A Discourse of Trade
by N.B. M.D.
London, Printed by Tho. Milbourn for the Author, 1690

by Nicholas Barbon

The Preface
The Greatness and Riches of the United Provinces, and States of
Venice, consider'd, with the little Tract of Ground that belongs to
either of their Territories, sufficiently Demonstrate the great
Advantage and Profit that Trade brings to a Nation.
	And since the Old Ammunition and Artillery of the Grecians and
Romans are grown out of Use; such as Stones, Bows, Arrows, and
battering Rams, with other Wooden Engines, which were in all Places
easily procured or made: And the Invention of Gunpowder hath
introduced another sort of Ammunition and Artillery, whose Materials
are made of Minerals, that are not to be found in all Countries; such
as Iron, Brass, Lead, Salt-petre, and Brimstone; and therefore where
they are wanting, must be procured by Traffick. Trade is now become as
necessary to Preserve Governments, as it is useful to make them Rich.
	And notwithstanding the great Influence, that Trade now hath in
the Support and Welfare of States and Kingdoms, yet there is nothing
more unknown, or that Men differ more in their Sentiments, than about
the True Causes that raise and promote Trade.
	Livy, and those Antient Writers, whose elevated Genius set them
upon the Inquiries into the Causes of the Rise and Fall of
governments, have been very exact in describing the several Forms of
Military Discipline, but take no Notice of Trade; and Machiavel a
Modern Writer, and the best, though he lived in a Government, where
the Family of Medicis had advanced themselves to the Soveraignty by
their riches, acquired by Merchandizing, doth not mention Trade, as
any way interested in the Affairs of State; for until



A Discourse of Trade.

Of Trade and the Stock, or Wares of Trade.

	Trade is the Making, and Selling of one sort of Goods for
another; The making is called Handy-Craft Trade, and the maker an
Artificer; The Selling is called Merchandizing, and the Seller a
Merchant: The Artificer is called by several Names from the sort of
goods he makes. As a Clothier, Silk-weaver, Shoo-maker, or Hatter,
etc. from Making of Cloth, Silk, Shooes, or Hats; and the Merchant is
distinguished by the Names of the Countrey he deals to, and is called,
Dutch, French, Spanish or Turkey Merchant.
	The chief End or Business of Trade, is to make a profitable
Bargain: In making of a Bargain there are these things to be
considered; The Wares to be Sold, the Quantity and Quality of those
Wares, the Value or Price of them, the Money or Credit, by which the
Wares are bought, the Interest that relates to the time of performing
the Bargain.
	The Stock and Wares of all Trades are the Animals, Vegitables,
and Minerals of the whole Universe, whatsoever the Land or Sea











produceth. These Wares may be divided into Natural and Artificial;
Natural Wares are those which are sold as Nature Produceth them; As
Flesh, Fish, and Fruits, etc. Articifial Wares are those which by Art
are Changed into another Form than Nature gave them; As Cloth,
Calicoes, and wrought Silks, etc. which are made of Wool, Flax,
Cotten, and Raw Silks.
	Both these Sorts of Wares are called the Staple Commoditys of
those Countreys where they chiefly abound, or are made. There are
Different Climates of the Heavens, some very Hot, some very Cold,
other Temperate; these Different Climates produce Different Animals,
Vegitables, & Minerals. The Staples of the hot Country are Spices; the
Staples of the Cold, Furrs; but the more Temperate Climates produce
much the same sorts of Commoditys; but by difference of the Quality or
Conveniency of place where they abound, the become the Staple of each
Country, whre they are either best or easier acquired or exchanged:
Thus, Herrings, and other Fish are the Staples of Holland; the Dutch
living amongst the Water, are most naturally inclined to Fishing:
English Wool being the best in the World, is the Staple of England,
for the same reason. Oyles of Italy, Fruits of Spain, Wine of France,
with several other sorts of Commoditys, are the Staples of their
several Countrys.
	Staple Commodities may be divided into Native or Forreign; the
Native Staple is what Each Country doth Naturally and best produce;
Forreign Staple, any Forreign Commodity, which a Country acquires by
the sole Trade to a Forreign Place, or sole possession of a particular
Art; as Spices are the Staple of Holland; and the making of Glass and
Paper, were the Staple of Venice.
	From the Stock, or Wares of Trade, these Three Things are
Observable:
	1. The Native Staple of each Country is the Riches of the
Country, and is perpetual, and never to be consumed; Beasts of the
Earth, Fowls of the Air, and Fishes of the Sea, Naturally Increase:
There is Every Year a New Spring and Autumn, which produceth a New
Stock of Plants and Fruits. And the Minerals of the Earth are
Unexhaustable; and if the Natural Stock be Infinite, the Artificial
Stock that is made of the Natural, must be Infinite, as Woollen and
Linnen Cloth, Calicoes, and wrought Silk, which are made of Flax,
Wool, Cotton, and Raw Silks.
	This sheweth a Mistake of Mr Munn, in his Discourse of Trade, who
commends Parsimony, Frugality, and Sumptuary Laws, as the means to
make a Nation Rich; and uses an Argument, from a Simile, supposing a
Man to have 1000 l. per annum, and 2000 l. in a Chest, and spends
Yearly 1500 l. per annum, he will in four Years time Waste his 2000 l.
This is true, of a Person, but not of a Nation; because his Estate is
finite, but the Stock of a Nation Infinite, and can never be consumed;
For what is Infinite, can neither receive Addition by Parsimony, nor
suffer Diminution, by Prodigality.
	2. The Native Staple of Each Contry, is the Foundation of it's
Forreign Trade: And no Nation have any Forreign Commodities, but what
are at firs brought in by the Exchange of the Native; for at the
beginning of Forreign Trade, a Nation hath nothing else to Exchange;
The Silver & Gold from Spain; the Silks from Turkey, Oyls from Italy,
wine from France, and all other Forreign Goods are brought into
England, by the Exchange of the English Cloth, or some other Staple of
England.











	3. That Forreign Staples are uncertain Wealth: Some Countries by
the Sole Trade to another Country, or by the Sole Possession of some
Arts, gain a Staple of Forreign Commodities, which may be as
profitable as the Native, so long as they enjoy the Sole possession of
that Trade or Art. But that is uncertain; for other Nations find out
the way of Trading to the same place: the Artists for Advantage,
Travel into other Countries, and the Arts are discover'd. Thus
Portugal had the Sole Trade of India; afterwards the Venetians got a
great Share of the Trade, and now the Dutch and English, have a
greater share than both: The Arts of making several sorts of Silks,
were chiefly confined to Genoa, & Naples; afterward Travelled into
France, since into England and Holland, and are now Practised there in
as great perfection as they were in Italy; So have other Arts
wander'd, as the making of Looking-Glasses from Venice into England,
the making of Paper from Venice into France and Holland.

