EXTRACTS FROM SEVERAL MERCATORS; BEING CONSIDERATIONS On the State of the BRITISH TRADE.
DUBLIN: Printed and Sold by
Edward Waters
at the New
Post-Office
Printing-House in
Essex-Street,
at the Corner of
Sycamore-Ally,
1713.
(Price 6d.)
EXTRACTS From several MERCATORS, &c.
A Comparison of the
Duties
payable on the Four Species excepted out of the Rule of the
Tariff
of 1664▪ with what they are now liable to, by several subsequent
Tariffs;
and how they will stand charg'd by the
Tariff
of 1699.
 
1664
1665
1667
1687
1701
1699
Liv
Sol.
Liv.
Sol.
Liv.
Sol.
Liv.
Sol.
Liv.
Sol.
Liv.
Sol.
Whale-Bone
cut & prepar'd, 1. C Weight.
2
10
 
 
15
00
 
 
 
 
9
00
Whale
ins
3 C. Weight.
3
00
 
 
30
00
 
 
 
 
20
00
rain Oyl
5 C. and 20 l. Wt.
3
00
 
 
12
00
 
 
 
 
7
10
Broad Cloth 25 Ells.
40
00
 
 
80
00
120
00
prhb.
 
55
00
Ratines 25 Ells,
pay as
Cloth Serge
, 13
to
15 Ells.
10
00
 
 
15
00
24
00
prhb.
 
11
00
Sugar
refin'd and in loaf or otherwise; and
Sugar Candy,
white or brown, 1
. Weight.
15
00
22
10
22
10
 
 
 
 
22
10
I T will be necessary to enter a little into the History of our Trade with
France,
for the last 40 or 45 Years: And because some Period of Time is proper in all such Cases to take a Rise from, it shall be placed at the Year 1660. If any think that Time is not sufficiently remote, they shall be fairly followed, let them go back as far as they please: In the mean while, I must take Notice to the
Reader,
that the Particulars are too copious and extensive, and especially their Numbers so pressing; that no Time or Room can be spar'd for
Preambles,
and
Introductions.
About the Year 1660, the general Book of Rates was made in
England,
according to an Act of Parliament, whereby a Subsidy of Tonnage was laid on
Wines
and
Brandies,
and a Subsidy of Poundage after the Rate of 5
l. per Cent.
upon all Goods and Merchandizes Imported.
In Imitation of this, in the Year 1664, the
French
made a General
Tariff
or Book of Rates, wherein they followed us in Rating all Goods and Merchandizes at a Tax of about 5
l. per Cent. ad Valorem,
except that, for the Encouragement of their own People to improve in Trade and Manufactures, all the Manufactures of
Silk, Gold, Silver, Hair, Thread,
and
Wool,
were Rated at 10
per Cent.
according to their Value. This
Tariff
was es
eemed by all the Nations in these parts of Europe, to be very easy, and not the least Interruption to their Trade with
France.
That the
Reader
may see at once what was paid upon our
English Manufactures
by that
Tariff,
and what has been laid on in
France
since that time, the foregoing Table is plac'd at the begining of this Paper; and also, as what there will be Occasion often to mention, and refer to: Out of which the
Whale-bone, Fins,
and
Oyl,
might have been omitted; because we have no Share of that Trade: But as it may be useful for the Information of some People, the whole is above Incerted.
All our
Woollen Manufactures
Exported from
England
to
France,
are reduced to the old Duties payable by the
Tariff
of 1664. Except
Broad-Cloth
and
Serges,
which are to pay, (as by the
Tariff
of 1699) (that also being capable of being moderated by Commissioners) thus:
Broad-Cloth,
which from the Year 1667, paid 80
Livres,
will now pay only 55
Livres.
Mill'd
Serges,
which paid 15
Livres,
now 11
Livres.
All other wollen Goods pay after the
Tariff
of 1664, (as aforesaid,) when their
Wines
paid Duty here but 7
l. 10 s. per Ton,
and
Brandy
but 1
l. 10 s.
This part being thus stated, let us turn the Tables, and view the other side of the Trade, (viz.) Our Import from
France,
where the Particulars will be very surprizing; and this following Conclusion is most natural there from, (viz.) That if we Traded with
France
to our Advantage before, much more must we do so now; for the State of the Trade between
England
and
France
stands thus.
An Account of the several Duties which were payable upon
French
Goods Imported into
England
from
France
at the Year 1664, and of the Duties payable upon the same Goods after
he Peace.
Payable in 1664
What the same Goods must pay now.
 
l.
s.
d.
 
 
l.
s.
d.
A
Ton
of
Wine
paid 1664
7
10
0
A
Ton
of
Wine
must pay 1713.
 
26
15
3 1/4
A
Ton
of
Brandy
-
1
10
0
A
Ton
of
Brandy
Custom.
L.
005 05 6
Excise.
L.
046 04 0
051
09
6
20
Wey
of
Salt,
being 40
Bushels
each
Wey.
1
00
0
20
Wey
of
Salt.
Custom.
L:
008 09 9
Excise.
L.
266 13 4
275
03
1
20l. weight wrought
Silks;
3
00
0
20l. Weight Wrought
Silks.
 
12
03
7
20l. weight
Alamodes
and
Lustrings.
6
00
0
20l. Weight
Alamodes
and
Lustrings.
 
034
00
0
Dowlas
106
Ells.
0
07
6
Dowlas
106
Ells.
 
