Full text of The Merchants' Magazine and Commercial Review : August 1855, Vol. XXXIII, No. II

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H U N T ’S

MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE.
E s t a b l i s h e d J u l y , 18 3 9 ,

BY FREEMAN HUNT, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.

VO LU M E X X X I I I .

AUGUST,

C O N T E N T S OF N O .

1 8 55.

NUM BER II.

II., V O L . X X X I I I .

ARTICLES.
Ar t.

I.

II.
III.
IV.
V.

pass.

THE PRINCIPLES AND TENDENCIES OF MODERN COMMERCE: WITH SPECIAL
REFERENCE TO THE CHARACTER AND INFLUENCE OF THE TRAFFIC BE­
TWEEN THE CHRISTIAN STATES AND THE ORIENTAL WORLD. By the Hon.
G e or ge P. M a r s h , o f Verm ont................................................................................................. 145
ICE: AND THE ICE T R A D E .................................................................................................... 169
WOODBURY’ S W RITINGS......................................................................................................... 180
THE CURRENCY AND THE TARIFF. By C h a rl e s II. C a r r o l l , Esq., Merchant, o f
Massachusetts.................................................................................................................
191
CAN ADA: ITS COMMERCE AND RESOURCES. By Ch a r l e s S e y m ou r , Esq., o f
Montreal, C an ada........................................................................................................................ 200

J O U R N A L OF M E R C A N T I L E L A W .
Promissory Note with Ten per cent per Month Interest......................................................................
Important to Merchants— Manager, with share of Profits, a Partner..................................................
Bill o f Exchange—Partnership-—\cceptance...........................
Ships passing each other—Liability of O w ners....................................................................................

207
208
208
208

C OMMERCI A L CHRONI CLE AND R E V I E W :
EMBRACING A FINANCIAL AND COMMERCIAL REVIEW OF THE UNITED STATES, ETC., ILLUSTRA­
TED WITH TABLES, ETC., AS FOLLOWS l

Condition of the Money Markets at Home and Abroad—Currency for moving the incoming
Crop—Anticipations o f Prosperity—The Railroad Interest—Foreign Failures—Banks o f New
York and Boston—Clearing House for New York State Banks—Deposits o f Cold and Silver
at tho New York Assay Office and Philadelphia Mint— Imports at New York for June, for
Six Months from January 1st, and for the Fiscal Year ending June 30—Imports at New
Orleans—Revenue from Customs at Philadelphia and Boston—Shipments o f Produce, and
the Shipping Interest, etc.............................................................................................................. 209-219
New York Cotton Market............................................................................................................. ..
VOL. XX XIII.— NO. I I .




10

«

219

146

CO N TEN TS

OF

N O . I I ., V O L . X X X I I I .
PAGE.

COMMERCIAL

STATISTICS.

Shipping built in the United States.......................................................... ............................................ 221
Ships and Shipping of the United States............................................................................................... 222
Lumber I'nule of Quebec for live years.—Consumption o f Spirits in England, Scotland, Ireland 224
The Pork Trade o f 1854-5....................................................................................................................... 225
The Fresh and Salt Meat Trade o f France........................................................................................ . . 226
Commercial Prosperity of the Greeks................................................................................................... 227
Wine Vaults o f the London Docks.—Navigation at the Port of Quebec.........................................227

JOURNAL

OF I N S U R A N C E .

The Causes o f Fires, with Suggestions for Prevention......................................................................
The Charter o f an Insurance Company a Contract...............................................................................

NAUTICAL

228
229

INTELLIGENCE.

Notices to Mariners: Flashing Light at Trapani, Sicily.—Isola di Vulcano.—Revolving Light on
the Morro de San Paolo, Brazil.—Coast o f Spain on the Atlantic— Alteration o f Light at Cadiz 231
Light on Cape San Antonio, Province o f Alicante............................................................................. 232
Change o f Light at Cove Point, North of Patuxel R iv er................................................................... 232

STATISTICS

OF P O P U L A T I O N ,

&c .

\

Results o f the Census o f Great Britain—No. vn. Territorial Subdivisions..................................... 232
Emigration to the United Slates............................................................................................................ 234
Population o f Arkansas in 1850 and 1854.—Native and Foreign Population o f Southern States. 235

STATISTICS

OF A G R I C U L T U R E , be.

Brief History of Kentucky Cattle. By B rutus J. C l a y ....................................................................
East Indian and American Cotton —The Sea Island Cotton of Florida............................................
The Wine Disease at Oporto, Portugal.—The Fruit T ra d e.......................................... .....................
Philadelphia Cattle Market.—Cultivation of Hops in England...........................................................

236
237
238
239

RAI LROAD, CANAL, AND S T E A M B O A T S T A T I S T I C S .

v

Cost of Passenger and Freight Transportation by Railway................................................................. 246
Ocean and Inland Steamers out of the Port ot New York— No. m . “ The Metropolis.” ............... 243
Agricuiture and Railroads........................................................................................................................ 244
The St. Clair Hals and Lake Navigation............................................................................................... 245
Operations of the Massachusetts Railroads............................................................................................ 246
Tiausporlation o f the Uuiled States Mail by Ocean Steamers........................................................... 246
Railroad and Steamboat Accidents in the Uuited States...................................................................... 247

COMMERCIAL

REGULATIONS.

An Act relating to the Carriage of Passengers in Steamships and Other Vessels............................ 248
Of the Saleol Products of the Uuited States in New Orleans........................................................... 252
Purchase o f Belligerent Ships by Neutrals........................................................................................... 253

JOURNAL

OF B A N K I N G ,

CURRENCY,

AND

FINANCE.

Operations o f the San Francisco Branch M int..................................................................................... 253
Of Bills of Exchange and Promissory Notes in Louisiana................................................................ 254
Is Gold Depreciating V.............................................................................................................................. 255
Where Silver comes from ........................................................................................................................ 256
How a Cashier Compromised with the Directors o f a Bank............................................................... 257

J O U R N A L OF M I N I N G A ND M A N U F A C T U R E S .
The Paris Palace o f Industry for the Great Exhibition........................................................................ 257
The Manulacture of Iron in the United States....................................................... ............................ 258
Ameiican hardware and Mechanical S k ill.......................................................................................... 259
Southern Manufactures.— How to Extract Glass Stopples.................................................................. 260
American Sewing Machines in France................................................................................................... 261
The Coal Lands o f Great Britain and Ohio.— Mining at Georgetown, California.............................261

MERCANTILE

MISCELLANIES.

The “ Philadelphia Merchant.” —“ Bell’s Commercial College ” at Chicago.................................... 262
The Long Credit o f No.them C ities..................................................................................................... 263
u He is a Country Merchant— -tick Him!” ........................................................................................... 264
Short Business Visits— idlers in Stores.......................................................................................... . . . 265
The Philadelphia Merchant on Mercantile Biography......................................................................... 266




THE

BOOK T R A D E .

i

(.

HUNT’S

MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE
AND

COMMERCIAL REVIEW.
A U G U S T ,

1855.

A rt. I.— THE PRINCIPLES AND TENDENCIES OF MODERN COMMERCE:
W IT H

S P E C IA L

REFERENCE

TO

TH E

CHARACTER

AND

IN F L U E N C E

OF

THE

T R A F F IC B E T W E E N TH E C H R IS T IA N STATES A N D TH E O R IE N T A L W O R L D .*

T h e life-time of every people, every race, Las its successive eras or pe­
riods, each marked by the predominance of some principle or motive of
action, which gives them their distinctive features and informs them with
those characteristic tendencies and propensities, that constitute what is
called the Spirit of the Age. When the actuating principle is an idea—
a great abstract truth, which appeals directly to the reason or the con­
science, with a force and an authority that overawe the will, drown for
the time even the voice of interest, elevates mortals above selfish nature,
and impels them with uncaiculating self-devotion, to sacrifice in its defense,
wealth, fame, ease, home, life itself— the age is heroic, and man seems
not a thing of time and space, but a superhuman being, invested with at­
tributes which savor not of earth, but vindicate his claim to companionship
with the higher intelligences who dwell in the immaterial heavens.
Thus, the heroic age of Israel was the exodus from Egypt, when the
elect people chose rather the worship of the one true God in the hungry
desert, than the idolatrous polytheism and the sensual abundance of the
valley of Nilus; of Rome, the dark hour, when, after the discomfiture
of her legions, though the Punic conqueror was knocking hard at her
* We are indebted to the Hon. G e or ge P. M a r s h , late American Minister at Constantinople, for
the manuscript copy of his discourse delivered before the Mercantile Library Association at Boston,
November 15th, 1854. It was kindly furnished us for publication in ihe Merchants' Magazine, at
our request.—Ed. Mer. Mag.




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

gates, yet such was the confidence o f her sons in the destiny o f the eter­
nal city, that the very ground on which the Carthaginian lay encamped,
commanded in open market, as high a price as in the day of her proudest
security; of England, the rebellion, when the people discarded that old
political superstition of the sacred inviolability o f the Crown, and good
m^n died for the principle that the liberties o f the subject are rights, not
graces; of our own Country, as has been eloquently shown by one o f
yourselves, the Pilgrim emigration, whose spirit revived again, though
with a larger admixture of selfish purposes in the period of the Revolution.
The heroic age, though commonly marked by enthusiastic and energetic
action, is yet more truly characterized as an era o f contemplation, of lofty
imagination, of high intellectual power, of the unequivocal predominance
o f the spiritual over the sensuous.
It is usually followed by a pieriod of
great physical activity, guided by a portion of the elevated intelligence
which that nobler preceding age has developed, and it is in general true,
that for every generation remarkable for its material energy, the way has
been prepared by an epoch o f great and general mental effort and excite­
ment. War, therefore, which demands, though too often in the worst of
causes, the exercise o f high and rare moral qualities, rapid and widely di­
versified intellectual combination, the mental vision which commands the
great and the distant, while it scrutinizes the trivial and the near, is often
the precursor of an age conspicuous for peaceful effort, which displays it­
self in civil or commercial undertakings of a gigantic magnitude, a com­
prehensiveness of purpose, a boldness, a forecast, a dignity, that seem to
lend even to pecuniary enterprise, something of the grandeur of heroism.
Shining, however, as are the qualities which war brings out and cherishes,
and to which a criminal prejudice imparts a yet more dazzling luster, there
is no greater error than to suppose that the most exalted arts are the arts
of destruction, and that the profession o f arms furnishes exclusive occa­
sion for the exercise of the noblest attributes of heart or head, or even of
that cheapest of virtues, physical courage. The unobtrusive pursuits of
Commerce, which the bloody and barbarous Christianity of the middle
ages, thought worthy only o f the despised burgher and the unbelieving
Jew, have had their heroes and their conquerors. The early maritime dis­
coverers encountered greater perils than the combatants of Trafalgar, and
our own commercial marine, braves every winter, horrors not less appall­
ing than those of the retreat from Moscow.
History, in fact, records no
more striking examples o f hardihood, perseverance, endurance, courage,
all the attributes, in short, o f exalted heroism, except the inspiration o f a
lofty and generous motive, than are presented in the narratives o f those
old, half-freebooter, half-merchant adventurers, who went forth with their
life in their hand, in search o f new paths to the rich Commerce of the
Eastern World, plundering where they were strong enough and trafficking
where they were not, like the rovers of the Homeric age or the Vikings of
the North, nor have the proudest structures of imperial munificence or en­
lightened national liberality in ancient or modern times, demanded a
greater amount of intelligent physical activity than many monuments of
associate commercial enterprise in the present day.
I suppose, therefore, I may safely presume, that to an audience descend­
ed from our own demi-gods, separated by but a few generations from our
heroic age, inheriting in an eminent degree the material energy, which, as
I said, has its roots in the more exalted virtues o f that era, and at the




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

149

same time composed o f persons, whose prosperity is mainly dependent upon
a wide and successful trade, founded, built up, and sustained, by extraordi­
nary individual and associate effort, some general speculations on the
fundamental principles and actual tendencies o f modern Commerce, with
special reference to the character and influence o f the traffic between the
Christian States and the Oriental world, may prove not wholly without in­
terest.
The contempt with which the false pride of feudal Europe regarded
commercial pursuits, seems to have made an exception in favor of foreign
Commerce, partly, no doubt, because it was a necessary means of furnish­
ing forth the splendor and luxury of the nobility and the Church, but chiefly
because it was ennobled by the romance of danger and the uncertainty of
wild adventure, and a prejudice, derived probably from the same source,
still exalts the foreign merchant above the domestic trader. But, indepen­
dently of this ancient prepossession, the traffic between distant countries
possesses a greater historical and philosophical interest than mere internal
Commerce, because its influences upon national character and national
prosperity are more stimulating, wider, and more diversified.
It is true,
no doubt, that internal improvements tend to develop and multiply the
material resources of every country where they are undertaken and pros­
ecuted as a system, and thereby to give domestic Commerce an increased
relative extent and importance; and in an empire embracing such vast
spaces and so great a variety o f climates, soils, and indigenous products
as our own, the intercourse between its remotest regions acquires many of
the features and incidents of proper foreign trade. Still, it is only be­
tween communities. o f different languages, laws and religions, that Com­
merce is most important as a moral agent, and I shall therefore speak of
it chiefly in its character of an external influence.
Commerce, in its earliest form of barter, or simple exchange of com­
modities in kind, is a mere matter of mutual convenience, excluding
the notion of mercantile profit or accumulation on either side; and it is
not until handicrafts, confining individuals to particular productive labors,
are established, and permanent husbandry attains such a progress as to
yield a regular disposable surplus, that the desire of gain becomes an ele­
ment in trade. As soon as men make traffic an occupation, and seek not
to acquire by a mutually beneficial exchange articles designed for immedi­
ate consumption or use, but to amass a stock of means, convertible at plea­
sure by a second exchange, into objects of utility, convenience or orna­
ment, the advantage is no longer strictly reciprocal, the parties become,
technically, buyer and seller, and the relations between them are rather
those of conflicting interest than of mutual benefit. Regular traffic hav­
ing now commenced, circulating mediums, at first usually possessing in­
trinsic value, as being applicable to purposes of actual use or personal dec­
oration, and afterwards becoming purely representative and conventional,
are invented, and their introduction effects an immediate revolution in the
processes of trade, and enlarges the sphere to an extent commensurate
with the demand and supply of all the natural and artificial wants of men.
Money, of whatever form or material, gold, iron, shells, wampum, leather
or paper, becomes the common measure of all values, the universal means
of acquiring whatever in its nature is purchasable, and its accumulation
is henceforth the aim o f the seller in all properly commercial transactions.
Trade is no longer limited by the personal wants of one party, or the dis-




150

Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

posable surplus products o f the other, and money, first invented as a
means, has now become the object o f exchange.
From the invention of circulating mediums to the age of discovery in
the fifteenth century, European Commerce does not appear to have under­
gone any very considerable revolutions, except in the alternate rise and
fall of its principal centers of action, and the fluctuating value of the ar­
ticles o f exchange'with which it was conversant. The sphere over which
it extended, the routes it pursued, the range of objects it embraced, were
all slowly varied and gradually enlarged, and its influence upon the civili­
zation of Europe was not other in kind, or appreciably greater in degree,
in the fourteenth century, than at the commencement of the Christian
Era.
Constantinople is the only great center of ancient trade, whose commer­
cial importance continued undiminished, until the enterprise and nautical
skill o f Genoa, Pisa, Amalfi, Ancona and Venice, •stimulated and fostered
by the returns o f the transport and carrying trade, in the service of the
Crusaders, succeeded in rendering those cities, for two or three centuries,
the great depots and marts of exchange between the commodities o f Eu­
rope and the East. In the meantime, the trading capitals of Trebizond,
Seleucia, Tyre and Sidon, Joppa, Palmyra, Petra and Alexandria, had ut­
terly perished or greatly declined in commercial importance; and the
trade of them all had centered upon Constantinople, the only great city
of the Levant, which had successfully resisted the invasions of the Nor­
thern hordes, the campaigns o f the Persians, and the destroying progress
of the Mussulman conquerors. The crusades opened the eyes of the mer­
chants of Italy to the practicability o f a personal participation in Oriental
trade, factories were established at all favorable points upon the Eastern
coasts of the Mediterranean, and in the latter p>art o f the thirteenth cen­
tury, the Genoese obtained possession of Galata,* a suburb of Constanti­
nople, on the Northern side of the Golden Horn, and thence extended
regular routes of traffic, sustained and defended by fortified posts, by way
of Kaffa in the Crimea, the Don, the W olga, the Caspian, the steppes of
Tartary and the river Oxus, to Persia and Central India ; and by Sinope,
Trebizond, Erzerum and the Euphrates, to Bagdad and Basrah. The Ve­
netians, meanwhile, engrossed the trade with maritime India, carrying on
their Commerce by way of Alexandria and Damietta, the Nile, and the
Red Sea. The intermediate route by Aleppo and the Euphrates, appears
to have remained not indeed altogether unexplored, but unoccupied by
European enterprise, until the sixteenth century, when England, and some­
what later, France, sought to compensate their want of facilities for mari­
time Commerce with those tropical regions o f the Old and New World,
which Spain and Portugal had monopolized, by establishing factories on
the coast and interior of Syria, in Mesopotamia, and on the Persian Gulf.
Queen Elizabeth even, kept a regularly organized fleet of boats at Bir, on
the Euphrates, to facilitate the trade of her subjects on that river; and
at a period not much more recent, the French had not less than twenty
commercial houses in Aleppo alone. The competition with Spain and
Portugal was a difficult one to sustain, and the merchants of those coun* The name o f Galata is now usually restricted to the space included within the old Genoese wall,
a,nd the adjacent suburb without the walls is called Pera. This distinction was formerly not ob­
served, thus Froissart I. 123, (reprint Lord Berner’s translation! says, “ and they (the Genuoys) have
the towne and castel o f Pere stodynge on the see before Constantyne-le-noble.”




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

151

tries had always the advantage in the continental marts, though the Brit­
ish trade to the Levant, has never ceased to be a highly important branch
of Commerce.*
By a series of the most remarkable revolutions in the history of trade,
the rival channels of the Oriental traffic of the Genoese and the Venetians
have recently been revived, after an abandonment for a period of three
centuries, and the project o f re-opening the old route by the Euphrates,
lately meditated, is not yet abandoned. It is not less remarkable that the
trade by all three, as well as by the Cape of Good Hope, should now be
almost exclusively in the hands of an Atlantic nation, whose maritime im­
portance dates from a period subsequent to the decay of all the great
Mediterranean capitals.
Although the propagation of the Mohammedan religion by the sword
interrupted for a time the regular course of Commerce in the countries of
the East, yet its wide diffusion in the end undoubtedly facilitated trade.
Its spread brought under the rule of two or three sovereignties numerous
countries before governed by different petty dynasties, ruled by conflict­
ing laws, and often at war with each other. Wherever Islamism pre­
vailed, the Arabic language and literature were introduced, and thus a
common medium of intercourse was provided between merchants whose
vernacular tongues were unintelligible to each other. The commentators
upon the Koran interpret several passages of the text as not only author­
izing, but commending the profession o f trade, and as enjoining the pro­
tection of merchants and their wares, under whatever circumstances of
national hostility.
The caravans to Mecca and other sacred shrines brought together in­
habitants of the remotest countries, and were always accompanied by large
numbers of dealers, who thus contrived to combine the advantages of
Commerce with the performance o f the most indispensable o f ceremonial
religious duties, and a great fair was annually holden on the arrival of
the pilgrims at the holy city of Mecca. But similar securities were ex­
tended also to the infidel Frank trader. The merchants of Genoa and
Venice visited freely all parts of the Levant during the whole o f the long
struggle between the Turkish conquerors and Eastern Europe ;f and at
this day all foreigners enjoy in Turkey important privileges and immuni­
ties derived from those originally accorded to merchants by Mussulman
liberality, and which no Christian nation grants to strangers.
The fifteenth century is specially memorable in the history o f trade as
the era of events which completely changed the relations o f Christendom
to the rest of the world, and gave to Commerce an importance and a social
influence it had never before possessed. The events to which I refer are,
first, the series of maritime discoveries, beginning with the coasting voy* And whereas in times past their cheefe trade was into Spaine, Porting'all, France, Flanders,
Danskae, Norwaie, Scotland and Ireland onelie; now in these daies as men not contented with these
iournies, they have sought out the east and west Indies, and made now and then suspicious voiages
not only vnto the Canaries and new Spaine but likewise into Cathaia, Moscovia, Tartaria, and the re­
gions thereabout.—Holinshead I., 274, (reprint of 18U7).
t For he sayd marchauntes myght go whider they lyst, and by them myght well be knowen the
dealynge of the turkes and tartaries wyth ye portes and passages of the kynges soudans and miscreantes. and specially they resorted to Quaire, to Alexandre, to Damas, to Antyoche, and into the
great puissant cyties o f the Sarazins; dayly they passe and repasse, and daylye marchauntes chris­
tened hath eutrecours with the Sarazins, and exchaunge one with another their marcbaundyse.—
Froissart 11., c. 223.
Syr, the marchauntes of Gennes and o f other isles are knowen over all and occupysth the trade o f
marchaundyse in Quayre, in Alexanore, in Damas, and out in farre countreys liethan, for as ye
knowe well marchaundyse flyeth over all the world.—Froissart II., c. 221.




152

Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

ages of the Portuguese navigators, and terminating with the general explo­
ration of the coasts of the East and West Indies; and, secondly, certain
gradual changes in the framework o f European society.
Universal tradition makes the temperate regions of central Asia the
cradle and primal nursery and school of the human family. From Asiatic
shrines were first delivered the oracles o f God. The southern and eastern
portions of that vast continent have from the earliest ages been regarded
as the field o f the greatest vegetable luxuriance, abundance, and variety
— the soil whose plants distilled the choicest juices and the most aromatic
odors. Here grew the spices with which, before alcoholic beverages
came into use, the luxury o f the middle ages added pungency to wine and
hippocras. From Asia came sacred spikenard and myrrh and frankin­
cense for the service o f the temple and the church, the perfumes o f the
toilet, the balms and simples of the physician, the dyes that tinged the
“ color of Ind,” the scarlet and the purple, the finest webs o f cotton, of
wool, of Damask silk, of Cashmere, and of gold. Here, too, the mineral
treasures of the earth were first elaborated and appreciated. The skill of
the old Chalybes, the inventors o f steel, remained the exclusive heritage
o f the Oriental armorers. Asiatic Ophir and Golconda continued the
most renowned mines of gold and diamonds and rubies, and it is only at
a comparatively late period that the mountains o f northern Europe have
been found to embosom veins of metallic ores superior in utility and value
to the gold and the diamonds of tropical regions; later still, that we have
learned how generous nature has compensated the eternal frosts of Siberia,
the great prison-house of Russia, by the richest abundance of the precious
metals and o f gems.
To civilized Europe, therefore, the East was the locality of the most
venerated traditions, the source of her rarest and most refined sensual en­
joyments, the store whence nature dispensed her most brilliant gifts, her
most healing balsams; and Asiatic Commerce supplied alike the gorgeous
luxury of Greece and Rome, the most precious materials employed in the
ceremonial observances o f religion, and the barbaric splendor of the era of
chivalry and the crusades.
The inaccessibility of the Oriental countries, from their distance; the
desert and inhospitable character o f intervening regions; the rude condi­
tion of ancient navigation; and the want o f artificial roads, rendered them
comparatively unknown to the European world. The character and value
of their productions, therefore, could only be estimated by the specimens
supplied by a slow, tedious, and uncertain process of successive exchanges,
and which served only to stimulate, not to satisfy the cupidity and the
curiosity of the West.
Popular opinion, therefore, judging of the unseen by the seen, exagge­
rated the abundance and fertility o f remoter Asia, and all India was sup­
posed to be one great storehouse o f nature’s choicest treasures. The gen­
eral impression on this subject was by no means weakened by the scanty
and rare opportunities which Europeans had o f actual contact with Ori­
entals. The few travelers who returned from the East brought back the
most extravagant accounts of the wealth, power, and gorgeous magnifi­
cence of the Indian princes. The successful invasion of Spain by the
Arabs soon after the promulgation o f Islamism, the sturdy resistance en­
countered by the crusaders in Palestine and Egypt, and the final conquest
o f Byzantium by the followers of Mohammed, gave the Europeans o f the




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

153

middle ages exalted notions of Mussulman prowess; while the polish, re­
finement, and gallantry of the courtiers of Granada and Cordova and
Seville, who, by the confession of their natural enemies, the Spanish
Goths, were “ gentlemen, albeit Moors,” * and the learning o f the Arabian
sages, who had translated Aristotle and the old geometers into their own
tongue, introduced the Arabic numerals into Europe, and were the fathers
of alchemy, astrology, and magic— all these were well calculated to inspire
elevated conceptions of the central glories o f that fairy realm, whose very
borders were the seat of such power and splendor and wisdom. Hence,
at the commencement o f the era of geographical discovery, the great ob­
ject aimed at by all explorers was to find a practicable route to that East­
ern world, which the heated imaginations o f our ancestors had invested
with a fictitious luster by no means yet dispelled from the common mind
of western Christendom.
A t this period, geographical science was at a very low ebb. The
Asiatic continent had indeed been penetrated to a great extent in almost
every direction, both by ancient European explorers and by more recent
adventurers. But as land travelers and coasting navigators do not require
for the prosecution of their travel the precise ascertainment o f their geo­
graphical position, they were usually unprovided with the compass or in­
struments for celestial observation, or even the ability to use them. They
could not, therefore, describe with certainty the courses they had pur­
sued or the distances they had accomplished. Their narratives contributed
little to the knowledge o f the actual configuration o f the earth’s surface,
and the vaguest ideas prevailed in regard to the form, extent, and relative
situation of the various empires composing the continent of Asia.f But
the necessities of that more extended navigation which the invention of the
mariner’s compass had made practicable, compelled voyagers to resort to
precise methods of determining course and distance, latitude and longi­
tude, and the astronomico-geographical position of all the more important
maritime markets of the East was soon known with reasonable exactness.
These served as points of departure and reference, and Europe now began
to acquire a true knowledge of the configuration, magnitude, and relative
position of all the States o f interior Asia. Up to this period, and even for
more than a century later, all Mohammedan countries -were in Europe
comprehended under the general name o f Turkey, and the qualification
“ Turkish ” was very commonly applied to all merchandise imported
through the Levant. By a similar but opposite error the maritime prov­
inces of the Turkish dominions were known in the farther East by the
name of the great Latin empire, which had once extended its sway over
* Aunque Moros, hijos d’algo.
f The Indian spices brought to Europe from ports in the Delta o f the Nile came, in part at least, '
by the old route between Captos and Berenice, instead of across the Isthmus o f Suez, and were
therefore supposed to be products of the bauks o f that great river. At the same time it was known
that they were of Asiatic growth, and it was concluded that the Nile originated in Asia, was identi­
cal with the (.ihon of the second chapter o f Genesis, and issued out o f the Terrestrial Paradise,
which all tradition placed in the interior o f that continent.
“ Avant que le flum entre en Egypte,” says .loinville, “ les gens qui ont accoutume a ce faire,
getent leurs roys desliees parmi le Hum au soir; et quant ce vient au matin si treuvent en leur rovz
cel avoir de poiz que l’en aporte en ceste terre. c'est a savoir gingimbre, rub” rbe, lignaloecy et canele, et dit Pen que ces choses viennent de paradis terrestre, que la vent abat des arbres qui sont en
paradis, aussi corame le vent abat en la forest en cest pais le bois s e c ; et ce qui chiet du bois sec ou
Hum, nous vendeut les marchans en ce paiz.” —.loinville, Histoire de !St. Louis, c. 109.
De Barros finely says that the reason why Europeans knew so little o f the interior o f that Ethio­
pian “ garden whence flow so many rivers of gold, which find their way to the sea through our con­
quests,” was that“ God had posted au angel wnh a flaming sword o f pestilence” to guard its en­
trance.—De Barros, de Asia, Dec. 1., L. III., cap. XII.




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

them ; and the Greek and Turkish artillerists and engineers in the service
of the Indian princes at the period o f the Portuguese conquests, were styled
Rumes or Romans.*
The name India was even of wider territorial application. It embraced
all the empires lying eastward of the conquests of the Moslem Caliphs and
the Sultans, including also the coasts of America, because that continent
was originally supposed to be an extension of the eastern. hemisphere.
These distinctions were indeed not always observed, and Turkey, India,
and America were often confounded, familiar examples of which may be
observed in the European names of an American fowl and An American
cereal grain. Our indigenous maize is popularly called Indian wheat by
the French, Turkish wheat by the Germans and Italians; and while the
pride of our domestic fowls is known in France as the Indian cock, we,
in common with the English, style him the Turkey.
The first great result of the efforts at maritime discovery was a total
revolution in the means by which Commerce was carried on, and conse­
quently a corresponding change in its processes and objects. The hope
of reaching by sea countries formerly accessible to Europeans only by
tedious, costly, and perilous overland routes, led to improvements in ship­
building and the theory and practice of navigation, which rendered that
mode of transport the speediest, as well as the safest and most economical
means of conveyance.! Maritime Commerce cheapens foreign commodi­
ties to the consumer, by bringing him and the producer more nearly in
contact, and thereby avoiding that great commercial evil, the increase of
cost arising from a multitude of successive transfers. Between the teagrower of China and the tea-drinker of America, there are few interme­
diate profits, and a single shipment transports merchandise from the coun­
try where it is produced, around half the circumference of the globe, to
that where it is consumed.
The sea freight of almost any article o f traffic is but an inconsiderable
addition to its original cost, and the natural or artificial products o f every
country may be supplied to the foreigner at a price not necessarily much
exceeding that fairly chargeable to the domestic consumer; whereas by
land carriage, bulky or ponderous objects can be transported to only mod­
erate distances, except at a cost beyond their possible value at the place o f
delivery.
W ith regard, therefore, to many articles o f daily use, every country
without navigation must dispense with them altogether, or, however un­
* Os Mouros da India como nao sabiam fazer divisao destas Provincias de Europa, a toda Tracia,
Grecia, Esclavonia, e llhas circumvizinhas do mar Mediterranao chamam Rum, e aos homens dellas Ruraij.— De Barros, Dec. IV., Liv. IV., cap. XVI.
Gente Arabia, Persa, e Turquesca, e de nacao Grega e Levantisca, a que elles chamam Rumes.—
Ibidem Liv. V., cap. XVI.
f Neither should we alone lose half of Nature’s dowrie without the benefit o f this Art, but even
the Larth itselfe would be unknowne to the Earthe, here immured by high impassable monntnyns,
there inaccessible by barren way less Deserts ; here divided and rent in sunder with violent Rivers,
thereingirt with a strait riege ot Sea; heere possessed with wild devouring beast's, there inhabited
with wilder man-devouring men ; here covered with huge Worlds of W ood, there buried in huger
spacious Lakes; here losing itselle in the mids of itselfe by showers o f Sand, there removed as
other Worlds out o f the World in remoter Inlands; here hiding her richest Mynes and Treasures in
sterill Wildernesses which cannot be fed but from those fertile soils which there are planted, and as
it were removed hither by helpe o f Navigation. Yea whereas otherwise wee reape but the fruits o f
one Land, hereby wee are inriched with the commodities of all Lands, the whole Globe is epito­
mized and yeelds an Abridgement and Summarie of itselfe in each countrie to each Man. Nor
should wee alone lose the full Moytie o f our Demesnes, the Sea, and a great part o f that, other
Moytie, the Land, but the Heavens also would shew us fewer Ftarres; nor should we grow familiar
with the Sunnes perambulation, to overtake him, to disappoint him o f shadow, to runne beyond
him, to imitate his daily journey, and make all the World an Island.—Purchas 1., 17.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

155

fitted for their growth or manufacture, produce them for itself, at whatever
sacrifice of capital and labor. It is in general only by this means that
raw material admits of transportation to the points where, from abundance
of fuel or water power, cheapness of manual labor, or superior mechanical
skill, it can be most advantageously elaborated; and it is in recent times
that unwrouglit material has first entered largely into Commerce as itself
a merchandise. Anciently, all natural products were converted into forms
suited to human use at or near the locality of their growth, and the dis­
tant consumer could only employ them in such shapes or combinations as
the taste or skill of the native artisan dictated ; but at present every civil­
ized people can supply itself with every crude material, to be wrought by
its own mechanics into such shapes as best suit its own convenience.*
The aggregate merchantable value, and the profits of the transport o f un ­
manufactured products, are second only to those of the results of mechan­
ical labor, and a large proportion o f the industry o f every manufacturing
country is employed in the conversion of material originally produced at
the distance of thousands of leagues, and destined perhaps, in its elabo­
rated form, to afford a second profit to the carrier by re-shipment to the
soil of its growth, or to other remote countries. Navigation, therefore,
has not only facilitated Commerce, but it has enlarged its sphere, increased
its gross amount by extending it to objects to which ease of transport
alone gives mercantile value, and it has promoted internal industry by
providing new and diversified means of occupation for many countries to
whose dense population mere agriculture and handicraft could no longer
furnish adequate employment.
It has, moreover, given birth and occupation to a new and numerous in­
dustrial class, marked by moral traits as distinct and peculiar as their
habits and their vocation, men tied to no soil, denizens of no clime, cos­
mopolite by profession, the messengers and carriers between nations, by a
noble triumph of human art compelling the unstable element to yield a
home and a livelihood to those who have found no room on the bosom of
the solid earth.f
* So long and in such proportion as the raw material was elaborated only on the soil o f its
growth, the variety o f manufactured wares was narrow, the arts of conversion were as little diversi­
fied as those of production, and the artisan continued fr^m father to son to repeat the same pro­
cesses and reproduce the same forms. But when, by improved means o f travel and transport on
the one hand, the producer was brought into more familiar communication with the consumer, and
on the other, the material itself was furnished in its crude state to the foreign manufacturer, a
greatly increased variety of product resulted, partly from a better knowledge of the original artisan
concerning the wants and tastes of his distant customer, and partly from the employment o f differ­
ent means o f converting the material or its application to different purposes by the new manufac­
turer. Foreign trade is thus the parent of variety in industrial art, and goods made for home con­
sumption are usually comparatively simple and uniform. Compare the multiform products turned
out for exportation by the looms of England. France, and Switzerland, with the perpetual repetition
and plainer styles of the domestic goods worn by the people of those countries. Many European
wares are manufactured exclusively for Oriental consumption and never met with in the home mar­
ket, and on the other hand, Eastern workshops are employed in the production o f articles which
Europe alone demands. But this is in part, no doubt, an effect o f that prejudice which leads us to
prefer far-fetched goods to those of domestic origin. Thus the Cashmere looms o f France adopt
Oriental patterns for domestic sale, and French designs for exportation to the East.
f The moral influence o f a mere carrying trade is, to say the least, very questionable. The freighter
has not a sufficient interest in the articles he transports, to induce him to exercise due fidelity in re­
gard to them. Forwarders and transportation agents are everywhere, deservedly it is to be feared,
in evil repute, and all commercial nations have Idlin'* it necessary to apply very strict rules of law
to common carriers. Where the law provides no adequate means of enforcing the liabilities o f
carriers, or where, as is the case for example in the State of * * , corrupt railroad and canal cor­
porations have become powerful enough to control not only public opinion, but the law-making
power itself, the moral and commercial abuses in the transportation o f persons and property soon
become enormous.
Modern Greece exhibits one of the most striking examples o f the dangerous tendency of this trade
when uncontrolled by law. The wrecking of ships, for the sake o f defrauding at once shippers and
underwriters, became a part o f regular Greek Commerce, and in 1851, the French government, af­




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

But, important as are the economical results of maritime traffic, its in­
fluences as a humanizing and civilizing agent are of yet higher interest.
To say nothing o f the power o f Commerce in breaking down the invete­
rate prejudices of birth and education, in softening national enmities, in
diffusing the comforts, the elegancies and the refinements o f life, in promot­
ing the progress of astronomical, geographical, ethnological and linguistic
knowledge, as well as of other liberal arts, it has other less obvious,
but not less important influences upon the well-being o f social man.
Without navigation, direct commercial intercourse is in general confined
to conterminous states, and the products o f remoter regions are attainable
only by a series o f successive exchanges, each o f which augments the
ultimate cost by the addition o f a profit beyond the cost of transport.
Inasmuch then as every country would traffic only with its neighbors,
there could be no general interchange o f merchandise, no universally rec­
ognized principles of trade; and commercial transactions in each state
would be conducted by different rules on every frontier.
The excessive
inconveniences of such a system, or rather want of system, led at a very
early day to the establishment of open markets, at particular seasons, in
many of the great towns o f Northern and Central Europe, and special
privileges were secured to merchants attending them ; but, as each of these
was subject to the authority o f its own municipal government, there was
no uniform law of trade, and the fairs at Novogorod, at Frankfort, at Beaucaire and at Sinigaglia, were conducted by quite different codes of ex­
change, involving entirely different rights and liabilities.
But the exten­
sion of Commerce, consequent upon the invention of the mariner’s com­
pass and other improvements in navigation, soon introduced a revolution
in all commercial legislation. It was obvious, that a merchant visitinghalf a dozen maritime towns in a single voyage could hardly be prepared
to encounter the difficulties of mastering as many different systems of
mercantile jurisprudence, and that ports which sent forth traders to every
known market, and invited traffic from every haven, would be benefited
by the general recognition of uniform rules o f trade, founded on mutual
convenience and the common experience of commercial men. The neces­
sity of the case soon gave the rules adopted by certain markets an uni­
versal currency and authority. It is however remarkable, that these laws
do not appear to have originated, or at least to have been reduced to form
and system in the greatest commercial cities, or those enjoying the largest
and most comprehensive traffic. The laws of Visby and of Barcelona,
which, however, are not to be understood as originally the mere local reg­
ulations of those comparatively inconsiderable towns, were authorities
widely recognized in the middle ages, but we do not learn that Venice or
Genoa exercised any very decisive influence in molding the commercial
law o f that period.
But, whatever may be the origin of the modern Eu­
ropean commercial code, the necessity o f the case invested its precepts, as
soon as they assumed a technical form, with a conventional authority, as
sacred as that of imperial rescript or parliamentary legislation.
Men
bowed not to the decrees of King or Caesar, hut to the common reason of
civilized Europe, the common experience of international society.
Com­
mercial law is, in fact, the only body of human enactments whoso saneter that of Greece had confessed its inability to prevent or punish the evil, (an inability growing
out of the general depravity of the people, who were mostly interested in this trade,) officially ad­
vised its subjects not to trust their property to Greek bottoms.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

157

tions claim universal respect, the common bond which links all Christen­
dom together. The triumphs of commercial jurisprudence are wider and
more permanent than those o f the sword. The ocean is no longer an im­
passable barrier, confining every man to his natal soil, but is the general
highway o f nations, serving them all as a common market-place. The ports
of the sea are the different booths o f a world-wide fair, where all things
vendible are bought, sold and exchanged, and where buyer and seller meet
upon equal terms, feel and acknowledge their common humanity, and
yield obedience to one law.*
Great as is, under ordinary circumstances, the moral and political influ­
ence of foreign Commerce, it is by no means, always reciprocal, and the
mercantile intercourse between Europe and the East is a remarkable in­
stance in point.
The East has from the remotest ages, possessed an indi­
genous and independent civilization o f its own, and a historical antiquity
to which the earliest European society laid no claim. The orientals trace
their parentage and their traditional wisdom to no foreign source, they
were aboriginal, not immigrants; the metropolis of the world, not a group
of colonies widely severed from the parent hive ; they owed neither their
religion nor their civil institutions to strangers, and they were regarded,
by both the Europeans and the Africans, with the reverence due to pa­
rents, or at least the elder brothers, of the human family. These circum­
stances were well calculated to foster in them a pride and self-esteem,
which rendered them entirely proof against external influences, and the
effect of European example upon the character, the habits and the relig­
ion of Asia, has at all times been very trifling.
Asia has conformed to
European modes of thought and belief, only so far as it has been conquered
and denationalized, and it has never recognized the superior wisdom of
Western intellect, or the superior purity of Christian virtue.
The Commerce between Europe and Asia, has always partaken much
less of the nature of an exchange o f commodities than that between other
countries. The oriental wares, silks, spices, pearls, gems, perfumes, drugs,
are in general of very moderate weight and hulk in proportion to their
value in remote markets, and they would therefore bear transportation,
either by land or by water, to almost any distance.f W ith the important
exception of the tin of England and the amber o f the Baltic, which last
article of traffic is, remarkably enough, not among those numerated in the
catalogue of the merchandise o f Tyre, in the X X V II chapter o f Ezekiel,
the products of Europe were too bulky to admit of profitable exportation
* And because no one National Law could prescribe in that wherein all are interested, Cod him­
self is the law-giver, and hath written by the stile o f Nature, this Law in the hearts o f men, called
in regard o f the efficient, the Law of Nature, in respect o f the object, the Law o f Nations, whereto
all Men. Nations, Commonwealths, Kyngdomes and Kings are subject. And, as he hath written
this Equity in man’s heart by Nature, so hath he therefore encompassed the Earth with the Sea,
adding so many inlets, bays, havens and other natural inducements and opportunities to invite
men to this mutuallCommerce. Therefore hath he also diversified the wiudes. which in their
shifting quarrels conspire to humaine traffieke. Therefore hath he divided the Earth with so many
Rivers, and made the Shoares conspicuous by Capes and Promontories; yea, hath admitted the
Sunne and Starres in their direction and assistance vnto this generall councell, wherein Nature
within vs and without vs by everlasting canons hath decreed Communitie o f Trade the World thorow.
—Purchas I., 5.
fT h e Ishmaelites carried “ spicery and balm and myrrh,” on camels from Gilead down to Egypt,
thirty-five hundred years since. Chinese perl time bottles of nearly as remote a period, and even
models of the pineapple have been found in the tombs o f that country. So in the barrows in the
valley o f the Ohio, pearls from the Gulf o f Mexico, and obsidian from the volcanic regions o f Cen­
tral America, are not unfrequently discovered. The Cufic coin which occur in the funeral mounds
o f Scandinavia, do not establish the existence of commercial relations between the Northmen aud
the Arabs, but they were probably sometimes brought home by the Veering jar, who served in the
imperial guard at Constantinople, and more frequently formed a part o f the booty obtained by tho
Vikings in their cruises against the Blamenn o f Serkland or African Moors.




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

to very remote regions, especially by land transport. The English and
Flemish broadcloths and kerseys, (which latter term designated a very
different tissue from the cloth at present known by that name,) and other
stuffs woven from the wool of those fine sheep, whose transportation into
Spain, so much improved the breed in that country, appear to have been
the most important articles o f European manufacture shipped to the Le­
vant, and as the difference was paid in the precious metals, there were, in
the sixteenth century, the same complaints of the disadvantages of an un­
favorable balance o f trade, and the same aro-uments against laws for the
protection of the interests of navigation, were drawn from the increased
price of foreign wares, that we so often hear at the present day.*
Doubtless the most remarkable and important event in the history of
Commerce, perhaps even in the civil history of the world, is the discovery
of the American continent. The discovery of America, whether estimat­
ed by the grandeur of the conception, the boldness of the undertaking,
the heroic constancy and courage o f its execution, or the magnitude and
splendor of its results, is doubtless the highest o f human achievements,
and the name of Columbus stands at the head of the list o f those whose
life and actions have exerted a wide and lasting influence in the affairs o f
men. Though, as is affirmed by some, of the discovery of the planet
Neptune, this great event is in a sense a lucky accident, inasmuch as its
author sought not what he found and found not what he sought ; yet, it
has not been the fate o f Columbus resemble to Leverrier in suffering a dim­
inution of his fame by the attempt to demonstrate, that the theory which
led to his illustrious discovery was erroneous, and his success but the ac­
cidental realization o f an incongruous and unsubstantial dream.
The er­
ror of Columbus was but in a name. The terrestrial counterpoise of Eu­
rope and Africa did really exist where his calculations placed it, and
his only mistake was in exaggerating the extent of Asia eastward, and in
expecting to find Cathay and Taprobane where nature had spread a con­
tinent unknown to the geography of the ancient world. But, though Co­
lumbus found not the shores of Eastern Asia, and though he brought back
neither pearls, nor diamonds, nor spices, nor silken stuffs, nor cloth o f
gold, the great supposed objects o f oriental commerce; yet, he had dis­
covered and bestowed upon the Caucasian race, what to civilized Europe,
was a far greater treasure than the rich merchandises of the East, or even
the veins of gold and diamonds, which yet lay hidden in the bosom of the
continent his genius and courage had unveiled.
He had revealed an asy­
lum wide enough to shelter and abundant enough to feed, the surplus mil­
lions that overpopulated Europe should continue for a thousand years to
send forth from her crowded cities and her exhausted s o il; he had opened
a market, the supply of which would, for centuries, task the energies o f her
industry, and stimulate the product of her workshops; he had provided a
field for the growth of raw material, whose transport should employ un­
numbered navies, and whose elaboration should give birth to a degree of
productive activity, a development o f mechanical power, a value to the
practical applications of science, o f which the world had seen no previous
example.
* “ In times past when the strange bottoms were suffered to come in,” says Holinshed, “ we had
sugar lor lour pence the pound, that now at the writing o f this treatise, is well worth half a crowne ;
raisins or con me for a penie, that now areholden at six pence, and sometimes at eight pence and
ten pence the pound; nutmegs at two-pence hull-penie the ounce, ginger at a penie an ounce, ciuamon at lour pence and cloves at two pence,” &c., &c.—Holinshead (reprint) I., 274.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

159

Although the mineral wealth o f America was o f immense value to the
growing Commerce of the world, as furnishing the circulating medium, a
great increase of which was now demanded, yet the agricultural capacities
of its soil have proved of infinitely greater importance to navigation than
the gold of Peru or the diamonds of Brazil. It is a circumstance well
worthy of note in this connection, that many o f the agricultural products
o f America which furnish the most abundant employment for shipping,
are not of indigenous growth, and that, in consequence of the greater
facility of producing some of these articles in the American States and
colonies, or of the greater proximity o f those territories to the workshops
of Europe, the introduction of these plants into American husbandry has
completely revolutionized the course of trade in them, and the East, so
far from monopolizing those branches o f Commerce, has almost ceased to
share in their profits. The cotton of America has no rival in the Medi­
terranean markets but the slender supply which Egypt can export; since
the time of Mehemet Ali, Turkey no longer receives her coffee from the
Moslem states upon the Red Sea, but from the islands o f the New World,
and the sugar consumed in the Levant is principally of American produc­
tion. In fact, the only indigenous exclusively American vegetable, which
furnishes regular and constant employment for navigation, is tobacco, and
as this plant is capable o f a much extended cultivation in the old world,
its future importance as an article of export is likely rather to diminish
than to increase.
It is remarkable too that the great staples of modern traffic, silk, rice,
cotton, tobacco, sugar, tea, and coffee, are all recently introduced into
European Commerce, and, with the exception o f tobacco, which is exclu­
sively American, and cotton, which is common to both Asia and America,
are all of oriental origin. Although some of these articles were known to
the Ancients, not one of them, except perhaps line cotton stuffs, was an
object of regular Commerce between the Romans and Asiatics, and the
important commodities o f tea and coffee were both unknown even in
Western xAsia and the Levant, until long after the discovery o f America.
But the economical influences of the discovery of America are of greatly
inferior importance to its moral and political results. Here civilized man
was for the first time brought into contact with unsubdued nature upon a
large scale. Society was instituted under new conditions. Government
has everywhere upon this continent been to a great extent, in fact, what
European speculators have made it in theory everywhere, a matter o f vol­
untary and formal compact. Men have lived, under whatever strictness of
colonial legislation, substantially in a condition of greater freedom, sympa­
thized more largely in the influences o f external nature, felt themselves
less bound by arbitrary and prescriptive custom, and regarded all civil
institutions as essentially more conventional and experimental.
Human life has with us, therefore, if not a nobler and more generous,
yet a larger, more luxuriant, and less artificial form, is free to yield to
more diversified impulses, embraces a wider range of objects, aims, and
purposes, than in the rigid and unbending communities of Europe. The
effect of all this has been, that, in spite o f that innate propensity of all
men, all nations, to conform to the opinions and adopt the institutions of
their ancestors, the characteristic features o f our North American society
are of original and spontaneously developed form, and we are what we
are, not through a spirit o f imitation, but by natural and organic growth.




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P rinciples and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

Aware of this, European statesmen and philosophers have watched our
development and progress, not indeed without doubt and apprehension,
but with ever increasing interest and sympathy, and it may be safely
affirmed, that notwithstanding the fixed and unyielding nature of the in­
stitutions of Europe, the example o f America, has, for half a century at
least, exercised a more powerful influence on the public policy and the
legislation, if not on the social life, of that continent, than the genius of
European society has exerted over us.
The action of Europe upon America is, at present, a social, I might
almost say a purely civic, rather than a moral or political influence. It is
confined to the modes and outward forms o f social life, to the laws of
artistic and literary criticism, to the esthetical and passive, rather than to
the active faculties of man, and scarcely extends at all to our legislation,
to the relations between our government and people, or to our views o f
the true principles o f international law. Its operation is restricted to that
portion of our population whose tastes, habits, sympathies, and modes of
life, are most analogous to those o f the aristocratic classes o f European
society, and its influence is almost null upon the masses which constitute
three-fourths o f the American people.
It is only when the European France, alternately republican and impe­
rial, revolutionary and conservative, a disturbing and a sedative force, has
at all times had admirers among us, and the continental and domestic
policy of England has never wanted American eulogists. Our popular
participation in European politics is not remarkable for consistency, and
our sympathies are not unfrequently enlisted in favor of governments
whose principles, whose aims, and whose policy, are most irreconcilably
hostile to our own. Thus in 1848 and 1849 the policy o f the Russian
Czar was regarded as the barbarian element in the European system, and
England and France were applauded for forming an alliance to support
Turkey against the demand of Russia and Austria for the surrender of
political refugees; at present, the autocrat is thought to be not only the
great reformer of Europe, but even a fond admirer of our republican insti­
tutions, and England and France are conspiring to check the progress of
political liberty, in resisting his philanthropic efforts to extend the bless­
ings of Muscovite civilization and Greek Christianity not only over the
Turkish empire, but the whole continent o f Europe.
But all these are partial and transitory influences, neither leading nor
diverting, retarding nor accelerating, that onward march, which is bearing
us with startling rapidity to an unknown goal of unprecedented great­
ness, or of unparalleled calamity. On the other hand, the influence o f
America on every European interest, already great, is rapidly widening
and strengthening. However opposed we may be to political propagandism, however strongly committed to governmental non-intervention, we
cannot control, nor can united Europe resist, the spontaneous influence of
institutions, whose principles, when left to work out their legitimate re­
sults, are not diffusible merely, but, so to speak, essentially contagious.
The action o f America upon Europe is not a superficial influence limited
to a particular stratum o f society, but it is a power which agitates the
foundations, a leaven which throws the entire mass into fermentation, and
we are accordingly regarded with apprehension and ill-will by all that
clings to the principles of civil and religious despotism, with reverence
and hope by all that longs for emancipation from the shackles o f spiritual
and political tyranny.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

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Nor is this American influence by any means confined to Europe.
Through Liberia, we are acting on Africa. Through the wide ramifications of our Bible and Missionary and other charitable associations, we
are, in all the oriental realms, protesting, in behaif o f God and humanity,
against idolatry and superstition and tyranny and oppression, and when,
the full light of Christian liberty, which has already so auspiciously dawn­
ed upon the Ottoman empire, shall shine upon all the Moslem world, it
will be found that American piety and philanthropy have been the fore­
most agents in the diffusion of this greatest o f blessings.
But we are now brought into contact with extremest Asia by a different
route, and are entering upon a new class of oriental relations. San Fran­
cisco is nearer to Yeddo than it is, by any route at present practicable for
Commerce, to Boston, and Hong Kong is but a few days beyond. The
fame of the mineral wealth o f California has excited the cupidity of China,
and the Celestials who are flocking to our Western coast, offering us at
our own doors the opportunity of liberalizing their minds and Christian­
izing their spirits, cannot fail to carry back with them some leaven of
political and religious truth, more precious than the gold which is the
primary object of their search.
Divided as the Western coasts o f America are from the Eastern, by
broad ranges o f uninhabitable mountain and desert, which, though pre­
senting many practicable passes, must ever oppose an insuperable obstacle
to continuity of settlement, our transmontane possessions belong rather
to the Pacific or Oriental than to the Atlantic or Occidental system.
Our Western coast and Pacific Asia are not the counterparts but the
complements of each other, and there exists a similar interdependence be­
tween Eastern America and Atlantic Europe.
America, as a whole, being thus shared by both, is destined to be prac­
tically, what it is by nature geographically, the connecting link between
the great oceanic basins— a middle term between the East and the West.
The American routes from Europe to China threaten a formidable compe­
tition with those by the Cape of Good Hope and the Red Sea, and the
tide of our own intercourse with Eastern Asia will be swoln by great aorcessions from Transatlantic sources. Our sphere o f influence for good or
evil will thus be commensurate with the terraqueous globe, and Commerce
will have conferred upon us a moral power in intellectual sway, mightier,
wider, more durable, more beneficent, than fleets or armies have ever
achieved.
Nor will the extent or the character of this influence be affected by a
contingency which seems neither improbable, undesirable, nor remote—
the secession, namely, of our Pacific territory from our confederacy, and
its erection into an independent State. The institutions of the new politi­
cal society will be based on the principles of religious liberty and political
equality ; its forms will be democratic, and its external action, it may be
hoped, forever harmonious with our own.
Were a regular steam communication opened between San Francisco
and Jeddo, Japan would be already, in time, scarcely further from England
than London and Liverpool were from New York thirty years since, before
the establishment of the monthly packet line of fast-sailing ships between
those ports, and it is now scarcely twenty days from Boston to Constanti­
nople.
Revolutions— political, social, religious, commercial— are already everyV O L . X X X I I I .-----N O . I I .




