheepfliaven, a very noble Bay, though fomewhat inferior to the former li. The Weft Entrance ^ From the Report made by Mr. Lowther the fame Day with the former, in regard to the Port of Ballycaftle. a This Giants Caufeway confifls of many thoufand Pillars, ftanding perpendicular to the Ho- rizon, fo clofe that a Knife can fcarce be put between them. The greatefi: part of them are pen- tagonal or hexagonal, but irregular, fo that none of them have equal Sides. The Curious agree that they are of the kind called Lapis Bafanus, or Bafalies. They run from the Side of a high Hill, nobody knows how far into the Sea. This Caufeway has been meafured^-^t low Water, more than fix hundred Feet ; in the broadeft Part it extends two hundred and forty Feet, and in the narrowed one hundred and twenty Feet, The Height in fome Places thirty-fix, and in others fifteen Feet. ^ Philofophical Tranfaftions of the Royal Society, N°. cxcix. ccxii. ccxxv. ccxli. See alfo thofe Papers printed in the Appendix to Grierfon's Edition of Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, and the Tranflation of Sir James Ware's Antiquities of Ireland, by Walter Harris Efq; chap, xxxiv. ' Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 257. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p.- 24. Dobbs's Eflay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, P. ii. p. 6. "J Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 258, 259, 260. e Camdcai Hibernia, p. 772. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. viii. Dobbs's EfTay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, P. ii. p. 6. f Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iv. §. iv. p. 28. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 22. S Camdeni Hibernia, p. 772. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 24. Baxter! GlofTarium Antlquitatum Britannicarum, p. 23. ■^ Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. ii. §. iv. p. 14. Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 22. 5 «f of GREAT BRITAIN. 445 of this Bay is called Cape Horn, and from thence to the North Iflands of Arran there is a fafe CoafI;, and feveral good Roads and Bays '. Seven Leagues from thefe Illes of Arran lies Cape Telin, or St. Helen, the North-Weft Point of Ireland, and under it a Haven with a good Road of the fame Name k. Four Leagues beyond this Headland lies Killi- begs, an excellent Bay, of a circular Form, the Entrance narrow, but free from Danger, and capable of receiving Ships of any Burden ; and when once in, Ships may lie any where from fix to eight Fathom Water, in pcr- fe(fl Safety. This Haven has fome Trade, which is more than any of the reft can boaft ; and the Town of the fame Name, which ftands upon it, is a parliamentary Borough, and has a Cuftom-houfe K Weft from Killibegs lies Cape St. John ; and between the Port laft-mentioned and this Cape is Mack- fwaine Bay, dangerous at the Entrance, but within very commodious !". Two Leagues beyond this lies Donegal Harbour, difficult likewife in the Entrance, which has rendered it lefs frequented than otherwife it would have been ". South- Weft of Donegal Haven Lough-Earn pours into the Ocean, and makes the Port of Ballyfliannon, which, though a barred Port, has fome Commerce, and, in Proportion as Induftry increaies amongft the People in this extcnfwe County, will have much more. We have already mentioned this Lough and its famous Caftle of Innil'killing ; and fliall therefore only obferve, that the ihort River, if it may be fo ftiled, which forms the Harbour of Ballyflian- non, feparates the Province of Connaught from that of Ulfter °. But in refpedt to the latter, it may be proper to remark, before we leave it, that as the County of Fermanagh communicates with the Ocean by the Port of Ballyfliannon, and all the Counties lying upon the Lough-Neagh have now a Correfpondence with the Irifli Sea by the Newry Canal, Mona- ghan and Cavan are, ftridly fpeaking, the only two inland Counties in the Province p. The County of Sligo is fmall, but the beft inhabited of any in Connaught, and the County in general very capable of Improvement. Weft from Bally- fliannon, at the Diftance of three Leagues, lies a fmall Ifland, called Ennis Murry ; at the South End of which is a large Rock above Water, with a Ledge running from it a great Diftance into the Scaj fo that to the South- i Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. §. viii. p. 32. * Cutler's CoaAing Pilot, p. 22. 1 Camdeui Hibernia, p. 772. Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. ii. i^. v. p. 15. Atlas Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 24. tn Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 23. " Camdeni Hibernia, p. 772. Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. ii. §. v. p. 16. Aths Maritimus et Commercialis, p. 24. o Boate's >..itural Hiftory of Ireland, chap. iii. §. v. p. 28. Prefent State of Ireland, chap, yiii. Cutle. s Coafting Pilot, v. 23. P This dcmonftrates the vaft Utility o ti-at great Work, which as it will redound to the Bene- fit, fo it will be the Admiration of Poilerity. 446 The POLITICAL SURVEY Weft the Coaft is foul as far as Rala Point. South-Eaft from thence lies the Haven of Sligo, the Libnius of Ptolemy, troublefome in the Paflage, but a tolerable Port when once entered. There is a Cuftom-houfe and fome Trade here, and the Town is a parliamentary Borough q. South from Sligo is Clonick Bay, and Weft from thence Moyle Harbour, neither of them much frequented. We come now to the County of Mayo, which is thrice as large, though not near fo well peopled as Sligo. It has a long Extent of Coaft, fronting direftly towards the North, in which there are many Coves and Bays that might be of Ufe ; but their particular Conveniencies are at prefent known only to fmuggling Veflels, and the Mafters of Cuftom-houfe Boats, who are employed tcT look after themr. Broadhaven, which expands itfelf near to the Weftern Extremity, is a good Port, though embarrafled on the Eaft Side with fome fmall funk Rocks, called the Stags of Broadhaven s. On the Back of the Promontory, which forms one Side of this, lies another, called Black-fod Harbour, of which I meet with no diftindt Account, though placed in all the Maps. About eleven Leagues from this Port lies Achil Head, in an Ifland, with a Paflage between it and the Main j fo that it is properly a Sound, within which there are many Creeks and Inlets 3 but fo unfrequented, and their State fo uncertain, that, in a Work like this, a Defcription of them need not be attempted. Galway is a very noble and fpacious Diftrldl, the largeft in this Pro- vince, and, except Corke, the County of greateft Extent in Ireland ; at the fame Time, after Donegal and Mayo, the thinneft in tliat Kingdom of People. Yet the Soil is good, and, in many Parts, fertile in Corn, as well as in Grafs ; fo that it is very capable of being made a fiir and flourifliing Refrion ; as, with thefe Advantages, it may be affirmed to abound likewife in fine Ports t. From Point Dogs to Cape Slyne there are various Creeks, but none amongft them of any confiderable Size. To the South-Eaft of the laft-mentioncd Headland there are feveral fine Inlets, particularly Batterby Bay, which has a narrow Entrance, but within is four Miles long and two broad, every where hfc, good Ground, deep Water, five Fathoms on each Side, and from ten to twelve in the Middle «. Conichin Bay has, in the very 1 Speed's Theatre of die Biitifli Empire, fol. 14;:!. Boate's Natural Hlftory of Ireland, chap. tti. §. V. p. 29. Baxter! Gloffarium Aiitiquitatum Britannic.irum, p. 152. r Thefe, in fucceeding Ages, will become Sources of honefl Abundance, inflead of Receptacles of clandeiline and deftruclive Commerce, in which the Neceflarics of Life are bartered for foreign "Wines and Spirits. ^ Camdeni Hibernia, p. 758. Boate's Natural Hillory of Ireland, chap. ii. §. vi. p. 16. Cut- ler's Coafting Pilot, p. 23. t Camdeii Hibernia, p. 757. Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 143. Dobbs's Eflay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, P. ii. p. 5. " Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap. iv. §. v. p. 39. Cutler's Coalling Pilot, p. 23. Mouth of GREAT BRITAIN. 447 Mouth of it, from twelve to fifteen Fathom Water, and (even at the very- Bottom, but then the Entrance is much embarraffed, and in that refpeft dan- gerous, till Seamen in general fliall become better acquainted with it ". Gal- way Bay is very capacious, having the South Arran Iflands before it, through which there are no lefs than four PalTages. There are various Sands, Shoals, and blind Rocks, fome of which are called the Stags of Arran, efpecially on the North Side, but having fo many Outlets thefe are eafily avoided; and if the Country was more populous, many excellent Harbours, befides thefe already in fome fmali Degree of Ufe, might be made without any great Expence x. Galway, which is not only the County Town, but the Capital of the Pro- vince, has a Mayor, Sheriffs, Recorder, Town Clerk, a Cuftom-houfe, Ex- cife-office, with ample EftabliHiments, and fends two Members to Parliament. It is a handfome well-built Place, and formerly accounted the fecond in Ire- land, though now, as I take it, but the feventh y. It ftands upon the great Lake of Corbes, which is the Aufoba of Ptolemy. The Port is very com- modious and fafe, but at a Diftance from tlie City, fo that Goods are carried up thither by Lighters. It has a confiderable foreign Commerce, as well as a great inland Trade, and there is a good Herring Filhery in the Bay.z. But after all, this is but little in comparifon of what might be expedted, and to what it will certainly attain, when this Province fliall be put upon a Level with the reft; but as we have treated pretty copioufly a' ready upon this Subjedl, we fliall content ourfelves with repeating our good Wilhes th.U this may be fpeedily brought about ■>. The lafl we fliall mention is the County of Clare, which is at prefent in the Province of Munfter, though Sir Robert Sidney annexed it to Connaughtj, but that it was antiently, as it now is, in the former Province, appears from its other Name of Thomond, that is. North Munfter, being divided from tlie reft of that Province by the Shannon, which is the Reafon of our placing. it kere b. It is a Peninfula, in the form of a Pyramid, the Bafis making the " There are feveral among the Iflands not inferior to t!iis Bay, but it wsuld fwell this Chapter too much to give a diflinft Account of them. ^ Boate's Natural Hiflory of Ireland, chap, ii, §. vi. p. i6. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. V. xi. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 23. y Atlas Mariiimus et Commercialis, p. 24. Prefent State of Ireland, chap. v. See alfo the Additions to the Englifh Tranfiation of Camden's Britannia. * Baxter! Gloffarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 30. Cutler's Co.afling Pilot, p. 23. Dobbs's Eflay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, P. ii. p. 114. a Camdeni Hibernia, p. 756. Ora autem maritima multis fmubus, et navigabilibus alueis peruia accolas ad navigationes quodammodo inuitat et provocat, fed innatx defidiac dulceJo ita dctinet, ut oftiatim malint viftim quasrere, quam honeftis laboribus paupertatem repellere. •> Camdeni Hibernia, p. 756. Prefeat State of Ireland, chap. T. Dobbs's Eflay on the Trade and Improvement of Ireland, P. ii. p. 6. Iftlimus^ 44-8 The POLITICAL SURVEY Ifthmus, about half the Size of Galway, but better inhabited. The Soil is good, the Climate mild, and the Situation excellent <:. The Ocean bounds it on the Noi th- Weft, where it has an Extent of twenty Leagues of Coaft, in which there are feveral Creeks and Bays, terminating with Cape Lean, rather Lainne, which in Irifli fignifies a Sword-blade, or the Loup's Head, the North Entrance of the River Shannon, by which it is wafhed upon the South-Weft for upwards of twenty Leagues more. The Town of Clare, from which it receives its Name, is feated upon a large Bay, full of fmall lilands ; and a lit- tle higher ftands Ennis, a parliamentary Borough. It is evident enough from hence, that no Country can be better difpofcd for Commerce ; but we have not Light fufticient to enter into a mpre particular Defcription, which I fliould otherwiie very willingly have given, and which Defeft the Surveys that are now faid to be making will, we have Reafon to exped;, very quickly fupply d. It is now prefumed we have very fully proved the numerous Benefits that the Illands of Britain and Ireland derive from the particular Strufture of their Coafts, and that they are not confined to particular Parts, but either extended by Nature, or by a wife Policy may be extended, to every Part of both. The many Advantages arifing to the Countries adjacent to Ports where a great Commerce is carried on, the Lofs of thofe Advantages whenever fuch Ports decline, and the fudden and certain Acquifitions that accrue from the reviving or opening of Harbours, which have been for a long time unobferved or unemployed, have been hiftorically alferted, and the Caules fo far explained, as thorouglily to unite the Teftimonies afforded us by Realon and Experience e. It is poffible fome may think we have rather been too copious, and that fewer Inftances might have fufficed. Some may likewife objedl that the De- fcription of certain Parts of the Coaft are dry and unentertaining ; and this very Objedion will be made by others to the Parts with which the former Objeftors are beft pleafed ^'. The Point was not to gratify any particular Clafs of Readers, but to ufe our utmoft Endeavours to fatisfy all ; and even where the Defcription is leaft ftriking, the Defign of the Chapter is, we alio hope <= Boate's Natural Hiftory of Ireland, cliap. xvi. §. v. p. 128. Additions to the Englifli Tranflatlon of Camden's Britannia. '' Sir William Monfon, who was an excellent Judge of thefe Matters, recommended this one hundred and fifty Years ago. He farther advifcd improving thefe Havens, building Towns near, and encouraging the Natives to apply thcmfelves to Fifliing, Navigation, and Commerce, as the mofl: eifeftual Means of atrach'ng them to the Englidi Government. <■ Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 304. 377. 313. where the amazing Efftfts of the Trade at Sunderland, the Mifchiefs attending the Decay of Rye and Winchelfea, and the fudden and furprizing Confequences that have followed the making fo great Improve- ments at Wliitehaven, are prefented to the Reader's Confideration. f The producing a few, though thefe had been the mofl: ftriking Examples, might have excited a Sufpicion of Partiality, would necedarily have left fome material Circumftances unex- plained, and have exhibited no manner of Proof, that all Parts of Britain and Ireland may be fcudcrcd alilic commercial, which is the principal Point ia view, beft of GREAT BRITAIN. 44;^ beH: purfued, as exhibiting the Deficiencies which are yet to be fupplied, and thtr Conquells that future Induftry is to make g. It may be alfo lurmized that theru is a certain Samenefs in fome of our Accounts that might have been avoided, which is true h. But, with regard to Fa<3:s th:U are of the utmoft Importance, no Advocate was ever cenfured for calling Icveral Witnefles, though they ail of them fpoke, and indeed muil necelfarily fpeak, much to the fame Purpuie. To deal with the Public without Rcferve : The chief Motive of our treating lo circuiallantially of the Ports tluit already are, or may be hereafter made, in both tliefe Chapters, was the Define of repreferiting the Ca;>acit7 of theie two Iflands for Commerce, in the {"ulleft and flrongell: Light poillble, fo as to remove even the flightefl Doubt, by making it incontelTiibly evident, that they are in all Refpedls as well dilpofed for entertaining an univerial Cor- refpondence with every Part of the Globe, as any of thofe Iflands were for attaining leffer Proportions of maritime Power and Trade, which for that Reafon have been celebrated by Writers ancient or modern, and of the moft eminent of which we have from them fuccindly treated i. If, from the an- xious Affiduity ufed in thefe Chaplers, the Subjedl fliall be more clearly under- ftood, and fhall for the future merit greater Attention, the Pains that have been taken are very happily beftowed ; for in efFedting tliis, or even by fo much as opening a Way to its being efFed:ed, I am thoroughly fatisfied a moft efiential Service will be rendered to this Nation, as nothing can contribute more to the advancing its Power and Profperity to that fublime Degree of Perfedion to which we have fliewn it is fo admirably adapted, and for which we may thence conclude it is defigned, and, if we co-operate in properly im- proving the Bleffings indulgently bellowed by Providence, it may be fpeedily as well as certainly exalted. That, after all, there may remain no latent Sufpicion of Singularitv in this Notion, or Apprehenfion of its being a conjed:ural Hypothefi^ I will produce the Opinion of one of the bell Judges that ever wrote upon the Subjed. A Man, whofe immenfe Fortune was the EfFed of his immenfc S By explaining in fome Degree the inexpreffible Benefits refulting from the Care and Cofl: ■expended in fome Places, and ftiewing the Difficulties that might be lemovcd, anJ the Difaflers that might be redreffed by embracing Nature's kind Offers, inmanyotliers, we have produced the moft perfuafive Argument to the moft noble Undertaking, viz. the rendering thefe Iflands alike plentiful and populoKS throughout. ^ In making it evident the Coal Trade has been equally advantageous on the Eafl and Weil Side of the Coaft of South Britain, in Wales, and is beginning to be fo in Ireland, we have proved the Propriety of encouraging the working and tranfporting, that, or any other Commodity of 2 like Nature, where-ever found, which a fmgle, or even a double Inftance would not have ■done. ' See the third Chapter of this Book, in which, with a View to this Application, that Matter ^as been at large difcuilcd. Vol. I. M m m Abilities, 450 the POLITICAL SURVEY Abilities, who fpent his whole Life in Studies of this Kind, and' who was not more attentive to his private Interefl than to the public Welfare. Thus theiv this great Man fpeaks K < The Sea-line of England, Scotland, and Ireland', and the adjacent Iflands, is about three thoufand eight hundred Miles, according to which Length, and the whole Content of Acres, the faid Land would be an oblong or paralellogram Figure, of three thoufand eight hundred Miles long, and about twenty-four Miles broad ; and confequently every Part of England,, Scotland, and Ireland, is, one with another, but twelve Miles from the Sea : Whereas France, containing but about one thoufand Miles of Sea-line, is, by the like Method of Computation, about lixty-five Miles from the Sea-fide; and confidering the Paucity of Ports, in Comparifon of what are in the King of England's Dominions, as good as feventy Miles diftant from a Port : Upon which Grounds, it is clear, that England can be fupplied" with all grofs and bulky Commodities, of foreign Growth and Manufadiure,, at far cheaper Rates than France can be ; viz. at about four Shillings per Cent, cheaper ; the Land Carriage, for the Difference of the Diftance,. between England and France, from a Port, being fo much, or near- thereabouts. Now to what Advantage this Conveniency amounteth, upon^ the Importation and Exportation of bulky Commodities, cannot be lefs than the Labour of one Million of People, &c. meaning by bulky Com- modities, all Sorts of Timber, Plank, and Staves for Cafk j all Iron, Lead, Stones, Bricks, and Tiles, for Building ; all Corn, Salt, and- Drinks ; all Flefh and Fifh ; and indeed all other Commodities, wherein, the Gain and Lofs of four Shillings per Gent, is confiderable.' The Caufes which this Gentleman afligns, and the Cafe he has ftated' by Way of Illuftration, may well fuffice towards making this Topic equally- clear and certain ; though, if it were neceflary, many more Authorities and Confirmations might be produced from a Variety of Works in different Languages. But in Reality, This, like all other great Truths, being once- fairly reprefented, brings with it, fuch a Weight of Evidence, to the Mind of an. impartial Judge, that it would be equally tedious and troublefome to infift farther upon what, perhaps, nobody will deny. ' Sir Wiljiam Petty's Eflays ia Political Arithmetic, p. 238, 239.- CHAR of GREAT BRITAIN. 451 CHAPTER VIII. IT J? E fiiJeral IJlands that are fcattered round B R I TA I N another jhigiilar Advantage. Their having been., maiiy of them, fo long negleSfed, no Prejudice -in refpe^ to their Capacity for Improvement. T'he Truth of which is as ca- pable of Support Jrom Hijlory, as of being maintained by Reafon. This Prero- gative, hitherto in a great Meajiire unexerted, may be rendered highly bene- ficial to this Country, in the prejent Conjuncture more efpecially. The Method in 'which this curious a?id copious SubjeSl 'will be treated. TH E happy Difpofition of our Rivers, the advantageous Form of our Coafts, are, as we have feen, Circumftances pregnant with Variety of ineftimable Benefits to this Country ; but there ftill remains another Prero- gative lefs attended to than either of the former, probably becaufe the Confe- quences of it being not fo apparent, have occafioned it to be lefs generally under- flood. This is the Number of fmaller Iflands, of very different Sizes, that lie, fome at a larger, fome at a lefler Diftance from This ; which therefore, in regard to them, may be confidered as a Continent. It was from hence, the graveft Authors of Antiquity, ufing a figurative Stile, called Britain, emphatically, the Great Island, and Another World, that is, another Continent ; and later Writers, in the lofty Language of the Poets, flile her Queen of the Isles, which we fhall endeavour to prove fomething more than a mere Title a. Though naturally, in moft refped:s, equal, yet in a long Courfe of Years, rather from a Concurrence of Accidents than by any politi- cal Contrivance, fome of thefe Ifles, as we fliall hereafter fee, are wonderfully improved ; though fome are in a worfe State at this Day than old Hiftorians reprefent them to have been in remoter Ages ^. a Dion. Alex, in Orbis Defcriptlone, ver. 563, et feq, Aiiftides in Oratione ^i^gyptiat.i. The Author of the Book de Mundo, which has been afcribed to Ariftotle, ia his third Chapter, where he tells us Albion and lerne are called the Britifh Ilks. C. Julii Soliiii Polyhiltor, cap. x\v. The Author of the Panegyric to Conlfantius, falfely infcribed to Ma.\iminian, fays, the Dictator Julius Casfar wrote to the Senate he had found another World, which he thought of fuch Extent, as that it might be, with greater Propriety, {aid to be embraced than farrouudcd by the Ocean. He muft therefore iiave comprehended in this Defcription all that depended on Britain. That this IS more than a Conjeifture appears from one of our moft antient a?.d autf.entic Hiftorians (Ethelwerdi Chronic, lib. iv. cap. iv.), who, fpeaking of a PaiTage to Irt'.md, fays, this Kland was, by the great Julius Caefar, called Britannides. Ptolemy, on the fame Principle, culls Ire- land Little Britain. b Diod. Sicul. lib. v. cap. 2. p. 209. Strabonis Geograph. lib. iii. p. 175, 176. iv. p. 201. Corn. Tacit, in Vita Julii Agricolx. Plin. Hlfl. Natural, lib. iv, cap. i. 6. Pompan. Mel. dc- Situ -Orbis, lib. iii. cap. vi. and many more who might be cited, who yet could have known iioilung of thefe Ifles, if they had not been inhabited, and vifited by Traders in thofe Times. M m m a Tub 452 The POLITICAL SURVEY The Dedudtion manifeftly flowing from hence is, that they may be alf, through an afliduous and well conduded Application, brought into the fame happy Condition. For it would be prepofterous and abfurd, while we main- tain, as a Principle of Law, diat no Length of Time can bar the Right of the Crown, to furmife that any Period of Inaftion fliould, in Policy, preclude the juft Claims of the Nation. She, at prefent, enjoys the Profits fpringing from the due Employment of feveral of thefe HandiMaids, and has there- fore Reafon to exped: none of the reft fhould be left idlec. The Gifts of Providence wear the Stamp and Cognizance of H I M from whom they come J and derive their Excellence from the State in which He has placed them. It may be, in certain Ages, the Want of fufficient Lights, the un- toward Situation of Things, the Misfortunes confequent from an ill adjufted or. ill adminiftered Government, might render any Attempts of this Sort hopelefs, if not fruitlefs d. But fuch is the Beneficence of the Supreme Power, that his Bleffings do not either perifh or lofe their Value by not being employed. They remain, though they remain undifcerned in fuch Days of Darknefs, and are referved, as the hidden Treafures of divine Bounty, to reward the intelligent Labours of thofe, who improve the Talents they have received from the fame Hand, by the indefatigable Study of his Works. We have already reprefented, in the cleareft Terms we were able, the Advan- tages infeparable from an infular Situation, which, as we have fhewn from Fails, and thefe, in political Reafoning, are allowed to be that kind of Evi- dence which is moft inconteftible, frequently ballance, nay fometimes over- come, all the Difadvantages of Climate and of Soil ; and this to a Degree that Experience only could force us to think credible , and are laft recovered. The civil Diflentions in the Government of England, Scotland, and Ireland, as might be eafily proved from Hiftory, have been no lefs injurious to the Countries than to the Inhabitants. The Fens in the fiift, the Heaths and Moors in the fecond, and the Bogs in the laf!:, arofe from thefe. Analogy teaches thefe Ifles have been ruined the fime Way. ' We have produced Examples enough of this in the third Chapter, and fhall, occaflonally, mention fome others, though any fingle Infianrc wight fuffice ; for what is done in one Part of the World may be done in another : And if the Inhabitants of an Ifland are free, or, which ia better, if the Ifle is fmall, dependent on a mild Government, in a Country capable of pro-- tedi.ng them, they may be rendered both populous and profperous in a high Degree. able J of GREAT BRITAIN. . 453? able; for the one accounts for the other; and yet we may truly aflert, that few Illands can be afligaed fo deftitute of Conveniencies, as that wc cannot point out others deficient in as many Particulars, which have been fo diipofed^ by human Induftry, as to become the Seats of Profit, Power, and Pieafure. I will not pretend to fay, though I might quote fome great Authorities on the Subjedl, what Homer had in View when he chofe the Monarch of Ithaca f for his Model of Wifdom, fince whatever it was, that Inftance could not be^ more applicable to his Purpofe than k is to mine s. But if, in Anfwer to what has been advanced, any fliould allege, that Want and Distress fharpen Men's Inventions, and enable them to adorn; the very Rocks to which they are confined; the Reply is eafy, that Virtue and Prudence may in this, as in many other Cafes, improve the Lessons- that were firft given to Mankind by Necessity i'. An Ifland, however fmall, may, as we have already feen, become the Seat of a great maritime City, and the Capacity of eredling many of thefe, if we can Ihew it to be in the Inhabitants of this Country, is undoubtedly, what we have ftilcd it, a- very glorious Prerogative 1. A Prerogative fingularly beneficial to a mari-- time Power, as inverting her with the Means of creating, at Pieafure, a multitude of fubordinate States; fo near, as that flic may at all Seafons command their Afiiftance; fo conftituted, as that they muft always be depen- ' dant upon, and fo connefted, that the greatcft Part of the Wealth they acquire muft conftantly and necefiarily reft with HER, But when we confider farther this maritime Empire already fo much extended, as not only tO' excite the Envy, but alfo to provoke the Jealouiy, of her moft potent Neigh- bours, this Prerogative appears in a ftill flronger Light, and may be well pre- fumed to be the Refource indicated by Nature, and which therefore muft prove fully lufficient for the Support of this naval Dominion, and rcnderinr^ f Homer. Iliad. R. OdyfT. A. Virg. JEneld. lib. iii. Pomp. Mete de Situ Orbis, lib. ii.- C-ip. vii. Templeman's Survey of the Globe, Plate ix. Ithaca is not a tenth Part of the Size of our Ifle of Wight. It is true Ulyfles had alfo Cephaloni.r and Zacynthus, but his whole Dominions were not quite as big as Hertford fliire. g Strabon. Geograph. lib. i. p. 17. where he aflerts that Homer's Intention was to reprefent the Charafter of a perfeft Prince. Heradidis Pontic! Allegoria; Homeri apud Galei Opuic. Mytho- log. p. 495. where this Point is fully explained. Ariliotelis, liber de Poetica, cap. viii. where he celebrates the Odylley as a moft complete Poem, and UlyfTes, in other Parts of his Works, as an accomplifhed Monarch. ^ A critical Reader may very pofllbly objeft, that if the Inhabitants of any of our Iflands are in a low Condition, their own fliarp Feelings will in Time teach them,',better than any other Pre- ceptors, how to extricate themfelvts. But in Anfwer to this, let it be obfervcd, that contented Poverty is a very unenterprizing Difpofition, and that thofe who are not blefled with tliis, leave fuch Ifles to thofe whom the Love of their Country has taught it. i I mean by Prerogative, an inherent Privilege beftowed by Nature, that is, the Providence- of the Supreme Being, in the Diftribution of Land and Sea, and the Difpofition of Countries,- v/ith a Fitnefs for certain Purpoles ; the Difcovery, Improvement, and Perfection of wluch, ■ depends upon the Prudence of their Inhabitants, and on the Attention of their Governors more cfpecially. it: 454 The POLITICAL SURVEY it as permanent and folld as it is fplendid and honourable k. But inflead of du'elling on its Conlequences, our immediate bulinefs is to prove that BRI- TAIN really polielles this Prerogative. The moft convenient, If not the fliorteft Way of doing this, is to take a View of the moft confiderable Illands with which Great Britain is invefted, which feem to be the Outworks placed by Providence for the Security of this great Country; and which, if properly improved, may, as we have fuggefted, make their Mother Isle invincible to her Enemies, and fuperior to her Ri- vals 1. We mud, in order to do this fo as to be intelligible, touch various Points in reference to of their Geography, Natural, Civil, and Commercial Hirtory; but, we defire it may be remembred that we touch them only in regard to this particular Purpole, for to make an ample Defcription of them in all Refpcfts is the proper Bulinefs, and has been, in part at leafl, executed by others, though never indeed in fo full and accurate Manner as it deferved ; for, if it had, the very End of this Chapter had been long ago fuperfeded. But perhaps the Time may come, and our great Aim is to accelerate its Approach, when this, in its fuUeft Extent, fliall be with Accuracy per- formed "\ At prefent, all that is defired of the Reader, is to confider this Political Survey of our Illands attentively; to compare the natural Advantages , of thofe that are already cultivated with thofc that have been fo long flighted; and to meafure the Benefits that may be reafonably expedled from the latter, by thofe that have been, and are aftually reaped from the former. His own Reflections will then projedt a Light upon the Subjedt, and enable him, perhaps, to form many flronger Arguments than we are able to offer, in favour of that Attention which we endeavour to befpeak, and which, whenever it is befl:owed, will be attended with eifed;s fuperior to any thing we are able to conceive, '' This therefore appears to be the proper Seafon for examining clofely into this Matter, and inquiring how thefe hitherto neglected Parts of the Britifh Empire may be brought to bear a Proportion in the Support of the common Interell:, which is the principal Reafon this Labour has been beftowcd, from the Hopes that the great Expediency of it will at once facilitate and render it acceptable. ' If we confider all Circumftances attentively, it is for the mutual Benefit of thofe who dwell in thefe fmaller Ifles and the Inhabitants of Britain, that they fhould he put Into a better State than they are : Ragged unimproved RoclvS dlfhonour the Country to which they belong ; but l;cing cultivated, Manufafturcs introduced, To^vns raifed. Ports opened, and Correfpondenc.e eftablilhcd, which can be only done by the Attention, Prot.e(fl;ion, and Encouragement, of the Motl-ver Country, the Confequences will certainly make good the antient and modern Etymolo- gies. Tiie Britons, in their own Language, called this Innis Mor, i. e. the Great Illand, as did the GreelvS ; the Romans, another World ; and, from the complete Uiiion of all its Parts, may this be ever truly filled Great Britain ! ni Such a Work, of which we pretend only to give the Outline, would fliew we have manj •yajuable Commodities in almoic ever}' one of thefe neglected Iflands. In of GREAT BRITAIN. 4155 In order to execute this Plan methodically, v/e will fpeak of thefe Wands » in the following Order : Firfl of thofe dependant upon South Britain ; next of fuch as formerly belonged to the Duchy of Normandy ; then of the Ille of Man ; after that of the Weftern Illands belonging to North Britain ; and laftly of the Orkney and Shetland Iflands. Thus we flnll gradually advance from thofe that are nearefl and heft known, to thofe that are moft remote, and with which, to their great Misfortune, and the public Detriment, wc have been hitherto but very little acquainted. Section I. Of the IJIands depe?idant upon South B?itai?2. NA M E, Situation, and Extent of the IJle of Wtht, or Wight. Succin^' Hiflory of it from the mofl ancient Times. Climate, Soil, and Produce: Comparative View of this with refpeB to Jbme other Iflands. Propofals jor farther Improvements. The like Particulars in regard to the Scilly, or Sylley Iflands. ConfideratioJts on their great Importance. Hints as to the numeroics Advantages that might be drawn frojn them. Acccount of Mona, now Anglejey, the original Seat of the BritiJJj Druids. The fmgu'.ar Changes' this Country has undergone. Happy Pofition, admirable Fertility, and other natural Benefits. Paji and prefent Condition in Reference to- Agriculture,. ManifaSlures, and Cotnmerce. Mifcellaneous Remarks. WE will begin then, as is natural, with that which is the moil confiderabic and neareft adjoining to the South Coall of Britain, the Ifle of Wight. This feems to have been called, by the ancient Britons, Ui'dl, the Diminutive of Uig, which fignifies an Ifland a. Plence the Romans, imi- tating, as their Cuftom was, the Sound of the Britifli Word, ftiled it Viftis,. Vedtis, and Vefta b. A Greek Winter, coming nearer to the Britifh Name, calls it Id:ac. The Saxons, Wiht, or Wihte, and Wightland, becaufe pof- fefled by the Jutes, called fometimes Vitae and Viti, as well as Juti J, whence in the modern Welch, it appears to be ftiled Guith, whicli, becaufe it fig- nifies disjoined or divorced, fome have thought a very fignificant Appellation «} a Baxteri Gloflarium Antiqultatum Britannicarum, p. 247, 248. relying on the great Skill of the Author in Etymologies, and the apparent Conformity between \5'i€t and Vefta. " Sueton. in Vefpatiano. PJin. Hilt. Nat, lib. iv. cap. 16. Claudii Ptolemsi Geogr.iph. lib. viii. cap. 2. Eutrop. Hirt. Rom. lib. vii. Bed. Hill. Ecclef. Gent. Angler, lib. i, cap. 3. <: Diodor. Sicul. Biblioth. Hift. lib. v, cap. ii. p. 209. d Chron. Saxon, p. 18, 19. Leg. Edwardi ConfefT. cap. 35. Alured. Beverlac. lib. vi. p^ 38. Stapkton, in the Margin of his Tranflation of Bede, obferves, that the Jutes were caJlcJ Wites. Lambarde's Hiftorical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 394. e Nennii Hift. Brit. cap. ii. Leland. Commentar. in CygneamCantionem, p. 90. Harrifoi/s Defcription of Britain, p. 31. Speed's Britifh Empire, fol, 15. Lewis's Hiftorv of Great. Britain, p. 231. who remarks, that Guyth Hgnifies nut only feparated, but a Thing m Sight. 5 bu4.' 45^ The POLITICAL SURVEY but the former Account, though more modern, is however more natural, and therefore fecms to come nearer the Truth. It is feparated from HampHiire by a fmall Arm of the Sea, called anticntly the Solent, which is, in fome Places, twelve, in others feven, in moft about four Miles broad, except at the Strait between Sharpnor and Hurft: Caftles, where it is not quite two f. This Illand is, or rather was, of an oval Form, and from thence laid to refemble an Egg; and in Length, from Eaft to Weft, was anciently thirty Miles, at prefent twenty-three at moft ; in Breadtli, from North to South, twelve ; in Circumference, fixty g. The Soutli Side of the Ifland, which is oppofed to France, is naturally fortified by exceeding fteep Cliffs, and, where-ever thefe are wanting, Forts and Blockhoufes have been built. There are alfo large and dangerous Banks of Sand on the North Side called the Horfe, No Man's Land, and the Brambles ; on the Weft Side a long Ridge of Rocks ; and, nearer the Shore, the Needles ; on the South Atherfeld Rocks, Challarme, and Done Mofs ; to the Eaft again, the Black Rocks, the Mixon, and the White Cliff", afford a kind of natural and effec- tual Barrier againft all Invaders K A LONG Ridge of Hills runs from Weft to Eaft. The Country on the South Side is wonderfully rich and fertile, producing vaft Quantities of excel- lent Corn ; fome fay, in one good Year as much as will fcrve the Inhabitants {even ». The Middle and mountainous Part of the Ifland has fome Wood, and Abundance of fine Grafs, which nourifhes a vaft Number of Sheep, and their Fleece is not inferior to any in Great Britain, except thofe of Cotf- would and Lempfter k. Cattle, Fowl, and Fifh, are equally good, and, except f Lcland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 79. Polyd. Vergil. HifV. Anglic, p. 18. Harrifon's Defcrip- tion of Britain, p. 31. Camdeni Britannia, p. 197. S Beds Hifl. Ecclcf. Gent Angler, lib. i. cap. 3. Chronicon Fani S. Neoti, five Jo. Aflerii Anna!, ap. Gale, xx fcript. torn, i p. 142. Lelandi Commentar. in Cygneam Caiuionem, p. 90. Polyd. Vergii. Hift. Anglic, p. 18 Hirrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 31. Broine's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P. iii. p. 265. i" Speed's Theatre of the Britiih Empire, fol. 15. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 285. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 11. It looks as if thefe Rocks, Shoals, and Sands, were Remnants of the Land belonging to this Ifland when thirty Miles long, and (haped like an Egg, as ancient Au- thors defcribe it. Add to this that in the Irith, and, if I miflake not in the Armoric, an Egg is called Uig or Ugh, which has no fmall Refemblance to Vefta in the Sound, nor is it altogether unlike in Orthography. > Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 31. Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Briti/h Empire, fol. 15. Collier's Hiftorlcal and Geographical Didlionary, under the Article Wight, vol. 2. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P. iii. p. 265. k Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 15. Childrey's Britannia Baco- nica, p. 51. Collier, under Wight, vol. ij. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P, iii. p. 266. in of GREAT BRITAIN. 457 in Time of War, when the Ifland is crowded with People, cheap. There were lilcewife two Parks, but one of thefe is now converted into arable Land, and a Foreft, ftored with excellent Venifon; to which when we add, that the Climate is fo mild that Myitles grow in the open Air, and fo wholfome (except towards the Eaftern Extremity, where Agues are very common) that the People are generally healthy, and live frequently to a great Age, we may be juftihed in faying, that few Places can boaft of being more plentiful ■ or more pleafant '. I T is admirably watered in every Part by Springs, Brooks, or Rivers. The famous Road of St. Helens lies on the North-Eaft Side of the Ifland, where the Sea enters fo deep, as almoft to cut off one Part ; the mofl Eaflern Promontory of which is Benbridge Point, and that Extremity obtains the Name of Benbridge Ifle "i. There is another large Opening about the Mid- dle, on the North Side, where the River Cowes falls into the Sea, and forms a Harbour, defended formerly by two ftrong Caflles called the Eaft and Weft Cowes, but the latter only is now ftanding n. About four Miles up this River ftands Newport, the Capital of the Ifle, in which there are, at prefent, between three and four thoufand Inhabitants : It is a neat Town, built with Stone, to which VelTels of a fmall Burden come up ; and being called in Latin Medena, the Ifland is on that Account divided into the Hun- dreds of Eaft Meden and Weft Meden. About a Mile from thence ftands Caref- brook Caftle, upon a high Rock *". To tlie Weft of Newport Haven lies that of Newton, which, notwithftanding it is now inconfiderable, was here- tofore alfo a pretty good Town ; and ftill farther to the Weft lies the Caftle and Town of South Yarmouth, where the Sea enters again into tlie Land, and penetrates within a Mile of the South Coaft, The Ifland being here as much interfeded as at the Eaftern Extremity, as that is ftiled Benbridge, fo this is called Frefliwater Ifle p. The Hiftory of this Ifland does not, ftridly fpeaking, fall within our Plan; but we fliall give it fuccindly neverthelefs, as it will throw much Light upon fome Parts of the Subjed. It was not fubdued by the Romans until the ' Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 31. Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 15. See alfo Drayton's Polyolbion, towards the Clofe of the Second Song, where we have a fine poetical Pifture of the Ifle of Wight, which is at once correft and elegant. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 51. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 285. Brome's Travels, P. iii. p. 265. '^- Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 15. Collier's Diftionary under Wight, vol ii. ° Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 79. Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 15. Brome's Travels, P. iii. p. 267. ° Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 79. Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britifli Empire, fol. 15. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 285. P Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Brilifli Empire, fol. 15. Collier's Didionai-y under Wight, vol. iu Vol. L N n n Reion 458 The POLITICAL SURVEY Reign of the Emperor Claudius ; when Vefpafian, who commanded witli great Succels and Reputation for him in Britain, reduced it q. According to fomc it revolted again, and was again reduced by Adrian >■. Wlien Aledus, who murdered Caraufius, and thereby gained a fliort-lived Sovereignty in Britain, apprehended Conftantius Chlorus would invade him from Gaul, he anchored with his Fleet at this Ifland, fuppofing he fliould have been able to intercept any naval Armament before it could reach Britain. But Conftantius paffing by with his Squadron unperceived in hazy Weather, and' landing his Forces, Aledlus (laying alide his Purple) fled precipitately, and was killed in the Route «. The" Saxons, then in the Roman Service, lirfl; vifited Briiain in this Fleet: Henceforward, improving in maritime Skill and Force, they meditated the Conquefl: which they afterwards atchieved. Cerdic, the firfl Monarch of the Weft Saxons, fubdued Vedla, with pi-odigious Slaughter of the Inhabitants, and beftowed it on his two Nephews, Stufo and Wihtgar^ who peopled it with Jutes t. Wolpher, King of the Mercians, took it from them, and beftowed it upon his Godfon Edelwach, King of the South Saxons-, in Truft that he would convert the People to Chriftianity, which jTowever he could not effedl «. Cedwall, the great Monarch of the Weft Saxons, attempted and completed their Reduftion, and was on the Point of extermi- nating them, if he had not been appeafed by Wilfrid, who had been Bi- ftiop of York, and was then of Seliey, to whom he gave one fourth of the Ifland, which, amounted to three hundred Houfeholds, or, as a Saxon Writer w underftands that Phrafe, three hundred Hides of Land. Tofti, Brother, but for all that an inveterate Enemy to King Harold, in the fliort Reign of this Prince plundered the Ifie with a piratical Squadron which he commanded ■<. Under William the Norman, Fitzofl^ome, Earl Marfhal and of Hertford, conquered it, and was ftiled Lord of the Ifle of Wight y. His Son having 1 Sueton. in Vefpafiano, cap. iv. Eutrop. Hift. Roman, lib. vli. Beds Ecclef. Hift. Gent. Anglor. lib. i. cap. 3. ' Heftor. Boethii Scotorum Hift. lib. v. £01,76. Lambarde's Hiftorical and Topographical Diflionary, p. 395. • Entropii Hift. Roman, lib. ix. Eumenii Panegj-ricus ad Conftantium. PonticI Virunnii Hift. Briton, lib. v. t Chronicon Saxonicum, A. D. 530. 534. Alured. Beverlacenfis Annal. lib. vi. Johannis de Fordun Scotichronicon, lib. iii. fot. 53. Lelandi Collectanea, torn. ii. p. 252. From this Wihtgar the principal Place in the ifland was called Wihtgar.abyrig, Wihigari Caftellum, after\vards Careibrook Caftle, which is ftill reputed (though now much decayed) the Refidence of the Governor. » Chronicon Saxonicum, A.D. 661. Henrici Huntlngdun. Hift. lib. i. Lelandi Colleftanea, torn. ii. p. 147. " Chronicon Saxonicum, A. D. 686. Bedae Ecclef. Hift. Gent. Anglor. lib. iv.cap. 16. Le- hndi Commentar. in Cygneam Cantionem, p. 90. 5 Aluredi Beverlacenfis Ann.al. lib. ix. Simonis Dunelmenfis Hiftor. AID. 1066. Lelan(fi CoUeftanea, tom. ii. p. 195. 7 GuUelm. Gemet. p. 2»J. Oderic. Vital. Hift. Ecclef, p. 521. Roger Hovedon, p. 258. forfeited of GREAT BRITAIN. 459 forfeited for Treafon, Henry the Firft granted it to Ricardus de Ripariis, Redvears, or Rivers'; and, in fucceeding Times, King John retired hither to avoid the Barons \ In the Reign of Edward the Firft, Ifabella d'e Forti- bus. Widow of the Earl of Albemarle, and Heirefs of the Family of Rivers, Earls of the Ifle of Wight, or rather her Daughter Aveline, fold or exchanged it, though very unwillingly, with the Crown ^. That Monarch being thus poflefled of the liland, appointed John Fitz- Thomas to govern it, with the Title of Conftable, aliigned him alio the keeping of Careibrook Caftle : And indeed it appears, that whenever this lile was thought in Danger, the King, or, by his Authority, the Sheriff of Hants, named a Guardian or a Captain to command therein, and to take all neceflary Provifions for its Security, as might be proved by many Inftances<^. Ed- ward the Second granted Careibrook Caftle, with all the Lands he poflefled in this Ifle, and which were then of the Value of three thoufand Marks a Year, to Piers Gavefton and Margaret his Wife, Daughter of the Earl of Gloucefter, and the Heirs of their Bodies. Upon his Deceafe it returned to the Crown ; and the fame King afterwards granted the Caftle before-men- tioned, with all the Services referved thereto, and his Lands in the Ifle, to his Son Prince Henry and his Heirs, Kings of England ; and in confe- quence of this an Inquifltion iffued, to alcertain what pafled by this Grant; when it appeared, that amongfl; other Rights, that of all Wrecks upon the Coafl: of Wight belonged to the Poflcflor of Cacefl^rook Cafl:le J. It is not evident, from any Thing we have feen, that it was alienated from the Crown in all the Reign of Edward the Third, who, being a wife Prince, knew the Advantage of retaining fo valuable a PoflelTion in his own Hands, as his Great Grandfather from a like Principle of Policy had done. But King Richard the Second, who was of another Difpofition, and much in the Hands of the Princes of bis Blood, granted the Ifle of Wight, with the Cafl:le of Carefbrook, and the Dominion thereof, to Edward Earl of Rutland, whom he afterwards created Duke of Albemarle. But he being flain, commanding the Vanguard of the Englifli Army, at the Battle of Agincourt, bearing the Title, on the Demife of his Father, of Duke of York, this Grant vefled in his Widow, Philippa Duchefs of York ; or, as fome lay, was granted to her for Life by King Henry the Fifth, with Remainder to 2 Oderic. Vital. Hid. Ecclef. p. 783. Jlonafticon Anglican, torn. i. col. 790. Brooke's Cata- logue of Nobility, p. 56. » Matt. Paris Hift. Angl. torn i. p. 624. Lambarde's Topographical and Hiftorical Diiflionary, p. 396. Speed's Chronicle, p. 504. t" Clauf. 4 Edw. I. iii. 7. in Cedula Pat. 11 Edw. III. p. i. per Infpex. Camdeni Britannia, p. 200. ' Rymeri Fcedera, torn. v. p. 22. 24. vii. 139. 147. ■^ Chart. I Edw. II. m. 6. 1 1. 6. Pat. 20 Edw. II. m. 10. jMoUoy dc Jure Maritimo ctNavali, lib. ii. cap. 5. N n n 2 his 46© The POLITICAL SURVEY his o-yvn Brother, Humphry Duke of Glouccfter. This PhiHppa became afterwards the Wife of Robert Fitzwaher, and dving, A. D. 1400, at Caref- hrook Cartle, ftiies herfelf, in her laft Teftament, Lady of the Ille of Wig] It «. But it does not appear that Humphry Duke of Gloucefter ever en- joyed this Lordlhip. On the contrary, it is more probable that it was again veiled in the Crown. For \ve find Henry the Sixth ahenated it in Favour of Henry de Beau- champ, wjiom he created Duke of Warwick, and afterwards crowned him, with his ov.'n Hands, King of the Ifle of Wight '. In him as the Title began >t alfo extinguilhed, he dying without Heirs g. The fame Monarch granted it to Henry Beaufort, Son to Edmund Duke of Somcrfet, which Title hitnfelf afterwards bore, and was flain fighting for the King his Mafter, having no law- ful Illlie h. Edmund the Fourth granted the Title of Lord of the Ifle of Wight to Anthony Woodville Lord Scales, afterwards Earl Rivers, who died on a Scaffold at Pontefract, without Ifilic '. In the Reign of Henry the Seventh Edward Widville, or Woodville, whom our Hillorians call Lord Woodville, though never lb created. Uncle to Anthony Earl of Rivers, was Governor of this Ifland, in which he raifed a confiderable Force, with the King's Con- nivance, though without his Countenance or Confent, which he carried over to Brittany ; and having performed many honourable Exploits, was there llain, in the Battle of St. Albin k. Upon his Demif'e, or not long after, it was granted in Farm by the fame Prince to his great Favourite Sir Reginald Bray, at the Rate of three hundred Marks per Annum. While this Ifland was fomctimes in the Hands ofSubjeds, fometimes belonging immediately to theCrown, the Condition of its Inhabitants muff have been very precarious '". The Lords alfo of the Ille ot Wight were in different Circumflances. Some held it in Fee, others in fpecial Tail, and others for Life only. When it was in the Crown, the Perfon prefiding there had the Title of Conflable, the Cuflody of Caresbrook, aiid the Profits of the Lands belonging thereto ; but the rell of the Manors belonging to the Lordlhip, of ' Pat. 20 R. II p. 3. m. 5. Chicheley (Regifler) vol. 1. p. 428. f Ex Libello de Antiquitate Theokcbirieniis Monallcrii. Leland's Itinerary, torn. vi. fol. 91. Camdeni Britannia, p. 200. 8 John RofTe's Hiflorical Account of the Earls of Warwick. Broolie's Catalogue of Nobility, p, 261. Sir William Dugdale's Antiquities of Warwicklhire, p. 322. h Pat. 36 H. VI. p. I. m. 10. i Pat. 6Edw. IV. p. 2. m. 19. ^ Polyd. Verg. Hift, Angl. lib. xxvi. p. 733. Holinflied's Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 768. Stowc's Annals, p. 485. 1 Polyd. Vcrg. Hift. Angl. lib. xxvi. p. 774. Camdeni Britannia, p. 2C0. Dugdale's Baronage, vol. ii. p. 3 II. '" The Uncertainty of their Tenures muft difcourage Induftry, and being expofed more than moft other Parts of England, in Time of War, hindered them from applying effectually to Trade. which of G R E AT BRI T AI N. 461 which he was only Steward, were accounted for in the Exchequer. At all Times the King received the fame Aids out of this Ifle as from the reft of Hampihire; and the Inhabitants were amenable to the King's Jufticcs when they came into that County, and were amerced if they did not attend ". After the Time of Henry the Eighth, the Office of Governor and Captain of the lile, to which was annexed the Conftablefliip of Caresbrook Caftle, was given to Perfons of high Rank, who, if they had no other Connexion with, the Ifle, commonly devolved the Duties of tke Office, with the Title of Deputy Governor, on fome Gentleman of Characfler or Diftindlion, ofwhicli there were and are many in the Country '^. From this Period, when greater Equality and Security in Point of Property began, and fince the Station of our naval Force likewife has been fo much confined to Portfmouth, the Face of Affairs has been changed here, and every Thing profpered and improved, as free from all ancient Impediments. For the Situation of this Ifland expofed it exceedingly, in thofe early Times, while other Nations were potent at Sea; more efpecially in the Davs of our Saxon Monarchs, when the Danes were continually infeiling our Coafts; and after the Conqueft, during our frequent Wars with the French and their Allies. For this Reafon feveral Methods were devifed and pradlifed for its Defence?. Thus, in Edward the Third's Time, we find that the Inhabitants were releafed from all perfonal Services and Aids in Money ; but fuch of them as were abfent were remanded to their own Country 'l. In the fucceeding Reign the People were lb harraffed that moft of them deferted tlie Illand, upon which the remain- ing Inhabitants petitioned the King in Parliament for Relief r. In order to raifc and array the Militia with greater Facility, the Ifland was divided into eleven^ Centons, which were equivalent toHundreds, that is in refpedl to thelfle; for as connefted with the County, the whole is divided into two Hundreds onlv, viz. Eaft Meden and Weft Meden, as has been before-mentioned; and each of thefe Centons is fubdivided into Vintons. The Sherift" of Southampton was impowered to mufter them, and to appoint a Cutlios or Guardian of the Ifles. King Henry the Eighth, whom the Writers of his own Time cele- brate for his extraordinary Care of our Coafts, had a fpecial, Regard to this. " Mag. Rot. 5 Steph. Rot. 5. b. where it appears the Inhabitants paid Danegelt. Mag. Rot. 16. Hen. II. Rot. 9. a. Hantefcira ; which Ihews that the People of this Ille were amerced for not meet- ing the Judges. " Sir James Worfel}', Lord Cromwel, Sir Edward Horfey, Sir Francis Knollys, Earl of Portland, Lord Culpeper, Sir William Oglander, &c. P Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 98. 129. 132. 13^. 138. Chronlcon Joannis Brompton, co!. 886,. 887. Annales Waverleienfes, p. 152. Chron. de Mailrofs, p. 153. q Walteri Hemingford Chron. Edw. III. p. 282. Lelandi CoUeftansa, torn. i. p. 302. Cotton's Records, p. 179. ■■ Thoms Sprotti Chronic, p. 59. col. 2. Thomx Otterboiirne Chronic, p. 148. Cotron's Re- cords, p. 179. ' Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Cotton's Record?, p. 28. Speed's Theatre of the Britilh Em- pire, fol. 15. J Mandj. 462 The POLITICAL SURVEY lil.ind, in which he built the two Caftles of Cowes f. In Queen Elizabeth's Reign the Militia amounted to tour thoufand ; ib that the Number of People in her Time was become greater than in preceding Ages u. At prefent, the Superiority of our Fleets defend the Inhabitants of this beautiful Spot, not only from Danger, but even from Apprehenfions. Indeed the Seafon of War is fo far from being now dreaded as perilous, that, on account of the almoft innumerable Advantages arifing from thence, it is regarded by the Inhabi- tants of this flourifliing Country as their Harveftw. We will take this Opportunity of mentioning a very memorable Propofal relating to this liland, made by a Gentleman who bore a very high Command in our Fleet, and was eftcemed as able a Seaman as any of his Time -^■. He has bellowed great Pains to prove that many Ufes might be made of Gallics in our Seas, that they would be a great Addition to the Strength of our Navy, would contribute to defend our own Coafls from Invafions, facilitate making Defcents upon thofe of our Enemies, and be highly ferviceable in feveral other Refpedts. He treats this Subjed: at large, and enforces what he deli- vers by Examples, drawn from his own Experience. In his Conclufiop, he obferves, that the Ille of Wight is not barely the fitteft Place in Britain, but in all Europe, for the Entertainment of Gallies, and enters llkewife into the Proof of this with great Spirit and Sagacity. As to the Size, or Extent rather, of this Ifland, it has been reckoned to be fomewhat more than one hundred and fifty Square Miles, or about one hundred thoufand Acres >'. And in order to afcertain this, upon an Appli- cation to the propereil Judge, an intelligent Inhabitant, he computed there muft be fourfcore thoufand Acres at leaft. Befides the three Boroughs, New- port, Newton, and Yarmouth, before-mentioned, which fend fix Members to Parliament ', and the Votes of all the Freeholders in chufing Knights for Hampfhire, there are upwards of forty Villages, divided into about thirty Parifhes •>, and in which there may be, on a very moderate Computation, ' Cygnea Cantio, p. 21. Leland's Itinerary, torn. iii. fol. 79. Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. " As appears by Returns made when there was an Apprehenfion of a Spanifh Invafion ; and a Piece of Ordnance was alfo placed in every Village. ■^ Heylin's Cofmography, p. 285. Brome's Travels over England, Scotland, and Wales, P. iii. p. 266. Stiikelcy's Itinerarium Curiofuin, p. 186. " Sir William Monfon's Naval Trafls, book iii. p. 361, 362, 363. y Templeman's Snrvey, Plate xxix. ^ It may not be amifs to remark that Newport and Yarmouth fent jointly Members to Parliament, 27 Edw. I. that Yarmouth fent Members to a great Council in the Reign of Edward III. But their becoming regular in that refpeft, and Newton's fending two Members, is to be dated from the twenty-feventh of Elizabeth. » Camdeni Britannia, p. 198. Speed's Britidi Empire, fol. 15. See the Preface before the firfl: Volume of Willis's Notitia Parliamentaria, p. xxiv. Stat. 7 & 8 W. lU. cap. xxv. § 10. Britifh Parliamentary Regifter, H^, 158, 160, 162. from of GREAT BRITAIN. 463 irom twenty-five to thirty thoufand Inhabitants s. There is no Doubt that the Number of Inhabitants here have encreafed greatly, and that the Ifland is, at prefent, incomparably in a better State than in former Times ; but con- fidering the Vicinity of England, and the many Opportunities that Youth meet with to vifit Countries at a far greater Diftance, it is not likely that, with all its Beauties, this Epitome of Britain, as it may be very juftly ftilcd, will ever be overftocked. But that this beautiful Country, even In its prefent flourifliing Conditiorf, is very far from being improved to the utmoft, may appear from comparing it with various Iflands, under feveral Forms of Rule, and in different Parts of the World. The Iflc of Walcheren, by much the mod confiderable, though not the largeft of the feven that are in Zeeland, the fecond of the Seven United Provinces, is at moft but half the Size of the Ifle of Wight, excel- lently cultivated indeed, having alfo an extenlive Trade, and much foreign Commerce, has in it a City, four walled Towns, and many laro-e populous Villages t, Middleburgh, the Capital of the Ifland, and of tht Province alfo, which Province is not thrice the Bignefs of our Ifle, contains as many Inhabitants as there are in Wight ; being in all Refpedls one of the fairefl, neateft, and beft built Cities within the Dutch Dominions ". Moft of its Advantages, and even its Port, are derived from Art, which originally conftrudled, and ftill maintains, thofe coftly and ftupendous Dykes which protedl the Bleflings that fpring from Nature y. A Circumftance which alone makes a prodigious Difference in refpedl of their Situations. But to pro- ceed : Malta is nearly of the fame Size with our Ifland, and, according to the beft Accounts, is about twice as well inhabited, though not at all fuperior to it in Point of Soil and other Prerogatives x. But the Ifland of Barbadoes far exceeds them both, having. Whites and Blacks together, not fewer than one hundred thoufand >'. It is therefore no- abfurd or ridiculous Scheme to propofe (which for many Reafons would be highly ferviceable to • Great Britain) the rendering this Ifland much better inhabited than it is, though we fiiould grant it to be very ditiicult to render it as populous 5 From private Information that may be depended on. ' Ifolario di Tomafo Porcacchi, lib. i. p. 33. Hcylin's Cofmography, book ii. p. 33 r. D'AudifFret Hiftoire et Geographie Ancienne et Moderne, torn. ii. p. 532. " Fynes Moryfon's Itinerary, P. i. book i. chap. iv. p. 49, 50. Sir William Monfcn's Naval ,Tra(5ts, p. 464^ 465, 466. Sir William Temple's Obfen-ations on the Neiherlnnds, chap. iii. p. 124. w Ailing. Not. infer German. P. ii. p. 117. Du Bois Geographie Moderne, P. i. chap. xiL ^.2. Atlas Mari'.imus et Commercialis, p. 27. 2= Sandys Travels, book iv. p. 227 — 234. Ray's Travels, vol. i. p. 264. Francefco .-^beia Defcrizione di Malta, Ifola nd Mare Siciiiano, coa le Antichita, e altre Notizie, Malta 1647 iol 1 Briti/h Empire in America, vol. ii. p. 125, 126. Hughes's Natural Hiftory ot BarbadoeS;, ^ock i. p. 14. Account of European Scttlcjients in America, vol. ii. p, 83, 84, as - 46+ The POLITICAL SURVEY as Barbadoes i. This is the rather to be attempted, as, if there arifes no immediate Advantages, yet no Inconveniencies whatever are to be apprehended from fuch an Endeavour. This Ifle has been always commended for its wonderful Fertility; and though fome may attribute that to the almoft univerfal Ufe of Marl fince the Beginning of the current Century, yet I am entirely of the lame Opinion with a worthy and very intelligent Gentleman fettled there, that this is no new, but an old Improvement revived ; and fo, in Effedl, has been the invariable Caufe of the Fruitfulnefs of Wight. He mentions, in Support of this, the great Depth of the Marl Pits on their Downs, and a Stratum of Chalk or Marl difcovered upon breaking up Lands which had been laid down in Grafs for one hundred Years or more a. It has been alfo found, on grubbing of Cop- pices, very deep in the Ground, which is aProof thefe had been once arable; and the fame Hufbandry praftifed before b. Indeed Marling was fo anciently introduced, that Pliny mentions it as a Method peculiarly ours c. But ftill perhaps it will admit of further Extenfion ; and it would be an acceptable Service done to the Public, if any competent Judge would give the World a complete Hiftory of this valuable Earth, and its Ufes in Agriculture; which, confidering how numerous they are, and how generally Marl is to be found in all Parts of thefe Kingdoms, is a Matter of great Importance d. The Cultivation of Turnips alfo has made fome Progrefs already in this Ifle ; and there is little Room to doubt will, in the Courfe of the prefent Age, be rendered as advantageous there as in Norfolk. In other Points of Oeco- nomy the Farmei's here are equally knowing and expert «. It is indeed true, we find them fometimes impeached of Obftinacy, and a Diflike to new Inventions, on which Topic they are more eafy to be excufed than in other Places, bccaufe their old Methods are very fenfible, and, for the moft Part, fucceed very well. z- The amazing Number of People in Barbadoes arifes from their Staple Sugar ; which is firfl a CommoJity, next a Manufacture, and laftly a grand Article of Commerce ; giving Em- ployment and Subfiflence to Multitudes, confidered in every one of thefe Lights. As to the other two lllands, Walcheren has the Staple of French Wines, and Malta her military Order. a This Account of Wight was tranfmitted entire to a Gentleman of eminent Under/landing in the Affiirs of the Ifland, to whom I am retrained from making a more difUnft Acknowlegement of my great Obligations. b Lille's Hulbandry, vol. i. p. 64. where are feveral ufcful Remarks upon this Subjeft. « Natur. Hift. lib. xvii. cap. 6, 7, 8. where he calls it Adeps Terrx, and informs us that the Celts called it, in their own Language, Marga. i The Ufe of Marl prevails much in Kent, ElTex, Suffex, Stafford/hire, Chefhire, and in the North. e Line's Hufbandry, vol. i. p. 64, G'}. 76. 292. 333. Vol. ii. p. 57, 143. 181. 228. 278. 390. 398, The of G R E A T BRITAIN. 465 The Situation, Climate, and Soil, might tempt one to hope Vines might be cultivated here to Perfedion ; that is, fo as to make Wine equal to what we import. This was attempted by Mr. Travers, and failed, as I have been informed, rather through Impatience than^^any other Source ; a Circumftancc that has been ufually fatal to this Improvement, which, from thence, has never once met with a fair Trial, under proper Management, the real Caufe, at leafl in my poor Opinion, why Vineyards in Britain do not llicceed f". Pomegra- nates, bearing Fruit, have been commonly raifed in the open Air, but as Curi- olities only : Yet as the Flowers, Fruit, Seeds, Rind, and Bark, are all of them faleable, and the latter peculiarly ufeful in tanning, perhaps it might be managed to Profit g. Samphire grows in Abundance, and fo no doubt would Caper Buflies, amongfl: the Cliffs, in proper Expolitions. Thefe are a confi- derable Objeft in one of the fairefl Provinces of France 1', and would cer- tainly become very foon a Commodity greatly advantageous to the Inhabitants of lb fmall an Illand, more efpecially as they would grow belT:, in Places where nothing is now produced of any Value, and might be gathered and pickled by aged Perfons, Women, and Children, who have no Opportunit)' of earur ing any thing at prefent i. White Mulberries there is little Room to quefiiion would thrive here, and many other Fruits and Shrubs, which would naturally follow, if any of the Improvements before-hinted were once brought to bear. There is, in thefe Cafes, no Difficulty in the Purfuit, comparable to that of taking a fteady and well founded Refolution of entering upon and pro- fecuting a new Improvement, till it is inconteftibly evident whether it will fuc- ceed or not. Though there are fo many raw Materials, yet there are but few Manu- fadlures in this Illand. It does not appear, that, except Worfled, there is any thing wrought out of their excellent Wool, which might be all employed in the flight Stuffs and thin Cloths that are the Supports of the French Looms, if a fmall Encouragement were given to thofe who are expert in thefe Trades to come over and fettle in this Ifland '<. There are a few Tanners, and a Currier, but the making leveral Sorts of Leather is not yet introduced, though f Harrifon's Defcriptlon of Britain, book i. chap, xviii. p. i lo. Evelyn's Preface to the Eng- glidi Vineyard vindicated, by John Rofe. Bradley's Survey of ancient Hiifbandry and Gardening, at the Clofe of his Preface. g Diftionaire Univerfelle de Commerce, torn. iii. col. 701, 702. Houghton's Collecflions for the Improvement of Hufbandry and Trade, vol. iii. p. 8. Retired Gardener, by London and Wife, vol. ii. p. 679 — 687. *■ Plin. Nat. fiift. lib. XX. cap. 15. Profperi Alpini ^gyptl Hift. Natur. torn, ii- p. 60. Bou- lainvilliers Etat de la France, vol. ii. p. 453. i Such Acquifitions are doubly valuable, as removing an Expence on one Side, and bringing in a clear Profit on the other. k In no Part of the Britifh Dominions could a Scheme of this Sort be [o eafily accomplilhed, as the Material is not any where to be obtained in Quantity or Quality fo well adapted to the Pur- pofe, or the Manufa^ff urc couveyed more fpeedily, or with kfs Kxpence, to foreign Markets. Voi^ I. O o o there 466 The POLITICAL SURVEY there is Room for it. There is a moft valuable and beautiful White Sand in Freftnvatcr Illc, near the Needles, upon the Eftate of David Urry Efq; of which confiderable Quantities arc fent annually to Briftol and Liverpool '. There was formerly a Manufadure of Glafs at Cowes, but it has been long ago difcontinued. The Lofs of thefe, and the Incapacity of fetting up any Dew Manufadure, is chiefly owing to the Dearnefs and Defed: of Firing, more efpecially of late Years m. It was this in all Probability that obliged the Inhabitants to difcontinue the baking their own Flour into Bifcuit, and brewing their own Malt into Beer, for the Ufc of the Navy, which was for- merly praftifed here ". We have the concurring Authority of feveral emi- nent Writers, that there was a very fine fort of Tobacco-pipe Clay, called Hayter's Clay, in this Ifland, but now what is ufed for making Pipes they bring from Pool o. But we will pafs from thefe to another Manufadluie which they have alfo loft, and not through that Defed which has been fpecified ; v/hich Manufadure may be certainly and eafily retrieved, and, if retrieved, would undoubtedly make Way for many more, increafe the Number of Inha- bitants, and give a new Turn to their Endeavours. The Manufadure that I mean is Bay-Salt, which, as I have been informed, was once adually made at Hampftead in this Ifland j and there can be no Reafon afl"igned why it fhould not be made there as well as on the Coafts of Brittany p. The Situation of the Ifland for Salt Ponds is more favourable. They might be conftruded and managed with the utmofl: Facility. The Stone propereft for flooring and lining thefe Ponds is carried from this Ifland to difl:ant Places, and would doubtlefs anfwer full as well hereq, Befides, the Salt being produced in thefe Ponds in the Summer only, they might he ufed for keeping Sea Fifh, as is pradifed and turns to Profit elfewhere >■, for at leafl fix Months in the Year. In confequence of this Manufadure there would probably arife a Fifliery, which would be a further Advantage; for though the Sea abounds v/ith the beft Sorts of Filh on all Sides, no Ufe 1 According to the Information I received upon the Application I have already mentioned. ■n There feem to be two Methods of redreffing this Evil. The firft, by increafing the Quan- tity of their Coppices, and putting the felling them under a general Regulation ; which probably would be found pradHcable. The fecond is, augnjenting their Navigation, by introducing Manufa£lures, which would foon reduce the Price of Coals, by bringing them in greater Plenty to Market. " If the Improvement hereafter mentioned, p. 469, fhould take EfTeiTt, this Pra(nice, to the nO' fmall Advantage of the Inhabitants, would naturally revive, as it would become the Care of the Admiralty to procure their Stores on the cheapefl Terms. o Morton's Natural Hiftory of Northamptonfhire, p. ii. chap. i. p. 70. Leigh's Natural Hif- tory of Lancafhire, p. c;7. Woodward's Natural Hiflory of FolTils, vol. ii. p. 63. p Philofophital Tranfaftions of the Royal Society, No. Ii. p. 1025. Collins on Salt and Filheries, p. 57. Brownrigg's Art of making Salt, p. 32. 125. '1 The Author laft cited has given very clear Inlfru(ftions in refpeifl: to the making thefe Ponds, and very accurate Calculations as to their Produce. ' Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 137. Childrey's Britannia Bacouica,. p. 22. 2 * has of GREAT BRITAIN. 467 has been made of this great Blefling, but for immediate Confumption, by the Inhabitants. At all Events, the producing Bay-Salt would create a new Branch of Exportation s ; and, by exhibiting the Advantages that accrue from Induftry, happily exerted, and the Benefits that may rellilt by a ftridt Attention to the natural Prerogatives of the Ille, give the People a greater Spirit than they have hitherto fliewn in making thofe Improvements for which they have fuch fingular and extraordinary Conveniencie;, and which would turn equally to their private and particular Emolument, as Inhabitants of Wight, and to the public Intereft, as at the fame Time they w^ould not at all leifen the Benefits they already derive from their native Commodities t. But all Things mult have a Beginning, and, in all Attempts of this Nature, a right Beginning is of the utmoll Confequence ; and fuch, on a mature Con- fideration of all Circumftances, this appears to be, which is the fole Reafon for Aating it fo much at large, and infixing upon it fo copioufly. In regard to Navigation and Commerce, Weft Cowes, which is a Mem- ber of Southampton, is properly fpealcing the Port of the Ifle of Wight; having under its Jurifdiftion the Havens of Yarmouth and Newport, as Creeks u. Cowes is in this Refpedl very commodious, and a great Refort there is thither of Ships outward and homeward bound, and, in Time of War, of foreign Ships, as well as our own. For this Reafon there is a Cuf- tom-houfe, and a competent Eftabhihment for Ofiicers employed in making the proper Entries and colleding the Duties. This Refort however is chiefly owing to its happy Situation, in refpedl to Veflels proceeding to or returning from diftant Parts, and has little to do with the Inhabitants of Wight iv, who, except fending, when Markets are favourable, pretty larsje Quantities of Corn to Spain and Portugal, cannot boaft of much foreign Commerce, for which, neverthelels, they are admirably feated, and, if Manufadures were once introduced, would very foon grow confiderable, and fee thofe Towns which are now declining, a lure Sign that fomething is wanting, rife again into Credit, and rekime their ancient Splendor x. For Cowes, from the Caufes before-mentioned, is the beft built and moft flou- rifliing Place, tliough no Borough, in this Klc ; and furely the fame Caufes > It would, when brought to bear, produce fome, and make Way {'or many other, Manu- faftures, which could not be introduced as Things now Hand. t There Is at prefent Bay Salt made to great Profit at Lymmington, but then this. is co:npIeted by boiling : What is propofed is by the fole Operation of the Sun, which, from its Situation, is cer- tainly pra(nicable in the Ifle of Wight. " Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. ii. Molloy de Jure Maritimo et Navali, p. 327. Crouch's Com- plete View of the Britilli Culloms, p. 385. " The Advantages which arife to the many induflrious and wealthy Perfons fettled here fpring from the Commerce of Britain, and would not be at all diminiflied by any Improvements we have fuggefted. X In the Reign of Henry VIIL Newport was the only Market In the Ille ; Newton and Yarmouth grew afterwards coniiderable. O o o a wjuld 468 The POLITICAL SURVEY would produce the flime Effeds elfevvhere. In the Coafting Trade, accord- ing to the befi Account I could obtain, there may be employed in the whole about fourfcore Vcilels of all Siz:s y. In order to accelerate all thefe Improvement?, of which this beautiful, fruit- ful, and well-featcd Country is certainly capable, let me be permitted to give .1 few further Hints, whicli, though they may pafs unregarded for the pre- fent, may pofTibly meet with a better Reception from Pofterity, which is the common Fate of fuch Pieces of Advice t-. The whole Ifland is wonderfully pleaiant ; but if any mineral Water could be difcovered in the Vicinity of fome well-lituatcd Village, where proper Convenicncies were provided for Strangers, under fuch Regulations, as to prevent Avarice from proving preju- dicial to the public Interelt, it could not fail, where-ever thefe Circumfiances concurred, of producing numerous Advantages -i. But here fomething is left to Chance. I will mendon another Cafe, where there is nothing. There is no Place where Bathing in the Sea could be rendered more commodious than in almoft every Town in the Ifland b ; and, confidering the many charm- ing Profpedts, agreeable Walks, and delightful Rides, that might be con- trived, and the Facility of having Recourfe to a Medicine, not inferior to Sea- Water, that is, making fliort Trips at Sea, which efficacious Exercife, and the falubrious Change of Air attending it, has been found beneficial even in the moll defperate Cafes c ; thefe Circunaftances combined, would quickly render this the fineft Retreat for valetudinary Perfons in the South of England. In confequence of a Concourfe of People at regular Seafons, many Improvements, now not fo much as in Conception, would, as from the like Caufe has been experienced in other Places, be Ipeedily and certainly made d. The Circulation of Money would by the fame means be increafed, and Induflry alfa of ncceffity encouraged, over the whole Ifle. Add to this, that it would afford the moll: natural Support to a new Manufacture in Stuff or Cloth, and flrongly conduce to the making it generally known, and bringing It into Credit. Belides, it would contribute to ftop the Humour of going to y The Introdudtion of Maoufaiftures would alfo render this Coafting Trade much more con- fiderable. 2- Many of the Hints given by Leiand, Sir Thomas More, Sir Hugh Plac, Mr. Hartiib, Mr. Evelyn, Dr. Beale, and Mr. Boyle, tliough unheeded in their own Times, have been the Source, of Wealth in ours. a It is a prevailing Opinion, that no Vein of any Kind of Metal is to be found in this Illand, which will be either confirmed or confuted,^ according to the Succefs of this Search for a medical Spring. - ^ When intelligent Readers confider, what Benefits have refulted in other Coun'ries nnd in our own, to Places where fuch a temporary Confluence of People hath been drawn by fuch Means, they will fee this Recommendation in its proper Light. ■: Plin.Nat. Hift. lib. xxxi. cap. vi. Van Swciten Comment, in Eoerhaav. Aphorif. vol. i. p. 34. Dr. Gilchrifl's Ufe of Sea Voyages in Medicine, chap. vii. »■ Cheltenham and Scarborough are Inftances in our own Times ; in which Period alfo, chiefly from prudent Regulations, Bath is become, in refpeet to what it v,as at the Beginning of this Cen^ tury, almoft as big again. Montpelier, of GREAT BRITAIN. 469 Montpelicr, Lifton, and Naples, and fave vafl: Sums unneceiTarily Ipent ia fuch Excuifions ". In the Middle of the Iile an Academy might be very commodioufly ereded, for teaching the modern Languages, and all the Sciences requilitc to qualijy Youth for the Service of the Navy. They would here be more retired, and confequently better difpofed to follow their Studies ; and yet near enough the Fleet to complete their Education by pradical Infi:rudions, when fo I'ar verfed in Theory as to underftand them thoroughly. Competent Salaries to the ProfelTors, firidl Regulations in regard to their granting Certificates to their Pupils of their Capacity, when fent upon adual Service, and a due Re- fpe(5l paid to thofe Certificates, if fupported by proper Behaviour, in accele- rating the Promotion of young Seamen thus educated, would produce many good Eifeds, at a fmall Expence to the Public f. How much fuch an Infti- tution upon a broad Foundation is wanted, what mighty Advantages liave ac- crued to Seamen from their having a juft Tincture of Letters, and what Mifchiefs flow from Deficiencies in this Refpedl, may be learned from the Writings of the befl: Judges ; Men verfed in naval AtJliirs, and who liad a. fincere and hearty Zeal for the Honour and Profperity of their Country 2. Another Thing that would contribute exceedingly to render this Ifle more populous and more confiderable, would be the making one of its Ports fit for the Reception of Part of the fmall-armed Veffels tliat belong to the Royal Navy, and laying up there the Stores, Artillery, and other Furniture, Vv^hen not employed. 1 am av\'are of fome Objections that may be made to this ; but inftead of ftating and anfwering thefe, I fhall only obferve, that none can be urged more ftrongly againft it, than thofe that were formerly alleged againft employing, in the fame Manner, but v/ith refped: to larger Veliels, the oppofite Ille called Portfea !'. As therefore the fuperior Excel- lency of the Haven of Portfmouth very juftly overcame thefe, and has been produdive of fo many Benefits, why may we not, in a proportionable Degree, exped that the fame would follow here ? There might indeed be fome Expence in the firfi; fixing thefe Efiablifhments ; but this v,ould be ia reality no more than a temporary Change in the Circulation, and would pof- fibly little, if at all, exceed the additional annual Income from Cuftom and = The Sums thus fpent, which are an abfolute Lofs to the Nation, amount to much more tliari could well be imagined ; and yet, we mufl: allow, it is an Evil tliat ought to be tenderly dealt with. f Such an Academy would draw young Men, who were inclined to a maritime Life, from all Quarters, and two Years would be fnffitient to go through the necelTary Parts of Education. S King Henry YIIl. declares his 'View to this, in his Letters Patent for eftablifning the Tri- nity-hpufes at Deptford, Kingfton upon Hull, and Newcaftle. See alfo Hackluyt's Dedication of his Colleftion of Voyages to the Earl of Nottingham. Sir WiUiam Monfon's Naval Tra which in the moft obvious Senfe is true : But as the Phoeni- cians were fiimiliar with the Metal, and with the Country that produced it, before the Greeks knew any tiling of either, it is very likely they intro- duced the Names of both from their own Language i. This is the more probable, becaufe Merodotus lays, that, though he was acquainted with Tin, he knew not the Iflands from whence it was brought "'. Strabo gives us an accurate, though a very fuccindl Account of the Cafiiterides. He fays thefe Iflands were ten in Number, lying clofe together, of which only one was uninhabited ; the People led an erratic Life, lived upon the Produce of their Cattle, wore an under Garment which reached down to their Ancles, nnd over that another, both of the fame Colour, which was black, girt round a little below the Breaft with a Girdle, and walked with Staves in their Hands. The Riches of thefe Iflands was Tin and Lead, which, with the Skins of their Cattle, they exchanged with foreign Merchants, that is the Phoenicians from Cadiz, for Earthen-ware, Salt, and Utenflls made of i The Produfts of thefe Duties may be confidered as Indices of the Commerce and Induflry of the People, fo far as regards tlie Public. k The rich Produce of thefe Iflands, and the commercial Spirit of their Inhabitants, rendered them famous ; thefe being loft, they became obfcure. 1 Num. xxxi. 22. All the Meta^ arc mentioned. But in the Targum of Jonathan, inftead of the Hebrew Word Bed'il, which we render Tin, we have KalUra, and in the Jerufalem Targum Kiffara. See Bib. Polyglot, torn. iv. p. ^03. «n Herodoti Thalia, p. 90, which Pa/Tage plainly fliews, that the CalTiterldes were, in his Opi- nion, Illands in the remoter Parts of Europe. Brals. of GREAT BRITAIN. 471 Brafs n. An Author of as great or greater Antiquity, fecms to include a Part at leaft of Cornwall amongft thefe Iflands -, or rather, he fuggeft?, that they were not perfedt Illands except at full Sea, but that at Ebb the Inhabitants paffed from one to another upon the Sands, and that they even tranfportcd their Tin in large fquare Blocks upon Carriages from one Ifland to another. He farther takes Notice, that fuch as inhabited about Belerium, or the Land's End, were, from their Converfation with Strangers, remarkably civil and cour- teous '■'. Other ancient Writers ftile thefe Iflands Hesperides, from their weft- em Situation'', and Oestrymnides, aflerting that the Land was extremely fertile, as well as full of Mines, and that the People, though \-cry brave, \vere entirely addided to Commerce, and boldly palled the Seas in their Leather Boats ''■. How Things come to be in (o very different a Condition as they are at prcfent, and how, even in the State they now rtand, they afford to zn intelligent Enquirer unqueftionable Proofs of their having been formerly fuch as thefe old Writers reprefent them, may be learned from the Pen of a very ingenious and fenfible Author, who has taken great Pains to make himfelf thoroughly Mafter of his Subject, which he has treated with equal Solidity and Perfpicuityj fo that there is no need of our infixing any longer upon this Point ■-. The Romans were exceedingly defirous of having a Share in this Com- merce, which the Phoenicians as carefully laboured to prevent, by concealing' their Navigation to thefe lilands as much as it was in their Power s. At length however the Romans prevailed, and Publius Craffus coming thither, was fo well pleafed with the Induftry and Manners of the People, that he taught them various Improvements, as well in working their Mines, which- till that Time were but ihallow, as in carrying their own Merchandize to- different Markets t. A very learned Perfon has with great Probability fug- " Strab. Geograph. lib. Lii. p. 147. 175, 176. We fliould, however, hnve received far more Lit^ht upon this SuhjeiH:, if ihe Treatife written upon Tin, and the Places from whence it came,, by'rolybins, had been preferved. We find thefe Iflands alfo mentioned by Pomponius Mtla, in ■his Work, dc Situ Orbis, lib. iii. cap. vi. p. 41. Diod. Siciil. Bibl. Hift. lib. v. cap. ii. p. 209. The Feint of Cornwall appears from. the high Lands in the Scillies as an Ifland. P Dionyfius Alexaad. in Orbis Defcript. V. 562. Euftathius, in his Commentary, afferts thefe to be the Cafllterides, and borrows feveral Paflages from Strabo in order to illuibate his Author's- very concife Account. 1 Fcfl:. AvLeni Ora Maritim. v. 90. His Account is larger and more circuipllantial than that of Dionyfius the Alexandrian. ' Philofophical Tranfaftions of the Royal Society, vol. xlviii. N". vii. p. 55. An Account of the great Alterations which the Iflands of Sylley have undergone fince the Time of the Ancients who mention them, as to their Number, Extent, and Pofition. In a Letter to the Reverend- Thomas Birch, D. I>. Sec. R. S. by the Reverend Mr. William Borlae, M. A. F. R. S. » Strabo informs us of this, and that one of the Phcerjician Traders having run his Ship afhore to avoid tl.-e Romans, and drawing them into the like Dilbefs, at his Return had the Value of ! is Cargo repaid him out of the public Treafury. ' Straboais Geograph. lib. iii. p. 176. It appears that the Art of Mining was well under .loc d^, and Mines wrought very deep ia fome Provinces in Spain. gelled. 472 The POLITICAL SURVEY gefted that this was the younger Crallus, at that Time Lieutenant to Julius Cajfar in Gaul, and afterwards flain with his Father, who bore the fame Names, by the Parthians ". It is apparent therefore that Commerce had ren- dered thefe Illes celebrated amongll the moft polite Nations in Europe before Caifar attempted the Conquefi: of Britain, to which there is nothing unlikely in fuppoling that the Report of Crafliis might in Ibme Meafure contribute. There is no room to doubt that they followed the Fate of the reft of Britain, and particularly of Cornwall, in becoming fubjcct to the Roman Empire. We find them called in the Itinerary of Antoninus, Sigdeles ; by Sulpi- tius, SiLLiN.