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H U N T ’ S MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE AND COMMERCIAL REVIEW. PEBEUAEY, Art. I.— B A N K S 1 858. O R NO B A N K S . * T h is question, which has been in past times so often and so obstinately discussed in our country, is certain to be revised at the present time, and is likely to form a prominent topic in the deliberations o f the body o f which you are a member, under the unprecedented circumstances of the present bank suspensions. H itherto they have failed to redeem their notes in specie only in time o f war, or when the state o f our foreign trade has left the country bare o f gold and silver; but at the m om ent o f their recent suspension in September last, all our great staples, o f which the supply was exuberant, bore remunerative prices, and some o f them, as cotton and tobacco, very high ones, and the country had never before been so abundantly supplied with specie. Under a state o f things so favorable to the safety and prosperity o f banks, if they fail to com ply with the principal condition on which their high privileges have been granted, what may we not expect in ordinary times ? I f the community is to be visited at short intervals with the evils o f a disordered and depreciated paper currency, it will behoove the guardians o f the public welfare to consider whether all the undoubted benefits o f banks, in econom izing the use o f the precious metals and in giving facili ties to commerce, are not outweighed by their attendant mischiefs. I shall make no apology for obtruding on you such suggestions as occur to me, presuming that, on a subject as complicated as it is important, the opinions o f any one who, like myself, is free from all bias o f interest, may not be unacceptable, and who is not, and never was, a debtor or stock holder o f any bank in Pennsylvania. * The question discussed in a letter to a member o f the General Assembly o f Pennsylvania, by Hon. G e o r g e T u c k e r , LL. D., now originally published in the Merchants' Magazine. 148 Banks or no Banks. In comparing the advantages with the mischiefs o f hanks, we must look to the several suspensions with which they have afflicted our community. These institutions may be considered to have com m enced in 1791, when the first national bank was established, disregarding the solitary case o f the Bank of North Am erica, which was chartered during the Revolution. From that time to the present, there have been four general suspensions o f the banks in Pennsylvania. The first was in 1813, two years after the charter o f the national bank expired, and continued until 1817, about five years. The next was in 1837, the year after the charter o f the second national bank expired, and continued m ore than a year. The third was in 1840, which continued about a year; and the fourth, which still con tinues, and which may last about the same time. So that, in a period o f sixty-seven years, there have been about nine years o f suspension, without taking into account the time which must elapse, on such occasions, before the banks can have fairly resumed their ordinary facilities to commerce. W h a t are the evils which these suspensions inflict on the community f They need not be heightened by the fallacies o f the memory, or the illu sions o f the fancy, for they are before our eyes. Manufacturing establish ments, at once profitable to their owners and beneficial to the community, have been compelled to stop, and all their operatives discharged. Mer chants, no longer able to obtain the accustomed aid from the banks, at the time when they most required it, have been compelled to stop pay ment, and to suspend their most promising enterprises. Thus, in the midst o f abundance, and surrounded by the materials o f wealth, we are suffering the evils o f poverty. The rich have not the command o f their wealth, and the poor are either out o f employment or compelled to accept o f reduced wages. In short, there is not a member o f the community who has not daily suffered by a loss o f time and o f money since the stop page o f the banks. It cannot be doubted that the recent failure o f the banks is the conse quence o f their own imprudence. O f this fact we have abundant evidence. Long experience has shown that, for a bank to be safe from suspension, in spite o f the adverse vicissitudes o f trade, its liabilities should not exceed three times the specie in its vaults; and that when they chance to be thus exceeded, by an unforeseen course o f events, their efforts should be active and unceasing to restore this proportion. But the banks o f the United States generally, finding that this proportion could often be violated with impunity, and their profits were augmented by such violation, have habit ually disregarded it, and consequently they have, as we have seen, repeat edly paid the penalty. Thus, in 1834, the banks o f the United States, 506 in number, had $26,500,000 in specie to $147,500,000 for their liabilities, including de posits as well as circulation, or nearly six for one. In 1846, 707 banks, $42,000,000 in specie to $191,500,000, or less than five to o n e; but in 1856, 1,253 banks had $60,000,000 to $417,000,000, or nearly seven to one. In these excessive issues the banks o f Pennsylva nia seem fully to have participated; for while in 1851 the amount o f their specie and treasury notes was, compared with their liabilities, little more than one to four, the proportion has now, according to the newspaper statement, fallen to one-seventh o f their liabilities. The excess o f their loans and circulation is further shown by their dividends. Those o f the Philadelphia banks, which were formerly about 9 per cent per annum, Banks or no Banks. 149 have, o f late years, been increased to 10 or 12 per cent, and in some cases to even more. This reckless course o f the banks, after the repeated warnings of the danger; this disregard of the interests of the community in their eager pursuit o f gain, to say nothing o f the gross frauds that some of them may have practiced, seems to warrant the abolition of such culpable and defective institutions, and, foregoing their unquestionable benefit, to justify the Legislature in returning to an exclusive metallic currency. But, sir, while I unhesitatingly condemn the course of the banks, I be lieve it would be both easier and better to reform than abolish them. Let me first premise that the banks, rash and imprudent as they have been, are not exclusively responsible for the evils under which the com munity is now suffering. The Legislature and the stockholders of the banks have also their share o f the responsibility. The restrictions imposed on these corporations by their charters have not been sufficiently stringent, or competent provision has not been made for their faithful execution. The stockholders, too, have been strangely negligent of their interests. Their error has not been so much in not making prudent by-laws, though here, too, they have sometimes erred, as in not enforcing their own regu lations. Before they give up these institutions in despair, these bodies are first bound to try the effect of their own reformation. It is with banks as all other human concerns— the good is never found unmixed with evil. The fire which warms us and cooks our food, often in a few hours destroys the proudest products of human industry and art. The steam boat or steam-car, which transports man and his merchandise with such celerity, are attended with a fearful waste o f human life. It is the part o f wisdom to secure the benefits, and as far as practicable to diminish the evils. Before I submit to your consideration such expedients as seem suited to this end, let us take a glance at the benefits which banking institutions confer on the community. According to some theories, if there were no banks, as much more gold and silver would circulate in the country as is equal to its paper currency, so long as that currency is readily converted into specie. As this broad assertion, however, admits of question, let us assume that the paper exceeds the specie which it substitutes 20 per cent, so that if there were no paper currency there would be an addition of 80 per cent of its amount to the gold and silver now in circulation. W h at is the amount o f the precious metals thus saved ? The currency o f the country, both o f paper and specie, being in proportion to the num ber and value o f commercial exchanges, steadily increases with the in crease o f population, and the yet more rapid increase o f wealth. In 1820, Mr. Crawford, the Secretary o f the Treasury, estimated the amount o f banknotes in circulation at $52,000,000, but in January, 1856, the bank circulation was 'estimated at $170,000,000, showing more than a three-fold increase in thirty-six years. D educting 20 per cent from this amount, $136,000,000 o f gold and silver is thus saved to the country by the use o f paper, and which could not be supplied without abridging to the same extent the productive capital o f the country and the means of com fort and enjoyment to the American people. T o the first cost o f the specie we must add its subsequent annual gains. N ow as, in this country, the profits o f capital cannot be estimated at less than 10 per cent per an num, the annual gain from our present amount o f paper may be reckoned 150 Banks or no Banks. at $1-3,600,000. But the paper which is thus substituted has intrinsic advantages over coin, without which it could never have had a general circulation. It is a prodigious labor-saving machine in counting and transferring values from person to person and from place to place. By favorable expansions o f the currency, discreetly made, banks can give aid to foreign com m erce when that aid is at once most seasonable and safe, and it can, in times o f public difficulty, materially assist the government. The sum total o f these benefits it is not easy to estimate in money, but they are obviously very great. Let us see if it is not possible to retain them without paying the very heavy penalty o f bank suspensions, to which we have been hitherto subjected. 1st. A s to the Legislature. Presuming that the charters hitherto granted to the banks have been in strictness forfeited, by their failure to redeem their notes, I will consider them all as subject to such restrictions as the Legislature may think proper to impose. The most efficient o f these restrictions is to limit the proportion be tween their liabilities and their specie. Formerly, when the deposits in banks were not considerable, and did not greatly fluctuate, this rule o f precaution and safety was confined to the circulation o f the bank, and its condition was considered safe if that circulation, throughout the community, did not exceed three times the specie in the bank. But o f late years the ordinary deposits have so greatly increased that, instead o f being less than the circulation, as they formerly were in this country, and as they still are in England, they now generally are at least 50 per cent more than the circulation, the rule must apply to all their liabilities; and so far as the safety or prudence o f the bank is concerned, there is no good reason to distinguish between the deposits and the circulation. They equally afford the means of withdrawing specie from the bank, and though it is not to be presumed that, under ordinary circumstances, any large proportion o f either the one or the other will be simultaneously used to deprive the bank of its coin, yet this fact depends altogether on the proportion between the amounts o f specie'and the, sums due to depositors and noteholders, so that, if the bank has been too liberal o f its loans, it is in the power o f one-half, or perhaps less, o f either class o f its creditors to exhaust the bank o f its last dollar. But the rule o f look in g to the deposits no less than the circulation o f banks, in estimating their condition, is further recommended. It has been stated that it has been only o f late years that the deposits exceeded the circulation. From 1830 to 1840, it appears, by a detailed statement o f the condition o f all the banks in the United States in the Merchants' Magazine (vol. v., p. 186,) that the circulation every year exceeded the deposits com m only 20 per cent, and sometimes m ore; but in January, 1848, in the Philadelphia banks, the deposits were generally about double the circulation, and in a few cases three times as much, (see same, vol. xviii., p. 328,) andfrom 1850 to 1856, while the circulation o f all the banks in the United States had increased from $105,000,000 to $175,000,000— equal to an increase o f 6 6 f per cent, the deposits had increased in the same period from $90,000,000 to $240,000,000— equal to 166|- per cent, which last increase a recent English writer (l’uoke, on Prices,) notices as a most remarkable result. This anomalous L et has been thus e x p l a i n e d I t is generally under stood that the most favored borrowers o f the banks are those who have Banks or no Banks. 151 ttte largest amounts on deposit, whereby the banks are enabled to increase their loans, and that greedy applicants for discounts have stipulated, as the condition o f the discounts they applied for, to leave on deposit for a definite period a liberal portion o f the money borrowed. The effect of such an understanding on the borrower was virtually to subject him to pay a higher interest for the money put into active use. Thus, so long as he left on deposit one-half o f the money borrowed, he paid double the bank interest; that is, more than 12 per cent. If he left one-quarter o f the sum borrowed, he for that time paid 9 per cent. Now, the effect o f such irregular arrangements is to increase the profits o f the bank at the expense o f its safety, and to give a preference to rash and gam bling cus tomers over those who are prudent and safe. This practice, so objection able on several accounts— as regards the just distribution o f the favors o f the bank, the giving to its capital the employment which is at once use ful to the country and most safe to the stockholders, is likely to be effect ually checked when the notes on deposit are as much regarded in limit ing the operations o f the bank as are the notes in circulation. It is not enough that this restriction on the liabilities should be enacted, but provision should also be made for its strict enforcement; and when ever these liabilities exceeded the prescribed proportion, they should be required to restore it by abstaining from all new loans, from calling in former loans, and by buying specie, under a daily pecuniary penalty for the delay, to be paid into the public treasury. Justice requires that they should refund the extra gains in the pursuit o f which they have jeoparded their solidity, and as they, in prosperous times, have the benefit of extra profit, they should, in adverse seasons, submit to extra loss. They should be required by their charters to make periodical exhibits o f their condition, certified on oath, and published to the world. This has been found to be one o f the most salutary checks on their imprudence. It strengthens their credit when they have acted with caution and moder ation, and gives timely warning when they have acted otherwise. These exhibits should be made at least as often as once a month, and perhaps once a week would not be too often. Their refusal to redeem th'eir notes in specie should be so dealt with that it should always bring loss on the banks. After the suspension o f the banks in 1813, the profits o f those institutions were in many places greater than they had been before. Eelieved from the necessity o f pay ing specie, they profited by the exemption to enlarge their issues, and thus enhance their profits. To prevent such an abuse, all their gains beyond a fixed rate should enure to the public, and every noteholder who had been refused specie should be compensated for the disappointment. To enforce these and other provisions aiming at a similar purpose, would it not be advisable for the Legislature to have among its standing com mittees one created solely for the supervision o f the banks o f the State, to which committee should be annually referred by the executive all the exhibits of the condition of the banks for the preceding year, and to whom should also be referred all subjects brought before the Legislature relative to the banks? And the committee should be required to make a detailed report of the operations of each bank for the preceding year, and o f its actual condition at the time of the report. Another very salutary provision in the bank charters, would be to pro hibit them from issuing any note below a fixed amount, which we wil 152 Banks or no Banks. suppose to be twenty dollars. Among many crude notions o f banking entertained by General Jackson was this sensible proposition, and some who supported him in nothing else agreed with him in this. It is obvious to all that to the same extent that small bank notes are proscribed, specie will supply their place; and such specie will constitute a fund or reser voir, from which the banks will receive a supply when they most need it. For small sums, moreover, silver or gold are more convenient instruments o f exchange than bank notes. As a further security against the imprudence of banks, and for the ul timate redemption of their paper, a plan has been adopted by several States of withholding from them the right of creating a paper currency, but to reserve to the State the exclusive right to make notes for that pur pose, and to transfer such to the bank on its depositing with the State au thorities approved State stocks of equal value, to be sold whenever the banks failed to redeem the notes in specie. Although this security may not always prove sufficient for its purpose, since the pledged stock, in times of pecuniary difficulty, may fail to bring near the sum at which it was estimated, yet the paper o f its borrowers must be regarded as sufficient to supply the deficiency, and unless we suppose the extreme case of a continued course of reckless and successful fraud, which may render this aid nugatory, the plan seems to afford a more complete and satisfactory security than any other; and no case has yet occurred, in the numerous experiments made, in which a bank so constituted has proved ultimately insolvent, though the pledge has not hindered any one from following the recent example of suspending specie payments. One objection to this plan is, that it affords the means, aud may prove an inducement, to a State to multiply banks to excess, inasmuch as the indebtedness of the State may greatly exceed its specie in amount, and it is only the last which determines the practicable amount o f banking cap ital. The public debt o f Pennsylvania is forty millions, and probably the amount of specie in the State was never half that amount. Another objection to the plan is, that it has seemed in practice to ex cite in the bank itself a speculating spirit. Thus, in some o f the “ free banks,” as they are called, after they have received notes to the amount o f the stock deposited, they have taken the notes and made a further pur chase o f stock, which has been the foundation of a second creation o f notes, which were to furnish them with the materials o f discount— trust ing to their industry and skill in diffusing their notes to such a distance, or in such ramifications, as to prevent their early return, or in inconvenient amounts. To prevent this practice, which favors a redundancy of paper, they may be restricted from any second purchase of stock. Should the Legislature disregard the previous objections, and consider that the other safeguards against the mismanagement and delinquency of the banks are not sufficient to secure their creditors against loss, I presume that it is now competent so to amend their charters as to require a pledge of public stock to the full amount of their circulation. To check an inconvenient demand for specie, when the state of foreign commerce requires it for export, an expedient has been adopted of late years by the Lank of England, and its example has been followed by other European banks, which is to raise the rate o f interest on their borrowers, so as to discourage loans or discounts for the sake of procuring specie. Thus, the interest demanded by the bank has been as low as 2 per cent Banks or no Banks. 153 per annum, and is now raised to 10 per cent. Though experience has shown that this expedient is not always sufficient to arrest the drain of specie, it is still a qualified benefit. As the market rate o f interest varies in all commercial countries, and in none m ore than this, such a power in the bank may seem to some con sonant to justice as well as p o lic y ; for the ability o f the bank to lend money at (3 per cent, when the market rate o f interest may be 10 or 12 per cent, is a power to enhance its favors, and to make unjust discrimina tions among borrowers. Y et such a power, until the habits o f prudence and good management are m ore settled, and more command the public confidence, it would not be safe to give. The desire to increase their profits which now prompts them to excessive discounts, m ight then tempt them to raise the rate o f interest; and the alternations from a low to a high interest, and from high to law, would give a new spring to gam bling speculations with the funds o f the bank, which is already sufficiently strong. Such a power, which may one day be safe and salutary would certainly be, at this time, premature and mischievous. Such are some o f the considerations which seem to deserve the atten tion o f the Legislature. Let us now see what are the duties which pru dence prescribes to the stockholder. I f they would make a well-con structed charter available, they must follow it up— first, by providing a wise set o f by-laws, and then by seeing them faithfully executed. I shall notice only those modes in which the proprietors o f their institutions have been most regardless o f their interests. One o f their most important duties— or, rather, the most important— is in making a proper selection o f the persons to whom they confide the administration. The directors should be selected b y the stockholders themselves, after a consultation and interchange o f opinion. This duty has been so neglected that it has been a common, perhaps a general, practice for the president to prepare the annual list o f directors, which received the obsequious support o f such stockholders as thought proper to v o te ; and thus those persons who were intended by the by-laws to counsel the president, and, if occasion required, to control him, and even remove him, were suffered to be appointed by himself. W h a t should we think o f our government if the President were suffered to appoint his own electors, and the members o f both houses o f Congress ? This strange and absurd practice, it is said, has been corrected by one* o f the banks since the recent suspension, and the plan they have adopted to secure a capable and independent board may be adopted by other banks. To prevent improper or interested combinations, one-half the directors should annually retire. To discourage wild and extravagant speculations, there should be a lim it to the amount discounted at one time, as well as to the sum obtained by any individual. Special limits should be prescribed to the discounts severally obtained by the president or directors. It would not be wise, perhaps, to proscribe accom m odation notes alto gether, but the preference due to paper representing bona fid e commercial transactions should be formally recognized and habitually acted on. There should be a limit to the time for which an accommodation loan should be continued. The m ore the discounts o f a bank are confined to business * The Girard Bank. 154 Banks or no Banks. paper, the more is the institution a handmaid to commerce, the m ore is its capital within its reach, and consequently the more safe is it from the adverse fluctuations o f trade. As the granting discounts is o f a legislative rather than executive char acter, no one should ever be made but by a quorum o f the directors. A t stated times— once a month, for example— the specie and notes in the bank should be counted by a committee o f the bank. This duty, in one o f the principal Southern banks,* after having been scrupulously fol lowed for years, was suffered to fall into disuse, in consequence o f which the bank lust three-tenths o f its capital, which had been gradually ab stracted : so that the par value o f a share, which had been $100, was re duced to $70. A word now on the expenses o f banks. A grow ing disposition has been lately manifested by the banks o f this city to spend their money on banking houses far beyond any purposes o f utility. This seems to be ob jectionable on several accounts. It wastes the money which partly be longs to widows and orphans, most o f whom can ill spare it. It gives countenance, moreover, to the reproach with which our country has been taunted, o f being worshipers o f mammon. W h ile every liberal-minded man is gratified in seeing the best efforts o f architecture exerted on our legislative halls, our courts o f justice, our churches, colleges, hospitals, and, indeed, all our public offices, he may not be equally pleased to see palaces built for our money changers. It seems to be somewhat o f the same impropriety as if we made our wagons finer than our coaches. These ostentatious edifices are repugnant to that simplicity and frugality to which Philadelphia once owed so much o f her prosperity, and which w'ere the parent o f that princely bounty that she is now enjoying. They tend to excite a vicious emulation, and they cherish a self importance in the offi cers o f the bank which is unfriendly to their usefulness. To this, perhaps, may be attributed the change in the hour o f opening the banks from 9 o ’ clock in the morning to 10. If nine is too early in Philadelphia in the winter, (though it is not so in most other places,) it is certainly late enough in the summer. The sun is then four hours high, and there is no reason why one who has a check on the bank should wait an hour longer before he can get it paid. W e may next look for the want o f that modesty o f deportment and spirit o f accom m odation which is so becom ing in the servants o f the public. Some of our citizens, looking to the past failure of our banks to supply the public without intermission with a paper currency readily convertible into gold and silver, and still wishing to retain the advantages which paper often has over specie, are advocates for a bank of deposit, in which every note of the bank would be represented by a correspondent amount of gold and silver in the bank. But supposing that the advantages of such banks would compensate for the difference between the cost of a paper currency and that of the precious metals, which it substitutes, (which, howrever, is not admitted,) yet there are other objections to banks of this character. 'There would always be danger that such large accumulations of treasure would not be safely and honestly kept. W e may appoint guardians to keep it, but who would guard the keepers? And if the Dutch could not pre * The Bank of Virginia. Banks or no Banks. 155 serve tlieir treasure untouched, how could we expect to do so? Besides, in a season o f public emergency, these accumulated hoards would be used by the government, under the plea o f public necessity, and thus the bank o f deposit would be converted into a bank o f circulation. Besides, if you put down chartered banks, private bankers immediately step in to supply their place; and with the credit which some of them will be sure to possess, and the intrinsic recommendation, of paper in trans mitting values, their paper would have a general currency, as the notes of Morris and Nicholson once did in this State ; in which case we should encounter all the evils of a paper circulation, without any of the salutary checks and securities which we possess under the present system. Another expedient has been suggested which seems to be received with great favor by many o f the public journals, and which is to re-establish a Bank of the United States. O f the effect of such an institution on the stability of the currency, we have much evidence. There was no bank suspension during the charter of the first national bank, that is, from 1791 to 1811 ; nor any during the existence o f the second national bank, from 1816 to 1836. Such a bank being the great depository of the public revenue, it always has the means of testing the solvency and punctuality of the State banks, and of discriminating between the good and the bad or doubtful, and is thus a most efficient check on the im prudent issues of the State banks. But against this expedient, there exists a strong popular prejudice, founded partly on its being repugnant to the constitution, and partly on its supposed power and political in fluence. The first objection— the unconstitutionality o f the bank— may be sur rendered now as it was surrendered in I 8 Hi, by many who had previously entertained that objection, and am ong them, Mr. Madison, the first and strongest opponent o f a national bank. "Without professing any change o f opinion on this point, he said that the legislative, judicial, and executive powers having, for upwards o f 30 years, recognized the constitutionality o f such an institution, he thought that the question ought to be considered as settled; and by giving his sanction to the bank charter o f 1816, he made his practice conform to his doctrine. There is even evidence that Mr. Jefferson was willing to renew the bank charter, if the renewal could be so managed as for him to escape the reproach o f inconsistency. Should all other objections to a national bank be removed, it is not likely that this one, grow ing out o f the constitution, would prevent its establishment. There are, however, other objections, which it is less easy to answer. The power of a national bank, provided of course with a large capital, in expanding or contracting the circulation at pleasure, as well as in granting pecuniary favors, is unquestionably very great, and this power, which may be used for political purposes, is naturally connected with that of the executive. These two powers were indeed placed in open collision during General Jackson’s administration, in the memorable contest between him and Mr. Biddle, but things were then in an unnatural position, owing to the personal characters o f those individuals; and the motives which severally swayed them are never likely to recur with those who may here after hold their respective offices. In nineteen cases out o f twenty, the power and influence o f the bank will be added to the power and influence of the executive. This objection, which I admit to be a weighty one, may be partially, 156 Banks or no Banks. if not wholly, obviated by dividing the bank power between two or three equal and independent institutions On this plan the power o f either to do mischief may be neutralized. This expedient is not now suggested for the first tim e : you will find it proposed by several o f the members of the House o f Representatives in the debates on the bank in 1810. There are several o f the States which have two equal and principal banks, whose monetary operations are conducted in perfect harmony, or at least with out discord. They severally exercise the same salutary checks on each other’s abuse o f power, as each operates on the State banks. Should such a result follow the present suspensions, they may turn out a fortunate occurence for the community, and we may again have a paper currency which will be of uniform value in all the States— at least as much so as gold and silver— and which will even have a credit and circu lation in foreign countries; and which may be yet farther improved by the exclusion of any bank-note under twenty dollars. I would not go beyond this limit, because while the exclusion of smaller notes would secure in ordinary times a large supply of coin in the country, and give to the people in silver or gold a better currency than small notes, a twenty dollar note is more convenient than the same amount of metallic money. The functions o f one or more national banks, possessing immense capital wisely organized as, with our ample experience, they would now be, and regulating the exchange o f this vast and grow ing country, would be o f a usefulness and importance ever increasing. The future increase o f our circulation— metallic and paper— may be inferred from the past. That o f the precious metals was in 1820, $37,000,000 ; in 1849, $140,000,000 ; in 1854, $254,000,000 ; which shows a seven-fold increase in 34 years. This increase is to be referred to three circumstances. 1. The increase o f our population in the 34 years, from about [li millions, to about 26 m il lions. 2. To the still, greater increase o f productive industry, and conse quently o f the number and value o f commercial exchanges; and 3. To the substitution o f gold for silver and for notes in consequence o f the im ports from California. All o f these circumstances, it may be remarked, tended to check the depreciation o f gold, and they have apparently been hitherto sufficient to keep it nearly at the price it bore before the dis covery' o f the California mines. The third circumstance had but a tem po rary effect in preventing the depreciation o f gold by giving it a new em ployment ; and whether the other two circumstances— the increase o f numbers and the yet greater increase o f wealth, will be sufficient to check the future decreation, (and how far,) time alone can show. If to these 254 millions o f specie in 1854, which we assume to be the same in 1856. we add the 177 millions for the bank note circulation, we have an aggregate in 1856, o f 431 millions, which, estimating our gross population at 27,000,000, gives within a few cents o f 16 dollars to each individual, which is nearly double of what it was estimated at in 1839.* A sensible English writerf computes that the gold circulation o f the United K ingdom , 1856, was £75,000,000 sterling, equal to $310,000,000, and the bank note circulation about the same time, 1854, at £36,970,000 sterling, equal to $1 94,850,000; making an aggregate o f $504,850,000, which, estimating the population at 28,000,000, gives $18 dollars to each * On this subject there seems to be no propriety in separating„the free and the slave population, t Mr. Tooke, on Prices, (vol. vi., p. 708.) The Financial Revulsion and the New York Banking System. 15V individual. This, however, is very unequally distributed among the three British Isles— that of England is nearly double that o f Scotland and Ire land united. When we consider the useful functions of money— one of the most striking characteristics and best fruits of civilization— it merits our best efforts to guard, as far as we can, against its fluctuations o f value, from occasional deficiency or redundancy, and such would be the tendency of the proposed national banks. Besides, with the credit which such insti tutions would have throughout the commercial world, their paper would in general answer all the purposes of the precious metals. It is true that so long as California and Australia continue to be, as they now are, the great producers o f gold for the world, all beyond their fair proportion will, by the laws o f trade, be transmitted to other countries, and must incur the risk and cost o f transportation. But the simultaneous trans mission of millions from England to the United States, and from the United States to England, which we have lately seen, would be rendered unnecessary by the establishment of a bank or banks o f equal credit with the Bank o f England. But, sir, it is time that I should bring this letter to a close. You will perceive that I have done little more than hint my views on this copious subject, leaving it to you to supply what I have omitted, and with the further hope that, on those points on which I have not your concurrence, my remarks may often suggest to you valuable corrections of their errors — my object being, as doubtless it will be yours, to elevate the the banks to that degree of respectability which was attained by the first Bank of the United States, and by the second during the administration o f Mr. Cheves. and part of the time under that o f Mr. B iddle; to subject them to a course of restriction and regulation, so as to be not as now, at one time bloated with a delusive prosperity, a foster-mother to speculators and gamblers, or a prey to swindlers and sharpers; and at another, paralyzed by their previous excesses, and owing a prolongation of their rickety ex istence to the clemency of the Legislature. Such, sir, are the sentiments ONE OP THE PE OPLE. of--- Art. II.— T n E FINANCIAL REVULSION AND THE N EW YORK BANKING SYSTEM. T he late revulsion and suspension is attributed to imprudent and excessive advances on the part of the banks, and then to blind and panicstricken contraction, (see London Times.) So far as it goes this explana tion is the true one. But bad as this view o f the case is, there is another still more serious. How was it that, in the absence o f any unusual drain of the precious metals, and with a fairly balanced trade with all nations, a panic so disastrous could come to pass? The answer to the question involves an investigation of the banking operations o f the financial center of the Union— the city of New York. Such an investigation will show unhappily that these panics are not accidental and anomalous— but that, on the contrary, they are only the consistent working of a bad organiza tion. It is not the derangement of a sound body, it is rather one o f the ever-recurring crises of organic and constitutional disorder. It is the system 158 The Financial Revulsion and the New York Banking System. itself, with its inherent weakness, that puts the merchants at the mercy of the banks, and merchants and banks together at the mercy o f all disturb ing causes. Everybody declaims against speculation, and our friends on the other aide of the Atlantic talk of the “ mercurial temperament of Americans,” as ah >\vn in the fluctuations o f prices and of the rates of interest, but if our banking system had been planned to impart even to legitimate business all the mutability of the wildest speculation, no more effectual system could have been devised. The defect is not in the “ temperament of Americans,” but in the bad machinery they work with.* Only so lately as 1854, the banks were saved from a similar suspension by the interposition o f the Secretary o f the Treasury— in releasing from the sub-treasury by unusual means a large amount o f specie. In Sep tember, 1851, only three years before, the banks were again on the verge o f suspension. The shipments o f coin were about 812,000,000 in the two months o f June and July o f that year, and in September follow ing the total stock remaining in all the banks was about $6,000,000. W h ere would they have been after another month o f equal export? Happily for the hanks there were no “ weekly statements” at that time, and the extent o f their danger was not known till it was passed, and so they did not suspend. These weekly statements were proposed by the writer as a safe-guard to the banks, and the public— that they m ight have timely warning and might always keep themselves strong— hut the result has not yet been attained. The banks have not acted upon the knowledge so afforded them, and the effect has been only to hasten the late crisis by revealing their weakness. And so it will continue to be— a series o f revul sions, more or less severe, as long as the present system continues. Ex tremes o f contraction and expansion are the law o f their action. The law o f interest is always urging towards the last point o f expansion, and that o f necessity and safety hurrying them back to contraction. The limit o f expansion is not fixed by statute, nor by any rule o f sound bank ing. The only recognized limit is danger— immediate and pressing d a n g e r — and the mode o f contraction, therefore, suits the cause— it is a run for life, and its m otto is “ sauve qui peut.” The present system of banking is an evasion o f the usury laws on a gigantic scale, and is, therefore, an out-growth o f those laws. It is a practical anomaly growing out o f a legal one. The law limits the rate of interest to 7 per cent, but capital wants more and will have it. The courts have made usury out of almost every possible and impossible violation of this law, but there is one evasion of it that has escaped them — that is the lending o f the same money twice over at the legal rate ; in other words, to make loans on the understood condition that half the amount loaned shall be left with the lender to be loaned over again. Capital, having found out this ingenious mode o f making 8 per cent and expenses, that is 14 per cent, by lending money at 7 per cent, naturally presses into a business so profitable. Hence we have an enormous in crease of the banking capital and movement. Hence we have 65,000,000 o f capital with 120,000,000 o f loans— and 60 or 70,000,000 of nominal ♦The monstrous and indiscriminate falls of securities are not the effect o f fickleness chiefly, but rather of forced sales, caused by the sudden contraction o f credits. The Financial Revulsion and the New Y ork Banking System. 159 deposits— one-third o f the loans being only so much credit given by the banks for which the merchants pay interest, leaving the money with the banks under the name o f deposits. Another consequence o f the effort to make 14 per cent by lending money at seven, is the endeavor to keep as much as possible o f capital and deposits drawing interest; but the specie reserve pays no interest and, therefore, must be made as small as safety will allow, and sm ller. Hence comes the substitution o f the treacherous resource o f “ call loans,’’ delusive alike to the banks and to the public. This is infinitely worse than the system o f forced deposits— it is the great panic-makiug power. Call loans with stock collaterals are put in the place' o f specie. The theory looks plausible as proposed by each separate bank, ‘‘ i f the balances are against us wre can call in our loans— get checks on other banks— and thus obtain the needful coin at any moment.” But in practice it is not so. The causes which alarm one bank alarm the whole. Upon any shock to confidence, they all cull in at once. The stock collaterals are forced upon the market at the same moment that its ability to take them is almost destroyed by the total cessation o f new loans. Down they g o— ten, twenty, forty per cent, using up the margins o f more stable loans, and then these too are forced up on the market. The struggle for money to avoid the sacrifice o f stocks, and the cessation o f loans by the banks, at once breaks in upon all the resources o f the merchants— and they are forced into suspension. The country banks share in the panic— their circulation returns upon them, their State stocks are forced to sale to gain the means o f redemption, and another depth is reached in the general decline, till finally banks and merchants g o down together. By the operation o f these “ call loa n s” millions com e suddenly due in a day, and while they sweep away fortunes and crush merchants, the worst o f it is, that they are comparatively impotent to strengthen the banks. They are swift for ruin, but slowr for good. The calling in of loans by the banks does not increase the total o f specie until it has had lime to force a turn in the interior and foreign exchanges. The checks which they get on each other do not increase their aggregate stock, and so we have repeatedly seen a contraction o f ten to twenty millions before there w-as an increase o f m ore than two or three millions o f coin. W h at is the result o f it all ? The hanks make, for the time, the interest on the eight or ten millions o f specie, for which they substitute call loans, at a cost to the country o f many times the value o f that interest in the derangement o f business and the destruction o f market values in their frequent panics. The whole banking capital o f N ew Y ork would fail to pay one-half the loss to the merchants, manufacturers, and farmers, and in fact to all classes which in this last instance their action has caused. W e were bound to have a contraction— and how was it done? Just as the season was approaching when the com bined m oving powers o f currency and credits, and canals and railroads, are annually taxed to their utmost— the biggest wheel o f the machinery stopped with a shock. The banks o f New Y ork went out o f business as banks o f loan and dis count. The payment o f twenty-five millions of loans was forced from the public in less than sixty days. This payment was made by the sacrifice o f property at an average depreciation o f full one-third from its ordinary value, and so cost the payers a loss o f seven or eight millions. A similar contraction was forced upon all the banks in the country, which at the 160 The Financial Revulsion and the New York Banking System. same rate on their whole loans o f over $800,000,000, would amount to a contraction o f $160,000,000. W h a t was the result? The business o f the nation was stopped— the course o f trade and exchange reversed— ex change on London that should, by the laws o f trade, have been at a pre mium, fell to 10 and even 14 per cent discount— gold, that should have been going to England, came to New Y ork— cargoes o f dry goods went back to Manchester— the grain that should have paid for them lay un thrashed on the prairies. W ith an unprecedented harvest, the sea-board begins the winter with a short supply o f food. Collections from the in terior becom e impracticable, and hundreds o f wealthy firms are driven into bankruptcy. Mills and forges cease their wealth-creating activities. Tens o f thousands o f stalwart arms and skillful fingers are idle. A t last the banks themselves suspend, and so make harmony o f the universal disorder, and the nation breathes again. N ow , it is perfectly demonstrable that three-fourths o f this ruin, all that was the destruction o f what was sound, m ight have been averted if the banks had held the eight or ten millions o f additional coin which they ought to have had, but did not. The call for specie was not severe. The exchanges promptly yielded to the pressure o f the banks, and the outflow o f specie ceased. A respectable stock in hand would have readily met the requirements o f the interior exchanges, and the evidence o f real strength would have forestalled the demands o f a panic. During all the contraction their specie was only reduced about three millions, from say $12,000,000 to $9,000,000, up to the time when desperation brought upon them the final onslaught. Had the stock been $20,000,000, and had it been reduced by the same amount, say to $17,000,000, or even to $15,000,000, or $12,000,000, there would have been no panic at all. The capacity to bear quietly even a very moderate drain would have carried on the business o f the country to the period when our bountiful crops o f cotton and grain would have begun and accomplished the annual process o f liquidation. It may be thought that too much power for good or evil is attributed to the New Y ork banks, but let it be remembered that they hold nearly one-fifth o f the banking capital o f the Union. New Y ork is to the United States what London is to Great Britain ; and she is second only to London am ong commercial cities. Paris, Vienna, and St. Petersburg, are all be low her in influence on the trade and finances and credits o f the world. A revulsion and suspension o f payments here affects the value o f money and property in all the markets o f the w orld ; it lessens the price o f every bushel o f grain and every bale o f c o tto n ; it reaches the goods in every warehouse and every sh ip ; and (besides the immediate loss o f its own payments) it reduces the means o f payment the world over. It touches with blight the merchant, the manufacturer, the farmer, the planter, the mechanic, the laborer, and even the incom e o f the retired and helpless. But vast and wide-reaching as are the relations o f the money-system o f N ew Y ork, we repeat that it fails in those elements o f strength, stability, and conservatism, which should make it a resource in times o f trial. The three or four millions o f coin which our banks could spare out o f their ordinary stock would barely suffice to pay a balance o f one per cent in a trade o f over three hundred millions each way. B ut a withdrawal of even so small an amount would be met by a contraction o f loans, and an indefinite rise in the rate o f interest. In impressive contrast is the con The Financial Revulsion and the New York Banking System. 161 duct o f the Bank o f England, which has often borne a loss o f twenty-live millions o f dollars without any change in its steady course. W hat, then, are some o f the conclusions from these facts as connected with the New Y ork banking system ? The first and most imperative o f these is anticipated in the follow ing remarks from an article published in this Magazine, in September, 1851, on the then “ Progressing Expansion." “ Meantime our new relations call for deliberate examination on the part of the managers of our banks. New York has become the center of a large and con stant specie movement, compared with which, the average stock of coin in her banks seems almost insignificant. W e have an average stock of from nine to twelve millions in all our city banks, while in the single month of June, our ex ports were more than six millions. Our banks are thus living on less than a two months’ supply. An unexpected cessation, or short fall of receipts from Cali fornia, with a continued shipment of coin, would, at this rate, completely drain the banks in a few weeks. The movement might, and, doubtless, would be ar rested, but this could not be done in a day, and the severe contraction demanded might, from great apparent prosperity, suddenly bring on a financial crisis. Ought the banks of New York thus to repose on the anticipated permanence of a passing current ? Ought the interests of the Metropolis, and of the Union, to depend on a support so narrow and precarious ? Looking at our specie basis, we are everywhere utterly weak. The banks of the whole country held, on the first of January last, only 48 millions of coin, with a circulation of 155 millions, and loans and discounts amounting to 412 millions. New England floats a cir culation of more than thirty -two millions, on the slender support of less than five millions of specie. Ohio and the Southern States are inflated to nearly the same extent. New Orleans, alone, is impregnable, having had, on the 31st of May, an amount of specie exceeding her whole circulation. “ The Bank of England carries an amount varying from sixty to seventy-five millions. The Bank of France had, at the last report, over 125 millions. Com pared with such sums, the stock in our New York banks looks small enough. “ The truth is, with the great opportunities of our country for enterprise, and with as yet limited accumulations of capital, there is too great an effort to attain the largest results with the smallest outlay. What England does in pounds sterling, we do in dollars. W e go for speed more than strength. The defects of our banks and of our steam-engines, are the same— a deficiency of metal; and the consequences arc the same—explosions. “ Now, the banks of New York hold the same relation to the whole Union that the Banks of England and France maintain as the financial centers of their respective countries. Many of the banks of the interior, repose, in a great de gree, upon their New Y ork deposits. These are denominated “ specie funds." Being so regarded, but a small comparative amount of coin is kept in their own vaults. In case then of a pressure, New York must depend on her own resources to meet a double demand, from abroad and from the interior. “ In view o f these fad s, ought not a fa r larger amount, say 20 millions, to be adopted as the average supply of the New York city banks? This would, per haps, curtail profits, but it would be in part compensated by better rates of in terest, and by fewer of those losses, which fall first upon our merchants and manu facturers, hut are sure to reach the banks at last, in periods o f revulsion. A t all events, any possible diminution of profits would be as nothiug compared with the uniformity, security, and strength, thus imparled to the financial interests o f the whole country." The brief interval o f six years, from 1851 to 1857, after the above re marks were written, has given them memorable confirmation. The “ expan sion” then in “ progress” went on with increasing volume and accelerated rapidity to its consummation. The banking movement o f the whole country was doubled. The loans o f all the banks in the United States rose from VOL. X X X V III. --- NO. II. 11 162 The Financial Revulsion and the New York Banking System. $400,000,000 to $800,000,000— and those o f the New Y ork city banks from about $65,000,000 to $120,000,000. But what is most noteworthy is, that so far from a proportionate increase o f the specie average, the stock, which was then wholly inadequate, has only increased some three or four millions. The capital and loans have doubled, while the increase o f specie has hardly exceeded 40 per cent. W h en the above was written the specie average was fully $9,0u0,000, and with doubled capital and loans it should have been, in 1857, at least $18,000,000, to preserve even the inadequate degree o f strength then maintained, while in fact up to the time o f the pauic the stock o f specie in that year was only about $10,500,000. It thus appears that the city banks, as a body, instead Of grow ing stronger, have grow n relatively very much weaker, and that the new banks have by no means added their quota to the specie reserve. A system so unsound, at that period, as to disturb the nation with its frequent panics, has been grow ing worse, till at last it has exploded in a convulsion which has strewn the commercial world with wrecks. N ow , if it were possible, the best o f all remedies would be a return to sound banking by the banks themselves, under the tremendous force o f these facts. The whole subject should be reviewed, and a new aver age o f specie adopted, by com m on consent, as the measure o f safe banking. Each and every bank should be compelled to keep its quota by public opinion, and especially by the demands of its associates, enforced by some concerted action, through a board or committee representing the whole body. If $20,000,000 were not too high a sum to fix upon in 1851, then with a doubled movement $40,000,000 would not be too high now, but if the banks would only preserve the stock o f say $30,000,000 now attained, (too late, indeed,) the good to the country would be worth the interest o f one hundred times that sum. If we look to legislative remedies, the most radical and effective would be the repeal or modification o f the usury laws, o f which, as we have shown, the unsound part o f our banking is an evasion and an outgrowth. Capital w ould then leave its assumed corporate trammels and be loaned once at its value instead o f twice at 7 per cent. But that will not be done, and so it were useless to prove its efficacy. Perhaps o f all the measures that may be thought of, the one which would involve the most important and conservative results in the most natural and legitimate way, would be the enactment o f a law to this effect— “ that no bank shall receive more than three per cent interest on loans having less than thirty days to run, nor more than five per cent on loans having less than sixty days to run.” Such a law would not be open to the objection o f being empirical or innovating. It would simply remand the banks to their proper and legitimate business o f discounting time paper. A provision similar in its purpose was in fact incorporated in the charters o f the old safety fund banks, which forbade them to take more than six per cent on sixty day loans. The law proposed, though it might be embraced in a single sentence, would be comprehensive in its effects. It would reach and restrain nearly all the evils now in full ac tiv ity ; for— 1st. By making “ dem and” and short loans unprofitable, it would great ly restrict them. 2d. The banks ceuld no longer afford to pay interest on deposits, and that cause for expanding their loans would cease. 163 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 8d. N ot having “ call loans ” as a poor dependence, they would be com pelled to keep a much larger proportion o f sp ecie; and not paying inter est on deposits, they could then afford to do so. 4th. A s expansions would thus be limited, the range o f contraction would be less, and panics less frequent. 