11

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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

where in progress throughout the mighty East, and rapidly acquiring a
momentum which must infallibly sweep away many of those primeval
institutions to which the Orientals have clung with such unyielding
tenacity!
The prejudices, a mightier barrier than the Chinese wall, which so long
closed the Eastern world against European action, have been in some
measure dispelled. The ancient vis inertice of Asia, the passive resistance
she has forever opposed to all external influences, has at length been over­
come, and all the vast continent, from the Thracian Bosphorus to the
Straits of Behring, is sharing in the movement of that swift current, which
is bearing humanity onward with ever-accelerating velocity. Asia is now
an open field, wide enough to tax the utmost energies of the philanthrop­
ist, the profoundest sagacity of the statesman, the most active enterprise
of the merchant. When, therefore, we consider the wide territorial sphere
of the changes to which I have alluded, the countless millions o f human
beings that are the actors in the shifting scenes of this great drama, we
cannot doubt that Asia is to be the theater o f events as far transcending
in importance the occurrences which make up the history of Europe, as
the population o f the East is more numerous, its territory more vast, than
the nations and the emqures of the West.
I have alluded to the fact that eras of great intellectual excitement are
usually followed by periods o f corresponding physical activity. The his­
tory of Commerce furnishes numberless illustrations o f the truth of this
remark, and it will be found that almost every great enlargement of trade
has been immediately preceded by war, revolution, or some other great
event of absorbing interest, which has created an unusual movement in
the minds of men. What, then, will be the effect of the general agitation
which is now shaking the Mohammedan and the pagan world ?
The empires o f China and Japan, countries as antipodal to Europe in
their institutions as in geography, are the sole examples of nations which
have grown great in numbers, power, and civilization, without a consider­
able foreign Commerce, and they have always reluctantly permitted a trade
from which they were unwilling to admit that they derived any advan­
tage. But the final argument of kings has at length proved persuasive
enough to induce them to change a system which appears to have existed
almost before European Commerce can be properly said to have had its
beginning. Their ports are partially opened, and the period is probably
not far distant when they will be compelled to adopt, without restriction,
the general commercial system of Christendom. It is impossible to esti­
mate or foresee the influence of such an event upon the productive activity
and trade of America and Europe. It will open to us a new market as
extensive as the present entire commercial w orld; and though neither
China nor Japan are supposed to be rich in the precious metals, yet there
can be little doubt that they will supply abundant and advantageous means
of exchange. The most important benefits will accrue to our own country
from this great extension of trade, because, as I have already said, our
position will enable us to supply the demand it will create with greater
facility than any other nation, even though the great scheme o f connect­
ing our own Atlantic and Pacific ports by a railway, be not realized.
An important effect o f commercial revolutions which I have not hitherto
noticed, is their tendency to change the centers of wealth and population,
according to the fluctuating convenience of access and transport; and this




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

163

tendency is likely to become more active as internal and mechanical im­
provements provide new routes and new modes of conveyance. It has
seldom occurred that any great trading town has retained its commercial
importance for any very considerable length of time. The revival of the
ancient routes by the Euxine, now the principal channel of the British
trade with Persia, and by the Red Sea, so indispensable as a means o f com­
munication with British India, has given renewed consequence to several
of the decayed marts of the Levant, and if the projected railroad from
Belgrade, on the Austrian frontier, to Constantinople, shall be constructed,
the modern Stamboul may surpass the ancient Byzantium in commercial
importance.
Still, few or none of the great trading towns of the Roman empire, few
even of those of the middle ages, at present enjoy an extensive traffic.
W ith respect to the ancient marts, we hardly know enough o f the course
of their trade to determine upon what principle they were selected as
commercial centers, or what change of circumstances has reduced them
from wealth and populousness to desolation. At the present day, when
navigation plays an almost exclusive part in international transport, the
fact that few o f the ancient commercial capitals were maritime, never fails
to strike us with some surprise; but when transportation was mainly by
land, an interior and central position was better suited for a comprehen­
sive trade, and was at the same time more secure against piratical incursion
and foreign invasion.
W e are able to trace both the rise and the decay o f most modern trad­
ing towns, and we find that with few exceptions, the degree of facility of
access by sea, and the capaciousness and security of harbor, are circum­
stances hardly less important to their prosperity, than the convenience of
communication with the interior. The decay o f Venice is perhaps the
most remarkable instance of utter commercial ruin which has befallen any
European city since the discovery of the continent of America and the
passage around the Cape o f Good Hope. The position of that city at the
head of the Adriatic, though at some distance from the junction of the
Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and therefore more remote from the Indies
by sea than Portugal or Spain, was yet a much more advantageous one
for the distribution and conveyance of merchandise into the interior of
Europe than any of the Peninsular ports. Genoa, too, possessed the same
facilities in even a higher degree. There is, then, no obvious local reason
why these republics might not have competed successfully with Lisbon and
Cadiz in the maritime traffic with the East; but they seem neither to have
rivaled, nor energetically to have resisted the progress of Spanish and
Portuguese Transatlantic Commerce, and to have resigned, almost without
a struggle, the rich prize of Oriental trade which they had so long monop­
olized. Venice, indeed, at this period was compelled to exert her utmost
power in resisting the encroachments of the Mohammedans on her posses­
sions in the Levant, and a jealousy of her commercial greatness and mari­
time strength was perhaps the most influential circumstance in deterring
the powers of Western Europe from coming to her aid in her struggles
against the Turks, the common and formidable enemy o f them all.
The true cause of the decay of Venice, and the diminished importance
of Genoa, is to be found not in the opening of the passage around the
Cape of Good Hope, but in the change in the geographical center o f the
known world, by the discovery of a new continent on the western side of




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

the Atlantic, furnishing abundant material for Commerce, and supplying
most of the productions o f the torrid zone. So long as but one sea, the
Mediterranean, was navigated, Genoa and Venice might well be styled
mercantile centers ; but when the Atlantic basin was opened, the Com­
merce o f the world was transferred to its shores, and mariners familiar
with those coasts and already trained to ocean navigation, soon appropri­
ated to themselves its exclusive advantages.
The restoration o f the ancient route to India by the Red Sea, the re­
vival of the trade with Persia by way of the Euxine, and the immense
Commerce in breadstulfs carried on between the Danubian provinces and
Western Europe, have conferred upon Trieste, the favored rival and suc­
cessor of Venice, a considerable share of the importance which once be­
longed to that great emporium. But the position of London and Liverpool,
as the central havens of what may be called the terrestrial hemisphere,
have secured to the British commercial capitals a pre-eminence which they
are likely to enjoy, until it shall be wrested from them by the superior ad­
vantages of our own great maritime towns, as promts of transit and exchange
in the extended intercourse which, as I have attempted to show, must at
no distant day exist between the coasts of Atlantic Europe and those of
China and Japan.
The use of steam in expediting transport and communication by land and
water, is effecting revolutions in Commerce, inferior only to those which
resulted from the first substitution of water for land carriage.
The en­
larged facilities of internal transport created by the employment o f this
agent, not only promote domestic traffic, but they increase foreign trade,
by establishing more or less direct relations between the interior and for­
eign countries. Whatever makes the sea-coast more readily accessible to
an inland population, influences foreign intercouse somewhat in the same
way as an actual extension of the sea-coast itself, or an increase o f the
population and exportable material upon it. Such increased facilities also
enlarge the sphere o f foreign trade, hy bringing within its reach objects
o f merchandise otherwise beyond it, both because they cheapen the cost
of transport from the interior, and, by shortening the time of carriage,
enable the producer, both to avail himself advantageously o f the fluctua­
tions of the market, and to dispose o f perishable commodities, which
could not be preserved long enough to reach, by other means o f convey­
ance, their destined place of consumption.
In all modern commercial transactions, time is an element which has
assumed an entirely new importance. The whole civilized world is in a
flux state. Nothing is stationary, and all things are required to keep pace
with the general rate of progress.
Unless, therefore, articles can be de­
livered within a very short period from the date of the order, the occasion
for them is past, and they have no longer mercantile value.
Steam ena­
bles the producer and the merchant to satisfy the urgent but fleeting de­
mand which this state of things produces, and at the same time to ob­
serve those other great and indispensable conditions of commercial success,
punctuality, exactness and order of business.
The introduction of steam
into ocean navigation is so recent, that we are not yet able to appreciate
its ultimate results, but the final triumph o f this or some other mechani­
cal mode of propulsion over the slowness and irregularity of navigation
by sails, is as certain as it is demonstrable, that water and steam are bet­
ter mechanical agents than wind.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

165

International Commerce is also likely to be very greatly affected by
changes in the commercial and financial legislation o f Christendom.
In
spite of local circumstances, which make it the interest of this or that coun­
try to impose general or special burdens upon foreign trade, there can be
no doubt, that the tendency of public opinion upon the whole, both in
this country and in Europe, is favorable to the removal o f commercial re­
strictions, and the only difference among political economists on this ques­
tion is, whether the legal regulations affecting Commerce should be strict­
ly confined to considerations of revenue, or whether duties may be prop­
erly imposed with reference to other objects.
There is no subject in the
whole range o f political economy, which presents problems more difficult
o f solution than this, and there is perhaps no one, where the calculations
o f theory have been so often disappointed in practice. In fact, experience
has as yet taught but one rule on this subject, which is, that all great and
sudden changes, however specious the arguments by which they may be
supported, are hazardous, and, that in affairs involving such vast and com­
plex interests, any lawful course of existing policy is sufficiently defended,
whenever its actual working is proved to be in the main beneficial.
It is remarkable that Turkey was one o f the earliest States to set an
example of liberality in commercial and international jurisprudence. The
right of wreckage, and the droit d'aubaine, which so long continued to
disgrace the law of Western Europe were relinquished by Turkey in her
first compacts with Christian Powers, and, as has been already remarked,
she has for three centuries accorded to all foreigners visiting her territo­
ries, privileges and immunities denied them at this day by every nation of
the Christian World.
The concessions thus made by the Porte, have indeed proved highly
detrimental to the industrial interests, as well as to the peace and security
of the Ottoman Enqfire, but no Christian government has ever shown the
slightest inclination to listen to the claims of justice, and surrender privi­
leges comparatively insignificant when granted, but which have now grown
into enormous abuses. Without dwelling on the exemption o f foreigners
from the civil and criminal jurisdiction o f the native tribunals, which is
in itself an abandonment of one of the most important o f governmental pre­
rogatives, and which has been the source of innumerable evils, not only to
Turkey, but to the very interests it was originally intended to subserve, I
may refer to those treaty stipulations, by which Turkey has bound herself
to levy but a nominal duty on the value of goods imported from Frank
ports. The import duty being thus reduced to an amount hardly suffici­
ent to pay the expenses of collection, the necessities o f the revenue have
compelled the Porte, not only to resort to burdensome and annoying in­
ternal taxes, but to impose export duties amounting together to twelve
per cent ad valorem on the exportation of Turkish products. The effect
o f this, as might have been easily foreseen, has been to flood the country
with European goods, and to discourage and depress every branch of
industry, by exposing it to a competition it could not sustain, and loading
it with a burden, under which it could not fail to succumb.
An odious feature of many commercial systems from which we are hap­
pily exempt, is the existence of monopolies, or exclusive rights of selling
particular wares, vested in the crown or in private individuals by royal
grant. The number and importance of these monopolies is one o f the
best tests of the extent to which a country is misgoverned ; and when we
find rulers, not only appropriating to themselves the profits of the trade




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Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

in that prime necessity salt, but keeping the only shops for the sale o f to­
bacco, playing cards and lottery tickets, we may be sure that government­
al abuses have nearly reached their acme.
The same spirit which resists restrictions upon international Commerce,
is gradually compelling the relinquishment or revocation o f those exclu­
sive prerogatives and privileges, and the policy which induced the Dutch
to burn the surplus spices of every fertile year in their East Indian pos­
sessions, lest a more abundant supply should occasion a permanent reduc­
tion of price, would now find few advocates in the most illiberal of Chris­
tian governments.*
Next to the establishment of a wholesome and generally recognized
system of mercantile law, and the abolition of unnecessary restrictions and
exclusive privileges, the most beneficial and important revolution in Com­
merce, has been the adoption of the principle, as a law o f trade, that the
best and surest profits are to be derived, not from high selling prices, but
from extensive sales at a moderate advance. The recognition of this prin­
ciple tends to bring Commerce back again, so far as its results are con­
cerned, to its original and only legitimate aim, the mutual advantage of
both buyer and seller, and it gives to trade a moral elevation, which could
hardly be said to belong to it, so long as it sought the largest returns from
the fewest sales. It is, moreover, a principle of high value in another as­
pect, which has been too often overlooked.
It stimulates and encourages
productive industry, and thereby provides employment for a larger class,
and at the same time furnishes, at the same aggregate cost to each indi­
vidual, a much greater proportion o f the necessaries, the comforts and the
elegances of life.
I referred in the outset, to certain changes in the organization o f Eu­
ropean society, which have been scarcely less effective in awakening and
encouraging a commercial spirit, than the other causes to which I have al­
luded.
Of these, perhaps, the most important are, the diminished power
and resources of the Church, and the overthow of the feudal system, the
influence of both which was hostile to the prosperity of Commerce, by
furnishing what was once thought more reputable employment for the in­
telligence and enterprise, and holding out more brilliant prizes to the am­
bition, of younger branches of the higher classes.
Since these'changes,
rank, whether civil or ecclesiastical, has become of less value; and wealth
is the indispensable and only means of commanding the advantages and
enjoying the social position, which mere titular nobility no longer confers.
Moreover, the era of discovery was contemporaneous with these social
revolutions, and as all the old expeditions to new-found lands partook
more or less of a military character, and were armed for conquest as well
as for trade, their martial organization ennobled them in the eyes o f an
adventurous age, and a voyage to the Indies became an object of as hon­
orable ambition as a crusade to the Holy Land.
Commerce thus acquired somewhat of the dignity of chivalry, and the
crowns o f Europe, whose coffers were suddenly filled by the increased
revenue arising from larger importations, favored and encouraged mercan­
tile pursuits at the cost of almost every other branch of industry. The
* It is said that some o f the fur companies are guilty o f the folly and wickedness o f encourag­
ing the Indians to bring in great numbers o f the American ermine, and then o f destroying the
skins, lest the sale o f a fur not in fashionable demand, at such prices as it would now bring, should
operate unfavorably on the market for costlier peltries.




Principles and Tendencies o f M odern Commerce.

16V

immensely multiplied points of contact between governments and people
in modern times, requiring tlie employment of a mucli larger official
corps in the public pay, the maintenance of standing armies and perma­
nent navies, the prosecution of works of internal improvement— all these
swell the expenditures of governments, and compel them to foster com­
mercial enterprise and promote the interests of trade, as the readiest and
most economical means of supplying the national exchequer with the vast
revenues which the public exigencies of the age demand.
The effect of these concurrent causes has been to give to Commerce an
overshadowing importance in every scheme o f public economy ; produc­
tive industry itself is but the handmaid, not the parent of trade, and the
present century may well be characterized as the commercial age.
The moral effect o f this wide extension and pervading influence of Com­
merce has been much questioned, and it is contended that its tendency is
to make men estimate all things by their marketable value, and consider
every act and every object alike as a subject of bargain and sale. Doubt­
less, there is some danger that in the multitude of new occasions and new
uses for pecuniary wealth, its necessity and its value may lead men to
overlook the end in their zeal to acquire the control of the means. Accu­
mulation begun for lawful and laudable purposes sometimes terminates in
the love of money for its own sake, irrespective o f its uses. But these
tendencies find compensations and correctives in circumstances insepara­
bly connected with the extension of Commerce, one o f which is perhaps
worth a more special notice.
The amount of mercantile exchanges is so
great that the metallic currency of the world is utterly inadequate to their
* transaction, and both barter in kind, and even extensive transfer of actual
coin, are wholly unsuited to the purposes of general traffic. Human in­
genuity has contrived to supply the defect of a substantial circulating me­
dium, by an artificial and representative currency without intrinsic value.
It is upon the faith of this conventional currency that most of the pecu­
niary affairs of the commercial world are transacted, and such is its con­
venience that coin is often an incumbrance, as compared with its more
portable and manageable substitute.
Although it might seem beforehand, that one form of money was as
well calculated to excite and gratify inordinate cupidity as another, yet it
is a law of our nature to cling with the strongest attachment to those
things to which we ascribe the greatest inherent worth. Every American
and English traveler will remember how difficult it was for him to attach
any value to the base alloy in which the smaller coins of the German
States are struck, or to the rudely executed government notes which com­
pose the general circulating medium of Constantinople; and absurd as it
may seem to be that men should love gold, and regard its equivalent substi­
tute with comparative indifference, yet experience has abundantly shown that
even if the desire of gain is not lessened, sordid hoarding avarice, nevertheless,
is much more rare since the general introduction of paper currency, than
when gold and silver coin constituted almost the sole circulating medium.
Ho man hides bank bills, as misers used to bury their gold, and the
possessor of this conventional, unsubstantial currency, finding in it no in­
trinsic worth, is forced to exchange it for something of positive utility— to
invest it, in short, and thus to value it according to its uses, and not for
itself.
There are, indeed, certain branches of trade which are unquestionably




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Principles and Tendencies o f Modern Commerce.

of highly demoralizing tendency. It may be laid down as a general rule,
that trading in objects of fluctuating or very uncertain value, in articles
whose due price can be determined neither by reference to the cost of
production, nor to the actual uses to which they are applicable, is unfavor­
able to the observance of commercial morality. Hence, we find that deal­
ers in horses, in medals, in old pictures, in antiquities, in articles o f rarity
and curiosity generally, where the temptation to exorbitance of demand or
misrepresentation of quality has no checks but the limited means of the
purchaser or the degree of his connoisseurship, are usually extremely
prone to imposition, both as regards the price and the character o f their
merchandise. On the other hand, merchants who trade in goods compara­
tively stable in market price, and possessing a value proportioned to their
known uses in the concerns of every-day life, much less frequently incur
the imputation o f defrauding their customers in respect to quality or
price.
It is, doubtless, in no small degree to speculation in stocks and other
securities, whose future value does not admit of calculation by any known
criterion of estimation, in lands for which there is no present demand,
and in other articles o f utterly uncertain or remotely prospective value, in
which, in our haste to be rich, we have so generally engaged, that we are
to ascribe the fearful and all-pervading pecuniary demoralization which,
in commercial towns, has made every man afraid o f his neighbor, and has
converted many mercantile communities into hordes of plunderers as un­
scrupulous and as indiscriminate in their pillage as the most lawless wan­
derers of the desert. Whether legislation can remedy this enormous and
most dangerous and most disgraceful evil, is a question of very grave con- •
sideration ; but as public opinion has proved utterly powerless in checking
its progress, it is quite time that the authorities of the land attempt to ar­
rest its further advance, by even the sacrifice of those associate franchises,
the negotiability of whose securities has afforded such facilities for legally
irresponsible mismanagement and monstrous pecuniary wrong. The de­
sire of gain, with a view to employ it for good and lawful purposes, is not
an illaudable passion ; and the love of money is criminal or commendable,
according to the aims to which it is designed to be subservient. In our
time and country, money has uses so numerous and so valuable, that a
more than ordinary solicitude for its possession may well be justified. In
a utilitarian age, it is the readiest means of acquiring all the good things
of material life— an indispensable condition o f the enjoyment o f the best
facilities for high intellectual culture; in our era, pre-eminently distin­
guished for the number and extent of its charitable benefactions, it is the
most potent instrument of Christian benevolence. The wealth accruing
from a prosperous trade is the source of our noblest and most liberal en­
terprises, and our most opulent commercial towns have long been remark­
able for the munificence of their public endowments. Experience, there­
fore, has shown that the pursuit of legitimate Commerce is as unlikely to
engender sordid and self-seeking habits and purposes as any other gainful
calling, and it is the well merited boast of the age of Commerce, that it is
also emphatically the era of liberal knowledge, and of systematic, enlarged,
and enlightened charity.




I c e : and the Ice Trade.

169

A rt. II.— I C E : AND THE ICE TRADE.
I n New England and some other parts of this country, there are har­
vests gathered in the winter as well as in the summer; at the last the
fields wave with a golden harvest, at the first there are vast fields of a
solid, transparent, brittle, nearly white substance, which we call ice. The
summer harvest is ripened by the influence of heat, attended by timely
rains. The winter harvest is matured by the cold, and the more distant
the sun the better it is for the crop. No farmer observes the prospect for
his crops more closely than he who is looking for fields of ice to be gath­
ered. He is a great friend to cold and clear days in December and at the
beginning of January, just the opposite of weather sought by the poor
m an; and perchance by the farmer who has already gathered in his har­
vest of the fruits of the earth.
Formerly nothing was made of the ice crop in this country. The gold in
these hidden mines upon our lakes was the same, but for centuries it was
undiscovered wealth, like that of California. The boys, indeed, watched
the formation of the ice, and were well pleased if they could have a little
indifferent skating by Thanksgiving, with the hope of a capital article by
Christmas or New Year’s. Another use of ice in the early days of our
history, was to afford bridges over rivers and lakes for a considerable por­
tion of the year. These bridges of nature were thought much of by our
fathers. It cost nothing to build or to repair them. The only trouble
with these free bridges was, that sometimes they contained fatal holes, in­
to which unwary passengers not unfrequently made a fatal plunge; and
then those persons who were disposed to pass over them until late in the
spring, often found that there was such a thing as riding a free bridge to
their death. As for the domestic use of the excellent ice which several of
our northern States always afforded, in such vast quantities as to have
supplied the wants of the world, it was not thought of. And the idea of
exporting to those countries and islands where nature never formed it, was
not the subject for an idle dream. All this is quite a modern invention.
Ice is a good old Saxon word. Its very form and sound indicate as
much. W e are sure, then, that our Saxon ancestors knew what cold
weather was, and had some experience with ice, even though they did not
know much of it as a luxury or necessary of life. Ice is formed of some
fluid, particularly of water, by means of cold. Let our winters become
very open and warm, and our ice farmers and merchants would find that
their occupation -was gone. But the cultivators of fields of ice are as sure
o f a harvest, as those who till the so il; for He who has said Summer shall
not cease, has destined Winter to be as sure in its annual return. And
when the Lord answered Job with such questions as these : “ Hast thou
entered into the treasures of the snow, or hast thou seen the treasures of
the hail ? Out of whose womb came the ice ? and the hoar frost of heaven,
who hath gendered it ?” we are led to expect that cold and winter, snow
and ice are perpetual institutions.
“ Ice,” in the language of a scientific writer, “ is only a re-establishment
of the parts of water in their natural state.” The mere absence of fire is
supposed to account for this re-establishment. Gallileo was the first that
observed that ice is lighter than the water of which it is composed ; hence
the floating of ice upon the water. This rarefaction of ice is owing to the




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I c e : and the Ice Trade.

air-bubbles produced in water by freezing. These bubbles, during tlieir
production, acquire a great expansive power, so that the containing vessels
are burst. Ice usually forms on the surface of the water ; but this, like
the crystalization, may be varied by an alteration o f circumstances. It
is an important law o f nature that ice forms much less rapidly below the
surface than on the surface. If the freezing was equally below as above,
our ponds and lakes and rivers would become solid masses of ice during
our long winters, which the summer heat could not melt away. And thus
there would shortly be almost a perpetual reign of winter’s cold. Ice is
formed in layers, resembling what we see when a tree is cut down, deno­
ting the gradual growth of the tree. In ice fifteen inches thick, there will
be found twenty-one layers, and so on, in that proportion.
It is a noticeable fact, that in those latitudes where the warmth of the
climate renders ice not only a desirable but a necessary article, it was not
afforded to the inhabitants except by artificial processes, until the recent
custom of shipping it from the colder regions. Fortunately, in warm cli­
mates, there have, for many centuries, been well-known processes whereby
ice could be procured by means o f glauber-salt, and by ether; the last
being much the best. W ith a small quantity of ether, a much larger
quantity of water can always be frozen, and the apparatus required is very
simple. So that the inhabitants of warm climates have always been able
to enjoy the luxury of ice-cream from ice of their own manufacture, and
at a trifling expense, provided they had the necessary information.
Ice was used for domestic consumption in this country previous to this
century. W e read that as early as 1792 there were several ice-houses,
owned mostly by farmers in Maryland and Pennsylvania. They probably
existed in other sections o f this country. The principal uses o f ice were
well known at that period.
The idea of exporting ice to low latitudes was first developed by Fred­
erick Tudor, Esq., of Boston, in August, 1805. During the following
February he shipped the first cargo of ice that was ever exported from
this country, and probably from any other, in a brig belonging to himself,
from Boston to Martinique. It has been stated that he could find no ves­
sel ready to take the ic e ; hence, he was obliged to furnish one himself.
The vessel was loaded at Gray’s Wharf, Charlestown. The ice was cut
with axes and saws in Saugas, which then formed a portion of Lynn.
It
was carted to the wharf in wagons. How slow and fatiguing the process,
compared to what it is at the present day, where steam does so much of
the work. Gray’s W harf has continued from that day to this to be the
center of the wharves from whence ice is shipped at Boston.
Although Mr. Tudor went out with the first ice that he dispatched to
the W est Indies, the voyage was attended with great losses. These hap­
pened in consequence o f the want of ice-houses, and the expense o f fitting
out two agents to the different islands, to announce the project, and to se­
cure some advantages. But a greater loss arose from the dismasting of
the brig in the vicinity of Martinique. The embargo and war intervened
to suspend the business, but it was renewed on the return of peace. As
late as 1823, continued disasters attended the business, which largely af­
fected the finances and health of Mr. Tudor. After an illness of two
years, he was enabled to proceed and to extend the business to several of
the Southern States, and to other of the West Indies. In 1834, his ships
carried the frozen element to the East Indies and to Brazil, an important




Ice : and the Ice Trade.

m

event in itself, since no other vessel had ever visited those distant parts of
the world on a similar errand, and because they have proved good markets
from that day to this.
It is now half a century since the founder o f this trade commenced it.
lie is still actively and largely engaged in the business, and notwithstand­
ing early losses, by pursuing the same business for a long period of years,
he has found an ample reward. Since Mr. Tudor engaged in the business,
he has been joined in the same hy N. J. Wyeth, of Cambridge, who has
long been engaged in, and who well understands it. Other companies en­
gaged in it are those of Gage, Hittinger & Co., Russell, Harrington & Co.,
and others in Boston and vicinity, who make Fresh, Spy, Newham, and
several other ponds, the scenes of their operations.
The great increase of the Boston ice trade has been since 1832. In
that year the whole amount shipped was but 4,352 tons, which was cut at
Fresh Pond by Mr. Tudor. In the year 1854 the amount exported from
Boston was 156,540 tons. In the preceding year there were but 100,000
tons shipped. In 1845 there were but 48,422 tons exported. The rail­
roads receive some $90,000 for transporting ice, and those who bear it
over the sea from $400,000 to $500,000.
Boston finds the best market for ice in the ports o f our southern cities.
Of all that was exported last year about 110,000 tons were sold in those
cities. The next best market was the East Indies, where 14,284 tons were
sold. Other moderately good markets were Havana, Rio Janeiro, Callao,
Demerara, St. Thomas, and Peru. O f the whole o f last year’s exports,
only 895 tons were sent to Great Britain, and that was landed at Liver­
pool. Years ago we were accustomed to hear how delighted the queen o f
England was with our Newham Lake ice. The mother-land now ships a
portion of its ice from Norway, which is believed to be the only nation
that exports ice, save the United States.
In the vicinity o f New York only about 20,000 tons are annually har­
vested for exportation— the home market requiring nearly the entire crop.
A t Rockland Lake 120,000 tons are annually secured ; at Highland Lake,
30,000; at New Rochelle, 10,000; at Athens on the Hudson, 15,000; at
Rhinebeck, 18,000; at Kingston Creek and vicinity, 60,000; at Catskill,
20.000 ; near Barrytown, 12,000 ; making a total o f 285,000 tons, or not
far from the amount gathered in the vicinity o f Boston.
The above amounts are stored by companies as below :— 113,000 tons
by J. D. Ascough & Co., known as the Knickerbocker Ice Company;
67.000 by A. Barmore & C o.; 60,000 tons by C. R. Wortendyke & Co.;
45.000 tons by Winch, Huyler & C o .; and 20,000 tons by Turnbull, Ackerson & Co.
The principal towns on the Hudson lay up for home consumption about
as follows :— Newburg, 4,000 tons ; Poughkeepsie, 6,000 ; Hudson, 4,000;
Albany, 20,000 ; Troy, 10,000 tons. Such is a general estimate furnished
by a friend in New York, who is actively engaged in the business. It is
believed to be essentially correct.
In Central and Western New York the use o f ice is quite extensive,
and the numerous lakes in those sections afford a plenty of an excellent
quality. The following extract of a letter dated Syracuse, New York, Jan­
uary 15, 1855, will be read with interest, as showing the rise and progress
of the ice business in that city. It is from the pen of Joseph Savage, Esq.
He says:—




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I c e : and the Ice Trade.

“ I began to make a regular business o f selling ice in 1844 or 1845. Previ­
ous to this I had been in the habit o f soiling ice to the keeper o f a saloon or
soda fountain. I put up about twenty cords annually, he paying the cost o f
filling the house, and I reserved to m yself what ice I wished to use in my own
family. This was thought to be a g ood bargain for us both. I began to supply
families in 1844. The next year I supplied fifty families. In 1846, 1 filled an
out-building with ice, and increased the business by the addition o f the butcher’ s
trade. Numbers, however, both o f butchers and private families, had houses o f
their own ice, and this continued until the trade became systematized. There
are now very few instances o f individuals putting up their own ice. This is
now the practice o f only two o f our principal hotels, and they do this more for
convenience than profit.
“ T he number o f families who now take ice regularly is, I think, from 500 to
600, besides saloons, hotels, butchers, etc.
This business is shared by m yself
and another about equally. The amount put up last winter for this place was
about 6,000 tons. O f this quantity, I estimate that from one-fourth to one-third
is either dissolved or in some way lost.
“ W e get our ice from the Onondaga Lake, a sheet o f water from four to five
miles long, by from one-half a mile to tw o miles broad. Ow ing to the marshy
character o f the land around the lake, no houses are built on its margin as at
Fresh Pond and Rockland L a k e; consequently all our ice is drawn from the
lake in the winter while the ground is frozen, a distance o f one-and-a-balf to
two-and-a-half miles, at a cost o f some fifty or seventy-five cents a ton, when it
is stowed away in the ice-house.
“ Ice sells in this city at from $2 50 to $3 per ton to butchers and hotel-heepers, who usually take about that quantity at once, and is in fact our wholesale
trade. In small quantities o f from fifty to tw o hundred pounds, w e sell for
more, or at about an average price o f twenty cents per hundred. This, I think,
is about the price o f ice in Central and W estern New York.
“ The mode o f cutting ice here is precisely the same as at Cambridge or R ock ­
land. Our houses for storing are built in the same manner, and all above ground,
only o f less capacity. Our towns being all inland, with the exception o f Buffalo,
are necessarily limited as regards the use o f ice, to the quantity wanted to sup­
ply its own inhabitants, so that compared with Boston and New York, it is now
and always must be small, as w e can have no export trade.
It is, however,
steadily increasing in importance and amount, and is a remunerating business at
the above prices, when competition is not too active, as is often the case with
the ice business.”

There is much ice cut to supply the markets of Cincinnati and Chicago.
To supply the first city they used to resort to the ice to he found in the
vicinity, hut now it is cut and brought from the great lakes, or from wa­
ters connected with them. In Peru, Illinois, a large quantity of ice is cut,
which finds a market in the towns on the Lower Mississippi River. It is
taken down the river in flat-boats, and it is a curious fact that these boats
are left in the autumn in the Illinois River to freeze up. When the ice is
of sufficient thickness in the river it is cut and placed in the boats, that
properly protected afford the only ice-houses needed. In the spring, when
the ice breaks up in the river, the boats, freighted with the frozen element,
are ready to float to the markets o f the far South.
The cities of Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, in favorable
seasons, secure in their own neighborhood a large portion of the ice used
by their inhabitants. They depend upon cold weather in the early part
of the winter to make their ice, and if they do not secure an ice harvest
then, they do not at all. In the best seasons they look to Boston for their
best and thickest ice, such as is used in the first-class hotels; and in un­
favorable seasons, (say one-third o f the whole,) the greatest portion of
their supply of ice is furnished from more northern lakes.




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173

Charleston, Mobile, and New Orleans are fine markets for Boston ice,
particularly the latter city, where there is at least $200,000 invested in
ice-houses, wharves, etc. Some of the most substantial brick buildings in
the cities of New Orleans and Mobile are houses that are annually filled
with Boston ice.
The leading house in Boston that is engaged in the exporting of ice is
that of Gage, Hittenger & Co., which exported last year exactly 91,540
tons. The remainder for the year, 65,000 tons, was exported by Frederick
Tudor, Daniel Draper & Son, Russell, Harrington & Co., and by the New
England Ice Company. The number of vessels engaged in these shipments
was 520.* The exports of ice from Boston furnish the largest amount of
tonnage of any other item. The commercial marine of the United States
has been materially increased by the operations of the ice trade. A large
portion of the vessels formerly engaged in the freighting trade from Bos­
ton sailed in ballast, depending for remuneration on freight of cotton, rice,
tobacco, sugar, etc., to be obtained in more southern latitudes, often com­
peting with the vessels of other nations which could earn a freight out
and home. Now a small outward freight from Boston can usually be ob­
tained for the transportation of ice to those places where freighting vessels
ordinarily obtain cargoes.
The domestic consumption of ice in Boston and vicinity in 1854 was
about 60,000 tons. In 1847 it was but 27,000 tons. Messrs. Thurston &
Stockton, successors to Gage, Hittenger & Co., in the retail trade sell
largely each season. Their prices as by their own card were, last year, as
follows :— A family gave $5 for nine pounds a day from May 1 to October
1. If it took fifteen pounds a day, the price for the season was $ 8 ; if
twenty-four pounds, $12. Butchers, grocers, and fishermen, taking one
hundred pounds daily, paid seventeen cents a hundred. To hotels, con­
fectioners, and others that consume five hundred daily, it was afforded at
§3 per ton.
Where Boston ice is sold in large quantities to be shipped, the average
price is $2 a ton. In years when there is a great scarcity it may bring
$6. Like everything else, the price is regulated by the plenty or scarcity.
The ice-houses at Fresh Pond in 1847 were capable of containing
86,732 tons, or more than half the ice that was gathered in Massachusetts
at that time. In that year the accommodation at seven other ponds in
the vicinity of Boston was equal to the storage o f 54,600 tons. These
ice-houses have been so increased that in 1854 their storage capacity was
300,000 tons.
From what has been said, it is clear that the ice trade is no mean one.
Though it has advanced quietly, and has as yet scarcely made any figure
in the literature of Commerce, it is destined to be a very large business in
this country. Already, from all that we can learn, there is invested in
this branch of business in all parts of the United States not less than from
$6,000,000 to $7,000,000. And in ten years, judging from the past, it
may be twice as great as at the present time. The number of men em­
ployed more or less o f the winter in the business in Boston and vicinity is
estimated at from 2,000 to 3,000; and in the whole country there are
supposed to be 8,000 to 10,000 employed.
All this is a clear gain to the productive industry o f the country. Many
men are thus employed at a season of the year when employment is the
* Boston Almanac for 1855, and Timothy T. Sawyer, Esq., the Mayor o f Charlestown.




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I c e : and the Ice Trade.

scarcest, and at fair prices of about $30 a month each, or $1 25 a day.
Nor is this all. The value o f all real estate has been much enhanced in
the neighborhood o f all fresh bodies of water where ice is secured, and
new business advantages are constantly obtained.
The mode of gathering a harvest of ice is likely to be one of the most
interesting topics to the reader. A s has been intimated, the ice is mostly
made in December and January. About the middle o f the last-named
month any good farmer of ice can estimate the value of the crop, and at
that time, or before, he is on the alert with his army o f men to “ lay up,”
in the language of ice men, the winter’s harvest. There is this advantage
in reference to this crop, that while there is no sowing of seed there is the
reaping of a harvest.
The ice farmer knows nothing of plowing the
ground— of harrowing the same— of clearing his crop o f the weeds. It
is left for him simply to anticipate a harvest, which is ripened by super­
human processes. He does, indeed, sometimes aim to assist nature by
passing Gver a pond that is frozen to break holes through the ice, that the
water may overflow the surface of the ice, that thus the precious substance
may form the faster at the bottom ; often, too, snow is removed from the
surface of a pond, since it is a garment unfriendly to the formation o f ice.
Aside from these aids, he who gathers this most frigid crop has little to do
but to witness the elements of nature as they act in concert to mature it,
until it be time to strike the first blow in gathering the silvery blocks.
W hen the ice is of sufficient thickness to cut, from nine to twenty inches,
according as it is to be used at home or exported, the owner causes the
field of ice to be cleared of snow (if there be any) with wooden scrapers,
drawn by a single horse each— the snow being piled up on the several ice
boundaries. Next another scraper is used to carry off the snow-ice, as it
is termed, which is not fit for market. This scraper is made o f iron, with
a sharp cutting instrument attached to the bottom of cast-steel. This ma­
chine is also drawn by a horse. A man rides upon the scraper, and thus
several inches of snow-ice is cut from the surface, which is removed into
the water, from the surface o f which the ice has already been taken.
The next process is to mark off a field o f ice into squares o f about five
feet each, by a sharp instrument, drawn by a horse. To it handles are at­
tached, and a man holds and guides it as he would a plow. W ith this in­
strument he marks and cross-marks. Next follow in the very tracks thus
marked out what are called “ cutters,” * also drawn by horses; and thus
the ice of acres of the pond is cut up into square pieces, and nothing re­
mains but to saw it slightly with hand-saws before it is ready to be floated
off through artificial canals, cut through the ice for the purpose, to the
shore of the pond. The floating is brought to pass by a large number of
men. From the shore the ice is taken by horse-power on sleds or carts to
a neighboring ice-house, or, what is better, it is immediately taken piece
by piece up an inclined plane by steam-power, to a sufficient elevation, and
thence it is directed down a more moderate inclined plane by hand to the
doors of ice-buildings, into which it is lowered by steam, and packed away
by the requisite number of men. This steam process is quite wonderful,
and is carried on in suitable weather by day and by night. All this must
be seen to be truly enjoyed and thoroughly understood.
* It is estimated that this instrument has reduced the cost o f cutting the ice in the neighborhood
o f Boston $15,000 per annum.




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175

Most of the ice-houses that we have seen are built o f wood. Some­
times they are found of brick. They are very high and broad, and are
usually from 100 to 200 feet in length. Fresh Pond, Cambridge, Mass.,
has its shores almost covered with some fifty of these ice-houses. They
present a singular appearance, neither looking like barns nor houses; and
one unacquainted with the ice business would be almost certain to ask, on
seeing them for the first time, “ What are they ?”
The construction o f
these houses, in which ice is to be stored until sold, must be regulated by
the climate— the amount to be stored— the material nearest at hand— and
the relation of the waters to the shores— the object being to have a cool
spot, where the influence o f the sun and a warm atmosphere shall be least.
Added to this, the mass o f ice must be preserved as much as possible from
wasting, by being surrounded by saw-dust, tan, shavings, rice-hulls, char­
coal, leaves, all of which must be used in the ice-house, or aboard ship,
according to circumstances.
The question may arise in the reader’s mind, “ How do companies fix
their boundaries, where several cut ice upon the same pond f” This ques­
tion, so far as Fresh Pond is concerned, may be answered as follows:— In
the year 1839, from the great quantity of ice that was secured there, a
difficulty arose as to boundaries, which was referred to three commissioners,
namely, Messrs. Simon Greenleaf, Levi Farwell, and S. M. Felton. They
decided that each owner should hold and occupy the same proportion of
the contiguous surface of the pond as the length o f his shore-line was to
its whole border. This rule might apply generally where there arises any
dispute about boundaries.
Ice was formerly regarded as a luxury, only to be enjoyed by the wealthy,
or by those well-to-do in the world. But within a few years it has been
regarded, not merely as a luxury, but as a necessary of life, and desirable
to be secured during the warm months by every family. It is useful to
preserve fresh meat and fish. Every one knows how important is its ap­
plication to preserve butter hard and nice in the summer. It is useful,
too, as a general cooler o f most articles o f food and drink. Take a large
city that uses aqueduct water, how could the inhabitants use it for their
daily beverage, unless it were cooled, for six or eight months of the year?
If they could subsist without ice, so they could without fresh meat, and
without fruit. But a people highly civilized must more than subsist— they
must live— they must live comfortably—-they must have the necessaries
and some of the luxuries that a gracious Providence has cast into their
path. Fruits of the most delicate kinds and flowers are preserved fresh
and blooming by the use o f ice. Ice, too, has its medical uses. It is a
tonic, and almost the only one, which, in its reaction, produces no injury.
It is stated that in India the first prescription o f the physician to his pa­
tient is usually ice, and it is sometimes the only one.
Ice is important, even, in promoting good morals.
How often do men
in health drink ardent spirits as a beverage because they cannot procure
good or only tepid water that ice would render palatable ? Temperance so­
cieties have alluded, in their published documents, to the importance o f ice
in warm climates, and in warm weather in temperate climates, as a promoter
of the use of the healthful beverage o f cold water, and thus of the cause
of temperance. It is idle to expect that water will be the general drink of
the people, unless it be cold ; and it is equally idle to suppose that a large
number of earth’s inhabitants can secure cold water at all seasons of the
year, except by the addition of the universal cooler under consideration.




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I c e : and the Ice Trade.

Ice is coming to be almost universally used by the inhabitants of our
cities and large towns. It is used in hotels and many families through the
year. It is found useful in the manufacture of oil. Fishermen and butch­
ers are excellent customers of the ice merchant. If Faneuil Hall Market,
or the other markets of Boston and other American cities, should be visited
at ten o’clock of any summer morning, no fresh provisions would be seen,
and yet every variety is to be found in hundreds of ice-chests in which they
are stored. Packet ships no longer find it necessary to have on board live
fowls and pigs, very much to their inconvenience, for it is easy to have on
board a small ice-house, in which the fresh provisions necessary for the voy­
age may be packed and preserved. The various fruits of our orchards are
to be found fresh in the spring in India, Brazil, and the West Indies, and
in as fine a condition as in Boston or New York— and all through the use
of ice.*
The question of the use of ice by farmers is an interesting one. A very
few intelligent farmers stored ice for their own use, as has been mentioned,
more than half a century ago. When the late Daniel Webster removed
from Boston to Marshfield, more than twenty years since, for the purpose of
cultivating a farm as a pastime from more severe mental pursuits, he felt
the need, as a farmer, of having his private ice-house, which he immediately
built. Every winter he filled that house with ice from a pond near his resi­
dence, or else from one more remote in Duxbury. His house cost him about
$100, and he filled it at an annual expense of $25. Thus he could pre­
serve fresh meat and fish in the summer, and prevent his butter from run­
ning awa,y.\
Several other farmers of Plymouth County now have their private ice­
houses. The same is true of many more of Massachusetts and other sec­
tions of the country. The farmer with his ice-house has a decided advan­
tage over his neighbor-farmer without one. If his water is too warm for
table use, he can cool it. If, for any reason, temporary or permanent, it has
a disagreeable taste, he may modify it, or he may manufacture a different
kind. If he takes a fancy to have a little ice-cream of a sultry day, he has
the materials at hand. And, indeed, the farmer may be called to use ice in
about all the modes to which it is ever used. W e can hardly see how that
a large and independent farmer should consent to be without his own ice­
house. Small farmers may not wish to be at such an expense for what lit­
tle they would use ; but that little they need as much as the large farmer a
larger quantity. And this they may procure from the ice-cart, as they do
fresh meat and fish from those who carry it around to sell; or a small neigh­
borhood of farmers may unite in building an ice-house for the common
good, and store and use the ice in the same manner.
Sometimes quite a large farmer will live in sight of a fine pond, and suf­
fer for the ice that he might have gathered from it in his winter leisure.
This ought not to be.
More than two-fifths of the adult males of this
country are devoted to agriculture, and the larger proportion of them culti­
vate farms in a climate cold enough to afford a winter’s harvest. And why
should they not share in that harvest that the bountiful Benefactor has ri
pened at their doors. W hy should not they generally rouse up and furnish
themselves and their families with this great luxury and necessary of good
living ?
• These facts and others have been placed before the writer by Frederick Tudor, Esq., o f Boston,
t Letter o f C. Porter Wright, o f Marshfield, late principal farmer o f the Hon. Daniel Webster.




I c e : and the Ice Trade.

m

Private ice-houses are constructed differently by different individuals.
Formerly, they were rather cellars than houses above ground. But the
more approved mode of building now is to erect them pretty much above
ground on some cool spot, where, if the land is o f a porous nature, it is all
the better, since it will obviate the necessity of making a drain beneath the
mass of ice. It is usually recommended that the entrance should be from
the north, and that the larger the quantity of ice (ceteris paribus) the less
of it will be melted and wasted. As to the protection to be afforded to the
ice from the effects of the sun and atmosphere, they are to be the same, in
general, that is afforded in the large ice-houses in which ice is stored for ex­
portation.
The per cent of ice that wastes depends wholly on circumstances. Ship­
ping houses should deliver 60 per cent, and more if delivered early in the
season. Of ice shipped for India, if, after a voyage of sixteen thousand
miles, in which the equator is crossed twice in a passage occupying four or
five months, one-half of the original cargo o f ice is delivered, it is consid­
ered a successful delivery.
Fortunes have been made in the ice business, and others have been lost.
It is a department o f human effort that requires the strictest attention and
the most judicious management. Formerly, the trade, though not suffering
from competition, was so new as not to be well understood ; now the dealer
is liable to suffer by the active competition that he meets on all sides. Still,
as the use of ice is constantly increasing both at home and abroad, and as
the crop is often a total or partial failure, he who thoroughly understands
the business will find it about as safe and remunerative as any other.
It is a noticeable fact that ice is not naturally formed in climates where it
is most needed, as in India, and in the equatorial regions of the earth. The
unreflecting person might, from this circumstance, be inclined to question
the goodness of Him who is said to be “ good to all, and whose tender mer­
cies are over all his works.” But the Maker of all yearly matures ice
enough for all his creatures, in all parts of the earth, and it only requires
the swift ships of Commerce, that He seems to have foreseen and ordained,
to furnish all earth’s inhabitants with this necessary o f life. And here we
see one of the important uses of trade and Commerce, without which many
of the good gifts of Providence could only be enjoyed by a few. Indeed, it
is hardly more a duty to till the earth than to furnish those its surplus fruits
who have no ground to cultivate ; and we cannot but most forcibly feel the
goodness of the bounteous Lord of all, without contemplating Commerce
as a part of His plan by which His gifts w'ere to be universally enjoyed.
In this connection how vast is the harvest o f ice that perishes yearly.
Hundreds of lakes and rivers in the whole northern section of our country
present their annual beds of as pure ice as w»as ever cut, and yet no man
lias attempted to gather in the silver harvest.
How much it is to be re­
gretted that millions in all parts of our earth, and we had almost said in
this country, pine during long months of each year for this cooler and tonic.
The time is coming when it will be otherwise— when the farmer will have
ice in his cellar about as commonly as potatoes, and when no good provider
of a family will forget his ice.
One of the most attractive drives in good sleighing from Boston and
neighborhood is to Fresh Pond, to witness the processes of securing a pre­
cious harvest. The pond is pleasantly nestled among hills of a moderate
height. Of a pleasant afternoon of a winter’s day, hundreds of sleighs
V OL. X X X I I I .— NO. I I .




12

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I c e : and the Ice Trade.

may be found there filled with well-dressed persons of both sexes, full of
life, and on the qui vive to witness the wonderful operations before them.
If they are paying their first winter visit, the sights before them are strange
indeed— the silvery pond glaring under the oblique rays of the sun— the
dark blue waters from which the ice has already been removed— the curi­
ous and huge buildings that fringe its shores— the hundreds of laborers
with scores of horses that almost darken the pond, each aiming at useful­
ness according to their several ability—-the curious mode of removing the
snow and snow-ice— of working and cutting the marketable solid— the
floating it through narrow artificial canals— and, above all, the storing it by
the wonderful power of steam— all these things quite fill the crowds of
spectators with admiration, and they feel paid if they have performed a jour­
ney of thirty miles merely to witness them. By steam it is quite common to
cut and house two tons a minute, and this is only a moderate rate; and
when a full force is at work together, six hundred tons are often stored in a
single hour, and where there are several parties on a single pond, each lay­
ing up ice at this rate, the scene cannot but be exciting.
The only State in our vast country that imports any ice from any other
country is the golden one on our Pacific shore, the youngest daughter in
the family, but by no means the least promising. California has had a por­
tion of its ice from Boston, but a still larger portion is obtained from the
Sitka Isles, lying off the Pacific coast of Russian America. This is carried
in vessels to San Francisco.
W e read of no ice being cut in California
proper.
The use of ice is as old as the age of Homer. The ancient Romans
cooled those Tiberian and other wines that the poet Horace so graphically
describes with frozen water. Indeed, the wealthy classes in every age have
both known and tested its virtues. The common use of it was left for our
day, and more particularly for the use of the inhabitants of this favored
land ; and it is not at all improbable that the use of an article, at once so
grateful and healthful, will become as universal, at some future day, as the
use of salt and butter.
The prospect for a harvest o f ice in the neighborhood of Boston the pres­
ent year is, at the time we write, very good.
The great rain and snow
storms of the past two days (January 19 and 20) may injure the crop a
trifle. W e are sure there will be extra expense in clearing the various ponds
of snow. Perhaps a fourth of the ice has already been secured. February
is the month most relied on in this latitude for the bulk of the annual yield.
From Philadelphia we have accounts that the ice farmers have already
housed an average harvest.
It used to be tauntingly said (we know not by whom) that “ New Eng­
land produces nothing but granite and ice.” W e have “ broken the ice ”
upon this last production, and if the reader has had the patience to follow
our rather discursive pen, he has found that whatever the importance to be
attached to the ice trade, present and prospective, New England is the father
of it. As for the granite story, a larger one might be told.
W e cannot close this paper better than in the language of Hon. Edward
Everett,* who, in paying a worthy tribute a few years ago to the gentleman
who first engaged in the ice trade on a large scale, has, by his beautiful
words, given warmth to a very cold subject;—




* As revised and printed in the “ Hundred Boston Orators.”

179

I c e : and the Ice Trade.

“ The gold expended by this gentleman at Nahant, (Mr. Frederick Tudor,)
whether it is little or much, was originally derived, not from California, but from
the ice of our own Fresh Pond. It is all Middlesex gold, every penny of it.
The sparkling surface of our beautiful ponds, restored by the kindly hand of
nature as often as it is removed, has yielded, and will continue to yield, ages
after the wet diggings and the dry diggings of the Sacramento and the Feather
Rivers are exhausted, a perpetual reward to the industry bestowed upon them.
The sallow genius of the mine creates but once; when rifled by man the glitter­
ing prize is gone forever. Not so with our pure crystal lakes. Them with each
returning winter, the austere but healthful Spirit of the North,
1---------With mace petriflc, cold and dry,
As with a trident smites, and fixes firm
As Delos floating once.’

«•«

“ This is a branch of Middlesex industry that we have a right to be proud of.
I do not think we have yet done justice to it; and I look upon Mr. Tudor, the
first person who took up this business on a large scale, as a great public bene­
factor. He has carried comfort, in its most inoffensive and salutary form, not
only to the dairies and tables of our own community, but to those of other re­
gions, throughout the tropics, to the farthest East. If merit and benefits con­
ferred gave power, it might be said of him, with more truth than of any prince
or ruler living,
4---------Super et Garamantas et Indos
Proferet imperium.’