-Ti ; and by Solinus they are termed Silures^. All we know of them during this Period is, that their Tin Trade continued, and that Ibme- times State Pnlbners were exiled, or, to ufe the Roman Phrale, relegated hither, as well as to other Iflands ^. At the Time the Legions were withdrawn, and Britain with its Depend- encies left in the Power of the Natives, there is no Reafon to queftion that tliefe Iflands fliared the fame Lot with the reft. As to the Appellation which from this Period prevailed, the ordinary Way of writing it is Scilly ; in Records we commonly find it fpelt Silly, Silley, or Sully ; but we are told the old Britilh Appellation was Sulleh, or Sylleh, which fignifies Rocks con- lecrated to the Sun y. We have not the leaft Notice of any thing that regards them from the fifth to the tenth Century. It is however, with much Appearance of Truth, conjeftured, that fometime within this Space they were in a great Meafure deftroyed by an Earthquake, attended with a finking of the Earth, by which moft of their Lowlands, and, of courfe, the greatelt Part of their Improvements, were covered by the Sea ; and thofe rich Mines of Tin, which had rendered them fo famous, fwallowed up in the Deep. They have a Tradition in Cornwall, tliat a very extenfive Tradl of Country, called the Lioness, in tlie old CorniHi Lethoufow, fuppofed to lie between tiiat Country and Scilly, was loft in this Manner ; and there are many con- current Circumftances which render this probable z. In reference to thefe Iflands the Cafe is ftill ftronger, for at low Ebbs, their Stone Jnclofures are Hill vifible from almoft all the Iflcs, and thereby afford an ocular Demon- " Casf. de Bel. Gallic, lib. iii. cap. 26, 27, 28. Pint, in Marc. Cra/T. Huet Hiftoire du Com- merce des Anciens, chap, xxxviii. p. 195. * Polyhillor. cap. xxv. It is not improbable that Tacitus might mean the People of thefe Iflands, when he alTerts the Silures were defcended from the Iberi in Spain, fince we find this po- jitively affirmed by other Authors. '^ Siilpit. Sevcri Hift. Sacrse, lib. ii. r Borlafe's Ancient and Prefent State of the Iflands of Scilly. Oxford 1756, 4'. p. 60. In Support of %vhich it maybe obferved, that there are more Remains ot the old Druid Monuments in thefe Ifles than in any other Part of the Britifli Dominions, Anglefey and Cornwall (in which there are alfo many) not excepted. z Carew's Survey of Cornwall, fol. 3. Fuller's Wortl:iies in Cornwall, p. 214. Childreys Britannia Bacouica, p. 26. ftration of GREAT BRITAIN. 473 flration that they were formerly of far greater Extent, and that in remoter Ages their Inhabitants mufl have been very numerous, and at the fame Time very induftrious a. This fufficiently proves the Fadl, that by fuch an Earth- quake they were deflroyed ; and that it happened at fome Period of Time within thofe Limits that have been aligned, appears from our hearing no- thing more of their Tin Trade, and from our having no Notice of it at all in any of our ancient Chronicles, which, if it had fallen out later, from their known Attention to extraordinary Events, muft certainly have happened b. It is generally fuppofed, and with great Appearance of Truth, that King Athelftan, after having overcome a very powerful Confederacy formed againlt him, and having reduced Exeter, and driven the Britons beyond the River Tamar, which he made the Boundary of their Cornifli Dominions, palTed over into thefe Iflands, then furely in a better State than now, or they would not have been Objefts of his Vengeance, and reduced them likewife c. Some are of Opinion, that either at this Time, or a little later, they were given to the Abbey of Taviftock, of which however there is no certain Evidence. Hiftory does not inform us that the Danes ever fixed themfelves in thefe Iflands, but, as their Method of fortifying is very well known, it has been con- jcftured that the Giant's Caftle, in the Ifle of St. Mary, was ere6led by them ; and indeed, if we confider the convenient Situation of thofe Iflands, and the Trade of Piracy, which that Nation carried on, there feems to be nothing im- probable in that Conjefture d. It is more certain that there were Churches eredled in thefe Illes, and that there were in them alfo many Monks and Hermits, before the Conqueft. It is out of all Difpute that foon after that thefe Ifles were granted to the Benedidtine Monaflery of Taviftock, and that they had a Cell there dedicated to St, Nicholas e. But notwithftanding this, and other fubfequent Grants, in confequence of which the Monks of Tavi- ftock were fliled Lords of Scilly, our Kings fent Governors thither, had FortrelTes in them, and granted Lands ; fo that there were Lay Eftates at all Times in them, independent of the Abbey of Taviflock, or the Cell of St. Nicholas in Scilly f. " Heath's Natural and Hlftorical Account of the Ifles of Scilly, p. 238, 239. Borlafe's An- cient and Prefent State of the Ifles of Scilly, p. 63. ^ Hook's PoAhumous Works, p. 308. where are feveral Inftances given of Earthquakes of thi^ Sort. « Chronicon Saxonicum, p. 112, 113, 114. Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 5. CaniJcni Britannia, p. 136. '' Borlafe's Ancient and prefent State of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 17. * Monafticon Anglicanum, torn. i. p. 516. where it plainly appears, that what the Abbey ac- quired had been pollened by other Ecclefiaflics, in the Reigns of Canutus the Dane and Edward the Confeflbr. ' As none of thefe Tenures, Jurifdiftions, or Properties of any kind now fubfilt, it woulJ anfwer no Purpofe to enter into any Account of them. Vol. L P P P In 474 The POLITICAL SURVEY In Lehnd's Account of thcfc Iflands, we are told in one Place that they were one hundred and forty-fevcn 3, in another that they were one liundred~ and forty l^. He makes St. Nicholas Ifle to be the biggcft, and tells us there was in it a Town of fixty Iloufliolds ; but he diftinguiflies this cxprefly from' Iniflchawe, or the Ifle of Elders, fo called from Abundance of {linking Eiders ■ tJiat grew in it. In another Place he tells us, that this Iniflchawe, which fome call Trefcaw, belonged to Taviftock, and had a poor Cell of Monks, whence it is evident that this is St. Nicholas Ifland, and fays it is fix Miles in- Compafs, whereas he makes St. Mary's i but five Miles, or fomewhat more. . But in a third Account ftill extant, and which I am perfuaded is alfo Leland's, we 'are told that St. Mary's is the nrft and greateft of the Scilly Iflands, about five Miles over, and nine Miles in Compafs ; that there was in it a Parifli Church, a poor Town of threefcore Houfholds, befide a Cafl:lc, Plenty of Corn, Rabbets, wild Sv/ans, Puffins, Gulls, Cranes, and other wild Fowl in: Abundance. In that Account he makes Rufco, which I take to be Inifl"— chawe, Trefchav/, or St. Nicholas, very near as big as St. Mary's j and the Ifle of St. Martin little inferior to that. We find in this Account, which is much larger than either of thofe in the Itinerary, the Names of upwards of thirty Ifles of different Sizes, They feem to be diftinguiflied into Iflands, rflets, and Rocks, or Rockets. By the firfl:, is to be underfl:ood Places in- habited ; by the fecond, fuch as produced Herbage, wild Garlic, and had Rabbets in them, fo that they were of fome Benefit; the third were bar- ren and ufelefs k. The Fertility of the Iflands is much infilled upon in all the Accounts ; and it is exprefly fud of St. Mary's, that it bears exceeding good Corn, infomuch that if Men did but cafl: Corn where Swine had routed, it would come up '. There is Mention made of a Breed of wild Swine, and' the Inhabitants had great Plenty of Fowl and Fifli '". But notvvithfl:anding . the Fertility of the Country, and the many Commodities that Men had, or might have there, it was, neverthelefs, but thinly peopled, and the Reafon affigned is, becaufe they were liable to be frequently fpoiied by French or' Spaniflb Pirates. In his Time one- Mr. Davers of Wiltfhire, and Mr. Whit^ • ^ Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 1 18. Thefe Notes (for the Whole are no more) feem to be made in . Ilafte, and St. Nicholas to have been written for St. Mary's. h Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 6. The Particulari fet down hei'e are much move diflinf):,' and feem ■ derived from better Information. ' Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 33, 34. He acknowleges AfTiftance from Leland, who? befides his Itinerary, wrote a di(^inft Work of the Llands beio.Tging to Britain, which is now loft ; and either out of this, or from fome larger Tranfcript of the Itinerary than any now extant, he compofed his Relation. *" This fecms to be alfo the mod natural and proper Method of confidcring tlie.ii, in cafe. of inaking an aftual and accurate Survey of the Scillys. ' Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 6. This fingiilar Goodnefs of Soil is acknowleged and aflertcd by the latt-ft and beft informed Writers on this Subjeift. , m It is evident from this Plenty of Provifions, that thefe Iflands are capable of maintaining as many Inhabitants as any Country of like Extciit. z tington of GREAT BRITAIN. 4.75 tington of Gloucefterfliire, were Proprietors of Scilly, and drew from thence, in Rents and Commodities, about forty Marks a Year ". There appears to be added to Mr. Leland's Account this fartlier Circum- fiance, by the Publiflier, that the Inhabitants, at that Juncture, and long before, carried on a fmall Trade in dried Skaite and other Fifh to Bretagne, with which they purchafed Salt, Canvafs, and other Neceflaries ». This Iccms to be the Remains of a very old Kind of Commerce, lince, for many Ages, the People of that Country, thofe of the Scilly Ifles, and the People of Cornwall, looked upon themfelves as Countrymen, being, in Truth, no other than Rem- nants of the ancient Britons, who, when driven out by the Saxons, took Re- fuge in thofe Illands, and in that Part of France which had before been called Armorica, and from hence ftiled Bretagne, Britanny, or Little Britain, and the People Bretons p. This in all Probability was a great Relief to thofe who dwelt in thefe Illes ; who, during the long civil War between the Houfes of York and Lancafter, had their Intercourfe with England fo much interrupted, that if it had not been for this Commerce with their Neighbours on the French Coaft, they might have been driven to the laft Diftrefs ''. But I forbear meddling farther with their Hiftory, as not immediately relating to my Inten- tion ; and Ihall proceed next to give the bell Account I can colled of thefe Ifles in their prefent Situation. The Scilly, or Silley Iflands, lie due Weft from the Lizard about feventeen Leagues ; Weft and by South from the old Land's End, neareft Mount's Bay, at the Diftance of ten Leagues j and from the weftern Land's End they lie Weft-South- Weft at the Diftance of fomethin? more than nine Leagues r. There are five of them inhabited; or, if you take in Samfon, in which there is only one Family, there are then fix. The largeft of thefe is St. Mary's, which lies in the North Latitude of forty-nine Degrees fifty-five Minutes ; and in the Longitude of fix Degrees forty Minutes, Weft from Greenwich s. It is two Miles and a Half in Length, about one and a Half in Breadth, and between nine and ten Miles in Compafs. On the Weft Side there pro- " Leland's Itinerary, vol. iii. fol. 6. In the Beginning of the fifteenth Century a great Part of thefe Ifles were polTefTed by Sir John Colfliul, and from this Family they came by Marriage to the Gentlemen mentioned in the Text. " Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 34. All this Time Bretagne was a diftiaft Sovereignty, dependent only on the Crown of France. P Gregor. Turoncnf. lib. x. cap. is.. D'Audiffrct Hiftoire et Geographic anclcnne et moderne, vol. ii. p. 235. Borlafe's Antiquities of Cornwall, chap. x. p. 39. q It would be a very curious, though a difficult Undertaking, to trace the Corrcfpondence of the o!d Britons with each other after their Dlfperfion by the Saxons. ' Norden's Topographical Defcription of Cornwall, p. 4. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 20. Borlafe's Obfervations on the Ifles of Scilly, p. 75. s Heath's Account of the Ifles of Scilly, p. 159. But this being a Point of great Coinl-qucnce to the Navigation of Britain, the Obfervations for fettling its Pofitiou pretiiely ought to be repeated. P p p 2 jefl? 476 The POLITICAL SURVEY iedls an Ifthmns : Beyond this there is a Peninfula, which is very high ; and upon which flands Star Caftle, built in 1593, with fome Outworks and Bat- teries : On thefe there are upwards of threelcore Pieces of Cannon mounted, and for the Defence of which there is a Garrifon of an entire Company, with a Mafter-Gunner and fix other Gunners ; and in the Magazine there are Arms for three hundred Iflanders, who, when fummoned, are bound to march into the Fortiefs '. Underneath the Caftle, Barracks, and Lines, flands Hugh Town, very improperly built, as lying fo low as to be fubjed: to Inundations. A Mile within Land ftands Church Town, fo denominated from their Place of Worfliip; it confifts of a few Houfes only, with a Court-houfc. About two Furlone;s Eoft of this lies the Old Town, where there are more Houfes, and fome of them very convenient Dwellings. The Number of Inhabitants in this Ifland are about fix or feven hundred, and it produces to the Lord. Proprietor three hundred Pounds per Annum ". Trescaw' lies diredly North from St. Mary's, at the Diftance of two Miles. It was formerly Itiled St. Nicholas's Ifland, and was at leaft as large as St. Mary's, though at prefent about half the Size w. The Remains of the Abby are yet viiible, the Situation well chofen, with a fine Bafon of frefli Water before it, half a Mile long and a Furlong wide, with an ever- green Bank high enough to keep out the Sea, and ferving at once to pre- ierve the Pond and flieltcr the Abby. In this Pond there are moft excellent Eels, and the Lands lying round it are by far the bcft in thofe Illands «, There are about Half a Score Stone Houfes, with a Church, which are called Dolphin Town, an old Caftle, built in the Reign of Henry the Eighth, though, for a Reafon which will be hereafter given, called Oliver's Caftle, and a new Block-houfe, raifed out of the Ruins of that Caftle, which is of far greater Ufe y. This Ifland is particularly noted for producing Plenty of the finell Samphire, and the only Tin-works that are now vifible are found here.. There are upon it at prefent about forty Families, who are very induftrious, and fpin more Wool than in St. Mary's. Its annual Value is computed at eighty Pounds a Year ?. t Camdenl Britannia, p. 857, 858. Hanifon's Defcription of Biitaln, p. 34. Borlafc's Obfer- vations on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 10, 11. " Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 40. Eorlafe's Obfervatlons on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 6. w JLeland's Itinerary, vol. ill. fol. 6. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 34. Borlafe's Ob- fervatlons on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 5 — 35. " This confirms what v;e have more than ones obferved, as to the Monks exquifite Judgment- in Situations, and their being great Improvers where-ever they were placed. y Leland's Itinerary, vol. vii. p. 118. Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 34. Heatli's j^ccount of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 91 . ^ Borlafe's Obferv:Uions on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 41 — 49. Compare the Size and Rent of this Ifla.ad wiih the Size and Rent of St. Mary's, and coniidcr Improvement only makes the Difference. A Mile of GREAT BRITAIN. 477 A Mile to the Eafl of Trefcavv, and about two Miles from the moiT: northern Part of St. Mary's, lies the Iflc of St. Mai tin, not much inferior in Size to that of Trefcaw. It very plainly appears to have been formerly extremely well cul- tivated; notwithftanding which, it was entirely defertcd, till within fomewhat lefs than a Century ago, when Mr. Thomas Ekines, a confiderable Merchant engaged fome People to fettle there. He likewife caufed to be ereded a hollow Tower, twenty Feet in Height, with a Spire of as many Feet morej which being neatly covered with Lime, ferves as a Day Mark for direcftin'J- Ships crolTing the Chanel, or coming into Scilly a. St. Martin's produces fome Corn, affords the beft Paflure in thefe Ill.uids, nouriflies a o-reat Num- ber of Sheep, has upon it feventeen Families, who pretend to have the Secret ©f burning the beft Kelp, and arc extremely attached to their own Illand. As a Proof of this it is obfervable, that, though fome of the Inhabitants rent Lands in St. Mary's, yet they continue to refide here, going tliither only Gccafionally b. St. Agnes, which is alfo called the Light-house Illand, lies near tliree- Miles South- Weft of St. Mary's, and is, though a very little, a very well cultivated Illand, fruitful in Corii and Grafs. The only Inconvenience to which the People who live in it are fubieft, is the Want of good Water, as their capital Advantage confifts in having feveral good Coves, or fmall Ports, where Boats may lie with Satety, which however are not much ufed c. The Lio-ht- houfe is the principal Ornament and great Support of the Ifland, which ftands on the moft elevated Ground, built with Stone from the Foundation to the Lanthorn, which is fifty-one Feet high, the Gallery four, the Safli-lights eleven Feet and an Half high, three Feet two Inches wide, and fixteen in Num- ber. The Floor of the Lanthorn is of Brick, upon which ftands a fubftan- tial Iron Grate, fquare, barred on every Side, with one great Chimney iiv the Canopy Roof, and feveral leder ones to let out the Smoke, and a lar-^e Pair of Smith's Bellows are fo fixed, as to be eafily ufed whenever there is Occafion. Upon the Whole, it is a noble and commodious Stru(fture, and being plaiftered white, is an uleful Day-mark to all Ships coming from the South- ward <^. The Keeper of this Light-houfe has a Salary, from the Trinity Houfe at Deptford, of forty Pounds a Year, with a Dwelling Houfe, and = Borlafe's Obfervatlons on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 54, 55. We may from hence conceive ■what Advantages might arife from fetiing up Perches on the moft dangerous Rocks about thefe l/les. " Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 93. Borlafe's Obfervatlons on the Iflands cf Scilly, p. 55. There are about feven hundred and twenty Acres of ufeful Land in this beautiful Illand., c But if the Number of the Inhabitants were increafed, and their Fifiieries improved, every ene of them would become ufeful, which is the Heafon of their being mentioned. ^ Authority to direft and conflruifl Beacons, or Sea-lights, was committed to the Corporatlpa cf the Holy Trinity at Deptford Sirand, by a Statute 8° Elizabetlwr. Ground. 478 The POLITICAL SURVEY Ground for a Garden. His Afliftant hns twenty Pounds a Year. It is lupplied with Coals by an annual Ship, and the Carriage of thefe Coals from the Sea-fide to the Light-houfe is looked on as a confiderable Benefit to the poor Inhabit- ants e. They have a neat little Church, built by the Godolphin Family. There arc at prefent fifty Houfeholds in the Ifland, which yield the Pro- prietor forty Pounds a Year *". Brehar, or, as pronounced, BRYER Ifland, lies North-Weft of St. Mary's, and to the Weft of Trefcaw, to which, when the Sea is very low, they fometimes pafs over the Sand. It is very mountainous, abounds with Sea and Land Fowls, excellent Samphire, and a great Variety of medicinal Herbs. There are at prefent thirteen Families, who hive a pretty Church, and pay thirty Poumls a Year to the Proprietor g. South from hence, and Weft from Trefcaw, ftands the Ifland of Samfon, in which there is not above one Family, who fublift chiefly by the making of Kelp I'. To the Weftward of thefe there lie four Iflands, which con- tain, in the Whole, three hundred and fixty Acres of meadow and arable Land. The Eaftern Ifles, fo denominated from their Pofition in refpedl to St. Mary's, contain one hundred and twenty-three Acres ; and tliere are alfo feven other rocky and fcattered Iflands, that have each a little Land of fome Ufe ; and befides thefe, innumerable Rocks on every Side, among which we muft reckon Scilly, now nothing more than a large, ill-(haped, craggy, inaccefli- ble Ifland, lying the fartheft North-Weft of any of them, and confequently the neareft to the Continent i. The Air of thefe Iflands is equally mild and pure; their Winters are fel- dom fubjedl to Froft or Snow. When the former happens, it lafts not long, and the latter never 'lies upon the Ground. The Heat of their Summers is much abated by Sea Breezes. They arc indeed frequently incommoded by Sea Foo-s, but then thefe are not unwholefome. Agues are rare, and Fevers more fo. The moft fatal Diftemper is the Small-pox ; yet thofe who live temperately furvive commonly to a great Age, and are remarkably free from Difeafcs ^. The Soil is very good, and produces Grain of all Sorts, except Wheat, of which they had anciently Plenty, in large Quantities. They ftill « Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 14. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 87. f Boilafe's Observations on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 36 — 39. S Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 14, 15. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 93. Bor- lafe's Obfervations on the Scilly Iflands, p. 55—57- h This little Ifle contains about one hundred and twenty Acres of ferviceable Land, and might maintain many more Inhabitants than are now fettled upon it very comfortably. » Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 14, 15. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 24. Bor- lafe's Obfervations on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 59. '' Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, p. 34. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 132. ^orlak's-Oblervations oa the Iflands of Scilly, p, 66. grow of GREAT BRITAIN. 479 grow a little, but the Bread made of it is unpleafant '. They eat, for this Reafon, chiefly what is made of Barley j and of this they have fuch Abun- dance, that though they ufe it both for Bread and Beer, they have more than luffices for their own Confumption. Potatoes is a new Improvement, and they proiper to fuch a Degree, that, in fome Places, they have two Crops in a Year m. Roots of all Sorts, Pulfe, and Sallads grow well, Dwarf Fruit-Trees, Goofeberries, Currants, Rafberries, and every thing of that Kind, under pro- per Shelter, thrive exceedingly ; but they have no Trees, though formerly they had Elder; and Porthelik, i. e. the Harbour of Willows, proves they had thefe likewife ; and, with a little Care, no doubt, great Improvements might be made n. The Ranuncula, Anemone, and moft Kinds of Flowers, are fuccefsfu'Iy cultivated in their Gardens. They have wild Fowl of all Sorts, from the Swan to the Snipe ; and a particular kind called the Hedge Chicken, which is not inferior to the Ortolan : Tame Fowl, Puffins, and Rabbets ia great Numbers °'. Their black Cattle are generally fmall, but very well tafted, though they feed upon Ore Weed. Their Horfes are little, but ftrong and lively. They have alfo large Flocks of fine Sheep, their Fleeces tolerably good, and their Flelli excellent. There are no venomous Creatures in thefe Illands P, We mufl: now pafs to the Sea, which is of more confequence to thefe Illes than that fmall Portion of Land which is dillributed amongft them. St. Mary's Harbour is very fafe and capacious, having that Ifland on the South. The Eaftern Iflands, with that of St. Martin on the Eaft, Trefcaw, Brcliar, and Samfon to the North, St. Agnes and feveral fmall Illands to the Welt. Ships ride here in three to five Fathom Water, with good Anchorage. Ihto- and out of this Harbour there are four Inlets, viz. Broad Sound, Smith's Sound, St. Mary's Sound, and Crow Sound; fo that hardly any Wind can blow with which a Ship of one hundred and fifty Tons cannot fafely fail through one or other of them, Crow Sound only excepted, where they cannot pafs at low Water, but at high there is from fixtten to twenty-four Feet in this PaliJge q^ Befides thefe there are two other Harbours, one called New 1 Rot. Clauf. 32 Hen. III. m. a. Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p, iSo. Boilafe's Obfervations on the Iflands of Scilly, p. 63. " Potatoes are now fo generally cultivated in thefe Iflands, that, v.iih their Fifli, they make aiiBofl: the daily Food of the common fort of People. " The Fences in thefe Ifles, as in Cornwall, though called Hedp-es, are compofed only of Stones laid one upon another, without Morter or any kind ot Cement. As foon as Trees rife above thefe the Sea Spray deflroys them. In Norway they have a kind of Water-Elder (Vand-hyld) which is not aift(5ted in this Manner, and Fences of this Elder might be ufed to cover and protedt other Trees. " Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 83. Borlafc's Observations on the Iflands o£ Stilly, p. 80, 81, 82. p It is amazing, in a Country where they might be bred to fo much Advantage, Goats hav« not been hitherto introduced. 1 .Heath's .Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 7 — 15.. Grynfey, 48o The POLITICAL SURVEY Grynley, which lies between Brehar and Trefcaw, where Ships of three hun- dred Tons may ride fecurely. The other is called Old Grynfey, and lies between Trefcaw, St. Helen's, and Theon, for fmaller Ships. The former is guarded by the Batteries at Oliver's Caftle, the latter by the Blockhoufc, on the caftcrn Side of Trefcaw, called Dover '. Small Coafters, bound to the Northward, have more convenient Outlets from thefe little Harbours than from St. Mary's, where, at the Weft End of Hugh Town, there is a fine Pier, built by the prefent Earl of Godolphin, four hundred and thirty Feet long, twenty Feet wide in the narroweft Part, and twenty-three Feet in Height, with fixteen Feet of Water at a Spring, and ten at a Neap Tide, fo that under the Shelter of this Pier VefTels of one hundred and fifty Tons may lie fecurely, not only clofe to the Quay, but all along the Strand of the Town s. In this Harbour, and in all the little Coves of the feveral Ifles, prodigious Quantities of Mackerel may be cauglit in their Seafon. Soal, Turbot, and Piaife, remarkably good in their Kind. Ling, which from its being a thicker Fifli, mellower, and better fed, is very juftly preferred to any caught nearer our own Coafts. Salmon, Cod, Pollock in great Plenty, and Pilchards in vaft Abundance, To thefe we may add, the Alga Marina, Fucus, or Ore- weed, which ferves to feed both their fmall and great Cattle, manures their Lands, is burned into Kelp, is of life in Phyfic, is fometimes preferved, fometimes pickled, and, befides all thefe, is in many other Relpedls very bene- ficial to the Inhabitants, of whom we are next to fpeak t. The People of Scilly in general are robufl:, handfome, adive, hardy, in- duftrious, generous, and good-natured ; fpeak the Englilh Language with great Propriety, have ftrong natural Parts, (though for want of a good School they have little Education u) as appears by their Dexterity in the feveral Employ- ments to which they are bred. They cultivate moft of their Lands as well as can be expefted under their prefent Circumftances. They are bred from their Infancy to the Management of their Boats, in which they excel j are good Fifhermen, and excellent Pilots w. Their Women are admirable Houfe- wivcs, fpin their own Wool, weave it into coarfe Cloth, and knit Stockings. ' Borlafe's Obfervations on the Idands of Scilly, p. 47. It is apparent from their Remains that there was hardly a Landing-place in thefe Iflands which was not anciently fortified. s Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 14, 15. Heath's Account of the Jflands of Scilly, p. 71. Bor- lafe's Obfervations on the Illands of Scilly, p. 14- ' They have done this in common with moft other Iflands and many of the Sea Coafts of Britain ; and though they employ the Alga to fo many different Purpofes, yet we fiiall hereafter fee that there arc People in fome other Places who life it ftill to more. " The Proprietor would be at the Expence of a Schoolmafter, but the Dillance is fo great that a proper Perfon is not eafily to be procured. * It is apparent therefore that every Man who inhabits thefe Iftands, as fooa as he arrives at that State, is a Seaman, and fo continues as long as he has Health. They of GREAT BRITAIN. 481 They have no Timber of their own Growth, and not much from En^^Iand ; yet they have many Joiners and Cabinet-makers, who, out of the fine Woods which they obtain from Captains of Ships who put in here, make all kinds of domeftic Furniture in a very neat IVIanner^'. They are free from the Land-Tax, Malt-Tax, and Excife, and being furniflied with Plenty of Liquors from the VelTels which are driven into their Roads, for Refrefliment, for neceflary Repairs, or to wait for a fair Wind, in return for Provifions and other Conveniencics ; this, with what little Fifli they can cure, makes the befl Part of their Trade, if we except their Kelp, which has been a growing Manufacfture for thefe fourfcore Years, and produces at prefent about five hun- dred Pounds per Annum y. The Right Honourable the Earl of Godolphin is ftiled Proprietor of Scilly, in virtue of Letters Patent granted to the late Earl, then Lord Godol- phin, dated the :fth of July 1698, for the Term of eighty-nine Years, to be computed from the End and Expiration of a Term of fifty Years, granted to Francis Godolphin Efq; by King Charles the Firfi; ; that is, from the Year ijop to 1798, when this Leale determines z. In virtue of this Pvoyal Grant, his LordHiip is the fole Owner of all Lands, Houfes, and Tene- ments, claims all the Tythes, not only of the Fruits of the Earth, but of Fifli taken at Sea, and landed upon thofe Premifes, Harbour-duties paid by Ships, and one Moiety of the Wrecks, the other belonging to the Admi- ralty ■■'. There is only one ecclefiailical Perfon upon the lllands, who refides at St. Mary's, and vilits the other inhabited Iflands once a Year. But divine Service is performed, and Sermons preached, or rather read, every Sunday in the Churches of tliofe Iflands, by an honefl Layman appointed for that ^ Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 63. Any Improvements may be leafonably expefted in Places fo happily fituated, and where the People have naturally both Induflry auJ Ingenui ty. y The making of Kelp was introduced from Cornwall by Mr. Nance in 1684. At firft it ■was fold for eighteen, now rifen to between forty and lifty Shillings per Ton, fo that in a favour able Year a Man may acquire five or fix Pounds by cutting and burning Kelp. z The Name of this antient and illuftrious Family was taken from the mod confpicuous Fart of their Inheritance before the Norman Conquefl, Godalghan, rather Godalchan Ball, that is. White Eagle Hill, in the old Cornilh Dialeft of the Britilh Tongue, in Kerricr Hundred in the County of Cornwall. The firft who had any Command in the Scilly Ifles was Sir William Go- dalchan in the Reign of Henry the Eighth. He dying without Iffue left his Eftate and Interefl to Francis Godolphin, afterwards Sir Francis Godolphin, who built Star Caftle, and to whom Queen Elizabeth, by Indenture, leafed thefe Ifles in 1571 for thirty-eight Years, with a referved Rent ot ten Pounds, which was naii'ed to twenty by King James the Firft, who renewed tl-.at Leafe for fifty Years, and was again I'aifed to forty Pounds per Annum by Charles the Firif, who granted them for fifty Years from the Determination of the lafi Grant, and this Exiention brought it as low as 1709, from whence the Leafe now fubi'ifling commences, as is above- mentioned ; fo that the Godolphins have been Proprietors near one hundred and ninety Years. a The Grants or Leafes entire, with thofe made by Qjjeen Elizabeth, King James the Firft and Charles the Firff, to the Ancefiois of this noble Peer, maj- be found in Mr. Heath's Book.' VoL.L Q^q q Purpofci 4P2 The POLITICAL SURVEY Purpofe; and there are, likewife, Churchwardens and Overfcers, regularly chol'en, in every Pari(h ''. As to the Civil Government, it is adminiftred by what is called the Court of Twelve j in which the Commander in Chief, the Proprietor's Agent, and the Chaplain, have their Seats, in virtue of their Offices ; the other nine are chofen by the People c. Thefe decide, or rather compromife, all Differences ; and punifli fmall Offences by Fines, Whippings, and the Ducking-ftool : As to greater Enormities, we may con- clude they have not been hitherto known ; fince, except for the Soldiers, there is no Prifon ^ in the Illands. But, in cafe of capital Offences, the Cri- minals may be tranfported to, and brought to Juflice in, the County of Cornwall. The great Importance of thefe Iflands arifes from their advantageous Si- tuation, as looking equally into St. George's Channel, which divides Great- Britain from Ireland, and the Englifli Channel, which feparates Britain from France. For this Reafon, moft Ships bound from the Southward ftrive to make the Scilly Illands, in order to Ifeer their Courfe with greater Certainty. It is very convenient alfo for Veflels to take Shelter amongft them, which prevents their being driven to Milford Haven, nay, Ibmetimes into fome Port in Ireland, if the Wind is ftrong at Eaft ; or, if it blows hard at North-Weft, from being forced back into lome of the Cornilh Harbours, or even on the French Coafls. If the Wind fliould not be very high, yet if unfavourable or unfteady, as between the Channels often happens, it is better to put into Scilly, than to beat about at Sea, in bad Weather e. The Intercourfe between thofe two Channels is anotlier Motive why Ships come in here, as chufing rather to wait in Safety for a Wind, than to run the Hazard of being blown out of their Courfe ; and, therefore, a ftrong Gale at Ealf feldom fails of bringing thirty or forty Veflels, and frequently a larger Number, into Scilly; not more to their own Satisfaction, than to that of the Inhabitants f". Ships honicward-bound from America often touch there, from the Defire of making the firil Land in their Power, and for the fake of Refrefhment. Some or other of thefe Reafons have an Influence on foreign Ships, as well as our own, and afford the Natives an Opportunity of fliewing their wonder- ful Dexterity, in conducting them lately into St. Mary's Flarbour, and, when fc If the Number of People in each of the inhabited Iflands were trebled, they might well jilFord to keep a Peifoii in Deacon's Orders, as a Minifter and School-inafter. f One cannot help admirinsr that, in an Age like this, and at fuch a Diftance from the Seat of Government, fo fimple an Inftiiiition fhoiild fuffice to keep the People in order. Tiiefe fucceflive Grants feem to declare a Truft repofed in the Leflees by the Grown, for the public Benefit ; and to the immortal Honour of the GODOLPHIN Family, no Truft was ever more effeftually difcharged ; and, as to the Difficulties mentioned in the Text, they do not cither proceed from the Proprietor, or are at all in his Power to redrefs. 3 moved of G R E A T BRITAIN. 485 moved which vifibly impede fuch a Defign, and fome other Helps are be- ftowed, which might have a Tendency to promote if. To both thefe Points we will fpeak as fuccinclly as, with due Regard to Perfpicuity, it is poffible. In the firlt place, the Inhabitants have no proper Tenure in their real or perfonal Ertates ; indeed, ftridlly fpeaking, there is no fuch Thing as a real Eftate in thofe Iflands. The Lands are lett only for twenty-one Years, the Houfes belong to, and are repaired by the Proprietor, are managed by his Agent, and no new Tenement can be eredled but by his Leave, and and on fuch Terms as he fliall judge reafonable s. Now, if we compare the Shortnefs of thefe Tenures with the Nature of the Improvements that are required, and which muft confift in fencing, draining, and planting, it is manifefl that no fuch Improvements v/ill ever be undertaken f. In the next place, there is, in Reality, no proper or elh;blifhed Civil Government j the- Commander in Chief being, in effed, the firfl Magiftrate, and the Court of Twelve wanting that Authority and Rule of Adtion which is requilite in a well-governed Community. The military Force, likewife, which is ufually fixed at only a fingle Company of forty Men, and thofe Invalids, is too- fmall for the Protedtion of the Iflands, or even for the bare defending the Fortifications that have been already made, at a great Expence ; and which, for the Honour and Security of the Nation, ought to be always kept in the beft Order ". The fame Indulgence is not fliewn to them, as to the Inha- bitants of the other Iflands, in refpedt to the Duty upon Salt; which reftrains their Fiihery, and is a very fenlible Check on that Species of Induflrv, which would foonefl and mofi effectually put it into their Power to enter upon far- ther Improvements w. Laflly, they have no ftated, regular, or certain Cor- refpondence with the Condnent of Britain, which, for m.any Reafons, they ought to have, and for want of which their Ncceflities and Diflreffes may be unknown to their Mother-Country, 'till they becom.e defperate, and pafl Re- drefs, as, in cafe of any fudden Attack from foreign Enemies with a tolerable Force, might eafily happen ; and againfl which, for that and for various weighty Confiderations, it becomes us mofi: certainly to guard, at leafl: till, by removing the former Difficulties, the People in thefe Ifles fhall be put thereby r All that is aimed at by thefe Piopofals, is to make the SciUy Iflands worth as much to Uiis Nation, as the Price once offered for them by our Neighbours. s Heath's Account of the Iflands of Scilly, p. 83. Borlafe's Obfervations, p. 131 — 139. t Whatever the Inhabitants acquire, muft be by hard Labour and great Induflry ; to induce them, therefore, to lay this out upon the Soil, the Legiflatiire.Ihould grant tliem (or enable rbe Proprietor to grant) a fettled Property. " It might be expedient to form the Iflanders into a regular Battalion of Militia, exerciCng them conftantly once a Week, and keeping each Company (at Soldiers Pay) upon Duty, in the Caftle, Lines, and Block- houfes, for two Months fuccellively ; which would be beneficial to the People, preferve the Fortifications and Barracks in good Order, and fecure thefe Illands effeflu- ally, at a fmall Expence. " Stat. 2 and 3 Ann. cap. 14. feft. 9. A Drawback is allowed on all Salt exported to the Iflaof Man, to Jerfey, and to Gncrnfey. The Reafons hold as well to the Ifks of Scilly. into- 486 The POLITICAL SURVEY into fucli a Situation as may qualify them to remove this themfclvcs, which they will fpeedily and naturally do, as loon as their Circumllances lliall permit ^. As Things Hand at prefent, the Scilly lilands, though Part of the Britifli Dominions, are of very little Ufe to Britain, and yield Icarcc any Return to the Public, for the Imali but conftant annual Expence with which the Pro- tcdion of them, in their prefent State, is necelVarily attended y. But if all the beforementioned Difficulties were taken away, and a regular Communica- tion was once eftablillied. Things would very quickly alter ; every habitable liland would be improved, the Number of Inhabitants increafed, and new Species of Induftry being introduced, would of courfe become new Sources of Subfiftence z ; more elpecially if a few additional Helps were added, which might be afforded without any great Expence, and would be produdive of fuch certain Ecneiits, as could not fail of reimburling that Expence very foon. There is a wide Difference between lavilhing away public Money, and laying it out for proper Purpofes : The former is Profufion ; the latter is Oeconomy ■■'. A ffriking Inllance of this occurs in the very lilands of which we are Ipeaking : Before the Light-houfe was crefted upon St. Agnes Ifland, not a Winter paffed unmarked by Misfortunes, inibmuch that theScillys were intamous ior Shipwrecks. But, fince that Time, very few have happened, find thofe either from Storms, CarelclTnefs, or the Ignorance of Pilots l>. That Light-houfe is not much above half a Century old, and the very Duties which have been paid on the Cargoes that it has preferred, would much more than defray the Cufts of thole auxiliary Ellablifl:iments which fcem to be necelTary. In the fiid Place, there ought to be a good School founded at St. Mary's, and put under the Care of two or three able Perfons, capable of inflrudling * If they had once a confiderable FKher)', then- little Boats, which are admirable in their Kind, and built in St. Mary's, would be quickly fuelled into decked Velfels; and the fetching Flour, Salt, Coals, Timber, and other NecelTaries, and the carrying Fifh, Kelp, Malt, and the like Commodities, would make thefe People fhike into Manufaftuies and Commerce, of which their Ancellors never heard. y The converting, by a little Attention and a moderate Expence, a certain, though fmall dead Char<»e, into a great and growing Profit, is an Objedl proper for national WiiJom to undertake; and which private Interefl:, having fuch Means offered, will fuddenly and certainly effcft. But, without this additional Difhurfenient, the fmall annual Charge will, in Length of Time, rife to a large Sum ; and a much larger, which might have been annually gained, be for ever lofl. i At prefent, the People live here, as it were, by Chance, fometimes in Plenty, much oftner in Penury ; or as their own Proverb (the Sapience, as Lord Bacon calls it, of the Multitude) more emphatic.dly expreffcs it, " A Feafl or a Famine in Scilly." Where Maintenance depends not on Forefight, but Accident, It is very natural for Mankind, whenever an Opportunity offers, to dro'A'n, in the Joy of To-day, the Remembrance of Yeiferday, and their Fears for To-morrow. » There is plainly a NecefTity in the prefent Cafe ; for, if the Publick will do nothing for thcfc Ides, they never can be of any farther \J{c to the Publick. b Burchct's Naval Hiftor^, p. 733. Atlas Maritimus qt Commerclalis, p. 13. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 14- 15- the of G R E AT B R I T A IN. 487 the Yotith of the IflanJ in Reading, Writing, and Arithmctick ; and fuch amongft them as manifeft an extraordinary Pregnancy of Parts, and fuitable Application, in other Branches of ufeful practical Knowledge : Juch as the Elements of Geometry, Navigation, and Mechanics c. If thcfc Perfons had handfome Salaries for their Lives, a fmall Endowment for the School would. procure them Succeffors from amongft their own Scholar- ; and there is no Doubt, that, as the Circumftances of the Inhabitants grew bett'T, they would , fupply any Deficiencies, as they are very fenfible of the want of Education, and of Books and other Means of Inftrudion. If one of the Perfons thus fent had a Turn to Hufbandry and Botany, it would be fo much the better; becaule, as thofe who have vilited thele Wands unanimouily agree, many Things might be done, and Lands which at prefent yield very little, be railed to a confiderable Value d. It would be very expedient to ered public Magazines, for holding Goods faved out of Wrecks, or extracted from the Sea by Diving, and fettling the Terms of Salvage by Law ; direcfting alio the Diftribution o^" it, in an equitable and certain Proportion, fo that there fliould remain no Foundation for Com- plaint on the Part of the Owner, or of the Inhabitants, who very frankly and conltantly expofe their Perfons, and their fmall Craft, for the Prelervation of People and Goods ; and, which is natural enough, think their Labours and Dangers in fo doing deferve a fuitable Recompence ^. It might be alio a real Point of Policy to eftablifli a Diving Engine, and a fmall Company here, under certain Regulations ; as there are known manv, and fome of tliele very richly laden Veilels, to have periihed unhappily upon the adjacent Rocks *'; from whence Chcfts of Silver and other Thinj^s of V^alue might be recovered, if the Title to the Goods fo recovered was by Law put beyond Difpute. It is of fonie Importance alio, that an Art which <■ The Plantation of Science feems to be incumbent on tlie Mother-Couutry ; the Cultivatioa belongs to thofe who are to reap its Fruits. <• This would not only do Service to thefe Iflands, but provide for fome Man of Merit, and wipe off the Reproach ot making thofe rich who admiuiller to the Pleafures, and fuffering thofe tj llarve who rendei" effential Services to the Age. « It is chiefly Puniftilios ill underllood, clafhing Authorities, and antiquated Claims, that have hindered chefe Points from being long ago adjufled, from whence thtfe accidental Evils have been entailed and heightened ; whereas, if a general Law was once made, plain in Subflance and eafily executed, thefe Misfortunes would receive all the Alle\ iations, of which, in their Nature, they are fufceptible. * As for inllance, a Weft India Ship, homeward-bound, in 1736, with much Silver on board; a Dutch Eaft India Ship, outward-bound, with Treafure on board, in 1743 ; to fiy nothing of older Wrecks : From whence (the Property being vefted, by Law, in the Recoverers) much might be ftill extraifled, and Succefs would excite Men to perfeft the Art, and, for fome Time m kail, confine it to thcfc Iflauds, where it might be pradifcd with Suttcfs. 2 the 488 The POLITICAL SURVEY the learned, ingenious, and induftrious Dr. Halley, brought in a manner to Perfe<5lion, iliould be preferved and pradifed by Britifh Subjects s. It would be right to give Encouragement for the procuring Salt in thefe Iflands, either by the Heat of the Sun in Ponds, which, the Latitude and fome other Circumftances confidered, feems to be very pradticable ; or, 'till that can be accomplifhed, by boiling the fait Water ; and, as they already make a great Quantity of Lime and Kelp, fome ingenious and induftrious Perfon might contrive Means, not only to burn thefe, but alfo to boil Sea Water into Salt, with one and the fame Fire j which, if it was once difcovered, and aftually carried into Execution in any one Place, would be very fpeedily per- formed in all the Iflands, and prove highly ferviceable to their Fiflieries h. There is one Thing more I would add, and it is this; that, under proper Regulations, and the Goods being depofited in proper Warehouies, Commo- dities, not quickly perifhable, might remain here till Merchants could conve- niently tranfport and pay Duty for them, in any of the Ports of Britain i. If it fliould be objeftcd, that this would be an Encouragement to Smuggling, I muft obferve, that there is a Cuftom-houfc already eftabliflied here ; that the Warehoufes for depoliting fuch Goods, till the Duties were paid, might be under the Care of the Officers ; and that if they had a Dock, with a V'ellel or tvv'o, the Communication with Britain might be put alfo under their Di- redion k ; and fuch Meafures taken, as to produce a valuable Commerce be- tween thefe Wands and their Mother Country, without any PofTibility of Frauds being committed, at leaft with Impunity !. In order to convince the impartial and intelligent Reader, that thefe are not gratuitous Suppofitions, or political Amufemcnts, it will be proper to clofe tliis Article with an Appeal to the Evidence of Fads '". If, as a very capable and judicious Perfon, from his own Obfervations, concluded, all the inhabited Iflands, together with fome that are now abandoned, formerly S Works of the Honourable Robert Boyle, vol. i. p. 6g. vol. Hi. p. 107. 1^5. Philofophical Tranfafcions of the Royal Society, vol. xxix. W 349. p. 492. See alfo the Improvements made *by Capt. Martin Tierwald (Military Aichiteft to his Swedidi Majefty) to the Diving Bell ; of which there is an Extraft in the Philofophical Tranfiftions, N". 444. p. 337. *■ The Drawback before propofed (hould be firft given, and then fuch Encouragements as may be requifite to make any of thefe Methods take Place. i In Countries where Goods are charged with very high Duties, this fecms to be no more than a natural and equitable Indulgence, which Merchants have reafon to expert. k Some judicious Perfons have thought the Moorifh Ground at Porthcllick, in St. Mary's, an old Harbour filted up : But nobody doubts, that, with a very fmall Charge, a com.modious Haven may be there made, which would anfwer all thefe Purpofcs. 1 It is a Point often difficult, but never imprafticable, to reconcile the Interefl of the Revenue with the publick Intereft. m Borlafe, p. 87. 97. where this Ingenious Writer has treated this Matter very copioufly, and •with much Penetration, Sagacity, and Learning. made of G R E A T BRITAIN. 48^ made but one, of which Scilly was the North-Weft Promontory, this was in ancient Times, as the Veftiges ftill apparent clearly fhew, much better in- habited, more thoroughly cultivated, and of far greater Confequence, than the Remains of it now are j though by having a capacious Harbour in the Middle, and thofe four Sounds which have been before mentioned, one fliould be led to imagine, that the Benefits which might be derived from the Sea would com.penfate for the Lofs of Land. As it now ftands, it is very little, if at all, lefs than the Illand of Texel in Weft Frizeland, or North Holland^ which lies in a much worfe Climate ; is alfo inferior in point of Soil ; has, in- deed, a very capacious but very indifferent Port, and yet very far furpafles thefe Ifles, in the Number of Inhabitants, and in all other Circumftances that de- pend on human Contrivance " : For this Ille has, bclides a ftrong Fortrels on tlie South Side, one pretty large Town, five populous Villages, feveral fmall Hamlets, and a Multitude of Farm-houfes <>. AH this is owing to its Situa- tion, at the Entrance of the Paffage through the Zuyder-Zee to Amfterdam j to the Care of the States in providing it with very ftrong expenfivc Dykes to keep out the Sea, and every thing elfe requifite to its Security; to the pro- curing for thofe who dwell there many of the Advantages which have been above fuggefted ; fuch as fettling the Rates of Pilotage, favouring the Fifheries, and affording them, who are by no means a better fort of People than thofe in the SciUys, the feveral Encouragements they want, and every Kind of Proteftion and Emolument that they can defire ''. In confequence of tl.cfe AlTiftances, which arife only from Principles of true Policy, the People are- enabled to live comfortably, to draw from their Lands inore, than from the Nature of them, could poffibly be expected j though this, indeed, falls fliort of their Subfiftence. But the Deficiency they labour under in that refped:, is abundantly made up by their Induftry in Filhing ; by their becoming many ways ufeful to Ships outward and homeward-bound ; by the Entertainment of Strangers waiting for fair Winds ; and a great Variety of other Circum- ftances "", fimilar to thofe, which, in refpedl to the Manners of our own Wanders, have been before c'efcribed. The Refult of this fingular Attention " This is the true Tefl:, in refpefl: to the Value of Countries ; for what Men are able to effl-iTb in one Place, they may be enabled, by like Means, to compafs in another. ° Diftionaire Geographique du Pais Bas. D'Andiffiet, Hifioire et Geographic ancienne et moderne, torn, ii p. 550. Du Bois Geographic moderne, torn. i. p. 388. P The Men of War, Fleets deftined for England, the Mediterranean, Africa, and the Eafi? Indies, rendezvous at, and return to the Texel ; thofe to the North, the Whale Fiftiing, and the Baltick, at the Ulie, or Ulielandt, another lOaiid, a few Miles diilant. By this equal Diftri- bution of Advantages, and conl^ant Attention of the Publick (that is, the Government) to the Interefls of private Perfons, they are efFeftually promote^, and the State flouriflies of courfe. 1 Veffels are fometimes wind-bound here for fix Weeks ; during which. Part of the Crew and mofl: of the PaiFengers live on Shore, which preferves their Health, and contributes to their Eafe, while, at the fame time; it enriches the Inhabitants ; who are (v.hich cannot be fiid of ouir People in the Scillys) in Circumftances to fupply them abundantly with whatever they want, and,, confequently, to improve fuch Incidents to the utmoft. The Number of Ships, oac Year with. another, is between two and three thoufand. Vol. L R r r Is^ 490 The POLITICAL SURVEY is that, in the annual Affeflment of Taxes for North Holland, this IHand pays Seventy Thousand Guilders r; which explains the Myilery in the Treaty with Sir John Greenvile, and fliews pretty plainly, how lilands may be worth One Hundred Thoufand Pounds to Ibmc People, though, from mere Negli- gence, yielding little or nothing to others. But it is now high Time to proceed. The Ifland we are next to mention was known to the Romans by the Name of Mona ; which is evidently no more, than the ibftening the Britifli Appellation Mon, or Tir Mon, the Furthelt Land 5. It was, indeed, in re- o-ard to this of Britain, another Ille, and, in rcfpedl to Situation, the remotefl: from the Continent. It had a lecond Name alio, derived from its being almoft entirely covered with Wood, and this was Inis Touil ; or, as the Moderns write it, Ynys Dywylh, the Shady Ifland t; and though now a very- open Country, yet that it was once in this Condition, appears plainly, from the Numbers of large Trees that are dug up therein, and which, confe- quently, muft have grown there u. It was this that in a very peculiar manner recommended it to the Druids ; who, when driven by the Roman Con- querors from among the Britifh People, as enthufiaflic Lovers of Liberty, and confequently Enemies to their Power, took Shelter in this fliady Ille ; whence it was called by a third Name, Ynys y Cedeirn, that is, the IQand of Heroes w. Here thev were in Hopes of remaining in Peace ; but the Roman Ambition knowing no Bounds, Caius Suetonius Paulinus, having overcome the Ordovices, who inhabited the adjacent Country, refolvcd alfo to pafs over into Mona, and to extirpate the Druids, who had cholen it for their Retreat x. With this View he prepared flat-bottomed Boats for tranfporting his Infantry, the Horfe being able to fwim over the narrow Strait that divides this Ifle from the Continent, and by the Vigour and Valour of the Roman Forces eafily overthrew a Race of unarmed People, who oppofed him only with Cries, Execrations, and unavailing Curfes, the poor Refources of barbarous Super- Ilition. But, before he had well efFefted his Conqueft, he was recalled by a "cneral Infurredtion of the Countries behind him, under the Conduit of that famous Heroine Boadicea, or Bonduca, which procured the Remnant of the Druids a Ihort Refpite of fifteen Years ; when the Ifland was again attacked, <■ Temple's Obfervations on the Netherlands, chap. iii. p. 125. Le Hollandois, P. iii. let. 48. p. 351. Van Egmont's and Hcyman's Travels, vol. i. chap. i. > Girald. Cambrenfis Itiner. Cambria;, lib. ii. cap. vii. Humfredi Lhuyd Fragm. Brit. Dc- fcript. fol. 53. Camdcni Britannia, p. 540. t Rowland's Mona Antiqua Rcftaurata, Dublin, 1723. 4°. p. 24. Hearne's Colleftion of curious Dlfcourfes, p. 214. Baxteri ClofTarium Antiq. Britan. p. 2i8. u Leiand's Itinerary, vol. v. fol. 13. Dr. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 150. Philo- fophical Tranfaftions of the Royal Society, No cclxxv. * Pont. Virunnii Britan. Hill. lib. iv. Lelandi Genethliac. Edvardi Principis, p. 24, 25. Mona Antiqua Rcftaurata, p. 96. ^ Tacit, Aonal. lib. jdv. Id. in vit. Agrlcok. Xiphilin. & Dion. lib. Ixii. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 491 and totally reduced, by Julius Agricola y. To the whole of this Relation, given us by one of the moft accurate Roman Hiftorians, the numerous Monu- ments of their facred Rites, the ancient Names of Places, and many other in- dubitable as well as indelible Charadters, afford concurrent Teftimonies z. To thefe we may probably add, tlie very old and common Britifli Saying, Mon Mam Gymrie j Mon, the Mother, or Nurfe, of Wales ; for though this is ufually underftood of its Fertility, yet it feems to be more applicable to its being the Relidence of the Druids, whom the primitive, unconquered Britons, held to he the Parents of Science and Guardians of Society a. After this Con- quefl, Mona, as a Part of the Province filled Britannia Secunda, remained fubjed: to thefe prudent and powerful People ; who have alfo left fome Re- mains, though not of public or private Buildings, yet of Coins, Urns, and Utenfils, abundantly fufficient to manifeft they once refided in this Ille. When the Romans entirely abandoned our Country, the Natives feem to have relumed that Kind of Government, under which they had lived before they came hither. At leaft it is certain, that many Princes were acknow- ledged at one and the fame Time, in different Parts of the Illand. Amongft thefe, Cafwallon law-hir fixed his regal Seat in Mona, though the Family Name v/as not taken from him, but from liis Son, who was called Malgvvyn Gvvynedd, and fucceeded in the Beginning of the Sixth Century ; from whom, in a diredt Line, fprung Cadwallader, the laft King of the Britons b. This Monarch finding himfelf, after many Struggles, at laft become unable to refift the fuperior Arms of the Saxons, retired to Bretagne, or Brittany, in France. His Defcendants, however, continued to rule in Wales, and Rodri Vaur, that is, Roderic the Great, who wore the princely Diadem about the Middle of the Ninth Century, and was Contemporary with King Alfred, made that Divifion of Power which fubfifled as long as the Britons continued free c. According to his Inflitution, the Preheminence was given to the Prince of North Wales, whofe Capital he eftablilhed at Aberffraw, in this Ifland ; and the other two Princes, of South Wales and Powis, paid the fame Tribute to him, that he did to the King of London ; for lb the Britons ftiled the Chief y Tacit, in vit. Agiicolas. Paulinus Suetonius, according to the moft accurate Coraputation, made his Expedition A. D. 6i. and the Reduction of Mona, by Julius Agricola, fo exactly and fo elegantly recorded by Tacitus, in A. D. 76. i See this Point very fully, learnedly, and fatisfadlorily difculTed, by the very ingenious and Reverend Mr. Rowlands, in his Mona Antiqua Reftaurata. a Caefar de Bello Gallico, lib. vi. Strabonis Gcograph. lib. 4. p. 197. Died. Sicnl. Biblioth. HifV. lib. V. cap. 31. Plin. Hill. Nat. lib. xvi. cap. 44. Pompon. Melx de Situ Orbis, lib. iii. cap. 2. b Nennii Hiftoria Brit. cap. Ixvi. in Sir Robert Cotton's M.S. but plainly not of Nennius's Compofition ; however, it agrees v.'ith all the BritKh Chronicles, and very probably might be added to the Copy of Nennius's Hiflory, kept by the Monks at Bangor, byVay of Appendix. « Girald. Cambrenf. Cambria: Defcript. cap. ii. The Britifh Hiflory, by Caradoc of Lan- prior to Co- lumbus, and their authentic M.S.S. rtill prefcived in Wales, put the Fafl out of Doubt, of his having quitted his own Country to feek a quiet Retreat, and rhat he not only carried Ships and Men, but was allowed, on his Return, to carry more. Does not this manifeft a Redundancy of People ? h Powell's Hi ftory of Wales, p. 27, 28, 29. Hakluyt's CoUcdtionof Voyages, vol. ii. p. i. Sir Thomas Herbert's Travels, p. 394, 295> 39^- As of GREAT BRITAIN. 493 As to the modern Name of Angles-ea, or Anglefey, that is, the Englifli Ifland, it is not eafily to be traced. Beda, fpeaking of this, and of Man, calls them the Menavian Iflands, reprefents this, which he calls the mofl Southern, as by much tlie largeft, mofl fertile, and bell inhabited ; and alfures us they both paid Tribute to Edwin, King of Northumberland i. In the Saxon Chronicle we find Anglefey ; but then it relates to a Tranfadion after the Nor- man Conqueftk. That the Saxons might covet and much affeft fo fine a Country, and defire to pofTefs this, with fo many other rich Provinces, of which they had defpoiled the Britons, we may eafily conceive. But that, from this Appellation, it iliould be regarded as ever being in their Hands, as a Pof- feflion, Hiftory afibrds us no Warrant to afiirm. The mofl probable Account of the Matter is, tlxat the Angles, in their very firfl Attempts on Britain, might land upon, and make fome Impreflion here, which induced them, by way of Claim, to call it their Ifland. But Calwallon, difcerning how com- modious it was for his Purpofe, and believing the Britons could not chufe a better Retreat than the Ifle in which the Druids fought Shelter, began to provide for its Security ; and left his Poflerity the Means, as well as gave them the Advice, to defend it againfi: Norwegians, Irifli, Normans, and all Invaders, which, after his Example, they gallantly performed, and raifed. various Monuments (fome of which ftiU remain) of their Vidoriesl. Hence, though known to its Natives only by the Appellation of Mon, the Name of Anglefey was common amongfl the Saxons, and from them pafled to the Normans, and fo to us r". But let us now return to the Thread of our hifiori- cal Narrative, into which we have entered, that, from the Story of its Inha- bitants, the different Conditions this Country hath been in may the more clearly appear. As the Renown of the Princes of North Wales began, fo it ended in this Ifle. For here, under Lhewelyn ap Grufiyth (the lafl of thele Princes) the Army of King Edward the Firfl, which pafled the Straits of Menai over a Bridge of Boats, in the very fame Place where Julius Agricola had entered the llland, was defeated, with great Lofs ". But, notwilhflanding this pro- mifing Vi(5lory, very foon after, Prince Lhewelyn and his Brother David were i EcclefiafticsE Hiftorije Gentis Ang'orum, lib. ii. cap. 7. Aluredi Beverlacenfis Anuales, lib. i. p. 2. Giraldi Cambrenfis. Itlner. Cambrlie, lib. ii. cap. 7. k Chronicca Saxonicum, p. 206, 33. Aluredi Beverlacenfis Annales, lib. ix. p. 71. Simeonis Dunelmenfis Hifloria, ap. x. Script, p. 223. 1 Lambarde's Hiflorical and Topographical Diftionary, p. 5, 6, 7. Sir John Pryfe's Dcftrip- tion of Wales, p. 6, 7, 8. Drayton's Polyolbion, Song ix. •" See the learned Selden's Notes upon Michael Drayton's Poem, before cited ; in which thei-e is a fuccinft Chronological View of the Britifh Princes ruling in Wales. " Nicholai Triveti Annales, torn. i. p. 257, 258. Thom. Walfingham Hill. Angl. p. 50. Chron. de Duuftaple, torn. ii. p. 273. H. Lloyd affures us, that this Bridge was at Mod y Donn. both 4 494 The POLITICAL SURVEY both llain o. This Monarch, the better to maintain his Conqueit, built and fortified the Town of Beaumaris, in this Iflandj ereding alfo the ftrong Caftle of Carnarvon, on the oppofite Side j and, to conciliate the Minds of his new Subjeds, declared his Son Edward, born in the Place laft-mcntioned. Prince of Wales p. But as the King, for his farther Security, made large Grants of Land to many of the Englifli Nobility, new Feuds enfued, in which Multitudes of the Welch perilhed q. When, by Degrees, they became in fome meafure reconciled to the Englifli Dominion, their Loyalty proved at leaft as fatal as their former Spirit of Difcontent ; for having fliewn a flrong Attachment to Richard the Second, and his Heirs r, this expofed them to the Reientment of the Houfe of Lancailer, who, through the Courfe of three Reigns, perfecuted them with uprelenting Severity ; and, amongft many other rigorous Laws, prohibited the breeding their Children to Learning, or binding them Apprentices to Trades : Whence it is eafy to apprehend how thefe Countries came to be depopulated, their Inhabitants lefs civilized, and even their beft improved Lands rendered defolate s. But upon the Acceffion of Henry the Seventh, who by the Father's Side was of Britilh Blood, and who chiefly by the Courage of thefe his Country- men was raifed to the Throne, they met with better Ufage. Henry the Eighth divided Wales into Counties, and gave that Denomination to Anglefey,, allowing it to fend two Members to Parliament, one as a Knight of the Sliire^ and the other as Burgefs for Beaumaris t. In fucceeding Reigns, as the Union between that Principality and this Kingdom grew more compleat. Circuits elfabliflied for the due Diftribution of Juftice, and ail Diftindion between Welch and Englifli taken away, they gradually recovered from that low^ and diftrefled Condition, into which the falfe Policy of the Princes of the Houfe of Lancafter, in Refentment of their Family Quarrel, equally to the Difgrace* and Detriment of the Nation, had reduced them ". From this hiftorical Dedudlion of the State of this Ifland, and its Inhabitants in former Times (which we hope has not been either ufelefs or unpleafant) we will pro- " VValteri Hemingford Hifloria Edwardi primi, torn. i. p. n, 12, 13. Henricus de Knyghton de Eventibns Angliae, lib iii. cap. i. Anna!. Waveri. p. 235. f Chrsnicon ThomjE Wykes, p. 127. Peter LangtufT's Chronide, p. 315. However, this. Monarch himfelf was, A. D. 1277, by his Father Henry III. declared Prince of Wales. q Walter! Hemingford Hift. Edwardi I. torn. i. p. 55. Henricus de Knyghton de Eventlbus Angliae, lib. iii. cap. 3. Dr. Powell's Additions to the BritiPa Hiltor)', p. 382, 383. r Vita Ricardi II. a quodam Monacho de Evefham, p. 155. Wilhelmi Wyrcelleri Annalcs Rerum Anglicarum, p. 445, 451. Fabian"s Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 345. ' Stat. 2 Hen. lY. cap. 20. 4 Henr. IV. cap. 29, 30, 31. i Henr. V. cap. 6. Cotton's Records, p. 423, 428, 631. Dr. Powell's Hiftory of Wales, p. 387. t Henry the Seventh pacified Things in Wales by a Charter ; but his Son very wifely incor- porated Wales with England, and encour.iged Civility and Induftry, o Stat. 27 Henr. VIII. cap. 5. 1 Eliz. cap. 2. § 12. 5 EJiz. 5 47, 48. 23 Eliz. cap. 3. and fome of the former fevere Statutes were not repealed till the Reign of King James. cced of G R E A T B R I T A I N. 495 ceed to the Defcription of the Country itfelf, and of the many natural Ad- vantages with which it is endowed. £J^ Anglesey is furrounded on every Side by the Irifli Sea, except on the South, where it is divided from the Continent by what is fometimes called the Strait, and fometimes the River Menai, Aqua Mena;, Men au, in Britifli, the Narrow Water ; ftretching from Eaft to Weft the whole Breadth of the Illand, in fome Places deep, in others fhallow, and even fordablc; whence, though with very little Foundation, it has been doubted whether this v/as ahvays an Illand w. The Form of the Country is very irregular, meafuring in Length, from South Eaft to North Weft, twenty-four, in Breadth about eighteen, and in Circumference between lixty and feventy Englifli Miles x. The Climate is mild and temperate, though fomewhat incommoded by Mifts rifing from the Sea in Autumn, when Agues are, in that Seafon, pretty fre- quent >'. The Soil is much better than it promifes to the Eye ; for notwith- ftanding it is marlhy in fome Places, and in many more ftony, yet is it won- derfully fertile, maintaining, in this refpedl, the Charadter it anciently ob- tained, of being the Granary of Wales z. It is alfo very finely diverfified with Hills and Valleys, though tlie Face of the Country is in general more level than moft of the neighbouring Counties ; and the Pafture upon the Hills ' is efteemed as excellent as the Grain produced in the Arable Grounds. In confequence of its being fprinkled with Hills, it is not only more wholfome and pleafant, but alfo infinitely better watered than it o'therwife would have been ; having, befides Brooks and lefler Streams, no fewer than twelve Rivulets, amongft which are Kevenney, Alau, and Frau, that may with more Propriety, perhaps, be ftiled Rivers ; which fome or other of them run into die Sea on each Side of the Ifle, affording thereby to all Parts of the Country a due Proportion of Moifi;ure a. The Shore, alfo, is fo happily indented, that there are every where Bays and Creeks, fome that are, fome that have been, and all of them might be, rendered very beneficial to the Inhabitants b. The Situ- ation of the whole, in refpecl to other Countries, is likewife admirable ; being equally convenient and well-difpofed for driving a Coaft Trade with the North Weft Part of England, the South of Scotland, the Eaft Side of "^ Camdenl Britannia, p. 540. Sir John Pryfe's Defcription of Wales, p. 6. Rowland's Moaa Antiqua Reftaurata, chap. xii. p. 191. X Speed's Theatre of the Britifh Empire, fol. 12^. Roberts's Merchants Map of Commerce, chap, cclxvii. p. 119. edit. 163S. Fuller's Worthies in Wales, p. 18. y This is the common Calamity of Countries thinly peopled, and confequently indifferently cultivated, and would ceafe if the Ifle was thoroughly improved. » Girald. Cambrenf, Itin. Cambria, lib. ii- cap. 7. llicharofon's State of Europe, Book iii, p. 27. Childrey's Britannia Baconica, p. 150. a Lelandi Collectanea, torn. iii. p. 96, 97, 98. Speed's Theatre of the Britifli Empire, fol. 25. Morris's Obfervations on the Coafts and Ports of Wales. b Harrifon's Defcription of Britain, book. i. chap. 10. p. 36. (hews it was anciently a Place of great Trade ; and the Names of Ports and Havens remain, though they iire loft. Irel.indj 496 The POLITICAL SURVEY Ireland, the Ifle of Man, all the Coafts of North and South Wales, and very commodious for a Commerce with Spain and Italy j as well as with our Colonies in North America, and in the Weft Indies C; to which when we add, that it is little inferior in Size to Martinico, larger than Guadaloupe, near twice as big as Barbadoes, we may from tlience form a general Idea of the Ifland d ; though, for the fake of comprehending it better, we fliall enter into fome further Particulars. The Producfls of this Ifle are various in Name, and many of them valuable in their Nature. In the Bowels of the Earth are found Ochres for Painters Ufe, fine Sand for making Glafs, and Diverfity of Clays fit for Potters, white and yellow Fullers Earth, Afbeftos, of which there were once hopes, Allom and Copperas might be made, but either thefe were taken up on flight Grounds, or otherwife too haftily abandoned e j excellent Mill-flones of feveral Sorts, and feveral Colours, for which tlie Country has been always noted f" : Amongft thefe they frequently meet with very mafly Blocks of Marble, as beautiful, as finely variegated, and as fit for building or for Orna- ments, as any we import from more diftant Places g. Many and thofe too- promifing Veins of Coal, of almoft every Sort hitherto wrought, have been Jikewife difcovered in different Parts of the Ifland. Befides thefe fubterraneous Treafures, Anglefea yields Lead, Copper, and perhaps other and richer Metals ^. The Soil is generally very good, and, where it is otherwife, they have Plenty of the beft Manures, fuch as Sea-wreck, rich Sand, and Lime- ftone. Befides the Mountains, which, as we have faid, produce admirable Pafture, there are many flat Lands near the Sea, now overwhelmed with Sand, which might be certainly, and with no great Expence or Difficulty, re- covered, and turned into rich Meadows i. As it was once ft\mous for its Woods, there is no doubt but Timber of every Species might be raifed. There are feveral Spots of Ground fit for Flax and Hemp ; and it would be an Experiment well worth the Trial, whether Barrilia, fb ncceffary in making Glafs and Soap, (and which we purchafe at a very dear Rate abroad) might ' This is a Point indifputable, and therefore it would be as great a Folly in us to labour the Proof of it, as it is in others to negleft fo many and fo manifeft Advantages. d Templeman's New Survey of the Globe, pi. ii. xxviii. xxix. All thefe Iflands have but one ftaple Commodity, Anglefey might have many. e Camden's Britannia, p. 540. Philofophical Tranfa. Nature has been likewife very indulgent here, and, for Barks and other fmall Craft, has made a very good Port. But for laying out the Sum of about five thoufind Pounds, it could certainly be rendered an exceeding good Harbour, even for Ships of confider- able Burthen, and become, by that Means, of general \5{& to Trade: This is the other Creek belonging to Beaumaris b. Aberffraw was anciently a very good Port, and by building a Pier of about thirty or forty Yards in Length, would be made fo again ; and as there are Qu^srries of white Marble in the Neighbourhood, and the Country all round it yields Plenty of Provilions, the Sum rcquifite for this beneficial Purpofe would be very trivial, and would be foon reimburfed c. Maldraeth, at the Mouth of the River Keveney, on the Weft Side of the Ifland, between Aberft^raw and the Ferry, might be very greatly improved. If a good Pier v.'as to be conftrudled at Dinas-Lvvyd, there would be very fafe, commodious Anchoring any where within, and this even for large Veffels ; and a fmall Pier under Bodorgan, for Veffels in the Coal Trade,, would undoubtedly, in a little Time, make this a Place of Confequence, and the whole Expence rather fall under than exceed a thoufand Pounds d : Or the y Crouch's Complete View of Britlfli Cuftoms, p. 383. In the Interpolation of Leland we are told, this, in the Britifh Language, is, the Port of Hogs ; whence we plainly fee the Ex- portation of Swine, or Swines Flelh, is not a new, but an old Trade revived. ^ Morris's Obfervations, fo frequently quoted, and which has furniflicd me with the Means of fetting this Matter in fo full a Light. a This Illand was called by the Britons, Innis Lenach, i. e. the Ifland of Clergy ; for there was a great College in it ; and the Town upon it, Caer-Kybi, was fo named in Honour of a Bifliop of Anglefcy, in the fourth or fifth Century, filled afterwards St. Kybi ; and the Caufe- ' way conneifling this Ifle to that of Anglefey, Pont-trytbwnt, has been by fome thought a Romatj' Work. '' Cutler's Coafling Pilot, p. 17. Crouch's Complete View of the Brithh Cufloms, p. 383, Morris's Obfervations on the Sea Coafls and Harbours of Wales, p. 4. ' Though this Place be now funk to a Village, yet it flill retains that Situation which recom- mended it to the Princes of North-Wales, viz. a beautiful Lake (Llin Coran) at a fmall Difiance,. a fine Rivulet running by it, and the Sea at two Miles Diflance, with what is, or eafily might be made, a good Port. •' Morris's Obfervations on the Sea Coafts and Harbours of Wales^ p. 5. whoI« of GREAT BRITAIN. 501 wfiole may be done by contradting the Entrance of the Eftuary of Maldreatb, from the Eafl: Shore at Llanddwyn, towards Dinas-Lwyd, in confequence of which, mofl of the Strand being taken in by Degrees, and converted into Meadows, an excellent Harbour would be formed of courfe <-'. In refpedl to the Sound of Menai, or the Channel between the Ifle and the Continent, one may with Truth affirm, that, in its full Extent, it is a kind of Haven, or more properly a Chain of Havens, for fmall Veflels ; but by the Help of Skill, Labour, and Money, it might (as we have elfewhere flievvn) be ren- dered a fafe Pailage, of infinite Utility to the Navigation in general of the Weft Coaft of Britain i\ After this fuccin£t Account of the Ports, Bays, and Inlets, if will be proper to mention, in the fame Order we have obferved in fpeaking of them,, the feveral Iflands that lie upon the Coafts of Anglefey, which hereafter may become, what heretofore they moft certainly were, in many refpedls beneficial- to their Mother Ifle g. The firif of thefe is Innis Seriol, as it was ancientlv Galled; in which there was a College of Eccleilaflics, from whence it receives its prelent Name of Prieftholm ; and the Spire of the old Church is, even now, a Day-mark for entering the Harbour of Beaumaris h. There was for- merly a good Town here, and certainly it is a mofl convenient Situation for a Lighthoufe, which would not be very expenfive, and would be as ferviceable to the Navigation on that Side, as the Lighthoufe upon the Skerry Illes is on> the other; which, though. at firft erefted at the Coft of private Perfons, was foon adopted upon their Application to Parliament, and is now fupported by the Publick i. This Ifland of Prieftholm might be alio made very ufeful for the Herring Fifhery. Innis Ligod is the next, ftiled, in Englilh, the IVIoufe. It is, in Truth, little better than a Rock, which, notwithllanding, would prove an excellent Place for curing and drying Fifli k. Innis Moyl Roniad, . or the Iile of Porpoiles, fuppoled to be that anciently called Innis Ader, or, the Ille of Birds^ lies to the North of Anglefey, is famous for the moft con- « In this Cafe, the Sea might be made to pay largely for its own Exclufion ; and, with refpedV" to Certaiary, what has been already gained at the Alouth of the Dee, in improving the Port of" Chefter, is a fufficient Evidence of what, under lii". Newborough now funk from a great Town almoft into a Village, might be reftored im- proved, and embelliflied, fo as to be a very pleafant and commodious Winter Refidence for the Gentry ; which muft quickly produce thofe Accommoda- tions that would render it no unwelcome or unentertaining Receptacle for Strangers, in their PaiTage to and from Ireland «: And if the Town of Holy- head was enlarged, and better built, with an Addition of proper Warehoufes k would be a very convenient Place for the IriOi Traders to import their Goods that pay Englilh- Duty, as lying within a few Hours fail of their own Coafts • fo that the Dublin Merchants might have the Conveniency of the Packet-boats to go over and fee their Goods landed t. There is nothing dark or difficult in any of thefe Propofals ; and as Coals, Salt, Lime, Kelp, Glafs, Lead, and Copper, are valuable Articles ; and as the Woollen, Leather, and Linnen Ma- nufa(flures would be fure to be encouraged and promoted from an Increafe of People ; the Profits of all thefe, joined to what already arife from Agriculture and Grazing, which thefe would rather augment than diminifli, would quickly elevate this Ifland into what Nature defigned it^ one of the faireft iinefl:, and mofl flouriihing Countries in the World ^'. the Poor, when there were no longer rich Perfons, by and upon whom they could live, quittea the Country, which growing thin of People, ceafed to be well or generally cultivated ; which Progrefs of Ruin points out the Steps that are to be regularly taken, to raife upwards of three bundled Towns and Hamlets again, and thofe better than the old. ' Ten confiderable Merchants, exporting annually the Commodities and Manufadlures of the Ifland, to the moft diflant foreign Markets, would do more in half a Century to come, than has- been done in three Centuries pad ; and Poll:erity would fcarce believe, that it was ever in fo low a State as we mufi; be convinced it was at that Period of T,ime. ^ The Improvement of Newborough would turn entirely to the Advantage of the Land- owners, to whom the Rents of the new Buildings would belong. The Amufements and Diver- lions fet on foot here, if they kept People from going out of the Ifle, inftead of Expence, (as it muft be if fpent elfewhere) would, from this Change of Circumftance, be fo much clear Gain. The encreafed Confumption arifing from Perfons retained at Home, and PafTengers detained oa the Road, would enrich the Country round it. ' The Situation, Size, and Figure of the Ifland of Holy-head feem to be perfeclly adapted to anfwer this Purpofe ; and as this Conftruftion of public RLigazines would be highly ad- vantageous to Ireland and Anglefey, without being (if under proper Regulations) in the leafl de- trimental to the public Revenue, but very ferviceable to the Commerce of Great Britain, one may reafonably hope to fee it one Day effccfl-ed. The Profperity of thefe three Towns would have fpeedy and fenfible EfFefts on the whole Ifland. " The judicious Reader will conclude this no random Ailertion, if he refleifls, that native Commodicies, valuable in their Kind and bulky in their Nature, are the prime Supports of N;i- vigation ; that Wind and Water for Machines, Fuel, and the grofs Materials at a cheap Rate, are the Funds for Man ufafture; and that Ports on every Side aie all th.at can he defu-ed for pro- moting Commerce^ Wis: 504- The POLITICAL SURVEY Wk have treated copioully and circuniftantially of the three Iflands men- tioned in this Secftion, that we might be more concife, without becoming obfcurCj in fpeaking of thofe that are to follow. We have (hewn, that where Iflands are equally beautiful and fertile, the private and the public In- terefl may be eafily united, and the Welfare of their particular Inhabitants, and of Society in general, promoted at the fame Time, and by the fame Means w. We have farther fliewn, that where thefe are in a great Degree wanting, the Importance of Situation may, in fome meafure, fupply thofe feemingly capital Defeifts '^. Finally, we have endeavoured to make it evi- dent, that the fteady Attention of a wife Government may call forth many and great Advantages, where, on a fuperficial View, they would be very little expedted ; and that, on the other Hand, Countries abrunding with all the Bleflings of Nature, rich, fertile, and pleafant, may be thinly inhabited, and of confequence contribute little to the public Stock, by being long over- looked, and fcarce any Notice taken of what, by proper Management, they might be made to produce y. For, to conclude this Sedion as we ought, As it is the Intereft, as well as the Duty of Individuals, to confult the Welfare of the Community, even at the Expence of their own ; fince felfiHi Views belong only to Savages, and not to Members of Society ; fo it becomes thofe who are entrufted with the Care of the Publick, and from thence are fometimes ftiled the Publick, to con- fider, in tliat Station, every Man's Benefit but their own i. They ought to render themfelves well acquainted with the Deficiencies and Redundancies of -every Part of the Country they govern ; to meditate ferioufly on the Means of .procuring general Plenty, by an univerfal Circulation; in order to this, they muft liiten willingly to every Requeft that is made, and comply with it readily, fo far as it is reafonable; their own unceafing Vigilance, unwearied Application, and unfufpefted Difintereflednefs, ought to be a Pattern to the People, and by being a Pattern, excite them to a ipirited Diligence, equally conllant in its Exertion, and well dircdcd as to the Objed; which would w Comp.ire the part and prefent State of the Iflands in the Archipelago, and remember, that their Soil, Climate, Ports, &c. are nearly the fame ; fo that Attention and Negleft create the Difference. " Ormuz, we have Ihewn, triumphed by this only Circumftance over Countries in the Neigh- bourhood bountifully endowed by Nature ; and Cura^oa is by the Dutch rendered a Canaan, bj Jnduftry, tho' in itfelf ill fituated and fterile. f See Political Survey of Great Britain, vol. i. p. 39. The Idand called the Engli/h Foreft, Mauritius, Ifle of France, examined, abandoned, fettled, flighted, refeitled, quitted, eflabliflied, on the Point of being relinquifhcd again, improved into a fine fertile Country, and its Inha- bitants rendered a flourilhing Colony, by the Sagacity of one Man, in the Spate of a very few Years. * The Perfian MAGI held, that the befl human Syftem of Government was that which moft j-efembled the Divine: In this. Senfe, Love thy Neighbour as Thyfelf, is 35 much a political MiiXim, as it is a religious and moral Principle, efFecHiually of GREAT BRITAIN. 505 effedually produce that Opulence, whence thofe well informed and well meaning Minifters may, in that Proportion the State of the Nation requires, extradl an ample Revenue, the vital Principle of political Power. For to hope this from any other Means, is as abfurd as it is vain : It is, in Truth, to expefl a flowing Vintage from a Field of Thorns, or a luxurious Ilarveft to fpring up in a Defart. Prepofterous both ! yet not in the Expedlation fmiply ; but expelling without ufing the proper Means : Since by fuitable Attention and fkilful Cultivation, both might be procured. Section II. The Iflands that were anciently dependant on Normandy. A fuccinSl H'ljlory of thefe IJles. Detail of the feveral Attempts made upon them by the French, i^ituation and Extent of Guernfey ; the Nature of its Climate, Soil, and Produce ; Divijions, Havens, Toum of St. Peter, and Cornet Cajlle : the Cujioms, Manners, and Occupations of the People- Ac- count Oj Alderney, 'Town, Harbour, and other Circumfances. A View of Sark, or Serk ; Grant to Hellier de Carteret ; and State of that Ijle at prefent. ■ Defription of Jerjey ; Size, Form, ProduSl, Parijhes, and Force; Towns, Ports, ManufaSlures, Commerce, Number a?id Employment of its Inhabitants. The Government^ Civil and Military, and AJJ'embly of Eftates in Guernfey and ferfey. Laws, Privileges and Peculiarities, in refpccl to Tenures and Rent. An Attempt to afjign the Caufes of their being fo full of People. Their Importance to the Crown of Great Britain acknowledged in the mojl authe7itick Manner by our wifefl and great eft Monarchs. Motives for treat- ing this Subject fo atnply. Though already Jo much improved, thefe Ifandsfill capable of many and great Improvements. IN order to render our Account of thefe IHands perfpicuous, it will be re- quiiite to begin with their Hiftory, which however we lliall treat as fuccinftly as pofiible. As making Part of Anticnt Gaul, they fell under the Dominion of the Romans; and upon the Conquefts made by the Franks, they became a Portion of what was called Well: France, or Neuftria \ In the opening of the Tenth Century, Charles the Simple, to fave the reft of his Dominions froni the Ravages of the Normans, eredlcd, in Favour ot their Captain, Rollo [\\\\o at his Baptifm took the Name of Robert) the Dutchy of Normandy, to which thefe Ifles were annexed b. His Defcendant, » Caef. dc Bello Gallico, lib. iii. vli. Cluverii Introd. Geograph. lib ii. cap. 13. D'Audiffref Hiftoire et Geographie ancienne et inoJerne, torn. ii. p. 225, 226. b Gulielm. Gemeticenfis de Ducibus Normannis, lib. ii. cap. 17. Tlion. WaUingham Ypo-' digm. NeuOriae, p. 417. Fauchet Aatiq. Gauloifes, torn. ii. lib. vii. cap. 7. Vol. I. T t t William, 5o6 The POLITICAL SURVEY William, having acquired the Kingdom of England in the eleventh Century, enjoyed it with his Dutchy and its Dependencies, all which his Sons poflefled in their Turns ; and the fucceeding Kings of England retained them, as Dukes of Normandy, till Philip Auguftus feized that Territory, under Pre- tence that King John had forfeited it ^. But notwithftanding he made him- felf Mafter of the Dutchy, and made alfo two vigorous Attempts upon thefe Iflands, yet fo loyal were the Inhabitants to their Prince, and fo much at- tached to the Englifh Interefl, and fo juft a Senfe had King John of their great Importance, that, as they did all in their Power, fo he exerted himfelf with great Spirit in their Defence ; and having fecured them againft his po- tent Adverfary, annexed them to the Dominions of the Crown of England d. He likewife fettled a royal Court in each of the Iflands of Guernfey and Jerfey, and gave the People thofe Constitutions, which have ever fince been very properly ftiled the Magna Charta of thefe Illes. It was from this Period, that the very great Confequence of thefe fmall Places, to both Crowns, came to be difcerned in its true Light. The French faw, with inexpreffible Unealinefs, Englifli Squadrons continually at their Doors; and, on the other hand, the Engliih underftood as clearly the Ad- vantages they reaped, and the Mifchiefs from which they were defended, by retaining them; fo that though in 1259 King Henry the Third was prevailed upon, for a very fmall Sum, to relinquifli his Claim to the Dutchy of Nor- mandy, yet he would never part with thefe Iflesf ; which it appears, in the twenty-fixth Year of his Reign, he let to farm for no more than three hundred and fifty Marks s. In the Reign of Edward the Firlf, the French making a Defcent here, were gallantly repulfed by the Inhabitants li. When Philip de Valois, who was Competitor with Edward the Third for the Crown of France, had formed a Defign which has been often formed, and as often defeated, of fetting up a French naval Power ; he made, which is worthy of Notice and Remembrance, the firll EfTay of his Strength by attacking thefe Illes, A. D. 1339, and was fo fortunate as to reduce Guernfey, and was <:G3gain. de Fiancor. Gsft. lib. v. Chronicon de Burgo, A. D. 1203. Du TlUet Recueil des Traitez dentie les Roys de France et d'Angleterre, p. i 57, 166. * Mat. Paris Hift. Angl. vol. i. p. 239. Daniel, in Rennet's Complete Hiflory of England, vol. i. p. 165. Rot. Placit. coram J. de F. Juftidar. Itiner. in Inful. An. 2 Edw. II. where this Faft Itands upon Record. ' Thefe Conftitiitions are no longer extant; but in a Tranfcript in the Reign of his Son Henry III. by an Inqueft then taken ; and the curious Reader may confult them in Falic's Accourft of jerfey in the Appendix, p. '3 29. <■ Joinville Hilloire de St. 