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c*> l
HUNT’ S
MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE
AND
COMMERCIAL REVIEW.
DECEMBER,
1 857.
Art. I.— T n E PANIC AND FINANCIAL CRISIS OF 1857.
C O M M E N C E M E N T O F T H E PA N IC — C A U S E S O F T H E R E V U L S IO N — E X C E S S I V E I M P O R T S OF M A N U F A C T U R E S
OF E U R O P E — TH E
A C C U M U L A T IO N OF L A R G E
F O R E I G N D E B T S — I M M E N S E A M O U N T I N V E S T E D IN
R A I L R O A D S — L O A N S ON B O N D A N D M O R T G A G E — E X T E N S I V E
AGANCE
S P E C U L A T IO N S
B Y R K A 8 0 N O F F A N C IE D W E A L T H — T H E O P E R A T I O N O F
M O R E I M M E D IA T E
CAUSE
OF T H E
P A N IC —
N E W Y O R K A N D M IC H IG A N T O L E G A L I Z E
P A N IC S A N D
TO
1780—
IS SU E
IN S T O C K S — K X T R A V .
E L E C T R IC T E L E G R A P H T H E
C O N S T IT U T IO N A L P R O V IS IO N OF T H E
S U S P E N S IO N S A C A U S E O F T H E
OF P A P E R
M ONEY
BY TH E
U N IT E D
S T A T E S OF
P A N IC —
STATES
FO RM ER
GOVERNMENT
1818— R E V U L S I O N A N D F A I L U R E S IN 1825—T H E R E M O V A L OF
1833— T H E G R E A T R E V U L S IO N O F 1837— SU SP E N S IO N OF A L L T H E
B A N K S — C A U S E S O F T H A T R E V U L S I O N — F O R E I G N D E B T IN 1837 — I M P O R T S A N D E X P O R T S O F
U N I T E D S T A T E S — A D V A L O R E M D U T IE S V S . S P E C I F I C — D E B T O F U N IT E D S T A T E S IN 1847, A N D
1855-57— F IN A N C E S O F T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S IN 1856—G R E A T A M O U N T C R E D I T E D IN R A IL R O A D S —
FROM
1776
R E V U L S IO N S — T H E
TH E
BANK
TH E
TH E
C R IS IS OF
T H E D E P O S I T S B Y G E N . J A C K S O N IN
D E P R E C IA T I O N OF S T O C K S — P R O S P E C T
OF T H E
COUNTRY
R E C O V E R IN G
FROM TH E
R E V U L S IO N
A T AN E A R L Y D A Y , E T C .
O ne o f the most violent panics and financial revulsions which ever
occurred in this or any other country has been sweeping over the United
States during the last few weeks.
It commenced with the suspension
and failure o f the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company, on the 24th
o f August, hut soon extended to other banking companies, and to many
merchants, manufacturers, and business men, who had large payments to
make. It caused large amounts o f railroad stocks and bonds, as well as
State and other stocks, to be thrown upon the market to raise m o n e y ;
and caused a rapid and unprecedented decline in stocks and securities,
and particularly in the bonds and stocks o f railroads ow ing large debts,
Some have been inclined to treat this panic lightly, as without any sub
stantial cause, and have attempted to ridicule it as senseless and without
foundation, except idle fears. But that mode o f treating the subject does
not help the matter. It is quite evident to most persons that there are
660
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
some substantial causes for it, though they have been greatly exaggerated,
and the evils aggravated, perhaps tenfold, by distrust and fearful appre
hensions o f the result. Let us inquire into the causes and compare them
•with the causes o f former panics and revulsions which have occurred in
our country, in order to ascertain what are the causes, and whether ex
aggerated or not. I f they are really exaggerated, and the public can
realize that they are so, it will aid in restoring confidence in individuals
and institutions that have heretofore managed their business prudently.
The causes o f the panic and revulsion are numerous, consisting—
F irst, o f excessive imports o f the manufactures o f Europe, the accumula
tion o f large foreign debts, and the exportation o f large amounts o f specie
to pay the balance o f trade against us, and the interest on our foreign
debt.
Secondlg, the immense amount invested in railroads during the last
ten years— much m ore than our country was able to afford— a large pro
portion o f which has been borrowed on bonds and stocks at excessive
rates o f interest, drawn from the mechanic, the manufacturer, the mer
chant, and other classes o f business men, and invested in roads, the most
o f which have produced very little incom e to the stockholder.
Thirdly, extensive speculations in stocks, and the extravagance intro
duced and fostered by reason o f fancied wealth, arising from railroads
and speculations in stocks.
Fourthly, the large amount o f loans made upon the pledge o f stocks
and bonds as security, payable on demand ; by reason o f which, when the
embarrassments commenced, and the borrowers could not obtain new loans
to pay the old ones, large amounts o f stocks were thrown upon the market
and sold at such prices as they would bring, to raise the moneys for which
they were pledged. This caused a great and rapid depreciation in stocks
and securities o f all kinds, and increased the embarrassments and panic.
F ifth ly, the more immediate cause o f the panic, and which tended to
aggravate the evils more than tenfold, is the operation o f the electro tele
graph, by means o f which bad news, such as the failure or embarrassment
o f a bank, o f a merchant or manufacturer, was immediately communicated
to all the cities and large towns o f the United States; and information o f
all such misfortunes was immediately concentrated in all the cities, and
worked up the minds o f the laboring classes, as well as those o f the busi
ness men, to a fever o f excitement, causing fearful apprehensions among
them in every city, that their banks also would fail, and inducing many,
out o f prudence, to withdraw their deposits, and to convert their bank
notes into coin.
And lastly, the fears and the evils resulting from them have been greatly
aggravated in the States o f N ew Y ork and Michigan, by the unwise pro
vision in their new constitutions, prohibiting the Legislature o f each o f
those States from authorizing a temporary suspension o f specie payments
by the banks.
N ew agricultural States, countries, and communities, are always,
m ore or less, involved in debt to old com m ercial and manufacturing States
and countries. This is inevitable, and results from the natural tendencies
and course o f trade.
The Am erican colonists were deeply involved in
debt to Great Britain prior to the revolution, and have been so involved
from that time until the present.
It is said to be the last feather that breaks the cam el’s back.
That
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
661
powerful animal will carry a heavy burthen with comparative ease ; hut
if the load be increased beyond its strength, the animal will eventually
break down under it. It is so with the debts o f individuals and o f States.
In times o f prosperity, when credit is good and confidence unshaken, the
country will carry a large amount o f debt, without embarrassment; but
when the amount becomes excessive it tends so undermine and destroy
confidence in the ability to pay punctually, and excites apprehensions o f
eventual failure and loss. This distrust and loss o f confidence tends to
produce the very results which were feared. In a country like this, having
numerous banks and a large paper currency, it produces first a distrust
o f some o f the banks which are supposed not to be very strong, and causes
a call or run upon them for specie.
This eventually leads to a failure
o f some o f them, and a diminution o f loans by all, to prepare for a finan
cial storm. This necessary measure o f precaution on the part o f the
banks, by diminishing their loans and the currency rapidly, renders it
difficult for many business men to meet their payments, and causes nu
merous failures among them. Every failure o f a bank or an individual
tends to excite distrust, and to weaken confidence still more. A ll these
causes and effects act and react upon the public mind, and tend to increase
distrust and alarm, and to cause a panic. If the causes are substantial
and sufficient, they may long continue to operate and produce a general
derangement o f all the business operations o f the country, and almost a
total suspension o f sales o f real estate, and o f all propert 3r, except the
necessaries o f life.
In times o f panic, no matter what the cause, it becomes very difficult
to borrow money, collect debts, or convert property or securities into
money, or anything that is available to pay debts, except at ruinous prices ;
and the tendency is to ruin almost any business man who is involved in
a large amount o f debt in proportion to his immediately available means.
Such are the tendencies o f panics, and o f all sudden and violent revulsions
in commerce, and in financial affairs. But when the causes are compara
tively slight, and have been greatly overrated and exaggerated by the
fears o f the public, they soon pass away, and business resumes its former
natural and healthful channels, after a comparatively few business men,
banking, and other institution, (the least prepared for it,) have been swept
away.
The question arises, are the causes sufficient to justify this terrible panic
and crisis ? Let us compare the condition o f our country now with its
condition at several former panics and revulsions in our history. During
our revolutionary struggle Congress issued at various periods, from 1776
to the close o f the year 1780, paper money to an amount exceeding
$350,000,000— which depreciated so rapidly during the years 1780 and
1781, that at the close o f the latter year it was not worth over one cent
on the dollar. The population o f our country was then small, only about
3,000,000, greatly impoverished by the war. It is now nearly ten times
as great, and the aggregate wealth more than thirty times as great as it
was then.
Another severe crisis and revulsion occurred in our country in the year
1818. The war o f 1812 closed in January, 18 15 ; immense quantities o f
foreign goods were im ported during the years 1815, 1816, and 1817,
w hich involved the country in debt beyond its ability to pay, prostrated
the most o f our manufacturing establishments, paralyzed much o f the in
662
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
dustry o f the country, and kept it deeply involved in debt and impoverished
for many years, until after the adoption o f the tariff o f 1824. A t that
time our country was comparatively new ; but few o f our resources were
d eveloped; we had accumulated very little wealth ; our manufactures
were few and weak ; our mining interest small in am ount; we had neither
canals nor railroads ; but few valuable roads, and no mines o f the precious
metals. Our situation is now very different.
There was a revulsion panic and numerous failures in the summer o f
1825, caused by a sudden and great decline in the prices of cotton, after
extensive speculations in that article, and in various stocks.
But the
speculations which produced the embarrassments and panic, having been
limited to a very small proportion o f the community, their effects soon
passed away, and did not materially depress business or the prices o f pro
perty after a few months.
The next great and severe panic which occurred in the United States
was immediately after the removal o f the deposits o f the government
from the United States Bank, by Gen. Jackson, in the fall o f the year
1833, which produced an alarm throughout the commercial cities, and
excited fearful apprehensions that it would destroy confidence and lead to
a general derangement o f the currency o f the country. The officers and
managers o f banks being alarmed, immediately curtailed their discounts
in self-defense, which embarrassed the merchants and business men, caused
numerous failures among them, and increased the panic. Confidence and
cre< lit was almost destroyed ; the business o f the country was deranged
for several months, and great numbers o f failures occurred.
But the
country was really in a sound and healthy con d ition ; the balance o f trade
had been in our favor, and a considerable amount o f coin had been im
ported during the previous six years ; the amount o f our foreign debt was
moderate, in proportion to the industry o f the country and our ability to
p a y ; our paper currency was not much expanded, and prices were not
inflated. W e had not over-traded nor speculated extensively, nor accu
mulated an excessive amount o f debts, either foreign or dom estic;
and after a few months’ embarrassment, business resumed its former chan
nels, and property sold as freely and at as high prices as it did before.
Next came the great revulsion o f 1837, when nearly all the banks in
the Union suspended; and a large proportion o f the merchants, manufac
turers, and business men, as well as the banks, failed, and were utterly
ruined, and business and property were depressed during many years.
The causes o f that revulsion and so great distress were as follows :—
F irst, the imports during the years 1834, 1835, and 1836, were exces
sive, whereby our foreign debt was nearly doubled.
Secondly, our paper currency was greatly expanded, which, in connec
tion with speculations, caused an inflation o f prices and great extravagance.
Thirdly, very large sales o f public lands, amounting to over forty-one
millions o f dollars had been made during the years 1835 and 1836 ; and
a wild spirit o f speculation in real estate prevailed extensively, whereby a
large proportion o f the people o f the United States were involved in debt.
The foreign debt o f the country then consisted o f national and State
stocks, or bonds, and a large mercantile debt, for goods imported, the
aggregate amount o f which has been carefully estimated at about
$200,000,000 on the 1st o f October, 1837, at $232,000,000 on the 1st o f
October, 1839, and about $200,000,000 October 1st, 1842, w hich was
663
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
gradually reduced under the tariff o f 1842, to about $166,000,000, on the
30th o f June, 1847.
Let us compare our exports with our imports during the last ten years,
in order to ascertain the balance o f trade against the country, and the
accumulation o f debt during that p eriod :—
IMPORTS INTO THE UNITED STATES DURING THE UNDERMENTIONED FISCAL YEARS,
ENDING THE 3 0 t h JUNE :— 1 S T , OF PRODUCTS AND MERCHANDISE ; 3 d , OF COIN
AND BULLION ; 3 d , THE TOTAL IMPORTS, STATED IN MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.
1848........................ .................
1849........................
1850.........................
1851........................
1852........................ ..................
1853........................ ,
1854........................
1855.........................
Merchandise.
Coin and bullion.
$148.6 millions.
“
$6.4 millions.
“
6.6
M
4.6
(«
6.5
it
“
$674.1
207.4
$926.8
1856........................
1857........................
$658.9
«
tt
$23.1
5.5
4.2
6.8
3.6
tt
it
it
It
a
a
$20.1
4.2
12.4
a
$16.6
it
it
ft
tt
a
Total imports.
$155. millions.
147.86 it
178.14 it
216.22 it
«
“
$697.22
212.95
267.98
304.56
261.47
It
it
ti
it
it-
$1,046.96
314.64
360.89
tt
tt
tt
$675.53
ti
tt
it
THE EXPORTS OF PRODUCTS AND MERCHANDISE, OF COIN AND BULLION, AND TOTAL
EXPORTS OF THE UNITED
LOWS :----
STATES, DURING THE SAME PE RIO D , WERE AS FOL
Products, &c.
1848........................
1849.........................
1850........................
1851........................
Specie.
millions.
it
«
tt
$611.8
tt
«
1852........................
1853.........................
1864........................
1855........................
it
it
ti
$826.4
1856........................
1857.........................
tt
it
“
$575.0
it
6.4
7.5
29.5
it
$58.2
42.7
27.6
41.2
56.2
it
ti
it
it
it
it
tt
$167.6
45.7
69.1
ti
$114.8
it
it
ti
Total.
$154. imillions*
«
145.7
•(
151.9
u
218.4
$670.0
209.6
231.
278.2
275.2
tt
$994.0
326.9
362.9
u
$689.8
u
u
tt
tt
tt
tt
u
The commercial reports o f the Treasury Department do not show the
full value and cost to the country o f our imports, for two reasons:— first,
nearly all our dutiable imports arp undervalued, for the purpose o f les
sening the duties to be paid on th em ; and secondly, nearly two-thirds o f
the foreign manufactures are sent here for sale by the producers, and
entered at the custom-houses at a very low foreign valuation, so that the
profits o f the im port and sale are made by the foreign manufacturer— our
merchants paying for the goods the full price in our markets.
The system o f ad valorem duties and foreign valuations, adopted by
Congress in the tariff o f 1846, affords great facilities to foreign producers
to defraud the government o f a portion o f the legal duties by means o f
664
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
undervaluations.
The system itself encourages undervaluations as a
means o f lessening the amount o f duties to be paid on all dutiable goods.
Numerous gross cases o f undervaluations have been detected. The ten
dency o f the system is to induce undervaluations, and there is reason to
believe that nearly all dutiable goods are undervalued, more or less, vary
ing from five to fifty per cent, and in some cases even more.
Nearly two-thirds o f our foreign debt consists o f stocks and bonds o f
various kinds, bearing interest from six to ten per cent— over one-third
o f it being a mercantile debt, only a part o f which bears interest. The
immense amount o f capital invested in railroads in Europe and Am erica,
during the last fifteen years, has increased the demand for money and
raised the rates o f interest. The average rate o f interest on our whole
foreign debt, during the last ten * years, has probably been about six
per c e n t:—
FOREIGN DEBT AS HERETOFORE ESTIMATED.
On the 30th of June, 1847...............................................................
Interest, 4 years, at 6 per cent, to June 30th, 1851.......................
Imports (“ including specie”) ..........................................................
Undervaluations of $560 millions of dutiable goods, including
profits made by foreigners on goods sent here for sale, estimated
at 6 per cent on the whole..........................................................
$166. millions'
39.8
697.2
“
Total imports and foreign debt............................................
Exports, including over $58 millions specie........................ $670.
Less fall on cotton shipped in 1851, by American mer
chants, before it was sold by them, estimated a t ..........
15.
-----Freights on exports carried by American vessels, estimated at 5
per cent on all except the specie exported.................................
$936.5
Amount realized from exports ......................................................
33.5
655.
30.5
685 6
Showing a foreign debt on the 30th June, 1851, of............
Interest, 4 years, to June 30th, 1855..............................................
Imports during the 4 years..............................................................
$251.
60.
1,047.
Total imports and foreign d eb t..........................................
Exports'during the four years (including over $167.6 millions of
specie)............................................................................. .............
$1,358.
994.
Showing a foreign debt on the 30th June, 1855, of.............
Interest, two years, to June 30th, 1857..........................................
Imports during the two years.........................................................
$364.
43.8
67 5.5
Total imports and foreign d e b t..........................................
Exports during the two years................ .. ....................................
$1,083.3
689.8
Showing a foreign debt on the 30th June, 1857, of.............
$393.5
There is no reason to doubt that, during the last two years, the under
valuations o f dutiable imports, and the profits made by foreign manufac
turers on goods sent by them to this country for sale, over and above the
invoice prices, greatly exceeded the freights and profits o f Am erican mer
chants on exports; and that the real foreign debt o f the country, on the
30th o f June, 1857, was at least $400,000,000, and it may have been as
great as $425,000,000 ; but it is not probable that it amounted to as much
$450,000,000.
665
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
The reader will see that, during the four years from June 30th, 1851,
to June 30th, 1855, our foreign debt increased about $113,000,000,
though we exported $38,000,000 m ore coin and bullion than we im ported;
and that, during the last two fiscal years, (from July 1st, 1855, to July
1st, 1857,) we exported $98,200,000 more specie than we imported, and
yet our foreign debt was increased about $30,000,000. There has been
an increase o f the foreign debt o f the country o f about $ 150,000,000
during six years, while we were enjoying peace and great apparent pros
perity— during more than two years o f which period the great nations o f
Europe were involved in war, and we enjoyed the advantages o f their
markets for our agricultural products, at high prices. H ow lon g can a
people stand up under such an accumulation o f debt, without embarrass
ment and panic ?
The next principal cause o f the embarrassment o f the country, is the
immense amount o f labor and capital invested in railroads during the last
ten years. It appears from the report o f the Secretary o f the Treasury,
on the finances and com m erce for the fiscal year ending June 30th, 1856,
that the amount o f capital stock paid in and expended for railroads in the
United States—
Amounted t o .......................................................................
That the amount of bonds issued was.................................
And the floating debt............................. ............................
Making an aggregate sum then invested in railroads of
$433,286,000
303,137,000
40,126,000
$176,549,000
The report was incomplete— the Michigan Southern & Northern Indiana
roads and branches, the Detroit & Milwaukie, and many other roads, being
entirely omitted. The amount necessary to supply deficiencies, with the
expenditures during the last fiscal year up to July 1st, 1857, would swell
the aggregate sum to about $850,000,000— o f which about $450,000,000
was paid on stock, and about $400,000,000 consists o f loans and floating
debts. The cost o f construction, up to July 1st, 1851, amounted to about
$320,000,000— there being then in operation about 10,000 miles o f road,
and over 7,000 miles in process o f construction. The number o f miles
completed in July, 1857, have been stated at 24,476, besides several thou
sand miles in process o f construction.
Perhaps two-thirds o f the expenditures for railroads, during the last six
years, have been paid for by State, city, county, and railroad bonds, which
have been sold in the market at high rates o f interest, and in most in
stances at great sacrifices, varying from five to fifty per cent. The mar
kets have been so glutted with such securities, that prices, at which sales
were made, have been constantly falling, and comparatively few have been
sold, during the last three years, at more than sixty to eighty cents on the
dollar. It is safe to say that the sacrifices on such securities have been at
least $100,000,000, and that the real expenditure for railroads and their
equipments has not exceeded $750,000,000, though their nominal cost
has been about $850,000,000.
The bonds have been sold at so great sacrifices that they have tempted
all classes o f money-lenders throughout the Union to purchase them, and
rendered it difficult for business-men to borrow money, except at very
high rates o f interest.
F or many years several o f the leading roads made large dividends, their
stocks stood high in the market, and the business and incom e o f nearly
m
666
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
all the roads increased beyond all expectation, which excited high hopes
o f their productiveness and the value o f their stocks in future. But ex
cessive and reckless competition has diminished the incom e o f nearly all
the roads, and the current expenses o f running them, and keeping them
in repair, have greatly exceeded all former calculations. These causes
have diminished their net incomes, produced an apprehension that nearly
all the roads must be finally sold to pay their creditors, and aided in ex
citing the panic in the stock market.
A ll the roads have greatly increased the value o f farming-lands in their
vicinity, and the value o f real estate in the principal cities which are rail
road centers, or in which they connect with navigable waters. H ence
the rage to obtain railroads as a means o f increasing the value o f real
estate, and hence the fancied wealth and extravagance arising from the
delusion that they had and would increase the value o f real estate two or
three times as much as is practicable for them to do. This delusion, to
gether with the large dividends made by many o f the roads, helped to
keep up the excitement and speculation in stocks and bonds, and to foster
a spirit o f extravagance in living, until the crisis came and the bubble
b u rst!
The roads are so numerous, and the stocks and bonds so great in
amount, that the holders o f such stocks and bonds in the United States
probably number more than 200,000 persons, the most o f whom pur
chased them as an investment, paid for them, and are not involved in
d eb t; but thousands o f the holders purchased them on speculation, with
borrowed means, and pledged them as security, in many instances, for
moneys payable on dem and; and when the panic commenced, the cred
itors threw them into the market to realize the money upon them.
Some have supposed that the embarrassments have been increased very
much by large investments and speculations in wild lands in the new
States and territories, but such is not the case to any very considerable
extent. The proceeds o f the sales o f the public lands, during the fiscal
years 1835 and 1836, amounted to over 841,000,000, and but little over
$20,000,000 during the fiscal years 1855 and 1856. The speculations in
wild lands and city lots, during the latter period, has been almost entirely
confined to the valley o f the Mississippi, above Missouri, and that vicin ity ;
while during the former period it pervaded more than half the Union.
In 1835 and 1836 millions o f dollars were borrowed to invest in real
estate speculations; on the contrary, nearly all the purchases o f real estate,
during the last three years, have been made by persons wanting the prop
erty for use, or by persons having money to invest, made the purchases
without involving themselves in debt.
It is debt which causes embarrassment. A poor man living on his
weekly earnings, but free from debt, may not be embarrassed ; on the
contrary, no matter how great a man’s property and incom e may be, if
he be deeply involved in debt, he will be subject to embarrassment for
want o f money to meet his engagements, and may be ruined in such a
revulsion and panic as the present.
The people o f the United States learned a severe lesson by the revul
sion, embarrassments, wide-spread bankruptcy, and ruin, from 1837 to
1842 ; the most o f them learned econom y also, and to dread debt as they
would a pestilence. By reason o f the late war in Europe, agricultural
products have brought high prices during the last four years; there- has
667
The Panic and Financial Crisis o f 1857.
been no great expansion o f the currency, nor rise in the price o f manu
factured g o o d s ; the farmers have not over-traded very m u ch ; they are
generally well off, and not one-fourth part as much in debt as they were
in 1837.
Though railroads, in the aggregate, have not proved good investments
o f capital to the stockholders, yet they have increased the value o f real
estate much more than sufficient to compensate for all losses in the de
preciation o f stocks. W ealth has accumulated rapidly during the last
twenty years; the average wealth o f the people is perhaps fifty per cent
greater now than it was in 1837 ; the aggregate wealth o f the Union is
more than twice as great as it was then, and the persons embarrassed with
debt not one-fourth as numerous, in proportion to the population, as they
were then.
Such being the case, there is no reason to doubt that the country will
soon recover from the present panic and crisis, business assume its former
activity, and real estate sell as freely and at as good prices as it did a
year since, unless the causes which produced the embarrassment shall be
continued. The country can invest $25,000,000 annually in railroads
and other public improvements, if it be not embarrassed with excessive
im ports; but it cannot invest in such improvements $80,000,000 annually
(as has been done during the last six years) without renewed embarrass
ments. Nor can the country im port from three hundred to three hundred
and fifty million dollars o f foreign products and manufactures annually,
and thereby undermine and supplant much o f our own industry, and export
from fifty to sixty millions o f coin and bullion annually, without prolonging
our embarrassments, or speedily bringing on another crisis.
The revulsion o f 1837 checked and greatly lessened imports during the
years 1837 and 1838, and the country partially recovered from its em
barrassments. Then came the excessive importations of 1839, under the
reduced duties o f the compromise act, which greatly increased the foreign
debt and completely prostrated the energies o f the cou n try; and such will
probably be the case again, unless Congress shall immediately modify the
tariff, and increase the duties on manufactured products which com e in
competition with American industry.
The imports into the United States during the fiscal years ending June
30th, 1847, 1854, and 1856, o f the follow ing classes o f manufactures,
stated in millions o f dollars, were as follow s:—
1S47.
1854.
1856.
Iron and steel, and manufactures of iron & steel. $10. mill. $31.8 mill. $24.5 mill.
Manufactures of wool, ditto of cotton, silk, flax,
and hemp, including clothing, laces, embroid
eries, and thread..............................................
47.1 “ 119.2
“ 109.1
“
Total of the above articles......................
$57.1 “
$151.
“
$133.6 “
The above table, compiled from the financial report o f the Secretary o f
the Treasury, shows how Am erican industry has been supplanted by for
eign imports under the tariff o f 1846, and indicates the cause o f the rapid
increase o f our foreign debt during the last ten years, and the export o f
the greatest part o f the product o f our gold mines to pay interest on the
debt and the balance o f trade against us. In 1847 there were numerous
woolen mills in the United States making broadcloths, cassitneres, and
other cloths o f a fine quality. A t the present time we have not a single
668
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
factory making such goods— all have been obliged to abandon the market
for fine woolen goods to the manufacturers o f Great Britain, France, and
Germany, and to confine themselves to making satinetts, coarse cassimeres, negro cloth, and other coarse goods. W h at country could flourish
under such a state o f things ?
A nh A ebok, M ich ig a n , October 20th, 1857.
E. 0. 8.
Art. II.— WHO CAINS BY CREDIT MONEY ?
W ho gains by credit m oney? This is our inquiry. That many lose
is certain enough. That a mixed currency, o f which credit money is one
and the chief element, is essentially fluctuating; alternately expanding
and contracting, and, occasionally, exploding— this too is sufficiently ob
vious to the apprehension o f sensible and well-informed men. That a sus
pension o f specie payments (which must take place occasionally under a
mixed-currency system, in spite o f all laws and regulations which can be
adopted,) destroys the standard o f value, cuts off all the usual means o f
negotiating the exchanges o f the country, causes the greatest derange
ment ot all our monetary affairs and the most ruinous losses to business
men, we think no one will deny.
The evils o f this system are plain,
palpable, and demonstrable.
That they are not accidental, but results
flowing from the system, in obedience to its fixed laws, is sufficiently clear
to those who understand the nature o f credit money. I f it be true that
the community generally suffers so severely by the issue o f this money,
who gains by it ? That som ebody does we should suppose was certain.
Men do not act without motive, and surely would not be at the trouble
and expense o f issuing millions on millions o f such money, unless som ebody
was better for it, unless some class o f men was made richer. It may be
so, and this may be a sufficient reason, provided such a currency does
confer benefits enough on the favored class to compensate for, or more
than counterbalance all the mischief and misery which it inflects on all
others. Before proceeding to answer the question, who gains by credit
money ? we will define our meaning o f the term. This we do by quoting
from an article in the July number o f this Magazine, pp. 32 and 33.
A mixed currency (if we except the amount o f specie in the pockets o f
the people, used as “ change,” ) is wholly a payer currency, yet it does in
fact consist o f two distinct elements, one of which is value money, or that
which has value within itself, and is therefore a proper standard o f v a lu e;
and the other is credit money, which has no value in itself, and therefore,
though equally g ood as an instrument o f exchange, has no quality which
can make it a true standard o f value. One part o f this currency repre
sents actual money, the other represents credit only. One is based on
specie in the vaults o f the bank, the other on the general property o f the
debtors o f the bank ; and however homogeneous the whole mass o f paper
money may seem to be, it is in truth, in its nature and effects,a. compound
o f these two distinct and widely different elements.
The reason why this credit money, or excess o f paper over specie, is
issued by the banks is sufficiently obvious. The bank that has (as a cer
tain bank in Massachusetts had at the time o f the last annual returns,) a
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
669
circulation o f $200,000 and only $6,000 in specie, gains the interest on
$194,000, since the whole o f this amount costs the bank nothing but the
expense o f its manufacture. This is the reason, and the only one. Let
us take the whole currency o f the United States.
The average circulation for the years 1843, ’51, ’54, ’65, and ’56, as
found in the financial report of the Sec. of the Treas., for 1865-6, was
The average amount of specie in the banks, during this time, was___
$160,223,641
50,891,143
Average excess, or amount of credit money, was.....................
$109,332,504
On this sum the banks received, we will suppose, 1 per cent interest,
probably a fair average for the period we have selected. The gross profits
then to all the banks arising from this system in the U nited States, at the
rate o f interest mentioned, is $7,653,212 annually. This is the sum total—the object for which the stupendous system o f credit money is created and
sustained. There is and can be no other. Let this be remembered. That
there is no necessity for the issue o f this credit money, in order to furnish
a sufficient currency, is apparent not only from the true nature o f money
itself, but from the fact that gold is produced in this country so plentifully
that we have exported three hundred millions within seven or eight years.
The issue o f bank notes over and above their actual specie is a matter o f
choice on the part o f the banks, and it is done for the sake o f the supposed
profit. This we presume will not be disputed. But the interest received
by the banks on this kind o f money is not all profits, for, in the first place,
the making, issuing, and keeping in repair such a currency is no small
matter. It requires an immense array o f bank officers and employees,
and costs in the aggregate a large sum. In the second place, very con
siderable losses are incident to the use o f such money— no small share
o f the embezzlements and defalcations which have occurred amongst those
concerned in the management o f banks, have originated in the use o f this
credit money.
The very manufacture o f it seems to be demoralizing.
Men who handle money that costs nothing appreciable, that can be made
by thousands and millions by merely engraving and signing, do almost as
a matter o f course lose their moral sense o f its sacredness.
It cannot be
otherwise. The philosophy o f the human mind is such that men cannot
invest with the idea o f value, that which they see created with no corres
ponding labor; and we know that it always must happen, as it always
has, that there will be great losses to the banks which issue this kind o f
currency from this very fact. Now, then, from the gross profits o f this
credit money, we must deduct all the expense and loss necessarily incident
to it. W e will not attempt to state what these are, because we have not
the data, on which to found any reliable estimate, but they are considerable,
and must be deducted from the sum before named and would reduce it
perhaps to $7,000,000 per annum.
That the banks may gain this sum, ’then, the public incur the conse
quences o f the whole mixed-currency system. This is the fu n d against
which we ai e to charge all the losses, all the derangements o f business,
all the misery and suffering o f the w orking classes, which such a currency
periodically produces. The banks as corporations gain this seven m ilons f
d o ars.
I.
Does the stockholder gain by credit money ? H e seems at first sight
to do so. H is dividends are advanced, we will suppose, from 6 to 8 per
cent per annum. H e gets 33 per cent more interest than he otherwise
670
Who Gains hy Credit Money ?
would. Is not he then a gainer.! Let us see. His incom e from his bank
stock, we will suppose, he wishes to consume in his current expenses o f
living.
By the issue o f this credit money (as we have endeavored to
prove in previous numbers o f this Magazine) the prices o f commodities
are raised from 33 to 50 per cent. The bank stockholder, then, when he
com es to lay out his money, will find that instead o f gaining he has lost
by his eight per cent dividend; for it will not bring him as many o f the
g ood things he desires, as a 6 per cent dividend would, with the corres
ponding prices o f a value-money currency. Instead o f being benefited,
unquestionably he loses. But suppose that he wishes, instead o f consuming,
to.invest his dividends— how is he then affected? Precisely in the same
way and to the same extent. If he would build a house, or a factory, the
materials and labor required are so much advanced that he will get no
m ore value than he would if prices and dividends had not been raised by
the issue o f credit money. But it is not the only view o f the case. The
stockholder must share with others the disastrous effects o f the creditmoney expansion ; he must also meet the collapse, the suspension, the
monetary revolutions which inevitably follow. N ow , where are his high
dividends ?— nay, where is his capital ?
W h at is the value o f his bank
stock? Is it worth 90 per cent, or 70, or 50, or 30, or— n othing? A
few1 months more will answer this question so far as the present revulsion
is con cern ed ; and sad will be the response— loss everywhere— great de
preciation in many cases, utter insolvency in others. The extra profits
arising from the issue o f credit money will be swallowed up. N o incon
siderable share of what is now invested in the banking institutions o f the
United States will be lost.
For it is a suggestive and instructive fact,
that the very difficulties into which the credit-money system brings the
business o f the country, react upon the banks themselves, and involve
them to a great extent in the general catastrophe.
Such was the ex
perience o f 1837, when the loss to stockholders by the failures o f banks
grow ing out o f that great collapse, was estimated upon sufficient data, at
fifty million dollars. Such will be the experience o f the present. Can
any one doubt, then, that in the long run the bank stockholders gain nothing
b y the issue o f credit money ? W ou ld they not be better off if the banks
confined themselves to their legitimate operations ? Shall we not have
their voice unanimously in favor o f the expulsion o f credit money ? That
will depend on the fact whether or not they understand their true interest.
II.
D o merchants and the trading classes gain by the issue o f credit
money ? It seems like m ockery to ask the question.
They are the
men, who o f all others take the hazards o f business, the men who stand
in the front rank and meet the first shock in great monetary revul
sions. Their property is scattered all over the land. They have business
relations everywhere, and under all possible complications.
Can they
gain by a monetary system which increases the risks o f business four
fold ? which makes all their operations like the drawing o f a lottery ?
which sets at defiance all their skill and prudence ? H ow can they gain
by it ? H ow can they place any rational dependence upon it ? H ow
could the merchants o f this country know that it was not as safe to
im port and sell goods in the spring o f 1857, as in that o f 1856 ? In one
case it was profitable, in the other ruinous.
H ow did business men
know when they made their engagement six months ago that the banks
would now be curtailing their circulation as fast as possible, taking in all
Who Gains hy Credit Money ?
671
the money afloat, destroying the power o f the debtor to pay them ? W e
say, could the wisest know all this ? W h o could have predicted the
failure o f the Ohio Life and Trust Company, or that that insignificant
event would have exploded the currency o f the United States ? H ow
could the merchants know that at the present time it would he utterly
impossible to negotiate or collect exchanges in any distant part o f the
Union, or that the banks on whom they depended would be bankrupt,
and as helpless as their customers ?
Such a currency favorable to the
mercantile classes? They gain by it? The idea is preposterous. It is
their greatest curse.
III. D o the manufacturing classes gain by credit money ? It is their busi
ness to take the raw materials, work them into fabrics, and sell them to
merchants, who in turn supply the consumers. Take the woolen manu
facturer, for example. H e must invest a large amount in fixed capital—
he must build and furnish a factory.
Suppose he did so at any time
within the last three years. The prices o f all commodities and o f labor
were so raised that it cost 25 per cent more than it would have done, but
for credit money. W hen completed, it cost him more for all his raw
materials and for the wages o f his workmen. So that when he g ot his
article ready for market, he had suffered so much by these enhanced
prices that he had lost all the advantages which the protection afforded
by duties on the foreign article would otherwise have given him ; and,
although he may not understand the matter, is not any better off than
he would be without any duties at all, under the prices o f a valuemoney currency. But he has invested his all perhaps, in manufactures,
and must go on. H e brings his goods into market, meets a contraction o f
the currency, and is a fortunate man if he is not ruined. H ow what is
true in this supposed case, is true o f the manufacturing interest generally.
It has been at all times deranged and injured by the credit-money system.
It has always suffered greatly by its sudden and violent fluctuations.
W hen everything “ goes on ever so finely,” that is, while the expansion
is taking place, the manufacturer suffers by the increase o f prices and the
consequent difficulty of meeting foreign competition. W hen the contrac
tion is taking place he suffers by the difficulty o f disposing o f his goods
at all, except at a loss.
W hen a revulsion comes, he loses by the failure
o f those to whom he has given credit, and by the impossibility— which is
then com m on to all— o f meeting liis own engagements.
The history o f
the manufacturing interest in this country is a sad one.
W ith all our
enterprise and skill, with all the fostering legislation o f the government,
and all the natural advantages we possess, our manufactures have ever
been subject to the greatest reverses, and uncounted millions have been
sunk in fruitless endeavors.
So far as we have had any success, it has
been in spite o f the great drawback o f a fluctuating, and, o f course, an
unreliable currency. W hoever else may gain by credit money, the manu
facturer does not.
IV . Does the agriculturist gain by this kind o f money ? H e gets high
prices for his products when the paper circulation is expanded, but not
as high as might seem from the “ quotation” o f these articles— since much
o f the profit (in consequence o f the facilities afforded by this kind o f
money) is made by the merchant or speculator. The farmer, pays more
for labor— -a great item in his business; he pays more for all which he pur
chases for his farm or his fam ily ; all his expenses are greatly increased ;
672
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
he partakes o f the general excitem ent; his incom e appears to be greatly,
though it is not permanently, increased; he buys more land, builds a
larger and m ore costly house, his family follow the fashions o f the day, and,
like others, he runs into debt. In his estimate o f his ability to pay, he
does not take into consideration the approaching danger. The contrac
tion comes— a day o f reckoning for all extravagancies— and he suffers
with others. For a long time his products are as much too low as they
were before too high.* H e may not, like the merchant, be utterly ruined;
but he will be embarrassed and in ju red; his crops will be unsaleable and
fall to a low price as after the revulsion o f 1837, and he will lose from
these causes as much as he gained by high prices during the continuance
o f the credit money delirium.
A general uniformity o f prices is as
desirable to the farmer, as to the manufacturer. This, we are per
suaded, every semible man will acknowledge, who has witnessed the
operation o f this system and reflected upon all its immediate and remote
consequences.
Y . D oes the laborer gain by credit money ? His wages rise in consequence
o f the expansion o f the currency— o f that there is no d ou bt; but does he
therefore gain by it? He may, if the commodities on which he subsists
do not rise more in proportion than his wages. H e does not eat, drink,
or wear credit money, or any kind o f money— his only use for it is to
exchange for food, clothing, etc. N ow if these are raised in price, more
in proportion than his wages, he will be a loser— if not, he will be a
gainer. H ow is it ?
W e have at some length, in the last September number o f this Magazine,
pp. 2 8 5 -6 , endeavored to prove that wages do not rise as much as com
modities. W ith ou t now repeating the argument, or exhibiting the proof
there offered, we simply state the principle— which is, that for all kinds
o f vendible commodities there is both an actual and a speculative demand,
while for labor there is only the actual, immediate demand, and therefore
wages never rise as much as commodities. Flour and sugar may be bought
up and held on speculation, and when credit money is plenty, they are
so, to a great extent, and the prices are thus enhanced ; but labor is never
bought up beforehand and held for an advance— hence there is all the
difference between the rise in the price o f commodities and labor which
the speculative demand causes, and this is often very great.
It is also to be added that the laborer not only loses in this way, but
suffers in another manner by the fluctuations o f a mixed currency. W ith
every violent contraction he is thrown out o f employment, all his resources
are cut off, and he has nothing to live upon. O f how many thousands o f
families will this be true during the corning winter. The merchant w ho
meets a crisis like the present, loses generally, a great part o f his accu
mulations for years, but he does not starve— perhaps he does not even
resign his luxuries; but the laborer must give up everything; he has usu
ally no resources on which to subsist, and pinching poverty must be his
lot, until the currency has been so far restored, that the legitimate pro
duction o f the country can again g o forward. Such was his experience
in 1837. For a long time after that explosion, persons dependent upon
their daily labor for their daily bread suffered severely; but after business
* In Boston, flour was worth $10 25 in 1837, and only $5 62 in 1843; pork, No. 1, $22 in 1837, and
only $7 75 in 1843.
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
673
began to revive, say from 1840 to 1843, inclusive, although wages were
low , the price o f commodities was so much lower that laborers never were
in more comfortable circumstances— in fact they received over 25 per
cent m ore real wages than in 1835, ’ 36, and ’ 37. A s prices in general
rose after this, wages became less effective for the purchase o f com m od
ities until the present revulsion, and now they are to g o again through
the same experience.
VI. And lastly, do capitalists, as a body, gain by credit money ? W e have
already seen that they cannot, so far as they are interested in the stock o f
mixed-currency banks. D o they fare any better in regard to railroad
stocks ? Doubtless much w orse; and much o f the loss here arises from
the fact, that the stimulus o f credit money has given rise to most o f the
unprofitable railroads built during the great expansion. N ot one-half o f
them would have been made but for that extension o f the credit system
which a mixed currency always engenders. Most o f the disastrous enter
prises o f this kind have been originated and carried on by credit contri
vances, and most o f the loss falls on the capitalists who have, in one form
or another, loaned the capital. It has been recently stated that the amount
o f railroad suspensions are, in the aggregate, already some two hundred
million dollars. This includes stocks, bonds, and floating debt, A great
part o f this immense sum will be a dead loss to those concerned. Does
the capitalist fare much better in his manufacturing stocks? V ery little.
Take the vast incorporated companies o f New England— how tremendous
must be the loss o f those engaged in them. The depreciation, though in
few cases total, in nearly all will be very heavy.
As a lender o f money, how is the capitalist affected ? There are two
kinds o f m oney-lenders:— those who have special reference to the security
o f their loans and are content with moderate interest, and those who, for
the sake o f a higher rate o f interest, are willing to take some risk. The
former most generally invest their money in notes or bonds, secured by
m ortgage on real estate, for such amount as shall be perfectly safe in any
ordinary contingency. These obtain the legal rate o f interest and no
more— six per cent in Massachusetts, seven in New Y ork, etc. They also
loan on personal securities, in those instances where they feel that the
solvency o f the borrower is beyond all question. The other class o f lenders
eschew mortgages, and “ operate in the street” — in other words, either by
themselves, or through the agency o f brokers, loan their money on such
notes as are offered in the market for discount. These get a rate o f in
terest depending wholly on the dem and; it may be 6, or 12, or 24, or 36
per cent— they “ do the best they can.”
To be a money-lender o f that description, a man must be actively en
gaged in the business, and be shrewd and “ well-posted” in regard to
the paper that is offered. I f he is so, he may operate to much advantage,
and increase his incom e greatly. Some o f the largest fortunes o f the
present day have been made in this manner. It has been a profitable
business for the last few years, up to the commencement o f the present
crisis. Now, such men will be likely to find on their hands a good share
o f suspended paper— much o f it perhaps “ gilt-edged”— and it will be for
them to determine, when the whole affair is settled up, whether they have
gained or lost by their hazardous operations. Those capitalists who have
the sagacity to keep their funds in such a position that they are perfectly
safe, and, at the same time, can be called for at short notice, are the men
43
VOL. X X X V II.---- N O. V I.
674
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
w ho most surely reap the advantages o f a revulsion like the present.
They are now, or will be in a few months, able to invest their funds in the
most profitable manner. They will be able to buy real or personal prop
erty at such prices that they can hardly fail o f gaining from 50 to 100
p ercen t. Such was the case in the revulsion o f 1837. Thus, while some
o f the rich will he made richer, most will suffer great losses.
If, then, neither capitalists, merchants, manufacturers, agriculturist*,
nor laborers, profit by credit money, w ho does? W e answer, those who,
having nothing to lose, plunge into speculation during periods o f expan
sion, and blow up the bubbles by which the unwary and inexperienced are
deluded and ruined. Every expansion breeds a swarm o f these vermin.
They spread over the land like locusts— are found everywhere engaged in
every sort o f enterprise, from the most humble to the most magnificent.
These men furnish the gas with which the balloons o f speculation are
filled— that is their vocation, and for this they are very frequently largely
paid. That they get permanently rich is seldom the case. They produce
n oth in g ; they prey on the public, and are to the body politic what the
parasitic plant is to the stately monarch o f the forest. The contraction
which restores the currency to its normal condition sweeps them away
b y myriads, and they are seen no more, until another credit money in
flation calls them again into life and motion.
It may be said that, by the paper money system, a great many persons
find employment as bank officers, etc. This will hardly be offered as an
argument by any sensible man. The mere fact that any class o f men is
employed in any particular business, is no matter o f congratulation, except
to themselves personally. The question which concerns the public is, are
they employed advantageously— are they producing anything, or aiding
directly or indirectly in doing so ? If not, then the fewer o f them to be
supported by the profitable labor o f others the better. Every man in
every department o f life, who in no way contributes to the welfare o f the
community, is only a burden or a nuisance.
W e m ight enter still further into detail in answering the inquiry, whe
gains by credit money ? W e might show that every department o f busi
ness, however humble— every profession, however exalted-— suffers mate
rially from the effects o f a mixed-currency system. One result must, in
the nature o f things, happen to all. W e ought, perhaps, to make an ex
ception to this remark. The business o f the legal profession may be m ore
extensive and profitable in consequence o f the general derangement of
every other. The call for the services o f the members o f this profession
must be greatly increased by the innumerable lawsuits, assignments, and
settlements grow ing out o f a general breaking down o f business men and
business affairs. But we trust that i f this be the case— if it he m ore
profitable to themselves— they would not desire the continuance o f a sys
tem so fraught with mischief to all around th e m ; and we are sure that
the community would be unwilling to endure the torture for the sake of
their advantage, and would be likely to address them as the frogs in the
fable did the boys who stoned them— “ it may be sport to you, but it is
death to us.”
One o f the greatest wrongs that credit money inflicts on any people, is that
it transfers an incalculable amount o f wealth from one class o f persons to
another without an equivalent. This is the sure resu lt; hut it is brought
about so indirectly, so covertly, that not one in a thousand knows it.
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
675
Men are ruined, and they attribute it to “ hard times, the scarcity o f
money, the fall o f property, the failure o f their debtors, the falling off in
demand for their goods or their labor.” A ll these are given as reasons
w hy so many are swamped and made bankrupts. The press o f the country,
which (as it is oracular) must account for everything that happens or
don’t happen, gravely attributes the revulsions which occur to all causes
but the right. The blame is sometimes thrown on the tariff— that is
specious; sometimes on the management o f the banks— that is plausible;
sometimes on overtrading, as if that were anything m ore than an effect o f
an expanded currency and corresponding credits. But to whatever attrib
uted, the result is the transfer o f an incalculable amount o f property from
the rightful owners to those w ho have no just claim to it.
For illustration, suppose that the merchants o f the Atlantic cities have
sold goods to the dealers o f the W est and South to the amount o f two
hundred million dollars, and one hundred millions o f this proves to be bad
and goes into bankruptcy, how much o f this is ever paid ? B y the ex
perience o f 1837, not ten cents on the d olla r! Indeed, o f the four hundred
and forty million dollars that went through the insolvency process, under
the national bankrupt law, less than one cent on the dollar was paid.
W h a t became o f all this property? W as it not transferred without an
equivalent? A nd not only as between different sections o f the country,
but among ourselves, how many millions pass in this m anner! It is a
legitimate result. The standard o f value has been vitiated by issuing that
as money which was only m oney in name. A ll the fraud, and perjury,
and general demoralization which followed, were the natural offspring o f
such a system.
I f we estimate the aggregate wealth o f the people o f this country at
ten thousand millions o f dollars, (a lo w figure,) and the average change in
the money value which the present revulsion will occasion, at only 15 per
cent on the average, the amount o f depreciation will be fifteen hundred
millions o f dollars, a sum fo u r times larger than all the banking capital
in the United States. N ow that there can be such an immense fall in
the value o f property without the most disastrous consequences to those
w ho own large estates, have large amounts due to them, and yet are
deeply in debt, is impossible. T o those who hold productive real or sub
stantial personal property, and ow e nothing, the difference will be small in
deed ; for, although th s price o f their property has greatly declined, its value,
that is, its exchangeable power in relation to any other property, except
money, will be the same. To those, however, who must realize all their
assets in money, the depreciation will be disastrous. H aving by the issue
o f credit money raised the prices o f all commodoties, and the mixed cur
rency having exploded, we must return to nearly a value-money currency
before we can again com m ence inflation ; in the meantime, we have so
changed the standard o f value, that we shall cause the disturbances which
we have described, and the transfer o f a considerable part o f the wealth
o f the country without an equivalent.
In illustration o f the manner in which this is done, we will suppose
the familiar case o f a dry goods job b in g house in New Y ork city. They
have been doing a thriving and strictly legitimate business for several
years— neither speculators nor spendthrifts; but their condition now is
presented in the follow ing statement o f their affairs :—
676
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
Store in Broadway, cost......................................................
Debts due them, all over the Union.....................................
Stock of goods on hand, at cost..........................................
$75,000
550,000
125,000
They owe.............................................................................
$750,000
450,000
Surplus....................................................................
$300,000
A s the result o f a contraction which cuts off their accustomed accom
modations at the hanks, and at the same time deprives their customers
o f all means o f paying their debts, and also breaks up all the exchanges,
so that when amounts are collected in the South and W est, it is im pos
sible to get the sums remitted, except with great delay and expense, the
concern is forced into bankruptcy. A t first they have full confidence in
their ability to pay every man in full, and have som ething handsome left.
They find, however, at the end o f a twelvemonth, their position and pros
pects to be—
Loss on had debts.......................................................
Loss on stock on hand..........................................................
Loss on store, whichthey were obliged to sell for cash..
$265,000
40,000
25,000
Total losses..............................................................
$830,000
They are ruined, pay a dividend to their creditors, and start in life
again.
Y e t they were in prosperous circumstances before the break
down in the currency. H ad there been no money in the country, but
value m oney— and there need have been no other— they would have
maintained a good standing and a successful business. But they were victim
ized. Their failure was no fault o f their own. W ith a capital o f $300,000,
they were justified in giving credits to the amount o f $450,000 ; and but for
the treachery o f the currency, they would have been safe in doing so.
They knew their customers well. They sold to men deserving cre d it;
but their debtors, like themselves, stood on a pit-fall, which swallowed
them all up together. A nd now we inquire, to whom has their property
been transferred ? In the first place, the $25,000 lost on the store, was
transferred to the capitalist who bought it for $50,000. In the second
place, the amount lost on the stock, was transferred to those who pur
chased the goods at the reduced prices at which they were sold. A nd,
lastly, the sum lost by bad debts was transferred in various amounts and
forms to bankrupt debtors, to brokers and agents for collecting, making set
tlements, and forwarding remittances, to the officers o f the law, to courts
and juries. It was scattered to the four w in ds; but a greater part o f the
amount was probably retained by their defaulting debtors, to enable them
to start again in life with a tolerable capital.
I f such be the natural and unavoidable consequences o f the introduc
tion o f credit m oney into the currency, if no class o f men are benefited
by it except those who prey upon the public during expansions, or fatten
on their misfortunes in times like the present, w i i y d o w e h a v e i t ? W e
answer—
F irst. It is one o f the false ideas o f the old world, transplanted to the
new. It came to us from the mother country. The Bank o f England is the
parent o f all credit-money institutions on the globe. It is the general model
on which all others have been form ed ; though, unfortunately in this country,
w e have greatly magnified its defective and pernicious features. It is
' Who Gains by Credit Money ?
677
eminently, and above all others, a credit-money institution. It has not
now, and never had, any capital to lend to the people. Its whole real
capital has always been permanently
to the governm ent; and,
therefore, it has never had anything to operate with but its credit. W ith
all its prestige and power, it has depended w h o l l y on its deposits and
circulation for the means o f making loans to the commercial public. It
buys specie with its notes, and issues notes upon its specie. But the great
skill and prudence with which it has been managed, as compared with
our banking institutions, has enabled it to g o on with a m ore steady
course. It is, in fact, an arm of the British government, and its interests
are committed to men o f the highest character and standing. Y et it
suspended within about two years after it was first chartered, and in 1797
again stopped specie payments for a period o f more than twenty years.
Notwithstanding this, it has succeeded in making credit money one o f
the prominent elements o f modern civilization— we do not say one o f the
essential or beneficent elements o f that civilization, for it is the opposite
o f both.
Secondly. W e have credit money because its nature is totally misap
prehended by the people. They fully believe that by the use o f it we
make money m ore plentiful, and thereby im prove and extend business.
But the demonstrable fact is, that we do no such thing in the long ru n ;
far from it. W hile the expansion is going on, money is indeed abun
dant ; but as soon as the expansion has taken place, prices have so in
creased, and credits become so extended, that money is dearer, in propor
tion to the demand for it, than before. This is shown in the high rates
o f interest which always rule during the existence o f a great volume o f
credit money. An expansion must, by the very laws o f currency, be fol
lowed by a corresponding contraction. Witness the expansion o f 1837,
when the circulation was $14.1,000,000, and 1843, when it was but
$ '8 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 . Witness also the great expansions o f the last five years,
and the contraction now begun, but not completed.
Thirdly. W e have this kind o f money because we have created a great
credit-money power. W e have established some 1,500 o f these institu
tions, scattered far and wide through the land, and located mostly in the
great centers o f influence. In these we have concentrated 343 millions o f
the active capital o f the country. And this great banking capital is supposed
to have a deep interest in keeping up the use o f this kind o f money. That
this is a delusion, that the interests o f capital are quite as adverse to the
use o f such money as the interests o f labor, we trust we have proved.
But the force o f habit, the association o f ideas, (for all our ideas are as
sociated with paper, as money,) and the want o f a true apprehension o f
its nature and effects, will form a great barrier to the restoration o f a
sound currency. W e trust and believe that this barrier is not insuper
able. A total and com plete revolution never takes place at once by the
natural laws o f motion. Radical changes, to be most beneficial and
most enduring, must be g ra d u a l; but we hope that the public mind may
be so convinced by the terrific effects o f the present monetary crisis, o f
the desirableness o f introducing a greater amount o f specie into circula
tion— that the Legislatures o f the several States (if there can be no ac
tion on the subject by the general government) will take measures towards
accom plishing that end. W e hope that it will be enacted, that the banks,
at the proper time, shall first redeem in specie all their bills under $5.