Of the Quantity and Quality of Wares

	The Quantity of all Wares are known by Weight or Measure. The
Reason of Gravity is not understood, neither is it Material to this
Purpose; Whether is proceeds from the Elastisity of Air, or Weight of
the utmost Spheer, or from what other Causes, its sufficient, that the
ways of Trying the Weights of Bodies are perfectly discover'd by the
Ballance. There are Two Sorts of Weights in Common Use, the Troy, and
Averdupois.
	The First are used to Weigh Goods of most Value, as Gold, Silver
and Silk, etc. The Latter for Coarser, and more Bulky Goods, as Lead,
Iron, etc.
	There are Two Sorts of Measures, the one for Fluid Bodies, a the
Bushel, Gallon and Quart, for Measuring Corn, Wine and Oyl; the other
for the Measuring the Dimensions of Solid Bodies, as a Yard, Ell, etc.
to Measure Cloth, Silk, etc.
	The Weights and Measures of all Countries differs, but that is no
Prejudice to Trade; they are all made certain by the Custom or Laws of
the Place,and the Trader knows the Weight or Measure in Use, in the
Place he Deals to. It is the Care of the government, to prevent and
punish the Fraud of False Weights and Measures, and in most Trading-
Cities, there are Publick Weigh-Houses, and Measures: The Fraud of the
Ballance, which is from the unequal Length of the end of the Beam, is
least perceivable; and therefore in Weighing Goods of Value, they
usually Weigh them in both Scales.
	The Qualities of Wares are known by their Colour, sound, Smell,
Taste, Make, or Shape.
	The Difference in the Qualities of Wares are very difficultly
distinguished; those Organs that are the proper Judges of those
Differencies, do very much disagree; some Men have clearer Eyes, some
more distinguishing Ears, and other nicer Noses and Tastes; and every
Man ahving a good Opinion of his own Faculties, it is hard to find a
Judge to determine which is best: Besides, those Qualites that belong
to Artificial Wares,such as depend upon the Mixture, Make or Shape of
them, are more difficultly discover'd: Those Wares, whose Quality are
produced by the just Mixture of different Bodies, such as Knives and
Razors, whose sharpness arise from the Good Temperament and Mixture of
the Steel & Iron, are not to be found out, but by the Use of them: And












so doth the Mixture, and well making of Hats, Cloth, and many other
things.
	Because the Difference in the Qualities of Wares, ae so
difficultly understood, it is that the Trader serves an Apprendiceship
to learn them; and the Knowledge of them is called the Mystery of
Trade; and in common Dealing, the Buyer is forced to rely on the Skill
and Honesty of the Seller, to deliver Wares with such Qualities as he
affirms them to have: It is the Sellers Interest, from the Expectation
of further Dealing, not to deceive; because his Shop, the Place of
Dealing, is known: Therefore, those Persons that buy of Pedlars, and
Wandering People, run Great Hazard of being Cheated.
	Those Wares, whose Chief Qualities consist in Shape, such as all
Wearing Apparel, do not so much depend uon the Honesty of the Seller;
for tho' the Trader or Maker, is the Inventor of the Shape, yet it is
the Fancy and Approbation of the Buyer, that brings it into Use, and
makes it pass for a Fashion.

Of the Value and Price of Wares

	The Value of all Wares arise from their Use; Things of no Use,
have no Value, as the English Phrase is, They are good for nothing.
	The Use of Things, are to supply the Wants and Necessities of
Man: There are Two General Wants that Mankind is born with; the Wants
of the Body,a nd the Wants of the Mind; To supply these two
Necessities, all things under the Sun become useful, and therefore
have a Value.
	Wares, useful to supply the Wants of the Body, are all things
necessary to support Life, such are in Common Estimation; all those
Goods which are useful to supply the Three General Necessities of Man,
Food, Clothes and Lodging; But if strictly Examined, nothing is
absolutely necessary to support Life, but Food; for a great Part of
Mankind go Naked, and lye in Huts and Caves; so that there are but few
things that are absolutely necessary to supply the Wants of the Body.
	Wares, that have their Value from supplying the Wants of the
Mind, are all such things that can satisfie Desire; Desire implys
Want: It is the Appetite of the Soul, and is as natural to the Soul,
as Hunger to the Body.
	The Wants of the Mind are infinite, Man naturally Aspires, and as
his Mind is elevated, his Senses grow more refined, and more capable
of Delight; his Desires are inlarged, and his Wants increase with his
Wishes, which is for every thing that is rare, can gratifie his
Senses, adorn his Body, and promote the Ease, Pleasure, and Pomp of
Life.
	Amongst the great Variety of things to satisfie the Wants of the
Mind, those that adorn Mans Body, and advance the Pomp of Life, have
the most general Use, and in all Ages, and amongst all sorts of
Mankind, have been of Value.
	The first Effects that the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge wrought
upon the Parents of Mankind, was to make them cloath themselves, and
it has made the most Visible Distinction of the Race, from the rest of
the Creation: It is that by which his Posterity may write Man, for no
Creatures adorn the Body but Man: Beside, the decking of the Body,
doth not onely distinguish Man from Beast, but is the Mark of
Difference and Superiority betwixt Man and Man.












	There was never any part of Mankind so wild and barbarous, but
they had Difference and Degree of Men amongst them, and invented some
things to shew that Distinction.
	Those that Cloathed with Skins, wore the Skins of those Beasts
that are most difficultly taken; thus Hercules wore a Lyons Skin; and
the Ermins and Sable, are still Badges of Honour. The Degree of
Quality amongst the Affricans, is known by the waste Cloth, and
amongst those that go naked, by adorning their Bodies with Colours,
most rare amongst them, as the Red was the Colour most in Esteem
amongst the Ancient Britains.
	And the most Ancient and best of Histories, the Bible, shews,
That amongst the Civilized People of the World, Ear-Rings, Bracelets,
Hoods and Vails, with Changeable Suits of Apparel, were then worn: And
the same Ornaments for the Body are still, and ever since have been
Worn, only differing in Shapes and Fashions, according to the Custom
of the Country.
	The Shapes of Habits are much in use, to denote the Qualities of
several men; but things rare and difficult to be obtained, are General
Badges of Honour: From this Use, Pearls, Diamonds, and Precious
Stones, have their Value: Things Rare are proper Ensigns of Honour,
because it is Honourable to acquire Things Difficult.
	The Price of Wares is the present Value; And ariseth by Computing
the occasions or use for them, with the Quantity to serve that
Occasion; for the Value of things depending on the use of them, the
Over-pluss of Those Wares, which are more than can be used, become
worth nothing; So that Plenty, in respect of the occasion, makes
things cheap; and Scarcity, dear.
	There is no fixt Price or Value of any thing for the Wares of
Trades; The Animals and Vegetables of the Earth, depend on the
Influence of Heaven, which sometimes causes Murrains, Dearth, Famine,
and sometimes Years of great Plenty; therefore, the Value of things
must accordingly Alter. Besides, the Use of most things being to
supply the Wants of the Mind, and not the Necessitys of the Body; and
those Wants, most of them proceeding from imagination, the Mind
Changeth; the things grow out of Use, and so lose their Value.
	There are two ways by which the value of things are a little
guessed at; by the Price of the Merchant, and the Price of the
Artificer: The Price that the Merchant sets upon his Wares, is by
reckoning Prime Cost, Charges and Interest.
	The Price of the Artificer, is by reckoning the Cost of the
Materials,with the time of working them; The Price of Time is
according to the Value of the Art, and the Skill of the Artist. Some
Artificiers Reckon Twelve, others Fifteen, and some Twenty, and Thirty
Shillings per Week.
	Interest is the Rule that the Merchant Trades by; And Time, the
Artificer, By which they cast up Profit, and Loss; for if the Price of
their Wares, so alter either by Plenty, or by Change of the Use, that
they do not pay the Merchant Interest, nor the Artificer for his Time,
they both reckon they lose by their Trade.
	But the Market is the best Judge of Value; for by the Concourse
of Buyers and Sellers, the Quantity of Wares, and the Occasion for
them are Best known: Things are just worth so much, as they can be
sold for, according to the Old Rule, Valet Quantum Vendi potest.













