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HUNT’S
MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE.
E s ta b lis h e d J u ly , 1 8 3 0 ,
BY FREEMAN HUNT, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.
V O LU M E X X X I .
JULY,
1854.
N U M BE R I.
CONTENTS OF NO. I., VOL. X X X I .
ARTICLES.
Art.
p a ge
I. SAIL AND STEAM COMMERCE. Desiderata o f Sail Commerce—Obvious Advantages
• o f their Reformation—The Desiderata o f steam Commerce—Inefficiency o f Collins’
Steamer “ Pacific's ” Wheels—Her Unavailable Motive Power—River Steamers............... 19
II. THE FIELD OF THE AMAZON. Fractional Aspect ofthe Mississippi—Relations with
the Amazon—Atlantic the Natural Outlet of Western South America—The Permanent
Region o f Commercial Supremacy— Description of the Amazon—Population, Product?,
and Trade o f its Valley—Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, upon its Free Navigation. By E noch
H a le , Jr., Esq., of New York....... ........................................................................................... 39
III. THE ELEMENTS OF BUSINESS SUCCESS.—By M a t t h e w H ale S m it h , Esq., o f the
Suffolk Bar, Massachusetts........................................................................................................... 56
IV. A UNIFORM SYSTEM OF COINAGE FOR COMMERCIAL NATIONS. By Dr. J. H.
G ibbon , o f the United States' Branch Mint, North Carolina.................................................. 63
V . ELEVATED RAILROAD TERRACE FOR BROADWAY. By J. B. W ic k e r s h a m ........ 72
J O U R N A L OF M E R C A N T I L E L A W .
Ship-owners—Specific Performance of a Contract.......................................... .....................................
Inability o f Railroad Companies for the Delivery o f Goods, etc .....................................................
Ship—Contract for Sale of—No Specific Performance—Registry A ct..................................................
Counterfeiting Trade Marks.....................................................................................................................
Carriers by Sea—Bills of Lading—Robbers—Dangers of the Road.—Ship-owners—Insurance... .
74
78
79
79
80
COMMERCIAL CHRONICLE AND R E V I E W :
EMBRACING A FINANCIAL AND COMMERCIAL REVIEW OF THE UNITED STATES, ETC., ILLUSTRA
TED WITH TABLES, ETC., AS FOLLOWS I
Condition o f the Money Market throughout the Country—Prospects o f the Fall Trade—State o f
the Manufacturing Interests—Building and other Improvements—Receipts o f Railroad Com
panies, and Pecuniary Effect of Careless Management—Explosion o f the Parker Vein Coal Co.
—Necessity o f Guarding against Fraudulent Issues o f Stock—Condition o f the Banks at New
York and Boston—Comparative Receipts o f Leading Railroads for May—Deposits and Coinage
at United States Mint for May—Foreign Imports at New York for May, and since January 1st
—Causes of Increased Receipts—Comparative Imports o f Dry Goods for May, and during the
last Five Months—Revenue o f the Country, with a Statement of Receipts at New York and
Philadelphia—Exports from New York to Foreign Ports for May and since January 1st—Ex
ports o f Leading Articles o f Domestic Produce to June 17th—Imports and Exports for Eleven
44
l i n C 'ipA n l V n n . A t .
At A
CM OO
Months o f lthe
Fiscal Year, etc., etc........................................
........................................................
81-88
New York Cotton Market......................................................................................................................
VOL. XXXI.— NO. I.
2
89
18
CONTENTS OF N O. I ., V O L. X X X I.
J O U R N A L OP B A N K I N G ,
CURRENCY,
AND F I N A N C E .
P AGE
Public Debt of the United States..........................................................................................................
Condition o f the Banks of Onio in May, 1354....................................................................................
Specie in the United States i i 1820, 1849, and 1854.—Product o f the Precious Metals in 1853...
Condition o f the Hanks o f Illinois.—Condition ol the Banks...........................................................
Domestic E xchange................................................................................................................................
Taxes and Properly o f Illinois.—The Condition of the Banks of Boston................................... ..
Condition of the Banks in the different States in 1850-51 and 1853-54 ..........................................
Specie as Baggage....................................................................................................................................
Savings Banks in the City of New York.— American Stocks held by Foreigners..........................
Condition o f the Banks of New Orleans.—The Three dollar Gold Coin o f the U. States.............
Bank Stocks o f the States held by Foreigners.....................................................................................
91
91
93
94
96
97
99
101
102
103
104
COMMERCIAL STATISTICS.
Exports of the Products of the Forest from the United States............. ...........................................
Export of the Products o f Agriculture from the United States.........................................................
Imports of BreadstutTs into Great Britain.................*..........................................................................
Duties Collected at Boston.—Exports and Imports of C hili...............................................................
Ships cleared from London to A ustralia........................................ ....................................................
Prices o f Grain in England and other parts.......................................’. .................................................
Exports o f the products o f the sea from the United States...............................................................
Export o f Animals and their products from the U. S.—Prices o f Wheat at Albany for 61 Years.
Commerce o f Gloucester, Massachusetts.............................................................................................
COMMERCIAL
105
105
106
107
107
1C8
109
109
110
REGULATIONS.
New Inspection Law o f Maryland......................................................................................................... 110
Commercial Regulations at San Francisco............................................................................................ I l l
Macuquino Currency, Island o f Porto R ico.......................................................................................... 112
J O U R N A L OF I N S U R A N C E .
Life Insurance......................................................................................................................................... 113
Property destroyed by tire in San Francisco —Stocks in Insurance Companies held by Foreigners. 114
Mariue losses by Boston Companies.—Policy o f Insurance—Average lo ss -S e t-o ff...................... 115
NAUTICAL
INTELLIGENCE.
North Ronnldshay Lighthouse.—Start-Point Lighthouse......................... «■....................................... 115
Navigation into Spithead.— invention lor reeling sails of Vessels..................................................... 116
Lighthouse at Winterton.—Mysteries ol the Ocean............................................................................. 116
RAILROAD, CANAL, AND S T E A M B O A T S T A T I S T I C S .
Railroad Stocks held by Foreigners.—The Railroads o f the State o f New Y ork........................... 117
Rates of Transportation on Canals and Railroads................................................................................. 123
The Canals and other Public Works o f New Y o r k ............................................................................. 123
STATISTICS
OF P O P U L A T I O N , & e .
Results of the Census o f Great Britain................................................................................................. 126
Decline of the Population o f Spain......................................................................................................... 127
Census o f the Saudwich Islands......................................................................................................... 128
STATISTICS
O F A G R I C U L T U R E , &c .
Agriculture in Germany............................................................................................................
Agricultural productions in California...................................................................................
128
129
J O U R N A L OF M I N I N G A N D M A N U F A C T U R E S .
Iron Manufactures o f the W orld ..............................................................................................
The Mines o f New Jersey.........................................................................................................
Composition o f the Sheathing of Ships.—To make Oxide o f G old .....................................
Cotton Manufactures in the United States.............................................................................
MERCANTILE
130
131
132
133
MISCELLANIES.
Tea and Coffee Trade................................................................................................................. .
MCommerce is King.” — Overtrading, and giving large Credit............................................
“ The Bible Clerks.” —A Camel Market: bargaining by Pantomime..................................
Tricks o f Tailors.—A hint lor the unsuccessiul.—Industry the Road to Success.............
J35
136
137
138
T IIE BOOK T R A D E .
Notices o f new Books or new Editions
139-144
MERCHANTS’ MAGA Z I N E
I
AND
COMMERCIAL REVIEW.
J U L Y ,
1854.
A r t . I . — SAI L AND S T E A M C O M M E R C E .
D E S I D E R A T A OF S A I L C O M M E R C E — O B V IO U S A D V A N T A G E S OF T H E I R R E F O R M A T IO N — T H E D E S I D E R A T A
OF
STEAM
A V A IL A B L E
C O M M E R C E — IN E F F I C IE N C Y
M O T IV E P O W E R — R IV E R
OF
C O L L IN S 5 S T E A M E R
u P A C IF IC ’ S ”
W H EELS— HER
UN
STEAM ERS.
T hat which is directly incorporated into our very prosperity, which is
a part of our individual and national life, and peculiarly so o f our interna
tional life, speaks its own eulogy at the door to the public m ind; its ad
vances are as rapidly proclaimed as from time to time they occur; but
the present and the past speak not the future, except as to its firm basis,
which is beyond the reach of decline; except they tell that its advances are
unknown, which may mark its culminating progress, as it has been so for
cibly marked by tlie past; and except they tell that the present, as that of
no past epoch in the day of its unsurpassed honors, has not reached its merid
ian splendor.
Marine Commerce has proclaimed within a half century last past her
successful alliance with steam, her extension of that treaty to Trans-Atlan
tic Commerce, her improvements in model and rigging, as shown in the
fast modern clipper in contrast with the anterior, dull-sailing ship, and her
nautical improvements under the scientific aid rendered through the Na
tional Observatory Department.
It would be arrogance to suppose that the public is not already fully
sensible of the wide-spread, extending, and deep-rooted interests of marine
Commerce in our vital prosperity, and sufficiently so to watch the pulsations
of her manly system. Not to watch them, through fear lest her sail or her
steam branch shall decline or lose its vitality; such a thought would be
contradicted by the prosperous enterprises of our commercial men, by the
constantly advancing attainments of her mechanical departments, of her
ship-builders, lier riggers, and engine-builders; of her army of mercantile
and navy commanders, so bold to meet the dangers of the deep, and so no
20
S ail and Steam Commerce.
ble in humanity’s calls, aspiring to the noblest and highest duties and honors
o f their profession; and it would be false to the late successful accomplish
ments of science in her so full hydrographical history and obvious instruc
tions therefrom, so ably set forth to mariners as at an early day of their
practical trial at once to establish important advantages, and their profit
able and reliable character; all o f which speak her progress and not her
decline, even speak her future eminence unknown— but to watch them to
know at all times her healthy or unhealthy state.
The human pulsations indicate, better e.ven than the external appear
ance, the real state of the physical system, and while all around judge by
the external appearance, that imbecility, disease, dangers, and death brood
now and then over different members of the great family, often over many
o f them at the same period of time, he whose profession especially qualifies
him to judge critically, watches the pulsations o f the internal system, and
as he determines the disease, actual or threatening, wisely determines the
proper restoratives or preventives. So, too, the public judge of the exter
nal appearances of sail commerce, and observe now and then her imbecil
ities, her diseases, her dangers, and the too numerous deaths, as they hover
over and attack different members of her great family; but he whose pro
fession constitutes him a judge of her internal system, should watch her
more sensitive pulsations, and knowing her threatening and actual diseases
and dangers, should know of and provide the remedies.
The general and specific diseases by which sail Commerce may be per
sonated, have all her lifetime hung about her system, like uncertain, occa
sional diseases and dangers to the constitution o f man. Thus, as when the
ship lies at her dock ready to spread her canvas to the winds, but the
winds are not forthcoming at her wish, or are too adverse for the narrow
channels or threatening shores; and as when she drops anchor at the door
of our harbor, because the winds are too light or too indirect to speed her
to her berth, the resting and reinvigorating place, which she seeks so anxiously
after the tedious, protracted, and perhaps disabling labors of her day, (her
passage,) then is she imbecile as the invalid upon the sick b e d ; as she finds
herself in the calms that settle upon the bosom of the ocean, that prevail
at certain seasons and that monopolize certain broad “ belts,” as in the
tropical and equatorial calms, to their peculiar and constant reign, then is
she like the feeble patient sleeping to recover hope and vigor; as the faint
breezes fan her, then does she show recovering vigor; as the dead
head-winds assail her, then is she like the strong man striving boldly against
disease, perhaps convulsive attacks, or perhaps moderate or mild in form ;
as the “ slant ” winds drive her from her chart course, then is she like the
robust man baffling a staggering disease; or, as wdien she finds herself by
enticing or decoy winds under their sudden reversion, helplessly too near
the lee shore dangers, and as when she is driven by winds overpowering
her skill, also too near threatening coast dangers, then is she like the al
most hopeless and helpless victim of terrible diseases; but, worst of all,
when the far too numerous and too terrible shipwrecks overtake her, then
is she like man tossed in the arms of Death; and we would that she did
not so alarmingly often carry in her embrace numbers, and often large num
bers of human victims to her disease, to the same watery grave!
But, again, Wisdom, in the outfit of his bark, (man,) provides for his
diseases by professionally bringing the preventives and restoratives of Sci
ence and Art to the aid of the mortal frailties of his nature, that he may
S ail and Steam Commerce.
21
preserve or restore a healthy constitutional vigor; which frailties o f man
are well known, for they are taught by fact, as well as by the words that
gave life to the fact when it was uttered unto the woman, “ I will greatly
multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow shalt thou bring forth
c h ild r e n a n d unto Adam, “ Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow
shalt thou eat of it all the days o f thy life ; in the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou
taken; for dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return.” W e all feel
and realize the fact, hence we desire, appreciate, and honor the faculty that
comes to our relief; and the medical department of science is based upon
the firmest foundations, for it is seated upon the best understanding and
judgment, and is deep-rooted in the affections of man.
The constitutional diseases of sail commerce are just as well known by
facts, and by that inspiration that said— “ The wind bloweth where it listeth,
and thou, hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh or
whither it goeth,” and it is left to the latter half of the nineteenth century
to repeat the echo— from whence cometh help ?
No medical department for her ills and woes is publicly known, and none
is pretended, and so far as we can judge of public sentiment and effort, and
commercial apathy in this regard, none is sought fo r ; supineness and patient,
passive sufferance, seem to me to predominate, and wealth lavishes from
her abundance to so multiply the numbers of her crafts as to make good
their inefficiencies from disease, and to reinforce, by new levies, the num
bers that decease.
Observe, due care is taken by the keen foresight of Finance to avail her
self to the utmost of science, art, and nautical skill, when the ship is healthy,
that no fractional percentage of the gratuitous forces of nature that conduce
to such health shall pass their deposits beyond her coffers, but the mite
from those deposits she does not send forth to invite from the apothecaries
of Commerce— Science and Art— the forces of art to prevent and relieve
her from the diseases of her system. The smoothly-gliding model is duly
encouraged— the ingenuity of man in spreading her multiplied canvas,
bearings broad as the long-arm o f strength can reach, as high as the upper
currents and as low as the surface currents, and longitudinally sail after
sail to catch every “ slant,” winding, or diverted current of the wind, is en
couraged until every flowing, fluttering breath of force must lend their aid
in enabling her to creep like an infant, at times, to walk like a child, and
to engage in the electric race o f life, as when in the race.with time she
has beaten (as yet at times) the most rapid steamers that have ever fur
rowed the tranquil inland, or billowy, oceanic waters; the highest skill is
sought in her nautical instruments, and the highest energy and talent in
her commanders; yet it is said o f her— “ one thing thou lackest,” and it
is thus, as if we would do everything to adorn the body so naturally and
perfectly developed, but scorn to provide for the inspiration of the soul by
force— since force is the living spirit of the ship— when nature ceaseth so
to do, and leave her a victim to her mortality.
Steam Commerce possesses the two familiar ways of developing the
force of steam in the run of the ship, but that which is best for the full
steamer, (the paddle-wheel,) so greatly encumbers the ship in fair sailing,
that it is secondary to the screw as an occasional motor.
Neither is the
screw propeller adapted, in that it hinders more in fair sailing than it
helps through adverse winds, which fact is practically known; and the
22
S ail and Steam Commerce.
philosophy of the fact rests upon another fact, that the fair winds by
which a ship may run “ close hauled ” to her chart course, considerably
exceed the adverse winds— as in the European trade they equal fourfifths of all the winds to the outward-bound passages, and five-eighths to
the return passages— so that the distance through which her propeller
acts as a “ dead drag ” to the ship, even though its blades are feathered,
forbids its availability. Therefore the use of the screw, without transfer
ring her sailing identity to that of a steamer, is like giving the naturally
well man medicine quite debilitating, that he may have its restoring ten
dencies when naturally sick.
Consequently, the personification of Sail Commerce shows her possessed
of a characteristic vigor and substantial progress so long as the natural
elements— winds and currents— conspire to give her life, health, and an
energetic vitality— shows her, when the winds are fair and full, the pride
of the ocean, and an emblem of man’s best estate; but when these ele
ments desert her, it shows her helpless “ upon the bosom of the deep ” as
an infant in its mother’s arms. When they assail her, she is tossed as in
a lottery of uncertain misfortunes, in which she may adroitly draw some
favor and ultimate headway, from her natural opponents, in which she
may hold a conservative position, or in which she may be overpowered,
pressed backward or forward into dangers, or perhaps into the coasting
grave.
The voice and the echo o f our commercial country, of our halls of
science, of our studios of invention, and of our shops o f industry, should
be, “ W hy is not such an alliance made with Steam as that she may
always have at her command Force?” Force that shall establish her
above these embarrassments, dangers, and losses— force that shall carry
her through the calms of life with a steadily onward course; not rapidly,
like the steamships, because its laboratory would require too much room
in her nursery chambers; but moderately, so as to keep up a healthy
pulsation of almost six knots hourly, which a little homeopathic engine
would breathe into her system, while yet its presence would hardly be
observed, except by its wonderful effects, would hardly be known, in its so
great bed-chamber, yet whose preventing, relieving, and restoring tend
encies could hardly be realized. It would carry it through the “ horse
latitudes ” (tropical calms) as if nature was cheated of her purposes o f de
lay ; it would carry her through the horrors of the “ doldrums ” (equato
rial calms) as if the scepter of Neptune had yielded to the progress of
republicanism— to the healthy industry and practical science of the age ;
it would glide her steadily through the too light breezes, as a gentle
and nourishing stimulant encourages the slow and feeble energies of
m an; it will help her as the adversities of life bullet her progress, and
keep her unvaryingly in her onward course; and, as when new diseases
ordinarily assail us, if we have an antidote at hand they are harmless;
and when, by the overpowering winds, she is driven waywardly far distant
into the broad expanse of the waters, or into proximity to dangers or into
dreadful disasters, then it is able to meet the assailing elements o f the
winds and the waters by the no less powerful elements of fire and water
vaporized, so that its subtle force withstands the winds and billows, and
yields not to their mastery, but boldly defies them, and resists or exceeds
them, and adds to her noble prow safety and progress.
The universal absence o f such a panacea tells the answer. It is because
S ail and' Steam Commerce.
23
human skill has not arisen to one of the greatest necessities o f Commerce ;
and can we say further, that it is because it cannot thus arise ? This
would be a lie to the onward course o f m an; it would be insulting that
spiritual halo that hovers over genius to direct it in the paths o f useful
ness ; it would be abusing the progress of science, industry, and ingenuity,
so happily blended, as when they bring forth the radically important
improvements o f the age; it would be charging impotency to the Medical
Department, because they had not relieved and restored a patient whom
they had never been called to visit— the patient, in the meantime, having
been giddy under the wealth which his sickly system, even, could gather,
scorned to interrupt the steady treasury flow by wisely caring for the
greater flow which a healthy system would produce.
When these diseases shall have cried long enough in vain; shall have
been long enough endured by the cool apathy of the directly interested
parties and friends; shall long enough have made our marine news col
umns to groan under the long lists of disasters— then, perhaps, an investi
gating and inventive genius, like a Watt, or a practical mind and skill,
like Fulton’s, or an alliance o f pure science and genius, like that of Morse,
may arise to meet these so pressing necessities; or perhaps like the little
colliery railways that profited man in their humble underground services,
and in due time stretched themselves out to unite and profit cities, states,
and nations, the system o f our little pleasure crafts that bedeck the bays,
now scudding before the breeze, now stemming the breeze by the steady
stroke of the oarsmen, shall grow until it pervades the ships as the rail
ways do the lands; and until the row-man’s arm becomes the strong arm
of the Cornish engine, (which has always swayed its scepter of superior
virtues and power over the crank engine, in the heavy European mining
operations;) and when the small engine cylinder and boiler that tugs
not only the ship but its own hull, so very advantageously through the
waters of our harbors, shall be honored with a retired chamber on board
ship, and shall have dismantled itself of its massive unnatural propelling
wheels in exchange for some device appropriate and practical, yet as
simple as the oar itself—hence more effective than the wheels or s c r e w then will Sail Commerce profit by the simple mechanical design shown in
rowing, just as Inland Commerce has profited by the little railways that
in the deep chambers o f the earth led to their present extended and in
creasing use over the earth.
It is very evident that no propelling device that is to be immersed
during the fair winds, can possibly be profitable as a remedy to the dis
advantages or diseases we have specified; as we have seen that the wheels
and screw have both been proved entirely incompetent, and they can only
be used where steam is the constant motor. In the little pleasure-boat we
may go easily and briskly by sail, when the winds are fair and fu ll; or by
oars when the winds fail or are too adverse; or by both when the winds
are slightly though insufficiently available. Just such a device, in char
acter, not in detail, Sail Commerce needs for her ships; for we can by no
means substitute the little paddle-wheel or screw, as delicately proportion
ed to the row-man’s power as is the oar, and accomplish like effects; and
their entire absence from pleasure-boats, o f men’s power, shows them in
comparison to the oar worthless; for that they cannot be adapted to a
few men’s power upon the small boat as well as to an army of men upon
the leviathan steamer, will not be presumed or claimed.
24
S ail and Steam Commerce.
The fact that the simple principles of the oar have never been adapted
to the steamer does not, therefore, presuppose them inappropriate; it is
simply an acknowledgement o f the historical fact, but in no way propheti
cal. No person should be so indiscriminate as to infer from the recipro
cating propelling devices which have been experimented with in the early,
middle, or latter history of steam navigation; that they have ever em
bodied the simple rowboat transmission of the actuating power— this has
never been done; and the task undertaken heretofore has been far more
difficult, since it has been the task o f producing the reciprocating rectili
neal (or curvilineal) propelling action from a rotatory resultant, (or prank
transmission,) produced by the reciprocating primary; whereas/ this dis
advantage and loss of power in producing the rotatory force (in this re
actionary manner) constitutes the well-known practical superiority o f the
Cornish engine transmission over that of the crank engine, as developed
in the heavy mining operations of Europe, where, for this simple reason,
(both being equally well adapted to the duties, except in their transmissive
properties,) the Cornish duty is greater than the crank duty as (100 is to
77 a) four is greater than three.
It is very obviously just as indirect and complicated to convert the sim
ple rectilineal action of the piston to a rotatory force through the crank in
navigation, to produce the horizontal run of the vessel, as it is in the drain
age duties of Europe to make the same unnatural use of the power to pro
duce the vertical rise of the water. The inefficiency in the latter case, or
drainage duties, by converting the rectilineal motion to a rotatory force
(as in the crank-engine for pumping) to produce the vertical rise o f the
water, compared to producing the vertical rise directly from the same rec
tilineal reciprocating motor, is just as notorious as is the fact that this most
early and extended business exists. And the inefficiency of the common
crank-engine in this mining duty, peculiarly adapted as a merit-test of the
mechanical principles, is just as well established as that of the paddle-wheel
or screw is for the little pleasure boat, compared to the oar; and because
the practical proof agrees with and sustains the scientific proof, that in the
former case three-fourths the fuel (everything else like and equal, except
the converting of the rectilineal primary motor to a rotatory force by ob
lique actions upon and radial reactions through the crank and its shaft
fixtures) only is required by the Cornish pumping-engine that is required
by the crank pumping-engine to do like and equal duties; and that in the
latter case, also admirably adapted to test the mechanical principles, boys
with oars in the little pleasure boat can outrun men with paddle-wheels or
screw, (of course, strictly well proportioned in their relations,) all other
things being like and equal, except the muscular power, and its mechanical
transmission to the boat. These extravagant deficiencies in transmitting
the actuating power renders both these common though unnatural fixtures
(at present) of navigation comparatively unknown, wherever the natural,
simple transmissions o f power have been rendered practical.
Consequently sail commerce, with such prodigal waste o f its mechanical
motive power— for the same elementary principles as are the bases of the
above experiments, should be the direct transmissive principles o f steam
mechanism— can only receive a little over half the aid or propelling power
due to the primary motor upon the piston. The immense power upon and
developed by the pistons, as in our trans-Atlantic steamers, shows the great
accumulation of motive-power, since it consists, effectively, of about two
S ail and Steam, Commerce.
25
thousand horses’ power, or nearly eighteen thousand men’s power, essential
to sustain these extravagant, prodigal losses, due to their mechanical pro
pelling systems. Besides the comparative proof of these losses, wdiich are
seldom realized because seldom critically and fully examined, we might
show by the most positive proof, based upon the published data and log of
the Collins’ steamer Pacific, that the motive-power developed by her piston,
which is entirely unavailable in the speed of the ship, equals not less than
four-fifths of the quantity that is available in her speed. Science traces the
development of the unavailable power just as strictly as it does that avail
able in her speed; hence there is no more uncertainty attending it in the
one case than in the other.
It is further evident that a multiplicity of oars, simply used, as in the
row-boat, are in nowise practical upon the steamer— even an oar to each
horse-power, literally, if mechanically governed, would be absurd. Yet the
oar sj'stem, reduced to a single propelling oar, so to speak, or the simple
Archimedean lever, to each side, and each with a simultaneous returning
oar or lever, so as to alternate at every piston-stroke, and each attached to
a complement of oar-blades, (in size and number at the pleasure o f the
builder,) all as one, running or reciprocating lengthwise of and horizontally
upon the side of the vessel, and returning above the water, giving to the
differing velocities of piston-strokes any desirable velocity o f floats, and we
have a simple, efficient system, with the exception of a single difficult
feature. This exception is, evidently, to produce the “ dipping” and
“ lifting ” of the complements of floats, or immersed areas, mechanically,
just as in rowing we do it by the will, muscularly.
That this exception can be overcome, is most probable from the fact that
we imitate many far more difficult human actions than this, mechanically,
and with most positive uniformity and precision. No mechanical device is
more simple than the lever, if the applied force acts perpendicular to i t ;
and nothing is better adapted to transmit the power, and to sustain its in
flexible positions; and nothing is better adapted to produce from the ordi
nary piston velocity the desired speed of the vessel; and the reciprocation
of the Cornish piston and the floats (each complement embodied as one)
are governed by the regulations o f the steam and the rock-shaft “ bumper”
in the same time, and just as easily and effectively as when the piston acts
upon the crank.
, The important alliance between the simple, directly transmissive princi
ples of the Cornish engine with the simple, directly transmissive principles
of the oar, by which from the rectilineal primary (or piston force) a recti
lineal resultant (or the speed of the vessel) is directly produced, rests upon
the single difficulty of providing a mechanical device to exactly imitate the
descent and ascent of the oar-blades, in which the oar-lever through which
the power acts (just as simply as through the “ walking-beam ” o f the river
engine) shall be flexibly connected with the oar-blade gang, (as a locomo
tive to its train, or the piston to its working-beam,) so that the oar-blade
gang only partakes of the dip and lift, leaving the lever movements as free
and invariable as that of the working-beam of an engine.
To say that genius, inventive talent, and mechanical skill cannot effect
this alliance, extremely important, yet resting upon a single difficulty,
would be a stigma upon the past, and false to the resources of the age.
W hy it has not been done, is because it has never been attempted. The
reader should bear in mind that the reciprocating devices now historical,
26
S ail and Steam Commerce.
or piled away in the patent-office apartments, have never attempted this
alliance, but a far different one— namely, that of a rectilineal primary, with
an unnatural mechanical rotation, (just as unnatural as for a man to expand
his muscular effort upon a crank in the same manner and as incorrigibly
as the engine does, and not rather produce in the application of his force
a muscular rotation by the guidance o f his judgment and will, which, if he
did not do, would stamp him as stupidly verdant— yet science knows no
two laws for the man and the engine,) and such a rotatory force with a
curvilineal reciprocation. Or the same question might be answered in the
same manner and for the same reasons as we would, prior to every im
provement, answer, why has not it been attained, even though its specific
necessity or value had not been known until introduced.
The subject thus presented is not simply speculative, but it is rationally
prophetical, in that the deductions are based upon undisputed data, while
those from science are indisputable, and the inductions follow as effect ever
follows cause.
OBVIOUS ADVANTAGES OF THEIR REFORMATION.
The advantages of such a practical alliance would render steam applica
ble to sail Commerce generally, without its losing its identity at all as a
sail marine in its economical relations, though it would lose its present
characteristics of uncertain, tediously lengthy, and dangerous passages.
In regard to the shipping o f the great trans-Atlantic thoroughfare, our
reliable statistics show that the average fair winds, when outward bound,
equal about 81 per cent, and when homeward bound equal about 62 per
cent of all the winds. Now, if we take the average tonnage as given last
year for the Liverpool packets, or 1,175 tons, and give to each a small en
gine, with the supposed improvements, such as tugs them at present in our
harbors at from 6 to 8 knots, and consumes about four tons of coal per 24
hours, we shall greatly increase its efficiency. By the National Observa
tory authority, as laid down by Lieut. Maury, we have to the outward
routes for January, February, March, and April, to 10 degrees west of Cape
Clear, 2,287 miles of fair winds, 469 miles o f slant winds, (or such as drive
a ship from her chart course,) and 76 miles dead-ahead winds; and we
have 72 vessels for the same months and routes averaging 19f days, which
gives a nominal run of 6 knots per hour.
Hence her specific sailing may, perhaps, be thus expressed:—
Days. Hours,
Through fair winds, 2,287 miles, at 8 knots................................................
Through slant winds, by chart 469 miles, by sail 606 miles, at 5knots..
Through dead headwinds, by chart 76, bysail 201miles, at 6knots.. .
Calms and delays..................................................................................
1
Total...............................................................................................
19
12
5
1
16
2
18
Their slant and head-winds being run “ close hauled,” and their distance
by sail given without allowance for drift, and since one mile drift requires
two and a half miles run on account of the transverse sailing to recover it,
the difference between the rates will not be considered too large.
It is evident that in making the run of 2,287 miles through the fair winds
there will be, under a general average, light breezes and very low runs, so
that, perhaps, we might assume to the strongest winds an average of about
eight days’ sail at 9.7 knots, so that we should give to the balance of the
27
S a il and Steam Commerce.
distance of fair but too light winds the aid o f steam. From the most ac
cessible facts and deductions, it is probable that, to the assumed tonnage,
the addition of steam to the light winds and slant winds would give about
1 knots upon the chart course; and steam alone to the dead head-winds
(ship close reefed) would average 4 knots or more. Hence we would have
the following results:—
Days. Hours.
9.7 knots.................
at 7 knots..............
knots.......................
at 4 knots..............
8
2
2
.
12
18
18
T ota l..........................................................................................................
14
00
Strongest fair winds, 1,867 miles by chart route, at
Light fair winds, 420 miles by chart, steam and sail
Slant winds, 469 miles by chart, steam and sail at 7
Dead head-winds, 76 miles by chart, steam and sail
Making to the credit of six days’ steam o f dffys’ time.
To the same months, and the return passages from 10 degrees west of
Cape Clear, we have only 1,664 miles of lair winds, 1,009 miles slant, and
179 miles dead head-winds, and to which we have 110 passages averaging
32 days. The chart distance is 2,851 miles, and the nominal rate 3.7
knots, though the sail-courses, due to the winds, without drift, is 3,406
miles, or at the rate o f 4.44 knots. These relations arise from the westerly
winds prevailing over the easterly, and their specific runs may, perhaps,
properly be given thus:—
Days. Hours.
Fair Winds, by chart course 1,664 miles, at 6£knots.....................................
Slant winds, 1,009 miles by chart, 1,262 miles by sail, at 3-J knots.. . .
Dead head winds, 179 miles by chart, 471 milesby sail, at 3| knots . .
Calms as extra, three-quarters of a d a y ........................................................
10
15
5
..
16
T otal............................................................................................................
32
00
14
18•
I f we suppose that to 1,280 miles of the strongest fair winds they could
have a run of 8 knots, then, with the rates before assumed to steam and
sail, we have, to the
Days. Hours.
Strongest fair winds, 1,280 miles by chart, by sail, at 8 knots...............
Lightest fair winds, 384 miles by chart, by sail and steam, at 7 knots.
Slant winds, 1,009 miles by chart, by sail and steam, at 7 knots...........
Dead head winds, 179 miles by chart, by sail and steam, at 4 knots...
T ota l........................................................................................................
6
2
6
1
17
16
7
21
00
Making, to the credit o f 10 days’ steam, 15 days’ time.
In uniting the passages for the same months, the actual average to both
ways is 5I f days, and the supposed passages by sail and steam jointly
equal 31 days, so that we have due to 16 days’ steam, at low rates and
consumption of fuel, 20 days’ time, or a saving of nearly two-fifths the
present time.
If we deduct from'the average tonnage'-the freight of engine, machinery,
coal, &c., by the saving in her running time she would increase her aggre
gate available freight by an addition equal to one-half of all her present
freight, and also increase her passenger capacity by two-fifths of her pres
ent lists.
