A great plantation, with its galleried manor-house, its rows of negro quarters, and group of barns and shops, was in a large measure a self-sustained community. The planter needed little that could be obtained elsewhere in his own colony or in the South, and conducted his commercial operations direct with England, the West Indies, and the Northern colonies. Vessels came to his landing, bringing the supplies which he had ordered of his correspondents, and loading for the return trip with such material as he had for export. Under this independent system, whereby the rural magnate was his own merchant, and negro slaves his only workmen, neither general trade nor industries could flourish. Manufactures of every sort--even tables, chairs, stools, wooden bowls, and birchen brooms--were, along with many necessaries of life, imported from England and neighboring colonies. There were a few negroes on every plantation who were trained to the mechanic arts; and a small number of white craftsmen found work in travelling around the country, doing such jobs as were beyond the capacity of the slaves. Sidenote: Commerce. There was a considerable trade with the other continental colonies, as well as with sister colonies in the West Indies and with England. Small vessels were built in Virginia and Maryland for the coasting traffic, though Englishmen, New Englanders, and Dutchmen were the principal carriers. The independent methods of the planters, with their systems of barter and direct importations, suited the lordly notions prevalent among them; but the luxury was an expensive one, for it placed them quite at the mercy of their foreign correspondents. Tobacco was the chief export, and barter was based upon its value, which, despite legal restrictions, was subject to great fluctuation. The importance of the crop, as the basis of exchange, led to governmental supervision of its quality, which was uniformly excellent except in North Carolina, where public spirit was at a low stage. The importance attached by the government to this industry is illustrated by a famous remark of Attorney-General Seymour. In 1692, when a delegation from Virginia were soliciting a charter for the College of William and Mary, on the ground that a higher education was necessary as a step towards the salvation of souls by the clergy, he blurted out: "Souls! Damn your souls; grow tobacco!" The Southern colonies had also a large and profitable export of lumber, tar, turpentine, and furs; from the Carolinas beef was shipped in great quantities to the West Indies; and rice, indigo, and cotton were sent to the Northern colonies and England. The trade with the Indians grew to considerable proportions in Virginia and Maryland, but was long neglected in the Carolinas. 44. Navigation Acts. Sidenote: Early attempts to protect English shipping.