It was not until after 1660 that the public took an active part in regard to the highways. Turnpikes were at that time placed on the great North road, in the counties of Hertford, Huntingdon, and Cam bridge; but it was not till after the peace of 1748 that adequate exertions were made to redeem our public roads from their wretched state. After 1760, the increasing price of agricultural produce, and the general spirit of improvement, were of the most be neficial operation in this respect; and in the fourteen years from that time to 1774, no less than 452 acts were passed for the amelioration of our roads. It was then also that our inland navigation assumed an aspect of activity. The Bridgewater and Trent canals were begun; yet the number of Canal acts that passed between 1760 and 1774 was only nine teen. The American war interfered considerably with public improvement; and it is only from the date of its cessation that we enter on an active and prosperous era.
The last period presents a good deal of fluctuation ; still the annual average is fully equal to that of the preceding series.
The total length of paved streets and paved roads in England and Wales is (from a Parliamentary re turn in 1818) nearly 20,000 miles. The total length of all other roads nearly 96,000 miles. In France the highways are under the care of govern ment, and are kept in repair out of' the general taxes, without any tolls or turnpike dues; in Eng land they are managed by the respective coun ties, represented by Commissioners, and no part of the expence comes out of the public treasury. It is defrayed partly by local imposts, partly by dues le vied : the local impost is discharged either by labour or by composition Money; thus : being at the rate of nearly L.12, 6s. 8d. per mile. In the Highlands of Scotland, where the travelling is so much less, one-third of this allowance is suffi cient for the annual repair of the roads.
The Canals of England are extremely numerous ; no country except Holland entering into competi tion with us in this respect. Among the princia pal are the Grand Junction, advancing from Lon don above 100 miles into the midland counties ; the Grand Trunk, extending from the Severn north. ward into Staffordshire, a distance of 139 miles ; the Liverpool and extending 130 miles ; the Oxford 91 miles. To proceed with the enumeration would be almost endless ; suffice it to observe, that the English canals are of moderate size, being from 45 to 30, 35, and 40 feet in width, and, in general, from 5 to 6 in depth ; the barges navigating them are very long, frequently 70 or 80 feet on a width of 10, 12, or 14 feet ; but in many cases their dimensions, at least their width, are necessarily smaller, the less frequented canals being narrower than those we have mentioned. Could the application of steam to navi
gation have been foreseen, the canals of England would have been made much wider; at present there would be great hazard of injury to the embankments, from vessels so propelled.
The principal bridges in the kingdom are the five erected across the Thames at London, three of which have been opened since 1817. Of these, two, the - Southwark and Vauxhall, are of cast iron ; the former of three very large arches, the lat ter of nine arches, each of 78 feet span. The first example of an iron bridge on a large scale, either in England or any other country, was that erected in 1796, at Waremouth in Durham, the span- of which was 240 feet. In the same year was finished at Buildwas, near Colebrook, Deal, over the Severn, an iron bridge 130 feet in span. See BRIDGE in this Supplement.
Of the state of English in former ages, we can form some idea from a reference to the acts of the Legislature. In these we find, at a very early date, the traces of that policy which expects abundance and cheapness to result from discoura ging the export of corn. No permission of export seems to have been granted till 1394, and then only, on thepayment of certain duties : in 1436, some ad ditional latitude was given, and export was allowed, when the quarter of wheat did not exceed a price corresponding to nearly 13s. of our present money. The reign of Elizabeth was the epoch of a great rise in the prices of corn, originating, not as was vulgar ly asserted, in the " decay of tillage," but in the sudden depreciation of money, produced (as we have explained under the head of CORN LAws) partly by degradation of the coin, and partly by the influx of silver from the mines of America. The complaints of the " decay of tillage," if they express any thing more than the ordinary discontent of the ignorant part of the to be accounted for by the gradual consolidation of small farms, and by inclos ing land for pasture, with a view to the export of wool. In these days, however, government partici pated in the prejudices of the people ; and the gene ral purport of the acts passed under Elizabeth and her successors, was to shackle export and prevent a rise of price. It was not till the reign of Charles II. (1670) that the export of corn was exempted from a tax; and it is from 1689 that we are to date that fundamental change in our Corn Laws, which encouraged export by a bounty.