ARTICLES. Quantity. Price in dollars. Am. in dollars. the best information I can get, nearly as follows: Before the prefent war we exported, communibus annis, according to This fum is equal to £.850,000 Virginia money, 607,142 guincas. In the year 1758, we exported feventy thousand hogfheads of tobacco, which was the greateft quantity ever produced in this country in one year. But its culture was faft declining at the commencement of this war, and that of wheat taking its place: And it muft continue to decline on the return of peace. I fufpect that the change in the temperature of our climate has become fenfible to that plant, which, to be good, requires an extraordinary degree of heat. But it requires ftill more indifpenfably an uncommon fertility of foil: And the price which it commands at market will not enable the planter to produce this by manure. Was the fupply ftill to depend on Virginia and Maryland alone, as its culture becomes more difficult, the price would rife, so as to enable the planter to furmount thofe difficulties and to live. But the western country on the Miffifippi, and the midlands of Georgia, having fresh and fertile lands in abundance, and a hotter fun, will be able to underfell these two states, and will oblige them to abandon the raifing tobacco altogether. And a happy obligation for them it will be. It is a culture productive of infinite wretchednefs. Thofe employed in it are in a continual flate of exertion beyond the powers of nature to fupport. Little food of any kind is raised by them; fo that the men and animals on thefe farms are badly fed, and the earth is rapidly impoverished. The cultivation of wheat is the reverse in every circumftance. Befides cloathing the earth with herbage, and preferving its fertility, it feeds the labourers plentifully, requires from them only a moderate toil, except in the feafon of harvest, raises great numbers of animals for food and fervice, and diffufes plenty and happiness among the whole. We find it easier to make an hundred bufhels of wheat, than a thoufand weight of tobacco, and they are worth more when made. The weavil indeed is a formidable obstacle to the cultivation of this grain with us. But principles are already known which must lead to a remedy. Thus a certain degree of heat, to wit, that of the common air in fummer, is neceffary to hatch the egg. If fubterranean granaries, or others, therefore, can be contrived below that temperature, the evil will be cured by cold. A degree of heat beyond that which hatches the egg, we know will kill it. But in aiming at this we eafily run into that which produces putrefaction. To produce putrefaction, however, three agents are requifite, heat, moisture, and the external air. If the abfence of any one of thefe be fecured, the other two may fafely be admitted. Heat is the one we want. Moisture then, or external air, must be excluded. The former has been done by exposing the grain in kilns to the action of fire, which produces heat, and extracts moisture at the fame time: The latter, by putting the grain into hogfheads, covering it with a coat of lime, and heading it up. In this fituation its bulk produces a heat fufficient to kill the egg; the moisture is fuffered to remain indeed, but the external air is excluded. A nicer operation yet has been attempted; that is, to produce an intermediate temperature of heat between that which kills the egg, and that which produces putrefaction. The threshing the grain as foon as it is cut, and laying it in its chaff in large heaps, has been found very nearly to hit this temperature, though not perfectly, nor always. The heap generates heat fuficient to kill most of the eggs, whilft the chaff commonly reftrains it from rifing into putrefaction. But all these methods abridge too much the quantity which the farmer can manage, and enable other countries to underfell him which are not infefted with this infect. There is ftill a defideratum than to give with us decifive triumph to this branch of agriculture over that of tobacco. The culture of wheat, by enlarging our pafture, will render an Arabian horse an article of very confiderable profit. Experience has fhewn that ours is the particular climate of America where he may be raised without degeneracy. Southwardly the heat of the fun occafions a deficiency of pafture, and northwardly the winters are too cold for the fhort and fine hair, the particular fenfibility and conftitution of that Animals tranfplanted into unfriendly climates, either change their nature and acquire new fences against the new difficulties in which they are placed, or they multiply poorly and become extinct. A good foundation is laid for their propagation here by our poffeffing already great numbers of horfes of that blood, and by a decided tafte and preference for them eftablifhed among the people. Their patience of heat without injury, their fuperior wind, fit them better in this and the more fouthern climates even for the drudgeries of the plough and waggon. Northwardly they will become an object only to perfons of tafte and fortune, for the faddle and light carriages. To these, and for thefe ufes, their fleetness and beauty will recommend them.-Befides thefe there will be other vaJuable fubititutes when the cultivation of tobacco fhall be difcontinued, fuch as cotton in the eastern parts of the ftate, and hemp and flax in the western. It is not eafy to fay what are the articles either of neceffity, comfort, or luxury, which we cannot raife, and which we therefore fhall be under a neceffity of importing from abroad, as every thing hardier than the olive, and as hardy as the fig, may be raised here in the open air. Sugar, coffee, and tea, indeed, are not between thefe limits; and habit having placed them among the neceffaries of life with the wealthy part of our citizens, as long as thefe habits remain, we must go for them to thofe countries which are able to furnish them.' Public Revenue and Expences. The nominal amount of these varying conftantly and rapidly, with the conftant and rapid depreciation of our paper money, it becomes impracticable to fay what they are. We find ourselves cheated in every effay by the depreciation