“ When I had the honor to represent the country at London, I was a little
struck one day, at the royal drawing-room, to see the President of the Board of
Control (the board charged with the supervision of the government of India)
approaching me with a stranger, at that time much talked of in London— the
Babu Dwarkananth Tagore. This person, who is now living, was a Hindoo of
great wealth, liberality, and intelligence. He was dressed with Oriental mag­
nificence— he had on his head, by way of turban, a rich Cashmere shawl, held
together by a large diamond broach; another Cashmere around his body; his
countenance and manners were those of a highly intelligent and remarkable
person, as he was. After the ceremony of introduction was over, he said he
wished to make his acknowledgements to me, as the American minister, for the
benefits which my countrymen had conferred on his countrymen. I did not at
first know what he referred to ; I thought he might have in view the mission
schools, knowing, as I did, that he himself had done a great deal for education.
He immediately said that he referred to the cargoes of ice sent from America to
India, conducing not only to comfort, but health; adding that numerous lives
were saved every year by applying lumps of American ice to the head of the pa­
tient in cases of high fever. He asked me if I knew from what part of America
it came. It gave me great pleasure to tell him that I lived, when at home, within
a short distance of the spot from which it was brought. It was a most agree­
able circumstance to hear, in this authentic way, that the sagacity and enterprise
of my friend and neighbor had converted the pure waters of our lakes into the
means, not only of promoting health, but saving life, at the antipodes. I must
say I almost envied Mr. Tudor the honest satisfaction which he could not but
feel, in reflecting that he had been able to stretch out an arm of benevolence
from the other side of the globe, by which he was every year raising up his fel­
low-men from the verge of the grave. How few of all the foreigners who have
entered India, from the time of Sesostris or Alexander the Great to the present
time, can say as much! Others, at best, have gone to govern, too often to plun­
der and to slay— our countryman has gone there, not to destroy life, but to save
it— to benefit them while he reaps a well-earned harvest himself.”




180

Woodbury's Writings.

A rt. H I.— WOODBURY’ S W RITINGS.
T he book, the name of which heads our article, contains a collection of
the speeches, addresses, and decisions o f the late Hon. Levi Woodbury, of
New Hampshire.
The long political career of Mr. W . in the Senate and the Cabinet was
so connected with the commercial and financial legislation of the govern­
ment, that the record o f the twenty years of his life spent in those posi­
tions, embodies within it a history of Commerce and finance.
W ith his connection with political parties we have no business ; it per­
tains to other journals than a Merchants' Magazine. So far as his states­
manship related to the mercantile interests of the country, it concerns this
journal, and we propose briefly to review it.
The era during which he filled a prominent position in public life was
marked by the active discussion of the tariff and the currency. Now
that opinion has become settled and confirmed by experience, it is difficult
to realize the stormy conflict through which the regulation of these ques­
tions was effected.
New ideas of the theories o f wealth, Commerce, and finance, were
struggling for expression. The divorce of private pursuits from State in­
terference was loudly called fo r ; independent action for individuals and
for government; freedom for their intellect and enterprise in commercial
pursuits, as broad as their personal liberty, found advocates who pressed
for a practical result.
Hardly fifty years have passed since Commerce and finance began to
assume shape as a science.
Great corporations, exclusive privileges, re­
strictive legislation, monopolies and arbitrary impositions, for centuries
had ruled the course of commercial progress in Europe, retarding the
development of the extended relations and free intercourse of nations
which are the solid basis of civilization and wealth. The mind relieved
from oppression by new liberty in government, sought to explore these
regions in political economy and inspire there fresh vigor and prosperity.
Energy is a characteristic of our countrymen ; and the believers in both
the old and new systems met on the arena of debate with their ideas en­
larged and developed beyond the narrow thought of those who had lived
under the stifling restrictions of European policy.
It was a wondrous contest, led by giants of debate. The issue which
was to decide the destinies of this continent, either for free trade and a
specie basis of currency, or to prohibitory tariffs and a paper-based credit
system, governed by mammoth corporations, hung suspended for twenty
years.
The leaders of the defeated party have filled the public ear with their
renown, and their praise has been sounded even by their opponents. W hy
should the successful be debarred from like evidences of appreciation of
their work ? There is no place in American politics where the victors of
senatorial contests can repose on their hard-won laurels and enjoy fame
and gratitude for their labors. Life to them is a continuous campaign,
and only when the earth has closed over their bones can come those un­
biased expressions o f approbation and esteem that are coupled with the
idea of a happy rest.
Mr. W oodbury entered into political life during the war of 1812, as a




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181

Democrat, and came into national politics, after having filled many im­
portant positions in his native State— including that o f Governor—-by be­
ing elected to the Senate o f the United States in 1824. His abilities had
been developed by experience, and he took rank in the Senate commen­
surate with the high expectations of his friends. The tariff question was
the most important of the time, and he ranged himself at once on the side
o f those who opposed the protective system. Living in the commercial
town of Portsmouth, the interests of navigation and Commerce were fami­
liar to him. His mind was not speculative or theorizing; it sought prac­
tical results, and made experience the basis o f calculation. A sincere be­
liever in the improvement of the human race, he was not conservative by
prejudice or instinct, and yet so careful and laborious were his investiga­
tions, that his results were remarkably reliable, stamping him as that
“ rara avis,” a prudent and careful reformer.
Although the United States had commenced its career as a free trade
power, the long discontinuance of its foreign Commerce, through the
embargo and the war o f 1812, had produced a great increase of domestic
manufactures, as well as a change in the rates of its tariff from the low
revenue point to the highest consistent with the income desired to meet
the expenses of government and the war debt. W hat had been the inci­
dent of war a combination of special interests, manufacturers, miners,
some branches of agriculture, and a portion of capitalists, now desired to
convert into a system o f tariffs that would by prohibitory protections se­
cure to them an exclusive control of the home markets for their existing
and future investments.
Commerce and navigation, crushed by long years of suffering, opposed
but a feeble resistance; the capital employed in the foreign trade had been
considerably diverted into these new occupations, and the body of mer­
chants owed a divided allegiance ; the natural ally of the agricultural in­
terests, the carrying trade, gave it an uncertain support. The idea of
forcing a premature development o f manufactures by a hot-bed system of
protection gained ground;' States changed their positions; speculative
views attraeted enthusiastic business people; and legislation was lending
efficient aid to force an unnatural system on the country.
Mr. W oodbury’s investigations into political economy made him dis­
trust the adequacy of this mode to produce a legitimate object, the fair
proportion of manufacturing population, compared with other classes of
the community. Not content with a mere theoretical position in favor of
free trade, Mr. Woodbury watched the bearing o f the details of the pro­
tection measures on his constituents. Their agricultural and fishing inter­
ests were injuriously affected by the proposed measures. He brought for­
ward a motion for the partial repeal o f the duties on salt, and in a speech,
(vol. 1, p. 15,) exhibited an array of facts and statistics which were so
convincing, that although the protectionists had a decided majority in
both houses, yet the reduction o f two-thirds of the duty was achieved. In
the struggles on these questions, Mr. W oodbury found his position closely
allied with that of those renowned leaders of the republican party— Cal­
houn, Hayne, and McDuffie, on the questions o f commercial policy. The
confidence then created between Mr. Calhoun and himself outlived their
separation on the nullification measures.
In that union of statesmen who clustered around Gen. Jackson, elevating
him to the Presidency, and forming the nucleus of the Democratic party,




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Woodbury's W ritings.

were found other men— as Benton, Van Buren, Ingham, Dickinson, Wright,
and Buchanan— who inclined towards the protective theory, yet were
willing to circumscribe, within more or less moderate limits, the extent of
its imposition. The contest on this subject was not extinct when Mr. W .
left the Senate. An indignant minority was meditating the utmost re­
sources of constitutional resistance to a tariff which burdened its constitu­
ents and outraged its ideas of constitutional equality. The argument, on
the view of its feasibility in relation to national wealth, was giving place
to a mixed discussion on the respective rights and powers of the State sov­
ereignties and the general government. The doctrines o f nullification,
which had lain dormant since the collisions on the sedition law in ’98,
were revived with a sectional array of support which threatened our do­
mestic peace; and angry discussion was only allayed by the passage of
the compromise measures introduced by Mr. Olay at the last critical mo­
ment.
Mr. W oodbury did not participate in these last debates, having passed
from the Senate to the Cabinet o f Gen. Jackson as Secretary of the Navy.
In this position, although apparently out o f its sphere, he found occasion
to gratify his earnest desire to promote and extend the commercial rela­
tions of the country. Piratical Rajahs were sternly punished; men of
war were sent to distant fields of commercial enterprise to give practical
evidence of our naval power and disposition to punish aggression on our
Commerce. He laid the foundations of new relations in the East Indies,
by organizing a squadron to cruise in those seas and exhibit to those bar­
barian powers our strength. A series of commercial treaties with Muscat
and Siam were made under his auspices, the commencement of the policy
since so happily completed by the treaties with China and Japan. Our
Commerce in that region, before then greatly exposed to predatory attacks
and arbitrary local impositions, derived from his policy a security before
unknown, the parent of its present noble development.
From the Navy he passed to the Treasury Department, succeeding Mr.
Taney, whose confirmation had been refused by the Senate. The deposits
of the government had just been removed from the Bank of the United
States, and the financial crisis was commencing. On Mr. W . devolved the
organizing of the new system for keeping the public moneys in the De­
posit or Pet Banks, as they were called. A t no time in the history of
our country were the duties of the Secretary of the Treasury so numerous
as then. A new department has since been created, and new bureaus,
which relieve the head of the treasury from many onerous labors then per­
sonally devolving on him.
The industry of Mr. Woodbury’s mind found a wide field of employ­
ment during the eight years that he was the head of this department.
His official labors occupied him from twelve to fourteen hours a d a y ; and
the volumes of his reports on the subjects within his department would
of themselves form a very considerable library. Had not his constitution
been as robust as his mind, he never could have survived the labors he
performed.
In the volumes before us no references are made to his reports when in
the treasury, except by the republication of his report on the cotton crop
of the United States, its growth, manufacture, & c.; one on the losses by
banks and bank paper; and one on the safe keeping of the public money.
Were no other instance in existence of the labors of Mr. W . than the cot­




W oodbury's W ritings.

183

ton report, it would be sufficient for a reputation. The task of collecting
and organizing the scattered information on the subject was performed
with industry, and its condensation and tabulation make it a model re­
port, invaluable to all who are interested in any branch of the cotton
trade.
When Mr. W oodbury took the Treasury Department, he assumed a
front position in the party which opposed the Bank of the United States.
The bitter partisanship that already existed was increased by the violent
efforts o f the bank to retain its position as controller of the currency and
depository of the public funds. By an active and unnecessary contraction
o f circulation, she had brought a pressure on the classes engaged in Com­
merce and finance. A sharp correspondence between Mr. Biddle and him­
self on the legality and security of a system of drafts put out by the
branches as currency, instead o f the notes of the mother bank, showed
that he was the evident and first object of attack.
Should a crisis in the finances o f the country take place, the failure of
credit and the suspension of specie payments by the government, would be
followed by the accession o f the opposition to power, and the restoration
of the bank as fiscal agent o f the government. To this end were directed
the attacks of the strongest opposition that ever assailed an administra­
tion. Calhoun, Clay, and Webster, each led a division, assailing from
different points. The bank had charge of the commissariat. Never was
a treasury department so assailed ; yet its resistance astonished the assail­
ants. Neither the heavy artillery o f the leaders, nor the clang of partisan
presses, produced the anticipated results. Stead}’’, cool, and wary, the Sec­
retary held his ground, and kept his temper. Timid politicians fled from
the battle, seeking positions that seemed safe from its fury, and many
waverers joined the enemy.
A t first, confidence was not widely spread, but never had secretary bet­
ter supporter than the hero of New Orleans. Both gathered strength in
the fight; and as the administration held its steadfast way month after
month, public confidence was reinspired. The whole influence of the
Bank of the United States had opposed, from a well-grounded apprehen­
sion of his distrust, the re-election o f Gen. Jackson. The removal of the
deposits from the bank, which followed a year or so after that re-election,
may be deemed a partisan, as well as a reforming act, fraught with im­
portant consequences.
The revenues of the country were deposited in twelve or thirteen banks,
commonly known as the Pet Banks. Under the old system, the Bank of
the United States had discounted on them, as if they were general de­
posits and a basis of the credit system of the country. The new deposit
Banks preserved this feature, so that the circulation and credit system of
the country were unaffected by the change. The efforts of the bank for
a suspension thus being checked, a rivalry grew up in accommodating the
public with loans. Other State banks pressed also to be made deposito­
ries of public funds, that they too might extend both their circulation and
discounts.
W hile the number o f deposit banks was small, the large deposits o f the
government enabled the secretary to restrain their expansions, and at the
same time-protect them against sudden or unforeseen emergencies. His
control over their movements was sufficient for all the purposes of safety.
Of course, the possession of such large deposits and the movement of ex­




184

Woodbury's W ritings.

changes consequent, were desirable objects to all banks, and an overwhelm­
ing rush of other banks was made to secure a share. The secretary had
no necessity for more fiscal agents, and was satisfied of the impolicy of in­
creasing their number.
On his refusal, Congress was appealed t o ; again he remonstrated in
most decided terms, and explained the embarrassments the proposed
change would cause to the department, and the dangers to the safe keep­
ing o f the public moneys. The prize was too tempting; an act was passed
by a great majority of both houses of Congress which forbade any bank
becoming the recipient o f more government deposits than three-fourths o f
its capital stock. This measure necessarily added thirty or forty more de­
posit banks, and compelled the distribution of the revenue to points dis­
tant from the commercial centers where it was collected, and where it
could be most conveniently kept to pay the public creditors. The practi­
cal control o f the department over its funds was much diminished.
It was at this time that Mr. W oodbury announced that the war debt
ef 1812, and all the other funded debt of the United States, had been paid
off, or funds were on deposit awaiting the call o f creditors to finally ex­
tinguish that greatest o f evils, a national debt, and that nineteen millions
of surplus revenue remained in the treasury after this extinguishment. In
the modern history o f nations these facts were unparalleled, and gave
great eclat to his administration. Mr. Woodbury recommended the in­
vestment of the surplus as a fund on which to rely when the final reduc­
tions under the compromise should temporarily diminish the revenue.
His advice was unheeded, and the course we have first mentioned was
adopted.
Immense inflation of currency and wide-spread speculation followed. In
vain was disaster prophesied ; a mania infected financial circles; yet the
prudence and watchfulness of the secretary might have been successful in
averting evil, but for a further element that entered. A surplus o f upwards
of twenty-five millions of dollars beyond the requirements of the govern­
ment lay on deposit in the banks. An act o f Congress directed this to
be withdrawn from them and deposited with the several States o f the
Union. It was a distribution bill. The secretary remonstrated against
the danger that making such large transfers would bring upon the credit
and circulation of the country, to which this already served as a partial
basis. The necessary consequences came. In order to meet the transfer
drafts, banks had to contract their loans; severe revulsions followed, and
before the forced process was completed, credit was destroyed, and specie
payments suspended by the banks throughout the Union. The funds o f
the government were involved; the further aid of the deposit banks in
managing the revenue lost; and the Treasury Department was thrown on
its own resources, unaided by legislation.
The opposition, which for years had carried on a fruitless war, rallied
at once, and substantially aided by the now delinquent State banks, at­
tempted to force the treasury to a like suspension of specie payments.
The secretary was resolved that the public honor should be preserved, and
gold and silver paid to all creditors who demanded them, and bore the
brunt of these attacks with the same solidity of resistance and untiringcaution and industry which had served him so well before. The ordinary
resources of government vanished; its funds locked up in non-specie pay­
ing banks; Commerce prostrated, and land sales suspended; revenues




Woodbury's W ritings.

185

were difficult to obtain, while expenditures were already fixed by law, and
could be only slightly curtailed.
The secretary created resources, developed plans, found means before
unknown; and, in despite of the violent efforts of political enemies and
the absolute crash of business, from the beginning to the end, no creditor
of the government was ever refused the payment o f his demand in gold
and silver. Opponents were confounded, alarmists set at naught, and the
honor of the treasury preserved in untarnished luster amid the general
vortex of suspension and repudiation.
One instance of the cleverness of the secretary may be interesting. In
transacting the business of the government, the requisition upon the treas­
ury and the warrant of the secretary on the treasurer for the sum named
in the requisition, had been made upon one sheet, and were both filed in
the office of the treasurer as vouchers, when he issued his warrant on the
banks for the money thus called for. Now, the money was kept by the
treasurer himself and the collectors and receivers of the United States. It
was difficult to procure specie to pay duties at the custom-house, and the
opposition expected that this circumstance would force the government to
suspend specie payments and adopt the use o f the paper currency o f the
banks. Mr. Biddle predicted i t ; the great lawyers of the opposition be­
lieved it, and confidently awaited the announcement o f the suspension
of the department as the crowning glory of their long and vigorous oppo­
sition.
The secretary took his shears, and with one clip, separated the requisi­
tion from the warrant.
The requisition went on the files, and the credit­
or took the warrant and presented it at his pleasure to the treasurer for
redemption. By an order of the secretary, the warrant was made re­
ceivable for all public dues at Custom Houses or Land Offices. It had,
therefore, the value of specie, or six to ten per cent premium over cur­
rency, and at once became in great demand with the business community
for the purposes of exchange ; and for paying debts to the United States,
it took the value of specie. This had not been foreseen. One clip of the
shears had cleared the Treasury Department from the toils spread around
it by the able and distinguished leaders o f the opposition. It towered, in
conscious strength, unhurt amid the wreck.
It was more than talent, to
produce success with such simple means.
Besides the multitudinous labors o f daily ingenuity and temporary ex­
pedients, the department was compelled to devise a permanent system to
replace the wreck o f their bank agents.
The specie circular and other
acts, had given fore-shadowings of the tendency of the secretary’s m ind;
and, at the extra Session, was announced a matured sub-treasury scheme,
which, by divorcing the government from the banks, should render the
commercial classes and the Treasury department independent of each other.
The work of reform and reorganization was at last in a tangible shape.
False and hollow systems o f credit, paper currency, and bank regulators,
were approaching their end.
A constitutional, practical and safe system
for keeping public moneys, which should in itself be the governor o f the
fluctuations of the currency, able to check expansions and relieve contrac­
tions, without departing from law, or exposing the money o f the people to
the dangers of private speculators, was offered for public approval.
In our necessarily narrow limits, it is impossible to trace the history o f
these financial events. During the four years of Mr. Van Buren’s admin-




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W oodbury's Writings.

istration, it was the key o f party organization. Thousands o f pamphlets
and myriads of speeches, expressed the views of its friends and opponents.
Financiers, merchants, capitalists, brought their ideas prominently forward.
The whole debtor and creditor classes of the community felt themselves
personally interested; and the public and private talent and experience of
the Union were arrayed in the discussion of the subject.
The Treasury
Department formed at once the citadel of the new ideas, and an armory
whence their supporters drew the statistical weapons of defense and as­
sault. The whole banking and credit system underwent a searching inves­
tigation, which resulted in the thorough remodeling of the loose theory
of currency and credit before relied on.
The life of Mr. Woodbury, while in the Treasury Department, was spent
in a continual storm. He entered at the commencement of the financial
war, and he saw the divorce of government from banks absolutely accom­
plished, and the great foundations o f a regeneration of the credit and cur­
rency systems laid and carried up to a demonstration of their feasibility.
Mr. Van Buren’s administration was overwhelmed in 1840, and the secre­
tary retired from his post, after having for eight years, maintained the
honor of the department and the integrity of the laws, through the se­
verest trials.
He had carried the sub-treasury scheme into practice, and
demonstrated not only its practicability but its vast superiority over all
previous modes of conducting the finances.
W ith the Democratic party
he retired from office, abiding the coming of that sober second thought of
the people to which the President had appealed.
Having been elected to the Senate of the United States, he took his
seat in that body, on the incoming of the next administration. Mr. Clay,
in the plenitude of success, and with the energy of his powerful nature,
had resolved on a system of reactionary measures, which should carry
back the legislation of the country to the point where it stood when Gen.
Jackson’s administration began. The results of 1840 he looked on as the
verdict of the people, and proposed, in his own strong language, “ to ex­
ecute the sentence of the law” on the defeated Democracy and their lead­
ers. One of the Cabinet stood defiant in the Senate Chamber.
The reports of Mr. W oodbury while in the treasury, were criticized from
Maine to Georgia, as crude and prolix.
The statistics and dry reasoning
of banking questions, are not favorable themes for rhetoric, and the neces­
sary and frequent recurring qualifications of language where practical ac­
curacy is sought, forbid much condensation.
The reports o f the treasury
were chiefly remarkable for the immense amount o f accurate information
conveyed in them, and the clear perceptions of a prudent and safe policy
for managing the fiscal affairs of the government.
In general they were
answers to calls for information and not designed as opinions or essays.
The ten years spent in the Cabinet had obscured the memory of the ora­
torical powers o f Mr. W . Great as he was admitted to be on details, his ca­
pacity for generalization was forgotten, until his first speech forcibly re­
called it.
The report of the new secretary, Mr. Ewing, involving the data and au­
thority for the action of his party, was at once attacked by Mr. W ood­
bury, who exposed its errors and fallacies with great clearness, sustaining
at the same time the financial policy of Mr. Van Buren’s administration.
The absolute mastery that Mr. W oodbury possessed over the details of the
policy and action of the past administration, and the stores of informa-




Woodbury's W ritings.

187

lion which his investigations on financial subjects had accumulated, gave
him great facility in the discussion.
He brought up powerful arrays of
facts and arguments that lost nothing of their force by the style in which
they were presented. W hile in the treasury, he could only defend himself
with the scant means of reaching public opinion that the machinery of a
free government permits to administrative officers.
How he was in the
open arena, amid the assailants of his policy. The first speech convinced
them that instead of pressing forward to their new measures, the ground
they already occupied was insecure. Mr. Van Buren was never so well
defended as during this extra Session. The strong points of his financial
policy rose above the dust and fog o f misrepresentation. The Democratic Sen­
ators were not numerous, but among them were Calhoun, Benton, Lewis,
W right and Buchanan, all statesman of distinguished ability. The de­
fense of the past was particularly Mr. W oodbury’s sphere, and many as­
cribed to the clear and vigorous performance of that obligation, the high­
est influence in determining the reaction of opinion on the merits of that
policy.
Mr. Clay’s measures (the Bankrupt Law', Land Distribution, and Tariff )
had a central point, to which they served as buttresses, the rechartering of
the Bank of the United States.
This combination was broken by the re­
peated vetoes of the bank bills by President Tyler. W e shall not follow
the debates on these measures; they throw some new light on the curren­
cy question, but do not affect the history of progress. The United States
Bank could not survive its usefulness, and a distinguished friend wrote its
epitaph, when he characterized it as “ an obsolete idea.”
The compromise of 1832 guarantied permanent restraint on the sys­
tem of laying a tariff for protection, fixing twenty per cent as the highest
point o f taxation.
A large free list had grown up during the preceding
ten years. Mr. Woodbury, near the close of his term as Secretary of the
Treasury, made a report on this subject; questioning first, whether further
increase of revenue was necessary for the economical support of the gov­
ernment, he suggested placing on twenty-eight o f the thirty-nine millions
of the free list, a tariff of ten or fifteen per cent, carrying absolute luxuries
to the twenty per cent class and reducing the rate on some articles of
general necessity. He admitted the right of discriminating below this
revenue point in favor of competing American articles. To this he added
the suggestion of reducing and remodeling the system of drawbacks and
of introducing the Warehouse system extensively in connection with cash
duties. These changes would at once add five millions to the revenue,
without disturbing the general features of the Compromise Bill, while the
recovery of Commerce from its depression, would soon increase the im­
ports. Mr. Clay’s theory was to distribute the income from the public
lands to the States, thus diminishing the revenue of the United States be­
tween two and three millions yearly.
This, and an enlarged expenditure,
would create such a deficiency in the treasury, as to compel the limit of
twenty per cent fixed in the Compromise, to be overrun in order to obtain
sufficient revenue ; when, under the professions of indirect protection and
home valuation, his favorite protection could be realized.
The discussion
of the theory of taxation was revived. The protectionists seeking to car­
ry out these views, while the friends o f free trade rallied to protect the com­
promises of the act of 1832 from destruction. The “ little tariff” was the
precursor. The tariff o f 1842 was a blow at free-trade and threatened




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W oodbury's W ritings.

the prostration of our foreign Commerce. Supported by the dominant
party, it had a majority in Congress. Its opponents exhausted in vain
their resources, an appeal to the people only was left. The time had come
when the free-traders must convince the people of the correctness o f their
views or see our Commerce sink, perhaps forever, beneath a restrictive
policy.
The exertions of Mr. Woodbury were not confined to the Senate ; in the
lecture rooms of Lyceums and Societies, before the primary assemblages o f
the people, and in the pages of this Magazine, to which he was a welcome
contributor, he sought to impress the advantages of a liberal commercial
policy. His dislike of mere abstract theory was prominently exhibited ; he
dealt not in ex cathedra opinions, and, when investigating a subject, took
nothing for granted, not even a principle. His arguments were conse­
quently supported by illustrative citations, which his industry had accumu­
lated to an extraordinary extent. The long training of his mental powers
to investigation, enabled him to digest and condense within the narrow com­
pass of a speech masses of observations, and, he took much pleasure in
proving the soundness of his positions, while he was exhibiting the conclu­
sions thence deduced. Three of his speeches on this tariff, are given in the
volumes which lucidly expose the workings of the various protective acts in
their bearings on the Treasury and on the people. Holding that, neither
in its absolute or modified state, should a protective system be so arranged
as to throw the burdens of taxation on the necessaries or the luxuries of
the poor, he moved, in the debate of 1842, to place tea and coffee on the
free list. As one of the minority of the committee that had reported the
bill of 1842, the duty of attack lay on him, which he faithfully performed.
The tariff of 1842 was not allowed to sleep in quiet after its passage, Mr,
McDuffie’s bill in 1844 for its repeal bringing on a renewed debate. Mr.
W .’s appeal on behalf of the interests of our foreign Commerce and naviga­
tion, involved a thorough examination of the paralyzing influence of the re­
strictive system. The disastrous effects of the tariff o f 1842 on the ship­
building interests were exposed.
The unincorporated ship-builders, with
their wealth uncombined, had been unable to exert that influence on their
representatives, which the superior activity and concentrated organizations
of manufacturing capitalists had enabled them to wield for many years.
Ship-building and navigation have been the natural occupations of the
Eastern States whenever the let alone ” policy has permitted their devel­
opment, which the results of the protective policy had greatly retarded.
Improved communications with the ocean were favoring a growing agricul­
tural community, in bringing their products within reach of the markets of
the world. The importance to them of a change in the policy which de­
pressed Commerce to benefit certain protected interests, was abundantly
evident.
Mr. Woodbury strongly urged the necessity of relieving ship-building
and Commerce, in order to advance the interests of agriculture, by securing
to them cheaper freights to the markets of the world. The mutual de­
pendence between these pursuits was illustrated by statesmanlike exposi­
tions. These views met the concurrence of the free traders of the West and
South, and the revival of the old alliance of interests became daily apparent.
The democratic triumph in 1844, closed the reactionary struggle of Mr.
Clay. The people had pronounced in favor o f a liberal tariff system, and
the free traders were in the ascendancy. Here we must close our review of




Woodbury's W ritings.

189

the connection of Mr. Woodburry -with the cause of commercial and finan­
cial freedom. Twenty years of exertion in their behalf, closed with the ac­
cession of Mr. Polk to the Presidency, in 1845.
The intense struggle on these subjects was over. A chapter in the his­
tory of the Union only awaited the entering up o f the popular decrees in
1846, by the reinstatement of the Sub-Treasury, and the reduction of the
tariff, to complete a record of the fierce struggle between progress, commer­
cial liberty, independence of government and people in fiscal affairs, on the
one hand, and the consolidating tendencies of conservatism, special legisla­
tion, and the subserviency of bank capital to political power, on the other.
With the result, a new life was breathed into Commerce. Navigation
flourished; and the rapid development of our resources under the increase
of intercourse with foreign States, has given to our merchants an unsurpass­
ed rank among the civilizers of the world, and made the trade and naviga­
tion of this young republic, second to those of no other power of the earth.
The development of these liberating tendencies goes onward. Reciprocity,
a thoroughly American idea, suggested by Jefferson, is wooing the affections
of slow and hesitating neighbors, increasing the sphere of our usefulness and
industry, while it promises to be soon established as a great free trade league,
that shall include this continent in its fraternal embrace.
Mr. Woodbury was not the organ of the commercial interests of his day.
His consistent political attachment to a party to which the great body of
merchants were usually hostile, prevented any such assumption. As a
statesman he gave liberal legislation on commercial questions, a consistent
advocacy, even when it was far in advance of existing ideas. In looking
back on his career, it is remarkable how close was his perception, and how
steadily he strove to bring the public mind to the admission o f views now
deemed absolutely demonstrated. O f all who surrounded him, how few
have been so profoundly penetrated with that wisdom of progress, which
made him that which we described in the beginning, “ a prudent reformer.”
Of how few can it be recorded that all their favorite measures were crowned
with success.
W e have nothing to do with party politics, hence Mr. W .’s career is not
of our sphere, except where his labors have been on the subjects to which
the Merchants' Magazine is devoted. As an orator, he bad won solid fame.
He was clear, logical, and often eloquent; his manner easy, graceful and
energetic; his language fluent and his voice full and agreeable. He was
always emphatically what is known as a good speaker ; but the wonderful
stores of facts, figures and authorities, and the extensive acquaintance with
every portion of public business that he possessed, made him a formidable
opponent in debate. A uniform sense of courtesy marked him as an ora­
tor, adding fresh dignity to the grave and composed habits of a life that rose
above low ambitions and petty passions.
Mr. Woodbury was appointed to the bench of the Supreme Court of the
United States, as Associate Justice, and resigning his seat in the Senate,
took no further part in political life. His decisions on commercial and ad­
miralty questions, were very popular with the merchants’ as a class, and
earned for him the reputation of being a sound and liberal commercial law­
yer, who appreciated the character of mercantile transactions, with a readi­
ness rarely found in one whose professional career had been mostly in
country practice. The volumes before us contain a number of his decisions
on constitutional law, which fully sustain the high estimate put upon his




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W oodbury's W ritings.

abilities, and witness the grasp o f thought and patient investigation he
brought to bear on all questions before him.
Mr. Woodbury’s name had been prominent in the democratic party in
1848, for the nomination by its convention, as a candidate for the Presi­
dency. It was still prominent in connection with the nomination of 1852,
and his friends had sanguine expectations of success; but events are not in
mortal control. Death suddenly claimed his prey, and Mr. Woodbury died
amid his elms at Portsmouth, in September, 1851. The history of his life
is yet to be written. The ashes of time have not gathered around the em­
bers of political strife sufficiently to justify the work being composed with
a spirit of impartial criticism which gives to history its highest value. The
life of Mr. Woodbury was marked by a rigid sense of justice, an inflexible
determination,#and a capacity for severe, continuous mental labor, very rarely
found. In his personal relations he was a good neighbor, steadfast friend,
and kind head of a family. As an opponent, as we have already said, never
vindictive, and too magnanimous to descend to personal abuse or petty re­
taliations. His laborious habits gave him time for every thing, and his
tastes led him to the pursuits of science, in many branches of which he was
very well informed. As a member of numerous scientific societies, he con­
tributed his aid to their advancement, and in organizing the reform of the
weights and measures, and the coast survey, when at the head of the Navy
and Treasury Departments, he gave most valuable aid to the efficiency with
which they were executed. The influences o f the spirit o f the age were
strong upon him, and, in all his writings and speeches, a deep conviction of
the beneficial tendencies of modern civilization, and an ardent faith in the
capacity of man to work out the great problems of life, and to accomplish
invigorating steps of progress in all the affairs of government, industry and
social relations, is everywhere manifest. Inactivity, and that conservatism,
which opposes improvement because it is change, had no part in his active
mind. The labors of his life were to place progress upon wide and strong
foundations, to remove oppressions and promote free inquiry and sound re­
forms. The volumes before us were in press at the time of his death, and
were published a few months afterwards, slightly modified. One volume
contains selected speeches, the other literary and judicial productions. The
lectures, especially, breathe an eloquence, a philosophic spirit, and an almost
poetic sympathy over their practical subjects, which seems extraordinary in
the iron statesman and financier.
The bulk of Mr. Woodbury’s writings while in public life, are only to be
found in the State papers of Congress, and the journals of their debates, and
in the judicial reports while he was on the bench. These volumes contain
simply a selection, bearing a small proportion to the uncollected residue.
The stores of information in his unpublished papers, are untouched. They
would throw great light on the subjects of our inquiry, and we must await
with anxiety, the time when a careful and extended life of Mr. W . shall pre­
sent the full history of his public career.




The Currency and the Tariff.

191

A rt. IV .— TIIE CURRENCY AND TIIE TAR IFF.
F r e e m a n H u nt ,

Esq., E ditor

o f the Merchants' Magazine, e tc :—

D e a r S ir :— I ask the attention of your readers to some plain thoughts
on the currency and the tariff, differing from those generally promulgated.
Some misapprehension of the difficulty and the profound depths of the
science of political economy, in its relation to these subjects, so intimately
blended in their action upon the industry, Commerce, and prosperity of
the nation, appears to have oppressed the minds and embarrassed the ar­
guments of most of the writers upon them. But the normal principle, that
genius, intelligence, industry, and integrity are entitled to their equivalent
reward, underlies the science of political econom y; and it is the duty of
every man who has a thought to spare, to give it voice, and claim for
this principle its just prerogative in the institutions and policy of the
nation.
W e see that our commercial system is in a state of antagonism to this
normal principle, or national law of industry and trade ; and the most
marked peculiarity of our history is found in the constant drain of the
precious metals— the frequent mercantile failures, the severe money pres­
sures, and consequent prostration o f industry, and the violent and unjust
transitions of property that succeed— notwithstanding the genius, intelli­
gence, and unparalleled industry of the people. Nothing of this sort oc­
curs to any comparative degree in any other country, and in some coun­
tries such events are wholly unknown.
It is the wont of business men to look widely abroad, or to dive deep
into the unfathomable science of political economy for the cause of the
frequent pressures and panics that disturb the trade and industry of this
country. It appears to me that cause is near at hand— on the surface,
and capable of a very simple illustration. Let me present one that I have
already published elsewhere.
Suppose, Mr. Editor, that you and I, and Peter and John, and ninety-six
others, form a community large enough for varied industry and mutual
support, engaged in the business o f life. Peter and John dig gold, and we
adopt the produce of their labor for our medium o f exchange and measure of
value. It is plain that the produce of their labor in gold will be exchange­
able for, and will properly represent the same amount o f labor in your
magazine, my leather, our neighbors’ corn or potatoes, or anything else.
This is the just condition or natural law of this state of things. Of course,
he who works the most intelligently as well as the most industriously,
will accumulate the most property. There will be some oscillation from
excess of production in some branches, and deficiency in others, but the
margin of that oscillation will be limited, soon observed, and we shall re­
turn to the proper distribution of labor, with the certainty of the vibrating
pendulum to its center. It matters not how much or how little gold Peter
and John produce, it will serve our purpose equally the same, and prices
will keep parallel with the quantity brought into or deducted from the
currency.
Some of us now discover that we can live with less labor by banking.
W e obtain a charter, offer the security o f a strong vault, and by this and
other temptations gather all the gold in the community into the coffers of




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The Currency and the Tariff.

our bank. W e then, according to the charter, discount notes and bills
receivable, credit the proceeds of the discounts to depositors, and issue
bank-notes, till the deposits and circulation payable in specie on demand
amount to three times the sum of the gold previously constituting the cur­
rency. How much does this operation increase our property ? Nothing.
It will inevitably increase prices and expand our obligations of debt on the
same quantity of property transferred threefold. It will give us magni­
tude of' name for everything, but o f wealth not a picayune more than be­
fore.
Now, there is another community o f one hundred men in a country
accessible to us— they have their Peter and John digging gold— they have
no bank of credit discount— nothing of money but gold— they have as
much gold as we, but only one-third the sum o f m on ey to settle the bal­
ances of trade— their price o f a day’s labor is necessarily one-third of ours,
and the value in money of all their indigenous commodities and property
must be one-third o f ours. W e open a Commerce with this community.
Does any sensible man need to be told that they will glut our markets
with their commodities— nay, that they will manufacture our raw mate­
rial, and sell the product back to us, charged with only one-third the sum
for labor that we must j>ay on our own similar production, and by fair
and legitimate Commerce drain us o f our specie? This is no mere hy­
pothesis. It is very much the condition of our trade with Germany. Not­
withstanding our reputation for whittling, they whittle out penny-whistles
and Nuremburg babies, and with them whittle our specie out of our pock­
ets. W e deal with France upon similar terms for silks and gew-gaws, and
with every other country in the world to a disadvantage in the exact pro­
portion that we have depreciated our currency below theirs by the issue
of bank notes and bank credits, redeemable in specie, beyond the equiva­
lent value o f bullion. W ith equal industry, under equal conditions of
labor, they can help themselves to our gold almost without stint; and no
tariff within any collectable scale o f duty could prevent this result.
I make this statement broadly, to show the principle upon which this
system of discounting upon the credit o f the bank virtually operates.
There is great protection to us in the folly and weakness o f other nations,
rather than in our tariff or our wisdom, which we will consider hereafter.
Meanwhile, this Briareus sits in our midst, grasping with his hundred
hands our whole industry and Commerce.
Sometimes he appears to be
reinforced by his two equally hideous brothers, who were once buried by
their father in the bowels o f the earth, in disgust at their deformity, and
the whole three hundred handed giants are “ huddling in our necks with
their damned fingers,” tickling us into a fancy that the dollar is almighty,
and teaching us, pagans that we are, to worship its graven image in a pa­
per note. It is but a kite. W e are charmed with its graceful sw eeps and
curves and gyrations in the breeze ; but the first squall snaps the twine,
and lands our paper deity in a distant field, where other boys as foolish
and as fond as we, launch it again into the air, to be admired, and lost,
and found as before.
The immense variations in the quantity o f this delusive currency that
we call money, the greater part o f which is but a mere “ promise to pay ”
money that has no existence, produce corresponding variations in the mo­
ney value of property and debts, so that no reliable estimate can be made
of property for any considerable period of time. There can be no reason-




The Currency and the Tariff.

193

able reliance that the quantity of money which measures an obligation for
six months, will be anywhere at its maturity to discharge the debt; and
this baffling uncertainty renders the trade of the country but little better
than licensed gambling.
Statisticians demonstrate that only three to fire of every hundred who
enter into trade in this country, pass through life without failure or dying
in poverty. When we consider the opportunities thus afforded to the un­
scrupulous of grasping the fruits of the labor of others, the distress o f the
conscientious, the sufferings of families, the broken health and broken
hearts thus occasioned, this fact is perfectly appalling.
Perhaps the mode of estimating the exports and imports by our cur­
rency may be the only practicable way o f aggregating them for statistical
purposes ; but it is a very indecisive and unsatisfactory account of their
quantity; for it is quite possible that the quantity may remain the same,
while by name in money value they would be doubled, or vice v er s a ;
and the same is true, of course, in regard to the wealth o f the nation. In­
flations or contractions of the currency may double the figures at one pe­
riod, or reduce them fifty per cent at another. For this reason, our tabular
statements of Commerce and o f consumption per capita, are wholly unre­
liable ; they can be frequently impressed into the service of falsehood as
well as truth, and made to prove anything or nothing, to accommodate
the theory or the prejudice o f the writer.
In the city of Baltimore I observed for about twenty-five years the varia­
tions in the value and rent o f a warehouse in the most central position for
business, occupied in the first instance by Mr. Peabody, the present London
banker, at the annual rent o f $750 per annum. It had been built upon a
ground rent of $900 per annum four or five years previously. The owner
had been compelled by the monetary crisis attending the operations of the
branch of the United States Bank in that city in 1819 to relinquish it to
the owners of the ground, who, with one of the finest warehouses in the
city added to their property, could not obtain for it within $150 per annum
as much as they had before received for the ground alone. Flour at that
period was worth $3 75 per barrel, so that 200 barrels of flour would re­
present the yearly rent of that warehouse. In the subsequent years during
which it was under my observations, the rent increased from $750 to
$2,000 ; and it is an instructive coincidence that at each new lease, 200
barrels of flour nearly or exactly represented the price of that rent, varying
as it did in money, and increasing nearly threefold. No doubt that rent
is worth nearly or precisely 200 barrels of flour to-day. This ought to
show the little reliance to be placed in tabular statements of property in
money, with our defective currency. The property in this case is un­
changed, excepting by the depreciation of age. It is a warehouse, costing
a certain amount of human labor and ground, in the same central posi­
tion in regard to trade as at first. It is the same wealth, and nothing
more. Yet a tabular statement of the property of Baltimore would con­
tain this item at three times its value in 1823. Certainly flour is not a
very stable measure of value, depending as it does upon varying crops and
•an uncertain foreign demand. Nevertheless, it is more reliable for long
contracts than money, under our system, as this illustration demonstrates.
The builder and owner of the warehouse in this case was wronged; he
was despoiled of his property by our money system, and others possess the
fruit of his labor without having granted any equivalent therefor. Every
V O L . X X X I I I .-----N O . I I .




13

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The Currency and the Tariff.

other city in the Union can furnish similar examples of this inaugurated
iniquity.
O f what avail, then, is the provision of the Constitution of the United
States that “ Congress shall have power to coin money and regulate the
Value thereof,” or the negative provision, that “ no State shall emit bills of
credit, make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in the payment of
debts, or pass any law impairing the obligation o f contracts ?”
The value o f money is regulated to disorder , to the impairing o f con­
tracts, and to the confusion of all just ideas regarding the rights of prop­
erty, as effectually by the powers exercised by the States in granting bank
charters, with authority to issue “ bills o f credit,”— for bank notes are no­
thing less nor more— and those bills are as effectual and forcible a legal
tender in practice as if the several State Legislatures passed direct laws
upon the subject at every session, or even authorized the issue of base coin.
And the following strange anomaly or rank absurdity presents itself to
every ingenuous mind disposed to consider language to mean what it
says:—
“ A principal authorizing a thing to be done, does it himself, and what
a principal cannot do himself, he cannot authorize to be done.” This is
good law and good common sense; in defiance of which, and in defiance
of the plain provisions of the Constitution, we find the States creating
banks, authorizing the issue of notes— bills of credit, in fact, and nothing
else— and directly emitting bills of credit in the form of bonds themselves.
I am aware that special pleading has proved to the satisfaction of many
minds that these bank notes and State bonds are not bills o f credit within
the meaning of the Constitution, and I once saw a letter to this effect from
Mr. Webster to Mr. Peabody, of London, who with others entertained
some scruples in regard to the validity of State bonds. I suppose it satis­
fied Mr. Peabody; it did not satisfy me.
If the bank notes and State
bonds are not bills of credit, it is impossible for a candid mind to deter­
mine what else they can be.
In the matter of State debt, which I believe is one difficulty in the way
of the interpretation o f this part of the Constitution, it seems to me that
a sufficient voucher might be provided by entering the amount subscribed
to a loan in a book in the hands of the creditor, after the manner of our
bank deposits, and by transfers on orders from the creditor, recorded in
the books of the State Treasurer. There would seem to be no constitu­
tional objection to this; but in regard to the “ bank bill of credit,” that
huge power of evil, a traveling tinker among the currency, changing val­
ues all the time, causing violent transfers of property, a constant discour­
agement to the conscientious, enterprising merchant, urging the unscru­
pulous and cunning to dash boldly forward and occupy, to the exclusion
of better men, the avenues o f trade, the great source of poverty and dis­
tress to honest, industrious men and their families, and, finally, the cause
of broken hearts, recorded in the bills o f mortality under every name but
the true on e; it should be utterly repudiated and abolished, along with
the credit deposits that belong to its system.
In our government scheme of finance, for raising surplus from impost
duties, we must meet a struggle of opinion between the advocates o f the
principles of protection and revenue, so purely political and partisan, as
to blind the opponents to the plain facts that lie at the bottom o f all pros­
perity, whether of the individual, the family, the community, or the State.




The Currency and the Tariff.

195

This prosperity rests upon the free untaxed labor, genius, and intelligence,
of the people; and the less the government has to do with it the better.
One man working ten hours o f the day, and exchanging his surplus prod­
uce with another, working with the same intelligence and industry only
seven hours of the day, must bring the latter in his debt, if both are equally
prudent in their consumption, and exchange their products on an equal
measure of value. This simple fact we lose sight of in our arguments
upon the tariff question. There cannot be a doubt that the labor o f the
people of this country, with their power of machinery and unequaled
general intelligence applied to the production o f wealth, is in the ratio of
ten to seven of that o f England, the next most favored nation of the
world, or even greater. W e need no protection against such weakness,
and we should ask of the government no teaching, only protection for life,
liberty, and property, and the smallest possible tax of any kind. The
principle of protection applied to the tariff, is in my opinion, a chimera;
and it is clearly a method of inflating prices, and checking exports; there­
by increasing the evil it was designed to remedy; causing the export of
specie, the returns o f which come to us in luxuries and manufactured
articles, in competition with our home industry. If I pay my neighbor
for his home-made article more than the foreign one would cost, I charge
him the more for my labor in return, and we reciprocally raise prices on
each other, and on all other producers, and thus aid the credit bankingsystem to raise the prices of all commodities, till their export becomes un­
profitable. In a recent controversy upon this subject I took occasion to
present the following proposition. Suppose it costs you $600 to maintain
your family for a year, without any tariff on your cotton and woolen
cloth, tea, coffee, and other necessaries; and during the year you can pro­
duce flour and potash, that can be sold for export to England at the ex­
treme limits of $650. What will b^ your condition and that o f the export
trade, if, by reason of a tariff on the necessaries consumed in your family,
your living is made to cost you $700 ?_ You could not afford to sell your
produce at the exporter’s limits of $650, and would not be likely to do it.
England would procure her supplies from the Baltic ports or elsewhere,
and draw on us for $650 of specie that we should otherwise pay in flour
and ashes. This principle must run through the whole field of domestic
labor, as I view the subject, and through all the ramifications of trade:
therefore it appears to me the lower we can keep the duties the better.
Mv correspondent replies by another question that covers the whole argu­
ment for the protective policy, so called. “ If,” he says, “ by the aid o f a
tariff we create a home market, that enables you to realize $800 for your
flour and ashes— how then ?” W h y then, I rejoin, it is non-intercourse
and nothing else. But the export o f such specie and the receipt o f such
commodities as will and must come to buy it, for if our usual products
cannot be exported by reason of their high cost, it is plain that we must
sell our specie or our foreign trade is at an end, and the industry it fosters
is at an end with it. It would be a severe tariff, the scale of which its
advocates have never measured, that under the operation of our system of
inflated prices would prevent the importation of foreign products, more
than sufficient to drain us of all the specie we could well spare, and run us
in debt for a large balance into the bargain. The true policy under this
supposition would be, to have a non-intercouse act at once. This would
at least save to us the California gold. Non-intercourse, embargo, and




196

The Currency and the Tariff.

war, first established our cotton and woolen manufactures, and nothing
else will sustain them if they are not sustained abroad, for the tariff does
not help us.
I have no prejudice against the tariff policy. Badged with the log-cabin, ,
drilled in the W hig procession, fed with hard cider, and taught to consider
hard money and free trade devices of the enemy, my prejudices and my
reading have been all the other way. I read the Tribune dutifully still,
and have never voted any but a W h ig ticket, but the issues of that party
are dead, and the party is dead along with them. There has been time
for some calm consideration and independent thought upon the subject,
and I make no doubt that ere long, most practical merchants will agree
with me, that the protective tariff policy, and paper money, are both mis­
takes that need to be rectified.
I do not now propose to examine the question o f a revenue tariff: but
I must say that I cannot see its justice. I cannot comprehend why the
producer with a large family, who must necessarily be a liberal consumer
of foreign products, and who is aj>t to be a poor man, should be taxed
more than a wealthy unprod uctive bachelor, or a wealthy childless man,
or as much as any wealthy man, who consumes less or no more of foreign
products than he. It would seem therefore, that the more equitable mode
of raising revenue for the government, would be by direct taxation.
Our true and efficient protective tariff is the intelligence, enterprise, in­
dustry, and integrity of the people, to which nothing in the known history
o f mankind bears any comparison, and the folly and weakness of Europe.
These are our protection and our strength.
W ith the people of Europe war is the most honorable employment and
the chief business o f life, requiring and using the strongest men ; and it
operates with a more than twofold power against the resources of the na­
tion. It changes an able producer to an exhausting consumer. It em­
ploys large numbers of the population in furnishing food and material for
the army, and the labor and the cost of supporting men, women, children,
and brute animals thus employed, are lost to the accumulative power and
wealth of the nation. Judicious writers assert that no nation can carry on
an aggressive war for any considerable period that shall require for its
army more than one-fifth of its able-bodied men, the remaining four-fifths
being indispensable for the maintenance of the army abroad and the mass
of the population at home.
“ In peace prepare for war,” is the motto of all Europe. Accordingly,
we see the nations bristling with bayonets in time of profound peace. It
is a common idea that extravagance is the reason o f the balance of trade
being so generally against this country, and the cause of our commercial
embarrassments; but there is nothing in it. Exceptional individuals there
are who are extravagant, and spend more than they earn ; but, as a whole
people, we earn and pay for all the elegancies and luxuries we enjoy, and
have abundant means left. No nation on the globe is so little extravagant
as our own, in the true sense of that term.
But war is an extravagance. A standing army in time o f peace is an
extravagance.
The army of France, which I think rarely falls below
400,000 men on the peace establishment, is a plaything more costly and
exhausting to the resources of the nation than all the gay equipages, rich
furniture, silks, satins, jewels, operas, and the other baubles that furnish
interest and amusement to all the vain men and frivolous women in our




The Currency and the Tariff.

197

land ; and from these the principal nations of Europe are no more exempt
than we. A privileged aristocracy, exempt from labor; an established
church, costing, as in England, $35,000,000 per annum ; a cumbrous mass
o f pauperism— all these are extravagances, the results of an old and de­
caying civilization, from which we, as a nation, are almost wholly free.
Our comparative exemption from these, and the intelligent industry o f the
masses of the population, promoted and secured by our common schools,
are carrying us forward to a height o f power and prosperity, and with a
rapidity such as the world never before saw equaled ; and we are teaching
the world with emphasis the important lesson for human happiness, that
■peace, not war, is the true mode of securing power, and the true policy for
mankind.
Nevertheless, we exploiter each other in our business relations at home,
and we fritter away a considerable portion of our productive labor for the
benefit of other nations. W ith a productive power in proportion to our
consumption, constantly applied, equal to 10 to 7 at least of the next most
favored nation of the world, the balance of trade is almost constantly
against us. True, we can spare this balance, and have the means of pros­
perity left, but it is wasted on wars and on objects foreign to our interests,
or to the advancement of mankind. W e should do better to keep it at
home.
The explanation of this apparent paradox, this constant unhappiness
and continued prosperity, is before us in the inflated, staggering currency,
which is never anywhere in a reliable position twelve months at a time,
and in the never-ceasing industry of the people. The tariff is of secondary
importance.
It remains to consider the remedy for the evils we experience. This is
a matter requiring the careful consideration of our merchants. As a class,
it appears to me they have unaccountably neglected a subject easy of com­
prehension, the right understanding of which is o f vital importance to their
prosperity, and to the general welfare o f the nation.
It is a trite remark, that it is easy to point out an evil, but not so easy
to devise a remedy. Perhaps it may be a sufficient answer to this to say,
that an idea must be created before it can have power to discover or en­
force its remedy; and I think the true idea in regard to the currency has
yet almost to be created in this country. The evil is the offspring of State
legislation ; and most men look to legislation for the remedy. The efforts
o f several of the States to pass laws to suppress the issue and circulation
of small bank notes, are in the right direction. Such laws have been
passed in several of the States, but are effectually enforced, I think, only
in Maryland and Virginia; they have had a most beneficial effect in
strengthening the currency o f those States, and none passed through the
money pressure o f the latter half o f last year with so little inconvenience
or suffering.
But it would be impossible to get a uniform system o f legislation in the
several States upon the subject. An attempt to pass a law in the Massa­
chusetts Legislature at its last session, restraining the issue and circulation
of small- bank notes, was defeated by the selfish interest o f the members,
many of whom, and some of the members of the banking committee, were
bank officers or directors, and by the general ignorance of the whole, who
were satisfied with the shallow idea that a one-dollar note will buy as
much as a silver dollar, and they seemed to think that it would be an




198

The Currency and the Tariff.

affliction to carry the weight of specie in their pockets.
But such a
measure, if adopted by all the States, would be only an alleviation— not a
cure.
The true remedy I conceive lies with the people, and more immediately
with the merchants in their individual capacity. If any number of mer­
chants in New York or Boston would realize one or two millions of dol­
lars in coin, and establish therewith a “ mercantile treasury,” it could, I
think, be so directed as to become the nucleus o f a power that would
shortly reform the whole system o f the currency of this country.
There are men in New York, and in every other city and community,
thank heaven, who can be trusted. W e know them and we trust them
now. Their note is as good as any bank note of the best quality, and
their word is as good as their bond. If such men would establish an in­
stitution or commercial firm of this character, manage it themselves, pledge
themselves to each other and to the public, to receive, pay, and loan no­
thing but specie or the precious metals— unless it might be desirable to
the public for the convenience o f portability, to receive certificates of de­
posit, and never to issue one dollar of that description unless for the
equivalent coin retained in hand— it could be made a substitute for our
savings banks, that are now little else than satellites of the other banks of
the credit system. They could borrow money at four, and loan it at six
or seven per cen t; they could charge a commission on accounts, loans, or
transfers; they might deal in exchange, perhaps make advances for a com­
mission on bullion or plate deposited; and other sources of profit might
be found in the practical working o f the institution to remunerate the pro­
prietors. But it would operate with power, I think, in the correction of
the evils of the present diseased currency, by keeping in check the issues
o f the banks of the credit system, for whose notes, to the extent of its op­
erations, it would substitute specie.
It is a circumstance generally unknown or unthought of, that when the
alarm in regard to the Provident Institution for Savings in Boston took
place,last fall, in consequence of the fact becoming known to the public
that the institution had invested largely in the stock of the Webster Bank,
the deposits in that institution and the other savings banks in the city
and suburban towns, amounted to between eight and nine millions of dol­
lars. They had nothing to pay out but notes of the Boston banks. The
whole sum of specie in those banks was only $2,400,000, and they h jd
before as much as they could do to take care of themselves, their custom­
ers, and their circulation previously issued. New York was as much
pressed for specie as Boston.
There was no resource for an immediate
additional supply. In this emergency, a Catholic priest and a wealthy
Irishman addressed the assembled multitude, who were clamoring for the
return of their deposits, assuring them of their safety ; and the excitement
subsided. It was full time. Such a state o f things is preposterous, and
should carry a condemnation of the system that produces it.
The reduction in the quantity o f money, and the fall o f prices that
would follow the substitution o f coin for our entire paper currency, I have
not now time to consider. It may form the subject of a future article;
but it may be well now to say that great misapprehension exists concern­
ing this. The change would be almost entirely a substitution of the one
for the other, and not a great reduction in quantity to cause a general or
disastrous fall of prices in this country; for the balance of trade is legiti­




The Currency and the Tariff.

