In obedience to your Commands, I here send you my Thoughts, of a Royal Fishery, and of a Council of Trade; and whither they are Projects fit for so Great a People, as the People of England to build on, I leave you to judge.

The first Sir, has been often try'd, and is just, as if England should set up a Royal Wooll Manufactory, and by virtue of a large House, many Subscripti­ons, and Officers to receive the Money, design'd to make a world of Woollen-Cloth; what the Consequence of such a Project will be, judge you: that is, Judge, whether the Publick Manufacture, will break the Private Manufactures, or the Private the Publick; and whether England can be Six-pence the better supposing either.

The other Sir, was Sir Walter Rawleigh's Project a hundred Years ago, only he calls that a State-Merchant which we call a Council of Trade.

Now Sir, whoever seriously considers, that England, after plowing the Seas a hundred Years, can show but Seven or Eight Millions by Trade, and that the Dutch in the same time, has actually rais'd above a Hundred Sir Walter Rawleigh, Sir John Burrows, and twenty more, but espe­cially the grow­ing Dutch and French Fisheries plainly shews, what England has lost, may lose, and may get by Fishing. Millions in Gold, with Seamen to defend it, out of England's Fish-Ponds, must sure own a Council of Trade, has signify'd very little to the English Nation; and that England by ne­glecting Fishing, especially the Newfoundland-Fishing, has not only lost Milli­ons which ought to be now in Englishmen's Pockets, but has given The French opportunity to raise Millions, and that Fleet we now see, A growing Fleet Sir, rightly consider'd; Mountains of Gold, as well as those Jewels Seamen, being to be rais'd by that Fishery.

Now Sir, that England has neglected this Rich Fishery, decay'd Bridport in Dorsetshire, that flourish'd upon making of Nets, and twenty places more, can witness: And indeed Sir, had the six or seven hundred Ships, England had on this Rich Fishery, encreas'd, as you know they ought to have done, instead of de­creas'd, the World must own, England might have sent abroad, as bold a Mes­sage now, as Queen Elizabeth did, which you know Sir, silences all ingeni­ous Writers upon Trade and Navigation in the Nation, and plainly shews they scribble and prattle to no purpose; and that if England's Power is ever to be rais'd, it must be by a National Fishery or Never Raised. But Sir, to do that, requires more Art, than most Men imagine, Eng­land's National Fishery, which has Vertue in't to get the Riches of the World, being to be rais'd without Six-pence ^†, when all the Money in the Nation, and Ten times as much, won't do't: And this Sir, being the subli­mest Lesson, in that great Art or Mystery call'd Commerce, or the Art of raising the Power of a People, I lay it before you; a Lesson Sir, if you carefully Learn, and can fairly demonstrate, to the Nation, how it may be practis'd, there's no doubt Sir, you may have what Reward you please, the true Art of Fishing being of more value to the English Nation than can be express'd, or indeed the Philoso­pher's-Stone, were there such a thing; for what's that Jewel Liberty, without this Art, or that Never-to-be-valu'd-enough Religion? for tho' it has pleas'd God, to bless the People of this Nation, with the Oracles of his Truth in their own Tongue, yet without this Art, how is it possible to defend these Sacred Oracles? for what's these inestimable Jewels, and all the Riches and Jewels in the Na­tion, without a Fleet? What's a Fleet without a growing National Fishery, or solid Nursery for Seamen? especially among Neighbours whose Power is ari­sing, who, you know, are Friends to Day for their Interest, and Enemies to [...]