000
12
7
Every True
Britain,
whose Concern is for his Countries Interest
must look upon this Table of Duties with great Satisfaction.
The setting this Account against the former, clears up
the Treaty of Commerce
so effectually, that farther Enlargements must seem unnecessary: Nevertheless, since, Matters of Fact concur, it shall next be shewed what Regard Her Majesty has had to the other Trading-Interest of Her Subjects: How the Ports of
France
are opened to Them upon equal Terms with the
French
Subjects themselves, and that even in some things prejudicial so themselves, as in the Levant Trade in particular.
The
Hudsons Bay
Company Pray, that the
French
may surrender all the Forts and Settlements in
Hudsons Bay
and
Straight,
and be obliged to renounce all Right and Pretensions thereto for the Future.
Granted.
And that they make Restitution of Damages to the Value of 108, 514
l.
Sterl.
Granted.
The Quantum only being referr'd to Comm
ssioners.
The
Turky
or
Levant Company
Pray, that They may have the
ame
i
erty of Trade in
France
as the
French
themselves, and not to pay higher Duties than by the
Tariff
of 1664.
Granted.
And that They be allowed to carry Goods to all Parts of
France
from the
Levant
directly, or the Goods of the
Levant
(viz.)
Raw Silks,
&c. from
Great-Britain.
Granted,
as in 1664.
The
East-India Company
Pray, that the Prohibitions and high Duties laid in
France
on
East-India
Goods sent from
England
may be taken off, and to be on the same foot as in the first of King
Charle
's Reign.
Granted.
And yet the Prohibition in
England
of
East-India
Goods from any Place but the
East-Indies,
continues.
The
Virginia
Merchants Pray, That the
Tobacco
of the
English
Plantations be Imported into
France
under a reasonable Duty, and the Importers to sell it without Subjection to the
Farmers.
Granted.
Under the same-Duty which other Nations pay, as to the Farm, referr'd to the Commissioners.
Lyme Regis
Prays, The Prohibition of Woollen Manufactures, and the high Duties laid in
France,
may be taken off, and the said Goods be Imported into
France,
as formerly,
Granted,
The Merchants of
Bristol
Pray, The same as above from
Lyme;
as also that Tonage of Ships be abolished on both Sides.
Granted,
And that all our Merchants be permitted to Buy and Sell
Tobacco
in
France
under moderate Customs, without being subjected to the Farmers.
Referred to the Commissioners.
That nothing might be wanting to secure to
Great Britain
a compleat Freedom of their Trade to
France;
all the Advantages of the Treaties
France
has made with other Nations, are contained in this Treaty, and all the Privileges stipulated for them, are by her Majesty's Care for her Subjects Profit made our own, as by the
Eighth
and other
Article
;
whereby it is stipulated, that her Majesty's Subjects shall be Treated in
France
in the same manner as the Nations they most favoured, and even as the
French
King's own Subjects.
The
Ninth Article
adds,
And all Prohibitions, Tariffs, Edicts, Declarations, Decrees made in
France
since the said
Tariff,
of 1664 contrary thereunto, in Respect of the Goods and Merchandizes of
Great Britain,
shall be repealed.
As to this it is objected; that it is not said
Goods and Merchandizes of the Subjects of
Great Britain, but
Goods and Merchandizes of
Great Britain,
which implyes
(say they)
the Manufactures of
Great Britain
only.
But the Absurdity here is so gross, that it is strange the Wisdom of the
Turkey Company
should fall into it: For (1.) if it had been meant of the Manufactures of
Great Britain,
only, it would have been said,
The
GROWTH
and
PRODUCE,
not the Goods and Merchandizes.
By Growth and Produce, indeed the Manufactures had been understood; but by the Goods and Merchandizes of
Great Britain
must be understood, the Goods and Merchandizes, which the Subjects of
Great Britain
TRADE IN. But (2.) it is out of Question, That if the taking off the Prohibitions, &c. of the Goods and Merchandizes of
Great Britain
was meant only of the Manufactures, then was the whole
Levant Trade
prohibited still; which the Gentlemen do not pretend to.
Thus it appears, that the Construction the Company would have put on▪ the Words of the 9th.
Article,
(viz.) Goods and Merchandizes of
Britain,
would be the Ruin of that very Trade which they Petition to support, and would Prohibit all their
Levant
Goods in
France.
Such People, like Children, must be dealt with by the Nature of things, and must have given them not always what they DO ask, but what they WOULD ask.
Some Considerations might be offered here, upon the
Turkey
Companies desiring the Liberty to carry their
Raw Silk
from
England
to
France;
and yet at the same time Petition that the Silk Manuf
ctures here should receive Encouragement, as if carrying the Silk abroad (which is a means to keep up the Price of Silk) should at the same time be a means to encourage the Weavers and Manufacturers of
Silk
in this Kingdom. This Mystery is referr'd to them to unfold. Also the Consistency of their desiring to supply
France
with
Raw Silk,
at the same time that they desire the Silk Manufactures of
France
should not be encouraged.
In general, all the
Memorials, Petitions,
and
Representations
given in, as well from publick Bodies of Men, as from private Merchants, do allow, that if the
Priviledges, Advantages, Abatements
of
Duties,
&c. which they request, or represent as needful▪ may be obtained, there will be a great and beneficial Trade driven from
England
to
France.
To make it plain then, that all those
Priviledges, Advantages, Abatements,
&c. are really obtain'd by the
Treaty;
the Contents of those
Memorials
are here sum'd up▪ (the
Memorials
themselves being too long) and most of them demanding the same thing with but little Variation.
All they Petition for may be reduced to these Heads.
1. Reduction of Duties in
France
upon our Goods, especially the Woollen Manufactures, to the
Tariff
of 1664.
1.
Obtained,
with a Reserve only to
Cloths
and
Cloth-Serges;
which is to be debated by Commissioners, and at most to pay but as in 1699.
2. Liberty of carrying all our Manufactures into
France,
and the taking off all Prohibitions.
2.
Obtained.
3. Abolishing the 50
Sol
per Ton,
and the
Droit au bein.
3.
Obtained
generally (tho' the
Dutch
pay it Coastway) as also the
Droit au bein,
which was a cruel Custom that gave all the Estates of
English
Merchants who died in
France
to the King.
4. Liberty of Importing
Tobacco
into
France,
and of Selling it there free from the Farm.
4.
Obtain'd;
only as to the Farm,
referr'd.
5. Liberty of Importing
Levant Goods,
either directly from the
Levant,
or from
England.
5.
Obtain'd.
6. Liberty of Importing
East-India
Goods into
France.
6
Obtain'd.
7.
British
Merchants to be free from the
Papier Timbrée,
or stamp'd
Paper▪
7.
Obtain'd;
and (which was not ask'd) a Freedom of Religion and Christian Burial, things the Petitioners shew'd little Concern about.
8. That Ships may Trade Coastways in
France,
without double Demands of Customs,
&c.
Ships may deliver part of the Cargo in
France,
and proceed with the rest without paying Duties.
8.
Obtain'd.
9 Surrender of
Hudson
's-
Bay
and
Straight, Newfoundland
and the
Fishery, Annapolis,
and
Nova Scotia.
9.
Obtain'd;
together with the Island of St.
Christophers,
which was not ask'd.
10. Reparation of Damages to Merchants.
10.
Obtain'd;
the
Quantum
only being
referr'd.
It would be reasonable here to desire those People who insist so much upon this Reserve of
Cloths
and
Serges
out of the
Tariff
of 1664, to consider what the exception amounts to, and how far it may hurt the Trade, that they may Judge whether the Damage is equal to the Complaint: To this purpose the Difference in the
Serges
is set down again here; (viz.) That the
Serges
which paid 10 Livres in 1664, and were afterwards brought to 15, and then to 24, and after that prohibited, may now be freely Imported into
France
paying only 11 Livres, that is to say, one Livre advance upon a piece of 15 Ells; and the Difference upon
Cloths
is, that the Piece which paid 40 Livres before, in 1664, must pay now 55, being 15 Livres upon about 31 Yards
English
Measure.
To make this Estimate more plain, it is to be noted, that the
Ell
mention'd in all these Cases is to be understood the
French Ell
containing 5 Quarters of the
English
Yard, and so the Account of the Exception of
Cloths,
and
Cloth Serges,
may be read thus.
Cloths per piece
containing 25
Ells,
that is, 31
English Yards
and a
Quarter,
to pay 15
Livres
more than by the
Tariff
of 1664.
Cloth Serges per piece
containing 15
Ells,
that is 18
Yards
and 3
Quarters,
to pay 1
Livre
more than by the
Tariff
of 1664.
Considering Men, when they come to weigh this, will be apt to wonder what it is the Trading part of this Nation have been so much allarm'd at in the Treaty with
France,
and will hardly be brought to believe that the Complaints which have been made of ruining our
Manufactures
and encouraging the
French,
should all be raised from these small Differences.
Would these People turn the
Tables,
and make the Case of
France
here the
r own, what loud Complaints would they make in
England,
if any
Manufactures
which our own People were endeavouring to make at home, should have been admitted by the Treaty from
France,
with alike small Advance on the
French
Goods more than they paid in 1664. Whereas every body is sensible that the
French
are to pay here upon all their Goods 2, 3, 4 or 500
l. per Cent
higher Duties than they paid in 1664, and in some Goods much more. Had these advanced Duties been taken off, how would they alledge that Foreigners were encouraged; that the Bread was taken out of the Mouths of our own People; that the Importing
Manufactures
from abroad, which we could make at Home, was taking away the Employment from our own Poor to give to the
French:
Yet this is the Case here. The
French
have given all the Encouragment they could to their People to fall upon the making the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Great Britain;
it is supposed none can blame them for that; some steps they have taken in it which promised them Success, while the Duties of 80
Livres
and 120
Livres
were laid on
English Cloths;
and yet even then, great Quantities of
English Cloth
were carried into
France,
which obliged the King of
France
at last, to make a Prohibition of
English Woollon Manufactures
in general, (viz) in the Year 1701.
But after all these
Advances
in the
Woollen Manufactures,
the
French
King being obliged by the Necessity of his Affa
rs to make a Peace, has yielded to such a Peace as opens the Door into
France
for the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Great Britain,
at the same Rate of
Custom
and
Duties
as they paid 49 Years ago, long before his own People m
de any considerable Attempt that way; having excepted or reserved but two species of
Manufactures,
and upon them has only advanced about 2 or 3
per Cent.
There is ha
dly a
Manufacture
Erected by us in
Britain
in the memory of Man, but that if the high
Duties
laid upon Forreign Goods of the same kind were taken off, or within 2 or 3
per Cent.
of what they were before, would be ruin'd, and the Undertakers thereof must lay them down: If the
Manufacturers
of
Paper, Linnen Cloth, Canvas,
or
Sail Cloth,
and many other things were heard to this, it is believed they would all acknowledge the Truth of it.
But the
French
King is obliged by this
Treaty,
what Discouragement soever it may be to his own Subjects and their
Manufacture
to take off all his Prohibitions and high Duties, and give all the
English Manufactures
a free Entrance into his Country, upon the same easy Duties they paid in the Year 1664, except two sorts only, (viz.)
Cloth,
and
Cloth Serges.
That this may admit of no
Dispute,
the Affirmative leads to the particular sorts of our
Woollen Manufactures,
which by this
Treaty
may be carryed into
France
by the Rule of the
Tariff
of 1664,
viz.
Spanish Cloths, Serges,
not
Cloth-Serges, Double Bays, Single Bays, Says, Perpetuana's, Spanish Draggets,
all sorts of
Norwich Stuff
, Linsey-Woolseys, Kiderminster Stuffs, Shalloons, Chenys, Peny
es, half Thicks, Cottons,
