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THE

MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE,
Established

July*

1839,

BY FREEMAN HUNT, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.

VOLUME X X III.

J U L Y , 1850.

NUMBER I.

C O N T E N T S O F N O . I ., V O L . X X I I I .
ARTICLES.
A rt.

age.

I. TH E GOLD M INES OF C A L IF O R N IA . B y Hon. G eorge T u c k e r , late Professor o f
Moral Philosophy and Political E conom y in the University o f Virginia, author o f “ Pro
gress o f the United States in Population and W ealth in Fifty Years,” etc., o f Pennsylvania.

II. TH E OPIUM T R A D E : A S C A R R IE D ON B E TW E E N IN D IA A N D CH IN A, INCLU
DING A SKETCH OF ITS H IS TO R Y , E X TE N T , EFFECTS, E t c . By N athan A llen ,
M. D., o f M assachusetts............................................................................................................................ 28
III. COM M ER CIAL CITIES A N D TO W N S O F TH E UNITED STATES.—No. 21— B A L T I
M ORE. By H enry Sto c k b r id g e , E sq ., o f the Baltimore Bar......................................................

IV . IN TER EST OF M O N EY .—N o. 4.

By D a vid F osdick , A . M., o f Massachusetts..................

TH E CO FFEE T R A D E —PRODUCTION A N D CONSUMPTION OF COFFEE IN 1850..

V I. JA M E S T A L L M A D G E , L L . D., PR ESID EN T OF TH E AM E R IC A N INSTITUTE, (with
a Portrait)...................................................................................................................................................... 64
V II. TH E CODES OF PROCED URE, C IV IL A N D CR IM IN A L , IN THE STATE O F N E W
Y O R K .............................................................................................................................................................
V III.

“ F R E E TR A D E vs. PROTECTIVE T A R IF F S.”

By R ich ar d S nkll , E sq., o f N ew Y ork.

J O U R N A L OF M E R C A N T I L E L A W .
A ct o f O hio to E xem pt the Homesteads o f Families from Forced Sale on Execution to Pay
Debts........................................ .................................................... ...................................................................... 84
A ct o f N ew Y ork to E xem pt from Sale on E xecution the Homestead o f a H ouseholder having
a Fam ily............................................................................................................................................................. 86

C O MM E R C I A L C H R O N IC L E AND R E V I E W :
EMBRACING A FINANCIAL AND COMMERCIAL R E V IE W OF THE UNITED STATES, ETC., ILLUSTRA
TED W IT H TABLES, ETC., AS F O L L O W S'.

Condition o f the M oney Market—Transfer o f United States Stocks at W ashington on Foreign A c
counts—Arrival o f Immigrants—N ew Y o rk and Erie Railroad Loan—Rates Paid for Erie
Railroad Bonds—Dividends o f N ew York Banks from 1845 to 1850—D ividends o f Boston and
Philadelphia Banks—Bank Paper— Imports and Exports at the Port o f N ew Y o rk —Freights
on Public W orks—The Produce Markets—Prospect o f Crops—The O hio Loans at S ix and
F ive Per Cent—Revenue o f Baltimore and O hio Railroad.............................................................. 87-94
V O L . X X I I I .-----N O . I .

CONTENTS OF NO. I., VOL. XXIII,
P AG E.

^COMMERCIAL STATISTICS.
Value o f Domestic Exports o f the United States, year ending June 30th, 1849..................................
Foreign Merchandise exported from the United States in 1848-49..........................................................
Imports from all Nations into the United States in 1848-49 .......................................................................
Statistical V iew o f the Com m erce o f the United States, exhibiting the Value o f Exports to, and
Imports from , each Foreign Country in 1848-49.........................................................................................
Navigation o f the United States with all Nations in 1848-49.....................................................................
National Character o f Foreign Vessels w hich entered into, and cleared from , the United States,
year ending June 30th, 1849 ...........................................................................................................................
Tonnage o f each Collection District o f the United States in 1849 ................................. ......................
British Exports o f Cotton Goods, first four m onths o f 1847, 1848, and 1849..........................................
Com m erce o f Charleston, South Carolina, Foreign and Coastwise, in 1849..........................................
The Product o f Cotton Plantations in South Carolina in 1848-49...............................................................
Price o f Cotton and Cotton Fabrics in 1849 and 1850...................................................................................
Stocks o f L ea f T obacco on 31st Decem ber, for last five years..................................................................

95
97
99
100
101
103
103
105
106
107
108
108

COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
Nicaragua Treaty between the United States and Great Britain..............................................................
O f Falsely Packed and Unmerchantable C o tto n ...........................................................................................
Inspection o f Flour in Albany, N ew Y o rk .............................................................................................. ..
Freedom o f the Coasting Trade o f India...................................................................................................
A D ecree opening the Port o f R ealijo, Nicaragua, to steam ers........................................................ ^ .. .

NAUTICAL INTEL LIGENC E.

109
I ll
112
113
113

Maury’ s Sailing Directions—W inds and Currents o f the Ocean................................................................
Passage over the Bar o f the Tobaccp R iv e r.....................................................................................................
Surveying Marks on the Florida R e e f .............................................................................................................
Light-house at the entrance o f the Old Bahama Channel...........................................................................
Shoal in M ozam bique Channel...........................................................................................................................

114
115
116
116
116

J O U R N A L OF B A N K I N G , C U R R E N C Y , A N D F I N A N C E .
Condition o f the Banks o f the State o f N ew Y ork on the 30th March, 1850 ........................................ 117
California G old at the United States Mint—its fineness, e tc....................................................................... 118
The Bank o f Hamburg...........................................................................................................................................
Am erican Continental Currency.— British Savings Banks and Friendly S ocieties..............................
Bank o f England Returns for each w eek o f 1849..........................................................................................
Finances o f the Hanoverian Government.........................................................................................................
Counterfeits on the State Bank o f Indiana.......................................................................................................

119
121
122
122
123

R A I L R O A D , C A N A L , A ND S T E A M B O A T S T A T I S T I C S .
The W hitney Railroad to the P acific.................................................................................................................
D ividends o f Railway Stocks in England and Scotland...............................................................................
Statistical V iew o f the French Railways .........................................................................................................
Receipts and Expenses o f the Boston and W orcester Railroads......................................................... . . .
Massachusetts Railroad Dividends in years from 1845 to 1849...................................................................
Ship Canal b y Lake N icaragua...........................................................................................................................

JOURNAL

123
124
125
125
126
126

OF M I N I N G A N D M A N U F A C T U R E S .

Exhibition o f the W orks o f Industry o f all Nations, to b e held in London, May, 1851....................
Production o f the Precious Metals in Russia..................................................................................................
Mineral Riches o f Southern Illinois.—Im provem ents in D yeing..............................................................
Application o f Hot A ir to the Smelting o f Iron.— Effect o f Manufactures in Producing W e a lth .. .
The Manufacture o f Varnished Leather in France........................................................................................
Rise and Progress o f the Broom M anufacture...............................................................................................
A n Im provement in the Manufacture o f Velvet.— India Rubber Buffers and Springs......................

127
129
130
131
132
133
133

MERCANTILE MISCELLANIES.
The
The
The
The
The
The
T he

Mercantile Library Association o f Boston in 1850........................................................................ 134
Establishment o f a Law School in South Carolina...............................................................................
English Merchant and the Spanish Beggar.............................................................................................
Annual Commercial Register o f D. Morier Evans, Jr.— London Provision M arkets..•...............
French Merchant and the Spaniard.— Im ports o f Corn and other Grain into England in 1849..
British Mercantile Navy.— Adulteration o f Coffee in Lon don...................................... . . . 137-138
Spanish Mercantile Character.—Men em ployed on Railways in England............................ ..........

135
135
136
137
138

THE BOOK T R A D E .
N otices o f 30 New W orks, or New Editions o f O ld W o rk s........................................................ ...... 139-144

HUNT’ S

MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE
AND

COMMERCIAL REVIEW.
JULY,

Art. I.— T H E

1 850.

GOLD M I N E S OF C A L I F O R N I A .

T he extraordinary fertility o f the gold mines o f California, no longer a
matter o f doubt, has naturally suggested the apprehension that the precious
metals, or at least gold, will experience a depreciation similar to that which
took place in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, in consequence o f the dis
covery o f America.
The subject is important from its bearing on all cases o f perpetual ground
rents ; on all money contracts extending over a long term o f years ; on the
value, and perhaps the regulation, o f the specie currency everywhere ; and
on national debts. It behoves us, therefore, to make timely inquiries into the
probable extent o f this depreciation, that we may either guard against its
mischiefs, or prepare for those we cannot prevent.
The depreciation o f gold and silver caused by the American mines, would
furnish us with the safe guide o f experience on this subject, if our know
ledge o f its facts was at once authentic and precise— but they are rarely both,
and are sometimes neither. To deduce the future depreciation from the past, we
must know the amount o f the precious metals in Europe at the time America
was discovered; the accessions to that amount furnished by the American
mines at different periods ; the depreciation at those periods ; the quantity
o f those metals now in existence; and lastly, the amount the California
mines are likely to furnish. But all these facts are founded more or less on
conjectures ; some o f which, resting on loose and imperfect data, have dif
fered very widely from one another. W hile precise certainty is thus unat
tainable, enough is probably known to enable us to make, within certain
limits, approaches to the truth on which we may, with some confidence, rely.
According to approved authorities, the quantity o f gold and silver in Eu
rope, at the end o f the fifteenth century, when America was discovered, was
about 1300,000,000. Mr. Jacob estimates the coin then in circulation at
$170,000,000.
O f the amount drawn from the American mines Baron Humboldt’s esti
mate is entitled to more respect than any other. He examined the several

The Gold M ines o f California.

previous estimates thoroughly; and he had means o f information which pro
bably no preceding inquirer had possessed. The result o f his investigation
was as follows :—
From 1492 to 1500 the amount o f gold and silver which flowed into
Europe from America was $250,000 a year : in all $2,000,000.
From 1500 to 1545 it was $3,000,000 a year : in all $135,000,000.
From 1545 to 1600 it was $11,000,000 a year: in a l l $605,000,000 ;
making the whole amount then received from America $742,000,000.
From 1600 to 1700 it was $16,000,000 a y e a r : in all $1,600,000,000 ;
making the whole amount received from America $2,342,000,000.
From 1700 to 1750 it was $22,500,000 a y ea r: in all $1,125,000,000 ;
making the whole amount received from America $3,4.67,000,000.
From 1750 to 1803 it was $35,300,000 a year : in all $1,870,000,000 ;
and raising the total amount sent to Europe to $5,337,000,000.
From this estimate it would appear that in one century from 1500 the
precious metals in Europe had received an accession o f $740,000,000, or o f
246| per c e n t; in two centuries an accession o f $2,340,000,000, or 780 per
cent ; and in little more than three centuries the accession had been
$5,335,000,000, or nearly 1800 per cent.
To ascertain the present amount o f the precious metals in Europe and
America, we must add to the amount drawn from the American mines— 1.
The amount in Europe before the discovery o f America. 2. The amount
in America at 1803. 3. The amount drawn since 1803 from the American,
European, and Siberian mines, and imported from Africa. From their aggre
gate sum we must then deduct— 1. W h at has been consumed by wear, or
in the arts, and by losses at sea. 2. W h at has been transported to India
and China. Thus :—
The whole amount received from America, including $25,000,000 of
booty obtained by the conquerors of Mexico and Peru, as estimated
by Humboldt..........................................................................................
The amount in Europe in 1492.................................................................
The amount in North and South America in 1803, according to
Humboldt .............................................................................................
Drawn from the American mines from 1803 to 1820, according to
Mr. Gallatin.............................................................................................
Drawn from the same, from 1830 to 1850, at the same rate..............
The product of the mines of Europe, and the gold dust from Africa,
according to Mr. Gallatin.....................................................................
The same since 1830—at $7,000,000 a year— 20 years.......................
From the Russian mines...........................................................................
Total................................................................................................
From this sum let us deduct—
Consumed by the wear of the coin— about a five hundredth part an
nually*....................................................................................
Consumed by wear of utensils, Ac., and lost..........................................
Transported to India and China, according to Jacob..........................

$5,445,000,000
300,000,000
153,000,000
750,000,000
555,000,000
450,000,000
140,000,000
270,000,000
$8,063,000,000

$600,000,000
700,000,000
2,100,000,000

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

$3,400,000,000

Now remaining in Europe and America................................................

$4,663,000,000

which is less than Mr. Gallatin’s estimate, and more than Mr. Jacob’s.
* This is indeed less than Mr. Jacob’ s estimate, bu t m ore than Mr. Gallatin’ s founded on the expe
rience o f the United States. He stated that the annual loss from the wear o f coin in this country was
$70,000 on $40,000,000, w hich is as 1 to 571.

The Gold M ines o f California.

It was the opinion o f Adam Smith, from a comparison o f the average
prices o f wheat in England through a series o f years, that, in the course of
about a century and a half before the discovery o f America, the precious
metals had doubled in value ; or, in other words, that the average price of
wheat had fallen in that time from four ounces o f silver a quarter to two
ounces. This last price, he says, continued unchanged until about the year
1570, from which he infers that the mines o f America seem not to have had
any very sensible effect upon prices in England till after that y e a r; but that
in the course o f the 70 years succeeding— that is, from 1570 to about 1640,
or even 1636, there was a gradual depreciation o f gold and silver to a third
or fourth o f their former value. From that period to the time he wrote—
1775— he considered that the value of those metals had been nearly station
ary ; or if not, that the value o f silver had somewhat risen in the course o f
the eighteenth century.
I f these views o f Dr. Smith are well-founded, we should be warranted in
inferring that there would be no depreciation o f the precious metals in Eu
rope and America until the quantity now existing there shall have received
an accession correspondent to that which had been made to the quantity
previously existing in Europe before any depreciation took place. As Dr.
Smith’s language seems to admit that there might have been some slight
depreciation before 1570, let us strike oft' ten years, and suppose that it be
gun in 1560. W h at addition has then been made to the quantity in Europe
in 1492, when America was discovered I
From 1492 to 1500 the amount received from America was
From 1500 to 1545 it was......................................................
From 1545 to 1560 the average deduced from Humboldt’s
estimate was $8,000,000 a year........................................
Deduct for wear and loss beyond the supply afforded by
the mines of Europe, at about half of 1 per cent...........
Exported to the East, suppose $1,000,000* a year.............
The whole accession from the American mines in 1560. . .

$2,000,000
135,000,000
120,000,000
-----------------

257,000,000

26,000,000
68,000,000
----------------

94,000,000
$163,000,000

which is somewhat more than 54 per cent on the amount believed to be in
Europe in 1492 ; consequently, we ought not to expect any depreciation
whatever until the quantity now in Europe and America had received a sim
ilar accession o f 54 per cent— equal to $2,528,000,000— which would re
quire a net annual addition o f $50,000,000 in 50 years, or $100,000,000 in
25 years.
But these views o f Dr. Smith must be received with considerable qualifi
cation. W e now find, by the aid of lights which that eminent man did not
possess, that his conclusions are not only irreconcilable to the estimates made
by Baron Humboldt, but are inconsistent with one another, as may be thus
shown.
The quantity o f gold and silver in Europe, according to our estimate, in
creased between 1492 and 1560 from $300,000,000 to $463,000,000. From
1560 to 1640 the increase had been as follows :—

* This trade, except a small portion overland, was then carried on exclusively b y the Portuguese.
It was only about the last o f the sixteenth century (in 1595) that the Dutch, their first rivals, made a
voyage to India b y the way o f the Cape o f G ood Hope.

The Gold M ines o f California.

Received from America between 1560 and 1600, $605,000,000, minus
$120,000,000............................................................................................
Received between 1600 and 1640, according to Humboldt’s averages,
$13,800,000 a year, for 40 years...........................................................
Total.............................................................................................

485,000,000
552,000,000
$1,031,000,000

From this amount a large deduction should be made for the extra loss b y
wear, &c., beyond the product o f the mines o f Europe, and for what had
been sent to the East— probably from $250,000,000 to $300,000,000. Let
it, however, he reckoned at only $200,000,000, leaving the whole amount to
be $801,000,000, and the increase from 1560 to 1640 will then have been
from $463,000,000 to $ 8 3 7 ,0 00 ,0 00 + $ 46 3,00 0,0 0 0 = $ 1 ,300,000,000, or
280 per cent, instead o f 300 or 400 per cent, as the depreciation is supposed
to have been by Dr. Smith. Besides, a part o f the increased supply o f the
precious metals went no doubt to meet the increased demand for them, in
consequence o f the admitted increase of population and wealth, and such
part would have no effect on depreciation. So large a part o f the gold and
silver received from America has been absorbed in this way, that though the
quantity in Europe and America is believed to have increased fifteen-fold in
three centuries and a half, the depreciation is never estimated at over onefourth.
But whatever was the depreciation between 1560 and 1640, inasmuch as
it was caused by an increase of the precious metals o f 280 per cent, we
must suppose that some depreciation would have also been caused by the
increase from 1492 to 1540 o f 54 per cent— that is to say, if 280 per cent
produced so much effect, 54 per cent would not have been inoperative. It is
true that Dr. Smith supposes, on grounds apparently good, that before the
discovery o f America the supply o f the precious metals was less than the
demand, and that they were therefore rising in value ; and he rightly con
siders that such part o f the products o f the American mines as supplied the
deficiency would have no effect in producing depreciation. But no indica
tion that we have of that deficiency, and o f the consequent rise o f gold and
silver, can lead us to estimate it at as much as 54 per cent in 68 years. W e
must, therefore, infer, that while a part o f what was drawn from America met
the increasing demand for the precious metals and arrested their rise in price,
a part also contributed to their depreciation.
But again : Dr. Smith, always regarding the price o f wheat as the stand
ard o f value, considers that there was no depreciation o f the precious metals
in Europe from 1640 to the time he wrote, or rather to 1784, when he pu b
lished his last edition. In that period o f 144 years, however, gold and sil
ver had very greatly increased, and were, as we have seen, as follows :—
From 1640 to 1100, $1,600,000,000, minus $552,000,000,000..........
From 1100 to 1150 ...............................................................................
From 1150 to 1184, according to Humboldt’s averages, $33,000,000
a year, for 34 years.............................................................................

$1,048,000,000
1,125,000,000

In all.........................................................................................

$3,295,000,000

1,122,000,000

Although from this enormous amount we must deduct largely for wear
and loss, and for the trade to the East, which had been steadily increasing;
yet if we make that deduction as much as one-half, the residue, $1,647,500,000
— being an increase from $1,300,000,000 o f more than 126 per cent— would
lead us to the opinion that, while the larger part o f the $1,647,500,000
might have answered the demands o f increasing numbers and wealth, a part

The Gold M ines o f California.

also would have caused depreciation. Taking Baron Humboldt, then, as
our guide in what before he wrote was a labyrinth o f uncertainty and con
jecture, we must believe that Dr. Smith has underrated the depreciation in
the first and the last o f the three periods on which he speculates, and has
overrated it in the second period.
These objections to Dr. Smith’s inferences are confirmed by some facts re
corded in that valuable repository, Anderson’s History o f Commerce, to
which we may briefly advert.
H e cites passages from an act o f Parliament passed in 1534, which afford
satisfactory evidence that even then gold and silver had fallen in value, though
the fact seemed not to have been suspected by the legislature. It states that
‘ ‘ a good sheep, that used to be sold for two shillings and four pence, or
three shillings at most, is now sold for six shillings, or five shillings, or four
shillings at least; and a stone o f wool, which used to be sold for one shilling
and six pence, or even one shilling and eight pence, is now sold for four shil
lings, or three shillings and four pence at least.” The act attributes the rise
of price to the inordinately large flocks which many persons then kept, by
which they secured to themselves a sort o f monopoly, and by way o f rem
edy strangely enacted that no one should keep, except on his own land, more
than 2,400 sheep.
In 1670 Sir Josiah Child notices the increase o f money in England within
the preceding twenty years, which is after the point o f time when Smith sup
posed that depreciation had ceased. H e says “ we give generally now onethird more money with apprentices than we did 20 years before. “ The
course o f trade,” he remarks, “ from the increase o f our money, is strangely
altered within these 20 years; most payments from merchants and shop
keepers being now made with ready money,” instead o f a credit as formerly
o f 3, 6, 9, and 18 months.
In 1681 Puffendorf states the revenue o f the king o f France to be
150.000. 000 livres, “ whereas,” he observes, “ in the last age it did not
amount to above 9,000,000 or 10,000,000 ; in Henry IV .’s time to
16.000.
000, and in the year 1639 to 77,000,000;” “ whichvast difference,”
says Anderson, “ is in part to be ascribed to the different value o f money
since those times, and partly also to the great taxes paid by his subjects.”
According to D’Avenant, the general rental of England in 1600 was
£6,000,000, at 12 years’ purchase, worth £72,000,000 ; but in 1688 the
rental was £14,000,000, and worth, at 18 years’ purchase, £252,000,000.
But the increase o f coin was yet greater. According to the same author,
the coin in England in 1600 did not exceed £4,000,000, and in the begin
ning o f the next century it was £12,000,000.
Anderson, after referring to a proclamation by Charles I. in 1633, to fix
the prices o f poultry, butter, game, &c., remarks :— “ From the above rates,
it appears that most o f the usual eatables for the middling or lower ranks
o f people were near one-third cheaper than in our days ; and he concludes
that the rate o f living then, compared with the rate in 1762 was as about 2
to 3. I f we suppose, as is generally done, that at the time Anderson wrote
the depreciation of silver since the discovery o f America had been to onefourth as 12 to 3 ; and he was right in estimating it between 1633 and
1762 as 3 to 2, or as one-third; then, by deducting one-third o f the whole
depreciation, it appears that the remainder— that which took place before
1633— was as 8 to 3 : and this was only three years before Adam Smith
supposed it had been 3 or 4 for 1.

The G old M ines o f California.

In truth, the standard adopted by Dr. Smith, though better than any
other, cannot be implicitly relied on. As the demand for wheat, when it
constitutes the bread o f a community, is more steady than that o f almost
any other article, its price rises more in scarce years, and falls more in years
o f plenty. There being less variation in the demand, there must be a greater
variation in the price. Thus we find in Dr. Smith’s tables that in the six
teenth century the price o f wheat ranged from 8s. the quarter to £ 4 2s.
The improvements o f husbandry tend to lessen this irregularity; but, in the
seventeenth century, the price ranged from 28s. to 8 5 s.; and in the
eighteenth century from 26s. to 76s. 6d. A n unusual number o f good or
bad seasons, as occasionally occur, may greatly affect the average, and thus
give us false views o f the value o f the articles with which wheat has been
compared. Besides, if the population o f a country increases faster than its
improvements in husbandry, the money-price o f wheat will rise without any
depreciation.
W hile, then, we must infer that the depreciation o f the precious metals
began sooner and continued much longer than Dr. Smith supposed— proba
bly to the early part o f this century— we must see, after making ample al
lowance for these errors, that the precious metals, taken together, are not
likely to undergo any sensible depreciation until their increase has made a
near approach to 50 per cent o f their present amount, or near one-half o f
$4,663,000,000 ; nor to experience the same decline in value as was caused
by the discovery o f America, whatever that depreciation may be, until the
quantity now in existence has also been multiplied fifteen-fold— that is, until
it has reached the unsupposable sum o f $70,000,000,000 !
W e have hitherto considered gold and silver together, because they were
not distinguished in Humboldt’s annual averages, and have been generally
blended by those who have speculated on their depreciation, and because,
moreover, it is possible that the increase o f silver may be somewhat corres
pondent to that o f gold. But since California has as yet produced only gold,
and the extraordinary richness and extent o f its deposits o f this metal are
now beyond dispute, let us suppose that the product o f silver will remain
stationary, or at least that its increase will not be greater than will meet the
growing demand for an increase o f population and wealth, and inquire into
the probable effects o f so large an addition to the gold o f the world.*
Before the discovery o f Am eiica the quantity o f gold annually drawn
from the mines was supposed to be to that o f silver as about 60 to 1 ; and
their proportionate values were a s l 0 o r l 2 t o l .
After several subsequent
fluctuations in the relative quantities and values o f the two metals, the pro
portion o f gold to silver, in weight, annually drawn from the mines, has been
for about a century as 1 to 40 or 41 ; and such also has been the proportion
in Europe, before the mines o f the Oural mountains were extensively worked.
The proportion o f gold has been greatly augmented by those mines, and is
likely to experience a far greater increase by the mines o f California. The
present value o f gold compared to that o f silver is 15^ or 16 to 1. It has
* It is true that the annual product o f silver has recently very m uch increased. Spain is now esti
mated to produce $10,000,000 a y e a r ; the M exican mines bid fair to yield m ore than they ever did ;
and mines o f that metal as well as o f gold, o f extraordinary richness, are know n to exist in the M ex
ican province o f S on ora ; but it seems not at all probable that, from all the sources together, the pres
ent yearly product can be m ore than d o u b le ; and this addition, being scarcely 1 per cent on the
quantity now existing in Europe and Am erica, will not have, according to our past experience, a per
ceptible effect on depreciation. The increase o f silver, whatever it m ay be, will indeed lessen or re
tard the com parative depreciation o f g o ld ; but w hile its rate o f increase is so m uch slower, it cannot
prevent that depreciation.

The Gold M ines o f California.

been rising to its present price from about 141 to 1 for the last 50 or 60
years ; but the extraordinary productiveness o f the Siberian and Californian
mines, which, it deserves to be remarked, are on directly opposite sides o f the
same hemisphere, are about to make its price vary in the opposite direction.
It is generally supposed that, o f the precious metals in Europe and Amer
ica, about one-third part in value was gold, which, on the computation we
have made, would be $1,554,000,000. For three or four years the Siberian
mountains have yielded from $18,000,000 to $20,000,000 a year, which is
believed to- exceed the yearly product o f all the rest o f the world. The
mines o f California, though scarcely known to the world more than two
years, appear to have produced from $12,000,000 to $14,000,000 last year;
and from present indications the quantity this year will be much more than
doubled. There have been alreadyf received at the mint o f the United
States $11,352,000, and large amounts have also been sent to England, China,
Valparaiso, and other places. In January last the number o f persons at the
mines, chiefly seekers for gold, were computed to be 40,000 ; and the aver
age product o f a laborer who is steady, is estimated there at $1,000 a month.
Let us suppose- that only one-half o f the 40,000 are working in the mines ;
that they work only six months in the year— though many also work in the
winter (in the dry diggings) ; and that their whole product for the year is
but $2,000, or one-third the supposed average: the whole amount they
would then produce would be $40,000,000 ; making the extraordinary ac
cession o f gold from the Russian and Californian mines for the year
$60,000,000 ; which is nearly 4 per cent on the supposed amount o f that
metal in Europe and America, and 3 per cent, if we raise that amount, as
some do, to $1,800,000,000. N ow the average annual product o f the
American mines between 1560 and 16 40— the period when Adam Smith
supposes that nearly the whole depreciation took place— was less than
$13,000,000, (12.9,000,000) and consequently less than 3 per cent, or
$454,000,000, the whole supposed amount in Europe in 1560, the com
mencement o f that period.
But the quantity yielded by the California mines will continue to increase,
if they make any tolerable approach to the confident representations given o f
their fertility and extent. They will be wrought by greater numbers, and
to greater advantage. They will attract immigrants from every part o f the
United States, and even from other countries ; and time only can show to
what degree their products will be multiplied.
Should they reach
$100,000,000 a year— and they may pass greatly beyond that amount—
the annual addition would be 6| per cent on $1,800,000,000, which more
than doubles the past contributions o f the American mines in their greatest
productiveness.
W h at are to be the effects o f this enormous and unprecedented increase
o f gold ?
1.
One o f the most obvious and necessary results will be to alter the propor
tion between the value o f silver and gold. W hatever may be the depreci
ation o f gold, it will be shown by this alteration, if the value o f silver be
stationary. W e have seen that gold compared with silver rose in the course
o f three centuries and a half from 10 or 12 to 1 up to 151 or 16 to 1. W e
have even seen it rise, in little more than half a century, 6 or 7 per c e n t;
and the alterations which thus took place in the comparative facility o f pro-*

* On the 17th o f June, 1850.

The Gold M ines o f California.

curing those metals, and consequently in their relative abundance and price
in many years, will now take place in a few years, and produce a similar ef
fect. The annual product is already five or six times as great as it formerly
was from the mines o f Brazil and Spanish America ; and it is likely, in a
few years, to be ten, probably twenty, times as great. In some three or four
years— perhaps sooner— we may expect gold to fall from 16 for 1 to 15 for
1 o f silver; and the same cause continuing, it will probably g o on declining
to 14, 12, 10, for 1, as it was in some parts o f Europe before the discovery
o f America, and yet lower. The point at which it will stop time only can
show.
There are indeed natural checks to this downward course, to which we
may briefly advert, though dependent as they are on so many contingencies,
we cannot now measure the extent o f their operation. The sure effect of
the depreciation o f gold will be both to increase the demand for it, not only
in quantity, but in value, and to discontinue the working the least produc
tive mines ; by which double operation on the supply and demand an equi
librium between the two will, sooner or later, be restored. Should gold fall
to one-half o f its present price— that is, to be only eight times the valne o f
silver— the real value expended for it in utensils and ornaments would be
not merely double, but greatly beyond that proportion, as we have seen in
the demand for both metals since the discovery o f America ; and this extra
demand tends to check depreciation. So, on the other hand, many mines
that were profitably worked when gold was sixteen times as valuable as sil
ver, will cease to reward the laborer, or to reward him sufficiently, when it
has fallen to only eight for it, by which means one source o f supply will be
cut off.
2. Another consequence will be that in all countries in which gold continues
to be a legal tender, its depreciation will injure creditors and benefit debtors,
according to the extent o f the depreciation and the duration o f their con
tracts. This o f course applies to all national debts. Legislatures in coun
tries in which gold is the standard, either solely or jointly with silver, if at
once prudent and just, will make the latter metal the exclusive standard.
W h en the question o f a single or double standard was agitated in this coun
try some years since, Congress, apparently influenced by the opinion o f Mr.
Gallatin, decided in favor o f both metals. It then appeared to some that
that distinguished man, usually so sound and practical in his views, had not,
in relying on the example o f France, where both metals are legal tenders,
sufficiently regarded two important points o f difference between that country
and this, to w it : the greater proportion o f paper currency in this country,
and that here coinage is gratuitous, while in France it is subjected to a seig
norage ; which circumstances defend her from the inconveniences o f a double
standard to which we are exposed.* The experience o f Russia, and indeed
our own experience, show that gold will not cease to circulate as coin because
it is not a legal tender.
3. The greater cheapness o f gold will benefit the world by making that beau
tiful metal attainable by a larger number o f persons, and to a greater extent.
In this way it will multiply gold watches, gold ornaments for the person,
silver-gilt utensils, and gilding generally ; but it will, at the same time, also*
* The advantages o f a double over a single standard, and o f silver over gold fo r that standard,
were fully discussed b y the writer o f this article in his essay on M oney and Banks, published in 1839,
to w hich he begs leave to refer the reader.

The Gold M ines o f California.

lessen the value o f all the gold previously in existence. This gain and this
loss will be confined to the wealthy classes of society ; but as to that portion
o f gold which is in coin, the depreciation will be an uncompensated loss to
all countries who so use it. If gold were to decline in value 50 per cent,
double the quantity would be required to discharge the same functions of
money as before ; and consequently the cost o f keeping up the original cir
culation would also be 50 per cent o f its value at the time. W here the specie
currency is principally gold, as in England, this loss would amount to
£30,000,000 or £40,000,000, that is, from $150,000,000 to $200,000,000.
It would thus be found that while the Californians were, enriching themselves
b y their very fertile mines, they were deducting from the wealth o f all the
rest o f the world. It is totally unimportant to the wealth o f a nation whether
its coin consists o f 10,000,000, 50,000,000, or 100,000,000 pieces ; but it
is a serious deduction from that wealth, if, when 50,000,000 is sufficient for
its circulation, it is compelled to buy 50,000,000 more, though at half the
former price.
However little the world in general may be benefited by the abundance
o f gold in California, its local effects are likely to be very great.
4. By the resistless attraction of its gold, the settlement o f that country will
advance beyond all example. Already its population has grown in two
years from 10,000 to 1 5 0,00 0; and the stream o f immigration, both round
Cape Horn and across the continent, still flows on with unabated force. It
is likely to continue until the average profits o f mining labor does not ex
ceed, or much exceed, that of other occupations— at least in the United
States. W hen greater facilities for going thither from the Atlantic States
shall be afforded by railroad or canal, the number o f adventurers will be pro
digiously multiplied.
5. The commerce o f California with the East— which, however, is the W est
to them— must soon be very great. As in China the precious metals are
dearer and labor cheaper than in any other part of the world, and in Caliifornia gold is cheaper and labor dearer than elsewhere, there is the greatest
possible encouragement to trade between the two countries ; and this inter
change, creating a great and growing vent for gold, will tend to lessen its
depreciation.
6. In consequence o f California being a part o f the United States, and most
o f its inhabitants having emigrated from other parts o f the Union, the larger
portion o f its gold is likely to find its way to the Atlantic States, especially
when there shall have been an easier communication between them across
the Mexican isthmus. Gold is then likely to be cheaper and more abundant
in the United States than in any part o f the civilized world. W e know that the
value o f the precious metals rose in value in proportion to their distance from the
mines, so that it was cheaper in Mexico and Peru than in the west o f Europe,
cheaper there than in the east o f Europe, and cheaper there than in India
and China. It will therefore be very easy for the State Legislatures to make gold
coin take the place o f the small bank notes. Those institutions would find
some compensation for the diminution o f their profits in their greater secu
rity ; and the public would be unquestionably benefited by the change.
This further employment o f gold would, by the quantity it would absorb,
also somewhat retard the depreciation.
7. 8. Two consequences may be expected from this great increase o f gold in
the United States. One is, that the gradual enlargement o f the circulation will

The Opium, Trade :

have its visual effect o f giving a spring to useful enterprise and productive
industry o f every kind. This is the use o f an augmented currency. The
other may be regarded as its abuse. Our banks, being the chief depositories
o f the new accessions o f gold, will be thereby enabled to add to their profits
b y extending their loans ; and, judging from past experience, this state o f
things, by distending the currency, is likely to engender a wild spirit o f spec
ulation, and inflated prices o f most articles, especially o f town lots, and every
species o f real estate, since they cannot be affected by competition from
abroad.
Such seem to be the prominent effects to be expected from the unexam
pled richness o f the California mines. Should these views prove to be cor
rect, they will, in a few years, have brought about a revolution in the mone
tary concerns o f the civilized world.
The subject may be hereafter resumed.

THE OPIUM T R A D E :
AS

C A R R IE D

ON B E TW E E N

IN D IA

AND

C H IN A , IN C L U D IN G

SK ETCH

O F ITS

H IS T O R Y , EX TE N T, EF FE C TS , ETC.
PART I.

F e w persons in this country are aware o f the extent o f traffic, or amount
o f capital invested in what is called the “ opium trade,” and carried on mostly
in South Eastern Asia. China expends for this single article, annually, more
money than the entire revenue o f the United States from all sources what
ever, and a larger sum than any one nation on the globe pays to another for
a single raw material, with the exception o f what Great Britain pays to this
country for cotton. The traffic is yet comparatively new— has grow n with
unparaleled rapidity, and is almost unknown, except to those personally
concerned in it.
Opium is a production o f the common English poppy, originally a native
o f Persia, but it may now be found growing as an ornamental plant in gar
dens throughout the civilized world. Most o f the opium used for medical
purposes in Europe and America is exported from Turkey; but India affords
a far more extensive field for its cultivation. It is estimated by good judges,
that more than 100,000 acres o f the richest plains o f Central India, are oc
cupied for this purpose, giving employment to many thousands o f men, wo
men, and children. Formerly these same grounds were used for the pro
duction o f sugar, indigo, corn, and other grain; but these useful crops have
yielded to the more profitable culture o f the poppy. It appears that a mild
climate, rich soil, plentiful irrigation, and diligent husbandry, are absolutely
necessary for its successful cultivation. The seed is sown in November, and
the juice is collected during February and March. The falling o f the flowers
from the plant is the signal for making incissions, which is done b y the cul
tivators in the cool o f the evening, with hooked knives, in a circular direc
tion, around the capsules.
From these incisions, a white, milky ju ice ex
udes, which is concreted into a dark brown mass by the heat o f the next
day’s sun, and this, scraped off every evening, as the plant continues to ex-

A s Carried, on Between In dia and China.

ude, constitutes opium in its crude state. It is then converted into balls or
cakes, covered with dried poppy leaves, and packed in chests o f mango-wood,
made expressly for the purpose, each chest containing from 125 to 150
pounds. Benares and Patna, two o f the principal localities for the cultiva
tion o f this drug in Bengal, have been for many years subject to the East
India Company, and consequently the manufacture o f opium, as well as the
traffic in the article, is a monopoly o f government. The native inhabitants
being generally poor, and very few o f them owning land, large sums o f money
are advanced to them by the company, to meet in part the expenses o f cul
tivating the poppy, and when the juice is collected, it must all be delivered
to government agents at a fixed price. For superintending the business
there is an extensive system o f government agency, and such is the effect o f
this management, that by keeping the poor laborers and native land-holders
constantly in debt, and making all their interests conspire one way, the cul
tivation o f the poppy becomes almost a matter o f absolute necessity on the
part o f the Hindoos. Thus the Company are able to obtain the opium at
almost its own price.
It is found that the expenses in this way amount from $125 to $150 per
chest. It is then transported down the river Ganges to Calcutta, and sold
on set market days by auction to merchants at prices from $500 to $600 per
chest, being about four times its first cost, or 400 per cent. The Indian
government thus receives annually an immense revenue from this source.
The official returns, as published in the Friend of India for November 8th,
1849, make the number o f chests and amount o f revenue for the last six
years as follow s:—
Chests.

1843- 44___
1844- 4 5 ___
1845- 46 . . .

20,534
23,003
25,192

Revenue.

$7,592,037 1846- 4 7 ___
8,137,230 1847- 4 8 ___
10,038,177 1848- 4 9 ___

Chests.

26,103
35,195
36,088

Revenue.

$10,406,694
6,027,605
10,967,672

The above table includes only the sales at Calcutta, and comprise, there
fore, only a part o f the trade. The poppy is cultivated somewhat extensively
in Malwa, a province lying on the western part o f India, and subject in its
government to native princes, being entirely independent o f all control o f the
East India Company. There the poppy is cultivated, and opium is manu
factured as freely as rice and wheat are raised, and the question with the
farmers is simply one o f profit. But their principal market is the city o f
Bombay, from 400 to 500 miles distant, and in order to reach this place, all
their opium must be transported through certain territories o f the East In
dia Company. For the mere privilege o f passing through these lands, tha
, company levy a tax, or “ transit duty,” so called, o f 400 rupees, or about
$187 on each chest. Thus a large revenue is also annually collected at
Bombay, where this duty is always paid. From an official report o f the
chief%rticles o f trade exported from this city, we find that the capital in
vested in this traffic alone, is greater than in any other article. In 1846, the
value o f the opium exported from this city to China was more than three
times the amount o f exports to England, and more than the entire trade, ex
ports and imports, between Bombay and all Europe. The price o f the Mal
wa opium varies from $600 to $650 per chest, being o f a more desirable
quality than the Benares or Patna, sold at Calcutta. The Bombay Gazette
o f November 20th, 1849, gives the following table on the trade, for the last
six years, copied from the official reports o f the East India Company, as pre
sented to Parliament:—

The Opium T ra d e:
Chests.

1843- 44..........
1844- 45..........
1845- 46..........

8,899
9,478
15,450

Revenue.

$1,619,740 1846- 47........
1,625,082 1847- 48........
2.811,970 1848- 49........

Chests.

Revenue.

15,271
10,352
21,830

$2,779,330
1,904,064
3,973,060

B y adding the above tables, we have, then, the whole number o f chests
exported from India, and the entire revenue o f government from this source
for the last six years. In 1 8 48 -49, it amounted to 57,918 chests, and al
most $15,000,000 net revenue, averaging annually for these six years over
40,000 chests, and about $12,000,000 revenue each year.
The price o f opium, both at Bombay and Calcutta, is quite variable. The
average rate for which the article has been sold for several years past, as near
as we can make the estimate from price-currents, will range between $550
and $600 per chest. Thus 57,918 chests, the quantity for 1 8 48 -49, at $600
per chest, amount to $34,750,800, which gives the sum that China paid to
India for this single article.
After the opium leaves the hands o f the Indian government, it is purchased
by merchants, and shipped to China. The vessels used for transporting it
are built expressly for this purpose, constructed in the form o f schooners or
brigantines, with low hulls, and being adapted to cut the waves with re
markable speed, are called “ clippers,” or “ runners.” It is stated on good
authority, that there are about fifty o f these clippers embarked in this traffic,
constantly plying between India and China, besides many other vessels which
are only partially freighted with the drug. It is stated by Mr. Martin that
the clear profit to merchants will average about 15 per cent, and in conse
quence o f realizing such sure gains in so short a time, and with so little
trouble, they seem unwilling to engage in any other branch o f commerce or
business. It should be borne in mind that cargoes o f opium, in point o f val
ue, and certainty o f sale, are very unlike those o f any other goods. The ves
sels that transport the drug from India to China, generally carry from 800
to 1,300 chests, making two or three voyages in a year, which, selling in
China at $700 per chest, will produce in return from $500,000 to $1,000,000.
In 1848 one ship carried 1800 chests from Bombay to H ong Kong, and sold
it for $750 per chest, receiving for this single cargo $1,350,000. Suppose
a vessel carries 1,000 chests, and sells for $700,000 ; this, at 15 per cent,
would net the owner $ 105,000. Besides, there is no risk or delay in the sale, and
the pay is always cash, or what amounts to the same thing, hills o f exchange.
Formerly, the payment for opium was made wholly in specie, but o f late
years bills o f exchange are received in part-pay, bearing a cash value, and
are used by English and other merchants to purchase teas, silks, &c., o f the
Chinese. Mr. W illiam Sturgess stated in a lecture delivered not long since
before the Boston Mercantile Library Association, that in 1818 $7,000,000
in specie was carried from the United States to China to pay our importa
tions from that country, but now most all our purchases are paid by bills o f
exchange on England fr o m the proceeds o f the opium trade.
The retail part of the trade is mostly carried on by the Chinese themselves,
who undoubtedly make large profits on the article, as it passes through several
hands, and is sold in small quantities. The vessels that transport the opium
from India anchor on the coast o f China, in the vicinity o f large cities, and
constitute a kind o f floating depot o f store-houses, from which the Chinese
junks purchase the drug in cases or chests, to be retailed at various points on
shore. In many o f the cities o f China may be found numerous shops de
voted exclusively to the sale of the drug, with accommodations fitted up ex

A s Carried on Between In dia and China.

pressly for*smoking. The poorer classes generally resort to these shops, but
the wealthier orders smoke more privately, in their own dwellings. It is
stated that in A m oy there are more than one thousand o f these shops, and
almost every man who can afford to buy the drug, is in the habit o f smoking
it. More than 2,700 chests are sold annually at Chusan, valued at almost
two millions of dollars, and a considerable larger quantity is imported into
the city o f Foochow, part o f which finds its way into the interior. One o f
the principal articles o f commerce carried on at H ong K ong is opium. The
drug is now landed without encountering much opposition all along the coast
o f China, and smoked publicly in the chief cities. The trade was never in
a more vigorous state than at the present time. According to the most re
cent intelligence, it is estimated that the sale will reach 60,000 chests the
present year, and the Indian government was taking measures to increase
hereafter the growth o f the poppy. Notwithstanding the supply has rapidly
increased, the demand more than keeps pace with i t ; and such, in all prob
ability, will continue to be the case for many years to come, unless Divine
Providence should interpose to arrest its progress.
The plan o f sending opium from Bengal to China was first suggested by
a Mr. Watson, in the year 1767, to a council o f Representatives o f the East
India Company, held at Calcutta. Mr. Wheeler, at that time an officer, and
an influential member o f the company, advocated the plan, and after being
favorably entertained, it was adopted as a happy expedient towards raising a
revenue for supporting government. Previously to this time, a small trade
in opium, rarely exceeding 200 chests per year, had been carried on with
the Chinese by some Portuguese merchants, who brought their opium from
Turkey.
From 1767 to 1774, the East India Company made several adventures o f
opium to China, which, for various causes, were not very successful. In 1794,
the English succeeded in stationing one o f their ships, laden exclusively with
opium at W ham poa, where she lay unmolested for more than a year, selling
out her cargo. This city continued about 25 years to be the principal mar
ket for the sale o f the drug, though the trade encountered considerable oppo
sition on the part of the Chinese. Macao also furnished somewhat o f a mar
ket, but in 1821, the opium merchants, on account o f the difficulties attend
ing the sale at these places, withdrew entirely from the harbor o f W ham poa
and Macao, and stationed their vessels under shelter of Lintin Island, in the
bay at the entrance o f Canton River. Henceforth this place became the
seat o f extensive trade. The Merope, Capt. Parkyns, in the same year, was
the first ship that commenced the system o f delivering opium at different
cities along the coast o f China, and from that time the trade increased with
wonderful rapidity. Eligible places also on the east and north-east coast o f
China were selected, to station receiving vessels, to which the Chinese might
easily have access, and become participators in the trade. From 1794 to
1820, the amount o f opium exported to China varied from 3,000 to 7,000
chests each year. In 1824 it increased to 12,639 chests, and in 1831 to
21,785 chests, valued at $14,454,193. In 1837 it amounted to between
39,000 and 40,000 chests, valued at $25,000,000. In 1 8 3 8 -3 9 the trade
was seriously interrupted by the more decided and efficient measures o f the
Chinese to break up and suppress entirely the smuggling in o f opium. After
a series o f altercations between the parties representing each government, as
well as some more violent exhibitions o f hostility, the Chinese forced the
merchants to surrender what opium they had on hand, and destroyed the

The Opium Trade :

whole, amounting to more than 20,000 chests. This step led to a war be
tween the two nations, and the negotiations for settlement were not entirely
brought to a close till August, 1842. During these years a much smaller
quantity o f opium was brought into the market, and the demand being so
much greater than the supply, it sold for almost double its former prices,
bringing from $1,000 to even $1,600 per chest. Mr. Tiffany, in his work on
China, states that the members of one English house made in this way, at
the close o f the war, from four to eight hundred thousand pounds sterling
apiece.
But no sooner was peace declared between the two nations, than again
commenced brisk operations in this traffic. B y referring to the preceding
tables, it will be seen that since the war there has been a constant increase
in the trade.
The principal use made of opium by the Chinese is in the form o f smoking,
and one great object in the trade is to furnish an article adapted to their pe
culiar tastes. This depends somewhat upon the cultivation o f the poppy—
the quality of its seed— the goodness o f the soil— the manner o f collecting
and converting the juice into a dry extract, or balls, convenient for trans
portation. The Chinese value any sample o f opium in direct proportion to
the quantity o f hot-drawn, watery extract obtainable from it, and to the puri
ty and strength of that extract when dried, and smoked through a pipe.
Sometimes the native cultivators, in order to increase the weight o f the arti
cle, and consequently their profits in its sale, have resorted to adulterating
the juice o f the poppy, by mixing with it sugar, catechu, molasses, cow-dung,
soft clayey mud, pounded poppy seed, as well as the juice o f various plants;
but these adulterations are generally detected by the government agents;
and the Chinese themselves, having often been imposed upon in this way
formerly, are careful to test its purity before purchasing.
After the arrival of the drug in China, it is subjected to a process o f heat
ing, evaporation, filtering, <kc., in order to increase its strength and improve
its flavor. The class and number of persons addicted to this practice may be
inferred from the following facts. One o f the chief officers belonging to the
Chinese Court, in a memorial to the Emperor, says:— “ A t first the use o f
opium was confined to the pampered sons o f fortune, with whom it was an
idle luxury, but still used with moderation, and under the power o f restraint.
Since then its use has extended upward to the officers and belted gentry,
and downwards to the laborer and tradesman, to the traveler, and even to
women, monks, nuns, and priests. In every place its inhalers are to be
fou nd; and the implements required for smoking it are now sold publicly in
the face of day.” It includes, therefore, among its votaries officers o f high
rank and dignity, wealthy men, merchants and bankers, as well as the com
mon mechanics and laborers. But it has been the general opinion of writers
on this subject, that opium smoking was most prevalent among the higher
classes o f the Chinese, inasmuch as the habit is a very expensive one, and
this class o f persons are most exposed to the temptation. As to the number
o f persons addicted to the vice, it must exceed four millions. From a care
ful and somewhat extended enquiry made by persons having the best means
o f knowing as to the exact amount o f opium daily used by those in the habit
o f smoking, it was ascertained that, on an average, each person consumed
upwards o f 17 grains per day. According to this data, 10,000 chests would
supply one million o f persons; and for the last six years, there have been
over 40,000 chests o f opium annually consumed in China in this way.

A s Carried, on between India and China.

The quantity o f opium daily used depends very much on the habits o f the
smoker. A t first he cannot inhale more than from three to six grains at a time,
but will go on gradually increasing the dose, till in a few years some con
sume even 300 grains daily. The expenses attending this habit are very
great— so great that in most instances it regulates the quantity used, each
one consuming as much as he can possibly command means to obtain. Mr.
Smith, o f the Church Missionary Societies, while visiting the opium-smoking
shops at Am oy, questioned ten persons, indiscriminately, as he met them,
most o f whom were laborers, as to the formation, effects, expense o f the habit,
Ac, Five o f these individuals consumed a mace, or sixty grains daily, and
it cost them, on an average, two-thirds o f their daily earnings to purchase the
article! This fact shows how amazingly expensive is the habit, and what
a fearfully impoverishing effect it must have upon all those who, for any
length o f time, give themselves up to the vice. Besides, it is calculated by
Mr. Martin, and other writers well acquainted with the evil, and competent
to form a correct judgment in the matter as any other individuals that can
be found, that the victims o f this vice do not live, on an average, more than
ten years after they have once given way to the habit. It brings on a train
o f diseases which make rapid work o f destruction on all the vital organs of
the body. B y means o f this Wee, then, according to the above data, and esti
mating the number o f opium smokers at 4,000,000, more than 400,000 hu
man beings in China find annually a premature grave 1 W h at other vice in
the whole history o f the world ever produced such appalling ravages on hu
man life ?
Reserving for another article some further observations upon the effects of
opium-smoking, the connection o f the British government with the traffic,
and its influences, financially and politically, on the Chinese nation, we close
by quoting the following extract from the “ Friend of India,” for July 26th,
1849, a paper printed at Serampore, and o f the highest authority in matters
o f this kind:—
“ The clear profit o f the British government o f India from the consumption
o f opium by the Chinese, at the end o f the official year 18 4 8 -4 9 , including,
o f course, the tax on Malwa opium at Bombay, will be found to have fallen
little short o f three crores and twenty lakhs o f rupees, or three millions two
hundred thousand pounds sterling ($15,488,000.) It is the most singular
and anomalous traffic in the world. To all appearances, we should find it
difficult to maintain our hold o f India without i t ; our administration would
be swamped by its financial embarrassments. Its effects on Chinese finances
must be as disastrous as it is beneficial to our own. The trade is not legal
ized in China, and the drug is paid for in hard cash. The annual drain of
the precious metals from China, through this article, is, therefore, between,
five and six millions sterling. N o wonder that the Cabinet at Peking are
struck dumb by this ‘ oozing out’ o f silver, and that we hear from time to
time o f the most resolute determination to extinguish the trade. But with
more than a thousand miles o f sea-coast to guard, and so small a protective
navy, and nine-tenths o f the officers in it venal to a proverb, that Cabinet is
helpless.”
V O L . X X I I I .— N O . i .

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United S ta tes:

Art. III.— COMMERCIAL CITIES AND TOWNS OF THE UNITED STATES.
NUMBER XXI.

BALTIM ORE.
B a l t i m o r e , the most southern of the four great “ commercial cities ” on
the Atlantic seaboard o f our country, from its position, the rapidity o f its
growth, and its prospective greatness, is entitled to a more extended notice
than is usually given to the cities sketched in this series. It is the largest
and most striking instance yet presented to the world of the rapid centrali
zation and development of all the elements of commercial greatness, which
characterize the New W orld. Barely fifty yearn old as a city, it already
takes rank, in population and trade, with those across the water which have
been struggling up toward importance for centuries, and with all the vigor
and elasticity of early youth is pressing on hopefully to a bright and strong
manhood.
It is located upon an estuary, or small bay, which makes up for about
two and a half miles on the north side o f the Patapsco River, about ten
miles from the entrance o f this river into the Chesapeake Bay, o f which it
is for this distance an arm. By ship channel it is about 200 miles from the
ocean, in 39° 17' 2 3 " north latitude, and longitude 0° 26' east from W ash
ington.
The city contains about 10,000 acres o f land, extending about four and a
half miles from east to west, and three and a half from north to south. It
consisted originally o f more than fifty elevations or hills, separated by ab
rupt valleys or ravines, and in a few instances by formidable marshes; while
nearly in the center it is divided by a rapid stream o f water, known as
“ Jones’ Falls.” This stream has on three occasions— October 5, 1780, A u
gust 9, 1817, and June 14, 1837— overflowed its banks and done great
damage to both life and property. The city has, in consequence, been at
great pains to remove all obstructions from its bed, and have the numerous
bridges by which it is crossed sprung by a single arch, and at such bight as
to remove all further danger from this source. The division east o f the fa lls
is again nominally subdivided into two parts— Fell's P oin t and Old Town.
The P oin t is the most easterly portion o f the city, has the advantage of
greater depth o f water than the upper harbor contains, is the resort o f sea
men and immigrants, and the place where the greater part o f the ship-build
ing and manufactures o f the city are carried on.
Old Town lies north and
west o f this, and is principally inhabited by mechanics and laborers.
The portion west o f the fa lls is, in like manner, divided into two parts—
the City P roper and Spring Garden section. The former is the center of
trade, and contains most o f the residences o f the more wealthy o f the citi
zens ; while the latter, which is the extreme south-western quarter, is the
residence o f many mechanics and laborers. It is the lowest and most un
healthy portion of the city, being subject, to a considerable extent at certain
seasons every year, to bilious and intermittent diseases. W hile the uneven
and broken nature o f the ground, with the exception o f this quarter, has
severely taxed both public and private resources and enterprise, it has been
made to obviate, to a great degree, the necessity o f extended sewers, (the
whole amount of which is less than two miles,) arid greatly conduced to the
healthfulness o f the city. Indeed, in this most important respect Baltimore

B altim ore.

will not suffer by comparison -with the most highly favored cities o f our
land. The following table will exhibit the aggregate and per centage o f
mortality o f the whole city for the last fourteen years:—
Years.
1 8 3 6 ...
1 8 3 7 ...
1 8 3 8 ...
1 8 3 9 ...
1 8 4 0 ...

