A Philosophical and Political History of the Settlements and Trade of the Europeans in the East and West Indies. Translated From the French of the ABBE Raynal, by J. Justamond, by Raynal

Author:Raynal [Raynal]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781296930271
Google: KjgdjgEACAAJ
Goodreads: 26730658
Publisher: BiblioBazaar
Published: 2015-08-22T12:10:26+00:00

Book XIV.

Settlement of the English in the American islands.

England was not in a very flourishing situation when her settlements in America were first begun in 1625. Her agriculture was not extended either to flax or hemp. The attempts that had been made to raise mulberry-trees and breed silk-worms had been unsuccessful. The labours of the husbandman were wholly engaged in the growing of corn, which, notwithstanding the turn of the nation for rural employments, was seldom sufficient for home consumption, and many of their granaries were stored from the fields bordering on the Baltic.

The flace of England when she began to form settlements in American islands.

Industry was still less advanced than agriculture. It was confined to woollen manufactures. These had been increased since the exportation of unwrought wool had been prohibited; but these islanders, who seemed to work only for themselves, were ignorant of the method of spreading those elegant ornaments upon their stuffs, which taste contrived to promote the sale and consumption of them. They sent their cloths over to Holland, where the Dutch gave them their colouring and gloss; from whence they circulated all over Europe, and were even brought back to England.

Navigation hardly employed at that time ten thousand sailors. These were in the service of exclusive companies, which had engrossed every branch of trade, not excepting that of cloth, which alone constituted a tenth part of the commercial riches of the nation. These, therefore, were centered in the hands of three or four hundred persons, who agreed for their own advantage, to six the price of goods, both at going out and coming into the kingdom. The privileges of these monopolizers were exercised in the capital, where the court sold the provinces, London alone had six times the number of ships that all the other ports in the kingdom put together had.

The public revenue neither was nor could be very considerable. It was farmed out; a ruinous method, which has preceded the establishment of the finance in all states, but has only been continued under arbitrary governments. The expences were proportionable to the low state of the treasury. The sleet was small, and the ships so weak, that in times of necessity the merchantmen were turned into men of war. A hundred and sixty thousand militia, which was the whole military force of the nation, were armed in time of war. There were no standing forces in time of peace, and the king himself had no guards.

With such confined powers at home the nation should not have ventured to extend itself in settlements abroad. Notwithstanding this, some colonies were established which laid a solid foundation of prosperity. The origin of these settlements was owing to certain events, the causes of which may be traced very far back.

Causes which hastened the population of the British islands.

Whoever is acquainted with the history and progress of the English government, knows that the regal authority was for a long time balanced only by a small number of considerable proprietors of land called Barons.

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