demand his money back if he left before the end of the play; "and forasmuch as 'tis impossible to command those vast engines (which move the scenes and machines) and to order such a number of persons as must be employed in works of this nature, if any but such as belong thereunto be suffered to press in amongst them," no one was allowed to go on to the stage or behind the scenes.1 4 3 Since the control of the Press, and the reporting of news concerning the government, were still regarded as being essentially matters which were under the control of the prerogative,2 problems connected with the Press and the dissemination of news continue to be fully illustrated by these proclamations. The publishing or reporting of any sort of matter concerning the government without licence was considered to be an offence, and in 1668 the sale of news books, gazettes, or pamphlets to hawkers, to cry about the streets, was forbidden. In 1686-1687 it was resolved to license pedlars, to prevent them from dispersing scandalous books; and in 1688 they were forbidden to sell any books. It was upon the Stationers Company that the government chiefly relied to carry out their orders as to the control of the Press; and in 1679 a proclamation was issued, approving their order that no book should be published which did not bear upon it the printer's or publisher's name. Sometimes proclamations were issued to protect copyright—thus in 1671 one was issued to prevent the infringement of a privilege granted to Edward Atkyns for the printing of books concerning the common law.10 There were other ways, besides the Press, in which news or criticism distasteful to the government was published. During the Commonwealth the coffee-houses had become important centres of social, literary, and political life; and from them news, criticisms, and rumours were quickly disseminated. "People generally believed," says Clarendon," "that those houses had a charter of privilege to speak what they would, 8 1 Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i no. 3588 (1673-1674); there is also an earlier proclamation of 1670, no. 3536. 2 Vol. iv 305-306; below 372-374. 3 Above 266; Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i nos. 3570 (1672); 3595 (1674); 3715 (1680); 3888 (1688). Ibid no. 3516; for bills which proposed to put other restrictions on hawkers and pedlars see Hist. MSS. Com. 9th Rep. Pt. ii 110 no. 528, and cp. ibid nos. 557, 586; a similar bill was thrown out by the House of Lords in 1685, Hist. MSS. Com. 11th Rep. App. Pt. ii 319 no. 465; cp. 14th Rep. App. Pt. vi 358, no. 708. 5 Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i no. 3832. 6 Ibid no. 3859. 7 Below 372. 8 Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i no. 3693. 9 For the connection between the licensing laws and the law of copyright see below 364-366, 369-370, 373-374, 377-379; Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i nos. 3337 (1661); 3543 (1670-1671). 10 Ibid no. 3553. 11 Life (ed. 1843) 1190. without being in danger to be called in question." In 1666 the licence then assumed by them had attracted the attention of the king. Clarendon recommended, either their suppression, or the employment of spies. The king seemed inclined to take the former course; but, to Clarendon's chagrin, he was dissuaded by Coventry.1 However, in 1675, they were suppressed.2 But this raised such an outcry that the proclamation was recalled, on condition that the coffee-house keepers entered into recognizances to prevent scandalous papers or libels from being brought to their houses, or read in them, and gave information within two days of any scandalous reports circulated there.3 We shall see that many of the topics covered by these proclamations were dealt with more fully, either by statutes, or by the rules of the common law. With the rules of the common law I shall deal in the following chapter and in the Second Part of this Book. Here we must consider the results achieved by the statutes of this period. The editions of the statutes during this period are not very numerous. In 1667 the king's printer issued an edition of the statutes at large then in force, from 16 Charles I. to 19 Charles II., together with the titles of those expired or repealed, and an index. In the same year Thomas Manby issued a similar work, based on Pulton's edition of the statutes. He gave an abridgment of the statutes expired and repealed, and the titles of the private Acts. In 1670 this was brought up to date, and issued with Pulton's Statutes; and in 1673 the same author issued a short abridgment of the statutes of Charles I. and II.'s reigns under alphabetical heads. It was preceded by a chronological table of the statutes public and private, and followed by lists of the lords spiritual and temporal and members of the House of Commons.