i8 A. D. 1783. 



tofore required by law. The fame drawbacks and bounties, allowed on 

 goods exported to the Britifh poffellions in America, were alfo allowed 

 on thofe exported to the United dates : and all veflels belonging to the 

 dates, which had arrived in any port of Great Britain after the 20'" of 

 January, were inutled to the benefit of this order. 



;; ■ The rancour, which the war had kept up between the inhabitants of 

 t;his country and thofe of America, was now at an end. Sentiments of 

 haimoriy and kindnefs, connexions, interrupted indeed, but not quite 

 broken off, by the war, and the ties of kindred and of former friend- 

 fhips, like fprings long withheld from their natural diredion, now re- 

 funied their origmal force : and the poet-laureat prophecied, that Great 

 Britain and America would become 



' The Tyre and Carthage of a wider fphere.'* 

 The truth was, that Britain, inftead of being ruined for want of com- 

 merce with America, as had been predided, (and indeed, contrary to a 

 received maxim, that a trade, once turned out of its channel, cannot be 

 recovered again) was in danger of fufFering from the too great ardour 

 of the merchants for forming new connexions in that continent, many 

 of which, as they found to their coft, were with people, who could never 

 have obtained credit for a {hilling from thofe among whom they refidedf. 

 With refpeX to the political arrangements for the commercial inter- 

 courfe, many people in the zeal of their renewed friendfhip for Ame- 

 rica, went fo far as to propofe, that the Americans, though as com- 

 pletely detached from any political connexion with this country as the 

 people of Turkey or Japan, fhould be admitted to the commercial pri- 

 vileges of Britifh fubjeds %, and that the Navigation a6l, fo long efteemed 

 the Palladium of the naval power of Britain, fliould be infringed by a 

 free admiflion of their veflels into the ports of our WelWndia iflands. 

 The prefs teemed with pamphlets written in fupport of thefe new 

 maxims of commercial policy ; and fom^ of the governors of the iflands 

 in reality adted, as if they thought the peace had placed the Americans 

 precifely in the fame condition they were in before the revolution, and 

 freely admitted them into their ports. Many of the Weft-India planters 

 alfo were induced to think, that the profperity of the iflands depended 



* Tn the Ode for ihe new year 1784. turers in America. It it certain, that confiderable 



f Many of thofe adventurers immediately upon quantities of European goods were carried from 



their arrival in America converted their goods into America during thofe years to the Weft Indies, 



ready money at any prices, and then (liipped them- and fold, even there, under the European prices, 



felves off for the continent of Europe, or hid them- J Strange as it may feem to any one who re- 



felves in the boundlefs back, countries of America fledta upon it, yet it is certain, that many people 



under the new-affumed charafter of land-jobbers, on both lides of the water and (thofe above the 



It appears from Mr. Coxe's Vieiu oj the United level of the unthinking mob too) aftually forgot, 



Jlates of America, [/. 34] that in the year 1787 the that the citizens of the United Itates of America, 



remains of the exceffive importations of the four by detaching themfelves from the jurifdiftion of 



preceding years were conflantly offered for fale at Great Britain, renounced all the privileges peculiar 



prices lower than their cofl in Europe, which was to the fr.bjedfs of Great Britain. 

 a great injury to the fair importers ai;d manufac- 