Per
"Whole No.
of deaths. centage. Years.
2,192
2 .3 3 1 8 4 1 ...
2,518
2 .6 4 1 8 4 2 ...
2,476
2 .5 3 1 8 4 3 ...
2 .2 6 1 8 4 4 ...
2,260
1 .9 9 1 8 4 5 ...
2,045

Per
Whole No.
of deaths, centage. Years.
2 .1 4 1 8 4 6 ...
2,247
2,477
2.3 1 1 8 4 7 ...
2 .0 8 1 8 4 8 ...
2,333
2,665
2 .2 8 1 8 4 9 ...
2,896
2 .3 8

Whole No.
Per
of deaths, centage.
2,996
2 .3 5
3,414
2 .5 8
3,861
2 .7 6
4,165
2 .7 8

During the last year, when many parts o f the country were so severely
afflicted by the Asiatic cholera, Baltimore entirely escaped, and although
there might have been indications of cognate diseases, yet, on the whole, the
mortality, as compared with other years, was hardly affected thereby. The
following is the monthly aggregate o f deaths for 1849 :—Vessels.:

•January.........
February . . . .
March.............
A p r il.............

Vessels.
............ 297
...........
327
...........
631
...........
560

September.......
October.............
November . . . .
December........

Vessels.
......... 440
......... 418
.........
276
......... 302

The first settlers on the shores o f the Chesapeake Bay seem to have
moved, for a long time, almost at random in the selection of the sites o f
their future towns, and to have been blindly experimenting with the laws of
nature, of attempting capriciously to produce a factitious determination of
wealth and population to points never designed for such a fortune by their
Maker. Hence, some places for which they mapped out future greatness,
and which they tried to nurse up to it, are now almost as much a wilderness
as when they were first discovered; while other spots, in which they saw no
comeliness, are now thriving marts.
In this way the almost unrivalled advantages of the location o f Baltimore
were long quite overlooked, and when, as late as the year 1729, they attract
ed attention, and the town was laid out, only a part o f it was under culti
vation, and that as a farm, while the rest was a wilderness.
The part thus first laid out (60 acres in extent) was the central southern
portion, about the head o f what is now familiarly called “ the Basin." Three
years subsequent, in 1732, ten acres east o f “ Jones' F a lls " a part o f the
present “ Old T ow n " were laid out under the name o f Jonestown, and the
two became united as the town o f Baltimore in 1745. For some years
its growth was by no means rapid. It was surrounded by older and jealous
rivals, and was obliged to contend with all the obstacles which they could
throw in its way. An authentic sketch o f it, made in 1752, by Mr. John
Moale, is in the rooms o f the Maryland Historical Society, from which it ap
pears that it then contained about twenty-five houses, four o f which were
built o f brick, while the rest were quite primitive in their structure. Six
teen years later, in 1768, it became the shire town o f the county, and ar
rangements were made for the erection o f a court-house and jail, which had
previously been located at Joppa, a place now known only in history. Its
first newspaper, “ The M aryland Journal and Baltimore A dvertiser" weekly,
was issued on the 20th o f August, 1773, and a second, “ D u n la p s M aryland
G azette" in 1775. It was not deemed a port o f entry till 1780, when first
a custom-house was opened, and a naval officer appointed. Until that time
all vessels trading to and from the port entered, cleared, and obtained their
registers at Annapolis. None of the streets were paved till 1782, when a

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United S ta tes:

commencement was made on Baltimore-street, from that day to this the main
street o f the city. In the same year the first regular communication with
Philadelphia— a line o f stage-coaches— was opened ; watchmen begun to be
employed in 1784, and, not to enlarge by tedious detail, it begun to assume
metropolitan airs, and obtained an act o f incorporation on the 31st day o f
December, 1796. The city government was organized in the following year,
and from the beginning o f 1798 Baltimore may be classed among American
cities.
In 1775 a census was taken, at the expense o f a few private individuals,
and the town found to contain 564 houses, and 5,934 persons. Some idea
o f its steadily rapid growth since may be obtained from the follow ing:—
Years.
1 7 9 0 ... .
1 8 0 0 ... .
1 8 1 0 ... .

Slaves. Free col’d. Whites. Total. Years.
1,255
323 11,925 13,503 1 8 2 0 ..
2,843 2,771 20,900 26,514 1 8 3 0 ..
4,672 5,671 36,212 46,455 1 8 4 0 ..

Slaves. Free col’d.
4,357 10,326
4,120 14,790
3,212 17,980

Whites. Total.
48,055 62,738
61,710 80,620
81,321 102,513

The census o f the present year, when it shall be taken, will probably show
a population o f not less than 135,000, and, it is generally supposed, will
considerably exceed that number.
Its increase in wealth has kept pace with the increase o f its population.
In 1808 the value o f taxable property in the city was computed at 82,522,780.
The following is the official estimate o f the value o f the property and num
ber o f houses erected in the city for the last six years:—
Real and personal Real property Personal property
property liable
exempt
exempt
to direct
from direct
from direct
taxation.
taxation.
taxation.
Total.
Years.
$2,983,604
$500,000
$53,799,170
1844.............
1845.............. .........
55,038,892
3,038,726
400,000
53,750,496
18 46............. .........
58,211,811
2,901,451
450,000
54,851,217
3,820,195
427,050
72,079,322
1847..............
412,319
18 48.............. .........
69,813,922
4,002,035
74,228,276
73,609,596
4,235,038
18 49.............. .........
407,954
78,252,588
420,114
1850.............. .........
75,310,808
4,507,038
80,237,960

No. of
houses
erected.
609
1,508
2,006
1,920
1,894

There is, however, every reason to believe that the actual value o f the
property far exceeds this taxable estimate.
In all the branches o f bush ess, in business facilities, and in the public
works by which cities are embellished, Baltimore has kept pace with the in
crease o f its wealth and population. It is familiarly known as “ The M onu
mental City ” — a name derived from certain monuments which the public
spirit o f its inhabitants has erected to commemorate worthy men and heroic
deeds in their own or their country’s history. The largest o f these is the
one erected to the memory o f Washington. This stands upon the highest
o f the original hills o f the city, at the intersection o f Charles and Monument
streets. The summit o f this hill is one hundred and fifty feet above the
water in the harbor, and from this the monument, o f white marble, rises one
hundred and eighty feet. It consists o f a base fifty feet square, and twenty
feet in hight, surmounted by a Doric Column, twenty feet in diameter, with
in which is a winding stair-case leading to the top, which is crowned with a
colossal statue o f Washington, thirteen feet in hight. The top commands
an excellent view o f the city, harbor, river, bay, and surrounding country,
for the enjoyment o f which it is much visited by strangers. This monument
cost upwards o f $100,000, which was raised by means o f a lottery.
The monument next in importance is '■'■Battle Monument,” upon Calvertstreet, between Fayette and Lexington, erected in 1815 to the memory o f

B altim ore.

those who fell at North Point the previous year in defense o f the city. This
monument, also o f white marble, is fifty-two feet high, and was erected by
the general and voluntary subscription o f the inhabitants. The base is
Egyptian— the column, a bundle of Roman faces, upon the bands o f which
are inscribed the names of those it commemorates, and the whole is sur
mounted by a female figure, emblamatic o f the Genius o f the City, holding
aloft a civic crown, the reward o f those who averted her capture at the ex
pense o f their lives.
The city now contains upwards o f a hundred churches,'* three universities,
four colleges, and many beautiful and commodious public buildings. To
notice these, however, further than they affect the commercial or mercantile
character o f the city, is no part o f the design o f this article. The Merchants’
Exchange, at the corner o f Gay and Lombard streets, is a spacious building,
225 feet long by 141 feet wide, and contains, besides the usual reading-room,
and room for the meeting o f the merchants, the Custom-house, a bank, tele
graph offices, a hotel, &c. The room in which the merchants’ meetings are
held is 53 feet square, has upon its east and west sides colonnades, the col
umns o f which are o f fine Italian marble, each a single block, and it is
lighted by a dome 115 feet above the street.
“ The Atheneum,” located on the corner o f Saratoga and St. Paul streets,
is a truly magnificent building, 112 feet in length by 50 in width, and from
footway to cornice, 66 in hight. This building, constructed o f brick, was
begun on the 16th of August, 1846, and completed on the 1st o f May,
1848, at a cost o f $28,182. It is o f the Italian Palazza stylo, was erected
under the direction o f the late R. Cary Long, as architect, and is the noblest
monument o f his genius standing in our city. The upper (third) story is
occupied by the Maryland Historical Society, whose library contains about
1,500 volumes, which are mostly historical and statistical works. This so
ciety has annually, in the month o f November, in the large hall in the rear
o f its library-room, an exhibition o f a choice collection o f paintings, engra
vings, statuary, and articles o f virtu, by means of which it is exerting a most
happy influence in awakening and cultivating a taste for the fine arts. The
main floor o f the building is occupied by the Baltimore Library Company.
This company, besides its choice reading-room, directors’ room, &c., has in
its main library-room, which is 53 feet in length by 47 in width, an exten
sive, well-selected, and most valuable library o f 14,000 volumes, covering
its sides from floor to ceiling.
The ground floor is occupied by the M e r c a n t i l e L i b r a r y A s s o c i a t i o n ,
whose reading-rooms, richly supplied with the choicest o f the magazines and
papers of the day, and whose shelves, furnished with 8,000 volumes o f ap
propriate and valuable books, afford to clerks and business men facilities and
offer inducements to mental culture such as no city can afford to be without,
and o f which large numbers eagerly avail themselves. Popular in its plan,
the benefits flowing from this institution can hardly be overstated. Estab
lished under circumstances anything but propitious less than eleven years
since— November 14, 1839— it has steadily and rapidly progressed in favor
with the community and in usefulness, and under the discreet and efficient

* The churches are as follows
Methodist, (Episcopal,') 40 ; M ethodist, (Protestant,) 3 ; Protestant
E piscopal, 12; Presbyterian, 11; Catholic, 11; Lutheran, 8 ; Baptist, 5 , Disciples, 2 ; German R e
form ed, 3 ; Evangelical Association, 2 ; Quakers, 3 ; United Brethren, 1 ; Universalist, 1 ; Unitarian,
1 ; Winebranerians, 1 ; Jewish Synagogues, 2. Thirteen o f these are specially designed for and o c
cupied b y colored congregations.

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United S ta tes:

management o f its present president, Charles Bradenbaugh, Esq., aided by
an intelligent and enterprising Board o f Directors, its debt has been liqui
dated, its library is rapidly increasing, and it is so accomplishing the noble
objects o f its institution as to make it at once the hope o f the mercantile
community and the pride o f the city'— elevating the standard o f moral and
intellectual character among business men, and forming them on that true
model, “ whose merchants are princes, whose trafficers the honorable o f the
earth.”
Building lots in this city are held by a tenure somewhat peculiar. About
the year 1747 a practice originated o f disposing o f lots by leases for long
terms— usually ninety-nine years— at a certain specified annual rent, the
leases generally containing a covenant for renewal, on the same terms as the
original, from time to time forever, at the ojrtion o f the lessee, or his assigns.
This system o f “ ground rents ” has found favor with all classes.
To the wealthy it offers the convenience o f a ready and safe investment,
with an unalterable and certain return o f due interest: while the young
tradesman, the successful prosecution o f whose business demands the em
ployment o f his whole capital therein, and the poor mechanic, who may be
unable to purchase a lot for the erection o f shop or residence, it furnishes
with a building site without present expense ; in other words, it, in effect,
gives them a permanent loan to the amount o f the value o f the buikling-lot,
without endorser or mortgage. The buildings, with the lots, are thus" held
as personal, instead o f real estate, and, in consequence, transfers are made
with much greater facility.
So convenient has this been found a practice, that, in many instances, nom
inal “ ground rents ” — as o f one cent per lot— are created with an eye to this
special convenience. A bout nine-tenths o f the occupied ground o f the city
is believed to be leasehold property o f this nature.
The banking operations o f the city are conducted by twelve banks, with
a capital o f 87,225,794, and a circulation o f $2,074,587. The following
table will show their condition at the beginning o f the current year:—
D ividends p. c.
Banks.

Bank of Baltimore...........
Union Bank of Maryland.
Mechanics’ Bank...............
Commerc’l Farmers’ B'k
Farmers Merchants’ B’k
Marine Bank.....................
Franklin Bank..................
Merchants’ B a n k .............
AVestern B a n k .................
Farmers & Planters’ Bank
Chesapeake Bank.............
Citizens’ Bank...................

1795
1804
1806
1810
1810
1810
1810
1834
1835
1236
1836
1835

1817. ’ 4 8 . T9.

Capital.

7
7
7

$1,200,000
916,350
591,276
512,560
393,560
310,000
301,850
1,500,000
308,280
600,625
341,293
250,000

6
6
8

6
74
7

6
6

6
6
6

6
6
6
6
6

64
7

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

Circulation,
Jan. 1,1850.

Deposits,
Jan. 1, 1850.

$230,631
160,710
265,706
196,130
110,143
112,170
84,159
171,320
290,025
337,653
114,940

$549,215
310,170
545,766
410,936
129,138
229,495
110,568
369,478
363,501
315,184
331,364

$7,225,794 $2,074,587 $3,664,815

The Citizens’ Bank, whose operations have been for the last few years sus
pended, was re-organized and resumed the regular prosecution o f its busi
ness on the 15th o f Aqoril of the present year. It is for this reason that it
is not carried out in the columns o f dividends, circulation, and deposits.
The savings banks are four in number, as follow s:—

B altim ore.
N o. D epos’ rs, Ara't o f Deposits,
IneorporM. Jan. 1, 1850.
Jan. 1, 1850.

Savings Bank o f Baltimore. . . .
Eutaw Savings Bank.................

1818
1846

8,392
519

$2,101,952 25
112,022 19

Fell’s Point Saving Institution..

1833

*132

55,000 00

Howardstreet Savings Bank . .

1848

*81

77,739 00

Circulation.

Does not issue.
(C

Not to exceed the
am’t of deposits.
F of deposits.

There are ten ■well-conducted fire and marine insurance companies and one
health insurance company in active operation, while more than this number,
incorporated in other States or in England, have their agencies established,
and do a large amount of business. The policy of the State, however, has
been to discourage these, and throw the whole business into the hands o f the
societies o f its own creation ; and all agents o f societies incorporated abroad
are compelled to comply with the provisions o f the act o f Assembly, passed
at the December session, 1846, ch. 357, which provides that “ any individ
ual, or association o f individuals, or corporations not incorporated, and au
thorized by the laws o f this State to make insurances on marine or fire risks,
or insurances on lives, or other insurances,” &c., &c., shall first pay to the
State Treasurer one hundred dollars for a license so to do ; and also deposit
with him good and sufficient bond in the penalty o f five thousand dollars,
conditioned for the furnishing to the Treasurer half yearly, on the first Mon
day in January and July respectively, a true list and account, verified by his
oath, o f all premiums by him received, and therewith faithfully to pay to
the Treasurer “ the sum o f three dollars per centum ” o f all such premiums.
Difficult as would be the task o f enumerating in full the pursuits of the
citizens, it would be hardly less difficult to name a branch of business which
is not prosecuted to a greater or less degree within the limits o f the city, or
in its immediate vicinity. Iron and copper works, woolen and cotton man
ufactures, flouring, chemicals, white-lead, glass, shot, printers’ types, pottery,
sugar-i efining, distilling, saddlery, agricultural implements, powder, ship
building, ropes, oil-cloth, carpeting, house furniture, hats, leather, are but a
part of her manufactures and o f the arts which give employment to her
people, and bring wealth to her coffers. Some o f these will demand our
more particular attention hereafter.
If, now, we glance at the business facilities o f the city, both natural and
acquired, we shall see some o f the causes o f its great and rapid growth.
It is probably speaking within bounds to say that, all things considered,
no city in our country has a more favorable location than Baltimore. Nearer
to the great valley o f the W est than any other Atlantic city, the natural
commercial center o f a region peculiarly fertile, and o f untold mineral
wealth, and healthy beyond compare, it has, in addition, the advantages of
an excellent harbor, seldom, even in the severest winters, obstructed by ice.
It is a matter o f history that it was so obstructed from early winter until the
9th o f March, in 1780, and from January 2d to March 25th, in 1784, and
again, till about the 20th o f March, in 1817 ; but in more stirring and
steaming modern times it rarely happens that the harbor is not open the
whole year, and men are beginning to look upon these stories of olden times
as savoring of the fabulous.
Fort McIIenry, at the entrance o f the harbor, is its defense. This, in Sep
tember, 1814, sustained, for twenty-four hours, and finally repulsed, a vigor
ous assault o f the British fleet under Admiral Cochrane, and thus was the

Regular w eekly depositors.

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United S ta tes:

means o f saving the city. The channel is here about six hundred yards
wide, and four fathoms deep. Approaching the city it increases in width,
the depth remaining about the same, so that ships o f six hundred tons bur
then come with their cargoes to Fell’s Point. Here the width diminishes
again to about one-fourth o f a mile, and the depth to about two and a half
fathoms, and it continues the same throughout “ the basin," which, originally
elliptical in form, a mile in length by a half mile in breadth, reaches almost
to the business center o f the city, and is navigated by steamers, bay, and
other craft o f two hundred, to two hundred and fifty tons burthen.
The chief o f the disadvantages under which the harbor labors is a want
o f depth sufficient to admit the entrance o f ships o f heavy burden, and o f
sufficient current to prevent the rapid accumulation o f deposits. From the
earliest settlement o f the city this has imposed the necessity o f constant and
heavy expenditure, and has called for and received large appropriations from
the treasury o f the State, as well as o f the city. So onerous was this tax,
that, as early as 1790, application was made to Congress for permission to
levy and collect, on all vessels entering the harbor, a port or tonnage tax for
the harbor’s improvement. Permission was given, as asked, to impose this
tax, on the 11th o f August in that year ; it was confirmed and continued, by
acts o f Congress, in 1791, 1792, 1796, 1800, and by subsequent successive
enactments to the present time. The present Congress have given permis
sion for its continuance to June 1st, 1860. The duty thus collected is two
cents per ton on all ships o f more than one hundred and seventy tons bur
then. The following table will show the amount o f tonnage duties collected
for each o f the last eleven years :—
Years.

.......................
1839
1840
........................
1841
........................
1442...................................
1843
........................
1844
........................

2 per cent port or
tonnage tax.

$2,26976
3,96414
5,10879
4,66224
3,61631
5,09321

2 per cent port or
tonnage tax.

Years.

1845
1846
1847
1848
1849

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

$5,391
5,868
5,999
5,894
6,883

45
93
05
18
20

The whole amount thus collected, during the sixty years that Congress
have permitted the collection o f this tax, has been about $192,000— an av
erage o f $3,200 per annum. The aggregate appropriation for harbor im
provement made by the city, meanwhile, has been $861,000— an average o f
$28,700, or $25,500 per annum, in addition to the tonnage tax collected.
This has been expended under the directions o f the harbor master, in widen
ing and deepening the channel, by means o f mud machines, dredging ma
chines, &c., &c.
The right or propriety o f imposing this tax, after so many recognitions o f
both by so high authority, it might be presumptious to call in question ; and
yet there are manifestly many and weighty reasons for its abolition at the
earliest practicable moment.
Beyond the harbor both shores of the Chesapeake, for one hundred miles,
are indented by numerous harbors, and are constantly pouring the products
o f their fertile soil into the Baltimore market for consumption and exchange.
A t all seasons large quantities o f their agricultural and mineral products, as
well as o f the forest, are on their way to this, their commercial depot.
Besides, the Susquehanna River, after traversing the whole o f central
Pennsylvania, leads into the head of this bay, bringing thither (whence it
finds speedy and sure transport to Baltimore) the lumber and other products

Baltim ore.

o f this region, as well as a large amount from Steuben, Chemung, Tioga,
Broome, and other o f the southern counties of New York. To this source
the city is indebted for a large portion o f the lumber she consumes from year
to year. This important article o f consumption has increased from 30,000,000
o f feet in 1839 to more than 80,000,000 in 1849. This is by no means,
however, as we shall see when we come to notice the Baltimore and Susque
hanna Railroad, the only article which she receives from the banks o f the
Susquehanna. Indeed, it may in truth be said that the trade o f the valley
o f this river alone is sufficient to create a large city, wherever it shall center.
It embraces a tract o f almost unrivalled richness in all the elements o f nat
ural greatness, four hundred and fifty miles in length, and, including its trib
utaries, nearly two hundred in breadth.
The shad and herring fisheries o f this river, as well as o f the Potomac,
are also very productive, though, for the last few years, less so than formerly.
In 1819 the inspections o f salted fish in Baltimore amounted to 73,037 bar
rels ; in 1849 it was 71,041 barrels.
That delight o f all epicures, the sheepskead, which has now nearly or quite
disappeared from the northern markets, is still found in considerable num
bers in the vicinity o f the capes at the entrance o f this bay ; while striped
bass, or roc/c fish, make the Chesapeake, and the rivers emptying into it,
their favorite resort, and are taken in immense numbers, and o f the best
quality, sometimes o f the weight o f eighty to one hundred pounds.
Oysters, however, constitute the heaviest item o f the piscatory crop o f the
Chesapeake and its branches. The boats engaged in securing and trans
porting this luxury, in its season, employ several hundreds of men, and in
number amount to a formidable fleet; yet, subject to no legal regulations, it
is impossible to arrive at the statistics o f the trade with any satisfactory de
gree o f accuracy. Besides abundantly supplying what are wanted in the
Baltimore markets for home consumption, and the wants o f the cities and
country in communication with it, there are from ten to twenty houses largely
engaged in putting them up in preservable and transportable form, and ex
porting them to the W est Indies, California, both coasts o f South America
— in short, to almost every port to which Yankee enterprise directs the sail
in search o f a market. A single one o f these exporters has consumed, dur
ing the past season, no less than 200,000 bushels.
The position o f the city upon this noble estuary gave rise, as a necessity
o f its commerce, to ships o f an original and peculiar construction, and which
have become widely known abroad, and in turn have contributed greatly to
the city’s growth.* This kind of craft, constructed with a view to rapid sail
ing in shallow water, has never been successfully imitated elsewhere.
In 1752 the entire shipping o f the port consisted o f a single brig o f 122
tons burthen. From this, the day o f small things, there was a rapid advance
during the next forty years, and, in 1790, it consisted o f 27 ships, o f 6,701
tons ; 1 scow, of 80 tons ; 31 brigs, o f 3,770 tons ; 34 schooners, o f 2,454
to n s; 9 sloops, o f 559 to n s; making a total o f 102 vessels, and 13,564
tons. The total tonnage o f the port in 1816 was 104,960 tons. On the
1st o f January, 1850, it was as follows :—
Registered.

Enrolled & licensed.

Steamboat.

Licensed under 20 tons.

65,054 65-95

44,331 44-96

12,979 75-95

718 13-95

Total.

123,084 07-95

A n idea o f the class o f vessels comprising this aggregate may be formed
from the following record o f all the ships built in the ship-yards o f Balti
more during the last twelve years:—

Commercial Cities and Toions o f the United S ta tes:

Years.
1838____
1839____
1840____
1841____
1842____
1843____
1 8 4 4 ....
1845____
1846____
18 47____
1848____
1849____

Ships.
4
2
3
2

2
2

1
8
3

Brigs.
7
7
11
8
3
4
10
19
22
18
11
4

Barks. Schooners. Sloops. Steamers. Total vessels. Tons.
.
1
45
3
60
9,697
56
5
70
9,818
i
i
43
1
60
8,558
2
3
26
41
5,883
4
21
1
2
3,100
31
3
12
1
1
21
3,206
1
5
20
1
37
5,265
5
47
5
2
80
11,192
4
39
8
3
74
11,198*
14
43
4
80
12,422*
6
40
1
3
69
14,447*
9
49
1
6
72
11,168*

A m ong the steamers constructed in 1849 was the fine steamship Repub
lic, 852 47 tons, since purchased by George Law & Co., o f New York, and
sent to the Pacific, to run between San Francisco and Panama. Other ves
sels o f this class are now on the ways, and their construction gives promise
o f becoming an important branch of ship-building. It is apprehended that
their machinery will not suffer by comparison with the best yet manufac
tured. The following table is a correct monthly record o f all the arrivals
and the clearances to foreign ports in 1849 :—
,-------------------------------------ARRIVALS. -------------------------------------

/---------FOREIGN.--------- '

January
Febru'y
March .
A p ril...
M a y .. .
June . .
J u ly .. .
August.
Sept’e r .
O cto’e r .
N ov’e r..
D ec’ber.
T o ta l.

/------------ COASTWISE.------------- ,

Ships. Barks. Brigs. Sch’rs. Ships. B’ks. Brigs.
6
8
1
7
13
10
25
5
16
2
7
7
12
12
31
5
11
6
8
7
16
24
15
6
5
4
20
11
35
12
9 12
3
8
24
9
9
5
6
14
7
19
21
14
6
9
9
12
24
29
13
12
3
6
21
19
6
4
3
12
7
17
15
5
11
11
5
7
24
24
4
4
2 10
10
16
9
9
4
4
3
13
18
86

245

113

136

CLEARANCES TO FOREIGN P’ TS.

Sch’rs. Total. Ships. B’rks. Brigs. Sch’rs. To’l.
64
134 10
8
28
18
64
2
36
59
120
9
15
10
86
170
9 10
31
14
64
135
220 12
22
11
50
5
200 11
9
24
16
60
97
152
8 16
9
54
83
21
99
194 11
8
48
20
9
171
9
8
24
12
53
87
110
178
9
5
18
11
43
117
195 10
5
20
15
50
206
22
136
9
12
50
7
110
9
168
5
16
10
40

227 1,183

2,108 107

261

147

612

O f these 2,108 arrivals 517 were from foreign ports, and 1,591 coastwise.
T he vessels were :—
American.............
1,942
British...................
115
Bremen................
21
Russian................
10
D anish.................
5
French .................
3

Swedish................... . . . 2 Venezuelian___ ___
1
Prussian................... . . . 1 Spanish
___
1
Sardinian................. . . .
1 Dutch .
___
1
Hanoverian.............. . . . 1 Genoese
___
1
Ecuadorian............. . . .
Norwegian..........
1
___
1
Hambui g ................. . . .
1
T he follow ing table will show the aggregate clearances to, and arrivals
from , foreign ports, for each o f the last five years
Clearances to foreign ports.
Entries from foreign ports.
Tons.
Men.
Vessels.
Vessels.
Tons.
Men.
f American..
359
78,126
3,365
278
58,946
2,527
120
1,349
27,645
100
20,628
1,033
1845-j -F°reiSn
Total. . ,
f American .
184&J fo reign ... .

479
413
129

105,771
92,262
29,961

4,714
3,931
1,409

378
357
119

79,574
78,508
27,202

3,560
3,615
1,355

[
Total. . .
f American .
1 8 4 7 J Foreign....

542
456
210

122,223
107,045
59,764

5,340
4,359
2,569

476
355
142

105,710
77,093
39,160

4,970
3,316
1,595

666

166,809

6,928

497

116,253

4,911

[

T ota l.. .

Baltim ore.

American . . . .
Foreign............

Clearances to foreign ports.
Vessels.
Tons.
Men.
412
90,544
3,868
124
1,302
28,058

Entries from foreign ports.
Vessels.
Tons.
Men.
346
3,226
74,801
114
22,996
1,102

T o t a l.........
A m erican___
Foreign............

636
452
160

118,602
111,026
34,523

5,168
4,620
1,636

460
359
137

97,797
84,620
27,882

4,328
3,372
1,246

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

612

145,549

6,256

496

112,502

4,618

The position o f Baltimore is peculiarly favorable for intercourse with the
W est Indies and South A m erica; and in consequence this trade has always
formed an important item in her foreign trade. Thus, in 1849, she received
from the W est Indies 12,590 hogsheads and 5,654 barrels o f sugar, and
5,833 hogsheads, 499 tierces, and 112 barrels o f molasses; while o f the
205,945 bags o f coffee entered at the port, 168,618 were from Bio Janeiro,
from which port New York, during the same time, received but 172,266
bags, or 6,352 bags less than Baltimore.
The coastwise trade, conducted by steamers, barges, schooners, barks,
brigs, and ships, is extensive and profitable. There are regular lines to Bos
ton, Providence, Hartford, New York, Norfolk, Richmond, Charleston, Sa
vannah, New Orleans, and several smaller places on our coast, which afford
every desirable facility o f transport for passengers and freight.
But whatever advantages for foreign or coastwise trade Baltimore may
derive from its favorable situation on the Chesapeake, these are not the only,
nor the chief advantages accruing to it from being located on this matchless
estuary. The deep indentation of this bay brings the city, planted so near
its head, nearer to the great western waters and valley than any other city
on the Atlantic coast. This fact early pointed it out as the most eligible
terminus of the great line o f travel which should unite the East with the
W est. Besides, the easiest route which could be pursued herefrom to that
great land o f promise must lead through tracts not only o f remarkable fer
tility, but also through regions rich almost beyond compare in mineral
wealth.
Western Maryland, because o f its wildness, has often been styled the
W ales o f America ; and although this roughness presented apalKng obstacles
to the prosecution o f the work which should form the great connecting link
o f the opposing slopes o f the Alleghanies, yet it was alluring as an indica
tion of the granite, copper, iron, and coal, to say nothing o f finer ores which
might be found beneath this rough exterior.
The fact, too, that New York, by means o f the Erie Canal, was brought
into a more expeditious and sure communication with Ohio, and all the north
ern part o f the Great W est, and that Baltimore, in consequence, was fast
losing the trade o f that important section o f country, aroused the jealousies
as well as the fears o f her enterprising merchants, and impressed them with
the necessity o f providing for themselves greater facilities o f transport for
travel and merchandise. Accordingly, in the year 1827, sundry leading cit
izens took the initiatory steps o f this gigantic undertaking.
A t this time railroads were hardly known in America ; and their practi
cability, on a scale so extended, had not been tested abroad. The project,
therefore, o f constructing a road, four hundred miles in length, through a
wildly rugged and mountainous country, and surmounting an elevation o f
3,000 feet was certainly a bold one. The cost, it was originally supposed,
could not exceed $5,000,000, while it would probably be less than that.

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United States :

The act o f incorporation gave the company a capital o f $3,000,000, and
power of increasing it to $5,000,000, in shares o f $100 each. Subsequently
the company projected a branch road— from the. Relay House, nine miles
from Baltimore— thirty-one miles in length, to Washington, D. O. The
company’s books were opened in March, 1827, the whole o f the required
amount subscribed in a few days, and the work pressed on and partially put
in operation in 1830, the aggregate revenue o f the year being $14,711. In
1834 it went into operation as far as Harper’s Ferry, Virginia, eighty-two
miles from Baltimore. In 1839 preparations were made for continuing and
completing the road to the Ohio River, and it was opened as far as Cumber
land, Maryland, 179 miles, on the 3d day o f November, 1842, which place
has since been its western terminus. The cost o f constructing and equipping
the road thus far has been $10,096,571, or $56,405 per mile.
From Cumberland to the Ohio River at W heeling is 211 miles. This
distance has been carefully surveyed, within the last two years, the road lo
cated, most o f it put under contract, and it is now hastening to its comple
tion. The face o f the country presented formidable obstacles, and the work,
when finished, will be one o f the most stupendous in the world. W ithin
a hundred miles o f Cumberland there are to be no less than five tunnels,
four o f them less than 500 feet each in length, while the fifth, “ Kingwood
Tunnel'' is 4,100 feet long, excavated through solid rock by means o f three
vertical shafts, each about 167 feet in depth.
W hen this road shall be completed, and Baltimore united with the great
valley by one unbroken track 390 miles in extent, she will be fifty-five miles
nearer than Philadelphia to Columbus, Ohio ; 200 nearer than New York
by her northern route; and 300 nearer than Boston. The unhealthy cli
mate o f New Orleans deterring multitudes o f the western merchants from
having recourse to her market, and Baltimore being the nearest point upon
the Atlantic seaboard, it is but reasonable to expect that a large portion of
the trade o f Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and o f the whole valley of
the northern Mississippi will be poured into her lap ; nor is it easy to con
ceive o f any contingency which can deprive her o f these advantages. A t
the present time the business o f this road is performed by 63 locomotives,
77 passenger, and 1,201 freight cars. The passenger trains during the year
1849 ran an aggregate o f 220,557 miles, and conveyed 336,882 passengers.
The burden trains transported 351,655 tons o f freight, and ran an aggregate
o f 785,229 miles, while the entire receipts o f the road amounted to
$1,241,205, and the net to $596,571. The total dividends, since the road
went into operation, have been $1,089,138, and the surplus reinvested
$3,096,638.
The following table will show the whole number o f passengers, (including
those passing over the Washington branch,) and the total amount of freight
with the receipts from each, for each year since the road went into operation
— the years in each case ending with October 1st:—

Years.

1830 .............................
1831 .............................
1832 .............................
1883..................
1834 .............................
1835 .............................

R eceipts
No. o f
from passeng’ s
passengers,
and mail.

.........
81,905
89,022
88,633
94,844
97,758

.........
$27,250
67,910
83,233
89.182
63,540

Total freight. Receipts from
tons.
tonnage.

.......
5,931
41,085
62,755
56,121
72,634

.......
$4,155
69,027
112,447
116,255
169,828

Total receipts for
pass, and
tonnage.

$14,711
31,405
136,937
195,680
205,437
263,368

B altim ore.

Ypars.

N o. o f
passengers.

R eceipts
from passeng’s Total freight, Receipts from
an,d mail?.
tons.
tonnage.

1886................................
1837 .............................
1838 .............................
1839 .............................
1840 .............................
1841 .............................
1842 .............................
1843 .............................
1844 .............................
1845 .............................
1846 .............................
1847 .............................
1848 .............................
1849 .............................

157,702
140,699
150,516
152,501
152,418
171,629
154,568
149,533
173,821
202,458
280,264
288,674
331,170
336,882

$128,126
145,625
166,694
173,860
177,035
179,616
181,177
274,617
336,876
369,882
413,341
447,020
488,376
394,497

T ota l.........................

3,294,397

$4,237,857

66,703
74,598
77,526
100,451
88,374
65,499
67,843
82,714
' 103,110
141,406
193,915
263,335
271,252
351,655
2,187,907

$158,186
155,676
198,530
233,487
255,848
211,454
245,315
300,618
321,743
368,721
468,346
654,917
725,288
846,708
$5,611,549

Total receipts for
pass, and
tonnage.

$281,312
301,301
365,224
407,347
432,885
391,070
426,492
575,235
658,619
738,603
881,687
1,101,937
1,213,664
1,241,205
$9,864,117

Since the completion o f the Washington branch, in 1835, the ratio o f the
passengers passing over it annually, compared with those over the main
stem, is very nearly that o f seventeen to fifteen. The freight transported
eastwardly has been about double that transported westwardly, though sub
ject to considerable fluctuations from year to year, and for the last three
years showing a steady and decided increase in the ratio, till, in 1849, the
eastwardly bound was 287,894 tons, while the westwardly was only 63,761.
The heaviest items of freight carried westwardly were sugar, 1,102 tons ;
fish, 1,352 ton s; groceries, 11,612 ton s; dry goods, 9,918 ton s; grain,
7 ,1 1 4 ; iron, 3,134 to n s; plaster, 4,724 to n s; hides, 1,023 tons, <fcc., &c.
The oysters transported amounted to 186 tons, 6 cwt., and 17 pounds, or
417,329 pounds.
The leading items conveyed eastwardly were flour, tobacco, coal, live
stock, granite, iron, limes, soap-stone, &c., &c. Most o f these articles were
worthless to their producers, from their decaying nature, or the great cost of
transportation, before the construction o f this road. Granite o f fine quality
is quarried near the road, about 28 miles from the city, and wrought to a
considerable amount for building and other purposes. The amount received
in the city in 1849 was about ‘ 0,000 cubic feet.
In the immediate vicinity o f this is found the best soap-stone, probably,
which is quarried in the world. Its discovery led to the formation o f the
“ M aryland Soap-Stone C o m p a n y incorporated at the last session o f the
Maryland Legislature. Four years’ working o f the quarry has demonstrated
the quantity to be abundant, and its extensive use in different parts o f the
Union for the same time has shown its solidity, strength, and purity. Its
many economical uses for withstanding the action o f fire, water, acids, &c.,
and the recency o f its introduction, entitle it to a passing notice. Capable
o f being sawn, bored, turned, planed, and screwed together, with similar
tools and almost as much facility as the harder kinds o f wood, it is finding
its way rapidly and acceptably into use, not only for fire purposes, but also
for many places where wood soon decays, or becomes disagreeable from moist
ure— such as shelving, linings to refrigerators, as a base-board in dwellings
where the floors are of marble, for water-tanks, bathing-tubs, kitchen-sinks,
&c., &c. It is found peculiarly adapted to the manufacture o f rolls for
dressers in cotton factories, neither warping, expanding, nor contracting, and
withstanding the acids o f the fermented paste used in sizing; and being eco

Commercial Cities and Towns o f the United S ta tes:

nomical and durable, large quantities have been, and are now being manu
factured and used for that purpose, by the best cotton-mills in New England
and other parts of the Union. It has .scarcely been introduced into Europe
as yet, but there is every reason to believe that at no distant day it will form
an important article o f export.
W h en the spirit o f internal improvement had once been fairly aroused by
the projectors o f the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, it sought other objects
on which to spend itself, and forthwith the design o f a direct route to the
valley o f the Susquehanna was conceived, a charter obtained, and the road
put under contract. A variety o f causes, which it is unnecessary to enu
merate here, conspired to delay its completion, and it was not until 1838
that this— the Baltimore and Susquehanna— railroad was completed— 57
miles to York, Pennsylvania— and put in operation. Its cost was about
$3,500,000. A continuation from York to Harrisburg has been for a twelvemonth under contract, and at an early day will be completed. It has al
ready a branch to the town o f Westminster, and is connected with Phila
delphia, via Columbia, by the Wrightsville Road, passing through the rich
and fertile counties o f Lancaster and Chester. The road from Columbia to
Middletown will be opened within a few w eeks; the Cumberland Valley
Road in the course o f the coming autumn, and the great Central Railroad of
Pennsylvania in the spring o f 1851. The road will thus circle in its arms
the whole o f the magnificent Keystone State, many of whose products must
seek in Baltimore their commercial depot. In anticipation of this vast and
certain increase o f business, the company have, at an expense o f $50,000,
constructed in Baltimore, during the past year, under the direction o f Messrs.
Niernsee and Nelson, architects, the most spacious and commodious depot,
to be found south o f New England. It is tastily constructed o f brick, free
stone, and granite, and is 350 feet in length, by 110 in breadth.
The business o f the road is performed by 14 locomotives, 18 passenger
and baggage, and 377 freight cars. There was conveyed over the road in
the year 1849 a tonnage o f 406,605,408 lbs., the receipts from which
amounted to $187,777 49, being an increase from the previous year o f
61,686,765 lbs. o f tonnage, and $27,397 86 o f revenue. The passengers
passing over the road, meanwhile, numbered 132,981, and paid to the com
pany $80,115 7 8 ; an increase o f 7,921 passengers, an d$6,629 12 revenue.
The quarries on the line o f this road, about 14 miles from the city, furnish
it with most o f its marble for building, and other purposes. The consump
tion of this article in 1849 was about 55,000 cubic feet, to 5,000 o f eastern,
and 4,800 o f Italian. The transportation o f milk and market produce over
this road to Baltimore is beginning to assume considerable importance, and
the company have had constructed large cars for the special accommodation
o f this branch o f their business. Their transportation of milk the last year
was 126,401 gallons.
The Philadelphia, W ilmington and Baltimore is the only remaining rail
road which has Baltimore for its terminus ; and this was constructed rather
as a necessary link in the great chain which should unite the North and
East with the South and W est, than from any consideration o f private ad
vantage to accrue from it to Baltimore. It is 97 miles in length, and was
constructed and equipped at an aggregate cost o f $4,844,493, or about
$50,974 per mile.
A ll efforts on the part o f this company to obtain from the Legislature o f
the State of Maryland permission to bridge the Susquehanna have as yet

Baltim ore.

proved unsuccessful. In consequence, every train passing over the road is
delayed from thirty to fifty minutes in the ferriage, the company is subjected
to a direct annual expenditure o f $10,000, and a heavier incidental tax
springing from the necessity thereby created o f a double supply of motivepower and car accommodations, while at times the river is wholly impassa
ble. Thus it was closely frozen over in January, 1849, and remained thus
closed for six weeks, doubtless deterring many altogether from traveling this
route, and subjecting to great discomfort, delay, and inconvenience, those
who were not so deterred.
The business of the road is performed by 23 engines, 46 passenger, and
206 freight cars. Passenger trains during the year 1849 ran an aggregate
o f 180,410 miles, and burden trains 71,300. The total number o f miles
run, including horse-power and steam ferry-boat, at the Susquehanna, was
287,512 ; the passenger trains making an average speed of 23 miles per
hour, running time, and the freight trains an average, including stoppages,
o f 10 miles per hour. The whole number of passengers transported in 1849
was 349,549, and the receipts therefrom $380,429 24. The total receipts
o f the road show a decrease from the previous year o f $10,287 34. This
was probably, in some degree, attributable to the prevalence o f the cholera,
which greatly checked the tide o f travel.
The heavy expenditures to which this company has been subjected by the
employment o f horse-power at both ends of the road is soon to be entirely
discontinued. To effect this they have just erected, for the accommodation
o f their business in Baltimore, a new depot, at the corner of President-street
and Canton Avenue, 236 feet long and 66 wide, at an expense o f about
$10,000.
They have also purchased an eligible site for the same purpose
in Philadelphia, and will proceed at an early day in the erection o f the
necessary buildings; and when these are completed horse-power will be
entirely dispensed with on their road.
The sparseness o f the population on the line o f these roads, as well as of
others in this same division o f our country, and hence the small amount of
way-travel, is, and must long continue to be, a serious disadvantage to them.
It deprives them o f their natural aliment, and compels them to look for sup
port to the same source from which the means o f their construction has al
ready been drawn. It imposes upon them the necessity o f striking different
points, and devoting all their energies and conveniences to the accommoda
tions o f the great lines o f through travel, and o f seeking their revenue
thence, rather than from the compact farms, and clustering villages, and fre
quent towns which form so important an item in the receipts o f the roads in
the more densely peopled parts o f our country.
As has been already remarked, the citizens o f Baltimore, with true Am er
ican versatility, are prosecuting, to a greater or less degree, almost every art
and manufacture. It is equally true, that in her large retail trade, and her
extensive wholesale business, almost every branch o f mercantile enterprise
is represented.
From the coal fields o f Pennsylvania some seventy or eighty thousand
tons o f anthracite are annually received, and mostly consumed in the city,
while a still larger amount of bituminous, or Cumberland coal, is brought
in by the Baltimore and Ohio Kail road, and mostly transhipped for con
sumption in sea and other steamers. This trade, which begun in 1843 with
4,964 tons, and has steadily and rapidly increased to 108,000 the last year,
has been deemed o f so much importance by this company that they have

Comjnercial Cities and Tovms o f the United S ta tes:

constructed for its special accommodation, at an expense o f $180,000, a lat
eral road, branching from their main stem about two miles west o f the city,
and running down upon the neck o f land south o f the city, between the two
branches o f the Patapsco, to Locust Point, where the coal passes at once
from the car to the ship, without the labor and expense o f carting or re
loading.
The iron o f the thirty-two blast furnaces o f the State, amounting to about
55.000 tons per annum, and worth a million and a half o f dollars, centers
entirely in Baltimore, where twenty-eight foundries produce annually about
40.000 tons o f castings.
The Cuba Copper-Smelting and Mining Company has been about four
years in operation, and is now doing an extensive business. W ith facilities
for manufacturing from the ore 5,000 tons o f copper annually, and a ready
market for all they can produce, they have never been able to procure half
this amount from the mines o f our country, and have obtained the balance
from Cuba, Chili, and other parts o f the western coast o f South America.
Another company was organized, and obtained an act o f incorporation in
February, 1850. They are now erecting furnaces and necessary buildings,
and will go into operation before the close of the present year.
The Merchants’ Shot Company manufacture o f every variety o f shot and
bullets 896,000 lbs. per annum. Their tower, two hundred and fifty feet
in hight, or one foot higher than the famous tower o f Villach, in Carinthia,
is believed to be the highest in the world. The lead, melted at the top of
the tower, and passing through a perforated vessel, acquires an immense ve
locity before reaching the reservoir o f water which receives it at the bottom.
The great hight o f the tower enables them to make shot several sizes larger
than can be manufactured at other towers.
They have facilities for manu
facturing a much larger amout than the demand will justify. The lead used
is mostly American.
The Batimore Eagle W orks use about the same
amount in the manufacture o f white lead.
A company has just been formed and entered largely upon the manufac
ture o f zinc-white. This is the only establishment o f this kind in America,
and every effort will be made to supply the demand for this valuable substi
tute for the deadly poison which painters have hitherto been compelled to
use.
The annual export of lime, for agricultural and other purposes, is about
1,000,000 o f bushels.
The manufacture o f bricks, unsurpassed in quality,
amounts to about 1 0,000,000 a year.
Pork packing has received considerable attention during the last few years,
and large numbers o f hogs have been brought in from the W est, over the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
The number in 1849 was 195,665. Dur
ing the last packing season the supply has been equal to the demand, and
and the decrease cannot have been less than from fifty to eighty thousand.
But the agricultural products by which Baltimore has always been most
widely known are tobacco and flour. These were long its great staples, and
Baltimore was confessedly the greatest tobacco and flour market in the
world. The supply o f the former has always been extremely fluctuating.
Before the Revolution the exports— conducted chiefly by foreign agents and
in foreign bottoms— in a single year reached as high as 20,000 hogs
heads, and in turn, many years subsequent, has fallen as low as half that
amount. The laws regulating its inspectien have also, from time to time,
undergone great changes. The act o f 1801, ch. 63, expressly inhibited, un-

Baltim ore.

der severe penalties, the exportation o f tobacco, unless it had been previouslyinspected, and the hogshead duly marked by the regularly-appointed inspector.
The act of 1823, cb. 165, established State warehouses in the city o f Balti
more, for the inspection of tobacco; and that 1825, ch. 159, made all the
warehouses in the city public property—-the inspectors appointed by the
governor, and responsible to him.
The general system has remained un
changed, from that day to this. There are now five State tobacco ware
houses, with an aggregate capacity o f about 30,000 hogsheads, exclusive of
working room.
The following table exhibits the aggregate o f inspections
since the establishment o f State warehouses, subject, however, to the fol
lowing exception. A part o f the inspection books o f warehouse No. 2, prior
to the year 1841, through culpable negligence, have been destroyed, and it
is thus impossible ever to obtain a perfectly accurate statement o f the work
o f that warehouse for those years. In the following table the inspections in
such case have been assumed to be the same as in warehouse No. 1, and the
result will approximate so nearly to perfect accuracy that the error would
not materially affect any economical calculation which might be based on it.
Years.

Maryland
tobacco.
H kds.

1824...........
1825...........
1826...........
1 8 2 7 ...........
18 28...........
1829 .........
1 8 3 0 ...........
1S 3 1 ...........
1832 ...........
1833 ...........
1834 ...........
1835 ...........
1 8 3 6 ...........
1837 ...........
1838 ...........
1839 ...........
1 8 4 0 ...........
1 8 4 1 ...........
1 8 4 2 ...........
1 8 4 3 ...........
1 8 4 4 ............
1845 ...........
1846 ...........
1847 ...........
1848 ...........
1849 ...........

Ohio
tobacco.
H kds .

Kentucky Virginia Pennsylvania Other
tobacco. tobacco, tobacco, tobacco.
Hkds.

H kds.

....
....

19,283
19,463
25,040
25,246
24,748
23,754
24,896

32,095
39,844
41,027
33,729
23,084
30,965

1,840
1,176
2,196
2,514
5,480
4,985
10,154
6,941
4,866
3,596
4,250
8,592
7,867
11,429
13,214
15,423
26,716
28,862
15,670
9,845
13,618

....

....
245
526
1,222
85
575
14
406
1,379
1,088
1,463
598
610
1,033
1,023
2,803
1,075
1,335
468
664
427
1,243

496
115
475
116
14
192
219
342
378
403
712
176
116
136
206
100
45
69
47
24

....
66
21
43
50
39
7
66
69
66
33
24
11
23
8
32
17
19
46
37
25
12'

59
10
36
46
108
16
12
14
42
1,240
114
419
247
1,902
134
517
199
25
215
14

Total.
Hkds.

17,688
17,186
18,562
22,836
15,746
14,264
17,991
23.229
25,122
25,719
30,168
36,080
32,093
31,124
29,266
31,411
41,273
38,848
46,475
47,935
48,950
68,531
70,647
50,194
33,643
45,876

These hogsheads range in weight from four to eighteen hundred pounds.
A fair average is about eight hundred.
The following table will show the
amount inspected at each warehouse since the law went into operation, on
1st April, 1824, subject, however, to the exceptions already made, with ref
erence to warehouse N o 2.
Years.

W arehouse No. 1.

1 8 2 4 ............ hhds.
1825 .....................
18 26 .....................

8,344
5,873
6,553

N o. 2.*

* Im perfect record. + Erected in the year 1837.
cause o f the record o f num ber 2.

VOL. XX11I.---- NO. I.

N o. 3.

N o. 4.+

No. 5 4

T o ta ls

..........................................................................................
____
5,440
____
____
____
____
5,456
____
____
____
$ Established in the year 1843.

§ Im perfect be

Com m ercial Cities and T ow ns o f the U nited S t a te s :

Years.
Warehouse No.
1827........
1828........
1829........
1830
..................
1831
..................
.............
7,965
1832........ .............
8,680
8,342
1833......... .............
1834........
1835........ .............
13,029
1836......... .............
11,220
1837........ .............
10,610
1838......... .............
9,210
1839.........
1840......... .............
10,794
1841........ .............
10,188
1842........ .............
11,386
1843......... .............
11,660
1844......... .............
11,592
1845......... .............
13,736
1846......... .............
15,037
1847......... .............
10,506
1848......... .............
7,530
1849......... .............
11,816
.............
Average per year

249 fiOfi
9,600

1. No. 2.
«...
....

....

11,153
11,430
13,175
13,582
13,009
13,001
9,080
8,542
8,073
11,227

No. 3.
5,650
5,890

6,012

No. 4.
No. 5.
. . . . ^ „ ■- r , ...
;
i ,, .
/*••• .

Total.
...
. •r ••

5,745
7,291
7,822
8,335
8,758
10,380
9,722
9,904
5,237
4,447
9,644
8,562
12,391
11,850
11,457
15,294
14,391
10,072
5,032
7,286

8,945
11,268
11,350
12,330
16,455
14,892
11,220
6,867
9,230

10,037
13,326
9,316
5,672
9,471

38,848
46,475
47,935
48,950
68,531
70,647
50,194
33,643
45,876

212,078
8,483

123,084
10,257

47,822
9 564

50,011

d j w y j - 'j 't
,.. . . .
•
....
....
....
5,608
4,908

10,011

IPmSOj__
....
....
....
....
....
....
....
....
....

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

The value o f this articles, besides being affected, in common with all other
commodities, by the demand, takes a wider range, from a difference o f quali
ty, than almost any other species o f merchandise; and that none requires a
more experienced and wakeful skill in judging o f it is sufficiently evinced
by the fact that the prices o f the different qualities in the market at the
present time range from three to thirty dollars per hundred. Forty-five dol
lars per hogshead is perhaps a fair average price, and at this rate the quan
tity inspected in the several warehouses in 1849 would be worth $2,064,420.
The broad, dark-leaved product o f Connecticut and Massachusetts brings the
highest price— being used as wrappers for cigars.
Indeed, from this article
there can be no doubt a large proportion o f the “ choice, imported Havan
nas” are manufactured.
Tobacco is exported largely to Europe : the Ger
man States being the lagest receivers, and Bremen taking much more than
any other single port.
The geological formation o f the country in the immediate vicinity o f Bal
timore affords a large amount o f water-power, and every facility for its use.
W ithin a circuit o f twenty miles there are ten mill streams— five o f them,
by the early settlers, for their rapidity, styled “ F alls"— with a fall ranging
from 106 to 326 feet each, and an aggregate o f about 80,650 horse power.
This has been to some extent improved by various kinds o f machinery.
Prominent among these improvements are the flouring mills— some sixty of
which are contained within this circuit.
The flour trade at an early day became a leading interest in Baltimore,
and has maintained that position to the present time.
Both shores o f the
Chesapeake, the rich fields o f central Pennsylvania, the fruitful valleys o f the
Shenandoah and Potomac, and the fertile regions along the eastern base o f
the Blue R idge— all send their bountiful tribute o f cereal grain to Baltimore
as a market. For some years after the revolutionary war the export o f flour
was confined to the W est Indies, though wheat itself was sent in considera
ble quantities to Spain and Portugal.
More recently a brisk trade in both
these articles, as well as in rye and Indian corn, has been kept up to many

Baltim ore.

o f the European, W est Indian, and South American ports, and also coast
wise to the eastern and southern ports o f our own country. There are three
brands of flour sent from Baltimore— that o f the City Mills, the Susque
hanna, and the Howard Street. The City Mills flour is the product of the
excellent mills within the limits o f the City or in its more immediate suburbs.
These are twenty-two in number, with about seventy-five run o f stones, and
facilities for the consumption of about 2,200,000 bushels o f wheat per an
num. The Susquehanna flour is chiefly the product o f Pennsylvania mills,
and is mostly brought to the city in the many immense wagons which are
engaged in transporting produce to, and merchandise from, the city markets.
The Howard-street flour— so named from the place o f its inspection— is the
product o f many country mills, and comes to the city by a great variety o f
conveyance, chiefly, however, over the Baltimore and Ohio Bailroad, from the
Valley of the Shenandoah, and from Frederick, Loudoun, and other counties
o f Virginia.
The following table will show the amount received by way o f
this road since its construction :—
Years.
1 8 3 2 ....
1 8 3 3 ....
1 8 3 4 ....
1 8 3 5 ....
1 8 3 6 ....
1 8 3 7 ....

