Crade and Manufactures of the Province, 1705. LORD CORNBURY TO SEC. HODGES. [Lond. Doc. XVI.] The Trade of this Province consists chiefly in flower and biskett which is sent to the Islands in the West Indians, in return they bring Rum, Sugar, Molasses, and some times pieces of Eight and Cocoa and Logwood; to Europe Our people send Skins of all sorts, Whale Oyle and Bone, which are the only Commodity this Country sends to Europe, of its own produce as yet, but if they were encouraged, the people of this Province would be able to supply England with all manner of Naval Stores, Pitch, Tarr, Rosine, Turpentine, Flax Hemp Masts and Timber of all Kinds and Sizes, and very good in their Kinds. When I said on the other side that if the people were encouraged they would be able to supply England with all manner of Naval Stores, I mean (by encouraged) if they had a certain sure market for their produce; for as the Case now stands, they aply their land to Corn of all sorts, but chiefly Wheat, because they have a certain Market for that in the Islands, but if they had a sure market for Hemp and flax in England, they would greedily fall to the planting of hemp & Flax, because they want Commoditys, to make returns to England for the goods they take from thence. Besides if part of their lands were imployed to those uses, their Corn would fetch a better price; besides the want of wherewithall to make returns for England, sets mens witts at work, and that has put them upon a Trade which I am sure will hurt England in a little time; for I am well informed, that upon Long Island and Connecticut, they are setting up a Woollen Manufacture, and I myself have seen Serge made upon Long Island that any man may wear. Now if they begin to make Serge, they will in time make Course Cloth, and then fine; we have as good fullers earth and tobacco pipe clay in this Province, as any in the world; how farr this will be for the service of England I submit to better Judgments; but however I hope I may be pardoned, if I declare my opinion to be, that all these Colloneys, which are but twigs belonging to the Main Tree (England) ought to be Kept entirely dependent upon & subservient to England, and that can never be if they are suffered to goe on in the notions they have, that as they are Englishmen, soe they may set up the same manufactures here as people may do in England; for the consequence will be that if once they can see they can cloath themselves, not only comfortably but handsomely too, without the help of England, they who are already not very fond of submitting to Government would soon think of putting in Execution designs they had long harbourd in their breasts This will not seem strange when you consider what sort of people this Country is inhabited by. MR CALEB HEATHCOTE TO THE BOARD OF TRADE, 3 AUG. 1708. [Lond. Doc. XVII.] My Lords-This comes chiefly to ask pardon for all the trouble I have given your Lordships in my severall letters relating to the Naval Stores. What I aimed at chiefly therein was the service of my Nation & I do assure yor Lordships (notwithstands I may have been otherwise represented) is very dear to me. And what in the first place I aimed at by my proposals was, to have diverted the Americans from goeing on with their linen and Woollen Manufactorys & to have turn'd their thoughts on such things as might be usefull & beneficiall to Great Britain. They are already so far advanced in their Manufactoryes that 314 of ye linen and Woollen they use, is made amongst 'em; espetially the Courser sort, & if some speedy and effectual ways are not found to putt a stop to it, they will carry it on a great deal further, & perhaps in time very much to the prejudice of our manufactorys at home. I have been discoursed with by some to assist them in setting up a manufactory of fine stuffs, but I have for the present putt it by, & will for my own part never be concerned in yt nor any thing of yt nature, but use all the little intrest & skill I have to prevent it.' GOV. HUNTER TO THE ROARD OF TRADE. 12 NOVR 1715 [Lond. Doc. XX.] The Trade of this Province has consisted chiefly of Provisions, We may reckon it considerably [decreased] since the late Peace, by reason that the Spaniards do not permit our Vessels to come on their coasts, as hey did formerly, having lately, as I am well informed sent several ships, some of which are French with Spanish Commissns to Guard their Coasts from that Traffick, which formerly we had by private communications with them; and these Provinces raising much more than serves for their own consumption and that of the West Indies, I can think of no solid way of prevents the total decay of Trade, and consequently the ruin of the Provinces but by setting on foot and carrying vigorously the production of Naval Stores, and if hemp were not so bulky a commodity, we know experimentally that our swamps and low land will produce as good of that kind as any in the world. The People of this Town (N. York) and Albany, which make a great part of the Province wear no clothing of their own manufacture, but if the letters mentioned in your Lordships mean the Planters and poorer sort of Country people, the computat1 is rather less than more, but the several sorts are Coarser than what come from England; I know no way to prevent it, than by encouraging them to go on some manufactures that may be useful to England & beneficial to themselves, for few that are able to go to the expense of English manufacture do wear home spun, and a law to oblige such as are not able to go to that expense to do it, under penalties, would be equivalent to a law to compel them to 1 Col. Heathcote the writer of the above, was Member of the Council, and an applicant for a contract to supply the Crown with Naval Stores & some small sloops of War for coasting purposes. go naked, for your Lordships well know that Goods at 100 per cent advance are reckoned cheap here, nor does it consist with my knowledge that ever any home spun was sold in the shops. CADWALLADER COLDEN ON THE TRADE OF [Lond. Doc. XXII.] The Trade of New York is chiefly to Britain & the British Plantations in the West Indies; besides which we have our wines from Madeira & a considerable Trade with Curacoa; some with Surinam & some little private Trade with the French IslandsThe Trade to the West Indies is wholly to the advantage of this Province the Balance being every where in our favor so that we have money remitted from every place we trade with, but chiefly from Curacoa and Jamaica, these places taking off great quantitys of Flower for the Spanish Trade The Trade to Barbadoes is more considerable than to any one of the rest Provisions being carried thither not only for the supply of that Island but likewise for Transportation to the Spanish coast while the Assiento Factors were settled there, & to the French Islands, so that tho' we consume more of the produce of that Island in Rum Sugar & Molasses than of all the others put together we have money frequently remitted from thence on Bills of Exchange for England The Trade to Madeira is to our Loss this Province consuming more wine from thence, than can be purchased with our commodities which obliges the Merchant either to send money or to pay the Ballance of Bills of Exchange for London But whatever advantages we have by the West India Trade we are so hard put to it to make even with England, that the money imported for the West Indies seldom continues six months in the Province, before it is remitted for England The Current Cash being wholly in the Paper Bills of this Province and a few Lyon Dollars In the time of the last war when the great scarcity of provisions happened in France, we had a very profitable Trade with Lisbon for wheat, by which several have made estates but that Trade |