26 



COMMERCE. 



Origin of 

 the naviga 

 tion laws. 



Commerce, the emigrations of Protestant Flemings, who fled from 

 N — ~/-""""' the tyranny of the Duke of Alva. Flanders had by 

 that time made great progress in commerce and manu- 

 factures. Bruges, Ghent, and Antwerp, were cities su- 

 perior to any in Europe, except the commercial capi- 

 tals. The inhabitants were formed to the practice of 

 regular industry, and brought over to England habits 

 and knowledge of the most useful kind. This conduct 

 on the part of the Spaniards was very similar, both in 

 its motive and in its consequences, to the recal, a cen- 

 tury afterwards, of the edict of Nantes by Louis XIV. 

 However questionable may be the merits of our na- 

 vigation laws, with reference to our progress in com- 

 merce, it may be proper, in this article, to say a few 

 words about their origin. It is generally assigned to 

 the time of the commonwealth and Charles II. ; but it 

 goes, in fact, much farther back than either Cromwell 

 or Charles, (12 Car. II. c. 18, 27 Geo. III. c. 19, 37 Geo. 

 III. c. 63,) the first provision of this nature having been 

 made in the latter part of the reign of Edward III. (42 Ed. 

 III.c.8,7&SWill.III. c.22, 34 Geo. II I.e. 42, 68.) The 

 next law of importance on this subject, was framed in 

 the reign of Henry VIII. ; (23 Hen. VIII. c. 7, 26 Geo. 

 III. c. 60, 35 Geo. III. c. 58.) but a law of Elizabeth's 

 reign in 1 563, entitled, " An act touching politic con- 

 stitutions for the maintenance of the navy, &c." (5 Eliz. 

 C. 5,) may be considered as in a manner the outline of 

 the system. By this law, herrings and other fish caught 

 on our coasts, are permitted to be exported duty free ; 

 no foreign ships are to be allowed to carry goods coast- 

 Avise, from one port to another ; and wines and wood 

 were permitted to be imported from France in English 

 ships only. 



Of the commercial countries on the continent of Eu- 

 rope, the most interesting, whether we look at its long 

 struggle for independence, its indefatigable perseve- 

 rance, or its splendid acquisition of wealth and power, 

 is Holland. The observations of Sir William Temple, 

 afford striking illustrations of the national character, as 

 well as of the condition of trade, at a time when it was in 

 full vigour. Without entering into alengthened exposition 

 of the history of Dutch commerce, we shall take notice 

 of two points not generally admitted into the notions 

 formed of this remarkable people. First, that their 

 commerce was not of such sudden growth as is com- 

 monly imagined, Amsterdam having been a large and 

 populous city before the revolt from the Spanish yoke ; 

 and secondly, that until the present age of unexampled 

 distress, the navigation and wealth of the Dutch had 

 not undergone that great decrease which many writers 

 have put upon record. Their fall had been more rela- 

 tive than absolute ; the other maritime states of Eu- 

 rope, particularly England, having advanced during the 

 last century with great rapidity. The Dutch continu- 

 ed industrious, economical, and even enterprising ; but 

 their own territory being small, and of little fertility, a 

 great proportion of their capital was lent out on foreign 

 securities. Not only were the treasuries of princes reple- 

 nished by loans from Holland, but a variety of private un- 

 dertakings, such for example as iron mines in Sweden, 

 were worked by Dutch capital. Their wealth was thus 

 made instrumental in augmenting the prosperity of other 

 countries, and afforded a memorable indication of the 

 laws by which the indefinite acquisition of property is 

 restrained. Besides, the debts of other countries to Hol- 

 land being payable not in real property but in money, 

 underwent that progressive and eventually great depre- 

 ciation, which has marked the history of the circula- 



Mistory of 



Dutch 



commerce. 



ting medium throughout Europe. We now return to Commerce, 

 the affairs of our own country, and proceed to examine ,— *"Y"""^ 

 the present state of British commerce. 



