| Title: | Prospects for Obtaining Rich Furs From North America. |
|---|---|
| ID | 3859 |
| Collection | Irish Emigration Database |
| File | 1741-50/3 |
| Year | ca. 1751 |
| Sender | unknown |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | fur merchant |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | England |
| Destination | unknown |
| Recipient | unknown |
| Recipient Gender | unknown |
| Relationship | unknown |
| Source | D.162/54: Presented by Major F. Dobbs, Castle Dobbs, Carrickfergus, Co.Antrim, Ireland, Per Mr A E Dobbs. #TYPE EMG Reasons For The Great Price & Scarcity of Beaver & Other Furs in England and Prospects of Obtaining These In North America. (Date c.1751) |
| Archive | Public Record Office Northern Ireland |
| Doc. No. | 8911097 |
| Date | 01/01/1750 |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | EMG |
| Log | 30:11:1989 GC created 02:05:1991 GC input 15:08:19 |
| Word Count | 4520 |
| Genre | |
| Note | |
| Transcript | Reasons for the great Price and scarcity of Beaver and other Furs in England That there is, or might be, as sufficient quantity of Beaver and other Rich Furs got, and purchasd [purchased?] in North America and be brought to England for to answer the consumption at home, and to making a large manufacture of hats for a foreign Market, and supply our manufacturing at Home at a reasonable price, if the Legislature would [Interfere?] and [?] our colonies and the countries claimed by the H:B: [Hudson Bay?] Company and trade there upon proper regulations and a proper management, may be almost [freed?] to a d[?] [?]; I shall therefore endeavour to show those countries in such a light as may make it manifest, that there is, and may be a fund in Beaver and other Rich Furs, got from North America, to carry on our manufacture to great advantage, and that the Trade there, may be securd [secured?] to Britain at a very small expense; and that by our situation, we can afford to give the natives better prices, and sell them at home cheaper than the French, our only kinds in that Trade, provided the govermnt [government?] will be pleasd [pleased?] to interfere, and our [possessions?] and Trade there be put under a proper government and regulations.- In order to show this, I must give a short description of these countries where Beaver &c abound, and consider its extent and the nature and disposition of the Natives.- All the countries in north America from the [chirokees?] country south of ohio in Lat [Latitude?] 38, to the Lat [latitude?] of 60, in all the unsettled parts beyond our colonies from [S?] Carolina to the North of Churchil [Churchill?] River in Hudsons Bay, and Hudsons streights, are all countries abounding in Be[avers?]; and great numbers of other Rich Furs, may be had [even?] [beond?] the P[olar?] Circle in 66:30; and from the east of the Labrador coast to the western ocean beyond H: [Hudson?] Bay; so that here is a country of [near?] [6?]00 Leagues in Length [35 to 64?] from N: 500 L: to S:[?] and 400 in Breadth from [60?] E: 120[?] to W: 740, wherein at 13th a degree Beaver abound, deducting only from [?] the returnd [returned?] Lakes and Hudsons Bay: and the more northerly they go, the Furs are [thicker?] and finer; and Tract of near 200 000 square Leagues, and these countries for want of cultivation and from the number of marshes and rivers, abound with places where Beaver can farm their Dams, so that it may be said to be a country by nature fitter for Beaver, and they are naturally so prolifick [prolific?], having from 6 to 9 or 10 at a litter, that by proper care the numbers might be increased [increased?] according to the d[emand?] price given for them. for if a reasonable price in manufactures, were allowd [allowed?] to the Natives, for such as were taken in the proper season: and the natives shown a more easy way of being maintaind [maintained?] and nourishd [nourished?], by tame cattle & tillage, the Beaver Ponds might be preservd [preserved?] & lockd [locked?] like pigeon houses so as to increase rather than diminish the number of Breeders, and none would then be taken but in the proper season for sale, to procure them better returns for their fur: whereas at present the Natives [having?] small incouragement [encouragement?] for the Furs, they destroy them instead of increasing them (having no property in them) at all sections for their nourishment without regard to their Furs, so that at present not a 3d each of the furs come to market except those that are near Canada and our colonies, which are not so good and valuable as those farther northward and at a distance from our settlements, so that if the natives were incouragd [encouraged?] and instructed how to increase the Beaver, and settled so as each Tribe might have a proper district to hunt in and preserve the Beaver, 5 times or probably 10 times as many might come to market as now do, and their being taken in season might increase their value a third above what they are at present, from hence it is plain, if the Indian Tribes were kept at peace with each other, and incouragd [encouraged?] our Trade in furs would greatly increase and a sufficient quantity might be got for our consumption & manufactures. I shall next show how far we have, or might have, the advantage of the French in the Fur Trade, and how far we have it in our Powern of gaining the friendship of the Natives and securing the Bulk of the