ought to be employed upon the means of trade, which include all the knowledge and practice neceffary to the skilful and fuccessful conduct of com

merce.

The first of the means of trade is proper education, which may confer a competent skill in numbers; to be afterwards completed in the countinghouse, by obfervation of the manner of stating accounts, and regulating books, which is one of the few arts which having been ftudied in proportion to its importance, is carried as far as ufe can require. The counting-house of an accomplished merchant is a school of method, where the great fcience may be learned of ranging particulars under generals, of bringing the different parts of a tranfaction together, and of fhewing at one view a long series of dealing and exchange. Let no man venture into large business while he is ignorant of the method of regulating books; never let him imagine that any degree of natural abilities will enable him to fupply this deficiency, or preferve multiplicity of affairs from inextricable confufion.

This is the ftudy, without which all other ftudies will be of little avail; but this alone is not fufficient. It will be neceffary to learn many other things, which however may be eafily included in the preparatory inftitutions, fuch as an exact knowledge of the weights and measures of different countries, and fome skill in geography and navigation, with which this book may perhaps fufficiently fupply him.

In navigation, confidered as part of the skill of a merchant, is included not fo much the art of steering a fhip, as the knowledge of the fea-coaft, and

of

of the different parts to which his cargoes are fent, the customs to be paid; the paffes, permiffions, or certificates to be procured; the hazards of every voyage, and the true rate of infurances. To this must be added, an acquaintance with the policies and arts of other nations, as well thofe to whom the commodities are fold, as of those who carry goods of the fame kind to the fame market; and who are therefore to be watched as rivals endeavouring to take advantage of every error, mifcarriage, or debate.

The chief of the means of trade is money, of which our late refinements in traffick have made the knowledge extremely difficult. The merchant muft not only inform himfelf of the various denominations and value of foreign coins, together with their method of counting and reducing; fuch as the milleries of Portugal, and the livres of France; but he muft learn what is of more difficult attainment; the discount of exchanges, the nature of current paper, the principles upon which the feveral banks of Europe are established, the real value of funds, the true credit of trading companies, with all the fources of profit, and poffibilities of lofs.

All this he must learn merely as a private dealer, attentive only to his own advantage; but as every man ought to confider himself as part of the community to which he belongs, and while he profecutes his own intereft to promote likewife that of his country, it is neceffary for the trader to look abroad upon mankind, and ftudy many questions which are perhaps more properly political than mer

cantile.

He

He ought therefore to confider very accurately the balance of trade, or the proportion between things exported and imported; to examine what kinds of commerce are unlawful, either as being expressly prohibited, becaufe detrimental to the manufactures or other interest of his country, as the exportation of filver to the Eaft-Indies, and the introduction of French commodities; or unlawful in itself, as the traffick for negroes. He ought to be able to state with accuracy, the benefits and mifchiefs of monopolies, and exclufive companies; to enquire into the arts which have been practised by them to make themfelves neceffary, or by their opponents to make them odious. He fhould inform himself what trades are declining, and what are improveable; when the advantage is on our fide, and when on that of our rivals.

The state of our colonies is always to be diligently furveyed, that no advantage may be loft which they can afford, and that every opportunity may be improved of encreafing their wealth and power, or of making them useful to their mother country.

There is no knowledge of more frequent use than that of duties and impoft, whether cuftoms paid at the ports, or excifes levied upon the manufacturer. Much of the profperity of a trading nation depends upon duties properly apportioned; fo that what is neceffary may continue cheap, and what is of use only to luxury may in fome measure atone to the publick for the mifchief done to individuals. Duties may often be fo regulated as to become useful even to those that pay them; and they may be likewife fo unequally impofed as to difcourage honefty,

and

and deprefs induftry, and give temptation to fraud and unlawful practices.

To teach all this is the defign of the Commercial Dictionary, which, though immediately and primarily written for the merchants, will be of ufe to every man of bufinefs or curiofity. There is no man who is not in fome degree a merchant, who has not fomething to buy and fomething to fell, and who does not therefore want fuch inftructions as may teach him the true value of poffeffions or commodities.

The defcriptions of the productions of the earth and water, which this volume will contain, may be equally pleafing and useful to the fpeculatift with any other natural hiftory; and the accounts of various manufactures will conftitute no contemptible body of experimental philofophy. The defcriptions of ports and cities may inftruct the geographer as well as if they were found in books appropriated only to his own science; and the doctrines of funds, infurances, currency, monopolies, exchanges, and duties, is fo neceffary to the politician, that without it he can be of no ufe either in the council or the fenate, nor can speak or think justly either on war or trade.

We therefore hope that we fhall not repent the labour of compiling this work, nor flatter ourselves unreasonably, in predicting a favourable reception to a book which no condition of life can render useless, which may contribute to the advantage of all that make or receive laws, of all that buy or fell, of all that wish to keep or improve their poffeffions, of all that defire to be rich, and all that defire to be

PREFACE TO THE TRANSLATION

O F

FATHER LOBO's VOYAGE

ΤΟ

ABYSSINIA*.

THE

HE following relation is fo curious and entertaining, and the differtations that accompany it fo judicious and inftructive, that the tranflator is confident his attempt ftands in need of no apology, whatever cenfures may fall on the performance.

The Portuguese traveller, contrary to the general vein of his countrymen, has amufed his reader with no romantick abfurdities or incredible fictions: whatever he relates, whether true or not, is at least probable; and he who tells nothing exceeding the bounds of probability, has a right to demand that they should believe him who cannot contradict him.

He appears, by his modeft and unaffected narration, to have defcribed things as he faw them, to have copied nature from the life, and to have confulted his fenfes, not his imagination. He meets with no bafilifks that deftroy with their eyes; his crocodiles devour their prey without tears; and his

* For an account of this book, fee the Life of Dr. Johnson, by the Editor.

VOL. IX.

Ff

cataracts