The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1806-02-25
Gle enquirer.
RICHMOND, astb FEBRUARY.
COMMERCIAL RESTRICTIONS.


Whenever Great Britain has unaffected an
! intention CT violating our rights, we have uni
forn,iy held up restriction upon their trade,
and rot a refort to war, as our principal nftru-
mrnt of defence. We faw that the profperity
of her people was principally dependant upon
her manufactures, and that her manufactures
had uniformly Hucuated with the caprice of
taftc or the accident of war. "The weavcrs
or Spitaliields were plunged into the mott fe-
we're aiftreis by the faillion of mullins intead of
hlks; and numbers Of the workmen in Sheffield
and Birmingham were, for 4 time, thrown ont
of employment, from the adoption of fhoe-
ftrings and covered buttons, inftead of buckles
and metal buttons. Our manufactures (conti-
nues Nautilus, from whom the preceding quo
tation is taken) have increafed with great rapi-
dity, but in particular places they have failed,
and the parihes where this has happened, are
invariably loaded with croud of poor, in the
mott diftref1ed and miferable condition. From
work of DR.. Akin it appears that the RICHTER
for the collegiate church at Manchester, from
Chritmas 1898 to Chri(tmas 1894, ftatcd de-
ereaje of les marriages, 5ss chriftenings, and
$50 burias. The caufe of this fldden check
to population, which could not have taken
place, in 70 fudden manner, without being &C.
cafoned by the meR Ievere diRreEj, was the
commencement OF the svar and the failure of
commercial credit which happened about this
time. But 1t tuch effects are produced by the
caprice of tafte or the commencement of a
war, we faw that G. Britain had reafon to an.
ticipate calamties not lefs lamentable from
the fnfpen6on of her trade with the United
States, which takes off manufactures to
the amount of twenty-five millions of dollars.
| Under fuch impreffi ms we had uniformly con-
ldered the reftrietion upon our trade with G..
Britain, rs our natural armour. We looked
ITO 1t not only as meafure of punihment or as
the means of obtaining redrefs, but as the means
OF preventing many infults and encroachments.
We believed that the national fpirit in cafe
OF ftrong emergency, was capable of making
this deciiive effort, and we refted with conf
dence upon its fuccefs The idea cheered and
animated us, when we looked forward to the
,ntults OF the ufurping government of Great
Britain and it was impofiible not to believe,
that the hair-flfpended terrors of fuch non
| interconrfe, or a non-importation act would
awe even her into better obfervance ofthe law
OF nations. The unfuccefsful effort made in
1894, was calculated indeed to difIipate her
fears, to diminih her refpect for our rights, and
to impair our own confidence in the praetic a.
biiity of employing this boafted expedient
but the real patriots of America knew, and the
court OF London mutt alto know, that this eff.
fort was defeated by party who are no Ionee,
the matters of our national councils, and tina,
the injuries which we have fince received are
infticient to demonftrate the ine6Feaey of the
n1e0ns which tbey adopted.
Now then is the moment for afcertaining the
lpractIcahi'ity of this expedient. Great Britain
is now making encroachments upon our rights
equal If not hyperion in the magnitude of thei
mltehef, to any which we may reafonably ex
peet to befal us for years to come. ConcreG
are now celebrating on the means of redrefs
They have proPofed to employ our natural ar
mour for various fchemes of restriction upor
Britiih trade ATE now before them. Now ther
is the time TO convince Great Britain, that w,
are prepared to refort to this defenlive expedi
emf; now is the time to confirm or difipat,
the fears, which fhe may have conceived, from
our reioution to refort TO it. If the pre
tent cribs paiics by without her granting fuI
indemnification for the injuries fhe has done u.
or without our punifhing her injuries through
the medium Of her commerce, it will be ridicu
lous to expect that any Gmiar idea of punrh
ment mould hereafter enter into her calculati
ons of Intereit, or fhould reprefS her future en-
croachments.
From the only documents which are befor
us. we believe 1t to he the intereft of the Uni
ted States to attempt negotiation once more
But we believeit alto to be our intereft to arm
our ninifter splenipotentiary with non-inter
courie or non-Importation act as the princi
pal means for enforcing his proportions. Still
more do we believe it to be our interef, to EN-
body the national fentiment upon this fubjee
& expreis it in the firmeft and mott uneouiyo
cal manner. Let us place it upon record, tina
, IN the year 1906, the people ofthefe ftates wer
refolutely determined TO yield up the manufac
lures and luxuries of Great Britain, rather tha
!. yield to her iniquitous ufurpations. Such re
cord AS this may perhaps have falutary effet
upon the future miniters of Great Britain
Perhaps IT may teach them, that it would b
better not to make any great encroachment
upon our rights, ince they may either expec
: to make us complete naturalization for tn
wrongs which they may inncf, or to fee tn
fame fpirit in action, which in SOC wasjprepar
ee to lay the fevereft :ihackles upon her com
. merce.
: With this view, is it not incumbent upon thu
people ofthe union to fecond the zeal of tbei
conititnents by the mott general and explicit
avowa of their fentiments Is it not more ei
pecially incumbent upon the fouthern Rate
who being more devoted to agricultural pur
: fuits, and not 70 much expofed to injury from
the late Britin Entertainments upon the eoio1io
trade, would give by fuch an exhibition tn
ftroHgef pofiible evidence of the refolutior
With which they world piinif,i any iiuri
which may be inflicted upon any portion of tn
union Let the people in all the cosnties o
Virginia pour forth thefe fentiments. Let refo