l66 XVOOLLEN MANUFACTURE, 



any other meafure whatever. Our merchants think fuch a 

 rivallhip would ruin them ; but do they think the French 

 would not reafon for fuch fears alfo ? Have we not loft the 

 Levant and Turkey trade through the obftinacy of our mo* 

 nopolifts ? And why fhould not Ireland have a chance for 

 fuch a branch as well as Languedoc ? But fuch has been our 

 Harrow policy with refpecl: to that kingdom, that we have for 

 a century fat down more contented with the fuccefsful rival- 

 fhip of France, than with the chance of an Irifli competitor. 



Whenever any queftion, relative to commercial indulgence 

 to Ireland, has come into the Britifli parliament, its friends 

 have always urged the diftrefled ftatc of Ireland as a motive. 

 This is taking the ground of duplicity, perhaps of falfhood, 

 they ought to be more liberal, and avow that their principle 

 is not to relax the prefent laws as a matter of humanity to 

 Ireland, but of right and policy to themfelves ; to demand a 

 free trade to Ireland as the beft friends to Britain ; to demand 

 that France may be rivalled by the fubjedls of the Britifli em- 

 pire, if thofe of one kingdom cannot, or will not do it, that 

 thole of another may. 



One would have reafon to fuppofe, from the fpirit of com- 

 mercial jealoufy among our woollen towns, that whatever 

 Ireland got was loft to England : I fhall in a fucceeding fec- 

 tion infert a table, which will fliew that in exact proportion to 

 the wealth of Ireland, is the balance of the Irifti trade in fa- 

 vour of England. That kingdom is one of the greateft cuf- 

 tomers we have upon the globe ; is it good policy to wifh 

 that our beft cuftomer may be poor ? Do not the maxims of 

 commercial life tell us that the richer he is the better ? 

 Can any one fuppofe that the immenfe wealth of Holland is 

 not of vaft advantage to our manufactures ; and though the 

 Ruffia trade, upon the balance, is much againil us, who can 

 fuppofe that the increafmg wealth of that vaft empire, owing 

 to the unparalleled wifdom of its prefent cmprefs, the firft 

 and moft able fovereign in the world, is not an increafmg 

 fund in favour of Britifh induftry ? 



The tabinets and poplins of Ireland (a fabric partly cf 

 woollen, partly of filk) did that ifland pcflefs a greater free- 

 dom in the woollen trade, would find their way to a fuccefsful 

 market throughout all the South of Europe. A friend of 

 mine travelled France and Spain with a fuit of that pleafmg 

 fabric among others, and it was more admired and envied 

 than any thing he carried with him. This is a manufacture 

 of 'frhich we have not a veftige in England. 



Under another head I infertcd the export of "wool and yarn, 

 and alfo the import of woollen goods from England ; the 

 following flight minute on the proportionate value of the la- 

 bour to the material, will conclude what I have to fay on a 

 manufacture, which working only for home confumption can 

 Zievtr thrive. 