* In 1676 we have the first issue of Joseph Keble's edition of the 1 Life (ed. 1843) 1190. He pointed out that the prohibition of the sale of coffee would be bad for the revenue; and also, "that it had been permitted in Cromwell's time, and that the king's friends had used more liberty of speech in those places than they durst do in any other; and that he thought it would be better to leave them as they were, without running the hazard of ill being continued, notwithstanding his command to the contrary." 2 Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i no. 3622; the legality of this course was exceedingly dubious; and so recourse was had to the idea that, being nuisances (above 303 n. 2), they could be suppressed; North, Lives of the Norths i 198, says, "His lordship upon the main thought that retailing of coffee might be an innocent trade; but as it was used to nourish sedition, spread lies, scandalize great men and the like, it might also be a common nuisance"; for the discussions on this subject see S.P. Dom. 1675-1676 496-497, 500, 502; cp. North, Examen 138. 3 Tudor and Stuart Proclamations i no. 3625. 4 It was probably intended quite as much for the use of members of Parliament as for the legal profession. "For Joseph Keble see below 557-558. statutes from Magna Carta to the present time. The statutes were printed in paragraphs; the heads of Pulton's and Rastell's Abridgments, and references to the reports and other legal works, were inserted in the margin; and the titles of statutes expired, repealed, altered, or out of use were inserted. Further issues bringing it up to date were made in 1681, 1684, 1695, and 1706. With the contents of the important statutes relating to public law I have already dealt. Of the rest, the largest group relates to commerce and industry; and with them I shall deal in the first place. The statutes which extend or modify old rules, or create new rules of law, are not, as a whole, of the first importance. The only statutes which effected important permanent modifications of the law are the statute abolishing the military tenures, and the statutes of Distribution with which I have already dealt;1 the statutes which regulated the Press; and the statute of Frauds, which, as we shall see, was chiefly important for the beneficial changes which it made in the law of evidence. In the second and third place, therefore, I shall deal with the statute law relating to the Press, and the statute of Frauds. Fourthly, I shall briefly summarize the other statutes which modified existing branches of law; and, lastly, I shall say something of the reasons for the striking absence of any great legislative reforms at the Revolution. Commerce and Industry Throughout this period the legislation upon these topics is inspired by aims very similar to those which inspired the legislation of the preceding period. The changes which can be observed are due, not to difference of aim, but to differences in the political machinery of the state, and in the economic machinery of commerce and industry. I shall therefore deal with the legislation upon these topics under somewhat the same heads as I dealt with it in the preceding period; and, in conclusion, I shall point out the significance of the effects which the changed political and economic machinery were beginning to have upon political and economic theory. The subject will fall under the following heads: (1) National defence; (2) Colonial trade; (3) Foreign trade and native industry; (4) Agriculture, the prices of food, and wages; (5) the Poor Law. 1 Vol. iii 45, 51, 61, 67, 559-563. 2 See Charles II.'s Instructions for the Council of Trade, S,P. Dom. xxi 27, printed by Cunningham, op. cit. iii 913-915. 3 Vol. iv 326, (1) National Defence. 3 4 5 In Charles II.'s reign the militia was reorganized;1 and, after the Revolution, we reach the period of standing armies governed by the Mutiny Acts. But, in this period as in the last, it was the navy to which the legislature paid the most attention. Naval discipline, the care of naval stores, the encouragement of volunteers, the organization of Greenwich hospital, the examination of abuses in the management of the navy and of the accounts of money voted for the navy, provision for the repair of harbours, and provision of carriage for ordonnance and naval stores are all the occasion for lengthy statutes. But we are here concerned, not with the statutes dealing directly with naval organization, but with the manner in which the navy and the other forces of the crown were indirectly encouraged by the regulation of commerce and industry. 