Of Money, Credit and Interest

	Mony is a Value made by a Law; and the Difference of its Value is
known by the Stamp,and Size of the Piece. One Use of Mony is, It is
the Measure of Value, by which the Value of all other things are
reckoned; as when the Value of any thing is expressed, its said, It's
worth so many shillings, or so many Pounds: Another Use of Mony is; It
is a Change or Pawn for the Value of all other Things: For this
Reason, the Value of Mony must be made certain by Law, or else it
could not be made a certain Measure, nor an Exchange for the Value of
all things.
	It is not absolutely necessary, Mony should be made of Gold or
Silver; for having its sole Value from the Law, it is not Material
upon what Metal the Stamp be set. Mony hath the same Value, and
performs the same Uses, if it be made of Brass, Copper, Tin, or any
thing else. The Brass Mony of Spain, the Copper Mony of Sweeden, and
Tin Farthings of England, have the same Value in Exchange, according
to the Rate they are set at and perform the same Uses, to Cast up the
Value of things, as the Gold and Silver Mony does; Six Pence in
Farthings will buy the same thing as Six Pence in Silver; and the
Value of a thing is well understood by saying, It is worth Eight
Farthings, as that it is worth Two Pence: Gold and Silver, as well as
Brass, Copper and Tin Mony, change their Value in those Countries,
where the Law has no force, and yield no more than the Price of the
Metal that bears the Stamp: Therefore, all Foreign Coins go by Weight,
and are of no certain Value, but rise and fall with the Price of the
metal. Pieces of Eight, yield sometimes 4 sh. 6 d. 4 sh. 7 d. and 4 sh
8 d. as the Value of Silver is higher or lower: And so doth Dollars,
and all Forreign Coin, change their Value; and were it not for the Law
that fixeth the Value, an English Crown Piece would now yield five
Shillings and Two Pence, for so much is the Value of it, if it were
melted, or in a Foreign Country. But the chief Advantage of making
Silver and Gold, being Metals of great Value, those who design Profit
by Counterfeiting the Coin, must Counterfeit the Metals, as well as
the Stamp, which is more difficult than the Stamp. There's another
Benefit to the Merchant, by such Mony; for Gold and Silver being
Commodities for other Uses, than to make Mony; to make Plate, Gold &
Silver Lace, Silks, etc. And Coins of little bulk, in respect of their
Value, the Merchant transmits such Mony from Place to Place, in
Specie, according as he finds his advantage, by the Rise of Bulloin;
though this may be a Conveniency to the Merchant, it often proves a
Prejudice to the State, by making Mony scarce: Therefore, there are
Laws in most Countries, that Prohibit the Transportation of Mony, yet
it cannot be prevented; for in Spain, though it be Capital, yet in Two
Months after the Gallions are come home, there is scarce any Silver
Mony to be seen in the Country.
	Some Men have so great an Esteem for Gold and Silver, that they
believe that they have an intrinsick Value in themselves, and cast up
the value of every thing by them: The Reason of the Mistake, is,
Because Mony being made of Gold and Silver, they do not distinguish
betwixt Mony, and Gold and Silver. Mony hath a certain Value, because
of the Law; but the Value of Gold and Silver are uncertain, and varies
their Price, as much as Copper, Lead, or other Metals: And in the
Places where they are dug, considering the smalness of their Veins,












with the Charges of getting them, they do not yield much more Profit
than other Minerals, nor pay the Miners better Wages for digging them.
	And were it not for the Waste, made of Gold and Silver, by Plate,
Lace, Silks, and Guilding, and the Custom of the Eastern Princes, to
lay them up and bury them, that Half which is dug in the West, is
buried in the East. The great quantities dug out of the Earth, since
the Discovery of the West Indies, would have so much lessened the
Value, that by this time, they would not have much exceeded the Value
of Tin, or Copper: Therefore, How greatly would those Gentlemen be
disappointed, that are searching after the Philosopher's Stone, if
they should at last happen to find it? For, if they should make but so
great a Quantity of Gold and Silver, as they, and their Predecessors
have spent in search after it, it would so alter, and bring down the
Price of those Metals, that it might be a Question, whether they would
get so much Over-plus by it, as would pay for the Metal they change
into Gold and Silver. It is only the Scarcity that keeps up the Value,
and not any Intrinsick Vertue or Quality in the Metals; For if the
Vertue were to be considered, the Affrican that gives Gold for Knives,
and Things made of Iron being a much more Useful metal, than either
Gold or Silver. To Conclude this Objection, Nothing in it self hath a
certain Value; One thing is as much worth as another: And it is time,
and place, that give a difference to the Value of all things.
	Credit is a Value raised by Opinion, it buys Goods as Mony doe's;
and in all Trading Citys, there's more Wares sold upon Credit, then
for present Mony.
	There are Two Sorts of Credit; the one, is Grounded upon the
Ability of the Buyer; the other, upon the Honesty: The first is called
a Good man,which implys an Able Man; he generally buys upon short
Time; to pay in a Month, which is accounted as ready Mony, and the
Price is made accordingly. The other is accounted and Honest Man; He
may be poor; he Generally buys for three and Six Months or longer so
as to pay the Merchant by the Return of his own Goods; and therefore,
the Seller relys more upon the Honesty of the Buyer, than his Ability:
Most of the Retail Traders buy upon this Sort of Credit, and are
usually Trusted for more than double they are worth.
	In Citys of great Trade, there are publick Banks of Credit, as at
Amsterdam and Venice: They are of great Advantage to Trade, for they
make Payments easie, by preventing the Continual Trouble of telling
over Mony, and cause a great Dispatch in Business: Publick Banks are
of so great a Concern in Trade, that the Merchants of London, for want
of such a Bank, have been forced to Carry their Cash to Goldsmiths,
and have thereby Raised such a Credit upon Goldsmiths Notes, that they
pass in Payments from one to another like Notes upon the Bank; And
although by this way of Credit, there hath been very Vast Sums of Mony
lost, not less then too Millions within five and Twenty Years, yet the
Dispatch and Ease in Trade is so great by such Notes, that the Credit
is still in some Measure kept up.
	Therefore, it is much to be wondered at, that since the City of
London is the Largest, Richest, and Chiefest City in the World, for
Trade; Since there is so much Ease, Dispatch, and Safety in a Publick
Bank; and since such vast Losses has Happened for want of it; That the
Merchant and Traders of London have not long before this time
Addressed themselves, to the Government, for the Establishing of a
Publick Bank.












	The Common Objection, that a Publick Bank cannot be safe in a
Monarchy, is not worth the Answering; As if Princes were not Governed
by the same Rules of Policy, as States are, To do all things for the
Well-fair of the Subjects, wherein their own Interest is concerned.
	It is True, in a Government wholly Dispotical, whose Support is
altogether in it's Millitary Forces; where Trade hath no Concern in
the Affaires of the State; Brings no Revenue, There might be a
Jealousy, that such a Bank might tempt a Prince to Seize it; when by
doing it, he doth not Prejudice the Affairs of his Government: But in
England, where the Government is not Dispotical; but the People Free;
and have as great a Share in the soveraign Legislative Power, as the
Subjects of any States have, or ever had; where the Customs makes
great Figures, in the Kings Exchequer; where Ships are the Bullworks
of the Kingdom; and where the Flourish of Trade is as much the
Interest of the King as of the People, There can be no such Cause of
Fear: For, What Objections can any Man make, that his Mony in the
Bank, may not be as well secured by a Law, as his Property is? Or; Why
he should be more afraid of Losing his Mony, than his Land or Goods?
	Interest is the Rent of Stock, and is the same as the Rent of
Land: The First, is the Rent of the Wrought or Artificial Stock; the
latter, of the Unwrought or Natural Stock.
	Interest is commonly reckoned for Mony; because the Mony borrowed
at Interest, is to be repayed in Mony; but this is a mistake; For the
Interest is paid for Stock: for the Mony borrowed, is laid out to buy
Goods, or pay for them before bought: No Man takes up Mony at
Interest, to lay it by him, and lose the Interest of it.
	One use of Interest: It is the Rule by which the Trader makes up
the Account of Profit and Loss; The Merchant expects by Dealing, to
get more then Interest by his Goods; because of bad Debts, and other
Hazards which he runs; and therefore, reckons all he gets above
Interest, is Gain; all under, Loss; but if no more than Interest,
neither Profit, nor Loss.
	Another use of Interest, is, It is the measure of the Value of
the Rent of Land; it sets the Price in Buying and Selling of Land:
For, by adding three Years Interest more than is in the Principle,
Makes the usual Value of the Land of the Country; The difference of
three Year is allowed; Because Land is more certain than Mony or
Stock. Thus in Holland, where Mony is at three per cent by reckoning
how many times three is in a Hundred Pounds, which is Thirty Three;
and Adding three Years more; makes Thirty Six Years Purchase; the
Value of the Land in Holland: And by the same Rule, interest being at
six per cent in England, Land is worth but Twenty Years Purchase; and
in Ireland, but Thirteen; Interest being there at Ten per cent: so
that, according to the Rate of Interest, is that Value of the Land in
the Country.
	Therefore, Interest in all Countrys is setled by a Law, to make
it certain; or else it could not be a Rule for the Merchant to make up
his Account, nor the Gentleman, to Sell his Land by.

