1751. PROCEEDINGS of the Pany; for other nations fupported their forts and settlements upon that coast at the publick expence, whilst we left the whole upon the company, even for many years after we had taken their exclufive privilege from them; and tho' I fhall not pretend to justify their management, yet in fuch circumftances it was impoffible for them to avoid being undone. C The prefent melancholy condition of our African company is therefore no argument, Sir, against our efta. B blishing any new company even with an exclufive privilege, and much less a company where no fuch privilege is fo much as defired or intended; and as the fociety are to lay their accounts yearly before parliament, they will of course be continually under the infpection of parliament; confequently, if they should either by a by-law, or by any other means, attempt a monopoly, or to obstruct the separate traders in their feveral chambers, a remedy would certainly be applied the very next feffion. Then, D Sir, as to there being any stock job. bing defign in this project, if there ever was any fuch, or if any one concerned ever had fuch a defign, it is fufficiently guarded against by that claufe in the bill now before us, which prevents the transfer of any part of their stock for five years from the date of their charter; confequently we must fuppofe, that every man who does fubfcribe is refolved to rett fatisfied with the annual profit which he expects from the trade, or that he subscribes with the generous view of risking fo much money, for the fake of fetting up a trade that may be of infinite advantage to his country. POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 283 materials made ufe of in building the fhips, and making the nets; and most of these we may already have from our northern colonies in America. I may, perhaps, Sir, be a little too fanguine in my hopes, but I do hope A that in a few years our fifheries upon our own coafts, at home and in America, will be a greater advantage to this kingdom, than the mines of Mexico and Peru ever were to the kingdom of Spain; and my hopes are founded upon the experience I have had of the goodness of our home-cured herrings, and the great increase of the confumption which may by cuftom and example be produced. Notwithstanding the prevailing opinion, which has been induftrioufly propagated by the Dutch and their agents, that the Dutch herrings are better, and more fit for longkeeping, than thofe cured in Scotland, I know the contrary: When I was at Stockholm, I had an opportunity to make the experiment. I had the best of both that could be got for money or favour, and I found that the Scottish herrings were by much the best for winter keeping; and I have fince had here in England, an opportunity to try which were beft in their kind: I had a good many years ago a prefent of fome Scottish herrings fent me by the late earl of Eglintoun. Upon trial every gentleman agreed, that they were moft exquifite both for taste and flavour, and far exceeding any Dutch herrings they had every tafted; yet they were defpifed by the country F people: Even my own fervants could hardly be induced to taste them: So far does cuftom and fashion prevail, even as to what we eat and drink; but if herrings fhould once come to be frequently ferved up at the tables of the great, they would foon come to be coveted by the poor, and would be as cheap and as wholesome a food as any they now ufe; by which means the confumption might be vastly increased even Cc 2 here E I fay, Sir, of infinite advantage; for tho' the private undertakers can expect no great profit, yet the king- G dom in general will reap a vaft profit, because the whole produce of all the fish fold in foreign markets will be clear profit to the nation, deducting only what we pay for the rough 204 PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. May here at home; and if fmall quantities of the best fort were fent to our minifters at foreign courts, and to our merchants or factors who refide in foreign countries, a very great addition might be made to their confumption in every country of Europe; and as the fishing lies wholly upon our own coast, we might in a little time be able to underfel, and thereby exclude every one of our neighbours from any fhare in this trade. A B I fhall grant, Sir, that the northern ports lie more convenient for this trade, than the port of London, and that publick companies feldom do carry on any trade at fo fmall an expence as the fame may be carried on by private men; but as a great number of buffes must be fitted out C at once, in order to be able to fend running fhips with the firft catched herrings to fome of the foreign markets at least, as foon as the Dutch, a greater capital must be employed than any private man or company can advance; and as at the first fet. D ring up the trade, no profit can for fome years be expected, because the expence must be much greater than there will afterwards be any occafion for, therefore we cannot fuppofe, that any private man or company will at first engage in fetting it up: For these reafons, a publick company, with a large capital, must at first be erected, and London is the only place where fuch a company can be established. By erecting