Middlemen in English Business 427 



Wales and Ireland. They used the sea, the Wye and the Severn. 

 In 1764 two hundred sail were used in this inland navigation. The 

 Severn was navigable for vessels of large burden 160 miles from sea. 

 The goods shipped upstream were coal, manufactures, and American 

 products; great cjuantities of grain, iron, earthenware, wool, hops, 

 cider and provisions were sent down-stream. The African and 

 American trade was particularly developed by the Bristol merchants.^ 



The port next in size and fast becoming greater was Liverpool. 

 The rise of Liverpool was the most phenomenal of any port. In six 

 decades it increased seven- fold in population.- "The decade follow- 

 ing the Restoration may be described as the most momentous in the 

 whole history of Liverpool. After centuries of comparatively quiet 

 vegetating the town suddenly began to expand, and entered on a 

 career of development and increase that has few parallels in history."^ 

 In 1702 it had one- thirtieth of the shipping of England,'^ in 1716 one- 

 twenty-fourth, and in 1792 more than one-sixth.^ This rapid expan- 

 sion resulted from many causes. It was well situated for the Irish 

 and American trade. It had a good harbor.'' It received initial 

 stimulus from the Irish RebelUon of 1641, the favor of Cromwell, and 

 the damper put on London's trade by the Great Fire in 1665-6. It 

 was fortunate in having "several ingenious men settled in Liverpool" 

 from London; the Moore family was, in particular, one of promoters.^ 

 The two great causes were the growth of manufactures in Lancashire 

 and Yorkshire, and that of the American trade.* 



The most obvious peculiarity of the ports on the east side of Britain 

 was that there were three capital ports, each having a "singular and 

 particular trade" to itself, in which the others were scarcely at all 

 concerned.^ Newcastle supplied coal and grindstones and salt, Hull 

 exported corn to Holland, and Yarmouth conducted the whole herring 

 fishery on the east coast. ^^ The Humber was the passage by which 



iSee Hurt, Bristol, 170; Latimer, Men Adv., 169, 179-183; 3 Geo. II, Cap. 

 31; "Present State of sugar," 16-7 and 22-3 Chas. II, Cap. , Sec. II, for factors 

 promoting Bristol's foreign commerce. 



2 Anderson, III, 143, 261, 325, 461; see above table. 



3 Moore, Liverpool, XXXI. 



■* Macpherson, II, 160-1 in note. 

 5 Bourne, Eng. Men, 320. 

 * It was improved in 1710: Anderson, III, 36. 

 ' Bourne, Eng. Mer., 300-1; Moore, Liverpool, XXXI. 

 8 Moore, XXVII, quoting Blome, 1673; Defoe, Plan, 84-5. 

 5 "Atlas Man et Com.," 2. 



'" These trades were discussed in the Chapters above. Yarmouth's commerce is 

 treated in Anderson, III, 454-5, and Defoe, Tour, I, 73: 



