A brief DECLARATION OF THE PROCEEDINGS of the Peace that is now entreating of between the King of spain, the Archduke, and the general States of the united provinces: Together with an Abstract of diuers weighty Reasons and Arguments alleged by the Netherlanders, to prove that the general States ought not by any means to grant unto the discontinuance of their trade and traffic into the EAST-INDIES.  
Translated out of Dutch into English.  
LONDON, Printed for Philip Harison, and are to be sold at the little shop at the Exchange, over against the Conduit. 1608.   

A brief DECLARATION of the Proceedings of the Peace that is now entreating of between the King of spain, the Archduke, and the general States of the united provinces: Together with an abstract of diuers weighty Reasons and Arguments alleged by the Netherlanders, to prove that the general States ought not by any means to grant unto the discontinuance of their trade and traffic into the EAST-INDIES.  
FIrst, that it is most certain, that friendship, conversation, and traffic, are necessary appendances of true peace, according to the general laws of nature, of all nations, and of each kind of people, conversation and traffic being shows and appearances of friendship and true peace, which no man denieth or refuseth to grant unto, but onely the enemy.  
Such an example was never found nor known, that ever any peace was made and agreed vpon, with condition that conversation and mutual traffic should be debarred and forbidden, for that should be no peace, but a true and certain banishment, which is never found to fall out but between enemy and enemy.  
Therefore the Spaniards( alleging and conditioning that we should leave our trade and traffic in the Indies) meaning is, that so by that means he might use those of the Netherlands, that he should find and take there, like banished enemies: for they would haue us to keep the peace in India, and they would there make war vpon us, and we should be bound not to resist them.  
Which is a most sure and certain token, that first sheweth an evident kind of vnreasonablenesse and injustice; and secondly a manifest deceit, by words and faire speeches, offering us a free sovereign Estate, and in dead and effect would make us much worse then ever we were under our Princes, therewith saying, that we desire peace, and in effect bring us into a harder estate then ever we were during the warres, which is, that we should willingly banish ourselves out of the Indies, that therein they might use all kind of hostility against us; and that we should bear it patiently. Lastly, they show forth their old practices, which are, that they can not entreat of peace but with dissimulation, and that as then they are readiest to make war.  
For that to allege unto us( that must of force live by the sea, and that are the best merchants and chiefest seafaring men in the whole world) that we should leave off to use our traffic & passage thorough the greatest part of the sea, and from the richest part of the whole traffic of the world, is the shamefullest and vnreasonablest thing that ever man heard of, specially when as he seemeth to usurp that vpon other countries and kingdoms, over the which he hath no command, and over the sea where he can forbid no man to sail, the use and passage whereof, ( jure gentium) is open and free for all men, and whereof no man in the world hath any particular government.  
This also should be an undoubted and certain overthrow & subuecsion of our Estate, which in this long and cruel war, cannot continue nor prosper without free traffic by sea, it being the onely means, which God almighty hath used for our upholding and maintenance; and by consequence, as much as our traffic by sea should lessen, according to the same proportion the power and strength of the land must of force be diminished, for that without it, our towns and inhabitants thereof, can not be maintained, much less can we haue any public aid by the rents and revenues of the land, as other great countries and kingdoms haue, for our country is too small; but all our wealth and power must come out of the sea; and it is easily to be seen, for that as much of our aid as we should lose, if that we will leave off our trade and traffic in India, so much must we of force miss in our public aid towards our maintenance.  
By the East India accounts and company it appeareth, that as now there are about 40. ships there in India, wherein there are 5000. sea-faring men, and that they are to receive from thence at the least 300. tons of gold, which is 3000000. pounds starling.  
In Guyenna they traffic yearly with about 20. ships, and 400. men, and there they return every year about 12. tons of gold, which is one hundred and twenty thousand pounds starling.  
To Puncto deal Rey in the West Indies, they use to traffic with an hundred great ships, for salt, and with about 1800. men, which yearly deal for fraught and salt, that costeth nothing but the fraught, and yet bring in ten hundred thousand Gulderns, which is one hundred thousand pound starling.  
The traffic for Hides to Cuba in Espagnola, useth to maintain 20. ships yearly, with 1500. men, and there is yearly ventured, not less then eight hundred thousand Gulderns, which is eighty thousand pound starling: which in all maketh 180. ships, 8700. men, and they return 413. times an hundred thousand Gulderns, which is 4130000. pound starling.  
Which being compared with all the rest of our traffic and sea-faring, it will be found, that this doth far surpass and exceed all our other traffic and sea-faring, that we haue else where, both in stock, number of well experienced sailors, and strength of ships; and consequently that we leaving our Indian trade, should lessen and lose more then the half of our strength and power, not onely at sea,( without the which we can do nothing) but also by land, for that all our might and power( for the reasons aforesaid) must come out of the sea.  