Barrels.
136,936
169,957
182,211*
268,162
174,643
113,870

Tons.
12,610
16,390
17,630
25,862
16,845
11,569

Years.
1838..
1839..
1840..
1841..
1842..
18 43..

Barrels.
..
..
..
. . 255,618
. . 233,536
..

Tons. Years.
1 8 4 4 ....
14 2,612*15,891
1 8 28,516
4 5 ....
264,033*
392,449*
1 8 42,383
4 6 ....
27,642 1 8 4 7 ....
25,233 1 8 4 8 ....
266,141*
1 8 28,744
4 9 ....

Barrels.
241,550
235,602*
412,776*
579,870*
416,110*
469,266

Tons.
26,066
25,446
44,586
62,599
44,717
50,007

The following table presents a view o f the annual inspections o f wheat
flour in the city from the date o f its incorporation to the present time. It
should be remarked, however, that rye flour and corn meal have always been
inspected in considerable quantities, and exported both to foreign and coast
wise ports.
Thus, in 1849 there were 801,192 barrels o f the former, and
428 hhds., 51,772 barrels, and 2,051 half barrels o f the latter, inspected in
the city. It has not been deemed necessary in this, or the other statistical
tables, given in this article, to make allusions to the great events in our
country’s or the world’s history which have checked or promoted trade and
controlled the intercourse o f nations.
The intelligent reader will at once
discern their influence at different periods, and make the requisite allowance.
In this table, for example, the influence o f the embargo o f 1808, o f the war
o f 1813 and 1814, and o f the Irish famine of 1840 and 1847, are seen at
a glance. So in the table o f ships constructed, the financial convulsions o f
o f 1842 and 1843 have left their trace ineffacible.
Years.
17 98,..
1799...
1800...
1801...
1802...
1803...
18 04...
1805...
1806...
1807...
1808...
1809...
1810...
1811...
1812...
1813...
1814...
1815...

Barrels.
247,046
264,211
265,797
349.749
358,705
396,178
255,232
326,988
342,425
479,429
255,191
413,169
354,259
516,269
537,988
285,466
154,816
381,580

Half
barrels.
17,612
18,639
15,227
19,604
21,857
21,060
11.223
17,007
16,698
21,542
5,984
20,219
19,392
27,566
29,423
11,854
2,699
13,525

Years.
1816...
1817...
1818...
1819...
1820...
1821...
1822...
1823...
1824...
1825...
1826...
1827...
1828...
1829...
1830...
1831...
1832... .

Barrels.
387,780
392,676
434,865
454,469
570,651
469,920
413.231
427,366
529,568
495,311
583,671
561.259
537,010
466,144
587,875
566,354
518,624

Half
barrels.
14,392
12,215
19,052
22,468
23,004
27,766
33,461
30,204
30,664
25,510
25,355
22,921
18,882
15,149
19,865
20,726
17,544

Years.
1833...
1834...
1835...
1836...
1837...
1838...
1839...
1840...
1841...
1842...
1843...
1844...
1845...
1846... .
1847...
1848... .
1849... .

Barrels.
524,620
460,733
516,600
893,924
391,676
420,636
650,982
764,115
613,116
544,801
547,224
486,475
563,632
834,446
945,482
627,078
765,820

Half
barrels.
18,072
17,264
21,303
13,533
14,777
19,222
19,786
31,606
31,716
26,962
26,415'
26,052;
26,226'
31,322:
28,191
21,593"
27,341

In terest o f M oney.

Less fluctuating, both in price and quantity, than tobacco, this article has
ever been, and bids fair long to be, a most important item in the business o f
Baltimore.
These which have now been enumerated are among the most important
branches of business pursued, and among the most noticeable of the business
facilities o f Baltimore. It were idle to attempt to enumerate all. These
convey, perhaps, something like an adequate idea o f what has been, is, and
may be done in this important central city.
From the time o f its settle
ment its growth has been steady and rapid, and its citizens have ever evinced
patriotism and enterprise: and though it has many o f the disadvantages for
the laboring poor which always exist in large and crowded cities, yet its ele
vated site and the practicability o f indefinite extension on all sides, mitigate
many o f these misfortunes, if they cannot wholly remove them.
Could a member o f that Congress which, on the 20th o f December,
lVIG, was gathered in the building now used as a store, on the south-east
corner o f Baltimore and Liberty streets, be summoned back from his long
sleep, again to enter that old familiar hall, and cast his eyes around, and
thence survey the town at his feet, and observe how that, then the most
western building in the town, is now almost in its center, and to note the
ten thousand indications o f growth, and progress, and future greatness, he
might well be overwhelmed with jo y at the view of the stupendous fabric
reared on the foundation he was then engaged in laying, and exclaim, This,
and the other marts like this, are commendation enough o f American insti
tutions ; this, and the other marts like this, are “ t h e n o b l e s t e u l o g y o n
the

U n io n

the

S t a t e s .”

A r t . IV.— I N T E R E S T OF M O N E T .
NUMBER IV.*

A s I have already stated, interest is the price paid f o r the use o f money.
The use o f money has an exchangeable value; and interest is the estimate
put upon that value.
This species o f price differs from price generally, in the circumstance that
it is commonly stated in the form of a per centage on the veiy thing for the
use o f which the price is paid. It results from this circumstance, that one
distinction, which in mv last article I mentioned as valid in relation to price
generally, nam ely: that between real and nominal price, does not hold in
the sense there explained, in relation to interest. For, though the money,
the use of which is the object of this species of price, should vary in value,
the price itself, being a per centage on the money, varies accordingly. Thus
when the sum o f $100 comes to possess double the value which it did five
years before, and the value o f its use is consequently doubled, any per cent
age on $100 is likewise doubled in value. The price keeps an equal pace, in
increase or decrease of value, with the article for which it is paid.
* The first o f this series o f papers, em bracing a brief account o f opinions and practice concerning
interest, from the earliest to the present time, was publshed in the M e r c h a n t s ' M a g a z i n e for A pril,
1849, (vol. xx., page 364;) a second appeared in March, 1850, (vol. xxii., page 273-278,) furnishing
a definition o f the term, and som e general account o f m oney. The third num ber appeared in May,
1850, (vol. xxii., page 492-499,) relating to certain terms, & c., connected m ore or less closely with the
subject o f price.

Interest o f M oney.

The distinction between natural and market price, however, is as valid
in this case as in any other. The natural price o f the use of money is that
rate of interest at which the productive agency employed in acquiring
the use purchased is fairly recompensed; its market price is that rate of in
terest, either above, equal to, or below the former, which can be readily ob
tained from borrowers.
A s in other cases, so in this, it is the market price alone which is o f much
practical importance.
The natural price of the use of money is perhaps
more difficult o f determination than the natural price of any other article.
The market rate of interest is influenced just in the same way as the market
price o f any other commodity. W e will consider somewhat particularly the
principal grounds o f its fluctuation.
It is to be observed, in the first place, that interest, like other price, is
sometimes a credit price, and sometimes a cash price. Cash price is not so
common in purchasing the use of a thing, as in purchasing a thing itself;
but still it does occur very often. Thus the price paid for the use o f a horse
may be a cash price; by which is here meant a price paid when the use of
the horse commences. The rent of a house may be paid on taking posses
sion. A man’s wages may be stipulated for and received in advance. So,
indeed, as to all prices o f use, interest as well as others. This may at first
seem strange to some readers. But so it is. W h at is called discount in
volves the principle o f cash-interest. For instance, a man carries to a bank
a note for $1,000, payable at the end o f six months, and receives cash for it,
the interest for the -six months being deducted. Supposing interest to be
reckond at V per cent per annum, he receives $965. Now, what is this ope
ration but the payment o f cash-interest for a loan ? The applicant borrows
$1,000, pays $35 in cash as interest, and furnishes a satisfactory guaranty
for the repayment o f the principal. A ll transactions o f discount, therefore,
are only the payment of cash price for the use of money.
There is one considerable distinction, however, between the loan of money
and most other loans, which makes the price of the former a credit-price, in
a peculiar sense. There is not only risk, as in other cases o f the price of use,
that th q price will never be paid, but there is also much more risk than in
ordinary cases o f other loans, that the thing borrowed will itself never be re
turned. W hen a house is let, the owner knows that, even if the rent is not
paid, he cannot lose his right o f property in the house. That is his so long
as it exists at hire. So, too, in general, when a man lends a horse, he knows
there is little danger o f losing the animal itself, except by dishonest pro
cedure ; and wherever the horse is taken, if the owner can find him and iden
tify him, his property must be restored. In the case o f wages, in which a
man lends his physical or mental ability, there is, of course, no risk at all of
the loss of what is lent. W hen money is lent, however, it is commonly so
disposed o f that the principal is as much hazarded as the interest. This pe
culiar risk has, o f course, its influence upon the rate o f interest. There is no
right o f property attached to the particular pieces of money which are lent.
Hence it is that interest is generally highest in countries where the rights
o f property are the least respected. It is generally high, for example, in
despotic countries, where no man can rely even on continued possession of
what he actually holds, and still less on an enforcement of his claims upon
w.hat has left his hands. W here popular violence bears great sway, men re
fuse to lend money, except at very high interest. In Europe, in the middle
ages, as I have stated in a former article, interest was more exorbitant than

In terest o f M oney.

it would otherwise have been, because o f the great risk respecting repayment,
which arose from the common practice o f both governments and people to dis
regard the rights o f lenders. Anything which tends to guarantee good faith
between debtor and creditor, tends to lower credit prices.
There are numerous special circumstances which increase risk, in particular
cases, and consequently in those cases increase the rate o f interest. Am ong
these circumstances are the character of the borrower for probity and punc
tuality, the manner in which the money is to be invested, &c., &c. Risks
at sea are peculiarly dangerous. Accordingly, the interest o f money to be
invested in marine ventures is commonly very high. Money lent on what
is called post-obit bond, usually bears high interest. An heir, for example,
borrows money on condition of repaying it, with interest, when he comes
into possession o f the expected inheritance. The bond which he gives for
the performance o f this condition is called a 'post-obit bond. Clearly, there
is great risk in a loan upon such a bond. The heir may die sooner than the
person from whom the inheritance would otherwise fall to him. The prop
erty may, for some reason, be differently bestowed by the will o f the owner.
It is customary to speak o f the increase o f interest, on the score o f risk, as
an increase which the lender makes in order to indemnify himself for that
risk. The expression is inaccurate. A risk cannot be indemnified. A n in
demnity’ is a recompense for a loss. W hen a man is indemnified, all is well
with him. How, then, is high interest an indemnity to the lender ? If his
loan is not repaid, with the interest stipulated, it is but a poor satisfaction or
solace to him that i f he had been paid in accordance with the bond he holds,
he would have been well paid. True, when a man makes many separate
loans, he may, in some sense, speak o f high interest as an indemnity; for
what he receives from one party may recompense a loss in respect to another.
But this is not what is generally intended by the expression; for it is used
in relation to all loans at great risk, without reference to the question whether
or not other loans are made by the same individual. To speak o f high in
terest as insurance against risk is equally objectionable. It is neither in
demnity nor insurance.
The increase o f interest on account o f risk, is, in truth, referable to the
principle o f a wager. The interest must be high enough to tempt the len
der to encounter a great hazard. For the chance o f unusual profit, he con
sents to an unusual risk o f all.
Having considered the effect produced on interest by the risk o f non-pay
ment, let us now inquire respecting the more fundamental principles which
determine its market rate. The main causes o f the elevation or depression
o f the market rate o f interest, while the natural rate continues the same,
may, as I have stated was the case iii regard to price generally', be compre
hended under the one great principle of demand and supply ; the operation
o f which, in this case, is the same that I have described it to be as to other
price.
In m y opinion, the representations o f Smith and Say', in relation to this
subject, are quite defective and incorrect. These two writers give very dif
ferent accounts o f the sources o f supply, in the case o f loans; and though
Say’s statement is certainly nearer the truth than Smith’s, I think both have
fallen far short o f it. Smith says that the quantity o f money to be lent is
regulated “ by the value o f that part o f the annual produce, which, as soon
as it comes either from the ground, or from the hands o f the productive la■ borers, is destined not only for replacing a capital, but such a capital as the

In terest o f M oney.

owner does not care to be at the trouble o f employing himself.” (1.) This is
a very inadequate statement. Can no money be lent but what is derived
from the annual produce o f labor ? There is a manifest absurdity in such a
restriction on the supply o f money. Cannot the very property on which the
annual produce accrues, be sold, and the sum which is received for it be then
lent ? W ill not a man’s capital command money as well as his revenue ?
A s I have already suggested, Say’s account o f the matter is nearer the
truth than that we have just considered. Indeed, his language in stating
generally the source o f supply for the purpose o f loans is perfectly correct
and adequate, if taken in a larger sense than that to which he unreasonably
restricts it. H e declares this source o f supply to be disposable capital— i. e.,
as he defines it, “ so much capital as the owners have both the power and
the will to dispose of. (2.) H e proceeds, however, to limit this capital in an
unjustifiable manner. H e says: “ A capital already vested and engaged in
production, or otherwise, is no longer in the market, . . . unless the employ
ment be one from which capital may be easily disengaged.” “ Capital lent
to a trade, and liable to be withdrawn at short notice,” “ especially capital
employed in the discount o f bills o f exchange,” “ capital employed by the
owner on his own account, in a trade that may be soon wround u p ; in that
o f a grocer, for instance,” and, o f course, capital actually held in the form o f
money, are the only specifications of disposable capital which lie presents.
H e expressly affirms that “ capital embarked in the construction o f a mill, or
other fabric, or even in a moveable o f small dimensions, is fixed capital,” and
cannot be considered as affecting the rate of interest. In regard to money,
he makes two precisely opposite assertions. As I have intimated above, he
sayshn one passage :— “ O f all values, the one not immediately disposable is
that o f money.” (3.) Only three or four pages further on, he says in a note,
that gold and silver “ form an item o f capital, but not o f disposable or
lendable capital; for they are already employed, and not in search o f em
ployment.”
It would seem that no more direct contradiction is pos
sible.
In considering these statements o f Says, I may remark, in the first place,
that I dislike the use o f the expression disposable capital. It is too general
in its meaning for the application which is made o f it. Disposable means
what can be disposed o f ; and hence disposable capital includes not only
such capital as the owners desire to dispose of, (which is the sense given to
it by Say,) but all such as they could dispose of, if they would. Now, in
truth, in this sense, all capital is disposable; for what capital is there which
a man cannot transfer to another ? Thus, strictly speaking, though dis
posable capital is the source o f supply for pecuniary loans, the supply itself
consists o f only a portion o f that capital, nam ely: such portion as the own
ers are willing to devote to loans.
Say lays considerable stress, in this connection, on a distinction between
fixed and circulating capital.
This distinction, as laid down by Adam
Smith, (4.) (who does not, however, apply it to this subject,) may be ex
pressed by saying that fixed capital does not leave its owner’s hands, while
circulating capital is what furnishes a revenue only by being transferred. A
man’s farm and agricultural implements are said to fall under the former
designation; a merchant’s goods, and sums paid in wages, under the latter.
(1.) W ealth o f Nations, B ook II., c. 4.
(3.) Ibid.

(2.) Say’ s Pol. Econ., B ook II., c . 8, 31.
(4.) Wealth o f Nation, B ook II., c. 1.

Interest o f M oney.

I do not know o f any considerable practical value which this distinction would
possess, could it be maintained. Nor do I think it of a well-marked charac
ter. W hat is called fixed capital, may change hands, and yield a profit to
the former owner from the transfer. W hat is called circulating capital, may
be held in the same hands for an indefinite period. W hat can be the util
ity o f a distinction so contingent? Look, for example, at an application
which is made o f it by Smith himself. Laboring cattle are a fixed capital;
cattle bought in and fattened for sale are a circulating capital; cattle kept
for increase, or for their milk, are a fixed capital. Now suppose they are
kept with no one exclusive purpose; suppose their owner is ready to sell
them, if he can get a good price for them, and meanwhile uses them as la
boring cattle, or derives a profit from their milk, what species o f capital are
they then ? The distinction is not one in the things themselves ; it is only
a distinction in the designs o f their owner, and the things are one species o f
capital or another, according to the manifold fluctuation o f those designs.
A bull raised for labor is fixed capital. Had the same animal been raised
for sale, it would have been circulating capital; the sale o f it as circulating
capital to a man who intended to employ it in the increase o f his stock o f
cattle, would change it at once into fixed capital.
N ow it is to this circulating capital that Say restricts the expression dis
posable capital.
According to his representation, the two terms are sy
nonymous.
It is my opinion, as I have said, that even the account which Say gives of
the topic under consideration, falls far short o f the truth. I take the broad
position that there is no species o f capital which is not disposable capital,
and may not affect the market rate o f interest. Any capital which the
owner does not wish to employ himself, may be the foundation o f a loan at
interest. For example, suppose a man possesses a farm which he cannot
conveniently cultivate himself, he may say to his neighbor, who is, perhaps,
less pressed with occupation than he is, “ You shall have my farm for $20,000,
and you may postpone payment as suits your convenience, if you will give
me your note for the same, with interest. Such a transaction might occur
as to every item o f what Smith, Say, and others call fixed capital, which
could be found in a whole country. O f ten men living together in the same
city, nine may, in this way, put together all their capital, o f whatever species,
into the hands o f the tenth, in the shape o f loans on interest. This is too
plain to need further remark. The supply o f capital for loans, then, depends
on the amount o f property, o f any description, which its owners are willing
to trust in other hands than their own.
In the case just stated, in respect to the ten men, it would not be neces
sary to the transaction that a single cent’s worth o f what Say calls disposable
capital, should be concerned, except the pen, ink, and paper by which the
transfers were executed.
It would be an idle objection to the propriety o f m y example, to say that
no loan of money, in the form o f money, would occur in such a case. The
question is merely whether money would, in this way, be at interest. Most
certainly it would be so, as much as under any circumstances o f loan. To
remove, however, the slightest ground o f objection, let us suppose that the
tenth o f the ten men mentioned possesses $1,000 in gold and silver, and that
the capital o f each of the nine is worth $1,000, but is vested in other prop
erty than money, which property they are desirous o f selling. The monied
man may now go to the first o f the nine, and purchase his property, paying

In terest o f M oney.

him his $1,000. H e may then say to the seller, if you will lend me that
money, I will pay you interest for it at the rate o f ten per cent per annum.
The sum may be lent just as all money is lent. The monied man may then
go to the second o f the nine, and pursue the same course; and so through
the list. In this case but $1,000 of what is called circulating or disposable
capital is concerned, and $9,000 are actually loaned in money. Clearly this
transaction is prcisely the same as the former, in the result, to the nine men.
The only difference between the two cases is, that in the one we have just
stated, the tenth man must have $1,000 in cash, while in the first case, his
property may be what is termed fixed capital, if he has any property, and,
indeed, he may not be worth anything whatever.
The demand for capital, on the other hand, will be regulated mainly by
the profits which attend its employment. This demand will tend to raise
the rate o f interest to an equality with the rate o f profits; for it is a true re
mark o f David Hume, that “ no man will accept o f low profits, where he can
have high interest, and no man will accept o f low interest, where he can
have high profits.” (1 .) Thus the profits o f business, and the interest o f
money, by their reciprocal operation upon each other, tend to the same level.
The high rate o f profits on capital in the early times o f mercantile enter
prise, was one cause o f the exorbitant rates o f interest which were demanded.
Thus, the annual profit which Venice made on all her mercantile capital, in
the 15th century, was 40 per cent. (2.) The profits of business are high in
Turkey, in China, and the East generally; and the rate of interest is also
enormous. In the United States, profits in business are higher than in most
European countries. Capital, therefore, is loaned at higher rates o f interest.
Not only is the demand for loans o f capital peculiarly pressing in the
United States, on account of the high rate o f profits, but the supplies of
capital for loans is probably much less in proportion to the entire capital than
in almost any other country, on account o f the structure and condition o f so
ciety. In the old countries, so called, an immense proportion o f the capital
exists in large masses in the hands o f the few, and these few have generally
little inclination to employ it themselves. In our country, capital is more
equally diffused, and the owner o f capital more generally employs it him
self, instead o f trusting it in other hands. On this account, interest is higher
than it would otherwise b e ; for, as we have seen, interest is regulated mainly by the amount o f capital, the use o f which the owners are willing to trans
fer to others, considered in comparison with the demand. It is to be ob
served, however, that this same condition o f society operates to diminish the
demand for loans.
It is very evident, from what I have said, that the plenty or scarcity of
money, in itself considered, has no effect at all upon interest. Money may
be very plenty, and all employed for other purposes than loans, because men
wish to make use o f their property themselves; and money may be really
somewhat scarce, and yet there may be a great deal offered on loan. A c
cordingly, it is observed, that when the rates o f interest are excessively high,
and men can with difficulty obtain the least loan o f money, it often exists
abundantly, but is hoarded, or otherwise disposed of, instead o f being lent.
So, too, it is by no means true that loans are always found difficult to be ob
tained just in proportion to the fall of money-prices generally, though this
fall is a pretty sure indication o f the scarcity o f money. The matter depends
upon other contingencies than the plenty or scarcity o f a single article.
(1.) Essays, Part II., Essay 4.

(2.) Script. Rev. ltal., T. XXII., p. 958.

Interest o f M oney.

There are several considerations affecting the rate o f interest, which have
not yet been noticed. As to moral considerations, like benevolence on one
side, or dishonesty on the other, they cannot be estimated, and do not fall
within our scope. The duration o f the loan is rightly stated by Say to be
a circumstance o f some weight in determining interest.(l.) A man will not
generally lend a sum for twenty years at as low a rate as he will for one
year. W h en the lender can reclaim his loan at pleasure, as is virtually the
case with regard to government loans, his terms will be still more favorable
to the borrowing party. The infamy o f interest has often enhanced its rate.
Lenders need considerable inducement to encounter it. This infamy has
been of different degrees in different periods and places, and has affected rates
o f interest accordingly. Moreover, all regulations o f law or custom which
tend in any degree to create a monoply o f loans, tend likewise to enhance
rates o f interest.
The principles which have been set forth in this article show us the ab
surdity o f determining, as some men would have us, whether a country is,
or is not prosperous, by remarking whether the rate o f interest is, or is not,
low. Even Hume says :— “ Interest is the barometer o f the State, and its
lowness is a sign almost infallible o f the flourishing condition of a people.” (2.)
Adam Smith also expatiates at length on the connection between low interest
and national advancement. If this rule o f estimation be accurate, the old
countries o f Europe are in a much more prosperous condition than the United
States. The truth is, that interest is lowest in places where the stagnation
o f enterprise, resulting from any cause whatsoever, renders the demand for
money small, in comparison with the supply. Thus interest was never so
low in France as in 1812, a year o f extreme national distress. Interest is
well known to be highest in those portions o f our own country which are
most thriving. An elevation o f the rates o f interest is perfectly consistent
with an advancement in wealth, since such elevation may arise from an in
crease o f demand for capital exceeding the increase of the capital itself. A
decrease in the rates is also possible, in perfect consistency with growing
w ealth; since the supply o f money for loans may be increased in greater
proportion than the wealth o f a people. High profits will, other things be
ing equal, cause high rates o f interest. Now, high profits, in such business
as is carried on, are perfectly compatible with national improvement, as well
as consequent on rapid national advancement. The individual may become
richer, while the community becomes poorer. In Turkey, as well as in the
United States, money bears a high rate o f interest. The rate o f interest,
then, is far from being what Hume terms it— a State barometer. It alone
will not afford any conclusion respecting a people’s condition; yet so strong
has been the persuasion, that the erroneous principle we have been consider
ing was correct, as to give direction to legislative enactments in Great Brit
ain for two centuries. Many English writers, such as Locke, Child, &c., have
expressly maintained that low interest is beneficial to the public, even though
it be compelled by law.
(1.) Pol. Econ., Book IL, c. 8 § I.

(2.) Essays, Part II., Eesay 4.

The Coffee Trade.

Art. V.— T H E C O F F E E T R A D E .
PR O D U C TIO N

AND

CO N SU M PTION

COFFEE

1850.

B y the statement o f import and stocks o f Coffee in the principal ports o f
Europe, by Messrs. Baring Brothers, & Co., on 31st December, 1849, the
sales or consumption for that year would be 441,000,000 lbs. If thereto
we add the direct imports o f Spain, Portugal, Norway, Sweden, Russia and
Turkey— not included in their statement, and which are not less than 25 a
30,000,000 lbs.— we may safely assume the total consumption to exceed 450
a 460,000,000 lbs. This is also less than would appear from statements o f
previous years, made up from the official returns, allowing for the annual
increase. Thus, in 1844 the official returns are stated to show a consump
tion of 3,640,000 cwt. in all Europe, or 407,680,000 lbs., and the annual
increase was found to be 4 a 5 per cent, which would make the consumption
o f 1850 fully 500,000,000 lbs. or more, as prices have been lower since,
materially, than prior to that period.
A n d it may be further added that
the known crops, with the proportion shipped to Europe, fully confirm these
statements, and prevent any essential error, under ordinary circumstances.

W e can, then, put down the consumption of all Europe for 1850, to be
within bounds, at...................................................................................lbs. 455,000,000
Of the United States, in the same way.it having amounted to 150,000,000
lbs. in 1848, by returns of that year,................................................ lbs. 150,000,000
Canadas and British Provinces..........................................................................
5,000,000
Total consumption............................................................! ........................ 610,000,000

The total production o f 1850 would be as follows, as nearly as can be as
certained ; and of the two great crops we are now tolerably certain, by re
cent advices from Rio and Ja va:—
Rio full average crop of 1,600,000 bags, of 160 lbs. each,....................... lbs. 256,000,000
Java, 1,000,000 piculs,of 133 lbs. each.............................................................. 133,000,000
Cuba......................................................................................................................
15,000,000
Porto Rico.......................................................................................... ............... ] 2,000,000
St. Domingo.......................................................................................................... 30,000,000
La Guira.............................................................................................................. 22,000,000
Other West India................................................................................................ 10,000,000
Ceylon................................................................................................................... 40,000,000
Mocha, and other East India.........................................................................
7,000,000
Total production.......................................................................................... 525,000,000

which shows a deficiency o f 85,000,000 lbs. in the production under an
average range o f prices; which for the last eleven years prior to the rise in
1849 we find to have been 8 a 9 cts.— or from 6 a 13 cts.— for the extremes
in this country, and probably about the same in Europe. As regards the
coming crops, from the last Rio advices the crop is more likely to fall short
o f than exceed 1,600,000 bags, which, allowing for the deficiency o f old coffee
lying over this year from the last, as usual, would make it about equal to the
largest crop ever grown, allowing the usual quantity to lay over this year.
From Java the estimates are o f a full crop, and it may exceed 1,000,000, pi
culs somewhat, if all shipped within the year, as it has done in some instances
before; but the excess is hardly probable, or essential, it would seem, at
most. These are the two great crops o f the world— and f u l l crops ; so that
we have not short crops to base our calculations upon.
The other crops

The Coffee T ra d e:

have varied but slightly for some years, except Ceylon, which has gained
largely, and is put down at the full estimate. The production, therefore, it
is assumed, is more likely to fall short of than to exceed this estimate, but
probably cannot vary much, the two leading crops being so well ascertained
by this time, and put down at full.
It is to be borne iu mind that these
crops are not all shipped and forwarded to market before July, 1851, and
will constitute the supply up to that time from July, 1850, when their re
ceipt commences in this country and Europe.
The deficiency o f the last Rio crop is now pretty well ascertained to be
about 400,000 bags, or 64,000,000 lb s .; and of the Java, 500,000 piculs,
or 66,000,000 lbs., together with 130,000,000 lbs. other crops, about the
usual average. This deficiency (not wholly realized yet, or until July 1,) is
shown in the greatly reduced stocks in Europe, and probably more in the
still greater reduced second-hand stocks, both in Europe and this country, ow
ing to recent high prices, which has prevented dealers stocking themselves
as usual.
On 31st December, 1849, the stock in Europe was 122,500,000
lbs., and on 31st March, 1850,122,300,000 lbs., while the import from Jan.
1st to 31st March, in 1849, was 76,400,000 lbs., and in 1850, 63,900,000
lbs., showing a decrease o f near 20 per c e n t; and this decrease must enlarge,
as compared with 1849, until the crops o f 1850 come forward— viz, after
July. If the usual sales should be made, therefore, it is plain that the stock
o f 122,300,000 must be considerably reduced before new supplies can come
forward freely, and would barely offset the deficiency in the ensuing crops, if
our estimates prove near correct.
In former years, say from 1840 to the
present time, stocks have been at times from 240,000,000 lbs. to 250,000,000
lbs., if not more in some instances. The great actual reduction is therefore
apparent, and from causes equally plain, v iz : the increasing consumption,
and falling oft'in the Rio and Java crops o f 1848 and 1849.
It is also
equally plain that the constantly increasing crops of Rio and Java up to 1847
and 1848 were in advance o f consumption, and caused prices to decline from
a range o f 10 a 12 cts. to 6 a 7 cts., finally, which is no doubt one cause,
if not a main one, o f the falling off in crops.
That these prices will not
admit o f increasing crops, but the reverse, has been shown by the experience
o f former years. New plantations are not started, and the old ones run o u t;
and as it requires four years to bring a new plantation into good bearing, it
follows that no great increase can be expected short of that time, as the low
prices o f 1846, ’47 and ’ 48, have not encouraged, but rather prevented the
starting o f new ones.
It has before followed that after prices had descend
ed to a low point that had checked growth, a rise to 10 a 12 and 13 cts.
has taken place, and been maintained for several years, or until the produc
tion, from the encouragement, again overtook and exceeded the consump
tion.
That the same thing must and will follow now would seem clear,
reasoning from the experience o f former years; and is what must be
expected as a consequence, if it is admitted that coffee cannot be pro
duced to advantage except at aconsiderably higher range o f prices than
those current for several years prior to the last, as experience would
seem to prove.
All farmers and planters know that it is not the lar
gest crop that is the most profitable; and our cotton-planters in particu
lar, that below a certain range o f prices they can raise some o f the necessa
ry provisions for the use of their blacks to more advantage than cotton, and
on the contrary at a price above this range it is better to buy the provisions
and raise more cotton.
The same applies to coffee; and particularly in the
Brazils.
The fact, therefore, that no great increase o f production is to be

P roduction and Consumption o f Coffee in 1850.

expected (beyond the chance o f crops) for three or four years is of impor
tance, and peculiar to the coffee crop, that requires so long an interval for
increase or diminution.
In the meantime it is fair to conclude that con
sumption will continue to increase, as it has done, as population increases—
except as the higher or lower price may check it somewhat— but at prices
such as have been common often within the past ten or twenty years, upon
which consumption has steadily and largely increased upon an average.
There appears to be no reason why it should not be the same now, at even
a higher range of prices than the present, which are still below the average,
when the price becomes better regulated and understood, so as to induce
dealers and traders to lay in their usual supplies.
Olfc-continuation it may be worth while, as a matter o f curiosity, at least,
■"to cijfa&der what has been the cause o f the late sudden rise and reaction
in-irhejirice o f coffee, to an extent almost unequalled in any one leading ar
ticle 0^ staple, for many years. In the first place it seems apparent that the
rise wgs induced by the reported short crops o f Rio and Java, coming upon
greatly Reduced stocks, and at a season (viz, July and December) when re■.'■ceiptg^ noticed are always light. This allowed speculators— combined with
HheJhrinre on the part o f traders to lay in stocks freely in anticipation o f a
'vfijBirer rise— to work the price up to a height unequalled for many years,
viz: to 14 a 15 cts., by which time, in January and February, the arrivals
naturally increased rapidly, hurried forward also by stimulating prices, causing
an accumulation of stock, and a desire to realize continuing, with an equal
disinclination to purchase on the part of the trade on account o f high prices
and gaining .(ears c f a reaction, fin s could not but have its effect upon
prices, and, onc.e .turned downwards the .greater eagerness to sell, with an
ability on the part o f dealers to keep out o f market to a great extent, having
still some old stock left; caused ^ decline cvjn. jnore rapid than the rise had
been.
Still it is apparent,, not only from receipts in Europe but in this
country, that had sales continued;
usual, all the coffee, and much more,
would have been required.
That prices would rally again, and advance,
would appear to be the conclusion, and the necessity, before new crops are
in market, from natural reasoning, if our estimates are nearly correct. But
how far this may be realized the result alone can show. There are so many
circumstances to be taken into consideration in every estimate o f the kind,
which cannot be known, or, if known, correctly estimated, we can but ap
proximate, at best, towards correct conclusions.
W e can only say, in this
case, that the supply would appear to be less, and considerably less, than the
consumption. If so, the effect, we know, would naturally and necessarily be
to raise prices ; and how soon, and to what extent, an additional price would
effect consumption is another question, regarding which opinions would differ.
Looking at what has been, and the cheapness of the article as compared with
other articles, and as in a great measure a necessary and innocent beverage—
affording, probably, more comfort and support to the middle and laboring
classes than any other for the same money— it would not seem that a differ
ence o f 2 a 3 cts. per lb., or 30 a 40 per cent in price, could make any es
sential difference, when it is borne in mind that this would be but $2 a $3
more per year for the use o f an ordinary family. As regards adulteration,
it has always existed, to some exten t; and it is pretty well understood that
what is gained in weight by this is, in good part, lost in expenditure, and
until prices pass 11 a 12 cts. there would be no more room for this than in
former years, upon which our calculations are mainly based.
A t the low

The Coffee T ra d e:

price that has been current for the past few years we have seen that the de
mand soon overtook the supply ; and upon this basis a much more extended
supply would be required than we have supposed, or has been obtained prior
to any deficiency in crops, viz : in 1847 and 1848, when the aggregate of
crops was probably 25 per cent more than this and the past year. Since
the preceding, accounts from Rio, to April 16th, fully and more than confirm
the foregoing estimates. They say their shipments, from January 1st, 1850,
to January 1st, 1851, will not be over 1,350,000 bags against 1,415,000 in
1849, 1,681,000 bags in 1848, and 1,627,000 in 1847— thus showing an
aggregate deficiency in the two years, 1849 and 1850, o f 563,000 bags, or
90,080,000 lbs., compared with the years 1847 and 1848, to say nothing
o f increased consumption in the meantime, which has been found, in a se
ries o f years embracing prices from 10 a 13 cts. mostly, to be about 4 per
cent per annum in Europe to about double that in this country.
It is un
doubtedly a fact that the deficiency in supply o f coffee is larger in propor
tion to the wants than that o f cotton, at the present time, yet the one arti
cle has not only fully sustained the large advance, but rather gained in price,
while the other has experienced a decline o f about 40 per cent, or nearly to
the lowest range o f prices for any length o f time.
Capital and confidence
have sustained the one, the want o f it alone, apparently, has depressed the
oth er; which may serve to show how little, after all, depends upon the actual
merits o f any one article, and how unsafe such calculations may prove,
although generally considered the only sound and safe ones to depend upon.
W e must conclude it is not reason or necessity so much as feeling and specu
lation, after all, that ■iygylptes {.hosp .things, often- times : b u t in the end the
necessity may be folk; and perhaps- obtain .its natural cot,sequences by the
imperative laws o f trade, as is always most probable ; and it may be when
least expected, as is not unfr.cqtiently the case, j f it, really exist, which time
alone in any case can show. ■.
..
...
Boston, June 6, 1850.
H.
Accounts from Batavia, to 28th March, say that if the advanced price o f
coffee should be maintained, the cultivation would, no doubt, be extended in
Java, in the course o f two or three years; but that if a reaction should take
place, and prices go back to the range o f the last six years, the exportation
o f private coffee would, in all probability, entirely cease, thus fully proving the
correctness o f the views taken, in this respect, in the preceding statement,
prior to the receipt o f these advices.
Some estimates o f the present crop,
also, do not exceed 700,000 piculs, instead o f a full average o f 1,000,000
piculs, which I have assumed.

Total import o f coffee from Rio Janeiro into the United States, and price
o f same in New Y ork in January o f each year.
1839....
1840___
1841___
1842___
1843___
1844___
1845___
1846___
1847___

338.033 bags.
275,750 it
439,614 it
321,043 it
502,620 U
530,323 «
540,040 «
735,317 ii
644.009 a

Average o f prices in January 7 . . . .
u
a
U
7 ______
«
«(
it
7 ___
((
«
if
7 ___
«
it
it
7 ___
«
M
it
7....
«<
ii
it
7 ___
«<
ii
u
7 -----ii
u
7 ___

Ilia
9 ia
10ia
9 a
8 a
7 a
6 a
7Ja
1 a

12J cents.
«
lli
it
lli
10i if
if
9
ti
8
6i a
u
8
71 a

Production and Consumption o f Coffee in 1850 .
1848....
1849___

815,123 bags.
680,099 “

Average of prices in January 7 . . . .
“
“
“
7 ___

6J a 7J cents.
6 a 6} ‘

11J 5,821,971
529,270 bags average per year.

Average price, 8 a 9 cents.

The total imports from 1839 to 1849, inclusive, would give an average
for the eleven years o f 530,000 bags per year about; or for the year 1844—
being the middle term— 530,000, which is exactly the import, in round
numbers. This gives an annual increase o f something over 9 per ct., according
to which the import o f 1850 should amount to 875,000 bags. Under the
most favorable circumstances we cannot expect over 640 a 650,000 bags,
(see estimate,) which would leave a deficiency o f 225 a 235,000 bags, or full
25 per ct. The average price for the eleven years is 8 a 9 cts., as nearly as
need be, in January o f each year.
If we add thereto 25 per cent for the
deficiency in supply for 1850 we have 10 a 11£ cts. as the corresponding
price at which the 25 per cent deficient supply would amount to the
same money as a full supply at 8 a 9 cts. A s the increase in price is almost
always greater than the decrease in supply, it would seem that a higher
price even should be looked for if the supply is no more than estimated.
ESTIMATE OF SUPPLY FOE

Arrived to May 1st . . . .bags
Estimated in M ay..................
“
J u n e..................
“
Ju ly....................
“
A u gu st..............
“
Septem ber. . . .

243,000
42,000
30,000
30,000
40,000
50,000

1850.

Estimated in October..............
“
November.........
“
December..........

60,000
70,000
80,000

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

645,000

This is allowing us to receive full one-half o f shipments after July 1st,
and estimating the shipments to correspond to a full average crop, v iz : 1,500
a 1,600,000 bags, and to be equally divided between this country and
Europe. A s there is no old coffee lying over to go into the new crop after
July 1st, it is more likely to be less than more than this estimate, and Eu
rope heretofore has taken 55 per cent o f the crop, or more, instead o f half
only.
The estimated import o f 1850 o f 875,000 bags, according to the eleven
years' increase, is not large, as deficient years come in with those o f excess,
as is shown by taking the import o f 1848, which was 815,000 bags. If we
add thereto the average increase o f 9 per cent per year, or 19 per cent for
two years— viz, to 1850— we have 970,000 bags, or 95,000 more than the
average estimate for the high and low prices, and which would be the same
for 1850 as 815,000 bags was for 1848.
Boston, May 15, 1850.

James Tallmadge, L L . D . :

Art. VI.— J A M E S T A L L M A D G E , L L . D.
PRESIDENT

THE

AMERICAN

INSTITUTE.

W e are indebted to the American Institute for an excellent likeness o f
the gentleman whose name stands at the head o f this article, which we pre
sent to our readers in the present number.
G e n e r a l J a m e s T a l l m a d g e is a native o f Dutchess county, New York,
and graduated at Brown University, R. I., 1798. H e studied law, as a pro
fession, and pursued the practice of it for many years with distinguished
ability. In 1817 he was returned to the lo t h Congress o f the United
States from his native county. Ilis private pursuits induced him to decline
a reelection.
From the adoption o f the Constitution, in 1787, no question connected
with the restriction of slavery in any new State had presented itself to Con
gress until February, 1819, when the agitation arose in regard to the ad
mission of Missouri. The great question discussed in this debate was to pre
vent the extension o f slavery in territory where it had not existed ; and at
the same time to leave it as a matter to be regulated by State authority,
where it had .been already introduced. General Tallmadge sustained, in a
speech o f great force and clearness, his proposition to amend the bill for the
admission o f Missouri, restricting the extension o f slavery ; and he also se
conded and advocated the motion o f the delegate from Alabama for the
admission of that State without the restriction. In support o f this position
he said, “ the principles he had avowed in the debate on the Missouri bill,
would guide his course on this bill. That slavery in the old States which
formed the Constitution was a question of State authority,’ and was to be
regulated by the compromises made in the Constitution. That in cases o f
newly acquired territory, not inhabited, he considered it an open question
for legislation, on the expediency o f the terms and conditions o f admission;
that, in the case o f Alabama, it was territory, since acquired by purchase ;
it was a settled country, and with a dense population, with slavery existing
before the purchase. That it would be a violation o f the rights of property,
and bad faith to the inhabitants and settlers, to add to Alabama the re
striction which he had moved, and which was now under discussion on the
Missouri bill. He should not, therefore, move such condition to the A la
bama bill, and he believed no such condition would be moved.” The ques
tion was carried without opposition or division.
General Tallmadge acquired popularity by the independent and manly
course pursued by him on this subject; and, whether in public or private
life has continued to enjoy the confidence and respect o f his fellow-citizens.
H e was chosen a delegate to the convention for altering the Constitution of
his native State in 1821— was a member o f the Legislature in 1824— and
bore a leading part in the great contest o f that session, in favor o f submit
ting the choice of presidential electors to the people; which measure was
carried in the House, and afterwards defeated in the Senate by the vote o f
what was then called “ the immortal seventeen.” It was during this ses
sion o f the Legislature that the administration o f the General Government
adopted measures, and appointed officers, for the collection o f tonnage du
ties on the canal from Buffalo to Albany, which had just then been com
pleted and was coming into active business operations. General Tallmadge
submitted a resolution to the Legislature, strongly dissenting from the col-

P resident o f the Am erican In stitute.

lection o f such duties; and among other things declaring that the State
with a due regard to public justice could not acquiesce in such a measure,
and ought to resist it as “ another Boston tea tax.” The resolution was
adopted by a unanimous vote, and all further endeavors to collect tonnage
duties on the canal were from that time discontinued.
General Tallmadge was elected lieutenant governor o f the State in 1825,
by a very large vote, having received a majority o f 32,000 over the oppos
ing candidate ; this was the largest majority that has at any time been given
in the State. H e was again elected a member o f the convention for alter
ing the constitution o f the State in 1846, and bore an able and efficient
part in all the duties o f that important convention.
H e was one o f the founders o f the University in the city o f New York,
and served as president o f its council for many years. During his absence
from the United States, in 1841, the degree o f LL. D. was conferred upon
him by that institution. The address delivered on the completion o f the
University edifice, and published by the council, shows the wisdom and lib
erality of his views on the important subject o f education and letters.
In 1828 he came to reside in the city o f New York. The American In
stitute, an association incorporated for the encouragement o f agriculture,
commerce, manufacture and the arts, viewing him as a gentleman o f pure
moral character, and above the influence o f the scheming politician, early
sought his aid in carrying forward the great objects for which the institution
had been formed. They were not disappointed in his hearty support o f all
measures calculated to advance the industrial interests o f our country. A l
though he has repeatedly ottered his resignation and expressed a wish to
retire, he has been continued by annual election, at the head o f the institu
tion as its President for a period o f seventeen years ; and has performed the
duties o f the station with undeviatiug firmness and a constant readiness to
lend his powerful aid in accomplishing its legitimate designs. A t the re
cent election he was rechosen by unanimous vote. His numerous public ad
dresses in support of the principles o f the institution have been printed and
widely disseminated, and bear evidence o f his zeal and service in the cause
o f our national welfare.
Having been severely afflicted by the loss o f several members o f his fam
ily, in May, 1835, General Tallmadge left the United States for the purpose
o f making the tour o f Europe. Few private American citizens while abroad
have received the attentions which were bestowed on him by men o f rank
and authority in the different countries through which he passed. During
his absence he embraced every opportunity o f transmitting to his favorite In
stitute the most useful publications, drawings, maps, and every species o f
information which might be turned to account for the benefit o f his fellowcitizens.
W hile on his tour in Russia, several incidents occurred which show the
respect entertained for him by the Russian government, and the interest he
has always taken in the commerce as well as in the agriculture and manu
factures o f his own country. A treaty arrangement had long existed be
tween Russia, Sweden and Denmark, to guard the Baltic, by a rigorous
quarantine, from contagious diseases, which was enforced at Elsineur. The
commerce o f the United States was seriously annoyed by this quarantine.
It often delayed a voyage from twenty to sixty days, subjecting vessels to
enormous exactions, much depending on the caprice or the cupidity o f those
charged with the execution of the laws. Several masters of American vesV O L . X X I II .-----N O . I .

James Tallm adge, L L . D .

sels, aware o f the position which General Tallmadge occupied at the Russian
court, solicited him to bring the attention o f that government to the sub
ject. H e felt some hesitation about introducing it, least it might seem to
be an interference with diplomatic duties, it being his desire to appear solely
in the character o f a private American citizen. A fit occasion, however, was
presented, and he conversed freely on the subject with the emperor. li e
was soon after requested to put his views on paper, to which he assented,
and accordingly addressed a letter to his friend Prince Lievin, a nobleman
who had honored him with many kindnesses, and who was then in the ser
vice o f the emperor. The letter was handed to the emperor, and by him
referred to his minister, Count Nesselrode, to examine and report on the
matter. It proved effectual in bringing clearly to the comprehension o f the
Russian government the utter inutility o f the quarantine, as respects the in
troduction o f diseases, and the great injury sustained to Russia by its exist
ence. The result was that within a few weeks time the vexatious regula
tion was abandoned, and the Baltic has ever since been open and free, with •
out charge to American commerce.
Previous to this period Russia had been desirous of introducing the man
ufacture o f cotton. In their zeal, four large factories at Moscow, and three
at St. Petersburgh had been erected, and under the expectation o f obtaining
the machinery from England. It was made a matter o f diplomatic solicita
tion, but without success; England persisted in her refusal to allow its
export.
The Russians learned with delight that the machinery could be obtained
in equal perfection from the United States. General Tallmadge undertook
to aid the Russians in their wishes, and in the summer o f 1837, after his
return, he caused the machinery for two cotton factories, complete, to be
shipped from Lowell, as samples. They were received with great satisfac
tion, orders were returned for more machines than Lowell could prepare ;
the others being furnished from Patterson and Mattewan. The export o f
the cotton machinery, in pursuance o f these orders, aroused England to the
loss o f her long monopoly in cotton manufactures, and true to her own in
terest, and alarmed at this new and valuable trade opening between Russia
and the United States, soon after “ repealed” so much o f her law as prohibited
the export o f cotton machinery to Russia, and she has since exported to,
and supplied that country with machinery, and taken the trade from this
country, which she was enabled to do from the greater shortness o f the
voyage.
In connection with these subjects, and the general views and doctrines o f
General Tallmadge, in regard to free trade and protection, we make the fol
lowing extract from the last circular o f the American Institute :—
“ W e hold, then, emphatically, to the doctrine o f self-preservation ; that this
country should create its wealth, its supplies, and, consequently, secure within
itself, its own happiness and entire independence. W e are not the advocates o f
a high tariff. W e advocate the encouragement o f domestic industry, domestic
production. W e maintain the expediency o f ample remuneration for, and an im
proved condition of, home labor, over the depressed labor o f Europe. As means
to accomplish these great objects, we claim that the measures o f our government
should be defensive, and to countervail the encroachments o f other countries, so
as to secure to our own citizens equality in commerce, in rights and privileges,
and by a just distinction between the raw material and the manufactured articles
imported, to lay duties for revenue on the manufactured articles, so as to encour
age our own labor in the production o f like articles, and thus to protect the do
mestic industry o f our own people, and develop the resources o f our country.”

The Code o f Procedure in the State o f N ew Y ork.

Such are the doctrines which have often been stated, asserted, and urged,
in the numerous public addresses o f the gentleman whose portrait is placed
at the head o f this number, and which have been widely disseminated and
perpetuated through the public press, receiving public approbation and es
tablishing for that individual a high reputation for talent, intelligence and
eloquence, as a public speaker, and for integrity and private worth as a
gentleman.

Art. VII.— THE CODES OF PROCEDURE, CIVIL AND CRIMINAL, IN T1IE STATE
OF NEW YORK.
A t the late session o f the Legislature o f New York, the Codes o f Proce
dure, Civil and Criminal, were reported complete. The Commissioners pre
sented the result o f their labors to that body, and resigned their commis
sions. Although sufficient time did not elapse to permit the Legislature to
g o through with the examination and acceptance o f the entire report; yet
the work is of such a high and novel character, and forms such a great stride
in the progress o f social affairs, and has such important bearings on many
commercial interests, that we deem the moment to have arrived when it be
comes us to take such notice of it as our circumscribed limits, and its ele
vated nature will permit. Happily, however, it does not fall within our
province to examine the production of the Commissioners so much upon
its merits, and the severe development o f its elementary principles, as more
briefly to take notice o f the origin and progress o f this revolution in the man
ner o f the application o f our laws, and its operation upon such o f them as
relate to commercial transactions.
The system o f rights and remedies in England, well known as the Com
mon Law, has been adopted, to a great extent, in this country. This sys
tem is the growth o f centuries. The elements, or first principles which have
been in course o f development during this long period, have reached a de
gree o f enlargement and expansion that have suited them to the most en
lightened, active, and commercial society. This Common Law has obtained
for the people o f England and o f this country a greater degree o f liberty,
and o f personal security, than has ever been enjoyed by any society. During
all this long period, and in the presence o f such benign and glorious results,
no successful attempt has heretofore been made by the people o f either coun
try to reduce their laws to a code. Nay, so backward has been the public
spirit in both countries on this subject, that although it has been often dis
cussed, there have been not a few who have seriously regarded the codifica
tion o f this law as an impossibility, whilst nearly all have believed that such
a consummation would be fraught with alarming evils. In this country, the
State o f New York, led on by some bold and courageous spirits, has been
the first pioneer in an attempt to codify any portion o f the Common Law.
This work was undertaken and accomplished at a time when the rest o f the
States o f the Union were either indifferent to the subject, or regarded it as a
duty far ahead in the progress of human affairs, and which might become
the task o f some future generation.
The great object o f a codification o f the law was to get rid o f the evils
which attended its existence in its previous form. In New York, these evils

The Code o f Procedure

were more seriously felt than in any other o f the States o f the Union. First
o f all the States in wealth, in population, in enterprise, and in social progress,
the evils o f an ill-defined, uncertain, or defective system o f rights and reme
dies, embarrassed her citizens at every point, in their pursuits. O f these cir
cumstances, her people were feelingly conscious, and every sort o f propo
sition for their modification or amelioration was made. Thus New York,
from position as well as interest, became the leader in this novel experiment,
before modern civilized society.
It would be improper, on our part, to pass over without notice the efforts
to improve the judicial system o f the State, which had been made at an early
period. Since the peace o f 1815, so great had been the progress of our in
dustry, and the increase of our wealth; so much had the sources of litigation
been multiplied, that the business had increased far beyond the power of the
courts to transact it. The catalogues o f causes had gone on, swelling greater
and greater every year. For the previous fifteen years, scarcely a session of
the Legislature had passed without some propositions to relieve the multitude
o f suitors who crowded the avenues to the courts with causes which the judges
could not hear; propositions, generally rejected, sometimes adopted, and al
ways found in the end inadequate. A new constitution went into effect on
the 1st o f J anuary, 1823. It was then supposed that by the wise and provident
policy o f the convention, which had remodled the courts, and established a
new system, it had secured a just and speedy administration o f justice for
future times.
Notwithstanding these expectations, that constitution had
scarcely gone into complete operation, and so early as the year 1825, when
it began to be suspected that the new condition was as bad as the o ld ; that
the remedies had only changed the seat o f the disease, not removed it. In
that year, an inquiry was ordered by the Senate, and the matter was referred
to the Chancellor and the Judges. They recommended some changes in de
tails, and in the practice o f the courts, most o f which were made. The sub
ject was often afterwards debated, and the inquiry repeated by the Senate
and Assembly in the years 1 8 3 5 -3 6 -3 7 -3 8 . But all these debates and
inquiries ended in nothing.
About this time a very able letter appeared from the pen o f David D ud
ley Field, o f New York, to which we refer as the best source from whence
to obtain a clear picture of the state o f things then existing. It was address
ed to a member o f the State Senate, and related to the “ Reform o f the
Judicial System.” It commenced with these words, which show the em
barrassments that were already felt in the State in consequence o f a defec
tive legal system :—
“ The reform o f our judicial system will be the most important question o f the
next session o f the Legislature. There may be other questions more popular in
their nature, which will engross for the time more o f the public attention; but
there will be none whose real and permanent consequence is comparable to this,
in its relation to the order, the peace, and the sound moral sentiment o f society.”
The second paragraph began with this strong sentence:—
“ The judicial system which prevails in this State has come now to be so ineffi
cient for good, and so productive o f evil, that some remedy is indispensable.”
The object which appeared to be desirable to be obtained at this day was
to combine a learned, dignified, and impartial, with a cheap and speedy ad
ministration of the law. W e are not aware that this letter o f Mr. Field dis
cussed any particular measure o f reform ; its object was rather to urge the
removal o f any obstacles which stood in the way o f all reform :—

In the State o f N ew Y ork.

