There is nothing in the art of weaving, or working in metals, or in any other material for common use, that is of such difficulty but that any man, with a common capacity, may do it nearly as well as any other man.  The habits and manners of mankind, their disposition to labour, and the nature of the government under which they live, may encourage or discourage manufacturing; but both the strength and capacity of any of the natives of Europe, taking them on an average, are fully sufficient to enable them to excel in any work.

—–­ {172} Where machines are very expensive, new improvements, that require other machinery, are sometimes crushed and rejected on that account.  To adopt them, a man must sometimes begin by sacrificing half his fortune, by destroying his old machinery.

There have been several instances of this seen, particularly in the making of iron, when it was proposed to convert the rough gueze into good malleable iron bar, by rolling it at a welding heat, instead of hammering it by a forge-mill. -=-

[end of page #212]

{Here appears at page 212 the third chart, entitled
“Chart
Shewing the Amount of the
Exports and Imports
-of-
ENGLAND
to and from all parts
from 1800 to 1805”}

The British nation has begun to seek for wealth from agriculture.  It had long been the mode to pay attention and give the preference to manufactures; but the current is, for the present, set in, in another direction.  Calculation has, till of late, been confined to mercantile men; but, after all, they have not carried it to a very great length:  and, as to their speculative wisdom, it consists chiefly in taking a ready advantage of some immediate object.

EXPLANATION OF PLATE NO.  III.

The space from right to left is divided into years, each line representing the year marked under and above.  From the beginning of the last century, till the year 1770, every tenth year only is expressed, and the average amount of exports and imports only is shewn; but, from 1770 to the present time, every year is separately represented by a line going from the top to the bottom.

The divisions from top to bottom are millions of pounds sterling, each representing a million, measuring from the bottom, the number of millions indicated is marked on the right margin.

As the exports, which are expressed by a red line, increased or diminished, the red line rises or falls, crossing the division representing the year at the line which indicates the number of millions to which the exports amounted that year.

The yellow line is drawn on the same principle, and represents the imports for the same years; the difference between the two, which is stained green, being the balance for or against England.

Thus, for example, we see that, till the year 1775, the exports rose very fast, and were far above the imports, but that then their proportion begun =sic= to vary; insomuch that, in 1781, the yellow line rose above the red, when the balance in favour of England turned against it, to the amount of a million for one year.  In 1782, the balance again became favourable; but, though the trade was increasing, the balance was once more, in 1785, against England; ever since which it has been more or less in our favour.