intervening between the declaration of the tax and its actual receipt. It will therefore be more fatisfactory to confider what our income may be when we shall find means of collecting what the people may fpare. I fhall eftimate the whole taxable property of this ftate at an hundred million of dollars, or thirty millions of pounds our money. One per cent. on this, compared with any thing we ever yet paid, would be deemed a very heavy tax. Yet I think that those who manage well, and use reasonable economy, could pay one and a half per cent. and maintain their houfhold comfortably in the mean time, without aliening any part of their principal, and that the people would fubmit to this willingly for the purpofe of fupporting the prefent contest. We may fay then, that we could raife, and ought to raife, from one million to one million and a half of dollars annually, and that is. from three hundred to four hundred and fifty thoufand pounds, Virginia Of our expences it is equally difficult to give an exact state, and for the fame reafon. They are moftly stated in paper money, which, varying continually, the legislature endeavours at every feffion, by new corrections, to adapt the nominal fums to the value it is wifhed they should bear. I will state them therefore in real coin, at the point at which they endeavour to keep them. 43.333/1/ Public levy: this is chiefly for the expences of criminal juftice 40,000 County levy, for bridges, court-houfes, prifons, &c. Members of Congrefs 40,000 7,000 °} 13,000 12,310 Quota of the Federal civil lift, fuppofed & of about 78,000 } dollars Expences of collection, 6 per cent. on the above Contingencies, to make round numbers not far from truth 25,000 7,5231/ 250,000 Dollars, or 53,571 guineas. This estimate is exclufive of the military expence. That varies with the force actually employed, and in time of peace will probably be little or nothing. It is exclufive alfo of the public debts, which are growing while I am writing, and cannot therefore be now fixed. So it is of the maintenance of the poor, which being merely a matter of charity, cannot be deemed expended in the adminiftration of government. And if we ftrike out the 25,000 dollars for the fervices of the clergy, which neither makes part of that adminiftration, more than what is paid to phyficians or lawyers, and being voluntary, is either much or nothing as every one pleafes, it leaves 225,000 dollars, equal to 48,208 guineas, the real coft of the apparatus of government with us. This, divided among the actual inhabitants of our country, comes to about two-fifths of a dollar, 21d. fterling, or 42 fols, the price which each pays annually for the protection of the refidue of his property, that of his perfon, and the other advantages of a free government. The public revenues of Great-Britain, divided in like manner on its inhabitants, would be be fixteen times greater. Deducting even the double of the expences of government, as before estimated, from the million and a half of dollars which we before fuppofed might he annually paid without diftrefs, we may conclude that this state can contribute one million of dollars annually towards fupporting the federal army, paying the federal debt, building a federal navy, or opening roads, clearing rivers, forming fafe ports, and other ufeful works.' Hiftory. We have already given a brief hiftorical account of the first fettlement of Virginia, till the arrival of Lord Delaware in 1610. His arrival with a fresh supply of fettlers and provifions revived the drooping fpirits of the former company, and gave permanency and refpectability to the fettlement. In April, 1613, Mr. John Rolfe, a worthy young gentleman, was married to Pocahontas, the daughter of Powhatan, the famous Indian chief. This connexion, which was very agreeable both to the English and Indians, was the foundation of a friendly and advantageous commerce between them. In 1616, Mr. Rolfe, with his wife Pocahontas, vifited England, where she was treated with that attention and refpect which the had merited by her important fervices to the colony in Virginia. She died the year following at Gravefend, in the 22d year of her age, juft as fhe was about to embark for America. She had embraced the Chriftian religion; and in her life and death evidenced the fincerity of her profeffion. She left a little fon, who, having received his education in England, came over to Virginia, where he lived and died in affluence and honour, leaving behind him an only daughter. Her defcendents are among the most respectable families in Virginia. Tomocomo, a fenfible Indian, brother-in-law to Pocahontas, accompanied her to England; and was directed by Powhatan to bring him an exact account of the numbers and ftrength of the English. For this purpose, when he arrived at Plymouth, he took a long flick, intending to cut a notch in it for every person he should fee. This he foon found impracticable, and threw away his ftick. On his return, being afked by Powhatan, how many people there were, he is faid to have replied, Count the stars in the fky, the leaves on the trees, and the fands on the sea shore; for fuch is the number of the people in England.' In purfuance of the authorities given to the company by their feveral charters, and more especially of that part in the charter of 1609, which authorised them to establish a form of government, they, on the 24th of July, 1621, by charter under their common feal, declared, That from thence forward there fhould be two fupreme councils in Virginia, the one to be called the council of ftate, to be placed and difplaced by the treasurer, council in England, and company, from time to time, whofe office was to be that of affifting and advifing the governor; the other to be called the general affembly, to be convened by the governor once, yearly, or oftener, which was to confift of the council of ftate, and two burgeffes out of every town, hundred, or plantation, to be refpectively chofen by the inhabitants. In this all matters were to be decided by the greater part of the votes prefent, referving to the governor a negative voice; and they were to have power to treat, confult, and conclude all emergent |