“ The first step towards an efficient remedy of the intolerable evils under which
we now suffer, seems to me,” says the writer, “ to be a simple amendment o f the
constitution of the State, removing the present restrictions upon the legislative
power, so that it may re-organize the courts now and hereafter, according to the
wants o f the people.”
The subject o f a codification o f the laws o f procedure does not seem to
have been mentioned as one o f the steps in the improvement o f the system.
In 1842, the subject o f judicial reform was again before the Legislature
o f the State, and a committee o f the Assembly made a report thereon. This
is an exceedingly interesting document, as it presents a view o f the remedies
which were proposed on this perplexing question at the time. The recom
mendation of the committee, which was, doubtless, to a considerable extent,
the opinion o f the public at the time, is in these words :—

“ Your committee propose not only to remove the causes which have led to the
present difficulties, but to prevent their recurrence, by calling to their aid the whole
effective power o f the legal profession, and this, by making it their direct interest
to use the fewest words possible to obtain the end desired. Hence, they have
made the costs, as between party and party, and which will often, but not always,
be the measure o f the attorney’s fees, to depend upon the result obtained, and
not on the amount o f labor by which it is accomplished. They have also im
pressed into the same service, to accomplish the same object, the whole body o f
parties litigant, by holding out inducements to them to proffer to their opponents
fair and reasonable terms of adjustment, and even o f compromise.”
Such was the view o f the committee o f the Assembly in 1842. Such
were the reforms which they chiefly proposed at that time. If we compare
this with what has since actually been, done, how vast is the distance between
their views and the present advanced state o f things ? A close scrutiny o f
the report does not enable us to detect the existence o f even a lurking idea
in the minds o f the committee that the system o f procedure now in force in
this State would ever be tolerated, or that it could be anything less than
visionary. Strange and singular as it may appear, this very report is ac
companied by an appendix, which was attached by the committee, and which
contains the leading principles of the new system. They could not concur
in these principles, or recommend the passage o f the bills containing them.

“ The learned author of the bills in question,” say the committee, “ David Dudley Field, o f the city of New York, has, with great pains and labor, collected a
large fund o f information on the subject, and the committee deem it due to him,
to the public, and to themselves, to recommend that the bills o f Mr. Field, to
gether with his explanatory letter in relation thereto, which has been recently
laid before them, but which they have not had time properly to examine, should
be printed as an appendix to the report.”
The report o f the committee was o f no avail; but the principles o f the
appendix have become, to a great extent, the law o f the State. It presents
a remarkable instance o f rapid progress in legislation, and o f great clear
sightedness on the part o f Mr. Field.
The public notice thus taken o f the labors o f Mr. Field by the committee of
the Legislature, make it due to our readers that we should say a word respect
ing the nature of the propositions advanced in his letter, and afford to them
an opportunity o f contrasting these propositions with those subsequently adop
ted. In a former letter, in 183T, he had aimed, as we have already men
tioned, rather to arouse the public mind to an effort to remove the obstacles
in the way o f judicial reform. On this occasion he had greatly advanced

The Code o f P rocedure

from his previous position, and urges the Legislature to secure the reforms
which are needed and distinctly stated. His words are these:—
“ There are, indeed, two sources from which spring most o f the evils o f the
system, as it stands. First, the forms and proceedings before the courts; and
secondly, the organization o f the courts themselves. For the latter, a remedy is
in prospect, through an amendment o f the constitution. My observations, there
fore, shall be directed only to the forms and proceedings before the courts. In
what I have to say, I shall confine myself to the proceedings in ordinary actions,
purposely omitting the proceedings in special cases. When any real reform is
effected in the ordinary actions, it will be time enough to look after the special
cases. If that time ever comes, I hope we shall have a code o f practice for all
cases, civil and criminal; nor do I doubt that one could be framed.”
In this instance, the subject o f codification was distinctly alluded to, but
in such words as would lead any one to suppose that it was regarded then
as an almost hopeless anticipation. “ I f that time ever comes,” was the lan
guage o f Mr. Field in 1842, and doubtless it expressed the universal senti
ment o f the State. Scarcely seven years from that hour have winged their
flight away ere a code o f procedure is reported complete to the Legislature,
much o f which was the work o f his own hand.
But we are overlooking the propositions o f reform which were urged by
Mr. Field at this time. They are in these w ords;—
“ It is proposed that the complaint (the declaration) shall set forth briefly, in
ordinary language, and without repetition, the nature and particulars o f the cause
o f action; and that the plaintiff, or his attorney, shall make oath to his belief o f
its truth. To this the defendant is to put in his answer, setting forth briefly, and
in ordinary language, and without repetition, the nature and particulars o f his
defense, to be verified in the same way.”
The reception which these proposed changes met at this time from the
public is very exactly expressed by their author, in another part o f the same
letter. W e cannot refrain from quoting it, as evidence relating to the pro
gress o f public opinion, and as showing the bold and decisive manner in
which Mr. Field stood forth, almost single-handed, to advocate this great
revolution;—
“ Such are the changes,” he writes, “ which I would recommend in the practice
of the Courts o f Common Law. I do not flatter myself that they will meet at
first wfith much favor. The changes are radical, and that is a decisive objection
with many. They will overturn nearly the whole o f the technical part o f our
system; a part which has decided and zealous advocates. It will wound the selflove o f many, because it will render useless a part o f their present skill, and de
stroy the advantage which that gives them. With all these discouragements, I
am convinced that something like the plan I propose will, sooner or later, be adop
ted. The present system cannot last.”
It is a striking circumstance, indicative o f the backwardness o f public opin
ion on this subject at that time, that the chairman o f the committee, by
whom this report was made in the Legislature, Mr. Loomis, was afterwards
one o f the commissioners to propose the Code o f Procedure, and united to
frame it upon the basis o f the very principles contained in this appendix to
his report.
Such was the state of this great movement at the close o f the spring
o f 1842.
It is but justice to say, that at that period, there was n o
man in the State known as so earnest, so persevering, and so radical

In the State o f H ew Y ork.

a champion o f the judicial reform as Mr. Field.
H e was at that time
the only man in the State who had pointed out repeatedly, and in a
clear and powerful manner, the only sound principles upon which a
legal reform could he made. H ad his suggestions then been presented
for a decision by the people, five thousand votes could not have been obtained
for them among a half-million o f voters ; and there were not a half-dozen press
es among the three hundred and upwards then in the State, that boldly ad
vocated his views, in all their length and breadth.
In the summer o f 1842, an extra session o f the Legislature had been
called, to provide means for the payment o f the instalments o f the public
debt, which were becoming due. A t this session, an entire revolution was
made in the financial conduct o f the State, in consequence o f the adoption
o f the famous “ People’s Resolution,” o f which Mr. Loomis was the author.
This step alone saved the treasury from bankruptcy. A t the same time,
principles o f a novel kind, in relation to State debts, were proclaimed and ad
vocated. These appeared to be so just and so sound, at the same time that
the financial measures of the Legislature proved to be so wise and so success
ful to avert the evils which had been apprehended, that the majority o f the
citizens o f the State were anxious for the incorporation o f these principles in
their State constitution. For this object, and for many others, which it is
not necessary for us, in this relation, to notice, the people o f the State, in a
formal manner, expressed their desire for a convention, to alter, or make anew',
the constitution o f the State.
It is one o f the most happy features o f our system o f government, that
whenever any evils arise under their operation, whether in consequence of
the time that may have elapsed since their formation, or in consequence of
the ever-varying aspect o f habits and customs in this young nation, then the
people can assemble in council, and amend or renew, in a peaceful and broth
erly manner, these great and fundamental charters of social liberty.
The convention, which had been thus called, assembled in July, 1846, and
adjourned on the 9th o f October following. A n entirely new draft o f a con
stitution had been proposed, and was submitted to the citizens, and adopted
by them, with an immense majority, in the November following. It went
into effect on the 1st o f January, 1847. Thus in less than six months had
a new system o f government been proposed, adopted and established.
Neither were these judicial reforms lost sight o f in that instrument. Pub
lic opinion had been steadily advancing on this subject, and previous to the
assembling o f the convention, the press o f the State had published many
articles in relation to the re organization of the judiciary. A brief notice of
some o f these will furnish us with the best evidence o f the state o f public
opinion on this subject, with the warmest advocates of reform. Am ong them
was a series from the pen o f Mr. Field, who had shown himself, from the
first, to be the most vigilant champion o f this cause. To these we shall re
fer, as best adapted to our purpose. The first article commences in this bold
and noble strain:—
“ The re-organization o f our judicial establishment is one of the first objects to
be effected by the approaching convention. It would be an idle waste o f time
now to explain the reasons that have made this necessary, further than to point
out some errors which may be avoided hereafter. Suffice it to say, that the pre
sent system has become so inadequate to the ends for which it was created, so
burdensome to the suitor and the State, so fruitful o f expense and delays, that
the necessity for its reconstruction is apparent to everybody, and it only remains
for the people to agree upon something better to put in its place. What this

The Code o f Procedure

shall be, is a matter o f the highest concern to us all. People sometimes act as if
the lawyers alone had any interest in it. This is a mistake. Obstruct the stream
o f justice, and the whole community suffers; corrupt its fountains, and society
is poisoned. The true interest o f the people, and o f the lawyers, is identified.”
In another article, the opinion entertained o f what would be the most rea
sonable and natural course to pursue is thus stated:—
“ W e must begin by settling the principles according to which the judiciary o f
such a people and government as ours should be formed, and then form it in con
formity to the principles.”
The conclusion o f the article is in these words, which have become the
basis upon which the new Code places the system o f the judiciary that it
establishes:—
“ Upon the whole, 1 think we may lay down the following, as principles for the
re-organization o f the judiciary:—
1. That the judicial and legislative departments shall be so separated that no
legislator exercise any judicial function.
2. That besides their annual salaries, the judges receive n o . fee or reward
whatever.
3. That there shall be at all times judges enough, and so distributed, as to do
all the business as soon as it is ready, so that no suit be delayed for want o f one
ready to hear and decide it.
4. That every judge, o f what class or court soever, be obliged to sit at trials
by jury.
5. That no more than one appeal be allowed.
6. That in all courts, except the appellate, there be but a single judge.”
Such are the views on the re-organization o f the judiciary which the pub
lic mind had now become prepared to hear, and which are treated in these
articles with great force and fulness. In connection with them, Courts o f
Conciliation were also proposed, and provisions for their organization have been
embodied in the present system. But with another, and an eloquent ex
tract, we must take- leave o f them :—
“ No reform in our judicial system will cure all the ills that spring from our
present administration, or rather mal-administration o f the law. The other great
reform, the revision and simplification o f legal practice, in all its branches and in
all courts, must follow hard after. How much of political and social good, or ill,
depends on the nature and extent o f these reforms, it were vain to tell. It is
difficult to imagine more unnecessary wrong than that which suitors in our courts
now suffer; where justice struggles through dead forms, is harrassed by delays,
and baffled by multiplied appeals. Now is the time to put an end to these wrongs
at once and forever. Now is the time for the legal profession to root out the
abuses which have been made the occasion o f so many attacks upon it, and to
vindicate its claim to lead in the reformation o f the law. Such another occasion
may not occur for a quarter o f a century.”
The new constitution, that went into effect eight years after the first arti
cle which we have noticed from Mr. Field’s pen was published, contained
the first great step which was taken in this movement. The twenty-fourth
section o f the sixth article o f that instrument, is in these words ;—
“ The Legislature, at its present session, after the adoption o f this constitution,
shall provide for the appointment o f three commissioners, whose duty it shall be
to revise, reform, simplify, and abridge, the rules and practice, pleadings, forms
and proceedings, o f the Courts o f Record o f this State, and to report thereon to
the Legislature, subject to their adoption and modification from time to time.”

In the State o f N ew YorJc.

A ll that had been accomplished up to this moment consisted merely
in the removal of obstacles. An opportunity was now presented to begin
the work in earnest; and it remained to be seen whether anything would, or
would not, be done. It is a striking evidence o f how little was anticipated
or expected, that Mr. Graham, subsequently one o f the commissioners to re
port the new code, did, at this time, publish a new edition of his voluminous
work on Legal Practice, which had for years been the text-book o f the pro
fession throughout the State. In the preface to this edition he emphatically
expresses his opinion in these w ords:—
“ The result o f the action o f the Legislature upon the subject o f the proposed
new system must necessarily be delayed for a considerable period, and whatever
may be the character o f that system, it would not so wholly remove the ancient
landmarks o f the practice as to render a work based upon the existing system
wholly valueless, &c., &c.
On the very day that the new constitution went into effect, a powerful
pamphlet, from the pen o f Mr. Field, addressed to the bar o f the State, issued
from the press. Its title was this :— “ W h at shall be done with the Practice
o f the Courts'? Shall it be wholly reformed ?” It is interesting to notice that
a still higher position is taken in this publication than had been assumed in
any one from the pen o f its author, which had preceded it. This new ground
is maintained with a noble boldness, and a confident assurance o f a final tri
umph. After speaking of the alterations that had been made in the judi
cial system by the new constitution, and which the scope o f this article has
not permitted us to notice, Mr. Field addresses the members o f the bar in
this lofty strain:—
“ But I think that the convention intended, and that the people expect, greater
changes than these. W e know that radical reform in legal proceedings has long
been demanded by no inconsiderable number o f the people; that a more deter
mined agitation o f the subject has been postponed by its friends till such time as
there should be a re-organization o f the judicial establishments, upon the idea
that a new system o f procedure, and a new system o f courts, ought to come in
together; that it was a prominent topic in the convention itself, where its friends
were in an undoubted majority; and that the manifestations o f public sentiment
out o f doors were no less clear than were the sentiments o f that body. Indeed,
if now, after all that has been done within the last five years, there should be
made only such changes as the constitution absolutely commands, there will be
great and general disappointment. The profession stands at this time in a posi
tion in which it has not before been placed. Shall it set itself in opposition to
the demand o f a radical reform? shall it be indifferent to it? or shall it unite
heartily in its prosecution? None can reform so well as w e; as none would be
benefited so much. W e cannot remain motionless. W o must either take part
in the changes, or set ourselves in opposition to them; and then, as I think, be
overwhelmed by them.”
The leading object o f this pamphlet was, as stated in its pages, to show
that a uniform course o f pleading was practicable in all cases legal and equi
table ; that it was desirable; and that then was the time to effect it. To us,
however, calling it up at this late day, it appears to have been a complete
chart o f the principles that have been laid down in the new system, and il
lustrated with a clearness and fulness which show a most perfect familiarity
with the subject. The effect o f this publication was great. It aroused the
indifferent; it encouraged the tim id; it dismayed the conservative ; and it
inspired with new energies the tried and veteran friends o f this great reform.
Our limits forbid us further to enter upon the contents o f this publication, or

The Code o f Procedure

it would be exceedingly gratifying to extract portions o f it relating more ful
ly to the nature o f this judicial revolution, and to quote the author’s firm
and enthusiastic declarations that the time for action had come, which were
like the sound o f a trumpet to rally the friends o f the cause.
The impression made by the “ Address to the Bar,” was followed up by a
memorial to the Legislature. This was drafted by Mr. Field and signed by
members of the bar o f the city. This memorial is one o f great importance,
as the Legislature, by granting its prayer, enacted that the reform should be
made upon the basis o f the principles for which Mr. Field had so perseveringly and so nobly struggled. It is in these w ords:—
“ The memorial o f the undersigned, members o f the bar in the city o f New
York, respectfully represents:— That they look with great solicitude for the ac
tion o f your honorable bodies, in respect to the revision, reform, simplification,
and abridgment of the rules of practice, pleadings, forms, and proceedings o f the
courts o f record. They are persuaded that a radical reform o f legal procedure,
in all its departments, is demanded by the interests o f justice, and by the voice o f
the people; that a uniform course of proceeding, in all cases legal and^equitable,
is entirely practicable, and no less expedient; that a radical reform should aim at
such uniformity, and at the abolition o f all useless forms and proceedings. Your
memorialists, therefore, pray your honorable bodies to declare by the act appoint
ing the commissioners, that it shall be their duty to provide for the abolition o f the
■
present forms of action and pleadings; for a uniform course o f proceeding, in all
cases, whether of legal or equitable cognizance: and fo r the abandonment o f every
form and proceeding not necessary to ascertain or preserve the rights of the parties."
This memorial was presented to the Legislature on the 10th o f February,
1847, and on the 8th o f April succeeding, the law for the appointment o f
the commissioners was passed. In this law was embodied the prayer o f the
memorial above in the very words o f the memorialists.
This was an achievement. Something had now been done. A step in
advance had been taken. The Legislature had provided for the appoint
ment o f the commission, and prescribed its duties in the very words o f the
most enthusiastic and radical champion o f this reform. The long passed
years o f toil, agitation, and discussion, had at length began to show signs o f
a distant harvest. So slow and backward are States, as individuals, to fore
see and comprehend the measures which promote their welfare, that they
must be urged and almost goaded to make the effort to grasp them.
The three commissioners had been nominated previous to the presentation
o f this memorial, the effect o f which was to require them to adopt a radical
reform, and they were subsequently appointed. They were Nicholas Hill,
o f Albany, David Graham, o f New York, and Arphaxad Loomis, o f Herki
mer. On the meeting o f the commissioners together, it appeared that Mr.
Loomis entertained the same radical views which Mr. Field had so strenu
ously advocated. Mr. Graham, whatever may have been his previous senti
ments, coincided with Mr. Loomis, and Mr. Hill, still dissenting, at last re
signed. A t the extra session of the Legislature in September following, Mr.
Field was appointed as one o f the commissioners in Mr. Hill’s place. U p
to this moment nothing whatever had been done by the commissioners, ex
cept to report to the Legislature that they had agreed upon the radical re
form which the law of their appointment required; the very reform, in
fact, which Mr. Field had proposed. The commission was now united
in opinion, and by the addition of Mr. Field possessed ample spirit and
enthusiasm for the most thorough and effectual labors.
Accordingly,
on the 29th o f February, 1848, little more than five months afterwards, we

In the State o f N ew Y ork .

find the commissioners reporting portions o f the first and second parts o f the
code to the Legislature.
The first part related to the courts o f justice, their organization and
jurisdiction, and the functions and duties o f all judicial and ministerial
officers connected with them.
The second relates to civil actions.
The Legislature, during the session, adopted them.
In the latter part
o f January, 1849, nearly one year afterwards, the commissioners made
three additional reports.
A portion o f these reports was adopted, and
a part were laid over to the next session o f the Legislature. These three
reports related to the subjects o f civil actions, with all their incidents, and to
special proceedings. On the 31st o f December ensuing, the commissioners
reported the fifth and sixth parts, which completed the codes o f civil and
criminal procedure for the State.
Their final report to the Legislature
thus sums up what had been accomplished:—
“ The two codes o f procedure, civil and criminal, cover the whole ground o f
remedial law, and are intended to dispense with all previous statute and common
law in that department. They, together, constitute an entire code o f remedies,
the complement o f the code o f rights, and designed, in connection with it, to unite,
as the constitution contemplates, in ‘ a written and systematic code, the whole
body o f the law o f the State.’ ”
A t the close o f this report, the commissioners resigned the high trust that
had been committed to th em ; for their work was done.
In glancing thus rapidly at the origin and progress o f this great move
ment, it must be manifest to every one that the occasion o f it had long ex
isted. Even as far back as previous to the adoption o f a constitution in
1823, these evils had then long been suffered, and it was supposed that
instrument would furnish an adequate remedy. It afforded no permanent
relief. Innumerable measures and methods, and plans o f reform were pro
posed and continued to be adopted with no decided benefit. A t length,
Mr. Field addressed the public with his single proposition, to commence on
fundamental and natural principles, and establish a new system which should
be as simple, clear, and brief as possible. Am id the almost inextricable
confusion which existed, it was difficult for him, at first, to obtain a hearing.
Finally, his perseverance was rewarded with success— his views were heard,
admitted to be sound, adopted, and the code has been formed in conformity
with them. H e is the only man in the State who felt the evil, first proposed
the remedy, and ardently advoeated it at every opportunity, until it tri
umphed. For the success o f this great m ovem ent; for the entire codification
o f all her remedial laws, the State of New York is more indebted to Mr.
Field than to any other man.
Before leaving this point o f our subject, we must take the liberty to quote
a single paragraph from the close o f an article in the London Law Review,
relating to this reform :—
“ Expressing once more our profound admiration o f the labors o f the procedurists o f New York, and o f the ability and energy o f the one individual to whom
the whole is so mainly to he traced, we must, for the present at least, conclude
this very desultory, and, we fear, unsatisfactory notice, in the hope that we may
some day resume the subject, and give not merely a fuller account o f their great
work, but also the history o f the agitation which led to its being ever undertaken.”
In the length at which we have traced the origin and progress o f this
great reform, we may have departed somewhat from our usual course upon
such subjects ; but the intense interest which it possesses, the great and par

The Code o f Procedure

amount influence which it is calculated to exert upon society, furnish us with
an ample apology.
The commercial bearings o f this great reform are quite important. If the
mercantile class wield the bulk o f the wealth o f the State, it certainly is of
the highest importance to them that the laws directing all legal proceedings
in relation to their immense rights, should be in the most simple and intel
ligible language, and free from all technicalities, or antiquated phrases. In
this respect the code is perfect. For it is believed that the practice o f the
courts is therein set forth in such a manner that no person need have occa
sion to witness a legal proceeding, or render a verdict, the meaning o f which
he does not comprehend.
In cases o f commercial paper the civil code provides a summary remedy.
It is somewhat similar to the summary proceedings in the commercial tribu
nals of continental Europe. These provisions o f the code appear to have
been framed upon the idea that there is a certain class o f obligations admit
ting o f a more summary remedy than the ordinary cases. They are those
where the demands have either been liquidated by the parties or settled by
the decision o f a judicial tribunal; where the defenses possible to be made
are few ; where the securities are chiefly commercial, and credit requires that
the remedy should be speedy.
These summary proceedings may be taken for a sum o f money actually
due, upon a bond conditioned for the payment o f money o n ly ; upon a ne
gotiable promissory note against the maker, endorser, or guarantor, and in
favor o f the holder ; upon a negotiable draft or bill o f exchange, against the
drawer, endorser, acceptor, or guarantor, and in favor o f the holder ; upon
a judgment o f a sister State, against the judgment debtor, and in favor o f
the judgment creditor. They consist m the service upon the defendant of a
complaint by a sheriff, with a notice that at a specified time (not less than
forty-eight hours) the complaint, &c., will be presented to the county judge,
who will endorse on it an order that judgment be extended, unless a sufficient
answer be made by the defendent. If no answer is made, the judgment is
recorded in three days : if an answer is made, it can be tried in five days, if
the court is in session. Notwithstanding such answer, the plaintiff can have
an immediate attachment against the property o f the defendant upon giving
security to pay all damages if he fails to make out his case; and the defend
ant can avoid the attachment process only by giving security to pay the
amount o f any judgment that may be obtained against him.
The proceedings in the case o f insolvency which are directed by the code
are o f such an important character, and may possess an interest to our com
mercial readers, independent o f their peculiar nature, that we are induced
to take notice o f them at some length. These proceedings are divided into
three chapters. The first relates to the course to be pursued by the insol
vent to discharge himself from an imprisonment in execution; the second
relates to the proceedings o f an insolvent to discharge himself from his debts ;
and the third comprises the proceedings o f a creditor to close the affairs of
an insolvent.
The course to be pursued by an insolvent who has been imprisoned on
execution for thirty days, to discharge himself is as follows :—
“ He must present to the county court o f the county where he is imprisoned,
on application in writing, verified by his oath, setting forth the fact o f his impris
onment, the amount, kind, and particulars of his property, and the amount, na
ture, and particulars of his debts, with the names and residence o f the creditors,

In the State o f N ew Y ork.

so far as they are known and can he ascertained by him, and asking for his dis
charge from the imprisonment,
“ He must, at the same time, prove, by affidavit or admission in writing, that a
copy o f the application, with notice o f presenting the same at a specified time
and place, has been served on the judgment creditor, upon whose execution the
insolvent is imprisoned, at least ten days before the application.
“ The application is to be heard in the same manner as any other motion; and if
it be shown to the satisfaction o f the court that the allegations o f the application
are true, that the applicant is insolvent, that he does not conceal any o f his pro
perty, and that he has not, after knowing his insolvency, and within six months
before his application given a preference to a creditor for an antecedent debt, by
any payment or disposition o f his property, the court may make an order, declar
ing that the applicant is an insolvent debtor, and appointing a receiver o f his pro
perty.
“ Upon a certificate of the receiver, upon a copy o f the inventory, that the in
solvent has transferred and delivered to him all the property specified therein, ex
cepting property exempt from execution, to be therein specified, with all books,
instruments, and papers relating thereto, and after due notice to the judgment
creditor, the court may make an order, discharging the insolvent from his impris
onment ; but such discharge shall not affect the judgment, nor any other remedy
for the collection thereof, other than against the person of the insolvent.”
“ The receiver must proceed in the conversion o f the property into money, and
the distribution thereof among the creditors existing at the time o f the application,
whether their demands are due or not, according to their several rights, giving no
preference, except where a preference is required by the statutes o f this State, or
o f the United States, and must deliver the surplus to the insolvent under the di
rection of the court. The receiver is at all times subject to the control o f the
court until his final discharge by its order. If other property o f the insolvent,
not stated in the inventory, be discovered by the receiver, it must be deemed a
part o f the property assigned, and the receiver must collect the same and account
therefor.”
The proceedings on the part o f an insolvent to discharge himself from
debt are as follow s:—
“ Any insolvent who, at the time o f his application, has resided in the State five
years, may present to the county court o f the county where he resides an appli
cation in writing, verified by his oath, setting forth the fact o f his insolvency, the
amount, kind, and particulars o f his property, and the amount nature, and partic
ulars o f his debts, specifying the residence o f his creditors, so far as they are
known or can be ascertained by him, alleging that he has not given a preference,
and asking a discharge from his debts.
“ Upon receiving the application the court may make an order, requiring the
creditors of the insolvent to show cause, if they have any, before the court, at a
specified time and place, not less than three months thereafter, why the applica
tion should not be granted, and directing the publication once a week, for ten
weeks, of the application, or a condensed statement thereof, and o f the order,
in the State paper, and in two other newspapers which the court may designate
as most likely to give notice to the creditors.
“ At a time and place specified upon proof of the publication in conformity
with the order, and also that a copy of one of the papers containing the applica
tion or statement and order, was deposited in the posboffice at least nine weeks
previously, directed to each creditor within the United States, at his residence,
when such residence is stated in the application, the court may proceed to hear
the application.
“ If a creditor appear and deny any o f the material allegations o f the applica
tion, or allege that the applicant has fraudulently contracted the debt to such
creditor; or that such a debt arose from a fraudulent misapplication by the appli
cant o f the property o f another; or that since it was contracted, the applicant, if
a merchant, has not kept proper books of account, the court may either try the
question o f fact, or may order it to be tried by a jury, or by referees.

The Code o f Precedure in the S tate o f N ew Y ork.

“ If such demand or allegation be not made, or if made, he found on the trial to
be untrue, the court may make an order declaring that the applicant is an insol
vent debtor, and appoint a receiver o f his property, not exempt from execution;
the receiver must give the certificate, and has the power, and is subject to the re
sponsibilities above-mentioned.
“ Upon the final report o f the receiver, showing the collection and conversion
into available assets o f all the property o f the insolvent not exempt from execu
tion, and the proper application and payment thereof, if it appear that at least 25
per cent o f each o f the insolvent’s debts contracted before his application, has
been paid, or a dividend to that extent offered and set apart thereon, the court
may order that the insolvent be discharged from all such debts o f the following
kinds:—
“ Debts due to persons who were residents o f the State at the time o f the ap
plication.
“ Debts contracted in this State.
“ Debts due to creditors who have received a dividend from the receiver.
“ But such order in no case discharges a debt arising out o f the fraudulent mis
application o f the property o f another, nor does it affect the liability o f another
person, who is liable jointly with the insolvent.”
The proceedings wbicli are to be taken by a creditor to close the affairs of
an insolvent, are as follow s:—
Any creditor residing in this State, having a claim arising on contract, and al
ready due, to the amount o f five hundred dollars, against a debtor residing in this
State, may apply to the county court o f the county where the debtor resides, to
declare him insolvent, and close his affairs, in any o f the following cases:—
“ When he has fraudulently contracted the debt to such creditor.
“ When he has concealed, removed, or disposed o f some part o f his property,
or is about to do so, with intent to defraud his creditors.
“ When an execution against his property has been returned unsatisfied, in
whole or in part; or—
“ When a promissory note made by him, or a bill o f exchange accepted by him,
while engaged in the business o f a merchant, broker, factor, or banker, and owned
by the creditor, has fallen due, and has remained unpaid, and under protest, for
at least ten days before the application, without notice from the debtor, that he
has a valid defense to such note or bill, accompanied by an offer o f good security
for the payment o f any judgment that may be recovered thereon.
“ The application must be in writing, verified by the affidavit o f the creditor, or
another person, and showing that the case is within the last section, and asking
that a' receiver of the property o f the usual rent, may be appointed, and his affairs
closed.
“ Upon receiving such application, the court may make an order requiring the
defendant to show cause, at a specified time and place, why the application should
not be appointed; and if then, or at any time afterwards, there appear to be dan
ger o f the defendant’s disposing o f property, to the prejudice o f the application,
the court may grant an injunction against any disposition thereof.
“ A t the time and place specified, upon proof o f the personal service o f the or
der to show cause, the court may proceed to hear the application.
“ If the defendant appear and deny any o f the material allegations o f the appli
cation, the court must order the question of fact to be tried by a ju ry; or if the
defendant waive a trial by jury, may itself try the question, or may order a trial
thereof by referees.
“ If such denial be not made, or, if made, be found in the trial to be untrue, the
court may make an order, declaring that the defendant is an insolvent debtor, and
appoint a receiver o f his property.
“ The receiver must immediately publish notice o f this appointment in the State
paper, and in two other newspapers designated by the court, for such time as the
court may direct; and from the time o f his appointment he is vested with all the
property o f the insolvent debtor, not exempt from execution. The court may
compel the transfer and delivering by the insolvent debtor o f any o f his property.”

F ree Trade vs. P rotective Tariffs.

Such is the law o f the State as prescribed by this code in relation to cases
o f insolvency. Its operation is rapid and effectual, and well adapted to the
circumstances o f an enterprising and commercial State like New York.
W e shall, in the present article, allude only to one more instance in which
the provisions o f the code have a direct and beneficial influence upon the
commercial interests of the people. It is in that provision which relates to
evidence, wherein the parties to a suit are authorized to be witnesses, not
withstanding their interest. The fundamental difference between this sys
tem o f evidence and that in common use, is, that the former goes upon the
principle o f admission, the latter upon the system of exclusion. Let in all
the light possible. N ot so, says the common law ; exclude the light lest i
may deceive you, unmindful that poor light is better than none. The ad
vantages o f this provision have already begun to be realized by the mercan
tile community. Already have we reported in these pages some cases in
which the secrets o f partnership transactions have been brought to light by
placing one o f the interested parties in the witness’ stand.
In closing these remarks, we cannot withhold the reflection that this great
and important movement is as yet in its infancy. The benign influences
which it is destined to yield, can, as yet, be only imperfectly realized. A l
ready, however, we have seen it substantially adopted by the Legislature of
the State o f Mississippi, and the legal publications o f England are commend
ing it with high favor.

Art. T ill.— “ FREE TRADE vs. PROTECTIVE TARIFFS'”
M e . F reeman H unt, Editor of the Merchants' Magazine, etc.
D e a r S i r :— I feel somewhat sorry to trouble you with the present com
munication, believing that it is paying the readers of your excellent M aga
zine but a poor compliment to suppose it necessary to make any comment
upon the petulent and disingenuous attack o f G. B. in the June number,
upon the article upon “ Free Trade and Protective Tariffs,” which appeared
in the number for April. I should not therefore have taken any notice o f
the review o f your correspondent if I had not hoped still further to subserve
the cause o f truth— that being so important at the present time— and fur
ther, I was afraid that G. B. would be so elated at his success in silencing
an advocate o f free trade, that like the frog in the fable, he might swell out
so far beyond his proper dimensions that some dreadful catastrophe would
happen to him. But to the subject: The review appears to me to be any
thing but a review. Your correspondent does not profess to discuss the im
portant subject contained in my former article, but merely the style in which
it is advocated, as though truth was less truth because put forth in a free and
independent style rather than in a canting whining tone, under the hypo
critical pretense, that though the author believing his own views to be correct
still defers to the opinions and judgments o f others. N ot content however
with attacking the style of m y article he has gone out o f his way to vent his
spleen upon all other advocates o f free trade, assuming also that I belong to
the Manchester School o f political economists. N ow if your correspondent
will take the trouble to refer to your April number, for 1849, he will there
find unmistakable evidence that he is wrong. H e will perceive that I have

F ree Trade vs. P rotective T ariffs.

even had the temerity to set-up school for myself. I hope, however, that that
is no great crime, seeing that society could not progress upon any other prin
ciple but that o f free thought and free discussion. Your correspondent says
that the subject o f free trade lias “ for the last twenty years occupied the at
tention and employed the pens o f the first minds in Europe and America,
assuming, therefore, that an humble individual like myself is not qualified
to judge o f this abstruse question. This, however, I must leave to others,
still claiming my right to exercise both public and private judgment, with
out deference to the errors o f great names. G. B. appears to be particularly
offended at what he calls my egotism, and the egotism o f the Manchester
School o f philosophers in general, and says they have not been able to do
much more than to disparage the honesty and capacity of the advocates of
“ protection.” This o f course is mere assertion. The abolishing o f the
British Corn-Law against all the power o f the aristocracy, who believed
themselves interested in its continuance— the remodeling o f the tariff and
abolition o f Navigation-Laws in England, and in America the repeal o f the
tariff' of 1842— these are some o f the achievements o f the advocates o f free
trade. Let us now examine into the subject o f m y egotism. Probably I
had better plead guilty to this charge; most writers have a little, and o f course
I have my share ; but we may find in the end that very few have more than
G. B. A very ancient and venerable authority says, “ wherein thou judgest
another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same
things.” Nevertheless, a little egotism may be excused, when the party has
the truth on his side, but when it is otherwise it appears foolish and offensive.
The egotism o f G. B., or some other quality o f his mind equally offensive to
propriety, has led him to misquote my language, and to draw disingenuous
conclusions from i t ; some o f which I will notice. He makes a quotation in
the following w ords:— “ this is precisely the question which no sane individu
al would have thought o f asking,” and then goes on to show that I assumed
that the Secretary o f the Treasury was insane, &c. Let us now quote the
sentence as it stands in the original, “ Now' this is precisely the question which
no sane individual in the U nion would have thought o f asking, unless he
had had a purpose to serve in answering it, and this o f course was the case
with the Secretary.” If it can be logically proved from this, that I inferred,
or ever wished others to infer that the Secretary o f the Treasury was insane,
then I must confess that I did not understand what I was w riting; but fur
ther comment is unnecessary. The next mal-quotation occurs in the follow
ing w’ords:— “ The governments o f the day believe the protective system to
be a gross humbug, having tried it from time immemorial, and are now le
gislating in the opposite direction.” This quotation is not to be found entire
in any part o f my article, but is a mere collection o f words, taken here and
there, from more than three times the number o f lines which contain them,
and would in nowise bear the sweeping construction put upon them by the
author o f the very candid review under consideration, I still believe that the
tendency o f the age is to abolish the miscalled protective system, in spite o f
the assertion o f G. B., that “ all the rest o f Europe (besides England) and all
America, except the United States f o r a short period, still adhere to the
syetem of protection. It is true I did not think of all America at the time
I wrote the sentence objected to ; I had quite forgotten the powerful, influen
tial, and civilized States beyond the isthmus. There is however the United
States;— and Canada is also ready, and has been for some time to act upon
the principle o f reciprocity. Holland has lately abolished her Navigation

Free Trade vs. Protective Tariffs.

Laws, and there have been other movements toward free trade which have
at present slipped m y memory. There is also a large and influential free trade
party in almost every country in Europe—witness the free trade dinners given
to Cobden when he made the tour of Europe, after the abolition of the CornLaws. G. B. next informs your readers that I attribute the formation o f the
Zollverein to the smaller States o f Germany, for the purposes o f “fr ee trade,"
while he asserts that every tyro who has learned the alphabet o f the subject
knows that it was forced upon many o f them by Prussia, for the sole pur
pose o f “ protection.” To the first part o f this sentence I have to say, that
I do not think my words will fairly bear the construction put upon them by
G. B., nevertheless, that construction may be true, in spite o f the opposite
assertion. But whether my language will bear that meaning or not, it is
evident that G. B.’s assertion is fallacious. H ow could any protection be
given to Prussian manufactures by extending the circle o f commerce. If
Prussia wished to protect her manufactures she certainly would not have
thrown open her own frontier and trusted to the good faith and vigilance o f
her allies to prevent a contraband trade. The truth is, the system was un
profitable, and worse than useless, and, therefore, was abolished.
Dr. Bowring, who was the British Commissioner to the Zollverein, says,
in speaking o f that subject, “ the Commercial Union was established in the
early part of the year 1833, but the way had been previously prepared by
the establishment o f several smaller Unions, and was not formed in hostility
to the commercial interests of other States.” W h at becomes then o f G. B .’s
assertion that the Zollverein was forced upon many o f the States for the pur
poses o f protection ? It is neither agreeable to common sense nor evidence.
G. B. next endeavors to throw doubt, without, however, denying my state
ment, upon the beneficial tendency o f the liberal tariff, which existed between
1830 and 1840. For the statistics I refer him to the Merchants' Magazine
for the year 1846, but as I have not the book at hand he will please excuse
the volume and the page. H e appears to attribute the great increase o f
commerce which occured in those ten years, to the enormous export o f
American credit. This is a new kind o f commodity, since Adam Smith,
rather o f a subtile texture, which I believe does not obtain any official re
cognition, therefore, does not appear in the list of exports, I have con
sequently, drawn no inference from that circumstance. In the next paragraph
G. B. attempts a little ridicule, which I can well afford to excuse, as thereby
he only exposes his own ignorance and folly.
W e have another, also, beginning in the same style, though not quite so
harmless. H e has again drawn a fallacious inference; it ajDpears in the fol
lowing w ords:— “ Our foreign commerce o f §300,000,000, and our 3,000,000
o f tons o f shipping are to be destroyed by protection.” Let us now quote
the language from which this assumption is made, and see whether it be a
candid inference or not. It is as follow s:— “ Or can it be supposed that a
country whose foreign commerce has reached the large amout o f 300,000,000
annually, under great restrictions and discouragements, and wThose shipping
exceeds 3,000,000 o f tons, can find it to be to her interest to destroy a great
p a rt o f this profitable trade, as well as a large amount o f the capital invest
ed, deranging, at the same time, the pursuits of a great number o f her population.” Your readers may now judge between us. Immediately after
the last sentence quoted we have the following assertion:— “ But suppose it
should be demonstrable, as it clearly is, and has been done, that both com
merce and the shipping interest have been most extensive and prosperous,
VOL. x x u i.— n o . i.

Free Trade vs. Protective Tariffs.

during the periods o f our history when “ protection ” has been most efficient
— why then the assumption is ridiculous— that is all.” This is something
in the style o f begging the question to which G. B. has such an objection
on my part. I wonder whether he thought that this mere assertion would
be taken either for truth or logic ? H e had much better have given us the
statistics, which might easily have been done, if the statement were true.
That the shipping interest may have been more prosperous than at present
may be admitted, without admitting it to be a logical sequence, that return
ing to a system o f extreme “ protection ” would produce a like result. It
has been said that England never prospered so well as she did in the time
o f the French w ar; but no one would now suppose it to be for her interest
to g o to war for an another quarter o f a century. O f course reasons can be
given sufficient to account for both these circumstances. A n individual al
ways prospers while he can borrow profusely— adversity commences with
pay-day. N o doubt England in that period sold a little o f that curious com
modity which G. B. would call British Credit. So in regard to the prosperi
ty o f the shipping interest o f this country under a state o f protection; it is
only necessary to know the principles o f political economy, and the circum
stances o f America at the time, then this prosperity is easily accounted for.
Every one knows, who has any pretentions to political economy, that the
profits on capital are greater in a new country than an old one, and that capi
tal will necessarily find a common rate o f profit; therefore a return to “ pro
tection ” could not now produce the same result.
W e have next rather a lugubrious admission, that “ the theory o f the
Secretary was unhappily illustrated by extreme cases,” and o f course not so
well sustained as it might have been. This is something like admitting that
“ the Secretary was incompetent to construct an argument to sustain his own
theory.” I f this be the case, the Secretary is only on the same position as
all other protectionists. G. B. asserts that I admit the practicability o f the
Secretary's’ theory. W e might admit, abstractedly, that a despot had power
to hang all his subjects; and yet we should know at once that this could not
be done. This is just such an admission that I made with regard to the
practicability o f the Secretary’s’ th eory; therefore, G. B. is welcome to all
the capital he can make out o f it.
H e next attempts a little ridicule at the supposition that an increase of
“ protection,” or the application o f the Secretarys’ theory would produce
misery to the operative classes. Let us look a little into this matter. In
referring to your Magazine o f this month I find that the wages o f the
eastern operatives have decreased 20 per cent, according to the quantity of
fabrics produced, during the last ten years; and that “ during the past year
there has been a growing difficulty in procuring hands at such wages as
would leave any profit to the c o m p a n i e s and that the American hands are
gradually turning out and being replaced by Irish hands; and that “ the
population o f Lowell is becoming altogether Irish. If this has been the
case under the various systems o f the last ten years, what may we expect
upon a further application of the principle o f protection, now that the British
Corn-Law is repealed ? D o we not see already that some of the mills are
standing, and o f course wages still lowering, and also that there is a less pro
duction o f superior goods. If under the impetus o f “ protection ” and the
facility o f an unemployed population, manufactures should spring up exten
sively at the South, it must, under these circumstances, be at the expense o f
the North. I f we are to believe protectionist authorities, we are still import

F ree Trade vs. P r o tectiv e Tariffs.

ing larger amounts o f manufactured goods in spite o f the present duties; and
England also is shipping a larger amount o f goods than usual, and at higher
prices. W e have now a free vent for all our agricultural productions, which
will necessarily equalize prices and favor the English operative; therefore, a
continual strife will exist between the British and the American manufacturer
who shall sell cheapest.*
Previous to the removal o f the British Corn-Law the protective principle
had a much better chance o f operation in this country. It (the Corn-Law)
operated much in the same way as an export duty might be expected to do.
I f we continue to endeavor to foster our manufactures, no doubt wages will
continue to decrease, and the character of our manufacturing population
to change, and the sooner we shall arrive at the condition o f European popu
lations. I still believe that we have no chance o f extending our manufac
tures beneficially, only in a national way ; and why induce permaturely a
manufacturing population ?. G. B. then proceeds to find fault with me for,
as he says, attacking Adam Smith, the former friend of the free traders, and
for deyning his theory, “ that the home trade is more profitable than the
foreign.” W hether Dr. Smith was the friend o f the free traders or not, is now
o f little consequence. I have no doubt that G. B. is well aware that I am
not the first who has denied this conclusion, and also that every protectionist,
since the time of Dr. Smith, has quoted it to serve the same purpose as the
Secretary, although they are all aware that it contradicts the principles pre
viously laid down.
G. B. need not have troubled himself to have made that wonderful cal
culation with regard to the amount of the home trade. H e knew very well
that the words were not used in any such sense; and as to the estimation of
the foreign trade in double quantities, I should like to ask if one set of mer
chants be not engaged with their capitals in exporting $150,000,000 of pro
duce, and another set o f merchants engaged with their capitals in importing
a like quantity, and, if so, whether this exchange can be correctly expressed
by $150,000,000, when if cash were paid it must still double the amount.
I apprehend if the exports as well as the imports were taxed there would
be no discrepancy. In the final paragraph G. B. becomes quite facitious
upon what he calls m y theory o f profits, o f which I think he is quite igno
rant, or probably o f any other theory. My theory of profits is, that they
must be derived from the facilities of nature, and the arrangements of Provi
dence— that if there be no profits naturally inherent in the circumstances, no
artificial arrangements can create them. The profit derived by one individu
al at the expense o f another, is very nearly akin to that derived by the man,
who steals a purse, society is not much richer for hiim
Now if I were to say that Mr. Secretary Meredith and G. B. were social
ists, G. B. would no doubt find fault, and say I was begging the question!.
A nd yet if profits can be created by the artificial arrangements o f “ protec
tion,” it may be carried to any extent; and socialism is the true theory, in
stead o f 'prudence, morality, and industry. Therefore, socialism and protec
tion are one and the same principle, only under different names. A nd I
* But there may be other causes at w ork to produce these large importations. The immense amount
o f gold continually arriving from California, the facility with w hich it is procured, and the large
amount o f population engaged in its production, with the facility afforded for its entering into circu
lation in this country, w ill, no doubt, materially derange the operation o f other industrial pursuits.
I f the production continues at this rate, and the same facilities continue to be afforded for its entering
into circulation, it w ill no doubt, be found to he injurious to the production o f manufactures.

Journal o f Mercantile Law.

shall expect to see G. B. and the whole o f the protectionist phalanx through
out the world, going the whole hog after a while.
In conclusion I would say, in the most friendly manner, that when next
G. B. undertakes to review an article o f mine, or of any other person, I
hope he will be careful to quote his sentences entire, neither cutting off one
end, and thereby knowingly destroying the meaning, nor leaving out the quali
fying terms. I think also it would be better not to use any Latin phrases,
as all persons are not learned, and then they fall pointless and destroy the
m eaning; but if it happens that the writer uses them in a wrong sense, then
they make him appear ridiculous.*
I remain, dear Sir, yours, very truly,
R IC H A R D SU LLEY.

JOURNAL OF MERCANTILE LAW.
THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION L A W S OF N EW YORK AND OHIO.

As the acts passed by the Legislatures o f several o f the States affect, in some
measure, the relations o f debtor and creditor, their publication in this department
o f the Merchants' Magazine will not, we trust, be deemed inappropriate at this
time. The act o f Ohio takes effect from and after the 4th o f July, 1850, and
that of New York on the 1st day o f January, 1851:—
AN ACT TO EXEM PT THE HOMESTEAD OF FAMILIES FROM FORCED SALE ON EXECU
TION TO P A Y DEBTS.

S ection 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, That
from and after the 4th o f July next, the family homestead o f each head o f a family
shall be exempt from sale, on execution on any judgment or decree rendered on
any cause o f action accruing after the taking effect o f this act; provided that such
homestead shall not exceed $500 in value.
S ection 2. That the sheriff or other officer executing any writ o f execution,
founded on any judgment or decree such as is mentioned in the first section of
this act, on application o f the debtor or his wife, his agent or attorney, if such
debtor have a family, and if the lands or tenements about to be levied on, or any
part or parcel thereof, shall be the homestead thereof, shall cause the inquest or
appraisers, upon their oaths, to set off such debtor, by metes and bounds, a home
stead not exceeding five hundred dollars in value, and the assignment o f Ihe home
stead so made by the appraisers shall be returned by the sheriff, or other officer,
along with his writ, and shall be copied by the clerk into the execution docket;
and if no complaint be made by either party, no further proceedings shall be had
against the homestead, but the remainder o f the debtor’s lands and tenements, if
any more he shall have, shall be liable to sale on execution, in the same manner
as if this act had not passed; provided, that upon complaint o f either party, and
upon good cause shown, the court out o f which the writ issued may order a re
appraisement and re-assignment o f the homestead; provided, also, that in case no
application be made, as aforesaid, during the life-time of the debtor, such applica
tion may be made by the widow o f the judgment debtor any time before a sale.
S ection 3. On petition o f executors or administrators, to sell the lands o f any
decedent to pay debts, who shall have left a widow and a minor child or children,
unmarried, and composing part o f decedent’s family at the time of his death, the
*

E r r o r .— In m y form er article upon this subject, for c h r o n o lo g ic a l read chimerical, in the first line

of the third page.

Journal o f Mercantile Law.

appraisers shall proceed to set apart a homestead in the same manner as is pro
vided in the preceding section; and the same shall remain exempt from sale on
execution for debts contracted after the taking effect of this act, and exempt from
sale under any order of such court, so long as any unmarried minor child, or chil
dren, shall reside thereon, although the widow may have previously died, and the
unmarried minor child, or children, o f any decedent actually residing on the family
homestead, shall be entitled to hold the same exempt from sale on execution for
debts, as hereinbefore provided for, although the parent from whom the same de
scended may have left no wife or husband surviving.
S ection 4. Every widower, or widow, having an unmarried minor child, or
children, residing with him, or her, as part o f his or her family, shall have the
benefit o f this act in the same manner as married persons. And married persons
living together as husband and wife, shall be entitled to the exemption in this act
provided, although they have no children.
S ection 5. Any person owning the superstructure o f a dwelling-house, occu
pied by him or her as a family homestead, shall be entitled to the benefit o f this
act, although the title to the land on which the same may be built shall be in an
other ; and lessees shall be entitled to the benefits o f this act, in the same man
ner as owners o f the freehold or inheritance; provided nothing herein contained
shall be construed to prevent a sale o f the fee simple subject to such lease.
S ection 6. When the homestead of any debtor in execution shall consist o f a
house and lot of land, which, in the opinion o f the appraisers, will not bear di
vision without manifest injury and inconvenience, the plaintiff in execution shall
receive in lieu o f the proceeds o f the sale o f the homestead, the amount, over and
above forty dollars annually, which shall be adjudged by the appraisers heretofore
mentioned, as a fair and reasonable rent for the same, until the debt, costs, and
interest are paid, the said rent over and above the said forty dollars shall be pay
able in quarterly payments, commencing three months from the time o f the levy
o f the execution, and the said rent may be paid to the plaintiff in execution, or to
his assigns, or to the clerk of the Court o f Common Pleas o f the county in which
the said homestead is situated, and the said clerk shall give to the persons paying
the same a proper receipt, and enter the same upon the execution docket, without
charge ; and in case the said rent shall not be paid quarter-yearly, as above pro
vided for, or within ten days after each and every payment shall become due, then,
in that case, it shall be the duty of the officer to proceed and sell said homestead
in the same manner as is provided in other cases for the sale of real estate; pro
vided such homestead shall not be sold for less than its appraised value; and the
plaintiff in execution may cause the said homestead to be re-appraised once in
two years, in the same manner as provided for in the second section o f this act;
and the said rent shall, after such re-appraisement, be paid in accordance with the
said re-appraisement; but in case the said homestead shall not, on any such reappraisement, be appraised at least one hundred dollars more than the next pre
vious appraisement, the costs o f such re-appraisement shall be paid by the plain
tiff in execution.
S ection 7. The provisions o f this act shall not extend to any judgment or de
cree rendered on any contract made before the taking effect o f this act, or judg
ment or decree rendered on any note or mortgage executed by the debtor and
his wife, nor any claim for work and labor less than one hundred dollars; nor to
impair the lien by mortgage or otherwise o f the vendor for the purchase money
o f the homestead in question; nor of any mechanic, or other person, under any
statute o f this State, for materials furnished, or labor performed in the erection
o f the dwelling-house thereon, nor from the payment o f taxes due thereon.
S ection 8. That it shall be lawful for any resident o f Ohio, being the head of
the family, and not the owner of a homestead, to hold exempt from execution, or
sale as aforesaid, mechanical tools, or a team and farming utensils, not exceeding
three hundred dollars in value in addition to the amount o f chattel property now
exempted.
S ection 9. No sale o f any real estate made under any mortgage hereafter exe
cuted, and which shall not have been executed by the wife of such debtor, if he

Journal o f Mercantile Law.

have one, shall in any manner affect the right o f said debtor’s wife or family to
have a homestead set off under the provisions o f this act.
S ection 10. Nothing in this act contained shall be so construed as in any way
to impair the right o f dower, as it now exists, or the mode provided by law for
enforcing the right.
AN ACT TO EXPEMPT PROM SALE ON EXECUTION THE HOMESTEAD OF A HOUSEHOLDER
HAVING A FAM ILY.

The people of the Stale o f New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do en
act as follows:—
S ection 1. In addition to the property now exempt by law from sale under ex
ecution, there shall be exempt by law from sale on execution for debts hereafter
contracted, the lot and buildings thereon, occupied as a residence and owned by
the debtor, being a householder and having a family, to the value of one thousand
dollars. Such exemption shall continue after the death o f such householder, for
the benefit o f the widow and family, some or one of them continuing to occupy
such homestead until the youngest child become twenty-one years o f age, and
until the death o f the widow. And no release or waiver o f such exemption shall
be valid, unless the same shall be in writing, subscribed by such householder,
and acknowledged in the same manner as conveyances o f real estate are by law
required to be acknowledged.
S ection 2. T o entitle any property to such exemption, the conveyance o f the
same shall show that it is designed to be held as a homestead under this act; or
if already purchased, or the conveyance does not show such design, a notice that
the same is designed to be so held shall be executed and acknowledged by the
person owning the said property, which shall contain a full description thereof,
and shall be recorded in the office o f the clerk o f the county in which the said
property is situate, in a book to be provided for that purpose, and known as the
“ Homestead Exemption Book.” But no property shall, by virtue o f this act, be
exempt from sale for non-payment o f taxes or assessments, or for a debt con
tracted for the purchase thereof, or prior to the recording o f the aforesaid deed
or notice.
S ection 3. If, in the opinion o f the sheriff holding an execution against such
householder, the premises claimed by him or her as exempt, are worth more than
one thousand dollars, he shall summon six qualified jurors o f his county, who
shall, upon oath, to be administered to them by such sheriff, appraise said premi
ses, and if, in the opinion of the jury, the property may be divided without injury
to the interests o f the parties, they shall set off so much o f said premises, inclu
ding the dwelling-house, as, in their opinion, shall be worth one thousand dollars,
and the residue o f said premises may be advertised and sold by such sheriff.
S ection 4. In case the value o f the premises shall, in the opinion o f the jury,
be more than one thousand dollars, and cannot be divided as is provided for in
the last section, they shall make and assign an appraisal o f the value thereof, and
deliver the same to the sheriff, who shall deliver a copy thereof to the execution
debtor, or to some one o f his family, o f suitable age to understand the nature
thereof, with a notice thereof attached, that unless the execution debtor shall pay
to said sheriff the surplus over and above one thousand dollars within sixty days
thereafter, that such premises will be sold.
S ection 5. Incase such surplus shall not be paid within the said sixty days, it shall

be lawful for the sheriff to advertise and sell the said premises, and out o f the
proceeds o f such sale to pay to said execution debtor the said sum o f one thou
sand dollars, which shall be exempt from execution for one year thereafter, and
apply the balance on such execution; provided that no sale be made, unless a
greater sum than one thousand dollars shall be bid therefor, in which case the
sheriff may return the execution for want o f property.
S ection 6. The costs and expenses of selling off such homestead, as provided
herein, shall be charged and included in the sheriff’s bill of costs upon the said
execution.
S ection 7. This act shall take effect on the 1st day o f January, one thousand
eight hundred and fifty-one.

