at% HISTORY OF THE [book it 
to any other nation. The means indeed which 
Great" Britain has adopted for retaining to herself 
the full benefit of the monopoly, have, in some 
eases, proved more liberal than those of rival states; 
but the principle by which the various nations of 
Europe were influenced, was precisely the same; 
To secure to themselves respectively, the most im¬ 
portant of the productions of their colonies, and 
to retain to themselves exclusively, the great ad¬ 
vantage of supplying those colonies with European 
goods and manufactures, was the chief aim and 
endeavour of them all. 
Whether the several parts of this system, as 
adopted by the British government, and its conse¬ 
quent train of duties, restrictions, and prohibi¬ 
tions, were originally as wise and politic, as they 
are evidently selfish, is a question that of late has 
been much controverted. But this is a discussion 
into which it can answer no good purpose to enter, 
because the present arrangement has been too long, 
and is now too firmly established among us to be 
abrogated; and thus much at least has been truly 
said in its favour, that it is calculated to correspond 
with the regulations of foreign states: for so long 
as other nations confine the trade of their colonies- 
to themselves, to affirm that Great Britain derives 
no advantage from following their example, is to- 
contradict both experience and reason.* 
* “ Free commerce and navigation are not to be given in exchange 
for restrictions and vexations, nor are they likely to produce a re- 