This is, to be sure, an extraordinary economy; and in these considera
tions, while some things are reliably taken— such as the chart distances
which would be followed by sail and steam, the relations of the winds,
which are based upon thousands of recorded observations by a large num
28
S a il and Steam Commerce.
ber of mariners, the time of the average actual passages, and the consump
tion of coal to such an engine— other points are only supposed nearly cor
rect, as the specific rates of sailing given to the relative winds and given to
sails and steam, and the rate given to steam under the average head-winds,
the appropriate machinery, &c., being supposed attainable; hence the giv
en difference is, to a certain degree, problematical; yet it is not doubtful,
from the nature of the case, but that with such an engine and appropriate
and efficient machinery, nearly these runs may be produced, and with great
certainty and regularity.
It is an important consideration that, as we shorten the passages, we not
only lessen the risks by dangers and disasters in the same proportion, but
at the same time increase the ability to withstand and avoid dangers, and
prevent delays. During the same months o f 1852 we have the arrival of
135 vessels from Liverpool, London, and Havre, which averaged 35§ days’
passages. In the account of these passages, from the single port o f Liver
pool, we read thus of one vessel: “ 12 days west o f Georges Banks”— (a
iittle over three hundred miles from New Y o rk ;) one “ 28 days between
long. 30 deg. west and 40 deg. west,” (or 28 days between the meridians
of 10 degrees of longitude in the broad Atlantic;) another, “ 16 days from
Nantucket to the H o o k a n o t h e r , “ V days making 3 degrees of longitude
w e s t a n o t h e r , “ 6 days with pilot aboard;” one “ 7 days within 60 miles
of the H o o k o n e “ 20 days without making any longitude w e s t a n
other, “ 20 days in reaching Cape Clear from her p o r t a n o t h e r , “ 25 days
making 600 miles from Liverpool, and 14 days making the last 600 miles
into New Y ork ;” another, “ 20 days from the Grand Banks;” and many
other lesser, yet very embarrassing delays from the same port.
If we take simply the arrivals for the month o f March of the same year,
we have a peculiar illustration of the uncertainties attending sail voyages,
and, too, under the well known abilities o f the Liverpool masters. Thus,
the shortest passage was 17 days, and the longest passage nearly four times
the shortest, or 66 days; the next shortest was 18 days, and the next long
est three and one-fourth times the longer, or 59 days. W e have also two
ships that were a longer time without making any longitude west (that is
without crossing a meridian which they had reached at an earlier day,)
than either of these shortest runs. And another instance o f a packet ship
which was longer reaching Cape Clear from Liverpool (not far from 300
miles,) than either of these shortest passages; and another ship that w as a
longer time making 1,200 miles (a little over one-tliird of her chart route,
and it being the first 600 and last 600 miles o f her route,) than twice that
of either o f the two shortest passages.
To fourteen passages of ships arriving within three months from one port,
there is an aggregate o f extreme delays equal to 7 months or 217 days,
(and delays not included in the list of disasters,) and the distance covered
by this sum of delays with a six-knot steam-power, would have been run
in thirty-seven days, showing a net saving of six months time, or 180 days.
Nearly two-thirds of this sum of delays is west of the Grand Banks, (off
Newfoundland,) hence a greater coastwise exposure, greater risks of life,
of shipping, of merchandise, and of disasters.
But from the other English and European ports we have a similar tale
o f embarrassments, and to all an addition of a large portion o f the too
lengthy daily lists of disasters, many o f which would be directly avoided
by such an available steam-power.
S a il and Steam Commerce.
29
A commentary upon these facts, to speak their pressing demands upon
commercial men, to speak the economy o f a remedial alliance with steam,
(which cannot be effected under the present system,) and to speak the hu
manity of such an alliance, to preserve the lives o f those now swept by hun
dreds to a watery grave during a single prevailing storm; where the ship
is without a single hope from its inherent resources, and what is worse,
without the least preparation for relief by posessing a contending power to
the winds, or steam fixtures for the emergencies, is useless; they speak
more forcibly than words of eloquence, than rhetorical appeals, and they
speak financially as well as to the understanding and the heart.
ADVANTAGES IN THE SOUTHERLY, EASTERN, AND WESTERN COMMERCE.
In the ship’s great highway to the Pacific’s eastern and western Com
merce, southerly by the capes, we find still more extraordinary circumstan
ces showing the necessities for an alliance of canvas and the winds with
steam. The common and almost universal dread of the calms of the “ Horse
Latitudes ” and the “ Doldrums,” o f both the Atlantic and the Pacific, have
led, by their embarrassments, to the most careful and philosophical inves
tigations, and nautical instructions therefrom; and their profitable devel
opment by most perfect ships and able commanders— all of which we
cannot too highly appreciate as one of the great modern improvements.
But when the w’inds and currents cease their motion, the ship’s locomo
tion ceases; and when they are adverse she is greatly restrained from her
destined course.
Whatever the destination south of the equator, all take the same thor
oughfares, according to the season of the year, best to clear the South
American Cape; (St. Rouque, a little south of the line,) hence, the routes
to the equator are highly important. The facts and data of these routes
are in contrast with the European routes, in that the common and extreme
delays in the former, proceed from the absence o f winds chiefly; while in
the European trade they proceed, chiefly, from adverse winds, except in
the milder months; but they are similar in their uncertainties— in their
irregularities— good ships having lain longer in the “ doldrums” than
others have taken from the New England ports to California— in their
long average of passages, compared to the shortest when the ships pass
the “ dreaded” latitudes and equinoctial “ horrors,” as the exceptions to
nature’s common laws— and in that the relations o f winds to the equator,
agree very nearly with those to Europe ; while yet the passages to the
equator agree more nearly with the passages from Europe, distances con
sidered ; hence they both agree in their pressing necessities for relief,
through their only possible resource, that is, by a suitable alliance with
steam.
Nothing more forcibly than the simple, careful examination of the ship’s
“ logs ” to these passages can be deduced to show their embarrassments,
and the great relief they would sustain from a small steam power appro
priate to canvas ships. By such an examination of the log o f the FlyingFish, in her celebrated run of nineteen days to the line, it shows plainly
that three days’ steam, partly in the “ horse latitudes ” and partly near the
equator, would have saved her two days’ tim e; and in the Flying-Cloud’s
celebrated run to California, three-and-a-half days’ steam would have
saved her four-and-a-half days’ time to the equator; while several days’
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S a il and Steam Commerce.
steam would shorten many a passage more than one-half o f their actual
time. In certain months the average time ships have occupied in cross
ing the “ belt ” of equatorial calms exceeds the average steamship run to
Europe; while by a little steam-tug, (with a twenty-eight inch cylinder
and six-foot stroke, to a 1,200 ton ship,) such as ply in our own harbors,
would have crossed them in two-and-a-half days, and saved the time of
the shortest steam runs to Europe.
Although the average runs to the line have been remarkably shortened
under the so useful instructions of Lieutenant Maury, yet, from their pe
culiarities, it is evident that steam used about one-fourth of the time of
the present average would lessen that average to about two-thirds its
present time, giving very uniform runs— the dull-sailing ships requiring
more steam than the fast-sailers.
The runs to California have been very greatly reduced in two ways, one
by having better ships and better rigging, and the other by better know
ledge of the best routes, and better sailing instructions; but neither of
these reaches the great desideratum of Sail Commerce, namely, motive
force towards her destined port, when the winds cease entirely, when they
are but faint breezes, and when they oppose such progress.
These embarrassments are such, that to the Flying-Cloud’s short run,
had she had a six-knot steam power, by twenty-two days’ steam, she
would have saved eighteen days’ time, and 1,45V miles of her actual run.
By her log her position at noon, each day, is given, hence we can tell
accurately how much she would have saved in distance, from these posi
tions, by steam, (that is, she could not have saved less,) and yet have kept
her same general route; and her forty-nine days, when she would not
have used steam, would have been unvaried, and in which she ran 10,940
miles, or at an average rate o f 9.3 knots per hour. To her other forty
days she ran 5,011 miles, or at an average o f five-and-a-quarter knots,
nearly ; but by steam’s enabling her to keep her chart routes, although its
use is at different parts of her passage, her forty days are reduced to
twenty-two days, steam and sail, and her 5,011 miles to 3,554 miles, and
which is run at an average of six-and-three-quarter knots nearly per hour.
Hence we see how it is that so little steam does so great good ; for, just
like homeopathic medicine, it reaches the disease directly— yet the little
medicinal store is hardly noticed in the great nursery chambers.
>
In the partial log of the Sovereign of the Seas, (in which the commander
gives to the National Department, only fifty-three days out of his eightytwo days’ run from the Sandwich Islands,) in one o f her celebrated runs,
we observe, that for thirty-five days out o f the fifty-three days, she aver
aged 10£ knots, running 8,552 miles; the other eighteen days in which
she ran 1,993 miles at 4| knots, would have been run in ten days, and
have saved four hundred miles o f the distance, or averaging nearly 62knots. But this part o f the log was evidently given chiefly to show his
best sailing; to the other twenty-nine days of his run steam would prob
ably have been much more observably essential.
But since these are among the best runs ever made, they are those
least likely to require steam, or least likely to show its necessities, though
we see its great advantages very forcibly.
The average of all American vessels that arrived at San Francisco
during 1850 is l S l i days. Of course some o f these made intermediate
ports, some were dull sailers, and some had extravagant delays. And
S a il and Steam Commerce.
3]
thirty-six vessels from New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, that followed
Lieutenant Maury’s instructions, averaged 152 days from port to port.
The average passage o f thirty-seven clipper ships that arrived at San
Francisco, from our Northern Atlantic ports, from January 1st, 1851, to
April 1st, 1852, is 124 days. Upon this fact it is easy to establish reliab
ly, a general average of from eighty to eighty-five days’ passage, uniform,
very nearly, in time with steam. In 1852 twenty-nine vessels averaged
124 days from port to port.
The twenty-nine best passages in 1851-52 averaged 111 days, having
followed Lieutenant Maury’s instructions; and some of these are unequaled
in 1853. Now, if we give to these ships only the number o f days o f fair
w inds which the Flying-Cloud had out of her short run; and an average
of nine knots, then twenty-five days’ sail and steam will make the run in
seventy-four days from New York to San Francisco. W e should even
remember that, to this first class of clipper ships, it is not to the inability
to run well in fair strong winds that regularly prevail through the greater
part of their passages, that their lengthy average and irregular runs are
attributable— for their logs show to those ports uniformly good runs; but
to their delays by calms, faint breezes, and adverse winds, which are en
tirely beyond definite consideration— for to these ports their logs show
the differences and otherwise extraordinary irregularities.
Admitting, then, a practical alliance with steam, that shall not sensibly
diminish the sailing properties of the ship— her propelling mechanism
being out of and above the water, just as naturally as the oar (though not
like it) when not in use— and such as to give ordinarily a six-knot run,
and we have further very reliable data upon which to establish the cer
tainty of 74-day average passages, which is just two-thirds of the 111-day
average.
The freight due to the machinery and coal would, of course, lessen the
available freight somewhat— but should not equal one-sixth; and at the
furthest could not exceed one-sixth, even when providing for more than
ordinarily favorable passages; therefore, three cargoes by sail and steam,
each less by one-sixth of sail cargo, equal two-and-a-half sail cargoes;
and three sail and steam passages are performed in the same time as two
sail passages ; hence, the aggregate available freight capacity is increased
over that of its sail capacity by an addition equal to one-fourth o f its sail
capacity, (or half o f a cargo) in the time of every two sail passages.
The increased price of freight due to so greatly shortened and reliably
regular passages, would much more than cover the expenses due to steam;
hence, these considerations leave a net increase of available duty to each
ship, equal to twenty-five per cent of the present available duty.
In the return passages by the Sandwich Islands, China, and India, the
necessities are in like manner pressing; but from the less complete know
ledge in relation to these routes, we cannot tell so definitely the consider
ations properly due to them.
The considerations thus far, present the embarrassments of Sail Com
merce as we are to hand them down to our successors— to the future, un
certain, irregular, and inefficient; or else, into which we are to wreath
the laurels of relief and reform, and thus hand it down under the blessings
of a skillful culture, which shall have engrafted to its powerful body a
branch which draws from the fountain-head of nature, (the coal mines) an
additional source of life, so as to insure a perpetual vigor through an alii-
32
S ail and Steam Commerce.
ance with the forces of Art, when the gratuitous forces o f Nature fail to
produce a constantly efficient progress.
THE DESIDERATA OF STEAM COMMERCE.
W e would that no other considerable branch of Marine Commerce was
stamped with equal inefficiencies, comjiared with what they should be—
with no local internal debilities— with no crippled locomotive properties,
and with no constant diseases permeating through her system!
When Commerce made her alliance with steam, now so extensively
developed, it is greatly to be regretted that her successful Prime Minister
(Fulton) had not effected the alliance with the then as now well-known
superior branch of the mechanical system, with the elder, the efficient
Cornish engine— and not with the inferior branch, which had been weigh
ed in the scales of utility, as it is also weighed by the standard of science,
and “ found wanting," with the younger crank engine.
Under the reign o f W att the former reached that high pre-eminence it
has ever so signally held, and the latter received its birth; even the latter
has, therefore, more than doubled the life o f man in actual profitable
service— and while both were born to very different spheres, yet both are
essential to fill up the peculiarities of Providence; and to the lighter
duties of the railways, shops of industry and of art, the former makes no
pretense ; while to the heavy duties o f navigation the latter has less pre
tense of right, or merit, than it has to the heavy mining operations— since
it is forced to ally itself with an unnatural or crippled locomotion— while
in drainage duty, the latter and the former possess the same locomotive
developments— the same double-acting drainage apparatus.
It is important, therefore, to notice their respective spheres— and that
peculiar to the Cornish transmissive principles, is to develop a rectilineal
motor in a rectilineal resultant. The reciprocation of the motor is me
chanically immaterial.
That peculiar to the crank transmissive principles is to develop a recti
lineal motor in a rotatory resultant.
But in steam navigation by the present system that duty becomes two
fold ; because the rotatory resultant from the piston force must, by the
same laws, be reconverted to a rectilineal resultant.
Ordinarily, these conversions are under the simple mechanical laws,
with the actions and transmissions perpendicular to the radii of the ma
chines— hence immaterial how often multiplied; but not so in steam
navigation— for these laws are strictly applicable to but one point of the
actuating force upon the crank, (when the piston connections and crank
are at right angles to each other;) and to but one point of the rotatory
power of the wheel upon the vessel, (when the action upon the water is
parallel to the run o f the vessel, as when the paddle is perpendicular under
the center of the shaft.)
Under the laws o f simple mechanics the phenomena of the crank en
gine are impossible. From the simple transmissive principles of the
Cornish engine, a miracle could only develop the variable impulsive crank
piston stroke— hence, no sophistry should ever cover the truth, that the
one develops itself under the laws of simple forces; and the other under
the laws of compound forces, or of diversified developments. Newton
classifies the expansive action upon the piston, and its development upon
the crank, as under the compound development o f the acting and a de
S ail and Steam, Commerce.
33
rived reacting energy, or function; while D ’Alembert classifies it as simple
diversified developments; commonly, we adopt the former, though ana
lytically we often adopt the latter. Both give like results from like causes,
and, though it is immaterial by which we speak, the former will be the
more generally understood.
Mr. Tredgold and others have correctly analyzed these values and
summed up the resultants, which abstractly equal only (.636) six hundred
and thirty-six one-thousandths o f the primary. But practically, Mr. Tred
gold makes them nearly (74) seventy-four per cent o f the primary. (The
Editorial Appendix Considerations embody only one part of the essential
phenomena of the crank development, hence the conclusions are irreliable.
The practical considerations by Mr. Bourne, editor of the “ Artisan Club,”
and other reprints o f the same considerations, are in like manner incom
plete and irreliable.*) The abstract and practical differences arise from
the variable expenditures o f steam. Abstractly, an equal quantity of steam
is supposed expended to each variable obliquity o f action; practically, this
supposition is not true— hence, in the practical considerations we take,
(and they are gi.ven by Mr. Tredgold,) the actual expenditures to each.
Therefore, when no steam is expended, the transmission is zero; when
near the piston extremes, the rotatory force is very small— science meas
ures to the least fraction just the steam that develops its force to the
least possible space of piston motion, or to its greater corresponding crankpin motion, and their sum, unerringly throughout its stroke. The more
exact sum than is given by Mr. Tredgold, equals 771 per cent of the
primary, independent of and without regard to friction.
It is obviously as well as scientifically true, that comparing the apparent
piston development, when acting upon the crank, with the crank-pin devel
opment, is like comparing one drunken, staggering man with another,
since both have drank of the same debilitating drug ; for it is very obvious
that if the piston was not radically intercepted, its velocity would be uni
formly constant, and equal to its velocity at the most rapid part of its
stroke. Hence, when we unnaturally interpose the radial interceptions of
the crank and shaft fixtures to the velocity of the piston, which would
otherwise be not less than that of its most rapid point, we cannot take the
lessened velocity as the velocity due to an unintercepted development.
The difference between the rotatory development (or the apparent pis
ton development) and the actuating primary motion (or the piston devel
opment, if always at right angles to the radius,) equals the sum o f all the
reactionary developments, derived from the rectilineal primary to produce
the force of rotation.
If sophistry could always cast a mantle, as she has sometimes done,
over the fact, that as the rotatory pressure is lessened by the obliquity of
action to the radius, the velocity of the piston is lessened also— then the
important truth of the inefficiency of the crank-engine, by a prodigal waste
* Because they take the greater crank-pin velocity over the actual piston velocity as an increased
velocity due to the oblique actions upon the crank, whereas the piston’s actual velocity is lessened
by the oblique crank interceptions, below the velocity due to the piston in perpendicular action to
its radius or crank, in the same relations that the actual piston velocity is lessened below the crankpin velocity. Hence, under the analytical rotatory pressures without the fly-wheel the crank-pin
velocity is uniform, and the piston velocity variable as in practice; therefore, we add the fly-wheel
to restore an equilibrium velocity o f crank-pin between the variable analytical rotatory pressures
and the uniform practical load; which takes force from the active piston-center, as the steam is
expended faster, and adds force to the dead-centers, as the uniform load exceeds the pressure of
rotation.
VOL. X X X I.— NO. I.
3
34
S a il and Steam Commerce.
o f nearly one-fourth of all the actuation upon the piston, as practically
proved and well known in the mining districts, which has staggered the
indiscriminate mind, and will continue so to do, although it admits a
truth for which it cannot account.
It is even presumptive to suppose, if unprejudiced by sophistry or indif
ference as to the truth, that the unnatural phenomena in mechanics devel
oped by the crank-engine, in that it twice to every piston stroke acts
lengthwise of its radius of transmission, and twice through all possible
angles to it, only one o f which equals the directly transmissive action, as
when perpendicular to the radius, can, notwithstanding the direct positive
contradiction, equal the development if the piston was always perpendicu
lar to the radius.
Omitting the rigid scientific proof, we state simply its results, which are
that only 771 per cent of the actuating motion upon the piston is avail
able upon the paddle wheels or screw propeller of a steamer, the difference
being just as absolutely unavailably developed as if so much of the steam
escaped through the safety-valve of the Cornish engine.
UNNATURAL PROPELLING SYSTEMS.
Again, in the alliance of steam and Commerce, the most unnatural phi
losophy of locomotion seemed to pervade the eminently practical genius
of Fulton. Our propelling systems have ever been disowned by nature,
and they are obviously the paraphernalia o f man; for nature would have
endowed Commerce with far more efficieht locomotion, as with but one
exception she has the entire locomotive creation— the exception being that
class of which it was declared, “ upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust
shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.”
Having a primary motion of precisely the same character as is required
in the speed of the vessel— reciprocation in navigation is immaterial, or
rather is favorable— it is surprising that we complicate the production o f
the speed by the most wasteful and unnatural mechanical media.
From the first unnatural development we have a rotatory resultant en
feebled by an exhaustion of nearly one-fourth of its producing vitality;
but the second unnatural development is also enfeebling and exhausting.
Like the frog, introduced to all schoolboys, that could jump three feet
in his progress out of the well every day, though he could not avoid fall
ing back one foot every night, the paddle wheels of the noble steamer go
horizontally back— “ slip ” from one-sixth to one-third as fast as her hull
goes forward. A river “ slip ” of one-sixth the velocity o f the effective
pressure of her paddles equals one-fifth of the vessel’s run; and one-fifth
slip equals one-fourth run, and one-third slip equals one-half the run :
hence, so much o f the rotatory power o f the wheels as is developed to
produce the horizontal slip o f the wheels cannot, o f course, be developed
in the horizontal slip o f the vessel or her speed. W hen she is fast at
anchor, to her wharf, or aground, her whole motive power is thus devel
oped in the slip of her wheels.
The slip of the screw propeller exceeds that of the wheel and is second
ary to it in transmitting the rotatory power to the vessel; hence, we shall
not further allude to it.
In the wheels there is an additional slip, or cycloidal slip, which is pro
duced by the rotatory motion o f the wheels and the horizontal motion o f
the vessel, and arises from the constant passing of the unending series o f
S ail and Steam. Commerce.
35
floats from the water’s surface down to their lowest immersion and up
again to the surface ; hence, each float is far more embarrassed in its duties
and complicated in the development of its actuating force than was the
frog in his retrograde movements ; and what is true of each float is true
of all.
But the unnatural developments are more than twofold; and the third
is the radial action of the wheels upon the water and their oblique re
transmitted action upon the vessel, by which we have a constant series o f
very unnatural developments. So unnatural, that in the Trans-Atlantic
steamers at their usual or average immersion, the first or surface entering
paddles would, if the vessel was as the same specific gravity as the water,
raise it into the air at the angle of about 45 degrees to the surface of the
water; so, too, the leaving paddles, if fully resisted and not counteracted
by its buoyancy, would submerge the ship at the same angle; and thus in
the dipping floats, we have an increasing series of available actions upon
the vessel as the obliquities grow less and less, until parallel to the vessel’s
run ; and a diminishing series in the rising paddles, as the obliquities in
crease.
Another unnatural development of the wheels is their excess of, or un
natural travel in the air. Each float is compelled to move about three
miles in ocean steamers, and about five miles in river steamers, in order
that they may aid to move the ship one mile, less the horizontal slip o f
the wheels. Now it is no inconsiderable development of their motive
power which whirls these high wheels through the air, made very dense
by the water thrown through and pervading every nook and crook of the
houses. Evidently, the per centage o f this power is much greater in river
than in ocean steamers, and but light in slow steamers.
The last, though not least unnatural development, is in her far too
diminutive resisting area.
Experiment, guided by the best judgment of men, has established that
about one hundred square inches are necessary as the area of an oarblade best suited to resist, and be otherwise available to a man’s power in
rowing.
Now, if we may illustrate the propelling system by the published data
and logs of the Collins steamer Pacific, we find that she has to each wheel
o f 35.6 ft. diameter, 28 floats, each 10.6 ft. by 21.5 in., of which 7 are im
mersed upon an average to each wheel; and that their average dip, or at
half coal, is 7 ft. All immersed floats, therefore, average 2 6 3 j square ft.
o f propelling surface, or 37,926 square inches.
For several passages each way she averaged 1,828 effective horses’
power. Now, if we take each effective horse power as equal to nine men,
then her motive power upon her pistons equaled an army of 16,452 labor
ing men.
Deducting the reactionary development through the obliquities upon
the crank of 22J per cent, which, in addition to the extra friction due to
the oblique actions over direct actions, equals 25 per cent, and we have
an effective rotatory power upon the wheels o f 12,339 men. Hence, we
have to each man’s power only 3£ square inches o f immersed propelling
surface from both wheels.
Having 28 floats per wheel and 7 immersed, it is evident we have twice
this area immersed per stroke, or only 6 i square inches to each man’s
power per piston stroke, or only T’j o f that due to a rowman.
There is still an important consideration in these relations, in that the
36
S ail and Steam Commerce.
oar acts steadily and effectually upon the inertia of the water parallel to its
boat’s run, while the float of the wheel acts from a dipping angle of 45 de
grees to an equal leaving angle, so that the water is stirred to a perfect
froth.
Increasing the area of the paddles does not remedy these embarrass
ments, for, owing to the great cycloidal slip, the water is churned by the
unending series of entering and passing floats to a mere foam ; and the
present size, in their cycloidal movement, presents two horizontal surfaces
to each wheel, and wider floats would rather shut past each other, as win
dow blinds, and would encumber the dipping and lifting of the floats, and
increase the water thrown through the wheel-houses, and consequently in
crease the power required to drive the returning floats against the air and
wheel-house spray. In these considerations, we may not take the variable
relation of the floats as if in simple circular rotation at the wharf, but in
their peculiar changes due to their horizontal velocity.
The resistance, therefore, to the ljnown power upon the wheels, under
the most favorable considerations, does not equal one-fifteenth the resist
ance we find essential in rowing ; and however signally it implicates the
mechanical skill of the system, it is just as if we would give the “ W hite
hall ” rowmen oar-blades only one-fifteenth of their present surface, or less
than the flat of a man’s hand; and it only equals, to each effective horse
power upon the wheels, three-fifths of an oar-blade.
THE PADDLE-W HEEL DEVELOPMENTS.
As a consequence of these very unnatural mechanical arrangements, we
find a large development of the rotatory power of the wheel— 1st, in pro
ducing the horizontal slip of the wheels; 2d, in producing the cycloidal
slip; 3d, in producing a horizontal run from the oblique actions upon the
vessel; and, 4th, the residuary development, which is only available in the
run of the vessel.
To illustrate these developments by the published data and logs of the
Collins steamer Pacific, we find that in several passages each way she
made 214,303 double strokes of piston, or revolutions of wheels; hence the
mean effective pressure o f her paddles moved in rotation 3,810 geographi
cal miles, while the ship’s run was only 3,098 miles, showing a horizontal
slip of the wheels of 712 miles, or 23 per cent of the ship’s run.
Her cycloidal slip is, of course, much greater, as it covers the passage of
each float from the surface to its deepest dip and up again to the surface.
It is difficult to determine this slip actually or relatively, precisely, yet it
obviously equals nearly half the run o f the wheels.
The development by the oblique lifting action upon the weight of the
vessel, and the depressing action upon its buoyancy by the radial floats, we
can readily determine, and in the Pacific’s relations equals 12 per cent of
the actions which tend to produce the run of the ship.
Whatever is developed to produce the slip of her paddles cannot, of
course, enter into the propelling actions upon the ship, no more than the
power used in overcoming the friction of a machine can be again used.
The question arises, therefore, and it is a highly important question—
W hat is that quantity of the rotatory power o f the wheels developed in
producing their slip ?
In propelling, the water acts as a fulcrum to the motive-power, the same
as if we stood in a boat and pushed against the wharf; but if the boat is
S ail and Steam Commerce.
31
fast, and we row, the power is developed in the slow movement of the oar;
and if the resistance to the oar just equals that to the boat, then the mo
tive-power will be equally developed in the slip o f the oar and the slip of
the boat. The water is, therefore, a mutual restorative of equilibriums.
From the nature of the case, the horizontal resistance to the oar, or
floats, into its motion, equals the horizontal resistance of the vessel into its
motion, (supposing all actions parallel to her run;) and when the resist
ance to the oar is immovable or infinite, as when the boat is free, and we
act upon the wharf, or when the boat is fast and we act upon the water,
which is movable, then the immovable resistance constitutes a perfect me
chanical fulcrum. And it is further evident that when both resistances are
movable, the resistances will be inversely as their velocities. This obvious
ly arises from the equilibro-restorative medium, under which the actuating
power is free to be diverted, in whole or in part; to the lesser resistance—
therefore, the power is increased to the lesser resistance, just as the resist
ance is lessened.
Hence, the quantities o f motive-power developed upon their respective
resistances, is as their respective velocities.
[This law and its conditions should not be improperly confounded with
the general law under other conditions, that the resistances to bodies in
water is as the squares of their velocities, for their variable conditions har
monize them; for if the powers were independent, and not mutually, restoratively, variable inversely as the resistances, then the powers developed
upon the respective resistances would be as the squares of their velocities,]
These considerations present reliably the general relations of the actual
motive-power developed, respectively, in the horizontal slip of the wheels
and the run of the vessel, of both of which we have tangible data.
From difficulties pertaining to reliable data in relation to the cycloidal
slip, and the uncertainty as to how far the horizontal slip covers the legit
imate consequences of this slip, we may omit a specific computation of it,
preferring to come short of the real disadvantages of the system, rather
than to give any uncertain relations, or to exaggerate them. If( however,
there was no horizontal slip, then the friction o f the cycloidal slip to transAtlantic steamers would be an independent and not an unimportant
consideration.
W e may present, therefore, confidently knowing that it is below the
actual, practical disadvantages, the following computation of the variable
developments of the rotatory power of the paddle-wheels.
INEFFICIENCY OF STEAMER “ P A C I F I c V ’ WHEELS.
W e have, as reliable data, of the Pacific’s published log—
1st. That the horizontal slip o f the wheels is to the speed of the ship as
712 is to 3,098, or as 23-100ths of 1 is to 1.
2d. That the motive-power developed by the constantly variable re
actions upon the vessel to produce a horizontal resultant power, equals
12-100ths of all the retransmitted actions upon the ship.
3d. That the motive-power developed in the speed of the ship equals
88-100ths of all the actions upon the vessel.
Consequently, omitting the other developments, it is evident—
1st. That the development in the velocity of the ship is less than the
sum of all the actions upon the ship by 12 per cent o f their sum.
2d. That the sum o f the actions upon the vessel is less than the rotatory
38
S ail and Steam Commerce.
power of the wheels, by the development which produces the slip of the
wheels.
If, therefore, we let a + b + c equal the rotatory power of the wheels; and
a equal the power producing the slip o f the wheels;
b equal the power developed by the oblique actions upon the ship, t*>
produce the ship’s velocity ;
c equal the power producing the velocity of the vessel;
then a equals 23 per cent o f c ; and since b+c equals the action upon th«
vessel, b equals 12 per cent of b+c, and c equals 88 per cent of b+c.
Hence these values are represented thus:—
a equals 16.83 per cent of the rotatory power of the wheels;
b
“
9.98 (or 10) per ct.
“
“
“
c
“
73.19 (731)
«
“
“
«
Their sum equaling the full power of the wheels.
a+b, equal to 26.81 per cent o f the rotatory power of the wheels, equal
the unavailable power, or the mechanical loss, while c equals the availabl*
power.
It is equally evident that these unavailable developments do not cover al
that are unavailable; and that the available developments given are stil
considerably larger than is actually, practically»true.
W e have, then, summarily, the steamer Pacific’s developments, thus:—■
1st. 77.25 per cent o f the actuating power upon her pistons available
upon her wheels;
2d. 56.54 per cent o f the actuating power upon her pistons available in
her speed;
3d. 43.46 per cent of the actuating power upon her pistons unavailable, or
mechanically lost.
These values accrue without any regard to the known losses by extra
friction due to the oblique strains over directly transmissive actions upon
the crank; by the power developed in the cycloidal slip in addition to the
horizontal slip of the wheels; and by the power developed in the unnat
ural action of so many paddles against the air and wheel-house spray.
From these reliable principles and facts, it is hardly problematical that
of the actual motive-power developed in the Collins steamers, not over
one-half is available in their speed. Most susceptible of positive proof is
the fact, that nearly one-half of their motive-power is entirely unavailable
in their speed or economy.
The simple, effectual developments of the Cornish transmission and row
boat propulsion, when properly united by mechanical or inventive skill, are
to succeed these very unnatural and inefficient developments.
The losses that accrue by slip and otherwise to the wheels of the first
class of light-draft river steamers, only equal from 15 to 20 per cent of
their rotatory power.
The aggregate power available in their speed equals about two-thirds o f
their primary actuating power.
These summary considerations present in plain facts, obvious and scien
tific truths, the strongest and most urgent incentives to the intelligence of
the age, to investigate the present, and seek of science, genius, and practi
cal skill those improvements that shall elevate this department to that of
the general enterprises of the age.
39
The F ield o f the Am azon.
Art. II.— TIIE FIELD OF THE AMAZON *
F R A C T IO N A L A S P E C T O F T IIE
O U T L E T OF W E S T E R N
D E S C R IP T IO N OF T H E
M IS S IS S I P P I — R E L A T I O N S W I T H T H E A M A Z O N — A T L A N T I C T H E N A T U R A L
S O U T H A M E R IC A — T H E
TH E
B O L IV IA , B R A Z I L , UPON I T S
P E R M A N E N T R E G IO N O F C O M M E R C I A L S U P R E M A C Y —
A M A Z O N — P O P U L A T IO N , P R O D U C T S , A N D T R A D E
OF IT S
VALLEY— PERU,
F R E E N A V IG A T IO N .
T he development o f the great M i s s i s s i p p i System of the United States
— with all its mighty gatherings o f waters— the interminable area of its
drain— the measureless bulk and variety o f the products borne downward
by its hundred conveying tides— and the limitless expansive capacity of
its harvests— overshadowing as it does all other commercial and industrial
enginery combined by nature and art within the country— with all its dis
tinctness and entirety as compared with other fluvial organizations— is not
yet, in itself, either in its wonderful present, or in the magnitude of its giant
prospective, a thing complete. Such is the fact now ; although there has
been a time within the brief period o f our national existence, when a mind
o f unusually penetrative force, in an unusual effort of that superior fore
sight, was required to discern what nature had endeavored so plainly to
point out to the empire-founders o f middle North America: that this elon
gated sea with all its articulations, composed, and could compose, no more
than one navigation system, essential in its wholeness to the greatness, the
power, wealth, age, even the safety of the single nation here established—
that it was but the complement of their magnificent reach of ocean-shore,
and was indispensible to the full realization o f these unequaled coastadvantages.
