of farms. A Board of Agriculture was meantime established, for ascertaining the state of husbandry in every district; for energizing the husbandmen; for instructing all those who are connected with lands: their reports evince a very improving agriculture every where, within the kingdom; and a very active spirit of improvement, upon better principles, appears to have gone forth in all parts of our country: hence, by a necessary progress, the body of the people, either as land-owners, or occupiers, became more skilful, more enterprizing, and more opulent; of consequence there was more land culti vated, with more knowledge, and more capital: so that from more cultivation, more skill and more capital, thus employed in agriculture, there were more of the products of land brought, every season, to market, from an improv ed husbandry, at home. But, since the demands of war have ceased, the prices of those products have fallen: this is a natural consequence; as price is always settled by the vibrations of supply and demand; the supply being greater, and the demand less; the prices must necessarily be less. Outcries have arisen in the country, as if our whole agricul ture were ruined. Those outcries merely arise, from the mutual complaints of landlord and tenant; of those landlords and tenants, who entered into improvident contracts during the war there is neither outcry, nor complaint, in those districts, where the landlords did not raise their rents, during the war, when it was idly supposed that rents would rise, without limitation. It does not, however, belong to my inquiry, to enter within the verge of those outcries and complaints. I have demonstrated what I undertook to prove, that the United Kingdom is infinitely better improved, than it ever was before; and of conse quence would sell for more: that the lands are every where cultivated with more skill and capital, with more

enterprize and labour; and of consequence must produce much more than they ever did before: it is thus apparent, that our agriculture has prospered greatly, during those long wars.

IV. OF OUR FOREIGN TRADE.

The next object of inquiry is, whether our commerce has kept pace with the progress of our agriculture, during our long enduring wars. The average of the three years 1755-56-57, shews the amount of the value of our exports, when the war of 1756 began, to have been £12,371,552

The value of the exports, when the war of 1793 began, appears, from the average of three years 1793-4-5, to have been

The value of the exports when the war of 1803 began, will appear, from a three years' average, ending with 1805, to have been

The greatest year of exports, during the war, was that of 1809; amounting to . . . . But this vast amount was far surpassed, by that of 1814, amounting to

24,753,867

33,614,902

50,301,763

56,591,514

From the Custom-house accounts, which have been made up to the 10th of October 1815, there is reason to believe, that the exports of 1815 have even surpassed the vast export of the preceding year. Such, then, was the prodigious augmentation of the foreign trade of Great Britain; while the British traders, owing to their capital and enterprize, and to the protection of the British fleets, in some measure engrossed the whole traffic of the commercial world; though the nation was embarrassed, but not obstructed, by the great demands, and smaller supplies

of bullion, owing chiefly to the convulsions of the American countries, and the continental system.

2dly. With regard to the trade of Ireland :

The value of the whole exports of Ireland in 1701 was only

In 1751

In 1801

In 1809

In 1814

£ 779,109

1,854,605

4,100,526

5,739,843

7,139,487

Now, it is quite evident to all, who are capable of reasoning on such subjects, that it required, both in Ireland and in Britain, more people and industry, more capital and enterprize, to export the cargoes of 1809 and 1814 from both, than the cargoes of 1801 and of 1751: and, whence did Great Britain and Ireland derive all those augmentations of enterprize and capital, of industry and people? The answer must be; from their own powers of reproduction, under a happy constitution, and a mild government.

V.

The fifth object of inquiry must be with regard to the shipping, which were necessary for exporting those vast cargoes:

quired to transport the exports of
the years 1755-56 and 57 were,

upon an average
of those years..
The quantity of tonnage, Bri-
tish and foreign, which were ne-
cessary for exporting the cargoes

of the years 1793-4 and 5, were

upon an average of those years.. 1,255,939 262,558 1,518,498

The quantity of tonnage, Bri

tish and foreign, which were necessary for exporting the cargoes of the

years 1803-4 and 5, were

upon an average of those years.. 1,470,520 589,404 2,059,924

The whole shipping, which

transported the great export of

1809, amounted to

The whole shipping, which transported the greater cargo of 1814, amounted to

..2,230,902

2,447,268

It is thus apparent, that shipping were successively found, for transporting these several cargoes, as our trade augmented, from various causes.

VI.

The sixth object of inquiry must be, what was the whole amount of shipping, which belonged to the British dominions, in the following periods; as the same were registered, under the directions of law. There were registered

Such, then, was the gradual but extensive increase of our shipping, since the year 1792; and such their general amount, at the end of 1814.

VII.-OF BULLION AND EXCHANGES.

The seventh object of inquiry must be, respecting bullion, exchanges, and the collateral questions, arising from these enigmatical topics.

What I published in 1811, on those litigated topics at that period, I see no reason to change: what I wrote was derived from the experience of the commercial world, and from the practice of daily business: what I then foretold has actually occurred. I then said, that what had happened before, as to the price of bullion, and the fluctuation of exchanges, would again happen, when the commercial pressures of the continental system were removed. That system, and its author, are both undone for ever. Commerce, and exchanges, have already begun to run in their usual channels. The exchanges have become favourable; and the prices of bullion have fallen. to five per cent. above the mint price of 31. 17s. 10 d., though the countries of bullion are agitated with desires of independence. In another country of agitations, the exchanges are, indeed, unfavourable, owing to the decline of prices, in all the products of agriculture. I do not learn that the Doctors in Political Economy have any other prescription for such a disorder, which is not unfrequent in Ireland, than patient perseverance in well doing.