5th. W hen contractions should occur, they would be less sudden and disastrous, because the banks would be compelled, and would be able, to await the maturing o f their “ time loans.” W e commend this suggestion to the consideration o f our excellent bank superintendent and that o f our legislators. The general relations o f this subject to the currency and to the banking system o f the whole country may be considered hereafter. e. d. Art. I l l _ _ PORTS OF THE HAWAIIAN OR SANDWICH ISLANDS. I . I S L A N D O F O A I ID — P O R T O F H O N O L U L U . H A IN A . IIL IS L A N D B ID -t,)— PO RT S OF OF H A W A II , (E A S T K A W A IH A E AND I I. IS L A N D OF M A U I , (W E S T E R N D I V I S I O N ,) — P O R T O F L A S I D E ,) — P O R T O F H IL O . KEALAKEAKUA. V . IS L A N D I V . IS L A N D O F OF H A W A II, K A U A I— PORTS OF (W E S T W A IM E A , K O L O A , N A W I L I W I L I , A N D H A N A L E I. CHAPTER I. I8L A N D OF O A H U — P O R T OF H O N O LU LU . or Fairhaven, as it was iirst called, is situated on the leeward side o f the Island o f Oahu, in latitude 21° 18' 2 3 " north, and 157° 48' 4 5 " west longitude. It was discovered and surveyed in 1794 by Captain Brown, o f the English ship Butterworth, a nurthwest trader, and was first entered by the schooner Jackall, tender to the But terworth, on the 1st day o f January, 1795. The year in which this harbor was first entered is am ong the most noted o f its history. Captain Brown, the discoverer, together with Captain Gardner, o f the Prince le B oo, were murdered by native pirates. The vessels were captured and taken out o f the harbor round to W aikiki Roads, which, till then, was the principal anchorage for vessels visiting Oahu, but were both retaken again by the seamen belonging to them. Kalanikapule, the K ing o f Oahu, was one o f the actors in this tragedy, and that too in the murder o f his ally, who was principally instrumental in defeating K eao at Kalauao, a filibustering chief from the Island o f Kauai, w ho was bent upon subduing Oahu to vassalage. Captain Brown, on return from his war expedition, fired a salute in honor o f the v icto ry ; a wad from one o f his guns en tered the cabin window o f the Am erican sloop Lady Washington, and killed Captain Kendrick. His interment, under the English burial ser vice, is noted as the first at the islands accompanied with Christian rites. The ceremony was deemed by the natives then as a solemn sorcery. The grave was rilled the same night for the sake o f the winding-sheet. W e give this piece o f history as a notable starting point, or “ fixed monument,” as the professionals say, in our survey o f the harbor. It serves, too, in distinguishing rather vividly the difference between the antagonism o f civilization and savagery sixty-two years ago and the polka reunions o f the races at the present day. The harbor is a deep basin in the coral reef, through which the fresh H onolulu H arbor, 164 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. The depth o f water varies from four to six-and-a-half fathoms. The bot tom is deep, stiff mud— the best o f holding ground. Vessels at anchor in the harbor are perfectly secure at all seasons o f the year. In the strongest southerly gales, when the wind is directly in from the sea, the harbor is well protected by the reef outside o f it. A bout one-third of the basin, or harbor proper, at the north end, is filled with mud— a de posit from the Nuuanu Valley stream. This can be converted at pleasure into a harbor for ships by dredging. The channel, which includes the outer harbor, is about one mile in length, narrow and rather tortuous. Its sides are bold coral reefs, and susceptible, when the wants o f com m erce demand it, o f being converted into wharf fronts the entire length on both sides to the bar, making there by a harbor o f the present channel, which, under the mooring system, could be made to accommodate a number o f vessels, little suspected by persons unacquainted with the real size o f the basin and channel. The depth o f w7ater on the bar is twenty-one-and-a-half feet at low tide, which rises and falls throughout the group about two feet. The bottom is sand, and about one hundred yards in width, and can be deepened with small expense, under competent direction, so as to admit the largest vessels afloat. The shape o f th§ harbor and channel is such as to offer as much wharf facilities as any harbor o f its area in the world. The reefs on both sides are easy o f improvement, and with extent enough o f themselves for a first-class city. There are five good wharves, at which vessels o f 1,500 tons can dis charge or take in cargo. These wharves furnish about six hundred feet wharfage front. The governm ent are now constructing new piers, and it is probable that, before the end o f twelve months, one thousand feet o f additional wharfage will be ready for use. This port is so easy of access, that any sailing directions for it are al most superfluous. The trade wind blows over the islands about nine months o f the year, from March to N ovem ber; during the winter months the south and west winds prevail, and bring usually a great quantity of rain. These months are generally stormy, and during them it is unsafe to anchor in the roads. Most o f the marine disasters occurring about the islands, are in December, January, and February. W h en the trade wind prevails, vessels should approach the islands and run along to the north ward o f Hawaii, Maui, and Molokai, distant from the land say fifteen or twenty miles, and passing through the channel between Molokai and Oahu, which is about eighteen miles in width, run along the shore from C oco Head (the most eastern point o f Oahu) to Diamond Head, keeping the shore two or three miles distant. The reefs extend only about half a mile from the shore between these headlands. Diam ond Head is about four miles distant from the anchorage. Vessels wishing a pilot should hoist the usual pilot signal at the fore as soon as the town and shipping come in sight. Skillful pilots are always in readiness, and the port is provided with a steam-tug, adapted to tow ing vessels in and out the harbor. H er service is generally needed when the trade wind is fresh. Vessels not wishing a pilot, can pass D iam ond Head about one mile distant from the shore, and head for the entrance o f the harbor. The anchorage is indi cated by a white iron buoy in twelve fathoms, and ships not wishing to enter the harbor can anchor anywhere near the above buoy, and outside water from the Nuuanu stream reaches the sea, capable o f accommodat ing one hundred and eighty vessels in its present almost unimproved state. Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 165 the “ spar b u o y ” at the entrance o f the channel. The trade wind always blows off shore. The site o f Honolulu is good, rising gradually from the sea to an eleva tion o f about twenty feet. The ground is volcanic soil, with a coral rock basis— the very best foundation for building. The surrounding scenery, as oft told, is made up o f everlasting- green mountains and valleys. The immediate vicinity is diversified with hill and plain, susceptible o f much adornment, as running water is abundant, and can be led to all parts. Much lias already been done to beautify the environs o f the town in the shape o f cottages and trees, but it is only the beginning o f what we shall see. The scenery o f this island is picturesque; it is well watered, salu brious, and fertile throughout, and its topography such that a railroad may be constructed around it at a moderate expense, and doubtless will be whenever it will pay. Its productions are_ various, mostly tropical fruits, vegetables, and poul try, to supply the residents and shipping in port. Grazing is carried on largely and at a profit, and is the ch ief business o f this island in the agri cultural line. Being the center of Hawaiian commerce, it draws its sup plies mainly from the other islands for consumption and shipping to for eign ports. A large fleet o f coasters o f every description, from the non pareil clipper schooner to the sand barge, are employed in this trade, leaving daily for, and returning from, the other islands. One or more steamers, adapted to-th e trade, and running regularly and permanently between the islands, is yet a desideratum. The town o f Honolulu and shipping in port are abundantly supplied with good water, brought down in iron pipes from exhaustless sources near the mountains; 2,000 barrels o f domestic salt beef, about 3,000 bar rels o f domestic flour, equal to any imported, as well as large quantities o f firewood, potatoes, pumpkins, vegetables, and fruits o f all kinds, are annually furnished at this port to merchant and whale ships. Native as well as foreign seamen can be obtained at this port at short notice for voyages to any part o f the world ; wages average about fifteen dollars per month for merchant service, and a hundred-and-fortieth lay for the whal ing service. The average value of imports at H onolulu for the last few years con siderably exceed a million o f dollars, com ing from every quarter o f the commercial world. This port seems to be a focus at which the commerce from every point o f the compass in the Pacific concentrates. Its g eo graphical position in relation to the Old and New W orld tends unavoid ably to make it such. The population o f Honolulu is somewhat fluctuating; during the fall and winter season it is as high as 10,000 or 12,000, caused by the influx of seamen, and also natives from the other islands o f the group. A t other seasons o f the year it may be as low as 7,000 or 8,000. There are four ship chandlery stores, about twenty im porting houses, and from fifty to sixty retail stores, twelve hotels, nine or ten physicians, and five printing offices. There are six church edifices, some o f them very substantial spe cimens o f architecture, and capable o f accom m odating each from 300 to 3,000 persons. The schools are numerous, both for the native and foreign children, and it is generally thought, by those most capable o f judging, that the advantages afforded in Honolulu for a thorough education are equal to those o f New England, excepting only her universities and col leges. 106 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. Aside from these elements o f material prosperity, there are gathered together in Honolulu many facilities for real intellectual and social enjoy ments; also many other diversions, said to be enjoyments, which are not so intellectual. There is a college of physicians, an incorporated college for students, delightfully located at Punahou. The postal arrangements with the Old World are complete, and correspondence is carried on with all parts of the world regularly and without confusion. There are three weekly and two monthly journals printed in Honolulu, in both the Hawaiian and English languages. They are conducted with more or less ability, with a high or low moral tone, according to the edi torial caliber and the intellectual and moral wants of their respective sup porters. W e avoid drawing comparisons between this harbor and any of the other harbors of the Hawaiian group. Commerce, with its true instincts, always alights upon the best, and converts it into a metropolis. This har bor is an exemplification of the assertion, not to be disputed by those in terested in the prosperity o f the kingdom, and we think it would be well for all to lend their good will to make it the center of that wide commerce for which it is so favorably situated, and thereby benefit themselves in a wise way. Before closing our remarks on the harbor of Honolulu, perhaps we ought to allude to its wants. A lighthouse ought to be erected forthwith at the entrance of the harbor. The necessities of our commerce demand this improvement. The fearful disasters and losses near and at the mouth of the harbor for the last few years, and all for the want of one, call loudly for such a safeguard. Aside from the losses which it would be the means of preventing, it would be the greatest accommodation to vessels, in en abling them to come in and go out at all times, night or day ; thus saving “ time, which is money,” or will be as the “ star of empire ” approaches our meridian. W e believe a proper lighthouse might be built by private parties, and that ships visiting this port would consent willingly to be taxed there as well as elsewhere for this kind of insurance or safeguard ; and that the amount of tax so levied would be nearly or quite sufficient to induce private parties to erect one without delay. But a want much more felt is a marine railway for repairing ships. W e are surprised that no attempt to construct a railway has ever been carried out here. The present mode o f repairing vessels is very expensive, while the repairing o f the hull of large steamers at this port is almost imprac ticable at present. W e are assured that the cost of a substantial railway for the present wants o f commerce will not exceed $25,000, and it would be a fortune to any person or company who undertook it with practical knowledge o f the subject. CHAPTER II. I S L A N D O F M A U I , (W E S T E R N D I V I S I O N ,) P O R T O F L A I I A I N A . L a h a i n a , (anciently called L e l e , from the short stay o f Chiefs there,) is pleasantly located on the western shore o f W est Maui, and is in W est long. 156° 41' and North lat. 24° 51' 50 ". It may be considered as the second port o f the Hawaiian Islands, as, next to Honolulu, it is most generally frequented by the whaling fleet which touch at the island in the spring and fall for recruits and refreshments. This town was selected by Kamehameha III. and his chiefs, to be the Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 167 seat o f government o f the group, and it continued such till the trouble some times o f 1843, when he removed the royal residence to Honolulu. Its public buildings are few. It has two churches, a hospital, a “ palace,” which from the anchorage loom s up and appears a stately building, but is fast g oin g to ruin from neglect. There are three ship chandlery stores, some fifteen retail stores, and three practicing physicians. The best seminary on the islands for the education o f natives, is located about two miles back o f the village. It is under the charge o f capable foreign teachers, and is sustained by the government. It numbers from sixty to eighty students. Perhaps there is no village on the group that presents to the stranger a more striking tropical appearance than does Lahaina. There is one principal street, several miles in length, intersected with many others, lined with large kukui trees, which cover the road, rendering it in places a shady and cool bower. These trees remind one of the noble branching elms of New Haven, though the shade of the kukui is denser and cooler. Numerous groves of cocoanuts and tall bananas line the beach and en virons, while grape and other vines almost bury in their foliage many of the cottages. There is no spot on these islands equal to Lahaina for gardening or raising fruit and vegetables of every description, owing to the abundant supply of water. The native inhabitants of Maui are far more advanced in the knowledge o f self-government, and also in agriculture, and consequently are more independent than those of either of the other islands of our group. This is owing mainly to the influence o f old Governor Hoapili, who governed the island for some twenty years, and who was thoroughly imbued with republican ideas. Whenever he undertook any public work, he first called the common people together to advise with them, telling them that the work, if needed, was for their g o o d ; and it is said that he always yielded to the popular voice. The successors of Hoapili have been intelligent governors, and, in a measure, carried out his popular views. Hence it is that far more attention is paid by the natives o f Maui to agriculture, and some of the common people have become independent. The anchorage being an open roadstead, vessels can always approach or leave it with any wind that blows. No pilot is needed here. Vessels generally approach through the channel between Maui and Molokai, standing well over to Lanai, as far as the trade will carry them, then take the sea breeze, which sets in during the forenoon, and head for the town. The anchorage is about ten miles in extent along the shore and from within a cable’s length of the reef in seven fathoms of water, to a distance o f three miles out with some twenty-five fathoms, affording abundant room for as large a fleet as can ever be collected here. The holding ground, with clear anchors, is considered good, though somewhat rocky, and little or no danger is ever experienced, more than usual where a number of ships congregate. The best anchorage is opposite the native church in about fifteen fathoms. There has been generally during the winter months a southerly storm, which the natives call a “ Kona,” but it seldom or ever comes when there is a fleet in port, or so strong that a vessel cannot ride it out in perfect safety. There has never yet been any vessel lost at this port by stress of weather; and but one, under any cir cumstances, which was lost on the reef some two or three miles from the channel. It was a remark of old Capt. Buttler, who resided here for 108 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. many years, that he never saw it blow so hard here as to endanger a ship at anchor with good tackle; and the immunity from accident to the shipping which have visited the port, is the best proof o f its safety. As near as we can ascertain, the first whale ships that visited these islands and touched at this port, were the Beilina, Capt. Gardner, and ----------- , Capt. W orth , which was some where about 1819. A few north west traders touched here from 1799 to the date above given, hut that trade dropping off, the whaler was a welcom e visitor, and we are informed by old Mr. W hite that the “ Old Palace ” was first built as a home to en tertain them. It was erected by, or under the direction o f Ivahekili, (Old Thunder,) who at that time was the head man o f Kamehameha I. In 1842, Capt. John Stetson was appointed the first American ViceConsular Agent at this port, and from the records kept in the consulate office, we gather the follow ing table o f the number of ships touching at this port in the course o f each year since that date. Most o f the ships touched in the spring and again in the fall. The figures are the total arrivals for the years :— 1 8 4 2 .......... 1 8 4 3 .......... 1 8 4 4 .......... . . 1 8 4 5 .......... 40 96 291 1 8 4 6 .......... . . 1 8 4 7 .......... . . 1 8 4 8 .......... . . 1 8 4 9 .......... 395 202 161 1 8 5 0 .......... 1 8 5 1 .......... . . 1 8 5 2 .......... . . 1 8 5 3 _____ . . 110 187 170 1854 1855 1856 To whale ships no port at the islands offers better facilities for all their business (with the exception of heavy repairs) than does Lahaina. As it is on this island, and but a short distance that the extensive potato fields are located that have furnished an almost inexhaustible supply for many years, and also the large sugar plantations from which the best sugar and molasses are procured, and tine herds of cattle which dress up better than any beef slaughtered for market that can be produced on the group. Efforts have been made for the last two or three years to introduce the “ Tombez ” variety of sweet potatoes, and the last fall season we were able to supply fully the demand of as good an article as has ever been offered in the market. Fruits are generally abundant. The grape seems to luxu riate in the rich soil, and the sunny, clear weather of Lahaina, as it is, par excellence, the fruit of this place or islands. Figs, bananas, and melons are produced in abundance, and pumpkins enough for all New England to make pies for a general thanksgiving. All other supplies needed by merchant or whale ships can always be procured at this port. In riding through “ Tropic road,” a few7 days since, we counted twenty varieties of trees and shrubs growing by the road side, and presenting within a mile’s ride, as fine specimens of tropical productions as any similar drive to be found on the islands. The population o f Lahaina is estimated at fifteen hundred, the foreign part of which will not probably exceed one to two hundred. The causes that have been at work depopulating the islands have likewise tended to reduce the numbers here. “ Years ago there was a hut under every bread fruit tree,” was the statement o f an old man who has seen the four Kamehamehas as the rulers of the land. So far as local diseases, we are singularly free. The climate is unequaled ; the mild sea breezes temper the heat of the day, and the cool breeze o f the night makes sleeping a luxury to be enjoyed. Epidemics do not seem to act with the virulence that they do at some Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 169 other places. There were but seven fatal cases of small pox, while some districts counted by thousands. The “ boohoo fever,” as it is called, which is said to have appeared first at this place, but which has now entirely disappeared, or exists only in isolated cases, is not considered acclimated among us. CHAPTER III. I S L A N D O F I I A W A I I , E A S T S I D E — P O E T O F H IL O . H il o , or Waiakea harbor, (called in many charts Byron’s Bay,) situated on the east side of Hawaii, in latitude 19° 44' N. and longitude 155° 03' W ., is most delightfully located; and on approaching it from sea, the whole surrounding country being well studded with trees and perennial verdure, even to the water’s edge, and presenting none o f that bleak and arid appearance which is so common and remarkably striking upon near ing most of the other ports, it exhibits probably, one of the most pleasing and extremely picturesque sites that the islands can afford. The harbor, which is a natural one, being formed seaward by a reef composed of coral, sand, and lava, and extending from east to west, some 1,500 fathoms, assumes a somewhat semi-circular shape, the diameter of which is from 1,000 to 1,200 fathoms; it is spacious and extensive, wellprotected, and being seldom visited by strong winds, affords a most con venient and safe asylum for vessels. The depths o f water in the harbor varies from 3 to 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 fathoms, ships generally anchoring in from five to six fathoms, and the bottom being composed chiefly o f mud and sand, and being free from sunken rocks, sand bars, or any similar obstruction, it gives a most excel lent holding ground for ships. The harbor, as it is at the present time, is capable of holding with safety upwards of one hundred and fifty vessels; but with a little enter prise, and an outlay o f capital, as a matter o f course, to erect piers, docks, and other improvements, how much larger a number it would accom modate is impossible to say ; but, being accessible at all times to ships of the largest class, it derives from nature all the advantages and peculiar facilities favorable for a great commercial station. The course, on entering the harbor o f W aiakea, is on the western shore o f the channel. The narrowest navigable part between the shore and the reef is upwards o f 500 fathoms. W ere it not for fear o f vitiating insurances, the services o f a pilot would seldom be required by ships possessing “ W ilkes’ ” chart o f the harbor. Still, as the winds at times are baffling, it is always safer to take a pilot, o f which there are two regularly com missioned, ever ready and on the alert to offer their services when a ves sel comes in sight. The charge o f pilotage, as at the port o f Honolulu, is calculated according to the vessel’s draft o f water, namely, one dollar per foot, inward and outward. As the trade winds prevail here, it would as a general.rule be advisable for ships upon approaching the port to keep well to the eastward, letting the harbor bear about S. W . It may perhaps be well to state here a fact, probably not generally known, that never has a ship been wrecked in this harbor, nor on the im mediate coast. The number of whale ships annually visiting this port, independent of 170 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. merchant vessels, etc., taking the last five years as an average, has been sixty-five. As inducements, for whale ships especially, to visit this port, it would not be amiss to state that very rarely does the ship master ex perience difficulty or trouble with his crew, which fact can be attributed to no other course than that of the impossibility of the men obtaining anything in the shape of intoxicating liquors, for the sale of which happily, no license has been granted on this island ; and so stringent is the law, that the victualling houses are strictly prohibited from even making beer, or giving it to their boarders. Seldom either does a ship lose any o f its crew from desertion, so efficient are the means o f retaking them, that slight indeed is the chance of escape. VYTe will mention what ships can obtain : in the first place, an abundant supply of good fresh water can be had all the year round from the nu merous streams and rivulets which empty themselves into the b a y ; a supply of recruits, such as sweet potatoes, squashes, bananas, cabbages, oranges, (when in season,) firewood, beef and pork, and poultry can always be obtained, and Irish potatoes, although not grown in the neighborhood, are procured in readiness for the whaling fleet at the fall and spring of the year. Bread, flour, salt provisions, ship chandlery, and groceries, and in fact everything in the way of a ship’s requirements can now be pro cured from the several stores in the bay. With regard to the temperature of Hilo, it is remarkable for its equality ; and though at certain seasons of the year humid, the climate may be, and is, considered salubrious and temperate. A supply o f timber being an in dispensable for the success of a commercial place, is an article in which Hilo is by no means lacking, as the woods extend far back into the moun tains, and reach to within two or three miles of the sea coast, containing an almost inexhaustible supply, a great deal of which, (the ohia for instance,) for durability in a great measure resembles the oak, and is for many purposes admirably adapted for ship use, for anchor stocks, etc., and the cost of which, as compared with the same at other ports, is very reasona ble. Such are some of the prominent- features o f Hilo. The trade, or agri cultural pursuits that are carried on for export, are too trifling at present to deserve much notice ; but as this article is intended to give some truth ful account, however imperfect, o f the different enterprises o f which Hilo can boast, we may be excused for submitting a few statements with respect to the commerce carried on by its residents. The principle articles of export are coffee, arrow-root, pulu, goat-skins, hides, sugar, molasses, and syrup, (the production o f the three latter named commodities have considerably varied o f late years,) but all of which might be very extensively, and we have no doubt, profitably raised, were the communications with the interior of the country more accessible, where there are thousands and thousands of acres, having a soil of extraordinary fertility, at present uncultivated, congenial to, and capable o f producing most abundant crops ; but the state of the roads renders them almost im passable to any but foot passengers, and the hitherto most expeditious mode of conveyance being by means of sticks slung across a native’s shoulders, with the burdens at the ends, make it much to be regretted that, although so favorable to commerce, Hilo, in an agricultural point of view, is so lamentably crippled. With more available roads and bridges, but few ports on any of the islands in the Pacific, with an industrious population, could pour into the market such an amount of produce. Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 171 CHAPTER IV. IS L A N D O F H A W A I I , W E 8 T S ID E — PO RT S O F K A W A in A E A N D K E A L A K E A K U A . K a w a ii ia e , (pronounced generally Tow-a-high,) is a small village on the bay of the same name on the western shore of Hawaii, with scarcely an object to attract a resident. Excepting a few cocoanut trees which line the water’s edge, there is hardly any foliage to be seen in the village or on the hills back of it. It derives its importance from being the port of the rich and extensive grazing uplands of Waimea— one of the finest agricultural districts of the islands, which has not yet developed its full resources. Just back of the town there exist the ruins of one of those large heiau’s, or idol temples. It is the most perfect one now existing on the islands. It was this temple which the young Kamehameha II., on the death of his father, went up to consecrate, accompanied by his priests; and it was here, in the midst o f his revelry, that he brought the tabu system to an end. Kawaihae is situated on the north-east side o f the bay in N. lat. 20° 04', and W . long. 155° 52'. The bay is well sheltered from the trades, but open to the southerly winds, and affords a good anchorage, Vessels bound for Kawaihae from the windward, should keep K ohala point distant about four miles, keep along the land in a southerly direction for about twenty miles till they com e in sight o f Macy & Law’s store, then stand directly in the bay till you open a large gulch on the north-east shore, running down to the water. Before closing this gulch, drop anchor in ten or twelve fathoms. The best anchorage for whale ships is from three to five cables’ length from the northern shore, and in about twelve fathoms water. The bottom o f the bay is fine coral sand or blue mud, but closer in, where small schooners anchor, the bottom is somewhat rocky. The wind is usually off-shore, though when the trade is light, sea and land breezes alternate. The usual pilot signal will bring off a pilot, from three to ten miles. The best course for square rigged vessels from H onolulu to Kawaihae, if the trade wind is not to far to the eastward, is for them to keep on the southern tack so long as they can head up S. E . ; if the wind should head them off south o f S. E., it would be well to tack towards Lanai, stand on to within twelve or fifteen miles, and then back to S. E . , which will bring them over on the west side o f Hawaii, where they can take the sea breeze for Kealakeakua or Kawaihae. Forty or fifty whale ships have annually visited this port for the l^st few years, to pro cure salted beef and Irish potatoes, which are considered the finest pro duced on the islands. D uring 1856, about 1,500 barrels o f beef and over 5.000 barrels of Irish potatoes have been furnished as supplies to vessels touching here. Besides the above the exports of the place have consisted o f fresh beef, pork, fowls, beans, some 20,000 lbs. wool, 1,200 bullock hides, 5.000 goat skins, 35,000 lbs. tallow, &c., &c. K e a l a k e a k u a , or Kaawaloa as the Ilawaiians generally prefer to call it, is located on the bay of the same name on the western side of Hawaii, in lat. 19° 26' N., and long. 150° 03' W . The bay is about 900 fathoms broad and 1,200 fathoms in length. Kealakeakua was long celebrated as the residence of the early kings o f Hawaii. It was in its neighborhood also that there existed the famous city of refuge, which afforded an inviol able sanctuary to the guilty fugitive who was so favored as to gain its 172 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. precincts. To it the man-slayer who had broken a tabu, the thief, and even the murderer, fled from his incensed pursuers and was secure. Its gates were always open to admit the refugee. The celebrity which this port acquired by the visit and murder o f Capt. Cook, and its being laid down accurately on the early charts, caused it to be visited m ore by war ships and whalemen than the other ports o f the group. The village is located on the sea-shore and comprises perhaps a hundred houses. In the farming districts, two to four miles from the village, quite a large number o f foreigners reside, some engaged in raising cotfee. A number of young orange groves are under cultivation, which promise in a few years to yield large crops. The best anchorage for ships visiting the bay, is on the north side under a bluff between six and seven hundred feet high, one-third o f a mile from the sand beach on the east side, and one-quarter o f a mile from the bluff on the north side o f the bay. The water is from sixteen to twenty fathoms deep. A ship can lie there at all times in perfect safety from wind or sea. The northwest part o f the bay is about forty fathoms deep. Outside o f this the water is shoaler, being twenty-two fathoms, leaving a basin within which fifty or sixty ships can be accommodated here at one time. Most o f the ships that visit here, com e after D ecem ber and during the spring. Capt. Cumings has a tank for watering ships that will hold sixteen hundred barrels. The follow ing articles can be obtained at this p o r t:— wood, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, squashes, melons, cabbages, oranges, from September to February, beef, best quality, mutton, goats, turkeys, and fowls, as well as pigs in any quantity; also, coffee, best quality, besides many kinds o f fruits, such as bananas, guavas, papaias, cocoanuts, &c. From eighteen to twenty ships usually touch here in the course o f a year. The weather is generally g ood— there are usually not more than six or eight days out o f the year that can be called bad. This port is considered by masters o f ships as one o f the best places to do work in the Hawaiian Islands, excepting only Honolulu. After a residence there o f eleven years, Capt. Cumings states that he has seen ships lying here during the worst o f weather, but never saw one in any danger. Irish potatoes can be raised within two miles o f the bay o f the finest quality, but no one pays any attention to their culture. For sailing directions, if the vessel cannot get in at once to the anchorage, keep directly off the b a y and close in, say two or three miles from the shore. Oftentimes, north o f the bay, there will be a current setting north, and south o f the bay, a current setting south, so by keeping directly off the bay both currents will be avoided. There is a regular land and sea breeze, the latter com m encing about 9 A . M., and lasting until sun down ; the land breeze commences about 8 o ’clock P. M., and lasts until 8 o'clock A . M. It is strongest about day-light, giving ships a chance to get under way after day-light and get a good offing before the wind changes. Masters who wish to anchor their vessels in the bay should keep within three or four miles of the shore, where they will have the strength o f the land breeze and get the sea breeze much earlier than if farther off. If ten or twelve miles off shore, they will not get the sea breeze until 12 or 1 o ’clock, while all the forenoon a fine breeze blows near the shore. The sea breeze is the strongest about 3 P. M. It usually prevails from about P orts o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. 173 N. W ., but is sometimes west and even S. W . W e usually Lave about two konas during the winter. The wind never blows with any strength in the bay. In the country they last from twelve to fifteen hours, and do much less damage than on most other parts of the islands. A pilot goes oft' to ships if a signal is made for one, otherwise not. chapter v. IS L A N D O F K A U A I — P O R T S O F W A I M E A , K O L O A , N A W I L I W I L I , A N D H A N A L E I . come now in our review of the ports of the islands to those of Kauai, which is the most northern island of the archipelago, and nearly circular in form, with an area of about 520 square miles, one half of which is adapted to grazing and cultivation. Its southern point lies in lat. 2 i° 56', its northern point in 22° V . Its longitude is embraced between 159° 41' and 160° 80' West. There are two bays and two open roads, used by coasting vessels, but ships now rarely anchor in them. W e W a im e a H a r b o r .— This is an open roadstead, sheltered from the trade wind, and has a good anchorage for whale ships, somewhat resembling that o f Lahaina. The harbor is located in lat. 21° 57' North, long. 159° 42' W est. From the year 1825 to 1845 this port was much visited by whale ships, averaging forty to fifty ships each year, but o f late years, owing to the customs regulations, and better supplies furnished at H on o lulu and Lahaina, but few whalers have anchored or touched at the port. It affords by far the best anchorage for ships to be had at Kauai, and is deemed safe for large vessels, excejit from Decem ber to March, when the south winds prevail. The best anchorage is directly opposite the beach, a little west o f the mouth o f the river, in twelve to fifteen fathoms, about-half a mile distant from the shore. W h en the wind is fresh the surf breaks wildly on the beach, but whale boats and canoes pass through it without danger. Sweet potatoes, and most o f the island fruits and vegetables, as well as poultry and pigs, can be had here in abundance at all seasons o f the year. It was at W aim ea that Capt. Cook first anchored when he discovered the group in 1778. K o l o a , located about fifteen miles north and to windward o f W aimea, is the port o f entry o f this island, at which a custom-house officer is sta tioned. The anchorage is an open roadstead, the trade wind blowing along and a little off shore. During the prevalence of the trade it is safe for ships to anchor, but they rarely do so, preferring to procure their supplies “ lying off and on.” The anchorage for schooners is close in shore, in four to six fathoms o f water, where it is somewhat sheltered from the wind by a bluff. Owing to the force of the swell and the suddenness with which the south wind sweeps around the headlands o f the island, and the want o f proper buoys, a number o f coasting vessels have been wrecked o f late years at this port. For the trade of the port there is a small rude pier constructed, which m ight be improved at no great outlay of labor. From the landing there is a good carriage road to the town, distant about two miles. Large quantities o f firewood, bullocks, and sweet potatoes, are furnished to whalers at this port, and these articles can nowhere be procured cheaper or better. It is estimated that 10,000 barrels o f sweet potatoes are cultivated annually here, w hich are thought to be the best on the islands. Nearly all the potatoes furnished for the California market are produced here. K oloa has long been noted for its 174 Ports o f the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands. sugar plantations, which are considered the most productive on the group. The mills are at present owned by Messrs. W o o d & Burbank, and the produce this year (1857) is not far from 200 tons o f sugar. The shipment o f potatoes, sugar, and molasses, constitute the chief trade o f the port. Its population is about 1,000. N a w il iw il l i B a y is distant from K oloa some twelve miles to the northeast. It is frequented only by coasters. The bar has three to threeand-a-half fathoms on it, and the bay lies directly open to southeast winds, during which, ow ing to the heavy swell, it is unsafe for vessels to lie there. The inner harbor, Niumalu, at the mouth o f the river has two fathoms on the bar. There is, however, a circuitous channel o f three fathoms leading into it. This is the only safe anchorage in the bay for vessels during southeasterly storms. This place is the residence o f the governor and judicial officers o f the island. The Lihue sugar plantation is also located here. H a n a l e i H ar b o r is on the north side o f the island, and during the prevalence o f the trade wind affords good anchorage for vessels o f all classes. It is exposed only to the northwest winds, which, however, rarely blow here ; and even in the strongest west and northwest gales, small vessels with good ground tackle can lie safely under the lee o f the reef, opposite the mouth o f the river. The view from the anchorage is one o f the most picturesque in the w orld— towering mountains, covered with woods, cascades, ravines, and the W a iole River, with one o f the richest valleys in our group, all mingle together in'm aking it a scene o f unusual beauty. The trade o f the port is now very limited and is confined to a few coasting vessels, which supply the wants o f the natives and the coffee plantations. W h ale ships seldom visit the port now. The steamer W est P oin t used to make this one o f her stopping places in her trips around the island, and a profitable trade was being established by her at the time o f her loss. The two largest coffee plantations on the islands are located here, producing annually 150,000 to 200,000 pounds o f coffee. In the neighborhood o f the port several thousand head o f cattle run wild, and in former years considerable quantities o f beef were packed here, but owing to the poor and irregular facilities for sending it to market, it has been entirely broken up. It was in this harbor in the year 1824, thirty-three years ago, that the R oyal Hawaiian brig Cleopatra’s Barge, “ The P ride o f Hawaii,” was wrecked, the circumstances attending which it may not be amiss to relate here. The wreck is supposed to have occurred solely through the incom petency or negligence o f the master, a foreigner. After the natives had brought on shore from the wreck, the spars, rigging, and other articles, they attempted to haul up the brig itself. This furnished one o f the best specimens o f physical force ever witnessed am ong them. “ They collected from the woods and margins of the river a large quantity of the bark of the hibiscus, and rvith their hands, without any machinery, made several thousand yards of strong rope, such as was then in common use at the islands. Twelve folds of this they made into a cable. Three cables of this kind they prepared for the purpose o f dragging up the wreck of the Cleopatra’s Barge on shore. These three cables were then attached to the mainmast of the brig, a few7 feet above the deck, leading some distance on the shore towards the moun tains, nearly parallel to each other. A t the sides of these the multitude were ar ranged as closely as they could conveniently sit or stand together. ? Garblings : or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. 175 “ The brig lay in about ten feet water, and partly on her side which was fur thest from the shore, and very near to a reef of rocks rising nearly half way to the surface. Over this reef they proposed first to roll the vessel. Everything being arranged for their great muscular effort, an old but spirited chieftain, for merly from Oahu, called the Wind-watcher, passing up and down through the different ranks, and from place to place, repeatedly sung out with prolonged notes and trumpet tongue, ‘ Be quiet— shut up the voice.’ To which the people re sponded, ‘ Say nothing,’ as a continuance of the prohibition to which they were ready to assent when they should come to the tug. Between the trumpet notes, the old chieftain, with the natural tones and inflections, instructed them to grasp the ropes firmly, rise together at the signal, and leaning inland, to look and draw straight forward, without looking backward toward the vessel. They being thus marshalled and instructed, remained quiet for some minutes upon their hips. “ A man, called a kaukau, or counselor with the chiefs, whose office it was to rehearse, for the encouragement of the drawers, an ancient and popular song, used when a tree for a canoe was to be drawn from the mountains to the shore, rose, and with great rapidity, commencing with an address to Lotio, the ancient god, rehearsed the mythological song, now in the possession of Judge Andrews, of which the following is a verse :—■ “ ‘ Give to me the trunk o f the tree, O Lone— Give me the tree's main root, O Lono— Give me the ear of the tree, 0 Lono. Hearken by night, and hear by day, O Poihiihi—0 Poahaaha — Come for the tree, and take to the sea-side.’ “ The multitude, quietly listening some six or eight minutes, at a particular turn or passage in the song, indicating the order to march, rose together, and as the song continued with increasing volubility and force, slowly moved forward in silence; and all leaning from the shore, strained their huge ropes, tugging to gether to heave up the vessel. The brig felt their power— rolled up slowly toward the shore, upon her keel, till her side came firmly against the rock, and there in stantly stopped ; but the immense team moved on unchecked ; and the mainmast broke and fell with its shrouds, being taken off by the cables drawn by unaided muscular strength. The hull instantly rolled back to her former place, and was considered irrecoverable. The interest of the scene was much heightened by the fact that a large man, by the name of Kiu, who had ascended the standing shrouds, being near the main-top when the hull began to move, was descending when the mast broke, and was seen to come down suddenly and simultaneously with it in its fall. Strong apprehension was felt on shore that he was killed amid the ruins. Numbers hastened from the shore to the wreck, to see the effects of their pull, and to look after Kiu. He was found amusing himself swimming about on the seaward side of the wreck, where he had opportunely plunged un hurt, when he was in imminent danger.” Art. IV.— GARBL1AGS: OR, COMMERCIAL COMMODITIES CHARACTERIZED. NUM BER ALCOHOLIC V I. LIQUORS. ( w i n e ---- CONTINUED.) B II E N I6 H W I N E S — n O C K — M O S E L L E — H U N G A R Y — T O K A Y — M E N E S A R .— S P A N IS H W I N E S — S H E R R Y — O T H E R V A R I E T I E S O F S P A N IS H W I N E S .— F R A N C E — C H A M P A G N E — S I L L E R Y — B U R G U N D Y — B O R D E A U X — C L A R E T — O T H E R V A R I E T I E S .— “ A M E R I C A N W I N E ” — C A T A W B A .— T E S T S O F P U R I T Y — T A S T E R S — C H IE F C O N 8 T IT U E N T S . Rhenish Wines are manufactured in a small district in Germany on the banks of the Rhine. The best of these was originally produced from a vinyard near Mentz, which belonged to the abbey o f Johannesberg. The Schloss-Juhannesberg, which is deemed the choicest variety, is from a vinyard which originally belonged to the Bishop o f Fulda, but which is 17tf Garblings : or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. now the property o f Prince Metternich. The superiority o f the wine from this vinyard to any other in the district is doubtless ow ing to the greater care bestowed upon it. Other vinyards in the neighborhood have excel lent attention, and produce the excellent Johannesberg o f com m erce— very little o f Prince Metternich’s ever finding its way into market. The Steinberger Rudesheim and Grcefenberg, from vinyards o f the same names, are also justly celebrated wines, containing but little alcohol, o f fine flavor, and characterized by a peculiarly delicate and agreeable aroma. H ock is so called from the little town o f Ilockheim , situated on the River Mayne, a few miles from its junction with the Rhine. The name, however, applies to several varieties o f the same kind o f wine in neighboring places, and is sometimes made to include the Moselle. H ock wine exceeds all others in im proving by age. It contains but little alcohol and is less heating than most other wines, yet when old it is very exhilarating and deceptive. M oselle Wines are rather inferior to genuine H ock, but they are nevertheless the most pure and wholesome o f all cheap wines. The Brauneberger and Wcheen are the best varieties. The best o f the German wines are fermented in casks and afterwards racked off into others, by means o f which the aroma is better preserved. The racking casks, or tuns, are always kept full. W henever any is drawn out, more is put in from the fermenting casks, and in this wise it is kept for centuries. Some of these tuns are o f enormous dimensions— one in Heidelberg holds six hundred hogsheads, and, though several centuries old, it has always been kept fu ll! The finest wines, however, are kept in smaller tuns. The Red W ives o f Germany are generally acid and un wholesome. It used to be the custom in Germany, on the birth o f a child, to bury an earthen vessel filled with wine, not to be taken up till marriage. Austria produces some white wines which are frequently imposed upon com m erce for Rhenish, but they are very inferior and extremely acid. H ungary produces the most celebrated wine o f modern times. This is made in the neighborhood, and takes its name from, the town o f Tokay, situated among the Carpathian Hills. The grapes from which it is pro duced are permitted to remain on the vine until they are partially dried and as sweet as sugar, when they are picked one by one and put together in oaken casks, the bottoms o f which are perforated. The juice which first escapes, without pressure, is called Tokay essence. It is o f syrupy consistence and very highly prized. After this the grapes are put into the vat and trampled with the bare feet, this being the only pressure to which they are submitted. The juice thus procured has added to it an equal quantity o f g ood wine, after which it is allowed to stand twenty-four hours to ferment, when it is strained, and the manufacture complete. This is the far-famed Tokay, which sells in Vienna at $00 per dozen, and which has been sold at Cracow, the principal depot o f old Tokay, at eight ducats the single bottle! There are several qualities o f this wine, depending upon the proportion o f pure Tokay added in making them up. Genuine Tokay Ausbruch is made entirely o f the essence. It is dry and sweet, and, according to the most diligent researches, it is thought to correspond with the renowned passum o f the ancients. This variety is never seen in commerce. It is only used as presents to embassadors, to be drunk at royal tables. Tokay Masslach is the kind which descends to other use. It is made Garblings : or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. 177 by adding Tokay essence, or Ausbrnch, to other wine. Meneser is another variety o f Hungarian wine, thought by some to be nearly equal to Masslach. Besides these there are many com m on wines made in Hungary, o f excellent quality, and far superior to the same class made in other countries. Switzerland also produces excellent com m on wines, similar to those o f Hungary, but there are none exported. Spain.— By the amusing adventures o f D on Quixote, o f Cervantes, everybody has become acquainted with the national wine-bottles o f Spain—the original proprietors o f which seemed to have lived just long enough to give them the right dimensions. In the monasteries, however, and am ong the gentry in the large towns, the best wines are preserved in w ood and kept in cellars. Sherry wine takes its name from the little town o f Xeres, not far from Gibraltar, in the province o f Andalusia. The Sherry district is about six square leagues, and many o f its best vinyards are in the proprietorship o f the English and French, who carry them on through agents and super intendents. The whole amount o f Sherry exported is usually about 17,000 pipes annually. The peculiarity o f pure Sherry wine is its non-acidity. This is perhaps in part due to the process o f manufacture. It is made o f white grapes, which are permitted to hang on the vines until perfectly ripe and slightly shriveled. They are then picked and spread out, and have quicklime sprinkled over them. They are thus kept exposed to the sun for fortyeight hours, with the view o f neutralizing the acid and softening the skins, so that the juice can be expressed with greater facility. They are then put into press and have brandy added to them. The juice is now ex pressed, and to this brandy is again added, when it is permitted to go through a regular fermentation ; after which it is put into casks, racked, and again brandied, when it is thought to be ready for exportation. Sherry, when new, is harsh and fiery. It requires age to give the alcohol that semblance o f combination which it never has in reality. The wine merchants of X eres always keep on hand a stock of old wines for the purpose o f giving zest to the finest new. The different varieties o f Sherry (pale, brown, &c.) are all the product o f the same grape, but the color is due to the addition o f burnt peach-kernels, or other and often worse substances. Tinto is produced in Rota, a little town opposite Cadiz. It is the pro duct o f a deep-red grape, and, when not adulterated by the addition of alcohol, is luscious and wholesome. The whole country in the vicinity o f Malaga abounds in vinyards, and it is said that during the vintage not less than 10,000 presses are con stantly employed. A nd wines are here made in almost every conceivable variety. The sweet wines are produced from grapes fully ripe— the strong and acid from those less m ature; and various compounds are concocted and exported for the manufacture o f different varieties from other places. Malaga Sherry, however, is often fully equal to the genuine Xeres, and sells much cheaper. Catalonia, Valentia, Mencia, and La Mancha, all have their peculiar wines, and facilities o f producing them ad libitum. W e pass over many other countries and provinces suited to the cultiv ation o f the grape, and noted for the production o f particular kinds of V O L. X X X V I I I .— N O . I I . 12 178 Garllings : or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. wines, to come at once to France— the greatest wine country of modern times. And here there is scope enough for more than we have either time or inclination to discuss. France has not only the best natural en dowments for the production o f the grape, but at the present time at least, she is at the very head in the art o f manufacturing wine. Champagne wines. These are chiefly produced in the province of Champagne, but the different qualities are almost as numerous as the vinyards producing them. The manufacture of champagne is more difficult, and it requires a more extensive experience to produce a fine quality, than that of any other wine. Hence it is that particular brands of it are perpetuated for ages. There are, however, certain grand destinations, into white and red, spark ling and still, which serve to classify it into particular species. Rosecolored is also a particular variety known in the Champagne district, but it is rarely exported. The very finest quality of white sparkling champagne is produced at A y, in the department o f the river Marne, about five miles south o f Rheimes. The A y champagne surpasses all other in its deliciousness of flavor and aroma, and A y has been justly considered the only place where can be made champagne, that is capable of producing that ecstacy o f delight, which is everywhere else vainly sought to be imitated, and which has for centuries tempted the monopoly of powerful potentates. Pope Leo X ., Charles V., Henry VIII., and other ancient celebrities, all owned vinyards in Ay, and each strove to excel all the rest in exclusively having the best champagne in the world ! The briskness and long effervessence of champagne, is no evidence o f its excellence. The best judges prefer that which possesses these qualities in a moderate degree only, as such is found to possess and retain a more delicate aroma, and more luscious flavor. S illery is a delicious white champagne, of the still kind. It derives its name from the Marquis of Sillery, the original proprietor o f the soil where it is produced. In this, and in other varieties of the still champagne, fermentation is more complete than in the sparkling, which are in a transition state. It is, therefore, better adapted to keeping, and improves more by age. But the sparkling wines attain their maximum degree of excellence at an uncertain period, after which they deteriorate. B ed champagnes are less known in commerce, and are often sold under other names. Some of them, however, are exceedingly fine, rivalling the very best Burgundy. The wine o f Clos de St. Thieny, in the vicinity of Rheims, possesses a flavor which seems to combine the qualities of the best A y champagne, and the richest Burgundy. It is exquisite and unique, both in aroma and flavor. In the manufacture o f champagne, the choicest quality is made after disposing the grapes in the manner already described for Tokay essence, and the wine produced from this like the Tokay, commands royal prices and is mostly confined to royal tables; rarely or never found in com merce. After this the grapes are put in press, and by regulating the pow'er the must of “ first quality ” is produced. This is used for making “ Cabinet” and ‘‘ Imperial.” After this they are subjected to greater pressure for the production of “ second quality,” and succeeding this, in like manner the “ third quality." Finally some white grapes and water Garblings : or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. 