fuch a company at London, we may expect that numbers of rich men will fubfcribe large fums, without defir. ing any profit by the trade, becaufe they will fatisfy themfelves with the annuity allowed by the government; E F and when numbers of feamen, fishermen, and other forts of tradesmen, have by the company been bred up G to this trade, and the company have running fhips enough, ready to take private adventurers, private men may then engage in the trade with a probable view of advantage; and when numbers of them have engaged, I do believe, the trade of the company, fo far as relates to herrings for winter keeping, will be confined chiefly to that of fupplying the London markets. But to conclude, Sir; is it poffible to fuppofe, that a publick company, with a large capital, and under the annual inspection of parliament, can any way obftruct this trade, or dif courage private men from engaging in it? They can have the three per cent. only upon the fums employed in the trade: They can have the 30s. per ton only upon the fhips employed in the trade; and if they fhould fell fo cheap as to prevent any Upon this Junius Brutus flood up, and F none but rich men were to fub fchch as could spare to on board and carry to a foreign lofe what they fubfcribe into the ca market, the fish catched not only by eir own buffes, but by thofe of L-S-S. pital 1751. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 205 A pital ftock of the fociety, which ment. It is true, Sir, the Dutch have a company for the government of their herring fishery; but that company never had any joint stock, nor did they ever carry on any trade upon their own account: They were established only for preferving the credit of the commodity, and infpecting the conduct of all thofe concerned in the trade; for in Holland no man is allowed to go with his fhip upon the fishing trade, until he has got what they call an act of conBent from the magiftrates of the port he fails from, figned by their fecretary, and the teal of the company affixed; fo that the conduct of every mafter is under the controul of the magiftrates as well as the company; and if there be an objection to his former conduct, he can obtain no fuch act of confent. The herring fishery in Holland is not therefore carried on by any company with a joint flock, but every fhip, both buffes and vent-yaggers, or fifhing and running fhips, trades upon its own feparate account; and in many of them there are a great number of perfons concerned; for when a man cannot build, and fit out a bufs or vent-yagger upon his own fingle account, he collects money for that purpofe among his friends, and allows every one a fhare in proportion to the fum he advances, by which means every feaman on board has often a fhare: Nay, I have been told, that there is hardly a fervant, male or female, in their fishing towns, but what has a fhare in fome one or other of their herring fhips; and the master once a year accounts fairly and honestly, and pays to every one a proportionable fhare of the profits; for if he does not manage with the utmoft frugality, or if he attempts to make up a falfe account, he can never more obtain an act of confent, or be employed as a master in the herring fishery. The famous South Sea fcheme, D the Charitable Corporation, and the African company, which has been fo lately under our confideration, should make us extremely cautious, Sir, of giving the fanction of an act of parliament to any project, unless we are morally certain that it cannot E fail of fuccefs: Whereas, with refpect to the project now before us, I think I am morally certain, that it cannot meet with fuccefs. By a company trading with a joint ftock, no trade can be carried on with fuccefs, but fuch a one wherein great profits may be made, and confequently fuch a one as does not require the ftricteft ceconomy. But the herring fishery is a trade, in which even the Dutch, who are in poffeflion of it, can make but a very Imall profit, and by which the ad- G venturers could make no profit at all, if it were not managed with the greatest honesty and the ftricteft œconomy. F By this method we may fee, Sir, that the utmost care, the utmost in dustry, 206 PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. B duftry, and the utmost œconomy May the Salt-office, in order to intitle him, or the perfon from whom he bought the fish, to an exemption from the duties payable upon the falt made use of in curing the fish; and befides this certificate, the exporter must have a debenture from the collector of the customs of the port where fuch fish are entered out for exportation, and verified by the searcher as to the quantity, without which he cannot intitle himself to the bounty; from whence it is plain, that, as our laws now ftand, neither the company, nor any one elfe, can intitle themselves to any exemption or bounty, as to the fish fent by yaggers or running fhips directly from the buffes to any foreign market. I must therefore conclude, that if this company ever export any herrings to a foreign market, they will lofe above three per cent. upon all the money employed in that trade; and with regard to the home confumption, I am perfuaded, our private traders will be able to underfel D them more than