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condition of England was not so satisfactory as might be
desired. Among other provisions these three Acts authorised
the magistrates of Northumberland and Cumberland to levy
at the cost of the locality, armed bands for the protection of
life and property, and required parishes to keep blood hounds
for tracking marauders.
Both the shipbuilding and agricultural interests received
the attention of Parliament in 1685. An Act to encourage
the building of ships in England recites that since the imposition
of the coal duty "there hath been observed a more than
ordinary decay in building ships in England," and imposes a
tax of 5s. per ton on foreign-built ships, the revenue arising
therefrom to be applied to the relief of wounded and decayed
seamen, their widows, and orphans. The expression "more
than ordinary decay" would seem to imply that there were
pessimists in the land in that day, and if it were possible for
the draftsmen of the Act to once more visit the scenes of their
labour, they would probably be astonished to find that the
carrying trade of the world is now virtually in the hands of
England. The Act relating to agriculture (for the improvement
of tillage) explained an Act of his late Majesty "of ever
blessed memory," imposing duties on foreign corn and grain,
according to the current price of corn.
The Act granting customs duties to the King distinguishes
between tobacco imported from his Majesty's plantations in
America and foreign tobacco, the latter being subject to a
duty of sixpence a pound "beyond what it now pays," as
compared with an additional tax of threepence on the colonial
tobacco. The principal duties were £8 a "ton" on French
wine and vinegar, £10 on Spanish wines, and an additional
duty of ¼d. a pound on sugar imported from the plantations;
¾d. on common sugar; ½d. on pance sugar; 1¼d. on white
powder sugar, and 3d. on loaf sugar. Tea and coffee had
been introduced into this country about thirty years previously,