[From Feltham's Tour, 1798]

LETTER VI.

To the same.

DEAR SIR,

ANNEXED is an account of the ports in the Island, the fairs, state of the registers of each parish, vicars, number of inhabitants, post-office, &c. also the revenues, duties exports, imports, prohibitions, &c. &c.

The following are the ports, with their creeks, appointed by commission, Sept. 15,1776.

PORTS.

Douglas Creeks, Port- Moore, Cornay, Laxey, Garwick, Groudel, Port-Concan, Port-Sodric, Greenwich.

Derby-haven.–Creeks, Castletown-harbour, Poolevash, Port le Marie, Port Iron, Fleshwick, Noorble.

Peele.–Creeks, Glenmay, Glenwilliam, Ballaugh.

Ramsay.–Creeks, Lanemoore, Port Cranstail, Port League.

FAIRS.

February.–Marown, Bride, Cross-four-ways, Poolevash.

March,–Boldin, Patrick, Peel

April.–Jurby, Balla-salla

May.–St. John's 2, Douglas 2, Bride, Castletown, St. Mark's, Ballaugh, Conchan.

June.–Sulby 2, Arbory, St. Anne, or Santon.

July.–St. John's, Peele, Four cross-ways.

August.–Laxey, Maughold, Balla-salla, Ballaugh.

September.–Balla-salla.

October.–K. Michael 2, K. Arbory.

November.–St. John's 2, Ramsay 2, Douglas, Jurby.

December.–K. Arbory, Andreas 2, Ramsay

N.B. Some of these fairs are well attended, but others are

A Retrospect of the Parish Registers

N.B. The registers in the most early state, I found so incorrect to justify a dependence on them.

Inhabitants at different periods; Vicars, Rectors, &c. in 1798.

N.B. Lieut.-Governor Shaw is of opinion that the Island contains from 30,000 to 33,000 inhabitants, 1797.

The Isle of Wight, which measures 22½ miles from east to west, and 13 miles from north to south, contains thirty parishes, and about 18,700 inhabitants

POST-OFFICE.

A packet arrives from Whitehaven weekly,+, with letters and passengers; it sails Monday evenings from thence, (wind and weather permitting) stays three days in the island, and the' l returns. The post-office brought in, previous to 1791, on average 3461. 13s. 7d. per annum; this has been increase since. The following is the produce from January 5, 1797,to January 5, 1798.

Letters from and through London . . . 195 18 7
Bye and cross-roads . . . . . . . 262 3 3
458 1 10

.

From this is to be deducted the hire of the packet-boat, 1501.; post-master's salary 201 per annum; and the hire of the footpost to Castletown, about 91. per annum.

I Revenue from January 1790 to 1791. }? 8, d.

Collected at Douglas port 2,793 0 1O2

Derby-Haven 104 9 51

Peel 31 19 2\

Ramsay 86 19 4

3,016 8 11

Payments) salaries, bounties on her-} 3 27~ 2 2 rings, tic.. . . . . . . .

N.B. I understand that for several late years the revenue of the island has been greater than the expenditure.

Duties on Articles imported.

British spirits, 40,000 gallons, at 1&. per gallon. Rum ditto, at 2s. per gallon. Bohea tea, 20,000 lb. at 6d. per pound Green tea, 5,000 lb. at 1s. per pound. - Coffee, 5,000 lb. at 4d. per pound.

Tobacco, 40,000 lb. at 3d. per pound. Coals, 3a7. per chaldron.

French wine, 81. per ton. All other wines, 41. per ton. Other goods so much per cent. ad valorem.

Quantity of Wine imported.

In 1790, from Whitehaven, 19 tons 61 gallons of white From Sicily, 22 tons 93 gallons of ditto. From Oporto, 16 tons 240 gallons, and 17 tons 76 gallons of port; and of white 31

In 1791, from Oporto, 19 tons 219 gallons; 26 tons 85 gallons, and 1 ton ~ gallons of port. From Whitehaven, 247 gallons of white wine; and from ditto, 1 ton 68 gallons.

Quantity of Salt imported.

For ten years, ending January 1791, were imported into the Island of Man, 518,141 bushels of salt from Great Britain, duty free. From foreign parts, during the same period, 8,880 bushels.

Quantity of Coals imported.

From 1781 to 1790, inclusive, 33,932 chaldrons.

Articles imported duty free.

1st, Flax, or flax-seed; raw, or brown linen yarn; flesh, corn, or grain of all sorts; wood and weed ashes; coming from any place except Great-Britain. th

2d. White, or brown linen cloth; hemp, or hemp seed; e produce or manufacture of Great-Britain or Ireland.

3d. Utensils and instruments to be employed in Manufactures, fisheries, or agriculture; bricks, tiles, young trees, sea-she s, lime, soapers' waste, packthread, and small cordage for nets.

4th. Salt, beards, timber, and hoops; the produce and manufacture of Great-Britain.

5th. Iron-rods, or bars; cotton, indigo, naval stores, lumber, the growth, &c. of the British plantations in America; add all l other goods of the growth, &c. of the said plantations, for which any bounty is allowed on importation into Great-Britain.

Imported free into Great-Britain from the Island.

