Neither may I forget that Royall testimony hereof, which is worthy to be written in letters of gold, and thankefully to be remembered of every tongue and pen; whereof amongst others more worthy, it was also my happinesse to be oculatus and auritus testis: when His Majesty in a Star-chamber assembly, lifting His eye toward heaven, and laying His hand on His Sonnes head, made such a solemne protestation of His sincerity in Justice, as may serve for a matter of admiration and imitation, to all the Kings on earth. Those that went before, and they that followed after:
Those that heard it then, and they that heard of it since; said it was {Greek phrase omitted} Nec vox hominem sonat, o Deus certe!
If such then be the Justice of the King and the kingdome, how is it then that Trade is hindered by suits of Law. Herein Columellae's counsell is remarquable, Principi providendum est, ne legibus fundata civitas, legibus evertatur. There cannot be too much Justice, ther may be too much Law. For the use of Justice is excellent, in conteining men within the bonds of civility and honesty: in preserving men from injurie: and in maintaining every mans right & propriety. But the abuse there of is a most pernitious and dangerous surfeit in the body of every Common-wealth.
And this is our case in this Weale-publike; no Kingdome hath better Lawes; no kingdome so full fraught with tedious, needlesse, endlesse, suits of Law. For now this Litigandi {Greek word omitted}, and waxeth so fast, and groweth so great, that suites of Law doe seem immortall: time doth increase them, and lenght of time would not determine them, if the wisedome of those Grave Fathers of the Law, did not put an end to the malice of the Litigants: as is now, worthily observed in Chancery, to his honour and memorie that hath so happily begun the same.
By the groweth and greatnesse of which suites, I say, a great number of His Majesties good and loving subjects are vexed, imprisoned, impoverished and overthrowne: and whilst the Litigants strive together, another taketh away the fish, and as it is in the Apologue, leaveth to either of them an empty shell.
And thus mens time and meanes being spent in Law, which should be employed in Trade, trade is neglected, and the Common-wealth deprived, of the benefit that might be purchased and procured thereby.
Amd thus much for the decay of Trade considered joyntly. It followeth now to consider them apart, in some principall parts thereof. Which may be reduced, to such as tend to the Fortification of the Kingdome, or Maintenance of Trade. The former are Ordinance and Munition: the too-too common exportation whereof, hath taught us wofull experience of an invaluable inconvenience thereby, which every man is sensible of: and therefore I neede not presse it: I wish it did not oppresse us.
The latter, I will referre to things essentiall, for the preservation of mans life, as Victus and Vestitus: yet such of them also as doe aford wondrous variety of Trade, and may be termed the Nourceries thereof, as the Fishing and Clothing of this Kingdome. For on these two, all sorts of Trades and Tradesmen, have some dependance.
The inconvenience in this former, is that Encroaching of Strangers, in Fishing upon our Coasts: whereby not onely the bread is taken out of the subjects mouth, but that infinite wealth, which God hath made proper and peculiar unto Us, is become common unto them. Whereby also, their Navigation is wonderfully encrea'st their Mariners are multiplied, and exceeding great Trades maintained into all parts of the Christian world. And victuals commonly yeelding ready money, and tolleration of exportation thereof, the same hath redounded to an infinite enriching of their Countries with Treasure, exhausted out of these Mines of our's.
I am not ignorant that a learned man of that side, pressing hard in a Treatise entituled Mare liberum, the Community and Freedome of the Sea against the Portugall Trade into the East Indies: doth cunningly and obliquely, under the covert terms of Populi Romani littus, defend and maintaine, in the fifth chapter thereof, their fishing upon our Coasts. For thus hee concludeth, Nemo igitur potest apopulo Romano ad littus marius accedere prohiberi, & retia siccare, & alia facere, quae semel onmes hominibus in perpetuum sibi licere voluerunt. And again, Exteris ius piscandi, ubique immune esse debet.
To part of which Treatise, there is an answere entituled, De Dominio Maris, to which I referre those that desire further satisfaction in this matter. But in my judgement, which I submit to better judgement, the Author of Mare liberum, though otherwise very learned, strayneth his Arguments for that purpose beyond their strength. For Jus is said to be scriptum, or Non scriptum.
And by both these, the proprieties of the Seas may be proved, to belong to those Princes and Countries, to which they are next adjacent.
For Custome, the examples of our Neighbour Countries round about us are frequent. As of Coeldine, Groeneland, Norway, and Frisland, under the King of Denmark. Tunny fishing under the Duke of Medina. The Gulfe of Venice that Seignory. And many others Imight instance: In all which there is no liberty of fishing, but by speciall priviledge had from those Princes to whom the same belongeth. Which being so we may wel conclude with the Poet, Cum ventum ad verum est, sensus moresque repugnant.
For the Law it selfe, it is not hard to produce some of his owne Authors against himselfe. As the Emperour Leo: of whome he thus speaketh, Voluit {Greek word omitted}, hoc est, vestibula maritima eorum esse propria, qui oram habitarent; ibique eos ius piscandi habere.