plain double and single Dozens,
i. e. Yorkshire Cloths, Kersies, Duffels, Tammies, Plaids, Blankets, Rugs,
lannels, Worsted Hose, Woollen Hose, Knit-Caps, Knit-Wa
c
ats, Knit-Petticoats, Friezes, Camtalogns,
and whatever other things are made of
Wool,
and wrought in
Great Britain,
all are reduced by this
Tariff
to the Duties payable in
1664.
What has been said of the Liberty of Commerce obtained by the Treaty with
France,
the Reduction of the Duties in
France
to the
Tariff
of 1664, and the Reserve or Limitation of two Species of our
Manufactures
only, (viz) of
Broad Cloths
and
Serges,
to a small Advance of Duty; has been more than sufficient to explain those things to any Mens Understandings, which are not politically dull: Unless these People expected that her Majesty should have made a Condition with the
French
King, that his Subjects should make no
Woollen Cloth,
or that when they had made it, they should not export it to
Turkey,
for fear of prejudicing our
Levant
Trade.
If the
French
Merchants in
Turkey
hold their
Cloths
up to equal Price with the
English,
no Buyer will take them, except when a sufficient Quantity of
English Cloth
cannot be had to supply the Market.
The
French Cloths
being inferiour to the
English
in Quality, are for that Reason, and no other, Sold in
Turkey
at a lower Price.
It is evident that the
French
want the Materials, (viz) the
Wool,
especially in those parts of
France
where their
Cloths
for the
Turkey
Trade are made; and whither the
English
or
Irish Wool
which they get by Stealth, cannot be carried without very great Expence; and that the
Wool
they make use of instead thereof, and to mix with the
Spanish Wool,
is of an inferiour Quality to the
English Wool,
they themselves will not deny. But if these were not so, and they were to make
Cloth
wholly of
Spanish Wool,
or of
English
and
Spanish Wool
mixt, yet the general Way of Workmanship of the
French
Nation, is known to be slighter and looser in all their
Manufactures,
than the
Manufactures
of the like kind made here, and that our Workmen perform almost all kinds of Work-firmer and more sub
antial, not only than the
French,
but also than any other People. So that our
Cloths,
and even all our
Woollen Manufactures,
will Sell for a better Price, than
Manufactures
of the same Denomination from other Countries.
As to the
Silk Manufactures,
they have such a sufficient Provision, made for them, and such Encouragement given them already by the high Duties on Foreign wrought
Silks,
as well of
France
as of any other Country, that as they stood in no need of Prohibitions during the War, so they stand in need of no farther Assistance during the Peace.
For this Reason, as they have nothing to ask but that those Duties should remain; so the
Treaty of Commerce
has taken none of them away; and if the
Silk Manufacture
cannot subsist with that Difference upon them which those Duties have laid, neither would they subsist with a Total Prohibition.
It is observable, that during the said high Duties, particularly upon
Alamodes,
and
Lustrings,
none of them have been Imported here, that is, legally Imported; as for Clandestine Importation, or Running of Goods, that can be no Argument, because neither can the Quantity be great, or is it possible entirely to prevent those things either in this Country or in any other. The Difference between the Manufactures of
Silk
at home, and those imported, stands thus:
Foreign wrought
Silks
of all kinds, pay for every 20 pound Weight,
L. 12. 3. 7. Netts Duty.
Alamodes
and
Lustrings,
pay for every 20 pound Weight,
L. 31. 17. 3. Nett Duty.
Now if the Foreign wrought
Silks
pay above 12
Shillings per Pound
Weight, Duty upon Importation, all Discounts taken off; the Disadvantage which they must lie under, must exceedingly lessen that Importation, and seems sufficient not only to encourage, but to quicken the Industry of our own
Weavers.
But since the Encouragement of the
Silk
Trade, and Employment of the
Weavers
is spoken of as a thing of such extraordinary Weight, it may be very necessary to state the Case of
Manufacturing
in general, that our Opinion of things may be rightly ballanc'd.
It is an undoubted Rule of Trade, that the Employment of our own Poor, and Consumption of our own Growth, is the first Principal of
Commerce,
and should be the last End of all our National Improvement.
As
Great Britain
is stated in Matters of Trade, this Concern for the General Interest of that Trade, centers upon our
Woollen Manufacture:
There is a just Concern due to every Branch of Trade, but to that most, which most contributes to, and is most essential, in the two great Ends of Trade above-mentioned; (viz)
Employment of the People, and Consumption of the Produce.
This the
Woollen Manufacture
is so far superior in, to all other Branches of our
Commerce,
as admits of no Comparison; and therefore the principal Concern of the Nation is, and ought to be the
Woollen Manufacture.
It is true, Prudence may so guide, as that this Concern for the
Woollen Manufacture,
tho' it be with a Preference to all our other Goods, yet may not be in Opposition to them; there being a manifest Difference between, shewing a peculiar Regard to one, and injuring the other; as a Man having many Children, may shew a peculiar Affection to his eldest, without injuring the rest: But then, on the other hand, neither must any of the other Branches of Trade claim or expect such a Regard or Concern to be shewn to them, as should be injurious to the
Woollen Manufactures.
The
Silk
Trade is useful and advantageous, but
Silk
is a modern
Manufacture,
and is useful and advantageous, as it is a Return for, and encourages the Exportation of the
Woollen Manufactures,
and no otherwise: The
Woollen Manufacture
is the Eldest Child of the Nation's
Commerce:
The
Silk
Trade is a Foster-Child taken into the Family, made useful and meriting to be encouraged, but always with a Subserviency to the Good of the Heir.
If the
Turky
Merchants drive any considerable Trade to
France
with raw
Silk,
whether from
England
by Re-Exportations, or from the
Levant
directly; the
Silk
they carry, it is allowed, must be the Product of
English Manufactures;
so that by that Method, not only our own
Silks,
but, even the
French Silks
also, as to the Materials they are made of, are the Product and Return of the
English Woollen Manufactures.
The next Difference is the Workmanship, which lies thus, that one is perform'd by the
French,
whom we ought to have no Regard to in Trade; the other is perform'd by our own People, whom we ought to support.
But granting this; if on the other hand, a Bale of wrought
Silks
should be brought from
France,
bought there with a Bale or Bales of
Spanish Cloth,
or other
Woollen Goods,
it is easy to prove that it is more our Interest to bring over that Bale of wrought
Silk;
and that the said wrought
Silks
are more our own
Manufacture,
than if they had been wrought in
Spittle-Fields;
because the
Woollen Manufactures
which were first sent to
Turky
to purchase the raw
Silk,
which this Bale of
Silks
was wrought from, and the
Spanish Cloths
or other
Woollen Goods
sent to
France
to purchase the said
Silks,
when wrought, not only consumed the Growth of
England,
but employed above Sixteen times the Number of People in their making,
&c.
more than the Bale of wrought
Silks
would have done, if they had been made in
Spittle-Fields.
On the other hand, this implies no Danger at all to the
English Manufactures
of
Silk,
because tho' the Humours and Fancies of some expensive People may run them upon buying Foreign wrought
Silks,
yet while the high Duties here remain as they are to do by the
Treaty,
the Difference of Price will be always such as will lessen the Demand of Foreign
Silks,
restrain the Humour aforesaid to a few People, and preserve the Bulk of the
Manufacture
in our hands.
It is objected by some, That the Difference is not sufficient; that notwithstanding 12
l. 3 s. 7 d.
to be paid upon the Importation for every 20 Pound Weight of wrought
Silks,
yet that the
French
will bring in their
Silks.
But this amounts to no more than this (viz) That they will bring in some few: Which is what as above, may be to our Advantage. But they will not pretend, that the Difference of the said Duty shall not lessen that Importation, and reduce it to a small Quantity, and that the Gross of the Trade shall remain in our own hands.
The Substance of the Petitions of the
Silk Weavers,
and of others who pretend to appear in their Behalf, is in short this, That the Importation of
French
wrought
Silks
may be prevented: The Pretence to make their Petitioning national, is the Danger, they say appears, that
French
wrought
Silks
will now, by Virtue of
the Treaty of Commerce,
be imported in great Quantities into
Britain,
and the
French
being able to under-work us, will also Under-sell us, and the Weavers thereby be ruin'd.
What Foundation there is to support these Things, will appear, upon making a few Enquiries into matters of Fact; and some just Calculation of the Proportions of one to the other.
The Affairs of the high Du
ies upon wrought
Silks
Imported, is given in Answer to the
Weavers,
and seems to make their Apprehensions appear very irrational: Above 31
s. per Pound
Duty on the Importation must be paid upon
Alamodes
and
Lustrings,
and above 12
s. per Pound
upon all other wrought
Silks;
except
Italian Silks
Imported in
English
Ships, which pay Duty 10
s. 6 d.
The Force of Reason prevailed in the first, and the
Weavers
have given it up, owning at the Bar of the
House of Commons,
that the Difference is sufficient in the
Alamodes
and
Lustrings,
and that the
French
can do them no harm there; but it seems they think 12
s.
or 10
s 6 d. per pound
too little upon the other wrought
Silks:
But they either did not know, or omitted to take notice, that the Raw
Silk
which those
French
Goods are made of, pays Sixteen
Livres per pound
Duty at the first Importation into
France;
that the wrought
Silks,
when shipp'd again to be brought hither, pay 5
l. per Cent.
Custom
ad Valorem
upon their Exportation, both by the
Tariff
of 1664; and that the other Charges, such as Transportation by Land-Carriage to the Ports they are shipp'd at, Commission for
Buying, Fraight, Risque
of the
Sea,
&c. cannot be so little as 5
per Cent.
more. So that here is about 12
per Cent.
more upon the Value of the Goods to be added to the Difference of
12s.
or
10s. 6 d. per pound;
all which put together, makes such a Weight upon the Foreign wrought
Silks,
and gives such an Advantage to the
English Weavers,
that it is wonderful to think they should complain.
To add to the Conviction of these Things, it shall be a little examin'd, what effect this Difference has already had upon the
Silk
Trade; from whence may be Estimated some thing of what may be expected for the time to come.
The
Weavers
said Themselves, at the Committee of the House of Commons, that they make to the Value of Three hundred thousand Pounds every Year, in
Black Silks
only; whether it be Truth or not, is not easy to be examined: But in this Case, if they allow it, we are not to question it, for if it be an Error, it is against themselves; their Quantity of other
Silks
they spake of as prodigiously great. It cannot be amiss to observe then, what Quantity of Foreign wrought
Silks
have been imported here from all parts of
Europe,
under our high
Duties,
and see what Proportion they bear to the Quantity which these People say they make at Home, whether these Foreign wrought
Silks
have been
French
or no, is not the Case; The
Duties
are near the same; and as they are Imported from Countries to which
France
had an open Trade, it is not improbable many
French Silks
have been among them, and if more has not come in, the Difference made by the
Duties
have been the apparent and only Reason, and the same Reason must hold good still, as long as the same
Duties
remain.
An Account of the Quantities of wrought Silks Imported Annually from all Parts of Europe, distingushing the Countries, viz.
The several Countries and Species:
From
Christmas
1707, To
Christmas
1708.
To
Christmas
1709.
To
Christmas
1710.
Total of the Three years.
 