'Louis, p. 14. Mich. Triveti Annates, torn i. p. 209. Du Tiilct Re- cueil des Trairez dentre les Roys de France et d'Angleterre, p. 175. g Magn. Rot. 26 Hen. III. Oxon. Maddox's Hilfory of tlie Exchequer, chap, x.xiii. p. 707. In our Money this Rent amounted to fix hundred feventy-eight Pounds. h Nic. Triveti Auniles, torn. i. p. 284, 285. Reiley Placita Parliamentaria in Appendice, p. 4^9. where the King grants Penfions to the Widows and Orphans of fuch Iflanders as had fallen in the Defence of the'r Country, and Gratuities to fuch as had diltinguiflied themfdves. 3 very of GREAT BRITAIN. 507 very near fubdulng Jerfey alfo ' ; in which however, he was at length difap- pointed by the fteady Oppofition of the People, who, when they had reco- vered their own Liberties at the Expence of their Blood, parted with a very large Sum of Money to refcue their Siller Illc k. At the famous Treaty of Bretigny, the King took Care to have his R.ight to thefe Iflands clearly acknowledged '. In the latter Part of his Reign, however, they were again attacked, and their Inhabitants in a manner ruined f" : Yet in the End, the Firrnnefs of the People prevailed, and though they had been driven to the very l,ift Extremity, they, by invincible Fortitude and unwearied Diligence, conftrained the Enemy to retire ". Under the Reign of Henry the Fourth they fufFered extremely ° : But Henry the Fifth drawing great Advantages from them during his long Wars with France, pro- vided for their Safety, and caufed the principal Fortrels in the Illc of Jeriey to be new built ; which from its great Strength and excellent Situation, re- ceived the Name, and has been ever fmce ililed. Mount Orgueil p. In the Time of Henry the Sixth, that Caflle, and the beft Part of the Ifland, was bafcly betrayed, through the Intrigues of his French Queen, into the Hands of her Countrymen. But Philip Seigneur de St. Ouen, of the noble Family of Carteret, defended the reft with invincible Refolution, and at length, in the fucceeding Reign, obliged them to abandon the Ifland . But it is now Time to fpeakof thofe two larger Illands, which being improved and well inhabited, are dependant upon, and make Part of the Government of Guernfey, The firfl: of thcfe is thought to be that Ifle, called in the Itinerary of An- toninus, Arica; by the French, Aurney, Aureney, Aurigney; by us, Al- derney c. It lies about two Leagues Wefl: from Cape de la Hogue, on the Coafl: of Normandy, about thirty Leagues South Weft from Portland, five Leagues North Weil from Guernfey, and nine Leagues North from Jerfey. It riles high out of the Sea, and, like the reft, is in a manner entirely fur- rounded with Rocks, between four and five Miles in Length, in fome Places one, in others two Miles broad ; in Circum.ference nine, and containing in Extent about feven fquare Miles, or nearly four thoufand five hundred Acres <^. The Climate is very temperate, pleafant, and wholefome ; the Soil admirably fertile both in Corn and Grafs, particularly remarkable for a Com- mon Field of five hundred Acres, which being manured with Sea Ore, has yielded profitable Harvefts, conftantly, for above a Century paft e. There are Plenty of Cattle in Alderney, excellent in their Kind, and which are fuf- ficiently known in Britain j Sheep, Horfes, Fowl, and Fifh, in Abundance. The Lands are more open than in the other Iflands, the Houfes not difperfed as in them, but the whole compadl together in the Centre of the Ifle, which are upwards of two Hundred, in what is called la Ville, i. e. the Town, where there is a good Church j and the Inhabitants may be between a b We have in the former Seftlon (hevro, that even thefe little Places may be rendered ufeful and piofitable, which fuperfedes the Neceflity of making the fame Kind of Remarks here. <^ Lambarde's Topographical and Hiftorical Diftionary, p. 20 — 123. Camden's Britannia,. p. 854. Heylin's Cofmography, p. 188. d Philemon Holland's Tranflation of the Britannia. Heylin's Survey of the State of Guern- fey and Jerfey, chap. i. p. 295, compared with the lateft Maps. « Additions, by the Rev. Mr. Falle, to Bifhop Cibfon's Tranflation of Camden, col. 1507. It is highly probable, that the Quantity of Corn in this Ifland might be flill augmented, if the Inhabitants had a better Port, krger Yeflels, aad could of couxfe fend it to different Markets, thoufand of GREAT BRITAIN. 515 thoufand and fifteen hundred f. The Port filled la Grabble is on the South Side fecured by a rough Stone Pier, and is capable only of admitting fmall Velfels s. The Duke of Somerfet, Uncle and Protecftor to Edward the Sixth, caufed a ftrong Fort, the Ruins of which are flill viliblc, to be begun here, with an Intent to have retired thither, from the Refentment of his Enemies h. The People of this Ifle are allowed four hundred Tods of Wool from England, belides what they raife of their own, which they manufadure and lell in Guernfey. The other Illand, belonging to this Government, is Sarke, lying two Leagues Eaft from Guernfey, and fix Welt from Cape Rofel in Normandy, three Leagues to the North of Jerfey ; and though, in point of Size, it is but fmall, yet in other Refpeds is far from being inconfiderable. In its Form it approaches an Oval, having a lefler liland annexed to it by a narrow Ifi:hmus ; they are not, together, above three Miles in Length, the largeft very little more than one Mile in Breadth, and about five, or at moft lix, in Circum- ference i. This Illand rifes high above the Sea, and is, if one may fo fpeak, regularly fortified, by a Rampart of fteep impenetrable Cliffs, fo that it has but one Acceis, which though in itfelf eafy and commodious, may be ren- dered, with great Facility, impervious to Invaders, let their Force be what it will k. In point of Climate, it yields not to any of the reft, and the Soil is fo fertile, that it produces more Corn than thofe who dwell in it can confume, as alfo Grafs fufiicient for the Support of Black Cattle, Sheep, and Horfes, with which it is exceedingly well flocked. This Ifland is allowed two hundred Tods of Wool annually from Britain ; the Number of Inhabitants is about five hundred, out of which, likewife, they raife a Company of Mi- litia, without taking from the Hands necefiary for Tillage '. Though peopled fo early as the fixth Century, when St. Maglolre, or, as he is com- monly called, St. Manlier, built a Convent here, yet it was afterwards de- ferted, and in that State was infidioufly feized by the French, in the Reign of Edward the Sixth j and recovered by Surprize, for by Force it could not f It was granted by Queen Elizabeth, to George, Son of Sir Leonard Chamberlain, then Go- vernor of Guernfey, when the Town confined of fourfcore Dwellings. But that it was fettled, and probably better peopled, long before, appears from Records. Rot. Finium 31 Edw. I. m. 18. Rot. Pari. 14 Ric. IL ii, 20. 8 Between this Ifle and the Coaft of France lies the Paflage called Raz-Blanchard, or the Race of Alderney, through which Part of the French Fleet efcaped from the Battle of la Hogue in A. D. 1692. t This was charged upon the Duke as a criminal Aff, Stowe's Annals, p. 602. Sir Joha HaywarJ's Life of Edward VI. in Kennet's Complete Hiflory, vol. ii. p. 309. i Heylin's Survey of the State of Guernfey and Jerfey, p. 295, 296. ^ This Entrance, which in many refpecTfs is very fingular, is now defended by feveral Pieces of Cannon ; aad the Inhabitants (more efpecially in Time of War) are exceedingly vigilant and alert. I As I was informed by my late worthy Friend, Charles Strachan, Efq; maay Years Deputy Governor of Guernfey, and perfeiStly acquainted with thefe Hies. U u u 2 have 5i6 The POLITICAL SURVEY have been taken, in that of Queen Mary »\ In the fucceeding Reign, to prevent any future Accidents of that Sort, it was granted in Property to Hellier de Carteret Seigneur de St. Ouen, in the Ifland of Jerfey " > by whom it was fettled, but has paffed fince into other Hands, and is now in a State of Improvement, and the Number of Inhabitants continually increafing. Jersey, which of itfelf is a diflin6t Government, is believed to be the Ifland called in the Itinerary, CjESARea, in fucceeding Times Aug i A, by us, Gersey, more frequently, Jersey". It is fituated twenty-five Leagues South from the Continent of Britain, five Leagues VVefl; from Cape Carteret in Normandy, three Leagues South from Sarke, feven Leagues, according to the common Computation, South Eafb from Guernfey, but in Reality not fo much } and nine Leagues South from Alderney. It is of an oT^long Figure, meafuring twelve Miles from Weft to Eaft, and fix from North to South, in Circumference between thirty-five and thirty-fix, and, in point of Extent, nearly equal to, or, rather, fomewhat larger than Guernfey p : Elevated like that, but, on the oppofite Side, declining, from South to North, the Cliffs on that Side which looks towards Guernfey being forty or fifty Fathom in Height ; whereas, on the South, it is in a manner level with the Sea. Hence the Diftance between St. Peter's and St. Hellier's is really feven Leagues, tho' the Iflands have not above four Leagues of Sea between them q. The People of Jerley think, that, from this Elevation, they have a great Advantage in point of Cfimate, that their Summers are warmer, and that their Corn and Fruits ripen better r. The Country is beautifully diverfified with little Hills, warm Vallies, and, towards the Sea, with pleafant Plains. The Soil alfb varies very much, in fome Places gravelly, in others fandy ; but the greateft Part is a deep, rich, fertile Mould, and there is hardly any Part of the Ifland that can be lliled barren. It is alfo thought to be better watered than Guern- fey, abounding every where with Rills, Rivulets, and living Springs ; fo that there are between thirty and forty Corn-Mills driven by Water, exclufive of feven Fulling, and leveral Windrnills s. The Produce of this Ifland is much m Chronique de Jerfey, cap. xxxiv. " Rot. Pat. 7 Eliz. p. 3. which, becaufe granted In Capke, Mr. Selden cite; in Support of his Cngular Opinion, that thefe Iflands belong to the Crown of England in its own Right, and were never Parcel of the Dutchy of Normandy ; though this is pofitively affirmed (he fays, er- roneoufly admitted) in the very Body of the Patent. o Camdeni Britannia, p. 854. Cellarii Geogr.iph. Antiq. lib. ii. cap. 2. p. 252. Du Mon- tier in Neuftrla Pia, chap. viii. p. 155. Baxteri Glolfarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum, p. 57. P Speed's Theatre of the Britifli Empire, p. 94. Heylin's Survey of the State of Guernfey and Jerfey, chap. i. p. 300. Falle's Csefarea ; an Account of Jerfey, p. 138. : The Country then was, in a manner, altogether arable or pafture, and the People, in general, applied themfelves to Agriculture ; whereas, now, every Houfe has its Orchard, and thefe Orchards are fo fenced with ftrong and thick Mounds of Earth and Stone, frequently furmounted by Hedges, and fome- times by Trees, that it has been thought, not by tranfient Spedlators, but even on Reflection affirmed by the moft competent Judges, thefe Inclofures, to- gether with larger or lelTer Roads, take up not lefs than a third Part of the Surface of the Ifland ^ ; and they have fuch an Abundance of Fruit, that it is believed, in a good Year, they make between twenty and thirty thoufand Hogflieads of Cyder ; and if we confider, that this is the common Drink of the Inhabitants, we may eafily acquiefce in the Account a. Their great Ma- nufadlure is the fame with that of Guernfey, the working up of their Wool, and that, which by two Ad:s of Parliament they are allowed to import from England, which is four thoufand Tods ; and fome fay, that ten thoufand Pair of Stockings, of all Sorts and Sizes, are brought weekly to the Market of St. Helliers ''. In ancient Times they depended greatly upon their Fifhery, in * This Account is according to the beft Information I could obtain, compared with the molt correft Maps that I could procure. y In former Times they exported Wheat, particularly to France j now they import it annually, moftly from Britain, though fometimes alfo from Dantzick. I In this Ifle, where every Thing is done by Weight and Meafure, there are three Kinds of Roads, (i) Chemins du Roy, i.e. the King's Highway, twelve Feet in Breadth, exclufive of two Feet on each Bank, or Side, in all, fixteen Feet. (2) Chemins de Huit Pieds, i. e. eight Feet Roads, with Side-ways of two Feet, making twelve in the Whole. (3) Chemins deQuatrc Pieds, i. e. four Feet Roads, refembling our Brid!e-ways. Thefe are annually examined by the Magiftrates, who fee that they are kept in good Order, and not encroached on. » If we refle(n:, that the People grow mod: of their Bread Corn, breed all the Cattle they con- fume, and obtain the mofl Part of their Drink from their own Lands, and that the whole Extent of their Orchards, (according even to this Calculation) does not amount to two thoufand five hundred Englifli Acres, we cannot difpate their being good Oeconomifls. t> Falle's Account of Jerfey, chap. ii. p. 177. I have feeu a Computation, by which this Branch of Induftry was fliewn to produce, annually, twenty-five thoufand Pounds. If proper Care was taken in the Choice of their Fruit, making and managing one-fixth Part of their Cj'der for Exportation, the Profit and Freight would yield little lefs. which of GREAT BRITAIN. 519 which they are much inferior, at prefent, to Guernfcy ; but whereas they had formerly larger Ships, and a greater Share of Commerce, that is now in the Hands of the People of Jerfey, who fend annually thirty ftout fhips to the Newfoundland Fiihcry ; and, in Time of Peace, great Quantities of Tobacco are fmuggled from thence into France c. For the Defence of the Illand they have two Troops of Horfe, five Regiments of Infantry, and a fine Train of Artillery, exclufive of what is in their feveral Caftles, and on the Redoubts and Breaft-works upon their Coafts, amounting in the Whole, to one hundred and fifteen Eightecn-pounders, given by King William to the Ifland in 1 6 02 d. There are always regular Troops in Elizabeth Caftle, and in Fort St. Aubin ; and, in time of War, they have commonly a Body of Forces from England. The whole Number of Inhabitants is computed at about twenty-five thouiand, all of whom are (except a very few) Natives of the Place e. Originally, all thefe Iflands were under the Jurifdidlion of one great Officer, ftiled, fometimes, Lord, lometimes Bailiff, and Ibmetimes Guardian of the Ifles f. In thofe early Times he had almofl: regal Authority ; indeed, there have been Periods when our Kings were diipoied to give thefe Ifles to thofe great Officers, in as abfolute a Manner as held by themfelves. Thus King Richard gave them in Appenage to hi? Brother John g ; Henry the Third to Prince Edward 'i; Henry the Filch to Edward Plantagenet Duke of York, and, upon his Demife, to John Duke of Bedford, his own Brother i; But Henry the Sixth went beyond them ail, granting them, after the Deceafe of his Uncle Humphry Duke of Glouceller (who had them after the Death of his other Uncle, Bedford), to his own great Favourite, and, which is more, creating him who was Henry Earl of Warwick, as we have elfewhere ob- ferved. King of the Ifles, and, as fuch, crowning him with his own Hands k. But, very luckily for the People, none of thefe Grants (except the firft) took « They defend themfelves againfl: this Accufation, by aUedgIng, the French come and purchafa thefe Commodities, and that they fend nothing on their own Account. d All thefe Brer.^L-vvorks, and other Fortifications are kept in good Repah-; the Militia are cloathed in red, like the regular Forces, and conftantly reviewed once a Year. e The Sugar Illands, Barbadoes, St. Chiiflopher's, Antego, are thought e.Ktremely populous,, but then their Inhabitants are bought, not bred upon the Klands ; and even taken together. Whites and Blacks, do not exceed, the Size of the refpeftive Countries being alfo conlidered, the Numbers contained in Jerfey. f In Latin, Dominns, Ballivus, Cuftos Infulm-um, all with nearly the fame Powers, as Lieu- tenants to, and Reprefentatives of, the Sovereign; but for different Terms, feme being during Pleafure, fonie for three or fix Years, and fome for Life. g It is not improbable, that thefe Ifles having been his private Eftate while Earl of Moreton,. might give this Prince that Affeftion for them which he afterwards exprefl'ed. '' Henry was defnous of carting all his Care upon his^ Son, afterwards Edward I. to whom,, as we have already mentioned, he yielded his Title to Wales, of which fome make him the firft Prince. i This Grant (flill extant) is dated November 27, 141 5, being the third of Henry the Fifths This Duke of Bedford died in the high Office of Regent of France, September 14, 1435. k See Political Survey of Britain, vol. i. p. 460, ESka 520 The POLITICAL SURVEY Effect for Any long Space of Time. King Henry the Seventh feparated them into two Governments ' ; as King John had, before, diverted this Officer of his Power over the Laws. He, or, as the Cufl:om of late Years is, liis De- puty, who is alfo named by his Majefly, is at the Head of the State, and of the Military Government. The Bailiff, now made by the King, though for- merly appointed by the Governor, is the chief Magiftrate, and precedes the Governor in Courts of Juftice, but no where elfe ; and is entrufted with the Cuftody, and, under certain Reftridions, with the Ufe of the Great Seal : He has likewife his Lieutenant "1. There aie alfo, in each Government, Co- ronatores Jurati, in Englifh, Jurats, Sworn Juftices, or Juflices of the Peace, twelve in Number, elected not by the particular Pariflies, but by the People in general. To thefe we may add, the following Minifterial Officers, le Pro- cureur du Roy, the Attorney-General ; I'Avocat du Roy, the Sollicitor-Gene- ral ; le Vicomte, in Jerfey, in Guernfey le Provoft, the High Sheriff; le Greffier, the Recorder ; two Under Sheriffs, and I'Enregiflreur, the Keeper of the Rolls. Thefe are all Members of the Royal Courts, in each of the Illands. Every Parifh has its Conflable, which is a triennial Office of great Honour and Truft ; each Conflable having under him two Centeniers, or Lieutenants, and twelve Sermentes, or fworn Affiffants, There is alfo, in every Vinton, a Vintonier. Thefe Officers execute Juftice, fupprefs Dif- orders, levy all Taxes, with very little Expence to the People. In the States of both Iflands, the Governor, or his Deputy, prefides, having firft called them together ; and he has alio a negative Voice. They pafs Laws, raife Money, naturalize Strangers, and appoint Deputies to carry Addreffes, or Re- prefentationsj on their Behalf, to the Crown ". These Illands, as the Lawyers agree, though parcel of the Dominions of .the Crown, are not, or ever were, parcel of the Realm of England". On this Account their Laws are different, being derived from the Cuitom of Nor- mandy, contained in Mancell's Inftitutes, the Common Law, or local Ufages, in every Illand, the Ordinances of our Kings, and their own Laws and Judgments, in their Royal Courts. Appeals lie from their Judicatures to the J This Monarch faw the Imprudence of trufting the Whole in one Hand ; and, therefore, not only divided the Governments, but leflened the Power of each of thefe Governors in his own llland. "1 King James I. by his Letters Patent, dated Auguft 9th, in the 13th of his Reign, A. D. 161 5, acknowledges the Wifdom of Henry VII. in depriving the Governor of the Power of no- minating the Bailiff, declares that Conftitution of Henry VII. a fundamental Law, affigns one hundred Merks as an annual Fee to the Bailiff, and Ilriftly enjoins the Governors not to inter- meddle in the Appointment of any of the Royal Officers. " Heviin's Survey of the State of Guernfey and Jerfey, chap. i. p. 206, 207, 208. Falle's Account of Jerfey, chap. iii. iv. v. Dicey's Hiftorical Account of Guernfey, p. 67 — 72. o Coke's Inftitutes, P. iv. chap. Ixx. Sir Matthew Hale's Hilfory and Analyfis of the Com- mon Law of England, chap. ix. Curzon's Compendium of the Laws and Cuftoms of England, &c. p. 437- King of GREAT BRITAIN. 521 King in Council, and Doleances, according to the Mode in Normandy p. Their Lands and Eftates defcend in Gavel Kindq. They do not eftimate their Rents by Money, but by Quarters of Wheat, and Rent Charges are created in the fame Manner j which Rents or Rent Charges may be paid from Michael- mas to St. Lawrence's Day, which is the tenth of Augufl: following, in Kind ; but after that Period is elapfed, in Money, as tlie Price is fet, for the Year, by the Royal Court r. A Gentleman who has a hundred Quarters of Wheat due to him annually, for Rent or Rent Charges, in thefe Jflcs, is equivalent to a Man of feventy Pounds a Year in any other Place «. Their Ports were formerly efteemed neutral, even in time of War, not only by us, but by our Neighbours, which gave them great Advantages in Commerce ; but their Zeal for the Britifli Interefi; having prompted them to fit out Privateers, this lingular Privilege, and all the Benefits flowing from it, is loft t. No Sheep or Lamb can be exported into foreign Countries from any of thefe Iflands, or any India Goods imported, but from England, under very fcvere Penalties j all Goods or Manufadures of thefe Iflands may be imported. Duty-free, into England, unlefs they are excifeable, and then they are to pay the fame Excife that would be paid for the like Goods or Manufactures here. Ships built ia thefe Iflands are within the Navigation AJ xii. 1 Camdeni Britannia, p, 839. Chaloner's Account of the Ifle of Man, p. 2. Htughton's Col- kftions for the Improvement of Huibandry and Tr.ade, vol. iii. N*-' 476. An Account of he Ifle of Man by William Sacheverel,. Efqv Governor of that Ifland, p. 9, 10. Bifhop Willfon's Account of that Ifland, publiflied by tlae late Biihop ot London, in his lait Edition of the-- £raxantua,. ^ tnele 526 The POLITICAL SURVEY thefe a very fuperftitious Religion "i. It is alfo very likely that they hindered them, as much as they could, from having any Correfpondence with their Neighbours, which is the Reafon, that though the Ifland is mentioned by fo many Writers, not One of them, before Orofius, fays fo much as a Word about the Inhabitants. A little before his Time, that is, in the Beginning of the Fifth Century, the Scots had tranfported themfelves thither from Ireland. The Tradition of the Natives of Man, for they have a traditionary Hiftory, begins at this Period ". They ftile this Firft Difcoverer, Mannan Mac Lear ; and they fay that he was a Magician, who kept this Country covered with Mifts, fo that the Inhabitants of other Places could never find it. But the ancient Chronicles of Ireland explain this Matter much better ; they inform us, that the true Name of this Adventurer was Orbfenius, the Son of Alla- dius, a Prince in their Ifiand °, and that he was furnamed Mannanan, from his having firft entered the Illand of Man, and Mac Lir, that is, the Offspring of the Sea, from his great iTcill in Navigation. He promoted Commerce, and is faid to have given a good Reception to St. Patrick, by whom the Natives were converted to Chriftianity. The Princes who ruled after him feem to have been of the fame Line with the Kings of Scotland, with which Country they had a great Intercourfe, afTifting its Monarchs in their Wars, and having the Education of their Princes confided to them in Time of Peace '' ; whence it appears, that the Inhabitants of Man had, in this Period, the Reputation of being learned, as well as civi- lized, in an extraordinary Degree ^ In the Beginning of the Seventh Century, Edwin, King of Northumberland, invaded the Menavian Illands, ravaged Man, and kept it for fome time, when, Beda affures us, there were in it about Three hundred Families, which was lefs than a Third Part of the People in Anglefey, though Man wants but a Third of the Size of that Illand ^ The Times fucceeding tbel'e were very troublefome, infomuch that, if it were not for that Tradition ah'eady mentioned, we fliould know hardly any thing of the moft confiderable Princes that ever ruled therein, and of which, after m The whole Syrtem of the Laws of this Nation, pafled from Generation to Generation by Tradition, without being committed to Writing, till the Beginning of the Fifteenth Cen- tury. n As their Laws have been fo well kept, and as there is little or no Variation in their Accounts of their Kings, it gives a Degree of Credit to their unwritten Hiftory. • Rod. O Flaherty, Ogygia, P. iii. cap xiv. p. 179. He was flain, as the Irifh Chronicles fay, at Mogeullin, in the County of Gallway. P Johannis de Fordun Scoti-chronicon, lib. iii. cap. 28. Heft. Boelh. Hifl. Scot. lib. ix. G. Buchanani rerum Scotic. lib. v. 1 According to the whole Tenor of the Saxon, Scots, and Irifli Writers, Man, and the adjacent Ifles, were famous at this Period for many wife and virtuous Prelates. ' Hift. Ecclefiaft. Gent. Anglor. lib. ii- cap. 9. If this be underflood of Hide-Lands (as the Saxon Tranflation takes it) tlieii it implies there were Forty-eight thoufan4 Acres of profitable Land in this IHand. ali. of GREAT BRITAIN. 5*7 all, thelr's is but an imperfedl Account ; yet, fuch as it is, it helps us to various "Circunvftances that certainly deferve our Notice. The Second Line of their Princes they derive from Orri, who, they fay, was the Son of the King of Norway, and that there were Twelve Princes of this Houfe who governed Man =. The old Conftitution, fettled by the Druids, while they fwayed the Sceptre, was perfe6tly reftored, the Country was well cultivated, and well peopled, their Subjedts were equally verfed in the Exer- cife of Anns and in the Knowlege of the Arts of Peace t • in a Word, they had a confiderable Naval Force, an extenlive Commerce, and were a great Nation, though inhabiting only a little Ille. Guttred, the Son of Orri, built the Caftle of Ruflyn, A. D. 960, which is a ftrong Place, a large Palace, and has fubfifted now for Eight hundred Years ". The Founder lies beneath a fmall Tomb in the Chapel, after having erefted this noble Structure as a Monument of himfelf, and of the Veracity of that Tradition which preferves his Memory, fince the Size and Ornaments of this vaft Pile inconteftibly prove, that it muft have been the Work of One who had the Skill and Labour of Multitudes at his Command, and who, for the Conftrudlion of this Edifice, fpared not for Expence w. Macao was the Ninth of thefe Kings, and, with refpedl to him, the Hiftory of our Saxon Anceftors bears ample Teftimony *. He maintained an unfuccefsful Struggle againfl: Edgar, who reduced all the little Sovereigns of the different Parts of Britain to own him for their Lord, and who, upon the SubmifTion of Macao, made him his High Admiral, by which Title ( Archipirata, in the Latin of thofe Times y), he fubfcribes that Monarch's Charter to the Abbey of Glaflonbury z. It is true we cannot infift upon this as abfolutely certain, or as a Fadt eftabliflied inconteftibly ; but then the Cir- cumftances that follow will render it highly probable. After the Death of Edward the Confeffor, when Harold, who pofleffed the Crown of England, had defeated the Norwegians at the Battle of Stam- ' This agrees very well with the Danifh and Norwegian Hiftories, and is not contradiftej by any other ; fo that it may be true, in the moft important Points at leaft. ■ In regard to this, we find the Tradition confirmed by Matters of Faft, fince all the great; Buildings almoft were conftrufted within this Period. " This refts upon the Tradition of the Manks-men; but as the Chronicle of the Monks, which commences but a Century lower, and who dv/elt here, fays nothing in Contradi^ion to this received Opinion, there feems no room to queftion the Faft. w It is built of an extreme hard Stone, exceedingly difficult to poliai ; and yet Mr. Chaloner, Mr. Sacheverel, and Mr. Waldron, who had all carefully examined it, agree that it is a Arong, fpacious, and, according to the Notions of thofe Times, a fplendid Edifice. * A. D. 973.. Chron. Maiian. Scot. Polychronicon Ranulph. Higden. Chronica de Mailrofs, where he is called Maccus. . y GuMelm. Malmelburienfis de Geflis Regum Anglor. lib. ii. cap. 8. Spelmanni Gloflarium, p. 460. » Johannis Glaftonienfis de rebus Glaflon. p.37. Gulielm. Malmefbur. de Antiq. Ecclef Glafton. p. 82. Monaft. Anglican, torn. i.p. 17. laevery one of thefe wc have the Charter, wherein his< Name is written. Malcufi us. . ford.. 528 The POLITICAL SURVEY ford, there was amongft the Fugitives one Goddard Crownan, the Son of Harold the Black, of Iceland, who took Shelter in the Ille of Man ••'. This Ifle was then governed by another Goddard, who was a Defcendant from Maco, and he gave him a very kind and friendly Reception. Goddard Crow- nan, during the ihort Stay he made in the Ifland, perceived that his Namefake was univerfally hated by his Subjecfls, which infpired him with Hopes, that, if he could bring a competent Force to fupport the Attempt, he might, with- out Difficulty, excite a general Revolt in his Favour. Full of thefe Thoughts he returned home, and having coUedled a Strength fufficient for his Purpofe, he returned j but found his Hopes fruftrated : For Goddard being dead, his Son Fingall was feated upon the Throne, and generally beloved. He debarked his Men however ; but his Forces being defeated in a general En- gagement, he was obliged to retire. In a Second Expedition joining Fraud to Force, he was more fortunate ; for landing Three hundred Men in the Night, whom he caufed to take Poft in a Wood b, he went on Shore with all the reft: the next Day, and, having drawn the Iflanders into a diladvantagcous Situation, fo that they had the Sea at their Backs, his Army in Front, and his Ambufcadc on their Flank, he, with great Fury, attacked them ; but they defended themfelves gallantly till the Tide came in, when thofe ported in the Wood falling upon and cutting offtlieir Retreat, they were forced, after great Lofs, and their King flain, to fubmit. Upon this he affigned them the North Part of the Ifland c, and gave the South to his own People, becom- ing, in virtue of his Conqueft, the Founder of their Third Race of Princes d. However he might acquire his Kingdom, he governed it with Spirit and Pru- dence, made War with Succefs in Ireland, gained feveral Victories over the Scots in the Ifles, and making a Tour through his new obtained Dominions, deceafed in the Ifland of Way e. He left behind him Three Sons. A civil War breakins: out between the Two Eldefl, and both of them deceafins: in the Courle of a few Years, Magnus, King of Norway, coming with a power- ful Fleet, pofTeifed himfelf of Man and the Ifles, and held them as long as he lived f J but, being flain in Ireland, the People invited home Olave, the youngefl Son of Goddard Crownan, who had fled to the Court of England, and been very honourably treated by Henry the Second s. There were in a Cfironicon Regum Mannise apud Camdcni Brltan. p. 480. *> It is remarkable that this Wood was on the North Eaft Side of the Ifland, near Ramfey, where there are few or no Trees at this Day. ' From this time they were confidered as a conquered People, and held not their Lands by In- heritance (as in times part) but at the Will of the King. '' This Third Race introduced the prefent Arms, alluding probably to their Dependance upon England, Scotland, and Norway. « Chronicon Regum Manni^; but the Scots have a Tradition, that he was buried in the famous Church of Il-Columb-Kill. t Aluredi Beverlacenfis Annal. lib. ix. p. 71. Johannis de Fordun Scoti-chionicon, lib. v. cap. 24. 26 Simeonis Dunelmenfis Hifioria ap. x. fcript. col. 223. 6 He was a gentle, wife, and peaceable Prince, governed long, founded the famous Abby of Ruffyn, and made a Voyage to iSIorway to prevent new Difputes. the of GREAT BRITAIN. 529 the whole Nine Princes of this Race, who were all of them Feudatories to the Kings of England ; and, as our Records fliew, often reforted to their Court, were very kindly received, and had Penfions beflowed upon them h. Henry the Third, in particular, charged Olave, King of Man, with the Defence of the Coafts of England and Ireland i, and granted him annually for that Service Forty Marks, One hundred Meafures of Wheat, and Five Pieces of Wine. Upon the Demife of Magnus, the laft King of this Ifle, without Heirs Male, Alexander the Third King of Scots, who had conquered the other Iflcs, feized likewife upon this k, which, as Parcel of that Kingdom, came into the Hands of Edward the Firft, who directed William Huntercumbe, Guardian or Warden of that Ifle for him, to reftore it to John Baliol, who had done Homage to him for the Kingdom of Scotland '. But it feems there was ftill remaining a Lady, Auftrica, who claimed this Sovereignty, as Coufin and nearefl: of Kin to the deceafed Magnus. This Claimant being able to obtain nothing from John Baliol, applied herfelf next to King Edward, as the fuperior Lord. He, upon this Application, by his Writ, which is yet extant, commanded both Parties, in order to determine their Right, to appear in the King's Bench "i. The Progrefs of this Suit does not appear; but we know farther, that this Lady, by a Deed of Gift, con- veyed her Claim to Sir Simon de Montacute "; and, after many Difputes, In- vallons by the Scots, and other Accidents, which it is not my Bufinefs to mention t>, the Title was examined in Parliament, in the Seventh of Edward the Third, and folemnly adjudged to William de Montacute, to whom, by Letters Patents, dated the fame Year, that Monarch releafed all Claim what- foever p. In the fucceeding Reign, William Montacute, Earl of Salifoury, fold it to Sir William Scroop, afterwards Earl of Wiltlhire '^ ; and, upon his lofing his Head, it was granted by Henry the Fourth to Henry Percy, Earl of North- umberland, who, being attainted, had, by the Grace of that King, all his •= Mat. Paris Hift. Ang). torn. i. p 706. 923. Rymeri Foedera, torn. i. p. 137. 140. 224. 234. 303. Rot. Pat. 2. Henr. iii. p. 1. n. 9. ' Pat. 19. Henr. iii. m. 5. k Johannis de Fordun Scoti-chronicon. vol. iii p. 468. 471. HeiH:. Bocth. Scot. Hift. lib. xiii. fol. 287, Leflxi de rebus geftis Scot. lib. vi. p. 231. 1 Rymeri FofJer.i, torn. ii. p. 492. 602. Rot. Scot. 21. EJw. i. m. 5. "' Rot. Scot. 21. Edw. i. m. 4. This Writ is diiefted to tlie Sheriff of Northumberland, who is commanded 10 deliver it to the King, before Witiiefs, and to m;ike a proper Return. n This Inrtrument bears Date on the Eve of the Annunciation of the Bleifcd Virgio, A. D. 1305- xxxiii. Edw. i. and is prefcrved in Dodcfwonh's Colleftions, vol. xxx. p. 114. ° If I could have fpared Room, I fliould have ufcd my bell Endeavours, to have authenticated the reft of this Hiftory down to thefe Times. p Rymeri FosJera, tom. iii p. 558. Fin. 7. Edw. iii. m. II. Pat. 7. Edw. iii. p. 2. m. 22. q Thomx Ottei bourne Chron. Regum Anglii, p. 182 VcL. I. Y y y La"ds 530 The POLITICAL SURVEY Lands reftored, except the Ifle of Man ^, which the fame Monarch granted to Sir John Stanley, to be held by him, of the Kings his Heirs and Siicceflbrs, by Homage, and a Cart: of Falcons to be prefented at every Coronation ?. Thus it was p'jffcfled by this noble Family, who were created Earls of Derby, till the Reign of Queen Elizabeth ; when, upon the Demife of Earl Ferdinand, who left Three Daughters, it was, as Lord Coke tells us t, adjudged to thofc Ladies, and from them purchafed by William Earl of Derby, the Brother of Ferdinand, from whom it was claimed by Defcent, and adjudged to its late PoflefTor, his Grace the Duke of iVthcl ". This fuccinft hiftorical Dedudlion is not fo much intended to fhew through what Hands this Country has paffed (for to do that accurately would require, and indeed deferves, a Volume ^v), but to prove authentically, that this lliand, many Hundred Years part:, was well wooded, exceedingly plentiful, very po- pulous, adorned with {lately Cartiles and other public Edifices ■< ; and its Princes powerful, and refpefted even by their mort: potent Neighbours, chiefiy on account of their Strength bv Sea y. This we conceive to be a proper In- troducftion to all that follows j fince the fullert: Defcription, and the ftrongeft Arguments that could be drawn from thence, could never fo clearly convince the Reader as the bare Recital of Matters of Fadl, thus fupported by Hiftory and Records, or induce him to believe that this Ifland may pofTibly be ren- ' Pat. I. Hen. iv. p. 5. m. 36. Thorn. Walfingham Hift. Ang. p. 369. Selden's Titles of Honour, p; i. chap. iii. p. 25. ' Pat. 7. Henr iv. p. 2. m. 18. '■ Fourth Inftitute, cap. Ixix. p. 283. " His Grace was Great Grandfon to the loyal James Earl of Derby by his Third Daughter^ Lady Amelia Sophia. w The Defcription ; natural, ecclcfiaflical, civil, and naval Hiflory of MAN, for which even this Sketch will fliew INIaterials are not wanting, would be a very curious, entertaining, and ufe- ful Work, and would be of nofmall Service to the Inhabitants. Our laborious Antiquary, Browne Willis, Hiftory of Cathedrals, vol. i. p. 370, cenfures Sacheverell, for faying, this Ifland was mortgaged to Anthony Beak, Bifliop of Durham. Yet Bifhop Godwin, fee Dr. Richardfon's fplendid and accurate Edition of his Book, de Praefulibus, p. 743, fays, this turbiilcnt Prelate, having obtained from the King, either by Prayers or Price, the Principality of Wan, held it all his Life. But, to put the Faft of his being in PolFeflion out of Doubt, confult the Record, Rot. Clauf 31. Edw. i. m. 4, d. Scire Facias to Anthony, Bifhop of Durham, to fliew Caule why he flaould not render the Ifle. " Pat. I. Hen. iv. p. 5. m. 36. The King grants to the Earl of Northumberland, infulam, Caflrum, Pelam, et Dominium de Man, ac omnia Infulas et Dominia, eidem Infula; de Man pei>- tinentia. It is very remarkable, that the King founds his own Right in this Patent on Conquefl, and alfo affirms that Right, fo founded, to have been owned and confirmed by Parliament. '' In order to give fome diflinimit3 of the Port of Chefler s. Salt brought from thence into any Port of Great Britain, and put on Shore there, is forfeited, together with the Ship and all her Tackle r. Perfons afiifting in fuch landing incur a Penalty of Twenty Pounds, or Six Months Imprifonment ; and, if feized, and un- claimed in Tv/enty Days, the Salt and Ship to be fold to the beft Advantage. But by the fame At\, a Drawback is allowed on all Salts exported thither. Coals from Britain to the Ifle of Man are charged v.'ith a Duty of One Shilling a Chaldron, or Eight-pence a Ton j but Security is to be taken for the Coals being landed in that liland; and if the Ship fails before fuch Security is given, both Veflcl and Cargo are forfeited". In the Beginning of the Reign of George L a Law was palled to prevent Eafl India Goods being carried thither in any other than a legal Manner, that is, from Great Britain, upon Pain of forfeiting the Ship and Cargo w. This appears, however, not to have " It is a farther Proof that this iniquitous Traffic came ;ii about the Tirae I mentioned, that no Acts were made to rcftrain the Commerce of thel'e People, till in his lateM.ijeft_v's Rtign. o In a Memorial laid before the Lords of the Treafnry, many Years ago, by the fair Traders in Cumberland, it was ftated at Four hundred thoufand Pounds per Annum ; but modern Accounts (how truely f know not) carry it even higher than is mentioned in the Text. P It is in order to fliew, that many coincident Points are to be confidered in fettling this Re- medy, that we have treated this Subjeft fo lar- their Laws to Writing, and making fuch Changes in them as they thought convenient. For thele plain, but conclufive Reafons, they ought to think of reviling the whole Syftem of their Laws, in order to render them fuitable to their prefent Situation, and to facilitate the Means wliich it af- fords for the Benefit of the Community. This fliould particularly dif- pofe them to relax in Reference to thofe Statutes which give unreafon- ahle Advantages to Natives, and are vifibly opprcdive upon Strangers. This would be apparently for their Reputation, efpecially if done volun- tarily in their Court ot Tingu-ald, and to this they ought to have the lefs Reluctance, fince many Advantages would accrue from it to them- felves. Their Knowledge in refpetfl to the Arts of Improvement is very limited, their Fimds narrow, and this is the only Method by which they can procure effectual Remedies for both. It may perhaps be urged as an additional Argument to accelerate fo ncceflary a Step, that in doing this they would only copy the Example that Great Britain hath rtiewn, in her Care and Attention to their Interefts, hnce they became connected with her. In this Review of the Laws of the IHand, particular Care flTould be taken to render every Kind of landed Property certain and fecure. For this is the Bafis, and the only folid Bafis of Improvements of every Sort ; for undoubtedly without this Encouragement, Induftry will not be exerted, or at leail not exerted in its utmoft Force. If we look round upon the feveral Countries of Europe we fliall find, that more remain barren from the precarious Poffeflions of their Inhabitants, than from any Defe(fls ia Soil or Climate. This Care muft be extended to Leafes, and even to Te- nants at Will, for the Poor are as much intitled to their little Property as- the Rich, and it is only a, Senfe of this that can enable them to become- fo, and their Labour in this Refpedl, though temporary only in regard to themfelves, muft be of lafting Benefit to the Public. The prefent Con- dition of this liland demands both Skill and Toil, but there is a moral Certainty, thatif thefe are employed, they will be rewarded. For it has been fliewn already from the Evidence of Fads, that this Ifland was once more populous and better cultivated, and yet the bringing it to that mull have been more difficult then than now. We evidently fee what good Effects have followed in Britain by the eRablifliing of good Laws and relieving the People from Reflraints in Point of Property, and we likewife fee by the Improvements that have been made lince this Ifland- became Part of the Dominions of Britain, that the fame Caufes will prc-- duce there the fame good Effedls. It.- 550 The POLITICAL SURVEY If Agriculture by the Help of fuch Laws was once put into a thriving State, and the major Part of the Lands in this Ifiand capable of it were brought into Cultivation, aniongfl: many other good Conlequences, Ma- nufactures would naturally and nccefiarily flourirti. By mending the Breed and increafing the Number of Sheep, than which nothing is more prac- ticable, the Quantity of Wool would become more confidcrable, and the Quality of it might be improved. The Laughton Wool in the Hands of People of Skill might be wrought into a Variety of Cloths and Stuffs, and if I have not been deceived in my Informations, there is a great Deal in this Ifland, that with a Mixture of Spanifh Wool might be fabricated into thole light Kind of Cloths which the French carry to the Levant. There are already very confiderable Quantities of Flax, and very good in its Kind, raifed in the Ifle of Man, and in virtue of the Encouragements before propofed, there is no Doubt that much more might be raifed, and as the Linnen Manufidure is already well eftabliflied, it might with a few neceffary Helps be brought into a flouriOnng Condition. At the fame Time it is to be remembered, that to procure Perfons capable of pufli- ing both thefe Manufactures to any confiderable Height, they muft have their religious and civil Liberties fecured, which were the Inducements that brought over into this Country thofe who have carried them here to fo great a Perfection. As any old Laws reftraining thefe muiT; have been made when no fuch valuable Objedls were in view, they ought for the Sake of the public Good to be repealed^. Thkse Points confidered, and the already thriving and favoured State of their Filhcries, by Means of which they fend both white, and red, or fmoaked Herrings to feveral Markets, we may be allowed to conjedure, that Trade by Degrees may be effedually eftabliOied. We know very well how much it was counteraded by the impoverifhed State of the Ifland in a great Degree occafioned by the common People being drawn from their honefl Occupations to affill in Smuggling. But thefe Evils being removed, and there being a fair Profped of Commodities, and Ma- nufadures being raifed by the Natives, we may well prefume that there will not be wanting Merchants amonglt their Countrymen ready to export " It is generally acknowledged, that excliifive of Sheep walks there are Forty or Fifty thoii- fand Acres ot Land capable of Cultivation in this -Ifiand. The late accurate and judicious Mr. Dobbs computes, that arable Land will yield Six Pounds an Acre, and that an Acre of Land producing Flax, and that Flax wrought into Linnen of but pjghteen Fence a Yard, will produce ;^ol. This then, added to the Woollen Manufa(5lure, and the Filheries, would undoubtedly put it iu the Power of the Inhabitants of Man to become rich, populous, and happy. them. 6 of GREAT BRITAIN. 551 them. This is Co far from being a mere fanciful or fpeculative Rcprefen- tion, that on the contrary the Progrefs of thel'e Improvements, wh'jn they come to be put in Practice, ^vjil be found equally natural and regu- lar. The Cultivation of their Lands will of courfe render Provifions p!f;;n- tiful, and by augmenting the Means of Subfiftcnce, and at the fune Time p.'-omoting ukful Labour, render the Country populous, and People, if induftrious, are the tnw Inllruments of their own Profpcrity. The taking a proper Care of their Sheep and of their Wool will find benefic ial Exer- cife for a Multitude of Hands, and Emulation, with the AfTiftance of a little Inftrudion, bring a great Variety of their Woollen Goods into Re- pute and Demand both at Home and Abroad. The Advantages ariling from hence will be eafily conceived, when it is confidered how many Thoufand Stone of Wool are, and how many more might be produced, and that every Stone of Wool may be manufattured up to the Value of Four Pounds Sterling. To this we may add, that there is perhaps no Country in the World that enjoys more Advantages than this for the car- rying on with Facility all the different Branches of this lucrative Mode of Induftry. The lame with equal Truth and Certainty may be faid ia regard to their Flax, which if converted into Fine Thread, and a Part of that employed in the Making of Lace, as it very eafily might be, would furnifh Employment for their Women, and be productive of amazing Pro- fits. In Proportion as thefe Manufactures rofe, the Spirit of CommercCj, as we have before obferved, would revive, for this hath been the Cafe in all other Countries, and in Iflands more efpecially, particularly where they are furnilTied with Ports well fituated, and where their Filhieries fur- nifh a conftant and adtive Race of hardy Seamen. Men are never blind to their own Interefts, and through the Wifdom of Providence this Attention to their private Concerns, and the Defire of advancing the Fortunes of themfelves and of their Families, hath all the good Effeds, and may therefore be truly confidered as public Spirit. This Deduction founded on the true Principles of political Oeconomy, and at the fame Time on the real State and Circumftances of this Ifland, clearly evince, that what we have fo often fuggefted as to the Poffibility of recovering it to a competent Degree of Importance, and raifing the Peo- ple into a Rank confident with their prefent Situation, confidered as the Subjecfts of the Crown of Great Britain, is perfedly pradticable, and muft afford a pleafing Contemplation to every Friend to the Welfare of this State, and who have a proper Senfe of Humanity. The raifing a little State to a great One, the refcuing an innocent and deferving People from Ob- fcurity and Poverty, by the Afliftanee of that which is now become their Mother 552 The POLITICAL SURVEY Mother Country, is a noble and laudable Exertion of Wifdom and Au- thority, and the Succels of this Exertion will quiclily become conlpicuous when the Inhabitants export their own Commodities in their own Vefllls, and thereby come to have an Intercourfe with foreign Nutions, and partici- pate in thole Advantages, which Experience lliews fuch an Intercuurle hath hitherto produced, and which affords us a moral Certainty, that in re- fpe£t to them, as well as the Inhabitants of all other Iflands, it caunotbut produce. However fmall or confined fuch a Commerce mny be at the Be- ginning, yet the happy Situation of this Ifland for an extenfive Trade, and the Spur which fuch a Commerce would give to every Species of Indullry amongfl the Inhabitants, would fpeedily increafi the Number and the Spirit of their Merchants who might reafonably hope, and would cer- tainly receive, every equitable Encouragement that the LegiOature of Great Britain could give. The Succefs of their Efforts would produce the moft folid Advantages to the Inhabitants, give them a full Convidtion of the wide Difference in refpe>5t to their own Interefts between a fair and legal, and a contraband and illicit Trade, fo that in a fliort Time it would be rendered evident, that the Condud of the Britifh Miniftry was perfeftly prudent in their Purchafe, by which fo many Miichiefs were removed and fo many Emoluments procured, both for the BritiOi Nation and the Peo- ple of thelflc of Man. SECT. of GREAT BRITAIN. 553 Section IV. Of the TVeJlerii IJIes dependant 07i North Britain, "THEIR Hijiory in the earliej} Ages. Were inhabited before they became known to the Greeks and Rotnans. Otice pojfejjed atid ailtivated by a civi- lized indujlrious and commercial Nation. Incontejlible Proofs of this iiide- penctant both of Hijlory and Tradition. Thefe IJlands dependatit upon and of great Utility to the Monarchs of Scotland. Invaded and conquered by Magnus King of Norivay. The Country totally ruined, and the People rendered barbarous by that Revolution. Recovered, after a long Series of Tears, to the Crou-n of Scotland by Alexander the Third. Their State and Condition under the fucceeding Kings of that Country. The Cazfes of their finking into Meannefs and Mifcry. Repeated, though ineffeSiual Attempts, to retrieve and recover them. Their great Value alivays known and their real Importance ackno'-^-lcdged. This often infiflfd upon and explained by Rnglifh as 'u;ell as Scots Writers. A Change in their Condition coiifdcntly .expeBed from the Union of the two Crowns. Some kind Intentions tnani- fefted towards them by fames the Firji. Attempts made to ejiablijh a Fijl:ery amongd them by Charles the Firjl. Thefe prove abortive and their State rendered worfe than ever by the Civil War. Two excellent Laws refpeSiing the Fijtiery pajjed by Charles the Second and fome Fjjays made to carry them into F^x edition. Their Situation, little if at all mended, face that lime. Their Capacity for Improvement ft ill rctna'ns unifnpaired. The Defcription, Situation, Natural, Civil, and Commercial Hifo?y of the Itle of Bute. The like in refpeSf to the Ifles of Arran, If a. Jura, Mull, Sky, and the Long If and. There are in thefe and in the leffer Iflands about them many valuable Commodities, and a Variety of Materials for the Support of Commerce. The Nuniber of thefe may be ea/ily augmented and their i^ali- ties greatly improved. Beneficial Informations, profitable Difcoveries, a?zd feveral ufeful Arts might be introduced from foreign Countries into thefe Ifies. Reafofis for their becoming ObjcBs of pub lick Notice and Encourage- ?nent, drawn from Infiances of Utility that would refult from thence to the Britifl.' Fmpire. Aii Attempt to point out the Means by which there is a moral Certainty that fo important a Work might be fully accomplifhed. The Confluences that in refpeSl to the Common-wealth would certainly attend them. TH E foregoing Secflio.ns, it is hoped, have given the candid and ju- dicious Reader full Satisfadlion, that the Dodlrine we Iiave efpoufed of the Superior Importance of Iflands, grounded on the many Advantages that may be drawn from them, was not an Opinion haftily taken up, or Vol. I. 4 B has 554 The POLITICAL SURVEY has been fo warmly maintained without juft Arguments for its Support a. Thefe, of which in this and in the following Section, we are now to fpeak, whatever may be thought of them in their prefent low and negledled Cir- cumflances, are moft undoubtedly thofe Parts of the Britifh Dominions, that from their intrinfic Qualities are capable of the higheftlmprovements; as will eafily appear, if we confider their Number andExter*; their happy Situation in many and thofe very important Refpedls; more efpecially fince the Difcovery and Settlement of America; the Number of Inhabitants they adlually maintain, and the far greater Number that might fubiift there, in a much more comfortable, commodious, and with regard to their Neigh- bours, in a more communicative Condition, than is in the Power of thofe who now dwell in them, and the Confequences that would neceffarily re- fult from thence towards augmenting the Strength, extending the Com- merce, and promoting the Naval Power of Great Britain!', por thefe Iflands, which are the Objed; of the prefent Sedion, though fo little known, and therefore fo little efteemed, make about a ninth Part of North Britain,, are confiderably larger than any County in South Britain, Yorkshire only excepted, equal in Size to the Counties of Kent and EfTex taken together, much larger than the Province of Holland, and indeed near Half as large as the whole Territories of the United Provinces c. In order to treat this interefting Subjedt, for fo in the Sequel it will ap- pear to be, intelligibly and perfpicuoufly, it will he requifite to give firll a general and fuccindt Hiftory of thefe Ifles, from whence it will be ken what they have been, and how they came to be in the Situation they now are; and next a particular Defcription of the mofl: confiderable amongfl them, that from thence the Reader may difcern the Probability of what has been fuggefted on their Behalf, that is, the rendering them hereafter of more Confequence and of greater Utility to the Briti(h Empire d. There are goodGrounds to believe that the Phoenicians and Carthaginians were acquainted with thefe Illands, becaufe from them the Greeks muft » Thucyd. lib. i. Diod. Sic. lib. v. Strab. lib. x. xiv. Ammian. Marcell. lib. xiv. c. 8. L'Efprit de Loix, 1 xviii. c. 5. ■^ The candid Reader is defired to carry it ever in his Mind, that the Attention (hewn to or Ardour exprelFed in this Work for promoting the Intsrefls of particular Places, does not proceed from any partial Regard to them, but from a zealous Defire of rendering all Parts of the Britifh Dominions conducive in the higheft Degree of which they are refpeiftively capable, to the ge- neral Welfare of the Britifl^ Empire. <^- Templeman's Survey of the Globe, PI. i. iii. vi. '' If we had ever been poireffed of a tolerable Hiftor)''or Defcription of thefe Ifles, they would not at this Day have been in this Condition. have of GREAT BRITAIN. 555 have derived their Knowledge «". If we had the Works of Pytheas of Mar- feilles f, who exprefly affirms that he had himfelf vifited all the Coafts of Europe, from Cadiz to the Mouth of the Tanais or Dons, wc fhould be able to fpeak with greater Certainty; for though he is decried by Strabo as a falfe and fibulous Writer'', yet Eratofthenes, who was even in Strabo's Opinion, a moft learned and judicious Geographer", had a very different Opinion of him, and if, as has been before hinted, we had his Writings, they would certainly give us earlier and perhaps better Notions of the State in which they then were, than can be collected from thofe who came after him. Diodorus Siculus '^ fays only, that there were many Iflands about Britain. Strabo' agrees in this, but being prejudiced againfl Pytheas, rejedts all that he had laid concerning them, and though he was indifputably a very learned and able Writer, yet as he exprefly places Ireland to the North of Britain, and argues from thence, that no Country could be habitable that lay ftill farther North than that Iflandm, we may plainly perceive that he was not infallible in his Judgment, and that what Pytheas faid, concerning Iflands to the North of Ireland, might be worth knowingi notwithftanding he, on the Principle before-mentioned, rejefted his Teftimony. Pomponius Alela", a very accurate and judicious VVriter, mentions the Orkneys, and tells us they were thirty in Number, with narrow Channels between them; but he fays nothing of the Weflern Ifles, Tacitus alfo is filent concern- ing them, though he gives us a very particular Account of Agricola's di- refting the Roman Fleet to pafs round the whole Ifland of Britain o, vvhen fteering to the North of the Orkneys, he fays they had Sight of Thule, by which he, as well as Pytheas of Marfeilles, mufl; have meant Shetland, though what the Greeks in general fay of that Country agrees better with Iceland r. Pliny makes the Orkneys forty, and the Wefliern Iflands which e Strab. Geogi'aph. lib. xvi. p. 757 et feq. Plin. Nat. Hift. lib. v. c. 12. vii. c. 56. Pomp. Mela de lltuOrbis, lib. i. c. 12. i This Pytheas, in the Opinion of the learned Voffius, flourifhed under Ptolemy Philadelphu?, and amongft other Works wrote an Account of Thule, by which it fiiould feem he meant Shet- land, and though at firfl Sight, more efpecially to fuch as are unacquainted with thofe Iflands, the few Sentences remaining of that Work appear very abfurd, yet, as we may tiave OccaJiou to fhow, they contain ill told Truths. g Gtog. lib. ii. p. 104. ^ Ibid. lib. 1. p. 63. i Id. ibid. k Bibl. Hill. lib. v. p. 209. ' Geogr. lib. iv. p. 201. °> Geog. lib. ii. p. 115. iv. p. 2or, n De Situ Orbis, lib. iii. c. 6. ° In vit. Agricolae, cap. x. P Strabo, lib. iv. p. 201. though he there again ceafures Pytheas as a fabulous Writer, yet ■admits his Accounts of thefe Northern Countries probable enough, 4 B 2 he 556 The POLITICAL SURVEY he calls Ha'biides thirty q. Solinus reduces them to five, but cdls tHein by the lame Name. Plutarch mentions them in general, but without any particular Denomination ^ Ptolemy ftilcs them JF.hudx, and names five of them. Orofiuss is filent as to thefe Iflands, though he fpeaks of the Ork- neys and the Ifle of Man. There might be feveral Reafons alfigned why the Romans v/ere no better acquainted with them, but it is fufficient to ob- ferve, that they lay beyond the Limits of their Provinces in Britain, and that it is no Wonder they did not conquer thefe, fince for any Thing that appears, though they might have it in Contemplation, yet they never adlu-- ally attempted Ireland f. Solinus is the only Author of Antiquity who gives any Account of their Inhabitants ^i. "■ The Iflands called Ha;budes, fays he, are five in " Number, the Natives of which unacquainted with Corn, live only upon " Filh and Milk. They are all governed by one King, for though fepa- " rate Illands, yet they are only divided from each other by narrow •' Channels. The King pollefles nothing of his own; is by Law con- " ftrained to govern with the mofl exaft JulHce, and that Avarice may " not incline him to digrefs, he is kept within Bounds by his Poverty 3 *' infomuch that he is allowed to have nothing that he can efieem his Pro- " perty, but in all Things is maintained at the Public Expence, neither " has he fo much as a Wife, but wherever he is, he takes for the Time " the Wife of one of his Subjects, fo that he is without hope of, and " confequently can have no Attention to Children." This fliews not only that thefe Iflands were and had been long inha- bited, but feems likewife to prove, that thofe Inhabitants had at fome Time or other felt, and were therefore willing in all fucceeding Times to guard againft the Power of Tyrants. As to thofe Writers who had a No- tion that tliefe were the Fortunate Iflands, the Habitations of Heroes, . or Receptacles of departed Spirits, they are not worth mentioning^. Only this it may be proper to remark, that idle and fabulous as they are, thefe Reports feem to allude rather to fertile and pleafant, than to wild, defert, and inhofpitable Countries, and feems alfo to imply a certain Knowledge of their being inhabited, though not a diftincft Knowledge of thofe Inha- bitants. ^ Nat. Hin. lib. iv. c. 16. ' De Oraculor. Defeft. ' Adrerfus Paganos, Hifl. lib. 1. » Strab. Geogr. lib. ii. p. 72. Tacit, vlt. Agrlc. c. 24. Plin. Nat. Hlft. lib. iv. c. 16. " Polyhilior. cap. xxv. * Plutarch deOracul. Defeifl. et iavita Sertorii. Ifacius Tzetzes, in notis fuis ad Lycophron, N. Comitis Mytholog. lib. iii. p. 273. Who- of GREAT BRITAIN. 557 Whoever the People were who dwelled in they^budae, or from what- ever Countries they originally came, we know that they were very early converted to the Chriftian Faith, and in confequence of this became, ac- cording to the Idea of thofe Times, a civilized, learned, and polifhed Na- tion X. They feem to have been ruled by their own Princes or Chiefs, and dependant upon or at leaft clofely connefted with the Monarchs of Scotland, to v\ hoTe Affiftance in Time of War they carried their Squadrons, and fome- times debarked their Troops ; received and educated their Youth in Time of Peace j and in cafe of civil Diffentions, or fudden Invafions, the too fre- quent Calamities of thofe Ages, afforded their Princes and Nobility Shel- ter Y. In this State, the Inhabitants of the Weftern Iflands continued from the Middle of the fourth till towards the Clofe of the eleventh Century, and during all that Space, were aiTiduous in cultivating, their Lands, erect- ing public Edifices of different Kinds, improving their Fiiheries, extend- ing their Trade, and raifing and ll:rengthening from thence their naval Power i. In this flourilliing Situation, through fo long a Period, the People grew numerous, their Government became ftronger and better con- flituted, their Correfpondence with their Neighbours more enlarged, and, in a Word, it was withinthis Period, that the /Ebudae wore a more favour- able and florid Alpeft than ever they have done fince ; from their being poffeffed by a Race of Men robuft, hardy, and induftrious, acquainted with Arts as well as Arms, lincere Lovers of their Country, and this Country likewife then enjoyed feveral natural Advantages, of which, tho' perhaps not irretrieveably, it is deprived at prefent ». It is indeed true, that within the Compafs of this Period, we have no ■ dillincfl or regular Hiftory of thefe Iflands or their Inhabitants extant ^, but notwithftanding this, how furprizing foever that may feem, the Reality of the foregoing Facfts may be fupported by probable, which in a Calc like this mull; be admitted as credible Evidence c. In the firll Place if we con- fider, that whether Scotland and Ireland were peopled from Scandinavia or " In this State they were found by St. Coluim, orCoIumba and his Difciples, who preached to them the Chriftian Faith, as to which their authentic U'ritings, efpecialiy the Life of St. Co- lumba by Adamnanus, afford the clearefl Evidence. ^ Fordun. Scotichronicon lib. iv. c. xxxix, 2 See what has been already faid on this Subje(ft, in the laft Setflion, relative to the ancienf flourifhing State of the Ifle of Man. =■ The Inhabitants in point of Stature, Strength, Genkis, Abilities, and Difpofition, are flill the fame, and with a little Encouragement would foon reffore their Country to its former Con- dition. " We may expert however to fee this Defefl fupplied by the Pen of an ingenious and learned Perfon, who has long turned his Thoughts to this Subjert. ' The Words of Authors may be wrelfed, tlicir Meanings miftaken, or their Aiuhority qucf^ tioned, but nothing of this Sort can be objcrted as to Farts, or the Arguments grounded upon them. 558 The POLITICAL SURVEY from Germany, thefe Illands lying direftly in the Way, were very likely to be at \c.\i\ as early, if not earlier fettled, than either «<; and this addsfomewhat to the Credibility of thofe Accounts from ancient Writers before produced, which aliert that they actually were fo fettled t'. This alfo receives addi- tional and no inconfiderable Countenance, from the Annals of the feveral Northern Nations, which however difcordant in other Points, agree in re- fped: to this ^ . The fame may be faid, with regard to the Lives of thofe holy Perfons, who planted the Chriftian Faith in the North of Britain, in Ireland, and in thefe Iflands, by which are meant not the modern legen- dary Romances of thofe Saints, but the fober and authentic Hiflories of their apoflolic Labours, penned by their immediate Difciples, who lived within this Period, and were Eye-witneffes of what they relate 3. To thefe we may join the Saxon and Iriih Chronicles, with that of the Ifle of Man K The ancient Iliftories, and the few remaining Annals of the Scots Ab- bies ' concur with thefe, as do alfo thofe inconteflible Events in reference to Scots Affairs hereafter mentioned, from Authors of different Countries, which from their Confequences are placed beyond Doubt or Sufpicion K But if we may fubjoin to thefe, that Kind of indelible and incorruptible Teftimony, which arifes from the Remains of Heathen Temples in fome Places ', Ruins of flately Works in others, ftrong Walls and Fences arti- ficially conftruded, flill tho' rarely to be Ceen, as having been long Time fwallowed up by the Sea m, innumerable Forts almofl every where ", and decayed Chapels, the Dedications of w^hich preferved by uniform and in- variable Traditions, which as well as their Materials and Conflrudion, all refer to thefe Times °, with a Multitude of other Circumftances, not lefs ■* Sax. Gnm.Hifl:. Dan. lib. li. Lyfchandcr Genealog. Reg. Dan. p. 322. Langhorn.Antiquit. Albion, p. 309. StiHinglieet Oiig. Britan. p. 245. « Pytheas Mafiilicnfis ap. Strab. lib. i. p. 63. Plutarch, de Oraculor. Defecl. Solin. Polyhift. cap. XXV. ( Olaus Magnus, Pont.inus, Torfoeiis. g Adamnani Vita S Columb. Vita S. Gildae in AiftisBenediftinis, Vita S.Niniani per Eldradum. * Beda, Chron.Sax. Alured. Bcverl. O Flaherty Ogygia. Chron. Manniseap. Camdcui Biitan. i Chron. de Mailrof. Forduni Scotichron. Liber Palletenfis. ^ Such as granting / Coluim Kil, i. e. Infula Seceffus Columbas, to that Saint and his Monks, their making this Monaftery their royal Burying-place ; the inlKtuting a great Officer, vvhofe Title was Infularum Senefchallus, Marflial of the Iflcs, or rather Steward, all Circumlhmces Ihewing the Importance of thefe Countries, and their Dependance on the Crown of Scotland. 1 Martin's Weftern Iflands, p. 9. where he dcfcribes a large Temple of the Druids in the Ifle of Lewis. Rowland's Mona Antiqua reflaurata, p. 336. ■" On the Weft Side of Lewis Remains arc feen of Walls, Dwellings, &c. " Fordun. Scotichron. lib. ii.cap. 10. ° Such as St. Flannan, in an Ifland of the f.ime Name : St. Ronan, in Rona ; St. Tarrani, In Tarans-ay; St. Ulton, in Valay ; St. Barr, in Kifmul; St. Columb, in lona; St. Ouran, in the fame Ifle ; St. Donnan and St. Katherine in the Ifle of Egg, and many others. ftrong of GREAT BRITAIN. 559 ilrong than thefe, which might be mentioned p, the Proofs to every candid. Reader, will appear conclufive. But to proceed, Duncan King of Scots, being about the Middle of the eleventh Cen- tury murdered by his Coufm Macbeth 1, who thereupon vifurped the Throne, the two Sons of the deceafed King fled, the eldeft into England, and the youngefl, according to a Cuftom already mentioned, to fome of his Father's Relations in the Weftern Illesr. Siward Earl of Northumber- land, by the Command of Edward the Confeffor, reftored Malcolm Ken- more, the eldeft Son of King Duncan, to his Father's Dominions*. He governed Scotland with great Reputation upwards of thirty-fix Years f. He and his eldeft Son Edward being flain in Northumberland, Donald Bane, i. e. the White, his younger Brother, returned with a confiderable Force out of the Ifles, and ufurped the Kingdom ". Duncan, a natural Son of King Malcom, drove him out, and affumed the regal Title. But Donald Bane procuring his Murder, feated himfelf once more in the Throne, fa- crificing, as the Scots Hiftorians affirm, the Weftern Iflands to Magnus King of Norway, for his Aftiftance, which rendered him odious to tlie Na- tion «. This however is certain, that A. D. 1098 King Magnus, with a potent naval Armament, attacked thefe lilands x. The firft Fury of his cruel Irruption fell upon Lewis ; which fubdued, he fteered for Sky, which large and then v/ell inhabited Ifland alfo fubmitting, he. took there fuch 3. Quantity of Cattle as fufficed to revidual his Fleet. He next reduced Ter- vift and Ivift, afterwards Mull and all the Northern Ifles. Then proceed- ing South, he fpent fome Time in pillaging Ha, burning their Dwellings, deftroying the Inhabitants, and laying every Thing waile where he came. The wretched People, flying as they could, endeavoured to take Shelter fome in Cantire, others in Ireland, Magnus purfuing them, carried Fire and Sword into both Countries, and after ravaging their Coafts, fubdued p As for Inftance, their numerous holy Wells, dedicated to thofe Saints, mentioned by Beds and the Saxon as well as the Scots and Irilh Chronicles. The Songs of their old Bards, fupported. by the Names of Mountains, Rivers, Rocks, &c. with the Memoirs of their ancient farailies,, whofe PofTeflions and Prctenfions afiord inconteflible Marks of their Amhenticity. "1 He was Grandfon to King Malcolm by his only Child Beatrix whoefpoufed Cryniii, Abthaae or Steward of the Ifles. Scotichron. lib. iv. c. 39. r Chron. de Mailros, p. 156, Fordun. Scotichron. lib. iv. c. 15. Boeth. Scot. Hill. lib. xii. fol. 250. a. s Chron. de Mailros, p. 158. Shneon Dunelmenf. ap. x. Script, col. 1S7. W. MalmetT). dr geft. Reg. Anglor. lib. ii. p. 79. ' Chron. Saxon, p. 199. J. M.ijor de geft. Scotorum, lib. iii. c, 8. Eoeth. Scot. Hift. lib. xii. fcl. 260. a. " Fordiin. Scotichron. lib. V. c. IF. w J. Major de geft. Scotor. lib. iii. c. 9. Heel. Boeth. Scot. Hift. lib. xii. fol. 261 . a. * Chron. de Mailros, p. 16?., Simeon Dunehn. Hift. apud x. Script, col, 22;?. OJii'ic Vital. Hift. EccIeCaft. lib. s. ths 56© The POLITICAL SURVIlY tiie Ifle of Man, and made an Attempt upon Anglefey, as has been al- ready mentioned Y. We have not the foregoing Particulars relative to this Expedition from Biitifh or Iriili Hirtorians, whofe Veracity might be fu- fpeCled, but from the Poems of two Norwegian Bards, who, according to the Cuilom of that Age, attended King Magnus on Furpofe to record his Triumphs i. It may feem ftrange that he met with no ReGllance from the Scots, but the Wonder will ceafe when we confider, the Collufion between Magnus and Donald Bane gave Rife to this Expedition, and that Edgar the Son of Malcolm Kenmore, affilled by a Imall Body of Englifh Troops, under the Command of his Uncle by the Mother Side Edgar Atheling, at this very Jundure entered Scotland, and defeating and making Prilbner the Ufurper, refeated himfelf on the Throne of his Anceftors, fo that a Nation thus occupied at home had .no Leifure to look to her Affairs abroad, however important ^ The Manner in which the Inhabitants were treated at the Time the Weftern Iflands were reduced by King Magnus is fufficiently charadeiillic of the Spirit of the Norwegian Government. Where the People patiently fubmitted to a fuperior Force, they were plundered of all they pon'eiTed; their Dwellings deflroyed, and themielves exterminated, where they made any Ilefiflance 1\ Under fuch Mafters, not only every Species of Art and In- duftry decayed, but even the Memory of pall Improvements was in Time buried in Oblivion. Perfonsof the befl: Condition rehired immediately with iuch Effedls as they could withdraw, and they were gradually followed by thofe, who being accuftomed to a civilized Mode of Life, had no ReliOi for the Manners newly introduced, and were belides capable of acquiring a Subfiftance in other Countries '^. Agriculture, which had been carried to a conliderable Height, became negledlied, for very few would chufe to cul- tivate the Soil, where, from repeated Debarkations of Invaders, they dif- cerned little or no Security of reaping the Fruits of their Labours "^L This l)ecay of Huibandry was followed by thinning the Numbers, and fpoiling y Political Survey of Great Britain, Vol. I. p. 528. •' Torfxus HliT:. Nor. P. iii. cap. 4. p. 421. The Names of tiie two Norwegian Bards, whofe Songs of this Expedition have been tranfcribed iiro their Hiffories, were Bioiiuis Ciirvimanus and Thorkell Haraarflviold, which alfo fliews the Authority of ihefe poetic Chronicles, which were teyoiid all Doubt the moft ancient Records of the Northern Nations. a Chron. Saxon, p, 206. Fordiin. Scotichron, lib. v. cap. 25. Major de Geftis Scotorum, lib. iii. cap. 9. '' Rerum Orcadenfium Hiftoria, lib. i. cap. ij. p. 71. ' So the Norwegian Bards before mentioned exprefly inform lis. . Haquin, who in the Latin Chronicles is called Acho or Ilacus, King of Norway, rejedied this Demand, neither would he liflen to an Overture made him, of receiving for this Reftitution a Compenlation in Money. This ablolute and peremptory Refufal determined Alexander to have Recourfe to Arms, tho' he knew in a Difpute at Sea his Force was much inferior to that of his Enemy. How he might have fucceeded in this arduous Undertaking cannot be determined, but it is certain he pro- ceeded boldly and yet with Prudence. Before he could effeft any Thing decifive, he was feized with a Fever, of which he died in the Ifland of Bernera ». Alexander II. was fucceeded by his Son of the fame Name, a Child of eight Years old, in whole Minority the public Affairs were much negledled. In this Space, Haquin King of Norway neglected nothing that could tend to fecure the Iftands which he poffefted. He fent for their Princes to, and carefTed tiiem in his Court, granted them many Favours, encouraged them in equipping Squadrons and augmented his own Fleet, that he might be in a Condition to meet his Enemies whenever they appeared ''. Alexander the Third, as foon as he was of Age, took the moft effedlual Mcafures in his Power to vindicate his Right to thefe Iftands, and to revenge his Fa- ther's Death, With this View, he fent a ftrong Squadron under the Com- ' Chron. deMalhofs, T73, 183, 185, 189, 190, 193, 203. m Boeth. Scot. Hifl. lib. xiii. Buchan. Reium Scotic. Hllh lib. vli. Rerum Oread. Hift. lib. i. cap. 38. " Boeth. Scot. Hift, ubi fupra. Hift. Oread, lib. ii. p. 163. •> Chron. de M.iilrofs, p. 219. where, from the Infcription on this Mon.irch's Tomb, it is called Cerfiirei. Foidiin. Scotichron. fol. 161, 162. wc find Kernercy. Chron. Manniae A. D. 1249 ^^^^^ '' Karwary. So it Aands in the Danifli Hiflories. But from a Charter of Confirma- tion by King Robert Bruce, it appears to have been Bernera, a fmall Ifland between North Uift and Harries. p Chron. de Maiirofs, p. 200, 221, 222. Major, dc Reb. Geft. Scot. lib. iv. Buchanan.- Rer. Scot. Hill. lib. vii. mand of GREAT BRITAIN. 563 mand of the Earl of Rofs, to reduce the fmaller Ifles 1. The News of this obliged Haquin V, King of Norway to haften his Preparation, to pre- ferve what were lUll and had been fo long his Anceftors and his Pofl'efllons. In the Summer A. D. 1263 he failed with Tome ftout Ships to Shetland, and from thence to Orkney, where his whole Fleet was to aflemble. As foon as his Squadron had joined, he ravaged Cantire ; and having provided for making a Diverfion in the North, by an Invafion in Caithnefs, pro- ceeded with his Fleet to attack the Ifles of Arran and Bute, v/hich he quickly reduced. Thus far Succefs attended him, and the Scots inflead of reco- vering the Illands which they had lofl, fecmed in no fmall Danger of being deprived of the very few they had left. But Haquin debarking twenty thoufind iVIen on the Continent, was totally defeated in the memorable Battle of Larges, fought on the firft of Auguft, with the Slaughter of two thirds of his Forces by the Army of the King of Scots, upon which he re- tired haftily to his Ships, and thefe being dilfipated by a Storm, and many of them dellroyed, he returned with the fhattered Remains of his Fleet to the Orkneys, and there, after a few Days Sicknefs, expired '■. Alexander did not let fo favourable an Opportunity flip away unufed. The naval Force that was infutficient to difpute the Dominion of the Sea with the Nor- wegians, was po~erful enough to reduce the Ifle of Man, fo that its King became tributary to Alexander. But taught by the Fate of Haquin the great Incertainty of War, he had again very wifely Recourfe to Negotiation with Magnus King of Norway, Son to Haquin, with whom at length he concluded a Treaty in A. D. 1266, by which he recovered Man and all the Illands (thofe of Orkney and Shetland excepted) paying to Magnus four thoufand Marks Sterling in four Years, and an Annuity of one hundred Marks Sterling, on the Feaft of St. John the Baptill yearly; which Treaty was folcmnly ratified by both Kings Magnus IV. and Alexander Ills, and they lived afterwards in fuch Union, that the latter beftowed in Marriage his Daughter, the Princefs Margaret, on the Son of the former, who had by her an only Daughter, called alfo Margaret, fliled the Maid of Nor- way, and who by the Death of her Grandfather without Iflue, became (but fhe furvived not long) the indifputed Heirefs of the Crown of Scotland t. ■i Hin. Oread, lib. ii. p. 165. It is very remarkable that of this Expedition (in which the Ifles were cruelly fpoiled) there is not the leaft Mention made by any Scots Hiflorian. ■■ Fordun. Scotichron. fol. 164, 165. Chron. de Aiailrofs, p. 229. Chron. Mannlx, A. D. 1260. Boeth. Sector. Hift. lib. xiii. p. 288, 289. Hift. Oread, lib. ii. p. 165 175. * The original Treaty is ftill preferved in the Archives of the Crown of Denmark. See alfo, Fordun. Scotichron. fol. 164, 165. SkcnedeVerborum Signilicatione, under the Word Annuell. Hift. Oread, p. 171, 198. ' Fordun. Scotichron. fol, 168. J. Major de Reb. Geft. Scot. lib. iv. fcl. 68. a. .Boeth. Scot, iJift. lib. xui. 4 C 2 The 564 The POLITICAL SURVEY The Illands during the Remaindei" of the Reign of Alexander III. a wife and juft Prince, attentive to Commerce, and folicitous about a Naval Power, began again to thrive, and tlieir Inhabitants recovering from their Misfortunes, afliduoufly applied to cultivate the Arts of Peace. But in lefs than tw'enty Years, the Scene was again changed entirely, by the pre- mature Death of that Monarch, and the Troubles that followed it". This gave the Chiefs, through all the Ifles, an Opportunity to let up forthem- felves, and Quarrels arifing amongfl: them, they harraffed and deftroyetl each other's Countries, and thereby fpread farther and wider that Dcfola- tion which was but too general before^". However in thofe Ifles King Robert Bruce found Shelter injiis greateft Diftrefs, which gave him fo true a Senfe of their Importance, that as icon as he could bring his Affairs into fome Order, he took care to fecure the Title to them, by renewing Anno Domini 1312, with Haquin V. King of Norway, the Treaty of Ceffion, made between Magnus IV. and Alexander III. their refpedive Predecef- fors, at his Court in Invernefs^, He alfo kept up a Fleer, fliewcd Kind- nefs to fome of their Cliiefs, and amongll otJier Points in his Political Teftament, this was one, that his Succeflbrs Ih-ould confider the Weftern Illes, when properly improved and well managed, as highly advantageous, or if in bad Hands exceedingly dangerous to their Realu^ and for this Rea- fon, ihould never trull the Government of them to a lingle Perfonr. But the Example he fet, in demolifliing the FortrelTes in the Ifle of Man, after he recovered it out of the Hands of Edward. I. had a bad EffeCl, for being followed by his Succefibrs, it left the Illands naked and defencelefs, which difcouraged Induftry, and made way for general Indigence. The detach- ing thefe Countries from the Sovereignty of Norway fo leii'encd the Naval Power of that Crown, as to give great Eafe to its Neighbours, and this fell out too at a very critical Conjundlure, for if Alexander III. had not re-annexed, and re-annexed them as he did, not by Conqueft but by Pur- chafe, the Scots, in the diftreffed and diftrafted Condition to which they were reduced by domellic Difientions and repeated Invafions, could never have withflood a Norwegian Fleet and Army, though inferior in Strength to thofe they had formerly (though fometimes not without great Ditficulty) defeated?. It was no QWftion a juft Senfe of this engaged King Robert " Boeth. Scot. Hift. lib. xiv. Leflsi de Rebus Geftis Scotor. lib. vi. Buchanan. Rcrum Scot, Hill. lib. viij. "•'' As A ftrlking Inft.ince of this we find the following Pa/Tags in the Norwegian Annals A. D. 1301. One Lokuland, at this Time iafefled the weftein Ifles,: who put to Death his adopted Brother John, and flew befidesjfooo P«rfoijSj ; and 3000 Children of both Sexes ! X Hill:. Oread lib. ii. p. 172, 173. Skene, de verborum Significatione, .is befoie cited. y Boeth. Scotor. Hift. lib. 3uv.-o;:i J. :■, Lell.. de Reb. Geft. Scot. lib. vi. p. 249. Buchanan. Rerur.i Scotic. Hift. lib. viii. * Boeth. Scotor. Hift. lib. xi. fol. 229, 243, lib. xiii. p. 289. Led. dc Rebus Gefl. Scotor, fib. V. p. 196, 197, 203. Chron. de Mailrofs, p.' 22'5. ■ 5 Bruce of GREAT BRITAIN. 