Art. VI. Account of the Premiums awarded by Law in the 

 State of New York, for the encouragement of Household 

 Manufactures of Woolen Cloths, in 1809, 1810, 1811, 1813, 

 1814, with references to Samples of these Premium Cloths 

 preserved in the Library of the Albany Institute ; prepared by 

 Franklin B. Hough, under a resolution of the Institute, dated 

 February 14, 1860. 



The difficulties preceding the last war between Great 

 Britain and the United States, led our patriotic citizens to 

 a realization of the importance of encouraging domestic 

 manufactures, with the view of rendering the country, as 

 far as possible, independent of foreign industry, and pre- 

 pared for the worst consequences that could arise from an 

 interruption of our foreign commerce. 



Prominent among these advocates for the development 

 of our own resources, was Chancellor Livingston of Co- 

 lumbia county, President of the Society for the Promotion 

 of Useful Arts, whose active labors for the promotion of 

 the substantial welfare and happiness of his country, can 

 not be forgotten by his countrymen, so long as the Trans- 

 actions of that Society exist in libraries, or history pre- 

 serves the record of deserved greatness. On his mission 

 to France in 1801, his attention was arrested by every 

 mode of culture and every source of benefit that could be 

 made available in this country, and his enterprise in im- 

 porting flocks of Merino sheep, for affording the material 

 of the finer woolen fabrics, has been beautifully compared 

 to the expedition of Jason and his companions in quest of 

 the Golden Fleece. 



Near the close of 1807, 1 an embargo cut off our communi- 

 cation with Great Britain, from whence the finer woolen 

 cloths had been previously imported, and in the following 



1 December 22. 



[Trans, vi.] 



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