179 are added, and the utmost degree o f force necessary to press out all the juice is applied, for the production o f a fourth and last quality. It is by the due adjustment o f these various qualities o f must that the experienced manufacturer is enabled to concentrate a liquid o f standard quality. It is then put into casks, and left to undergo first fermentation, immediately on the termination o f which, it is stowed in underground cellars and there kept for six months, meanwhile it is several times racked and fined. In the month o f March it is usually ready for bottling, and previous to this, the taster selects and classifies such casks as most nearly approximate to a particular quality. And, that the brand may be uniform, casks so selected are all emptied into one com m on receptacle o f enormous demensions, where the whole is thoroughly mixed and amalgamated. Sugar and “ first, second, or third quality,” are now added in the necessary pro portions to produce the required standard, after which it is forthwith bottled. So soon as it is bottled the second fermentation commences, and with it the generation o f carbonic acid gas, which gives the sparkling qualities, technically called, the mousse. In the first place the corks and bottles have to be selected with the greatest care, and the operation of corking performed in the most substantial manner, to insure perfect tightness. After this the bottles are stowed on their sides in deep cool cellars, and allowed to remain without being disturbed for eighteen months, by the end o f which period there is a thick muddy deposit in each bottle. D uring the first two months o f this time, when fermentation is most active, there is frequently considerable loss from breakage. It is rarely ever less than ten per cent and sometimes is as high as fifty. The bottles are now taken up and shaken, and for convenience in re peating this process, they are put upon racks with the necks inclined downwards. B y this, the deposit accumulates near the cork. Next, the bottles are turned bottom upwards and so kept for several months, by which all the sediment collects at the end o f the cork. The next maneuver is to get rid o f this deposit— an operation o f great dexterity. For this purpose the expert degorgeur carefully raises the bottle from the perpendicular position, and with an awl-shaped instrument quickly detaches the wire and twine and lets the cork fly, carrying with it all the deposit, and a small quantity o f the wine. A s fast as this is accomplished, the bottles are handed one by one to the degustateur, who adds to each a liquid compound, chiefly consisting o f a mixture o f pure cognac brandy, wine made o f must o f the “ first quality ” and sugar. But the entire composition o f this mixture and its particular quality, is the secret o f each particular establishment, and this it is which distinguishes “ Im perial” from “ Cabinet,” “ A n c h o r ” from “ Verzenay,” “ Cliquot’s " from “ Mumm’s,” “ Heidseick ” from “ Rcederer,” &c. The wine which is allowed to escape in the process o f degorgement, is never m ore than necessary to make room for the addition to be made by the degustateur. And this, the discharged wine, is all collected for a separate and particular quality, w hich like as all the rest is submitted to the manipulations o f the degustateur ere it becomes fitted for com m erce, under the name o f Tisane. From the hand o f the degustateur the bottles are passed to the corkers, who, by the aid o f machinery, cork up, wire, and twine them. They are then tinfoiled, labeled, and packed in cases or baskets, subject to order. 180 Garblings: or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. Thus prepared, sparkling champagne, which is not over-sweetened and kept cool, may be preserved for about twenty years, after which time it is more likely to becom e worse than better. I f sweet, it will deteriorate after six or eight years. B urgundy Wines.— These are justly esteemed am ong the richest and best manufactured wines in the world. They are both red and white, but the former are the more esteemed. But like champagne and tokay, the best are only to be found where they are made or at royal banquets. They are o f great delicacy, and possess aroma and flavor consumately exquisite. The best are those made in the province o f Cote-d’Or— at Rom anee, Conti, Chambertin, Eiehebourg, Nuits, or Clos-Saint-Georges, Beaune, Savigney, and other places. Very good is also produced in the depart ments o f Youne and Saone-et-Soire. The best white Burgundies, some o f which are o f great excellence, are the Lapeyriere, the Montrachet, the Goutte-d’Or, and the Charmes. There are also several other varieties which are excellent, and probably the lowest priced wines in the world, o f the same degree o f excellence. N ext to these are the Bordeaux or Claret wines, which, on account o f the quantity consumed, are perhaps, in a sanitary point o f view, the most important o f all. It is remarkable, however, that in France, no such wine is known as claret, other than that the word clairet or vin clairret signifies a color— red or rose-colored wine. In the neighborhood o f Bordeaux there are produced a great variety of' wines which are distinguished simply as vin de Bordeaux, a few o f them only taking the name o f the particular district in which they are produced. O f such are those in the canton o f M edoc, viz., Chateau-Latour, Chateau-Lafitte, Chateau-Margaux, ChateauHaut Brion, Saint Julien, Saint Estephe, Saint-Emilion, etc., etc. These wines when pure are o f fine quality. They are o f a rich red color, and have a peculiarly pleasant aroma, resembling raspberries or violets, and a decidedly agreeable but slightly austere taste. The Lafitte and Margaux varieties particularly possess a luscious soft ness, which renders them the most esteemed varieties, while the Latour has a full body without softness, on which account it is the favorite wine with the English. Though strong it is but slightly intoxicating, and may be partaken o f in greater quantity than any other wine possessing the same relative strength in alcohol. There are, however, many qualities o f wine bearing the above names, and many times the quantity produced in the M edoc district. Indeed the whole yield o f g ood quality does not probably exceed seventy-five tuns per annum. O f the white Bordeaux those most distinguished are theBounnes, Rious, Sauterne, Barsac, Blanquefort, Grave, Langau, and Preignac. Besides which there is an infinite variety o f inferior quality. Lanquedoc, Perigord, Orrange, and other sections in France also pro duce large quantities o f excellent wine which it is unnecessary to par ticularize, as our object is not to give an account o f all that is produced but only to characterize the kind. American Wine.— It has long since been demonstrated that almost everywhere south o f the 40th degree o f latitude in the United States the soil and climate are well adapted to the cultivation o f the vine. N ot Garblings: or, Commercial Commodities Characterized. 181 withstanding, thirty years’ experience in the manufacture o f wine may be summed up in the statement that it is yet only an experiment. True, some good wine o f fine aroma and pleasant flavor has been made ; “ old port,” “ first-rate sherry,” “ imperial Muscat,” “ superb champagne,” and other varieties have frequently been exhibited and pronounced “ excel lent,” but from causes known only to the producer o f the vineyards whence they came have either not been made known, or else they have speedily run down for the want o f proper culture. A few names am ong us have indeed becom e eminent in the successful manufacture o f fine samples on known vineyards, but such are chiefly to be found only am ong those wealthy patriots who take pride in developing the agricultural resources o f the country. But it may be safely asserted that there is not a self-supporting vineyard in the United States, and, ex cepting one or two vinyards in Califoi nia, not a fa ir sample o f American wine. Is is well-known that everywhere in the world, where wine is success fully manufactured, labor is cheap, and in this consists the want o f success in our country, the first cost o f wine made here being even more than equal to a better quality which has perhaps paid half-a-dozen profits. But besides this, a great evil in the manufacture o f Am erican wine con sists in the endeavor to imitate foreign varieties— adulterations and all — and it is owing to this that in reality we have no American wine whatever. The only exception to this was Longw orth’s sparkling wine, o f the vintage o f 1848. On that year this variety o f wine really seemed to possess a peculiar aroma and flavor, characteristic of the Catawba grape, which had never been present before, and which no “ essence” nor com pound o f foreign or domestic origin has since successfully imitated. And so long as the evil o f imitation is inculcated and permitted to flourish co-equally with the cultivation o f the vine in Am erica, just so long at least will there be no such thing as American wine. Tests o f P u rity .— -According to the latest analyses o f French chemistry, wine consists o f various proportions o f water ; mucilaginous extractive m atter; essential o il; acetic, tanic, carbonic, and malic acids; a lcoh ol; coloring matter; sugar; bitartrate o f potassa; the tartrates o f lime, alum, and iron ; the chlorides o f potassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium ; the sulphates o f potassa and lime, and the phosphates o f lime and mag nesia. The different circumstances o f climate, season, and s o i l; the different modes o f the culture o f the v in e ; the different processes o f manufacturing wine, and the difference in means for preserving it, all largely contribute to change the proportion and the condition o f its essential prin ciples; and, therefore, to render a true knowledge o f the composition o f wine both difficult and uncertain. Some wines, without adulteration, are flat and in sipid; others, are acid or austere; and such wines by long accus tomed use may be considered potable. But they can never be so con sidered in a commercial point o f view, because in their pure state they are wholly unacceptable, excepting to those who have by habit acquired a taste for them. Other wines there are, rich in mucilaginous extractive, or sugar, or c olor ing matter, and aroma, such as are made from the “ first quality” o f grape juice, but lacking in other desirable qualities. These are in like manner only adapted to the use o f those who are accustomed to them. But it is even more difficult to classify wine according to its taste and 182 Garblings: or, Commercial Commodities Characterzed. aroma, than to ascertain its primitive composition by analysis. So diffi cult indeed is it, as to be considered the special attribute o f the degusta.teur. W e must, therefore, be content to divide wine into three great classes. 1. The generous and d ry, in which alcohol predominates. O f such, in general, are the wines o f Spain, Italy, and the department o f Roussillon, in France. 2. The luscious and sweet, in which saccharine matter predominates, and resists fermentation though they contain alcohol. A t the very head ot this class stands the celebrated Tokay o f Hungary ; Rota, Alacante, Malaga, Frontignac, etc., are o f the same character in less degree. S. The sparkling or mousseux, in which fermentation has been allowed to proceed to a certain stage and then arrested, and which also contain a large proportion o f carbonic acid in solution ; Champagne, Condrieu, Limoux, and Nissan, and wines o f this class. These are generally white. Although the same variety o f wine varies in different seasons and years, yet those which are manufactured by the same process and which are o f the same growth, possess certain analogies o f composition which will generally serve to designate any decided departure from their usual pro portion of elementary principles. By closely observing the color, odor, taste, and density, they can gen erally be distinguished, notwithstanding these characters are by no means constant. 1. Taste varies according to locality. In France there are tasters who can pronounce upon the different departments o f that country where the wine was produced. That o f the east has a peculiar silicious taste, like pulverised quarts or flin t; o f the south, the flavor o f burnt sugar ; o f the southwest, by the taste o f pulverised resin or in cen se; o f the southeast, o f dried rose leaves ; o f the interior, Orleans and Terrain, has the taste o f violets or raspberries. But no other country can supply the same facili ties, and consequently there exists nowhere else such experts. 2. The color depends upon the grapes, the temperature o f the year, the length o f time the juice is permitted to remain with the grapes after they are broken. 3. The density o f wine is also various, as well in that o f the same gene ral character and from the same district in different years, as in that o f different qualities containing an equal amount o f alcohol. Some wines rich in extractive also contain a large per cent o f alcohol, these are con sequently more dense than those which are poor in extractive and con taining an equal amount o f alcohol, and vice versa. The known density o f a particular sample however, is always o f use towards arriving at other conclusions. A nd for this object the ordinary specific-gravity bottle affords the most accurate and the simplest means. It consists o f a globular bottle with a flat bottom and a slender neck, which holds exactly one thousand grains o f distilled water at a certain fixed temperature. The w eight in grains o f the quantity o f any other liquid o f the same temperature filling, such bottle, will indicate its specific gravity. B y the experiments o f Brisson and Brande the follow ing are some o f their results in testing the density o f wine :— P ort.............................................. 0.982 Bordeaux.......................................... Sauterne....................................... Madeira, Sercial............................... .986 “ common.-........................... .987 A m erican......................................... Cider, “ pure............................ .989 common............................... Burgundy........................................... .991Mead.................................................. 0.995 .995 1.007 1.034 1.090 Railroads and their Future. 183 It is, therefore, perfectly apparent that no one o f these qualities can he in such wise described as to be o f any other utility than what may serve to make one acquainted with the conditions on which they depend, and to show the importance o f the whole taken together, in applying them to a particular variety o f wine. The proportion o f water, alcohol, and extract, contained in wine may be determined by evaporating a known quantity o f wine into a receiver. The water and alcohol being thus collected together may be separated b y distillating, and their relative proportions, and also the weight o f the fixed principles or crude extract left upon evaporation, known. Take, for example, 100 drams o f wine, evaporate to dryness, the weight o f the residue is found to be 20 drams, showing the amount o f water and alcohol to be 80. N ow distil off the alcohol, and there remains say 72 drams o f water. The result o f this operation would be in the 100 parts, o f water, 7 2 ; extract, 2 0 ; alcohol, 8. It is in this manner that the relative proportion o f these main consti tuents in wine may be ascertained. If, therefore, a type o f wine is found to give the above proportions, and a suspected example purporting to be o f the same character, is found to leave but 18 per cent o f extract, and if on distillation only 7 per cent o f alcohol is obtained, p roof is pretty clear that the wine in question has been diluted with water. The quantity o f extract found by Mr. Filhol in the chief wines o f the department o f Haute Garonne, in France, is found to vary from 19 to 25 per cent, or a mean o f 22 per cent.* Art. V.— RAILROADS AND T1IE1R FUTURE. F eeeman H unt , E d ito r o f th e M er c h a n ts ' M a g a z in e a n d C om m ercial R e v ie w :— S ir :— N ow that the “ crisis” is past, and the clouds which lowered so gloom ily over the commercial horizon for a few months are breaking away, it is to be hoped that the lessons taught by the overwhelming panic o f 1857 may not be altogether lost upon the country. As was natural, when the first shock o f the disaster Rad somewhat abated, men looked around them, and began to inquire, one o f another, for the causes which had led to so sudden and unexpected a revulsion. As if by common consent, it was voted that the railways were the authors o f all the mischief, and the bears o f the Exchange, who had so tenderly nourished this idea in the public mind, themselves became terrified as stocks and bonds went tumbling down like a m ighty avalanche, and threatened to engulf them in an unfathomable abyss. The veil which had for so long concealed the blundering incapacity o f presidents and directors o f some leading and favorite lines was rudely torn away by the fury o f the hurricane, and stockholders stood aghast at the spectacle revealed before them. Th® •alarming inquiry followed, “ I s the American railway system after all a fa ilu re, as an investment f o r capital?" A pregnant question truly, when we remember that more than five hundred millions o f dollars are at stak® upon the answ er! That a considerable proportion o f the vast sums expended in the build in g o f railways in the United States during the last twenty years has been * E rratum.— On page 49 o f last num ber, in last line, for “ Madeira” read “ Malvasia.” 184 Railroads and their Future. furnished rather with a view to collateral advantages than to any profits upon the stock is well known ; and it is equally true that the contributors have in many cases being more than reimbursed by the enhanced values o f their property, consequent upon the construction o f railways near them. But it is doubtful whether these motives alone would have been sufficient to secure the com pletion o f any of the long lines o f railway now traversing the country in every direction, without the aid o f another large class o f contributors, w ho were induced to embark in these enterprises under the belief that they would be profitable investments for capital. In the earlier stages o f railway-experience this belief was fortified by the success o f some o f the principal lines then in operation, and so railway building has been g oin g on for twenty-five years until a thousand millions o f dollars have been expended upon them in the United States, about one-half o f which is repre sented by bonds and debts, and the remainder by the capital stock. These bonds are mostly held abroad, and the stock at home. To the holders o f the latter belong' the exclusive control o f the government o f the various com panies, while the former stand as preferred creditors, and are the first re cipients o f the profits derived from railway operations, to the extent o f their annual percentage o f interest. So long, therefore, as the managers o f any railway corporation are able to provide for this interest, the bond holder has no right, and but little inducement if the right existed, to in quire into the internal administration o f its affairs. Such is the activity o f inland commerce that, even under the most in competent management, the majority o f our railways earn and pay the interest upon their bonded debts with a fair degree o f punctuality; con sequently the market values o f this class o f railway securities generally approximate towards par, while a few favorites sometimes command a premium. W ith the “ stock” the case is far different; after discharging the preferred liability there is often nothing left for dividends, and the investment at once becomes a “ fancy.” Some roads, after years o f seem ing prosperity, with receipts counting by millions, are now reduced to this condition, while it is discovered that the “ construction account” has been the open door through which directors have invited stockholders to walk in to receive dividends that had never been honestly earned. Other lines have managed to create large floating debts, which have becom e too heavy to float any longer, and bid fair to sink the stock altogether out o f sight. This is the present status o f the leading roads that have been under “ W all-street management” for any considerable period. Their cost has been swollen in some cases to more than double the original amount when completed ; enormous sums have been worse than wasted in negotiations; and in short, they have been “ financiered” to death, and their stock will hereafter be quoted nowhere, unless perhaps on the books o f the coroner. This brings us back to the question before propounded— are these lines only bow ing to the decree o f manifest (railway) destiny, and descending to the inevitable bourne from which no dividend returns? Is the same fate to overtake, sooner or later, all the rest, until five hundred millions o f stock shall be extinguished forever ? The answer to these questions, in our judgm ent, depends upon stockholders themselves. W e are aware that the clam or against railway stocks is universal, and that it is the fashion to decry them without discrimination. Notwith standing, and presumptuous as the opinion may seem, we do not hesitate Railroads and their Future. 185 to express our belief that— with all the reckless folly o f managers, and the shipwreck they have made o f stockholders’ interests— three-fourths o f the lines in the United States, well located for traffic, may yet be rescued from the annihilation which seems impending over them, and be made to yield as permanent and substantial dividends as the like capital invested in banks, manufactures, or other favorite enterprises. In American railway management the administration is confided to a Board o f Directors, which is generally composed o f men chosen for their personal wealth, influence, or respectable standing in society. These gen tlemen, being usually engaged in active private pursuits, and receiving no compensation for their services as Directors, could not o f course be expected to devote much time to the affairs o f the stockholders. They however select from am ong themselves a President, upon whom is de volved the active executive management o f the concern. This officer is supposed to devote his entire time and talents to the service o f the com pany, and receives accordingly a suitable compensation. Unfortunately the salary attached to this office is tempting enough to make it attractive to some one o f the many very respectable old fogies who turn up in every community whenever a comfortable pension is in prospect; and in nine cases out o f ten, through a little electioneering management, the post is secured to some excellent individual without the remotest reference to his personal fitness for the important and responsible duties assigned him. Extraordinary as the fact may be, it is a matter o f every day occurrence in railway history, that, in the choice o f Directors and Presidents, stock holders ignore all the rules that govern human action in other depart ments o f life, and readily place their vast interests in the charge o f men utterly devoid o f the first elements o f railway knowledge, and unqualified by age, previous education, and pursuits, to attain to them. A s a natural consequence, on such a road, the President is dependent upon, and really controlled by, a corps o f subordinate officers and agents, who, having no direct responsibility to the stockholders, feel neither pride nor interest in the skillful management o f its affairs. W h en stockholders look beyond the ranks o f honorable judges, retired politicians, or, worse than either, celebrated financiers, and select young, practical, energetic, talented men o f business, who have reputations to create and an honorable ambition to stimulate them, a long step will be taken in the right direction. Indeed, it is not perhaps too much to say that the responsibility for the failure o f many railroad enterprises to reward “ the promise o f their dawn,” is justly chargeable to Boards o f Directors, who have confided (either from ignorance or improper motives) the chief executive administration to men totally incompetent for the peculiar duties o f the station. Scores o f men can be found to-day, scat tered in various positions over the roads o f the country, who have the ability and knowledge which, placed in the executive chair, would soon gladden the hearts o f stockholders with far different results than those generally chronicled in the journals o f the day. W e enlarge upon this point, for we believe that herein lies the key to a great practical reform in railway management. The Presidency o f a railroad company is not a cushioned easy chair for indolence to loll in for the enjoyment o f a comfortable nap, but is, or should be, emphatically the post o f action. W ith sound judgment, quick perception, and fair admin istrative talent, the executive o f a railway should com bine mercantile The Railroads and Canals o f New York. 186 method, and attention to detail, with active business habits, and should exercise a sleepless vigilance over the whole operations o f the company, in all their varied relations. In running our eyes over the lon g list o f railways in Am erica, and noting the few lines here and there which have proven a success, we shall find— not that it is due to the fortunate routes they occupy, nor that they enjoy a larger traffic, or have any specially favorable local influences to explain their advantages— but that they have men at the helm who comprehend the duties o f their position, and are adapted to all its re quirements. Let stockholders, then, discard partisan feeling from their annual elec tions, and select the right men for the right places. Let them order the “ construction account” to be closed, if it be a complete road, at once and forever; or, if unfinished, when the last rail is laid and it is fully equipped for service. Let them prohibit floating debts, and establish a renewal fund to cover annual depreciation o f every kind, and let Presidents and Directors reflect that dividends depend not upon financiering operations, but upon the earnings o f their locom otives and cars, and econom y o f ex penses in the details o f management. W hen stockholders shall determine to enforce these considerations, rail way stocks will no longer languish under the frowns o f public disfavor, but will rank side by side with other substantial and profitable investments o f capital, and railways in Am erica will be no longer a doubtful problem. Art. VI.— THE RAILROADS A M CANALS OF N EW YORK. I M P O R T A N C E O F T H E N E W Y O R K A N D E R I E A N D T H E N E W Y O R K C E N T R A L R A IL R O A D S TO T H B C O M M E R C E O F T H E S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K , AS IN D U S T R IA L M A C H IN E S , F O R T H E T R A N S P O R T A T IO N OF F R E I G H T A N D P A S S E N G E R S , AS C O M P A R E D BY THE AN N U A L G RO SS R E C E IP T S O F T H E S E R O A D S , W I T H T H E T O L L S A N D R E C E IP T S ON T H E E R I E A N D L A T E R A L C A N A L S . To F reeman H unt, E d ito r o f the M erch a n ts' M a g a z in e :— D e a r S ir :— A distinguished and intelligent merchant, o f “ Major D ow ning m em ory,” presiding at a meeting o f the stock and bond holders o f the New Y ork and Erie Railroad, last fall in New Y ork, took the view — and by no means an extravagant one, in calling on the citizens o f New Y ork to support this work— “ that this road was as important to the pros perity and com m erce o f the city o f N ew Y ork, to reach the grain and provision regions o f the W est, as was the.passage to the ocean by the Narrows. That it was o f more advantage to her, than the Erie Canal, as it was open the entire year.” T o give a view o f the im portance to the com m erce and industry o f our State by our canals, as com pared with the Erie and Central Railroads — (the latter ignored by Mr. C. A . Davis, by some obliquity o f vision, like many o f his associates, with their eyes only fixed on the New Y ork and Erie Railroad,) a few facts and figures, principally from the last report o f the Central Railroad, will suffice to show that for certainty and celerity, and this too at all seasons o f the year, the railways in this State, as well as beyond us in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and I may add elsewhere, are The Railroads and Canals o f New York. 187 gradually and surely trenching on, and curtailing the tolls and receipts from canals. They are, in fact, destined finally to supersede them, with the exception, perhaps, o f the Erie and Oswego Canals, connecting, as they do, inland seas with the ocean. There is a hope, however, for these State works, that the increase o f tonnage, transported through the State o f N ew Y ork, is destined in all probability to increase faster than our avenues and facilities to transmit tonnage and passengers to and from the great commercial center o f this continent, if not of the world, situated, as it is, nearly midway between Europe and Asia, at the outlet o f the only depression o f the Alleghany ridge— at the Little Falls and the Highlands, connected as New Y ork is, with a continuous line o f railways, that have progressed, during the last fifteen years, link by link, until they have bridged the Mississippi, reached the city o f Iowa, and are in the course o f construction to Council Bluff's, on the Missouri, thence up the valley o f that river to the portage, between the sources o f this stream and the Columbia River, where we have the lowest depression o f the R ocky Mountains ; while down the valley o f this w'ater course, to its mouth, and the admirable ports on the Straits o f Fuca, is a line that will still settle itself from the admirable grain and grass lands on the whole route. These facts leave little doubt in the minds o f those who have investigated the subject, and have read Edwin F. Johnson’s (chief engineer,) and Gov. Stevens’ reports, that this route, and at no very distant day— even if un aided by the General Government— is destined to be the main avenue and connection with Eastern Asia and the possessions o f Russia, through Prussia to the Atlantic. This is no fancy sketch. It is sure to be realized. Then, as the New Y ork Evening P o s t has predicted, “ the commercial center o f the world will pass from London to N ew Y ork.” “ The Grand Canal,” wras a great work w’hen first projected, and started the rapid growth o f the city o f N ew Y ork. This would have been accele rated 50 years had the recommendation o f Col. John Stevens, o f H oboken, to Canal Commissioners Livingston, Morris, and Clinton, in “ documents tending to prove the superior advantages o f railways over canal naviga tion, printed by T. & J. Swords, 1812,” been adopted. A t that early period, among other reasons, he took the sound position, v iz.:— “ Fourth. These railways, from the nature o f their construction, will be free from numerous casualties to which canals are liable. Fifth. The expense o f transportation would he much less than on a canal o f the best construction. To prove this, a summary calculation will be necessary.” H e then demonstrates his 5th position as clear as the 47th problem o f E u clid ; he describes the locom otor, and the principle o f adhesion, for which Stevenson g ot $2,500 from the Liverpool and Manchester Railroad Company, for in v e n tin g !! (in 1829,) that which Stevens described in 1811. Had Mr. Stevens been listend to, as a sane man, by the great men named, and their puerile objections against railways been examined into, (stated in the “ documents,”) the State and city o f New Y ork would have been h alf a century in advance o f her present position, in population and commerce, as I contend— railways now make cities, not water courses. In evidence o f this view, look to the merchants o f N ew Orleans, calling for a railway up the Mississippi to St. Louis. O f late, trade and travel 188 The Railroads and Canals o f New York. have been drawn up and from the Mississippi, mainly to our Erie and Cen ral Railroad, for certainty and celerity, at all seasons. Chicago is the greatest receiving and distributing city in the world for grain, arising from her numerous railroads, penetrating the rich prairies o f the W est in every direction. It is the railroads, radiating from Boston and from New York, that is pushing them ahead o f all other sea-board cities. Philadelphia, in a measure, is tributary to N ew Y ork, even with the partial facilities, furnished by the Camden and Am boy Railroad in its present equipment to carry freight. This arises from this company being obliged, b y family influence, to take the burden o f the Delaware and Raritan Canal on them, when this canal, 7 feet by VO, did not pay one per cent on its cost, $3,000,000. It now divides 8 per cent per annum, paid from the earnings o f the railway, who drive the bulky articles and coal to the canal, by asking exorbitant prices. The railway has not equipped itself properly for freight, otherwise this com pany could have swept the entire coasting trade from Philadelphia to New Y ork, as well as the tonnage now transported on the canal. After the completion o f the Erie Canal, (1825,) but with an error, or more probable cheat, o f nine inches in the level and bench marks between the Mohawk feeder at Rom e and Oriskany, which finally filled up to less than three feet water in the canal, and was the main cause for the en largement, and also to cut oft’ the project o f the Hudson by a steamboat canal, on the north side o f the Mohawk, by Oneida Lake and river to O sw ego— was the introduction o f the packet, and semi-packets, that carried 15 to 20 tons, and any quantity o f extra baggage at very low rates. “ This luxurious mode o f traveling,” as it was called, while sleeping on shelves three deep, superseded the admirable line o f post coaches then traveling daily between Albany and Buffalo. W e find by a report o f the Canal Auditor to the last Legislature, Senate D oc. No. 10, “ the tolls on these passages added largely to the revenues o f the State. In 1836, they were nearly $100,000; in 1840, $ 3 6 ,8 1 5 ; in 1855, $1,228, and in 1856, they touch zero, (0) in their competition with the railways parallel to them.” The emigrant and the poor man, whose time was his only capital, towit, the saving o f eight days in time, and for food, was more than suffi cient, as experience has proved, for the poor man to take the railway— the better industrial machine— even if a passage was given to him by the canal. As the several links o f railways in the line from Albany to Buffalo, through our populous villages and cities were completed, (without refer ence to its location for a freight railroad,) the inland storekeeper was seen in the spring and fall, and soon, oftener, with a large shoe trunk, to carry the baggage that he now puts into a carpet bag, visiting the city o f New Y ork “ to fill up.” On his return he was sure to have two or more large trunks as “ extra ba gg ag e” — or, all the trunks but one, palmed off on his country cousins, as their baggage, thus to avoid the State tolls This was stopped by the agents o f the Canal Board. The public in the interior flooded the Legislature, it may be recollected, with petitions to com pel the central line o f railways to carry “ extra baggage as a great conveni ence and advantage to commerce.” They were answered— as appears by the statute book— “ you may carry and incur the responsibility o f extra baggage, provided you do not charge for it.” The Railroads and Canals o f New York. 189 Again, petitions came to the Legislature, asking “ to permit railways to carry freight, generally, paying canal tolls.’’ They were answered after much delay ; yes, you can carry freight during the months the canal is closed, (and in fact after the State had got the tolls on all that was worth carrying,) provided you pay us full canal tolls. This, it was evident, would not answer or pay the railroads to equip their roads with motive power, rolling-stock, and warehouses, m ore expensive, to a great degree, than the rolling-stock required to convey passengers, who loaded and un loaded the passenger cars. In addition to this, there were six sejrarate in corporations, who could not act as a unit, or with safety incur the res ponsibility o f transporting freight, with a decided responsibility. Again, petitions were jrressed on the Legislature, “ that the central line o f railways be permitted to carry freight the whole year, paying full canal tolls, as they were a great convenience in carrying provisions and perishable articles that could not go by the slow canal.” The State Engineers, by their reports, certified to the public (a disgrace to their intelligence, if not to their integrity, as guardians o f the sujjposed interests o f the State— under the policy we were then pursuing to make railways subservient to the enlargement o f the canals,) in substance, “ that the State had nothing to fear in a competition with railways— they would carry a few valuable, light, and perishable articles, but that they were not adapted to carry flour and general tonnage.” Our State Engineer, Mr. M cAlpine, wrent so far as to say in nearly so many words, “ that it would take six double track rail ways by the side o f the Erie Canal to do its business.” P r o pudor. 1 now come to the point for which I mainly took the pen— “ to show the importance o f the N ew York and Erie and Central Railroads, as in dustrial machines for transportation of freight and passengers, by their re ceipts, as compared with the annual receipts by our canals.” The Erie Canal, writh its laterals, is 899 miles in length. The New Y ork and Erie Railroad is 464 miles from Lake Erie to Jersey City, and the Central, 300 miles from Buffalo to Albany. These two works, with their rolling-stock and warehouses, have cost seventy-five millions o f dollars. The canals, when enlarged as now7progressing, with boats, horses, and warehouses, will exceed this sum, and probably not fall short o f one hundred millions. Let us see, by their receipts, how these railroads compare with our State canals, as yielding facilities to the traveling and trading public. The railways are only in their A B C ’s, in learning their lessons in transport ing freight. The Central Road, and I may add the Erie, have done wonders in their management in carrying freight, in their present state and equipment, carrying, as they have done the last year, upwards o f four millions o f passengers, and 1,600,000 tons o f every variety o f articles, over grades that may be much improved, particularly those o f the Central Railroad. It appears, the central line was released by the Legislature o f 1851, from canal tolls, to commence January, 1852. They then com m enced to contract to build freight-engines and cars. The act for consolidating the several railroad incorporations from Albany to Buffalo, to make them a unit, under one board o f directors, and without w hich they could not well have incurred the responsibility o f freighting, did not take effect until the year 1853, so that from this period o f four years it is only necessary to show the rapid increase o f receipts on this line, and the falling off o f 190 The Railroads and Canals o f New York. our receipts or our canals, since 1847, when they were at their highest, to present a view o f the estimation which the producer and consumer— and I may add the banks, in yielding facilities to get produce to market — considered each class o f improvement. It is a plain, simple test. In 1847, the receipts by the State, in tolls and water rents, from all canals was, $3,634,850 ; in 1856, they had gradually fallen to $2,742,356 ; in 1857, they had gradually fallen to $2,014,548; showing a falling; off in one year, o f $727,808 ; and in ten years, o f $1,602,302. In 1853, there were 637,748 tons o f freight, the produce o f this State, delivered at tide-water by the Erie Canal, and in 1855, there was only 327,839 tons o f the like produce arriving the same way. Decrease in ten years, 309,909 tons.” These official statements (Senate D oc.,) speak for themselves. It is estimated that the average o f the canal forwarder for freight, is not generally equal to the State charge for tolls. W e will, however, call it so, and double the receipts o f the last year— $2,014,458 to 15th D e cember, (instead o f the fiscal year 30th September,) and we have $1,029,096 as the receipts for freights on 4,000 canal boats, and the gross earning o f say 10,000 horses and full 20,000 hands on the boats to earn, in round numbers, four millions o f dollars. B y the late Annual Report o f the H ew Y ork Central Railroad Company, to the State Engineer, under oath, we find this important work to the in dustrial interests o f this State received .for carrying 2,609,947 pas sengers to the end o f their fiscal year— 30th September, 1857— $3,147,638. The receipts for carrying 545,914 tons way, and 292,877 tons through, o f freight, with mails and express, was $4,879,614; total receipts for 1857, $8,027,252. I have not before me the report o f the New Y ork and Erie Railroad for 1857. In 1855, this company transported 842,054 tons o f freight, and about 1,500,000 passengers. The gross receijDts between $6 and $7,000,000. This year, the receipts, I learn, are near seven millions. This sum, in round numbers, added to eight millions received b y the Central Railroad Company, as the industrial product o f these two roads, is as 15 to 4, as compared with the receipts by the State and forwarders on all our canals, and o f course we may say, that these two roads are nearly four times as important to the growth and prosperity o f the city o f New Y ork as all our canals. There should be taken into the calculation, the Oswego and Syracuse, the Cape Vincent and Rom e, and Ogdensburg and Boston Rail roads, leading from Lake Ontario, that transported on these valuable improvements to develop the industry and resources o f secluded districts, 400,000 tons o f produce and merchandise, and half a million o f passengers, that it is now proposed to tax with canal tolls. The following table from the Central Railroad Company’s Report, for 1857, (page 13,) shows the rapid increase since this road began to equip herself, (1853,) to transact a general freighting business. It is at the rate o f $800,000 per annum. This com pany now own 218 locom otive engines, 196 eight-wheel pas senger cars, 2,845 freight cars, and 285 gravel cars, that have cost, by the report, $5,172,077. I f coupled together they would extend in line 20 miles. Three-fourths o f this expenditure, with warehouses, etc., has been incurred on the faith o f the State repealing tolls. The enabling act to consolidate the several railroad incorporations, and to get rid o f those The Railroads and Canals o f New York. 191 who had com m enced the Mohawk Valley Railroad, cost high rates o f premium, as the several roads were dividing 8 to 10 percent am ong their stockholders, in carrying passengers, with comparatively, not to exceed one-fifth the present rolling stock and motive power, now owned by the consolidated company. This should have its consideration, as no doubt it will, to prevent any re-imposition o f canal tolls, as I perceive the canal interest at Rochester (certainly not the mill interest) have resolved, that they will petition to the next Legislature to place on railroads. Let us take a view o f the equipment o f the canal to carry freight. It is estimated that there are 4,000 boats and scows, that are worth on an average 8800 each, or 83,200,000. Say 2|- horses to a boat, and give 10,000 horses, that have cost $80, and a like sum to keep them a year would be 81,600,000. W ith the average o f five persons to each boat, we have 20,000 persons, w ho should earn 8140 per annum, or 82,800,000. It will require three acres o f land in grain and grass, for hay, to support a canal horse, or 30,000 acres o f land. The 218 locom otives— the iron horse— require in fuel, prepared for use, 191,119 cords o f wood, that cost 8847,853, for the year ending 30th September, 1857. Estimating, say 60 cords to the acre, this would clear up 3,200 acres to produce food sufficient for all the operatives on this road, and the estimated 20,000 on our canals. S T A T E M E N T O F E A R N IN G S F R O M YEARS Years. 1 8 5 3 .... 1 8 5 4 .... 1 85 5 -----1 8 5 6 .... 1 8 5 7 .... . . . . P A S S E N G E R S , F R E IG H T , A N D O T H E R S O U R C E S , F O R E N D IN G S E P T E M B E R Passengers. $2,826,668 74 3 ,151,513 89 3,242,229 19 3,207,37S 32 3,147,636 86 Freight. $ 1,835,572 2,479,820 3 ,189,602 4,328,041 4 ,559,275 25 66 90 36 88 THR 30TH, 1 8 5 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 . Other sources. $122,279 18 286,999 95 131,749 05 171,928 50 320,338 67 Total. $4,7 87 ,6 2 0 6,918,334 6,563,851 7,707,348 8,027,251 way & throu’h. 17 360 ,00 0 50 649 ,80 5 14 670,073 IS 776,112 41 838,791 It will be perceived the increase in freight receipts in four years is $3,239,731, while the tonnage has m ore than doubled since 1853, and there has been a decrease in the receipts for passengers o f $3,877 in the last four years, or nearly stationary during the last four years. D uring this period the Central Railroad Company have regularly paid 8 per cent per annum to its stockholders, the interest to its bondholders, $9 70,871 12, nesides having a “ debt certificate fund o f $632,000, and a balance o f incom e account, 30th September, 1857, o f $1,826,572 39,” and “ without one dollar o f floating debt.” It is calculated the sinking fund will pay the debts o f the company. H ow does this picture compare with the receipts on the State works ? It appears that our canals are running us in debt for their attendance and repairs, while we are obliged to resort to direct taxation to meet our indebtedness for the enlargement, and with no certainty o f being remu nerated for further expenditures for the enlargement, if we are to judge from our experience, and that o f Ohio and Indiana, o f the result o f com pe tition between these tw o classes o f internal improvement. The follow ing is taken from the New Y ork Tribune, o f the 17th Decem ber, under the head o f money article :— “ The tolls collected on the Wabash and Erie Canal, Indiana, for the year end ing the 1st inst. amount to over $60,457 14. The tolls last year were $113,64314. They fall short largely of the expense o f the ordinary repairs of the canal. The tolls for the year 1852 were $187,392 15. The diminution from year to year since 192 The Railroads and Canals o f New York. is to be referred to the competition of the railroads. Similar results are ex perienced in Ohio, where their canal tolls have fallen off in the same ratio, owing to the same causes.” Mr. Bentofi, the Canal Auditor, in his report to the Senate, 9th o f June, 1857, (D oc. N o. 10,) after showing that out o f 1,518,000 barrels o f flour, shipped in 1856 from Buffalo and Black B ock, only 76,476, or one barrel in twenty, went by the canal. Mr. Henry Fitzhugh, Canal Commissioner, in his report to the Senate (D oc. 127, page 39,) corroborates Mr. Benton, by tables, facts, and figures. H e says, “ thus it appears that o f the lead in g articles o f flour, pork, beef, bacon, lard, tallow, and oil, arriving at Buffalo, but a small portion is shipped by canal. W e must not suppose that the above articles are the only portion o f this trade that will be taken by railroads from Buffalo and elsewhere. There is no article o f transportation better suited to movement by rail road than grain ; none that, with proper arrangements, requires less manual labor, or can be m ore easily transferred by machinery from boats and vessels to cars, and from cars to vessels or storehouses, and that it will soon becom e as com m on an article o f transportation on our railways as any other, admits not o f 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 in creasing facilities for sharing in this trade.” * * * * Mr. Fitzhugh, a canal forwarder o f more than twenty-five years, re marks, (page 49,) “ as to what would be the effect o f re-imposing tolls on the railroads, as well as by subjecting to toll all roads competing with the canals, I have no doubt that ample revenue may be derived from them, if it were deemed just and expedient to tax them with canal tolls.” * * * H e then shows that it would drive trade through Pennsylvania and the Canadas, and remarks, “ It would be a tax local and invidious in its character, and would damage the com m erce o f the State in which we are all interested.” * * * * “ The great object sought by our system o f canals and railroads has been commerce, and the result has justified our anticipations and rewarded our efforts. Under this system our State has greatly prospered, and it is not deemed wise to hazard this prosperity by new and doubtful experi ments, particularly now when neighboring States and provinces are pre paring to wrest this travel and trade from our State.” Should not this view o f the relative importance o f these two classes o f internal improvements— as industrial machines— with the fact that Great Britain during the last quarter o f a century has invested nearly two thousand millions o f dollars (half her national debt) in railways, while her capitalists have not invested one dollar in any new canals, with the like course forthe last ten years of all the States o f thisU nion, (with theexception o f New Y ork,) admonish the incom ing Legislature to examine and inquire into the relative merits o f railways and canals, with a view to a new dis position in our State policy? In fine, it would appear by all late experience in this State, as well as in Pennsylvania, our State officers, elected by the popular vote, are not com petent to manage our public works, without crru p tin g all those who have anything to do with the immense sums that are squandered, and will continue to be squandered, on our public works, and then, cui bono, except to make banking capital the true secret, if we could arrive at the Journal o f Mercantile Law. 193 fact why the people have been called to issue their bonds for “ the more speedy enlargement” during the last twenty years, to issue “ credit nioney” on the twenty and odd millions lodged with the bank department to meet the same, which, in the late panic, fell about 30 per cent, in throwing about 10 per cent o f our State promises into the market to redeem our “ credit money,” the true secret o f the enlagement as now progressing. In conclusion, has not the time arrived to use the earnings o f our canals, if any, and the canal tax now collecting, to clear out our canals lor the best navigation they will give us in their entire length, to Lakes Erie and Ontario ? W e may find it to our interest to follow the example o f Penn sylvania, to sell our public works to private enterprise, and thus get rid o f their political and corrupting influence. Since writing the foregoing I learn that eleven freight trains, with 36 cars in a train, each loaded with eight tons, or 3,168 tons daily, or one million o f tons per annum, in one direction, is now passing Syracuse with western produce, cattle, hogs, sheep, etc., to supply the seaboard markets. This daily tonnage is independent o f trains o f passenger cars, each way, carrying 2,609,974 per annum, or above 8,000 passengers daily. Should not this freight and passenger travel have a railroad bridge at Albany, so as to form a continuous, unbroken line between the lakes over our State and the seaboard ? W h ich is the major interest— for on this the question— that o f two or three steamboats daily from Troy, with the sloop trade almost reduced to the carrying o f lumber, and which will be taken from Troy by railway, so soon as the Harlem and Hudson com pa nies equip themselves to carry this article to the upper wards in the city o f New York, on better terms and where it is required for building; or the lines o f railroads from Lakes Erie, Ontario, and Champlain ? J. E. B. JOURNAL OF M E R C A N T IL E L A W . C O L L IS IO N ON THE NORTH R IV E R . Discision in Admiralty— United States Circuit Court. Before Judge Nelson. The following decision in Admiralty in appeal from the Court below, was ren dered in September, 1857. H. Fitzhugh, el at., vs. the steam propeller Com merce :— Nelson, C. J.— The libel in this case was filed by the owners o f the barge Isabella against the Commerce for a collision on the North River, near Castleton, some ten miles below Albany. The steamboat Indiana was ascending the river on the east side with a tow o f ten boats. The Isabella, the one in question, with barge Cleveland, were the last tier, and were connected by a hawser to the tug. There was an intermediate tier o f four canal boats, also connected by a hawser, some two hundred feet in advance o f the two last. The Indiana had passed Mull Island, and had straightened up on the east side o f the river, as near as it was safe for her to go, and had advanced so far that the last tow was op posite or just above the head o f the island. The Commerce had left Albany that evening, and was descending the river on the west side, the Oregon follow ing her at a distance o f a few hundred yards. The night was not very dark. The Commerce, after passing the Indiana west from seventy to one hundred feet, when about opposite the second tier o f tows took a sheer to the east, and thus changing her course, struck the Isabella, which was lashed to the larboard V O L . X X X V I I I . ------ N O . I I . 