WOOLLEN IVIANUFACTUIIE. 



dyeing and finifliing. A letter esifts addreffed to king 

 James on this fubjeA, afcribed to fir Walter Raleigh, but 

 without fufBcient evidence, as '« the moft ancient manufcripts 

 of this letter in the libraries of the nobility afcribe it to 

 John Keymer." ( Oldy's Life of Sir W. Raleigh. ) In this 

 letter it is ftated, " that there have been eighty thoufand un- 

 dreffed and undyed cloths exported yearly, by which the 

 kingdom has been deprived of four hundred thoufand 

 pounds for the laft fifty-five years, which is nearly twenty 

 millions that would have been gained by the labour of the 

 workmen in that time, with the merchants' gains for bring- 

 ing in dyeing-wares, and return of cloths drefled and dyed, 

 with other benefits to the realm." The writer proceeds, in 

 another part, to ftate, that there had alfo been exported in 

 that time annually, of baizes and northern and Devonfhire 

 kerfies, in the white, fifty thoufand cloths, counting three 

 kerfies to a cloth, whereby had been loft about five millions 

 to the nation in labour, profit, &c. The author informs 

 us, that the baizes fo exported were drefled and dyed at 

 Amfterdam, and (hipped to Spain, Portugal, and other 

 kingdoms, under the name of Flemifh baize, fetting their 

 own feal upon them ; " fo that we lofe the very name of our 

 home-bred commodities, and other countries get the reputa- 

 tion and profit thereof." The author concludes with aflert- 

 ing, that the nation lofes a million a year by the export of 

 white cloths, which might be drefled and dyed as well at 

 home. This letter has been often quoted as containing un- 

 anfwerable reafons for confining the whole procefs of the 

 cloth manufacture to our own country ; but, like other mo- 

 nopolifts, the writer feems to forget that there are two 

 parties in all mercantile tranfaftions, and that manufaftured 

 goods muft be fent in that ftate in which the purchafer is 

 willing to receive them, unlefs it be proved that he cannot 

 procure them elfewhere. Let us mark the refult. Alder- 

 man Cockayne, and other London merchants, had fufficient 

 influence with the government to obtain the prohibition of 

 the export of white cloths, and to fecure a patent for dref- 

 fing and dyeing of cloths. In confequence of which, the 

 Dutch and Germans immediately prohibited the importation 

 of dyed cloths from England, which gave fo great a check 

 to our export trade, that in the year 1616, the whole 

 amount of cloths exported of every kind aniounted only to 

 ftxty thoufand, fo that the export trade in woollens had 

 fallen to lefs than one-third of its former amount ; and in 

 the year 1622, 



1. s. d. 



All our exports of every kind 7 



amounted only to 

 Whilft our imports were 



2,320,436 12 10 



2,619,315 o o 



Lea.ving a balance againft us of 298,878 7 2 



It being from experience proved, that the pohcy of dref- 

 fmg and dyeing all our goods at home had produced the 

 greateft injury to the woollen trade, the reftriftions were 

 taken off, and the export for white cloth left free. In the 

 former reign, cloths about four pounds value were, by ftatute, 

 to be fent out dyed, by all perfons except the company of 

 merchant adventurers, who obtained a licence to export all 

 forts of white cloths ; and though this was itfelf a monopoly, 

 yet, as it gave foreigners an opportunity of receiving our 

 finer cloths in the ftate which they moft wanted, it was the 

 means of increafing our trade : indeed it is faid by Miflel- 

 den, that " within a few years after granting this licence, the 

 vent for cloth in foreign parts increafed to twice as much 

 as it had been during the ftrift obfervance of the ftatute." 

 With this faft before their eyes, it is fcarcely pofGble that 

 our ftatefmen at that time could have proceeded to the pro- 



hibition of white cloth exports, unlefs they had been (as 

 was afferted) influenced by prefents from alderman Cock- 

 ayne and the rich merchants, who expefted to receive the 

 benefit arifing from the prohibition, and the exclufive right 

 of dyeing and drefling. The wool-growers equally felt the 

 ill effefts of this prohibition. Wool is faid to have fallea 

 from thirty-three ftiillings per tod to twenty fltillings ; if 

 by this is meant the long combing-wools, the former price, ; 

 confidering the value of money at that time, is much higher 

 than it has been in the laft or the prefent century. , 



During the reigns of the Stuarts, the infamous policy they 

 adopted ftruck not only at the liberty, but at the commer- 

 cial profperity of the country. Archbiftiop Laud, imbued i 

 with the malignant zeal of a bigot, commenced his attacks i 

 on the defcendants of the French Proteftants, eftabliflied as 

 manufacturers of woollens in Norfolk and Suffolk, from I 

 which counties his perfecuting fury drove fome thoufand 

 families. Many of them fettled in New England ; but others ' 

 went into Holland, where they were encouraged by the ! 

 Dutch, who allowed them an exemption from taxes and ; 

 rents for feven years. In return for this, the ftates were amply 

 repaid by the introduftion of manufafturers, with which they ' 

 were before unacquainted. In the year 1622, king James 

 iffued a proclamation to prohibit the exportation of wool, 

 fuller's- earth, &c. In 1640 wool was again admitted to be ' 

 exported on the payment of certain duties ; and we are told, . 

 that in the fame year fir John Brownlowe, of Belton in Lin- 

 colnfhire, fold three years' wool at twenty-four fliillings ) 

 per tod to a baize-maker of Colchefter. As it is reafonable to 

 fuppofe that this was the long combing-wool of that county, 

 it ihews the high relative price of the article at that time. 

 In 1 647, owing to the high price of wool, its exportation 

 was again prohibited. 



During the civil wars, the manufafturcs and export trade 

 of England declined, and the Dutch availed themfelves of 

 this to extend their own manufafture and export of woollens, 

 particularly to Spain, from whence they brought fine Spa- 

 nifli wool. At this time it appears, that the woollen manu-! 

 failures in Poland and Silefia were rapidly increafing ; and 

 the Englifti government received information that two hun- 

 dred and twenty thoufand cloths were made there annually, 

 befides confiderable quantities made at Dantzic, and in the 

 vicinity. 



The duke of Brandenburg, it was alfo ftated to our 

 government, had ordered one hundred thoufand ells of Silefia 

 cloth at Koningftjerg for his troops, which had been hereto- 

 fore fupplied with Englifti cloth. The eftimation in which 

 our cloth had been held is faid to have been loft by negh- 

 gence in the manufafture, particularly in the fpinning and 

 weaving. The Dutch and Poles had a little before this 

 time received a great number of Proteftant manufafturers, 

 who fled from the perfecution of the duke of Alva in 

 Brabant and Flanders. 



Here it may be proper to remark, that the Englifli as 

 a nation had little intercourfe with other parts of the 

 world, except through a few large trading companies ; 

 hence they were extremely ignorant refpefting the ftatf 

 of foreign countries, and fuppofed that the cloth tradt 

 had been confined to their own country for three hun- 

 dred years ; and they confidered the eftabhfhment of othei 

 manufaAurers as a novelty and infringement of theii 

 juft rights. With thefe views, it was propofed .t( 

 obtain a complete monopoly of all the clothing-wool: 

 in Spain, in order to prevent the Dutch and other nation: 

 from rivalling our manufaftures. This is the more extra 

 ordinary, as the Englifli had not then learned, like thi 

 Dutch, to manufatlure Spanifti wool, without mixing i ■ 

 with that of their own country. It is ncedlefs to fay, thai 

 1 th 



