A. D. 133 1. 505 



"villeins in England. — Fines fhould no longer be levied in cows, but in 



money The colledors of the king's cuftoms fhould not be ftrangers, 



but Come of the mofl opulent and prudent burgefles of the towns in 

 which the cuftoms were to be coUefted. [F^dera, V. iv,p. 475.] 



May 23'' — King Edward, at the requefl: of John Pultney, then mayor 

 of London, a renowned and opulent citizen, and for other caufes, gave 

 the merchants of Louvain in Brabant a charter of free trade, with the 

 now-cuflomary exemption from being arrefted for any other debts or 

 crimes than their own, provided the lord of their town fliould not make 

 war upon him, or be aiding to his enemies. The merchants of Louvain, 

 however, allowed at leaft (even years to elapfe, before they began to 

 avail themfelves of this charter; [^Foedera, V. \,p. 77] a circumftance 

 v^hich ought to put us on our guard againft prefuming a great trade 

 with every nation or community, to whom we find fuch charters grant- 

 ed, which were more frequently intended to ferve the intereft of, what 

 are called, politics than of commerce. 



July 23*^ — The difcontents among the manufafturers of Flanders flill 

 continued ; and King Edward availed himfelf of the opportunity to hold 

 out to them an invitation to tranfport themfelves into England. The 

 firfl perfon who thereupon removed into this country to carry on his 

 bufinefs, and alfo to inftrud thofe who defired to learn it, was John 

 Kempe, a weaver of woollen cloth, whom, together with his apprentices 

 bred to the bufinefs, and his fervants, his goods and chattels, the king 

 took under his protedion. And in the fame grant he promifed the like 

 favour to other cloth-weavers, and alfo to dyers and fullers, willing to 

 fettle in his kingdom. [^Fcpdera, V. iv, />. 496.] This fmall, but valu- 

 able, colony, though not (as fome have fuppofed) the original founders 

 of the woollen manufadure of England, may very jufily be confidered 

 as the founders of the manufadure o^Jine woollen cloths, which has for 

 fome centuries been cherifhed with the mofi; anxious fofiiering care, as 

 the mofl: important branch of the induftry of the country*. 



September 30"" — Fairs, which were the fcenes of mofl; of the inland 

 ■trade of the kingdom, were frequently protraded beyond the time limit- 

 ed by their charters. That irregularity was forbidden by parliament in 

 the year 1328; and now the fame prohibition was repeated, with the 

 addition of a penally upon the merchants, who fliould negled to clofe 

 their booths and flails (' fcudes et eftaux') at the due conclufion of the 

 fairs. [A5ls 2 Edw. Ill, f. 15 ; and 5, r. 5.] 



Odober 14''' — The king having, by an ad of parliament (which does 

 not appear in the flatute books) renewed his grandfather's law for pre- 



* Mr. Anderfon afcrlbes the introduction of the people of England dtriving a real and per- 



the Netherlaiid cloth-workers to the king's refent- maneiit advantage IVom a quarrel or their fovercijjo 



ment againft the earl of Fland^is. If that was with a foreign prince, 

 'his motive, it was a Cngularly happy inftance of 



Vol. L 3 S 



