In July 1615 the Weavers' Company urged that “the strangers employed more workmen than were allowed by statute, and then concealed them when search was made — that they lived more cheaply and therefore sold more cheaply than the English — that they imported silk lace contrary to law,” &c. In 1621 a longer plaint survives [the original spelling may be seen in Durrant Cooper’s Introduction, page v.]: — “Their chiefest cause of entertainment here of late was in charity to shroud them from persecution for religion; and, being here, their necessity became the mother of their ingenuity in devising many trades, before to us unknown. The State, noting their diligence, and yet preventing the future inconvenience, enacted two special laws, that they should entertain english apprentices and servants to learn these trades — the neglect whereof giveth them advantage to keep their mysteries to themselves, which hath made them bold of late to devise engines for working of tape, lace, ribbon, and such, wherein one man doth more among them than seven Englishmen can do; so as their cheap sale of those commodities beggareth all our English artificers of that trade and enricheth them. Since the making of the last statute they are thought to be increased ten for one, so as no tenement is left to an English artificer to inhabit in divers parts of the city and suburbs, but they take them over their heads at a great rate. So their numbers causeth the enhancing of the price of victuals and house rents, and much furthereth the late disorderly new buildings which is so burdonous to the subject that His Majesty hath not any work to perform for the good of his commons (especially in cities and towns) than by the taking of the benefit of the law upon them, a thing which is done against his own subjects by common informers. But their daily flocking hither without such remedy is like to grow scarce tolerable.”
In 1606 “double custom” was imposed upon baise as upon cloth exported. Lord Dorset seems to have been inclined to discourage further immigration, on the plea that foreign persecutions had ceased. That noble Lord died in 1608, and Salisbury, who succeeded him as Lord High Treasurer, died in 1612. The complaints made against refugees in 1615 and 1621 were each responded to by the taking of a census, one in 1618 and another in 1621. The lists collected in 1618 are printed in the appendix to the Camden Society volume, and the lists of 1621 in the body of the volume, pp. i to 26. These lists rather injured the case of the complainants by revealing that they had exaggerated the number of foreigners and overstated the proportion between foreign and native tradesmen. On the 30th July 1621 a Board of Royal Commissioners was appointed to consider the laws affecting aliens, and to propound regulations for the liberty of their wholesale merchants and for enforcing the restrictions upon retailers. On 7th September 1622 (says Mr Cooper), “the Commissioners ordered that, as the retailing of English goods by strangers was hurtful to home trade, all strangers selling to strangers English goods should pay half the duty on such commodities as would be paid for custom on export, &c, &c. But little further took place. Any restrictions upon the refugees were unpopular with the mass of the people, however desirable they might appear to the chartered companies.” — (Introduction, page x.)
King James was anxious to be independent of foreign countries for silk. He therefore offered encouragement for the planting of mulberry trees, and the home rearing of silk-worms. The refugees were able and disposed to promote the enterprise, and for this reason the King’s letter, dated 16th November 1608, may be inserted here. The letter was addressed to the Lord-Lieutenant of each county.
“James R.,
Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well. It is a principal part of that Christian care, which appertaineth to sovereignty, to endeavour by all means possible as well to beget as to increase among their people the knowledge and practice of all arts and trades, whereby they may be both weaned from idleness and the enormities thereof which are infinite, and exercised in such industries and labours as are accompanied with evident hopes not only of preserving people from the shame and grief of penury, but also raising and increasing them in wealth and abundance — the scope which every freeborn spirit aimeth at, not in regard of himself only and the ease which a plentiful estate bringeth to every one in his particular, but also in regard of the honour of their native country, whose commendations is no ways more set forth than in the people’s activeness and industry.
“The consideration whereof having of late occupied our mind (who always esteem our people’s good our necessary contemplations) we have conceived, as well by the discourse of our reason as by information gathered from others, that the making of silk might as well be effected here as it is in the kingdom of France, where the same hath of late years been put in practice. For neither the climate of this Isle so far distinct or different in condition from that country (especially from the hither parts thereto) but that it is to be hoped, that these