678
Who Gains by Credit Money ?
This will introduce a considerable amount o f specie into the currency.
W e find, by examining bank returns o f Massachusetts and some other
States, that bills o f a less denomination than five dollars form one-sixth
part o f the whole circulation. In Rhode Island, by the returns o f the
present year, the whole amount o f bills under five dollars, was $1,146,217,
while the total amount o f specie in the banks was only $359,724. H ere
was three times as large an amount o f these small hills as the banks had
o f specie. N ow , it is evident that if these small bills were excluded from
circulation, the vacuum would be filled with gold, and the amount o f this
would be greater than all the specie in the banks o f both the States men
tioned. That which is true o f these States, is doubtless essentially true
o f all other States in which small bills are issued.*'
It wrould seem, in view o f the whole subject, that all business men and
capitalists, all men o f intelligence and candor who have the best interests
o f the country at heart, should unite in a temperate but determined effort
to com m ence the desired reform, and make a point o f insisting that all
hills under five dollars shall be excluded within a reasonable time ; and
they should not regard the experiment as fa ir ly tested until all o f less
denomination than ten dollars are withdrawn. A t that point they m ight
stop, until further experience and observation had convinced the people
o f the utter inutility and folly o f having any paper money, except what
actually represents or is the substitute for an equal amount o f specie in
the vaults o f the bank from which it is issued. The public mind will
have sufficient time to reflect on this subject before the present crisis has
entirely passed by. The effects o f this revulsion are, thus far, only par
tially felt, its consequences but partially seen. Both will eventually be
fully understood. Our business affairs will return to a sound state only
when the specie which our credit m oney has sent out o f the country has
been recovered. N ot till then can we g o on prosperously. That point
we may regard as settled. The absence o f the gold which we have forced
away, is the cause o f the suspension o f our banks, and the universal de
rangement o f our industrial affairs. H ow soon that w ill be replaced,
and the agriculture, manufactures, and trade o f the country flourish, no
one can tell. W e can rely on but little g old from any source but our
own mines. England and France have none to return to us. They w ill
be more fortunate than we expect if they avoid a general suspension. If
California can furnish us some 40 or 50 millions annually, and we re
tain it here, in tw o years from this time we shall so far have recovered
ourselves as to be in a healthy condition. One by one the different
branches o f manufacture will rev iv e ; those which are most necessary
first, and those for which the natural demand is least imperative— arti
cles o f luxury or mere convenience, last. The experience o f 1837 illus
trated the w orking o f this law. The shoe trade was the first department
o f manufacturing industry that felt the reviving influence o f the return
to a healthy state; and others recovered in the order of their relation to
the most obvious necessities o f mankind— fancy goods bringing up the
rear. W ith a sound currency, they would all remain in a generally pros
* It has been “ estimated” by some of the newspaper editors, that the whole amount o f bills
under five dollars in the United States, is seven millions. Now Massachusetts and Rhode Island
have together at least four and a half millions. All the banks in New England, New York, New
Jersey, Ohio, and many Other States, have such bills, and the writer is o f opinion that the total
amount is twelve to fourteen millions.
The Revenue L a w s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
679
perous conditton. Convulsions like those we are now experiencing are
abnormal, and the product o f unnatural causes. W e have such a vast
and varied production, such an unlimited area for agricultural expansion
and development, that, but for our defective currency, the prosperity o f
the country would flow on in a more uniform and steady, as well as more
powerful current, than that o f any other nation in the w o rld ; instead o f
which, ours, o f all others, is subject to the most frightful alternations.
Shall we learn wisdom from the things we suffer ? That question re
mains to be answered by the events o f the future. G od in his mercy pre
serve us from the infatuation, the stark madness, which shall lead us to
repeat the terrible experiment o f u n l i m i t e d c r e d i t m o n e y !
A rt. III.— THE REVENUE L A W S : APPRAISEMENT OF MERCHANDISE.
On the 19th January, 1853, the U. S. Senate passed a resolution, call
in g on the Secretary o f the Treasury to prepare a draft o f a general
revenue law, designed to supersede all existing laws on the subject, and
to embrace all needful provisions for regulating the foreign and domes
tic com m erce o f the U nited States, in American and foreign vessels; and
on the 11th July, 1854, the then Secretary, Mr. Guthrie, transmitted such
a draft to the Senate. N o definite action has yet been had on the sub
je c t by Congress, but it is to be hoped that the present administration
w ill not g o out o f power before the much-needed reform o f these laws has
been accomplished. The present able and indefatigable Secretary o f the
Treasury will, we have no doubt, apply himself to the im provement o f the
draft already prepared, and his well-known energy gives reason to hope
that when his attention has been directed to the necessity o f reform, no
obstacles will be allowed to intervene to prevent its accomplishment.
Sure we are, that no achievement will m ore distinguish the administra
tion o f any Secretary o f the Treasury than will the codification o f the
Revenue Laws the administration o f that Secretary during whose official
term it shall be done.
Perhaps no portions o f the laws o f the United States so m uch require
revision and amendment as those regulating the collection o f the rev
enue, the appraisement o f merchandise, and the com m erce and naviga
tion o f the Union. These, it will be observed, do not include the TariffLaws, but the laws by which the rates o f duty imposed by the Tariff
Laws are assessed and collected, and which prescribe the rules governing
the marine engaged in im porting merchandise from abroad, as well as in
the coasting trade. The necessity o f such revision and amendment may
be inferred from the statement, that the law prescribing the mode o f reg
istering vessels to be engaged in foreign trade was passed in 1792 ; that
regulating the enrolling and licensing o f vessels to be engaged in the
coasting trade in 1 7 9 3 ; and that regulating the collection o f revenue
from imports in 1799 ; while there are various alterations, amendments,
changes, and repeals, scattered through the statutes enacted since, some
acts pertaining solely to these subjects, while other amendments are em
braced in tariff acts, appropriation bills, e t c .; so that it is a work o f great
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The Revenue L aw s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
difficulty and labor for any one, even a lawyer, to ascertain what the law
is ; though, notwithstanding all the changes, the laws o f 1792, 1793, and
1799, remain substantially in force. The mere mention o f these dates,
when the coast line o f the U nion was not one-third o f its present ex
tent, when its com m erce was not one per cent o f its present amount,
when steam had not been applied to navigation, and when lake and canal
com m erce were unknown, will be sufficient to show the necessity for a
revision.
The draft o f the law prepared by Mr. Guthrie comprises fifteen chap
ters, and extends over 170 printed octavo pages, in the type usually em
ployed in printing Congressional documents. The subjects treated o f in
these fifteen chapters, are as follo w s:—
I. Establishing the collection districts o f the United States, and desig
nating the ports o f entry and the ports o f delivery in the same.
. li-lating to the appointment o f officers for the collection o f cus
toms, and to provide for their compensation.
8.
Concerning the registry o f vessels and regulating the coasting
trade.
4. For the governm ent and regulation o f seamen in the merchant ser
vice in the United States.
.). To regulate the duties o f officers o f the customs, and masters o f
vessels, on entry o f vessels from foreign ports.
6. Regulating the entry o f goods, the unloading o f cargoes, assort
ment o f quantities and damage, entry o f baggage and sea stores.
7. To regulate the appraisement o f imported merchandise.
8. To regulate the warehousing, under bonds, o f imported m erchan
dise.
9. To regulate the carriage o f passengers in steamships and other
vessels.
10. Concerning navigation, and for obtaining statements o f foreign
com m erce o f the United States.
I I . Regulating seizures, suits on duty bonds, and prosecution for the
recovery o f fines, penalties, and forfeitures, their distribution and remis
sion.
12. Revenue cutters and their officers, and concerning pilots.
13. Respecting marine hospitals and health laws.
14. Respecting the importation o f drugs and medicines.
15. Examination o f custom houses, depositories, and other public of
fices, prohibiting importations, and other miscellaneous provisions.
The mere mention o f the titles o f the foregoing chapters must be suf
ficient to satisfy any person o f the vast importance to be attached to such
a piece o f legislation. A nd yet we are assured by one very familiar
with the working o f the revenue and navigation laws, that the draft, as
prepared and submitted to Congress, needs revision as much as the laws
now in existence. Although in many respects, great improvements are
proposed, yet in others, old absurdities are retained and new ones intro
duced. To take up this proposed law, and point out its defects and sug
gest. the amendments necessary, would take up so much time and space,
that we are not inclined at present to undertake the task. But it will
not be amiss to point out to the Secretary o f the Treasury and to Con
gress, where there is a vast fund o f information and ability at their com
mand, to aid in producing such a code o f revenue and navigation laws
The Revenue L a w s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
681
as will be an honor to the country ; which will remedy many existing de
fects, aud provide against many serious omissions. W e refer to the nu
merous gentlemen who are to be found— some now in the public service,
and others out o f it— who have spent long years in the service o f the
Union in various position s; some collectors, some naval officers, some
surveyors, deputies and clerks, appraisers, etc., etc. In the ranks of these
men are to be found those having a fund o f natural ability, which, with
the acquired information, gathered in the course o f their particular em
ployment, eminently qualifies them for the special duty o f revising par
ticular portions o f the draft now under consideration.
It is well, however, that in all public departments, though the princi
pals and large numbers o f the subordinates may be changed every four
years without serious damage to the public interest or inconvenience to
the public, yet there are always certain old stand-bys, landmarks in the
establishment, whose services cannot be dispensed with, whose familiarity
with the law, and knowledge o f the practice, and acquaintance with the
former, are valuable and indispensable to the proper performance o f the
duties o f the office, and whose opinion on any matter within the sphere
o f their observation, in connection with the performance o f their special
duties, would be found to be o f more practical worth than that o f the
most learned lawyer or accomplished jurist who had not had a special
practice in relation to matters o f law arising in the performance o f those
duties.
Take the case o f the Auditor, (Mr. Ogden,) at New York, o f the
Deputy-Collector, (Mr. Lynch,) at the same place, o f Mr. Phillips o f the
Appraiser’s Department th ere; or o f Mr. W ellman, late Deputy-Collector
at Boston, or Mr. Gray, late Clerk at San Francisco, and let the question
o f the law as it is, and the law as it should be, in reference to the par
ticular objects com ing under their supervision, be presented to them, and
they will inform you what the law is, where it is to be found, what are
the regulations o f the Treasury Department, what are the objections to
the law or regulations, and what the remedy should be, with more pre
cision, accuracy, and fidelity, and with greater readiness and better rea
sons for their opinion, than could be given in tenfold the time by the best
lawyers in the Union.
W e say, then, that the services o f men o f this class should be engaged
by the governm ent upon this revision o f our collection and navigation
laws. Let such men be requested to take up the consideration o f the
proposed draft o f a general law, and give their views on the subject o f
such portions as have been specially within their consideration and observa
tion, and the governm ent will have a mass o f information infinitely more
valuable and practical than can be obtained in any other way.
The foregoing observations have been induced by an opportunity
which has been afforded us, o f reading and publishing the follow ing let
ter, addressed by Mr. Samuel J. Bridge, formerly Appraiser-General at
San Francisco, to Mr. Guthrie, on the subject o f the proposed revision,
so far as it related to the appraisement o f merchandise, soon after he had
been furnished with a copy o f the proposed Revenue Law. Mr. B ridge
was for twelve years connected with the Appraiser’s Department o f the
Custom House at Boston, and in 1851, when Congress authorized the
appointment o f an additional Appraiser-General to reside on the Pacific
coast, he was selected by the President to undertake the responsible du
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The Revenue L aw s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
ties o f that post. The recent removal o f Mr. Bridge has operated to
remove his scruples against allowing a copy o f the letter to be taken
for publication, and we have therefore obtained and published it to il
lustrate the views w e have expressed upon the mode by which the
most valuable information can be acquired, for the purpose o f com
piling laws which will m eet the wants o f the community and the
times, and protect the interests o f the government and the honest trader
against the fraudulent and designing.
A p pr aiser -G e n e ra l ' s Office , S a n F rancisco , December 23, 1834
S ir :— I have examined with care your able report to Congress on a revision
of the revenue laws. The sections embraced in the work are admirably drawn to
meet the present wants of the country, and, if adopted, will greatly facilitate the
business of the customs. I have given particular attention to that part of the
report relating to the appraiser’s department, and a revision of the appraisement
laws, (chapter 2d and 7th,) leaving it for the collector to give his views on that
portion coming more immediately within his province.
I have long been aware of the importance of a thorough reorganization of the
appraiser’s department, and a revision of the appraisement laws, and have on
more than one occasion urged the necessity of this reform on the Treasury De
partment and Congress. A s the appraiser’s department is now constituted at the
great port of New York, the three principal appraisers sit as a board, and coun
tersign the invoices as they are received from the assistant-appraisers and ex
aminers. and if this practice is to be continued, it is quite unnecessary to have
more than one principal appraiser.
But there ought to be a division of labor and responsibility in appraisements
there, where the probable imports this year will be of the value of one hundred
and eighty millions of dollars. This division should be as follows :—
1st. Woolen and worsted goods.
2d. Cottons and mixed goods.
3d. Groceries, including sugars, molasses, spirits, etc.
4th. Drugs, chemicals, paints, dye-woods, etc.
5th. Metals, including iron, steel, and manufactures thereof.
If there were five principal appraisers at New York, as in my judgment there
ought to be, and as I presume Congress would authorize, they should be appointed
and assigned to duties separate and distinct, with a view to the five above classi
fications. A man may have a very good knowledge of dry goods, and yet none
of metals, drugs, and chemicals, and vice versa, and therefore a separate and dis
tinct knowledge of these various branches is indispensible where the imports are
large, as at New York.
Under former tariffs the duties were chiefly specific, and in such case the goods
required no appraisement, but in consequence of doubling the imports and the
change of specific into ad valorem duties, the goods to be appraised have quad
rupled, and without this subdivision it is in vain to expect accuracy in appraise
ments, etc.
To each principal appraiser there ought to be allowed one assistant-appraiser,
and as many examiners and clerks as maybe required for the prompt and efficient
discharge of the duties of the office, but they should all be selected with reference
to the above classifications. A t Boston, where the imports are nearly forty mil
lions annually, there ought to be three principal appraisers and three assistantappraisers, with a like division of duties, while at all the other ports of the firsts
class, where the imports will not exceed twenty millions of dollars annually, two
principal appraisers and two assistant-appraisers are all that is required. But in
every port where there are two principal appraisers, separate and distinct duties
should be assigned to each, the same as is now the case at Boston and San Fran
cisco.
A t all the ports of the second-class, where the imports are comparatively
trifling, one principal appraiser and assistant-appraiser is all that is required.
There should also be six appraisers at large, five for the Atlantic and one for
The Revenue L aw s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
fi83
the Pacific coasts, but the five on the Atlantic ought to be selected not geographi
cally as heretofore, but with a view in each case to a knowledge of the separate
and distinct duties assigned to the principal appraisers at New York.
The appraiser at large having the entire supervision of woolens on the Atlan
tic coast, would in the first place inform himself in regard to the quality and
value of the various woolen faeries, by working with the appraisers, assistantappraisers, and examiners, in the woolen department at New York, and then
proceed to Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and New Orleans, the only places
where woolen goods are imported, and there, by the skill and experience thus ac
quired, perfect a uniformity of appraisement at all the ports.
This rule will apply with equal force to the appraiser at large having super
vision of cotton and mixed goods, and to all the other appraisers at large having
in like manner the supervision of groceries, drugs, and metals.
Without this separate and distinct classification, there never can exist that
uniformity in the valuation of imports, required by the Constitution, at all the
ports of our extended coast.
I have followed the form adopted in your report, making only such alterations
as is required to carry out the plan suggested. The appraiser’s department is the
efficient arm of the service. On it more than any other does the success of the
ad valorem system depend. The appraisers are the eyes of the custom-house, the
guardians of the honest importer and the revenue.
By a judicious division of the duties and responsibilities of the office, the reve
nue will be better protected, and the public business more promptly and effi
ciently discharged. Above all it will conduce to the interest of the government,
by promoting harmony, increasing vigilance, and largely augmenting the revenue.
The only other alteration in chapter 2d relates to the appointement of officers
in section 23d. By the present law, the collector, naval officer, and surveyor of
the port, are appointed for four years, but are removable at pleasure, and this is
well. They are almost always politicians, generally legal gentlemen, and not unfrequently ex-members of Congress, and to this there can be no objection, for the
the duties of the several officers can be performed by men of ordinary information
as regards mercantile pursuits. It would be better, perhaps, to have the appoint
ments date from the 1st April or the 1st July immediately following a new ad
ministration, and in case of death, resignation, or removal, to appoint a successor
for the unexpired time, as is now the case in the United States Senate. The
new administration would find all the offices soon to become vacant, and hence
all clamor, ill-feeling, and sympathy, caused by removal would cease.
This rule will not apply to the appraisers or appraisers at large—by the present
law they are removable at pleasure, but their commissions do not expire by lim
itation, and there are weighty reasons why they should not. They are judicial
officers standing and deciding impartially between the government and importer ;
they ought to persecute no man for envy, hatred, malice, or revenge, nor ougtit they
to spare him from love, friendship, affection, or regard.
It ought always to be their aim to protect the honest importer against the
fraudulent one, and keep in legitimate channels the trade of the country. They
are by far the most important officers under the government, and require to be
filled by men of a high order of talents, possessing the most varied acquirements.
An appraiser must know the language, the currency, and the weights and
measures of every country.
He must know the foreign value of every article of merchandise in his depart
ment imported from every quarter of the globe, the value of wool in Odessa, in
South America, and Australia, on every day of the week ; the value of iron in
England, Sweden, and Russia ; the value of sugar in Cuba, Manilla, and South
America, and so of every article known to commerce, its quality and value. He
must also know the home value of every article coming under his supervision to
enable him to assess the proper rate of damage on the voyage of importation.
N or is this all, he must possess a perfect knowledge of human nature, and the
motives and springs of action which usually govern men, for he is brought in
daily contact with the selfish, unscrupulous importer, or the dishonest smuggler.
There is no office where skill, tact, good judgment, untiring industry, firmness
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The Revenue L a w s: Appraisement o f Merchandise.
and decision of character, are more demanded, while integrity, fidelity, and dis
cretion, are only a few of the requisite qualifications necessary to make an ac
complished public officer. It is the policy of the government to retain good
officers in its employ, but this it could hardly do if the commission of the ap
praisers expire by limitation. The President and Secretary of the Treasury
coming fresh from the people are not presumed to be familiar on their advent to
office with all the ramifications of the customs, and especially with this important
branch of the public service, and it is to be feared they might do in a hurry
what they would regret at leisure. It appears to me, therefore, it would be alto
gether better to let the term of office of aupraisers and appraisers at large re
main as at present, without limitation, leaving it in the hands of the Secretary of
the Treasury, with the concurrence of the President, to retain those officers who
w'ere meritorious, and dismiss those who were not so.
After four years of
familiarity with the duties of his office an efficient appraiser becomes too valuable
an auxiliary to the Treasury Department for his services to be dispensed with
without injury to the revenue, as his place can only be supplied by the utmost
care in the selection of a successor. While serious injury to the revenue and a
faithful administration of the laws might be the result of a single hasty or uncon
sidered removal of an appraiser, the indiscriminate removal of all at one time
might be irreparable. The deficiency of one appraiser where there were four
others, who would at least have a partial knowledge of his duties, might be sup
plied in a great degree by their united aid, but where can the deficiencies of five
simultaneously removed, and their places filled by new appointments, be supplied?
This very perfection in the knowledge and discharge of their duties may be
urged why such a division should not be made, and why the performance of the
duties should be left to subordinates who may be retained in office on a change
of administration.
'Phis reasoning is to my mind very fallacious, it is entrusting to a subordinate,
but moderately compensated, duties and responsibilities which require the highest
capacity and attainments, and is making the principal a pupil of and dependent
upon a subordinate, more open by reason of his subordination and inferior com
pensation to the means of corruption. My examination of chapter 7, relating to
the appraisement of merchandise, induces me to suggest but one alteration, and
that in the close of the 8th section on the 125th page. Its provisions appear to
me to be admirably calculated to accomplish the objects in view, a just and faith
ful estimate of the value of imported merchandise.
I am very respectfully, your obedient servant,
SAMUEL J. BRIDGE, Appraiser-General.
H on . J am es G u tiik ie , Secretary o f the Treasury, Washington.
W e have reason to believe that, if Congress, at its last session, had
found time to act upon this subject, the views of Mr. Bridge would have
been adopted. A copy o f the bill introduced into Congress at Mr. Guthrie’s
recommendation was sent to the collectors of customs throughout the
Union, for the purpose o f obtaining their views, suggestions, etc., on the
subject. This brought out the foregoing letter o f Mr. Bridge, the main
views of which were acceded to by Mr. Guthrie, and would have been
adopted in the report o f the Committee on Finance, (Mr. Hunter, chair
man,) and incorporated in the bill. The bill is yet before Congress, and
it is to be hoped that it will be adopted at the incoming session, as it will
lead to facilitate the transaction of business at New York and other prin
cipal ports. W e learn that a commission was recently appointed by Mr.
Cobb, the present Secretary o f the Treasury, to investigate and report
upon the causes of delay in the passage of merchandise at the custom
house in New York and other chief seaports. The result of the investiga
tion will probably appear in his annual report, and if so, will be duly pub
lished in the Merchants' Magazine.
Commercial and Industrial Cities o f the United States.
685
A rt. IV.— COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL CITIES OF THE UNITED STATES.
M VM BEll LL
QUINCY,
ILLINOIS.
T he city o f Quincy, the county seat o f Adams County, (which, by re
turns o f 1855, is the third county in the State in aggregate population
and wealth,) Illinois, is situated upon the eastern shore o f the Mississippi
River, 160 miles above St. Louis, and 110 miles west o f Springfield, the
capital o f the State. Its distance from Chicago, by railroad, is 268 miles,
(by Quincy and Chicago Railroad, 100 miles, from Quincy to G alesburg;
and thence 168 miles to Chicago, by Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy
Railroad.)
W e recently received a small volume, (<59 pages, 16mo.,) entitled—
“ Q uincy, Illinois, in 185T ; or, Facts and Figures exhibiting its Advan
tages, Resources, Manufactures, and Commerce. B y J o seph T. H olm es .”
This was prepared, according to the author’s preface, “ under the super
vision o f the Mayor and Council o f the city o f Quincy, and others who
are thoroughly acquainted with her history and business; and the facts
and figures have been obtained from sources o f unquestionable authority,
and may be relied upon as correct.” As no publication o f this kind, rela
tive to Quincy, had been heretofore attempted, and as no business returns
had been collected or preserved in former years, the author was unable to
illustrate the progress o f the city as he desired. H is object is to direct
public attention to Quincy, Illinois, as one o f the most eligible points in
the W e s t ; and thus we readily make allowance for the laudatory style
with which he enumerates its many advantages. In the preparation o f
the present article, we have, to a considerable extent, availed ourselves o f
the “ facts and figures” collected by Mr. H olm es; and these we have con
densed and rearranged in a summary form. W e have prepared the
tables on the increase o f population in the city, county, and State from
the several censuses, and have com piled the tables on manufactures and
trade from the facts in his work.
Its site is at an elevation o f about one hundred and twenty feet above
the level o f the Mississippi River. For many miles above and below, the
bluffs on the Illinois side are separated from the river by a wide extent o f
bottom land, covered with water at every inundation, and intersected by
sloughs and marshes, rendering the main channel inaccessible for pur
poses o f commerce. A t this point they rise almost from the water’s edge,
and form a landing, practicable for steamboats o f the largest class at all
seasons o f the year. Their summit commands a view o f the river for
several miles in either direction. Lagrange, twelve miles to the north,
and Palmyra, fourteen miles to the southwest, may be seen on a clear day.
N o landscape on the Mississippi is mure lovely than that w hich is here
presented in the season o f foliage. The bold outline o f the bluffs skirt
ing the western horizon, the wide expanse o f forest on either side extend
ing to the water’s edge, and the thickly-w ooded islands dotting the surface
o f the stream, com bine to form a picture such as rarely meets the eye
amid the comparatively monotonous scenery o f the W est. The Missis
sippi at this point is about a mile in width. Its western shore is lined by
688
Commercial and Industrial Cities o f the United States:
a dense forest, extending several miles into the interior, and affording an
ample supply of fuel and lumber. The northwestern portion of the city
extends along the shore o f a beautiful sheet o f water, now known as
“ Quincy Bay,” but which, in “ early times,” was called “ Boston Bay,” as
were the bluffs upon which the city now stands called “ Boston Hills ”—
being named by the Indians after a trader, who, in the employ of the
“ Boston Fur Company,” established a trading post about three miles
above this point. Many of the largest manufacturing establishments of
Quincy are built upon the shore of this inlet. The country in the imme
diate vicinity of the city is gently rolling. Groves alternate with fertile
fields. Neat and comfortable farm-houses, and highly cultivated farms,
attest the industry and success with which agriculture is carried on.
The area embraced within its corporate limits is about five square miles.
The streets are laid off with perfect regularity, o f ample width, occupying
easy grades, and in the business portion are thoroughly macadamized.
The side-walks are wide and substantially paved with brick, and extend
over almost the entire area occupied by buildings.
Their aggregate
length is no less than thirty-three miles— a greater extent o f brick pave
ment than is to be found in all the other cities and towns in Illinois to
gether, Chicago not excepted. Gas works were erected in the fall o f 1854,
and the streets are now well lighted in all the most frequented parts.
Great attention has been given, from the first settlement, to shading and
adorning public and private grounds. The forest trees have been pre
served, so far as it could be done consistently with the necessities of build
ing and grading; and where they were wanting, thrifty elms and maples
have been transplanted. Large tracts of valuable real estate, some of it
in the heart of the city, have been purchased by the city government, and
reserved for parks and ornamental grounds. Washington Square, in the
central portion of the city, is neatly enclosed, and surrounded by business
houses which may challenge comparison with the finest portions of St.
Louis and Chicago. Jefferson Park is in the northeastern part o f the
city, and adds much to its appearance. Franklin Square, situated on the
bluff, commands a fine view of the river and its western shore. W ood
land Park, an enclosure o f twenty-five acres, in the southern suburbs of
the city, was selected as a place of public recreation, for its rare natural
beauty and convenient location. Woodland Cemetery, situated in the
southwestern portion of the city, extending on the western side nearly to
the river, includes an area of forty-five acres. The grounds are tastefully
laid out, and thickly wooded with oaks and maples.
The historical sketch before us is too lengthy and minute for us to quote
at length. In the fall of 1821, Quincy was selected as a town site by
John W ood, (in 1857, Lieutenant-Governor of the State, and still a resi
dent of Quincy,) who then visited its neighborhood with two others to
examine some land belonging to the latter. In the fall of 18z2, Mr.
W ood returned and built a cabin. In the spring succeeding (1823) Major
Jeremiah Rose, a native o f New York, came with his family, and shared
Mr. W ood’s cabin, Mrs. Rose being the first white woman, and her daugh
ter, now Mrs. George W . Brown, the first white child residing in Quincy.
The second house was built in the spring o f 1824, by Mr Willard Keyes,
a native of Vermont, and a former acquaintance of Mr. W o o d ; and the
third in the following fall, by John Droulard, a Frenchman. A t that time
there was no white settlement in the Military Tract north o f Gilead, a
081
Quincy, Illinois.
point sixty miles south o f Quincy, and but two other white men in the
bounds o f what is now Adams County.
Previous to the establishment o f the white settlement at Quincy, an
Indian village o f the Sauk tribe occupied its site, and for several years
afterward these aborigines remained in the vicinity, but as a general thing
were not troublesome to their white neighbors. In 1825, Quincy was
selected as the county seat, and was then so named in honor o f John
Quincy Adams. In Novem ber o f that year the town was laid out, and
in D ecem ber some o f its lots were sold at auction. From 1825 to 1835,
the growth o f the place was slow. Its residents were many miles distant
from any point where provisions or supplies o f any kind could he obtained.
Their coffee was a decoction o f okro seed, (from an herb cultivated for
that purpose,) w hich they sweetened with wild honey, found in great
abundance in the neighboring woods. Their nearest blacksmith’s shop
was at Atlas, forty miles distant, where they carried their plows to be
sharpened, swung upon a horse’s back. These and other privations inci
dent to pioneer life, together with several visitations o f epidemic disease
during the interval mentioned, prevented any great improvement. In the
spring o f 1826, the first store was opened. In the fall o f the same year
a court-house was built o f hewed logs, in which the first school was or
ganized and kept. In 1829, the first frame building was erected, and in
1857 this was still standing on “ the old post-office corner.” In 1829 or
1830, the first ste&m flour mill was erected. In 1833, the first church
was organized. In June, 1834, the town was incorporated; in 1835, it
contained about 700 inhabitants; in 1837, 1,653 ; and in 1841, 2,686.
The population o f Quincy and o f Adam s County in 1840 and in 1850,
according to the national censuses o f those years, we have compiled as
follow s:—
CITY OF QUINCY.
,------------------------ w h i t e s . ----------------
Years.
Males.
Females.
1840 ................
1850 ................
1,284
3,476
1,012
3,336
1840 ................
1850 ................
6,596
10,203
1840 ................
1850 ................
7,880
13,679
»
Total.
2,296
6,812
s
,— f r e e c o l o r e d . —
Males. Females. Total.
12
39
Grand
total.
11
51
23
90
2,319
6,902
4
33
10
49
12,157
19,608
15
84
33
139
14,476
26,508
COUNTY OF ADAMS, EXCLUSIVE OF QUINCY.
5,551
9,354
12,147
19,557
6
10
TOTAL OF COUNTY OF ADAMS.
6,563
12,690
14,443
26,369
18
55
In the follow ing tables we give the progress o f the population o f the
city o f Quincy, as ascertained by censuses and estimates, together with
the progress o f population in the county o f Adam s and the State o f Illi
nois, according to official enumerations :—
,--------- CITY
Y ears.
1 8 3 5 ...........
1 8 3 7 ...........
1 8 4 0 ...........
1 8 4 1 ...........
1 8 4 9 ...........
1 8 5 0 ...........
1 8 5 4 ...........
OF QUINCY.----------\
Pop.
_____
700
_____
1 ,6 5 3
____
2 ,3 1 9
_____
2 ,6 8 6
_____
5 ,5 0 0
____
6 ,9 0 2
____
1 0 ,9 5 1
1 8 5 7 ...........
/--------COUNTY OF ADAMS.------- \
Years.
Pop.
1 8 1 0 ..............
1 8 2 0 ..............
1 8 3 0 ..............
2 ,1 8 6
1 8 3 5 ..............
1 8 4 0 ..............
1 8 4 5 ..............
1 8 5 0 ..............
1 8 5 5 ..............
,------- 3
Y ears.
1810.
1820.
1830.
1835.
1840.
1845.
1850.
1855.
Pop.
12,282
55,211
1 5 7 ,4 4 5
272,427
476,183
650,000
851,470
688
Commercial and Industrial Cities o f the United States:
The next table, which shows the assessed value and estimated value o f
taxable property in the city each year from 1 885 to 1857, both inclusive, is
derived from the publication m entioned:—
Y e a rs .
1 8 8 5 ...............
A ssessed
v a lu e.
E s tim a te d
va lu e.
$ 1 6 8 ,8 7 8
Y ea rs.
A ssessed
v a lu e.
1 8 4 7 ...............
E s t im a t e d
v a lu e.
$ 1 ,9 8 7 ,0 9 8
1 8 8 6 ...............
8 8 7 ,9 0 0
1 8 4 8 ...............
2 ,1 6 9 ,4 9 8
1 8 3 7 ...............
9 4 5 ,1 5 0
1 8 4 9 ...............
2 ,8 7 4 ,3 3 8
1 8 8 8 ...............
1 ,0 6 8 ,8 2 0
1 8 5 0 ...............
1 8 3 9 ...............
1 ,1 8 5 ,4 4 3
1 8 5 1 ...............
1 ,7 8 9 ,3 9 9
3 ,2 0 8 ,3 9 9
1 ,2 8 4 ,1 8 6
1 8 5 2 ...............
1 ,5 7 4 ,1 3 4
3 ,7 4 6 ,1 3 3
1 ,5 7 3 ,8 6 3
1 8 5 3 ...............
1 ,8 1 1 ,9 6 5
4 ,1 0 4 ,9 6 5
1 8 5 4 ...............
1 ,8 8 6 ,7 7 8
4 ,6 2 7 ,7 7 8
1 8 4 3 ...............
1 ,6 3 4 ,2 7 9
1 ,7 6 3 ,2 0 9
1 8 5 5 ...............
3 ,1 4 9 ,7 9 7
6 ,8 9 5 ,7 9 7
1 8 4 4 ...............
1 ,8 4 3 ,3 9 0
I s 5 6 ............ ...
4 ,0 3 3 ,9 7 6
9 ,1 8 5 ,9 7 6
1 ,8 6 2 ,1 2 0
1 8 5 7 ...............
5 ,0 4 2 ,9 5 1
1 2 ,3 4 6 ,9 5 7
1840
............
1 8 4 1 ...............
8 8 7 ,8 6 8
1 8 4 2 ...............
1845
.
1846
.
9 0 0 ,1 2 0
2 ,9 8 3 ,3 4 2
1 ,9 4 3 ,2 8 8
Quincy possesses important natural advantages for extensively prosecut
ing both manufactures and commerce. In respect to manufactures, it is
especially fortunate in its ability to obtain coal. “ On the north and east,
within a distance easily accessible by railroad, lie vast beds o f superior
coal, which are, as yet, almost undisturbed. In the neighboring counties
o f H ancock and M cDonough, some few veins have been opened, and a
company has been organized which imports it to some extent into the
city.”
D uring the first six months o f 1857, the com pany im ported
800,000 bushels, o f wTiich the foundries and factories used 275,000 bush
els ; and although its price was very high during the greater part o f the
time, it was much cheaper than wood. In July, 1857, the price was sev
enteen cents per bushel. U pon the opening to market o f the large de
posits in Brow n and Schuyler counties, by the completion o f the Quincy
and Toledo Railroad, it is reasonably expected that the price will not ex
ceed twelve cents per bushel.
The bluffs in the neighborhood contain
large deposits o f limestone, suited to building purposes. “ Rafts o f pine
lumber are constantly arriving from the Upper Mississippi, but the supply
heretofore has scarcely been commensurate with the demand. W ithin
the past year, however, great attention has been paid to the production o f
hard w ood lumber in the immediate vicinity o f the city. Upon the bluffs
adjoining on the north and south, on the islands in the river within a
short distance above and below, and immediately opposite on the Missouri
shore, lie vast tracts o f timber lands, which will eventually be made to
furnish a large proportion o f timber required for building purposes, and
em ployed in manufacturing wagons, furniture, etc., to which it is well
adapted.” The steam saw-mills in the city have for years done a profit
able business, and recently, “ several additional ones have been erected in
the forests on the Missouri side, opposite the city, and upon the neighbor
ing islands.”
Statistics o f the manufactures o f Quincy are presented by Mr. Holm es
in a very detailed manner. In the account o f each branch, he gives the
name o f each firm, the year when it was established, and the name o f its
founders, with occasionally other particulars. His statements o f the num
ber o f establishments and hands employed, and o f the amount o f wages
paid and o f the product annually, are made up for the year ending June
1st, 1857, and these, he says, “ are in some degree incomplete, so that,
taken as a whole, they form an under-estimate o f the actual business o f
Quincy, Illinois.
689
the city.” F or obvious reasons he has not published “ the amount o f
capita! invested and business done by individual firms, but the aggregates
on those points are made up from reliable statements.” W e have, with
considerable labor, com piled from the several accounts the follow ing
ta b le :—
Value of
Amount
product
of wages
Manufactories.
Hands
yearly.
yearly.
No.
employed.
$924,000
Flour mills, steam.................................
....
6
51
265,500
Saw mills, steam...................................
$22,000
2
55
126,000
Planing mills.........................................
30,700
6
63
207,000
65,800
Furniture manufactories........................
175
4
145
51.000
13
195,000
Machine shops......................................
72
47.000
4
127,000
Iron foundries........................................
30,000
53
4
99,128
Stove foundry........................................
60
30,232
1
185,000
Stove and tinware manufactories.........
23,000
67
8
25,000
Copper and sheet iron manufactories...
....
2
7
47,000
Boiler manufactories.............................
7,250
16
2
107,625
Wagon manufactories............................
83
41,750
9
83,000
Carriage manufactories.........................
69
29,000
2
84,000
Saddlery manufactories........................
14,700
6
41
25,260
Agricultural implement manufactory..
20
8,000
1
Rope-walk.............................................
26,000
4,600
1
10
42,000
Lime kilns.............................................
15
....
3
127,500
Brick yards............................................
26,304
8
119
Marble works.........................................
27,000
2
14
637,000
Grain distilleries....................................
34,240
4
92
105,000
Alcohol distilleries.................................
2
6
35,000
Beer breweries......................................
••
5
....
The follow ing paragraphs refer to some o f the classes of manufactures
in the preceding table, and present additional statistics:—
F lour M ills . The capital invested is $280,000. They consume an
nually 660,000 bushels o f wheat, and make 132,000 barrels o f flour, sell
ing at an average o f $7. There are also two corn-meal and feed mills,
consum ing ] 35,000 bushels o f corn.
S a w Mills. Capital invested, $110,000; product, 9,500,000 feet o f
lumber, at $25 per M. feet, $237,500; 4,000,000 lath, at $4 per M.,
$10,000 ; and 3,000,000 shingles, at $4 per M., $12,000 ; total, $265,500.
Tw o other saw mills near the city manufacture hard wood lumber, about
3,000,000 feet, worth $60,000.
P laning M ills . Product about 5,000,000 feet o f dressed lumber.
Most o f these make sash, blinds, doors, and frames.
F urniture . There are seven smaller factories, whose sales are $65,000.
C o o p e r a g e . Product, 98,000 flour, 28,000 pork, and 35,000 whisky
and alcohol barrels, besides a great number o f hogsheads, etc. There are
several other shops on a smaller scale.
M ac h in e S h o p s . Capital invested, $87,000.
I ron F o u n d ries . Capital invested, $91,000. These consume 300 tons
o f iron and 35,000 bushels o f coal and coke.
S tove F oun dry . Consumed in the past year 987 tons o f iron and
20,000 bushels o f coal and coke, and made 9,466 stoves.
W agon M a k in g . Product, 1,435 wagons. These also do a large re
pairing business, but the amount is not obtained. Connected with one o f
them is a plow factory, making 1,100 plows, worth $8,800. (See also for
plows the next note.) Besides these, there are eight shops, whose chief
VOL.
x x x v i i .— n o .
v i.
44
690
Commercial and Industrial Cities o f the United States :
business is repairing; they em ploy 21 hands, whose wages are $9,560, ahd
the value o f their work is $19,500.
A g r ic u l t u r a l I m p l e m e n t s . Product, 1,000 plows, worth $8,000 ; 150
seed-drills, -$12,000; and 150 corn-planters, $5 ,2 5 0 ; total, $25,250.
L im e -k il n s . Product, 140,000 bushels o f lime, worth, at the rate o f
1857, $42,000. One lime-kiln has a capacity o f 300 bushels a day.
B r ic k Y a r d s . These statistics are for 1856. The quantity made in
1857 is estimated to exceed that o f 1856 by about 25 per cent. The
brick are generally afforded at $5 per M.
Am ount made in 1856,
25,500,000, worth $127,500 ; estimated for 1857, 31,875,000, worth
$159,375. One yard has steam machinery.
G r a in D ist il l e r ie s .
Capital invested, $355,000.
They consume
124,200 bushels o f small grain, and 481,800 bushels o f corn. They make
45,000 barrels o f high-wines, worth $637,000. They feed 9,300 hogs
and 3,000 head o f cattle.
A l c o h o l D ist il l e r ie s .
Capital invested, $ 4 3 ,0 0 0 ; product, 5,000
barrels.
B r e w e r ie s . These consume 16,000 bushels o f barley and 15,000 bar
rels h op s; and make 17,500 kegs o f beer. Near the city are several
other breweries.
Other branches o f manufacturing industry are reported as follow s: —
Three soda-water manufactories em ploy 18 hands, and make 100,000
dozen bottles, worth $35,000. One vinegar manufactory produces 650
barrels, worth $3,575. One manufactory o f endless-chain pumps, and
one o f suction pumps. Seven confectionery establishments employ 30
hands, and make to the value o f $ 9 8 ,0 0 0 ; and there are several smaller
establishments, whose sales are about $30,000.
One manufactory of
wooden measures and utensils employs 10 hands, and produces to the
value o f $15,000. Three book-binderies em ploy 8 hands, whose work is
to the value o f $8,500.
From the returns o f the branches o f trade, which are as minute as those
o f manufactures, we have com piled the follow ing ta ble:—
Mercantile establishments.
Dry goods, wholesale and retail.......................
Drv goods, entirely retail.................................. ___
Groceries, entirely wholesale........................... ___
Groceries, wholesale and retail..........................____
Groceries, entirely retail.................................... ___
Hardware, wholesale and retail....................... ____
Iron and heavy hardware.................................. ____
Variety stores, principal establishments........... ___
Liquors, etc........................................................
Clothing............................................................. ___
Merchant tailoring.............................................. ___
Boot and shoe, wholesale and retail.........................
Millinery and bonnet..........................................
Hat and cap........................ ........................... .......
Drug and medicine............................................ ____
Book and stationery.......................................... ____
Watch and jewelry............................................. .......
Tobacco and cigar, chief establishments...........
Tobacco and cigar, small establishments..........
Leather, hides, etc.............................................. ___
No.
10
3
9
20
4
3
8
5
5
4
2
6
5
5
4
2
Other branches o f trade are reported as follo w s:—
Amount o**
Clerks
and hands. ann'l salesseio.ouO
125,000
321,000
13
184,600
23
180,1100
280,000
13
11
145,000
24
279,000
205,120
21
53
186,000
63
131,000
182,000
n
91,000
15
6U,000
21
158,000
11
116,000
15
100,000
66,000
17
86,000
..
55,000
7
Quincy, Illinois.
691
P ork P a c k in g . D uring the winter o f 1856-7, six firms packed 38,306
hogs, weighing 8,086,492 pounds, making the average weight 235 pounds.
Besides these, there were sold to provision stores, etc., some 2,500 hogs,
(which, at the above average, amounted to 687,500 pounds,) making the
total o f 40,806 hogs, weighing 9,773,932 pounds, which, at $5 30 per
hundred, the average price paid during the season, amounted in value to
$512,721 57.
B e e f P a c k in g . In 1856, two firms (also engaged in pork packing)
killed and packed 2,300 beef cattle, netting 4,930 barrels. A bout 3,000
head are slaughtered for home consumption annually. Most o f the cattle
fattened at and near Quincy are driven to eastern and southern markets.
F o r w a r d in g . Seven firms employ 33 hands. D uring the six months
ending July 1st, 1857, they received— -of wheat, 2 5 9,57 4; corn, 268,321 ;
oats, 88,456 ; rye and barley, 6,312 bushels; o f shipstuff, 31,642 pounds;
and 16,443 packages. Shipments— o f wheat, 11 8,87 2; corn, 14 5,94 2;
oats, 60,292 bushels; flour, 37,850 barrels; and 14,187 packages.
L um ber . Seven principal firms im ported during the year, 16,750,000
feet o f pine lumber, 7,870,000 shingles, and 2,320,000 lath.
A uctio n H ouses . T wo houses, estimated to sell $75,000.
R eal E state . Ten firms deal in real estate, whose business is not re
ported.
I c e . Three firms, during 1S 56 -7, put up 3,350 tons, worth $33,500.
Quincy has steamboat communication for three-fourths o f the year with
all points accessible by the Mississippi River and its tributaries. The ar
rivals and departures o f steamboats in 1856 amounted to 2,921.
Two
daily lines o f packets run to St. Louis, and one to Keokuk. There are
also frequent opportunities, by means o f transient boats, for shipping mer
chandise both up and down the river. In 1851, Quincy was made a port
o f entry, and attached to the collection district o f New Orleans.
To
some extent, goods have been imported into Quincy from the manufac
turers in Europe, via New Orleans, with but a single reshipment.
The Quincy and Chicago Railroad (formerly called Northern Cross
Railroad) has, since its completion, greatly increased the trade o f Quincy.
The Quincy and Toledo Railroad will soon be in operation. It extends
from Camp Point (which is 22 miles from Quincy, and the point o f ju n c
tion with the Quincy and Chicago Railroad,) to the Illinois River, a dis
tance o f 32 miles. A t Meredosia it will connect with the Great W estern
Railroad. The proposed Quincy and Palmyra Railroad will extend to
Palmyra, Missouri, 14 miles, there connecting with the Hannibal and St.
Joseph Railroad. In September, 1857, its grading was commenced. Sev
eral lines have been proposed, o f which those most favorably considered
are— 1st, one from Camp Point to W a rsaw ; 2d, one from Quincy to
W arsaw along the Mississippi R iver; and 3d, one from Quincy west
through Missouri to La Grange, Trenton, etc.
In the city there is one bank o f issue, viz., the Bank o f Quincy, which
was established April, 1856, under the general banking law, and its cap
ital stock is $65,000.
There are three private bankers.
The Quincy
Savings and Insurance Company was organized May 1st, 185 7, under act
o f February 15th, 1855. Capital, $320,000 ; authorized capital, $500,000.
It is authorized to make all kinds o f fire and marine insurance, and to
operate as a bank o f deposit.
Three newspapers, the Herald, W hig, and Republican, are published
692
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
daily and weekly ; two German papers, the Tribune and Courier, are pub
lished weekly. The public schools are efficiently organized, and have
over 1,000 pupils. There are some private academies. Several benevo
lent associations are permanently established. There are twenty churches,
six o f which are composed o f people o f German origin and descent.
The city is divided into six wards, and each elects two aldermen. The
city debt on July 1st, 1857, was $684,042 21, consisting o f improvement
bonds, $184,042, and railroad bonds, $500,000.
The latter item is nom
inally counterbalanced by the railroad stocks owned by the city— N orth
ern Cross (Quincy and Chicago) Eailroad, $2 00 ,0 00 ; Toledo, W abash,
and W estern (Quincy and Toledo) Railroad, $2 00 ,0 00 ; and Quincy and
Palm yra Railroad, $100,000. Estimated value o f real estate owned by
the city, $880,000, o f which the levee at the foot o f Main-street (1,550
feet front) is rated at $ 3 5 0 ,0 0 0 ; city revenue for 1857, $90,000.
A rt. V.— THE PUBLIC WORKS OF THE STATE OF N EW YORK.
F reeman H unt, Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine and Commercial Review: —
D e a r S ir :— In some previous remarks, I endeavored to show, by the
State Chief Engineer’s report to the Legislature o f 1855, (Asseui. D oc.,
N o. 50,) his sound and honest views, when he says, “ the cost o f repairs
and maintenance o f our public works has been annually increasing, and
has now reached a sum so enorm ous, and with a still greater increase,
that it has becom e the most earnest inquiry on the part o f every honest
public officer, to suggest or provide some remedy.” H e then adds, “ in
m y judgm ent, there is but one truly effective remedy, which is, the sale
o f the public works in whole or in part.”
The corrupting political influence o f the State works o f Pennsylvania
was such, and w'ithout regard to the party in power, that her people were
glad to get rid o f them to her Central Railroad Company for eight m il
lions o f dollars, works in their log-rolling construction, that had cost
her more than four times this sum.
The view presented by the Canal Auditor, Mr. N. S. Benton, that the
Erie Canal cannot sustain itself in a competition with the New Y ork and
Erie and Central Railroads— works that have very objectionable grades
to do a cheap freighting business, and also with double to treble the
distance from Lake Erie at Dunkirk and Buffalo, as compared with a di
rect and very level line from Oswego on Lake Ontario, by Rom e, only
420 feet summit, and then the down-hill route on the north side o f the
M ohawk Valley, to tide at the Troy bridge, there to be connected with
the Hudson River and Harlem Railroad Companies and the wharves o f
N ew Y ork, unless canal tolls are re-imposed on these works— is a suf
ficient reason for the State to sell the Erie Canal, while she may find a
purchaser perhaps in our Central Railroad Company, the better to compete
with the New Y ork and Erie Railroad Company.
The H on. N. S. Benton, in his report, (Assem. D oc., N o. 10, pp. 30 to
45,) to which I would refer, comes to the conclusion, on p. 45, “ In this
view o f the question, it is a fallacy to say that these tolls (on railways)
693
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
are not wanted to pay the interest on the new debt o f $11,000,000, while
the present deficiency continues. The process o f borrowing money to pay
the annual interest, will increase that debt about $11,000,000 more by the
1st o f January, 1872, if the bottom o f the loan bag shall not be sooner
reached.
“ The canals and railroads o f the State may be parts o f a single sys
tem o f internal improvements, but it by no means follows, when there is
antagonism o f interest between different lines o f railroad, that there can
be none between the canals and railroads, especially when all the lines
are competing.
“ The relative rights and interesls o f all the parties concerned in them,
must be examined, adjusted, and disposed of, as the best interests o f the
whole State, and not o f any particular class o f persons, may require.”
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
To this doctrine o f examination into the relative merits o f each class
o f improvement, I agree, but not to tax the better improvement o f the age—
railways, for the inferior— canals.— That is to say, to make com m erce sub
servient to the State m onopoly ; as if the people were to be taxed and
used for our canals, instead o f the reverse o f this potsition, assumed by
Mr. Benton.
H ow much better would it have been if, years and years ago, our
Canal Board and Legislature had examined with candor into the pro
gressive improvement o f railways in England and this country, as a m a
chine to carry freight at cheap rates and profitably, when there was ton
nage to be transported to only half the capacity o f the railroads. A
railway cannot do a small freight business profitably. The most profit
able railroad in Great Britain is the Stockton and Darlington, devoted to
the transportation o f coal, almost entirely in one direction. So, also, is
the case in this country with the Philadelphia and Heading Railroad, bv
the side o f the Schuylkill Canal. Both these railways have cost double
what they should have done, or could now be built for, with an adequate
capital in hand or at call, to com m ence and complete their construction
and equipment, and without the necessity o f a resort to loans and bad
financing to procure a rolling stock— adequate to command a freighting
business at all seasons o f the year, from the certainty and celerity with
which a freighting business may be conducted by a railway, as compared
with the uncertainty to which canals are liable. The banker prefers to
discount short drafts, based on the transmission o f flour and grain by
railway, instead o f by the canal.
It has been the uncertainty and the delays incident to the navigation
of the Erie Canal in past years, with the delay o f its opening in the
spring, that has forced ^ fth s o f the flour trade, entering at Buffalo, from
the Erie Canal to the New Y ork and Erie and the New Y ork Central
Railways—-works, that as yet are in their A B C— in learning their les
sons to accomplish cheaper transportation. This can be done by lessen
ing their rate o f speed, and by im proving the grade on the Central Rail
road on a new track, that I would propose to have devoted entirely to
down tonnage, to tide, from the W est, and thus avoid cost and high
speed, as at present is the case on the Erie and Central Railroads, to keep
clear o f the numerous passage trains, conveying upwards o f four millions
o f way and through passage annually.
The New Y ork and Erie Railroad has but a single track through from
694
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
Dunkirk, and from Buffalo with turn-cut, as yet, entirely inadequate to do
the immense business that will seek this road, when equipped with suit
able machinery to load and unload these trains o f cars. The Central
Railroad has a disjointed double track, but not continuous, and parellel
to each other. The Oswego and Syracuse Bailroad has but a single
track, with a turn-cut in the center. This road, by some singular miscal
culation o f its stockholders, (said to be largely interested in the Central
Bailroad, which company now furnish mainly the rolling stock, to do at
arm’ s length a freighting business!) is only finished to a small and inade
quate depot, at the entrance to the city, full half a mile from her wharves
and elevators, instead o f using water pow er to load flour and grain into
cars. From this cause, in m y view, is explained the partial shipments o f
freight by this road in 1855, to wit, 40,848 tons, (as compared with
670,073 tons transported that year by the New Y ork Central, and
842,054 tons by the F ew Y ork and Erie Bailroad, diverted from the
Erie Canal,) yet the profit on transporting this small amount o f freight
has brought the Oswego and Syracuse Bailway Company into the ranks
o f an 8 per cent dividend-paying road, from the net earnings from freight,
when her previous receipts from passengers alone, in former years, pre
vented any dividend. The grades on this road are admirable to its in
tersection with the Central, at Syracuse. Freight on this railroad, to
enter from Lake Ontario, can be carried much cheaper than by the Central.
It has been proposed to lay down another rail, to make it six feet wide, and
thus connect with the Syracuse and Binghamton Railroad, and the railroad
through Pennsylvania by Scranton, the W atergap and Central New Jer
sey, to Elizabethport, New Jersey, all roads with the broad gauge. This
line o f railroads is im portant to Syracuse, to convey coal for her salines,
and to Oswego to distribute this article as ballast to her numerous ves
sels now employed through the W elland Canal, with the Upper Lakes,
in the grain and flour trade. This Scranton route to the seaboard, and
coal-fields o f Pennsylvania, with a summit o f 2,200 feet in the coal dis
trict, and with grades o f 88 feet to the mile, cannot compete, even in
carrying coal, with the line o f the Hudson and Delaware Canal deliver
ing coal into return empty cars from N ew Y ork, destined for Oswego,
over the almost level Hudson Railroad to Troy, to be conveyed from
thence, with an average rise through the valley o f the Mohawk to Rom e,
o f 4 feet to the mile, in a distance o f 110 miles, and a like average de
scent from that point to the wharves at Oswego, 57 miles. There need
be no grade on this favored route into the city o f New Y ork, and to her
wharves, to exceed 20 feet to the mile, with the usual cuttings and em
bankments. This is an important fact for the trade o f the city o f New
Y ork.