Of the Use and Benefit of Trade

	The Use of Trade is to make, and provide things Necessary: Or
useful for the Support, Defence, Ease, Pleasure, and Pomp of Life:
Thus the Brewers, Bakers, Butchers, Poulterers, Cocks, with the












Apothecaries, Surgeons, and their Dependencies provide Food, and
Medicine for the support of Life: the Cutlers, Gun-smiths, Powder-
makers, with their Company of Traders, make things for Defence; The
Shoo-makers Sadlers, Couch, and Chair-makers, with abundance more for
the Ease of Life: The Perfumers, Fidlers, Painters, and Booksellers,
and all those Trades that make things to gratifie the Sense, or
delight the Mind, promote Pleasure: But those Trades that are imploy'd
to express the Pomp of Life, are Infinite; for, besides those that
adorn Mans Body, as the Glover, Hosier, Hatter, Semstriss, Taylor, and
many more, with those that make the Materials to Deck it; as Clothier,
Silk-Weaver, Lace-Maker, Ribbon-Weaver, with their Assistance of
Drapers, Mercers, and Milliners, and a Thousand more: Those Trades
that make the Equipage for Servants, Trappings for Horses; and those
that Build, Furnish, and Adorn Houses, are innumerable.
	Thus Busie Man is imployed, and it is for his own Benefit; For by
Trade, the Natural Stock of the Country is improved, the Wool and
Flax, are made into Cloth; the Skins, into Leather; and the Wood,
Lead, Iron and Tin, wrought into Thousand useful Things: The Over-plus
of these Wares not useful, are transported by the Merchants and
Exchanged for the Wines, Oyls, Spices, and every Thing that is good of
Forreign Countries: The Trader hath One Share for his Pains, and the
Land-Lord the Other for his Rent: So, that by Trade, the Inhabitants
in general, are not only well Fed, Clothed and Lodged; but the Richer
sort are Furnished with all things to promote the Ease, Pleasure &
Pomp of Life: Whereas, in the same Country, where there's no Trade,
the Land-Lords would have but Coarse Diet, Coarser Clothes, and worse
Lodgings; and nothing for the Rent of their Lands, but the Homage and
Attendance of their Poor Bare-footed Tenants, for they have nothing
else to give.
	Trade Raiseth the Rent of the Land, for by the Use of several
sorts of Improvements, the Land Yieldeth a greater natural Stock; by
which, the Land-lord's Share is the greater: And it is the same thing,
whether his Share be paid in Mony, or Goods; for the Mony must be laid
out to Buy such Good's: Mony is an Immaginary Value made by a Law, for
the Conveniency of Exchange: It is the Natural Stock that is the Real
Value, and Rent of the Land.
	Another Benefit of Trade, is, That, it doth not only bring
Plenty, but hath occasioned Peace: For the Northern Nations, as they
increased, were forced from the Necessities of their Climates, to
Remove; and used to Destroy, and Conquer the Inhabitants of the Warmer
Climates to make Room for themselves; thence was a Proverb, Omne Malum
ab Aquilone: But those Northern People being settled in Trade, the
Land by their Industry, is made more Fertile; and by the Exchange of
the Nations Stock, for Wines and Spices, of Hotter Climates, those
Countries become most Habitable; and the Inhabitants having Warmer
Food, Clothes, and Lodgings, are better able to endure the Extreamitys
of their Cold Seasons: This seems to be the Reason, that for these
Seven or Eight Hundred years last past, there has been no such
Invasions from the Northern part of the World, as used to destroy the
Inhabitants of the Warmer Countries: Besides, Trade allows a better
Price for labourers, than is paid for Fighting: So it is become more
the Interest of Mankind to live at home in Peace, than to seek their
fortunes abroad by Wars.
	These are the Benefits of Trade, as they Relate to Mankind; those
that Relate to Government, are many.











	Trade Increaseth the Revenue of the Government, by providing an
Imploy for the People: For every Man that Works, pay by those things
which he Eats and Wears, something to the Government. Thus the Excise
and Custom's are Raised, and the more every Man Earns, the more he
Consumes, and the King's Revenue is the more Increased.
	This shews the way of Determining those Controversies, about
which sort of Goods are most beneficial to the Government, by their
Making, or Importing: The sole difference is from the Number of hands
imploy'd in making them; Hence the Importation of Raw Silk, is more
Profitable to the Government than Gold, or Silver; Because there are
more Hands imployd in the Throwing, and Weaving of the First; than
there can be in working the Latter.
	Another Benefit of Trade is, It is Useful for the Defence of the
Government; It provides the Magazines of Warr. The Guns, Powder, and
Bullets, are all made of Minerals, and are wrought by Traders;
Besides, those Minerals are not to be had in all Countries; The great
stock of Saltpeter is brought from the East Indies, and therefore must
be Imported by the Merchant, for the Exchange of the Natives Stock.
	The last Benefit is, That Trade may be Assistant to the Inlarging
of Empire; and if an Universal Empire, or Dominion of very Large
Extent, can again be raised in the World, It seems more probable to be
done by the Help of Trade; By the Increase of Ships at Sea, than by
Arms at land: This is too large a Subject to be here Treated of; but
the French King's seeming Attempt to Raise Empire in Europe, being
that Common Theam of Mens Discourse, has caused some short
Reflections, which will appear by Comparing the Difficulty of the one,
with the Probability of the other.
	The Difficulties of Raising a Dominion of very Large Extent;
especially in Europe, are Many.
	First, Europe is grown more Populous than formerly, and there are
more Fortified Towns and Cities, than were in the time of the Roman
Empire, which was the last extended Dominion; and therefore, not
easily Subjected to the Power of any one Prince.
	Whether Europe be grown more Populous, Solely by the Natural
Increase of Mankind; There being more Born than Dye, which first
Peopled the World?
	Or, Whether, since the Inhabitants of Europe being Addicted to
Trade, the ground is made more Fertile, and yields greater plenty of
Food; which hath prevented famine, that formerly destroy'd great
numbers of Mankind: So that no great Famines, has been taken Notice of
by Historians, these Last Three Hundred Years?
	Whether by Dreining Great Bogs, Lakes, and Fens, and Cutting down
vast Woods, to make Room for the Increase of Mankind, the Air is Grown
more Healthy; So that Plagues, and other Epidemical Diseases, are not
so destructive as formerly? none so violent, as Procopius and
Wallsingham Report, where destroyed such Vast Numbers in Italy, that
there were not left Ten in a Thousand; and in other Parts of Europe,
not enough alive to Bury the Dead. Whereas, the Plague in (1665) the
Greatest since did not take away the Hundredth Person in England,
Holland, and other Countries, where it Raged?
	Whether, since the Invention of Guns and Gun-Powder, so many Men
are not slain in the Wars as formerly? Xerxes lost 160000 in one
Battle against the Grecians; Alexander destroyed 110000 of Darius's
Army; Marius slew 120000 of the Cimbri; and in great Battles, seldome












