Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Annals of Commerce, Manufactures, Fisheries, and Navigation, Vol. 2 of 4: With Brief Notices of the Arts and Sciences Connected With Them; Connecting the Commercial Transactions of the British Empire and Other Countries
Herrera, the great Spanifh hifidrian' of America, exprefsly a?irms, That 'neither on thecontinent, ' 'nor i?es of the welt-indies, (the name the Spaniards ufually-gi've to all America), were there either filk, wine, 'fugar, ' olives, wheat, barley, 'rorrfpulfe; all which, and many Other things, have been tranfplanted thither from Spain.' Their own originalprodue'tions were only tobacco, indigo, cochineal, cotton, gin ger, cocoa, pimento, fundry ufeful drugs and woods for dying, fur niture, phyfic, and {hip and hoofe-building. Our Britifh colonifts have fince found plenty'of ir'onf'tonle, as alfo Copper and lead mines. And it is from thofe two countries of Spain and Portugal, that Europe has been fupplied with that-immenfe quantity of treafure, which has fo much en riched and improved it. From 'peru and Mexico, as alfo from fome weft-india i?es, Europe has been fuppl'ied with great quantities of ex cellent materials for dying, (and above ally with that incornparable One of Cochineal, hitherto peculiar only to Mexico), drugs, gums, colours and minerals for painters, preferved fruits of their own growth, ginger, Jamaica pepper (called pimento), tobacco, furs, (kins, and many excel lenttimbers 'all which were; originally in thofe countries, but which have, by the cultiv-ation of the Europeans, been fince improved in qual ity, and much increafed in quantity': So that, upon the whole, it may be faid, that, even abfiraeting from' the gold and filver of America, there has really been a greater accefiion. Of rich and ufeful materials for commerce introduced into it by the Europeans (their great improve ments of American productions jointly confidered) than all America afforded, before it was known to Europe; all which, through the be nignity of the climate, and the fertility of the'virgin foil. Of America, have long fin'ce repaid, and do {till continue to fupply Europe with im tnenfe ufury. This, it is true, was alfo mo?ly the cafe with refpeet to many of the colonies fettled in ancient times by the Arabians, Egyp tians, Phoemcians, Greeks, and Romans, though perhaps not in fo. Emi nent a degree as in the modern cafe, of the plantation of America.
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