L.
L.
L.
L.
Germany—Dutch
wrought.
 
393
 
393
Italian
wrought.
1517
1419
551½
3487½
Holland—Dutch
wrought.
5884
4483
5885¾
16252¾
Italian
wrought.
2567½
1813¾
1559½
5940¾
Italy—Italian
wrought.
8453
6084½
6372¼
20909¾
Spain—Spanish
wrought.
 
23
16
39
Italian
wrought.
 
 
299½
299½
Streights—Italian
wrought.
1357
621
110½
2088½
Turky—Turky
wrought.
14
309
152½
475½
Venice—Italian
wrought.
 
6
 
6
Total of the Three Years.—
 
 
 
49892¼
All that can be alledged against this is, to beg the
Question
and say,
That There will be more Imported now;
but before that can be allowed, they should shew a good Reason why more was not Imported in these Years above-stated, being the Quantity from
Italy
was always much greater, before the raising the
Duties
here; and that Reason which is good for preventing the Importation from
Italy,
will be good for preventing it from any other Country.
What has been said against the Reason of this, is so little to the Purpose, and with such little Force, that it is worth no Notice, the Facts are so clearly made out, that they amount even to Demonstration: The high Duties have effectually check'd the importation of wrought
Silks,
and will do so still. If the
French
had their
raw Silks
cheaper than we have it, how comes it to pass, that so much weight has been put upon the
Levant
Company's obtaining a Liberty of Exporting
Raw Silk
from
England
to
France?
which is obtain'd for them by the
Treaty,
and which the Company are now fully satisfied, is settled to their advantages. If the
French
had
raw Silks
cheaper than the
English,
it would be absur'd to spake of our sending
raw Silks
from
England
to
France.
Goods are shipped from Port to Port, to mend their Market, not to lessen their Value; if our Merchants did not advance the Price, they would never send their Goods abroad.
Not only the
French
have not their raw
Silk
Cheaper than
England;
but on the contrary,
England
has their
raw Silks
cheaper than all the World; those Countries excepted, who have it of their own; and this will appear, by the great Quantity of
raw Silk
Exported from
England
to other Countries; as also of
Mohair Yarn,
which is equally concern'd in the
Argument;
and the following
Abstract
of One Year may give a specimen.
An Account of Raw Silk and Mohair-Yarn, Exported into Foreign Parts from Christmas 1709, to Christmas 1710. Viz.
Raw Silk
Mohair-Yarn
Pounds weight
Pounds weight
59,995.
67,769.
It would be an unaccountable Trade, if it should be true, that other Nations had
Raw Silk
cheaper than we have it, when at the same time they should buy such Quantities of it every Year from us.
If any Nation in the World can have
Raw Silk
cheaper than
England, Italy
may be thought to be the Place, because they have great Quantities (
Sicily
included) of
Silks
of their own Growth. It will be hard to assign a Reason why
Italy,
who have
Silk
of their own, and with whom our Trade has been always open, should by our high Duties be obstructed from sending their wrought
Silks
to
England,
and
France,
who buy great Quantities of
Silk
from us, should not.
As the like Arts have been made use of to possess the People with an Opinion, that the Interest of
Britain
has been neglected with respect to the
Portugal
Trade, which were before employ'd in that of the
French;
so it will easily be made appear, it has been done with the like Weakness, and 'tis hop'd it shall be with the like Success.
It is alledged, That the Treaty with
France,
and the
Treaty
formerly made with
Portugal,
and no
subsisting, are inconsistent with one another; That the Effect of the
Treaty
with
France
will be the
ess
ing the Importation of
Portugal Wines,
by Lowering the Duties on the
French;
that this will lessen the Consumption of our
Woollen Manufactures
in
Portugal,
that our Trade there will be en
irely lost by a Prohibition of all our
Woollen Manufactures
in
Portugal
as it was before the War:
And the like.
It is needful to go back and look into the former State of the
Portugal
Trade, before the late
Treaty,
and enquire into the Nature and Reason of the Alterations, Additions and Encreases, which have been Accidents to that Trade, and which have brought it from what it was, to what it now is; in which, if the Causes assign'd for it's Encrease are mistaken, the Notions we entertain of such and such things endangering its Decrease, will appear equ
ly groundless.
Two general and Vulgar Errors, or Mistakes, are entertained among us relating to the first part of the
Portugal
Trade; (viz) what it was before the
Treaty
with
Portugal;
and two more relating to what it now is, or will be by reason of the
Peace.
The Mistakes about what it was, are (1) That the
Portuguese
had prohibited all our
Woolllen Manufactures.
(2) That the Encrease of our Trade or Export to
Portugal,
was occasioned by, and depended upon the Encrease of our Demand for Their Wines. Our Mistakes about what the
Portugal
Trade is now, or is like to be, are, (1) That upon our reducing the Duties of
French Wine
by the
Treaty of Commerce
with
France
to an Equality with the
Portuguese Wines,
the
Wine
Trade from
Portugal
will be ruined, and we shall import no more. (2) That upon this, the
Portuguese
will immediately prohibit our
Woollen Manufactures;
and so that great Trade which it is alledged, tho' falsly too, Exports two Millions Yearly in the
Growth
and
Manufacture
of
Great-Britain,
will be lost.
If every one of these may be clearly proved to be Mistakes, and that neither the things suggested, or the Consequences drawn from them, can be supported by Truth or Reason, then all our Uneasiness about this
Portugal
Trade; will appear causeless and ill grounded. To do this, there needs no more than to state Matters of Fact; and give such Proofs of every thing as the Case will admit.
1. That all our
Woolen Manufactures
were Prohibited before the War, is a Mistake; and truly this is a Mistake of such a Nature, so obvious, and so easy to be confuted, that it is wonderful it should be expected by any body to do their Arguments any Service. It is well known upon the Exchange, and no
Portugal
Merchants of any long standing, can be ignorant that the Prohibition was ONLY of our
Medley Cloths,
which were forbidden not only to be imported there, but to be worn; the Reasons whereof also were assigned, (viz.) Not that they set about the making them there, as some alledged, but because they found their People forward to run into the
French
way of Clothing and Dressing themselves, which the Court for many Reasons thought fit to prevent. But no Man who has any competent Knowledge of the
Portugal
Trade, will pretend that the
Bays, Says, Perpets, Serges, Stuffs, Stockings, Cotions, Plains, Kerseys,
&c. which were always the Gross of the
English
Exportations to
Portugal,
were ever under any Prohibition there, or any other of our
Woollen Manufactures,
the
Woollen Cloths
as above only excepted.
That what is said here may, as
it is Resolved all things in this Paper shall,
carry it's Evidence along with it, the Words of the late Treaty with
Portugal
may be produced for Proof: In the Second Articles after the Proportion between the Customs of
Portuguese
Wines and the Custom of
French
Wines is settled, follow these Words;
Butt if this Abatements of Customs as is presumed to be made, shall be after any manner prejudiced or Abolished, shall be just and lawful for his Sacred Royal Majesty of
Portugal,
again to forbid the
WOOLLEN CLOTHS.
From he
ce may be noted also, that
this part
of the Agreement was not so absolutely and
laid down, as an Essential of the Treaty between
England
and
Portugal,
without which the Peace of the two Nations could not subsist, but Provision was expresly made in the very Article, that if it should be ABOLISHED, yet the Peace should r
main entire; only the King of
Portugal
would then be at Liberty if he thought
make himself Amend
upon
England,
by prohibiting the
English
WOOLLEN CLOTHS.
The next vulgar Error, or Mistake, which we are led into about the
Portugal
Trade, is, that the Encrease of our Exports of the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Great Britain
to
Portugal,
is occasion'd by, and depends upon the Encrease of our Demand for their Wines: This, however absurd, and in its Nature contrary to the Truth of Fact, is the thing on which the Argument is made to turn; from which they would infer, that as our Demand for
Portugal
Wine decreased, so will their Demand for our
Manufactures
decline: And in short, that if by the coming in of
French
Wines, the
Portugal
Wine shall be wholly left off, as they vainly suggest, so will also the Demand for our
Woollen Manufactures
in
Portugal
cease, and that Trade be lost.
The People who argue thus, confute themselves in their own Calculations: For First to magnify the
Portugal
Trade, they tell us that we export thither Annually the Value of Two Millions
Sterling,
most of it in the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Great Britain
against this, give them leave to make their own Estimates of the
Wine
we Import from thence, and take the largest Year and the highest Price they can reasonably suppose, the Quantity will not amount to above 8 or 9000
Ton,
which Account there will in the pursuit of this Article, appear Reason to make great Abatement of too; but were it so, and account the Wines prime Cost one with another, at 15
l. per Ton,
or,
to please them,
at 20
l. per Ton,
which is much above the true Cost in in
Portugal,
they will not amount to 200,000
l.
which by their own Account, is less than one Tenth part of the Demand for our
Manufactures.
This will very ill make it out that their Demand for our
Manufactures
is occasion'd by, and depends upon our Demand for their Wines; by which they must make it appear, that the Nine parts of the Trade depend upon the Tenth, and the greater is occasioned by the less, which is an Absurdity in the very Nature of the thing.
But the matter of Fact is evident, and known to all that have any tolerable Knowledge of the
Portugal
Trade, (viz) That the Encrease of the Trade to
Portugal,
has been occasion'd by the Discovery within these few Years of the Gold Mines of St.
Paul
in the
Brazils,
by which an immense Treasure is gain'd yearly to the
Portugueze
Nation, as well as to their King; that by th
s means the People in
Brazil
are so increas'd in Wea
th, and the Trade to
Brazil
are so increased as a Consequence, that the
leets which about twelve Years ago, were usually Twenty-three to Twenty-Eight Sail of Ships from
Lisbon
to
Brazil,
are now Seventy, Eighty, to a hundred Sail, and the Exports of
English
Goods to
Portugal
are increased in Proportion.
This is the true and the only Reason of the Encrease of their Demand for
English Manufactures;
and th
s has no more Dependance upon, or is occasion'd by our Demand for their
Wines,
than it depends upon any thing that has no Relation at all to it.
It is very strange to find the Opposers of any Argument lay the whole Stress and Weight of what they have to say upon any thing which they are not very sure they can support the Truth of. But it is perfectly surprizing to see Men value themselves and their Cause upon Accounts and Calculations which are fraudulent and erroneous, known by Themselves to be so, and which they might be sure, in an Age like this, when Men take nothing upon Trust, would by inquiring Heads be soon detected and exposed.
Nothing of this kind can be more wonderful, than what we see practised just now by some People, in handing about a Paper call'd,
A SCHEME of the Trade between
England
and
France, in order to make the Trade between
England
and
France
look with an Aspect to please them, and to answer all the
Romantick
things they have said of it; which Paper or SCHEME, was Printed in 1674, and said to be Sign'd by several eminent Merchants of the City of
London.
Something might be said to the Design of that Paper, when it was first published, and to the Persons who Sign'd it (viz.)
That it was Calculated for a Design then on foot, to expose the Publick Management, and divide the People against the Court.
It may be proper than for the detecting the Fraud of this
Scheme,
to enter into an Examination of some of the Particulars wherein it differs from the true Account of that Year; which shall be done by giving a brief
Abstract
of the said
Scheme,
and likewise of the true Account from the
Custom House,
as it is now laid before the Honourable House of Commons by the Commissioners.
By both which it will appear, that the Design of this Paper, call'd A
SCHEME,
was then, and the making it publick is now, to lessen in the publick Opinion the Value of our Exp
rtations to
France,
and to encrease or heighten the Value of our Importations from
France;
a Design in it self dishonest, but much more so from the manner of doing it, as will appear by what follows.
Our Exportat
ons to