565 Bruce to renew the Treaty with King Magnus, and it is not impofflble, that his DenioUtion of the Fortreffes might be to render the Ifles lefs te- nable by the Norwegians, in cafe they retook them. After the I>emife of King Robert, who left his Dominions to his Son David, then in his Minority, there followed a new Scene of Trouble and Confufion, which lafted near a Century. In this Space, the great Men in- different Parts of the Kingdom ercdlied their Lands into a kind of Princi- palities, in which they governed according to their own Humours, and feldom agreeing amonglt themfelves, inftead of having Recourfe to the: Laws, took up Arms againft each other, and thus every little Quarrel was decided by the Sv/ord. It may be eafily conceived what dreadful Effeds- this produced in the Manners of the People, and in the State of the Coun- try ^i. But thefe fad Diforders, as they no where rofe to a greater Height,, fo they no where produced greater Calamities, than in thefe Wcflern Ifles. The p>rincipal Perfon here was the Chief of the potent F.imily of Mac- donald, who in fupport of his Claim to the Earldom ofRofs, debai-ked many thoufand Men in that Country, and was defeated with much Diffi- culty and great Lofs on both Sides, under the Regency of the Duke of Albany b. James I. on his Return from his Captivity in England, endea- vouring to bring the Affairs of his Dominions into good Order, met with great Obftrudions from this Family, whom he fometimes treated with Clemency and fometimes with Rigour^. But to facilitate the bringing all 'Things in thele Parts into a regular and peaceable Condition, the King very prudently determined to renew the Treaty with the Crown of Nor- way, which was done accordingly July 29, 1426, and the Arrears of the annual Penfion referved on account of the Troubles and expenlive Wars in which the Crown of Scotland had been engaged, were for the Prefervation of Peace and a good Correfpondence between the two Crowns remitted^. After this, the King applied himfelf with indefatigable Diligence to the Care of public Affairs, and to removing thofe innumerable Diforders which, through the long Relaxation of the Government, overfpread the wliole Kingdcnn. So difficult a Tafk as this required, though purhied witli the utmoll Ardour, a long Courf'e of Time. In the Space of eleven Years hovvcver. King James made lb great a Progrefs, that tiiere was. the glo- » Major, de Geft. Sector, lib. v. v'l. Lell. de Rebus Geft. Scotor. lib. vii. Buchanan. Rcr. Scot. Hift. lib. X. f> Boeth. Scotor. HiO-. lib. xvi. fol. 341. Lefl. de Rebus Gel>. Scotor. lib. vii. p. 268, 269. Buchanan. Rer. Scot. Hifl:. lib. x. <: Boeth. Scoior. Hill. lib. xvii. fol. 347. Major, lib. vi. fol. 142. Lefl. de.Rcb. Geft. Scotor. lib. vii. p. 273. '' Hift. .Oread, lib. ii. p. 182. Skene takes not the leall Notice of this, or indeed any of the Scots Hillorians. riou.S 565 The POLITICAL SURVEY rious Profpedl before him of a regular and well fettled State, when by a Confpiracy of Malecontents, whom by his firift Juftice and upright Con- du6l he had provoked, he was in the Flower of his Age cruelly murdered in his Palace e. In the Courfe of the Minority of James II. the Kingdom was again torn by intefliine Diffentions, in which the People of the Ifles, intent, as uRial, on Rapine, had their full Share, and landing with a great Force on the Weft Side of Scotland, and ravaging a great Tradl of Country, committed moft inhuman Barbarities. The King, when he afTumed' the Government into his own Hands, did all he could to reprefs thefe Diforders, and to reftore Peace throughout his Dominions f. In Oppofition to this, and to fupport their own Greatnefs, the ambitious Earl of Douglas, and the Lord of the Ifles, with other potent Lords, entered into a folemn League, and in Con- fequence of this, the Earl of Douglas was to take Arms, in order to reduce the South, and the Lord of the Ifles the North Part of the Kingdoms. But in this Attempt they failed, and after a long Contention and much Bloodfhed on both Sides, the Lord of the Ifles was forced to iiave Re- courfe to the Royal Clemency, which he obtained, and fo long as the King lived behaved afterwards as became a good Subjedl'". It was towards the Clofe of this Monarch's Reign, that by the Interpofition of the Crown of prance, the Difputes with Chriflian I. King of Denmark and Norway, in relation to Arrears of the Annuity payable for the weftern Ifles, were pre- vented from breaking out into a War, and an Expedient propofed, to put a final End to thefe Altercations, by marrying the Daughter of King Chrif- tian to the young Prince of Scotland'. But before this Treaty could be concluded, King James was unfortunately flain at the Siege of Roxbo- rough, Auguft the 3d 1460'^'. One of the firfi: finiliier Events in the Minority of James III. was a new Rebellion of this Lord of the Ifles, though in Obedience to the deceafed King's Commands, he had marched with three Thoufand Men to the Siege of Roxborough, from whence, after taking that Place, he returned with them Home. In this new Irruption he brought the whole Strength of the Ifles, ravaged a large Extent of Country, made the E:irl of Athol the King's Uncle with his Countefs Pri- e Boeth. Scotor. Hift. lib. xvii. fol. 353. Lefl. de Reb. Geft. Sector, lib. vii. p. 276. Bu- chanan. Rer. Scot. lib. x. * Loeth. Scotor. Hift. lib. xviii. fol. 360. Lefl. de Reb. Gcft. lib. vUi. Buchanani Rer. Scotic. Hift. lib. xi. e Lindefay's Hiftory of Scotland, p. 50. Drummond's Hiftory of Scotland, p 53. •» Lefl. de Reb. Gefi. Scotor. lib. viii. p. 35^6. Liadefay's Hiftory of Scotland, 55, 58. Drum, mond's Hiftory of Scotland, p. 65, 66. i Hift. Orc.id. Jib. ii. k Boeth. Scotor. Hift. lib, xviii. fol. 391. Major, de G«AJs Scotor. lib. vi. Buchanan. Re- rum Scoticaruin lib. xi. foners. of GREAT BRITAIN. ^bj Toners, and acquired by plundering the Country an immenfe Booty. YeC in the Clore he was no Gainer by this E\pedition. The far greater Part of his- VelTels were loft in a Storm, in which almoft all their Crews pe- rifhed likewife, fo that for want of Power of doing more Mifchief, he was difpofed or rather was compelled to remain quiet during the Remainder of his Life'. He left, however, his Preteniions to his Son and Succeflbr John, of as turbulent a Difpofition, who immediately affumed the Titles of Earl of Rofs and Lord of the Ifles "'. As foon as the King began to take Cognizance of his own Affairs, he fent Ambiffadors to Copenhagen to demand the Princefs Margaret, only Daughter to Chrillian L King of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, in: Marriage J and the Treaty being figned September the 8th 1468, the ab- folute Ceffion of the wcftiern Illes, and the full Extinftion of all paft Ar- rears, and of all Claim or Right in future to the refervcd Annuity, was ftipulated, and belides thefe, the Queen brought alfo the immediate Pof- feiiion of the Ides of Orkney and Shetland^ which made her exceedingly- acceptable to the Nation f. This Point thus effedtually fettled. King James made Laws for encouraging Commerce, building Ships, providing BulTes, Nets, Salt, and whatever elfe was neceflary for erefting and eftablilliing an Herring Fiihery. But before this could be carried into Execution, John Earl of Rofs, in virtue of his Engagements with the King of Eng- land, Edward the Fourth, and James Earl of Douglafs, then an Exile in- Edward's Court, raifed a formidable Lifurreftion ". Terrified, however, by the King's great Preparations, he fubmitted in Time, and the Earl- dom of Rofs being voluntarily furrendered by him, was annexed to the Crown by an Aft of Parliament p. In the Reign of James IV. who was a Prince very attentive to Naval Power, Foreign Commerce, and the In- land Trade of his Dominions, many good Laws were made, which breath a true public Spirit, and a juft Regard for the Good of all his Subjetflss. With a View to civilize and reduce the Inhabitants of the weftern Ifles into peaceable Obedience, and due Rcfpeing thefe Ifles to which our Enemies have ever had and ever will have an Eye; as in this Cafe the Spaniards, afterwards the Dutch, and in the laft War the French, who under Thurot aftually made a Dcfcent on Ila. '' Johnfloni Rerum Britan. Hift. lib. ix. Spotfwood's Hiflory of Scotland, p. 466,467,490. Bafilicon Doron, Book 11. p. 159. in the Colleftion of King's James's Works. *= Stat. Jac. vi. par. 15. cap. 237. p. 720. in the Scots Afts it is cap. 241. but this is a Mi- ftake, it fhould be 237, as in the old Edition. This A<51 is to declare null and void Alienations of thi Affize Herring, as being the Cuftom due to the Crown for Fifliing. What this was, fee Skene De Verborum Significatione, under the Word ASSI3A. Sir Dudley Carlton's Letters, p. 156, I7S; 437, 441 ; 447, 4 5°, 454, 5^2. took dF great BRITAIN. 571 took great Pains to fet thefe important Points in a true Light ^. Sir William Monfon went to thefe Iflands, and has fliewn not only what prodigious Ad- vantages might arile by properly fettling the Hebrides, but alfo that it was very pradicable, not necefiarily expeniive, but \\ hat might be certainly, eafily, and evpeditioully done 3. However, after all it was never done, but it would require too much Room to fliew how there came to be fo total a Negledi of a Defign fo manifeftly to the Advantage of the United Crowns, well underllood by and i'o acceptable to the King and to Prince Henryl^. In the fucceeding Reign fomething was attempted, and a capital Impedi- ment removed. King Charle.s I. honoured a Scheme for eflablilliing a Filhery in thefe liles with his Patronage', and encouraged it by his Bounty. He prevented what might have been an irreparable Prejudice to the Interell of Britain, the Alienation of fome of thefe Illands to the Dutch, who had made Overtures for and were very defirous of purchafing them. King Charles's Intentions were defeated, a^ his Endeavours by intclline Difputcs had been originally interrupted, by the breaking out of the Civil War^. After his Death, the long Parliament openly adopted the Maxims of thefe Monarchs, vindicated their Pretenfions to the Dominion of the Sea, and in Profecution of their Claims, made a fucceftful War upon the Dutch'. But all their Views in regard to the Fidiery were intemipted by Cromwell's Ufurpaticm, who except demolilhing one Fortification and building ano- ther on the Ille of Lewis, did nothing in this Refped: "'. At the Relto- ration the Ifles were in the moft miferable Condition, thinly inhabited. Multitudes having retired to Ireland, Improvements altogether neglected, without Trade, without Veffels, and of Courfe without a Fiihery. Charles II. ' Obfervations touching Trnde and Commerce prefented to King James by Sir W. R. Eng- land's Wa)' to win Wealth, by Tobias Gentleman, 1614. 4°. s Thefe Accounts are contained in the Sixth Book of his Naval Traifls, preferred in the tliird Volume of Churchill's Colieftion of Voyages. If the Advices then given, and the Lights at that Time afforded had been properly purfued, this Nation had acquired many Thouiands of Subjefts, and many Millions of Money more than flie now ponefles. h There is fiili exifting an Original Letter from Sir Thomas Challoner to the Prince, in whicli this Matter is very fully difcufTed. i Rymeri Feeder. Anglix, torn. xix. p. 2 1 1 . Trade and Fifliing of Great Britain difplayed, hj Capt. John Smith 1662. 4°. Martin's Hiftory of the Wefttrn Iflands, p. 340. ^ In order to be convinced of this, we need only confult Secretary Coke's Letter to Sir Willian Bofwell, then the liing's Minifter to the States, April 16, 1635, printed in the Appendix to the Book mentioned in the next Note, p. 478. by which the King's Care of, and Attention to the Fifliery, and his true Senfe of its Importance fully appear. i The learned Selden's elaborate Work entitled MARE CLAUSUM, was by order of the long Parliament tranflatcd into Englifli, under the Title of the Dominion of Sea, printed A.D. 1652. Folio, by Appointment of the Council of State, dedicated to the Parliainent by Marcha- mont Needham the Tranflator, with additional Evidences of England's Sovereignty of the Sea from State Papers in the Reigns of K. James and K. Charles. " Martin's Hiltory of the Weftera Iflands, p. 8. 4 D 2 paffed 572 .The POLirrCAL SURVEY paffed two excellent Laws, one in England the other in Scotland, for r£- covering and fupporting our Fiflieries, towards which he (for fome Time at leaft) employed confiderable Sums of Money, by which there was not barely a Trial made, but enough was done, to (liew that all might have been done that v/as propofed". But the King's Neceffities obliging him to withdraw what he had advanced, the Merchants were dilcouraged, and the Defign abandoned, before thefe Illes received any great Benefit from it, which would have proved the fole Means of fee u ring its Succefs". For as thefe and other unavailing Attempts, have inconteilably fliewn all other Methods, however plaufible, however expenfive, muft prove inadequate to the retrieving and retaining the Fifheries, till thefe Iflands are once pro- perly fettled and fupported, and then it would follow of Courfe, rife as' high as either Skill or Induflry could carry it, and could never more be' taken from us ''. Thus we have at length travelled through this long Hiflory, in which; the want of intcrefting and important Events muil: be made up by keeping, in conftant View its Utility "*. The Fadls have been carefully and diligently colledled from our antient Writers, and if we conlider the whole Series attentively, we can have no Reafon to doubt of their Authenticity. The Obfcurity of early Times, and the Feeblenefs of our Vouchers in regard to them, is neverthelefs fully juftified, by the concurrent Evidence in fucceeding Ages, by which it appears,, that as thofe old Accounts atlirm they were once fully peopled ■■, thefe People muft have had Subfiftence, and of Courfe thefe Illes were alfo once fully cultivated. They had likewife a very formidable Naval Force, which muft have arifen from Commerce, the " The EngliQi Afts were Stat, i; Car.II. cap. 7. §. 16. and 15 Car. II. cap. 16. §. i. The Scots Law Stat. Car. II. par. i. fefT. i. cap. 39. p. 227. " If the Inhabitants of thefe Iflands were properly encouraged, they would carry on all Kinds of Fifheries fo cheap, fo early, fo Ufadily, and with ifo many other Circninltances of natural Ad-* vantage, in curing, packing, and carrying Fifh to all thcMarkets could be found for them in > Europe and America, as would foon beat out all Competitors. 5" This is felf evident. For give thefe Iflanders Venels, Nets, Salt, and Cailc, or put it in their Power to acquire them, and they will not be long In redeeming what they confider as their Pa- trimony (the Fifhery) out of the Hands of Foreigners, who could never after get it again from them by Induflry, Force, or Fraud. '1 From fuch a fuccincc Hiflory as this of the Rife, Progrefs, and abfolute Decay of a People, the pliilofophic Politician will much more clearly difcern the Connexion between Caufes and Events, than iii long Details of dilTerent Fafts, where froin a Number of intervening Circum- llar.ces, the Chain of Courfe cannot be fo eafily diftinguirtied. r Faifls are of all others the befl: Evidence, in rtfpeft to Hiflor)', and the Credibility cf writ-- ten Tdtimony is bc.^ diftingwilhcd by a Comparifon with them. .foV of G R E A T BRITAIN, 57;^ fole Means of attaining it in Iflands^. The old Hiftor)' therefore, in re- prefenting Things fo to have been, ought from thence to be concluded credible. The Conqueft of thefe Illands by the Norwegians, and the re- covering them again to the Crown of Scotland, are Points fupported by the Records of both Nations as well as Hiftory, and are therefore placed beyond all Difpute t. In this Period, the Manners of the Inhabitants and the Condition of the Country were changed, fo as to bring them into Cir- eumftances alike detrimental to themfehes and dangerout to their Neigh- bours ". How the Remedies to thefe Dillempers, though fufficiently ob- vious, came not to be applied, is eafily to be accounted for from this Hif- tory, and in Confequence of the:ir not being applied, how every thing ran in a rapid Courfe from bad to worfe, is vvithout Difficulty to be appre- hended. That thefe are not at all exaggerated will be apparent to thofe who will take the Trouble of confulting the Defcriptions given of them by our beft Hiftorians ^^,- By this Dedudtion of Facfls, it has been rendered evident, that in the Hands of well difpofed, well governed, well difciplined, well inrtrufted^. and well emploved People, thefe Illands furnifhed all the Ncceflaries of Life; as their Filheries and Native Commodities did then plentifully fup- ply them with the Means of Commerce; that Uefpotifm introduced Igno- rance, Barbarifm, and Piracy ; that Feuds, Revolutions, and other Poli-- tical Accidents depriving them of all Refort, has for feveral Ages rendered them negleded X ; that Inability to labour to any Purpofe has produced involuntary Idlenefs, followed by univerfai Indigence, and in Conftquence of this undeferved Reproach 7; and that notvvithflanding all this, they not only retain all their original natural Capacities of being rcllcred to 5 Odericiis Vitalis, who flomifhed in the Reign of WillLim Rufus, fpeaking of thefe and orhcr Iflands then under the Dominion of the King ot Kofway, mentions it as a Thing notorious, that Wealth rolled in to them on all Sides by the Refort thither of Shipping from all Parts of the World. Hiflor. Ecclef. lib. x. ' By this Means we are furniflied with many Particulars from the Iilandic, Norwegian, and Danhh Hiftories, not preferved in our own. u Johnfon the Hiftorian fays they were, Homines Agrefles, fine Legibiis, fine Moiibus, fine Urbium Cultu, ac prope omnis Humanitatis et Religionis cxpertes. Rer. Britan. HiA. lib. vii. p. 231. w Heftoris Boethii Scotorum Regni Dcfcriptio, fol. ?., 9. Lcfl. Regionum et Infulanim Scotics Defcript. p. 34—39, Kuchan. Rer. Scot. Hifl. lib. i. the fuUefV and mofl accurate of a\\. Bu- chanan ackrowleges he had this from Donald Monro, a worthy pious Man, who made the Tour of the Ifles for this Purpofe. ^ It is by Navigatioi and Commerce tliat Illands thrive and flourifli ; interdift thefe, and cf courfe wanting their proper nutriment they decline and decay. y In the Gourfe of this Seftion, we (hall vindicate the Characters of thefe People who in reCpi^ to [nduftry, Capacity, and Difpofition, are as fit to rcftore and revive the anticnt Liiftre ot thci.-' Country, as can be wifhed, and were compelled to ihofe Afts of Rapine and Violence, for which iti paft Times they were decried, and for which their innocent Polkrity fo deeply fuitcr. theism 374 The POLITICAL SURVEY •tlieir priinitlve flourilhing Condition, but from thofe Alterations, whicb, in a Coiuie of Ages, this World and its Inhabitants have experienced, it is become of the utmoft Importance to Great Britain to pay a fpeedy and ferious Attention to thefe Illands, for her own fake, and thofe numberlefs and immenfe Advantages that may be drawn from them'. This Propo- fition ihall be conclufively proved, and many of the foregoing Points ftill farther explained and fupported, by entering, fo far as the Defign of this Work requires, into a particular Enumeration and Defcription of the largell, beil fituatcd, and moll confiderable of the Vv'^eftern Illands. We will begin, as is natural, with the Wands neareft the Continent, -that is, with thofe which at prefent compofe the Shire of Bute, and which were never at any Time detached from their Depeudance upon the Crown ,of Scotland.. B U T E. T'HE Name of that Ifle, which affords an Appellation to the Shire, has been by feveral Authors, and in various Periods, very differently written. Bote, Both, Bothe, Boot, and now generally Bute ^ Our an- cient Writer* fuppofe it derived its Name from a Cell erefted therein by St. Brendan, an Iriih Abbot, who flourifhed in the fixth Century, becaule in his Language fuch a Cell was called Both ^. It is however more pro- bable, that this Name was of greater Antiquity, fmce we find it denomi- ;nated Botis, by the anonymous Geographer of Ravenna. If, fuppofing this to be the Name impofed by its original Inhabitants, an Etymology mull be had, we may fuppofe it derived from the Word Bodhi, which in the old Language of the Country, fignifies a Thing deprelled in Water, or a flat Country encompaffed by the Sea^. The Situation of the Ifle of Bute is remarkably commodious, at the Entrance of the Firth of Clyde, having the main Land of the Shire of Air, at the Diftance of flx Miles on the Eall; feparated from Cowel, which is Part of Argylefliire, by a Channel not above half a Mile broad ; the Lands in this Country being remarkably high ^ It was a thorough Seofe of then- Importance and Utility, excited in me a Defire of writing -their Hiftory diftinftly, that from the Evidence of Facts what they once were might be made ap- parent, the true Caufes of their prefent Condition explained, and from thence the Certainty of refloring and improving them might be rendered vifiblc. '^ John Fordun caUs it Bothe ; Hector (Boys) Boethias, ftiies it Botha; John Major names it Butha ; Lelley Bilhop of Rofs, Buta ; Donald-Monro, and from him Buchanan, Bute; C.imden, Buthe ; and Timothy Pont, in his large Map in Bleau's Atlas, entitles it the Yle Boot. b Fordun. Scotichron. lib. i. cap. 28. Irleft. Boethii Scotorum Regni Defcript. fol. 8. Cam- deni Britan. p. 695. ' Baxteri Gloffar. Antiqnlr. Britan. p. 44. But it may not be amifs to remark, that Botis in the Galtc or Erie, fignifies a Boot. 2 flicker of GREAT BRITAIN. 575 flielter it from the North Winds. The Ifland of Arran lies to the South' Wed, at the Diftance of about ten Miles ; and the Peninfula of Cantirc, which is alfo a Part of Argylefhire, lies diredly Weft at fomewhat a greater Diftance d. It is no lefs happy in its Climate, which is very mild, the Spring is forward, Summer kindly. Winter rather rainy than cold, little expol'ed to Frofts or Snow, the former very Ihort, and the latter lying but a few Days on the Ground, having in all thefe Refpeits the Advantage of the adjacent Continent e. Their longeft Day about feventeen Hours and a -..-J _ . — ,^ — — J . . ^ Quarter. This Country is remarkably healthy, and People live in it to great Age, upon which the Inhabitants value themfelves not a little '". a It lies ftretched in length from North to South, about eighteen Miles, the broadeft Part from Eaft to Weft is about five, but is in many Places narrower, being indented on both Sides by large Bays of the Sea. The Face of the Country is rather hilly than mountainous, except the North Eaft Part, which however is lower coniiderably than the Mountains of Cowals. There are large Tracts of level and fruitful Ground interfperfed between the Hills through almoft every Part of the Ifland. With all thefe and many other Advantages, a great Part of it is little cultivated, tho' very little, if any, utterly unfit for Cultivation li. In Point of Size, it is larger than Rhode liland in America, fomewhat fmaller than Guernfey, but to the full as large as Jerfey i. The Soil in general is of a very good Qua- lity, light and free, upon a Gravelly Bottom, the Country rifing gradually from the Sea Side, and the Flats along the Shore, and through the Val- lies, are of a deep ftrong Mould, uncommonly rich and fertile, and ex- tremely fit for Wheat, Barley, Oats, and Flax, tho' at prefent the Inha- d See the large Map of this Ifland by Timothy Pont, Geographiis Blavianff, vol. vi. p ijp. ' From a MS. Account of this Ifland communicated by a Pcrfon of DiUindion, pe feftly ac- quainted therewith. f Martin's Hiflory of the Weftcrn Iflands, p-2i5. To this it may not he amifs that we add a fingular and authentic Circumfiance. There was a few Years fince (and very probably it ftiii- fubfiils) a Club in the Borough of Rothfay, of whom the Chairman v/as one hundred and fix, and every other Member turned of feventy, of thefe there were twenty all dwelling in the Place, or within two Miles of it. 6 Cowal is a Diftriff of Argylefliire, feparated from Knapdale on the Wi.ft by a vaft Inlet of the Sea called Loch Fyae, famous for the immcnfe Shoals of excellent Herring which annually refort thither. The Mouth of this noble Loch lies open to the Ifle of Bute, and at the Diftance only of a few Miles to the North Weft. As to the Hills, the higheft in the Ifland is but four hundred and twenty Feet perpendicular. h From the MS. Account of this Ifland agreeing with the fuccinft Charafter of tlie Eifhop of' Rofs, Eft Buta elegans quidcm Infula. * Rhode Ifland is ftiled the Paradifeof New England ; we have already endeavoured to do Juf- tke to Jerfey, See P. S. vol. i. p. 516. In point of Situation, Capacity of maintaining People, and ether natural Advantages, Bate is not inferior to either, but in the Number of Inhabitants falls Tery flrart of boih, bitants 576 The POLITICAL SURVEY bitants grow only Oats and Bear or Big '■, of which Grain they commonly export about two thoufand Quarters annually, which is very inconliderable in comparifon of what they might produce, as they have Sea Weeds, and which is much better, Sea Shells in vaft Quantities, and even the Ground upon their Hills, when ploughed and cleared of the Heath and improved with any Manure, bears good Crops of Oats and Big, and for many Years afterwards produces a fine feeding Grafs '. Towards the North End of the Ifland there is a Quarry of coarfe Slate, and a Vein of indifferent good Coal has been found, which however dipping very deep is not thought worth that Expence which muft attend working. Here is Plenty of Free Stone, and Stone of a red Colour, of which there are many ancient Build- ings. There is a large Mountain of Lime Stone, that hangs over the Sea"'. There were anciently many Woods, feveral of which, fomeof Oak, and not inconfiderable, ftill remaining; befides thefe, there are Copfes in different Parts of the Uland, and Trees of every Kind in the Earl of Bute's Park, which flourifh more, and grow quicker, than upon the oppofite Continent; fo that mofh Sorts of Timber, and more efpegially Oak, might be railed here with the greateil Facility ". Few Iflands can boaft of being fo well watered, for befides Abundance .of frefli clear Springs, there are feveral fine Rivulets, fome of which run two or three Miles and are very fit for turning Mills ; there are alfo fix or eight Lochs of frefli Water, and amongfl: thefe four that have Rivers run- ning out of them; the largelf, called Loch Fad, that is the long Loch, is a Mile in Extent. Thefe abound with Pike, Perch, and very fine large Trout °. There are feveral large Bays on the Eaft and on the Wefi: Side of the Ifland, and between it and the neighbouring Continent of Cowel, •there is a fafe, deep, and capacious Road, called the Kyles of Bute ''. Here This, from Us having four or fometimes fixE-ows of Grain, is by J. Bauhine, called Hordeum Polyftichon, and Polyftichon Hyberniim, by C. B. Winter or Square Bailey. Rail Hift. Plant, p. 1244. Sibb.ildi Prodrom. Nat. Hill. Scotice, P. ii. lib. i. cap. viii. p. 30. Merret. Pin. Rer. Nat. Britan. p. 63. ' MS. Account of this Ifland. "' Martin's Defcription of the Weftcrn Iflaiids, p. 215. " This feems to be in fome Meafure an Advantage peculiar to this Ifland, and therefore de.- ferves particular Attention, as the promoting the Growth of Timber, tho' not an immediate, would moft certainly prove a capital Benefit to the Inhabitants, whenever thofe Improvement hereafter propofed come to take Place. ° Martin's Defcription of the Welkrn Iflands, p. 214. Font's Map of this Ifland. It has been before fhewn, that any Kind of Fifh natural to Lakes, may be brought into and propagated, without much Expence or Trouble, in any Lake whatever, which might alfo, when tlje Number of Inhabitants increafed, prove a confiderable Advantage to this Ifland, in cafe greater Benefits might noiarife from Draining fome of thefe Lochs. P This fafe and commodious Road fcems to invite the Building a Town on this Side of t!ie ffie. are of GREAT BRITAIN. 577 are wild, tame, and water Fowl of mofl Sorts, and in great Plenty, In the Hills there are Deer, and that beautiful Creature the Roe Bucki. Their Horfes are fmall, and fo are their black Cattle, which is chiefly owing to their feeding too great a Number, and their Lands lying in common, for otherwife few Places produce better Pafturc. They have alfo excellent Sheep, and no fmall Quantity of Swine r. Their Coafts abound with different Sorts of Sea Fiih, and particulaily Herring. The Inhabitants are in general well made, very adtive and robufl, not- withltanding which they are moftly poor and indolent ; their Houfes, fav.- ing thofe of the old Barons, now moftly converted into Farms, but very indifferent, and except the ordinary and neceffary mechanic Employments, a good deal of Linnen (feme of which is very fine) and Boat Building, they can be fcarce faid to have any Manufactures \ This is chiefly owing to their having no foreign Commerce, and very little Intercourfe with Stran- gers. But as thefe Evils are obvious, fo they might be eafily remedied, by fending a few fkilful Farmers and induftrious Mechanics amongft them, who would foon teach them to fee their own Interefls, and the many Be- nefits that might be derived from fo pleafant and fertile a Country as that in which they live '. This, as our old Writers agree, was the firft Ifland poffeffcd by the Scots, under the Command of Reuda, or as others call him Rothfay, their Leader", and who is fuppofed to have built the Town and Fort of Roth- fay, which though a royal Borough, and giving fince the Reign of Robert III. the Title of Duke to the Heir apparent of the Crown ^v, is but a very inconfiderable Place, in which there may be about fix or ftxcn hundred In- habitants X. The Bay upon which it llands is a very fine one, capable ot holding a Fleet of large Ships, but the Entrance and Qivay are very indif- ferent, which with the Affillance of their noble Proprietor, and with f This tho' fmall is juftly efleemed excellent Venifon, SibbalJi Prodrom. Nat. Hifl. Scotix, P. ii. lib. 2. p. 9. f This Abundance of Provifion, which is alfo capable of great Iiicicafc, is rir.other Circumflancc ia Favour of the propofed Improvement. = Some Years fines, when an Ofnabrig Manufaclnre fubfiiled at Dunoon, it was in p;irt caniei on here, on account. of the Cheapnefs of Living and Labour. ' In fuch an Ifland as this, whoever would plant the Tree of Induftry, muft ufe the fame Me- thod which Cato took to excite the People of Rome againrt the Carthaginians ; he mui\ produce fome of its richeft Fruits, and tell them, thefe may be procured without War or Tr.ivc', only by taking (as other Folks do) a little more Pains at Home. u Bed. Ecclcf. Hift. Gent. Ang. lib. i. cap. i. J. Fordun. Scotichron. lib. i. cap. aS, p. -|7- _ w Camden. Britan p. 695. Selden's Titles of Honor, P. ii. chap. vii. p. 698. This Creatioa "v^'asA.D. 1398. Crawford's Peerage of Scotland, p 431. * Martin's Defcription of the Wellernlllands, p. 214, 215. Vol. I. 4 E great 57B The POLITICAL SURVEY great Probability of Succefs, the Inhabitants are ufmg their utmofl: Endea- vours to improve y. Their chief Support is the Herring Filhery, in which they employ from one hundred and lixty to one hundred and feventy, or, according to later Accounts, about two hundred Boats, all built by them- felves, and each of thcfe Boats requires four Hands. They don't go to feek the Fifh in the deep Water, but wait till they come upon their ov/n Coafls, and fell them daily as they take them to the attending Traders from Glafgow^ Greenock, and other Places. There are two Ferries, one from Rothlay to Greenock, which is about five Leagues up the Clyde, and the other from Mount Stewart to Larges, the neareft; Port in the Shire of Air. Thefe go regularly every Week, the former carrying Corn, Cattle, and other Things for the Greenock Market, and the latter chiefly PafTen- gers. Thefe two Ferries, as they maintain a conltant Intcrcourle with the Continent, are very advantageous to the lUand, and are the chief Source of what little Induftry there is among the Inhabitants. They moft of them fpeak the Englilh Language, which may be confidered as their Mo- ther Tongue, tho' many of them underfland and fome likewife can fpeak Galic or Erfe, which is the common Dialed: of the ordinary People in the other Wellern Illands i-. There are feveral old Fortrefles, or Places anciently built for Defence, fuch as Dun Owl, or Dun Ouil, and Dun Allin on the Weft Side^, and on the Eaft Side of the liland a little North from Rofa or Rothfay, there is an old Caflle three Stories high, which mull have been when eredted a ftrong, a flately, and an expenfive Work, and a great Security to the Place t>. For heretofore when frequent Hoftilities and little Confidence reigned between the Highlanders and the Inhabitants of the low Coun- tries, Rothfay was the intermediate Port to which both brought their Goods, and what Intercourfe there was came to be fettled there, and this made it larger and more confiderable than at prefent, when an ami- s' MS. Account of the Ifle of Bute. "^ It is evident from this Account that fince Martin's Time, who wrote above Half a Century ago, the Royal Borough of Rothfay and the Ifle in general is improved, as not more than Half the Number of Boats now employed in the Herring Fiftiery were then fent yearly, which Change of Circumftanccs fhcws what on further Encouragement might be expefted in all Kinds of Im- provement. a Martin's Defcription of tlie Weftern Iflands, p. 215. '' Fordun. Scotichron. lib. ii. cap. 10. p. 81. (peaking of this Fortrefs, as it was in his own Time, calls it, Caftrum regale puicrum et inexpugnabile. This was the largeft Cal^le in all the WcAern Iflands. In Cromwell's Time the Moat was filled up and the Outworks demoliflied. But the main Building remained entire till thcEailof Argyle's Attempt in May A. D. 1685, when it was deflroycd. Burnet, vol. ii. p. 632. Woodrow's Hiftory of the Church of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 533. % cable of GREAT BRITAIN. 579 cable Correlpoudence is eftabliflied, and no Traces of their former Jea- loufies fubfill c. . This evidently points out the great Conveniency of its Situation, and makes it more than probable, that with fuitable Encouragement and judicious Management, Rothfay might be revived, and become in Time the Entre- pot or common Magazine between the neighbouring Continent and cir- cumjacent Illands, for which it feems by Nature to have been deligned, of which it was once poffelTed, and to which by a moderate Degree of At- tention it certainly might be both eafily and effedluaily reftored d. In for- mer Times there were feveral Churches in the North and in the South Part of the Illand <■' ; there are at prefent but two Pariflies, and in them about five, or as fome compute, feven thoufand Souls. The principal Proprietor is the Earl of Bute ; befides his Lordfliip, Stewart oi Elfick and Ballenden of Keams have Houfes upon and Eftates in the Ifland f. It may be juftly inferred from this fuccinft Account of the Ifland of which we are fpeaking, it is ilill capable of many and great Improve- ments S. But as thefe mull follow each other gradually, it will be iuffi- cient to mention thofe that are moft obvious, may be mofl eafily made, and are moll; likely to introduce others h. The large Quantity they already have of excellent Pafturage, would, if divided, inclofed, and tolerably ini- proved, enable them to feed conliderable Herds of large and valuable Cattle, inftead of Multitudes of little low priced Beafts, and this eafy Al- teration would quickly turn in many Relpefts highly to their Advantage. They might likewife, by amending and applying themfelves more afliduoufly to Agriculture, raife great Crops of all Sorts of Grain, and might alio fall "= Thus, as it fometimes happens, particular Places fufFer from what becomes a common an! public Convenience. T here was alfo in former Times a flourifliing School in this Town, to which many of the moft confiJerable Families in the Highlands lent their Sons for Education, and this was likewiie very beneficial to the Inhabitants. ■^ This Dodlrine is confirmed from the Advantages already derived to the Inhabitants from the Ferries to Gree'iock and Larges. <= As for Inftance Kil-Michel, Kil-Blain, Kil-Chattan, &-c. to the Number of twelve, bcfidts Lady Kirk in the Borough of Rothlay, and there were alfo thirty Hermitages, wliich are diUin- guiilied by the Addition of Kerry before the Name of the Place, as Kerry Lamont. From the Confiderr.tion of the Barons Houfes, Chapels, Hermitages, and the Extent ot Rothfay Caflle and Town, may we not fately conclude, that in ancient Times this Kland was better peopled ? f Martin's Defcriotion of the Weflern Iflands, p. 215. . S. Let it be conf.Jered, that the Climate is mild, the Soil fruitful, and the Heniiig Fi(hc:y abundant, and w- nnot but fee In j'uftry alone is wanting. *■ It is of infinite Confequence to begin right, the Improvements here propofed are evidently attainable, and hefe once attained, will afford Spirit, Skill, and Scope to proceed to many Things it would be in vain to attempt now, and therefore it would be needlefs, if not impertinent, to mention them, tho' in fucceeding Ages thofe that would be now thought fo ra.iy be not attempted only but accomplilhed. 4 E 2 into 580 The POLITICAL SURVEY into making Malt and baking Bifcuit i. By thefe and other luch like Branches oi Induftry the Inhabitants of the Ille of Wight, of Portfe.i, and the Town of Portfmouth, have, almoft within Memory, become rich and thrivingly. If we confider that Bute and its Port of Rothfay lies in the Mouth of that River which has the largeft Share of Trade, and the greatefl: Refort of Shipping in North Britain, and withal remember the Cheapnet-s of Labour, it will appear by no means a difficult Tafk to bring a com- petent Proportion of the victualling Trade, and perhaps of Bark as well as Boat-building hither; more efpecially if fuitable Regard be had to thefe Objedls in repairing and improving the Quay ■. Whenever any Thing of this Sort is attempted in earneft and with Spirit, a new Scene will quickly open. The People when once they have fuch a Market as this brought home, will afpire and find Funds fufficient to carry them in their own Veflels to foreign Markets. They will not wait (as they now do) till the Fi(h come to their own Coafts, but will go and feek them in the deep Wa- ter, and in a few Years be as early, as keen, and as fuccefsful in this Filh- ery as the Dutch '". When this ihall happen, as happen it will, no Won- der at all will arife at the Event, but the only Wonder will be, how Advantages fo great andfo apparent came to be fo long and fo totally over- looked ". The Ifle of Bute has on the Eaft two Iflands, Kumbra-more and Kum- bra-beg, that is Kumbra the larger and the lefs °. The former has the Continent on the Eaft, at the Diftance of a Mile j Cowel, about five Miles to the North ; Bute, at nearly the fame Diftance, on the Weft ; and. Little Kumbra, fcarce a Mile to the South Weft. It is about three Miles long, fcarce two in its greateft Breadth, hardly nine in Circumference ''. Always celebrated for its Fertility, capable of producing all Kinds of Grain in Perfection, as alfo Hemp and Flax, and every Sort of Timber.. In Soil and Climate not at all inferior to Bute, very level, and yet well ' This is in the Order of Nature ; when Cattle and Corn are once obtained, their Owners next Care will be to turn them to the beft Advantage. " Thefe are Cafes in point, and therefore from the Snccefs in one Place we may with Proba- bility ccnclude the like Succefs will follow from like Endeavours in another. ' The Connexion of thefe Improvements one with another, and their general Suitablenefs to- this Kle and Port, will CKceedlngly facilitate their Intiodii(ftion. "■ It is wtll known that the Herrings divide, and that one Shoal paffes through the Wcflern lOands, fo that from Arran and Bute they might be caught as foon within a few Weeks as on the Coaft of Shetland, and carried to many of the principal Markets much fooncr, by the happy Situation of thefe Irles for foreign Commerce. n Some of the moft frequented Ports in South Britain were a!fo long overlooked, Liverpool became confiderable only in the lafl: Age, and Whitehaven in this. o Thefe Illands are mentioned by Fordun, Boethius, and all our old Authors who fpeak of them as larger, or at leafl more confiderable, than at prefent. P Tlicfe Mesfurcs are exactly taken from the Map before mentioned. f up plied of GREAT BRITAIN. sS-i fupplled with fine Springs of excellent Water q. It is a diflindt Parifli j and tho' the whole Ifle does not contain above two thoufand of improve- able Acres, yet it fubfifts upwards of threefcore Families, making together between three and four hundred Souls. Part of it is the Property of the Earl of Bute, the other Part belongs to the Earl of Glafgow >". The Leffer Kumbra is not much above a Mile in Circumference, rough and hilly, was formerly full of Deer s. At prefent there are but two Families upon it, who pay the Proprietor (the Earl of Eglington) his Rent in Rabbit Skins t. About half a League Weft of Bute, about the fame Diftance South from Cowel, and two Leagues to the Eaft of Arran, lies Inchmar- noch ; little fuperior in Size to the Leffer, but in Point of Beauty and Fertility nothing inferior to the Larger Kumbra j abounding, for its fmall Extent, with Trees, Corn, and Pafture, finely diverfified with Hills and Vallies, and remarkably healthy ". Here in ancient Times was a Cell of religious Perfons, or Keeldees, who fubfifting by the Labour of their owrii Hands, enjoyed in this pleafint Illet the Sweets of Solitude^''. It belongs- to the Eari of Bute. ARRAN. THE large Ifland, which in the Itinerary of Antoninus Is ftiled Glotta,. from whence the Name of Glotta; yEftuarium is given to what we- now call the Firth of Clyde x, is by the anonymus Geographer named Iberran, which preferving the Termination, is with us, and has been feme Ages, named the Ifland of Arran >". This feems to be a more probable Ety- mology, than that it was fo called from the Irifli Word Arran, which fig- nifies Bread '^■^ It lies in the Mouth of the beforementioned Firth, and directly oppofite to Loch Fyne, having Cowel five Miles to the North 3 Bute, near ten Miles North Eaft ; Saltcoats, on the Continent, at the Dif- tance of {^\&n Leagues due Eaft ; Air at fomewhat a greater Diftance,. South Eaft ; the Peninfula of Cantyre on the Weft, diftant about two Leagues ; with Loch Ryan in Galloway, fifteen Leagues South Eaft ; and ^ From the MS. Accoiiat of the Ifle of Bute. ' Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Ilbnds, p. 215. MS. Account. ' Fordun. Scotkhron. lib. ii. cap. 10. p. Si. Infula Combiay mhior, infignis Venatul, pau- cos igltur habet Incoias. c From the MS. Account of the Ifle of Bute. " This Account was taken from an intelligent Perfon well acquainted wUh this Ifl.md. v Fordun. Scotichrcn. lib. ii. cap. 10. p. 81. " CamJeni Britan. 69;. he writes Glota, fame think it (hould be Clota. y Baxteri GlofTar. Antiquit. Britan. p. 135. It is not impofllble that Iberan might fignlfjf Bread-Ifland, but to deferve that Name, the Country muft have been tlien iii a Stats very diifercnfc from that in which it is now. » Llartins Defcriptioij of tlie Wellern Iflands^ p. 2 J 7. tber 582 The POLITICAL SURVEY the Bay of Carrickfergus in Ireland, eighteen South Weft. A Situation remarkably commodious, as with a fair Wind, Ships may proceed from thence to France, Spain, or Italy in the Space of a Week 1. The Air is pretty fliarp, but pure, and remarkably wholefome in refpedl to the Na- tives ; their Springs fomewhat earlier, their Summers warmer, their Win- ters colder, with more Rain and Snow, than upon the Continent. The extreme Height of its Mountains occafions frequent Gufts of Wind, and fubjefts the Inhabitants to very variable Weather ''. Their longell Day is fomewhat more than feventeen Hours. The Shape of this Ifland is very differently reprefented in Maps, in fome of the lateft its Form approaches that of an Oval. The Face of the Coun- try is far from being agreeable, being almoll every where rough and moun- tainous c. The Cock of Arran, which is towards the Northern Extre- mity, is a famous Sea Mark d. But the higheft Mountain is near the Center of the Ifle, called Goat Field «", from the Top of whicli in a fe- rene Day the three BritilTi Kingdoms may be feen, together with the Ifle of Man *". It is in Length from South to North twenty-four Miles, its greateft Breadth from Eaft to Well fourteen, being in many Places in- dented by the Seas. It is about fix times as large as Bute, fomething fu- perior in Size to Anglefea, and nearly equal to the Ifland of Granada, which has been lately acquired by us in the Weft Indies h. A very fmall Part of it near the Sea Coaft is improved ', and much the greater Part of the Ifland poflibly in ancient Times was, and certainly might be fo. For tho' it cannot be denied, that many of thefe high Mountains are no better than fo many barren Rocks, and others at prefent over-run with Heath and Fern '=, yet there is tolerable Pafture upon moft of them, and the Country is by no means deftitute of natural Commodities. Amongll thefe we may reckon Fullers Earth in fome Places ', white and brown Chryftal, " The Fiflienes revived, p. 32. •> MS. Aecoiint of this Ifland tranfmitted by the ingenious Mr. D. Main. = Donald Monro's Account of the Iflands th:rt belong to Scotland. '' The Situation of this Klv- the Conveniency of this Fort, and the great Refort of Shipping thereto, renders this Sea Mark highly ufeful. ' Ledcl Region, et Infular. Scotia; Defcriptio, p. 34. ( Mr. D Main's Acccunt of Airan, which, from this Circumflancc, appears capable of great commercial Corrcfpondence. 8 Fidierics revived, p. 31. Martin in his Defcription of the Weftern Iflands, p. 217. makes it but feven (Scots) Miles broad. *" Thefe Computations were made with all the Caution and all the Circumfpcftion polfible. * Such was its Condition when the learned Camden wrote. A Century and a Half have fince elapicd, and fuch is its Condition ftill ! ■^ The Ranknefs of Weeds, which in other Words is the Strength of Vegetation, ftiews what Si In order to comprehend this Matter fully, confider the Defcrlption of Zealand, one of the feven Provinces, by Guicciardin, or Lemnius. ' See Roivland's Mona Antiqua Rellaurata p. 366. where a Charafler is given of the Inhabi- tants of the Hebrides, by thnt learned and candid Antiquary Edward Lhwyd. "J Defcription of the Weflern Illands, p. 219. * Fordun the eldeft of the Scots Hiftorians, mentions thefe Caftles then belonging to the Crown, Seotichron. lib. ii. cap. 10 i Leflei Regionum et IiiU.Iarum Scotis Defcript. p. 34. Buchan. Rerum. Scoticarum Hift. lib. i. from Donald Monro, theycill the Ifle at the Mouth of the Port, Molas. 5 The Firnerts revived, p. 29. where there is an exa , which will not appear in any Degree ftrange to the judicious Reader, if he takes the Trouble of perufing and comparing the Account we have given of thefe, with the Detail that we have like- wife given of thofe Iflands -=. I L A. TH E firft and moft Southern of what are properly filled the i^^bud^, is what Ptolemy calls Epidium Infula •>, by the Natives Isla, that is fimply the IJIe b, as being the Seat of Dominion and Miftrefs of all the reft. There cannot be a more commodious Situation, than this little Country enjoys c. It has the Ifland of jura on the North, from which it ° If a few Places for the Education of Youth, on the Plan of the Charter Schools in Ireland, ^vere eftabliflied in Arran, it might prove the Means of fpreading the Englilli Language, and at the fame Time introducing Indurtry. "" Martin's Defcription of the Weflern Iflands, p. 224. Mr. Main's Account of this Ifiand. '^ It may be faid, that there is (more efpecially in regard to Arran) a wide Difference in the Nature of the Lands. But does not this arife in fome degree from Induflry ? [s not this excited by a more equal Difpofition and Divifion of Property ? Does not this deferve the Confideration of thofe who regard the public Intereft in all her Dominions ? y This is the beft Criterion for judging of the relative Value of particular Diflrlfts to that political Body of which they are Members. ^ Political Survey of Britain, vol. i. p. 50 j. * Geograph. lib. viii. '' Baxter, in GlofTar. Antiq. Britan. p. 193. obferves, that through the Inaccuracy of the TraH- fcribers, the firfl Letter of proper Names is frequently omitted, (probably with a Dt/ign of eni- bellifhing or depifting them in red after the Book was finiflied) whence he conceives that the Mull of Cantire, which in Ptolemy is called Epidium, fliould be Pepidium from its Refemblance to a Pipe called in the anticnt Britilh Language Papydh, and that this Illand as manifeftly de- riving its Name from that Promontory fliould be Pepidium or Pepidiorum Infula. The Name, in . the antient Language for an Ifland was Oilen, Elan, or Hen, and in old Books this Country is called Yle, Ifle, in Latin 11a. ' As lying very happily for Trade to all Parts of Britain and Ireland, within a Week's Sail of France, Spain, and Italy, and opea to a Commerce with the Weft Indies. 4 F 2 is 588 The POLITICAL SURVEY is feparated by a Sound, in Ibme Places fcarce one, in others full four Miles broad. To the Ealt lies the Peninfula of Cantire, at the Dillance of feven Leagues. Ireland to the South, at fomewhat a greater Diftance, and the Ocean on the Weft, with no Land between this and America d. The Climate is in general mild, the Spring early and kindly, the Summer al- ways warm, and fometimes very bote, the Winter generally rainy with but little Froft or Snow, and when thefe happen, they are feldom of any long Continuance ; lefs fubjcdt to violent Winds and fudden Changes of Weather than many of the other Illands ; but then a great Part of it being low, as there are many ftanding Waters and fome Marflies about them, the Air is humid, and in Comparifon of fome neighbouring Iflands not fo wholefome ''. The Face of the Ifland is rendered irregular by a Multitude of little Hills, but it can be called Mountainous only at the North and the North Eaft Extremities g. It is indented by two large Inlets of the Sea, one on the Weft, the other at the Southern Extremity, Vvhich enter fo deep into the Land as to be but two Miles afunderli. it is in Length from South to North about twenty-four Miles, and fixteen, fome fay eighteen from Eaft to Weft in Breadth, near fourfcore Miles in Circumference '. It is larger than the Ifle of Man, little inferior to the whole Province of Zealand, contains nearly as many Acres as the County of Middlefex, and is very little lefs than the Ifland of Scio in the Archipelago k. The Soil in general is deep and good, fo that many are of Opinion, that there is little or no- thing that grows in any Part of Britain, that might not, with proper Ma- '' Taken from Timothy Font's large Map of this Ifland. ' As the flroDgeft Proof of this, let us confider what Mr. Drummond, formerly his Majefly's Conful at Aleppo, tells us in his Travels p. i6o, I 61. of his own Knowledge. Having mentioned the turning a beautiful green Caterpillar of a footy black, by the Bite of a 'Tarantula, he proceeds thus, " 1 he fame Effedf I have obferved upon the human Body, from the Bite of the Vipers, •' which are peculiar to the Ifland of Ila in Scotland. Wherever the Venom fpreads, the Skin of " the moft beautiful Girl will be chenged into a duflcy brown Colour, like that of the Adder. " A Phaenomenon which I can authenticate from my own Obfervation." From a Climate which gives fuch Venom to Vipers as is experienced only in the warmeA Countries, we may rationally, in regard to Fertility, expeft fimiiar EfTcfts. ' From an Account of this Ifland, communicated by a Gentleman who refides in it. 8 Martin's Dcfcripiion of the WefVern Iflands, p. 239. * Into the latter of thefe, the two (for the Size of this Country) great Rivers, hereafter men- tioned, difcharge their Waters. ' Lefl. Regionum et Infularum Scotiae Defcript. p. 35. Camdeni Britan. p 84S. Martin's Wef- tern Iflands, p. 239. '' In Templeman's Survey, PI. ii. Middlefex is faid to contain 298 fq. Miles; PI. vi. Zea- land is computed 303 fq. Miles ; PI. xxix. Scio is eftimated 300. Ila, allowing for the Inlets of the Sea, comprehends fomething more than 300 fq. Miles. In thefe Points we fpeak from Compulations, that very pofFibly may not be very exaft, but if there fliould be Errors, thefe when discovered will not probably affeft the Proportions. nagement^ of GREAT BRITAIN. 589 nagement, be produced here '. There is particularly a rich Valley that runs from Eaft to Weft fix or eight Miles long and fuur broad, very fertile in itfelf, well cultivated, and well inhabited. Befides this, the Sea Coaft in general, except a few Miles on the North Eaft Side of the Sounu of Ifla, is very flat and fruitful '". They have enough of P>ee Stone, and Lime Stone in vaft Abundance, rich in Lead Ore, for which it was famous more than two Hundred Years ago ". Wheat grows here very well, but for want of Water or ^Vindmills, for both which however no Country can be more fit, they do not raife a great deal°. Barley, Rye, Oats, and Peas, they have in Abundance, Hemp and Flax in confiderable Quantities. All Kinds of Garden Stuff in Plenty, and where properly attended to, in great Perfection r. Timber would grow very well, lor there are natural Copfes in many Parts of the Ifle q. It is on all Hands allowed to be much better improved than the reft of the Illands, and yet it is believed, that there is not above one Third cultivated, of the Land that would admit of Cultivation to Profit '", and indeed the Extent of the Countiy, compared with the Number of the Inhabitants, gives a great Probability to this Opinion. There is in this Ifland the greateft Plenty of frefli Water, irtdeed to a Degree of Redundance. Springs every where, all wholefome, and fome re- puted Medicinal s. Such a Number of frefli Water Lakes that fome have reckoned ' The Exportations from lience fliew that hitherto tlieu' Improvements liave been with a View- to immediate and adjacent Markets, but as iheir Funds encreafe there is iictle room to doubt they will extend their Commerce, and thrs of Courfe will lead them to make the beft Ufe of fo good a Country, by expanding and augmenting their Improvements. "> Buchan. Rerum Scoticarum Hiii. lib. i. JMartin's Account of the Weftern Iflands, p. 239, 240. MS. Account before mentioned. " Boethii Scotor. Regni Defcript. whofe Words are thefe, cum frumenii fcrax, tam metallo- rum dives. " It might be of advantage to the Inhabitants if thefe Mines were leafed, together with a Traifl: ef Land for the Supply of Wood, to Strangers; for this by encreafing the Number of People, mnft necelTai-lly augment the Confumption of ProvifTons, which they niufl furnifli, and at the fame Time the Stranger would inflruft them in manv Things to their Advantage. Since the writing thib I am informed the Tiling has been done, and has been prodnitive of thefe good Etfefts. P The Defcription of the Country renders this evident, and ihews at the fame Time, that they ought to begin their Improvements by planting Timber. "] Martin's Account of the Weftern Illands, p. 243. MS. Relation before cited. ' This certainly does not proceed from any Repugnance in the Inhabitants to Labour, or any Inaptitude for Mechanic Employments, but from the want of a rational Profpeft of Succefs to fii- muiate their Endeavours. It is generally held, that the Number of People is in Proportion to the Means of Subfiftance ; it is much more certain, that the Progrefs of Induftry always corref- ponds with the Secuiity of receiving Encouragement. s There are many fuch reputed Iklutary Springs in this and indeed in mofl cf the Wfiflern Iflands. This Opinion is founded on fuperflitious Traditions, but it may be true ncverthelcfs in many Cafes. The Monks were not ignorant of the Virtues of mineral Waters, though from 3 JNIoilves- .'5QO The POLITICAL SURVEY reckoned them at near a Hundred ', Amongft thefe, fome are of fucli an Extent as to hold fmall Iflands in them, and in many of thefe Ifles there are the Ruins of antient Fortreflcs ", which affords one Argument amongft many, that this Ifland was in former Times much more populous. There are feveral very fine running Streams and Rivulets. The Laggan or Lyfa may well he ftiled a River, as it runs fixteen Miles, and another R.iver runs almof!: parallel to it between twelve and thirteen j thefe abound in Salmon, Trout, and other Kinds of excellent Fifli, as the Lakes do in Pike, Eels, &cc.^''. It may not be amifs to obferve, that Loch Guynord, on the Weft Side of the liland, becomes in a Mawner dry at low Water, fo that it would not be very difficult to recover fome Thoufands of Acres from the Sea ^S but as there is no want of Land, or even of good Land at prefent, it will not be expedient to attempt any Thing of this Kind, till the Country is better peopled y, and then a fine artificial Port might be made at its Entrance, and by prefcrving a Paflage for the River Guy- iiord, it may ferve as a back Water to keep this Port always clean, which would be an Improvement indeed^! In this Ifland all the Fowl wild and tame that are to be found in any of the weftern Iflands abound, and amongfl: thefe, there are many that bear a very high Price in other Countries, and are efteemed the greateft Delicacies ^ Their Horfes and black Cattle, in Comparifon of their Neighbours, are larger and more valuable, being better fed and having more Care taken of them ^. The fame may be faid of their Sheep ; they have alio Plenty of Goats, Swine, and Hares, fome Deer ilill remaining, of which they had formerly Abundance, with all Sorts of Motives obvious enough, they chofe to alTign fuch Caufes as might fuit their Interefis. But an accurate Inquiry into the Reality of thofe Cures, and in Confcqueiice of that, a Chemical E.\ami- naiion of the Waters, would be in many Refpcifls ufeful. ' So it is aderted in the Relation before mentioned. " Martin's Defcription of the Weflern Iflands, p. 241. " See Font's large Map of this Ifland. " This Improvement has been fuggefted by the MS. Relation before mentioned. ^ The Number of Hands requilite to be employed in fuch an Undertaking, the great Espence with which it would be attended, and many other Reafons that might be mL-ntioned, all render it neceflary, that before fuch an expcnfivc Projeft as this is carried into Execution, it fliould be, to- gether with all the Confequences that may attend it, attentively and maturely confidered. ^ A good Port on this Side of the Ifland, when the Inhabitants are become numerous, would be of infinite Advantage to their Commerce. ^ For Inftance, the black Cock and grey Hen, the Ptarmigan or white Partridge, the Corn- creek or Land-rail. ^ Hence there is good Reafon to believe, that in all the other Iflands, if their Paflures were improved, as they might eafily be, and not over-flocked, they would have as large Cattle as in other Countries, and when fuUy inhabited, fo that they flood in Need of thefe Cattle for Home Confumption, their Hides and Tallow only, would be then of as great Value as the diminutive Eeafts they breed at prefent, fine of GREAT BRITAIN. 591 fine Sea Fidi upon their Coafts,, except ilerring, which do not of late fre- quent this lilandc. The Inhabitants are in general a flout, well made, well looking People,, very active and laborious in cultivating their Grounds, bold hardy Seamen,, very capable and well inclined to Manufaftures and Commerce, and with a very little Affiftance would make no inconfiderable Figure. As it is,, they carry on no defpicable Trade from their Town of Kiilarow, on Loch Dale, which is their only Harbour c"; in black Cattle, Cheefe, Butter, Barley, Oats, Flour, Malt, and Malt Spirits. They likewife make a great deal of Kelp and Fern Afhes. The Linnen Manufacture prevails, amongfl them, and the poor People commonly pay their Rent in Thread c. It has been already obferved, that in antient Times this was the Chief ofthelllands, where Macdonald, Lord, and who fometimes aflumed the Title of King of tlie Ifles, kept his Court f, in the Caftle of Falinghan or Finlagan, built upon an Ifland in Loch Guryen, Guirm, or Gurim, the Ruins of which, and of the Barracks for his Life Guards, are yet vifible S. On the round Ifland li in the fame Lake, which is about three Miles in Compafs, and communicates with the Sea, fat his Court of Juftice, con- fifling of fourteen Perfons, to which Court there were Appeals from all the other Iflands'. On the Ealt Side of the Ifland he had another great Fortrefs called Dun-owaig ^, and innumerable other Places of Strength Qver all the Ifle, which with many Churches, feveral fortified Caves, Stone Monuments, though rough and barbarous ', are additional Proofs that Ea was in thofe Days much better peopled; if fo, they mufl have re- quired more Subflflance, and of Courfe it was either better cultivated or a greater Part of it cultivated than at this Day. <: Martin's Defcription of the Wellera Iflands, p. 240. MS. Relation of this Ifland. ~ ^ This Port, to which there are fome Veflels belonging, has deep Water only in the Middle, fo that Ships do not fail within half a Mile of the Coafl on either Side. ' One may difcern from hence that the Seeds of Commerce are already fown, and only a little Attention and Encouragement needful to bring ihem. up. f Thefe Lords of the Ifles defcended from Summerled Prince of Argyll, v.'ho in P■ is that of fifliing for Cod and other white Fiili, which may be taken in prodigious Qjjantities on three great Banks s, which lie at no great Diftance. The firft between this liland and the Ille of Giga on the South Eaft; the fecond in the Ocean feme LeaETues to the Weftward: and the thirJ to the North Weft betweco Ilia and Collonfaf. There are at prefent but two or three Pariflies " j all the Inhabitants are Proteflants, of whom all the better Sort fpcak E;:gli(h, and the common People Erfe orGalic"'. Avery confiderable Part of the Ifland belongs to the Crown, and there is a Receiver appointed of its Rents. Mr. Campbell of Shawfield is the greateft Proprietor, but belides him there are feveral others ^. The Number of Inhabitants in this, the moft: populous of all thefe Iflands, amounts only to between fix and {even ■" It is not from any Opinion that thefe Thoughts are new, that they are infer ted here, hut from- a Perfualion, that till they are carried into Execution, they ought to be produced to pub- lic View on every proper Occalion. n The Ufes of Timber are infinite, and properly cultivated in well chofen Situations, and pro- perly preferved, would become the Source of innumerable Improvements. ° Heftor Boyfe (Bocthius) alnioft 200 Years ago, attributed the Negleft of their Mines to the Inhabitants being in want of Wood. •" Sir Alexander Murray affirms there are very rich Mines, not only of Lead and Copper, but alfo of Iron Ore, which laft had been wrought in his Time, by Daniel Campbell of Shaw- field, Efq; ■J MS. Relation of this Ifland. It is alfo afTerted by Sir Alexander Murray, and certainly de- ferves Attention. ' This is meant under the prefent Circumffances of this Ifland, and which undertaken pro- perly and purfued with Spirit, could not fail of Succefs. ' On thefe B.anks are prodigious Quantities of Cod, Ling, Mackrei, Turbot, Pollock, and other Kinds of excellent and valuable fifti. ' There is the iitmoft Probability that if a Fiflicry was once well eftablilTied, many more fui.h Banks might be difcovered. " There are the Ruins of many Churches remaining, and the Names of fome have furvlved even ihtir Ruins. w We may conHder this as a Circumflance, that by hindring Communication and Correfpon- dence of courfe retards Improvements. * Martin's Dcfcription of the Weflern Iflands, p. 244. MS. Relation of this Ifland. Thou- of GREAT BRITAIN. 593 thoufand Men, Women, and Children 7. On the Coafts of Ifla, more efpecially on the Eafl Side, there are many Iflands, fome on the North, in the Sound between it and Jura. Thefe are none of them very large, but they are neverthelefs of different Sizes, making about thirty in the whole, which if the Country were fully inhabited, might be fufccptible of many Improvements ^. JURA. WE come next to the Ifland of Jura, as to the Etymology of which Name there are very different Opinions i. It feems to be in fome degree certain that it was antiently called Dura''. The plaineff: Derivation of its prefent Denomination, and the mofl likely to be true, is that it was called fo from the Yew Trees that grew in it, as the Yew Tree in the Language of this Country is named Jur*^. This Ifland has to the North the fmall Ifle of Scarba, from which it is divided by a narrow Strait to be hereafter mentioned. Beyond this lies Mull, at the Diftance of be- tween four and five Leagues. It is feparated on the Eaff from Knapdale and other Parts of Argylefliire, by what is called the Sound of Jura, hav- ing on the Side of the Continent many fmall Iflands, and which where narrowefl is five Miles broad, and in other Places more. The Iflands of Colonfay and Oronfw, neither of them inconfiderable, lie on the Weff, at the Diftance of fomewhat more than four Leagues; and the Sound of Ifla, which has been before defcribed, feparates it on the South from that Ifliand d. The Climate is generally mild or rather warm, but the Air is exceed- ingly pure, fo that fome have effeemed it the very healthieft Spot in the Dominions of Great Britain. Surprizing Inftances of Longevity are pro- duced in fupport of this Opinion j and which perhaps is a Proof equally ftrong, it is affirmed that in upwards of thirty Years no Woman had died in Child-bearing °. The Caules affigned for this extraordinary Salubrity •of the Climate are three, the Streams of frefli Air blowing daily from the Ridge of high Mountains running through the Midft of the Ifle ; great y Upon the Ille of Scio, though fubjefl; to the oppreffiTC Government of the Tnrks, there are 120C00 Inhabitants. ^ White Fifh might be commodioufly faked and dried upon, and Glafs, Salt, and Soap-works ■erefted in, thefe Iflands. ^ The learned Baxter takes Jura to be a Contraftion orConuptioaof JauRag, i. e. Jovis Regis, the Ifland of Jupiter the King. Glofl". Antiq. Britan. p. 145, 146. b Foidun. Scotichron. lib. ii. cap. 10. Buchanan fays in the old Gothic Language, Dura fig- mified a Deer. ' Sibbaidi Nafuralis Hifl. Scotise, lib. i. p. ii. cap. xix. p. 51. * Mr. Font's compared with the befb modern M.ips of this Iibnd. ' ALartin's Defcription of the Wsflern Iflands, p. 232,233, Vol. I. 4 G ' Plenty 594 The POLITICAL SURVEY Plenty every where of excellent running Water; and the general Tempe- rance of the Inhabitants, in the midft of Plenty ^\ It is thouglit, that with proper Care, almoit any thing would grow in this Country, and the few Experiments that have been made, contribute not a little to the Sup- port of this Opinion. The Eaft Coafl of this Ifland, through its whole Extent, Is remarkably plain and fertile, but the Interior of the Ifland is very mountainous, many of thefe Mountains rifing to a great Height, and amongft t'hefe, two which are very ufeful Sea Marks, diltinguifhed by the Name of the Paps of Jura f. Its Length, from North to South, is full twenty-four Miles, its Breadth, from Eall to Weft, nearly feven, and about fixty in Circumfe- rence 3. In point of Size, it is nearly equal to Malta, Barbadoes, or the Ifle of Wight '\ but very unlike them in every other refped:, which arifes chiefly from the want of Cultivation. For here, as in the reft of thefe Ifles, the Induftry of the many is reftrained from want of Money, and amongft the few, who comparatively fpeaking are rich, there is a want of Enterprize, and no great Degree of public Spirit '. In refpeA to the Soil, It Is all along the Eaft Coaft compofed of Clay, mixed with Sand, and under a very indifferent Management is very fertile. In the Heart of the Ifland, and on the Weft Side, the Land is commonly cold, fpouty, and much overgrown with Mofs. In the Vallies however, there is a deep black Mould, and on the Hills great Quantities of Heath, intermixed with a very nutritive Kind of Grafs k. In thefe Mountains likewife there have been found feveral Veins of Iron Ore, which mixed with that from Lancaftiire, has been wrought to Advantage, and of late they have difcovered a valuable Quarry of Slate '. There are ftill confidc- rable Woods in diff'erent Parts of the Ifland. The fiat Country produces Barley, Oats, Rye, Hemp, and Flax, in no inconfiderable Quantities. Wheat has been tried ; and it fucceeds very well, but as they have no ' Thefe will appear no improbable Grounds, to whoever confults Hippocrates, in his Treatife on Air, Water, and Situation. ' Buchan. Rerum Scoticar. Hifl-, lib. i. Martin's Defcriptioa of the Weftern Iflcs, p. 231. Sa- cheverell's Voyage to [■cokimb-kill, p. 126. g In thefe Dimenfions agree all the Accounts antlent or modern. ti .'iilowing for the Lakes, Jura contaius as much (though not fo good) Land as any of theifc Iflands. • This narrow Difpofition has been detrimental to private Property, for if Mines had been- wrought, Woods improved, or Fiflieries cftablilhcd, every Eftatc iu Jura would have rifcn in. Value. ^ Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Jfles, p. 235. i Sii- Alexander Murray's Tra<5ls, MS. Account of this Ifland. Millsj of GREAT BRITAIN. 595 Mills, they are not folicitous about raifing it "'. On the Kills there are many medicinal Herbs, with the Virtues of which the People are well acquainted, and there are likewile fome Shrubs, and Mofs growing on the Rocks, of which they make ufe in dyeing". They burn great (^^antitics of Sea Wreck into Kelp, and make alio ibme Profit by their Fern Alhes °, How- ever not one half of the profitable Land in this lOe, of which it is thought there are upwards of forty thoufand Englifli Acres r, is cultivated, which is chiefly owing to Caufes that have been already mentioned, and above all to their having but very little Commerce 4. Jura is admirably well watered in every refpeft, abounding with fine Springs, and amongft thefc one, which is very remarkable, called Toubir in Lechkin, i. e. the Well in the flony Delcent, the Water of which is faid to be near one half lighter than any other in the Ifland^ They have likewife feveral frella Water Lochs, fome of them of pretty large Extent, but not near fo many as in Ifla, Thefe abound in Trout, Pike, Eels, and other Sorts ofFilh, as alfo with vail: Quantites of Water Fowl. There are likewife Abundance of beautiful Rivulets, that run from the Mountains, not fewer than Ten, on the Eaft Side only of the Illand, four or five of which are well flored with Salmon and other fine Fidi, and their rapid Streams, which roll with a full Current to the Sea, might be made very ufeful in driving Mills s. Loch Tarbat enters on the Weft Side of the Illand "> We may from this Inflance difcern, that no hafty Conclufion fhould be drawn, from the ac- tual Wants of a Couatiy, agauiil its Soil or Climate, which, as in the prefent Cafe, may have all the Powers of Produdlion, if the proper Means (in confequence of adequate Encouragement) were employed for that Pin-pofe, and this adds to the Probability, that thefe Illands were formerly, when better cultivated, fruitful in many Things not found in them at prefent. " There is good reafon to believe, that if a Perfon expert in Botany and the feveral Ufes to which Vegetables may be applied, was fent to vifit the ^Vef^ern Ifles, he might make fome ufeful and profitable Difcoveries, and at the f\me Time communicate Inflruftions that might in Procefs of Time prove very advantageous to the Inhabitants. This alfo fliews, that in refpeft to Commodities, for which they have a known and certaia Market, Induftry in the Inhabitants is not wanting. P Perhaps it may be fiild with equal Truth, that even the Moiety which is cultivated is not im- proved half as much as it might be. ■i As few Strangers come hither, and the Inhabitants have little Correfpondence, they cannot have clear Notions as to the Choice of proper Objects, to irake their Labour and InduAry turn to a juft Account, and which is flill worfe, fuppofing them to be inftruifted in thefe Points, they have not, as in the Ifleof Bute, any certain or regular Means for exporting their Commodities or Ma- nufaftures. ' Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Ifles, p. 234. He fays the Salmon in the River NifTa (by others called Lyfi) into which this Spring falls, are better than in any River in the Illand. It is likely there may be fome Exaggeration in this Matter, but Hill an Inquiry how much there is of Truth would be in many Refpefts ufeful. ' The Ufes of Water-mills are fo numerous, and the Profits arifing from them fo great, that if this fingle Improvement was introduced, it could not but be very beneficial to the Inhabitants, and 4G2 to 596 The POLITICAL SURVEY lUand very deep into the Land, but it is rocky, crouded with fniall Illands, and not navigable even for Boats f. On the Eaft Side is the Bay of Meil, ■which is but an indifferent Port, with feveral Iflands of different Sizes at the Mouth of it, but there are Roads with good anchoring Ground on both Sides of the Ifland". There are in this Country great Plenty of all Sorts of tame Fowl, but in the Hills a ftill greater Abundance of all Kinds of wild Fowl, and efpe- cially what is called the Black Game, than in any other of the lilands. In the Mountains alfo, there are ffill a confiderable Number of Red Deer, for which this Illand was formerly very famous ^v. They are of a large Size, and are eftcemed excellent Venifon. They have likewife Black Cattle, Horfes, Sheep, Goats, and Rabbits ; but, which is very remarkable, they have not either Flares or Foxes ^. The Sea Coaft abounds with all Sorts of white and fhell Fifh, and their barren rocky Iflands, by affording them Plenty of Seal, and prodigious Quantities of Sea Ware, are in fome degree ufeful, inftead of being abfolute Incumbrances. The Inhabitants in general are a flout, well proportioned, aftive Peo- ple, of a brown or rather dark Complexion, refembling in that refpeil the People in the Southern Countries of Europe y. They have amongll them, only the common and neceflary mechanic Employments, and fcarce any Manufadure, except Linen and coarfe Cloth, and thefe ferve chiefly for their own Ufe z. Their Hufbandry, the Quality of their Soil and Quan- tity of Manure confidered, is but indiff'erent, and the fame may be fiid of their Fifhing, which is owing to the fmall Demand,^ or rather from their want of a proper Vent for their Produce, which with their great Facility of finding Subfiffence, and their moderate Manner of Living, makes them eafy and fatisfied with their Condition, and lefs felicitous than otherwife they would be to render it better. In a Word,, the want of Encouragement ta to many others. As it would be eafy to conftruft them in a Country where Timber, Stone, and Iron are every where to be met with, as well as fomany Streams convenient for the Purpofe. ' It is not impoffible that with fome Expence, under the Direftion of an able Engineer, an ar- tificial Port might be made in this Place. u The Want of Commerce is fuch a Capital Defeift in an Ifland, as not to be balanced by any internal Advantages, but then there are fcarce any Iflands from which, by Induftry and Art, this, Defeft may not be removed. w Buchanan. Rerum Scoticarum Hift. lib. i. " MS. Account of this Ifland. This is the more extraordinary, as both Hares and Foxes are common in Ua. The difcovering the natural Caufe of this would not be the Exercife of a uR-lefs C'.iriofity, as in all Probability it arifes from fome (it may be mineral) Efluvia from the Soil, which' could it be reduced to a Cenainty would be a Point of Confequence. ' Martin's Defcription of the Wefiern Iflcs.. p. 239. He alfo remarks that none of the Inha- bitants were ever known to be mad. i MS. Accoum o£ thisiflaad. Induilrjj, of GREAT BRITAIN. 597 Inftuftry, rather than a natural Idlenefs, keeps them in a low but contented State ; and the fame Defeil in Correfpondence, which deprives them of the Means of fupplying, renders them lefs fenfible of their Wants ^ P'or in other refpefts they are courteous, hofpitable, and very ingenious, fo that with a fmall Intermixture of Foreigners, and the fuitable Means of exerting their Faculties for their own Emolument, their Situation would be fpeedily and effedually changed, as, for want of thofe Afliftances, it has continued for As:es in much the fame State in which we have de- fcribed it.. They live in fmall Hamlets, difperfed for the moft part along the Eaft Side of the Illand, there being nothing that deferves the Name of a Town any where, which is owing to their want of a good Port, and nut being in Circumftances to fupply the Defedls of Nature by Art in that poor Haven which tliey have. There is, as far as our Information reaches, at prefent but one Parilh, that of Killearn, which comprehending alfo the Illes of Coloniay, Oronfay, and Scarba, is confequently of a very large Extent ^. The People in general fpeak the Galic or Erfe Language, but the Gentle- men amongft them fpeak and underlland Englifh very well. The Number of People upon this Ifle amounts to about Twelve Hundred c. It lies ia the Shire of Argyle, and Part of it is the Duke's Property. Mr. Archibald Campbell, who is ufually fliled the Bailiff of Jura, is the moft confidera- ble Proprietor, but there are feveral others d. It is a Thing much to be wifhed, that fome Means were found to furnilh the ordinary People with Employment, that might enable them to live comfortably by their Labour, and thea no doubt a great Part of their Youth would incline to remain ia their own Country, and improve it, inftead of quitting it to feek a Living abroad, which in their prefent Situation it is very natural for them to do, and by which, themfelves and their Pofterity are too often lolt to the Bri- tish Em.pire, and carry their Genius and their Induftry to tlie Support of fo-^ ceign States e. A Circumilance ever to be regetted ! Though this Ifland is fufceptible of fewer than Tfla, yet fome, and thofe no inconfiderable. Improvements might mod certainly be made * The fame Obfervation may with equal Ju.aice be applied to the Inhabitams of many other iflands. b Martin's Defcription of the Weftern IflanJs, p. 239. '■ MS. Account of this Ifland. ^ Martin's MS. Account, Prefent State of North Britain-. e Some may undervalue this Lofs ; but whoever attentively confider* the SrJubrity of this Ifle,. the Fecundity and the Longevity of its Inhabitants, and compares this with the imall Number of People, murt be convinced that in the Space of a Century fome Thoufands mull migrate from. heaCe, aaJ of thefe fome Hundreds mufl be lofl to Britain.. tliece; 598 The POLITICAL SURVEY there (. In the firil Place if their Mountains were thoroughly examinecJ, by I'erlbns of Integrity and Intelligence, there is little reafon to douht, that Veins of different Metals might be found, of which thofe who have acci- dentally vilued Jura,, have declared they met with many probable Indica- tions 3. Next, it would be expedient to prefervc, to extend, and to take due Care of their Woods, which might turn to the Profit of the Inhabi- tants, by inviting Adventurers to fet up Furnaces for melting the Ore found in Ida, where they have not fo much Woodh. The making Oil from the Fat of Seals, and the Livers of thofe immenfe Quantities of fmall Fiili, tiiat are and may be taken upon their Coail:s, would prove a lucrative Em- ployment for their Women and Children i, as Is at prefent praftifed ia biietland, as this is a Commodity which will always tind a Market, and would be a Saving of fo much, as it would produce to the Mother Country. The narrow Strait or Sound of Cory Vrekan, or Cori Brechan, which is fomewhat more than a Mile broad, lies to the North of this Illand, and ie^iarates it from that of Scarba l<. The Current that fets through this Sound, is and has been for Ages famous for the Rage and Impetuolity with which it runs, fo that it is abfolutely impaflable by any Veilel, except fbme few Hours in the four-and-twenty, when it is fo fmooth and flill, th.it both large Barks and fmall Boats pafs without cither Difficulty or Dan- ger K As to the Ijland of Scarba, it is fomeuhat more than four Miles tong, and in moll Places above a Mile broad™. It is exceedingly rocky and mountainous, fo that it is but very thinly inhabited, though to the full as healthy as Jura"; as wild and lavage a Place as this leems to be, there is one Improvement of which it feems very capable, which is, that of f So fad a Country was never feen, as that Skill and Induftry could not improve, much lefs fo fertile a Soil as this, and an Ifle fo well fituated. * This is faid on the Authority of Sir Alexander Murray, Mr. Main, and others well acquainted with this Branch of Knowledge; and though in its prefent Circumflances, difcouraging Difficul- ties may occur, yet if upon due Inquiry any valuable Metals fliould be difcovered, or even rich Veins of Copper or Iron, it would encourage Adventurers (which would be an extraordinary Be- nefit to the Country) to go thither to work them- •» This would cofl little Pains or Expence, and is fo earneflly recommended, becaufe no future Improvement c.in take Place, to which this will not be elTentiaily necelTary, ' So much is this Commodity in Demand, that within thclc few Years it has rilcn in its Vahie very confiderabiy. '' This Sound is faid to derive its Name from one Brechan, Son to a King of Denm.irk, who being lofl here, and his Body thrown upon the North Coaft of Jura, was interred in a Cave, in which an Altar and a Monument were erefted, and are faid to be Aill remaining. The Rapidity of the Current is mentioned by Fordun and Boethius. ' Martin's Defcription of the Wcflern Ifles, p. 2T,6, i2,y, 238. " Fordun Scotichron. lib. ii. cap. to. fays the IllanJ of Scarba was fifteen Miles long. Bucha? nan. Rerum Scoti-carum Hift. lib. i. " A Woman who lived to 140, and retained the perfeil Ufc of her Senfes to the laft, died there sbout two Years before Dr. Martin came to the Illand. breeding of GREAT BRITAIN. 599 breeding Goats, which may be brought from Switzerland, Barbary, or ths Levant, which would fiirnifli confiderable Gains to the Inhabitants, pro- vided they were inftru6led, as they might eafily be, in the Art of manu- faduring their Skins, into Shamoy, Morocco, and Cordovan Leather, for M'hich they have all, or at leaft mofl of the neceflary Materials, in the Ifland'^. This may feem a very extraordinary, and to fome a very chi- merical Projedl; but if inftead of lying v/here it does, it was fituatcd on the Coaft of Holland, there is no great Doubt that it would be carried into Execution p J and why the Dutch fliould make fo much of their Iflanis and we fo little of ours, is a political Queflion, that very well deferves Difcuflion. MULL. THIS Ifland is believed to be the Maleos of Ptolemy a, and the very learned Camden b thinks, it was not unknown to Pliny. If we credit another ingenious Author, it was in Times of high Antiquity con- fecrated to the Goddeis Minerva c. On the North it has that Part of the Shire of Argyle,'iwhich is called Ardnamurchan ^, at the Diftance of more than a League in fome Places, and in others not above two Miles. It is feparated on the Eaft from another Part of the fame Shire, which is called Morverne, by what is called the Sound of Mull, and has on thatSide- " The Ch.imois, from tlie Alps, might be eafily obtained, as might alfo the Barbary Goat, and though with more Difficulty the Natolian (for they have been brought hither both Male and Female, and have bred here) which have Hair as fine as Silk. In oi e ot the C.ipe dc Verd Iilands the Inhabitants fatten carefully their old Goats, and fend vaft Quantities of iheir Suet or Fat an-- nually to Lifbon, '' It is more than a Century fince the Dutch brought Sheep from the Eafl Indies into the Ifi.ind of Texel, where that valuable Breed has continued and proved a confiderable and a continoni Source of Profit to the Inhabitants. Thefe Sheep are of a large Size, bear a large fleece [ihe Wool not fo fine as ours) and their Ewes bring four Lambs every Year. ' Geograph. lib. viii. cap. 2. b Britan. p. 848. where he obferves that in Plin,lib. iv. c. 16. the common Editions reac'^ " Reliquarum nulla cxxv. mill, circultu amplior proditur." The old Edition printed at Venice has " Reliquarum Melle xxv. mil. palT. amplior proditur." According to the firll, no one ot the reft was reported to be above one Hundred and twenty-five Miles in Circuit. I he Senie ct the latter, that among the reif, Melle (Mull) is laid to be the largeft by twenty-five Miles. " Gloffar. Antiquit. Britan. p. 177. He fuppofes Maleos to be written for Maleuos, vhich fae refolves into the Britifli Words Malen Inls, i, e. Minerva's Ifland. ■' The Barony of Ardnamurchan runs from the main Land into the Sea, flom E.ifl so Weft, about thirty Miles in Length. ' This Country lies direftly oppofite, and makes the Eaft Side of the Sound of Mull, hardly aay where more than a League bread, lik^wiie 6oo The POLITICAL SURVEY likewife the pleafant and fertile Ifland of Lifmore C On the South lie the lilands of Scarba and Jura, ut the Diftance of about four Leagues, and or the Well, at the Diftance of eight or nine Leagues, the Iflands of Tirey and CoU-j, and beyond thefe the wide Atlantic Ocean. The Climate of Mull is not very favourable; from the Beginning of April to the End of May there is generally fair Weather, but attended with cold Northerly Winds, From that Time, to the Middle of July, the Weather is pretty warm, and in moll; Seafons tolerably dry. But from the xMiddle of that Month to the End of Oftober, it generally rains incef- fantly. In the W'inter the Inhabitants are more expofed to Wind and Rain than to P'roft or Snow, either of which fcldom happens, and when they do, are not fevere or of any long Continuance I'. Ix its Arpe£t, tiie Ifle of Mull is very rough and mountainous, InterfedleJ on all Sides by the Sea, but more cfpecially on the Well, where two large Bays enter fo very deep into^the Land, that there is fcarce any Place in it full four Miles diftant from Salt Water'. It is twenty-four computed Miles from North to South, and not Icfs from Eall: to Weft ■<. In rcfpedl to Size, it is equal to the Counties of Fife and Kinrofs in North Britain, larger than the County of Bedford, and nearly equal to that of Monmouth in South Britain, very little lefs than the Ille of Rhodes, of much the fame Extent with that of Cephalonia, which belongs to the Republick of Venice, and to the Illand of Amboyna in the Eall: Indies '. What has been faid of the Climate is equally true of the Soil, the far greatefl Part of which is very indifferent. In the South Weil: Corner which is fliled Rofs or Rofy, the Ground is plain, low, and tolerably fer- tile. We may fay the fame of the North Eall Part which is called Mori- ^ This Is a very beautiful anJ pleafant IfianJ, abounding in Arable and Pafliirc Lands, fur its Ilxtent being eight Miles long and two broad. It was the Property of the Bifliop of Argyl (For- dun. Scotichron. lib. ii. cap. to.) well cultivated and w/;ll inliabited. It is faid to have in it Veins, and thofe in Appearance piomillng of different Metals. ^ Tirey is about ten Miles long and four broad, and is allov^ed to be, in regard to Corn as well as Pafture, the moll; fertile of all thefe Illes ; but being low and flit, the Inhabitants are very much afFeifled with Agues. Coll is ten Miles in Length and three in Breadth, higher Land and more wholefome, though lefs fruitful than Tirey. Thefe Iflands are diftant from each other aboul a League, with the fmall Ifle of Gunna between them. They are remarkably populous, and it is believed an advantageous Filliery might be cflablifiied on their Ccafl.^, where Cod and Ling of a fuperior Size and Flavour to thofe taken on the Shores of the Continent, arc caught in great Numbers. '' MS. Relation from a Gentleman refident in the Weltern Iflands. ' Martin's Defcription of the Weflern Ifles, p. 251, 252. * See Pout's Map and all the Accounts of this Itle ancient and modern, ' T<;mpkman's Survey of the Globe. Plates, 2, 3, 29. nllh. of GREAT BRITAIN. 