less than 100000 fell: but now 20000 Men are accounted very great
Slaughter.
	Whether, since the Northern People have fallen on Trade, such
vast Numbers, are not destroyed by Invasions?
	Whether, by all these Ways, or by which of them most, Europe is
grown Populous, is not Material to this Discourse: It is sufficient to
shew, that the Matter of Fact is so, which does appear by comparing
the Antient Histories of Countries with the Modern?
	In the Antient Descriptions, the Countries are full of Vast
Woods, wild Beasts; the Inhabitants barbarous, and as wild, without
Arts, and the Governments are like Colonies, or Herds of People: But
in the Modern, the Woods are cut down, and the Lyons, Bears, and wild
Beasts destroyed; no Flesh-Eaters are left to inhabit with man, but
those Dogs and Cats that he tames for his Use: Corn grows where the
Woods did, and with the Timber are built Cities, Towns and Villages;
the People are cloathed, and have all Arts among them; and those
little Colonies and Families, are increased into Great States and
Kingdoms; and the most undeniable Proof of the Increase of Mankind in
England, is the Doom-Day-Book, which was a Survey taken of all the
Inhabitants of England, in the Reign of William the Conquerour; by
which it appears, that the People of England are increased more than
double since that time: But since the Mosaical Hypothesis of the
Increase of the World, is generally believed amongst the Christians.
And the late Lord Chief Justice Hales, in his Book of the Origination
of Mankind, hath endeavoured to satisfie all the rest of the World. It
would be misspending of time, to use any other Topick for the further
Proof thereof, than what naturally follows in this Discourse, which is
from the Different Success of Arms, in the Latter and Former Ages.
	In the Infancy of the World, Governments began with little
Families and Colonies of Men; so that, when ever any Government
arrived to greater Heighth than the rest, either by the great Wisdom
or Courage of the Government, they afterwards grew a pace: it was no
Difficulty for Ninus, that was the oldest Government, and
consequently, the most Populous, to begin the Assyrian Empire; nor for
his Successors to continue and inlarge it: Such Vast Armies of Cyrus,
Darius, Hystopis and Xerxes, the least of their Forces amounting to
above 500000, could not be resisted, when the World was but thin
Peopled.
	These great Armies might at first sight, seem to infer, That the
World was more Populous than now; because the Armies of the greatest
Princes, seldom now exceed the Number of Fifty or Sixty Thousand Men;
But the Reason of those great Numbers, was, They were not so well
skilled in Military Arts, and shew that the World was in the Infancy
of its Knowledge, rather than Populous; for all that were able to bear
Arms, went to the Wars: And if that were now the Custom, there might
be an Army in England of above Three Million, allowing the Inhabitants
to be Seven Millions; and by the same Proportion, the King of France's
Country, (being four times bigger) might raise Twelve Millions; such a
Number was never heard of in this World.
	The next Difficulty against the inlarging of Empire by Arms is,
That since Printing, and the Use of the Needle hath been discovered,
Navigation is better known, and thence is a Greater Commerce against
Men, the Countries and Languages are more understood, Knowledge more
dispersed, and the Arts of War in all Places known; so that, Men fight












more upon equal Terms than formerly; and like two Skilful Fencers,
fight a long Time, before either gets Advantage.
	The Assyrians & Persians Conquered more by the Number of
Souldiers than Discipline; the Grecians and Romans, more by Discipline
than Number; as the World grew older, it grew wiser: Learning first
flourished among the Grecians, afterwards among the Romans; and as the
Latter succeeded in Learning, so they did in Empire. But now both
Parties are Equally Disciplin'd and Arm'd; and the Successes of War
are not so great; victory is seldem gained without some Considerable
Loss to the Conquerour.
	Another Difficulty to the inlarging of Dominion by Arms, is, That
the Goths overcoming the greatest part of Europe, did by their Form of
Government, so settle Liberty, and Property of Land, that it is
difficult for any Prince to Change that Form.
	Whether the Goths were Part of the Ten Tribes, as some are of
Opinion, and to Countenance their conjectures, have Compared the
Languages of the Inhabitants, Wales, Finland and Orchadis, and other
Northern Parts (little frequented by Strangers, which might alter
their language) and find them to agree with the Hebrew in many Words
and Sound, all their Speech being Guttural. This is certain, their
Form of Government seems framed after the Examples of Moses's
Government in the Land of Canaan, by dividing the Legislative Power,
according to the Property of Land, according to that Antient Maxim,
That Dominion is founded upon Property of Land. There Monarchy seems
to be made by an easie Division of Land into Thirds, by a Conquering
Army, setting down in Peace; the General being King, has one Third;
the Colonels being the Lords, another Third; and the Captains, and
other Inferiour Officers being Gentlemen, another; the Common
Souldiers are the Farmers, and the Conquered are the Villains: The
Legislative Power is divided amongst them, according to their Share in
the Land; it being necessary that those that have Property of Land,
should have Power to make Laws to Preserve it.
	There seems to be but two settled Forms of government; the
Turkish, and Gothick, or English Monarchy: They are both founded upon
Property in Land; in the First, the Property and Legislative Power is
solely in the Prince; In the Latter, they are in both the Prince and
People: The one is best fitted to raise Dominion by Armies; for the
Prince must be Absolute to give Command, according to the Various
Fortunes of Warr: The other is Best for Trade; for men most
industrious, where they are most free, and secure to injoy the Effects
of their Labours.
	All other Sorts of Government, either Aristocracy, or Democracy,
where the Supream Magistrate is Elective, are Imperfect, Tumultuous,
and Unsettled: For Man is Naturally Ambitious; he inherits the same
Ruleing Spirit that God gave to Adam, to Govern the Creation with: And
the oftener that the Throne is Empty, the oftener will Contentions and
Struggles Happen to get into it: Where deter digniori is the Rule,
Warr always Ensues for the Golden Prize. Such Governments will never
be without such Men as Marius and Scilla, to disturb them; nor without
such a Man as Caesar to Usurp them; notwithstanding all the
Contrivance for their Defence by those Polititians who seems fond of
such Formes of Government.
	The Gothick Government being a well fixed Form, and the People so
free under it, is great hindedrance to the Enlarging of Dominion; for












a People under a good Government do more Vigorously Defend it: A free
People have more to lose than Slaves, and their Success is better
Rewarded than by any Mercenary Pay, and therefore, make a better
Resistance: It was the Freedom of the Grecians and Romans that raised
their Courage, and had an equal Share in raising their Empires, with
their Millitary Discipline: The free City of Tyre put Alexander to
more Trouble to Conquer, than all the Citys of Asia.
	The People of Asia, living under a Dispotick Power, made little
Resistance; Alexander subdued Libia, Phoenicia, Pamphilia, without
much Opposition in his Journey to meet Darius; Egypt came under
Subjection without Fighting, and so did many Countries, being willing
to Change the Persian Yoak: Besides, he Fought but two Battles for the
whole Persian Empire; and the Resistance of those slavish People was
so weak, that he did not lose 500 Grecians in either of the Battles,
tho' Darius Number far exceeded his; the one being above 260000, and
the other not Forty; And there was as great Disproportion in the
Slaughter; for at the Battle in Cilicia he slew 110000, and that at
Arbela 40000; whereas, the Spartan, a Free People, about the same
time, fought with Antipater his Vice-Roy of Macedon; and in a Fight,
where neither Army exceeded 60000, slew 1012 of the Macedonians, which
was more than Alexander lost in both his Battles: so great is the
difference of fighting against a Free, and a Slavish Effeminate
People.
	For the same Reasons, That the world is grown more Populous, That
the Arts of War are more known. That the People of Europe live under a
Free Government. It is as difficult to keep a Country in Subjection,
as to Conquer it. The People are too Numerous to be kept in Obedience:
To destroy the greatest Part, were too Bloody, and Inhuman; To Burn
the Towns, and Villages, and so force the People to remove, Is to lose
the greatest share in conquest; for the People are the Riches and the
Strength of the Country, And it is not much more Advantage to a
Prince, to have a Title to Lands, in Terra Incognita, As to Countries
without People.
	Besides, Countries and Languages being more known; And Mankind
more acquainted than formerly: The Oppressed People remove into the
next Country they can find Shelter in, and become the Subjects of
other Governments. By such Addition of Subjects, those Governments
growing stronger, are better able to Resist the Incroaches of Empire:
So that, every Conquest makes the next more difficult, from the
Assistance of those People before Conquered; To Transplant the
Conquered into a Remote Country, as formerly, Is not to be Practised;
There is now no Room, the World is so full of People.
	To Conquer, and leave them Free, only paying Tribute and Homage,
Is the same as not to conquer them: For there is no Reason to expect
their Submission longer, than till they are able to Resist; which will
not be long before they make the same Opposition, if they continue in
the same Possession; and therefore, though the Romans in the Infancy
of their Government, did leave several Countries Free, as an
Assistance to other Conquest; yet, when they grew stronger, they
turned all their Conquest into Provinces, being the surest way to keep
them from Revolting.
	These are the Difficulties of inlarging Dominion at Land, but are
not Impediments to its Rise at Sea: For those things that Obstruct the
Growth of Empire at Land, do rather Promote its Growth at Sea. That