199

mately in our favor, as I have already demonstrated, to secure the coin to
any desired extent as soon as we shall require its use. No nation in the
world could exchange products with us on a specie, or any other equal
measure of value, without falling in our debt. This is the explanation of
the early and entire success of the Sub-Treasury that politicians supposed
would require and absorb all the specie, and break every bank in the
United States. That admirably devised scheme of finance now retains in
the country twenty or thirty millions o f dollars of specie that would in­
evitably cause inflation, fluctuation, and wide-spread disaster, as before,
and would disappear like magic, if the government funds should be again
committed to the custody of the credit banking system. That money
alone, in my opinion, preserved our banks from a general suspension of
specie payments during the recent pressure.
In the present delusion o f the public mind regarding banks, the system
of expansion and inflation cannot stand still. The establishment of a bank
is generally considered, in a country neighborhood, equivalent to the crea­
tion of wealth to the sum o f its capital at least; and the legislature cannot
equitably refuse a loan so valued, and already so freely granted, to any
town that may petition for it. More capital, more capital, is the constant
cry. Every one thinks it necessary to provide more money for increasing
prices and increasing demands. Nobody thinks of the natural remedy for
a deficiency of money— lower prices, till they fall in an avalanche on all
the property touched by the magic finger of the idolized bank. The
sapient member of the Legislature, a duality of statesman and bank di­
rector, says a bank note will buy as much as the specie. It is money, in
his opinion, real money, therefore the making o f a bank is the making of
money ; and so we apparently go ahead, but really advancing backwards ;
and so we must go, so far as I can see, if we depend on legislation, till the
bubble bursts in a general suspension o f specie payments.
Then will a
specie deposit bank, or an institution such as I have described, be the only
one having character or capacity to do anything; and then will its merits
commend it to public favor in a manner that will probably put an end to
the present credit banking system in this country forever.
Now, a “ mercantile treasury” of this character might place and keep in
circulation, in coin, a large portion or all of the money usually held on
deposit in the “ savings institutions,” so called, which serve at present in a
great degree as a means of inflation in other banks, and it could not be
pressed for its engagements. It would substitute the thing promised
to be paid for the mere “ promise to pay,” and it would be a public bene­
diction.
I am not alone in this opinion.
A new sentiment wholly independent
of politics is fast growing into importance, that would rally around and
sustain any reliable institution established to give it practical effect.




200

Canada: its Commerce and Resources.

A rt, V.— CANADA: ITS COMMERCE AND RESOURCES.
I n the selection of a country which offers the greatest security to life and
property, and yields the largest reward for labor and capital, Europeans will
readily appreciate the fact that North America presents to the laborer and
capitalist inducements superior to those of any other on the globe. Em­
bracing almost every variety of climate, soil, and production, and possessing
natural resources and advantages, which, properly developed and improved,
will make its inhabitants conspicuous among the people of the earth for
wealth and commercial as well as political influence, America supplies for
the surplus population and capital of Europe a field for enterprise that ad­
mits of no limitation or comparison.
Canada, which may safely be regarded as the most thriving and prosper­
ous portion of the continent, on account o f its great agricultural resources,
and its proximity to the ocean navigation and the Atlantic markets, exhibits
in its remarkable increase of population and trade, undoubted evidence of a
substantial, real progress in those material interests which combine to give a
nation strength.
W hile the population of Great Britain and Ireland increased from
26,833,496, in 1841, to 27,452,262, in 1851, or at the rate of about half
a million, or about 2 per cent, during the ten years, and while the popula­
tion of France increased from 34,230,278, in 1841, to 35,781,628, in 1851,
showing an increase of 1,551,450, or 4 i per cent, in ten years, the popula­
tion of the United States and British North America increased from
20.000. 000, in 1841, to 27,200,000, in 1851, showing an increase of
7.200.000, or about 36 per cent, in ten years.
POPULATION— UPPER CANADA.

1811.

1818.

1811.

ISIS.

77,000

185,000

261,060

385,824

1811.

465,357

1848.

1851.

486,055

952,004

LOWER CANADA.

1811.

1814.

1S51.

511,920
1831—say Upper Canada..
say Lower Canada...

690,782
890,261
240,000 I 1851—9ay Upper Canada ..
511,920 |
say Lower Canada...

Total...............
1855, estimated at

751,920 I

Total.

959,004
890,261
1,842,265
2,250,000

W hile the free population of the United States increased from 5,305,925,
in 1800, to 20,000,000, in 1850, or nearly 400 per cent in fifty years, Up­
per Canada increased from 77,000, in 1811, to 952,000, in 1851, or 1,100
per cent in forty years. Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois, the most thriving
portion of the United States, increased 320 per cent in .twenty years, from
1830 to 1850 ; Upper Canada in the same time increased 375 per cent.
The abolition of the Seigniorial Tenure in Lower Canada will, doubtless, be
attended by a more rapid increase of population than formerly. The lon­
gevity of Canada is unequaled, there are 4,100 persons between 80 and 90
years of age; 1,270 between 90 and 100; and 74 between 100 and 120.
In the consideration of the respective merits of the different localities or




Canada : its Commerce and Resources.

201

districts of the North American Continent, it is reasonable to assume that
the Valley of the Rivers Mississippi and Missouri, should be considered at
present the extreme western limits of that portion o f the North American
Continent which is favorable to agriculture and other industrial pursuits.
Those States bordering upon the Atlantic Ocean are the oldest and foremost
in manufactures and Commerce. Possessing the seaports, they are engaged
in Commerce between the interior of the continent and foreign countries.
As a general thing the soil of the Atlantic States is not so remunerative to
labor as those rich tracts of land in the vicinity of the great rivers and
lakes of the continent, which find access to the ocean at New Orleans and
Quebec.
Those States south o f latitude 40°, and known as “ slave States,” are
Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama,
Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland.
The climate of that section of the continent is highly unfavorable to Euro­
peans or whites, with perhaps the exception of the most northern districts.
The chief products are cotton, rice, tobacco, and sugar, w'kich are cultivated
by slave labor.
Without attempting to settle the question as to the right of man to en­
slave or degrade his brother-man, it is sufficient, for our present purpose, to
know that the Southern slave States present, in comparison with the North­
ern free States and the Province of Canada, at least a humiliating spectacle
in the eyes of the civilized world. While the slave territory of the South
experiences no marked progress in population, wealth, education, agriculture,
arts, and Commerce, the free territory of the North is rapidly advancing in
everything which tends to the solidity and greatness of a nation. The an­
tagonism that exists between free labor and slave labor, deprives the former
of that dignity and value which it possesses in the more enlightened pro­
gressive free territory of the North. It may well be questioned how far
the peculiar institutions of the South are capable of giving security to the
investment of capital within its borders, when we consider the possibility of
a dissolution of the Union, and a separation o f the free States from the
slave States, the result o f which would unquestionably be disastrous to the
white population of the South.
W ith a prudent forecast, and with an intelligent appreciation of the facts
already stated, the most discriminating and. prosperous of the millions of
Europe who have migrated to America, have selected for their residence the
best portion of the continent, and which may be described as the Valley or
Basin of the St. Lawrence and the great Western Lakes. The States of
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan, bordering upon those lakes,
together with the Provinces of Canada, offer a greater amount of prospect­
ive increase to the laborer and capitalist than any other section of the con­
tinent. From this rich tract of land, extending a distance o f nearly two
thousand miles, with a coast line of nearly three thousand miles, from the
mouth of the St. Lawrence to the head of the great lakeg, the Atlantic and
European markets derive, to a considerable extent, their supplies of breadstuffs and provisions; and it may, with strict propriety, be designated as
the “ Garden o f America.”
The enormous increase o f wealth and population having its basis on the
ample resources and natural riches of that fertile region, evince a rapidity
and steadiness of growth, in every department of material prosperity, be­
longing to no other country of the same extent in the world.




202

Canada : its Commerce and Resources.

The trade of the Western Lakes in 1841 was valued a t ...................
“
“
1846
“
...................
“
“
1851
“
....................

$65,000,000
186,000,000
300,000,000

Exclusive of the cost of vessels and the profits of the passenger trade.
The surplus waters o f those lakes are all tributary to the River St. Law­
rence. Canada possesses this great natural commercial highway, or channel
of communication between the interior of the American Continent and the
Atlantic, and holds the ocean key to lakes and rivers, on which is carried a
Commerce amounting already to the enormous sum of $400,000,000 an­
nually.
A consideration of the position of Canada, with a territory of 160,000,000
acres of land, the greater part of which is susceptible of the highest culti­
vation and improvement, with a steady but rapid increase of population,
which is doubled every fifteen years; and with the astonishing growth of
her trade, Commerce, and navigation, will result in the conviction that Can­
ada has a future, and that she bolds a favorable position for the promotion
of her industrial and commercial interests, and for a liberal participation in
that substantial progress and advancement in the acquisition o f publjc
wealth, which, as a natural consequence of the rapid development of wait
resources, will attend the untrammeled energies of the enterprising millions
of America.
Easy of cultivation, remunerative to labor, and favorably situated upon
the great navigable highway to the ocean, the land in the vicinity of the
St. Lawrence and its tributary waters, will appear exceedingly desirable to
all who appreciate its advantages in respect to fertility of soil and easy ac­
cess to the principal markets o f the world.
The agricultural interests of Canada are exhibited in the following state­
ment :—

Total occupied acres of land cultivated................................................
“
“
uncultivated............................................

7,300,839
17,939,796

Say 18,000,000 acres occupied lands, worth £65;,879,048 or $273,5:6,172.
The average price of the Canadian occupied lands is about $15 25 per acre,
or £3 sterling, which is about the annual rent of lands in England. Un­
occupied lands can be bought at from five shillings sterling to twenty shil­
lings sterling per acre. There are under cultivation :—■
1,139,311 acres of wheat, yielding 16,155,946 bushels, or 141 bushels
per acre, 20 bushels per acre being a fair average on good wheat lands.
89,875 acres Indian corn, yielding 2,029,544 bushels, or 22 bushels per
acre, 25 bushels per acre being a fair average on good corn lands.
77,972 acres rye, yielding 869,835 bushels, or I l f bushels per acre.
329,755 acres peas, yielding 4,223,487 bushels, or 13 bushels per acre,
17 bushels being a fair average on good land.
913,356 acres oats, yielding 21,434,810 bushels, or 24 bushels per acre.
65,650 acres barley, yielding 1,389,499 bushels, or 21|- bushels per acre.

Potatoes...............
H ay.....................
Buckwheat. . . . . .
Hops...................
Hemp and flax...
Cider..................




10,080,173
1,647,435
1,169,681
224,222
9,772,199
1,917,666
754,939

Tobacco.......... ............lbs.
Butter.............
Cheese............
Wool...............
Pork...............

1,253,128
25,613,467
2,787,790
4,130,740
182,659
553,928

203

Canada: its Commerce and Resources.
THE LITE STOCK COMPRISES----

Horses................................
385,377 I Sheep.........
Horned cattle......................
1,332,544 | Swine........
Total value of live stock...................................................
Total annual value of grain...............................................
Total annual value of other produce..................................
Total annual value of manufactured agricultural products
Total annual value of beef and pork.............................. .

*

Total.

1,597,849
825,476
£10,947,537
5,624,268
4,435,153
1,455,999
1,605,908
£24,071,765

The agricultural products and farming stock o f Canada divided equally
among the total population of men, women, and children, would supply
each family of six persons throughout the Provinces annually with—

Wheat..............
Indian corn . . .
B y e .................
Peas..................
Oats.................
Barley.............
Potatoes............

2,940 lbs., or 52^ bush.
392 lbs., or 7 bush.
168 lbs., or 3 bush.
758 lbs., or 13 bush.
2,112 lbs, or 66 bush.
192 lbs., or 4 bush.
1,748 lbs., or 33 bush.

Buckwheat........
Maple sugar . . . .
Cheese................
Beef and pork ..

150 lbs., or 3f bush.
32 lbs.
92 lbs.
480 lbs.

Food, each family 9,064 lbs.

Besides 5 sheep, 4 oxen and cows, 3 hogs, 24 acres of land occupied and
cultivated, or 60 acres of land occupied, improved, and unimproved, leaving
140,000,000 acres yet unoccupied and uncultivated.
In the above statement, it will be observed, only the leading staple arti­
cles have been named, and no mention is made of the garden and farm
vegetables, fruits, poultry and game, fish, and other items of food, which
are very abundant— and also, that in the calculation the entire population of
Canada is embraced. One important fact may be inferred from an attentive
consideration of the foregoing statement, viz.: that the people of Canada
have an abundance of rich, wholesome food, and after supplying the warns
of the farmers, and the mechanics, manufacturers, merchants, and other Ca­
nadian consumers, have a large surplus of produce for exportation. The
exports of Canada amount in value to about $24,000,000 annually.
The surplus agricultural products of the soil form an important item of
public wealth, and a substantial basis for Commerce with other countries.
Although the agricultural productions of Canada furnish evidence of its
prosperity, it is not upon these alone that her inhabitants rely for support.
The products of the forest supply Canadians with sources o f wealth which
are not easily overestimated. From the Ottawa and other rivers emptying
into the St. Lawrence, immense quantities of timber and lumber are brought
to the seaboard for exportation.
The timber exports of Canada, amount to $10,000,000 annually. From these
exports Canada also derives a solid basis for her Commerce with other coun­
tries. The capacity of Canada to sustain a large population is quite appar­
ent. Her people may be increased to 25,000,000, with a corresponding in­
crease of general prosperity.
Any man of ordinary capacity and industry can obtain employment and com­
mand wages on the farm— in the shop— and the factory— in the ship yard
or the forest— in improving new or cultivating old lands— in the navigation
of the noble lakes and rivers— in the pursuit of Agriculture, Manufactures
and Commerce, that will enable him to enjoy this “ bill of fare,” a perusal




204

Canada : its Commerce and Resources.

of which will satisfy Europeans that in Canada they need not be deprived of
the neccessaries, the comforts or the luxuries of life. By a recent treaty
made between Great Britain and the United States of America, the free
navigation of the river St. Lawrence is secured to the United States of
America, and free access to the markets of the United States is secured for
the produce of Canada. The farmers of Canada can now have the choice
of Canadian, American and European markets for the sale o f their produce.
The duty exacted by the United States Government upon ordinary im­
portations of merchandise from Europe is twenty per cent, while the Prov­
ince of Canada requires only twelve-and-a-half per cent upon the same
articles. This is considered by some as an advantage of seven-and-a-half
per cent upon importations, in favor of Canadian consumers, while others
have regarded the high duty upon imported goods as favorable to the con­
sumer, because by keeping out of the country foreign manufactures, they en­
courage home or domestic manufactures, and thereby create good “ home or
near markets,” for the produce of the farms. However this may have been,
it is now positively certain, that Canadians have the privilege of choosing
markets, and under the present system, their position is highly advantage­
ous for Agriculture, Manufactures and Commerce.
Water power on the Canadian rivers, and cheap fuel for propelling ma­
chinery for manufacturing purposes, may be easily procured, and in addition
to these natural facilities, the government by the admission, at a mere nom­
inal duty or free of duty into the Province, of the raw materials of cotton,
wool, <fec., are encouraging Canadian manufactures. Experienced mechanics
and artisans readily find employment for their skill and talent in Canada.
The display of Canadian manufactures at the Annual Provincial Exhibition,
some of which elicited much admiration at the World's Industrial Exhibi­
tion in London in 1851, specimens o f which may be seen at the Paris Exhi­
bition of 1855, reflects great credit upon the manufacturing and mechanical
classes in Canada. Europeans would find this a profitable field for the in­
vestment of capital in manufacturing establishments, under the guidance of
skillful mechanics from England, France, Germany, Belgium and other
countries where manufactures have attained perfection. The iron and cop­
per mines of Canada are important sources of wealth.
The ship-yards, iron forges, nail factories, flour and lumber establish­
ments, tanneries, machine shops, paper mills and factories of various kinds
in Canada, will compare favorably with those of other and older countries,
and with the continued progress and advancement of the agricultural inter­
ests of Canada, it is reasonable to anticipate a corresponding prosperity in
that other strong arm of national wealth, which may be designated as the
mechanical or manufacturing interest.
Agriculture and manufactures— twin elements of a nation’s strength—
should, and doubtless will, go hand in-hand, and be mutually tributary to
each other’s prosperity in Canada. The fraternal and intimate relation they
bear to each other in the Province, forbids that antagonism of feeling or in­
terest which exists in older or more densely populated countries, where the
agricultural and mechanical interests sometimes come into collision in the
adjustment of questions aftecting the general commercial interest and policy
of those countries.
The natural commercial facilities of Canada have and are constantly being
improved by the construction of canals and railways. The public works of
Canada are of an extensive character, and will compare favorably with those




Canada : its Commerce and Resources.

205

of any country in the world. There are already constructed 80 miles of
canals, costing $15,000,000, and of sufficient dimensions to enable vessels
from any European port to ascend the St. Lawrence to the great lakes On­
tario, Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior, touching at the ports of Quebec,
Montreal, Kingston, Toronto, Hamilton, Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, and
Chicago. Cargoes of produce from any of these ports may be conveyed to
Europe without breaking bulk or transhipment of any kind, if desired.
From the St. Lawrence and the lakes, several lines of railroad to the interior
are open and in process of construction.
The Grand Trunk Railway with the connecting lines of railway in Canada,
amounting to about 1,200 miles, will supply an open communication, at all
seasons of the year, between the different points in the interior and the sea­
board, and will supply immigrants and travelers arriving at Quebec, Mon­
treal, or Portland, from Europe, safe, comfortable and speedy conveyance to
any part of Canada and the Western States. In addition to the railways,
there are, during the season of navigation, several lines of steamers ascend­
ing and descending the St. Lawrence and Western lakes.
Immigrants arriving at New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and other
Atlantic ports, intending to proceed to Canada or the Western States, are
necessarily subjected to the inconvenience, expense and danger attending a
long journey by land, by routes that for five hundred, one thousand, or fifteen
hundred miles afford no opportunity for cooking, washing and sleeping.
Assuming two cents, or one penny sterling per mile, as the average cost of
land transportation, for each emigrant, from New York, Philadelphia, and
Baltimore, to Chicago, which may be regarded as the great distributing
point of the West, the expense for a family of six persons must be about $ 150
or £30 sterling, while the same persons could go comfortably per St. Law­
rence steamers, from Quebec to Chicago, at an expense of not exceeding one
cent or half-penny sterling per mile each, which would be a saving to the
family of at least $75 or £15 sterling, by taking the St. Lawrence route.
This sum saved would be sufficient to buy fifty or sixty acres of unimproved
government land.
By taking the St. Lawrence route, emigrants have the twofold advantage
of the most desirable route to the Western States, and at the same time the
opportunity to become acquainted with the resources of Canada, and its ad­
vantages as a place of residence.
The portof Quebec was visited in 1,854 by 1563 vessels, equal to 600,838
tons ; besides, built at Quebec 68 vessels, equal to 46,628 tons; making
1,631 vessels, equal to 647,628 tons, as the total amount of shipping at
Quebec, for cargoes af Canadian lumber and produce, viz :

Vessels.
British
1899
.Norwegian
63
Prussian
18
German
7
Swedish
4

Equal to.
619,391 tons.
24,884 “
7,084 “
2,652 “
1,356 '■

Austrian
French
Portuguese
American
Canadian

Vessels.
1
2
16
54
68

Equal to.
811 tons
453 “
2,871 “
41,539 “
46,790 “

1,631

647,628

The immigration into Canada in 1854 increased 50 per cent over that of
1853, and was as follows : From England, 18,473 ; Ireland, 16,376 ; Scot­
land, 6.770; Continent of Europe, 11,583; Lower Ports, 652. Total,
53,794.'
The policy of the government in selling wild lands at a merely nomi-




206

Canada : its Commerce and Resources.

rial price to actual settlers, is attractive, and in districts recently surveyed,
tlie settlement has been so rapid that new districts will soon be in requisi­
tion to meet the wants of the increasing population. A portion o f the
above-mentioned immigrants proceeded to the Western States, and came
via Quebec, on account of its being the most economical route.
The St. Lawrence is also the most desirable for freight between the
Western lakes ancj the seaboard. Appreciating this fact, several Western
railway companies have imported large quantities o f railroad iron from
Great Britain via River St. Lawrence. The freight o f iron from Liver­
pool to Quebec and Montreal is about the same as from Liverpool to Bos­
ton, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. The cost of transportation
from Montreal to ports on Lake Erie is about $3, or 12s. sterling, per ton,
against $12 or $15, equal to 48s. to 60s. sterling, per ton, by these over­
land routes. Flour is conveyed from Chicago, at the head. o f Lake
Michigan, to Montreal for 2s. sterling per barrel. The cost per United
States railways or canals to the seaboard is about 4s. sterling per barrel.
The free navigation o f the River St. Lawrence will now make the nat­
ural advantages o f the Canadian route between the seaboard and the in­
terior of the continent available for a large carrying trade, and the re­
moval of all former restrictions will invest that noble highway with its
appropriate commercial importance and value. Already its superior ad­
vantages attract the attention of enterprising merchants in the United
States, Canada, and Europe, and as it becomes more generally known it
will be more highly appreciated and employed.
Having glanced at the material interests of Canada, and the induce­
ments presented to the agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial
classes for the investment o f labor and capital, it may be proper to notice
its educational and political institutions.
The educational system is well established, and receives the fostering
care and attention o f the government. Liberal appropriations o f public
moneys are made by the Parliament and people for the support of schools
throughout the province. There are 500 schools, attended by 225,000
scholars, supported at an annual expense of $400,000, or 100,000L
If any Canadian youth is deprived of a good business education, the
fault rests with the parent, who withholds from the child the opportunity
to attend the Common Schools of the country, or with the unfortunate one
who neglects to improve the educational facilities so universally avail­
able. The literary institutions of Canada are of a high order, and ably
sustained.
The political institutions o f Canada are in the form o f a responsible or
a representative system of government, which consists of a Parliament of
130 representatives, chosen by the holders of land the annual value of
which is 51. sterling, and 40 councillors, appointed by the Executive. The
Governor-General of the province is the representative o f her majesty the
Queen of England. The Parliament is supposed to represent the wishes
of the people, and is invested with the power of making the law’s o f the
province. The Governor-General seldom interferes with the legislation of
the People’s Parliament, and is assisted by the advice o f the Executive
Council or ministry of the province, who are responsible to the people for
their conduct, and can only retain office as advisers o f the crown so long
as they can retain the confidence o f the people’s representatives in Parlia­
ment. If good, sound, judicious, wholesome laws, are not made and ad­




207

Journal o f Mercantile Law.

ministered according to the liberal constitution of the country, the remedy
is in the hands of the electors of the province, with whom the power of
giving character to the government is lodged. The prosperity o f Canada
is the best evidence of the adaptation of its laws and system of govern­
ment to the wants and circumstances of its enterprising people.
Canada has no standing army, and requires none, but there are 120
newspapers and journals published in the province, pnd the freedom of
the press is enjoyed to the fullest extent. To the press, as an element of
power more important than the sword, the people resort for the correction
and redress of their grievances. To be “ killed in the newspapers ” is re­
garded a much sorer punishment than to be exiled to Siberia. The press
and public opinion are identified with each other, and without the concur­
rence and support of the latter, the former either falls to the ground or
ceases to perform its appropriate office of giving expression to the voice
and wishes of the people.
The bench, bar, pulpit, legislature, banks, and counting-houses of Canada
are occupied, in many instances, by men of very humble origin, if we may
believe the accounts that are given of them by those who “ knew them
well at home.”
Aristocracy, wealth, parentage, and family pride, are of
little or no avail to any one, when competing with the man o f industry,
intelligence, and character, for the honors o f life or the respect and confi­
dence of the community in which he may reside. Labor is respected and
receives, as it deserves, its just reward. The sons of the poorest emigrant
can, by a diligent use o f the means of advancement so abundantly at their
disposal, become the honored and respected associate of those who enjoy
the highest honors and privileges of public and social life.

JOURNAL OF MERCANTILE LAW,
PROMISSORY NOTE W IT H TEN PE R CENT PER MONTH INTEREST.

In the Twelfth District Court, San Francisco, October, 1854.
vs. M. G. Vallejo and John B. Frisbie.

Felix Argenti

Tliis was an action on a promissory note made in the course of certain trans­
actions. The following were the facts as charged in the pleadings: the defend­
ants had made their note to the plaintiffs on the 27th November, 1850, for
$5,450, payable forty-five days after date, without grace, and bearing interest at
10 per cent per month; and on the 14th of January, 1851, the defendants deliv­
ered to the plaintiffs a note at 10 per cent per annum of Theodore Shillaber, for
the sum of $10,000, which was secured by mortgage. The action was brought
to recover on the first note, with interest at the rate of 10 per cent per month,
which raises the debt to a very considerable sum. The testimony and the argument
were mainly directed to the question whether the plaintiff had taken the note of
Shillaber only as a collateral security, or as in absolute payment of so much
money.
The court charged the jury that they were authorized to infer from the use
which Argenti made of the Shillaber note, which had been taken as collateral,
and the control which he exercised over it, namely, in the taking o f a mortgage
from Shillaber, and extending the time of payment, that he, Argenti, considered
or held it in complete payment of his note against Vallejo and Frisbie, unless it
appeared from the evidence, of which they were to judge, that Argenti made
such arrangement with Shillaber, with the knowledge and consent of Vallejo




208

Journal o j M ercantile Law.

and Frisbie, the indorsers. The jury might also infer that Argenti considered
the Shillaber note as his own from another fact, which was in evidence. It was
that in the arrangement with Shillaher, the said collateral was to bear 4 per cent
per month, which upon its face bore only 10 per cent per annum. A party hold­
ing a collateral was not authorized or empowered of his own volition to add to
or deduct from said collateral, or in any manner vary the amount which may be
recovered by the owners. From such an act the jury might reasonably infer
that Argenti considered it as his own, unless they were satisfied that he had done
so by the indorser’s consent.
The jury found for the plaintiff the full amount o f the note, with 10 per cent
per month interest, less the amount received from the sheriff’s sale under the
Shillaber mortgage, with ten per cent per month—the verdict to be computed.
IM PORTANT TO MERCHANTS— M AN AG ER, W IT H SH ARE OF PROFITS, A PA RTN E R.

The following important decision is recorded in a late number of the Free­
man’s Journal:—
An interesting case on the law of partnership has been decided this week. A
gentleman who had been engaged as manager to a large manufacturing concern
at a salary, with a per centage on the profits, had been removed by the principal
on various grounds, the only one proved to the satisfaction of the jury being
that he had held out himself as being a partner. The action was brought to re­
cover a sum of £4,000 for salary and profits for five years, on the ground that
under the agreement he was in fact a partner, and could not be discharged. The
judge directed the jury that, although palpably no partnership was intended, the
agreement created one, and they must find damages for the plaintiff, which they
did to the extent of £600, being the amount of the salary only. It being well
known that these agreements, especially in large houses, are of frequent occur­
rence, the decision, if upheld, goes the full length of making any manager or
traveler who receives a share of the profits to all intents a partner, who cannot
be got rid of during the continuance of the agreement.— Belfast Com. Register.
*

BILL OF EXCHANGE— PARTNERSHIP-----ACCEPTANCE.

Nichols vs. Diamond. Where a bill is drawn personally on one of several
partners, and he accepts it on behalf o f the partnership, he is individually liable.
This was an action upon two bills of exchange by the plaintiff to drawer,
against the defendant as acceptor. The defendant, by his plea, denied the ac­
ceptance. At the trial before Justice Talfourd, at the last assizes for Devon­
shire, the bills, which were respectively for £64 Is. Id., were put in evidence,
when it appeared that they were respectively directed “ To James Diamond,
Purser, West Downs Mining Company,” and were accepted by the defendant,
“ James Diamond, by procuration o f West Downs Mining Company.” The de­
fendant was a shareholder in the mining company. It was objected by the coun­
sel for the defendant that the acceptance was not pursuant to the drawing, and
was therefore invalid.
His lordship left the case to the jury, who, finding a verdict for the plaintiff,
leave was reserved to set the same aside, and enter the verdict for the defendant
upon this point. Rule refused.
SHIPS PASSING EACH O TH ER---- L IA B IL IT Y OF OWNERS.

It has been ruled by the British Court of Exchequer, and confirmed by the
Court of Common Pleas, that a vessel passing another vessel passing in con­
trary direction cannot, under any circumstances, be wrong in porting helm; that
the question for the jury is not whether the master saw the danger of collision,
but whether there actually were any danger; and that the owner of the vessel,
the master of which neglects to port his helm, is liable for damages for any in­
jury arising from that circumstance.




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Commercial Chronicle and Review.

COMMERCIAL CHRONICLE AND REVIEW.
CONDITION OF T O E

M ON ET

MARKETS

A T H O M E A ND A B R O A D — C U R R K N O T F O R M O V I N G T H E I N C O M I N G

C R O P — A N T I C I P A T I O N S OF P R O S P E R I T Y — T H E
NEW

YORK

AND

R A IL R O A D I N T E R E S T — FO RE IGN

B OST ON— C LE A R IN G HOUSE

AND S ILV E R A T T H E

FOR

NEW

YORK

STATE

F A I L U R E S — B A N K S OF

BANKS— D E PO SITS

OF GOLD

N E W Y O R K ASS AY OFFICE AND PH I L A D E L P H I A M IN T— I M P O R T S A T N E W

FOR JU N E , FOR SIX M ON TH S

FR OM JA N U A R Y l.ST. AND

FO R T H E

YORK

FI SC A L Y E A R ENDING JU NE 30 — IM ­

P O R T S A T N E W O R L E A N S — R E V E N U E F R O M C U S T O M S A T P H I L A D E L P H I A A N D B O S T O N — S H I P M E N T S OF
P R O D U C E , AND T H E SHIP PI NG I N T E R E S T , E T C .

T

here

were some apprehensions, soon after the date o f our last, o f an in­

creased stringency in the money market, and a partial return o f the old pressure.
The accounts from abroad were less encouraging; there was an increased de­
mand for capital in nearly all o f the principal markets o f the European conti­
nent, and at London the bankers all seemed to fear a loss o f confidence. These
fears have since been partially dissipated. There has been little that is cheerful
in the late foreign advices, but the condition o f things in this country is highly
encouraging.

The harvests are everywhere promising, and the capital required

to move the incoming crops can be readily obtained.

There is a very limited

amount o f business paper maturing in either July or August, and this will en­
able those desiring currency to invest in produce to obtain it before the pressure
com es in September.

There is a large amount o f money loaned on fancy stocks,

especially in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, and if these loans were to be
suddenly called in, there would certainly be trouble.

But the supply o f specie

is abundant, and as long as this continues no great distress need be apprehended.
W ith $50,000,000 per annum from California, and nearly as much more from
Australia, the calculations based upon the old manner o f moving the precious
metals are all upset, and the practical result disproves the finest theories. The
accounts from the harvest-fields o f Europe are encouraging, while in this coun­
try the crop o f breadstuffs must prove a very large one.

I f harvested in good

condition, we shall have a very large surplus. There would seem to be no ques­
tion but what a large portion o f this surplus will be needed in France and Eng­
land.

The supplies from the Black Sea will be greatly interrupted, and the

belligerent attitude o f Europe will call for an increased consumption. America
must furnish bread to the world during the next year, and we shall have it to
spare.

I f this does not induce a high state o f prosperity in this country, then

we shall be disappointed. The cotton crop is less prom ising; the long dry sea­
son has been succeeded by an unusual quantity o f rain; on the Uplands this
will have but little effect, but the production o f the richer fields will be much
shortened if the wet season is continued.
The interest on nearly all o f the various railroad and other bonds, throughout
the country, due July 1st, was paid with commendable promptness, although in
a few cases the money was borrowed instead o f being earned. The New Jersey
Central Railroad Company have borrowed $1,500,000, to be expended on their
road, upon their 7 per cent bonds, at 85 cents. The Legislature o f Connecticut
have authorized the New York and New Haven Railroad Company to com pro­
mise their difficulties with the holders o f the st >ck fraudulently issued by S ch u y ler.
V O L . X X X I I I .----- N O . I I .




14

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

210

but no plan of settlement has yet been officially proposed. It is probable that
such a plan will be submitted ere long to the parties interested, and this vexed
question finally laid at rest.
The failure of Messrs. Strahan, Paul & Scott, bankers, at London, with
whom many of the aristocracy o f England, and a large number of widows and
orphans, had their securities deposited, has created an unusual sensation in that
metropolis. This firm had little to do with the mercantile world, their custom­
ers being almost exclusively of the classes indicated. They appear to have been
insolvent for a long time, owing to unfortunate speculations, and they had con­
verted or otherwise appropriated over half a million of dollars of securities de­
posited with them, besides owing three or four times that amount in general ac­
count. This, and the previous dock-warrant frauds, will make English financiers
a little less bitter in their invectives against American dishonesty and repudia­
tion. The effect has already been to enhance the comparative value of Ameri­
can securities. Even business paper, with the signatures o f our leading mer­
chants, is now regarded as an acceptable investment, and the energy of character
peculiar to our people is coming to be better understood throughout the old
world.
The banks in this country, for the most part, stand very strongly. Some of
the Western institutions have not recovered the shock given to public confidence
by the failures of last year, but most o f them are now in good credit, and by
proper caution must succeed in recovering their position. The New York banks
stand very strongly, although their discount lines have considerably increased.
T he follow ing will show the weekly avei•ages o f the city institutions since Jan" u a r y 1st:—
W EEKLY

Date.

Capital.

Jan. 6, 1855 §48,000,000
Jan. 13......... 48,000,000
Jan. 20......... 48,000,000
Jan. 27......... 48,000,000
48,000,000
F eb . S ..........
48,000,000
F eb . 10.........
48,000,000
F e b . 17.........
48,000,000
F eb . 24 .........
March 3 ___ 48,000,000
48,000,000
March 10 . . .
March 1 7 . . . 48,000,000
March 24 . . . 48,000,000
March 81 . . .
47,68.3,415
47,855,665
April 7 . .
April 14 . . . 47,855,665
April 21 . . .
47,855,665
April 28___ 47,855,665
47,855,665
May 5 . . . .
47.855,665
May 1 2 ___
May 19 . . . . 47,855,665
48,684,730
May 26 . . . .
June 2........ 48,684,730
June 9........ 48,684,730
June 16........ 48,633,380
June 23........ 48,633.380
June 30........ 48,633,380
4 8,6,83.380
July 7 . . . .
July 1 4 __ _ 48,833,380




AVERAGES

NEW

Loans and
Discounts.

§82,244,706
83,976,081
85,447,998
86,654,657
88,145,697
89,862,170
90,850,031
91.590,504
92,386,125
92,331,789
92,447,345
93,050,773
93,634,041
94,499,394
94,140,399
93,632,893
92,505,951
93,093,243
91,642,498
91,675,500
91,160,518
91,197,653
92,109,097
93,100,385
94.029,425
95.573,212
97,852.4 91
98,521,002

YORK

C IT Y

Specie.

. §13.596,963
15,488,525
16,372,127
16,697,260
17,439,196
17,124,391
17,339,085
16,370,875
16,531,279
16,870,669
16,933,932
16,602,729
16,018,105
14,968,004
14,890,979
14,355,041
14,282,424
14,325,050
14.585,626
15,225,056
15,314,532
15,397,674
15,005,155
14,978,558
14,705,629
15,64 1,970
15,381,093
16,576,506

BA N K S .

Circulation.

§7,049,982
6,686,461
6,681.355
6,739,823
7,000,766
6,969,111
6,941,606
6,963,562
7,106,710
7,131,998
7,061,018
7,452,231
7,337,633
7,771 534
7,523,528
7,510,124
7,010,985
8,087,609
7,804,977
7,638 630
7,489,637
7,555,609
7,502,568
7,452,161
7,935,653
7,394.964
7,743,069
7,515,724

Deposits.

§64,982,158
67,303,398
69,647,618
20,136 618
72,923,317
73,794,342
75,193.636
74,544,721
75,958,344
76,259,484
76,524,227
76,289,923
75,600,186
77,313,908
77,282,242
75,744,921
76,219,951
78,214,169
75,850.592
77,351,218
75,765,740
76,343,236
77,128,789
77,894.4 54
79.113.135
81.903,966
85,647,249
85,664,186

211

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

The following will also show the weekly averages of the Boston city banks
since the date given in our last:—
June 25.

July 2.

July 9.

July lfi.

Capital............................................ $32,710,000 $32,710 000 $32,710,000 $32,710,000
Loans and discounts........................ 52,934,226 53,180,777 53,897,596 54,279,031
Specie...............................................
3,501,018
3,505.506
3,426,200
3,220,702
Due from other banks......................
3,000,000
3,000,000
9,024,196
8,019,938
8,000,000
8,000,000
6,902,198
6.726,199
Due to other banks.........................
D eposits..........................................
15,206,417 15,314,318 15,599,049 15,449,733
5,537,958
5,687,731
8,244,099
7,602,637
Circulation......................................

The New York country banks have met in convention at Syracuse, and adopted
a plan for a clearing-house in New York city, which has been referred to a com­
mittee for the maturity of its details, and we trust will ere long be established.
The plan is very much like that now adopted by the city banks, except that the
packages o f notes to be exchanged and redeemed will be sent instead of being
brought by clerks, and the banks will be required to keep an account in some
city bank, where the amount which they may owe to the clearing-house, when
the exchanges are arranged, must be promptly met. It will save the banks a
large yearly expense, and be a public accommodation. While upon this subject j
we cannot but express our opinion that it would be greatly for the interest of all
of the sound banks to arrange for a par redemption at New York. The law al­
lows them to deduct one-quarter from the amount thus redeemed, but this de- 1
duetion can never be fully justified upon sound principles o f banking.
The supply of gold from California continues steady, but as a considerable
portion is now deposited at the San Francisco Mint, the amounts deposited here
do not show an increase corresponding to the actual receipts. The following
is the total deposits at the Assay Office, New York, in the month of June
1855:—
D E P O S IT S A T T U E A S S A Y O F F IC E , N E W Y O R K , F O R T H E M O N T H OF JU N E.

.........
Foreign bullion ........................................
Domestic bullion.......................................
Total deposits...........................

Gold.

Silver.

Total,

$11,000

$5,100
6,020
14,580

$16,100
26,020
1,950,580

$25,700

$1,992,700

Total deposits payable in bars................

$1,925,000
67,700

Gold bars stamped..............................................................................................
Transmitted to the United States Mint at Philadelphia for coinage...........

$1,992,934
38,279

The above deposits of gold include $16,000 in California Mint bars.
The gold deposits at the Philadelphia Mint for the month of June were
$536,269, which includes $493,610 50 from California and the Assay Office in
New York, and $42,649 50 from other sources. The silver deposits are $207,000,
including silver purchases. The following will show the coinage at the Phila­
delphia Mint for the month of June:—




Pieces.

Value.

212

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

The imports for June show a less comparative decline than during several for­
mer months.

A t New York the total receipts for June were $1,794,221 less

than for June, 1854, $5,467,239 less than for June, 1853, and $2,234,015 greater
than for June, 1852, as will appear from the follow ing com parison:—
F O R E IG N IM P O R T S AT N E W

YORK

1852.

F O E JU N E .

1853.

1854.

Entered for consumption...............
Entered for warehousing...............
Free goods........................................
Specie aud bullion.........................

$7,626,181 $13,590,517 $8,475,330
640,722
3,010,404 3,005,646
1,062,947
744,909
2,148,043
429,747
115,021
158,814

Total entered at the p o r t..............
Withdrawn from warehouse.........

$9,759,597
911,479

1855.
$8,020,545
2,716,245
1,188,043
68,779

$17,460,851 $13,787,833 $11,993,612
1,181,396
1,422,672 1,304,620

It will be seen that the falling off, as compared with last year, was almost
w holly in free goods and stock entered for warehousing.

T he imports at the

same port for the six months ending June are $26,805,946 less than for the same
period o f 1854, $29,889,094 less than for the same period o f 1853, and $6,651,802
greater than for the same period o f 1852.

W e annex a comparison with each

period referred t o :—
F O R E IG N

IM PO R TS A T

NEW

YORK

FOR

1852.

S IX

M O N TH S

FR O M JA N U A R Y

1851

1854.

1ST.

1855.

Entered for consumption ........... $47,044,912 $76,833,164 $70,447,314 $45,897,795
Entered for warehousing..............
5,027,749
11,606,681 13,726,750 13,832,891
Free g o o d s .....................................
7.344,785 8,596.616
9,231,284
7,762,627
Specie and b u llio n ........................
1,878,181
900,062 1,408,027
454,116
Total entered at the port . . . $61,295,627 $97,836,523 $94,813,375 $67,947,429
Withdrawn from warehouse.
8,526,777
6,524,654 10,908,044 12,242,070
The month o f June ends the fiscal year o f the United States.

The govern­

ment returns, including the total for each o f the minor ports, are not yet com ­
pleted, but we have compiled the total for New York.

From this we see that

the imports for the year ending June 30th are $36,568,978 less than for the year
ending June 30th, 1854, $11,884,989 less than for the year ending June 30th,
1853, and $34,237,678 more than for the year ending June 30th, 1852, as will
appear from the follow ing com parison:—
I M P O R T S O F F O R E I G N M E R C H A N D IS E A T N E W Y O R E . F O R T H E F IS C A L Y E A R E N D IN G JU N E 3 0 t H .

1852.
Entered for consumption___
Entered for warehousing.. . .
Free g o o d s .............................
Specie and bullion.................

1851.

1851

1855.

$94,345,831 $136,45S.663 $147,939,241 $107,029,210
1 1,466,714
15,144.573
27,417,160
32,022,396
11,926,912
13,357,173
12,791.055
14,230,259
2,528,391
1,430,106
2,937,048
1,153,661

Total entered at the port . $120,267,848 $166,390,515 $191,074,504 $164,505,525
Withdrawn,from warehouse
16,712,962
13,413,186
19,876,445
23,501,421
F or the whole year the receipts o f free goods have slightly increased, while
the warehousing business is larger than ever before since the system was estab­
lished. O f the decrease in the imports, by far the largest portion, as compared
with last year, has been in dry goods, while compared with the year ending June
30th, 1853, the falling o ff in dry goods alone is nearly double tile aggregate de­
cline.

W e have compiled the follow ing table in proof o f this statement:—




Commercial Chronicle and Review.

21S

I M P O R T S A T N E W Y O R K F O R T H E Y E A R E N D IX G JU N E 3 0 l H .

185?.

1854.

1855.

D rygood s..................................................
General merchandise................................

$’79,192,513
87,198,602

$92,389,627
98,684,877

$62,918,443
91,587,083

Total imports....................................

$166,890,515

$191,074,504

$154,505,526

Compared with last year the imports of dry goods have fallen off $29,471,184,
while the imports of all other descriptions of merchandise have fallen off only
$7,097,794.
We annex farther particulars of the imports of dry goods. It will be seen
that the total for June is $1,473,390 less than for June, 1854, $4,062,053 less
than for June, 1853, and $530,807 greater than for June, 1852; these changes,
and especially the falling off as compared with last year, being divided among
all classes of goods.
IM P O R T S O F F O R E IG N P R Y G O O D S A T
ENTERED

FOR

N E W Y O R K I N JU N E .

C O N S U M P T IO N .

1852.

1853.

1854.

1855.

$688,785
330,785
1,011,909
292,015
103,838

$2,320,855
903,011
2,469,230
399,969
246,876

$1,122,306
640,761
1,390,827
276,51 1
260,198

$772,903
298,042
1.269,212
173,050
182,317

Total entered for consumption . $2,426,832

$6,329,941

$3,590,603 $2,695,524

Manufactures o f w o o l.......................
Manufactures of cotton .....................
Manufactures of s ilk .........................
Manufactures of f la x .........................
Miscellaneous dry goods...................

WITHDRAWN FROM WAREHOUSE.

1853.

1854.

18§§.

Manufactures o f w o o l.......................
Manufactures o f co tto n ...................
Manufactures of s ilk .........................
Manufactures o f f l a x .......................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s .................

$62,094
24,586
88,132
17,310
7,525

$134,613
48,637
103,650
13,454
12,989

$118,471
40,539
137.371
26,000
19,105

$124,910
39.068
96,336
40.848
29,700

T o ta l............................................
Add entered for consumption...........

$199,647
2,426,832

$318,343
6,329,941

$341,486
3,590,603

$330 862
2,695,524

Total thrown on the m arket. . .

$2,626,479

1852.

$6,643,284 $3,932,089 $3,026,3S6

ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.

1854.

1855.

Manufactures o f wool .......................
Manufactures of co tto n .....................
Manufactures o f s ilk ..........................
Manufactures of flax...........................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ...................

$105,125
32,565
86,984
19,708
13,022

$613,264
131,817
143,979
20,963
37,132

$492,627
165,768
335,560
52,687
51,188

$245,468
54,527
154,972
36,430
28,122

Total............................................
Add entered for consumption...........

$257,404
2,426,832

$947,155 $1,097,830
3,590,603
6,329,941

$519,519
2,695,524

1852.

Total entered at the p o r t .........

1853.

$2,684,236 $7,277,096 $4,688,433 $3,215,043

For the six months ending June 30th the receipts of dry goods have fallen off
$17,924,493, as compared with the same period af last year, $19,239,077 as
compared with the first six months of 1853, and $1,700,708 as compared with the
same time in 1852.




214
IM P O R T S

Commercial Chronicle and Review.
O F F O R E IG N

DRY

GOODS A T T H E

PORT OF

NEW

YORK

FOR

S IX

M O N TH S , F R O M

JANUARY 1S T .

ENTERED

FOR

C O N S U M PTIO N .

1858.
Manufactures of w o o l ...................
Manufactures of cotton...................
Manufactures of silk.......................
Manufactures of flax......................
Miscellaneous dry goods................

1853.

1854.

$5,277,654 810,815,972 $8,748,853
4,626,052
7,621,801 8,489,125
9,168,466 15,854,541 13,540,260
2,935.404
4,199.560 3,713.007
1,961,860
2,786,750 2,798,969

1855.
$5,181,553
3,660,275
7,798,851
2,224,593
2,118,642

T o ta l............................................ $23,969,436 $41,278,624 $37,290,214 $20,983,919
W IT H D R A W N

FROM

W AREH O U SE.

1852.

1853.

Manufactures o f w o o l...................
Manufactures of cotton .................
Manufactures of s ilk .....................
Manufactures of flax.......................
Miscellaneous dry goods................

$841,704
1 ,0 2 8 , 8 1 6
1,251,782
583,459
226,849

$633,404
603.235
775,306
130,684
214,747

Total w ithdrawn.......................
Add entered for consumption . . .

$3,932,610
23,969,436

$2,357,376
41,278,624

1854.

1855.

$1,273,612 $1,191,673
1,544,071 1,651,176
1,446,038 1,577,883
527,445
782,268
209,781
535,587
$5,000,947
37,290,214

$5,738,587
20,983,919

Total thrown upon the market. $27,902,046 $43,636,000 $42,291,161 $26,722,506
ENTERED

FOR

W A R E H O U S IN G .

$788,560
568,638
1,521,494
207,480
200,989

1851
$1,380,466
742,071
970,757
181,257
241,791

$2,095,807
1,544,365
1,854,736
490,890
204,370

1855.
$1,037,636
993,786
1,426,705
622,606
491,237

$3,287,161
23,969,436

$3,516,342
41,278,624

$6,190,168
37,290,214

$4,671,970
20,983,919

Isa

Manufactures of wool...............
Manufactures of cotton...........
Manufactures of silk............... .
Manufactures of flax................
Miscellaneous dry goods.........
Total................................ .
Add entered for consumption..,, .

1854.

Total entered at the port. . . . . $27,256,597 !$44,794,966 !$43,480,382 $25,555,8S9
For the fiscal year ending June 30, the receipts of dry goods, as already no­
ticed, are $29,471,184 less than the preceding year, $16,274,070 less than for
the year ending June 30, 1853, and $5,697,381 greater than for the year ending
June 30, 1852.
IM P O R T S

OF

DRY

GOODS AT TH E

PORT

OF NEW YO RK

IN G JU N E

ENTERED

FOR

D U R IN G

THE

F IS C A L

YEAR

END­

30.

C O N SU M PTIO N .

1852.

1851.

1854.

1855.

Manufactures o f w o o l.................... $12,054,269 $20,351,957 $23,115,935 $14,295,207
Manufactures o f cotton...................
8,460,116 13.01S.164 15,408,447 8,240,025
Manufactures of silk....................... 19,161,253 27,512,722 29,487,539 18,814.441
Manufactures of flax ...................
5,521,293
7,568,861
7,577,627 4,880,462
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ...............
3,665,227
5,085,598
5,351,715 4,698,710
T ota l............................................ $48,862,158 $73,537,302 $80,941,293 $50,928,845




215

Commercial Chronicle and Review.
W IT H D R A W N

FROM

W AREH O U SE.

1852.

1851.

Manufactures o f w o o l....................
Manufactures o f cotton ..................
Manufactures of silk.......................
Manufactures of flax .....................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ...............

$2,157,409
1,586,828
2,342742
851,704
474,362

Total.............................................
Add entered for consumption........

$7,413,040
48,862,158

1851.

1855.

$1,429,076 $2,814,704
990,760
2,069,578
1,441,580
2,184,028
346,357
778,789
381,175
397,551
$4,588,948
73,537,302

$4,041,940
2,649,973
3,075,368
1,143,979
752,958

$8,244,650 $11,664,218
89,941,293 50,928,845

Total thrown on the m a rk et... $56,275,198 $78,126,250 $89,185,943 $62,593,063
E N TE R E D FO R W A R E H O U S IN G .

1852.

1853.

1854.

1855.

Manufactures o f w o o l....................
Manufactures of cotton...................
Manufactures o f silk ......................
Manufactures of flax .....................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ................

$2,334,296
1,522,431
3,158,698
824,966
518,513

$1,954,508
1,274,363
1,576,505
356,999
492,836

$3,746,433 $3,768,980
3,064,614 2,272,932
3,211,737 3,544,225
1,035,588 1,396,417
389,962
1,007,044

Total.............................................
Add entered for consumption.......

$8,358,904
48,862,158

$5,655,21 1 $11,448,334 $11,989,598
73,537,302 80,941,293 60,928,845

Total entered at the port.......... $57,221,062

$79,192,513 $92,389,627 $62,918,443

The exports show a much more favorable comparison; the total shipments
from New York to foreign ports for the month of June, exclusive of specie, are
$9,155 larger than for June, 1854; only $320,246 less than for June, 1853; and
$1,066,231 larger than for June, 1852.
EXPORTS

FROM

NEW

YORK

TO F O R E IG N

PORTS

GO

Domestic produce...........................
Foreign merchandise (free)...........
Foreign merchandise (dutiable)...
S p e cie..............................................

125,500
482,594
3,556,355

Total ex p o rts..............................
Total, exclusive o f specie..........

$7,730,818
4,174,463

FOR

THE

1853.
$5,057,229
109,668
394,043
3,264,282

M ONTH

O F JU N E.