France
from
Michaelmas
to
Michaelmas
1668-9, are made by the Scheme to amount to l. 171, 021. 06. 08, and all the species of Goods are restrated to these few, (viz.)
Woollen Cloths, Dozens, Kerseys, Rashes, Pennystones, Cott
ns, Flannels, Hose, Bays, Stuffs, Serges,
and
Perpets,
with some
Petties,
which are Crowded together at the Value of 20000
l.
Two
Observations
shall contain what is sufficient to say to this part of it, and nothing can be desired to expose it more.
1: That here is not half of the species of Goods named which are every Year Exported to
France,
and which, as appears by the
Custom-house
Books were actually Exported to
France
that Year.
2. That of the species of Goods which they have named, they have not set down the true quantities which were really Exported to
France
that very Year.
These are such Tokens of a design'd
Collusion
and
Prevarication,
that nothing of that kind can be more corrupt.
But to descend to a few
Particulars
of this
Fraud,
that the People may see in how gross a manner they are Imposed upon.
1. Take a few of the Articles mention'd by the
SCHEME
of Goods Exported to
France,
1668-9, as aforesaid, and when Compared with the real Entries of that Year in the
Custom-House
Books, from the Port of
London,
according to the Account given in by the Commissioners, and now lying before the House of Commons.
And any one, upon Casting up the following
Particulars,
will see to what a Magnitude this Part will amount.
The Difference stands thus:
Exported as by the Scheme.
Really Exported as by the
Custom-House
Books.
Spanish Cloths
829
2049
Long Cloths
112
349
Short Cloths
42
54
Northern Dozens Double
97
305
Di
to
single
69
192
Devon Dozens and Cloth Rashes
186
339
Pennystones
6
161
Kersies
3585
5607
Norwich Stuffs
344
1701
Serges and Perpets
5564
7581
2. Add to this, That to lessen the Appearance of our Trade to
France,
they have wholly omitted all the
Fish,
such as
Herrings, Pilchards, Salmon,
and
White Fish;
all our
Plantation Goods,
and all the Goods of other Countries Re
exported by us to
France;
of which the Quantities Exported that very Year were very great and are so every Year: The
Particulars
are too long to set down here, but may be guess'd at by these few.
Cotten, Wool, and Yarn
67695
l.
Goats Hair or Wooll
50977
Indico
8481
Sugar Brown
608000
Pepper
224859
Tobacco
160818
Callicoes
7995 Pieces
Oyl
203 Ton.
Drugs
68309
l.
Besides prodigious Quantities of other Goods Exported to
France
that Year; as may be seen by the said account from the
Custom-House,
now lying before the House of Commons.
The remaining
Particulars
are so many, as makes it plain, that the Value of our Exportations to
France
for that Year exceeded the Value of our Importations from
France
very considerably, as by the
Custom-House
Books will appear.
The Errors in the Account of the Importations, are no less unfairly Stated than these, and the Fraud is extended to a much greater Value; Nay, even the manner of Stating it, discovers a design of Imposing upon the Publick. For First the Export is confine
to the Port of
London,
only with an allowance of one Third more for the out Ports, whereas the Import is said to be for the whole Kingdom, let them take it which way they Please.
If their Imports are for the Ports of
London
only, then they have committed a Fraud in the Quantities to the Value of above 721,796 Pounds, as will be prov'd by the
Custom-House
Books.
If their Imports take in the whole Kingdom, then they have committed two Frauds instead of one (1.) In the Quantities: And (2.) In offering to state the Debtor side of the Account upon the Port of
London,
with a Guess at one Third more of the Out-Ports, AGAINST all that they say was Imported in the whole Kingdom.
If they had design'd a fair and just Account, They ought to have stated the Exports and Imports exactly for the Port of
London,
and have made the Addition of one Third for the out Ports equal to both sides; and have stated both sides upon the Imports and Exports of the whole Kingdom; For if the Exports exceed the Imports for the Port of
London
only, as appears by the
Custom-House
Books: It would have been much more so for the Out-Ports, because many of our Out-Ports, which lye in or near those Countries where the
Woollen Manufactures
are made,
Fish
cured,
&c.
Export much greater Quantities to
France,
than they could consume the Value of in
French
Goods, as
Exeter, Colchester, Yarmouth,
and many other Ports.
But the Prevarications are yet more gross, and the Value greater; As one part makes the Exportations to
France
seem less; so the other as dexterously makes the Importations from
France
seem more: Nor will their making a Guess or Wholsale Allowance of one Third for the Out-Ports on one side answer for it, unless they had either made the same allowance serve on both sides, or extended the Account to the same period of Time on both sides without it; but acting fairly did not seem to suit the Design.
Those who would support the Paper call'd
A Scheme,
produce a Paper, said to be Signed by the Farmers of the Customs, containing an Account of the Importations of
Wines, Brandies,
and
Linnen
from
France,
from
Michaelmas
1667, to
Michaelmas
1669, which they make to be very large, and from whence they would argue, that one half thereof must be the Rule of the Year 1669. Had this been a meer Guess, or had it been at any other time, the Calculation might have been less suspected. But there lies so just an Exception against the Year 1667, and it was so well known to them, that it cannot be any thing but a meer Design.
It is well known, the Plague had in the Year 1665 put an universal stop to all Trade, except such as Necessity forc'd the People to, for meer Provisions. The next Year the Fire of
London
happen'd; and as the Fire began near the water side, and among the Warehouses and Cellars of the Merchants, the Quantities of
Wines
as well as of other Goods which were spoil'd or destroy'd, were very great. Add to this a War with
France
and
Holland;
by which the Trade with both was stop'd, and which War was not ended till the Treaty at
Breda
in
July
1667.
These Things might well suppose
England
to be so Exhausted of
French
Goods, as that the Importation of the next Year, (viz) 1667, must be prodigious great; and no rational Judgment can be made of the Trade to or from
France
by the Accounts of that Year. This is farther demonstrated by the Article of the
Brandies
which the Account of the Farmers aforesaid makes for the said Two Years to be but 3775
Ton.
But by an Account of the same Farmers for the last Five Quarters of the said two Years, (viz.) from
Michaelmas
1668, to
Michaelmas
1669, the whole Quantity of Brandy Imported, amounts to no more than 680
Ton;
and yet the
SCHEME
affirms, there was 4000
Ton
of
Brandy
Imported from
Michaelmas
1668, to
Michaelmas
1669. And this is offer'd as one undeniable Evidence of the Fraud of that
SCHEME.
There may be a parallel Case found out to illustrate this, and that is of the Exportation of
Lead
from
England
to
France
in the Year 1662, which amounts to, as by the
Custom-House
Books, a most prodigious and unusual Quantity (viz.) From
Michaelmas
1662, to
Michaelmas
1663, there was Exported from
England
to
France,
21,757 Fodder of
Lead,
which at 12
l. per Fodder,
as the
Scheme
allows the Price to be, amounts to 261,084
l.
It would be acknowledged very unfair, that this should be given in as an Article of our usual Export of Lead to
France;
for, as an extraordinary Year is no just Rule to take a Medium of Calculation from, so no more is the Year 1667, to be taken as a proper time to Calculate our Importation of
Wine
from
France;
the preceding Accidents of a Plague, the Fire, and the War, joining together to make the Demand for Wines that Year extraordinary great.
Perhaps it is a Fate upon us, that the Inconveniencies and Ill-Consequences of rejecting a Trade so evidently Beneficial to
England,
must be discovered by our Experience, and must be felt before they will be known; in which Case this Paper will have Occasion not only to mention those Inconveniencies before hand, but to remind you of them when they happen.
This Paper shall also, in its Course, be adapted to the several Trading Counties and Towns of
Great Britain,
to make appear, that now the War is ended, all the Goods and Commodities of
France
may be Imported into this Kingdom, especially such as are to be Re-exported, as
Brandies, Linens, Silks, Paper, Laces,
&c. Since upon such Re-exportation all the additional Duties are drawn back; when at the same time not one Yard of the
Woollen Manufacture
of
Great Britain,
which are all prohibited in
France,
nor of our
Fish
and other material Commodities, can be Imported into
France,
the Articles not being made effectual.
The Instances of this, shall be hereafter especially applyed to the particular Trading places of
Great Britain,
who will thereby be able to judge whether this is not the true State of their Case, and whether the
Dutch
or
Flemings
will now have the Importation of our
Manufactures
into
France,
as they have had for above 20 Years last past, and reserve to themselves the
Dressing, Dying
and
Finishing
of those Goods; whereby the
Manufacturers
of
Great Britain
will become Slaves to Foreigners, who will either set their own Price upon our
Manufactures,
or set up Fabricks of their own in Imitation of them, all which might have been avoided, by having an open and direct Trade with
France.
This Paper shall not suggest so much Unhappiness to
Great Britain,
whose general Good it is design'd to promote, as to propose that the Articles of
Commerce
shall not in time to come be farther consider'd. The Parliament of
Britain
who are the true Judges of their Countries Good, cannot be supposed to omit any thing that shall be apparently for the publick Advantage; and therefore when it shall appear to them which we will not question, that these Articles are proper to be Re-consider'd, they will no doubt, act therein, as Reason and Justice requires.
In the mean time, seeing we are to carry on our Trade without the Advantages which were expected from the
Treaty,
let us enquire upon what Terms we are to carry it on, and how we shall Trade with
France
for the time coming.
The
Tariff
of 1664 is now no more to be mentioned in this Affair: The low Duties which our Goods would have paid in
France,
are out of the Question. The Edict of 1701 must now be the Rule of our Trade in
France:
And that this may be understood without any Difficulty, and be as little subject to Mistakes as possible, the Edict it self may be its own Exposi
or; of which the following is a faithful Abstract.
An Arrest of the King's-Council of State, containing a Rule for the Importation of Goods and Merchandizes of the Manufactures of
England, Scotland,
and
Ireland,
and the Dominions thereunto belonging.
September
6th, 1701.
HIS Majesty continuing his
Application
for the
Profit
and
Advantage
of his Subjects in matters of Trade,
&c.
and being in his Council, has forbidden and Prohibited, and does hereby Forbid and Prohibit,
from the Day of the publication of these presents,
the Importation into this Kingdom of the several Merchandizes hereunder specified, being of the Growth and Manufactures of
England, Scotland,
and
Ireland, &c.
whither coming directly, or from other Countries, on the Penalty of Confiscation of the Goods and of the Ships bringing them, of whatever Nation they are, and of 3000
Livres
Fine upon the Merchants who shall Receive or Import them.
All sorts of
Stockings,
and
Caps
of
Wooll, Silk
or
Thread,
whither Knit or Woven.
All sorts of
Wollen Cloths, R
ines, Bays, Serges, Norwich Stuffs, Camlets, Mohairs, Tafaties, Plush,
or other Stuffs, whither of
Wooll, Silk
or
Hair,
or mingled with
Wooll, Silk, Hair, Thread,
or
Cotton.
All sorts of
Hats,
of what sort, or of what Materials soever they are made.
All sorts of
Leather,
Tann'd, Curry'd or Dress'd.
All sorts of
Gloves.
all sorts of
Buttons,
and
Ribbands,
whither of
Silk, Gimp, Worsted, Thread,
or of any thing else. All sorts of
Cutlers, Ironmongers,
or
Brasiers Wares;
All
Watches, Pendulums,
and other kinds of
Clockwork.
All sorts of
W
es
and
Liquors.
All sorts of
Tin,
Wrought or Unwrought.
All sorts of
Lead,
whither in Pigs or otherwise.
Also His Majesty forbids, and prohibits all
Haberdashery, Drugs,
and
Spices,
to be brought into any part of his Dominions, from
England, Scotland,
or
Ireland,
or the Dominions thereto belonging, or from any other Countries in
English
Shipping.
His Majesty Ordains and Appoints also, that the particular Goods hereunder specified coming from the said Countries of
England, Scotland,
or
Ireland
or the Dominions thereunto belonging, in whatsoever Ships or Vessels they shall come, upon their Importation into his Majesty's Dominions, shall pay the following Duties, That is to say,
 