6 9 It was easier to encourage the navy by such legislation than the army. But there are two sets of measures which operated in favour of both. Firstly, encouragement was given to the manufacturers of munitions of war. In 1660 the manufacturers of gunpowder were encouraged by a permission to export if the price did not exceed a certain amount-with the proviso, however, that the king could at any time forbid its export, or the export of arms and ammunition. In 1685 10 the manufacturers of gunpowder and other munitions were still further encouraged by the prohibition of their import without royal licence. Secondly, as in the preceding period," the crown did all it could to encourage the production of saltpetre. In 1694 it was allowed to be freely imported for one year in English ships, and the maximum price at which it could be sold was fixed.12 Companies which set out to produce it were incorporated. But they had very little success. The most valuable source of supply was found to be the East Indies; and a proviso was inserted in several of the East India Company's charters that it should sell the crown a fixed quantity of saltpetre each year at a fixed price.11 The measures passed to encourage the naval strength of the 1 Above 167. 13 2 Above 241. 13 Charles II. st. 1 c. 9; 5, 6 William and Mary c. 25; above 226. 16 Charles II. c. 5; 18, 19 Charles II. c. 12; 22, 23 Charles II. c. 23. 7, 8 William III. c. 21; 8, 9 William III. c. 23. 619, 20 Charles II. c. I. 715 Charles II. c. 5 (a private Act); 1 James II. c. 16; 8, 9 William III. c. 29; 10 William III. c. 5. 8 14 Charles II. c. 20. 10 I James II. c. 8. 125, 6 William and Mary c. 16. 9 12 Charles II. c. § II. 11 Vol. iv 299, 331, 352. 13 Scott, Joint Stock Companies ii 471-474. 14 Ibid 472; Select Charters of Trading Companies (S.S.) liv. country follow somewhat the same lines as the legislation of the preceding period. Thus, industries which were directly useful to it were encouraged. In 1663 all persons, whether natives or foreigners, were encouraged to set up the trades of dressing hemp and flax for the making (among other things) of thread, twine, fishing nets, and cordage; and foreigners who exercised these trades were, on taking the oaths of allegiance and supremacy, to become naturalized.2 In 1667-1668, "with a view to the supply of his Majesties Royal Navy and the maintenance of Shipping for the Trade of this nation," an Act was passed for the increase and preservation of timber in the forest of Dean.3 The fishing industry was a nursery of seamen, and the mercantile marine formed a reserve of ships. Both were encouraged by the legislature and by the crown. Firstly, the fishing industry. We have seen that the Political Lent was a device to encourage this industry. It ceased to be enforced in the latter part of the seventeenth century; but the fishing trade was encouraged in other ways. In 1662 the pilchard fishery of Devon and Cornwall was regulated; in 1666 the importation of certain kinds of fish taken by foreigners was prohibited; and in 16728 the export of fish caught in English ships, manned as required by the Navigation Act, was allowed. Throughout the seventeenth century societies and companies were formed to exploit the fishing industry round the English coast.10 In 1692 the Greenland Company was created by statute to organize the whaling industry," which had been thrown open in 1672; 12 and in 1696 it was given an exemption from the duties on oil and whalebone.13 That one of the chief objects of the legislature in creating this Company was to provide a school for seamen can be seen from the preamble to the Act of 1692; and the same object is apparent in some of the regulations for the Newfoundland fishery, which provided for the employment 25 Charles II. c. 6 § 3. 215 Charles II. c. 15. 718, 19 Charles II. c. 2. § 2. 9 Below 317-318. 14 10 For a society formed in the early part of the seventeenth century, see Scott, op. cit. ii 361-368; for the Royal Fishery Company founded in 1664, see ibid ii 372-374; and for a company started in 1692, see ibid ii 374-376. 11 4 William and Mary c. 17; the encouragement of this industry had been one of the objects of the Russia Company, to which in 1613 James I. had given a monopoly of the trade, Scott, op. cit. ii 53-54. 12 25 Charles II. c. 7, § 1. 13 7, 8 William III. c. 33; cp. Cunningham, op. cit. ii 484. 14" Whereas the trade to Greenland and the Greenland sea in the fishing for whales there hath been heretofore a very beneficial trade to this kingdom, not only in the employing great numbers of seamen and ships, and consuming great quantities of provisions, but also in the bringing into this nation great quantities of oil blubber and fins," |