Nature, in her primeval arrangements of the territorial surface, as well
as pre-ordaining the magnitude o f nations, marking out with most in
telligible lines the boundaries by which they should be legitimately and to
a degree per force circumscribed, has also measurably indicated the extent
and intimacy of their outward correspondence. Not that there are estab
lished, in these respects, unvarying limits for all states and conditions of
men. W e adhere with some emphasis to the modern idea that the expan
sion of a nation’s domain, and the extension of its intercourse may safely
and advantageously correspond with the force and activity o f its govermental,
its commercial, its social, in short, of its civilizing machinery. Barriers invin
cible to rude tribes, have scarcely the air of an obstacle in the way of the union
or correspondence of partially civilized communities. Walls higher, thicker,
stronger, are by the power of a superior enlightenment, transpierced, and
riddled with intelligence-holes, until the honey-combed fabric otters no ob
struction to the free passage of the sun-light, and the mutual sympathies
of mutual interests find unreserved interchange. Before the progress of
human improvement all fortresses of national limitation, except a few eter
nal barricades, designed from the first to maintain immutable separation o f
certain major divisions o f the earth, vanish, as the endless distances and
insurmountable hights of the child become trifling feasibilities to the
man.
Proportioned then to the state of the subject people, there are natural
* Exploration o f the Valley o f the Amazon, made under direction o f the Navy Department, by W h .
H e r n d o n and L a r d n e r G i b b o n , Lieutenants United States Navy. Part. I. By Lieutenant
L e w is
H erndon.
40
The F ield o f the Amazon.
laws regulative of the extent of national domain and correspondence. One
thoroughly conversant with Physical Geography, could such a one have ex
isted before the division of the race into these minor families, might have
delineated upon a map of the world the actual boundary and correspondence
lines of many nations as at present existing, especially of such as have for
ages maintained unchanged social condition and frontier, and could have
indicated the sort o f neutral space within which the wavy partition-threads
of others might oscillate.
Within the New W orld, and especially that part of it which we inhabit,
although there exist hedges sufficient for the confinement of an uncivilized
or lethargic population, nature had pre-arranged a physical system which,
under the occupation of the intellectually robust people who established the
mid-continental colonization, was certain to afford a development o f em
pire and of intercourse entirely beyond the scale of European magnitudes.
Notwithstanding early jealousies and a somewhat morbid tenacity o f their
segregate provincialism, the certainty of fusion throughout the long range
of English plantations, eventuating in the formation of a country-embracing
nearly the whole sea-coast o f temperate North America, and the width of
the Cis-Alleghanian belt, was very early evident. The French conceived
the gigantic scheme o f a colonial dominion extending all the way by the
grand line of water-courses between the deltas of the Mississippi and the
estuary of the St. Lawrence. The scheme was no vagary. Soon after our
independence, the mistrustful forebodings with which many had regarded
the whole transmontane region, were forced to give w a y ; our vast coast
and numerous Atlantic bays and rivers afforded an insufficient commercial
accommodation. The finger of destiny pointed to the Mississippi, and its
entire trunk, with the whole immensity o f its western tributaries becoming
ours, it w as converted from a border stream into the great central nerve of
the country.
It requires, at the present time, no more penetration than led to the ef
fort to secure the embouchure and farther branches of the Mississippi, to
see that the wholeness which that object appeared to comprise was only ap
parent. The view then taken, broad as it was, corresponded only with the
comparatively narrow interest of a near future. The Mississippi, in all its
magnificence of volume, its immensity of explored, improved, steam-nav
igated secondaries, with their city-crowned, life-stirring banks, though as
regards political dominion, it may have completed all presently necessary
amplitude of our circle, is yet, as regards the range o f our intercourse, as
much an imperfection as was the Monongahela before. It is as much a
fragment of a great river system, as is at present the Kanzas or the W achita.
North America is not, in itself, a perfect division of the earth— at least,
if ever such, it has ceased to be longer. It is a half-continent, joined to
its twin-section by the Siamese ligament of Darien, and within this
complement of the North the Mississippi finds its correspondent— the
A
m azon.
»
Betw-een the great rivers o f Asia and Africa,, or of Asia and Europe, as
the Indus, the Nile, the Danube, there may be no especial relationship, but
it is not thus with the two great streams o f America. Rising in the same
wonderful chain of mountains that extend from the Arctic Ocean to Terra
del Fuego, forming the common backbone o f both divisions, these running
seas partake fully o f the grandeur of their source. Starting forward in
The F ield o f the Amazon.
41
contrary directions, they approach toward each other at every step o f
their progress, and disembogue their floods, at length, in the same great
ocean.
The one has brought down the wealth gathered from the heart of North
America, the other would deposit on the Atlantic coast, and within easy
reach of our Commerce, had the burden been committed to its tide, all the
inestimable wealth of torrid America, in its whole equinoctial length. Nor
does it end with connecting thus the very shores o f the Pacific with the
Atlantic. Streams like these are not immediately lost, even in the profun
dity of the ocean. The tide of the Amazon, on reaching the sea, turns to
the northward, and pushing its way through, or bearing along with it, the
obstructing portions of the seemingly inert mass, passes the coast of Gui
ana, and penetrating the same archipelago to which the Mississippi volume
hastens across the Gulf of Mexico, meets and mingles with its brother-tide
at the coast of Florida, and thence along the Gulf Stream they rush to
gether— skirting, as it were, a large part of the coast of the United States,
and bending out, finally, toward the other hemisphere, with which the con
cerns of agencies of intercourse so vast could not fail of close connection,
were the relationship less plainly indicated. Here, then, we have the
Mississippi on a far more extended scale, with a much vaster ampli
tude of drain, larger and more numerous branches, a longer course, and
more remote termini than it had been usual to embrace in our contem
plation.
The Amazon has been heard o f in the United States. There is a very
universal school-boy knowledge, derived from the rudimental epitomes of
geography, of its great length ; but the dimensions of the anacondas of that
neighborhood, pictured in the manual as winding about traveler, horse, and
tree, their abundant folds, and preparing to follow this exhibition of aft'ection by swallowing the former two whole, are more particularly remem
bered. Serious inquirers after cosmographical information, the travelers
in gazetteers, the drawing-room companions of Humboldt, Hakluyt, Yon
Tschudi, Castlenau, and their colaborers, had admired the wonderful liber
ality with which nature has distributed her favors in that region, and would
have gone to behold it, had it not been farther off than the nearest public
square. Merchants well posted up in the opportunities and prospective
achievements of their profession, have admired the magnificence of the
commercial field here inviting, so long ineffectively, the resort of enterprise.
Politicians, have, at times, deemed it a subject well worthy of their specu
lations. Mr. Quincy Adams, during his administration, attempted a
politico-commercial alliance with the South American republics, which,
had it succeeded, would certainly have had important connection with the
improvement of the Amazon region. No succeeding administration re
vived the project of Mr. Adams, and until very lately, although some little
attention has been paid to our South American relations, the means of
best advancing our commercial interests in that quarter, seem to have
entirely escaped the observation of the whole body o f our officials. The
late administration, so particularly attentive to all prospects of extending
the Commerce of the United States, had the credit of making, after so
long neglect, a fresh move in this matter. The direct subject of the
Amazon as a new field for our commercial enterprise, was taken into
serious consideration by Mr. Fillmore’s cabinet, and in 1851, a practical
exhibition was made of this interest, in the shape o f a survey, made by
42
The F ield o f the Am azon.
Lieutenants Herndon and Gibbon, of the navy, under very full and par
ticular instructions from the department, directing a complete explora
tion of the Amazon from its source to its mouth, and a thorough ex
amination of the products, resources, condition, and prospects, of the
region about that river and its tributaries.
The Amazon itself takes its rise in Peru, and some o f its principal
branches flow wholly through that country, while others have their source
within its limits, or within those of Bolivia. A particular interest at
taches to the expedition from the large explorations necessary within
these countries, the fame of whose mineral wealth had reached every
corner of the world, when California and Australia were buried hun
dreds of years within the womb o f futurity, and whose wealth pur
chased for them at least an historic notoriety, inciting as it did the
deeds of unhallowed daring and of ensanguined victory, performed by
the few volunteers of Spain. Although treasures so immense have
been drawn from their mines, in the drain o f three centuries, furnishing
so vast a portion of the present currency o f the world, and affecting,
beyond all calculation, the increase o f Commerce, of the arts, of wealth,
o f intelligence, of individual comfort, of national revenue and strength,
over almost the whole earth’s surface, yet the source is unexhausted.
Nay, the field would seem to have been scarcely opened. Peru and
Bolivia are as rich as ever. Mines which were formerly worked lie
idle now, merely for the want o f means to continue operations— o f
machinery, of money, and above all, o f an enterprise akin to the spirit
o f Yankee effort; while there are veins yet untouched, of both gold
and silver, scattered through their mountains, and auriferous sands
along their gulches, which promise to rival all the abundance of the
palmiest treasure-exporting days o f Peru and Bolivia.
Nearly the whole of these countries lie upon the Amazonian slope of
the Andes, the average distance between the mountains and the Pacific
sea-coast not being above sixty miles, while the width beyond the moun
tains, descending towards central South America, can be nowhere less
than three hundred, and must in many parts exceed six hundred miles.
B y far the greater portion o f these countries, then, is completely
debarred, and forever, from the privilege o f the Pacific. There are,
indeed, some comparatively feasible passages across the Cordilleras, but
these are few, and so remote to most portions, and the difficulty of
reaching the passages themselves by land, (for almost all journeying in
this direction must be by land,) is so great, that they must give up all
thoughts of anything but a very small and unprofitable communication
with the coast.
Nor under the nature of the country, is it possible that there can
ever be any system of roads established, either for mule or steam car
riage, which can effect the interdicted connection. So continuous is the
great chain planted as an eternal barrier along every inch of sea-coast,
so multiplied, broad, and close are the parallel ranges seated inwardly
o f this, and seeming to occupy half the whole area o f Peru, especially,
that one observing the map may discover at a glance, that nature has put
her positive inhibition upon the communication of these parts of America
with the Pacific, which their propinquity to that ocean would else insure;
and that she has effectively guarded the supremacy of her mandate.
On the other hand, the long slopes, the vast inclining planes, and the
The F ield o f the Am azon.
43
multitudinous, broad, deep, swift, and lengthy streams, all hastening to
join the King of Rivers, invite, with temptations such nature as seldom
offers, aye, command, and must enforce communication with the remote
ocean that washes the eastern shore of the continent. In the direction
assumed by its rivers, must the main current o f a nation’s intercourse,
of the land as well as water, be established; and when, in these two
countries, scarce a drop of all the immense floods shed from the eastern
slope of the Andes, is able, though following along at the foot of the
mountains for hundreds o f miles, to effect a western passage through
that wall, and merge with the Pacific, it is certainly plain enough that
if the Peruvians and Bolivians would ever become a great commercial
and prosperous people, they must, like the ancient Persians, turn their
faces towards the East.
There is not within the entire range of physical geography, to our com
prehension, so remarkable a feature as this of the mountain barrier of
South America. Parallel to it, there is none upon the surface o f the
whole earth. In the northern half of the continent, the range is less
continuous, much less formidable, being sometimes dispersed into a series
of hills, merely, and what is more noticeable, although parallel with the
the coast, located at such a distance from it as to admit of the estab
lishment of large, wealthy, and powerful countries on the Pacific shore,
for which every requisite o f nature is provided, in greater abundance
even than in the region beyond. Here are the fitting theaters of a great
Commerce with China, Japan, the remoter India, and with the whole
immense Polynesian archipelago; while to afford the fullest develop
ment to this trade and to enlarge all their other intercourses, the Cor
dilleras do not cut off, in fact permit, a comparatively easy communica
tion with the interior and Atlantic regions of the continent.
The moment it has passed the isthmus, however, the chain swells into a
mighty column of huge, close and cloud-dividing peaks, with interlocked
bases, ranged in double and treble files, and hugging the sea-coast in its
entire extent from Panama to Magellan, frowning upon the ocean, like an
army posted along the banks of a frontier river to repel alike the assault
or unsolicited intimacy of the power beyond. All the engines which
human ingenuity has prepared for the conquest of nature, all the boasted ■
power of reorganizing her works, and better adapting them to the conve
nience and interest of man, utterly fail here, and he is made painfully
conscious of her entire superiority; he finds himself cribbed in, held back,
his utmost energy palsied, and learns that his sphere is to assist, to work
in unison with, and not to vanquish or reform nature.
There is indeed a space left between the barrier and the sea as a sort
o f terrace or foothold for man, in order that the passing navigator may
not suffer from the interminable desolation of all that range of coast— but
this strip is far too contracted, poor, and insignificant, to be cultivated
into any marked respectability o f opulence, power, or of general Com
merce. It is true, that the oldest, some of the most famous, and, except
those immediately upon the Atlantic shore, the most populous and con
siderable of all the South American cities and ports, are here, and that
Chili, the most prosperous o f the Spanish republics, is an entire country
planted upon the Pacific descent of these mountains. It was, indeed,
from the Pacific coast that the treasures passing through Spain to enrich
Europe, were exported; hither Drake and other naval commanders o f
44
The F ield o f the Am azon.
England, were sent when she was at war with Spain, to intercept her
richly-freighted galleons; the Dutch East India Company, essayed after
Pizarro, a conquest at this point o f Spain’s treasure-fields; the metallic
wealth o f South America was in all time past, and to this day of geo
graphical intelligence, is, identified in the world’s mind, with the great
South S ea; to these cities and ports came formerly all, and comes yet,
the far greater bulk o f the merchandises sent from Europe, or elsewhere,
as payment of the labor o f the mines and the profit of the treasure-vender,
or to be sold among the interior population; the Commerce of Pacific
South America, amid the prevailing lassitude of the region, is. still some
what respectable, seems to grow, and has latterly attracted considerable
attention from European nations, and from the United States, as well, in
the hope that it may he encouraged to a material expansion— the pro
gressing development of California, indeed, has cast a new interest upon
these regions, and has seemed to give promise o f elevating them at once
in commercial and industrial dignity, to the position they are so well
qualified to attain.
In reply to all this, we have but to observe, that the mineral wealth
exported from the coast of the countries named, formed the whole basis
o f the foundation, maintenance and growth, o f the cities there established;
this wealth was obtained, like the products forming the staple o f the
present trade, from a few places within the mountains, near by to the
cities, or but a little inwardly, and at points where the passage to and
from the coast happened not to be entirely impracticable— though it
might well have been considered so to any mode of transport, except by
the back of the sure-footed mule. The more distant, perhaps richer mines,
in fact, the great surface of the treasure-field remained, as to this day it is,
untouched, awaiting the energy that shall come from the right quarter,
and establish the proper entry and egress. The difficulties of penetrating
inwardly, and of living there as men who had enjoyed the comforts o f
civilization would desire to live, kept the whites upon the coast, giving the
cities there an appearance of respectability, and leaving the great interior,
as it remains now, almost in the exclusive possession and use o f the In
dians.
Upon these people they have had to depend for the very riches
upon which their own existence depended, and do still, for the light prod
ucts with which they manage to keep up an outward Commerce. The
few mines ever worked have been generally for many years closed, having
been perhaps in some cases exhausted, though the principal reason is that
the increasing difficulties of the progressive descent into the mountains has
rendered further operations impossible, without means wholly out of their
command. The gold with which these regions certainly abound was still
more out o f their reach than the silver. The few products which are now
gathered and exported from Payta, Truxillo, and Callao, no more corres
pond with the wealth of the Peruvian soil and forest, than the former
mineral operations gave the measure of its subterranean riches. Of the
seashore itself, the products are indeed scanty, and in Bolivia, the Desert
o f Atacama occupies almost the whole o f that region.
The world has certainly profited much by what has been achieved, in
the mode indicated, in Peru and Bolivia, and but for the revelation to the
world of their natural wealth, through this avenue, the inducement might
never have been sufficient to cause their being sought through any other.
The F ield o f the Am azon.
45
But to these countries themselves the good accomplished has been small,
indeed, proportioned to the results that another system would have devel
oped.
With all the material for nations o f the foremost rank in population,
opulence, and comfort, they remain vast wildernesses, with a very few
towns in which a white population preponderate, and the balance of their
people being made up of lazy, indigent, and degraded Indians, who, if they
make out to obtain from the liberal soil food enough for themselves, have
from the want of all encouragement, little beyond that quantity either to
sell or to give.
Where is the return from the world without for all the wealth these
countries have sent to its hands ? W hat compensation is found here for
the thousands of millions shipped hence since the eyes of Pizarro were,
dazzled by the glitter o f the great Temple of the Sun and the Incarial
Palace ? Have not the few millions as yet exported from California built
up San Francisco to a superior rank to that which the outgo of centuries
has secured to Lima ? The truth is, the Commerce o f Peru and Bolivia
have been carried on at too much expense. The article of export has cost
them too much at the place of shipment, and the article of import has cost
them too much at the place o f consumption. Both, and especially the
latter, being large in bulk in proportion to the value for which it was ex
changed, and depending for its profit much upon interior distribution, have
had tedious, expensive, and dangerous journeys to perform. The enhance
ment of price necessarily resulting has greatly limited, and in a large de
gree utterly prevented their use by the Indians where they could be
reached,- whose consumption in some shape was yet a necessity to the im
porters.
In the present state o f the Indians, who are the workers and producers
of these countries, and who as the result of that position, have gone as
far toward the state, and acquired as many of the wants o f civilized men
as possible under the circumstances— in their present state we see what is
far more the effect o f their necessitated dependence upon a Commerce
effected by the Pacific, than as has been the alleged cause, of their oppres
sion by the Spanish population. The latter are, indeed, too much sep
arated from them at present to make their presence very sensible in any
w ay; and beside, by the laws o f Peru at least, slavery is not allowed. The
misery of the Indian consists in his geographical situation. The Andes
have engulfed more of his wealth, of the value of his products, and of his
earnings, many times over, than they have yielded up to his labor. It
would have been a blessing to him, apart from the lure held out to Span
ish cupidity, had those mountains, with all their magazines o f treasure,
been removed to the bottom of that ocean, and a free coast and clear hori
zon left.
An illustration of the difficulty, we may say the absolute impossibility
of any considerable trade between this coast and the interior, is seen in
the fact mentioned by Lieut. Herndon, regarding the towns and villages
upon the extreme upper branches o f the Amazon, which now receive only
a portion of the lighter goods imported by them from Lima, and receive
all their heavy goods by the river voyage, all the way from Para, at the
mouth of the Amazon, which, in spite of frequent rapids,' the necessity of
occasional portages in the upper waters, and of the transhipment from
46
The F ield o f the Am azon.
larger to smaller vessels, and then to boats and canoes, is yet the only
feasible route by which they can be supplied.
A t Chili, there is a small bend o f the mountains inwardly, giving a little
more coast space than exists in the nations above, and a number o f short
streams, or rather torrents, rush down to the near ocean. But Chili is
still so contracted as almost to escape notice in the map, looking like the
turned edge of Buenos Ayres. Its rivers are useless for any purpose of
navigation, and not even susceptible of ordinary bridging. The prosperity of
Chili is rather comparative, regarding the state of the other republics, than
absolute, and is entirely the result of its superior political condition, it be
ing almost entirely free o f the tumults which vex, and certainly retard the
progress of the others. But Chili can never become a great, a populous,
or a wealthy nation. Its position must forever prevent its rise, even to the
top level of minor countries.
In regard to California, the influence of her enterprise in the improve
ment o f this coast must soon be exhausted. Like the original discovery
and conquest o f the Spaniards, its main benefit will be in directing, or
rather in re-directing attention to the valuable region which is fringed
by this coast, and in pushing forward the proper system for its develop
m ent
But the western side of South America has really no more coast advan
tages than it has benefit o f country. Nature never lavishes her favors in
vain, and when she has denied the material and the land conveniences of
Commerce, she does not trouble herself with forming a succession o f fine
harbors, accessible bays, and protective promontories and reaches o f the
land. To such a coast she does not attach that peculiar order of outline,
and that general conformation which is essential to a proper modification
o f the force and currents o f the sea, and to the direction and variations of
the winds, so requisite to every coast where navigation is to thrive. On
the eastern side of South America, you find a series of indentures of vary
ing magnitude, and evidencing the purpose for which nature designed
them, and to which use the country is itself adapted. But while the ad
vantages of this coast are not at all remarkable, and infinitely belorv the
admirable arrangement o f the Atlantic frontier of the United States, how
vastly superior it is to the opposite shore ! Of that side a few stiff, straight,
and ungraceful lines give the whole contour, unvaried, except in Patagonia,
by bays, sounds, archipelagoes, or capes, and scarcely relieved by the pres
ence of solitary islands.
Unrestricted by any of these essential friends of navigation, unchecked
even by the floods ejected from river mouths, the tides of the ocean pur
sue their continuous w'ay along the coast, and the winds blow in a like un
disciplined habit. The few tenable harbors are mostly difficult of access,
and afford very poor shelter and accommodation. Such is the case, indeed,
with the greater portion of the western coast o f North America also. Two
of the wants named above are especially fatal to Commerce. One is the
absence o f islands as midway places to stop at for watering and refresh
ment, as convenient places of transhipment, or for shelter from sudden
storms. The thick groups of the Pacific cease at a long distance from
this shore, as if to avoid interrupting its cheerless monotony. Every one
knows the celebrity of Juan Fernandez as a resort for supplies to vessels
in the Pacific; yet if this island were situated in the Atlantic, in a position
relative to North America corresponding to its connection with South
The F ield o f the Am azon.
41
America, it would be a place entirely without consequence. The other
peculiarly fatal want is that o f river mouths. Could there he any descrip
tion more expressive of the total unfitness of a coast of some thousand
miles length for the purposes o f Commerce than is exhibited in the one
fact of its having no river mouth, at least nothing worthy the name, in its
whole extent ?
Such a coast as we have described is the horror of mariners; they will
never approach it, if they can possibly keep off. In the combination of
repulsive features, there is certainly no other habitable region of the world
so entirely unfriendly to Commerce, and no quarter of the earth, except
Africa, with whose disadvantages of ocean front a comparison could be
even suggested.
Although the rulers o f Mexico, under the old Viceroyalty, were not in
different to Commerce, and kept up intercourse, by the Pacific, with places
so remote as the Philippine Islands, and even with Spain, yet they had but
very little trade with the Spanish colonies on the coasts below them. The
delays and dangers of the voyage were sufficiently dreaded to turn all their
enterprise elsewhere. To reach Lima, about 1,800 miles down the coast,
from Acapulco, and return again, occupied absolutely longer time than to
make the voyage to Seville, in Spain, and return again, circumnavigating
the globe, while the dangers of the former voyage were considered more
formidable. Pizarro, in his first attempt at conquest in this region, was
wrecked, as were many subsequent adventurers from the isthmus. In his
second and final attempt, he arrived at Peru only from being unable to effect
a landing at any place previously. The description given by the historian
of the expedition, of the dangers and vexations of the navigation along
that coast, present no picture of holiday voyaging. W ith the improved
vessels and seamanship of our times, these dangers and inconveniences are
certainly greatly lessened, but are yet sufficiently important.
The relation of the Pacific toward the development of western South
America, at least of the two countries particularly specified, has, we be
lieve, been in the main degree answered. In being the means of bringing
the knowledge of this region to the world, and in opening such portion of
its wealth as might better enable the world to appreciate, and afford it
strength to avail itself of the latent portion, it has perfected what was here
the chief intent of its office. It gives way now to the Atlantic; a new, a
reversed direction o f export and of receipt is established; and new and in
verted results, as regards the subject region, more worthy o f its advan
tages than any it has known before, are about to be introduced.
The grand result, as Lieut. Maury has already suggested, will be to
make the Atlantic forever what it is now, and what it was intended from
the beginning to be, the great theater of the world’s Commerce. W ith
that general weight which universal Europe, the United States, and the
countries in course of development in almost the entirety of South Amer
ica, bring to its support, the cause of the Atlantic, even if Australia were
thrown where it does not belong, in the sole interest o f the Pacific, be
comes invincible.
W ith such adjuncts as the Mediterranean, Black and Baltic seas, the
West Indian Archipelago, the Northern fisheries, including Hudson’s and
Baffin’s bays, the St. Lawrence, with its grand Lake system, the Mississippi
and the Amazon, the Orinoco, the La Plata, and we may add, the Niger,
with the Gulf of Guinea, awaiting the hand o f enterprise, and even the
48
The F ield o f the Am azon.
Caspian and Red seas, of Asia, destined to become its important tributa
ries, and the latter effecting almost an incorporation with the Atlantic of
the great Indian Ocean, with all its rich countries and islands,— with all
this tremendous weight in its scale, it must entirely and forever overbal
ance the Pacific in commercial importance. In its whole extent within
the southern hemisphere, the latter has not a single continental commer
cial coast. Its total resource there is in a series of islands, which in their
utmost development can never exceed the maritime dignity of any one
leading division, as enumerated above, of the Atlantic.
The want of a
continent in a whole hemisphere must certainly be fatal. In the northern
hemisphere, the Pacific has indeed an excellent coast in Eastern Asia, sup
ported by a remarkable country behind, but has no corresponding advan
tage in the opposing region— North America. The facilities of the west
ern North American coast for navigation are, in general, very poor, having
in many parts little to boast over the South American Pacific shore. Cali
fornia and Oregon are likely, indeed, to become important commercial
States; but the inabilities of the rest of the coast will greatly restrict their
outward intercourse. As for their Commerce crosswise the ocean, although
it will, no doubt, be considerable— and we have ourself participated some
what in the glowing visions upon this head— yet all advantage derived by
this over the old route to China and the East will, it seems to us,- be at
least fully counterbalanced by a junction, certain to be effected, o f the
Mediterranean and Red seas, through the Isthmus of Suez, or, more likely,
by way of the River Nile, and by the construction of railroads and other
internal improvements within Asia. The great dependence o f California
and Oregon must be, after all, on the continent to -which they belong, and
like that of Peru and Bolivia, if in a less degree, on its eastern region.
So the Atlantic must remain the great commercial basin, until some vio
lent, or if systematic, long-coming re-arrangement of the physical earth
shall oblige it to exchange relations with the Pacific.
To return to the region of the Amazon. Inwardly of Peru, as so im
perfectly known to its conquerors, rumor, with her usual veracity, had
placed the dominions of El Dorado, or The Gilded. It was a realm full
o f gorgeous cities, whose streets were paved with gold, and their houses
and temples decorated beyond all imagination. In the capital city of
Manoa, there were whole streets where no tradesmen’s shops but those of
gold and silver workers -were to be seen ; and there lived the king, whose
daily raiment was an uncomfortable suit o f fresh gold-dust, blown over
him through reeds, and attached to his skin by an inner coat o f oil. To
seize the person and possess themselves of the dominions o f a sovereign
wearing so ridiculous a shirt and doublet, was long the feverish ambition
of the Spaniards, and the eager wish o f the envious rivals of Spain.
Gonzales Pizarro, hoping to equal the exploits o f the adventurer, his
brother, crossed the Andes and embarked on the Amazon in the idle
search. Others followed him at intervals, and although none of them
had ever the satisfaction o f interrupting the gilded monarch’s toilet, their
expeditions were the means of an early exploration of the entire Amazon
to the ocean. The great Sir Walter Raleigh was allured, among others,
to the search for this fanciful empire, sailing up the Orinoco for that ob
ject, after the failure of his efforts at colonization within the United
States. How keenly would his really practical, though enthusiastic mind,
have appreciated the unlimited advantages for colonization and Commerce
The F ield o f the Am azon.
49
offered by the Amazon, had he beheld that noble river. He had entered
a stream about nine hundred miles distant from the mouth of the Ama
zon, yet had he further pursued the route of that river, it would have
brought him, through its inosculation with the Rio Negro, upon the Am
azon itself, at about its mid-course, and consequently in the very heart of
South America.
The fiction of El Dorado has been long dissipated; but in its stead the
region of the central and lower Amazon glows with the reality o f a coun
try rich in the vegetable products of nature almost beyond conception;
affording the most alluring temptations for settlement, for cultivation, for
manufacture, for Commerce, for enterprise o f almost any and every de
scription. Ay, and if no gilded king claims the fealty o f its population,
it is not that gold is not sufficiently plenty to afford the royal habiliment,
or that there is no unctuous matter in a country where manteiga, or oil
prepared from turtles, is a leading article of export, to serve the purpose
of an under-garment. It depends on the taste of the future population o f
the Amazon valley, whether the romance o f The Gilded shall be made a
substantiality.
The extreme upper limb o f the Amazon, or, as it is called at that point,
the Maranon, takes its rise in Lake Lauricocha, among the Andes, at about
one hundred miles from the Pacific. It runs northwardly about six de
grees, and thenceforward, leaving sight of the Pacific, its course is eastwardly, till it reaches the other ocean. The principal branches in Peru
are the Huallaga, which is over 700 miles long, and to the head of canoe
navigation upon which is 325 miles; the Ucayali, which affords clear
navigation for vessels 600 miles, and for canoes 770 miles, while several
of its own tributaries, some hundreds m ore; and the Yavori, forming a
part of the boundary with Brazil. These are all on the southern side.
On the northern side are a number of rivers of less magnitude, the Napo,
o f about 400 miles’ length, being the principal, all originating in the
country of Ecuador.
The chief tributaries of Bolivia are the Beni, the Mamore, and the
Guapore, which unite and form the Madeira, the latter being wholly with
in Brazil, and the largest of all the auxiliaries of the Amazon. The
branches of the Madeira penetrate the heart of Bolivia, and are navigable
nearly to Chuquisaca, or “ the city o f silver,” to Potosi, and Cochabamba.
Their magnitude is even superior to that of the direct confluents o f the
Amazon in Peru. The Madeira is estimated to drain 44,000 square
leagues.
The tributaries whose course is wholly or mostly within Brazil are on
the south side: the Jutoy, navigable 450 miles, the Jurua, the Teffe, the
Coari, the Purus, the Madeira, the Tapajos, with many large secondaries,
and coming directly from the diamond region of Brazil; the Xingu, the
Tocantins, affording 1,600 navigable miles. The five last named will all
compare with rivers o f the first magnitude in any part o f the world, and
indeed some of their own branches might well take that rank. There are
many smaller streams, emptying directly into the Amazon.
On the northern side the branches o f the Amazon, for its whole extent,
-are greatly inferior to those o f the South. The chief of these in Brazil
are the Putamayo; the Japura, at the intersection of which the Amazon is
four or five miles w ide; the Rio Negro, the chief river on this side, navi
gable over 400 miles, and having a branch, the Rio Branco, navigable 300
4
YOL. X X X I.-----NO. I .
50
The F ield o f the Am azon.
miles further. There are numerous other streams o f 200 to 400 miles in
length, not meriting especial notice.
B y the. continual accession of these vast rivers, the tide o f the Amazon
is, of course rapidly augmented in volume at every downward step. Even
so far up as Peru, it has, according to Herndon, the same thick, turbid,
rushing aspect that the Mississippi presents at its highest flood. Yet its
current must be, in the main, much less violent than that o f the Missis
sippi, or it would be impossible to use the rude vessels which freely navi
gate it. The total length of the Amazon is usually estimated at between
4,000 and 4,500 miles. Ships of 500 tons may ascend to the bight o f
2,500 miles; the longest continuous line of navigation, following the
Ucayli, and its branch, the Urabamba, gives a distance of 3,360 miles from
the mouth of the Amazon. The aggregate length of navigation, on the
main trunk and all its branches, for vessels, Herndon estimates at 6,000
miles, or for small flat-bottomed steamers, 10,000 miles. O f the Amazon
itself, the navigation is remarkably clear, there being no shelving rocks or
sand-banks, and of course no ice, although there are in some o f the
branches, especially the Ucayali, many sunken trees. But they are mostly
remarkable, like the main river, for the great extent o f clear and easy
channel. The time occupied by Lieutenant Herndon in making the de
scent of the Hualaga and Amazon, which o f course the object of the ex
pedition required to be done leisurely, was rather less than a year, starting
from Lima in May 1851, and arriving at Para in April, 1852. Lieutenant
Gibbon, who took the route by the Mamore and Madeira, did not reach
Para until after his associate had reached the United States.
One of the most remarkable features o f the whole system of South
American rivers, resulting from the immense number and the vast sweep
o f their accessories, and affording advantages not enjoyed by any other
section of the •earth, is the near approach everywhere seen, and often the
intermixture, of their upper waters. Many of them disgorge also by a
multiplicity of throats, embracing sometimes regions of hundreds of miles’
breadth. Numberless great islands are thus formed along the whole track
o f the Amazon, and upon the course o f most o f its branches. An extra
ordinary facility is also afforded for emerging from any point in the interior
o f the continent at any point upon the Atlantic, and for moving between
internal countries and provinces. The three great rivers of South America,
the Orinoco, the Amazon, and the La Plata, are in this way united, although
the range of coast embraced between their mouths extends over about fortyfive degrees of latitude. The Orinoco unites in New Granada with the Rio
Negro, by the Casiquiara, a stream which, small as it appears, like a headbrook o f those rivers, has yet a breadth equal to that of the Rhine. Hern
don estimates that a flat-bottomed steamer could pass from the Amazon,
at the mouth of the Rio Negro, all the way through Venezuela to the Carribbean Sea, in twenty days. Humboldt mentions this channel, and is
quite enthusiastic with the prospect it affords to European States desiring
to avail themselves of the Commerce thus laid open of a region nine or ten
times as large as Spain. The Rio Branco, a branch of the Rio Negro, ap
proaches, at the head of navigation, to within twelve miles of the Essequibo
of Guiana, and some little trade is now carried on by this route in Euro
pean goods.