1854 .
$4,526,383
148,500
556,656
5,168,183

1851
$3,956,706
547,682
736,306
3,862,393

$8,825,222 $10,399,722
5,560,940
5,231,539

$9,103,087
5,240,694

This result was quite unexpected, considering the scarcity of produce at the
seaboard and the great falling off in clearances of breadstuffs. We have now
shipped since January 1st, exclusive of specie, only $1,878,101 less to foreign
ports than we did the first six months of 1854; $4,276,086 more than we ex­
ported for the same time in 1853; and $7,350,218 more than for the same time
in 1852. The clearances of specie during the same time are but little larger
than last year, but twice as large as for the same time of 1853. There has been
a large increase in free goods, owing to the dull markets here, guano and some
other free items having been largely reshipped.
EXPORTS

FROM

NEW

TORK

TO

F O R E IG N

PORTS FO R

1852.

S IX

1852.

M ONTHS FR O M

1851.

JA N U A R Y

1ST.

1855.

Domestic produce............................ $22,145,821 $25,422,290 $31,197,440 $26,337,424
Foreign merchandise (free).........
521,119
697,477
732,815
3,103,557
Foreign merchandise(dutiable)..
2,419,575
2,040,980
2,384,679
2,989,852
Specie................................................ 12,624,009
8,654,982 16,185,867 17,074,795
Total exp orts...................
Total, exclusive o f specie




$37,710,624 $36,815,729 $50,500,801 $49,505,628
25,086,615 28,160,747 34,314,934 32,436,833

216

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

Turning now to the exports for the fiscal year just ended, we find the total,
exclusive o f specie, only *10,967,249 less than the very large total shipped dur­
ing the year ending June 30, 1854; 812,822,094 more than for the year ending
June 30, 1853; and 818,136,251 more than for the year ending 30th June, 1852T he exports o f specie have been larger than in either o f the previous three years:
EXPOETS

FROM

NEW

TORE

TO

F O R E IG N

PORTS

FOR

1852.

THE

F IS C A L Y E A R

1851.

E N D IN G

1854.

Domestic produ ce...................... 138,853,757 843,993,250
Foreign merchandise (free).......
871,687
1,058,209
Foreign merchandise (dutiable)..
4,461.885
4,450,027
37,273,703
21,127.228
Specie ..........................................

JU N E

30.

1855.

866 318.038 $52,602,406
1,339,973
4,084,387
5,634,818
5,636,781
34,284,241 38,058,334

Total exports.......................... $81,461,032 $70,628,714 $107,575,070 $100 381.914
Total exclusive of specie___
44,187,329 49,501,486
73,290,829
62,323,580
T o sum up, then, we find that while the imports for the last fiscal year, as
compared with the one just previous, have declined $36,568,978, the total ex­
ports have declined only $7,193,156, while the specie shipments have increased
only $3,774,093. This showing is far different from that which many predicted!
and proves that this trade will regulate itself if political economists will have a
little patience. W e annex a recapitulative summary to show at a glance the
several totals for the y ea r:—
IM P O R T S

AND E XPO R TS

June 30.

AT N E W

Y 'O R K .

Exports o f specie.

Total exports.

Total imports.

1855.........................................................
1854.........................................................

$38,058,384
34,284,241

$100,381,914
107,575,070

$154,505,526
191,074,504

Difference..........................................

$3,774,093

$7,193,156

$36,568,978

Y e a r e n d iD g

It will be a matter of interest to many of our readers to know the course of
the trade throughout the year. For their gratification we have compiled a table
embracing the several months o f the fiscal year, and showing the result of each
month’s imports and exports, as compared with the same month of the preceding
year. From this it will be seen that the decline in imports began in September!
and, with a single unimportant exception, continued to the close; while the de­
cline in exports, exclusive of specie, was greatest from September to December:
IM PO R TS

AND

EXPORTS
TH E

FOR
SAM E

TH E
FOR

F IS C A L
THE

YEAR

YEAR

E N D IN G JU N E 3 0 , 1 8 5 6 , C O M P A R E D W I T H

E N D IN G 3 U N E

30,

E X P O R T S E X C L U S IV E O F S P E C IE .

July.......
August. . .
September
October ..
November
December
January..,
February .
March.. . .
April.......
May.......
June.......

Increase.
$258,786




TO TAL IM PO R TS.

Increase.
$149,843
2,890,359

1,851,589
1,125,813
3,177,617
1,796,044
1,393,006

985,902

304,666

6,384,017
7,476,423
5,536,195
1,794,221

231,201
624,437
9,155
$11,590,578
623,329
$10,967,249

Decrease.
$3,025,816
1,151,887
3,953,085
4,612,446
6,661,992

50,722

$623,329
Total decrease

Decrease.
$1,390,871

1854.

$4,026,104

$40,595,082
4,026,104
$36,568,978

217

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

The cash revenue at the same port for June (exclusive o f penal duties and
hospital money) shows a slight decline compared with June o f last year, hut a
greater falling o ff from the receipts for June, 1853. T he total received for cash
duties for the last six months is $5,438,015 05 less than for the corresponding
period o f last year, $6,867,383 79 less than for the same time in 1853, and
$49,632 83 m ore than for the same time in 1852.

T he total for the fiscal year

ending June 30 is 88,999,984 06 less than for the previous year, 85,590,881 40
less than for the year ending June 30, 1853, and 83,979,962 67 more than for
the year ending June 30, 1852.
cified:—
CASH

W e annex a comparison for each term spe­

D U T IE S R E C E I V E D

1852.
In June....................
Previous 5 months..

AT N EW

TOEK.

1853.

$2,282.680 23
12,017,632 65

1854.

1855.

$3,810,723 33 $2,452,606 83
17,326,606 17 17.285,353 93

$2,316,464 80
11,983,480 91

Total 6 months.. $14,260,312 88 $21,167,329 50 $19,737,960 76 $14,299,945 71
Total fiscal year. 28,678,910 36 38,249,754 43 41,658,857 09 32,658,873 03

The receipts for customs at Boston show a less comparative decline, as the
steamers arriving there this season have brought larger freights, owing to the
change in the line to New York. W e look for no important increase in imports
over last year until after the close of August; from that time to the end of the
year we anticipate a large comparative increase in the receipts of foreign mer­
chandise. We annex a comparative statement, showing the imports at New
Orleans during the last fiscal year:—
IM P O R T S

O F M E R C H A N D IS E

AND
CAL

B U L L IO N
TEAR

AT THE

E N D IN G

J u l y , 1 8 5 4 ........................ ...........................................
A u g u s t ................................
S e p t e m b e r ........................
O c t o b e r ..............................
N o v e m b e r ........................ ...........................................
D e c e m b e r ........................ ............................................
J a n u a r y , 1 8 5 5 ................
F e b r u a r y ...........................
M a r c h ...................................
A p r i l ...................................
M a y ......................................
J u n e ......................................

PORT

JU N E

OF N E W

ORLEANS

FOR

THE

F IS ­

30, 1855.

D utiable.

Free.

$ 1 9 7 ,2 9 7

$ 5 7 ,8 5 9
1 5 ,7 2 7
1 6 0 ,3 5 6
1 2 6 .9 1 8
8 3 0 ,0 5 2
8 1 8 ,4 0 0
5 7 9 .7 3 6

9 3 5 ,5 6 3
7 3 5 ,7 6 4

Bul. & specie.
$ 8 5 ,5 8 7
4 0 ,2 7 0
2 8 ,0 1 4
3 5 ,9 2 6
4 3 ,2 1 5
9 3 ,8 4 9
8 3 ,1 5 9
1 2 6 .4 6 1
8 3 0 ,8 8 0
9 0 ,7 2 1
4 3 ,4 8 7
1 3 3 ,9 2 8

5 3 2 .6 8 7
4 8 3 ,4 1 9
3 5 9 ,5 1 5
4 1 9 ,6 9 0
4 0 2 ,7 8 1
$ 6 ,9 3 9 ,0 0 2

$ 1 ,6 8 7 ,4 3 6
6 ,9 3 9 ,0 0 2
4 ,2 9 7 ,1 7 0

$ 4 ,2 9 7 ,1 7 0

D u t i a b l e ........................
F r e e ................................

F o r t h e p a s t t h r e e f is c a l y e a r s e n d i n g J u n e 3 0 , t h e f o l l o w i n g i s a c o m p a r a t iv e
s t a t e m e n t :—
IMPORTS OF MERCHANDISE AT THE CUSTOM-HOUSE,, NEW ORLEANS.
1851
D u t i a b l e ...........................
F r e e .....................................
B u llio n a n d s p e c ie . . .




$ 1 3 ,6 5 4 ,1 1 3

1854.

1855.

$ 8 ,2 7 2 ,4 4 9
3 ,8 7 6 ,6 7 8
2 ,2 5 3 ,1 2 8

$ 6 ,9 3 9 ,0 0 2
4 .2 9 7 ,1 7 0
1 ,6 8 7 ,4 3 6

$ 1 4 ,4 0 2 ,1 5 5

$ 1 2 ,9 2 3 ,6 0 8

218

Commercial Chronicle and Review.
M ONTHLY

R E C E IP T S O F

CASH

D U TIE S

AT

NEW

ORLEANS

ISfii.

FOR

THE

YEARS—

1855.

J u ly ............................. ..........
A u gust....................................
September................... ...........
O ctober.......................
November................... ............
Decem ber................... ...........

$62,231 January.
100,796 February
199,896 Mai ch . . .
April . . .
219,342 May. . . . ,
283,122 J une. . . .

.................
...................
..................
...................
..................
...................

$213,666
130,801
202,916
171,147
156,239
146,340
$1,021,109
1,106,981

$2,128,690
Amount reo’ved for fiscal year. 2,558,647
$1,106,981

Decrease or falling o f f .............

$430,557

The annexed statement will show the amount received for duties at the cus­
tom-house in Philadelphia, for the month of June, and for the first six months of
the current year, compared with the corresponding periods in the two previous
years:—
1851.

1855.

J u n e ...............................................
Previous 5 mouths.......................

$628,503 90
1,831,651 65

1851.

$304,754 75
2,088,619 12

$249,445 20
1,403,082 85

Total 6 months.........................

$2,460,155 55

$2,393,378 87

$1,662,528 05

W e also annex a summary, showing the comparative revenue, &c., at Bos­
ton :—
Revenue collected at Boston for the month ending June 30, 1 8 5 5 ...
Collected for the month of June, 1854 ..................................................

$505,961 03
668,194 07

Decrease..................................................................................................
Collected for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1854................................
Collected for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1855................................

$157,233 04
8,342,289 06
7,616,568 78

Decrease..................................................................................................
Collected from January 1 to June 30, 1854 ..........................................
Collected from January 1 to June 30, 1855 ..........................................

$725,720 28
4,344,753 39
3,706,84S 85

Decrease....................................................................................................

$637,904 54

Foreign arrivals from January 1 to June 30, 1854................................
Foreign arrivals from January 1 to June 30, 1855................................

1,213
1,285

Increase....................................................................................................

72

It will be seen that the foreign arrivals from January 1st to June 30th, 1855,
exceed the arrivals for the same period in 1854, 72 ; while the revenue for the
same time is $637,904 54 less than it was in 1854.
The keeping up of the exports at New York, notwithstanding the large falling
off in the shipments of breadstuffs, has excited general surprise. The following
comparative summary of the shipments of the leading articles o f domestic prod­
uce for the last six-and-a-half months will be found highly interesting:—




219

Commercial Chronicle and Review .
EXPORTS

OF C E R T A IN A R T IC L E S O F D O M E S T IC P R O D U C E
PORTS

FROM JA N U A R Y

1851.

FROM

1S T TO JU LY

1851

NEW

YORK

TO F O R E IG N

1 6 T H :—

1854.

1855.

4,828
5,627 Naval stores.. . .bbls. 361,680 392,302
92,063
463
1,618 Oils— w hale.. . .galls. 109,422
sp erm ............. 234,870 473,842
134,654 112,086
la r d .................
17,154
32,056
lin seed............
2,053
6,079
Breadstuff's—
Wheat flour . .bbls. 657,397 226,198
Rye flo u r...............
9,986
13,818 Provisions —
Pork.................bbls.
54,864 112,880
Corn meal...............
48,187
33,217
Beef.........................
40,856
47,619
W h e a t...........bush. 1,380,409
31,288
Cut m eats,lbs.. ..13,148,061 14,658,452
R y e ......................... 315,158
5,139
B u tte r.................... 1,316,825 367,871
Oats ........................
15,359
12,111
Cheese....................1,168,441 1,451,736
C orn ....................... 2,410,796 2,304,293
Lard........................ 8,321,190 5,202,481
Candles— mold-boxes
31,727
31,748
16.470
10,818
3,674
7,483 R ic e ....................... trcs
sperm.........
Coal....................... tons
15,131
4,006 Tallow.................... lbs. 2,449,005 1,098,825
23,697
19,324
Cotton..................bales 192,330 153,756 Tobacco, crude. . pkgs
H a y ..............................
2,821
3,584 Do,, manufactured.lbs. 1,512,735 2,622,582
H o p s ...........................
481
7,640 Whalebone................ 787,470 1,047,730
Ashes— pots___ bbls.
pearls...........
Beeswax.................lbs.

The foregoing shows that the exports of wheat flour have declined two-thirds
and the shipments of wheat, which for the same time last year reached nearly a
million-and-a-half of bushels, have almost totally ceased. The clearances of
Indian corn have been nearly the same. Cotton has fallen off, while the ship­
ments of many descriptions of provisions have largely increased. There can be
little question but what Great Britain will need large supplies of breadstuffs dur­
ing the coming year, even though her own crops should prove a full average : so
that we may reckon not only on large sales of produce for export, but also on a
large carrying trade for our vessels. The shipping interests have suffered very
much during the last year, and many have found no employment for their ves­
sels which paid for more than the expense of maintenance and repairs. A brisk
demand for our produce would revive this drooping trade and put new life in
naval affairs.
NEW YORK COTTON MARKET FOR THE MONTH ENDING JULY 20.
PREPARED

FOR T H E M E R C H A N T s’ M AGAZINE

B Y U H LIIO R N &

FR E D E R IC K SO N , B R O K E R S,N E W YORK.

The month under review, and since the close o f our last report, (June 22d,)
has been one of depression and great irregularity in prices. An unexpected rise
in the Southern rivers, particularly in Alabama, caused the release of a large
body of cotton, and on its receipt at the ports, such being the state o f monetary
affairs, that a large portion was forced on the markets to meet payments due and
past due—in consequence a rapid decline took place, and which, extending to
our own market, caused a depression in price of one-and-a-half cent per pound
during the month, and two cents per pound from the highest point of the past
two months.
The motives on which the advance of the past season were based still exist,
and so long as the present European war is confined to the parties now in the
field, the probabilities are that the present rate of consumption abroad will suffer
no diminution. Trade in the manufacturing districts of England and France
continues remunerative, and the consumption of the raw material beyond that




Commercial Chronicle and Review.

220

o f any former period.

The demand for Russia may slightly suffer, from her

isolated position, but at the price she pays for her present requirements, and
which she obtains, more than compensates for the decreased demand.

In this

country the complaints about manufacturing are comparatively few, most styles
o f goods paying a fair profit. T he change in opinion o f the value o f cotton
seems based upon the free receipts o f the past month, and although the proba­
bilities are that the crop will fall short o f the preceding one by at least 100,000
bales, there remains a want o f confidence in those very motives by which the ad­
vance was obtained.
F o r the week ending June 29th, the sales did not exceed 5,500 bales, buyers
demanding a greater reduction than holders were willing to accede to, a large
quantity was withdrawn from sale.
There was, however, no disposition to en­
gage in the article, and the market closed dull at a decline for the week o f *c.
per pound.
P R IC E S

A D O P T E D JU N E

29TH

FOR

TH E

F O L L O W I N G Q U A L I T I E S :-----

Upland.

Ordinary.............................................
M iddling............................................
Middling fair.....................................
F a ir....................................................

10
11*
12*
13

Florida.

10
I lf
12f
13 *

Mobile.

N. O. & Texas.

10
I lf
13
13f

10*
12*
13*
14

T he transactions for the week ending July 6 th again showed considerable de­
cline ; the sales were estimated at 5,000 bales, at *c. a |c. per pound o ff from
quotations o f week previous.
T he foreign advices received this week reported
Jd. per pound decline, and to this the addition o f large receipts o f cotton at
M obile gave cause for alarm in the ranks o f speculators, who offered their stocks
at the above reduction, without, however, inducing purchasers to any great ex­
tent.

The market closed tamely at the follow ing nominal quotations:—
P R IC E S

ADO PTED JU LY

6TH

FOR

THE

Upland.

Ordinary............................... ■...........
Middling............................... ............
Middling fa ir.......................
Fair....................................................

n

F O L L O W I N G Q U A L I T I E S :-----

Florida.

»*
Hi
Hi .
12*

m
12

Mobile. N. 0. & Texas.
O f

Hf
12*
1 2 f

Hf
12*
13*

The week follow ing the market opened with a better inquiry, and at an improvement o f f c . per pound.
The sales reached 9,000 bales, a large portion
being for export.

H olders assumed much firmness, and the demand was limited

by their excessive demands.

A slight yielding w ould have induced larger purT he market

chases, as a more favorable feeling was manifested in the article.
closed firm at the follow in g :—
T R IC E S

ADOPTED JU LY

13tH

FOR

TH E

Upland.

Ordinary.............................. ............
M iddling............................. .............
Middling f a i r ..................... .............
F a ir...................................... .............

F O L L O W IN G

Florida.

n

n

11 i
i

Hf
12

i-’ i

121

H

Q U A L IT IE S

Mobile.

N. O. & Texas.

10
lif
12*
13

10*
12
13
13*

A more moderate demand existed during the week ending at date, and the
sales did not exceed 5,000 bales at much irregularity in prices.
There was an
increased desire on the part o f holders to meet the views o f buyers, and the
amount on sale at quotations annexed was large.




Operators, however, could

221

Commercial Statistics.

not be induced to go on, and in the absence o f demand, large quantities have
been shipped abroad from first hands here, and by orders from the South.

The

rates annexed are merely nominal, the market closing without inquiry :—
P R IC E S A D O P T E D J U L Y

20 m

FOR

TH E

F O L L O W IN G

Q U A L IT IE S -----

Upland.

Florida.

Mobile.

N. O. & Texas.

9£
11
11|
12

9f
11J
T2
12£

9f
llj
12f
12f

9f
Ilf
12J
18£

O rdinary...........................................
Middling............................................
Middling f a i r ....................................
F a ir....................................................

CROP AND GROWING CROP.

T he crop o f 1854-55 now points to 2,825,000 bales.
represented to be in a fine condition generally.

The growing crop is

T he late and excessive rains

may, however, prove injurious in some districts.

COMMERCIAL STATISTICS.

(

SHIPPING BUILT I.V THE UNITED STATES,
A

S T A T E M E N T S H O W IN G
THEREOF
E N D IN G

IN
JU N E

THE

NUM BER

AND CLASS

EACH STATE AN D T E R R IT O R Y
30,

OF VESSELS
THE

B U IL T ,

U N IT E D

AND

TH E

S T A T E S D U R IN G

TO N N A G E

THE

YEAR

1 8 5 4 I—

f------------ —CLAS S
barks.
Maine.........................
New Hampshire . . . .
V erm ont.................... .
Massachusetts...........
Rhode Island.............
Connecticut.............
New Y ork.................
New Jersey............... .
Pennsylvania.............
D elaw are..................
Maryland................... ..
District of Columbia.
V irginia.....................
North Carolina......... .
South Carolina...........
G eorgia......................
F lorida...............
.
A labam a...................
Mississippi.................
Louisiana...................
Tennessee...................
Missouri.....................
Kentucky...................
Illinois.....................
Wisconsin..................
Ohio............................
Indiana ...................
Michigan.................
T e x a s.......................
California.................
Total.....................

OF V ESS E L S . -----

S choon

S h ip s a n d




OF

Brigs.

ers.

156

78

99

9

..

..

12

3
2

T o ta l N o.
of v e s s e ls
b u ilt.

T on s and
9 5 ih s .

348

1 6 8 ,6 3 1

54

11

1 1 ,9 8 0

12

1

3

..

4

227

34

4

87

4

3

180

9 2 ,5 7 0

24

3

1

5 ,7 2 6

23

1

30

8

2
2

It

10

51

1 0 ,6 9 1

13

46

10

89

85

70

300

1 1 7 ,1 6 6

69

..

33

27

9

69

8 ,6 5 4

17

75

237

3 6 ,7 6 8

25
45

82
5

7

'

TOTAL TON AGE.

S lo o p s a n d
can al
b oa ts.
S tea m ers.

13

1

••
.•
1

4

27

124

..

29

1

4

34

3 ,6 2 1

3

101

1

4
2

122

2 0 ,3 5 2

90

42

44

2 ,8 1 4

24

3

6

59

..
..
..
..
..
,.
..
..
.,
..
3

19

3 ,2 2 7

32

3

3

38

2 ,5 3 1

84

13

10

..

23

1 ,1 6 1

94

..

2

3

666

69

..

7

662

41
78

1
7
4

2

2

9

1 ,9 9 9

..

3

77

15

6

5

2

14

,,
..
..

,,

2

3

8

2

..

4

1 ,5 0 8

52

2

208

90

7

9

3 ,0 7 0

92

22

22

6 ,8 2 3

71
70

.

1

17

3 ,3 6 3

..

26

..

..

26

2 ,9 1 6

04

4

20

27

41

92

1 7 ,0 4 5

49

2 ,4 1 ) 0

51

7 ,7 8 8

21

..
1

9

6

..
..

112

..

..

4

22

12

8

,.

..

11

10

5

386

281

661

4
48
1

124

48

26

1 ,0 2 3

09

1 ,7 7 4

5 3 5 ,6 3 6

01

Commercial Statistics.

222

STATEMENT SHOWING THE NUMBER AND CLASS OF VESSELS BUILT, AND THE TONNAGE
THEREOF, IN THE SEVERAL STATES AND TERRITORIES OF THE UNITED STATES FROM
1815 t o 1854, i n c l u s i v e :—

,-------------------- -C L A S S
S h ip s a n d
bark s.
1 8 1 5 .....................

B r ig s .

O F YES S E L S.-------------\
S l o o p s and
ca n a l
S choon
S te a m ers.
b u a ts.
ers.

T DTAL TO N A G E .
T ota l N o .
T on s and
o f v e s s e ls
l)5 th s .
b u ilt.

224

681

274

1 ,8 1 4

1 5 4 ,6 2 4

................

76

122

781

424

1 ,4 0 3

1 3 1 ,8 6 8

04

1 8 1 7 ..................... .................

34

86

559

394

1 ,0 7 3

8 6 ,3 9 3

37

1 8 1 8 ...................... .................

63

85

428

332

898

8 2 ,4 2 1

20

1 8 1 9 ..................... ................

53

82

473

242

850

7 9 ,8 1 7

86

1 8 2 0 ..................... ................

21

60

301

152

534

4 7 ,7 8 4

01

1 8 2 1 ..................... .................

43

89

248

127

507

5 5 ,8 5 6

01

1 8 2 2 .....................

131

.2 6 0

168

623

7 5 .3 4 6

93

1 8 2 3 .....................

127

260

165

15

622

7 5 ,0 0 7

57

1 8 2 4 .....................

156

377

166

26

781

9 0 ,9 3 9

00

1 8 1 6 ...................

39

1 8 2 5 ..................... .................

56

197

538

168

35

994

1 1 4 ,9 9 7

25

1 8 2 6 ..................... ................

71

187

482

227

45

1 ,0 1 2

1 2 6 ,4 3 8

35

1 8 2 7 ..................... .................

55

153

464

241

38

934

1 0 4 ,3 4 2

67

1 8 2 8 ..................... .................

73

108

474

196

33

884

9 8 ,3 7 5

58

68

485

145

43

785

7 7 ,0 9 S

65

56

403

116

37

637

5 8 ,0 9 4

24

95

416

94

34

711

8 5 ,9 6 2

68

1 8 2 9 .....................
1 8 3 0 .....................
1 8 3 1 ..................... .................

72

1 8 3 2 .....................

143

568

122

100

1 ,0 6 5

1 4 4 ,5 3 9

16

1 8 3 3 .....................

169

625

185

65

1 ,1 8 8

1 6 1 ,6 2 6

36

1 8 3 4 .....................

94

497

180

68

937

1 1 8 ,3 3 0

37

1 8 3 5 .....................

50

301

100

30

507

4 6 ,2 3 8

52

1836

49

...................

65

444

164

124

890

1 1 3 ,6 2 7

1 8 3 7 .....................

72

607

168

135

949

1 2 2 ,9 8 7

22

1 8 3 8 .....................

79

501

153

90

898

1 1 3 ,1 3 5

44

1 8 3 9 .....................

89

439

122

125

858

1 2 0 ,9 8 9

34

1 8 4 0 .....................

109

378

224

64

872

1 1 8 ,3 0 9

23
71

1 8 4 1 .....................

101

310

157

78

762

1 1 8 ,8 9 3

1 8 4 2 ..................... ................

116

91

273

404

137

1 ,0 2 1

1 2 9 ,0 8 3

64

1 8 4 3 ..................... .................

58

34

138

173

79

482

6 3 ,6 1 7

77

1 8 4 4 .....................

47

204

279

163

766

1 0 3 ,5 3 7

29

1 8 4 5 .....................

87

322

842

163

1 ,0 3 8

1 4 6 ,0 1 8

02

1 ,4 2 0

1 8 8 ,2 0 3

93
67

1 8 4 6 .....................

164

576

855

225

1 8 4 7 .....................

168

689

392

198

1 ,5 9 8

2 4 3 ,7 3 2

1 8 4 8 .....................

174

701

547

175

1 ,8 5 1

3 1 8 ,0 7 5

54

1 8 4 9 .....................
1 8 5 0 ..................... .................

247

148

623

370

208

1 ,5 4 7

2 5 6 ,5 7 7

47

117

647

290

159

1 ,3 6 0

2 7 2 ,2 1 8

54

233

1 ,3 6 7

2 9 8 ,2 0 3

60

259

1 ,4 4 4

3 5 1 ,4 9 3

41

1 8 5 1 .....................

65

522

326

1 8 5 2 .....................

79

584

267

1 8 5 3 .....................

95

681

394

271

1 ,7 1 0

4 2 4 ,5 7 2

49

1 8 5 4 .....................

112

661

386

281

1 ,7 7 4

6 3 5 ,6 1 6

01

SHIPS AND SHIPPING OF THE UNITED STATES.
The Shipping Lint, alluding to the depressed condition of the shipping interests of
the United States for the past year, gives the following comprehensive summary of the
progress of this department of our national industry and Commerce:—
Rapid as has been the progress of population in this country for the past forty y enrs,
the increase in the amount and value of the tonnage employed in the carrying trade
has vastly outstripped it. While population has about doubled itself in thirty-four
years, our tonnage has quadrupled in that time. In the year 1820 the total tonnage,
registered and enrolled, was 1,2S0,163 tons, and in 1854 it was 4,802,902 tons. The
general pacification of Europe in 1815 found us with a tonnage of 1,868,127— of
which 854,294 tons were registered, the remainder being enrolled and licensed, repre­
senting with tolerable accuracy the proportions of the tonnage engaged in the foreign
and coasting trade.
From 1815 till 1822, it appears that the tonnage declined in amount, and it was not




223

Commercial Statistics.

until the year 1823 that it again equaled what it had been in 1815. The cause of
this decline it is not now our purpose to explore. It was doubtless caused mainly by
the ability of the nations of Europe to do for themselves that which, as a neutral
power, we had been doing for them on the ocean during the progress of the conti­
nental war. From 1824 till 1828, the amount of tonnage gradually increased, until in
that year it reached 1,741,391 tons. The next year it decreased nearly half a million
tons, and did not attain the point it had been at in 1828 until the year 1834, since
which time it has been steadily increasing. From 1834 to 1844 the increase of ton­
nage was about sixty per cent, and from 1844 to 1854 it has more than doubled. The
following tabular statement will show the progress in this department o f our national
R e g is te re d
to n n a g e .
1 8 1 5 ..........................................
1 8 2 0 .......................................... ..........................

9 1 9 .0 4 7

1 8 2 5 ..........................................
1 8 8 0 .......................................... ..........................

5 7 6 ,6 7 5

E n r o lle d
to n n a g e .

E m p l o y e d in
c o a s tin g tra d e .

5 1 8 ,8 3 3

4 3 5 ,0 6 6

6 6 1 ,1 1 8

6 3 9 ,0 8 0

7 2 2 ,3 2 3

5 8 9 ,2 7 3

6 1 5 ,3 1 1

5 1 6 ,9 7 8

1 8 3 5 ..........................................

9 3 9 ,1 1 8

7 9 2 ,3 0 1

1 8 4 0 ..........................................

1 ,2 8 0 ,9 9 9

1 ,1 7 6 ,6 9 4

1 ,3 2 1 ,8 2 9

1 ,1 9 0 ,8 9 8

1 8 5 0 .......................................... ..........................

1 ,5 8 5 ,7 1 1

1 .9 4 9 .7 4 3

1 ,7 5 5 ,7 9 6

1 8 5 4 .......................................... ..........................

2 ,3 3 3 ,8 1 9

2 ,4 0 9 ,0 8 3

2 ,2 7 3 ,9 0 0

1 8 4 5 ..........................................

A remarkable feature exhibited by this statement is, the uniformity of the propor­
tions of increase between that part of our tonDage engaged in the coasting trade and
o f that portion employed in the foreign trade. Both of these classes of vessels have
increased astonishingly in the last five years. "We have not the statistics to show the
fact, but we believe the tonnage of our commercial marine now exceeds that of Great
Britain.
The tonnage employed in steam navigation has increased in a greater proportion
than that of any other description of vessels. In 1824 the tonnage of steam vessels
was 23,879, in 1834 it wTas 122,855, in 1844 it was 272,197, and in 1854 it reached
676,607 tons. This rapid extension of the steam tonnage will doubtless continue to
move with even accelerated force— the tendency is evidently in that direction, and
steam will take the place of sailing vessels where the circumstances are such as to
warrant the substitution.
The investment in vessels is a very large one, and the amount will perhaps astonish
some of our readers. II we estimate the first cost of these vessels— steam and sailing
— at fifty dollars per ton, (a very low estimate,) it will amount to $240,64 5,000, the
annual interest on which, at the legal rate, is fourteen millions four hundred thousand
dollars ! But the annual earnings of the vessels must not only include the interest on
their cost, but also repairs and lenewals. If we place these as equal to a total destiuction in twelve years, we shall have $20,503,750, which, added to the annual in­
terest, make $34,903,750 as the total annual earnings of cur commercial maiine. This
amount, then, represents the value of the labor either directly or indirectly employed
in the home department of industry pertaining to navigation.
The Philadelphia Ledger reasonably asserts that the ship building interests are like
a bare meter— indicating } ears of prosperity and adversity in Commerce. Thus it says:
During the forty years between 1815 and 1855, the number of vessels built in the
United States— including canal boats, steamers, sloops, schooners, biigs, and ships, and
indeed all descriptions, excepting those constructed for the federal government— was
thirty nine thousand and ninety-two. Ti e tonnage of these vessels exceeded five
milhons-and-a half. The prosperity of this branch of industry kept pace with the
fluctuations of the general prosperity, the periods of momentary depression witness­
ing the most teriible revulsions It is only necessary, indeed, to comult the statistics
of American ship building to tell when expansion was at its height, and when a finan­
cial crisis prevailed. In 1832 and 1833,over three hundred thousand tons were built;
in 1840 and 1841, there was a decline of nearly thirty per cent. The year 1853 and
the five preceding years w itnessed an increased development of this business; but for
the last twelve months there has been a great decline. In 1853 and 1854, in fact, the
tonnage launched amounted to one-seventh of the whole tonnage built since 1 8 J5.
The greatest ship-building State is Maine, which, in 1853, constructed 118,916 of the
425,572 tons built. New York comes second, Massachusetts third, aud Pennsylvania
fourth.




224

Commercial Statistics.
LUMBER TRADE OF QUEBEC FOR FIVE YEARS.

We are indebted to Wood, Retry, Portras & Co. for the subjoined statistics of the
wood or lumber trade of Quebec in each of the years from 1850 to 1851, inclusive.
1. The “ Supply ” is derived from Supervisor’s returns for years ending December 1st.
2. The “ Export,” from Customs returns for years ending December 1st:—
I.

1S50.

SUPPLY.

1851.

1852.

1851

1851.

Timber —

Oak, fe e t.. . .
E lm ..............
A s h .............
B irch ...........
Tamarac......
White pine .
Red pine . . .

1,0S?,854
1,504,650
82,797
69,761
256.414
14,388,593
2,121,316

1,589 932
2,008,727
174,137
74,659
490.081
15,417,815
3,189,387

1,650,073
2,404.616
235,312
49.880
465,382
27,631,239
2,405,644

1,353,431
711.239
159,020
70,616
718,130
17,487,616
2,060,659

2,17.6,071
1,927,865
221,446
45,052
2,649,759
19,648,006
3,756,848

2,036
4,474
26

1,455
1,009
1

2,OSO
1,790

1,914
8,175
2

1,841
2,982

Staves —

Standard, m .
Puncheon.. .
Barrel..........
L ea ls —

Pine, stand’d.
Spruce.........
Lath wood—
Red pine and
heiul’k, c’ds.

1,462,000
399,100
2,180

1,560,000 )
660,000 f

2,508,896

3,4 S3

4,029

8,500
II.

1850.

2,465,236

( 2,223,568
640,112

1

4,564

EXPORT.

1851.

1852.

1851.

1851.

Timber —

Oak, feet... .
Elm..............
A s h .............
B irch ...........

Taman c......
White pine .
Red pine . . .

1,116,240
1,526,640
47,2S0
180,200
86,61)0
13,040,520
3,586,840

12,680
15,941,600
3,482,200

1,265
2,702
107
2,207,086
614,277

1,124,200
1,423,880
102,720

1,036.480
893.880
86.440
94,360
51,440
15,695,920
2,502,840

1,068.320
1,153,600
82,200
101,760
9,600
17,399,480
2,315,160

1,335,920
1,463,600
106,160
51,160
78,560
19,612,320
2,699,080

1,510
2,443
64

1,4 34
1,766

1,571
1,854

1,579
2,708

13

3

1,418,584
548,165

1,342,391
665,115

2,425,469
653,106

6,569

6,076

1 2 2 ,8 0 0

Staves —

Standard, m .
Puncheon . . .
B irrel.........
Deals —
Pine, stand’d.
Spruce.........
Lath wood—

Red pine and
hemi’k, c’da.

4,423

5 ,3 1 6

2,604,656
871,835

5 ,9 7 2

CONSUMPTION OF SPIRITS IN ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, AND IRELAND.
Returns moved for by Mr. Cogrn, member o f the British Parliament, show that in
the year 1S51 the gross total number of imperial gallons of spirits charged with duty
for home consumption in the United Kingdom amounted to 31,011.727— namely,
15,589,473 gallons in England, 6,803,819 in Scotland, and 8,613,435 in Ireland. The
quantity of British spirits charged for consumption was, in England, 10,889,611 gal­
lons, in Scotland, 6,533,239 gallons, and in Ireland, 8,140,734 gallons. The quantity of
foreign spirits charged for home consumption was, in England, 1,740,587 gallons,
in Scotland, 107,044, and in Ireland, 53,918. The quantity of colonial spirit so
charged was, in England, 2,959,275 gallons, in Scotland, 148,536 gallons, and in Ire­
land, 118,783 gallons. The quantity of malt charged with duty in 1854 was, in Eng­
land, 31,868,978 bushels, and the amoint of duty, £5,210,493; in Scotland, 3,412,950
bushels, and the duty, £571,829; and in Ireland, 1,537,432 bushels, and the duty,




225

Commercial Statistics.

£251,654; making for the whole United Kingdom, 36,819,360 bushels of malt, and
£6,012,888 amount o f du ty; 4,593,880 gallons of spirits were made in Scotland from
malt only, and the amount of malt drawback paid was £194,480. The quantity of
malt spirits consumed in England was 936,478 gallons, in Scotland, 3,444,257 gallons^
and in Ireland, 34,777 gallons. The amount of malt drawback repaid on malt spirits
exported to England or Ireland from Scotland was £33,665 ; on spirits imported into
England from Scotland, £3,267, and on malt spirits imported into Ireland from Scot­
land, £1,267. A second return, moved for by Mr. Dunlop, relative to spirits in Scot­
land only, show’s that the to al quantities of foreign spirits entered forborne consump­
tion in that country amounted in 1854 to 255,658 gallons, (including 148,544 gallons
o f rum;) in 1851, to 260,998 gallons; in 1852, to 265,469 gallons; in 1841, to 260,200
gallons; and in 1850, to 289,246 gallons. The number of gallons of British spirits
cleared for home consumption in Scotland amounted in 1854 to 6,553,239 gallons; in
1853, to 6,534,048 gallons ; in 1S52, to 7,172,015 gallons; in 1851, to 6,830,710 gal­
lons; and in 1850, to 7,122,987 gallons.

THE PORK TRADE OF 1854-55.
The Cincinnati P rice Current, on the 7th March last, published a partial statement
o f the number o f the bogs packed in the West during the season of 1854-5, expecting
to be able in a week or two thereafter to present a full exhibit. It d o w presents a
pretty full statement, embracing all the principal points, but first remarks:—
“ It will be seen that the Western States show an increase in the aggregate, while
in Ohio, Indiana. Iventueky, and Tennessee there is a large deficiency. The falling off
in number is 349.403 head, and in number and pounds equal to 463,066 head— being
about 20 per ct nt. With reference to the product of lard, we have found it impossible
to arrive at any satisfactory conclusion, lhe yield of leaf lard is unquestionably less
than last year by nt least five poundk to the hog; but in many cases sides were ren­
dered into lard to a considerable extent; and thus the deficiency in the former will be
made up to some extent; still, taking the entire West, the average yield per hog, of
all kiuds, must be less than that of last year.’’
W e omit the figures in detail, but give the following recapitulation:—

O hio....................
Indiana...............
Kentucky...........
Iow a....................

1851-4.

1854-5.

718,650
50,880
601,820
502,925
48,060

671,165
6,000
505,830
337,799
102,131

Illinois................
Wisconsin..........
Detroit, Mich. . .
Buffalo, JN. Y. . .

Grand total .

1851-4.

1854-5.

344,047
130,025
59,900
7,500
8,000

413,916
128,261
39,272
5,000
15,000

2,473,807

2,124,404

Showing a deficiency in 1854-5 of 463,066 hogs.
In Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana, hogs fell considerably short in weight.
This deficiency we estimated, in publishing a partial statement a few weeks since, at
8 per cent. 1 his is rather a low but upon the whole a fair estimate. The total num­
ber of hogs packed in those States, as above, is 1,420,794; and 8 per cent deficiency
on this number is 113,663. Adding this to the decrease in number, the total falling
off is 463,066, as follows:—
Number . . .............................

349,403 | Decrease in weight equal to........

113,663

Total deficiency...............................................................................................

463,066

In Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Wisconsin the hogs averaged about the same as last
year. In some portions there was a falling off, but in others an increase, thus bringing
up the average.
In our statement made at the close o f the season of 1S53-4, we estimated the avV O L . X X X I I I .-----N O . I I .




15

226

Commercial Regulations.

erage -weight of hogs packed in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee at 208 lbsDeducting S per cent from this, the average for the pa^t season would be 192£ lbs.
In other States the average last year was 218 lbs, and this year we estimate it at
the same. Taking these figures as the average, the crop, reduced to pounds, compares
as follows :—
Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, *yid Tennessee.....................
Other States.....................................................................

1853-4.

1854-5.

391,926,200
128,515,796

273,502,845
153,486,980

520,445,996
426,989,825
Showing a deficiency of 103,457,171 lbs., being a trifle over 20 per cent. The in­
crease in pounds last year over the preceding year’s crop was 22$ per cent. The prod­
uct of this season is, therefore, 20 per cent less than that of 1853-4, and 2£ per cent
greater than that of 1852-3.

THE FRESH AND SALT MEAT TRADE OF FRANCE.
The Department of State at Washington has received a letter from the United
States Consul in Paris, relating to the meat trade of France. The letter of the con­
sul contains an extract, as will be seen, from the “ Echo d 'A gricol” showing the usual
mode of importing salt meats, which is of importance to those engaged in the export
of provisions from the United States:—
“ The increase in the price of meats in France has been very great since 1848— so
much so that general complaint exists on the subject. From 1852 to 1854 there has
been an increase o f price from 40 to 45 per cent. The attention of the government
o f France having been called to this fact, its efforts have been not only to prevent a
further increase, but to effect a diminution from present prices. To this end the tariffs
have been revised, and very great reductions have been made upon the importation of
foreign cattle, to wit: from §10 23 to 74 cents a head on beef, &c. Not only so, but
the direct attention of the people of France has been called to the use of salt meat,
and the experiment of opening the market is being made with much success. The
duty on this article has been successively reduced from $5 58 to §3 72, (§1 86,) and
in the month of October last to 9£ cents the 226 pounds, or 100 kilogrammes. Un­
der this reduction there has been an astonishing development in its importation. In
1854, the importation of meats, fresh and salt, reached only 3,527 quintaux— or
777,844.58 pounds; while in the first month of the present year the importation has
reached 3,720 quintaux— being more than in the whole year of 1852 by 203 quintaux,
or 44,769.62 pounds.
“ I transmit herewith an extract from the ‘ Echo d’Agricol} showing the usual
mode of importing salt meats, witu the respective values of the several quantities:—
Prime pork is the most common kind in brine of gray salt, barrels of 331£ lbs.
gross, or 198.90 lbs. net; value from §14 80 to §15 81 the barrel.
“ ‘ Mess pork is little imported, and does not find a sale, being too flit. Prime mess,
first quality, preserved in brine with white salt from lean hogs, is held at from §18 60
to §19 53 per barrel.
“ ‘ Hams, salted, sugared, and smoked, sustain a comparison with the best we have
in Europe, and find a ready sale.
Shoulders, dry-salted, find a good deal of favor in France. They come in dry
barrels of 994.40 lbs.net; value from §18 60 to 19 53 per 221 lbs., or 100 kilo­
grammes.
“ ‘ Lard comes in barrels of 265.20 lbs., or in firkins of 46.62 lbs. net; value, §13
per 110£ lbs., or 50 kilogrammes.’
“ The foregoing extract will indicate the kinds, manner of importation, and value,
for the benefit of importers. By a decree of the 10th of March, the rates o f duties
on salt meats into the French colonies have been reduced as follows:—
“ Into Martinique, Guadaloupe, Guiana, and Reunion, salt meats of foreign make,
from whatsoever country7 imported, and under whatsoever flag, will pay a duty of 50
centimes (9£ cents) per 100 kilogrammes, or 221 pounds. The same duty is required
at St. Louis, Senegal, but only when imported in French bottoms, either directly from
abroad or by extraction from the entrepot Sonee. Those imported into Senegal uuder
a foreign flag are charged the duty enforced before this decree.”




227

Commercial Statistics.
C03IMERCIAL PROSPERITY OF THE GREEKS.

Commerce and navigation which had been given up to them, as mercenary occu­
pations, by the pride of the Ottomans, had also concentrated in their h mds the whole
wealth of the empire. Municipal liberty, and the governments of towns and islands
by elective councils, chosen from among the respective populations, and paying only
the tributes or exactions to the pachas, constituted these islands and these Greek
provinces into a species of federation, very apt to revolt against the common oppres­
sor, and to combine together in the cause o f freedom. Finally, the law which only
permitted the Ottoman armies to be recruited from among the conquering race, di
minished that source from year to year, and allowed the conquered race to increase
and multiply. All these causes together had lessened the masters and magnified the
slaves, so that the number of Christians in the empire very much surpassed the num­
ber o f Mahometans. The Turks still reigned, it is true, but they were nothing more
than an armed aristocracy in the midst o f a disarmed multitude. The Greeks, how­
ever, hail long felt their strength, and looked out for allies in Europe, to give them
the signal, the opportunity, and support. Tney had found these natural allies in
the Russians, attached to them by two causes, which did not require preconcerting to
be understood: identity of religion and community o f hatred against the Turks. The
first Greek insurrection had been fomented and sustained by a Russian fleet, in the
Morea, in 1790, under the reign of Catherine II. Though it miscarried, in consequence
of the French revolution, which had recalled the attention of the empress to the side
of Germany, and had nude her defer the ambitious views of Russia on the side of
Asia, this insurrection in the Morea had left souvenirs, hopes, and seeds of liberty, in
the minds of the Greeks, who reckoned, if not upon auxiliaries at least upon sympa­
thy at Petersburgh. The triumph of the Russians on the Danube, and the arrival of
a Russian fleet, from the Black Sea, before Constantinople, combined with an insur­
rection in the Peloponnesus and the islands, would leave nothing for the Turks but
flight into Asia. The reign of the Russians over the Bosphorus would be the reign of
the Greeks, re-establishing the empire o f the East in its capital, so long usurped by
others. This idea, or this dream, kept hope alive in the Morea and in the islands.
Greece was going to make the attempt, and Europe was going to assist her; but
never did fatality, that urges nations on to results which they see the best and dread
the most, exhibit itself more distinctly in human affairs. Russia once mistress of the
Bosphorus, of Constantinople, and of Greece, this was universal monarchy over Europe,
over Asia, and the Mediterranean. But never mind, the cry of freedom resounded
upon the mountains of Epirus, and Europe was about to echo it, and to precipitate
itself bodily, against her own interest., down the declivity on which hung the world.
Religion was to serve as a pretext for liberty; and while modern philosophy was
sapping or reforming Christianity in Europe, European liberalism was upholding
the cause of Christianity in Greece, and preaching a crusade in the name of the Rev
olution.— History o f the Restoration o f Monarchy in France -

WINE VAULTS OF THE LONDON DOCKS.
The Newark Advertiser gives an account of a recent visit to the London Docks, and
especially to the vaults in which Port wine is stored. It says:—
You have a guide, without whom you would run a great risk of being lost, and,
each taking a light, commence your rambles through the vault. On either side are the
pipes of wine, on tramways, which extend in all twenty-six miles; overhead hang fes­
toons of fungus, a sure sign of the good condition of the vaults, since if the roof leaked,
the fungus would be destroyed ; and around you is the heavy odor of alcohol, which,
if breathed too long, will be pretty sure to create a headache. We had a tasting
order, which, however, we declined to use, thinking that we had taken in by the lungs
as much spirits as would suffice without the assistance of the stomach. We left with
the impression tint Portugal could scarcely produce much else except wiue, and that
if the English drank all we saw, they would deserve the reputatiou of particularly af­
fecting this beverage.”

NAVIGATION AT THE PORT OF QUEBEC.
The arrivals and tonnage at the port of Quebec for the undermentioned years were—

1850.
Vessels................................................
Tons......................................................




1851.

1S52.

1,078
1,185
1,055
436,379 505,034 454,102

1854.

1854.

1,183
1,315
531,648 580,323

228

Journal o f Insurance.

JOURNAL

OF

INSURANCE.

THE CAUSES OF FIRES, WITH SUGGESTIONS FOR PREVENTION.
The London Quarterly Review cautions persons against leaving waxlucifer matches
where they are accessible to rats and mice, stating that these vermin convey them to
their holes, and eat the wax until they reach the phosphorus, which is ignited by the
friction of their teeth.
The same authority suggests that fires are much more frequently caused by heating
buildings with hot water, hot air, and steam-pipes, than is commonly imagined. Mr
Braidwood, the Superintendent of the London Fire Brigade, in his evidence before a
committee of the House of Lords, expressed the opinion, founded on wide and careful
observation, that by long exposure to heat not much exceeding that of boiling water
— 212°— timber is rendered liable to spontaneous combustion, which he thinks would
ensue in eight or ten years. It is a common thing for some parts of the surface of
partition walls to become so heated that one can hardly bear the hand upon i t ; and
it seems probable, where that is the case, that the laths or wood work nearer to the
source of heat, may be subjected to the temperature indicated as dangerous. In a
large city there is more or less insecurity from fire, whatever degree of caution one
may adopt; and we become gradually reconciled to risking the chances of losing pro­
perty through the carelessness of those whose actions we cannot control, in the rea­
sonable expectation that if the block in which we live is ignited outside of our own
houses, we shall at least have sufficient warning to escape personal injury. There are
no doubt hundreds of families living in the insecurity resulting from the heating-pipes
of their houses not being sufficiently isolated for safety. It is true this is not the sea­
son of danger. But it is the season when precautions may be taken with some con­
venience to avert the danger ; and it is the season when more building is in progress
than in any other, and when, therefore, those engaged in it may be addressed with the
expectation that a matter so deeply involving their own interests and the safety of
their tenants, will meet with the attention it merits.
It is suggested that ingenuity has a field for its exercise still left in devising some
more effective plan than the mixed structure of iron and brick or stone for rendering
those buildings fire-proof which are used in storing a large quantity of combustible
material. I f their inflammable contents become once thoroughly ignited, it is seldom
that the buildings themselves can be saved from destruction. “ Iron columns in such
instances melt before the white heat like sticks of sealing-wax; stone flies into a thou­
sand pieces with the celerity of a Prince Itupert’s drop; slate becomes transformed
into a pumice, light enough to float upon water; the iron girders and beams, by rea­
son of their lateral expansion, thrust out the walls; and the very elements which
seem calculated, under ordinary circumstances, to give an almost exhaustless durability
to the structure, produce its most rapid destruction.” The danger is diminished by
dividing the warehouse into compartments, separated by substantial brick walls, so as
to confine the fire within manageable limits. In private dwellings and offices not
used for storage there is little danger from the fusibility or expansion of iron; for or­
dinarily the combustion of their contents would not produce sufficient, heat to involve
such a catastrophe. On the other hand, the use of iron and stone or brick in the out­
side structure, generally affords a leliable piotection against extraneous danger.
For the interior structure of dwellings, the plan in vogue in Paris, of making the
party-walls to rooms and the floors solid, is found efficacious to prevent the spread of




Journal o f Insurance .

229

fire. Few wide conflagrations occur in the French capital, notwithstanding the im­
mense height of its houses, and the insignificance of its fire department. This is at­
tributed to the care with which the partitions and floors are filled in with rubble and
plaster of Paris. To support this packing, of course something else is requisite than
flimsy laths, and thick oak boards are nailed firmly on to the framing, and then cov­
ered with a thick coating of plaster of Paris. A room thus finished, devoted to do­
mestic uses, is essentially fire proof. The under-side of the stairs is protected in the
same way, which is o f the greatest importance, as being the part of the house most
imperiled by fire, which always seeks an unobstructed ascent, and also the part from
which danger of destruction should be most carefully averted, that it may afford an
avenue o f retreat for the inmates.
Th# Superintendent of the London Fire Brigade has devised the following very ju ­
dicious directions for aiding persons to escape from premises on fire:—
1. Be careful to acquaint yourself with the best means o f exit from the house, both
at the top and bottom.
2. On the first alarm reflect before you act. If in bed at the time, wrap yourself
in a blanket or bedside carpet; open no more doors or windows than are absolutely
necessary, and shut every door after you.
3. There is always from eight to twelve inches of pure air close to the ground ; if
you cannot, therefore, walk upright through the smoke, drop on your hands and knees,
and thus progress. A wetted silk handkerchief, a piece of flannel, or a worsted
stocking drawn over the face permits breathing, and, to a great extent, excludes the
smoke.
4. If you can neither make your way upwards or downwards, get into a front-room ;
if there is a family, see that they are all collected here, and keep the door closed as
much as possible, for remember that smoke always follows a draught, and fire always
rushes after smoke.
5. On no account throw yourself, or allow others to throw themselves, from the win­
dow. If no assistance is at hand, and you are in extremity, tie the sheets together,
and having fastened one end to some heavy piece of furniture, let down the women
and children one by one, by tying the end of the line of sheets around the waist and
lowering them through the window that is over the door, rather than through one that
is over the area. You can easily let yourself down after the helpless are saved.
6. If a woman’s clothes should catch fire, let her instantly roll herself over and over
on the ground; if a man be present, let him throw her down and do the like, and then
wrap her in a rug, coat, or the first woolen thing that is at hand.

THE CHARTER OF AN INSURANCE COMPANY A CONTRACT.
The following decision was recently delivered in the Circuit Court of Alabama by
his Honor Judge Rapier:—
THE ALABAMA LIFE INSURANCE AND TRUST COMPANY VS. JAMES H. DAUGHDRILL.

The company was incorporated in 1836. The 25th section of the act of incorpora­
tion provides “ that this act shall continue and be in force unalterable by the General
Assembly, without the consent of the trustees of said company, for and during the
term of twenty years.”
The 22d section reads, “ that as a full commutation for all taxes, impositions, or as­
sessments on the capital stock of the said company during the continuance of its char­
ter, it shall pay annually on the first Monday in December in each year, to the treas­
urer of the State for the use of the people thereof, the sum of $2,000.”
Section 391 of the Code adopted in February, 1852, provides “ that there shall be
assessed in each county, on all corporations created under any law of this State, and
not exempt from taxation under section 390, on each hundred dollars of their capital
stock: actually paid in and belonging to persons not exempt from taxation, twentyfive cents.”
By section 1% of the Code it is further provided, “ that the Court of County Com­
missioners must in each year levy a tax for county purposes not exceeding 100 per
cent on the amount of the State assessments.”




