Page 32.

Page 49.

2. When the Romans became Mafters of Afia, the Perfians applied themfelves more to Trade, but chiefly embraced the Commerce of the Southern Sea.

3. Xenophon fpeaking of Athens mentions it as a City of great Trade, and well furnifhed with all Sorts of Commodities* for Traffick.

4. About fifty Years after the Reign of Minos, the Argonauts went to Colchis in Search of the Golden Fleece. Now altho' the Fable would give the Air of a military Expedition to this Enterprize; yet nevertheless there is fome Appearance that it was equally carried on by War and Merchandize. This Golden Fleece is a Mystery, which has been varioufly explained by the Ancients. Some fay it was the Profit arifing from the Wool of Colchis;

riod, that he is forced to glean all his Intelligence from the Laws of the Empire, as contained in the Theodofian Code. And this again is in fome measure the Cafe of these Memoirs. The Statute Books are not only the Compiler's best Authority, but chief Materials, till towards the latter End of Queen Elizabeth, when writing and printing came more into Ufe upon all Subjects. What is here felected from Mr. Huet, is all that appeared to have any Relation to the Subject in Hand.

*And no doubt but Cloth was one of them. A Fable afcribed to Demofthenes fuppofes that the People of Athens were well acquainted at least with the Nature of Sheep, and the Bufinefs of Shepherds.

He had ferved them with great Fidelity in the Station of an Orator, when upon a certain Occafion, apprehending to be delivered over to his Enemies, he told the Athenians his Countrymen the following Story. Once upon a Time the Wolves defired a League with the Sheep, upon this Condition, that the Caufe of Strife might be taken away; which was the Shepherds and the Maftiffs: This being granted, the Wolves without Fear made havock of the Sheep.' DRAPER'S Letters, p. 127.

And a Dialogue between Socrates and Ariftarchus fhews no less, that they were accustomed to Woolen Manufacture; for that the latter by the Advice of the former, in order to maintain his Sifters, Nieces and Coufins, in a Time of public Diftrefs, laid in a Provision of WooL; on which they worked from Morning to Night.'

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this; others, that it meant the + Gold that was taken out of the Rivers of the Country.

5. The City of Corinth, for its Land Trade, was, in Pag. 103. its Situation, the most commodious Staple || in all Greece;

from whence the drew fuch large Tolls, that Philip ufed to call her the Chain of Greece.

6. After the Defeat of the Pirates (by Pompey) Com- Pag. 111. merce (which had been fore interrupted) began to reestablish itself among the People who inhabited the Coast of the Mediterranean. Wherein that Commerce particu Pag. 112. larly confifted, is not fo easily known, because the ancient Authors, who chiefly applied themselves to preferve the most confiderable Events, have very much neglected this Part of Hiftory.

7. When Cafar fubdued the Belgians, the People of Vannes (which Strabo places among the Belgians) were obliged among others to give them Hoftages. But the Vannes chiefly carried on a confiderable Trade with Britain; and as they forefaw that Cæfar was about to attack the British Nation, they endeavoured to turn him from it. Now thefe People were more powerful than any others in those Quarters, by the Number and Strength of their Ships, which they maintained chiefly on Account of Trade with Britain.

8. Now altho' the Romans knew Britain, yet was it Pag, 113. hardly known to the Gauls; they were only apprized of its Coafts oppofite to them; and that by the Relation of their Merchants, who from time to time had traded with the Britons.

9. The Expeditions of Cæfar, and those which the Romans had made before his Time into Spain, did mightily promote Commerce in the Weftern Parts of Europe. The People of Belgium did not willingly admit Strangers upon that score: But the British Ports were open to foreign Merchants.

10. The

+ Might it not be both? (See §. 20. of this Chap.) And does it not plainly argue a Senfe the Ancients had of the Value of Wool and Woolen Manufacture, their Experience of the Ufe and Benefit thereof, and this before England (as we fhall fee) knew any thing of the matter?

And must not Wool, or Cloth, or both, neceffarily have been in the Number of thofe Staple Commodities at CoTinth?

Pag. 116.

10. The Spaniards, and Phænicians who had great Eftablishments in Spain, made frequent Voyages into the Western Parts of Britain, and into the adjacent Islands, which Antiquity comprized under one general Name of Caffiterides. The great Gain which they drew from the British Lead and Tin, induced them to make a Secret of it, left the Multitude of Buyers should diminish their Profits; and therefore a Phoenician Ship being close

purfued by one of the Romans, was by the Pilot run upon the Rocks, and split to pieces, and fhipwreck made of all its Cargo, that thereby he might decoy the Roman Veffel into the fame Difafter, left it fhould have found its Way to the great Mart of Tin, as Strabo tells us. The Phoenician Nation approving their Countryman's Conduct, made good unto him all the Damage he sustained by the Lofs of his Ship.