This favored route to and from the lakes, is here again introduced, in
order to show the propriety of selling the Erie Canal, on the admission
o f Messrs. Benton and Fitzhugh, that Sthis canal is not able to compete
with the Central Railroad in the transportation o f flour and grain, the
main items o f tonnage for the Buffalo forwarder. In proof o f this posi
tion, it can be shown by figures, and from past experience the cost of
transportation o f coal alone over the Stockton and Darlington and the
Reading Railroads, per ton per mile, (loaded by its owners into the trains
o f cars seeking tide and its market, with more than 9 -lO tb s o f the freight
in one direction,) that for even the 357 miles o f canal tolls, as now
695
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
charged from Buffalo to Albany, that a railway o f 167 miles, from Lake
Ontario to Albany, could convey trains with 500 to 600 tons o f flour,
grain, and rolling freight, by one locom otive engine, and dump the same
into the holds o f vessels at Albany and at Troy, or to the Hudson and
Harlem Railroad, and from the receipts o f transporting one-and-a-half to
two millions o f tons for 357 miles o f canal tolls, this line o f road would
pay its stockholders handsome dividends— say 8 to 10 p e r ce n t; on a cost
for the railroad o f $8,000,000 to $9,000,000, with its equipments, to do a
freighting business alone, although as the time from New Y ork to the
steamboat at Oswego, at 30 miles per hour, need not exceed ten hours,
and about a like time to deliver the passengers from New Y ork, destined
for the W est via Lewiston to Buffalo, or via the Suspension B ridge to
the Great W estern Railroad, to reach D etroit, etc., or by Toronto, to
seek the short Collingwood route to lakes Michigan and Superior, I con
tend that this route will secure a fair share, if not the largest travel to
and from the W est, by giving one night’s rest on board the splendid
steamboats o f Lake Ontario, in going or com ing, for a change o f route.
I will now proceed to give extracts from the official reports alluded to,
to show the falling o ff in receipts o f the Erie Canal in its contest with
the railways, trusting that second, sober thoughts, may induce our next
Legislature to consider and effect the sale o f our public works, if possi
ble, and thus follow the good example o f Pennsylvania, and thus relieve
the people from so much o f taxation as they may be able to sell
them for.
Mr. Benton remarks, (Sen. D oc. N o. 10, p. 30,) “ The relative condition
o f the canals and the two lines o f railroad, in regard to the freighting
business, form the only legitimate subject o f inquiry and comparison.
The follow ing shows the tonnage o f all the canals o f the State, from 1850
to 1855, inclusive:—
1850.
1851.
1852.
1852.
3,076,617
3,582,733
3,863,441
4,247,853
1854.
4,165,862
1855.
4,022,617
“ The two lines o f railway in the State, which, during the season o f
the canal navigation most effectually and seriously com pete with the
canals in the transportation o f freight, are the New Y ork and Erie and
the N ew Y ork Central Railroads. The operations o f these lines, in the
transportation o f freight, during the years stated below, show a steady
and progressive increase.
“ In 1853, the whole number o f tons carried over the N ew Y ork and
Erie, was 631,039. In 1854, 743,250 tons.
“ In 1853, the N ew Y ork Central carried only 300,000.
In 1854,
549,805 tons. The tonnage o f both these roads, in 1852, was 767,462.
In 1856, the tonnage o f either o f these roads exceeded that amount.
“ The operations o f these roads for the year ending September 30,
1855, was as follows :—
Tons o f
thro’ freight.
New York and Erie..........
New York Central.............
Tons o f .
way freight.
Total.
Tolls at
canal rates.
155,469
156,194
686,586
513,879
842,055
670,073
£649,185
437,019
311,663
1,200,465
1,512,128
|986,204
“ For the year ending September 3 0 ,1 8 5 6 , we have the following
New York Central..........
253,288
522,824
New York and Erie, Tonnage Report not made.
776,112
$491,450
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
“ The N ew Y ork and Erie Railroad received on through freight, in
1855, $1,461,419, equal to $9 40 per ton. The same year, the New
Y ork Central received $1,289,706, $8 25 per ton.
“ The act relieving certain railroads from the payment o f canal tolls,
took effect the 1st o f January, 1852. The consolidation o f the several
railway lines, now constituting the New Y ork Central Railroad, did not
take effect until 1853, and not in time to increase its equipment and
rolling stock to an extent to materially interfere with the tonnage on the
oanals that year. The w hole tonnage o f all the canals, in 1853, was
4,247,853. It will be seen there was, in 1854 and 1855, a steady and
gradual decrease o f tonnage from that o f 1853, amounting to 225,236
tons in 1855, while the N ew Y ork and Erie Railroad had increased
211,014 tons.”
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
“ Freights paying the low rates o f tolls on the canals are not seriously
diverted, while merchandise and that class called “ rolling,” become ob
jects for competition. This fact appears to be established by reference
to our statistical tables.
“ In 1853, there were 637,748 tons o f freight, the produce o f this
State, delivered by the way o f the Erie Canal, and in 1855, there were
only 327,839 tons o f the like produce arriving in the same way.
“ The tons o f freight, the produce o f the W estern States or Can
ada, arriving at tide by canal, in 1853, was 1,2 13,69 0; in 1852,
1,092,867.
“ The merchandise going to other States via Buffalo and Oswego, in.
1853, was 261,752 ton s; in 1855, 220,466 tons.”
The Buffalo Board o f Trade, stated, I believe, that if t h s o f the rolling
tonnage was diverted from the canal to the railroad.
N ow , mark Mr. Benton’s conclusion, (p. 35,) “ The operations o f these
railroads for the year closing September 30, 1856, deserve special notice.
The New Y ork Central Railroad, during this year, carried 212,654 tons
o f flour, or 1,969,118 barrels. A ll but 52,088 tons, or 482,000 barrels
were carried during canal navigation. June and September last were the
heaviest business months o f this article. O f the 770,112 tons o f freight
o f all classes transported on the road the whole year, 508,392 tons were
carried when the canal was navigable. This disposes o f the argument
sometimes put forward, that the heaviest freightin g business is done by the
railroads while the canals are closed.
“ The freight earnings o f the road for the year are set down at
$4 ,328 ,0 41 ; the expenses, $2,036,674, which is 47 per cent o f the gross
earnings on this branch o f traffic. The transportation expenses on pass
ages is 6 4 rYo per cent o f the gross earnings.”
A reply to the often-repeated assertion, that railroad companies do not
make any profits on the freight traffic is here given.
“ The report o f the New Y ork Central Company for 1856, shows that
the transportation expenses for the year was 5 2 per cent on the pass
ages and freight business. The net earnings, after paying interest on
debts is equal to 10-/yL on the capital stock drawing dividend.”
Mr. Benton, in a subsequent report to the Senate, March 20, 1857, re
marks, (p. 14,) “ It is believed that the com peting railroad lines are preparing
to enter the lists for the carriage o f wheat and corn in bulk, even against
the present canal tolls ; and should they prove as successful in this effort, as
they have heretofore been in diverting the carrying trade in flour and
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
697
other rolling and com pact freight, the State may again be driven to the
alternative o f reducing the rates o f toll on the eanals, with a view o f
retaining a fair portion o f the freight traffic to and from Lake Erie and
the Western States.”
This view o f Mr. Benton, who has lon g resided at Little Falls, on the
line o f the Central Railroad, is corroborated by Mr. H . J. Fitzhugh, Canal
Commissioner, and an old and intelligent forwarder o f m ore than twentyfive years’ residence in Oswego, in the same Senate document, (N o. 127,)
“ In reply to a resolution o f the Senate respecting discriminating tolls,”
and is another p roof that we should sell the public works, as he says,
“ Railways are better suited to handle and transport grain, with proper
arrangements, than flour.”
H e remarks, (pp. 3, 5, 6, 7, 8,) “ W ith open and free competition there
can be no m onopoly, and no margin o f profits beyond that o f all other
pursuits.”
“ T o secure Oswego 90 cents profit per ton (the rate stated by Buffalo,)
on all the commodities transported through her channels, she must have
legislative protection. A ll other com peting channels, both within and
without our State, must be shut out from competition by force o f law.
The Erie Canal, all our railroads, and those o f neighboring States and the
St. Lawrence, must be inhibited from com peting for this traffic. N or
would all this achieve the end, and secure this m onopoly and this margin
to the Oswego Canal. A n y and all o f the citizens o f our State would
embark in this golden enterprise. Oswego herself would soon muster
competitors enough to reduce the profits on this exclusive canal to those
o f ordinary pursuits.”
*
*
*
*
“ There can be no favored locality o f trade enjoying exorbitant profits
with free competitors on all hands— it is idle to believe it. The laws o f
trade, m ore potent than legislative enactments, forbid it.
“ The Oswego Canal has done m ore than any other State work, by her
competition and reduction o f the price o f freight, to swell the volume o f
W estern trade through our canals, and has brought to the Treasury four
hundred and odd thousand dollars in down freight, in revenue, the
last year.”
*
*
*
*
*
*
“ Every article burthened with discriminating tolls will desert the
canals, and to the loss o f this trade we may add the present tolls upon it.
A few facts will demonstrate much better than figures, that the trade will
bear no new impositions.
“ O f the corn from Lake Erie, as compared with Buffalo alone, Oswego
last year received, in round numbers, 3,500,00
9,600,000 bushels, and o f other articles as follow s:—
Oswego.
Flour...........................................
Beef.............................................
Pork............................................
Tallow, lard, and oil....................
Bacon...........................................
Wheat.........................................
60,000 bbls.
a,105 “
32,656 “
1,871,700 lbs.
4,235,642 “
6,000,000 bush
Buffalo.
1,200,000 bbls.
32,184 “
61,053 “
9,494,986 lbs.
11,319,969 “
8,543,117 bush.
“ W ith the exception o f wheat, drawn to Oswego by her unrivaled
m illing facilities, the portion o f this vast commerce which falls to the lot
o f the Oswego Canal is small indeed ; even last year, when her receipts
were largely increased by disasters to the navigation o f the western por-
698
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
tion o f the Erie Canal. A small imposition will diminish this share; a
large one will destroy the trade, and transfer it, not to the Erie, but to
railroads and other competitors.”
*
*
*
*
“ The follow ing statement shows where this trade now goes, as far as
it is composed o f the great lading products— flour, wheat, corn, and other
grain. A nd the transportation o f these to tide water, whether on the
Delaware, the Chesapeake, the Hudson, or St. Lawrence, or to the ocean
at Portland or Boston, controls and gives direction to the merchandise
returning to the interior o f the great W est for consumption.
"Statement showing the quantity o f fou r, wheat, corn,and other grain imported from
the Western States and Canada, at the principal receiving points on Lakes Erie
and Ontario, and the St. Lawrence, in the year 1 8 5 6 , and the total in grain
including flour at 4 4 bushels per barrel.” [ / conidense this table—an interesting
one—to give the total grain in bushels.]
Imported at Dunkirk................................................................
“
Buffalo..................................................................
“
Suspension Bridge..............................................
1,675,000
25,605,050
2,270,358
From Lake Erie.................................
Imported at Rochester, Lake Ontario
“
Oswego,
“
“
Cape Vincent, “
“
Ogdensburg,
“
“
Montreal,
“
29,450,408
.................
380,000
13,504,074
7,472,965
2,583,682
3,717,357
27,658,078
57,108,486
“ Shut out this trade from any o f these channels in which it now runs,
and the laws o f trade will drive it into the others in about the same pro
portion that they now' command it. Buffalo would receive her p ortion ;
with how much increase o f the tolls o f the canal may be inferred from
the follow ing statement, which shows—
“
The imports from the West, and the shipments by canal of a few articles at Buffalo
and Oswego, fo r the season o f 1856 :—
,-------------------BUFFALO----------- -------- N
EecVl by
Lake.
Flour.... .bbls.
Pork...............
Beef................
Bacon........ lbs.
Lard, tallow, oil
1,218,1)85
61,053
32,184
11,319,967
9,494,986
,------------------O SW E SO ------------------,
Ship’d b y
Canal.
P.ee'd b y
Lake.
76,476
28,032
4,843
3,948,307
3,905,702
60,168
32.656
3,105
4,235,642
1,871,700
Ship'd by
Canal.
395,523
30,156
2,702
1,085,642
1,147,128
“ Thus, it appears, that o f the leading articles o f flour, pork, beef, bacon,
lard, tallow, and oil, arriving at Buffalo, but a very small portion is
shipped by the canal. O f flour, if we include some 300,000 barrels
manufactured at Black Piock, the canal does not get one barrel in twenty,
while at Oswego, with a receipt from Lake Erie o f only 60,000 barrels o f
flour, near 400,000 barrels were shipped by canal, manufactured to a
great extent at Oswego from U pper Lake w'heat.” * H ear further what
this forwarder sa ys:—
“ W e must not suppose that the above articles are the only portion o f
this trade that will take the railroads from Buffalo or elsewhere. There
* I have accounted for this, ill the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad having but commenced to carry
freight, and with but a partial equipment of rolling stock, derived mainly from the Central Rail
road.
699
The Public. Works o f the State o f New York.
is no article o f transportation better suited to movement by railways,
than g ra in ; none that with proper arrangement requires less manual la
bor, or can be more readily transferred by machinery from boats and ves
sels to cars, and from cars to storehouses and vessels; and that it will
soon becom e as com m on an article o f transportation on our railroads as
any other, admits not of a doubt.”
“ But we have other competitors for this trade, north and south, beyond
the limits o f control o f State legislation, which are yearly acquiring increas
in g facilities for sharing in this trade. It is but a few years since our canals
m onopolized the business o f Ohio, as far south as the center o f the State.
It is now divided, and no inconsiderable portion o f the trade passes
through Pennsylvania, to and from tide-water. Often, a few cents per
barrel or bushel, or ton, at the center o f the great producing States o f
Indiana and Illinois, determines the estimation o f grain, provisions, and
flour, whether north, through the lakes, or south, to the Mississippi. On
the north, the rivalry threatens to be more serious than on the south.
The W elland Canal and the improvements on the St. Lawrence enables
vessels to pass with 500 tons freight to Montreal. Continuous lines of
railways, disconnected only by the St. Lawrenee at Montreal, which is
now being bridged, are in operation between Portland, Maine, via the
northern shore o f Lake Ontario and Detroit. Flour is taken from Lake
Erie ports, including Detroit, either by vessels the whole distance, or by
railroad from Detroit to Hamilton, and thence by vessels to Montreal, at
45 cents per barrel. From Montreal to Portland, 292 miles by railroad,
it can be carried for 40 cents per ba rrel; say 85 cents per barrel from
D etroit to Portland, which is barely a paying price from Detroit to New
Y ork. Large arrangements are being made to establish steam communi
cations between Montreal, Portland, and Liverpool, the steamers to stop
at Portland during the suspension o f navigation in the St. Lawrence by
ice. W e must not flatter ourselves by the delusion that the St. Lawrence
is too far north to become a com peting channel for the products o f the
W estern States. Much the largest portion o f this trade has to pass the
Straits o f Mackinac, which are as far north as Quebec, and obstructed
by ice as many months in the year.”
*-
*
*
*
*
*
*
Mr. Fitzhugh, a practical forwarder on both the Oswego and the
Erie Canal, then continues, on eight pages of this valuable and interest
ing report, to show— ■
l' W ith all these competitors within and without our State for the Lake
trade, it would be suicidal to do anything that can remotely disturb or
obstruct its free passage through all its courses through our State, whether
natural or artificial.”
*
*
*
“ Free com petition is
one o f the main elements o f cheap transportation”
*
*
*
“ W h ile we are striving to draw trade through our canals, and when
cheapness o f transportation is the great desideratum, while we are expending millions on the enlargement o f our canals for the purpose alone
o f cheapening transportation, while competing channels o f trade all
around us are being improved, and new ones constructed, and still others
projected, and rival railroads are straightening their lines, reducing their
grades, and increasing the weight o f their rails to enable them to com
mand the greatest possible amount o f this very trade— to impose addi-
TOO
The Public Works o f the State o f New York.
tional and discriminating tolls on any o f our canals, cannot but result in
loss o f com m erce and revenue.”
*
*
*
*
*
Mr. Fitzhugh is very properly opposed to tbe reimposition o f canal
tolls on the Central line o f railroad, or any other railroad through our
State.
l i e very properly remarks, (p. 49,) “ A s to what would be the effect o f
reimposing tolls on the railroads relieved by the law o f 1851, as well as by
subjecting to tolls all roads com peting with the canals, the undersigned has
no doubt but that ample revenue may be derived from them, if it
were deemed just and expedient to tax them with canal tolls. Most
o f the roads released by the law o f 1851 are merged in the Central,”
*
*
“ com peting energetically and successfully with a cor
poration o f equal magnitude and power in our State, viz., the Erie Rail
road.”
*
*
*
“ W ithou t our State, both these competitors
encounter long lines o f railroads invading their own field o f commerce,
connecting the travel and traffic also between the lakes and the A t
lantic ; on the south, through Ohio and Pennsylvania, on the north,
through Canada and N ew England. To select this chain o f roads now
com bined as the Central, for the subject o f taxation, would be invidious,
and would place them at a disadvantage with both their domestic and
foreign competitors for lake trade, and would afford but slight protec
tion to the canals, which was the original object o f the restriction; for
most o f the trade forced from this channel through the influence o f taxa
tion, would seek other roads within or without our State. It would be a
tax local and invidious in its character, and would damage the commerce
o f our State, in which all are interested.”
From the foregoing extracts o f a State document, I think I have shown
that the time has arrived to discuss the question o f the State o f New
Y ork following the example o f Pennsylvania, and the sound advice o f
Engineer J . T. Clark, “ to sell the public works in whole or in part,” and
the State to retire from the field as a com petitor with private enterprise and
capital invested in railways in cu r State, who, it appears, “ are straighten
ing their lines, and reducing their grades, and new ones projected,” as I
have pointed out. This can be done by the union o f the Hudson and
Harlem stockholders consolidating these two companies into one, as the
four tracks will be required to do freighting and passenger
r rinefs
will com e on to these two roads when they shall be extended to Lake On
tario, from the Canadas and the W est, as well as from Lake Erie by the
Central Railroad, when the wants o f com m erce and travel shall give this
avenue from New Y ork to Lake Erie a bridge at Albany, a work needed
by the great railroad interests o f N ew England and the W estern States,
and called for to compete, in the future, with the line o f railways certain
to be completed from the Lon g W h a rf in Boston, by the H oosic Tunnel
and Troy Bridge, to the grain wharvehouses o f the W est at Oswego. The
great contest for the flour and grain trade o f the W est, destined for the
seaboard, is to be, hereafter, mainly between Montreal and Oswego— not
Oswego and Buffalo.
Essay on Mercantile Education.
701
A rt. VI.— ESSAY OS MERCANTILE ED U CATIO N *
The transactions o f the business man, to meet with a successful issue,
must be regulated by a rigid and exact knowledge o f the science o f ac
counts. The necessity o f an education having direct bearing on the mer
cantile calling must be apparent to every reflecting mind ; for it is a de
partment where the chances o f success and failure are so equally balanced
that the nicest discrimination o f the educated merchant hardly avails to
keep clear o f the shoals o f bankruptcy. W h at proportion o f the failures ,
of mercantile houses within the past few years may be traced, directly or
indirectly, to a want o f knowledge requisite for a business calling, it is
impossible to determ ine; but, from their great number and frequency, it
is rational to conclude that the cause, in many instances, may be traced to
this source alone.
There are thousands in the country who are representatives o f extended
business affairs— who have ventures upon the sea and upon the land—
w ho are identified with schemes o f speculation, and buy and sell with a
recklessness that takes hold on ruin, who, at the same time, are almost
w holly ignorant o f their present standing in the business world. The
hooks wherein the record o f their transactions from time to time is kept,
are to them “ sealed books,” and they cannot even read the evidence o f
fraud, which, perchance, their confidential clerk or bookkeeper has been
for years practicing upon them, in the w ay o f false entries and forced bal
ances.
It Is not necessary to specify any particular instances o f the kind in
qu estion ; for the reading public are already in possession o f m ore than
one case o f failure caused by entrusting to employees the all-important
part o f a trader’s business— the keeping and adjustment o f his accounts.
Let every man who stands at the head o f a commercial business thoroughly understand its details, and be able at all times, to determine read
ily the condition o f his affairs, so that he shall not expand when the bal
ances are against him, and his chances o f success are doubly certain. The
clerk or bookkeeper will no longer take advantage o f his ignorance, and
make him the victim o f misplaced confidence; for they will know that
there is an eye upon them, and that the record must be made plain and
truthful. O f the great number engaged in mercantile pursuits, a large
proportion could not take the place o f their own bookkeepers— not that
they are deficient in executive ability, but in that scientific knowledge
which gives to experience its great value, and, to experiment, the certainty
o f its results.
Custom, in this country, can never assign to one class o f the com m uni
ty a certain department in the circle o f industrial pursuits; for that equal
ity which forms the very basis o f our society is radically opposed to it.
* The substance o f an essay read before the Buffalo Mercantile College by W a r r e n P. S p e n c e r .
The principals of this college, II. B. Bryant and II. D. Stratton, are gentlemen well qualified to
manage successfully such an institution. Similar institutions have been established, within tho
last few years, in many o f our large commercial towns, and it is quite certain that we shall have a
generation of educated and accomplished merchants. G e o r g e N. C o m e r is, we believe, the pion
eer, in the establishment of a seminary specifically devoted to mercantile education, and we know
that there are at this time many young merchants, of eight or ten years’ standing, who attributo
their success in life to Mr. Comer's thoroughly organized system of education.—E d.
702
Essay on Mercantile Education.
Our laws recognize no succession o f landed estates; and the aggregation
o f wealth, and consequent creation o f caste, so hateful to the genius o f our
institutions, is thereby happily avoided.
Patrimonial estates seldom remain entire in the possession o f h eirs; for
they are generally too small to furnish each a home, and are consequently
divided or transferred, and not unfrequently pass from their possession al
together. The young men o f our country are thus constantly becom ing
adventurers, seeking new homes and associations, and perfecting, new
plans for future life. Thus, our land presents a m oving scene, a wide
field, where American youth are constantly appearing in a contest for
posts o f trust and profit— a field where neither wealth nor the prestige of
name and ancestry avail anything, but where talent and honesty are the
true criterions, and are certain to triumph. Here the plow boy enters
with a manly purpose, while another takes the burden o f liis honest t o i l;
a few years pass, and his name has becom e a surety; his ships plow a
wider field, and bring a more abundant h arvest; and he grows rich by
the thrift o f trade.
Here another springs from obscurity, secures a competence by well-di
rected industry, retires, and his name is heard no more in the busy marts
o f com m erce; the ambition o f his youth is realized; the poor boy who
did his bidding so obsequiously has taken his place, and is m oving stead
ily and surely in the path to business distinction.
W ith us, success, in a general sense, springs from no condition o f birth
or accident. If there are instances where inherited wealth has remained
for a series o f years by succession, and has increased by judicious man
agement, they are the exceptions; the whole history o f our country goes
to show that individual exertion is the main condition o f advancement.
K now ledge is what the Am erican youth wants— knowledge in the outset
o f his career in life, to make him self-reliant, to direct his judgm ent, and
enable him, with a skillful hand, to work out his own fortune.
The masses have no disposition to spend the best years o f their lives in
studying abstract theories, even if their means would admit. The age is
characterized more by activity and earnest w ork than by abstruse specu
lations. Men care but little about knowledge that has no direct bearing
upon the practical things o f life, and will estimate its value rather by its
uses than by its novelty. The idea o f utility is becom ing m ore and more
a prominent o n e ; men are learning to estimate things more by the appli
cation o f judgm ent than the exercise o f fancy. In this country, the idea
has developed slo w ly ; but it has now fairly assumed a controlling influ
ence, and labor, energy, and enterprise will be directed by it.
Ours has been a country o f experiments. W e have had no chart o f
examples in the history o f the past, laying down the hidden danger o f
rocks and quicksands, now pointing out the safe pathway which others
have explored, and which we could follow with safety. The history o f
our progress, nationally, is without a parallel.
W e are now contesting
the palm o f civilization with kingdoms and empires, the growth o f two
thousand years. W h en the nations o f the earth com e up together, to lay
upon a com m on altar their achievements in art and science, we meet them
proudly, even in the m orning o f our manhood, bearing the trophies o f
American genius. W h a t we were commercially is within the mem ory of
many living men ; what we shall be, at no distant period, requires no spec
ulation or conjecture to determine. I f we have, in a little more than half
.Essay cm Mercantile Education.
703
a century, an aggregate o f ocean and inland tonnage greater tlian any
other nation on the globe, what must it be fifty years hence, when the re
sources o f the country are m ore fully developed ? W h at will not the in
telligence and industry which has bound the East and the West, as it were,
with an iron chain o f railroads, and stretched the telegraphic wires over
all the rivers and mountains, and through all the cities o f the land, achieve
for its greatness in the future ?
W h ile agriculture, manufactures, and com m erce— the three elements o f
national strength and wealth— are happily blended, to make the measure
o f our country’s greatness, com m erce still stands pre-eminent, and must
remain so. W h en nature sunk these majestic lakes, coursed the entire
land with m ighty rivers, and washed our every border with the sweeping
sea, she determined the character o f those who should inhabit this land
to be commercial. N o individual nation has such extended facilities, g eo
graphically, for the employm ent o f shipping, as our o w n ; we have a
longer extent o f seaboard, a greater stretch o f navigable rivers and lakes,
that almost rival seas in their wonderful extent.
W e have seen but the beginning o f the gigantic com m erce which these
waters are yet destined to bear. It is only a question o f time. W e but
wait for the agricultural and mechanical resources o f the country to be
com e fully developed; for the surplus o f a teeming soil to seek a foreign
market, and the products o f mechanical skill and labor their equivalent,
b y way o f exchange. A population, ardent and ambitious, like a cease
less tide, is pouring into the W est, converting its wide prairies into fruit
ful fields, founding and peopling towns and cities, opening new channels
o f trade, and laying the foundation o f wealth and social refinement. It
w ill be but a little time before we shall meet, in our westward march, the
settlements o f the Pacific coast, and shall have consummated the great
enterprise o f uniting, by a continuous line o f railway, the Atlantic and
Pacific shores. W h en this much-desired project is completed, we shall
present a spectacle o f which we may justly feel a national p rid e ; for the
point will be fairly gained from w hich we may behold a future where may
be gathered, with easy toil, a harvest o f prosperity commensurate with
the skill and labor expended in producing it.
The object, in thus reverting briefly to the grow th o f the country, and
its capacity for producing ample returns for every species o f enterprise
known to a state o f civilization, is to create, if possible, a more exalted am
bition, a wider range o f thought, and m ore enlightened views, with those
w ho have not been accustomed to wander beyond the narrow circle o f
their own experience. W hatever position we may at present occupy, be
it ever so low, in the scale o f advancement, it is yet an honorable tru st;
and its duties and responsibilities, if discharged with fidelity, give a first
claim to promotion. Increased ability' is sure to give to that claim its
consideration and effect.
To occupy a subordinate position o f trust and activity is not b a se; far,
with us, happily, all business is honorable that is essential to the support
and well-being o f society.
But it is base, in a country where equality is
a birthright with all, and where the highest places o f trust and profit may
be aspired to by even the humblest citizen, to grovel meanly, without am bi
tion, persisting in the vague belief that fate has fixed a bound beyond
which some cannot pass.
The progress which has marked our history, and which is the charac-
704
Essay on Mercantile Education.
teristie o f the present age, has grow n out o f the unshaken faith o f our
countrymen in their own individual capacity. I f the exigency o f the o c
casion required their services in camp or council, they left the plow and
mechanic shop, to labor in tflfeir new sphere, not less capable or efficient
for having been bred to the routine o f honest toil. To whatever extent
we examine this subject, we are forced to admit that, in American society,
no inferior condition in life is incompatible with the attainment o f a higher
by energy and mental culture, and, therefore, that it is wisdom on the part
o f all to prepare themselves for the m ore responsible positions to which
time or chance may finally call them.
Education, in its widest sense, does not com e within the scope o f our
subject, but only that department which pertains to practical business and
the mercantile profession— a department which occupies the middle ground
between the com m on and academic schools, and the collegiate institutions
o f the country, and which, it must be confessed, has heretofore received
but little attention. W ith the growth o f the country, and the consequent
increase o f business, there has appeared, in this respect, a real defect in
our educational system. The com m on school and academy have taught
too little, while the college has neglected it altogether. In this land,
where the spirit o f invention is abroad, where demand usually exists but
a little time without its adequate supply, we are almost surprised that this
want was not remedied sooner, and yet rejoice that, finally, the middle
ground is occupied by the modern mercantile college.
W h en it is considered that our first literary institutions have been for
years reaching their present state o f perfection, countenanced, as they have
been, by our most learned men, upheld by the most influential patronage,
supported by princely donations, and rendered permanent by munificent
endowments, may we not hope that the public w ill look leniently upon
the seeming defects o f the mercantile institutions, trusting that time and
labor will apply the needed remedies.
W h ile the classical and scientific institution is designed for a few o f
leisure and means, the mercantile school instructs the masses ; while the
former requires the expenditure o f a competence to complete its course of
study, the latter, for its course, requires but a nominal su m ; and, while
the former instructs in theory, and speaks in the language o f the dead
past, the latter, in the stirring language o f the living present, teaches the
practical things o f earnest life.
W e have, thus far, spoken o f commercial schools in a general sense,
because the scope and design o f them all is professedly the same. There
is, however, one feature peculiar to the institutions o f which we are teachers
and pupils which is deemed o f too much importance to be passed unno
ticed. Y ou are aware that we, here, represent but one link in a chain o f
mercantile colleges extending from Albany, in this State, to Chicago, Illi
nois, and taking in, on its track, the important cities o f Buffalo and Cleve
land. W h ile the principles o f commercial science are the same the world
over, their application to business details is widely different in different
localities. Each o f these four cities has its own peculiar customs, all
w'orking, it is true, to the same great results, but through the agency of
different business form s; and, to be properly fitted for the discharge o f
his duties, the student should not only be acquainted with the science o f
accounts, in the abstract, but with its conventional application to the busi
ness customs o f different cities. This has been effected by the establish
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
705
ment o f this chain o f colleges— by concentrating the requisite knowledge
o f each at one point, and, at the same time, by a continual intercommu
nication with other commercial centers, making the particular forms and
customs o f all these great marts equally well understood. It is not uncom
mon, in these days o f railroad and telegraph facilities, for individuals to
be engaged in business in several cities, or different localities, having wide
intervening distances ; and it evinces a degree o f enterprise, on the part
o f the founders o f these colleges, o f great merit, in so distributing them as
to be o f the greatest service to community, and to best meet the demands
o f our rapidly increasing business expansion.
Perhaps, justice requires that we should, aside from this one distinguish
in g feature, speak further in a discriminating manner, lest mercantile
schools o f real merit should fall under the odium o f even a classification
with those o f mere pretension. That genuine coin has its corresponding
counterfeit is not more true than that mercantile schools o f really merito
rious character have, also, their worthless imitations. W h ile the cause
itself may not be permanently injured by them, yet those who have not
the means o f judging properly may be led to condemn, where praise and
support are justly deserved. These imitations, however, like base coin,
may be detected by the ring.
They are usually full o f high-sounding
words which mean nothing, unblushing self-adulation, pompous assertions
o f superiority, and sweeping denunciations o f everything that comes within
the range o f what they seem to regard as their peculiar province. A s the
thief, with stolen goods upon his person, cries, “ Stop th ief!” to hide his
ow n guilt, so the projectors o f these ephemeral concerns rail against the
humbugs o f the day, seemingly, to divert attention from their own gross
impositions. But it is gratifying to reflect that these petty annoyances
are transient and comparatively harmless. There is a strong under-current
o f good sense in the land, that beats back the false and spurious, permitting
that only which is true to finally prevail.
The institutions which this
large and intelligent class o f ladies and gentlemen honors by their patron
age are not what their founders intend they shall be, when time shall
have demonstrated more fully their utility in imparting a sound and re
liable mercantile education.
JOURNAL OF MERCANTILE LAW.
THE LA W OF TK ADE-M AEKS— CLARK’ S SPOOL-COTTON.
Supreme Court— New York— Special Term. Before Mitchell, Roosevelt, and
Peabody. John Clark against George Clark and another:—
The plaintiffs are manufacturers at Mile End, Glasgow, o f spool-cotton. In
1843 they used their present trade-mark, consisting o f four concentric circles, the
inner one in gold, the next in silver, the next black, with letters in gold, the
next in silver, the whole bounded by two concentric black lines. In the inner
circle is the number o f the cotton, in the next “ J. Clark, Jr. & Co., Mile End,
Glasgow ;” J. Clark, Jr. & Co. being at the top— Mile End, Glasgow, at the
bottom. In the next circle are the words, “ Six cord cabled thread, warranted
200 yards.” In the outer circle are the words, “ Sole agent, Wm. Whitewright,
New Y ork.”
J. & J. Clark & Co. are also manufacturers o f the same article, at Seed Hill,
V O L . X X X V II.— N O .
VI.
45
706
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
Paisley; the defendant, George Clark, is their agent. They have both sold
largely o f the article in the United States. The defendants, some years after
the plaintiffs’ trade-mark was well known, adopted one for their cotton to be
sold in the United States, consisting o f concentric spaces o f precisely the same
dimensions as those o f the plaintiffs, o f the same colors, in the same order, with
the letters in black or in gold, as in the plaintiffs’ . There is the same number
for the inner circle, with the same kind o f stamp. In the next circle are the
words “ Clark & Co., Seed Hill, Paisley.” Clark & Co. being at the top, as in
the plaintiffs’, and the same words, as far as they go, as the plaintiffs’ ; and
the other words put below, and in the reverse order, as are also the plaintiffs’,
though these last words are entirely different from the plaintiffs’.
Then in the next circle “ Six cord cabled thread, warranted 200 yards,” pre
cisely as in the plaintiffs’— in black ground and gold letters—-and in the outer
circles the words, “ Sole agent, George Clark, New York.” The words “ sole
agent, New Y ork,” being the same as the plaintiffs’ in every respect, even as to
their position, the place o f their beginning and ending, and the stamp for the
letters being exactly alike also in both.
There is thus an evident design to imitate plaintiffs’ mark, audit is successfully
carried out by actually transferring the face o f the plaintiffs' die to the defendants
in all respects, except that the plaintiffs’ have on theirs “ Win. Whitewright,”
•1Mile End, Glasgow,” “ J. Clark, Jr. & Co.,” when the defendants have “ George
Clark,” “ Seed Hill, Paisley,” “ Clark & Co.”
The effect o f this imitation must be that all, except very cautious purchasers,
would be deceived. Some, who may have known that Win. Whitewright was
the agent o f the plaintiffs, would naturally suppose that George Clark had been
substituted, so that the difference o f the names o f the agents would not prevent
deception.
The name “ Clark & Co.” is so near to “ J. Clark, Jr. & Co.” that it would pass
for the same, especially when placed in the same position, in the same kind o f
letters, and on tne same ground. The difference in residence being stamped so
as to be read in the reverse o f the rest o f that circle, might pass unnoticed.
The law o f trade-marks is o f recent origin, and may be comprehended in the
proposition, that a dealer “ has a property in his trade-mark.” The ownership
is allowed to him that he may have the exclusive benefit o f the reputation which
his skill has given to articles made by him, and that no other may be able to sell
to the public as his, that which is not his. An imitiation o f his mark with par
tial difference, such as the public would not observe, does him the same harm as
an entire counterfeit.
I f the wholesale buyer, who is most conversant with the marks, is not misled,
but the small retailer or the consumer is, the injury is the same in kind and differs
only in degree. The right o f action must exist for the last as well as the first.
If all consumers do not discriminate, in the end it would be indifferent even to
the wholesale buyers from which o f the two they bought, and thus the extent,
also, o f the injury would be as great as if thev also were deceived. It would
follow that the defendants in this case should be enjoined from using the mark
which they now use, and from any imitation o f it with only colorable differences.’
But the injunction should not be as broad as it was originally granted. (See
case, fob 1 to 5.) It should be so expressed that the defendants might distinctly
understand what is prohibited.
Their firm name is J. & J. Clark & C o .; they manufacture six-cord cabled
thread; they have George Clark as their agent in New Y ork— all this they may
express, as well as the number o f their thread. But they should express it, so
as not to appear to imitate the plaintiffs. This could be done by inserting their
firm name instead o f only part o f it— by changing the order o f the colors in the
concentric circles— and the style o f the lettering and figures, and the position o f
the letters. There will still be a similarity between the labels o f the two that
may mislead some— but this results from two persons o f nearly the same name
being engaged in the same business, and the undoubted right o f each to use his
own name, and to describe the article which he sells by its well known name,
but does not result from an imitation o f the mark o f the other.
Journal of Mercantile Law.
101
The injunction should be modified accordingly.
The plaintiffs complain that the defendants caused to be inserted in the news
papers an advertisement that “ Clark’s spool-cotton was sold wholesale only by
George A. Clark,” and that their cotton had obtained the designation o f “ Clark’s
spool-cotton.” The defendants shovv that their advertisement was inserted in
consequence o f the plaintiffs having previously caused to be inserted in the daily
papers an advertisement that “ Clark’s spool-cotton, the genuine article, has the
name o f William Whitewright orr every spool.” Both parties deal in spoolcotton, and as both are o f the same name, each is entitled to have his called by
the name o f “ Clark’s spool-cotton.” The advertisement o f each was, therefore,
unjustifiable.
The defendants’ advertisement, if intended only indirectly to negative the
plaintiffs’, must be considered as part o f a war o f advertisements, in which neither
has the right to call upon the court to intercede in his behalf until he lays down
the hostile weapons which he has assumed, and comes in a peaceful attitude to
ask for the protection o f the law.
For this reason the injunction should not be continued as to the advertisement
unless the plaintiffs stipulate to forbear such advertisements as they have inserted.
The injunction should be modified in this respect also.
MATERIAL MAN— ACTION TO RECOVER FOR THE MATERIALS FOR BUILDING SH IP—
LIEN LAW OF MAINE.
United States District Court, (Maine,) Judge Ware. March 2d and 3d, 1857.
This was a libel in rem. by a material man, for the price o f material furnished
for the building o f a new ship, to enforce the lien given by a statute o f the
State.
Before the filing o f the libel, a suit had been commenced at common law by
another lien creditor, on which the ship was attached, and was in possession o f
the sheriff.
The right claimed by the libelant is not paramount to that o f the attaching
creditor, but concurrent with it. The sheriff having the legal possession o f the
ship, has a right, and is bound to retain it, and the marshal has no authority to
disturb him in the possession.
Both creditors are prosecuting their rights at the same time, and each in a
court having jurisdiction over the suit. There is no conflict o f jurisdiction in
the case. Each creditor had a perfect right to determine for himself in which
jurisdiction he would seek his remedy.
The difficulties supposed to arise, if in fact any exist, aiise after the judgment
and decree in enforcing them, and obtaining satisfaction. But if there were any
difficulty in this respect as the law stood under the Revised Statutes, that is re
moved by the statute o f 1848, ch. — . The fourth section o f that act provides
that if there are several actions against the debtor o f this privileged character,
seeking to enforce a lien against the vessel, no satisfaction shall be made o f any
o f the judgments obtained until there is a judgment in all, and that these shall
be paid concurrently, without any preference o f one over the other on account
o f priority o f the attachment. This is precisely what would have been done by
a Court o f Admiralty, under the law as it stood in the Revised Statutes, without
the supplementary act o f 1848. All the creditors standing in the same rank of
privilege would have been paid concurrently, and no preference would have been
given to the creditor who first filed his libel, or commenced his suit at common
law.
The act o f 1848, section 2, directs that all attachments o f the ship shall be
made by the same officer; and the next section provides that if he is disqualified
from serving any writ, that any other qualified officer may serve it, and by giving
notice to the attaching officer who has the possession, the same right is acquired
against tne vessel as if the writ had been served by the first officer. This pro
vision o f the law applies precisely to the present case. The attaching officer
who had the possession o f the vessel was not qualified to serve the libel by an
arrest o f the vessel; and notice to the sheriff by the marshal, that he had a war
708
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
rant o f arrest against the vessel, would operate as an arrest or attachment o f the
vessel. There is, therefore, no conflict o f jurisdiction in the concurrent prose
cution o f the two suits in the State Court and the Admiralty, nor does there
arise any conflict o f authority for the possession after judgment is obtained in
levying the executions. By the direct operation o f the law, the possession o f
the sheriff", so far as is necessary to the satisfaction o f a decree under the libel,
becomes the possession of the marshal. lie holds the vessel for the satisfaction
o f the creditor who obtains his judgment in the court.
The counsel for the respondent, in support o f his plea to the jurisdiction of
the court, is perfectly correct in the position taken, that a court proceeding in
rem. can only maintain its jurisdiction when it can reach and act directly on the
thing. The object and end o f the suit is to get satisfaction out o f the res., and
the judgment o f the court is against the thing. Unless, therefore, the court can
reach the thing, its judgment would be entirely illusory. But in the present case,
the process o f the court has reached the thing, or, at least, may reach it effectu
ally by a simple notice to the sheriff to hold the ship to respond to any decree
the libelant may obtain. This objection, therefore, fails; nor can I see any of
the practical difficulties and dangers o f a collision o f authorities, in carrying the
law into execution, and giving to each party his remedy, that have been suggested
by the counsel for the respondent. Plea for the jurisdiction overruled.
SHIPPERS AND CONSIGNEES---- REFUSAL TO PA Y FREIGHT ON DAMAGED COTTON.
Superior Court, New York—before Judge Bosworth.
others, vs. Augustus W . Sus.
Bussell H. Post, and
This was an action to recover the freight on two hundred and thirteen bales o f
cotton shipped on board a vessel owned by the plaintiffs in New Orleans and
consigned to the defendants in New York. It appeared that the vessel having
this shipment (cotton) on board, arrived here in October, 1855, and that the con
signee was duly notified. That the cotton was landed on the wharf, and a por
tion carried to the store o f the consignee under his orders. Prom some error or
oversight, sixteen bales were sent to the Public Store, and it was not until sev
eral days had elapsed that the consignee could obtain them, and then he was
compelled to pay the storage. A demand was then made for the freight, which
amounted to $728 52, which the defendant refused to pay. On the part of the
defense, it was set up that the cotton in question was carelessly and negligently
discharged from the ship during a heavy rain, and put on the wharf in such a
state o f confusion as greatly to delay their delivery to the consignee. That the
latter had not reasonable time given to secure the cotton in his store, and that
the shipowners wrongfully sent sixteen bales to the Public Store, putting the
defendant to expense for storage. It was also set up that after the ship com
menced discharging, the defendant made a contract for the sale and delivery o f
all the shipment, and that the contract was to deliver for reshipment by the 15th
o f October, and that on the 10th o f October twenty-two bales remained unde
livered; that in consequence o f such delay the defendant lost the sale o f part o f
the cotton, and a fall subsequently occurring in the market, he sustained a loss
o f upwards o f $20, besides the cost of storage. It was contended for the de
fendant that the shipmaster or the owners were liable for any damage occurring
to consignments until actually removed by the consignee. On the other hand, it
was contended by the plaintiff’s counsel, that after notice to the consignee the
goods were at his risk.
The Court, in his charge, said, that when goods were discharged at the wharf
on the arrival o f a vessel at her port o f delivery, if the consignee had notice o f
the arrival, he was bound to take proper care for their safety. The notice in
such case must be a reasonable one, and then the risk and liability would be re
moved from the shipmaster or owners to the consignees. The action was brought
to recover the freight, and the only question o f fact appeared to be, whether the
defendant could claim a set-off. The jury retired for a few minutes, and found
for the plaintiff; damages, $728 52.
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
709
ACTION TO ENFORCE MARITIME LIEN FOR THE SUPPLIES.
United States Supreme Court, December, 1856.
Sultana.
Samuel Pratt, et al., vs. the
The steamboat Sultana received supplies of coal at Erie, amounting to $5,355
98 ; she was mortgaged at the same time at Buffalo, her place o f enrollment.
This was an action to enforce a maritime lien for the supplies. Defendant ad
mitted the supplies furnished, but contended that they were furnished upon the
responsibility o f the master, who was also owner, and not upon the credit o f the
steamer. Judgment below for plaintiffs.
Mr. Justice Wayne delivered the opinion o f the court:— Under the Admiralty
rule it must be necessary at the time that the vessel have the supplies, and fur
ther that the supplies be furnished on the credit o f the vessel. It is only under
special circumstances that a hypothecation o f the vessel will be presumed. It
must be shown that the master could not otherwise procure the supplies. In
the case o f the Sultana, the supplies being furnished at a fixed rate, and on a
running account, there is no reason for supposing the hypothecation o f the ves
sel, particularly as the master was also the owner. These maritime liens in our
coasting trade are greatly increasing, and should not be encouraged. Decree be
low reversed, and mortgage entitled to the proceeds o f the ship.
LIBEL FILED BY OWNER OF ONE-QUARTER OF SHIP TO OBTAIN SECURITY FOR HER
SAFE RETURN.
Samuel S. Bragdon vs. the ship Kitty Simpson.
The libelant alleged that the owners o f the other three-quarters were going to
send the ship to Australia, under the command o f a master named Brown, whom
he alleged to be unfit for such command, by reason o f intemperance, and that he
had dissented from such voyage.
The answer o f the claimants denied that Brown was intemperate, and alleged
that the libelant had assented to the charter to Australia, but afterwards, when
she was taking in cargo, expressed his dissent, on account o f his allegation against
Brown, and denied that he could withdraw his assent for that cause.
Held by the Court— That the majority owners have the right to employ the
vessel in such voyages as they please, giving a stipulation to the dissenting own
ers for her safe return, if the latter, upon a proper libel, filed in admiralty, re
quire it. (11 Peters. R., p. 183; Crabbe’s C. C. R., p. 271.) That this libel is
in proper form to that end. Judgment that the majority owners must give secu
rity for the safe return o f the ship. United States District Court, 1857, Betts, J.
MARINE INSURANCE— GENERAL AVER AG E.
In the Supreme Court o f Pennsylvania, January, 1856. Before Judge Lowrie
Hancock & Co. vs. Holmes & Co.
In some countries a consultation is required before the sacrifice is made; but
that form is resorted to only as a means o f deciding upon, and proving its neces
sity, and is not a part o f our law, for it may be otherwise proved. An analysis
o f the cases very plainly reveals three things as the elements of general average—
a purpose, a means, and a result; a design to avert a common danger, by a sacri
fice voluntarily made, and a successful issue. The first and the last are perfectly
definite in their character, while the means must always remain to be defined by
the rule o f prudence when the danger arises.
Guided by the light o f the rule and its instances, we feel constrained to say,
that when a vessel or its cargo takes fire without the fault o f the crew, the damage
done by the application o f water or steam in extinguishing the fire, and by tear
ing up part o f the vessel in order to get at it, is general average. The danger is
a common one, and the cost o f the remedy must be common. It makes no dif
ference how the water is applied; by the aid o f fire engines on the land, or in
710
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
the form o f steam, or by scuttling the vessel. All these modes were tried in
this case, before the success was complete. They are all to be treated together,
because they all referred to the same peril. They were the means employed
for the purpose o f averting the danger in which they were placed. It was a
sacrifice for the common safety, for it was intentionally injuring or destroying
all that part o f the cargo that could be thus affected by water, in order to save
the rest. The result was successful, if a single article was saved by the means
employed. Without attempting to follow the counsel in their minute criticism
upon the charge to the jury, we may say that it was entirely correct.
There is an exception to the admission o f evidence, but it also is unfounded.
Judgment affirmed.
CHARTER PA RTY---- CONTRACT TO SU PPLY FULL CARGO OF MERCHANDISE.
Decision in Admiralty. United States Circuit Court, September, 1857. Before
Judge Nelson. Daniel Ogden, appellant, vs. Joseph Parsons and others.
N e l s o n , C. J.— By the charter party in this case the whole o f the vessel was
chartered to Ogden (except the deck-room, a crew, etc.,) for a voyage from
Liverpool to New York. He was to supply her with a full cargo o f general
merchandise, and not exceeding five hundred and thirteen passengers, second
cabin and steerage, and the ship not to take exceeding her registered lonnage of
iron. This was one thousand and twenty tons. The charterer was to pay for
the hire o f the vessel the round sum o f £1,500 sterling. A dispute arose be
tween the captain and the consignee at Liverpool, in respect to the stowing o f
the goods; the former refusing to stow the iron in the hold to the extent of the
quantity mentioned in the charter party; but stowed part o f this freight between
decks; and in consequence thereof was unable to carry the number o f passengers
mentioned. The vessel was laden with but some 923 tons o f dead freight, and 374
tons admeasurement, together with 363 passengers. She had, in a previous voyage
from Liverpool to New York, carried a larger freight o f the same description,
and her full complement ofpassengers. The charter party is carelessly drawn, and it
is perhaps difficult to say that it contains a warranty or warrant to carry the
freight and passengers mentioned in it, as was probably intended. But I am
satisfied that both parties contemplated, at the time, that freight and passengers
to the extent and number mentioned were to be carried, if furnished by the
charterer. The measure o f compensation was doubtless regulated very much
thereby. I am, also, satisfied that the vessel had sufficient capacity to have com
plied in this respect with the terms o f the charter; and that the captain wrong
fully refused to permit her to be laden.
I had doubts on the first hearing,
whether or not the testimony o f J. C. Taylor was admissible, or the case
would have then been disposed o f according to the view above stated. It is
pretty certain, upon the further testimony on this point, that a release was exe
cuted to him by Ogden, before his testimony was taken.
The vessel should have carried some 150 passengers more than were taken
on board. I think the proofs full that they could have been furnished, and that
a considerable number had been engaged, and were obliged to be sent by other
vessels.
The case, upon the view I have taken, should be sent to the clerk to take
proofs as to the damage sustained on account o f the non-compliance with the
charter party, and what should be deducted from the freight. But to save ex
pense, and prevent delay, I shall make the deduction myself—and shall accord
ingly direct that the decree below be modified by deducting therefrom the sum
o f $1,200, and no costs to either party on the appeal.
m
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
COMMERCIAL CHRONICLE AND REVIEW.
C O N T IN U A T IO N O F T H E
H IS T O R Y
OF
C R O PS— PR O C E SS OF G E N E R A L
TH E
F IN A N C IA L
C O N S E Q U E N T S C A R C I T Y O F B U S IN E S S P A P E R —
DEBTORS—
S E C U R IT Y
B A N K -N O T E S — T H E
OF A G E N E R A L
R E C E IP T S
OF GOLD
SETTLEM ENTS
BANKRUPT LA W — TH E
FROM
B A N K M OVEM EN T— IM P O R T 8 AND E X P O R T S A T
R E V E N U E — S H IP M E N T S
R E V U L S I O N — P R O V IS IO N S
FOR
M O V IN G
TH E
L I Q U I D A T I O N — T H E F L O W O F S P E C I E — L I M I T A T IO N O F T R A D E , A N D
BY
SU SPEN D ED
AND
C A L IF O R N I A A N D B U S I N E S S A T T H E
NEW
OF B R EA D S TU F FS, AND T H E
YORK
FOR TH E
Q U E S T IO N
IN SO L V E N T
Q U E S T I O N OF S U P P R E S S IN G
SM ALL
M IN T S — T H E
M O N T H OF O C T O B E R — C A S H
O F S U P P L I E S , E T C ., E T C .
W e are once more enabled to adopt a cheerful tone, and to announce that, to
all appearance, the worst of our financial revulsion is passed. It has been with
out a parallel in the history of this country, and we hope will long occupy this
solitary eminence. In our last, we announced that, after the suspension of the
New York city banks, they had resolved to receive the secured currency of the
State (issued by the country banks) at par, without sending it home for redemp
tion ; and this, it was hoped, would furnish the means of moving such portion of
the crop as the farmers would sell at current rates, while it would relieve the
pressure and greatly facilitate the process of general liquidation. The measure
fulfilled all which the most sanguine could have expected. The banks continued
the accommodation until the volume of the country money amounted to nearly
eight million dollars. On the 18th they ceased to take it at par, agreeing to re
tain all on hand until January, 1858, with interest upon it at 6 per cent after
December 1st, the country banks to redeem at least 20 percent January 1st,and
20 per cent on each succeeding month, until the total was exhausted, the loss, if
any, to be divided ratably among the city institutions. After the 19th instant, the
country banks to commence regular redemption at £ per cent discount on all sub
sequently received. The flow of specie from Europe began as we predicted. A t
first it created considerable excitement in London; but after the suspension of
most of our banks was announced there, the apprehension subsided, although the
money market continued very stringent. Meanwhile, the flow could not at once
be checked, although the Bank of England advanced its rate of interest to 9 per
cent, orders having been positive to remit for bills sent out for collection ; and
thus the strange anomaly was presented of a double current between the same
points, as at the same moment that gold arrived here from Liverpool, an almost
equal amount was exported in return shipments. The volume of gold on deposit
at New York was larger than needed, and far greater than ever before known,
so that the banks were almost crowded into a resumption against their will.
One of the greatest obstacles to returning ease is the small amount of prime
business paper in circulation. O f course, the moment the trouble first began, the
most solvent of our merchants began to curtail their operations, and as the
pressure became severe, the contraction was rapid at all points. It is well known
that negotiable paper, under our credit system, performs a large part of the work
of exchange, and is as indispensable as the bank note currency to the facile
working of the complicated machinery. The sudden contraction in the volume
of business paper, created but little attention at first, but has now become too
important to be overlooked, and is sorely felt at the great commercial centers.
712
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
The contraction being greatest in that which is most desirable, (the signatures
supposed to be of the first class,) the competition among the capitalists has re
duced the rate of interest upon this quality of securities, until the banks are in
the market for it at 6 per cent. Second class paper is still negotiated with dif
ficulty, but as the rate declines for the higher grade, the temptation to invest in
that which promises a larger profit, must lead to an easier market for all descrip
tions.