230

Journal o f Insurance.

In 1853, pursuant to the provisions of the Code, there was assessed on the company
$600 for State tax. and 80 per cent on the amount of the State tax for county pur­
poses. The defendant, as tax collector for the county of Mobile, demanded the
amount assessed for the county, which the company refused to pay. A levy was then
made to enforce payment as provided by law in such cases.
The question presented for the court is, whether the company, in view of the facts
above stated and the acts of the Legislature referred to, is exempt from taxation for
county purposes. If it be held exempt, judgment by agreement of parties is to be
rendered agaiust the defendant for a trespass in making the levy. If it be not ex­
empt, then judgment is to be rendered for the defendant.
It is contended on the part of the defendant— 1st. That the exemption contained in
the charter of the company does not, under a proper construction of it, extend to
county taxes. 2d. That if it did, the exemption would be unconstitutional and void.
The language of exemption is explicit and comprehensive, and there is but little
room left for construction. The words “ all taxes” are certainly within themselves
sufficiently broad to include county as well as State taxes, and the one kind being as
much dependent upon the legislative power as the other, there is no room for except­
ing from the meaning of the general terms employed the one kind more than the
other, unless such reason be furnished by the context or by words of limitation else­
where in the act. There are no words of limitation, nor does the context, on any cor­
rect principle of exposition, narrow the exemption. The bonus, it is true, is required
to be paid into the State treasury for the use of the people thereof, and this may af­
ford some ground for supposing that inasmuch as this bonus is to be appropriated as
State taxes are, for the benefit of the State at large, in the use of the v ords “ all
taxes,” State taxes only were intended by the Legislature. If such was the intention,
the words go beyond it.
But in the construction of statutes, as a primary rule, courts are to collect the in­
tention from the words, ar.d it is safer to adopt what the Legislature have said than
to suppose what they meant to say. “ Where,” says Dwarris, “ the Legislature has
used words o f a plain and definite import, it would be very dangerous to put upon
them a construction which would amount to holding that the Legislature did not mean
what it expressed.”
Interpreting, then, the act to have intended to exempt the capital stock of the com­
pany from taxation for county and all other purposes, then comes the other questions,
whether the act was constitutional.
And here it may be premised that the courts regard the question of constitutionality
o f a law as one of great delicacy, and which ought seldom if ever to be decided affir­
matively in a doubtful case. In the Dartmouth College case, (4 Wheat. 125,) the
Supreme Court of the United States says— “ On more than one occasion the court
has expressed the cautious circumspection with which it approaches the consideration
of such questions, and has declared that in no doubtful case would it pronounce a legis­
lative act to be coutrary to the constitution.”
That it was within legislative authority to surrender in part the sovereign power
to tax, may be now regarded as a settled question. In the case of Providence Bank
vs. Bolling <fc Pittman, (4 Peters, 561,) the Supreme Court of the United States, Chief
Justice Marshall delivering the opinion, say— “ that the taxing power is of vital im­
portance ; that it is essential to the existence of government, are truths which it can­
not be necessary to reaffirm. They are acknowledged and ascribed by all. It would
seem the relinquishment of such a power is never to be assumed. We will not say
that a slave may not relinquish it, that a consideration sufficiently valuable to induce
a partial release of it may not exist.” But subsequently, in the case of Gordon vs.
the Appeal Tax Court, (3 How. 133,) the same tribunal held the affirmative of the
proposition in maintaining that the charter of a bank is a franchise which is not taxa­
ble as such, if a price has been paid for it which the Legislature accepted. But the
first section of the Bill of Rights in the Code of Alabama is referred to, and it is said
that the charter of plaintiffs is repugnant to this section. The objection might apply
as well to any licensed business which is authorized to be carried on for a price. The
franchise of this company can hardly be said to confer an exclusive privilege; nor is
it granted without the consideration of public benefit.
It must be held, therefore, in the case under consideration, that the act was intended
to exempt the company, during the continuation of its charter, from taxation for county
as well as for State purposes, and that this exemption was within the power of the
Legislature, and pot contrary to the constitution. What, then, is the effect of the sub­
sequent act adopted in 1852 ?




N autical Intelligence,

231

That the charter of the plaintiffs is a contract, and such a one as cannot be impaired
by subsequent legislation without a violation of the constitution, is amply shown by
many adjudications in similar cases. In Providence Bank vs. Bolling & Pittman, (4
Peters, 514;) Bank of Pennsylvania vs. the Commonwealth, (19 Penn. State Rep. 144 ;)
Logwood et al. vs. the Planters’ and Merchants’ Bank of Huntsville, ( A R. 23.)
It remains, then, but to say that the levy made by the defendant was a trespass,
and to give judgment pursuant to the agreement.
Messrs. Chandler, Smith, and Herndon for the company; Messrs. Dargan & Hall,
aud Messrs. Hamilton, for Mr. Daughdrill.

NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE.
N O T I C E S TO M A R I N E R S A N D N A V I G A T O R S .
FLASHING LIGHT AT TRAPAN I, SICILY.

The Sicilian government has given notice that on and after the evening of the 8th
o f February, 1855, in place of the old beacon on the Colombaja at Trapani there would
be exhibited a fixed light, with flashes every three minutes.
The apparatus is catadioptric, of the fourth order of the system of Fresnel. The
light is elevated 139 feet above the level of the sea, and will be visible 14 miles in
clear weather.
ISOLA DI VULCANO.

Also, that on Tsola di Vulcano, at Punta del Rosario, there would be exhibited on
the evening of March 8th, 1855, a similar fixed light, with flashes at intervals of three
minutes.
This light is elevated 458 feet above the level of the sea, and will be visible 14
miles in clear weather.
JOHN WASHINGTON, Ilydrographer.
Hydrographic O ffice, A dmiralty , L ondon, June 12, 1835.

This notice affects the following Admiralty Charts:— Trapani Anchorage, No. 189 ;
Sicily W. Coast, No. 187 ; Lipari Islands, No. 172 ; Sicily N. Coast, No. 167; Medit­
erranean General, No. 2,158; Sicily Island, No. 165; also, Light-house Book of the
Mediterranean, Nos. 96 and 97.
REVOLVING LIGHT ON THE MORRO DE SAN PAOLO, BRAZIL.

The Provincial Government of Bahia has given notice that on the 3d day of May
next, 1855, a revolving light will be exhibited on the Morro de San Paolo, Brazil.
The light-house stands on the summit of the Morro, or hill, at the entrance of the
harbor of San Paolo, in lat. 13° 2P 40" south, long. 38° 54' 48" west of Greenwich;
the tower is 80 feet high, and painted white.
The light is revolving, completing a revolution in one minute, and showing a bright
light for 15 seconds, followed by an eclipse of 45 seconds. It is dioptric, or refracting,
and of the first order of Fresnel; it is placed at an elevation of 276 feet above the
mean level of the sea, and is visible 20 miles in clear weather. A t a less distance
than 12 miles the eclipse is not total, but a faint light is seen.
This light must not be mistaken for the revolving light of San Antonio at the Bar
of Bahia, which lies 30 miles to the north-east, and revolves once in four minutes,
showing a red, a faint, and a bright light in succession.
Vessels approaching this part of the coast of Brazil are cautioned not to stand into
a less depth than 11 fathoms without a pilot.
JOHN WASHINGTON, Ilydrographer.
Hydrographic O ffice , A dmiralty , L ondon, 21st April, 1855.

This notice affects the Admiralty Charts:— Brazil, sheet 5, Pernambuco to Victoria,
No. 1,079, and the South American Lights List, No. 16.
COAST OF SPAIN ON THE ATLANTIC---- ALTERATION OF LIGHT AT CADIZ.

The Spanish government have given notice that on the 1st of June next the present
revolving light on the Castle of San Sabastian, at Cadiz, will be changed to a fixed
bright light, with red flashes at intervals of two minutes.




232

Statistics o f Population, etc.

The new illuminating apparatus is catadioptric, of the second order of Fresnel.
The light will be elevated 143 feet above the level of the sea, and be visible IS miles
in clear weather from the deck of a ship.
There has been no change in the position of the light.
JOHN WASHINGTON, Hydrographer.
Hydrographic Office, A dm ir alty , L ondon, 22d May, 1855.

This notice affects the following Admiralty Charts:—Mediterranean, No. 2,158 ;
Approaches to Gibraltar, No. 92 ; Cadiz Harhor, No. 86 ; also, Spanish Light-house
List, No. 180.

LIGHT Off CAPE SAff ANTONIO, PROVINCE OF ALICANTE,
H ydrographic Office,

A d m ir a lt y , L ondon,

December 28, 1854.

The Spanish government has given notice that on the 1st of January, 1855, a re­
volving light will be exhibited on the old tower of San Antonio, in the province of
Alicante, in 38° 48' 30" N., and 0° 48" E. of Greenwich.
This light will revolve every half minute, and, being 580 feet above the level of
the sea, will be visible in clear weather from the deck of a moderate-sized vessel at
the distance of 19 miles.
Admiralty Charts affected by this notice: No. 2,15S, General Chart of the Mediter­
ranean; No. 1,187, S. Coast of Spain, Alicante to Palm os; and Mediterranean Lits
Lighthouse, No. 8 a.

CHANGE OF LIGHT AT COVE POINT, NORTH OF PATUXET RIVER.
By order of the United States Lighthouse Board, A. M. Pennock, Lighthouse In­
spector Fifth District, under date Norfolk, Va., May 10, 1855, publishes the following
notice to-mariners :—
Notice is hereby given that the present fixed light at Cove Point will be changed
on or about the 15th of June next, to a fixed light varied by flashes. The light wil
be produced by a fifth order catadioptric apparatus; will be of the natural color, fixed
with a bright flash at intervals of one-and-a-half minute.

STATISTICS OF POPULATION!, &c .

RESULTS OF THE CENSUS OF GREAT BRITAIN,
NUM BER VII.

TERRITORIAL SUB DIVISIONS.

The Report here investigates, at great length, the territorial distribution of Britain
from the earliest times, including the divisions made by the Romans and Saxons suc­
cessively, and the state of things under the Heptarchy. It traces the division of the
country into shires, hundreds, and tithings, to Alfred the Great; and the circuits to
Henry II. ( a . d . 1179.) The counties in each circuit were enumerated in the annals
of the times, and the names of all the existing counties appear, except five.
The shire is an important sub-division of the kingdom; each has a lord lieutenant,
who is also keeper of the archives; a sheriff, an under-sheriff, and justices of the peace,
all appointed by the crown; each shire has also a county treasurer and a clerk of the
peace, each appointed by the lord lieutenant; and a county coroner, elected by the
freeholders. The revenue of the shires is chiefly derived from rates struck by the
justices o f peace in counties at quarter sessions, and is for the most part appropriated
in maintaining bridges, lunatic asylums, jails, prisoners, and police.
The terms “ hundreds” and “ tithings” had their origin in a system of numeration,
but whether they represented persons, families, or holdings, is difficult to determine,
In process of time, what was once a number became a name, and for a long period
the terms have ceased to measure either area or population, as is evidenced by the




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Statistics o f Population etc

233

fact that the hundreds in the survey after the Conquest and the hundreds still remain­
ing, differ widely in both elements, and, moreover, the present hundred is different in
extent in the various counties; for instance, in Gloucestershire, the hundred contains
on an average 29,000 acres; in Herefordshire, 49,000; and in Shropshire, 63,000.
The hide was the lot or share of the first settler.
The sessional divisions existing in all the counties of England and "Wales, for the
purposes of special sessions, are in general based on the hundreds and other ancient
county sub divisions. The justices hive power to alter these divisions for the conve­
nience of holding sessions, but they have no authority to alter the ancient hundreds.
There are 609 sessional divisions in England and Wales, and, for the purposes of assize
and jail delivery, eight circuits, besides the jurisdiction of the central criminal court.
A Saxon burgh, or borough, was a hundred, or an assemblage of hundreds, sur­
rounded by a moat or wall. As ancient boroughs fell into decay, new ones sprung
up, and many towns not formerly boroughs, have been created boroughs for purposes
nut very intelligible. The affairs of municipal boroughs are administered by a mayor,
alderman, and other functionaries.
The 196 reformed boroughs in Eugland and Wales contain a total population of
4,345,269 inhabitants: the population of 64 range under 5,000; 43 from 5,000 to
10,000; 68 from 10,000 to 50,000; 14 from 50,000 to 100,000; 4 from 100,000 to
200,000; and three above 200,000. The city of London is still unreformed, and there­
fore not included iu these. If inserted in the list, it would stand below Sheffield, as
having a population of only 127,869 inhabitants, a one-nineteenth portion of the popu­
lation of London ; and yet, forsooth, the Corporation claim to represent the metropolis.
Scotland contains 83 royal and municipal burghs, having a total population of
752,777 inhabitants; 55 have a population under 5,000; 16 from 5,000 to 10,000;
11 from 10,000 to 70,000; and 1, 148,000.
The minor subdivisions of townships, parishes, and manors, were re-distributed by
William the Conqueror, after the battle of Hastings, and apportioned among the
chieftains iu his arm y; but we must pass over these divisions for a slight notice of
ecclesiastical districts and dioceses.
The Act for the census of 1851 required the population of “ ecclesiastical districts’
to be enumerated.
“ The task,” states the Report, “ of obtaining accurately the population of the dis­
tricts was one of great difficulty. Designed exclusively for spiritual purposes, their
boundaries are quite ignored by the general public, and rarely known by any secular
officers; while, in many cases, even the clergy themselves, unprovided with maps or
plans, are uncertain as to the limits of their respective cures. Formed, too, in many
cases, without reference to any existing boundaries— often by imaginary lines, which
the progress of building speedily obliterates, and liable, as circumstances alter, to re­
peated reconstruction— it was sometimes almost impossible, with any confidence, to
ascertain the real present limits of these districts. No labor, however, was spared, in
order to overcome the obstacles and secure a trustworthy statement. The registrars,
when apportioning their districts among the enumerators, were directed to procure as
much information upon the boundaries of these new districts, as the incumbent might
be able and willing to supply; and very important aid was in this manner readily
afforded; and subsequently the accounts of population which resulted from these in­
quiries were forwarded from the census office to the various incumbents, for their in­
spection and revision.”
The division of the country ecclesiastically, in Dioceses, Arch-deaconries, and Dean­
eries, took place at a very early period. Most of the present bishoprics were founded
in Saxon times. The dioceses, on their first formation, had their limits co-extensive
with the boundaries of the kingdoms of the sovereigns who formed them ; but sub­
divisions were soon discovered to be necessary, and various princes subsequently made
repeated alterations, until at length the whole arrangement settled into its existing
shape.
The census here enters into an elaborate history of the changes in the ancient
boundaries of counties, parliamentary divisions of counties and boroughs. Most of the
existing subdivisions were made at an early period. Alfred has been named as the
great divider of the country, and the progress and modifications of the subdivisions
throw light on the progress of the population. At this point we appear to be peru­
sing some deep antiquarian treatise. At length we arrive at the discussion of the




,

234

Statistics o f Population etc.

recent territorial subdivisions of the country for the administration of the poor law,
and for purposes of registration ; and, after reciting the inconveniences and perplexities
which the variety of ecclesiastical, military and civil, fiscal and judicial, ancient and
modern, municipal and parliamentary subdivisions oi the country occasions, the Report
urges the adoption of a uniform system of territorial divisions in Great Britain, and
concludes ‘with a summary of the contents and general results of the census.

EMIGRATION TO THE UNITED STATES.
[The letter referred to in the following circular from the Hon. W i l l i a m L . M a r c y ,
Secretary of State, was published in a former number of the Merchants' Magazine.
The act of 1819, as suggested by the Secretary, should be amended so as to embrace
emigrants entering the United States by land.]— Ed. Mer. Mag.
D epartment

of

S t a t e , W ash in g ton ,

February 10, 1855.

In the letter which accompanied the last annual statement of passengers arriving
from foreign countries, it was remarked, with a view to obviate the absence of unifor­
mity in the returns from the collectors on which that statement is based, and to which
is attiibuted a considerable degree of inaccuracy during a period of many years, a cir­
cular had been addressed to those officers, accompanied by a schedule for their gen­
eral guidance. The effect o f this measure has been favorable. Greater uniformity
has characterized the returns; and the country of which the passengers intend to be­
come inhabitants, and the number of passengers who hive died on the voyage, have
for the first time been furnished. A tabular statement has also been added of all
passengers arriving in the United States dur.ng the last eleven years from September
80, 1843— the earliest period when any recapitulations were appended to the annual
statement furnishing the necessary data— to December 81, 1854.
The information conveyed under the heads of “ occupation” and “ country” still
continues, to some extent, vague and indefinite; and it is expected that the collectors
will hereafter cause their returns to conform, in this regard, to the recapitulation of
the statement now transmitted, a copy of which will be sent to each of them with that
view. It is, moreover, desirable, as was suggested in my last letter on this subject,
that the attention of collectors at frontier custom-houses, especially on the northern
border, should be directed to immigrants entering the country by land. The act of
1819, by which immigration returns are now controlled, seems to contemplate only
those passengers “ arriving by sea.” If this construction is deemed correct, an amend­
ment of that act is demanded.
I have the honor to be, sir, your obedient servant,
W . L. MARCY.
STATEMENT OF THE NUMBER OF PASSENGERS ARRIVING IN THE UNITED STATES BY SEA
FROM FOREIGN COUNTRIES FROM SEPT. 30, 1843, TO DEC. 31, 1854.

From

Sept. 30, 1843, to Sept. 30,1844___
1845___
1844
1845
1846___
1846
1847___
1848___
184'?
1849___
1848
1849 to Dec. 31, 1849___
1860___
Dec. 31, 1849
1851___
1850
1852___
1851
1853___
1852
1 8 5 4 ....
1853
T o ta l.........................




Males.

Females.

48,897
69,188
90,793
134,750
136,128
179,253
38,282
200,903
245,017

35,867
49.290
66.778
96,747
92,883
119,915
27,107
113,392
163,745

236.596
284,887

164,181
175,5S7

1,664,874

1,105,492

Sex not
stated.

1,400
897
1,057
472
442
181
1,038
66
398,470

404,029

Total.

84,764
119,804
158,648
232.554
229,843
309,610
66,570
315,333
408,828
398,470
400,777
460,474
3,174,395

235

Statistics o f Population, etc.
POPULATION OF ARKANSAS IN 1850 AND 1S54,

The result of the census of the State of Arkansas for 1854, -which has just been
completed, as compared with 1850, -will be seen in the following table:—

Population...........................
W h ite s .................................
Slaves ....................................
Free colored...........................
Lands cultivated...................
Cotton produced..................
Corn (1 8 5 3 ).........................
W h e a t.. . ......................... .
O ats........................................
THE PEE CENT AG E OF INCREASE IN

Of
Of
Of
Of

population......................
whites.............................
slaves...........................
lands cultivated............

1854

OYER

21 1 Of
Of
27 j Of
10 1 Of

1850.

1854.

209.887
162,189
47,100
608

253,117
199.224
60,279
614

781.530
65,344
8,893,939
199,639
656,283

857,180
160,779
11,536,969
332,535
1,040,208

1850, WAS

AS FOLLOWS'.----

cotton produced......... . . .
wheat............................
oats...............................
corn ..............................

150
130
50

It appears evident from this that the State of Arkansas is growing with great rapid­
ity ; but as the extent of lands cultivated does not correspond with the amount pro­
duced, (in income,) it is also plaiu lhat the land is better cultivated, more labor put
upon it, and this also appears from the increase of slaves being greater than the in­
crease o f whites.
The State of Arkansas has nearly 5,000,000 of acres of swamp lands, which the
Governor proposes to give partly to levee the Mississippi and Red rivers, and partly
to railways.
He commends the interests of the Fulton and Cairo Railroad Company to the Legis­
lature. This company has a huge grant of land from the government of the United
States, and has already had the route surveyed.

NATIVE AND FOREIGN POPULATION OF THE SOUTHERN STATES,
The Union has turned to the last census returns and made out the following table,
which shows the native, the foreign, and Catholic population in each Southern State
in 1850. It would seem from this table that “ Know-Nothingism ” has not, in for­
eigners or Roman Catholics, a very powerful enemy, numerically, to com bat:—
Foreign.
1.

Alabama............................
2. Arkansas...........................
3. Florida................................
4.
Georgia..............................
5. Kentucky...........................
6. Louisiana............................
7 . Maryland...........................
8. Mississippi.........................
9. Missouri..............................
10 . North Carolina.................
11. South Carolina................. ...........
12. Tennessee.........................
13. T exas.................................
14. Virginia.............................




8,508

306,514

N ative.

R . Catholic.

426,514
162,189
47,203
521,572
761.413
255,491
417,943
295,718
592,004
553,028
274,563
756,836
154,034
894,800

5,200
1.600
1,850
4,250
24.240
37,780
37,100
3,250
33,950
1,400
6,030
1,400
6,760
7,930

5,993,308

172,740

236

Statistics o f Agriculture, etc.

STATISTICS OF AGRICULTURE. &c.
BRIEF HISTORY OF KENTUCKY CATTLE,
BY BRUTUS J. CLAY.

The Patton stock, so called from the person who first introduced them into Ken­
tucky, were brought from Virginia about the year 1785 by two of the sons of Matthew
Patton, Sr., then a resident of Virginia, and Mr. Gay, his son-in law— a bull and sev­
eral heifers, (half blooded English cattle, so called at that day,) being from the stock
of Mr. Patton, Sr., the product o f a bull purchased by him of a Mr. Gough, of Mary­
land, importer of English cattle. This bull was very large and rough, with very long
horns. In 1790 Mr. Patton, Sr., moved to Kentucky, and brought with him six more
cows, calves of this same bull. They were large, somewhat coarse and rough, with
very long horns, wide between the points and turning up considerably; the bags and
teats very large; good milkers, differing very much from what was called the Long­
horns of 1817, so says Mr. B. Harrison, of Woodford county, Kentucky, (see Franklin
Farmer, p. 196, vol. 2.)
About the year 1795 Mr. Patton, Sr., also introduced a bull and heifer purchased of
this same Mr. Gough, said to have been imported; the bull a deep-red with heavy
horns—the heifer white, the horns turned down. From the above-mentioned cattle,
all the Patton stock of Kentucky has sprung ; being generally large but coarse, horns
turned up, good milkers, bad handlers, and difficult to fatten early. These, at this
day, have been so mixed with the Durham and other breeds, that I suppose there are
none to be found anywhere of the pure blood.
In 1803 Daniel Harrison brought to Kentucky a two-year old bull, called Plato,
purchased of Mr. Miller, of Virginia, (an importer of English cattle,) said to have
been out o f an imported bull, dark-red or brindle, very large, small head and neck,
light, short horns, and heavy fleshed. He was bred mostly to Patton cows, and pro­
duced some fine milkers. He was taken to Ohio about 1812.
In 1810 Captain Smith, of Fayette, purchased of this same Mr. Miller, of Virginia,
a bull called Buzzard, a brindle, large and coarse, sired by the same bull as Plato, out
o f a different cow, being of Longhorn stock, purchased of Matthew Patton, Sr.
In 1813 Mr. Inskip came to Kentucky and brought with him a large bull called the
Inskip, brindle, a mixture o f the Miller and Patton stock, left in Virginia by Patton
when he came to Kentucky.
In 1814 Daniel Harrison purchased of Mr. Ringgold, of Virginia or Maryland, a bull
and heifer called the Cary cattle, white pied and red, bad feeders, and not in very
high repute in Kentucky as fine cattle.
In 1814 the Messrs. Hutchcraft, of Bourbon county, brought from Ohio the bull
called Shaker, purchased from the society of Shakers, and said to have been descended
from the Miller stock.
In 1817 Mr. James Prentice, of Lexington, Kentucky, imported from England two
bulls— John Bull and Prince Regent—one of the celebrated Durham improved breed,
and the other of the improved milk breed. John Bull was a deep-red, fine size and
form, delicate, down-pointed horns. Prince Regent was pied, white, with red spots.
They were purchased of Nat. Hart, of Woodford county, and John Fayette, for
$1,300, and have produced some good stock.
In 1817 the Hon. H. Clay imported from England three head of Herefords— a bull
cow, and heifer, and placed them with Isaac Cunningham, of Clarke, one of the best
cattle raisers in Kentucky at that time. I have never seen one in the State.




,

.

Statistics o f Agriculture etc

237

EAST INDIAN AND AMERICAN COTTON.
Recent investigations in England appear to have established the fact that our
planters have nothing to fear from the rivalry o f the planters in India. It would
gratify the people of England to be able to supply their own looms with the produce
o f their own possessions, but nature seems to have interposed insuperable obstacles.
The investigations to which we refer were set on foot by a committee of the House of
Commons, before whom the leading men of Manchester were minutely examined
Without troubling our readers with details, we may sum up the results as follows:—
1. India is five months’ sail from Liverpool; America, one month’s.
2. The consumption of cotton in India is so enormous as to render the planters
comparatively indifferent to a foreign market. India is a country of 150,000 000 of
inhabitants. “ In India,” said one gentleman, “ cotton is used for all the purposes that
hemp and flax, and hair and wool, are used in this country. The home consumption
is something enormous. I exhibited at the Asiatic Society the cloth of a man’s dress
and a female's dress, and the weight of those two was five pounds; the average dress
of each inhabitant, therefore, was two-anda-half pounds; and if we multiply that by
the population, assuming it to be 150,000,000 over the whole of India, it will amount
to 375,000,000 of pounds. But it is used for beds, pillows, cushions, awnings, cano­
pies, and ceilings, draperies and hangings, carpets, screens, curtains, quilting and pad­
ding of every description, both for padding clothes and for saddles, for tents, ropes for
tents, halters for horses— and, in fact, applied to all the purposes that hemp and wool
are used for in this country. I assumed at that time, without any correct data, that
it would require as much more annually for such purposes, which would make an
amount of 750,000,000 pounds.”
3. The India cotton is, for the purposes of the English manufacturer, 20 per cent
inferior in quality to the American. Mr. Basley, a noted manufacturer, in reply to
questions, stated that it was found by experience that the waste in using Surat cotton
is 25 per cent, while from the American the loss is 12£ per cent; that is, from every
100 lbs. of Surat cotton which the spinner takes into his mill, he produces 75 lbs. of
yarn; and that from every 100 lbs. of American cotton, he produces 87£ lbs.; also
that the same machinery produces a larger quantity of yarn from the American cot­
ton than from the Surat cotton. And when asked whether that does not arise from
the smaller number o f breakages, he replied:—
“ Y e s; and from the American cotton requiring fewer turns from the spindle, and
for the quantity of yarn coming through the rollers, less twist per inch.”
4. Much o f the Indian cotton comes to market so badly cleaned that the waste is
excessive.*

THE SEA ISLAND COTTON OF FLORIDA.
Sea Island cotton is one of the’ grand productions of Florida. From her insular
position, quality of soil, and blandness of climate, this delicate and valuable crop is
very successfully cultivated. According to the Florida News, this crop is produced
the best where the soil is composed of clay, strongly mixed with vegetable decom
position. As a manure for cotton lands, sea-weeds and marsh-mud are found to be
excellent, increasing the quantity of the crop without injuring the fineness and glossi­
ness of the staple.
The cotton seed is planted in rows from six to eight feet apart, and the plant kept
free from weeds by the use of the hoe and plow. . The shrub grows rapidly, and
throws out a profusion of rich, yellow blossoms, and at length the pods appear.
These, bursting open about September, reveal their snowy treasures to the planter’s




,

238

.

Statistics o f Agriculture etc

gaze. The field must now be picked, as exposure to the weather injures the fine
gloss of the cotton. The down is collected, exposed on a scaffold to dry, and is then
passed through the gin, whose thousand fingers quickly separate it from the seed,
after which it is packed in bales and is ready for the market. As the pods do not
open all at a time, several pickings are necessary to clean the field. The cotton shrub
grows very luxuriantly in Florida; the writer has seen a specimen produced in Marion
county, which more resembled a tree than a shrub, the lower branches being sufficient
to sustain the weight of a man. The cotton crop is liable to many accidents; the
caterpillar sometimes destroys whole fields of it; the red-bug pierces the pod and
discolors the cotton, and a heavy wind sometimes entirely destroys the pod. Good
cotton lauds will yield three or four hundred pounds to the acre, and it is said that
one hand may cultivate about three acres. The price of the article varies according
to the quality and state o f the market, from fifteen to twenty cents per pound.
To every hundred pounds of cotton produced, there are about ten bushels of seed
weighing forty pounds to the bushel. Experiments have been made in turning the
seed to account, by extracting oil from it; and we believe the result has proved that
about half a gallon of crude oil may be obtained from a bushel. The oil cake may be
also used for cattle and horses. It is thought by some that the seed used in this
way would pay one-half of the labor required for the cultivation of the crop.

THE WINE DISEASE AT OPORTO, PORTUGAL.
It is a well known fact, that more port wine, or the article of that name, is consumed
in the city of London, than the entire product of the Oporto wine district. But very
little of the wine consumed in the United States has a particle of the juice of the
grape in it. A letter recently received at the State Department, Washington, from
Oporto, Portugal, says, that the produce of the wine district, in 1854, has been about
19,000 pipes, although there have been sent to the judges at Regoa samples of 49,000
pipes for approval. More than one-half of this wine is that which was refused in 1853
as being unsound, and unfit for transportation. It has since been treated with gerofrizci and boja, and in all probability much of this noxious stuff found its wTay down
the Douro in the Spring, and was exported to different parts of the world. The Oporto
correspondent thinks there have not been three thousand pipes of good wholesome
wine made in the Douro this last vintage. The wine known as the green wine, the
principal drink of the native Portuguese, has been almost totally destroyed ; and in
the Vienna district not a pipe has been made. In the Spring of 1854 the vines put
forth their shoots and leaves with great vigor, and the growth was very rapid. The
show of fruit was greater than ever known in that country before. The farmers anti
cipated a good vintage, but as the season advanced their hopes were blasted. Through­
out the kingdom the vines begin to show symptoms of the fatal “ odium;” by the
middle of June the leaves had the autumnal tints, began to curl, and the berries in­
dicated a sickly appearance. Many vineyards had the appearance they usually have
in the month of November. In the early part of July, many vines put forth a second
crop of leaves and fruit, and the berries nearly ripened before they were attacked
with the “ odium.”

THE FRUIT TRADE.
Some thirty vessels are engaged in the fruit trade between New York and the
West Indies. A much larger trade in fruits is carried on with ports in the Mediter­
ranean, which supply annually something like seventy or eighty cargoes— principally
oranges. The West Indian importations of last year are estimated as follows:—
Seventy-five thousand bunches of bananas from Baracoa, sold here at from $1 25




,

239

Statistics o f Agriculture etc.

to $1 50 per bunch— $93,750 to $112,500; 2,000,000 Baracoa cocoa-nuts, sold at from
$25 to $80 per 100— $500,000 to $600.0u0; 20 cargoes of pineapples from Matanzis
and Havana, aeveraging 80,000 dozen per cargo, and sold at from $8 to $12 per 100
— $128 0U0 to $192,0U0 ; 20,000 dozen
Barts pines, sold at from $7 50 to $8 per
100— $18,000 to $19,200; 200,000 dozen from the Bahama Islands— $15,000 to
$16,000 ; 10 cargoes of Havana oranges, averaging 350,000, at 3 cents each— $10,500 •
have been received thu9 far the present season, the crop being more abundant than
at any time during the last fifteen years. West Indian oranges arrive in October,
and are most abundant in January and February. Bananas and pineapples begin to
arrive about the first of April, and are most plentiful during the succeeding three
months. Cocoa nuts arrive all the year round. Mediterranean oranges, -which come
in boxes, and are most extensively shipped to different part9 of the United States, be­
gin to be received in January, but not extensively until April or May.
The above list comprises but few of the foreign fruits imported— and these only
from the West Indies. A few minutes’ calculation will show the sum paid for the
articles enumerated in the fist amount to not less than $850,000. The total amount
paid for foreign fruit last year was not less than $20,000,000.
Our exports are comparatively trifling. With the very best soil and climate in the
world for growing fruit, embracing twenty three degrees of latitude, we pay out an­
nually to foreign countries cash enough to stock a Territory with the choicest varieties
of fruit trees. Besides, fruit grown in our own soil and climate is better adapted to
our people, and far more healthful than that which is imported from other climates.

PHILADELPHIA CATTLE MARKET.
The following tabular statement presents the number of cattle received in Phila­
delphia during each of the last eleven years, with the exception of the large number
brought in by butchers, of which no account can be obtained
Beeves.
1 8 5 4 .....................................

Cows.

Swine.

Sheep.

Totals.

1 5 ,3 5 0

7 8 ,0 0 0

6 1 ,0 0 0

2 2 7 ,7 5 0
2 1 2 ,6 0 0

1 8 5 3 ..................................... .......................

7 1 ,9 0 0

1 5 ,1 0 0

5 3 ,3 0 0

7 2 ,3 0 0

1 8 5 2 ...................................... .......................

7 1 ,2 0 0

1 4 ,4 2 0

4 9 ,2 0 0

8 1 ,2 0 0

2 1 6 ,0 2 0

1 8 5 1 ...................................... .......................

6 9 ,1 0 0

1 5 ,4 0 0

4 6 ,7 0 0

8 3 ,0 0 0

2 i4 ,2 0 0

1 8 5 0 ...................................... .......................

6 8 ,7 5 0

1 5 ,1 2 0

4 6 ,9 0 0

8 2 ,5 0 0

2 1 3 ,2 7 0

1 8 4 9 ...................................... .......................

6 8 ,1 2 0

1 4 ,3 2 0

4 6 ,7 0 0

7 7 ,1 1 0

2 0 6 ,2 5 0

1 8 4 8 ...................................... .......................

6 7 ,2 1 1

1 4 ,1 0 8

4 7 ,6 9 0

7 •'■,820

2 0 5 ,8 2 9

1 8 4 7 ...................................... .......................

5 0 ,2 7 0

1 6 .7 0 0

2 2 ,4 5 0

5 7 ,8 0 0

1 4 7 ,2 2 0

1 8 4 6 ...................................... .......................

4 7 ,5 0 0

1 4 , 4 SO

1 8 ,6 7 0

5 5 ,8 1 0

1 3 6 ,4 6 0

1 8 4 5 .................................... .......................

5 1 ,2 9 8

1 8 .b 0 5

2 6 ,4 5 5

5 6 ,9 4 8

1 5 3 ,5 0 6

1 8 4 4 ..................................... .........................

4 5 ,7 3 2

1 8 ,5 1 9

2 5 ,4 2 0

5 1 ,0 5 6

1 4 3 ,7 2 7

CULTIVATION OF HOPS IN ENGLAND.
In June number of the Merchants' Magazine we published a brief sketch of the
history with some statistics of hops in the United States, derived from the excellent
report of C. L. Flint, Esq., the Secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture.
From a recent English authority we learn that the gross total number of statute acres
o f land under cultivation for hops in England in the year 1854 amounted to 53,823
acres, of which ll,4 9 0 f were in the district of Canterbury, 2,050 in Hants, 4,548f in
Hereford, 1,4<)3£ in the Isle of Wight, 10,337£ in the district o f Rochester, l,3 7 7 f in
the district of Stourbridge, 1,224 in that o f Worcester, and 11,690 acres in Sussex.
The total amount of duty charged on the hops in the various collections of England,
the growth of the year 1854, was £86,422 against £47,327 under the old duty of
1 12 20d. per lb., £34,981 under the new duty of £ 8 20d. per lb., and £4,113 for the
additional duty of 5 per cent. The average amount of duty per acre is stated to be
£1 12s. Id.




,

240

Railroad, Canal and Steamboat Statistics.

RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS.
COST OF PASSENGER AND FREIGHT TRANSPORTATION BY RAILWAY.
Boston, June 1st, 1855.
F re em an H unt , Esq.,

E ditor o f the Merchants' Magazine , etc :—

D ea r S i r : — Inclosed you -will find a table exhibiting the cost of passenger and
freight transportation upon the principal railways of New York and Massachusetts,
submitted for insertion in the pages of your valuable journal. The statement is com­
piled from the legal returns made by the companies of each State to the Legislature
thereof. In the returns of the New York companies, the expenses of each department
are divided by the companies, and the division stated in each report. But in the re­
turn from the Massachusetts companies the division is not made, but on the other hand
a large amount o f expenses are designated as “ miscellaneous.”
Yours, truly,
DAVID M. BALFOUR.
PASSENGER DEPARTMENT.

juengin :viaxiin miles mum
Names of railways.
including grade
branches, p.m.
New York Central.....
582
New York and Erie...
464
Hudson River..............
144
Harlem..........................
183
O gdensburg................
119
Buffalo, Corning <fe N. York.
100
Watertown and Rome.......
97
Buffalo and New York City.
92
69
30
Boston and Worcester.......
W estern......................
155
83
Boston and Providence . . . .
55
84
28
10
Boston and Low ell......
Old Colony and Fall River.
87 45
Fitchburg......................
68
40
Boston and M aine......
83
47
Eastern..........................
93
40
T ota l.....................

2,379

Receipts
from
Names of railways.
passengers,
mails, &c.
New YTork Central............... $3,488,514
New York and E r ie ...........
1,990,369
Hudson River........................
1,289,841
Harlem...........................
605,084
Ogdensburg.........................
149,980
Buffalo, Corning &, N. York.
67,981
Watertown and Rom e........ »
168,181
Buffalo and New York City
137,917
Boston and Worcester . . . . .
547,397
W estern...............................
838,971
Boston and Providence........
329,156
Boston and L o w e ll.............
175,240
Old Colony and Fall River.
427,137
313,754
Fitchburg...............................
Boston and M aine...............
560,935
Eastern...................................
473,753
T ota l




ru n by
passen ger
tr a in s .

P as= en g ers
c a r r ie d n
th e ca rs.

P assen gers
car d
ca t r e d
each
o n e m ile , m * r u n .

2 ,1 1 1 .0 3 8

2 ,6 5 6 .8 7 4

1 6 3 ,8 7 4 ,4 7 3

77

1 ,4 9 6 ,6 6 1

1 ,1 2 5 ,1 2 3

9 6 ,6 6 3 ,7 0 9

65
127

6 0 4 .4 4 3

1 ,5 3 9 ,0 3 6

7 6 ,8 3 0 ,6 6 0

7 4 4 ,3 0 9

3 ,2 0 9 .4 0 2

2 1 ,7 2 6 ,8 5 6

29

1 4 1 ,8 4 5

1 0 2 ,3 6 3

4 ,3 0 0 ,5 5 5

29

1 2 0 ,6 4 0

1 1 2 .1 4 6

2 ,5 7 6 ,9 6 2

21

1 5 2 ,8 1 4

1 8 5 .3 9 8

5 .6 1 1 ,4 0 0

37

2 5 8 ,2 4 0

1 1 9 ,6 3 7

6 ,4 4 7 ,1 4 0

25

3 3 6 ,2 4 4

1 ,6 0 8 ,6 0 2

2 0 ,4 0 8 ,2 5 7

79

3 2 8 ,2 5 6

5 9 1 ,5 5 9

2 8 ,6 8 4 ,5 5 2

87

2 1 9 ,4 2 9

8 5 2 ,2 1 0

1 1 ,9 9 6 ,2 1 8

55

1 6 0 .3 9 5

6 0 4 ,1 0 6

9 ,2 2 1 ,7 6 1

57

2 8 5 ,0 9 5

1 ,2 8 2 ,6 1 0

2 7 .9 4 9 ,9 9 5

63

2 8 2 .5 6 1

1 ,2 5 1 ,6 0 0

1 7 ^ 3 1 2 ,2 0 8

61

4 1 0 .1 5 9

1 ,9 6 9 ,4 6 2

2 8 ,4 7 3 ,8 7 9

69

3 0 8 ,4 8 0

1 ,1 8 1 ,5 1 4

1 6 ,0 2 9 ,3 8 0

62

5 3 4 ,1 0 7 ,0 1 5

67

7 ,9 1 3 ,2 6 9

1 8 ,3 6 9 ,3 0 4
PASSENGER

EXPENSES.

R e p a ir s o f
p assen ger
cars.

P r o p o r tio n
o f oth e r
exp en ses.

$ 9 0 4 ,3 2 1

$ 3 4 7 ,6 9 3

$ 5 3 6 ,8 4 8 $ 1 ,7 8 7 ,8 6 2

4 9 8 ,4 4 1

2 2 9 ,6 3 0

2 2 2 ,4 2 9

5 7 1 ,1 8 4

1 1 1 ,7 1 7

1 4 1 ,6 4 2

8 2 4 ,5 4 3

2 4 3 ,7 4 2

5 2 ,9 2 2

1 1 7 ,0 0 0

4 1 3 ,6 6 5

4 1 ,0 7 4

2 9 ,2 7 5

5 0 ,5 4 7

1 2 0 ,8 9 6

2 1 ,8 3 7

7 ,2 9 7

9 ,1 9 2

3 8 ,3 2 6

5 1 ,3 4 8

1 0 ,3 8 1

2 6 .5 1 8

8 8 ,3 4 7

6 0 ,0 8 8

1 9 ,5 3 4

2 2 ,6 6 5

1 0 2 ,2 8 7

5 9 ,3 8 0

1 6 ,7 2 2

1 6 7 ,7 1 5

2 4 3 ,8 2 6

6 6 ,7 3 5

2 5 ,2 2 5

1 7 3 ,2 6 5

2 6 5 ,2 2 5

3 5 ,0 6 8

1 3 ,4 9 0

8 5 ,8 7 5

1 3 4 ,4 3 3

2 4 ,7 9 8

2 1 ,6 0 7

8 9 ,2 8 7

1 3 5 ,6 9 2

5 0 ,3 3 7

2 7 ,1 1 3

1 5 9 ,8 5 3

2 3 7 ,3 2 3

6 0 ,6 4 5

1 2 ,0 8 3

1 0 5 ,3 4 7

1 6 8 ,0 7 5

6 3 ,3 4 5

1 1 ,2 5 0

1 0 1 ,2 5 7

1 7 5 ,8 5 2

6 5 ,5 6 9

2 0 ,5 1 2

9 2 ,8 4 6

1 7 8 ,9 2 7

S a la r ie s ,
w ages, & c.

$11,514,200 $2,807,921

T o t a l.
9 5 0 ,6 0 0

$956,451 $2,101,406 $5,865,778

Railroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
Rates of Net inpassenger cometrom
expenses passengers,
per cent. mails, &c.
New York Central...............
$52 00 $1,650,552
New York and Erie.............
47 75 1,039,869
Hudson River.......................
465,298
63 93
H arlem ..................................
68 36
191,420
80 61
29,084
Ogdensburg...........................
Buffalo, Corning & N. York.
56 39
29,645
"Watertown and R o m e.. . .
62 53
79,834
Buffalo and New York City.
35,630
74 16
Boston and Worcester.........
44 54
303,571
Western.................................
573,746
31 61
Boston and Providence . . . .
40 84
194,723
39,548
Boston and Low ell...............
77 43
Old Colony and Fall River.
55 56
189,814
Fitchburg.............................
53 57
145,679
Boston and M ain e...............
31 35
385,083
Eastern...................................
294,826
37 77
Total...............................
$50 94 $5,648,422
Net in­
come Irom
passengers,
mails, &c.,
Names of railways.
per mile
run.
New York Central...................
$0 77
0 69
New York and Erie.................
Hudson River...........................
0 77
Harlem.......................................
0 25
Ogdeosburg.............................
0 19
Buffalo, Coming and New Y o r k .............
0 24
Watertown and Rome.............
0 52
Buffalo and New Y'ork C ity ..
0 13
Boston and Worcester.............
0 90
W estern ....................................
1 75
Boston and Providence............
0 89
Boston and L o w e ll.................
0 24
Old Colony and Fall River . . .
0 67
Fitchburg.................................
0 52
Boston and Maine.....................
0 94
Eastern.......................................
0 96
$0 70
Total.................................
Names of railways.

Names of railways.
New York Central................
New York and Erie..............
Hudson R iv e r........................
Harlem...................................
Ogdensburg............................
Buffalo, Corning & N. Y o r k ..
Watertown and R o m e .........
Buffalo and New York City.
Boston and Worcester...........
Western..................................
Boston and Providence.........
Boston and L o w e ll...............
Old Colony and Fall River..
Fitchburg...............................
Boston and Maine.................
Eastern.................................
Total...............................
V O L . X X X I I I .-----N O . I I .




FREIGHT DEPARTMENT.
Miles run
Tons o f
b v freight
freight

and other
trains.
1,200,240
1,466,823
278,932
255,584
269,157
55,320
97,565
66,430
215,603
661,176
111,161
126,063
104,108
222,473
158,430
82,080
6,370,145

carried in
the cars.
549,805
743,250
156,715
114,180
219,250
44,460
132,859
51,430
324,990
355,063
149,540
325,960
236,297
478,606
384,784
118,013
4,385,192
16

241

Rates of
Receipts Expenses
of pas­
net income
from
from
passensengers,
mails,
passengers, gers, mails,
mails, &c.,
&c., per &c.,per
percent.
mile run. m. run.
$48 00
$1 62
$0 85
0 64
52 25
1 33
1 36
36 07
2 13
31 64
0 81
0 66
19 39
1 01
0 82
43 61
0 56
0 32
0 58
47 47
1 10
0 40
25 84
0 62
55 46
1 63
0 73
0 81
68 39
2 56
0 61
59 16
1 50
0
85
22 57
1 09
44 44
1 50
0 83
0 69
46 43
1 11
0 43
68 65
1 37
0 58
62 23
1 54
$0 74
$49 06
$1 44
Net in­
Receipts
Expenses
from
o f pas- come from
passengers.
sengers, passeng’rs,
mails, &c., mails, Sec., mails, &c.,
carried
carried
carried
one mile. one mile. one mile.
2 098
1.091
1.007
1.076
2.059
0.9S3
1.691
1.085
0.606
2.785
1.904
0.881
3.487
2.811
0.676
2.638
1.487
1.151
2.997
1.574
1.423
2.139
1.586
0.553
2.073
0.923
1 160
2.924
0.924
2 000
2.744
1.121
1.623
1.900
1.471
0.429
2.380
1.322
1 .058
1.812
0.971
0.841
1.970
0.618
1.352
2.955
1.116
1.839
2.156
1.098
1.058
Tons
Tons of
freight
freight
carried Receipts
carried
each m. from
freight.
one mile.
run.
81,168,080
68 $2,479,821
130,808,034
89
3,369,590
18,141,520
55
464,145
337,311
9,988,096
39
440,144
19,684,332
74
1,825.768
33
55,176
222,796
8,200,288
85
116,858
4,113,637
62
405,499
12,057,332
56
924,973
32,284,823
49
214,594
5,176,144
47
267,252
8,223,586
65
3,885,233
37
222,519
11,869,692
53
390,885
297,446
9,165,196
58
105,445
2,896,771
35
359,488,832
67 $10,314,449

242

R ailroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
F R E IG H T E X PE N S E S.

Names o f railways.

New York Central...............
New York and Erie.............
Hudson R iv e r .....................
Harlem...................................
Ogdensburg ..........................
Buffalo, Corning &. N. York.
"Watertown and Rome.........
Buffalo and New York City
Boston and Worcester........
Western.................................
Boston and Providence__ _
Boston and L o w e ll.............
Old Colony and Fall River.
Fitchburg...............................
Boston and Maine.................
Eastern..................................
Total..............................

Repairs of Proportion
freight
o f other
cars.
expenses.
Total.
wages, &c.
$684,990 $311,399
$303,790 $1,300,179
330,951
916,799
380,358 1,687,108
234,680
64,480
37,108
336,208
27,860
58,354
204,063
117,849
64,022
92,803
295,319
138,553
19,411
8,171
34,069
6,487
23,592
28,923
18,896
131,411
20,050
22,665
57,738
100,453
109,129
20,494
221,080
350,703
98,398
532,762
780,016
148,856
39,596
10,621
197,032
146,815
187,335
53,193
22,790
111,352
262,947
53,736
21,575
177,636
272,479
472,366
81,409
118,418
9,248
240,488
309,377
59,641
6,223
93,480
120,651
20,948
$2,874,374 5 ,156,658 $2,728,264 $6,759,296

Names o f railways.

New York Central.......................
New York and Erie.....................
Hudson River...............................
H arlem ..........................................
Ogdensburg...................................
Buffalo, Corning and New York.
Watertown and Rom e.................
Buffalo and New York City . . . .
Boston and Worcester.................
Western..........................................
Boston and Providence...............
Boston and Low ell.......................
Old Colony and Fall River..........
Fitchburg......................................
Boston and Maine..........................
Eastern...........................................
T o ta l..................... ................

Names o f railways.

New York Central.......................
New York and Erie.....................
Hudson River...............................
H arlem .........................................
Ogdensburg...................................
Buffalo, Corning and New York.
Watertown and Rom e.................
Buffalo and New York C ity... . .
Boston and Worcester.................
W estern........................................
Boston and Providence...............
Boston and Lowell.......................
Old Colony and Fall River.........
Fitchburg......................................
Boston and M aine.......................
Eastern...........................................
T o ta l......................................


I


Salaries,

Net
income
from
freight
$1,119,642
1,682,482
127,937
133,248
144,766
21,107
91,385
16,400
54,796
144,957
17,662
19,917

$3,555,153
Net
income
from
freight
each
mile run.
$0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

99
15
46
52
54
38
94
26
25
22
16
63

....
....
...
. . . .

$0 66

Rates of
freight
expenses
p. cent.
$52 43
50 07
72 44
60 50
67 11
61 75
58 98
85 97
86 48
84 33
91 82
70 10

$65 53

Rates of Receipts Ex pens’s
net income
from ot freight
lrom
freight
each
freight
each mile mile
percent.
run.
run.
$47 67
$2 07
$1 08
49 93
2 30
1 15
27 56
1 67
1 21
39 50
1 32
0 80
32 89
1 64
1 10
38 25
1 00
0 62
41 02
2 29
1 35
14 03
1 51
1 76
13 52
1 88
1 63
15 67
1 40
1 18
8 18
1 93
1 77
2 12
29 90
1 49
2 14
2 43
1 76
2 12
1 88
1 95
1 28
1 47
$34 47
$1 92
$1 26
Receipts
Expenses
Net infrom
of freight comefr’m
per tun
freight
freight
per ton
carried.
per ton
carried
one
curried
one mile.
mile. one mile.
cents.
cents.
cents.
1.602
3.055
1.453
2.576
1.290
1.286
2.558
1.853
0.705
3.377
2.042
1.334
2.236
1.501
0.735
3.022
1.866
1.156
1.603
2.717
1.114
2.841
2.442
0.399
3.363
2.909
0.454
2.865
2.416
0.449
4.146
3.807
0.339
3.250
2.278
0.972
6.727
6.510
3.293
3.979
3.245
3.362
3 640
4.165
2.870
1.880
0.990

R ailroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.

243

OCEAN AND INLAND STEAMERS OUT OF THE PORT OF NEW YORK.
N U M B ER III.

