New-York tribune., 1907-06-01


pany-
on both sides of the Atlantic much study and
research a-e now being devoted to early colonial
history II A4aerica- a few weeks ago the two
eral volumes Of Mr.. J. A. Doyle's English
colonies in America" were reviewed in The
rrIbure and quickly following these appears
,te third volume Of Or. Osgood's American
rolonies IN ;he Seventeenth Century" DR..
T,ov,e Is a.l oxford scholar who has spen4 prac-
fcsiIv -ns whole Of his life in the shades of the
.oroo,,s O.a World university. DR.. Osgood, on
The other hand. much younger man, is pro-
,.ssor Of history in Columbia. Yet it is DIR.
osrocd VINO views the history Of the colonies
,-or7 the imperial standpoint, who concentrates
his attention the relations Of the colonies
with the mother country. and who Judges of the
course of events in the colonies according
,1sse events affected the dominion of Great
britain while Mr.. Doyle is concerned with the
details Of colonial life, with the personalities
,-ho dominated affairs on this side of the At
Iantic and with the relations of the colonies to
one another and to their Dutch and French
neishbors and rivals.
The logical continuation of Mr. Doyle's Eng
,sb Colonies in America" is the history Of the
voted states The logical continuation of Dr.
oeroods American Colonies" after the Revolu-
.,or would be found in the remaining colonies
cf Great Britain-in Canada and the island col
ories and the great self-governing colonies of
Australasia Taken from DR.. Osgood's point of
view. the Revolution must appear as an acci-
dental end of the DEVELOPMENT Of the British
colonial svzrem-an end brought about by mis-
.slas and irritations which have been avoided
q, connection with the colonies left 10 Great
britain after the War Of the Revolution. and the
f7u development Of the policy can be better
traced in the Dominion of Canada or the Fed
Grated Australian Provinces than in the -inde
pendent life OF the United States
The central principle of the English colonial
svstenc Sas trade. This mercaRtilism the
dominant theory Of Europe at the time of the
rettIernert of the American colonies. Accord
ing 10 this theory" writes DR.. Osgood. the
nation or empire which had attained q tolerable
degree of political unity became, by virtue of
that very fact. a1 economic unit. Trade there
fore. was not free. The merchant the sub
iect as well when considered as a producer or
r customer was not regarded as simply an indi-
viduaI with relations which were quite likely
70 be cosmopolitan as national. He prima-
rily and essentially & Frenchman or an English
man. and was bound by law and custom to seek
through his transactions the advantage of his
country and its prince" To obtain this advan-
tage-the maximum Of national strength-the |
strictest regulation Of trade was both constitu-
tional ard justifable. and although England as
usual fell behind France IN her thoroughgoing
ard logical application Of the principle. DR.. Os-
good sfhrnls that 2 reasonable degree Of con-
sistency was maintained by the English.
Considered from the point Of view Of the well |
fare Of the British dominions. the restrictions I
placed on colonial trade. however irksome they |
may have been TO the colonists, We're neither |
capricious nor JyrannicaI The colonies were |
treated no more harshly than the towns and |
ports Of England. and far less severely than |
those nearer outlying portions of the empire |
ireland and Scotland. The principle OF the |
tteple-of the designation Of certain ports or |
market towns as the only centres for particular !
trades-had long been applied within the realm |
20 wool and other marketable goods It was |
merely an extension Of this principle. when, as /
early as 1921. an order was issued forbdding !
the export of any commodity of Virginia TO any
foreign poEt unless IT had first been landed in
England. Attempts were made again and again |
70 extend the principle Of the staple TO all the !
colonies but the distance from the central gov |
ernrnent and especially the natural indepen- |
dence and contumacy Of the New England col |
onies, made It impossible TO carry it into effect.
The British government, however, learned from |
It's failure in the revolted colonies the useless
ness Of g coercive policy and the later cocaial |
system, which prevailed in respect to Canada, |
the West Indies and South Africa until II was |
swept away by the free trade enactments OF |
1861. consisted IN keeping the trade Of the |
colonies by means of preferential dutes-charg- |
ing on colonial goods only a fraction of the |
duties charged on similar goods from foreign !
parts and insisting on a similar preference for
BRUSH goods in the colonial markets. with this
roodifcation the British colonial system. which |
had proved a constant source Of irritation 10
the New England and Atlantic colonies, became |
extremely profitable TO the Maritime Provinces
md 70 Upper and Lower Canada. and bitter
were The complaints when their protected mar
keJ IL Great Britain was thrown freely open to
the competition Of the United States, although
Greet Britain 81 the same time conceded COM
rlete fiscal freedom 10 her colonies. and left
them free 70 levy what duties they thought 1t
On British goods.
Just 50 il with the Navigation Laws which
were passed by the parliaments of Oliver Crom-
well and Charles H. and which were aimed at
the naval rivalry Of Holland. then the greatest
sea power of Europe These acts were COM
r!etely abrogated in Great Britain more than
fifty wears ago, but on them is modelled the
coasting and navigation code Of the United
ststes They limited the trade between Eng
land and the colonies strictly 10 English Irish
and colonial ships-a restriction which caused /
much hard=htp 70 Virginia and New England in
tne seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but
which Quebec and the Maritime Provinces
turned 70 their advantage in the nineteenth. In
connection "ith the trade and navigation laws,
II IS curious fact that Scotland. which at this
taae vas under the same sovereign rs England |
D1t which, until 1907, had its own laws and
i's o%n Parliament, was not admitted TO the
Naoe o. the colonies. IN 1861 Immediately
ne Restoration, Scotland, counting on its