9. That it is essential to the general commercial interests of the empire, that so long as the Parliament of this kingdom shall think it adviseable, that the commerce to the countries beyond the Cape of Good Hope, to the Straits of Magellan, shall be carried on solely by an exclusive company, having liberty to import into the port of London only, no goods of the growth, produce, or manufacture of the said countries, shall be allowed to be imported into Ireland, but through Great Britain; except dye-stuffs, cotton, or other wool and spiceries, which may be imported into Ireland from foreign European countries, so long as the same are importable from foreign European countries into Great Britain; and that it shall be lawful to export such goods of the growth, product, or manufacture of any of the countries beyond the Cape of Good Hope, to the Straits of Magellan, from Great Britain to Ireland, with the same duties retained thereon as are now retained on their being exported to that kingdom, but that an account shall be kept of the duties retained and not drawn back on the said goods exported to Ireland, and that the amount thereof shall be remitted by the Receiver-General of His Majesty's customs in Great Britain, to the proper officer of the revenue of Ireland, to be placed to the account of His Majesty's revenue there, subject to the disposal of the Parliament of that kingdom; and that the ships going from Great Britain to any of the said countries beyond the Cape of Good Hope, to the Straits of Magellan, should not be restrained from touching at any of the ports in Ireland, and taking on board there any of the goods of the growth, produce, or manufacture of that kingdom; and that no ships be allowed to clear out from Ireland for any of the said countries, but such ships as shall be freighted by the said company, and which shall have sailed from the port of London; and that whenever the commerce to the said country shall cease to be carried on solely by such an exclusive company, the goods, the growth, produce, or manufacture of the said countries beyond the Cape of Good Hope, to the Straits of Magellan, should be importable into Ireland from the same countries from which they may be importable into Great Britain, and no other.

10. That no prohibition should exist in either country against the importation, use, or sale of any article the growth, product, or manufacture of the other, except such as either kingdom may judge expedient from time to time upon corn, meal, malt, flour, and biscuits; and except such qualified prohibitions at present contained in any act of the British or Irish Parliaments, as do not absolutely prevent the importation of goods or manufactures, or materials of manufactures, but only regulate the weight, the size, the package, or other particular circumstances, or prescribe the built or country, and dimensions of the ships importing the same; and also except on ammunition, arms, gunpowder, and other utensils of war importable only by virtue of His Majesty's licenses; and that the duty on the importation of every such article (if subject to duty in either country) should be precisely the same in the one country as in the other, except where an addition may be necessary in either country, in consequence of an internal duty on any such article of its own consumption, or an internal bounty in the country where such article is grown, produced, or manufactured, and except such duties as either kingdom may judge expedient from time to time upon corn, meal, malt, flour, and biscuits.

11. That in all cases where the duties on articles of the growth, produce, or manufacture of either country, are different on the importation into the other, it is expedient that they should be reduced in the kingdom where they are the highest, to an amount not exceeding the amount payable in the other, so that the same shall not be less than ten and a half per centum, or where any article was charged with a duty on importation into Ireland of ten and a half per centum, or upwards, on the 17th day of May, 1782; and that all such articles shall be exported from the kingdom into which they shall be imported, as free from duties as the same kingdom.

12. That it is also proper that in all cases where the articles of the consumption of either kingdom shall be charged with an internal duty on the manufacture, the same manufacture, when imported from the other, may be charged with a farther duty on importation, adequate to countervail the internal duty on the

manufacture, except in the case of beer imported into Ireland, as far as relates to the duties now charged thereon; such farther duty to continue so long only as the internal consumption shall be charged with the duty or duties to balance which it shall be imposed; and that where there is a duty on the raw material of any manufacture in either kingdom, less than the duty on the like raw material in the other, or equal to such duty, such manufacture may, on its importation into the other kingdom, be charged with such a countervailing duty as may be sufficient to subject the same, so imported, to burthens adequate to those which the manufacture composed of the like raw material is subject to, in consequence of duties on such material in the kingdom into which such manufacture is so imported; and that the said manufacture so imported shall be entitled to such drawbacks or bounties on exportation as may leave the same subject to no heavier burthen than the home-made manufacture.