6oi TihTi, as for the Reil, k is in general poor, cold, and wet'". The Inte- rior of the Ifland is exceedingly mountainous, and aniongd thefe Moun- tains, fome (particularly Beinne mor, i. e. the great Mountain) are ficep and of a great height ". There are Ibme Woods yet remaining, and many Coppices. The Grafs is in general but indifferent, and Black Cattle can hnd little or no Suhfillence in the Hills in the Winter o. But thefe Mountains are however not totally ufcleis, as they yield inmien!e Quantities of Turf or Feat, which fupply the Inhabitants with Fuel. Oats and Bar- lev srow here, but neither of them are elfeemed excellent in their Kind p. Hemp has not been tried, and Flax, which othervvile would grow well, is frequently rotted by the great Rains which but too commonly fall in Har- veft. Potatoes fucceed in general very well, and indeed all Kinds of Gar- den Stuff, and Fruit Trees thrive when properly planted and affiduouily culti\ated M. But there is no great Spirit of Induflry, as appears from their not producing more Corn in all the Illand, than will fufiice the fmall Num- ber of its Inhabitants for nine Months in the Year ; by their never hav- ing made any proper Search for Ore in their Moiuitains, notwithflanding the cafuil Difcovery of fome very promifmg Veins of Lead ; and as little has been done in refpeft to Coal, though it difcovers itfelf in two or three Places, and thofe too are all within a very fmall Diftance of the Sea"". The Illand, in general, is exceedingly well watered, with many fine limpid Springs, fome of which are medicinal s. Many Rivulets run on all Sides from the Mountains; there are fome pretty large frelh Water Lochs which abound in Trout, Eel, and other Filh, and there are Salmon in fonie of their Rivers, as well as Pearl Mulcles t. At the South Well End, where the Land is molly, the Water is alfo tindured thereby, and not fo '' MS. Relation of this Ifland. n Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Iflands, p. 250. o MS. Accountof Mull and the larger Welfern Ifles. P In tke MS. Relation it is faid, Oats produce three for one, and Barley from fix to ilxtecn for one. 4 It (hould feem from hence, that many Things delighting in a moift and warm Climate would focceed equally well here. For that the Climate is very warm as well as moift, appears from there being in this Illand and in Jura, thofe fpeckled Vipers, which have been already mentioned as fo highly venomous in IJa. ' In Dorret's Map, there is faid to be an Appearance of Coal at Kilcwlcken and at Eeinncninic, and Coal at Loggan, all on the South Sitlc of the Ifland. ' Toubir-Mary or the Bleffed Virgin's Well, the Water of which is drank as a Catholicon by the Inhabitants, might upon an Examination be found a mineral Spring, and lead our Conici'hires as to the Contents of thefurrounding Mountains. The Water from Beinne Vaur lets £;ill a yellow Sediment, upon which Fire fcarce afts at all. ' It might feem animmediate Improvement, toeftablifh a Pearl Fifhery, but ir would probably turn to little Account ; and the Labour it would require might be direfled to nianv more iifeful Pur- pofes. This Remark is the more necelTary, as in every Country like this an Iinprovement Ihould be well weighed before, and Jlleadily purfued when it was once carried into Execution. -Vol. I. 4 H good. 6o2 The POLITICAL SURVEY good. Bloody Bay affords a Harbour for faiall Veffels, which fometimes go into Loch Buy in the Herring Seafon ". The Bay behind the Caftle of Dowart, is alfo frequented by linall Veffels. But Toubir-Mary Bay, that is, the Bay of the blelfed Virgin's Well, which is covered by a fmall Ifland called Calve, is a very good Port, in which a very large Ship of the Spa- nifli Armada was blown up in 1588 v.'. Loch Scafford, in Dorret's Map called Loch na Gaul, on the V/ell: Side of the Illand, runs many Miles into the Land, and there are in it feveral fertile and plcafant Iflands ^. Loch Leflan, which in the Map before mentioned is named Loch Serecdan, by Martin Loch Levin, enters likewife very deep. Befides thefe there is Loch Lay, and many other Inlets, fome of which afford good Anchorage, and yield occafionally very commodious Shelter to Ships that pafs through thefe Seas, and in that refpedl only, by prefenting Opportunities of vending frefli Provifions to their Crews and Palfcngcrs on board them, contribute to the Advantage of the Ifland, where, with all thefe Conveniencies, there is, exclulive of thefe accidental Markets, very little Trade or Communi- cation y. Thkre is great Plenty of tame Fowl of all Sorts about every Flabitation in the Ifland. The Mountains abound with Game of every Kind, as the Lochs furnifh a prodigious Variety of Water Fowl. They have great Quantities of Black Cattle, fmall in regard to Size, but cfleemed to pro- duce, when killed, exceeding good Beef. Sheep and Goats in Abundance, many Deer in the Hills and Woods, which are alfo much infefted with Foxes 2;. The Horfes of Mull are of a fmall Size, but are highly efteemed,. and there is an annual Fair in the Month of Augiifl, in which there are " An accurate Survey of thefe Ifles, with regard to the Boys, Harbours, and whatever refpefts the Navigation upon their Coafls, has been made by Order of the Lords of the Admiralty, by an inrclligent and indefatigable Seaman, who has already given ample TelUmonies of his Abilities, and therefore to his Survey the inquifitive Reader is referred. * Camdeni Annal. p. 580.* Johnftoni Rerum. Britan. Hiflor. p. 134. Spotfwood's IliAory of the Church of Scotland, p. 371. Mr. William Sacheverel, who lay fome time in this Bay, fuper- intending the Divers employed on this Wreck, fays, that for Size it is one of the find! and fafefl: Ports in the World, covered by the woody Idand of Calve, furrounded by Mountains Hiaded with Trees, and the Cafcades of chryftal Waters rolling over the Rocks, form altogether a Scene equally pleafmg and romantic. * Amongfl: thefe, the principal are Ulva and Gometra. They lie on the North Side near the Mouth of the Loch. Ulva is in Length about four Miles and two broad ; one half of it is culti- vated, and affords both Corn and Grafs, but no Wood, except a few Fruit Trees, which thiive very well in a Gentleman's Garden. Gometra is about two Miles in Length and about half a Mile in I3readth, very pleafant and fertile, but without Wood. In Ulva there may be two hundred, and in Gometra twenty Souls. At low Water People may pafs on the Sand from one of thefe fmall Iflands to the other. At high Water the Sound which divides them, is a Muflvet-flwt over, and is every Tide furnithed with a frefli Supply of excellent Oyiters and other Shcll-fifh. y Sacheverell's Voyage to Il-Columb-Kill, p. 1 20, 130. Mania's and other Defcriptions. » MS. Relation of the prcfent State of the Ifle of Mull. confiderable of GREAT BRITAIN. 603 confiderable Numbers fold a. The Excellency of this truly valuable Breed is attributed to feme Spaniih Horfes, that got on Shore from feveral Ships of their Armada, wrecked, as has been before obfcrved, upon the Coaftt^ Herrings come frequently into their Bays, which furniQi alfo great Plenty of White and Shell Fifli of all Sorts. Many Seals and Otters are found among the rocky Illands in the large Bays, and the Sea Ware not only fur- nillies them with Plenty of good Manure for their Lands, but there is like- wife a confiderable Quantity of it annually burned into Kelp c. The Inhabitants refemble in their Pcrfons thofe of tlie other Iflands, and are a very ftout, flrong, and adlive People A. In Point of Genius, they are Ihrewd, penetrating, and have a great deal of Vivacity, much addidled to Poetry, and very inquifitivc after News e. They have a natural Inge- nuity, which enables them to become Taylors, Shoemakers, Smiths, Car- penters, &c, without ever being taught any of thofe Trades f. For tho' very docile and attentive, they are fo impatient of Reftraint, as feldom to end'ure an Apprenticefliip, fo that we need not wonder, that whenever an Opportunity is offered, they are ready to quit a Country, where a tolerable Subfiftence is all that can be obtained, either by Parts or Labour, It is likevvife to be obferved, that they are extremely attached to their Chiefs and Heads of Families, follow them willingly into the Land or Sea Service, or when they are lb difpofed, to any of our American Settlements S. The Caftle of Dowart, which ftands on a Rock, about the Middle of the Eaft Coaft of the Illand, remains llill a Kind of a Garrifon. The Caftle of Aros, farther in the Country, is become a Heap of Ruins, and the Caftle a According to feme Accounts, there arc two annual Fairs, one in the Month of May, and the other in Auguil. b MS. Rebtiou of the Ifle of Mull. ■= The Reader fees here all the native Refonrccs of the People in this Ifle, and may from thence difcern ho^v little can be hoped from their Elforts, without Afliftance towards putting them into a better Condition. On the Continent Agriculture and feeding Cattle induRrionfly purfued will do all that can be wiilied, but Communication and Commerce are efTential to the Welfare of aQ Ifland. d MS. Accounts of Mull. e Mr. Sacheverell defcribcs them them thus, " During my Stay, I obferved the Men in general " to be large bodied, ilout, fubtle, aftive, patient of Cold and Hunger : There appeared in nil " their Aftions a certain geuevcus Air of Freedom, and a Contempt of thofe Trifles, Luxury " and Ambition, which we fo fervilely purfue." Voyage to Il-Columb-Kill, p. 128. f This feems to account rationally for their Impatience in ferving Apprentkcfliips ; for as thefe Artificers cannot be fuppofed very expert in their refpeftive Trades, fo young Men of quick Parts, finding themfelves in a Qiort Space as great Profacienis as their Maflers, are little inclined to drudge for Years, when all they can hope to learn may be acquired in a few^IoBtbs. g MS. Reliiiion of the Ifle of 'MuII. 4 H 2 of 6o4 The POLITICAL SURVEY of May, at the Head of Loch Buy, is now a Place of no Confequence ''. There are fome Remains of Uttle Daniih Forts, but nothing that defcrves- the Name of a Town, in all this large Ifland i. As for the Inliabitants they live on their refpedlive Properties, and of courfe in fcattered- Hamlets, ■where-ever thefe happen to lie, and have amongft them no Appearance of Improvements, except a few Inclofures ; no Manufactures, beyond coaife Cloth and Linnen, for their own Confumption j and no Fiflieries of any Confequence, for which they are fo well fituated ^. In 1588 lome large Ships of the Spanifli Armada were loft upon this Coaff, and amongff the reft, as has been fuppofed, the Treafure-Ship funk in or near Toubir- Mary Bay '. In 1688 an Attempt was made to recover the Effects of this Veffel by diving, and fome Cannon, Bracelets, a gold Chain, Beads, and. a little Money were brought up, but to no great Amount '". Many Years after Mr. Rowe and Captain Irwin were fent for the fanie Purpofe, to the Wefl Coaft of North Britain, and perhaps to the Coafts of the Ille of Mull. It has been often fince under Confideration, to renew this Experiment, which very poffibly might be attended with more Succefs, if it was pro- fecuted with better Engines, the AlTiflance of large Veflels, and under pra- per Direction ". '' It may ckfervc Confideration, whether Companies of In valFJs, compofed of Soldiers, either bred to, or who have acquired Trades, might not be Rationed in this and fome other Ifles, and allowed to work themfelves at, and inllruift others in their feveral Occupations, with very rational Hopes of procuring fome confiderable Advantages, at a very fmall Expence. i This is an additional Proof, in refpeft to the great Truth before advanced, that without Help- Things in this Country are not like to grow much better. " The long Negleft of tliefe Filheries can no way prejudice them in Point of Profit, whenever they fhall be properly undertaken and fteadily pm fued. 1 The Depofitions of the Spaniili Prifoners in England confirm this in general ; but in r.^gard to ■ the Vellel lofl in Toubir-Mary Bay, thofe Depofitions ftiled her a large Veffcl from Florence ; , Martin fays, (he was called the Florida, and blown up in that Port by one Smollct of Dumbarton. All agree as to her having immenfe Riches on board. m Mr. Sache-verell (who had been Governor of the Ifle of Man) fu peri n tended this diving Expedi-- tion, and his llrong Defire of feeing lona, Hv, or the Ifland of Il-Columb-Kil, led him to traverfc Mull from the North Eaft to the South Weft Extremity. In regard to the Expedition, all he fays fs, ' that in clear, ferene Weather (from the Mountains round the Bay) it was pleafant to fee the Divers finking threefcore Feet under Water, flaying fometimes above an Hour, and at laif returning with the Spoils of the Ocean, whether Plate or Money, convinced us of the Riches and Splendor of the once thought invincible Armada. " In all Probability, the Succefs of Sir William- Phipps, who the Year before had brought up ' to the Value of 300,000 1. in Silver out of a Spanifli Wreck in the Weft Indies, excited the At- tempt in 1688. But as great Improvements have been made on the Diving Bell (which was the Engine ufed here) by Dr. Halley and others, and as new Methods of praftifing this Art have been invented by Borelli in Italy, and by Mr. Simmonds and Mr. Lithbridge in England, an Account of which may be found in that great Treafure of ufeful Informations, -the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. xix. we need not defpair of recovering fomewhat more out of this valuable Wreck, as the f lace in which ihe lies is certain, and the Depth of the Sea not very great. of GREAT B R I T A I N. 605 The principal Proprietor is the Duke of Argyll, who has his Bailiff or Steward refident ia the Ifland, but there are befides many other Proprietors ". The common People fpeak Galic or Erfe, in which Language their Poetry is compofed. In refpedt to Religion, they are Protellants. There are three Pariihes, which are conlcquciitly of large Extent, and a Chapel, as alfo a School where fome forty or fifty Children are taught, at the Expence of the Society for propagating Chriftian Knowlege in the Highlands p. There are VelHges of many more Churches, and other pregnant Tcflimo- iiies that this Illand was much more populous in former Tunes. At pre- ient the Number of People here are computed to be about five thoufand ; and if fome Methods are not devifcd to alter their prefent Situation, there is no great Appearance of their becoming more numerous 'I, At the South Weft Extremity of Mull, divided from it by a Sound fcarce a Mile over, lies the fmall Iflc which bore anciently the Name of lona, orHui, or Hy, better known by that of I-Coluim-Kill, that is, the Ille of Columb's Church, fo famous in the old Scots Hiftory. It is about two Miles long, and fomewhat more than half a Mile broad. The Cli- mate, tho' fo very near, differs much from that of Mull, being warmer and lefs fubjedt to Rain. The Soil alfo is rich and fertile, one Moiety arable, producing excellent Oats, Barley, and Flax, and the Harveft near a Month earherthan in Mull. The other Moiety, which is rocky, and confequently not fit for Cultivation, abounds with very fine Grafs, and feeds, for its Extent, a great Number of Cattle. It is well \vatered, and exceedingly pleafant ^. This Illand was given, in the fixth Century, to St. Columba, who ereded here a famous Monaftery, and dying at the clofe of that Century, or the beginning of the feventh, was there interred. In fucceeding Times, a Nunnery, and feveral Chapels were built there ^ It was al. '' The Range of Iflands breaks the Force of the Weft, as the Continent does of the Eall Winds, which accounts for tlie Mildnefs of the ^\'■inte^ in Sky. g See the learned Dr. Halley's admirable Difcourfe on the proportional Heat of the Sun in all La- titudes, Mifceilanea Curiofa, vol. i. p. 256. ii Relation of the Ifleof Sky, by a Gentleman who v/cnt thither A. D. 1761, and compofed his Account while on the Spot. ' Plin. Nat. Hiflr. lib. xvii. c. 4. Phil. Tranf. N' 27. p. 495. Smith's Natural Hillory of the Conntyof Waterford, p. 285. ;^ MS. Relation of the Ille of Sky. afcribed of GREAT BRITAIN. 609 afcribed '. In Length this Ifland is faid to be forty or forty-four com- puted Miles, and in Breadth thirty-fix in fome Places, but twenty-fix in others, and in certain Parts fcarce two Miles. A very fenlible and inqui- fitive Gentleman, who was fo obliging as to examine it on the Spot, for the Sake of this Work, found the Dillance of the Point at Sclait, or Slate, in the South Weft Part of the Ifland, from Trotternefs in the North Weft, to be eighty Englifli Miles compleat ; and thinks that the mean Breadth of the Ifland may be computed at twelve •'. In refpe See Pout's Map of Lewis and Harris in the Theatrum Scotix, p. 131. ' All of them abounding in Fidi and Fowl, and habitable Iflands in mofl of them. ■« Mackenzie's Survey, p. 14. See the Title at large, p. 425. ' Such as Pheafants, Termagants, or White Partridges, Moor Fowl, Corn-Creakcr, or Land Rail. ■" Barth. Aft. i . p. 90. Worm. Muf. 310. Willoughb. Ornith. 277. Faun. Succ. 94. " Buchan. Rer. Scoric. Hift. lib. i. gives a very particular Account of this Fowl, which he calls in Latin Co'.ca. He fays thty come annually to the little rocky Ifland of Suilflcer near Lewis, to lay their Eggs; that when they have hatched all, their Plumage falls, and going naked into the Sea, are not feen again till next Spring. He adds, that they have no Quills or Feathers, but are entirely covered -with Down. 4 K 2 the 620 The POLITICAL SURVEY the World °. They have Sheep, Goats, and Hogs, in great Number, Black Cuttle, Korfes, and Deer, fmall indeed in Size, but excellent in their refpedrive Kinds. No wild Bealts, and very few Vermin, except the Mettrick, faid to afford a valuable Fur p. On the Coafts there are Cod, Ling, Haddock, Whiting, Skate, Tiubot, Mackerel, and many other Kinds of Fifh in prodigious Plenty 1. Herring, in fome or other of their Lochs, through all Seaibns of the Year ■■ ; Seals and Otters in greater Numbers than in the other Ides, as alfo Porpoifes, and Whales of almoft every Size and Denomination, with all the feveral Kinds of Shell Fi(h, in a Degree of Excels, fo as to cover the Beaches when the Sea ebbs, where by corrupting in the warm Weather they fometimes infedl the Air s. The Inhabitants of the Long Ifland arc, taking them in general, a flout, adive, well-proportioned People, their Hair mofhly of a light- brown, and there are very few among them who have black. They are naturajjy ingenious, have a great turn to Mechanics, are commonly pa- tient, laborious, and capable of turning readily to different Occupations ^ They are very induftrious Hulbandmen in their own Way". They pre- fer digging to ploughing, as producing a greater Increafe. They make conftant Ufe of what they call a Rijlle, which is a kind of a Sickle Plough, drav/n by one Horfe, and v;hich cuts not a Furrow but a deep Line, di- viding all the flringy Roots of Bent or other Plants, and rotten Vegetables, that compofe their Moors. This they do to facilitate the Entrance of the Spade, as well as the larger common Plough, that they may go the deeper^ bring up more Earth, and expofe a greater Surface to the Sun. They af- terwards plough with an Inftrument Vv'hich is alfo peculiar to themfelvcs,, and after fowing, draw a Harrow over the Field with two Rows of crooked o Linnsei Syftctna Naturae, torn. i. p. 124. Depliimatur inNido: Plumis molliflimis, prse- ftantifTimis, pretioQlIimis. If the Reader would be informed of what Care is taken of them, how vahiable they are ellcemed, and what Profits arife from them, he may confult PontopiJan's Hiftory of Norway, P. 11. p. 70, 71, 72. Horrebow's Hiltory of Iceland, p. 65, 66, 6-j. Debes, Det ftription of the Iflands and Inhabitants of Feroe, p. 137, 138. P Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Iflands, p. 36. '' Sir William Monfon, Martin, Mac Pherfon, and all who have vifited thefe Iflands. ' \n 175^, there were in the Months of September and Oftober, in Loch Roig in Lewis, fixty-three VefTels from dilferent Ports in South and North Biitain, employed in the Herring Fifli- cry, having four hundred and five Seamen, befides one hundred and' ten Country Boats, and be: tween four and five hundred Fifhermen. ' Martin's Defcription of the VVeflern Iflands, p. 6. • All the ancient and modern Accounts of the Long Ifland. «' It feems probable from the whole Stile of Hulbandry which prevails among thefe People, that their Iflands were once extremely populous, and Land very fcarce. If it had not been fo, they would not have had recourfe to the laborious Method of digging, cutting, ploughing, and har- rowing, in order to render the Crop the larger. This Mode of Cnitivation, outof refpe^ to theit, Atjceflors, they ftill purfue, though now the Caufe no longer fubfifts. Teetha. of GREAT BRITAIN. 621 Teeth, and Heather fixed in the third Row, to fmootli the Surface after breaking the Clods wi;h the former. All this requires a great deal of Time and Lab nir, for which they are derided b/ fome of their Neighbours; but they have hitherto perfifttd in their old Methods, and if it be true that their Crops are very abundant, we need not to wonder at it w. Thev make Woollen Cloth and Linen for themfclves, and while they had a Market for it, the Women ipun a gieat deal of Yarn and Thread^. Earthen Ware, as we faid before, is another of their Manufactures. They are alfo very expert Filliermen, and prove, whenever they are employed,, very hardy, enterprizin-g, and able Seamen. They are very courteous and affable in their Manners, extremely hofpitable to Strangers, inquifitive, and eafdy prevailed upon to enter into any Undertaking, by which a Live- lihood may be obtained)'. They are a very lively chearful People, prone to all manly Exercifes, fuch as Hunting, Shooting, Swimming, Running, and Leaping. Their favourite Diverlions are Mufic and Dancing, and many of at Ranks have a natural Talent for compofmg Verfes, in which thofe who underrtand the Galic Language and Poetry fay they difcover great Wit and Spirit ^^ It cannot be doubted that thefe Iflands have been inhabited from ths earlieft Times, fmce we find in them many Monuments of Druidical Wor- ship, fuch as theThrufhell Stone, in the Parifli of Barvas, which is twenty Feet high, and very near as many broad. Three upright Stones on the North Side of Loch Carlavay, each of them twelve Feet in Height. But which is far more remarkable than any of thefe, as fine, as well prefervcd, and as perfeft a Temple, as Stone Henge, at the Village of Clalfernefs'^ The Danes have likewife left very confpicuous Marks of their Dominion, in a Multitude of Forts, the Ruins of which are ftill vifible b. Li fucceed- ing Times they muft have been very thoroughly inhabited, fince in Lewis, and the fmall Illands that lie round it, there are no lefs than twenty-five- w Martin's Defcriptlon of the Wedern Iflands, p. 3, 42, 43, 53. All the later .Accounts atteft tiie fame Fafts. In one it is thus ftated, " the Hulbmdry in the Long Kland is fiiigul-ir and ex- traordinary. " They firfl: ufe the Riftel to cut the Ground deep, then a Sort of Spade or Hoe^ " which they call Cificha Croma, with which they turn up the Turf and Manure with Sea W.ire, «' and when fown ufe the Harrow, which Method of Culture tliey call Timiy, and are pofiti\i? " it brings a better Crop than ploughing. They have however a Pltiugh, which is drawn by " four Horfcs, called Cromnigad, but the Riftel alfo precedes this, as well as the crooked Spade."' This is that Hufb.indry mentioned by the ingenious Mr. Lille, in his Obfervations, fee vol.i. p-Sj.. " Mr. Mac Pherfon's Account of the Long Ifland. r It appears from hence of how great Confequence it would be, to put fuch Numbers into », regular and conftant Train of Induftry. ^ Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Iflands, p. 14. a There is a very fair Cut of this Temple in Martin's Book, p. 9. 's Thefe are Tcftimonies flill more authentic than any Hillories, ChurcACS; '622 The POLITICAL S U P. V E Y Churches and Cha^ els c, or rather the Remains of them ; from v.hich it ?p- pears, tliat fome of tliem muTc have been no contemptible Stru^it'westi. Kiig James the Sixth had an Intention of ellahhlhing a Fjfliery here, ani, of ereding a royal Borough, with a Delign to promote Commerce '^. 1 his Scheme was reiumed in the Reign of his Son, and the Foundations of a llately Magazine are Hill vifible * . In the Reign of Charles the Second there were fome Dutch People that had been long fettled upon Lewis, who from political Motives were then removed; yet during their RefiL^cnce here, they gave the Natives better Inftrudlions with refped: to Trade, and in- fpired them with fuperior Notions as to the Art of curing and catchin'^ Fiih than they had before a. It is owing to this, that thofe who dwell in the little Town of Stornoway, which lies upon a Loch of the fame Name, that affords a very fafe and convenient Harbour, have to this Day a brifk. Trade, fail in their own Veffels to different Parts of Europe, and might, with a little Encouragement, come to make a much better Figure, as probably they will, when the good Intentions of the prefent Proprietor, who has propofed great Advantages to So'diers and Seamen who have fettled in his Country, come fully to take Effect h. The lile of Lewis belongs chiefly to Mr. Mackenzie of Seaforth, and that of Harris to Mr. Macleod. North Vist, or North Uifl, lies to the South of Harris, from which it is divided by a narrow Sound of about nine Miles over, in which there are a Multitude of very fmall Ulands i. It is thought to be about thirty Miles in Circumference ". The Climate is very temperate, the Soil rich, and on the Wefl: Side there is a great deal of flat Ground, which affords large Qujmtities of Grain, efpecially Barley, and being covered with Dailies and na'tural Clover, moft excellent Pafture h On the Eafl: Side it is fandy, full of little Eminences, and in the middle mountainous, where however there grow great Quantities of F'ern and Grafs fuflicient to feed abundance of "= According to the difflient Cuftoms of thefe diifcrent Ages, all Proofs of a Country well in- habited. '' Thefe Struftures were therefore built by, and for the Ufe of, a civil and religious People. ' This Monarch King James I. of England recommended ftrongly thefe Improvements to his Son Prince Henry. See his Works, p. 159. ' This Magazine was built in the Ifle of Vackfay in Loch Maddy, and a more commodious Place could not be chofen. fc Martin, p. 30. Sir W. Monfon tells ns the Dutch were fe'tled here by the Earl of Seaforth. '> This Town of Stronway has at prefent two thoufand Inhabitants. i Bitchanai), who had his Information from Donald Monro, reprefents the two Uifls and Ben- becula as one Ifle, and affirms they adually were fo at low Water. " MS. Account of this Illand. 1 In regard to thefe Faft s, Martin and all the later Accounts (in procuring of which no Pains •were fpared] exaflly agree. Cattle of GREAT BRITAIN. 623^ Cattle and Sheep'". They make much Kelp on the Eafl: Side". Loch Maddie is accounted a good Harbour. This liland, which is undoubtedly capable of great Improvement, belongs to Sir James Macdonald. To the South of North Uift, divided from it by a Sound feven Miles, broad, lies Benbecula, fo called from a Mountain of the fame Name in its Centre, ten Miles in Circumference, and on the Weft Side plain and fruit- ful, on the Eall fandy and iuU of little Hills. There was formerly in this Ifland a very large Nunnery, which is now the Refidence of Mr. Macdonald ofClanronald the Proprietor of the Ifle<-'. A narrow Sound, fordable in fome Places at low Water, divides Benbecula from South Uift, a fpacious Ifland, thirty-fix Miles long from Norih to South, and from four to feveru Miles broad ^. This may oe ftiled the Garden of the Long Ifiand, for there is a Tra6t of flat Land on the Weft Side, very rich and fertile, con- taining forty thouiand Acres q. This, befides excellent Pafture, produces very large Crops of line Barley ; and there is very little Doubt that any Grain would grow here, as the Seafons are very regular, and the Ifland lefs fubjecl to Ram than any of the reft. Hemp and Flax thrive exceedingly i". The Inhabitants have great Qu^^ntities of Black Cattle and Sheep, which have very fine Wool, and there is Abundance of all Kinds of White Fiili upon the Coafts ; and yet with all this thefe Inhabitants have little or no Commerce, and are confequently poor, if that Expreffion can be properly applied to People who have the jNeceflaries of Lite in the utmoft Plenty =. This Ifland likewife belongs to Mr. Macdonald. The Ifle of Barra lies at a fmall Diftance South from Uift, and is about, fifteen Miles in Circumference. It is not either fo pieafmt or fo fruitful as the former, but there is Plenty of Cod and Ling caught on the Coaft, of a- very large Size. This Ifle belongs to a Gentleman of the Name of Mac Neil, lb the South of Barra there lie fcveral fmall Iflands, particularly five, uhich, though they have diftincTt Names, are in general called the Bijhop's Ifiands % There are likewife innumerable Iflands of various Sizes, lying round thofe fix larger that have been defcrihcd, nioft of them very ■" This Abundance is relative to the piefent Nuaiber of Inhabitants, but Ciililvaiion MoiiIJ fe- cure the like Pleat)', if tliefe were doubled. " The having a Market for Kelp, makes them induftiious in this Mimuf.ic^ure. The like Ad- vantage would make themfo in others. ° This Ifland is remarkable for a Kind of fpotted Salmon, which have a very delicious Flavour. £ Thefe are common Miks, or Engiiih Itaudard Meafure. ' MS. Account of the Long Ifiand. ' It is evident that if a regular Firtiery was fettled on the Coail, this would quickly brcome z . populous as well as plealiint Country. ^ The chief Commodities are Horfes, Seal Oil, .nnd Kelp. • Thefe Iflands are named in the Map Fladda, Linga, I'apay, Magala, and Berucra. liiliilij 624 The POLITICAL SURVEY linall, but ibnie even among them five or fix Miles in Circumference ; all of which were anciently thorough]}-' cultivated and well inhabited, of which indubitable Teftimonies remain ^. To the weftward lies -the famous foli- tary Ilk of St. Kilda, in the Language of the Country Hirt, with a few Rocks near it, of which fo many, and thofe alfo extenfive Defcriptions ^^ have been given, that there is no need of infifling farther upon it here; though poffibly in fucceeding Times it may become {till better known, if, in conftquence of fome Trials lately made, a conPuint and regular Fifhery ihould be eltablifhed upon its Coafts. The Long Ifland is, in point of legal Jurifdidlion, in the Shire of Inver- nefs, and of courfe the Inhabitants of it are very remote from the Seat of Jufi:ice'<. It is divided into feveral Parilhes, and in each of thefe there is at leaft one School, where the Children of the better Sort receive a tole- rable Education ; which, however, inftead of difpofing them to be content with their Condition, to endeavour at Improvements, and to live quietly in their own, generally excites Difiafte to their Situation, and a Dt;fire of feeking their Fortune in other Countries ; fo that the Reader will not be much furprized when he is told, that there is not in the whole of this large Tradl of Country above fifteen thoufand Souls y. The common People fpeak the Galic, or, as it is vulgarly called, the Irifh Language ; and in South Uill: and Barra many of them are Papifts, of whom there are few or none in the other Iflands, and the Number is daily decreafing even in thefe. A little Attention fiom the Public to the removing Inconveniencies, which in Ages will be hardly overcome by the Efforts of private Perfons, would quickly render confpicuous thofe Treafures which Providence has beftowed on the Long Ifland ^. u Between Harris and North Uifl lies Beinera (there are feveral Ifles of this Name) five Miles in Circumference, near this Pabay, nearer North Uift lies Hennctra, where a Magazine was ere£ted for Salt and Cal1. In the firft Place, then, let it be obferved, that thefe neglecfled liles are, even at this Day, far from being dellitute of Things necelTary for the Subfiftence of much larger Numbers than are at prefent contained in them, and that they are likewife very far from want- ing many of thole Materials which Induflry in other Countries renders Ob- jedts of Commerce, and which might be confequently rendered fo in thefe, by the proper Application of the fame Means =. In feveral, indeed in mod: of thefe liles, there are a great Variety of Earths, fit for the UCe of Fullers, Painters, Pipe-makers, and other Trades. Boles for medicinal Ufes, excellent Clays of various Sorts, of which Earthen Ware, Bricks, Tiles, and many other Things might be made d. Limc- ftone, Frecftone, black, white, and variegated Marble, Slates in great Abundance, and of the bsft Kind -. Veins of Coal have been diftovered in many, which might be rendered of great Benefit to all, if the Duty upon thofe v/ater-borne was either removed or properly regulated f. Iron, ' It is toeftablLdi this Fact inconteftably, that fo much Notice has been taken of tlie Ruins and Remains of ancient Buldings erefted in former Ages, which from tlicir Solidity and Extent clearly evince, independent of Hiftory or Tradition, a fuperior Number of People, by whofe Labour and for whole Ufe they were rai ed. •> As in the Coiirfe of thefe Refleftions it will be Ihewn, fiich an Attention woxild have a Ten- dency to extend Commerce, to enlarge the Revenue, and contribute to the Strength of the State. ' In the prefent State of Things, Experience fiiews Induftry is not to be hoped ; and riierefovc the common Good requires that by fome proper Change it iliould be introduced. d Thefe are valuable in other Countries, becaufe their Ufes arc known; of little here, as the People have no Call to employ, and are not in a Condition to export them. But thefe are not infuperable Difficulties; a reguhir Communication with thefe Illcs would bring them to Maiket, an Increafe of induftrious People would convert them to ufeful Purpofes upon the Spot. e Confiderable Quantities are, but much greater might be, exported. f It would be a reafonable Indulgence to permit the tranfporting Co;iIs from any one Idc to any Other, without Duty. Vol. I. 4 L Copper, 626 The POLITICAL SURVEY Copper, Lead, C^ickfilver, have been undoubtedly found in them, and as Ibnie report Silver, and Gold Dull, and Minerals of diftercnt Kinds g. Where the natural Soil is not overgrown with Mofs, they have very fine (Jrais, and in many Places the Ground is fpread with natural Clover and Dailiies. Rye, Oats, Barley, and in fume Places Wheat are raifed, and might be raifed in much greater Quantities ■'. Hemp and Flax, with pro- }ier Attention, as good in their refpedlive Kinds as any in the World, and might be had in great Abundance '. Peas, Beans, Potatoes, all Kinds of Roots, and other Garden Vegetables in the utmofl: Plenty '<. Trees of dif- ferent Kinds in many of them, and Junipers in all. One cannot help won- dering therefore at the popular Prejudice that prevails amongft many of the Inhabitants, that Trees cannot be brought to thrive in thefe Itlandsj where- as with a little Attention it would be found, as we have often hinted, not only pradlicable, but eafy. They muft be planted thick, that they may fupportand prote<5t each other, Iheltered as much as poffiblefrom the South Weft Winds, and properly fenced from Cattle. With thefe Precautions there is no Queltion to be made that they might raife large Plantations of Oak, Adi, Birch, Plane, and Scots Pines, to fay nothing of fuch Trees as grow in the Northern Parts of Canada and other Countries in America. Than this furely nothing could be more defirable amongft a People who are daily in fuch Want of Wood for their Houfes, Boats, domeftic Utenfils, and Inftruments of Hulbandry, infomuch that in fome liles they are forced to venture fixty Miles or more, over a tempelluous Sea in an open Boat, to procure the Materials neceflary for making a lingle Plough. All which might be fpared if they would vigoroully and judiciouily attempt what is fo much and fo indifputably their Intereft . To put this Matter out of all Doubt, it will be fufficient to mention, that Dr. Walker, a worthy Clergy- man, and a moft intelligent Perfon, in a late Vilit to thefe Illes, faw a large Clump of Aili Trees, planted about thirty Years before, which v/ere forty Feet high, very frelh and iiouriihing, on the Ille of Colonfay, than which there is not one more expofed, and confequently not one where an Improve- ment of this Kind was lefs likely to have fucceeded. W^hence we may with Probability infer it would fucceed any where. £ The Wiiut of Fuel is fappofed to be the principal Caufe that no Mines are wrourrht In thefe Ifles. . h If they had Shipping fufficient, they might be foon excited to a Cultivation, that would pro* duce much greater Plenty. ' If we confider how many thoufand Acres in thefe Iflands would bear, and how many thoufand Pounds are annually fent out of Great Britain for thefe Commodities, it feems no extravagant De- mand, that we fliould afford the Inhabitants (which is all the Encouragement they need) a fettled and certain Market for them. ^ Hence it is evident the Culture of Cole and Rape Seed might be fuccefsfully introduced, which would be highly profitable. See Mortimer's Huibandry, vol. i. p. 155. Their of GREAT BRITAIN. 627 Their Lochs and Rivers abound with Salmon, Trout, Eels, and many other Kinds of excellent Filli '. They have a vaft Variety of tame, wild, and water Fowl, the Down, Feathers, and Quills of fome of which, if properly managed, might produce a very large Profit i". Immenfe Num- bers of Sheep, the Wool of which is fine. Goats in great Numbers, as alfo Black Cattle, Deer, and Horfes ; the Size of which, a Circumftance wherein alone they are deficient, might with due Attention, and with the Affiftance of a few jufl Regulations, be without queftion improved " . Their Rocks produce Crotil, Chryftals, Agates, coloured Stones, and Talc ". In their Lochs or Bays they have Pearl- Oyfters, and Mufclcs, Corals and Corallines. Amber and Ambergrife are frequently thrown by the Sea upon their Coafts p. But fuch natural Advantages might in thefe, as Experience fhews us they have done in other Countries, receive many Afllflances, and very great AccefTions, if the Inhabitants were once bleffed with Commerce 1. They might then bring many Kinds of Grafs Seed from different Parts of Eu- rope, and ftill more from xA.merica, which would turn exceedingly to their Emolument. For as Grafs is the univerfal Nutriment of Cattle,' we fee that with little or no Prejudice many of its richeft Kinds vary both Soil and Climate ; and from the luxuriant Growth of all Kinds of Vegetables in thefe Ifles, we have fcarce any Reafon to doubt that almoft any Kind of Grafs might with proper Attention be brought to thrive here. The very fame Thing may be faid in reference to Grain, more efpecially fuch Sorts as na- turally grow in wet Grounds and a humid Air, fuch as Millet, Panic, &c. which, tho' lefs ferviceable in refpedl to Food, might be found highly ufe- ful in fattening Beafts and Fowl «. With ftill more Reafon might we hope ' Thefe, if pickled, dried, fmoked, or otherwife properly cured, might turn to a confiderable Amount, as in other Countries they do. ■" It is through Want of Skill in forting, picking, ckanfing, and drying their Feathers, that (though nothing more faleable in good Order) they make of them fo little. " This miglu be accomplifhed "by mending the Breed, inclofing and improving their Paftures, and being, as they might eifily be, better fupplied with Winter Forage. ° Though thefe are in themfelvcs no conhderable Objecfls, yet if once a regular Correfpondcnce was eftablifhed, they would find a Place in every Cargo. P The (Itme may be faid of thefe Cafualties, which would be then more carefully looked after, as well as better colle(."l:ed and preferved . 1 This is one of the many beneficial Confequences attending an extenfive Correfpondcnce; the fined and mofl fruitful Countries of Europe, Italy not excepted, owing fome of their richcft Fro- duftions to their being tranfplanted from other Places, and the fame Method has been as fucccfs- fully adopted in lefs fertile Soils, and in worfe Climates. r Hartlib's Legacy, p. 4. Mortimer's Hufbandry, book i. chap. 4. ElTays on Hufbandry, P. ii. p 20. In refpeft to' which Book it is difficult to fay, whether in point of Utility, Variety of Learn- ing, or Elegance in Compofition, it mofl deferves to be applauded and admired. s This will be found an important Improvement when an Increafe of People, a Refort of Ship- ping, and fitting VelTels for long Voyages come to take place. 4 L 2 to 628 The POLITICAL SURVEY to raife Barilla or Soda, the Seed of which may be eaiily procured from Ali- cant, where it grows in the higheft Perfe<5tion t, and which would prove of incredible Advantage if it could be brought to grow even in the mofl Soutli- ern of thefe liles ; as in the firft Inftance it would furnilh a very valuable Commodity for which we pay large Sums to Strangers, or might be em- ployed to llill greater Benefit in the Manufadlures of Soap and Glafs ". This is to be underllood of the fineft Sorts, for as to the coarfe, they have all the Materials in the greatefl Plenty already. By the like Care Trees and Shrubs from different Parts of the World, and particularly America ^v^ might be introduced here, thofe efpecially that. grow in or dole to the Sea ; fuch as are of quick Growth, and fit for build- ing of Sloops; and all Kinds of Buflies and Plants that may anfwer ufeful Pupofes in Dyeing, Tanning, Bafket-making, Matting, Painting, Var- nifliing, or that are lerviceable in Medicine. The Stock of Animals might, be alfo improved by the bringing in of Chinefe Hogs, Indian and Flemifli Sheep, Rams of a large Size, as alfo Bulls, Spaniih and Arabian Horfes x.. Afi'es, which at prefent are very fcarce, might, if well chofen, be rendered, numerous, and as they live as well as labour hard, become very fervice- able y. We have already hinted that Goats from Natolia or Barbary might be imported with Advantage ; and there is no Reafon to doubt that Buffa- loes from Louifiana, now Weft Florida, would likewife live here ?. Any Kind of aquatic Fowls might be reconciled to this Climate; and we have already mentioned in another Place the Means by which all their Lakes might be flocked with fuch Kinds of Filli as might be thought more valu- able than thofe tlicy have already a, ' Di(f>ionnaire de Commerce, torn. ili. col. 805. Diflionnaire d'Hiftoire Natnrelle, vol. v. p. 287, 289. Memoires fur le Commerce des HoUandois, p. 105. Tour through Spain and Por- tugal by Udal ap Rheys, p. 1 86. Hill's Hiftory ot Plants, p. 312. In the Memoirs of the French. Academy we find it thus defcribed, Kali Hifpanicum, fupinum, annuum, fedi minoris folio. " It might perhaps be an ufeful Experiment to fow the Seeds of the Alga Marina on the Coafts, I mean on Land, as is praflifed in Spain. >' EfTays on Hufbandry, i. p. 140 — •162, where the ingenious Author has pointed out nume- rous InftanceSof Trees, &c. that might be introduced to Advantage. * Hartlibs Legacy, p. 96, 97. Thefe Methods have been praftifed in other Countries, and even ia thefe Ifles they attribute the Mettle of their Horfes to thofe that fwam on Shore from the Wreck of the Spanifh Armada. Would Things fucceed work when condufled with Defign, thaa. when left to Accident and Chance > ' Amongft other Reafons for recommending this patient and pains-taking Animal, one is, the Mildnefs of the Climate, which is of Importance. ^ They are fliid to delight in moift and marfhy Soils ; if any Doubt (liould arlfe as to the Climate, it will be removed by cbferving, thefe Animals are alfo common in the moft Northern Parts of Canada, and even about Hudfon's Bay. Experiment alone can determine in all thefe Cafes ; for the mofl probable Attempts fometimes fail, and thofe more unlikely now and then fucceed. * Political Survey of Britain, vol. i. p. 106 — io8. Whem of GREAT BRITAIN. 629 When the People were once habituated to carry their own Goods in their own Vellels to different Parts of the World, for which their Countries are fo happily feated '', they might eafily, as they are naturally inquifitive and induftrious, transfer many valuable Arts and M an u fixtures into their own ; fuch as the charring of Peats, which is pradlifed both in Holland and France, and would render them excellent Fuel for drying Malt, di- flilling, and for melting of Ore, Purpofes for which hitherto they have not been ufed c. The Water of Haerlem has a peculiar Excellence in bleach- ing Linen, which it derives from a Circumilance common in almofl every one of thefe Illes, that of the Sea forcing a Pafiage through thick Banks of Sand, to which Kind of Percolation this fingular and very valuable Qu^a- hty is entirely owing'!. The Inhabitants of the Ifles of Feroe, which be- long to the Crown of Denmark, and are fituated about fifty four Lear^ues North of Lewis, tan all their Leather with the Roots of Tormentil, which for that Reafon pafles amongil them by the Name of Bark. This Method might be eafily introduced, and perhaps improved, intheWeftern Ifles e. It would be no difficult Thing to rife much higher in this Manufacture, lince the Materials for tanning afcer theRuflian Method, and that too in the utmoit Perfedlion, are eafily attained here C With much greater Facility might the Caviar from the Roes of Mackrell be made in thefe Ifles (in eafe they come here before fpawning) of which great Quantities are annual- ly fent into the Mediterranean and the Levants. It is not at all impoffible that the very beft Sort of Caviar, of which there are two Kinds, one ia '' This Circumilance deferves particular Attention, as it facilitates every Attempt of this Nature to a very great Degree. <= Mr. Boyle commends charring of Peat, but declines telling us how it is to be done- Arch- feifhop King fays he had feen it. The Parliament of Ireland gave a Reward for doing it, but did not publifli the Method. It may be thus pei formed Let there be a Kiln conftruflcd with Vent- Holes on the Sides and at the Top. Lay a Floor of Billets or of dry Scicks; on this conftrutTt a Pile of Peats ; ftt fire to the Wood ; as foon as the Peats are thoroughly lighted, flop all the Holes- gradually except that at the Top, and that alfo as foon as it ceafwis to fmoke ; let it then have Time to cool, and the Peat will be perfeflly charred. ^ Ray's Travels, vol, i. p. 34. Ker's Travels, p. 17, Bufching's Geography, vol. iii. p. 488. * Rail Hift. Plantar, vol. i. p. 617. Debes's Defcription of the Iflandsand Inhabitants oi Ye- roe, p. 120. Maples's Tanning without Bark, Dublin 1739. He alFerted that Hides tanned therev.'ith, were equal in Colour, Subflance, and Solidity to thofc tanned with B.irk, and done fooner. The Houfe of Commons by a Vote declared he had fully proved all his Allegations. It has been of late difcovered that Oak Saw Duft will tan full as well as Oak Bark. ' Strahlenbergh's Defcription of Ruflia, p. 388. Pontoppidan's Hiflory of Norway, P. ii. p. 7. for in that Country they drefs Skins in this Manner. BeU's Travels, vol. i. p. 21. where he Iht forms us, that the bed is made at Cazan, aud that the peculiar Smell is owing to a Kind of Tar, drawn from the Bark of Birch (and perh.'.ps from the Roots of thole Trees) by the Help of Fire. The Dye ufed is Logwood. It is dreffed with Tar inflead of Oil. S Piin. Nat. Hift. lib. xxxi. cap. 8. VVllloughb. lib. iv. § vii. p. loi. Di(flionnaire de Com- merce, torn. iii. col. 1 198. The Preparation is by no means difficult. The Roe is firfV wa(hed with Vinegar, then thoroughly freed from all the little Skins and Teguments, next fpread and di'ied, laftly falted, and hung in a net to dry, and fo packed. In the fame Manner the Roes of Mullets and other Fiih may be treated, and come to.agocd Market. Grdins.. 630 The POLITICAL SURVEY Grains, and the other prefled from the Roe of the Beluga, which fells in ll:ill greater Quantities and at a higher Price, might be alfo made, if the Filh could be brought into any of their Lakes that communicate by Rivers with the Sea'-'. The Manufatlurc of Ifinglafs, if, as many intelligent Per- fons fufpedt, it can be made from the gelatinous Parts of any large Fifli, might likewife be brought to Perfedlion in thefe Parts'. The French in North America have a Method of makinp- Leather of the Skins of Por- poifes, which, though very thin and fupplc, is capable of rcfifling a Piftol Ball. This, if inquired into and known, might be very beneficial in Coun- tries where thefe Kind of Fifxi abound k. Thofe immenfe Quantities of Shell Fidi, which, as we have hinteJ, fometimes become a Nufance, might by Induftry and Application be rendered very advantageous, and this not not only by pickling, potting, and otherwife curing and preferving the Fiih fo as to tranfport them, but alfo by making ufe of the Shells, which are capable of being converted into excellent Manure, and turned likewile to other valuabJe Ufes '. In confcquence of the Lights they would neceflarily derive from Com- merce, we may rationally conclude, that by a ftridt Invcftigation they would difcover many valuable Things in their own Ifles, which have been hitherto, for Want of that neceflary Knowlege, entirely overlooked J". They would doubtlefs introduce likev/ife from their Obfervations on the Praitice of other Nations, new Methods of draining their Marlhes, improving their Fifhcries, conftrudling Water Mills and other Engines, of which hitherto they have had no Idea, becaufe hitherto for fuch Things they have had little Ufe, and of which confequently they could not feel the Want ". It is not to be defued, much lefs expecfled, that all or even any great Number ■f Purchas's Pilgrims, vol. ii. p. 1420. Houghton's Colleftlons for the Improvement of Hiif- bandry and Trade, vol. iii. p. 282. Strahlcnbergh's Defcription of Ruffia, p. 345. ' Wiiloiighb. Hift. Pifc. p. 244. DJdflonnaire dc Commerce, torn. i. col. 961. Strahlcn- bergh's Defcription of Ru/Tia, p. 388. The Method of making this valuable Commodity is very fimple. Take the Skin, Inteftines, Stomach, Fins, and Tail of any large FiQi, let them mace- rate in Water till all the Flefh is ftparated, then evaporate over a flow Fire until it becomes a fine Jelly, after which fpread it as thin as a Sheet of Paper, and dry it thoroughly. '' P.CharlevoJK, Journal d'un Voyage dans I'Amerique Septrentrionale, vol. i. p. 217. ■ To give one Inftance : Mufcle-fliells laid on and ploughed into the Earth afford a rich and lafting Manure ; being burned they make excellent Lime ; equal Parts of this Lime and fine Brick- dufV tempered with Bullocks Blood become an admirable Cement, which being ufed either on a /la t Roof, or fpread on a Floor, is very compaifl, beautiful, and Infling. -■" There are very few Countries highly improved, which have not been improved in this Man- ner; and the lefs any Country is known, the more Difioveries of this Kind are to be expefted. The natural Hiftorips of the feveral Counties in South Britain and Ireland afford the moll con- vincing Proofs of this, and it is to be wifhed we may have the like Hillories of all the Counties in both Iflands, which would prove of inexprefiible Utility. n Encouragement will foon beget Induftry, Indufiry Improvements ; and thefe will proceed with a quick Pace amongft an ingenious and fpirited People. 5 : ®^ of GR EAT B RITA IN. 631 of thefe Improvements {hould be immediately attempted, but there is no- thing more probable than that gradually thele, and many others, which it furpafles the Power of a private Perfon to fuggeft, will take place as Op- portunities offer from the propofcd Alterations in the State of thefe Coun- tries, and the Circumft.inces of thofe who inhabit them ". It was, how- ever, very requifite to mention them here, becaufe Men natu-ally Ijve to look forward to fair Profpedts of future Advantages. Becaufe if any one of thefe fliould take place, and it would be very hard if many of them did not, this would excite a v'^pirit of Emulation and Enquiry, that would in- fallibly bring to Perfedion many more '', and becaufe the natural, adive, and ambitious Spirit of thefe Peo le, the Keennefs of their Invention, and their great Aiftivity, when pronf^ted by proper Motives, would facilitate fuch Acquilitions as much here as in any Part of the Wprld q. In order to accomplilh (o great and fo very defirable a Work, it will be abfolutely requifite that the Public, for its ov/n fake, fliould afford its Af- fiftance, and therefore it is highly expedient, before this can be expedled, to ftate fuccindly the Motives which ought to perfuade the particular At- tention of the State to the rc'cuing thefe Ifles from their prefent low and dejedled Condition r. It would, in the firfl place, add a very conliderable Province to the Britifli Empire, of which though we have long had both the Title and Poffeffion, yet this has been in a great Degree without Uti- lity J and, as from a long Dedudion of Fads we have clearly (liewn, has for near two hundred Years been reputed by the heft Judges a Negligence equally detrimental and difgraceful to Government =. By this means Mul- titudes who have been for a Series of Years, and if Things go on in their prefent State will be for ever unprofitable to the Community, might be • The Sight of other Nations Profperity, on no better Funds than are in their PofTeflion, will prompt them to an Exertion of their Faculties, as iliey will be convinced this is neceifary to leciirs Succefs. P For inftance, if in I!a they flionld be able to raiie Barilla, the very Sale of the Commodity would foon put ir in their Power to fet up Glafs Works. ") If it Ifiould be objected, that their continuino fo long in fo low and unimproved a State feems tocontradidf this Charaaer of their Abilities, I de'lire it m'ay be confidercd how far this maybe ac- counted tor from the following Caufcs. t. Their being able to acquire fnch a Subfiftcnce as they have been ufed to, with little InJuftry or Labour. 2. Their having no Models to excite Emula- tion. 3. Being without any Profpeift of Reward. 4. The unequal Diftribution ot Property. 5. Tlie conftant Emigration of their Youth, who, for the Reafons before mentioned, are deterred from returning home," and confequently from applying their acquired Koowlegc to the Benefit ot tlieir Country. • ' In the prcfeat Situation of Things, the only proper Motives to excite public Attention, are propofmg public Advantages. = Sir William- Monfon's Naval Trafts, p. 525, 526. Smith's England's Improvement_ revived, bookvi. Houghton's CoUeftions for the Improvement of Hufbandry and Tr.ade, vol. iii. 318 339. Puckle's England's Path to Weahh and Honor, Lond. 1700, I2% with very many more that might be cited, as well as many that have bccu ahcady sited. . connected 632 The POLITICAL SURVEY connefled with and rendered ufeful to Society t. Abundance of Foreigners from the Northern Parts of Europe, who are all Proteflants, might be ea- fily induced to fettle under a milder Climate, and a better Government than their own; and thefe would unquellionably bring, what is fur preferable to Riches, Induflry and the ufeful Arts along with them". Being incorpo- rated with the Natives, and having a like Intereft in their Defence, they would convert thefe Ifles, which have hitherto been the weakeft Parts of cur Dominions, into a ftrong Barrier, facilitate our Navigation, and in Time of War render a PafTage through thefe Seas impradicable to our Ene- mies ^^'. In fuch Circumftances a coniliant Supply of very able and hardy Seamen ^ might upon any Emergency be drawn from hence, who, as foon as it ccafcd, would chearfully return to tl^ir Families and their ufual Oc- cupations y. As foon as Commerce was elkablifhed, and the People came to have, as they very foon would, a Relilh for a more commodious Way of Living, they would draw in fome meafure the Necelfaries, and derive all tlie Conveniencies of Life, and moll: of the Liftruments for Tillage, Ma- nufactures, and carrying on their refpedive Trades, from Great Britain 7.. In proportion as they grewftill more eafyin their Circumftances, and Num- bers amongfl; them came to have tolerable Fortunes, they would probably quit their PolTeflions here to purchafe Settlements on the Continent, fo that the accumulated Fruits of all their Pains and Induftry would in the End centre in fome Part or other of this iHand a. On Views far lefs probable, and much more uncertain, large Sums have been fpent, and annual Supplies given, for the fettling and maintaining more diftant Colonies ^, v.'hich t This is a Point of infinite Importance ; for whatever Benefits accrued to Indivi Juals mufl at the fame time turn to the Emolument of the State. u Their Induflry would well intitle them to a Settlement, and then- Poflerity would, by Manners as well as Birth, be zealous Bridfh Subjects. * Thefe are Fafts fupported by Experience ; and if the Inhabitants of thefe Kles were in a Con- dition to fit out Privateers, the Enemies of Britain would have no Chance of efcaping. Our Statefmen, Merchants, and Sea Officers will difcern, as foon as mentioned, the numerous Advan- tages that from thefe Circnmftances muft arife to the Public. " The People in general being bred either Fifhermen or . eamen, enured to Labour and to a dan- gerous and difficult Navigation, would croud on board our Fleets, without preffing to compel, or high Rewards to invite them ; a Thing of all others the mofi: defirable ; and yet, if we depend on pail Experience, not likely by any other Method to be obtained. y Thus ihey would be always in their Element, and Mnd their own and the public Intcrelf con- tinu.illy and infeparably united. " When feveral Branches of domeftic Induftry and foreign Commerce come to be fucccfsful, their prefent coarfe Manufactures will drop, as they rind it more for their .'Advantage to export their Wool in Yarn and their Tlax in Thread, than to make Cloth or Linen. The cultivating what are now walk Lands, if they had Property in them, and Markets open for their Produce, would furnifh much better Employment. » This, though a great Benefit to Britain, will be no Detriment to the Ifies, as it will fccure a Confl.int SuccelTion of affive and indiiftrious Inhabitants. '' As for Inftince, Nova Scotia and Georgia, long and prudently fupported by the Mother Coun- try, from the Profpeft of future Advantages, having of GREAT BRITAIN. 633 having in a reafonabie Space anfwered our Expedations, fully juftiiies the Policy of fuch Meafures, and thereby renders it clearly inexculablc ta remain blind to the innumerable Advantages, which with more than equal Certainty might be fecured to the State, by taking proper Notice of Coun- tries that lie at our own Doors <;. This being once effeftually undertaken, tho' without any great Expence, the Settlement will undoubtedly make its own Way; fo that if any fubfequent Afliftance fliould be neceflary, it will be chearfully afforded in Confequence of the Progrefs made, and the vifible Security of its turning to Account, and repaying with Interefl: whatever may be farther for fuch Encouragement laid out^. These Motives being premifed, we will now venture modeftly to fuggeft what feems to be the propereft Means for eftedting thefe great and falu- tary Purpofes. In the firfl Place, it will be requifite to regulate and ef- tablifli Property by Law, without which there can be no fuch Thing as Induftry. Men will not fow, that others may reap. They will not be fedulous in improving, if themfelves and their Pofterity are not to enjoy the Profits of their Labour e. The Public have an Intereft in thefe Lands; they have long enough fuffered them to lie wafle and uncultivated ; they have a Right therefore to take fuch Steps as may have a Tendency to pro- mote Cultivation, by making the Cultivators fecure and happy '^\ This would effectually prevent the Natives from abandoning their Country, and this alone would foon render thefe Ifles populous s. The next Thing is, to ereft Courts of Judicature in every one of the great Illes, in the fame Manner as Arran and Bute are become a Shire already ; that Juflice might be at every Man's Door, and not as at prefent on the other Side the Sea, where it cannot be in every Man's Power to go and feek it'-. Public Schools lliould be eredled upon the Plan of the Charter Schools in Ireland, where Induftry and the Englifti Language fliould be taught and practifcd ' On this Account, whatever Acquifitions they may make through the Interpofuion of the Public, will, as they ought, redound ultimately to the Public. '' It will be always under the Power of the Legillature to exaifl from time to time a fpecific Account of their Concerns, from the Moment they take thefe Countries under their Care. « It would be Prefumption to lay down any particular Method of doing this ; that mud rcfult from flrict Inquiry, and mature Deliberation. ^ This is not a new or unfupported Suggeftion, fince many Aifls of the Scots Parliament (fome of which have been cited) proceed plainly on this Principle. g This alone would be ot great Confequence, as it would preferve many thoufand ufeful Sub- jefts, and the Produce of their Labours to the State. h It might be very expedient alfo, to eftablifh fummary Proceedings in refpeft to Wages, for the Proteftion of the Fifheries, and to eftablifb a Court-merchant for the fpeedy Dccifion of Dif- putes arifing in Trade, in order to prevent as much as poffible the VVafte of Time and Money in fuch Difputes, where both might and ought to be more ufefully employed. Vol. I. 4 M together; 634 The POLITICAL SURVEY together ' ; and if in each of the great Illands the Elements of the Ma- thematics and Navigation were tauglit, the Society would reap Advantages much fuperior to any Expence that might be incurred k. A Cuftom-houle fliould be eredled upon every one of tlie large Illands, with a compleat Eftabliihment of Officers, which would efifedually prevent Smuggling, and proteft a fair and regular Commerce'. To thefe fliould be added, copious Magazines of Salt to be furniflied to the Natives, receiving Flax and Hemp in Payment, for the Service of the Royal Navy at a fettled Rate, which would render Fiflieries pradticable '". But if the Manufafture of Canvafs and Sail-cloth was eftablilhed in thefe Ides (even with foreign Hemp) which might be done fpecdily, with Facility, and at no great Expence, it would undoubtedly anfwer many excellent Purpofes ; it would employ a great Number of Pcrfons of both Sexes, and ot almoft: all Ages ; it would bring Money into thefe Parts of the Britiili Dominions, and prevent its being employed in the Purchafe of this Commodity from Foi^eigners ; and, which is no inconfiderable Motive to fuch an Undertaking, it would both quickly and effectually excite a Spirit of railing Hemp and Flax ; which Circiunftance joined to the Cheapnefs of Living, would give them great Advantages towards gaining fo important a Manufacture. It would be in another refpedl highly beneficial to the Weftern Ifles, fmce in many, more efpecially of the fmall ones, the Inhabitants make ufe of coarfe woollea Cloths for Sails, and twift what Twigs they can get into Cordage. The very Precedent and its immediate Confequences would awaken the People to Induftry, and by fliewing them what Labour would do, put an effeftual End to the Reign of Indolence. But to proceed. It will be alfo requifite that Packet Boats fliould be flationed between thefe Ifles, Glafgow, Liver- pool, and Briftol by which a fettled and ftated Correfpondence would be in- troduced. Orders conveyed, and Intelligence received, which in a little Tmie would be found in many Refpedls highly beneficial ". A Company or two of Invalids, compofed as far as poflible of Men bred up in their • A few fuch Schools in each of the great Ifles, endowed with twenty or thirty Acres of Land, to be manured by the Boys brought up in it, and they taught to read a plain and fuccinft Syftem of the Elements of Agriculture and Gardening, would at once lay a folid and lafting Bafis for extending ufeful Science and real Indufiry. ; ^ One School in each Ifland of this Kuid would be fufficient, and Children thus educated at the public Charge, might be delfined to the public Service. 1 Smuggling always keeps People poor, at the fame Time it makes them diflionefl:. Fair Com- merce has the direft contrary Effefts, and if once put in the Inhabitants Power, would be chear- fuUy and generally embraced. "> They know the Value of Salt and Cade, and how to make them turn to account; and if thefe could be purchafed on the Spot for Hemp and Flax, they would eagerly raile both in great PerfeiTlion. " By thefe regular Conveyances, the People in the Ifles would have various and conflant Markets open to them, know the juft Value of their own Commodities, and of thofe in which fhej chofe to deal, in refpc*^ to which hitherto they have been much in the dark. You,thi of GREAT BRITAIN. 635 Youth to fome Trade, Manufadure, or other ufeful Occupation, fliould be fent by way of Garrifon into the great Ifles ° ; and the Public might em- ploy annually, for a few Years, a fmall Sum, in compounding the Debts of Seamen and Artificers in Prifon, on Condition of their going and fettling there with their Families, for a certain reafonable Term p. Foreigners might be invited by a general Naturalization, being Proteflants, on Con- dition of purchafing Land, and fetting up fome Bulinefs of public Utility, their Privileges to be void, if more than five Years out of the Ides, and not during that Space in his Majefty's Service q. An exclufive Right might be allowed to any Inhabitant who introduced into any of the Illes a Manufac- ture unexercifed in any of the King's European Dominions, for the Term of twenty-one Years, or for Life >". A Fifliing Boat, with its Equipage and Nets, might be given at the public Expence to any Native who had ferved feven Years in the Navy, upon his marrying and fettling in any one of thefe Ifles s. It is hoped, that all thefe Propofitions will appear plain^ pradicable, and not attended with any exorbitant Charge t. But after all that has or can be faid, the great Point in refpe<5l to thefe Ifles, and therefore referved for the Conclufion, is the Fishery; for which it is allowed by our own, and alfo admitted by foreign Writers, that they are better fituated than any other Countries in the World. They have the Sea on every Side, the Ocean on the North, and the immenfe Atlantic on the Weft. They have the Advantage of innumerable Creeks and Havens on every Side, fo that all Winds are favourable to them for fome Purpofe or other ; and though the Currents in the narrow Seas which divide fome of the Ifles, render the Sailing between them dangerous to Strangers, yet even thefe Sounds are fafely and commodioufly navigated by the Natives, who from their Habit in this Refpedlj, may be ftiled Seamen of Nature's making. The peculiar Fitnefs of thefe Ifles for Fllliing, is not confined to any particular Branch, as is the Cafe in mofl: other Places. They have the ° This would be at once a very cheap, and Experience has fhewn, a very eiTeftual Means of fpreading many praiflical Improvements. p This might certainly be done with more Facility, and with as great Benefit to the State, as it' they were fent to diflant Colonies in America. 1 No Qoellion this would draw many well {killed in making Nets, in the different Methods of curing Fifh, and in feveral Branches of the Fifhery, to which, for want of Inftruftion, thefe People have been hitherto Strangers. r This is no more than is praftifed in other commercial States, and has been formerly with very happy EfFefts in our own. s By this Mark of Diflinclion, the Flame of public Spirit would be kindled and maintained, and the Service in the Navy confidered as a Preferment. ' Thefe are intended only as Propofitions to be confidered, and if any other Means more effec- tual can be devifed, they will and ought to be adopted. 4 M 2 greatefl 636 The POLITICAL SURVEY greatefl Plenty of Herring in till Seafons, early and late; and it is faid (though there are Ibmc Grounds to doubt it, in fome or other of the large Lochs in the long Illand they are taken through the whole Year. If therefore by the Eltablilhment of Magazines, as has been before propofed, this Fifliery was once thoroughly fettled amongfl: the People here, it might be carried on cheaper, to greater Advantage, and with a moral Certainty of continuing longer in our Hands, than it ever did or can do in the Hands of any other Nation, fince they have been forced to fupply by Art and Management, thofe Advantages that are here the fole Gift of Providence ". Besides Herring, immenfe Quantities of white Filli, flat Fifh, and of various other Kinds, abound upon thefe Coafts, and may be caught in all their Lochs. To mention only thofe that are moft faleable, and confequently may become the Objefts of a lafting as well as a very lucrative Commerce ; Cod, Ling, Turbot, Skate and Mackrell w, all of which yield large Profits to other Countries, and can be taken in none, either in greater Quantities, or greater Perfedion than amongft thefe Illes, There are alfo all Kinds of cetaceous Fifli, from Whales of almoft every Sort and Size down to the Grampus J^', as alfo innumerable Quantities of Seals, and other amphibious Animals ; and from all thefe Train Oil might be made, of which the Confumption is continually increafing, and which therefore is, and probably always will be, a very faleable Commodity ; to fay nothing of what might be made of the Skin of fome, the Teeth of others, and the Spermaceti produced by one Tribe of thefe Creatures. Any one of thefe Fifheries, in the Hands of an induflrious People, would be fuf- ficient to enrich them, and fuch the Inhabitants of thefe liles would ce*r- tainly become, if by proper Encouragement it was once put into their Power. For in thefe Lies Subfiftence may be obtained en the eafiefl: Terms, and might be fo, if they had ten Times the Number upon them that they now have, confequently Labour is and would continue cheap. Their Situation t " Itm.iy be fiiid (and perhaps with Truth) that the Advantages made by the Dutch in this Fifliery liave been by fome Writers much exaggerated, that at all Events it is now much declined, and that the Swedes have lately come in for a confiderable Share; but this makes nothing againft our ef- tablifliing an Herring Fifhery in thefe Ifles, becaufe with their Advantages it may be efFcftually recovered, and as efFcftually preferved. w In the North Seas, Turbots are taken of fo large a Size, as that one cut in Pieces and falted fills a Barrel ; the Norwegians dry and fmoke Skate, which is chiefly exported ; the French both dry and pickle Mackrell ; all thefe Methods of curing are certainly prafticable here ; nor would there there be any Difficulty in finding Markets. =• There have been lately great Quantities of Oil made from the Livers of a particular Kind of Shark, one of which will fometimes yield tv/o Barrels. enables of G RE AT BRITAI N. 637 enables them to procure Materials for Boat-building, and all other Utenfils, as alio naval Stores at a very cheap Rate, and they need be under no Dif- ficulty in equipping fuch Veflels as might be requifite to carry their Car- goes even to the moft diftant Markets, or in furnilhing Hands or Pro- vifions requifite for fuch Voyages. To fupply thefe Cargoes, they have incomparable Conveniencies for bringing their Fifli on Shore as fall as they are caught, as well as for curc- ing drying, packing, and putting them under fuitable Infpedtion, into the beft and moft faleable Condition for every Climate, and for every Market where Fifh either now are, or may be hereafter in demand ; and their Re- turns might be carried to different Ports in Great Britain, and the Ships be laden from thence, with fuch Commodities and Manufadtures as were re- quifite for the Inhabitants of thefe Iflands ; with which they are now fur- nilhed, if furnilhed at all, by Ships putting in by Chance; fo that the very linall Trade they have at prefent is no better than Smuggling. In proportion as the Benefits which muft neceflarily arife from their feveraj Fhheries ihall advance, they would gradually raife amongft themfelves all the Trades requifite for carrying them on, futh as Sloop and Boat-builders, Rope and Sail-makers, Twine-workers, Net-makers; Coopers, &c. y ; and all thefe, in proportion as they got Money, would intereft themfelves in the FiQieries, in which they would be great Gainers, even by the fmalleft Profit, as this would come to them entirely clear, by their deriving other- wife a competent Maintenance from the living Prices allowed them in their refpedtive Occupations. This is another Reafon for fettling this Trade fo euectually, as that we may never more be rivalled in it by Foreigners; and indeed is the true and only Reafon, why, notwithftanding fo many At- tempts, and fome at very confiderable Expence, we have not been yet able to prevail fo far as to take it out of their Hands. We may add to this, what was not infifted upon before, in fpeaking of the Commodities already in their Hands, Kelp and Fern Aflies,. of which they make very great Quantities, and might make much more, and fell them at a better Rate, if all Degrees of People were intituled to the Effedls of their own Indullry and Labour, and could have recourfe to open, regular, and conftant Markets, where all Things would find their proper Value, and the Produce go into the Pockets of thofe from whofe Labour it arofe, and to whom alone it juftly belongs. y In Holland they reckon upwards of thirty Trades depending on the Fifnery; and it was by thi? Management, and their excellent Regulations in relation to catching, curing, pickling, packing, and repacking their Herrings, for which we have far greater Conveniencies, that gained them the Repu- tation thsy are in all over Europe. Ws. 638 The POLITICAL SURVEY We may now hope it is fairly and fully proved, that with due Attention, and very moderate Encouragement, thefe People might be put into a Way of becoming ufeful to themfelves and to the State. This once done, the Improvements before mentioned would follow of themfelves, and we might very foon, perhaps in half a Century, expedl to fee five hundred thoufand People in thefe Hies, whofe Confumntion of cxcifeable Commo- dities would produce a Revenue of at lea.^ as many Pounds, and their In- duftry add twice as much annually to the public Stock. The Profpedl of this was the fole Motive of the great Pains ''' that have been taken in this Sec- tion ; and may Divine Providence profper the Bntiih Adminiflration which fhall carry this good Work into Execution ! " I ilefire to be underftood literally, for the Merit I claim is from the Pains, and not from the PerfeL^ion of this Article, which I am lenfible is very incomplete: For living at fo great a Dif- tance, having few Correfpondents, and being no way connected with the Inhabitants, I may be mifrnformed as to Fafts, and of courfe may be miftaken in reafoning from them. But in this I am clear, that if thefe Ifles are ever examined by Authority, they will appear in a much better Light than I have placed them. S E C T I O N V. Part I. Ijlands of Orbiey. THE Method purfued in treating this SubjeB. Thefe IJlcs ivere certainly inha- bited in the carliejl Times. Who thefe Inhabitants were very incertain. The Opinion is that they were PiSis. Whoever they were, fubdued by the Ro~ niafis. Probable that the mojl micient Inhabitants were the Papa and Peti. Thefe were conquered-, and in a great meafiire extirpated by the Norwegians, who in the ninth Century ereBed thefe ajid the Shetland Ifles into a County dependant on the Crown of Norway. Eynar, their third Count, celebrated for having introduced the Ufe of Turf. His Defendants in Poffefjion of this Country for the Space of five Centuries. At what Time they were con- verted to Chriflianity. The Cathedral founded and dedicated to St. Magnus, a Count of Orkney, and confidered as a Chrifian Martyr. T he populous and fiourijlnng Cojidition of thefe Ifles under their Counts. The Title and Pof'ef- fon devolves to the noble Family of Sinclair. The Sovereignity of the Orkney and Shetland Ifles in Confquence of a Marriage with the Princefs Marga- ret, Daughter to Chnfia>i III. King of Denmark and Norway, transferred to fames III. King of Scots. He obtains the alfolute Pofjefjion by the vo- luntary Ceffion of Sinclaiy Ear I of Orkney. The Town of Kirkwal ereBed by him into a royal Burgh. The Manner in which thefe Ifles were governed by Lieutenants after they became fubjeB to the Kings of Scotland. S^een 3 Mary of GREAT BRITAIN. 639 Mary created James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, Duke of Orkney, Robert Stuart ralfed to that Dignity by his Nephew King 'James thcVl. His Son Patrick Earl of Orkney beheaded. The royal Reve?iue in thefe IJlands let to farm. Grant of them by way of Mortgage to the noble Family of Morton. That Grant reduced, and the Ifles reannexed to the Crown by Ah of Par- liament. Dijjolved by another ASl, and again granted to the Houfe of Mor- ton. This Mortgage declared irredeemable by AB of Parliament. Accoujit of the Bifiopric and its Revenues, the Number of the Southern IJles, and a Defcription of the tnofi remarkable amongd thetn ; the like Ejiumeration and Defer ipt ion of the Northern Ifles. A getieral Idea of their Importance, from Extent of Territory, Difpofition and Situation ; probable that they might be rendered of much greater Confequence if the Inhabitants were p?-operly en- couraged- The Nature of the Climate, Scafons, and other Circumjlances. The Soil and Produce of the Orkneys. Admirably feated for every Kind of Fipefj. Account of the Temper, Manners, Cujioms, and Employtnents of the Inhabitants. Their Number, Commerce, Circum fiances, and other Par- ticulars. Several Means propofed for rendering thefe People 7nore ufefid to themfelves, and to the Empire of Great Britain ; by making thefe Iftes the Centre of the Herring, White, and Whale Fijl^ery ; by ejlablijhing in them the ManufaBures requifite for the carrying on that Trade ; by excit- ing, encouraging, and extending their Commerce to foreign Countries ; by erecfi?ig a Vniverfity in Pomona or the main Land, with the Advantages that would attend fuch an Injiitution. And by the united Companies fixing a Magazine in them for fupplying with Eajl India Commodities the Hans Towns, Germany, and the Northern Parts of Europe^ WE are now come to the laft Sedion, relative to the IfTands that de- pend upon Great Britain, and which by proper Attention, and fome necefTary Encouragements, might undoubtedly be made in many Refpedts as highly fubfervient to her capital Interefts, as any of her more diftant Colonies ■■•. In order to render this important Truth more apparent, it will be neceflary to give, in the firfl: Place, a fuccinct Hiftory ot thefe Ifles, from which it will become manifeft, that they were not always in a low or contemptible, miK'h lefs in a deferted or neglecfled Condition''; ia, the next, it will be requifite to enter upon a fliort Defcription of them, from wloich it will be no lefs evident, tliey are Countries, that, though ' The Improvement folicited in favour of thefe diftant Provinces, will hnve this powerful Motive m Preference to Colonies, that they are already peopled ; conlequeutly, the beneficial Lfliixli ex- peeled, will be more certain, lefs expenfive, and fooner obtained. Befides, whatever Advantaj^cs accrue to them, will immediately and conftandy refult to this Country, cf which ihey will then, become a Part, in Confequence of thefe Improvements. '' If there had boen any regular, authentic, and comprehenfive Hidory of tliefe Ill.iriis, t! is- Labour might have been fparedj as thwe is not, v/.e may h.ipe it. will be acci. jtabie. 640 The POLITICAL SURVEY long flighted, are not even now in fo low a State, as not to merit our Attention c; and laftly, it will be proper to give an Account of their pre- fent Situation and Circumftances, and alfo of the Number, Condition, and Occupations of their Inhabitants ; from whence it may be certainly con- cluded, that with a reafonable and timely Degree of public Notice and fuitablc Afliftance, they might be brought to anfwer the mofl valuable Purpofes in contributing alike to the Security and to the Advantage of the Britiih Empire, and thereby fully cou penfate whatever in their prefent Condition may be required to put them on a tolerable, if not upon an equal Foot with the reft of our Dominions ^i. It is altogether impoffible to fiiy with hiflorical Certainty, when, how, or by whom thefe lilands were firft planted ; becaufe from the very earlicfl Accounts, that are any where extant, in regard to Commerce and Naviga- tion, we find, even the moft diftant.of them are treated as Countries that were already known and inhabited s. As fuch, they were vifited by the Phcenicians, from whom one of the mofl Northern of them, or rather one of the Shetland Illes, was fliled Thule, that is, dark or obfcure, as being- then probably very full of Wood *", An ancient Author, Antonius Dioge- nes, who flouriilied not long after Alexander the Great, wrote a large Work concerning them &, the Materials of which are faid to have been taken from Cyprefs Tables preferved in the Tombs of Mantima and Der- celis at Tyre, which Work is indeed loft, but an Extradl of it is ftill pre- ferved i^, and this is Evidence fufhcient to prove, that the People of Tyre were acquainted with thefe Iflands, and from them the Knowledge that there were fuch Countries came to be communicated to the Greeks '. If we truft to the Accounts of later Hiftorians, they will infinuate to us, that they were in antient Times inhabited by the Pidls or Pights, who were a Northern Nation, diflinguifl:icd by their being a fair, tall, comely, robufl, ' Thefe Coiinti-ies flourilhed formerly, when the Manners of the Northern Nations were different from wliat they are at prefect ; by adopting therefore a ntw Syftem, they, as well as other Northern Countries, mifjht be aguui brought to flourifli ; and this new Syflem is nothing more than uniting them really and effeftually, inflead of partially, or rather nominally, to the Empire oi Britain. '' By this Means, the Induftry of the Inhabitants would be better applied, and the whole Pro- duce of their Induilry enter into the Channel of general Circulation. "^ The Egyptians and the Phosnicians addifted themfelves firft to Navigation, the former turned their Views to tlie Indies, and the latter towards the North. ' Bochart. Chanan. lib. i. cap. 40. All the ancient Authors fupport this Etymology, by the Epi- thets they beftow on this Ifland wherever fituated. g G. I. Vofs. de Hiflor. Grsec. lib. i. cap. 15. He wrote twenty-four Books of the incredible Things reported of Thule. ''. Photii. Biblioth. mem. 166. This Work is alfo mentioned by Porphiry, in his Life of Pytha- goras, and by Servius on the Georgics of A'irgil. ' Herod. Clio, cap. i. Diod. Sicul. lib. v. cap. 74, Strab. Geogr. lib. xvi. p. 531. 5 and of GREAT BRITAIN. 6^i and warlike People k. We are likewife told that one Belus, King of Ork- ney, invaded Scotland in the Reign of Eoganus or Ewen the Second, by whom however he was defeated, and flew himfelf thereupon, to avoid beincr made Prifoner '. This would fcarce have deferved to be mentioned, if there had not been Authority to prove, that the Name of Belus was aduallv to be feen in an ancient Gothic or Runic Characfter on a Stone Monument, preferved Vv'ithin Memory, in the Church of Birfa, in Orkney "'. We are alfo told of one Ganus, a Monarch of thefe Illes, who was led in Triumph at Rome in the Time of Claudius Ca^faro j but it muil be allowed, that as •on the one Hand, there feems to be no juft Grounds to reiecfl the Autho-> rities by which this Fa6t is fupported ; fo on the other Side, it is very difficult to reconcile it with v/hat Tacitus fays as to the firft Difcovery of thefe Ifles by the Romans, when his Father-in-law Agricola commanded in Britain. At that Time however it muft be allowed, that they were well inhabited, fince he alTerts, that they were not only difcovered, but fub- dued ''. The Roman Poets boaft not a little of the Conquefl: of the Or- cades q, which have been reckoned by fome Writers as making, on the Divifion of the Empire, a Part of the Territories of Conftantine, one of the Sons of Conftantine the Great r. But leaving thele clallical Guides at this Period, v/e muft now have Recourfe to our own Hiftorianss. At the Time Columb, or St. Columba, fo often mentioned in the former Sedlion, vifited the Court of Brudaeus King of the Pifts, that is ^ Johannis de Fordun Scotlchron. lib. i. cap. 29. Langhorn. Antiq. Albion, p. 275. R. Made de Antiquit. GeniLs Scotorum, lib. ii. ' Heft. Bocth. Hill. Scot. lib. ii. fol. 29. who calls him Balus. Buchan. Rerum Scot, Hill. lib. iy. p. 108. "■• Dr. Wallace's Defcription of the Orkneys, p. no. He fr.ys the Stone widi the Word Belus upon it, in odd ancient Characflers, remained then in the Church of Birfa. " Boeth. Scot. Hilf. lib. iii. p. 40. Lefl. de Reb. geft. Sector, lib. ii. p. 99. is filent on this Head. Buchan. Rer, Scot. Hill. lib. iv. p. no. declmes that he dilbclieves the Facl. o Eutrop. Rom. Hilt. Brev. lib. vii. cap. 7. P. Orolli adverfos Paganos Hifl. lib. vii. cap. 6. Bed. Hid. Ecclef. Gent. Anglor. lib. i. cap. 3. Thofe who mention iuetonius, as fayinw the fame Thing, are milled- by an Error in fome Copies, wherein Orcades is put for Stoechades, which are the Ifiands Kieres, at the Mouth of the Rhone. But the great Authority is Pomponius ^l^h, who mentions the Orcades, and who flourifhed tmdcr Claudius. P Iq vita Agricolffi, cap. 10. Hanc Oram noviljimi maris tunc primum Romana ClaiTis circumvefl.i, Infulam efie Britaaniam affirmavir, ac fimul incognitas ad id tempus infulas, quas Orcadas vocant, invenit domuitque. Difpecla e(l et Thyle, qiiam hniflenus nix, et Hiems abdebit ■3 Juvenal. Sat. ii. § 161. Claudian. de Conful. Honor. Stat. lib. v. Protrept. ad Crifpin. ' Polyd. Virgil. Hill. Angl. lib. iii. p. 67. ' Heh. Boeth. Scoiorum Hilt. lib. fol. vii. 128. Polyd. Virgil. Angl. Hifl. lib. iii. p. -9. B.i!s defcript. Brit. P. ii. p. 1S6. mention Servanvis as fent from Rome about the Middle of the Fifth Century, and confecrated Bilhop of the Orknef,-s. He certainly preached the Gofpel in Scotland, an J in thefe Ifles. For we find aChuich dedicatal to his Memory, near Loch Levin ; and, which was their Cuftom, the People of Orkoey adumed his as a Sirname, which fliblills to ihii Day in the Family of St. Serf. Vol. I. 4 N about 642 The POLITICAL SURVEY about the Middle of the ninth Century, he met there with a Prince of the Orkneys, who was tributary to that Monarch, to whom he recommended his Dii'ciple Cormuc, who afterwards vifited his Dominions t. It is gene- rally held that, together with the reft of the Pidlifh Kingdom, thefe Ifles fell under the Power of Kenneth M'Alpin, who eftablifhed the Sovereignty of the Scots over all North Britain ", by whom it is fuppofed they were retained, until Donald Bain gave them up to the Norwegians; from whom, together with the reft of the Iflands, the Succeflbrs of Malcolm Canmoir, if we may truft the Scots Writers, endeavoured to recover them, with- out being able to prevail "'. It muft be admitted, that there are various Circumftances in this De- tail that are very far from being clear, and therefore fome Notice is due to a lefs known, though not lefs probable Account, preferved in the an- cient Records of the People of Orkney, in which it is exprefly fald, that the Orkneys (and probably the Shetland liles) were originally inhabited by two Nations, the Papi or Paps, and the Peti^. The former of thefe poiTeffed the Northern Ifles, in the Appellations of fome of which their Name is ftill preferved. The latter occupied the Southern Iflands, which were from thence ftiled Terra Petorum, and the narrow Sea, which di- vides them from the Continent of Scotland, Fretum Petlandicum, now cor- ruptly called the Piclland or Pightland, more corredlly the Petland Firth ^^ Frorh hence, with fome Degree of Probability, we may colledt, that the Prince before mentioned, with whom Columb the Apoftle of the Nor- thern Pids, converfed at the Court of Brudasus, was the Chief of thefe Peti,. and not, as he is generally reprefented, a tributary Pidifli Prince c. ' Adamnan. vit. S. Columbae, lib. ii. cap. 42. Bed. Ecclef. Hift. Gent. Anglor. lib. iii.cap, 4. Jo- hannis de Fordun Scotichron. lib. iv. cap. 2. " Heft. Boeth. Scot. Hift. lib. x. Led. de Rtb. geft. Scot. lib. Iv. p. 182. w Dr. Wallace's Defciiptlon of the Orkneys, p. 115. a This ancient and authentic Record, which is a folemn Return to Eric, thenEIing of Norway,, by the Bithop, Chief Juftice, principal Perfons, and Heretors of Orkney, under the Seal of the Ifland, bearing Date May 4, A. D. 1403, reciring at large from their Archives, the Defcent and: Right of William Sinclair, the then Ear!, to that Honour, was in the Beginning of the current Century in the PolTeflion of Mr. Robert Norry, Minifter at Dundee. ^ Dr. Wallace's Defcription of the Iflands of Orkney, p. 129. ■: It has been thought (vide Sibbaldi Introduff. ad Hift. veteris Scotise, p. 35.) we may leara;. fomething as to the original Country of thefe Peti, from Herodotus, Polym. p. 182. where men- tioning the Tribes of Thracians, in the Army which Xerxes led into Greece, he fets down the PetJj, Cicones, Biftones, Sapcei, Derfasi, Edoni, and SattJe. If thefe afterwards penetrated into the Northern Parts of Europe, they might eafdy pafs from theix:e into thefe Ifles. It has been men- tioned as fomething tending towards a Proof, that among the moft antient Families in thefe Ifles, were the Biftanes and the Setters ; but to fuch Coiyedluies we ought to pay no gre,at Regard.. of GREAT BRITAIN. 