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

COMMERCIAL CHRONICLE AND REVIEW.
CONDITION OF THE MONEY MARKET— TRANSFER OF UNITED STATES STOCKS AT WASHINGTON ON
FOREIGN ACCOUNTS—ARRIVAL OF IMMIGRANTS—NEW YORK AND ERIE RAILROAD LOAN— RATES
PAID FOR ERIE RAILROAD BONDS—DIVIDENDS OF NEW YORK BANKS FROM 1845 TO 1850— DIVIDENDS
OF BOSTON AND PHILADELPHIA BANKS— BANK PAPER—IMPORTS AND EXPORTS AT THE PORT OF NEW
YORK— FREIGHTS ON PUBLIC WORKS—THE PRODUCE MARKETS— PROSPECT OF CROPS— THE OHIO
LOANS OF SIX AND FIVE PER CENT.

A t the date o f our last we had occasion to refer to the continued increase o f
the precious metals, the high figure which the bank lines o f discounts had
reached, and the consequent falling rates for money. As the spring season o f
business drew to a close these features became more marked, although the
country, from various alleged causes, did not pay up so well as had been antici
pated ; yet the accumulation o f capital enabled many leading houses to borrow
on securities at very low rates, and retire their own outstanding paper on very
favorable terms. The payment o f over $3,000,000 on account o f the Mexican
indemnity to Messrs. Howland & Aspinwall and to A. Belmont, Esq., agent for
the House o f Rothschilds, relieved a considerable or corresponding amount o f
specie from the government vaults, and this was, to a considerable extent, in
vested in government stocks for remittances abroad. These remittances, in ad
dition to the continued good demand for American stocks in Europe, have swollen
the transfers at Washington on foreign account. In our last number we gave
the transfers down to May 4— we now bring the table down to the 1st o f June,
when the books closed for the dividends on July 1. The whole transfers from
“ the opening,” January, to the close, June 1, were as follow s:—
TRANSFER OF UNITED STATES STOCKS AT WASHINGTON ON FOREIGN ACCOUNT.

DATE OF ISSUE.

Week ending—
January a ................
18..............
a
25..............
February 1................
“
8..............
U
15................
«
22..............
March
1..............
«
8..............
“
16..............
“
22..............
“
29..............
April
5..............
12..............
“
19..............
U
26..............
May
2..............
10..............
M
11..............
(«
24..............
ft
31..............

Price, 6’s, 1848,in jr
in London. 104o).
§6,000
106
1,000
5,000
300
2,900
15,512
15,000
10,000
10,000
108
1,000
108^
3,100
109
3,500
109i
40,000
. ..
1*7,500
Ill
128,500
10,300
. . .
3,900
1111
6,000
49,874
i i i i 1,500

Total, 6 months.

1330,986

1846.

1847.

1848.

$2,000
10,000
7,500

$143,000
172,900
32,150
91,450
47,600
139,650
100,300
102,100
122,800
216,350
27,400
201,150
59,200
128,950
275,400
440,500
148,450
75,350
191,450
167,350
339,950

$64,000
21,400
4,100
41,500

2,000
6,000

2,500
....
600
3,000
3,000
9,300
9,500
4,000
36,500
9,000

$69,300 $3,223,450

5,200
7,000
9,400
62,400
39,300
15,850
23,000
40,000
90,000
39,000
58,900
38,300
32,500
15,000
17,600
28,700

Total.
$214,000
205,300
48,760
133,250
50,500
162,462
123,300
127,500
195,200
256,750
43,250
229,750
102,700
259,550
334,900
630,900
206,250
121,350
216,950
271,324
379,150

$553,150 $4,312,986

This does not include the coupon-stocks which have gone abroad, probably
more than $6,000,000 o f the stocks were sent to London, and the price rose

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

per cent, or 2 i more than the interest. The number o f immigrants which ar
rived in New York in May was 45,000, and nearly as many in June— very con
siderable amounts are received by their hands, and, added to the capital sent here
for United States and other stocks, besides the large supplies from California,
there becomes a marked increase in the cheapness o f money. An evidence o f
this was afforded in the success o f the Erie Railroad in obtaining a loan upon
“ income-bonds.”
The whole issue o f these bonds amount to $3,500,000, bearing interest at 7
per cent per annum, payable half-yearly by coupons, in the city o f New York,
on the first days o f February and August, and redeemable at the pleasure o f the
company, within five years from the 1st o f February, 1850— $1,000,000 o f the
whole amount was taken by contractors.
The bonds are issued for the completion o f the road to Lake Erie, and for the
payment o f the principal and interest. The whole net income o f the road, after
the 1st o f July, 1851, and until the net earnings shall reach $1,200,000 per an
num, is pledged ; reserving only a sum sufficient to pay the interest on the mort
gage-bonds.
The bonds were in sums o f $1,000 each, with coupons attached, and proposals
were received for any number from one to twenty-five hundred.
Terms, 10 per cent on notice o f acceptance o f bids, and 10 per cent on the
first o f each month thereafter; or, at the option o f the purchaser, a larger or
the whole amount may be paid at an earlier date.
On the opening o f the bids the following amounts and rates appeared
$10,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
20,000
10,000
15,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
20,000
5,000

a t ...
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
........
.........
.........
.........

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

91
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90

00
87^
75
62£
65
52
50
45
87i
37
35
30

$100,000
30,000
10,000
10,000
10,000
5,000
310,000
25,000
30,000
95,000
2,445,000
100,000

a t .. .
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........

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

90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
90
89

25
15
14
12i
06J
06
05
04
03
02
00
87i

$500,000 a t .
10,000 . .
20,000 . .
10,000 . .
1,550,000 . .
575,000 ..
390,000 . .
120,000 ..
60,000 . .
45,000 . . .

89
89
89
89
89
89 a 89
88 a 89
87 a 88
86 a 87
85 a 86

75
64
62J
55
50
25
00
00
00
00

6,635,000

All the bids above 90 were successful, amounting to $810,000, and the re
mainder o f the bonds were divided pro rata among the bidders o f 90, giving
them about two-thirds o f the amount each bid for.
The largest bidders were Messrs. Ward & Co., for $2,500,000; John Thomp
son, for 550,000; W . & J. O’Brien, for 450,000, and they were awarded
$150,000 at 90.05; and Messrs. Dykers & Alstyne, for $250,000. The other
bids ranged from $5,000 to $200,000. The bid o f Ward & Co. was $1,250,000
at 89J, and $1,250,000 at 90. On the following day the price stood at 92| per
cent; but subsequently fell off.
There can be no more gratifying instance not only o f the high credit o f the
company, which was offered $4,125,000 more than it asked, but o f the intelli
gence o f the public who cannot be misled by the misrepresentations o f an in
terested press, and also o f the abundance and cheapness o f capital. Very many
o f these bonds go to England, and offer a most ample security, at high rates of
interest. This work, like the others in operation, annually enhances the amount

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

o f floating capital, by making accessible the products o f industry which were
before not available to the general benefit. The increased quantities o f produce
which come down to exchange for articles o f manufacturing industry promotes
the general activity o f capital, and swells not only the revenues o f the avenues
o f communication, but the demand for industry and the profits o f commerce.
The Erie Railroad lays open to market a larger tract o f more fertile country than
any similar work in the country.
The high line o f discounts maintained by the New York banks has enabled
them to earn large dividends, notwithstanding the comparative low rate o f mo
ney. As compared with 1849, the first dividends for 1850 are as follow s:—
DIVIDENDS OF THE N E W YO RK BANKS FOE

1845, 1846, 1847, 1848, 1849,

1845.
Banks.

Capital.
D o lla r s .

D iv.
p . ct.

1816.
D iv.

1847. 1848.
D iv.

p . ct.

D iv.

p . ct.

AND

D iv.

p . ct.

Am ount.

p . ct.

Bank of New Y o r k * ...
1,000,000 4 3 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Merchants’! ....................
1,490,000 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 44 5
Mechanics’* ................... 1,440,000 34 4 4 4 4 4 4 9 4 5 5
Union*............................ 1,000,000 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Bank of A m e rica !___
2,001,200 3 3 3 84 34 8| 34 8£ 3 ! 3b 34
C it y * .............................
720,000 3$ 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
5 5
Phoenix1.......................... 1,200,000 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3$ 3b 3£
North River||..................
655,000 8* 3$ 3$ 3b H 4 4 4 4 4 a
Tradesmen’s ! .................
400,000 5 5 5 5 5 1 0 5 5 5 5
6!
Fulton*...........................
600,000 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Butch. & Drovers’! ........
500,000
34 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
Mech. & Traders’* .........
200,000 34 34 4 4 44 5 5 5 5 5 5
National§.......................
750,000 3 34 34 3| 3-| 4 4 4 4 4 4
Merchants’ Exch’ge||. . .
1,233,800 34 34 34 4 4 4 4 4 8 44 4
Leather Manufac.!........
600,000 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 34 4 4 4
Seventh Ward||.............
500,000 3 3 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 3 4 4
4 4 4
State*.............................. 2,000,000 3 2 3 3 3 3 3 34 34 34 4
Bank of Commerce! ••• 3,473,840 3 3 3 3 3 34 34 34 4 4 4
Mech. Association!........
632,000 34 34 4 4 . 34 34 3 4 34 34 4
American Exchange*...
1,155,400 3 3 3 3 34 34 34 4 4 5 5
Manhattan Company! .
2,050,000 . .
. 3 . . 3 -3 34 34 34
Greenwich*....................
200,000 ................................ 4 4 4 4
5
Bow ery*.........................
356,650 ................................new
4 4
4
Chemical!.......................
300,000 ................................ 6 6 6 6
6
Broadway (new )*.. . . . .
300,000
4

Total...................... 24,757,890

6.31

7.09

7.00

8.09

1850.

1849.1810.
D o lla r s .

50,000
94,500
*72,000
50,000
70,042
36,000
72,000
.
25,000
30,000
25,000
10,000
30,000
49,352
24,000
20,000
80,000
138,953
25,280
57,770
71,750
10,000
14,266
18,000
12,000

8.07 4.37 1,085,913

These dividends, as compared with those o f the Boston and Philadelphia banks
for the same period, are as follow s:—
BOSTON AND N EW YO RK AND PHILADELPHIA BANK DIVIDENDS.

New York......................................
Boston.............................................
Philadelphia...................................

Capital.

A m ’ t o f dividends,

D ividend,
per cent.

124,757,890
19,730,000
7,725,000

11,085,933
766,050
381,250

4.38
3.90
4.93

Philadelphia averages the highest. It will be observed, however, that the
Boston and New York bank-capital has o f late years considerably increased,
while that o f Philadelphia remained stationary. This fact has had, in the two
* D ividend paid May and N ovem ber.
+ D ividend paid June and Decem ber.
X D ividend paid
February and August.
§ Dividend paid A pril and October.
f Dividend paid January and July.
a The North R iver Bank passed its dividend because o f the difficulty with the cashier.

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

former cities, a tendency to reduce profits, notwithstanding which, the average
aggregate rate has continually increased. Some o f the largest capitals, like the
Bank o f Commerce in New York, reached 4 per cent. Until 1847, say the first 10
years o f its existence, that institution never declared over 3 per cent semi-annual.
The line o f discounts o f all o f them is now very full, and stands, in the aggregate,
higher than ever before. At the same time, it may be remarked as a general
thing, that the paper they hold was in the mass never more sound and active
than now. It is, no doubt, true that, owing to the failure o f some harvests
(W est) last year, and the emigration to California, that renewals and extensions
o f some paper have been submitted to, but it will be remembered that this ope
ration, instead o f being the exception, was the rule in former years o f bank ex
tension. When formerly it was a matter o f course to pass accommodation paper
emanating from the proper quarter, that description o f paper is now rarely offered,
and more rarely “ done.”
Those ramifications o f balances in distant banks
which formerly resulted from the system o f collections, which the banks adopt
ed in order to supply the fancied vacuum created by the stoppage o f the late
National Bank, now no longer exist; and when balances are created in the course
o f regular business they are more promptly settled. In short, tire increase of
the bank movement now is the legitimate result o f the enhanced production and
general business o f the country. The importations o f the past year have not
been sold on eighteen months credit to be paid for out o f the proceeds o f crops
which are never sown. Nearly all the paper now outstanding represents actual prop
erty at a not extravagant money-value. Hence, although losses may be sustained,
no wide-spread and general revulsion is within the reach o f probability. The
importations have no doubt been very large, but so, also, have the exports of
domestic produce. Notwithstanding the diminished quantity o f breadstuffs sent
to England, the rise in cotton have compensated, and the quantity o f stocks
exported has, as seen in the state o f the exchanges, more than compensated for
the enhanced import--of goods. The California demand has also turned into
gold very considerable quantities o f produce, and the temporary fall in prices
there, which resulted from a protracted rainy season, having reacted with the re
turning sunshine, suffering diggers to purchase supplies for the mines. The
markets there promise better than ever.
The imports and exports o f the port o f New York for two years show a very
considerable increase in the progressive movement, particularly in specie. The
imports are as follows :—
IMPORTS AT THE PORT OF NEW YORK.

Dutiable.

Specie.

Free.

§433,882

§437,290
662,293
1,364,182
1,674,330
808,216

§10,443,531
6,867,804
7,588,168
8,725,401
7,492,958

§11,314,703
8,111,459
9,859,984
11,495,329
11,184,797

Total....................... .
“ 1 8 4 9 .............

§4,946,311
4,481,478

§41,117,870
35,607,752

§51,966,272
42,075,825

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

§464,833

§5,510,118

§9,890,447

January......................... ___
February.....................
March............................
A p r il........................... .
May.............................. .

Total.

Commercial Chronicle and Review.
EXPORTS.

Specie.

January.........................
February .....................
March........................... ___
A p r il...........................
May...............................
Total.........................___
“ 1849 ..............___

278,786
172,078

$1,573,167
775,546

Foreign.

Domestic.

$916,981
324,396
270,250
499,971
346,632

$2,223,910
3,188,994
2,865,634
3,146,151
3,610,971

$3,261,052
3,792,175
3,308,031
3,936,227
4,699,344

$2,358,230
2,632,863

$15,035,680
12,665,039

$18,996,829
16,073,458

$2,370,621

$2,923,371

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

Total.

These figures show a considerably increased movement both in imports and
exports, and while the export o f domestic produce has exceeded by more than
$2,125,000 the exports for the corresponding season last year, the dutiable im
ports have been still lower. This excess o f importation, added to the enhanced
amount o f specie brought into the port from foreign places, in connection with
the state o f the exchanges, show the general balance to be much in favor o f the
country, irrespective o f the California operations. This is, no doubt, greatly
aided by the exportation o f the securities o f the government, various States, and
companies, which, in increasing amounts, as American credit becomes more fully
established, are finding then- way abroad. The whole trade o f the country, as
indicated in the operations not only at the ports o f Boston and Philadelphia, as
well as New York, but as indicated below upon all the great avenues o f
trade throughout the country, is steadily and rapidly progressing; and n oton
a credit basis which must sooner or later suffer a severe collapse, but upon a
sound interchange o f commodities, which swell the sum o f each season’ s busi
ness, while they close its accounts and leave comparatively little to be liquidated
by future operations o f industry, the progress o f which is indicated in the re
turns o f public works.
The receipts for freight in 1847, on the several avenues o f internal trade,
swelled to a high figure, being 40 per cent more than in 1846, and since 1847
they have increased but about 14 per cent. One fact is, however, remarkable,
namely: that they have not only maintained the extraordinary rise o f 1846,
growing out o f the circumstances o f the English harvest, but have advanced up
on it.
But this has not been the case with the New York canals. The hold
which that year gave Boston upon the interior business seems to have been im
proved.
Comparing the New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania canals with the
Massachusetts, New York, and Georgia railroads, we have reoeipts as follows :—

1846.
Ohio Canal................................
Georgia & Macon and Western
r o a d s ....................................
New York canals....................
Pennsylvania canals...............
New York railroads...............
Massachusetts railroads.........
Total...........................

1848.

1849.

$612,302

$805,019

$785,8S2

$713,173

529,365
2,756,106
1,196,977
2,315,078
3,940,504

531,631
3,635,381
1,295,494
3,166,340
5,210,081

743,583
3,252,212
1,587,995
3,724,470
5,651,884

825,330
3,266,226
1,633,277
4,289,205
6,118,214

$15,746,026

$16,845,425

$11,350,332

1847.

$14,643,946

Thus the New York canal freights, which were so prolific in 1847, that year o f
large exports, have not since maintained the figure, but all other works have
maintained them.
In relation to the Massachusetts roads, it is to be remarked

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

that their receipts have been swollen by the tributary works o f the New England
States. The whole, however, indicates the improved availibilty o f New Eng
land natural advantages and industry through improved means o f communication.
In relation to these works it may be observed, that through branches, double
tracks, and sidings, the. cost per mile o f the main road seems annually to increase.
Thus 16 New York roads and the Massachusetts compare thus:—
N ew Y o rk .

Length.............................
C o st.................................
“ per m ile .................
Income per mile..............

1846.

1849.

670
18,325,488
27,351
3,455

912
38,246,084
41,936
4,697

Massachusetts.

1846.
707
30,244,927
42,779
5,573

1849.
1,025
51,801,126
50,630
5,960

That is to say, in New York the increase o f receipts is 9 per cent o f the incurred
cost, and in Massachusetts the revenues improved 5J per cent o f the enhanced
cost per mile. It would thus seem that the roads are good property per se, but
the collateral benefits derived from them, in drawing out the industry and devel
oping the natural wealth o f the country, have created a far greater amount of
property than themselves represent.
It has been the case, however, that during the past spring the country has not
paid up so well as was hoped for, and this has been attributed to the gold fever.
The real amount o f emigration and o f capital, however, actuallv transferred
from our Western States cannot be sufficient to counterbalance the immigration
from Europe, and the money brought in by that means. It has been very conve
nient, however, to charge all hesitancy in meeting payments to the gold fever.
The true cause o f backward payments may be more accurately found in the de
ficient harvests o f some considerable sections, and the diminished export demand,
the absence o f which to the extent which prevailed last year has prevented pri
ces from rising to a point that could compensate for the diminished production.
This fact has cramped the resources o f entire regions. The vast quantities o f
land that are annually brought under cultivation, as well through the extended
operations o f old settlers as the considerable purchases o f immigrants so far
enhanced supplies o f produce as greatly to exceed the wants o f the country, even
when harvests are short in extensive regions. If, for instance, the production is
short throughout Michigan and Northern Ohio, the diminution in yield in those
regions is not compensated by a corresponding rise in prices, because the surplus
productions o f other regions, competing in the same markets, checks the advance,
and the farmers o f those sections have to contend with small yield and low pri
ces, and their means are doubly cramped, and the result is manifest in smaller
purchases o f goods and greater hesitancy in payments.
A considerable foreign
demand for farm produce seems to be necessary to counteract such a ^state o f
affairs, and this has not existed since the last harvest. The high prices that ex
isted all over Europe in 1847 stimulated unusal cultivation; and, attended by a
favorable season, the production o f 1849, in all the countries o f Europe, Eng
land included, was very large— so much so that the average o f prices in W est
ern Europe was very low, and the result has been a very considerable diminution
in exports from the United States. O f the four articles o f flour, meal, wheat,
and corn, a value o f six millions less has been exported since September than
for a corresponding period last year, and yet prices are about the same in
the Atlantic ports as then. It follows, that had the same quantity been exported,

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

prices would so have advanced in the interior, under the demand, as to have made
a material difference in the payments o f the country.
Under these circumstances the prospects o f the foreign demand for western
produce for the coming year becomes matter o f interest to those whose connec
tions with the W est make them interested in the material welfare o f those pro
lific regions. The latest accounts indicate that the prospects o f the crops, as
well in England as in Europe, are by no means so good as they were last year,
but have improved o f late. That is to say, in England the spring was unpropitious— and while in Europe the low prices o f the past year, by checking cultiva
tion, are producing a reaction, that tendency is promoted by political causes, and
by the presence o f important bodies o f Russian troops in Eastern Europe, draw
ing supplies from those grain regions o f which the surplus usually sought the
Baltic and England, The low prices o f food in England have promoted an un
wonted consumption, and the quantities now required for English use by far
exceed the productive powers o f the country. Thus, although prices have ruled
extremely low in England, the importations o f wheat for the first quarter o f 1850
have been large, and the quantity o f British wheat delivered at the two hundred
and fifty towns which regulate averages have been 1,370,277 qrs. for the first
quarter o f 1850, against 1,281,030 qrs. for the same period last year: therefore
the result is apparent, that at the rates which have ruled this year, foreign wheat
cannot compete with English, but that the production o f the latter is too little
for consumption; the price, therefore, at which the required quantity can be fur
nished depends upon the competition for supplying it. The improved means o f
communication and cheapening freights in the United States are gradually indu
cing the current o f trade to run in this direction, and apart from the probabilities
o f war, it seems reasonable to look for a more considerable export trade for the
coming year— but, from the diminished supplies at the West, it must bo at a
higher range o f prices than the same quantity could have been supplied last year.
As yet the abundance o f France continues to compete severely with the English
grower, and to keep prices low in that great market for American surplus.
Notwithstanding that both in London and in New York, as well as in most
other cities o f the Union, money continues exceedingly abundant, without promo
ting the usual influence in raising prices or developing a speculating spirit, cot
ton is almost the only article which experienced and maintained an advance above
the level o f some past years.
This has not, however, been a speculative move
ment, but the legitimate result o f an effective demand operating upon a short
supply. In the United states the quantity o f cotton purchased by the manufac
turers seems to have been comparatively very large at these high prices; but
nevertheless the value o f the manufactured goods has by no means advanced in
proportion, and the profits o f the manufacturer have disappeared between the
advancing cost o f the material and stationary prices o f the fabric, giving cause
for great dissatisfaction. The quantity o f goods consumed in the Union has,
nevertheless, not been diminished, and the cause o f a non-advance o f the fabric
in proportion to the material is a matter which requires attention. Several causes
have operated, doubtless, the chief o f which have been the large importations,
the low prices and short harvests o f western produce, the productive power o f
many old factories, and the considerable multiplication of factories at the South,
whence the favorable state o f the cotton market would otherwise have caused a

Commercial Chronicle and Review.

more extensive demand for northern goods. That is to say, a portion o f the
benefit which the old manufacturers would have derived from the demand for
goods resulting from the prosperity o f planters has been intercepted by the new
factories that have sprung up so rapidly in the past year. Thus, while the impor
tations and northern productions have been large, the market has been narrowed
at the South by unfavorable seasons at the West. The pressure upon corporate
companies has, consequently, been severe, and many have been driven to addi
tional outlays for machinery, in order, by economizing labor, to counteract the
advance o f the raw material.
Offers for the new Ohio loans were opened on the 19th o f June, 1850, and
the whole amount, $1,600,000 six per cent stock, redeemable after the year 1875,
with $1,000,000 five per cent, redeemable after the year 1865, were subscribed
for.
Fully $1,400,000 o f the above was taken on foreign account. The parties
interested were A. Belmont, D. S. Kennedy, Ward & Co., Jacob Little &
Co., Camman & Whitehouse, P. Harmony’ s Nephews & Co., De Rham & More,
Moran & Iselin, Jas. G. King & Sons, Drew, Dobinson & Co., Winslow, La
nier & Co., L. & E. Decoppet, Jas. K. Hamilton & Sons, and Banks in Ohio. It
is understood that the whole amount will be paid in cash. The accepted bids
were as follows :—
SIX P E R CENT STOCKS OF

1875.

Prem ium .

$10,000.....................
10,000.....................
5,000.....................
5,000.....................
17,000.....................
13,000.....................
12,000.....................
13,000.....................
200,000................... .

$15
15
15
14
14
13
12
12
14

26 per cent.
64
“
75
“
83
“
03
“
63
“
77
“
33
“
03
“

Prem ium .

$200,000...................
200,000...................
200,000...................
200,000...................
200,000...................
200,000...................
115,000...................

1865.

Premium.

$0
0
1
1

28 per cent.
78
58
“
88
“

81 per cent.
58
“
08
“
81
38
«
81
18
“

1,600,000

F IV E P E R CENT STOCKS OF

$200,000.....................
200,000.....................
200,000.....................
200,000.....................

$13
13
13
12
12
11
11

Prem ium .

$185,000.....................
15,000.....................

$2 04 per cent.
2 00
“

1,000,000

The offerings exceeded the amount required b y $500,000.
T he revenue o f the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, for the recent month o f

May, shows an increase o f upwards o f $9000 over the corresponding month o f
1849. According to a statement in the Patriot the items o f the revenue are—
For Passengers,

For Freight.

Main Stem.................................................................
WashingtonBranch.....................................

$33,117 36
24,543 72

$72,840 39
4,240 69

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

$57,721 08

$77,081 08

Making anaggregate o f $106,017 75 on the main stem,and $28,784 41 on
the Washington Branch— the total being $134,802 16. This shows an increase
over the corresponding month o f last year o f $4,390 80 on the main stem, and
$5,007 48 on the Washington Branch— making together $9,398 28.

Commercial Statistics.

COMMERCIAL STATISTICS.
COMMERCE AND NAVIGATION OF THE UNITED STATES IN 1849.
W e have at length received, through the kind attention o f the Hon. J ames G. K in s ,
M. C., o f Nttw Jersey, the annual “ Report of the Secretary of the Treasury, trans
mitting a Report from the Register of the Treasury of the Commerce and Navigation
of the United States for the year ending the 80th June, 1849.” This report is pre
pared (annually) in accordance with an act of Congress passed February 10th, 1820.
The commercial and tonnage statements it embraces are compiled in the office of the
Register of the Treasury from the quarterly returns made to it by the several custom
houses, under the provisions of the act of February, 1820.
Last year we received this document in season to lay a condensed and comprehensive
view of its contents, in accordance with our annual custom, before the readers of the
Merchants Magazine in May, 1849, eleven months after the expiration of the fiscal
year. The present report was not received until after the publication of the June
number of our Magazine, and just in time for our July issue. There is no necessity o f
this delay in the publication o f a document so important to the commercial interests
of the United States, and we earnestly trust that another effort will be made before
the close of the present session of Congress to provide for the printing of the report
immediately after the close of the commercial or fiscal year, ending on the 80th of
June, so that the printed copies can be laid before Congress at the commencement of
each session in December.*
V A L U E OF TH E DOMESTIC E X P O R T S OF TH E UNITED STATES.
SUMMARY STATEMENT OF THE VALUE OF THE EXPORTS OF THE GROWTH, PRODUCE, AND MANUFACTURE OF THE UNITED STATES, DURING THE YEAR COMMENCING JULY
ENDING JUNE

1, 1848,

AND

30, 1849.
Ashes, pot and pearl........

THE SEA.

Fisheries—
Dried fish, or cod fisheris.
Pickled fish, or river fisher
ies, (herring, shad, salmon,
m ackerel)........................
"Whale ana other fish oil.
Spermaceti.......................
Whalebone........................
Spermaceti candles..........
THE FOREST.

Skins and furs.......................
Ginseng..................................
Product of wood—
Staves, shingles, boards,
hewn timber....................
Other lumber.....................
Masts and spars...............
Oak bark and other dye..
A ll manufactures of wood
Naval stores, tar, pitch,
rosin, and turpentine-----

515,603
$5,917,994

$419,092
AGRICULTURE.

Product of animals—
Beef, tallow, hides, homed
cattle............................
2,058,958
Butter and cheese............
1,654,16 7
Pork, (pickled,) bacon, lard,
live hogs...........................
9,245,885
Horses and mules............
96,982
$2,547,654
Sheep.................................
16,305
W ool...................................
81,015
656,228
182,966
Yegeiable food—
$13,153,302
Wheat................................
1,756,848
F l o u r . . . . . . . . ........
11,280,582
1,776,749
Indian corn .......................
7,966,369
60,344
Indian m e a l.....................
1,169,625
87,720
Rye m e a l.........................
218,248
95,392
Rye, oats, and other small
1,697,828
grain and pulse...............
139,793
Biscuit or ship-bread........
364,318
845,164
93,085
965,597
572,763
337,'714
159,403

* F or som e suggestions on this point the reader is referred to the M e r c h a n t s ’ M a g a z i n e fo r May,
1849, (v ol. xx. page 534.)

Commercial Statistics.

Potatoes.............................
Apples................................
Rice.....................................

83,313
93,904
2,569,362

825,642,362
Tobacco..................................
6,804,207
Cotton....................................
66,396,967
H e m p ....................................
8,458
A ll other agricultural products—
Flaxseed.............................
4
Hops...................................
29,123
Brown sugar.....................
24,906
In digo................................
49
$54,082
MANUFACTURES.

Soap and tallow candles.. .
Leather boots and shoes.. . .
Household furniture.............
Coaches and other carriages.
H ats.......................................
Saddlery................................
W a x ...................
Spirits from grain................
Beer, ale, porter, and cider..
Snuff and tobacco.
613,044
Linseed oil and spirits of tur
pentine ............................
Cordage.................................
Iron— pig, bar, and n ails.. .
“
castings.
60,175
“
all manufactures o f . .
Spirits from molasses.........
Sugar, refined.......................
Chocolate................................
Gunpowder...........................
Copper and brass.................
Medicinal drugs............ . . .

627,280
151,774
237,342
95,923
64,967
37,276
121,720
67,129
51,820
148,056
41,636
149,358
886,639
288,452
129,001
1,941
131,297
66,203
220,894

Twist, yarn, and thread..
A ll manufactures of.........
Flax and hemp—
Cloth and thread............
Bags, and all manfactures
Wearing apparel.................
Combs and buttons...............
Brushes...................................
Billiard tables.......................
Umbrellas and parasols.. . .
Leather and morocco skins,
not sold per pound...........
Fire-engines and apparatus..
Printing presses and t y p e ..
Musical instruments.............
Books and maps.............
Paper and stationery...........
Paints and varnish...............
Vinegar..................................
Earthen and stoneware.......
Manufactures of glass..........
“
tin...................
“
pewter lead.
“
marb'e& stone
“
gold and sEver,
& gold leaf..
Gold and silver coin.............
Artificial flowers & jewelry.
Molasses................................
Trunks....................................
Bricks and lim e ...................
Salt.........................................

Coal........................................
L e a d ...................................
Ice...........................................
Articles not enumerated—
Manufactured....................
Other articles............ . . .
$4,191,427

Cotton piece goods—
Printed and colored.........
W h ite................................
Nankeen............................

466,574
3,955,117
3,203

92,555
415,680
1,009
4,549
75,945
38,136
2,924
701
5,800
9,427
458
28,031
23,713
94,427
86,827
55,145
14,036
10,632
101,419
13,143
13,196
20,282
4,502
956,874
8,557
7,442
5,099
8,671
82,972
$6,607,046
40,396
30,198
95,027
1,408,278
7 69,557
$2,177,835

Grand total.........'.____ $132,666,965

TOTAL VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF THE UNITED STATES TO EACH FOREIGN COUNTRY,
DISTINGUISHING THE AMOUNT SHIPPED IN AM ERICAN AND FOREIGN VESSELS, FOR YEAR
ENDING JUNE

30, 1849.

W hither exported.

Russia...................................
Prussia...................................
Sweden and Norway...........
Swedish West Indies..........
Denmark...............................
Danish West Indies.............
Hanse Tow ns.......................
H an over...............................
Holland.................................. . . .
Dutch East Indies...............
Dutch West Indies..............
Dutch Guiana.......................
B e l g i u m ................... . . .

In Am erican
vessels.

In foreign
vessels.

$864,621
6,944
117,132
88,044
175

$72,936
27,759
608,149
7,084
54,963
48,619
1,972,123
8,496
719,385
23,635
14,657
3,017
430,428

738,125
1,435,943
257,188
302,409
2,012,636

T o each
country.

To dom inions
o f each p o w ’r.

$937,557
$937,557
34,703
34,703
725,281 j
!■
820,409
95,128 1
55,138 j
!•
782,335
727,197 1
2,710,248
2,710,248
8,496
8,496
2,155,328 "j
280,823 !
2,857,230
317,066 j
104,013 J
2,443,064
2,443,064

Commercial Statistics.
TOTAL VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF THE UNITED STATES— CONTINUED.

In foreign

In Am erican

vessels.
vessels.
England....................................... $44,819,160 $24,642,832
1,668,991
1,880,969
Scotland.......................................
1,643,602
2,272,740
Ireland.........................................
678,335
45,484
Gibraltar......................................
23,114
28,119
Malta............................................
332,962
British East Indies.....................
94,422
Cape of Good H ope..................
7,884
13,847
Mauritius......................... ............
191,347
604,681
57,634
British Guiana.............................
739,729
3,196,105
British West Indies....................
1,254,145
1,066,178
Canada................................. . . .
916,851
2,694,932
British American colonies.........
1,577,194
France on the A tlan tic............. 10,069,418
France on the Mediterranean ..
746,834
130,313
121,321
59,410
French West Indies...................
Miquelon and French fisheries .
20,370
44,504
1,657
French Guiana.............................
9,473
12,259
Spain on the A tlantic...............
156,812
Spain on the Mediterranean . . .
161,351
1,458,072
Teneriffe and other Canaries. . .
17,840
Manilla and Philippine Islands.
137,868
4,564,651
76,494
C u ba............................................
Other Spanish West Indies.. . .
512,693
10,599
105,614
64.107
Portugal......................................
80,588
37,290
Madeira........................................
Fayal and other Azores.............
14,204
Cape de V erd Islands................
62,647
640,007
171,443
I t a ly ............................................
7,900
Sicily.............................................
16,459
320,310
140,640
Sardinia.......................................
Tuscany........................................
26,800
3,276
Trieste and other Austrian ports
727,105
215,384
Turkey, Levant, Ac.....................
182,410
11,466
485,082
47,495
H ayti............................................
955,112
Mexico..........................................
92,887
58,739
53,741
Central Republic of America..
Hew Granada.............................
214,258
30,202
415,792
Venezuela....................................
15,629
2,701,120
137,260
Brazil...........................................
105,113
29,525
Cisplatine Republic....................
435,714
Argentine Republic...................
159,804
81,410
Chili.............................................
1,641,047
93,195
1,460,945
West Indies generally...............
101,219
5,110
South America generally...........
85,215
Europe generally.......................
18,588
Asia generally...........................
344,436
Africa generally..........................
609,871
66,898
South Seas and Pacific Ocean. .
336,660
W hither exported.

To each

T o dom inions

country. o f each p o w ’ r.
$69,161,992'
3,549,960
8,916,342
723,S19
51,233
332,962
94,422 1 88,574,063
21,731
191,347
662,315
3,935,834
2,320,323
3,611,783 j
11,646,612'
877,147
180,731
- 12,780,494
20,370
46,161
9,473
169,0711
1,619,423
17,840
- 7,108,639
137,868
4,641,145
523,292
169,7211
117,878
364,450
14,204
62,647
811,450
811,450
24,359
24,359
460,960
460,950
30,076
30,076
942,489
942,489
193,876
193,876
532,577
532,577
1,047,999
1,047,999
112,480
112,480
244,460
244,460
431,421
431,421
2,838,380
2,838,380
134,638
134,638
595,518
595,518
1,722,457
1,722,457
93,195
93,195
1,460,945
1,460,945
106,329
106,329
85,215
85,215
18,588
18,688
344,436
344,436
676,769
676,769
336,660
336,660

Total............................... $91,363,308 $41,303,647 $132,666,955 $132,666,955
FO REIGN M ER CH AN DISE E X PO RT ED FROM UNITED STATES.
VALUE OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE EXPORTED FROM THE UNITED STATES TO EACH FOREIGN
COUNTRY DURING THE YEAR ENDING 3 0 ’fH OF JUNE, 1 8 4 9 .

W hither exported.

Russia .............................................
Prussia ............................................
V O L . X X I I I .-----N O . I .

Paying duties ad
Free o f duty,
valorem .

Total.

1 1 6 ,4 3 0

$ 1 8 1 ;5 1 7

$ 1 9 7 ,9 4 7

4 ,5 1 0

5 ,0 0 6

9 ,5 1 6

In Am erican
vessels.
$ 1 9 0 ,8 8 8
7 ,7 9 0

In foreign
vessels.
$ 7 ,0 5 9
1 ,7 2 6

Commercial Statistics.

VALUE OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE EXPORTED FROM THE UNITED STATES---- CONTINUED.

W hither exported.

Paying duties ad
Free o f duty,
valorem.

Sweden and Norway........
Swedish West Indies.. . .
Danish West Indies.........
Hanse T ow n s...................

$287
321
12,280
309,397

Holland...............................
Dutch East In d ie s...........
Dutch West Indies...........

4,426
35,500
38,258
52
132,273
552,241

Belgium.............................
England.............................
Scotland.............................
Ireland...............................
Gibraltar............................
Malta..................................
British East Indies...........
British Honduras.............
British Guiana...................
British West Indies.........
Canada...............................
British American colonies.
France on Atlantic...........
France on Mediterranean .
French West Indies..........
Spain on Atlantic.............
Spain on Mediterranean..
Teneriffe & other Canaries
Manilla & Philippine Isl’d.
Cuba..............................
Oth. Spanish W est Indies.
Portugal............................
Madeira..............................
Faval and other Azores..
Cape de Verds..................
Italy....................................
Sicily..............................
Sardinia..............................
Trieste, <fcc.........................
Turkey, Levant, A c ..........
Hayti..................................
Mexico................................
Central Repub. of America
Hew Granada...................
Venezuela..........................
Brazil..................................
Cisplatine Republic..........
Argentine Republic.........
Chili................... ................
West Indies generally... .
South America generally.
Asia generally..................
Africa generally...............
Soutl^ Seas and Pacific. . .

41,648
26,333
249
3,901
22
181,876
1,057,123
109,891
2,565,151
30,702
5,234
28,159
19,827
8,369
321,003
687
251
156
114
2,110
182,651
1,056
17’825
233,119
54,070
6,943
7,843
11
8,642
90,073
164,778
11,589
95,388
39,378
2,162
15^710
3,286
8,682
6,463
5,139

$38,219
416
41,869
295,285
85
237,601
18,618
11,994
155,970
1,328,687
58,472
22,526
36,819
36,401
76,313
5,000
3oj719
3,737
21,221
857,278
147,869
253,152
137,819
9,033
3,320
... ...
654
300
347,065
32,547
6,022
603
1,725
1,705
110,768
3,798
3^589
231,257
31,050
63,072
1,035,026
23,728
44,682
16,140
99,819
1,500
76,688
255,265
15,879
106^509
2,395
4,733
10,693
25,179
57,929

In Am erican

Total.
vessels.
$38,506
$2,533
581
737
54,149
54,149
604,682
318,068
85
134,715
242,027
54,118
54,118
50,252
48,630
52
52
288,243
169,430
1,880,878
566‘934
22,545
58,472
10,094
22,526
70,778
78,467
62,734
53,800
76,562
76,562
5,000
5,000
34^620
3L620
3,759
3,759
33,511
203,097
1,914,401
979,492
257,760
1,651
2,818,303 2,591,113
102,948
168,521
14,267
6,257
31,479
31,479
19,827
19,827
654
654
8,669
8,669
668,068
644,322
33,234
31,018
6,273
2,195
759
759
1,839
1,839
3,815
3,815
293,419
284,489
4,854
2l'414
2,882
464,376
369,326
85,120
78,693
62,102
70,015
1,042,869 1,012,265
23,739
23,739
53,324
40,392
106,213
103,905
246,424
264,597
11,545
13,089
122,199
172,076
262,451
294,643
18,041
18,041
122^279
122^279
2'395
2^395
8,019
8,019
19,375
19,375
31,642
31,642
63,068
63,068

In foreign
vessels, i

$35,984
156
286,614
85
107,312
1,622
118,813
1,313,944
35,927
12,432
7,689
8,934

169,586
934,909
256,109
227,190
65,573
8,010

23,746
2,216
4,078

8,930
4,854
18,532
95,050
6,427
7,913
30,604
12,932
2,208
18,173
1,544
49,877
32,192

Total........................... $6,463,589 $6,625,276 $13,088,865 $9,169,815 $3,919,050
Entitled to drawback.. . .
2,034,683 1,166,699
867,984
2,034,683
Not entitled to drawback. 6,463,589
7,361,819 5,756,278 1,605,541
898,230
From warehouse...............
3,692,363 2,246,838 1,445,525
3,692,363

Commercial Statistics.
IMPORTS INTO TH E UNITED STATES FROM A L L NATIONS.

STATEMENT OF GOODS, W ARES, AND MERCHANDISE IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM
FOREIGN COUNTRIES DURING THE YEAR ENDING JUNE

W hence imported.

Free o f duty. Paying duties.

Russia...................

$794,653
17,687
34
731,812
9,918
6,064
316,888
22,253
18,704
500
90,901
7,651,963
209,906
1,291,737
41,786
411,813
232,596
121,932
1,933
56,348
7,675
1,836,618
4,069,015 54,749,410
122,966
1,836,354
6,270
370,523
1,193
8,405
11,738
2,024,516
997
70,301
153,364
109,053
5,614
19,906
339,384
658,481
1,191,210
154,588
3,613
894,741
586,341
329,828 22,880,050
1,153,142
763
3,720
19,697
44,976
26,493
24,604
288,886
112,618
893,069
88,919

Sweden & Norway.
Swedish W. Indies.
Danish W. indies..
Denmark................
Hanse T ow n s___
Holland..................
Dutch W. Indies..
Dutch K Indies....
Dutch Guiana........
Belgium..................
England..................
Scotland................
Ireland...................
Gibraltar...............
M alta.....................
British E. Indies.. .
Gape of G. Hope .
British Honduras..
British Guiana___
British W. Indies .
British Am. col’nies
Oth. British col’nies
Canada...................
France on Atlantic.
France on Mediter’n
French Guiana.. . .
French W. Indies..
Spain on Atlantic.
Spain on Mediter’n
Teneriffe & Can’ries
Manilla and other
Philippine Islands
Cuba.......................
Oth. Sp’nish W. Ind.
Portugal................
Madeira..................
Fayal & A zores.. .
Cape de V erds... .
Italy.......................
Sicily......................
Sardinia.................
Trieste and other
Austrian ports. . .
Turkey..................
Ionian Islands.. . .
Hayti......................
M exico...................
Cent. Repub. of Am.
New Granada........
Venezuela..............
Brazil.....................
Cisplatine Republic
Argentine Republic
Chili........................
Peru........................
S. America gener’y
China.....................

$45,585

33,274
719,045
52,774
1,860
200
3,500
33,088
251
42,285
3,927
7
694,499
1,696,237
5,907
72,206
931,404
6,788,803
2,004
282,273
119,062
11,450
4,077,257

Total.

$840,238
17,687
731,846
15,982
339,141
19,204
7,742,864
1,501,643
453,099
354,528
58,281
1,844,293
58,818,425
1,959,320
376,793
1,193
8,405
2.036,254
71,298
262,417
25,520
997,865
1,345,798
3,613
1,481,082
23,209,878
1,153,905
23,417
71,469
313,490
1,005,687
38,919

30, 1849.
In American
ve sse l.

$840,238
17,687
207,337
15,982
324,482
5,715,795
910,954
436,707
354,528
58,281
1,635,496
44,606,035
1,021,036
2 1 1 ,m
1,993
8^405
2,036,254
71,298
262,417
23,857
694,491
250,893
3,613
659,237
21,376,968
696,050
23,417
53,241
256,670
757,203
33,722

1,093,840
9,940,911
1,912,087
320,360
73,559
13.552
1,853
1,517,808
529,993
253

1,127,114
10,659,956
1,964,861
322,220
73,759
17,052
1,853
1,550,896
530.244
42,538

1,127,114
9,972,087
1,899,107
155,193
73,738
14,404
1,853
1,257,437
474,792

405,251
374,057
291
207,225
520,482
50,110
86,754
481,692
1,705.565
79,924
1,707,823
1,535,450
327,891
4,709
1,436,528

409,178
374,064
291
901,724
2,216,719
56,017
158,960
1,413,096
8,494,368
79,924
1,709,827
1,817,723
446,953
16,159
5,513,785

225,419
384,486
291
834,460
1,785,570
56,017
107,595
1,238,657
7,515,909
32,849
1,178,857
1,765,549
440,518
5,513,785

In foreign
vessels.

524,509
14,659
19,204
2,027,069
590,689
16,392
208,797
14,212,390
938,284
165,623
■

1,663
303,374
1,094,905
821,845
1,832,910
457,855
18,228
56,820
248,484
5,197
687,869
65,754
167,027
21

2,648
293,459
55,452
42,538
183,769
39,578
67,264
431,149
51,365
174,439
978,469
47,075
536,970
52,174
6,435
16,159

100

Commercial Statistics.

STATEMENT OF GOODS, TVARES, AND MERCHANDISE IMPORTED INTO UNITED STATES— CONTINUED.

' W hence imported.

Asia generally___
Africa generally...
South Seas and Pa
cific Ocean.........
Sandwich Islands..

Total.

In Am erican
vessels.

In foreign
vessels.

$4,030
101,443

$205,639
394,299

$209,669
495,742

$209,669
477,946

...............
$17,796

71,522
43,795

13,796
80

85,318
43,875

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

Free o f duty. Paying duties.

Total............... $22,377,665 125,479,774 $147,857,439 $120,382,152 $27,475,287
COMMERCE OF UNITED STATE S W ITH A L L N ATIONS.
STATISTICAL V IE W OF THE COMMERCE OF THE UNITED STATES, EXHIBITING THE VALUE OF
EXPORTS TO, AND IMPORTS FROM, EACH FOREIGN COUNTRY, DURING THE YEAR ENDING
JUNE

30, 1849.
value of e x po r t s .

Countries.
Domestic prodi
Foreign produce. Total.
$197,947
$1,135,504
R u ssia ........................
$937,557
9,516
44,219
Prussia.....................................
34,7 03
38,506
Sweden and Norway.
725,281
763,787
Swedish West Indies.
95,128
737
95,865
55,138
Denmark....................
55,138
54,149
781,346
Danish West Indies...
727,197
604,682
Hanse Towns...........................
2,710,248
3,314,930
85
8,581
Hanover.....................
8,496
2.397,355
Holland........................
2,155,328
242,027
54,118
334,941
Dutch East Indies............................... 280,823
50,252
367,318
Dutch West Indies............. ,t.
317,066
52
104,065
Dutch G u ia n a ............ 104,013
288,243
2,731,307
Belgium. . . J i . v . . . . . . . . . 117X2,443,064
1,880,878
71,042,870
E n g l a n d . ..........'vjTO, 161,992
58,472
3,608,432
Scotland
^3,549,960
22,526
3,938,868
........ 1 /
3,916,342
Ireland . 1 7 .
Gibraltar
. .Vv,
./ 723,819 78,467
802,286
62,734
Malta___ > > -._____________________51,233
113,967
76,562
British East Indies.....
332,962
409,524
Cape of Good H ope..
94,422
94,422
5,000
Mauritius.....................
21,731
26,731
34,620
Honduras....................... ..
191,347
225,967
3,759
666,074
British Guiana............
662,315
4,138,931
British West Indies..
3,935,834
203,097
1,914,401
4,234,724
Canada........................
2,320,323
257,760
British American colonies . . .
3,611,783
3,869,543
Other British colonies.............
...............
2,818,303
14,464,915
France on Atlantic.....
11,646,612
168,521
1,045,668
France on Mediterranean___ _
877,147
14,267
194,998
French West Indies....
180,731
20,370
Miquelon and French fisheries
20,370
French G uiana....................
46,161
46.161
Bourbon (French East Indies)
9,473
9,473
...............
French possessions in Africa..
31,479
200,550
Spain on Atlantic........
169,071
1,619,423
Spain on Mediterranean........
19,827
1,639,250
654
18,494
Teneriffe and other Canaries..
17,840
8,669
146,537
Manilla and Philippine Islands
137,868
668,068
5,309,213
Cuba............................
4,641,145
33,234
556,526
Other Spanish West Indies..
523,292
175,994
6,273
Portugal.......................
169,721
759
Madeira.......................
117,878
118,637
1,839
16,043
Fayal and other Azores.........
14,204
66,462
3,815
Cape de Verds............
62,647
293,419
1,104,869
Italy.............................
811,450
29,213
4,854
S icily.......................
24,359
21,414
482,364
Sardinia........................
460,950

Value

of imports.
$840,238
17,687
731,846
15,982
19,204
339,141
7,742,864
1,501,643
354,528
453,099
58,281
2,844,293
58,813,425
1,959,320
376,793
1,193
8,405
2,036,254
71,298
262,417
25,520
997,865
1,481,082
1,345,798
3,613
23,209,878
1,153,905
71,469
23,417

313,490
1,005,687
38,919
1,127,114
10,659,956
1,964,861
322,220
73,759
17,052
1,853
1,550,896
530,244
42,538

101

Commercial Statistics.
STATISTICAL V IE W OF THE COMMERCE OF THE UNITED STATES---- CONTINUED.

VALUE OF EXPORTS.
Domestic produce. Foreign produce. Total.
$30,076
$30,076
1,406,865
$464,376
Triests it other Austrian ports
942,489
278,996
85,120
Turkey.....................................
193,876
Countries.

Value
of imports.

Hayti.........................................
Mexico.......................................
Central Republic of America.
New Granada.........................
Venezuela.................................

532,577
1,045,999
112,480
244,460
431,421

70,015
1,042,869
23,739
53,324
106,213

602,592
2,090.868
136,219
297,784
537,634

$409,178
374,064
i)QI
901,724
2,216,719
56,017
' 158,960
1,413,096

Brazil........................................
Cisplatine Republic................
Argentine Republic...............
Chili..........................................
Peru..........................................
China........................................
Burmah....................................

2,838,380
134,638
595,518
1,722,457
93,195
1,460,945

264,597
13,089
172,076
294,643
18,041
122,279

3,102,977
147,727
767,594
2,017,100
111,236
1,583,224

8,494,368
79,924
1,709,827
1,817,723
446,953
5,513,785

West Indies generally............
South America generally.. . .
Europe generally...................
Asia generally.........................
Africa generally......................
South Seas and Pacific Ocean
Indian Ocean...........................
Atlantic Ocean.......................
Sandwich Islands....................

106,329
85,215
18 588
344,436
676,769
336,660

2,395
8,019

108,724
93,234
18,588
363^811
708,411
399,728

North-west Coast...................
Uncertain nlaees...................

19,375
31,642
63,068

16,159
209,669
495,742
85,318
43,875

........

Total............................. $132,666,955

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

$13,088,865 $145,755,820 $147,857,439

N A V IG A T IO N OF TH E U N ITED STATES W ITH A L L NATIONS.
STATISTICAL V IE W OF THE TONNAGE OF AMERICAN AND FOREIGN VESSELS ARRIVIN G FROM, AND
DEPARTING TO, EACH FOREIGN COUNTRY DURING THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 3 0 , 1 8 4 9 .

Countries.

Russia..........................................
Prussia..........................................
Sweden and Norway..................
Swedish West Indies.................
Denmark......................................
Danish West Indies................... ...........
Hanse T ow n s...........................
Hanover...............................
Holland...............................
Dutch East In dies.....................
Dutch West Indies.....................
Dutch Guiana..............................
Belgium.......................................
England.......................................
Scotland.......................................
Ireland.........................................
Gibraltar......................................
Malta............................................
British East Indies..................... ...........
Cape of Good H ope................... ...........
Mauritius.....................................
Honduras.....................................

AMERICAN TONNAGE.
FOREIGN TONNAGE.
Entered
Cleared
Entered
Cleared
United States. United States. United States. U. States.

10,349
240
1,531
2,684
12,466

20,529
911

25,397
23,385
22,536
6,688
14,193
5,369
27,862
576,018
21,032
53,901
13,139
3,068
21,020
2,728
5,215

15,464
384
3,514
71,931
8,662
660
361
9,947
402,330
48,188
105,121

373

1,393
606
14,718
547
1,681
5,426
44,264
250
16,460
1,433
357
1,000
6,196
349,900
24,940
46,165
1,540
720
327
...
898

Commercial Statistics.

102

STATISTICAL V IE W OF THE TONNAGE OF AMERICAN AND FOREIGN VESSELS— CONTINUED.

AMERICAN TONNAGE.

Countries.
British Guiana.................................
British West In dies....................... ___
Canada..............................................
British American colonies..............
Other British colonies.....................
iFrance on the Atlantic...................
France bn the Mediterranean . . . .
French West Indies.......................
Miquelon and French fisheries . . .
French Guiana................................
Bourbon (French East Indies)___
French possessions in Africa..........
Spain on the Atlantic.....................
Spain on the Mediterranean.........
Teneriffe and other Canairies . . . .
Manilla and Philippine Islands. . .
Cuba.................................................
Other Spanish West Indies...........
Portugal............................................
Madeira.............................................
Fayal and other Azores.................
Cape de V erd s...............................
Italy........................................... ......
S icily................................................
Sardinia............................................
Tuscany............................................
Trieste and other Austrian ports .
Turkey..............................................
Ionian Islands.................................
H a y ti...............................................
Mexico...............................................
Central Republic of Am erica.. . .
New Granada.................................
Venezuela........................................
Bolivia......................... ....................
Brazil................................................
Cisplatine Republic ........................
Argentine Republic.........................
Chili..................................................
Peru..................................................
China.............. ................................
Burmah............................................
Liberia.............................................
West Indies generally...................
South America generally...............
Europe generally.............................
Asia generally.................................
Africa generally..............................
South Seas and Pacific Ocean. . . .
Indian Ocean...................................
Atlantic O cean...............................
Sandwich Islands.............................
North-west Coast..............................
Uncertain places...............................
Total..........................................

