WE Humbly Address this Paper to Your Lordships in General: But adventure in an especial manner [...]o Implore the Favour of You, Our good Lords, the Bishops; because Matters rela­ting to Piety and Vertue are more imme­diately under the Care of Your Lordships.

The Late Queen, of Ever Blessed Me­mory, well knowing, That most Vices have [...]heir Original from Sloth and Idleness, did [Page 6] by Her own Good Example, give great Encouragement to all kind of Works with the Needle, and otherwise, relating to your Petitioners respective Employments; where by those of Better Quality might find Di­version and Employment, and the Meane [...] Sort receive an Honest Maintenance.

There is hardly any Country in the World, where the Women have been so much a Burthen to the Publick, as in England; whereas, in other Nations, they Contribute a large Proportion to the Live­lyhood of their Families.

But the Countenance Her Sacred Ma­jesty did give to Needle Works of all kinds has made them for these Six Years last past so Fashionable, and of such General Use in this Kingdom, that many Thousands of Women do thereby Maintain themselves their Aged Parents, and Young Children.

By which Means the Weaker Sex have been preserved from those Temptations t [...] which Want might otherwise incline them and, by this Houswisery, many Mode [...] Virgins have recommended themselves t [...] Frugal and Industrious Husbands.

We must crave leave to lay before Yo [...] Lordships, That the long War Abroa [...] the Civil War in Ireland, and other Acc [...] ­dents at Home, have made great Chang [...] [Page 7] in Families heretofore Rich and Prosperous. And we the Principal Employers of these Embroiderers, Stitchers, &c. in and about London, (if it were fit and proper) could make it appear to the Parliament, That very many Gentlewomen of good Birth and Education, have not any Bread or Sub­sistance, but what they Earn Dayly by their Work, as 'tis deliver'd to us.

We have not thought it Dutiful or De­cent to trouble either Houses of Parliament with Complaints or Clamours, Not but that our Numbers are exceeding great, and our Case full as deplorable as that of the Weavers.

We shall not pretend to Calculate how many Hands are thus employ'd, but this in some measure may be guess'd at, by Con­sidering, of what general Use, from the highest, to the lowest, those Indian Goods are, which we improve in England.

If, as some People apprehend, the in­tended Prohibitions should Occasion the intire Loss of the East-India Trade, we may venture to affirm, That many Thou­sand Families will thereby be utterly ruin'd who have no Other Subsistance than by bettering those Sort of Goods by their Skill and Fancy.

[Page 8] If the Prohibitions should so Opperate as as to loose the Trade, it would undo some Hundreds of Families, who live by Print­ing, Dying, and Staining the Courser Cal­licoes. For in such a Case those who set these Men at Work, must be forc'd either to buy Callicoes of the Dutch, or Scotch-Cloth at near double the Price.

Many Thousand Hands are likewise employ'd in Stitching Callicoes, and Flou­rishing Muzslings, which must intirely lose their Work, if these Prohibitions should destroy the East-India Trade; no [...] other kind of Linnen being proper for that Use, but fine Callico and Muzslin.

But may it please your good Lord­ships, The intended Prohibitions will cer­tainly ruin yet a greater Number of Peo­ple, who intirely Subsist, by Staining, Painting, Printing, Embroidering, Stitch­ing, and Flourishing a great part of the Ginghams, Plain Damask, Bengals, Taffa­ties and Satins, and several other sorts of Goods that come from India.

If it should be Objected, That this Workmanship may be employ'd upon Silks Manufactur'd at home; We humbly An­swer, That it will not be Worth Our while so to do, and that it cannot be practicable, because many of the fore­mention'd [Page 9] Wares, come as Cheap into Our Hands, as the Silk comes into the Weavers Reed.

As for Example, The first Cost to us, of an Indian Silk may be Two Shillings the Yard, which when We have improv'd, by Embroidering, Stitching, or other­wise, may Sell for Nine Shillings per Yard, whereby there is gain'd for the Manufacturers Livelyhood Seven Shillings per Yard.

A Silk of very little better Substance, either brought from Italy, France, and Holland, or Wrought at Home, shall Cost Nine Shillings per Yard: Notwithstand­ing which, the Indian Silk so improv'd by us, shall do equal the Service, and be More acceptable to the Customer than a­ny European Silk.

And, may it please your Lordships, ge­nerally Speaking, We can afford Wares so improv'd, Cheaper, as Serviceable and more pleasing to the Eye, than any Silkman, Because among the Silk-Weavers, a good Workman will expect half a Crown a-day, and not work hard from Six in the Morn­ing to Six at Night, whereas Our People begin at Five, and are at their Needles [Page 10] till Nine at Night: and much the greatest part of them earn not above Six Penc [...] by the Day.

It must without doubt import an [...] Country that the prime Cost in Manufactures wrought from foreign Material [...] should be as low as possible.