643 The great Country of Norway was anciently divided into fevcral little Principalities, governed by their refpedive Princes or Chiefs, called in their ov/n Language, Fylkis Konga, and ftiled in the Latin Iliftorians Phi- larchi d. Harold Harfargre, i. e. Haroldus Comatus, five pulchri comus, that is the brighter fair-haired Harold, refolving to make himfclffole Monarch of Norway,- attacked thofe little Princes, and after a long and bloody War reduced mod of them, and forced the reft to fly with fuch of their Follow- ers as were content to be the Companions of theirFortunes into Iceland, Fer- rce, Shetland, Orkney, and other lllands, about the Year 875 c. He followed them with a Fleet and Army into thefe lllands of which we are fpeaking, and landing firft in Shetland, and then proceeding to the Orkneys, left in them a conftderable Force, under the Command of Rongwald, a Nobleman of diftinguifhed Birth, and high in his Favour, to whom he gave the Title of Earl or Count ; and he with the Norwegians under his Command fub- dued, and as the Northern Writers fay (which is perhaps beyond the Truth) utterly exterminated the ancient Inhabitants ', bringing in con- tinual Supplies of his own Countrymen, at that Time very powerful by Sea, to inhabit thefe Countries, which they with good Reafon efteemed better than their own ; and thus, if their Relations are to be relied on, which are indeed better connefted, and have an Air of greater Probability than what we meet with in our own Hillorians, thefe Countries fell into the Hands of the Norwegians g. Rongwald, who was a potent Nobleman, and had large Pofiefiions in Norway, made a free Gift of tliefe new acquired Ellates to his Brother Sigurd or Sward, who enjoyed them during his Life, and left them to his Son Gothurn, who furvived hini only one Year, and dying without Iffue the Earldom reverted to Rongyv^ald, who had three legitimate Sons, one of whom was Rollo, afterwards named Robert, the hrlT: Duke of Nor- mandy, and three Baftards, the youngeft of whom was by his menial Ser- vant li. His Name was Einar or Eynard, on whom his Father bcilowed Orkney and Shetland, and from whom ail the fucceeding Earls lineally defcended. He is called in Latin Einar de Cefpite or Einarus Torffein- '' Angrlmus Jonas Comment, de Iflandia, P. ii. § 5. Id. de Ifiaiidic* Gent'is prhiiordiis ct %eteii Republica, cap. ii. « Tovfei Hill. Norv. P. ii. p. 49. Angiimus Jonas ubi fiipra. f Rerum Orcadenf. Hift. lib. i. cap. 3. g Tiie Hiftory of the Affitirs of Orlaiey, publiflied by TcrfLSus. but co!Ie<5ted chiefly from the Iflimdic Writers, correfponds in this Refpeft with the Record before mentioned. It clearly ap- pears from that very curious Fragment, the People of Orkney had great Collcclions of valuable pieces in their Archives, which (if not removed to Norway} are all diffpr.tcd or deflroyed. h Rerum Orcadenf. Hiff. lib. i. cap. 7. 4 N 2 aruE. 644 The POLITICAL SURVEY arus', in his own Country Language Torf-Einar or Turffeid, from his firA: teaching his People the Ufe of Turf or Peat for Fuel.. The candid PvCader will not probably be difpleafcd, if we fubmit to his- Judgment our Conjedlure on fo fingular a Subject. It is poilible, that the ancient Inhabitants of thefc Illes, whoever they were, might, as the Briton* were accuftomed to do before the Coming of Cslar, make ufe of their Woods^ as FortreiTes or Places of Strength, to which they retired upon any Inva- fion. This, it is likely, occafioned their being almoft all dcftroyed, by the Norwegians, who afterwards fuffered no fmall Diftrefs, in a Country rendered colder by the Deftrudtion of thefe Forefls, as well as for want of that Fuel which they had hitherto fupplied. It is therefore no wonder that Eynar fliould be fo highly celebrated as he is, by the Iflandic and Nor- wegian Bards, for finding out the Ufe of Turf, without which thefe Iflands could fcarcely be inhabited in their prefent naked and expofed Condition ^. His Grandfon Sward the Second was the firll Chrlllian Earl, and liis Great Grandfon Magnus, being barbaroully murthcrcd by his Coufin Ha- co, from an ambitious Defire of enjoying the whole Patrimony, came from that Circumftance, and the Innocency of his Life, to be reputed a Saint and Martyr '. To his Memory, Rolandus one of his Succeffors, eredled^ dedicated, and endowed the Cathedral Church of St. Magnus "', which was enlarged into a very {lately Building in fucceeding Times, and ftill re- mains the unqueftionable Monument of this Fadl, as well as the great Ornament of the Town of Kirkwall ", which feems to have derived its , Name, as well as its Confequence from this Strudure. The People of thefe Iflands remained feveral Ages under alongSucceffion. of thefe Earls, and dependant on the Kingdom of Norway °, under averyeafy and equitable Conftitution, the Earl living upon his demefne Lands, the Bi- fhop and Clergy having alfo a Support fuitable to their refpedlive Stations, and the Inhabitants enjoying a lucrative and extenfive Commerce, which en- > It was the Cuftom of the Norwej^ians, and in thofe Times perhaps of all the Northern Na- tions, to diftinguifli their Princes by fuch Appellations. " Rer. Oread. Hift. lib. i. cap. 7. p. 19. which agrees alfo with the Record of, Orkney, Angr. Jonas de Idandia, cap. vi. ' Buchanan fays they were converted to Chriftianity by St. Magnus ; and in Contempt of Epif- copacy, would have us believe he left a Cup of an enormous Size, out of which he drank, which at his Acceffion was prefented to every new Bifhop, that the People by his firft Draught might dravtf an Omen of his Abilities and Adminiftration. "" Rer. Qrcadenf. Hift. lib. i. cap. 25. It is affirmed that Magniis fuffered April i6. A. P. I no. " Torfaeus conjectures, that this Town was in the ancient Language of the Natives ; called Kirkiuvog, i. e. the Bay under the Church; Ja L^tin, or rather latinijed. Kircua^ or CracovJacj, as Buchanan calls it, abled of GREAT BRITAIN. 645^ ablcd them to build and maintain many flout Ships p. Of the Truth of all thefe Facls, independant of Tradition, Records, and Hiltories, there ftill remain vifible and indubitable Teflimonies relative to thefe diiierent Periods; fuch as, Places in which large Stones are fet up in a particular Form, which from the Compariibn with thofe of the like Kind in other Northern Nations, appear to have been confccrated to tlie Worfhip in thofe early and barbarous Ages paid to Wodin or Odin q ; the Pets, Pids, or Pights Houfes, which, now overgrown with Earth, are of a very flrangc and fingular Structure; the Wart or Ward Hill in every liland, on which Beacons were placed, to give Notice of Fleets. fcen, or Enemies landed; the Remains of Forts and Watch Towers in almofl every Ifiand ; the Ca- thedral and many other Churches and Chapels ereded at'ter thefe People became Chriftians >■. Many of thefe Earls had alfo ample Ei1;ates in Nor- way and Iceland, and held likewife the Earldoms ofCaithnefs and Su- therland in Scotland, but refiding chiefly at their Palace in Orkney, fpent. nwd of their Revenues there; which contributed no doubt to enrich their S.ubjedls,. and increafe their Elleem and Refpcdl for thefe Lords 5. This Succeffion of Earls ended in Magnus the fifth, to whom, in Rio-ht of his Mother, fucceeded Malis Earl of Strathern in Scotland, who held the Earldoms both of Orkney and Caithnefs. This Earl, by two Wives, left five Daughters, by which the Inheritance came to be divided, and poffelTed by different Families, till at length it was again united in the noble Family of Sinclair":, who were in Pollelhon ; when by virtue of the Contraft of ?vIarJ^ riage between James the third. King of Scots, and the Princefs Margaret, Daughter to Chriitian the third. King of Denmark and Norway, all the. Rights of the laft mentioned Monarch v/ere transferred by way of Mort- gage, redeemable for fifty thoufand Florins, Part of the Marriage Portion ° According to this Account, which for thofe Times feems fufficiently clear and confiHent, the Norwegians held thefe Ifles 593 Year?. P In the Hillory pubiidied by Tor feus, there are many flgnallnftances of naval Armaments, nad- of great Refort of Shipping to thefe Ifles. 1 P. Diac.de gcflis Longobardorum, hb. i. cap. 9. 01. Worm. Monument. Danlca. Rsr. Oread. Hifl. lib i. cap. 7. p. 19. y Dr. Wallace, p. 82. informs us, that befides the Cathedra!, there are 31 Churches, all built in old Times, and upwards of 100 ancient Chappels in thefe lOands, which he obferves, (hew the Inhabitants of this Country were in paft Ages, as well as in the prefent, that is, more than hr.lf a Century ago, much addifled to Devotion. * The People in thefe Times had good Reafon to think themftlvcs happy, their Propeity was iecure, they had the Protection of Norway, a friendly Intcrcourfe with Scotland ; their Earls lived magniScently, and lived amongfl them ; the Church was rich, and the Clergy Natives ; to which \»(.r€;addeJ, the Benefits attending their Situation, a free Commerce with all their Neighbours. ' The inquifitive Reader may had the feveral Dtfcents of thefe Daughters fucciudUy Hated in the Record before mentioned. 2 ©£ 6+6 The POLITICAL SURVEY of lixty thoufand Florins, to King James ; which Contra<5t bears Date at Copenhagen, September the 8th, A. D. 1468 ". These Iflands being thus transferred, it is evident that King James came only in the Place of his Father-in-law, Chriftian the firft. King of Denmark and Norway j that is, the Hom-ge and the Sovereignty of thefc Iflcs were yielded and made over to him, while the aclual Pollenion re- mained as before in the Earl of Orkney"'. But by a Tranfadlion between the Hime King, and William, the Son of Henry the Second, Son to Henry the firft, who was Son to William Lord Sinclair, by the Daughter of MaHfe, Earl of Orkney, the then Earl, within lefs than three Years after the Cef- fion of thefe Iflands, had a Compenfation given him for the Earldom x, by the Grant of Lands then in Polle'Tion of the Crown, in the County of F-ifej in Confcquence of which, the King's Title being rendered complete, thefe Iflands were annexed to the Crown of Scotland by Adl of Parlia- menty. James the third, as appears by this Exchange and Annexation, had a true Notion of their Value ; and that he might promote the Welfare of their Inhabitants, he gracioully, and at the fame Time prudently, eredled Kirkwall into a Royal Borough, and preferved to the People their Cuftoms and Privileges, and more efpecially thofe of the L^dalmen or Freeholders '. They were governed during that and the fucceeding Reign by the King's Lieutenants ; and notwithftanding their Surrender of the Earldom, the Fa- mily of Sinclair, about the Year ijor, obtained a very beneficial Grant of the Rents of the Earldom, which they enjoyed for many Years i. However, it feems tliey were not content with this, but afpir.d to the recoveriiig the entire Poffeffion. To make this as clear as at this Dillance of Time is poflible, it is to be obfcrved, that amongft the Reafons wl)ich determined William Sinclair, Earl of Orkney and Caithnefs, to refign his Honours to the Crown, as has been before mentioned, one was, a Defire of fubrtitut- ing his Son William, by Marjory, Daughter to Alexander, eldeft Son to the Earl of Sutherland, his-fecond Wife, to his elder Son William by Elizabeth his firft Wife, Daughter of James Earl of Douglas, as his " Hifl. Oread, lib. ii. p. 191 . where the M.irringe Contraft is at large inferted. ■" This Earl had been Chancellor of Scotland in the preceding Reign, and 29th of April 1456 created Earl of Caithnefs. " Wc Hull hereafter have Occafion to mention fome of the Motives which are fuppofed to have determined the Earl to this Meafure. y This Art of Parliament is preferved in Haddington's Collcftions from the Records. • ^ In Norway, this is Odel-right, and was eft iblilhed before the Tiinc of Harold Harfagre ; who, thongh he fubdued and extinguilhed the Petty Princes or Chiefs, went no farther than fixing a Tax'(and that but a fmall one) upon thefe Freeholders, (liied Ode's-ll the eldcil; Son, Lord Sinclair, and declared him Head and Chief of his Family, as in Truth he was", yet his Son concurred with George Earl of Caithnefs, the Grandibn of William, in whofe Favour that Earldom had been refigned, in a bold At- tempt upon the Orkneys, where they landed with a confiderable Force; but the People of the Country, being headed by Sir James Sinclair, then Captain of the Caftle of Kirkwall, a Baftard Son of the fame Family, at- tacked and routed them at a Place called Summers Dale, on the 18th of May 1529, when the Earl of Caithnefs, and about five hundred of his Follo\vers, were killed or drowned, and the Lord Sinclair and all the red were made Priioners d. This Sir James Sinclair, prefuming on the Merit of his great Service,, procured from King James the fifth a Grant of the two fine Iflands of Sanda and Eda, upon a falte SuggelHon that they were only Holms fit for- grazing, which is fuppofed to be the Reafon that Buchanan has left them out in his flaort Account of thele Illands, on a Suppofition that they really were fo. But the King being informed of this Impofition, and exprefling a very high Refentment thereat, Sir James was fo terrified on the arrival of that Monarch at Kirkwall in 1534, that upon the firfl News of it he threw himfelf into the Sea at a Place called the Loup of Linknefsf. This Monarch was entertained by Dr. Robert Maxwell, then Bifliop, during his Stay; and having compofed all the Troubles, he carried away with him feme of the moft fadlious Perlbns, that they might create no more Diflurbances^ When he left theie Ifles, that Prince conceived fo an high an Opinion of the Loyalty of the People of Kirkwall, that on his Return to Edinburgh,, he granted them a Confirmation of their Charter*". Soon after the Attempt before mentioned, he granted the Revenues of" the Earldom to James Earl of Murray, which Grant however never took. EfFedlg ; but the Widow of the Lord Sinclair continued to enjoy that be- neficial Leafe, which has been mentioned, to the Year 1540 ; when the Rents of thefe Illands were let again to Sir Oliver Sinclair at two tlioufand ^ This appears from the Charter of the new Creation, dated the. 8th of December 1476, andl the Honour IHII remains in this Line., ' Chartain publ. Archivis, '' Mackenzie's Collections. HoUinlhed's Hiftory of Scotland, p. 3 1 7 • Dr. Wallace's Defcrip- taon of the Iflands of Orkney, p. 95. e This is a Promontory to the North of Deer Sound in Pomona, and the Faft is prcfeiveJ by Tradition in the Country. ' This Charter bears Date Feb. 3th, A. D. T53.6.. 5 Qreat Seal Regifter, B. 26. n. 25. ? PoundsK 648 The POLITICAL SURVEY Pounds a Year ''. In 1565, Qiieen Mary made a Grant of them to her na- tural Brother ', Lord Robert Stuart; wliich, however, was revoked upon the Queen's becoming of Age ■<. In i <;67, the fame Princefs was prevailed upon, not only to make a new Grant of thefe Iflands to James Hepburn, Earl of BolhwcU, but alfo to raife him to the Title of Duke of Orkney, in Confcqnence of her unhappy Refolution to become his Wife'. Upon his Flight and Forfeiture, they fell again to the Crown, and in that State con- tinued for fome Years'; when Lord Robert Stuart reviving his Claim on the Grant made to him feventeen Years before, and making ufe of that In- fluence which he had over the young King James the Sixth as his Uncle, and being himfelf alfo a Perfon of great Addrefs, prevailed at length fo far, as not only to get that Grant renewed, but alfo by Letters Patent, dated Oc- tober 28th I jJ^ I, got himfelf at the fame Time created Earl of Orkney ". But in a few Years, for the Violences and Oppreflions by him committed, that Grant was revoked ", but renewed again in two Years, upon his re- covering the Favour of his Nephew King James the fixth, and two Years after that confirmed to him and to his Son p. In 1600, Patrick Earl of Ork- ney, Son to Robert, obtained a new Grant j and being a proud Man and deiirous of extending his Power and amalVing Wealth, he treated the People lb ill, that upon their Complaints, he was imprifoned; and even in that State having folicited and excited an open Rebellion, he was in 161 5 convidtcd of high Treafonj and beheaded 'i. After this, to quiet the Minds of the People of Orkney, a public Proclamation was made by Authority ■from the Crown, declaring that thele Iflands fliould never more be dif- fevered or granted in private Property-*. Sir James Stuart, afterwards Lord Ochiltree, became in 1614 the King's Farmer General for thefe Iflands; and in a few Years after, the Complaints againft him were fo many and fo loud, that he was imprifoneds. In 1624, the then Chancellor, Sir George Hay, had the CoUedlion of thefe Rents, ^ This fully appears from the Entries on the Exchequer P>.olIs yet extant. ■* Great Seal Regifler, B, 35. n. 494. ^ Ibid B. 36. n. 92. A Grant being at the fame Tipe made Xo James Earl of Both\ycIl, and his Heirs Male. ' Buchan. Rerum Scotic. Hift. lib. xviii. Spofifwood's Hiflory of Scotland, Book iv. p 203. " The Rents during this Space were accounted for to the Treafury. ■■' Spotifwood's Hihory of Scotland, Book vi. p. 315. Moyfe's Memoirs of the Afliiirs of Scot- land, p. 56. o Great Seal Rcfjifler, R. 37. n. 414. ■" Many Complaints had been continually made againft this Earl Robert, who notwithftanding ebtained this Grant. Great Seal Regifter, B. 63. fol. 210. '1 Spotifwood's Hiftory of Scotland, Book vii. p. 521. R. Johnftoni Britanicarum Hift. lib. xv. ;p.486. ' The Order for this rroclamation Is entered in the Rcglfter of the Privy Council. :" Privy Scil Ilegifter, B. 82. fol. 280. Spotifwood's Hillpry of Scotland, Book vji. p. 5 That is, in regard to the Crown Rent, now received from the Inhabitants. ' Earl of Morton's Memorial, in the Caufc between his Lordfhip and the Earl of Galloway and others, 12 June 1758, p. 11. k Stat. 20 Geo II. cap. 43. § i. See alfo the authentic Lift of the Sums adjudged and paid to the Claimants under that Aft. 1 As thefe Bifliops received their Education in fome other Country, and were almoft equally connefted with Norway and Scotland, this obliged them to cultivate their Underflandings, and to gain a thorough Knowledge of both Courts, that they might be the better able to fupport their own Interefts, and thofe of th&ir See ; and fome of them alfo (the Times confijered) were Men of Learning. this of GREAT BRITAIN. 651 this See was of very conliderable Value ; and the Prelates who fat there, were many of them Men of very diftinguilhed Abilities "', and of fuch Cre- dit, as to be frequently intruded with the Government of the Country ', employed in foreign Embaflies °, and advanced to civil Offices, by which they accumulated Wealth, no fmall Part of which they laid out in em- belliffiing their Cathedral, in building and improving their Palaces, and in the Support of other public Ufes p. At the Time of the Reformation, Bifiiop Bothwell exchanged the Temporality of this Biiliopric with Lord Robert Stuart, for the Abbey of Holy-rood Houle 'i ; in confequence of which, that Nobleman, and his Son Patrick, enjoyed the Revenues of the Bifhopric as well as the Earldom of Orkney r. In 1614., all the Lands of the Bifhopric and Ecclefiaftics were refigned to the Crown j in Conildera- tion of which. King James the fixth 3 granted back a fufficient Subfillence to the Bidiop and Clergy, exempting the Lands fo granted from the Power of the Earl and his Officers, and allowing the Bilhop to appoint a Sheriff and other Officers of his own, and granting him likewife the Pa- tronage of all the Benefices f. In 1653, the Value of thefe Lands was about ten thoufand Pounds Scots per Annum, and a third Part being de- duced for IMinifters Stipends, and the Remainder, which was the clear Rent of the Bilhopric, amounting to above five hundred Pounds flerling, was then, by Grant from the governing Powers, enjoyed by the City of Edin- burgh u. After the Refloration they were again fettled upon the Bifhop, and after the Revolution annexed to the Crown. His Lordlhip, as has been " See the Memorial before cited, p. i 5. " Eric, Heir apparent of Denmark and Norwaj-, A. D. 1422, appointed Thomas Biihop of Orkne)' Governor of the Earldom. Hift. Oread, lib. ii. p. i 78. William Bifhop of Orkney., and his SuccclTor Andrew, had the Colieftion of Crown Revenues from A. D. 1474 to A. D. 1501. A Commilhon was granted by the Privy Council to George Graham, Bifhop of Orkney, loth May 1620, to inquire Into and redrefs Grievances in Shetland. o William Tulloch, Bifhop of Orkney, had a great Share in negotiating the Treaty of Marriage between James the third, and the Princefs Margaret of Norway. Bifhop Reid was in great Credit with James the fifth, who fent him on fcveral Embaflies, and after his Death, he attended his Daughter Mary into France, when (he went to marry the Dauphin. Bifhop Bothwell was often lent to negotiate public Affairs in England, aad was alfo one of the Senators of the College of Jullice. P This plainly fhews how much the People and Country were benefited by thefe Ellabliiliments, and accounts for their Decline, when thofe who enjoy the Profits of thofe Eftablilhments refi Je no longer amongU them. ^ The Son of this Bifhop, who was one of the Senators of the College of Juflice, w.is by James the fixth created Lord Holy-rood Houfe, 20th December, A. D. 1607. ' To which Patrick had no Colour of Right ; and jet it was not till after liis Death, that Bi- fhop Law obtained quiet PoirefTion of the Lands belonging to his See. = In A. D. 1 61 2, an Aft of Parliament pafTed, appointing Commiffioners to fettle this Ex- change, which two Years after was completed. ' l3r. Wallace's Defcription of the Illands of Orkney, p. loi. "The Rental of the Bifhopric, A. D. 1653, was 6796 1. i6s. 4d. Scots, or 566 1. 3 s. i d. fler- ling. As to the City of Edinburgh, fee Wallace, p. 102. 4 O 2 faid, 652 The POLITICAL SURVEY faiJ, enjoys them by a Grant, but fubjcdt to fuch Deduftions, that it I«^ thought they do not amount to above half the Sum before mentioned. Besides the Crown Rents, thofe of the Earldom and Bifliopric, the Earl of Morton has alfo a temporary Grant of the Rights of Admiralty. The Ad- miralty of the Iflands of Orkney and Shetland was always dillinct and feparate from that of Scotland, and held not to be included in the Grant to the Family of Lenox w, any more than the Power of Juftice General; then in the Family of Argylc, which never extended thither. As to the Cuftoms, in antient Times they were far from being inconliderable as fome have fuppofed ; for Nvhile governed by their own Earls, and even after they were ceded to the Kings of Scotland, there was a great Refort of Shipping to them from Hol- land, Zealand, Hamburgh, Bremen, Ernbden, Roftock, and other Places >^. The Duties impofed for Licence to filh on the Coafts, were derived from, . as they had always been aflerted by, the Kings of Norway y, and were ac- tually paid to the Kings of Scotland while it remained a feparate Kingdom ; which Rights were ftrenuoufly maintained by James the fixth, and Charles the firft t, and are here mentioned to fliew the great Importance of thefe Ifles ; to the Defcription of which we will now proceed. In Ptolemy's Geography, the moft Northern Promontory of the Conti- nent of Britaiji is called Tarvedrum, and Orcas a j whether in reality thefe Names belong to two Capes, or to one, and by what Names they arc, or it is nov/ called, would be no eafy Talk to fettle. But from Cape Orcas, the Illands oppofite to it, are with great Probability fuppoled to have been called Orcades, Orcad-eys,,i. e. liles off", or oppofite to Cape Orcas, corruptly Orkneys b. Camden thinks-they were fo filled from ar or or, which in the old Britifn fignified over againft, and Cat, that is the Point of the Catti, or People of Caithnefs c. Baxter derives it from or or gor, two Britifli Words, which he takes in the fame Senfe with Camden, and Cad, which is as much as to '^ Diileton's Doubts and Queflions, p. 2&6 — 288. Sir James Steuart's Doubts and Quef- tioiis in the Law of Scotland relolved and aniwered, p. 473. « The Truth of this appears from the HiOory publilhcd by Torfsus, by the Books of the Privy Council, and by Coinmiffions for determining Difputes on this Subjeft. 1 Joh. Pontan. Difcuf. Hill. lib. i. tap. 21. Jo. Loccenius, de Jure Maritimo, lib. i. cap. 9. Seldeni Marc Claufum, lib, ii. cap. 31. * WcKvood's Dominion of the Sea, chap. iii. Sclderi as before cited. The Appendix to the Englila Transition of Mare Claufum, printed by Authority of the Parliament, A. D. 1652. » In feme MSS. of Ptolomy, we read Tarvedufne five Horcas. ^ This feems very fatisfaftory, if we confider Orcas as a Word framed from the Name given to the Promontory by the Natives. In the Idandic, which many think was their Lan- guage, Ork fignifies Strength, and makes Orka in the Plural, which might give Name to the Cape, from the flrong and rapid Tides between it and the oppofite Iflands, '^ Britan. p. 848. very ingenious, and very probable, if there had been no Cape Orcas ; for this Kaifon, the former is more like to be the Truth, 2 fay of GREAT BRITAIN. 6^7 fiiy Head or Promontory d. As to the fanciful Derivations from an old Gothic Prince whofc Name was Eriior Ork, or from the Old Scandinavian Ear and Kyn, i. e. an Offspring of Honour ; they are in Truth hardly worth mentioning i^. The Number of them, if we were folely to depend upon antient Authors, is very uncertain. Pomponius Mela, who calls them Orchades, fays, there were thirty of them f. Pliny makes theai forty g. Ptolomy reckons thtm thirty i'. Orofius and Ifidore fay, there were thirteen- inhabited, and twenty defart'. Solinus fpeaks of them as deftitute of Wood, and overgrown with Ruflies k. John Fordun fays, that all together they make upwards of two hundred, and that more than forty of them, in his Time, many Years before the Ceflion to Scotland, were inhabited '. Boethius fays nothing upon this Kead at all; and, indeed, nothing he fays about them deferves to be regarded. J. Ferrerius, a Piedmontefe, who continued his Hiftory from Materials fur- nished by Henry Sinclair, Bifliop of Rofs, fixes the Number of inhabited Ifles, as, we do, at twenty eight™. Buchanan is likewife filent as to their Number, for want probably of any certain Information ". The Situation of thefe Ifles, more efpecially in regard to Commerce, is very commodious ; they have the Ocean on the North, the Ides of Shetland on the North Eafl, the German Ocean on the Eafl, Petland Firth, which divides them from the Continent of Scotland, on the South, which Streisht is about hve Leagues over,, and the Great Atlantic Ocean on the Weft". They lie between fifty-eight Degrees forty-three Minutes, and fifty-nine De- grees thirty-four Minutes of North Latitude?. At d GlofTar. Antiq. Britan. p. i88, 189. This (if the Author be right in the Britifli Words) is clearer than Camden's Expianatioa; but is ftill liable to the fame E,s.ception, as it cannot be ap- plied to the Cape : And the lame Author (Ptolomy) fpeaks of Cape Orcas, and of the Ifles called Orcades ; and if Orcas was the Denomination given bj' the Natives, ihtaOrcad-eys was clearly ths Name of the Iflands, foftent;d by the Romans into Orcades. e Dr. Wallace's Delcription of the Iflands of Orkney, p. 2. f De Situ Orbis, lib. iii. cap. 6. s Hift. Nat. lib. iv. cap. 16. ^ Geogiaph lib. viii. cap. 2. ' Adverfus Paganos, Hifl. lib. i. cap. 1, . ^ Polyhifl. cap. xxv. ' Scotichron. lib. i. cap. 11. fol. 21. m Scotorum Hifl. Appendix, fol. 388. b. . a Rerum Scotic. Hid. lib. i. " The intelligent Reader willeafily difcern from hence, how happily thefe Ifles are fituated for a commodious Correfpondence one with another, the cflabliflVmg M.igazincs, the carrying. on Fiftieries of every Kind, the intercepting an Enemy's Ships duiing a War, and uiaintaining in Time of Peace a mofl: extenfive Commerce. P In Mr. Mackenzie's Map, Longitude is reckoned from Kirkwall, which is his firfl Meridian. But iaotker Maps, which are thought to be very exail, Kirkwall is laid down two Degress, is', \Vsii;: 654 The POLITICAL SURVEY At the Beginning of the laft Century, there were reckoned feventy-eight Iflands cultivated and inhabited ; and in the Neighbourhood of each of thefe, feme fmaller Iflets, producing Pafture for Cattle, and Peats for Fuel, ftiled in the Language of the Country Holms, and certain fmall Rocks, which the Natives call Skerries; in which, though there is but very little Grafs, yet are they not altogether ufelefs, as affording Shelter to vaft Numbers o? Fowls, amphibious Animals, and having a great Variety of Filh upon their Coafts 1. This Divifion flill fubfifts, and from thence refults the beft Method of defcribing them, which we, as the Nature of this Defign leads us, (hall endeavour to purfue as fuccinftly as poffible f. PoMONi^, or the main Land', is by far the moftconfiderable. An liland, very irregular in its Form, fhooting Northward about fixteen Miles in Length, and about nine in Breadth, and the lower Part running out Eaftward thir- teen Miles in Length, in fome Places four; but from Kirkwall to the op- polite Sea, not above two Miles in Breadth f. There are in it feveral Moun- tains and Lakes, particularly that of Stennis or Stenhoufe, which, the Size of the Country confidered, is of large Extent ; but the greateft Part of the Ifland is flat and fruitful ". Kirkwall, the only Town in thefe lilands, called in Latin Cracoviaca, by the Natives Kirkwa, flretches near a Mile in Length, on the Eaft Side of a fair and pleafant Inlet of the Sea, which affords a fafe and convenient Harbour '■'''. The Houfes arc generally v/ell Weft from London, five Degrees Weft from Paris, and two Degrees 45 Minutes Eaft from the Meridian of the Lizard Point in Cornwall. 1 In the old Scandinavian or Iflandic ; ey fignified an Ifland ; Holm a more modern Term for an uninhabited Iflet; and Sker fignifies a Rock. '■ The Authorities on which this Defcription is founded, are (i) an antient Latin MS. intitled, Defcriptio Infularum Orchadiarum per me, Jo. Ben, ibidem colentem. in A. D. 1529. (2) The large Account of the Orcades in Latin in the fixth Volume of Blaeu's Atlas, p. 135. (3) Mr. Robert Monteith of Egleflia's Account of them (1635) publiflied by Sir R. Sibbald. (4) Torfxus in ihis Rerum Orcadenfium Hiftoria. (5) Dr. Wallace's Defcription of the Iflands of Orkney. (6) Mr. Murdoch Mackenzie's Survey of thofe Iflands. {■;) A Defcriprion of them, by a worthy Friend, a Native and Inhabitant in thefe Ifles, who very kindly compofed it for my Ufe in this Woik. s Ben writes it Pomonia, and explains ir, the Middle of the Apple, from its Situation between the North Ifles and the South. Baxter fays it is latinized from two Britifti Words, Pou mon, i. e. parva Patria. In the fame Manner he accounts for Main-land, for main, which in the Britifh Language, he fays, is Oender or littte, and Main-land, exiguis Terra. I muft own, I am not fatisfied with this. Pomona was probably an Appellation unknown to the Natives ; and Tor- faeus, who attempts to explain the Names of other Iflands, gives this up. But in the lOandic Lan- guage, Magn fignifies Power ; and the learned Dr. Hicks fays, we borrow this Word, in the com- mon Phrafe, to ftrive with might and main. 7 he Word Land, we have fiom the fame Language ; fo that Magn or Alain-land, is a Land of Power, becaufeit had as many Inhabitants as all the reft. t Biaeu makes it 24 Miles, and from fix to nine broad. Monteith agrees nearly to thefe Di- menfions. Wallace fays, it is 24 Miles long. " By the draining this Lake, fuppofing it prafticabk', fome thoufand Acres of good Land might be obtained. * Blaeu, Wallace, Mackenzie. J built ox^ GREAT BRITAIN. 655 built of Stone, and handfoniely flatcd ; fome of them are very fair, both on the Outfide and within, and mod of them have Httle Kitchen Gardens behind them^. The Number may be about three hundred, and the Place feems to be increafing)'. The Cathedral Church of St. Magnus is fitu- ated in the Center; it is a large and beautiful Structure, built upon Pillars, in the Form of a Crofs, with a high Steeple z. There were formerly two Palaces, one called the King's, the other the Bifliop's^. The Bifhop's See was one of the beil in Scotland ; and there was befides, a Provoft or Dean and Chapter, all of v/hom had fuitable and very comfortable Provifions b. King James the third, by his Charter, dated March the thirty-firft One thoufand Four hundred and Eighty-fix, recognized their antient Foundation, and confirmed their Privileges, to hold Borough Courts, eledt their own Magiftrates, granting them v/eekly Markets on Tuefday and Friday, and three Fairs in the Year ^ This Charter was ratified by James the fifth, as alfo by King Charles the fecond. May the twenty-fifth One thoufand Six hundred and Sixty- one ; and all their Rights efFeftually confirmed, by an Adl of Parliament, pafled Augull the twenty-kcond One thoufand Six hundred and Seventy d. This Royal Borough is governed by a Provoft, four Bai- lififs, a Treafurer, Dean of Guild, and a Common-council compofed of fif- teen Members «. The Sheriff's and Commiffary's Courts are held here, as alfo the Synod of the Clergy ; and there is likewife a Cuftom-houfe, and a Poft-houfe f. At Biria, in the North Weft Corner of the Ifland, Robert and Patrick, Earls of Orkney, built a large and elegant Palace, Part of which is ftill ftanding g. Befides that of Kirkwall, there are three good Ports in this Ifland. Deer Sound, which is a very fafe capacious Bay, at the North Eaft End of the Ifland, in the Peninfula of Deernefs, i. e. the Cape of Deer, a pleafant and plentiful Spot, anciently a Foreft abounding with Deer, whence " MS. Account, Wallace, Mackenzie.. y MS. Account. i Ben, Bbeu, Wallace, &c. " The King's Palace (as it was called) had for lis Founder Henry Lord Sinclair, Earl of Crk ney, A. D. 1379- '' Bifhop Reld refoimded the Chapter, which confiHed of a Provofl, an Archdeacon, a Prccen-- tor, a Chancellor, a Treafurer, a Subdea.-i, a Subchanter, and fevcn other Canons or Prebendaries. Wallice, p. 83, 84, 85. ' One about Palm Sunday, one at Lammas, and one at Martinmas, to continue e.^ch for three Days. '' The Title of this A£l may be found in the Lift: of Statutes paffed, but not printed, Sef. ii. Par. ii. Car. ii. e Mackenzie. f MS. Account. g According to the Tradition of the Country, this Place was the royal Refidence of their antient Kings. Over the Gateway of the new Building was this Infcription, Dominus Robertus Stuartus, Filius Jacobi quinti Rex Scotorum, hoc opus inflruxit. Over his Coat of Arms, curioully carveJ in Stone, thefe Words were placed ; fic fuit, eft, et erit. Thefe are thought to have^been prejudicial to his Son Patrick, when he fell into Misfortunes. its 656 The POLITICAL SURVEY its Name'i; Grimfliall, on the South Eaft Side i, and the Bay of Cairfton* now called Stromnefs, at the South Weft Extremity, which is very large and laie, and has a Village of the fame Name, built on the Eaft Side of the Harbour, the moft noted and the bcft frequented in the Orkneys ^. The South Ifles, that is, the Ifles lying to the South of the main Land, are twelve in Number, viz. Suina or Swinna, Suda, South Ronaldfha, Waes or Walls, Hoia or Hoy, Graemfe, Cava, South Fara, Ryfa, Flotta, Burra, and Coupinllia ; of feveral Sizes, and very different from each other in their Soils and Properties K Amongst thefe. South Ronaldfiia is one of the moft confiderable. It lies the neareft of any to the Continent of Caithnefs ; the ulual Ferry being be- tween Burwicin this Illand and Duncan's Bay on the Continent f". It is in Length between feven and eight Miles, in fome Places five, in others fcarce two Miles broad, producing confiderable Qu^iintitics of Barley and Oats, as well as great Plenty of very good Grafs r.j a Vein of Lead Ore has been dif- covered near Grimnefs, in the North Eafl Part of the Ifland, and alfo near Widewall on the Wefh Side 3. There are fome, but not many Hills, and a few fmall Locha, and two very good Ports, one on the North Side called St. Margaret's Hope, and the other at Widewall p. Cod and Ling abound upon its Coafts. To the South V.'eft, lies the little Lland of Swinna, re- markable for a fine Quarry of Slate, but ftill more remarkable for two Whirlpools, called the WJls of S'iZ'i?mal. South Eaft from Ronaldflu are the Pentland Skerries '. The liland of Burra lies to the North of South Ronaldfha, from which it is divided by a narrow Strait called Water Sound s. It is four Miles in h In Support of this Tradition we are told of I>cer3 Horns being found buiieJ deep in the Earth.. Blaeii, Wallace, p. 59. Ken fays, that by a Storm and Inundation, the Roots of the Trees being inoif- teaed, and their Trunks miferably fliaken, they were overturned and perifhed. He adds, that in A. D. 1506, a Gold Mine was difcovered here. Tradition preferves theMemory of a large. Wood at Burnefs, w hich I am informed has been verified by many Roots and Stumps of large Trees ftca in the Sand on an extraordinary Ebb of the Sea. ' Monicith, Blacu, Wallace. 1< Muckenzie, MS. Account. This Port was vifited by French and Spa.nifli Veflels more than two hundred Years ago. 1 Blaeu. tK Wallace, p. 3. . " Blaeu, Monteith, Wallace. " Thefe Particulars ns well as the Size of the ir.and from Mackenzie's Map. P Blaeu, Wallace, MS. Account. q Thefe make a great Figure in the old Accounts of the.fe Ifles, but Mr. Mackenzie h.is re- moved all Prodigies by explaining them. r The fame may be faid of the Skaries as of the Whirlpools. ' Ben, Monteith, Wallace. Leneth of GREAT BRITAIN. 657 Length from Weft to Eaft, in fome two, in others one in Breadth f; and efteemed, for its Size, the rnoft fruitful, pleafint, and commodious of thefe Iflands, as abounding in Corn, Grafs, and Peat, well furnifhed with Stones for Building; and in which there is, or at leaft there was, a. large and profitable Rabbit Warren". Between Burra and Pomona, lie Lamb Holm, fertile in Corn and Grafs ; Glumps Holm, affording good Pafture ; and Hunda, overgrown with Heath, affording Shelter to great Quantities of Wild Fowl ^v. West from South Ronaldflia, and South from Pomona, lie the Ifles of Hoia or Hoy, and of Waes or Walls, which at the low Ebbs after Spring Tides, make but ojie Ifland>>'. Confidered in this Light, it is about nine Miles in Length, five in the broadcft Part, but in fome Places not above one y. It is by fome fuppofed to be the Dumna of Pliny ''-. Hoy, which is the Northern Part, is the moft mountainous of all thefe Ifles, the Hills being very high, and the Vallies very deep, afford ftriking and romantic Profped:s. There are more Bufhes and Birch Trees in this than in all the Ifles ; but the Soil is heathy and barren, abounding however with Game, particularly in Hares, which are white in the Winter, and which Crea- ture is not found in any of the other Iflands ^. There is a Bird alfb called the Lyar, taken in great Abundance here, and highly efteemed i\ On the Wetl Side, is a Kind of natural Fortrefs called Braburg, anciently held to be impregnable '^. Walls, and particularly that Part called South Walls, is flat, fertile, and pleafant d. There are in thefe Ifles three good Ports, Orehope, Longhope, and Kirkhope, very fafe and commodious =. At a fmall DifVance to the Eaft of Hoy, lies the little Ifland of RysA, flat, fertile, and pleafant ^ To the North Eaft of this, at the Diftance of about two Miles, and nearly the fame Diflance from Pomona, and North from Fara, lies Cavab, another fmall Ifland, in a Manner overgrown with Heath, ' MS. Acconnt, and meafured on the Map. " Biaeu. where there is an ample Account of this Lie. «■ Ben, Monteith, Wallace. » Ben, Biaeu, Monteith, &c. y MS. Account, compared with Mackenzie's Alap. "^ Hift. Nat. lib. iv. c. 16. Wallace, p. 9. Baxter Glcflar. Antiq. Britan. p. 108. " Biaeu, Monteith, Wallace. Hares grow commonly white in the Winter in Norway. •^ This Bird was known to Sir Robert Sibbald, who calls it in Latin, Lyra, but has n^t ds- fcribed it. « It is remarked in Blaeu's Map ; but we have no particular Defcrlption of it. ^ Ben, Biaeu, Monteith. « The firfl is a fine Bay towards the South Eafl: Extremity of Hoy ; the fecond, on the South Side of the fame Ifle ; and the lafl, in South Walls. f Biaeu, Monteith, MS. Account. g Ben informs us, that Cava, or Cavey, ilgnifies the Cheefe Ifland, from the great Quantities made there. Vol. I. 4 P which 65S The POLITICAL SURVEY which affords Shelter to Abundance of Wild Fowl, and particularly the Tyjly fmall, but very high flavoured h. There are a great Variety, and great Quantities of excellent Fifli upon its Coafts". Graemsa, lies in the Middle between Pomona and Hoy, fcarce a Mile diftant from either k. It is a very plealant little Ille, about five Miles in Circumference, furrounded towards the Sea with fliarp and fleep Rocks ; within, the Country is flat, and fertile in Corn and Grafs. Their Peat and Heath for Fuel, the Inhabitants receive from Pomona ; for which this Ille lies very conveniently, as covering the Port of Stromnefs !. CouPiNSHA, more properly CoupMANSEA, or the Merchants Ifle, lies direftly EafI: from Pomona; a fmall but very high Ifland, which with a Rock near it, called the Horfe of Coupinfha, ferves as a Sea Mark for all Ships bound from the Eaflward, from whence it received its Name "'. It is about a Mile in Length, and fcarce Half as much broad, and no way remarkable, but from its Situation ". The North Ifles, as they are fliled, that is, thofe lying to the North of Pomona, are fifteen, Damfa, Shapinlha, Gerfi, Vera, Egleflia, Raula, V/eflra, Papa Weflra, North Fara, Eda, Alhallow orlnhallo, Stronfa, Papa Stronfa, Sanda, and North Ronaldfha". Damsa, is a little Ifle, lying at the Foot of Wytfell, in a Bay of Pomo- na, about a Mile or fomewhat lefs in Circumference, plain, pleafant, and for its Size fruitful P. There flood upon it formerly a Nunnery; and there is a great Holm by it called Grimfbutter, which is very near as large as this Ifland; which, how^ever, was formerly elegantly laid out in Meadows and Gardens a. The Iflandof Siapinsa, vulgarly Shapinflia, lies three Miles NorthEaft from the Town of Kirkwall, is full four Miles long, and near as many h Rlaeu, Sibbaldi Piodiom. Nat. Hifi-. Scotis, P. ii. lib. iii. cap. 7. ' If thefe Ifles were more populous, or their pr^fent Inhabitants applied to fifliing, this would be a Thing of Confequence. ^ Ben, Blaeu, Monteith. I MS. Account. "" The High Land made it very confpicuous to Ships coming from the Eaftward, as the Hill of Hoy was a Sea Mark to thofe bound from the Weft. n By which it feems to be wonderfully well difpofed for Magazines of Sea Stores, Salt, Cade, Net s, &c. and for Refrcftiments and Provifions. ° Blaeu, Wallace, MS. Account. P Ben, Blaeu, Wallace. ^ Monteith. It is afferted that no venomous, noxious, or loathfooie Animal can live in this Ifle, • 5 broad; of GREAT BRITAIN. 659 broad '^•, it Is fruitful in Barley and Grafs, has a very fafe Harbour called Elwick. The whole Ifland made formerly Part of the Eftate of the Bi- fhop of Orkney ; fine Lead Ore has been found in feveral Places on the South Coaft, as alfo in a large Holm called Helgar, which lies near it, covers the Port of Elwick, and affords excellent Pafture =. To the North Eaft lies Stronsa, feparated from the laft mentioned •Ifland by a Firth, which is about five Miles broad'; it is feven Miles in Length and four in Breadth, very fertile, and abounding with all the Ne- celfaries of Life". On the South Well there runs out a Peninfula called Roufholm Head, in which there is plenty of Peatw. This Peninfula forms the Weft Side of a Plarbour called Roufliolm Bay; befides which, there are three others, one on the Weft Side covered by Ling Holm, and called Linga Sound; Strynie on the North Eaft, defended by the little Ifland of Papa Stronfa; and a little to the South of this. Mills Bays. In former Times this Ifland was much frequented by Shipping, was very populous, and the Inhabitants had a confiderable Trade with all the Northern Na- tions y, and a valuable Fifliery about the Coafts of a great Rock called Ouflcerry, lying fix Miles to the South?, The little Ifland of Papa Stronsa, about a Mile and a half in Circumference, lies near it, and is very fertile in Corn and Grafs, but without Peat a. Two Miles North from Stronfa lies San da, efteemed to be the largeft of all thefe Ifles next to Pomona b. It is of a very rude irregular Fis;ure, inter- fered on every Side by deep Inlets of the Sea ; it is twelve Miles long, in fome Places only one, in others two, and in none above three Miles >■ MS. Account compared with Mackenzie's Map. Ben afTerts, Shapinflia lignifies Ship Ifland, which is not improbable, as in their old Language, Skip fignifies a Ship, andey an Ifland. s This Ifland having fome thoufand Acres of improveable Land, much Lead Ore, and a good Port, might certainly be rendered valuable. ' Stronfa, i. e. the Ifle with many Strands, is very properly fo called, being compofed of three Peninfula's whh large Baj's between them. Thcfe were formerly as many I'aiiflics; St. Peter's to the North'; that of our Lady on the South Eaft; and that of St. NichoLis, which is much the hirgefl:, towards the South Weft. " Ben, Blaeu, MS. Account. " This Quarter furniflies Fuel to the other two, and to fome of the adjacent Iflands. " Wallace, p. I2. '' More efpecially, when the Dutch Herring Fifliery was in its moft flouriQiing State. This Ifle is about the Size of Schelling on the Coaft of Holland, in which Sir Robert Holmes, A. D. 1666, burned a Town confifting of One thoufand Houfes, with Merchandize and Ships to the Amount of a Million Sterling. Such is the Value to which the Dutch raife their Iflands ! ^ When the People of Fife were engaged in the Fifliery, they came annually hither. a Ben, Blaeu, Monteith, Wallace, MS. Account. t Blaeu, where it is faid to be twelve Miles long, and eight broad. 4 P a broad. 66o The POLITICAL SURVEY broad <^. There are feveral Hills, many Lochs, and fome of them large * It is fruitful in Corn and Grafs ; but has no Peat or Turf, which is a heavy Misfortune in a Country where they have nothing elfe to burn d. It is alio defective as to Ports, for though there are two, yet they are both fmall and Ihallow e. North and by Eaft from Stronfa, lies North Ronaldsha, themoft re- mote of thefe Iflands, as well towards the North as towards the Eaft ^ It is three Miles in Length, and one in Breadth. The Country is moftly flat, fufficiently fruitful in Barley and in Grafs, but without any Peats. There was formerly a very neat Church dedicated to St. Olaus. The Sea on its Coafts is very tempeftuous ; and there is nothing that can, properly fpeak- ing, be called a Port ''. We muft now turn to the Wed:, and begin with Eda, Ethie or Heath, which lies North from Shapinflia, North Weft from Stronfa, and Weft from Sanda i. This Ifle is near eight Miles long, and two broad ; hilly, covered with Heath, and abounding with Peat, with which it fupplies feve- ral of the other lilands. It is not in other refpedts very fertile k. On the North Eaft Side there is a large grafly Holm called the Calf of Eda, be- tween which and the Ifle there is a very fafe Road '. In the laft Century this was the Property of Stuart Earl of Carrick '", who built a good Houfe on the Ifland ; and having ereded proper Works on the Calf of Eda, made <^ This, like Stronfa, had anciently three Parifhes, each a Peninfula, with fome fmaller joining to them. '' It is the more diftreffing, bccaufe in the Winter Seafon, when this Commodity is mofl: necef- fary, the Sea is very tempeAuous, and the Paflage to the other Ifles very difficult, as well as very dangerous. It were therefore to be wifhed, that the Inhabitants could be intruded in fome Me- thod of procuring Fuel in their own Ifles, or were annually fupplied with a Quantity of Coals, which is much more practicable. « Monteith, Wallace, MS. Account. ' The Promontory of Dennis in this Ide, lies in 59°. 24'. N. L. and 19' Eaft Longitude from Kirkwall. It was on tlie Coafts of this Ille that a rich Swedifh Eaft-India Ship was loft in A. D- 1740. Accidents of this Sort were formerly too frequent ; but fince the Publication of Mr. Mackenzie's accurate Charts, they are become much lefs common. g Ben, Blaeu, Monteith, &c. h About half a Mile from this Ifle, to the North, lies a dangerous Rock called Selkfkcrry, where Abundance of Seals are annually taken. > Ben, Blaeu, Monteith, Wallace. ^ MS. Account compared with Mackenzie's Map. ' This is called Calf Sound ; fomething more than a Mile long, and Half a Mile broad. ■" Carrick, is a Village in the North Part of this Ifle, erefted into a Burgh of Barony by Charles T. who created the Lord Kincliven, fecond Son to Robert, and Brother to Patrick Earl of Orkney, Earl of Carrick, about 1633 ; who died without IlTiie, by which the Honour became cxtinft, and his Salt Works were negle(fled. there of GREAT BRITAIN. 66i there very fine Salt". This in the Opinion of feme is the Ocetis of Ptolomy '^. Three jMiles to the Weftward of Eda, lies W£Str.\, a very beautiful, and for thefe Countries no inconfiderable Ifle, as being nine Miles long^, and five broad p. The Country very happily diverfified with Hills and Plains, and abounding with Barley, Grafs, Cattle, Sheep, Rabbits, Wild and Sea Fowl, and Abundance of Fifli upon its Coafls q. On the North Weft are the Remains of the Caftle of Xautland, which was begun but not finifhcd by Hepburn Duke of Orkney ^ The moft W^eftern Point of this Ifle is Cape Noup, and not far from it lies the little Harbour of Pierowal, where Veflels that draw' under ten Feet Water may lie very fecurely s. At two Miles Diftance to the Eaftward lies Papa Westra, a very pleafant and not infertile liland, three Miles long, and one broad, formerly famous from St. Friedwald's Chapel and Loch, of which many fabulous Stories are ftill current f. Mould Head is the North Well Point of Papa Welba, and lies in fifty-nine Degrees twenty-one Minutes and thirty Seconds of North Latitude". Between the two Ifles there is a very fafe and commodious Road for Fifliing Veffels^^'., At a League Weft from Eda, and four North Eaft from Pomona, we find the Ifland of Eglisa or Egilsha, three Miles long, and about one broad, a fair and fruitful Country for its Size, diftinguilhed by a neat little Church dedicated to, and in v%hich it is faid lies the Body of, St. Magnus, the Patron of thefe Ifles s. Half a League South Weft from Egillha, and about the fame Diftance North Eaft from Pomona, lies Wire, in Latin Vera, two Miles in Length, and one in Breadth; very fertile in Barley and Grafs, but without Peat, with which it is fupplied from the other Iflands y. Two Miles South from Wire, about the fame Diftance North Weft from Shapinftia, and Half a League North Eaft from Pomona, lies the fmall Ifland of Giarsa, tvvo Miles long, and one broad, with a Sugar n Here is a pregnant Inftance of the Improvements that might be made ia thefe Ifles, more efpecially in regard to the Fifher)'. " Camdeni Biitan. p. 848. Wallace, p. I2. P Ben, Blaeu, Monteith. IMS. Account, in which it faid, that for Richnefs of Soil, and Mildnefs of Climate, this is not inferior 10 any of the Orkneys. I This had been long before a Place of great Strength. s MS. Account compared with Mackenzie's Map. t Wallace, p. 13. » MS. Account compared with Mackenzie's Map. ^ Ben, Blaeu, Monteith. » Some write this Eglifa, and interpret it Ecclefiie lafula, 1, s. Kirk Iflrin J, from the Venera- tion paid to the Church of St. Magnus. y Ben, Blaeu, Monteith, Wallace. Loaf 662 The POLITICAL SURVEY Loaf Hill In the Middle ^ . Part of this Ifle running out in a Peninfula on the Eaft Side, makes what is called the Hen of Giirfi, between which and- the Body of the Ifland there is a commodious little Creek. A VERY narrow Sound feparates Pomona from Rousa, which lies North from it, and -is a large fquare Ifland, between four and five Miles in Length from North to South, and four from Weft to Eaft a It is mountainous on the Weft, and on the South Side as well as on the Middle, but ftat and fertile in Grafs on the Coafts''. There is a great deal of Heath, and Abun- dance of Peat on this Ifland, with which many of the neighbouring Ifles are fupplied. It is well ftored with Cattle, Sheep, Rabbits, Fowl, and Fifli, and is very halthy and pleafanf^. It is divided on the Eaft by a Strait about a Mile broad, called Howa Sound, from Egilflia, which affords a Paflage to the Ships bound to and from Iceland, and by another Strait called \Vire Sound, from that little Ifland d. Between Roufa, and the North Weft Point of Pomona, lies the little Ifle of Alhallow or In- HALLow, about a Mile in Circumference; and for its Size neither infertile or unpleafant c. The bare Defcription of thefe Iflands, ftiort and fimple as it is, will be abundantly fuflicient to (liew, that the Orkneys are very far from being mean or inconliderable even in point of Territory or Extent ^ ; fince taken together they are equal to the County of Huntingdon in South Britain s ; of much the lame Size with the Principality of Neufchatel in Switzerland h; and not at all inferior in this Refpeil to Zealand, which is the Third of the United Provinces ». In point of Situation, thefe Iflands have alfo many, and thofe very Angular Advantages. They are in the very Centre of Trade, or at » MS. Account compared with the Map. * Ben, Blaeu, Monteith. *> Some of thefe Mountahis produce tolerable Grafs, and though a great Part of the Ifle is un- cultivated, the Soil is not naturally barren. « There is near the Middle of Roufa, a Lake, from which runs a Stream that may deferve the Name of a River. •^ Monteith, MS. Account compared with Mackenzie's Map. " Ben, Blaeu, Monteith, Wallace, r>IS. Account. f The Texell and other fmall Iflands in the Province of North Holland, not in Size more than one third of the Orkneys, are full of Towns, People, and Wealth, though they pay more in annual Taxes to the States than the whole Rental of our Ifles amount to. This they are enabled to do, by the great Refort of Shipping, the conftant Induflry of the Inhabitants, and the fingular At- tention of Government to promote their Indul^ry, and to fee it properly rewarded. 8 This fmall inland County pays more to the Land Tax than the whole annual Produce of the Orkneys. '■ L'Etat de la Suiffc, p. 241. This Country is 'more populous, and the People live more at their Eafe, though an inland Spot, and the Soil and Climate very indifferent. ' There are no natural Impediments to prevent our Britifh from becoming in every Refpeft as confiderable as thofe Iflands which form this Dutch Province. leaft of GREAT BRITAIN. 663 lealt might be made foto all the Northern Kingdoms of Europe''; lie open at all Sealbns for the Navigation to and from America i ; and are feated in the Middle between the Shetland and the VVeftern Iflands; to which we may- add, that Velfels from them may run down with equal Facility either on the Eaffc or on the Weft Side of Great Britain -1. But this Subject may be, and furely on all the Principles of Huma- nity, Juftice, and Ibund Policy it deferves to be, placed in a ftronger and more confpicuous Point of Light". For though hitherto little confidered, thefe remote Iflands are moft conveniently and happily difpofed, from their different Sizes and Circumftances o, for the Introduftion of many valuable Commodities from foreign Countries to increafe the Number of their Mate- rials ; and the fiime Method might be ufed for the Improvement of their own Breed of Horfes, Swine, Sheep, Goats, and Black Cattle p. Thus fupplied with the Means of an eafv and plentiful Subfiftence, together with an ad- ditional Stock of Commodities, proper to exercife their Skill, their Labour, and their Application '1 ; and the prefent Lihabitants being inftrucled by a few Families fent and fettled amongft them for that Purpofe '" ; thefe Ifles, in the Space of a few Years, would be made, what it is the undoubted Intereft of Britain they iliould be made^, the Seats of a Variety of Manu- faftures"^; by the Help of which, the People who dwell there would quickly be enabled to carry on a beneficial and extenfive foreign Trade " j ^ If therefore Manufaftures were introduced and efcabliilieJ in thcfs Ifles they would find Markets for them at no great Diflance. ' If at the fame Time we coiifider the Facility of Correfpondence, we recolleft the Abun- dance of raw Commodities in one Country, the Number of Inhabitants, of courfe the Chcapnefs of Labour in the other, and that the People of both are Subjefts of the fame Prince ; it will not be difficult to difcover, that by very eafy JNIcihods, aud with very little Afiiffauce, many and mighty Advantages might be procured to Great Britain. " Ships from the Port of Kirlcwall, airive commonly in Fourteen or Fifteen, and with a fair Wind fometimes in lefs than Five Days in the River of Thames. " Numbers in thefe Ifles labour hard, and fare ftill more hardly ; thefe fliould certainly be re- lieved : They are loyal Subjects to the Britilh Government, and have thereby a Right to its At- tention. Any Affiflance given to them, would in its Confequer.ces contribute highly and exten- tenfively to the general Welfare. ° The Multitude which in their prefcut Circumftaaces they aftually maintain, is an invincible Proof of their Capacity for Improvement.. P In the former Seftlon thefe Points have been fully infilled upon. q Particular Plans (houid be firft carefully adapted to, and, that once done, vigoroufly and lleadily purfued in every Illand. r This might be with Facility effefted by Methods that have been already mentioned. ' An Increafe of Property procured by Induffry, though in the remote^ Province, will be felt ty an Increafe of Demands, through the Vv^hole Community. ' Which, from a great Concurrence of favourable Circumflances, would beat out thofe of our Rivals in all the Northern Markets. u Without which no Iflaad ever became, and with which there is no Lie but may become con- fiJerable. more 664 The POLITICAL SURVEY more efpccially if to, or rather previous to, all thefe Confidcrations, we add, that which is indeed the moft obvious Improvement, their entering into, and fteadily purluing what was intended them by Nature, almofl every Kind of Fifhery w. The Poflibility of embracing moft, if not all thefe Means, of emerging from Want and Infignificance, we truft has been in a great meafure demon- ftrated in the foregoing Section f; and if a few vigorous Steps were once taken in order to give a Beginning to any of thefe, it would foon change the Face of Affairs in the Orkneys. We fhould then gradually fee, what furely was the Defign of Providence, every Ifland, Holm, and Rock, ap- plied to fome ufeful Purpofe ; and the People being enabled and encou- raged to be indudrious, would, feiz;ing with Alacrity u'hit they have fo long and ardently lighed for, become aftivein Agriculture, FiOaing, manual Arts, Navigation, and Commerce, andofcourfe from.their vigorous Exertion of their own Induftry, eafy and happy >'. As the natural and infallible Con- fequence of fuch a Change, inftead of their being as they are of little Vic even to themfelves, and fcarce at all known to the Inhabitants of the South- ern Parts of Britain i it would, in no very long Space, bring their nu- merous Iflands to be efteemed a very valuable and profitable Province of the Britifli Empire ' ; as will more fully appear from the fubfequent Part of this Section. We will therefore conclude this Account of the Orkneys, and their In- habitants, with fome Particulars relating to their natural, commercial, and civil Hiftory, which may be depended upon, and which are all that is ne- ceiTary to compleat the Defign of fliewing, that as we have more than once alTerted, they arc really capable of being rendered much more confi- derable than they are in their prefent Situation, and of far greater Utility w If any Doubt fliould arife as to the finding Markets for all this Fidi, let it be obferved that many hundred Veffds come annually from other Countries to filh on thefe Coafts, and then fiil with their Cargoes, which might undoubtedly be furniflied much cheaper by thefe Iflanders, who have the Fi(h, and might hare Salt at Home ; and are befidcs nearer to many of thefe already found Markets. » In Subjeifts fo clofely connefVed as thofe are that compofe this and the foregoing Seclion, though almoft unavoidable, yet the greateft care has been taken to avoid Repetitions. ' For all which Means of advancing their own Intercfts, they have both Talents and Inclina- tions, if fome few Obflacles were removed. ' Thefe Points were long ago infifled upon by Sir William Monfon, and after him by Mr. Smith. Both of thefe Gentlemen excellent Judges, and who both of them fpoke from what they had themfelves obferved, having both vifued thefe Ifles, and agreeing exaftly in their No- tions as to their Utility and Importance. 7 ' to of GREAT BRITAIN. 665 to the general Interefts of thele Kingdoms, than any, even of our bcfl in- formed Statefmen, feem to have hitherto thought them ». The Chmate, notwithftanding their Northern Situation, is far from be- ing either fevere or unpleafant. The longed Day is about eighteen Hours, the Sun then rifing feven Minutes before three, and fetting as many Mi- nutes after nine b. It has been faid, that from the Hill of Hoy, the Body of the Sun may about Midfummer be feen at Midnight ; which is, as the Lights derived from Aftronomy convince us, no better than a Fable c. But it is true, that in clear Weather, for near two Months in Summer, the Twilight is ftrong enough to read by through the whole Night ^. But not- withftanding this Length of the Day, the Heat from the Obliquenefs of the Sun's Rays, and from feveral other Caufes, is not, in Summer, fo great as upon the Continent ; and from the Vapours of the furrounding Sea, the Cold in Winter is in the like Manner very fenfibly diminifhed e. The Winds are in general brifk rather than boifterous, and they are not fubjedt frequently either to Storms or Calms f. When it blows from any of the Points to the Weft, it brings foul Weather, and fair and dry, when it blows from the Bail:. From the Month of Auguft to that of March, the Winds are commonly Weft ; from March to May, they blow from the North Fall: to the North ; and from May to Auguft, the South and South Eaft Winds prevails. The Spring is tolerably forward, the Summer mo- derately hot, the Autumn hazy, and the Winter mild, attended with much more Rain than Snow, which leldom falls long or rifcs high, neither are Frofts more frequent, and never very intenfe i'. Thunder is more common in Winter than in Summer. The Northern Lights, or Aurora Borealis, 'to ^ It muft be allowed that the Lords of the Admiialty fliewed a juft Concern for the Interefts of the Merchants, by firft direfting Mr. Mackenzie's Survey, and afterwards permitting him to make his Charts public; and it is with a difinterefted View to recommeaJ thefe Illes and their Ir.ha- bitants to the Attention and Proteftion of a Britifli Adminiflration, that they have beca fo largely infilled on here. '' Wallace, p. 3. Mackenzie, MS. Account. c It is alferted by the Author of the Account pnhlinied by Blaeu, p. 139, who adds, that People went thither every Year to fee this Phenomenon, which he defcribes asau obicure Cloud veiling the Body of the Sun, from half an Hour after Eleven to half an Hour after One, when he fays it rifes. It is neceflary to remark this Falfehood, becaufe it has been often tranfcribed. ■* Wallace, Mackenzie, MS. Account. e Thefe known EfFefts of an infular Situation, are as confpicuous in the Feroe Ifles, lying three Degrees more to the North ; where, by the way, the Natives affirm the Sun on the longefl Day ri.'es feven Minutes after Two, and fets fifty-three Minutes after Nine. f MS. Account. S It is to be underflood that this is commonly, not conffantly, the Courfe of the Weather, which is here, as well as elfewhere, very vaiiable. *■ Mr. Mackenzie has given a very clear and curious Account of thefe L'ghts, to which the Reader is referred. Vol. I. 4 CL- ^e 666 The POLITICAL SURVEY are frequent, and fometimes the whole Sky is as much illuminated bv them. as at other Times by the Moon i. The Sea is often violently agitated fo as to rife thirty or forty Yards againft the Rocks, even when the Wind is not high. Mifts and Fogs are not common ; but the Weather is often dark and hazy, from the Vapours riling out of the furrounding Seas, which rather aftedts thofe on Shipboard, thun the Inhabitants ''. We have already taken Notice, that not above four of thefe Iflands can- hi called mountainous, though there is at leaft one Hill or conliderable Eminence in each of them'. On thefe Hills there is much Heath, and fome Grafs, and at the Bottom of them very ricii Pall:ure "i. The Soil is various, not only in different Illands, but alfo in almoll every one of them. In fome Places black Earth, in others Clay, in fbme Loam, in fome mofiy, in others ftony; but the moft general is Sand ". The Sand, even where it is pure, when enriched with Sea Ware proves very fertile, as do moft of the other Soils when properly manured, and cultivated with Care ". The Earth is almofi: in every Place but thin, and lies either upon a fol-id Rock, or in (bme Places, on what is interpofed between the Soil and Rock, a ftiff Clay p. They ufe light Ploughs, drawn by two or by four Horfes, or by two Horfes and two Cows. They are no Strangers to Inclofures ; but it. is allowed, that much of their common Land, and many of their Moors, which in their prefcnt State are of little Value, might be taken in, and and rendered good Meadow Ground ■; i'.nd as to the municipal Laws and Courts of Juftice, they were in the Hands of a Chief Magillrate, and fubordinate Ollicers cledled by the People. The •good Elfedts of this Form of Rule were very vifible in the Improvement of the Country, the plentiful Living of the People, and their Numbers in every Illand, of all which the Monuments that remain put thefe Fadfs out of Doubt s. At prefent they have a Sheriff, who diilributes Juftice, and feveral Gentlemen in the Commiffion of the Peace. The County has a Rcprcfentativc in Parliament, and Kirkwall likcvvife fends a Member in Conjunction with four other Boroughs t. In reference to Ecclefiallical Af- fairs, they have a Provincial Synod, three Prefbyteries, twenty-eight Pa- riihes, and thefe are fupplied by eighteen Minifters. It has been computed that there are Three thoufand Eight hundred and Twenty Families, and Twenty-three thoufand Inhabitants in thefe Illes u. Their Drefs is after the Scots Mode, and they likewife fpeak the Scots Language, their old Lan- guage, called Norns, being now nearly, if not entirely, worn out. As to the Produce of thefe Ifles, it arifes in the firft Place from their Agriculture and Grazing. The former produces Grain, Malt, and Meal, a very large Proportion of which goes for the Payment of the Crown Rent, and is annually exported; which, when they have had bad Harvefls, brings q So long as they retaineil their old Government, and what they paid for its Support circulated amongft them, they throve, and were content. But as the foregoing Hiftory fliews, from the Time that tire public Revenue was exafted from them, and carried out of the Country, they gradually declined in their Circumflances, grew poor and uneafy, dejefted and unhappy. >■ The Churchmen being Natives, and living in the Country, whatever they received, by their Buildings and Hofpitality, entered again into Circulation, and from hence the Commons felt no great Inconvenience from what they paid, and confidered thofe Edifices (as in truth they were) as Acqi:ifitions to and Ornaments of their Country. ' The Caftles now demoliihed, the Churches and Chapels now difufed, and the Account given in Blaeu, that in the lalt Century, on a general Mufter, there appeared (without any Prejudice to Huibandry, Grazing, or FiQieries) ten thoufand Men able to bear Arms, and even then thefe IQes were far from being in the heft Condition, muft be looked upon as incontclliblc Evidences in Support of what is aflerted in the Text. ' Thefe are the Boroughs of Tainc, Dingwall, Dornock, and \Vick. " The Number here ftated from Mr. Mackenzie's Survey, is of fuch only as are entered on the the Minifters Rolls, as having been catechized ; but upon a ftrift Inquiry in feveral Paridies, the Proportion has been found to ftand thus; in a Parilh confifting of 853, there were 613 on that Lift, and 240 under the Age at which they are ufually catechized, that is between nine and ten ,Years old, aud therefore the true Number of Souls in thcfc Ifles is 32,039. a great of GREAT BRITAIN. 6-t: great Dillrefs, and is at all Times a Harcifliip upon the People 'V, They likewife export Beef and Butter, though the latter is really no better than Greafe, to the Amount of about eight hundred Barrels, or more proper! v Half Barrels, of one hundred Weight each, per Annum, and about one Half of this, we are told, alfo goes in Payment of Rent x. It is not to be underftood from hence, that in Orkney there is any natural Defedl in tliis Commoditv, for few Countries afford better Butter than in good Families ij made here for their own Confamption ; but the great Qu^antity required, and the lov/ Price allowed, are the Caufes that depreciate the Quality of the refty. They likewife export a good deal of Linen Yarn, and fome Cloth z, Worfted, coarfe woollen Goods, and very fine Stockings, which, with Calves, Rab- bits, Otters and Seal Skins, and fome Feathers, make up the refh of their Commodities \ Before the Union, though they had undouhteuly lefs Trade, they had more Money, . or at leaft an Appearance of more Money, in confe- quence of their drawing a Balance in Cafh, which circulated in their di.Tcr- ent Coins through thele Ifles, from all the Northern Nations with whom they traded '\ Now though they have ftill fome Trade with Hamburt^h and Norway, and alfo with Spain and Portugal e ^ yet their principal Cor- refpondence is with Leith and Newcaflle, in confequence of their having difcovered a new Refource in Kelp/^, of which they export annually up- wards of a thoufand Tons. It is this valuable Article enables them to pro- cure fuch Conveniencies as they moft affeit, and a fmall Balance in Caih. befides, which with the Expences of foreign Seamen at Kirkwall and Strom- nefs, furnillics what little Money they have e, and is an incontelHMe Proof of what on increafed and well dircded Induftry, produ«5live of an exten- w The People ia Orkney, through Want of Money, which arlfcs from the Want of Trade, pay their Rents in Barley, Malt, and Oatmeal. "^ MS. Account. y This Orkney Greafe, as it is commonly called, is a Commodity, "which at its prefent Price is in great Demand, and therefore we need not wonder they dj not endeavour to mnke it better. ^ This Linea Yarn and Cloth are feru to Leith, Newcaftle, and other Ports in the North of England with their Kelp. * As to theQnaatities of thefe, no diAinft Accoimts have been obtained ; but in all thefe .Ar- ticles great Improvements might be made. ^ Their great Commerce in thofe Days was with Norway in Corn and Meal; to the Hans Towns, viz. Bremen, Hambuigh, and Dantzick, to which they carrried Fifh, Fiih-oil, wooilen Stuffs and Butter. The greateli: Part of thel'c Commodities they fold for ready Money, and this being carried home, became, as is faid in the' Text, the current Coin in the Orkneys. ' To Norway they fend Grain and INIeal, and bring Tar and Timber from thence. d Before the Union they had no Intercourfe with England, from whence they now furnilfi thenr- fdves with numerous Articles for home Confumption, in return for their Kelp, which is ncceflitry to the beneficial Manufa. Several of thefe Iflands are no lefs happily difpofed for the Greenland and North Ameri- can Whale Fifhery. For here they might depoflt their Stores, bring hi- ther their Blubber, extradl their Oil, and from hence export it in Calks to proper Markets k. In Time of War thefe Iflands would be an excellent Station for a fmall Squadron of his Majefly's Ship?, as well for the Protec- tion of our own Commerce, as for annoying that of our Enemies j in which i Sir '\Viiri;iin Monfon's LJaval Trafts, p. 525. Smith's England's Improvement revived, p. ajr. T. Gentleman's Way to win Wealth, p. 11, 12. ^ The Spaniards bo.iA the Difcovery of America, the Portuguefc of the Eafb Indies, the Italian States of having reduced Commerce to a Sydem, the Dutch of carrying thofe Rules into Pradlice. But the Rritifh Nation has furpalTed them all, witnefs the iiniivalled Strength of her naval Power, the wide-fpread Empire of her Colonies, the Produce of her numbei lefs Manufactures, her Credit rtable as tlie Globe, and her Traffick which knows no Bounds, but thofe impofed by Nature on the World. But .ibove all, from that generous Spirit of Aipporting and rewarding Induflry, which gives Life and Aftivity, .ind I truA will give Immortality to her unequalled and amazing Gri\ndcur. h It is not intended by this to fupcrfede other Magazines, which will be undoubtedly necef- fary in the Weftern Iflands, but to recommend a capital Magazine in a Place fo feated, as that RccourCe might be had to it in any Emergency, and from any of the Iflands. The rather, be- caufe the Fiiliing in Shetland, Lewis, and the Weftern Ifles, is in fome Seafons fo great, that for want of fuch a Magazine very large Advantages are loft. i This has been more than once mentioned, but till it is effeftcd, it can never be too frequently repeated. ^ They might here alfb complete their Number of Hands, winter their Ships, and take in Part of their Provifions. 3 Light of GREAT BRITAIN. 673 Ugjbt alfo, its Ports and Reads would be very convenient for Privateers / As ibon as by their Fifhing and the Produce of it carried and fold at foreigii Markets, by applying to Manufadures, more efpecially fuch as are requi- site to the Fi{hery, the Materials for which they produce or might produce in their own Ifles, and fending out with their Fifli their native Commodi- ties to Places where they were never carried before. Money came to cir- culate ; it would.be a fit Time to fix the Price of the Rents hitherto paid in Kind, from the Want of Specie, and of preventing the accumulating of Farms, a Praiflice however beneficial (and that but for a Time) to Indivi- duals, extremely detrimental to the Public ; longer Leafes ihould likewife be introduced, and every other Method purfued that may bring the Land now under Cultivation, by an improved Hufbandry, into a fuperior Con- dition, and thereby encourage the bringing what has been confidered as waiie Land into Cultivation likewife m. It m.ight be alfo highly expedient to introduce] the Dutch Model, for ren- dering Iflands, in their own Nature much worfe than thefe, rich and flourifh- ing n. This is no other, than firli maturely confideririg, and then carefully adapting, particularly Staples to fuch Iflands, as from their Size, Situation, Produce, and natural Advantages, are fitteft for their Reception"". Such, for Example, as encouraging Boats, Sloops, and Bark-building in any Illand where there are many Creeks and Bays of different Sizes, for thecommodious Launch- ing and convenienient Reception of fuch Vellels when built r. The encourag- ing, in fome orotlierof the larger Iflands, the raifing and manufadluring of Hemp and Flax, for the important Purpofes of making Twine, Nets, Cordage, and other fifhing and naval Stores, than which nothing would be ealier, when iutficient Markets were once open for them amongfl themfelves ■, an Improvement, which if i-evived, would immediately correfpond with, and turn highly to the Advantage of, the Fifhery, as well as thofe that have been before mentioned. These are Modes of Improvement which have been, fome of them, mentioned long ago, and are all of them fo plain and obvious, that they cannot be controverted ; but I will conclude with two, that, as far as I know, were never hitherto fuggefled, and which, I apprehend, would not only be very effedlual, but would alfo be equally quick and certain in their Operations s. The firft is the erefting an University, which might be done at a very fmall Expence, added to the Application of what the People already pay in virtue of the old Ecclefiaflical Eflablifliment r. This Uni- verfity, from the centrical Situation of the Orkneys, would be probably at- tended with the following happy Effefts ". Firfl, it would take away the Neceffity of fending the Youth out of the Country, where their Parents are compelled to be at the Charge of their Education, and who, from this very Circumftance of being brought up in another Place, and accuftomed to other Objedls, People, and Manners, are fo weaned from their Country, that not one in five of them return. In the next Place, it would fave the Expences which their Parents are now at, or, in other Words, would keep confiderable Sums of Money in the Country, which now, and unlefs fome fuch Remedy is applied, will for ever go out of it, and confequently contribute to increafe the Circulation, which is a Point of infinite Importance. Laftly, it would attradl Numbers of young Perfons from the Northern Extremity of the Continent, from the Iflands, and it may be from Norway, Denmark, and Germany, which would bring both Men and Money into the Orkneys, and be produftive of other Advantages, on which there is not room to in- ' The fame Nobleman eftablifhed another Manufaftiite of the fame Kind on Pomona, called from thence the new Work at I>eernefs. Befides thefe, as I have been informed, there were Salt Pans on Flota. Should it be afked, how came they to fail ? The Anfwer is, by the failing of the Fiihery. As they funk, they (liould revive together. s It is from this iSIotive that they are fubmitted to the public Confideration, to whom it is polTible their apparent good Confequences may recommend thtra. ' There is a wide Difference between doing Things from a Motive of Superftition, and from Reafons founded in found Policy ; fo lince the Inhabitants of Orkney Hill pay the Rents of the Bi- fliopnc, it feems but Juftice to fettle them on f^me fuch Foundation, that, as in the Days of Pre- hcy, ihey may be conftantly expended amongft them, " There is no Doubt, that if fuch a Scheme fhould ever be carried into Execution, due Care wcu'.d be taken to render this a Seminary of iifeful Knowledge and praiftical Science. fifl. of GREAT BRITAIN. 675 fift w. My other Propofal is, that the East India Company be allowed to ereft a fpacious Magazine in one of thefe Iflands, where alfo a Collec- tor and a fufficient Number of King's Officers ihould alio refidc, to receive the Duties of fuch Eaft India Commodities as might be taken off by Britifh Subjeds ; and which being afforded cheaper, would increaTe the Confumption to the Profit of the Company, and of the Revenue x. This would likewife effecflually prevent Smuggling, more efpecially if a Cuftom- houfe Cutter was to be alfo ftationed at the fome Illand, and to cruize occa- fionally from thence. It would likewile enable the Company to lend their Goods to Hamburgh, to Lubec, and to other Ports, on eafier Terms than they could be fupplied by the Dutch, and the new Northern Companies; which it is well known have been eredled by the Affiftance of Britifh Subjects, and have been, are, and ever will be, very detrimental to this Nation r. If this Hiftory, Defcription, and Account of their Produce and Refources, fhould be fo fortunate as to throw Light fufficient on this Subjeft, to in- duce an able and intelligent Adminiftration, to look with Attention upon the Orkneys, and by the Methods here propofed, or any other, enable the Inhabitants to turn their Abilities and Labour to their own, and to the pub- lic Emolument, it will certainly produce very falutary, perhaps very fur- prizing Effcdls z. The bringing the Endeavours of thirty thoufand Perfons, to live in that Eafe, and with thofe Comforts which their fellow Subjefts in general enjoy, would increafe their Correfpondence with Britain and her Colonies, promote the Confumption of their Commodities and Manu- *■ AmongfV thefe, it will be none of the lesrt, that it will aiFord a Means of cultivating Genius amongft the Natives, and furnifhing in Time a Subfiftence to a few of them, who no Queftion ■will in Gratitude bend all their Endeavours to render their Studies beneficial to their Country, and thereby repay the Obligation. '^ It may be eafily conceived that the faving repeated Freights, the Accumulation of different Profits, feveral Infurances, and other Charges, may in a great Degree balance the Duty. At all Events, whatever can be thus fold will be fo much clear Gain to the Nation ; as the whole Purchafc Money would have been laid out with Swedes, Danes, or other Strangers. y The very forming fuch Magazines, the Maintenance of the Officers of the Ciown and Com- pany, though lefs expenfive here than they would be any where elfe, with the Refort of Shipping, &c. would very fpeedily Change the Face of Affiirs in the Orkneys, and poffibly put it in the Power of the People to undertake Fifheries and other Improvements without any AlTiftance from the Publick, fave a few good Laws to fecond their Endeavours. i It has been ffiewn that thefe Illes in point of Territory are equal to Zealand, a Province com- pofed like this of Iflands of different Sizes ; it has been hinted, that by proper Attention and rea- fonable Encouragement, the Orkneys might be made as flourifliing in Time to come as Zealand now is. It may be demanded by fome Lover of Precifion, what does Zealand yield to the States ? The only Anfwer that can be returned to this is, that when Sir William Temple computed the ordinary Revenue of the Republic at twenty-one millions of Guilders, Zealand aftually paid about two millions, or upwards of one hundred and eighty thoufand Pounds fterling, exclufive of the Expence of Dikes, &c. 4 R 2 fadures. 676 The POLITICAL SURVEY fadtures, and confequently the Revenue of the Excife as well as Cuftomsj- Thefe are Advantages we have very prudently fouglir, by peopling Coun- tries at a vafl DilTance ; would there be Icis Prudence in drawing the fame Refources here at Home ? Thefe People are confeffed to be frugal and diligent ; but they wifh to find the Sweets of their own Labour, and to feel their Induftry rewarded. What is this, but an earneft Inclination to refume their FKheries, to ferve on board our Fleets, to bring more raw Commodities to our Markets, in order to carry more of our Manufadtures to theirs, to be inllruded in our Arts, to copy our Examples, and thereby make thefe Britiili Iflands more and more refemble Britain ? Ought we not to caft an Eye on fuch People, ought we not to encourage their Defires ? In a Word, ought we not to put it in their Power to pay us Tribute ? This is all they afk, or. I for them. . S E C T I O N V. Part II. Of the IJlancIs of Shetland, THE Reafons ivhyfo little is to be known in refpecl to the ancient State off theje IJlands. A fuccinSi Account of the fever al Changes they have under- gone i The prificipal Caifes why they have been hitherto fo little known, and why they d ferve to be better defcribed, and more attentively confidered. The Jeveral Appellations which have been bejlowed upon them. Their Nutnbcr,- S it nation, and Extent. The largejl of thefe Iflands Jlyled the Main Land, and the principal Harbours therein particularly defcribed. The Ijlands that lie on the Weji Side of the Main Land. '^Ihe Ijlands that are fituated to the Eafi of the Main Land. A diJlinSl Account of the Ifland of Yell. ■ The like of the Ifland of'Unfl. Situation and prefent State of Foula, which was the Thule of Tacitus. Of Fair Ife, with a remarkable Piece of Ilif- tory relating thereto. Of the Climate atid Scafons in the Shetland Ifes. Their Soil and Produce. Are all of them admirably watered, and their Coafs abounding with Variety of excellent Fiji?. The annual Progrcfs of Herring- AJhort Hifiory of the Dutch Fifl^ery upon this Coajh A modeji Computation of its total Amount. Account of the Inhabitants in re- fpetl to their Perj'ons, Manners, Husbandry, ManvfaBures, and Commerce. Reciprocal Advantages that might arife j'rom a cloj'er Connexion, and more conjiant and rcgidar Inter comje between the Inhabitants of thefe Ijlands and thofe in Great Britain. The beneficial ConfequeJices that flowed from that Conflitution which originally took Place in all our Iflands. Political Deduc- tions from the Contents of this Chapter, tending to Jljew what ftupendous Advantages may be derived from the Improvement even of the remoteji Bri- tifo of , G R E A T BRITAIN. 