Indian Trade from the French, if the countries were properly settled and put under a proper governmt [government?] to civilize and instruct the natives, and the Trade was opend [opened?] and put under proper regulations. The natives are a sagacious and sensible people and know their own Benefit as well as Europeans, and who earn behaviour with most c[andour?] and friendship and will offerd [offered?] them such goods as they want for the most reasonable T[erms?] are sure to have the preference of their friendship, and where trade is open and free it is the interest of all merchants to take a reasonable profit for their goods and to give such a price for foreign goods as they can afford, with sufficient profit to carry on Trade, now tis [it is?] plain that by the situation of our northern colonies and the possessions we might have around Hudsons Bay, that we might have great advantages over the French in trading with the natives. of which within these 20 or 30 years we have had a notable instance from new york, where Mr Bru[?] was made governr [governor?] there in 1720 he found little or no Trade directly from thence with the Indians, but the English from thence supplyd [supplied?] the French in Canada with our coarse manufactures fit for the Indian Trade upon much better terms than they could be afforded from France at Quebec by [sea?] [by?] [reason?] of the difficulty of the navigation from France and from thence again to the L[akes?] by which means the French then [ingrattd?] almost the whole indian trade [on?] the la[kes?], He wisely framd [framed?] a [Law?] to incourage [encourage?] the Indian Trade and to [?] our [carrying?] our manufactures fit for the Indian Trade to Canada to supply the Indians from thence, and fixd [fixed?] a trading house at [oswego?] [?] [colarakui?] or ontario Lake among the Nations by which means they supplyd [supplied?] the Indians at a much cheaper rate than the French could do from Canada, and his thereby turnd [turned?] the currant [current?] of the Indian Trade to the english, and g[ave?] such credit to the six nations our Indian allies, thro [through?] which country our Trade is carryd [carried?] on, that the Bulk of the Indian Trade upon the L[akes?] [?] now in new york and all these nations have enterd [entered?] into allyance [alliance?] with our Indians and become friends to the english to the great discouragement of the French in Canada, if the same incouragement [encouragement?] were given from our Colonies between south carolina and new york the whole Trade in the Lakes in a few years would be gaind [gained?] to the English and the Natives be assembled in friendship with us by keeping our Traders within Bounds and using the Natives with candour and friendship, for as S: Carolina has securd [secured?] the friendship of the cherakees chickesaws and by the assistance of georgia, the creek Indians and [few?] of the cha[ctanes?], we by [proper?] [?]utions may [prevent?] the French Trade from extending up the Mississippi towards the La[kes?], now let us put the [manner?] or conduct of our Trade with the Indians from our colonies, where the Trade is open and Free in Cantrell with our Trade in Hudsons Bay where it is made a monopoly by the [company?] under p[rete?]nce of an exclusive right to that Trade; notwithstanding the furs there are much [choicer?] and finer than to the southward, and would [abound?] more under proper care and regulation yet what a miserable appearance do they make in Trade, not #[6000?] worth of goods sent out from Britain in a season to a country almost as large as the 3d part of Europe, & if you will believe the companies [known?] to the committee of Parliament the company and consequently yet the indian dont gain above 10 or 12,000 # annually by that Trade, all owing to their misconduct and monopoly to gain much upon a small capital in order to keep their profits, and those countries and the [?]gation there a secret from Britain & in order to secure this to themselves a pitiful Trade to Britain tho [though?] considerable to the few concernd [concerned?] in the company, they will neither settle the countries themselves nor let any other Britains, independent of them, settle there, nor even give consent to any to settle and in their grant nor allow their own, [servants?] to go up into the country, either to settle or Trade, or make friendship with the natives, or keep them in peace with each other, nor do they give the natives any incouragement [encouragement?] to Trade with them, or instruct them in any methods to improve their Trade, or civilize or [convert?] them; or suffer any mass of capacity or learning to go [even?] in [?] [?] [service?] to instruct them or discover these inland countries [earn?], has th[ere?] been a clergy man [sent?] [?] to instruct their own people since the forming of the company [they?] being content to take what Furs the natives bring to them to their [factories?] selling the necessaries they must have, to them, at a most monstrous price, consequently giving them little or nothing for their Furs, the natives having no conveniency of bringing many in their Birch c[auses?] [?], or an [?] [in?] [winter?] yet by their monopoly and [misconduct?] they have incourgad [encouraged?] the French to gain the friendship of the natives within land and to carry their - goods from Canada many hundred [hundred?] leagues even to the [Kuizzard?] [lakes?] westward of our [factories?] on the west and s: [south?] west of the Bay, and to carry off the most valuable furs from thence to Canada by a long and tedious land carriage, and a very bad navigation where they have any water carriage, so that what we have gaind [gained?] from the French by having a free and open trade with the natives upon the lakes, from our colonies, is more than made up to them, by the rich furs they get from the natives about Hudsons Bay by the in[jur?]ious monopoly of the company - From the Breif [brief?] account a way may be easily chalkd [chalked?] out how to increase our Fur Trade and secure the Bulk if not the whole from the French, and secure the greatest part of the Trade of that northern continent.