Liv.
Sol.
Rock Allum,
per C. weight.
10.
00
Glass-Bottles,
double or single, per C.
20.
00
English Beer,
per Bottle
00.
10
Bees-Wax, Yellow,
per C.
05
00
Ditto, White,
per C.
20.
00
Coals
from
England,
per Barrel
01.
10
Flesh Salted,
vocat
Beef,
per C.
05.
00
Glue,
per C.
20.
00
Horses
of 90
Liv.
Value, and under, each
Horse
10.
00
Ditto
of 90
Liv.
Value and upward, each
20.
00
Horns
Round or in Leaves, per C. weight
01.
10
Coppera
,
per C.
03.
00
Leather
of
England
or
Ireland
per Piece
10.
00
Crystal
of all kinds, per C.
60.
00
Elephants Teeth,
per C,
06.
00
Sheers
for
Clothiers,
per Pa
r
03.
00
Herrings,
per Last of 12 Barrels
80.
00
Wooll,
per C. weight
02.
00
Grindstones
for
Smiths,
per Dozen
15.
00
Dried Cod-fish,
per C. weight
08.
00
Ox-Bones,
per Thousand
03.
00
Skins
of all sorts not Tann'd, per C weight
100.
00
Calf Skins,
per Dozen
12.
00
Raw Hides,
per Dozen
30.
00
Cows Hair,
per C. weight
02.
00
Salmon Salted
from
Ireland
or
Scotland,
per 8 Barrels
40.
00
Tallow
of all sorts, per C. Weight
01.
10
Jumps,
per C.
06.
00
Tapistry
and
Turky
Work for
Chairs,
&c. 50 per Cent.
ad Valorem.
 
