Page:Economic History of Virginia Vol 2.djvu/493

 deer and calf skins were declared to be included in the meaning of the word &#8220;hide.&#8221;

The scope of the original Act was in 1665 again extended. The penalty for shipping hides from the Colony had previously been restricted to the buyer and seller, but it was now made to apply to all tanners who sought to export leather and shoes, and to all masters of vessels who received these articles. By the original law, a large ship was permitted by special license to carry out eight hides, and smaller ships a number in proportion to their size, according to what was calculated to be sufficient for the needs of their crews. The collector issued the licenses before the hides were brought on board, and the masters and commanders of vessels were liable for an excess over the number allowed by a special clause in their bonds. For every hide or skin beyond this number exported, the seller, whether a tanner or not, was fined one thousand pounds of tobacco, and the same penalty was imposed upon the shipmaster or commander who received it. For every pair of shoes transported from the country, the seller and buyer forfeited one hundred pounds of the same commodity.

All the laws relating to the exportation of hides, as well as of iron and wool, were repealed in 1671 on the ground that the tradesmen whom it was intended to benefit had failed to derive any advantage from them. It is difficult to see how the welfare of the tanners, carriers, and shoemakers in the Colony could be advanced materially by enactments expressly prohibiting the shipment of dressed leather and shoes, but this clause was inserted probably to remove the apprehension of the English Government lest Virginia should become an active