650 A. D. 1692. 



gulations made by the committee of council, he was of opinion, thaiT 

 what was needful to preferve this valuable trade could not be perfeded*' 

 without the concurrence of parliament ; wherefor he recommended to 

 them to prepare a bill for that purpofe. This was fpeaking like a good 

 king to a free people. Hereupon the houfe of commons took the fettle- 

 ment of this trade into confideration, yet, through their divifions, and 

 the company's great interefl, they did nothing effedual ; only at the 

 clofe of that fefTion they addrefled the king to difTolve the company at 

 the end of the three years ; which, he told them, he would confider of. 



A war with France having before been feen to be unavoidable by 

 England, it was foon found to be very unfortunate for the later, that as 

 her maritime commerce was much greater than that of France, fhe was 

 thereby very much expofed to captures by French privateers ; info- 

 much, that by an account laid before the parliament in this year, it ap- 

 peared, that the French had in the two years paft of this war, taken 

 from England no fewer than 3000 fail of trading vefTels, great and 

 fmall : and within the fame period we had taken from France only 

 67 merchant {hips. A terrible difference indeed, yet not fo difficult to 

 be accounted for as fome might imagine, when it is confidered that fo 

 great a part of France's commerce was at this time driven in foreign, 

 fhips, chiefly till now in Dutch bottoms. 



On the other hand,, (for balancing part of this great misfortune) the 

 llridl prohibition of commerce by both nations during this war, proved 

 the occafion of gradually deftroying fundry very profitable French ma- 

 nufactures, which were either transferred to England diredly, or elfe fet 

 on foot by other nations. Thus, I) France was almoft entirely deprived 

 of a mofl: profitable hnen manufacture (never likely to be regained) of 

 two particular fpecies, viz. dow^las and lockram, chiefly manufactured in: 

 Normandy and Eritanny ; of which England was faid to have taken off 

 to the value of L200,ooo flerling annually. For England, not being 

 well able to be without thofe two forts of linen, fet the Hamburghers on 

 imitating them fo well, that the very names of thofe French linens with 

 us are buried in oblivion. 



TI) France, before this war, manufactured good and cheap felt hats af 

 Caudbeque, Havre de Grace, and other places in Normandy ; and by 

 our prohibition of them, we have in time learned to make them better^ 

 as well as cheaper, than the French can do.. 



Ill) Before this war the fine glafs manufacture was almofl entirely 

 French : for, not only the greateft part of the plate-glafs of our coaches 

 and chairs, and of our fine looking-glafTes, came from France, but like- 

 wife our finefl window-glafs, which was ufually called Normandy glafs, 

 and French crown-glafs ; both which we have fince made entirely our 

 own manufacture, in the greateft perfection. 



We h^ve before noted, under the year 1685, the great benefits which 



