four magnets, which attract the wealth of other countries;—­corn, which is exported to Spain and Portugal;—­wine, which is sent to Flanders, England, and the Baltic;—­salt, made by the heat of the sun on the Mediterranean coast, and also on that of the ocean, as far north as Saintoigne; and hemp and cloth, of which and of cordage great quantities are exported to Lisbon and Seville:—­the exportation of the articles of this fourth class, he adds, is incredibly great.

In the middle of the seventeenth century, the finer manufactures of woollen and silken goods having been carried to great perfection in France, her exports in these articles were greatly increased.  In the political testament of Richelieu, we are informed that a considerable and lucrative trade in these articles was carried on with Turkey, Spain, Italy, &c., and that France had driven, in a great measure, out of those markets the serges of Milan, the velvets of Genoa, and the cloth of gold of Italy.

Early in the reign of Louis XIV., Colbert directed his attention to the improvement of manufactures and commerce; and though many of his plans were frustrated from the operation of causes over which he had no control, and principally because he went before the age in which he lived, yet there can be no doubt that to him France was indebted for the consolidation, extension, and firm footing of her commerce.  Immediately before the revocation of the edict of Nantes, her commerce was at its greatest heighth, as the following estimates of that she carried on with England and Holland will prove.  To the former country the exportation of manufactured silks of all sorts is said to have been to the value of 600,000_l_.;—­of linen, sail-cloth, and canvass, about 700,000_l_.;—­in beaver hats, watches, clocks, and glass, about 220,000_l_.;—­in paper, about 90,000_l_.;—­in iron ware, the manufacture of Auvergne, chiefly, about 40,000_l_.;—­in shalloons, tammies, &c. from Picardy and Champagne, about 150,000_l_.;—­in wines, about 200,000_l_.; and brandies, about 80,000_l_.  The exports to Holland, shortly before the revocation of the edict of Nantes, in silks, velvets, linen, and paper, are estimated at 600,000_l_.; —­in hats, about 200,000_l_.;—­in glass, clocks, watches, and household furniture, about 160,000_l_.;—­in small articles, such as fringes, gloves, &c., about 200,000_l_.;—­in linen, canvass, and sail cloth, about 160,000_l_.; and in saffron, dye-wood, woollen yarn, &c., about 300,000_l_.

In the year 1700 a council of commerce was constituted in France, consisting of the principal ministers of state and finance, and of twelve of the principal merchants of the kingdom, chosen annually from Paris, Rouen, Bourdeaux, Lyons, Marseilles, Rochelle, Nantes, St. Maloe, Lisle, Bayonne, and Dunkirk.