- We have an undoubted right as first discoverers of all the Labrador coast from the streights of Bell[Is?]le in newfoundland to Hudsons streights and Bay, and no possession or claim has been made to that Labrador coast tho [though?] a valuable Fur Trade might be had there; it is highly probable that from davys inlet to Hudsons streights is the [?] made up of Islands and a communication may be made through that Inlet into Hudsons Bay by the Inland sea lately discovered between it and Hudsons Bay, by occupying that inlet in 56, all the Trade of Furs from that to Canada might be securd [secured?] to us and by treating the natives kindly they might be all made our friends [friends?] and Hunt and fish for us, and if we do not secure it, I am perswaded [persuaded?] that if the French do not seize it soon, the danes will, they have already made a settlement in davys streight a very im[?]able [climate?] in 64, and as they had an old claim to greenland from discoveries from Iceland, so they pretend the Labrador coast was then discovered [discovered?] from thence, under the name of Met[a?] [Incayruta?] and as they want a settlement in a more moderate climate than davys streight, I am apt to think they will settle on that coast soon, finding it unoccupyd [unoccupied?] by us, and probably the east ships sent out are designd [designed?] for that settlement; by which they will gain a considerable fur- trade, as well as a fishery of fish abound on that coast as this is still open & free from the company [it?] ought not to be longer neglected lest we repent it when too late.- The next step to be taken to increase our Fur Trade is to apply to Parliament to open the Trade to H: [Hudsons?] Bay [witheld?] [from?] the [march?] [well?] in Britain by an illegal [unjust?] monopoly w[ith?] by act of Parliamt [Parliament?]. and if the[y?] [?] can show any right to the Lands they have occupyd [occupied?] at or adjoyning [adjoining] to their [Factories?] to ascertain by law how far their claim goes and allow all other parts about the Bay to be settled by any of his majestys subjects and a civil gowernmt [government?], should be [established?] in all [places?] which shall be settled, and civil governors and magistrates be fixd [fixed?] by the crown: and such hands as maybe confirmd [confirmed?] to the company by Parliamt [Parliament?] as their right shall be established upon the same [feeling?] of a civil government to be appointed by his majesty the governmt [government?] in Britain [returning?] only a moderate [just?] [?] to the proprietors; of the company or if the company should choose [ra?]ther to sell their [Factories?] to the Publick [public?] and give up the whole country to the crown then a reasonable value may be given to then by Parliament [Parliament?] for their [charter?] and the whole [be?] given up to the crown. That [formidably?] upon this same settlers be sent over to the [rivers?] already occupyd [occupied?] by the company and proper [charters?] be chosen by the crown to make discoveries of the Inland countries and make friendship with the natives and to induce them to live in peace with each other and to instruct them how to increase and improve the Fur Trade and any other Branches of trade proper for those Climates, by thus laying open the Trade to all the settlers and merchants and giving our manufactures to the natives at a reasonable value we should be able to undersell the French and secure the friendship of the natives by [kind?] [usage?] and [full?] dealings and [pull?] our trade to the southwestwe [southwestward?] and southward towards Canada and the Lakes and secure the Trade of the whole continent and at the same time [persuade?] [our?] d[iscovery?] of the western [ocean?] by a [very?] [able?] [passage?] or at the north by [cross?]ing over the continent which cannot be of any great extent in [?] to trade from thence which might be easily done by [?] in number as is practd [practiced?] in Russia to their great benefit and at small expense - upon the companys [companies?] giving up their [factories?] at [Maele?] Albany Hays and Churchills River to the crown for a reasonable consideration, The King could then send over a person qualifyd [qualified?] to be governor over all the countries adjoyning [adjoining?] Hudsons Bay who should carry over proper [persons?] with him of [capacity?] and resolution to [push?] on the discovery of the Inland countries and Tribes of Indians to learn their language and form alliances with them by treating them humanely as friends, they might by [degrees?] [civilize?] them and instruct them in the best manner of Hunting and increasing the number of beavers and only taking them when in season