13. That in order to give permanency to the settlement now intended to be established, it is necessary that no new or additional duties should be hereafter imposed in either kingdom on the importation of any article of the growth, product, or manufacture of the other, except such additional duties as may be requisite to balance duties on internal consumption, pursuant to the foregoing resolution, or in consequence of bounties remaining on such article when exported from the other kingdom.

14. That for the same purpose it is necessary farther, that no new prohibition or new or additional duties should be hereafter imposed in either kingdom on the exportation of any article of native growth, produce or manufacture, from the one kingdom to the other, except such as either kingdom may deem expedient from time to time, upon corn, meal, malt, flour, and biscuits.

15. That for the same purpose it is necessary that no bounties whatsoever should be paid or payable in either kingdom, on the exportation of any article to the other, except such as relate to corn, meal, malt, flour, and biscuits, and except also the bounties at present given by Great Britain on beer and spirits distilled from corn, and such as are in the nature of

drawbacks or compensations for duties paid; and that no bounties should be payable in Ireland on the exportation of any article to any British colonies or plantations, or to the British settlements on the coast of Africa, or on the exportation of any article imported from the British plantations, or from the British settlements on the coast of Africa, or British settlements in the East Indies, or any manufacture made of such article, unless in cases where a similar bounty is payable in Great Britain on exportation from thence, or where such bounty is merely in the nature of a drawback or compensation of or for duties paid over and above any duties paid thereon in Great Britain; and that where any internal bounty shall be given in either kingdom on any goods manufactured therein, and shall remain on such goods when exported, a countervailing duty adequate thereto may be laid upon the importation of the said goods into the other kingdom.

16. That it is expedient for the general benefit of the British empire, that the importation of articles from foreign countries should be regulated from time to time in each kingdom on such terms as may effectually favour the importation of similar articles of the growth, produce, or manufacture of the other, except in the case of materials or manufacture which are or hereafter may be allowed to be imported from foreign countries duty free; and that in all cases where any articles are or may be subject to higher duties on importation into this kingdom from the countries belonging to any of the states of North America than the like goods are or may be subject to when imported as the growth, produce, or manufacture of the British colonies and plantations, or as the produce of the fisheries carried on by British subjects, such articles shall be subject to the same duties on importation into Ireland from the countries belonging to any of the states of North America as the same are or may be subject to on importation from the said countries into this kingdom.

17. That it is expedient that such privileges of printing and vending books, as are or may be legally possessed within Great Britain, under the grant of the Crown or otherwise, and the copyrights of the authors and booksellers of Great Britain,

should continue to be protected in the manner they are at present by the laws of Great Britain; and that it is just that measures should be taken by the Parliament of Ireland, for giving the like protection to similar rights and privileges in that kingdom.

18. That it is expedient that regulations should be adopted with respect to patents to be hereafter granted for the encouragement of new inventions, so that the rights, privileges, and restrictions therein granted and contained shall be of equal force and duration, throughout Great Britain and Ireland.

19. That it is expedient that measures should be taken to prevent disputes touching the exercise of the right of the inhabitants of each kingdom to fish on the coasts of any part of the British dominions.

20. That the appropriation of whatever sum the gross hereditary revenue of the kingdom of Ireland (the due collection thereof being secured by permanent provisions) shall produce after deducting all drawbacks, repayments, or bounties granted in the nature of drawbacks, over and above the sum of six hundred and fifty-six thousand pounds in each year, towards the support of the naval force of the empire, to be applied in such manner as the Parliament of Ireland shall direct, by an act to be passed for that purpose, will be a satisfactory provision, proportioned to the growing prosperity of that kingdom, towards defraying in time of peace the necessary expenses of protecting the trade and general interests of the empire.

VI.

THE BRITISH ACT OF TRADE BETWEEN IRELAND, THE COLONIES, AND AMERICA.

An Act to allow the trade between Ireland and the British Colonies, and plantations in America and the West Indies, and the British settlements on the coast of Africa, to be carried on in like manner as it is now carried on between Great Britain and the said colonies and settlements, 1779.

Whereas by an Act of Parliament, made in the twelfth year of the reign of King Charles the Second, (intituled, an Act for the