Page:Craik History of British Commerce Vol 2.djvu/62

60 in the reign of James I., to defray the expenses attending certain of the early settlements in America.

The commercial history of the remainder of the present period will not detain us long. The trade and industry of the country in all their branches suffered of necessity considerable depression during the continuance of the war; but, after the re-establishment of tranquillity and a settled government, great pains were taken by the parliament and by Cromwell to bring about their revival, and, on the whole, with very considerable success.

We shall first enumerate the few facts requiring notice in the history of the several great chartered companies. In 1643 a number of the proprietors of the East India Company were at length induced to subscribe a new stock, but only to the inadequate amount of 105,000l. Great part of this money was soon after lost in various ways; and for some years the trade could scarcely be said to be carried on at all. It is worthy of remark, however, that it was during this period the company acquired two of its most important possessions, the town of Madraspatnam, or Madras, long the seat of their supreme government in India, and still the capital of one of the presidencies, which was ceded to them by the sovereign of the country in 1643; and the island of St. Helena, of which they took possession in 1651, on its abandonment by the Dutch. Meanwhile, in 1649, a subscription for a new stock had been opened; but, although encouraged by the parliament, it proceeded slowly, and by the following year had only produced about 192,000l. With a small part of this they soon after engaged in the Guinea trade, a charter to carry on which for five years they obtained from the parliament in 1651. In 1654, on the conclusion of peace with Holland, commissioners from both parties were appointed to settle the claims brought by the English and Dutch companies against each other for depredations and other injuries committed before the war; when the English gave in an account of 2,795,990l. 19s, which the Dutch met by one of 2,919,861l. 3s. 6d.; but, in the end, the commissioners decided that a sum of 85,000l. should be paid by the