Ch. ix. Of the Commercial System. 143 



allowed to be the most illustrious mercantile city, 

 and to carry on the most extensive and richest 

 commerce of any in the north of Europe. 



The rising greatness of Amsterdam was favoured 

 by the unfortunate siege and capture of Antwerp 

 by the duke of Parma ; and the competition of 

 the extraordinary industry and persevering exer- 

 tions of the Hollanders not only prevented An- 

 twerp from recovering her commerce, but gave a 

 severe blow to the foreign trade of almost all the 

 other Hanse Towns. 



The subsequent decline of the trade of Am- 

 sterdam itself was caused partly by the low pro- 

 fits arising from home competition and abundance 

 of capital ; partly by excessive taxation, which 

 raised the price of the necessaries of life ; but 

 more than either, perhaps, by the progress of 

 other nations possessing greater natural advan- 

 tages, and being able, even with inferior skill, in- 

 dustry and capital, beneficially to carry on much 

 of that trade which had before fallen almost ex- 

 clusively into the hands of the Dutch. 



As early as 1669 and 1670, when Sir William 

 Temple was in Holland, the effects of abundance 

 of capital and domestic competition were such, 

 that most of the foreign trades were losing ones, 

 except the Indian, and that none of them gave a 

 profit of more than two or three per cent.* In 

 such a state of things both the power and the will 

 to save must be greatly diminished. The capital 

 must have been either stationary or declining, or 



* Temple's Works, vol. i, p. G9, fol. 



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