13 194 Journal o f Mercantile Law. side o f Ihe Cleveland, and, o f course, nearest the Commerce, sinking vessel and cargo. The Court below was o f opinion, upon the proofs, that the Isabella was wholly in fault, being out o f place at the time, and far in towards the west shore, and in the track o f the Commerce, and dismissed the libel. The conflict and obscurity o f the proofs on this point have been very much cleared up by the evi dence o f the pilot o f the Oregon, who had charge o f that vessel, which has been taken in this Court since the appeal. The evidence o f the master o f the Indiana, and o f six o f the tows, is very full and explicit, that, at the time o f the sheer of the Commerce, the two last tows, the Isabella and Cleveland, were on a line, or nearly in a line, with the tug, which confessedly was as far to the east shore as was safe; and the master of the Cleveland, to which vessel the Isabella was lashed, states that his vessel was about as near the shore as was prudent for him to go. And further, they all agree that there was room enough for the Com merce to have passed west o f the tow, and that the sheer was unnecessary, and the direct cause o f the collision. These witnesses all saw the sheer, which, in deed, is admitted by the witnesses for the Commerce: and, apprehending a col lision in consequence, watched the course o f the vessel until it happened. They speak, therefore, with confidence as to the transaction ; and, indeed, cannot well be mistaken'; and they are fully confirmed by the testimony of the pilot o f the Oregon, who also apprehended the collision when he saw the sheer, and kept his eye on the Commerce. The evidence o f this pilot, who was first pilot of the Oregon, very much shakes the testimony o f Wilson, the second pilot, who was examined on behalf of the respondents in the Court below. The defense set up to jusliiy the sheer is placed on two grounds :— 1. That there was a light on the Isabella, and that the pilot of the Commerce supposed, and had a right to suppose, she was a vessel at anchor; and that, being well out in the channel of the river, he made the sheer to pass her on the east side; and 2. That she was so far out in the channel there was not room to pass her on the west side. As we have already said, the testimony o f the captain o f the tug, and of six o f the tows, is very strong to show that the pilot was mistaken as to the room in the channel west o f the Isabella. But in addition to this, is the evidence in this case o f the pilot o f the Oregon, who was looking on, and who passed over the tract just at or near the moment of the collision. And as it re spects the light on the Isabella, it was in the hand o f the master, who was mov ing about on the boat at the time, and, under the circumstances, we cannot but be o f opinion that if proper attention had been given to the navigation o f the Commerce, it would have aided in admonishing the pilot o f her position as one o f the tows o f the Indiana instead o f confusing or embarrassing him. The pilot o f the Oregon, who had charge o f that vessel and W'ho was several hundred feet behind the Commerce, had no difficulty at the time in regarding this vessel with the light as the tow o f the Indiana, and apprehended a collision from the moment o f the sheer o f the Commerce. The channel o f the river was only from three to four or five or six hundred feet wide at the place o f the collision in which were the Indiana with her ten tows ascending slowly the river— the Commerce and Oregon descending, and in respect to which navigation some embarrassment ex isted ; and yet, the weight o f the proof is, that the speed o f the Commerce was not checked till at the moment o f the collision, nor any o f the usual precautions taken under such circumstances. The Oregon immediately checked her speed, and took measures to prevent any accident. L IA B IL IT Y O F R A IL R O A D S A S COM M ON C A R R IE R S . In the Morris Courts, on the 21st o f October, 1857, the case o f John C. and Lewis D. Kay is. the Morris and Essex Railroad, was tried. The plaintiff's al leged that they had bought rags to (he value o f over $300 in New York, which had been consigned to the railroad company as common carriers, to be delivered to them at Morristown. Since the consignment the goods had not been seen nor heard from, although frequently demanded o f the defendants. The plaintiffs claimed damages for the full value o f the rags, with interest on the same since the date o f the demand. It was admitted that the goods were 195 Commercial Chronicle and Review. transported to the Morristown depot. The defense was, that the liabilities o f the common carriers ceased when they had conveyed the goods to the depot, and that, as they were not paid for their services as baiiers, they were not bound to exercise more than the ordinary care and diligence over the goods as such. This they had done. Verdict for plaintiff for full amount claimed, with costs. CO M M ER CIAL CHRONICLE AND R E V I E W . G E N E R A L A S P E C T O F F IN A N C IA L A F F A IR S — C O M P A R A T IV E D E C L I N E IN T H E V A L U E S OF M E R C H A N D IS E AND REAL C O IN A G E E STATE — TH E OF G O L D — T H E AL TABLES AND A D U T IE S — T A B L E STO C K M ARKET— GENERAL COU RSE OF TRADE— TH E B A N K M O V E M E N T — IM P O R T S AND E X P O R T 8 A T G E N E R A L R E V IE W OF T H E COM M ERCE OF TH E NEW R E C E IP T S YO RK , W IT H Y E A R — R E C E IP T S FOR AND ANNU CASH OF P R IC E S — IN C R E A S E D A G R I C U L T U R A L P R O D U C T IO N S , E T C . T here has been a farther general improvement in the aspect of financial affairsj during the last month, although the public mind is not wholly free from anxiety, nor has there been any return of the old activity. Money is very abundant, but the falling off in trade has limited the supply of business paper, and lenders are very fastidious in their selections. The value of almost all descriptions of pro perty has continued to decline, although there are some exceptions. Flour which sold in May, 1855, as high as §10 56 for common, and §13 for choice, has ave raged during the last month only §4 30 for the former and §7 for the latter, with an abundant supply. Cotton, which sold on the 1st of September, 1857, at 15| for middling, upland, declined soon after January 1st, to 8J, but again gradually appreciated, although it was reaching nothing like the old range of high prices. Sugar has continued to decline— the falling off from the highest rate o f 1857, being nearly 50 per cent. Nearly all domestic fabrics, both cotton and woolen, have declined 20 to 30 per cent from the autumn rates, and the same is true of almost all articles of meal, provisions, and general merchandise. Real estate has not escaped the common depreciation, although there have been fewer forced sales in this, than in moveable property. Speculative estates, such as un improved town or village lots, not wanted for present growth, have fallen off 50 per cent from the nominal rates of last year; while the best improved city pro perty would not sell except at an average of 20 per cent below the current rates of last spring. Although this falling off in prices might appear to be adverse to a speedy return of prosperity, it is, in fact, one of the best indications of a pros perous change. Nothing so soon tempts capital from its hiding places, as the opportunity of a cheap investment. It is true that none but the boldest opera tors will venture to purchase while prices are still declining ; but once let the market pause, and the upward movement begin, and we shall witness an unusual excitement in all of the channels of trade. Stocks have rallied materially from the lowest point— but the gain, of late, has been most prominent in the best securities, and especially in bonds and stocks usually sold for investment, instead o f those which are made the foot-ball of speculators. Railroad stocks are still purchased with great caution. The falling off in the receipts of many of the roads as business and travel diminish, and the large floating debts which many of them have accumulated, have operated to prevent large purchases for investment. General trade is very backward, and the principal business is still transacted Commercial Chronicle and Review. 196 through the auction room. One reason of this is, the limited demand at private sale ; but the most powerful motive is, undoubtedly, the desire to secure such business paper as can be converted into money. The great length of the annual tables, which accompany this review, will prevent us from giving farther detail. The receipts of gold from California have been mostly absorbed for export, and only a portion has been deposited at the Assay-office in New York. The follow ing will show the business at that office for the month of December, 1857 :— D E P O S IT S AT TH E N EW YORK A S S A Y -O F F IC E I N DECEM BER. Gold. Silver. Total. Foreign c o in .............................. Foreign bullion......................... United States bullion............... $125,000 00 16,000 00 1,471,000 00 $61,000 00 12,000 00 15,000 00 $186,000 00 28,000 00 1,486,000 00 Total deposits............... $1,612,000 00 $88,000 00 $1,700,000 00 Deposits payable in b a rs....................................................................... Deposits payable in coin......................................................................... Goid bars stam ped.................................................................................. Transmitted to United States Mint for coinage.................................. $1,560,000 140,000 2,375,213 854,934 00 00 97 49 The following is a statement of the coinage at the United States Mint in Phil adelphia, during the month of December, 1857 :— GOLD D E P O S IT S . Gold from California................... Gold from other sources................ $ 872,692 50 7,277 50 Total gold deposits........... $ 8 7 9 ,9 7 0 0 0 S IL V E R D E P O S IT S . Silver, including purchases.......... Spanish and Mexican fractions of a dollar received in exchange for new cents.,.. . . $ 9 8 0 ,7 3 0 00 5 ,7 0 0 00 Total silver deposits.......... COPPER. Cents (O. S.) received in exchange for new cents. . . . Total deposits................... The coinage executed was GOLD. No. of pieces. Value. 69,8 52 $ 1 ,3 9 7 ,0 4 0 0 0 2,452 6 ,1 3 0 0 0 2,009 6,027 00 12,094 12,094 00 Double e a g le s....................... Eagles...................................... Half eagles............................. D olla rs.................................... Total........................... 86,407 $1,4 21 ,2 9 1 00 S IL V E R . H alf dollars............................ Quarter dollars...................... Dimes...................................... H alf dimes............................. Three cent pieces................. T o ta l.......................... 4 8 0 .0 0 0 1,228,000 340.000 6 60 .00 0 5 4 2 ,0 0 0 $ 2 4 0 ,0 0 0 3 0 7 ,00 0 34.000 28.000 16,260 3,150,000 $ 6 2 5 ,2 6 0 00 1,8 0 0,00 0 $ 1 8 ,0 0 0 00 00 00 00 00 00 COPPER. Cents ...................................... Commercial Chronicle and R eview . 197 R E C A P IT U L A T IO N . Gold coinage.................................................... Silver co in a g e .................................................. Copper coinage.................................................. 86,407 8,150,000 1,880,000 $1,421,291 00 625,260 00 18,S00 00 Total....................................................... 5,116,407 $2,065,351 00 The bank movement shows a further gain in specie at most of the many cen ters, and a moderate expansion. The latter would be greater if acceptable bills were offered for discount. W e annex a comparison of the weekly statements, at New York, throughout the last year, which will be found very convenient for reference :— W EEKLY Date. Jan. 8, 1857 Jan. 1 0 . . . Jan. 1 7 . . . Jan. 2 4 . . . Jan. 8 1 . . . Feb. 7 ... Feb. 1 4 . . . Feb. 2 1 . . . Feb. 2 8 . . . Mar’h 7 . . . Mar’h 1 4 ... Mar’h 2 1 . . . Mar’h 2 8 ... April 4 . . . April 1 1 . . . April 1 8 ... April 2 5 . . . May 2 ... May 9 ... May 1 6 ... May 2 3 . . . May 3 0 . . . June 6 ... June 1 3 ... June 2 0 ... June 2 7 . . . July 3. .. July 1 1 ... July 1 8 ... July 2 5 . . . A u<£. 1 Aug. 8 . . . Aug. 1 5 ... Aug. 2 2 . . . Aug. 2 9 . . . Sept. 5 . . . Sept. 1 2 . . . Sept. 1 9 ... Sept. 2 6 . . . Oct’r 3 . . . Oct’r 1 0 ... Oct’r 1 7 ... Oct’r 2 4 . . . Oct’r 8 1 . . . Nov’r 7 . . . Nov’r 1 4 ... Nov’r 2 1 . . . Nov’r 2 8 ... Dec’r 5 . . . ... Capital. 55,235,068 55,235.068 55,235,068 55,235,068 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,266,434 59,296,434 59,296,434 59,513,830 59,513,330 59,513,330 59,513,330 59,513,330 59,513,330 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 63,470,137 63,470,137 63,470,137 AVERAGES OF Loans a n d d is c o u n ts . 109,149,153 110,150,234 110,860,401 111,094,415 111,785,333 112,876,713 112,722,799 111,773,572 111,137,717 111,899,649 113,250,980 113,448,692 112,884,025 114,833,902 115,374,717 114,398,174 113,391,910 114,409,275 115,068,322 114,620.042 114,049,103 114,049,633 115,338,592 115,412,541 115,119,690 115,015,504 115,044,303 116,028,618 117,365,321 118,848,131 120,597,050 122,077,252 121,241,472 120,139,582 116,588,919 112,221,365 109,985,572 108,777,421 107,791,433 105,935,499 101,917,569 97,245,826 95,593,618 95,317,754 95,866,241 95,289,247 95,375,432 94,963,130 96,333,687 NEW YORK C IT Y Specie. 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 11,827,861 12,009,911 12,011,491 12,643,694 13,126,734 12,815,515 13,134.715 11,974,879 12,790,455 10,901,091 12,887,34 6 12,666,146 13,594,606 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 23,167,980 24,303,145 26,069,832 BANKS. Circulation. 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 8,452,541 8,494,238 8,473,829 8,812,328 8,787,344 8,770,828 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 8,673,192 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 6,283,417 6,520,783 6,555,000 Deposits. 95,846,216 90,709,710 93,036,766 88,644,575 92,466,236 96,029,439 91,917,188 92,448,944 92,178,280 95,858,222 94,281,267 96,406,450 92,614,660 97,340,914 96,518,908 96,461,417 95,258,612 99,159,472 98,963,318 98,818,704 97,306,034 96,147,814 96,594,391 96,168,937 96,939,618 94,318,715 98,834,588 94,624,473 94,446,798 93,633,786 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 79,313,291 79,509,225 78,492,065 108 Commercial Chronicle and Review, Capital. Loans and discounts. 68,470,137 63,470,137 63,470,137 65,069,708 65,069,708 65,069,708 96,526,(37 97,211,690 97,902,035 98.549,983 98,792,757 99,473,762 Date. JDec r 1 2 ... Dec’r 1 9 ... Dec’r 2 6 ... Jan. 2, ’58 Jan. 9 ... Jan. 1 6 ... Specie. Circulation. 6,348,494 6,309,466 6,352,187 6,490,403 6,615,464 6,349,325 26,058,877 27,957,827 27,142,099 28,561,946 29,176,838 30,211,266 * Deposits. 75,365,134 76,443,130 76,189,897 78,635.225 79,841,362 81,790,321 The above table shows many very important fluctuations, but these have been elsewhere fully discussed in our columns. Never before did the banks hold any thing like the quantity of specie they have had in their vaults during the last few weeks, and they are as much troubled now to know how to dispose of it, as they were in the lowest ebb for the want of it. W e annex also a continuation of the weekly statement of the Boston banks W E E K L Y A V E R A G E S AT BOSTON. Dec. 22. C a p ita l........................... Loans <fc discounts_____ S p ecie.............................. Due from other banks.. Due to other banks........ D eposits......................... Circulation..................... $81,960,000 60,209,500 4,579,000 5,888,000 4,054,800 15,606,000 5,627,000 Dec. 29. Jan, 5. $31,960,000 50,377,000 4,789,500 5,688.000 3,998,000 16,326,600 5,130,400 $31,960,000 50,726,800 5,028,000 5,732,600 3,971,000 17,073,800 5,416,500 Jan. 12. $31,960,000 51,221,000 5,449,000 5,969,500 4,368,000 17,226,700 6,938,400 The specie at all the many centers has been accumulating on deposit since the general falling off in active trade. The following will show the comparative weekly totals of the New Orleans banks:—■ W EEK LY AVERAGES Dec. 12. Specie....................... Circulation................ Deposits.................... Short loans............... Exchange.................. Due distant banks.. Long and short loans. AT N E W Dec. 19. ORLEANS. Dec. 26. Jan. 2. Jan. 9. $8,841,370 $9,942,880 $10,320,714 $10,505,183 $10,626,260 4,158,S59 4,224,042 4,336,624 4,535,951 4,778,539 9,993,370 10,996,494 11,579,048 11,948,905 11,754,593 15,385,271 14,938,782 14,940,429 15,257,238 14,873,403 2,838,878 3,526,929 3,951,212 4,414,622 4,675,023 816,132 1,266,660 1,363,478 1,590,072 1,849,981 18,069,088 17,818,222 17,741,355 18,149,456 ............... The Rhode Island banks resumed specie payments on the 14th of January, and the Philadelphia banks are daily growing stronger, and will probably resume before the date prescribed by the statute. W e have compiled our usual comparative tables, showing the total foreign imports and exports, at the port of New York, throughout the year. The total imports entered at New York from foreign ports, during the year 1857, amount to $230,018,129, being $17,061,480 in excess of the total for 1856, which was the largest yearly aggregate previously on record. Before giving our monthly com parison, we annex a brief summary, showing at a glance the total foreign imports at New York in each of the last eight years:— F O R E IG N Year. 1850........... 1851........... 1852.......... 1853........... 1854........... 1855........... . . 1856______ 1857........... Dutiable. $110,933,763 119,592,264 115,836,052 179,512,412 163,494,984 14 2,900,661 193,839,646 196,279,362 IM P O R T S AT NEW YO RK . Free goods. $8,645,240 9,719,771 12,105,342 12,156,387 15,76S,916 14,103,946 17,902,578 21,440,734 Specie. $16,127,939 2,049,543 2,408,225 2,4 29.083 2,107,572 855,631 1,814,425 12,898,033 Total. $135,706,942 131,361,578 129,849,619 194,097,652 181,371,472 157,860,238 213,556,649 230,618,129 Commercial Chronicle and Review . .199 The imports of specie have been much larger than usual, owing not only to the return shipments since the beginning of the revulsion, but also to the previous receipts of foreign coin designed for reshipment to the West Indies. Under the head of dutiable, we have included above both the dutiable entered directly for consumption, and the goods thrown into bonded warehouse. In the extended table given below, these items are given separately, although brought together in the total. The specie which swells the total for 1850 in the above summary, includes the receipts of California gold— then reckoned as “ foreign” because cleared for New York from Chagres on the isthmus. Since that date, all the receipts direct from California have been excluded from the statement of imports. A study of the table given below will show an uninterrupted increase in the im ports up to the close of May— although during April and May, many goods were kept back to take advantage of the reduction of the tariff on the 1st of July. In June there was a slight decrease from the same cause, but this was fully made up by a gain of over ten millions in July, after the new rates of duty had taken effect. August showed a decrease, but September and October added a compen sating gain, while the only small monthly total is that for December just closed, the aggregate (§9,196,811) being smaller than for any previous December since 1851. Many have been looking for a large decrease in the imports previous to this date, but they will be less surprised at the result if they will remember that the financial pressure -was not severely felt until it was too late to check the re ceipts for the fall months as largely as the importers would have desired. This is shown in the fact that while the large entries for warehousing made previous to June, to benefit by the change of duty, had swelled the aggregate in bond, the withdrawals since, except for the months of July and August, have been on a more limited scale, while during the whole autumn, when trade is usually most active, the entries of dutiable goods for warehousing have been extraordinarily large, and for the last three months have considerably exceeded the direct entries for consumption. In the following table, on the right, we have added the monthly report of the dutiable goods withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, but they are not to be reckoned again with the total imports— such of them as were landed here having been already included under the head of entered for ware housing — F O R E IG N IM P O R T S ENTERED AT N E W Y O R K ENTERED OS GO January............... February............. March ................. A p ril................... M ay..................... June..................... J u ly .? ................. A u g u st............... Septem ber......... October.............. November.......... December........... Total............ 5,746,538 FOR D U R IN G T H E YEARS 1854-0-6-7. C O N S U M P T IO N . 1855. 1856. 1857. $8,370,259 8,315,268 6,765,687 6,343,512 8,082,524 8,020,545 13,008,485 13,899,758 11,859,017 12,088,621 7,654,782 11,276,564 $12,556,638 12,521,622 15,781,297 14,530,636 12,392,421 12,518,271 19,288,885 18,375,986 10,934,435 9,932,001 9,730,429 7,930,499 $15,300,034 18,508,939 12,350,457 11,155,530 6,451,191 2,471,723 26,042,740 14,401,018 8,841,367 2,791,905 2,792,185 2,829,924 $115,685,022 $156,493,120 $122,937,013 200 Commercial Chronicle and Review, ENTERED January.......... February............. . . M arch................. April.............. M ay.............. June..................... J u l y - - ................. August................. September........... October................ . . November............ D ecem ber........... Total............ FOR 1854. W A R E H O U S IN G . 1855. $1,969,266 3,543,996 5,384,835 8,168,142 10.508.421 11,540,136 6,796,835 3.516,039 5,428,203 7,356,424 5,821,588 3,308,464 $27,215,639 $37,346,526 $73,342,349 $1,230,630 1,461,455 1,458,578 1,266,998 1,156,913 1,188,043 799,671 1,201,570 489,126 1,082,120 1,730.287 1,038,540 $1,341,808 1,956,155 2,141,661 2,250,533 2,151,057 1,249,579 1,280,854 1,303,790 1,026,208 961,781 1,097,524 1,141,628 $850,923 2,447.839 2,338,379 955,428 1,674,810 957,366 2,455,333 2,052,122 1,772,505 1.782,345 1,776,384 2,377,300 $14,103,946 $17,902,578 $21,440,734 FREE January................... February................. M arch..................... April......................... M ay......................... June......................... J u ly ......................... August..................... September............... October.................... November................ December................ $1,395,063 466.506 1,344.627 2,018.091 1,858,954 2,148,043 1,812,917 1,304,662 769,195 1,086,467 662,817 901,574 Total free......... $15,762,916 S P E C IE 1857. $1,625,254 1,486.259 2,222,655 3,181,498 3,733,350 8,936.633 4,907,675 4,136,716 3,264,622 2,836,781 3,318,842 2,696,241 2,210,646 $81,916,255 1856. $3,254,654 2,237,894 1,865,633 1,422,006 2,336,959 2,716,245 2,431,756 1,366,428 1.566,377 2,379,886 2,547,741 8,100,560 12,271,976 923,480 1,856 688 2,516,996 3,151,964 8,005.646 3,963,573 GO O D S. A N D B U L L IO N . January .................. February................. M a rch ..................... A p ril....................... Mav........................... June......................... July.......................... AugUrt.................... September............... October.................... November................ D ecem ber............... $2S9,365 279,388 444,015 70,520 165,925 158,814 198,063 175,692 159,359 88,854 39,121 38,456 $90,284 67,355 83,159 74,949 69,590 68,779 69,035 48,643 107,205 54,399 14,378 107,855 $54,364 72,247 111,345 95,163 134,284 257,174 238,918 103,173 84,097 95,029 321,750 246,876 $886,509 1,023,718 1,061,833 939,218 1,070,833 369,901 505,298 17,319 885,285 2,509,193 3,027,803 681,123 T o ta l............... $2,107,572 $855,631 $1,814,425 $12,898,033 T O T A L IM P O R T S . January .................. February................. March...................... A p ril....................... M ay......................... J u n e ....................... July......................... A u g u st................... Septem ber............. October.................... November............... December................ $19,607,819 11,095,580 16,557,074 16,583,888 17,181,181 13,787,833 20,228,350 23,084,133 14,266,888 11,031,038 8,631,842 9,315,846 $12,945,827 12,081.482 10,173,057 9,107,465 11,645,986 11.993,612 16,308,947 16,506,399 14,021,725 15,605,031 11,947,188 15,523,519 $15,578,064 16,036,283 20,256,958 20,057,835 18,411,112 17,961,657 25,716,332 23,919,665 15,309,362 13,825,592 14,468,545 12,015,244 $19,006,732 25,624,492 21,135,504 21,218,318 18,705,255 15,339,126 35,800,206 19,986,498 16,847,360 14,489,867 13,417,960 9,196,811 Total imports. $181,371,472 $157,860,238 $213,556,649 $230,618,129 201 Commercial Chronicle and Review. ■ W IT H D R A W N W AREH O U SE. 1856. OO 1854. FROM 1857. January................. February................ March................... April....................... May....................... June....................... July....................... August................... September.............. October................. November.............. December............... $2,889,516 1,954,010 1,701,203 1,151,991 1,588,662 1,422,672 636,832 3,038,056 3,181,316 2,070,544 1,431,775 901,828 $2,057,931 2,563,274 2,718,093 1,814,318 1,782,834 1,304,620 2,029,164 2,889,884 2,311,341 1,597,437 1,197,650 1,190,787 $2,845,618 2,047,067 1,852.396 1,467,576 1,548,329 1,656,871 2,187,337 2,534,732 3,457,706 3,273,982 1,725,544 1,625,650 $2,673,755 2,501,696 2,639,223 2,287,315 2,262,173 781,099 .10,470,820 5,624,147 2,882,046 1,750,392 3,152,316 3,584,908 Total withdrawn. $21,968,395 $23,457,333 $25,722,818 $40,609,890 Under the head of withdrawn from warehouse, we have included the dutiable goods taken out of bond ; but the new tariff made certain goods free which were previously held for duty, and these are not included. Of goods so made free and withdrawn from warehouse, the total to November 1st was $1,868,109— being $1,432,687 in July, $311,100 in August, $72,733 in September, and $51,589 in October. The total value of merchandise now in bond is a fraction over twentysix million dollars. The imports of foreign dry goods at the port of New York, for the year 1857, are $90,534,129— being $2,828,764 less than for the year 1856, but $25,560,067 more than for 1855, and $9,691,193 more than the total for 1854 :— IM P O R T S OF DRY GOODS AT N E W Y O R K FOR TH E 1854. Manufactures of w ool.... Cotton......................... Silk............................... Flax............................. Miscellaneous dry goods. Total. 1855. TEAR 1857. 1856. 1857. $22,689,658 15,892,888 28,528,106 7,633,572 6,099,214 $18,637,337 10,510.723 23,197,480 6,706,364 5,922,158 $27,257,237 17,926,293 30,938,865 9,484,401 7,756,097 $27,489,564 18,905,535 28,537,260 7,950,864 7,650,906 $80,842,936 $64,974,062 $93,362,893 $90,534,129 Although the total, as compared with last year, shows but little change— there being a slight increase in the receipts of woolens and cottons, and a slight falling off in silks, linens, and miscellaneous goods— the comparative monthly receipts show a wide variation. To present this at a single glance, we have compiled a monthly comparison, showing the course of the trade during the entire year. The most remarkable feature in this table is the enormous increase in the imports of dry goods, during the months of February and July, in striking contrast with the falling off during all the other months of the year. The month of December, as given in the table for the current year, includes the same number of days as in the first two years, but a few less than were included in last year’s total— the object being to close the year as evenly as possible consistent with returns made out in even weeks. The following is the monthly comparison of this year with last, in tabular form :— 202 Commercial Chronicle and Review. MONTHLY INCREASE OR DECREASE IN TOE IMPORTS OF DRY GOODS FOR THE YEAR 1867, AS COMPARED WITH THE YEAR 1856. Increase. Decrease. J a n u a ry ............... . .............................................................. .................. $800,295 F e b ru a ry ............ ! ............................................................. $ 5,092,007 .................. M a r c h .................................................................................. 1,545,519 A p r i l ......................................................................................................... 1,204,926 M a y ........................................................................................................... 1,263,940 J u n e .......................................................................... 1,471,132 .................. 2,227,368 703,698 746,533 1,999,013 3,571,499 J u ly ............................................................................... 7 ,113,152 A u g u s t ................................................................................ S e p t e m b e r ........................................................................ O c t o b e r ............................................. I ! . ' . ” ! . ! ' . ' . . . ! N o v e m b e r ........................................................................... D e c e m b e r ........................................................................... Total.............................................................. $12,205,159 $15,033,923 12,205,159 Total decrease.............................................................................. $2,828,764 W e recapitulate the comparative totals of the imports of dry goods and general merchandise for the convenience of reference :—- _ 1855. 1856. 1857. D rygood s............................... General merchandise............. $64,974,062 92,030,545 $93,362,893 118,379,331 $90,534,129 127,185,967 Total............................ $157,004,607 $211,742,224 $217,720,096 The reason why the imports of dry goods have declined, since the commercial revulsion began, in a greater ratio than the receipts of general merchandise, has been owing to the fact that they were more easily controlled on a short notice of a change in the market, and also because the trade in most of these fabrics is more affected by the pressure. The former, however, is the chief reason why the change in the imports of general merchandise is less apparent. The bulk of the most valuable goods under this head come from a greater distance, and the tide cannot be easily turned. W e annex a comparative summary of the receipts of some leading articles of foreign merchandise during the past year :— IM P O R T S O F A FEW L E A D IN G A R T IC L E S O F G E N E R A L 1854. Books........................................ Buttons..................................... Cheese...................................... Chinaware................................ C iga rs...................................... Coal........................................... Coffee........................................ Earthenware........................... Furs.......................................... Glass, plale............................. India-rubber............................. In d ig o ...................................... Leather and dressed skins . . . Undressed skins...................... Liquors— Brandy.................... Metals— Copper and o re . . . . Ditto, sheathing................... Iron, b a r s ........................... Iron, p i g ........ .................... Iron, railroad..................... Iron,sheet........................... L e a d .................................... $562,951 575,299 76,204 714,118 2,048,044 465,970 4,907,835 1,471,614 1,420,174 698,322 1,469,261 403,950 1,447,699 5,385,434 1,013,581 403,717 1,025,646 3,702,733 793,276 3,196,439 487,955 2,439,769 1855. $491,980 406,760 93,290 413,847 2,304,051 336,373 6,508,080 932,049 1,472,302 241,925 795,450 283,533 1,496,546 3,972,915 1,301,063 245,606 405,868 2,666,440 830,266 1,973,622 431,930 1,709,517 M E R C H A N D IS E . 1856. $614,068 742,002 102,677 636,443 2,264,699 540,803 7,395,809 1,220,487 2,270,781 337,940 648,619 322,949 2,224,387 5,505,407 2,078,887 256,658 573,394 8,628,256 563,600 2,608,742 751,863 2,116,110 1857. $663,447 845,456 120,479 589,682 2,610,679 460,399 7,722,162 1,178,924 1,859,923 481,751 609,840 457,125 2,052,299 6,590,173 1,812,201 426,474 248,375 3,354,101 501,096 3,070,762 706,872 2,035,464 203 Commercial Chronicle and Review. 1855. 1854. Spelter............................. S t e e l............................... Tin and tinplates............ . . Z in c ................................. M olasses............................. R a g s ............................. ...... S a lt ..................................... Saltpeter............................. Sugar................................... Tea........................................ W atches........................... Wines ........................... Wool and waste,................ 301,228 1,315,228 3,141,533 268,861 941,111 713,547 458,127 165,063 9,818,724 4,991,516 3,038,845 1,633,539 597,260 355,463 1,613,909 3,100,885 401,320 644,658 667,365 1,145,728 1857. 1856. 370,293 1,791,408 4,792,0.15 381,434 1,606,338 824,082 487,480 68,244 17,711,162 5,898,900 3,506,432 1,686,266 643,365 380,434 1,694,950 4,669,951 341,648 5,197.047 882,181 318,880 162,658 20,698,854 5,399,964 2,954,702 2,011,691 1,775,673 The receipts for cash duties at the port of New York, for 1857, are ten mil lions less than for the previous year, owing to the change in the tariff, and the great falling off in the quantity of goods thrown upon the market— for, while the total value of foreign goods entered at the port during the year 1857, (exclusive of specie,) is about two hundred and eighteen millions, the value thrown upon the market is only one hundred and eighty-five millions. The total of cash duties in 1853, was $43,088,225 83, and for 1854, $38,096,888 08, but we are obliged to omit the details of these years in our table:— CASH D U T IE S R E C E I V E D January........... February........ M arch............. April................ M ay................. J u n e ............... July................. A u gu st........... September . . . October........... Novem ber.. . . December. . . . Total. . . . $4,379,285 2,867,294 3,627,119 3,168,490 3,243,164 2,452,606 4,045,745 5,214,629 3,439,492 2,402,115 1,751,023 1,505,920 AT N E W Y O R K . 1855. 185-1. 32 60 49 21 41 83 78 78 49 10 45 72 $38,096,888 08 $2,560,038 2,665,164 2,363,084 1,994,710 2,400,482 2,816,464 3,787,341 4,290,796 3,623,379 3,329,194 2,171,707 2,984,941 1857. 1856. 32 94 95 10 60 so 95 15 50 95 76 97 $34,387,307 99 $3,683,654 3,576,919 4,382,107 3,913,885 3,457,153 3,527,425 5,441,544 5,286,399 3,702,134 3,391,230 2,774,845 2,381,969 $4,537,378 5,117.249 3,752,184 3,801,607 1,907,289 677,811 6,987,019 3,946,830 2,249,982 867,534 1,121.792 1,172,392 85 14 47 39 64 26 27 11 70 97 63 75 $45,519,270 18 43 85 98 05 71 29 61 40 89 99 70 98 $35,639,074 88 Turning now to the e x p o r t s from New York to foreign ports, we find a very small total for December, and, exclusive of specie, a general falling off during the year. W e annex a quarterly statement showing the course of this trade for the year compared with the previous three years :— EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO F O R E IG N 1851. P O R T S , E X C L U S IV E O F S P E C IE . 1855. 1856. 1857. $19,820,683 20,250,346 20,567,594 23,028,907 $19,83S,847 18,822,867 15,803,531 18,898,910 First quarter.................. Second quarter............... Third quarter.................. Fourth quarter............... $17,840,161 16,474,773 13,826,852 15,065,895 $16,802,543 15,628,290 14,616,675 25,299,054 Total......................... $64,207,681 $72,346,562 $83,667,530 $73,364,155 This shows a decline of ten millions as compared with the previous year, but a gain upon any former year. The exports of specie, not included in the above, show a large increase upon the total for 1856, notwithstanding the cessation of shipments in October and November. W e present here our monthly com parison :— 204 Commercial Chronicle and Review, EXPORTS O F S P E C IE FROM NEW YORK 1S§3. 1854. January ........... February.......... March............... A p r il............... May.................. June................. J u ly ................. A u g u s t........... September.. . . October........... November . . . December........ $747,679 1,121.020 592,479 767,055 2,162,467 3,264,282 3,924,612 1,183,973 1,244,191 4,757,972 3,855,775 3,131,851 $1,845,682 579,724 1,466,127 3,474,525 3,651,626 5,168,183 2,922.452 4,548,320 6,547,104 3,359,398 3,338,001 68,264 Total........ Ditto, Boston... $26,753,356 5,763,517 $37,169,406 7,413,437 TO F O R E IG N PORTS. 1855. 1856. 1857. $156,398 2,123,708 2,298,697 3,313.447 6,320,152 3,862,396 2,923,324 2,609,393 1,831,684 1,188,100 1,011,900 986,535 $104,834 1,204,343 2,584,396 3,261,694 3,812,865 4,300,328 5 278,126 3,202,053 3,738,547 4,996,660 2,955,839 1,779,181 $1,307,946 1,831,728 2,174,965 3,354,805 5,789,266 7.939,354 3,628,377 6,271,717 990,476 297,259 3,239,231 7,535,052 $27,625,740 14,859,470 $37,218,766 12,227,059 $44,360,174 9,712,759 The total shipments of specie for 1857, is even greater than for 1851, where the aggregate from New Y ork alone reached ,$43,743,209. The total added to the foot of the above table as shipped from Boston, part of it went overland from New Y ork to be shipped by the steamer, but is not included in the total at that port. W e now annex our usual de'ailed statement showing the exports of domestic produce, foreign dutiable and free goods, and specie during each month of the last four years :— EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO F O R E IG N P O R T S D U R IN G THE YEARS 1854-5-6-7. D O M E S T IC P R O D U C E . 1856. 1857. January............... February............. M arch................. A p r il................... Ma y ..................... June..................... J u ly ..................... A u g u st............... Septem ber........ O c t o b e r ............. November........... December............ $5,304,203 5,400,924 5,562,810 4,578,693 6,824,427 4,526,383 3,768,661 4,487,619 3,772,124 4,672,017 4,660,007 4,904,554 $4,996,787 3,154,264 4,807,833 4,349,944 5,071,890 3,956,706 3,960,757 4,281,481 5,228,637 6,614,146 8,344,333 8,819,997 $5,257,686 5,408,990 8,044,122 5,229,436 5,563,205 8,273,454 6,901,272 5,612,828 7,045,202 6,129,837 7,541,595 8,246,568 $4,543,842 5,399.202 7,904,481 5,162,160 6,04 6,643 5,395,312 4,273,696 4,289,479 4,218,954 6,491,529 5,245,599 2,832,338 Total............ $57,462,422 $63,586,775 $79,254,195 $61,803,235 1851. 1855. F O R E IG N January................. February............... M arch................... April....................... M ay....................... June....................... July........................ .. August................... Septem ber........... October.................. November.............. December.............. Total.............. D U T IA B L E . $469,068 400,739 876,278 239,611 342,437 556,656 252,030 615,270 447,664 316,012 823,389 792,570 $440,689 598,601 692,890 262,684 858,732 736,306 210,320 222,176 358,896 201.939 306,817 667,401 $212,239 143,944 468,280 202,027 247,079 450,482 108,617 211,933 509,752 130,577 202,093 467,501 $188,408 363,878 628.080 314,343 294,839 512,349 582,059 654,088 566,106 806,049 1,194,355 1,226,690 $5,031,614 $4,957,401 $3,354,524 $7,331,144 Commercial Chronicle and Review, F O R E IG N 1854. FREE. 1855. January............... February............. M arch ................. A p ril................... May....................... June..................... J u ly ..................... August................. September........... O ctober............... November........... D ecem ber........... $71,524 156,434 98,191 125,717 132,449 148,500 231,788 253,857 Total............ $1,713,645 1856. 1857. $458,091 812,226 941,212 100,092 244,254 547,682 185,557 161,482 17,369 31,505 129,405 183,511 $41,305 53,275 190,842 68,263 68,194 148,206 22,423 88,242 67,325 71,931 55,662 183,143 $151,920 175,706 483,330 185,642 169,451 732,128 407,697 393,882 417,570 212,443 386,528 503,479 $3,802,386 $1,058,811 $4,229,776 $104,834 1,204,343 2,584,396 3,261,504 3,812,865 4,300,328 5,278,126 3,202,053 3,738,547 4,996,660 2,955,839 1,779,181 $1,307,946 1,831,726 2.174,965 3,354,805 5,789,266 7,939,354 3.628,377 6,271,717 990,476 297,259 3,239,231 7,535,052 $37,218,766 $44,360,174 151,682 S P E C IE A N D B U L L IO N . January............... February............. M arch................. April.................... M ay..................... June..................... Ju ly..................... A u gu st............... Septem ber......... October................ November........... December........ , $1,845,682 579,724 68,264 $156,398 2,123,708 2,298,697 3,313,447 5,320,152 3,862,393 2,923,324 2,609,893 1,831,684 1,188,109 1,011,900 986,536 Total............ $37,169,406 $27,625,740 3,474,525 TOTAL January............... Februarv............. March................... April.................... M ay..................... J une..................... July ............................... .. August................. September.......... October.............. November.......... December........... EXPORTS. % $6,051,915 6,688,799 8,640,632 8,026,167 10,995,028 9,103,087 7,279,958 7,264,532 7,436 586 8,035,699 9,792,455 10,657,444 $5,616,064 6,810,552 11,287,640 8,761,320 9,691,343 13,172,470 12,310,438 9,115,056 11,360,826 11,329,005 10,755,189 10,676,393 $6,192,116 7,770,512 11,190,856 9,026,950 12,3u0,199 14,579,143 8,891,829 11,609,166 6,193,106 7,807,280 10,065,713 12,097,459 $99,972,302 $120,886,296 $117,724,329 6,537,821 7,174,931 10,864,731 8.476,207 8,638,281 Total............ 205 In addition to the above tables showing the value of all the exports from New York to foreign ports, we have compiled a brief comparative table giving the quantity which has been shipped of a few leading articles of domestic produce:— C O M P A R A T IV E STA TE M E N T OF TH E EXPORTS OF A F E W L E A D IN G P R O D U C E , F R O M N E W Y O R K TO F O R E IG N P O R T S , F R O M A R T IC L E S O F D O M E S T IO 1854 TO 1857. 1854. 1855. 1856. 1857. 9,652 1,876 218,177 13,155 2,243 169,616 9,055 2,227 217,435 13,068 3,629 256,226 888,735 1,005,006 1,921,025 1,041,871 A sh es— Pots, bbls........................ Pearls............................... Beeswax, lbs........................ B readstuff's — Wheat flour, bbl........... 206 v Commercial Chronicle and Review. Rye flour............... , Corn meal....................... . Wheat, bush................... R y e .................................. Oats.................................. Barley.............................. C o rn ............................... Candles — Mould, boxes . . . . . . . . . Sperm............................. Coal, tons........................... CottoD, b a le s..................... H a y .................................... H ops.................................... Naval stores, bbls.............. O ils — Whale, galls................... Sperm............................. L a rd ............................... Linseed........................... P r o v is io n s — Pork, bbls....................... Beef.................................. Cut-meats, l b s ............... Butter............................. C heese........................... Lard................................. Rice, tcs............................... Tallow, ibs............................... T obacco — Crude, pkgs.................... Manufactured, lbs........... Whalebone......................... 10,354 67,858 1,671,013 3-26,961 63,999 72 4,673,371 20,647 51,259 3,405,293 535,907 40,264 1,184 3,860,852 11,890 77,529 9,571,393 1,261,905 17,032 305 3,862,529 3,986 50,011 3,772,986 81.446 13,410 51,427 10,450 22,332 SOS,683 3,886 13,289 656,473 64,303 10,776 14,486 227,921 5,734 9,156 627,728 45,474 4,751 7,222 195,730 4,560 4,250 478,511 51,357 6,982 23,543 161,901 13,137 2,254 550,591 361,315 680,537 83,194 11,610 272,400 836,199 103,179 11,210 44,378 698,062 55,063 6,394 463,748 925,394 34,095 38,839 116,869 95,513 17,333,742 2,045,432' 3,817,407 15,785,363 22,947 6,064,197 152,750 66,212 15,903,457 990,639 6,987,496 8,555,962 24,264 1,911,339 134,474 65,028 29,805,028 1,115,081 3,760,540 10,979,593 38,715 1,375,620 52,069 48,921 18,607,528 890,742 4,529,273 14,612,603 29,603 3,110,803 35,735 3,700,444 735,799 32,367 5,282,952 2,131,197 33,175 4,849,923 1,872,151 42,576 2,360,703 1,889,685 1,957,355 Included in the exports o f naval stores for the year 1857, are 61,110 bbls. crude turpentine, 46,328 bbls. spirits turpentine, 406,899 bbls. rosin, 32,582 bbls. tar, and 3,672 bbls. pitch. W e also present our annual comparative statement of the wholesale prices at this port, of the leading articles o f foreign aud domestic produce, which will be found very interesting. There are few, even of those who are engaged in the trade, who can remember the changes in price from year to year, and this table, if preserved, will be found very useful for reference :— C O M P A R A T IV E Ashes, Pots............100 lbs. Pearls............................... Breadstuff's — Wheat, flour, State., bbl. Wheat, best extra G en .. Rye flour, “ .......... Corn meal, Jersey........... Wheat, white Gen..bush. White Michigan.............. White Ohio....................... White Southern............. Red Western................... Rye, Northern................. Oats, State....................... Corn, old Western........... Corn, new Southern........ Cotton, mid. Uplaud___ lb. Mid. New Orleans........... Fish, dry cod.................. qtl. P R IC E S AT NEW YORK ON JANU ARY 3 d. 1854. 1855. 1856. 1857. 1858. $5 50 5 75 $6 50 7 50 ?7 00 8 00 $7 75 8 00 $5 75 5 76 9 25 12 00 7 25 4 311 2 62* 2 40 2 35 2 30 2 10 1 37* 65 1 02 1 02 8 31* 11 00 6 37* 4 00 2 20 2 121 2 12* 2 16 1 90 1 31 46 94 90 7 75 8 50 5 37$ 3 75 2 05 1 95 1 90 1 90 1 78 1 24 E0 82 79 10* 10* 8 00 71 81 1 121 n H 4 12* 6 25 8 50 6 00 3 25 1 80 1 75 1 75 1 78 1 58 92 48 68 67 IS* 13* 3 60 4 25 7 60 4 00 8 25 1 30 1 20 1 15 1 25 1 10 73 43 65 62 8i 9 8 26 Commercial Chronicle and Review. Fruit, bunch raisins__ bx. Currants....................... lb. Hay, shipping ...1 0 0 lbs. Hemp, R’gh American, ton H o p s ................. per lb. Iron, Scotch pig.............ton English, bars................... Laths.........................per M. Lead, Spanish............... ton Galena............................. L ea th er — Hemlock, sole, ligh t . .lb. Oak, “ “ , L im e — Com, Rockland.........bbl. L iq u o r s — Brandy, new cognac, .gl. Domestic whisky............ M ola sses — New Orleans..............gal. N a v a l S tores — Crude turpentine.. . .bbl. Spirits “ ....g a l . Common rosin, N. C.bbl. Oils, crude whale.......... gal. “ sperm............... Linseed ........................... P r o v is io n s — Pork, old mess...........bbl. Pork, old prime............... Beef, city mess................ Beef, repacked chic........ Beef hams, extra........... Hams, pickled...........lb. Shoulders, “ ................. L ard............................... .. Butter, Ohio..................... Butter, State................... Butter. Orange county.. Cheese ............................. Rice, g o o d .............100 lbs. S a lt — Liverpool, ground..sack Liverpool, fine, Ashtons. Seeds, clover...................lb. S uga r — Cuba, good................... lb. Tallow...................... oer lb. W hale bone, polar........... 1854. 207 1856. 1857. 2 65 23 1 00 170 00 36 27 50 56 00 1 50 5 25 6 25 2 871 20 95 170 00 10 32 00 62 50 1 45 6 371 6 871 3 80 21 90 208 00 10 SO 00 63 00 1 311 6 00 6 75 23 27 17 26 231 31 1 121 85 3 65 271 4 60 37 2 75 18 871 185 00 65 38 00 70 00 2 00 6 121 6 75 1855. 90 85 5 00 25 4 25 22 35 27 49 80 4 75 60 1 75 70 1 30 63 4 00 44 1 85 65 1 70 81 3 00 41 1 60 80 1 80 88 4 00 48 1 60 78 1 30 80 50 25 50 50 00 9 10 12 18 21 10 4 371 50 25 00 121 00 9 6410f 17 22 26 101 4 25 1 17 1 80 101 1 05 1 60 11 H 12 12 14 15 15 16 75 14 50 13 50 14 50 15 00 10 8| Hf 20 23 27 11 5 50 92 J 1 55 13 none. 221 28 28 13 11 13 13 15 1 95 9 65 100 00 10 26 00 62 50 1 25 4 75 82 38 1 00 4 75 351 1858. 19 16 12 12 19 50 60 25 25 50 101 71 12J 21 24 27 101 4 311 80 1 55 12! 5± lO f 45 5 124 41 8 13 50 91 11! 65 40 27 35 38 2 871 38 1 30 60 1 00 55 15 13 10 12 15 40 00 00 50 50 8f 61 91 16 20 24 8 3 25 80 1 30 91 7 10 1 10 W o o l— Common fleece...........lb. 27 The decline in prices extends to nearly every article upon the list, and is very strongly marked. How long it will contiuue, cannot now be determined, but the general impression is that breadstuffs have nearly touched the bottom, while meat provisions must go still lower. A t any rate the average value of all the ne cessaries of life must be much less during the coming year than it has been in the past. This will prove a reliable foundation for the future prosperity of the country, as already noticed in our opening remarks. There is much reason to believe that agricultural labor will be more abundant this year, and the produc. 208 Commercial Cliroriicle and Review. tion of all descriptions of produce much more ample. Manufactures are languish ing, and labor must be forced from the workshop to the field. This will enable farmers to produce at low' cost, while the lower prices will react upon other branches of industry, giving them assistance in the way o f active commerce, as well as cheaper sustenance. NEW YORK COTTON MARKET FOR THE MONTH ENDING JANUARY 22, 1858. P R E P A R E D FO R TH E M ER C H A N T S’ M A G A Z IN 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 . Under date of my last report, December 25th, our market closed quiet at 9fc. for middling uplands— during the ensuing week the transactions were limited to a few hundred bales, the market closing quiet at the following quotations:— Upland. Ordinary........................................................................... Middling........................................................................... Middling fa ir ................................................................... 84 9f N. O. & Texas, 84 94 94 The sales for the week ending January 8th, were 6,500 bales, at an advance of 4 a fc . per pound, owing to the favorable advices to hand per Atlantic. The accounts being altogether of a character unexpected, imparted confidence to both buyers and sellers, and the market closed steady at the following with a good inquiry :— Upland. 84 94 9f Ordinary.. . . Middling.. . . Middling fair Fair............... 104 N. O. & Texas. 9 94 lO f none. A continuation of favorable foreign advices were received during the wreek ending January 15th, under which our market advanced 4 a Jc. per lb. The sales were estimated at 10,000 bales, including parcels in transitu. A t the close the market was firm at the following quotations :— Upland. Ordinary . . . M iddling.. . . Middling fair Fair............... 9} N. O & Texas. 91 10i 10f 10i 11 lli none. The demand continued active during the forepart of the week ending at date, and a further advance took place, middling uplands reaching 101 cents per pound. A t the close of the week there was less inquiry, and holders receded in their views without inducing operations. The sales for the week were 6,500 bales, the market closing dull at the following :— Upland. Ordinary.. . . Middling.. . . Middling fair Fair............... n N. O. & Texas. 9* lO f 104 H i H i none. 11 Of the above transactions about one-half have been for the home trade— the balance for export and speculation. The rapid advance will materially interfere with the immediate resumption of many mills, and must further tend to delay present consumption. Receipts to date............ Export to Great Britain Export to France........... Total e x p o r ts.................. Stock on hand............... 1, 221,000 388.000 141.000 622.000 588,000 Decrease Increase Decrease « 622,000 19.000 27.000 23.000 225.000 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. 209 JOURNAL OF BANK IN G, C URRENCY, AND FINANCE. BASKS ASD BASKISG IS THE STATE OF SEW YORK. The Annual Report of the Superintendent of the Banking Department, of the State of New York, transmitted to the Legislature January 5, 1858, is a docu ment of 235 pages octavo. The greater portion of the statement of the Super intendent, (J ames M. Cook, Esq.,) prefatory to the accompanying tables, consist* of a review of the financial disaster of 1857, embracing his views of the causes which produced the catastrophe. Having first given an outline of bank ing business in the State, he then makes a statistical comparison of the condition of the banks in the State in 1837 with their condition in 1857, and the inference that the immediate causes which produced the suspensions at those periods were materially different. The history of the bank movement through 1857 is given with considerable detail. The Superintendent urges that “ this suspension of 1857 stands alone without precedent,” and deduces from his statements in regard to deposits that the banker and the public should learn from it—-------“ that a system of paper credits may be so enlarged as to render the posi tion of the banks one of imminent peril, even with a contracted currency; that the greatest danger to the banker, as well as to the public, lies in the large amount of his deposits, and the least in the currency he issues.” The Superintendent refers to the action of the banks of the city of New York on 7th November, in requiring the country banks to resume their usual daily re demptions, and shows that this course not only compelled the latter to a partial resumption of specie payments, but, by reaction, forced a resumption upon the city banks. He considers that the cause of the recent suspension was the want of sufficient coin in the banks to pay the demands upon them, and that, as a consequence— ------ “ it is not safe for bank capital or the public to permit the banks of the State to owe, say eight or nine dollars of demand loans to one dollar of specie in their vaults.” In concluding, he remarks:— “ All that is desirable, in the opinion of the Superintendent, to perfect our present system, is embraced in the following propositions, all of which have been noted in the report:— “ 1st. Allow no more mortgages to be taken hereafter as security for circulat ing notes. “ 2d. Compel every incorporated bank to gradually replace its present circula tion by notes secured in the same manner as the free bank notes. “ 3d. Compel all banks located in the city of New Y ork to keep 20 per cent of their average weekly deposits of all descriptions in coin, special deposits of coin not to form a part of the statement; and every bank out of that city to keep 20 per cent upon its quarterly average of its deposits, either in coin or a balance to its credit in some solvent bank either in the city o f New York, Brook lyn, Albany, or Troy. “ 4th. Allow every banking association or individual hanker to commence the business of banking upon the deposit of $50,000, in stocks of the United States or State of New York. But if bonds and mortgages are to be received, as at present, the Superintendent respectfully recommends the enactment of the acts of 1840 and 1844, relative to bank capital, in such language as shall place their construction beyond the reach of judicial decisions. V OL. X X X V III.---- N O . I I . 14 210 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. “ These amendments to the present general bank law are all the Superintendent deems necessary for the protection of both the public and the banks. Beyond this there is danger of materially disturbing the general interest of our citizens. “ Any sudden or violent change in our banking system would be sensibly felt in all the business pursuits of our people. The interests of the merchant, the manufacturer, the mechanic, and the farmer, are identical with the banker. The proof of the fact lies before us in the general prostration of all these pursuits at the present moment. They all fell together, and so interwoven are their respect ive interests with each other, they must rise together to their usual healthy ope rations. There is no single resurrection for them. The resuscitation of all these interests must be gradual to be certain. “ The causes that produced the late suspension of specie payments by our banks, and the consequent temporary prostration of the business of our citizens, cannot be remedied by legislation. Something may possibly be done for their prevention in future; and in even attempting to do this, great care should be ex ercised, or our preventives for future disasters may aggravate our present evils.” From the appendix to the report we compile the following synopsis of the in crease of the number of banks in 1857, & c .:— During the last fiscal year nine banking associations, with an aggregate capi tal, as shown by their certificates of association on file in this office, of $6,275.000, have deposited the requisite securities, and commenced the business of baukiug, namely :— Name and location. Capital. Bank of the Interior, Albany. $70u,000 Lake Ontario Bank, O sw ego.. 250,000 Merchants’ Bank in city of N.Y. 3,000,000 Meehan. & Traders’ Bank, N.Y. 400,000 Montgom’y Co. B’k, Johnstown 100,000 Total...................................................... Name and location. Monroe Co. Bank, Rochester.. National Bank in city of N. Y .. Saratoga Co. Bank, Waterford Wallkill Bank, Middletown... Capital. $100,000 1,500,000 100,000 125,000 .......................................................$6,275,000 Three individual bankers have also deposited securities and commenced the business of banking, under the name and title of the Addison Bank, Addison ; Bank of Lima, Lim a; J. T. Raplee’s Bank, Dundee. The associations above named have deposited the following securities, viz. :— Bonds and mortgages, §86,667 ; New York State stock, 44 per cent, §8,000 ; 5 per cent, §245.666 ; 6 per cent, $63,000 ; aggregate stock, $316,666 ; total se curities, $403,333 ; on which has been issued a circulation of $232,000. The individual bankers have deposited— Bonds and mortgages, $70,135 ; New York State stock, 5 per cent, $47,702 ; 6 per cent, $39,150 ; aggregate stock, $86,852 ; total securities, $156,987 ; on which has been issued a circulation of $151,585. The following table exhibits the total amount of outstanding circulation issued to banking associations and individual bankers, and the amount and character of the securities deposited for its redemption, on the 30th day of September, 1857 : Outstanding circulation..................................................................... $28,429,522 00 S E C U R IT IE S . Bonds and mortgages.............................................. New York State stock, 44 per cent.................... u 11 r, “ “ 54 11 » g « “ ............... 11 $7,856,231 59 $361,700 8,024,690 1,150,000 11,463,011 00 64 00 92 20,999,402 56 United States stock, “ “ 5 6 Arkansas State stock, 6 Illinois State stock, 6 Michigan State Stock, 6 C ash.................................. Total “ “ ..................... ..................... 9,000 00 300,300 00 309,300 211,000 692,029 172,000 63,668 00 00 40 00 62 $30,203,632 07 211 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. Aggregate of the securities held in trust for bank ing associations and individual bankers, Sep tember 30, 1856.................................................. Increase for the year 1857.................................... $30,026,910 40 176,721 67 -------------------- 80,203,632 07 Amount of circulation outstanding September 30, 1857.................. “ “ “ “ 1856................... $28,429,522 00 28.319,311 00 $ 110,211 00 Increase for the year ending September 30, 1857 $176,721 67 The increase in the securities above noted, viz., has been in the following securities, viz :— Bonds and mortgages................. $165,474 69 New York State stocks............. 