It is more prudent to leave the merchants at liberty to pursue those measures which experience shall dictate upon every occasion, and suffer them to snatch the present opportunity of honest gain, whenever it shall happen; they will never injure their own interest by the use of this liberty, and by preserving themselves, they will preserve the nation from detriment; nor will they need to be restrained by a law proposed without their solicitation, and of which they cannot discover any beneficial consequences.

Mr. Horace WALPOLE spoke next, to this purpose:—­Sir, for the bill now before us I have no particular fondness, nor desire that it should be promoted by any other means than rational arguments, and the representation of indubitable facts.

I have no regard, sir, in this inquiry, to any private interest, or any other desire than that of securing the interest of my country, which, in my opinion, evidently requires that we should give no assistance to our enemies, that our merchants should cooperate with our navies, and that we should endeavour to withhold every thing that may make the war less burdensome to them, and, consequently, of longer continuance.

It was observed, sir, in the beginning of the debate, by a gentleman eminently skilled in mercantile affairs, that insurance was practised by many nations; but he did not inform us of what one of the clauses makes it proper to inquire, whether they allowed the method of insuring interest or no interest, and rating ships at an imaginary value.  This is, I know, prohibited by the Dutch, a nation whose authority on commercial questions will not be disputed, nor do they allow their East Indian ships to be insured at all.

The difficulty of estimating the value of any cargo has been urged in defence of this practice, nor is the defence wholly without weight, because the cargo in many voyages cannot be ascertained.  I shall, however, take this opportunity of observing, though I may somewhat digress from the present argument, how necessary it is that some of our exported cargoes should be exactly specified.

I have been lately informed, sir, that six ships laden with British wool, have entered at one time into a port of France; nor do I know how this practice, which is justly complained of as pernicious to our trade, and threatening the ruin of our country, can be prevented but by a constant and regular particularization of every cargo carried to France.

I admit, sir, that some cargoes which are imported cannot be particularly registered; such is the gold with which we are daily supplied by our commerce with the Portuguese, in opposition to their laws, and which our merchants are, therefore, under the necessity of concealing.