*
The settlements of insolvent estates are proceeding very slowly. Collections
from the country are made with less difficulty by solvent houses, but those which
have suspended find their receipts almost totally cut off, and a large portion of
their assets thus prove wholly unreliable. W e are also compelled to state that
there is much shuffling in the way of settlements, and that many suspended
houses which show a nominal surplus of assets, openly claim a compromise on
the plea of preserving a part of their property as a capital upon which to re
commence business. Several years ago we cautioned our mercantile readers
against the facilities given to insolvents, as however generous the arrange
ment might seem, it would be regarded by many as a direct premium for dis
honesty. W e are now more than ever confirmed in these views. While we
would advocate a liberal treatment of the unfortunate, and in all cases where
there was no gross mismanagement or apparent fraud, would gladly sec the insol
vent released from his obligations upon a surrender of his estate, yet we would
not extend this to the knave in a way to discourage the honest dealer whose
honor would thus stand in the way of his fortune ; nor would we make so libe
ral a settlement as to leave the insolvent a larger fortune than he could have
acquired from the gains of his regular business, thus reversing the order of
nature, and making bankruptcy the readier avenue to prosperity. There is
great need in this country of a uniform bankrupt law, and as the enactment o f
such a measure is within the province of Congress, we hope it will ere long be
adopted. Massachusetts has done very well for herself, but New Y ork and
many other States are sadly deficient in this respect. The main features of a
just system are the forced surrender of an insolvent’s estate, and its equitable
division, without preference, among the bona fide creditors. Upon such a sur
render and division, the courts might have power to grant full release unless such
discharge should be opposed by one-third of the creditors in interest. This
would make a suitable difference between the unfortunate and the fraudulent, and
would secure a dividend in many cases where the assets are now all swallowed
up by “ confidential” creditors. I f we mistake not, the great irregularities in
connection with recent settlements, and the startling demands of insolvents,
from whom better things had been expected, will quicken the progress of the re
form so long desired.
W e should not be surprised if an effort were made at the next session o f
Congress to secure some uniformity among the several Slates in regard to bauk
note circulation, chiefly in reference to the currency of small bills, which might
soon be spared now that the volume of gold has so much increased. W ith no
bills below five dollars the currency would be far less subject to disastrous fluctu
ations, and the sudden changes from expansion to contraction of the paper issues
would be less felt among the classes whose foresight does not extend to financial
matters.
713
Commercial Chronicle and Review,
The receipts of gold from California have been larger than usual, although
they fell off again toward the close. The following will show the business at the
Assay-office, in New York, for the last month :—
DEPOSITS AT THE ASSAY-OFFICE, NEW YORK, IN OCTOBER,
Gold.
1857.
Silver.
Total.
Foreign coin ...........................
Foreign bullion.......................
United States bullion..............
$300,000 00
55,000 00
2,378,000 00
$523,000 00
67,000 00
60,000 00
$823,OuO 00
122,000 00
2,438,000 00
Total deposits..............
$2,733,000 00
$650,000 00
$3,383,000 00
Deposits payable in bars..................................................................
Deposits payable in coin....................................................................
Gold bars stamped............................................................................
Transmitted to United States Hint for coinage...............................
$24,000
3,359,000
2,330,394
3,514,355
00
00
91
52
Host of the gold has been deposited for coinage, but there is now a prospect
that bars will be again demanded. The demand for coin has kept the Mint
actively engaged, while the diminished bullion fund, owing to the necessity of
drawing upon it for government use, has rendered the operations less convenient.
Further trouble will be experienced from this source as the balances in the SubTreasury diminish :—
STATEMENT OF THE DEPOSITS AND COINAGE AT THE MINT OF THE UNITED STATES,
A T PH ILA D E LPH IA , DURING THE MONTH OF OCTOBER,
1857.
GOLD DEPOSITS.
Gold from California..................................... value
Gold from other sources..........................................
$3,135,896 00
21,150 00
Total gold deposits.......................................
$3,157,046 00
SILVEE DEPOSITS,
Silver, including purchases.....................................
Spanish and Mexican fractions of a dollar received
in exchange for new cents.,.................................
$680,150 00
6,360 00
$686,510 00
Total silver deposits.................................
COPPER.
$845 00
Cents (O. S.) received in exchange for new cents
Total deposits.........................................
$3,844,401 00
The coinage executed was :—
GOLD.
Yalue
No. of pieces.
$2,393,640 00
119,682
67,400
168,500 00
Double eagles
Quarter eagles
Total..,
187,072
$2,562,140 00
S ILV E R .
Half dollars...............................................
Quarter dollars..........................................
Half dimes................. ..............................
Three cent pieces......................................
320,000
2,400,000
760,000
245,000
$160,000
600,000
38,000
7,350
Total...............................................
3,725,000
$805,350 00
00
00
00
00
714
Commercial Chronicle and Review,
COPPER.
Cents............................................................
1,560,000
$15,600 00
Gold coinage.................................................
Silver coinage..............................................
Copper coinage..............................................
187,082
3,725,000
1,560,000
$2,562,140 00
805,850 00
15,600 00
Total...................................................
5,472,082
$3,383,090 00
RECAPITULATION.
W e also annex a statement of the business of the New Orleans Branch Mint,
for the month of October, as follows:—
STATEMENT OP THE NEW ORLEANS BRANCH MINT.
GOLD.
California gold...................
Gold from other sources.,..
SILVER.
$10,746 00 Silver parted from Cal. gold
191,932 00 Silver from other sources..
$61 77
375,953 98
376,015 75
$206,728 00
Total gold and silver deposits
$582,743 76
GOLD COINAGE.
\
Double eagles, 750 pieces........................................................................
Half eagles, 1,000 pieces........................................................................
Quarter eagles, 4,000 pieces.....................................................................
$15,000 00
5,000 00
10,000 00
Total gold coined, 5,750 pieces ..................................................
$30,000 00
SILV ER COINAGE.
Quarter dollars, 340,000 pieces..............................................
Dimes, 540,000 p ieces__ i ....................................................
Half dimes, 480,000 pieces.....................................................
Total silver coined, 1,360,000 pieces.........................
$35,000
64,000
23,000
........... $163,000 00
Total amount of gold and silver coinage.....................................
$193,000 00
The course of the New Y ork banks, after suspension, was such as greatly to
strengthen, and they finally ran up in specie strength several millions above any
previous total since the first bank was incorporated. W e annex a statement of
the official averages :—•
W EEKLY AVERAGES OF NEW Y O RK CITY BANKS.
L oan s and
Date.
Capital.
Jan. E!, 1857 55,235,068
Jan. 1 0 ... 55,235,068
Jan. 1 7 ... 65,235,068
Jan. 2 4 ... 55,235,068
Jan. 3 1 ... 59,266,434
Feb.
7 . . . 59,266,434
Feb. 1 4 ... 59,266,434
Feb. 2 1 ... 59,266,434
Feb. 2 8 ... 59,266,434
Mar’h 7 . . . 59,266,434
Mar’h 1 4 ... 59,266,434
Mar’h 2 1 ... 59,296,434
Mar’h 2 8 ... 59,296,434
April 4 . . . 69,513,330
April 1 1 ... 59,513,330
April 1 8 ... 59,513,330
discounts.
Specie.
Circulation.
Deposits.
109,149,163
110,150,234
110,860,401
111,094,415
111,785,833
112,876,713
112,722,799
111,773,572
111,137,717
111,899,649
113,250,980
113,448,692
112,884,025
114,833,902
115,374,717
114,398,174
11,172,244
11,090,108
11,955,154
11,633,924
12,191,825
11,143,894
10,497,382
10,432,158
10,645,254
11,707,346
11,077,732
11,291,373
11,325,733
11,538,732
10,884,490
12,061,372
8,602,113
8,328,395
8,047,065
7,879,027
8,024,948
8,426,817
8,151,799
8,106,074
8,159,275
8,465,697
8,452,641
8,494,238
8,473,829
8,812,328
8,787,344
8,770,828
95,846,216
90,709,710
93,035,766
88,644,575
92,466,236
96,029,439
91,917,188
92,448,944
92,173,280
95,858,222
94,231,267
96,406,450
92,614,560
97,340,914
96,518,908
96,461,417
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
Date.
Aprd
May
May
May
May
May
June
June
June
June
July
July
July
July
Aug.
Aug.
Aug.
Aug.
Aug.
Sept.
Sept.
Sept.
Sept.
Oct’r
Oct’r
Oct’r
Oct’r
Oct’r
Nov'r
Nov’r
2 5 ...
2 ...
9 ...
1 6 ...
2 3 ...
3 0 ...
6...
1 3 ...
2 0 ...
2 7 ...
3 ...
1 1 ...
1 8 ...
2 5 ...
1 ...
8 ...
1 5 ...
2 2 ...
2 9 ...
5 ...
1 2 ...
1 9 ...
2 6 ...
3 ...
1 0 ...
1 7 ...
2 4 ...
3 1 ...
7 ...
1 5 ...
Capital.
59,513,330
59,513,330
59,518,330
59,513,330
59,700,000
59,700,000
60,264,705
60,264,705
62,000,000
64,500,000
64,576,110
64,576,110
64,576,110
64,626,110
64,626,110
64,626,110
64,626,110
66,027,705
66,027,705
66,027,705
66,027,705
66,027,705
65,500,000
65,000,000
64,500,000
63,770,137
63,470,137
63,470,137
63,470,137
63,470,137
Loans and
discounts.
715
113,391,910
114,409,275
115,068,322
114,620,042
114,049,103
114,049,633
115,338,592
115,412,541
115,119,690
115,015,504
116,044,303
116,028,618
117,365,321
118,848,131
120,597,050
122,077,252
121,241,472
120,139,582
116,588,919
112,221,365
109,985,572
108,777,421
107,791,433
105,935,499
101,917,569
97,245,826
95,593,518
95,317,754
95,866,241
95,239,247
11,827,861
12,009,911
12,011,491
12,543,694
13,126,734
12,815,515
13,134,715
11,974,879
12,790,455
10,901,091
12,837,346
12,666,146
13,694,606
12,956,855
12,918,013
11,737,367
11,360,645
10,097,178
9,241,376
10,229,965
12,181,857
13,556,186
13,327,095
11,400,413
11,476,294
7,843,230
10,411,643
12,883,441
16,492,152
19,451,966
8,736,768
9,006,566
9,182,783
8,935,297
8,738,025
8,696,693
8,838,572
8,696,893
8,593,801
8,505,065
8,901,590
8,693,578
8,448,833
8,528,814
8,665,422
8,981,740
8,780,012
8,694,011
8,671,060
8,678,192
8,322,316
8,073,801
7,838,308
7,916,102
7,523,599
8,087,441
6,884,739
6,334,748
6,434,312
6,258,652
Deposits.
95,268,612
99,159,472
98,963,318
98,818,704
97,306,034
96,147,814
96,594,391
96,168,937
95,939,618
94,318,715
98,834,583
94,624,473
94,446,798
93,633,736
94,445,967
94,436,417
92,356,328
89,364,046
84,812,886
79,491,317
76,388,376
75,772,774
73,315,611
67,978,657
63,301,681
52,894,623
57,530,384
61,463,664
68,884,773
72,592,645
103,554,450
12,253,737
8,856,977
87,620,900
Specie.
Circulation.
Same timei last year
Nov’r 15,’56
55,197,718
When the banks will resume specie payments it is too soon to predict. I f
this be done formally, it will not probably take place before January or Feb
ruary ; but it may be that they will slide gradually into specie redemptions at
an earlier day. Even now there is no premium for coin, and the customers of the
banks have no difficulty in obtaining all they need at the counters when they
make their deposits.
The Boston banks have also continued to increase in specie since their suspen
sion. W e annex a continuation of our last report:—
WEEKLY AVERAGES AT BOSTON.
Capital.........................
Loans & discounts........
Specie............................
Due from other banks..
Due to other banks.......
Deposits........................
Circulation....................
Oct. 2T.
Nov. 3.
Nov. 10.
Nov. 17.
$31,961,000
49,427,000
2,808,800
6,894,700
3,623,700
13,966,000
6,014,000
$31,960,000
50,196,700
3,090,700
5,442,600
8,809,000
14,624,000
5,970,600
$31,960,000
50,580,600
3,337,700
5,952,500
4,295,000
14,178,500
6,223,000
$31,960,000
50,764,000
3,694,900
5,753,500
4,417,000
14,993,500
6,141,000
Since our last report we have received the official return of the banks of
Massachusetts, out of Boston, which shows that since the last monthly return
there has been an increase in the paid-up capital of the country banks of Massa
chusetts, amounting to $106,655. Most of the other items of the return have
decreased, as appears by the subjoined comparison:—
716
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
Oct 3.
Oct 31.
C apital..................................
$28,256,125
$28,362,180
Increase $106,655
Loans and discounts................
41,351,000
43,393,510
Decrease 3,951,430
1,030.631
1,005,821
Decrease , 24,804
Specie.....................................
Due from other banks..............
3,059,332
3,095,862
Increase
36,530
Due to other banks..................
490,805
462,165
Decrease
28,640
Deposits...................................
5,935,215
5,643,834
Decrease 291,441
Circulation...............................
14,023,092
11,080,149
Decrease 2,942,943
It must be remembered that every one of these banks which redeem at the
Suffolk, is obliged to keep a deposit of specie in Boston, which is not included in
the return above printed.
The revulsion appears to have been less felt at New Orleans than at any other
point of the Union. There are nine banks in the city of New Orleans. Four of
them— the Citizens’ Bank, the Canal Bank, the Bank of Louisiana, and Louis
iana State Bank— are banks with special charters. Five are working under the
general banking law of 1853, v iz.:— The Bank of New Orleans, the Mechanics’
and Traders’ Bank, the Union Bank, the Southern Bank, and the Bank of James
Robb. Five of these nine banks (viz., the Bank of Louisiana, the Louisiana State
Bank, and the Canal Bank, among the chartered banks, and the Southern Bank
and the Bank of James Robb, among the free banks) have never suspended on
any class of their obligations. The Citizens’ Bank paid its circulation in specie
when demanded, and this, with the other three which temporarily suspended, has
now resumed in full, so that all the banks there are once more paying specie.
W e continue the weekly summary of their condition :—
W E E K L Y AVERAGES AT N E W ORLEANS.
Oct. 17.
Specie............................
$3,228,319
Circulation...................... ■ 6,196,459
6,501,409
Deposits.........................
Short loans....... ............
19,350,583
Exchange......................
2,398,847
Due distant banks.........
897,551
Long and short loans......
22,570,992
Oct. 24.
O ct 31.
$3,608,775
5,786,589
6,330,248
18,476,329
1,912,663
780,533
21,567,482
$3,912,625
5,263,999
6,638,162
18,050,269
1,932,198
719,394
21,053,835
N ot. 7.
$5,665,728
6,151,039
7,832,992
17,319,314
1,947,846
551,180
20,243,192
The imports of merchandise at New York, for the month of October, do not
show a very large decline from the corresponding total of last year, as the ship
ments could not be arrested in time to diminish the receipts ; but the great bulk
o f entries have been thrown into warehouse as fast as recovered, and a part of
them will no doubt be reshipped. The receipts of free goods have been increased
by the additions to the free list under the new tariff, and, for the first time in
several years, the imports of specie have greatly exceeded the exports. The total
entered at the port for October, including specie, is $614,275 in excess of the
total for October, 1856, $1,165,164 less than for October, 1855, and $3,408,829
more than for October, 1854. W e annex a comparison, which includes four
years:—
F O R E IG N IM P O R T S AT N E W Y O RK IN OCTOBER.
1854.
Entered for consumption.. . .
Entered for warehousing......
Free g o o d s ............................
Specie and bullion™...............
$7,645,071
2,210,646
1,086,467
88,864
1855.
1856.
1857.
$12,088,621
2,319,886
1,082,125
54,399
$9,932,001
2,836,181
961,181
95,029
$2,791,905
1,356,424
1,782,345
2,509,194
Total entered at the p ort... . $11,031,038 $15,605,031
Withdrawn from warehouse.
2,070,644
1,597,437
$13,825,592 $14,439,867
1,150,392
3,273,982
The total entered at the port since January 1st, is $20,930,498 greater than
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
717
for the same time last year, $77,613,827 greater than the same period of 1865,
and $44,579,574 greater than for the same period of 1854
FOREIGN IMPORTS AT NEW YORK FOE TEN MONTHS, FROM JANUARY 1ST.
1854.
Entered for consumption... $120,408,905
Entered for warehousing...
26,780,359
Free goods...........................
14,204,525
Specie and bullion..............
2,029,995
1855.
1856.
1857.
$96,753,676 $138,832,192 $117,314,904
21,567,338
31,331,443 64,212,297
11,335,119
15,663,426 17,287,050
733,398
1,245,799
9,189,107
Total entered at the p ort.. $163,423,784. $130,389,531 $187,072,860 $208,003,358
Withdrawn from warehouse ' 19,607,761
21,068,896
22,371,624
33,872,666
The imports of dry goods (included in the above) have been divided very much
in the same proportion as the receipts of general mercandise, the greater portion
having been entered for warehousing. Our table is made for even weeks, but is
sufficiently near for a general comparison. The total of dry goods entered at the
port is §746,533 less than for October of last year, §2,499,583 less than October,
1855, and only §618,747 more than for the same month of 1854:—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN DRY GOODS AT NEW YORK FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER.
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
1854.
1856.
Manufactures of wool..........
Manufactures of cotton........
Manufactures of silk............
Manufactures of flax............
Miscellaneous dry goods.. . .
$678,508
256,956
631,959
342,655
245,993
0 1855.
$1,738,240
770,574
1,666.267
718,110
426,027
$910,699
594,649
1,005,771
408,354
386,998
$200,452
95,994
145,702
70,197
110,490
Total.............................
$2,056,071
$5,319,218
$3,306,471
$622,836
1857.
WITHDRAWN FROM WAREHOUSE.
1854.
1855.
1856.
Manufactures of w o o l..........
Manufactures of cotton........
Manufactures of silk............
Manufactures of flax............
Miscellaneous dry goods.. . .
$336,435
62,319
166,019
45,483
18,863
$59,112
57,360
136,651
43,912
82,447
$169,765
69,032
59,091
62,416
31,183
$61,255
20,408
49,929
4,902
25,258
Total.............................
Add entered for consumption
$629,119
2,056,071
$329,482
5,319,218
$391,437
3,306,471
$141,752
622,835
Total thrown on market.
$2,685,190
$5,648,700
$3,697,908
$784,587
1857.
ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.
1854.
1855.
1856.
Manufactures of wool...........
Manufactures of cotton........
Manufactures of silk.............
Manufactures of flax.............
Miscellaneous dry goods.. . .
$193,851
70,586
111,091
179,705
98,088
$120,575
188,752
69,525
108,412
21,240
$155,899
301,681
67,424
159,846
83,851
$779,708
479,056
877,371
312,629
256,540
Total.............. ............
Add entered for consumption
$653,321
2,056,071
$508,504
5,319,218
$768,201
3,306,471
$2,705,304
622,835
$2,709,892
$5,827,722
$4,074,672
$3,828,139
Total entered at port...
1857.
This leaves the total receipts o f dry goods at New Y ork from foreign ports,
since January 1st, only §2,741,748 in excess of the corresponding total of last
year, §29,527,702 in excess of the same period of 1855, and §10,165,162 in excess
of the same period of 1854:—
718
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN DRY GOODS AT THE PORT OF NEW YORK, FOR TEN MONTHS,
FROM JANUARY 1ST.
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
Manufactures o f w ool........
Manufactures of cotton . . .
Manufactures o f silk..........
Manufactures of fla x ........
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s..
Total
1854.
1855.
$17,209,293 $14,762,483
12,559,194
7,284,754
23,398,759 18,878,589
5,921,826
4,893,680
4,932,265
4,503,056
1856.
1857.
$22,225,997 $19,211,416
13,357,725 13,844,025
26,260,353 22,057,413
7,057,713
5,114,515
6,260,955
6,490,856
$64,021,337 $50,322,562 $75,162,743 $65,718,225
WITHDRAWN FROM WAREHOUSE.
1854.
1855.
1856.
1857.
Manufactures of wool.................. . $3,879,052 $2,271,944 $2,487,694 $4,876,938
Manufactures of cotton .............. .
2,451,505 2,041,920 1,888,943 2,738,823
Manufactures of silk.................... . 2,780,003 2,485,211 1,823,401 3,912,795
Manufactures of flax....................
771,476 1,107,080
927,274 1,394,028
733,135
Miscellaneous dry goods.............
367,108
350,425
740,646
Total withdrawn.................. . $10,232,461 $8,646,801 $7,494,420 $13,655,719
Add entered for consumption__ . 64,021,337 55,322,562 75,162,743 65,718,225
Total thrown upon market... .
74,253,798 58,969,363 82,657,163 79,373,944
ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.
1854.
1855.
1856.
1857.
Manufactures of w ool.................. . $4,599,887 $1,569,684 $2,926,688 $7,429,904
Manufactures of cotton............... . 2,424,134 1,440,662 1,889,732 3,557,696
Manufactures of silk.................... . 3,358,043 1,815,763 1,937,818 5,525,267
940,312 2,270,263
Manufactures of flax.................... . 1,076,689
880,309
576,398 1,674,084
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ............
530,287
618,797
Total..................................... . $11,988,940 $6,325,115 $8,270,948 $20,457,214
Add entered for consumption___ .. 64,021,337 50,322,662 75,162,743 65,718,225
Total entered at the p o r t... . 76,010,277 56,647,677 83,433,691 86,175,439
The exports from New York to foreign ports, during the month of October,
show a marked gain upon the corresponding total of any former year, except in
the single item of specie. The total, exclusive of specie, is $1,177,676 greater
than for October of last year, ©662,431 greater than for October, 1855, and
©2,393,212 greater than for October, 1854:—
EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER.
1854.
Domestic produce.........................
Foreign merchandise (free)..........
Foreign merchandise (dutiable)...
Specie and bullion.......................
Total exports.........................
Total exclusive of specie.. . .
1855.
$4,672,017 $6,614,146
128,780
31,505
316,012
201,939
3,359,398
1,188,109
8,476,207
5,116,809
8,035,699
6,847,590
1856.
1S57.
$6,129,837
71,931
130,577
4,996,660
$6,491,529
212,443
806,049
297,259
11,329,005
6,332,345
7,807,280
7,510,021
This brings the exports from New York, since January 1st, (exclusive of
specie,) only ©4,995,702 below the total for the corresponding ten months of last
year, ©8,080,168 above the corresponding total for 1855, and ©8,716,671 above
the corresponding period of 1854 :—
719
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
EXPORTS FROM N E W YO RK TO FOREIGN PORTS, FOR TEN MONTHS, FROM JANUARY 1ST.
18-34.
1855.
1856.
1857.
Domestic produce........... .$47,897,861
$46,422,445 $63,466,032 $53,725,298
Foreign merchandise (free). . . .
1,445,079
3,489,470
820,006 3,339,769
Foreign merchandise (dutiable)
3,915,655
3,983,183
2,684,930 4,910,199
Specie and bullion........... 33,563,141
25,627,305 32,483,746 33,585,891
Total exports......................$86,821,736 $79,522,403 $99,454,714 $95,561,157
Total, exclusive o f sp ecie.. 53,258,595 63,895,098 66,970,968 61,975,266
The cash duties have of course been largely reduced, owing to the fact that
the bulk of the dutiable goods have been entered for warehousing instead of con
sumption, and the duties on them, therefore, remain unpaid :—
CASH DUTIES RECEIVED AT NEW YORK FROM JANUARY 1ST.
1851.
First quarter........$10,873,699
Second quarter....
8,864,261
Third quarter........ 12,699,868
In October.............
2,402,115
1855.
31
45
05
10
Total since Jan. 1 34,889,943 91
$7,588,288
6,711,657
11,601,517
3,329,194
1856.
1857.
21 $11,642,681 46 $13,406,813 26
50 10,898,464 29
5,886,708 85
60 14,430,078 08 13,183,832 90
95
3,391,280 97
867,534 99
29,230,658 26
40,362,454 80
33,344,890 00
The question of revenue is now giving the government more anxiety than all
other subjects combined. The receipts must fall off for several months to come,
but we do not believe that the diminution will continue as long as many suppose.
After a few months of stagnation, the foreign trade must again revive with in
creased animation.
W e also annex a statement showing the exports of the principal articles of
domestic produce, from New Y ork to foreign ports, for the expired portion of
the year, compared with the total for the corresponding period of last year :—
COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF THE EXPORTS OF A FEW LEADING ARTICLES OF DOMESTIO
PRODUCE, FROM NEW YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS, FROM JANUARY 1 TO NOVEMBER 16 .
1856.
1S57.
12,301
Ashes—pots, bbls...
7,754
1,178
3,485
pearls........
Beeswax, lb3...........
191,659 232,442
Breadstuffs—
Wheat flour,bbls. 1,662,205 890,606
Rye flour.............
11,305
3,530
43,461
Com meal............
70,213
Wheat, bush........ 7,669,308 2,854,107
81,446
Rye...................... 1,228,186
17,032
11,330
Corn..................... 3,685.720 1,887,551
42,442
45,773
Caudles, mold, boxes
sperm.......
4,260
6,046
6,858
20,790
Coal, tons.................
Cotton, bales............
170,903 153,053
H a y .......................
4,100
11,362
Hops.......................
3,854
1,933
Naval stores—
73,886
56,573
Turpentine, bbls..
33,648
45,455
Spts. turpentine..
Rosin....................
T a r......................
Pitch...................
Oils—whale, galls..
sperm............
lard................
linseed..........
Provisions—
Pork, bbls............
1856.
1857.
433,103
20,116
2,730
38,656
519,349
44,745
5,006
377,064
32,094
3,205
359,811
788,992
28,115
28,580
130,950
44,927
63,113
41,934
Cut meats, lbs.... 26,453,867 17,971,915
Butter.................. 1,036,738 763,413
Cheese................ 3,132,247 3,202,497
Lard..................... 9,472,915 13,896,112
Rice, tcs...................
33,633
26,539
Tallow, lbs.............. 1,106,915 2,990,574
Tobacco—crude,pkg.
31,299
87,413
manuf., lbs. 4,584,392 2,041,217
Whalebone, lbs........ 1,729,877 1,860,341
This statement now possesses peculiar interest. By reference to the corres
ponding table in our last issue, it will be seen that, although the shipments of
breadstuffs have materially increased during the month, they have not approached
720
Commertial Chronicle and Review.
the total for the same time last year. The clearances of grain, chiefly of wheat,
from New York, will be quite large from the last date given above to the close
of the season, and there will be something going forward all winter. The sea
board is not as dependent for its supplies on summer navigation as it was for
merly. The cultivation of grain at the South has progressed rapidly during the
last two years, and as the ocean is never frozen, winter cannot check the ship
ments from thence. Where formerly there were only 10,000 bushels of wheat
shipped, there are now 100,000, and immense tracts of available land, in the in
terior o f Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee, have been reached by railroads,
and thus rendered productive. In addition to the large increase of Southern
supplies, the railroad facilities at the North will bring forward a large winter
supply— the motive power being quite sufficient to transport from the West to
the seaboard all the breadstuffs needed for winter consumption, with a surplus
for export. When the spring opens, however, there will be an enormous accu
mulation in Western graneries that must seek an outlet at the East, and thence
to Europe.
NE1V YORK COTTON M ARKET FOR THE MONTH ENDING NOVEMBER 27.
P R E r A R E D F O R T I I E M E R C H A N T S ’ M A G A Z I N E B Y C H A R L E S W . F R E D E R IC K S O N , B R O K E R , N E W Y O R K
Since the date of my last report (October 23d) the position of our cotton mar
ket has been such as to call for no especial comment. For the past five weeks,
inequality in prices and unimportant transactions have characterized our market.
The demand for the home trade mainly consists of the purchase of a few bales
daily to supply the deficiency in the mills about closing. The absence of the
home demand in this market is now seen and felt, and its importance to the trade
seems better understood— now that the well is dry.
The export demand is not dignified by the amount shipped— being some 8,500
bales— a large portion of which is sent direct from first hands, or by Southern
orders. In transitu, the transactions do not exceed 3,500 bales, and the quantity
on sale increasing. Our unsold stock may be estimated at 4,000 bales. The
foreign advices to hand, during the past month, have been of a more unfavorable
character than anticipated— a decline of fully two pence per pound on cotton
having taken place in Liverpool. Suspensions of banks and mercantile houses,
of the highest character, have also added to the depression. The rapid advance in
the rate of discount to 10 per cent by the Bank of England, failed to arrest the
downward plunge of public credit until the government granted a suspension of
the bank charter, and in a measure restored a partial return of confidence. W ith
such a state of affairs abroad, and an almost total prostration of American in
dustry, it is only to be wondered at that cotton has maintained its present value.
The prices of middlings, at the close, are thus represented :—
M id d lin g ...................................................................
Upland.
11*
Ilf
N. O. & Texas.
I lf
12*
The crop prospects are more encouraging, and estimates on the increase. Those
in farm are 3,300,000 to 3,500,000 bales :—
Receipts to date........................... bales
415,000
Export to Great Britain........................
161,000
Export to France...................................
80,000
Total exports.............................................
217,000
Stock on hand...........................................
236,000
Decrease
Increase
Decrease
Increase
Decrease
317,000
38,000
34,000
100
192,000
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
721
JOURNAL OF BANKING, CURRENCY, AND FINANCE.
‘ rTH E BANKING SYSTEM OF NEW YORK.”
J ohn S. V
law-book seller and publisher, has recently published an
octavo volume of near four hundred pages, with the above title. It was compiled
by John Cleaveland. It'opens with an introduction containing a comprehensive
history of the two banking systems of the State of New York, prior to that in
troduced by the general banking law of 1838. The first system was in force
from 1791 to 1829, the second, from 1829 to 1838. It embraces all the laws of
the State relating to banking and moneyed institutions from the earliest time, a
table of the leading cases decided by the courts of the State of New York,
from 1838 to 1856, relating to the general bank act of 1838, and the powers,
&c., of corporation formed under it. In the appendix we have an account of the
clearing-house, established in the city of New York in 1853, and a digest of the
leading decisions of the courts of the State of New York, relating to the general
banking law, and all matters pertaining to corporations organized under it. We
have had frequent applications from legislators of other States for the acts of
New York on this subject, and we are happy to inform such applicants, that this
volume will furnish them with all the information they desire in regard to the
banking system of New York, which we consider as the best and most perfect
that has yet been devised. Every bank in New York, (or almost every one,) is
based upon United States stocks and stocks of the State of New York, and can
scarcely fail of redeeming every dollar of their circulation, and with a few excep
tions paying their depositors dollar for dollar. Even in case of fraud, the billholders are secured by the stocks deposited as security in the Banking Depart
ment of the State at Albany.
ooriiies ,
REGULATIONS OF BANKING IN VIRGINIA.
The Alexandria Sentinel furnishes the following synopsis of the banking laws
of Yirginia, touching their responsibilities and the penalties imposed for noncompliance with the laws of the State, regulating the business of banking:—
The old banks received an extension of their charters from the Legislature of
1855-6. The extension is for six years from the 1st of April, 1857. The names
of the banks thus extended, are the Bank of Virginia, Farmers’ Bank of Virginia,
Exchange Bank of Virginia, Merchants’ and Mechanics’ Bank of Wheeling, Bank
of the Valley in Virginia, Northwestern Bauk of Virginia, and the Bank of K a
nawha. These banks have established numerous branches throughout the. State,
and laws are in force, but not yet availed of, authorizing the establishment of a
number of others.
The new banks are generally independent, or without branches ; the only ex
ception we know of being the recently established branch of the Old Dominion
Bank, at Petersburg, in Giles County. The principal of them are the Old Do
minion Bank, at Alexandria, with its branch as aforesaid; Bauk of Commerce,
Fredericksburg; Central Bank, Stanton ; Bank of Howardsville, Bank of Bock ■
iugham, Harrisonburg; Bank of Danville, Monticello Bank, Charlottsvilie. A
number of others have been chartered and some of them may have commenced
operations.
The Bank of Virginia, Farmers’ Bank of Virginia, and the Branch of the ExV O L. X X X V II.---- N O . V I.
46
1 22
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
change Bank at Bichmond, are made the depositories o f the State’s funds. I f
either refuse to redeem its notes in specie, the public money is required to be de
posited with the others. I f all refuse, the Governor shall select some other place
of deposite until further provision be made by law. [Code chap. 58, (S29.]
The following provisions apply to all the banks, new and old :—-If any bank
refuse to redeem its notes with specie, the governor may, by proclamation, pro
hibit the notes of said bank from being received as taxes. [Chap. 58, § 28.]
The party presenting the note may, on motion or by warrant, recover the
amount with interest at 12-per cent from the date of refusal,— provided the party
complaining be not a bank or company itself in suspension. [Chap. 58, § 15.]
In the case of'the new banks. (Circulation secured by deposite of stocks in
trust with the State Treasurer,) the holder of a note for which specie is refused
may cause it to be protested for non-payment; and the State Treasurer on re
ceiving notes thereof shall warn the bank to pay the same, and if it be not done
in ten days shall give notice through the papers, that all the notes of said bank,
whether protested or not, will be redeemed out of the trust property in his hands ;
to which end he may dispose of said trust property in such way as best to protect
the interests of the bill-holders.
Stockholders in the new banks are also liable
out of their private estate for the circulation and debts of the bank, in proportion
to the respective amounts of their stock.
Banks are allowed to have in circulation their notes to an amount equal to five
times the quantity of specie money on hand. They are not allowed to igsue notes,
or pay checks or drafts any part of which is printed,— of less than five dollars.
The act prolonging the charters of the old banks, provided that they should
thenceforth issue bills of no other denominations than five dollars, ten dollars, and
multiples of ten dollars. The Legislature reserves thejright to repeal, alter, or
modify the charter of any bank at its pleasure. [Code chap. 58, ji 31.]
CONDITIO® OF THE BAKES IN TENNESSEE.
From the official statements of several banks o f the State of Tennessee, showing
their condition on the 1st of July, 1857, the Nashville News has prepared the
annexed table, exhibiting the amount of capital paid in by each, the circulation,
deposits, specie, amount of bills due from other banks, domestic bills, and the
amount o f notes under discount. The aggregates may be divided as follows
Capital..............
Circulation.......
Deposits............
Specie...............
Due from banks.
Bills discounted
Notes................
T h e three
o ld hanks.
$ 6 ,4 9 1 ,3 4 9
3 ,9 6 4 ,8 2 4
2 ,3 4 6 ,6 5 0
2 ,0 1 4 ,2 7 7
2 ,0 4 2 ,6 7 2
2 ,6 6 3 ,3 1 2
4 ,8 4 8 ,9 0 0
Other
stock hanks.
$ 1 ,1 2 2 ,7 1 1
1 ,0 9 6 ,3 3 0
2 7 7 ,4 4 1
3 5 9 ,0 0 5
2 4 9 ,8 9 9
6 2 1 ,4 4 9
1 ,0 8 3 ,5 1 4
F ree hanks.
$ 1 ,4 6 2 ,3 0 0
1 ,1 9 3 ,0 6 7
1 ,7 3 1 ,2 4 0
2 8 3 ,1 5 5
6 3 0 ,0 0 7
6 0 6 ,9 3 2
1 ,5 5 7 ,7 7 2
T o ta l
$ 9 ,0 7 6 ,3 6 0
6 ,2 5 4 ,2 0 1
4 ,3 5 5 ,3 0 1
2 ,6 5 6 ,5 8 7
2 ,9 2 2 ,5 7 8
3 ,8 9 1 ,9 8 3
7 ,5 9 0 ,1 8 6
Six of the free banks have not reported, v iz.:—
Bank of Knoxville..................... Knoxville.
Bank of Memphis..................... Memphis.
Bank of Paris........................... Paris.
Bank of Tazewell....................TazewellBank of Claiborne....................Tazewell.
Bank of Trenton......................Trenton.
Their capital and circulation, however, may be very nearly arrived at by re
ference to the number of State bonds they have on deposit with the Controller of
the Treasury, which is as follows :—
Bank of Knoxville..................
Bank of Memphis....................
Bank of Paris...........................
$67,000 |Bank of Tazewell...............
50,000 IBank of Claiborne.............
50,000 I Bank of Trenton.................
$135,000
145,000
54,000
The law provides that the amount of bonds deposited shall exceed the amount
of notes issued 10 per cent.
CONDITION OF TIIE BANKS IN TENNESSEE.
Name of bank.
.Nashville.
“
u
Clarksville.
Chattanooga.
Lawrenceb’g.
Cleveland.
Shelbyville.
Brownsville.
Memphis.
T ota l................
Amount in
circulation.
Amount on
deposit.
$3,361,131 $1,518,469 $1,106,039 56 $1,029,971 61
457,500 00
1,305,815
659,054 22
1,774,809
581,666 79
526,806 00
1,140,540
1,356,400
216,045
56,249 25
74,179 79
189,810
20,340
10
28,319 00
211,44)0
141,641
6,574
43
42,874 85
138,300
177,246
101,486 41
130,000
57,237 60
142,000
83,210
47,601 23
39,163 50
112,616
67,028 35
70,000
30,588 24
123,600
50,362 55
300,000
183,182
15,691 30
$7,614,060
$5,061,154
$2,624,091 53
FREE
Bank of Nashville........ . Nashville.
Commercial Bank........ .. Memphis.
Exchange Bank............ . Murfreesboro’.
Traders’ Bank.............. . Nashville.
Buck’s Bank.................. . M’Minnville.
Southern Bank............ . Memphis.
Dandridge Bank.......... . Dandridge.
City Bank...................... . Nashville.
Merchants’ Bank........... .
“
Bank of Middle Tenn... . Lebanon.
River Bank.................... . Memphis.
Bank of the Union........ . Nashville.
Northern Bank.............. . Clarksville.
Bank of Jefferson.......... . Dandridge.
Farmers’ Bank.............. . Knoxville.
Bank of Commerce........ . Nashville.
Total...................
Amount o f
specie.
$ 1 0 0 ,0 0 0
50,000
313,000
75,000
50,000
70,000
60,000
50,000
1 0 0 ,0 0 0
1 2 1 ,0 0 0
120,600
82,000
60,000
100,700
50,000
60,000
$1,462,300
$88,835
43,309
227,600
50,30k)
16,620
60,569
1 0 0 ,0 0 0
38,900
46,000
131,134
80,000
45,000
70,000
1 0 0 ,0 0 0
50,800
54,000
$1,193,067
Amount duo
from banks.
$927,694
372,480
742,497
107,974
18,216
230
86,209
2,386
10,002
24,880
Bills o f Exch’ge.
26 $1,442,997 44
728,412,68
70
67
492,303’ 77
09
129,649 79
87
Notes & bills
20
18,793 78
31
Notes & bills
267,698 52
50
24
Notes <fc bills
40
205,005 07
$2,373,882 75
$2,292,571 24
$45,598
11,120
27,875
9,231
17,693
7,325
11,058
16,031
20,201
15,662
83,517
17,410
17,392
11,584
21,963
8,025
$50,236
58,214
6,724
28,967
649
84,474
52,631
107,065
63,275
6,201
30,583
31,452
41,784
18,033
26,004
23,707
Notes dise’ed.
$1,889,572
1,786,236
1,173,090
170,709
178,506
206,951
185,661
11,329
124,608
205,746
88
50
88
66
90
59
00
48
95
71
$3,284,761 05 $5,932,414 55
BANKS.
8422,334
52,741
87,500
73,567
43,759
121,450
28,289
69,229
267,573
156,230
32,328
69,084
216,968
13,631
29,133
50,387
36
46
00
14
44
86
90
52
93
96
80
16
03
24
21
02
$1,731,210 03
49
38
00
10
90
45
86
45
25
64
29
00
31
00
29
82
$283,155 41
93
65
50
90
20
39
24
10
37
99
31
58
73
46
34
37
$630,007 06
$212,090 58
Notes & bills
((
it
il
it
«•
U
U
it
153,129 91
Notes <Ssbills
208,876 28
Notes <fc bills
ii
32,226 20
$606,322 97
$189,524
67,968
147,350
97,215
35,919
91,809
24,382
159,080
196,615
203,007
85,610
84,912
38,061
94,686
24,659
16,988
64
24
00
55
48
37
29
89
26
70
80
16
06
51
69
89
$1,557,772 43
Journal o f B anking, Currency , and Finance.
Bank of Tennessee........
Union Bank....................
Planters’ Bank..............
Bank of America..........,
Bank of Chattanooga . . . .
Lawrenceburg Bank___
Oeoee Bank.................. .
Bank of Shelby ville.__ .
Agricultural Bank . , . . .
Citizens’ Bank.............. .
Where located.
Capital
paid in.
724
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
RATES OF EXCHANGE AT CINCINNATI ON N EW YORK AND NEW ORLEANS,
The following table, showing the rates of exchange on New Orleans, New York,
and eastern cities, at the close of each week during the years 1855-57, was pre
pared by W il l ia m S m ith , Esq., Superintendent of the Merchants’ Exchange,
and the editor of the Cincinnati Price Current:—
RATES
OF
SIGHT EXCHANGE ON NEW YO RK , THE EASTERN CITIES, AND N EW ORLEANS,
DURING THE YEARS ENDING AUGUST S lS T ,
,----------NEW TOP.lv.-----------,
1856-57.
1855-56.
prem. disc’t. prem. disc’t
September 7 ........
“
14........
tt
21........
tt
28........
5 ........
October
ft
12___
<(
19........
tf
26........
November 5 ........
tt
12........
ft
19........
tt
26........
December 3........
ft
10........
It
17........
“
24........
if
31 . . . .
7 ........
January
tf
14........
21........
tt
28........
February 4 ........
“
11........
“
18........
(t
25........
4 ........
March
“
11........
18........
“
25........
1........
April
it
8 ........
“
15........
tf
22........ .
tt
29........
6........
May
13........
tf
20........
tf
27........
3........
June
“
1 0 ... .
ft
17........
tf
24........
1........
July
ft
ft
ft
August
ft
if
8 ..........
1 5 ..........
22........
29........
5 ........
12........
1 9 ..........
26........
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
par
i
..
£
..
£
£
..
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£
£
£
£
£
. .
£
1
1856-57.
,---------NEW ORLEANS.---------- ,
1855-56.
1856-57.
prem. disc’t prem. dis’ct.
i
..
i
..
i
..
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par
par
..
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par
“
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
725
CHANGE IN THE CURRENCY OF PORTO RICO.
A royal order, bearing date May 5,1857, and published in the island of Porto
Rico by the Captain-General, Fernando Cotoner, by proclamation or circular
bearing date July 27, (and now in full force,) provides for the entire extinction
of the Macuquino money that has long been|the circulating medium in that
island, by the government changing it for Spanish money, at a discount of 12^
per cent on Macuquino currency. There was, at the date of the Captain-General’s
proclamation, according to the most reliable calculation, about a million and a half
dollars of this depreciated currency in circulation in the island, and the loss incurred
by the government in the operation of changing, freights, expenses of recoining,
etc., will, in the aggregate, amount to about 30 per cent, or (say) $450,000Thi3 government is to be indemnified for this loss by an export duty on produce
of the island, commencing August 4,1857. The items of this export duty are
published in this number of the Magazine, in the department of “ Commercial
Regulations.”
In Mr. Reuss’ “ Calculations and Statements” relative to the
American trade the Macuquino dollar is considered an anomaly. Its fineness is
stated to be only 7 dineros, or 9-12, and weight 15 dwts. 11 grains, making its
value from about 73 cents to 75 cents, but it is more commonly estimated at from
about 3s. 2^d. to 3s. 4d., the usual exchange being $6 to the £1.
FINANCES OF THE
E M PIRE
OF BRAZIL,
W e have received from the accomplished Consul-General of Brazil, Le Chevalier
L. U . F. D ’A guiar, the following statement of the estimated expenditure of the
Brazilian Empire for the fiscal year 1858-59, and of the revenue for each of the
years from 1850-51 to 1855-56, inclusive. In former volumes of the Merchants'
Magazine, we have published similar statements from the same source, as in vol.
xix., p. 309, and in vol. xxxiii., p. 613, etc. The statements of value are given
in contos. A conto = £112 10s., at 27d. per 1,000 reis.
ESTIMATED EXPENDITURE OF THE EMPIRE FOR
Department.
Contos.
Empire.....................................
Justice.......................................
Navy.........................................
War...........................................
1858-59.
Department.
Contos.
6,019 Foreign affairs..........................
3,689 Finance.....................................
4,859
Total expenditures............
10,145
659
12,339
37,613
REVENUE OF THE EM PIRE.
The receipts are estimated at 39,000 contos, leaving a probable balance of
1,387 contos, but the revenue actually received is generally greater than the
amount estimated. The revenue of the first six months of the fiscal year of
1855-56, was 17,140 contos ; ditto, ditto, 1856-57,19,589 contos. The following
table exhibits the amount of the national revenue for a series of years :—
Tear.
1851-52..........contos
1852- 53......................
1853- 54......................
1854- 55......................
1855- 56......................
On imports.
24,840
24,758
23,527
23,637
25,484
On exports.
Interior.
Miscellaneous.
Total.
5,096
5,181
8,082
4,715
4,910
4,466
4,702
5,045
5,906
6,153
1,382
1,747
1,909
1,675
1,857
35,786
86,391
34,516
35,985
38,4.07
The statistics of the medium public revenue during twenty years, divided in
periods of five years, are as follows :—
1836 to 1841..................contos
1841 to 1846............................
16,539 I 1846 to 185121,491 i 1851 to 1856-
contos
..........
26,920
36,217
726
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
THE NATIONAL D EBT OF BRAZIL.
F or the expenses of the Treasury, no less sum than 7,247 contos is applied for
the interest and sinking fund o f the national debt, which is as follows :—
Foreign......................... contos
48,82V Treasury notes...............contos
Internal...................................
57,V43
Not yet converted...................
144
Aggregate........................
Paper money in circulation............................................................................
66
---------106,770
44,689
Grand total...................... ................................................................
161,459
In December, 1854, the foreign debt was. £5,824,200 ; in December, 1855, was
£5,635,900; and in December, 1856, was £5,493,100. Of the interest debt,
55,795 contos bear an interest of 6 per cent; 1,828 ditto, 5 per cent; and 119
ditto, 4 per cen t; of which there is owned—
By Brazilians..................contos
By subjects of Great Britain__
By subjects of other nations. . .
37,185 I By national estab’hm’ts. .contos
6,658 In the provinces........................
2,173 I
11,066
660
COINAGE OF THE RIO JANEIRO MINT.
During the year 1855-56, the coinage of gold and silver at the Eio Janeiro
Mint was as follows :—
Of gold...............................................
Of silver.............................................
Total........................................
466,495 pieces, of value of
990,481
“
“
1,456,386
“
“
6,919 contos
1,071 “
7,990
“
The total coinage of the mint from 1849 to December, 1856, was— of gold,
27,629 contos ; of silver, 5,030 contos ; total, 32,659 contos.
CONDITION OF THE CANADIAN BANKS IN 1857,
W e have compiled from returns published in the Canadian Merchants' Mag
azine and Commercial Review, (an imitation of our Magazine, the first number
of which made its appearance in April, 1857,) and other sources, the subjoined
statement of the monthly averages, from March to September inclusive, of the
Canadian banks, as follows:—Date.
Capital.
Discounts.
Specie.
March 31.............. $16,119,187 $34,927,218 $2,025,715
April 30.................
16,295,597 32,232,219
2,145,249
May 31.................
16,844,834 32,470,986
2,114,084
June 30.................
17,246,140 32,307,199
2,210,933
17,924,667 82,243,981
2,262,167
July 31 .................
August 31.............
18,092,888 32,931,843
2,272,310
September 3 0 ...
17,250,202
33,865,282
2,004,557
Circulation.
Deposits.
$1-1,338,376 $8,306,435
10,859,571 8,507,157
10,226,624 8,795,065
10,511,876 9,650,326
10,760,167 8,625,924
10,777,358 8,621,015
10,974,377
8,800,689
The Bank of British North America, and Gore Bank, are not included in the
above figures.
W EBSTER ON THE EVILS OF A PAPER CURRENCY,
In the November number of the Merchants' Magazine we published George
Washington’s views of a depreciated paper currency. W e now give an extract
from a speech made by Daniel Webster, in the United States Senate, in 1852,
which may be found in Benton’s Thirty Years' View, page 244, volume i i . :—
“ A disorderly currency is one of the greatest of political evils. It undermines
the virtues necessary for the support of the social system, and encourages pro
pensities destructive of its happiness. It wars against industry, frugality, and
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
727
economy, and it fosters the evil spirit of extravagance and speculation. O f all
the contrivances for cheating the laboring classes of mankind, none has been more
effectual than that which deludes them with paper money. This is the most ef
fectual of inventions to fertilize the rich man’s field by the sweat of the poor man’s
brow.
“ Ordinary tyranny, oppression, excessive taxation—-these bear lightly on the
happiness of the mass of the community, compared with the fraudulent currencies
and the robberies committed by depreciated paper. Our own history has re
corded for our instruction enough, and more than enough, of the demoralizing
tendency, the injustice, and the intolerable oppression on the virtuous and well-dis
posed, of a degraded paper currency authorized by law or any way countenanced
by government.” Again he says :—
“ The paper circulation of the country is, at this time, probably seventy-five
or eighty millions of dollars. O f specie, we may have twenty or thirty millions,
and this principally in masses in the vaults of the banks. Now, sir, this is a state
of things which leads constantly to overtrading, and to the cousequent excess and
revulsions which so often disturb the regular course of commercial affairs. W hy
have we so small an amount of specie in circulation ? Certainly the only reason
is we do not require more ! W e have but to ask its presence and it would re
turn. But we voluntarily banish it by the great amount of small bank-notes.
In most of the States the banks issue notes of low denominations, even to a single
dollar. How is it possible, under such circumstances, to retain specie in circula
tion ? A ll experience shows it to be impossible. The paper will take the place
of gold and silver. When Mr. Pitt, in the year 1797, proposed, in Parliament,
to authorize the Bank of England to issue one pound notes, Mr. Burke lay sick
at Bath, of an illness of which he never recovered, and he is said to have written
to the late Mr. Canning :— ‘ Tell Mr. Pitt that, if he consents to the issuing o f one
pound notes, he must never expect to see a guinea again.’ ”
An early step in a reform in our paper currency, in the judgment of the editor
of this Magazine, would be restricting issues of bank notes of a less denomina
tion than ten dollars. A ll the States should adopt the system, and eventually
less than twenty dollars. Many sound and intelligent bankers entertain similar
views, among whom we may mention A mos A . L awrence , Boston merchant and
bank director.
BASKS ASD PA PER M O SE Y I S PRUSSIA,
The Berlin correspondent of the Neue Zeit, writes that since the recent pro
duction of paper money in Prussia was very slight, banks were established in
the little border provinces, which distributed their notes in their intercourse with
us. Prussia sought to protect herself by forbidding the circulation of small bills
in strange paper money, and her example was followed by all the larger States
of Germany. The result was that the banks issued more bills at 10 per cent and
over, which, on account of the great necessity of such means of exchange, are
capable of an extensive circulation.
A t length Prussia has commenced the
establishment of provincial banks for the purpose of issuing notes, and before long
every province will contain at least one such bank. A t the same time the capital
o f the “ Prussia Bank ” has increased, and its issue of notes has become more ex
tensive. Beside the banks of issue there were in Germany many imitations of the
French Credit Mobilier. A t the end of 1849 we had in Germany only 14 banks,
with an aggregate capital of about 61* million dollars. Now we have 53 such
institutions, with an aggregate capital of 283 million dollars, which, moreover, is
not yet all paid in.
728
Commercial Regulations.
LEGAL TE N D ER , W HAT IT IS.
The law regulating the payment of debts with coin, provides the following coin
to be the legal tender :—
1. AH gold coin at their respective values, for debts of any amount.
2. The half dollar, quarter dollar, dime and half dime, at their respective values,
for debts of any amount under five dollars.
3. Three cent pieces for debts of amount under thirty cents; and
4. By the law just passed, we may add one cent pieces for debts of amount
under ten cents.
By the law of Congress, passed some four or five years ago, gold was made the
legal tender for large amounts. Those who, to get rid of large quantities of cents
and small coin, sometimes pay their bills with it to the annoyance of the creditor,
will perceive that there is a stoppage put to that antic by law.
COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
TOWELS COMPOSED OF LINEN AND COTTON.
T reasury Department, October 6, 185T.
S ir :— Messrs. Paton & Co., of New York, have appealed from the decision of
the collector at that port as to the rate of duty chargeable, under the present
tariff, on certain articles composed of linen and colored cotton, but alleged to be
known in commerce under the designation of “ linen towels.” N ot being specially
named in any schedule of the tariff, the collector assessed duty on the articles in
question at the rate of 24 per cent, imposed on “ all manufactures composed wholly
of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed,” in schedule 0 of the
tariff of 1857, applying'to them the provisions of the 20th section of the act of
1842. that “ on all articles manufactured from two or more materials the duty
shall be assessed at the highest rate at which any of its component parts may be
chargeable.” The appellants claim to enter the articles at a duty of 15 per cent,
being known in trade as “ linen towels.” and the cotton material being only used
as a finish, and not considered as a component part of the fabric. The article in
question being composed of cotton and linen, and not specially named in any
schedule of the tariff, must be held to be chargeable with duty at the rate of 19
per cent, imposed in schedule D on “ manufactures composed wholly of cotton,
not otherwise provided for.” It was placed in that schedule of the tariff act of
1816, by force of the provisions of the 20th section of the tariff act of 1842, and
has not been transferred to schedule C of the tariff act of 1857 by the provisions
in its 2d section, which transfers to that schedule “ all manufactures composed
wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The collector’s
decision in this case is, therefore, overruled, and the acticle in question is entitled
to entry at the duty of 19 per cent, imposed on “ manufactures composed wholly
of cotton, not otherwise provided for,” in schedule D of the tariff of 1857. Very
respectfully, your obedient servant,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector, New York
TAPES OF C0TT0l\, AND OF COTTON AND LINEN.
Treasury D epartment, October 6, 1857.
'The department has had under consideration an appeal from the decision
of the collector at New York, assessing duty on certain articles of merchandise
well known in commerce as “ tapes,” entered at that port by Messrs. Denison &
Binsse. The fabrics in this case were of two descriptions— one composed wholly
o f white cotton, and the other of white cotton and linen, the warp being linen
SiR
Commercial Regulations.
729
and the filling cotton.