the World is more Populous, is no Prejudice, there is Room enough upon
the Sea; the many Fortified Towns may hinder the March of an Army, but
not the Sailing of Ships: The Arts of Navigation being discover'd,
hath added an Unlimited Compass to the Naval Power. There needs no
change of the Gothick Government; for that best Agrees with such an
Empire.
	The Ways of preserving Conquests gain'd by Sea, are different
from those at Land. By the one, the Cities, Towns and Villages are
burnt, to thin the People, that they may be the easier Governed, and
kept into Subjection; by the other, the Cities must be inlarged, and
New ones built: Instead of Banishing the People, they must be
continued, in their Possession, or invited to the Seat of Empire; by
the one, the Inhabitants are inslaved, by the other, they are made
Free: The Seat of such an Empire must be in an Island, that their
Defence may be solely in Shipping; the same way to defend their
Dominion, as to inlarge it.
	To conclude, there needs no other Argument, That Empire may be
raised sooner at Sea, than at Land; than by observing the Growth of
the United Provinces, within One Hundred Years last past, who have
Changed their Style, from Poor Distressed, into that of High and
Mighty States of the United Provinces: And Amsterdam, that was not
long since, a poor Fisher-Town, is now one of the Chief Cities in
Europe; and with the same compass of time, that the Spaniard & French
have been endeavouring to Raise an Universal Empire upon the Land;
they have risen to that Heighth, as to be an equal Match for either of
them at Sea; and were their Government fitted for a Dominion of large
Extent, and their country separated from their Troublesome Neighbour
the Continent, which would Free them from that Military Charge in
defending themselves, they might, in a short time, Contend for the
Soveraignity of the Seats.
	But England seems the Properer Seat for such an Empire: It is an
Island, therefore requires no Military Force to defend it. Besides,
Merchants and Souldiers never thrive in the same Place; It hath many
large Harbours fitting for a large Dominion: The Inhabitants are
naturally Couragious, as appears from the Effects of the Climate, in
the Game Cocks, and Mastiff Dogs, being no where else so stout: The
Monarchy is both fitted for Trade and Empire. And were there an Act
for a General Naturalization, that all Forreigners, purchasing Land in
England, might Enjoy the Freedom of Englishmen, It might within much
less Compass of Time, than any Government by Arms at Land, arrive to
such a Dominion: For since, in some Parts of Europe, Mankind is
harrassed and disturbed with Wars; Since, some Governours have
incroached upon the Rights fo their Subjects, and inslaved them; Since
the People of England enjoy the Largest Freedoms, and Best government
in the World; and since by Navigation and Letters, there is a great
Commerce, and a General Acquaintance among Mankind, by which the Laws
and Liberties of all Nations are known; those that are oppressed and
inslaved, may probably Remove, and become the Subjects of England: And
if the Subjects increase, the Ships, Excise and Customs, which are the
Strength and Revenue of the Kingdom, will in Proportion increase,
which may be so Great in a short Time, not only to preserve its
Antient Soveraignty over the Narrow Seas, but to extent its Dominion
over all the Great Ocean: an Empire, not less Glorious, and of a much
larger Extent, than either Alexander's or Ceasar's.













Of the Chief Causes that Promote Trade.

	The Chief Causes that Promote Trade, (not to mention good
Government, Peace, and Scituation, with other Advantages) are Industry
in the Poor, and Liberality in the Rich: Liberality, is the free Usage
of all those things that are made by the Industry of the Poor, for the
Use of the Body and Mind; It Relates chiefly to Man's self, but doth
not hinder him from being Liberal to others.
	The Two Extreams to this Vertue, are Prodigality and
Covetousness: Prodigality is a vice that is prejudicial to the Man,
but not to Trade; It is living a pace, and spending that in a Year,
that should last all his Life: Covetousness is a Vice, prejudicial
both to Man and Trade; It starves the Man, and breaks the Trader; and
by the same way the Covetous Man thinks he grows rich, he grows poor;
for by not consuming the goods that are provided for Man's Use, there
ariseth a dead Stock, called Plenty, and the Value of those goods
fall, and the Covetous Man's Estates, whether in Land, or Mony, become
less worth: And a Conspiracy of the Rich Men to be Covetous, and not
spend, would be as dangerous to a Trading State, as a Forreign War;
for though they themselves get nothing by their Covetousness, nor grow
the Richer, yet they would make the Nation poor, and the government
great Losers in the Customs and Excises that ariseth from Expence.
	Liberality ought chiefly to be Excercised in an equal Division of
the Expence amongst those things that relate to Food, Cloaths, and
Lodging; according to the Portion, or Station, that is allotted to
every Man, with some allowance for the more refined Pleasures of the
Mind; with such Distributions, as may please both sect of
Philosophers, Platonist and Epicureans: The Belly must not be starved
to cloath the Back-Part.
	Those Expences that most Promote Trade, are in Cloaths and
Lodging: In Adorning the Body and the House, There are a Thousand
Traders Imploy'd in providing Food. Belonging to Cloaths, is Fashion;
which is the shape or Form of Apparel.
	In some places, it is fixt and certain; as all over Asia, and in
Spain; but in France, England, and other places, the Dress alters;
Fashion or the alteration of Dress, is a great Promoter of Trade,
because it occasions the Expence of Cloaths, before the Old ones are
worn out: It is the Spirit and Life of Trade; It makes a Circulation,
and gives a Value by Turns, to all sorts of Commodities; keeps the
great Body of Trade in Motion; it is an Invention to Dress a Man, as
if he lived in a perpetual Spring; he never sees the Autum of his
Cloaths: The following of the Fashion, Is a Respect paid to the Prince
and his Court, by approving his Choice in the shape of Dress. It lyes
under an ill Name amongst many Grave and Sober People, but without any
Just Cause; for those that Exclaim against the Vanity of the New
Fashion, and at the same time, commend that Decency of the Old one,
forget that every Old Fashion was once New, and then the same Argument
might have been used against it. And if an Indian, or Stranger, that
nvever saw any person Cloathed before, were to be Judge of the
Controversy, and were to Determin upon seeing at the same time a well
Drest-Courtier in the New Fashion, and another in the Old, which is
accounted Decent; and a third in the Robes of an Officer, which by
common Esteem, had a Reverence: It will be Two to One, against any One