852,092 00 $1,017,566 69 Less dec. in United States stock Less dec. in Illinois State stock. Less decrease in cash ............... 775,780 17 54,658 43 10,406 42 840,845 02 176,721 67 The total amount of securities held in trust by the Superintendent of the Bank ing Department, September 30th, 1857, was, for banking associations and indi vidual bankers, $30,203,632 07 ; for incorporated banks, $86,590 91; for insol vent banks, $20,611 74; for trust companies, $200,000 00 ; total, $30,510,834 72. The total number of banks, banking associations, individual bankers, closing and insolvent banks, and those in the hands of receivers, is 345, viz., incorporated banks, 37; banking associations, 224; individual bankers, 37; closing and in solvent banks, 34 ; associations in the hands of receivers, 11 ; individual banks in the hands of receivers, 2 ; total, 345. DIVIDENDS OF COUNTRY BANKS IN MASSACHUSETTS. In the November number of the Merchants' Magazine, we gave a table of dividends of banks in Boston for several years. W e now subjoin a statement of the capital and dividends, paid in October, 1857, of thirty-five of the banks out of Boston:— C O U N T R Y B A N K S — S E M I-A N N U A L D I V ID E N D S F O R Banks. Capital. Citizens’, Worcest’r. Siso.uuo Riindolph................ 150,000 Ocean, Newburyp’ t. 100,000 Farmingham........... 200,000 Brighton M arket.. 200,000 North Bridgewater. W altham ............... 200,000 Rockland, Roxbury 150,000 Barnstable, Yarm’h 850,000 Cape Cod, Harwich 100,000 Mt. Wollast'n, Quin. 100,000 Brighton ............... 250,000 Commercial, Salem 200,000 People’s, Roxbury. 150,000 Merchants’, Lowell. 100 000 Hopkinton............. 100,000 Essex, Haverhill... 100,000 Merrimac, Haver’ll. 180,000 OCTOBER, 1857. Amt's. Banks. Capital. Div. 6 $?,5U0 Haverhill................ $160,UO0 4 5 7,500 Union, H averhill.. 100,000 4 5 5,000 Newton.................. 150,000 3 9,000 Hingham............... 140,000 4 H 4* 9,000 Railroad, L ow ell... 600,000 4 4 Mechanics’, New’ p't 200.000 4 4 8,000 Central, Worcester. 350,0110 4 4 6,000 City, Worcester___ 200,000 4 4 14,000 Mechanics’, W ’rc.es’r 350,000 4 4,000 Quinsigamond,Wor. 250,000 4 4 4,000 Worcester.............. 300,000 4 4 4 10,000 Townsend............... 100,000 4 4 8,000 Danvers................. 150,000 4 4 6,000 Warren, Danvers.. 200,000 4 4 4,000 Naumkeag, Salem. 500,000 34 4,000 Merchants’,Newb’ pt 150,000 3 4 4 4,000 Mercantile, Salem.. 200,000 3 7,200 4 Div. Amt’s. $6,000 4,000 6,000 5,600 24,000 8,000 14.000 8,000 14,000 10,000 12,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 17,500 6,300 6,000 The country banks in Massachusetts are managed very economically. The presidents receiving small, if any, salary, hence— with a large circulation and small amount of specie— these banks are able to pay larger average dividends 212 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance, than the banks in New Y ork State— notwithstanding the legal interest in M as sachusetts is six per cent, while in New Y ork it is seven. BOSTON BANK DIVIDENDS FOR FIVE YEARS. The following table, originally compiled by G eorge A . F oxcraft for the Boston Courier, exhibits the rate and amount of dividends paid by the Boston banks during the last five years. The banks named in April, 1853, had an a g g r e g a te c a p ita l o f $ 2 4 ,1 1 0 ,0 0 0 :; A p r il, 1854, $ 2 9 ,4 1 0 ,0 0 0 ; A p r i l, 1855, 8 3 1 , 7 0 5 ,0 0 0 ; A p r i l , 1 8 5 6 , $ 3 1 , 9 6 0 ,0 0 0 ; A p r i l , 1 8 5 7 , $ 3 1 ,9 6 0 ,0 0 0 Banks. A tla n tic .............. . . per cent A t l a s ................ B la c k s t o n e ... . ...................... B o s t o n ,.............. ..................... B o y l s t o n .. . . . B r o a d w a y ... . C ity ...................... C o lu m b ia n ... . ..................... C om m erce.......... E a g l e ................ ..................... E l i o t ................... E x c h a n g e ................................ F a n eu il H a ll . , ..................... F reem a n ’s . . . . G lo b e .................... ...................... G r a n ite ...................................... H a m i lt o n ................................. H o w a r d ............. M a rk e t................. M a ssa ch u se ts. . M a v e r ic k ........... M echanics’.......... ................... M erchants’.......... ................... .N ation a l.............. N e w E n glan d . N o r t h . . ........... N o rth A m e ric a ................... S h a w m u t............. ................... S h oe L e a th er D ealers’ . S t a t e ..................... ............ S u f f o lk ................ Traders’ .............. T rem on t................ ................... U nion..................... ................... W a s h in g to n ___ ................... W e b s t e r .............. & Dividend, Dividend, Dividend,, Dividend, Dividend, 1Sj4. 1853. 1c55. 1856. 1S 57. last 5 years. 8 8 7 6 6 7 8 8 71 7 6 -1 0 71 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 10 9 9 9 9 3 -1 0 6 8 71 71 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 61 6 9 -1 0 8 8 7 7 7 6 10 8 8 8 8 7 9 -1 0 8 7 7 7 8 8 8 10 10 8 8 -1 0 8 8 8 8 8 8 10 10 10 10 9 8 -1 0 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 7 71 7 3 -1 0 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 8 7 in 10 10 10 10 6 2 5 6 2-5 6 2-5 6 2-5 6 8 -2 5 N ew . 61 61 61 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 8 -1 0 8 7 7 71 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 3 -1 0 61 8 7 7 7 4 -1 0 71 71 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 9 9 8 4 -1 0 7 7 7 7 2 -1 0 71 71 10 10 10 10 10 8 8 7 7 7 -1 0 71 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 7 2 -1 0 61 71 n 1 AM OUNT OF 1858. $1,897,750 1854. $2,341,200 1 7 7 D IV ID E N D S . 1855. $2,494,000 1856. $2,4«4,100 1857. $2,437,950 AGGREGATE VALUATION AND TAXATION IN THE STATE OF NEIV YORK. From the Annual Report of the Controller of the State o f New York, for 1857, we derive the following. The aggregate amounts of assessed valuations o f real and personal estate in the State of New York, for 1857, were as follows :— Beal, $1,111,551,629 ; personal, $316,887,155. 213 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. The amount o f 2J- mill tax—viz., 1£ mill for support of government, and 1 mill for the enlargement and completion of the canals, was. The amount of J mill school tax.............................................................. The amount of town ta x ........................................................................... The amount o f county t a x ....................................................................... Total taxation................................................................................. $3,224,946 1,074,982 2,257,702 8,608,678 68 20 15 59 $15,166,309 62 The rate of tax on $1 valuation was 10 7-10 mills. The increase of the aggrevaluations of real and personal estate, over the year 1856, was $2,975,017 ; the increase of aggregate taxation was $2,403,129 89 ; and the increase of tax on $1 valuation was 1 8-10 mills. It appears that in six counties the rate of tax on $ 1 valuation exceeded 1 0 mills, v iz .:— Albany . . Hamilton. Kings . . . . 11.5 New Y o r k .. . 23.7 Schenectady., 17.3 W arren......... 15.4 12.5 10.8 And the average rate in these counties was 15 5-10 mills, while in all the re maining counties the average rate was 6 2 -1 0 mills. FINANCES OF THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. The Hae Hawaii furnishes the following statement of the receipts and expert* ditures of the government of these islands, for the year ending March 31,1857 :— Balance in the Treasury, April 1,1856 ................. E X P E N D IT U R E S . $28,096 84 R E C E IP T S . From foreign imports......... Internal commerce ___ Taxes............................... Government press......... Fines and penalties__ _ Fees and perquisites... . Government realizations. Miscellaneous sources.... 114,341 83 33,137 46 64,976 94 7,508 82 20,167 27 11,687 32 51,113 62 16,998 76 Total receipts.......... $348,028 86 For civil list......................... Dep’ rtm’t of the Interior. Government press......... Dep’t of For’n Relations. Dep’t of Fiuance............ Dep't of Public Iustruc’n. Dep’t of W ar................... Dep’t of L a w ................. Bureau of Public Works. Miscellan’s expenditures. Balance $39,472 27 52,624 08 9,332 31 9,139 86 21,538 67 45,204 23 28,291 13 48,099 76 56,096 00 21,147 55 $330,945 86 $17,083 00 Total $348,028 86 BRIEF HISTORY OF THE BANKS OF MICHIGAN. Preston’s United States Bank Reporter, in its first number, has the following succinct history of the banks of the State of. Michigan, which, as being a matter of quite general interest, we subjoin :— Michigan has but five banks of issue, viz., Michigan Insurance, Peninsula, and Farmers & Mechanics’, of Detroit; Bank of Macomb County. Mount Clemens, (20 miles northeast of Detroit,) and Bank of Tecumseh, (located at Tecumseh, about 55 miles southeast of Detroit.) Michigan Insurance Bank was organized in 1838 ; reorganized in 1849. This bank has the privilege of issuing $ 1 2 0 ,0 0 0 , without other security than the indi vidual liability of its stockholders. Beyond that amount, they can issue as much as they choose by securing their issues, dollar for dollar, with United States, New York, or Michigan stocks at their par value. Their charter expires on the first Monday of June, 1860. John Owen, Esq., is the presiding officer of the bank, and has been for twelve years past; H. K. Sanger, cashier. Mr. Sanger ha* 1 eld this office for six years, and has been engaged in banking for thirty-two j ears. •214 Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. Erastus Corning, of Albany; John Owen, H. N. Walker. J. M. Roberts, and H. K. Sanger, of Detroit, are the directors, and among the principal stockholders of the bank. The Farmers & Mechanics’ Bank was organized in 1829 ; rechartered in 1849 for twenty years. Their authorized capital is §750,000 ; capital paid in, §400.000. They are obliged to secure their entire circulation with United States, New York, or Michigan stocks. Their present securities are Michigan stocks. Guy Foote, president; J. 0. W . Seymore, cashier. The Peninsula Bank was organized in the fall of 1849 ; charter expires 1869. The present capital is §350,000 ; can be increased to §500,000. Their notes are wholly secured by United States, New York, or Michigan stocks ; rate of inter est, 7 per cent per annum. Charles Howard, president; D. Bethune Duffield, vice-president; H . H. Brown, cashier ; II. T. Stringham, assistant cashier. Messrs. Brown and Howard have held their respective offices ever since the bank organized. H. H. Brown, Esq., has been a bank cashier in this city for over twenty years. The Bank of Tecumseh was chartered in 1836 ; charter expires 1866. The cashier informed us (under date of October 28, 1856,) that the bank has a solid paid-up capital of § 1 1 0 ,0 0 0 ; assessments on stock subscribed due and payable in full on the 20th of December next, will increase it to §140,000, and it is our intention to increase it to $200,000 quite soon. W e believe their charter allows them to issue $3 for $1 capital. The following are the officers and directors :— Jas. A . Raynor, president; Thos. G. Cole, Henry C. Lewis, J. C. Satterthwaite, Michigan; E. C. Litchfield, B. F. Jervis, New Y ork ; J. C. Dann, E. Bruce, Buffalo, directors; Wed W . Clarke, cashier. The Bank of Macomb County was originally organized in 1837, and reorgan ized September 5, 1851. The charter nominally expires in 1875 ; but is said to be perpetual. Capital paid in, $100,000 ; outstanding circulation, about $7,000. The stock of the bank is now owned in Detroit— principally by Luther Beecher, Esq. Alvin Wilkens, cashier ; II. C. Kibbee, president. Mr. Kibbee has been connected with the bank as cashier, vice-president, and president, since 1850. THE COWS AND COERE1VCV OF COiVSTAJiTIIVOPLE. The subjoined account of the Turkish currency at Constantinople is extracted from a letter to the Department of State:—■ It is quite necessary that American merchants trading at Constantinople, and also the collectors of the customs in the United States, should be informed that there is a payer currency in circulation at this capital, which is not allowed to circulate out of i t ; and that, in consequence nearly all of the specie has been driven by it into the interior of the empire. All trade is carried on here in this paper currency, and all invoices of goods are made out in it. The value of this paper currency fluctuates very much, and its rise or fall is greatly affected by various causes ; frequently by political occurrences and news. A few years ago the value of the Spanish dollar was always given in the bulletins of commerce and prices current, published here, as it was a coin then in circula tion at Constantinople; but, from causes unknown to me, it is now rarely quoted, and the coin is never seen here in commerce. I am not aware that the American dollar has ever circulated, or even been known here ; and its value has, certainly, never been quoted in any of the publications of this capital. The value of various Turkish, as well as foreign coins, is published in the daily bulletins of the Journal de Constantinople and La Presse; and these fluctuate very much. Their value differs greatly in each port or city of the Ottoman Empire. A t Erzroom the Turkish pound values at 150 piasters; the same at Rodosto, only forty-five miles from this place, and 145 piasters at Pendick, still nearer. A t Smyrna the Turkish pound is quoted at 108 piasters. A t this city the fluctuations vary, not only daily, but often several times during a day, which will be seen in the published bulletins. In the bulletin on the 16th inst., the Turkish pounds, in exchange for Turkish Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance. 215 paper money, is quoted at 122 25-40 piasters; whilst, ou the 7th of last month, it was quoted at 118 25-40 piasters. So great was the fluctuation of the value of Turkish and foreign money here, that the journals complained of it. As afore said, political occurrences or reports affect vety much the credit of the paper currency of the Sublime Porte, increasing the discount upon i t ; and, consequently, the gold and silver coins in the market rise proportionally. Bankers and money brokers in this place speculate largely in these fluctuations, and are accused of creating and promoting them. I should here take occasion to add that, as will be perceived in the bulletins, there are two distinct valuations of the Turkish and foreign specie quoted, viz. the one being that of “ exchange,” or of payments for bills of exchange at the Bourse, and the other that of the market value used in payment of goods and merchandise, which is always in kaimeh, or paper currency. To-day the Turkish pound here is quoted at 122 25-40 piasters, and the Med jidich at 24 20 40 piasters, in exchange for the paper currency, and at 125 piasters for the Turkish pound, and at 25 piasters for the Medjidich in the pur chase of goods; whilst the same pound remains fixed at Smyrna at 108 piasters, and the same Medjidich at 21^ piasters. Last year, at this date, the same pound valued here at 140 piasters, and at Smyrna it remained always at 108 piasters. Another peculiarity regarding the currency of this place may be mentioned here, showing that it offers an exception to all the other places in the empire; which is, that there is a premium at Smyrna for-Constantinople, and that it varies according to the fluctuation to all the other places in the empire. Thus, on the 11th ultimo, this difference of agio or premium for the market ol Constantinople was from 8 i to 9 per cent, and on the 15th it was at 11 a 12 per cent. Here, to-day, the discount of money on the market of Smyrna is at 16 per cent; so that it is necessary to pay here 1,000 piasters to have in Smyrna 840 piasters ; whilst to-morrow, or the day following, this discount may diminish or decrease, and the same will be the premium at Smyrna. It will consequently be observed that at Constantinople, on account of its paper currency, which has a most unstable value, the gold and silver Turkish coins change their value at an analogous rate; whilst their value remains the same in other places in the empire, where the paper currency is illegal, and that, for this same reason, these places have a premium varying in each respectively, on Constantinople. Prom the proceeding it will be seen that the rate of the value of any given coin in Smyrna is no criterion for a certificate of the value of the dollar at Constantinople; for, whilst it varies very seldom, and then but little, at the former place, the fluctuations are daily and very considerable here. Indeed, the' value of the dollar is in no manner connected with that o f the pound English or Turkish ; and much less with that of the Medjidich. As an example, whilst the English pound of $4 84 was considered at the exchange of Constantinople as valuing 134 piasters, it was quoted in trade at 135 piasters ; and though at this rate the dollar should only be 28 9-100 piasters, it is well-known that it valued 32 piasters. In the “ Manual of Coins and Bullion,” published by the Mint of Philadelphia in 1842, the English sovereign is marked at $4 85.6 ; the pillared dollar of Spain $1 00.4 ; the Mexican dollar at $ 1 01 4.5 ; and the difference, therefore, between these and the American dollar is so trifling that it would be difficult to draw a distinction here. I may add, in conclusion, that the dollar values here, in paper currency, 30 piasters, or 32 piasters, and, consequently, the piaster values at 3 33-100 cents, or 3 12-100 cents, at the date stated therein. I am confident that this is a3 near the truth as can be attained, where the dollar is a fictitious coin, that scarcely exists at the present time at all, in a currency, which is so changeable as to render it extremely difficult to define its value. But at Smyrna, as herein shown, the value of coins fluctuates seldom and slightly. 216 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. STATISTICS OF TRADE AND COMMERCE. GOODS IMPORTED AT ST. PETERSBURG FROM THE UNITED STATES IN 1857. W e have received from J. P i e r c e , Jr., of the United States Legation at St. Petersburg, a printed statement of the commerce of St. Petersburg with the United States in 1857, prepared by A . Wilkins, Cronstadt, November, 1857. W e have rearranged (for better adaptation to our pages) the statistics of the goods imported from the United States, and present them as follows :— The vessels from the United States arriving at St. Petersburg in 1857 were— From New Y o rk .. . Boston.............. Mobile.............. New Orleans.. American. No. Tons. 3 1.738 4 2,094 5 4,410 15 12,448 Foreign. No. Tons. 174 i i 188 t 666 2 948 Total............ 27 21,690 Making the full total............... Of which were Am erican.. . . 5 From Charleston................. Savannah................... ___ H avana................... England.................... ___ American. No. Tons. 2 1,202 1,182 2 904 2 930 2 Total................. ___ 1,976 ................... 35 “ 4,218 8 24,928 “ Cotton appears to be the principal article imported. Its amount in 1857 was as stated below. The quantity of this and other articles is given in poods. A pood equals thirty-six pounds. From New Orleans.. M o b i l e .............. B o s t o n ............... T o ta l. Am. vessels. For. vess. Am. vessels. From 589,916 177,327 14,076 85,398 Charleston. 25,907 Savannah . 105 New York. 731,318 61,410 . 56,070 53,443 30,166 139,679 T o ta l.. Making, as the aggregate in American vessels, 870,597 poods, and in foreign, 61,410— total, 932,007. The sugar imported amounted to 70,550 poods, and all in American vessels; of which 3,204 poods were from Boston, and 67,346 from Havana. The other imports were as follows:— In American vessels from New York. Boston. L o g w o o d ............................poods Fustic..................................... S a p a n w u o d .................................. Lignum vitse.................................. M a h o g a n y .......................... .. Dye wood extract................ Sarsaparilla.................................. R ice................................................... C ar w h e e ls ................................... M achinery........................... cases Su ndries...................... packages 44,362 2,773 1,575 .... . . . . 5,695 1,148 53,109 . . . . 1,260 2,085 7,058 444 1,586 . . . . . . . . 3,200 8 26 4,336 16 3 In foreign Total from U. States. In American In all vessels from vessels. N. Y ork. Boston. vessels. 7,059 1,203 .... . . . . . . . . 8.126 551 1,328 1,388 65 7 6,456 .... 2,550 628 224 289 1,172 400 1,479 14 4 *94.882 *108,397 2,773 3,976 2,885 5,385 2,085 2,713 7,058 7,282 6,139 14,554 2,734 4,457 f4,054 ■j-5,782 7,536 10,403 24 103 28 39 To the foregoing1 are to be added— 1st, in foreign vessels, 630 poods Limawood from New York, 651 poods furniture wood from Boston, and 304 barrels rosin. 2d, in American vessels, 1,106,276 cigars, 1 package sweetmeats from Havana, 53 poods indigo from Boston, and 3 bags pecan nuts from Mobile. PRICES OF WESTERN PRODUCTS IN CINCINNATI IN 1856-57. W e compile from the annual statement of the trade and commerce of Cincin nati, for the commercial year ending August 31,1857, as reported to the Chamber * The total of logwood includes 311 poods from Charleston, in American vessels, t The total of rice includes 4,1)54 poods from Charleston, in American vessels. 217 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. of Commerce of that city by W illiam S mith, Esq., Superintendent of the Mer chants’ Exchange, the prices of various articles of Western production in the Cincinnati market, for the year ending as above stated. These tables will be found valuable for future reference, and each year furnish a valuable history of prices:— P ork, L ard , B acon, etc.— The following table shows the price of the various articles specified, at the close of each week, during the year ending August 31st, Months. September 3 ........... 10........... ___ 17........... ___ 24........... October 1 ______ 8 ........... 15........... 22........... ___ 29........... November 5 .......... 12 ........... ___ 19.......... ___ 26........... December 3 ........... ___ 10........... ___ 17........... ___ 24........... 31........... ___ January 7 ........... ___ 14........... 21........... 28........... ___ 4 ........... ___ February 11........... 18........... ___ 25........... ___ March 4 ........... ___ 11........... 18........... 25........ ___ 1........... April 8 ........... 15........... 22........... 29........... May 6 ........... ___ 13........... ___ 20 ........... 2 7 .......... June 3 ........... 10........... ___ 17........... ___ 24........... ___ July 1 ........... 8 ........... ___ 15........... ___ 2 2 ........... ___ 29........... ___ August 5 ........... 12........... ___ 19 ........ ___ Prime Sugar Bacon, Bacon, Bulk Bulk Mess pork. bbl. lard, cur'd hams. sides. should’rs. sides. sh'ld’rs. 12 12i 18 00 12 124 si 12 18 00 84 124 94 1 24 18 75 74 64 84 134 74 13 13 18 00 m Hi 74 Hi 15 50 10* 15 00 10 94 15 00 15 75 16 00 16 75 17 00 lo j 10f 10f 101 li n 114 114 IS 00 18 60 18 50 19 50 20 00 21 50 22 00 22 75 23 00 23 00 23 00 22 23 23 23 60 00 00 00 24 00 24 00 ii* iif H i 12 134 134 134 13* 134 134 134 134 134 It 14 14 H i 144 H* ... 14 ... . •. 144 ... H* H* ... Hi 15 12 Hf 94 94 94 94 94 94 124 104 124 124 124 124 124 11 114 11 124 124 124 124 124 124 124 134 134 134 134 134 134 134 134 134 14 Hi 15 1 04 11 104 104 104 11 114 12 124 124 12 74 8 8 84 84 84 84 9 94 94 94 9 9 84 84 84 9 94 10 104 104 7 74 74 8 8 84 84 84 84 84 84 84 94 94 9f 94 94 94 94 94 94 94 10 104 104 114 114 11 11 11 11 11 114 124 124 124 124 10 10 10 10 94 10 124 104 114 13 134 14 14 io i 11 12 12 12 • .. ... ... 124 54 54 64 64 6* 7 7 74 74 74 74 74 8 8 81 84 8 8 74 74 74 74 8 84 9 94 9* 9 9 84 84 9 10 10 ioi ... 218 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. S tar C andles.— The following table shows the prices of star candles, at the close o f each week, during the year Sept. 3 . . . . Dec. 3 ........... 1 0 ........... 1 0 ___ . . 25 17___ . . 26 17........... 24___ 2 4 ........... Oct. 1 ___ . . 26 31........... 8 ___ . . 26 Jan. 7 ........... 13___ . . 26 14........... 99 . . 26 2 1 ........... 2 9 ___ . . 26 28........... Nov. 5 . . . . . . 26 1 1 ........... 1 2 ___ . . 26 1 9 . . . . . . 26 18 .......... 26 ___ . . 26 25 ........... ending August 31, 1857 :— June 3 ........... 26 Mar. 4 ........ . 28 11 . 28 1 0 ........... 26 24 18........ ,. 28 17.......... 24........... 24 2 5 .. ..,. 28 April 1........ .. 28 July 1 ........... 24 8 ........... 24 8 ........ 15........... 26 15........ ,. 28 2 2 ........... 26 2 2 ........ .. 28 2 9 ... .. 28 29........... 26 ,. 28 26 26 ° 1 2 ........... 1 3 .., ,. 28 19........... 26 2 0 ____ . . 28 26........... 28 27 ____ . . 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 T allow Candles.— The following shows the price o f tallow candles :— Sept. 3 ___ 10___ 17___ 24___ Oct. 1 . . . . 8 ___ 15___ 2 2 ___ 29___ Nov. 5 . . . . 1 2 ___ 19___ 2 6 .... .. .. .. .. 13 13 14 14 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 Dec. 3 ........... 1 0 ........... 17........... 24........... 31........... Jan. 7 ........... 14........... 2 1 ........... 28........... Feb. 4 ........... 11........... 18........... 25........... 13 13 13 13 13 13 14 14 14 14 14 14 15 Mar. 4 . __ 1 1 ___ 18 .. 25 .. . . April 1___ 8 ___ 15___ 22 . . . . 2 9 ___ May 6 ___ 13 . . . . . 2 0 ___ . . 27 ----- . . 15 15 15 15 15 June 3 ........... 1 0 .......... 17.......... , 24.......... . July 1 .......... 8 .......... . 15.......... . 2 2 .......... 2 9 .......... . Aug. 5 _____ 12.......... . 19........ .. 26.......... 15 15 15 15 15 15 16 15 15 15 15 15 15 B d t t e r . — The following table shows the price of prime butter, in Cincinnati market, each Week during the year ending August 31,1857. In summer the quotation refers to prime in barrels and firkins, and in winter to prime r o ll:— Sept. 3 . . . . June 3 . . . . . . 20 Dec. 3 . . . . . 22 Mar. 4 . . . . . . 18 10___ .. 14 10___ .. 18 10___ . . 24 11___ 17___ .. 18 17 . .. 14 1 8 .... 17 ----- . . 24 24 ___ . . 14 24 ___ 2 4 ___ .. 22 25___ . . 21 15 Oct. 1 ___ .. 16 April 1 . . . . July 1 . . . 31___ .. 20 8 . .. .. 16 8 ___ . . 22 Jan. 7 ____ . . 20 23 8 . . . .. 15___ . . 16 15 . . . . . . 22 14 ___ 15 ___ . . 25 22___ . . 15 22 ___ .. 20 21 ___ .. 19 22 ___ 29___ .. 15 29 ___ 28___ . . 19 29___ .. 24 Aug. 5 ----- .. 15 Nov. 5 . . . . Feb. 4 . . . . .. 19 May 6 ___ . . 22 a ___ . . 19 12 ___ .. 16 12 ___ . . 20 13 ___ .. 24 19___ 18 ___ . . 19 20 ___ . . 20 1 9 . . . . . . 16 26 ___ . . 22 25 ___ . . 19 2 6 ___ .. 17 27 ___ . . 25 C heese.— The following table shows the price of Western Reserve cheese, in Cincinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending August 31, 1857 M ar. 4 . . . . . . 1 1 } June 3 . . . . .. 9 } S e p t. 8 . . . . Dec. 3 . . . . .. 1 0 } 1 0 ____ .. 1 0 ___ .. 9 1 0 . . . . .. 1 0 } n . . . . . .. 1 1 } 9f 17 . . . . .. 1 7 ____ . . 10.V 1 8 ____ . .. 1 H 1 7 ____ .. 8$ 9^ 2 4 ____ 2 5 ___ 2 4 ___ .. 8} 24___ .. .. 1 0 } ... h i J u ly 1 ----.. 8} 3 1 ___ .. 11 A p r il 1 . . . . . . i i } Oct. 1___ .. 9| 8 . . . . .. 8 . .. . . . i n 8} 8 ___ . .. 9} Jan. 7 . . . . 1 5 ___ . . 9 15 .. . .. i i } 1 5 ..., 1 4 . . . , . . . 11 99 22 . . . . . . 8 2 1 ___ 2 2 . . . . . . 12 . . . 11 ... 9 } 2 9 . . . , . . . 10 2 9 ____ .. 2 9 . .. . . 11 8} 2 8 . .. . . . 11 A u g . 5 ___ .. M ay 6 . . . . . . 1 0 } 8} N o v . 7 . . . . . . 10 Feb. 4 . . . . . . 11 1 2 ___ .. 9} 1 1 . . . . . . 11 1 3 ... ... 10} 1 2 ___ . . . 10 2 0 ... ... 10} 1 9 ___ . . 9 1 9 ___ I S . .. . . . 1 1 } 2 6 ___ . . 9} 2 6 ... 25... . .. 1 1 } 2 7 . . . . . . 10 n 219 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. B eef Cattle.— The following table shows the price of prime beef cattle, per cwt., gross, in Cineinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending August 31, L, l1857 Ui :—• Mar. 4 . . . . 5 00 3 75 June 3 . . . . 5 75 Sept. 3 . . . . 4 00 Dec. 3 . . . . 10___ 3 70 11___ 5 25 1 0 . . . . 5 501 0 ... . 4 00 5 25 5 50 18___ 17. . . 1 7 . . . . 3 75 1 7 ... . 4 00 Oct. 24-. . . 1. . . . . . . . 8 1 5 ... 2 2 ... 2 9 ... Nov. 5 . . . 1 2 ... 1 9 .. . 26 . . . . . . 00 75 60 50 50 75 50 75 70 75 24___ 31___ Jan. 7 ___ 14 _____ 21___ . 28 _____ 3 75 4 00 4 00 4 00 4 00 4 00 4 00 4 25 4 25 4 50 25___ April 1___ 8 ___ 15___ 22 _____ 29 _____ May 6 . . . . 13___ 2 0 _____ 27 _____ 5 5 5 5 5 6 5 5 5 6 50 25 00 50 70 00 75 75 75 75 6 70 10___ 17___ 24___ 31___ Jan. 7 ___ 14___ 21___ 28___ Feb. 4 ___ 1 1 ___ 18___ 25___ 5 35 5 35 5 35 5 25 5 00 5 30 5 40 5 60 5 80 5 40 5 25 5 25 11___ 18___ 2 5 ___ April 1 ___ 8 ___ 15___ 22___ 29___ May 6 . . . . 13___ 2 0 ___ 27___ 5 6 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 15 05 10 00 00 05 30 10 25 75 00 00 4 3 3 3 3 2 4 .. . July 1 . . . 8 . . . 1 5 ... 2 2 ... 29. . . Aug. 5 . . . 1 2 ... 5 00 5 00 4 50 00 5 00 5 00 5 50 5 00 4 50 4 50 3 3 Feb. 4 . . . . 11 _____ . 3 18 _____ 19. .. . 3 25 _____ 2 6 ... . 3 F lour.— The following table shows the price of superfine flour, in Cincinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending August 31,1857 :— June 3 . . . . 7 50 Sept. 3 . . . . 5 70 Dec. 3 . . . . 5 35 Mar. 4 . . . . 5 25 . . 10___ 1 7 .... 2 4 ___ Oct. 1___ 8 ___ 15___ 22___ 2 9 ___ Nov. 5 . . . . 12___ 19___ 26___ 5 85 5 60 6 00 5 75 5 75 5 90 5 80 5 50 5 25 5 00 5 20 10___ 1 7 .... 24___ July 1 ----8 ___ 15___ 22___ 29___ Aug. 5 . . . . 12___ 19___ 26___ 7 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 00 60 50 50 25 50 50 50 60 6 10 5 50 5 00 W heat, P rime R ed .— The following table shows the price of prime red wheat, in Cincinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending August 31, 1857 Sept. 3 . . . . 1 12 Dec. 3 . . . . 1 1 10___ 1 12 10___ 1 17 . . . 1 15 17___ 24___ 1 15 24___ 1 Oct. 1 ___ 1 15 31___ 1 8 . . . . 1 15 Jan. 7 . . . . 1 15___ 1 16 14___ 1 2 2 . ; . . 1 18 21 ___ 1 29___ 1 18 2 8 .... 1 Nov. 5 . . . . 1 18 Feb. 4 . . . . 1 1 2 . . . . 1 10 1 1 .... 1 19___ 1 06 1 8 .... 1 1 1 05 2 5 .... 26___ R ye.— The following table shows 10 Mar. 4 . . . . 11___ 10 12 18___ 12 25___ 14 April 1___ 13 3 ___ 14 15___ 14 22___ 16 29___ 16 May 6 . . . . 16 13___ 16 20___ 12 2 7 ___ the price o f rye, in 1 60 1 15 June 3 . . . . 1 0 . . . . 1 40 1 12 1 40 1 10 17___ 1 30 24___ 1 10 July 1 . . . . 1 30 1 08 8 . . . . 1 30 1 07 1 25 15___ 1 08 2 2 .., 1 30 1 13 2 9 . ! ! . 1 25 1 20 1 26 Aug. 5 . . . . 1 30 1 2 . . . . 1 10 1 40 1 00 1 50 19___ 1 00 26___ 1 60 Cincinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending August 31,1857 :— Sept. 3 ___ 10___ 17___ 24 ___ Oct. 1___ 8 ___ 1 5 .... 22___ 2 9 ___ Nov. 5 . . . . 12___ 19___ 26 . . . 83 77 75 78 78 78 78 75 77 80 80 80 80 Dec. 3 . . . . 10----1 7 .... 24 ___ 31___ Jan. 1 . . . . 14___ 2 1 .... 28___ Feb. 4 . . . . 1 1 .... 1 8 .... 25___ 78 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 83 Mar. 4 . . . . 1 1 .... 1 8 .... 2 5 .... April 1 . . . . 8 .. 1 5 .... 2 2 ___ 29___ May 6 ___ 1 3 .... 2 0 .... 27___ 1 1 1 1 1 86 87 86 86 85 85 86 90 00 25 30 35 37 June 3 . . . . 10___ 1 7 .... 24___ July 1 ___ 8 ___ 15___ 2 2 .... 29___ Aug. 5 . . . . 1 2 .... 1 9 .... 26___ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 25 00 15 00 95 95 03 00 15 15 15 90 70 220 S ta tis tic s o f T r a d e a n d C om m erce. H arley .—-The following table shows the price o f prime barley, in Cincinnati market, at the close of each week during the year ending Aug ust 31,1857 --Sept. 8 __ _ 1 74 June 3 . . . . 1 95 1 58 Dec. 3. . . 1 50 Mar. 4 ___ 1 95 10___ 10___ 1 74 11___ 1 53 10 . . 1 50 2 05 1 7 . . . . 1 60 17___ 18___ 1 52 17. . . 1 50 2 00 24___ 24___ 1 60 25___ 1 63 24. . . 1 60 Oct. 1 . . . . 1 60 July 1 . . . . 1 53 April 1___ 31. . . 1 60 8 ___ 8 ___ .... 1 50 8 ___ 1 60 Jan. 7. . . 1 60 15___ 15___ 15___ 1 60 1 60 14. . . 1 60 22___ 22___ .... 1 63 1 50 21. . . 1 50 22___ 29___ .... 2 9 .... 2 9 .... 1 75 1 50 28. . . 1 60 Nov. 5 . . . . Aug. 5 . . . . 1 80 1 55 Feb. 4 . . 1 58 May 6 . . . . 1 00 12___ 12___ 13___ 1 80 1 50 i i . . . 1 55 80 19___ 19___ 20___ 1 80 1 50 18. . . 1 68 80 26___ 2 6 ----1 85 1 50 25. . . 1 58 27___ 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 I I 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 O ats .— T he following table shows the price o f oats, in Cincinnati market, at the close o f each week during the year ending A ugust 31,1857 :— Sept. 3 ___ . 38 June 3 ........ . 63 Dec. 3. Mar. 4 . . . . . . 44 10........ . 38 1 0 . . . . . 53 10. 11___ 17........ 18___ 17 . . . . 45 17. . . . . 41 24........ . 39 24........ . 50 24. ___ 42 25___ Oct. 1......... . 39 July 1 . . . . . 55 31. ___ 45 April 1 ___ . . 48 8 ........ 8 ___ . 60 8 ___ . . 52 Jan. 7. ___ 43 15......... . 39 1 5 . . . . . 49 14 ___ 44 15___ . . 54 22......... . 39 22___ . 51 21. ___ 44 2 2 ___ . . 51 2 9 ........ . 39 2 9 ----- . 60 29___ . . 52 28. . . . . 44 Nov. 5 ........ . 39 Aug. 5 . . . . . 60 Feb. 4. . . . . 44* May 6 ___ . . 64 12........ . 40 12___ . 70 i i . ........ 44* 13___ 19......... . 39 19 ___ . 35 18. ........ 44* 20___ 26___ 26......... . 40 25. ___ 44 2 7 . . . . . . 70 Jt W hisky , P roof.— T he following table shows the price o f proof whisky, in Cincinnati market, at the close o f each week during the year ending August 31, 1857 Sept. 3 ......... . 26* Mar. 4 . . . June 3 . . . . . 33 Dec. 3. ........ 25* 10___ . 30* 10........ 10. 1 1 ... . . 23* 1 8 ... 1 7 . . . . . 28* 17........ . 27* 17. .........22* 24......... . 29* 24___ . 27* 24. .........23* 2 5 . . . . . 23* Oct. 1........ July 1 . . . . . . 26 31. ........ 22* April 1 . . . 8 ___ . 25 8 ........ . 30 8 . . . . . 22| Jan. 7. .........20* 15___ . . 2 6 15........ . 29 14. 1 6 ... 22___ . . 25* 22......... . 28 21. ........ 23* 2 2 ... 29......... . 27* 29___ . 26 28. 2 9 ... Nov. 5 ........ . 26* Feb. 4. ........ 22* Aug. 5 . . . . . . 25 May 6 . . . 12___ . . 25* 12........ . 26 11. .........24 1 3 ... 19___ . . 25 18. 19........ . 24* 2 0 ... 26......... . 24 26___ .. 23 25. . . . . 23 2 7 . . . . . 31 A lcohol •— The following table shows the price o f alcohol, 76 per cent over proof, iu Cincinnati market, at the close o f each week during the year ending 1 August 31,1857 ■ 1 1 Sept, 3 ___ 10........ 17........ 24___ Oct. 1 . . . . 8 ___ 15 ___ 22___ 2 9 ___ Nov. 5 . . . . 12 ___ 19 ___ 26___ I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ■ ■ ■ . 53 . 55 . 58 . 60 . 58 . 56 . 53* . 52 . 49 Dec. 3. 10. .........50 17. .........45 24. 31. Jan. 7. .........41 14. 21. .........47 28. .........45 Feb. 4. 1 1 . ........ 48 18. 25. ........ 46 Mar. 4 . . . 1 1 ... 1 8 ... 2 5 ... April 1 . . . . . 46* 8 . . . . . . 45* 1 5 ... 2 2 . . . . . . 46 2 9 ... May 6 . . . 1 3 ... . . . 6 0 2 0 ... 2 7 ... June 3 . . . . .. 10___ . . 1 7 . . . . .. 24 ___ . . July 1 . . . . . . 8 ___ . . 15 ___ . . 2 2 ___ 29___ Aug. 5 ___ 12___ 19___ 2 6 .... 62 61 57 55 52 50 52 50* 52 50 50* 50 .. .. .. .. .. . . 46 | I I 1 | 1 I I 1 I I [ 1 ' 1 )► Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. 221 H at .— The following table shows the price o f prime timothy hay, in bales, at the wharves and railway depots in Cincinnati, at the close o f each week during the year ending August C ^ 31,1857 ’ * :— Sept. 3 . . . . . . $22 Mar. 4. ........ $20 June 3 ........ .. $24 Dec. 3 ........ . $24 1 0 ... . . . 22 10......... . 21 11. ___ 20 10........ 1 7 .... . . . 22 18. ......... 20 17......... . 21 17........ 2 4 ... . . . . 24 25. 24......... . 18 24........ Oct. 1 . . . . . . . 24 April 1. ........ 22 July 1........ 31........ . 10 8 .... . . . 8. ......... 21 8 ........ .. 18 25 Jan. 1 . . . . . . 18 1 5 .... . . . 25 14........ 15. ........ 22 15........ 2 2 ... . . . . 25 22........ 21........ 22. ......... 22 2 9 ... 29........ ,. 18 28......... . 20 29. ......... 24 Nov. 5 . . , . . . . 23 May 6. ........ Aug. 5 ........ .. 18 25 Feb. 4 ......... 12........ ,. 16 11......... 13. 1 2 ...___ 24 1 9 ..., . . . 19........ 1 8 ... . . 20 20. ......... 26 24 2 6 .... . . . 24 26____ .. 18 27. ......... 27 25 ........ . 20 H emp .-—The following shows the price o f prime dew-rotted hemp, in Cincinnati market, at the close o f each week during the year ending A ug ust 31,1857 :— Sept. 3 . . . . . . $170 Mar. 4. ___ $170 Dec. 3 ......... $180 June 3 ........ , $150 10 ... . . 170 10......... 180 11. ___ 10____ . 150 165 18. . . . . 1 7 .... . . 170 185 160 17........ 17____ . 145 24......... 185 25. ___ 160 24 ........ . 145 2 4 .... . . 170 April 1. ___ 31......... 185 160 Oct. 1 . . . . . . 180 145 July 1........ 8 .... . . 8. ___ 155 8 ____ . 150 180 Jan. 7 ......... 185 14......... 185 15. ___ 1 5 .... . . 180 155 15____ . 150 21 ......... 185 22. ___ 150 2 2 .... . . 175 22........ . 150 28......... 185 29. 2 9 .... . . 175 29____ . 150 Nov. 5 . . . . . . 175 Feb. 4 ......... 180 May 6. Aug. 5 . . . . . 150 180 13. ___ 150 1 2 .... . . 175 1 1 ........ 12........ . 150 18......... 175 145 1 9 .... . . 180 20. ___ 19____ . 150 2 6 ..,. . . 25 ......... 175 27. ___ 145 26___ . 150 180 Oak B ark.— This article is chiefly brought down the river to Cincinnati in flat-boats, and is sold by the cord. The following table shows the price of prime tanners’ bark, per cord, durin g the year ending August 31, 1857 :— Dec. 3. . . 14 00 Mar. 4 . . . . 12 50 June 3 . . . . 13 50 Sept. 3 __ . 14 50 10. . . 12 50 11___ 13 50 10___ 13 50 1 0 ... . 14 50 18 . . . 13 00 17. . . 12 00 1 7 ... . 14 50 1 7 . . . . 13 00 24. . . 12 00 24 . . . 14 50 25___ 13 00 24___ 13 25 April 1___ 13 00 J uly 1__ _ 12 50 31. . . 12 00 Oct. 1 . . . . 15 00 Jan. 7. . . 12 00 8 . . . 13 00 8 ___ 11 25 8 . . . . 15 60 14. . . 12 00 15___ 13 00 15___ 11 25 1 5 ... . 15 50 21 . . 12 00 22___ 13 00 22___ 11 25 2 2 . . . . 15 50 28. . . 12 00 29 ___ 13 50 29___ 11 25 2 9 . . . . 15 50 Feb. 4. . . 12 00 May 6 ___ 13 50 Aug. 5 . . . . 11 25 Nov. 5 . . . . 15 50 11. . . 12 00 13___ 13 50 1 2 ... . 15 50 12___ 11 25 18. . . 12 00 20___ 13 50 19___ 11 25 1 9 ... . 14 00 25. . . 12 00 2 6 . . . . 11 25 2 6 . . . . 14 00 27___ 13 60 F laxseed .—-The following table shows the price of flaxseed, at the close o f each week during the year ending A ugust 31, 1857 .... Mar. 4 ___ Dec. 3. . . 1 80 June 3 . . . . Sept. 3 . . . . 1 65 1 0 .. . . 1 80 11___ 1 80 10....... 1 0 ... . 1 76 18___ 1 80 17. . . 1 80 17 . . . 1 7 ... . 1 80 24. . . 1 80 2 5 . . . , 1 80 2 4 .... 2 4 ... . 1 80 April 1 . . . . 31. . . 1 75 July 1----Oct. 1 . . . . 1 80 8 ___ Jan. 7. . . 1 75 8 .... 8 . . . . 1 80 15___ 14. . . 1 75 1 6 .... 1 5 ... . 1 85 22___ 21. . . 1 70 22___ 2 2 . . . . 1 85 29 . . . 28. . . 1 75 2 9 ...; 2 9 . . . . 1 85 May 6 . . . . Feb. 4. . . 1 80 Aug. 5 . . . . Nov. 5 . . . . 1 85 13___ 11. . . 1 80 1 2 . . . . 1 20 1 2 ... . 1 85 20___ 18. •• •••• 1 9 ... . 1 85 1 9 . . . . 1 20 25. ................ 2 7 .... 2 6 . . . . 1 20 2 6 ... . 1 85 222 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. L tnseed Oil ., at the close of each week during the year ending August 31,1857 Sept. 8 10 17 . . . . 24 Oct. 1.... 8 15 . . . . 22 . . . . 29 Nov. 5 12 19 26 . . . . I 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 05 05 05 02 00 00 00 05 05 1 05 99 99 1 00 Dec. 3 . . . . 10___ 17 ----24___ 31___ Jan. 7 . . . . 1 4 .... 21 ___ 2 8 ___ Feb. 4 . . . . i i ___ 18___ 25___ 95 95 97 97 96 96 95 95 95 95 95 98 1 00 Mar. 4 . . . . 1 1 ... . 1 8 ... . 2 5 ... . April 1__ . 8 . .. . 1 5 ... . 2 2 ... . 2 9 ... . May 6 . . . . 13 .. . 2 0 . .. . 2 7 ... 98 98 98 96 97 96 91 92 96 92 90 91 June 3 . . . . 10___ 17___ 24___ July 1 . . . . 8 .... 15___ 22___ 29___ Aug. 5 ___ 12___ 19___ 2 6 ___ 90 92 85 82 82 84 87* 87* 87* 85 85 82 80 TRADE AND COMMERCE OF ST. LOUIS IN 1S57, W e are indebted to W . B. B aker, E.'q., reporter of the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce, and Secretary to the Chamber, for an official copy of the annual statement of the trade and commerce of St. Louis for the year ending December 31,1857. as compared with several previous years. It is, as usual, quite elaborate, and covers some fifty closely priuted pages, large octavo. W e give a summary of some of the leading items, and shall endeavor in a future number of the Ma gazine to present other equally interesting and important details :— T obacco. The entire receipts of leaf and manufactured, during the year and the four preceding years, compare as follows : — H h d s ................... ___ Boxes................... 1857. 1856. 18§5. 1854. 1853. 5,563 7,456 8,182 7,424 5,195 9,907 5,818 10,445 6,450 The receipts of manufactured do not include those from New Orleans and the Ohio River. There was a large increase in the amount manufactured last year, particularly in the city, and the business was generally remunerative, though manufacturers are still holding considerable stock. The financial troubles in September almost entirely checked the demand, and business since has been unusually limited, but as the supplies in the hands of dealers are very low, it is likely that manufac turers will yet be able to work off the stocks on hand at or near present rates. The business of stripping fell far short of last year, being less than COO hogs heads, against about 800 hogsheads of the year before, of which 2 0 0 hogsheads were taken here by a speculator at about §18 per 1 0 0 lbs.— a very remunerative rate. In this State, the last crop which is to come forward in the ensuing year, is said to be of better quality than any of the past four or five years ; being heavy and fully matured, it will, therefore, be better adapted to the purposes of strippers and shippers than of manufacturers. It was secured without damage by frost or otherwise, though a small portion of the late cutting is understood to have been injured by freezing after housing. In quantity, the crop is estimated to be in ex cess of that of last year, about 2 ,0 0 0 hhds. In Kentucky and Tennessee the crops are said to be a full average in quantity, and of fine qualities. In Virginia the crop is estimated to be 10,000 hogsheads short of an average, and only fair in quality. The estimated yield is 45,000 hogsheads. H emp. The market in the past two weeks of December, 1857, has continued very quiet, with only an occasional sale to city spinners and for the supply of orders, and the price has remained unchanged— fair and good undressed selling at §75 a 80. and prime at $85 per ton. N o recent sale of dressed, and the price is nominal. The stocks in the warehouses at close comprise 5,318 bales, part of 223 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. which is held by manufacturers, and a considerable part of that in first hands is held out of the market. The receipts by all conveyances in the past five years compare as follows :— 1857. Bales............................. 1856. 81,369 63,075 1855. 1851. 93,244 73,825 1853. 63,794 As the financial panic checked business in the early part of the fall, and arrested the receipts, a large quantity oi the old crop is still held in the interior, the amount of which is variously estimated from 15,000 to 25,000 bales. The quantity of hemp consumed by the manufacturers of this city in the past year compares with previous years as follows 1857. Tons............................. 1856. 6,944 1855. 5,600 6,200 1854. 1853. 2,300 1,040 L ead . During the past two weeks there has been scarcely any demand, until within the past three days, when a few small lots Missouri were taken at §4 75 a $4 80. Galena is held at $5, but finds no buyers, and the market closes dull for all kinds. The receipts by all modes of conveyance compare as follows in the past five years:— 1857. Pigs............................... 1856. 203,129 1855. 222,050 325,948 1854. 1853. 323,943 455,960 The consumption of the city in the past five years has been as follows :— 1857. Pigs............................... 1856. 182,000 1855. 150,000 183,500 1854. 195,000 1853. 105,000 The stock in first hands at the close, as correctly ascertained, was in round numbers 30,000 pigs, against 13,500 pigs at the close of 1850. A considerable amount of Missouri lead does not enter into the above statistics, as it was sold deliverable at shipping points below, and mostly taken for manu facturing on the Ohio. The mineral lands of Missouri are now attracting much attention, and from the large increase of population, and the richness of the lead mines in the south eastern and southwestern counties of the State, we may reasonably expect a large increase in the production of this metal. W heat. The aggregate receipts by boats, railroads, and wagons in the past four years compare as follows :— Bushels..................................... 1857. 1856. 1855. 1854. 3,330,395 4,066,070 3,921,642 2,317,622 C orn. During December, 1857, the receipts of new were moderate, and in the early part, mixed and yellow ranged at 32 a 35c., and white at 36 a 40c.. but in the past two weeks the market has been extremely dull, with a limited business at 32 a 35c. per bushel for round lots mixed, and yellow, and 35 a 37c. for good and prime white, including gunnies, which were the market limits at the close. Receipts of the past four years, exclusive of wagons, have been as follows Bushels..................................... 1857. 1856. 1855. 1854. 2,766,062 1,295,430 2,980,295 1,764,010 The late crop was large in the West and South, but on account of the lateness of the spring it failed to become matured, and in consequence it is estimated that in large portions of the Western States, from one-third to one-half of the crop is damaged and will be entirely unmerchantable. H ogs. The packing season was very late in commencing last fall, owing to the financial convulsions which upset all the arrangements and cumulations of dealers, the lateness of the corn crop, and the tardiness manifested on the part of drovers and feeders in accepting the prices offered. Contracts were made during July, August, and beginning of September, embracing some 8.000 or 10,000 head for early delivery at 36 50 per 100 lbs., but while the panic raged in Sep tember and October, no packers were in the market. In November, some of the packers entered the market at 34 50, for heavy lots for early delivery, but it was 224 Statistics o f Trade and Commerce. not until toward the close of the month that sellers would accept the terms offered, when a few hundred head were sold a t . $4 50 a $5, averaging 200 lbs. and over. The demand increased in December, but the firmness of holders caused the market to drag heavily. A s the month advanced, feeders have brought in their stock more freely, and the market has ruled steadily at $4 25 a $4 50 for light, and $4 50 a §4 75 for heavy hogs, though at the close only very heavy lots would command the outside figures. The number cut to this date is about 55,000 head, against 53,000 head to same date last year. P rovisions. The receipts of provisions and lard in the past four years were as follows :— Beef............... “ ............... P e r k ............... “ .......................... “ ............. It B ico n .............. “ ............... “ ............. Lard............... “ .......................... “ .......................... S ugar a n d Molasses. 1856. 177 8,134 9,963 109,215 1,017 590,772 14,156 680 8,153 29,868 29,674 10,155 219 1,234 14,570 96,504 2,983 849,229 23,072 2,917 36,793 37,872 51,544 17,692 1855. 3,232 18,387 14,868 73,346 26 949,606 16,014 1,917 16,107 35,675 63,452 14,333 1854. 1,586 3,978 11,261 70,628 1,848 471,609 9,602 492 24,134 18,612 44,062 12,028 Beceipts of the past four years were as follows :— S u g a r ............ “ ............ M ola sses. . . . ................................... bbls. W hisky. 1857. 1857. 1856. 1855. 1854. 41,437 13,513 57,176 65,500 37,968 61,174 58,904 20,262 50,021 60,701 14,461 62,575 The following comprise the receipts and supplies in the past five years :— 1 8 5 7 ............... 1 8 5 6 .............. 1 8 5 5 ............... 1 8 5 4 ............... 1 8 5 3 ............... Ecceipts. 151,804 123,977 S2.077 84,230 73,417 Manufactured. 10,000 18,500 14,800 21,020 17,800 Total. 161,804 142,477 96,877 105,250 91,217 F lour. During the latter part of the month, country superfine continued dull and drooping with no shipping demand, and a very limited business in supplying orders, and prices in the past week have ranged as follows:— Low grade and good superfine, from $$3 50 to $3 75 ; low grade and good extra, from $4 to $4 75 ; and choice extra, from §5 to §5 25. City superfine, although in small supply, has also declined, and the closing rates for round lots to shippers, were §3 90 a $54 per bbl. in currency. For city extra the demand is quite limited, and the price may be quoted as ranging from §5 50 to $56 50 per bbl. as in quality. There wa3 no stock of flour of consequence on baud at the close. The aggregate receipts per boats, railroad, and wagons, and the quantity manu factured by the city mills in the past five years, are as follows :—• 1857................................................ 1S56................................................ 1855................................................ 1854................................................ 1853................................................ Receipts. Manufactured. Total. 657,646 484,109 426,721 288,601 289,585 663,509 648,188 589,958 503,157 449,746 1,221,155 1,132,297 1,016,679 791,758 739,331 H ides. W ith very small supplies in the past week the market has been steady, regular buyers taking all received at 8 4 a 9c., as iu quality. Green salt at close were quoted at 4 a 4£c. per lb. Beceipts of the past year amount to 154,516, against 126,349 in 1856, and 122,550 in 1855. 225 Commercial Regulations. COMM ERCIAL REGULATIONS. SOUND DUES TREATY BETWEEN DENMARK AND THE UNITED STATES, C O N V E N T IO N DENM ARK, IN G T O N , BETW EEN FOR THE THE 11th THE U N IT E D STATES D IS C O N T IN U A N C E DAY OF A P R IL , OF AND T IIE H IS M A JE STY , SOUN D DUES ; THE DONE K IN O AT OF W ASH 1857. The United States of America and his Majesty, the King of Denmark, being desirous to terminate amicably the differences which have arisen between them in regard to the tolls levied by Denmark on American vessels and their cargoes passing through the Sound and Belts, and commonly called Sound dues, have resolved to conclude a convention for that purpose, and have named as their plenipotentiaries, that is to say, the President of the United States, Lewis Cass, Secretary of State of the United States, and hi3 Majesty, the King of Denmark, Torben Bille, Esq., Knight of the Dannebrog, and decorated with the cross of honor of the same order, his said Majesty’s Charge d’Affairs near the government of the United States, who, after having communicated to each other their full powers in due form, have agreed to and signed the following articles :— A rt. 1. His Majesty, the King of Denmark, declares entire freedom of the navigation of the Sound and the Belts, in favor of American vessels and their cargoes, from and forever after the day when this convention shall go into effect, as hereinafter provided. And it is hereby agreed that American vessels and their cargoes, after that day, shall not be subject to any charge what ever in passing the Sound or Belts, or to any detention in the said waters ; and both governments will concur, if occasion should require it, in taking measures to prevent abuse of the free flag of the United States, by the shipping of other nations, which shall not have secured the same freedom and exemption from charges enjoyed by that of the United States. A rt. 2. His Danish Majesty further engages, that the passage of the Sound and Belts shall continue to be lighted and buoyed as heretofore, without any charge upon American vessels or their cargoes on passing the Sound and the Belts, and that the present establishments of Danish pilots in these waters shall continue to be meintained by Denmark. His Danish Majesty agrees to make such additions and improvements in regard to the lights, buoys, and pilot esta blishments in these waters as circumstances and the increasing trade of the Baltic may require. He further engages that no charge shall be made in consequence of such additions and improvements on American ships and their cargoes, passing through the Sound and the Belts. It is understood, however, to be optional for the masters of American vessels either to employ in the said waters Danish pilots, at reasonable rates fixed by the Danish government, or to navigate their vessels without such assistance. A rt. 3. In consideration of the foregoing agreements and stipulations on the part of Denmark, whereby the free and unencumbered navigation of American vessels through the Sound and the Belts is forever secured, the United States agree to pay to the government of Denmark, once for all, the sum of seven hun dred and seventeen thousand eight hundred and twenty-nine rix dollars, or the equivalent, three hundred and ninety-three thousand and eleven dollars in United States currency, at London, on the day when the said convention shall go into full effect, as hereafter provided. A r t . 4. It is further agreed, that any other or further privileges, rights or advantages, which may have been or may be granted by Denmark, to the com merce and navigation of any other nation at the Sound and Belts, on her coasts and in her harbors, with reference to the transit by land through Danish territory VOL. XXXVIII.----NO. II. 15 226 Commercial Regulations. of merchandise belonging to the citizens or subjects of such nation, shall also be fully extended to and enjoyed by the citizens of the United States and by their vessels aud property in that quarter. A rt. 5. The general convention of friendship, commerce, and navigation, concluded between the United States and his Majesty, the King of Denmark, on the 26th o f April. 1826, and which was abrogated on the 15th April, 1856, and the provisions contained in each and all of its articles, the fifth article alone ex cepted, shall, after ratification of this present convention, again become binding upon the United States and Denmark ; it being, however, understood that a year’s notice shall suffice for the abrogation of the stipulations of the said conven tion hereby renewed. A rt. 6. The present convention shall take effect as soon as the laws to carry it into operation shall be passed by the governments of the contracting parties, and the sum stipulated to be paid by the United States shall be received by or tendered to Denmark ; and for the fulfillment of these purposes, a period not exceeding twelve months from the signing of this convention shall bo allowed. But if, in the interval, an earlier day shall be fixed upon and carried into effect for the free navigation through the Sound and Belts, in favor of any other power or powers, the same shall simultaneously be extended to the vessels of the United States and their cargoes, in anticipation of the payment of the sum stipulated in article three; it being understood, however, that in that event the government of the United States shall also pay to that of Denmark four per cent interest on said sum, from the day the said immunity shall have gone into operation, until the principal shall have been paid as aforesaid. A rt. 7. The present convention shall be duly ratified, and the exchange of ratification shall take place in Washington, within ten months from the date hereof, or sooner if practicable. In faith, thereof, the respective plenipotentiaries have signed the present con vention, in duplicate, and have thereunto affixed their seal. Done at Washington, thi3 11th day of April, in the year of our Lord, 1857, and of the independence o f the United States the eighty-first. LEW IS C A S a TORBEN. NEW EXPORT AND IMPORT DUTIES IN JAMAICA. Our exchanges from Kingston, Jamaica, to December 28th, 1857, are chiefly occupied with the proceedings of the Legislature. The most important measures of the session relate to the finances of the colony, to the subject of immigration, and to the improvement of the main lines of communication throughout the island. The financial measures involve a considerable revolution in taxation as it has existed in the island heretofore. The hereditaments tax, which for many years has produced great discontent, has been permanently abolished. Proprietors will, for the future, instead of paying direct taxes on an assumed value of their respective estates, be required only to pay, in the shape of an export duty, on the produce they may actually export. The export duty to be levied, in lieu o f the hereditaments tax, has been fixed on the following scale 8. d. 8. d . Sugar, per hhd. of 18 cw t.............. Rum, per punch, of 96 g a lls .. . . Coffee, per tee. of 750 lbs............. Pimento, b a g ........................ 