On the “ tape,” composed wholly of cotton the col
lector charged a duty of 24 per cent, under schedule 0 of the tariff act, as a
bleached cotton, and falling within the classification in that schedule of “ all manu
factures composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or
dyed.” On the “ tape ” composed of cotton and lineu, being an unenumerated
article, the collector assessed a duty of 24 per cent, applying the provisions o f the
20th section of the tariff act of 1842, that “ on all articles manufactured from
two or more materials the duty shall be assessed at the highest rate at which any
of its component parts may be chargeable.” Of the materials composing this
fabric, cotton is chargeable with the highest duty, and as it is a bleached “ cotton,”
the collector assessed the duty imposed on “ all manufactures composed wholly of
cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed,” in schedule C of the tariff
act of 1847. The appellants contend that the “ tape ” composed wholly of cotton
should be classified under the designation of “ braid,” specified in schedule D of
the tariff act of 1857, and be subjected to a duty of 19 per cent. They claim
that the “ tape” composed of linen and cotton should be dutiable as a “ manu
facture of flax,” (the linen warp being the component of chief value) under schedule
E, at the rate of 15 per cent; or treated as an unenumerated article, subject to
the same rate of duty. The tape composed wholly of cotton is known in com
merce as a “ tape.” and not as a “ braid,” and is not enumerated in any schedule
oi the tariff act of 1857. Being composed wholly of “ bleached ” cotton, it is
dutiable under schedule C of the tariff act of 1857, at the rate of 24 per cent, in
the classification of “ all manufactures composed wholly of cotton, which are
bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The decision of the collector as to the rate
of duty on this article is affirmed. The tape composed of linen and cotton ought
not, in the opinion of the department, to be charged with the duty imposed on
manufactures composed wholly of cotton and bleached, under schedule C. Under
the tariff of 1846 it was classed, by force of the 20th section of the tariff act of
1842, in schedule D, and paid the duty imposed on “ manufactures composed
wholly of cotton, not otherwise provided for.” That classification is not disturbed
by the act of 1857. The provision of the 2d section of that act, which transfers
to schedule 0 “ all manufactures composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached,
printed, painted, or dyed,” cannot be held to transfer a mixed fabric composed of
linen and cotton from the schedule of the tariff of 1846, in which it was placed
by force of the 20th section of the act of 1842, to schedule 0 in the act of 1857.
The collector’s decision as to the rate of duty on this article is therefore overruled,
and it is entitled to entry at the duty of 19 per cent imposed on “ manufactures
composed wholly of cotton, not otherwise provided for,” in schedule D of the tariff
of 1857. Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Augustus Schell, Esq., Collector, New York.
SPOOL COTTOJV— BLEACHED OR DYED.
Treasury Department, October 6, 1857.
S ir :— This department has had under consideration an appeal of Messr s. Stuart
& Brothers, of Philadelphia, from the decision of the collector of that port as to
the rate of duty to be assessed, under the tariff law of March 3,1857, upon an
article known in commerce as “ spool cotton.” The article in question is a thread
composed wholly of cotton, bleached or dyed, and the collector assessed a duty
upon it at the rate of 24 per cent, under the classification, in schedule C of the
tariff of 1857, of “ all manufactures composed wholly of cotton, which are
bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The appellants contend that the provision
of the tariff act of 1857, subjecting to 24 per cent “ manufactures composed wholly
of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed,” embrace only what are
known as “ piece goods,” and that threads composed wholly of cotton, bleached
or dyed, should be placed under the classification, in schedule 1) of the tariff of
1857, of “ manufactures composed wholly of cotton, not otherwise provided for,”
and be subjected to duty at the rate of 19 per cent. The department is clearly
of the opinion that the article in question is dutiable at the rate of 24 per cent,
730
Commercial Regulations.
under the classification, in schedule C of the tariff of 1857, of “ all manufactures
composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed ; ” and
the decision of the collector is hereby affirmed. I am, very respectfully,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
J. B. Baker, Esq., Collector of the Customs, Philadelphia.
FABRIC OF COTTON AND LINEN— SNOW-DROP DAMASK.
Treasury D epartment, October 12, 1857.
S ir :— Messrs. Butt, Black, & Guild, of New York, have appealed to this de
partment, under date of the 29th ultimo, from the decision of the collector at
that port, as to the rate of duty to be assessed on a fabric imported by them into
that port, under the designation of “ snow-drop damask,” and composed of linen
and cotton. Fabrics f this description not being specially designated in any
schedule of the tariff act of 1857, the collector applied the provisions of the 20th
section of the tariff act of 1842, that “ on all articles manufactured from two or
more materials, the duty shall be assessed at the highest rate at which any of its
component material may be chargeable,” and thus' classified them, at a duty of
24 per cent, in schedule C of the tariff law of 1857, which provides for “ all manu
factures composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or
dyed,” one of its materials being “ bleached ” cotton. The importer claims entry
o f the fabric in question at a duty of 19 per cent under schedule D of the tariff
of 1857, subjecting it to the rate of duty imposed on “ manufactures composed
wholly of cotton, not otherwise provided for.” For the reasons stated in the de
cisions of the Department under date of the 6th instant, in the cases of “ towels
composed of cotton and linen,” on the appeal of Messrs. Paton & Co., and “ tapes
o f cotton and of cotton and linen,” on the appeal of Messrs. Denison & Binsse,
from the decision of the collector at New Nork, the article in question must be
held to be dutiable at the rate of 19 per cent under schedule D of the tariff act
of 1857. The decision of the collector in this case is overruled. I am, very
respectfully,
H OW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector of the Customs, New York.
FABRICS OF COTTON— VELVETEEN S AND CORDS OR CORDUROYS.
Treasury Department, October 14, 1857.
S ir :— A n appeal has been taken to this department by Messrs. A . Wray &
Co., of Philadelphia, from the decision of the collector at that port as to the rate
of duty to be assessed on certain articles imported by them, and described as
“ velveteens,” and “ velvet cords,” or “ corduroys.” The collector assessed a duty
of 24 per cent under schedule C of the tariff of 1857, regarding the articles in
question as falling within the classification in that, schedule of “ all manufactures
composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The
importers claim that the articles are commercially known as velvets in the piece,
and should be classed under the designation, in schedule E of the tariff of 1857,
of “ velvets in the piece composed wholly of cotton,” and be subjected to a duty
of 15 per cent. The duty in this case was, in the opinion of the department,
rightfully assessed by the collector, in accordance with the decision, under date
of the 12th August last, on an appeal from the assessment by the collector at
Philadelphia of duties on similar articles imported by Mr. Geo. D. Parrish into
that port. The appellants allege that the articles in question have been and'are
known in commerce as “ velvets in the piece composed wholly of cotton,” and, as
such, ought to.be made dutiable, under that classification in schedule E of the
tariff of 1857, at the rate of 15 per cent. N o satisfactory proof has been ex
hibited to the department that they are commercially known under that designa
tion. Even if they have been and are now so known, they would still fall within
the classification in schedule 0 of the tariff of 1857, and be subjected to duty at
the rate of 24 per cent, if “ composed v’holly of cotton, and bleached, printed,
painted, or dyed,” by operation of the 2d section of the tariff act of 3d March,
Commercial Regulations.
^31
1857, which transfers from schedule E to schedule C all manufactures composed
wholly of cotton which have been subjected to any of those processes, leaving
still in schedule E velvets in the piece composed wholly of cotton, if any_ such
there are, which are not “ bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The decision of
the collector, levying duty on the articles in question at the rate of 24 per cent,
under schedule 0 of the tariff of the 3d March, 1857, is affirmed. Y ery respect
fully, &c.,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
J. B. Bakes, Esq., Collector, Philadelphia, Pa.
COTTON FABRICS— BED LACE, DIAMOND BED LACE, CORSET LACE, VELVET RIBBON.
Treasury Department, October 16,1857.
S ik :— An appeal has been taken to this department by Messrs. Denison &
Binsse, from the decision of the collector at Mew York as to the legal rate of
duty on several fabrics hereinafter enumerated. On articles described under the
designations of “ bed lace,” “ diamond bed lace,” “ cotton corset lace,” and cotton
velvet, cut into strips, and denominated “ velvet ribbon,” being manufactures
composed wholly of cotton, and bleached or dyed, the collector charged a duty of
24 per cent, under the classification in schedule 0 of the tariff act of 1857, of “ all
manufactures composed wholly of cotton, which are bleached, printed, painted, or
dyed.” The appellants contend that cotton “ bed lace,” “ diamond bed lace.” and
“ corset lace,” being known in commerce' under the designation of “ laces,” are
entitled to entry at a duty of 19 per cent under the classification in schedule D
of the tariff of 1857, of “ cotton laces, cotton insertings, cotton trimming laces,
cotton laces and braids,” and that the article denominated “ velvet ribbon ” should
be charged duty at the rate of 15 per cent, as “ velvet in the piece composed
wholly pf cotton,” under schedule E of the tariff act o f 1857. The articles in
question denominated “ bed lace,” “ diamond bed lace,” “ corset lace,” and “ cotton
velvet ribbons,” being composed wholly of cotton, and bleached or dyed, are, in
the opinion of this department, dutiable at the rate of 24 per cent, under schedule
0 of the tariff act of 3d March, 1857, by force of the second section of that act,
which transfers to that schedule “ all manufactures composed wholly of cotton,
which are bleached, printed, painted, or dyed.” The decision of the collector in
regard to the several articles above mentioned is therefore hereby affirmed. I am,
very respectfully,
H OW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, New York.
JAPANNED LEATHER.
Treasury D epartment, October 26,1857.
S ir :— I acknowledge the receipt of your report of the 3d instant, in regard to
the appeal of John A . Tauber, from your decision assessing duty on an article
denominated by the importer “ glazed calfskins ” at the rate of 19 per cent, under
the classification in schedule E of the tariff of 1857, of “ japanned leather or
skins of all kinds,” the appellant contending that the article in question should be
made dutiable at the rate of 15 per cent under the classification in schedule E of
“ leather, upper, of all kinds.” The terms “ patent,” “ japanned,” and “ glazed,”
as applied to leather or skins, are believed to be synonymous, and if, as the ap
pellant would seem to contend, the article in question could, under the tariff act
of 1846, be classed as “ leather, upper, of all kinds,” it must now be regarded in
the tariff of 3d March, 1857, as transferred to schedule D, and made dutiable at
the rate of 19 per cent, by force of the provision of the secoud section of that act,
which transfers to schedule D “ japanned leather or skins of all kinds.” The
duty in this case was properly assessed by the collector, and his decision is affirmed.
I am, very respectfully,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Augustus Schell, Esq., Collector of the Customs, New York.
^32
Commercial Regulations.
WATCH MOVEMENTS.
Treasury Department, October 2 6 ,185T.
acknowledge the receipt of your report of the 9th ultimo, in regard to
the appeal of Messrs. Pratt & Eeath, of Philadelphia, from your decision as to
the rate of duty to which certain articles of import, termed by them “ watch
movements,” are liable under the tariff act of 1857. “ Watch movements” are
understood to be the entire watch in running order, except the outer case and
crystal. The collector assessed duty at the rate of 8 per cent, under schedule G
in the tariff of 1846, as modified by the act of 3d March, 1857. The importers
contend that the “ watch movements ” have been transferred from schedule G in
the tariff of 1846 to schedule H by force of the provision of the 2d section of the
act of 3d March, 1857, which transfers to that schedule “ watch materials and
unfinished parts of watches,” and that they are entitled to entry under that
schedule at a duty of 4 per cent. The tariff act of 1846 provided for “ watches
and parts of watches ” and “ watch materials ” in schedule G. The 2d section of
tariff act of 3d March, 1857, transfers from schedule G to schedule H “ watch
materials and unfinished parts of watches.” The designation in schedule G em
braced “ watches, watch materials, and parts o f watches,” finished and unfinished.
“ Watch materials” and “ unfinished, parts of watches” being transferred to
schedule H, “ watches and parts of watches ” other than “ unfinished parts ” are
still left in schedule G. liable to a duty of 8 per cent. “ Watch movements ”
are neither “ watch materials,” as that term is understood in the language of the
trade, nor are they unfinished parts of watches ; and do not fall within the pro
vision of the 2d section of the act of 3d March, 1857, which transfers “ watch
materials and unfinished parts of watches ” to schedule H. They must be re
garded, therefore, as remaining in schedule G, subject to duty at the rate of 8 per
cent. The decision of the collector is affirmed. Very respectfully, your obedient
servant,
S i r :— I
H OW ELL COBB, Secretary of the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, New T o rt.
WATCH M ATERIALS.
Treasury Department, October 26, 1857.
:— I acknowledge the receipt of your report, under date of the 12th instant,
and accompanying report of the appraiser, on the appeal of Messrs. S. & J. Myers
& Co., from your decision assessing duty on an importation by them into your
port of “ watch-hands ” and “ chain-hooks.” It appears that duty was assessed
on these articles at the rate of 8 per cent, under the classification of “ watches,
and parts of watches,” in schedule G of the tariff of 1857. The importers claim
entry of the articles in question at a duty of 4 per cent, under the classification in
schedule H, of “ watch materials, and unfinished parts of watches.” It has al
ready been decided by the department, under this date, on the appeal of Messrs.
Pratt & Eeath from the decision of the collector of customs at Philadelphia, that
“ watch movements ”— that is, the several parts of a watch adjusted to each other,
and in running order, without case or crystal— were dutiable under schedule G as
finished parts of watches. Parts of watches, such as “ watch-hands ” and “ chainhooks,” unless they form the part of a movement in running order, should be re
garded in the opinion of this department, as “ watch materials, and unfinished
parts of watches,” and as such transferred by the 2d section of the tariff act of
3d March, 1857, from schedule G to schedule H, and as dutiable at the rate of 4
per cent. The department is satisfied that this view is sustained also by the
meaning of the terms “ watch materials, and unfinished parts of watches,” as used
in the trade. The decision of the collector is therefore overruled, and the articles
in question are entitled to entry at a duty of 4 per cent, under the classification
in schedule H of “ watch materials, and unfinished parts of watches.” I am, very
respectfully,
S ir
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A. W . A ustin, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, Boston, Mass.
Commercial Regulations.
733
CORRUGATED ZINC.
Treasury Department, October 28, 1857.
:— The department has had under consideration a report from the collector
o f customs at New York, under date of the 26th ultimo, in regard to the appeal
of Messrs. Strong & Smith, from his decision as to the rate of duty to be assessed
under the tariff of 1857, on an article known in commerce as “ corrugated zinc,’’
together with a communication from the appellants under date of the 23d ultimo,
on that subject. The collector assessed duty upon the article in question at the
rate of 24 per cent, under the classification in schedule C of the tariff of 1857, of
“ manufactures, articles, vessels, and wares, not otherwise provided for, of brass,
copper, gold, iron, lead, pewter, platina, silver, tin, or other metal, or of which
either of those metals, or any other metal, shall be the component of chief value.”
The appellants claim entry at a duty of 12 per cent, under the classification in
schedule F of the tariff of 1857, of “ zinc, spelter, or teutenegue, in sheets.” The
collector is of the opinion that “ zinc in sheets,” being subjected to an additional
process of manufacture, the “ corrugated zinc ” of commerce, thus prepared, is
thereby removed from the classification in schedule F, and is to be treated as a
“ manufacture of zinc,” and as such liable to a duty of 24 per cent, under schedule
C. From the most reliable and authentic information which the department has
been able to obtain, it is its opinion that “ corrugated zinc ” was not known in
commerce at the passage of the tariff as zinc in sheets.” The metal, it is under
stood, is first rolled into sheets of the requisite thickness, and then corrugated by
the application of a peculiar machinery adapted to that purpose. It must, there
fore, be regarded as a “ manufacture o f zinc,” and as such liable to duty at the
rate of 24 per cent, under schedule C o f the tariff act of 3d March, 1857. The
decision of the collector is affirmed. I am, very respectfully,
S ir
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Augustus Schell, Esq., Collector of the Customs, New York.
ZINC— SHEATHING
METAL.
T reasu ry D e partm en t,
October 28,1857.
:— I have examined a report from the collector of customs at New York,
under date of the 25th ultimo, in regard to the appeal of Messrs. Strong & Smith
of that port as to the rate of duty legally chargeable upon zinc in sheets i of the
dimensions and weight prescribed by the tariff act as prerequisite to the admis
sion o f “ sheathing copper ” to entry free of duty ; the zinc in question being in
tended and prepared, as alleged by the importers, for the sheathing of vessels. The
collector assessed duty upon the article in question ut the rate of 12 per cent
under the classification in schedule F, o f “ zinc, spelter, or teutenegue, in sheets.”
The importers claim entry of the articles free of duty, as embraced under the de
signation “ sheathing metal, not wholly or in part of iron, ungalvanized,” under
schedule I of the tariff of 1857. In schedule F of the tariff act of 1846 zinc in
sheets was provided for under the classification of “ zinc, spelter, or teutenegue, in
sheets,” and “ sheating metal,” was specified as free of duty in schedule I of that
act. The tariff act of 3d March, 1857, makes no change in these classifications
except to annex the condition to “ sheathing metal ” in schedule I of being “ not
wholly or in part iron, ungalvanized.” The term “ sheathing metal ” would embrace
zinc if used for the purpose of sheathing vessels; and that it was known and used
as a “ sheathing metal ” at the date of the tariff act of 1846, and continues still
to be so used, appears clearly established by the evidence in the case. The pur
pose intended in regard to the importation in question is rendered clear and con
clusive by the form in which the article is imported, being fitted exclusively for
the sheathing of vessels. The sheets are of the same dimensions and weight as
required by law in regard to “ sheathing copper,” and are thus clearly discrim
inated from “ zinc in sheets ” as that designation is used and understood in com
mercial parlance; and when so imported, as in this instance, and being well
known and in common use as a “ sheathing metal,” it must be regarded as ex
cepted from the classification in schedule F of “ zinc, spelter, or teutenegue, in
S ir
734
Commercial Regulations.
sheets,” and treated as embraced in the classification of “ sheathing metal,” not
wholly or in part of iron, ungalvanized, in schedule I, and admitted free of duty.
The decision of the collector is, therefore, overruled. I am, very respectfully,
H OW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, New York.
GARANCINE— EXTRACT OF MADDER.
Treasury Department, October 28,1857.
S ir :— I acknowledge the receipt o f your several reports, under date o f the 25th
ultimo and 3d instant, and the accompanying reports from the appraisers at your
port, in regard to the classification of an article known in commerce as “ Garanc i n e a n d the rate of duty to which it ought to be subjected, under the present
tariff, appeals having been taken from your decision to this department by the
importers, Messrs. R. & W . Manton & Co., and Messrs. Wetter, Schlieper, &
Haarhous. It appears from the papers submitted to me, that you imposed a
duty of four per centum on the article in question, under the classification o f
“ extract of madder ” in schedule H of the act of 3d March, 1857, and that entry
free was claimed by the appellants under the classification of “ mader, ground or
prepared,” in schedule I of. the tariff of 1857. The article embraced under the
designation of “ madder, ground or prepared ” is merely the madder root reduced
to a powder by the mechanical process of grinding. It is identical in all its
qualities with the root, and differs from it only in the form which it is thus made
to assume. “ Garancine ” is a product, obtained from the madder root by a
chemical process by which part of the coloring matter is extracted, and presented
in a concentrated state. It should properly be classed as an “ extract from
madder ” as contradistinguished from the preparation of madder in which the
character of the material is not chemically changed. Duty was properly assessed
on the article in question at the rate of1four per cent as an “ extract of madder,”
under schedule H of the tariff act of 3d March, 1857. The decision of the col
lector is affirmed. Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector of the Customs, New York.
PARIAN MARBLE BUSTS AND FIGURES— STATUARY,
Treasury Department, October 29, 1857.
S ir :— I acknowledge the receipt of your report, under date o f the 28th ult., on
the appeal of Henry Levy, Esq., from your decision assessing duty on four casks
of “ Parian marble busts and figures,” as designated by the importer, imported in
the ship “ James R. Keeler,” from London. The entry describes the articles
as “ four crates of merchandise, statuary,” and the return of the appraisers
describes the contents of the crate sent to them for examination as “ china figures
and statuettes.” The collector assessed duty on the articles in question at the
rate of 24 per cent under the classification in schedule C of “ earthen, china, and
stone ware, and all other wares composed of earthy and mineral substances, not
otherwise provided for.” Entry free of duty is claimed by the importer under
the classification in schedule I of the tariff of 1857, of “ paintings and statuary.”
Having no samples of the importation, the Department assumes the description
by the appraisers, it being the result of an actual examination by experts. “ China
figures and statuettes,” if they fall within the definition of “ statuary,” adopted
by the Department, and heretofore promulgated for the information and govern
ment of collectors, are entitled to free entry. The Department has defined
“ statuary,” as used in the tariff law, as confined in its application to figures, re
presenting living or deceased creatures of whatever species, real or imaginary, in
full relievo, insulated on every part, and which may be formed of marble, plaster,
bronze, galvanized zinc, or other material appropriate to the composition of arti
cles of taste. “ Statuary” was made free of duty by the tariff of 1846, if “ im
ported in good faith as objects of taste, and not of merchandise.” “ Paintings
and statuary” are exempted from duty, without any qualification or restriction,
Commercial Regulations.
735
by the tariff act of 1857. The department feels justified, by the reports of the
collector and appraisers, in assuming that the articles in question do not fall
within the classification of “ doils, and toys of all kinds,” in schedule 0 of the
tariff of 1857. Not falling within that classification, they belong to the descrip
tion of articles known distinctly as “ statuary” in commercial parlance. The
decision of the collector is overruled in this case, and the articles are entitled to
entry free of duty, under schedule I of the tariff of 1857.
I am, very respectfully,
H OW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
A ugustus Schell, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, New York.
BISQUE STATU E TTE S— STATUARY.
Treasury Department, October 29, 1857.
The Department has had under consideration an appeal taken by J. J.
Griffin & Co., from the decision of the collector of the customs at New York,
assessing duty on certain merchandise described as “ bisque statuettes,” im
ported into that port in the ship “ Wm. Tell,” from Havre.
The collector
assessed duty on the article in question at the rate of 24 per cent, under the
classification in schedule C, of “ earthen, china, and glass wares, and all other
wares composed of earthy and mineral substances, not otherwise provided for.”
The importers claim that the articles are entitled to free entry as “ statuary”
under that classification in schedule I of the tariff of 1857. It has heretofore
been decided by this Department that the articles of the composition known in
commerce as “ biscuit” or “ bisque” statuary are to be considered as “ statuary”
within the meaning of the law, and no just reason is perceived for disturbing the
classification thus made. The articles in question being thus decided to be statuary,
they are for the reasons stated in the decision of the Department under this date
on the appeal of Henry Levy, Esq., from the decision of the collector at New
York, assessing duty on busts and figures of Parian marble, entitled to entry
free of duty, under the classification of statuary in schedule I of the tariff act
of 1857. The decision of the collector is therefore overruled.
Yery respectfully,
S i r :—
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Augustus Schell, Esq., Collector, New York.
CHEMICALS, AND APPARATUS FOR SEM INARIES OF LEARNING.
Treasury Department, October 29, 1857.
:— An appeal has been taken to this Department by Mr. J. P. Cook,
Jr., professor of chemistry in Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
from the decision of the collector of the customs at Boston, assessing duty on
an importation for the use of that institution, of the following, among other
similar articles, viz. : white tiles for furnaces, potassium, sodium, aluminum in
ingot and leaf, oil of naphtha, and uric acid. N o question is presented as to
the rates of duty to be assessed on these several articles, if dutiable, under the
law ; but it is contended by the appellant that they arc entitled to free entry
under that provision of schedule I of the tariff act of 1857, which exempts from
duty “ all philosophical apparatus, instruments, books, maps, and charts, statues,
statuary, busts, and casts of marble, bronze, alabaster, or plaster of P aris;
paintings and drawings, etchings, specimens of sculpture, cabinets of coins,
medals, gems, and all collections of antiquities, 'provided., the same be specially
imported in good faith for the use of any society incorporated or established for
philosophical or literary purposes, or for the encouragement of the fine arts; or
for the use, or by the order, of any college, academy, school, or seminary of learn
ing in the United States.” The appellant claims entry of the articles in ques
tion as “ philosophical apparatus” under this provision, the same having been
imported by order of the proper authorities of the university for the purpose of
illustrating by experiment the principles of chemical science. Giving to this
provision the most enlarged and liberal construction in favor of seminaries of
S ir
Commercial Regulations.
736
learning, of which its terms will admit, this Department does not feel at liberty
to extend the meaning of the phrase “ philosophical apparatus” beyond its or
dinary meaning as used in commercial parlance. “ Philosophical apparatus” are
terms descriptive of instruments or utensils used in illustrations and experiments ;
but it would be yielding to an unsafe latitude of construction to bring within
the operation of this provision, as “ philosophical apparatus,” brick for furnaces,
chemicals and chemical preparations, or other similar articles, understood to be
embraced in this importation, upon the general ground of their utility in advanc
ing the interests and objects of seminaries of learning. The decision of the col
lector, refusing the free entry of the articles in question, is affirmed.
I am, very respectfully,
A. W .
A u s t in ,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary of the Treasury.
Esq., Collector of the Customs, Boston, Mass.
SALTED PE PPER S FROM CAPE HAYTIE1V,
Treasury Department, October 30,1857.
:— An appeal has been taken to this department by Messrs. Delafield &
Wilson from the decision of the collector of customs at New York, assessing
duty at the rate of 24 per cent on an importation of Hayden “ salted peppers,”
under the classification in schedule C of the tariff of 1857 of “ capers, pickles,
and sauces of all kinds not otherwise provided for.” The importers claim to
enter the articles in question, as uuenumerated in the tariff of 1857, at the rate
of 15 per cent, as prescribed in the 1st section of that act. It is alleged by the
appellants that the articles in question are not used as a pickle in the ordinary
sense of that term, but are used for the manufacture, mainly, of the condiment in
common use, known in trade as “ pepper sauce;” the peppers being put in salt
and water to prevent the shrinking or withering of the pods during the voyage.
In a general sense the word “ pickle ” may be held to embrace all articles pre
served in salt and water, and peppers so preserved and imported might fall under
that designation. But the term as used in schedule C obviously, in the opinion
of the department, refers to the well known article in ordinary use for the table,
and commonly preserved in vinegar. Cucumbers, peppers, onions, other vege
tables and walnuts so preserved and used, are familiar instances of the class of
articles understood by the department to be embraced within the term “ pickles,”
as used in schedule C of the tariff of 1857. “ Haytien peppers,” imported as in
this instance in salt and water, are not used in that form as a “ pickle,” but for
the preparation of pepper sauce. A t all events they are not, in the condition in
which they are imported, “ pickles.” as before defined, nor are they embraced in
the designation of “ pepper” in schedule H of the tariff, which is a spice, and as
such, transferred from schedule C in the tariff of 1846, to schedule H in the tariff
of 1857, by force of the 2d section of that act, which transfers to that schedule
“ spices of all kinds.” Tl.e articles in question, as they are imported, not being
specially designated in any schedule of the tariff, nor falling within any general
description or class therein specified, must be held to be unenumerated, and as
such subject to duty at the rate of 15 per cent, as prescribed in the 1st section of
the tariff act of the 3d March, 1857. The decision of the collector is overruled,
and the articles in question are entitled to entry as unenumerated at a duty of 15
per cent. I am, very respectfully,
S ir
IIOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Augustus Schell, Esq., Collector of the Customs, New York.
GREEN EBONY— VALUE OF JAMAICA CURRENCY.
Teeasury Department, October 30, 1857.
S ir :— The department has had under consideration the appeal of Messrs. B.
A . Franklin & Co., of Baltimore, from the decision of the collector at that port
as to the rate of duty to be assessed on an article known in commerce as “ green
ebony.” The collector assessed duty on the article in question at the rate of 8
per cent, under the classification in schedule G of the tariff of 1857, of “ woods,
Commercial Regulations.
737
namely, cedar, lignumvitae, ebony, box, granadilla, mahogany, rose wood, satin
wood, and all cabinet woods,” the appellants claiming to enter it free of duty
under the classification of “ Brazil wood, brazilletto, aud all other dye woods in
sticks,” in schedule I. Prom the best information obtained by the department
it regards the wood in question as used exclusively for dyeing, and as such en
titled to free entry under the classification in schedule I of the tariff of 1857, of
“ Brazil wood, brazilletto, and all other dye woods in sticks.” The decision of
the collector is overruled, and the article in question will be entitled to entry,
free of duty, as a dye wood in slicks, under schedule I of the tariff of 1857. The
collector of the customs was also in error in computing in this case the value of
the Jamaica currency. The pound of Jamaica should have been computed as
sterling, at the value of the pound sterling of Great Britain, fixed by law at $4 84;
at which rate it should be computed at ports of entry in the United States.
I am, very respectfully,
HOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f ttie Treasury.
Q. Thomson Mason, Esq., Collector of the Customs, Baltimore, Md.
MULES FROM MEXICO.
Treasury Department, October 30, 1837.
S ir :— A question has been submitted to this department by the collector of
customs at the port of San Diego, California, on appeals, in two several cases of
importations of mules from Mexico, from the decisions of the collector levying a
duty on the said mules of 20 per cent ad valorem, as unenumerated articles.
From the reports and statements submitted, it appears that during the month of
June, 1857, droves of mules were brought into the district of San Diego, from the
provinces of Sonora or Sinoloa, in the Republic of Mexico, by the several ap
pellants, Messrs. M. Straus & J . Salomon in the first case, and Mr. Marquis R.
Chamlin in the second. It further appears, that the mules in each case were
taken possession of by the collector, who placed special inspectors in charge of
the respective droves, where they remained until the 1st July, when, on being
withdrawn by the importers, a duty of 20 per cent was levied as upon importa
tions of unenumerated articles, under the provisions of the act of 1857. From
this decision the importers appeal, contending for the free entry of the mules
under the existing laws. In the opinion of this department the provisions o f the
4th section of the act of 3d March, 1857, extends the privileges granted to mer
chandise in public store on the 1st July, 1857, to cases like the present, where
articles not of a description to be stored are in the custody and possession of the
officers of the customs on that day, all charges and expenses of such custody being
paid by the importers. The decision of the collector is therefore overruled, the
mules in question being entitled to free entry under the provisions in schedule I
of the tariff act, exempting from duty “ living animals of all kinds.”
I am, very respectfully,
IIOW ELL COBB, Secretary o f the Treasury.
Jos. M. Covarrubias, Esq., Collector o f the Customs, San Diego, California.
NEW EXPO RT DUTIES ORDERED IN PORTO RICO.
A royal order of importance to our mercantile classes, bearing date May 5,
1857, has recently been issued in Porto Rico. It was published in the island
by the captain-general, Fernando Cotoner, by proclamation or circular, dated
July 27, and is now in force. It owes its origin to the government’s extinguishing
the Macuquino currency at a discount of 12£ per cent, and directing that these
export duties should apply to indemnification for loss by that discount. The ex
port duties are as follows :— On sugar, 61- cents per 100 pounds; on coffee, 25
cents per 100 pounds ; on tobacco, 37£ cents per 100 pounds; on molasses, 50
cents per cask ; on rum, $1 per cask. These export duties are to be collected
until the whole sum is paid off.
VOL. X X X V II.— NO. V I.
46
738
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
The tariff of Porto Rico, in force since November 1, 1851, exempts from ex
port duties the articles comprised in the preceding category. The first article
o f this tariff is thus translated :— The products of the island, except timber, are
free from all export duty, both municipal and of the government.”
STATISTICS OF TRADE AND COMMERCE.
TRADE AND COMMERCE OF CINCINNATI,
DURING THE Y E AR ENDING AUGUST 3 1 s t , 1 8 5 7 .
The “ Annual Statement of the Trade and Commerce of Cincinnati, for the
Commercial Year ending August 3 1 , 1 8 5 7 , ” published in the Price Current, is
before us. This statement has for several years been prepared by W i l l i a m
S m i t h , editor and publisher of the Price Current, and is adopted by the Chamber
of Commerce of Cincinnati as a reliable account of the business of that flour
ishing internal emporium. W e therefore yearly furnish an abstract of this report
and its accompanying statistics, which, with our other frequent accounts of the
progress in population, manufactures, and trade of Cincinnati, have supplied our
readers with all the principal facts in its history to the present time.
VALUE OF PRINCIPAL IMPORTS INTO THE PORT OF
CINCINNATI FOR THE YEARS ENDING
81, 1856 AND 1857.
/------ Year ending August 31,1857.-------*
AUGUST
Articles.
Apples, green .
Beef................
B e e f...............
Bagging..........
Barley............
Beans..............
B u t t e r ................
Butter............
.firks.
k eg s
B l o o m s ............
BraD, <fec........
Candles..........
C orn....................
Corn meal.......
Cider .............
Cheese...........
C h e e s e ...............
C otton ................
Coffee............
Codfish..........
C oop era ge. . . .
E g g s ...................
F lou r............. .................bbls.
Feathers..........
Fish, sundry... .................bbls.
Fish...............
Fruits, dried...
G r e a s e ...............
Glass...............
G la s s w a r e . . . .
Hemp............. ,. bdls. & bbls.
Hides, loose. . . ................No.
Hides, green...,
Total
quantity.
Average
price.
12,470
6S1
1
....
881,060
85,492
11,352
10,818
6,104
125,046
1,898
1,673,363
6,436
911
238
176,623
18,794
102,405
1,441
161,406
18,079
495,089
4,592
13,590
9,226
48,797
9,570
31,561
39,819
8,930
69,440
30,384
13 00
14 00
21 00
....
1 60
2 60
33 00
16 00
60 00
95
8 30
55
80
6 00
26 00
3 60
56 00
18 00
34 00
1 00
7 00
5 75
32 00
13 00
4 00
2 00
20 00
2 50
4 60
20 00
4 25
8
Total
value.
$37,410
9,534
21
....
609,696
88,730
374,616
173,088
366,240
118,793
15,753
920,349
5,148
5,466
6,188
636,842
1,052,464
1,843,290
48,994
161,406
126,553
2,846,761
146,944
176,670
36,904
97,594
191,400
78,902
183,167
178,600
295,120
2,430
Tot. value
1855-56.
$34,753
18,408
10,782
67
342,708
34,859
368,552
192,541
275,430
153,015
13,041
420,759
7,184
6,760
1,848
649,342
1,310,355
1,667,548
52,220
121,911
119,976
3,499,052
40,245
169,967
18,271
220,259
120,003
99,422
144,808
241,896
170,131
4,495
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
Hay ....................................
Herrings............
Hogs..................
Hops................. ...
Iron and steel...
.......... bdls.
«
Lead..................
Lard...................
Lard..................
Leather............
Lemons...........................
Lime..................
Liquors........... hhds. & pipes
Mdse, and sundries...... pkgs.
Merchandise. . .
Molasses...........
Malt.................
Nails.................
Oil....................
Oranges-.......... .bxs. A bbls.
Oakum..............
Oats..................
Oil cake.......... ............. lbs.
Pork and bacon
(C
«
“
............blk.
Potatoes.......... ... ........... bbls.
Iron, pig.....................
Pimento and pepper . . .bags
R y e .....................................
Rosin, tar, A c . .
Raisins........................ ...
Rope, twine, Ac,....................... Pkg3R ice ................
Sugar .............................
Sugar............... ......................... bbls.
Sugar ..............
Seed, flax........
Seed, grass . . .
Seed, hemp . . . ,
Salt..................
Salt.................
Shot ................
T e a .................. .......... pkgs.
Tobacco...........
Tobacco.......... .
Tobacco...........
T allow ............
Wines..........bbls. qr. casks
Wines............. .bskts. <fc bxs.
AVheat............
Wool...............
Whisky . . . . . ............bbls.
Yarns, cotton . ............PkgsY arns...............
Lumber...........
Coal................
Shingles.......................... No.
Staves, wood, & stone, estimated at......
Total....
57,722
8,443
466,729
4,270
843,499
120,580
6,181
61,328
29,465
10,534
19,035
,7,125
68,755
2,434
810,091
2,012
43,682
108,291
112,215
12,545
13,317
4,716
534,312
160,958
8,264
1,667
19,713
11,968,483
46,537
29,484
3,357
113,818
6,531
15,724
7,685
4,285
15,980
21,647
1,473
21.101
11,474
641
148,303
112,971
1,562
14,230
4,837
2,663
40,994
4,581
3,633
10,110
737,723
6,029
531.873
14,696
7,852
90,000,000
14,500,000
37,400,000
3 25
60
13 00
25 00
1 60
4 00
80 00
6 60
27 00
5 50
16 00
4 00
1 00
225 00
38 00
640 00
22 00
1 80
4 75
41 00
5 00
17 50
48
2
80 00
26 00
18 00
8
2 25
30 00
16 00
90
3 25
4 25
7 50
38 00
120 00
25 00
62 00
4 50
24 00
3 25
1 50
2 50
24 50
37 00
110 00
11 00
27 00
28 00
70 00
12 00
1 30
32 00
13 00
1 75
23
H
10
4 00
739
$187,596
5,065
6,067,477
106,750
1,349,598
482,320
494,480
398,632
795,555
57,937
304,560
28,600
68,755
547,650
30,783,458
1,287,680
961,504
194.923
533,021
514,345
66,585
82,530
256,469
3,219
261,120
43,342
354,834
897,478
104,708
884,520
63,712
102,436
21,226
66,827
67,637
162,830
1,917,600
541,175
91,326
94,954
275,376
2,086
222,454
282,427
38,249
526,510
532,070
29,293
1,106,838
127,868
254,310
121,320
959,039
192,928
6,914,349
25,716
1,806
1,350,000
1,450,000
149,600
$114664
7,711
6,255 751
153,265
1,185,659
4,541,184
300,566
245,514
1,9S7,625
73,815
213,178
42,873
53,545
442,600
29,476,500
1,539,986
1,107,958
120,267
494,317
497,154
39,850
67,480
129,254
6,249
603,508
165,286
420,672
1,153,771
58,639
1,435,560
56,220
116,665
39,585
69,404
57.322
155,470
2,688,320
336>20
90,405
135,707
173,640
5,798
121.078
149,932
39,552
480,992
535,988
18,522
915.948
59,852
193,048
83,088
1,497,255
201,159
5,564,013
14,563
5,692
1,031,250
675,000
120,000
. . . .
. . . .
460,000
410,000
. . . .
. . . .
$77,950,146
$75,295,901
740
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
VALUE OF PRINCIPAL EXPORTS FROM TOE PORT OF CINCINNATI FOR THE YEARS ENDING
81, 1856 AND 1857.
r------ Tear ending August 31,1857.-------,
Total
Average
Total
quantity.c
price.
value.
5,001
$3 00
$15,003
44,629
26 40
1,178,205
18,769
14 00
262,766
5,057
21 00
106,197
4,736
6 00
28,416
28,696
1 75
60,218
2,569
36 00
92,484
21,913
12 00
262,956
90
15,657
14,091
1,334
2 90
3,868
81,470
1 25
101,837
951
3 00
2,853
97
26 00
2,522
112,692
3 70
418,960
160,840
8 30
1,334,972
20,454
74 00
1,513,596
13,278
56 00
743,568
49,694
18 00
894,492
105,363
1 10
115,899
10,438
10 00
104,380
416,789
5 75
2,396,536
4,730
35 00
165,550
21,801
43,602
2 00
6,834
20 00
136,680
7,004
168,096
24 00
2,386
140 00
334,040
4,757
15,460
3 25
1,698
25 00
42,450
37,309
15
559,635
57,422
4 25
244,043
944,538
1 50
1,416,807
97,761
3 75
2,866,603
16,064
80 00
1,285,120
36,989
27 00
99S.703
51,591
5 50
283,750
45,437
40 00
1,817.480
36 00
32,292
897
23,576
22 00
518,672
778
35 00
27,230
85,058
1 25
43,822
25,986
2 25
58,469
34,072
80 00
2,725,760
32,775
26 00
852,150
100,816
18 00
1,814,688
29,896
34 00
1,016,464
900,799
67,559
7i
8,154
7 00
67,078
41,788
5 00
208,940
6,487
2 00
12,974
13,270
120 00
1,592,400
39,192
2 50
97,980
10,417
1 50
15,626
764
4 50
3,438
1,376,525
8 50
11,700,462
5,730
640 00
3,671,040
61,287
50 00
3,064,350
437,106
4 00
1,748,424
174.819
3 50
611,886
35,857
4 00
143,428
AUGUST
Articles.
Apples, green.......... ...bbls.
Alcohol............ . . .
Beef..........................
B eef.........................
Beans........................ .. bbls.
Brooms....................
Butter.......................
Butter............... firks. & kegs
lJran, etc...................
Bagging....................
Corn m eal................ ..bbls.
Cheese......................
Cheese......................
Candles......................
Cuttle.......................
Cotton.......................
Colfee......................
Cooperage................
Eggs.........................
Flour.......................
Feathers..................
Fruit, dried...............
Grease...................... ..bbls.
Grass seed................
Horses.......................
Hay.........................
H em p......................
Hides.........................
Hides....................... ■...No.
Iron .........................
Iron...........................
Iron..........................
Lard.........................
Lai d.........................
Lard o i l ....................
Linseed oil..............
Molasses...................
Oil cake....................
Oats.........................
Potatoes, & c ..............
Pork and bacon........
“
....
it
. bbls.
“
....
“
in bulk... lbs.
Rope, twine, <£c.......
Soap.........................
Sheep.......................
Sugar.......................
Salt...........................
S alt.........................
Seed, flax................ ..bbls.
Sundry merchandise.. ..pkgs.
“
merchandise.. .. tons
“
liquors..........
“
manufactures . . . pcs.
“
produce . . . .
Starch......................
Tot. value
1£55-56.
$17,582 '
836,325
284,192
87,192
9,455
56,198
76,512
309,408
16,270
15,696
77,528
2,671
192
401,125
1,552,997
1,498,650
973,125
682,254
126,211
86,030
3,257,798
141,441
79.473
130,475
89,560
269,220
3,628
68,688
804
117,400
1,283,577
845,146
950.480
795,950
251,940
1,871,496
131,004
671,832
28,588
4,416
62,610
2,108,310
920.018
1,713.904
819,296
78,065
36,008
168,128
7,326
1,813,680
85,426
18,000
7,444
7,928,868
6,997,006
1,185 570
1,333,492
1,817,851
151,964
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
/-------- Year ending August 31,1857.-------- v
Total
Average
Total
quantity.
price.
value.
Articles.
Tallow............ ...............bbls.
Tobacco.............. k eg s & bxs.
4*
“
741
..............
............
Vinegar..........
W hisky..........
VVool............... .
W ool...............
White lead. . . .
Castings..........
Castings..........
W heatf............
Total....
28
27
110
11
4
13
32
6,987
34,298
4,054
5,826
10,407
361,889
7,180
1,411
61,449
94,226
3,818
197,460
2
5
90
2
....
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
45
25
00
00
40
....
Tot. value
1855-56.
8195.636
926,046
445,940
64,086
41,628
4,704,557
229,760
634
138,260
471,130
343,620'
473,904
8106,444
679,752
470,470
26,752
48.832
4,581,642
269,421
268
123,270
274,640
316,620
64,360
855,642,171
$50,809,146
It will be seen by the following table that there has been a large increase in
the value of the leading articles of the commerce, as compared with previous
years:—
Imports.
T e a rs .
185118521853-
2 . . 841,266,199
.
3 . . . 51,230,644
4 . . . 65,730,029
Exports.
T ears.
833,234,896
36,266,108
45,432,780
185418551856-
Imports.
5 . . $67,501,341
.
6 . . . 75,295,901
7 . . . 77,090,146
Exports.
838,777,394
50.744,786
55,642,171
It must be borne in mind that these figures do not show the entire value o f the
commerce. None of the furniture, machinery, and agricultural implements— such
as wagons, portable-mills, reaping-machines, etc., exported are included in the
exports, and a large amount of general merchandise is not included in the im
ports. Ten per cent may be added to the aggregate value of the imports, and
twenty-five per cent to the value of the exports, as given, in order to arrive at
the true figures. Under all the adverse circumstances, the above table shows a
gratifying increase; but, with the large crops now gathered, the increase during
the coming year promises to be vastly greater than in any previous year. It is
proper to mention in this connection that all the goods and merchandise which
comes to Cincinnati for reshipment, is excluded from the tables of imports and
exports, though the transhipment of them adds largely to the trade of the port.
W e append some of the leading articles of imports and exports, in a comparative
form, in which there was a marked increase or decrease during the year ending
August 31,1857, as compared with the previous year :—
IMPORTS.
1855—6.
244,792
15,493
3,939
978,511
92,086
14,997
7,059
52,348
41,696
741,037
113,546
3,757
44,639
15,227
63,545
A r tic le s .
Barley........................
Beans ......................
Blooms.....................
Corn.........................
Coffee......................
E g g s .......................................
Grease.................... ..................... bbls.
Hides, loose............. ......................No.
Hay........................
Iron and steel...........
(I
U
......................bdls.
Lead.........................
Leather....................
Lime........................
i
1 8 5 6 -7 .
881,060
35,493
6,104
1,673,363
102,405
18,079
9,750
69,440
57,722
843,499
120,580
6,181
61,328
19,035
68,755
In crease
per c e n t
55
122
55
70
11
20
35
82
38
13
6
64
37
24
23
742
S ta tistic s o f T ra d e
and
M alt..................
Nails....................
Oranges ..................
Oats......................
Potatoes..................
Rope, twine, (fee........
Sugar.......................
Grass seed................
Sail...........................
Sail.........................
Tobacco...................
Tobacco....................
Tallow......................
W in e .......................
W hisby....................
Yarns, cotton............
A pples....................
Bran, <fec....................
Cheese......................
Cotton.......................
Flour........................
Dried fruit................
H em p......................
Hogs.........................
Lar.l.........................
Molasses...................
O il cuke....................
Pork and bacon........
“
........
“
........
“
bulk. ....................... lbs.
Pig iron...................
Rye...........................
Rosin, tar, Ac...........
Sugar.......................
Sugar.......................
Flax seed...................................... bbls.
Tobacco ....................
Wheat.......................
C om m erce.
68,839
104,067
7,972
403,920
33,508
5,643
16,846
8,682
80,719
54,521
2,129
33,924
2,302
6,924
428,001
9,102
108,291
112,215
13,317
534,312
46,537
7,685
21,647
11,474
148,303
112,971
2,663
40,994
4,581
10,110
531,173
14,696
31,594
180,018
190,983
29,119
546,727
137,662
10,079
456,187
79 505
65,174
499,980
9,784
7,513
26,202
16,482,452
41,976
158,220
12,180
23,354
2,009
26,894
5,702
12,470
125,046
176,623
18,794
495,089
48,797
8,930
407,729
29,465
43,682
160,958
3,264
1,667
19,713
11,968,483
29,484
113,818
6,531
15,980
1,473
21.101
4,837
737,723
57
17
67
32
38
36
28
32
84
107
25
20
55
46
24
61
Decrease
per cent.
60
29
7
35
9
62
20
10
63
18
60
66
77
63
25
29
28
46
50
26
18
15
31
EXPO RTS.
Articles.
Alcohol.....................
Beans .......................
Corn.........................
Coffee.......................
E g g s................... . .
Grass seed..............
Hay...........................
Hides.......................
Hides.......................
Iron...........................
Iron...........................
Iron .................... .
Lard.........................
Oats...........................
Rope, twine, <fec........
Sheep.......................
Salt........................... ..................... bbls.
Liquors.....................
T adow ......................
Tobacco.....................
1 8 3 5 -6 .
31,679
1,891
75,260
37,903
8,603
4,478
1,008
7,315
36,123
855,715
92,039
11,881
81,838
5,521
5,144
3,613
31,064
26,346
4,094
27,745
1 8 5 6 -7 .
44,629
4,736
81,470
49,694
10,438
7,004
4,754
37,309
57,422
944,538
97,761
16,064
36,989
35,058
8,154
6,487
39,192
61,287
6,987
34,298
Increase
per cent
40
150
8
31
21
78
229
410
59
10
6
35
16
534
68
75
26
132
70
24
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
Tobacco ..................
Whisky...................
White lead.............
Castings..................
3,075
352,434
56,063
54,928
7 43
88
3
10
73
5,827
361,889
61,449
94,226
Decrease
per cent.
Apples................... ....................... bbls.
Bagging...................
Cotton......................
Flour............................................... bbls.
Dried fruit...............
Hemp......................
O il......................... ....................... bbls.
Molasses..................
Sugar.......................
Flax seed.................
Tobacco..................
Vinegar....................
Wool.......................
10,047
6,378
21,625
509,031
49,671
2,862
60,351
37,324
21,336
1,418
5,008
12,208
8,691
5,001
1,334
13,278
416,789
21,801
1,698
46,334
23,576
13,270
764
4,054
10,407
7,180
50
75
38
19
56
40
23
37
37
46
20
14
17
DESTINATION OF TIIE PRINCIPAL ARTICLES EXPORTED FROM THE PORT OF CINCINNATI FOR
THE YEAR COMMENCING SEPTEMBER 1ST, AND ENDING AUGUST 3 1 s T, 1 8 5 7 .
Commodities.
A p p le s ...................
A lc o h o l................. .
B e e f.........................
B e e f........................
B eans ...................
B r o o m s ...................
B u t te r ...................
B u t t e r .. . . . .firks,. it kegs
Bran, <fcc.................
B a g g in g ............... .
C o r n ........................
Corn m e a l.............
C h e e s e ...................
C heese.....................
C a n d le s ................
C attle.....................
C o t t o n ...................
C offee......................
C oop era ge..............
E g g s ...................... . . . b b l s .
F l o u r .....................
F eath ers.................
Fruit, d ried ........... . . bush.
G r e a s e ...................
Grass s e e d ..........
H o r s e s ...................
H a y ........................
H e m p ................... ..
H id es...................... . . . . l b s .
H i d e s ...................
I r o n .........................
I r o n ........................
Iron ..........................
L a rd ........................
L a rd ........................ . . . k e g s
L a rd o i l ...............
L in seed o i l ............
M o la ss e s .................
O il c a k e .................
O ats..........................
P otatoes . . . . . . .
To New
Orleans.
405
12,020
12,972
121
727
9,570
728
13,721
....
11
....
22,752
57,754
« ...
16,640
1,311
68,625
42
263
25
2
397
155
....
....
18,149
1,405
60
3,130
17,878
6,363
3
68
13,759
2,020
T o oth. down
river ports.
2,588
2,046
805
239
2,837
14,671
1,115
5,832
4,064
1,334
9,688
148
59
62,070
38,318
69
3
11,728
47,532
376
15,463
55
4,263
2,683
4,038
1,347
3,998
775
91
260,947
41,871
2,790
1,801
1,517
4,293
595
987
14,149
9,668
To up
river ports.
101
1,812
2,024
1,236
281
934
37
192
8,845
61,276
574
24
4,520
7,361
8,030
3,570
14,632
35
107,040
1,040
793
5C5
1,347
84
236
826
12,000
19,249
231762
5,992
1,242
8,555
9 ,894
9,971
6
5,931
24
979
6,776
Via canals
& railways.
1,907
28,751
2,968
3,461
891
3,621
689
2,168
2,748
....
10,506
218
14
23,350
57,407
20,385
5,245
34,396
26,579
8,717
225,661
3,593
16,482
3,621
1,617
558
368
597
25,309
38,082
641,680
48,493
11,972
23,503
22,302
25,810
296
16,655
686
6,171
8,522
By flat
boats.
....
2
631
....
68
962
377
500
••••
....
1,620
260
35
160
....
30,813
75
....
325
• • ••
...
192
....
128
....
915
25
5
3,857
2,943
744
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
P o rk and b a c o n ___ .bhds.
D i t t o ...........................
D itto ............................
D it t o ........................ ..
D itto, in b u l k ..........
R o p e ........................... ,pkg9.
S o a p ...........................
S b e e p ........................
S u g a r ........................ .bhds.
S a l t ............................. . bbls.
S a l t ................. . . . . . sacks
S e e d , f l a x .................
S u n d ry m erch’ dise. •pkgs.
D itto m erch an dise. . .ton s
D itto l i q u o r s ..........
D itto m is ................. . . . p s .
D itto p rod u ce . . . . .p k g s.
S ta rch ........................
T a llo w ...................... .
T o b a c c o .......... kegs & bxs.
D itto ...........................
D it t o ......................
V in e g a r .....................
W h i s k y .................
W o o l .........................
W o o l .........................
W h ite l e a d ............ .
C astings.....................
C a s tin g s -.................
W h e a t........................
8,655
6,862
44,493
1,000
248,COO
1,378
1,128
285
....
1,003
98,553
• „,. .
1,080
2,048
1,266
170
50,000
5,257
8,245
57
736
1,634
4,475
259
391,125
1,529
34,219
339,772
96,880
15,332
117
10,031
307
1,322
3,713
120,276
271
232
5,043
792
55
10,449
57,474
2,524
6,445
75
45,300
60
4,709
51,179
756
13,335
988
828
8,804
8,748
12,029
8,916
396,180
336
7,451
1,117
692
605
45
195,000
39
4,360
10,773
15,490
2,090
432
2,496
264
651
790
51,962
2,699
4,641
5,061
4
25,642
15,633
15.617
43,028
19,810
206,619
1,183
24,9 64
6,145
11,417
36,966
5,337
385
745 ,10 0
4,118
17,899
35,382
61,687
5,096
6,438
20,773
2,655
3 ,853
4,901
91,098
4 ,2 1 0
1,411
46,127
26,648
498
165,318
27
86
1,678
50,000
69
296
. .. .
6
6
14,500
56
37
710
...»
282
. .. .
215
....
11
145
22,201
....
335
32
. . ..
PROGRESS OF GERMAN COMMERCE AMD INDUSTRY.
According to a correspondent of the Neue Zeit, the development of the Ham
burg commerce has been most speedy and energetic. The commercial fleet of
that city comprised in 184", 223 ships of 9,494 tons, and in 185G, 4G8 vessels of
28,869 tons burden. It has, therefore, according to the number of vessels, more
than doubled in that time— according to the tonnage it has increased more than
threefold. The average tonnage of a vessel in 1847 was42| tons; iu 1856, G1J
tons.
