228 JAMAICA. 



Shipping employed (including Britifli and North-American, and 



exclufive of coafting veflels), — — 700 fail. 



Tonnage, ■ ■ 900CO tons. 



Seamen, ■ ■ loooo 



From which it is eafy to conceive (without minutely recapitu- 

 lating the fubjed) how vaftly profitable this ifland is to the mother- 

 country in every view ; whether by employing fuch multitudes ot 

 her manufadurers and artificers of all kinds, or of Britifh and 

 American failors, fliip-builders, and all the trades and occupations 

 dependent upon them. Such is the value of this flourifliing co- 

 lony to Britain ! Whence we may rightly conclude, how enormous 

 and irreparable the lofs mull: be, fhould it ever devolve into the 

 hands of any other power. In refped to the quantity of fugar 

 which the ifland may be capable of producing, in addition to what 

 it now yields, it is no eafy matter to fpeak with ablolute preci- 

 fion, on account of the unequal crops obtained from different foils, 

 and the diverfity of fituation ; thofe which are remote from the 

 coaft, or which have bad or indifferent roads for their carriage, or 

 cannot have the conveniences of wind or water-mills, requiring a 

 much greater tra6t of land for pafturage than others. But, in or- 

 der to form fome conjedure on this head, let us firfl confider that 

 the implanted land, lying chiefly within the mountains, and di- 

 fiant from the fea, muft in general be fubjed, more or lefs, to the 

 inconveniences I have enumerated ; and therefore the allowance for 

 pafture, or grafs-land, fhould in general be rated accordingly. Let 

 us fuppofe, then, a traft of three hundred acres compleatly fettled, 

 and duly apportioned in canes, provifion, pafture and grafs, wafle, 

 and wood for fire and repairs ; and that this eftate, in the fituation 

 before-reprefcnted, yields, cotnmimibus annis, one hundred hogfheads 

 of fugar, and about forty-two puncheons of rum. Admitting 

 then, that here are only five hundred thoufand acres of cane-land 

 unplanted ; thefe, according to the eflimate, are capable of pro- 

 ducing one hundred and fixty-five thoufand hogsheads, and feventy 

 thoufond pundieons ; the duties on which amount to 7^7,500 A. 

 -or upwards. The computation may be eafily led on to the fliipping, 

 the feamen, the confumption of manufadures, and other numerous 

 appendnges, which necefiiuily and invariably follow this augmented 

 ilate of cultivation.. But all thefe are, by this time, fo obvious to 



5 ^^^ 