three per cent. confequently, if they carry on any trade at all, they will lofe more than they are to receive from the government yearly, which will every year diminish their capital; and if they carry on no trade at all, as they are in that cafe to have no allowance from the government, their very expences of management will at last eat it up. E For explaining what I have faid, I muft obferve, Sir, that there was formerly a drawback allowed upon fifh exported, in lieu of the duties paid upon the falt wherewith they were cured; but as this occafioned great frauds, therefore by an act of the 5th of his late majefty, the curers of fish for foreign markets are now allowed to have the falt they fo ufe duty-free, and they are allowed F a fmall bounty in lieu of the former drawbacks; but then, to intitle themfelves either to this exemption or bounty, the fish fo cured must be brought to fome British port, in order to be from thence exported, and that the exporter may have a certificate from the proper officers of that port, certifying the quantities and qualities of the fish by him exported; which certificate is to be delivered to I If these things be confidered, Sir, believe it will be allowed, that my apprehenfions are well founded; and furely, my noble friend who spoke laft will not fay, that the ruin of widows and orphans is not a confequence that ought to be avoided. However, this confequence, alarming as it is, I fhould be willing to run the rifque of, if I thought that G the publick company by this bill to be erected, would in the least contribute to recover or promote the herring fishery; but the only attempt that has been made to fhew, that 1751. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 207 that a company may be useful for crude, indigefted fcheme as any that this purpose is, that they may fend was ever brought before parliament. out fuch a number of buffes, with They do not feem to have confidered running fhips to attend them, upon maturely what it is that has hitherto a joint account, as to be able to prevented our ingroffing this trade to fhare with the Dutch in the great ourselves alone. Before the union profits made by the firft of foreign A we were jealous of every thing that markets: Now, if they are to pay might tend to the enriching of Scotthe high duties upon all falt em- land; therefore we never thought of ployed in curing fuch herrings, and fetting up the herring fifhery, beto have no bounty, which, as I cause a great benefit would thereby have fhewn, must be their case, I have accrued to the people of that believe their profits will not be very country; and by that time the uniconfiderable, even upon the fifh thus B on was concluded, our trade, our fold at the first of foreign markets. manufactures, and our navigation were fo loaded with taxes and duties, by the heavy and neceffary wars we had been engaged in, that it was impoffible for our people to contend with the Dutch in any branch of C trade, especially one they had been long in poffeffion of; for those who can carry on any trade at the smallest expence, will always be able to fell cheapest, and by that means will ingrofs every foreign market. -D Besides this, Sir, they must labour under another very great difadvantage, on account of the duties payable in this kingdom upon many of the materials neceffary for fitting out and victualling their buffes or fifhing fhips By a calculation which, I find, was given in to the gentlemen called the committee on the British fishery, it is computed, that the duties to be paid on the feveral materials neceffary for building and victu- For this reafon, Sir, the commitalling a veffel of 75 tons, to be em- tee I have mentioned fhould have ployed in the herring fishery, that is confidered of the most proper and to fay, for victualling her for one fea- effectual methods for removing the fon only, amount to 150 1. of which weight of our taxes, from every above 74 1. is for the duties payable material neceffary for carrying on on the materials for victualling only, the herring fishery, and efpecially to which we must add 25 1. for du- the falt duty with refpect to the falt ties paid annually on the materials E employed for curing the fish exportneceffary for repairing the veffel and ed, or for victualling the fhip with fifhing tackle, all which is an expence falt provifions; and indeed, I wonthe Dutch are abfolutely free from; der they had not this more under and if to this extraordinary expence their confideration, when it appears, we add the intereft of the money, that they had a paper laid before we fhall find, that the high premium them by a worthy admiral, by which per ton to be allowed by this act, F they were informed, that in the year will do very little more than put our 1738, fome gentlemen fent out three herring fifhers upon an equal footing fifhing veffels and two running veffels to fish for herrings, that those gentlemen found they could both catch and cure their fifh as well as the Dutch, that they got first to the market both at Hamburgh and Bremen, and that they fold their fish at as high a price as any brought by the Dutch; but were obliged to give over the trade, because of the diffi with the Dutch. Thefe difadvantages, Sir, I fhall culties |