c o 
net in pods; fnch as are made into bread.—Except a 
corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth 
alone. John, xii. 25. 
The people cry you mock’d them ; and, of late, 
When corn was given them gratis, you repin’d. Shakefp. 
Grain yet unreaped, Handing in the field upon its (talk.— 
Landing his men, he burnt the corn all thereabouts, which 
was now aim oft ripe. Kno'lles. 
Still a murmur runs 
Along the foft inclining fields of com. Thomfon. 
Grain in the ear, yet unthrefiied.—Thou (halt come to 
•thy grave in a full age, like as a (hock of corn cometh in 
his feafon. Job, v. 26. 
Egypt was anciently the mod fertile of all countries in 
corn ; as appears both from facred and profane hiftoay. 
It long furnifhed a great part of the people fubjeit to 
the Roman empire, and was proverbially called the dry- 
nuri'e of Rome and Italy. Britain, France, and Poland, 
feem now in the place pf Egypt, and out of their abun¬ 
dance fupply a confiderable part of the European con¬ 
tinent. It will hence be obvious, that iio object of civi¬ 
lized fociety can be of more importance than a conftant 
and permanent fupply of this, abfolute necellary of life, 
and therefore nothing can more ferioufly demand the at¬ 
tention of the government of this country, than the ra¬ 
tional means of encouraging and extending its growth. 
Agriculture bounteoufly fupplies the wants of induf- 
trious people, from the foil which they cultivate; and 
trade carries oft' the fuperfiuity to foreign countries, 
which fends us back their produce in return. But while 
this fupply increafes the variety of our food, it para¬ 
doxically multiplies our wants'.; for a dearth of tea and 
fugar would now occafion almoft as great a commotion 
in the na.ion, as a dearth of wheat! The foie -objedt of 
trade is profit; and, for the fake of this, the commer¬ 
cial clafs of people feem as if they would at any time 
reduce the country to want bread, if they could gain by 
carrying the corn abroad, until the tide turned, that they 
could double their gain, by bringing it home again. This' 
remark has been verified in our own day ; and therefore 
bounties from government, being merely artificial expe¬ 
dients to cherilh an infant trade, or to turn the channels 
-of commerce a different way, (hould be reforted to with 
-caution. 
It is not for the fake of the farmer, but for the good 
of the nation at large, that bounties (hould be granted, 
and on the felf-evident principle, that it is. wifer to raife 
our food at home, than to depend on foreign countries 
for the necelfaries of Life. In ftiort, the principles by 
which our corn laws, in regard to the exportation of 
corn, ought to be regulated, are briefly the following: 
The leading feature (hould ever be the promoting of.the 
.general good of fociety, and the. objeft in this cafe to 
procure a conftant fupply of provifions on reafonable 
terms; therefore, when the price of corn is low, to en¬ 
courage the farmer to endeavour to raife it'in great quan¬ 
tities, a bounty proportioned to the need there' is for fuch 
aid, may be given to enable the farmer to (ell our.fuper- 
abundant grain.to foreigners, at a price which they will 
pay for it; and this bounty (hould be granted both on 
unground and ground corn, lb as to encourage not only 
agriculture, but every, fpecies of Britith. induftry em¬ 
ployed in railing, drefling,, anci exporting, corn .or meal, 
And when our fuperapundant corn can be fold to fo¬ 
reigners without any bounty, it lhould be permitted to 
be exported, when the. prices are moderate,. and even 
though they (hould be pretty high, owing to a great de-. 
mand from abroad; but when the price of corn is fo 
very high as to indicate an .approaching fcarcity, or at 
leaft an appearance of fcarcity, exportation ought to.be 
prohibited. 
The principles which (hould regulate our laws in re¬ 
gard to the importation of corn, are next to be conlidered. 
Vol.V. No. 266... 