On the south, the waters o f the Madeira approach to within two and a
half miles of those o f the Paraguay, a branch of the La Plata, and in 1772
The F ield o f the Amazon.
51
a vessel was carried over and launched upon the Paraguay. The Preto, a
branch of the Tapajos, approaches so near the Paraguay that all the heavy
trade of Cuiha, a flourishing mining town on a navigable branch of the
Paraguay, is carried on with Para through the Tapajos and Amazon.
From the upper waters of the Tocantins to the capital city, Rio Janeiro,
the distance is less than 500 miles. It needs but a few hundred miles of
very feasible canal in South America, to add several thousand miles to the
river navigation connected with the Amazon.
The population of all the regions described is very small, the immensely
larger portion being, in fact, still an unbroken, and in great part, except by
savages, an unvisited wilderness. The total population of Peru numbers
about two millions, of whom but a very small proportion are whites, the
rest being Indians and mestizoes. In a region close by Lima, only onetwelfth are pure whites. The Indians are, in fact, the great laboring and
producing population. The most remarkable traits Herndon notices in
them are a docile but stupid disposition, and universal laziness. But
Tschudi, the Prussian traveler, draws a somewhat different picture. He
says they are high-spirited, intensely national in feeling, self-reliant, used
to fire-arms and military manoeuvers, being admitted into the Peruvian
army, and is of opinion that they will some day effect a successful revolt,
and expel the Spaniards. Certain it is, Peru was mainly indebted to them
for the success of its revolutionary contest, they being deluded into the
patriot cause by the promise o f a restoration of the government o f the
Incas, in a descendent of Atahualpa, deposed by Pizarro. Their inertness
is sufficiently accounted for from the total absence of any encouragement
to action; hut that they are not unambitious, is evident from the fact men
tioned by Herndon himself, that great numbers of them go down the Am
azon, and are found along its whole course in Brazil, where they are the
principal boatmen, fishermen, and laborers, the inducement being wages to
the value of twelve and a half cents a day, in goods.
The population of Bolivia is of a similar cast, hut rather more thrifty,
numbering about 1,500,000.
In Brazil, the population along the Amazon and its branches is much
scantier still than in Peru and Bolivia. The whole great region watered
by them is an unoccupied waste, with the exception of here and there a
solitary town, or a very sparsely settled district.
Lima, the capital o f Peru, is estimated to contain 70,000 inhabitants,
probably an exaggeration, as it had but 53,000 in 1842, and cannot be
said to be a growing place. In 1810 it numbered 87,000, but the mines
of Peru were better worked then than at present. The Huallaga is the
most populous portion o f the Amazon region. There are some forty towns
along its route, comprising about 60,000 inhabitants, nearly all Indians.
The chief of these towns are Huanuco, with 4,000 or 5,000; Tarapota,
having, with its two ports, 5,130 ; Moyabamba, with a very active trading
population, contrary to the general character o f the Peruvians of these
parts, of 7,000; Chasuta; and Laguna, near the mouth of the river, with
1,044 inhabitants. Sarayacu, 275 miles up the Ucayali, with 1,000 con
verted Indians, is the leading town o f that river, aud there is no other
above it on the main river, though several on its upper branches, which
also pass very near to Cuzco, the ancient capital of the Incas, and to Huancevelica, in the region o f the quicksilver mines. There are some twenty
towns along the Amazon banks, within Peru, o f which Nauta, a fishing
52
The F ield o f the Am azon.
village of about 1,000, opposite the mouth o f the Ucayali, and the depot
whence all the region above, receiving foreign articles by way of the Am
azon, is supplied, is the principal. Loreto, on the frontier, has 250 inhabi
tants and three mercantile houses, all Portuguese, doing a business of about
$10,000 a year.
On the Amazon, within Brazil, there are some twenty-five towns indi
cated on the map, the chief of which are Egas, at the mouth of the Telle,
with 800 inhabitants, eight or ten commercial houses, and a few vessels,
situated midway between Loreto and Barra; Barra, at the mouth of the
Rio Negro, midway between Egas and Para, with 3,614 free and 2-34 ser
vile inhabitants in 1848; Santarem, at the mouth of the Tapajos, with a
population of 4,917 free persons (87 foreigners) and 1,591 slaves; Santa
Anna, with 500; and Para, at the river mouth, with 9,284 free persons
and 4,726 slaves, total, 14,010. The town population on the Amazon,
enumerated by Herndon, amounts to about 70,000, large districts around
being included in the estimates o f most of the towns. The valley of the
Tocantins contains 80,000 inhabitants, and the province 125,000, of whom
25,000 are slaves. The few towns on the Brazilian tributaries are all in
considerable.
The products of Peru and Bolivia vary according to the altitude, em
bracing all the riches of the temperate and torrid zones. In the higher
•parts, Indian com affords three crops a year, and there are fine crops of
wheat, barley, cabbages, onions, potatoes, peaches, &c. The vicuna, alpacca, and other sheep, of finest wool, are here in unlimited abundance,
though the business of wool growing, as well as that of the herdsmen, is
but poorly attended to. In the warmer and in the torrid region, descend
ing from the mountains, the range o f product is infinite, and has nearly
the same character throughout Peru, Bolivia, and the Brazilian valley.
Plenty seems here to have almost exhausted her various cornucopia.
Cotton grows on trees o f eight or ten feet bight, yielding yearly for three
consecutive years, and furnishing a material of most excellent quality and
of diverse kinds. Rice, tobacco, coffee, and sugar-cane are everywhere.
The latter yields every ten months, and the same stalk will continue to
bear for sixty or seventy years, so Lieut. Herndon assures us, improving in
quality for a portion of that tim e; 1,500 lbs. of expressed juice give 253
lbs. of sugar. The coffee is superior to that of Guayaquil or Central
America, which are, however, used principally at Lima, the coffee of the
country being there so expensive, from the difficulty of transport. While
at Tarma, about 150 miles only from Lima, it is worth $8 per 100 lbs., at
Lima it sells for $20, and as high even as $25 or $27. The silk-tree grows
in Peru, producing an article like cotton to the eye, and silk to the touch.
Bananas are the most common fruit, and of their varieties the amount is
enormous. These, with the yucca or cassava-root, are used as substitutes
for bread, and tend thus to encourage indolence. The tamarind, cocoa,
oranges, lemons, citrons, pomegranates, figs, pine-apples, melons, Ac., ev
erywhere abound. Indigo and plentiful other dyes are found, one of which,
a shrub, not'yet brought into Commerce, produces a brilliant scarlet, quite
equal to cochineal. Of gums, drugs, and medicinal herbs there is no limit;
sarsaparilla abounds on nearly all the rivers, the greatest amount being at
present gathered upon the U cayali; India-rubber seems nearly as plenti
ful ; Peruvian bark, rocou, vanilla, ipecacuanha, copal, and many others,
are in the list. Among the products that appear peculiar to Brazil, are
The F ield o f the Am azon.
53
the Brazilian nuts and nutmegs, black-pepper, ginger, arrow-root, tapioca,
farina, (used as a substitute for bread,) anato, sapueacia, tonka beans.
Also the cow-tree, which yields a substance very much resembling the
milk of a cow, and affording a most refreshing beverage. Vast herds of
cattle browse on the endless savannahs, the woods swarm with game, and
the rivers with fish and turtle, the oil o f the latter being a leading article
of trade on the lower Amazon. In regard to woods, there are, in the
province of Amazonas alone, twenty-three well-known varieties of palms,
twenty-two kinds o f timber fit for ship-building, thirty-three for houses
and boats, twelve for cabinet work, having the finest grain and susceptible
of the highest polish.
The mineral kingdom corresponds with the wealth o f the vegetable.
“ On the top and east slope of the Andes lie hidden unimaginable quanti
ties of silver, iron, coal, copper, and quicksilver, awaiting but the applica
tion of science and the hand o f industry for their development.” Gold
undoubtedly exists at the head o f nearly all the streams rising in Bolivia
and Peru. Gold washings have been opened at the province of Cambaya,
in Peru, within a few years, and the Peruvian government has invited
emigration thither, under guaranty of all necessary immunities and privi
leges. An intelligent resident o f Peru deems the whole of the great
region embraced within the branches of the Madeira, (which is a great
part of all Bolivia,) and up even to the Ucayali, to be a continuous field
of gold and silver, and containing probably diamonds and other precious
stones. Most of the Brazilian rivers rise in a diamond country, the bulk
o f which is comparatively untouched, and gold is as plentiful there, be
sides large mines of nitre and iron, although no silver has been yet found.
O f the exuberance of the animal creation below the Andes, Herndon
enumerates the wild cow, fish-ox, black tiger, electric eel, boa-constrictor,
anaconda, coral snake, alligator, endless varieties of monkeys, birds o f
most brilliant plumage, and insects of strange forms and the gayest colors.
The climate is throughout salubrious and what would hardly be expect
ed from the nature of the productions, generally temperate. Diseases
seem to be few ; some fevers prevail, but we see nothing mentioned o f
that pest of our own western regions, the ague.
Castlenau declares that this is the finest country in the world, and our
observing lieutenant is also of opinion, that “ no country in the world is so
favorably situated, and that if trade there is once awakened, the power
and wealth and grandeur o f ancient Babylon and modern London must
yield to that of the depots of this trade, that shall be established at the
mouths of the Oronoco, the Amazon, and the La Plata.”
The trade of these regions is, like their population, contracted beneath
all proportion with their abilities. The few foreign goods carried into the
interior of Peru, o f which the lighter kinds come by way o f Lima and the
coast, and the heavier from Para on the Atlantic, are very high on ar
riving there. At San Mateo, only ninety miles from Lima, foreign goods,
cottons, silks, linens, Ac., are one hundred per cent higher than in Lima,
and further back the price trebles and quadruples. Money is there almost
unknown. The encouragement is so small, that the people are inattentive
to cultivation, and have but a few ordinary manufactures. On the Huallaga, Herndon says his party would have starved had it consisted of one
hundred men. Salt fish, taken mostly at the Ucayali, is an article of trade
all up and down the Huallaga and Amazon.
i
54
T he F ield o f the Am azon.
The exports from Para, in 1846, amounted to $560,302; in 184V to
$710,879 ; in 1848 to. $589,286. The imports, in 1846, were $622,052 ;
in 1847, $646,946; in 1848, $564,881. Of the exports in 1846, $182,742
were to the United States, $117,813 to England, $107,813 to France, and
$123,156 to Portugal. Of the imports in the same year, $235,105 were
from the U. States, $160,050 from Great Britain, $52,924 from France,
and $87,608 from Portugal.
In 1851 the Commerce of Para was as follows:—
American.............
British................
French ................
Portuguese...........
Hamburg.............
Belgian................
Danish................
Swedish..............
Total.............
No. of vessels
entered
and cleared.
..............
19
2
...............
2
Tons.
4,574
2,732
536
3,666
510
320
480
420
Imports.
$42 5 ,4 8 4
275,000
122,830
231,457
27,500
5,250
4 ,7 5 0
Exports.
$ 746,210
335,000
188,699
215,142
131,000
16,250
34,000
28,500
14,238
$1,092,271
$1,424,801
Herndon suggests the expediency o f American steamers being placed
upon these rivers, at once, to conduct the trade now carried on in flat,
slow, inefficient vessels, and to carry up American goods. There can be
no question as to their full success. The people all along the river are
ambitious of an enlarged trade, and desire greatly to see improvements
which they are unable to effect, introduced by others. Except for some
jealousy o f foreigners among the Brazilian Indians, they are all eager to
see the entire river made free to all nations, and a tide o f emigration set
thither. They look for no decided advance until that freedom of naviga
tion is established. The governments also of Peru and Bolivia are fully
awake upon this subject. Every attention was shown to the United States
expeditionists. In Bolivia— which country has offered twenty thousand
square miles of the richest land to encourage the introduction from any
source, of steam upon her waters— Lieutenant Gib"bon was hailed as a
benefactor. The present minister of Peru, it is said, is a man fully up
with the spirit of the age, one who has seen the world abroad, and knows
what is requisite to that country. It is to be presumed, though not able
for any great effort, the government of Peru is something more stable and
efficient than it was some years ago, when, as Tschudi mentions, there
were six presidents, all attempting simultaneous exercise of authority,
levying taxes and shooting each other’s adherents. New Granada and
Venezuela would gladly second the designs of Peru and Bolivia, as them
selves intimately concerned in the free navigation of the Amazon.
Brazil, alone, of the five powers, lying upon the Amazon and its great
rivers, is disinclined to their proposed freedom, and her jurisdiction ex
tends over about three-fourths of the whole length of the Amazon, and
over, it might be said, almost the whole o f its tributary waters. Yet
there is a very large jurisdiction still remaining with the other powers,
the rights of which are to be maintained, and these rights do not permit
Brazil to shut up the ports o f any o f these rivers within her own territory.
The attempt comes at too late a day, though it might have been admitted
at the time when Spain undertook the monopoly of the Atlantic ocean.
No such claim is allowed even in regard to the shorter rivers of Europe; •
/
The F ield o f the Am azon.
55
and our own country was long ago nearly involved in a war from a simi
lar effort with regard to the Mississippi. But Brazil has condemned her
own present policy by the war which she made against the tyrant Rosas,
"to secure the freedom of the La Plata, and happily effected.
A t the time the United States government resolved upon the exploration
of the Amazon, that of Brazil undertook to thwart its obvious design, and
hurriedly effected a treaty with Peru, in 1851, professing to have in view
the navigation of the Amazon and its confluents by steam, and the mutual
improvement of their river territories. The duties on products passing up
and down were assimilated, and each power agreed to assist with $20,000
yearly, for five years, the first company formed for steam navigation, be
longing exclusively to the respective States, other coterminous States being
at liberty to join on the same conditions. Consummate art was displayed
in the imposition of this purely Brazilian scheme upon Peru.
Under this treaty, Brazil, in 1852, conveyed to Ireno Evangelistu de
Souza, one of her own citizens, the exclusive privilege of navigating the
Amazon for thirty years, guarantying to him the $20,000 yearly o f Peru,
and granting him, from its own funds, the sum of $80,000 yearly, in addi
tion to its stipulated amount of $20,000. He is to keep six steamers on
the Amazon, and to establish sixty colonies, of Indians, or of others desig
nated by the crown. These steamers are to afford Peru 250 miles of nav
igation, and Brazil above 1,500.
Tirado, the minister o f Peru, has objected to this arrangement, as regards
Peru, and the Council of State sustain his demurral. Peru has opened her
part of the river, under the treaty, to which the United States, under the
provision for equality with the “ most favored nations,” in our treaty with
that country, effected in July, 1851, three months before that of Peru with
Brazil, are admitted, as well as the latter. Nauta and Loreto, the two Pe
ruvian ports of the Amazon, are declared free, there being no import or
export duties on foreign trade. The Council o f State have appropriated
$200,000 to establish steam navigation on the Huallaga, Ucayali, <fcc., and
to effect their settlement. Two small steamers, to be built in the United
States, for $75,000, were to be delivered at Loreto on the 1st of January,
1854. To encourage emigrants, Peru gives free grants o f land, exempts
them from any taxes or contributions for twenty years, assuming the pay
ment of even their parochial dues, and allows them to make their own local
laws. She also defrays the expense of passage within her territory of the
emigrants to the place o f settlement, and furnishes implements of husband
ry, and seeds, gratuitously. Roads are to be opened, and other facilities
afforded.
In her attempt to administer to Bolivia the same pill prepared for Peru,
Brazil made a failure. That government rejected her scheme, plainly per
ceiving its animus. In January, 1853, Bolivia declared all her ports com
municating with the Atlantic, by either the Amazon or La Plata, free to
the Commerce of the world, and the president of that republic declares it
is to the Norte Americanos they look for the emigration, wealth, and en
ergy necessary to complete the great objects they have in view regarding
their own internal improvement.
The treaty of the United States with Peru alluded to, gives us, beside
equal privileges with the most favored o f other nations, (by which what
ever Brazil gets from her, she obtains for us the same or an equivalent,)
the same privileges o f coast and inland trade, and the right to establish
56
Elem ents o f Business Success.
shops, depots, &c., as are possessed by her own citizens. There are already
Americans established, at different trades, in various parts of the country.
If the Amazonian waters are to wait until Brazil shall be able to enliven
them with an all-invading presence of Steam— if the development o f the
great interior South America is to be the fruit of her unassisted energy,
why then solitude here, and indigence there, have a long tenure of the fair
est region of the earth. The echoes of many of those silent old rivers will
not be astonished with the steam-shriek within this century, and perhaps
not in the next. The country will be known only as it has been, as the
home of anacondas, ugly chattering monkeys, and insidious vampires.
Rip Van Winkle might sleep soundly for a hundred years on the banks of
the Tapajos or Xingu, without fear o f change. Positively, the world will
not permit the royal scion of Braganza and his august court to wrap up
the great Amazon in their diminutive napkin. In that great bank, nature
has invested capital for the world’s use, and the world will not fail to draw
the interest, though Brazil shall attempt to stop the payment. A spirit is
abroad, and one that is stronger and wiser than the selfish policy and art
ful diplomacy of Don Pedro the Second.
The first part of the work, descriptive of Lieut. Herndon’s share in the
exploration, the publication of which preceded that of his coadjutor, whose
researches in the Madeira Valley-were not finished at the time of Lieut.
Herndon’s return to the United States, is, as was to have been expected
where the adventure in such a field was intrusted to one so competent, and
as these previous pages evidence, a volume of rare interest. The intelligent
explorer, without being led by an ardent temperament, and a strong enthu
siasm in favor of his undertaking, into any extravagant views, has done full
justice to the subject. The character, the resources, the position, the des
tiny of the Amazon are depicted in a style so vivid as cannot fail to arrest
the attention of the reader, and to excite in him some portion of the spirit
felt by the author. Ho higher praise can be awarded the book, than to
say that it is worthy of association with the volumes o f exploration in other
directions made by the gallant Lieutenant’s fellow-officers in the Navy,
Wilkes and Lynch, and that it reflects a credit not inferior to that which
they have conferred upon that important branch of the service.
Art. III.— THE ELEMENTS OF BUSINESS SUCCESS*
B usiness, as that term will be used in this article, is the lawful aim and
pursuit of rational men. It is the great purpose of life. ' The race were
made for employment. Adam was created and placed in the Garden of
Eden for business purposes ; it would have been better for the race if he
had attended closely to the occupation for which he was made. The
Saviour of men identified himself with the useful labor of life; his public
mission did not commence till he was thirty years of age. That long pe
riod might have been passed in indolence in the wilderness of Judea or on
the banks of the blue Galilee, which washed the walls of the city “ where
he was brought up,” or in the caves that surrounded his mountain home ;
he could have dreamed away a listless manhood, without toil or want, and
• A lecture delivered before Comer’s Commercial Institute, Boston, by Matthew Hale Smith, a
member o f the Suffolk Bar. ' Now first published in the Merchants' Magazine.
Elem ents o f B usiness Success.
57
found that repose said by many to be so favorable, if not indispensable, to
an elevated piety;— but not so did he. He became one of u s; he knew
the stern trials of life. He earned his bread in an arduous calling; he
knew what toil was; beneath the hot rays of the sun of Palestine he met
the labor of life. He was known no less as the “ carpenter ” than as the
“ carpenter’s son ; ” he dignified labor, and he placed the curse on indo
lence. Physical strength and beauty attend physical to il; moral excel
lence comes forth from constant and faithful attention to the service from
whence come out the issues of life.
Some men sneer at employment and bind indolence on their brow as an
ornament. Such are effeminate and lack-brained, cultivating their beards
more than their brains, if they possess that important function— adorning
their person rather than their mind— weighing down their bodies with
brass jewelry and miniature ox-chains, while their physical and mental
inferiority are known to all men. Let us consider.
1.
THE SELECTION OF BUSINESS.
All departments o f life are open to young men in this favored land. But
all are not fitted alike for each post and profession. Men have physical
moral, and mental gifts that peculiarly fit them for some pursuits, and
peculiarly unfit them for others ; and the taste for and attraction of certain
pursuits should incline each young man to look well at his chosen occupa
tion, and when once chosen, to follow it to the en d ; and his earlier train
ing should have special reference to his position and occupation. Before
his choice is made, he should weigh well all the obstacles in his path, and
his fitness to remove or overcome them. Law, medicine, divinity, mechan
ics, present an inviting field. One may shine in the law who would be a
drone or a driveler in the pulpit; and many a man has attempted to
mend a broken limb with not talent enough to repair the leg of a stool.
Young men have marked characteristics and talent; these are as well
known as their faces— better known often to others than to themselves.
One is quick at figures; another would make a capital salesman. One
has a legal mind and would revel in the intricacies of the law ; another
can only generalize, and is happy only in active employment. Some have
great dispatch ; others are cautious, careful, and trustworthy in minute
matters. The bent of each mind, the taste and the talent must all be con
sulted in the selection of business. All business has a settled price and
market value. Success is to be won by obeying the laws of the calling
selected; and he who would be eminent in any pursuit, must pay the mar
ket price for success. Two kinds of business may be found, to one of
which the aspirant for employment must address himself. The one is bad
and the other g o o d ; the one can be found in a d a y ; the other must be
sought for diligently, and often with “ long patience.” The one pays at
on ce; for the other money must often be paid.
The central point o f attraction to a young man is a large city. Here is
a wide field for activity and energy. Upon his arrival in a city, a stranger
perhaps, and with the change of his last dollar ringing in his pocket, he
seeks employment. He wants wages. He has his fortune to make and
must be about it. The banks are fu ll; but bar-rooms and dram-shops are
open. No merchant of eminence that he can find is in want of the ser
vices of a stranger fresh from the country; but he can attend in a bowling
saloon, or find employment in a billiard room, or some lower place. He
learns that the banks and merchants pay a small salary to a youth, if they
58
E lem ents o f Business Success.
do not even demand a bonus of him for the privilege o f receiving his ser
vices. He is a moral young man ; and the better his moral character, the
higher the wages in business not exactly reputable. Men in such business
leave no objection to the services o f an upright young man. Fully resolved
to have his doubtful employment as soon as a favorable opening shall pre
sent itself, he grasps at the first offer. This step taints his character for
life, and binds him to business that will keep him from high attain
ments and positions. Lot was not exactly pleased with the people of
S odom ; but the Yale o f Admah had peculiar business attractions. He
removed thither; and the end is well known to all students of the Bible.
2. BUSINESS PRINCIPLE.
Principle and integrity are good capital to begin and continue life with.
In many large houses men enter as partners who are destitute of wealth
and can only put into the firm their business reputation. Each man has
a business repute, and his character is judged by little things. A s Dr.
Johnson said when he condemned a book of which he had read only a few
pages, “ One need not eat a whole joint of meat to know that it is tainted
so you need not be very familiar with a man of business to know what his
principles of trade are. It was said that Cuvier, the naturalist, could take
the bone of any animal, no matter how insignificant that bone might be,
and by its aid construct the entire animal, and tell you its character and
the clime it called its home. So out o f small matters, words spoken, prin
ciples avowed, acts done, or deeds omitted, you build up the character o f
a man and make up your opinion about him. You say of some one, “ I
like his appearance; I will employ h im ; he suits me.”
Y ou do not
analyze your feelings ; but your mind is made up. Of another you may
say, “ I do not like that young man.” Perhaps you could not satisfy your
self why, if a reason was called for. You have taken certain acts o f the
young man, trivial though they be, and made up your opinion. A friend
of mine said to me one day, “ I shall dismiss my clerk.”
I knew the
young m an; he was smart and intelligent, well-disposed and genteel. I
asked the reason. “ I am not quite satisfied,” was the reply; “ he dresses
too w ell; he has too much jew elry; his room is too well furnished; he
rides too much. I know his means; the salary I pay him will not admit
of such expenses.” The young man thought he was producing a sensa
tion. He was; but not o f the character he supposed. It is said that
men cannot do business on strict principles o f integrity and honor. But
it is certain that they can be conducted on no other. I f it be true, or if
the statement at all approximates to the truth, that in Boston for the past
twenty-five years ninety-nine out of each hundred o f all our merchants
have been unsuccessful, how much worse would it have been if all had
conducted their business on high moral principles ? The men who suc
ceed in life and become eminent are few. Their characters are well known
— almost all of them have been men of hjgh moral principle.
It will not be pretended that Joseph in Egypt was restrained and im
peded in his exalted career by his stern and uncompromising principles. It
was Daniel’s moral character that raised him from a slave to the premier
ship of Babylon; and he maintained his noble position because he con
ducted the affairs of the realm with such integrity and honesty that his
keen-eyed enemies could find no fault with him at all in the “ king’s mat
ters.” And Cornelius, who had such proof of God’s favor, was a most loyal
Elem ents o f Business Success.
59
captain in tlie Koman army. Permanent success is found only in connec
tion with principle and integrity in business.
The man who purchases cutlery from the renowned manufactory of
Kogers is anxious only to know that the stamp on the blade is genuine.
Years ago that house resolved not to send a poor article into the market.
Its work is good ; it cannot afford to sell poor articles. The fame of Day
and Martin’s blacking is wide as civilization. No man “ tries i t h e asks
only if it be the genuine article ; and a man that can secure a store in the
famed “ 97 High Holborn,” has his fortune secured. It is said that the
stores in that building wall command almost any rent. If the United States
need an instrument for the Corps of Engineers, or a glass for the Observatory
at Washington, an order is sent to England for one instrument, and to France
for another, and to Germany for a third— the reputation of the house that
manufactures is a guaranty for the excellence of the article. In the small
town of Douglas, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, there is a manu
factory of axes. Immense numbers are shipped for all parts of the earth.
N o man but the maker sees them till taken from the boxes, put on the
helves, and swung in the forests at the far West, on our Pacific possessions,
or in Africa, or in the islands of the sea; and if each axe was tried in the
manufactory at Douglas before the purchase, no more confidence would bo
put in the excellence o f the article than the name of the maker inspires.
The invariable perfection of this article is the business capital of the
maker.
W e have men among us— now ranking among the merchant princes of
Boston— who began life poor. Some of them were grooms, some waited
and tended in families, some dug gravel, others wheeled coals; but all
that they did was well done. When the late William Gray was taunted
by an envious man, who said that he could remember when the same Mr.
Gray was only a drummer, his reply gave the key-note to his success—
“ And did I not drum well ? ”
The late Jonas Chiclcering, whose memory is yet green among us, and
who is a noble specimen of one who has been the architect of his own
fortune, owes that fortune quite as much to the substantial and invariable
excellency of his workmanship, as to his indomitable industry and perse
verance. And it was no idle boast of a man in the British Parliament,
who was reminded by a noble that his father was a butcher; that he had
arisen to his position by his own labor; and all admitted the retort to be
just, wdren he added, “ If the father o f the noble lord had been a butcher,
his son this day would be slaughtering calves.” Honesty is the best pol
icy, and high moral principle can alone lead to permanent success. W e
admit that a man must have other qualities with these ; but without prin
ciple, all will not avail.
3. BUSINESS ENDURANCE.
Men of genius without endurance cannot succeed. Men -who start in
one kind of business may find it impossible to continue therein all their
days. Ill health may demand a change. New and wider fields of enter
prise and success may be opened to them ; new elements o f character may
be developed. Men may have a positive distaste for some pursuits, and
success may demand a change. None o f these cases fall within the gen
eral rule. Men may have rare talents, but if they “ are everything by
turns, and nothing long,” they must not expect to prosper. No form o f
business is free from vexations; each man knows the spot on which his
60
Elem ents o f B usiness Success.
own harness chafes; but he cannot know how much his neighbor suffers.
It is said that a Yankee can splice a rope in many different ways; an
English sailor knows but one method, but in that method he does his
work well. Life is not long enough to allow any one to be really master
of but one pursuit.
The history of eminent men in all professions and callings proves this.
The great statesman, Daniel Webster, was a great lawyer. His boyhoocl
was marked only by uncommon industry ; as a speaker he did not excel
in early life. W ith great deliberation he selected the law as his profes
sion, nor could he be deterred from his chosen pursuit. W hile a poor
student, not the tempting prize of fifteen hundred dollars a year as clerk
of the courts, then a large sum, gained with great difficulty for him by the
zeal and influence of his father, nor could all the persuasions of the father,
turn him from the mark he had set before h im ; and his great eulogist,
the Attorney-General of Massachusetts, is another marked illustration of
resolute endurance and indomitable industry— life-long— centering in one
profession, making him one of the chief ornaments of that profession, if
not its head, in the United States.
Our late distinguished ambassador at the Court o f St. James, Hon. Abbot
Lawrence, whose wealth is poured out for all benevolent purposes in dona
tions large as the sea, can recall the time when he had his profession to se
lect, and the first dollar of his splendid fortune to earn. He chose deliber
ately a calling; he pursued that occupation with integrity and endurance,
through dark days and trying seasons, and the result is before the world.
This case affords an apt illustration o f the proverb of the wise man, that a
man “ diligent in his business shall stand before kings, and not before mean
men.”
The late John Jacob Astor, as he left his native Germany, paused be
neath a linden-tree not far from the line that separated his native land
from another, and made three resolutions, which he intended should guide
him through life: “ 1. He would be honest. 2. He would be industrious.
3. He would never gamble.” He was on fo o t; his wealth was in the small
bundle that swung from the stick laid on his shoulder. The world was be
fore him. He was able to make such resolutions; he was able to carry
them out. His success is the best comment on his endurance. Stephen
Gerard, at the age o f 40 years, was in quite moderate circumstances, being
the captain of a small coasting vessel on the Delaware, and part owner of
the same. No trait in his character was more marked than his endurance,
and this element gave him a fortune.
All men who have succeeded well in life have been men of high resolve
and endurance. The famed William Pitt was in early life fond of gaming,
the passion increased with his years; he knew that he must at once mas
ter the passion, or the passion would master him. He made a firm resolve
that he would never again play at a game o f hazard. He could make such
a resolution; he could keep it. His subsequent eminence was the fruit of
that power. William Wilberforce, in his earlier days, like most young
men of his rank and age, loved the excitement of places of hazard. He
was one night persuaded to keep the faro-bank. He saw the ruin of the
vice of gaming as he never saw it before ; he was appalled with what he
beheld. Sitting amid gaming, ruin, and despair, he took the resolution
that he would never again enter a gaming house. He changed his com
pany with the change of his conduct, and subsequently became one of the
most distinguished Englishmen of his age.
Elem ents o f Business Success.
61
Dr. Samuel Johnson was once requested to drink wine with a friend;
the Doctor proposed tea. “ But drink a little wine,” said his host. “ I
cannot,” was the reply. “ I know abstinence— I know excess; but I know
no medium. Long since, I resolved, as I could not drink a little wine, I
would drink none at all.” A man who could thus support his resolution
by action was a man of endurance, and that element is as well displayed in
this incident as in the compilation o f his great work. When Richard
Brinsley Sheridan made his first speech in Parliament, it was regarded on
all hands as a most mortifying failure. His friends urged him to abandon
a Parliamentary career, and enter upon some field better suited to his
ability. “ No,” said Sheridan— “ no, it is in me, and it shall come o u t!"
And it did, and he became one of the most splendid debaters in England.
Loyola, the founder of the order of Jesuits, the courtier, the man of gal
lantry and dissipation, obtained such mastery over himself by labor and
endurance, that, to illustrate the fact, he stood several hours, apparently
unmoved, in a pond of ice and muddy water, up to his chin. Perhaps no
other nation in Europe, at the time, could have won the battle o f Waterloo
except the British, because no other could have brought to that conflict
that amount of endurance needed to win. For many hours that army
stood manfully before the murderous fire of the French; column after col
umn fell, while not a gun was discharged on their part. One sullen word
of command raajatong the' linft as;thousands fell— “ File up! file u p !”
“ Not yet— not y e s j/’ was the Iroii.Duke's>rep!y. to.earnest requests made
to charge and fight the foe. A t length the time o f action came. The
charge was given, and victory perched upoif the standard of England.
4.
BUSINESS THE CHARM OF LIFE.
No passion is more ruinous than'.the “ haste to be rich.” It is condemn
ed alike by revelation, reason, and'the sound practical experience o f life.
It leads men into unsafe and ruinous speculation; it seduces them from
fast-anchored property to the mirage that glitters. It allows the hands of
industry and employment to stand still on the dial-plate o f life, while men
grasp at shadows. It is this passion separates the business past from the
business present by so wide a gulf.
