DBQ

675 Words2 Pages

In the colonization period, the urge to conquer foreign territories was strong, and many lands in the Western Hemisphere were conquered. With the colonization of these areas, a mercantilist relationship was formed between the conquered civilization and the maternal country. A major part of this was the restriction of exportation of native resources only to the mother country as well as the banning of trading with colonies of other countries. In turn, there was an increasing in the number of smuggling activities during the time. According to a British sailor named William Taggart in 1760, the illegal smuggling of goods into these areas had a positive impact because it brought prosperity to the people in Monte Christi, as there were only one hundred poor families. Likewise, Dominica governor John Orde praised the trading because it created prices much lower than with its maternal country. However, British admiral David Tyrell, Roger Elletson, Dominica governor John Orde, and a 1790 Bahaman newspaper report all had similar views on the harmful effects and corruptness present in smuggling. Despite this, physician George Lipscomb and British Lieutenant Governor Thomas Bruce had neutral opinions on the matter, and only stated what they witnessed in the process. Firstly, the Caribbean smuggling was viewed as necessary and positive in the late eighteenth century. According to William Taggart, a British sailor traveling to testify at his smuggling trial in April 1760, the illegal transportation of goods from the Spanish port of Monte Christi led to general prosperity in the area, as there were only 100 relatively poor families and that the governor had full knowledge of this and demanded a tax of one silver Spanish coin. Taggart mi... ... middle of paper ... ...e action. Also, lieutenant governor Thomas Bruce of Dominica reported of inhumane treatment (primarily tar and feathering) of John Blair, who failed to alert British officials of the trading, but did not give a clear standpoint. This depiction shows the mixed views of the people in these societies on the issue. In all, the smuggling of raw materials, products, and slaves to and from the Caribbean islands assisted the economy in the islands but harmed the maternal countries such as the British. This issue was met with mixed views, and even some people such as John Orde had two different opinions on occurrences of the action. One additional document that would be of assistance in analyzing the causes and opinions of the smuggling would be an account of a native Caribbean merchant, because it would give a middle class account of the event of whom it actually affected.

Open Document