These calculations show that the vessels built for crossing the Atlantic have
especially increased. Among these are now included 17 sea steamships. A t the
end of 1856, the Bremen commercial fleet comprised 271 sea vessels of 3,889 tons,
and the Baltic fleet of Prussia comprised at the end of 1846, 896 vessels, of
56,524 tons, and at the close of 1856, 933 vessels of 70,024 tons burden. V ari
ous unfavorable circumstances, su h as the Danish blockade of the Baltic ports
in 1848 and 1849, the Sound dues, and the high tariff of the Zollverein have pre
vented this increase from being greater.
The aggregate value of- the productions of mining, smelting, and salt works,
amounted in Prussia, in 1855, to 67,200,000; in 1845, only to 30,000,000.
It has thus more than doubled in five years. In 1840, 13,854,588 tons of coal
were produced ; 1850, 29,600.000 tons ; 1855, 54,500,000 tons. Iron ore, 1850,
1,500,000 tons; 1855, 2,228,117 tons. Zinc ore, 1850, 2,956,791 hundred
pounds; 1855, 4,287,293 hundred pounds.
The value of mining products
amounted, in 1820, to $8,133,274 ; in 1855, to $18,978,416. The value of smelt
ing products amounted, in 1850, to $19,867,727 ; in 1855, to $47,113,603.
Statistics o f Trade and Commerce.
745
TOBACCO MONOPOLY IN FRANCE, AND TOBACCO DOTIES IN ENGLAND.
From a document issued by the Ministry of Finance, exhibiting comparative
statements of the indirect revenues of France, the first six months of 1857, com
pared with the corresponding period of 1858, it appears that the product of the
sale of tobacco (the tobacco monopoly in the hands of the Regie) during the
former period amounted to 84,168,000 francs, or nearly $17,000,000, against
79,011,000 francs, or $15,800,000, the first six months of 1856. During the same
period there were imported into Great Britain, for consumption 16,121,746 pounds
of tobacco, exclusive of manufactured and snuff, on which the British government
realized a revenue from custom-house duties alone of $12,188,040. Supposing
the importation of tobacco into both these countries the last six months of 1857,
should equal (and it will doubtless exceed) the importation of the first six months,
the aggregate amount o f revenue derived from tobacco, almost wholly of American
growth, by the governments of Great Britain and France would reach, for 1857,
the sum of $58,376,080; or for France $34,000,000, and for Great Britain
$24,376,080. Almost every dollar of this enormous sum comes out of the labor
and toil of American tobacco-growers, and the figures represent no more than a
minimum average of the result, one year with another, of the American tobacco
trade in France and Great Britain.
THE TOBACCO TRADE OF RICHMOND.
There are, according to the Richmond South, fifty-six manufacturers of this
staple, tobacco, in Richmond, whose united capital amounts to four or five
millions of dollars. More tobacco is raised in Virginia, and opened, inspected,
and sold in that city, than perhaps in any one place in the United States.^It
is there that the choicest specimens of the weed assume the shape which com
mends it to the regard of devoted chewers, everywhere. Tobacco is pat up in as
many different ways almost as there are chewers. There is as much difference
between the ideas of the Yankee and Southerner on this question of taste, as
there are on any other matter. The former likes his“ pig tail” plentifully sweet
ened, and liquoriced to a degree ; the latter, the less sweetening you put in, the
better the tobacco. Buyers congregate here ■who purchase for all parts of the
globe. Foreign governments are supplied by agents, who reside here for that
purpose. With many a citizen in Richmand, the road to wealth has been via
Tobacco. Some of the richest men in that city have made their “ pile” this
way. Success in the trade is followed by a plethoric purse and a healthy pecu
niary condition ; but fortunes, from over-speculation, have as often been lost as
soonas made.
TRADE OF VENEZUELA.
The wholesale trade of Venezuela is carried on by wealthy houses, German,
French, English, North American, Spanish, and a few natives. The intermediate
or retail trade is carried on generally by the natives, in shops and provision
depots calculated for their trade. The general consumption of foreign goods in
1855, was as follows :— In cotton goods, 2,275,245 dols.; wollen goods, 253,362
dnls.; linen goods, 689,286 dols.; silks, 197,224 dols.; provisions, 495,137 dols.;
liquors, 353,515 dols.; small wares, hardware, 256,703 dols.; coin and various
articles, 1,721,244 dols.; total, 6,242,686 dols.
746
N autical Intelligence.
THE FISH TRADE OF THE GERMAN ZOLLVEREIN.
According to a statement in a German paper, the importation of herrings into
the Zollverein has augmented nearly two-thirds since 1825. The same authority
says, there were imported into Prussia in 1825, 45,269 packages, of 800 fish
each, for a population of twelve-and-a-quarter millions ; whilst in the Zollverein,
there were imported in 1856, 333,355 packages, for a population of thirty-twoand-a-half millions—namely, in 1825 about three herrings, and in 1856 about eight
herrings, for every inhabitant. The great consumption has hitherto been in
Prussia and northern Germany; but by means of railroads the consumption has
lately extended to the southern States of the confederation. The importation of
oysters into the Zollverein, in the years 1825 and 1831 was, on an average, 1,898
quintals. On reckoning 100 oysters for 20 pounds, it gave in Prussia 12 oysters
for every 140 or 150 persons. In 1856 the consumption of oysters in the Zollver
ein was 6,430 quintals— nearly 12 oysters for 111 persons, or about one oyster
for 10 persons. In Berlin the consumption in 1844, was 657, and in 1853,
2,784 quintals.
NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE.
CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA— PACIFIC OCEAN.
The following notices have been received at the office of the Lighthouse
Board :—
F i x e d l i g h t a t P itn ta A r e n a s .— A fixed light has been established at Punta
Arenas, in the Gulf of Nicoya. at an elevation of 65 feet above the mean level of
the sea, and should be visible from the deck of a ship, in ordinary weather, at a
distance of 10 miles. The lighthouse stands between the point and the town, in
lat. 9° 48' 40" north ; long. 84° 45' west of Greenwich. The light may be plainly
seen when a vessel is a little to the southward of the Sail Rock, and by not
bringing the light to the northward of N. N. W ., it will lead clear of all danger
up to the anchorage of the town.
R o c k i n H e r r a d u r a B a y .— A dangerous rock has been discovered in Herradura Bay, on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Nicoya. It has a depth of only
two feet on it at low water of spring tides, and is sometimes visible when there
is much swell on. It lies nearly in the middle of the bay, with a house on the
beach bearing N. E. J N. eight cables’ length, and a Canon pinnacle S. W . by
S. nine cables’ length. A t full and change of the moon, the tide rises about 9j
feet.
S h o a l o f f t iie R i v e r L e m p a .— An extensive shoal, having only 12 feet of
water over it, on which two vessels have recently struck, is reported to lie off the
River Lempa, about 10 miles off shore, and directly in the track of vessels bound
from La Union to Acajutla. The shoal is about three miles long, in a N. E. and
S. W . direction ; and from its center the volcano of San Miguel (6,790 feet high)
bears N . N . E. It lies in lat. 13° 2' north : long. 88° 19' west of Greenwich.
There is reason to believe that the whole of this coast of Central America is
placed in our charts about eight miles too far north.
R o c k s i n S m y t h C h a n n e l , M a g e l l a n S t r a i t .— A shoal in Smyth Chan
nel. at the northwest end of Magellan Strait, was struck upon by H. M. S.
“ Vixen” when steering to the northward and attempting to take the passage
between the east side of Long Island and King William Land. It extends across
the passage, from the shore under Rose Hill to within half a cable’s length of
the beach on Long Island; has only 6 feet of water on it, and the depths de
crease suddenly from 25 to 4£ fathoms, close to. The bearings from the vessel
Nautical Intelligence.
when aground were, the southeast extreme of Long Island S. j- B . ; and the
highest point of the island W . by S. This extensive shoal, with a patch of
rocks immediately in the fairway, (steep to, with only 9 feet of water on them,)
renders this passage unnavigable; and vessels should follow the channel recom
mended in the sailing directions forjSouth America, part 11, page '264, viz. :— to
the eastward of the Otter Islands, and then between the Summer Isles and Long
Island.
A ll bearings are magnetic. Variation in 1857 :— In Gulf of Nicoya, 7 f B. ;
off the Lempa, 7 f° E. ; off N. W . end of Magellan Strait, 22|° E. By ordee of
the Lighthouse Board,
THORNTON A. JENKINS, Secretary.
Office Lighthouse Board, )
Washington* Oct. 24, J857.
j
T reasu ry D epartm ent,
FLOATING LIGHTS IN THE RIO DE LA. PLATA.
ATLANTIC OCEAN---- SOUTH AMERICA.
Official information has been received at this office, that the Captain of the
Port at Buenos Ayres has given notice, that the following lights have recently
been established in the Bio de la Plata :—-1. A light-vessel off Point Indio, carry
ing a fixed white light at a height of about 30 feet above the level of the sea,
visible from the deck of a ship at a distance of from 8 to 10 miles in clear
weather. The vessel lies in 3£ fathoms water, N. E. i N . off Point Indio, at
about 8 miles from the land, near the edge of the bank or shelf that extends to
that distance off shore, and at about 9 miles S. S. W . of the tail or southeastern
extremity of the Ortiz bank, in lat. 35° l i t ' S . ; long. 57° 1' W. of Green
wich.
2. A light-vessel off the north end of the Chico Bank, showing a fixed white
light, visible from 8 to 10 miles in clear weather. The vessel lies in 5 fathoms
water, N . E. f N., 13 miles from Point Atalaya, and about 33 miles N. AV. £
W . from the before named Point of Indio light-vessel, in lat. 34° 46' S . ; long
57° 28' W .
3. A fixed white light is shown from the hulk or guardship, that lies in the
Outer Road at Buenos Ayres, in 21 fathoms water, at about 3J miles E. N . E.
of the city, and 40 miles W . i N. from the above named Chico light-vessel. It
may be seen 7 miles in clear weather.
Further notice has been given, that a light-vessel is shortly to be placed off
the north spit of the English bank, at a distance of 11 miles S. by E. from
Fiores revolving lig h t; also a light on the south point ot Lobos Island, off Mal
donado, near the north entrance of the Biver Plata. It is further proposed to
place a refuge raft on the English bank.
A ll bearings are magnetic. Variation, 11° E. at Buenos Ayres, and 9° 50'
at Monte Video, in January, 1857. By order of the Lighthouse Board,
THORNTON A. JENKINS, Secretary.
Office Lighthouse Board, i
October 5, 1857.
f
T reasu ry D epartm en t,
CHANGE OF BUOYS AND LIGHT-SHIPS AT PORT OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.
ALL BEARINGS BY COMPASS.
Official information has been received at this office that the trustees of the
Liverpool docks and harbor have given notice, that the following changes in the
buoying and lighting of the approaches to the port, will be carried into effect on
Monday, the 12th October inst., and following days (weather permitting.) The
buoys undermentioned being rendered unnecessary or inconvenient, in their pres
ent positions, by changes in the banks, will be removed, or, where requisite, su
perseded by new arrangements
Z. 2, red can ; P. 4, red can ; Z. 1, black and
white striped horizontally; B. 1, black and white chequered mm bu oy; B. 2,
black and white chequered nun buoy.
748
Nautical Intelligence.
ALTER
R E L A T IV E CHANGE.
B E A R IN G S A N D
D IS T A N C E S F R O M N E W P O S IT IO N S .
Formby light-ship will be moved from her pres Crosby lighthouse S. E . b y E . 1 - 2 E. easterly,
4 3-4 miles. Crosby light-ship, S. E.
ent berth N. W. 2-3 N. 1 mile and 20
1-4 S. 25-6 miles. N. W . mark, E. by
fathoms, into 22 feet at low water.
N. northerly, 4 1-8 miles. Q. Fairway
buoy, N. W . b y W . 1-2 W . westerly,
1 5-8 mile. Y. 3, red can buoy, S. by \V.
westerly, 3-8 mile. Y. 3, black nun
buoy, S". W. 1-2 mile.
Q. Fy., black pillar buoy, will be moved N. W. Formby light-ship and Crosby shore light in
one, S. E. by E. 1-2 E. easterly, distant
1-4 W . 155 fathoms, into 30 feet at low
water.
from Formby light-ship 1 5-8 mile. Bell
beacon and N. W . light-ship in one, S.
W. 1-2 W . nearly, distant from Bell
beacon I mile.
Q. 1, chequered red and white can buoy, will Formby light-ship, E. by S. 1-2 S. 1 mile Q.
F y , N. W. 3-4 W . 1-2 mile. Q 1. black
be moved N. W. 1-2 W. 345 fathoms, in
to 11 feet at low water.
and white nun buoy, N. N. E . 3-8
mile.
Q . 1, chequered black and white nun buoy, will Formby light-ship, S. E. 1-2 E. 1 mile. Q. 1,
be moved N. W. by W. 3-1 W. 410 fath
red and white can buoy, S. S. W . 3-8
oms, into 11 feet at low water.
mile.
Y . 2, black nun buoy, will be moved S. W . 32 Bell beacon, W .N . W . nearly, 1 1-4 mile. Crosby
fathoms, into 25 feet at low water.
lighthouse W . by N*. 3-4 N. V. 3, black,
E. 1-4 N. 9 -1(> mile
Y . 3, red can buoy will be m ovedN. E . by N. 30 Formby light-ship, N. by E. easterly, 3-S mile.
V. 3, black nun buoy, W. 1-4 mile. C.
fathoms into 12 feet at low water.
1, red can buoy, S. E. bv E. easterly, 5-8
mile.
S. Y . 1, striped horizontally red and white can S. Y . 1, nun buoy striped horizontslly, N E 3-4
buoy, will be moved N. W . by W. 1-3
N. 3-16 mile. V. 2 red can, W. by N .
W . 185 fathoms, into 12 feet" at low
.1-4 mile nearly. C 1, red can, E. by N.
water,
northerly, 1-2 mile nearly.
Y . 4, red can buoy, will retain its present posi
tion and color, but its denomination will
be changed to C. 1; it will lie in 30 feet
at low water.
The present C. I, red can buoy, will be moved C. 1 red can, N. W. 3-4 N. 1 mile. C. 3, red can
buoy with perch, S. E 1-4 E 3-4 mile.
E. by S. 3-4 S. 170 fathoms, and its de
C. 2, black nun quoy, N. by E 3-8 mile.
nomination changed m
to C. 2, red, into
31 feet at low water.
C. 3, red can buoy with perch, will be moved Crosby light-ship, E. S. E. 5-16 mile. C. 4, red
can buoy S. by E. 1-2 E. I 3-4 mile.
N. N. W. 1-4 W. 372 fathoms, into 44
C. 3, black nun buoy, N. by W. 1-2
feet at low water.
*
mile.
C. 4, red’ can buoy, will be moved N. N. "W. C. 3, red can buoy with perch, N. b y W . 1-2 W .
1 3-4 milo. c. 5, black nun buoy, N. E.
125 fathoms, into 25 feet at low Avater.
1-4 E. 7-8 mile. C- 6, black nun buoy,
S. E. 1-2 E. 1 1-4 mile nearly.
F. 2, red can buoy, will take the position of F.
3, red can, in 10 feet at low water.
F. 3, red can with perch, will be moved S. 1-2 C. 4, black nun buoy, S. S. W. 1 mile. F. 2, red,
N. 1-2 £ . *1 5-16 miles. Formby life
W. I 5-10 miles off south spit o f Jordan
boat flagstaff, N. E. 3-4 E. F 2, black
Bank, on the northwestern side of Cros
nun, N. E. 1-2 N. 5-8 mile nearly.
by channel entrance, into Formby Pool,
in 3 feet at low water.
K . 1, black nun buoy, will be moved W . 1-4 N. W . lightship, "W. 1-4 N. 2 miles Bell beacon,
N. by E. 1-2 easterly, 2 3-4 miles. H.
N. 43(1 fathoms, on western end o f shoal
J, chequered black and white nun buoy,
part of Newcome Knowl.
S. 8-4 E. 2 1-2 miles.
NEW BUOYS W ILL BE 1 LACED AS FOLLOWS :—
Q. 1,
Q. 2, chequered black and white nun buoy, on Formby light-ship, S. E. 1-2 mile.
chequered black and white nun buoy,
southwestern edge of Zebra Flats, in 11
N. W. by W . 1-2 mile nearly. Q. 2,
feet at low water.
chequered red and white can buoy, S.
"W. by S. 3-8 mile.
Q. 2, chequered red and white can buoy, on Formby light-ship. E. 1-2 mile. Q. 1, red and
white can buoy, N. W . by \V 1-2 mile.
northeastern edge of Little B urbo.in 12
Q. 2, black and white nun, N. E. by N.
feet at low water.
3-8 mile.
F.
2,
red
can, N. by W . 1-2 W. 1 mile nearly.
F . 2, black nun buoy, on N W . side of northern
F. 3, red can. S. W 1-2 S. 5-8 mile near
spit of Formby bank, west side of en
trance to New Cut, in 6 feet at low
ly.
Formby life-boat flagstaff, N. E.
by E. 3-4 E. 7-8 mile.
water.
B. P.. chequered black and white nun buoy, on Spencer's spit buoy, W . by N 1 1-8 mile Leasowe lighthouse, S. by E. 1-2 E. I 1-8
shoalest part of Beggar's Patch, in (i feet
mile. It. 2, red can buoy, S. E. by E.
at low water.
8-4 E. 1-2 mile.
Nautical Intelligence.
749
REMARKS AND DIRECTIONS.
The effect of the above alterations will be. to make the Queen’s channel the
channel for night navigation,jthe buoys in the Victoria channel being trimmed to
the growth of the banks, and their general arrangement remaining the same as
before. It may be navigated by daylight, great care being taken to make due
allowance for the tide, which, during both flow and ebb, sets across this channel
and over the banks on either side of it. The navigation of the Crosby channel
in thick weather, will be facilitated by the equalizing of the distances and
straightening the line of buoys.
From a position of 2 miles north of Point Lynas, the Fairway buoy of the
Queen’s channel will bear E. by S. i S., distant 39 miles, that line of bearing
passing 4 miles north of the N . W . ship, and } of a mile north of the Bell bea
con. The buoy Q. Fy., lies with the Formby light-ship (two white lights) on
with the Crosby shore red light, bearing S. E. by E. £ (5. easterly; and this line
leads in the Fairway of the Queen’s channel, with not less than 10 feet water
over the bar. The Formby lightship lies in the elbow of the Crosby and
Queen’s channels, bearing N .W . northerly from the Crosby light-ship, her position
being over towards the N . E. side of the channel. Ships navigating the Crosby
and Queen’s channels should always alter course so as to pass to southward of her.
The tide sets fair through these channels. From the Queen’s channel northward
to the line of the Zebra buoys, the ground consists of ridges of sand, with from
5 to 9 feet water at low water; this part may be navigated after half-tide by
vessels drawing from 16 to 17 feet.
The new buoy on the Beggar’s patch, being on its shoalest part, should be
given a wide berth. By order of the Lighthouse Board,
THORNTON A . JENKINS, Secretary.
Treasury Department, Office Lighthouse
Washington, October 10, 1857.
Board, )
j
VARIATION OF THE COMPASS— BRITISH ISLE S.
The Hydrographer to the British Admiralty has published the following in
formation respecting the variation of the compass in the British Islands and ad
jacent seas, in order— 1st. To apprise mariners of the decrease of the variation,
which in the last 20 years has amounted to one-quarter of a point, aud at present
averages 6 minutes annually. 2dly. To enable mariners, chart makers, and
agents for the sale of charts, to correct the numerous charts and sailing direc
tions now in use; all of which have the variation incorrectly marked.
From Shetland, the Orkneys, and Hebrides, to the northern coasts of France
between Calais and Ushant, the present general direction of the lines of equal
variation is S. S. W . and N . N . E., (true,) ranging in amount from 21° to 28°
westerly.
EASTERN COAST.
L e r w ic k and S u m bu rgh
25 0
P en tla u d
au d
M oray
F rith s ...............................
B uch aon ess and Fifeness
H o ly and F a rn I s la n d s ...
W.
25f° “
24£° “
24 ° “
A t S h ield s, S u n d erla n d , and
H a r t le p o o l..................
F la n iborou gh H e a d ..........
T h e W ash and D u d g e o n .
L em an and O w er, Y a rm onth and Orfordness,
23 F W.
22J° 44
22 ° (1
21i°
21F
(t
23 0
23|°
24
26 °
2«F
w.
«(
SOUTHERN COASTS.
N orth and S outh F orelands and D u n g e n e s s ..
B eeeh y H ea d ...................
St. C atherin e's, Isle o f
W i g h t .............................
B ill o f P o r tla n d .................
21 0
2
W.
22 ° “
22i° “
A t S ta rt Pi lint.............................
L izard P o in t ........................
S cilly I s la n d s .......................
C ork H a r b o r .........................
C a p e C le a r ...........................
“
((
{(
\
*750
Nautical Intelligence.
WESTERN COASTS.
At Valentia and the Biasquets ...............
Arran Islands................
Achill Head...................
Tory Island......................
At
the Minch and Little
Minch.........................
Cape Wrath.......... . . .
Thurso.............................
At Innistrnbaul lighthouse...
Skerryvore lighthouse...
27}° W.
Bara Head......................
27|° “
Butt of Lewis.................
28 0 “
27}° “
NORTHERN COASTS.
At North Bonaldsha Orkneys
Foula Island, Shetland..
27}° w .
Uust Island, Shetland...
27 ° “
26 ° “
27 °
27i°
27|°
Og 0
W.
“
“
K
25}° W,
25J° “
25 ° “
IRISH SEA AND BRISTOL CHANNEL.
At Mull of Cantire................
Mull of Galloway. . . . .
Isle of Man......................
Liverpool.........................
Holyhead........................
W. At Dublin..............................
Smalls lighthouse........
“
Tuscar lighthouse............
“
Lundy Island..................
“
Bristol.............................
“
26£°
254°
25 0
24 °
24}°
25|°
24J°
25}°
24 °
22 °
W.
“
“
u
“
NORTHERN COAST OF FRANCE.
At Calais...............................
Havre...............................
Cape Barfleur..................
J ersey.............................
20}°
21 °
21f°
2 1 }°
W
“
“
“
At
Casquets, Alderney aDd
22}° W.
Guernsey....................
23 ° “
Ushant............................
Republished by order of the Lighthouse Board,
TIIOBNTON A. JENKINS, Secretary.
Office Lighthouse Board, )
October 5, 1857.
f
T reasu ry D e partm en t,
VARIATION OF THE COMPASS— MEDITERRANEAN, BLACK, AND RED SEAS,
The Hydrographer of the British Admiralty has published the following in
formation respecting the variation of the compass in the Mediterranean, Black,
and Bed Seas, in order to apprise mariners of the gradual decrease of the varia
tion, which, in many places, since the commencement of the present century, has
amounted to more than hall a point. The average rate of annual decrease at
the present time, appears to lie about 3' at the western limits of the Mediter
ranean, 5' in the central portion, 6' in the eastern limits and the Black Sea, and
about 7' in the Bed Sea.
SPAIN, FRANCE, AND ITALY.
Gibraltar.............................
Cape de Gat.......................
Cape Antonio and Tarrangona.............................
Barcelona and CapeCreux.
Marseilles and Toulon........
20 ° W.
19 “
18| “
18
“
17 “
Genoa..................................
Leghorn..............................
Naples.................................
Cape Spartivento................
‘Gulf of Taranto..................
15^° W.
15 “
13} “
12£ “
12 “
PRINCIPAL ISLANDS.
Port Mahon (Minorca).........
Corsica and Sardinia..........
Pantellaria and west coasts
of Sicily.......................
17 ° f . | Malta...................................
15} “
| East coasts of Sicily...........
| Ionian Islands......................
14 “
13}° W.
12 }
“
10} “
NORTH COAST OF AFRICA.
Cape Spartel........................
Cape Ferrat........................
Algiers..................................
Cape Serrat and Galita
Island..........................
20 ° W.
18 “
1*7£ “
'
15} “
I Cape Bon and Skerki Shoals.
Tripoli.................................
1Ben Ghazi...........................
1Bombah..............................
| Alexandria..........................
144° W.
13} “
11
9f
“
“
7} “
N au tical Intelligence.
'
751
COASTS OF GREECE, ETC.
C orinth and C erigo I s la n d . .
9 4 ° W . A th e n s .........................................
A r c h ip e la g o in gen eral, from 9 ° to 8 ° W .
COASTS OF
is
o
GO
D ard a n elles an d S vm rn a ___
A la y a in K arm a n ia and w est
end o f C yp ru s I s l a n d ..
9 1° W .
ASIA MINOR.
Isk an derun G u lf......................
A c r e ..............................................
4 0 W.
6
“
BJ “
BLACK SEA.
E ntrance t o B osp h oru s and
C on s ta n tin op le ................
M ouths o f D a n u b e ..................
O d e s sa .........................................
6
S u e z ..............................................
K osseir........................................
S e b e r g e t I s la n d .......................
6 0 W.
5i “
4i “
°
7
6i
w.
“
“
W e s t coasts o f C rim e a ..........
K ertch S tr a it ............................
E astern or Circassian co a s t.
S in o p e .........................................
5° W.
3J “
21 “
4
“
RED SEA.
J ib b e l T e e r ...............................
P erim Is la n d .............................
A d e n .............................................
4 ° W.
41 “
2£ “
Republished by order of the Lighthouse Board,
T reasury D epartment, Office Lighthouse Board, )
Washington, Oct. 24, 1857.
THORNTON A. JENKINS, Secretary.
)
LIGHTHOUSE AT THE MOUTH OF UMPQUA R IV E R , OREGON.
Notice is hereby given, that on and after the 10th of October next, a light
will be exhibited in the lighthouse recently erected on the South Sands, at the
mouth of Umpqua river. The light is a fixed white light of the third order of
Fresnel, and elevated 100 feet above the mean sea level, and should be seen from
the deck of any sea-going vessel, in clear weather, 15 nautical or 171 statute
miles. The structure consists of a keeper’s dwelling of stone, with a tower of
brick, whitewashed, rising above it and surmounted by an iron lantern painted
red, the entire height being 92 feet. The latitude and longtitude, and magnetic
variation o f the light, as given by the coast survey, are :—lat. 43? 40' 20" N .;
long. 124° 11' 05" W . ^magnetic variation, 18Q 55' E„ July, 1851. By ordero f
the Lighthouse Board,
HAKTMAN BACHE, Maj. Topog’l Eng’rs. Bt. Major.
Office T welfth LiGirmousE District, )
San Francisco, Cal., Sept. 22, 1857.
)
BLOCK ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE, RHODE ISLAND.
A new lighthouse and keeper’s dwelling have been erected on the extreme
north point of Block Island, to replace the double light which was situated
about 4 mile south from the new lighthouse. The tower and keeper’s house are
built of brick, in connection, and both are white. The house is of two stories.
The tower is 14 feet square. Its base is 10 feet above high water, and the light
is 501 feet above the base, or 601 feet above high water. The temporary light
exhibited during the erection of the new buildings, will be discontinued on the
28th instant, from which date a single light will be shown from the new tower.
This light will be fixed, of the natural color. The illuminating apparatus will
be a fourth order lens, of the system of Fresnel, illuminating the entire horizon ;
but in the arc included between the bearings, (going round by the south.) E. 35
deg. S., to S. 25 deg. W., (true,) it will be hidden by the island. It should be
visible from the deck of a vessel 15 feet above the water, in ordinary states of
the atmosphere, a distance of 13 nautical mi’es. By order of the Lighthouse
Board,
Lighthouse
E n gin ee r ' s
Office, 1
Bristol, E. I. Oct. ID, 1857.
f
E. B. HUNT, Lieut. Corps o f Engineers.
*752 '
Journal o f Insurance.
BEACON LIGHT IN LLOYD’ S HARBOR, HUNTINGTON BAY, L. I. SOUND.
On the evening of loth day of December, 1857, a fixed light of the fifth order
catadioptric of the system of Fresnel, illuminating an are of 350° of the hori
zon, will be exhibited for the first time, and every night thereafter, from sunset
to sunrise, in the tower recently elected on the southeast point of Lloyd’s Neck
and north side of Huntington or Lloyd’s Harbor, in Long Island Sound. The
tower is 34 feet high, built of brick, and the light will have an elevation of 48
feet above the mean level of the sound. The keeper’s dwelling, which is attached
to the tower, is painted] white. The approximate position of this light is— lat.
40° 54' 48" north ; long. 73° 25' 45" west. By order of the Lighthouse
Board,
Engineee's Office, Third Lighthouse District, )
New York, Oct. 31, 1S57.
J. C. DUANE, Lieut, o f Engineers.
J
CHARLESTON (S . C.) LIGHTHOUSE,
During the renovation of the Charleston lighthouse, the present revolving
light will be put out, and a fourth order fixed lens light substituted on the even
ing of November 20, inst., 1857, and continued thereafter until January 1, 1858,
when the new second order fixed Fresnel light will be exhibited for the first time,
and simultaneously with the exhibition of the revolving light at Cape Roman.
This temporary fourth order fixed lens light will be placed upon a scaffold outside
of the southeast face of the lighthouse tower, at the height of ninety (90) feet
above the sea, which may be seen over 17 miles from the deck of a vessel 15 feet
above water. By order of the Lighthouse Board,
GEO. W . CULLUM, Capt. U. 8. Engineers.
Charleston, S. C., November 4, 1857.
JOURNAL
OF
INSURANCE.
TAXES LEVIED ON INSURANCE COMPANIES BY THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
Moneyed and other corporations are assessed on their capital. In Massachu
setts and most of the New England States, such corporations pay a State tax
on their capital, real estate, &c., and the individual stockholders are assessed and
pay a personal tax on the same. The following table, compiled by our cotempo
rary of the Insurance Monitor, shows the amount of tax levied on insurance com
panies by the city of New Y ork in the year 1856, as returned by the Receiver of
Taxes:—
MUTUAL MARINE INSURANCE COMPANIES.
A t l a s ....................
A sto r .................
A t l a n t i c ............
C om m ercia l . . .
G lo b e .................
G reat W estern .
T o ta l for
Capital.
Tax.
$ 800,000
* 4 ,1 4 9 00
853,226
9,034 10
996,264
13,778 82
46,375
641 36
10,000
138 30
500,000
6,915 00
m arine c o m p a n ie s ............
N ew Y o r k .........
O rie n t.................
P a c i f i c ...............
S u n ......................
U n io n .................
Capital.
$ 346,162
180,000
100,000
1,018,065
508,240
—
Tax.
$4,787 41
2,489 4 0
1,383 00
14,079 83
7 ,0 2 8 95
------- , -------
$ 4,658,332
$64 ,42 4 67
N ew Y o r k .......... $ 1,000,000
U n ited S ta tes .
100,000
N . Y . L i f e & T ’st
1,351,963
$ 1 3 ,8 3 0 00
1,383 00
18,697 64
LIFE COMPANIES— DOMESTIC.
K n ic k e rb o ck e r..
M anhattan . . . .
M u t u a l ...............
$ 100,000
100,000
2,000,000
$1,383 00
1,383 00
27,660 00
7 53
Journal o f Insurance.
FOREIGN.
A lb io n .................
British C om m ’al
C o lo n ia l..............
M u tu al B en efit.
8 100,000
100,000
100,000
100,000
$1,383
1,383
1,383
1,383
00
00
00
00
8100,000
$ 1,3 83 00
100 ,00 a
1,383 00
8 5,261,963
$ 7 2 ,6 3 4 64
N. E. M utual . .
N a t’l L oan Fund
n ow Internat’al
L ife, L o n d o n ..
T o ta l for life com p a n ies......................
FIRE COMPANIES— DOMESTIC.
Real and personal
Tax.
estate.
8 25 0 ,0 0 0
A r c t ic ...................
8 3 ,4 5 7 50
2,766 00
J&tna....................
200,000
2 ,074 50
150,000
A s t o r ...................
342,833
4,741 87
B o w e r y ...............
205,000
2,836 14
B r o a d w a y .........
200,000
2,766 00
B eek in a n ............
256,755
3,550 91
C ity .......................
C om m ercia l . . .
200,000
2,766 00
C orn E x ch a n g e.
200,000
2,766 00
250,000
C l i n t o n ...............
3,4 57 60
C o n t in e n t a l.. . .
500,000
6,915 00
C om m on w ealth .
250,000
3,457 50
200.000
2,766 00
C o lu m b i a ..........
315,189
4,359
04
E a g le ....................
200,000
2,766 00
E m p ire C i t v . . .
200,000
2,766 00
E x c e ls io r ............
E ast R iv e r . . . .
162,000
2,240 46
2,848 93
205,997
F u l t o n .................
I 5 0 ’000
2^074 50
G reen w ich . . . .
192,960
2,667 80
200,000
G rocers’ ..............
2,766 00
H o w a r d ..............
260,000
3,467 48
H a n o v e r ............
150,000
2,074 50
H a r m o n y ..........
150,000
2,074 50
433,431
H o m e .................
5,994 35
229,115
J e ffe r s o n ............
3,168 65
200,000
I r v i n g .................
2,766 00
I n d e m n it y .........
100,000
1,383 00
K n ick erb ock er..
279,999
3,872 37
T o ta l o f d om estic com p anies............
Real and personal
estate.
L a B a r g e ..........
$ 16 0 ,0 0 0
L e n o x .................
150,000
L orilla rd .............
200,000
M anhattan . . . .
250,000
M etrop olita n . . .
300,000
Mech.dfe T rad ers’
196,920
.M ercantile.........
200,000
M erchants’ . . . .
200,000
M a r k e t ...............
193,405
N a t io n a l.............
141,863
N ia g a ra ...............
200 ,00 0
N. A m s t e r d a m ..
200,000
N orth A m erican
257,305
N orth R i v e r . .. .
349 ,00 0
N. Y . E qu ita b le
249 ,00 0
N .Y . Fire & Mar.
225,283
P a c i f i c .................
200,000
P a r k ...................
200,000
P eop les’...............
150J)00
P eter C o op er . .
150,000
R e p u b lic ............
180,250
R e l i e f .................
150,000
R u tg e rs ...............
175,242
St. N ic h o la s ___
134,988
St. M ark’s ..........
150,000
S tu yvesa n t........
2 00,000
U n ited S ta t e s ..
250,000
W ashington . . .
215,785
Tax.
$ 2 ,0 7 4 50
2,074 50
2,766 00
3,457 50
4 ,149 00
2,723 39
2,766 00
2,766 00
2 ,674 78
1,961 96
2.766 00
2,766 00
3,558 52
4,829 4 3
3,443 67
8,115 64
2,766 00
2,766 0 0
2J)74 5 0
2,074 50
2,492 85
2,074 50
2,423 59
1,866 88
2,074 50
2,766 00
3,457 50
2,984 30
—
12,212,260
169,813 01
$ 150,000
$2,074 50
13,012,260
180,877 01
FOREIGN.
L iv erp . & L ’nd’n
M onarch, L ond’n
$50 0 ,0 0 0
150,000
86,9 15 00
2,074 50
R o y a l,L o n d o n &
L iv e r p o o l . . .
T o ta l o f d om estic and foreign com p anies........................
THE SO PTH CAROLINA INSURANCE LAW OF 1S56.
The following are the several sections of an act to regulate insurance com
panies not incorporated in the State of South Carolina, passed December, 1856,
and now in force :—
AN ACT TO REGULATE TIIE AGENCIES OF INSURANCE COMPANIES NOT INCORPORATED
IN THE STATE OF SOUTII CAROLINA.
1.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, now met and
sitting in General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That it shall not
be lawful after the first day of July, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven,
for any agent of any insurance company in the United States, not incorporated
by the laws of this State, to take risks or transact any business of insurance in
this State, without first obtaining a license from the Controller-General.
V O L. X X X V II.-----N O . V I.
47
754
Postal Department.
2. That before the Controller-General shall issue such license to any agent
of any company not incorporated in South Carolina, there shall be tiled in his
office a certified copy of the charter of the company from which the said agent or
attorney has received his appointment, and also a certified copy of the vote or
resolution of the trustees or directors of said company appointing him such agent,
accompanied by a warrant of appointment, under the official seal of the company,
and signed by the president and the secretary. Such warrant of appointment
shall continue valid and irrevocable until another agent or attorney shall be sub
stituted, and that at all times, while any liability remains outstanding, there shall
be within the State an agent or attorney as aforesaid, and shall contain a consent
expressed, authorizing process of law to be served on said agent or attorney for
all liabilities of every nature incurred in this State by said company, and that
such service made on such agent or attorney, in the manner required by the laws
of this State, shall be deemed legal and binding on the company or companies, in
all cases whatsoever, and that every judgment so recovered shall be conclusive
evidence of the indebtedness of the company. And in addition to said warrant
of appointment, there shall be filed and published a statement, made under oath,
of its president or secretary, showing its assets and liabilities, and distinctly
showing the amount of capital stock, and how the same has been paid, and of
what the assets of the company consist, the amount of losses due and unpaid, and
all other claims against the company or other indebtedness, whether due or not
due at the time of the filing of the statement above.
3. That every agent or attorney obtaining such license, shall also cause such
statements and license to be published in some newspaper in the district in which
he resides. The company shall also furnish to the Controller-General, through
their agent, a semi-annual statement of the affairs of the company, as provided in
the second section of this, act* and it shall be the duty of the agent or agents to
publish the same.
4. That if the Controller shall become satisfied that any company is insolvent
and unsafe, it shall, be his duty to refuse license to its agent or agents, and to
withdraw any licenses that have been already issued.
5. That any person who shall deliver any policy of insurance, or collect any
premium of insurance, or transact any business of insurance in this State, for any
company in the United States, not incorporated by the laws of this State, without
having obtained license, as by this act required, or after his license has been
withdrawn, or who shall, in any way, violate the provisions of this act, shall be
fined for every such offense, not less than one hundred dollars, nor more than five
hundred dollars, at the discretion of the jury ; Prodded further, That nothing
contained in this section shall release any such company or companies upon any
policy issued or delivered by it or them.
6. That lor every license issued by the Controller-General, under this act, ho
shall be paid by the company taking out such license, the sum of two dollars and
and fifty cents.
POSTAL DEPARTMENT.
THE NEW YORK POST-OFFICE IN 1S57,
A w'ell-informed correspondent of the Washington Stales relates some inter
esting facts concerning the immense business transacted at the New York Post,
office. The weight of the Southern mail, on a single day, is over ten thousand
pounds!— or more than five tons. The weight of the mail forwarded by the
Erie Road is over sixteen thousand pounds— or more than eight tons— that
gent by the Hudson River over four tons in weight. The weight of the entire
mails forwarded on one day of last week was over forty thousand pounds— or
more than twenty tons. There is now employed in the Post-office of New York,
Postal Department.
155
a clerk who has been there forty years. Thirty-five years ago this clerk carried
the entire Southern mail daily, under his arm, across the river to Jersey City.
That mail, which could then be tied up in a handkerchief, now weighs some five
or six tons each day, and has to be transported from the Post-office in heavy
wagons, making several loads. If the increase of the mails may be regarded as
an index of the general growth and progress of the country in all that adds to
the prosperity of the nation, then truly, we are a progressive people.
UNITED STATES POST-OFFICE DEPARTM ENT.
The following is a statement of the revenue o f the Post-office Department from
postages collected during the quarter ending June 30th, 1857, at 25,461 postoffices, the quarterly accounts having been examined, audited, analyzed, and re
gistered in the office of the Auditor of the Treasury for the Post-office Depart
ment :—
Letter postage...................................................................................
Newspaper and pamphlet postage.....................................................
Registered letter postage..................................................................
Postage stamps and stamped envelops sold....................................
Emoluments for box rents..................................................................
Fines for violation of post office laws.. .............................................
T ota l.......................................................................................
$245,275
147,209
8,117
1,429,180
20,328
2
18
67
05
20
46
50
$1,850,119 46
Deduct expenditures, exclusive of transportation of the mails, in
collecting the above, viz.:—
Compensation allowed postmasters.........................
$693,077 5i
Incidental expenses of post-offices..........................
262,221 65
Ship, steamboat, and way letters............................
4,977 93
860,277 09
$989,842 37
N e t revenue.
UNITED STATES
POST-OFFICE DECISION ON CENTS AND TH UEE-CENT PIECES.
The subjoined letter will be of interest to postmasters:—
P o s t - o f f ic e D e p a r t m e n t ,
A p p o in tm e n t O ffice, O ct. 30, 1851.
S ir :— Tours of the 17th instant is received, stating that you are over
whelmed with the accumulation of cents and three-cent pieces tendered to you
and received as payment for postage or postage stamps ; that you cannot dis
pose of them as they accumulate ; that your banks will neither receive them
in exchange for other coin nor in payment of such drafts as are left with or
sent to them for collection, and asking the opinion and instructions of the de
partment in relation to them.
By the 18th section of the act of August 6, 1846. it is declared that on and
after the 1st day of January, 1847, “ all duties, taxes, sales of public lands, debts,
and sums of money accruing or becoming due to the United States, and also all
sums of money due for postage or otherwise to the General Post-office Departs
ment, shall be paid in gold and silver coin only, or in treasury notes issued under
the authority of the United States.
By the 11th section of the act of March 3, 1851, which authorizes and regu
lates the coinage and issue of a silver coin “ of the denomination and legal value
o f three cents,” it is provided that said coin “ shall bo a legal tender in payment
o f debts for all suras of thirty cents or under.”
From the above provisions of law, still in force and unrepealed, it seems evi
dent that you are not compelled to receive cents in payment for either postage
or postage stamps, nor from any one person at any one time more than thirty
cents in three-ceQt coin. A ll beyond this rests in your own discretion, and in
D
ear
756
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
that spirit of courtesy and accommodation which, I doubt not, will ever influence
you in the discharge of your official duties.
Very respectfully, etc.,
H O E A T I O K I N G . F i r s t A ssis ta n t P o s t m a s t e r -G e n e r a l.
E . P . R o s s , E s q ., P o s tm a s te r a t A u b u r n , N . Y .
POSTAGE TO PORTS OF THE BLACK SEA, AND OF THE DANUBE.
The Washington Union of Nov. 6, 1857, states, on authority, that the French
government has recently established post-offices at Volo, Varna, Sulina, Pultcha,
Galatz, Ibraila, Ineboli, Sinope, Samsoun, Kerasund, and Trebizond, and that
correspondence of every description originating in or destined for those cities
will hereafter be transmitted in the mail, via France, upon the same terms and
conditions as correspondence of the like nature originating in or destined for the
cities of the Levant in which France has post-offices.
The single rate of letter postage between the United States and those places
by the French mail will, therefore, be 30 cents the quarter ounce, and 60 cents
the half ounce letter; prepayment optional. Printed matter of every description
may also be transmitted to those ports, by way of France, on prepayment o f
the United States postage— v iz.: 2 cents on newspapers ; 1 cent an ounce, or
fraction of an ounce, on pamphlets and periodicals; and the regular domestic
rates on other kinds of printed matter. The same rates of postage must be col
lected at the office of delivery in the United States upon printed matter from
those places received by French mail.
POSTAGE ON LO TTE R Y CIRCULARS.
The Post-office Department at Washington has instructed postmasters, in all
cases where persons will persist in endeavoring to evade the law in regard to
lottery circulars, in getting them into the mail without prepayment, or only part
paid, to return such circulars to the place of mailing, or to the publishers, to be
fully prepaid by postage stamps, and properly posted. It is the peremptory order
of the department that all such printed mailer shall bear the stamp of the mailing
office.
RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS.
COMMERCE
BY
STEAM.
Steam power seems destined to rule the ocean. It is but few years since the
passage o f a steamer across the Atlantic was deemed a wonderful event. N ow
we are as familiar with lines of Liverpool steamers, as with any customary modes
of travel. The question seems to force itself upon the public mind— is not steam
the force by which the oceans are to be traversed ? W ill not the fickle and un
certain winds be given up, and the steady and resistless steam-engine, be relied
on as the motive power ? On all our rivers this tendency has long been manifest,
and is not the time hastening on, when sails for navigation will stand on a level
with the wind-mill in machinery.
Connected with the progress o f steam, is the rapidly increasing use o f iron in
ship-building, and the disposition to make trial of much larger vessels on the
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
757
the ocean. These changes seem to point to a new order of things in the com
merce o f the world. W e cannot avoid raising the inquiry whether the work of
transporting passengers and merchandise across the waters of the globe, is not,
ere long, to be a very different thing from what it has been. Is it not to become
a far more regular, sure, and safe work, than men have supposed it could be?
The might o f the ocean has always caused man to appear feeble; but the
ocean is no more mighty or terrible than in all past ages. Man. on the other
hand, advances in his power to subdue nature, and to triumph over the elements.
The waves are not more mountain-like now than when Columbus ventured to
America in his little bark ; but the ships o f the present day are vastly nearer to
the point o f defying the violence o f the winds and waves. This violence has a
limit. But who shall say where is the limit of man’s achievements in building
vessels, and propelling them by machinery ? The skiff on the mill-pond is tossed
by the little waves, and the juvenile boatmen are, perhaps, lost in their half-mile
voyage. But the scow and the hay sloop, o f the same water, know nothing of
these waves, and are as safe as the solid land. They have passed the limit of
danger from the agitation that can there arise. It may seem bold to suggest that
any such triumph over the ocean is possible for man. But experience has shown
that our anticipations of human achievement have lagged behind the actual
human progress.
Practical men see, at present, great obstacles in the way of general steam navi
gation, and of the use of immense vessels. But we must remember that a great
system of changes is going forward, the parts of which bear on each other.
Coal
supplies will yet be found in so many quarters, and coal depots will be established
on so many capes and islands, that the difficulty connected with transporting fuel
will be greatly diminished. As the operations of commerce are more and more
systematized in all ports, the cargoes for huge steamers will be collected with
greater rapidity, and the whole shipping operation will be carried on with a
promptness and regularity now hardly dreamed of. New modes of loading very
large vessels will be invented, and greater accommodations for them will be pro
vided ou all shores.
Thus it may be that ocean transportation will yet be conducted with such
power and on such a scale, that the old uncertainties will be read o f as we now
read of the times when the mariner could not venture upon the high seas at all.
With huge metallic vessels and mighty engines, we may cross the Atlantic almost
as a ferry-boat crosses the Delaware, with regular and sure transit, having carried
our mechanical power beyond the accidents of wind and waves. This is, indeed,
aspiring high ; but in these days we seem hardly in danger of extending our spec
ulations beyond the bounds what is to be realized.
Should such results be gained, and the ocean voyage become regular and sure,
the deep would cease to be a mystery, and mankind would move across it as on a
familiar journey. The distant quarters of the world would be brought practically
near to each other. The effect of free intercourse would be to civilize the nations,
and to bring the genius of other races into the work o f advancing human triumphs.
The inhabitants of different continents would regard each other as neighbors,
hostilities would die away. The various climates would also more efficiently
combine to promote human comfort. The greater the speed and certainty with
which the productions of one zone are carried to annother, the more multiplied are
758
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
the sources of enjoyment and prosperity. Increase the facilities of communication,
and there will be less struggling to counteract the adaptations of climate aud
soil, and the people of different lands will be satisfied to produce that which they
can produce most successfully.
In a great variety of aspects, therefore, the progress of steam navigation is
fitted to awaken big hanticipations. The globe is to become in some sense smallerMen are to become as one nation. Knowledge is to be a common possession of
humanity. The different climates are to supply the race with their varied pro
ducts, and the interchange is to be quick and abundant. W e are to be more and
more at home in all parts o f the- habitable globe. Every land is to enjoy the
light which has shone on every other, and the tribes of men are to visit, aid, and
cheer each other. The sailor is to bo no louger an exile from society, but he will
be a swift messenger, respected and valued, aud holding a position requiring in
telligence and skill. The ocean will be indeed the highway of nations—a safe*
much-traveled highway ; a scene where the elements will indeed show their
might, but where man will calmly take his course in his huge floating castles, and
pass safely from shore to shore.
STEAMBOAT
A R R I V A L S ' AND
DEPARTURES
AT
IN E A C H M O N TH F O R T H R E E Y E A R S , E N D IN G AU G U ST
CI NCI J VJ VAT1
31, 1857.
In the Merchants’ Magazine and Commercial Reciew, we have heretofore pub
lished statements of the arrivals and departures of steamboats at Cincinnati
for several commercial years, each ending August 31. For example, for the
year :—
184718481850185118521853-
48 and 1848-49, in Merchants’ Magazine, October,
49 and 1849-50,
“
“
51
November,
52
53
December,
54
November,
1849,
1850,
1851,
1852,
1853,
1854,
vol. xxi., page 468
vol. xxiii., “ 469
vol. xxv.. “ 505
vol. xxvii, “ 635
vol. xxix., “ 751
vol. xxxi.,
“ 636
The table on the following page is a continuation of these statistics to Aug.
31, 1857. and is copied from the Cincinnati Price Current’s Animal Statement
o f Trade and Commerce,” which we believe to be reliable. That journal pre
sents a list of the steamboats and barges, 357 in number, arriving at Cincinnati
during the commercial year, with statement of their tonnage, the summary of
which is as follows:— Tonnage of steamboats, 77,590 ; do. of barges, 9,863 ;
total tonnage, 87,453. The total tonnage of the steamboats and barges, 365 in
number, trading to the port in the year 1855-56 was 92,401, showing a decrease
‘in the year just ended of 4,948 tons. The following table is a summary of com
parative aggregates
Y ea rs.
1 8 5 U - 1 ....................
_____
N o.
233
1 8 5 1 - 2 ....................
_____
203
Tonnage.
4 9 ,2 7 4
Y cars.
1 6 6 4 - 5 .....................
6 0 ,5 4 2
1 8 5 5 - 6 ....................
1852-
3 .........
7 6 ,6 4 7
1 8 5 6 - 7 .....................
1853-
4 .........
8 0 ,2 6 6
N o.
. . . .
365
Tonnage.
8 0 ,8 7 4
9 2 ,4 0 1
8 7 ,4 5 3
COMPARATIVE MONTHLY STATEMENT OF STEAMBOAT A R R IV A L S AND DEPARTURES AT CINCINNATI FOR THREE YEARS, ENDING AUGUST
81, 1867.
A RR IV ED FROM.
------- Ne sw O rlea ns.------ n
M o n th s.
September, 1 8 5 6 ..............
’ n > 4 -§ .
4
8
l
T ota l..............
l
41
13
61
’ 51 -5. .
7
8
1
’ 5 5 -t ). ’ « i6 -7 .
,
26
,
31
. .
O th e r P o i •ts.---------- V
— T o t a l.-
’ 6 4 -5 ..
’ g> 6 -6 .
’ 5 b —7 .
5q)4 — ,
’6 6 -6 .
104
176
135
112
245
135
121
185
117
142
281
118
’ § 6 -7 .'
12
l
10
65
10
19
30
5
163
191
172
192
298
187
19
20
19
73
27
20
34
189
198
192
236
316
273
2
13
196
13
20
2
64
3
. .
13
26
•.
22
10
. .
35
7
. .
46
80
59
41
75
20
19
63
191
28
24
72
76
64
24
42
55
209
20
10
57
75
51
31
37
51
204
8
9
31
50
42
20
39
43
156
2
5
33
37
29
21
28
83
161
8
41
25
1
26
2
—
-St. L o u i is.----------V
— P itts b u r g .---------- »
’ 5 4 - ■5. ’ 4 i - 6 . ’ 4 6 - 7 .
. .
—
—
—
—
113
127
407
530
3
88
385
210
279
162
21
17
304
115
92
167
188
295
273
356
206
195
337
352
338
196
193
309
328
305
164
186
224
261
280
171
180
220
238
247
50
175
188
228
185
184
258
—
—
---------
—
—
315
1 ,8 0 9
1 ,8 4 4
1 ,8 7 8
2 ,8 4 5
107
159
136
115
247
136
. .
121
174
113
124
277
113
■
2 ,7 9 6
2 ,7 0 3
DEPARTED FOR.
September, 1 8 5 6 .............
October.......................
November.................
December...................
January, 1 8 5 7 ....................
February..................... ..
March.....................................
A p ril .....................................
M ay ........................................
June.........................................
J u ly ...........................
August................................ ..
34
4
8
60
35
20
18
70
49
1
. .
2
24
17
32
19
66
21
12
■■ ■
85
44
. .
20
34
23
159
197
155
198
305
182
19
26
19
170
186
148
225
317
236
29
. .
. .
54
. .
89
37
63
1
204
6
14
321
7
15
34
51
. •.
113
89
9
210
9
49
38
78
315
287
344
66
64
63
62
198
190
328
347
332
69
58
38
59
66
55
187
196
187
69
58
204
188
174
312
330
296
86
34
44
26
39
40
160
163
187
228
246
278
2
30
17
34
25
37
30
169
161
171
229
221
237
4
43
23
168
190
183
236
—----
—
—
. •
——
30
—
••
—
42
---—
101
400
463
393
316
374
376
16
146
60
9
7
6
—
T otal ......................
14
. .
. ,
1
13
7
8
20
50
3
9
■■
1 ,9 6 6
187
—
1 ,8 1 0
■ ■ ■
1 ,7 8 1
------- -
2,585
190
■.
2 ,7 8 3
259
------- 2 ,6 4 8
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
October.......................
November.................
December...................
January, 1 8 5 7 ....................
February...................
March.........................
A p r il.........................
M a y ...........................
June............................
J u ly ...........................
August.......................
’ 3 a —(i. ’ 5 6 - 7 .
2
. .
Railroad, Canal,and Steamboat Statistics.
760
THE PROGRESS OF RAILROADS IJV PRUSSIA SINCE 1849.
The Tribune has translated from the Berlin correspondence of the Neue Zeit,
the subjoined account of the progress of railroads in Prussia :—
1850
1 ,8 2 1 *
1 ,8 7 1
106
1851
1 ,9 8 2 *
1 1 2 .2
1 4 8 ,6 8 0
1 ,6 0 4 ,3 2 5
4 ,6 2 2 ,9 9 0
4 ,9 5 8 ,9 5 9
5 .0 9
1852
2 ,1 8 6
126
1 4 7 ,8 1 7
2 ,1 7 1 ,6 1 9
4 ,9 6 6 ,7 3 4
6 ,; 1 1 ,3 9 6
5 .7 5
1849
L e n g th
in m iles.
O u tla y in
m illio n
d olla rs.
101*
A vg.
p r o fit
p. ct.