“ THE METROPOLIS.”
In the June (1855) number of our magazine we commenced a new series of descrip­
tions o f the first class steamers out of New York. In that number we spoke of the
“ Commonwealth,” and of the Norwich route to Boston, Worcester, and Northern and
Eastern New England, to which that elegant steamer belongs. In the last (July)
number we described the beautiful “ Plymouth Rock,” of the Stonington line to Bos­
ton, and briefly referred to the history of that route.
Early in June the proprietors of the Bay State Line between New York and
Boston, by way of Newport and Fall River, brought out their queenly boat, the
“ Metropolis,” which had been for some time announced, and of which partial descrip­
tions had been given.
This is certainly a most remarkable steamer, and is entitled to special notice at our
hands. She is undoubtedly the largest boat now running; her machinery is the most
massive and powerful ever made. In the construction o f her hull and boilers she
differs materially from all others, and in some respects has no equal. For strength,
speed, safety, and in the extent and convenience, as well as elegance of her accom­
modations, she is not surpassed. The utmost care and most liberal expenditure of
money has been bestowed upon her. The cost, which was about three hundred and
fifty thousand dollars, is a sufficient proof that no expeuse has been spared to make
her everything that is desirable in a steamboat.
She has now been running for several weeks, and her qualities have been fully
tested, and in no respect has she failed to satisfy the most sanguine expectations
Her hull was built by Mr. Samuel Sneeden at Greenpoint, and is much admired for
its beautiful proportions and graceful lines. She is 2,108 tons burden; 347 feet in
length; 16 feet depth of hold ; 47 feet breadth of beam; and 82 feet over the guards.
She has 7 kelsons of immense size. Her saloon deck extends over her whole size, and
the side timbers, which are carried up to meet it, are braced in the same manner as
the first class sea-going steamers, with upwards of 50 tons of iron bars. These cross
each other diagonally, and are bolted together, giving her great strength, and dis­
pensing with the unsightly hog-frame which disfigures most other steamboats. She
has 98 state-rooms, many of them with wide berths, and doors communicating for the
convenience of families; they are arranged two tiers deep on each side, leaving be­
tween them a spacious and elegant saloon, richly and tastefully decorated and fur­
nished ; comfortable sleeping accommodations for 800 persons can be supplied. The
engine was made by Messrs. Stillman, Allen & Co., at the Novelty Works, and is con­
sidered their master-piece. It is a beam engine of 200 horse-power,and works with the
most perfect ease.
The cylinder is 105 inches in diameter, with a twelve-feet stroke. Before it was
placed in her, a horse and buggy were driven through it ; a party of twenty-two per­
sons dined in i t ; one hundred and five men stood in it at one time. Its great size
gives it a large increase of power, with a low pressure of steam. Twenty-five pounds
to the square inch being the full working pressure, this is twenty pounds less than is
carried on the usual plan.
The wheels are of wrought-iron, 42 feet in diameter ; the working beam weighs 24
tons, and the shafts 25 tons each. She has 4 separate boilers, with 8 furnaces, and
is fitted with vertical brass tubes like the Collins steamers—the only river or Sound
boat upon this plan. With such extraordinary motive powers, it was of course e x ­
pected she would be fast, and in this respect she has surpassed all expectation, having




244

Railroad, Canal, and, Steamboat Statistics.

made the passage from New York to Tall River (183 miles) in 8 hours and 45 min­
utes— averaging over 20 miles an hour for the whole distance. Such steamboat trav­
eling has rarely been equaled, and almost comes up to railroad speed.
In regard to safety, every precaution has been taken to guard against accident; she
has a full supply of anchors, cables, the most approved pumps, fire engines and hose>
and buckets o f water distributed throughout the boat. She carries ten of Francis’s
Patent Metallic Lifeboats of large size, and so arranged that they can'all be launched
with safety in fifteen minutes. In addition to these, tin life-preservers are placed in
every state-room and berth.
Of her commander, Captain Brown, it is unnecessary to speak. Twenty years of
experience on Long Island Sound, and for the last seven in the Bay State, have estab­
lished his reputation with the public. A ll the officers and engineers are men of
great experience and the highest capability for their duties. In the steward’s de­
partment, the high character o f the line is fully sustained. A ll her linens, damask
table-cloths, and napkins, sheets, pillow-cases, <tc., were made at the new American
Linen Manufactory, at Fall River— (of this establishment we shall speak hereafter.)
In her entire construction, and in all her arrangements and appointments, it is be­
lieved she is as nearly perfect and complete as she can be.
To the enterprise and liberality of the owners of this line— among whom the presi­
dent, Col. Richard Borden, Jefferson Borden, Esq., and Dr. Durfee, are the most prom­
inent, and especially to the great experience, large views, sound judgment, and devoted
attention of the former, the public are greatly indebted for this splendid specimen of
naval architecture, so creditable to our country. It is but a few years since the Fall
River line was first established and under circumstances calculated to discourage less
enterprising and far-seeing parties than its proprietors. There were already several
lines between New York and Boston of long standing and high reputation, and to
compete with them was deemed so rash that but few would engage in it ; but by
building and placing upon it such splendid boats as the Bay State and Empire State,
under such commanders as Comstock and Brown, its advantages soon became known,
its popularity was established, and has been most successfully sustained.
To the Boston traveler, or those going further East, this line is a great convenience,
as it affords them a comfortable night’s rest, and enables them to arrive in Boston in
time for an early breakfast, or to take the morning cars on the Eastern railroads. New
Bedford, Nantucket, Fall River, and all the numerous thriving towns in the southeast­
ern part of Massachusetts, have been benefited by this line, as it gives them a direct
and easy communication with New York and the South. But to Newport it has been
of incalculable advantage, by the facility of reaching it which has been given to the
wealthy citizens of New York and Boston, and which has induced them to build sum­
mer residences at this delightful watering place, thus increasing many-fold the value
of its real estate.
AGRICULTURE AND RAILROADS.
From an address before the North Carolina Agricultural Society, recently delivered
by the Hon. K enneth .R ayner , we select the following remarks:—
“ One of the most striking manifestations of the industrial enterprise of the age is the
struggle man is now engaged in, with the obstacles presented by nature— in opening
channels of communication, in laying down the pathways of trade and Commerce, in
pioneering the way fcr the iron rail and steam-engine. The vast stores of the Incas of
Peru dwindled into insignificance compared with the hundred of millions that have
been expended in these monuments of human industry in the United States, in Eng­
land, in France ; and their march is onward toward the steppes of Asia. In their con­




R ailroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.

245

struction man has achieved victories over the elements, o f which Archimedes never
dreamt. It was the boast of Napoleon, that while Hannibal had scaled the Alps, he
had turned them— but the engineer has done more than either of these great conquer­
ors ; he has tunneled them—not for the march of desolating armies, but for the tran­
sit of the products o f the pursuits of peace—for the conveyance of the traveler in
comfort and safety, beneath the roaring avalanche above his head. And what are rail­
roads, but the veins and arteries through which the products of agriculture, either in
their crude state or as fashioned in the workshop, circulate, in seeking the markets of
Commerce. While railroads are dependent upon the products of agriculture, yet the
two are inseparably identified in interest. They act and react on each other. It is
upon the productions of the field and the workshop the railroad must rely for the ma­
terials of freight, the very means of subsistence. But then again, the construction of
the railroad, by the benefits conferred, in contiguity to market, cheapening the cost of
transportation, increased convenience in procuring the comforts and luxuries of life,
affords a stimulus to the landowner to improve his land to the highest capability of
production; and as the products of the land are increased, the railroad finds increased
employment, and enhanced profits. This is no mere theory. Experience has every
where proven it to be true. It is a mistake then to suppose— a mistake in which the
farmers of South Carolina indulged for many years, to an almost fatal extent— that
it is the speculator and the capitalist, who are principally interested in the construc­
tion of railroads and the advancement of internal improvement. Until within a
very few years, the farmers of this State supposed, and demagogues found it to their
interest to foster the delusion, that the only interest the farmer had in works of inter­
nal improvement, was the interest on the State debt caused by their construction.
But the diffusion of intelligence, and the teachings of experience, have proven that
productive labor, after supplying the producer’s immediate wants, are valueless with­
out markets in which to s ell; and that markets are valueless without the means of
reaching them.”
THE ST. CLAIR FLATS AND LAKE NAVIGATION.
A committee of the Buffalo Board of Trade, appointed to inquire into the amount
o f losses sustained by owners of vessels which have been detained on the St. Clair
Flats during the last season o f navigation, have recently made a report, from which
we gather the following facts
The number of steamers engaged in the carrying trade of the Upper Lakes,
and passing the St. Clair Flats, having a total tonnage o f ..................tons
Number of propellers, forty-four, o f...................................................................

6,880
21,189

Total steam tonnage..........................................................................................

28,649

The vessels have paid for lighterage, including expenses of same during
time detained, and for damages by collisions while aground on the Flats,
the sum of $208,000.
There are also o f sail vessels engaged in the same trade :—
Thirty-two barks of.........................................................................................tons
Eighty-four brigs of...............................................................................................
One hundred and ninety-eight schooners of.......................................................

12,234
21,757
48,323

Total s a il............................................................................... ........................

82,324

These vessels, the committee estimate, have paid out, during the season of
1854, for—
Towing and lighterage..................................................................................
Time detained, 5,566 days............................................................................
Damage for repairs by collisions, iV C ...................................................................................................

$168,686 56
220,640 00
62,800 00

Total sail damage ................. '.................................................................
Total steam................................................................................................

$452,126 66
208,000 00

Total damage.............................................................................................

$660,126 56




246

Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
OPERATIONS OF THE MASSACHUSETTS RAILROADS.

We published in the Merchants’ Magazine for April, 1855, (vol. xxxii., pages 503-4,)
our usual tabular statement of the operations of the railroads of Massachusetts in
1854, carefully compiled from returns of the different corporations. The roads, how­
ever, embraced in our tables, were only those actually running, and the totals and av­
erages, therefore, do not apply to the entire railway system of the State. The returns
o f the different companies to the Legislature in 1853 and 1854 show the following
facts:—

1853.
Number of companies.....................
Aggregate length of roads in miles
Aggregate capital.............................
Amount paid in.................................
The aggregate c o s t......... ...............
The total earnings.............................
Funded and floating d e b ts.............
Surplus earnings on hand...............

1854.

63
54
1,415.92
1,453.27
$60,779,900 $61,605,100
48,025,370 50,235,277
61.778,695 65,601,756
8,976,441
9,973,377
17,718,244 21,246,349
1,636,295
1,406,256

W e give below a few o f the leading items for 1854, of the thirty-nine roads in ac­
tual operation, so that a comparison may be made with the operation of the three
preceeding years:—
1851.
1852.
1853 .
1864 .
Number of railw ays.............
36
36
40
39
Miles of road and branches .
1,150
1,150
1,192
1,262
Of double track and sidings..
384
526
407
439
Gross cost................................. $52,595,288 $53,076,013 $55,348,652 $59,030,450
46,153
Average cost per mile...........
45,556
46,433
46,783
Gross receipts.........................
6,590,570
7,994,033
8,696,251
6,885,517
3,338,905
3,073,410
Gross expenses.......................
4,332,769
5,435,757
Net income..............................
3,360,671
3,212,107
3,260,494
3,661,277
Aver, net income p. c. on cost
6 20
6 05
6 61
5 52
4,785,783
4,398,370
5,250,392
5,531,014
Gross number of miles ru n ..
Aver, receipts per mile run .
1 60
1 44
1 52
1 57
Aver, expenses per mile run.
0 76
0 82
0 77
0 90
Aver, net income per mile run
0 74
0 67
0 70
0 59
Gross receipts per mile..........
5,730 07
6,706 40
6,890 85
5,987 32
9,510,858
9,810,056
No. of passengers carried.. .
11,668,992
12,392,703
152,916,183 161,694,655 186,215,713 194,158,802
Do. carried one m ile .............
Tons of merchandise carried.
2,260,346
3,041,782
2,563,277
3,757,630
Do. carried one m ile .............
70,205,310
95,985,832 104,583,043
77,639,247
TRANSPORTATION OF THE UNITED STATES MAIL BY OCEAN STEAMERS.
The following is an abstract of the bill for the transportation of the U. S. Mail by
Ocean Steamships, and otherwise, during the fiscal year, 1855-56, which passed at the
Second Session o f the Thirty-third Congress :
The bill appropriates for the transportation of the mails from New York to Liver­
pool and back, $858,000; and the proviso contained in the first section of an Act en­
titled “ An Act to supply deficiencies in the appropriations for the service o f the fiscal
year ending 30th of June, 1852,” is repealed, provided that Edward K. CoUins and his
associates shall proceed with all due diligence to build another steamship in accord­
ance with the terms of the contract, and have the same ready for mail service in two
years from and after the passage of this b ill; and if the said steamship be not ready
within the time above mentioned, by reason of any neglect or want o f diligence on
their part, then the said Edward K. Collins and his associates shall carry the
United States mails between New York and Liverpool, from the expiration of the
said two years, every fortnight free of any charge to the Government, until the new
steamship shall have commenced the said mail service. The bill also appropriates for
transportation of the mails from New York to New Orleans, Charleston, Savannah,
Havana, and Chagres and back, $261,000; for transportation of the mails from Pana-




247

Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.

rna to California, and Oregon and back, $328,350 ; and for carrying out the contract
entered into by the Post Office Department under the provision of the act approved
on the 30th of August, 1852, establishing a tri-monthly mail by steam vessels between
New Orleans and Vera Cruz via Tampico, $69,150 ; and it further appropriates for
the transportation o f the mails in two steamships from New York by Cowes and
Havre, and back, at $75,000 for each ship, under the contract with the Ocean Steam
Navigation Company of New York, $350,000. For transportation of the mails be­
tween Charleston and Havana, a sum not exceeding $50,000 ; and for the transporta­
tion o f the mails across the Isthmus o f Panama, $150,000.
KAILR0AD AND STEAMBOAT ACCIDENTS IN THE UNITED STATES.
KAILBOAD ACCIDENTS.

The following table shows the number of accidents, together with the number of
killed and wounded, which have occurred on the various railroads in the United States
during the past year, together with a comparative table o f the number during 1853.
The table contains a record of no accident which was not attended with loss of life
or injury to individuals ; neither does it embrace the great number o f persons who
have been killed and maimed by jumping from moving trains, attempting to get on
cars while in motion, being run over, disc.:—
,--------- 1851.--------- . ,------- 1854.
Killed. W ’nded.
Accidents. Killed. Wounded.
Acc.
January .....................
25
40
12
25
20
February.....................
6
11
11
37
19
M arch......................... ...........
14
24
62
18
13
99
A p r il........................... ..........
25
54
13
5
4
37
May.............................. ...........
5
8
54
49
9
42
34
J u n e ........................... ...........
5
5
19
14
13
July............................. ...........
11
44
66
8
22
11
A u gu st.......................
25
36
96
27
23
Septem ber................. ...........
8
51
18
14
40
9
O ctober....................... ............
12
41
19
18
41
16
November...................
95
11
32
21
29
37
11
D ecem ber...................
14
7
39
T o ta l.......................

234

496

193

186

589

STEAMBOAT ACCIDENTS.

The following table embraces the number of steamboat accidents which have oc­
curred on the rivers, lakes, and bays of this country, and which have been attended
with loss of life and injury to persons during the year 1854, together with the num­
ber of killed and wounded. W e also give a comparative table of like accidents which
happened in 1853:—
1854
1853
1G >!»•
r' '
Accidents.

January .....................
February .....................
M arch.........................
A p r il............................
M ay..............................
J t n e .............................
July..............................
A u g u st........................
Septem ber.................
Oi tober.......................
November...................
December.....................
Total.........................

Killed.

26

Wounded.
33

120

30
58

17
21

..
19
7

18
18
13

17
2
5
14
23
10
16

319

158

2
8

Acc.
8
6
6
5
3
1

Killed. W ’nded.
20
130
26
57
26
165
56
59
4
24
1
1

..

None.
4
4
3
6
2

22
28
48
26
27

13
6
5
65

48

587

225

••

This shows a frightful increase of all our figures, and admonishes us to ask where
and when will it stop. The idea of five hundred and eighty-seven human beings be­




248

Commercial Regulations.

ing sent prematurely to their long home, in one year, by collision and explosion, on
our inland waters, is too heart-rending to contemplate. W e will leave it for those
most interested to think of, and if they can to provide a remedy.

COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
THE CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS IN STEAMSHIPS AND OTHER VESSELS.
We publish below, an act passed at the Second Session of the Thirty-third Congress
of the United States, and approved March 3d, 1855 :
AN ACT TO REGULATE THE CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS IN STEAMSHIPS AND OTHER VESSELS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and Rouse o f Representatives o f the United States o f
America in Congress assembled, That no master of any vessel owned in whole or in
part by a citizen of the United States, or by a citizen of any foreign country, shall
take on board such vessel, at any foreign port or place, other than foreign contiguous
territory of the United States, a greater number of passengers than in proportion of
one to every two tons of such vessel, not including children under the age of one year
in the computation, and computing two children over one and under eight years of age
as one passenger. That the spaces appropriated for the U9e of such passengers, and
which shall not be occupied by stores or other goods not the personal baggage of such
passengers, shall be in the following proportions, v iz: On the main and poop decks or
platforms and in the deck houses, if there be any, one passenger for each sixteen clear
superficial feet of deck, if the height or distance between the decks or platform shall
not be less than six feet; and on the lowest deck, (not being an orlop deck) if any,
one passenger for eighteen such clear superficial feet, if the height or distance between
the decks or platforms shall not be less than six feet, but so a9 that no passenger shall
be carried on any other deck or platform, nor upon any deck where the height or dis­
tance between the decks is less than six feet, with intent to bring such passengers to
the United States, and shall leave such port or place and bring the same, or any num­
ber thereof, within the jurisdiction of the United States ; or if any such master of any
vessel shall take on board his vessel, at any port or place within the jurisdiction of the
United States, any greater number of passengers than in the proportion aforesaid to
the space aforesaid, or to the tonnage aforesaid, with intent to carry the same to any
foreign port or place other than foreign contiguous territory as aforesaid, every such
master shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, before
any circuit or district court of the United States, shall, for each passenger taken on
board beyond the limit aforesaid, or the space aforesaid, be fined in the sum of fifty
dollars, and may also be imprisoned, at the discretion of the judge before whom the
penalty shall be recovered, not exceeding six months; but should it be necessary for
the safety or convenience of the vessel, that any portion of her cargo or any other ar­
ticles, or article, should be placed on, or stored in any of the decks, cabins, or other
places appropriated to the use of passengers, the same may be placed in lockers or
inclosures prepared for the purpose, on an exterior surface impervious to the wave,
capable o f beiDg cleansed in like manner as the decks or platforms of the vessel. In
no case, however, shall the places thus provided be deemed to be a part of the space
allowable for the use of passengers, but the same shall be deducted therefrom, and in
all cases where prepared or^used, the upper surface of said lockers or inclosed spaces
shall be deemed and taken to be the deck or platform from which measurement shall
be made for all the purposes of this act. It is also provided that one hospital in the
spaces appropriated to passengers, and separate therefrom by an appropriate parti­
tion, and furnished as its purposes require, may be prepared, and when used, may be
included in the space allowable for passengers, but the same shall not occupy more
than one hundred superficial feet of deck or platform : Provided , That on board two
deck ships, where the height between the decks is 7^- feet or more, fourteen clear
superficial feet of deck shall be the proportion required for each passenger.
S ec. 2. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That no such vessel shall have more than two
tiers of berths, and the interval between the lowest part thereof and the deck or plat­
form beneath shall not be less than nine inches, and the berths shall be well construct­
ed, parallel with the sides of the vessel, and separated from each other by partitions,
as berths ordinarily are separated, aud shall be at least six feet in length and at least




Commercial Regulations .

249

two feet in width, and each berth shall be occupied by no more than one passenger ;
but double berths of twice the above width may be constructed, each berth to be oc­
cupied by no more, and by no other, than two women, or by one woman and two chil­
dren under the age of eight years, or by husband and wife, or by a man and two of
his own children under the age of eight years, or by two men members of the same
family; and if there shall be any violation of this section In any of its provisions, then
the master of the vessel and the owners thereof shall severally forfeit and pay the
sum o f five dollars for each passenger on board of said vessel on such voyage, to be
recovered by the United States in any port where such vessel may arrive or depart.
S ec. 3. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That all vessels, whether of the United States
or any foreign country, having sufficient capacity or space according to law for fifty
or more passengers (other than cabin passengers) shall, when employed in transport­
ing such passengers between the United States and Europe, have, on the upper deck,
for the use of such passengers, a house over the passage way leading to the apart­
ments allotted to such passengers below deck, firmly secured to the deck or combings
o f the hatch, with two doors, the sills of which shall be at least one foot above the
deck, so constructed that one door or window in such house may at all times be left
open for ventilation; and all vessels so employed, and having the capacity to carry one
hundred and fifty passengers or more, shall have two such houses; and the stairs or
ladder leading down to the aforesaid appartment shall be furnished with a hand-rail
of wood or strong rope ; but booby hatches may be substituted for such houses.
S ec. 4. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That every such vessel so employed, and having
the legal capacity for more than one hundred such passengers, shall have at least two
ventilators to purify the apartment or apartments occupied by such passengers; one
of which shall be inserted in the after part of the apartment or apartments, and the
other shall be placed in the forward portion of the apartment or apartments, and one
o f them shall have an exhausting cap to carry off the foul air, and the other a receiving
cap to carry down the fresh air; which said ventilators shall have a capacity propor­
tioned to the size of the apartment or apartments to be purified, namely: if the apart­
ment or apartments will lawfully authorize the reception of two hundred such passen­
gers, the capacity o f such ventilators shall each be equal to a tube of twelve inches
diameter in the clear, and in proportion for larger or smaller apartments; and all said
ventilators shall rise at least four feet six inches above the upper deck of any such
vessel, and be o f the most approved form and construction; but if it shall appear,
from the report to be made and approved, as hereinafter provided, that such vessel is
equally well ventilated by any other means, such other means of ventilation shall be
deemed and held to be a compliance with the provisions of this section.
Seo. 5. A n d be it fu rth er enacted. That every vessel carrying more than fifty
such passengers shall have for their use on deck, housed and conveniently arranged, at
least one camboose or cooking range, the dimensions of which shall be equal to four
feet long and one foot six inches wide for every two hundred passengers ; and provis­
ions shall be made in the manner aforesaid, in this ratio, for a greater or less number
of passengers; but nothing herein contained shall take away the right to make such
arrangements for cooking between decks, if that shall be deemed desirable.
S ec. 6. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That all vessels employed as aforesaid shall
have on board, for the use of such passengers, at the time of leaving the last port
whence such vessel shall sail, well secured under deck, for each passenger, at least
twenty pounds of good navy bread, fifteen pounds of rice, fifteen pounds of oatmeal,
ten pounds of wheat flour, fifteen pounds of peas and beans, twenty pounds of potatoes,
one pint of vinegar, sixty gallons of fresh water, ten pounds of salt beef, free of bone,
all to be o f good quality ; but at places where either rice, oatmeal, wheat flour, or peas
and beans cannot be procured, of good quality, and on reasonable terms, the quantity
of either or any o f the other last named articles may be increased and substituted
therefor; and, in case potatoes cannot be procured on reasonable terms, one pound of
either of said articles may be substituted in lieu of five pounds o f potatoes; and the
captains of such vessels shall deliver to each passenger at least one-tenth part of the
aforesaid provisions weekly, commencing on the day o f sailing, and at least three
quarts of watei daily ; and if the passengers on board of any such vessel in which the
provisions, and water herein required shall not have been provided as aforesaid, shall
at any time be put on short allowance during any voyage, the master or owner of any
such vessel shall pay to each and every passenger who shall have been put on short
allowance, the sum of three dollars for each and every day they may have been put on
short allowance, to be recovered in the circuit or district court of the United States;
and it shall be the duty of the captain or master of every such ship or vessel, to cause




250

Commercial Regulations.

the food and provisions of all the passengers to be well and properly cooked daily and
to be served out and distributed to them at regular and stated hours by messes, or in
such other manner as shall be deemed best and most conducive to the health and com­
fort of such passengers, of which hours and manner of distribution, due and sufficient
notice shall be given. If the captain or master of any such ship or vessel shall will­
fully fail to furnish and distribute such provisions cooked as aforesaid, he shall be
deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof before any circuit or dis­
trict court of the United States, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars and
shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding one year: Provided, That the enforce­
ment of this penalty shall not affect the civil responsibility of the captain or master
and owners, to such passengers as may have suffered from said default.
S ec. 7. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That the captain of any such vessel so employed
is hereby authorized to maintain good discipline and such habits of cleanliness among
such passengers as will tend to the preservation and promotion o f health; and to that
end he shall cause such regulations as he may adopt for this purpose to be posted up,
before sailing, on board such vessel, in a place accessible to such passengers, and shall
keep the same so posted up duiing the voyage; and it is hereby made the duty of
said captain to cause the apartments occupied by such passengers to be kept at all
times in a clean, healthy state, and the owners of every such vessel so employed are
required to construct the decks, and all parts of said apartment, so that it can be
thoroughly cleansed; and they shall also provide a safe, convenient privy or watercloset for the exclusive use of every one hundred such passengers. And when the
weather is such that said passengers cannot be mustered on deck with their bedding,
it shall be the duty of the captain of every such vessel to cause the deck occupied by
such passengers to be cleansed with chloride of lime, or some other equally efficient
disinfecting agent, and also at such other times as said captain may deem necessary.
S ec. 8. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That the master and owner or owners of any
such vessel so employed, which shall not be provided with the house or houses over
the passage-ways, as prescribed in the third section of this chapter, or with ventila­
tors, as prescribed in the fourth section of this chapter, or with the cambooses or cook­
ing ranges, with the houses over them, as prescribed in the fifth section of this chap­
ter, shall severally forfeit and pay to the United States the sum of two hundred dollars
for each and every violation of, or neglect to conform to, the provisions of each of said
sections; and fifty dollars for each and every neglect or violation of any of the pro­
visions of the seventh section of this chapter, to be recovered by suit in any circuit or
district court of the United States, w ithin the jurisdiction of which the said vessel
may arrive, or from which she may be about to depart, or at any place within the ju ­
risdiction of such courts, w herever the owner or owners or captain of such vessel may
be found.
S ec . 9. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That the collector of the customs at any port of
the United States at which any vessel so employed shall arrive, or from which any
such vessel shall be about to depart, shall appoint and direct one or more of the in­
spectors of the customs for such port to examine such vessel, and report, in writing,
to such collector, whether the requirements of law have been complied with in respect
to such vessel; and if such report shall state such compliance, and shall be approved
by such collector, it shall be deemed and held as j orima facie evidence thereof.
S ec. 10. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That the provisions, requisitions, penalties, and
liens of this act, relating to the space in vessels appropriated to the use of passengers,
are hereby extended and made applicable to all spaces appropriated to the use of
steerage passengers in vessels propelled in w'hole or in part by steam, and navigating
from, to, and between the ports, and in manner as in this act named, and to such ves­
sels and to the masters thereof; and so much of the act entitled, “ An act to amend
an act entitled ‘ An act to provide for the better security of the lives of passengers
on board of vessels propelled in whole or in part by steam, and for other purposes,’ ”
approved August thirtieth, eighteen hundred and fifty-two, as conflicts with this act,
is hereby repealed; and the space appropriated to the use of steerage passengers in
vessels so as above propelled and navigated, is hereby subject to the supervision and
inspection of the collector of the customs at any port of the United States at which
any such vessel shall airive, or from which she shall be about to depart; and the same
shall be examined and reported in the same manner, and by the same officers, by the
next preceding section directed to examine and report.
S ec. 11. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That the vessels bound from any port in the
United States to any port or place in the Pacific Ocean, or on its tributaries, or from
any such port or place to any port in the United States on the Atlantic or its tribu­




Commercial Regulations .

251

taries, shall be subject to the foregoing provisions regulating the carriage of passen­
gers in merchant vessels, except so much as relates to provisions and water; but the
owners and masters of all such vessels shall in all cases furnish to each passenger the
daily supply of water therein mentioned; and they shall furnish a sufficient supply of
good and wholesome food, properly cooked; and in case they shall fail so to do. or
shall provide unwholesome or unsuitable provisions, they shall be subject to the pen­
alty provided in the sixth section of this chapter, in case the passengers are put on
short allowance of water or provisions.
S ec. 12. A n d be it further enacted, That the captain or master of any ship or vessel
arriving in the United States, or any of the territories thereof, from any foreign place
whatever, at the same time that he delivers a manifest of the cargo, and if there be
no cargo, then at the time of making report or entry of the ship or vessel, pursuant
to law, shall also deliver and report to the collector of the district in which such ship
or vessel shall arrive a list or manifest of all the passengers taken on board of the
said ship or vessel at any foreign port or place; in which list or manifest it shall be
the duty of the said master to designate, particularly, the age, sex. and occupation of
the said passengers, respectively, tlie part of the vessel occupied by each during the
voyage, the country to which they severally belong, and of that of which it is their
intention to become inhabitants; and shall further set forth whether any, and what
number, have died on the voyage; which list or manifest shall be sworn to by the
said master, in the same manner as directed by law in relation to the manifest of the
cargo, and the refusal or neglect of the master aforesaid to comply with the provisions
o f this section, or any part thereof, shall incur the same penalties, disabilities, and for­
feitures as are provided fur a refusal or neglect to report and deliver a manifest of the
cargo aforesaid.
S ec. 13. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That each and every collector of the customs,
to whom such manifest or list of passengers as aforesaid shall be delivered, shall quar­
ter-yearly return copies thereof to the Secretary of State of the United States, by
whom statements of the same shall be laid before Congress at each and every session.
S ec. 14. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That in case there shall have occurred on board
any ship or vessel arriving at any port or place within lhe United States or its terri­
tories, any death or deaths among the passengers, (other than cabin passengers,) the
the master, or captain, or owner, or consignee, of such ship or vessel, shall within
twenty-four hours after the time within which the report and list or manifest of pas­
sengers, mentioned in section twelve of this act, is required to be delivered to the col­
lector of the customs, pay to the said collector the sum of ten dollars for each and
every passenger above the age of eight years who shall have died on the voyage by
natural disease; and the said collector shall pay the money thus received at such
times and in such manner as the Secretary of the Treasury by general rules shall di­
rect, to any board or commission appointed by and acting under the authority of the
State within which the port where such ship or vessel arrived is situated, for the care
and protection of sick, indigeut, or destitute emigrants, to be applied to the objects of
their appointment, and if there be more than one board or commission who shall claim
such payment, the Secretary o f the Treasury, for the time being, shall determine
which is entitled to receive the same, and his decision in the premises shall be final
and without appeal. Provided , that the payment shall in no case be awarded or made
to any board, or commission, or association formed for the protection or advancement
of auy particular class of immigrants, or emigrants of any particular nation or creed,
and it the master, captain, owner, or consignee of any ship or vessel refuse or neglect
to pay to the collector the sum and sums of money required, and within the time pre­
scribed by this section, he or they shall severally forfeit and pay the sum of fifty dol­
lars in addition to such sum of ten dollars for each and every passenger upon whose
death the same has become payable, to be recovered by the. United States in any cir­
cuit or district court of the United States where such vessel may arrive, or such mas­
ter, captain, owner, or consignee may reside; and when recovered, the said money
shall be disposed of in the same manner as is directed with respect to the sum and
sums required to be paid to the collector of customs.
S ec. 15. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That the amount of the several penalties im­
posed by the foregoing provisions regulating the carriage of passengers in merchant
vessels, shall be liens ou the vessel or vessels violating those provisions, and such ves­
sel or vessels shall be libeled therefor in any circuit or district court of the United
States where such vessel or vessels shall arrive.
S ec. 16. A n d be it f urther enacted, That all and every vessel or vessels which shall
or may be employed by the American Colonization Society, or the Colonization Socie­




252

Commercial Regulations.

ty of any State, to transport, and ■which shall actually transport, from any port or
ports of the United States to any colony or colonies on the west coast of Africa, col­
ored emigrants to reside there, shall be and the same are hereby subjected to the ope­
ration of the foregoing provisions regulating the carriage of passengers in merchant
vessels.
S ec. 17. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That the collector of the customs shall examine
each emigrant ship or vessel on its arrival at his port, and ascertain and report to the
Secretary of the Treasury at the time of sailing, the length of the voyage, the ven­
tilation, the number of passengers, their space on board, their food, the native country
of the emigrants, the number of deaths, the age and sex of those who died during the
voyage, together with his opinion of the cause of the mortality, if any, on board, and
if none, what precautionary measures, arrangements, or habits, are supposed to have
had any, and what, agency in causing the exemption.
S ec. 18. A n d be it fu rth e r enacted, That this act shall take effect, with respect to
vessels sailing from ports in the United States on the eastern side of the continent,
within thirty days from the time of its approval; and with respect to vessels sailing
from ports in the United States on the western side of the continent, and from ports
in Europe, within sixty days from the time of its approval; and with respect to ves­
sels sailing from ports in other parts of the world, within six months from the time of
its approval.
And it is hereby made the duty of the Secretary of State to give notice, in the
ports of Europe and elsewhere, of this act, in such manner as he shall deem proper.
S ec. 19. A n d be it fu rth er enacted, That from and after the time that this act shall
take effect with respect to any vessels, then in respect to such vessels, the act of 2d
March, eighteen hundred and nineteen, entitled “ An act regulating passenger ships
and v e s s e ls th e act of twenty-second of February, eighteen hundred and forty-seven,
entitled “ An act to regulated the carriage of passengers in merchant vessels;” the act
of second March, eighteen hundred and forty-seven, entitled “ An act to amend an act
entitled *An act to regulate the carriage of passengers in merchant vessels,’ and to
determine the time when said act shall take effect;” the act of thirty-first January,
eighteen hundred and forty eight, entitled “ An act exempting vessels employed by
the American Colonization Society in transporting colored emigrants from the United
States to the coast of Africa from the provisions of the acts of the twenty-second Feb­
ruary and second of March, eighteen hundred and forty-seven, regulating the carriage
of passengers in merchant v e s s e ls t h e act of seventeenth May, eighteen hundred and
forty-eight, entitled “ An act to provide for the ventillation of passengers vessels, and
for other purposes; and the act of third March, eighteen hundred and forty-nine, en­
titled “ An act to extend the provisions of all laws now in force relating to the carriage
of passengers in merchant vessels, and the regulation thereof,” are hereby repealed ;
but nothing in this act contained shall in any wise obstruct or prevent the prosecution,
recovery, distribution, or remission of any fines, penalties, or forfeitures which may
have been incurred in respect to any vessels prior to the day this act goes into effect,
in respect to such vessels, under the laws hereby repealed, for which purpose the said
laws shall continue in force.
But the Secretary of the Treasury may, in his discretion, and upon such conditions
as he shall think proper, discontinue any such prosecutions, or remit or modify such
penalties.
OF THE SALE OF PRODUCTS OF THE UNITED STATES IN NEW ORLEANS.
A t the last session of the Legislature of Louisiana the following act was passed
relative to the sale of agricultural products of the United States sold in the city of
New Orleans. This act, repealing all acts contrary to its provisions, was approved
March 15th, 1855, and is now in force:—
AN ACT RELATIVE TO PRIVILEGES.

S ec. 1. That any person who may sell the agricultural products of the United

States in the city of New Orleans, shall be entitled to a special lien and privilege
thereon, to secure the payment of the purchase money, for and during the space of
five days only, after the day of delivery; within which time the vendor shall be enti­
tled to seize the same, in whatsoever hands or place it may be found, and his claim
for the purchase money shall have preference over all others. If the vendor gives a
written order for the delivery of any such produce, and shall say therein that it is to
be delivered without vendor’s privilege, then no lien shall attach thereto.




Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.

253

PURCHASE OF BELLIGERENT SHIPS BY NEUTRALS.
1. According to the law of nations, neutrals have the right to purchase during war,
the property of belligerents, whether ships or anything else; and any regulation of a
particular State which contravenes this doctrine is against public law, and in mere
derogation of the sovereign authority of all other independent States.
2. A citizen of the United States may at this time lawfully purchase a Russian
merchant ship, of either of the belligerents, Turkey, Russia, Great Britain, France, or
Sardinia ; if purchased bona fide , such ship becomes American property, and entitled
as such to the protection and the flag of the United States; and although she cannot
take out a register by our law, yet that is because she is foreign built, not because she
is belligerent built; and she can obtain a register by special act of Congress.

JOURNAL OF BANKING, CURRENCY, AND FINANCE.
OPERATIONS OF THE SAN FRANCISCO BRANCH MINT.

W e give below the first annual (official) report of the San Francisco Branch United
States Mint operations, giving an accurate statement of gold and silver deposits,
number of assays, amount of coinage, <fec.
The San Francisco branch of the United States Mint commenced operations April
3d, 1854. The following table exhibits the total operations for the first year, ending
March 31, 1855 ; the coinage of silver was commenced in the month of March, 1855 :—
Gold deposits......................................................................... Ho.
6,143
Silver deposits..............................................................................
146
Weight of gold deposits........................................................oz.
195,921 26
Weight o f silver deposits...........................................................
43,026 90
Value o f gold deposits................................................................ $14,655,347 22
Value of silver deposits.............................................................
51,601 28
Silver parted from gold deposits......................................... oz.
48,158 61
Gold parted from silver deposits..............................................
259 38
Value of silver from gold deposits...........................................
$56,030 47
Value of gold from silver deposits...........................................
4,825 73
52,280 50
Mint per centage for refining.....................................................
Mint per centage for coinage.....................................................
41,362 41
Mint charges on bars...................................................................
20,218 94
Gold assays............................................................................Ho.
20,229
Silver assays................................................................................
438
GOLD COINAGE.

Pieces.

Value.

Double eagles..........................................................
Eagles......................................................................
Half eagles.............................................................
Quarter ea g le s.......................................................
Gold dollars...........................................................

318,018
123,826
268
246
14,632

$6,360,360
1,238,260
1,340
615
14,632

Total gold coin a ge............................................

466,990

$7,615,207

59,800
122,000

$14,900
30,500

151,800

$45,400

___
2,504
8

$7,660,607
6,428,201
5,865

Total.............

2,602

$6,424,065

Total coinage

.........

$14,094,672

SILVER COINAGE.

H alf dollars.............................................................
Quarter dollars.......................................................
Total silver coinage
Total gold and silver coinage.
Unparted bars..............................
Refined bars..................................




Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance .

254

OF BILLS OF EXCHANGE AND PROMISSORY NOTES IN LOUISIANA.
The following act, relative to bills of exchange and promissory notes, was passed at
the last session of the Legislature of Louisiana, approved March 9, 1855, and is now
in force:—
AN ACT RELATIVE TO BILLS OF EXCHANGE AND PROMISSORY NOTES.

1. That no bill of exchange, promissory note, or other obligation for the
payment of money, made within this State, shall be received as evidence of a debt,
when the whole sum shall be expressed in figures, unless the same shall be accompa­
nied by proof that it was given for the sum therein expressed ; the cents or fractional
parts of a dollar may be in figures.
S ec. 2. That the rate of damages to be allowed and paid upon the usual protest for
non acceptance or non payment of bills of exchange drawn or negotiated within this
State shall be as follows: On all bills drawn on and payable in foreign countries, ten
dollars upon the hundred upon the principal sum specified in such b ills; on all bills
drawn on and payable in any other State in the United States, five dollars upon the
hundred upon the principal sum specified in such bill.
S ec. 3. That damages shall be in lieu of interest, charges of protest, and all other
charges incurred previously to and at the rime of giving notice of non acceptance or
non-payment, but the holder shall be entitled to demand and recover lawful interest
upon the aggregate of the principal sum, and of the damages thereon from the time
at which notice of protest for non-acceptance or non payment shall have been given,
and payfnent of such principal sum shall have been demanded.
S ec. 4. That if the contents of the bill be expressed in the money of account of the
United States, the amount of the principal and of the damages shall be ascertained
and determined without any reference to the rate of exchange existing between this
State and the place on which such bill shall have been drawn at the time of the de­
mand of payment or notice of non-acceptance or non-payment.
S ec. 5. That if the contents of such bill be expressed in any money of account or
currency of any foreign country, then the principal as well as the damages payable
thereon shall be ascertained and determined by the rate of exchange; but whenever
the value of such foreign coin is fixed by the laws of the United States, then the value
thus fixed shall prevail.
S ec. 6. That the following shall be considered as days of public rest in this State,
viz.: The first of January, the eighth of January, the twenty-second of February, the
fourth of July, twenty-fifth of December, Sundays and Good Friday; and all promis­
sory notes and bills of exchange shall be due and payable on the second day of grace,
when the third is a day of public rest; and on the first day of grace, when both the
second and third are days of publie rest, and in computing the delay allowed for giv­
ing notice of non acceptance or non-payment of a bill of exchange or promissory note,
the days of public rest shall not be counted; and if the day or two days next succeed­
ing the protest for non-acceptance or non-payment shall be days of public rest, then
the day next following shall be computed as the first day after the protest.
S ec. 7. That notaries and parish recorders shall keep a separate book in which they
shall transcribe and record by order o f date, all the protests by them made, with
mention made of the notices which they shall have given of the same to the drawers
and indorsers thereof, together with the names of the drawers or indorsers, the date
of the notices, and the manner in which they were served or forwarded, which decla­
ration, duly recorded under the signature of the notary public or parish recorder and
two witnesses, shall be considered and received in all courts of this State as a legal
proof of the notices.
S ec. 8. That all notaries or persons acting as such are authorized in their protests
of bills of exchange, promissory notes, or orders for the payment of money, to make
mention of the demand made upon the drawer, acceptor, or person on whom such
order or bill of exchange is drawn or given, and of the manner and circumstances of
such demand, and by certificate added to such protest, to state the manner in which
any notices of protest were served or forwarded; and whenever they shall have so
done, a certified copy of such protest and certificate shall be evidence of all the mat­
ters therein stated.
S ec. 9. That whenever the drawer, acceptor, indorser, or others shall not reside in
S e c t io n




Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance .

255

the town or city where protest shall be made, it shall be the duty of such notaries or
others acting as such, to put into the nearest post-office where the protest is made a
notice of the protest to such drawer, acceptor, indorser, or others, addressed to them at
their domicil or usual place of residence.
S ec. 10. That wheuever the residence of any drawer, acceptor, indorser, or others
shall be unknown to the notary or other person acting as such; and whenever, after
using all due diligence to obtain the necessary information thereon, the residence shall
not have been found, then it shall be the duty of the notary or other person acting a3
such to put the notices of such protest in the nearest post-office where the protest was
made, addressed to the drawer, acceptor, indorser, or others, at the place where, as it
shall appear by the face thereof, such bill of exchange or promissory note was drawn ;
and the same shall be deemed and considered legal notice of such protest.
S ec. 11. That notaries public in the city of New Orleans are empowered to protest
bills of exchange, notes, and other negotiable effects throughout the parish of Orleans,
and in default of notaries and p irish recorders in the country, any justice of the peace
may protest promissory notes and bills of exchange in the presence of two persons
residing in the parish, who shall certify and subscribe the same as witnesses.
S ec. 12. That whenever promissory notes are indorsed for the benefit of the drawer
or drawers thereof, and the same is mentioned on the notes, if the drawer or drawers
cause the notes to be discounted in any bank in operation within this State, or obtain
any sum of money in consideration of the notes from any person, the indorsers shall by
law be bound towards the bearers of the notes, as if they had been discounted or ne­
gotiated for their own account and benefit.
S ec. 13. That upon all bills of exchange and promissory notes made negotiable by
law, or by the usage and custom of merchants in this State, three days of grace shall
be allowed.
S ec. 14. That all laws or parts of laws conflicting with the provisions of this act
and all law's on the same subject matter, except what is contained in the Civil Code of
Practice, be repealed.
IS GOLD DEPRECIATING ?
This question is cleverly discussed in a recent number of the A ktionare , in an arti­
cle dated Zurich. The following statement is translated from that journal:—
“ Since some years there has been much interesting matter written in relation to the
value of the noble metals. The majority of estimates in relation to the quantity ex­
isting at the time of the discovery of California make the total nearly £1,200,000,000 ;
some place it at over £2,000,000,000. We do not place the figures so high. But it
is to be considered also about what is the total of those things which require the func­
tions of money ?
“ We will attempt a general estimate, placing the quantity of coined gold and silver,
including ingots,
Which are not in bank at.............................................................................
£500,000,000
Bank notes in circulation in the w o rld ....................................................
250,000,000
Inland exchange o f all countries, estimated on the British stamps for
1854 ..........................................................................................................
600,000,000
Private debts and credits not represented by exchange.........................
1,500,000,000
Government stocks and shares on the various stock markets...............
150,000,000
Total.................................................................................................. £3,000,000,000
“ This may be considered a very moderate estimate of all those things which in all
countries require the services of the metals. If now the gold countries discovered
since 1846 produce together £30,000,000 annually, the result is 1 per cent of the above
sum. Population, necessities, and prosperity, however, increase, irrespective of higher
prices and wars, more than 1 per cent. The re^t of the world, not speaking exclu­
sively of wholesale trade, is served with metallic money as well as credit— of coined
money there is always about the same quantity, but credit is very elastic. The peri­
ods of so-called money scarcity, that is, contraction of credit, and money abundance,
that is, expansion of credit, are taken for each other reciprocally.
“ What may be the annual exchanges of the world ?
“ The Journal des Bebals for January 15, 1851, puts the annual interchanges of




256

Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.

known countries at £1,200,000,000, lialf of that is exports and half imports. Now,
every article before it is exported will, on an average, be exchanged tw ice; and every
article imported will likewise be exchanged twice,
Making an exchange o f ...........................................................................
The population of the moDey-using world may be taken at
600,000,000, and every individual buys of domestic produce $25
worth, not included in the above estimate, and after these pur­
chases pass through two harids, the result is....................................
The quantity of stocks, shares, <tc., of all descriptions of companies
in the world, which is annually bought and sold, is taken at.........
Annual sales, houses, lands, &c................................................................

£2,400,000,000

T o ta l...............................................................................................

£12,000,000,000

6,000,000,000
3,000,000,000
600,000,000

“ Of what importance, in comparison with this sum, is an annual production of
30.000. 000 o f gold ? It is about £ of 1 per cent.
“ But the above estimates are far too small If we take the productive value of
all lands at only £6,000,000,000 per annum, and allow these to be twice exchanged,
we have alone £12,000,000,000, exclusive of the operations in stocks, houses, lands,
<tc. The chances that more gold countries will be discovered are less than that the
present production of California and Australia will not be sustained. If we do not
regard the present production as likely to depreciate the metals, we are far from
thinking the yield will be without influence. On the contrary, we expect from it a
very important stimulus to enterprise and speculation. It is just possible that a pro­
duction of 30,000,000 will be as great a stimulus as one of 60,000,000. The conse­
quence will be the contrary of a depreciation of gold.
“ Many believe that the present high prices of things are to be attributed to gold ;
but in the case of food and all relatives to it we have direct reasons, apart from gold
influence, and of other articles we can see none of which the stocks are not disproportioned to the consumption, as compared with the seasons of lower prices.
“ From 1847 to 1853, when the English crisis and European disorders had subsided,
low rates o f food, attended with unusual prosperity and great power of consumption,
enhanced by the restored feeling of political security, the progress of free trade, the
increase of means of communication, and the indirect influence of the gold receipts,
were all causes of higher prices.
“ Those whose views are like our own will not expect a reduction of the value of
gold in respect to silver. If prior to 1847 there existed 1,200,000,000 of the metals,
33 per cent gold and 66 per cent silver, and gold has been produced at the rate of
30.000. 000 annually, the proportion increase is only 1| per cent. But the increase of
business has been in those countries, England, France, and the United States, that
have gold standards, far greater. France has used a silver standard, but designs
adopting gold. Since 1795 she has coined £173,000,000, but the coinage bas now
ceased. It has been estimated that within a few years France possessed £80,000,000
of silver, of which the larger portion has been exchanged for gold, and thrown upon
the markets of the world. Other countries also, Germany and Switzerland, absorb
more or less gold. The use of silver for mechanical purposes has been less than it
was. The production of silver through the abundance of mercury is enhanced.
“ In conclusion it is to remark, that if the population of this money-using world is
600.000. 000, an annual production of £30,000,000 is about one shilling per head.”
WHERE SILVER COMES FROM.
The production of the silver mines o f Mexico for the year 1850, exceeded that of
the rest of the world by one million dollars, the total yield being thirty-three millions.
When we reflect that this immense sum is dug out of the earth by a population com­
paratively destitute of science, or capital, or comprehensive system, it will readily be
perceived how vast the yield would be if these mines of wealth were in the hands of
a vigorous and energetic people. Until the cession of California to the United States,
and the rush of Americans thither, the rich gold deposits of the placers remained un­
known to its semi-civilized inhabitants. What the effect would be as regards the
product of silver in Mexico under similar circumstances may be estimated.




Journal o f M ining and M anufactures .

25*7

HOW A CASHIER COMPROMISED WITH THE DIRECTORS OF A BANK.
The Evening Post relates the following anecdote of a defaulting cashier:—
“ The cashier of a bank found himself short in his account about $200,000, at a time
when he foresaw an inevitable disclosure from an examination of accounts, which was
ordered to take place within a short time. Not seeing any escape, he consulted a
friend of his who was an attorney, asking for his advice. The attorney, on ascertain­
ing that the cashier had no property that was available to convert into cash to cover
the deficiency, recommended him to take $200,000 more, and then, when the discov­
ery took place, he would have something to negotiate with, so as to induce the direct­
ors to refrain from making a public exposure. The cashier took his advice, abstracted
the additional sum, and when the discovery took place, confessed his error, and told
the directors that he would get friends to make some amends, provided they would
not punish him. After some negotiation, he compromised with them for $100,000;
and he retired from his situation with a fortune of $100,000. The cashier iu question
was consequently respected, and he died, we believe, within the current year. The
directors never made known their loss, and neither the stockholders of the bank nor
the public knew anything about it.”

JOURNAL OF M IN IN G AND MANUFACTURES.
THE PARIS PALACE OF INDUSTRY FOR THE GREAT EXHIBITION.
W e are indebted to an American in Paris for the following account of the French
Palace of Industry. It will interest many of the readers of the Merchants' M agazine:
The Palace of Industry is not to be merely a temporary structure, but a permanent
hall o f exhibition, in which will be held the displays of Industrial Art which take
place every fifth year, and of painting and sculpture which occur every third year.
It is of an cblong form, being about 700 feet in length, by 360 feet in width, with a
double row of windows, and an entrance in the center of each of its four fronts. Its
greatest length runs parallel with the avenue of the Champs Elysees, and the entrance
upon the side of the avenue is a sort of triumphal tower, very rich and splendid, sur­
mounted by a female figure crowned with stars, and holding a wreath of laurel in each
hand. Other figures recline upon the steps beneath her feet; and a great abundance
of shields, wreaths, bas reliefs, eagles, and the perpetually recurring “ N ” are intro­
duced over this tower, and also over the rest of the building. The names of eminent
inventors are carved upon the walls— also ornamented with profiles in bas-relief.
The interior consists of a grand central nave, 700 feet in length, 190 feet in width,
and 130 feet in height, roofed with a lofty dome of glass. On each side of the nave is
a gallery 85 feet in width.
Above this ground floor gallery is another, on the second story, which runs com­
pletely round the building; it is 2,400 feet long, and is roofed like the nave, but rather
lower. Both galleries are surrounded by pillars; those which spring from the upper
gallery and support the dome being rather lighter than those which serve to support
the second floor. Friezes of iron openwork run along both galleries, decorated with
escutcheons, in the center of which are emblazoned shields, alternating with a golden
crescent or star. Delicate moldings run round both galleries, and an elegant bronzed
balustrade surrounds the upper gallery. With the exception of the moldings—
which are white— and the shields— which are richly colored or gilded— the whole o f
the interior surfaces are of a pale, soft gray. Opinion i3 much divided as to the effect
of this coloring, some considering it to be cold and foggy, while others consider it as a
great improvement upon the somewhat obtrusive red and blue of the palace in Hyde
Park, and the fairy-like fabric at Sydenham. This question is one which cannot really
be decided until the objects to be exhibited are in their places.
The French, so methodical and exact in their doings for the most part, have made
rather a mess of it in their preparations for the Exhibition. In the first place the
building, when half completed was found to be coming down. It has been built on an
unsteady soil— the ground sunk away at one end, and the whole concern threatened
to come down together. An immense sum has been expended in strengthening it, and
it now appears to be perfectly safe.
V O L . X X X I I I .-----N O . I I.




17

Journal o f M ining and M anufactures .

258

In the next place the exhibiting surface turned out to be only 500,000 square feet—
rather less than half that afforded by the Crystal Palace of 1851; and another building
was erected on a quay of the Seine near the Palace, 4,000 feet in length, which will be
devoted almost exclusively to machinery. This gallery is called the “ Annexe.”
By-and by it was found that this accommodation was still deficient, and another
large building, called the Palace of the Fine Arts, and devoted to sculpture, painting,
and engraving, was built in another part of these beautiful groves.
Next, a “ Supplement” to the Palace of Industry was erected opposite to the west­
ern entrance of that building. After this, as spAce was still wanting, it was deter­
mined to join the Supplement to the Palace by a covered gallery, which would also
contain a portion of the Exhibition; and now within the last few days it has been de­
termined to connect all four of the large buildings by covered galleries, in order both
to facilitate the passage from one to the other, and also to afford room for the placing
of objects which otherwise must have been excluded for want of space.
A ll these changes and additions have led to a great loss of time and have greatly
increased the cost of the undertaking. With regard to the latter point nothing is
known, but the outlay must have been enormous, as the principal building is exceed­
ingly massive, and lavishly ornamented.
Gardens will be laid out round all the structures, and the trees, though they will
intercept the view of the principal building, will add much to the general beauty of
the scene.
THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON IN THE UNITED STATES.
The census returns of the manufacture of iron castings give the following facts in
relation to this important branch of American industry :—
MANUFACTURE OF IRON CASTINGS,

States, &c.
Alabam a.......................
California...................... ___
Columbia District........
Connecticut.....................
D elaw are..................... .
Georgia ...........................
Illinois........................... .
Indiana...........................
Iow a............................... .......
K entucky.......................
Louisiana....................... ___
Maine.............................
M aryland.....................
Massachusetts............... .
Michigan .......................
Mississippi.....................
Missouri......................... .
New H am pshire..........
New Jersey...................
New Y ork.....................
North Carolina.............
Ohio.................................
Pennsylvania............... ___
.Rhode Island..................
South Carolina..............
Tennessee.....................
Texas.............................
Vermont.........................
Virginia......................... .
Wisconsin.....................
T o ta l.................................

