Answered.

It is the Wisdom of our Neighbours, finding the great Advantage arising by Dying our Manufacture, to make a Law that no Dyed Goods shall be Imported into their Dominions.

It must necessarily then follow, that it is our Wisdom, if we permit our Neighbours to have all the Profitable use of the Manufacturing of our Goods, to make them pay a Duty for it, equi­volent [Page 8]to the charge of Dying (if we can without hindring our Trade) And we can do it, unless they Countermine us one of these Three ways,

• 1. They must bring People to wear no Cloaths. Or,
• 2. They must wear some other sort of Cloaths. Or,
• 3. They must find another way to procure the same sorts of Goods as Cheap as from England, after this Duty is Im­posed.

If I defend our Nation, and carry these Three Points, you will allow, That England is able to put a Pole Tax upon the whole World.

1. The Duty will not arise to above One Shilling upon a Suit, and People will not go Naked, though their Clothes cost a little dearer.

2. We find Men so wedded to Cu­stom, that you have a hard matter to beat them out of their old way, in do­ing any work, though you had a new [Page 9]way never so much easier; be sure then they will have the same Cloaths they use to wear, if they cost One Shilling dearer, they will not change their Ha­bits for twice the value.

3. They must find a way to procure these same sorts of Goods as Cheap else­where as from England, after this Duty is Imposed.

Answ. Here it happens very luckily, for the greatest part of these Goods are the very Cheapest that are made in all parts of England, and yet take up the greatest quantity of Wooll, and are such as England doth in a most special manner exceed all the World in, as York-shire Cloth, Colchester Bays, Exeter Searges, viz. Long and Short Ells, Half Quarters, Ten Hundred Yards, and Ranters Nor­wich Cheynes, &c. For,

1. By long Experience, and continual Practice, we have got such a Slight and Skill to make these Goods, as well as all other, that no Nation can out do us.

2. We have greater Plenty of Wooll than any other, and therefore it is Cheaper here than in other Countreys, which plainly appears, if we consider that Men adventure their Lives and Estates to Transport our Wooll to other Nations, then it is evident that they are Incouraged by Price, or they would not do it.

3. When they give such Incourage­ment to bring them our Wooll, and these Goods take up such great Quantities of Wooll, our Neighbours will never set about making these Goods that are so Cheap. Now let us look back and we shall find,

First, That these are the Cheapest sorts of Goods.

Secondly, That we have the greatest slight and skill in making them.

Thirdly, That we have Wooll Cheap­est. And,

Fourthly, Nothing's got by all our Art and Skill.

Sure then our Neighbours cannot find a way to buy these Goods cheaper than from us, after this Duty is put up­on them; neither can any other Coun­trey out do us.

But to go through with the Answer to the latter part of the Objection, That the Trade is just at a Ballance, and the scale ready to turn against us; this is the reason we are forced to beat down our poor Workmen, that they can scarce Live, and 'tis as much as we can do to maintain our Trade; we are under sold in the Streights, &c.

Answ. The Trade comes to a Ballance and many times turns against us, but our own Manufacture are in both scales, which comes to pass by this means.

The duties of our Dye Stufs are very high, so that our Neighbours dye our Goods cheaper than we do, therefore they are carryed to other Countreys and Dyed, and then sent to the Streights, where our Merchants are under sold by [Page 12]our own Goods: We may thank our Hambrough Merchants and others for this: Against whom have the poor Makers Petitioned many time? but a­gainst the Hambrough Company, whom they did set forth, in their Petitions, to be Ruiners and Destroyers of their Trade.

Now if this Duty be Imposed, our Merchants will be able to Trade again with our own Goods, for they are no other then our own in other mens hands, that can stand in competition with us; it will then necessarily follow, that to set our Merchants even with Forreigners in their Trade, you must impose this du­ty on Whites, or take of half the duty of Dye-stufs, (which is a thing not fit to be named) for we cannot Trade un­less we betray our Nation, as some do, who send out our Goods to be Manu­factured else where; and what difference is there between this and the sending abroad our Wooll? It is Spun, Weaved, [Page 13]and one third Dressed; but Spinners and Weavers are slaves to Forreigners, and neither King nor Subject get any thing by these Goods, which are two thirds of the Nations Manufactury, and tends only to our shame and dishonour: To whom shall the Trade go from us? when it requires all the Goods which can be made in the whole World; as for in­stance the last year it swallow'd up all the Wooll in the Nation.

This is not a Burthening but an Ea­sing of the Trade: Why should not we be able to Sell our own Goods in the Streights as Cheap as our Neighbours?

We may observe from the scarcity of Wooll last year, the great advantage which hath accrued to Trade by the act of burying in Woollen; there are near Ten thousand Parishes in England and Wales, and if you Compute one to dye a week out of a Parish, one with another, and allow four pounds of Ruf Wooll, be­fore ti's Manufactured, in a Burying [Page 14]Suit, 'tis Forty Thousand Pounds of Wool buryed every week, which is about One Thousand Tun a year buryed, and is a great advancement to Trade.

It would be a good answer to the Petitions of the Poor Trades-men, if we find out another Expedient like to this, and lay a small Tax of Two Shilings the year to be paid at Sixpence per Quarter by all those that wear any other then Flannel Shirts, and if the People should all come to this, and avoid the Tax, we may compute it thus, allow five-hundred People in a Parish, and these have two Shirts each every year, and two pound of Ruf Wooll must be allowed to make a Shirt, which shall scarce be above one when made, so that here is four pound of Wooll consumed more then now by five hundred in every Parish, which will be a Tun in a year, and ten thousand Parishes is Ten thousand Tun, which will be con­sumed in one year, but if you will allow but Two hundred and fifty in a Parish, [Page 15]then 'tis Five Thousand Tun; here you see what a Great Consumption this will make of the Woollen Manufacture; this will advance Trade and make goods dear­er, and then shall be a quiker Trade and greater price, and quite contrary to the Hambrough Companies Notion, who would bring Goods for cheapeness, like dirt, to advance Trade: Thus I have cast my two Mites into your Treasury, where I leave it to have that use made of it which your Wisdom shall direct: And Humbly Pray, if this pass into an Act, that as it will be of Mighty Advantage to the Dyers, so if this House think fit, for the Incouragement of all other Persons that study the Promotion of Trade and the Welfare of the English Nation, a Clause may be Inserted, That the Dyers pay the Proposer One Farthing a Piece for all Goods charged by this Act, which shall be Dyed during his Life, which can be but for a little while, he being in the Fiftieth Year of his Age.