R N. 205 
They are alfo founded on the general gtood of fociety, 
and their objedt is alfo to procure a conftant fupply of 
provifions on reafonable terms. When the prices of corn 
are fo low, that a bounty is allowed on exportation, the 
importing of foreign corn ought to be prohibited ; for 
it would be abfurd to admit any foreign corn into the 
kingdom for fupplying its inhabitants, at tire fame time 
that we give a bounty to fend away our fuperabundant 
grain. When the price is fo high, that a bounty is 
judged nece(fary, and corn fo abundant, that exportation 
is allowed without any bounty, foreign corn (hould be 
permitted to be imported, upon payment of very high 
but not prohibitory duties, and thefe duties (hould gra¬ 
dually fall as the prices rife in Britain. Thefe duties 
would give the corn raifed in Britain a decided prefer¬ 
ence over that which is brought from other countries, 
and by giving the manufactures'gradual accefs to the 
market for foreign grain, would keep a proper balance 
between them and our farmers, and oblige the farmer to 
a(k, and the manufacturer to give, a reafonable price. 
When the price of corn becomes very high in Britain, 
and when all exportation of corn is prohibited, then the 
duties on importing foreign corn fhould be very mode¬ 
rate, and alfo fall gradually, till the prices become ex¬ 
tremely high, and the duty is merely nominal. Thefe- 
low duties are ufeful in preventing too great an im¬ 
portation of foreign corn. 
It is certainly abfurd in our law, that a bounty of five 
(hillings fhould be allowed becaufe the price is thought 
too low, and that when this price rifes only two (hillings- 
higher than that low price, exportation (hould be pro¬ 
hibited altogether. By prohibiting exportation, when the 
price of corn is only a little higher than that at which a 
bounty is granted, our corn-merchants are under great 
temptations to fpeculate deeply, when the price of any 
■kind of grain is at that fum, at which all exportation is pro¬ 
hibited. What (hall they do, for example, if wheat is at 
forty-fix (hillings a quarter, with a profpect of its being, 
ftationary for a whole feafon, and. a great quantity on. 
their hands, for which there is not a quick fale in the 
market ? They will then pour forth a great quantity of 
grain from their granaries, till they get the price of 
wheat reduced below forty-four (hillings, that they may 
firft get liberty to export, by virtue of the corn aCt, and 
next obtain as much of.tlie bounty it allows, as will in¬ 
demnify them for underfelling part of their own corn. 
What are the confequences ? A.corn-merchant lofes live 
per cent, by underfelling, perhaps, one-fourth of his 
grain, and gains twelve per cent, of bounty on what he 
exports ; fometimes gets that fold to advantage to fo¬ 
reigners, and fometimes meets with a bad market abroad ; 
but feldom fails to draw a very great profit on perhaps 
one half of his corn fold at home, after the prices are 
thus raifed artificially. The prices of corn fluctuate ex¬ 
ceedingly during the twenty days, in which he muft .com-. 
plete his lading of the corn entered for exportation ; and 
the high bounty, followed by the early prohibition, tempts 
a man to fpeculate, and raife the price of corn. Thus 
the operation of fuch a law teaches the dealer crimes; 
it plages him too much between the fear of lols, and the 
hope of gain. 
After all, the mod rational and effectual plan for re¬ 
ducing the price of corn would be, by inclcling our vaft 
traits of wade lands, under the function and authority of. 
an .act for that purpofe. Ic appears from the furveyor’s 
report, that York (hire alone contains two hundred and 
lixty-fiye thou fund acres of wafte land capable of culti¬ 
vation. Now, fuppofe thefe acres to produce one quarter 
each of wheat or oats, what a vaft addition.of food would 
that county acquire ; and what an incalculable benefit 
would refillt to the nation at large, by cultivating all the 
wafte land it contains, capable of bearing corn ? How ab¬ 
furd, .then, mull that policy be, to import the bread we 
might grow ourfelves, and thus encourage foreigners to 
improve their wafte lands at our expence.! . 
3 .P- As 
