266 A. D. i6i2. 



Buring his war with Sweden, that was no more than what other princes^ 

 in like cafes do : for that he was fovereign lord of the Baltic fea, or 

 Sound, the dominion whereof was tranfmitted to him by his anceftors, 

 feeing a great part of his territories border on that fea ; wherefor he 

 would never fuffer his title to his fovereignty in the Baltic to be called 

 in queftion. Probably, however, he meant only that part of it called 

 the Sound. 



The Dutch, having prevailed on King James to join with them and 

 the Hanfe towns in the complaint to the ftatcs of Denmark, (which 

 then had a free conftitution) the toll was reduced to the fame rates that 

 were paid before the Swedifh war. And, to guard againft the repeti- 

 tion of fuch encroachments, the Dutch contraded an alliance with the 

 Hanfe towns in general, in the year 1613, and another with Lubeck and 

 fome other of the Hanfe towns in 1615, wherein they agreed to ftand 

 by each other againft all impofitions. 



By the interefl of a Dutchman, who was in great favour with the king 

 of Ceylon, the Dutch Eaft-India company obtained a favourable treaty 

 with that king, who engaged to fell them all the cinnamon of theifland, 

 to exempt them from fundry taxes, and to allow free commerce thither to 

 no other European nation without their leave, and alfo to difpofe of all 

 his pretious ftones to them alone ; and lafdy, to allow them half the 

 cuftoms of the ifland, &c. (fays Baldaeus, a Dutch preacher at Ceylon, 

 who publiflied his Account of Ceylon at Amfterdam, 1672) Yet the 

 contefts of the Dutch for fecuring the conquefl of the Molucca fpice 

 iflands prevented their being able at this time to improve that treaty fo 

 far as to drive the Portuguefe out of Ceylon, who were guarded againft- 

 the encroachments made by the Dutch, and had alfo violent quarrels 

 with the king of Ceylon. 



This effort of the declining Hanfe towns to draw the Dutch into a 

 confederacy with them for the freedom of commerce, did, by the power- 

 ful conjundion of England, produce the defired effed. Yet, in general, 

 it was unlikely that any durable confederacy (and much lefs an union, 

 as fome then propofed) could rake place between the Dutch and fo great 

 a number of widely difperfed towns, with interefts almoft as different as 

 their fituations ; over-awed too by the greater potentates near them, 

 fmce they have become ftrong in {hipping. Such an union therefor 

 could not be advantageous to the Dutch, whofe aim always was to gain 

 ground every where in commerce, and who now for m.ore than a cen- 

 tury have engrofled the greateft part of the commerce of the Baltic, and 

 thereby have rendered mofl; of the Hanfeatic ports on that fea as empty 

 of good (hipping as their exchanges now are of rich merchants. 



About this time alfo the Swedes treated as enemies all fuch m^erchant 

 (liips as did not take out licences from their king for liberty to trade 

 thither : fo that the eafterling Hanfe towns, being prefixed with difficul- 



