3^4 A. D. 1760. 



ployed, both for the foreign and home demand of thofe goods : info- 

 much that Manchefter is fwelled to the bulk of a great city, being fup- 

 pofed to contain from 40 to 45,000 people. 



Liverpool, in the fame county, in point of a vaftly-cxtended foreign 

 commerce and mercantile fhipping, is long fince become undoubtedly 

 the greateft and moft opulent fea-port in the kingdom, next to London 

 and Briftol, employing about 300 fail -of fhips moflly in the Guinea 

 and American trades, and is now faid to be thrice as large and populous 

 as it was at the acceflion of William and Mary to the crown. In fliort, 

 this profperous town extends its commerce to all parts not occupied by 

 exclufive companies, and is thought to contain at this time from 30 to 

 35,000 inhabitants. 



Birmingham, in Warwickfliire, though ftill alfo, like Manchefter, an 

 unincorporated town, has, through the general increafe of our national 

 commerce, gradually grown up, more efpecially of later years, to the 

 magnitude of a confiderable city, by means of its vaft, numerous, and 

 mofl ingenious, manufadures of iron, fleel, and brafs, or hard-ware, in 

 an almoft-endlefs variety, fuch as enamelled and polifhed fleel fnufF- 

 boxes, keys, locks, hinges, buckles, buttons, &c. not only for fupply- 

 ing ourfelves and our own foreign plantations, but almod all the reft 

 of the world therewith. This very bufy place is reckoned to contain 

 at leaft 30,000 inhabitants. 



In much the fame fort of employment has the populous town of Shef- 

 field been more or lefs famous for above four centuries paft, partly by 

 means of the iron ftone in its vicinity, but of late much more by the 

 general increafe of the nation's foreign commerce. It has been pecu- 

 liarly famous for the manufadure of knives and other cutlery-ware, as 

 far back as the poet Chaucer's time, (in the reign of King Edward III) 

 their knives being by that poet, as ftill by the common people farther 

 north, called whittles. There are above 600 mafter-cutlers there, who 

 are a corporation, by the name of the cutlers of Hallamilaire, of which 

 diftricl in Yorkfhire, Sheffield is the principal town. It is reputed to be 

 two miles in length and one in breadth, and to employ about 40,000 

 perfons in the iron manufadures, though not all living within the town. 

 They have likewife a confiderable trade in this town for corn and alum ; 

 and are more particularly noted for making the beft files and other iron 

 tools for various handicrafts. Yet fo little curious are its inhabitants in 

 fpeculative refearches, that we have not been able to learn with any 

 precifion the probable number of the inhabitants of fo populous a 

 town, as diftinguiftied from the reft of Hallamfliire, though, from fun- 

 dry circumftances, they may very probably be confiderably above 

 20,000. 



Newcaftle upon Tine has been eminent for feveral centuries paft for 

 its almoft inexhauftible ftaple of pit-coal, called at London fea-coal, be- 