II. Present Stale of British Commerce. — On looking Present 

 back to the aera of the Restoration, we find, that the " a . re " f 

 whole quantity of merchant shipping employed in our comm e rce . 

 coasting and foreign trade did not exceed 1 40,000 tons. 

 Of these, the third part was foreign, and particularly 

 Dutch, which led Sir William Temple to remark, that, 

 notwithstanding our discouraging foreign vessels in our 

 ports, the trade between England and the Continent 

 was principally conducted by Dutch vessels. In spite 

 of the bad government of Charles II. the enjoyment 

 peace during the chief part of his reign, produced 

 great increase in our mercantile shipping, so that, at the 

 Revolution, it was found to have doubled in the course 

 of the preceding twenty-five years. The long wars 

 under William and Anne operated to retard its augmen- 

 tation ; but the peace of Utrecht gave fresh vigour to 

 our trade, and enabled us to dispense with those neu- 

 trals to whom we had had recourse in the season of 

 hostility. However, the increase of our trade during 

 the first half of last century was very gradual. In the 

 long period of almost uninterrupted peace between 

 1713 and 1739, our tonnage did not increase above one- 

 seventh, viz. from 421,000 to 476,000 tons. The va- 

 lue of our exports was less stationary, and rose some- 

 what more than a fourth, viz. from ^7,300,000 to 

 JL 10,000,000. In the interval of peace between 1748 

 and 1755, a considerable improvement took place. The 

 recommencement of war damped it to a certain degree; 

 but on the whole, the increase during the latter half of 

 last century was very great, as we perceive from the 

 subjoined Table. 







Tonnage of Merchant 





Vessels cleared out- 



The first year 

 of Geo. III. 



wards. 



, * 





* 





English. 

 540241 



Foreign. 



A \ 



■1760 

 '1761 



107,237 



s> * 



582.020 



122,735 



£ 1 



1762 



543,444 



124,926 





: 1763 



631,724 



91,593 





1764 



662,434 



79,800 





1765 



726 402 



72,215 





1766 



758-081 



66,153 



, 



1767 



725,835 



68,006 





1768 



761,786 



77,984 



u 1 1769 



805,305 



68,420 



Ph 



1770 



806,495 



63,176 





1771 



877,004 



66.898 





1772 



923.456 



72.931 





1773 



874,421 



57.994 





J774 



901,016 



68,402 





fl775 



882,579 



68.034 





1776 



872,108 



74,323 





1777 



827,067 



102,638 



d 



1778 



732,558 



93,778 



g +1779 

 ^ 1 1780 



642,98 1 



149,040 



731,286 



154,111 



1781 



608,219 



170.775 



1782 



615,150 



225,456 



J1783 



865,967 



170,938 



. f 1784 



932219 



118,268 



8 J 1785 



1,074,862 



107,484 



£ 1 1786 



1,115,024 



121-197 



* 



L1787 



1,279,033 



138,220 



Value of our 

 Exports. 



15 781 175 

 16,038913 

 14,543,336 

 15,578,943 

 17 446.306 

 15,731,374 

 15,188,668 

 1.5,090 001 

 16,620,133 

 15 001,280 

 15,994,571 

 19,018 481 

 17,720,169 

 16,375,431 

 17,288.487 

 16.326,364 

 14.755.699 

 13 491 030 

 12,253.895 

 13.189,325 

 12 648,616 

 11 342,296 

 13,01 ",391 

 15 468 287 

 15,734.062 

 16,117.649 

 16.300,726 

 16,870,144 



Nett amount 

 of our Cus. 

 toms. 



1,969934 

 1.866.152 

 1,858,417 

 2,249604 

 2.169,473 

 2.261,231 

 2.448,280 

 2,355.850 

 2,445 016 

 2,639,086 

 2,546,144 

 2,642.129 

 2,525,596 

 2,439,017 

 2,567,770 

 2,481 031 

 2,480.403 

 2.229 106 

 2,162,681 

 2,502. 274 

 2 723-920 

 2,791,428 

 2,861,563 

 2.848.320 

 3,326639 

 4,592,091 

 4,076.911 

 3,673,807 