677 iij}} IJlands. An Injlance in Support of this from the Ifland of Gothland, and the great Mart of Wifhuy fated therein. The Conclufon. IN refpedl to the early Hiftory of thefe Iflands, and of their original In- habitants, we have already given all the memorable Particulars that we could- glean in treating of the People in the Orkneys^. The Writers of Antiquity, to fpeak the Truth, are totally filcnt as to any of them'except Thule, of which we have already faid much, and in the Courfe of this Sedlion fliall have Occafion to fay fomewhat morels. It may be that So- linus, by his Pomona diiitina., might mean the main Land of Shetland, to which that Epithet agrees better than to the main Land of Orkney ; yet this after all is but Conjedlure <:. Thefe Iflands are not fo much as men- tioned by Fordun or Polydore Virgil ; are but very flightly treated by Hec- tor Boethius, Bifhop Lelly, and Buchanan'^'; barely touched by Camden, though pretty largely infifted upon by another Writer ^, who flourifhed at the fame Time.. There are Proofs fufficiently convincing, that they were very early inha- bited by the Pifts, or rather by thofe Nations who were the original PolTeflors of the Orkneys; and at the Time of the total Deftrudtion of thefe Nations, if any Credit be due to Tradition, their Woods, for Reafons elfewhere mentioned, were entirely ruined f. It is highly probable tliat the People in Shetland, as well as in the Orkneys, flouriihed under their own Princes dependant upon the Crown of Norway; ye.t this feems to have been ra- ther through what they acquired by Filhing and Commerce, than by the * As the Ifles of Shetland He 'io near the Continent of Norway, it is reafonable tofuppofe they were peopled, or at leaft conquered, from thence, in which all the antient Northern Hirtorians agree ; who in this refpeft, that is, as to the Anceftors of the prefent Inhabitants, are our fuitfl Guides. Mallet, Introduflion a I'Hiftoire de Dannemarc, p. 172. '' The learned Angrimus Jonas. Crymog, lib. i. takes great Pains to prove that Thule, meh- tioned by Vii-gil, Pliny, and othei RomAn Authors, was notlfeland, but one of the Britifh Ifles, and cites Ranius and Myritius, who were both of his Opinion. Petrarch, lib. iii. Epill. i. has a great deal to the fame Purpofe. Thule is a Pha;nician Word, fignifying dark or obfcure ; and in the Britifh, Inis touil, implied Infala umbrofa, or the dark fliady Ille. <: Polyhift. cap. xxkv. His Words are " fed Thule Larga, Pomona diutina coplofa efl." It fhould feem he meant to diftinguifli two Iflands lying near one to the other. If this was his- Meaning, it will appear frona the fubfequent Defcription of thefe Ifles, that it was not either ill- founded or ill exprefl^ed. <• Scotorum Regni Defcript. fol. 9. b. 10. a. Regloniim fafe, and commodious "n The Town of Scalloway before v/hich it lies, was formerly the chief, indeed the only one in the Ifland. A. D. One thoufand Six hundred, Patrick Earl of Orkney built a flately Caftle here, which is now in Ruins " ; and the Place m a Courfe of Years fo much de- clined, that there are fcarce thirty Houfes *'. On the fame Side of the Ifland are Olis Voe and Valley Sound, both fine Ports, and very capacious p. On the other Side of the Ifland, that is on the Eall:, the Town of Ler- wick, which is the prefent Capital, is fituated, which confifls of upwards of three hundred Floufes, and is every Day increafingl. Oppofite to this Town lies the Ifland of Brefl"ay or Brafla, and between the Ifland and the Main runs the famous Brassa, fometimes alfo called Broad Sound, in which no lefs than two thoufond Sail of Vefl"els have lain at once fafe and commodioufly r. It is four Miles in Length, in fome Places two, in others one Mile broad, in fome others much narrower ; but deep and well fe- cured from Winds «. There is towards the North End, a Rock called the JJ?iicorn^. In One thoufand Six hundred and Forty, the Dunkirk Squa- ^ There is good Rcafon to believe, tliat even in the interior Part of the Country, man)' fiich Spots might be found and improved, at leafl this is the Cafe in the Ferroe IQes, and in lieland. But in the prefent State of Things, this is fcarce to be expeiTled. But if the Country was more populous, that is, if more of the Natives were enabled to continue in it, this and many other Improvements would follow of Courfe. ' This is the gre it and diftinguifhing Advantage of this and the other Idands remarked by Sir William Monfon, illuflrated by Mr. Smith, and confirmed by Captain Prcfion, all Englifli Writers of indifputab'e Credit. It is no fmall Honour to Shetland that thefe Gentlemen con- curred in Opinion as to its Importance, and pubiiflied their Opinion for the Information of the Public. "> In Mr. Preflon's.]NI-'P both thefe Entrances are particularly defcribed, as is alfo the Harbour. " Over the Gate was this Infcription, Patricius Orcfeadia; & Zelandix Comes. ° The Country about Scalloway is incomparably better than about Lerwick. ; but then there is no Comparifon to be made between their Ports. P See Captain Prefton's Map, and his Account in the Traufaftions. 1 Blaeu, p. 148. Sibbald, p. 2, 3. Martin's Defcription of the Weftern Iflands, p. 388. ' Sibbald, p. 30. Smith's England's linpiovement revived, B. vi p. 252. "^ When James Hepburn Duke of Orkney fled hither, he was purfued by William Kirkaldie of •Grange, in a Ship called the Unicorn, wnich Ifriking thereon, left its Namev to this Rock. This gave the Duke an Opportunity of efcaping, who after lying many Years ia Prifon in Denmark pe- riled at length miferably in that Confinement. Vol. I. 4 S dron 682 The POLITICAL SURVEY dron of Spanifli Ships, confilling of ten Siiil, attacked and deftroyed foirr Dutch Men of War that had been fent to convoy home their Eaft India Fleet f. In One thoufand Six hundred and Fifty-three, the Englidi Fleet, confining of ninety- four Sail, under the Command af the Admirals Deane and Monk, anchored here " > and in One thoufand Six hundred and Sixty- five, the Earl of Sandwich, with ninety-two Men of War under his Com- mand, lay for fome Time in this Harbour w. The fame Year a Fort was eredled by the Orders of King Charles the Second, which, together with tlie Town, was burned and dedroyed Auguft the Thirteenth One thou- fand Six hundred aud Seventy-three by the Dutch -^. On the fame Side the Iftand with BrelTa Sound, are Dura' Voe and Balta, both good Ports, and alfo Catfnrd Voe, where in the Summer Seafon a whole Navy may ride with great Coiiveniency y. There are few or no Sands or Shoals upon the Coaft, except one on the Wefl: Side called Have de Grind', and fome dangerous Rocks to the North Weft a. to^ On the Weft Side of the Main Land there are not fewer than twenty Iflands of very different Sizes, befides Holms and Skerries ; neither are either of thefe unprofitable, as the former afford vafl: Quantities of fine Grafs for the Feeding of Cattle ; and on the Coafts of the latter are caught Abundance of fine Fifli of difterent Sorts j and on both there are immenfe .Quantities of Fowls''. To the South of Scalloway lies the little liland of St. Ninian, corruptly called St. Ringing's, in which, though but a Mile long and half a Mile broad, there is a large well-built Church, which Ihews that it was once fully inhabited ':. Oppofite to the Town of Scallo- t Of thefe, two were funk in the Sound, a third ran on Shore, and was fet on fire by her own Captain, and the fourth was taken. u In the preceding Year Admiral Blake had diflipated their Herring BufTes, which occafioned a great Confufion in Holland. w Philips's Continuation of Heath's Chronicle, p. 541. Sibbald, p. 30. Le Clerc Hiftoire des Provinces-unles, torn. iii. p. 85. 87. « Sibbald, p. 30. The Dutch fufpended the Herring Fifhery this Year, and therefore were not expefted. y Blaeu, p. 149. Sibbald, p. ij. Cutler's Coafting Pilot, p. 10. » Mr. Prefton's Account of Shetland, in the Philofophical Tranfaftions, No. 473. " As the Coafl in general is high and bold, feen at a great Diflance from Sea, and the Harbours numerous, fafe, and eafy of Accefs, it is, as Mr. Prefton well obferves, a Wonder that thefe Ifles are fo little known, and have been fo long neglcfted. The firft his been probably the Caufe of the fecond. It is not a little ftrange that this Gentleman's Map is not now to be pur- chafed. b There is fcarce one of thefe Iflands, that would not, if the Inhabitants had the Means and the Encouragements neccfiary to render them induflrious, furnifli them with the Power of fubfifting, and carrying on a beneficial as well as extenfive Commerce, the Profits of which muft ultimately and neceflarily center in Britain ; and what better Reafon can be affigned for her Attention and A fli fiance ? • Sibbald, p. 15, i<5. Martin's Defcription of the Weftera Ifles, p. 379* way of GREAT BRITAIN. 6^^ way lie Teveral Iflands, which, as we have before obferved, break the Ra- pidity of the Flood, and form fafe Entrances into the Harbour. The biggelt of thefe Illes is Trondra, three Miles long and two broad "i. Burra, confiils of two Iflands e, one called Houfe, the other Kirk Ifland, in neither of which it is faid Mice can live ^ To the North of thefe lies Pa- pa Stour, or the Great Papa; which, though but two Miles long and one broad, is efteemed the pleafanteft, and for its Size the beft furniftied with the NecelTaries of Life of any of thefe Illes g. There are befides this. Pa- pas, and the Little Papah; and to the North of thefe, Rou Stour, or the Great Rou, eight Miles long and two broad, with a good Port '. There are alfo many Iflands on the Eafl: Side of the Main Land; fomc of which it may not be improper to mention. To the South of Lerwick lies Moufa or the Queen's Ifland, one Mile in Length and about a Quarter of a Mile broad, and is remarkable for having upon it the moft compleat and entire of thofe little Fortifications, called by the Natives Br ugh s, but by the Scots commonly Pi£}s Houfes, that are fl;ill remaining in any of thefe Iflands '■. Over againfl; Lerwick lies BreflTay or Brafla Ifle, five Miles from South to North, and two from Wefl: to Eaft. This Ifle for its Size is very moun- tainous, and amongfl; many Hills there are two in it very confpicuous '. It ■• Sibbald, p. 28. Martin, p. 378. * It is necefTary to remark this, becaufe in fome Maps we meet with thefe Illes under their proper Names, and in others under that of Burra. * Some attribute this (Martin, p. 380) to tlie Ifles of Burra. Others to the little Ifle of Ha- verey, which lies near them. Sibbald, p. 27. e Martin, p. 379. Some fuch Ifland as this, being properly laid out, judicioufly cultii-ated, and the People encouraged to undertake fome ufeful Manufafture, all which might be brought about at no great Expence, would eflablirti a Precedent that would be quickly imitated, and is perhaps the fole Thing requifite to render thefe Iflands populous, and the People in them happy. •» There is another Papa near tlie Coaft of Norwa;; , and a little Ifland of the fame Name near Ifeland. Perhaps the Papx came from thefe into the Orkneys and Shetland, or poffibly, when driven out of thefe, they might retire to thofe Iflands. ' Sibbald, p. 33, 34. Martin, p. 379. The Port is called the Hams of Rou or Rooe, Land- locked, and very fafe. " We have an exafl: Defcriptlon of this Brugh in Latin, by the learned Mr. Maule, of the noble Family of Panmure, one of the ablefl; Antiquaries his Country ever produced. Thofe Brughs in their Form are not unlike Pigeon Houfes, they have a winding Stair in the Wall of each, which reaches quite to the Top. Thefe ferved as Watch-towers and Beacons, having Heaps of Peat on the Top, which were kindled to give Notice of an Enemy's Appearance ; and therefore all the Brughs in an Ifland were in Sight one of another. There were Cells or Apartments underneath forfecur- ing their Perfons and Eifefts ; and in fome of them fubterraneous PafTages to Ibme Creek, where- in their Boats lay, in which they might efcape. Whoever attentively conlidcrs the Motives which induced thefe People to raife fuch Struftures, how well calculated they were to aufwer the Ends for which they were built, and for how many Ages they ha\e refilled the R.age of Time, svill hefitate at calling thofe who conftrufted them Barbarians. ' One of thefe is on the Eall Side, called Andrew's Hill ; the other, which is the higlieft, at ihe South End, called the Wart or Beacon Hill. 4 S 2 is 684 The POLITICAL SURVEY is in a manner over-run witli Heath, though there are fome confiderable Parcels of good Pafturage and arable Lands near the Shore. There are alfo eight frefh water Lochs, abounding with fine Trout and Eels. It muft have been very populous in former Times, fince there are the Ruins of five fmall Forts, and there are ftill two Churches and a Chapel. It has likewife a good Port called Aiths Voe'". At a fmall Diftance to the Eafi: lies another Ifle, called the Nofs, two Miles long and three Quarters of a Mile broad; it has a Church upon it, is equally fertile and pleafant, and has a large Holm belonging to it, in which there are Abundance of Sea Fowls n. Whalfey, that is the Ifle of Whales, which lies to the North of Breliay, and to the Eaft of the Main Land, is about nine Miles in Cir- cumference °. At fix Leagues Diftance from this Ifle lie the Skerries, on which, in One thoufand Six hundred and Sixty-four, the Carmalan of Am- fterdam, a very rich Eaft India Ship, was loft p. To the North of Whal- fey there are many fmall Iflands, moft of which are inhabited ; and though but infignificant at prefent, yet if any Change of Fortune ftiould happen to the Shetland Ifles, they would probably partake of it, and by being turned to ufeful Purpofes, and in confequence of that retaining all the Pofterity. of their prefent Inhabitants, come to be thought of more Confequence q. But befides thefe, there are two large and confiderable Iflands belong- ing to Shetland, with feveral fmall ones in their Vicinity, of which there- fore we ought to fpeak more particularly. The firft of thefe is Yell, which anciently was written Zeal, making however, as we have before re- marked, no great Alteration in the Pronunciation "■. This Ifland, in the Opinion of the learned Mr. Maule, from its nearnefs to Norway, fcems ■" This opens to the North Weft, and runs up to South Eaft about a Mile ; it is a Quarter of a Mile broad, good clean anchoring Ground in eight, nine, or ten Fathom Water. The Inhabit- ants have a Tradition, that in ancient Times the Englifli reforted particularly to this Harbour, and had a Place oa the lUaad for curing their Fifti, and felling their Goods, which was called the Englilh Booth. " Sibbald, p. 30, 31. Martin, p. 380. Two Things are remarked in this Ifland (in fome old Writings called Qualfay) the firft is, that the Inhabitants are exceedingly diftrefTed by Rats, though thefe Creatures cannot live in moft of the other Ifles. Martin, p. 378. The other, that the Mariner's Compafs being placed on a little Hill, the Poles of the Needle are immediately changed, and as fuddcnly, on being removed to a very fmall Diftance, recover their proper DireiSlion. Sibbald, p. 39. p Martin, p. 378. He fays only four of the Crew were faved, and that the Cargo was valued . at three Millions of Guilders. 1 If a right Direflion %vas given to the Peoples Induflry, and they had an eafy Accefs to pro- per Markets, this would be fpeedily efFefted. ' This will be eafily underftood by pronouncing Z like Y. Sir James Skene in his Explanation of Law Terms, tranflates Virgata Terrte, an Zairde of Land, i. e. a Yard Land ; and according to this Mode of Pronunciation, Zell or Zeal, is fpoken Yell, or Yeal; Zetland or Zeatland, Yetland »r. Ygatland, which has been corrupted into Schetland, as is before raentionedc . ta. 3' of GREAT BRITAIR 685; fo Rave been the firft inhabited s, and to have given Name to all the reft.- His Opinion has certainly a great Degree of Probability, for the Natives- call themfelves, and are called by all the Northern Nations, Talts, and their Language TaJtmcll. Now in the Klandic, which as has been already hinted, was the original Language of Norway, "Jell fignifies a dark Cloud, and confequently yelland, or "Jeltland, a rainy Country, which it may be prefumed is at leafl: as good an Etymology as any that has been hitherto offered f. Mr. Maule likewife thinks that this was the true Thule «» This Ifland lies North Eall by Eaft from iVIain Land, and is divided from, it by an Arm of the Sea, called Yell Sound w. In the old Defcriptions, Tell is faid to be twenty Miles long and eight broad : It is very moun-- tainous, full of Mofs; but there are pretty confiderable Paftures, in v/hich they feed a great many Sheep; and it alio affords Plenty of Peat. It has- eight large Voes or Harbours, befides many fmaller Bays, which would not be thouoht defoicable anchorinjj Places in other Countries. It feems to have been populous in ancient Times, lince there are in it three Churches, twenty Chapels, and many Brughs or Pidlifli Forts f . There are dependent upon it Hajcofea, two Miles long and one broad, Samphra and Bigga, all of them IHands very fertile in Grafs >'. Befides thefe, to the South Weft lies Fetlar, or Theodore's Ifle, nine or ten Miles in Compafs,, with a Church, ten Chapels, and many Brughs ; it has feveral Creeks- for fmall. Boats, but nothing that can be called a Port z. The other of thefe two larger Iflands is Unst, which is alfo the mofl Northern of all the Shetland Ifles, and at the fame Time the pleafanteft,. and not the leaft fertile amongft them''. It lies at a fmall Diftance Eafl. from Yell, having that large Illand between it and the Main Land, being s I: may be objefted thatUnfl; is flill nearer to Norway, and tbe pleafanter Ifland of the two, by which, of late, it has gained confiderably on the other. But this Objeftion anfwers itfelf ; fince under thefe Circumftances, Yell could never had the Superiority over the other, if it had not been the firft planted. ■ It is certain that no great Strefs is to be laid on any Et)-mology of this Kind, though by the way this agrees exactly with the Phoenician Thule ; but the Defire of coining as near Truth as poflible is always laudable. B By this is to be underftood the Thule of the Phoenicians and Greeks, not that of Tacitus- and the Romans, as fnall be hereafter explained. "^ Blaeu, p. 148. who calls it Zeal. Sibbald, p. 34. Martin, p. 381. " This, at the fame Timeit demonflrates the Ifland's being well fettled even in the earlleft Age?,- confirms the Argument before advanced, that it was firft inhabited. y Blaeu, p. 148. Sibbald, p. 35. Martin, p. 381. '^ Sibbald, p. 35. Martin, p. 381. MS. Relation of the Shetland Ifles. ' ^ In like Manner the Northern and North-eaftern Iflands of Fcrroe, the Northern Parts of Ife- land, and, which is moft fingular, the North-eaftern Part of Greenland (whence it receives its ■ Name) is fertile in Pafturage. See Debes's Defcription of the Ifles of ■Fence, p. 1 1 5. See likewife^' ibcncw Accounts ofGreenland by theMorairiaus, . dividedi 686 The POLITICAL S U R V E Y •li\ ided from the tirft mentioned Ifland by an Arm of the Sea, called Blumel Sound '\ Unst is eight Miles long, and between three and four broad, and divided into tv\enty-four Scatfa/Js, twenty-two of which have each of them a Proportion of Sea Coaft c. There is great Plenty of Hether and Peat, with lome good Pailure and a little of very fertile arable Ground d. Near the Middle of this Ifle there is a Loch three Miles in Extent, in which there are Abundance of Trout, Eel, and Flounders e. Here are three Churches, twenty-four Chapels, and eleven Briighs. There was alfo a Caftle at rhe Southern Extremity, called Movvnes, now in Decay C. There are two excellent Harbours, the one in the South called Via Bay, being covered by an Ifland of the fame Name §, equally commodious and capacious, having nine Fathom "Water, and good anchoring Ground ''. The other is on the Eaft Side, covered by the Ifle of Balta, and from thence called Balta Voe, very fafe and fpacious, with eight Fathom Water i. There are befides ihefe feveral Bays and Roads lefs confiderable. The Number of Inhabit- ants in thefe Iflands, that is Unll; and its Dependencies, may be about Fifteen hundred, and they have feventy filhing Boats k. Via is a very fair liland, and produces great Plenty of fine and rich Grafs. The fame may be faid of Balta, vyhich is alio well flocked with Rabbits'. There are befides thefe Iflets four or five Holms, which feed Sheep and Cattle; and the Ifland of Linga, low, flat, covered with Mofs, but which would be a very convenient Place for Salt Pans, if the Inhabitants were in fuch a Condition as to be capable of carrying on a Fifhery entirely on their own Accouat "\ ' Between fix and feven Leagues Wefl from the Main Land lies the fland of FuLA or Foula, commonly called by our Seamen Foul Ifland, * BLieii, p. 148. Sibbald, p. 36, 37. Mnrtin, p. 381. « MS. Relation of the Illes of Shetland. Skataid, in the Iflandic, fignifies a Portion of Lan4 paying Tribute. •* The ingenious and worthy Gentlem.in who fent me the Relation to which I (o frequently re- fer, informs me that a fmall Spot of fandy Soil in the North of this Ifle, being fown with Bear or Bigg on the third of May, was reaped on the tenth of Augiif^, both Old Stile, and produced twenty-four fold. This is furely fufficient to vindicate the Soil from the Imputation of bein^ jbarren. ' Sibbald, p. 38. * This was built by Lawrence Bruce, Efq; and was a fpacious regular Structure, g Blaeu, p. 148. Sibbald. Martin, p. 382. ■t Sibbald, p 36, 37. where we are told it has three Entrances, and as an Harbour is little kiferior to BrelTay Sound. ' It lies on the Eafl Side of Unll, and is defervedly efteemed an excellent Haven. ^ Thefe Boats or Yalls carry four or five Men each, and by being conflantly employed in thefe tempefluous Seas, the Crews of them become hardy and fkUful Sailors. ' The Ifle of Via, though fo called in Blaeu, is named Uzea by Sibbald and Martin. n> This no Doubt might be as eafily done in many fmall Iflands v.'henever it lliall become ne- cel&ry., 2 in of GREAT BRITAIN. 687 In Oppofition to that of which wc fliall prelently fpeak". It is about three Miles long, narrow, and full of rough, fteep, and bare Rocks, one of which is fo large, and runs up to fo great a Height, as to be clearly feen from the Orkneys". This therefore may be eftecmed with the gieatefi: Probability to be the Tkule of Tacitus, whatever might be the Thule of the Phcenicians and Greeks p. It has fcarce any Palturage, a very little arable Land ; but that though fmall in Size, is however very fertile, out of the Produce of which, with Fowl and Firti, the poor Inhabitants fubfift. They have nothing that can be called a Port, and the only Commodities they have, are Stock-filh, Train-oil, and Feathers 'l. The Fair Isle lies between Orkney and Shetland, ten or twelve Leagues Eaft North Eaft from the former; feven or, as others fay, te:i Leagues South Weft from the h'tter; and about eighteen or nineteen Leagues South Eaft from Foula^ It is full three Miles long, and fcarce haii a Mile broad, very craggy, with three high Rocks, which are clearly feen both from Orkney and Shetland s. Tliere is in this Ifland alfo a fmall Quantity of arable Land, which is very fruitful, and well manured ; they might have coniiderably more, but they are obliged to refcrve this for Feat and Pafturage f. They have for the Size of the Ifland a great man) Sheep, and thofe are very good and very fat; but they have no Kind of Moor Fowl or other Game, but very great Plenty of Sea and Water Fowl, and all kinds of Fifli upon their Coafts. They have a very pretty Church, but no Minifter, being annexed to one of the Parilhes in Shetland, or ferved by an Itinerant Minifter, as fome late Accounts aftert. A Layman reads the Scriptures every Simday in the Church, the Inhabitants being a very religious, harmlefs> fober, ard honeft People". They have in etfcdt no Port, though they have two that are nominally fo, one at the South End, which is full of Rocks, where only fmall Boats can lie, and that but in- diiterently ; the other at the North Eaft End, larger and fafer in the Sum- " There is nothing more common in the Journals of Seamen, who have come, as they phrafe it, North about, than to mark their having had Sight of Foul or Fair IllanJ and fometimes of both. " Miirtin's Account of the Wefiern Iflands of Scotland, p. 380. P This was the only one of the Shetland Iflands that could have been difcerned by the Rom.in VefTels in their Padage round the Oikueys, « Sibbald, p. 3 ( . "■ Blaeu, p. 147. Smith's England's Improvement revived, B. vi. p. 252. Sibbald, p. 23. « Shetland, that is the Main Laud, if the Horizon be clear, is very plainly feen ; Orkney Icfs di"f- tinftly as the Lands lie low. ' Thefe, the Situation of the Inhabiti".nts confidcred, are as necefTary, if not more fo than Bread, with which, when in Scarcity, they can be more eafily fupplied than with FltlTi or Fuel. But there is no Doubt to b2 midc, that even this liitle Ifland, with all its Impeifeffions, might have been by proper Management improved, and with this View confidcrable Oi!ers were made to the Proprietor, but rejedfed. " This is, and has been always their Charafttr, owing probably to the good Example of their Auceitors, and the fmall Commerce they have with the IVtil ot the Woild, 688 The POLITICAL SURVEY mer Time, fo as to ferve commodioufly enough for their Fifliery. Small :and infignificant as this Ifland may Teem, there is a very remarkable Piece of Hiflory belonging to it "'. Tl:ie Duke of Medina Sidonia, when Comman- dev in Chief of the famous Spanidi Armada in One thoufand Five hundred and Eighty-eight, was wrecked on the Ead Coall of this Ifland. The Ship ibroke to Pieces, but the Duke and about two hundred more efcaped. They lived there till both themfelves and the Inhabitants were very near famifli- ed J at length the Duke and the poor Remains of his People were carried ■over to the Main Land of Shetland by Andrew Humphry. He continued fome Time at Quendale, and then embarked on board the fame fmall Ship, and was fafely conveyed therein to Dunkirk, for which Service he rewarded Andrew Humphry with Three thoufand Marks. This Ifland produced to its late Proprietor between fifty and fixty Pounds Sterling per Annum, and was fold at Edinburgh, on the twentieth of June One thoufund Seven hun- dred and Sixty fix, for the Sam of Ten thoufand Two hundred Pounds Scots, or about Eight hundred and Fifty Pounds Sterling, to James Stuart of Burgh, Efquire. In refpefl to Climate, the Shetland Iflands have not much to boafl:, and yet are very far from being fuch miferable Habitations as fome have re- prefented them }'. The longefl Day in the Ifland of Unft is nineteen Hours fifteen Minutes, and of Confequence the fhortefl: Day four Hours and forty- iive Minutes. The Spring is very late, the Summer very fliort ; the Au- tumn alfo is of no long Duration, dark, foggy, and rainy ; the Winter fets in about November, and lafts till April, and fometimes till May 2. They have frequently in that Seafon Storms of Thunder, much Rain, but little Froft or Snown High Winds are indeed very frequent and very troublefome, yet they feldom produce any terrible Effedfs. The Aurora Borealis is as common here as in any of the Northern Countries h. In the Winter Sea- fon the Sea fwells and rages in fuch a Manner, that for five or fix Months ^ Sibbald, p. 25. " It was fold in the Court of Exchequer, agreeable to a Rental from which the annual Value ■was taken, that is mentioned in the Text. y Shetland has not however been woife treated in this Refpeft than other Northern Countries, as may be clearly difcerned by comparing Burgher-mafler Anderfon's with Dr. Horrebow's Account of Ifeland, by which it appears, that it is in all Seafons habitable, and in fome pleafant, though as far North from Shetland as Shetland is from Edinburgh. * Blaeu, p. 148, 149. Sibbald, p. 2. Captain Prefton's Account in the Tranfafbions, N". 147, p. 57. MS. Relation, all agreeing in the Main. a All the Accounts old and new agree in thefe Particulars. Mr. Smith, A. D. 1633, faw no Snow, but Mr. Frefton faw itcovered with Snow 20th May 1744. In the Year 1762, my Corref- pondent afTures mc the Winter was remarkably mild ; fo that the difmal Ideas of its being a mi- ferable, bleak, frozen Region appear to have little Foundation, and in Proportion as it is better cultivated will have gradually lefs. " Thefe boifterous Winds blow commonly from fome Point between the South and the Weft. The Aurora Borealis is feeu almoft every Night about the Winter Solflice. their of GREAT BRITAIN. 689 tlieJr Ports are inaccelTible, and of courfe the People during that Space have no Correfpondence with the reft of the World c. The Soil in the interior Part of the Main Land, for the mofl: Part, is mountainous, moorifh, and boggy, yet not to fuch a Degree as to render the Country utterly impaffable ; for many of the Roads here, and in fome of the Northern Ifles, are as good as any other natural Roads, and the People travel them frequently on all Occafions d. Near the Coafts there arc fome- times for Miles together flat pleafant Spots, very fertile both in Pallure and Corne. The Mountains produce large Crops of very nutritive Grafs in the Summer, and they cut conliderable Quantities of Hay, with which they feed their Cattle in the Winter. They might with a little Attention bring more of their Country into Cultivation ; but the People are fo much addicted to their Fifliery, and feel fo little Neceflity of having Recourfe to this Method for Subliftence, that they are content, how ftrange foever that may feem to us, to let four Parts in five of their Land remain in a State of Nature f . They want not conliderable Quantities of Marl in different Illands, though they ufe but little; hitherto there has been no Chalk found ; Lime- ftone and Freeftone there are in the Southern Parts of the Main Land in great Quantities, and alfo in the neighbouring Illands, particularly Fetlar, and confiderable Quantities of Slate very good in its Kind s. No Mines have been hitherto wrought, though there are in many Places vifible Ap- pearances of feveral Kinds of Metal 1\ Some folid Pieces of Silver, it is laid, have been turned up by the Plough'. In the liland of Via, a yellow Metal has been met with, which being found dithcult to melt, has been c Wt muA by no meiins fuppofe the Temper anJ Difpofition of the People affedled" by the Drearinefs ot the Se^ifon. Winter, on the contrary, is a Kind ot Cm nival in Shetland. All Ranks of People eat Flefti and live well during this Period of Relaxation. Gentlemen of Family ani Fortune, of which there are many here, live fo hofpitably and fo politely, that few Strangers rtgrct the Length of the Winter who happen to fpend it amongft them. •^ MS. Relation of the Ifles of Shetland. e Thefe are generally inclofed with Dykes, and cultivated according to the Manner oi theCou:".- tiy, which is daily improving. i This is not a greater Misfortune to the Commons of Shetland, who work hard and f.ire yet harder, than to the Community ; for if their Lands were iinpioved, and the Popple in gener.".! lived better, they muft become thereby more ufciul to the Public ; and it is the Coiifideration of thli; very important and incontelVible Truth, that (lionld reccmmcad them to public Protefiioa, as it has been the fole Motive to my Writing this Scftion to point it out. t Martin, p. 390, 391. Captain Prefton's Remarks. MS. Relation of the Ifies of Shetland. h This may be accounted for, firft from the Want of People, next froin the Want of WooJ, nnd laflly from the Want of Funds to defray the Expence. « Captain Preflon's Reiaarks in the Philofophical Tranfaifllon?, \''. 47;;. Vol. I. 4 T negledcd. 690 The POLITICAL SURVEY n-egleAed •<• In fome of the fmaller Iflcs there are ftrong Appearances of Iron; but through the Want of proper Experiments being made, there is, in this Refpedt at leaft, hitherto nothing certain '. Their Meadows are inclofed with Dykes, and produce very good Grafs'". The little Corn they grow is chiefly Barley with fome Oats ; and even in the Northern Ex- tremity of Unfl (as we have hinted before) the little Land they have is re- markable for its Fertility ". The Hills abound with medicinal Herbs, and their Kitchen Gardens thrive as well, and produce as good Greens and Roots as any in Britain". Of late Years, and fince this has been attended to, fome Gentlemen have had even greater Succefs than they expedled in the cultivating Tulips, Rofes, and many other Flowers. It is true, that though, as has been before obferved, they have no Trees, and hardly any Shrubs except Juniper, yet they have a Tradition that their Country was formerly overgrown with Woods ; and it feems to be a Confirmation of this, that the Roots of Timber Trees have been and are fl;ill dug up at a great Depth ; and that in fome, and thofe too inacceffible Places, the Rodden- Tree is ftill found growing wild p. That this Defeft, viz. the Want of Wood at prefent, does not arife entirely from the Soil or Climate, appears- from feveral late Experiments ; fome Gentlemen having raifed Adi, Maple,. Horfe Chefnuts, &c. in their Gardens q. Though the Inhabitants are without either Wood or Coals, they are very well fupplied with Fuel, hav- ing great Plenty of Hether and Peat i". The black Cattle in this Country are in general of a larger Sort than in Orkney, which is owing to their having more extenfive Pafturesj a clear Proof ihiM flill farther Improve- '■ Martin, p. 382. He calls this Ifland Uzla ; Sibbald Names it Uzea. ' It would colt the Public little to fend an experienced Perlon thither, in order to put this Point out ot Doubt, and the Confequences might be confidcrable. "> Sibbald, p. 3. and all the later Writers. Their Scythes are very fhort, and tlicy cut their Hay in the Beginning of Aiigiift. " An Inftance of this has been given before of Barley fown and reaped i'n ninety-nine Days. In Norway, A. D. 1732, they fowed and reaped the fame Grain in fifty eight Days. The Quantity al(b twenty- four Fold is by no means extraordinary, fince in the Ferroe Iflands there are Iimances of much larger Increafe ; and when Agriculture fhall be improved, no doubt the fame may be Tcry reafonably expefied here. o This is a Faft concerning which there cannot be the leafl: Doubt, and which, maturely confidered, might lead to great as well as numerous Improvements. P There feems to be no Reafon to queftion that Woods grew anciently here ; many Trees have been dug up feveral Feet under a Peat Mofs ; large Tracfls of moify Ground are probably pro- duced by decayed or deftroyed Woods; and with regard to Cliniate, Woods grow farther to the North in Norway; and to remove any Objeftion that may arife as to the Sea Air, it is fufficient to remark, there are ffill Woods (near the Sea) in the Latitude of 66°. 20'. in Ifeland. S MS. Reiaiion of the Ifles of Shetland, and the Reader may rely upon the Fa(5fs. ' In this Refpefl (fo lur.g as the Inhabitants are confined to this fuel) the People in Shetland irt be:tcr provided with it thaa thofj in the Orkneys. meats 4 of GREAT BRITAIN. 6gi hients might be made in refpcdl to Size s. Their Horfes are very fmall, hit ftrong, itout, and weil-fliaped, live very hardly, and to a great Age t. They have likewile a Breed of Itnall Swine, the Fleih of which when fat is ei- teemed very delicious ". They have no Goats, Hares, or Foxes, and in general no wild or venemous Creatures of any Kind, except Rats in fome few Illands ^•■. They have no Heath or Moor Fowl; which is the more remark- able as tjiere is every where immenfe Qu^antities of Flether ; but there are many Sorts of wild and Water Fowl, particularly the Dunter Goofe, Clack Goofe, Solan Goofe, Sv/ans, Ducks, Teal, Whaps, Foifts, Lyres, Kittiwaiks, Maws, Plovers, Scarfs, 6cc >■'. There is hkewife the Ember Goofe, which is faid to hatch her Egg under her Wing > . Eagles and Hawks they have more than they delire, as alfo Ravens, Crows, Mews, £cc. All thefe Iflands are well w^atered, for there are everv where excellent Springs, fome of them mineral and medicinal 7-. They have indeed no Rivers, but many plealant Rills or Rivulets, which they call Burns, of dif- ferent Sizes ; in fome of the largefi: thev hf.ve admirable Trouts, fome of v/hich are of fifteen and even of twenty Pounds Weight ^ ; many frefli Water Lakes, well ftored with Trouts and Eels, and in moft of them there are alto large and fine Flounders. In fome very excellent Cod '\ Thefc frefh water Lakes, if the Country was better peopled, and the common People more at their Eafe, are certainly capable of great Improvements. The Sea Coafts of the Main Land of Shetland, in a ftrait Line, are Fifty- five Leagues; and therefore there cannot be a Country conceived more pro; er for ellablifning an extenfive Fillicry t-". What the Inhabitants have been ' Thefe Cattle are from One hundred and Eighty to Three hundred Pound? Weight, extraor- dinary fat, and fine Meat. In Mr. Smith's Time they were fold at twenty cr twcnty-fi^'e Shil- lings a Head ; in Mr. Prefton's, at the Diflance of more than a Century, for Icfs ; which fliews evidently that the Demand for them is dccreafed, in confequence, as I conjecture, of the Decline of the Dtitch Filhcry. ■: My Correfpondent fays he is pofTcfTcd of one twenty-fix Years old, in good Condition, and has rid on one that was two-and- thirty. » Sibbald, p. 7 " Blaeu, p. 148. Sibbald, p. 22. Martin, p. 29r. " Captain Prefton's Remarks, and all the Relations ancient and modern. >■ Dr. Horrebow, in his Hilloiy of Iicland, p. 67. calls this the Lomcn or Northern Diver, and alTures us they make their Nclfs far within Land, near freih Water, and hatch like other Water Fowl. » MS. Relation of the Ifles of Shetland. a Sibbald, p. 2g. Captain Prefton's Remarks. MS. Relation of the Ides of Shctiaid. » C.'prain Prefton fpeaks to the Cod from his own Knowledge. All Accounts agree as to the other Filfi. <= If the Inhabitants of Shetland and the other IP.es were once put into a Condition to carijr on all the vaiious Fifherits, whiih ihtii- Situation has {o mrinifenf, enabled them to pnrftie, t'.cy would quickly beat out Foreigners ; and then all the Produce^ ot their luduflry would ultimaccly center in Britain, as it ought to do. 4 T 2 hitherto 692 The POLITICAL SURVEY hitherto able to do, their natural Advantages confidcred, does not dcferve that Name, notwithflanding they export large Quantities of Cod, Tufli, Ling, and Safe, infomuch that the Bounty allowed by Ads of Parliament amounts from Fourteen Hundred to Two thoufand Pounds annually ^. They have befides Codlins, Haddocks, Whitings, Turbot, Skate, and a Variety of other Firti. In many of the Inlets there are prodigious Quantities of excellent Oyftcrs, Lobfters, Mufcles, Cockles, and other Shell Filh <=. As to amphibious Creatures they have Multitudes of Otters and Seals ^; add to thefe, that Amber, Ambergris, and other Spoils of the Ocean, are fre- quently found upon the Coalls s. As the Herring Fifhery on the Coafls of Shetland flill is, and has been long the great and diftinguifliing Glory of thefe liles, we fliall give as clear, but at the fame Time as concife an Account of it as poflible. The Her- ring is a Fifh that has been diftinguilhed by many honourable Epithets, on Account of the immenfe Profits derived therefrom in Commerce •'. It has the Teflimony of eminent Phyficians in its Favour as to its Whole- fomenefs, when cured in its proper Seafon i ; and it is univerfally allowed, that the very befl: Herring in the World are caught upon the Shetland Coafls ^. We have no Room to enter into Conjedures or Philofophical Rea- fons, and fliall therefore confine what is here advanced ftridly to Fadls. The firfl of thefe is, that about the Beginning of the Year, the Herrings, like the Mackrel, Plaife, and other Fifli of Paffage, iflue from the remote Receflcs of the North, in a Body furpafhng Defcription, and almoft exxeeding the •1 They make alfo immenfe Quantities of Train-oil from the Livers of large Fifli. As for Sil- Incks and Piltocks, which are a Kind of fmall Whales, the meaner Sort live on their FIcfli, fiich as it is, and Milk during the Summer. Their better Kinds of Fiih, fiich as Cod, Ling, Tufli, &c. they cure for foreign Markets, and more efpecially for Hamburgh, with which City they have a gieat Correfpondence. ' Martin, p. 285. Captain Preflon's Remarks. MS. Relation of the Illes of Shctl.md. ' The Otters they call Tikes ; and Seals, Selkies. The former have, fine Furrs, and the Skins of the latter are prettily fpeckled. * The Wrecks of Ships, which are but too frequent (Captain Prefton mentions three or four- during the few Months he remained here) belong to the Admiral. •> Willoiighby calls the Herring, Rex Pifcium, the King of Fifh ; the Swedes flile it the Royal: Fi(h; the Hamburghcrs, the Crowned Fifli. In Iflandic the Herring is called Syld, in the Kor- wegian Sild, in Swcdifli Sill, in French Harcng, in Italian Aringhe, in Dutch H.irinke, in t!-.e Britlfli of North Wales Penuag, i. e hollow Head, in Smith Wales Yfgadenin, in the plural Skadan, whence our Shad, in Cornifli Hernan guidn, i. e. white, to diftinguilh it from Hernan the. Pilchard. ' Volfii de origine et progrefl"u Idololatr. lib. iv. cap. xxvii. p. ^6. Tiilpii Obfer. Med. lib. ii. cap. 24. p. 133. * liltmoires fur Commerce des Hollandois, chap. iii. Diftioaaire uaiverfal de Commerce, torn- ii. col. 756. Politike Grondea en Max. van Holland, p. 27. Pow€r of GREAT BRITAIN. 693; Piswer of Imaginations ', The firfl Column detached, moves towards the Well by the Coafts of Newfoundland towards North America m ; the Ealtern Column proceeding leifurely by the Coafts of Ifeland, fends off one Divifion along the Coafts of Norway, which foon divides into two; one paffing by the Strait of the Sound into the Baltic " ; the other towards Hol- ftein, Bremen, &c o. the larger and deeper Column falls diredtly upon the Illes of Shetland and Orkney ; and paffing thefe divides into two, the Eaftern Colunm moving along that Whole Side of Britain, detaching gradually fmaller Shoals to the Coafts of Friezland, Holland, Zealand, Flanders, and France p, while the Weftern Column pafles on the other Side of Bri- tain and Ireland q. The Remains of this Body reaffemble in the Channel, and proceeding thence into the Ocean, retire to their Afylum in the North, where in Peace and Safety they repair the Loffes they have fuftained, and being grown large and lufty, break out again at the next Seafon, to make die lame Tour whicli. has been already defcribed ',. It would be a very difficult, and in refpeft to our Purpofe, an almoft ufelefs Undertaking, to endeavour at fixing the Tim'C when this Fifliery commenced s. It is certain, that at the Beginning of the fourteenth Century, it was confidered as a Matter of great Importance in this as well as in other Nations f. But William Buchold, who, as fome affirm, publithed this I Natural Hiflory of Norway, P. ii. p. 145. AnJerfon Hiftoire naturelle de I'lflande, torn. i. p. 107. Atlas maritimus et commercialis, p. 9. "" Hlilory of the Iflands of Cape Breton and St. John, p. 74. 106. Haclduyt's A'oyages, torn, ii. p. 153, where the Author ot Sir H. Gilbert's Voyage to Newfoundland, affirms the Herring on that Coai^ to be larger than Norway Herring, p. 274. Mr. Hariot (a celebrated Mathematician) aH^ures us that in the Months of February, March, April, and May, Herring are taken on the Coafls of Virginia eighteen, twenty, and even twenty-four Inches long. Britilli Empire in Ame- rica, vol. i. p. 19. 448- n Natural Hiflory of Norway, P. ii. p. 145. 01. Magn. de gentibus feptentrionalibus HiA. lib, XX. cap. 22. Robert's Merchant's Map of Commerce, p. 247. ° The Coafts of Jutland, Holftcin, and the other Countries on the Bultick, lying dire^flly oppo- fite to Schonen, the Herrings vilit them at the fame Time. P Atlas maritimus et commercialis, p. 10. Grimftone's HiAory of the Netherlands, p. 39. Dic- tionnaire univerfclle de Commerce, torn. ii. col. 758. 1 Camdeni Britan. p. 586. 737. Martin's Deicription of the Weflern Ilks, p. 349. Ancient and prefent. Stale of the County of Down, p. 245. f 01. Magn. de Gent. Scp.tentrionalibus HIA. lib. xx. cap. 23. Anderfon Hiftoire naturelle de riOande, torn. i. p. 7 — 13. ' The Dutch fix their entering on this Fifliery on their own Coafts toA.D.1163. InthcoLl; Chronicle of John Francis le Petit we have a very dilVrnft Account of this Matter. It is there faid, that the Inhabitants of Ziriczee, in the Ifle of Zealand, were the firll: who barrelled Herring;- ani that afterwards the People of Biervliet found the Method of prcferving them more clTecTiually, by taking feme fraall. Bones out of their Heads, which Operatioa they c.-il AV-Atv:, i.esgUling or- jawing the Herring. ■ Mar. Paris Hill. Angl. A. D. 1238. p 471- 3'- E. iii. St. 2. A. D. 1357. ch. i. ii. which is ^ ealkd th,; Statute of Herrings Cotton'.- Abridgment, p. 126. 149. iSo. 191., 31 7, 2. Invention;;. 694 The POLITICAL SURVEY Invention ; or who, as others fay, died at Biervliet, Anno Domini One thoufand Three hundred and Eighty-fix, to vvhofe Tomb, it is afferted, Charles the Fifth and his Sifter the Qu^ecn of Hungary made a Vifit, in Acknowledgment of the Services he had done the Low Countries, invented a new Method of Curing tliefe FiOi ", by which his Countrymen the Flemings engroOcd this lucrative Commerce, and to diftinguilh them, thefe were ftiled Fieifiifi Herrings ^''. Others fay, this Invention was taught them by ao ILnghlhman, one William BelkJ.nfon, much later -^ ,; but however that Matter be, Certain it is, that the Flemings were exceedingly ejiriched by it, till by the Revolt of the United Provinces, this Fiftiery fell into the Hands of the Dutch, who by making many prudent Ordinances, in reference to the catching, curing, and exporting Herring, fixed this Trade in their own Hands, and ex.cited thereby the Wonder, Envy, and Jealuufy of all their Neighbours y. There is however very little Doubt to be made, that the Profits accru- ing to the Dutch from this Fiiheiy, have been at certain Times, though probably without any bad Intention, magnified much beyond the Truth '•. We therefore, in endeavouring to come at fomething like a Calculation, will lay down certain Fad:s from the beft Authorities, which may ferve to iliew the progrefilve State of this Filhery, at the fame Time that it fur- niflies the Means of guefling, with fome Degree of Probability, at its vaft Value. Sir William Monfon, Sir Walter Ralegh, and other Writers of thole Days, Men of Experience, proper Judges, and who had feen with their own Eyes what they advanced as Fadts, afllire us, that the Dutch employed in their Times, and had long employed. Two thoufand Buftes ia " Cottfr. Chron. P.Vi. p. 035. This Vifit of the Emperor was in A. D, 1556. Gutccardin caUs him Beukelins, and places his Death, A. D. 1397. " 01. Magn. de Geinibus Septentiionalibus Ilill. lib. xx. cap. 22. " Martin Tydelekurfon, who wrote Remarks on the Dutch Gold Mine, a Difcourfe pre- fented to the Dyet of Sweden, A. D. 1748 (to which they are indebted for their Herring Filliery) pofiiiiely affiims that William Belkinfon taught the Dutch their prefent Mechod of Curing thefe Fifli, folate as A. D. 1548; in confcquence of which the Herring Trade at Bahus in Norway (now belonging to the Swedes) gradually declined. y Martini Schoockii Belgium Federatum, lib. viii. cap. 2. Meteren. Neder. HiA. p. 466. Sir Willim Munfon's Naval Trrffts, p. 518, 519. Maline's LexMercatoria, p. 1(^9, 170, J71. Sir Wal- ter Ralegh's Works, vol. ii. p. 130. Politike Gronden en Max. van Holland, p. 27. where De Wit, who is the Author, though he does not queflion their Calculaiions, yet in the Margin re- marks, that through Envy they were over-rated. Commerce des Hollandois, p. 43. i It will be a fufficicnt Inlhuice of this to mention, that fome Writers have computed that Ten thoufand foreign Velfels fifhed annually on the Coafls of Great j^iitain ; that in thefe there were employed Two hundred Thoufand Seamen; and that the Value of the Herring, Cod, Ling, and other Fifh taken by them, amounts to Ten MiUions Sterling. Hougluon'5 Colledions for the 'improvement of Hulbandry and Trade, vol, iii. p. 329. the of GREAT BRITAIN. 695 the Shetland Fifliery^ In One thoufand Six hundred and Thirty-three^ Mr. Smith, who was fent to Shetland by the Earl of Pembroke to look ftricftly into this Affair, and to report the then State of the Dutch Fifhing, fixes the Number of Bulles when he was there at Fifteen hundred, and the Vef- fels that were befides employed in the Cod Filliery at Four hundred''. It appears from very exadl Refearchcs made after the Reftoration, and by dif- ferent Modes of Calculation which checked each other <^, that it was then to the full as confiderable <^. Rut the fubfequent Wars with England and France bringing great Lolles on the Subjedls of the States General, who had em- barked their Fortunes in this Fifliery ; other Nations beginning to in- terfere with them; and from, a Variety of Caufes, which it would be te- dious for us to mention, this Trade gradually declined '; fo that in One thouland Seven hundred and Sixty-tv/o, the Dutch had no more than Two hundred Buifes here ; the Britilh Herring Fidiery a very few S!iips; wKjch^ however, caught more in Proportion, and cured them to the full as well as the Dutch ; the Swedes had alio fome Bulles, and there were fome like- wife from Oftend *" ; from all of which, whatever they might do in former Times, the Natives drew but very little Advantage; and though it be di- redlly contrary to their Orders from Mome, yet the People frequently com- plain of illUlage from the Dutch Bufles, by infulting, and fometimes ipoil- ijig their fmall Boats, more efpecially when they attempt fiihing in deep "Sir Walter Ralegh, in his Obfervations on Trade an;! Commerce addrelTeJ to King James, af- fures him the Dutch employed Three thoudnid Ships to fi(h annually on our Coafls ; wliich occa-_ fioned the Freighting Nine thouland more, and gave Subfitlence to One hundred and Fifty thoufand- Eerfons. Sir William Monfbn, from his own Experience, fixes on Two thoufiind Bulles, and- affirms that each acquired One thoufa'id Pounds in four Months. " Smith's England's Improvement revived, B. vi. p. 257. confirmed bv Sir John Burrough, who pubiifhed his Rook the fame Year Smith went to Shetland. ' By comparing the Number of Bulfes and ihclr Cargoes with the Duties impofed and paid in. Holland, with the Accounts of Sales in foreign Ports, and with the Expences and necefliu-y Main- tenance of the Families known to live by this Filhery, and the feveral Trades that are requifite for the Support of it, and the Navigation arifing from thence, which are the moft f.tti.fudtory Methods of coming to a Certainly in this Matter. d It appears from the Reports of Dr. B. Worfljy, Secretary to the Committee for Tiad in the- Keign of King Charles the Second, that in his Judgment the Dutch Herring Filhery produced to- them annually Th.^ee Millions Stealing ; which being lounded on thofe Computations mentioned' in the former Note, and looked upon as certain by the befl: of Judges here, may well be con- fidered as a Point eflablillied, more efpecially as it migiit be fupporced by many concurren:-- Broofs. e The Dntch themfelves afcribe this to the Declenfion of Markets, efpecially the French ; to the. Swedes and Norwegians entering on this Filhery; and to the other Nations of Europe h.iving-. found the Seci'et of Curing thefe Fi(h in as great Perfeftion as themfelves. We may therefore re- gard it as a Faft out ef Doubt, that theConfumpiion of pickled Herrings is r.s great as ever, tiwugh. tlve Trade is divided, and the Piofits rendered thereby lefs apparent. * MS. Relation of the Illcs of Shetland. 696 The POLITICAL SURVEY M''atcrf. But however, in regard to the Subjeds of that RcpubHc, the •Herring FilLcry may be at prel'ent decayed, it would be no dithcuh Thing 'to prove, to the Satisfadion of the candid as well as critical Enquirer, "that while it continued to flourish in their Hands, the Dutch drew from their Fifliery out of the Ocean wartiing the Coafts of thefe Illands, to the Amount of Two hundred Millions Sterling''. A Circumftance that may furcly in fome Degree intitle tlic Shetland liles to the Notice of Great 'Britain i ! In r^fpecft to the Inhabitants, they are a flout, well-made, comely People, the lower Sort of a fwarthy Complexion k. The Gentry are allowed by all ■who have converled with them, to be moft of them polite, Q:irewd, fenfible, lively, aftive, and intelligent Perfons ; and thefe, to the Number of about 'One hundred Families, have very handfome, flrong, well-builtHoufesneatly furniihed, their Tables well ferved, polifhed in their Manners, and exceed- ingly hofpitable and civil to Strangers'. Thofe of an inferior Rank are a hardy, robuft, and laborious People, who, generally fpeaking, get their Bread by filhing in all Weathers m in their Yawls, which are little bigger than 'Gravefend Wherries, live hardily, and in the Summer Seafon moltly on Fifli ; their Drink, which in reference to the Britilh Dominions is pecu- liar to the Country, is called Bland, and is a Sort of Butter Milk, long kept, S This has been long and loudly Matter of Complnint, anJ has and will reftrain the poor Na- tives (till fupported) from undertaking this Fifliery on their own Account. ** Emanuel van Rleteren, and other Netherland Hiflorians, boaft of the prodigious Profit of this ■Fifhery, and the Multitudes employed therein during the Century preceding the lafl ; and as we 'have (hewn, it continued increaiing till after the Reftoration. Let us then fiippofe (what indeed we have proved) that for One hundred Years they annually fent Two thoufand Bulfcs, and that each gained One thoufand Pounds, and it efiablidies this Calculation. To difpell all Doubts, we give up whatever was made before, or has been made fince, and relf upon what is fupported by the fulleft Evidence given by the beft informed of their Writers as well as ours. ' It is a very fenfible and flirewd, not to fay a Ainging Remark made by Camden, Britan. p. 586. " Veniam enim pifcandi femper concefTerunt Angli, honot-e fibi rtfervato, utilltate vero ex- teris, quafi per defidiam refignata." " The Liberty of Filhing the Englifli have always allowed, re- ferving the Honour to themielves ; the Profit through Indolence they have refigntd to Foreigners." Schoocklus very fairly quotes this Obfervation, as the Charter by which his Countrymen enjoj their Fifliery. But it fecms to be now high Time to correcf this Error, and to encourage the In- habitants of all Parts of Great Britain to exert their Induflry to the utinoft for the common Benefit. k Sibbald, p. 4. MS. Relation of the Ifles of Shetland. ' Captain PreKon, who was there about twenty Years ago, fays, " The People are generally civil, fagacious, of ready Wit, and of a quick Apprehtnfion, pioufly inclined, much given to Hofpita- lity, civil and liberal in their Entertainments, and exceedingly kind to Strangers, which I may fay indeed from Experience; for I never met with more Civility in any Part of the World." '" Smith's England's Improvemeivts revived, p. 254, 255. Sibbald, p. 40. Captain Prcrton's Account, which iliews that a whole Century has elapfed witliout making any great Alteration. and of GREAT BRITAIN. 697 and very four ". Many live to great Ages, though not fo long as in former Times. In refped: hov/ever to the Bulk of the Inhabitants, from the Poornefs of Living, from the Nature of it, and from the Drinking great Quantities of Corn Spirits of the very worft Sort, Miiltitudes are alilidled with an inveterateScurvy^, from which thofcin better Circumftances areen- tirely free, and enjoy as good Health as in any other Country in Europe. As they have no great Turn to Agriculture, and are perfuaded that their Country is not fit for it, they do not (though probably they might) raife Corn enough to fubfitl: them for more than two thirds of the Year p. But they are much more fuccefsful in their paflure Grounds, which are kept well inclofed, in good Order, and together with their Commons, fupply them plentifully with Beef and Mutton. They pay their Rents generally in Butter at Lammas, and in Money at Martinmas. As to Manufaftures, they make a ftrong coarfe Cloth for their own Ufe q, as alfo Linnen. They make likewife of their own Wool very fine Stockings. They export faltedand dried Ling, Cod, and Tulle, fome Herrings, a confiderablc Quantity of Butter and Train-oil, Otter and Seal Skins, and no inconfiderable Quantity of the fine Stockings before mentioned. Their chief Trade is to Leith, London, Hamburgh, Spain, and to the Streights. They import Timber, Deals, and fome of their bed Boats from Norway ; Corn and Flour from the Ork- neys, and from North Britain ; Spirits and fome other Things from Ham- burgh ; Cloaths and the better Sort of Linnen from Leith ; Grocery, Houfe- hold Furniture, and other Neceffaries from London r. The fuperior Du- ties to the Earl of Morton are generally let in farm, and are paid by the People in Butter, Oil, and Money. The Remains of the old Norwegian Conftitution is ftill vifible in the Divifion of their Lands ; and they have n This is an Iflandic Word, from whence we have h!end\n our own Language, wljich fignifies to mingle. This therefore is a proper Name for a Liquor, whicli from its Sharpntfs is feldoni drank alone, but mixed uith Water. Sibbald, p. 21, 22. It is the fame with what the People of Norway and Ifcland call Syrc, made by Boiling the thin Part of Butter-milk, and keeping it in CaHcs ; it has the Colour of White Wine, and they fometimcs ufe it as a Pickle for Fifli or Flcfli. " Sibbald, p. 25. Martin, p. 373. Wholefoms Diet, Cleanlinefb-, and lefs ufe of Spirits, would quickly mitigate, and in Time root out this dreadful Malady. P This was the Cafe in Norway, till about half a Century ago, when they fet about Agriculture in Earnefl, and with Succefs. Pontopp. p. 79 — 108. . 1 This Cloth as now made, is Ilrong and warm, fo as to anfvver all the Purpofes of the common Prxiple. They formerly made that Kind (Sibbald, p. 5.) which is cilled Vadmell or W.admell, which is flill made under the fame Appellation in Norway and in Ife'and. See Pontopp. p. 273, 274. Horrebjw p. 124, and had a lingular Method of thickening it, by expofing it at the lin- trance of a Creek to the flux and reflux of the Sea. ' It is evident therefore, that by mending their Clrcum fiances, and enabling thi Bulk of the P.cople to live better, and more comfortably, which can only be done by encouraging and prote Ifles contain a very large Tra5i of Coimtry. This Country fidl of fine Meadows, arable Lands, or Mountains fi&i jn Metals, capable of fupporting fome Millions more than their pre- sent. of GREAT BRITAIN. 705 fent. Many Advantages that may be derived from the leffer IJIands depend- ant upon Great Britahz. The farther Explanation of feveral of thcfe Points referred to the fiiccced'mg Books. ' I ^ H E principal End of a Political Survey of any Country, is to point J_ out its Capacity, under the Regulation of a wife Policy, to render the Inhabitants thereof independant, potent, and happy ^. In regard to a Matter of this Importance, more efpecially in an Age fo enlightened as this, Af- fertions are not regarded as Arguments ; and even Arguments, however Ipecious or plaufible, if unfupported by Fadls, are not looked upon as con- clulive. As far as Rhetoric, Panegyric, and all the Powers of Elo- quence could reach, Britain, as we have more than once had Occalion to fliew, has been as highly celebrated as any Country could be ^. But how much foever fuch Pieces may pleafe, they feldom carry in them any great Degree of Information, and will by no means furnifli any fatisfactory Anfwers to Objecflions. In order to accomplilli this, it is requifite to purfue another Method, to go to the Bottom of Things, to enter, and even to enter minutely, into Particulars, and by thus proceeding Step by Step, to render whatever is affirmed as clear and as certain as poffible c. It muft be allowed that this as well as other Countwies hath been fubjedt to very great Viciflitudes, and to frequent Revolutions ; in confequence of which, not only the Condition of the Inhabitants, but the very Face and Appear- ance of the Country itfelf, hath been in different Periods greatly altered, which in fuch a Survey ought to be remarked and explained ^. Many of its natural Advantages were at all Times too obvious not to be difcerned ; and yet fome of thefe have never been improved, while others again, paffing wholly unnoticed, have been of courfe totally neglefted. But within thef? two laft Centuries, fince the Reformation j: reduced the Revival of ufeful Science, the Eyes of Men have been in a great meafure opened ; and in » what ir is poffible or impoffible for a Nation to execute can never be fo well known as from a juft Survey of the Country they inhabit. ^ Befides the autient Panegyrics addrefled to the Family of Conftantine the Great, of which there are large Extrafts in Camden and Speed, the fucclncl; Accounts at the beginning of Beda, and all our ancient Chronicles, the Reader may confult William Harrifon's Defcription ot Britain, London 1577, folio. Thomas Cainsford's Glory of England, London, 1618,410. ADifcouiie of the national Excellencies of England, by R. Hawkins, London 1658, Svo. '^ By this Manner of treating it, the judicious.Rcader will make himfelf fully Mailer of the ''nb jcffb in all its Parts, and uill gradually from his own Reflections, and confulting the Authorities- derive Lights fuperior to any I am able to give him, who airume no greater Merit thm to have, laboured very long and very affiduoufly to coUecl and arrange Things as well as I am able '' It is as certain as any Thing can be- thit the Romans left a great Part of this Country highly improved, which in the fucceeding In uptions of the Angles, the Saxons, and the Jutes, were utterly deflroyed. The Danes overturned and ruined the whole Ifland at difiTerent though not far diftant Times ; and the Normans were by no means afTiduous, as the Saxons had been, to re- cover and refbrc the Regions they fubdued. Vol. I. 4 ^ confequencts 7o6 The POLITICAL SURVEY eonfequeace of this, much more has been done within that Period than ift many Ages before >••. Thefe Improvements, how great foever, ought only to be confidered as fo many laudable Models, calculated to excite a flili ftrouger Principle of public Spirit and Emulation ; as there ftill remain va- rious of our native Prerogatives vmexerted,. feveral great Relources unex- plored, and not a few Means yet untried ; by which even grl^ater Things th:.n have been yet done, might be Hill effected in Agriculture, Manu- faiflures, and Commerce, by profecuting the Aptitude this Country has for al molt every potlible Species of Improvement, and tliereby renderings it the noble and refpcd:able Center of as extenfive, flouriihing, and well- governed an Empire, as any on which, fiiice launched from the Hand of the Creator, the Sun has ever £lione» As a Bafi3 for fuch a Superftrudure, we hazarded fonve political Sketches of the great Empires in Antiquity, and fliewed from Fad;s that fuch ftupendous Edifices might be ere>5ted ;. and defcending from thefe to Countries which, both in Time and Situation, were lefs remote, we made it equally evident, that, thefe Powers of Conftruftion were not confined to anyQuarter of the Globe, or at all reftrained to the particular Circumilances^ of Soil or Climate f. But that Wifdom and Induftry, Prudence and Per- feverance, were Engines capable of overcoming almoft any Obftaclc, and removing every Defed:, and even in fome Cafes of converting apparent Defefts into real Advantages S. We alfo ventured to draw the Veil a little,, and to render it mamfcft, that thefe amazing efFeds were not performed by thofe myllerious and refined Arts which have ufurped the Name of Policy ia modern Ages ; but by fimple and folid Maxims, infpired by Genius, approved by Reafon, and confirmed by Experience. From thefe fprung a Syftem of Rule, founded on a few well weighed Principles, fuited to the Genius and Circumftances of the People, and invariably tending to the public Good. Inftitutions, plain, fuccinft, and agreeable to the na- tural Notions that all Men have of Juflice^ By which a Senfe of Shame v/as made as much as poflible to ferve inftead of Punirtiment, Idlenefs was profcribed as the infamous Mother of Vices ; Benevolence confidered. as the vifible Image of Virtue; and Induflry refpedted as the Parent o£ Independency ; which,, by affording a comfortable Support to private Fa- milies, maintained Order, Vigour, Harmony, andof Courfe the V/elfare and ' The Reader wUl find tins very, important Point very largely explained, and iVis hoped clearly proved, in fome of the Hrft Chapters ot the nest Book. f Thus China and Phoenicia are IhAances in Afia ; Egypt and.Carthage in Africa ; Venice, Pcrtugal, and the United Provances, in Europe; and the Empires of Peru and Mexico, in .'imeiica. g As in Genoa, Switzerland, and Holland, where Skill, Labour, and Frugality fupply the AVant of Fertility, and the Inhabitants, amidft Rocks, Mountains, and Marllies, enjoy a Plenty wlilch ex- cites the Admiration, at the fame Time it provokes the Envy of their refpcdive Neighbours. Stability of GREAT BRITAIN. 707 Stability of the State. In a Word, the Conftitution prefcribing their IXity to Magiftrates, the Laws controuHng the Adlions of Individuals, and the Manners diftufed from thofe, either honoured with Titles, or trufted with Power, conveyed a Spirit of Obedience through all Ranks, from a Con- fcioufnefs that, in purfuing the public Weal, they took the beft and fureft Method of purfuing their private Interefts ''. By the Operations of thefe Syftems vail Countries became full of People, lodged in Cities, Towns, and Villages; while to furniih thefe with Subfiftence, their Lands of every Kind grew by continual Cultivation to look like Gardens; but when thefe were overborn by Violence, or undermined by Corruption, thofe Lands followed the Fate of their Inhabitants ; and as they relapfed into a State of Nature, or, which is little better, into a State of Servitude, thofe like wife became, in Comparifon of what they were, fo many Wildernelles deformed with Ruins k This Foundation thus laid, we fpeak in the next Place of the Benefits that refult from Situation ; which, if commodious, is one of the highell: Ad- vantages any Country can enjoy ; and if this be wanting, that lingle Defedl proves an Obllacle, of all others the hardeft to be overcome, and is indeed almoll: the only one which Experience has Ihewn in fome Cafes to be in- furmountable k. In the ordinary Occurrences of Life we have daily In- flances of this. It is the Thing firfl: to be confidered in laying out of Grounds and Gardens, and if not then duly attended to. Labour and Expence are thereby greatly increafed, and it may be,after all, are thrown away. In Villages, Towns, and even Cities, the Cafe is the fame. Their Beauty, their Suc- cefs, and their Duration depends upon it. It is from the Afiirtance of Si- tuation that Fortrelfes become impregnable; that they are often weak and quickly reduced, arifes generally from fome Defedl therein -. In Coun- h By proceeding in this Method, we have endeavoured to avoid dilating, and have only pre- fented the Mirror of pohtical Experience, to fliew the conflant Conne(rtioa between Caiifes and Events ; and to prove that almoft the only Secret in Government confilbin directing the Pafliens and Propenlities of Men to right Ends, by wliltli they contribute reciprocally to each othei's Sup- port, and in their relpeifllve Spheres, promote public Grandeur, by being intent on private Felicity. ' This is the prefent State of Pcrfia, Alia Minor, Greece, Egypt, Syria, and many Rcgioiij that make a fliining Figure in ancient Hiftory. k This, as we have (hewn, is the Cafe ot the Tatars or Tartars, a numerous, and by no mean* a flupid People, who roam continually through the Defarts. In the two great Empires of India and China they have embraced the Advantages of Situation thofe Countries afforded ; in order to which they have quilted their ancient Cufloms, and adopted the Manners of the former Inhabit- ants, now become their Subjects. ' It fometlmes happens that a fuperior Genius removes or fupplies luch a DefeifV, by recon- ciling Art with Nature, and fo fuiting his Works to the Scite of the Place, as to make a refpecl- able Fortrcfs of what had been before but a miferable Poll. Situation is of no lefs Confequeucc ia regard to Camps ; and fome Generals (particularly M. Turenne) l»ve owed no imall Part ot their Reputation to their fuperior Skill in this Refpedt. 4X2 tries. 7o8 The POLITICAL SURVEY tries, Philofophers and Politicians have obferved, that their Situation, o-e- nerally Ipeaking, gives a Biafs to the Minds of the Inhabitants, which if not immediately taken, their Struggles to thrive arc in vain till they do "\ Accidents may, and often do remove other Impediments, fo that a Nation, which remained obfcure for Ages, breaks fuddenly and furprizingly out into Light and Lullre. But to the People living in a Country defedive iii this Refpeft, no fuch Chance can avail, unlefs by fome lucky Revolution it is joined to another Region, and comes that Way to participate of a more favourable Pofition "; which Exception, inftead of weakening, adds Strength to the Maxim we have laid down. We have had Reafon there- fore, when enquiring into the ufual Sources of political Grandeur, to lay a great Strefs on Situation, as a Blefling, properly fpeaking, derived only from Nature, and in many Refpeils the moft lafting and the mofl valuable Blefiing that even Nature herfelf can beftow ". The Magnitude and Importance of this Bleffing implies that it muft have many different Degrees, and of thefe we have given feveral Inftances. From the Lights derived from them we proceed to the fupremc Degree of Ex'cellence, which we affert to be in aninfular Situation, as containing com- pleatly all the Advantages that can accrue to any Country merely from its Pofition; which Advantages, to fum them up in as fuccindl a Manner as we may, are principally thefe : In the firft Place, many Benefits are derived to the Inhabitants of an Illand from its Unity. The very largefl: Country on a Continent is ftill but a Part, which implies Dependance, and is neceffarily *" In order to conceive tliis clearly, ^^'^ need only refer to the HIrtory of the Low Countries h".- fore the Time of Baldwin of Flanders, who about A. D. 960, invented Marts nnd Fairs at flated Times, which giving vent to their Fabricks, flrewed his Subjefts their truelntcrells, and gave them a Turn to Agriculture and to Manufaftures, which fuiting exaflly the Situation of their Country, raifed them fpeedily to the very Summit of Profperity. To what did the Dutch owe the many Millions they acquired by the Herring Fifliery ? — By their making the beft Ufe poflible of an in- different Situation. Why did the People of Shetland never avail therafelves of the beft Situatioa; that could be for this Fifliery ? — Becaufe the Narrownefs of their Circumftances put it out of their Power. " The Commerce opened by the Port of Archangel firfl; made the RufTians known in Europe. The Conqneft made by Peter the Great of Ingermaaia and Livonia, and his building St. Peterf- burgh, raifed him from Grand Duke of INIufcovy, and a very inconfiderable Prince, to be Errj« peror of all the Ruffias, and one of the mofl refpeftable Powers in Chriftendom. His SucccfTors by attending to Situation may do much more. o Situation, as it conducts to Profperity, fo it wonderfully refifts Ruin. Egypt from an Em- pire is dwindled into a Province ; but Alexandria, now Scandarea, is flill a Port, and was much more confiderablc than it is till a Paffage was difco\'ered by the Cape of Good Hope to the Indies. The Arabs inhabiting Arabia Felix have bent their Manners to the St.Ue of their Country, and have many well frequented Ports ; amongft others, Mufkat, the Inhabitants of which are eflecmad for Civility, Temperance, Probity, and being as fair Traders as any upon Earth. Hamburg, Lubeck, and Bremen, by Dint of Situation only, retained Part of the Trade of the Hans Towns, famous for having once engrofled mofl of the Commerce cf Euiope. attended of GREAT BRITAIN. 709- attended with a Train of Imperfcdlions ; from all which, by the unerrin''-, and unalterable Laws of Nature, the People who live in an Illand are or may be entirely free p. In the next Place,, the Climate is generally mild and falubrious from the Vapours of the furrounding Sea, which accordin'^ to the Latitude abates the Violence of Heat, and moderates the Rigour of Cold, both which are fenfibly and conftantly Icfs than on Continents under the fame Elevation of the Polen. There is alfo commonly a greater Va- riety, and almofl always a greater Fertility in the Soil, occafioncd chiefly by the Warmth of the circumambient Air, frequent Showers, and, in confe- quence of both, being continually impregnated with vegetable Salts ^- Anotherconfiderable Advantage arifesfromits Acceffibility on every Side, by which it is open to receive Supplies from other Countries, and has the Con- veniency of exporting its Commodities and Manufiidures to all Markets, and in Comparifon of the Continent at all Seafons 5. An Ifland has atonce- tlie moft extenfive and the mofi: effedtual Frontier, and this on all Sides fubfiiling for ever without Repairs, and without Expence; and which is flill more, derives from this very Frontier a great Part of the Subfillence of its Inhabitants, and a valuable Article in its Commerce from its Fisheries f. The Defence of this natural Barrier, which, as we have faid, cofts nothing 3. but on the contrary yields much, is not only permanent, but in every Refpecl more to be rehed on than any that could be raifed by the Skill and- P All Countries on the Continent are expofcd to continual Dangers, againA which their Inha-- bitants mufl: be perpetually upon their Guard. This renders a large military Force requifite. It involves them in continual Negotiations, Leagues, and Alliances, all of which, however, cannot exempt them from frequent Wars, or the Miferiss that attend them, and which have commonly had Effects on their internal Policy. 1 We have a remarkable Inflance of this, in the Ifiaads called anciently StcEcliades, in the mo- dern Latin Infulse Arearura, by us the Illands of Hieres. They are three in Number, lying in 43°. N. L. before the Port of Toulon. In them the Fruits of France and Italy arrive at the highefl: Perfedion, and all the medicinal Herbs of Italy, Greece, and Egypt grow wild. Yet the Climate is wonderfully temperate and pleafant in all Seafons. >■ We has'e Proofs of this at our ov/n Doors, in the Illands of Wight and Anglefea, as the Reader has already feen in their refpeflive Defcriptions. s The oppofite Sides of an Ifland may in regard to Commerce be confidered as two Countries,, each has- its Ports, its proper Commodities, its proper Corrcfpondencies ; in confequence of which, . it promotes the Cultivation, and procures Vent for the Manufi(ftures of a large Diflrict behind- it; while the intermediate midland Space finds a Profit in that inland Trade, which thefe two' Diflrifts fupply. The Winds contrary on one Side arefivourabieon the other; and the Sea, the common Road to both Coaf^s, is continually ploughed by Veffels outward and homeward bound, , which keeps up that aftive and enterprizing Spiiit which charaiflerizes Iflanders. • It is commonly faid the Sea is a Mine, but in Truth it is better ; its Treafures arc more lad- ing and more certain, procured by Labour folely, and fit for Uk or for Sale as foon as procured, . quickly confumed, and thereby the Source of continual Employment to a ftout, hardv, laborious > Race of Men, who likewife find Employment for Number?, and are in various Refpe^s otherwifc : beneficial Members of the' Community. . 3 ladiiftry;,- 7IO The POLITICAL SURVEY Induftry of Men at the greatefl Expence". All thefe Bleffings and Bene- fits are infured by the Lellbn that Nature didates ; fome would fay, the Law which flie prefcribes to the Inhabitants of every Ifland, to place all their Hopes in the aflidiious Cultivation of their own Country, to bend all their Endeavours to raifmg and extending their Commerce, and to put their Truft in Providence, and in the Safeguard which die direds ; Men accuflomed to robuft and hardy Exercifes, and in what neceffarily arifes from their Way of Life, a Naval Force v.-. In Support of thefe Pofitions we have brought the fulleil: Evidence of Fads, manifcfled in a Variety of Inftances taken from every Quarter of the Globe; fo that the Reader may fee that this Dodriue is equally fupported by Reafon, and juftified by Ex- perience. These Preliminaries thus fettled, we go on next to the general Defcrip- tion of Great Britain and the Iflands belonging thereto ; which afforded a fair Opportunity of fhewing, that all the Benetits connedted with an infular Si- tuation were in the utmoft Perfedion to be found therein-''. In point of Size naturally formed to be the Seat of Empire, as having fufticient Room for the commodious Habitation, plentiful Subfiftence, and the Means of furnilhing ample Employment to a potent and populous Nation y. So happily difpofed as to be the commercial Center of the old World and the new. So extended as to participate of feveral Climates, none of theni fultry through Heat, or fubjed to the Inclemency of Cold z. Blefled with a furprizing Variety of Soils, many happily cultivated, and all of them ca- pable of innumerable Improvements. Abounding already with many of the mofl valuable Commodities, and by the Extenfion of Science and Application continually and confiderably increafing thefe. Inhabited by a People confeffedly endowed with the moft defirable Accomplifliments in Body and in Mind, having a like Turn to Indurtry and Ingenuity; dillin- guifhed by their Expertnefs both in Arts and Arms, and applying them- felves with equal Facility and Succefs to Literature, to Manufadures, and " This Frontier requires no Gnrrifon, Fleets nre manned t' om I^IerchaDtmen, and Sailors are a Kind of Militia paid no longer than in aflual Service. » " The firfl; Inhabitants come in Vefllls, are for a Time dependant on the Country from whence they came, arrive at Indepcndance by enlarging their Correfpondcnce ; and thus Commerce is natural aud effential to the People of an liland, which is the Reafon that they thrive fo long as they pofll-fs it, and gradually decline in the fime Proportion in which that decays. " The Reader may run over the foregoing Summary, and will feel the Truth of this AfTertion, by applying the feveral Heads of it to Great Britain. " This in a Variety of Inflances has been already (hewn, and will be further and more largely explained in the fucceeding Part of this Work. 1 This likewife has been proved in the lad Chapter, and indeed can hardly be difputed, when we confider how many great Countries lie farther North than anj of the Britifti Ifler. to of GREAT BRITAIN. 711 to Commerce ». Both Parts of the Ifland, together with her fifter Ifle, united under one Government, and having in a political Light but one In- • tereft. Circumftanccs of fuch Confequence as to take away all old De- fects, and to eftablilh an uniform Syftem of Policy that renders their In- habitants in Efted: but one People. Great in refpeft to Fame from their Exploits in Times preceding this Connedion, which fliewed what in their feparate State each was able to perform; and fince thus fortunately com- bined, evidently capable of maintaining their own Rights by Sea and Land. Ambitious not of fubduing others, but of proteding them, and ever ready in yielding Affiitance, even to their remote Allies, as well as to their Neigh- bours, by whofe Opprellion their own Safety might be endangered ; which. Particulars have been all of them evinced by Fads; and thofe Fads not only fupported from the Teilimony of our own, but by the Authorities alfo of the mofl authentic amonglt foreign Hirtorians, who, as the mod impartial and mod: difmterefted, are the leafl to be fufpeded, and are o£ Courfe the molt credible Witneffes. Independant of thofe v/hich flow from their Situation, the British Ifles enjoy many other Advantages, in a Degree equal to any, and luperior to mod; Countries. In the copious Supply, and in the happy Dillribu- tion of Water particularly, that indifpenfable Neceflliry to, and that capi- tal Convenience of, human Life. We have entered very fully into this Matter, becaufe notwithftanding its incontellable Importance,, it is com- monly too little confidered, and from thence, generally fpeaking, too little underifood i^. We have fhewn, that living Springs, chryftal Brooks, and plea- lant Rivulets adorn all Parts of the Britilh Dominions, contributing alike to the Purity of the Air, the Fertility of the Soil, and that lively Verdure in our Fields for which this Country is fo juftly admired, and which is a natural and pleafing Expreirion of the Mildnefs and Wholefomenefs of the Climate c. In reference to Springs having Angular and extraordinary Qua- lities, as far as the Reality of thefe could be alcertained by credible Evi- dence, it has been proved that we have the like in fome Part or other of our own Iflands. If therefore any Difcovery fhould be made elfewhere, in. » However like this may be to Panegyric, every Tittle of it is exaftly true ; and to diirtmblo Truth when it does Honour to one's Country, would be talfe Modtfty, and anfv^'er no End. b It is well obferved by the judicious Boerhaave, that becaufe few Things are more common than Water, therefore Men generally think none can be better known ; whereas it is one of the mofl: difficult Subjeifts in natural Philofophy to be well acquainted with. This is the true ReafoQ why many Ufes to which it might be employed are very imperfeftly dilVmguilhed. 9 Reafon and Experience concur in attributing the Corruption of Air to Ifagnant, r.nd its Pii-- rity to Plenty of running Water. Cardan in his Commentary on an excellent Treatife of Hippo- crates obfcrves, that lolum ficcum cum aquis currentibus, falubritatem aeris efficiunt. Cardani Opera, torn. viii. p. 14. col. j. which though not of all, is \iJidoubtedly true of the btfti'avt oj. ^rcat Britaia. . ^ refpeai 712 The POLITICAL SURVEY jefped to their Utility, we fliall receive the Benefit of fuch Difcovcr}', as well as the Inhabitants of the Country wherein it is made d. It has been alfo rendered fiifficiently evident, that we have not the leail Rcafon to envy any Region in the known World as to Salt Springs, lihce of thefe we have great Plenty, many of them rich in their Contents; and yet there are very good Grounds to believe that they will prove inexhauftible e, A few of thefe are legarded abroad as a Staple in themfclves, and Sources of V/ealth to a large Diftridl; with us they arc not confined to a fingle County; and there •are ftrong Reafons to prefume that more of them might be found, if there was an extraordinary Demand for this Kind of Salt ; which, however, con- fidering the Qiiantitles of other Sorts that are made in dilTerent Places, is not very fpeedily to be expeded. Mineral Springs of almofl all Kinds we have in great Abundance ; and it hath been endeavoured to do particular Juftice to thefe, fo far as they came within the Defign of this Work; and we have likewife ventured to give fome Hints for their Improvement, or rather increafing the Advantages that are derived from them '^'. In like Manner, we have enumerated the moft confiderable of the Britifli Baths; and have ihewn that in point of Efficacy, as well as Elegance, they render it utterly unneceflary for fuch as (land in need of Relief from thefe healing Wate;-?, to go and leek it, either amongft the numerous Baths in Italy, or of Aix in Provence, or of Aix-la-Chapelle in Weftphalia, or of any of the three Bourbons in Burgundy, Champagne, or the Bcurbonnois, or of Plombiers in Lorraine, or of Balaruc in Languedoc, or of Baden in Switzerland, or Baden in Lower Auftria, Toeplitz or Carlfoad in Bohemia ; or even the Baths of Buda in Hungary, fuppofed by very good Judges to be equal at , leafl, if not fuperior to any of them g. It may be, that in this fingle In- rtance * In refpefl: to fuch Fountains, the Inqmrles hitherto made hnve tended only, and that with no great Succefs, to difcover the Caufes of thofe Circumllances by which they are rendered Objefts of Wonder, without ever trying whether their Waters might not anfwcr fome particular Pur- pofe better than any other ; and this is fo true, that the falutary Qualities of fome of our mofl valuable medicinal Springs were made known to us by Birds or Beafts. "= The Brine Springs have been wrought for many Ages, they have been known for about a Century pad to derive their Contents from immenfe Rocks of Foffil Salt, whence all Apprchen- fions of thtir decaying are removed. Many confiderable Improvements have been made witMn thefe few Years, by which the Expence of Labour and of Fuel are diminifhed, and the Quantity and the Value of the Salt are encreafed. f It would be a fingular Improvement, and at the fame Time a leading Experiment, if the wafle Water of any of thefe Spiings could te applied to any mechanic Ufes, fuch as bleaching, fcouring, tanning, dying, or brewing. We knuw that Stroud Water in Glouceflerfhire, and a Well near Northampton, when Madder was ufed, were famous for d) ing Scarlets, as the River Winrufti is for v\hitening Blankets at Witney in Oxford fliire. It would be nfefiil to determine by Experiment, whecher there be any, and what Degree of Truth in fuch Kind of Reports ; and in cafe there rtiould be any, to make the flrifteft Analyfis poflible of the Waters. s We are certainly in want of a complete Hiftory of warm Baths, founded folely on Fa5lurc. 2 tion. of GREAT BRITAIN. 