It hath been a great Debate how the Ballance of our Foreign Trade shall be computed, and what Methods must be taken to know whither we get or lose thereby; some have thought that if we Export more than we Import we lose by Trade, others that if we Export of substantial Commodities more in value than we Import in such we then lose by it, and this seems to be the most rational Computation, but I do not think there is any certainty in the Account we can have of either; our Exports indeed are better known than our Imports by the _Custom-House_ Books, the Bullion and such things being not entered there, and seldom presented, besides many Commodities both outward and inward are run, and never come under the Cognizance of those Officers; but suppose a more exact Account could be kept, since so great a part of the Trade of _England_ is driven by Exchange, and such vast quantities of Commodities are imported from the _West-Indies_ and others exported thither for Account of the Inhabitants of those Plantations, the Ballances whereof they design to lie here as foundations of a secure Settlement for themselves at home, which Commodities are Exported to Foreign Nations on the Accounts of its Inhabitants, who pay for them here by Bills of Exchange, I cannot see how any moderate Computation can be made thereby of our general Trade, much less of that we drive with any particular Nation, the Commodities which we receive at one place being often carried to another; Thus we transport to _Italy_ the Sugars we receive for our Manufactures in _Portugal_, and bring thence Silks and other things to be manufactured here; thus we carry to _Turky_ the Money we receive at _Cadiz_, which helps us there in the selling our Manufactures, and purchasing Materials more protable to this Nation than the Money would be if Imported in Specie; and yet we must not conclude we lose by the _Portugal_ or _Spanish_ Trades because the Returns fall short by the _Custom-House_ Books, or that we get more by the _Italian_ Trade because it doth not appear by them how we exported Commodities to pay for those we Import, so the thing must still remain doubtful. [Sidenote: A Committee of Trade would be of great advantage to the Kingdom.]