FOREIGN TONNAGE.

Entered
Cleared
Entered
Cleared
United States. United States. United States. U. States.
15,054
1,575
2,831
63,523
101,704
47,010
34,147
906,813
890,204
537,697
563,910
120,861
122,641
314,948
409,377
....
95,435
25,664
27,161
114,035
6,582
8,253
3,227
13,853
2,786
7,485
5,940
206
260
1,348
42
1,050
39
1,461
....
488
....
465
....
....
1,529
2,234
17,243
12,979
10,003
28,073
5.603
1,160
912
235
10,115
3,826
....
271,061
284,568
19,564
31,577
3,898
47,534
25,870
2,192
5,576
3,509
5,023
4,837
3,744
342
1,673
1,741
1,284
102
2,714
4,773

....

. . . .

28,554
3,266
3,994
47,807
1,226

70,670
483
11,929

1,853
12,397
1,586
11,176
1,912

4,596
4,196
3,364
2,182
670

232
4,843
666
5,753
300

16,556
29,820
5,203
25,094
8,420
189
56,335
2,345
9,397
25,936
5,611
11,740

1,931
7,881
393
755
1,350
487
11,061
1,126
7,282
517
1,293

4,552
10,140
78
1,354
1,157
125
6,028
2,635
5,492
1,351
2,291
517

2,950

1,732
6,861
3,607

. . . .

43,755

524
9,476
39,659
3,668
3,684
3,066
648

. .

1,939
. . . .

328
304
. . . .

. . . .

453

623
161

....
2,753,724

1,710,515

1,675,709

103

Commercial Statistics.

STATEMENT EXHIBITING THE NATIONAL CHARACTER OF THE FOREIGN VESSELS "WHICH ENTERED
INTO, AND CLEARED FROM, THE UNITED STATES FOR FOREIGN COUNTRIES DURING THE YEAR
ENDING JUNE 3 0 , 1 8 4 9 .

,--—
-------- ENTE RED.---- ------- \
National character o f vessels.

Russian.....................
Prussian...................
Swedish................... . . .
Danish......................
Hanseatic . . . . . . . . . . .
Dutch.......................
Belgian....................
Mechlenburg............
Oldenburg................
Hanoverian...........
British ...................
French ....................
Spanish ........ . . . .
Portuguese.............
Austrian .................
Sardinian................
Sicilian ...................
Mexican....................
Guatemalan............
Venezuelan.............
Brazilian.................
JVew Granadian. . . .
Bolivian .................
Argentine................
Cisplatine...............
Chilian.....................
Turkish....................
Total.................

No.

18
14
105
47
201
25
16
1
21
9

99
10
21
13
19

2
6
5
4

3
1
1

Tons.

Crews.
Men. Boys.

f ■---------CLEA RED.------------\
N o.

Crews.
Men. Boys.

Tons.

262
6,627
13
5,057
189 ___
198 . . . .
14
4,536
4,412
175 . . . .
31,172 1,292
4 106
32,011 1,285
8
9,278
459
53
11,033
10
507
8
72,392 2,798
76,553 2,949
12 211
11
7,594
314
21
5,135
226
7
5,265
208
5,624
3
17
222
1
308
14
1
308
14 ___
202 . . . .
4,244
18
3,963
178 ___
78
8
1,848
1,592
77 ___
1,482,707 77,168 2,559 8,079 1,449,273 80,052 2,616
98
31,292 1,296
31,466 1,359
5
16
28,294 1,357
29,814 1,515
54 109
29
152 . . . .
2,799
3,057
15
137 ___
4,178
138
10
4,264
165 ___
304
5,171
238
3
6,495
3
17
.
.
.
.
149
12
2,866
136
1
3,017
1,455
145
1
20
1,524
153
1
144
156
17
2
16 ___
4
774
978
53
38 ___
55
1,056
7
1,057
54 ___
41
4
575
755
33 ___
1
125
7 ___
49
3
675
29
1
1,187
33
1
106
619
7 ___
2
...
12
526
267
24 ___
i
18 . . . .
300
350
15
2
1,710,515 87,033 2,651 8,847 1,675,709 89,579 2,704

TO N N AGE OF EACH COLLECTION DISTRICT OF TH E UNITED STATES.
STATEMENT EXHIBITING A CONDENSED V IE W OF THE TONNAGE OF THE SEVERAL DISTRICTS OF
THE UNITED STATES ON THE 3 0 T H OF JUNE, 1 8 4 9 IN TONS AND 95T H S.

Districts.
Passamaquoddy, Maine....................
Machias
“
.....................
Frenchman’s Bay “
.....................
Penobscot
“
.....................
Belfast
“
.....................
Bangor
“
.....................
Waldoborough
“
...................
Wiscasset
“
.....................
Bath
“
.....................
Portland
“
.....................
Saco
“
.....................
Kennebunk
“
.....................
York
“
.....................
Portsmouth, New Hampshire...........
Burlington, Vermont...........................
Newbury port, Massachusetts.............
.............
Ipswich
“
Glouster
“
.............
Salem
“
.............
Beverly
“
.............
Marblehead
“
.............
Boston
“
.............
Plymouth
“
.............

Registered.

7,549
1,369
2,616
5,794

76
56
47
91

11,168
31,975
5,068
61,938
57,657
1,000
7,766

14
02
40
38
01
19
57

16,674 35
17,720 82
2,826 61
16,762 19
247,336 14
4,070 75

Enrolled
and licensed.

Total of
each district.

9,566 94
18,958 09
29,020 38
30,689 29
32,504 27
13,548 41
57,740 49
12,020 89
26,882 46
26,911 79
1,031 11
2,083 03
1,057 44
8,694 43
3,629 82
7,289 87
701 94
18,163 75
8,648 54
3,173 04
4,710 36
49,553 85
7,224 22

17,116 75
20,327 65
31,636 85
36,484 25
43,073 73
24,716 55
89,715 51
17,089 44
88,820 84
84,568 80
2,031 30
9,849 60
1,057 34
25,368 78
3,629 82
25,010 74
701 94
20,990 41
25,410 73
3,173 04
5,145 45
296,890 04
11,295 02

104

Commercial Statistics.

STATEMENT OF THE TONNAGE OF THE SEVERAL DISTRICTS OF THE UNITED STATES---- CONTINUED.

Districts.
Eall River, Massachusetts................
New Bedford
“
...............
Barnstable
“
...............
...............
Edgartown
“
Nantucket
“
...............
Providence, Rhode Island.....................
Bristol
“
.....................
Newport
“
.....................
Middletown, Connecticut.....................
New London
“
.....................
Stonington
“
.....................
New Haven
“
.....................
Eairfield
“
.....................
Champlain,
New Y ork.....................
Sackett’s Harbor “
.....................
Oswego
“
.....................
Niagara
“
.....................
Genesee
“
..................... .
Oswegatchie
“
..................... .
Buffalo
“
................... .
Sag Harbor
“
.......................
Greenport
“
.......................
New York
“
..................... .
Cape Vincent
“
.......................
Cold Spring
“
.......................
Perth Amboy, New Jersey...................
Bridgetown
“
...................
Burlington
“
...................
Camden
“
...................
Newark
“
...................
Little Egg Harbor “
...................
Great Egg Harbor “
...................
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....................
Presque Isle
“
...................
...................
Pittsburg
“
Wilmington, Delaware. : .......................
New Castle
“
...........................
Baltimore, Maryland...............................
Oxford
“
................................
Vienna
“
................................
Snow Hill
“
................................
St. Mary’s
“
................................
Town Creek “
................................
Annapolis
“
................................
Georgetown, District of Columbia . . . .
Alexandria, V irginia...........................
Norfolk
“
............................
Petersburg
“
............................
Richmond
“
...........................
York Town
“
............................
Tappahannock “
............................
East River
“
...........................
...........................
Accomac, C. H. “
Yeocomico
“
...........................
Cherrystone
“
......................... .
Wheeling
“
...........................
Wilmington, North Carolina...................
Newbern
“
...................
Washington
*
...................
Edenton
“
...................

Registered.
2.083 69
115,091 12
6,124 24
4,508 11
26,325 70
10,226 68
13,010 30
5,480 45
251 12
24,909 14
12,921 21
6,065 70

17,077 60
953 22
378,986 89
2,736 40
133 69
433 00
169 86
53,821 91
1,878 24
79,682 31

2,720
6,183
9,925
948
5,134

62
21
52
76
37

680 76

10,873
777
1,109
300

94
05
54
66

Enrolled
and licensed.
11,274 64
8,820 45
67.631 92
2,289 75
3,831 46
7,492 91
2,487 50
4,666 84
10,839 45
16,076 19
7,201 54
14,241 30
21,243 44
4,745 74
8,776 14
22,151 68
732 73
1,036 74
2,586 37
40,667 34
5,735 69
3,685 80
417,504 85
2,424 09
1,478 90
23,454 02
14,308 51
9,209 17
10.184 87
7,192 33
5,318 71
11,845 48
134,265 25
7,794 80
35,770 63
7,901 67
6,802 52
54,343 04
11,312 78
13,109 20
8,081 24
1,819 78
2,285 26
2,387 21
11,054 94
5,671 75
13,090 69
1,787 60
5,197 54
3,660 39
5,479 59
4,739 19
4,043 02
2,840 77
1,239 07
2,660 76
5,767 88
3,488 17
4,822 60
1,070 59

Total of
each district.
13,358 38
123,911 57
73,756 21
6,797 86
30,157 21
17,719 64
15,557 80
10,147 34
11,090 57
40,985 93
20,122 75
20,307 05
21,243 44
4,745 74
8,776 14
22,151 68
732 73
1,036 74
2,586 37
40,667 34
22,813 34
4,639 07
796,491 79
2,424 09
4,215 35
23,587 71
14,741 51
9,209 17
10,184 87
7,362 24
5,318 71
11,845 48
188,087 21
7,794 80
35,770 63
9,779 91
6,802 52
134,025 35
11,312 78
13,109 20
8,081 24
1,819 78
2,285 26
2,387 21
13,775 61
11,855 01
23,016 26
2,736 41
10,331 91
3,660 39
6,160 40
4,739 19
4,043 02
2,840 77
1,239 07
2,660 76
16,641 87
4,265 22
5,932 19
1,371 30

105

Commercial Statistics.

STATEMENT OF THE TONNAGE OF THE SEVERAL DISTRICTS OF THE UNITED STATES---- CONTINUED.

Districts.
Camden,
North Carolina
Beaufort
“
Plymouth
“
Ocracoke
“
Charleston, South Carolina .
Georgetown
“
Beaufort
“
Savannah, G eorgia..............
Sunbury
“
.............
Brunswick
“
.............
Hardwick
'*
.............
St. Mary’s
“
.............
Pensacola, Florida................
St. Agustine “
...............
St. Mark’s
“
...............
St. John’s
“
...............
Key West
“
...............
Apalachicola “
...............
Mobile, Alabama..................
Pearl River, Mississippi.. . .
Vicksburg
“
....
New Orleans, Louisiana........
Teche
“
....
Nashville, Tennessee.............
Louisville, Kentucky.............
St. Louis, Missouri................
Chicago, Illinois.....................
Cuyahoga, Ohio.....................
Sandusky “ .....................
Cincinnati “ .....................
Miami
“ .....................
Detroit, Michigan.................
Micliilimackinac, Michigan..
Galveston, Texas...................
Saluria
“ ...................
Astoria, Oregon.....................
San Francisco, California___

Enrolled
and licensed.
10,463 12
1,501 00
1,094 85
1,428 15
14,365 65
911 83

Registered.
993 16
281 00
841 10
14,919 18
2,282 34
9,122 81

10,099 65

19,222 51

215 56

344 88
2,818 24

421 62
6,141 11

253 01
309 92
2,293 63
1,100 85
11,982 31
1,361 34
148 65
158,301 80
1,291 15
2,910 11
13,954 91
32,255 08
11,332 43
30,031 11
8,366 80
16,891 14
2,929 20
33,466 94
1,191 41
1,512 04
213 33

253 01
309 92
6,130 10
1,100 85
25,061 19
1,361 34
148 65
240,206 24
1,291 15
2,910 11
13,954 91
32,255 08
11,332 43
30,041 11
8,366 80
16,891 14
2,929 20
33,466 94
1,191 41
2,559 55
213 33

83 04
3,328 82

4,436 42
1,085 48
81,898 39

1,041 51

Total of
each district.
11,451 53
1,188 00
1,942 60
1,428 15
29,285 48
3,200 22

122 44

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

1,438,941 53

122 44
1,895,013 11

3,334,015 29

BRITISH EXPORTS OF COTTON MANUFACTURES.
The exports of cotton manufactures; namely, calicoes, plain, dyed, and printed, and
cotton twist, from Great Britain to the chief markets of the world during the first four
months of the present year as compared with the corresponding period in 1849, 1848,
and 1841, are as follows:—
TO CALCUTTA.

Calicoes,
plain.

Years.

Y a rd s.

1850..............
1849 .........
1848 .........
1841..............

43,143,169
35,602,920
19,818,019
22,859,854

1850 .........
1849 .........
1848..............
1841..............

4,834,888
2,069,230
1,580,893
1,824,964

Calicoes,
printed and
dyed.
Y a rd s.

TO BOMBAY.

Twist.

Calicoes,
plain.

L bs.

Y ard s.

6,220,334 3,696,144 10,129,359
2,191,058 4,185,182 11,015,005
951,939 2,365,811 12,293,995
1,621,358 5,401,413
9,528,961

TO SINGAPORE, MANILLA.

1,159,896
110,096
629,446
511,418

80,900
115,588
24,000
194,192

Calicoes,
printed and
dyed.
Y a rd s.

Twist.
L bs.

4,344,545
880,050
2,405,362
934,983
533,325
913,158
961,511 1,435,110

TO HONG KONG AND CANTON.

10,45$,350
5,999,365
3,029,291
10,638,241

184,642
932,910
310,116 1.252,120
448,323
206,125
209,616 2,408,990

Commercial Statistics.

106

TO SHANGHAE.

1850...
1849...
1848...
1847...

178,914
150,464
29,744
297^901

TO OTHER CHINESE PORTS.

114,800

7,297,430
593,360

41,947
119,281

212,220
145,200

12,400

587,300

21,926

162,660

TO BRAZIL.

1850... .........
1849... .........
1848...
1847... .........

TO CHILI AND PERU.

22,205,855 14,854,054
18,293,586 10,306,957

16,912
2,112

25,916,122 21,310,349

18,500

5,548,354 5,305,655
8,982,944 11,279,915
6 067 089 4 510 101
11,762,153 6,735^959

TO COLOMBIA.

1850...
1849...
1848...
1847...

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

2,616,819
2,470,620
2,157,773
826,727

4,072,859
4,460,528
1,797,922
711,978

R IV E R PLATA.

2,000
1,344
66,162

635,336
5,464,967
2,903,338
1,815,080

TO MEXICO.

1850... .........
1849...
1848... .........
1847... .........

1,321,569
2,198,885
123,270

1,737,310
6,729,342
2,090,352 .
246,305

9,684
648
S 927
720

644,218
2,848,991
1,667,255
1,194,956

1,500
6,374
. . . .

TO BRITISH NORTH AMERICA.

900

5,540,415
5,793,834
5,457,128
6,458,415

. . . .

207,440

7,013,524
5,432,782
4,182,611
6,136,979

251,318
465,162
418,376
239,206

TO THE UNITED STATES.

1850. . ,.
1949. . ..

7,572,433
5,334,424

19,109,369
19,980,069

26,218 1 1848..
46,688 | 1847...

6,821,331
11,228,438

13,423,261
13,258,058

12,533
4,432

COMMERCE OF CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA,
In an elaborate article -which we prepared from authentic documents, and published
in the Merchants’ Magazine for May, 1860, (vol. xxii., p. 499-516,) will be found a full
statistical view of the commerce of Charleston for a series of years, down to 1848.
W e now subjoin a statement of the foreign commerce, and coastwise and foreign navi
gation of that port for the year 1849:—
STATEMENT OF EXPORTS FROM THE DISTRICT OF CHARLESTON OF THE GROWTH, PRODUCE, AND
MANUFACTURE OF THE UNITED STATES, IN AMERICAN AND FOREIGN VESSELS, FOR THE YEAR

1849,

AS PUBLISHED IN THE CHARLESTON MERCURY.

W hither exported.

Boards,
plank, &.C.
F eet.

Russia......................................................
S w eden..................................
14,415
Denm ark and N orw ay___
16,484
H o lla n d .................................
10,603
B elg iu m ................................. 106,705
E n gla n d ................................. 584,382
S c o tla n d .................................................
G ibraltar................................
30,366
British W est Indies............ 316,490
Hause Tow ns & Germ any. 131,429
France on the Atlantic----96,746
Spain on the Mediterranean
11,091
H on d u ras..............................
71,757
Cuba........................................ 1,534,050
Italy and M alta....................
2,681
Trieste & oth. Austrian pts.................
Brazilian ports......................
50,110
Buenos A y r e s ....................... 262,723
T o t a l............................... 3,240,032
COASTWISE EXPORTS.

R ice.

Miscel Total
Rough laneous to each
rice.
articles. country.

T rcs.

B u sh .

D o lla r s . D o lla r s .

........................... 1,362,366 1,353 89,043
...........................
593,704
457 59,889
...........................
4,779
400
........................... 1,385,611 4*608 70,543
........................... 3,147,988 2,835 235,260
14,254 4,176,711 66,525,252 11,721
........
21,294 1,384,354
7
260
1,011 16,000
1,569
............ 2,213,651 12,789 21,721
........ 1,766,705 13,837,534 4.027
34
............ 4,773,027

132,419
125,271
54,963
198,341
382,829
6,490,178
136,745
5,966
28,779
432,566
1,460,381
413,277

Naval
Cotton,
stores. Sea Island. Other.
B b ls .

L bs.

5,647

1,000
81

19,040

10,221

563,845
267,011
453
15,938

5,964,710 96,059,122 58,561 492,812

385,101
61,071
18,640
1,046
15,198

28,644 10,343,771

FOREIGN EXPORTS.

$1,294,363 In American vessels
1,169,912
Foreign vessels. .
1,139,536
Total foreign'...
1,890,649
“ coastwise
$5,494,520
Total coastwise...........
Total value of exports, foreign and coastwise, for the year 1849..

First quarter, 1849
Second quarter___
Third quarter........
Fourth quarter___

12,739
37

$6,728,590
3,615,181
$10,343,771
5,494,520
$15,838,291

107

Commercial Statistics.
THE PRODUCT OF COTTON PLANTATIONS IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
To

F r e e m a n H unt , E sq .,

Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine:

S ir :— The following table will be found interesting, as showing the comparative
amount of labor performed, and crops grown, upon some of the Sea Island cotton
plantations, against those of other parts of the United States:—
1848.

STATEMENT OF SEVERAL PLANTATIONS IN

N o. o f
N o. o f
full hands acres o f No. o f
in the cotton cul- lbs. per
field.
acre.
tivated.

42
50
12
22
14*
45
30
36
15
40
18
55
17
32
18
38

160
157
50
64
50
160
100
50
108
71
150
62
106
63
180

484*

1,641

•

N o. o f
lbs. per
hand.

Total N o. N o. o f A v . No.
Total No. No. o f
o f lbs.
acres o f o f b’sh’ s A v . No. ac’ s o f c ’ n ac’ s o f
o f cotton
corn
o f corn o f bush’ s &. cotton sweet
grown. cultiv’ t’d. p . acre. p. hand. p. h’nd. potat’s.

122
159
193
161
67
125
108
109
135
142
109
179

495
251
687
320
421
473
513
523
268
337
420
297
510
470
381
848

20,800
12,560
8,250
7,040
6,100
25,500
21,280
16,100
3,350
13,500
7,668
16,350
8,380
15,052
6,867
32,220

40
50
25
40
30
96

10
20
14
14
12
174

...
22
18 1-5
20*
17*
20
45

64
3|
5 1-5
4*
54
7*

...

221,017

••

...

••

130
80
165

492*

105
63
65
63
48
50
80
140
100
183

130
115
109
145
163
140
177
127
132
178
124
73
135
93
145
178

399
383
390
528
489
490
580
421
505
560
396
243
360
325
383
867

21,450
11,500
21,800
29,000
9,780
10,780
18,585
8,001
8,580
11,214
5,952
3,650
10,800
13,020
14,500
32,574

16
26
57
70

14
17
23
18

103

1,699

..*

. ..

221,186

. ..

165
100
200
200
60

none grown on this place.
20
40
36*
44
8
20
11
4
40
15
15*
4*
45
15
22*
5 1-5
4
45
11
13*

STATEMENT OF SEVERAL PLANTATIONS IN

54
30
56
55
20
22
32
19
17
20
15
15
30
40
30
37*

70
50
56
60
38
30
46
20
30

io
..
..

1849.

4*
5
4*
44
5
4*

45*
23
34
37

4 4

17
28

4*
5*

15
29*
43
31*

4*
5
4*
5

14*
27
34

49*

39*

...

This shows a cultivation less than three and a half acres to the hand of cotton, yield
ing an average in 1848 of 1344 pounds per acre, and 498 pounds per hand. The cul
tivation in 1849 was about the same number of acres per hand, yielding an average
of 136 pounds per acre, and 4691 pounds per hand. This cotton varies in price from
25 to 55 cents per pound at this time. The crop of 1849 wiU average about 37 * cents
a pound. I cannot give the total average of the corn crop, owing to the blanks above ;
but it will not vary much from those given. The total number of acres to the hand
of all crops is less than six. The reason of this is, that the whole island, with but
little exception, is cultivated with the hoe.
SOLON ROBINSON.

108

Commercial Statistics.
PRICES OF COTTON AND COTTON FABRICS,

The Journal o f Commerce published a table showing the comparative prices of cot
ton and the several descriptions of plain goods on the first and fifteenth of each month
since January, 1849. The quotations for cotton have been revised by Mr. Thomas J.
Stewart, cotton broker, and the prices of printing cloths by Mr. H. C. Beach, agent for
the sale of a majority of the various styles of these goods offered in this market:—
RELATIVE PRICES OF COTTON AN n PLAIN COTTON GOODS AT THE FOLLOWING DATES.

- COTTON
S

5
5
g
O.

C n

ig
UJ-T5
1849— January
U

1.......
15.......
February
1.......
“
15.......
March
1.......
««
15.......
A pril
1.......
«
15.......
M ay
1.......
It
15.......
June
1.......
“
15.......
1.......
July
“
15.......
August
1.......
<(
15.......
September 1.......
it
15.......
October
1.......
it
15.......
Novem ber 1.......
“
15.......
December
1.......
“
15.......
1850— January
1 .... .
“
15.......
February
1.......
«
15.......
March
1.......
u
15.......
A pril
1.......
U
15.......

n
7*
if
if
7f
n
n
H
H

6i
6*
6f
6f
7

H
n
H

g
S*

8
Si
8f
9

10f
10*
11
11*
Ilf
Ilf
Ilf
11
H i
n f
13
13*
12f
121
12f
13
12f

9f
10i
10*
H f
H f
H i
n f
li

lif
12f
13f .
131
12*
12f
12f
12f

6f
6f
6f
7
7
7i
n

7f
Sf
n

9f
9f
10
10i
10*
lO f
10i
10i
lO f
Ilf
13*
13
12i
12*
12
H f

S3 /—PRINTING CLOTHS.—.

7*
7f
8
Si
Si
8
8
7f
7f

64
by
68

60
by
64

4
4i
If
4*
4f
4f
4*
4f
4i
4i
4*
4i
4*
4f
4f
4f
4*
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5i
5i
5f
5f
5*
5*
5i
5

3f
4
4*
4i
4*
4*
4i
4*
4
4
3*
4
4
3*
4f
4*
4f
4f
4f
4f
4f
4f
4f
4f
5
5
5*
5*
5i
5i
5
4f

3*
3f
3*
4
4*
4i
4
3*
3f
3f
3f
3f
3f
3*
4*
4i
4f
*1*
4*
4*
4*
4*
4*
4*
4f
4f
5i
5i
5
5
4f
4*

STOCKS OF LEAF TOBACCO IN EUROPE.
ESTIMATED STOCKS IN EUROPE ON 3 1 S T DECEMBER FOR LAST FIVE YEARS.

London............................. hhds.
Liverpool...................................
Bristol, New Castle, &c..........
Scotland....................................
Ireland......................................
North of Europe.....................
Bremen and H am burg...........
Amsterdam, Antwerp, & Rot
terdam ..................................
Spain and Portugal................
France.......................................
Total.............................

1845,

1846.

1847.

1848.

27,513
16,900
1,700
1,300
1,800
200
13,600

33,374
20,500
2,000
1,700
1,600
200
17,500

29,578
18,400
2,090
2,590
1,800
200
12,400

28,031
16,119
2,301
1,740
1,600
200
14,500

26,547
16,355
2,645
1.980
1,600
200
10,000

26,000
2,000
200

21,700
2,000
200

20,700
900
200

15,500
200
200

10,800
200
200

91,213

100,774

88,858

80,391

70,535

Commercial Regulations.

109

COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
NICARAGUA TREATY.
CONVENTION BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND HER

BRITANIC MAJESTY.

The United States of America and Her Britanic Majesty, being desirous of consoli
dating the relations of amity, which so happily subsist between them, by setting forth
and fixing in a convention their views and intentions with reference to any means of
communication by ship-canal which may be constructed between the Atlantic and Pa
cific oceans, by the way of the river San Juan de Nicaragua, and either or both of the
Lakes of Nicaragua or Managua, to any port or place on the Pacific ocean, the President
of the United States has conferred full powers on John M. Clayton, Secretary of State
of the United States, and Her Britanic Majesty on the Right Honorable Sir Henry
Lytton Bulwer, a member of Her Majesty’s Most Honorable Privy Council, Knight
Commander of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, and Envoy Extraordinary and
Minister Plenipotentiary o f Her Britanic Majesty to the United States, for the aforesaid
purpose; and the said plenipotentiaries, having exchanged their full powers, which
were found to be in proper form, have agreed to the following articles:—
A rt . 1. The Governments of the United States and Great Britain hereby declare
that neither the one or the other will ever obtain nor maintain for itself any exclusive
control over the said ship-canal: agreeing that neither will ever erect or maintain any
fortifications commanding the same, or in the vicinity thereof, or occupy, or fortify, or
colonize, or assume, or exercise any dominion over Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Mosquito
coast, or any part of Central America; nor will either make any use of any protection
which either affords or may afford, or any alliance which either has or may have to
or with any State or people, for the purpose of erecting or maintaining any such forti
fications, or occupying, fortifying, or colonizing Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Mosquito
coast, or any part of Central America, or o f assuming or exercising dominion over the
same; nor will the United States or Great Britain hike advantage of any intimacy, or
use any alliance, connection, or influence, that either may possess with any State or
Government through whose territory the said canal may pass, for the purpose of ac
quiring or holding, directly or indirectly, for the citizens or the subjects of the one,
any rights or advantages, in regard to commerce or navigation through the said
canal, which shall not be offered on the same terms to the citizens or subjects of the
other.
A rt . 2. Vessels of the United States or Great Britain traversing the said canal, shall,
in case of war between the contracting parties, be exempted from blockade, detention,
or capture by either of the belligerents; and this provision shall extend to such a
distance from the two ends of the said ’ canal as may hereafter De found expedient to
establish.
A rt . 3. In order to secure the construction of the said canal, the contracting parties
engage, that if any such canal shall be undertaken upon fair and equitable terms by
any parties having the authority of the local government or governments through
whose territory the same may pass, then the persons employed in making the said
canal, and their property used, or to be used, for that object shall be protected, from the
commencement of the said canal to its completion, by the governments of the United
States and Great Britain from unjust detention, confiscation, seizure, or any violence
whatsoever.
A rt . 4. The contracting parties will use whatever influence they respectively exer
cise with any State, States, or governments, possessing, or claiming to possess, any
jurisdiction over the territory which the said canal shall traverse, or which shall he near
the waters applicable thereto, in order to induce such States or governments to facilitate
the construction of the said canal by every means in their power. And, furthermore,
the United States and Great Britain agree to use their good offices, wherever or how
ever it may be most expedient in order to procure the establishment of two free ports
— one at each end of the said canal.
A rt . 5. The contracting parties further engage, that when the said canal shall have
been completed they will protect it from interruption, seizure, or unjust confiscation,
and they will guaranty the neutrality thereof, so that the said canal may be forever
open, and the capital invested therein secure. Nevertheless, the governments of the
United States and Great Britain, in according their protection to the construction of the

110

Commercial Regulations,

said canal, and guarantying its neutrality and security when completed, always under
stand that this protection and guaranty are granted conditionally and may be with
drawn by both governments, or either government, if both governments, or either gov
ernment should deem that the persons or company undertaking or managing the same
adopt or establish such regulations concerning the traffick thereupon as are contrary to
the spirit and intention of this convention, either by making unfair discriminations in
favor of the commerce of one of the contracting parties over the commerce of the
other, or by imposing oppressive exactions or unreasonable tolls upon passengers, ves
sels, goods, wares, merchandise, or other articles. Neither party, however, shall with
draw the aforesaid protection and guaranty without first giving six months notice to the
other.
A rt . 6. The contracting parties in this convention engage to invite any State with
which both or either have friendly intercourse to enter into stipulations with them simi
lar to those which they have entered into with each other, to the end that all other
States may share in the honor and advantages of having contributed to a work of such
general interest and importance as the canal herein contemplated. And the contracting
parties likewise agree that each shall enter into treaty stipulations with such of the
Central American States as they may deem advisable, for the purpose of more effectu
ally carrying out the great design of this convention— namely, that of constructing and
maintaining the said canal as a ship communication between the two oceans, for the
benefit of mankind on equal terms to all, and of protecting the same. And they also
agree that the good offices of either shall be employed, when requested by the other,
in aiding and assisting the negotiation of such treaty stipulations; and should any dif
ferences arise as to the right of property over the territory through which the said
canal shall pass between the States or governments of Central America, and such dif
ferences should in any way impede or obstruct the execution of the said canal, the
governments of the United States and Great Britain will use their good offices to settle
such differences in the manner best suited to promote the interests of said canal, and
to strengthen the bonds of friendship and alliance which exist between the contracting
parties.
A rt. 7. It being desirable that no time should be necessarily lost in commencing
and constructing the said canal, the governments of the United States and Great
Britain determine to give their support and encouragement to such persons or company
as may first offer to commence the same, with the necessary capital, the consent of the
local authorities, and on such principles as accord with the spirit and intention of this
convention ; and if any person or company should already have, with any State through
which the proposed ship-canal may pass, a contract for the construction of such a canal
as that specified in this convention, to the stipulations of which contract neither of the
contracting parties in this convention have any just cause to object, and the said per
sons or company shall, moreover, have made preparations, and expended time, money,
and trouble, on the faith of such contract, it is hereby agreed that such persons or com
pany shall have a priority of claim, over every other person, persons, or company to
the protection o f the governments of the United States and Great Britain, and be al
lowed a year from the date of the exchange of the ratifications of this convention for
concluding their arrangements, and presenting evidence of sufficient capital subscribed
to accomplish the contemplated undertaking ; it being understood, that if, at the ex
piration of the afore-aid period, such persons or company be not able to commence and
carry out the proposed enterprise, then the government of the United States and Great
Britain shall be free to commence and proceed with the construction of the canal in
question.
A rt . 8. The governments of the United States and Great Britain having not only
desired, in entering into this convention, to accomplish a particular object, but also to
establish a general principle, they hereby agree to extend their protection, by treaty
stipulations, to any other practicable communications, whether by canal or railway,
across the isthmus which connects North and South America, and especially to the in
ter-oceanic communications should the same prove to be practicable, whether by canal
or railway, which are now proposed to be established by the way of Tehuantepec or
Panama. In granting, however, their joint protection to any such canal or railways as
are by this article specified, it is always understood by the United States and Great
Britain that the parties constructing or owning the same shall impose no other charges
or conditions of traffick thereupon than the aforesaid governments shall approve of as
just and equitable; and that the same canals or railways, being open to the citizens
and subjects o f the United States and Great Britain on equal terms, shall also be open

Commercial Regulations.

Ill

on like terras to the citizens and subjects of every other State which is willing to grant
thereto such protection as the United States and Great Britain engage to afford.
A rt. 9. The ratification of this convention shall be exchanged at Washington within
six month from this day, or sooner, if possible.
In faith, whereof, we, the respective plenipotentiaries, have signed this convention,
and have hereunto affixed our seals.
Done at Washington, the 19th April, 1850.
J ohn M. C layton,
[ l. s.l
H enry L ytton B ulwer,

[ l . s.J

OF FALSELY PACKED AND UNMERCHANTABLE COTTON.
The following report of the Committee of Arbitration, of the New Orleans Chamber
of Commerce, was originally published in the New Orleans Price Current, by the re
quest of the Secretary of the Chamber, it being the desire of cotton-planters and pur
chasers of cotton that it be made public, as similar cases frequently arise:—
N e w O rleans C ham ber of C om m erce , D ec . 13, 1849.

Schwidt A Holland vs. Maunsel White & Co.
Before the Committee of Arbitration— present: Messrs. Geo. Arnold Holt, Charles
Briggs, C. L. Frost, C. Green, J. A. Amelung, Fred. Frey, and John M. BelL
The claim made by plaintiffs (acting for W. H. Haynes & Co.) upon defendants is
$192 04, being for loss alleged to have been sustained upon a parcel of 69 bales of
cotton, in consequence of the same proving in Liverpool to be falsely packed and un
merchantable.
The plaintiffs state that the list of cotton, of which these 69 bales formed a portion,
was purchased by them from defendants, with the usual and customary understanding
and implied warranty, that the whole of the list was sound and merchantable in every
respect. They further state tliat it is their invariable custom, when they purchase any
mixed cotton, to make a specific note of that fact in their contract book, and that no
such note was made in this case.
Their contract book has been examined by the committee and no such remark exists
on the entry of this purchase.
They prove by the evidence of Mr. S. J. B. Degruy, that he took a list of this cotton
to the press; that it corresponded in every respect with the entry in their contract book,
and that there was no remark against any of the marks indicating any o f them to be
mixed in tire bale.
To this the defendants reply, that they decline paying the claim:—
1st. Because the list, of which the above 69 bales formed a portion, was composed
of various marks, amongst which was one mark of J. R. 32 bales “ mixed cotton,” and
sold by them as such, as per entry in their day-book. That the A. B. 69 bales was the
purchaser’s classification and was composed of portions of four different planter’s marks,
namely, C. Mulhollan 43, Farrar 3, J. T. H. 1., and J. R. 17.
2d. Because in consequence of the marks, Mulhollan 43, Farrar 3 and J. T. H „ being
classed and shipped in the same mark with the J. R. 17 bales mixed, and the whole
parcel was condemned solely because the 17 mixed bales were in the lot, and not be
cause each and every bale was falsely packed.
3d. Because it is evident from the fact that other B9 bales of the same mark,
namely, C. Mulhollan 40, Farrar 7, and J. T. H. 12, not being classed with any of the
J. R. marks are not objected to, and consequently are presumed to have been found
good and merchantable ; and
♦4th. Because the certificate of false packing are not made out in a regular and proper
form, no original marks or shipping numbers being given, and that this would be abso
lutely necessasy for them, who are only agents in the matter, to establish any claims
against the planters.
As evidence in the support of the above Mr. J. G. Wakefield states that he was in
the employ of defendants at the time this sale was made; that each paper of samples
of this cotton was ticketed by him, and that the ticket on the sample of J. R. 32 bales
was marked “ m i x e d t h a t he was present when Mr. Holland examined these samples
prior to making the purchase, and that he heard Mr. Bulht distinctly state to Mr. Hol
land that the mark J. R. was mixed cotton, and to be sold as such.
The Committee have examined defendants’ day-book and account sales-book, and the
words “ mixed cotton ” is written opposite the mark J. R. in the day-book, apparently

112

Commercial Regulations.

in the same hand-writing, and with the same ink as the original entry. The copy of
the account sale in that book shows the sale to have been rendered by them for this
parcel as mixed cotton.
The Committee consider the evidence of Mr. Wakefield conclusive as to the fact of
the J. R. 32 bales having been sold as mixed, and attach no importance to the evidence
of Mr. Degruy, that no such remark was made upon the the list taken by him to the
press, for it is not even proved that that was the original list obtained from the de
fendants.
The mark A. B. 69 bales appears from the classification book of the plaintiffs to
have been a selection from the whole list, namely, the 4th or most inferior quality, and
it is known by the committee, that in this market, if any portion of a crop of cotton
be found falsely packed it is very customary for the purchaser to reject the whole
mark, and it is supposed that the same custom exists in Liverpool.
But although here this may be done with perfect safety, as a mark applies to one
crop, it is evident that where several crops are embodied by the purchaser under one
general shipping mark for his own convenience, it would be unjust that his so doing
should subject an honest and careful planter to condemnation and loss, simply because
his crop should happen to be found in a foreign market classed and marked along with
that o f a dishonest or less careful neighbor, and evidence intended to condemn a whole
mark of cotton, composed as this was of various crops, should be clear and distinct as
to each and every bale.
It is clear to the committee that as regards the 17 bales, J. R., they were sold as
mixed cotton, and under no circumstances could the plaintiffs’ have any claims for los3
upon them ; and as regards the remaining 52 bales, the documentary evidence pro
duced by the plaintiffs’ is of a very vague and unsatisfactory nature.
Neither of the certificates states that the whole of the 69 bales were falsely packed ;
that of Messrs Thos. Haight & Co. says “ principally falsely packed,” that of Messrs.
Jones, Mann & Foster “ as well as for the most part falsely packed.”
That the whole of them were not falsely packed, the committee think may fairly be
presumed from the result of the resale.
A comparison of the Liverpool Price Current of the 4th and 18th August shows
there to have been a decline in that market during the fortnight of a full -J-d. per l b ;
consequently, if, on the first of August, the sound and merchantable value of the 69
bales was 3ld., (the price at which it was sold,) on the 19th of August the value would
have been 3fd., and yet, on that day, under all the disadvantages created by a sale by
public auction, “ all faults,” we find that 30 bales realized 3£d. per lb., or within -^d.
per lb. of their full value, if sold under ordinary circumstances, and the remaining 39
bales 3£d. per lb.
It has been shown also that the 69 bales were composed of portions of various crops,
and yet, in the certificates and returns of the resales, no original marks, or shipping
numbers, or weight, are given, so that it is impossible to say which crops or portions of
crops sold at 3£d., or which at 3£d., and, therefore, the defendants would be utterly
at a loss how to apportion a claim against their principals, as they could not tell what
proportion of the resale they had to place to the credit of each party respectively, nor
could it be ascertained which were the J. R. 17 bales, purchased by the plaintiffs as
mixed cotton.
Hence the Committee are of opinion, that, upon the J. R. 17 bales, the plaintiffs
cannot possibly ha\e any claim whatsoever, and that they have not produced evidence
sufficiently satisfactory to entitle them to any award in consequence of loss upon the
remaining 52 bales.
They, therefore, unanimously award, that plaintiffs’ claim be dismissed, with the costs
o f this arbitration. ( A true copy.)
C. J. M AN SO N I^

INSPECTION OF FLOUR IN ALBANY.
A t a meeting of the Board of Trade, 18th April, two important measures, which
have long been under consideration, and which will be found, when carried out, alike
beneficial to the public and those engaged in the flour and produce business, were
agreed upon. The most important is the raising of the standard of inspection of flour.
The Board unanimously adopted the New York standard of extra, superfine, and
superfine No. 2, and recommended that the three inspectors, Cornelius Vosburgh, Rich
ard Updike, William Dowd, be requested to take the samples in the possession of the
Board as the standard, and to procure a suitable brand for the superfine No. 2, with
the word and figure No. 2, and the inspector’s name with the month from the 1st

Commercial Regulations.

11 3

of May to the 1st of November, on the same brand, and directed that the same be
branded upon the head instead of the side of the barrel. The same to take effect
on the 1st of May.
This is as it should be, and we trust that it will be kept there. It only requires a
strict adherence to this standard on the part of the inspectors to have our inspection
pass as current in the sea-coast towns and the Eastern markets as that of any other
place, and we have no doubt that the inspectors will strictly adhere to this standard.
MEASUREMENT OF GRAIN.

The Board also took up the subject of the measurement of grain, and finally agreed
upon a plan, which was unanimously adopted. They selected from those whose busi
ness has heretofore been that of weighers and measurers the names of twenty per
sons, to be recognized by the Board of Trade as weighers and measures for this city.

FREEDOM OF TH E COASTING TRADE OF INDIA.

An extract of a letter to Frederick Tudor, Esq., of Boston, received by the last In
dia mail, from Messrs. Binney & Co., dated Madras, April 12, 1850 :— “ In pursuance
o f this opening o f the ports in India to entire freedom, the bark Brothers, of Boston,
was, at last accounts, taking in cargo of salt at Bombay for Calcutta, on freight.”
F o r t W il l ia m , H ome D e pa r t m e n t , March 8, 1850.

The following act, passed by the Governor General of India, in council, on the 8th
of March, 1850, is hereby promulgated for general information:—
AN ACT FOR FREEDOM OF THE COASTING TRADE OF INDIA.

Whereas, by an act of Parliament passed in the thirteenth year of the reign of Her
Majesty, entitled an A ct to Amend the Laws in Force for the Encouragement of British
Shipping and Navigation, it is enacted with regard to the coasting trade of India that
it shall be lawful for the Governor General of India in Council, to make any regula
tions authorizing or permitting the conveyance of goods or passengers from one part
of the possessions of the East India Company to another part thereof, in other than
British ships, subject to such restrictions or regulations as he may think necessary.
It is enacted as follows :—
1.
Goods and passengers may be conveyed from one part of the territories under
the government of the East India Company to another part thereof, in other than
British ships, without any restriction other than is or shaU be equally imposed on Brit
ish ships for securing the payment of duties of customs, or otherwise.
F R E D . JA S. H A L L ID A Y , S e c r e t a r y t o th e G o v e r n o r o f I n d ia .

PORT OF REALIJO, NICARAGUA.

The Supreme Director of the State o f Nicaragua, being informed that on or before
the first of May next the American lines of steamers' in the Pacific Ocean propose to
establish depots in the port of Realijo, and to touch there in their voyages to obtain
supplies of coals and provisions, therefore, and in virtue of the powers conferred by the
law of the 4th October last, he does
DECREE.

A rt. 1. The said lines of steamers shall have the right to enter and depart from
the said port free of all anchorage or tonnage duties.
A rt. 2. All vessels exclusively carrying coal for said steamers shall be allowed to
enter said port and discharge their cargoes upon the same terms.
A rt. 3. Each o f the said lines of steamers shall have the privilege of erecting such
wharfs or docks as may be necessary for the objects above indicated, under such regu
lations as may be agreed upon with the government.
A rt. 4. A ll regulations conflicting with the provisions of this decree are hereby sus
pended.
Dated in Leon, this *7th day of March, 1850.
N orbkrto R amirez .
VOL. XX11I.— n o . I.

114

Nautical Intelligence.

NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE.
MAURY’ S SAILING DIRECTIONS.
W e are indebted to George Manning, Esq., of New York, for a copy of Lieutenant
M. F. Maury’s Sailing Directions, which have been approved by the Secretary of the
Navy, and published by authority of Commodore Warrington, Chief o f the Bureau o f
Ordinance and Hydrography, a most valuable addition to the science and practice of
navigation. This publication embraces tabular statements of the best average routes
from New York to clear Cape St. Roque, in Brazil, for December, January, February,
and March; general remarks on the passage from the United States to ports beyond
the Equator, with comparisons of actual passages by the new and by the old routes
to the Line. It also embraces directions and tables in regard to the best average
routes to and fro, between New York, Cape Clear, and the English Channel, for Januuary, February, March, and April. Lieutenant Maury, who is at the head of the Na
tional Observatory, Washington, has prepared and published, under the auspices of our
Government, a series of well-executed “ Pilot-charts,” and navigators who are disposed
to try these routes are furnished with them on application, either at the National Ob
servatory, at Washington, or to George Manning, No. 90 Wall-street, New York, or to
W. H. C. Riggs, Philadelphia; provided the applicant will agree to furnish Lieutenant
Maury, of the National Observatory, an abstract of bis log according to form, with
which he will also be gratuitously supplied. The form referred to is given in the pres
ent document. Lieutenant Maury deserves the lasting gratitude of navigators, as well
for his useful discoveries as for his untiring efforts and learned labors in this depart
ment of science. Although we are not particularly well informed on the topics con
nected with this subject, we are intuitively impressed with the untiring industry and
great skill he has brought to bear upon the important interest of navigation:—
W IN D S AN D CURRENTS OF TH E OCEAN.
COPY OF A LETTER ADDRESSED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF THE NATIONAL OBSERVATORY TO
THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY.

N ational O b se r v a t o r y , M a y 13IA, 1850.

:— The investigations carried on at this office with regard to the winds and cur
rents of the ocean, have led me to the discovery of a new route hence to the Equator,
by which the passage of all vessels trading under canvass, whether to South America,
China, India, or Australasia; to California, Polynesia, or the markets of the Pacific,
has been shortened several days.
This discovery has been duly made known to navigators, many of whom have availed
themselves of it.
In order to enable the Department to judge of the importance of this discovery, and
to compare the passages by the new route with passages made by the old, I submit
herewith a tabular statement showing the passage of eighty-eight vessels by the new
and o f seventy-three by the old or usual route.
These passages were taken at random from those that have been returned to the
office, and are believed to afford a fair average.
The average passage by the old route to the Equator is forty-one days.
Y ou will observe by the tabular statement that the passage by the new route has
frequently been made in about half that time, and even in less, as by the “ St. Helena,”
the “ Houqua,” and the “ Memnon,” which three ships made the passage from New
York in March and April, 1849, in nineteen, twenty, and nineteen days respectively
by this route.
You will observe, also, that the vessels which have taken it in February and March
have had, on the average, a passage of fourteen or fifteen days less than those which
have taken the old route at the same season, and that, consequently, during the period
S ir

N autical Intelligence.

11 5

o f each year the markets of Brazil, China, and the Indies, and of all those countries
beyond the Equator, have been practically brought by these investigations, charts, and
discoveries, two weeks nearer to our own doors than they were before.
The route by sea to all these places is the same until you cross the Equator, and
these charts have shortened that part of the route during these two months by more
than one-third of the time hitherto required for its performance.
It will be further observed by this tabular statement that the average passage to
the Equator during the half-year, which comprises the winter and spring months, has
been shortened ten days by the new route, and by more than a week, on the average,
the year round.
In view of these important and practical results I beg leave to call the attention of
the Departments to the fact that the vast amount of observatiohs, data, and materials
which it was necessary to collect and discuss, in order to arrive at such valuable con
clusions, have been obtained without cost to the Government.
American ship-owners and masters, in the broad spirit of those enlarged and en
lightened views for which they are celebrated, have, at my solicitation, not only furn
ished me gratuitously with abstracts and copies of old sea-journals, from which the
materials of the wind and current charts have been gathered, but they have agreed
also to co-operate with me in the undertaking, and to make daily, and in all parts of the
ocean, wherever an American ship may go, a series of observations for the completion
and perfection of these charts. More than a thousand private ships are now engaged
daily in this important undertaking.
The only expense entailed by it upon the Government so far is the expense of making
this information available after it has been obtained, by the publication thereof in a
cheap and convenient form.
The charts that have been published hitherto relate principally to the North Atlantic
Ocean; but similar charts and investigations, with the view to like improvements in
the navigation of the South Atlantic, the Pacific, and Indian Oceans, are also in
progress.
Many important subjects, such as the existence of rocks, shoals, and vigias; the true
character and locality of dangers, of obstructions and facilities to navigation, with many
other subjects of practical interest to commerce, and which relate to the winds and
currents of the sea, require more careful and tedious investigation or examination than
these private ships, which are aiding me, have the time to give.
In view of this fact, of what has already been accomplished, and in consideration of
the very great value of such service, I beg leave again to call your attention to the
act of Congress which authorizes the employment of three small vessels of the navy
to assist me with these investigations.
Hoping that the exigencies of the other branches of the public service are no longer
such as to prevent suitable vessels from being detailed on this important work, I have
the honor to be, respectfully, <fcc.
M. F. MAURY.
Hon. W illiam B a ll ar d P r esto n , S e c r e t a r y o f th e N a v y , W a s h i n g t o n .

PASSAGE OVER TH E BAR OF TH E TOBACCO RIV ER
MEMORANDUM FROM THE NOTE BOOK OF GEORGE M. TOTTON, LIEUTENANT COMMANDER OF
THE UNITED STATES STEAMER “ W ATER W ITCH.”

The bar o f the Tobacco River may be considered passable at all seasons of the year
for vessels drawing ten (10) feet water, though there are times, immediately alter a
norther, when there is as little as eight (8) feet; but in one or two days the current of
the river wears the channel to its usual depth.
I surveyed the bar in the early part of March, 1848, and have since crossed it many
times, never with less than ten feet, sometimes with eleven, and once with thirteen, in
September, 1848.
The water will be found deepest during the months immediately preceding the sea
son of north winds, when the current of the river has had a long time to act in clearing
out the channel on the bar.
The water in the river is highest, and the current more rapid, during the rainy sea
son, when I have known a single norther to bank the bar up from eight to ten feet.
No vessel should load inside deeper than to ten feet draught, or they may have to
wait a month before getting out.
The pilots are good and keep a good lookout for vessels approaching—getting ou
board in good time.

116

N autical Intelligence .
SURVEYING MARKS ON TH E FLORIDA R E E F.

The Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey has addressed the following
official communication, containing some important information relating to surveying
marks on the Florida R eef:—
Coa st Su rv ey O ffice , W ashington , M a y 16th , 1850.

S ir :— In surveying the Florida coast, it has been found desirable and practicable to

place signals upon the reefs, as they will serve as important marks to show these dan
gers, and unless removed by accident or design, are likely to be permanent for some
considerable time. I am of opinion that it would subserve the interests of navigators
to give notice of their ppsition and character, and I would respectfully request author
ity to give publicity to the notice.
Assistant Gerdes informs me that the steamers “ Ohio ” and “ Georgia ” have both
already found these marks useful to them.
1. A signal pole on “ Turtle Reef," bearing S. E. from Caesar's Creek, 12 feet above
the water, with braces 6 feet from the base, on the top, a thin cone— the upper half
painted red, the lower white.
2. A signal on the “ Pacific Reef,” E. S. E. from Cassars Creek, of the same dimen
sions— the upper part of the cone painted white, the lower part red.
S. On “ Ajax Reef’’ (commonly called the “ Hay Jack Reef") bearing E. by K. from
Caesar’s Creek, of the same dimensions— the upper part of the cone painted red, the
lower white.
4. On “ Long R eef’’ bearing E. of Elliott’s Key, also of the same dimensions— the
upper part of the cone painted white, the lower part red.
Two beacons of similar dimensions were also put up on the “ Triumph Reef," and
o f the “ Flowey Rocks,” but by some accident or design they were lately removed.
Arrangements, however, have been made to have them replaced during the first calm
weather, and their barings and character will be as follows:—
“ Triumph Reef ”— E. of Ragged Keys, painted red above, white below.
“ Flowey Rocks ”— S. % W. from Soldier’s Key, white above, and red below.
It was attempted to place a signal or beacon on “ Ledbury Reef" but it was found
impracticable.
The following large signals and beacons were put up last year and recently:—
“ Sombrero K ey”— 36 feet high, barrel, braces 25 feet long.
“ Looe Key ”— 38 feet high, ban-el, braces 22 feet lon g; leans somewhat to the east.
“ West Sambo ”— 35 feet high, barrel, braces 25 feet long.
“ Sand Key ’— (astronomical station) 36 feet high, barrel, braces 26 feet lon g; the
sides recently boarded up by Lieutenant Rodgers.
“ Eastern Dry Rocks ”— near Sand K e y ; triangle, 18 feet poles.
“ Western Dry Rocks ”— near Sand Key ; 18 feet poles.
“ Middle Ground ”— also near Sand K e y ; triangle, 22 feet poles ; the E. and W.
sides boarded up.
Very respectfully, yours,
A . D. BACH E, S u p e r in t e n d e n t o f U n ite d S t a t f s C o a s t S u r v e y .
Hon. W . M. M EREDITH, S e c r e t a r y o f th e T r e a s u r y .

LIGHT HOUSE AT TH E ENTRANCE OF TH E OLD BAHAMA CHANNEL.

F rom and after the 1st o f M ay, 1850, a light w ill be exhibited at the entrance o f
the old Baham a Channel, at C ape Maternillos, Island o f Cuba, from sunset to sunrise.
The said light is situated in lat. 2 1 ° 3 9 ' 3 9 " K., Ion. 7 0 ° 5 3 ' l 1? " W., m eridian o f Cadiz,
o f the first-class o f Fresnell, “ dioptrieo,” with rotary m ovem ent, eclipsing in alternate
minutes. T he light w ill be o f natural color, elevated 190 feet above the level o f the
sea, givin g 15 m iles o f tangent, so that it m ay be seen at greater or less distance, a c
cording to the state o f the atm osphere and the elevation o f the observer.
SHOAL IN MOZAMBIQUE CHANNEL.

Mr. W hite, o f the bark “ Pilot,” a t Salem , furnishes the follow ing extract from his
jo u rn a l:— “ Saturday. January 5th, at 7£ A . M „ passed over the end o f a shoal, w ith
not m ore than three fathoms on it— cou ld see the bottom very distinctly, and at the
sam e tim e saw several patches to w indw ard, w hich looked m uch shoaler— should think
the w h ole extent o f the shoal to be 1J to 2 miles. It bears from Bassa de India N\
W . b y W . -f W ., bjr com pass, distance 35 miles, lies in lat. 2 1 ° 10' S., Ion. 3 8 ° 5 7 ' 3 0 "
E , and should consider it dangerous.

Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance.