of the Grave Fashions; for it's only Use and Custom by which Habits
become Grave and Decent, and not any particular Conveniency in the
shape; for if Conveniency were the Rule of Commendation, Whether the
Spanish garb made strait to the Body, or the loose Habit of the Turks,
were to be Chosen? And therefore since all Habits are equally
handsome, and hard to know which is most Convenient: The Promoting of
New Fashions, ought to be Encouraged, because it provides a Livelihood
for a great Part of Mankind.
	The next Expence that chiefly promotes Trade, is Building, which
is natural to Mankind, being the making of a Nest or Place for his
Birth, it is the most proper and vible Distinction of Riches, and
Greatness; because the Expences are too Great for Mean Persons to
follow. It is a Pleasure fit to entertain Princes; for a Magnificient
Structure doth best represent the Majesty of the Person that lives
init, and is the most lasting and truest History of the Greatness of
his Person.
	Building is the chiefest Promoter of Trade; it Imploys a greater
Number of Trades and People, than Feeding or Cloathing: the Artificers
that belong to building, such as Bricklayers, Carpenters, Plaisterers,
etc. imploy many Hands; Those that make the Materials for Building,
usch as Bricks, Lyme, Tyle, etc. imploy more; and with those that
Furnish the Houses, such as Upholsterers, Pewterers, etc. they are
almost Innumerable.
	In Holland, where Trade hath made the Inhabitants very Rich, It
is the Care of the government, to Incourage the Builder, and at the
Charge of the State, the Grafts and Streets are made. And at
Amsterdam, they have three times, at great Expence, Thrown down the
walls of thier City, and Dreined the Boggs, to make Room for the
Builder: For Houses are the Places where the Artificers make their
Goods, and Merchants Sell them; and without New Houses, the Trades and
Inhabitants could not Increase.
	Beside, There is another great Advantage to Trade, by Enlarging
of cities; the Two Beneficial Expences of cloathing and Lodging, are
Increased; Man being Naturally Ambitious, the Living together,
occasion Emulation, which is seen by Out-Vying one another in Apparel,
Equipage, and Furniture of the House; whereas, if a Man lived Solitary
alone, his chiefest Expence, would be Food. It is from this very
Custom; If the Gentry of France Living in Cities, with the Invention
of Fashion; that France, tho' a Country no way fitted for Trade, has
so great a share of it: It is from Fashion in Cloaths, and Living in
Cities, that the King of France's Revenues is so great, by which he is
become troublesome to his Neighbours, and will always be so, while he
can preserve Peace within his own Country; by which, those Fountains
of riches, may run Interrupted into his Exchequer.

Of the Chief Causes of the Decay of Trade in England, and Fall of the
Rents of Land.

	The Two Chief Causes of the Decay of Trade, are the many
Prohibitions and high Interest.
	The Prohibition of Trade, is the Cause of its Decay; for all
Forreign Wares are brought in by the Exchange of the Native: So that
the Prohibiting of any Foreign Commodity, doth hinder the Making and
Exportation of so much of the Native, as used to be Made and Exchanged












for it. The Artificiers and Merchants, that Dealt in such Goods, lose
their Trades; and the Profit that was gained by such Trades,and laid
out amongst other Traders, is Lost. The Native Stock for want of such
Exportation, Falls in Value, and the Rent of the Land must Fall with
the Value of the Stock.
	The common Argument for the Prohibiting Foreign Commodities, is,
That the Bringing in, and Consuming such Forreign Wares, hinders the
Making and Consuming the like sort of Goods of our own Native Make and
Growth; therefore Flanders-Lace, French-Hats, Gloves, Silks,
Westphalia-Bacon, etc. are Prohibited, because it is supposed, they
hinder the Consumption of English Lace, Gloves, Hats, Silk, Bacon,
etc. But this is mistaken Reason, and ariseth by not considering what
it is that Occasions Trade. It is not Necessity that causeth the
Consumption, Nature may be Satisfied with little; but it is the wants
of the Mind, Fashion, and desire of Novelties and things scarce, that
causeth Trade. A Person may have English-Lace, Gloves, or Silk, as
much as he wants, and will Buy no more such; and yet, lay out his Mony
on a Point of Venice, Jessimine-Gloves, or French-Silks; he may desire
to Eat Westphalia-Bacon, when he will not English; so that, the
Prohibition of Forreign Wares, does not necessarily cause a greater
Consumption of the like sort of English.
	Besides, There is the same wants of the Mind in Foreigners, as in
the English; they desire Novelties; they Value English-cloth, Hats,
and Gloves, and Foreign Goods, more than their Native make; so that,
tho' the Wearing or Consuming of Forreign Things, might lessen the
consuming of the same sort in England; yet there may not be a lesser
Quantity made; and if the same Quantity be make, it will be a greater
Advantange to the Nation, if they Consumed in Foreign Countries, than
at home; because the Charge, and Imploy of the Freight, is Gained by
it, which in bulky Goods, may be a Fourth Part of the whole Value.
	The particular Trades that expect an Advantage by such
Prohibition, are often mistaken; For if the Use of most Commodities
depending upon Fashion, which often alters; the Use of those Goods
cease. As to Instance, Suppose a Law to Prohibit Cane-Chairs, (which
are already in use amongst the Gentry, The Cane-Chairs being grown too
Cheap and Common) or else, they may lay aside the Use of all Chairs,
Introducing the Custom of Lying upon Carpets; the Ancient Roman
Fashion; still in Use amongst the Turks, Persians, and all the Eastern
Princes.
	Lastly, If the Suppressing or Prohibiting of some sorts of Goods,
should prove an Advantage to the Trader, and Increase the Consumption
of the same sort of our Native Commodity: Yet it may prove a Loss to
the Nation. for the Advantage to the Nation from Trade, is, from the
Customs, and from those Goods that Imploys most Hands. So that, tho'
the Prohibition may Increase, as the Consumption of the like sort of
the Native; yet if it should Obstruct the Transporting of other goods
which were Exchanged for them, that Paid more custom, Freight, or
Imployed more Hands in making; the Nation will be a loser by the
Prohibition: As to Instance, If Tobacco or Woollen-Cloth were used to
Exchange for Westphaly-Bacon, The Nation loseth by the Prohibition,
tho' it should Increase the Consumption of English-Bacon; because the
First, Pays more Freight and Custom; and the Latter, Imploys more
Hands. By this Rule it appears, That the Prohibiting of all unwrought
Goods, such as raw Silk, Cotton, Flax, etc. and all Bulky goods; such












as Wines, Oyls, Fruits, etc. would be a Loss to the Nation; because
nothing can be sent in Exchange that Imploys fewer Hands than the
First, or Pays greater Freight than the Latter.
	But all Trading Countries Study their Advantage of Trade, and
Know the difference of the Profit by the Exchange of wrought Goods,
for unwrought: And therefore, for any Nation to make a Law to Prohibit
all Foreign Goods, but such only as are most Advantageous; Is to put
other Nations upon making the same Laws; and the Consequence will be
to Ruine all Foreign Trade. For the Foundation of all Forreign Trade,
is, from the Exchange of the Native Commodities of each Country, for
one another.
	To Conclude, If the bringing in of Foreign Goods, should hinder
the making and consuming of the Native, which will very seldom happen;
this disadvantage is not to be Remedied by a Prohibition of those
Goods; but by Laying so great Duties upon them, that they may be
always Dearer than those of our Country make: The Dearness will hinder
the common Consumption of them, and preserve them for the Use of the
Gentry, who may Esteem them, because they are Dear; and perhaps, might
not Consume more of the English Growth, were the other not Imported.
By such duties, the Revenue of the Crown, will be increased; and no
Exceptions can be taken by any Foreign Prince or Government; Since it
is in the Liberty of every Government, to lay what Duty or Imposition
they please. Trade will continue Open, and Free; and the Traders,
Enjoy the Profit of their Trade: The Dead Stock of the Nation, that is
more than can be Used, will be carried off, which will keep up the
Price of the Native Stock, and the Rent of the Land.
	The next cause of the Decay of Trade in England, and the Fall of
Rents, is, That Interest is higher in England, than in Holland, and
other places of great Trade: It is at Six per cent in England and at
Three in Holland; For all Merchants that Trade in the same sort of
Goods, to the same Ports, should Trade by the same Interest.
	Interest is the Rule of buying and Selling: And being higher in
England, than in Holland; the English Merchant Trades with a
Disadvantage, because he cannot Sell the same sort of Goods in the
same Port, for the same Value as the Dutch Merchant. The Dutch
Merchant can Sell 100 l. worth of Goods, for 103 l. And the English
Merchant must Sell the same sort, for 106 l. to make the same Account
of Principal and Interest.
	Besides, And the English Merchant hath the same Disadvantage in
the Return of the Goods he buys; for the Dutch Merchant making his
Return in the same sort of Goods, can under-Sell him.
	By this Difference of Interest, Holland is become to be the great
Magazine, and Store-House of this Part of Europe, for all sorts of
Goods: For they may be laid up cheaper in Holland, than in England.
	It is impossible for the Merchant when he has Bought his goods,
To know what he shall sell them for: The Value of them, depends upon
the Difference betwixt the Occasion and the Quantity; tho' that be the
Chiefest of the Merchants Care to observe, yet it depends upon so many
Circumstances, that it's impossible to know it. Therefore if the
plenty of the goods,has brought down the Price; the Merchant layeth
them up, till the Quantity is consumed, and the Price riseth. But the
English Merchant, cannot lay up his, but with Disadvantage; for by
that time, the Price is risen so as to pay Charges and Interest at Six
per cent the same Goods are sent for from Holland, and bring down the