1 Woods, except mahogany, to n .. Ginger, cw t............•..................... 3 0 Beeswax........................................ 2 6 A rrow root..................... 4 0 Cocoannts, 1,000........................... 6 Mahogany, 1,000 f t ..................... 1 0 Honey, c w t .................................. 1 0 2 1 1 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 In addition to these duties on export, it has been agreed to levy the following duties, which are additional to the tariff, and which effect articles of consumption, to commence on the 19th December, 1857 :— Commercial Regulations. Soap, box of 56 lbs., each.......... Tobacco, manufactured, lb......... 8. d. 0 0 2 1 Tobacco, unmanuf., 100 lbs........ Segars, 100......................................... 227 8. d. 7 0 0 1 Duties to be levied on the undermentioned articles now in bond and imported on and after the 18th December — 8. <L 8. d. Gin, gall................... ................ 5 6 l 0 Lucifer matches, gross.............. Brandy ...................................... 0 2 l 0 Tea, lb........................................ Ale and beer, ton of 252 galls.. 20 0 Sperm & composit’n candles, box 2 0 Wine.......................................... 60 0 TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND REPUBLIC OF PERU. The President, of the United States, by proclamation of 2d Nov., 1857, made public the convention between the United States of America and the Republic o f Peru, which was concluded and signed by their respective plenipotentiaries at Lima, on 22d July, 1856. The plenipotentiary on the part of the United States was J. Randolph Clay, and on the part of Peru, J. M. Sequin. In accordance with the fifth article of the convention it was duly ratified (within eighteen months from the signature) on both parts, and the respective ratifications were exchanged in Washington on 31st Oct., 1857. The convention, omitting the fifth article, is as follows :— The United States of America and the Republic of Peru, in order to render still more intimate their relations of friendship and good understanding, and desiring, for the benefit of their respective commerce and that of other nations, to establish a uniform system of maritime legislation in time of war, in accordance with the present state of civilization, have resolved to declare, by means of a formal convention, the principles which the two republics acknowledge as the basis of the rights of neutrals at sea, and which they recognize and profess as permanent and immutable, considering them as the true and indispensable condi tions of all freedom of navigation and maritime commerce and trade. A rticle I. The two high contracting parties recognize as permanent and im mutable the following principles 1st. That free ships make free goods ; that is to say, that the effects or mer chandise belonging to a power or nation at war, or to its citizens or subjects, are free from capture and confiscation when found on board of neutral vessels, with the exception of articles contraband of war. 2d. That the property of neutrals on board of an enemy’s vessel i3 not subject to detention or confiscation, unless the same be contraband of war ; it being also understood that, as far as regards the two contracting parties, warlike articles, destined for the use of either of them, shall not be considered as contraband of war. The two high contracting parties engage to apply these principles to the com merce and navigation of all powers and States as shall consent to adopt them as permanent and immutable. A rt. II. It is hereby agreed between the two high contracting parties that the provisions contained in article twenty-second of the treaty concluded between them at Lima, on the twenty-sixth day of July, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, are hereby annulled and revoked, in so far as they militate against or are contrary to the stipulations contained in this convention. But nothing in the present convention shall in any manner affect or invalidate the stipulations contained in the other articles of the said treaty of the twenty-sixth of July, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, which shall remain in their full force and effect. A rt. III. The two high contracting parties reserve to themselves to come to an ulterior understanding, as circumstances may require, with regard to the application and extension to be given, if there be any cause for it, to the princi ples laid down in the first article. But they declare, from this time, that they Journal o f Insurance. 228 will take the stipulations contained in the said article as a rule whenever it shall become a question to judge of the rights of neutrality. A rt . IV . It is agreed between the two high contracting parties that all nations which shall consent to accede to the rules of the first article of this con vention, by a formal declaration, stipulating to observe them, shall enjoy the rights resulting from such accession as they shall be enjoyed and observed by the two parties signing this convention ; they shall communicate to each other the result of the steps which may be taken on the subject. JOURNAL OF INSURANCE. INSURANCE COMPANIES IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK. From the Annual Report for 1857, of the Controller (L orenzo B urrows,) of the State of New York, we abstract the following :— INSURANCE. The reports from the several insurance companies of this State, made to the Controller on the first of January last, exhibit, with few exceptions, a favorable condition of their aflairs, and indicate that this important branch of busiuess is in a prosperous condition. Previous to the insurance law Of 1853, mutual insurance companies were organized in almost every county of the State, and most of them became insolvent after a brief career, causing much litigation and loss. Of the small number not already closed up, or in process of liquidation, nearly all are doing, it is believed, a safe and legitimate business. Since the last annual report of the Controller was communicated to the Legis lature, several mutual companies have taken steps preliminary to closing up their affairs, and the Susquehanna Fire Insurance Company, with a joint-stock capital o f §50,000, has been placed in the hands of a receiver. This company was organized at Cooperstown, Otsego County, but by an act of the Legislature in 1855, permission was granted for its removal to the city of Albany. Receiving information indicating that the affairs of the company were in an insolvent con dition, an agent was appointed to make an examination relative thereto, but the agent after making diligent search, was unable to find the officers of the company, and upon application to the court a receiver was appointed to close up its affairs. The last annual report from stock fire insurance companies show that there is invested as capital of such companies in this State, the sum of §14,706,000, and of surplus §4,591,987. Total capital and surplus, §19,297,987. Cash pre miums received during the year, §5,723,105. Gross income, §6,940,872. Losses paid, §2,574,268. Gross expenditures in 1856, including losses and dividends, §5,478,140. The amount of property in this State insured by these companies, was §480,427,596. Amount insured by same companies in other States, was §80,720,809. Total amount of property insured, §561,148,405. The dividends paid by the stock companies of this State during the year, exclusive of those organized in 1856, amount to the sum of §2,407,702, being 17 63-100 per cent on the aggregate capital. The amount of capital and surplus of State mutual insurance companies is §5,563,274. Amount of cash premiums received during the year, §206,821. Losses paid, §190,032. Amount of risks, §91,404,931. The reports of companies chartered by other States and foreign governments, transacting business in this State, show that there has been received by them in cash premiums during the year, in this State, §1,177,507, and that there was paid for losses §655,493. There was insured by these companies in this State, §90,971,292. As compared with the aggregates obtained from the returns o f 1855, these figures show a small increase in the business of insurance. Journal o f Insurance. 229 Under the present law our insurance companies occupy a high position, and in the opinion of the Controller no radical change in the system is desirable. The following is a correct list of the new fire insurance companies organized during the year 1857, with the amount of capital, location, and date of organiza tion :— American Fire Insurance Company, New York, April 21, 1857................. Brevoort Fire Insurance Company, New York, February 4 ,1 85 7 .............. Columbia Insurance Company, (marine,) New York, August 8, 1857........ Goodhue Fire Insurance Company, New York, June 29, 1857................... Gallatin Fire Insurance Company, New York, August 11, 1857 ............... Gebhard Fire Insurance Company, New York, August 6, 1857................ Humboldt Fire Insurance Company, New York, April 24,1857 ............... Mechanics’ Fire Insurance Company, Brooklyn, May, 5, 1857 ................... Montauk Fire Insurance Company, Brooklyn, May 19, 1857...................... Resolute Fire Insurance Company, New York, July 10, 1857.................... $200,000 150,000 150,000 200,000 150,000 200,000 200,000 150,000 150,000 200,000 The following is a list of Life Insurance Companies of this State, and the afhount of securities deposited by them respectively with the Controller, as re quired by chap. 95, laws of 1851, and 463 and 551 of the laws of 1853 Howard Life Insurance Company, New Y o r k .............................................. Knickerbocker Life Insurance Company, New Y o r k .................................... Manhattan Life Insurance Company, New Y ork ............................................ Mutual Life Insurance Company, New Y o r k ................................................ New York Life Insurance Company, New Y ork............................................ New York Life Insurance <k Trust Company, New Y o r k ........................... United States Life Insurance Company, New Y ork...................................... $100,000 103,000 101,700 100,000 108,900 100,000 100,000 T o ta l........................................................................................................ $713,600 The annexed is a list of Life Insurance Companies of other States and foreign governments, with the amount of securities deposited with the Controller by each company, as required by chap. 95, laws of 1851, and 463 and 551, laws o f 1853:— Albion Life Insurance Company, London, England....................................... British Commercial Life Insurance Company, London, England................. Colonial Life Assurance Company, Edinburgh, Scotland............................. Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company, Newark, N. J ............................... National Loan Fund Life Assurance Society, London, England.................. New England Mutual Life Insurance Company, Boston, Mass..................... $100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 Subjoined is a list of Life Insurance Companies of other States, which have severally deposited the amount of securities with the Treasurer or chief financial officer of respective States, in pursuance of chap3.463 and 551, laws of 1853 :— American Mutual Life Insurance Company, New Haven, Ct...................... Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company, Hartford, Ct......................... Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, Springfield, Mass............ $100,000 100,500 100,000 The Howard Life Insurance Company of New York, has taken the preliminary steps to close up its business, and the officers of the company represent that amicable arrangements have been perfected with nearly all the policy-holders of the company, and that the policies have been surrendered and canceled. In con sequence of this arrangement the officers of the company desired to withdraw a portion of the securities deposited with the Controller; but there being no law authorizing the surrender of the securities, or any portion thereof, so long as a policy is outstanding, the request could not be complied with. The parties in terested applied to the last Legislature for a general law to authorize the delivery o f securities in the hands of the Controller, deposited by life insurance companies, retaining a sum equal to twenty per cent more than the entire amount of liability on uncanceled policies, but for some cause the bill reported failed to become a law. Justice to the stockholders of companies closing business.would seem to require the enactment of a law similar to the one proposed at the last session of the Legislature. 230 Journal o f Insurance. By a provision in our laws, relative to life insurance companies, any company incorporated by any other State in the Union, may deposit the requisite amount of security with the Auditor, Controller, or chief financial officer of such State, and file in this office a certificate from such officer to that effect, and thus become entitled to transact business in this State. Under this provision of law, the Hartford Life Insurance Company of Hart ford, Connecticut, commenced doing business in this State on the first day of January, 1854, and continued the same until May last, when a notice was re ceived at this department from the Treasurer of the State of Connecticut, stating that said company had discontinued its agencies in the State of New York, and compiled with 1he laws of the State of Connecticut relative thereto, and had withdrawn from his office the securities deposited for the benefit of policy-holders. Since the receipt of this notice, several instances have come to the knowledge o f the Controller of policies issued by that company to citizens of this State, in which the parties interested claim that there lias been a want of good faith on the part of the company. The certificate of the Treasurer of that State, upon which the company was admitted to transact business in this State, and which remains on file in this office, recites that “ the Hartford Life Insurance Company, a corporation incor porated by and organized under the laws of this State, have deposited with me as Treasurer of said State, to be held by me or my successor in office, in trust and on deposit for the benefit of all the policy holders of said company, the following securities, amounting to the sum of $ 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 , as per statement annexed.” The Controller was not furnished with a copy of the law by virtue of which authority was given to the Treasurer to surrender the special deposit in his hands, leaving policy-holders in this State unprotected ; but upon investigation it was found that the Legislature of Connecticut, in 1855, passed a law, which enables any life insurance company of that State to withdraw its securities from the keeping of the Treasurer, on giving that officer notice that the agencies established in other States have been discontinued. There is good reason to fear that this law may operate injuriously upon our citizens, and it may be deemed advisable to amend the laws of this State re specting the deposit of securities for the protection of persons holding policies, issued by life insurance companies chartered under the laws of other States. LOSSES BY FIRES IS THE USITED STATES IS 1856 ASD 1857. The following table, according to the New York Herald, shows the losses by fire in the United States during each month in the years 1856 and 1857 :— 1856. Months. January..................... February................... March......................... A p r il......................... May............................ June........................... July............................. August....................... September................. O ctober..................... November.................. D ecem ber................. T o ta l............. No. fires. 18 15 19 23 13 26 16 1857. L o S3. $ 1 ,0 07 ,0 0 0 1,480,000 1,435,000 1,817,000 1,481,000 1,160,000 4,096,000 1,345,000 1,712,000 1,160,000 3,041,000 1,135,000 $21 ,15 9 ,0 0 0 16 24 9 Loss. $ 1 ,0 12 ,0 0 0 1 ,798,000 1.765,000 1,900,000 698 ,00 0 1,094,000 1,387,000 1 ,310,000 1,245,000 1 ,611,000 1 ,597,000 4 25 ,00 0 230 $ 1 5 ,70 2 ,0 0 0 No. fires. 21 19 24 30 18 18 15 19 19 Add to the above the amount of property destroyed by fire, where in each instance the loss was less than twenty thousand dollars, and the aggregate would be increased to probably twenty-seven millions in 185G, and to twenty millions in 1857. W ith the above was published a table of the—- 231 Postal Department. L IV E S LOST B Y F IR E S D U R IN G 1857 AND 1856. 1857. Months. Fires. January ............................. February.......................... .___ March.................................. A p ril.................................. May.................................... June................................... July................................... A u g u st............................. Septem ber....................... ___ October............................. November......................... .___ Decem ber......................... Total..................... 6 4 8 9 72 1856. Lives lost Lives lost Fires. 18 16 32 9 8 21 11 7 82 8 7 14 12 5 7 5 3 7 11 .. r> 32 16 •• 9 6 11 9 158 89 6 4 22 .• 23 10 87 17 183 POSTAL DEPARTMENT. POSTAL MOISEY ORDERS. A system of remitting sums of money not exceeding £5 sterling ($25) in amount was adopted by the British Post-office Department in 1839. and some idea may be formed of the growth and extent of its operations from the following brief statement derived from the Annual Report of Her Majesty’s Postmaster-General, dated March 17th, 1857. Number and amount of money orders issued in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland every fifth year, commencing with 1840 Years ending January 5, January 5, Decem’r 31, Decem’r 81, Decem’r 31, 1840................................ 1845................................ 1850................................ 1855................................ 1856................................ No. of orders issued Aggregate amount in sums not exceedin pounds ing £5 sterling. sterling. 188,921 2,806,803 4,439,713 5,807,412 6,178,982 £313,124 5,695,395 8,494,458 11,009,279 11,805,561 The foregoing statement is derived from the Annual Report for 1857, of the Postmaster-General of the United States, and is prefaced by the following :— “ The adoption of some plan for the more convenient and safe remittance of small sums of money through the mails by means of orders drawn upon one post master by another having been frequently urged upon this department as a matter worthy of its attention, it is deemed proper here to state that, on the 31st of January last, my predecessor transmitted to the chairman of the Committe on the Post-office and Post Roads in the House of Representatives, in compliance with his request, the outline of such a plan as might be put in operation in this country. The submission of it doe3 not appear to have been accompanied by any recommendation of the department, nor does it appear that the Hon. Com mittee acted upon the subject.” Prom this it does not appear whether the present Postmaster-General is either in favor o f adopting the “ postal money order system” in the United States or not. W o believe that the establishment of such a system is highly desirable. It is well-known that the amount of money stolen from the mails in the United States is enormously greater than in any other country. Robberies of great magnitude 232 Nautical Intelligence. are frequently occurring', and prove that some of the postal business is conducted in a very careless manner. According to common law, based on common sense, one who undertakes to be a carrier and gets pay for so doing, renders himself liable for whatever he carries, all protestations to the contrary notwithstanding. The “ registered letter system” has not by any means proved to be a complete safeguard for valuable letters. The Philadelphia Bulletin states concerning owe periodical office of that city, “ that every cent which has been stolen for six months has been from registered letters, so that it has become a matter of serious and advertised request that those remitting will not register the letters.” Such re quests, both advertised and written, are common. The publishers throughout the Union, as well as many other classes of business men, can bear witness that their annual losses by theft of letters are very large. The fat money letters run through the Post-office with a mark upon them, which appeals to the thief in the tones of “ come steal me 1” And hence it ia not wonderful that they are stolen. NAUTICAL IN T E L L IG E N C E . STATISTICS OF THE WRECKS AT KEY WEST, To F reeman H unt, E d ito r o f the M e r c h a n ts ’ M a g a z in e :— W e to-day, forward you for publication, a correct list of vessels meeting with accidents in this wrecking district during the year ending, December 31st, 1857. This list includes those totally lost, others on the reef or in the gulf, those springinag-leak at sea and seeking this port for repairs, and those brought in by the wreckers from the shoals of the coast. The number of accidents, according to our list, is fifty-nine, of which nine were totally lost, (three of them were destroyed by fire ;) one condemned and burned, being unworthy of repair ; four dismasted in gale of wind and brought to this port and re-fitted ; one blown from the latitude of Cape Henry to this place— the first port she could make ; one shifted cargo ; one with a mutinous crew ; nixteen leaking and unable to proceed ; one leaking supplied with steam pumps and proceeded without repairs; nineteen received assistance from the wreckers and paid pilotage or salvage, and five got ashore and succeeded in getting afloat without aid ; one foundered at sea, and one (steamer) arrived with machinery out of order and needed new boilers. The value of these vessels was $825,500, and that of their cargo, $1,837,950. The repairs of tne vessels arriving in distress, and the expenses attending those brought in by the wreckers, amounted to $79,882 35. The value of damaged cargoes and condemned materials and stores, amounted to $56,962 51. The salvage paid by the Admiralty Court was $99,657 43. The total salvage paid by court, by mutual agreement and by arbi tration, amounted to $101,890 57. The salvage and expenses were $172,984 44. The classification of vessels is as follows :— Steamers, 1 ; Ships, 10 ; Barks, 7 ; Brigs, 9 ; Schooners, 32. Total, 59. W e annex the wrecking returns for 1854, 5, and 6 . In 1854, the number of accidents was 64 ; in 1855, the number was 80 ; and in 1856, 71. Value o f vessels and cargoes arriving in distress, or wrecked, in 1854... tt t« it it cc Total « “ it (i “ tl u “ “ 1C 1855. 1856. 1857. $2,242,454 3,844,077 4,747,264 2,663,450 $12,497,241 233 Nautical Intelligence. During the fourteen years preceding 1858, the following detailed statement exibit3 the number of vessels, value of vessels and cargo, salvage decreed, and total expenses, incurred on said vessels and cargo putting into this port in a disabled condition. Yalue of voss. &cargo’s. Year. Expenses. Salvage. No. vessels. 1 8 4 4 ............................. 1 8 4 5 ............................. 1 8 4 6 ............................. 1 8 4 7 .............................. 1 8 4 8 ............................. 1 8 4 9 ............................. 1 8 5 0 ............................. 1 8 5 1 ............................. 1 8 5 2 .............................. 1 8 5 3 .............................. 1 8 5 4 ............................. 1 8 5 5 ............................. 1 8 5 6 ............................. 1 8 5 7 .............................. 8 9 3 ,7 1 2 6 9 ,5 9 2 1 2 2 ,8 9 2 1 0 9 ,0 0 0 1 2 5 .8 0 0 1 2 7 ,8 7 0 1 2 2 ,8 3 1 7 5 ,8 5 2 8 0 ,1 1 2 1 7 4 ,3 5 0 8 8 ,9 4 0 1 0 0 ,4 9 5 1 6 3 ,1 1 7 1 0 1 ,8 9 0 Total.......... $ 1 ,5 5 6 ,4 5 3 42 • * 1 6 9 ,0 6 5 1 0 5 ,7 0 9 2 3 1 ,4 2 3 2 0 0 ,6 0 0 2 0 6 ,5 0 0 2 1 9 ,1 6 0 2 0 0 ,8 6 0 1 6 5 ,0 8 5 1 6 3 ,0 0 0 2 3 0 ,1 0 0 1 6 6 ,3 6 5 1 8 9 ,8 0 0 2 6 2 ,6 4 4 1 7 2 ,9 8 4 * 2 ,6 8 3 ,2 9 5 * 7 2 5 ,0 0 0 7 8 7 ,0 0 0 1 ,5 9 7 .6 0 0 1 ,6 2 4 ,0 0 0 1 ,2 8 2 ,0 0 0 1 ,3 0 5 ,0 0 0 9 2 9 ,8 0 0 9 4 1 ,5 0 0 6 7 5 ,0 0 0 1 ,9 7 3 ,0 0 0 2 ,3 1 4 ,0 0 0 2 ,8 4 4 ,0 7 7 4 ,7 9 7 ,6 0 0 2 ,6 6 3 ,4 5 0 $ 2 4 ,3 5 9 ,0 2 7 The value of property jeopardized last year, was nearly four-fold that of 1844 ; and that of 185G and 1857, equal to that of the years 1844, 5—6 —7—8 , and 9, together— showing conclusively that the Florida wrecker is still an important assistant to the commerce of the great gulf. The increase in the number of beacons, reef signals, buoys, and lighthouses, and the adoption of experienced illuminating apparatus, does not seem to lessen the number of accidents to vessels passing through the Florida Straits. But there is no doubt but that the average number of accidents to the amount of shipping now passing, is less than in former years when the lights and signals did not exist. A list o f vessels wrecked upon the Florida Beef, arriving in distress at the port of Key West, their expenses, auction sales of materials and cargoes, and salvages, during the year of 1857. January :— Schooner Statilla, Wass, from Jacksonville for Key West, leaking, value of vessel and cargo §5,000, expenses § 2 0 6 99 ; Schooner Louisa, Newcomb, from New York for Apalach, leaking, value of vessel and cargo, $25,000, expen ses $1,471 03; Schooner Nightingale, Baker, from Providence for Baltimore, loss of sails, value $3,050, expenses $42 63 ; Br. Ship Kelvin, Hatfield, New Orleans, for Liverpool, ashore on Pickles Beef, value $150,000, expenses $310 00, auction sales $8,092 47, salvage $7,781 0 0 ; Schooner Moonlight, Bogers, Phihtdelphia, Mobile, ashore on Bahama Banks, value $19,500, expenses $3,873 33 ; Spanish Ship Diogenes, Julia, from New Orleans for Barcelona, ashore on Collins Patches, threw over cargo, value $100,000, no assistance rendered ; Schooner Fred. Shurer, Shurer, Pensacola, for K ey West, ashore at Fort Taylor, value $13,000, expenses $500 ; Br. Ship Crown. Carey, New Orleans for Liverpool, ashore off Coleare Creek, total loss, value $250,000, expenses $9,500, sales $28,773, salvage $23,050 ; Schooner Woodburn, Allen, from New Y ork for Brazos, leaking, value $68,000, expenses $685 ; Pilot Boat Florida, Frow, from Key W e s t; wrecking ship Crown, destroyed by fire, value vessel and cargo $17,000. February Schooner Oriental, Chase, from Trinidad for New York, leaking, valne $10,000, expenses $941 83; Schooner Boseneath, Bogers, Boston for Mobile, ashore on Loo Key, value $25,000, expenses $3,614, salvage $3,800 ; Bark Aruces, Stephenson, Boston, for Matagorda, shifted cargo, value $30,000, expenses $50 60 ; Br. Ship Meteor, Porter, Mobile for Liverpool, leaking, value $400,000, expenses $4,502 ; Bark Mary Chipman, Hill, Cienfuegos for New York, leaking, value $33,000, expenses $282 8 6 , auction sale $469 36 ; Schooner Hannah, Whitmore, from Attakapas for Bichmond, value $15,000, expenses $584 80 ; Schooner Howard, Moore, Plymouth for Carribbean, leaking, value $4,000, expenses $528 00. March :— Bark Trinity, from Boston for Galveston, 234 Nautical Intelligence. ashore at Pickles Reef, took no aid, value $30,000, piloted out for $100 ; Schooner Phoenix, Brown, from New Orleans for Canaries, on Grecian Shoal, value $3,500, paid for piloting to sea $50 00 ; Ship Empress, from New Orleans for Liverpool, on Sombrene Reef, no assistance, value vessel and cargo $180,000. A dE I:— S chooner Kensington, Gray, from New Y ork for Key West and Tampa, leaking, value $8,000, expenses $416 18 ; Steamer Scottish Chief, Car penter, from Baltimore for Minitellau, value $28,000, expenses $2,800, still in port. M ay:— Ship Helen E. Booker, Otis, from Cardiff for New Orleans, totally lost on Elbow Reef, value vessel and cargo $125,000, expenses $10,998 60, sales $4,037 56, salvage $22,754 00; Schooner Ottawa, Seaman, Cardenas for Boston, leaking, had been ashore on the Cuba Coast, value vessel $5,000, ex penses $400 00; Brig Cynosure, Anderson, from Rockland for New Orleans, destroyed by fire, value $30,000, expenses $ 8 6 40, salvage $1,000. J u ly :— Ship Canack, Stilphen, from New Orleans for Liverpool, destroyed by fire, value $200,000, expenses $43 00, sales $43 00 ; Bark, Pacific, Gardner, value $40,000, salvage, $10,221, sales $7,178 37, expenses $2,020. August :— Schoon er Arlington, Murch, from New Y ork for Mobile, ashore at Tortugas, value $110,000. expenses $637 40, sales $ 6 78, salvage $4,710; Brig Natrisca, Concklin, Aspinwall for Jacksonville, sickness, value $ 1 0 ,0 0 0 , expenses $150; Schooner Americus, Watriss, New York for Mobile, mutiny, value $56,000, expenses $225 00; Ship Silas Holmes, Griffith, from New Y ork for New Or leans, ashore, Alligator Reef and piloted out, value $120,000, salvage $500 00. September Schooner Evergreen, Thomson, New York for Tampa, loss of sails, value $8,000, expenses $165 00 ; Br. Brig Belle, Hewson, from Jamaica for Halifax, ashore on French Reef, value $6,000, sales $38 70, salvage $ 2 0 0 07, expenses $25 00 ; Schooner Lucy Witham, Wallington, from Pensacola for Key West, leaking, value $10,000, expenses $1,400 ; Schooner, Harrison Jones, Gammo, from New York for Cedar Keys, leaking, value $14,000, expenses $12 83 ; Schooner Cassandra, L. V . Merrill, Franklin for Plymouth, ashore at Tortugas, $11,00.0, no aid given. November :— United States Schooner, Phoenix, Brown, New Orleans for Baltimore, lost at Key Yoccas, value $900, expenses $10 00, sales $165 00, salvage $82 50 ; Schooner Margaret Ann Lee, from Apalacli for Key West, lost at Charlotte Harbor, value $2,000, expenses $56 00, sales $200 00, salvage $100 ; Brig Darien, Sterritt, from Boston for Mobile, on dry rocks, value $18,000, salvage $1,800, expenses $244 ; Schooner Francis Burrett, Hardy, New York for Attakapas, loss of sails, value $7,000, expenses $100; Brig E. Remington, Jones, from St. Marks for New York, ashore at Tortugas, value $85,000, expenses $1,260, salvage $6,300 ; Ship Sibyl, Jenkins, from.New Orleans for Havre, dismasted, value $248,000, expenses $18,000, sales $2,630 ; Ship Sarah, Judkins, from New York to Tortugas, ashore at Tortugas, value $40,000, expenses $500 ; Schooner John Griffiths, Concklin, from Minitellau for New York, sickness, value $9,000, expenses $574 34, pilotage $100 : Bark Tru man, Gallagher, Laguayra for New York, loss of spars, value $8,000, expenses $342 43 ; Brig Iris, Me Alvery, from Sisal for New York, sickness, value $13,000, expenses $864,34 ; Schooner Louisa, Newcomb, New Y ork for Attakapas, dis masted, value $8,050, expenses $2,417 85 ; Schooner Cosmos, Whittmore, from Plymouth for Franklin, dismasted, value $4,000, expenses $1,244 85 ; Schooner A . H. Manchester, from Matagorda for New York, ashore at Tortugas, value $14,000. piloted out for $100. December:— Brig D. S. Brown, Baker, Phila delphia for Key West, foundered at sea, value $17,500; Bark West Wind, Saunders, from New Orleans for Fort Jefferson, ashore at the entrance of the harbor, value $18,000, lighted by government schooner; Schooner A . P. Howe, Tilbery, from Pensacola for Fort Jefferson, ashore in the harbor, lighted by government transport, value $10,000 ; Schooner Flommefeet, String, from Pen sacola for Fort Jefferson, dismasted, value $8,000, expenses $500 ; Schooner Tillie E., Hathaway, from Cardenas for Mobile, dismasted, value $6,200, expenses $1,500; Schooner Abbey Morton, Lamberton, from Pensacola for Fort Taylor, collision, value $1,800, expenses $250. 235 Nautical Intelligence. SH O RE -LIKE OF ST A T E S ON TH E ATLANTIC COAST. The Hon. Lawrence M. Keitt, Kepresentative in Congress from South Car olina, in a speech on the resources of the Slave States, furnished the shore-line of States on the Atlantic coast and Gulf of Mexico. According to this statement the Northern or Free States have 9.334 miles of coast, and Southern or Slave States 23,803— a total north and south of 33,137 miles :— ~ States. © l l in Maine................ miles .New Hampshire....... Massachusetts........... Rhode Island........... Connecticut............... New York................. New Jersey.............. Pennsylvania............ Dela ware.................. Maryland................. V irginia................... North Carolina........ South Carolina........ Georgia..................... F lorida..................... Alabama................... Mississippi............... Louisiana.................. Texas . . . . .......................... Totals .......................... S® c3 O c3 VrO C 0 ' ° “0 ~ ‘“ '3 ©'S a fe a 2 rt > o to GO 427 13 209 65 14 114 118 1,599 37 865 153 239 888 702 29 44 148 299 192 76 1,020 33 42 616 353 136 1,008 735 1,549 356 410 3,005 284 206 1,595 1,284 . . . £ © ©. "C *2 Oo .5 & «— © © jq S n C$3 of - t*> -M c2 S '0 . o, © I I I cj e q "O'fn ® E-» 2,026 50 1,074 208 253 1,000 820 o. o o ’otftl sea shores sounds, of liver; of tido. •*» | a©M 427 24 832 232 1,074 1,057 151 106 506 3,401 1,690 932 708 468 860 313 137 936 432 165 1,052 883 1,848 548 486 4,025 317 248 2,211 1,637 2,453 74 1,906 440 1,327 2,057 971 106 671 4,453 2,573 2,780 1,256 954 4,885 630 385 3.147 2,069 14,286 18,851 33,137 . . . Mr. K eitt also gives a table of the number of harbors in the different States on the coast, and the principal ones on the rivers to the head of tide. This table is incomplete, but the full table would increase the number on the southern coast and rivers. For the Free States— Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania—the number of harbors is put down at 189 ; and for the Slave States— Delawarei Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas— 249, showing a difference of 60 harbors in favor of the Southern States. M AR IN E INVENTION— A LANTERN FOR SHIPS. A lantern, for ships’ use, has been contrived, and appears to possess some ad vantages peculiar to itself. The two sides of the lantern are inclined to each other, the back and front being parallel. On the. front and each side is a fixed lens. The three lenses are on the same level, and show the light of one lamp through them. On the outside of the lantern is a concave reflector around each of the lenses. Each of the side lenses is arranged to have a frame glazed with green or red glass to slide between it and the burner. The lamp or burner has a tubular projection at its under slide, which fits on a similar fixed projection at the bottom of the lantern. 230 Nautical Intelligence. TH E BRITISH WRECK REG ISTER FOR F IV E YE AR S. In accordance with the practice which has been observed for some years past in the Life Boat Journal, (Eng.,) we give in our current "number a synopsis of the wrecks and casualties which have taken place during 1856, and the four pre ceding years, on the coasts and in the seas of the British Isles. The following list gives some details o f the work of destruction during the past five years:— Wrecks. Collisions. ................... ................... ................... ................... ................... 958 759 893 894 837 57 73 94 247 316 1 ,0 1 5 832 987 1,1 4 1 1 ,1 5 3 829 989 1,5 4 9 469 521 T o t a l ................... 4 ,3 4 1 787 5 ,1 2 8 4 ,3 4 8 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 Total. Tot. lives lost. Thus we find that no less than 220 ships were totally lost or stranded in 1856 from errors, unseamanship, or drunkenness, or other preventable causes, in addi tion to those from stress o f weather. A SHIP OF B E S T TIM B ER , According to the Journal of Commerce the American Ship Timber Bending Company, whose works are at Green Point, Williamsburg, have resolved to build a large ship, of one thousand tons, in which bent timber is to bo submitted for natural sticks, for frames, knees, futtocks, top-timbers, etc., thus putting to a practical test the merits claimed for their peculiar invention. The keel is already cut out, and will be laid nest week. To do this, some additional machinery will be constructed, of a power adequate to bend the largest timbers employed in marine architecture. The proposed ship will be built on a plan in many respects original, and will no doubt excite much curiosity among nautical men. For instance, the futtocks and top timbers will be formed from a single piece thirty to thirty-five feet long, accurately bent to the model; and the knees will be inserted between the frames and beams, and bolted through and through. As one result, no knee will be visi ble when the ship is coiled— thus giving a clear space for the stowage of cargo, calculated to be equal to a saving of 300 bales of cotton in a ship of 1,200 tons, but the great advantages to be realized are increased strength and durability. Every stick being steamed before it is bent, the natural acids of the wood are either destroyed or expelled (as the invention claims) diminishing the liability to decay; and bending, the pores have greater compactness, and the fibers more strength. ADDITIONAL LIGHTHOUSE OFF TH E SCILLY ISLANDS, T r in it y -H o u se , L o n d o n , 15th December, 1857. The lighthouse which has been for some time past in course of erection upon the Bisnop B o c k — the south-westernmost of the Scilly group, bearing W .} N. by compass, four miles distant from St. Agnes— being now far advanced towards com pletion, notice is hereby given that the light will be exhibited therefrom on or about the 1st of December next, (1858.) Mariners are to observe, that the Bishop Bock light will be a fixed bright dioptric light of the first order, and will burn at an elevation of 1 1 0 feet above the level of high water, and illuminate the entire circle, and will be visible in clear weather at a distance of about fourteen miles. By order, P . H. BEBTHON, Secretary. Nautical Intelligence, 237 R EVOLVING LIGHT ON CAPE SAN SEBASTIAN, M E D IT E R R A N E A N , COAST OF S P A IN . Official information has been received at this office, that the Minister of Marine at Madrid has given notice that on and after the 1st day of October, 1857, a light would be exhibited from a lighthouse recently built on Cape San Sebastian, in the province of Gerona, Catalonia. The light is a bright revolting light, eclipsed once a minute. It is placed at an elevation of 555 English feet above the level of the sea, and should be visible from the deck of a ship in ordinary weather at a distance of about 22 miles. The illuminating apparatus is catadrioptric of the first order. The lighthouse stands near the hermitage of San Sebastian, and is in lat. 41° 53' 30" north, long. 3° 12' 22" east of Greenwich. The form, color, and height of the lighthouse are not stated. This light serves to enable vessels to avoid the Hormigas or Ant Islets, the southernmost of which lies at 2£ miles south of the lighthouse, and the easternmost at 1 £ mile from Punta del Termino, or Castell. By order of the Lighthouse Board, TH ORNTON A . JE N K IN S, Sec' j . Office Lighthouse Board, November 7th, 1857. T reasu ry D epartm en t, FIXED HARBOR LIGHT ON MOLE HEAD, SANTA CRUZ, T E N E R IF E , Official information has been received at this office, that the Spanish government has given notice, that on the 1st of July last, a fixed red light was established on the outer extreme of the Mole at Santa Cruz, Tenerife. The light is 2 1 J feet above the level of high water, and is visible at the distance of four miles. As soon as the light is shown, all others on the Mole are screened. Masters of vessels approaching the anchorage from the southward are informed that the light bears S. W . from it, and they are cautioned to keep it well open on the port hand, and to be careful of nearing the shore to the southward of the Mole within a depth of 25 fathoms, in order to avoid some sunken rocks recently reported there. Spring tides rise 8 } feet, neaps six feet. Variation in 1857, 21 deg. W . By order of the Lighthouse Board. T n O R N T O N A . JENK INS, Secretary, Office Lighthouse Board, October 10,1857 T reasu ry D epartm en t, ADDITIONAL LIGHT A T PO RT JACKSON, AU STRALIA, E A ST COAST. Official information has been received at this office, that the Colonial Govern ment of New South Wales has given notice, that in addition to the revolving light now exhibited on the outer south head, Port Jackson, Sydney, it is intended shortly to establish a white fixed light on the inner south head, at the entrance of that harbor. The new light will be catoptric or reflecting, of the first order, placed at an elevation of 90 feet above the sea at high water, and should be vis ible from the deck of a vessel in ordinary weather at a distance of 14 miles. It is expected that the light will be exhibited early in the year 1858. Further particulars, as soon as they are received, will be given hereafter. F IX E D L IG H T AT NEW CASTLE HARBOR, A U S T R A L IA , E A S T COAST. Notice has been given, that on and after the 1st January, 1858, a white fixed light will be exhibited all night from the lighthouse recently erected on Nobby Head, at the entrance of the port of Newcastle, when the coal fire hitherto shown on the main land there will be discontinued. The light tower stands in lat. 32° 55' 20" S., long. 151° 48' 50" east of Greenwich. The character and order of the illuminating apparatus, and the form, height, and color of the lighthouse, are not stated. By order of the Lighthouse Board, TH ORNTON A . JE N K IN S, Secretary. Office Li;Ighthouse Board, Washington, January 4,, 1858. T reasu ry D epartm en t, 238 Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics. LIGHTS 03! TH E B R E AK W AT ER AT LEGHORN. M E D IT E R R A N E A N — C O A ST OF T U S C A N Y . Official information has been received at this office, that the Grand Ducal Gov ernment of Tuscany has given notice, that on and after the 1st day of December, 1857, the following lights will be exhibited from the breakwater and jetty now in course of construction at the port of Livorno or Leghorn :— 1. A fixed red light will be shown at the southern head of the curved break water, at 43 yards to the northward of the outer blocks of stone which appear above water. It will bear from the present faro or light-tower of the port \V. 7° N . or W . $- N. distant 440 yards. 2. A fixed green light will be shown at the north end of the same curved breakwater, which will bear from the existing mole head of the port N. 53° i W . or N. VV. f W . distant 480 yards. 3. A fixed white light will be shown from the southwest extremity of the strait jetty, which is now in course of erection on the north side of the port of Leghorn ; and it will be moved outwards as the works advance. A ll the above lights will be lighted from sunset to sunrise, except when the state of the sea will not admit of access to the heads of the unfinished jetties. In this special case a single fixed wdiite light will be exhibited from the head of the present mole, which, with the existing faro, will indicate the points which serve as a base to determine the position of the ends of the above mentioned curved breakwater. The illuminating apparatus of the four lights will be dioptric or by lense3, but the order or strength of the lights, and their heights respectively above the level of the sea, are not yet determined upon. All bearings are magnetic. Variation 15J0 West in 1858.' By order of the Lighthouse Board. THOBNTON A. JENKINS, Secretary. Office Lighthouse Board, ) December 23, 1857. J T reasu ry D epartm ent, RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS. TA XA TIO N OF RAILROAD C03IPANIES IN TH E STATE OF N E W YORK. The Annual Report for 1858, of the Controller of the State of New York, ( H o n . L o r e n z o B u r r o w s , ) contains the following remarks on the “ Assessment of Taxes on Incorporated Companies,” especially railroad companies :— The act of the last session, chapter 536, laws of 1857, relative to the assess ment of the property of railroad corporations, contains provisions which have called forth earnest complaints from many of our tax-paying citizens ; and some o f its provisions certainly seem to be repugnant to the principles of just and equal taxation. The 24th section of the act requires every railroad corporation of this State to deliver, on or before the first day of May, in each year, to the assessors of each town or ward into which any part of their road shall run, or in which they own or are in possession of real estate, a classified list of all real estate owned or in possession of said company in said town or ward, specifying— I. The whole number of acres of land owned, possessed, or appropriated for their use, with a valuation affixed to the same, deducting that which passes along or across highways, and such other portions, if any, as are already devoted to public uses and purposes. 2d. The whole length of their superstructure, its cost as at present constructed, and present estimated value, naming the percentage of depreciation, if any, and construing superstructure to mean the ties, chairs, rails, spikes, frogs, and switches, whether such superstructure be laid on land or artificial foundation. 3d. The buildings belonging to the company, or in their possession, describing them by location, with the estimated value, naming the percentage of deprecia tion, if any. The next section directs that the valuation of the property of any railroad cop- Railroad, Canal, ant? Steamboat Statistics. 239 poration, thus furnished by the corporation itself, (and not required to be made under oath,) shall be received as prima facie evidence of the value thereof. And, although the assessors are authorized, if they deem it needful for the purpose of testing or altering the valuation thus received, to avail themselves of other ad ditional evidence under oath, it is obvious that the difficulty of ascertaining from extraneous sources the cost and value of an isolated portion of a road-track, confined to a single township or ward, must render this authority of the assessors practically inadequate, if not altogether ineffective. It seems to be but reasonable that the property of a railroad corporation should be assessed and taxed upon the same basis and in the same manner as property belonging to other corporations. In estimating its real estate, reference should be had to the amount which has been expended upon it, in fitting it for the pur pose to which it is applied. It will be observed that the phraseology of the second clause of the section referred to, in effect excludes the cost of grading the track and erecting culverts and bridges, items which constitute a large part of the outlay in all railroad constructions. This portion ofthe expenditure terms a share of the capital of a company, and why this should be exempt from taxation more than any other part of its capital, is not perceived. The cost of construction and equipment of the railroads of this State, in 1856, is put down by the railroad commissioners, in their report to the Legislature, at $137,478,176 79, a sum nearly equal to one-tenth of the total valuation of the taxable property of the State, and although this sum probably greatly exceeds the present actual value of the property of these corporations, it is nevertheless obvious that the radical change authorized by the act in question, in the method • of assessing this vast amount of property, may seriously affect the revenue of *he State. Surely so broad a departure from the ordinary mode of appraisement, and the principle of just equality in distributing public burdens, should not be sanctioned without a clear demonstration of its expediency. Conceiving that the act in question needs a careful revision to make it more accordant with prin ciples of justice and equality, the Controller deems it his duty to present the sub ject to the attention of the Legislature, trusting that it may receive the impar tial consideration which its importance demands. STEAM BOAT AND RAILROAD ACCIDENTS UV T H E U NITED STATES. W e now publish two tables, furnished to our hands by the New York Herald, exhibiting the number of accidents in the United States, occurring on railroads and by steamboats, in each month o f 1857 and 1856. S T E A M B O A T A C C I D E N T S I N 1857 A N D 1856. The following table embraces the number of steamboat accidents which have occurred on the rivers, lakes, and bays of the United States, which were attended with loss of life and injury to persons, during the years 1857 and 1856, together with the number of killed and wounded :— Months. January............ February .......... March............... April................. M ay................... J tine................... July................... A u gu st............. September . . . . October............. November......... December......... Total......... r ~ ~ ------- ------ I S * /.— Killed. Accidents. .. •. 3 27 12 4 4 24 46 3 . .. . 1 4 4 16 1 65 7 1 119 20 SO 822 1 2 > Wounded. .. i 19 27 . . . . 10 6 . . 6 18 f---Accidents. i 2 3 2 3 3 4 •• 1 •• 7 2 1 86 29 ------IOqJU.Killed. .. 22 89 8 2 A Wound. i 38 26 6 . . 15 2 10 •. . . 11 7 17 358 127 4 62 . . 66 29 1 240 Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics. R A IL R O A D A C C ID E N T S D U R IN G THE YEARS 1857 AND 1856. The following table shows the number of accidents, together with the number of killed and wounded, which occurred on the various railroads in the United States during the year 1857, together with a comparative table of the number during 1856. N o accident has been recorded which was not attended with loss of life or injury to person ; neither does the table embrace the great number of persons who have been killed and maimed by jumping from moving trains, at tempting to get on cars while they were in motion, being run over, &c.:— r Months. Jan uary................ F e b ru a ry .............. M a r c h ................... A p r i l ................... M a y ........................ J u n e ...................... J u ly ........................ A u g u s t ................ Sep tem b er . . . . O cto b er................ N o v e m b e r ........... D e c e m b e r ........... T o t a l........... Accidents. 15 12 13 15 9 5 9 14 15 11 3 5 125 ------1 0 3 /.— Killed. 12 16 17 16 10 1 10 8 18 8 3 5 130 \ Wounded. 71 61 43 36 33 18 48 62 88 50 9 10 630 r Accidents. 23 16 21 14 7 5 13 8 10 11 11 14 143 ----- 1030.— Killed. 24 8 12 11 6 4 78 10 11 7 10 14 195 N W ouncL 86 67 40 49 10 21 140 14 44 24 37 97 629 N E W FEATUR ES IN BUILDING AND PROPELLING STEAM BOATS. W e learn that in the recent construction of a steamboat, several new features have been introduced. According to the New York Times, the boat was built near Keyport, New Jersey— her machinery was put in at Jersey City. She is named the Charlotte Vanderbilt, and is intended to ply as a day boat between New Y ork and Albany :— In mode! she is not unlike the ordinary river boats, except that she is sharper, and in her natural trim draws only two feet and ten inches water. She is two hundred feet long, and has great breadth of beam. Below the main deck her hull is divided, fore and aft, through the center, from keelson to deck with a wrought iron bulkhead, into two w’ater-tight compartments. Also, for every twenty feet of space she is divided into water-tight compartments of the same materials, so that she could not be sunk though ever so badly stove. N o other use is made of the space below the main deck. Along the sides, upon the guards, are arranged rooms for the kitchen, ivash-rooins, bar-rooms, barber shop, &c., and a large apartment for a restaurant, where passengers can be served with whatever is ordered, on the European hotel plan. The deck room, which is very large, is devoted to freight. The saloon for passengers is on the upper deck, and is decidedly unique. It extends nearly the entire length of the boat, is twenty feet wide and thirteen feet high, spanned by an elliptical arch. Being designed for a day boat, merely, she has only four staterooms, for the accommodation of inva lids, which are near the center of the boat, and are very roomy. This saloon is lighted and ventillated by windows fore and aft, like a railroad car, so that pas sengers, though inside, can see any object outside. A row of seats extends the whole length of the salooD, on all sides. Through the center there will be ar ranged such other furniture as the convenience and comfort of passengers require. Off the saloon is a lady’s ordinary, furnished with every regard to comfort. The most novel part of this boat, however, is the method by which she is to be propelled. She is provided with a pair of oscillating engines on each side, which drive a four-bladed propeller fourteen feet in diameter, located a little Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics. 241 abaft the middle of the boat. The power is applied at right angles with the hull, directly to the cranks of the shaft— the propeller being in the center. The line of the shaft is about two feet above the water level. The nominal power of each engine is two hundred and fifty horse. The boilers are built upright, eighteen feet high, and nine feet in diameter, with an inside round shell about five feet in diameter, filled with two hundred vertical tubes. Between the outer and inner shell are sixteen coils of steam pipes, to contain water for the generation of steam. The space between the shells, which is about two feet wide, comprises the furnace room, and contains less grate surface, (so says the engineer,) in proportion to the fire surface of the boiler, than any other that was ever built. She is also supplied with two donkey engines and all requisite fire apparatus. The advantages of this improvement (it has been tested on the lakes) is a great increase of power and speed, and at the same time, a great saving of fuel and labor. The weight of the engines and boilers is only a fraction of the old-fashioned ones. Captain H. Whittaker, of Buffalo, who has been long connected with steamers on the lakes, is the inventor of this new improvement, and the boat was built under his direction for D. J. Townsend, of Buffalo. Mr. Samuel Hathaway, a lake engineer, who constructed those so successfully used on the lakes, superin tended the putting in of her engines. BUSINESS OF A STEAM BOAT 0 ® TH E M ISSOURI. The steamer Omaha, Capt. Wineland, says the St. Louis Republican, probablytraversed more miles in the “ big muddy” in the season of 1857 than any other boat in the trade— commencing her trips early in March and running steadily, without cessation, until ice-bound, November 26, on her last trip down for the year. She made, during the season, three trips to St. Joseph, of eleven hundred and thirty miles each, (up and back ;) one to Council Bluffs and Omaha, of sixteen hundred ; one to Florence, of sixteen hundred and thirty ; six to Sioux City of twenty-one hundred each ; and one to Fort Randall of twenty-seven hundred— making the aggregate number of miles passed over within a space of nine months, twenty-one thousand nine hundred and twenty. During this time the Omaha carried (by actual count from her register) safely to their different points of destination, four thousand five hundred and three passengers, average of 375 per trip, and received, handled, and discharged, thirtysix hundred tons of freight, or 300 tons for each round trip throughout the season. ■ RAILROADS IN M ISSOURI. The following statement respecting the railroads in Missouri, is derived from the report of the Board of Public Works to the Legislature, at its session in the fall of 1857 :— There are six railroads in Missouri, including the Southwest Branch, in the process of construction, and which have received the aid of the State, v iz.:— The Pacific, the Southwest Branch, the Iron Mountain, the North Missouri, the Han nibal and St. Joseph, and the Cairo and Fulton Road. The aggregate State credit granted to these roads is $24,250,000, and $700,000 to the Platte County Road, making the whole amount of State credit authorized, in bonds, for all roads, $24,950,000. The aggregate of bonds issued by the State to the compa nies is $16,010,000, which leaves $8,940,000 yet to be issued. O f this sum, $3,800,000 are bonds to be guarantied by the State for the use of the southwest branch of the Pacific Railroad ; and although these bonds are to be indorsed by the State, and bear seven per cent interest, they are not regarded in the stock market as first-class bonds, and cannot be sold for as much as bonds directly is V O L. X X X V III.---- N O . I I . 