Note 88 — Chapter VII
Reading edition
The first ship of the line built by contract was in 1755, when Messrs. Wells built the Elizabeth, of 74 guns; and, since that time, private shipbuilders have contributed greatly to the public wants. They built and repaired (chiefly in the last war) 93 sail of line-of-battle ships, and 466 frigates and smaller vessels, making a total of 559 vessels of war. In the last war Napoleon I. had as building ports, Venice, Genoa, Toulon, Rochefort, L’Orient, Cherbourg, Antwerp, and, practically also, all the ports of Holland.