908 Deane Phillips 



every seaport town in Massachusetts, in which were to be entered the 

 number, description, destination, and vessel on w^hich it was shipped, 

 of every horse sent out of the colon}^, as well as the name of the owner 

 of the horse and his place of residence. For any violations a fine of 

 £10 was to be inflicted for each horse sent out (100). 



The incentive for most of this stealing was, of course, the export 

 trade to the West Indies, which made the thieving both possible and 

 profitable. The prevalence and widespread extent of this practice is 

 but one more indication of the importance and magnitude of the export 

 trade itself during this period. It is therefore probably no exaggera- 

 tion to say that by the year 1700, horses were being raised for shipment 

 to the West Indies throughout the whole New England area — to such 

 an extent had the trade developed in the space of fifty years. It is 

 apparent, how^ever, that by this time a shift was taking place in the 

 center of the trade, from its early location in the ports of Massachusetts 

 Bay to those of Rhode Island and, especially, Connecticut. 



These shipments of horses were carried on the decks of the vessels 

 engaged in the West Indies trade, so that nearly every ship could 

 transport a few animals on the southward voyage. Since the ships 

 engaged in the trade were numerous and since they usually made two 

 trips a year (101), the possible shipments of horses were large. By the 

 end of the period, also, a beginning had been made in the building of 

 vessels with more ample deck space to provide room for the livestock 

 shipments, and these " horse jockeys," as such vessels were called 

 (102), played an important part in the West Indies trade during the 

 century that followed. 



INCREASING DEMAND FOR NEW ENGLAND HORSES FROM 1700 TO 1775 

 The exportation of horses, which by 1700 had become a well-estab- 

 lished part of the trade of New England with the British sugar colonies, 

 continued on an increasing scale during the century that followed. 

 About 1700, however, the demand for supplies for the islands began 

 to be greatly augmented by the entrance into the market of the Dutch 

 and French West Indies, which were beginning in their turn to develop 

 the raising of sugar on an extensive scale. A steady increase in New 

 England exports was a reflection of these changes that were taking 



