70 A. D. 1528. 



commanded the merchants to take off thofe cloths at a reafonable price 

 from the poor mens hands, threatening otherwife that the king himfelf 

 fliould buy them, and fell them to ftrangers ; but the fullen merchants, 

 little moved herewith, faid they had no reafon to buy commodities they 

 knew not how to vend: Therefor, whatloever was propofed for ftaples 

 at Calais or at Abbeville (the Englidi flaple being then at Antwerp) 

 the merchants did not, or at leaf! would not underftand it. But this 

 difcontentment did equally extend to the inhabitants of the Low 

 Countries, and eipecialiy to thofe of Ajitwerp, where the chief marl 

 was. 



This matter, however, blew over for that time ; yet this relation 

 plainly fhows that the commerce to the Netherlands was the mofl im- 

 portant that England then poflefTed. 



1529. — Cortes, the viceroy of Mexico, having fent Saavedra with three 

 fliips from New Spain, to find a palFage that way to the Molucco or Spice 

 ifles, one of them got fafe thither, and returned the fame way back to 

 Panama this year with the fpices of thofe iflands. This voyage paved 

 the way to the conquefl of the Philippine ifles in the Eaft-Indian feas 

 by the Spaniards, who flill poilefs them. 



1530 It may not be here improper to take notice of an ad [21 Hen. 



VIII, c. 12.] for the regulation of rope-making in the town of Bridport 

 (therein named Burport) in Dorfetfhire. It fets forth, ' That whereas 

 ' the people of that town have, out of time that no man's mind is to 

 ' the contrary, uled to make the mofl part of all the great cables, hawf- 

 ' ers, ropes, and all other tackling, as well for your royal fliips and 

 ■' navy, as for the mofl part of all other fliips within this realm, by reafon 



' whereof your faid town was right well maintained,' &c Then comes 



;:he grievance, viz. ' That the people of the adjacent parts to this town 

 ' have fet up rope-making, and make flight goods, whereby the pricesofthe 

 ' faid cables, &c. are greatly enhanced * ; and your faid town or borough, 

 ' by means whereof, is like utterly to be decayed f.' For remedy where- 

 of, it was enaded, that all hemp growing within five miles of Bridport 

 fliould be fold no where but in that town ; and no perfons but fuch as 

 dwell in the faid town fliould make out of the faid town any cables, 

 hawfers, &c. made of hemp, in any other place or places within the dif- 

 tance of five miles from the faid town. 



* A mod glarinp falfehood. Notliiiig is clearer and other companies of London and fome other 



than ihat the iT.uUii.ucle of workmen nnift cffcdl a towns. They (how how very little the plaineft 



competition for cheapnefs, as well as goodiu-fs of principles of trade were known or attended to by 



the CO :r.n:jdity, greatly to the advantage of the the Icgiflatnre in thofe times. 



purch.il'.rs. Such abiuid allegations in favour of f This was probably vei-y true ; and it was the 



tnonopoly frequently occur in old a£ls of parlia- fole ground of the application to parliament. 

 ment, procured by the pewterers, clothworkcrs, 