117

JOURNAL OF BANKING, CURRENCY, AND FINANCE.
*

CONDITION OF TH E BANKS OF TH E STATE OF NEW YORK.

{

In the Merchants’ Magazine for January, 1850, we published a table showing the
condition of the banking institutions of the State of New York on the 1st of September, 1849; and in the April number a similar table o f their condition on the 29th of
December, 1849, compiled from the Controller’s usual quarterly statement. We now
subjoin a similar statement, carefully compiled from the same official document, show
ing the condition of the same banks on the 30th of March, 1850 :—
RESOURCES.
Other
Other
Other
Incorporated Banking incorporated banking
assoc’ ns o f
Banks
associations individual
banks o f
N. Y . city. N. Y . city, o f the State, o f the State, banks.

Grand
Total.
Loans & D isco’ nts, except to
Directors and Brokers........ $ 13,885,877 $17,488,110 $22,286,971 $10,273,656 $2,001,963 $85,936,577
Loans & disc’ts to Directors.
1,371,004
708,109
1,910,502
1,191,976
5,181,591
A ll other liabilities, absolute
524,310
1,082,145
or contingent o f Directors.
1,606,455
326,92 i
987,000
749,151
250.995
A ll suras due from brokers..
109,650
2,423,717
673,194
424,618
1,004,926
Real estaie................................
1,582,939
59,902
3,745,579
1,952,749
34,311
528,577
150,022
Bonds and m ortgages............
247,525
2,913,184
2,851,903
606,131
4,877,000 3,420,236
S tocks........................................
357,935
12,113,205
Prom issory notes, other than
23,207
12,931
for loans and discou n ts.. .
257,265
293,403
66,336
83,612
123,167
244,712
35,741
L oss and expense a cco u n t...
553,568
3,965
73,834
55,527
21,567
O verdrafts................................
15,734
170,627
1,763,833
558,863
267,825
5,091,580
47,885
7,729,986
158,784
5,912,840
2,637,273
509.978
40,806
9.259,68L
1,166,074
469,374
345,093
377,313
93,935
Bills o f solv’ t banks on hand
2,451,789
' 2,357
1,167
1,760
Bills o f susp’ d banks on hand
5,284
987
131
1,012
2,130
Estimated value o f the same.
4,205,032
971,972
1,287,801
270,531
Due f ’ m solv’ t b ’ks o n d e m ’d
2,992,256
9,727,592
304,962
75,976
4,000
384,938
D ue Prn solv’ t b’ ks on credit
153,192
13,844
171,869
D ue f ’ m susp’ d b’ks on dem ’ d
4,833
38,830
2,300
41,130
Estimated value o f the same.
Due f ’m susp’d b’ ks on credit
Estimated value o f the same.
Total resources................ $53,522,086 $28,707,288 $32,831,684 $21,284,985 $6,606,828 $ 1 12,952 ,8 a 1
LIABILITIES.
Capital........................................$16,251,200 $10,489,145 $11,365,260 $7,754,859 $1,500,861 $47,361,325
Profits................ .......................
1,198,930
2,212,432
2,705,272
1,203,231
163,515
7,483,380
281,340
338,756
Notes in cir’ la’ ni not regist’d
620,090
9,079,873
Registered notes in circulat’ n
4,078,576
1,944,478
5,182,324 3,729,044
24,014,295
Due Treasurer o f State o f N. Y
743,351
686,679
166,980
50,583
1,647,593
Due depositors on dem and..
D ue individuals & c o r p ’ns,
oth. than b’ ks & depositors
D ue banks on dem an d..........
Due banks on credit...............
Due to others, not included
in either o f above h e a d s...

21,897,976

10,072,453

5,122,524

4,093,652

843,779

42,030,384

47,316
7,887,365
95,000

14,224
4,544,575
150,000

30.497
3,116,612
403,352

386,883
1,461,452
225,724

43,701
91,538

522,621
17,101,542
874,076

227,432

293,465

418,932

290,109

67,601

1,297,539

Total liabilities................ $53,532,086 $28,707,288 $32,831,664 $21,284,985 $6,606,828 $142,952,851
S U M M A R Y OF T H E I T E M S OF C A P I T A L , C IR C U L A T IO N , A N D D E P O S I T S — S P E C IE AND C A S H I T E M S —
S E C U R I T I E S , A N D P R I V A T E S E C U R I T I E S , OF T H E B A N K S OF T H E S T A T E OF N E W Y O R K , ON T H E
ING OF T H E 3 0 T H D A Y OF M A R C H , 1 8 5 0 .

Capital..................................................... $47,361,325 i S p e cie......................................................
Cir’ t’ n (old em isson)........
$620,096
Cash Item s...............................................
“ (registered n otes). 24,014,295
JPublic securities....................................
---------------24,634,391 t Private securities..................................
D eposits.. . ............................................
42,030,384 '

N o report w as received from the Bank o f Bainbridge.
and W arren County Bank have closed their affairs.

PUBLIC
MORN

$7,729,986
9,259,681
12,406,608
96,625,696

The Franklin County Bank

Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance.

11 8

CALIFORNIA GOLD AT TH E UNITED STATES M INT.

George W. Edelman, Accountant of the United States Mint, Philadelphia, has pre
pared a brief treatise, designed to answer the frequent inquiries made at the Mint re
specting the general character of California gold, and its value per ounce Troy. It
appears from Edelman that since December 8th, 1848, when the first deposit of gold
from California was made at the Mint at Philadelphia, there have been presented
for coinage 8,845 deposits, of the value of $11,420,000, the product of that country;
1,842 deposits, worth $5,550,000, during the first thirteen months, and the remainder,
or 2,003 deposits, worth $5,87 0,000, since the first year.
The following table shows the number of deposits of California gold presented at
the Mint for coinage from December 8th, 1848, to April 30th, 1850, with the fineness
o f each deposit:—
Fine- No. of
Fine- No. of
ness, deposits. ness. deposits.
v

T h ou s.

8484
849
8494
850
8504
851
8514
852
8524
853
8534
854
8544
855
8554
856
8564
857
8574
858
8584
859
8594
860
8604

0
1
0
1
1
2
0
1
2
2
i
i
i
i
0
1
2
3
2
4
3
2
1
10
4

T h ou s.

861
8614
862
8624
863
8634
864
8644
865
8654
866
8664
867
8674
868
8684
869
8694
870
8704
871
8714
872
8724
873

5
4
4
2
5
5
2
3
3
6
5
5
5
6
11
7
10
11
7
11
8
11
11
8
13
168

Fine- No. of
Fine- No. of
ness. deposits. ness. deposits.

Fine- No. of Fine- No. of
ness. ■
deposits. ness, dep’ts.

T h ou s.

8734
874
8744
875
8754
876
8764
877
8774
878
8784
879
8794
880
8804
881
8814
882
8824
883
8834
884
8844
885
8854

T h ou s,

9
13
15
11
9
18
19
29
22
20
31
33
24
55
44
67
69
102
95
116
104
135
150
227
160
1,577

886
8864
887
8874
888
8884
889
8894
890
8904
891
8914
892
8924
893
8934
894
8944
895
8954
896
8964
897
8974
898

219
122
179
114
147
73
109
93
95
55
54
38
60
47
45
37
43
27
34
35
38
30
27
14
30
1,765

8984
899
8994
900
9004
901
9014
902
9024
903
9034
904
9044
905
9054
906
9064
907
9074
908
9084
909
9094
910
9104

T h ou s.

23
16
9
21
12
22
8
16
8
17
7
8
8
7
4
4
4
7
3
9
7
6
1
1
1
229

911
9114
912
9124
913
9134
914
9144
915
9154
916
9164
917
9174
918
9184
919
9194
920
9204
921
9214
922
9224
923

2
2
5
1
3
2
0
1
2
1
0
3
0
1
2
0
0
1
0
0
2
0
1
0
0
29

Number o f deposits, as above
Besides which, there were o f a lower fineness than in the above list.........
And o f a higher fineness . . . ,

3,814
19
12

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

3,845

It appears by the above table that seven-eights of all the deposits made in the Mint,
from the commencement of the California business to the present period, show a va
riation in quality of only fifty cents per ounce Troy, the fineness ranging between 8734
thousandths and 8984 thousandths.
The average fineness of nearly all the California gold brought to the Mint is 886
thousandths: the flat spangles of the rivers, which bear a small proportion to the mass,
average 895 thousandths.
“ The alloy of California gold, ordinarily, is wholly silver with a little iron.” The
iron and dirt or sand are removed by melting, occasioning an average loss in weight of
about 34 per cent. If the grains have been cleansed by the magnet, the loss is reduced

Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance .

119

to about 2£ per cent; but if the grains are dampened or wet, the loss may rise to 4
per cent, or even higher.
California gold is regarded as consisting of 995 parts of gold and silver in every
1.000 parts by weight, which renders it necessary to separate these metals before they
are converted into coin. An allowance for the silver is made to the depositor, provid
ing the quantity deposited is sufficiently large to yield five dollars, after paying the
expenses of parting, as estimated according to the tariff of Mint charges fixed by the
Director of the Mint, with the concurrence of the Secretary of the Treasury.
According to law the standard gold o f the United States is so constituted that in
1.000 parts by weight 900 shall be of pure gold, and 100 of an alloy composed of
copper and silver: 381 ounces of pure gold are worth $8,000, and 99 ounces of pure
silver are worth $128.
TH E BANK OF HAMBURG.

The confusion arising out of the state and nature of the coinage throughout Ger
many, which prevailed at the commencement of the seventeenth century, was the
cause of the establishment of the Bank of Hamburg. From the low value of some
of the coins, and from the superabundance of others which were of no value at all,
the imperial dollars, coined according to the standard fixed by the constitution of the
German empire, grew every year more scarce, and the actual value of them became
more fluctuating and uncertain; and, therefore, as these dollars were the money espe
cially used in wholesale business and in the trade in bills of exchange, the merchants
were thereby exposed to the greatest inconvenience, and experienced extreme difficulty
in the proper transaction of their affairs.
In order to obviate or remove a similar state of circumstances attending the coinage
of the low countries, a bank has been established at Amsterdam in the year 1609, and
the Committee of Merchants at Hamburg, being desirous of following such an exam
ple, addressed themselves to the Senate of that city about the year 1615, praying for
the establishment of a Bank of Exchange, for the accommodation and benefit of the
commercial interest. The Senate, without hesitation, acknowledged the propriety and
suitableness of the proposal, and about four years subsequently, when the assembly of
the citizens had definitively given their consent to it, the Bank of Hamburg was es
tablished.
The principle upon which it was founded was, that a person who might deposit in
the bank a thousand specie dollars of the empire, should be credited with the sum of
a thousand and one dollars Banco; and further, that a person, who might be disposed
to withdraw his deposits from the bank, should be paid at anytime without reserve or
delay, at the rate of one thousand imperial dollars in cash for 1,001 & dollars Banco.
The actual difference in the value set by the bank between the dollars deposited and with
drawn was, therefore, at the commencement absolutely inconsiderable, being only fiveeighths of a dollar per $1.000; and this margin arose simply in this w ay: that, inas
much a3 the rate paid at the Bank of Amsterdam for the charges consequent on the
deposit and withdrawal was one stiver for 1,000 florins, that to be paid at the Bank
of Hamburg should be fixed at Is. for 100 marks, which is also the same as 1-16 per
centum or five-eighths per 1,000.
According to the comprehensive and highly interesting work, “ Ueber Hamburgs
Handel, und Statistik des Hambergischen Handels ”— by Adolph Soetbeer, published
at Hamburg in 1846— the following appear to be the leading features in the constitu
tion and regulations of the Hamburg Bank, at the present time:—
The Bank of Hamburg is a transfer deposit bank, the capital of which is composed
of bars of fine silver.
A ll Hamburg citizens who have been admitted to the superior grade of citizenship,
and those members of the Jewish guilds who have paid to the City Chamber a sum of
money corresponding in amount with the expenses of admission to that grade of citi
zenships, are privileged to become depositors in the bank.
The capital of the bank is composed of the bullion which is deposited by the de
positors, and which must consist of bars of silver of at least 15 ounces and 12 grains
to the fine mark of the standard of Cologne.
Any person who may be privileged to become a depositor in the bank, and who de
posits silver in bars, lias an account opened to his credit in the books of the bank, and

120

Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance .

every fine mark o f the standard of Cologne deposited by him is estimated at the rate
o f 27 marks 10s. Hamburg Banco.
An account may also be opened to the credit of a person privileged to become, by
the transfer into his name by another person of the capital which the latter may have
deposited in the bank; so that, however numerous the depositors’ accounts in the books
of the bank may be, the total amount of the silver bullion in the custody of the bank
is equal to the total amount of the accounts of all the depositors.
Whenever a depositor has to make a payment to another depositor, he has only to
direct that the sum to be paid to him be written off or transferred from his own ac
count. and be posted to the account of such other depositor, in the books of the bank.
The peculiar expressions used for this purpose are “ absehreiben,” (to write off,) and
“ zuschreiben,” (to write or post to.) This transfer from the account of one depositor
to that of another is effected simply by the person who makes the transfer filling up
a form called “ Bankzettel,” (bank ticket,) which he delivers in person.
The bank takes no concern respecting the genuineness of the depositors’ signatures;
the only thing it attends to is, that the depositors deliver in their bank tickets either in
person or by an attorney especially appointed for the purpose.
A person so appointed to act as an attorney cannot depute another person to act for
him ; indeed, it is requisite in his case, that, at the commencement of every year, the
power by which he has been appointed to act be renewed personally at the bank by
the depositor who has appointed him.
It is a rule that no transfer shall be made from the account of one depositor to that
of another for a smaller sum than 100 marks Hamburg Banco. No depositor is priv
ileged to transfer more than the amount which stands to his credit, nor can he transfer
any sum which has not stood to his credit at least for one day.
Early every morning, except on Sundays and holidays, depositors may send to the
bank to inquire whether any and what sums have been posted to their accounts on the
day previous, and for a small consideration, to be paid to the book-keepers, they may
receive that information every evening. By this simple process of writing off or trans
ferring an amount of money from the account of depositor to that of another, Ham
burg possesses the safest and easiest currency; for as long as any silver bullion re
mains in the custody of the bank to the credit of any depositor, so long can payments,
corresponding thereto in amount, be made from the account of that depositor to the
account of another depositor, according to the will of the owner. Sums, which it
would be tedious to calculate, are thus transferred by means of a few strokes of the
pen ; and, as the bank is responsible for the correctness of the payments which are
made by it, there need be no fear respecting error, counterfeit coins, or spurious notes;
and all receipts for bills and accounts referring to payments which have been made by
the bank are, therefore, rendered unnecessary.
Depositors who are desirous of withdrawing, in silver bullion, the whole or any part
of the amount standing to their credit, may do so at any time, when they will receive
the sum in bars of silver, estimated at the rate of 27 marks and 12 schillings banco
for the fine mark at Cologne.
The amount of the balance standing to the credit of each depositor, and the sums
written off from and carried to his account from time to time, are never divulged. Not
only the superintendent of the bank, but also the clerks and book-keepers, are sworn
to the most scrupulous secrecy; so that a depositor cannot obtain any information re
specting the account of another depositor, but only respecting his own.
The Government of Hamburg is never allowed, under any circumstances whatever,
to interfere with, or make any disposition of, the whole or any portion of the funds of
the bank, as the administration of them is altogether independent of the Goverment,
the establishment being subject only to the supervision of the State.
The above are the leading features in the constitution and regulations of the Ham
burg Bank, and the following are the fundamental principles on which it is based :—
1. The funds of the bank being composed of fine silver, the immutability of those
funds is secured.
2. The regulation requiring the personal attendance of a depositor, or his attorney,
specially appointed, for the purpose of transferring sums from one account to another
in the bank’s books, ensures correctness in effecting such transfers.
3. As a depositor is not allowed to transfer any sum which has not stood at least
twenty-four hours to his account, great regularity and accuracy are secured.
4. By the state of each depositor’s account, and the operations effected in it, being
entirely confidential, the unrestricted use of the bank is furthered and encouraged;
and

Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance.

121

5.
The Government being precluded from any interference with the bank, is a guar
antee for its independence.
In considering the effects produced by the operation of a bank constituted like that
at Hamburg, the first and most essential benefits is stated to be the easy and perfectly
secure state o f circulation. Secondly, that Hamburg money, both currency and banco,
must, as is evident, become, from the unchangeable character, a normal value. And
thirdly, that the regulations of the bank offer the surest preventives against any de
ficiency or excess in the circulating medium.
As the Bank of Hamburg foregoes all business operations of every description on
its own account, and, therefore, has no occasion to resort to any artificial means to em
ploy its credit, it is an inevitable consequence that, when the bullion in the bank is
sufficient in amount to supply the wants of Hamburg commerce, the rates of discount
will rise, and the course of the foreign exchanges will fall to such a point as to make
it profitable to deposit silver in the bank. A deficiency in the circulating medium is,
moreover, much more readily perceptible when the treasure of all the merchants is
accumulated in one lot, than if it were divided among several private bankers. Again,
in the event of an excess in the circulating medium, the stock of bullion in the bank is
also in excess; and in this case discounts will fall so low, and the rates of the foreign
exchanges will rise so high, that silver may be exported at a profit; the treasure in the
bank will, therefore, be in like manner in excess.
In whatever way mercantile speculation may operate, and whatever may be their
ultimate effect, the importation and exportation of silver are never the result of any
arbitrary proceedings on the part of the bank, but depend entirely upon the existing
state o f trade, and upon the amount of the circulating medium.
An apparent scarcity of money may, however, exist at Hamburg as well as at other
places, because a number of the depositors in the bank may, in anticipation of a com
mercial crisis, be prompted to allow their stock of bullion to remain in the bank un
disturbed, and, therefore, useless. But if the substantial character of the banking sys
tem of Hamburg should be found to act in opposition to a fictitious state of credit, it
follows, as a matter of course, that a rise in the rates of discount, and a fall in the
course of the foreign exchanges, will soon be the means of bringing back into circula
tion the capitals which have been withheld, precisely because discounts and the ex
changes are regulated without any spontaneous action on behalf of the bank. On this
account, therefore, an apparent scarcity in the circulating medium is always but of a
very transient character at Hamburg; while an apparent excess of the circulating
medium is not readily perceptible, because all transactions of exchange there are re
solved into bars o f silver.— London Bankers! Magazine.

AMERICAN CONTINENTAL CURRENCY.

Various attempts have been made to redeem the continental money, but without
success. The amount issued during the war was four hundred millions of dollars, but
one-half was cancelled by collection. Congress paid it out at forty dollars for one
specie. It afterwards fell to five hundred for one, and finally got as low as one thou
sand for one, when it lost all value. The whole public debt, including continental
money, was a foreign debt to France and Holland, at 4 per cent, of $7,885,085, and
a domestic debt, in loan office certificates, of $34,115,330, to which were added the
claims of several States, amounting to $21,500,000. The whole debt was $94,000,000,
which finally went to par. The campaign of 1778-9 cost $135,000,000 continental
money, while the whole amount in the Treasury in specie was $151,665. Taking the
reduction in value on continental money, it only amounted to a tax of about $5 per
annum to each person. It was doubtless a great loss to our forefathers, but what a
rich heritage have we not obtained for it, if we are wise enough to keep it.

BRITISH SAVINGS BANKS AND FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

It appears from a Parliamentary paper just printed, that from the 6th August, 1817'
when savings banks and friendly societies were commenced, to the 20th November.
1849, the gross amount received and credited, including interest, was £59,734,756 17s.7d.,
of which £56,258,799 14. lid . was on account of savings’ banks, and £3,475,957 2s. 8don account of friendly societies.

122

Journal o f Banking , Currency, and Finance.
BAKE OF ENGLAND R ETU R N S FOR 1849.
ISSUE DEPARTMENT.

January
“
“
“
February

6 .............. . . . .
18............. ........
20............. ........
27 ........... ........
3 ............. ........
10............. ........
it
17.............
“
24............. ........
March
3............. ........
a
10............. ........
«
17............. ........
“
24.............
u
31............. ........
April
7 ............. ........
il
14............. ........
“
2 1 .....................
(«
28............. ........
May
5 ...............
ti
12.......................
u
19...............
“
26..............
June
2 .......................
“
9 .......................
u
16 .............
u
23.......................
1C
30...............
July
7 ..............
il
14...............
it
21...............
u
28...............____
August
4 ...............
“
11..............
it
18...............
“
25.......................
September 1.......................
“
8 .......................
«<
15.......................
“
22.......................
a
29...............
6 ..............
October
M
13...............
“
20.......................
“
17.............. ........
November 3 ...............
“
10.......................
“
17...............
“
24...............____
December 1...............
a
8 ...............
u
15............. ___
a
22.......................
a
29...............____

Notes issued.
£28,234,000
28,198,000
28,270,000
28,315,000
28,330,000
28,447,000
28,405,000
28,314,000
28,548,000
28,551,000
28,407,000
28,019,000
27,928,000
27,769,000
27,602,000
27,460,000
27,553,000
27,770,000
28,304,000

27,746,000

27,790,000
27,919,000
27,908,000
27,910,000
28,246,000

28,252,000
28,470,000
28,818,000
29,570,000
30,137,000
30,284,000
30,238,000

Gold and silver
bullion.
£14,234,000
14,198,000
14,270,000
14,315,000
14,330,000
14,447,000
14,595,000
14,405,000
14,314,000
14,548,000
14,551,000
14,582,000
• 14,407,000
14,019,000
13,928,000
13,769,000
13,602,000
13,495,000
13,460,000
13,517,000
13,500,000
13,553,000
13,770,000
14,065,000
14,304,000
14,300,000
14,072,000
13,926,000
13,834,000
13,746,000
13,495,000
13,648,000
13,636,000
13,790,000
13,91,9000
13,908,000
13,910,000
14,246,000
14,292,000
14,268,000
14,149,000
14,252,000
14,470,000
14,605,000
14,818,000
15,209,000
15,570,000
15,720,000
15,983,000
16,137,000
16,284,000
16,238,000

BANKING DEPARTMENT.

Notes
in reserve.
£10,985,000
9,924,000
9,641,000
9,638,000
9,553,000
10,108,000
10,308,000
10,272,000
9,942,000
10,645,000
10,853,000
10,953,000
10,461,000
9,737,000
8,875,000
8,691,000
8,533,000
8,281,000
8,505,000
8,802,000
9,030,000
9,192,000
9,648,000
10,094,000
10,437,000
10,366,000
9,851,000
8,473,000
8,111,000
8,249,000
8,252,000
8,902,000
8,756,000
9,339,000
9,470,000
9,841,000
10,246,000
10,813,000
10,161,000
10,238,000
9,566,000
9,205,000
9,250,000
9,724,000
10,402,000
11,027,000
11,571,000
11,693,000
12,962,000
12,184,000
12,481,000
12,000,000

Gold and
silver coin.
£790,000
745,000
778,000
726,000
774,000
802,000
796,000
924,000
862,000
748,000
731,000
740,000
790,000
856,000
778,000
740,000
783,000
782,000
847,000
833,000
897,000
888,000
882,000
882,000
883,000
820,000
902,000
841,000
882,000
874,000
937,000
911,000
945,000
969,000
857,000
894,000
949,000
868,000
962,000
950,000
932,000
787,000
788,000
870,000
1,002,000
828,000
809,000
792,000
788,000
853,000
796,000
777,853

FINANCES OF TH E HANOVERIAN GOVERNMENT.

L etters from H anover, o f the 28th M ay, 1850, giv e a sum m ary o f the budget o f that
kingdom . T he expenditure is calculated a t 7,714,847 dollars, and the incom e o f the
yea r at 7,376,099 dollars; there is, consequently, a deficit o f 338,747 dollars, w hich
the H anoverian governm ent proposes to cover b y means o f an additional d u ty on
coffee, tobacco, w ine and brandy.
*

Railroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.

123

COUNTERFEITS ON THE STATE BANK OF INDIANA.

The counterfeit 7’s on the State Bank of Indiana, with which some parts o f the
Western country are now flooded, the State Sentinel says, are well calculated to deceive.
Still, attention will detect them. Letter B, for example, has a hill or bluff bank be
hind the steamboat on the right side of the vignette— the genuine has not.
There is
also a dot after the word Indianapolis, at the top of the counterfeit, which is not in the
genuine. The portrait on the left is course and indistinct, and the scroll work surround
ing it is much heavier and blacker than in the genuine. The appearance of the coun
terfeit is too dark and coarse. Letter C may be detected by noticing that the State
House at the bottom has no windows on the side— the genuine one has; the top of the
cupola in the counterfeit is directly under the first l in the word dollars in the line
above, while in the genuine it is between the o and l.

RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS.
TH E W HITNEY RAILROAD TO TH E PACIFIC,

W e were among the first to recognize the peculiar character of Mr. Whitney’s plan
of a railroad to the Pacific, and therefore announce with pleasure its triumph, not only
with the people in public assemblies, but with Legislatures of the States in their offi
cial action, and with committees of Congress, whenever it has been brought before
them. It passes every ordeal of public and official scrutiny, only to come out victori
ous, and to enforce its own by the lights of comparison, as well as by its intrinsic re
commendations. We have just received a report of the Committee of Roads and
Canals, of the House of Representatives, o f the present Congress, which is not only
the most decided sanction, but the best exposition of the Whitney plan that has been
presented. We proceed to give a brief analysis of this document.
After giving Mr. Whitney credit for his protracted exertions, and great success in
this field of investigation, and declaring tlieir conclusion in favor of his plan, the com
mittee proceed to specify some of the general objects of this enterprise, commercial,
social, and political, which constitute a showing of great interest and importance. We
only regret that we have not room for what they say under this head.
On the merits of the plan, positive and comparative, they find that it surmounts con
stitutional difficulties, and questions of difference between the two great political par
ties of the country, and all sectional interests, thus running in safety by Scylla on the
one side, and Charybdis on the other. The showing of the committee that this work
cannot with prudence be undertaken, nor in any probability accomplished by the gov
ernment, in any form whatever, will probably be regarded as satisfactory. The only
alternative left is the Whitney plan, as an individual enterprise, to be controlled and
supervised forever by the authorities of Congress, and of the national executive, so as
to secure the faithful execution of the law, and prevent abuses of the powers conferred.
The committee next proceed to a consideration of “ plans without means” in the
prosecution o f which they clearly show that Mr. Whitney’s is the only plan which
makes a demonstration of adequate means, independent of the public treasury, which,
it is assumed by the committee, cannot be relied upon, or legitimately applied to
this object. But the Whitney plan, as shown, furnishes means in itself, by its own
operation. It relies solely on the increased value of the lands through which the road
is to pass, as a capital created by its own progress, and a capital which would not other
wise exist. The evidence on this point is satisfactory and convincing. The means,
therefore, without which the road could never be built, are provided by this plan, and
could not possibly be found in any other which would not contain the elements of fail
ure in itself. The means are very properly considered by the committee as the sine
qua non of questions. They show that all the other plans proposed are wanting in
this particular, and therefore totally unreliable.
The committee then proceed to show that certain scientific and physical laws, which
cannot be overlooked in this enterprise, are in favor of Mr. Whitney’s plan, and against
all others. The route must necessarily be chosen where the great mass of the material
for the road itself, for towns and villages on the line, can be found ; and Mr. Whitney’s
plan is the only one for that. It must also be far enough north to escape the impedi
ments of winter interference in those latitudes bordering upon, or lying within the re

12 4

Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance .

gions where the alternate dry and rainy reasons prevail, and where the falling weather
being all in winter, the snows on the higher grounds are of insurmountable depth, and
where also the want of water and fuel in the dry season will be another insuperable
obstacle. Oa the Whitney route, the falling weather i3 distributed throughout the
year, and the snows of winter are light and dry, and easily removed from a railroad
track. It is also indispensable that the line of road from all the Atlantic ports should
be unbroken by river or lake to the Pacific terminus; and Mr. Whitney’s is the only
line to accomplish that. To have the route broken at St. Louis, or by any river or
water that cannot be bridged, would never do. Moreover, the distance from New
York to the great South Pass of the Rocky Mountains, is full three hundred miles less
by the Whitney route than by St. Louis; and by the laws of spherical trigonometry,
it will be seen that the distance between any two given circles of longitude is always
lessened in proportion as one’s line of movement from one to the other of these circles
is remote from the equator. Mr. Whitney’s route, therefore, is a material saving of
distance, as compared with others proposed.
The objections to the Whitney plan are thoroughly dealt with by the committee,
and scattered to the four winds. But the great reason in its favor, which prevails over
all, and which, as we think, can never be dispensed with, is, that it asks no capital
foreign to the lands awarded to it, to w it: a belt sixty miles wide, and, as a conse
quence, it will impose no toll to satisfy the interest of capital invested. This exemp
tion from toll, for the object of dividends, as is customary, and, in ordinary cases, ne
cessary, is regarded as the great principle which will forever make the Whitney rail
road the greatest and most important work in the world. Instead o f going to the pub
lic treasury, or to Wall street, or to London, for capital to build this road, and thus
forever subjecting all transport thereon to a tax to satisfy the interest of the cost, the
whole capital required on the Whitney plan, lies at this moment sleeping in the land
through which the road is to pass, in abeyance to the passage of the bill now pen
ding before Congress, and the instant that bill becomes a law, this immense amount
of capital starts into being, for the sole benefit of trade and commerce in all time
coming, the management of which will forever remain under the control of the Con
gress of the United States. In all history, there never was, and probably will never
be again, such a gratuity to the public— first of the United States, and next of the
world— a positive gratuity, operating in such a way, and on such a vast scale, the bene
ficial and cumulative effects of which will be felt by the whole world, and run down
through all time. It requires some consideration to understand this principle, and
when once distinctly apprehended, it will be seen to be one of infinite scope, and of
inconceivable extent of purpose. The masses of the people of the United States do
understand it, and unfortunately our statesmen seem to have been the last to appreci
ate it. It is enough to say that this cheap transport across the American continent,
obtained in this way, and which can be obtained only on Mr. Whitney’s plan, will, of a
moral certainty, produce the most stupendous change ever known in the commerce o f
the world, by turning its great bulk on one line; first between the Atlantic and Pa
cific portions of the United States ; next, between the United States and Asia; and
lastly between Europe and Asia, bringing into intimate commercial contact the great
industrial and producing portions of the human family around the entire globe.
Had we space, we should say more of this report, so replete with argument, so
pregnant with importance to our country, as we think it is. We have time only to
express the earnest hope that Congress will not fail, at their present session, to pass
the bill reported by this committee.

DIVIDENDS OF RAILWAY STOCKS IN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND.

The dividends declared on ten of the principal lines of railway in England and
Scotland, for the first half-year of 1849, have, as we learn from the London Railway
Magazine, been as follows:—
1
1
1
1

at £*7
at 3 5s.
at 2 183.
at 1

per cent per annum

Two others have earned
been declared upon them.

3 at £4
2 at 3
1 at 2

per cent per annum.
“
2s.

and 3| per cent per annum, but as yet no dividend has

Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.

12 5

STATISTICAL VIEW OF FRENCH RAILWAY!.

W e are indebted to the Paris correspondent o f the American Railroad Journal
the subjoined tabular statem ent o f tw enty-one railroads in F ra n ce:—
Length,

Amiens to Boulogne...............
Andrezieux to Roanne...........
Avignon to Marseilles...........
Center Orleans to Bourges &
Chateauroux.......................
North Paris to St. Quentin,
Valenciennes A Calais . . .
Paris to Orleans.....................
Orleans to Tours...................
Paris to Rouen.......................
Paris to St. Germain............
Paris to Sceaux....................
Paris to Versailles,right b’nk
Paris to Versailles, left bank
Rouen to Havre....................
Strasbourg to Basle...............
St. Etienne to Lyons............
Tours to Angers....................
Rouen to Dieppe...................
Mulhouse to Thann...............
Versailles to Chartres...........
Paris & Lyons— Paris to Tonnere, Dizon to Chalons.. . .
Montereau toFroyes.............

Whole

fu r

Time of
Ordin’y JSxp.
Cost /—----- fa r e s .----—, trains, trains.

miles.
cost.
per mile, lstcl’s. 2d. 3d.
77
7,562,809 96,919 2 38 1 79 1 38
42.2
3,347,256 79,319 1 22 0 93 0 93
74.5 14,007,884 188,020 2 52 1 76 1 18

h. m.
3 17
3 12
3 57

h. m.
2 25
....
3 02

142

16,813,250 178,403 3 98 3 05 2 26

6 32

5 15

321
75.8
70.8
85
13
7
11.8
10.5
55.3
87.6
36
67
38
13
44

34,928,324 108,811 7 47 5 63 3 14
11,251,683 148,439 2 34 1 76 1 31
8,468,199 119,607 2 10 1 66 1 22
12,985,129 152,766 2 97 2 41 1 86
4,822,280 370,944 2 79 2 32 2 32
837,000 119,571 0 18 0 16 0 11
3,582,848 303,631 0 27 0 23 0 23
3,343,626 318,440 0 37 0 27 0 23
11,251,883 203,479 1 86 1 39 0 93
8,656,514 98,818 3 13 2 72 2 03
4,597,351 127,704 0 46 0 46 0 46
6,532,633 97,502 2 07 1 56 1 16
2,760,296 72,656 1 20 0 90 0 67
............................... 0 40 0 31 0 23
1 30 0 9 7 0 7 4

15 84
4 00
3 55
4 15
0 35
0 25
0 36
0 31
3 08
5 11
3 05
3 40
2 32
0 41
214

10 40
3 15
___
3 45
0 30
____
____
__ _
2 25
4 34
2 55
3 00
2 15
____
____

5 00 3 84 2 85
1 91 1 43 1 06

8 28
3 37

6 23
2 58

165
62

T otal num ber o f miles, 1,498.5; total cost, §155,748,175; average cost p er m ile,
§128,240; average fare p er m ile for first-class passengers, 3.07 cen ts; average fare

p er m ile for second-class passengers, 2.31 cen ts; average fare p er m ile for third-class
passengers, 1.77 cen ts; average speed o f ordinary passenger trains, m iles p er hour,
19 ; average speed o f direct or express trains, m iles p er hour, 29.

RECEIPTS AND EXPEN SES OF TH E BOSTON AND WORCESTER RAILROAD,
Years.
1842........... ____
1843........... ____
1844............ ____
1845............ ____
1846........... ____
1847............ ____
1848............ ____
1849............ ____
Years.
18 42............. . . .
18 43.............
1844............. ___
1845............. ___
18 46............. ___
1847............. ___
18 48............. ___
1849.............____

Length.*
Cost.
45
§2,764,396
45
2,836,169
2,914,078
45
45
3,212,264
54
3,485,232
59
4,113,610
67
4,650,393
69
4,908,332

Passengers.
§186,610
207,262
234,633
241,219
279,793
304,580
332,886
330,606

Freight. Mails, rents, &.c. Total.
§148,188
§14,408
§349,206
162,656
13,441
383,367
426,413
175,996
15,783
487.456
233,505
12,732
260,165
14,754
554,712
374,663
722,170
42,927
359,073
24,325
716,284
331,338
703,361
41,417

EXPENSES.--------n
Road bed. Motive power. Miscellan’us.
Total.
§19,073
§107,980
§51,457
§178,510
44,502
117,488
28,559
190,549
49,158
57,337
124,754
231,249
69,444
129,022
51,263
249,729
47,444
67,262
172,170
2S6.876
65,195
91,141
225,650
881,986
61,512
269,886
50,520
381,918
86,883
72,298
246,370
405,551

Including branches.

Net
income.
§170,696
192,818
195,164
237,727
267,836
340,184
334,366
297,810

on cost.
§6 20
6 80
6 73
7 40
7 68
8 27
7 88
6 07

126

Railroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
MASSACHUSETTS RAILROAD DIVIDENDS.

The following table exhibits the dividends paid by eleven railroads of Massachusetts
during the last five years. These are the only roads that have been in operation,
throughout, for so long a period. It will be seen that there was an increase of
$10,221,300 on the cost of the eleven roads, from January 1,1845, to January 1,1849.
The earnings in 1845 were $1,809,900. In 1849, $2,490,600. Increase, $680,'100.
ANNUAL PER CENTAGE OF DIVIDENDS.

184S. 1846. 1847. 1848. 1849.
P. cent. P. cent. P. cent. P. cent. P. cent. Total.

Railroads.

B oston and P ro v id e n ce .............. ..........
B oston and W orcester............... ..........
B oston and L ow ell.....................
Taunton B ranch......................... ..........
N ashua and L o w e ll................... ...........
N orw ich und W o r c e s te r ............ ..........
N e w B edford.............................. ..........
W estern ...................................... ..........
E astern ..................................................
B oston and M aine....................... ..........
F itchburg.................................... ..........

7
8
8
9
3
7

5
8
7
4

8
8
8
10

10
8
8
10

8
8

6
8

8
81

6
8
7
10

9
10

6 }

6
6

8
10

8
8
54
8

35
401
40
40
49
3
341
35
40
37
401

The cost of the roads at the beginning of 1845 was $22,504,500; 1846, $23,626,100 ;
184V,$25,828,800; 1848, $29,224,400; 1849, $32,725,800.

TH E SH IP CANAL BY LAKE NICARAGUA.
F reeman H unt, E sq., Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine, etc.

In your number for June, in speaking of a ship canal by Lake Nicaragua to the Pa
cific Ocean, you say at page 649, “ two steamships are about to commence running
from New York to Graytown, (mouth of the River San Juan;) thence a steamboat
will ascend the river (79 miles) to Lake Nicaragua, and Nicaragua City. From this
point the steamers Sarah Sands and New Orleans will run to San Francisco, and the
whole route will be open for trade in September next.”
Now I am inclined to think there is a material error in saying that the steamer
Sarah Sands is to come from San Francisco to Nicaragua City, on the lake. The lake
is according to the measurement of Lieut. Bailey, R. N., in 1837, then in the employ
o f the government of Central America, as mentioned by Mr. Stephens in his Central
America, 15§-miles from the Pacific. The ascent to the summit of a canal coming
from the Pacific is 1,047 feet, and the descent to the lake is 919 feet, which gives 128
feet height of the lake above the Pacific Ocean. I doubt if the Sarah Sands will go
over this summit and lockage of 1,950 feet to get to the lake, but rather think she
will stop at the seaport of Realejo, and let the passengers come over the summit in
canal-boats.
Mr. Stephens says the Lake Nicaragua is 95 miles long, about 30 miles wide, in the
broadest part, and the average depth is 15 fathoms, or 90 feet. Near the center of
the lake are two islands, Isola and Madeira, with giant volcanoes rising as if to scale
the heavens. The volcano of Omotepeque reminded me of Mount Etna, rising from
the water’s edge, a smooth unbroken cone, to the height of nearly six thousand feet.”
Mr. Stephens describes the town of Nicaragua “ as a large collection of straggling
houses, without a single object of interest; though the richest state in the confederacy
in natural gifts, the population is the most miserable.” It is some distance from the
lake, as in passing through the suburbs, they entered the woods, from which, when
they emerged, they had a grand view of the lake.
The morning after his arrival at Nicaragua, Mr. Stephens devoted to enquiries about
the canal route, but says “ more is known of it in the United States than at Nicaragua.
I did not find one man who had been to the port of San Juan, on the Pacific; or even
knew Mr. Bay ley’s terminating point on the Lake of Nicaragua.”
My impression is, that the canal to the Pacific, instead of being “ open fo r trade 9
in September next, will not be open in three years.
A S ubscriber in N ew Y ork .

Journal o f M ining and M anufactures .

127

JOURNAL OF MINING AND MANUFACTURES.
EXHIBITION OF TH E WORKS OF INDUSTRY OF ALL NATIONS.
PROPOSED TO BE HELD IN LONDON, MAY,

1851.

A m erican In st itu t e , N e w Y o r k , M a r c h 19th , 1850.

The undersigned trustees and officers of the American Institute respectfully lay be
fore their fellow-citizens of the United States the information which has been officially
communicated to them, relative to the proposed exhibition, designed to take place in
London, May, 1851, to which the products of the industrial classes, in every depart
ment of human labor throughout the world, have been freely invited. The proposition
is accompanied with an unexceptionable assurance that all will there be placed, with
entire fairness, in rivalry and competition for superiority, subject to the decision of
gentlemen of high attainments and integrity. The awards to successful competitors
will be made commensurate with the magnitude of the occasion, and the importance
o f the invention, product, or material exhibited; the pecuniary means will be derived,
as appears, from the good will and liberality of the entire British nation. W e have
recently received from our countryman, the resident Minister at the Court of St. James,
the following communication in relation to the proposed exhibition:—
L ondon , F e b r u a r y 22 d , 1850.

To the Secretary o f the American Institute :—
D e a r S i r :— You have doubtless been apprised, through the public press, that an
Industrial Exhibition is proposed by Great Britain, to take place in May, 1851. The
invitation embraces all nations. The plan has met with general approbation here, and
by the representatives of the different countries of Europe accredited to this Court.
It has commended itself to my judgment, as the representative of the United
States. I have taken an interest in its success, in behalf of the people of the United
States, believing that great benefits may be derived not only by the citizens of the
Union, but by all mankind.
I entertain an abiding confidence, that tee possess the material to present at the pro
posed exhibition such combinations of science and art as will gratify the highest an
ticipations o f that class of men who have been, and will continue to be, the creators of
wealth, and through their inventions and labors, the civilizers of mankind throughout
the world.
I f such a response should be given to this invitation as may be expected, the ex
hibition will present to the world a victory gained by a congress of nations, not ac
quired by arms or physical strength, but the triumph of mind over matter.
The details of this great plan will be published at an early day, which I shall have
the pleasure of transmitting to y o u ; in the meantime, I send with this ntfte a copy of
the Report of the Eleventh French Exposition, with the Royal Commission establish
ing the proposed exhibition, and the proceedings of the first public meeting. Will you
do me the favor to place these papers before the government of the institute, and if
the plan should be approved, to open a correspondence with similar institutions in other
States, that there may be concert of action in the arrangements for the exhibition.
I have the honor to remain, Sir, your obedient servant,
AB BO TT L A W R E N C E .

The proposition for the contemplated fair emanated from Prince Albert, the Royal
Consort. To promote which Queen Victoria issued a commission on the 3d of Janu
ary last, addressed to some of the most distinguished men of England, embracing in
their respective departments, all the great interests of her realm.
The first public meeting in response to the proposition was held in London, on the
25th o f January last. It was numerously attended by highly distinguished men, and
received with unamimity and approbation. W e gather from the speeches made on
that occasion views of the following import:—
It was desirable that the effort should b e supported, not by a few opulent individuals, but rather
that the great body o f the people should com e forward according to their means, and aid in accom

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

128

plishing the object, so that it should be felt as being sustained by the entire g o o d w ill o f the nation.
The exam ple w hich had been set by the queen and her illustrious consort, there could be no doubt,
w ould be follow ed to any desirable extent.
Tiie plan was deem ed to be in harmony wi ll public feeling, and might b e taken as the best evi
dence o f the rapid extension o f enlightened views and liberal principles, and may be regarded as the
foundation o f a belief that it will tend to the preservation o f the blessings o f peace.
The selection o f the Commissioners by Her Majesty evinces the greatest impartiality and judgm ent,
em bracing every shade o f political opinion, and m en o f various ranks and occupation, all distin
guished and remarkable in their respective spheres, and at the head o f which is the Prince Consort.
it w ould go forth to the w orld as the public declaration o f the English people, that they did not
believe at present in the possibility o f war.
One great object in the contemplated exhibition w ould b e to show how the arts and benefits o f
peace were to be im proved. It w ould also tend to show mankind how infinitely superior are the arts
o f peace in reciprocating all those things w hich im prove, civilize, and elevate the character o f man.
Those w ho succeeded in distinguishing themselves at the contem plated exhibition by their skill, in
ventions, ingenuity, and b y the perfection to w hich they brought the products they exhibited, w ould
be men whose names w ould justly be repeated over the w hole globe, as remarkable for effecting o b
jects which must be useful to all mankind ; and if such were their true character, their fam e ought
to be commensurate w ith that o f other benefactors o f mankind, to whose m em ory the proudest m e
morials had been raised.
it was suggestered that false and erroneous notions had prevailed, and had been practiced upon by
all nations in respect to com m ercial and manufacturing m atters; that an artificial state o f things had
grown up ; and in returning to m ore sagacious views, it was necessary to have full information. N o
better beginning cou ld be made than by inviting the people o f all nations to com e together, and ex
hibit together the various products o f their soil, climate, capital, and industry, before strictly impar
tial judges, in public view . It w ould tend to rem ove prejudices and asperities. W hen people b e
com e better acquainted, the bad opinions they entertain o f each other were likely to be eradicated.
it was believed that it w ould prove beneficial in prom oting the arts and manufactures o f all coun
tries, knitting nations in the bonds o f peace and harmony, and have a direct tendency to increase the
general civilization and industry o f the world.
They had issued a solem n invitation to other nations, to send here the productions o f their industry
and ingenuity for exhibition, and had encouraged the inhabitants o f those nations to com e in good
tim e to these hospitable shores, as guests, and witness the exhibition prepared fo r them. It m ight
justly be called the Great Olympian Festival o f m odern times.

Such being the views entertained by the very eminent men of England, who ad
dressed the meeting in London, we cannot see the remotest cause to doubt their sin
cerity. We, therefore, say to our fellow-citizens of the United States, to whose in
ventive genius the world stands somewhat indebted, to those engaged in mechanical
and manufacturing pursuits, and to the agriculturist, that we most cheerfully commend
the proposition to their reflection and consideration. W e believe that the sagacity, in
ventive genius, skill, aptitude, pride, and the indomitable industry of our people, are a
sufficient guaranty that this festival will not be permitted to pass in the absence of a
representation from them. No opportunity could be more auspicious for bringing for
ward the delicate productions of those engaged in the fine arts— new and useful in
ventions—skill and perfection of workmanship in various departments of the mechanic
arts and manufactures. In the department of agriculture, the productions of the dairy
may well be considered; for field-crops, we have a full season before u s; the best
method of preparing our great staple, Indian corn, for safe and perfect transportation;
the production and preparation of hemp, so much improved of late, and some domes
tic animals of our country, may not be unworthy of a thought.
The undersigned deem it a pleasure to discharge the duty required of them by the
American Institute, in conveying to the American people the information they have,
or may receive, in relation to the proposed exhibition; the details of which they hope
to receive by the earliest conveyance from London, which will be immediately circu
lated to the extent of their ability— in aid of which we invoke and presume upon the
assistance of the press throughout the country.
We hope the subject will be duly considered, and that each State will adopt meas
ures to participate in an undertaking designed to promote the peace, harmony, industry,
and general civilization of the world.
Communications addressed to the Superintending Agent of the American Institute,
New York, (postage paid,) will meet witli attention.
J ames T allmadge, President,
J ohn C ampbell, Vice President,
J ohn D. W ard , Vice President,
Trustees of the American Institute.
L ivingston L ivingston, Vice-President,
E dward T. B ackhouse, Treasurer,
G eorge B acon, Corresponding Secret'y,
H. M eigs, Recording Secretary,
A doniram C handler, Superintending Agent.

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

129

PRODUCTION OF TH E PRECIOUS METALS IN RUSSIAi

The London Mining Journal furnishes the following extracts from the report o f the
Austrian Commissioners on the Exhibition which took place last year in St. Peters
burg.
/
PRECIOUS METALS.

The wealth of Russia in precious metals is known to be very great. The mines are
situated principally in the Ural and Altai mountains, and the lower range of hills which
surround Nertschinks, in Siberia.
GOLD.

This is always an interesting topic, but doubly so at the present moment, and we
shall, therefore, quote the report of the Austrian Commissioners respecting it rather
fully. The mines in which gold is found belong partly to the imperial domains and
partly to individuals. They are found in the largest numbers in the neighborhood of
Katherinenburg, in the government of Perm, which is the seat o f the superior admin
istration of all the mines of Perm and Siberia.
Gold washings exist in the district of
Wertchourie, in the government of Perm. Large quaintities of gold are also found
in Eastern Siberia:— the first discovery of its existence was in 1829. The mines on
the Ural were not worked until 1814, and those on the Altai not before 1830. The
gold found in the sand is of various forms and weights— pieces weighing 16, and even
24 pounds have been discovered; but the shape in which it is chiefly found is a fine
sand. The mines in Siberia can only be worked during four months, and the goldhunters are compelled to obtain a license from the Minister of Finance.
The crown
has a royalty of from 20 to 24 per cent on all gold found, and every pound of gold
pays four roubles for police, and other purposes.
Import and export of gold in all
shapes is duty free. It cannot, however, be exported from the western frontier of the
empire. The annual publication of the St. Petersburg Academy, for the year 1849,
contains the official returns of the amount of gold obtained in the year 1847. The
following table refers only to mines on the Ural, which, it will be seen, are by no
means so productive as the mines o f Siberia:—
FROM THE CROWN MINES ON THE URAL.

Xatherinenburg.............................................................................................. (poods)
Slatoust......................................................................................................................
B ogoslow sk................................................................................................................
G ow b la god a tsk ............................................................................ ........... . ...............
T o ta l....................................................................

35
48
34
10
127

FROM PRIVATE MINES.

W erch Isetsk .................................................................................................(p ood s)
Kaatinsk K aschtim sk.................................................................................................
N isc)pie-Tagilsk........................... . .................................... ........................................
S y s s e r t ................................................................................
N ew iansk...................................................................................................................
Schaita'nsk..............................................................................
B ilim bajew sk.............................................................................................................
K restow osdw ishensk..................................................................................................
W sew oloshskisch.......................................................................................................
W erch ne U faleisk.....................................................
Ittabansk............
Other m in e s ..............................................................................................................

48
13
28
27
10
6
2
18
6
2
10
18

T otal................................................................................................................... 196
Siberia produced in the same year the enormous quantity of 1,456 poods.
previous year the product was 1,677 poods.

In the

PLATINA.

Platina is found in the Ural Mountains; the mines being worked by the government
and by private persons. The quantity produced annually has decreased very much
of late years.
In 1838 it averaged about 40 poods, while in 1847 it did not amount
to 2, and in the following year only a very little more. The present price is about
V O L . X X I I I .— N O . I .

130

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

3,600 silver roubles per pood. The exportation of this article is entirely free : manu
factured platina is subject to an ad valorem duty of 25 per cent. France is the chief
recipient of the platina exported from Russia.
SILVER.

Silver is found in the Altai and Nertschinski mountains. The latter produce on an
average about 207 poods annually. Some silver mines exist also in the Ural Moun
tains, but were only discovered in 1834. It may be imported and exported duty free,
with the exception of exportation on the western land frontier. The total quantity of
silver produced in 1846 was 1,191 poods.
The various articles manufactured from the precious metals are described as of high
finish and great elegance. The silver articles were more particularly remarkable. This
branch of industry is a very ancient one in Russia, and is principally distinguished for
the remarkably fine silver chains that are manufactured in large quantities in Ustjug
"Welski, a town in the government of Wologda
These chains are not thicker than
an ordinary thread, and are worn by the lower classes to suspend their crosses on.
They are principally made by women.
Gold and silver articles pay an ad valorem
import duty of 35 per cent. The plated articles exhibited were held by the Austrian
Commissioners to be a convincing proof that Russian industry has rendered Russia
independent o f the foreigner in this branch.
M INERAL RICHES OF SOUTHERN ILLINOIS.

The Morgan County Journal says that the little county of Hardin contains iron ore
enough to build the Pacific Railroad fifty times over, and the adjoining counties of
Gallatin and Salina could furnish the State with coal for a thousand years. Several
other counties are also rich in coal. Pope County has mines of iron which are of a
kind easily prepared for the furnace, being the brown hiematite. Hardin County is
also rich in solid bodies of lead ore, which is almost pure galena. There is also an
other mineral of great importance. W e copy what relates to i t :— Zinc is also found
in great quantities in this same region, and frequently in the same mine with the lead.
The ore is that caUed zinc-blende— being a sulphuret of zinc. W e have seen this ore
lying in such quantities at a single spot that a large steamboat could have been loaded
down with it. A t one point, only half a mile from the Ohio, it occurs in the same pit
with lead, though in a separate body, in immense blocks of pure chrystalized ore,
weighing, in some instances, a ton each. The art of reducing this ore, by a cheap pro
cess, is unknown in this country, except to a very fe w ; and this ore has been chiefly
used for making brass, by fusing it with the ore of copper. Yet there can be no
doubt that it might at this place be made very profitable, being far more valuable than
lead. Especially might it be made valuable for the preparation of “ zinc-white,” a car
bonate of zinc, which is destined to supersede the white-lead as a paint. It is equally
durable with lead as a color, and does not turn yellow as lead does. It is also free
from the poisonous qualities possessed by preparations of lead which render its effects
upon the workmen who use it so disastrous. As being interesting to the mineralogist,
there are also found here ores o f antimony, arsenic, copper, cobalt, and cadmium,
though none of them in any considerable quantity. There are, also, (in Pope County,)
large beds o f very pure lithomarge, or rock morrow, an interesting mineral, very rare
in this country.
IM PROVEM ENTS IN DYEING.