1850.*
Value of raw
material,
fuel, &.c.
$102,085
8,530
18,100
351,369
153.852
11,950
172,330
66,918
2,524
295,583
75,300
112,570
259,190
1,057,904
91,865
50,370
133,114
177,060
301,048
2,393,763
8,341
1,199,700
2,372,467
258,267
29,128
90,035
8,400
160,603
297,014
86,930

Establishments. Capital.
$216,625
i
5,000
0
14,000
580,800
373,600
35,000
260,400
82,900
3
5,500
502,200
20
8
255,000
150,100
359,100
16
1,499,050
195,450
8
100,000
187,000
232,700
693,250
4,622,482
5
11,500
2,063,650
320
3,422,924
20
428,800
185,700
6
139,500
16
16,000
290,720
471 160
116,350

Tons
pig-iron.
2,348
75
545
11,396
4,440
440
4,418
1,968
81
9,731
1,660
3,591
7,220
31,134
2,494
1,197
5,100
5,673
10,666
108,945
192
37,555
69,501
8,918
169
1,682
250
5,279
7,114
1,371

1,391 §17,416,361

345,553 *§10,346,265 $25,108,155

Products.
$271,126
20,740
41,696
9S1.400
267,462
46,200
441,185
149,430
8,500
744.316
312,500
265,000
685,000
2,335.635
279,697
117,400
336,495
371,710
686,430
5,921,980
12,861
3,069,350
5,354,481
728,705
87,683
264,325
55,000
460,831
674,416
216,195

* Tons of mineral coal used, 190,891; bushels of coke and charcoal, 2,413,750; tons of casting
made, 332,745.




V

259

Journal o f M ining and M anufactures.

In the special report by Professor Wilson, we find a curious table, showing the
number o f blast furnaces and bloomeries put in operation in this country from the
year 1130 to 1850. In this tabular view he states that there were no failures during
the long period of 1730 to 1840, (over one hundred years;) but from 1840 to 1850,
the failures were numerous, involving a large loss of capital. W e insert the main
features of this summary:—
IRON WORKS BUILT IN THE UNITED* STATES IN EACH PERIOD OF TEN YEARS FROM 1830
TO 1840, AND IN EACH YEAR THEREAFTER TO 1850.
BLAST FURNACES.

To
1 7 3 0 ............
1 7 4 0 ...............
1 7 5 0 ............
1 7 6 0 ............
1 7 7 0 ...............
1 7 8 0 ............
1 7 9 0 ............
1 8 0 0 ...............
1 8 1 0 ...............
1 8 2 0 ...............
1 8 3 0 ...............
1 8 3 5 ...............
1 8 4 0 ...............
1 8 4 1 ...............
1 8 4 2 ...............
1 8 4 3 ...............
1 8 4 4 ...............
1 8 4 5 ...............
1 8 4 6 ...............
1 8 4 7 ...............
1 8 4 8 ...............
1 8 4 9 ...............
1 8 5 0 ...............

Coal.

Charcoal.

i
2
2
3
1
9
11
14
18
72
3
3
8
5
13
15
30
12

l
l
l
5
2
4
16
19
16
20
46
6
2
7

i
2
3
7
5
5
25
30
30
49
123
12

5

2
1

4
11
12
5
6
5
5

20
7
21
40
53
25
17
10
13

6
2
20
7
11
3
4
24
37
41
22

230

106

504

177

6

Total . . . .

BLOOMERIES.

Built. Total built. Failed.

2

6

The impetus after 1840 is attributed to the discovery of the successful application
of anthracite coal for iron-making purposes.
One singular feature in the history o f this subject is the fact that in the early days
o f iron making, Great Britain imported from this country considerable quantities of
iron, viz.: from 1740 to 1750 the imports were 2,360 tons per annum. This increased
until in 1770 they reached 7,525 tons, being more than one-sixth of all the iron im ­
ported into Great Britain from all quarters.
AMERICAN HARDWARE AND MECHANICAL SKILL.
The following, from the Economist, will open the eyes o f thousands of our people
to the growing importance of certain kinds of manufacture, made at home, and which
the great majority o f our people suppose are made in England:—
“ The manufacture of many articles of hardware has lately been introduced into this
country, and firmly established. Forty years ago not more than half a dozen leading
articles of the trade were of our own manufacture, the rest were all imported; now,
by far the greatest part of the trade is in articles made by our own artisans. The im­
ported articles, too, are, one after another, yielding the palm of superiority to those of
American manufacture. American enterprise, machinery, skill, and ingenuity, are
more than a match for European fogyism.
“ The English manufacturers aim at producing a cheap article, strong enough to
avoid being blown to pieces by the w ind; the American manufacturers aim at produ­
cing, and in nine cases out of ten succeed in producing an article as cheap as that im­




260

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

ported, and possessing, at the same time, the qualities of simplicity, strength, and
durability. This is especially the case with regard to the lighter articles, such as door
latches, locks, ifec. Many of our heavy articles are unapproachable by the English im­
ported goods. For instance, our Eagle anvil, with its cast-steel face, is firmer and
more durable than the English anvil of wrought iron. The American chain vice is an
improvement unknown there. The augers made here are far in advance o f the Eng­
lish ideas of progress, and so of many articles. Five years ago mason’s trowels were
imported; now, $30,000 worth of trowels, confessedly superior to the English, are
made by one manufacturer— Mr. Bisbee, in South Canton—and his business doubles
annually. Even the celebrated Congress penknives are now reproduced by our own
workmen, with all the elegance and excellence of the English knife, and we might ex­
tend the list indefinitely. Again, the American goods are generally warranted, an
advantage not possessed in our home market by those which are imported.
“ The exportation of American hardware has sprung up, almost entirely, within the
last few years, and is rapidly becoming a very extensive business. Already have
American goods found their way into the British provinces, and are there preferred to
their own (English) home manufactures, thus competing successfully with English
goods in their own markets. The exportation to Canada especially is rapidly increa­
sing, and almost doubles annually. The Douglas axes are sold even in London. Large
quantities of goods are also sent to the West Indies, South America, and to all parts
of the world.”
SOUTHERN MANUFACTURES.
Our cotemporary o f the New Orleans Commercial Bulletin, says :—
“ Georgia was the first Southern State that essayed the experiment of diverting
capital from agricultural pursuits to the establishment of manufactures. W e remem­
ber the time well. Cotton had fallen to its lowest mark, far below a remunerating
price. The planters en masse, as a supposed remedy for the existing evil, and being
the most hopeful people in the world, always beguiling themselves with the idea that
‘ a better time is coming,’ began planting more cotton. The lower cotton went down
the more they grew, and the larger their crops; by this means increasing the very
mischief they were contending with, and thus impoverishing themselves. There were
a few exceptionable instances ; men ‘ to the manor born,’ and who had not the benefit
of experience, travel and observation, but who, governed by good hard sense, and the
deductions of simple reasoning, arrived at the conclusion that money could be more
profitably employed in something else than planting cotton, with largely increasing
crops, and selling it at five and six cents a pound. Cotton fabrics do not fall in price
in a corresponding ratio with the decline in the raw material. This was the clue to
their future action; and upon this hint they commenced building manufactories for
themselves. It was a small beginning, for it was ‘ the day of small things.’ There
were no railroads, or only one at most in those times. Georgia had not evolved from
her chrysalis state— she had not then by her enterprise and energy won wealth and
influence, and the proud distinction o f being the empire state of the South.”
“ The attempt at manufactures succeeded wonderfully ; the example was followed
in different parts of the State; and there are now in Georgia between fifty and sixty
cotton factories in the full tide of successful experiment. 'The degree of success they
have attained may' be inferred from the following statement of the condition of the
Macon Manufacturing Company. •During the last six months its clear profits have
been at the rate of seventeen per cent per annum on the amount of the stock. It has
declared a dividend of ten per cent, and has accumulated during the last eighteen
months, over the dividends, a reserve fund of thirty-seven thousand dollars.”
HOW TO EXTRACT GLASS STOPPLES.
When the glass will not come out, pass a strip of woolen cloth around it, and then
“ see-saw” backwards and forwards, bo that the friction may beat the neck of the bot­
tle. This will cause it to expand, become larger than the stopple, and the latter will
drop out, or may be easily withdrawn. A tight screw may be easily loosened from a
metal socket, by heating the latter by means of a cloth wet with boiling water, or in
any other way— on the simple principle of expansion by heat.




Journal o f M ining and M anufactures .

261

AMERICAN SEWING MACHINES IN FRANCE.
A Paris correspondent, under a recent date says :—
“ Three companies have sold their patents for sewing machines in France at very
high prices. 1 he company of Avery, North & Co., first sold to the Emperor for the use
of the army, at 105,000 francs; Grover, Baker & Co., of Boston, sold to a French com­
pany at a much higher rate; and more recently Singer &, Co., of New York, have sold
to a company for $100,000 francs. These useful machines are also being rapidly in­
troduced into the other States of Europe. I should mention, however, that much
difficulty is found in France in using these machines, for the want o f mechanical inge­
nuity in the people, and it is curious to see with what wonder and astonishment they
watch the machine in the har\ds of Miss Ames, who is here from New York in the em­
ploy of the French Government, and who is celebrated in her dexterity with these ma­
chines. This lady, who made at the war office, in the space of six hours, one hundred
pairs of soldiers’ pantaloons, and who has worked the machine in the presence of the
Emperor at the Tuileries, is regarded by the French as a great curiosity from the
New World, and wherever the Government Agent, Mr. Dusatory, carries her and her
favorite machine, she is the center of astonished crowds of officers and dignitaries, who
make her presents without number. She receives a salary of 750 francs a month from
the Government to superintend the manufacture of the machines, to put them into op­
eration, and to oversee the soldiers who are trying to work them. The difficulty, not
only o f making the machines perfect in France, but of finding persons capable of work­
ing them, has been found so great that it is now in contemplation to send to New York
for machines, as well as for girls to work them.”
THE COAL LANDS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND OHIO.
According the Hon. Benjamin Seaver, England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales con­
tain 11,859 square miles of coal lands; Ohio contains 11,900 square miles. The cannel coal of the Tunnel Tract, in Ohio, is superior to the English cannel usually shipped
to this country ; and the bituminous coal of Straitsville is equal to the splint coal of
Scotland, or to the coal of England, both of which are used now in the manufacture of
pig metal.
The coal trade of Great Britain in 1853, was as follows: the capital invested was,
150,000,000 ; annual production, 37,000,000 tons ; value at pit’s mouth, $50,000,000;
value at the place of consumption, $100,000,000. London alone consumed 3,600,000
tons.
In 1850, 180,439 tons of coal were shipped to this country from England and the
British provinces; in 1853, 231,508 tons; in 1854 the demand could not be supplied.
Manufacturing has made this great demand for bituminous coal; railroads, steam
engines and steam-vessels, will rapidly increase the enormous consumption.
MINING AT GEORGETOWN, CALIFORNIA.
From California papers we give a brief synopsis of the mining operations in the
vicinity of Georgetown, as follows:—
The hill or cayote diggings are considered the best in that region. A t Jones’s Hill
several companies have struck the paying dirt. The Columbia Company have fin­
ished 300 feet of tunnel through hard rock, at a cost of $3,000, and found a paying
lead of five feet in depth. Some of the dirt taken out pays as high as $200 to the
pan. Its shares are valued at from $4,000 to $6,000. The Union Tunnel Company
have made 300 feet of tunnel, at a cost*>f $15,000, which the dirt paid for as they
went along. They find 21 feet of pay dirt, averaging half an ounce a day to the
hand. The company took out the sum of $10,000 in the circumference of six feet
square. The Flying Cloud Company have a tunnel of 250 feet, at a cost of $6,000.
They have struck pay dirt, and the shares, which consist of 12, have sold at $4,500
each. Summit Tunnel Company have run into the hill 350 feet, at a cost of $10 per
foot. They have struck a rich lead, having prospected as high as $35 to the pan.
Their shares are held high.




262

Mercantile Miscellanies.

M ERCANTILE MISCELLANIES.
THE “ PHILADELPHIA MERCHANT.”
W e are glad to learn that our esteemed cotemporary, the “ Philadelphia Merchant
and American Manufacturers’ Journal ” circulates extensively. W e have frequently
had occasion to cut from its columns choice matter for our department of “ Mercantile
Miscellanies.” W e see that some thirty-six of the merchants and manufacturers of
our sister city of Philadelphia have commended the Merchant to the support of the
business men o f their city as an advertising medium. This list of firms comprises
such as David S. Brown & Co., Caleb Cope & Co., and other highly respectable and
sterling names. The paper is a large-sized weekly, handsomely printed, and contains
brief and able editorials, and presents many facts and statistics interesting to the
mercantile and manufacturing community. It appears from the affidavit of the
mailing clerk, that the Merchant is sent in regular succession to 55,755 business men
in twenty-one States and in the District of Columbia. The scattering list in other
States, and copies distributed monthly in the city, amount to 5,000, showing a total
circulation of 60,755 copies. The circulation out of Pennsylvania is chiefly in the
South and West.
W e presume that most of our Philadelphia readers are also readers of the Merchant.
The labors of Messrs. Torrey <fc Pickett to promote the interest and reputation of Phil­
adelphia, should be properly appreciated by their fellow citizens.
“ BELL’S COMMERCIAL COLLEGE » OF CHICAGO.
In this age of Commerce, any legitimate enterprise calculated to promote its inter­
ests, should certainly be esteemed a benefaction. Commercial academies or colleges,
in which are afforded the means of obtaining a thorough business education, may
therefore justly be ranked among the real improvements of the age, dispensing, as
they do, benefits of practical value and o f ready availability.
Foremost among these institutions stands “ Bell’s Commercial College ” of Chicago.
Established only about four years ago, it has already acquired a reputation unsur­
passed, if equaled, in the thoroughness and efficiency of its course of instruction, in­
volving the science of accounts.
The school is formed into a counting-room, and the student is at once introduced to
the practical workings of business, and the discharge of an accountant’s duties; and
the results are flatteringly attested by the many business houses employing its nu­
merous graduates.
The collegiate course embraces four principal departments, viz.: book-keeping,
practical or business, penmanship, commercial calculations, and commercial la w ; to
which is added instruction in the art of detecting counterfeit and altered bank-notes,
and much other knowledge of great value to the business man.
A reading-room and library of over 1,000 volumes in all the departments o f useful
knowledge and general literature, is a marked and novel feature in the organization
of this school, and one which must not only furnish its students with the means of
much valuable instruction, but be to them a source of entertainment and pleasure.
The college was chartered by the Legislature o f Illinois in 1853, and endowed with
“ all the powers and privileges exercised and enjoyed by any institution of learning
in the State.” Its faculty consists of a President, four Professors, and four Assistant
Teachers in the various departments; with a Board of Trustees, and also a Board of




Mercantile Miscellanies.

263

Examiners, consisting of practical accountants, before whom candidates for graduation
are examined.
The catalogue of the school shows it to be the recipient of a most liberal and ex­
tensive patronage, the names of students from most of the Western States and many
of the Eastern being there recorded. Its diplomas are a sure passport to lucrative
and responsible situations in business, and it deservedly enjoys the public confidence
and a high reputation for the completeness and excellence of its course o f study.
The President, Judge B ell, who is favorably known in New York, where he for­
merly resided, has for many years been identified with the interests of the West,
where he has held offices of the highest trust and responsibility. Engaged, during an
active and eventful life, for many years in business pursuits, he has acquired a thor­
ough commercial knowledge, which must constitute a valuable resource for the instruc­
tion of his students in the details of business transactions, and which, with his scholastic
acquirements, must afford him superior ability in the management of this excellent
and useful institution, upon the possession of which we congratulate our young giant
city o f the West.
THE LONG CREDIT OF NORTHERN CITIES.
A late number o f the Commercial B ulletin, one of the best mercantile journals pub­
lished in New Orleans, has some sensible remarks touching long credits in our northern
marts of trade; which we commend to the notice of the readers of the Merchants'
M agazine :—
One reason why New Orleans has been deprived of a large amount of interior trade,
due her on account of her commanding position, unequaled natural advantages and
splendid market, can be traced to the fact that the wholesale jobbers of the northern
cities could afford to extend to country merchants and small traders greater facilities
in the way of long credits than could our jobbers and wholesale dealers— not that
their markets were better, as convenient, or really cheaper than this, all things consid­
ered. The twelve-months credit system did the business, and attracted an immense
amount of Western and Southwestern trade to those cities, which would have other­
wise sought this port.
The long-credit system is to the purchaser what the lighted candle is to the moth,
with this exception— the moth gets scorched to death but the candle burns on unin­
jured— while long credits very often destroy both wholesale jobber and country
merchant. The country merchant finds it so easy to lay in his stock that he makes
large and imprudent purchases—goes beyond his means and the wants of the section
in which he resides. With his large supplies he returns home highly elated; and as
he bought on a credit he sells on a credit, and as fast as possible—in fact forces his
goods on the market. In turn, his customers, having enjoyed unusual facilities, have
purchased more than they needed, are unable to settle when pay-day rolls round, and
the country merchant, consequently, cannot take up the notes he has given the jobber.
Multiply the instance we have hastily illustrated a hundred or a thousand fold—and
it is but one of an annual thousand— and the whole commercial world is, after a
while, startled by the news of the failure of large jobbing houses supposed to be as
solid as the rock of Gibraltar, and which would have been so but for the prevalence
of this pernicious long-credit system.
Let us carry out the parallel a little further: the customers of the country merchant
fail to pay him promptly; he cannot meet his engagements with the jobber in conse­
quence ; the jobber, owing to the bad faith or misfortunes of his correspondents, is
compelled to close— to break. He proceeds to collect his claims as speedily as possi­
ble. He sues the country merchant; the country merchant sues his delinquent debt­
ors, and there is a general litigation all around, to which must be added the usual
amount-of costs, fees, and interest, to say nothing of the bad feelings and the lax
morality engendered by the proceedings. The finale sums up usually in this wise :
the principal parties to the transaction are ruined in fortune and credit; the customers
o f the country trader are harassed by lawsuits, have to pay costs, lawyers’ fees, <fcc.,
superadded to the original claim, if solvent— all of which would have been avoided if
the practice o f long credits had never known existence. There never was a truer say­
ing than that “ short credits make prompt payments.




•264

Mercantile Miscellanies .

And there are other evils inseparably connected with this system, throwing out of
view altogether the objections alluded to above. We will refer to one of them mere­
ly. The jobber who sells on long time, is compelled, o f course, to make frequent re­
newals, and he must, therefore, enjoy a larger rate of profit on the goods he sells, to
provide for future contingencies and losses, for there will be losses, no matter how
cautiously and ably an extended business is conducted; and there are contingencies
against which no human foresight can provide. As the small dealer has to pay for
the prolonged credit afforded to him, he must charge his customers in proportion, to
make himself safe, and the consequence is, supposing all obligations promptly met at
maturity, that the masses of the people, the retail buyers from the interior traders,
have to pay higher prices for the goods they use than they would had the system of
protracted credits been repudiated from the commencement.
iThe New York jobbers are now moving to shorten the credits they have been in
the habit of extending to their customers. The shoe pinches too tight to be much
longer endured. By expanding the credit system to an unsafe and unhealthy extent,
they have sold an incalculable amount of merchandise, on a portion of which we
imagine they would be rejoiced to realize. And if they fail to collect fully, they
should recollect that the fault is partially their own. The inducements they held out
were too strong for poor, sanguine human nature to resist, especially in a country like
ours, where there are so many who believe in “ luck,” and “ manifest destiny,” and are
ready to “ go it blind” whenever an opportunity presents itself.
In reference to the movement of the jobbers, a New York cotemporary has the
following: “ There is a much needed and judicious movement among our jobbers to
reduce the term of credit given to country dealers. One of the leading silk houses in
Broadway has taken the initiative step, and has adopted the rule of giving six and
eight months’ credit, taking notes payable at bank. The evil of long credits has long
been felt by our jobbers as one of the most dangerous in the dry goods business.
Philadelphia and Boston have suffered severely from granting such credits, in order to
attract trade from New York, and our jobbers appear now fully awake to the necessi­
ty o f avoiding a like fate. If our sister cities like twelve months trade, our opinion is,
that the policy of New York is to let them enjoy it undisturbed.”
For our part we are glad to see this movement, and hope it will go on till it em ­
braces every commercial city in the North. As their long credits were the prime
cause of taking from us thousands of good customers residing within the Valley of the
Mississippi and adjacent States, so will the withdrawal of that dangerously attractive
facility bring them back to us— at least many of them.
The Mobile Tribune thinks “ that the best thing the Northern cities could do for the
South would be to demand cash. W e are bound to the North by credits. Destroy
these and peihaps then there would be some chance for direct trade.” The remark is
a suggestive one; but we must become more energetic and public-spirited before we
can hope for direct communication with Europe. W e must infuse a new life into our
body politic.
*'<HE IS A COUNTRY MERCHANT— STICK HIM !”
W e are not about to indite an essay on the mercantile axiom in Hudibras, says our
clever cotemporary of the Philadelphia Merchant, that “ everything is worth as much
as it will b r i n g n o r do we expect to offer any new exposition of the morality of
trade. W e simply purpose recording an illustration of the immorality of taking the
advantage of a buyer’s presumed ignorance.
In a certain city which shall be nameless, and in a year which we shall not specify,
Mr. A established himself in business. Among the frequent visitors at his store was
Mr. B, whose olBficiousness was never agreeable to the proprietor, and on one occasion
at least his advice was botli insulting and disastrous. It happened on this wise :—
A gentleman came into the store and inquired for sundry articles as to prices, &c.
In the midst of the interview, Mr. B called Mr. A to the door, and, taking him by the
button, whispered confidentially regarding the inquirer, “ He is a country merchant—
stick him !”
Mr. A turned away in disgust, and resumed his conversation with the new-comer.
But the whispered counsel had reached the ear of the latter, and he left the premises
without purchasing a single article. Probably a valuable customer was lost— per­
haps many customers indirectly— by the wicked suggestion of an intermeddler, over­
heard.




Mercantile Miscellanies .

265

There can be no doubt that he uttered the principle o f his own business operations,
the whole being resolved into the reckless axiom—
“ That they should get who have the power,
And they should keep who can 1”

However decent in the appearance of things, and however respectable as to social
position, a man who advises a neighbor to “ stick a country merchant,” has repeatedly
committed such crimes himself; and he who would do that , would be a petty thief or
a highwayman were it not for the danger o f detection, and the grip o f the law.
W e may mention, continues the Merchant, as an illustrative commentary, that the
adviser alluded to had recently become a bankrupt shamelessly.
W e do not announce this result as an event always certain in the ordinations of
Providence, else all who succeed in amassing wealth might claim the issue as proof
o f their integrity in trade ; but we affirm that riches cankered by fraud never pur­
chased serenity of mind, the highest form of prosperity. Generally, too, all deception
and overreaching in mercantile affairs, break down the doer of the wrong, in his estate
no less than in his personal happiness, or is visited on his children in the direst forms
of retribution.
W e can easily see how a double-dealing merchant must in time destroy his business
by establishing a suspicious reputation, and it is not difficult to see how the sins of
such a man are transmitted to his offspring, iu respect of consequences. He who
seeks to accumulate money at all hazrrds, will pay little regard to the virtuous train­
ing of his children; and sad indeed would be the fate of all such unfortunate ones,
were it not for the saving graces and wholesome home-instruction of the mothers o f the
land.
No doubt there is a wide margin for “ tricks in trade,” as also for “ tricks upon trav­
elers,” and opportunity for operating may often be a sore temptation to such as are
not rooted and grounded in principle ; but we submit that all persons who ignore in­
tegrity in their transactions, whatever may be their calling, deny the righteous gov­
ernment of God, and are therefore among the practical atheists of the world.
SHORT BUSINESS VIS1TS-IDLERS IN STORES,
A correspondent of the Phrenological Journal complains that some of his custom­
ers, who are very valuable to him, are nevertheless in the habit of lingering in his es­
tablishment for hours at a time, much to his annoyance. He cannot treat them with
discourtesy, and has no inclination so to do. But he thinks that a hint or two as to
the policy of short visits on business, especially when others require a fair degree of
attention, would not only prove serviceable in his case, but in a general sense.
The error alluded to is a serious one, and it prevails to a very great extent. There
are some people who fancy that others have little or nothing to do. They stop them
in the street during business hours, and attempt to get up a long conversation on tri­
fling matters— they visit their stores and lounge on their desks and counters— they
repeat silly stories that have been told a dozen times before—and still worse, they
pry into matters with which they have no concern, and thus not only annoy and vex,
but inflict absolute injury. A friend who keeps a leading store at one of our promi­
nent corners, informs us that he has lost quite a number of customers in consequence
~o( the almost perpetual presence of idlers and loafers, who stare with rude impudence,
and who will not take any of the many gentlemanly hints that he has ventured to
give them. He does not like to turn them out absolutely, but he assures ns that he
not only suffers in his feelings but his business. Some of them may mean no harm,
but the effect is not the less pernicious. A man of common sense, and a gentleman,
could readily imagine the indelicacy of standing beside the counter of a book store,
with a lady making application for publications, either for herself or a member of her
family. Nay, we know of a case, in which a young man, who kept a store for the
sale of works, was absolutely ruined in the manner described. He lacked the moral
courage to send away the idlers who infested his establishment, and the consequence
was that all his customers left him. But as a general rule, a visit of business should




266

Mercantile Miscellanies.

be brief, especially when other parties are to be consulted with, or waited upon.
When, too, any matter, private or confidential, is in progress, everything like curiosity
should be regarded as ill timed or impertinent. It is quite a common occurrence for
an idler to step into a room and exclaim—“ Are you engaged ?” —seeing, at the same
time, two or three persons busily occupied, and hence such a question being altogether
unnecessary. But even when an affirmative answer is given, he will take a seat
coolly, pick up a newspaper, and attempt to listen to all that is passing. Nay, he
will venture ever and anon to throw in a remark, as if he were the party concerned,
and as if his affairs were the topic under consideration. But enough for the present.
The subject is a fruitful one, and we may return to its consideration again.
T1IE PHILADELPHIA MERCHANT ON MERCANTILE BIOGRAPHY.
✓

Enough has not yet been made of mercantile biography. Eminence in some other
sphere has too often been made requisite in order to insure any notice, beyond an
obituary, of many an eminent merchant. And yet in what line o f human action is
there Jraore of telling incident, exhibiting the operations of all the springs of noble,
manly caaracter, than in that of mercantile life? But Commerce is an every day
affair; it is mixed up with small matters, and there is an unromantic mass of details
that intrudes itself and drives away the historic muse. Just so, dear sir, it is with the
life of the statesman and military chieftain who occupy so much of biography. To
peep behind the curtain that hides the preparations for some great public performance,
is to behold quite uninteresting details, and to see what Burke wittily described when
he said, “ What is majEsry deprived of its externals” (the first and last letters) “ but
a jest? ” We see how the statesman and the military chieftain wade through masses
of unromantic details to prepare for the striking display; and the splendid oration
which sets the nation on fire with enthusiasm as it did the Senate, is not unaptly to
be compared to the merchant’s ship to gather whose freight was no small labor, and
to load which was no very interesting performance, but once afloat with sail spread to
a favorable wind, is a majestic and beautiful sight.
But the signs of the times are more favorable. Mercantile biography is command­
ing more and more attention. The various methods of obtaining a good likeness
without the tedious process attendant on portrait painting, has given us fine speci­
mens o f splendid men from the ranks of eminent merchants; this has led to the pre­
paration of some notice of their career to accompany the portrait, and thus an outline
has been furnished to be filled up in each case when the man becomes only a memory
and an influence. The discovery at length is made that business life, the vicissitudes
of Commerce and the vast range of commercial relations afford as good and fruitful a
field of materials for biography as any department of human operation. What exhi­
bitions of self-reliance, of indomitable energy, of persevering resolution, of triumph
over the frowns of fortune, of stern moral principle, of inflexible integrity, of individu­
al power and personal influence, are there given! It is a good token for the future
that increased attention is now given to this range of examples, and young men look­
ing forward to a business career, will learn that true success is no hap-hazard thing,
but has its laws and conditions, and they will see before them something worth achiev­
ing. A merchant’s life will assume a higher dignity; they will see the hollowness of
that success which sinks character ; and they will count loss gain when wealth goes
rather than the immortal riches of honor, integrity, and sound faith. They will serve,
they will stand and wait for the turn o f fortune, they will fortify their soul to bear
more and more of disaster, in the strength of that moral principle which gave such
dignity and excellency to some merchant’s career whose character has won their love
and fixed their determination to imitate.
While dwelling on this theme we may remark, that in an article on Mercantile Lit­
erature we expressed our opinion of the great good which would be done by the pub­
lication, in book form, of a compilation of biographies from “ Hunt's Merchants' M a­
gazine .” W e are happy to see the announcement of such a volume now in prepara­
tion. It will doubtless contain the fine portraits which from time to time have ap­
peared in the Magazine, and will thus make an exhibition of as splendid heads as can
be selected from the Senate or the Bar— features glowing with energy and glorified
by the splendor of manly character. Such a volume will have great value, and we
trust it will be liberally circulated in our counting rooms.— Philadelphia Merchant.




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THE BOOK TRADE.
1. — Population and C apital; being a Course of Lectures, delivered before the Uni­
versity of Oxford in 1853-4. By G eorge K. R ichards, M. A., Professor of Polit­
ical Economy. 12mo.f pp. 259. London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longman.
New York: John Wiley.
This volume contains ten lectures delivered before the University of Oxford, and
are now published in accordance with a statute, under which the professorship of po­
litical economy is founded. The lecture which stands first in the volume, ‘‘On the Na­
ture and Functions of Capital,” treats of matters which are elementary in their nature,
and familiar to all proficients in the science. In this lecture he successfully, as we
think, refutes the doctrine that “ private vices are public benefits ” — ably and clearly
exposing thet allacy, which we have so often repeated, that extravagance and prodi­
gality furnish employment for labor, encourage trade, and benefit the community, by
putting money into active circulation. The remaining nine lectures are devoted mainly
to the subject o f population, in which he attempts, among other important questions,
to discriminate between the truth and the error contained in Malthus’s celebrated es­
say ou the same subject— candidly and fairly giving credit for much that is sound in
the researches and reasonings of that clever economist. The doctrine which Mr. Malthus labored to inculcate, touching the constant tendency of all societies to over-popu­
lation, Professor Richards thinks untenable in principle, irreconcilable in facts, and
acquits him o f any approach to impiety, or as derogating from the Author of those
laws by which the economy of society is regulated. In discussing and illustrating the
various branches of the subject, Mr. Richards has availed himself of the labors of
other well-known writers on population, particularly our esteemed friend and corre­
spondent, Mr. Henry C. Carey, the eminent American economist, whose able and elab­
orate papers on “ Money” (published in recent numbers of the Merchants' Magazine )
have attracted so much attention. Mr. Richards alludes also to a small tract by the
late Alexander H. Everett, published in London in 1823, entitled “ New Ideas on
Population, with Remarks on the Theories of Malthus and Godwin.” “ This work of
Mr. Everett,” says Mr. R., “ does not appear to have met with the attention or pro­
duced the effect which the candor, ability, and judgment displayed in its few pages
deserved.”
2. — The Lives and Times o f the Chief Justices o f the Supreme Court o f the United
States. By H enry F landers. First Series—John Jay, John Rutledge. 8vo., pp.
645.
The story of the Lives of the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of the United
S tates, is, of course, v^ry intimately associated with the history of their country. The
history of the early Justices is interwoven with the contest and the struggle for Inde­
pendence, the establishment and early days of our glorious Union. Such are the lives
of John Jay and John Rutledge, whose biographies are presented in the present hand­
some volume. The political and judicial career of these eminent men is traced by one
who has brought to the task much ability and profound research, and apparently an
impartial judgment in his delineation of character. This volume is one of those that
are peculiarly interesting to the student o f history, and instructive to all American
citizens.
3. — The Two Guardians ; or Home in this World. By the author of “ The Heir of
Redcliffe,” “ Henrietta’s wish,” Heartsease,” “ The Castle Builder.” 12mo., pp. 338.
D. Appleton & Co., New York.
This is a good domestic story. We do not find such vivid pictures or startling inci­
dents as mark some of her other tales, yet there is much that is interesting and profit­
able. The story presents a picture of ordinary life with its small daiL event of joys,
pleasures and trials, in the development of which we see the moral and beneficial ten­
dency of the book. The characters personified, particularly that of Marion, exhibit the
value and worth of true consistent Christian principle, in combating with the circum­
stances of life, and the aid such stability affords in meeting its discipline. W e believe
these books, while they interest will leave a salutary effect upon the mind of the
reader.




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— The History o f Napoleon Bonaparte.
B y J ohn S. C. A bbott. 2 vols., 8vo.,
pp. 611 and 666. New York: Harper &. Brothers.
The author of this biography of Napoleon is an enthusiastic admirer of his charac­
ter. The name of* that wonderful genius and great man has been assailed by hostile
historians, and he has been stigmatized as a usurper, a tyrant, a blood thirsty monster,
unsatiably ambitious, and almost the entire phraseology which unmerited obloquy
could heap upon his fame has been exhausted. In these volumes the character of
Napoleon is held up in the most favorable light in which it can be viewed. The wri­
ter admires him because, as he believes, he abhorred war, merited the position to which
he was elevated, and because his extraordinary energies were consecrated to the pro­
motion of his country’s prosperity— because he was regardless of luxury, and endured
much to elevate and bless mankind. He attributes to him a high sense of honor— a
reverence for religion—a respect for the rights of conscience— and admires him for
his noble advocacy of equality of privileges and the universal brotherhood of man.
It is a most interesting narrative, containing well-authenticated anecdotes and remark­
able sayings, illustrative of his character. The work will be regarded by many as too
partial and eulogistic. We cannot consider the author’s estimate of Napoleon, as a
great and noble man, placed hardly, if any, too high. The work contains two wellengraved portraits of Napoleon at different ages. There is also a large number of
beautiful illustrations, depicting scenes and incidents of his eventful life and time.
4.

5. — The L ife o f General Lafayette , M arquis o f France, General in the United
States A rm y, etc., etc. By P. C. H e a d l e y , author of the Life of the Empress Joseph­
ine, etc. 12 mo. pp. Auburn: Miller, Orton & Mulligan.
The philanthropic and heroic subject o f this memoir, General Lafayette, should be
as well known to the American people as any of our native heroes, and the circulation
o f an accurate biography should be co-extensive with the limits of the Republic. His
brilliant career, his devotion to our country in its youth make the theme a national one.
The volume before us seems to be the fullest record of his life ever published, and to
have been prepared with much labor and research. The part he took in the French
Revolution is discussed. The author’s estimate of his character seems to us, for the
most part, a correct one. But the animadversions of his lack of theological religion
seem unnecessary and uncalled for.
6.

— St. Petersburg ; Its People ; Their Character and Institutions. By E dward J er Translated from the original German by F rederick H ardmann. 12mo.,
pp. 234. New York : N. J. Barnes & Co.

mann.

The author of these sketches of St. Petersburg, is by profession an actor, and passed
three years in that city as manager of a German theatrical company. His success in
that capacity was not great, and he devoted his leisure to writing for the German jour­
nals. These writings were collected in book form, owing to their very favorable recep­
tion. His impressions are more favorable than many travelers have brought away
with them from that country, and he is a warm admirer of the late Emperor Nicholas.
This narrative is vivacious and entertaining.
7. — Surgical Reports and Miscellaneous Papers on Medical subjects. By G eo. H a y ­
w a r d , M. D., President of the Massachusetts Medical Society, Fellow of the Amer­
ican Academy of Arts and Sciences, late Professor o f Surgery in Harvard Uni­
versity, and one of the Consulting Surgeons to the Massachusetts General Hospital.
12mo., pp. 452. Boston : Phillips, Sampson <fc Co. New York : J. C. Derby.
The contents of this volume will be interesting to medical students and young phys­
icians, as well as to the older members o f the profession, whose time will not permit
an examination of more extended works on the subjects of which the work treats.
The papers on the “ Statistics of Consumption” and “ Some of the Diseases of a Lit­
erary Life,” are such as will be interesting to other readers.
8. — D iary in Turkish and Greek Waters. By the E arl of C arlisle . Edited by
C. C. F elton. Boston : Hickling, Swan & Brown. 1855. 12mo., pp. 299.
Prof. Felton has greatly enhanced the value of this very readable book by his spicy,
illustrative, entertaining notes and preface. As Lord Morpeth, the author has a wellearnt reputation here and at home, and, though not very profound, is, as personal ex­
amination of the same ground enables us to say, a reliable authority besides being a
genial companion. His general conclusion is that the “ sick man” is nearly dead, and
that Greek Christianity may be vitalized enough to recover its ancient throne.




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9. — The A lta r at Home : Prayers for the Family and the Closet. By clergymen in
and near Boston. Boston: American Unitarian Association. New Y ork: C. S.
Francis. 12 mo. pp., 350. 1855.
This sixth volume of a series publishing by the Liberal party in Boston, with the
“ Book Fund ” recently collected, is made up of the independent contributions of
twenty-five clergymen, whose names are not given, but who are among the bright
lights of the church of progress. There is, of course, great variety, and ooccasional
failure; but, as a whoie, familiar as we are with books of this stamp, we know of
none so life-full, so suggestive, so charming, so sincere. Other denominations will miss
some things to which they are accustomed, but will not find a word to wound or dis­
turb. W e like the brevity of most of the petitions, the well-adapted scripture selec­
tions, the Ancient Collects near the close. We are glad that the first edition was
taken up at once; and trust that this will be a favorite marriage-offering to many a
young home, the mother’s parting gift to the only son, the traveler’s bosom friend, the
inviting light upon that last journey taken cheerily from the Christian's sick bed.
10. — The P rim acy o f the Apostolic See Vindicated. By F rancis P atrick K endrick,
Archbishop of Baltimore. 8vo., pp. 440. Baltimore: John Murphy & Co.
This work, as we learn from the erudite archbishop’s preface, was originally pub­
lished in 1837, in the form of letters to the Protestant Episcopal Bishop of Vermont,
J. H. Hopkins, in reply to a work on the Church of Rome, addressed by him to the
Catholic Hierarchy. It was enlarged, 1845 and 1848, and was republished with a new
and improved arrangement of the matters which it embraced. It has also been trans­
lated and published in the German language. The present edition has been farther
enlarged, and it now comes before the public in a permanent form. We confess to
have very little taste for all kinds of theological controversy, but there are minds dif­
ferently molded, who read such works with a zeal and a zest that would, if applied
to the advancement o f “ peace on earth and good will among men,” produce results of
far greater importance to the human race. The author is an able writer and clever
controversalist.
11. — Our Countrymen ; or, Brief Memoirs o f Eminent Americans. By B enson J. Lossing, author of the Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution, etc. Illustrated by one
hundred and three portraits. By L ossing & B arritt . 12mo., pp. 407. New York :
Ensigu, Budgman & Fanning.
There are brief sketches of between three and four hundred Americans in this vol­
ume— statesmen, philosophers, scholars, philanthropists, divines, physicians, artists,
merchants, soldiers, mariners, mechanics,— men who have made their mark, who are
worthy of imitation as examples, or, as in the case of some, are to be admired for their
greatness, and to be studied as warnings on account of their faults. The prominent
points in the character, and the deeds of these men have been presented. Although
notices of some men which might appear in such a work, men who have made their
impression on their age, are omitted, yet the volume is a useful one.
12. — A M anual o f Ancient History, from the Remotest Times to the Overthrow of
the Western Empire, A. D. 476. By Dr. L eonhard S chmitz, F. R, S. E., Rector of
the High School of Edinburgh. 12mo., pp. 466. Philadelphia: Lea & Blanchard.
This work furnishes in a compendious form the ancient history of not only Greece
and Rome, but embraces an account of all nations of antiquity except the Jewish.
The work is divided into three parts, each part a distinct course in itself. The first
comprises the Asiatic; the second, Greece, Macedonia, and the Greeco Macedonian;
the third, Rome, Carthage, and the nations of Western Europe. Added to the history
are copious chronological tables, including a brief chronology o f Jewish history, de­
signed to assist the biblical student. It is beyond all question one of the most com­
prehensive manuals of history extant
13. — The Mysterious P archm ent ; or the Satanic License. Dedicated to Maine Law
Progress. By Rev. J ohn W akeman, Pastor o f the First Presbyterian Church of
Almond, New York. 12mo., pp. 323. Boston: J. P. Jewett & Co.
A temperance tale of considerable power; increased by the fact that many of the
most horrible and shocking statements are true, or taken from actual life. The author
has succeeded, without embellishment or color, in transferring to his pages the deplor­
able results of intemperance as they daily occur in real life. He regards the Maine
Law as the only sure remedy in the wide range of human instrumentality for the sup­
pression of the evil.




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14. — Sermons o f Rev. I chabod S. S pen cer , D. D., late Pastor of the Second Presby­
terian Church, L. I., author of “ A Pastor’s Sketches” With a sketch of his life.
By Rev. J. M. S h e r w o o d . In two volumes. 12mo., pp. 473 and 479. New Y ork :
M. W. Dodd.
Dr. Spencer, who for nearly a quarter of a century was settled in Brooklyn, L. I.,
the “ City of Churches,” was an eminent divine of the Presbyterian faith. He was
much respected by those who were accustomed to listen to his teachings, and was a
man of high repute for scholarly attainments. On more than one occasion during his
ministry he was called to the presidency of a college or university, which posts he
declined accepting. The editor of these volumes has arranged in one of them those
mainly of a doctrinal character, and in the other has placed together those which he
denominates as practical and experimental. The first volume contains a sketch of the
life and character of Dr. Spencer, and is illustrated by a well-executed engraving and
correct likeness of the subject of the memoir.
— A New System o f Practical P enm anship: Founded on Scientific Movements;
and the art of Pen making explained, for the use of Teachers and Learners. By
J ames F rench . Boston: J. French &, Co.
The author o f this treatise illustrates his theory of penmanship with the most ele­
gant specimens of execution, which show him to be master of this branch of education.
The great beauty of his method lies in the simplicity and ease with which it can be
made practically useful not only to schools, but to individuals who wish to improve
their own imperfect hand-writiDg. We cordially recommend to all who desire to ac­
quire a fair, legible, practical use of the pen, which may be speedily obtained by
faithfully following the rules which are presented with such simplicity in this excel­
lent and masterly system of penmanship.
15.

16. — Our W orld; or the Slaveholder’s Daughter. 12mo., pp. 597. New Y ork:
Miller, Orton & Mulligan.
This story, like “ Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” is designed to show up the “ peculiar institu­
tion” of the South. The writer disclaims the grave charges of misrepresenting socie­
ty and misconstruing facts, which he anticipates from his southern friends. He at­
tempts to give “ a true picture of southern society in its various aspects; and details
various moral, social, and political evils, which he charges directly to the institution
of slavery.” The book has merit as a story, but cannot well be read without prejudice
for or against its inculcations. It will doubtless be admired by the anti-slavery, and
denounced by the pro-slavery, party, North and South.
17. — The History o f Switzerland , for the Swiss people. By H ein r ic h Z ochokke , with
a continuation to the ) ear 1848. By E mil Z ochokke . Translated by F ra n cis G eo.
S h a w . 12mo., pp. 405. New Y o r k : C. S. Francis & Co.
The present translation of a work so popular in Switzerland, and which is used as
a text-book in many if not in all the confederate cantons of that country, is from the
ninth enlarged edition. The work is regarded as an impartial one, is concisely writ­
ten, and Mr. Shaw seems to have preserved the beautiful simplicity of the authors
style in his translation. The history of free Switzerland, the land of Tell, is an inter­
esting study to the American citizen.
18. — The Englishwoman in R u ssia ; Impressions of the Society and Manners of the
Russians at Home. By A L ad y , ten years’ resident in that country. 12mo., p p . 316.
New York: Charles Scribner.
The sketch of Russian manners and society, descriptions of scenery and places
worth visiting, anecdotes embraced in this narrative, furnish an instructive and un­
commonly attractive work on a country which, from its warlike position at this time,
is exciting interest. The authoress has been a close observer; she has delineated the
Russian character, it seems to us, with discrimination, and has portrayed in an agree­
able style much of interest that she has seen or heard during ten years’ residence.
19. — Woodworth's Am erican Miscellany o f Entertaining Knowledge. By F rancis B.
W o od w o r th , Author o f Stories About Animals, Uncle Frank’s Horae Stories, Theodore Thinker’s Tales, etc., etc. 12 mo. Boston: Phillips, Sampson <fc Co.
The original matter of this volume before us (one of a series) is written in an engag­
ing style, which will render it attractive to youth, and the selections show care, and
generally, good taste. It is an instructive and entertaining volume for the young, and
contains much that will prove readable to those of maturer years.




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20. — Westward Ho ! The Voyages and Adventures of Sir Amyas Leigh, Knight of
Burrough, in the <'ounty of Devon, in the reign of her Most Glorious Majesty Queen
Elizabeth. Rendered iuto Modern English. By C h a r le s K in g sl e y , author of
“ Alton Locke,” “ Hypatia,” etc. 12mo., pp. 5S8. Boston : Ticknor & Fields.
This work has all the fascination of a romance, yet it is both biographical and his­
torical. The events occur in the time of Queen Elizabeth, and with the adventures of
the hero of the story are interwoven the lives of many heroic men, to whom the au­
thor believes that England owes much of her naval and commercial glory. To give
these persons their just due seems to be the design of the writer. The book is ably
written in commemoration of these men of Devon— “ Drakes and Hawkins, Gilberts
and Raleighs, Grenvilles and Oxenhams, their voyages and battles, their heroic lives
and heroic deaths.” The self-sacrifice and heroism, the faith and valor depicted in
these pages, with the romance connected with it, invest the story with more than or­
dinary interest, for we consider it a work of uncommon vigor and power.
21. — A B urning and a Shining L ig h t; being the Life and Discourses of Reverend
T homas S pen cer , of Liverpool. By Rev. T homas R a f f l e s , D. D., LL. D., his suc­
cessor in the pastoral office, with an Introduction. 12mo., pp. 280. N ew York:
Sheldon, Lamport & Blakeman.
Rev. Thomas Spencer, a memoir of whose life, together with his discourses and some
of his letters, are embraced in this volume, was a young man who displayed great tal­
ents as a pulpit orator. He preached a sermon before lie was seventeen years of age,
and was cut off in the hey-day of life, being drowned while bathing in the river Mer­
sey, in August, 1811 ; then not twenty-one years of age. He had been for a time pre­
vious to that attracting crowded congregations. 'The celebrated English preacher,
Robert Hall, in speaking of his abilities, says— “ I entertain no doubt that his talents
in the pulpit were unrivalled, and that had his life been spared, he would, in ali proba­
bility, have carried the art of preaching, if it may be so styled, to a greater perfection
than it ever attained, at least in this kingdom.”
22. — Despotism in America. An Inquiry into the Nature, Results, and Legal Basis
of the Slave-holdiug System in the United States. By R ich a rd H il d r e t h , author
of the “ History of the United States,” “ Theory of Politics,” “ White Slave,” <fec.
12mo., pp. 307. Boston: John P. Jewett & Co.
Mr. Hildreth, to use a hackneyed expression, holds the pen of an able and ready
writer, and his History of the United States evinces great research and industry. The
present volume is mainly devoted to the subject of Negro slavery, and is divided into
five parts, in which he treats of the relation of master and slave; the political, econ­
omical, and personal results of the slave-holding system; and concludes with the legal
basis of that system. With all Mr. Hildreth’s clearness of style and logical array of
historical data, he will not, we apprehend, be able to make many converts to his
views, particularly among our Southern friends.
23. — A Vindication o f the Catholic Church , in a Series of Letters addressed to the
Rt. Rev. John Henry Hopkins, Protestant Episcopal Bishop of Vermont. By
F rancis P a tr ic k K en drick , Archbishop of Baltimore. 12mo., pp. 332. Baltimore:
John Murphy
Co.
The pages of this volume are written in reply to a work of Bishop Hopkins’ styled
“ The End of Controversy Controverted.” The letters of which this latter book is
composed are addressed to Archbishop Kendrick, and contain what he calls a special
challenge to refute them addressed to himself. The dogmas of the Romish Church
are ably defended in these letters, and they will be interesting to all who sympathize
with the author in religious belief, as well as to those opposed who read Bishop Hop­
kins’ work, and to many others in opposition to such views who wish to hear the other
side.
24. — Colton's A tla s o f the W orld: Illustrating Physical and Political Geography. By
G eorge W. C olton .
Accompanied b y descriptions, Geographical, Statistical, and
Historical. By Richard L. Fisher, M. D.
We noticed in the January number of the Merchants ’ Magazine , Parts 1, 2, and 3
of these beautiful maps, and commended the work as a whole for its elegance of exe­
cution, elaborateness of design, and its apparent reliability. We have before us Parts
4, 5, 6, and 7 ; the maps are published in uniform style as regards size, finish, and
beauty. We shall take occasion to refer to this invaluable atlas more in detail in a
future number of the Merchants' Magazine.




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25. — A Journey to Central A frica ; or Life and Landscapes from Egypt to the Negro
Kingdoms of the White Wile. By B a yar d T a y l o r . New York: George P. Put­
nam & Co.
Having read everything published among us upon Egypt, and traveled over as
much of that country as travelers usually visit, we are prepared to recognize this book
as the best yet written upon the subject, and one of the most instructive, reliable, and
fascinating books of travel in existence. Mr. Taylor went far beyond the Second
Cataract, where Americans have hitherto stopped, with no little peril wot king his
way up the White Nile, till his boatmen refused to go any further, and reaching
within eight degrees and a half of the highest point ever attained by Europeans. His
descriptions are full of life,'his spirit always buoyant, his love of adventure bewitch­
ing, and his conclusions generally those which the intelligent will accept. No one of
our race will visit the true source of the Nile in our d a y ; intensity of heat, destitution
o f food, hostility of natives, absence of means of travel, will keep the lips of this
sphynx sealed till the continent itself is somewhat civilized.
26. — Louis Fourteenth and the Writers o f his Age : being a Course of Lectures de­
livered (in French) to a Select Audience in New York. By the Rev. J. F. A st ie .
Introduction and translation by the Rev. E. N. Kerse. 12mo., pp. 413. Boston:
John P. Jewett <fe Co.
The course of lectures embodied in this volume are from the pen of a cultivated
Frenchman, who reviews an important period in his country’s history— partially in its
political, chiefly in its literary features. Besides an introduction by the translator,
there are dissertations on the Age of Louis X IV ., Pascal’s Provincial Letters, Cor­
neille, Fenelon, La Fontaine, Boileau, Racine, Moliere, Pascal’s Thoughts. Mr. Astie
considers the great elements that contributed to form the literary genius of the
Augustan epoch to have been the study of antiquity, the more or less sincere respect
for religion, and, above all, the monarchy of Louis X IV . The book is an interesting
contribution to historical science.
27.

— The P rinciples o f Metaphysical and Ethical Science applied to the Evidences o f
Religion. By F rancis B o w e n , A. M., Alford Professor o f Natural Religion, Moral

Philosophy, and Civil Polity in Harvard College. 12mo., pp. 487. Boston: Hickling, Swan <fe Brown.
The substance of this work was delivered in two courses of lectures by the Profes­
sor, before the Snell Institute in Boston, in the winters of 1848-9, and publbhed in
that form. That edition was exhausted. The present, which has been revised and
recast, is used as a text-book of instruction by the students of Harvard College. It
treats of the leading doctrines of metaphysical and ethical philosophy, considered as
bearing upon the evidences of religion; and in its present form is much better adapted
to the object aimed at by the learned author.
28. — Sanders’ Young Ladies’ Reader : Embracing a Comprehensive Course of Instruc­
tion in the Principles of Rhetorical Reading. With a choice Collection of Exercises
in Reading, both in Prose and Poetry. For the use of the Higher Female Semi­
naries, as also the Higher Classes in Female Schools generally. By C h arles W.
S an ders , A. M., author of “ A Series of School Readers,” “ Speller, Definer, and
Analyzer,” “ Elocutionary Chart,” “ Young Choir,” “ Young Vocalist,” (fee. 12mo,
pp. 500. New Y ork: Ivison <fe Phinney.
The selections of pieces for reading are from excellent authors, and the sentiments
are high-toned. They are such frequently as abound in moral instruction or incidental
teaching. There is a due proportion of the gay with the grave.
29. — A Treatise on the Inflammatory and Organic Diseases o f the B rain : Including
Irritation, Congestion, and Inflammation of the Brain and its Membranes— Tuber­
culous, Meningotis, Hydrocephaloid Disease, Hydrocephalus, Atrophy and Hyper­
trophy, Hydatids, and Cancer of the Brain. Based upon J. Rieckert’s Clinical
Experience in Homeopathy. By J ohn C. P ete rs . 8 v u , pp. 136. New York :
William liadde.
This is a convenient manual on diseases of the brain, and will be interesting to physi­
cians of the homeopathic school. Dr. Peters is the author and translator of numerous
medical treatises, and his works evince careful study and great industry.