small quantity of sugar of a good quality; and in 1814, he had one hundred acres in cane, which produced seventy-five thousand weight of prime sugar, and four thousand gallons of molasses; and but for the want of boilers, which, on account of the war, could not be brought to his plantations, he would have produced one hundred thousand weight. The culture of the cane is found not to be more laborious than that of cotton, and is not liable to so many accidents. One thousand pounds per acre is not considered a great crop. This at ten cents, (5½d.) would be one hundred dollars. Almost every planter along the sea coast of Georgia is now turning his attention, more or less, to the culture of the sugar cane; and from experiments already made, the cane is found to grow luxuriantly as far north as the city of Charleston in South Carolina."
These facts render it nearly certain that America will soon be in a situation to export sugar; and I confess that I contemplate the probability of that event without any feeling of regret, and am even convinced it will be much to the advantage of this country.—If the Americans cannot undersell our planters, the latter have nothing to fear from their competition; but if they can afford us a valuable necessary at a cheaper rate, very cogent reasons indeed would be required to shew, why we should not become their customers.—There is surely nothing so very attractive, or advantageous, in the possession of the West India islands, as to induce us to tax ourselves for their support,—for such, to the consumers, is the real effect of every monopoly. Sufficient employment for capital can still be found in this country, and it is not necessary to force it into the colony trade, by giving an undue preference to its products over those of other countries; and even if such employment could not be found, it would be impolitic in government to give any factitious encouragement to one department of industry, inasmuch as it is certain some other branch must be thereby proportionally depressed. No bad consequences have resulted to us from purchasing the cotton of the United States; on the contrary, it has been attended with the happiest effects.—The Americans have taken an equivalent in our manufactured goods, and it is always reckoned good policy to import raw materials with a view to export them when wrought up. If we shall hereafter purchase sugar from America, it will enable her merchants to order still larger quantities of our manufactures. They will not, we may rest assured, send us their produce gratis, and they cannot take money in payment, the real value of gold and silver being greater here than on the opposite side of the Atlantic. But supposing them to receive payment in gold and silver, it would only shew, that we found it more advantageous to export manufactures to countries abounding in those metals, and then to pay them over to the Americans, rather than export directly to the latter.
The remarks I have just made, apply equally to the case of any other power who might come into competition with our own sugar colonies: and now that peace has been restored to the country, and the attention of the legislature is no longer attracted by the momentous discussions to which an arduous and long protracted contest gave rise, I do hope that our system of colonial policy will be thoroughly investigated.—I am not aware that it has been materially changed since Dr Smith exposed its mischievous tendency; and I confess, I cannot see the utility of employing our soldiers and sailors at an infinite expense, to preserve a precarious authority over isles situated in an unhealthy and pestiferous climate, if we can purchase their products cheaper elsewhere.
No colonies were ever reckoned so important to this country, as those which now form the powerful republic of the United States. But has their independence had any bad effects on the wealth, commerce, or industry, of Great Britain? The reverse is decidedly the fact.—Without the expense of maintaining armaments to defend these distant and extensive territories, we have continued to enjoy every previous advantage resulting from their commercial intercourse. As long as we can afford to sell manufactured goods to the Americans, cheaper than they can prepare them at home, and cheaper than they can purchase from any other power, we shall continue to supply their market to precisely the same extent we should have done had they still remained our colonies.—Surely no person ima-