16 242 Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistic>, sued by the State, bearing an interest of only six per cent. The board would suggest that, as the proceeds of direct bonds would be greater than those arising from the guarantied bonds, and the interest less, by using the same securities, the State would be as well protected on direct bonds as it is now upon guarantied bonds, and that it might be good policy to substitute direct for guarantied bonds. The expenditures made, and to be made, on the railroads in Missouri, are as follows :— The expenditures on the Pacific, we^t of Jefferson City, to Round Hill arnouqt t o .................................................................................................. Additional amount required to open, for business, to Round H ill........ The expenditures on the Iron Mountain road amount to......................... Additional amount required to open the road through for business.. . The expenditures of the North Missouri road amount to ....................... Amount required to open the road to Mexico.......................................... T o t a l.................................................................................................. $723,552 215,400 3,867,142 476,000 3,824,218 206,000 59 00 69 00 52 00 $7,914,913 08 The length o f track laid on each of the roads, is as follows :— On the Hannibal & St. Joseph road.................................................................. miles On the North Missouri road......................................................................................... On the Iron Mountain road.......................................................................................... On the Pacific, west of Jefferson C ity....................................................................... Whole length of track on the Pacific......................................................................... 64 75 46 7 132 PASSAGES OF STEAMSHIPS BETWEEN QUEBEC AND LIVERPOOL, In the Montreal Gazette, we find full statistics of all the passages made by the steamera of the Montreal Ocean Steamship Company during the season of 1857, with the number of passengers carried each way. To this is added the follow ing remarks :— The Indian performed five complete voyages from April till November, which was never done by any other vessel. The Anglo-Saxon and North American made each four voyages. The Canadian was lost on her first voyage. The quickest passage westward, was made by the Anglo-Saxon, sailed 1st July— in nine days and thirteen hours. The quickest eastward, was made by the Indian, sailed 4th July— in 9 days and eleven hours ; this was the quickest of the season. The annexed table is a summary of the statistics for the seasons of two years :— AVERAGE PASSAGES. 1857— Outwards................................................................................... 1856— “ .................................................................................. 11 days 12 “ 1 hour 3 “ . 1 “ 2 “ 1857— Homewards......................... 10 11 “ 15 “ “ 6 “ M 15 “ Shorter in 1857, average I R fifi “ ................................. Shorter in 1857, average................. NUMBER OF PA88ENGER8. 1857— Outwards......................... 1355— «* ................................. Increase ........................ in 1857 4,133 11857— Homewards...... “ ___ 2,648 1 1856— 1,485 | Increase in 1 8 5 7 . . 2,552 1,673 879 Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt. 24S RAILROADS IN T E N N E SSE E . From the report of the commissioner of railroads in Tennessse, made up to October, 1857, we learn that there are now 635 miles of finished railroad in that State. The roads completed and commenced amount to 1,600 miles. The Nashville News says :— “ The total actual cost of 1,385 miles is $28,844,739— an average of $20,826 per mile. The State aid granted and to be granted to these roads, whose cost is here given, is $16,406,000. The whole amount pledged by the State to the com panies which have completed their roads, or placed parts thereof under contract, amounts to $19,096,000. The amount of aid granted and to be granted to the finished roads and to those now in actual progress of construction's $L 5,515,000, leaving $3,615,000 as the sum pledged to those compa nies which have sus pended operations.” , The commissioner arrives at the conclusion that it may be safely estimated that the present and prospective liability of the State, under its general improve ment system, will not exceed $16,000,000. JOURNAL OF M IN IN G , M A N U F A C T U R E S, AND ART. COAL TRADE OF TH E UNITED ST A T E S IN 1 8 5 7 . W e give below the quantity of coal, in the United States, sent to market in the year 1857, according to the official returns published in the Pottsville Miners’ Journal. This statement embraces all the anthracite coal sent to market in the United States, and also the semi-anthracite and bituminous mined in Pennsyl vania and Maryland, that comes in competition with the market on the seaboard—together with the importations of foreign coal. The great depression in business that occurred in the latter portion of the past year, in common with all other branches of business, affected the coal business very seriously, and there is a decline in the supply of anthracite of 320,163 tons, and an increase of the other kinds of 3,841 tons— making a deficiency in the supply of the year, compared with last year, of 316,322 tons. In the spring, the trade anticipated a demand for an increased supply of at least 600,000 tons :— S C H U Y L K IL L R E G IO N . By railroad................. tons By canal............................... Pine G rove......................... 1B5G. 2,088,90.3 1,189,453 75,449 Total....................... 3,333,855 L E H IG H By railroad......................... 1,186,230 'l6 a ’740 W Y O M IN G Pennsylvania Coal C o . . . . Delaware & Hudson C o.... North Branch Canal, down. 612,500 499,650 510,631 Scranton, north................... Scranton, south................. 184,714 Total ..................... 1857. 1,709,552 1,275,989 56,837 Increase. 3,042,378 106,536 18,662 398,013 R E G IO N . 900,314 418^235 285,916 252,495 R E G IO N . 137,406 536,008 480,699 405,822 2,092 194,070 295,954 155,806 2,092 9^653 174,842 18,400 6,751,541 6,431,378 564,018 121,112 Decrease, 379,351 106,536 76,492 18,951 104,809 884 244 Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt. S E M I-A N T H R A C IT E AND BITU M IN O U S. S E M I-A N T H R A C IT E . Broad T o p ....................... 61,187 41,739 73,112 42,000 65,201 56,588 110,711 78,813 4,014 14,799 37,589 36,813 Total..................... 218,088 311,263 93,215 719,211 173,055 564,690 238,192 65,137 1,110,304 1,114,145 158,362 Lykens Valley Co............ Short Mountain Co........... BITU M IN O U S. Cumberland....................... T ota ls................... 154,521 154,521 The whole supply of coal thrown into the markets on the seaboard, in 1856, was as follows :— Anthracite................................................................................................... tons Other kinds, including imported..................................................................... 6,431,318 1,114,145 Total for 1851....................................................................................... Total in 1856........................................................................ ............. 1,545,523 1,861,846 Decrease in 1851................................................................................. 316,323 The above does not embrace the bituminous coal trade of Eiehmond, Ya., o f Western Pennsylvania, nor of the Great West, which finds a market at home and on the western waters. This would swell the supply up to about 10,500,000 tons, because the trade of the W est largely increased in 1857, owing to the suf ferings for the want of fuel during the severe winter of 1856-7, caused by the great drought in the western waters, thus preventing it from being sent to market. The trade of the Monongahela, as given in the Pittsburg Gazette, was— In 1855— 22,234,000 bush., in tons of 32 bush........................................tons 1856— 8,584,095 “ “ “ ............................................... 1857— 29,251,399 “ “ “ ............................................... 694,812 286,136 975,046 The coal trade of .Cleveland, Ohio, reached— In 1557................................tons 320,000 | Of which was ship’d by lakes. 225,000 Leaving for consumption, <fcc................................................................... 195,000 The growing scarcity of wood and the economical experiments made recently with anthracite as a fuel for locomotives, must be the means of introducing this fuel largely into use on the railroads of the country; but what is most desired is a change in our foreign policy, by which our o<fn manufactories and workshops are protected, to increase the consumption of coal. With protection, the trade has largely increased— without it, it has languished and decreased, as the statistics will show. The year 1857 was the first, since 1838, that the production of an thracite coal diminished. The trade languished until 1843, when the tariff took effect, showing an average for the five years, from 1838 to 1843, of only 140,753 tons; for the four years from 1844 to 1849, the average annual increase was 404,680 tons. For the two years, 1849 and 1850, when the tariff of 1846 began to be felt, and the foreign market for our produce, caused by the famine, was diminished, the annual increase was only 115,949 tons. From 1851 to 1856, for five years, while the United States were receiving California gold, which was exchanged for foreign products, the annual increase averaged 633,123 tons. For the year 1856, under heavy importations, the increase was only 262,597 tons; and for the year 1857 there is a decrease of 320,163 tons in the production. Examine these figures and the periods, and the reader can trace out the ultimate connection between the protection of the industry of the country and the pros perity of the coal trade. 245 Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt. From the tables presented by the Miners’ Journal, it appears that the whole product of anthracite and bituminous coal sent to market since the commencement o f the trade in this couutrv, together with the foreign importations, amount in the aggregate to 77,336,544 tons. COAL PRODUCT OF TH E UNITED KINGDOM. According to the London Mining Journal, of December 1, 1857, the summary o f the production of coal in the United Kingdom, during the year 1856, was as stated below:— Tons. Tons. Durham and Northumberland. 15,492,969 Lancashire................................. Cumberland............................. 913,891 Cheshire..................................... Yorkshire.................................. 9,083,625 Shropshire................................ Derbyshire and Nottingham Gloucestershire, Somersets’re, shire ...................................... 3,293,325 and Devonshire.................... Warwickshire-......................... 335,000 North W a le s ............................ Leicestershire........................... 632,478 South W a le s ........................... Staffordshire and Worcester Scotland..................................... shire ...................................... 7,305,500 Ireland....................................... 8,950,000 754,329 752,100 1,530,000 1,046,500 8,919,100 7,500.000 136,635 66,645,450 Total of United Kingdom in 1856. From this it appears that a territory not exceeding in extent the States of New York and Pennsylvania, produced, in the year 1856, within 10,691,094 tons o f the whole product o f the United States since 1820, in the aggregate. England has built up this immense trade by encouraging her domestic industry; and the United State, with more than five times the coal area that England possesses, could do the same under an enlightened system of government. YIELD OF TH E LAKE SUPERIOR COPPER M IN E S IN 1 8 5 6 AND 1 8 5 7 . From the Miner, (one of the Lake Superior newspapers,) we compile the fol lowing table, showing the amount of copper shipped from Ontonagon, by the various mines of that district, during the season of navigation of 1856-7 :— 1857. Minnesota... .lbs. Rockland........... Peninsula............ Norwich.......... Nebraska........... 4,236,605 779,452 1,236 416,982 180,176 4,735 58,695 1856. 3,715,796 A ztec............ lbs. 398,473 Evergreen Bluff. 1,178 Itidge.......... . . 230,044 231,279 Toltee.................. 44,025 66,307 Other mines..... Total.......... 1857. 87,068 71,174 96,699 17,275 54,409 12,176 1856. 110,725 38,554 124,193 23,067 119,551 138,191 6,343,411 6,534,071 The above shows a total of over three thousand two hundred and eighty tons, the value of which is estimated at not less than one million dollars. M ANUFACTURE OF SILK IN TH E UNITED S T A T E S . The Hartford Times recently published the following :— “ Mr. T. Kohn, a merchant of this city, (Hartford,) who deals in ribbons, fringes, etc., has put up some valuable machinery in Mr. Thrall's building, for weaving silk. He showed us a piece of silk yesterday, containing twelve yards, which was made by this machinery, and which he claims is the first piece of silk ever made in the country. It is very heavy, made of double thread, and it is a i 246 Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt. plaid of five colors. It is certainly a successful experiment. Mr. Kotin has machinery lor producing six hundred different patterns of figured silks, and he intends to do a good business at silk making. He also intends to make ribbons. Mr. Albert Sugden, who superintends the work, is an experienced and competent weaver, and he has procured from England certain portions of the machinery used, and directed the work in putting it up. The piece of silk shown us is |ths of a yard wide, and it is thought to be worth $ 2 a yard, though it can probably be sold for less.” With regard to the foregoing statement, Mr. Wm. R. Prince, of Flushing, Long Island, under date of January 7, 1858, addressed a letter to the New York Times, which was as follows :— “ I have noticed an article, which originated with the Hartford Times, headed, ‘ The First Silk Manufactured in the United States,’ referring to some which has been recently manufactured by iMr. F. Kohn, of that city. “ It is quite amusing to witness so complete an ignoring of all the previous silk manufactories of our country. William Prince, my father, died in the year 1842, being 76 years of age. A t the age of 18, (in 1784,) he was so imbued with the ‘ true American system,’ afterwards so arduously sought to be enforced upon our country by that noblest impersonation of Americanism, Henry Olay, that he engaged ardently in the culture of the mulberry and the silk worm. His cocoonery yielded large quantities of cocoons, and he planned a filature which was highly successful. A t that period there was a silk manufactory at Philadelphia, and there may have been others, but I distinctly remember my father’s statement, that it was there alone that ho could have fingered gloves and stockings woven, and as he was desirous of having these articles manufactured for his own use from his own silk, he sent his silk there for that purpose. I remember well to have seen the last remaining pair of gloves worn out at the finger ends, which were kept for many years by the family as a memento, and which I would now give $50 to repossess. Little is generally known of the ardent feelings of W il liam Prince in regard to our attainment of a real national independence. The culture of the vine, the tanner’s sumac, the madder, licorice, and other plants o f great national importance, he continued through life to urge upon our country’s adoption, as the means of rendering it independent of foreign supplies. “ He always contended that our paying tribute by importations from other nations less favored by nature than our own, for such articles as our country could readily produce, was not only a tacit concession that Americans were deficient in intellect, industry, and enterprise, but that it was an insult to that beneficent Creator who had stamped upon the favored regions of our country such pre eminent advantages for its development.” R EQ UISITES FOR MAKING GOOD FIRE-BRICK. The materials for the manufacture of good fire-brick are very plentiful in the United States. There is an abundance of fire-clay, also kaolin, (the result of the decomposition of feldspathic rock,) which is very common between the Alleghany Mountains and the shores of the Atlantic ; and it is more abundant in the South ern than in the Eastern and Northern States. In the region of the western coal deposits, an abundance of slaty clay of good quality is found; and fire-clay, in one or other forms, abounds also in the Western States. In this connection it may be remarked, that when fire-brick of a finer composition are required, it is necessary that the materials should be ground fine. The quartz sand used to increase the refractory nature of the brick should be pure. The clay thus mixed with quartz, or pure, is subjected to grinding, which should be done carefully and thoroughly, that the brick may be compact. Carbon, iu the form of graphite or anthracite dust, or coke dust, is often mixed with the clay from which crucibles are made. M. Overman states, in his work on Metallurgy, that fire-bricks which are manu factured and used on the spot, do not require baking, but only those which are to be transported. Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and A rt. 247 HOW TO M AKE OIL OF VITRIOL. The thousand and one uses in which oil of vitriol, or sulphuric acid, is put in this and all countries, cannot fail to render some account of it interesting to every one of our readers. First, then, what is sulphuric acid ? Chemically, it is a compound consisting of one equivalent of sulphur and three of oxygen, and is written S03. Some chemists, however, hold the theory that there can be no acid without the presence of hydrogen, and from all experiment, this idea seems to be the correct one, and they write it H S04, i. e., one equivalent of S03 com bined with one equivalent of water, which is a compound in equal proportions of hydrogen and oxygen, and is written H O .; and, moreover, as the compound S03 has uever been obtained in any but the gaseous state, and then it exerts no acid reaction, H S 0 4 or S 0 3 -H 0 is the received symbol for oil of vitriol. Its physi cal properties are a yellowish-white, oily-looking liquid, having a strong acid taste and smell, capable of mixing with water, and has a specific gravity of 1-9. The chief uses are the solution of indigo and the manufacture of various chemical salts, and the method of manufacturing it is as follows:— In the United States, where pure sulphur is comparatively cheap, it is burnt in large kilns, and the result of this combustion is a gas called sulphurous acid, having the composition S02, and this is conducted into large leaden chambers, where it meets with a jet of steam and a quantity of nitric acid in the gaseous state, from which it takes up one equivalent of oxygen and falls down to the bottom of the chamber as liquid sulphuric acid, having a specific gravity of about 1 - 2 , (having obtained the water from the steam ;) it has then to be concentrated by evaporation in either leaden or platina vessels to the required strength. The nitric acid gas is obtain ed by heating together a quantity o f common nitre or nitrate of potash with sulphuric acid, and the nitrous gas is given off, while the sulphate of potash remains, which is chiefly used in medicine. This is a brief outline of the manufacture as it is generally described ; but practice has rendered some important changes necessary to produce it at a price sufficiently low for the consumer ; and in England this cheapening process has been carried to a still greater extent. In the great districts of the chemical works— namely, in ar,d around St. Helena in Lancashire, and Birmingham, the method is as follows:— In consequence of the dearness of pure sulphur, some compound w’hich would burn easily and was cheap, and in abundance, had to be obtained, and this was readily done in that class of minerals known as pyrites, which are a compound of some metal (usually iron or copper) and sulphur, and contain from thirty to sixty per ce: t of the latter ; and as this is very abundant in almost all parts of the world, and hitherto of no use, it provhd to be the very thing required, so that by a slight modification in the construction of the kilns or furnaces, it was found to burn as well as pure sulphur, and has consequently been used ever since. Certain precautions in the regulation of the draft have to be taken to prevent it from fusing and caking into a cinder, which would, of course, stop the combustion. The gas, which is the result of this, is the same as in the case of pure sulphur, and is treated the same way. There is, however, a mass of matter left in the kiln which needs to be cleared out, v iz .:— the pyrites, now no longer useless compounds of sulphur with iron and copper, but oxydes of those metals, ready at once for the further processes of the smelter, and in many instances, the copper which is extracted from these burnt pyrites, pays for the manufacture of vitriol. Another change is that nitrate of soda is used, or. as it is called, soda-nitre, which is imported from South America, as it is much cheap er than the potash nitre, it being worth about four dollars per cwt., in England, and the potash more than twice that sum. The result is the same, namely, nitrous gas, which is conveyed into the lead chamber with the sulphurous gas and a residue of sulphate of soda, which is used in making soda-ash. The part which nitrous gas plays in the chemical changes from sulphurous to sulphuric acid, is as yet scarcely understood, but it is supposed to be but a kind of trans ferring action, or, in plain terms, that it is the commission agent between the moist air in the chamber which has oxygen to spare and the sulphurous acid that s in want of oxygen. The idea is, that it undergoes no real change itself, but is 248 Journal o f Mining, Manufactures, and Art. continually giving up oxygen to the acid and taking it from the air. Experience, however, shows that this is not true, for if fhe continual supply of a small portion of fresh nitrous gas is not furnished, it becomes robbed of all its oxygen, and the process stops ; so that our opinion is, that it exerts not only a transferring and carrying action, but also a very powerful ckemica1 action when present in exactly the right quantity, which can only be understood by long experience in the manufacture. There are many points to be noted in the various processes, which need only be mentioned to show that we are not unmindful of them : but nothing short of practice can, of course, familiarize them to the inquirer ; the regulation of the draft to the kilns, the depth of the fire in the kilns, the color of the gases in the lead chamber, and the specific gravity of the liquid at various stages of the pro cess, which, by the way, is a continuous oDe. This is a general and cursory description of the manufacture of oil of vitriol, and of course has only given a general and popular description of the process.— Scientific American. TH E F IR ST STEAM ENGINE IN TH E UNITED ST AT ES. The Historical Society of Tennessee, recently received a communication from Mr. S. D. McCullough, of Lexington, Ky., giving particulars of the construc tion of a model of a steam engine by the late Edward West, of that city. Mr. McCullough says:— After the death of Mr. West, and the death of his servant, Henson, in 1833, the contents of his shop were sold out, and the late Mr. Brenan, of that place, became the purchaser of the engine, or all that was left of it, who gave it to me as one of the neighbors and friends of Mr. West. I have that little engine now in possession, or all of its remains, which consists of a small oblong wooden frame, a cylinder and piston-rod, two valves for letting on and off steam, supply and escape pipes, and two springs, which apparently were intended as substitutes for the fly-wheel, to overcome the ‘ dead point.’ The governor, if such a thing was known in those days, is not attached, nor are any other parts to which the power was applied. There is no boiler, no crank, no way, in fact, visible by which he applied the power to the paddles, except, perhaps, a hole in the end of the piston-rod and two levers acted on by spiral or semi-spiral springs. I had intended to have sent it to the Smithsonian Institute, if I permitted it to leave Kentucky at all, and shall still deliberate prudently where I had better place it, so as to preserve it for all time to come. Your own good sense will agree with me, no doubt, in that. I regard the name of Edward West as na tional, and not local, and feel proud of his reputation as a Kentuckian and citizen of Lexington, as having been the first man in the United States, to run a steam boat (model though it was) on the United States waters.” MANUFACTURE OF LIME IN ALTON, ILLINOIS. One of the newspapers in Alton, 111., gives an account of the manufacture of lime in that city. Though in 1815 it was carried on upon a small scale and in primitive style, it has now become of importance. Since the first of March, 1857, there were, to date of account manufactured, 121,900 barrels, There are twenty kilns in operation, of which five are patents. About five hundred men are employed on them, without counting the coopers. It is stated that there are ample facilities for the manufacture of 2 1 0 ,0 0 0 barrels of lime per annum, worth over $200,000. This is the yearly product of the rocky and forbidding bluffs that adorn the river bank in the immediate neighborhood of Alton. From this account, we find practical “ sermons in stones,” and have an example to prove that Yankee ingenuity can produce profit from the hardest of nature’s products. Journal o f Mining Manufactures and A rt. 249 TH E MANUFACTURE OF W H IT E LEAD. According to one of our cotemporaries, white lead is now manufactured by a new process. In regard to the old process the following statement is given :— According to'the old process the sheet lead, placed in earthen pots with acid in a moderate heat, requires some five or six months to become sufficiently oxydized, and in this process large quantities of vinegar are wasted, as well as interest of money invested in lead lost. And in respect to the new process :— In the new process the fumes arising from the manufacture of vinegar are sub stituted for the liquid, and answer the purpose so much better that, as it is alleged, sheet lead of the same thickness with that in tin pots is corroded in eight or ten days, so as to yield a much larger per cent of white lead—say 20 or 25 per cent— than is obtained in the old way in five or six months. A t the same time the con version of 50 gallons of whisky into 330 gallons of vinegar will, it is estimated, pay all the expense of converting the sheet lead into white lead of the first quality. The filtration of the whisky aud water going on at a suitable heat in a lower room, gives off its fumes from the filters directly into an air-tight room above, where the sheets of lead are arranged upon racks, and where the process of oxydatiou can be seen through glasses in the partition. The after process of washing and separation of oxyde from the unoxydated portion is the same as in the old process. TH E NEAT YORK GAS LIGHT COMPANY, The New York Gas Light Company have in operation three retort houses, containing five hundred and four retorts, and over one hundred and sixty furnaces. There are also purifying and condensing houses, together with the usual number of workshops and offices. They have two large chimneys over one hundred and fifty feet high, with six telescope gasometers, exclusive of six distributing gaso meters at different parts of their district, which hold over 1,500,000 cubic feet of gas. The total cost of these works amounts to oyer $500,000. The company employs about four hundred men, and manufactures 150,000,000 cubic feet of gas per year, consuming about 40,000 tons of coal, from which over 25,000 tons of coke are produced. Before 1849, the company manufactured their gas from oil and rosin, but now they use two-thirds of Cannel and one-third of Newcastle coal; and when the gasometers are not large enough to contain what is manufactured, the Cannel coal is exclusively used, as it is purer and makes more gas, although its market price is somewhat higher than Newcastle. The company have over one hundred and twenty-five miles of pipe laid, cover ing the whole of their district, which consists of all that part of the city south of Grand-street. TH E SALISBURY W OOLEN FABRICS, F reem an H unt, Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine:— C a m b r id g e , January 9,1858. D ear S ir :—I should like to call attention to an error one of your corresdents has made—page 6 6 8 of January number. Mr. Seaman says, “ at the present time we have not a single factory making such goods”— meaning all the fine woolens. Now the Salisbury Company, near Newburyport, always has manufac tured the finest fabrics of the kind, for gentlemen and lady’s wear, and never any '■ negro cloth” or the like. A number of other companies all over New England do the same, but this, the Salisbury, is a large and old establishment, wholly de voted to first-class manufactures, and the only one with which I have been well acquainted. Yours, F. W . HOLLAND. 250 Statistics o f Agriculture, etc STATISTICS OF A G R IC U LT U R E , &c. AGRICULTURAL CAPABILITIES OP MINNESOTA, During the year 1857, according to our exchanges, the farmers of Minnesota, by their efficient and well-directed labor, achieved much for the prosperity of this new State. They have thus proved how capable Minnesota is of producing all the cereal crops in the greatest abundance. The Hastings Independent, in N o vember, 1857, commenting upon the crops of the year, remarked:— The produce of the territory having been harvested, it may not be inappropri ate to glance at the extraordinary yield which the soil o f Minnesota affords the husbandman. For wheat, oats, rye, barley, and buckwheat, there is no country which ex ceeds Minnesota, if it has any equals ; while as to corn, which is principally of the eight-rowed species, there is a fair yield, farmers estimating an average crop at 40 bushels to the acre— a large average for a corn-growing region, which we do not claim that Minnesota is, it being separated by Northern Illinois and Iowa, from what we consider the cornfields of the world. "VYliat Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, and Illinois are to corn, Minnesota is to wheat, oats, rye, barley, producing immense returns for the labor invested, and rendering it em phatically the land for the farmer who wishes to make money from the produc tion of these grains. With but proportionally small amounts of land under cultivation, Minnesota has raised enough of the small grains for home use, and there will probably be a small amount for transportation. This, in view of the fact that emigration has been much greater to the cities and towns than to the farms, is what we consider extraordinary for a country which has attracted attention but for three or four years, and as hereafter we expect that emigration will be attracted by the im mense amount of excellent farm land, the increase of products will, in a year or two, be doubled, and Minnesota will take her place and become famous for her exports of the small grains. But we cannot close this article without speaking of the potatoe. which is so prolific here, and which is universally an article of diet the world over. The potatoes of Minnesota are becoming noted, not only for their extreme productive ness, but for the excellent flavor which they possess, it being conceded that in this climate they are richer in taste and more nutritive in their qualities than in any other portion of the United States. 'A s a potatoe-growing region, Min nesota has no superior. Then, as to cabbages, turnips, and the various kinds of roots, together with the vines, Minnesota classes with those portions of the world which produce the best. In summing up, we cannot but anticipate the position the State will occupy among her sisters, and expect, in a few years, to see steamers plying along her rivers laden with the productions of her rich soil. ILLUSTRIOU S FA R M E R S. Edward Everett, in a late oration at the New Y ork Agricultural State Fair, thus referred to great men who have chosen an agricultural life :— The greatest political philosopher and most consummate statesman of modern Europe. Edmund Burke, who saw further than any of his countrymen into the cloudy future which hung over the close o f the eighteenth century, at the meridian of his life, and while most engrossed in public business, purchased a large farm. “ I have,” says he in a letter written to a friend in that most critical year of English politics, 1769, “ just made a push, with all I could collect of my own, and the aid of my friends, to cast a little root in the country. I have purchased about t Statistics o f Agriculture, etc. 251 six hundred acres of land in Buckinghamshire, about twenty-four miles from Lon don. It is a place exceedingly pleasant, and I purpose, God willingly, to become a farmer in good earnest." This, his purpose, he carried into effect, and adhered to it to the eud of his life. Those immortal orations which revived in the British Senate the glories of the ancient eloquence, were meditated in the retirement of Beaconsfield ; and there, also, were composed those all but inspired appeals and expostulations, which went to the heart of England and Europe in the hour of their dearest peril, and did so much to expose the deformity and arrest the pro gress of that godless philosophy— specious, arrogant, hypocritical, and sanguinary — which, with liberty and equality on its lips, and plunder, and murder, and treason in its heart, waged deadly war on Prance and mankind, and closed a professed crusade for republican freedom by the establishment of a military despotism. A greater than Burke in this country, our own peerless Washington, with a burden of public care on his mind such as has seldom weighed upon any other person— conscious, through a considerable part of his career, that the success not only of the American Revolution, but of the whole great experiment of republican government, was dependent in no small degree upon his course and conduct— yet gave throughout his life, in time of peace, more of his time and attention, as he himself in one of his private letters informs us, to the superintendence of his agri cultural operations, than to any other object. “ It will not be doubted,” says he, in his last annual message to Congress (7th of December, 1796,) that, with re ference either to individual or national welfare, agriculture is of primary import ance. In proportion as nations advance in population and other circumstances of maturity, this truth becomes more apparent, and renders the cultivation of the soil more and more an object of public patronage. * * * Among the means which have been employed to this end, none have been attended with greater success than the establishment of boards, charged with collecting and diffusing information, and enabled by premiums and small pecuniary aids, to encourage and assist a spirit of discovery and improvement.” On the 10th of December, 1799, Washington addressed a long letter to the manager of his farms— the last elaborate production of his pen— transmitting a plan, drawn upon thirty written folio pages, containing directions for their cultivation for several years to come. In seven days from the date of this letter his own venerated form was “ sown a natural body to be raised a spiritual body." Nearly all the successors of Washington in the Presidency of the United States, both the deceased and the living, passed, or are passing, t.heir closing years in the dignified tranquility of rural pursuits. DESCRIPTION OF A ROMAN FAR M . The Philadelphia Press gives the subjoined account of a Roman farm, which, in many respects, will be of interest to our readers :— The farm of Campo Marto, near the Campagna, consists of seventeen thousand acres, one thousand of which is arable land, eleven hundred permanent pastures or meadows, and twenty-two hundred forest. The arable land is divided into four lots, which are subject each to a rotation of crops and fallows according to the nature of the soil. One wheat crop is succeeded by two or three years’ fal lows, or the wheat crop is succeeded by oats and beans ; or, lastly, after the oat harvest in the second year, the ground is sown with Indian corn or beans, after which it is left fallow for one year and then sown with wheat again. The wheat crop, in general, returns about nine for one, the other, grains and beans, about fifteen. The cultivation of the farm requires sixty-five plow's and two hundred and twenty oxen. Two hundred and fifty bullocks are kept fattening for the market, besides about eight hundred cows and calves, and about one hundred buffaloes. One hundred horses aie required for the cattle drivers and servants of the farm, who are alwmys mounted, as well as for the carts, &c., and two hundred and fifty mares and colts to keep up that number. Two thousand sheep graze on the 1 > 252 Statistics o f Agriculture, etc. farm. The agents and servants, permanently employed, amount to two hundred. About four hundred laborers are engaged from October to June, and about eight hundred in harvest time. The former are paid from one penny-and-a-half to two pence per day— from thirty to forty cents. The latter, in general, about two francs, or forty cents, They come chiefly from the mountains of Abruzzi and Sabine. The rent paid the Chapter of St. Peters, who are the proprietors, is 130,000 francs, or about $6,000. The whole product of the farm is valued at, or a little over, $17,000. But the expenses attending this great establishment, swallows up so much of this sum, that the real profits of the farmer consist in his commercial and banking speculations, which he carries on by means of the farm produce. CATTLE M AR K ET AT BRIGHTON, M A S S,, FOR FOUR YE AR S. In the following table we have combined the statistics of the aggregate sales of the different kinds of stock, at Brighton (Mass.) market, from 1854 to 1857, inclusive:— Value, Beef cattle . . . ...N o . Stores .......... ........... Sheep............ Sboats.......... Fat hogs........ Yalue o f above.. . 1854. 1855. 65,065 20,840 65,650 16,935 216,420 71,220 1856. 59,925 11,580 190,120 90,356 49,895 1857. 54,585 15,325 161,825 65,510 36,420 1857. $2,947,590 489,400 647,280 334,101 478,855 $4,897,226 $5,328,130 $5,485,467 $5,791,953 The material falling off in 1857 in all kinds of market stock, alike in number and price, was almost wholly in the months of October, November, aud Decem ber, and must be considered one of the direct results of the financial revulsion. TRADE OF TH E CATTLE M AR K ET AT CAMBRIDGE, M A S S ,, IN 1 8 5 7 . The whole number of cattle, sheep, &c., brought to the Cambridge market during the year ending December 31st, 1857, was as follows :— Cattle, 45,901; sheep, 123,338 ; veal calves, 6,574. They were from the different States as follows:—. NUMBER M ain e............... New Hampshire. Vermont............. Massachusetts... . T otal........... Cattle. 2,500 10,284 18,613 2,808 FROM Sheep and lambs. 1,000 33,168 63,600 15,939 EACH S TA TE . New York......... Western.............. Canada.............. Cattle. 4,247 5,509 1,940 45,901 Fheep and lambs. 3,485 .... 6,146 123,338 The estimated cost for the cattle is $1,744,238 ; for sheep, $400,848 ; and for veal calves, $39,444; total, $2,184,530. CATTLE AND SW IN E IN OHIO. In a Cincinnati paper we find a statement of the production of cattle and swine in the State of Ohio from 1840 to 1857, coupled with a conclusion on the part of the writer that Ohio reached, in 1854-5, that point when it is more profitable to raise grain for men, or to turn its labor into manufactures or the arts of life, than it is to raise cattle :— Cattle. Swine. 1840............... 1846............... 1,217,864 920.995 2,099,746 1,405,094 1 8 5 3 ................. 1,646,195 2 ,498,794 1855 1856 1857 ..... ..... ..... Cattle. Swine. 1,791,189 1,687,710 1,655,415 2,195,769 1,851,124 2,331,778 Statistics o f Agriculture, etc. 253 TH E CAMAS AND W APPATTOO OF VANCOUVER’ S ISLAND, In the Journal of the Canadian Institute, Mr. Paul Kane, of Toronto, gives an account of his travels among the Chinook Indians, who inhabited a portion of the northwest coast of America and of Vancouver’s Island— a region to which many an eager eye is now cast in anticipation of the expiration of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s charter. Mr. Kane states The only vegetables in use among the Chinooks are the Camas and Wappattoo. The Camas is a bulbous root, much resembling the onion in outward appearance, but is more like the potatoe when cooked, and is very good eating. The Wappattoo is somewhat similar, but larger, and not so dry and delicate in its flavor. They are found in immense quantities in the plains in the vicinity of Fort Vancouver, and in the spring of the year present a most curious and beau tiful appearance, the whole surface displaying an uninterrupted sheet of bright ultra-marine blue from the innumerable blossoms of these plants. They are cooked by digging a hole in the ground, then putting down a layer of hot stones, covering them with dry grass, on which the roots are placed. The hole is then closed by another layer of grass and of earth, perforated by a small orifice, through which water is poured and immediately closed ; and the water on reach ing the hot stones is converted into steam, which, in a short time, completely cooks the roots. TH E COST OF RAISING TOBACCO. A correspondent of the Southern Planter, writes a£ follows :— Tobacco is the most unfriendliest of all crops to the improvement of a farm. It is a comp.ete monopolist of manure. The tobacco lots get every particle from the stable and barn-yard, except the few loads that the planter’s wife begs for her garden. The very woodland is often robbed of its dead leaves and top-soil, to fatten the tobacco ground. The whole tract is impoverished, starved, cheated of its aliments, to pamper the favorite crop. The wheat’s only chance for benefit from manure is, when it is sown upon tobacco land. Then it has the pet’s leavings. The planter’s attention, too, is all taken up by his tobacco. His thoughts and the cares, of his overseer and hands are so filled with it, that other crops are neglected— particularly the many third and fourth rate crops, such as hay, tur nips, potatoes, beets, and pumpkins, and milch cows, pork, mutton, beef, milk, butter, honey, fruits, &c., that bring so much comfort and-profit. It is as much as he can do to sow and harvest his wheat, and to plant, weed hastily, and gather his corn— for the months from March to January are spent in preparing and nursing plant beds, hoeing and hilling tobacco ground, planting and replanting, watering, suckering, weeding, priming, topping, worming, cutting, scaffolding, housing, hanging, firing, string-down, striping, tying, and prizing, with constant anxieties and watchfulness all the time, to profit by or to guard against the weather and accidents. CHINESE SUGAR CANE, (SORGHO SUCRE.) Mr. J. P. C. Hyde, of Newton Center, Massachusetts, (says a correspondent writing to the head of the agricultural division of the Patent-office,) has a West India sugar mill of two-horse power in constant operation, and grinds canes for his owu and several adjoining counties. He charges fifty cents per gallon for making syrup for others from their canes, and sells his own at one dollar per gallon. So he will soon get back his $600 spent for his mill, and he has already turned the laugh at his alleged “ folly.” He is making barrels of syrup every day, and has a full bank of large boilers at work. He will have his begasse made into paper. He weighs his canes and keeps count of his products. Statistics o f Population, etc. 254 VEG ETATIO N IN HIGH LATITUDES, Bayard Taylor, in narrating his second visit along the coast of Norway, in 1857, (his first visit having been but a few weeks previous,) remarks :— “ I was particularly struck, during the return, with the rapid progress of sum mer— the flying leaps with which she clears her short course. Among the Lofodens the potatoes were coming into blossom, and the rye and barley into head ; the grass was already cut in many places and drying on poles, and the green of the woods and meadows showed the dark rich character of the southern lands. Owing to this rapidity of growth, all the more hardy varieties of vegeta bles may be successfully cultivated. Mr. Thomas informed me that his peas and beans at Kaafiord, (latitude seventy degrees north,) grew three inches in twenty-four hours ! and that although planted about six weeks later than those about Christiana, came to maturity at the same time. Here is another popular illusion dispelled. W hat are all the marvels of tropical growth to this ?” STATISTICS OF POPULATION, & c . N A T IV IT Y OF TH E PEOPLE OF TH E STATE OF N E W YORK. From the official publication of the census o f the State of New Y ork for 1855, we derive the following statements concerning the place o f birth o f the population o f the State at that period. N o inquiries into the nativities of the population of the State were made until the census of 1845, when there were reported as born—■ Number. In State of New York................................. New England Statee.................................................. Other States and Territories of United States........ Mexico and South America.......................................... Great Britain and its possessions................................ France.............................................................................. Germany......................................................................... Other European countries............................................ Nativities not reported................................................ 1,894,278 228,881 83,642 977 277,890 10,619 49,558 8,222 50,428 Percent. or 72.73 8.78 3.31 0.04 10.67 0.41 1.90 0.32 1.93 In 1850 the deputy marshals were required to enter the name of the State or Territory, or of the government, in which each person was born. In condensing these returns, only the following was ascertained concerning the State of New Y o rk :— Born in Number. State of New Y o r k ........................................................... Other States and Territories of United States............. Foreign countries............................................................... Nativities not reported..................................................... 2,092,076 296,754 655,224 4,271 Per cent. or 68.63 9.74 21.49 0.14 In the census of 1855 there was required— the county, if in the State; the State or Territory, if in the United States, or the foreign country in which each person was born. The tendency of emigration in the State is westward, as is most strikingly shown by comparing the population of almost any county in the eastern with one in the western part of the State. The following are examples :— In Steuben, born in Otsego........... Washington... Livingston, “ Montgomery. Jefferson, “ Genesee, “ Herkimer... . , 1,173 In Otsego, born in 353 Washington, “ 1,602 Montgomery, “ 104 Herkimer, “ Steuben......... Livingston... Jefferson . . . . Genesee......... 23 8 55 15 255 Statistics o f Population, etc. The number and percentages of the population of the State in 1855, born in the several sections of the Union and in foreign countries, are as follows :— Number. Per cent. 2,323,321 or 64.077 63,691 1.863 57,086 1.648 54,266 1.565 14^941 0.431 11,737 0.339 588 0.168 207,539 6.014 40,391 1.164 31,472 0.907 New York ........ Connecticut....... Massachusetts... Vermont.......... N. Hampshire... Rhode Island... M aine............... N. Eng. States.. Mew Jersey.... Pennsylvania... Per cent Number. 13,124 or 0.378 5,256 0.151 3,413 0.098 0.036 1,163 0.033 606 0.017 183 0.005 2,528,444 72.905 17,749 0.512 922,019 26.585 Southern States O hio................ Michigan........... Wisconsin......... Indiana............. Other States__ United States. . At sea & unk’n. For’n countries. MORTALITY IN AMERICAN COMMERCIAL CITIES. The Philadelphia Bulletin has published its annual compilation o f the records of mortality in New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Boston, according to which it appears that the general health was better in 1857 than in 1856 in all the cities except New York, where there was an increase in the number of interments. W e have rearranged the figures from the Bulletin as follows :— A G G R E G A T E M O R T A L IT Y . Deaths reported in New York. 1853..................... 1854..................... 1855..................... 1856..................... 1857..................... 21,864 28,458 23,107 21,496 28,370 Philadelphia. 9,750 11,811 10,509 12,090 10,950 STATISTICS O F P R O M IN E N T D IS E A S E S IN Consumption.. . . Convulsions......... C holera............... Cholera infantum Cholera morbus. Diarrbcea............ Dysentery.......... Scarlet fever. . . . Typhoid A typhus fever.. Inflammation of lungs... Small p o x ........ Marasmus......... Still-born........... Other diseases.. Total........... Under 5 years........ Baltimore. 5,117 5,938 5,447 5,677 5,524 1857. 762 91 Boston. 4,369 4,418 4,030 4,170 4,005 776 2,877 1,610 1,535 539 10 1 1,486 63 615 826 1,363 284 1,097 417 1,628 1,546 10,158 535 402 10 10 7 116 208 727 204 529 69 498 570 5,419 17 131 355 96 96 S4 29 94 429 105 198 433 3,047 1,880 23,370 7,862 10,950 5,520 5,524 1,674 4,005 955 117 1 286 2 81 * POPULATION OF TH E E M P IR E OF AU STR IA, An Austrian statistician recently published a classification of the people of the Empire of Austria. The last census stated the population at 36,398,354. Of this number the dominant race yields the smallest proportion, there being less than eight millions of German subjects of the Emperor. The Sclavonic race forms the bulk of the empire, being nearly fifteen millions in number. The Asiatic tribes, under Austrian rule, are between five and six millions, and of these the Magyars in Hungary are the chief portion. The Austrian army, which in its complete state numbers 648,000 men, is stated to be the largest army in Europe for actual service.* * In Boston the still-born are not reported. 256 Statistics o f Population, etc. PROGRESS OF POPULATION IN CANADA. The Montreal Herald recently published a synopsis o f the census of 1851, ac companied by an estimate of the increase of population since that census was prepared. That estimate was based upon returns sent in from Upper Canada Municipalities, in 1856 and 1857, to the Bureau of Agriculture and Statistics. In Lower Canada some such returns were sent in 1856, and one-seventeenth added for the increase of the past year, which is perhaps too large an addition, since the previously established rate of increase has been about 4 per cent or l-25th per annum. Making this deduction, however, there is much cause for congratu lation in the approximate estimates thus arrived at, based in part upon authentic returns, and in part upon careful calculations. The population of Canada may be safely stated at almost, if not quite, two-and a-half-millions. When it is re. membered that in 1848 the population of the United Provinces was about 1,500,000, the rate of increase in ten years is indeed something to boast of. Twothirds added to the population of a country with such variety of soil and climate in that time is without precedent. The increase of the United States during the 10 years ending 1850, was 35J per cent, that of Upper Canada during the 10 years from 1841 to 1851, 10-U per cent, and now for the whole Province since 1848, it is 65 to 70 per cent, or nearly double the rate of increase of the United States. The third of a century is generally reckoned as a generation. During that period the population of Canada has increased from 582,000 to 2,500,000, or more than twice doubled itself. In fact, population of Canada doubles itself in rather less than 15 years. If that ratio of increase be continued, Canada will have at the beginning of the next century 2 0 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 of inhabitants. FACTS ABOUT FA M ILY NAM ES IN ENGLAND AND W A L E S. ■The following facts are from an interesting article on the family nomenclature of England and Wales, in the sixteenth annual report of the Registrar-General of England :— The indexes of births, marriages, and deaths, for 17-J years, contain more (ban 21,000,000 names. In England, Smith is by far the most common name, while in Wales the name of Jones predominates. During the period above named, the records of both England and Wales show 286,037 persons named Smith, and 282,900 named Jones. Of the whole population of England and Wales, in 1853, one person in 73 was named Smith, one in 76 was a Jones, one in 115 was a Williams, and one in 148 a Taylor, one in 162 a Davies, and one in 174 a Brown. Over half-a-million of the whole population were named Smith or Jones. Of the 21,000,000 names registered, a greater number began with the letter B than with any other letter, being 1 1 in every 1 0 0 names; the letter H was next in number, 9.5 in each 100 ; letter S 8.9 in each 100 ; W , 8.7 ; C, 7.9, etc. In England, there is a very great diversity of surnames, in Wales there are very few. Probably nine-tenths of the population of Wales could be mustered under less than 100 different surnames. Of these the following are the most numerous, and in the order given :— Jones, Williams, Davies, Evans, Thomas, Roberts, Lewis, Hughes, Edwards, Lloyd, etc. The above facts refer to England and Wales alone, and do not include Ireland and Scotland. In this country, with a mixture of all nations, an examination of the family names would show quite different results. W ill not some lover of the curious look up the subject here ? Mercantile Miscellanies. 257 M E R C A N T IL E M ISC E L L A N IE S. NOTHING TO PAY. The Boston Morning Post has a parody on “ Nothing to Wear,” suggested by the financial revulsion of the past year. W e confess that we can form a better estimate of arithmetic than of the numbers of the Sacred Nine Yerses to suit our “ parish,” which must partake of the shop; and as that is not the most in. spiring theme for the muse, the reader will not, either in original contributions or selections, expect to find a flowing verse or the most lofty soul-stirring inspire tion :— Nothing to wear and nothing to eat, Are nothing at all to shinning the street— There’s nothing worth singing at this time of day, But the glorious freedom of “ Nothing to Pay.” My friend round the corner, you see by his look, Is compelled to take care of both sides of the book ; While his neighbor next door is so radiant and gay Y ou may bet on your life he has “ Nothing to Pay.” John Smith in his office sits calm and sedate ; The wave has submerged him, he yields to his fate ; His notes have laid over, they’re out of the way ; For some time, at least, he has “ Nothing to Pay.” Tim Noolan, his porter, from o’er the sea, Is as free from all care as a lark or a b ee; Tim blesses the gods, as he moistens his clay, That, unlike his employers, he’s “ Nothing to Pay.” The school-boy who sighs for the beard of a man, And to be independent as soon as he can, May comfort himself that, whate’er the delay, Until twenty-one he has “ Nothing to Pay.” The maiden who weeps for the false one that’s gone, And left her deserted, abandon’d, alone, Has this consolation— though lovers will stray, Lovely damsels, unlike them, have “ Nothing to Pay.” The soldier who’s gone to the land of the sun To fight against Sepoys or demons— all one— Is lucky at least, as he comes from the fray Minus arms, minus legs, that he’s “ Nothing to Pay.” The pauper in poor house, who lives without care, Provided with food and with raiment to wear, May chuckle once more, that while others defray His expense, he only has “ Nothing to Pay.” But a truce to all jesting— if matters don’t mend Very soon, Heaven only knows where they will end— But this much is certain— there’ll be in the Bay State (perhaps there’s already) the “ Devil to Pay.” V O L . X X X V III. ----- NO. I I . 