3 .8 2
/— O v e r w h o le le n g t h .— k
10U lbs.
,--------------- R e c e ip t s .------------■_—>
M erch a n d ise.
m erch a n d ise. P a ssen gers.
$ 3 ,5 4 5 ,4 2 7
1 ,0 5 7 ,0 2 1
$ 3 ,7 0 8 ,2 2 7
4 ,3 0 8 ,2 2 9
1 4 6 ,2 7 3
1 ,3 3 1 ,8 9 4
4 ,4 2 0 ,1 7 2
Y ears.
P a ssen g ers,
1 2 9 ,4 1 6
4 .6 5
1853
2 ,3 2 6 *
135*
1 4 4 ,3 9 7
2 ,5 3 7 ,4 0 1
5 ,4 8 8 ,9 6 6
7 ,8 2 1 ,6 8 5
5 .7 6
1854
2 ,3 2 6 *
141*
1 3 7 ,1 8 4
2 ,9 3 9 ,0 8 4
5 ,7 1 2 ,1 3 5
9 ,9 7 7 ,2 6 1
5 .7 9
1855
2 ,3 8 4
146*
1 4 3 ,7 8 4
3 ,5 4 5 ,9 6 0
5 ,9 5 9 ,3 1 4
1 2 ,2 0 5 ,5 2 3
6 .4 1
The number of passengers has remained stationary since 1849, while the re
ceipts for passenger trade have increased only in proportion to the length of
road. The amount of merchandise transported has, on the contrary, increased
three and-a-half fold ; and, while in 1849 the receipts on merchandise did not
equal the receipts from passengers, they amounted in 1855 to more than double
the receipts from passenger transport. In 1849, 384,788,585 hundred pounds
were transported over every mile of road ; in 1855, were transported 1,742,066,452
hundred pounds. While the roads have scarcely increased one-third in aggregate
length, the transport of merchandise has increased five-fold.
The lengths above attributed to Prussian roads extend in some cases beyond
the Prussian borders. A t the end of 1854 there were 2,230 miles of railroad in
Prussia. A t the end of 1855 there were 2,313 miles. During the year 1856
about 270 miles of road were opened in Prussia, so that at present in the whole
Prussian State there is one mile of railroad to every nine and two-thirds square
miles. This, however, varies in different provinces— amounting in Rhineland
and Westphalia to 5.5 ; in Silesia to 7.2 ; in Brandenburg and Saxony to_7.5 ;
in Pomerania, Prussia, and Poland, to 22.5 square miles for every mile of rail
road. There are already commenced, and to be completed in 12 years, 2,650
miles, so that in 12 years Prussia will contain at least 5,230 miles of railroad, or
one mile for every 4.3 square miles. There will then be one mile of railroad to
every 2.3 square miles in Rhineland and Westphalia, to every 4 square miles in
Silesia, to every 4 square miles in Brandenburg and Saxony, and to every 10
square miles in Pomerania, Posen, and Prussia. The cost of building these new
roads is estimated at about $168,000,000, or $14,000,000 yearly.
ERICSSON’ S AIR MOTOR NOT YE T A FAILURE,
Mr. Ericsson, it is stated, does not despair of success in applying the “ new
motor.” He is said to have built eight small engines, on the hot air principle,
since the experiment with the Ericsson steamship, and to be still engaged in the
pursuit of his favorite study. The Scientific American says:— “ He has now
floating on the Hudson a small steamer, or air-er, about seventy feet long, which
he has succeeded in driving at a good rate by the combustion of an almost in
credibly small quantity of pine kindling wood. There are two engines, horizontal,
single-acting, and apparently about thirty inches diameter by thirty-six inches
stroke. The vessel is an open boat, or mammoth yawl, and the paddle-wheels
are about ten or twelve feet in diameter. W e believe air alone is the fluid em
ployed as a medium to generate the power.”
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
*761
PR E-EM PTIO N CLAIMS UPON LANDS RESERVED FOR RAILROAD PURPOSES.
The Commissioner of the General Land-office of the United States, has made
the subjoined decision, which will be found of general interest:—
“ 1. Pre emption claims upon any lands withdrawn from market for railroad
purposes, where the settlements were made in good faith with the government
before the passage of the law making the grant, and prior to the ‘definite location’
or surveying and staking off of the route of the road, are subject to consummation
within the period fixed by law for proving up and entering offered and unoffered
lands at one ordinary minimum of $1 25 per acre, and payment may be made in
specie or with military bounty-land warrants.
“ 2. After the survey and staking off of any route, the pre-emption right ceases
on the railroad sections ; but from and after that date the United States reserved
sections within the six-mile limits of the route are pre-emptible at a minimum of
$2 50 per acre, till the date of ‘final settlement’ of the alternate sections to which
the railroad is entitled.
“ 3. Prom the date of the final allotment aforesaid till the date of offering the
United Stales reserved sections at public sale, pre-emption rights to lands in such
sections cannot attach ; but after the offering the reserved sections again become
pre-emptible at a minimum of $2 50 per acre.
“ 4. When the $2 50 minimum attaches, bounty-land warrants, under the act of
3d March, 1855, cannot be used in part payment, there being an express inhibi
tion of such use in the statute; but warrants issued under prior acts ot -Congress
may be so used— one warrant only to be laid on a single pre-emption claim at
the rate of $1 25 per acre, and the balance required to make up the $2 50 to be
paid in specie.”
WELL-DESERVED PRESENT TO A M ASTER MARINER,
W e have many fine examples of courage and skill among the officers and crews
of our American mercantile marine which pass unnoticed, “ unhonored and
unsung.” It therefore affords us pleasure to record on the pages of the Merchants'
Magazine of an appropriate appreciation of the services of Capt. John Simpson,
of Newburyport, commander of the ship Moses Wheeler, of Boston, while on a
voyage in 1856 from Newport, Wales, to Calcutta, with a valuable cargo, pre
served his vessel from shipwreck, in the midst of great danger, by the exercise of
both skill and courage, and for which, on his return to England, he was presented
by the London underwriters with a costly gold chronometer watch. The presi
dents of the Alliance, Boston, and China Insurance Companies, of Boston, also
have presented to Capt. Simpson a check for §500, as a token of their appreci
ation of his “ skill and persevering courage in conducting his ship to her port of
destination, when surrounded by great difficulties and peril.” The skill of the
captain no doubt saved the underwriters thousands of dollars.
THE FRENCH RAILW AY SYSTEM IN 1856.
A review of the railway system in France has been published in Galignani’s
Messenger, which shows that the gross receipts in 1856 were no less than
$53,952,000, or about one-seventh of the whole imperial revenue. The value of
the shares and bonds in circulation at the end of the year is stated at $768,000,000,
and the amount of dividends paid in 1856 was $23,040,000, of which either by
direct or indirect taxation, $6,344,865 went to the State. And it is expected
that a still greater amount of profit will accrue in future, owing to the new law
imposing a duty upon the transfer of shares.
762
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
THE QUICKEST PASSAGE TO EUROPE ON RECORD.
The subjoined extract from the log of the United States steampship Vander
bilt. E. Higgins commander, from New York to Cowes, on her third voyage,
it will be seen made the quickest passage on record. Cast off from dock at New
York at 12.20, P. M. Passed Sandy Hook, 2.10 ; discharged pilot, 2.30, Au gust
1 , 1857
D a te.
Dist
D a y s ou t.
L o n g it u d e .
L a titu d e .
290
Aug. 2..........................
67 40
40 57
3 .........................
300
61 27
42 48
4 .........................
317
45 21
55 01
6 .........................
319
48 43
48 08
6 .........................
306
48 40
41 20
320
7 .........................
33 05
50 48
8 .........................
333
24 10
51 04
. .
7
9 .........................
350
15 10
51
10.........................
337
6 31
49 50
11..........................
at 1.20 A.M.
9 davs. 13 hours
Annarent time............
5 M
Deduct difference of longitude.........
9 days, 8 hours
Time of passage..........
Making the passage equal to 9 days 1 hour to Liverpool.
CANALS BELONGING TO PENNSYLVANIA.
The sale of the Main Line of Public Improvements in Pennsylvania leaves,
according to the Philadelphia Ledger, the following lines of canal in operation,
in the hands of the State :—
D e la w a re d iv isio n ......................m iles
Susqueh anna division..........................
N orth branch divis’ n and extension
60 I W e st branch division................. m iles
41 |
165 1
T o t a l .................................................
76
-----342
RAILROADS IN GERMANY.
A correspondent of the Department of State, at Frankfort-on-tha-Maine, fur
nishes the following information respecting railroads in Germany :—
When in the year 1850 the different, railroad companies in Germany—hitherto
isolated— began to be somewhat more connected, the necessity of establishing
general principles for the construction and management of railroads was uni
versally felt; with a view to effect that purpose a meeting of officers of the sev
eral companies took place in Berlin in the month of February, 1850.
The result of that meeting was the framing of common regulations for the
transit service, as well as the adoption of common principles for the construc
tion and management of railroads generally.
The principles then laid down have since that period formed the basis of all
railroad undertakings in Germany, and they were even adopted by Switzerland.
However, in the construction as well as in the management of railroads great
progress has been made within the last seven years, and it was found that the
old regulations required improvement in order to correspond with this progress.
For this reason a new meeting was called together this year to revise the resolu
tions of the former one; and that meeting was held in Vienna from the 18th to
the 26th May last. Most of the German railroads were represented in it. The
results arrived at by this meeting are to be brought before a general meeting of
railroad managers to be held at Munich ; and they will afterwards be published.
One of the resolutions concerns the application of chain bridges to railroads.
And the Vienna meeting requested the Austrian government to obtain correct
Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and Art.
•763
information from America respecting the bridge of this kind first erected—
namely, that on the Niagara Railroad— and upon the results of that experiment.
The manufactory of engines at Esslingen, in Wnrtemburg, has just received
orders for the locomotives required for the railroad from Copenhagen to Corsoer
in Denmark ; and similar orders have been given for French lines. The Wurtemburg engines enjoy a high reputation all over Europe ; and I have frequently
heard them spoken of as the best in the whole railroad world.
The regulations on the Herman railroads for the summer have undergone soma
important improvements. A traveler from Frankfort, for instance, may now
reach Berne, the capital of Switzerland, in one day. Travelers leaving Friedrichs haven, on the Lake of Constance, at 5 A. M., arrive the next day at noon
in Berlin by way of Stuttgardt, Heidelburg, Frankfort, and Cassel. Travelers
starting from this city at 5 A . M., reach Paris at 10:25 the same evening— say
in 17:25 hours.
JOURNAL OF MINING, MANUFACTURES, AND ART.
MINERAL
WEALTH
OF
OHIO.
B V E . D . M A N S F IE L D , ESQ .
Men go to California for gold, and seek pearls in muscle shells, but a greater
than gold or pearls is here. Experience has proved that the most productive of
all mining is of coal and iron. The Boons and Kentons hunted over mines,
unsuspected and unknown, which will become the wealth of future age3. Already
there is far more coal and iron mines in Ohio than the public have any idea of.
Either the census of 1850 was greatly defective, or the growth of mining in Ohio
has immensely increased in the last seven years. In fact, I know the last to be
the case. In the counties of Lawrence, Jackson, Vinton, and Hancock, many
new furnaces have been opened,'and in these as in other things there are great
improvements. A furnace now turns out nearly double as much iron as it did
twenty years ago. The demaud for iron increases also beyond all precedent. It
is not, as some suppose, the co istruction of railroads only which has occasioned
this demand. A ll the new arts of life demaud iron, and every new town adds to
its consumption. Most happily for us, we have not only iron inexhaustible, but
we have begun to manufacture it, far beyond the increase of importations, so that
we shall, in a few years, be rid of the disgrace of going to foreign nations for
what lies heaped up around our doors.
In this mining, we find a beautiful illustration of the dependencies of various
elements of industry on each other. These iron furnaces consume a great amount
of food for men and horses. This opens a market for the farmer o f the mining
couuties. In fact, the farmers of that region will soon need no other. It will
need the highest cultivation to supply that demand. So, also, of natural pro
duction. Soon the furnaces, railroads, and all other machinery must use coal,
and here it lies, where the utmost cost need not exceed four cents per bushel.
Thus, we find in Ohio all the resources of an empire, and each one contributing
to the other— till we know not what measure of art, of wealth, of production, or
of power, may here be accumulated, nor to what extent of physical and intellect
ual grandeur the freedom of institutions and the genius of science may carry this
young and growing people.
764
Journal o f M ining, Manufactures, and A rt.
MICHIGAN COAL ANALYZED,
Prof. Douglas of the Michigan University, furnishes one of the local papers
with the following analysis of the coal mined at Jackson, in that State. The
analysis, it appears to us, requires further corroboration before it can be admitted
as a fair sample of the whole, but is nevertheless deserving of record as showing
the value of the coal for gas.
The coal was of the bituminous variety, having a jet black color and a slaty
structure. It was readily ignited, burning with a dull flame and much smoke,
the fragments comminuting more or less by the heat. It had a specific gravity
of about 125.
100 parts gave :—
*
Volatile matter.........................
Sulphur...................................
Iron...........................................
50.780 Ash............................................
4.028 Carbon, not volatilized.............
4.400
3.600
41.400
The value of coal for the nanufacture of gas isusually estimated by the amount
of volatile matter, it yields at a full red heat. The following list of English coals,
taken from the best authorities, are given in the order of their gas-producing
properties, as determined by actual trial for the purpose of comparison:—■
Ash.
Sulphur.
Volatile matter.
1.06
Boghead .......................
67.4
22.8
66.2
0.6
0.14
New Brunswick Canal .
60.
13.
2.80
Kirknep.......................
2.
2.60
Staffordshire Canal.......
50.
Arniston.........................
8.40
45.8
4.2
38.
2.20
Silkstone, Yorkshire . . .
2.6
2.40
Wigan, Lancashire . . . .
3.
37.
36.8
2.50
Ramsey, Newcastle . . .
6.6
5.70
Nielesa, Somerset.........
3.
34.9
8.20
Coal-pit Heath..............
5.8
30.1
It is apparent from the above, that the amount of volatile matter in the coal,
holds a fixed relation to its gas-producing properties.
The following table, compiled from Professor Johnson’s work, will show the
volatile matter in the several varieties of American coals. The sulphur is not
given in these analyses, but there is no reason to believe that it will be very much
less than the average of any other coals :
Yol. matter. Ash.
Yol. m a tte r. Ash.
Beaver Meadow, P a ...
3.80
7.11 Midlothian, Va.......... .
87.28
10.47
Canelton,
Ind............
Peach Mountain, P a...
33.99
4.97
3.07
4.41
Lehigh, Pa...................
5 28
5.56 Pittsburg..................
36.78
7 07
Cumberland, Md.........
14.87
14.98 Jackson (by Prof. D.).
50.78
8.40
Blossburg, Pa..............
14.78
11.77
From the above it will be apparent that the coal of Michigan for the manu
facture of gas is nearly equal to the best English coals, and quite superior to any
of the American coal around. I have not access to analyses of the Ohio coals,
and am not aware that any have been made.
AMERICAN MANUFACTURES WRONGED.
It is said that the best of our domestic goods are not unfrequently sold by
the retailer as foreign. This is doing injustice to our own country, and throwing
away our own reputation. To offer a home article as foreign, in order to have it
thought better than it is, is dishonest; but to do so because the article is equal to
the foreign, or better, is to sell our own well-earned character— it is meanly dis-
Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, a»cZ Mrf.
"765
honest. Surely we should avail ourselves of the credit we have merited. I f our
energy and skill have produced that which England cannot surpass, we should
make this known, to the honor and advantage of our country, and not put our
own laurels upon the head of our neighbor. It is a short-sighted policy which
would thus deny our own achievements because they are worthy to have been
the achievements of another, more famous than ourselves. This is to keep down
our reputation. To do this for a little immediate gain, is small-souled.
In some sensible remarks on this subject, the Providence Journal states that
an American manufacturer of edge tools has lately recovered damages in an
English court, of an English manufacturer who counterfeited his trade mark.
This shows what reputation our productions may gain, and the folly of conceal
ing their origin. A s Philadelphians we have an interest in this subject. W e
are putting the foreign manufacturer upon desperate efforts to keep up with us,
in some departments, and we wish to have the honors of our city and of our
youthful country maintained. W e respectfully suggest to several Philadelphia
manufacturers the propriety of changing their policy in this particular. Let
your products bear your name, and show the world that, you defy foreign competi
tion.— Philadelphia Shipping List.
BRITISH APPRECIATION OF AMERICAN INGENUITY.
The Scientific American gives a brief abstract of a paper read before the Poly
technic Society, by Mr. T. B. Arnolt, at their first meeting in 1851, on the
“ Inventions in the United States.” Mr. A . was surprised at American river
steamers, and the Metropolis of the Pall River Line delighted him beyond mea
sure ; he told his hearers that on the Mississippi the Americans have 800 steam
boats running, and that he had traveled 1,500 miles in seven days for twenty
dollars! He explained the dexterity exhibited by the pilots, and gave some
statistical information of our traffic that astonished his audience. On our rail
road system he said much, and although he found some faults, he thought that,
on the whole, there was much for British railroads to copy, especially as regards
the cars. The locomotives attracted his attention, but the “ camel engine ” was
his greatest object o f admiration. The hydraulic dock he thought was a master
piece of ingenuity and inventive faculty ; and the water-works of Fairmount and
Croton made him thoroughly perceive that he was traveling in a country whose
basis was the civilization of the nineteenth century; and lastly, the American
telegraph system, and the mode of conducting the United States Patent-office,
were, he said, examples to the world; and he concluded by expressing his ad
miration of the matter-of-fact, inventive mind of America.
A LARGE BARREL MANUFACTORY,
The Scientific American speaks of an establishment for the manufacture of flour
barrels put into operation at Kasoog, New Tork, by the proprietors of the
Metropolitan Mills of New Tork. According to the American, they employ some
forty hands, and turn out finished stock for 500 barrels daily; the method of
manufacture is rapid and very systematic; the logs are first put upon a saw mill
and sawed into plank about four inches thick, (the slabs are used for heading,)
and the plank are cut into thirty-inch lengths, then steamed and cut into staves;
the staves while wet are passed through a machine which finishes both ends at a
stroke, and they are then passed through the dry kiln, which is the main feature
of novelty in the business. The wet staves piled on cars enter one end of the
kiln, and are taken out at the other end thoroughly dry. The drying is accom
766
Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt.
plished by keeping up a strong and constant blast of bot air upon the staves, by
means of a large blower placed in connection with the boiler surface, in such a
manner as to make a draught upon the fire, and discharge the whole heat of the
fire divested of smoke into the kiln. Such is the rapidity of drying that each
day’s work is dried perfectly in twenty-four hours, so that to-day a log may be
taken from the stump and to-morrow be made up into thoroughly seasoned barrels
ready to pack. After drying, the staves are jointed upon a machine which
finishes both edges at the same tim e; they are then packed in bundles of one
hundred each, ready for shipment. The heading goes through the same kiln, and
is afterwards finished up and turned in rapidly-working lathes. The heads are
then packed in barrels for transportation.
COMB MANUFACTORY IN SCOTLAND.
It is stated in one of the foreign exchanges of the Merchants' Magazine, that
the greatest comb manufactory in the world is in Aberdeen, Scotland. There
are thirty-six furnaces for preparing horns and tortoise shell for the combs, and
no less than one hundred and twenty iron screw presses are continually going in
stamping them. Steam power is employed to cut the combs. The coarse combs
are stamped or cut out— two being cut in one piece at a time. The fine dressing
combs, and all small tooth combs, are cut by fine circular saws, some so fine as
to cut forty teeth in the space of one inch; and they revolve five thousand times
in one minute. There are some two thousand varieties of combs made, and the
aggregate number produced, of all these different sorts of combs, is about
9.000. 000 annually— a quantity that, if laid together lengthwise, would extend
about seven hundred miles. The annual consumption of ox horns is about
730.000, and the annual consumption of hoofs amounts to 4,000,000; the con
sumption of tortoise shell and buffalo horn, although not so large, is correspond
ingly valuable. A hoof undergoes eleven distinct operations before it becomes
a finished comb.
DEFINITION OF THE T E E M JEW E LLE RS’ GOLD,
According to a London cotemporary, this term is applied to alloys of gold
used for trinkets and inferior articles of jewelry, ranging from three to four karats
fine upwards, or which are too inferior to receive the Hall mark. The lowest al
loy of this class is formed of copper 16 parts; silver, 1 to I f parts ; gold, 2 to 3
parts, melted together. This is worth only from 8s. 6d. to 9s. 6d. the ounce.
“ It has recently be found that gold of the 12 karats, or less, if alloyed with zinc
instead of the proper quantity of silver, presents a color very nearly equal to that
of a metal at least 2J or 3 karats higher, or of 8s. or 10s. an ounce more value;
and the consequence has been that a large quantity of jewelry has been made of
gold alloyed in this manner, and the same has been purchased by some shop
keepers, very much to their own loss, as that of the public, inasmuch as a galvanic
action is produced after a time upon gold so alloyed, by means of which the metal
is split into separate pieces, and the articles rendered perfectly useless. Gold
chains, pencil eases, thimbles, and lockets are the articles of which" the public and
the shopkeepers will do well to take heed, as these have, among some other things,
been lately so constructed.”
Journal o f Mining and Manufactures.
767
MANUFACTURE OF W INE FROM THE GRAPE IN BOSTON.
W e learn from our cotemporary of the Boston Evening Gazette, that there is
in that city a manufactory of wine from the native grapes. Mr. Enoch Page,
who has for some years paid attention to the raising of grapes and the making
of wine, at home and abroad, deeming that good wine could be made from the
common grape, made the experiment a year or two ago, and his first effort was
exhibited in 1856, on the tables of the Horticultural Society. He began upon a
small scale, but in May. 1857, enlarged his operations, hiring from the city the
arches under the reservoir on Beacon Hill, and transformed them into wine vaults.
Mr. Page has on hand from twenty-five to thirty tons of the wild grapes, or some
one hundred and fifty barrels, capable of yielding four hundred gallons of juice to
the ton. These grapes are brought to him mostly from the State of Massachu
setts— seven or eight tons having been supplied by one man on Cape Cod. Some
are brought from as far as Connecticut. The amount of grapes on hand is very
large, and the product of the stock will be equal to 10,000 gallons of wine. Be
side the 6,000 gallons of grape wine already made, Mr. Page has 4,000 gallons of
currant wine in cask, that proved upon test an article of great excellence, and
more like the product of the vine than any currant wine we ever tasted. He has,
also, several casks of hucklebury wine that promise well, though the taste is not
so lively as the currant.
DETECTION OF COTTON IN LINEN.
W e have frequently called the attention of the readers of the Merchants’ Mag azine to the adulteration in almost every article of commerce. Much of the linen
we import is mixed with cotton. A scientific man informs us that one of the
most practicable methods for the detection of cotton in unbleached linen is the
following :— A piece of the stuff to be examined is well washed with boiling
water, and dried, then laid in a mixure of two parts of dried nitrate of potash
and three parts of ordinary sulphuric acid, and left in intimate contact with it
for 8 or 10 minutes, according to the strength of the fabric. After a complete
washing and drying, the piece of stuff, which has been changed by the nitrate
acid, is decocted w’ith ether, to which some alcohol is added ; the more consistent
the collodion thus obtained, the more cotton is there in the linen. I f no cotton
be. in it, the ethereal decoction is scarcely thickened. If it is wished to deter
mine the quantity of cotton, it is only necessary to weigh the linen after it has
been boiled with water and dried, then to proceed as above, separate the collo
dion obtained from the residue— which is unchanged linen— wash this well with
some ether and alcohol, and when dried and weighed the loss of weight gives the
quantity of cotton with tolerable accuracy.
LAKE SUPERIOR IRON.
company, with a capital of §125,000, has been formed for the manufacture
of pig iron near the Lake Superior mines. A n immense furnace is already in a
forward state, and next spring the question will be solved whether Lake Superior
iron ore can be successfully converted into pigs by the ordinary process. Char
coal can be easily procured near the furnace, and the cost of manufacturing is
estimated at no more than ten per cent higher than it would be in Pittsburg.
Three or four years ago a similar attempt was made in Cleveland, by what was
A
Statistics o f Agriculture, etc
768
called the Benton Process, a half-developed system, which can never be perfected
except by a series of expensive and patient experiments. It proved a failure, and
the company was too much discouraged to attempt any trials by the ordinary
method. There are strong reasons to hope that the new company will succeed.
IM PROVEM ENT IN LOOMS FOR WEAVING.
Mr. K. Edmeston has effected a valuable improvement in looms for weaving.
It is a combination of apparatus actuated by jacquard or pattern surfaces of the
loom, in order to move the shuttle-boxes to suit the pattern being woven. The
cam shaft of the loom is caused, by a tappet or cam, to act on a lever in connec
tion with the shuttle-boxes, so that the latter are lifted when the tappet or cam
is, b y the jac tuard or pattern surface, allowed to act on the lever referred t o ;
but when the lever is moved out of the way of the cam or tappet, the shuttleboxes are not raised by the rotation of the shaft of the loom. The shuttle-boxes
are retained from descending by a catch acting in the teeth of the rachet, carried
by a lever which lifts the shuttle-boxes, and the catch retains the shuttle-boxes
from descending to their lowest position, excepting when the jacquard or pattern
surface causes the catch to be removed— a contrivance ingeniously adapted to the
end to be accomplished.
PREM IU M ON SOAP MANUFACTURED IN FRANCE.
Commercial advices from Paris of the 22d of September, 1857, inform us that,
by imperial decree of August 12, 1857, colored soaps, composed of oleaginous
oils and animal fat, shall be entitled to a premium on exportation of 6 francs, SI
1 2 j per 100 kilogrammes, (220 pounds,) in accordance with the conditions deter
mined by the law of June 11,1845, especially the 5th article of said law. This,
as a matter of course, will increase the manufacture in France of this description
o f soaps, and operate as an additional tax, to the extent of the premium,_on their
importation.
STATISTICS OF AGRICULTURE, &c.
AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES OF OHIO COMPARED W ITH N E W YORK.
This comparison of the two most populous States, we take at second hand, not
now, as formerly, receiving the Cincinnati Gazelle:— Of the forty thousand
square miles of Ohio’s surface, the Gazette says, nearly every foot is arable; at
least twenty five of the twenty-six millions , of acres may be deemed tillable and
fruitful. There are some ravines or steep hill sides that cannot easily be plowed ;
but these are useful for the growth of wood, or for pasturage ; while there are
no rocky cliffs and no swamps that may nof easily be drained. The primitive
forests have been cleared away nearly as far as is desirable, leaving an abun
dance of valuable timber, while Fone-third of the whole State is underlaid with
bituminous coal, forming the best and cheapest fuel, while her iron ore is equal in
quantity and quality to that o f Great Britain. The natural capacities of Ohio are
fully adequate to the employment and subsistence of a population of twenty mil
lions, while her actual population, still steadily increasing, is as yet but two millions
769
Statistics o f Population, etc.
three hundred thousand. But her soil is so fertile, her position with reference to
markets so advantageous, and her population so industrious and efficient, that
the Gazette estimates, from official data, her annual product as bearing the pro
portion to that of New Y ork of S32 to 100, whereas her population is but as 65
to 100. Here are some of the data, based on the census returns of 1855, with
an estimated annual increase of ten per cent:—
,-----------------NEW YORK----------------- ,
Corn.......... . .bush.
Wheat . . . .
Oats...........
Hay
Coal...........
Iron..........
Hogs.........
Cattle........
Sheep........
Cheese.. . .
Butter____
Products.
26,000,000
14,000.000
30,000,000
4,000,000
Value.
120,800,000
17,500,000
15,000,000
80,000,000
1,200,000
14,000,000
90,000,000
7,000,000
6,000,000
12,800,000
30,000
1,000,000
3,600,000
3,500,000
25,000
40,000
,---------------------- OHIO---------------------y
Products.
90,000,000
22,000,000
20.000,000
1,800,000
40,000,000
100,000
2,000,000
• 2.900,000
3,500,000
10,000
20,000
$264,300,000
Total.
Value.
$54,000,000
22,000,000
7,000,000
27,000,000
4,000.000
3,500,000
24,000,000
40,000,000
7,000,000
2,000,000
6,400,000
■$196,900,000
[ These values are calculated for the month of September in either case ; the New
York values are based on prices in that city; the Ohio on those prevailing in Cin
cinnati.]
The Gazelle believes that the actual production of Ohio for the current year
will exceed the amounts given above, and proceeds as follows :—
“ The superiority of Ohio in the two departments of agriculture and mining,
is thus made manifest. But let us proceed further to the export:— as Ohio has
1,300,000 inhabitants less than New York, she has so many less consumers. In
the table of exports, it must be remembered that corn is exported in the shape
of hogs, whisky, and cattle, chiefly ; wheat chiefly as flour ; iron mostly as cast
ings, manufactured; sheep as wool. W e shall disregard these, but adding the
manufactured values, state them as follows, viz.
N ew Y ork .
C o r n ., bu sh
5 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0
Wheat.............................
Oats..........
10,000,000
Hay....tons
1,000,000
Coal...bush
..............
Iron., .tons
...........
New York.
O h io .
3 0 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0
10,000,000
5,000,000
200,000
15,000,000
40,000,000 |
..............
Hogs. . . tons
Cattle................................
Wool___lbs........................
Cheese., tons
5,000
Butter..........
5,000
Ohio,
600,000
200.000
10,000,000
5,000
5,000
“ The aggregate value of these, adding on a moderate per cent for the manu
facture of "part of them, is for New York— on corn, oats, cheese, butter, and
hay, most of which goes coastwise to the South, $30,000,000. And for Ohio, on
all these products, is $61,000,000. Thus the value of exports in Ohio exceeds
the value of exports in New York, as to agriculture and mining, by thirty-one
millions of dollars. Here is the great and real basis of wealth ; it is the power
to realize on the products of industry. Ohio is now worth one thousand millions
o f dollars, and three-fourths of it has been made out of the profits of labor, applied
to agriculture, mining, and manufactures. The sixty millions of export values is
ten per cent interest on six hundred millions of dollars, and represents the net
profits of the State, independent of its commerce and trade. If any other com
munity can show a better result than that, we should like to see it, and where is
the community which has a more solid basis for financial prosperity ?”
VOL. X X X V II.---- NO. V I.
48
770
Statistics o f Agriculture, etc.
AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS OF IRELAND,
According to abstracts of the agricultural property of Ireland, prepared by Mr.
Donnelly, the efficient Register-General of Ireland, which we find in the Mer
cantile Register and Statistical Journal, published in Belfast, (Ireland,) a most
able and reliable commercial paper, it would appear that the total value of live
stock in Ireland has increased from £28,535,000 in 1852, to £33,685,000 in 1857,
showing an increase of £5,180,000, or upwards of 18 per cent. The total extent
in statute acres of cereal and grain crops grown in each year, from 1852 to 1857,
inclusive, was—
CEREAL CROPS AND FLA X.
Y ea rs.
1 8 5 2 ...............
"W heat.
Oats.
2 ,2 8 3 ,4 4 9
B a rie v , B e r e , B y e ,
B ea ns, a n d P eas.
3 3 9 ,5 9 1
F la x .
1 3 7 ,0 0 8
1 8 5 3 ________
2 ,1 5 7 ,8 4 9
3 4 8 ,6 4 2
1 7 4 ,5 7 0
1 8 5 4 ...............
2 ,0 4 5 ,2 9 8
2 8 7 ,1 5 4
1 5 1 ,4 0 3
1 8 6 5 ...............
2 ,1 1 8 ,8 5 8
2 6 7 ,9 3 1
9 7 ,0 7 5
1 8 5 6 ................
2 ,0 3 7 ,4 3 7
2 1 8 ,7 2 1
1 0 6 ,3 1 1
1 8 5 7 ................
1 ,9 7 8 ,8 7 8
2 4 6 ,2 5 7
9 8 ,0 7 4
T u rn ip s.
3 5 6 ,7 9 0
O th e r
g r e e n crop s.
1 2 1 ,5 6 5
M eadow
& c lo v e r .
1 ,2 7 0 ,7 1 3
1 8 5 3 ...............
3 9 9 ,3 7 7
1 2 0 ,1 3 3
1 ,2 7 0 ,7 4 2
1 8 5 4 ................
3 2 9 ,1 7 0
9 8 ,7 7 7
1 ,2 5 7 ,8 6 4
1 ,3 1 4 ,8 0 7
GREEN CROP.
Y ea rs.
1 8 5 2 ...............
1 8 5 5 ............... ...........................
1 8 5 6 ............... ...........................
1 8 5 7 ................
P o ta to e s .
9 8 2 ,3 0 1
3 6 6 ,9 5 3
9 5 ,1 3 6
1 ,1 0 4 ,7 0 4
3 5 4 ,4 5 1
1 0 0 ,0 8 6
1 ,3 0 2 ,7 8 7
3 4 9 ,9 6 4
1 0 7 ,9 9 4
1 ,3 6 9 ,4 2 1
It will be observed that the number of acres under wheat has been rapidly in
creasing, whilst other cereals and flax have been diminishing, the latter to a very
serious extent, considering that flax is the raw material of our staple manufac
ture. Potatoes, on the other hand, have increased from 876,000 acres in 1852,
to 1,147,000 in 1857. Turnips and other green crops have diminished ; but
meadow and clover lands have increased from 1,271,000 acres in 1842. to 1.370,000
in 1857.
According to the return of live stock there were 600,693 horses in Ireland in
1857, being an increase over the number enumerated in the previous year, of
27,285, of which 16,606 were horses used for agricultural purposes; 2,466 for
traffic and manufactures; 2,469 for amusement or recreation ; 1,779 were year
ling, and 3,965 under one year old. Cattle increased by 30,686 between 1856
and 1857 ; the number returned in the latter year being 3,618,544; of these
1,602,908 were milch cows; 801,875 two years old and upwards; 616,015 were
under one year o ld ; and 597,746 were one year old and under two years ; these
last decreased in 1857 by 23,361, compared with the same class in 1856. Pigs
increased 333,627 since 1856 ; the number for that year having been 918,525,
and for 1857, 1,252,152 ; the increase is made up of 34,037 one year old and up
wards, and 299,590 under one year. Sheep show a decrease of 245,618 in 1857,
of which 119,391 were ewes; 41,714 tups and wethers, and 84,513 lambs. The
decrease in sheep is attributed to a satisfactory cause— their increased exporta
tion, which is now so much facilitated by railway communication.
The value of each description of stock in 1856 and 1857 was as under:—
1856.
Horses, at £8 each
Cattle, at £6 10s..
Sheep, at £1 2s...
Pigs, at £1 5 s .. . .
1857.
£ 4 ,5 8 7 ,2 6 4
£ 4 ,8 0 5 ,5 4 4
2 3 ,3 2 1 ,0 7 7
2 3 ,5 2 0 ,5 3 6
4 ,0 6 3 ,7 2 3
3 ,7 9 3 ,5 4 3
1 ,1 4 8 ,1 5 6
1 ,5 6 5 ,1 9 0
It is interesting to notice the gradual increase of the land under tillage, not
.
Statistics o f Agriculture, etc.
in
withstanding the continued emigration from Ireland— owing to which cause it is
estimated that the population has decreased from 6,552,385 in 1851, to 6,047,492
on the 1st January, 1857— and this number has been reduced to 6,015,768, to
the 1st of .September instant, up to which date the emigrants from Irish ports in
1857, as returned by the enumerators, were 72,186. To this diminution of the
population the advance which has taken place in the price of labor may be
ascribed ; and as employment increases with an extending area under tillage, the
means and prospects of the working classes in this country must, it is confidently
hoped, be permanently improved.
These abstracts, says a cotemporary of Mercantile Journal, “ disclose the
gratifying fact, that Ireland is rapidly becoming rich and prosperous.”
PRODUCTION OF W INES DURING THE PAST CENTURY.
The Union condenses from an interesting article in a late number of the Courrier des Elats Unis the following statistics relative to the production of wines
from 1762 to 1857, furnished to that journal by an amateur vine-grower of the
districts of Beaujolois :—
In 1762, intense heat, very little rain, the crop excellent, and quality of wines
superior.
In certain localities of France, wines which, when first brought into
market, sold for 30 livres (about 18 cents each) per measure, were worth 150
livres the following year. In 1763, ’64, ’65, ’66, the quality was very ordinary ;
in 1767 and 1768 very good, but not equal to that of 1762 ; in 1769 very bad ;
1770 fair ; 1771 good; 1772,’7 3 ,’74, bad; in 1775 excellent; 1776 and 1777,
tolerable; 1778 good, and 1779 detestable ; in 1780 a n d ’81, fair ; 1782 good ^
1783 and ’84, fair ; 1785 was a year so abundant that in Beaujolois wines fell to
20 livres for the first quality. From this period we must pass on to 1791 to find*
a good wine, or rather a wine of an excellent quality. After this a new phase of'
mediocrity, until we come down to 1795, which was a year remarkable for it»
quality.
N o change worthy of note until we reach 1802. A ll the grapes were destroyed’
by hail on the 17th, 18th, and 19th of May. Prices were enormously high, but
disastrous to the monopolists. Soon the warm weather set in ; the heat becameas intense as in 1762, and continued as long. The vines produced a second cropof grapes, which yielded wines called conscripts, of a very fair quality. In 1803:
was a year of great abundance, but indifferent quality; 1804 was an extraordin
ary year both as to quality and quantity. During this year the new casks were
worth 24 to 25 francs each; and in those districts where the production was not
greater than usual the wines were not worth more than the cost of the casks.
The result was, that the vinters who had purchased their casks on credit, and
could not sell their wines, offered to return them to the coopers full of wine to be
released from their obligations, but where refused, as the latter also had engage
ments to meet.
The year 1803 gave the highest hopes of an excellent yield, but in-the early
part of October, a week before the vintage commenced, it snowed; and hailed.
The crop was made, but the wine decomposed in the cask, and' in the winter that
which was not spoiled turned to a yellowish white. In 1806 and 1807 the quality
was superior, and kept for a long tim e; 1808, great abundance ; 1809, 1810,
poor years; 1811, the year of the comet. The wines of this year have been
greatly extolled, but tht y did not come up to those of 1762. A t first they sold
at prices sufficiently low, because we had no markets; but in 1813 they attained
to fabulous prices, and the short crops of succeeding years only tended to augment
their price. The first remarkable year after 1811 was 1822. There was no
winter. The vine budded in March, blossomed in May, and in August new wine
was drank. The wine was very good, but tender; it possessed no endurance.
From 1822 to 1842 there was a good series of years, the- most notable of which
772
Statistics o f Population, etc.
were 1832, 1833, and 1842 ; 1843 was of no account; the following years
alternated ; but from 1849 to 1856, inclusive, the crops were failures from causes
already known.
The Courrier’s correspondent thinks that every quarter of a century, failures
and compensation being properly set off against each other, the sums of good and
bad crops would be about equally balanced. There is no question but we have
paid since 1849 the full interest of the good years which elapsed between 1822
and 1842. W e must only hope that we are now entering upon a better epoch.
MOLASSES FROM THE CHINESE CANE.
Our hope in regard to the successful production of sugar from the “ Sorgho
Sucre,” is small, but we agree with the South (Richmond,) that the Patent-office
at Washington did a good thing in distributing through the country the seed of
the “ Sorgho Sucre,” on Chinese sugar-cane; for, in view of the high price of
molasses, it is likely before many years to be extensively cultivated for the sac
charine juice with which it abounds, and which, by an easy process, can be con
verted into very good sirup or molasses. Messrs. Joseph Sinton & Sons, of
Henrico, Virginia, according to the South, obtained some of the seeds and raised
a good crop of the cane, which is valuable as cattle-feed, even after all the sac charine juice is pressed out. The gentlemen tried the cane as a molasses-pro
ducer, with the following results :— One hundred and ten stalks were cut and
pressed twice in a cider-mill. The juice obtained, amounting to twenty-seven
quarts, was then put in a large dinner-pot and boiled one hour and forty-five
minutes, making one gallon and a pint of molasses. The article is good and very
enticing to those who like sweet things of the kind. The “ Sorgho Sucre,” though
a foreigner, grows and thrives like a native of American soil.
PEA-NUTS OR GROUND PEAS.
The Commissioner of Patents has received from Mr. Daniel Shaw, of Lillington Hall, New Hanover County, North Carolina, an interesting description of the
cultivation of this nut, which has been successfully raised for several years. The
crop of last year, (1856.) amounted to over one hundred thousand bushels, the
price of which per bushel in Wilmington is quoted at §1 25. A s soon as the
frost is out o f the ground the land is broken up, and about the middle of April
laid off with a small plough thirty-three inches each way, two or three peas are
then dropped into the crosses thus made. The plants are kept clean with hoes
and ploughs until the vines cover the ground ; but no dirt is put on the vines.
In October they are dug with a rake or plough, and as soon as they are dried
they are stacked, ten bushels to the stack. Hogs are then turned into the field,
and they soon fatten upon the peas left upon the ground. During the winter the
nuts are gathered from the vines. When the vines are left upon the land for
the hogs to feed upon, there is no crop that improves the land so much; but
when the vines are removed the land is exhausted.
WILD SILK IN CENTRAL AMERICA.
The depths of the Central American forests will yield, probably, sopie new
artieles of commerce. In the Olancho there is found hanging from the trees a
sort of sack, some two feet in depth, which is the nest of a species of silk-worm.
The silk is woven over the inside of this sack. In 1844 six pounds were sent to
Statistics o f Population, etc.
118
England, where.it was made into handkerchiefs of excellent quality. A profitable
trade in this article might perhaps be established, as this material can be gathered
in any required quantity. A n old Mexican author speaks of wild silk as abundant
in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and states that the natives were accustomed to
gather it for exportation to Spain.
FARMING VERSUS MERCHANDISING.
It is a peculiar part of the programme comlnon to high pressure times, says a
eotemporary, when speculation riots and drives reason and® prudence into ob
scurity, that men forsake the plow, anvil, and work-bench, and resort to the sell
ing of siiks and.laces, toys and tobacco, rat-traps, grindstones, and ribbons, for a
living; it is useless for a man of prudence and experience to urge that bank
ruptcy is generally the fate of all such as forsake the farm and resort to the coun
ter for a living. Inexperienced in their business, their failure is a mere problem
in process of solution; the' first reaction in commerce and currency will sweep
them overboard, and they will go down. A successful farmer, possessing a fam
ily has no more a right to forsake his well-secured farm boat for a leaky, shaky,
cob-wed, lace-lined boat, than he has to intemperance or gambling. Stick to
your farms ; your lands will never desert you, nor cease to supply your wants,
unless you first desert them.
STATISTICS OF POPULATION, & c.
NATIVITY AND OCCUPATION OF THE PEOPLE OF IOWA IN 1 85 6 .
In the Merchants' Magazine for April, 1857, (vol. xxxvi., pp. 497-499,) we
published that part of the State census of Iowa, in 1856, which exhibited the
official returns relative to the number of inhabitants in each county o f the State.
That article was continuous of a somewhat more general statement in the num
ber of this Magazine for February, 1857, (vol. xxxvi., pp. 247-248,) which ex
hibited the progress of Iowa in population and wealth for a series of years. W e
now publish, from the official State document, (containing the full returns of the
census of Iowa in 1856,) an abstract of the reports on the nativity and occupa
tion of the inhabitants of the State. W e have, however, in the table of nativi
ties, arranged the States and countries in geographical instead of alphabetical
order, the latter being that adopted in the census document:—
ORIGIN OF THOSE BORN W ITH IN THE UNITED STATES.
»
^
Maine......................................
New Hampshire......... .............
Vermont.................................
Massachusetts..........................
Rhode Island............................
Connecticut.............................
New York................................
New Jersey.............................
Pennsylvania..........................
Ohio.........................................
Indiana.......... ............
Illinois.....................................
Michigan.................................
Wisconsin.................................
Iowa .•.....................................
2,362
2,515
5,925
4,567
609
2,411
85,419
3,473
45,659
90,032
53,354
23,183
3,100
2,784
93,302
Delaware.................................
Maryland.................................
Virginia...................................
Nortlv Carolina.........................
South Carolina........................
Georgia...................................
Florida.....................................
Alabama...................................
Mississippi...............................
Louisiana.................................
Texas.......................................
Arkansas.................................
Tennessee...............................
Kentucky.................................
Missouri....................................
645
4,400
17,518
4,917
602
242
23
204
177
284
33
136
6,374
14,357
5,588
From the District of Columbia, 84; Minnesota, 37 ; Nebraska, 19 : Kansas,
30 ; Oregon, 6 ; Utah, 3.
m
Statistics o f Population, etc.
ORIGIN OF THOSE BORN IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES.
Canada............
New Brunswick
Nova Scotia
Mexico.............
West Indies___
South America..
England............
Scotland............
Wales...............
Ireland..............
France...............
Switzerland.. . .
Germany...........
Saxony.............
Hanover...........
Austria..............
Prussia..............
1,511
589
172
2,782
1,116
50
46
Belgium.. . .
Holland.......
Denmark...
Norway.. . .
Sweden.......
Russia........
Poland........
Greece........
Italy............
Portugal . . .
Africa.........
East Indies .
Australia. . .
102 Iceland........
286 On the ocean
1,254 Unknown...
960
5,177
149
207
1
55
17
8,941
2,170
595
20,896
1,807
1,108
28,644
8
7
2
8
6
8
1
64
4,565
OCCUPATIONS, TRADES, AND PROFESSIONS.
Farmers............... 68,684 Clergymen...........
Laborers.............. 15,858 Teachers..............
2,426 Musicians..............
Blacksmiths.........
Carpenters...........
7,916 Printers.................
Wagon-makers . . .
687 Editors..................
314 Artists..................
Brick-layers.........
Pla-terers ...........
560 Daguerrean artists.
Stone-masons.......
1,339 Bankers.................
Stone-cutters........
232 Grocers................
Builders...............
12 Teamsters............
127 Chandlers.............
Carriage-makers...
Machinists............
•254 Brick-makers........
Engineers............
523 Watch makers....
Millers..................
808 Jewelers..............
Surveyors...........
394 Gun-smiths..........
Millwrights..........
332 Coopers.................
Painters................
524 Clerks..................
Cabinet-makers....
582 Surveyors............
Chair makers.......
107 Tanners.................
Turners .............
375 Weavers..............
Milliners..............
438 Prairie-breakers ..
Merchant-tailors ..
16 Wheelrights........
Tailors........ .
701 Miners..................
Hatters..............
61 Seamstresses........
Shoe-makers......... 1,286 Lime-burners.......
Harness-makers ..
477 Basket-makers . . .
Bakers..................
193 Pilots...................
Butchers..............
233 Ship-builders........
Mechanics...........
543 Lumbermen..........
Manufacturers__
173 Cradle»makers. . . .
2,786 Bookbinders.........
Merchants...........
Speculators..........
47 Hunters.................
180 Barbers................
Agents.................
16 Ferrymen..............
Drovers................
Traders ...............
217 Stage-drivers........
178 Peddlers...............
Druggists.............
Confectioners........
47 Potters..................
79 Turners................
B’ard’g-h’se keep’rs
392 Livery-keepers . . .
Hotel-keepers.......
29 Shingle-makers....
Clothiers.............
1,105 Tobacconists........
Physicians............
55 Locksmiths...........
Dentists.............. .
Lawyers..............
658
643
822
46
256
48
63
38
124
287
952
26
473
57
125
121
705
1,486
183
62
137
17
101
260
249
11
8
64
24
80
3
19
16
80
29
134
98
82
46
90
45
73
7
Horse-farriers . . . .
Sailors..................
Students.............
Nurservmen.........
Distillers..............
Engravers ..........
Moulders............
Hostlers................
Upholsterers.........
Domestics............
Gardeners............
Carders................
Fishermen.............
Raftmen................
Brewers.................
Draymen...............
Broom-makers.. . .
Contractors..........
Cooks....................
Saloon-keepers . . .
Architects............
Boatmen..............
Porters..................
Gas-fitters.............
Auctioneers. . . . . .
Conductors...........
Carvers..................
Founders...............
Dairymen.............
Plow makers.........
Pump-makers . . . .
Pattern-makers....
Smelters...............
Bookkeepers.........
Actors..................
Sculptors..............
Rope-makers.........
Colliers.................
Land-jobbers.........
Brokers........ . . .
Dyers....................
Opticians...............
18
6
107
52
16
8
78
37
14
393
104
43
15
3
52
30
22
40
25
60
10
53
18
11
22
4
3
82
16
10
5
8
8
14
14
6
6
21
15
5
10
3
775
Statistics o f Population, etc.
M IN N ESO TA : ITS ESTIMATED POPULATION IN JU LY, 1857.
The Joint Committee of the two Conventions of Minnesota, assembled to pre
pare a constitution for the proposed State, agreed upon the following senatorial
and representative districts, with the apportionment of members in the two houses
o f the State Legislature, together with the table of population in the several dis
tricts upon which the apportionment is based. The estimate of population was
made with much care from the best information the committee could obtain.
Number and district.
Population. Senators. Rep’«
I . .Washington County..............................................
2
3
19,500
2 .. Ramsey County..................................................
6
18,000
3
5
3 .. Dakota County....................................................
13,500
2
4
2
4 . . Hennepin County, west of Mississippi............
12,000
fi. .Rice County........................................................
2
3
10,000
6 .. Goodhue County..................................................
4
10,000
1
7 .. Scott County........................................................
3
9,000
1
8 .. Olmsted County....... ......... . ................................
4
13,000
2
6
9 .. Fillmore County..................................................
15,000
2
11,000
3
10. .Houston County...................................................
2
2
11.. Winona County....................................................
4
12,500
12.. Wabashaw County...............................................
3
8,000
i
13. .Mower and Dodge counties.................................
11,000
3
2
3
14. .Freeborn and Faribault counties..........................
8,000
1
15.. Steele and Waseca counties.................................
4
9,500
1
16. .Blue Earth and Le Sueur counties......................
3
1
8,600
3
17. .Nicollet and Brown counties...............................
8,500
1
3
18. .Sibley, Renville, and McLeod counties.............
1
8,000
3
19. .Carver and Wright counties.................................
8,000
1
3
20. .Benton, Stearns, and Meeker counties................
9,000
1
1
1
21. .Morrison, Crow Wing, and Mille Lac counties...
5,500
22. .Cass, Pembina, and Todd counties......................
1
5,000
1
2
23. .Hennepin County, east of Mississippi.................
7,000
1
1
24. .Sherburne, Anoka, and Manomin counties........
5,500
1
1
25. .Chisago, Pine, and Isanti counties......................
6,000
1
1
26. .Buchanan, Carlton, St. Louis, Lake, and Itasca,.
1
6,000
Total................................................................
247,500
37
80
POPULATION OF LOUISVILLE IN 1850 AND 1857.
The census of the city of Louisville, completed this year, exhibits the following
result:—
Population of Louisville in 1857....................................................................
“
“
1850....................................................................
57,585
43,194
Increase in seven years.......................................................................
Number of voters............................................................................................
Children between 6 and 18 years..................................................................
Increase of whites since 1850.........................................................................
“
free negroes “
......................................................................
Decrease of slaves since “
..................................... ...............................
14,391
7,404
12,045
14,871
77
557
FOREIGN POPULATION IN THE SOUTHERN STATES.
A correspondent of the London Times has been traveling in the Southern
States. In a letter dated Macon, Georgia, he says :—
Germans abound in the interior of the States; they seem to have ousted the
native American from whole branches of traffic. Y ou may pass rows of shops
with names and faces that are genuine importations from Whitechapel, the streets
of Frankfort, or the towns of the Rhine. The Germans proper are bakers, or
770
Mercantile Miscellanies.
watchmakers, generally practicing some handicraft; the Jew, German or other,
is, as generally, a trader only, especially in those beautiful fits that are so well
got up to the eye and wear so badly. A Frenchman is seldom seen ; the Italian
is much more common, and he devotes himself to pastry ; if the place will support
a confectioner, he will be a Giovanni or Fratelli. In these national distributions
of trades one American town is exactly like another, the division seems almost as
unvarying as the plan of the streets. What are the natives, it may be asked ?
It is not so easy to say. For many the petty trades are too slow of profit, and
they flock to the West to speculate in land.”
MERCANTILE MISCELLANIES.
POETRY 0 F THE PANIC— A SONG FOR THE TIMES.
The following lines are credited to the Daily Advertiser, and dated Galena,
October 16,1857. The muse seems to have been inspired (if inspiration were
necessary) by the commercial crash which was at its height in October last:—
Crasli, crash, crash.
Is the key-note for the times,
And crash, crash, crash,
Kings out the country chimes —
Whilst failure, suspension, and dearth
Sweep o’er the desolate earth,
Instead of the musical mirth
That rings from millions o f dimes*.
Crash, crash, crash.
Is the only music I hear,
And crash, crash, crash,
Is the only thing I fear—
Fear I with his ghastly, ghostly grimace,
Comes up from his dreary hiding-place
And stares me full in the face,
And mocks me with mad'ning jeer.
Crash, crash, crash,
Is whispered in many a breath,
And crash, crash, crash,
Is the ’scape-valve of sudden death—
Whilst limb’ring limbs and glaring eyes
Denote the demon's distorted size,
Before the wretch in silence dies
And yields up his precious breath.
Crash, crash, crash,
Of merchants, brokers, and banks,
And crash, crash, crash,
To bogus exchange give thanks!—
For he alone o f tho bony tribe,
Is the grizzly monster, with mouth open wide,
Washed up by the equinoctial tide
Just to swallow your head and shanks.
Crash, crash, crash,
Of hearts and homes once bright,
And crash, crash, crash.
Since the stars refused their light;
L o! crinoline will no more be seen,
And silks o f purple, and pink, and green,
Will soon be crash'd by the powers" I ween,
.And the angels al! lost to sight.
Crash, crash, crash,
On railroad, river, and land,
And crash, crash, crash,
Of houses built on sand;
’ .Mid tumbling ruins and crumbling beams-,
And the rip and tear o f ten thousand schemes.
All passing away like childhood’s dreams,
Without leaving one note-of-hand.
