554 ■^' ^' 1^70* 



' they {hould do") they can never bear up with us, and much lefs pre- 

 ' judice our plantations. As we have already,' in my time, continues 

 he, ' beat their mufcovada and paneal fugars quite out of England, 

 ' and their whites we have brought down in all thefe parts of Europe, 

 ' in price, from L7 and L8 per cwt. to 50/ and L3. And we have alfo 



* much leflened their quantities, for whereas formerly their Brafil fleets 



• brought 100 to 120,000 chefts of fugar, they are now reduced to 

 ' about 30,000 chefts fince the great increafe of Barbados.' 



The great decay of England's Newfoundland fithery, from 250 fliips 

 in the year 1605 to 80 in 1670, Sir Joliah (]hild thinks owing princi- 

 pally to the increaling liberty, which is everywhere more and more 

 ufed in Romilh countries, as well as in others, of eating flefh in lent and 

 on fifh days. Secondly, to the abufe of allowing private boat-keepers, 

 who can doubtlefs afford their fiih cheaper than the fhips from England 

 can, becaufe the former refide on the place, and are generally old fifliers. 

 Thirdly, the great increafe of the French filhery at Placentia there. And 

 he is of opinion, that the dilplanting and difpeopling of Newfoundland 

 would be an advantage to our fifliing there, becaufe the charge of a go- 

 vernment there is a burden on the fiftiing : and the provifions, clothing, 

 &c. which the planters, or rather inhabitants, confume, are fupplied them 

 from New England and Ireland; and they have their wine, oil, and linen 

 from the fait Quvs of France and Spain. Befides, if the planters of New 

 foundland fhould be permitted to increafe, it would happen to us in a 

 few years in that country, as it hath done with regard to the fifhery at 

 New-England, which many years fince was managed by Enghfh fhips 

 from ourweftern ports, as the Newfoundland fifhery at prefent chiefly 

 is ; but as the plantations in New-England increafed, that fifhery fell 

 entirely to the people there. Upon the whole, as fifliing fliips have 

 ever been the breeders of feamen, it is our great incereft to increafe 

 the number of them, who befides, fupport multitudes of Enghfh tradef- 

 men and artificers of various kinds. 



Of New-England he remarks, that by means of their cod and mack- 

 rel fifheries that people are more proper for building fliips and producing 

 feamen than our other American colonies : and he adds, that nothing 

 is more prejudicial to any mother-country than the increafe of ftiipping 

 in its colonies ; that it, producing the fame commodities as England, 

 is therefor the leaft profitable to us. Yet he owns, that what they took 

 from England amounted to ten times what we took from them. Of the 

 other continental colonies he fays nothing. Thofe ftatements, though 

 true in his time, have fince, in i'undry rcipeds, undergone confiderable 

 alterations with refpedf to our American colonies. 



King Charles this year coined what was called crown gold, of 22 ca- 

 rats fine, and 2 carats allay, into L44 : 10 per pound weight, by tale, 

 in pieces of 10, 20, and 40/", and L5 ; and a pound weight of filver, 