The modern merchant, with Small capital, and that, perhaps, not his own
— with his granite store, his mahddatiy'<fesk, hia^country-seat, fast horse,
and rash speculations, scorns the example of his sire, who, at his desk of
pine and green baize, sat each day sixteen mortal hours at his business,
doing his own errands, and hging his own clerk. W ith so wide a contrast,
it is not strange that many begin business where their sires left off, and
leave off where the sires began.
It is employment we all need— employment till life shall end. The
plowboy is happy in his furrow, and the hours pass swifter that the weav
er’s shuttle, while the matron and maid sing amid their daily duties. No
success and no wealth can make that man happy who has nothing to do.
W e have seen a boy grow up to the full stature of manhood, take his stand
by the side and as one of our richest m en; his elegant city residence and
suburban abode became the envy of men— his horses and his equipagfc the
most perfect in our midst. W e have seen him, with his fortune made, bid
adieu to the toils and vexations of business, take the balance o f his life to
himself, and resolve to be happy at his ease. W e have watched him in
his elegant retreat, possessed of “ more than heart can wish.” After a few
years we have sought and found him not, learning, with sorrow, that, not
62
E lem ents o f B usiness Success.
able to endure a life of leisure and ease, he had gone uncalled for into the
presence of his Maker.
An eminent merchant o f Boston, when asked by some one why he did
not quit his business, as his fortune was ample, replied, “ that his repose
would be his death.” "We know well that the spring of enjoyment would
dry up, and soon, with inactivity, life would become a burden. The cele
brated commentator, Dr. McKnight, completed his work on the epistles
when not far from sixty years o f age. Nearly thirty years o£ his life had
been occupied with that great labor. His employment had been regular
and cheerful, and the purple current o f life had flowed noiselessly and joy
ously along. He refused to go on with the Gospel, as he had earned his
respite, he said. His faculties were in their usual vigor. In leaving his
regular employment, his mind soon lost its tone, and he sunk almost into
a driveling idiocy. Had he continued his employment, a mellow and a
green old age would have been his portion, and his sun gone down at last
in unclouded splendor.
It is employment that has made us what we are. Our sky is inclement,
our soil hard and tough; but the sun shines on no land where so many
people enjoy so much substantial good. The alchemy of labor can turn
our ice into gold and our rocks into bread. Employment given to the
millions of Europe now indolent and hungry, would quench many a volcano
and put down misrule and insubordination'. It was Lord Badon, I think,
who said that “ all rebellibijs'comfiie'nce 'in the stomach;” ’ 'Eet’a nation be
both destitute and idle, and.it would npt be strange, if they should become
turbulent also. Sodom had thilee gfleatt sins; cfneAf them was “ an abund
ance of idleness.” Palestine;' in the time'bf Solomon, contained a nation
of men who were daily employed, and .a race o f women who could both
“ clothe their households with scarlet,” 'and! “ consider a field and buy it.”
These were the days of Israel’s prosperity. Gold and silver were abund
ant ; the mountains were terraced up to their summits with fruit, and the
valleys were hot-beds of vegetation. It is now a land of indolence. The
same sky is above the people— they tread the same soil beneath their feet;
but all is desolate, because all are indolent. The owl and the cormorant
sit now in the palaces o f David and Solomon. W hen men were proud to
say, “ I am a Roman citizen! ” Rome was governed by emperors whom she
called from the plow. They led her invincible legions to conquest. Now
indolence broods over the whole land of the Caesars like the miasma over
the pleasant home of man— desolation and ruin are seen on all sides.
W e should be glad to address you on many other topics which will, and
must, enter into your business prosperity. That courtesy to all, based on
principle, that costs so little and yields so large a return; that courage and
business faith that will not only make you enterprising and far-seeing, but
enable you to be singular and odd even when duty calls or danger is to be
avoided; that regard for your word that will command credit; that
high moral character which will make your word as good as your bon d;
that integrity that will induce you to meet with amputation sooner than
repudiation, and cause you to select some other road to fortune than that
o f ’ defrauding your creditors; that principle without which no smart
ness, no talent will avail; but these, and all other things by them suggest
ed, must be left to your own thoughts and your own application, and so
also must that certain success that will attend the application to the busi
ness of life.
A
Uniform, System o f Coinage f o r Com mercial N ations.
63
Art. IV.— A UNIFORM SYSTEM OF COINAGE FOR COMMERCIAL NATIONS.
D r . J. II. G i b b o n , o f the United States’ Branch Mint, North Carolina,
has forwarded us a copy of his report on the utility o f a uniform system in
measures, weights, fineness, and decimal accounts for the standard coinage
of commercial nations. This report was made in compliance with a reso
lution passed by the Commercial Convention assembled in Charleston,
South Carolina, on the 10th of April, 1854.
The commercial importance o f a uniform system for the coinage o f com
mercial nations to facilitate mutual exchanges, and the interesting histori
cal and other data furnished by Dr. Gibbon, renders any apology for pub
lishing it entire in the pages of the Merchants' Magazine unnecessary.
The subject has already been introduced to Congress in a letter to the
Hon. H annibal H amlin, Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, &c.,
in the United States’ Senate, by A lexander V attemare, accompanied by
a historical, popular description o f the metrical-decimal system, by W m.
W . M ann, Esq., of Georgia, and reports by Mr. Sibbermann, Superintend
ent of the Conservatoir des A rts et Metiers, and by Mr. D urand, Commis
sary General of Coins and Medals.*
To render the subject of uniformity in coinage generally intelligible, slight
references to history appear indispensable.
After the settlement of North America, from Europe, the earliest metallic
currency of the colonies consisted o f coins of the mother country. In 1652
Massachusetts provided for the coinage of shillings, six-pences, and three-penees.
The example was followed by Maryland, where silver and copper coins were is
sued in 1662.
In 1694 the Carolinas struck a half-penny; and two-penny and penny pieces
in 1723 and 1733. In 1773 Virginia also introduced a half-penny coinage.
Trade was carried on principally by barter.
As Commerce and population increased, foreign gold coins were introduced—
the English guinea, the Portuguese joannes, the Spanish doubloon, the French
pistole, with Spanish dollars and their proportions, British silver coins, and, final
ly, French crowns.
After our Revolutionary struggle, various emissions of silver and copper were
made by States—Massachusetts, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Vermont issued
cents of varied weights. In 1783, J. Chalmers, at Annapolis, in Maryland, fab
ricated the smaller silver coins, carelessly proportioned. In 1830, Templeton
Reed, in Georgia, and Christopher Bechtler, in North Carolina, coined gold pieces,
literally at the pit’s mouth, from veins and deposits worked in those States.
The pound of the colonies was originally the same as the pound sterling of
Great Britain, but became greatly altered in consequence of excessive issues of
paper money, in very unequal proportions, by different colonial authorities.
In 1782 the Congress of the United States directed a report upon the subject
of coins and currency, which was made by the financier, Gouverneur Morris. He
labored to reconcile the moneys o f the different States upon the pound basis,
and expressed an opinion that it was “ very desirable money should be increased
in a decimal ratio, because, by that means, all calculations of interest, exchange,
insurance, and the like, are rendered much more simple and accurate; and of
course more within the power of the great mass of the people.”
In 1784, Mr. Jefferson, on behalf of a committee, also advocated the decimal
system, stating: “ The most easy ratio o f multiplication and division is that by
* W e are indebted to M. Vattemare for a copy of his letter and the other documents referred to
above, in English and French, and shall probably notice them in a future number o f the Merchants’
Magazine•
64
A
U niform System o f Coinage
ten. Every one remembers the facility o f decimal arithmetic at school, and the
bulk of mankind are school-boys through life.”
Mr. Jefferson differed from Mr. Morris upon the unit of value, and proposed
the Spanish dollar as the basis, which was adopted in 1785.
The Confederation o f the States had already provided that “ Congress should
have the sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and value of
coins.” The Constitution o f 1789 arrested local issues, and vested the right of
coinage solely in the general government.
In 1790 Mr. Jefferson, then Secretary of State, made “ A Report on Moneys,
Weights, and Measures.”
In 1792 a code of laws and regulations was enacted for a mint, in Philadelphia,
with denominations for coinage in gold, silver, and copper. The standard of
fineness for gold being fixed at .917, that for silver at .882 milliemes, or thou
sandths, according to the French mode o f computation, now employed in the
mints of the United States, instead of the ancient expression by carats and
eighths.
In 1793 and 1796 slight modifications were made in the weight of copper
.pieces, “ on account of the increased price o f copper in the commercial mar ket.”
In 1819 Mr. Lowndes proposed to raise the value of gold against silver. To
provide a remedy for their recognized disproportion, engaged the attention of em
inent statesmen for fifteen years. The fineness of the gold coins was ultimately
reduced to .899 and a fraction.
»
In 1834 an act was passed changing the weight and fineness of the gold coins,
and also the relative value of gold to silver. The first basis, 15 to 1, being found
too low, at the market value, which, although constantly fluctuating, was near 16
to 1, the original Spanish ratio.
“ The effect of our previous legal proportions was to reduce the coinage of
gold, and to retain its circulation. Being always at a premium, the coin was im
mediately exported to Europe in the course of trade, and there quickly wrought
into other shapes.”*
But the disadvantages of a complex standard of fineness in gold and in silver,
determined the director of the mint to suggest the more simple and modern
standard of France, established upon a distinct basis. This was acted upon by
Congress in 1837, the standard being fixed at .900, or 90 per cent of fine metal,
for gold and silver coins, in the 1,000 parts.
In the year 1835 branches of the mint were directed to be established in Louis
iana, Georgia, and North Carolina, all the coins being uniform. A mint in Cali
fornia and an assay office in New York have since been decided upon.
In Great Britain, the basis of the value of money is the pound sterling of twen
ty shillings. This pound of standard silver was represented by the guinea, a gold
coin, ordained in 1675, during the reign of Charles the Second.
From a depreciation of silver coins in England, Sir Isaac Newton, Master of
the Mint, during George the First, recommended, in 1717, that the guinea should
be rated at twenty-one shillings.
In 1816 the sovereign, a new gold coin of twenty shillings, slightly differing
in weight from the guinea, was substituted, and an alteration again effected in
the British silver coinage, silver being made a legal tender only to the amount of
forty shillings at a time.
In the history of the British mint, the coinage of the year 1816 “ will be re
markable,” writes Dr. Kelley, “ not only on account of important alterations then
made in the monetary system, but also for the great accommodation afforded to
the public.” At the present moment still greater conveniences are desired in
that country.
A recent report of a select committee to the House of Commons of Great
Britain, founded upon careful inquiry among intelligent and practical men, en
courages a modification of measures and weights in ail money accounts.
The decimal system of computation being acknowledged so simple and easily
* Manual of Coins and Bnllion, by Eckfeldt and Dubois.
F o r Com mercial N ations.
65
understood at home and abroad, compared with the mode at present employed,
that “ he who runs may count, his fingers being a text-book! ”
A governor of the Bank of England, Mr. Hankey, examined in reference to the
sale or purchase of bullion, declared, “ a more complicated system than that
lately in use, and one more fraught with incidents to error, would hardly be
conceived.”
Three elements enter into the consideration: 1st. The weight calculated in
troy pounds, ounces, pennyweights, and grains. 2d. The quality of the gold,
subdivided by 24 carats and their eighths. 3d. The element of value estimated
in pounds, shillings, pence, and farthings.
Prof. George Biddell,acting Astronomer Royal, remarked—“ That if gold was
adopted as the standard o f value by other countries, it would be possible to have
such international arrangements as would make the coin of different countries
interchangeable at fixed rates.”
Sir John Herscheli, Master of the Mint, “ recommended a decimal coinage, ac
companied by a decimal system of weights and measures.”
The only point on which witnesses were divided in opinion, before the select
committee, was the precise basis which should be adopted.
Under an impression that “ the laws of physical nature operate uniformly, the
unit of measure in England was fixed by ascertaining the length of a pendulum,
vibrating seconds, in the latitude of London, at the level of the sea.” *
To this length a yard measure was referred, and subdivided into three feet of
twelve inches each.
“ The unit of measure is the element from which is deduced the unit of
weight.”
By such contrivances the magnitudes and distances of the planets, as well as
the fineness and weights of coins are measured, by the graduated scaleof a yard
stick ; “ the motions of the heavenly bodies being governed by general laws, ap
plicable to all matter.”
During 37 years, from 1689 to 1726, no less than nine changes were made in
the standard value of gold coins in France.
In 1795 the present system was commenced in that country, based, however,
upon a different calculation from the English, by an admeasurement of our planet,
the earth, the distance from the equator to the pole being computed, for a stand
ard of measure, the French meter.
A cube of pure water, at the temperature of melting ice, measuring each way
the hundredth part of this meter, offered a certain standard weight, called a
gramme. From such bases the franc coin was deduced.
These units of admeasurement were multiplied decimally into other denomi
nations, by which the system is thought to possess “ completeness as well as
simplicity.”
Before the year 1772 there were thirty-one mints in France—these were after
ward reduced to eighteen. Finally, only six remain. The coinage of the French
is very large, and especially their specie circulation in silver, while in England a
gold coinage is more predominant.
The minor purposes of trade are supplied in populous portions of Asia—China,
Burmah, and Japan—by a “ current money,” composed of thin plates of hardened,
mixed, base metal, like brass or bronze, stamped with devices, and sometimes
apparently cast in molds, each piece having a square hole in the center, by which
these coins are strung like button-molds, in parcels of one hundred, for the con
venience of counting and of carriage.
Their computations o f money are subdivided decimally. Being excellent
judges o f the purity of foreign coins, the Chinese separate good from bad with
rapid accuracy. They recognize the character and fineness o f metal by the sight,
the touch, the smell, and the sound.
Dr. John Bowring, formerly and now consul to Canton, stated before the se
lect British committee, that “ in Japan, accounts had been kept in decimals from
Davies’ Logic o f Mathematics.
VOL. xxxi.— no. I.
5
66
A Uniform System o f Coinage
time immemorial, and that the Chinese system is one of great simplicity and
ease.”
The integer, or whole number, is one ounce o f pure silver, which is divided
into 1,000 parts, called “ cash.”
Dr. Bowring declared “ he never could approach his Chinese servant in the
celerity with which he kept his accounts.”
These anciently civilized nations employ refined gold and fine silver, in bullion
bars, without coinage, for exchanges of all large sums in trade.
The Chinese notation of fineness is by hundredths, ours by thousandths.
Some fine silver bars, fabricated in China, exhibited upon assay at the mint in
Philadelphia a purity of .982—a very high grade, equivalent to 98 and 2-10ths
per cent of fine silver.
The Chinese money system we conceive to be similar to that recorded during
the residence of the Hebrews in civilized Egypt. Identity in quality was the
most ancient process of preparation for monetary calculations, as it is now—
“ pieces of money” were checked “ by weight” in the interchange between Jo
seph and his brethren, when Jacob sent into Egypt for corn.
Abraham is described to have had servants “ bought with money o f the stran
ger,” as well as some “ born in his house.”
These references are presented for the satisfaction of those who dread novel
ties, to convince them our object is not a new one, but as old as the days of the
Hebrew Patriarchs.
In Assyria, Persia, and Hindostan, a coinage of gold was known and valued at
the conquest of Alexander. From these countries the Greeks and Romans de
rived the models of their measures, weights, and devices, which have since pre
vailed in modern Europe, and now among us. From the time of Aristotle, we
have a generally accepted definition— “ Money is a standard measure,” by which
the value of all things are ascertained, regulated, and represented. Money forms
a language of mathematical proportion, by which commercial interchanges are
readily made and generally understood.
In Dialogues upon the usefulness o f ancient medals or coins, Mr. Addison de
scribes them as “ a kind o f printing, before the art was invented, giving great
light to h is t o r y w e now know that the invention of printing claims a high
antiquity.
Napoleon—as great in civil as in military administration—proposed to have
throughout Europe money of the same value, but with different coins or devices.
Identity of coins has been employed to produce a stronger bond of union
among nations. For this purpose the relations between the silver coinage of
Russia and Poland were projected, to facilitate their intercourse.
The coinages of Italy and Spain were assimilated, at one time, with that o f
France, as those of Greece, Rome, Saxony, and Baden now are. Uniformity is
desirable in all national measures and weights, but especially to regulate coinage.
Nations that have mints possess means for one common measure, or standard of
proportions. The varieties which now exist result from want of concert in the
elements of art, and needless dissimilarities in mint usages.
The principles upon which the practices of different mints are founded, prove
that different nations may act upon the same general system in all money
accounts.
The distinct units of weight, fineness, and value form curious and important
portions in the arrangements of our coinage.
The properties of numbers were held sacred by the ancients, and regarded as
of divine authority, from the evident system, exactness, order, and harmony in
the varied arrangements of the natural world.
Numbers were divided into classes:—
O ne was regarded most eminently sacred;
Two the associate;
T hree considered perfect, comprehending—“ The Beginning, the Middle, and
the End” — one conspicuous name of The Divinity.
Pythagoras was thought to mingle faney with the truths o f mathematics.
F o r Com mercial N ations.
61
F our is the number he is described to have affected to venerate the most, from
deductions of the absolute powers of numbers he had been taught in the East.
F our contains within itself all the musical proportions; and a very ancient
division of mathematical science distrbuted it into four parts, namely— 1, arith
metic ; 2, geometry; 3, astronomy; and 4, music.
The Spanish dollar, assumed as the unit of value for the coinage of the United
States, contains one ounce of silver— originally subdivided into halves, quarters,
eighths, and sixteenths. This silver ounce was called “ a piece of eight,” in
reference to the “ reales,” or twelve-and-a-half cent pieces, which compose its
sum.
Sixteen silver ounces are equal to one pound avoirdupois weight—the result
of some ancient Phenician, Assyrian, or Arabian measure of computation.
One pound, of sixteen ounces, of standard silver, was represented by a Span
ish doubloon— an ounce o f standard gold.
The unit of weight, in the calculations for coinage of the United States, is
devised from the Troy ounce, twelve to the pound weight, believed to have been
introduced into Troyes, of France, from Cairo, in Egypt, during the Crusades.
W e dismiss the pound, pennyweight, and grain weights, and confine our mint
estimates to the divisions of one ounce into hundred parts, converted by a dis
tinct process into dollars and cents; and we multiply the ounces decimally.
To estimate the quality of gold and silver, in the mint practice of the United
States, the unit for fineness is obtained from the more modern French computa
tion—a gramme for assay o f silver, and a half gramme for assay of gold—each
subdivided into thousandths or milliemes, in place of the antique jewelers’
weights, twenty-four carats and their eighths.
By our decimal intentions we have intermingled a variety o f units employed
in the measures, weights, and standards of other nations, but are uniform with
none.
We have broken down some ancient systems into decimals, but still use
the original materials, however difficult for mathematical correspondence with
others.
We have admitted astronomy, geometry, and arithmetic into our mint calcula
tions, but have disregarded music.
Our coins do not harmonize with those of other nations, nor do any accord
with us.
In order to illustrate, for the convenience o f those not conversant with the
simple but still complicated structure of mintage, we may describe the element
ary features in the coinage of gold for the United States as four— 1st, perfectly
fine gold; 2d, fine silver alloy ; 3d, pure copper alloy ; 4th, exact weight.
Silver, in some definite proportion, is always found united with gold in its
native state; for perfectly pure gold is solely the result “ of the refiner’s art.”
Silver, therefore, is used as a natural alloy for gold coins by certain nations, who
thus avoid the modern process of complete separation o f these metals, and recov
ery of the silver by acids.
In the States of South America, in Mexico, and in Spain, the coinage of doub
loons was made without addition of copper alloy; while in Europe generally the
mints endeavor to rid their gold coinage of silver entirely, reviving this metal by
chemical process and using copper alone as an alloy.
Consequently the national colors vary very much in these different coinages
of gold.
In the standard gold coins of the United States, the proportion of silver alloy
has varied from 25 to 50-100ths in the 1,000 parts, or from 2£ to 5 per cent.
The other portion of alloy from 50 to 75-100ths, or from 5 to 7J per cent in the
1,000— being copper. This allowance for silver alloy in gold pieces has been
recently reduced at the United States mints to ll-100ths in the 1,000, or 1 per
cent and a fraction, for greater uniformity of color.
Although the standards of France and of the United States are the same in
respect to the proportionate amounts of fine gold in their coinages, yet as the
68
A U niform System o f Coinage
weights of their coins and the alloys differ, there is not a perfect approximation
of values in their severally proportioned pieces.
The coins of either, when exported to the other, are mutually regarded as
bullion, or uncoined gold.
The election of silver alone or copper alone as alloy, with the same allowance
of fine gold in the coins of each, would render equal weights of the standards o f ,
both these countries of the same intrinsic value.
The specific gravities or differences in the relative weights of metals of the
same bulk, by measure, is expressed minutely and accurately by figures. The
specific gravity of fine gold is rated at 19.30; fine silver at 10.80; pure copper,
8.80; but the gravity of a mixture of metals is not always the exact result o f
arithmetical addition.
With all the care that can be taken, the same alloy is acknowledged to pro
duce varying results in this trial by specific gravity. Being a much less delicate
test than the assay by complete separation of the metals, it is considered inad
missible for mint purposes.
The legal amount of fine gold in English standard coin is 916 parts in the
thousand, or 911 per cent and a fraction, alloyed with copper alone, which gives
a dark, rich color to the British coin.
By concerted action between England, France, the United States, and other
nations, consenting to the employment of similar units of admeasurement for
weights, fineness, and alloys, connected with a uniform basis for all decimal
computations; a French Napoleon, a Ducat of Denmark, an English Sovereign,
a Spanish Pistole, a Moidore of Brazil, a Doubloon of Mexico or Peru, and a
Russian Imperial, could as conveniently, and more economically, be formed of
the exact value of a gold coin o f the United States, as it is easy for the several
mints in the United States to oblige all eagle coins to correspond precisely with
each other; to contain exactly the same quantity o f fine gold and alloys, and to
be of the same general weight and value among us. Any sum can be mutually
assumed, with equal facility, by concert at all mints, and decision in the bases.
The large amount of fine silver contained in our gold coins o f preceding
dates, had sometimes invited a destruction of their forms, for the purpose of
recovering that metal by ready processes of art at refineries in foreign countries.
The addition of spurious or counterfeit pieces to large amounts of correct
gold coins, exported without sufficient scrutiny, once caused suspicion o f the
general accuracy of the coinage o f the United States. Possibly for want of in
formation at that time of a method to check the values of large amounts of
standard gold by weight, complaint was made to the American Minister in Lon
don, Mr. Lawrence, that the assays of the mints of the United States were sus
pected to be inexact.
As the annual trials to test uniformity in all the coinages of the several mints
are regular and precise by law, the assayers experienced no inconvenience, al
though aware of other causes which produce the same results as defective purity,
or deficient fineness in the national coinage.
The value of precious metals is computed by multiplying the gross weight,
after proper melting, by the fineness or quality ascertained from careful assay,
expressed in thousandths of a French half gramme. A moderate arithmetician
can calculate that defective weight would cause the same results in the product
as inaccuracy in the certificate of fineness.
Large sums of correct coins, slightly intermingled with counterfeit pieces,
exhibit deficient weight before melting to a mint officer or clerk; and when
melted in mass, as surely show a lower quality by assay than the standard fine
ness for legal coins.
Tlie assayers and refiners abroad certified satisfactorily to the accuracy of the
mint practice in the United States. The French mint in Paris expressed such
experience from re-melting, re-assaying, and re-coining seven million of our gold
pieces during that year.
While this constant re-melting and re-modeling of carefully coined gold oc
curs, the policy of incessantly increasing the gold coinage of the United States
F o r Commercial N ations.
09
may well be questioned. For this manufacture, which is tedious, expensive, and
important, does not add to the value of the precious metals, which are solely re
garded in other countries as old or uncoined gold.
The employment of gold and silver in the arts has heeome very extended,
and bullion of different qualities maybe easily prepared at the mints for such
operations; to restrain a disposition to work up coins alone for such purposes,
in consequence of their well ascertained quality of fineness, readily calculated
for reduction.
As our Southern and Western States produce the precious metals, and four
mints have been established in the South and West, this subject is important to
us in a mercantile view. Gold and silver, as raw products, are annually ex
ported to a very large amount, besides the indiscreet and unnecessary loss of
coins by transportation, to adjust our balances of trade.
Ancient historical monuments assure us the trade in gold and silver was ap
preciated in remote periods of civilization, and their valuation conducted upon a
system which originated in correct views of practical utility for general conve
nience and the earliest commercial interchanges.
Moneys were very anciently divided into “ pieces ” designated by images or
“ devices,” their value checked by “ weight,” and estimated from “ quality,” or
their fineness.
The modern mint practices preserve the same measures of precaution, the
purity and weight of every piece of coin being accurately adjusted before its
emission from the mints.
By the systematic regulations o f the Asiatics, whose usages in metalurgical
arts gave an impulse to similar procedures in civilized Europe, we feel per
suaded that the moderns, in the discovery of exact principles of art and knowl
edge, pass through the same kind of experience which led to the many original
processes enumerated in the ancient Scriptures; which, while they offer to our
intelligence a corrected system of morals, at the same time announce in a simple
but comprehensive manner the progress and condition of the varied useful arts
of life at periods we scarcely dare compute.
The existence of “ good” gold, an expression understood to have reference to
its quality of fineness, is noticed in the second chapter of the Genesis. The
technical name of goldsmith, translated “ founder,” appears in Judges, and that
o f the crucible, or “ firing pot ” for melting, in the Proverbs.
The metals enumerated in those old writings are iron, copper, silver, gold,
lead, and tin.
There is a Hebrew word to express an admixture or amalgam. Some sup
pose it bronze or brass, the ancient manufacture of which, at Corinth, was cele
brated, as well as in Egypt. Others regard it a combination of gold alloyed
with copper, like modern coin.
That the metalurgical arts were carried into useful manufactures at very dis
tant ages, is shown by the list of tools fabricated from metals, or employed in
the various processes of smelting and working them distinctly specified in the
Hebrew Scriptures.
Axes, saws, and stone-cutters, chisels, chains, bolts, nails, knives, warlike
weapons, bedsteads, chariots and harrows o f iron, are all mentioned at the pe
riod of the Hebrew Exodus; besides, numerous vessels for cooking or sacrifices
were made of copper; defensive and offensive armor— swords, spears, arrow
heads, shields and helmets of bronze or brass, combinations including the metals
o f copper and of tin.
Drinking vessels o f gold and silver, altars, idols, possibly a rough currency
like coins, with devices or rudely east models of the figures o f animals, were rep
resented as in common use in the days of Jacob.
Lead was employed as weight for plumb-lines. The anvil, the hammer,
pincers or tongs, the bellows, “ fining pots or sand crucibles, and melting fur
naces,” are expressively detailed by Hebrew writers of antiquity.
The chemical or mechanical separation of the metals by fluxes, for purifica
tion, and the dross resulting from them, are all used as illustrative comparisons
70
A U niform System o f Coinage
of ordinary customs in the familiar but figurative language of the Hebrews. The
casting of images, forms, figures or ornamented plates, were obviously known
in the age of the Patriarchs. Soldering and welding, smoothing and polishing,
overlaying or gilding, and other metalurgical operations, indicate the distinct
branches of “•workers ” in iron, bronze, brass, silver, and gold.
Some of the neighboring nations, as the Tyrians, were noticed by tbe same
authorities to have been more experienced and successful in such handicraft than
the Hebrews.
Many golden coins produced during past centuries at the mints in Europe,
Africa, and Asia, indicate a high degree o f purity or fineness, and prove'the ex
cellence of former artistic processes in this part of the manufacture. Gold and
silver “ refined in a crucible by fire,” often used as comparison to designate re
semblances, indicate well-known customs. Such purity being not natural among
those metals, but entirely due to processes of ingenious skill and art.
The sequins of Rome, Venice, and Tuscany, fabricated during the early por
tions of last century, contained from .996 to .997 parts o f pure gold in the 1,000,
or 99J per cent of perfectly fine gold. This is as high quality as that obtained
by the present means of separation in our refineries by acids. Assays made at
the mint of the United States show in the old gold ducats of Hungary .986;
Sweden, .977 ; Bavaria, .980; Denmark, .988; Hanover, .993; the Netherlands,
.980 ; and Poland, .984, fineness varying from 97£ to 99 per cent of fine metal.
The last minute fractional remnants of silver separate with great reluctance from
gold in refining, and it is only during the delicate and diminutive operations of
the assay department, that perfectly pure or fine gold is obtained in practice.
The golden ounce (.995) of Naples and Sicily, the toman (.991) of Persia, the
mohur (.982) of Bengal, and the sequin (.958) of Egypt, show a fineness from
96 to 99( per cent, and demonstrate that the ancient principle in coinage was a
close approximation to perfect purity in the metals, and that their calculations
of value were simply based, as now, upon the fineness and the weights.
The doubloons, or golden ounces, of Spain, Mexico, and the South American
States, vary in fineness from .813 to .872 thousandths, or from 8IL to 87 per
cent, their alloy being silver alone. The moidore of Brazil, the joannes of Por
tugal, and the imperial of Russia, approach the British standard of coinage, or
91^ per cent. Yet the varieties in the proportionate values o f such coins are
still too great in these different sections of the commercial world to permit any
reciprocal interchanges at equal rates.
All coins, however varied in fineness, weights, and characters of alloy, con
tinue to be graduated with great care in each country, but in exchange with
others require extended, complicated, and dilatory calculations of arithmetic,
which, by general consent among nations, could readily be dismissed.
If the actions of national mints were submitted to a reformed code of regula
tions, organized by practical men, for general uniformity in the basis o f meas
ures for fineness, weights, alloys, and decimal calculations, without altering the
national superscriptions, devices, forms, and designations, advantage surely would
be gained for all.
Such uniformity once established by a few nations, other measures of accord
ance might be expected to ensue, for the promotion of general exactness in other
weights and measures, for useful and equitable correspondences.
The practices of mints require the greatest accuracy in all their details, and
unless an exact uniformity exists in their original basis of calculations, no iden
tity of values can prevail in coins. The mints require the rigid accord of mathe
matical, chemical, and mechanical actions, w'hicli, being known to prevail in the
separate coins of each nation, can, by concerted action, as surely be made to ex
ist in the general coinage of all.
If it is held important that neighboring portions o f the same country should
comprehend and employ the same currency, no logical argument can prove a
contrary effect among intercommuning nations for commercial transactions. The
gold coins of the United States, easily and instantly recognized in Louisiana,
Maine, Michigan, Kentucky, South Carolina, and California, could as readily be
F o r Com mercial N ations.
71
understood and valued in Prance, Germany, England, Spain, Russia, and Sweden,
Mexico, Brazil, and Peru, Egypt, Persia, India, China, and Japan, and all their
coins as readily credited here. Such a plan of concert once established by a
few, the practice of re-melting coins of either, thus consenting, would be aban
doned at once among them.
Impressions, forms, dates, or places o f manufacture, do not affect value, which
is regulated solely by the amount o f perfectly pure gold or fine silver, in coins,
jewelry, ores, or dust. By the employment of the most easy decimal calcula
tions, their values can be reduced or augmented, and the exact worth of every
1,000th, 100th, 50th, 10th, or 5th, of any basis of value be generally established,
and everywhere correctly comprehended by all men who are taught decimal
arithmetic, or have sense and fingers.
Such easy uniformity of fabrication might introduce the practice of testing
large amounts of gold and silver coins or bullion, by weight; wh'ch, in the
larger transactions o f Commerce, would prove the best remedy against counter
feits and false tokens.
We all comprehend the inconveniences resulting from any depreciation in the
value o f paper money in adjacent States; still the similarity of five, ten, twenty,
and fifty dollar notes enable us to exchange when they will pass by a recognized
public confidence.
»
The dissimilarities in the coinages o f different nations expose merchants to
some of the inconveniences o f uncurrent paper, which can be avoided by cor
respondence, explanations, and a very moderate yielding by each to slight changes
in mint practice.
The mining interests of the Southern States are concerned to reduce charges
upon their industry, which all unnecessary impediments, in ascertaining the value
o f their products, multiply upon them. As coins and as merchandise, gold, and
silver require to have their quality o f fineness carefully designated, in order to
decide upon their value, like an inspection of flour, tobacco, or fish. Condition
regulates the character and worth of all—for use, manufactures, or exchanges.
Since the original introduction Of civilization from Africa and Asia into Eu
rope, the nations who employ coins as representatives of value have never con
sulted together upon any mutual accommodation in coinage. They have each
fixed upon some convenient or casual intermingling o f the metals to represent
their standards, which, like those exhibited in war, present different forms, with
distinct emblems and colors. The varieties of value in these standards existing
among different friendly nations, instead o f being at once recognized by the eye,
like their flags, can only be distinguished by separate calculations of arithmetic
to verify their character in every market. They are private signals, promoting
difficulties rather than convenience among nations, not always differing in lan
guage.
In matters of money we may, surely, all advance with success under one truth
ful, peaceful, and common standard.
All foreign coins, notwithstanding the special care of each separate nation in
producing them, are now degraded as bullion abroad, recklessly melted and then
issued under a new standard—a kind of civilized piracy, which should be abated
for the benefit of all, with the general consent of all.