Crash, crash, crash,
In stocks all shaven and shorn,
And crash, crash, crash,
In scrip by the panic torn;
Alas! the stocks that were once at par,
When Wall-street's gate stood a little ajar,
Slip’d through; and now they're gone afar,
All to dire desolation born.
Crash, crash, crash,
Of foundries and factories too,
And crash, crash, crash,
From factory bells sound blue;
Pulleys are stopped by a very slight liitcb,
Because every firm lias got a* stitch
In the side—and down in the ditch
They are kicking their last, "tis true.
Crash, crash, crash,
Is borne on the winds o f heaven,
And crash, crash, crash.
From east to west is driven;
I hear its voice from Atlantic’s shore,
Coming up with its wild, bewild’ring roar—
May its ravings be speedily heard no more,
And peace with plenty be given.
G alena,
Oct.
1G, 18 3 7 .
8 . 8 ------- p .
“ THE W ORTHLESSNESS OF GOLD.”
Accumulation is a wise and providential instinct of human nature, and gold
is useful and good when honestly obtained aDd liberally and prudently used;
and it is not worthless when it will purchase the comforts and elegancies of life.
It has been the mission of the Merchants' Magazine, for the last eighteen or nine
teen years of its existence, to teach merchants and others the true principles of
its acquisition, and that the miserly love of it is an evil— a great ev il; but it
Mercantile Miscellanies.
111
possession b j those who know how to use it for their own and others’ good, is a
real and substantial blessing. But there are times and circumstances in the life
of every man of sound mind, when he experiences a sense of its utter worthless
ness.
For illustration, we find it reported in the Tribune of September 21, 1857,
that there was seldom so large an amount o f money owned by passengers as was
in the case of those on board the “ Central America” when she foundered at sea,
on her passage from Aspinwall to New York. Many were persons o f large
means, and there were but very few persons whose immediate wealth did not
amount to hundreds, while numbers reckoned their gold by the thousands of dol
lars. The greater portion of the passengers were returned miners, some coming
hither to invest the capital they had realized, in hopes to live a life of greater
ease, as the result of their industry, and others to get their families and once
more go to the land of gold. But as the storm continued to rage, less and less
of gold was thought of, and when, on Saturday, it became evident that they
were likely at any moment to be buried beneath the waves, wealthy men divested
themselves of their treasure belts and scattered the gold upon the cabin floors
telling those to take it who would, lest its weight— a few ounces or pounds—
carry them to their death. Full purses, containing in some instances $2,000,
were laying untouched on sofas. Carpet-bags were opened by men, and the
shining metal was poured out on the floor with the prodigality of death’s des
pair. One of the passengers, who was fortunately rescued, -opened a bag and
dashed about the cabin $20,000 in gold dust, and told him who wanted to gra
tify his greed for gold to take it. But it was passed by untouched as the
veriest dross. A few hours before he would have struck down the man who
would have attempted to take a grain of that which he now spurned from him.
BRIEF NOTICE OF A N EW YORK MERCHANT.
It is our intention to place on record in the pages of the Merchants' Magazine
brief obituaries of prominent merchants, and we have from the start published
schetches of their lives, when placed in possession of suitable materials for that
purpose, or when we have been furnished by those who know their history best
with appropriate biographies. This course we have pursued for the last eighteen
years.
The Caurier <f- Enquirer of August 26, 1857, announced the death of M or
tim er L iv in gsto n , a prominent merchant of New York.
M r. Livingston, it ap
pears, died at his summer residence on Staten Island, and the manner of his death
was sudden. On Sunday morning, August 23d, being in his usual health, he took
a bath, remaining in the water a long time. On coming out he complained of
feeling great cold, and the means which were instantly employed to restore
warmth, failed to accomplish their purpose. He lingered until Monday, the 24th,
when he died. Mr. Livingston was fifty years old, and was a member of one of
the oldest and most respectable families in the State of New York, being the son
of the Hon. M a tu rin L iv in g sto n , formerly Recorder of the city of New York,
and the grandson of General M organ L e w is , formerly Governor of this State.
Mr. Livingston was for many years connected with the Havre trade, first as a
member of the firm of B olton , F ox & L iv in gsto n . After the death of Mr.
Bolton, F ox & Livingston continued the line of packets to Havre. When the
Havre lines formed a union, Mr. Livingston commenced a line o f steamers between
the port of New Y ork and Havre, which still continues. Mr. Livingston was
much respected as a merchant and beloved as a man. In respect to his memory
the flags of the shipping were displayed at half-mast.
Mercantile Miscellanies.
778
A
STORY OP THE BANK SUSPENSION OF 1 8 5 7 .
Harpers' Weekly] of Saturday,'October 24th, contained the following strong
hit at the times :—
Ten days before the banks suspended Jones was in the lowest depths of despair.
He had a bill to meet at three; and after incredible effort, wanting five thousand,
had succeeded in borrowing two hundred and fifty.
He went back to his office overwhelmed. It was a quarter to three. There was
no hope left. Despair !
A t that moment in rushed Glunton of Front-street, with a shout, and two
handfuls of bills.
Jones, my boy, hurrah! The banks have resolved to expand three millions
— three millions— th ree m illions 1 Do you hear ? So now, my boy, I can let
you have what you want. How much is it ?”
Jones was saved— at that time. Most unhappily, as it turned out, the banks,
instead of expanding three millions, curtailed five ; and instead of getting Jones
out of the scrape, they got poor G-unton in. Both, as is known, suspended last
week.
On receipt of the news, Mrs. Jones hastened to her savings bank, elbowed her
way to the desk, presented her book, and demanded her money.
“ Madam,” said the clerk, persuasively, “ are you sure you want to draw this
money out in specie ?”
“ Mrs. Jones, said a director, with a virtuous frown, “ do you know that you
are injuring your fellow-depositors?”
“ And setting an example of great folly to less educated persons in this com
munity ?” struck in another director.
“ Let me advise you to reflect” interposed the clerk, still blandly.
“ To wait for a day or two at least,” said the director.
A t last there was a pause.
Mrs. Jones had been collecting herself.
She burst now. In a scream
which was heard throughout the building, and over all the din :—
“ W ill you pay me my money, yes or no?”
They paid her instantly.
“ N ow ,” said she, “ poor dear Jones and the children have something to rely
upon for the w i n t e r a n d she hugged the fat little bag which contained her
gold.
.
A s she hastened up Broadway, her eye was caught by the signs in the
shop-windows. “ These goods sold at wholesale prices.” “ Selling off at half
cost.” “ Bargains to be had for two days— now or never.” “ W e must realize
ten thousand to-day at any sacrifice.”
Her eye fell on- a piece of muslin de laine which would make such lovely
dresses for the children. • She priced it— dirt cheap ; she bought it. The clerk
actually forced her toward a pile of winter dresses; they were positively given
aw ay; she bought two, one for herself, the other for Maria. Fearful of spending
more, she ran out of the shop.
A little farther on thcie was a sign— “ These sheetings sold at a quarter o f
their cost!” If there was a thing needed in Jones’s household it was sheets.
Mrs. J. would only take two pair. In she went, and bought six. Blankets?
Blankets for a song ? Well, she would just have one pair. They were so ridicu
lously cheap that she took four pair, paid for them, and ran home.
Home? N ot quite yet. Was it possible that Brussels carpets were selling at
seven shillings, and their drawing-room carpet all in holes, while poor Jones’s
smoking-room had no carpet at all ? She bought a carpet.
Then she went home. Yes, quite straight home, only stopping twice, once
to buy some stuff for under-clothing for herself and the girls, and once to pick
up some lovely material for curtains, which, like everything else, was given
away.
A t the door of her home she met Jones, very haggard, and gloomy as a man
wh i looks poverty in the face.
“ Where have you been ?”
Mercantile Miscellanies.
779
“ Ah, T om !” exclaimed his breathless wife, laying down her parcels, “ you’ll
love me now. Y ou never thought of the savings bank ?”
“ True. Had you anything there ?”
“ Hadn’t I ? Enough for our winter, my dear— and such bargains as I ’ve
made besides. O h ! I have had such work, fighting my wray through the crowd
of rude creatures at the savings bank, and then nearly cheated at last by the
president and the clerks. But I knew what I was about, and I carried my
point. O h ! dear, dear Jones, how tired and breathless and good for nothing I
do feel, to be sure !”
Poor Tom felt his heart rise as he discovered this new proof of his wife’s
thoughtfulness and economy. He pressed her to his breast, and called her his
darling, darling Emma ; and, as she sat on his knee, listened to her story of the
struggle she had to get the money— all in gold— out of the savings bank. “ But
here it is,” said she, and so saying, she pulled out the bag, counted its con
tents, and found that she had left, out of the fund which was to keep them all
winter—just seven dollars and fifty cents!
DRAWING THE SPECIE— AN INCIDENT OF THE PANIC,
The Boston Transcript relates a story of a working man in the vicinity of Bos
ton, who having saved quite a sum from his earning, deposited fifteen hundred
dollars, some months ago in a bank near Boston, one of the officers of which was
an old acquaintance. A few days since the depositor concluded to withdraw his
money, stating that he wished gold, as he was to expend it in Maine, and there
might be some trouble about bills if he took them. He was informed that the
cashier’s check on Boston would be as good as the gold for the purpose, and in
case of loss, be more secure, as payment could be stopped. He concluded, how
ever, to take the gold, which was at once counted out to him. The next the
bank officer heard of him, he was under arrest, and the following facts were
elicited :— The story about taking the funds to Maine was a ruse to obtain
specie. The gold had been secreted under the hay in the loft of a stable, and
the man visiting it in the night, had taken a lantern, the light of which had ar
rested the attention of another party who watched the movements, supposing the
owner of the gold to be an incendiary, and took the man and his bag of double
eagles to the police station-house. After considerable parley and protestations
of innocence on the part of the supposed Culprit, the funds were retained as se
curity for the owner’s appearance in the morning. His statements concerning
his treasure were verified the next day, and he was released. When remonstrated
with for his imprudence for mistrusting a sound bank and leaving his money in a
place so liable to destruction as a stable, he replied, that he thought that in case
the barn was burned, his gold would drop through, and he could easily fiud it
among the ruins!
ADVICE TO MERCHANTS IN RHYM E.
The following from the New Y ork Evening Post, (not by Goldsmith,) will
do to laugh over, but is not so very pleasant, we opine, in practice :—
"When merchants fondly trust to paper,
And find too late that banks betray,
"What art can help them through the scrape, or
Suggest the means wherewith to pay ?
The only way to stop each croaker.
And pay the banks to whom they trust,
To bring repentance to the broker,
And wring his bosom, is—“ to bust 1”
Mercantile Miscellanies.
780
AJV INCIDENT OF THE PANIC OF 1 857.
The Express tells a story of a foreign house in New York, consisting of three
partners, which a few days before the suspension of specie payments by the banks
drew their deposits, amounting to $100,000 in gold, from the bank— which they
re-deposited in their counting-house safe. But the $100,000 “ elephant” thus
caged, became very troublesome. What to do with Mm, how to guard Mm,
who to have to watch over Mm, were very important problems to be solved.
The clerks might steal. The temptation was too great for the watchman or por
ter. If the “ burglars ” heard of it, they would be sure to break in and steal,
and if necessary, murder too. There was a very unhappy consultation among
the partners as to what should be done with the $100,000. Well, the conclusion
finally was, that a brace of Colt’s revolvers should be bought— and that each
partner should take his turn in sitting up at night by the safe, wide awake—
with a revolver in each hand.
How this matter terminated the Express does not inform u s; but we learn
from another equally authentic source, that the money was re-deposited in one
o f the banks the day before it suspended.
A PAM PH LET FOR THE TIM E S.
Mr. C h a r le s M. E ll is , of Boston, has written, and Crosby & Nichols have
published, a pamphlet o f some sixty pages, entitled “ Hints for Belief by a General
Law to protect and promote amicable arrangements for Extension and Compro
mise between Debtor and Creditor.” The author says, in the concluding part of
his preface, that “ if the principles which I here develop can be safely and well
organized, they will lessen and often cure two of the greatest of the troubles of
such times, viz., the necessity o f temporary or permanent stoppage of business,
and extended and protracted litigation; both of which arise mainly from the
omission of the American laws to clothe with their sanction those relations
which are at once recognized by all just and honorable men in such crisis.” Mr.
Ellis seems to have studied his subject with care ; and the conclusions at which
he arrives are eminently well calculated to promote the mutual interests of both
debtor and creditor. W e have no hesitation in commending the author’s princi
ples, as laid down in the pamphlet before us, to the consideration of those “ who
seek to do all that may be done for the jurisprudence and legislation of the
country.”
COMMERCIAL READING ROOM AND LIBRARY OF REFERENCE,
The Mercantile Library Association of New York, have, through its Presi
dent, offered to unite with the Chamber of Commerce in establishing a “ Com
mercial Beading Boom and Library of Beference,” to contain dictionaries, gazet
teers, tariffs, works on mercantile law, insurance, banking, and such other depart
ments as need to be represented. Also, the publications of Congress, of the
New Y ork Legislature, and of our city government, to embrace also a depart
ment of maps and charts, wherein shall be preserved the most reliable maps of
our own and foreign countries ; the charts published under the direction of the
coast survey, and if deemed advisable, the ordnance maps of Great Britain,
and the several topographical surveys made by France, Austria, Switzerland,
and other States of Europe.
Mercantile Miscellanies.
THE PANIC AND REVULSION
^81
OF 1 837.
December, 1837, a Bank Convention was held in New Y ork to take measures
for an early resumption. Messrs. Albert Gallatin, George Newbold, C. W .
Lawrence, Cornelius Heyer, John J. Palmer, Preserved Pish, and Gorham A .
Worth, were appointed a committee to publish the views of the convention.
W e extract as follows, as a matter of history :—
The immediate causes which compelled the banks of the city of New York to
suspend specie payment on the 10th of May last, are well known. The simul
taneous withdrawing of the large public deposits and of excessive foreign
credits, combined with the great and unexpected fall in the price of the principal
articles of our exports, with an import of breadstulfs such as had never before
occurred, and with the consequent inability of the country, particularly of the
Southwestern States, to make the usual and expected remittances, did, at one and
the same time, fall principally and necessarily on the greatest commercial em
porium of the Union. After a long and most arduous struggle, during which
the banks, though not altogether unsuccessfully resisting the imperative foreign
demand for the precious metals, were gradually deprived of a great portion of
their specie, some unfortunate incidents of a local nature operating with other
previous exciting causes, produced distrust and panic, and finally one of those
general runs, which, if continued, no bank that issues paper money payable on
demand can ever resist, and which soon put it out of the power of those of this
city to sustain specie payments. The example was followed by the banks
throughout the whole country with as much rapidity as the news of the suspen
sion in New Y ork reached them, without waiting for an actual run, and princi
pally, if not exclusively, on the alleged ground of the effects to be apprehended
from that suspension. Thus, while the New Y ork city banks were almost
draiued of their specie, those in other places preserved the amount which they
had before the final catastrophe.
THE MERCHANTS’ CLERKS’ SAVINGS BANK.
One of the best and noteworthy features of the Mercantile Library Association
in the city of New York, was the establishment in 1848 of the “ institution for
the savings of merchants' clerks,” now permanently located in its own building
in Broadway, opposite the St. Nicholas Hotel. The last annual report of the
mercantile association thus alludes to the history and character of the bank :—
“ This institution originated in 1848, under the auspices of the Chamber of
Commerce, and was established mainly to encourage prudence and thrift in the.
future merchants o f this great commercial city. Established mainly for the ad
vantage of merchants’ clerks, it receives deposits from all persons; and it is grati
fying to announce that it has continued steadily to advance in usefulness, that its
deposits now reach about one million and a quarter of dollars, and that quite a
large accession of the class for whom it was chiefly founded have availed them
selves of it as a safe and convenient depository of their funds.
“ By the laws of the State, it is managed by gentlemen who are or have been
connected with mercantile pursuits, among whom are the principal officers of the
Chamber of Commerce and many of our most accomplished and successful mer
chants, affording an ample guaranty of an efficient and prudent management of
its affairs. The rising generation of New York merchants have already establish
ed a marked character for intelligence and morality, much of which is to be at
tributed to the influence exercised on the tastes and associations of youth by our
own and kindred institutions. It becomes us, therefore, by our precepts and ex
amples, to stimulate each other to the adoption of a course of life in which a
judicious culture of the mind is mingled with habits of frugal economy.”
Feeling a deep interest in the future merchants of America, we earnestly hope
that similar institutions connected with Mercantile Library Associations, will
be established in every commercial city of the Union.
782
Mercantile Miscellanies.
DON’ T HOARD THE SPECIE.
When Santa Anna wanted gold he took it from the altars o f the churches
in Mexico, and sent it, as he said, about doing good. The Delaware Republican
seems to entertain the same opinion. That journal says :—There is abundance
of specie in the country for all ordinary transactions o f daily life, if it be only
kept in circulation. Specie, or other small currency, is the life-blood o f business,
and if it be wanting to any considerable extent, business will languish, stagnate,
or decay, in proportion as its life-blood is wanting. The propensity to hoard
specie is one of the lowest and meanest Tices of the human mind. It is the very
essence of selfishness. The propensity is naturally heightened in time of panic like
the present, and often seizes, upon good men who in ordinary seasons would be
entirely free from it. Let all who have a spark of kindly and liberal feeling,
“ resist the temptation and it will flee from them.” , There is still sufficient gold
and silver in the country to keep the wheels of business' in motion, and thereby
enable honest industry by daily labor to earn its daily bread. Whatever of want
and suffering may prevail this winter among those who would labor, but can find
no employment, will be largely owing to the hoarding of specie. Those who
cause this want to fall upon the poor, will receive their pay in due season, if it
be true “ that with the measure ye mete withal, the same shall be measured to
you again.”
TOO MUCH SPECIE ON HAND.
The Evening Post relates an anecdote of a man -who by long years of toil, had
saved same §4,000, drew it from the ---------- Bank in this city, not believing
his money was safe there, in these “ troublous times.” His money was all in
gold. He occupied a room in a building in the lower part of the city. On his
way to his quarters with his gold in a bag he imagined every person he passed
knew that he had gold. Night came, and he put the gold between the beds, and
lay down on it, but not to sleep. His imagination was alive; he deemed every
noise made by burglars who were after his gold. During the long night
watches he was sleepless, and he rejoiced when daylight came.
H e changed
his quarters— took a room in a more respectable locality; put the gold away,
went to his work, was uneasy, went again and again to his room, looked at
his bag of “ yellow boys,” and “ night and darkness” came again. His gold
was under him, but noises were round about him. He slept not. In the morn
ing he went to a friend on Front-street, and asked, “ W hat shall I do with
my money ?” told him his trouble for two days and nights, and asked for ad
vice. “ Go and deposit your gold again in the ---------- Bank, and take a cer
tificate.” He did so, and was happy, as his money is safe.
FORM ER BANK SUSPENSIONS.
The first general suspension of specie payments by banks occurred in 1814,
immediately after the capture of the city of Washington by the British. The
banks of New Y ork and all South and West suspended, and did not resume for
three or four years. The general suspension in 1837, began at New York, May
10th, and the next day the banks of Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore fol
lowed. The banks of Cincinnati suspended on the 17th. A general resumption
o f specie payments was attempted in 1839, but a large proportion of the banka
Mercantile Miscellanies.
783
did not succeed in the operation, and a universal resumption was not effected
until 1843 and 1844. The suspension in New York in 1831 was preceded by a
period of unprecedented commercial distress. Three hundred heavy firms failed
there that spring, with liabilities estimated at 840,000.000, and it was said
that 2,000 men, dependent on their daily labor for their support, were thrown
out of employment. The pressure was equally severe in other places; one
hundred and sixty-eight firms failed in Boston during the six months pre.
ceding the suspension.
NOTICE OF HENRY W ILLIAMS, A BOSTON MERCHANT.
The Boston Daily Advertiser, in announcing the death of H e n r y W il l ia m s ,
which took place on Monday, the 28th of September, 1851, says:— “ Mr. W il
liams was born in Deerfield, Mass., the 12th of September, 1186, and was therefore
a few days more than 11 years of age at the time of his death. He came to
Boston in early life, and was for many years an active and enterprising merchant,
being the senior partner in the house of Williams, Putnam & Co., on Central
Wharf. Mr. Williams was a man of great energy of character and public spirit.
He was one of the earliest advocates for the construction of the Western Kailroad, and rendered efficient service in accomplishing that important work ; and he
contributed in no small degree, by his writings in the papers, to encourage the
introduction of the Cochituate water into the city. He was repeatedly elected a
Representative to the State Legislature, where he held a prominent rank as an
able debater. In political principles, in former times, he was universally known
as one of the most ardent and zealous members of the federal party, to which he
adhered as long as the party existed, and from its principles he never swerved.
He was an honest and upright man, and ever had the good of the community and
prosperity of the country at heart.” W e knew Mr. Williams well during the last
thirty years of his life, and it affords us pleasure to bear our testimory to the justice
of the Advertiser's tribute to his integrity, energy, and public spirit.
A MERCANTILE LIBRARY ASSOCIATION FOR NEW ORLEANS.
While almost every other commercial city in the Union has its Mercantile
Library Association, New Orleans, one of the most important in the country, has
until recently neglected to establish one. By the New Orleans papers, it appears
that a meeting for the organization of such an institution was held on the evening
of August 4th, 1857. The meeting was organized by the choice of Gustavus A .
Breaux as chairman, and Mr. Wm. Gregory as secretary. The Chairman
stated the objects of the meeting to be the building up of an association to pro
vide for the intellectual wants and welfare of the mercantile and other young
men of the city of New Orleans, by means of a Library and Beading Room, Lec
tures and Discusions, to provide a place of literary resort, such as had long been
needed. The Secretary than read the draft of a constitution which had been pre
pared, providing for the election of a board of thirteen trustees, a board of thirteen
directors, the procurement of a library, the establishment of a reading room, etc.,
which was adopted section by section, with little or no alteration. Five dollars
per annum was fixed as the price of membership, and one hundred dollars for
life-membership. The following gentlemen were then elected as the Board of
Trustees, by acclamation :— Wm. H. Avery, Charles Briggs, J. A . Braud, Jos.
W . Carroll, Cornelius Fellowes, H. T. Lonsdale, Logan McKnight, John L,
Macaulay, Wm. M. Perkins, John Pemberton, Col. I. G. Seymour, E. B. Smedes,
and George Jonas. After balloting for a Board of Directors, the following gentle
784
Mercantile Miscellanies.
men were declared to be elected— 62 votes being cast:— G. A . Breaux, T. D.
Van Horn, Theo. A . James, Geo. Seymour, Sam. L. Butler, C. W . Cammack,
Jos. Ellison, A . J . Moss, Thomas P. Walker, Jas. H. Wheeler, W . Gregory,
Jos. Murphy, John E. Caldwell. The spirit manifested at the organization, and
the well known respectability and activity of the gentlemen composing the board
of Directors, are, says the Commercial Bulletin of that city, a sufficient guaranty
that this long-talked-of and much-needed institution will now be established upon
a firm and enduring basis. W e earnestly hope that the merchants of New Orleans
will, in this case, evince their usual liberality, and assist in bringing about this
much-desired consummation.
A SUCCESSFUL MERCHANT’ S EXPERIENCE.
A communication in the Country Gentleman, has a word in season for those
young men who hanker after tickets in the great lottery of mercantile life :—
I am a city merchant, having commenced my career as an adventurer from the
farm, on a salary of 680 per year, and having passed through half a life time of
incessant toil to reach the point where dependence ceases, and “ dinner ahead”
begins.
1 filled a clerkship in several first-class mercantile houses, and was associated
with a very considerable number of salesmen, accountants, and clerks generally.
Nearly thirty years have passed since my city clerkship began, and the retrospect
has developed the following results :—
A ll mercantile houses by whom I was employed, have since failed— one, after
an eminently creditable career of fifteen years, was carried into hopeless bank
ruptcy by outside, speculation, and another after thirty-five years of unbounded
success and credit, was a few months since in inextricable difficulties— the result
o f a single dash of the pen— and has forever closed its mercantile existence.
Of all the clerks with whom I have been associated, not one has achieved per
manent success equal to the value of a well-stocked one-hundred-acre farm, while
from the most brilliant of their number, the penitentiary, the hospital, the drunk
ard’s grave have claimed their victims. Some embarked in business with lofty
anticipations of success, but soon passed away in disaster, and the career of not
a few would fill thrilling illustrated chapters in the unwritten history of city mer
chant’s clerks, and prove beyond a question that—■
“ Yice is a monster of such frightful mien,
That to be hated needs but to be seen,
But seen too oft, familiar with its face,
W e first endure, then pity, then embrace.”
Some sanguine youth may ask where the successful men originate. I answer,
they are one in one hundred of those who embark in business, and one in several
hundred of those who seek clerkships with anticipations of fortune in prospect.
Personally, by a rare combination of favorable circumstances, those “ wonder
flowers” that bloom but once in a life time, I am meeting what is called success.
The way to it was paved by years of incessant labor, of sixteen to eighteen hours
per day, and such days and nights of toil as no farmer’s boy that I have met
with ever dreamed of in rural labors, and which, if applied to the cultivation of a
hundred-acre farm, would have developed hidden treasures not dreamed of by the
reluctant plowman.
But as years pass and develop, along with the vanities of life, the gray hairs
which are stealing upon me, my thoughts often revert to the home scenes of my
childhood in the country, and I feel tempted to shake off this artificial life and
seek for my declining years that repose and quiet which I imagine might be found
in rural life, among an intelligent and open-hearted population devoted to agricul
ture— and secure my family those health-growing influences, both mental and
physical, which cheerful country life must supply to general minds.
\
Mercantile Miscellanies.
785
WHAT MONEY W ILL DO.
Money, as the readers of the Merchants' Magazine well know, is a queer in
stitution. It makes best of friends, who take a great interest in your welfare,
and will do anything for you in the world if you have the “ one thing needful’’
wherewith to do' it. It buys provender, satisfies justice, and heals wounded honor.
Everything resolves itself into cash, from stock jobbing to building churches.
Childhood craves pennies ; youth aspires to dimes ; manhood is swayed by the
mighty dollar. The blacksmith swings the sledge, the lawyer pleads for his
client, and the judge decides the question of life and death for his salary. Money
makes the man ; therefore, the man must make money, if he would be respected
by fools ; for the eye of the world looks through golden spectacles. It buys
Brussels carpets, lace curtains, gilded cornices, and rich furniture, and builds
marble mansions. It drives us to church in splendid equipages and pays the rent
of the best pew. It buys silks and jewelry for my lady— it commands the respect
of gaping crowds and insures obsequious attention. It enables us to be charit
able, to send Bibles to the heathen, and relieve domestic indigencies. It gilds the
rugged scenes of life and spreads over the rugged path of existence a velvet carpet
soft to our tread ; the rude scenes of turmoil are encased in a gilt frame. It bid 3
care vanish, soothes the anguish of the bed of sickness, stops short of nothing
save the grim destroyer, whose relentless hand spares none, but levels all mortal
distinction, and teaches poor, weak humanity that it is but dust. Thus wealth
pauses on the brink of eternity ; the beggar and the millionaire rest side by side
beneath the sod, to rise in equality to answer the final summons.
THE BENEFITS OF COMMERCE.
The Hon. R. M. T. H unter, in an address before the Virginia Military Insti
tute, pays the following just and beautiful tribute to commerce and the mer
chant :—
Such are the mighty agencies of the school which are now being directed with
all their energies to the great good of human advancement. How glows the
heart of man at the prospect belore i t ; for the same increase of power and effici
ency are to be observed in all the agencies which are at work for its improve
ment. The occupation of commerce, and that corporation of the “ guild,” as it
has been called, consisting of those who are engaged in transferring from hand
to hand the productions of human labor, and the accumulated commodities
which constitute capital, have had scant justice done them in a moral point of
view. The vast services which the merchant has rendered to mankind, in relar
tion to his material comforts, have been sufficiently acknowledged; but his
agency in the civilization and moral improvement of his race, has hardly been
properly considered. It was the merchant who carried Joseph away and estab
lished him in Egypt, to become the stay and support of his family, and to save
his race when it was threatened with extinction from famine. It was the Phcenecian merchant who bore the germs of civilization and the gift of letters around
the shores of the Mediterranean ; it was he who sowed in the sensitive and sus
ceptible soul of the Greek that seed from which sprang, under his lovely sky,
the flowers and the fruits that have made his genius immortal, and constituted
the deals which have been the exemplars for all succeeding ages. He penetrates
into every known region which is accessible to the camel, the ship, or even to
the human footstep, and may say, with the ancient mariner, that he passes like
“ night from land to land,” to exchange not merely the productions of the lands
o f different and distant people, but, in some sort, the productions of their minds
also, their modes of thought, and moral culture.
I f the wild hordes which roam, each in its respective circuit, over the plateau
of Central Asia, know anything beyond the narrow boundaries of their own
horizon, it is probably due to the Hindoo, Hebrew, and Armenian merchants, who
scale its steeps to satisfy something more than the physical necessities of those peo
ple. That the educated, intelligent Anglo-Saxon merchant, whether of the senior
or junior branches of the family, is a prime agent in the work of human civilization,
v o l . x x x v i i .— n o .
vi.
49
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Mercantile Miscellanies.
no one would be disposed to deny. I f the obligations of the world of commerce
have been so great in past times, what are we to expect from it with all its in
creased powers for the future ? I f the periplus of Hanno, the Carthagenian, or
that of Nearchus the Great, were so important in their day, what shall we say
of the voyages of public exploration, or even of private adventures, by which
we now so often circle the globe itself? I f the commercial marine of antiquity
which so slowly felt its way along the shores of the Mediterranean, did great
good, what are we to expect from those lines of ocean steamers which find a path
everywhere upon the boundless deep, and reduce to days and weeks the time of
circuits of human intercourse which formerly would have been either impossible,
or else required months and years for their accomplishment ? Indeed, there are
none of the agencies of human society which have increased more in favor and
efficiency than this.
I believe it was Frederick the Great of Prussia, who said, if he was king of
France, not a gun should be fired in Europe without his leave. The day seems
to have now come, when the union of but a few capitalists would be sufficient
to realize so proud a boast, for they hold in their hands the sinews of peace and
war, and it is almost by their leave that either is made. That the commercial
community over the world is daily tending to a unity of interest and feeling, is
obvious enough, and that this must operate to bring men more and more into
one common brotherhood, is also manifest.
LOUDON SHOPS AND SHOP WINDOWS.
According to T he Little World of London, the grand source o f gratuitous
entertainment in the great metropolis— London— is the shop windows. W e
quote:—
Here lies the veritable Great Exhibition, which is perpetually open to all
comers, and of which nobody ever tires. It is an awful blunder to suppose that
those only profit 'by the display in shop windows who are in a position to pur
chase. Every shop front is an open volume, which even he that runs may read,
while he that stands still may study it, and gather wisdom at the cheapest
source, •which may be useful for a whole life. To the moneyless million, the shops
of London are what the university is to the collegian ; they teach them all
knowledge ; they are history, geography, astronomy, chemistry, photography,
numismatics, dynamics, mechanics— in a word, they arc science in all its prac
tical developments— and, glorious addition, they are art in all its latest and no
blest achievements. While to one class of observers they are a source of inex
haustible amusement, to another they are a source equally inexhaustible of in
struction. Therefore it is that the mechanic and artisan, out of work and out
of money, wanders along the interminable miles of shop fronts, peering here,
puzzling there, guessing in this place, solving in that, some one or other of the
mechanical problems presented to his view. A common thing with men and
lads thus circumstanced, is to sally forth in groups to dissipate the weary hours
of enforced idleness by gazing in at the shop windows, and speculating upon this
or that unknown material or contrivance; and guessing, or, if practicable, in
quiring into the circumstances of its produce or construction. A well known
source of gratis recreation to the unemployed is what is called “ a picture fud
dle,” when a party of idle hands will hunt up all the print shops and picture
shops of a whole district, and spend perhaps the whole day in the contemplation
of this gratuitous gallery, which, having the charm of novelty, recommends itself
to them more than do the rooms of the National Collection or the long chambers
of the British Museum. Others may prefer “ a book fuddle,” and these roam
from stall to stall in the second-hand book districts, beguiling the time by a
chapter from a dog’s-eared Pickwick or a brown study over the columns of an
old Mechanics' Magazine. There is no end to the entertainment derivable, in
tolerable weather, from shop stalls and shop windows j and it is our notion that
he need be a clever fellow indeed, who would undertake to specify in set terms
the influence they have had in forming the mind, character, and habits of our
city population.
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THE BOOK TRADE.
1. —-Travels and Discoveries in North and Central Africa. Being a Journal o f
an Expedition undertakes under the Auspices o f H. B. M.’s Government, in
the years 1849-1855. By H e n r y B a r t h , Ph. D., D. C. L., Fellow o f the
Royal Geographical and Asiatic Societies, etc., etc. In three volumes. 8vo.
New Y ork: Harper & Brothers.
Previous to the fifteenth century, in which the Portuguese navigators, in a
long series o f maritime discoveries, first doubled Cape Bnjador and the Cape o f
Good Hope, but little was known o f Africa. Its interior is still a mysterious
region. Bruce traveled through Abyssinia in 1770 ; a quarter o f a century af
terward, Park traced the course o f the Niger, and Browne penetrated into the
central regions o f Darfur and Bornu. Since then Barrow, Trulter, and Somer
ville, and still more recently Dr. Livingston, have made important and extensive
discoveries in South Africa. The most interesting account of all recent explo
rations is to be found in the invaluable journal o f Dr. Barth. The expedition
was projected by the British government, and under its patronage, combined with
that o f the Prussian government, was prosecuted. The explorers were Mr.
James Richardson, who had, in 1845-6, traversed a great portion o f the desert
o f Sahara, accompanied by Dr. Overweg and the author o f this journal. ' They
left Tripoli, March 30th, 1850. Mr. Richardson died in March, 1851, and Dr.
Overweg in September, 1852. Dr. Y ogel was' sent to supply the place o f Dr.
Overweg, and his astronomical observations were o f vast benefit in prosecuting
geographical explorations. Dr. Barth’s travels extended over a tract o f country
twenty-four degrees in length by twenty in width, and in a portion o f the conti
nent o f Africa hitherto almost wholly unknown. His researches have brought
to light vast tracts o f fertile lands, producing grain in abundance, as well as su
gar-cane, cotton, and indigo. The discovery o f the river Benuwe opens a navi
gable highway into the heart o f a region o f untold production. In the preface
to this work Dr. Barth says, “ My chief object has been to represent the tribes
and nations with whom I came in contact, in their historical and ethnographical
relation to the rest o f mankind, as well as in their physical relation to that tract
o f country in which they live.” This task he has agreeably performed, and has
rendered a no less valuable service to the philanthropist than to geography and
science.
2. — Essays in Biography and Criticism. By P e t e r B a y n e , M. A., author o f
“ The Christian Life, Social and Individual,” etc. First Series. 12mo., pp.
426. Boston : Gould & Lincoln.
The papers contained in this handsome volume consist, in part, o f the contri
butions o f the author to an Edinburgh magazine, and in part o f contributions
that have not previously been published. It contains eight biographical criticisms,
viz., Thomas de Quincy and his works; Tennyson and his teachers; Mrs. Bar
rett Browning; Glimpses o f recent British art; John Ruskin; Hugh Miller;
the modern novelists, Dickens, Buhver, Tbackaray, and Currer, Ellis, and Acton
Bell, &c. W e have not been in the habit o f looking for marked literary criti
cism among what are termed “ evangelical” writers, but we find in Mr. Bayne
all the analytical power which has attached itself to the most astute orators of
the “ infidel school.”
3. — The Norse-Folk; or, A Visit to the Homes o f Norway and Sweden. By
C harles L oring B race, author o f “ Hungary in 1851,” and “ Home-Life in
Germany.” 12mo., pp. 516. New Y ork : Charles Scribner.
Mr. Brace presents, in this volume, a vivid picture o f a country and its people,
with much o f the personnel with which they come before the traveler, and describes
the habits, manners, &c., o f the people as one who had sat at their tables, min
gled in their households, and become familiar with their thoughts.
788
The Book Trade.
4. — Brazil and the Brazilians: portrayed in Historical and Descriptive Sketches.
By Rev. D. P. K id d e r , D. D., and Rev. J. C. F l e t c h e r . Illustrated by one
hundred and fifty engravings. 8vo., pp. 630. Philadelphia: Childs & Peter
son.
This volume, the joint production o f two educated and intelligent men, whose
experience in the Brazilian Empire embraces a period o f twenty years, discloses
facts in regard to the country and the people that will be new to readers gene
rally. They will find, on perusal, that in the distant southern hemisphere there
is a stable constitutional monarchy and a growing nation, occupying a territory
o f greater area than that o f the United States, ar.d that the descendants o f the
Portuguese hold the same relative position in South America as the descendants
o f the English do in the northern half o f the New World. The authors appear
to have faithfully portrayed the history o f the country, and by a narrative o f in
cidents connected with travel and residence, they have described the manners,
customs, habits, and advancement o f the most progressive people south o f the
equator. It is the first general work on Brazil that has been issued in Europe
or America since the “ Sketches” of Dr. Kidder, the senior author o f the work.
That work W'as noticed in this Magazine at the time o f its publication, and was
very favorably received in England and the United States. Besides their own
personal knowledge, the authors have consulted every important work, in French,
German, English, and Portuguese, that could throw any light upon the history
o f Brazil; and also various published memoirs and discourses read before the
flourishing “ Geographical and Historical Society ” at Rio de Janeiro. Their
statistics have been quoted from the imperial and provincial archives and Brazil
ian State papers. The volume is copiously illustrated with engravings, and a
fine, and probably the best, map o f the empire that has ever been published. It
is produced in the usual good style o f the publishers o f Dr. Kane’s Expedition,
and will bear, in this respect, a favorable comparison with that splendid work.
5. — Ministering Children. A Story showing how even a Child may be as a
Ministering Angel to the Poor and Sorrowful. Revised and slightly abridged
from the 29th London edition. 16mo., pp. 542. New Y ork : Carlton &
Porter.
This simple and instructive narrative, originally published under the auspices
o f the British Sunday School Union and the London Religious Tract Society, is
now reproduced by the Methodist Sunday School Union in New York. In Eng
land it reached a circulation o f nearly thirty thousand copies, pretty good evi
dence o f its immense popularity. A Wesleyan layman, no mean judge in liter
ary excellence, has pronounced it the best work o f its class yet published.
6. — Shamrock Leaves; Gleaned in the Fertile Field of Irish Literature. Being
Tales and Stories o f Ireland, selected from the most Popular Authors. 12mo.,
pp. 336. Boston: Patrick Donahoe.
This collection o f “ leaves” consists o f “ the genuine productions o f the ver
dant vales and majestic mountain-sides o f the land o f poetry and pathos, mirth
and melody, the Emerald Isle o f the ocean.” The volume contains the master
pieces o f such Irish writers as Carleton, Gerald Griffin, John Bannin, Crofton
Crocker, Mrs. Hall, with those o f many others whose names were not ascer
tained.
7. — Chit-chat of Humor, Wit, and Anecdote. With fifty original Illustrations,
from designs by J. M c L en an . Edited by P ie r c e P u n ge nt . 12mo., pp. 398.
New York : Stringer & Townsend.
Those who regard “ variety as the spice o f life,” will find it in this thick vol
ume, which overflows with that mixture o f fact, fun, fancy, philosophy, and
freaks o f adventure so calculated to while away the tedium o f a journey, that,
“ like the Frenchman who had invented a sauce so piquant that a man might eat
his own grandmother with a relish.” Seriously, the book contains several thou
sand bits o f “ wit, humor, and amusement.”
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8. — The Hand-Book o f Household Science. A popular account o f Heat, Light,
Air, Aliment, and Cleansing, in their Scientific Principles and Domestic Ap
plications. With numerous Illustrative Diagrams. By E d w a k d L. Y oumans,
author o f the “ Class-book o f Chemistry,” “ Chemical Atlas” and “ Chart,”
“ Alcohol and the Constitution of Man.” 12mo., pp. 447. New York : D.
Appleton & Co.
The author o f this work is a good illustration o f the idea o f acquiring knowl
edge under difficulties. At one time, and for a long time, almost, if not quite,
blind, by extraordinary perseverance he managed to pursue his studies in science,
and has at length become one o f the soundest, most original, and able writers
on chemistry either in Europe or America. The design o f the present work Is
to present a better statement than has hitherto been published o f the bearings
o f science upon the economy o f the household. This design Mr. Youmans
has, in our judgment, in a good degree accomplished. He has condensed within
the limits o f a convenient manual, a vast amount o f interesting and valuable
scientific information relating to those agents, materials, and operations in which
“ we have a concern as dwellers in houses.” The subjects are treated in an ele
mentary way. It is among the most valuable and useful books o f the day.
9. — Appletons’ Illustrated Hand-Book o f American Travel.
12mo., pp. 420.
New York : D. Appleton & Co.
This handsome volume is “ got u p” after the style and manner o f Murray’s
celebrated “ Hand-Books ” o f travel for the various countries o f Europe. It
embraces a full and reliable guide, by the several modes o f modern conveyance,
to the cities, towns, water-falls, battle-fields, mountains, rivers, lakes, hunting
and fishing grounds, watering places, and all other scenes and objects o f import
ance and interest in the United States and the British Provinces. It contains
several carefully-prepared maps, besides a number o f fine engravings o f famous
places and picturesque scenes, from original drawings by Mr. Richards, the au
thor. It will compare favorably with the best hand-books o f Murray.
10. — Beranger: two hundred o f his Lyrical Poems done into English Verse.
By W il l ia m Y oung . A new edition. 12mo., pp. 400. New Y ork : D. Ap
pleton & Co.
The recent death o f Beranger, which took place on the 16th o f July, 18S7,
has, it is well remarked by the accomplished translator, revived among foreigners
that interest in his works which has absorbed his own countrymen during al
most half a century. The first edition o f the work was published some seven
years ago. A s a lyric poet Beranger has never been surpassed.
11-— The American Railway Library. New York : D. Appleton & Co.
W e have received the first volume o f this series. It is entitled, “ Punch’s
Pocket-Book o f Fun,” and is “ made up ” o f cuts and cuttings from the wit and
wisdom o f twenty-five volumes o f “ Punch,” and altogether forms “ a b ook ”
that one can take up and lay down at his pleasure, without let or hinderance to
more sober thoughts or profitable occupation.
12.— The American Form-Book. By B enjamin T a t e and A l e x a n d e r H. S a n d s .
12mo., pp. 338, 358. Richmond, V a .: A. Morris & Co.
This work is divided into two parts, or volumes, bound in one. In the first
we have legally approyed precedents for agreements, arbitration, assignments,
land deeds, wills, &c.; also, forms o f deeds o f bargain and sale under the code
o f Virginia, with forms o f attachment under the same, mode o f holding to bail
under the Virginian acts o f 1851 and 1852, &c. In the second part we have
forms o f acknowledgements and deeds, and practical notes on the registry laws
in the several States o f the Union, together with forms of orders for the use o f
notaries public, and clerks and practitioners in the courts o f Virginia. The local
matter, pertaining to Virginia, was prepared by Alexander H. Sands, and that
relating to the States o f the Union by Benjamin Tate, both members o f the
legal profession.
790
The Book Trade.
13. — A Guide to the Right Understanding o f our American Union; or, Political,
Economical, and Literary Miscellanies. Dedicated to the Young Men of
America. By A. B. J ohnson, author o f “ An Encyclopedia o f Instruction;
or, Apologues and Breviats on Man and Manners,” etc.
12mo., pp. 407.
New York : Derby & Jackson.
Mr. Johnson is not a professed author, but an eminent bank manager. In
the present publication he “ discusses most o f those governmental peculiarities
that our progress has shown to be disturbing, guiding us thus, by a practical de
tail, to a better understanding o f our policy than could any treatise on govern
ment, written systematically in abstract general propositions.” The volume is
divided into three parts. In the first, the negro question and territorial self-gov
ernment, the nature o f our confederacy, the acquisition o f new territory, the rel
ative merits o f existing parties, and a United States Bank, are discussed. The
second part is devoted to the State government, private corporations, sumptuary
legislation, and public improvements. The third part consists o f several miscel
laneous papers, among which we notice an article entitled, “ The Almighty Dol
lar,” which was published some months since in this Magazine. Mr. Johnson is
a clear, strong, logical writer, and although the reader may not assent to all the
views put forth in this work, he cannot resist awarding to him the characteristics
we have mentioned.
14. — Moss-Side. By M akion H a r l a n d , author o f “ Alone,” and the “ Hidden
Path.” 12mo., pp. 450. New Tork : Derby & Jackson.
The reputation which the authoress has attained from the productions o f
“ A lone” and the “ Hidden Path,” cannot fail to be enhanced by this new work
from the fluent pen o f the charming writer. Marion Harland is entitled to be
ranked among the most popular o f American female writers. The gracefulness
and natural eloquence o f her style, coupled with a warm, sympathizing heart,
and a clear, keen eye, which pierces the mysteries o f a woman’s nature, has
found for her readers in foreign climes and foreign tongues. “ Moss-Side ” is
destined to a wide popularity, which it 'well deserves.
15. — History o f King Philip, Sovereign Chief o f the Wampanoags. By John
S. C. A bbo tt . With Engravings. New Tork : Harper & Brothers.
This is another o f Mr. Abbott’s series o f royal biographies for young readers,
the simplicity and attractiveness o f which, entitle him to the name o f the Plu
tarch o f children. The lives and exploits of the great kings of Grecian and
Roman fame, and o f English monarchs, have been chronicled by him in previous
volumes. This he devotes to a monarch o f the forest, Philip o f Massasoit, one
o f the great figures in the foreground of American colonial history. The biog
raphy necessarily includes many details of colonial history, interesting to readers
o f every age.
16. — Sam Slick, the Clock-maker. By J u d g e H a l ie u r t o n . With Illustrations.
Tw o volumes complete in one. 12mo., pp. 179, 192. Philadelphia : T. B.
Peterson.
This volume contains the earliest literary undertaking o f the humorous au
thor, and about one-half o f the sketches it embraces were originally published
in the “ Nova-Scotian,” more than twenty years ago. “ Sam Slick’s ” writings
are remarkable for the combination o f humor with sound, sagacious views of
human nature as it exists in a free, unsophisticated country. W e are glad the
publisher has seen fit to furnish us with a good edition (the best that has been
published) o f these inimitable sketches.
17. — Mr. Dunn Browne's Experiences in Foreign Parts. Enlarged from the
“ Springfield Republican.” Boston: John P. Jewett & Co.
Those who read the humorous, punning preface to this amusing book o f travel
and experiences in foreign parts, will, we venture to say, dip into the text, and
find pleasure, if not profit, in the perusal. The author’s descriptions are graphic,
and his sketches and reflections written in an agreeable style.
The Book Trade.
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18. — Life of James Montgomery. By Mrs. H e l e n C. K n ig h t , author o f “ Lady
Huntington and her Friends,” “ Memoirs o f Hannah More,” etc. 12mo., pp.
416. Boston : Gould & Lincoln.
Mrs. Knight has, in this compact and comprehensive memoir, sifted from the
biographies o f John Holland and the Rev. James Everett (published in seven
volumes) the “ true wheat ” o f Montgomery’s life, and molded it anew. She
well and truly remarks that, although he possessed none o f the classic richness
o f Rogers, the weird originality o f Coleridge, the retrospective sweetness o f
Wordsworth, or the fascinating romance of Scott, he had a moral earnestness,
an unaffected grace, a purity o f diction, which penetrates the heart, and places
his poetry among the permanent literature o f England. The Christian element
of his hymns gave them wings, and his name will be had in remembrance as long
as the religion he thus celebrates shall endure. W e welcome the volume as an
interesting contribution to biographical literature.
19. — Mormonism: its Leaders and Designs. By John H yde, Jr., formerly a
Mormon Elder, and Resident o f Salt Lake City.
12mo., pp. 335. New
Y o r k : W . P. Fetridge & Co.
Since the day when Joseph Smith fell in with the manuscript o f a Mr. Spaul
ding, from which the amazing fanaticism was born, we have had from no writer
so candid a confession o f that impious imposture as is contained in this work.
The author embraced Mormonism in his youth, was duly ordained as preacher,
sent as missionary to France, thence to Salt Lake, where, after having been init
iated into the Mormon mysteries, he was again sent as missionary to the Sand
wich Islands. As an expose o f that astounding delusion, and its concomitant
evils, as well as a vivid, comprehensive, yet complete, analysis o f its hidden
mysteries and ultimate aims, it is well deserving the attention o f an enlightened
people and a free press.
20. — Kiana : a Tradition o f Hawaii. By James J. J arves, author o f “ History
o f the Hawaiian Islands.” 12mo., pp. 276. Boston and Cambridge : James
Munroe & Co.
“ Kiana ” is based upon the supposition that many years before the discovery
o f the Sandwich Islands by Captain Cook, a Spanish priest, several men, and a
woman, escaped to the islands from the wreck o f a ship sent by Cortez to ex
plore California. The situation o f the party, involuntary missionaries and set
tlers among the primitive Indians, affords some picturesque and unhackneyed
scenes and incidents. The soft air, still seas, spontaneous nature, o f the Pacific
islands, make them fit scenes for the romance o f primitive nature, such as make
the pages o f St. Pierre’s “ Paul and Virginia,” and Mitchell’s “ Typee.” Mr.
Jarves’ residence in the islands, and familiarity with the scenery and inhabitants,
enables him to give a picturesque and life-like minuteness to his descriptions o f
persons and scenery. Several steel-plates and wood-cuts illustrate.the story.
21. — Fresh Leaves.
Brothers.
By F a n n y F e r n .
16mo., pp. 336.
New Y ork : Mason
“ Fanny Fern ” is one o f your “ strong minded women,” and wifhal a very
clever writer. The present volume opens with a new story, the “ Business Man’s
Home,” which we heartily commend to our readers. W e have, also, the “ Hundred-dollars-a-column Story,” and most o f her late fugitive pieces. Sound com
mon sense pervades every page and paragraph from the author’ s pointed pen.
22. — Gaut Gurley; or, the Trappers o f Umbagog. A Tale o f Border Life.
By D. P. T hompson . 12mo., pp. 360. Boston : John P. Jewett & Co.
W e need not commend this work to those who have read the author’s “ May
' Martin,” “ Green Mountain Boys,” or “ The R a n g e r s s t o r ie s which have en
joyed a wide popularity. Those who seek for sickly sentimentality had better
pass this book b y ; it has none o f . ; .
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The Book Trade.
23.— City Poems. By A l e x a n d e r S m it h , author o f “ A Life Drama, and other
Poems.” l2mo., pp. 138. Boston : Ticknor & Fields.
W e know but little o f the author o f this volume, but the London press, the
“ Literary Gazette,” “ Athemeum,” “ Spectator,” “ Westminster Review,’®“ Daily
News,” “ Leader,” &e., all pretty good authorities in literary matters, are loud
and strong in their peans o f praise. The first says that, since Tennyson, no
poet has come before the public with the same promise as the author o f this
volume. The “ Athenaium” says that he has a “ wealth o f poetical thought
and expression,” and that his “ beauties ” are “ abundant.”
24.— Waverly Novels. Boston : Ticknor & Fields.
W e noticed in a former number o f the Magazine this new, beautiful, and, we
may say, unrivaled edition o f these novels, now in course o f publication. Six
teen volumes have already been issued, embracing Waverly, Guy Mannering, the
Antiquary, Rob Roy, Black Dwarf, Oid Mortality, the Heart of Mid-Lothian,
and the Bride o f Lammermoor, each work in two compact volumes. This is
emphatically what the publishers term it, the “ household edition ” o f Scott’s
matchless novels, and we hope it will find its way into every family library in
the land.
•Wi
25.— A Practical Treatise on Grasses and Forage Plants; comprising thejj^NS>v.
ural History, comparative Nutritive Value, Methods o f Cultivating,^Cutting/\
and Curing, and the Management o f Grass Lands. By C h a r l e s L . F lin t , ' -\
A. M., Secretary o f the Massachusetts State Board o f Agriculture! JV^ember 77.
o f the Boston Society o f Natural History, etc. 4vo., pp. 236. N Sy York : 7.
G. P. Putnam & Co.
e>! > '
The accomplished author has produced a treatise worthy o f the rep itatiori'he
has acquired as the Secretary o f the Massachusetts Board o f Agriculture. .Every
intelligent farmer will desire a copy o f the work. The illustrations aye dtawd '
from nature, and of.course very accurate.
26.— Ricord’s Series o f Roman History. V ol. I., the Kings o f Rom e; Vol. II.,
the Republic o f Rom e; V ol. III., the Empire o f Rome. By F. W . R icord .
With Illustrations. 3 vols., 12mo., pp. 304,308,294. New York : A. S.
Barnes & Co.
The three volumes before us embrace the three periods o f Roman history.
First we had the kings, then the republic, and finally the empire. The series
gives a connected account o f the most important events o f Roman history, from
the commencement to the termination o f the Roman power. Each volume, as
indicated above, is limited to a distinct epoch in the history o f Rome. The sev
eral volumes are written in a pleasing and agreeable style, and adapted to the
capacity o f the young student.
27.— The Plenary Inspiration o f the Holy Scriptures. By E l e a z e r L o r d .
12mo., pp. 312. New Y ork : M. W . Dodd.
W e take very little interest in dogmatical theology, and it does not come
within the province o f our labors to discuss its tenets. W e know the author
personally, and believe him to be an honest and sincere man, and one who con
scientiously believes every conclusion at which he arrives.
28.— Mrs. Stephens’ Illustrated New Monthly. Vol. I. July to December, 1856;
V o l. II. January to June, 1857. 4to., pp. 290, 290. New York.
Mrs. Stephens’ has established her reputation as a novelist, and the two vol
umes o f her “ New Monthly ” before us give abundant evidence o f her capa
bilities as a journalist; we use the term in its highest significance. Her new
monthly is, in our judgment, the best magazine o f its class. The number o f
lady writers is legion, yet but few, if any, have made a marked impress upon
the public mind like Mrs. Stephens. There is an earnestness and vigor in her
published productions that is quite refreshing, and that stands out in bold relief
from the puerile inanities o f the would-be distinguished lady-writers o f the day.
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