lowed to export, are linen cloth
and linen yarn, which are marketable only in England; the rest of our
commodities are wool, restrained to England, and raw hides, skins,
tallow, beef, and butter. Now, these are things for which the northern
nations have no occasion; we are therefore obliged, instead of carrying
woollen goods to their markets, and bringing home money, to purchase
their commodities.

In France, Spain, and Portugal, our wares are more valuable, though it
must be owned, our fraudulent trade in wool is the best branch of our
commerce; from hence we get wines, brandy, and fruit, very cheap, and
in great perfection; so that though England has constrained us to be
poor, they have given us leave to be merry. From these countries we
bring home moydores, pistoles, and louisdores, without which we should
scarce have a penny to turn upon.

To England we are allowed to send nothing but linen cloth, yarn, raw
hides, skins, tallow, and wool. From thence we have coals, for which we
always pay ready money, India goods, English woollen and silks, tobacco,
hardware, earthenware, salt, and several other commodities. Our
exportations to England are very much overbalanced by our importations;
so that the course of exchange is generally too high, and people choose
rather to make their remittances to England in specie, than by a bill,
and our nation is perpetually drained of its little running cash.

Another cause of the decay of trade, scarcity of money, and swelling of
exchange, is the unnatural affectation of our gentry to reside in and
about London.[104] Their rents are remitted to them, and spent there.
The countryman wants employment from them; the country shopkeeper wants
their custom. For this reason he can't pay his Dublin correspondent
readily, nor take off a great quantity of his wares. Therefore, the
Dublin merchant can't employ the artisan, nor keep up his credit in
foreign markets.

I have discoursed some of these gentlemen, persons esteemed for good
sense, and demanded a reason for this their so unaccountable
proceeding,--expensive to them for the present, ruinous to their
country, and destructive to the future value of their estates,--and find
all their answers summed up under three heads, curiosity, pleasure, and
loyalty to King George. The two first excuses deserve no answer; let us
try the validity of the third. Would not loyalty be much better
expressed by gentlemen staying in their respective countries,