This being duly considered, it is clearly and manifestly found, that although no merchants traffics in other countries, and no man goeth to sea, but onely for his own profit and advantage, that notwithstanding the public State should be much more interested and hindered thereby, then the particular persons themselves: for besides this, that the public State consisteth only of the particularity, and that they make the public State, and that the said public State is strengthened & becometh mighty, according to the riches and wealth of the particularity or Commons; yet it is most certain that the particularity can aid themselves without the public State, but not the public State without the particularity or Commons; for that particular persons going to inhabit in other countries, can from thence traffic into India, as well as out of these countries, but the public State must stay still at home, and behold itself lessened and much weakened in his forces, according to the diminishing of his traffic, for that according to the proportion thereof, the number of the inhabitants decrease, and the force and power of the public Estate weakeneth.  
Besides all this, consider that the sailors and sea-faring men, that are used by particular persons in traffic by sea, are a mighty great number, that are maintained without any charge unto the country, and daily practised and employed at sea, that at all assays and needs they may be used for the aid and defence of the land, without the which it is impossible to haue any power at sea, as we by experience see, that the mightiest kingdoms in the world haue no strength at sea, according to the proportion of their powers, but onely according to the proportion of the traffic that their countries haue.  
From hence it is well to be considered, that the Spaniard by great policy setteth this before our eyes to entrap us, offering us the sovereignty, that will afford us no more power, but onely a dignity, as the golden fleece doth, which he useth to give unto the nobility of the Netherlands, for their utter ruin and overthrow: and seeking to haue us in regard thereof to leave off the greatest part of our traffic and sea-faring, that we thereby being more then half weakened of our power, he might the better attain unto his cruel intent, and that he, after that, might without fear break the peace, and take all advantages against vs.  
Which is most sure and evident by their own profession. For acknowledging that the Ring of spain onely ought to haue his Indies free and vnmolested unto himself, hath moved this offer of peace, & desisting from his former pretences, so it is not to be doubted but that the same is the only means whereby he should be moved to keep the peace: for that according to the alteration of things, so the counsels and intents of Princes alter; specially also for that hereby it is evidently perceived, that this offer proceedeth not from good will and affection that he beareth unto the peace, or that he is weary of the wars, but onely because he feareth to lose his Indies, and that consequently it followeth that he will begin to make war again as soon as he shall once be released of that fear.  
Which shall be as soon as we shall haue loft off our traffic to the Indies: for that once done, it is unpossible for us ever after to set it up again, the company being once dissolved, the Merchants being in other Countries, and from thence traffiking thither, the Spaniards having cruelly revenged themselves vpon the Indians that are our friends, and wee with our faithless leaving of them, being fallen into hatred with the Indians, the matter would be vntecouerable.  
How could a more shameful thing be heard of, than that we( that by the authority and commission of the States) which are confederate, by means of the company, with the Indians, should abandonate them to the discretion of so cruel an enemy, which they for our sakes, and vpon our promises, haue moved against them: and that we should take from our Merchants and Sea-faring men( that haue so much offended the Spaniards, that they may not abide to suffer them to come and traffic amongst them) the full traffic and dealing, that God, Nature, and the laws of all Nations giveth unto them? whereas to the contrary we ought to show them all the like fidelity as we in our need and necessity haue found at their hands, for that they with so great danger of their lines and goods, with the loss of so much blood, and by so many honourable and valiant actions, haue compelled the Spaniards to this treaty of peace, and to aclowledge and confess that it is they only that haue caused him to leave off his pretences. Faith and fidelity do by no means permit that we should not seek to maintain the least and meanest of our country men( which haue holpen, and put to their hands to support the common burdens and great charges of the land) in their estate and traffic, and much less that we should hinder and cut off the traffic of twenty thousand persons, which are participants in this treaty of peace; and so many expert and lusty seafaring men, that haue failed unto the Indies, and such as peradventure may find more means to reuenge themselves vpon us, than the Spaniards can.  
Our Forefathers in times past did take hard quarrels and warres in hand to maintain their sea-faring and traffic, which then was very small, and when as their whole stock was not to be compared for value with the bare ships, with their furnitures that are in India, and wee being so mighty and strong at Sea, that the enemy thereby acknowledgeth himself to be constrained to abandon and leave his own right, and desire & seek peace, should with our own consents, suffer ourselves to be banished out of the two third parts of the whole world, where he hath no command, and where we to the contrary are the strongest.  
We should buy this title far too dear, for that in stead of being honoured thereby, it will bring vpon us a great shane and contempt, not onely amongst our own inhabitants, but specially out of the land, both amongst our friends and enemies. Our Inhabitants shall with good reason haue just cause to be much offended thereat, to see that we abandon and forsake our traffic, and that they are compelled to withdraw themselves: our friends and allies will persuade themselves, that they are not to expect or repose any faith or fidelity in us, when they shall see that we forsake our own Country-men and the united Indians, that haue done us so great good, and faith full service, to obtain a bare title: and perceiving us to be so much weakened in our power at Sea,( which is the onely thing wherewith we should haue the means to procure their good and to aid and assist them) would make no account of us, so that we embarking ourselves in this ship of peace, vpon the assurance of our alliances, shall in the end finds ourselves wholly deceived.  
And by means of the aforesaid weakening of our forces we shall of ourselves be the onely means to provoke our ancient and capital enemy to break the peace, and to make war vpon us again.  