And those Manufactures are to be en­courag'd, which Employ many Hands though at small Wages, because the Profi [...] thereby arising, becomes, so, more dispers'd among the Common People.

And 'tis humbly hop'd, such Work may be Countenanc'd by the State, tha [...] Employ hands which would otherwise b [...] Idle.

We who Employ many Thousand F [...] milies in the second Manufacturing an [...] Improving East-India Goods, are ready t [...] make it appear before Your Lordships when call'd upon, by the Oaths of Credi­ble Persons,

First, That the Prime Cost of ou [...] Goods is so low that we can affor [...] to let the Poor Manufacturers be rea­sonable Gainers by Us.

Secondly, That this Gain is widely dis­pers'd among the Common People, reaching to Parts very distant from London.

[Page 11] Thirdly, That we Employ some Thou­sands of Children and Women, who probably could not otherwise get an honest livelyhood.

And, Lastly, May it please Your Lord­ships, We shall perhaps be able to prove, That upon the whole, not ma­ny fewer Families Subsist by Im­proving East-India Goods, than by means of the Silk Manufacture.

All which will appear plainly to such as consider, how great the Consumption is, of these Wares, by both Sexes, and a­mong all Degrees of People.

The Head-Dressings for Women, Waste-Coats, and Night-Caps for Men, Stitch'd Quilts, Embroideries, and Flourish'd Muz­slins for both Sexes, with many other things that might be enumerated, must of Necessity set many Hands at work upon different Manufactures, of which the Prime Cost of the first Materials at the East-India Sales, is not, one with another, above a third; the other two thirds being divided among the Poorer sort, and such as Em­ploy 'em.

We are afflicted from the bottom of Our Hearts at the Case of the Poor Wea­vers who want Work, but we must Crave [Page 12] leave to lay before Your Lordships, That VVe the Employers of these Embroiderers and other Manufacturers are credibly In­formed that the Weavers want of Business does not arise from the Importation of East-India Goods, but from other Causes. For,

First, Before the VVar, when much greater Quantities of Wrought Silks were brought from India, they had full Employment and there was no Complaint.

Secondly, The Excessive Price of Raw Silk, and the present Scarcity of Money (occasion'd by the VVar) are Causes that the Head Weavers cannot set the Poor to VVork.

So long a VVar must needs afflict all the different Ranks of Men, and the Weavers bear but their proportion in the Common Calamity.

The Nobility and Gentry pay in Taxes a Fifth part of their Revenues, besides well nigh double for all Materials of a Foreign Growth.

The Merchant pays more now for Freight and Seamens VVages than ever, besides the hazzard he runs from an Enemy, who has [Page 13] diverted his whole Naval Strength to a Pyratical War.

The present Want of Species makes Trading dead every where, and we who are now Petitioners before Your Lordships, have Our full Share in this general Misery; being forc'd to keep at Work, and Pay Our People, though Our Goods can have but little Vent.

But we live in hopes that the High Wis­dom, and Valour, of the King, will re­store Our Affairs either by a Peace, or by His Victories Abroad.

And in the mean while we Your Peti­tioners humbly submit it to the Considera­tion of Your Lordships, how far it may be Consistent with Your Piety and Justice to relieve one sort of Men at the Expence of others, a yet more helpless People.

We hope the Blessed Memory of Her Sacred Majesty, now Deceased, will pre­vail upon Your Lordships to take Our Case into Your Thoughts, and the sad Condi­tion of such as depend upon Us, who are generally Orphans, Poor Widows, and Young Virgins, who must be depriv'd of their Subsistance, if the Prohibition of East-India Goods passes, which is now Propos'd in Parliament.

[Page 14] The Hearty Prayers of Widows and Virgins VVe hope will undoubtedly bring Success to Your Lordships Councils, and Prosperity to the Kings Arms, who will be shortly Contending in the Field for the Liberties of Europe.

Not only some Thousands of VVomen subsist from VVork meerly occasion'd by East-India Goods, as well as very many Families of other Manufacturers, but ma­ny Virgins also have been thereby preserv'd from Vice and Corruption; And 'tis upon this Score chiefly that we presume to Im­plore Your Lordships assistance, who are the Principal Protectors of Modesty and Vertue.

The Protection of the VVeaker Sex, and the keeping of them within the Bounds of Modesty and Goodness, have been alwayes the Care of VVise Governments; because in all Countries the Courage of Men does very much depend upon the Vertue of their VVomen: For at all Times, and in all Places, where the VVomen have grown Vicious, either through too much VVealth, or too much VVant, the Men have imme­diately become Fearful and Effeminate.

[Page 15] The Premises consider'd, VVe humbly hope Your Lordships will not think it Adviseable, nor for the Publick Good, to pass this Bill now Propos'd for Pro­hibiting the VVearing East-India and Persia Wrought Silks, Bengals, &c.

And Your Petitioners, as in Duty bound, shall ever Pray for the Wel­fare and Prosperity of your Lord­ships.