 
Linen Cloth
of all sorts, 50 per Cent.
ad Valorem.
 
 
Drinking-Glass, Decanters,
and all other sorts of
Glass Wares,
p. C. Wt.
20
00
This is a strict View of the present State of the
English Commerce
in
France,
and these are but part of the Burthens and Incumbrances of our Trade there, which her Majesty, by the
Treaty of Commerce
with
France,
and in her just Concern for the good of her Kingdoms, had procured to have her Subjects delivered from; But the Articles being not made Effectual, they are now to continue, so that our Trade is to remain in general prohibited there, till some Act shall be passed here, to render Effectual the Provisions made for a Freedom of
Commerce,
and till Two Months after, all which time the Profits of an advantageous Trade are lost to this Nation.
It is also to be observed, that while all these high Duties and Prohibitions remain upon our Trade into
France,
most of the
French
Goods are still at Liberty to be Imported here, paying the high Duties; the Case of which will be, that for all of those which may be Re-exported whither to our Plantations, the
Spanish West-Indies,
or other Parts, those high Duties will be all drawn back, and the
French
Goods be so far prejudicial to our
Manufactures
without our having any Share of the Advantage from the Trade to
France.
In like manner, the
Wines
and
Brandies
which may be used at Sea, or in Foreign Parts, will draw back all the high Duties; and for the other part (viz) the Home Consumption, they will be brought in as
Spanish
and
Portugal Wines
and
Brandies
or else smuggled upon the Coast: The
Silks, Linnen, Paper,
&c. will come in as
Dutch
and
Flemmish;
by which means the
French
will have the Benefit of the Peace as to their Part of the Trade, and
Britain
will be entirely shut out, or be subservient to Foreigners, who shall carry it on for their own Benefit, as they have done for 20 Years last past.
There have been divers Representations made to the King of
France
himself, by his own Subjects, as well
Merchants
and
Manufacturers
as others, all against the
Treaty of Commerce
with
Great Britain,
and especially against the Eighth and Ninth Articles, the same which our People are offended with; Complaining, and with great Earnestness too, against admitting the
English Woollen Manufactures
into
France
upon the low Duties of 1664, as what will be ruinous to the
Manufactures
set up with so great Success in
France;
For that the
English
will now bring in all their
Woollen Manufactures
upon them, in such great Quantities, that those made in
Languedoc
in
Porton,
in
Picardy,
and other Places will be Ruined; That the
English
make those Goods so much better than they can be made in
France,
and they will be so Cheap, the high Duties which his Majesty had laid on, not so much to enrich his Treasury, as to encourage the Industry of his own Subjects, being taken off, even as far back as the
Tariff
of 1664, that the
French
Goods will find no Sale; but that the
English
Goods will in proportion to their Goodness, be sold much cheaper than any can be made in
France.
Farther, these Representations go on in very pressing, tho' humble Terms, it being spoken to their King, to Complain, that an open Trade with
England
will always be to the great Damage and Loss of the
French;
for, say they, the
French
Nation has very few Goods to send to the
English,
but whereof other Nations have the like kinds, and do also Import the same into
England;
But the
English
have divers Goods to send to
France,
of which no other Nation can send the like; That is to say,
Lead, Tin, Leather, Allum, Coal, Pilchards, Salmon,
and several other kinds; whereas the
Wines
of
France
are supplied to the
English
by
Portugal,
the
Brandy
by
Spain,
the
Wrought Silks
by
Genoa
and the
Dutchy
of
Milan,
the
Fruits
and
Perfumes
by
Italy,
and the
Linen
and
Paper
by
Hamburgh
and
Holland.
For these Reasons they repres
nt, that the
Treaty of Commerce
with
Great Britain,
as it is now fixed, would be Dist
uctive, and an entire Ruin to the Trade of the
French
Nation; concluding, that
France
can never recover it's Wealth and Greatness, if such a
Treaty of Commerce
should be permitted to take place, and unless some way be found out to continue the high Duties, and thereby to keep out the
English Manufactures
from being permitted to come into
France.
These
Representations
seem to rally the
English,
for what they call a Stupidity incredible, that they prohibit Trading with
France,
at the begining of the first War,
By which (
say they
) the Manufactures of
France,
have arrived to a great Height, which it was impossible should have been, if the
English Woollen Manufactures
had continu'd to have been sent into
France; and insinuate, that
it should have been the Most Christian King, not the late King
William,
who should have caused a
Prohibition
of Trade to have been publish'd; for that the
English
Trade was the only Destructive thing to the Industry of the
French
Nation.
These
Arguments
are so pungent, and carry with them so much Weight, that it makes a most pointed
Satyre
upon the
French
King, that he should not comply with their Desires; but it must be acknowledged, that if their Reasons are just on the
French
side, it will be hard to find that our Complaints of this Trade can be reasonable on the other side; for it is hardly Rational to suggest, that the Trade between these Two Nations can be to the Disadvantage and Loss on both sides
Many Delusions have been spread about to amuse and deceive the People in this Matter of the
Treaty of Commerce
with
France;
some of which have been Detected and duly Exposed, and many who have been Deceived by them begin to recover their Judgments, and to find that the
Treaty
which they have been prevail'd upon to Reject and Contemn, is really a Foundation of the most advantageous Commerce that
Britain
can be engaged in; That the
French
must Trade with us under the most disadvantageous Conditions imaginable; That our Export will be easy to us, their Imports here hard and Loaden with Burthens to them; and we begin to see these People now repent the Opposition they have all along made to their Countries Good, and would undo what others have done if it was in their Power to do so.
But there are still Mistakes behind, which must be removed, and Objections which however they may be ill-grounded, yet require some Notice of them; as especially this (viz) That there are but three Ports in
France
at which our
Manufactures
are admitted to be Imported, (viz.) St.
Vallery
on the
Soame, Roan,
and
Bourdaux.
It is wonderful to reflect how much this prevails in the Minds of the People, considering it is evident that the limiting the Ports for Entry, concern only the two Species, (viz.) the
Cloths
and
Cloth-Serges,
which is plain by the Specifications of the
Treaty,
and not all the rest of our
Woollen Manufactures.
But as to all our other
Woollen Manufactures, Bays, Says, Serges, Perpets, Stuffs, Druggets, Dozens, Kersies, Stockings,
&c. All our Re-exported Goods, such as
Cottons, Indicoes, Sugars, East-India
and
Turky
Goods, and all other, they are f
eely allow'd by the
Treaty
to be Imported into all the Ports of
France;
and before this
Treaty,
the said two species of
Manufactures
were confined to but Two Ports, (viz.)
Calais,
and St.
Vallery
on the same.
It has been said, that the Reason why the
French
Confined our said
Woollen Manufactures
to certain Ports for their Importations was, that the Land Carriage and Local Duties of the said Goods should rise so h
gh upon them, that the Price should thereby be made too great for the Buyer, and give the advantage to their own
Manufactures.
Let such People but look Back upon their Own
Arguments,
they are not only false in themselves, but inconsistent with one another; for if this were true, then it must be true also, that their own
Manufactures
stood in need of those Helps; that their own
Manufactures
were so Inferiour to the
Eng
ish
that if the utmost Discouragements were not put upon the
English
Goods, the
French Manufactures
would not be told, that the
English Manufactures
so excelled the
French,
in the real intrinsick Value, that if these were admitted, tho' upon the hardest Terms to be Imported into
France,
yet they would gain Ground there; and to be brief, would Sell before the
French,
albeit the Difference made by the Burthen of Duties there, was at that time above 40
per Cent.
and these things they will not allow, having on many Occasions published that the
French Manufactures
are as good as Ours, and if permitted to come into
England,
would ruin our own.
But on the other hand, this suggestion cannot in general be True; for had it been so that the limiting the Importation of the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Britain
to a few certain Ports, was contriv'd to Load the said Goods with the farther Burthens of Land-carriage,
&c.
Why then should the Ports they were limited to, be chosen out upon the greatest Navigable Rivers in
France,
nearest to the Place where the Centre of their Trade lay, and where the chief Consumption of our
Manufactures
was to be expected. For Example;
Roan
and
Bourdeaux.
The City of
Roven
lies on the River
Sein,
and is to
Paris
as
Gravesend
is to
London:
From thence the Navigation of the
Sein
conveys every thing by Water upon Five great Rivers, (viz) by the
Oyse
and the
Aisne
into the Isle of
France
and the lower
Champain
to the City of
Rhiemes,
the
Rhetelois
and the Edge of the Dutchy of
Bar;
by the River
Maza
through the whole Province of
Champain,
by the
Yonne
into
Burgundy
and
Nivernois,
and by the River
Loyng
and the
Canal de Briare
into the great River
Loyre
to the Cities of
Orleans, Nevers, Blais Tours, Angers,
&c. even down to the
Occean,
and through the very Heart of
France:
Again the City of
Bourdeaux
is the Centre of the
English Commerce
in
France,
and where the greatest Number of our Ships resort for the
Wine
and
Brandies
which are brought from thence, Therefore appointing
Bourdeaux
as one of the Ports for the Import of our
Manufactures,
was rather making the Trade easy than difficult to the
English,
and so far from a design of making our Goods dear, and encreasing the Charges upon them, that it was rather giving Ease to it by opening that only Port to which the
English
could bring them upon the easiest Terms of
Fraight,
and where the greatest Demand for those Goods was to be found; where the principal Consumption of them might be excepted, and where the greatest Convenience of
Ireland
Navigation was to be had, in order to convey the said
Manufactures
to all Parts of the Kingdom of
France:
For the City of
Bourdeaux
stands on the
Garonne,
from whence they have a Navigation by other Rivers; (viz.) the
Dordonne
quite through
Perigott
and
Limosin
into
Auvergne;
by the River
Lot
through
Quercy
and
Rovergne
even to the
Sevennes,
and by the Royal Canal from the City of
Thoulouse
on the
Garonne
quite through the Province of
Languedoc
to
Narbonne,
and into the mediterranean Sea; supplying the whole Provinces of
Gascoign, Guienne,
and
Languedock
with
British Manufactures
by Water Carriage.
This rather seems to intimate to us, that the
French
King finding it convenient on other Accounts to limit the Importation of these Goods to certain Ports, yet appointed those Ports so, as that his Subjects might have the Goods brought with the greatest Ease and the least Charge that could be to those Markets, where the greatest Consumption of them was, and where the Principal Traders in those Goods were settled; who from thence supplyed the whole Kingdom by the Convenience of Water-Carriage: As to the Reason of naming particular Ports and Places for the Importation of these Goods, it is known to those who are acquainted with the Affairs of
France, That it was occasioned by the differing Circumstances of the Contracts with the Farmers,
and was a thing practised in other Cases in
France
as well as in this of the
Woollen Manufactures,
as particularly the
Drugs
and
Spices
which are limited in almost the same manner.
Also this limiting the Importation of Goods to certain Ports, is not a new Practice or peculiar to
France
only; the like is done in
England,
particularly the
Alamodes
and
Lustrings,
are confined to the Port of
London;
and the Importation of
Wooll
from
Ireland
is limited to Three or Four Ports only, but however is so ordered, not that the
Irish Wooll
should by Reason of Land-Carriage be made dearer to our
Manufactures
than the
English,
in order to discourage the Importation of it; But for other particular Reasons, drawn from the Circumstances of the thing it self; and therefore the Towns to which the Importations of
Irish Wooll
is limited are such, as are not only nearest and most convenient by their Situation for the coming from
Ireland,
but nearest and most convenient to those parts of
England
where the
Manufacturers
live, who make use of
Irish Wooll,
and are the principal Buyers and Consumers thereof; as
Mi
e
ead
for the
Serge-Makers
of
Ta
ton;
are
Biddiford
or
Ba
stable
for the
Serge-Makers
of
Exeter, Tiverton,
&c. at
L
verpool
for the
Clothiers
of
Yorkshire
and
Lancashire:
And the like.
Had not the Convenience of the
Manufacturers
been consulted in this Limitation, but on the contrary, had it been contrived or appointed on purpose to add the Burthen and Expence of Land-Carriage to the Price of the
Wooll, Bristoll
might have been named,
Milford-Ha
e
,
or any Port in
Wales,
which tho' lying as wel
for the
Navigation
of the
Irish
Vessels, would yet have greatly encreased the Price of the
Wooll
to the
Manufacturers,
by the Charges of carrying it on Horseback after it was landed; in like manner had the King of
France
limited the Importation of the
English▪ Manufactures
with Design, as it is alledged, to Enhance the Price by Land-Carriage, he would have chosen such Ports for their Importation as were most remote from those Parts, where the principal Consumptions of them was known to be, and most remote from the Conveniences of Water-Carriage: This was very easy for him to have done, had he
amed the Cities of
Rochell
and St.
Mall
for Example, instead of
Roan
and
Bourdeaux,
the Case had been qui
e altered, there being no River Navigable near them; and then it would have been difficult to have assigned any other Reason for such Limitation, than that of Discouraging and Burthening the Trade: But as it is now, there is no room for any Supposition of that kind.
Further it might be demanded why the
French
King should not rather lay still higher D
ties on the said
Woollen Manufactures,
than study to raise their Price by the Difficulties of their Importation; the former being the readiest Method of Discour
ging their Market, and which would at the same time have brought in some Gain to the Crown, which is an Article they are far from being forgetful of in
France.
Much has been said in Discoursing on this Subject, about the Ballance of the
French
Trade being against
England:
That the Ballance formerly against
England
has been Disputed, and that with good Reason; the contrary in many Particulars evidently appearing; But that the Ballance will be against
England
NOW, is too evident; for it is impossible to be otherwise: the Nature of the Trade will not permit it to be otherwise; The
French
will bring in great Quantities of their Goods here, of which some will always be consumed at home, what Price soever they cost; and all that we want for Re-Exportation, whether to our own Colonies or other Parts will go abroad, drawing back the high Duties, which, as it is alledged, are to hinder our Trading in them. So that still all our Foreign
Commerce,
so far as these Kind of
Goods
are Demanded, will be
French.
Against this, it is demanded, how must Payment be made?
all our Trade to
France
is in some Respect prohibited, as has been shewn by the Edict of 1701, published MERCATOR (No. 13.) and what is not prohibited is loaded with such high Duties, as are almost equal to a Prohibition: We have been told that we pay for all the Goods we buy in
France
with ready Money, whether we did or no BEFORE may be debated another time, but it is evident that we shall buy NOW; the Articles not being made Effectual, must be paid for with Money, or not paid for at all; for the
French
will take nothing of us. So that they having formerly shut the Door of
Commerce
against
England,
we have bolted it now on the wrong side, and will not suffer them to open it again, altho' they are willing to do it.
If the Ballance of Trade by this means runs against
Britain,
which before always ran against
France,
we cannot blame them, but must blame our selves, who have been willing to have it so, and have so blamed our Party-Interest with our Trading-Interest, as to ruin the one, in order to carry on the other.
The Objection upon which all this Matter seem'd to turn, has been, that the
French
have NOW all kinds of
Woollen Manufactures
of their own making, and have no need of our Trade; this is carryed such a Length by some, that they insist, that the
French
make all the sorts of our
Woollen Manufactures
as good as the
English,
and much cheaper than they can be made here; that they are able not only to supply themselves but other Countries, nay all Countries says one Author; and
Britain
too, says another Author: But it would be ask'd of these warm People,
Why then do they so strictly and carefully Exclude, Prohibit, or Load with Duties, all the
English Woollen Manufactures? If their own are better and cheaper than the
English,
their Quality would be a Prohibition as effectual as an Edict or
Arrest du Conseil,
and much more, and other Prohibitions would be needless.
But whatever we are pleased to say, the
French
know better, and as they have good Reason to be most sensible of the Defects of their own
Manufactures,
so they are very careful to keep the
English
Goods out, that the Goodness of one against the Meanness of the other, may not be discovered by the Trade it self: Nothing can be a more undeniable Proof of the Mistake of those People who talk so warmly of the Goodness and Cheapness of the
French Manufactures,
than the
French
King laying such repeated Burthens upon the
English
Goods; and after this was done, and several times encreased, yet, when the
Manufacturers
there found, that notwithstanding their high Duties and Burthens, the
English
Goods would be bought by their People, whatever they cost, being recommended so effectually by their own Worth and Goodness, that all the
French
could do in the meer way of Trade would be of no Signification to it, They Petitioned the
French
King to grant a Total Prohibition of
Woollen Manufactures,
which he did: And this was all done during a Time of Peace; so that the War is not the Reason of this Case, but the meer Nature of the Trade, and it is easy to be discovered that it had been to small Purpose to go about making
Woollen Manufactures
in
France,
if the
English Woollen Manufactures
were not effectually Prohibited.
Her Majesty, on the other hand, has so effectually secur'd to her Subjects all the Advantages of the
French
Trade, that she has not only obtain'd the Revocation of all that the King of
France
had been doing for 50 Years, for the Encouragement of his Subjects in the
Woollen Manufactures,
by which she gives her own People a full Opportunity to extend their Trade into all parts of
France
with Advantage, but on the contrary, has continued upon the
French
Importations hither, all those Inequalities and extraordinary Duties which were needful to exclude them from any prejudicial Excesses in
England
to the Disadvantage of her own People: By both which the Ballance of that Trade is effectually secured to be on the
English
side, and we are in a fair way to recover all the Injury done to our
Commerce
by the last impungent Prohibitions.
Would these People turn the Tables and make this Case their own, what may we suppose they would say if the Queen of
Great Britain
had, in Her Majesty's
Treaty of Commerce,
Consented to take off the high Duties laid on the Importation of those
French Manufactures,
which our People have been Encouraged by those high Duties to make here, and given Permission by this
New Treaty
to the
French,
to Import the said Goods upon the low Duties, which the same Goods paid here before the Year, 1664.
For Example,
Should the Duties on
French Alamodes
and
Lustrings
have been reduced to 6
s. per l.
which they paid before the War, instead of 31 s. 10 d. which they are to pay now; should the Duties on
French Brandy,
which by this
Treaty
is to remain at above 51 l.
per
Ton, have been reduced to 30 s. as it was before the
Revolution;
May we not suppose the Distiller of
Corn
and
Mollasses,
the Weavers of
Alamodes
and
Lustrings,
and the Dealers under them all, would have made
Representations
and
Complaints
of their Trade being ruin'd and given up to the
French,
their Families Impoverish'd,
&c.
like as we find the
French
Merchants and
Manufactures
in
France
have done on their side to their King, and for which we must acknowledge they have very good Reason.
It is scarcely worth while to mention here, much less to give an Answer to a Report very Confidently spread about, and which some people are weak enough to take upon Trust, viz.
That by the
Treaty of Commerce,
leave was to be given to Export our Wooll unwrought into
France: But as it is certain, that such a R
port is industriously spread about, where it is thought there is Ignorance enough to suffer so great a De
sion, it is reasonable to observe from it, what
Endeavours
are us'd by some among us, to Impose upon the people of this Nation in the grossest manner, for the carrying on other Designs, equally Destructive to the publick safety.
But to return to what was mention'd, viz. of the real abatement of Duties, which is obtain'd by this
Treaty;
it may be a profitable Explanation of the present
Treaty of Commerce,
and may prevent the prejudices which some Entertain against this
Treaty,
should a brief Account be given them of the Difference between the present State of our Trade with
France,
and what it has been at several times; when it has nevertheless been carried on by us to Advantage; and what it was to have been by the
Treaty,
or would have been, had the
Articles
been made Effectual: And as this shall be done in brief Tables, referring to the several Heads of our Exportation, as they now lye before us; so they may afterwards be brought down one by one, to the particular Trading Towns and Counties of
Britain,
where those Branches of our
Manufactures
are carried on:
To begin with our
Woollen Manufactures,
all which now stand Prohibited, and must do so till the said
Articles
are made Effectual, the following Table will shew what Duties are taken off by this Treaty, and upon what low Duties they would have been admitted into
France
by this Treaty, had it been made Effectual, as well as what Prohibitions and high Duties the Trade now labours under.
The following is an Account of several
Goods
and
Woollen Manufactures
of
Great Britain,
now Prohibited in
France,
the Time when the high Duties were laid upon them before the said Prohibition; with what they were to pay by the
Tariff
of, 1664, which was to take place, if the
Eighth
and
Ninth Articles
of the
Treaty
had been made Effectual.
 