Price: For they are laid up there, at three per cent and can therefoer
be sold cheaper.
	For want of Considering this, in England, many an English
Merchant has been undone; for, though by observing the Bill of Lading,
he was able to make some Guess of the Stock that was Imported here;
and therefore, hath kept his Goods by him for a Rise: But not knowing
what Stock there was in Holland, hath not been able to sell his Goods
to Profit, the same Goods being brought from thence before the Price
riseth high enough to pay Ware-House-Room, and Interest.
	So that, now the great part of the English Trade is driven by a
quick Return, every Day Buying and Selling, according to a Bill of
Rate every day Printed. By this Means, the English Trade is narrowed
and confined, and the King loseth the Revenue of Importation, which he
would have, if England were the Magazine of Europe; and the Nation
loseth the Profit, which would arise from the Hands imploy'd in
Freight and Shipping.
	Interest being so high in England, is the Cause of the Fall of
Rents; for Trade being confined to a Quick Return: And the Merchant
being not able to lay up Foreign Goods, at the same Interest as in
Holland, he Exports less of the Native; and the Plenty of the Native
Stock Brings down the Rent of Land; for the rest of the Land that
produceth the Stock, must fall, as the Price of the Stock doth.
	Whereas, if Interest were at the same Rates as in Holland, at
Three per cent it would make the Rent more certain, and raise the
Value of the Land.
	This Difference of Three per cent is so Considerable, that many
Dutch Merchants Living in Holland, having Sold their Goods in England;
give order, to put out their Stock to Interest in England; thinking
That a better Advantage than they can make by Trade.
	It will raise the Rent of some Estates, and preserve the Rent of
others: For the Farmer must make up his Account, as the Merchant doth;
the Interest of the Stock, must be reckoned, as well as the Rent of
Land: Now if the Farmer hath 300 l. Stock, upon his Farm, that is so
easily Rented, that he lives well upon it; he may add 9 l. per annum
more to the rent, when the interest is at three per cent and make the
same Account of Profit from the Farm: As he doth now Interest , is at
six per cent. And those Farmers that are hard rented, having the same
stock, will have 9 l. per annum Advance in the Account, towards the
Easing the Rent: Fro altho' the Farmer gets nothing more at the Years
end, yet in making up of Account, towards the Easing the Rent: For
altho' the Farmer gets nothing more at the Years end, yet in making up
of Account, there must 9 l. add to the Value of Land, and taken from
the Account of the Stock. If Interest were at Three per cent there
would always be a Magazine of Corn and Wooll in England,which would be
agrat Advantage to the Farmer, and make his Rent more certain; for
there are Years of Plenty, and Scarcity; and there are more Farmers
undone by Years of great Plenty, than Recover themselves in Years of
Scarcity; for when the Price is very low, the Crop doth not pay the
Charge of Sowing, Farming, and Carrying to Market; and when it is
Dear, It doth not fall to all Mens fortune that were losers by Plenty,
to have a Crop: Now if Interest were at three per cent Corn and Wooll
in Years of great Plenty, would be Bought and Laid up to be Sold in
Years of Scarcity. The Buying in Years of Plenty, would keep the Price
from Falling too low; and the Selling in Years of Scarcity, would












prevent it from Rising too High; by this means, a moderate Price,
being best upon Corn and Wooll; the Farmers Stock and Rent of Land,
would be more certain.
	But now Holland being the great Magazine of Corn, Man will Lay up
any considerable Quantity in England at Six per cent when he may
always Buy as much as he wants, that was Laid up at Three per cent and
may bring it from thence, as soon, and as Cheap, into any Parts of
England, as if it were laid up here.
	Thirdly, If Interest were at Three per cent the Land of England,
would be worth from Thirty six, to Forty Years Purchase; for Interest,
sets the Price in the Buying and Selling of Land.
	The bringing down of Interest, will not alter the Value of other
Wares; for the Value of all Wares, arriveth from their Use; and the
Dearness and Cheapness of them, from their Plenty and Scarcity: Nor
will it make Mony more Scarce. For if the Law allow no more Interest,
than Three per cent they that live upon it, must Lend at that rate, or
have no Interest; for they cannot put it forth any where else to
better Advantage. but if it be supposed, that it may make Mony scarce,
and that it may be a Prejudice to the Government, who want the Advance
of the Mony; It may be provided for, by a Clause, that all that Lend
Mony to the King, shall have 6 l. per cent; such Advantage would make
all Men lend to the Government: And the King will save two per cent by
such a law.
	The seeming Prejudice from such a law, is, It will lessen the
Revenue of those who live upon Interest: But this will not be a
General Prejudice; for many of those Persons have Land as well as
Mony, and will get as much by the Rise of one, as the fall of the
other. Besides, many of them, are Persons that live Thriftily, and
much within the Compass of their Estates; and therefore, will not want
it, but in Opinion. they have had a long Time, the Advantage of the
Borrower; for the Land yielding but 4 l. per cent and the Interest
being at 6 l. per cent a new Debt is every Year contracted of 2 l. per
cent more than the Value of the Debt in Land will pay, which hath
Devoured many a good Farm; and eat up the Estates of many of the
Ancient Gentry of England.
	Moses, that Wise Law-Giver, who designed, that the Land divided
amongst the Jews, should continue in their Families; forbid the Jews
to pay Interest, well knowing that the Merchants of Tyre, who were to
be their near Neighbours, would, by Lending Mony at Interest, at last
get their Lands: And that this seems to be the Reason, is plain; For
the Jews might take Interest of Strangers, but not pay; for by taking
Interest, they could not lose their Estates.
	The Lawyers have invented Intails, to preserve Estates in
Families; and the bringing down of Interest to three per cent will
much help to continue it; because the Estates being raised to double
the Value, will require double the time, after the same Proportion of
Expence to Consume it in.
	The raising the Value of Land, at this Time, seems most
necessary, when the Nation is Engages in such a Chargeable War: For
the Land is the Fund that must support and preserve the Government;
and the Taxes will be lesser and easier payd; for they will not be so
great: For 3 sh. in the Pound, is now 133 1/2 Part of every Mans
Estate in Land, reckoning at Twenty Years Purchase. But if the Value
of the Land be doubled, it will be the 226 Part of the Land,which may
be much easier born.











	Campinella, who Wrote an 100 years since, upon considering of the
great Tract of the Land of France; says, That if ever it were United
under one Prince, it would produce so great a Revenue; it might give
Law to all Europe.
	The Effect of this Calculation, Is since, seen by the Attempts of
this present King of France: And therefore, since England is an
Island, and the Number of Acres cannot be Increased; It seems
absolutely necessary, That the Value of them, should be raised to
Defend the nation against such a Powerful Force: It will be some
Recompence to the Gentry, whose Lands must bear the Burthen of the
War, to have the Value of their Estates Raised; which is the Fund and
Support of the Government; Is a great Advantage to the whole Nation;
and its the greater, because it doth not Disturb, Lessen, nor Alter
the Value of any Thing else.

	FINIS.

ÿ