Smuggling in the American Colonies at the Outbreak of the Revolution, With Special Reference to the
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William Smith McClellan. Softcover, originally published in 1912 and reprinted here 1997, 5.25 x 8.25, as new, Index, Bibliography, 105 pages. The publisher writes: Mr. McClellan seeks 'to establish the particular function which smuggling-and especially that in connection with the West Indies trade'-performed in relation to the political and economic elements of the Revolution. The first two chapters provide an overview of 'American colonial trade and with it the growth of and operation of the British commercial and colonial systems.' Without an understanding of these broader elements, one cannot fully comprehend the role of smuggling. After establishing this groundwork within the first two chapters, Mr. McClellan proceeds to define 'smuggling' in the American colonies and spends the book's remaining three chapters discussing the causes of smuggling, the political circumstances surrounding it, the laws designed to stop it and the results of enforcing those laws. The author poses that the 'Molasses Act,' passed in 1733 for the benefit of the sugar planters of the British West Indies, was the main catalyst for the initiation of widespread smuggling; 'A more striking or momentous instance of legislative favoritism...can scarcely exist, in all the modem history of blundering governmental interference with the freedom of commerce.' It was these 'restrictions on imports from the West Indies,' which 'were systematically and persistently ignored,' that created a system of smuggling. After the close of the French and Indian War, Britain sought to enforce the laws concerning imports from the West Indies. This attempted restriction, along with new taxes and an already growing sense of independence, worked to accelerate the colonies along the road to revolution. This discussion, which was the prize-winner of an essay contest at Williams College in 1911, is enhanced by a complete bibliography and a topical index. [m111-H]