To allege that we should be content which the like traffic and seafaring, as we had before the beginning of the warres, is no other thing, but that our enemy would gladly see us in the like estate of small power and strength as we were in at the beginning of the warres, and so the easilier to entrap us: from whence God defend vs.  
It is also without any ground of reason, for that although before the wars we neither sailed, trafficked nor dealt in the Indies, yet we had both right and freedom to haue done it, jure gentium, which was by no man taken from us: for the King of spain being Lord of those Countries, had no lawful power in regard of his Spaniards, to take that from us, for that by his oath, he was bound to maintain these Countries and the Inhabitants thereof in their freedom of trade and traffic, under the which, without all doubt, the full use of the Sea, of the air, and of trade and traffic throughout the whole World, was the chiefest thing: and doing otherwise he should haue dealt with us clean contrary to his oath: and there was never any mention or question made thereof that could be heard, till in the year of our Lord, 1596. when the Spaniards made an express Article thereof, in the transportation of the Netherlands unto the Archduke, whereby the Archduke made himself( and not the Netherlands) servile unto the Spaniards; so that we still remain in the freedom that we had before the beginning of the warres, the full sea-faring and traffic of the whole World standeth open unto us, which but by war and force cannot be taken from vs.  
This proposition also is hereby manifested and made known, that they seek by policy and deceit to deal with us in this treatise of peace, for that the general States being all by one consent fully resolved not to harken unto any treaty of peace, without they were first assured of the full and absolute freedom of the Land, first desired to haue assurance under hand and seal, to show that the King of spain and the Archduke made promise to deal with us, as with free Countries, wherein they pretend not any right or title.  
And so entering into treaty, they would lay vpon us the most unworthy and shameful servitude, that ever was heard of. It is also expressly set down and agreed that either party should hold that which he now possesseth, unless by common consent it were agreed to forsake any places that they hold; and now they will dispossess us of the most important possession that we haue, which is, the possession and free use of two third parts of the Sea, and the whole World. They will take from us the places and traffic of the Indies, with the greatest half of our sea-faring and power at Sea, without giuing us any places in stead thereof.  
To allege, that he in regard thereof forsaketh and refuseth his title and pretence unto these Countries, which he by his letters hath promised to give over: and further, that he would take nothing from us, but by consent, and in exchange.  
That they would give us the traffic and trade in spain in regard therof, is but a vain and mere toy. For that we haue always had, and yet haue it at this present time, by means of other Countries, notwithstanding his interdiction: and when he should permit us the freedom thereof, we might well and freely go thither, for that there consisteth more therein than every man marketh or perceiveth, for that thereby he obtaineth his great customs. spain should be holpen by us with victuals in time of famine, and we thereby shall put our stock, men, ships and ordinance into his hands for hostage, therewith to master us at his will and pleasure, as he meant therewith to haue overruled us, and would indeed haue overruled us when he had his will, and forbidden us trade and traffic in those Countries, if we had not taken the Indian traffic in hand: and we thereby shall undoubtedly be overruled, and wholly overthrown, it we once leave our trade and traffic in India, for that it would be unpossible for us to begin it again, for the reasons and causes before alleged.  
Lastly, if we look narrowly into this matter, we shall find it to haue been a thing altogether needless to take war in hand, and to consume so much blood and money for our freedom, when we with our own consent should make ourselves servile, and banished from the two third parts of the whole World. It was also needless for us to oppose ourselves against the Spanish tyranny, if wee will subject ourselves under to Tyrannous a command, that we should not trade and traffic with all Nations, and also not with those that are not subiects unto him. It was needless for us to oppose ourselves against the tenth penny( that would haue driven all trade of Merchandise out of these Countries) when we seek to give over the two third parts, or the greatest half of our traffic and Sea-faring.  
The reasons and considerations that might yet be further alleged herein are innumerable: but these seem to be sufficient to conclude and prove, that although we with all our hearts, good liking, truly, absolutely, generally, and uprightly desire a peace, yet we desire not( under colour and pretence thereof) to be deceived and beguiled, and to be brought into more and greater servitude than ever we were before, but that we persist and continue in our aforesaid common resolution, and in the letters, and under the hands and seals of the King of spain, and the Archduke, to deal in nothing else but for the maintenance of our fréedomes( together with holding all that which we presently possess) without the which we would never haue taken this treaty of peace in hand.  
herein nevertheless the adverse party should thereby be holpen, that peace should be made and agreed vpon in Europe, and that all the rest of the world should continue in warres, although the same is wholly contrary unto the meaning of the general States: which is no other but to establish an upright sincere peace, friendship, mutual conversation, and traffic generally and without any limitation: he should nevertheless make no difficulty to lessen the war in some part, and so far as by consent were permitted unto us, and to appoint the limits thereof at his discretion, for that the same part that by his limits were excluded, should still continue in warres, and that with the offence and hurt that thereby might be done unto the one or the other of the parties in Europe, the peace shall not be understood to be broken: and that also for their sakes in Europe, within the appointed limits, no reparation shall be sought for, or may be taken.