560 A. D. 1670. 



England. Ireland is really a mine of treafure to Great Britain, and is 

 fo perhaps in a much greater degree than feme of our American plan- 

 tations, fince much of what is gained in Ireland centers at length in 

 Britain. And the ingenious author of a trad, entitled the Querift, pub- 

 lifhed fome few years ago, rightly obferves, that every fevere ftep taken 

 by us with regard to Ireland, has been lefs injurious to it than advan- 

 tageous to our foreign rivals. It is now clearly feen, that the prohibi- 

 tion ot live cattle from Ireland, in order to raife the price of our own 

 lands, was not well judged. Even the reftridive laws relating to the 

 woollen manufadures of Ireland forced the Irifli workmen to fettle in 

 France, and thereby laid the foundation for the great woollen manufac- 

 ture in that kingdom, although we mull confefs this lad point to be ex- 

 tremely delicate on both fides of the queftion. 



Aboui this time the duke of Buckingham procured makers, grinders, 

 and poUfhers, of glafs from Venice, to fettle in England. The manu- 

 fadtire has fince been brought to fuch perfedion, that the very fineft 

 glafs is now lent from this country to all parts of the globe, even Venice 

 itfelt not excepted. 



1 67 I. — The Englifh Eaft-India company entered into an agreement 

 with the king of Golconda to pay him a certain annuity of i 260 pa- 

 godas for ever, inftead of the culloms hitherto paid to him at Madras, 

 or Fort St. George, which is faid to have fince then proved a great be- 

 nefit to the company's mcreafing commerce at that place. 



1672. — The exportation of our produce and manufadures was en- 

 couraged by an ad of parliament, [25 Car. II, c. 6] for taking off aliens 

 duty upon all the native commodities, coals only excepted, and manu- 

 fadures of England exported by foreigners : thereby putting them on 

 a level with Enghfh fubjecT:s : whereas by the 1 1 th of Henry VII, c. 14, 

 and the tonnage and poundage ad of the i 2th (confirmed by one of 

 the 13th) year of the prefent king, they were to pay double duties. 

 By this law aliens were to pay only the fame duty for fifti caught by 

 Engliflimen, and'exported in Englifh fhipping, navigated as the navi- 

 gation ad direds, as the natives pay. 



it was in January 1671 (now 1672) that King Charles II was fo ill 

 advifed by Sir Thomas Clifford, (for which he was created a peer and 

 lord high treafurer) as to ihut up the exchequer, on which occafion he 

 made a declaration in council, that it fliould be but for one year only. 

 Thereby all the money which the London goldfmiihs and bankers had 

 lent to the king at 8 per cent interefl, befides certain confiderable ad- 

 vantages in the manner of paying them the money weekly, as it came 

 into the exchequer, &c. was made ufe of by him for his intended war 

 againft Floiland. The cruel and unjuil feizure of this money, amount- 

 ing to Li, 328, 526, an.l not even paying the interefi: due on it, made a 

 very great clamour among the creditors of the bankers ; and it was 



I 