A patent has been granted to Jean Adolphe Carteron, as we learn from the London
“ Chemical Gazette,” for certain improvements in dyeing, which are thus described in
the specification :—
These improvements in dyeing consist in the preparation of certain mordants, to be
used instead of the cream of tartar and cream of tartar and alum, now commonly em'ed, whereby colors will be produced at less cost than heretofore, and of superior
iancy and variety. The mordants are four in number. The first is prepared by
dissolving 18 parts by weight of common salt, and nine parts of tartaric acid in 67
parts of boiling water, and then adding 18 parts of the acetic acid of commerce. One
pound of this mordant is equivalent for dyeing purposes to about one pound o f cream
of tartar, and it is used in the same manner. It is suitable for crimson and all reddish

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

131

dyes. The second mordant is made by triturating and mixing 1 part of alum with 2
parts of the residuum (sulphate of soda) of that mode o f manufacturing nitric acid in
which nitrate of soda is employed. Two and a quarter pounds of this mordant are
equivalent to half that quantity of cream of tartar, and it is to be used in the same
way. It is suitable for all olive and brown dyes. The third mordant is prepared by
triturating and mixing together 5 parts of common salt, and 1 part of the residuum of
the manufacture of sulphuric acid where nitrate of potash is employed. This mor
dant is to be used in the same proportions to cream of tartar as the second mordant,
and it is applicable to black and dark colors only. The fourth mordant is formed by
dissolving 6 parts of alumina, 3 parts of nitric acid, and 1 part of caustic ley of 24°
Beaume in 20 quarts of boiling water. It may be used in dyers’ baths for green dyes
of all shades and fancy dyes, in the proportion of 1 pint for every 20 lbs. weight of
the fabrics to be dyed.
APPLICATION OF HOT AIR TO TH E SMELTING OF IRON.*

A t the smelting furnace of Pious, in Wurtemburg, before employing the hot air, the
consumption was 100 kilos (2 cwt.) of ore, 40 cubic feet (48^) of charcoal, and the
produce, under the old system, was 3,000 kilos, (3 tons,) while, with the hot air, it is
on an average 3,750 kilos, (3|- tons.) A t Koningsbronn, in the same kingdom, to ob
tain 108 livres (1.17 cwt.) of bar iron with cold ah', it required 20 cubic feet, (24.2 Eng
lish cubic feet,) and with hot air only 17 cubic feet, (20^-.) The temperature to which
the air is raised is, however, much inferior to the lowest standard in this country; for
at Pious, according to Bertliier, the temperature of the heated air is only 150° or 200°,
(302° or 392° F.,) whilst, at the Clyde Iron Works, the usual test of the standard
temperature is the melting point of lead, or 606° F. This is the lowest point to which
the heat is allowed to faU, for it may in general be much higher; yet, even with this
disadvantage in Germany, we see that the expenditure of the combustible matter has
been reduced one-fourth, with a sensible increase of the product. The effect of the
heated air has commonly been attributed to the absence of the cooling power, which
was exercised by the cold air on its being introduced in contact with the heated con
tents of the furnace. Berthier denies that this is the mode in which it operates. He
thinks that the phenomena which result from the employment of hot air proceed from
the greater activity of the combustion in the furnace than when the air has not been
previously heated; that is to say, that with the same weight of air there is more oxy
gen absorbed in the first case than in the second. I f this opinion be correct, it fol
lows that less of hot air will be required than of cold air for the combustion of an
equal quantity of charcoal in the furnace, and that the air, which proceeds from the
latter, being possessed of little oxygen, cannot support combustion. Now, the exhaus
tion of the oxygen in the air is a point o f essential importance, when we wish to ob
tain a strong heat, for the nitrogen of the air only assists in producing a loss of a por
tion of the heat developed by combustion. Hence, the less air that is consumed, the
less does this cause o f cooling operate. Besides, the affinity of gas for solid substances
is increased by the heating of the gas. It has been said that effects similar to those
produced by heated air may be obtained by the employment of cold air sufficiently
compressed ; or, what would be extremely powerful, the use of hot air compressed to
such a degree as experience might point out.
EFFECT OF MANUFACTURES IN PRODUCING WEALTH.

The following anecdote, taken from the History of Inventions, of the rise of the
family of Sir Robert Peel, forcibly illustrates the effect of ingenuity and industry, when
employed in manufactures. Robert Peel, the grandfather of the present distinguished
British statesman, was an humble farmer of Lancashire. He is represented as a man
of observant and inquiring mind— shrewd, intelligent, and energetic. He had noted
the growing spirit of enterprise in manufactures, which were rapidly advancing in con
sequence of the improvements in machinery, and he determined to abandon fanning
and adapt himself to another business which promised to be more profitable. Having
remarked the tedious process by which cotton wool was brought into a state for spin
ning by the common hand card, he invented the cylinder for doing the work better and

* The Lon don P a t e n t J o u r n a l , N o. 180, N ovem ber 3d, 1849.

132

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

more expeditiously. He then became a calico printer. “ He set to work, and with
his own hands he cut away on blocks of wood, with such tools as he could command,
till he had formed the figure of a parsley leaf. A t the back of each of these blocks
he put a handle, and a pin of strong wire at each o f the- former corners. He then got
a tub, into which he put a colored mixture with a little alum in it. He then cowered
the tub with a woolen cloth, which sunk till it touched the coloring matter and became
saturated with it. The white cloth was then stretched tightly across the table top,
the woolen cloth was then touched with the face of the parsley leaf block, and as
soon as the figure was fairly cowered with the color, he placed it squarely on the cloth
and struck it sharply with a mallet, so that the figure of the engraving was left upon
the white calico. This process was repeated until the whole was completed. As soon
as it was diy his wife and daughters set to work and ironed it with common smoothing
irons.” This was the original of calico-printing. Mr. Peel, not satisfied with this pro
cess, subsequently invented another machine, by which the labor was lightened and
the work greatly facilitated. His new machine consisted “ of an oblong frame, made
with a smooth bottom and upright posts, and a rail on each side. Running from each
side there was a roller, with a handle to turn it, and round the roller there was a rope
wound spirally. Each end of the rope was fastened to an oblong deep box, as wide
and as loBg as the frame. It was filled with bricks, and of course was heavy. The
farmer had now a machine more forcible than the strength and warm iron of his wife
and daughters. He wound his pieces of calico round smooth wooden rollers, which
were placed under the box, and that being drawn backward and forward by means of
the rope round the upper roller, the winch soon gave the requisite smoothness to the
work. With this rude machine Mr. Peel laid the foundation of his success in life.
The calicoes thus manufactured met with ready sale. His machine was afterward
superseded by others o f superior machinery, but he went on step by step until he be
came the head o f one of the largest manufacturing houses in the country. His eldest
son became connected with him in business. The tide of wealth flowed fast. His son
became a baronet, and ranked among the wealthiest commoners in the kingdom, and
his grandson, the prime minister of ‘ an empire whose power was never equaled.’
This anecdote shows that humble origin is no bar to wealth or exalted station, when
industry and integrity are combined with intelligence and perseverance.

TH E MANUFACTURE OF VARNISHED LEATHER IN FRANCE.*

This process consists o f two operations:— first, the preparation of the skin; and
second, the varnishing of the leather thus dressed. In the preparation of the leather,
linseed oil, made readily drying, by means of metallic oxides and salts, is employed
as the basis. For each 22 gallons of linseed oil, 22 pounds of white lead and 22 pounds
o f litharge are employed, and the oil boiled with those ingredients until it has attained
the consistence of a syrup. This preparation, mixed either with chalk or ochres, is
applied to the leather by means of appropriate tools, and well worked into the pores ;
three or four layers are applied in succession, taking care to dry each layer thoroughly
before the application of the next coating. Four or five coatings of the dried linseed
oil, without the admixture of the earthy substances, are then given; the addition of
very fine ivory black and some oil of turpentine is usually made to the oil. These
coatings are put on very thin, and when carefully dried the leather is rubbed over with
fine pummice-stone powder, to render the surface perfectly smooth and even, for the
reception of the varnish. The varnish is composed as foHows:— 10 pounds of oil pre
pared as above, half a pound of asphalt or Jewish bitumen, 5 pounds of copal varnish,
and 10 pounds of turpentine. The oil and asphalt are first boiled together, the copal
varnish and the turpentine added afterward, and that mixture well stirred. Instead
o f asphalt, Prussian blue or ivory black may be employed. This varnish must be kept
in a warm place for two or three weeks before it is fit for use. The greatest possible
care must be taken both before and during the application of the varnish, to prevent
the adherence of any dust to the leather. The leather, when varnished, must be put
into drying stoves, heated to about 90° or more, according to the nature of the leather
and the varnish employed. Some very fine specimens of leather prepared in this
manner were exhibited at the recent exhibition of French industry at Paris.

The L on don P a t e n t J o u r n a l , N ovem ber 3d, 1849.

Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.

133

R ISE AND PROGRESS OF TH E BROOM MANUFACTURE.

The following information, which has been supplied to us by a friend, says the Bur
lington Gazette, of the history and present extent of the “ broom business” in this re
gion, will no doubt be interesting to many of our readers, especially the ladies, all of
whom will understand the truth of the maxim that a new broom sweeps clean.
About 1190, Benjamin Atkinson commenced the broom business in Byberry town
ship, this county, raising the corn and manufacturing the broom. After a few years
he took Bezaleel Croasdale into partnership, and they jointly had the trade altogether
in their hands, until 1815 or 16, making the brooms, and entirely supplying the mar
kets of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Lancaster, Trenton, and sometimes New York. A
broom made in those days would be a curiosity to a modern broom-maker. Invariably
round, with horn on the neck instead of twine, confined to its place by a wooden p e g ;
and handle of oak, rough shaved with the drawing-knife! The brooms thus made
commanded a high price, particularly during the. war, when they sold for 84 20 per
dozen, wholesale. Since that time the business has gradually increased, employing a
great number of hands, and a large capital to carry it on in its various stages.
Some idea of the present extent of the trade may be formed from the fact that Jo
seph Yansant, at his manufactory in the adjoining township of Bensalem, Bucks county,
has made and sold two hundred and twenty-five thousand handles this season, and
this quantity, probably, is not more than half the number made and used altogether.
These handles are sold at 81 30 to 81 40 per hundred. The value of the twine used
on every broom is estimated at one-half a cent, and the labor for making two cents.
The cost of cultivation of the corn is considered to be one-fourth greater than that of
Indian corn. The yield is uncertain, varying according to the season: sometimes as
many as 600 brooms per acre are produced, though probably from 300 to 400 might
be set down an average crop, with 20 bushels of seed, worth as much as oats for feed.
The largest quantity of brooms are made in the lower parts of Bucks and Montgom
ery counties, and the upper townships of Philadelphia county. Many are also made
in Saucon, Lehigh County, in Delaware, and Lancaster counties, and in Salem county,
New Jersey.
AN IM PRO V EM EN T IN MAUFACTURE OF V ELV ET.

The Paris correspondent of the Tribune says:— " There is no news o f any great im
portance this week, except, perhaps, the discovery of a new machine for weaving vel
vet of large widths. Velvet is one of the richest and most beautiful tissues— the de
light of woman’s fancy, and therefore not indifferent to human happiness. A revolu
tion in the world of velvet-weaving is a more pacific and not less progressive conquest
than a revolution in the world of politics. It may, perhaps, disturb the interests of a
few manufacturers, but nobody cares for such a class. They have no soldiers at com
mand, and loan contractors can pursue their avocations just as well with new machines
as with the old ones, so long as money will secure to them the profits of mechanical
inventions. Hitherto velvet could only be produced in very narrow widths; the new
invention of the Lyons manufacturer enables him to weave both plain and ornamental
velvets, of any quality, from six to twenty-four feet in width, and I suppose of any
length. This may possibly be no particular advantage for the cut of ladies’ dresses;
but when man’s abode is elevated from the isolated and confined proportions of a few
small rooms to a collected and associate dwelling, in which public concert-rooms and
drawing-rooms are added to the private family apartments, the beauty, and the com
fort, and the humanizing influence of expensively rich velvet tapestry will be impor
tant to the dignity and the refinement of the universal multitude of priests and kings,
of either sex and of all ages, who inhabit the new palaces of democratic loyalty.”
INDIA RUBBER BUFFERS AND SPRINGS.

India rubber buffers and springs have now been introduced, says the London Builder,
on upwards of fifty lines of railway, and stood the test of heat and cold, and wear
and tear, so as to form a cheap and useful substitute for the old apparatus. Needing
no cumberous extension beneath the wagon or carriage framing, they can be fitted to
newly-built wagons, it is alleged, for about £4 10s. a set, and the wear and tear of the
old buffers, estimated on luggage trains at 50 to 60 per cent on their own much greater
cost, thus reduced to 10 per cent. The material has also been tried for bearing springs,
but has not hitherto come into use as such.

Mercantile Miscellanies.

134

MERCANTITE MISCELLANIES.
TH E MERCANTILE LIBRARY ASSOCIATION OF BOSTON.

"We have received a copy of the thirtieth annual report of this excellent institution,
exhibiting a general statement of its afihirs and the policy which has guided its directors
in the discharge of their official duties during the year ending on the 11th of April,
1860. Its affairs have evidently been managed with energy and judgment, and are
encouraging and prosperous. The library has been enlarged by the addition of many
valuable works by purchase and donation. The number of volumes in the catalogue,
as per the previous report, was 6,819,'and there has been added by purchase, 1,644, by
donation, 98, by magazines and reviews bound, 16— making the present number 1,637.
This increase to the library has cost the association $1,538, being an increase above the
appropriations o f the previous year for the same purpose of $961. The transfer-books
show that the librarians have recorded as -loaned to members during the year thirtyfou r thousand nine hundred and sixty-seven volumes—a striking illustration that the
advantages afforded are duly appreciated. Many additions have been made to the
list of magazines and newspapers, and the reading-room is supplied with fourteen daily
and sixty-nine weekly and semi-weekly newspapers. The number of members has
been increased from 1,145, as per the report of last year, to 1,651. The finances of
the association are in a healthy condition. It appears by the treasurer’s annual report
that the receipts during the year amounted to $4,697 32, to which add the balance
from the last administration of $151 43, and we have a total of $4,848 15. The ex
penditures during the year amounted to $4,419 53, leaving in the treasury a balance
on the retirement of the Board of $429 22, and the association entirely free from debt.
The association has besides invested funds to the amount of $16,100, the contributions
o f the liberal and enlightened merchants of Boston. This fund will eventually be ap
plied, as we understand, to the erection of a suitable edifice for the accommodation of
the library and members of the association. A varied and highly interesting and in
structive course o f lectures was delivered during the last year, for which 1,617 tickets
were issued, of which number 1,512 were taken by members. The receipts for the
sale of tickets to the course amounted to $1,122, and the expenditures for lectures,
hall, &c., to $1,214, leaving a net profit, which was paid into the treasury of the asso
ciation, of $448.
The weekly exercises of declamation, debate, and composition, projected some time
since, appear to have been ably sustained. In alluding to the stated meetings the
Committee in charge of these exercises realize the force of the truthful words spoken
by one of their own members, at the dedication of the rooms which the association
now occupy:—
“ So strong are my convictions of the utility of these exercises that I am compelled
to admit that we could better afford to forego our public lectures, to sink our fund, yes,
even to lose these new and beautiful rooms, and ask the Legislature to take back their
parchment charter, with its honored autographs, than to give up the frequent gatherings,
where mind meets mind, truth and error grapple, where character is developed, talents
find the standard of their influence, where mental culture is the natural growth of ac
tion, and where the young mind is brought in close proximity with all shades of opin
ion, and every variety of character; where contact with living men is the school, and
animated nature the best instructor.”
Classes in the French and Spanish languages, and in penmanship and book-keeping’
have been organized, under teachers of ability in their profession. The directors ac
knowledge their indebtedness to Samuel Topliff, Esq., for a donation of eighty-four ar
ticles o f curiosities; many of them rare and valuable. In conclusion, it appears from

135

Mercantile Miscellanies.

the report that the past, beyond all former years in the society’s history, has been emi
nently successful, whether we regard the regular financial receipts, increase of mem
bers, or valuable additions to the library.
The following is a list of the officers of the association elected at the annual meet
ing on the 17th of April, 1850, for the years 1850 and 1851:—
William H. Kennard, President. Elihu C. Baker. Vice President. H. P. Chamberlain, Corresponding Secretary. C. R. Patten, Recording Secretary. Lyman H. Tasker,
Treasurer. Thomas S. Waterman, James A. Woolson, Theodore Stanwood, Jr., Charles
W . Wright, William A. Walker, John 0. Proctor, Jr., George E. Learnard, 0 . H, Dut
ton, Directors. Daniel 17. Haskell, Thomas J. Allen, Elliot C. Cowdin, Warren Saw
yer, Francis G. Allen, Trustees. Charles H. Allen, William H. Kennard, Elihu. C.
Baker, James P. Walker, George S. Blanchard, Committee on Lectures.
TH E ESTABLISHM ENT OF A LAW SCHOOL IN TH E SOUTH.*

There are Professorships of Law, we believe, in the University of Virginia. Wheth
er they are filled or not we cannot say, nor do we know if instruction is actually given
there at present. It was certainly part of Mr. Jefferson’s plan. With this exception,
if it be one, we believe there is not one Law School at the South, nor are there any
facilities afforded the southern student of pursuing at home the study of the law un
der those advantages which oral instruction, the argument of moot cases, and the other
usual exercises of a law school undoubtedly afford.
These advantages are accurately and ably stated in the Prospectus of a Law School
to be conducted by the Hon. Benj. F. Porter. The superiority of law-school instruc
tion over private reading, or the miscellaneous and random studies of a law office, is
forcibly illustrated. A law office is certainly no place for mastering legal principles,
however useful for learning the tools, the mechanics of the profession.
Mr. Porter proposes to establish his School at Charleston, although during the heat
of the southern summer a class will be taught at Rome, in the mountain region of
Georgia, which is described as a most delighful and healthful locality. Mr. Porter very
liberally proposes to admit a number of students, whose means wiH not enable them
to defray the expenses of tuition, into his class gratis. What an opening does such lib
erality afford for some soul of genius and poverty— one of those
“ Quorum virtutibus obstat,
Res angusta dom i,”

some Mill-boy o f the Slashes and future Henry Clay.
The School wiH open at Charleston in the coming November, and the southern
student will have an opportunity of enjoying the advantages of a law-school without
going a thousand miles from home, and will not be compelled to face at the same time
the ruggedness of the law— and of a northern winter.
To the reader of the Merchant's Magazine the name of Mr. Porter is familiar, as
that of the contributor of numerous learned articles, more particularly on topics of
commercial law. If any further evidence of his talent is needed, it is furnished in su
perabundance, by the numerous testimonials appended to the Prospectus, from profes
sors and gentlemen of attainment at the South, who speak from personal knowledge,
and in the highest terms. And we wish to add our own testimony, as well as our best
wishes, for the success of this undertaking.
TH E ENGLISH MERCHANT AND TH E SPANISH BEGGAR.

An English merchant in the neighborhood of Madrid, having no money in his pocket,
gave a handful of cigars to a beggar: the poorest Spaniard will be more gratified with
a cigar than with money, as it is a compliment. Three years afterward, this merchant
was seized near his country-house by a band of robbers. While they were settling
his rausom they were joined by an absent comrade, who instantly dismounted, and,
approaching the Englishman, saluted him, and asked if he did not remember having
given at such a place and time a handful of cigars to a beggar; then turning to his
comrades he said, “ This is my benefactor— whoever lays a hand on him lays it on me.”

Prospectus o f a Law School, to b e conducted by Benjamin L. Porter.

Charleston; 1850.

136

Mercantile Miscellanies.
TH E ANNUAL COMMERCIAL R E G IS T E R .*

Tliis is one of the most valuable -works, of a purely commercial character, that we
have ever had the pleasure of examining. It has been prepared with the view of
affording the banker, merchant, stock broker, and trader, a facile and compendius in
dex to the whole o f the financial and mercantile events o f 1849; furnishing, in addi
tion, a variety of statistical and descriptive information, which renders it valuable for
counting-house reference. It is, of course, designed for the meridian of Great Britain,
but the important and intimate commercial relations existing between the United
Kingdom and the United States, renders much of the information it embodies almost
as valuable to the commercial classes o f the last, as of the first-named power. Mr.
Evans, the author, informs us in his preface to the work, that his “ own experience in
mercantile pursuits led him almost daily to regret the absence of a manual of this
description; and having, in the course of Ids other occupations, collected and arranged
for private use the large amount of information contained in the present pages, it
was at the suggestion of friends similarly circumstanced, who approved the utili
tarian nature of the undertaking, that he was encouraged to proceed with it, and pre
sent the first volume to notice.” Upon the success which may follow this issue of the
“ Annual Commercial Register,” he adds, will, of course, mainly depend its subsequent
(annual) appearance. W e are gratified to learn that the first volume has received at
home the encouragement it so richly merits, and we shall look with interest for its
annual publication, as every volume will enhance its value as a work of permanent
utility for present and future reference. The author, availing himself of the “ facts
and figures” brought to hand by official returns, furnishes us with a clear and compre
hensive view of the commercial history and condition of England for the past year.
Every importer and broker in the United States, who has any commercial transactions
with Europe, and especially with England, must regard the work as an almost indis
pensable vade mecitm.
LONDON PROVISION M ARKETS.

The number of oxen consumed in London yearly is estimated at about 250,000; of
sheep, about 1,000,000; of lambs, about 400,000; of calves, 800,000; of hogs, about
250,000, besides various animals used as food. Considerable quantities of butcher’s
meat have lately been imported from Scotland and the provinces to London, in addi
tion to what is bought at Smithfield and the other markets. It is reckoned that about
£1,000,000 sterling is a fair computation of the value of live animals sold in Smithfield market alone. About 800,000 gallons of milk are consumed in London annually,
supplied by about 10,000 cows. It is said that nearly £500,000 per annum are paid by
milk retailers to cow keepers for the produce of their cow s; and that from the addi
tional cent per cent added to the original cost of the produce, independent of the loss
caused by adulteration, the citizens of London pay nearly £1,000,000 sterling for milk
alone. Upwards of 10,000 acres of land are under cultivation round the city, in order
to supply the regular vegetable market; and about 4,000 acres axe devoted to the cul
tivation of fruits and flowers. Nearly £7 00,000 sterling are paid at market for garden
stuffs, and upwards of £400,000 for fruit alone; and when we take into consideration
that the retailers advance the price o f these more than 200 per cent, we shall find that
the Londoners disburse above £3,000,000 yearly for esculent vegetables. The annual
consumption of wheat in London is above 1,000,000 quarters, each quarter containing
eight Winchester bushels. About 1,000,000 chaldrons of coals are consumed, each
chaldron containing thirty-six bushels, or one ton and a half. Nearly 250,000 barrels
o f ale and porter annually are brewed and sold in the city, each barrel containing
thirty-six gallons. About 12,000,000 gallons of spirituous liquors and compounds,
about 70,000 pipes of wine, about 3,000,000 pounds of butter, and about 30,000,000
pounds o f cheese, constitute the articles of general use. In Billingsgate market alone
— that famous theater of eloquent persons, who, from their dress and demeanor, might
be supposed to constitute a third sex— upward of 300,000 tons of fish are annually
disposed of, and nearly £100,000 are paid for poultry during a season by the rich.
* The Anim al Com m ercial Register and General R ecord o f Prices in the year 1849. By D. M o r ie r
E vans , author o f the Com m ercial Crisis, 3847, 1848, <t-c. 12mo., pp. 255, L on don : Letts, Son &
Steer.

Mercantile Miscellanies.

13 7

TH E FRENCH MERCHANT AND TH E SPANIARD,

a member o f the British Parliament, while traveling in Spain, in
1848, fell in with a French merchant, who related to him the following anecdote:—
D a v id U r q u h a r t ,

A French merchant from Bordeaux, who had a house at Barcelona, where he resided,
received, in the course of business, a large sum money from a Spaniard at a time when
he was much embarrassed in his affairs ; he was, therefore, unwilling to receive the
money, and yet fearful to refuse it, lest his credit should be shaken. Shortly afterward,
he failed and absconded. His creditor traced him to Gibralter, and thence to Cadiz.
There he found him lying sick, without attendants, in a garret. On entering the room,
the Spaniard sternly demanded his debtor’s books. Receiving them, he sat himself
down and spent several hours examining them, referring to the Frenchman merely upon
points where he wanted information. When he had completed his investigation he re
turned the books without comment, and departed. Shortly afterward he returned, ac
companied by a physician, and had his debtor removed to a comfortable apartment,
and then addressed him thus: “ I am satisfied that you have not been guilty of fraud;
but you have done me a great wrong: had you been frank I should have enabled you
to hold your ground. Now that we are in the same boat, let me know how much wiU
enable you to recommence business.” The sum being specified, he said, “ Well, you
shall have it upon the condition that you pledge me your word of honor that you wiU
not leave Spain without my permission.” The debtor was about to pour forth expres
sions of gratitude, when his creditor stopped him : “ It is you,” said he, “ who have
rendered me a s e r v i c e a n d , unbuttoning his coat, showed him a brace of pistols, add
ing, “ One of these was for myself.” My informant concluded : “ I am the man, and it
happened under this roof.”
IM PORTS OF CORN AND OTHER GRAIN INTO ENGLAND IN 1848.

According to a British Parliamentary return published, the total quantity of wheat
and wheat flour imported into the United Kingdom in the year ending January 5,1850,
amounted to 4,835,280 quarters, of which 4,765,233 were from foreign countries, and
160,047 from British colonies ; the average price of wheat during the year being 44s.
3d. The quantity of foreign barley and barley-meal imported in the same year was
1,389,858 quarters, the average price being 27s. 9d. The total quantity of oats and
oat-meal imported was 1,307,904 quarters, of which 1,283,834 were foreign, and 24,070
British colonial; the average price was 17s. 6d. Of rye-meal 246,843 quarters were
imported ; 246,822 from foreign countries, and 21 from British colonies ; the average
price being 25s. 8d. The quantity of peas and pea-meal imported was 236,525 quar
ters, of which 221,705 was foreign, and 14,820 British colonial ; the average price be
ing 31s. 2d. The total imports of beans and bean-meal amounted to 458,651, aU of
which, with the exception of one quarter, was foreign; the average price being 30s. 2d.
The quantity of Indian corn and meal imported was 2,277,224 quarters, 2,274,624 be
ing foreign, and 2,600 British colonial. The imports of buckwheat and buckwheatmeal amounted to 627 quarters, aU but one quarter being foreign. In bere or bigg 843
quarters were imported. The aggregate quantity of grain and meal of all sorts im
ported in 1849 amounted to 10,753,775 quarters— the largest proportions being sup
plied by Denmark (1,320,571 ;) Prussia (1,364,694;) Russia (northern ports 343,124;
ports within the Black Sea 577,633;) France (1,025,009 ;) and the United States of
America (1,834,000.)
TH E BRITISH MERCANTILE NAVY.

The present number of British seamen is about 270,000, of whom 200,000 belong to
the mercantile marine, and 25,000 to the navy, the remainder being in foreign service.
The total number of vessels belonging to the merchant service of the British Empire
in 1848, was no less than 33,672, having an aggregate tonnage of 4,052,160, and carry
ing collectively 230,069 men. The average rate of increase in the merchant vessels
for the last ten years has been 600 per annum, while the annual increase of burden
amounts, within a fraction, to 100,000 tons. By this means employment is found for
5,000 fresh hands every year. The British Empire possesses one-third more vessels
than France ; while the aggregate tomrage of the British ships is upwards of four times
as great as the French, and one-third more than the collective burden of the American
vessels. A n idea o f the extent of the foreign trade carried on by this country may be

Mercantile Miscellanies.

138

formed from the number of British and foreign vessels that annually enter the several
ports of the United Kingdom. Those in the year 1848 amounted to 35,000 vessels,
(13,000 of which were foreign,) having a gross burden of 6,500,000 tons, and giving
employment to nearly 350,000 men. The total value of the exports and imports effec
ted by such means amounts-to upwards of £75,000,000 sterling per annum. Accord
ing to the estimate of Mr. G. F. Young, the ships engaged in the mercantile marine are
worth £38,000,000. The sum annually expended in building, repairing, and outfitting
new and old ships amounts to £10,500,000; and the cost of the wages and provisions
for the seamen engaged in navigating the merchant vessels to £9,500,000; while the
amount annually received for freight by the shipowners is said to come to £29,500,000.
The foreign trade, in connection with the port of London, is very nearly one-fourth of
the maritime commerce of the United Kingdom. The number of vessels that entered
the port of London in 1847 was upwards of 9,000, and the gross tonnage nearly
2,000,000; the rate of increase being about half a million tons and 2,500 vessels in five
years, or 100,000 tons and 500 vessels per annum.

ADULTERATION OF COFFEE IN LONDON,

A memorial, numerously signed by the leading merchants of London, has just been
forwarded to the Lords of the Treasury, setting forth the gross adulteration practiced
in the article of coffee, by the fraudulent and deleterious mixture of roasted acorns,
chestnuts, peas or beans, red pottery earth, sand mahogany sawdust, coloring matter,
and finings, as also chicory. It is shown that a severe loss to the revenue accrues by
the very serious and progressive diminution in the deliveries of coffee, during the last
few years, arising from the extensive adulteration spoken of, whilst considerable in
justice is done to the planter, the fair trader, and the consumer. The object of the me
morialists is not to prevent the fair, legitimate fale of chicory, but to prevent the sale
o f a mixture of coffee and chicory, (or other substances,) under the name of coffee ; the
former paying a heavy duty, and the latter paying none. They therefore pray that
their lordships will rescind their order of August, 1840, sanctioning, contrary to the
Act of Parliament of 48d Geo. I l l , c. 129, the mixture of chicory with coffee. From
the great respectability of the memorialists, including the names of Baring Brothers,
Forbes & Co., Frederick Hutt As Co., Arbuthnot & Co., Crawford Colvin & Co., Sase &
Sibeth, and other leading houses, it is to be expected that the justness of their com
plaints will receive due attention from their lordships.
T H E SPANISH MERCANTILE CHARACTER.

A French merchant in conversation with Mr. Urquhart, M. P., during his travels in
Spain, remarked to him that there was no public credit in the English sense of that
term, but there was real credit, for in Spain man trusts man. A great traffick had
been carried on through the Basque provinces, during the Continental blockade: no
books were kept; the recovery of debts by legal process was impossible; yet was it
distinguished by the most perfect confidence, and entire absence of failures or embez
zlement. The statement was subsequently confirmed by Mr. George Jones, of Man
chester, who managed the largest English concern in the Basque provinces during the
war. He had no clerks. The goods were disembarked and put in warehouses. He
could keep no regular accounts. The muleteers came themselves to get the bales, and
aU he could do was to tell them what the bales contained, and to received their own
note o f what they had taken in an amount of £300,000, and there was but one parcel
missing. Several years afterward a priest brought him fifty dollars, which was the
value of the missing bale of goods, saying, “ Take that and ask no questions.”

M EN EMPLOYED ON RAILWAYS IN ENGLAND.

A Parliamentary has just been issued, showing that, on the 30th June, 1849, there
were 159,784 persons employed on railways, of which 55,968 were employed on rail
ways open, and 103,816 on railways not then open. On the 30th June the total length
o f railways open was 5,447 miles and 10} chains; the length in the course of con
struction on that day was 1,504 miles and 20 J- chains; and 5,132 miles and 38} chains
neither open nor in the course of construction; making 12,083 miles and 70 chains au
thorized to be used for the conveyance of passengers.

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139

THE BOOK TRADE.
1. — The Pillars o f Hercules: A Narrative o f Travels in Spain and Morocco in
1848. By D avid U rquhart, Esq., M. P. Author of “ Turkey and Morocco,”
“ Turkey and its Resources,” “ The State of the East,” etc. 2 vols. 12mo., pp. 287
and 283. New Y ork : Harper & Brothers.
Spain and Morocco, which the author of these volumes visited, without, as he informs
the reader, any settled plan, presents treasures which are unknown, in those regions
which have been subjected to repeoplings and fundamental changes.
Mr. Urquhart
carries us, as it were, with him through homely paths, and into the presence of the
most trivial practices, and describes to the reader, as a stranger would, a different
manner of life, endeavoring, however, as a native, to explain matters from which his
readers may derive benefits in health, comfort, happiness or taste, from their old expe
rience. When he (the author) has drawn comparisons, it has been for our advantage,
not theirs— it has been their merits, not ours, that he has placed in evidence. We have
culled a few inviting extracts from the first volume, which will be found under the
“ Mercantile Miscellanies” of the present number of the Merchants’ Magazine. Two
more readable or instructive volumes of travel have not, that we are aware, been
published in a long time.
2. — Hints toward Reform, in Lectures, Addresses, and other Writings. By H orace
G reeley . 12mo., pp. 400. Hew Y ork : Harper & Brothers.
This work consists of a number of lectures which have been delivered by Mr. Gree
ley before various literary associations, and also several essays from his pen which have
at different times been given to the public. They are written in a style which pos
sesses many claims to literary merit, and with a vigor of thought which is peculiar to
the author. The leading idea which runs through the book, and which apparently oc
cupies much thought with the author, is the amelioration and improvement of the so
cial condition of man. Amid all his labors— amid all his duties— this subject is still
prominent, and nowhere is it discussed with such variety of thought or cleverness of
argument as in this book. W e think, however, that the author, with all his noble and
generous views, is too much disposed to secure reforms by the force of legislation, and to
tie men up to virtue by the power of legal enactments. More confidence in man, and
in the nobleness of his nature, would remove this tendency to fasten restraints upon
him. Yet, in the cause of humanity and social improvement, Mr. Greely is certainly
entitled to hold a high place, even if our judgment should be formed merely by the
contents o f the book before us. We cannot, however, reconcile his ultra views on the
subject of trade with the liberal and noble sentiments here put forth.
3. — Eldorado, or, Adventures in the Path o f E m pire: comprising a Voyage to Cali
fornia via Panama ; L ife in San Francisco and M onterey; Pictures o f the Gold
Region, and Experiences o f Mexican Travel. By B ayard T aylor , author of “ Views
on Foot,” “ Rhymes of Travel,” etc. With illustrations by the author. 2 vols., 12mo.
New York: George P. Putnam.
Mr. Taylor visited California, as a correspondent of the Tribune, and his letters were
published in that journal, as received by each arrival. A portion only of the pages of
the volumes, however, were included in the original letters, which appeared in the
columns o f the Tribune. “ Many personal incidents and pictures o f society, as it then ex
isted in California, noted down at the time, have been added, and a new form given to
the materials obtained.” Mr. Taylor’s “ impressions of California are those of one who
went to see and write, and who sought to do both faithfully.” The work is written in
an agreeable and popular style, and we have no doubt of the fidelity of the author’s
statements. The report of Mr. King, on California affairs, is added as an appendix to
the work.
4. — The Past, Present, and Future o f the Republic. Translated from the French of
A lphonze de L amartine, author of the “ History of the Girondists,” “ Memoirs o f
my Youth,” “ Raphael,” etc. New York: Harper and Brothers.
The present volume treats of a variety o f subjects connected with the political con
dition of France— past, present, and prospective. The heroism, patriotism and purity
of the author, combined with his reputation as a man of letters, and the part he assum
ed in the French Revolution, are circumstances well calculated to interest a large class.

140

The B ook Trade.

5. — The Trippings o f Tom Pepper; or, the Remits o f Romancing. A n autobiogra
phy. By H arry F ranco. 2 vols., pp. 283 and 296. New Y ork: Mirror Office.
Dewitt & Davenport.
Tom Pepper (Tom is not the hero’s nickname, but liis grandfather’s surname,) is a
novel of American manners and society, of American localities and characters, and of
American notions at the present day. Without, apparently, any professed aim at
writing a national work, the author has given us what may be fairly classed as an
American book. A t the same time some pretty severe satire is leveled, in the course
of the story, at the notions on the subject of a national American literature. A good
deal o f nonsense, no doubt, has been said and written about this matter, and certainly
the absurdity is very obvious, of insisting upon a writer’s shaping his efforts simply to
the production of national and American books. But the nationalty, which is desirable,
which is essential, we may say, to success, is that which flows from a true originality.
I f a writer be an American, and, as a writer, be true to himself, not writing from books,
not working up again the ideas of others, but writing from life, his writings cannot fail
of that local hue which we call nationality. This is particularly true of the writer of
fiction—above all, o f fictions of every day life. If his pictures are not painted from
what he has himself seen, and heard, and felt, they are sure to be mere second-hand
copies o f what others have seen, and heard, and felt. Without any of that life and
truth which always announce themselves and make their way straight to the heart,
and which we recognize as instinctively as we do the likeness of the portrait of one
we have never seen. Tom Pepper is, in the good sense of the word, original, and must
needs be national. The author, Mr. Briggs, whom the thin disguise of his nomme de
plume can no longer conceal, being one of the patriotic editors of that truly American
journal, the Evening Mirror, in whose columns the novel first appeared in chapters.
The story abounds in characters and incidents which succeed each other in almost end
less variety and with almost breathless rapidity. W e are hurried with the hero through
a motley crowd of personages— some slightly sketched, others more elaborately painted
— all brought out with some of those touches and points which give individuality and
variety; just as in a crowd you see a thousand faces with the usual complement of
eyes and voices; yet always something in each to distinguish it from every other. The
men and women are not mere generalized masculines and feminines, such as fill the
pages of so many novels, like the ghosts with “ exiguous voices” in Virgil’s Elysian
fields cold and shadowy. Nor are we forced to learn who and what the characters are
from what the author asserts them to be. He lets them speak for themselves. The
volumes abound in dialogues which are lively and natural. The narrative is in that
plain, direct and unvarnished style, yet flowing and free from stiffness, which belongs to
works of that class, which imparts an air of truthfulness, and is, therefore, selected
from true artistic reasons.
6. — The Illustrated Atlas and Modern History o f the W orld: Geographical, Polit
ical, Commercial and Statistical. Edited by R. M ontgomery M artin , Esq., author
of the “ History o f the British Colonies.” London and New Y ork: John & E.
Tallis.
W e have taken occasion to refer to this Atlas in former numbers of our journal, and
always in terms of high but deserved commendation, for we regard it as incomparably
the best and cheapest general atlas ever published. It is executed in the highest style
of the art, and the copious maps, drawn and engraved on steel from Government
(British) and other authentic records, including all new boundaries, discoveries, and
lines of railways, of which accounts have been received in London to the time of going
to press, are illustrated with a great variety of objects, as public buildings, views, and
the most remarkable scenes in the countries laid down on the several maps, executed
in a style of engraving that would not detract from the high reputation of the London
Art Journal, which is regarded as a model of artistic excellence. This Atlas is pub
lished in parts, each part containing two maps, illustrated with letter-press descriptions
of the geography, history, commerce and resources of the several countries and parts of
the globe laid down on the maps. Twenty-one have already been issued, and eleven
more, thirty-two in all, or sixty-four maps, will complete the series. It will form,
when completed, one of the most accurate and convenient works of reference that has
ever been produced.
1.— Shakspeare’s Dramatic Works. Boston: Phillips, Sampson & Co.
The 15th and 16th numbers of this unrivaled edition embraces the “ Comedy of Er
rors ” and “ M a c b e t h t h e former illustrated with a portrait of “ Luciana,” and the lat
ter with a masterly engraving of “ Lady Macbeth.”

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141

8. — Lectures on A rt, and Poems. By W ashington A lston. Edited by R ichard
H enry D ana, J r . 8 vo., pp. 380. New York: Baker <fe Scribner.
This work, from the pen of an eminent painter of modern times, is a valuable con
tribution to the press. It embraces principally lectures on art and poems upon various
subjects. The author, a native of the State of South Carolina, possessed the advanta
ges of a classical education, and was graduated at Harvard, during the year 1800.
From this circumstance, probably, he was induced to travel beyond the range of the
profession which he had chosen, into the field of literary effort, where he achieved a
considerable reputation. The most interesting part of the work consists o f lectures
upon art which are composed in a philosophic spirit and a nice appreciation of the
sentiments and principles appertaining to the pursuit to which he had devoted his life.
An individual who had attained so much distinction in the art of painting, both in
Europe and America, could commit nothing to the press upon the subject which could
fail to attract the interest of the cultivated, and we doubt not that the work will be
favorably received by this class of readers, as well as by the public generally. It is
prefaced with an introduction by the editor, who informs us that the present volume
will be followed by another, containing a full biography of this illustrious painter, as
well as his correspondence.
9. — Talbot and Vernon. A novel. 12mo., pp. 512. New York: Baker & Scribner.
A story of more than ordinary interest, designed to illustrate the strength of what is
commonly called “ circumstantial evidence,” and to refute a prevalent idea that such
evidence is fallacious, and ought not to be a ground of conviction. The author, a young
man, a resident of one of our Western States, and who had never left it until he en
tered the army as a volunteer in the Mexican war, introduces in his narrative an ac
count of the battle of Buena Vista, most of which he “ saw, and a part of which he
was.” The writer portrays Western manners, and Western civilization, and has, we
think, succeeded in giving a clear idea of what they are. The work is written in a
style that would not discredit older and more practiced authors. We have read the
volume from its first to its last page, a circumstance (rare for an editor) that should
entitle our appreciation of its merit to some little respect.
10. — Memoirs o f Extraordinary Popular Delusions. By C harles M ackay, author of
“ The Thames and its Tributaries,” “ The Hope of the World, <fcc. 2 vols., 12mo.,
pp. 384 and 384. Philadelphia: Lindsay tfc Blakiston.
These two volumes embrace a collection of the most remarkable instances of the
moral epidemics which have been excited, sometimes by one cause, and sometimes by
another. They serve to show how easily the masses have been led astray, and how
imitative and gregarious men are, even in their infatuations and crimes. The memoirs
o f those commercial delusions, the South Sea Madness, and the Mississippi Scheme,
are more copious and complete than are to be found elsewhere; and the same may be
said of the history of the Witch Mania, which contains an account of its terrific pro
gress in Germany ; a part of the subject which has been left comparatively untouched
by Walter Scott, in his “ Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft;” the most important
that have yet appeared on this fearful but most interesting subject. Aside from the
marvelous interest which the work is designed to excite, it records a history, or chap
ter, in the great and awful book of human folly, well calculated to exert a beneficial
influence upon man and society. The chaste and beautiful style in which Mr. Mackay
has recorded these narratives, is not the least attractive feature of the work.
11. — Memoirs, Letters and Poems o f Bernard Barton. Edited by his daughter.
12mo., pp. 405. Philadelphia: Lindsay & Blakiston.
Besides a comprehensive memoir of a life marked by no extraordinary or exciting
incidents, but characterized rather for the virtues of an intelligent and conscientious
member of the society of Friends, the volume contains an interesting collection of the
poet’s correspondence, including a number of letters from his friends, Charles Lamb,
Robert Southey, <fcc. The letters are of various moods, on various subjects, but, like
the poems, (which cover one-half the pages of this volume,) one with another, they
always reveal a heart, which, though often playful and humorous, like Wordsworth’s
good old Matthew, could never once be said to “ go astray.” Though strongly attached,
from education and principle, to Quakerism, he was equally liberal in his recognition
of other forms of Christianity. W e prize the volume, because we admire the purity of
the poet, and the character of a man whose life was in harmony with the peaceful
and progressive principles of practical Christianity.

142

The Booh Trade.

12.— The L ife and Correspondence o f Andrew Combe, M. D., Fellow o f the Royal
College o f Physicians o f Edinburg, etc., etc. By G eorge C ombe. 12mo., pp. 428.
Philadelphia: A. Hart, late Carey & Hart.
The subject of this memoir is well known to the reading world as the author of sev
eral valuable works connected with physiology. Among which may be named his
publication on the “ Principles of Physiology,” the “ Management of Infancy,” and a
“ Treatise on the Philosophy of Digestion and the Principles of Dietetics.” Of the
first-mentioned work, it is stated on reliable information, that not less than sixty thou
sand copies have been printed and sold in this country. The incidents in the life of a
man of letters or science, like Dr. Combe, seldom abounds in many personal adven
tures or stiring incidents. But it is instructive, recording as it does, the struggles which
Dr. Combe had to make against the depressing influence of disease; which, though
often remitting in its violence, was ever his companion until the day of his death. It
shows a mind, under such adverse circumstances, can be gradually developed into a
state of maturity and even vigor; and, from the variety of subjects treated in the vol
ume, it will be more interesting and instructive to the general reader than any single
treatise of Dr. Combe’s on a particular subject.
18.— The Unity o f the Human Races proved to be the Doctrine o f Scripture, Reason,
and Science.
With a Review o f the Present Position and Theory o f Professor
Agassiz. By Rev. T homas S myth, D. D., Member of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science. 12mo., pp. 404. New York: George P. Putnam.
Dr. Smyth professes to have taken a comprehensive survey of the whole subject, in
its relations to Scripture, Reason, and Science, and comes to the conclusion that
the concurrence o f so many distinct lines of proof in establishing the original unity of
the human race, is equal to the clearest demonstration,
14. — Redwood: a Tale. By the author of “ Hope Leslie,” etc. Authors revised
edition. Complete in one volume. 8 vo., pp. 457. New York: George P. Putnam.
The established reputation of the author of this work has already secured for it a
wide circulation. It comprises one of a series of her entire works, which are now in
the progress of publication, in a uniform and beautiful style. The merit of this novel
is already so well known that it would seem hardly necessary to describe its character
15. — Letters o f a Traveler; or, Notes o f Things seen in Europe and America. By
W illiam C ullen B ryant . 12mo., pp. 442. New York: George P. Putnam.
This volume consists of letters written during three excursions to Europe, at differ
ent periods, two trips to Illinois, and one to Florida, and occasional visits in the neigh
borhood of New York. Many were published at the time in the columns of the New
York Evening Post. They are written with much ease and gracefulness o f style, and
narrate incidents, occurrences, and scenes, which possess an attraction in themselves,
independent of any connection with the author.
16. — The Miscellaneous Works o f Oliver Goldsmith, Including a Variety o f Pieces
nowfirst Collected. By J ames Prior . In 4 vols., 12mo. YoL IV., pp. 543. New
Y ork: George P. Putnam.
This volume completes the most complete collection of Goldsmith's miscellaneous
writings. The present volume embraces all the poems heretofore published and manyshorter pieces not before collected, together with the dramas, and twenty-three criti
cisms relating to poetry and Belles’ Letters, now first collected. The four volumes
form the most perfect and beautiful edition of Goldsmith’s works that has ever been
published.
— The Hungarian Revolution.
Outlines o f the Circumstances attending the Hungarian Struggle fo r Freedom: together with brief Biographical Sketches o f the
Leading Statesmen and Generals who took part in it. By J ohann P ragay , Colonel
and Adjutant-General in the Hungarian Army under Kossuth. 12mo.,pp. 176. New
Y ork: George P. Putnam.
The author of this brief sketch of the struggles of Hungary for liberty held an
official station in the Ministry of War, under the administration of Kossuth, and of
Adjutant-General in the Army— circumstances which, in connection with his active
participation in all the important battles, have enabled him to give a faithful and re
liable view of the prominent events, and, indeed, the whole course of the revolution .
The volume is illustrated with a map of Hungary, Galicia, Slavonia, Ac., including the
military operation of the Hungarian war.
17.

The B ook Trade .

14 3

18. — The United States Lawyers' Directory and Official Bulletin f o r 1850— the Man
ual o f the American Legal Association. Compiled by J ohn L ivingston, of the
New York Bar, and editor of the United States Monthly Law Magazine, etc. New
Y o rk : John Livingston.
A handsomely printed octavo volume of one hundred and seventy-five pages, con
taining the name and place of residence of every practicing lawyer in the Union, and
the names and places of residence of the commissioners of deeds, appointed by the
governors of the various States, together with the plan, constitution, <fec., of the Ameri
can Legal Association, and a catalogue of its members, embracing the name and ad
dress of at least “ one efficient and trustworthy lawyer ” for every village and city in
the Union. The directoiy comprises the names and places of residence of nineteen
thousand five hundred and twenty-seven practicing lawyers. The value of such a
work to the profession, and those in any way connected with it, is too apparent to re
quire other than a mere announcement of the publication. The work has evidently
been compiled with care, and is, we are assured, entirely accurate in its details.
19. — New Poems. By Miss H annah F. G ould. Boston: W . J. Reynolds.
Many of the poems in the previously published collections of Miss Gould have be
come as familiar as household words. Her verses are artistic in construction and pure
and beautiful in conception, and convey thoughts and feelings in harmony with what
ever is good, and beautiful, and true in nature, religion, and society. The present vol
ume is made up entirely of pieces never before published in a collective form, embra
cing many o f the writer's happiest and most successful efforts. The volume is hand
somely printed, and bound in a correspondingly neat and attractive style.
20. — The L ife and Religion o f Mohammed; A s Contained in the Sheeah Traditions o f
the Hyat-ul-kaloob. Translated from the Persian, by the Rev. James L. Merrick,
eleven years Missionary to the Persians, member of the American Oriental Society.
8vo.. pp. 483. 1850. Boston: Phillips, Sampson & Co.
It is the design of this volume to exhibit the character and religion of Mohammed.
It is an abridged translation of a Persian work, and, probably, contains much authentic
information upon the subject o f which it treats, mingled with traditions which possess
but little authority. Y et it is valuable as a rare and curious monument of Persian
literature, which may be consulted with advantage, as throwing light upon the celes
tial character of that singular people. “ It may be hoped,” says the translator, “ that
increased information will lead to more systematic and persevering effort to diffuse
through the Moslem world the freedom, peace, and righteousness of the Gospel, and
thus repay with good the evil which Islam has done to the followers of Jesus.”
21. — Atheism among the people. By A lphonse de L amartine. 8 vo., pp. 71. Boston :
Phillips, Sampson
Co.
It is the design of this little track to illustrate and enforce the sublime idea of faith
in God, as the fundamental principal of a republic; or a sense of obligation to a higher
power as tending to the performance of duty. Its general style and arrangement are
presented to us in the form of a discourse. It is hardly necessary to allege that the
common law of England, from which our own system of jurisprudence is derived, is
based upon Christianity, and in proportion as its bonds are weakened is the fabric of
social order shaken from its foundations.
22. — The Gallery o f Illustrious Americans. New York: published from Brady’s
Gallery.
The fifth number of this great national work is illustrated with an admirable por
trait of H enry C lay, the great American statesman. It affords another unmistakable
proof of D’Avignon’s unrivalled genius and masterly power as an artist. The brief
letter-press sketch of the life and character of Henry Clay, by C. Edwards Lester,
scarcely covering two pages, affords one of the finest specimens of comprehensive bi
ography that we have ever seen. It. condenses many things in few words; and that
without sacrificing that graceful elegance of diction which characterizes the best efforts
of the gifted editor.
23. — Frank Fairlegh ; or, Scenes from the L ife o f a Private Pupil. With illustra
tion by G eorge Cruikshank. London: A. Hall. New Y ork : George Virtue.
The 15th part, now before us. completes the story. Without any effort at imitation,
many o f the scenes and characters are portrayed with a cleverness not surpassed by
Dickens in his happiest moments. To say that the illustrations, which accompany
each part, are drawn by Cruikshank is equivalent to pronouncing them faultless.

144

The B ook Trade .

— The Scarlet Letter: a Romance. By N athaniel H awthorne. 12mo., pp. 322
Boston : Ticknor, Reed & Fields.
The author of this volume is possessed o f peculiar genius. His style evinces a deli
cate perception— and is elegant and picturesque. The present work is comprised of a
series of sketches, showing the state of New England society at an early period, and
they breathe, throughout, a tone of refinement and graphic skill which render them
efforts of no ordinary character.
24.

25. — Lights and Shadows o f Domestic Life, and Other Stories. By the author of
“ Rose and her Lamb,” &c. Boston: Ticknor, Reed & Fields.
The moral of this little work is beneficent, exhibiting the tendency of hom e as
the source of the best influences, and the purest happiness. W e are here informed
how domestic life may be improved by the cultivation of moral principles, and there
are, moreover, depicted numerous sketches of character tending to enforce the gene
ral objects of the volume. The tales and sketches are written in an easy and grace
ful style.
26. — The Rise, Progress, and Present Structure o f the English Language. By the
Rev. Matthew Harrison, A. M., Rector of Church Oakley, Hants, and Late Fellow of
Queen’s College. Oxford. 8 vo., pp. 393. Philadelphia: E. C. & J. Biddle.
The present volume is an able work, exhibiting the progress of the English language.
The author appears to have made the subject one of profound study, and he has given
us a comprehensive treatise, showing its origin and structure, and also the rise of va
rious terms, by different authors and in different ages. There is no one but an individu
al of a peculiar taste, adapted to this especial study, who could have presented the
subject so satisfactorily, and we have no doubt that the work will be received with
favor, as a valuable commentary upon the topic which it describes.
27.

— The Philosophy o f Electrical Psychology: in a Course o f Nine Lectures. By
New York: Fowlers & Wells.
These lectures, which were delivered in Washington by invitation of several mem
bers of Congress, relate to “ Electrical Psychology,” a department of science said to
treat of the phylosophy of disease, and the reciprocal action of mind and matter upon
each other. The work purports to be written “ in rather a fanciful style, so as to
make it pleasing to readers generally.” Whatever may be the reader’s opinion of the
soundness of the author’s views, he will not be disposed to deny him the merit claimed
o f “ throwing out before him a fair specimen of original thought.”
J ohn B ovee D ods.

28. — Mothers o f the Wise and Good. B y J abez B urns, D. D., author o f the “ Pulpit
Cyclopedia,” etc. 12mo., pp. 288. Boston: Gould, Kendall & Lincoln.
It is the design of this work to exhibit the influence of mothers in their offspring;
and we find accordingly that the “ wise and good” men and women here introduced
to the reader have all enjoyed the blessing of being the sons and daughters of “ wise
and good” mothers. The work embraces a series of agreeable instances of the success
of pious maternal influence, interspersed with various striking incidents, both in prose
and verse, calculated to interest and improve the mind, followed by short essays on
the various duties and responsibilities o f the Christian mother.
29. — The American Vocalist. By Rev. D. H. M ansfield. Boston: W. J. Reynolds.
This new collection of music embraces a great variety of tunes, anthems, sentences,
and hymns, derived from the compositions of Billings, Holden, Maxim, Edson, Holyoke,
Read, Kimball, Morgan, Wood, Swan, <fcc., besides eminent American authors now living,
as well as distinguished European composers. It is designed for the church, the vestry,
and the parlor; and is, to use the language of the compiler, “ adapted to every variety
of meter in common use, and appropriate to every occasion where God is worshiped
and men are blest.”
30. — “ The Art-Journal ” for May contains two illustrations, engraved on steel, from
pictures in the “ Vernon Gallery,” namely : “ Sir Thomas Moore” and “ Reading the
News,” and “ St. George,” engraved on steel by Roffe, from the medal by W. Wyon,
R. A. The “ passages from the poets,” “ Titania,” and the “ Minstrels Dream,” the for
mer from Shakspeare, and the latter from Beatie, are capital specimens of wood en
graving. George Virtue is the American publisher of this beautiful work.

Full text of The Merchants' Magazine and Commercial Review : July 1850, Vol. XXIII, No. I

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