Anno 1701.
By the Tariff of 1664.
Anno 1687.
 
 
Liv.
Sol
Liv.
Sol.
Bays
Double per Piece of 50 Ells
Prohibited
15
00
60
00
Single per Piece of Ells. 25
Prohibited
4
00
20
00
Minikin,
Ditto.
Prohibited
Ditto.
Ditto.
Fl
el,
per Piece of
26
Prohibited
6
00
24
00
Cottons,
per C. Goads
 
Prohibited
12
00
20
per
C.
An.
1685.
Ker
es,
per Piece of
13
Prohibited
3
12
6
00
Fustians,
per Piece of
12
Prohibited
1
15
4
00
Yorkshire,
Single
10
Prohibited
4
10
20
00
Dozens,
Double
10
Prohibited
9
00
40
00
If above 8 Livres per Ell Value, to pay
 
 
 
 
120
00
Mill'd Serges
per P. of
15
Prohibited
10
00
30
00
Scots Plaiding
25
Prohibited
2
00
8
00
Silk Stocking,
per Pair
 
 
0
15
2
00
Cloths
per Piece of
25
Prohibited
 
 
 
 
Cloth-Serges,
per Piece of
15
Prohibited
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The Duties of these Stated several Times before.
They must be no
Manufacturers
themselves, nor much concern'd for those who are, or for the
Woollen Manufactures
of
Britain
in general, who can read this Table without being sensible of the Disadvantage our Trade lyes under in the present situation of our Commerce with
France:
When they shall Read the Word
Prohibited
continually before every
Article
of our
Woollen Manufacture,
and shall remember, that for Twelve Years past, none of all those Goods have been admitted into
France
but by way of
Holland;
whereas very great Quantities of
Woollen Manufactures
were Yearly Exported thither before, besides other Goods of the Growth and Production of our own Country, or of our Plantations, which is the same thing, and ought so to be esteemmed.
When the QUEEN,
who always had the Good of Her Subjects, and the Prosperity of their Commerce at Her Heart,
found it was in Her Power to open such a Door of Trade to Her People,
on Terms so much to the Loss and Disadvantage of
France,
and so evidently to the Advantage of Her own Kingdoms;
it could not but be with great Satisfaction, that Her Majesty gave in Charge to Her Ministers and Plenipotentiaties,
to Conclude a Treaty, which took off all the Burthens and Prohibitions, which the Mistakes of former Years had brought upon the Trade, and by which Her Enemies were obliged to make deep Wounds in their own Trade, to comply with those Demands.
But, it must be very disobliging to the QUEEN, as well as very surprizing to her Faithful Subjects, to see in what manner
some People
receive, and how disingeniously they Construe
all Her Majesty's Endeavours to shew Her affectionate Concern for the Welfare of Her Subjects, and the Prosperity of Their Commerce;
as if that very Care, which Her Majesty has so Eminently express'd,
for Their Good,
was a Contrivance of Her and their Enemies, to betray us to the
French,
and to give up the
British Interest in Trade,
to the most dangerous Rivals they have in the World.
Certainly Mankind cannot be so far carried away with the stream of their Passions, as to deny this general Maxim;
That nothing ought to be believed in such publick Debates as these, but what is proved.
This
Paper
has from its beginning, taken this for a Rule,
and therefore brings Authentick Proofs with it, of every Thing it says, yet these Men say it is all Lies;
on the contrary,
they bring no
Proof
at all of what they say, and yet they expect to be believed.
To shorten the
Dispute,
the
MERCATOR
shall as modestly as the
Case
will allow make a fair Challenge to all
Opposers;
which if they do not Answer, they can but ill Justify any of their future
Objections
against the Truth of what is alledg'd in this Paper.
The
Challenge
is▪
That whereas they charge this Paper with Lying,
they ought to descend to Particulars; and stating it truly,
let the World know what ONE THING it is the MERCATOR has Affirm'd, Asserted, made Publick as Truth, which is not so:
If this cannot be done,
the charge of Lying will turn back upon them, with great Disadvantage to themselves.
One Condition only must be desir'd of them, (viz.)
That they will not expect any thing should be taken upon Trust on one side more than on the other;
and therefore that they will be careful, as the MERCATOR has always done, to quote their Authorities for all they shall say; the Validity of which, when Confronted with those of this Paper, may be easily examined, and the
Readers
may judge whether are in the Right; if they do not think fit to do this, as the MERCATOR will not think it worth while to take any Notice of them, so neither can they expect it of any one else.
That their
Scheme
of which they
oasted, is it self one general Complication of Fraud; and false Representations has been made appear, even to both Houses of Parliament; The MERCATOR in that, as in every other Case of like Nature, says nothing from himself, but spakes the Language of the
Custom House
Books, gives exact Copies of the Commissioners Reports, sign'd under their Hands, and proves every thing in particular by Authentick Papers; if these are false, the MERCATOR would be very willing to see the Proof of it; if any mistake has happened, whether wilful or by the negligence of Clerks, the Books are remaining, and may be referr'd to: Why do not these People tell us where these Mistakes lye? why do they not prove that the MERCATORS has made false Draughts of those Accounts and Reports? omitted any thing or added any thing to make his Arguments appear the Better; as on the other Hand has been proved to be their practice, even in a most scandalous manner, in their late SCHEME, under the hands of the Commissioners of the
Customs,
and by them Laid before both Houses of Parliament.
All the use this Paper shall make of this unfair Usage, is only to proceed with the same Caution in all that it shall make publick, still taking care to offer nothing but what is sufficiently confirm'd by such Authorities, as shall always stand the Test of the strictest Examination; taking no notice of any thing which shall be said in Opposition to it, unless it comes likewise supported by such Proofs as may give a due Weight, and make it reasonable to be Inquired into.
But to return to the Subject of Trade, from which as few Digressions as possible, shall be made in this
Paper.
The last MERCATOR gave a true Prospect of the State of one Branch of our Trade in
France
as it now stands, and as it might now have stood, had the
Treaty
taken place, that is to say,
the Branch of Trade which concerns our
Woollen Manufactures
in particular.
The
Manufacturers
of
Great Britain
may there see what Circumstances they are now in as to
Trade,
and what their unnatural Joy is built upon which they have so publickly shewn at the Delay of the Advantages which they might by this time have rafted of in their Trade.
Next to the said Exportation of our
Woollen Manufacture,
the
Fishing Trade
is our immediate Concern, and that more especially since our
Union
with
Scotland:
The
Northern
Parts of
Britain
have a peculiar Interest in the
Fishery,
and the securing a Market in
France
for the great Quantities of
Fish
that are or may be Cured in
Scotland,
and in the
North,
and
West
parts of
England,
is of so great Consequence to this Nation, that it cannot be omitted in a
Treaty of Commerce.
The
French
had not forgotten this part, or to encourage their own Subjects to launch into the
Fishery
as well as into the other Branches of our
Trade:
The high Duties in
France
laid upon
Fish
from
Great Britain, were an effectual Support to the
French
Projects of
Fishing,
and a Bar to the
Fishing of Great Britain: For
Scotland
by the
Union
being brought into the same Prohibitions, and being esteemed as the same Nation, came thereby also under
the same Inconveniencies of Trade,
and
lost the Advantage of their Trade to
France, which before was very considerable, especially in
Fish; Scotland
having always before the
Union,
Exported to
France
yearly, a very great Quantity of
Herring, Salmon
and white
Fish.
It cannot but be grateful to all those Parts of
Britain
which are sensible of the
Benefit
of the
Fishery,
and who depend
upon the Exportation of the
Fish
when taken,
to understand
That the Importation of our
Fish
into
France
is now, by this
Treaty,
left open upon very easy Terms,
and particularly,
upon the same Terms with the
Dutch; which could never be obtained before.
The just Care and Concern which Her Majesty has shewn for the Interest of Her own Subjects, and the Extent of their Commerce, has been seen in removing that Inequality, and providing that our Fishery shall now be upon the same Foot with that of the
Dutch,
and have the same Encouragement of an open Trade to
France;
a thing which however the
Dutch
have Taught us to reject here, they always took care to secure for themselves, and found no little advantage in it.
The Merchants and Gentlemen of the
North
-part of
Britain,
and of the
West
also, have frequently express'd to the Government their great Concern for the obtaining this Liberty of Commerce; and the great Advantages which it would be to them, if obtain'd; as may be seen by the
Representation
of the Royal Buroughs in
Scotland,
formerly sent up to the Lords Commissioners of Trade; and of others also: And unless we could suppose them to Act in Contradiction to themselves, it must be a particular Satisfaction to them all, to see what provision Her Majesty has made for the said
Fishing-Trade
by this
Treaty;
and it must be impossible, without an Infatuation, which it would be rude to suggest, that the Merchants and Trading People of
Scotland,
of the
North
of
England,
of the Coasts about
Y
mouth
and
Loest
ff,
or the Counties of
Cornwall
and
Devon,
can be drawn into say,
they are pleas'd that the Articles of this Treaty remain Ineffectual.
Having thus often mention'd
Scotland,
and the
Fishing-Trade,
it is proper also to take notice how, by the present Treaty, Her Majesty made it Her especial Care, in behalf of Her
Scots
Subjects as well as
English,
to have all those new Burthens which were laid upon the
British Fishing Trade
only, and which gave that Trade away from us to the
Dutch,
taken away in
France;
and as it is very surprizing, that the Power of any Party-Influence, should make us in
England
insensible of such advantages. So the next Paper shall let you see what those Advantages are, and that they are not equally disregarded in
Scotland,
as they are here.
FINIS.