1 8 A. D. 171 1. 



proprietors of the national funds, were averfe to his new meafures, it 

 was his great aim to bring them into good humour. 



There happened at this time to be a very large arrear of navy, vic- 

 tualling, and tranfport debentures, and alio of army debentures, &c. 

 without any eflabliflied fund for putting them into a regular courfe of 

 being difcharged : for this reafon principally, as well as on account of 

 this change in the miniftry, they were at a large difcount, whereby the 

 diftruft, which the proprietors had before generally entertained of the 

 new miniftry, was greatly heightened : if therefor a fund could be efta- 

 blifhed for the regular payment of the intereft of that large arrear, and 

 at the fame time plaufible means could be devifed to give the creditors 

 the hope of farther advantages by a new and alluring commerce, he 

 prudently thought he fliould obtain his principal end. We mufl: here 

 previoufly obferve, that fome of our adventurers to Spanifh America, in 

 Queen Elizabeth's time, as well as the late buccaneers, had raifed in the 

 minds of people the higheft ideas of the advantages of a trade thither ;. 

 which were farther heightened by obferving the vaft; riches which France 

 had brought home from thence, fmce the duke of Anjou had ruled in. 

 Spain: moreover, it was remembered, that fo early as the 21ft year of 

 King James I, a company, or aflbciation, was propofed in the houfe 

 of commons for a Spanifh Weft-India trade : in the reign of King 

 William alfo, as well as in the former part of the prefent reign, during 

 Lord Godolphin's miniftry, there had been much difcourfe of an expe- 

 dition to the Spanifli Weft-Indies, in conjundion with the Dutch, in 

 order to make fome permanent fettlement there for commerce. Fur- 

 thermore, certain fchemes were handed about and publiftied for making 

 fettlements, by force, in the South feas. of America, in contemplation of 

 the vaft plenty of gold, filver, and rich drugs, &c. there to be found, 

 and of the immenfe profit made by the Spaniards on the European 

 merchandize fent thither ; which confiderations, joined to the feeblenefs 

 of the Spanifli government in thofe parts, were plaufible allurements for 

 a nation of fo enterprifing and commercial a genius as ours, to ftrive for 

 ftiaring fuch advantages at firft hand. Moreover, to make tlie new mi- 

 niftry's feparate negociations with the enemy to be the better reliftied, 

 it was induftrioufly given out by their emifllu-ies, that Great Britain was 

 to have a concelfion from Spain of four ports in the South feas, on the 

 coafts of Peru and Chill, for the fecurity of her commerce there. But, 

 without enlarging farther on fuch romantic fchemes, we ftiall now ob- 

 ferve, that the new prime minifter procured an ad: of parliament of the 

 9th year of Queen Anne, for making good deficiencies, and fiuisfying 

 the public debts ; and fjr creeling a corporation to carry on a trade to 

 the South feas; and for the encouragement of the fiftiery ; and for li- 

 berty to trade in unwrought iron with the fubjecls of Spain; and to re- 

 peal the ads for regiftering feamen. 