by showing them, how to supply their families with proper food without destroying the [game?] for food when the Furs are out of season, by the [increase?] of [tame?] cattell [cattle?] & fowl as well as fish or [by?] [tillage?], - and by thus forming regular civil societys [societies?] on the several rivers the Traders might be kept under proper restrictions not to def[raud?] the natives but carry on an equitable Trade so as to preserve and increase a friendship and intercourse between us and the natives around the Bay Thus a free equitable trade with the natives, being free to all the settlers and planters the country would be settled and securd [secured?] from the French and the Fur Trade be recovered [recovered?], and the Furriers and [Hatters?] would be well supplyd [supplied?] with a sufficient quantity at a reasonable price, and a great quantity of coarse iron and woollen manufactures would be expanded to purchase them to the great advantage of Britain and those countries be securd [secured?] by the increase of our [settlements?] in case of a future war, which at present are in danger of being [lost?] [wherein?] we have a future war with France The company alledge [allege?] in their own [justification?] that the climate is so cold and [inhospitable?] that it cant be settled and [impard?] to maintain [?] or be fit for Tillage or keeping of cattle and alledge [allege?] it to be [impracticable?] to navigate in Trade up the river in the Inland country.- But any intelligent [person?] upon the [best] reflection may [plainly?] see that what they alledge [allege?] is not consistent with Truth. [Facts?] or the nature of things but only an [attempt?] to impose upon our understanding in order to excuse their [negligence] & this conduct, in not settling these countries and improving this trade which might be made very valuable to Britain can it be supposd [supposed?] that countries from 51 to 60 degrees in a [less?] wooded country far distant from mountains is not as habitable as lands in the same latitude in Europe and [Asia?]. yet we find that siberia much more northerly is become a valuable country to Russia and of late is greatly improved and able to support its inhabitants comfertibly [comfortably?] do we not see the Danes settled in davys streights as far north as 64 without any such complaint, do we not find that the French rangers have futhd [furthered?] beyond Hudsons Bay from canada and support themselves there and carry on an advantageous Trade upon our [ruins?] above our [factories?], and is it [practicable?] and beneficial to them but not to the H: [Hudson?] Bay company, or can a French man live comfortably there when an englishman cannot is it not practicable to [rear?] and [keep?] Tame cattle such as horses cows [swine?] goats and sheep in those [cows?] [?] where deer and Buffalos live and [?] without any care or assistance so that instead of giving credit to the allegations of the company in excuse for their own misconduct we ought to be ashamd [ashamed?] of being so long imposd [imposed] upon and hard workd [worked?] by them to the great loss of Britain and incouragement [encouragement?] of our only [rivals?] in Trade so that unless we resolve to be in[fatu?]ated and [lamely?] give up that [valuable?] trade to the French there is an absolute necessity of opening the Trade and dissolving or [purchasing?] and the company if they have any legal right to the adjacent lands what [pains?] do the French take to civilize c[onvert?] and make a friendship [friendship?] with the Indian Tribes and what [thorns?] they prove to our colonies when thus debauchd [debauched?] in their pr[?] under pretence of religion which they make a Handle of to promote Murders and degredations [degradations?] upon our colonies of which [now?] [?] at present is a [flaming?] [?] and therefore we ought to study to [present?] the French in all their [?] to distress and ruin us, which can only be done by gaining the Indians and prevent their being further debauchd [debauched?] by the French; our Free and equitable governmt [government?] has greatly the advantage of gaining the Indians if we make [use?] of the [power?] and means as christians and free prostestants of gaining civilizing and converting them and securing their properties as well as our own by doing them [justice?] in trade and [protecting?] them in their property and possessions, so that if we behave right we cant fail of securing them all from the French, and a spirit of Trade would soon [rouse?] them from their indolence to become industrious and to supply their wants when they could peacably [peaceably?] enjoy their property under our protection [I] [think?] it [un?]necessary to Inlarge [enlarge?] any further upon a subject which is as obvious as the sun at noon day and therefore apprehend that upon [proper?] petitions from the merchants [Hatters?] Furriers and other manufacturers in Iron and coarse woollens that Parliament will at once see the reasonableness and I may say necessity of opening the trade and settling the countries around H: [Hudson?] Bay and securing. The Labrador coast that we may [?] have such [insufferable?] [injurious?] [?] [?] or we find the French are at Chig[?] St Johns and Halifax in [perusing?] [?] [?] [cautioned?] by our negligence in not securing those places in time; which ought to be a [caution?] to us to prevent such a [pernicious?] [neighbourhood?] [for?] [the?] [future?] [securing?] by