11. But the Romans being greedy after Gain, at length found out the Way to Britain. Strabo adds, that Publius Craffus making a Voyage to that Country, discovered the Way thither. 'Tis likely he meant Craffus the Father, who was flain in the Parthian Wars; for when he was Proconful, he made Wars against the Portugueze, and triumph'd over the Spaniards, and was informed by the Phoenicians and Carthaginians (inhabiting Cadiz) of the Trade of the Caffiterides. Yet I find better Reasons to attribute this Voyage to Craffus the younger, whom the Parthians put to Death together with his Father; for while he was Lieutenant under Cafar in the War with the Gauls, he fubdued the Vanni, and all the neighbouring Nations inhabiting the Western and Northern Coafts of that Country; and during his Abode among them, he was apprized of the Traffick they carried on with the Britons and the Inland Caffiterides; and being a young, valiant, enterprizing Hero, formed the Defign of vifiting in Person thofe Iflands, to be fully affured of the Relations made of them; or 'tis likely he was commiffioned by Cafar to take Cognizance of the Western Coafts of Britain, as Volufenus was to difcover the Eaftern and Southern Parts of the fame Island.

12. Craffus being nearer to Hibernia than any of Cafar's Lieutenants, he learned, without doubt, that that Ifland had good Harbours, and was much frequented by Merchants. In Strabe's Time, the Veffels that failed.

from

from Gallia towards the North, did not pass farther than Hibernia; for they then believed, that the more Northern Climates were altogether uninhabitable, by the Extremity of the Cold; but afterwards the Hibernian Harbours came to be more known than those of Britain. Tacitus tells us, that the People of Cornwal, by converfing continually with Foreigners, became more tractable and courteous than others of their Countrymen, as Diodorus Siculus likewife affures us. But as for the Inland and Northern Parts of the Ifland, and the adjacent little Iflands belonging to Britain, 'tis highly probable, that the Inhabitants thereof, notwithstanding the Conflux of Foreigners, did yet retain their natural Brutality and uncultivated Manners. And notwithstanding Solinus fays, that the Inhabitants of the Caffiterides did refufe to take Money for their Commodities, this is no Argument of their Ignorance, but was rather for the Furtherance of their Traffick; for the Britons that were known to CaJar ufed Money made of Copper or Iron, and paid Cafar their Tribute Money in thofe Coins.

13. Strabo tells us, that Corn, Cattle, Gold, Silver, Hides and Hounds were the Commodities furnished by the Britons; and speaking of the Caffiterides as making a Part of the fame, he adds Tin and Lead *. 'Twas from Pag. 118, the Weftern Parts of Britain and its adjacent Islands, their Tin and Lead came, which more than any other Commodity enriched the Country, and gave it the Name of Caffiterides.

14. As for the Dogs of Britain, they had them at Rome before the Cafarian Expedition into that Ifland; inafmuch as Strabo, and the Poet Gratius cited by Ovid, Pag. 120. make mention of them; and the Poem about hunting is ftill extant, wherein mention is made of the British Dogs, and the Ufe the Gauls made of them in their Wars, and the Romans in hunting.

15. The Merchandizes imported into Britain were, Salt, earthen Wares, Implements made of Copper, of Ivory, and Amber.

16. That we may have a juft Idea of the Traffick of Britain by Sea in Cafar's Time, we must understand

that

Not a word here of Sheep or Wool; Cattle and Herds always denoting Beafts, as Flocks do Sheep,

that their Veffels were made of light, pliant Wood covered with Leather *, which were then used in other Nations, and in these latter Times among the GreenPag. 122. landers. This was the State of the British Trade, until the Wars between Cæfar and Pompey made this Country Pag. 123. to be neglected by the Romans. And furely we cannot attribute the maritime Power of the Vanni, and their great Correspondence with the Britons to proceed from any other Caufe than their Sea Traffick, and Naval Negotiations.

Pag. 127.

Pag. 134.

Pag. 140.

Pag. 142.

Pag. 146.

17. But the principal Commerce of the Gauls was then carried on at Marfeilles; and Diodorus affures us, that the British Tin was brought by Land Carriage through the Heart of Gallia to that Place, as alfo to Narbonne.

18. Befides the Metals that were found in Spain, that Country afforded many other Merchandizes, viz. Wine and WOOL, with fine Stuffs and CLOTH, and fine Linen; which Inventions are attributed to them.

19. All the Commerce of Poland, and the Provinces depending on that Country, was only carried on in their Ports of the Baltick Sea. It was at thofe Places they fold the Merchandizes of their own Growth, fuch as Leather, WooL, &c.

20. Befides the Gold and other Metals of Calchis, the Pontus Euxinus alfo afforded Corn, Leather, Flax, Honey, Wax, Flocks of Sheep, &c.

21. The Tartars changed their Furs, Butter and Horfes with the Turks and Armenians for their Calicoes, Woolen Cloths, &c.

22. If the Books of Navigation that were written by Varro had yet remained, they would certainly have given Pag. 153. great Light into this Subject. In the Year of Rome 259 was inftituted the College of Merchants,

23. I think

Mr. Evelyn, in his Treatife of Navigation and Commerce (1674), inclines, upon the Authority of certain Writers, to think that the Structure of their Veffels was not altogether of fuch flight Materials; and Mr. Huet acknowledges it no irrational Belief, from the Account given by Julius Cafar himfelf, but that no Author has exprefsly faid as much; and fome have affirmed directly the contrary; and therefore, in regard it is uncertain Conjecture, he leaves the Matter undecided,