1st. Bestials, goods, wares, and merchandises, of the growth produce, or manufacture of the island, except such as are prohibited, and except woollen manufactures, beer, and ale.

2d. Linens, made of hemp or flax, not being the produce of the island. But no other goods of a foreign nation manufactured either wholly, or in part, in the island.

Prohibited to be imported.

-Wrought silks, Bengals, stuffs mixed with silk or herba, of the manufacture of Persia, China, or East-India; calicoes painted, dyed, printed, or stained there; cambrics and French lawns.

Brandy; British spirits, exceeding 40,000 gallons; rum, ditto, : and all Other spirits.

Bohea tea, exceeding 20,000 lbs.; green tea and coffee, exceeding 5,000 lbs. each; tobacco, exceeding 40,000 lbs.;

British refined sugar, exceeding 400 cwt. fully refined; bastard refined, exceeding 10 cwt.

Prohibited to be exported.

Brandy, rum, strong waters, and spirits of all kinds; to Great Britain or Ireland.

Tea, brandy, strong waters, and spirits of an kinds; coffee, chocolate, tobacco, glass, coals, British or other wrought silks salt and wine; to any place whatsoever.

Wool, woollen or bay yarn, live sheep; to any place except Great-Britain.

British refined sugar_to any place whatsoever.

EXPORTS.

To give an idea of the growth, produce, and manufactures of this island, I quote the amount of exports under that denomination, exclusive of grain, linen, bestials, and herrings, which took place in 1790. To Great-Britain in 1790; 1743 bushels of potatoes; 1313 crocks of butter; 201 boxes and baskets of eggs; 7 barrels of pork; 12 barrel of beef; 195 cow and ox hides, in ha*; 56 dozen and 10 calf skins; tanned leather, 3 cwt. 3-quarters 13 lb.; Cow and ox horns, 1400; cow and ox hair, 26 cwt. 1 quarter 16 lb.; honey, 3 cwt. 1 quarter 24 lb.; kelp, 1335 cwt.; beeswax, 1 cwt. 3-quarters 21 lb.; wool, and woollen yarn, 17 cwt. 15 lb.; linen yarn, 158 cwt. 3-quarters 15 lb.; lead ore, 69 tons odd; rabbit skins, 257 dozen and 10.

lo Ireland, of rabbit-skins, 103 dozen; feathers, 10 cwt.

3-quarters 18 lb.; bacon, 49 cwt. 2-quarters 16 lb.; Cotton twist, 40 cwt. odd ; lime-stone, 143 tons ; reams of paper, 1807 ; pavingstones, 282 tons; cheese, 11 cwt. odd; slate, 102 tons; sycamore and ash timber,` 80 feet; fern ashes, 17 cwt. odd; ha* powder, 1 cwt.; 130 hanks of candlewicks; 1 tomb or hearth stone; and dried beef, 2-quarters 24 lb.

Articles entitled to Bounty.

Linens made in the island exported to Great-Britain, and re-exported from thence–the like bounty as on Irish linens by 29th Geo. II. sect. 13.

Herrings cured, white, Is. per barrel.

Ditto ditto, exported from the island to foreign parts, 2s. 8d. per barrel.

Ditto ditto, exported to Great-Britain, and re-exported to foreign parts, 2s. 8d. per barrel.

Herrings cured red, exported from the island to foreign parts, Is. 9d. per barrel.

Ditto ditto, exported to Great Britain, and re-exported from thence to foreign parts, Is. 9d. per barrel.

Linen exported in ten years, from 1781 to 1790, inclusive. To Great-Britain, 506,365} yards. To Ireland, 1564 yards.

Cattle exported in ten years, from 1781 to 1790, inclusive. To Great-Britain, 727 horses; 4019 black cattle; 238 sheep; 248 pigs; 1 mule; ~ goats. To Ireland, 113 horses; 4 black cattle; 12 mules.

In consequence of that contraband trade, which is so generally known to have prevailed in the island, government, as soon as it became possessed of it, determined to lose no time in putting a final stop to so injurious a traffic, and therefore appointed commissioners from London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, to enquire into its nature and effects, and report thereon; with the remedies necessary to be adopted Among other matters, they state, the prejudices to the King's revenue to have been nearly 350,0001. per annum; and the value of seizures on the coast of Ireland, from the island, to have been nearly 10,0001. per annum. In consequence, the act of 5 Geo. III. passed, and some subsequent ones, which have nearly stopped this illicit trade, by enacting prohibitions and regulations, some of which are stated in this letter. But the revesting act, with these, greatly abridged their insular rights, and the Manks were deprived of some of their ancient privileges. They felt themselves oppressed, and sent agents to England to assert their rights before parliament; and prevailed so far as to procure, in 1766, an act for encouraging and regulating their trade, &c. and for ralsmg a revenue to effect the purposes therein mentioned. These acts now appear to have had a beneficial operation, and the inhabitants are perfectly happy under the British government.

Footnotes

1 Mr.Quayle died March, 1798.

Warners History of the Isle of Wight, 8vo. 1795.

+ See the act of parliament, anno septimo Geo. III. cap. 50, As no department is more respectable than the post-office, the salaries should therefore be adequate to its utility and various inconveniences: it is here too small; a man and horse ought instantly to be dispatched to each town on the arrival of the packet.