The enormous exportation of coins constantly witnessed from ports in the
United States, may induce attention to this subject, connected with continued
applications for increased means, to augment and promote so impolitic a proce
dure.
The original laws for the organization of the mint of the United States could
not have anticipated the immense influx of precious metals consequent upon
our recent discoveries and lately acquired possessions, which have impaired all
former calculations of proportion, distribution, and values.
As raw material for export and foreign exchange, the values of gold and silver
can be estimated without coinage, like those of any other products of industry
or of art; but as a currency required by our constitution for permanent domestic
exchanges and home convenience, other consilerations are essential.
72
E levated R ailroad Terrace fo r Broadw ay.
The annually increasing coinage of nold beyond our domestic necessities, ap
pears in opposition to true economy. Being solely estimated as bullion in for
eign countries, it is re-melted by millions at the mints and refineries in Europe,
without special advantage to them or to us.
While there exists in Great Britain a consent to the importance o f an entire
change in systematic coinage, and this subject is in active discussion, connected
with decimal calculations for moneys and mintage, much valuable information
may be gained or communicated, and a liberal scheme of mutual accommodation
and concert now be generally approved.
The community of interests which the advancement of liberal knowledge and
useful arts produce, by commercial intercourse, lead us to trust they contribute
to promote peace and good-will among men of different nations and languages.
Art. V.— ELEVATED RAILROAD TERRACE FOR BROADWAY.
A number o f plans have been suggested for facilitating the immense
travel o f Broadway, hut we have seen none, so far as we are capable o f
judging, so well calculated to promote that object as the one proposed by
Mr. J ohn B. W ickersham, an ingenious mechanic of New York. "We
therefore cheerfully give place to the following communication from that
gentleman. Its importance to the commercial and social interests of New
York cannot be too highly estimated.
N ew Y ork ,
To
F r ee m an H unt,
June 5, 1854.
Editor o f the Merchants’ Magazine.
For some time past the subject of relief for Broadway has been frequently agi
tated, and many plans have been suggested to effect the object desired. All the
plans submitted, however, have looked to the street only, not considering the re
lief of the sidewalks of any necessity.
The growth of this city for the last fifteen years is almost unprecedented by
any other city in the world. Her Commerce has extended far and wide, and her
manufactures are second to none in this country. The peculiar formation of the
island on which New York is located, the North and East Rivers on the east and
west sides of the city, concentrates the business of the wholesale class into the
lower part, the most convenient location for the prosecution of that business.
The transformations now going on in the lower part of our city, filling all the
side-streets with stores and warehouses, and driving the families up town, must
greatly augment the travel in Broadway, and every year more and more embar
rass this thoroughfare. It is evident some relief ought to be given to this street
which shall combine the greatest advantages with a moderate expenditure, and
the greatest good to the greatest number. Something must indeed soon be done
to prevent its being absolutely choked up.
These thoughts led me to suggest a plan, which, so far, has received very flat
tering encouragement from the leading men of the city. The plan proposed is,
to erect additional sidewalks on both sides of Broadway, at a Inght of about 16
feet over the present sidewalks, supported by iron columns at the gutters; the
width of the upper sidewalk or Terrace to be 19 feet from the buildings, 10 feet
to be occupied by pedestrians, and 9 feet for rail-track on the outer side, which
will be supported by the columns. By this means the Terrace will be relieved
from the weight where it spans to the buildings. Both sides of the rail-track,
outside and inside, are to be inclosed with iron railing. The pavement above is
E levated R ailroad Terrace fo r Broadw ay.
73
to be formed of stone, supported by iron gratings and iron beams, with corruga
ted iron for the roof of the lower sidewalk, making a perfect water-tight cover
ing, and an iron awning the whole length of Broadway more efficient than the
present ones, protecting the pedestrians from storms and scorching suns.
The sidewalk above, doubling the facilities for travel, and increasing the shop
fronts to double their number, giving each property owner two fronts on the
same street for each house, at a trifling outlay o f $1,500 for each 25 feet, the
cost of its construction, will increase the value of each front on Broadway from
$20,000 to $30,000, besides the dividends from the company’s railroad, and the
additional facilities and advantages to increase.
It is proposed that this improvement should extend from the South Ferry to
the Crystal Palace, a distance up and down o f about nine miles. Each property
owner or tenant to take stock enough to construct the Terrace in front of his own
building, which would be in the aggregate about $3,000,000.
A street like this, doubled in its whole length, from the Battery to the Crystal
Palace, would reimburse from receipts much more than the outlay required to fit it
up with the improvements herein suggested. The unquestionable great increase
of the value of property alone, independent of the receipts, must be apparent to
every one.
I have herewith inclosed you a printed description, which enters more into
the details of construction, explaining all the objections in respect to light, fires,
removing buildings, inequality of stone fronts, drains, gas, water, &c., &c., which
I hope, after perusal will meet with your approval and warm support.
If it is not out of place, I will here give a copy of one of the many testimonials
received in favor of this project.
N e w Y o r k , March 13,1854.
:—I have flevoted considerable time and attention to your circular in
relation to an Elevated Railroad Terrace in Broadway. I feel convinced it is just the
thing that is needed, and that it is the only feasible plan yet suggested.
I own some two hundred and fifty feet fronting in Broadway, on several locations,
and would take my proportion of the stock. In fact, I regard the stock as one that
would soon command a high premium.
Yours Trulv,
M r D e a r S ir
P. T. BARNUM.
To J. B. W1CKERSHAM, Esq.
With proper concert of action among the various business men of that thor
oughfare, we would soon see the Elevated Terrace in operation, and adding a
new impetus to the business of New York, by the attraction presented by such
a structure.
Anything that tends to advertise a city to the world, by some leading feature
different in its character from other cities, will induce strangers and business men
to visit us, thereby increasing all kinds of business. Some may advertise in
newspapers, which is very essential to success; others by costly arrangements
in buildings that are always daguerreotyped on the brain.
So this improvement, affording as it will, additional facilities for business and
travel, enticing purchasers and pedestrians to that great thoroughfare, will add
immensely to the fame we have already acquired, and increase our business to a
large extent, besides relieving and assisting the increased influx Broadway is daily
receiving.
With a high regard for the tact and ability by which your Journal is conduc
ted, I have the honor to be,
Respectfully yours,
J. b . w .
\
74
Journal o f M ercantile Law .
JOURNAL OF M E R C A N T ILE LAW .
SHIP OWNERS— SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE OF A CONTRACT.
In the Circuit Court o f the United States, before Judge Ware, Higgins in
Equily vs. Jenks, et als. December 2, 1853.
In Equity for the specific performance of a contract for the sale of three-eighths
of a ship now being built, with the right of the purchaser to the command, and
for an injunction on the owners of the five-eighths against selling the same ex
cept with notice of this contract, and subject to whatever right the plaintiff may
have under it, and against appointing any other person as master.
The facts in the case were fully stated in the opinion of the Judge.
Ware, District Judge. This is a bill in Equity seeking a specific execution of
a contract. On the 9th of August, the defendants being then engaged in build
ing a ship of about 1,500 tons burden, the plaintiff entered into a written con
tract for the purchase o f three-eighths o f her, upon which he was to pay at the
rate of fifty-five dollars a ton, two-thirds of the amount in cash, deducting there
from the cost of the rigging, which he was to furnish, and the other third in his
notes, indorsed by Brookman & Co., of New York, in four, nine, and twelve
months; and it was further agreed that Higgins should superintend and direct
the completion and rigging o f the ship, for which he was to receive no other
compensation than payment of his board ; and that when completed he should
sail her as master and have for his compensation the best wages with primage,
&c., allowed to masters commanding similar ships from the port of Bath. In
conformity with the agreement the plaintiff has superintended and directed the
work on the ship from the time o f the contract until about the time of filing the
bill; has furnished the rigging as it has been wanted, and made all his cash pay
ments as often as demanded, and is now ready on the completion of the. ship to
deliver the securities named in the agreement for the balance due.
The plaintiff, apprehending that the defendants intended to disable themselves
from performing their part o f the contract, by a sale and transfer o f the vessel,
filed this bill praying for an injunction against a sale of the three-eighths bar
gained to him, and on their disavowing any such intention, amended his bill pray
ing an injunction against the sale of the other five-eighths, except with notice of
his contract, and subject to whatever rights he has under it, with a further prayer
for an injunction against appointing any other person as master, and for a specific
execution of the contract.
Since the filing of the bill the defendants have transferred five-eighths of the
ship to Messrs, john and George Patten, and by a further amendment they have
been made parties defendant, and the same remedies by injunction and specific
performance are asked against them.
The original defendants have appeared and put in affidavits admitting the con
tract and offering to convey the three-eighths, and giving as a reason for refusing
to fulfill the contract by putting the plaintiff in as master, that they have since
the contract was made heard many reports and stories in disparagement of the
plaintiff’s character as a shipmaster, and against his truthfulness and integrity in
his Healings as a man, from which they have become satisfied that he is not a fit
person to have the command and management of such a ship, and that they should
not consider their pioperty in her to be safe in his hands.
Mr. George Patten, one of the new defendants, has put in an affidavit admitting
he purchase of five-eighths of the ship of Jenks & Harding, and stating that a
parole agreement for the purchase was made on the fifth of that month, the day
on which the bill was filed, but that the contract was not completed and the
transfer made by a bill of sale until the eighth, three days after—admitting that
he knew that Higgins was the purchaser o f three-eighths, and that he expected
to go as master, but that he did not know the precise terms o f the contract.
Journal o f M ercantile Law .
75
As fo the Messrs. Patten, the purchasers, their purchase was made under such
circumstances that they must be deemed and considered as having purchased with
full notice of the contract with Higgins. They knew of his contract and they
knew of his expectation of going master. The contract was in the hands of their
venders and they might have seen it by asking for it, as it was their duty to do.
I consider them as standing on the same ground and having the same rights as
their venders and no others. They took the five-eighths subject to all the rights
which Higgins had against Jenks & Harding.
The defence made by the affidavits of Jenks & Harding against a preliminary
injunction till the hearing, and the same will be relied on at the final heating
against a decree for a specific invention, is in substance that of a surprise; that
at the time of the contract they supposed Higgins to be a well qualified master
and a trustworthy man ; that they are now undeceived, and from what they have
since learnt of his qualification as a shipmaster, and of his character as a man,
they verily believe that they cannot with safety and prudence confide to him the
command of the ship, or intrust to him the management of their property. But
it is not pretended that they were deceived by any artifice or management on the
part of the plaintiff.
The negotiation between the parties for the sale and purchase o f this vessel,
commenced some lime before the contract was consummated; the precise time
dees not appear, but I infer from the affidavits and the exhibits in the case in
the early part—as least as early as the middle of July. It was completed on the
9th of August. Capt. Higgins is a native of Maine, and was born and brought
up in Orhitid, an adjoining town of Bucksport. Early in life he had been in the
command of two small vessels, engaged, I infer, in the coasting trade. After
wards he went to New York and was there employed as a shipmaster. If he was
a stranger to the defendants, it would seem that during the month which the ne
gotiations were pending, the defendants might without difficulty have made all
the necessary inquiries and obtained all the necessary information in relation to
his qualifications and character, and it is hardly to be supposed that, as men of
ordinary caution and prudence, thus would have agreed to intrust to his manage
ment and control so large and valuable a property as five-eighths o f this ship, of
the value of $37,000, according to the rate at which the sale was made to plain
tiff, or that they would have been willing to have entered with that confidential
relation of joint-owner of the vessel, intrusting to him the command, unless they
had been pretty well assured of his qualification as a seaman, and of his integ
rity as a man. With all this time and opportunity for informing themselves, it
seems to me that their excuse of surprise for not fulfilling their engagement
ought to be scrutinized pretty narrowly. It was nearly three months after the
plaintiff had been engaged in executing his part o f the contract, and about four
from the commencement of the negotiation for the purchase, that he was informed
that he would not have the command of the vessel, though I cannot but believe
that it must have been well understood by the defendants that this was Capt.
Higgins’ principal object in the purchase; that it was not so much his object to
make an investment in the vessel, as to provide himself with an honorable and
lucrative employment.
If, however, it is made satisfactory to appear that here has been a real sur
prise—if it be shown that for want of capacity and want o f integrity the plaintiff
is unfit to be intrusted with the command of such a ship, and that the defendants
cannot safely intrust their property in his hands, as this application for an injunc
tion and specific performance is addressed to the discretion of the court and is
not a claim strictly en delilo justicia, my opinion would be that he ought to be
left to his remedy at law. Under this view of the subject it becomes necessary
to examine the foundation of the defendants’ excuse for not performing their en
gagement. They have produced a large number of affidavits in their justification,
most of them from persons residing in Bath, Bucksport, Eastport, and Calais, in
which places he seems formerly to have been best known, all speaking of him in
terms strongly unfavorable; some who have had dealings with him charging him
with dishonesty, others speaking only of his general reputation for want of in-
76
Journal o f M ercantile Law.
tegrity, and for want of veracity, and several of them adding that he commonly
was known by the name of the lying Higgins. They uniformly speak of him
as a man unfit to be intrusted with such a vessel. All this testimony is open to
one general observation, that it relates to a period ten or twelve years ago when
he was employed in the command of small vessels in the coasting trade of Maine,
while he was young and soon after arriving at his majority.
Some years ago, precisely when does not appear, but as I collect it from the
affidavits, eight or nine years, the plaintiff left this part of the country and went
to New York, has since been employed as shipmaster from that port. The de
fendants have produced two affidavits from New York, one of Richard P. Buck,
formerly of Bucksport, and now a commission merchant and ship-owner of New
York, who states that he has been acquainted with Capt. Higgins for six years,
that he has been,consigned to him but never employed by him, that he thinks
him unfit to have the command of a ship of 1,000 tons, that he would not in
trust him with the command of a ship because he believed him to be incompetent,
that he considers him untrustworthy and irresponsible, that he would not trust
him for a hundred dollars, and he adds that he should not have given his affida
vit if he had not been called upon by a subpoena. The other is o f Benj. Carver,
formerly a shipmaster and now a dealer in ship chandlery. He has known Hig
gins for three or four years, has but little acquaintance with him, but has formed
an unfavorable opinion of his character and would be unwilling to purchase into
a ship of which he was part owner. This is all the evidence which the defend
ants have produced from New York where the plaintiff has been employed for the
last eight or nine years. That o f Carver is a little and but a little more than
negative. That of Buck is explicit and full as to his opinion, and it may be re
marked that he is the only one of the affiants who has taken pains to inform us that
he gives his affidavit from necessity, and in the same breath says that he would
not trust the plaintiff for one hundred dollars. This appears to me to be pretty
strong language for an unwilling witness towards a neighbor, who has shown
himself able to fulfill a contract for more than $20,000.
The defendants have also produced the affidavits of Mr. Curtis, and Mr. Dimmock, each president'of an insurance company in Boston, who had insured ves
sels commanded by the plaintiff and had had losses. They both say that after
examining the statement of the losses and the circumstances under which they
happened, they were so dissatisfied that they should be unwilling to insure a
vessel of which he had the command. If this evidence stood alone and unex
plained, and unqualified, it would appear to me to be entitled to very grave con
sideration. If the plaintiff has justly earned such a reputation that where his
character is known a vessel under his command could not be insured at all, or
not at the usual rate, it would be a decisive objection to the application that he
here makes, and I should feel bound to leave him to his remedy at law. Butin
this connection it is proper to consider the affidavit of Zebulon Cook, formerly
of Boston and now of New York, an insurance broker of great experience, and
entitled to full credit as a man of integrity and as an expert in the business. He
was employed by the owners of one of the vessels insured in Boston to prepare
a statement of the loss, and he states that in making up the statement, his inter
course with Capt. Higgins was protracted for some weeks, and that in the infor
mation and explanation he gave, he showed so much frankness and fairness that
he became favorably impressed towards him, and that he has heard nothing since
to change that opinion. This was one o f the cases from which the Boston in
surers formed their unfavorable opinion, and perhaps it would not be unreason
able to allow one opinion to balance the other.
To meet this testimony impeaching his character, the plaintiff has produced
the affidavits of five gentlemen of New York and six from Boston, belonging to
reputable mercantile houses, who have been acquainted with him for the last
seven or eight years, who have had transactions of business with him, all speak
ing in strong terms of his capacity and integrity, opinions which they have formed
from their intercourse with him in business, as well as from his general reputa
tion. One of them, Mr. Dishon, of Boston, was acquainted with the affair o f the
Journal o f M ercantile Law.
*1*1
Kanahwa, one of the insurance cases complained of by the Boston offices, and
formed so favorable an opinion from his own observation and what he heard of
others, that he was very desirous of selling him part of a ship as late as last Au
gust, and putting him into her as master.
On a fair consideration of the plaintiff’s affidavits, I think that they more than
balance and neutralize those of the defendants. These relate almost exclusively
to a period ten or twelve years ago. The plaintiff was then a young man just
past his majority. They undoubtedly leave on the mind an unfavorable impres
sion of the plaintiff’s character at that time. But whatever the truth may be, this
has not prevented him from obtaining employment and rising in his profession,
and passing from the command of small coasting vessels to those of a larger
class engaged in foreign trade; and for the last nine or ten years, while he has
sailed from New York, notwithstanding the opinion of Mr. Buck, I feel bound
to consider him as having maintained a fair reputation as a shipmaster, and as
qualified and competent for any kind of business he may be required to transact
in that employment, and I must hold that the excuse which the defendants have
offered for not performing their engagements be removed.
The question then fairly arises, and to my mind free and disembarrassed,
whether the plaintiff, on the principles upon which the courts of equity exercise
this discretionary jurisdiction, is entitled to the relief, by way of injunction, for
which he asks. As to the first prayer of the bill, that is an injunction against
the transfer of the five-eighths of the vessel without notice of his contract and
whatever rights he has under it, I can see no objection to it. If the contract
gives him any right in the nature o f a privilege and preference to the command
of the ship, an obligation, charge, liens or nexus, which follows and adheres to the
thing and qualifies the right of ownership, it is what he has bargained and paid
for, and whatever it may amount to he is on every principle of justice entitled to.
If it is a right of any value, he might lose it by a transfer to a bona fide purchaser
without notice. But, if with notice he might have the same right, whether it is
to a specific performance or only to a compensation in damages against the as
signees, or against the original owners.
As to the second prayer for an injunction against the appointment of any other
person to the command, there is certainly much more difficulty; nor do I pretend,
after the best consideration I have been able to give to the subject, to hold an
opinion far from doubt. It appears to me that this injunction ought not to be
granted, unless on the ground that the contract is a proper one for a decree of
specific performance, and this is only to be determined at the final hearing. I
am aware that it is not unusual in cases admitting of doubt, for the court to grant
a preliminary injunction, to preserve all matters unchanged till the hearing, but
it is usually in cases where things may remain in statu quo without sacrifice to
either party. In this case the effect may be to keep the vessel unemployed at
the wharf till the hearing, to the injury of all interests.
Without undertaking to anticipate what may be the opinion of the court on a
final hearing, it may not be out of place here to remark that the grounds on which
the courts of equity take jurisdiction to decree a specific performance of contracts,
is that a court of law can give for the breach of a contract no other remedy than
damages; that in the particular case damages are an imperfect and inadequate
remedy; that it is against conscience to leave to a party his election, either to pay
damages for a voluntary breach of his engagements, or faithfully to perform
them ; and that it is unequal and unjust to the claimant to leave him to recover
by a suit at law such damages as a jury may think proper to give him, in a case
where the damages are uncertain and conjectural, instead of having the full ben
efit for which he has bargained by a specific execution of his contract.— 2 Story's
Equity, secs. 717-718.
It cannot be denied that this reasoning o f courts of equity applies in its full
form to the present case. It is sufficiently apparent in this case that the princi
pal object of the plaintiff in this purchase was not a mere investment of money.
It was to provide for himself some lucrative arid honorable employment in his
profession. If he had purchased only as an investment, there would be no par-
78
Journal o f M ercantile Law .
ticular hardship in leaving him to an action of law for damages. A jury would have
a clear and intelligible rule by which to ascertain the damages. But by what
rule is a jury to calculate the damage to the plaintiff, of the disappointment in
being thrown out of employment with all his available means locked up in their
vessel. It is plain that the damage is altogether uncertain and conjectural.
The counsel for the defendants have urged several objections to the granting
an injunction, in a line of argument tending to show that this is not a case for
specific performance. By what process, it is asked, will the court enforce a
specific performance, and if it is enforced of what avail will it be for the plaintiff?
The force of this argument presses on the prayer for an injunction against ap
pointing any other person as master. It is said if the plaintiff is placed in the
command, that the defendants, being the major owners, may immediately dis
place him and appoint a new master, and that a decree for a specific performance
would be nugatory. What the plaintiff asks for, and what be has bargained and
paid for, is that the ship shall be finished and made ready for sea with ail conven
ient speed, and he placed in the command. He has performed, or tendered the
performance of all his part o f the contract in its precise terms, and he claims a
like performance on the part o f the defendants. When the contract is carried
into execution they may exercise all the rights the law allows them. Whether
they, as major owners, can immediately remove him from the command, will be
the subject of after consideration. It is certain in ordinary cases the major
owners have this right. They may displace a master without assigning any
reason.
But if the master is a part owner, a court of admiralty, by which this jurisdic
tion is exercised, according to Lord Stowell, requires some justifying cause to be
shown by the major owners beyond their own pleasure, before it will interfere to
displace him.— The Neiv Draper, 4 Rob. 290. By the common law as a tenant
in common, he has equal right to the possession with any other owner, and the
admiralty pays so much respect to his common law right, that it will not inter
fere to disturb his possession without some cause shown, and would, I think, be
reluctant to do it without a sufficient cause, when the master was in possession
under such a contract as this.
On the whole, I shall grant both parts of the injunction asked for. And I do
it with less reluctance, as the injunction is only until the further order of the
court. If I am wrong, no irreparable injury will be done to the defendants, as
they may at any time apply to the circuit judge to have the injunction removed.
LIABILITY OF RAILROAD COMPANIES FOR THE DELIVERY OF GOODS, ETC.
In the March term o f the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, was tried
the case of Nathaniel Stevens, et at., vs. the Boston and Maine Railroad Co.
This was an action brought to recover the value of twelve bales of flannel,
which were sent by the plaintiffs from Andover over the defendants’ road to
Boston, on Saturday, November 2, 1850. The goods arrived, and were unload
ed on the afternoon of that day. On Monday, November 4, the agent of the
plaintiffs called for the goods, but the delivery agent of the defendants replied
that they had been taken away by some other team. The agent of the plain
tiffs owned several teams. The goods at this time were in the freight depot
of the defendants, not having been taken away; but the delivery agent had
made a mistake, owing, as he said, to the fact that the goods were not removed
on Saturday, the day of arrival. The goods were destroyed by fire with the
depot, on the night of the 4th of November. Previous to the fire no notice
of the mistake was given to the plaintiffs or their agent.
Shaw, C. J. The defendants are liable as bailees. The plaintiffs called for
the goods, and did not receive them, owing to the mistake of the defendants’
agent. The delivery agent has a waybill, which affords him the necessary infor
mation to enable him to deliver the right goods to the right person, and it is his
duty to deliver when called upon. His failure to deliver, upon request, is negli
gence, for which the defendants are liable to the full value of the goods.
Journal o f M ercantile Law .
79
SHIP— CONTRACT FOR SALE OF— NO SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE— REGISTRY ACT.
According to the proper construction to be on the 34th section of the 8th and
9th Victoria, c. 89, (the Ship Registry Act,) a court of equity will not enforce
specific performance of a contract for the purchase of a ship, although such con
tract does not affect to make a present transfer of the ship, but is merely execu
tory; the property in a registered ship can be transferred only by a bill of sale,
containing a recital o f the certificate o f registry of such ship. Hughes vs. Morris,
19 Law Times Rep., 210.) This point turned upon the construction to be put
on the eighty-fourth section of the last Ship Registry Act, (8th and 9th Victo
ria, c. 89,) which, in some degree varying from the previous acts, enacts, 11That
when and so often as the property in any ship or vessel, or any part thereof,
belonging to any of her majesty’s subjects, shall, after registry thereof, be sold
to any other or others of her majesty’s subjects, the same shall be transferred
by bill of sale or other instrument, in writing, containing a recital of the cer
tificate of registry of such ship or vessel, or the principal contents thereof;
otherwise such transfer shall not be valid or effectual for any purpose whatever,
either in law or in equity; provided always that no bill o f sale shall be deemed
void by reason of any error in such recital, or by the recital of any former certifi
cate of registry, instead o f the existing certificate, provided the identity of the
ship or vessel intended in the recital be effectually proved thereby.” Lord Jus
tice Cranworth, in reference to the above section, observed
“ The language in
this statute is altogether very informal; thus we have ‘ property in a ship to be
sold;’ the proper expression would be, ‘ the ship sold;’ then the statute goes on
‘ that so often as any property in any ship or vessel, or any part thereof belong
ing to any of her majesty’s subjects, shall be sold, the same shall be transferred
by bill of sale,’ containing such and such particulars, ‘ otherwise such transfer
shall not be valid for any purpose whatsoever.’ What is said by the counsel
for the plaintiff is, that a contract, although not valid to transfer the property,
may make the party the owner in equity. That would be to get rid of the whole
policy of the statute, which is, (whether a sound policy or not we need not in
quire,) that there should be the means of seeing conclusively, by tracing from
the original grand bill o f sale, as it is called, from owner to owner, the owner
ship for all time. But if this doctrine that is contended for be right, there never
need anything appear in any document from the very first sale, because it may
well be a sale in equity, which would be just as good, and handed from party to
party, and I do not see why the whole policy of the statute may not be got rid of
entirely and effectually, even supposing there be an alteration in the law by the
omission in the last registry statute, which is rnerr ly an alteration with respect to
a right of action, and not an alteration that can affect the question of equity.”
COUNTERFEITING TRADE MARKS.
A decision of some importance to manufacturers was recently rendered in the
Superior Court of Connecticut, whereby it is shown that manufacturers are
liable for imitating or approaching the imitation of the trade marks and labels of
other manufacturers. This point has been similarly held in previous cases in
the United States.
The present suit was brought at the instance of Messrs. J. & P. Coats, manu
facturers and sellers of spool cotton, o f Paisley, Scotland, against the Welling
ton Thread Company of Connecticut, for an infringement of the labels used on
the spools.
They show that the Wellington Thread Company, at Wellington, Tolland
County, Connecticut, manufacture spool cotton also; but imitate the mark of
Messrs. Coats & Co., so as to make it appear as “ Coats’ best six cord, 200
yards;” and that the article is really inferior, and contains only 150 yards.
An injunction has been granted by the Superior Court against the Welling
ton Thread Co., to prevent.the further use of the “ false and simulated labels
and wrappers on their thread,” under the penalty of ten thousand dollars. The
Company was also taxed for the costs of suit.
80
Journal o f M ercantile Law .
CARRIERS BY SEA— BILLS OF LADING— ROBBERS— DANGERS OF THE ROAD.
The following decision o f the'Court of Exchequer, as to the liability o f ship
owners undertaking the carriage of goods, will be of some interest to mercantile
men. The plaintiff sought to recover from the defendants the value of a box o f
gold dust, part of 11 received by them from Panama, to be carried to the Bank
of England. The defendants carried the goods from Panama across the Isthmus,
by land, shipped at Chagres, and brought them by steam-vessels to Southampton,
and thence carried them by the'London and Southwestern Railway to London.
The bill o f lading was given for them at Panama, acknowledging the receipt of
11 packages, said to contain 7,000 and odd ounces of gold dust, to be carried to
the Bank of England, “ the act o f God, the Queen’s enemies, robbers, fire, acci
dents from machinery, boilers, steam, dangers of the sea, roads, and rivers, o f
whatsoever nature or kind, excepted.”
All the packages arrived safely at Southampton, and were placed on the rail
road to be carried to London ; but one of them was stolen secretly from the
railroad truck before their arrival there, and the jury found that the defendants
were guilty of negligence in the conveyance o f them to London, which caused
the loss. The defendants pleaded the exceptions in the bill of lading, in two
different pleas, one stating that the loss was occasioned by robbers, the other by
dangers of the roads. At the trial both pleas were found for the defendants, but
with a reservation o f liberty to enter a verdict on both for the plaintiff. A rule
nisi for the purpose having been granted, the case on behalf of the defendants
was elaborately and fully argued. The Court of Exchequer decided that where,
as in this case, the property was pilfered, or taken by stealth, the defendants were
liable for the loss, although they would not have been so liable had it been taken
by a vis major which they could not resist; the word “ robbers” meaning per
sons thieving with violence; and that the exception, “ dangers of the roads,”
meant marine roads in which vessels lie at anchor, or dangers caused by the over
turning of carriages in ruts or precipitous places. (De Rothschild vs. the Royal
Mail Steam Packet Company, 19, Law Times Rep., 229.)
SHIP-OWNERS— INSURANCE.
The following important decision to ship-owners, in the case of Dean vs. Horn
by, is from an English paper.
In this case the facts had been turned into a special case for the opinion of the
Court of Queen’s Bench. The plaintiff was the owner o f a vessel called the
Eliza Cornish, on which he had effected, with the defendant, a time policy from
April, 1851, to 1852. In November, 1851, the vessel sailed from Valparaiso to
Liverpool, and on the 1st of December in that year, while passing through the
Straits of Magellan, it was seized by pirates, who appeared to be men in rebellion
against the Chilian government. The fact o f its seizure was communicated to
the commander of her majesty’s ship the Virago, who was stationed in those
seas, and he recaptured it, put some men on board, and sent it to England to be
adjudicated on in the admirality court there. In the course of the voyage it sus
tained some damage, and was taken into the port of Fayal for repairs. While
there it was repaired by the purchaser, and finally came, abandoned and sold, to
England. On intelligence of the capture by the pirates reaching England, the
plaintiff sent in a formal claim for a total loss, stating the capture as a total
loss; but also stating in his notice that the ship had been taken back to and con
demned at Valparaiso. This statement of condemnation was erroneous. The
underwriters declined to receive the notice of abandonment, on the ground that
the vessel having been in fact brought to England, no total loss had occurred,
but the owner might recover possession of it under the 13th and 14th Vic., c. 26.
It was found as a fact that none of the crew or any one on the part of the plain
tiff had any control over the vessel from the time of the capture, and the ques
tion under these circumstance was, whether the plaintiff was entitled to recover
for a total loss. The court was of opinion that on the true principles of insur
ance law, and according to decided cases, the plaintiff was entitled to recover.
81
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
COMMERCIAL CHRONICLE AND R E VIEW .
C O N D IT IO N O F
— STATE
TH E
OF T H E
M ONEY M A R K E T TH R O U G H O U T T H E
O F R A IL R O A D C O M P A N IE S , A N D
P E C U N IA R Y
EFFECT
T H E P A R K E R V E IN C O A L C O M P A N Y — N E C E S S I T Y O F
S T O C K — C O N D IT IO N
L E A D IN G
C O U N T R Y — P R O S P E C T S OF T H E F A L L T R A D E
M A N U F A C T U R IN G I N T E R E S T S — B U I L D I N G A N D O T H E R
OF
R A IL R O A D S
PORTS A T NEW YO RK
TH E
FO R
BANKS
AT
NEW
OF
CARELESS
G U A R D IN G
YORK
AND
M A Y — D E P O S I T S A N D C O IN A G E
FO R
M A Y , A N D SIN C E
JA N U A R Y
A G A IN S T
U. S.
TH E
M IN T
1 S T — CAU SES
OF
LAST
FOR
R E C E IP T S
OF
OF
OF
M A Y — F O R E IG N IM
IN C R E A S E D
F IV E
IS S U E S
R E C E IP T S —
M O N TH S— REVENUE
C O U N T R Y , W IT H A S T A T E M E N T OF R E C E IP T S A T N E W Y O R K AND P H IL A D E L P H IA — E X P O R T S
FROM N E W YO RK TO
T IC L E S
FRAU DU LEN T
B O S T O N — C O M P A R A T IV E
AT
C O M P A R A T IV E I M P O R T S OF D R Y G UO DS F O R M A Y , A N D D U R IN G T H E
OF TH E
IM P R O V E M E N T S — R E C E I P T S
M A N A G E M E N T — E X P L O S IO N
F O R E IG N P O R T S
FO R M A Y , AND
S IN C E J A N . 1 S T — E X P O R T S O F L E A D I N G
O F D O M E S T I C P R O D U C E T O JU N E 1 7 T H — I M P O R T S A N D E X P O R T S
FOR E LE V EN
AR
M O N T H S OF
F IS C A L Y E A R , E T C .
T here was more ease in the money markets throughout the country early in
the month, but toward the close the stringency again increased, and full rates
are now paid in all parts o f the country. T he banks are forced to be cautious,
while at the note-brokers capital commands nearly double the legal rates.
A
few o f the most desperate class o f borrowers for railroad companies are pressing
their bonds upon the public; but most o f the projected roads, not approaching
completion, will be obliged to postpone their operations to a period when the
money market will be more compliant.
There appears now to be little prospect
o f a general decline in rates o f interest during the current year.
There will
doubtless be times o f partial relaxation, but the uses for capital are so numer
ous, and the causes for disquiet so general, that lenders will be enabled to exact
their own terms.