715 lion, and InduRry of Pofterity p. A Profpeft this! mofl fingularly pleafiug to thofe who wi'h and hope the perpetual Prolperity of the Britiih Em- pire, to which nothing can more clearly, more certainly, or more conlider- ably contribute. The numerous and very important Confequences that attend the very- large Extent, and the lingularly beneficial Form of our Coafls, are the Subjedts treated in the fucceeding Chapter. In order to render this perfedtly intelli- gible, we have been very careful to explain wherein this Prerogative confifls, which no way depends upon our being an Ifland, as there are many of our own, which have but few, and fome not above one Port; fo that our Happinefs in this Refpect fprings Iblely and entirely from the be- neficent Bounty of the Supreme Being, towards whom our Gratitude is befl: expreffed, by improving fo rare and fo important a Blelling to the ut- moft q. To give fome Idea of which, by fhewing what has been already done, we have purfued the fame Method as in the former Chapter, making the compleat Tcur of the Britifli Illands, and mentioning their moft re- markable Po/ts as they occur r. By this Method the Reader fees clearly the Truth of this Pofition, and from the Light of Evidence difcerns what innumerable Advantages we derive from thence. But that fo long a Peregri- nation, inltead of proving tedious, might be made as entertaining and inllruc- tive as poflible, we have taken at the fame Time a Survey of the Maritime Counties, and in doing this, have ventured to give a fuccinifl Detail of their principal Produce, as well as a Defcription of their Situation, and the Benefits that either are or may be derived from both «. In this Survey, Abundance p In order to fee thh in Ji Light of Probability, we muft confider how Things aclnally Aood a Century or two ago, look back on the Propofals then made for Improvements, obferve how nightly they wererecel\-ed, how little they were known, how long they fiept in Obfcurity, by what Accidents awakened and brought to View, with what DitF.cuky carried into Execution ; and ihefe Circumftances generally unattended to, their real Authors and true Sources buried in Ob- •iivion. q This is endently the beft Return that rational Beings can make to an omnifcient Creator. Bleffings unemployed are confequently unfelt, and they will always remain unemployed fo long as they are not underilood. But when from the Spur of NeceUity, which works quickeft, or from due Obfervation, which proceeds beft, Men apply themfelves to make a proper LTe of natural Advantages, they find them extend under their Care, and exceed their Expeftatioas in their Effeas. ' It appears from the Hiflory of thefe Ports feated immediately on the Sea Coan:, that by at- tracting Inhabitants, and thereby increafing Confumption, they produce a cultivated Country round them; as their Influence extends, more diitant Places procure g-x)d Roads to participate in thefe Advantages ; and in a neceffary Chain of Confequences, Link being added to Link, this la- .fluence comes to be felt at fifty or an hundred, which at tirll icarce reached five Miles. ' We have been thereby enabled to (hew, how Freedom and a mild Government, encouraging 'ladaftry, and protecting Property, fupply all the fappofcJ Defefts of Soli and Climate ; fo that 4 Y 2 in 7i6 The POLITICAL SURVEY Abundance of Points in natural, civil, and commercial Hiflory are inter-'- fperfed j which, however, are itridlly relative to our original Plan of point- ing out, as we proceed, what hath been or what may be done towards ren- dering the Country more flourirtiing, and placing the Inhabitants thereby more at their Eafe. If introduced to any other, or infilled on any farther than to th s Purpofe, they muft neceffarily have diverted our Attention from the principal Defign of this Work ; and however pleafing, laudable, or ufeful they might be in themfelves, would have been thereby very impro- per; whereas thus applied, they have, it is hoped, thrown a clearer and more agreeable Light on many Things than could have been obtained any other Way f. The bringing back to Remembrance what was done here in very early Days, Vv'hen fupported by authentic Evidence, is not barely doing Juftice to Antiquity, but furnilhes alio, in fome Cafes, a kind of Proof not otherwife to be had, and in its own Nature conclufive ". The Me- morials even of the middle Ages are not unworthy of our Regard ; for though after the Danilh Devaftations and the Norman Conqueft, a ilrong Tin(^ture of Barbarifm prevailed amongft our Anceitors, yet fome Things that they either retained from former Times, or brought over hither from other Countries, proving ufeful and advantageous, delerve therefore to be re- membered w. In refpecfl to the numerous modern Improvements that ocr cur, they not only fhew the happy Effeils that have followed from the In- creafe of ufeful Science, but ferve alfo to excite in us a Delire of making ftill greater Im.provements ; for which there yet remsins futhcicnt Room, and in fome Places pregnant Occafion, as there will be undoubtedly in others, in Proportion as a Spirit of Commerce, which in an llland can in point of Fertility and Abundance, the Produce of Commodities and Manufaftiires for our own life, and the Confumption of others, we are much fiiperior to our. Aneeftors, inferior ta no ■ other Nation, and have flili numerous Refources, to which either ourfelves or our Pofterity miy recur. ' In this we have followed the learned Camden, the judicious Selden, the accurate Spehnan.- and indeed all the celebrated Writers who have treated Subjects ot this Nature, and upon their Principle, that by this Means the Defcriptions might be rendered more ufetul, by being better un- derflood. Strabo in truth fet the Example, who is indifputably one of the mofi entertaining and elegant, as well as one of the moft accurate of ancient Geographers. " It could never have been proved th.it Corn, Cattle, Hares, Geefe, and Poultry were in Plenty here 1800 Years ago, if Caefar had not exprelly told us fo. Diodorus Siculus afTcrts Britain was Tery populous. Vines were planted here, by Permiffion for that Purpofe from the Emperor Probus. Tacitus acquaints us, that the Romans employed the Natives in draining Moraffes ; the Coins found near Fleet in Holland in Lincolnfliire, prove this was recovered by them. w The woollen Manufafture is allowed to tiave been brought in by our Norman Kings ; and fo . it really was, and much earlier than is commonly fuppofed, as has been mentioned, p. 179. They were vciy foUicitous in promoting the Cultivation of Hemp about Biidport ; encouraged the Plan- tation ot Timber ; were attentive to the Breetting of Horfes ; reiBitted Part of their .Fce-fiimSito decaying Towns, and fliewed much Attention to the Sea Coalls and Ports of the Kingdom, alone of GREAT BRITAIN. 717 al-on-e either excite or fupport a Spirit of Induftry, univerlully prevails, and eomes in different Degrees to animate the whole Nation ^. But befides thefe, there is yet another very dillinguifliing Prerogative,, v/hich may be truly faid to give Value to the Reil ; and which not having been hitherto explicitly treated in this Work, it is requifite to fpeak more largely to it here > . It is that very wife and happy Mixture which Provi- dence hath made of Midland and Maritime Countries in both Iflands, by which they mutually fupply and fupport each other, and render both of far greater Importance than otherv/ife they would be^. This fingular and fuperlative Advantage, though evidently connedted with, does by no means depend abfolutely upon Size. There are fome, though but few larger Iflands than Britain, which want this as well as other Conveniencies which we poffefs 3. In thofe large Iflands the interior Country fwells into Moun- tains of flupendous Height, dreary and uninhabitabf^ by VIen, and the Re- fuge only of wild Beafb. From thefe many Torrents ruihing down, be- fides frequent and deffrudiive Inundations, render the lower Countrico at all Times equally unwholefome and unpleafant. Some Ifl mds are flat and marfliy within Land, and from the Incommodities nLceffrily refulting thence, are unimprovable, unhealthy, and of Courfe thmly peopled. There are others again in the fame Situation from the very contrary Caufe, that is,- ^ Liverpool came to be confidered in confequence of tlie Iiifli; Harwich of the Dutch, Porrf- mouth-of our French Wars ; Whitby rofe to be a Port after the Reformation ; Whitehaven al- moft in our own Times, by the Attention of the Lowther Family ; Sandwich, as 'he Remnant of the old Rutiipium, London, Yarmouth, Newtaftle, and Southampton, are coeval with our Com- merce. The lat'cr Ports excited it, and in C injunftiun with a few others fufficed for Ages. The foi-mer arofc from different Occafions, h.ive W(jndcrfully extended it, and no Doubt' future- Occafions, fome of which may, and others cannot be forcfeen, will Hill further enlarge their Number. ' It may be very properJy afifed, Why was it not infifted upon? To this it is anfwereJ, I. That the happy Effeifts of this great national Advantage are frequently mentioned in this, and will be more treqtiently mentioned in the next Volume. 2. That the pioper Difcuffion of this Subjedf v.-ould have required a great deal of Room. 3: That the Natural Hillories oi^ Oxford- fliire and Stafford diire by Plot; of Northamptonfliire by Morton ; of Lancalhire by Leigh, &c. made it lefs necelTary.. '" The Plenty of a valuable grofs Commodity, in the Hands of a few opulent Perfons, awaVens a Defire of erefting a Creek into a Port, in which they find their Account. But tlie Port i>nce made, with proper Piers, Qnavs, and Mi^gazines, the adjacent Country feels the Efleifls, Inha- bitants ini-reafe, they rnufl be fed Agriculture thrives, Rents rife. Trade requires Beafls and Carriages, nev/ Roads are made, Induftry fprends, and with it Affluence. * The Ifland of Borneo under the Equinoftial is more than thiice as large as Great Britain.. Madagafcar, the Urge ft of the African Iflands, is more than twice tlie Size of Britain; and th'e ■ Ifle of Sumatra in the Eaft Indies, on which we have a Settlement, is near as large again. Japan is alfo reputed larger- than Britain, but i nproperly 4 for the Empire of Japan is really com poled of three Iflands, viz. Niphon, Kinliu, and Siliokf, and thefe taken together are indeed -fuperior in; Ske to Britain and Ireland, '2 fro mi 7iS The POLITIC/VL SURVEY from the Want of Water '\ But none of thcie capital Evils, at leafl: ia any great Degree, aftcdt either of our Illes ; fo that we equally enjoy the be- ni<^n Blefilngs of a rich and fertile, as well as thofe copious Benefits that anfe from our being a Maritime Country. It is evident from hence, that we are much happier from our being divided as we are, than if ther^; had been but one liland, equal in Extent to both <^. We flionld then have loft that great Tradt of Coaft, and all the numerous Advantages, which, as we have ihewn, arife from thence, and in its ftead have poflefTed a hr larger Space of interior Country, necefiarily removed to a much greater Diftance from the Sea, and in many other Refpedts lefs improveable ; whereas now all the Coafts and Ports of Ireland may be made as fubfervient to Britain as our own, together with all the Emoluments that may be drawn from their different Situation. For in refpedl to Illands, Size is^o a certain Degree, tmd to a certain Degree only, beneficial, as is obvious in refpecft to Africa, as we have already obicrved and demonftrated in another Point of View d. It might be thought a Degree of Partiality mixed with Prefumption, if we ihould afi'ert the Size of Great Britain to be the Standard of infular Per- feftion ; it is fully fufficient for our Purpofe to maintain that its Size is lb well fuited to all the Purpofes of Agriculture and of Commerce, th-at y/e cannot conceive how it could have been better «■, It muft be allowed, that with Regard to Inland Provinces, South Britain enjoys an obvious and incontelfable Advantage; and there needs no ArgU" m'ent to prove, that for the common Benefit of the Britifli Empire it fliould ^ If the Reader confults Capt.iin Danie! Beeckinan's Voyage to Borneo, London, 1715, 8vo, he will fee, that it is fuch an Ifland as is firfl defcrlbed, and of Courfe will not envy its Inhabit- ants the Honour of living in the largefV Ifland in the World. Darapier's Voyages furnifh. Variety of Inftances of Ifles of the fecond Clafs, in which the INIountains being near the Sea Coaft, ■few of their Rivers are navigable but by fmall VelTels, and the Inland Country u mere Qnag- mire. c Several foreign Writers have infified exprefsly on the like Divifion of the Empire of Japan, and have fnewn the various Benefits that arife from thence, more efpecially in refpeifi: to Fertility, Number of People, and the Commodity of Water-carriage. It is alfo very remarkable, that to juftify this Sentiment, and to make the Point better underflood, they compare thefe to the Britifh Ifles, and alTure us, that amongft the Japanefe the Phrafe of the three Kingdoms is ufed to denote their Dominions. d Africa is disjoined from Europe by the Streights of Gibraltar; and if in like manner feparated i"rom Afia, by cutting through the Iflhmus of Suez, it would be a complete Ifland. It is about thrice the Size of Europe, more than twice as big as North America, and more than eighty-five Times as large as Great Britain and Ireland. Yet through the great DiAance of the inland Parts from the Sea, and the Want of frelh Water, more barren and lefs peopled than any other Fart of the Globe. ' Whoever will ferloufly confider the feveral natural Advantages pointed OHt in the Courfe of this Work, and at the fame time reflefts that all thefe Advantages arife from the Form, Size, and Situation of Great Britain, will not need many Arguments to convince him that what is advanced jjn the Text hath a Foundation iu Truth, and is not afTerted at random. .be of GREAT BRITAIN. 71^ be To f. The midland Counties are wonderfully fertile and pleafant, fome of them diftinguilhed by large Downs covered by Sheep ; fome fpread out into wide Lawns or fpacious Meadows, afrbrding luxuriant Paftures to nu- merous Flocks, immenfe Herds of Black Cattle, and Multitudes of va- luable Horfes ; fome again have wide-fpread Plains annually crowned with prodigious Harvefls of all Kinds of Grain, or with other Produds of equal, or even of greater Value. Hills adorned with Timber, and fuch an Inter- mixture of Forefls, Chaces, and Parks, as renders it hard to decide whether they are moil adapted to Plenty or to Pleafure ; but undoubtedly well pro- vided for both^. True it is, however, that in fome Places thefe delicious Scenes are interrupted by lefs agreeable Objects, which ferve notwithlland- ing to diverfify the View, and may, after exercifing our Induftry, prove of as great Utility as more promifmg Countries''. It is alfo Truth, that many Mountains are fcattered here and there through South Britain, and more plentifully in Wales, befides that long Chain, running from South to North,- which Camden calls the Englifli Appennine. But even the highell: and the roughefl: of thefe yield the moft valuable Advantages ; for to fay nothing, of their contributing to the purifying the Air, and breaking the Clouds, it is to thefe we ou'e that copious Supply of Rivers, which we have re- prefentcd as fo many Sources of Pleafure and of Plenty j and to their Po- sition, the long Current and gentle Courfe of the moft confiderable of thcm^ They are like.vife pregnant v/ith rich Veins of almofk all Kinds of Metals and Minerals, and may thus be faid to produce their Harvefls, not indeed orr their Bofoms, but from their Bowels k On the other Hand, many of thefe ' It is happy for the Britifh Empire, that the Southern, bed frtuuted, and mo/V fertile Part of the Illand, Ihould be fo much the largefl as to contain about live Parts in feven of the whole- Territory. It is therefore in this, as v/ell as in other Rcfpefts, the fitted to be the Seat of Go- vernment. By this Means, Improvements have been fiift made where they ought to be firft made, that is, in the Countries where they would fuccecd beft and yield moft. s If the Reader will confult Drayton's Polyolbion, Camden, Speed, or any of our Geogra- phers, he will find what is faid in the Text to be ftriftly iNIatters of Faff, and that the mid- land Countries, really tranfcend this Defcription. Northamptonfliire, than which there are not above ten fmaller Counties in England, though it produces as much Grain as any, and hath many Manufaftures, hath alfo three Forefts, two Chafes, and above twenty Parks. h Part of Flanders, between Dunkirk and Bruges, is vifibly as fine and rich a Country in Corn and Failure as can be wiihed. Between Ghent and Antwerp, for twenty Miles together, the Soil is a poor barren fandy Heath, in all Appearance of no Worth or Value ; yet by Skill and Induflry this is rendered incomparably more valuable than the former, being brought by Cultivation to produce Flax (the great Staple of that Country) fo 6ne as to be worth Forty Pounds an Acre. i Whatever furniflies Employment to the People and Emolument to the State, contributes equally to the public Profit, through whatever Medium it comes, be it Coals or Copper, or Barley or V/heat, Wool or Flax, or Hops. Counties therefore rich in Mines are highly va- luable, however rugged their Appearance. Nay, in fpite of this. Agriculture, Grazing, and even Manufaftures, v/ili follow and fiourilli with them in PLices ■.vLich thty had never reached witho'dT ti^m. Mountains 720 The POLITICAL SURVEY Mountains make no fuch fqualid Figure; but on the contrary, rife to a ma- jeflic Height, cloathed with noble Woods, or covered with excellent Grafs, and with the wholelbmeft Herbs, In the Northern Part of the Ifle, there is a fmallcr Quantity of fuch inKuid Country, but llill much more than is commonly conceived; for tie Breadth, from E all to Weft, is in fome Places very confiJerable, and both in the Southern and in the Northern Pans a large Quantity of Land, that is, and a ilill larger Quantity that might be, well cultivated. Indeed of late Years, fmce a Spirit of Attention to do- meftic Oeconomy arofe, or rather revived, many Improvements have been niade, which very fully juflify what had been long before fuggefted, that Soil lying on Rocks may by Induftry be rendered competently fruitful k. The inland Counties in Ireland are in general very fertile and pleafant, as well as of great Extent, much improved within the Courfe of the prefent Century, improving daily, and ftill inconteftably capable of mucl> higher Improvements. All this has vifibly arifcn from the Progrefs of Commerce, the Spirit of which hath already pervaded the Inhabitants of a great Part, and will gradually pervade the whole People of that fair and fruitful Ifland I Short as this Defcription is, and in Fail as it chiefly confifts in fimply recalling to Memory Things that cannot be controverted, there needed not a long one ; it fufficiently fliews how very happily the Size and Dif- tribution of Countries concur in both Iflands for the Benefit of their In- habitants. Thele midland Provinces furnifli a copious Subfillence, and thereby retain Multitudes of People in the Places where they were born, who finding from the large and regular Demands of thofe in the Maritime and Commercial Parts, a conftant and fatisfaclory Reward of Induftry, ap- ply themfelves vigoroufly not only to Agriculture and Grazing, but to a vaft Variety of other Occupations, fuch as raifing grofs Commodities for domeftic and foreign Markets, and eftablifhing many Manufaftures which have increafed, are ftill increafing, and will increafe, as Commerce con- ■^ In the Philofophical Tranfaftions it was long ago remarked, with a View to the Improveinent of this Country, tliat a rocky Bottom, though but thinly covered with Earth, infiead of being de- trimental, was favourable to Vegetation, and this not from Theory but Experience. On this Principle it is afTerted that Hops, Flax, Madder, Liquorice, and Saffron, all of them rich Com- modities, might be tiled with jufl Exgeftations of Succefs, and fome Trials that have been made prove this Dodfrine true. ' It will be the Chaiafteriflic of true Patriots to c:)nciliate the Interefls of both Iflands. Great Britain cannot diftrefs Ireland but at her own Expense ; Ireland would hurt her own Security by weakening Britain. Wiftakes may happen on both Sides the Water. Wife Men will miflake on neither. The growing Profperity of Ireland will be a pleafing Objeil to every Man who really ■Rifhes well to Britaii;, tinues of GREAT B R I T A f N. 721 tinues to flourlfli and to extend "i. Experience very fully i unifies this Manner of Reafoning or rather this Method of Reafoning is founded on, and deduced from Experience; which clearly evinces the manifold Advan- tages that are produced from this fortunate Proportion of Midland and Ma- ritime Territory. Hence we fee how indifpenfably, and therefore infepa- rably the landed and the trading Interefts are connedted and alfo why Commerce is, what we have fo often alTertcd it to be, elTential to an Ifland, We may farther learn, how lince the Power of Britain hath been extended by the Means of her Commerce and her Colonies, to which that likewifc gave Birth, this Diftribution may be ftill fo improved, as under the Direction of our mild and excellent Conftitution, to furnilh a competent Strength to fuflain this mighty Empire thus acquired, in Dignity undiminiHied, and un- fading in Luftren. If in contemplating fome of the larger Counties on the Sea Coafl, in South Britain more efpecially, we advert that Part, and even a conliderable Part of them may be confidered as Inland, in refpedl to the Reft, we may be induced to think it no extravagant Calculation, that in the "Whole of the three Kingdoms, there may be between forty and fifty Millions of Acres, that may be very juftly looked upon in this Light, which would commodioufly hold, and very plentifully fupport, two Millions of Families"i and whenever this fliall happen, the Maritime Counties for many Realbns, fome of which have been already, and others which will be hereafter given, muft of Neceflity be more populous by far than at prefent, and confe- quently that there will be near double the Number of Inhabitants in the two Iflands that are in them at this Time. The Pollibility and Pra(ftica- bility of this, is all that from thefe Premifes we mean to aflert, and this can hardly with any Shadow of Argument be controverted, when it would be very eafy to fhew, that Iflands very fhort of thefe in many natural Ad- vantages are certainly more populous than either Great Britain or Ireland, •" Thefe can be promoted in no other Way ; and yet on the preferving and promoting thefe de- pends the Welfare of this Nation. It is not Weahh flowing by fecret and latent Channels that enriches People, but Subftance fairly earned by Labour and Indufiiy. The Rain from Heaven raifes Grafs, Corn, and Fruits ; feriodical Showers of Gold would produce only a Harvefl of— Jdlenefs. n This is fo great, fo glorious, fo generous, but at the fame Time fo arduous a Tafk, as to de- •mand all the Skill and Care, all the Attention and AfFiduity of the ablefl and mofl: virtuous Statefmen. Such, for this Country hath produced many fuch, may f\ill be found ; hut they mufl not be diflurbed or diverted from their Endeavours in the public Service ; for fuch will not either head or contend with Faflions, who feek not their Country's Profperity but their own. ° This certainly is no extravagant, much lefs abfurd Piopofmon, accounting only five Perfons to a Houfe or Family. For this allows twenty-five Acres to each fuch Family, and is about the Number which has been computed in feveral of thofe which are not_efteemed the mofl populous •Counties of England, as Bucks, Norfolk, and Somerfet. In fome others there aie double that .Number to one Houfe ; in faft therefore, it is no more than fuggefling that onr Inland Territory may be brought to this Standard. A Thing which it is hoped this certain and faniiliar laftance Villi put beyond Doubt. Vol. L 4 Z and 722 Tlie POLITICAL SURVEY and even more populous than in that Cafe they would be p. To this we may add, that Ibme Countries there are upon the Continent, which, in virtue of a tew of the Benefits we enjoy, and by a proper and fedulous Application of thefe, are in a like Condition 4; fo that thefe are to be regarded as po- litical Probabilities, founded in Reafon, juftified by Experience, and fo fully fupported by Fails, that we hope they will not be in Danger of palling for commercial Chimeras. It is not however unlikely, that the Poflibility of the Thing maybe ad- mitted by many, who neverthelefs aie perluaded that fuch an Augmenta- tion of Inhabitants never can take Place, and Candour will oblige us to own, they have many flrong Arguments in their Favour, which from the Lights both of Reafon and Experience are not very eafy to be aufwered"". Such Perfons may, and there is no Deubt will fay, that the Manners of Men in general, their Employments, more efpecially in Manufadlures, the Pro- penfity of living in great Towns and Cities, tends rather to diminifli than to increafe our People; that Numbers are conftantly confumed in the Sea Service, that our foreign Garrifons have the fame EffefS, that our Colonies arc a continual and a confiderable Drain ; and that our Wars, whenever they happen, fweep away great Numbers. In moft of thefe Cafes tliey will urge, that we not only lo!e fo many Individuals, but which is of ftill higher Conlequence, we alfo lofe their Pofterity. They will alledge ftill farther, that thefe not only operate as Caufes of Evil, but which is yet worfe, have a certain and vifible Tendency to prevent the Application of Remedies s. In P Acconrmg to the beft Accounts which the Dutch have given iis of Java, it is confiderably larger than it is commonly believed to b^, y«t lefs than Great Britain. It is fald however by then, from Computations very carefully made, that it contains thirty-two Millions of Inhabitants; therefore they conchidc juftly, if their Calculation be right, that it is the bell: peopled Ifland in the World. This is in Afia, and comes home to the Point; and therefore it is unnecefTary to repeat the Names of Iflands in all Parts of the Globe, which, their Size confidered, are certainly- more populous thaa this Ifland; though, on the ftriftert Comparifon, it will not be found they have any Advantages over us in any other Refpect whatever. 1 If we take the mofl: nioJerate liltimate of the People in the Province of Holland, they are (Tx Times, and the whole United Provinces are three Times as populous as England ; and of Cour/e this is fufhcient to prove what is faid in the Text. We fee therefore there is no Impoffibility In fuppofingour three Kingdoms may well fubfift double the Number of People now in them. This is naturally the firfl and iiot the leaft material Step towards accomplifliing it. ' In foimer Times, when Plaufibilities paded for Arguments, and x'^uthorliies were fufficient to e.'iabHfii Fafts, any Thing of this Sort might have been in fome Degree refuted, or at leaft might have been rendered doubtful. But the prefent Age is by far too enlightened, and thefe Kind of (^eftions have been too much ventilated to admit of any Sort of Impolltlon, how artfully foever rtiUed. Our Bufmefs is to difcover, not to difgulfe Truth, and upon this we Aake our Credit with the Reader. ' T!ie mofl knowing and cautious of our political Writers feem to allow, that we have not Cita fuiTtcient to determine with any Degree of Certainty as to the Number of People In thefe lilauds, 4 of GREAT BRITAIN. 723 li) ibmc Cafes the Intereft of our Commerce Hands in the Way, in others, the Honour of the Nation ; fince, when neccfiary, Wars mull be under^ taken, and when undertaken they mud: be fiipported ; in all Cafes they may alledge, that the Temper of the Times, or rather the Bent of the People, unaccullomed to, and therefore by no Means inclined to fubmit to fevere Laws t, even though vifibly conducive to public Good, would hinder Re- gulations requifite for thisPurpofe; and in Defence of this Doftrine, they will not fail to mention the repeated Dillike that has' been fhewn to a general Naturalization ; though that has been efteemcd by fome very emi- nent Statefmen, the (horteft, fpeedieft, and moft promifing Scheme for pro- ducing fuch an Effedl. Yet if, after all, the Thing be poffible in its Nature, imd it is at the fame Time of the highell Importance to the Welfare and Stability, as well as to the Grandeur and Glory of this Country, that it Ihould be accompliflied, we ought not to be deterred or driven to Defpair by the Confideration of Difficulties, how great foever they may appear". The Genius of the Britilh Nation hath particularly flione in overcoming Ob- ftacles to the Point flie had in View, which by any other People would have been believed, and perhaps found infurmountable, and therefore any At- tempt to indicate a Method of doing this, will certainly deferve Notice, and. very probably meet with Favour. It was with this View, that the Subjcdl of the laft Chapter is therein fo fully and circumllantially ftated, as affording a very promiling Method of attaining or heloing to attain this End, without innova ing in any Way on the Manners of the People in the Mother Country. In that we have fnewn, that there are numerous lilands dependant on Great Britain, and many of thefe little attend- ed to, and confcquently neglected and unimproved. That all of thefe notwith- ftanding are very capable of being brought into a tolerable Stateof Cultivation, Iflands. But by a ftrift Comparifon of F.ifls, it pafles for probable, that we h:ive not tnorf, oral lead not many more than we had at the Clofe of the laft Century: for which the Reafons ftated in the Text, may account with tolerably Certainty ; but their future Operations can be forefeen with no fuch Certainty. '■ The mild and gentle Laws of Britain have been attended with fuch numerous Advantages, and have thereby fo endeared their Authority to the People, that it is no Wonder they have ef- tabhfhed their Character, and fixed in their Breafts a zealous Attachment to thofe Inflitutions which have been pregnant to them with fo many and fo great Bleilings. This therefore ought to fce confidered not as national Weakncfs, but as national Virtue, and public Spirit. -Laws pro- per to render a Nation numerous, ought to m.ike a Part of their oiiginal CoiiAiturion, and can fcarce be afterwards introduced. But the fame EiiJ may poiTibly be reached iome other Way. " When Difficulties occur in refpc^fl: to what are truly national Objefts, the.firft Point is to re- prefent thofe Objefts in a true Light, that their Nature may be clearly difccrned, and their Im- portance generally underftood. This will produce an Unanimity of Sentiment, cr.pable ol infpiring a Vigour not to be oppofed, and a Steadinefs not to be overcome. In fuch a State, fair Words, juft Precepts, and good Examples will do more, or rather will excite a free People to do icore, than any coercive Laws would ever efFeft. 4 Z 2 with 724 The POLITICAL SURVEY with fome fmall Attention and Expence; the Truth of this it is hoped has been proved by ahiiofl every Argument of which the Subjcrt is Ihlceptible w. That thefe Improvements would necelTarily, and in a Manner immediately become highly beneficial to Britain. That in the fame Proportion as thefc Improvements increafe, they muft grow more and more beneficial to this Country; their Connexion with which could never be in Danger of being interrupted or weakened, much lefs of being broken or dillolved ;. and that this is no temporary, incertain, or trivial, but a moll: ferious and important Objeanythoufand adtive and induftrious Subjedls tothisEmpireas thefe Iflands contain ; and who for Ages paft have contributed very little to the common Benefit of the Society. The fixing a proper Bafis, and giving Stability to^ their Improvements, wiU retain Thoufands of young People who annually go to foreign Countries, and very fcldom return, by finding proper Em- ployment for them, where, for the public Benefit they ought to be, in their own. By this Means, and that too in a very (hort Space of Time, the whole, and even the moft remote of them, will become fully inhabited. This will t.llb be very much facilitated by the Rcfort of foreign Proteflants,. ■"^ If a Man had ftadied liis own Eafe, or been intent on entertaining and nmufing his Readers, he would never have dragged ihcm to the Wcflern Idands, to the Orkneys, and to Shetland ; Coun- tiics known barely by Name, and fc.ircely that to Southern Politicians. But one who vvi(hes to fee the Britifh Empire the moft cxtenfive and the mofl ftable on Earth, believed it to be his Duly. He thought the Time was come, when to preferve and to proteft our diflant Dominions, it would be requifite to colleft, and by every poffible Method to augment our Strength at Home. He faw that great Countries lay in a Manner defart at our own Doors, that thoufands and thouHinds of People (in refpeifl to the Public) were abfolutely idle. He knew the former might be cultivated, and the latter employed. He difcerned the Confequences that would attend this ; and he conceived th;ir a diflinft Detail of what he thought would feme time or other (as has been the Cafe in other jSjpiovuBCUtij produce thit likewif^. who of GREAT BRITAIN. 725 wfio might be invited without any inconvenlcncy thither, would readily come, and bringing the Means of Snbliftcnce, that is Skill and Labour ia ufeful Employments, would be very kindly received^. The furnifliing thefe Ifles, when tolerably fettled, and moderately well inhabited, with many Ne- ceffaries and domeftic Furniture, the Utcnfils requifite for their Trades, and Commodities, and Manufadlures, to complete the Allbrtment of their Car- goes in Commerce, for which they are well htuated, and to which, if they' had the Means, they are naturally inclined, will procure Employment and Subfiftence for many Families in Britain and Ireland, as certainly as the like Effefts have followed from the Eftabliihaient of more diftant Co- lonies. Belides, as in Time of War, our Fleet may be manned from thefe lilands without Prejudice to our Trade; which in that Sealbn has fuftered through the Neceffity we have hitherto been under of feeding and paying (to fay nothing of difciplining) foreign Seamen, it muft prove a great Saving of Men here. When they ihall come to be fully peopled and completely improved, the wealthieft and the molt fubftantial Inhabitants, will con- tinually follow the Fortunes they have acquired hither ; and thus there will be a conftant Influx of People, according to their various Connexions,- into fome Part or other of Great Britain and Ireland. By this Means, which is all we intend to fuggeft, an Augmentation equal to the unavoidable Outlets of People from hence wuuld fpeedily arife, and of Courfe, the natural Multiplication of the prefent Inhabitants of thefe two Iflands be no' longer impeded y. We (hall proceed, after laying the beft Foundation we are able of judginc ef the comparative Values of Countries in general, to give in the fucceeding Books, a compendious Inventory of the national Produce of Great Britain j- from whence it will inconteflably appear, that in all Ages thefe Iflands poflcflTed very extenflve Funds both of valuable Commodities for Commerce, and for the Employment of her Natives in every Species of Induflry ; which, though many of them, might be negledled, and others for a long Space to- " The Methods recommended for fpeedily peopling thefe Ifles, would be very acceptable to their' Inhabitants. Gavelkind (that great Source of People) was their ancient ConlVitution. They are naturally hofpitable, and weli-difpofed to Strangers, very inquiiitive, and much inclined to learn- new Trades. To which we may add, they would mofl: willingly accept new Privileges, on Con- dition of furnlfhing regular Supplies of Seamen in Time of War, for the Service of the Navy. 'f In order to make this Matter perfeftly intelligible to the attentive and candid Reader, let it Be obferved, that Guernfey and Jerfey are four Times more populous than Britain and Ireland -. and confequently no Improbability in fuppofing that thefe may commodionily maintain twice the prefent Number of Inhabitants. In Comparifon of Guernfey and Jerfey, Wight and Anglefey are thinly, and all the other Ifles very thinly peopled, for which we have ajfigiied the Reafons, and endeavoured to point out the Remedies. The only Obie(ffion that can be formed againfl: this- Method of arguing is, that, their Soil and Situation confidered, the Scheme of rendering them po- pulous is improbable, if not impofTible. But this we have- overthrown, by proving they Mere ©nee as populous -as we would wiflr them. tdly 726 The POLITICAL vS U R V E Y, 8cc. ally overlooked, or the Profits ariling from them fuffered to pafs into the Hands of Foreigners, yet through the Courfe of feveral Centuries pall: have been improved by ourfelves to the almoft inexpreflible Benefit of this Country. We fliall likewife fliew, that in Proportion as ufeful Science in- creafcd, and our political Conftitution improved, thefe Funds of every Kind were gradually enlarged and much more improved, by which the Nation grew capable of extending her Views, and of thereby afcending much higher in the Scale of Power, with Refpeft to the other States of Lurope than in former Times. It is true, thai in the Profccution of tliefc cnlar2;ed Views we were carried into immenfe Expences ; but as we fliall alfo prove, not beyond, or even to the Extent of our Abilities, or without making Acquilitions fuitable to thofe Expences, large as they were. We flv.iU finally attempt a fuccindl Reprefentation of the diiiant Dominions of Britain, and enquire into the Advantages {he hath already reaped, and thofe that (he may hereafter acquire from them ; and how far this may conduce to au2;ment her Wealth and Force, fo as to enable her to preferve, and to fullain fo vaft an Empire with Dignity and Luftre, fo long as our mild and happy Conftitution retains its Vigour and this Nation its Freedom. 2 In fpeaking of our Trade being formerly in the H:iuds of Foreigners, we mean only to (late a. Fadl, and not ro cafl; any Reflcftion. For without Doubt we I>and indebted for many of €>ur Manufaiflures, and no fmall Part of our Commerce to Forei^gners fettled amongfl us. Rut thefe Foreigners came and went, and in virtue of Privileges obtained from our Princes, eflablifhed Monopolies, and, having raifed great Fortunes here, carried them over and lived upon them ;ji their own Countiies. E N D of the FIRST VOLUME. I N D E X TO THE FIRST VOLUME. A.- ^BERDEEN, city of, fome account •^^ of it, 207. Reckoned the third in North Britain, ibid. The falmon- fifhery here of great confequence, ibid. Akrdovey, in North Wales, a propofal to make the harbour there an excel- lent haven, by rolling the fouth bar to bring the river into its old channel, &c. 1 85. Aberyftwyth, in Wales, an account of the means which have been propofed to reftore this almoft ufelefs haven, 182. Half-crowns and fhillings coined there with the oftrich feathers, 184. Aden, famous in antiquity, in the lan- guage of the natives, fignifying de- light, from whence the coaft was ftyled Arabia the Happy, and which was af- terwards called the Roman Ports, ftill frequented, 23. Julius Callus, fent by Auguflus Casfar, after he became mafter of ^gypt, to fubdue Arabia, 22. Aire, in Scotland, formerly very famous for the beauty of its iituation, and many other advantages, 228. Famous alio for having a citadel built by Oli- ver Cromwell, of which there are ftill fome fmall remains, ibid. Alderney, Ifland of, account of the town, harbour, and other circumftances, 514, Alexander the Great, looks upon ^gypt with particular fatisfadion, when his flatterers ftyled him the Matter of the Vol. I. World, 5. Intends Arabia for the feat of that empire, which he defigned to make univerfal, 22. America, the time of its difcovery mark- ed, 8. The immenfe riches poured into Spain by it, ibid. The only two civilized countries which the Euro- peans found upon that continent de- Icribed, 2c. Amjlerdavi, acquires great trade, in con- fequence of an inundation, and by the ruin of the port of Antwerp, 14. Antwerp, a view of it in its moft flourifli- ing ftate, 15. Deftroyed by the ava- rice, ambition, and bigotry of Spanifti kings, 16. Application, the neceflity of it urged to improve the advantages derived from nature, 3. Arabia, a view of the advantages it for- merly enjoyed in confequence of its fituation, 22. Intended by Alexander for the feat of that empire, which he meant to make Univerfal, ibid. Sub- dued by iElius Gallus, ibid. Exhi- bits, at this day, fome faint marks of what it was, 23- Several of its ports ftill frequented, ibid. Arabians, endeavouring to ftiake off" the Roman yoke fixed on them by j^illius Gallus, are again humbled by Tra- jan, 11 Ardocb, caftle of, one of the moft perfeft in our ifland, 20c. Arijiotle, ftyk-s Crete the Emprefs of the Sea, 29. Arran.. Ifie of, defcribed, 581 — 587. 5 A Afia, jiftor^ formerly offered us an inftance not unworthy of being compared with Venice, 36. Afirop^ the wells there in great efteem for many chronic cafes, 79. Athelney^hMxzA founds a monaftery there, 333. A little more than two acres ot firm ground in the midft of marches, ibid. Atheljlan, drives the Britons beyond the river Tamar, after having reduced Exeter, 475. Makes that river the boundary of their Cornifh dominions, ibid. Proceeding in a martial man- ner, he makes new conquefts, ibid. Augujlus Cafar, fends yElius Gallus to fubdue Arabia, 22. Auftria, the princes of that houfe in- fpired, by unlimited power and im- menfe wealth, with an ambition fatal to themfelves, and to their fubjeds, 8. B. Bacctt, fir Francis^ his way of account- ing for the caufe of cold in Newfound- land, 65. Banrjy one of the finefl rivers in Ireland, 258. Its fifhery of very great value, ibid. Barnet, in Hertfordfhire, a purging-wa- ter there, formerly in great efteem^yg. Barrowdak, near Grange, three miles from Kefwick in Cumberland, a pretty ftrong fpring there, y6. Bafil, a fpring there of a blueilh co- lour, 74. Bath, in Somerfetfliire, fome account of its hiftory, and of its waters, 9^, 96, 97- Bathing, the great utility of it with re- gard to health, 89. Its utility well known in all babarous as well as civi- lized nations, ibid. Baths, a farther fearch after them in England ftrongly recommended, 89. Several of the baths in England fpe- cified, 91 — 102. I-n North Britain, III HZ. N D E X. Battel, in Suflex.^a manufacture of gun- powder carried on there, by which it is produced in the higheft perfedion, 974- Belfaft, one of the beft towns, and a port of the greateft commerce in Ire- land, 257. Benihal, near Wenlock in Shropfliire, an excellent chalybeate fpring there, 79, Beverley Beck, a cut or canal in York- fliire, productive of great commercial advantages to the ancient town of Be- verley, 174. Black- bidies, our coal-pits humoroudy fo called, 156. Bland, a drink peculiar to the inhabi- tants of Shetland, a fort of butter- milk, 696. Blafqiiet I Hand, a Ihip of the Spanifh ars- mada wrecked near it, 432. Boyne, river in Ireland, famous for the decifive battle in 1690, when it was. pafled by king William, 254. Bridport, in Dorfetfhire, the manuring of land about it with mackerel difcou- raged, as that practice was thought \.o corrupt the air, 351. Brine fprings, principal ones in South Britain enumerated, yS — 78. Bi-ijlal, fome account of the virtues of its waters, 98. The fecond city in England, 147. Britijb Iflands, the fituation and extent of them, 4,5. The temperature and falubrity of the climate in general urged againft particular objeftions to its frequent and confiderable altera- tions, 47, Proofs produced in favour of the climate in Britain from the lon- gevity of its inhabitants, ibid. From their fecundity, 48. From their cor- poral advantages, 49. From their ge- nius, 50. .XTonveniences arifing from> the uncertainty of our climate enu- merated, 51 — 54, Common objec- tions upon this head anfwered, 54* The fertility of our foil equal to the moderation of our climate, ^^. The fource of many and great advantages,. ibid. ibid. Its produftions fpecifiecl, ibid. Is no lels diftinguiditrd by nourifhing animals of eveiy k nc', 58. More happy in its capacity of improve- ment than in its actual fertility, 59. The diftinguifhed blcfllng which we enjoy to be attributed to the fituation of our iflands, 62. This afiertion for- tified by a number of proofs, 65. The peculiar felicity of Great Britain arif- ing from a copious diftribution of ex- cellent water, 68. Diftinguifhed from many countries upon the continent, and from many iflands, by fuch a hap- py diftribution, 68, 69. Little ex- pofed to inundations, 69. Our hap- pinefs in this refpeft accounted for, 70. The beneficial confequences re- Iblting to the Britifli dominions, from the large extent and peculiar figure of their coafts, 272. The great excel- lence of the coaft of Great Britain, with regard to its fize and to its form, 274. The feveral iflands fcattered round Britain Angularly advantageous to it, 451. Britain emphatically call- ed by the graved authors of antiquity the Great Ifland, and Another World, ibid. By later writers. Queen of the Ifles. The iflands dependent upon South Britain enumerated, 455 — 504, The iflands that were anciently de- pendent on Normandy, 505 — 523. The ifland and kingdom of Man, 524. Of the wefliern ifles dependent on North Britain, 553 — 573. Thofe if- lands defcribed, 574 — 624. Iflands of Orkney defcribed, 638 — 676. If- lands of Shetland defcribed, 676. Brockhole, near Prefton in Lancafliire, two chalybeate fprings there, 79, Br^Jeky, near Wenlock in Shropihire, a very Angular burning fpring difcover- ed there in the year 171 1, 74. A joint of meat boiled over ic fooner than any other fire, ibid Ccdfed burning, but broice out again in 1747, and continued till i755> ibid. Touily ex- N D E X. tinguifhed by the finking* of a coal- pit in its neighbourhood, ibid. Bute, ifland of, a defcription of its fitua- tion, natural, civil, and commercial hiltory, 574 — 581. Buxton, Ibme account of the virtues of its waters, 99. C. Camhray, league of, the Venetians confi- dcrably afFe- dities of this ifl>ind, 533, 534. The chief towns and principal harbours in it, 534 The government civil, ec- clefialtical, and military, 535 — 557. The cuftoms and diipofuions of the people, 538. Smuggling, wiih all the mifchicfs that attend that perni- cious pradicc, introduced by the want of improvements, the lols of their commerce, and the decline of their fiftiery, 559. The feveral laws that have been made, but with little fuc- cefs, in order to prevent the contra- band trade from thence to Great Bri- tain and Ireland, 540, 541. Manchejler, though a place of much note tor variety of the manufaflures, though larger, better built, and more populous than many cities, not fo much as a corporation, 322. Maiine of England, the ftate of it in the reign of queen Elizabeth, 161. The ftriking difference between the num- ber of feamen and fliips in her reign and in the prefent, ibid, Marfac, in Perigord, a fountain there, follows the tide of the Garonne at Bourdeaux, 72. Martin-Meer, a lake in LancaQiire, eiglit canoes difcovered at the bottom of ir, 103. Mary, queen of Scots, creates James Hepburn, earl of Bothwell, duke of Orkney, in confequence of her un- happy reiolution to become his wife, 648. Matlock, the virtues of its waters dc- fcribed, 10 r. Alaudjliy, near Prefton in Lancafhire, a fpring there, the virtues of which are faid to have been difcovered by the obfervations of the country people on the pigeons reforting thither. Si. Mauritius, Ifland of, particular account of it from its firft cifcovery by the Porcuguefe in the fixteenth century, to its occupation by the French, under the name of the Ille of France, 38 — 40. 40. Amazingly improved by the fa- gacity, ailivity, and perfeverance of of Monfr. de la Bourdonnaye in ly^s, 40. Medicinal fprings, few countries in Eu- rope better furnifhed with them than the Britifh iflands, yS. The uncom- mon frequency of our healing fprings to be attributed to the lixivious qua- lity of our rain water, ibid. To the variety of our rich foils, ibid. To the inimitable chemiilry of nature, by which, happily impregnated, they be- come moft acceptable remedies to the mod tormenting diftempers, ibid. Some of the moft celebrated ones in England enumerated, 79 — 86. In Wales, 86 — 88. In Scotland, 1 10 — 115. In Ireland, 117 — 119. Med-Tvay^ river, inconveniences to be ap- prehended from the continued rife of its bed, I'G. To be prevented by timely remedies, ibid. To be pre- vented with greater facility than re- moved, ibid. Merioneth, the firft maritime county in North Wales, its comm.ercial advan- tages, nianufadlures, &c. pointed our, 185. All the necelTaries of life here in the greateft plenty, ibid. Middleton, fir Hugh, farms the mines at Confumblock, from the fociety for royal mines, for an annual rent of four hundred pounds, 1S4. Is for- tunate enough to make two thoufand pounds a month, and acquires by his mines, in that time, the greateft pare of that vaft wealth which he buried in the prcjed for bringing the New River to London, ibid. Milfcrd Have;!, commonly allowed to be the moft capacious, commodious, and fecure port in the Britifh iflands, j8o. Many harbours in this finguiar and wonderful place out of repair, ibid. Thofe harbours enumerated, ibid. A view of the advantages to be expeded from a proper attention to its improve- naents, 4.16- Advantages which would IN D E X' be foon felt to the honour of a rich country, and the emolument of its hofpitable inhabitants, ibid. A'line-zvcrks, thofe lying on the fea-fide preferable, on many accounts, to thofe in the inland parts of a country, 187. Minho, the, rifes in Galicia, 142. Di- vides that kingdom from Portugal, ibid, falls into the Atlantic Ocean, a little below the fmall city of Tuy, without makins any confiderable porc» ibid. Minos, fon of Jupiter and Europa, go- verns Crete, after he had fubdued it, with the greateft political wifdom, 2%^ Mocka, in confequence of its bcinj the ftaple of the coffee-trade, ftill a place of great reforr, 2-3. Moffat, in the ftiore of Annandale, North Britain, a fpring there, celebrated for medicinal ufes, 74. Mohammei roufes the fleeping fpirit of his countrymen to conqueft, 23. Mona, now Anglefea, the original feat of the Druids, an account of the fin- guiar changes it has undergone, 4ga — 495. The happy pofition, admirable fertility, and other natural benefirs of this remarkable i.Gand, 49.7 — 497. Paft: and prelent condition of it in reference to agriculture, manufadures, and commerce, 497 — 499. Mcrtcn, the grant of the Orkney illands, by way of mortgage, to that noble family, 649. The grant reduced, and the iflcs re-annexed to the crown by adt of parliament, ibid. DiiTolvcd by another act, and again granted to the houfe of Morton, 6^0. Mojco-jo, its fituation defcribed, 60. Its climate compared with that of Edin- burgh, ibid. The feverity of it fpe- cified, and accounted for, ibid. McuntainSy of no confideration, though pregnant with the richeft mineral trea- fures, if there are no rivers near them, 156. Remain unwrought and difre- garded, ibid. Mulhevy- N D MMbcrry-tree, the introdudion of the white mi)!berry-trec into Hampfhiie Urongly recommended, 362. Various Teafons produced in favour of its being planted there to (Ircngthen then-com- inendation, 363 — i6j. An objecftion with regard to the difcouragement of our colonies anfwered, ibid. Mull^ iQjnd of^ defcribed, 599 — 6 7. Murray Firth, in Scotland, remarks on it, cfpecially with regard to its fiflie- ries, 213. This finiery dcferving of public notice and encouragement for many realons, ibid. i^a-iiptu;kh, a noble fpring there, not far from the river Weaver, rich enough to yield one fixth part of pure uhite fait, 76. N'Jture, the advantages we receive from it not fo liable to tlie vicifTitudes of time, as the benefits we receive from art, >6S. Her gifts permanent, and refill furprifingly the v^orlt ulage, .87. Naziiahle rivers, the fources of power and plenty, 134. Nebuchadnezzar^'^ ihti old city of Tyre facked by him. 29. Neville- 1 loU^ in LeictlU-ilhire, a fpring there, fuppoied to be the only one of the kind in Britain, 82. Accidentally difcovered by a farmer, in the year T728, ibid. Nevscc.jlle upon lyrie, derivaiion of its name, i()2. A particular account of its increafing confequence during ie- veral reigns, ibid. And commercial improvements, ibid. The difcovery of co-l-mines in its neighbourhood, a new acceOlon of wealth, ibid. It alfo turns to the benefit of the crown, and procures the inhabitants frtfh privi- leges, ibid. They are made inde- pendent of the county of Northum- berland by Fienry VI. ibid. New- caltie flourilhes more than ever, after E X. the accelT.on of king J..mes tlie Fird: to the crown of England, ibid. '1 he efTcds of the civil war ftill felt by it, i6;. NtwfoundLuid, the fcverity of its cold in winter, and its exceffive heats in ium- mer, though lyine, for the mod part, in a lower latitude than Britain, phi- lofophically accounted for, to fir Fran- cis Bicon, by 3 perfon who had car- ried over fettiers, 165. Newry, in Ireland, the canal of, a noble work, 327. Nczvton, in Glamf-rganniire, a cuiious fpring there, 72. Nile, the annual overflowing of it, a confiderabie blcirini:, 4. They might have been a curfe if the rulers of Egypt had bten Ids f.igacious, or the people lefs obedient, ibid. Norfolk, confidered at this day as one of the belt cultivated co'.;nties in the kingdom, 2S4. Eflates laid to have been more than doubled by mere dint of judicious cultivation, within m.e- mory, ibid. The lands in this coun- ty greatly increafed in their value dur- ing that time, ibid. The inhabitants equally fuccefiful with their manufac- tures and herring-fifnery, ibid. The little care taken of the e-'itcnfive Nor- folk coaft, irreconcileable to the ge- neral maxims of policy, and to the particular ipirit of improvement by which the people of Norfolk are fo much diftinguiflied, ibid. North Britain, plentifully and agreeably fupplied with water, iio. An ac- count of the medicinal and mineral fountains there molt in repute for their fanative virtues, 1 10 — i 13. The lochs in North Britain enumerated, 114 — ■ 116. Navigable rivers and ports in North Britain enumerated, 194 — 236. A furvey of the inlets, ports, and har- bours, in North Britain, and the im- provements pointed out of which they arc capable from their fituation, 4 1 S— 430- O. N O. Olive-treeSy the cultivation of them in Hampfliire recommended, 361. The cultivation of them more pra<5licable than is generally apprehended, ibid, Orkney, iflands of, certainly inhabited in the earlieft times, 640. Vifited by the Phoenicians, ibid. An extract from a large work prefervcd concerning them, executed in a curious manner, by which it pl.iinly appears, that the people of Tyre were acquainted wiih ihefc idands, ibid. Suppofed by fome hiftorians to have been inhabited in ancient times by Pifts, ibid. Certain- ly fubdued by the Romans, 64.1. Rea- fons for imagining that the Pppi, or Pap.f, and the Peti were the original inhabitants of thcfe ifljnds, 642. The conquefts, and in a great meafure the extirpation of them by the Norwe- gians, 643. Erected into a county, dependent on the crown of Norway, ibid. Einar, or Eynard, their third count celebrated for having introduced the ufe of turf, 644. Magnus, a count of Orkney, in confequcnte of having been barbaruuQy murdered by his couiin, confidered as a Lhriilian mar- tyr, ibid. The people ot thefe ides remain fevcral ages under a long fu;- ctfljon of Norwegian earls, in an cafy fituaticn, being governed in an equit- able manner, ibid. The government of them transferred from Norway to Scotland, 645. The fovereignry of the Orkney ilks transferred to James 111. king of Scots, in confequence of his marriage with a daughter to the king of D.-nmark and Norway, who obtains the abfolute pofTefrion of- them by the voluntary ceiTioa of Sinclair, tarl of O.dcney, 646. Remarkable behaviour of fir James Sinclair, 647. The town of Kirkwall creded into a scy.aJ borougli, by Jaaics V. ibid. D E X. Earl of Bothwell created duke of Ork- ney by queen Mary, 64S. Robert Stuart railed to that dignity by hii nephe v James VI. ibid. His fon Pa- trick, earl of Orkney, beheaded, ibid. The royal revenue of thefe iflands let to farm, 649. Grant of them, by way of mortgage, to the noble family of Morton, ibid. That grant reduced, and the ides re-annexed to the crovvTi by a£t of parliament, ibid. A frefh dilTylution procured in favour of the houfe of Morton, 650. This mort- gage declared irredeemable by act of padiament, ibid. Account of the bifhoprick and its revenues, 651, 652. The number of the fouthern illcs, and a delcription of the moft remarkable amongll them, with the like enumera- tion and defcriptijn of the northern ides, 653 — 662. A general idea of the importance of thefe ides from their extent of territory, from their difpo- fition and fuuation, 662 — 664. The probability of their being rendered of much greater confequence if the inha- bitants were properly encouraged, 662, Particulars relating to their climate, 663. Soil, 665. Produce, 667. The fituation of the Orkneys very favour- able to the fidiery, 66S. An account of the tempers, manners, cuftoms, and employments of the inhabirants, 66). Their commerce, circumftancc:, and other particulars, 671. Scveml nu-ans propofed for rendering thc'e people more ufrful to themlclvts, and to the empire of Great Britain, 6, 2 — 676., Cnniis, idand of, its extent, 37. Its difagreeable fituation, its commercial confequence,. ibid. city of, torn from the Arabians by the Portuguefe, and by th.m con- fiderably iir.proved, ibid. Founded in the fourteenth centu'y, 38. De- ftroyed in the feventeenth, ibiJ. O/iriSyOr BacchuSj the expedition .of,, in CO: N D into the Indies, one of the darkefl: points of the Egyptian hiftory, 8. Oiife, the, in O n ford (li ire, its rife and progrcfs defcribed, 13H. The entire coLirfe of this river about one hundred miles, ibid. P. Pcmhrokejhire, held on good grounds to be the cradle of our woollen manu- fafture, 179. Its many valuable com- modities defcribed, 181. Perfetlion, to be aimed at, tliough un- attainable, I. Peru, the land on the co.-ift of it, fup- plied (as it does not rain at all there, in confequence of its climate and fi- tuation), with moifture by dews, 70. Peter the Great, czar of Mufcovy, a me- morable faying of his, 21. Phanicia, a geographical defcription of peculiar felicity of Great Britain in a co[)ious diftribution of excellent water, 68. On the frequency of fprings in this ifland, 72. On the utility of a copious diltribution of waters, 132, 133. On the numerous benefits arif- ing from navigable rivers, 134, 155. On the advantages which we derive from ours, 155 — 160. On the im- provements which may be made in our rivers advantageous to our com- merce, 175. On the natural advan- tages and vail importance of Ireland, 26', — 271. On the various benrficial confequcnces arifing to the Briiifli do- minions from the large extent and peculiar figure of their coafls, 272, 273. On the form of a coafl:, 274. On the excellence of the coaft of Great Britain, with regard to its form as well as fize, ibid. On the conveniences and defeats of the ports on the eaft fide of it, 23 Its inhabitants celebrated by South Britain, 276 — 308. On the the Greeks as the inventors, at lealt the great improvers of every art and fcience, ibid. Phchford, a village in Shroplhire, a very remarkable fpring there, 74. Political rtflcftions on the great object of true policy, I — 4. On the refem- blance in the principles of govern- ment between the Egyptians and the Chineie, 7. On the great changes produced in Spain by the difcovery of America, 8. On the prefcnt ftate of Italy, 10. On the Dutch republic, 15. On the ufe of hiftorical repre- fentations, 16. On the fuperiority of genuine policy to intrigue, 17. On the intereR and duty of members of a free flate, 44. On the fevenl advantages arifing from the uncer- tainty of our climate, 51. On the caution with which geographical diftinctions of climates are to be re- ceived, 60. On the impodibilicy of \ enjoying the benefits in our poficffion in another fituation, 66, 67. On the immenfe benefits daily refulting from the coal-trade, 508 — 310. On the great utility of fpirit and perfeverance in making national improvements, 311,312. On the improvements of which the ports and harbours in North Britain are capable from their fitua- tion, 418 — 430. On the prefcnt ad- vantages of the coafts of Ireland, and the much greater advantages which might be drawn from them, 531 — 448. On the advantages arifing from the feveral ifiands fcattered round Bri- tain, 4c;i. On the great importance of the Scilly ifiands, 482, 483. On their little confequence at prefcnt, 486. On the numerous benefits which might be derived from them, 486 — 488. On the pafl: and pn:lent condition of the Ifle of Anglefey, with regard to agriculture, manufaftures, and com- merce, 496, 457. On the improve- ments of which it is capable, 512 — 514. On the caufes to which, the illands, that were anciently dependent en I N D E on Normandy, owe tlieir extraordi- nary popuhnon, 522. On the infi- nite importance of thefe iflands to Bri- tain, ibid. On the prefent Hate of the Ifle of Man, and its inhabitants,, 541^544. On the Hiftory of the Wellern Ifles dependent on Norih Britain, 625 — 638. On the import- ance of the inhabitants of the iflands of Orkney from their extent of terri- tory, difpofition, and fituation, 662 — 664. On the improvemt-nts which might be made in them greatly to their own advantage, as well as to that of the empire of Great Britain, 672 — t'jG^ On the caufes which have con- fpired to render the iflands of Shet- land fo little known, 673. On the ftupendous advantages which might be derived from the improvement, even on the remotefl: Britifli iflands, 699 — 701. On the principal end of a political furvey of any country, Toole, lome miflakes in hiftory of this port removed, 354. Known to the Saxons by the name of Fromouth, ibid. Ancient hiftory of it from the eleventh century, 354 — 357. Its fi- tuation defcribed, ibid. The parifli- church a royal p; :uliar, ibid. Its quay convenient, ibid. Fifli furnifli- ed in abur.Jince by the bay, ibid. The oyflers particularly excellent, ibid. The oyRer-fifhery, taken in all its branches, a confidcrable one, in point of extent and proHr, ibid. Benefits to be reaped by the inhabitants, from perfons comin< to bathe in the falt- water , ibid. The Newfound; nd- fifliery the [rmcipal b anch of their for.ign com:nerce, 358 This trade not more profitable to tiiole concer ; ed than bentilcial in gt;^? il to the knijdon"., ibid. The coiivcnient fi- tuation of Poole fir its Carniina trade, ibid. Account of the trade toother places, ibid. Vol. 1. Vorpoifcy the fkin of it made into leather by the French in Norih America, capable, though very thin and i'upplc, of reflfiing a piflol-ball, 630. Pons, a view of the principal ones on the eaft fide of South Britain, their hiftory, with occafional obfervations on their conveniences and dcfeds, 276 — 318. See Co;'fts. Portjnwu.'h, tO'.An of, fuppofed to receive its name from Port, a famous Saxon chieftain, who landed there, A. D. 501, with his two fons, 367. The figure it made conliderable in the time of the Saxons, ibid. Is highly fa- voured, from the utility of its fitua- tion, by all the monarchs of the Nor- man line, ibid. Is incorporated, and becomes a parliamentary borough, ibid. Is in a very flourifhing ftate in the reign of Edward the Third, ibid. Is burnt by the French in the fame reign, ibid. The inhabitants, in con- fequence of this event, receive parti- cular indulgences for ten years, ibid. Recover themfelves during that time fufficiently to equip a fquadron, ibid. They fail to the mouth of the river Seine, and bring away a great booty, ibid. The fingular excellence of the port of this town, ibid. The conve- nience of fitting out fleets from hence in a French war, induced Edward the Fourth to think of fortifying it, ibid. The fortifications farther carried on by Richard the Third, ibid. A gar- rifon firft fettled by king Henry the Seventh, ibid. The place ftrengthen- ed in the reign of Henry the Eighth, and a great dock made there by him, ibid. The l.trgeft fliip in the navy of his time built there, ibid. South Sea caftie built by the fame monarch, for the fecurity of this maritime place, cj6H. The improvements made in the rt-ign of queen Elizabeth fuperior to all rhfle, ib!>.'. '.^rcac akerations di- icded by Lhark's the Second, 'bid. 5 C The N D The works executed in his, and aug- mented in his brother's reign, ibid. New alterations and additions ordered by king William, ibid. The fortifi- cations extended by fucceeding princes, ibid. The great importance of Portf- mouth, ibid. Its haven examined by tiie charafteriftics of a perfedl har- bour, laid down by the ableft writers on naval affairs, 368 — 370. Ptolemy Philadclphus, governs Egypt with the gieatelt magnificence, 5. Leaves a prodigious fum in his coffers at his deccafe, ibid. ^{eeii's Cawel, in Somerfetihire, a very remarkable Ipring there, 82. R. Renfrew, an ancient royal burgh of Scot- land, its fituation well adapted to trade •, has a very convenient har- bour -, arid its inhabitants carry on a trade with Ireland, 224. Rhodes, its infular advantages, 31. The nature of its government, and the ge- nius of its inhabitants, with their manners defcribed, 32. The fiege of it one of the mofl remarkable in an- cient hifrory, 33. The duration of it long, and the conclufion of it honour- able to its inhabitants, ibid. Rhodians, their adlivity and power un- quefcionable from their tranfaftions with other nations, 52. Send forces to the fieoe of Troy, ibid. Make a ronfiderable figure in the Peloponne- fian war againfl: Xerxes, ibid. Side afterwards with the Macedonians, ibid. Court Alexander, ibid. Unite them- felves to Ptolemy, 33. Stand the fnock of Antiuchus^s refentment, ibid. Are befieged by his fon Demetrius, 'in the moft vigorous manner, ibid. Charm him with their fpirlt and in- E X. trepidity, and convert him into a friend, ibid. Become the moft faith- ful, and the moft confidered amongft the allies of Rome, ibid. Ruined by thinking too highly of themfelves, and of their power, ibid. Retain their liberty till the reign of Vefpafian, ibid. Become a Roman province, ibid. The fpirited defence of the knights of St. John at Rhodes againft the whole force of the Ottoman empire, ibid. Rhone, the, reputed the moft rapid river in France, 137. Rifcs without the bounds of that kingdom, in the king- dom of Valais, connefted by alliance with the Swifs, ibid. Having paffed through the lake of Geneva, it ac length, after rolling over a precipice, by "which it feems dilTipated into a mift, enters France, ibid. Having wafhed the city of Lyons, and receiv- ed the gentle Soane within its banks,, it continues its progrefs through Pro- vence, ibid. Its farther progrefs de- fcribed, ibid. It runs about two hun- dred and fifty miles in France, ibid. The navigation hazardous with (light boats, ibid. Our river Tyne fet againlt it, ibid. Rivers, navigable ones, the fources of power and plenty, 134. Domeftic trade fuftained by them, ibid. Foreign- commerce promoted by them, ibid. Rivers in France and England com- pared, i36-»— 140. Six great rivers- in Spain defcribed, 141, 142. An ac- count of Englifli rivers and ports which in point of improvement, navi-- gation, and commerce may be op- pofed to them, 143 — T54. The re- mainder of the rivers on the weft and fouth coafts of this ifland, and their principal ports enumerated, 161 — 176. A detail of rivers and havens in the principality of Wales, 177 — 188. The navigable rivers, and the ports which they afford in North Britain briefly ftated and confidered, 194 — 235. The fame 1 N D fame fubjedt with refpecl to Ireland fuccindlly reprefented, 236 — 266. Rofs, I'c'-ji'/t, commonly called New Rofs, in the county of Wexford, upon tlie river Barrow, a very rich and thriving place, 249. Its inland trade great, ibid. Its commerce not defpicable, ibid. Its port exempt from the ju- rifdidion of Watertord, ibid. Rujfia, the difcovery of it, probably, pro- duced by the difcovery of America, 2f. This conjcdture ftrengthened by hiftorical proofs, ibid. Rujfians, the great change brought about in their manners by political cultiva- tion, 19. Their laws, circumfcrip- tion, and confinement accounted for, 21. Cbhoed to the En2;lifh for the iigure they have fince made, ibid. Sali, extraited from fea-fand, by the exertion of uncommon parts and pa- tience in the old Britons, 320. Salt-f{ rings., in feveral counties in Eng- land, 76, 77. Immenfe quantities of fait drawn from the celebrated Wiches in Chtfhire, 76. A fuccindt account of the fait fprings at Droitwich in Worcefterfliire, 78. Sch-ivater-haugh, near Butterby, in the billioprick of Durham, a multitude of fak fprings there, which rife in the midft of the river Weare, for the fpace of about forty yards in length, and ten in breadth, 76. -Sandmck, a manufa(fl:ory of flannel, fet- tled there by the Walloons, driven hi- ther by the duke of Alva's perfecu- tion, 386. Particular account of it, 392—399. . Sarkst juand of, a view of it, 515. Its grant to Hellier de Carteret, 516. Its prefent ftate, ibid. SchuyUmberg, count, difcovers great in- trepidity and military fKill in the de- fence of Corfu againft the 1 urks, 34. Scilly IJlands, firft called CafTiterides, or the Tin Ifles, from their being rich in that metal, 470. Accounts of them by feveral ancient authors, 470 — 474- Difcription of them, 475 — 478. i^ro- duce of them, 479. A view of their harbours, ibid. The inhabitants de- fcribed, 480. The great importance of thefe idands arifing from their ad- vantageous fituation, 482. That importance ftill more conlpicuous in time of war, 483. Thefe iHands of very little ufe to Britain at prefent, 486. SeJginsre, a difcrcdit to the county of isomerfet, 331. Several moors conti- guous to it equally difgraceful, ibid. Seine, the, has its fourcc a little above Chanceaux in Burgundy, 138. Paffcs through feveral generalities, 139. Be- gins to be navigable at Troycs, the capital of Champagne, ibid. Receives feveral rivers in its courfe, fome of them not inferior in their dreams to its own, ibid. Pafies through the midll of the capital of France, ibid. Makes a moft noble and majeftic fi- gure at Rouen, ibid. Proceeds to Havre de Grace, ibid. Enters the fea between this place and lionfleur, mak- ing an opening at lealt of nine miles in breadth, ibid. Its entire courfe com- puted at two hundred and forty miles, ibid. Our Thames the fittelf river in Britain to ftand in competition with it, ibid. See 'Tham:s. Severn, river, a remarkable pool there,73, Shcid'wdl-water, its fingular efficacy, 83. Suppofed to derive its virtues from its running through a bed of pyrites, 84. Shannon, the largeft river in Ireland, 264. Rolls two hundred miles, ibid. Di- vides the greateil part of Ireland in its courfe, ibid. Vifits ten counties in its p.ifiage, ibid. Joins its waters to the lea twenty leagues below Limerick, navigable all the way for the largeft vcffcis, ibid. This expanfion byfonne confuiv-red as a lake, ibid. 5 C 2 Shethndi I N D Shetland, iflancls of, the little knowledge with regard to the ancient flare of thcle iflands accounted for, 677, 678. The diftcrcnt names which have been given them, 679. Well fituated for trade, ibid. The largeft of them ftyied Main Land, 680. The principal har- bours in it defcribed, 681. 'I'he iflands that lie on the weft of the Main Land, 683. Tiie iflands that are fituated on the eaft of the Main Land, 685, 684. A diftinft account of the ifland of Yell, 685. A fimilar account of the ifland of Unfl, 686. Situation and prefent flate of Foula, the Thule of Tacitus, 687. Of Fair Ifle, with a remarkable piece of hiftory relating to ir, 687. c3f the climate and feafons in the Shetland ifles, 688. Their foil and produce, 689, 690, 691. AH of them well watered, and abounding with excellent fprings, 691. Plenty and variety of fifh on their coalb, 69 1, 692- The herring-filliery on the coafl of Shetland the diftinguifhing glory of ihefe iiles, ibid. The herring, a very profitable and wholelbme fifn, ibid. The annual progrefs of the herring de- fcribed, 692, 6<^i- An account of the Dutch fifhery upon this coall, 694. A computation of its total amount, 695. Account of the inhabitants with regard to their perfbns and manners, 696. Hufbandry, manufactures, and commerce, 697. Sidcn, its fertility, 23. Its inhabitants remarkable for their aflronomical and commercial knowledge, ibid. Ap- plied to by Solomon for building the temple, ibid. Sincla r, the devolving of the Orkney if- lands into the poffefTjon of that nobis family, 645. Situation, its confequence with refpetft to the flate of any country, 18. Great defefts in it hardly ever conquered, ibid. The fmgular prerogative of countries happily fituated, :i. A view E X. of thofe countries in which the dil'ad- vantages of fituation are mofl remark' able, 18 — 21. Of thofe which are happily fituated, 21 — ir^. Sky, ifland of, defcribed, 607 — 616. Slaiiis, in the fhire of Buchan, a petrify - ing fpring there, the water of which, when expoled to the air, very fpeedily turns to a kind of friable ftone, 113. Somcrfetfljire, defcribed, 929. The in- habitants of this country make a right ufe of their gifts, 330. Southampton, in point of trade, equally benefitted by the favour and finiller acts of two great men, king Philip of Spain, and Robert Dudley, earl of Leicefler, ibid. South Britain, the flate of it in times pafl, with regard to its naval advantages, compared with its present fituation, 160. Soutkams, the, particularly famous for a moft vinous and flrong-bodied cyder, that fells upon the fpot for as much as mofl foreign wines, 347. Spain, the compatflnefs of us monarchy, , and the advantages of its fituation, 7. A view of its ancient and prefent ftatc, 8, 9. About thrice as large as South Britain, 9. Springs, the different opinions of philo- fophers as to the origin of them, 71. Proportionable variety of foils demon- flrated by the various properties of. fprings, 72. The frequency of fprings in Great-Britain proved from autho- rities, ibid. An attempt to account for this frequency, ibid. Moft of thefe iprings, judged extraordinary in other countries, are found in the Britidi iflands, 72, 7?, 74- Salt fprings in feveral parts of England, 76, 77. Stockholm, its fituation and climate de- fcribed, 61. Its produiflions enume- rated, ibid. The- faying of a French ambafTador there, ibid. Stockton upon Tees, its rapid advances to . commercial importance, from the re- floration, i63. SU I N D E X. St. /fgaes, its curious light- houfe de- fcribed, 477. An iifcfiil mark to fliips from the Ibuthward, ibid. St, Anne's 'well, at Buxton, remarkable for throwing out no kis than thrt-e hundred and ninety gallons in an hour, 130. Many gallons of fait, and much calcarious powder in then"", ibid. St. John, knights of, in poflelllon of the iiland of Rhodes, behave themfelves gallantly againfl: the forces of the Ot- toman empire, 33. Oblige the fleet and army of Mohammed to retire, eonfiderably reduced, 54. Are be- fieged by Solyman, and lubdued, af- ter along and fpirited defence, but procure an honourable capitulation, ibid. St. Johnfion's., its bleach-fields highly ufeful to the linen manufadiure, by which Perth is chiefly fupported, 200. Stuart, Robert, created duke of Orkney by his nephew king James VI. 64.8. Stuart, Patrick, earl of Orkney, fon to Robert, beheaded, ibid. Sp£Ix, a peculiar tendency in its foil to produce Wood, 372. 1 he manufac- tures of this county depend principally upon its timber, 373. S-ivUzerLiJul, not fo much known as it deferves to be, jo. Its climate, go- vernment, manufadures, and the mi- litary paflion of its inhabitants defcrib- ed, II, 12. The whole country not above a lixth part as large as the ifle of Britain, ibid. Tajo, the, or as we call it after the Ro- mans, the Tagus, a noble river, i/^z- Has its fource in the New Cartile, on the borders of Arragon, ibid. PalTcs through the kingdom of Cillile from eafl: to well, ibid. After having vifit- cd the royal city of Toledo, it rolls through the Spanifh Ellramadura into Fortugal, ibid. Aftbrding a fafe and capacious harbour to the largeft fliips, in any number, at Lifbon, it falls about fix miles lower into the Atlantic ocean, ibid. barters, Khalmuc, Uftec, and others, their fiercenefs and obftinacy account- ed for, 18. Their civilization not to be expefted, ibid. Taunton-Dian, its amazing fertility, 331. Only furpalTcd by the induflry of its inhabitants, ibid. Tay, the largeft river in North Britain, a particular account of it, 199. Fur- ther account, 261. Tenterdeii-ileepW, an old faying about it, 405. The true fenfeof it, ibid. Thames, the rife and progrefs of this noble river defcribed, 139. Three /ijiers, rivers fo called by the old Irilh, 249. Three fifters, remarkable hills in Ireland, fo called by feamen, 432. Timher, the fcarcity of it in Great Britain accounted for, 57. The queftion whe- ther the raifing of it in this kingdom can be of any benclic to it, confidered at large, 379. Tine, the, a river compofed of two ft reams of the fame name, 137. Its courfe and confequencc defcribed, , ibid. Tree, an high one unexpectedly difco- vered under a hill in Dcvonfliire, 337. Trent, the, rifes out of New Pool, in con- junction with two fprings, near Mole Cap and Harton Hay, in Staftbrdfliire, I ;6. After having received no fewer than fixteen rivers in that county, it paflcs into Derbyfhire, ibid. Coatting the edgeof Leicefterfliire, it runs witli a copious pleafant ftream the whole length of Nottinghamfhirc, ibid. Croft- ing over a corner of Lincolnfliire, it falls into the Humbcr, twelve miles above Kingfton upon Hull, ibid. The direift courfe of this river about one hundred miles, ibid. It divides Eng- land into two parts of unequal fi^e, ibid. . N D X. ibid. The diftindlion of fouth and north of Trent created by that un- equal divifion, ibid. Tripoli, built at the joint expence of tlie Sidonians, the Tyrians, and the Ara- bians, a confiderable place, 24. Tunis, city of, raifcd upon the ryins of Carthage, 26. Tufcany, its prefent ftate, g. 'Tyne, river, the entrance of it difficult and dangerous, 175. Why particu- larly fo, ibid. Tyre, a brief hiftory of its commonwealth, 29 ' 0^ 'Tyricins, make a fuperior figure at fea to the Cretans, 29. Their maritime con- fequence increaled by their connexions with the Carthaginians, 30. Stand a fiege of feven months againft Alex- ander the Great, ibid. Forced at laft to fubmit to him, and cruelly ufed, ibid. Convert their misfortunes into benefits, ibid. Meet with favour from the Romans, ibid. Their deftruftion completed by the Turks, ibid. U. Vemce, its ancient and prefent (late com- pared, 10. Its Angularity as an ifland pointed out, 35. Particular defcrip- tion of its fituation, extent, govern- ment, and commerce, 36. Rendered venerable by its having remained thir- teen centuries unattacked, 36. Vefpafian, the emperor, makes the idand of Rhodes a part, and the city of Rhodes the metropolis of a Roman province, 33. Unji, ifland of, defcribed, 684. Upminjler, near Horn Church in Eflex, a fpring there with lome fii»gular as well as falutary qualifies, 84. W, Wales, a detail of rivers and havens in this principality, 177-— 188. The defign of it to (hew its natural capacity for a much greater domeftic trade, and a larger proportion of foreign commerce than the inhabitants of this valuable country at prefent po(rcrs, ]88. The objcdions raifed againft the ruggednefj of the foil, the fharp- nefs of the air, and the want of many advantages enjoyed by other parts of the Britilh iflands, trivial and incon- clufive, ibid. A view of the ancient and prefent ftate of Wales, 190, igi. Remarks on the bays, roads, and ha- vens on the coafts of Wales, 409 — 411. Various methods propofed for the improvement of this principality, 412 — 416. Water, the peculiar felicity of Great Britain, in a copious dlftribution of excellent water, 68. Our rains equally produftive of v,crdure and fertility, being purer, though impregnated with falts of variouskinds, than if they came from the land, 70, 71. IFelJh, their falfe notions of gentility con- fidered, 1 89. Wejicrn IJlcs, dependent on North Bri- taim, capable of the higheft improve- ment, 554. With great probability fuppofcd to have been inhabited by the Phoenicians and Carthaginians, before they became known to the Greeks and Romans, ibid. Once pof- felTed and cultivated by a civilized, induftrious, and commercial nation, 557. Inconteftible proof of this, in- dependent both of hiftory and tradition, ibid. Thefe iflands dependent upon, and of great utility to the monarchs of Scotland, 558. Invaded and conquer- ed by Magnus, king of Norway, 559. The country totally ruined, and ifie people rendered favages by this revo- lution, c^^o. Recovered, after a long feries of years, to the crown of Scot- land, by Alexander the third, 563. Their ftate and condition under the fucceeding kings of that country, 564. The I K D E X- The caufes of their finking into mean- nefs and milery, !^6^. A change in their condition confidently expcdted from the union of the two crowns of England and Scotland, ^6ip, Some kind intentions manifeftcd towards them by James the Firfl:, 571. At- tempts made to efi:abli(h a fifhery amongft them by Charles the Firfl, ibid. Thefe prove abortive, and their ftate rendered woif; than ever by the civil war, ibid. Two excellent laws pafled by Charles the Second, refpeft- ing the fifhery, and Ibmc efiays made to carry them into execution, 572. Their fituation little, if at ail, mended, fince that time, 373. Their capacity of improvement remains unimpaired, ibid. The defcription, fituation, na- tural, civil, and commercial hill;ory of the ifle of Bute, 574 — 581. Arran, 581— 5'^7. lia, 587—593. Jura, 593—599' M'ull, 599— bo7. Sky, 607 — 616. The Lewcs, or Long Idand, 616 — 624- Many valuable commodities, and a variety of mate- rials for the fupport of commerce to be met with in thefe, and in the leficr idands about them, 625 — 627. Thefe advantages greatly to be increafed by commerce, 627. Beneficial informa- tions, profitable difcoveries, and feve- ral ufeful arts might be introduced from foreign countries into thefe iflcs, 627, 628, 629. Reafons'for their be- coming objeds of public notice and encouragement, drawn from infianccs of utility that would refultfrom thence to theBritifli empire, 63 1 — 33. An at- tempt to point out the means by which there is a moral certainty that fo im- portant a work might be fuliy accom- plifhed, 623 — 637 The confequences rhit, in rcfpect to the common- wealti), would certainly attend them, 62S. IVeJion, in StafFordfhire, brine pits there, 76. Weymouth^ the flourifliing flate of it fuf- ficient to prove the confequcnce of the fmallefl: rivers, 151. Whitby^ the inhabitants of this place re- markable for their induftry, frugality, and univerfal paffion for what regards the marine, 300. A particular ac- count of the prefent ftate of its com- merce, ibid. Whitehaven, a particular account of its commercial importance, 313 — 315. JViches, inChefliire, falt-iprings, fo called, JVigan, in Lancafliire, a fpring there,- upon the approach of a lighted candle takes fire, and burns like fpirits of wine, 73. Wight, ifle of, its name, fituation, and extent, 455—456. Hiftory of it from the molt ancient times, 457 — 462. Its fize afcertained, 462. Compara- tive view of it with refpeft to other iOands, 463. Propofals for farther improvements, 464 — 470. Wilkughbridge-park, in StafTordfhire, re- markable for having no fewer than fixty fprings within the fmall fpace of- twenty yards fquare, 72. Winchelfea, called by queen Elizabeth Little London, 405. Winder, or Windal-meer, in Weftmore- knd,. the iargeft and mofl famous of all our lakes, lo;;. Winifrede, St. her legendary much dif- credited by the fiience of Giraldus Cambrenfis, 92. Her waters recom- mended for their medicinal virtues, 93- Wiiucr/sn Nefs, a point into the Ger- man ocean, to the north of Yarmouth,- 280. The fliore low and flat, befieg- cd with dangerous fands, reputed to have been extremely fatal to fhipping, ibid. Marks of its having made a' better figure in former times, ibid. Ruins of Roman n.ttions in feveral places, which they occupied in the accommodaticn of their cavalry, to delend I N D E X. defend the country againft invafions, 172. Still entitled to that appellation ibid. for fevcral realbns, ibid. iWijby-, the capital of Gothland, an ac- Ycughall^ in Ireland, tl;e potatoes firfl: count of its ancient magnificence, 702. planted in the gardens belonging to Famous for the firll invention of fea- this place, z\6. charts, ibid. JFilt,Johnde, his authority cited, 2S. ' Z. Y. Zilba, mount, in the duchy of Modena, a fpring at the foot of it, the waters of which are mixt with oil, that floats upon the furface, 74.. Zthet, in Arabia, a port of great trade, 23. Zircbnitzer-fea, in Carniola, a curiofiiy to which we can fhew nothing equal, Tarmouth, its confequence arifing from its capacious and commodious har- bour, 280. Tell, ifland of, defcribed, 684. Teoville, in Somerfetfhire, a pool near it, which contains water of a green co- lour, 74. Tork, city of, looked upon as a fea-port in the reien of Edward the Third, 73- Ztigh, lake of, in Switzerland, an un- common quantity of feveral kinds of fifh in it, 107. N « 5 1 5 1 University of California SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1388 Return this material to the library from which It was borrowed. UNIVERSITY of CALIFORNIA ■i^u^ AMGliLiiS r 1 r»i-i * Tr»\7- 3 1158 01047 9763 ii iiijMi|iiiiniiiiii!i||;:|i|;ii|iiil!l|||;Ill|f D 000 001 475 3