Epstein, Mordecai: The English Levant Company: its foundation and its history to 1640 (London: George Routledge & Sons Ltd, 1908)

42 THE EARLY HISTORY OF
made itself very strongly felt. In a docu-
ment 5 entitled, “ Needful observations for
maintaining of the Turkish intercourse ” it
is significant to find that mention is made of
the possibility of adding to the numbers of
the original merchants. “Forasmuch as the
Turkey and Venice Company be incorporated
into one fellowship, both for the setting out
of the greater number of ships as no less for
the more easy supporting of all needful
charges, a competent number of mere mer-
chants not free of that company, upon reason-
able contribution towards their charge, might
be adjoined to them . . . lest some of the
wealthy sort deceasing 6 the rest might be
unable to continue the same.”
Whether this actually took place we cannot
tell since documents for the period between
1592 and 1600 are scarce. But as far as
can be gathered from the later statements, one
thing is certain. The company was making
itself very unpopular by levying five shillings
and sixpence on every hundredweight of
5 S. P. D. Eliz. vol. 241, No. 13. Cf. also No. 12.
6 In the printed summary of the contents of this
document the calendarer has “ decreasing.”