T he prospect for the Fall trade is less encouraging than at the date o f our
la st; but we can see no reason to apprehend any disasters to our mercantile
interests. The country may be affected to some extent by the stoppage o f pay
ment upon many works o f internal improvement, but the farmers have had a
season for profits without a precedent in the previous eight years, and their con
sumption o f merchandise will not be materially diminished. T he supply o f for
eign goods has been very large, and much o f it must find its way into the chan
nels o f distribution at a very low price; but if there is an active trade at any
price, our merchants will have no right to com plain.
Manufacturers are still actively engaged, but with very unequal success.
M ost o f the cotton spinners have made m on ey; and if any have not done so, it
has been the fault o f their ow n mismanagement, and not o f the public markets.
T he new improvements in machinery o f course give the advantage to those mills
o f later construction, other things being equal; and many o f the older establish
ments, which have not kept up with the spirit o f the age, cannot com pete with
their more enterprising neighbors. The joint-stock principle is not favorable to
cheap production. Except in cases where a heavy outlay is involved, beyond the
compass o f private capital, any enterprise is always more successful under private
management than in the hands o f a corporate company or joint-stock association
VOL. xxxx.—NO. i.
6
82
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
Hitherto the individual adventurers in this field have been without means to com
pete with their more wealthy rivals; but whenever a manufacturer can combine
in his own person a knowledge o f the business and the requisite capital, his
chances o f success are greatly increased. The w oolen manufacturers have met
with less encouragement. The broadcloth loom s are still to a great extent at
work upon foreign nmol, or cotton warps, and their fabrics find a dull market.
Fancy cassimeres are in large stock, and only the choice o f styles are selling at
a profit. Blankets are offered at a decline o f 10 a 15 per cent upon the prices o f
the previous season.
The erection of buildings, which received a check from the high prices of both
labor and materials, has been more extensively prosecuted during the current
month, contractors having made some concessions from the previous extreme
rates. There is, however, in most o f our principal cities, less encouragement
given to expensive structures for any purpose.
W e do not perceive such extensive preparations for Summer travel as were
generally anticipated, and we fear many o f our railroad companies will find their
receipts from this source considerably short o f their estimates.
One reason o f
this has been the constant succession o f accidents, more or less serious, which
produce a far more important effect upon the aggregate o f travel than generally
supposed. The migratory crowd are easily diverted from established routes o f
travel, and a long chapter o f accidents, o f which a verse is served up in every
morning’s newspaper, has a great effect upon the weak nerves o f the votaries o f
pleasure.
T he heavy verdicts obtained against the responsible corporations are
not as much in the way o f a good dividend as the cause itself, which checks the
current o f travel.
The community were somewhat startled during the early part o f the month by
a report o f something wrong in the management o f the Parker Vein Coal Com
pany ; soon after which the company made an assignment, and various legal pro
ceedings were instituted by interested parties with a view o f securing their sev
eral claims. It appears to be generally conceded that the amount o f stock issued,
i f not beyond legal limits, was much greater than innocent stockholders sup
posed, and there is about the whole affair an odor o f fraud which must be very
annoying to the managers, if they have not actually transgressed.
This matter
has brought up the whole subject o f issues o f stock, and various checks have
been proposed to prevent the use o f fraudulent certificates. Officers o f corpora
tions, who are responsible for the issue o f stocks, should have a book o f certifi
cates, regularly numbered, with a wide margin, and should never sign one o f the
documents after it has been detached by a subordinate. I f some check upon the
superior officer is deemed necessary, an A ct o f Assem bly might be passed, re
quiring the registration o f all stock certificates, and thus limit such issues to the
legal amount.
The present loose way o f managing such matters is a temptation
to fraud, and some reformation is sorely needed.
T he banks throughout the country are discounting with more caution, and the
stock o f precious metals on deposit in these institutions is gradually decreasing.
A t N ew York, the average o f specie in each weekly statement since August 13,
1863, has but once been below $10,000,000, until the 10th o f June, when it was
only $9,617,180 ; it has once more recovered, but has not yet returned to the
average o f the last few m onths:—
83
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
WEEKLY AVERAGES OF NEW YORK CITY BANKS.
r
Weekending.
January 7 , 1 8 5 4 _____
January 1 4 .....................
January 2 1 .....................
January 2 8 .....................
February 4 .................
February 1 1 ...............
February 1 8 ...............
February 2 5 ...................
March 4 ...........................
March 1 1 ...........................
March 1 8 .....................
March 2 5 ...........................
April 1 ...........................
April 8 ...........................
April 1 5 .....................
April 2 2 ..........................
April 2 9 ...........................
May 6 .........................
May 1 3 ...............................
May 2 0 ..............................
May 2 7 .............................
June 3 .......................
June 1 0 .............................
June 1 7 .............................
Average amount
o f Loans
and Discounts.
9 0 ,1 3 3 ,8 8 7
9 0 ,0 6 8 ,7 3 8
9 0 ,3 7 6 ,3 4 0
9 6 ,2 4 5 ,9 2 7
Average
amount o f
Circulation.
Average
amount of
Specie.
1 1 ,5 0 6 ,1 2 4
1 1 ,8 9 4 ,4 5 3
1 1 ,4 5 5 ,1 5 6
1 1 ,1 1 7 ,9 5 8
1 1 ,6 3 4 ,6 5 3
1 1 ,8 7 2 ,1 2 6
1 1 ,7 4 2 ,3 8 4
1 1 ,2 1 2 ,6 9 3
1 0 ,5 6 0 ,4 0 0
9 ,8 3 2 ,4 ^ 3
1 0 ,0 1 8 ,4 5 6
1 0 ,1 3 2 ,2 4 6
1 0 ,2 6 4 ,0 0 9
1 0 ,1 S 8 ,1 4 1
1 1 ,0 4 4 ,0 4 4
1 0 ,5 2 6 ,9 7 6
1 0 ,9 5 1 ,1 5 3
1 1 ,4 3 7 ,0 3 9
1 2 ,3 8 2 ,0 6 8
1 2 ,1 1 8 ,0 4 3
1 0 ,9 8 1 ,5 3 1
1 0 ,2 8 1 ,9 6 9
9 ,6 1 7 ,1 8 0
1 0 ,0 1 3 ,1 5 7
Average
amount of
Deposits.
9 ,0 7 5 ,9 2 6
8 ,6 6 8 ,3 4 4
8 ,6 0 5 ,2 3 5
6 0 ,8 3 5 ,3 6 2
5 8 ,3 9 6 ,9 5 6
6 9 ,0 7 1 ,2 5 2
8 ,6 4 2 ,6 7 7
8 ,9 9 6 ,6 5 7
8 ,9 9 4 ,0 8 3
8 ,9 5 4 ,4 6 4
8 ,9 2 9 ,8 1 4
9 ,2 0 9 ,8 3 0
9 ,1 3 7 ,5 5 5
9 ,2 5 5 ,7 8 1
9 ,2 0 9 ,4 0 6
9 ,3 9 5 ,8 2 0
9 ,7 1 3 ,2 1 6
9 ,5 3 3 ,9 9 8
9 ,3 5 3 ,8 5 4
9 ,3 7 7 ,6 8 7
9 ,8 2 3 ,0 0 7
9 ,5 0 7 ,7 9 6
9 ,4 8 0 ,0 1 8
9 ,2 8 4 ,8 0 7
9 ,3 8 1 ,7 1 4
9 ,3 0 7 ,8 8 9
9 ,1 4 4 ,2 8 4
6 8 ,2 3 9 ,5 7 7
6 1 ,2 0 8 ,4 6 6
6 1 ,0 2 4 ,8 1 7
6 1 ,8 2 6 ,6 6 9
6 1 ,2 9 3 ,6 4 5
6 1 ,9 7 5 ,6 7 5
6 0 ,2 2 6 .5 8 3
6 1 ,0 9 3 ,6 0 5
5 9 ,1 6 8 ,1 7 8
5 9 ,4 7 8 ,1 4 9
6 0 ,2 8 6 ,8 3 9
6 0 ,3 2 5 ,0 8 7
6 9 ,2 2 5 ,9 0 5
5 9 ,7 1 9 ,3 8 1
6 3 ,8 5 5 ,5 0 9
6 4 ,2 0 3 ,6 7 1
6 3 ,3 8 2 ,6 6 1
6 1 ,6 2 3 ,6 7 0
7 1 ,7 0 2 ,2 9 0
7 2 ,4 9 5 ,8 5 8
7 1 ,9 5 9 ,1 0 5
Tile Boston banks have now commenced weekly statements, jn d the follow
ing will show their condition at the date o f the last report which has com e to
hand:—
WEEKLY BANK REPORT.
AVERAGE CONDITION OF THE THIRTY-SIX BANKS IN BOSTON WEEK ENDING
C apital................... .
Loans and discounts
Specie......................
D eposits..................
Circulation...............
Due Irom banks.. .
Due to banks.........
Juno 19.
June 12.
$30,496,708
49,110,473
2,929,756
13,298,837
8,221,337
9,180,038
6,596,824
$30,412,750
48,586,003
2,933,521
13,129,602
8,406,280
9,624,542
6,758,405
W e annex the follow ing statement o f the comparative receipts for May on a
number o f the leading railroads o f the country, which generally show an increase
over the corresponding month o f last y ea r:—
1854.
Hudson River Railroad.........
Cleveland and Toledo........ ..
Chicago and Rock Island . . .
Milwaukie and Mississippi..
Ohio and Pennsylvania..........
Michigan Central...................
Michigan Southern.................
Cleveland and Pittsburgh . . .
Pennsylvania R ailroad.........
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
New York Central.................
New York and New Haven.
Erie Railroad.........................
Louisville and Frankfort. . . . ,
$123,271
55,500
109,279
42,000
81,238
200,020
211,684
51.2S3
297,137
366,514
511,888
71,906
439,809
20,408
1851.
$93,701
27,000
New.
13,967
47,870
135,202
148,325
35,368
195,072
204,950
362,997
62,674
350,142
16,706
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
84
T h e follow ing will show the deposits and coinage at the Philadelphia and New
Orleans mints for the month o f M a y :—
DEPOSITS FOE MAY.
,------------------ Gold.------------------- .
From California. Other sources.
Silver.
Total.
Philadelphia M int...........
New Orleans Mint...........
$3,41)0,000
116,809
$196,000
7,621
$134,000
85,866
$3,730,000
210,196
T o t a l d e p o s i t s ..................
$ 3 ,5 1 6 ,8 0 9
$ 2 0 3 ,5 2 1
$ 2 1 9 ,8 6 6
$ 3 ,9 4 0 ,1 9 6
GOLD COINAGE.
N e w O rlean s.
Pieces.
E a g l e s ...................................................
1 5 ,5 0 0
T h r e e d o l l a r p i e c e s ........................
D o u b l e e a g l e s ...................................
............
H a l f e a g l e s ..........................................
5 ,0 0 0
Q u a r t e r e a g l e s ...................................
, D o l l a r s ............................................................................
B a r s ................................................................................
Total gold coin age............... 20,500
.
$ 1 5 5 ,0 0 0
..............
2 5 ,0 0 0
..............
$180,000
P h il a d e l p h ia .
Pieces.
Value.
................................................
1 0 3 ,8 2 8
$ 3 1 1 ,4 8 4
..............
....................
................................................
1 7 ,0 9 2
4 2 ,7 3 0
1 7 4 ,6 1 6
1 7 4 ,6 1 6
..............
2 ,7 4 1 ,5 0 0
295,536
$3,270,330
SILYEE COINAGE.
H alf dollars................................
800,000
Quarter dollars.........................
.........
H alf dimes............... ......................................
Three cent pieces ...................
.........
Total silver coinage........... .
Value.
$400,000
...........
......
...........
800,000
$400,000
882,000
692,000
1,760,000
270,000
8441,000
173,000
88,000
8,100
3,604,000
$710,100
817,596
$8,175
4,717,132
$3,988,606
COPPEE COINAGE.
Cents.......................................................................................
Total coinage.........................
820,500
$580,000
The mines and washings in California are now being worked with renewed
diligence, and the gold production during the latter months o f the year will
probably show a large increase upon last year.
The constant downward tendency in the prices of most descriptions o f goods
in Europe, with the falling off in the demand there, owing to the confused state
of p ditical affairs, which has nearly paralyzed legitimate trade, have produced an
increased current of foreign merchandise toward our ports, and the imports of
May are larger than previously anticipated. The total at New York is $2,640,938
greater than for the same month o f last year; $9,461,446 greater than for May,
1852; and $6,193,273 greater than for May, 1851. The receipts o f free goods
(tea and coffee) have largely increased, while the stock thrown into warehouse
is also greater. We annex a comparison for each o f the last four years:—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE AT NEW YORK FOR THE MONTH OF MAY.
18.51.
Entered for consumption...............
Entered for warehousing..............
Free g o o d s ......................................
Specie and bulliou.........................
•
$8,942,711
1,148,428
785,326
111,443
1852.
1858.
1854.
$6,096,996 810,255,071 $12,004,338
453,109
2,590,000 3,151,964
789,046
1,487,248 1,858,954
380,584
207,924
165,925•
Total entered at the p o r t.........$10,987,908 $7,719,735 $14,540,243 $17,181,181
Withdrawn from warehouse.........
858,519
1,380,371
1,049,550
1,588,652
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
85
T he withdrawals from warehouse, it will be seen, are $1,563,312 less than
the total entered for warehousing, showing that the goods were not brought ou t
because they were needed; •nd the sales o f such as have been offered by auc
tion have proved that they were crowded upon an unwilling market. It was
generally expected that the imports for the first half o f the current year would
show a very material decline, in comparison with the heavy totals for the same
period o f last year; but this expectation has not been realized. There was an
important decline during the months o f February and March, but the total from
January 1st to May 31st is a little more than equal to the imports for the cor
responding five months o f 1852, the excess amounting to $649,870.
The differ
ence is greater when compared with previous years, the total for the last months
being $28,489,512 greater than for the same period o f 1852, and $18,567,111
greater than for the same period o f 1851, as will appear from the follow ing com
parison :—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE AT NEW YORK FOR FIVE MONTHS FROM JAN. 1ST.
1851.
E n t e r e d f o r c o n s u m p t i o n ......................$ 5 0 ,2 9 0 ,5 6 2
E n t e r e d fo r w a r e h o u s in g ...................
6 ,4 2 0 ,8 4 2
F r e e g o o d s ..................................................
4 ,4 6 8 ,9 2 8
S p e c i e a n d b u l l i o n ................................
1 ,2 7 8 ,0 9 9
1852.
1858.
1854.
$ 3 9 ,4 1 8 ,7 3 1 $ 6 3 ,2 4 2 ,6 4 7 $ 6 1 ,9 7 1 ,9 8 4
4 ,3 8 7 ,0 2 7
8 ,4 9 6 ,2 7 7 1 0 ,7 2 1 ,1 0 4
6 ,2 8 1 ,8 3 8
7 ,8 5 1 ,7 0 7
7 ,0 8 3 ,2 4 1
1 ,4 4 8 ,4 3 4
7 8 5 ,0 4 1
1 ,2 4 9 ,2 1 3
T o t a l e n t e r e d a t t h e p o r t ................... $ 6 2 ,4 5 8 ,4 3 1 $ 5 1 ,5 3 6 ,0 3 0 $ 8 0 ,3 7 6 ,6 7 2 $ 8 1 ,0 2 5 ,6 4 2
W it h d r a w n fr o m w a r e h o u s e . . . .
4 ,9 9 4 ,7 0 8
7 ,6 1 5 ,2 9 8
5 ,3 4 3 ,2 5 8
9 ,2 8 5 ,3 7 2
T he increased receipts o f foreign merchandise during the month o f May have
not been com posed o f dry goods, although the total o f this description is nearly
half a million o f dollars in advance o f the corresponding total o f last year.
T he
increase in receipts o f dry goods has been altogether in stock entered for ware
housing, the total which has passed into consumption being actually less than
for May, 1852.
W e annex a comparison for the month o f May and since Janu
ary 1st in each o f the last four years:—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN DRY GOODS AT NEW YORK FOR THE MONTH OF MAY.
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
1851.
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M is c e lla n e o u s
o f w o o l ...........................
o f c o t t o n ........................
o f s i l k .............................
o f f l a x .............................
d r y g o o d s ...................
$ 5 8 6 ,3 5 0
2 3 7 ,3 4 9
9 1 8 ,3 9 9
2 6 S .9 8 6
1 2 4 ,0 1 3
T o t a l ........................................................
$ 2 ,1 3 5 ,0 9 7
1852.
1853.
1853.
$ 3 9 7 ,3 0 5
2 7 7 ,3 5 1
5 1 8 ,3 6 8
2 6 3 ,6 0 7
2 4 6 ,7 9 6
$ 1 ,0 2 6 ,4 5 1
3 8 0 ,3 0 8
1 ,5 0 0 ,3 5 8
3 5 7 ,6 4 9
2 4 1 ,6 5 1
$ 1 ,0 2 3 ,8 8 7
7 3 8 ,9 3 2
1 ,0 2 6 ,3 8 1
3G 0,087
1 2 9 ,2 1 8
$ 1 ,7 0 3 ,4 2 7
$ 3 ,5 0 6 ,4 1 7
$ 3 ,2 7 8 ,4 8 5
WITHDRAWN FROM WAREHOUSE.
1851.
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M a n u fa c tu r e s
M is c e lla n e o u s
o f w o o l ...........................
o f c o t t o n ........................
o f s i l k .............................
o f f l a x ..............................
d r y g o o d s ...................
$ 7 6 ,8 0 0
5 2 ,6 4 6
4 9 ,3 4 3
2 8 ,9 8 0
2 8 ,6 1 5
T o t a l w i t h d r a w n ................................
A d d e n t e r e d fo r c o n s u m p t io n . . . .
T o t a l t h r o w n u p o n t h e m a r k e t ..
$ 2 ,3 7 1 ,4 8 1
1852.
1853.
1854.
$ 7 0 ,5 8 4
8 7 ,9 0 2
1 3 8 ,7 1 7
4 0 ,3 5 5
2 6 ,7 0 5
$ 8 3 ,5 6 7
29 007
7 9 ,1 7 7
9 .3 9 0
9 ,5 9 7
$ 1 5 3 ,5 2 1
8 7 ,1 2 3
1 0 0 ,1 8 2
2 8 ,7 2 4
1 2,5 11
$ 2 3 6 ,3 8 4
$ 3 1 4 ,2 6 3
2 ,1 3 5 ,0 9 7
1 ,7 0 3 ,4 2 7
$ 2 1 0 ,7 3 8
3 ,5 0 6 ,4 1 7
$ 3 8 2 ,0 6 1
3 ,2 7 8 ,4 8 5
$ 2 ,0 1 7 ,6 9 0
$ 3 ,7 1 7 ,1 5 5
$ 3 ,6 6 0 ,5 4 6
86
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
ENTERED FOR 'WAREHOUSING.
Manufactures of w o o l...................
Manufactures of cotton .................
Manufactures of s ilk .....................
Manufactures o f f la x .....................
Miscellaneous dry goods...............
Total.......................................
Add entered for consumption. . . , . . .
Total entered at the p o r t__ . .
1851.
1852.
92,118
111,418
59,082
9,777
$109,736
39,519
111,309
26,580
19,817
$178,918
68,967
107,694
48,740
26,459
2,135,097
$306,961
1,703,427
$430,778 $1,177,028
3,278,485
3,506,417
1853.
1851.
$542,867
194,201
311,391
82,347
46,222
$2,514,736 $2,010,3S8 $3,937,195 $4,455,513
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN DRY GOODS AT NEW YORK FOR FIVE MONTHS, FROM JANUARY 1ST.
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
1851.
Manufactures of w o o l...................
Manufactures o f co tto n .................
Manufactures o f s ilk ......................
Manufactures of flax.......................
Miscellaneous dry go o d s...............
1851
$5,513,126
5,355,438
10,296,506
3,291,168
1,742,901
$4,588,869
4,295,267
8,156,557
2,643,389
1,858,522
1851
1854.
$8,495,117 $7,626,547
6,718,790
7,948,364
13,395,311 12,149,433
3,799,591
3,436,496
2,539,874
2,538,771
Total........................................$26,199,139 $21,442,604 $34,948,683 $33,699,611
WITHDRAWN FROM WAREHOUSE.
1851.
1851
1851
1854.
$474,386
822,057
520,655
332,322
220,667
$779,610
1,004,230
1,163,650
566,149
219,324
$498,791
654,598
671,656
117,230
201,758
$1,155,141
1,503,532
1,308,667
501,445
190,676
$2,370,087 $3,732,963
26,199,139 21,542,604
$2,044,033
34,948,683
$4,659,461
33,699.611
Manufactures of wool ..............
Manufactures of cotton...........
Manufactures of silk................
Manufactures of f l a x ...........................
Miscellaneous dry goods..........
Total...........................
j^.dd entered for consumption....
Total tkrowii on the market.
$28,569,226 $25,275,567 $36,992,716 $38,359,072
ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.
18,52.
$683,435
536,073
1,434,510
187,772
187,967
$767,202
610,254
826,778
160,294
204,659
$1,603,180
1,378,597
1,519,176
438,203
158,18‘i
Total...........................
entered for consumption....
$2,726,590
26,199,139
$3,029,757
21,542,604
$2,569,187
34,948,6S3
$5,092,338
33,699,611
Add
T o t a l e n t e r e d a t th e p o r t . . .
<8V>
1851.
$589,058
763,854
861.037
322,561
190,080
CO
Manufactures of wool.............
Manufactures of cotton...........
Manufactures of silk...............
Manufactures of flax................
Miscellaneous dry goods..........
1854.
$ 2 8 ,9 2 5 ,7 2 9 $ 2 4 ,5 7 2 ,3 6 1 $ 3 7 ,5 1 7 ,8 7 0 $ 3 8 ,7 9 1 ,9 4 9
F r o m t h e a b o v e it w i l l b e s e e n t h a t t h e t o t a l i m p o r t s a t N e w Y o r k o f f o r e i g n
d r y g o o d s s i n c e J a n u a r y 1 s t , a r e 8 1 , 2 7 4 , 0 7 9 g r e a t e r th a n f o r t h e c o r r e s p o n d i n g
fiv e m o n t h s o f la s t y e a r ;
$ 1 4 ,2 1 9 ,5 8 8 g r e a t r th a n f o r th e s a m e p e r io d o f 1 8 5 2 ;
a n d $ 9 , 2 6 6 , 2 2 0 g r e a t e r th a n f o r t h e s a m e p e r i o d o f 1 8 5 1 .
T h e R e v e n u e o f th e c o u n t r y is
s t i l l in
e x c e s s o f th e
e x p e n d it u r e s , b u t th e
t o t a l r e c e ip t s a t N e w Y o r k , s in c e J a n u a r y 1 s t , a r e n o t q u i t e a s l a r g e a s f o r t h e
s a m e t im e la s t y e a r , n o t w i t h s t a n d i n g t h e s li g h t i n c r e a s e in t h e d u t i a b l e i m p o r t s ,
a s w ill b e s e e n b y th e f o l l o w i n g c o m p a r is o n :—
87
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
CASH DUTIES RECEIVED AT NEW YOKE FOR FIVE MONTHS FROM JANUARY 1ST.
1851.
1852.
1st three months. $9,395,257 30
In A p r il............. 2,547,582 52
In M a y ............... 2,544,640 16
Total................ 14,487,479 98
,
1853.
1851.
$7,617,887 72 $11,125,501 47 $10,873,699 31
2,447,634 07
3,348,252 14
3,168,490 21
1,952,110 86
2,852,853 66
3,243,164 41
12,017,632 65
17,326,606 17
17,385,353 93
The receipts for duties at the Custom House in Philadelphia, for the month o f
May, amount to $328,422 95, which is a slight increase over the corresponding
month last year.
T he follow ing is a comparative statement o f the receipts for
five months in the present and past tw o years:—
1852.
J a n u a r y .......................
F e b r u a r y ............................
M a r c h .......................... i . . .
A p r i l .....................................
M a y ........................................
T o t a l ...........................
$ 3 1 5 ,8 7 7 5 5
4 8 9 ,0 0 0 0 0
3 6 7 ,4 0 0 7 0
3 0 3 ,9 2 2 5 3
2 5 7 ,7 3 6 7 0
$ 1 ,7 3 3 ,9 3 7 4 8
1853.
$ 2 6 7 ,0 1 0
6 2 3 ,6 4 2
4 2 7 ,6 2 0
2 6 4 ,7 5 3
3 1 5 ,8 1 7
1854.
25
75
33
65
77
$ 1 ,8 9 8 ,8 4 4 6 5
$ 5 3 9 ,2 9 2
5 2 5 ,0 9 3
3 1 6 ,3 3 3
3 7 9 ,4 7 1
3 2 8 ,4 9 2
76
25
70
46
95
$ 2 ,0 8 8 ,6 8 4 12
The exports from New Y ork to foreign ports, for the month o f May, (exclu
sive o f specie,) are $1,402,131 greater than for the same month o f last year,
$1,396,598 greater than for the corresponding month o f 1852, and $1,422,875
g r e a t e r th a n f o r th e s a m e p e r io d o f 1 8 5 1 .
EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS FOR TOE MONTH OF MAY.
1851.
1852.
1853.
1854.
D o m e s t i c p r o d u c e ..................................
F o r e ig n m e r c h a n d is e ( f r e e ) .............
F o r e i g n m e r c h a n d is e ( d u t i a b l e ) . . .
S p e c i e ..........................................................
$ 4 ,4 0 2 ,0 5 2
1 1 3 ,3 7 1
3 6 1 ,0 1 5
4 ,5 0 6 ,1 3 5
$ 4 ,2 4 9 ,9 2 4
1 0 6 ,8 1 8
5 4 5 ,9 7 3
1 ,8 3 4 ,S 9 3
$ 4 ,1 6 5 ,9 5 4
2 4 8 ,5 9 8
4 8 7 ,6 3 0
2 ,1 6 2 ,4 6 7
$ 5 ,8 2 4 ,4 2 7
1 3 2 ,4 4 9
3 4 2 ,4 3 7
3 ,6 5 1 ,6 2 6
T o t a l e x p o r t s .....................................
T o t a l , e x c lu s iv e o f s p e c i e ...........
$ 9 ,3 8 2 ,5 7 3
4 ,8 7 6 ,4 3 8
$ 6 ,7 3 7 ,6 0 8
4 ,9 0 2 ,7 1 5
$ 7 ,0 5 9 ,6 4 9
4 ,8 9 7 ,1 8 2
$ 9 ,9 5 0 ,9 3 9
6 ,2 9 9 ,3 1 3
T he exports o f specie are larger than for the same month in each o f the last
two years, but not as large as for May 1851.
The reshipments o f foreign prod
uce have been on a more limited scale. W e also annex a summary statement
o f the exports o f the same port since January 1st.
EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS FOR FIVE MONTHS, FROM JANUARY 1ST.
1851.
1852.
D o m e s t ic p r o d u c e ......................................$ 1 8 ,6 7 8 ,5 5 0 $ 1 8 ,5 7 9 ,4 5 2
F o r e ig n m e r c h a n d is e ( f r e e ) .............
3 1 4 ,9 1 0
3 9 5 ,7 1 9
F o r e ig n m e r c h a n d is e ( d u t i a b l e ) . . .
1 ,7 1 6 ,4 5 2
1 ,9 3 6 ,9 8 1
1 2 ,6 3 1 ,1 4 8
9 ,0 6 7 ,6 5 4
S p e c i e ..........................................................
1853.
1854.
$ 2 0 ,3 6 5 ,0 6 1 $ 2 6 ,6 7 1 ,0 5 7
5 8 7 ,8 0 9
5 8 4 ,3 1 6
1 ,6 4 6 ,9 3 7
1 ,8 2 8 ,0 2 3
5 ,3 9 0 ,7 0 0 1 1 ,0 1 7 ,6 8 4
Total expurts ........................... $33,341,060 $29,979,806 $27,990,507 $40,101,079
Total, exclusive of sp ecie......... 20,709,912 20,912,152 22,599,807 29,083,395
It will thus be seen that the exports from New York, exclusive o f specie,
since January 1st, are $6,483,588 in excess o f the total for the same time in
1853, $8,171,243 in excess o f the first five months o f 1852, and $8,373,483 in
excess o f the corresponding total in 1851.
It will be interesting in this connection to look at the shipments o f some o f
the leading articles o f domestic produce, and wo annex a comparative total from
January 1st to June 17th, in each o f the last two years:—
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
88
EXPORTS FROM NEXT YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS OF CERTAIN LEADING ARTICLES OF
DOMESTIC PRODUCE, FROM JANUARY 1ST TO JUNE 1 7 t II :----
A s h e s — p o t s ........... b b ls
p e a r l s ..............
B e e s w a x ......................l b s
Breadstuff*—
1853.
4 ,4 5 9
453
1 1 7 ,8 2 5
W h e a t f l o u r . . .b b l s 6 0 5 ,6 9 6
R y e f l o u r ...........* . . .
1,1 7 8
C o r n m e a l ...................
2 2 ,2 6 9
W h e a t ..............b u s h .1 ,1 9 4 ,1 1 9
O a ts
.............................
C o r n ..............................
C a n d le s — m o l d - b o x e s
s p e r m ...........
C o a l ............................ ton s
C o t t o n ......................b a le s
H a y ..................................
H o p s ..................................
2 3 ,9 2 5
3 ,2 4 8
330
1 0 9 ,9 1 5
6 7 0 ,9 7 2
8,5 3 S
4 3 ,3 1 5
1 ,1 6 3 ,5 5 3
3 1 5 ,1 5 8
11 '5 0 3
5 6 2 ,7 9 0 2 ,0 5 5 ,6 5 5
2 8 ,1 2 0
2 9 ,8 4 9
2 ,6 2 3
3 ,2 5 9
1 4 ,3 7 8
1 7,1 17
1 4 1 ,5 3 6
1 4 2 ,09 1
1 ,9 0 0
1 ,6 8 9
112
475
N a v a l s t o r e s ___ .b b ls
O ils — w h a l e . . . . g a l l s
sperm . .
la r d . . . .
lin s e e d . . .........
1851.
1 8 8 ,6 1 9
1 9 9 .8 7 6
4 ,3 1 5
1854.
2 9 8 .2 6 8
1 0 5 ,2 9 1
£ 1 9 ,7 8 2
1 6 5 ,2 4 5
1 ,5 8 4
8 6 ,1 1 3
3 0 365
4 2 ,1 8 2
3 4 .8 9 3
Provisions—
P o r k ................... ■b b l s
____
•lb s .4 ,6 3 2 ,9 9 5 1 0 ,7 9 1 .4 5 2
....
8 1 3 ,3 5 6 1 ,0 6 2 ,3 3 0
7 i5 1 3 > 9 3
C h e e s e ..............
L a r d ................ ____ 3 ,9 0 0 ,6 6 3 7 ,2 8 6 ,0 9 7
1 5 ,4 0 9
7 ,1 7 2
R i c e ........................ .t r e s
T a l l o w ................ ...lb s l,0 6 3 ,6 8 8 1 ,7 3 3 ,6 5 7
1 9 ,6 3 6
T o b a c c o , c r u d e . . .p k g s
1 0 ,4 7 8
D o ., m a n u fa c t u r e d .l b s 2 ,8 5 7 ,4 1 3 1 ,3 1 5 ,1 3 9
7 5 0 ,6 4 4
W h a le b o n e . . . .
C u t m e a t s .. .
T he m ost noticeable difference in (he above is in the shipments o f corn and
provisions, the increase in some cases being three or four hundred per cent.
There w ould have been a large increase in the shipments o f wheat, but for the
scarcity o f this grain, the supply reaching the seaboard not having been sufficient
for local millers, and the price o f prime white wheat in the city o f New York,
has been $ 2 50 and upwards.
The month o f June will show a less comparative
increase, the supply o f domestic produce at the seaboard, with a few exceptions,
not being sufficiently large to bring the prices within the limits o f orders for
shipment.
Much interest will be felt in the official statement o f the imports and
exports for the fiscal year ending June 30th, but it will be some time before that
can be published. Enough is already known to leave no doubt o f the fact, that
the total o f each will be larger than ever before known in the history o f the
country. It is a singular fact, that notwithstanding the very large increase in the
receipts o f foreign goods at New York for the last eleven months, the increase in
the exports, exclusive o f specie, nearly balances them, while including the specie,
the exports are far greater.
son :—
This will fully appear in the follow ing compari
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE AND PRODUCE AT NEW YORK, TOGETHER WITH THE
EXPORTS OF SPECIE, FROM JANUARY 1ST TO MAY SlST.
During 11
months of—
Imports o f
Merchandise.
Exports o f Produce
and Merchandise.
Exports of
Specie.
1853-4 ...........
1852-3 ...........
$174,508,437
147,624,579
$70,059,290
43,940,546
$29,116,058
17,862,946
In crease.........
26,883,858
26,118,744
11,253,112
T h e same increase in either imports or exports, will not be found at other
ports, but it is well enough to bear in mind that while over two-thirds o f all the
foreign imports o f the country are received at New York, only about one-third
o f the foreign exports clear from thence, so that the total exports from the
United States for the fiscal year ending June 30th, may, and probably will,
nearly or quite equal the imports, presenting the most important commercial
summary ever exhibited to the country.
