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with us. This sloop went through the water a good deal faster than we could: but in the course of two hours beating to windward, we found that the sloop was left behind two feet in three; though it is certain, that if our false keels had not been let down, we could scarcely, in that situation, have advanced one foot for her three.

It is unnecessary to point out to seafaring men the benefits that may be derived from this contrivance in certain circumstances, as these will be very obvious to them.

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NORTH-WEST PASSAGE.

NOTWITHSTANDING the many fruitless attempts that have been made to discover a north-west passage into the South Seas, would seem that this important geographical question is not yet fully decided; for at a meeting of the Academy of Sciences, at Paris, held on the 13th of November last, M. Bauche, first geographer to the king, read a curious memoir concerning the north-west passage. M. de Mendoza, an intelligent captain of a vessel in the service of Spain, charged with the care of former establishments favourable to the marine, has made a careful examination of the archives of several departments: there he has found the relation of a voyage made in the year 1598, by Lorenzo Herrero de Maldonada. There it appears, that at the entry into Davis's Straits, north lat. 60 degrees and 28 of longitude, counting from the first meridian, he turned to the west, leaving Hudson's Bay on the south, and Baffin's Bay on the north. Arrived at latitude 65 and 297, he went towards the north by the Straits of Labrador, till he reached 76, and 278: and, finding himself in the icy Sea, he turned south-west to lat. 60 and 135, where he found a strait, which separates Asia from America, by which he entered into the South Sea, which he called the Straits of Anian. This passages ought to be, according to M. Bauche, between William's Sound and Mount St. Elias. The Russians and Captain Cook have not observed it, because it is very narrow. But it is to be wished, that this important discovery should be verified, which has been overlook ed for two centuries, in spite of the attempts which have been made on these coasts. M. Bauche calls this passage the Straits of Ferrer.

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POSITIONS TO BE EXAMINED.

1. ALL food, or subsistence for mankind, arise from the earth or waters.

2. Necessaries of life that are not foods, and all other conveniences, have their value estimated by the proportion of food consumed while we are employed in procuring them.

3. A small people, with a large territory, may subsist on the productions of nature, with no other labour than that of gathering the vegetables and catching the animals.

4. A large people, with a small territory, find these insufficient; and, to subsist, must labour the earth, to make it produce greater quantities of vegetable food, suitable to the nourishment of men, and of the animals they intend to eat.

5. From this labour arises a great increase of vege table and animal. food, and of materials for clothing; as flax, wool, silk, &c. The superfluity of these is wealth. With this wealth we pay for the labour employed in building our houses, cities, &c. which are therefore only subsistence thus metamorphosed.

6. Manufactures are only another shape into which so much provisions and substance are turned, as were in value equal to the manufactures produced. This appears from hence, that the manufacturer does not, in fact, obtain from the employer, for his labour, more than a mere subsistence, including raiment, fuel, and shelter: all which derive their value from the provisions consumed in procuring them.

7. The produce of the earth, thus converted into manufactures, may be more easily carried into distant markets, than before such conversion.

8. Fair commerce is where equal values are exchanged for equal, the expense of transport included. Thus, if it cost A. in England, as much labour and charge to raise a bushel of wheat, as it cost B. in France to produce four gallons of wine, then are four gallons of wine the fair exchange for a bushel of wheat, A. and B. meeting at a half distance with commodi ties to make the exchange. The advantage of this fair commerce is, that each party increases the number of his enjoyments, having instead of wheat alone, or wine alone, the use of both wheat and wine.

9. Where the labour and expense of producing both commodities are known to both parties, bargains will generally be fair and equal. Where they are known

to one party only, bargains will often be unequal, knowledge taking its advantage of ignorance.

10. Thus he that carries a thousand bushels of wheat abroad to sell, may not probably obtain so great a profit thereon, as if he had first turned the wheat into manufactures, by subsisting therewith the workmen while producing those manufactures, since there are many expediting and facilitating methods of working, not generally known, and strangers to the manufactures, though they know pretty well the expense of raising wheat, are unacquainted with those short methods of working; and thence, being apt to suppose more labour employed in the manufacture than there really is, are more easily imposed on in their value, and induced to allow more for them than they are honestly worth.

11. Thus the advantage of having manufactures in a country does not consist, as is commonly supposed, in their highly advancing the value of rough materials, of which they are formed; since, though sixpenny worth of flax may be worth twenty shillings when worked into lace, yet the very cause of its being worth twenty shillings is that, besides the flax, it has cost nineteen shillings and sixpence in subsistence to the manufactu rer. But the advantage of manufactures is, that under their shape, provisions may be more easily carried to a foreign market: and by their means our traders may more easily cheat strangers. Few, where it is not made, are judges of the value of lace. The importer may demand forty, and perhaps get thirty shillings for that which cost him but twenty.

12. Finally, there seems to be but three ways for a nation to acquire wealth. The first is by war, as the Romans did, in plundering their conquered neighbours; this is robbery.--The second by cominerce, which is generally cheating.-The third by agriculture, the only honest way, wherein a man receives a real increase of the seed thrown into the ground, in a kind of continual miracle, wrought by the hand of God in his favour, as a reward for his innocent life and his virtuous industry. FRANKLIN.

MINARY ADDRESS

E PENNSYLVANIA ALMANAC,

- Pour Roland's Almanac, for the year 1758.

KITTEN ST DR. FRANKLIN.

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"Friends (says he) and neighbours, the taxes are indeed very heavy; and if those laid on by the government were the only ones we had to pay, we might more easily discharge them, but we have many others, and much more grievous to some or us. We are taxed twice as much by our idleness, three times as much by our pride, and four times as much by our folly; and from these taxes the commissioners cannot ease or deliver us, by allowing an abatement. However, let us hearken to good advice, and something may be done. for us; "God helps them that help themselves," as poor Richard says in his Almanac."

"It would be thought a hard government that should tax its people one tenth part of their time, to be employed in its service; but idleness taxes many of us much more if we reckon all that is spent in absolute sloth, or doing of nothing, with that which is spent in idle employments, or amusements that amount to nothing. Sloth, by bringing on diseases, absolutely shortens life. "Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labour wears, while the key often used is always bright," as poor Richard says. "But dost thou love life? then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of," as poor Richard says. How much more than is necessary do we spend in sleep, forgetting, that "the sleeping fox catches no poultry, and that there will be sleeping enough in the grave," as poor Richard says. "If time be of all things the most precious, wasting time must be (as poor Richard says) the greatest prodigality" since, as he elsewhere tells us, "Lost time is never found again: and what we call time enough, always proves little enough." Let us then up and be doing, and doing to the purpose; so by diligence shall we do more with less perplexity. "Sloth makes all, things difficult, but industry ail easy," as poor Richard says; and he that riseth late must trot all day, and shall scarce overtake his business at night; while laziness travels so slowly, that poverty soon overtakes him, as we read in poor Richard; who adds, " Drive thy business, let not that drive thee ;" and, "early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

So what signifies wishing and hoping for better times? We make these times better if we bestir ourselves. "Industry needs not wish," as poor Richard says" and, "He that lives upon hope will die fasting." "There are no gains without pains; then help hands, for I have no lands; or if I have, they are smartly taxed" and, (as roer Richard likewise observes) "He that bath a trade hath an estate, and he that hath a

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