Your Majesty’s dominions are admirably situated for commerce. Three large rivers, which run through them, must furnish the greatest facilities for it. What then is wanting? Merely an object sufficiently distant to form sailors, and sufficiently extensive to establish and support trade. Such an object is America; and the unexpected events, which have made the trade of that country free, afford inducements for it. The monopoly of this trade, which, in the opinion of that great and wise man, Mr Pitt, supported the power of England, no longer exists, and, without a miracle, will never exist again. The nations that shall endeavor to obtain a part of it for themselves, by furnishing to a young and grateful people the means of resisting their oppressors, will be very successful. But those, who wish to await in tranquillity the event of this war, ought not to expect to turn trade from the course, in which custom and gratitude, before that time, will have fixed it. The present, therefore, is the proper time for those to begin, who wish to enjoy for the future the commerce of America. But there are obstacles to this trade; for, in the first place, you have no vessels of war to cause your flag to be respected. But, Sire, you have the best regiments in the world; and Great Britain, destitute as she is of wise counsels, is not, however, so foolish as to incur the risk of compelling your Majesty to join your formidable forces to those of her rival. Besides, such is the present weakness of England, so pressed and exhausted is she by the war with America, that she is obliged to blind herself to still harder things, which are carried on immediately before her eyes. Secondly. It is not practicable to have at the same time an army so numerous as that of your Majesty, and a respectable fleet, since the latter would require too many men, and destroy the country. This reasoning would be sound, if population were diminished by commerce. But the contrary is the fact. In place of diminishing, it increases it. Thus the most commercial countries are always the most populous. Population is always proportioned to the means of living. Commerce, by increasing these means, increases the population. Instead therefore of increasing the consequences of a numerous army, commerce is their most certain remedy.