THE IMPERIAL COMMONWEALTH CHAPTER I THE EARLY GROWTH OF INDUSTRIES THE growth of the British Commonwealth has been a slow process politically, evolving from a sovereignty vested in a king to a sovereignty vested in a king and Parliament. Commercially it has expanded from a country of little activity to a country whose business operations rank among the foremost in the world. Lord Bacon, writing of the City of London-and what he says of the City is applicable to the Commonwealthremarks that Aristotle noteth well "that the nature of everything is best seen in its smallest portions and for that cause he enquireth of the nature of a Commonwealth first in the simple conjugations of man and wife, parent and child, master and servant, which are in every cottage, even so likewise the nature of this great city of the world and the policy thereof must be sought in mean concordances and small portions." In this sense the growth of the Imperial Commonwealth is the story of the growth of the family and its connections; the human element runs through it, and may be perceived in the desires of the peoples to improve their spiritual and material condition. The early industries of England were few, and these were mostly confined to the South-East and the West of the land; divided from the Continent by the sea, England had to rely on her natural resources for support. She possessed an equable climate, a land well wooded and watered, potteries, tin, iron, lead mines and coal, cattle and large flocks of sheep. Her coal and iron at first were of little importance, although they are now of the greatest; for many years her commerce with the Continent was mainly in the hands of foreigners, Germans of the Hanseatic League known as Easterlings, and Flemish and Belgian merchants called Westerlings. They resorted to her shores to sell cloth and a variety of commodities, some of which, such as spices, were exported from the East; in return they purchased raw material, lead, tin and hides, but principally wool. For long these foreign merchants were welcomed and obtained exceptional privileges; the great majority of them stayed forty days at a time, when, having discharged their business, they returned home with the profits of their venture. The conquest of England by William I brought the Norman invaders, who became permanent settlers; in their train followed architects, builders, artists and weavers. They built cathedrals and churches, practised the fine arts and introduced the making of fabric. The close connection with Rome led to the coming of Italian ecclesiastics in whose retinue were many conversant with Italian trade. Flemings and others crossed the seas from Flanders and introduced their crafts. England, however, had no definite commercial policy till a later period. Many towns had charters and privileges which were not conducive to national policy. The progress of newly introduced industries was necessarily slow, and was often interrupted by civil commotions. The evolution of a system of law was only gradual. The reign of Edward I saw the beginnings of constitutional and legal reform; the reign of Edward III witnessed the quickening of industry. The two movements proceeded, as might have been anticipated, in a directly logical order, the constitutional change preparing the way for the industrial, for before industry could explain its wants it required a medium by which to express them. It found this through a Parliament in which sat burgesses from the towns. As soon as industry made its wants heard it proceeded with no uncertain voice to determine a commercial policy for the country. In the reign of Edward III a new word crept into the recitals or preambles of Acts of Parliament. The Parliamentary draftsman or the Clerk to the Parliament expressed that a statute was made for the benefit of the people. No doubt these preambles were based on wordings of petitions presented to the House of Commons from the Commonalty. Thus a statute of 14 Edw. III recited its enactment for the peace and quietness of the people. By the time of Richard II statutes were passed for the common profit of the realm, for the quietness and tranquillity of the people. In the reign of Henry IV the phrasing purported to nourish the unity, peace and concord of all parties within the realm. Late in the reign of Henry VI statutes were passed for the weal of the people and the common profit of all the realm. With the coming of the Tudors the expression Commonwealth definitely made its appearance. The Commonwealth and the public weal became synonymous terms, and lastly the country adopted the Commonwealth as a title to express that it existed for all the people. Commercial policy, it has already been stated, was directed to meet the desire of the people to improve their conditions. The early door to prosperity lay through wool. During the reigns of the three Edwards the Englishman sold wool to the foreign merchant and received cloth in exchange. The wool, carried across Channel, was manufactured into cloth at towns such as Bruges, Ypres and Poperinghe. With the growth of population it was found that the rearing of sheep was not an occupation which afforded employment in sufficient ratio