17 258 Mercantile Miscellanies. TH E CHOICE OF A B USINESS. The following letter, which was not, we presume, designed for publication, ask ing our advice in regard to the choice of an occupation in life, is from a young man in New York, who gives us his address and present position. He indicates a course which, if carried out, could not, under ordinary circumstances, fail of securing success. Our young friend will find, scattered over the last thirty-seven volumes of the Merchants’ Magazine, and in a little volume we published in the spring of 1856, entitled “ Worth and Wealth ; a Variety of Mercantile Morals and Maxims,” gleaned from our own and the experience of others, hints and sugges tions which may be of service to him and others who may seek similar advice. F reeman H unt Hsq., Editor of the Merchants’ Magazine:— D ear S ir :— I have been a constant reader of your valuable Magazine for three years past, and have great confidence in your judgment of mercantile affairs. I, therefore, take the liberty of addressing you, and asking your advice as to the choice of a business or pursuit to follow through life. Y ou urge the necessity of a young man adopting some one pursuit to which he should give all his atten tion, if he would be successful in the commercial world. I am 23 years of age, of ordinary qualifications; I understand book-keeping and the general routine of business; 1 am industrious, energetic, and persevering, with a large bump of order. These combined with a good, robust constitution, I flatter myself that I would make at least a moderate man of business. The branches of business I prefer are hardware, drugs, groceries, ship-chandlery, produce, or any other good staple business in which there is least fluctuation. I do not wish to go into any fancy business. As a general thing, they are overdone. I am both willing and able to work, and want a pursuit where industry, activity, and perseverance are required, and by their application 1 can advance myself. I am just commencing the world poor, and wish to know which business of the above you think 1 would be most successful at. Or if you could suggest any other business, where there is a wide field for self-promotion, I would feel much obliged. 1 have been in the patent-medicine business for eight years past, and now want to do something more useful, both for myself and the rest of mankind, and besides, I desire to lead a good and useful life. I feel that I could make my way through the world successfuly if I was only on the right track. I am sorry for having trespassed on your valuable time, but as you have devoted your life to the advancement of the mercantile community, I hope you will look over the liberty taken by one of its humblest members. Respectfully yours, etc. P. MoQ. Mercantile life is not, in our judgment, the surest path to competence or for tune. The gains of trade may be large, and the temptation to hazardous enter prise, a beach on which many a noble ship is stranded. W E B S T E R ’ S DICTIONARY AND SPELLING BOOK. According to the Springfield Republican, it appears that the Meriams sent a quantity of Webster’s dictionary to the Sandwich Islands. A few days since they received an order for a second supply, to consist of the unabridged and the school edditions, and also for a quantity of Webster’s spelling book. The number of copies of Webster’s spelling book sold since its first publication, is greater than the present population of the whole United States— men, women, and children. Six copies have to be produced every minute for ten hours each day, to meet the demand. The Appletons, who have recently become the publishers of this popular book, state that they have just received an order for 1 ,0 0 0 copies o f it from Constantinople. There is hope for Turkey yet. Mercantile Miscellanies. 259 COMMERCIAL TO W N S— STOCK GAMBLING. In running over the appropriate and eloquent address of E dward E verett, before the New York State Agricultural Society, at Buffalo, October 9, 1857, we met with the following passages relating to topics falling within the province o f our “ parish.” Mr. Everett has the happy power of harmonizing all the great interests of the world. N o “ pent up Utica contracts” his comprehensive vision. He would have (with all sound political or social economists) Agriculture, Manufacture, and Commerce, move on in brotherly harmony—they form a Trinity in Unity, which neither can dissolve without suffering the pains and penalties o f a broken law, as stable as any in creation. W e quote from the address of Mr. E. as follows :— “ It would be absurd to deny the manifold importance of great commercial towns in our social system. They are not the mere result of calculation ; they grow up by an irresistible necessity. The intenser life which springs from their stern competition undoubtedly performs a most important office in the progress o f civilization. The faculties are sharpened by the direct contact and collision o f kindred minds. The great accumulations of capital, which almost exclusively take place in commerce and the occupations connected with it, exercise an allpowerful influence in the community, aud are felt in all its enterprises. The social sympathies gather warmth and force from the generous contagion of congenial natures. But society is in its happiest state when town and country act and react upon each other to mutual advantage; when the simpler manners and purer tastes of rural life are brought to invigorate the moral atmosphere of the metropolis, and when a lair proportion of the wealth acquired in the city flows back and is invested in landed improvements; transferring cultivated tastes and liberal arts from crowded avenues and ringing pavements to the open, healthful country, and connecting them with its substantial interests and calm pursuits. In acknowledging, as I do most cheerfully, the important relations of city life and commercial pursuits to the entire social system oi the country, I leave of course out of the account— I have no words hut of abhorrence— for the organized conspiracies, swindling and plunder, which exist side by side with the legitimate transactions of the stock exchange. It is not one of the least perplexing anoma lies of modern life and manners, that while avowed and thus far honest gambling (if I may connect those words) is driven by public opinion and the law. to seclude itself front observation within carefully tyled doors, there to fool away its hundreds, perhaps its thousands in secret— discredited, infamous— blasted by the anathemas o f deserted, heart-broken wives and beggared children— subject at all times to the fell swoop o f the police— the licensed gambling of the brokers’ board is car ried on in the face of d a y ; its pretended sales of what it does not own, its pre tended purchases of what it does not expect to pay for, are chronicled in the pub lic prints to the extent of millions in the course of a season, for the cruel and dishonest purpose of frightening innocent third parties into the ruinous sacrifice of bona fide property, and thus making a guilty profit out of the public distress and the ruin of thousauds. M ERCANTILE MANHOOD. The man, according to the Tribune, that brings his whole power of economy to bear in saving a drop at the spigot, while his barrel is leaking beyond all ac count at the bunghole, is the short-sighted individual who stops his paper or his advertising because trade is dull and times are hard. Never, says our coteniporary, stop advertising as long as yon continue in business. The merchant, or manufacturer, who evinces the most pluck aud energy, under the present pressure will be most respected for his vim and courage now, and secure a reputation for manhood and enterprise that will be serviceable to him all the rest of his life. 260 Mercantile Miscellanies. MAGNANIMOUS ACT OF A BROKER. Start not, gentle reader of the Merchants' Magazine, at the caption of this paragraph, for we have a case to show that even a broker may be magnauimous in money matters. The occurrence is related in the New Orleans Crescent, and re cently transpired. The Crescent says, that Mr. Lefevre, a wealthy sugar planter o f Lafourche, died recently without issue— his wife having preceded him to the grave. His estate was appraised at about $700,000. A few days since his will was opened, when it was found that he had left the whole of his possession to be divided equally between two gentlemen of this city— one a nephew to his wife, and the other the broker who had transacted his business in this city, a man in no wise related to him only in the way of his business. To the astonishment of his friends, this broker, on finding that he had being made legatee to half the old man’s estate, ($350,000 at least,) went before a notary public and renounced the whole legacy, making it over in favor of the relatives of the deceased in France, consisting of nephews and nieces to the number of twenty or thirty, and all hum bly situated in life. The old man had previously made a will in which his French relatives were handsomely remembered ; but on returning from a visit to them, not long ago, for some reason known only to himself, he tore the will to pieces and wrote a new one, leaving everything to his wife’s nephew and his broker, as above stated. He came to this country when young, a poor hatter ; but prospering in his business, and finally marrying a lady of wealth, he went into the sugar culture, and progressed so well that a few years more might have made him a millionaire. The broker who so magnanimously renounced his share of the estate gave as his reason for so doing that he was already as rich as he wished to be, and felt so in dependent that he did not wish it to be in the power of any one to say that any part of his fortune was not of his own making. His independence will certainly be heartily blessed on the other side of the water. W e would give the gentle man’s name were we not satisBed that he claims no merit for his act, and has no desire to be publicly mentioned in connection with the matter. GLOUCESTER TH E FISH M ETROPOLIS OF TH E U NITED ST AT ES. G loucester, as everybody knows, is in Massachusetts. The Gloucester Tele graph expresses the sanguine opinion that Gloucester is destined to become the acknowledged headquarters of the American fisheries before many years have run their course. It says :— “ Upon the principle that the big fish eat up the little ones— in the same man ner that Boston has swallowed Salem and all neighboring commercial communi ties, and somewhat after the style in which New York will eat up the prospective gains of Boston commerce, by stealing away her East India and China trade altogether, and monopolizing the steam communication with Europe— in this way Gloucester will quietly stow away in her capacious maw all the fishing in terests of New England ; and the thing is so far advanced nowT that nothing can stop the final consummation of the work. Several reasons combine to bring about this (to us) important result. W e are the oldest fishing community extant, and have always had the benefit of a good harbor, enterprising men, and a knowledge of the ropes generally, that warrants the success of our fisheries over all competitors. W e have the best'fleet of vessels afloat, and four thousand men now on board of them ; and this year more men have come here to ship for fishing voyages than ever before, and but few of them, we believe, came in vain. This Mercantile Miscellanies. 261 is of itself an indication of the high repute in which our vessels, our packers, and our skippers are held abroad, and already some towns on Cape Cod, feeling the inevitable rush of things this way, seem almost persuaded to abandon the fish ing business altogether. So we learn. A t this time we are hopeful of a profit able year’s business for our vessels in the Bay of St. Lawrence. They are coming along now with good fares and fat fish, and the certainty of high prices will not be counted on in vain, for our market is the broad continent, and our competitors not numerous enough to affect us at all.” HOW SOME B ASKS AR E STARTED IN W E S T E R N S T A T E S . W e give the following for what it is worth. Doubtles many banks have been “ got up ” by unprincipled knaves in Western States, as well as in other sections o f the Union ; since rascality knows no distinction of latitude or longitude. The Milwaukee Sentinel states, that the following letter was actually received from parties in the city o f New Y o r k :—N e w Y ork , N o— Wall-street, July 2,1857. Understanding from some of your friends— now on a visit to this city— that you are desirous to start a bank under the free banking law of W is consin, we take this opportunity to offer you our services to forward your views. Having had great experience within the past five years in “ getting up ” banks in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and even in Wisconsin, under the free banking laws of those States, we are quite sure your interests would be served by em ploying us to get in operation one for you. Without wishing or designing to disparage our neighbors, (some of whom are engaged in the same business,) we would say that to make a bank move on suc cessfully there is much wisdom to be displayed in its organization, which has not been displayed by those we have alluded t o ; for out of forty-three they were in strumental in “ getting up,” in Indiana forty-one have failed, while of those we have -‘ got u p ” (twenty-seven,) only fourteen have failed. W e have made it our particular study to organize “ free banks.” and hence our great success ; and if parties who desire to “ get u p ” banks will be governed by the advice we give, (in our private circulars,) there is no danger but the projector of the bank will make money, and it is to the projector’s interest we only look. It will, sir, cost you but little to get up a bank with $100,000 capital, secured by stock. W ith the addition of the retaining fee, $2,000, as above mentioned, about $3,000 for plates and notes, and $5,000 placed in our hands as a margin for the $ 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 stocks, we can manage to put it in successful operation. Yours respectfully, D e a b S i r :— O. P. K. COMMERCIAL EN T ER PR ISE OF A M ERCHANT IN WISCONSIN. By the following, from the Appleton (Wis.,) Crescent, it will be seen that the people living along the Lower Pox River and Improvement, are looking forward to extensive commercial ventures. The Mr. Hutchinson alluded to, has receutly purchased a large interest at Appleton :— Mr. Hutchinson contemplates embarking heavily in a new and important trade, viz.:— the purchase of grain and flouring it by the water power o f Appleton, and the exporting it via Green Bay and the Welland Canal to Nova Scotia, where flour always commands a higher price than in the New York market. Then load the vessel with choice lumber and ship to the West Indies; returning with a cargo of sugar, molasses, and salt. In this way, making two trips round per year from Green Bay, via the P ox and W olf rivers, the merchants of all the river towns can buy their sugar as low as at Chicago, besides an important saving in the item of transportation. 262 Mercantile Miscellanies. RECKLESS LENDING AND INDORSING. Jon.v G kigg , the retired millionaire, book publisher, and bookseller, sends us the following paragraph from the pen of a cotemporary :— A great many cautions are given to the public which are sure not to be heeded. In such times as these we are all ready to deliver lectures on the folly of attempt ing to live by the wits; on the results of extravagance, and the duty of going to work to earn our bread; on the madness of doing a large business on mere credit, and a variety of similar points; and in these lectures we give just that counsel which is unwelcome when it is needed. But if we say be careful, in future, when yon trust, to whom you give credit on goods, and to whom you lend your money or your indorsement, we may perhaps reach many minds with an acceptable piece of advice. Foolish borrowing must bo mainly prevented by the refusal to lend carelessly. Men must be put to sober work and economy, chiefly by necessity. Precept will do but little. When a man finds that he cannot bor row easily he will turn his attention to earning. In the eagerness to do business, we are tempted to send off large amounts of property in a very unsafe way. W e enjoy the excitement of large sales, even if we have only promises for our pay. W e are inclined to look on the favorable side, and to expect that the buyers will be as good as their word W o deem it enterprising and bold-spirited to send off the goods and hope for the best, but, iu this business fervor we go quite too far. W e stimulate each other to excessive trusting, and the consequence is, that a vast amount of property is scattered abroad and consumed, without ever being paid for. The indorsement hallucina tion proceeds in a somewhat similar way. The love of making a dashing movement extends to the helping of others by signing for them. The fever is contagious. Thus it is with all the forms of lending. Only a few cool and wary men are proof against it, and they are reproached in times of credit prosperity. But the community needs to learn a lesson of them— not to be selfish, and hard, and extortionate, but to abstain from incautious lending. A venturesome style o f giving credit may appear magnanimous at the time, and be applauded, but it tempts the borrower into a ruinous course, and prepares the way for reverses and bitter disappointment. The credit system now and then helps a poor young man to make a fortune, but how many does it lure on into pitfalls and over pre cipices. A destructive kindness is that which lends too freely. ENGLISH NICETY IN BUSINESS. I think the most curious fact, says an anonymous writer, taken altogether, that I have ever heard of the electric telegraph, was told me by a cashier of the Bank o f England. Y ou may have heard of it. It may have been in print; I am sure it deserves to be. Once upon a time, then, on a certain Saturday night, the folks at the bank could not make the balance come right by just il l Of). This is a se rious matter in that little establishment. I do not mean the cash, but the mistake in arithmetic— for it occasions a world of scrutiny. A n error in the balancing has been known, I am told, to keep a delegation of clerks from each office at work, sometimes, through the whole night. A hue and cry, of course, was made after this £100, as if the old lady in Threadneedle-street would be in the Gazette for want of it. Luckily, on the Sunday morning, the clerk, (in the middle of a sermon, I dare say, if the truth was known,) felt a suspicion of the truth dart through his mind quicker than any flash of the telegraph itself. He told the chief cashier on Monday morning, that perhaps the mistake might have occurred in packing some boxes of specie for the West Indies, which bad been sent to Southampton for shipment. The suggestion was immediately acted upon. Here was a race— lightning against steam, and steam with eight-and-forty hours the Mercantile Miscellanies. 263 start given. Instantly the wires asked, “ whether such a vessel had left the harbor?” “ Just weighing anchor,” was the reply. “ Stop her!” frantically shouted the telegraph. It was done. “ Have up on deck certain boxes marked so and s o ; weigh them carefully.” They were weighed ; and one, the delinquent, was found heavier by just one packet of a hundred sovereigns than it ought to be. ' Let her go,” said the mysterious telegraph. The West India folks were debted with just £ 1 0 0 more, and the error was corrected without ever looking into the boxes or delaying the voyage an hour. Now, that is what may be called “ doing business.” TH E OPIUM TRADE. According to the London Lancet, at the commencement of the Parliamentary ses sion in 1857, Earl Shaftesbury pressed for a reply to some questions he had previ ously asked in reference to the disgraceful opium trade with China, carried on under the auspices of the East India Company. The disastrous results of the Eastern policy of the authorities in Leadenhall street had not then been revealed, or it is probable that the Lord Chancellor would scarcely have ventured to narrate the eccentric mode of proceeding adopted by government before investigating the grounds of accusation against the aiders and abettors of this nefarious practice o f importing opium into China, in defiance of the decided and wise refusal of the Emperor to allow its introduction. As the trade, however, was a profitable one, its injurious results to the people, and the deliberate insult to the authorities implied by its continuance, did not disturb the conscience of John Compauy. And yet, when definite charges were brought against them, and they were ac cused of sanctioning this reprehensible sort of smuggling, these charges were actu ally submitted to the consideration of the East India Directors, and their opinion sought as to the admission or rejection of evidence tending to inculpate the con duct of the company. The result precisely corresponded to that which we might expect from affectionately consulting the wishes of an accused criminal as to what evidence he would prefer omitted on his trial. For it was announced— just at the fag end of the session, when noble lords were restlessly longing to celebrate the great festival of St. Grouse, and were too weary to ask many ques tions— that the whole case, as “ amended by the Board of Directors! ” had been submitted to the law officers of the Crown; the result, of course, being an opinion, “ that there was no illegality in the cultivation or sale of opium by the East India Company ; and with regard to its export to China, which had gone on from a period dating long before the present century, though they were of opinion that there was no violation of the treaty with China in that respect, it might be well to make some alteration, otherwise the company might not appear to be acting in accordance with the spirit of the treaty, which might lead to re monstrances.” That is assuredly an elastic kind of legislation, which demands an enormous yearly expenditure for suppressing the slave-trade, and at the same time sanctions (or at least winks very hard at) a traffic whose sole object is to gain pelf by brutalizing and debasing human beings. A GREAT COMMERCIAL EN T ER PR ISE IN HOLLAND. A gigantic enterprise is now going on in Holland, being nothing less than blocking up two arms of the sea, and replacing them by a navigable canal for 264 Mercantile Miscellanies. merchant vessels of the largest burthen. By this operation, an extent of land otL 14,000 hectares (35,000 acres) of the finest quality, will be gained from the Scheldt. This canal, which will be completed in the course of two years, crosses the Island of Sub-Beveland, between the villages of Hanswert, on the western branch of the Scheldt, and Wemerdinge. on the eastern. It will be ten killometres (six-and-a-quarter miles) in length, and provided with towing paths on both sides, and aqueducts and other works requisite for draining off the waters. There are t >be locks at both ends of the canal, with wet docks of a thousand square metres each. Outside the locks, there will be ports about sixty metres broad, and swivel bridges are to cross the canal at several points. The dams are to rise four metres above high water mark. A double railway, commencing at Flushing, touching at Middleburg and Goes, and terminating at Bergen-op-Zoom, is to run along their sides on beams ten metres in breadth and one-and-a-half metres above high water mark. By this railway, Flushing will be brought into immediate communication with all the railways of Germany. PICTURE OF AN ILLINOIS BANK, A correspondent of the St. Louis Republican, in concluding a letter to that journal, thus describes, how graphically we cannot say. an Illinois bank in 1857 :—A frame house, a counter, so high that you can barely lay your wrists on the sharp edges of it, and so narrow that but one man can approach at a time. The specie scoop hangs high up, like the laws of Nero, but unlike them, covered with cobwebs. Your check is canceled in deadly silence. You hear some fumbling behind a green screen. A package of shinplasters, as thick as a bull’s horn, and twenty-five cents in silver, is handed you for your inconsiderable check. The bundle is tightly laced, the notes are inside, so that, with the other inconveniences, you can hardly count them. Y ou open the bundle and sift out the Tinkham’a Almond-trees, and Wisconsins, and you are peremptorily told, *•N o use in assort ing ; that is all that you can get.” Y ou say— “ Please, then, return me my check.” Answer— “ Your check is already canceled.” This is the return made you by the best of them for gold advanced on grain. Had the grain gone down, you would have had it, but having gone up, they return you such shinplasters for your advances in gold, or stand suit. COMMERCIAL M O R A LITY IN IRELAND. The editor of the Belfast (Ireland) “ Mercantile Journal,1’ records the honorable conduct of two young men as an instance of the high commercial integrity which influences the great mass of merchants in the north of Ireland. Mr. David Thomp son, late of Maghera, died in the year 1848, after a tedious illness, during which his affairs became embarrassed. He was in considerable debt at the time of his death. His two sons, David and James, some years afterwards, sailed for Aus tralia, which they reached in safety ; and after three or four years o f severe toil, and having endured many hardships, they accumulated, by their industry, a sum % sufficient to pay off the debts due by their father, which amounted to between £1,100 and £1,200. On their return home, they sent a circular to each of their father’s creditors, requesting a statement of their accounts ; and they have since paid every demand in full. Some of the creditors wished to make a return for such honest and honorable conduct, by presenting each of them with a service of plate ; but this they firmly but respectfully declined. Both young gentlemen have again sailed for Melbourne, taking with them a new and powerful quartz Mercantile Miscellanies. 265 crushing machine, manufactured by Messrs. Rowan & Son, of Tork-street Foun dry, under their own inspection. A ll our readers will join heartily in our wishes that their prosperity will be such as their very honorable conduct deserves. COMMERCE OF APIA, NAVIGATOR'S ISLANDS. A correspondent of the Department of State, residing at Apia, Navigator’s Islands, furnishes the following information in relation to the commerce of that place. W e condense from the letter, as furnished to the Union by the Depart ment of State “ Cocoa-nut oil, which is the chief article of export, is shipped annually to the amount of 300 tons ; this is purely Samoan, and does not include such oil as may be brought hither from Tonga, or elsewhere, for the purpose of shipment for foreign ports. Sidney and Valparaiso are the two chief markets for this article. The value of the merchandise annually imported here in return for the oil shipped away, and also to meet the requirements of these islands, is, as nearly as I am able to ascertain, $60,000, consisting of general assortments; tobacco, and cutlery, axes, etc., are chiefly of American manufacture ; the goods, groceries, and spirits are principally British ; from Java, Manilla, and China, through Sidney, the place is supplied with sugar, coffee, and tea. The proportions of American merchandise, as compared with that of other countries, is about as 1 to 3 of the whole amount— the whalers invariably leaving a portion of merchandise in payment for their sup plies. The consumption of articles of foreign manufacture is very fluctuating, depending as much upon the ability as the willingness of the natives to purchase. During their wars, which are liable at any moment to break out, a large amount of their producing force is wasted. In time of peace, where trade is not inter fered with by legislation, the demand for foreign goods is one that gradually in creases. A s one want is satisfied, others arise, and, from step to step, they will, in such a case, materially extend the consumption. Their ridiculous social sys tem, however, interferes greatly with the progress of general commerce. The old men of the district can at any time, and do, for a period varying from three to nine months, or more, prohibit the sale of oil, vegetables, and fruit to, and, in fact, cause an entire cessation of intercourse with, foreigners, as was the case at Savaii until wiihin the last week, and as is now the case at Tutuila, where, for the last nine months, the natives have refused, and steadily persist in refusing, to sell ex cept at such prices as amount to ,a total extinguishment of trade. The average price of cocoa-nut oil here for the quarter has been from $80 to $ 1 0 0 per ton ; the oil is bought by the pound sterling, and payment is made in dollars, at $5 to the pound. It is always bought without casks. There are no duties leviable here, nor prohibitory regulations of any description. The port charges are, harbor dues $1 to $ 6 , according to the size of the vessel. Pilotage, $ 8 to $10, a single charge for in and out, according to the size of the vessel. A t present the amount of capital employed in this group is more than will yield profitable returns to all, and although the produce sent hence meets with ready sales in Australia and South America, yet such is the competition that a business must be very economically conducted to pay. The field is. completely occupied by traders of all nations.” M ERCANTILE FORTUNE. Some years ago an examination was made of all the accounts kept by one of the Philadelphia banks during a period of thirty years, in order to ascertain, as a question of mercantile statistics, what had been the average fate of the de positors as regarded their success in life. The result was so remarkable as to be deserving of careful study at a moment like the present, when every flash of the telegraph is tinged, not with light but with gloom. Of the whole number, seventy-five per cent had failed, or become so trammeled with debt as to be com pelled to relinquish business. 266 Mercantile Miscellanies. TH E S A FE TY OF IN V E S T M E N T S IN R EA L ESTA TE . W e agree with the economical writer in the Philadelphia Ledger, that in the long run, those men get to be the richest, as all past experience proves, who invest most of their surplus capital in good mortgages and real estate. It is astonishing how fast a fortune accumulates, even at six per cent, if dividends and rents are invested quarterly, or even semi-annually. Investments in real estate securities, rarely, or never, bring loss; and hence, there is no drawback on the compounding of interest. The fact is notorious, that, of the Philadelphia families which were rich a century ago, only those remain rich that keep the bulk of their wealth in real estate. N o business man can afford, for any long period, to pay two per cent for money. To demand such high rates, is, therefore, not sound policy in the capitalist; and the history of the rich in this, or any other city, if traced back a hundred years, affords abundant proofs of this. It is wiser, believe us, not to “ kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.” FRAUDS IN TH E PORT W IN E TRADE. A great sensation has been caused at Oporto by the discovery of extensive frauds in the wine trade. It appears that mixtures, to represent port wine, are manufactured in England and Hamburg, and sent out in ships to Oporto, when, by means of falsified certificates, the mixtures are imported into England as port wine. About three thousand pipes o f these mixtures are now in London. Ten pipes of the mixtures have been seized by the customs, at Oporto, on board a ship from England. The captain declared he had the pipes on board merely to give the wine the benefit of a sea voyage. The mixture has been tested, and found to be a composition of bad alcohol, molasses, and the essence of tar. The Portuguese authorities refuse to give up the ten pipes. There can be no doubt but that they would have been imported into England and sold on the veritable production of the Douro shipped at Oporto. OUT OF DEBT, OUT OF TROUBLE. A man who is out of debt is out of trouble. Trouble is but the synonym of debt. I f you wish for peace, make it with your creditors. That done and your conscience will go to bed in repose. Of all causes that give men the horrors— not excepting tliree-cent trash liquors— nothing has one-half the potency of this diabolical debt. Men who have had experience in this matter, will indorse what we assert. It is the satanic in man. It takes a sensitive man’s vitality right out flat, and leaves him nowhere and nothing. And yet there are some men who, by force of circumstances, or a perversion of nature, or something else more or less operative and marvelous, are head-over-heels in debt constantly, and who continue to lead cool, and, apparently, most agreeable lives. But, with most people, it is quite the reverse. They are only out of trouble when out of debt. ADULTERATED W A X . Of all the adulterators of merchandise, the French are the most ingenious. In deed, so much like the genuine article are their chemical mixtures, that it is difficult to distinguish between the true and false. The French Government recently published a notice warning merchants to be on their guard in their pur chases of wax from the Portuguese. It appears that the province of Angcea annually exports to Europe, through the port of Lisbon, 1,500,000 arrobas of virgin wax. A recent discovery has been made that some foreign heavy sub stance has been introduced into the wax for the purpose of defrauding the buyers. The Book Trade. 267 TH E BOOK TRADE. or 1. — Married Single. By the author of “ Hope Leslie,” “ Redwood,” “ Home,” etc. In 2 vols., 1 2 mo., pp. 500. New York : Harper & Brothers. Miss Sedgwick’s long literary career has been genuinely, and in the best sense, American, and this, without attaching any undue importance to mere nationality, we deem high praise. Her novels have reflected the various, and often incon gruous, aspects o f our American life and social relations; her didactic works have taught the duties growing out o f them, in the true spirit o f Christian Der mocracy— the duties o f rich and poor, o f domestic and employer. O f this, her last novel, it might be praise enough to say that it is worthy o f a place in the long list o f her admirable works. Its pages, full o f life, action, conversation, and character, present pictures o f American life in city and country, and there is hardly a social question, now occupying the minds o f our thinkers, which is not touched upon and illustrated. Nowhere, we are persuaded, can there be found truer pictures o f our American country life, and the city sketches are very vivid. But the leading idea of this story is the dignity, the independent sphere o f ac tivity and usefulness o f unmarried womanhood. These are shown in the spirited, high-toned character o f Grace Herbert, who vindicates the honor o f maidenhood by rejecting an unworthy man, although rich, and remaining unmarried until she is twenty-five ! But the old question, which yet is ever new, presented in the title o f the story, older than St. Paul, and which neither he nor Miss Sedgwick can claim to have entirely solved, can seldom be settled by pure intellect or pure sentiment. How often would the balance waver did not sensuous passion strike the scale. “ Raphael blushed to own that even angels love.” W e are treated to so much o f the high, strong, and intense in the fictions o f the day, that to us there is real refreshment in Miss Sedgwick’s cheerful and life-like pages. They breathe the breath o f life and reality; they please, after Jane Eyre and Uncle Tom. Their tone is that o f an earlier, perhaps a purer, taste in fiction, such as marked the era o f Scott and Edgeworth. 2. — Lucy Howard's Journal. By Mrs. L. H. S igourney. 12mo., pp. 343. New York : Harper & Brothers. This little volume contains several hundred detached paragraphs— the journal o f a girl in school, and in the early relations o f domestic life; and exhibits, we presume, the experiences and reflections o f the authoress, who, in her social and mental life, may be regarded as a representative of New England female charac ter. The elementary details in “ Lucy Howard's Journal ” involve “ principles or affections which have given to New England homes stability and comfort, as well as that affluence o f virtue which has enabled them to cast freely to the young West germs that cause its wilderness to blossom as the rose.” 3. — Why and What am I. The Confessions of an Inquirer. In Three Parts. Part I. Heart Experience; or, the Education o f the Emotions. By J ames Jackson J arvis, author o f “ Art-Hints,” “ Kiana,” etc. Boston: Phillips, Sampson & Co. W e have known Mr. Jarvis personally for many years— as a resident o f Honolulu, the editor o f the government paper o f that “ kingdom,” and as the author o f a work on the Hawaiian Islands, and as the writer o f several articles, originally published in the early volumes o f this Magazine, on the commerce and resources of those islands. The present treatise partakes more o f the spec ulative and metaphysical than any of the author’s former publication.s He seems to possess more than ordinary versatility o f talent or thought, and writes like one who enters into his studies with earnestness. His works, as we take it, from the number and variety that have appeared during the last ten or fifteen years, have been successful, in a commercial point o f view at least. 268 The Book Trade. 4-— The Biographical History of Philosophy, from its origin in Greece. H. L ewes. 8 vo., pp. 801. New York : 1). Appleton & Co. By G. The plan o f this comprehensive work, by the popular essayist and biographer o f Goethe, is peculiar. The history o f philosophy is traced, not as a system or succession o f systems so much as the mental biography, as it were, o f the men who have, in successive ages, advanced new doctrines, reviewed old ones, and then contributed to the mass o f opinions, in relation to the mind and its power, the origin o f ideas, the possibility and certainty o f knowledge, which we call philosophy. In part first, the loves o f the Greek philosophers are given. In part second, the course o f modern philosophy is traced through Des Cartes and Locke to Fichte, Comte, and the living thinkers. Mr. Lewes’ plan seems to ex clude any theory o f philosophy as governing the views o f the writer, but it must be borne in mind that he is a disciple o f the positive philosophy, and the conclu sion to which his inquirers, or rather his narrative, necessarily leads him, as he thinks, is that philosophy is impossible; that, in other words, all attempts to prove the absolute truth of ideas, outside o f and apart from the senses, are fu tile. Mr. Lewes is full, lucid, and animated; free from pedantry, and at the same time accurate and learned. Those who desire to know enough of the his tory o f past philosophical opinion to understand its present aspect, will find hia book a useful manual. 5. — Dynevor Terrace; or, the Clue o f Life. By the author o f “ The Heir of Redclyffe.” In two volumes. 12mo., pp. 316, 319. New York: D. Appleton & Co. Miss Yonge, although but little known among the masses, is the author o f some eight or ten different works, among which we may enumerate several which have been reproduced in this country by the Appletons, viz., the “ Heir o f Redclyffe,” “ Heartsease,” the “ Daisy Chain,” the “ Castle Builders,” “ Rich ard the Fearless,” the “ Tw o Guardians,” “ Kenneth, or the Rear Guard,” and “ Lances o f Lynwood.” Few women have written with more vigor, or displayed as much, o f what we are accustomed to term, masculine power. She has her own “ parish ” o f readers, as our friend Willis would say, and that “ parish ” seems to have been large enough in this country to secure the republication of at least eight works from her prolific pen. 6. — Practical Housekeeper: a Cyclopedia o f Domestic Economy, comprising five thousand practical Receipts and Maxims. Illustrated with five hundred engravings. Edited by Mrs. E i.let , author o f the “ Women o f the American Revolution.” 8 vo., pp. 599. New York : Stringer & Townsend. W e suppose that Mrs. Ellet knows as much about the practical bearings o f her five thousand receipts and maxims as we do. She is a literary lady, and has written some clever stories and histories. But, notwithstanding this, she got hold o f a good collection o f these things, and has displayed good taste and sound judgment in the arrangement of her materials. She has, to quote from her preface, (judiciously written and well considered,) reduced to practical rules the best theories o f France concerning an extensive range o f household duties. The various departments are arranged with cleverness and method. A carefully prepared index will direct the inquirer to every important fact. It is, on the whole, a good book for inexperienced housewives, and as such we commend it to all young ladies who have assumed the responsibilities o f wives and mothers. 7. — The Psalms of Life : a Composition o f Psalms, Hymns, Chants, Anthems, etc., embodying the Spiritual, Progressive, and Reformatory Sentiment o f the present Age. By J ohn S. A dams. 1 2 mo., pp. 262. Boston: Bela Marsh. This volume, prepared by a gentleman o f the new school o f modern Spiritu alists, consists o f selections o f poetry and hymns from writers o f every school. The most “ orthodox ” or “ evangelical ” have been ushered into this temple o f Spiritualism, by the clever adaptation o f the compiler. H e has certainly grouped in this book a fine collection o f Spiritual poetry, and set it to harmonious music. The Book Trade. 269 8. — The Life and Labors of the Rev. Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet. J2mo., pp. New Y ork : Robert Carter & Brothers. The subject o f this memoir was extensively known, especially in the new de partment o f deaf and dumb instructor, which he inaugurated and carried to higher perfection in his own school than it had attained even in the Parisian Asylum, to which he was indebted for his own education in the language o f signs. The author had access to all the materials witnin reach, whether in man uscript or in print, and appears to have made a free use o f selections, as well from his occasional discourses and contributions to the educational press, as from his extensive private correspondence. Few men have done more for their race, and this volume contains a full and comprehensive account o f his life and labors. The work is divided into three parts. The first embraces the period o f his early life and his labors in the cause o f deaf mute education. The editor, as he modestly calls himself, has given, we are persuaded, a truthful “ memorial o f his friend and classmate.” 440. 9. -.-Lessons from the Great Biography. By J ames H amilton, D. D., F. L. S., author o f ‘ Life in Earnest,” “ Mount o f Olives,” “ Happy Home,” etc. New York : Robert Carter & Brothers. Dr. Hamilton is a learned theologian, and the author o f a great number o f works o f a highly religious character. The contents o f the present volume were, for the most part, given to his own congregation as specimens o f the Gos pel story, mainly couched in the author’s own words. The work is divided into four parts. In the first is given the early incidents in the life o f Christ, referring to nis pre-existence, appearance before the advent, the advent, Bethlehem, the first visit to Jerusalem, and the scene in the wilderness. The second part re lates to the several miracles; the third to the discourses; the fourth to “ inter view s;” and closes with “ Final Glimpses, or the Risen Redeemer.” 10. — Life Studies; or, How to Live. Illustrated in the Biographies o f Bunyan, Tersteeger, Montgomery, Perthes, and Mrs. Winslow. By the Rev. John B aillie , author o f “ Memoirs o f Hewitson,” &c. New Y o rk : Robert Car ter & Brothers. W e have ever regarded biography, when truthfully and judiciously written, as among the most entertaining and at the same time instructive reading, especially for the young. The five biographical sketches in this volume represent, in the order stated, John Bunyan, the Good Soldier; Gerhard Tersteeger, the Chris tian Laborer; James Montgomery, the Christian Man o f Letters; Frederick Perthes, the Man o f Business; and Mrs. Mary Winslow, the Christian Mother. They exhibit, in an agreeable form, the Christian life and character under differ ent circumstances and varied aspects, and are well adapted to the opening capac ities o f the young. 11. — The Way An interesting element. It was quest from many culation. Home. New York: Robert Carter & Brothers. and instructive little volume, deeply imbued with the religious originally printed for private circulation, but at an urgent re quarters, it has very properly been reproduced for general cir 12. — The Englishman in Kansas; or, Squatter Life and Border Warfare. By T. H. G ladstone, Esq., author o f the “ Letters from Kansas in the London Times." With an Introduction, by F red . L aw Olmsted, author o f “ A Journey in the Seaboard Slave States,” “ A Journey through Texas,” etc. 16mo., pp. 328. New Y ork : Miller & Co. The author o f this volume, a kinsman o f the distinguished ex-Chancellor o f the Exchequer o f England, visited Kansas at a moment o f interest in its history. His opportunities, we are assured by Mr. Olmsted, the American editor, (who prefaces the work with an elaborate introduction,) were good. As a stranger, he occupied a neutral position, and appears to have used his opportunities calmly and diligently. 270 The Book Trade. 13. — Lectures on Temperance. By E liphalet N ott, D. D., LL. D., President o f Union College. With an Introduction, by T aylor L ewis , M. D., Profes sor of Greek in Union College. Edited by A masa Mc Coy , late editor o f the “ Prohibitionist.” 12mo., pp. 341. New York: Sheldon, Blakeman & Co. Besides the preface and introduction by the editor and Professor Taylor Lewis, this volume contains nine lectures from the veteran president o f Union College. The first lecture is preliminary to a question o f temperance and intemperance. The second points out the remedy for the evil: the third presents the Bible his tory and argument; in the fourth the. inquiry is extended to what Dr. Nott is pleased to call profane writers; lecture five is devoted to the sacramental use of wine; in lecture six abstinence from wine is urged on the ground of expediency ; lecture seven is devoted to the abominable adulterations o f liquors; in lectures eight and nine the doctor applies the moral and natural laws to the use o f strong drink. In the tenth lecture we have an appeal to the traffickers in strong drinks. The eleventh and last lecture is a recapitulation of the volume, and a general appeal in behalf o f temperance. These lectures o f Dr. Nott are worthy o f a careful consideration; and if the evils o f intemperance are ever overcome, it must be by appeals to the reason and common sense o f mankind. 14. — Life Pictures: from a Pastor’s Note-Book. New York: Sheldon, Blakeman & Co. By R obert T urnbull. 12mo. Mr. Turnbull has sought to invest religion with literature. His “ Christ in History,” “ Genius of Scotland,” and other similar works, partake o f this char acteristic. “ Life Pictures,” including narratives, conversations, letters, and “ so forth,” is to bring out in concrete form the “ true idea o f the inner life.” The subjects o f these “ life pictures ” are chiefly drawn from the denomination to which the author belongs; but three or four o f them, he tells us, “ are from other Christian folds. Simple facts, however, are narrated, without sectarian reference or polemical aim.” 15. — The Legal Adviser; or, How to diminish Losses, avoid Law-suits, and save Time, Trouble, and Money, by conducting Business according to Law, as Expounded by the best and latest Authorities. By E dwin T. F reedley , author o f “ A Practical Treatise on Business,” etc. 1 2 mo., pp. 397. Phila^ delphia : J. B. Lippincott & Co. Mr. Freedley, the compiler o f the present volume has been very successful in preparation o f practical works, designed rather for the mercantile than the pro fessional classes. He does not propose to aid in making every “ man his own lawyer,” but to infuse habits o f caution and circumspection, and teach the un skilled to be less bold in attempting themselves that which can only be well done by an experienced and skillful lawyer. The work, which covers a wide field o f legal investigation, is compiled mainly from the decisions o f the ablest jurists and mercantile law writers. 16. — The Olive Branch ; or, White Oak Farm. J. B. Lippincott & Co. 12mo., pp. 329. Philadelphia: The author o f this story maintains that the Scriptures recognize, “ beyond all doubt, cavil, or dispute,” the institution o f slavery as it exists in the Southern States. But the New Testament law, he argues, like the statutes o f the Old Testament, allows no oppression, cruelty, or wrong. The slaveholder will agree with the author in the last proposition, but the abolitionist, Christian or infidel, will not admit the first. 17. — Mia and Charlie; or, a W eek’s Holiday at Rydale Rectory. With Illus trations by Birket Foster. New York : Robert Carter & Brothers. A book that will be read during the holidays o f Christmas and New Years, and indeed at any time, with pleasure and profit, by children from eight to fifteen years. It has some very pretty illustrations. The Book Trade. 271 18.— Waverley Novels. Household Edition. Boston: Ticknor & Fields. Notwithstanding the great stagnation o f business, the paralysis o f almost every branch o f trade, in which the book business suffers as much, if not more, than many others, Ticknor & Fields continue uninterruptedly the issue o f their un rivaled household and library edition o f the “ Waverley Novels.” Twenty vol umes have already been published, embracing Waverley, Guy Mannering, The Antiquary, Rob Roy, Black Dwarf, a Legend of Montrose, Old Mortality, The Heart o f Mid-Lothian, The Bride of Lammermoor, Ivanhoe, and tne Monastery — each in two as beautiful volumes as ever adorned any household library in the land. W e have so often repeated, in this department o f our Magazine, our ap preciation o f this republication o f Scott’s matchless novels, that it seems almost, if not entirely, a work o f supererogation to say more ; and in future it will only be necessary on our part to announce the regular issue o f each wojk, by way o f advertisement. 19. -— Stories and Legends; or, Travel and History for Children. G reenwood. 18mo., pp. 290. Boston : Ticknor & Fields. By G race Grace Greenwood is a most delightful and truthful writer, and whether writ ing for the young, or more advanced minds, her words, thoughts, and utterances touch the true emotions o f pure and good minds. In this volume, London Parks and Gardens, the Greenwich Hospital, Hampton Court, a Journey from England to Ireland, and many other scenes o f interest and attraction, are gracefully and graphically described. 20. — Exploring Expedition during the years 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, 1842. Madeira, Brazil, Southern Cruise, Chili, Peru, Pornutu Group. By C harles W ilkes, U. S. N., Commander o f the Expedition, Member o f the American Philosophical Society, etc. With Engravings on Steel, and numerous W ood Cuts. Royal 8 vo. New Y ork : George P. Putnam. This great American work was first published in 1844, and this is the first o f the five volumes now in course o f republication bv Mr. Putnam. It is, beyond all question, one o f the most valuable contributions that has ever been made to the geographical literature o f a large and interesting portion o f the world. It is published, we believe, by subscription, and copies may be obtained o f Mr. Putnam, 321 Broadway. 21— Putnam's Railway Classics. W e have three volumes of this series before us— all, we believe, that have been published. These three volumes embrace Washington Irving’s “ Tales o f a Traveler,” and the “ Sketch Book,” and last, but not least, “ Salmagundi; or, the Opinions o f Launcelot Langstaff, Esq., and others.” Washington Irving’s works have all been given to the public in fine editions, and some o f them hand somely illustrated. Will not our friend Putnam give us a handsome edition o f “ Salmagundi?” It embraces some o f the earliest and choicest gems of our best writers twenty-five or thirty years ago. 22.— Lizzie Maitland. Edited by O. A . B rownson. 16mo., pp. 240. New Y ork: E. Dunigan & Brother, (James B. Kirker.) This story, the production o f an American Catholic lady, is introduced to the public by our erudite friend Brownson, some time “ infidel,” “ transcendental,” etc., and finally a good and acceptable member o f “ the church.” The idea was suggested, we believe, by some remark o f that gentleman in his very able “ Re view.” The object o f the story is to “ give,” so says the fair writer, “ some sim ple explanation o f a few o f the dogmas o f the Catholic Church, and only those which are most frequently assailed and misrepresented.” This she seems to have done to her own satisfaction, and that o f her learned god-father. She de precates the critics, and appeals to the charity o f good Catholics, and will feel “ amply repaid if, from the whole mass a single ray o f truth shall find its way to the depths o f one earnest heart.” 272 The Book Trade. 23. — Martin Chuzzlewit. By Charles D ickens, (B oz.) With twenty-eight Illustrations, from designs by Phiz and Cruikshank. In two vols., l 2 mo. Philadelphia : T. B. Peterson. Mr. Peterson is giving us an admirable uniform edition o f the complete works o f Charles Dickens, thus supplying a decided want o f the American reading world. O f various ununiform editions, in every variety o f bad paper and type, there was no lack, but we wanted a complete edition to place beside the Boston Waverley and Putnam’s Irving and Cooper. Tuis Mr. Peterson is supplying most acceptably. There is no American edition o f Dickens which approaches it in the quality o f paper and type, or in convenience o f form. In fact, we are not aware o f any other uniform edition. Martin Chuzzlewit, when it first ap peared, was thought, we believe, to show rather a falling off from the freshness and vigor o f Pickwick and Nickleby, but we are inclined to think that it has since rather gained than lost in popularity, and Pecksniff, Sarah Camp, and Mark Tapley, will always keep their places in that glorious Pantheon o f the comic immortals which Dickens has erected. 24. — Records of the Revolutionary War. 12mo., pp. 554. The title-page to this volume is very copious, and gives a very good idea o f its contents. It is intended as a book o f reference to the historian and scholar, and furnishes the most thorough guide to persons claiming title to land or pen sions from the services o f their forefathers during the Revolutionary War, that has ever fallen under our observation. It contains, also, “ the names o f over 50,000 officers and privates o f the Revolutionary army, and should be in the hands o f all the descendants o f the brave men who fought under the banner o f ’76, that the noble actions o f their ancestors may not escape reminiscence o f their descendants, who must retain this work as a memento o f their brave deeds and patient sufferings.” 25. — The Object of Life. A Narrative illustrating the Insufficiency o f the World, and the Sufficiency o f Christ. Four Illustrations. 1 2 mo., pp. 357. New Y ork ; Carlton & Porter, for the M. E. S. S. Union. This is one o f the publications o f the London Religious Tract Society, and now adopted and reprinted, with slight alterations, by the Methodist Sunday School Union in New York. T o say nothing o f its religious character, which is regarded by those best competent to judge as “ eminently evangelical ” in its sentiment, we find that its pictures o f life are graphically and truthfully drawn, and its characters delineated with more than ordinary skill. 26. — Six Steps to Honor; or, Great Truths Illustrated. By Rev. H. P. A ndrews, author o f “ The Sure Anchor.” 16mo., pp. 299. New Y o r k : Carlton & Porter, for M. E. S. S. Union. This is designed as a “ Sunday-school book,” and is composed, as we are told by the author, substantially o f facts. The “ six steps to honor ” pointed out and illustrated by the author, are Obedience, Truthfulness, Honesty, Kindness, En ergy and Perseverance, and last, but not least, true and genuine Piety, in which, as the poet says, we “ trace the source o f every Christian grace.” It is replete with incidents and anecdotes, all illustrative o f the “ six points.” 27. — God’s Message to the Young; or, the Obligation and the Advantages o f Early Piety. Seriously urged upon Young Persons, in connection with Eccles. xii., 1 . By the Rev. G eorge W . L eyburn, late Missionary in Greece. 1 2 mo., pp. 179. New York: M. W . Dodd. The object o f this book, as its title indicates, is to bring the claims o f religion to bear upon the young in the way o f direct personal address, and in relation to their age and circumstances. It is written in an earnest style, and will be re garded as eminently “ evangelical.”