A discourse about trade wherein the reduction of interest in money to 4 l. per centum, is recommended : methods for the employment and maintenance of the poor are proposed : several weighty points relating to companies of merchants, the act of navigation, naturalization of strangers, our woollen manufactures, the ballance of trade, and the nature of plantations, and their consequences in relation to the kingdom are seriously discussed : and some arguments for erecting a court of merchants for determining controversies, relating to maritime affairs, and for a law for transferrance of bills of debts, are humbly offered.

Suppliment.

THE fore-going Discourse I Wrote in the Sickness-Summer at my Country-Habitation, not then intending to publish it, but only to communicate it to some Honourable and Ingenious Friends of the present Parliament, who were pleased to take Copies of it for their own deliberate consideration and digestion of the Prin∣ciples therein asserted; which at first were strange to them, as I expect they will be to most others, till they have spent some time in thinking on them; after which, I doubt not but all Men will be convinced of the Tru••h of them, that have not some private Interest of heir own against them, external to the

general Good of the Kingdom. For sure I am they have a Foundation in Nature, and that according to the excellent, Sr Wil∣liam Petty's Observation in his late Dis∣course, concerning Taxes, Res nolune male Administrare: Nature must and will have its course, the matter in Eng∣land is prepared for an Abatement of In∣terest, and it cannot long be obstructed, and after the next Abatement, who ever lives fourty Years longer, shall see a second Abatement; for we shall never stand on even ground in Trade with the Dutch, till Interest be the same with us, as it is with them.

His Majesty was graciously pleased at the opening of the last Session of this Parliament, to propose to the Conside∣ration of both Houses, the Ballancing of the Trade of the Nation; to effect which, in my opinion, the Abatement of Interest is the first and principal Engine which ought to be set on work, which notwithstanding, I should not have presumed to expose it to publick censure, on my own single Opinion, if I had not had the concurrance of much better Judgments then my own;

having never seen any thing in Print for it (though much against it) until the latter end of Ianuary last; at which time, a Friend whom I had often dis∣coursed with upon this subject, met with by accident a small Tract to the same purpose, Wrote near fifty years ago, which he gave me, and I have, for publick Good, thought fit to annex it hereunto, verbatim.

The Author of the said Tract, by the stile thereof, seems to have been a Coun∣try Gentleman, and my Education hath mostly been that of a Merchant, so I hope that going together, they may in some measure, supply the defects of each other.

Another Reason that induced me to to the Printing of them together, is, because what he Wrote then, would be the consequences of the Abatement of Interest from ten to six per cent. I have, I think, fully proved to the Conviction of all Men not wilfully blind, have been the real effects thereof, and that to a greater proportion then he did premise, every Paragraph whereof was Writ by me, and Copies thereof delivered to se∣veral

worthy Members of this Parliament, many Months before ever I saw or heard of this, or any thing else Writ or Prin∣ted to the like purpose.

What I have aimed at in the whole, is the good of my Native Country, o∣therwise I had not busied my self about it, for I want not employment sufficient of my own, nor have reason to be out of love with that I have.

The several Particulars in the begin∣ning of this Treatise, relating to Trade, I have only hinted in general terms; ho∣ping that some abler Pen, will hereaf∣ter be incited for the service of his King and Country, to enlarge more particular∣ly upon them.

Before I conclude, though I have studi∣ed brevity in the whole, I cannot omit the inserting of one Objection more, which I have lately met with, to the main design of this Treatise, viz.

Object. It is said that the lowness of Interest of Money in Holland, is not the EFFECT OF LAWS, but proceeds only FROM THEIR ABUNDANCE THEREOF, for that in Holland,

there is no Law limitting the rate of Usury.

Answ. I answer, that it may be true, that in Holland there hath not lately been any Law, to limit Usury to the present rate it is now at, i. e. three or four per cent; although most certain it is, that many years since, there was a Law that did limit it to five or six at most: And by consequence, there would be a renew∣ing of that Law to a lesser rate, were it necessary at this time; It having always been the Policy of that People to keep down the Interest of their Money, three or four per cent, under the rate of what is usual∣ly paid in their Neighbouring Countries, which (being now naturally done) it is needless to use the Artificial Stratagem of a Law to Establish.

Answ. 2. Although they have no Law expresly, limitting Interest at pre∣sent, yet they have other Laws which we cannot yet arrive to, which do effect the same thing among them, and would do the like among us, if we could have them: One whereof,

is, their ascertaining REAL SE∣CURITIES by their PUBLICK REGISTERS: For we see evi∣dently, Money is not so much want∣ing in England as Securities, which Men account Infallible; a remarkable Instance whereof is, the East-India-Company, who can and do take up what Money they please, for four per cent at any time.

Another Law is, Their constitution of BANKS and LUMBARDS, whereby private Persons that have but tollerable credit may be supplied at easie rates from the State.

A third, and very considerable one, is, Their Law for Transferring Bills of Debt, mentioned in the beginning of this Discourse.

A fourth, which is a Custom, and in effect may be here to our Purpose ac∣counted as a Law, is the extraordinary Frugality used in all their Publick Affairs, which in their greatest Extreamities have been such, as not to compel them

to give above four per cent for the loan of Money. Whereas it is said, His Ma∣jesty in some Cases of exigency, when the National Supplies have not come in to answer the present Emergencies of Affairs, hath been inforced to give above the usual Rates to Gold-Smiths; and that encouraged them to take up great Sums from pri∣vate Persons at the full rate of six per cent, whereas formerly they usully gave but four per cent otherwise, in humane probability, Money would have fallen of it self to four per cent.

But again, to conclude, Every Nation does proceed according to peculiar Methods of their own in the Transactions of their publick Affairs and Law-making: And in this Kingdom it hath always been the Custom to reduce the Rate of Interest by a Law, when Nature had prepared the matter fit for such an alteration as now I say it hath. By a Law it was reduced from an unlimitted rate, to ten; and after∣wards from ten to eight; after that from eight to six. And through the Blessing of Almighty God, this King∣dom hath found, as I think I have ful∣ly

proved, and every Mans Experi∣ence will witness, prodigious success and advantage thereby. And I doubt not, through the like Blessing of God Almighty, but this Generation will find the like great and good effects, by the reduction of it from six to four, which is now at the Birth. And that the next Generation will yet see far greater Advantage by bringing it from four to three per cent.