to the increase. Nobles and abbots grew rich from the profits of its sale, but few shepherds were needed to tend great flocks of sheep. Many factors now united to determine the country to establish new industries and to enlarge and improve existing ones. It was computed that the Englishman sold his wool and saw it returned to him in the manufactured article at seven times the price at which he had sold it. With improvements constantly introduced in manufacturing munitions many new industries became essential as means of defence. King, Parliament and people now began by a series of protective measures, some tentative in character, many subsequently repealed, to establish an industrial system. During this transitory period England was generally, but not always, self-supporting in the matter of foodstuff, but her wine was poor and it was found desirable to supplement it from the vintages of France. Some tendency was exhibited towards a free trade system in the reign of Edward III when the Kingship of England and the Duchy of Guienne were vested in one sovereign, and when excellent trade relationships existed with Brabant and Flanders. Underlying the dynastic reasons which led to wars between France and England there were also substantial commercial causes. The King of France was seeking the unity of France, but found great obstacles in the existence of such powerful fiefs as Guienne and Flanders. Edward III had similar aims; his wars in Wales and against Scotland were attempts to unite Great Britain. The conquest of Flanders by France seemed not improbable, but it would have endangered the Flemish manufacturing interests and interfered with their export of English wool. France was always willing to assist Scotland in her struggles with England so as to weaken a formidable opponent. It might have been thought by Edward III that the trade interests of Guienne as an exporter of wine would have drawn her so closely to England as to render a commercial federation between England, France and Guienne possible. Such a federation would have proved a barrier to the further expansion of France. During the greater portion of the reign of Edward III Canon Cunningham traces the working of this idea which loomed through the battle lust of Crécy and Poitiers but faded with the failure of the Black Prince's administration in the South of France. With this exception the commercial policy of England was wholly Protectionist in character, and remained so till nearly the first half of last century. During the reigns of the Lancastrians and Yorkists commercial policy was directed to keeping foreign merchants strictly to their business of selling merchandise they imported by wholesale, not allowing them to become retailers. When, however, privileges based upon ancient charters were claimed by towns to purchase off foreign merchants wine and foodstuffs in order to enhance prices unduly on their way to the consumer, the prohibition against retailing was withdrawn. Restrictions on the sale of wool were directed to ensure a sale at the highest price by offering it to foreign merchants through certain defined markets in staple towns where competition would be likely to increase prices. Its disposal, however, through special markets was also a revenue measure to enable the customs to be more easily collected. There was nothing in the principles on which commercial policy was then based which differed from those pursued by a business man of the present day; of buying in the lowest and selling in the highest market. The institution of staple towns afforded him the opportunity required. By selling wool at the highest price and by the restrictions on the sale of imports, especially on rich articles of dress such as furs, probably brought by German merchants from their factory at Nijni Novgorod, and by sumptuary laws, it was sought to secure a favourable balance of trade and increase the capital of the country. The success of this policy was undeniable, for without an increase in the spending power of the people there would have been no means to purchase imported furs and the commodities of Italian towns. From the time of Richard II legislation proceeded generally at the instance of the producers. It was often, however, regulated to meet the needs of the consumers, and honesty in manufacturing was required. A statute of Henry VI in 1442 is an instance of such legislation. Its preamble says that whereas worsted was somewhat a good merchandise and greatly desired and loved in the parts beyond the sea, now, because that it is of false work and false stuff, no man thereof taketh regard, which is a great danger to the King's customs. Worsted was a Norfolk industry: it was directed that four wardens of Norwich and two from the county should be selected from worsted weavers to regulate its manufacture. Another statute illustrates an attempt to combine the interests of the corn growers with those of the consumers. The export of corn had been prohibited. It was now allowed when the price of wheat did not exceed 6s. 8d. a quarter and barley 3s. 4d. As abundance of corn glutted markets, lowered prices and impoverished the growers, the interests of the consumers were compelled to |