Notes on the State of Virginia

Jefferson discusses Virginia exports: Although formerly tobacco was Virginia’s main export, it is fast being replaced by wheat, owing to issues of both climate and soil. Jefferson expresses satisfaction in the decline of tobacco. It is a hard crop to cultivate, and tobacco farmers suffer greatly in their work; besides, tobacco is useless for food. Jefferson extols wheat as a crop instead: It provides food for both people and animals, preserves the soil, and requires less strenuous labor.

The only downside to wheat is the destructive presence of weevils, but Jefferson suggests a remedy to get rid of these pests (168). Jefferson also recommends cotton, hemp, and flax as valuable crops to substitute for tobacco. His recommendation is prescient: Cotton would become the major crop of Virginia in generations to come, facilitated by the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793.

To conclude, Jefferson recommends that Virginians become more subsistent by growing their own crops (those that can reasonably be grown in the state) instead of relying on foreign imports. This chapter shows, again, Jefferson’s keen interest in agriculture as part of a prosperous and healthy society and in scientific ways of improving it. 

American weights and measures are the same as those of England, fixed by the British parliament. However, the value of a coin in Virginia differs from that of England; American paper money has also become depreciated due to inconsistencies in legislation in Britain. At the time of Jefferson’s writing, the dollar seemed poised to become the standard currency unit of the United States, replacing earlier units derived from England. Jefferson presents a table stating the various currencies and their values throughout the history of the colonies. 

Jefferson says that it is hard to calculate Virginia’s revenue from taxes because of the depreciation of the money making the currency value unstable; the same is true of the state’s expenses. He presents a table with approximate expenses due to the governor and other public officials of the state. Jefferson also makes an estimate of how much money Virginia could contribute to public works for the entire country, including payment of the federal debt and building of roads.

Jefferson stakes a major claim: Virginia should open itself to commerce but not engage in it on the seas, because this would be an encouragement to compete with other nations and thus risk starting a war. Nevertheless, Jefferson acknowledges that any kind of commerce will open one up to the risk of war and, therefore, Virginia must be prepared. He advocates building a small naval force that could provide defense on the sea and go to meet European enemies, without straining Virginia’s budget with excessive military spending.

Jefferson’s desire to withdraw from trade and competition could be described as isolationist, contrasting with the desire to compete with Great Britain shown by the Federalist party of George Washington.