our [?] I hope before they are eaten upon [and?] [?] by others who make an advantage of our negligence But to some of the whole by making some usefull [useful?] reflections The countries around Hudsons Bay and streight have a sea coast of above 2000 miles extent from 51.30[c?] to 65[c?] N:L: great part of which is in the same Latitude with Britain upon which coast are many large navigable rivers which have their sources some hundred miles to the southward south eastward and southwestward of that sea coast by which some of them maybe navigated to 45[c?] n: this many large navigable lakes surrounded by many p[?] tribes and Natives who [live?] in countries abounding in furs of Beaver [?] foxes and others of great [variety?] & price with [?] herds of deer Buffaloes elks moose and other Beasts whose skins are valuable in rich fine countries and [?] climates where all herds of [?] might be raised and stock of [tame?] cattle [propagated?] and the sea [coasts?] abounding with black and white whales seals sea [horses?] and other fish [?] [?] and fish might be had from the natives in great quantity and very reasonable by supplying them with proper tackling harpoons &c Here are also valuable mines and minerals already known but never wrought and a continent to be dis[?] of great extent to the south westward which abounds with other valuable commodities - These great and extensive countries have been [navigated?] and lockd [locked?] up by the [charter?] of the Hudsons Bay Company these 80 years, the countries kept conceald [concealed?] and the Trade to countries equal to 1/4th part of Europe confind [confined?] to a small capital and an annual export [and?] [?] All the [factories?] they have are 4 and [two?] other small [?] in which are about 150 europeans fixd [fixed?] at the [mouths?] of [rivers?] on a frozen sea, which the country within l[ured?] are in pleasent temperate climates, all the Trade they have [or?] seem to desire is [what?] Furs the natives can carry down in small Birch C[arriers?] which can [scarce?] [carry?] 2 men [with?] a small [parcel?] of Furs, for which they give the natives [little?] [or?] [nothing?] by fixing the British goods at an unreasonsble standard, so that they can only bring down a few Furs to furnish them with what they think absolutely necessary to them with a few [days?] if no [weight], and the rest of their [pelts?] and [furs?] are destroyd [destroyed?] or [?]ot at home having no acnt [account?] for them; they in all this time have neither instructed the Natives to nagivate the [rivers?] with [better?] Boats or to [?] in their Hunting and [propagating?] cattle to draw their hides in winter as in [?], nor have they ever attemped or incouragd [encouraged?] their own servants to navigate up the river and carry their goods to supply the natives at Home at more reasonable rates, nor have allowd [allowed?] any British sujbects or merchants to settle and Trade in the country and make settlements as in other proprietarry [proprietary?] colonies, [nay?] so far have they [paid?] enemies to Britain in concealing the countries and confining the Trade, that they endeavour all they can to conceal from Britain, that the [French?] are settling those countries and extending their Trade to the westward of their settlements upon the River and Lakes above their several [Factories?], and tho [though?] they carry on that Trade at an extraordinary expense by many hundred [?] land [coverage?] upon their B[?] from River to [river?] till they get above their [factories?] yet by the companys extravagant prices, they enable the French to undersell them and carry away the most valuable and lightest of their Furs such as [Marlins?] foxes &c - and then do their utmost to give the French a claim to those countries by giving them an undisturbed possession which they will soon make use of and pretend a right contrary to the Faith of treaties as they have done at [St Croix?] [?] [?] and ch[anecto?] in nova scotia.- Are these countries and [seas?] to be perpetually lockd [locked?] up by a [charter?] and monopoly not warranted by act of Parliamt [Parliament?] which the Parliament refusd [refused?] to confirm for more than 7 years, is the company to sleep like the dog in the manger and neither do good for themselves nor allow the British merchants to Trade and settle there, are we to be continually hoodwinked [hoodwinked?] in Britain and have no liberty to extend and improve so beneficial a Trade, whilst our rivals are extending amd improving their colonies and commerce thro [through?] all europe are we to continue to neglect these countries and keep them in a weak defenceless state whilst the French are improving and extending their colonies and [?] and gaining all the Indians against us in order to take the whole country and Trade from us upon the next warr [war?].- These are melancholy reflections but necessary to [?] us before it is too late which may easily be prevented by opening that Trade and settling those countries which will make them a strong Barrier against Canada and secure the friendship of the natives by a show of friendship and giving them an equitable Trade. if those seasonable remarks should procure so great a g[ain?] to my native country it would be the height of my ambition & without view I submit them to the publick [public?] hoping our eyes will be opend [opened?] before it be too late.- |