89
Commercial Chronicle and Revieie.
THE
NEW
YORK
COTTON
MARKET
FOR THE MONTH ENDING JUNE 19.
PREPARED
FO R T H E
M E R C H A N T S ’ M A G A Z IN E
148
T h e m o n th u n d e r
to n .
PEARL
BY
U H LH ORN &
STREET, NEW
P R E D E R IC K S O N , B K O K H R S ,
YORK.
r e v ie w h a s b e e n an u n s a tis fa c to r y o n e fo r t h o s e e n g a g e d in c o t
T o t h e e x p o r t e r th e re tu r n s h a v e b e e n d is a s tr o u s , a n d t o t h e r e c e iv e r h e r e th e
ra D g e o f p r ic e s h a s b e e n m u c h b e l o w th e c o s t
o f th e a r t ic le .
In
a cco rd a n ce w ith
o r d e r s fr o m t h e S o u t h , b a c k e d b y th e v i e w s o f h o l d e r s h e r e , l a r g e q u a n t it ie s o f c o t t o n
h a v e b e e n s h ip p e d fr o m fir s t h a n d s t o E u r o p e , in a n t ic ip a t io n o f m e e t i n g a b e t t e r
m a r k e t t h e r e th a n c o u ld b e c a lc u la t e d o n h e r e .
T h e a m o u n t ta k e n s o m e w h a t r e l i e v e d
h o ld e r s , a n d t o w a r d s th e c l o s e o f th e m o n t h , u n d e r m o r e fa v o r a b le L i v e r p o o l a d v ic e s ,
th e m a r k e t c lo s e d w it h a n u p w a r d t e n d e n c y .
F o r th e w e e k e n d in g M a y 2 2 d , o u r m a r k e t w a s w it h o u t to n e , a n d p r ic e s e x t r e m e l y
i r r e g u l a r ; th e tr a n s a c tio n s w e r e a t a d e c lin e o f J c . o n q u o t a t io n s o f th e p r e v io u s w e e k ,
s p in n e r s a n d s h ip p e r s b e i n g th e p r in c ip a l p u r c h a s e r s .
A t t h e c l o s e o f th e w e e k m o r e
s te a d in e s s w a s o b s e r v e d , a n d t h e f o l l o w i n g q u o t a t io n s w e r e p a id f o r s tr ic t c la s s ific a
tio n s :—
E x p o r t . . . . . ................ b a le s .
H o m e u s e ...................................
5 ,6 0 0 I S p e c u l a t i o n ....................b a le s .
2 ,9 6 4 | I n t r a n s it u ........... ........................
191
600
T o t a l s a le s d u r in g th e w e e k .............................................................................
9 ,9 6 1
PRICES ADOPTED MAY 2 2 d FOR THE FOLLOWING QUALITIES:----
Ordinary.............................................
Middling.................................................
Middling fair.........................................
F a ir........................................................
Upland.
Florida.
Mobile.
N. O. & Texas.
7*
7*
9*
10 i
11*
7*
9*
10*
‘ Hi
1*
9§
11*
12*
9
10*
11
The week ensuing the demand was kept up by large parcels being either with
drawn or shipped on owners’ accounts. Our own manufacturers, (who are quite bare
of stocks,) bought freely; the transactions, however, were not sufficient to advance
prices materially, and holders met the demand without advancing rates. The week
closed quiet but firm at the anuexed quotations:—
E xp ort................. . .bales.
1,411
119
6,004 1 Speculation___
Total sales during the week
8,919
PRICES ADOPTED MAY 29TH FOR THE FOLLOWING QUALITIES
Upland.
Ordinary.....................................
Middling ........................... ............. .. . . .
Middling fa ir ............................. . . . .
F a ir ............................................
n
n
10*
Florida.
i*
n
10*
11*
Mobile.
n
n
10i
iii
N. O. & Texas.
i*
9i
H i
12*
This week opened with but little inquiry, and large offerings gave buyers the ad
vantage in price. The sales were small, and confined to lots pressing on the market.
A decline in freights and an advance in exchange offered no inducements to export
ers, and the transactions ol the week were at very irregular prices, the market closing
heavily, and quotations almost nominal. The total sales for the week we estimate
at 6,500 bales, there being no other mode to arrive at the correct result, as the follow
ing resolutions, adopted by the New York Cotton Brokers’ Association, at their
meeting held May 29th, leave us without the means of acquiring the usual official
report:—
90
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
Whereas certain members of our board hare withdrawn, we are now unable to give
an accurate report of the daily transactions; therefore
Resolved, That hereafter the official daily report of sales be discontinued; and
Resolved, That the standard of classification be maintained, and that we meet every
Monday morning to determine quotations.
The necessity of the above action is, in a measure, to be ascribed to the stringent
rules governing the members of the association, they being compelled, by a fine of
five dollars, to report their daily transactions, even when, as was often the case, such
a course would conflict with the interest o f their buyers. The association seemed
formed to give “ aid and comfort” to sellers and ship-owners only. The articles of
association will have to be materially altered before it will have upon its roll the
names o f all the cotton brokers of the city.
Estimated sales during the past week, 6,500 bales.
PRICES ADOPTED JUNE OTH FOR THE FOLLOWING VARIETIES I—
Upland.
Ordinary............................................
Middling............................................
Middling fair.....................................
F air....................................................
7}
8}
10}
10}
Florida.
Mobile.
7}
8}
10}
11
7}
9
10}
H i
N. O. & Texas.
7}
9}
10}
12
For the week ending June 12th but little interest was felt in cotton. The foreign
advices continued of a gloomy character, and the future prospect for a return o f an
investment was too uncertain for consideration. And, as is always the case when the
market declines in Liverpool, the standard of classification is lowered, and sales o f
“ good middling” and upwards bring but a middling price. In fact, a stricter ad
herence to grade is maintained in New York than in Liverpool; this change of classi
fication is now so common an occurrence at the latter place, that the usual reliance is
not placed in their reports, either in an advancing or a declining market.
The sales for the week are estimated at 5,500 bales, and do not include partial
sales or shipments from first hands— market closing without spirit at the annexed
quotations:—
PRICES ADOPTED JUNE 12TH FOR THE FOLLOWING QUALITIES—
Upland.
Ordinary............................................
Middling............................................
Middling fair.....................................
F a ir....................................................
7
8}
10
10}
Florida.
7
8}
10}
10}
Mobile. N. O. & Texas.
7
9
lO f
11
7
9}
10}
11}
The transactions for the week ending Jilne 19th were large and at advancing
prices. The slightly improved tone of the Liverpool market, as advised per Pacific
and Arabia, gave an impetus to the trade and increased value to the article to the
extent of fully }c. a }c. per lb. on all grades. For France and the continent the busi
ness has been extensive, including some large parcels from first hands. Our stock is
now, from the above causes, much reduced, aud does not exceed 4 5 ,0 0 0 bales unsold.
W e estimate the sales at 12,000 bales, market closing firm at the annexed quotations
for not an over strict classification:—
PRICES ADOPTED JUNE 19l'H FOR THE FOLLOWING QUALITIES I----
Upland.
Ordinary............................................
Middling............................................
Middling fair.....................................
Fair....................................................
7+
9}
10}
10}
Florida.
7}
9}
10}
11
Mobile. N. O. & Texas.
7*
9f
10}
11}
7}
9}
11
12
G r o w in g C r o p . The weather for the growing crop has been all that could be de
sired for the past six weeks. A good stand has been obtained, and the damage by
frosts in the early part of the spring in a great measure remedied.
91
Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance.
JOURNAL OF BANKING, CURRENCY, AN1) FINANCE.
PUBLIC DEBT OF THE UNITED STATES.
The following statement of the Register of the Treasury shows the date of the acts
o f Congress authorizing the issue of the several loans of the United States, the Texas
indemnity, when redeemable, the rate of interest, the amount redeemed from the 4th
March, 1853, to the 6th May, 1854, inclusive, the premium paid, the amount outstand
ing, the amount purchased of the debt of the corporate cities of the District of Colum
bia, the premium paid, the amount outstanding, the Treasury notes outstanding, and
interest due and unpaid upon the old funded and unfunded d e b t:—
Loan.
1842 ..................
1843 ......... .
184G..................
1847 ...................
1848 ..................
Texas indem’ ty.
Do. issued.........
Authorized.
Apr. 15, 1842
M’ch 3, 1843
July 22, 1846
Jan. 28, 1847
M’ch 31, 1848
Sept. 9, 1850
Sept. 9, 1850
Redeemable.
Int.
Redeemed.
Dec. 31, 18G2 6 p. c. $2,427,785 49
July
1, 1853 5 “
3.949.031 35
Nov. 12, 1856 G 44
1.943,439 71
Jan.
1, 1868 6 “
7,199.250 00
July
1, 1868 6 “
2,361,408 20
Dec. 31, 1864 5 “
320,000 00
Dec. 31, 1864 5 44
.............
Debt o f the cities o f the District ofColumbia.............
Treasury notes outstanding..........................................
Interest on old funded and unfunded debt.................
Total..........................................................................
Prem. paid. Outstanding.
$384,436 45 $5,765,900 54
28.900 00
145.133 70 3,052,700 00
1,509,349 41 18,130.300 (K)
471,193 37 13,422,841 80
4,680,000 00
35,200 00
5,000,000 00
18,100,914 75
712,800 00
.................
2,545,312 93 50,080,642 34
112,590 00
7.200 00
...................................... 113,91164
...................................... 114,11854
18,813,714 75
2,657,902 93 50,315,872 52
CONDITION OF THE BANKS OF OHIO IN MAY, 1854,
In the Merchants' Magazine for May, 1854, (vol. xxx., pages 605-607,) we gave a
statement of the condition o f each bank in the State of Ohio, as taken from the re
turns made to the Auditor of State—furnished to our hands by that officer— on the
first Monday of February, 1854. W e now give a summary view of the condition of
the banks o f that State on the first Monday of May, 1854:—
INDEPENDENT BANKS— RESOURCES.
Notes and bills discounted........................................................................
Specie on hand..............................................................................................
Notes of other banks, & c .............................................................................
Due from other banks and bankers..........................................................
Eastern deposits............................................................................................
Checks and other cash items......................................................................
Bonds deposited with State Treasurer......................................................
Real estate and personal property.............................................................
Total resources o f Independent Banks.................. ...............................
§2,241,671
193,245
215,614
146,824
226 958
50,266
1,095,048
118,396
30
97
33
55
07
65
54
70
4,586,922 80
INDEPENDENT BANKS— LIABILITIES.
Capital stock..................................................................................................
§719,730 00
Circulation......................................................................................................
1,004^857 00
Safety Fund sto c k ................................................................................. , 1 , 1 7 8 . 3 9 3 67
Due to banks and bankers...................................................................
210,738 20
Due to individual depositors.......................................................................
1,241,011 97
Surplus of Contingent Fund and undivided profits...............................
65,908 15
Bills payable and time drafts....................................................................
77,561 21
Discount, interest, die...................................................................................
34,254 48
Dividends unpaid..........................................................................................
20.308 75
Other liabilities..............................................................................................
34,159 37
Total liabilities of Independent Banks.
4,58G,922 80
92
Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance.
OHIO BRANCHES OF STATE BANK— RESOURCES.
§11,160,213 65
Notes and bills discounted . . . ...........
Specie on h an d .............................................................................................
1,651,278 *25
Notes of other banks, tfcc.......................................
509,615 89
Due from other banks and bankers..........................................................
518,543 51
1,255,299 17
Eastern deposits...................................
Checks and other cash items........ ..............................................................
59,267 45
Safety F u n d ..................................................................................................
849,609 80
Real estate and personal property............................................................
159,794 09
Other resources.............................................................................................
343,161 00
Total resources of Ohio Branches o f State B a n k ................................
16,506,673 81
OHIO BRANCHES OF STATE BANK— LIABILITIES.
Capital stock.................................................................................................. §4,254,175 00
Circulation............................................................................................. ..
7,311,225 00
Safety Fund at credit of Board of Control..............................................
43.284 65
Due to banks and bankers..........................................................................
373,719 79
Due to individual depositors.....................................
3,599,261 04
Surplus o f Contingent Fund andundivided profits.................................
645,050 33
Bills payable and time drafts.........................................................
154,312 26
Discount, interest, <fcc...................................................................................
14,145 72
Dividends unpdid.........................................................................................
125,475 75
Other liabilities........ .....................................................................................
86,1 b0 27
Total liabilities..................................................................... ..................
16,506,773 81
OLD BANKS— RESOURCES.
Notes and bills discounted.........................................................................
Specie on hand............................
Notes of other banks, &c.........................................................................
Due from other banks and bankers..........................................................
Eastern deposits....................................
Real estate and personal property............................................................
Other resources.............................................................................................
Total resources,.........................................................................................
$2,514,198
99.010
166,155
45,152
164,402
26,502
129,569
29
39
00
82
51
21
35
3,144,990 57
OLD BANKS— LIABILITIES.
Capital s to c k ................................................................................................
Circulation ...................................................................................................
Due to banks and bankers...........................................................................
Due to individual depositors..............................................................
Surplus of Contingent Fund and undivided profits...............................
Bills payable and time drafts........................
Other liabilities.............................................................................................
Total liabilities..........................................................................................
$711,000
398,555
1,002 596
893,682
73,333
745
65,077
00
00
99
90
40
00
28
3,144,990 57
FREE BANKS— RESOURCES.
Notes and bills discounted.........................................................................
Specie on hand.................................................
Notes of other banks, tfec..............................................................................
Due from other banks and bankers..........................................................
Eastern deposits...........................................................................................
Checks and other cash items......................................................................
Bonds deposited with Auditor of State....................................................
Real and personal property ......................................................................
Other resources.............................................................................................
Total resources of Free B anks...............................................................
$1,366,738
133,634
225.613
485,860
205,460
60,839
930,769
28,138
34,606
91
92
50
51
00
02
99
47
56
3,471,661 88
93
Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance.
The number of banka in Ohio, according to the report o f the Auditor, is 63; of
■which 10 are Independent Banks, 38 Ohio Branches of State Bank, 2 Old Banks, and
13 Free Banks. The total capital of all the banks in Ohio is $6,520,195 ; the specie
in banks on the first Monday in May, 1854, amounted to $2,017,169; the total circu
lation at that time was $9,507,052 ; and the total resources, $27,760,349.
SPECIE IN THE UNITED STATES IN 1820, 1849, AND 1854,
The statistics lately collected by the Secretary of the Treasury present some inter
esting facts. The following the statement of Mr. Crawford:—
The amount of specie in the country in 1820 was only...........................
Product of the mines from that date to 1849............................................
Imports o f specie from 1820 to 1849 amounted t o ___
$252,169,841
Exported during the same time......................................
180,462,406
$37,000,000
37,705,250
Leaving an excess o f imports over exports o f specie to 1849 o f ............
71,707,435
In the country on the 1st January, 1849....................................................
Supply from the mines from 1849 to 1854........................................
Imported in sarng time................................................ ................................
122,412,685
194,363,117
26,508,774
Total.............................................................................................................
Exported from the country between January, 1849, and -Jan., 1 8 5 4 ...
- 343,284,576
112,695,514
Specie in the country in January, 1854....................... .......... ...................
230,589,502
Being $108,000,000 more in the country now than in 1849. But there are large
amounts of money brought into the country that cannot appear in statistical tables.
It is estimated that over $30,000,000 in coin have been brought in by immigrants
since 1840. Of the $230,000,000 in specie in the country now, a little less than sixty
millions is in the banks, a little more than twenty-seven millions in the National
Treasury, and the balance is in circulation, or hoarded up by private owners. The
gold and silver in circulation, then, is over one hundred and forty-three millions now,
and the circulation of bank paper is over one hundred and ninety-four million dollars.
Together they make over three hundred and thirty-eight million dollars as the active
money of the country at the present time.
PRODUCT OF THE PRECIOUS METALS IN 1853.
To
F r e e m a n H unt , Editor o f the M erchants’ Magazine
:—
D ear S ik :— Inclosed you will find a statement of the production of the precious
metals throughout the world in 1853, submitted for insertion in the columns of your
excellent journal. Yours truly,
DAVID M. BALFOUR.
PRODUCT OF THE PRECIOUS METALS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD IN
1853.
Gold.
Silver.
Total.
America .
Australia
Europe . .
A s ia .. . .
Africa . .
$109,156,748
96,000,000
22,138,914
19,847,658
4,000,000
$29,807,456
$138,964,204
96,000,000
30,787,851
25,044,876
4,000,000
Total
$251,143,320
$43,653,611
8,648,937
5,197,218
$294,196,931
The following statement will exhibit the annual product of the precious metab at
different periods prior to above:—
1492...................................
1500....................................
1600....................................
1700....................................
$250,000 1 1800 ....................................
8,000,000 | 1842 ...............................
11,000,000 1848 ....................................
23,060,000 | 1851 ....................................
$52,529,867
69,987,681
86,661,060
180,173,873
'
94
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
CONDITION OF TH E BANKS OF ILLINOIS.
The number of banka in Illinois is twenty-nine. The Hon. T h o m a s H. C a m p b e l l ,
Auditor of the State, furnishes a statement o f their condition on the 3d of April, 1854,
as follows:—
RESOURCES.
Stock deposited........................................................................... $2,475,741 62
31,158 22
Real estate owned by banks......................................................
Notes of other banks on hand................................... . ..............
385,339 45
Debts other than loans and discounts......................................
1,368,203 68
Specie on hand.............................................................................
565.152 04
Loans and discounts.....................................................................
316,841 76
Deposited with other banks.......................................................
878,612 58
Expense account...........................................................................
24,874 97
Checks, drafts, and other cash item s.........................................
63,892 41
Total resources.........................................................................
6,365,978 86
LIABILITIES.
Capital stock paid i n ...............
Debts owing other than for deposits........................................
Dhe to depositors.........................................................................
Circulation.....................................................................................
Profit and loss account...............................................................
Total liabilities.........................................................................
2,513,790
294,034
1,286,102
2,283,526
71,787
17
50
25
00
00
6,448,239 92
CONDITION OF T H E BANKS.
While there are causes that affect the operation of the banks throughout the country,
there are others the force of which is felt most in particular districts. As a general
rule, expansions commence in the East, and proceed thence South and West, and con
tractions follow the same law.
The more rapid the development of the natural resources of a region, the greater are
the apparent benefits resulting from a bank expansion, and the greater are the real
evils that result from a bank contiaction. Hence the effects of bank expansions and
bank contractions are felt much more sensibly in the Mississippi valley than in the
Atlantic States.
A commercial or a manufacturing population recovers from the effects of a bank
revulsion much moie easily than does any one that is purely agricultural.
After the terrible revulsion of 1842-43, the banks of Massachusetts were the first to
right themselves. By July, 1844, their current credits (circulation and deposits) were
swelled to 24,000,000, which was even 6,000,000 more than it had in October, 1837.
Since then tin* banks in Massachusetts have been gradually extending their operations,
with occasional and temporary intervals of contraction.
The bauks in the other New England States and in New York were the next to re
cover their position; but the banks in the great tier of grain growing States, extending
from New Jersey to Missouri, cannot be said to have recovered their position till
1846-48, when a new demand for our breadstuffs sprung up in Europe.
The banks in the South and Southwest were still longer in recovering themselves.
But a new demand for cotton sprung up, and then they began rapidly to extend their
operations. In two years the banks of South Carolina more than doubled their circu
lation, increasing it from $5,237,000, which it was in January, 1849, to $11,770,000 in
January, 1851. In Georgia the circulation was more than doubled in one year; it was
$4,118,000 in October, 1849, and $9,818,000 in December, 1850. The Southwestern
States still lagged behind ; but between October, 1849, and January, 1851, the banks
of Tennessee increased their issues from $3,913,000 to $6,814,000.
After all, this expansion did no more than bring the Southern and Southwestern
States to a level with the New England and Middle States, even if it did that. They
err greatly who suppose that paper money makes prices permanently high. It makes
them occasionally unnaturally high; but in the revulsions that follow, prices are re
duced so low and remain low for so long a time, that it is a question w hether, on an
average of years, prices are not lower with us than they would be if we had only a
gold and silver circulating medium.
COMPARATIVE V IE W OP THE CONDITION OF THE BANKS IN DIFFERENT SECTIONS OF THE UNION IN
Sections.
Banks & branches.
Capital paid in.
1850-1.
1
1850-1.
1850-1
AND
Stocks.
1853-4.
1853-4.
Real estate.
1850-1.
1851-4.
$66,299,185
79,716,950
40,309,024
29,917,056
11,565,338
$84,556,433
114,834,179
46,646,211
88,384,368
16,954,880
$108,504,955
170,886,640
60,437,459
61,153,748
22,773,997
$149,143,789
283,602,631
73,213,195
72,751,629
28,676,184
$191,777
15,419,701
2,957,874
1,198,225
2,621,412
$883,501
24,458,149
7,292,894
2,653,322
9,062,464
$1,912,134
5,249,774
8,425,580
3,594,784
1,037,452
$2,015,838
6,993,606
9,490,007
3,078,778
789,243
879 11,208
227,807,553
301,376,071
413,756,799
607,287,428
22,388,989
44,350,330
20,219,724
22,367,472
Other investments.
1
CO
GO
1850-1.
Specie funds.
Notes of other banks.
Due by other banks.
1850-1.
1853-4.
1850-1.
1853-4.
1850-1.
1853-4.
Specie.
1850-1.
1S53-4.
$409,496
2,152,420
2,908,203
2,836,593
634,260
$757,883
1,056.988
2,108,791
2,695,359
222,408
$9,661,775
17,728,833
11,138,910
7,565,472
4,623,025
$13,032,448
19,370,777
7,890,880
7,743,566
7,469,414
$5,238,147
6,664,315
2,382,588
1,381,440
1,529,593
$7,336,184
7,536,523
3,164,870
1,974,371
2,647,318
$105,900
13,493,342
448,209
1,200,000
93,655
$202,204
23,860,024
521,024
670,868
325,133
$4,663,774
17,865,051
8,903.871
13,164,213
4,074,139
$6,570,360
22,845,551
8,776,876
16,117,957
6,099,509
T o ta l.............. 8,935,972
6,841,429
50,718,015
55,516,085
17,196,083
22,659,066
15,341,196
25,579,253
48,671,048
59,410,253
Eastern States___
Middle States........
Southern States. . .
Southwest'n States.
Western States... .
7
T o t a l...............
1851-4.
Other liabilities.
1850-1.
1851-4.
1851-4.
,220,921
45 619,039
,176,977
25.,768,805
15,379,509
$49,396,107
61,116,263
40.854,139
33,258,965
20,063 733
$17,397,742
78.012,354
11.906,342
15,284,247
6,357,027
$24,898,038
116,917,925
14,59^i,101
20,064,818
11,710,862
$7,750,247
30,199,200
3,888,838
15,118,040
1,460,603
$10,546,638
27,811,364
3,422,446
5,832,24 6
2,709^68
$653,103
3,151,500
1,480,206
670,732
482,786
$1,765,563
5,956.919
1,305,636
2,897,091
1,514,067
,165,251
204,689,207
128,957,712
188,188,744
46,416,928
50,322,162
6,438,327
13,439,276
1850-1.
1853--4.
GO
Eastern States........
Middle States.........
Southern States . . .
Southwestern States
Western States___
Due to other banks.
Deposits.
Circulation.
1850-1.
E a s t e r n S t a t e s .— Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut.
M i d d l e S t a t e s .—New York, New Jersey, Penn
sylvania, Delaware, Maryland.
S o u t h e r n S t a t e s .— Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia.
S o u t h w e s t e r n S t a t e s .— Alabama, Louis
iana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri.
W e s t e r n S t a t e s .— Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin.
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
397
451
116
92
152
Eastern States......... 313
Middle States........... 316
90
Southern States . . . .
Southwestern States,.
83
Western States........
77
Total.................
1851-4.
GO
1850-1. 1851--4. 1850-1.
Loans and discounts.
o
DOMESTIC EXCHANGE.
o
QUOTATIONS OF DOMESTIC EXCHANGES, APRIL 29TH , 1 8 5 4 , RECEIVED AT THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT FROM THE ASSISTANT TREASURERS AND DEPOSITARIES.
Upon Boston.
At Boston.....................
New Y o rk ..............
Philadelphia...........
St. L ou is.................
New Orleans....... ..
San F ra n cisco....,
Baltimore................
R ichm ond...............
Mobile . . . . .......... .
Cincinnati................
Pittsburg.................
B uffalo....................
Norfolk....................
W ilmington............
Savannah.................
Nashville.................
D ubuque.................
Little B o c k ............
Chicago...................
^Tallahassee.............
£ dis.......................
£ dis. to 1-10 prem.
| to £ prem...........
P a r ........................
1 to 2 prem...........
Par to 1-10 prem ...
£ to 1 prem...........
£ to £ prem...........
P a r ........................
P a r ........................
£ to £ prem...........
Par to £ dis...........
1 prem...................
£ prem..................
£ prem...................
£ to £ prem...........
1 prem ...................
P a r ........................
1 p rem ...................
St. Louis.
1 dis................
1£ dis..............
1£ to £ d is.......
Par to 1 d is ... .
3 to 2 prem. . . .
1 to £ dis..........
1 dis.................
£ dis................ .
£ prem.............
1£ dis................
No salo.............
No sale.............
N on e.............. .
N on e.............. .
£ prem.............
£ to £ prem . . . ,
£ prem.............
£ dis................ .
£ prem ............
New York.
1-10 dis............
Par to 1-10 prem ...
£ to £ prem ...........
P a r ........................
| to 1 prem...........
1 to 2 prem...........
Par to 1-10 prem ...
£ to 1 prem...........
£ to £ prem...........
P a r ........................
P a r ........................
£ to £ prem...........
Par to £ dis.............
1 prem...................
£ prem...................
£ prem..................
£ to £ prem...........
1 prem...................
P a r ........................
1 prem...................
Mobile.
£ dis..............
2 dis...............
1 to £ dis__
Par to £ dis.
No sale........
Philadelphia.
£ dis..................
£ dis..................
£ to £ prem........
P a r ....................
£ to I prem........
1 to 2 prem........
Par to 1-10 prem
4 to 1 prem
£ to £ prem
Par
Par
Par
Par to £ dis.
1 p rem .. .
i p r e m ....
£ prem
£ to £ prem
1 p r e m ....
Par
New Orleans.
1£ dis..................
2 d is ...................
1£ to £dis...........
£ dis....................
£ to 2 prem
1£ to £ dis..
1 dis...........
P a r ...........
P a r ...........
1£ dis.........
No s a le ....
No sale.. . .
N on e.........
N o n e.........
£ prem.......
£ to £ prem
1 per cent dis.
£ prem............
I
Baltimore.
£ dis..................
£ dis..................
| dis. to par . . .
£ to £ prem----P a r...................
£ to 1 prem----1 to 2 prem .. . .
Par to £ dis.
Washington.
£ dis..................
| dis..................
£ dis. to par . . .
£ dis. to p a r.. . .
$ to l p rem .. . .
$ to 2 prem .. . .
£ dis. to par.. . .
Par to £ p rem ..
Par to £ prem..
P a r ...................
£ dis..................
1 per cent d is ..
No sale............
N one.................
£ to | prem. . . .
£ prem...............
£ to £ prem .. . .
Richmond.
dis..................
1£ dis................
Charleston.
1 dis..................
]£ dis.................
1 dis. to p ar....
1 to £ dis---£ to J£ prem.
£ to 1 prem.
2 to 1 dis...........
Par to £ dis.......
Par ..................
£ to £ dis...........
Par to £ d is .. . ,
P a r ..................
£ dis..................
1£ dis................
No sale.............
No sale.............
£ prem..............
t
P a r .......................
P a r ..................
N on e................
1 prem
£ dis...
1 prem,
Cincinnati.
]£ dis..............
2£ dis..............
1£ to £ dis.......
1£ to 1 dis.......
Par to 1 dis___
£ to 2 prem . . .
Pittsburgh.
1 d i s ...............
£ dis.. ............ .
£ dis. to par ..
£ to £ dis.........
£ to 2 prem
£ d is ...
£ prem
Buffalo.
£ dis................
£ dis................
£ dis. to par ..
1 to £ dis....... .
Par to 1 prem
San Francisco.
Par ........................
6 to 8 d is................
6 to I dis. April 22.
5 dis........................
No quotation.........
Last rep. March 25.
5 dis. to par...........
2 dis., n om inal....
Nominal.................
Par. Rep. April 15.
No sale...................
No sale...................
No sale...................
N one......................
N one......................
N one......................
N one......................
Last rep., April 22.
No sale...................
£ prem....................
Journal o f Banicing, Currency, and Finance.
At Boston..........
New Y o rk ...
Philadelphia.
Charleston....
St. Louis . . . .
New Orleans.
San Francisco
Baltimore. . . .
Richmond . . .
M obile..........
Cincinnati. . . .
Pittsburg . . . .
Buffalo.........
N orfolk.........
W ilmington..
Savannah....
Nashville. . . .
D ubuque----Little Bock....
Chicago.........
Tallahassee...
97
Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance.
TAXES AND PR O PE R T Y OF ILLINOIS.
The following statement is derived from the last report of the Auditor of
Illinois:—
The whole amount of taxable property in the State for 1853 is assessed at
$224,715,963; and the State and county tax alone is $1,973,317.
The report also gives the following :—
Value.
$12,530,211
8,635,100
683,985
705,846
2,670,678
3,364,156
516,226
82,809
Number.
2 8 6 ,9 9 4
848,716
12,536
616 ,15 8
1,383,643
102,658
81,556
613
.H orses..................................................
Neat cattle..........................................
M ules....................................................
Sheep....................................................
H ogs......................................................
Carriages and w agons.......................
Clocks and w atches...........................
Pianos....................................................
The following is the assessed value of those counties which return over four millions
o f dollars. It will be seen there is some difference in the rates of taxation, the cause
o f which we leave for others to determine:—
Assessed
value.
County.
C o o k ...................... $22,929,637
Sangamon........... 10,639,232
Madison...............
6,239,616
P e o ria .................
5,646,657
St. Clair...............
5,269,264
M organ ...............
5,115,380
State and
Co. tax.
County.
$245,057
72,044
Adams............. . .
Fulton............
56,537 McLean...........
58,220 P ik e................
38,986 Jo Davies . . . ,
36,830 La Salle........
Assessed
value.
State and
Co. tax.
$4,9 77 ,9 6 7
$46 ,08 9
4 3 ,4 5 0
42,532
37,945
53,7 34
60,377
4,929,647
4,395,884
4,062,532
TH E CONDITION OF T H E BANKS OF BOSTON.
S Y N O P S IS O F T H E
TO
BE
M ADE
BOSTON — T H E
A C T OF T H E
BY
B O ST O N
L E G IS L A T U R E
BAN K S,
AND
O F M A S S A C H U S E T T S C O N C E R N IN G W E E K L Y R E T U R N S
M ONTH LY
F IR S T W E E K L Y R E T U R N S OF
RETURNS
OF BANKS
IN
THE
STATE
OUT
OF
B A N K S IN B O S T O N U N D E R T H E A C T .
By an act of the Legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts of April 15th,
1854, each bank in Boston is required to transmit to the Secretary of the Common
wealth, on every Monday morning, a statement under oath of the president or cashier,
the amount of capital stock, the average amount of loans and discounts, specie actu
ally in the bank, amount due from other banks, amount due to other banks, deposits
and circulation for the several days of the week next preceding the said Monday.
Section 2 of this act requires the Secretary of State to publish in one or more of the
Boston daily papers, to be selected by him, a summary statement of the condition of
each o f the Boston banks for the week, compiled from the returns as made to the
Secretary of State.
By section 3 o f this act, each bank in Massachusetts, out o f Boston, is required to
make a similar statement, based on the condition of each bank on each Saturday of
the month next preceding the first Monday of each month. Section 4 requires the
Secretary of State to cause a similar summary of the monthly returns of banks out of
Boston to be published in the same manner as is provided for in regard to the Boston
banks. By section 5 the Secretary is authorized to select the newspapers, and the
expenses of publication, when approved by the Governor of the Commonwealth. Sec
tion 6 of the act affixes a forfeit of five hundred dollars on every bank neglecting to
comply with the provisions of the law, to be recovered by the Treasurer of the Com
monwealth.
^
The Secretary is required to transmit to each bank in the State a blank form for
the returns required by the act. This act took effect on the 1st of June, 1854. A
VOL. X X X I.---- NO. I.
7
98
Journal o f Banking , Currency , awe? Finance.
similar act was passed by the Legislature of New York during the session of 1853,
and the first returns were made under its provisions for the week ending August 6th,
1853. A summary statement of the weekly averages of the New York City Banks,
from the commencement, will be found in our usual “ Commercial Chronicle and Re
view ” for the month.
W e publish below the first weekly statement of the condition of the banks in
Boston, as prepared under the direction of the Secretary of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts:—
AVERAG E CONDITION OF THE BANKS IN BOSTON FOR THE W EE K PRECEDING MONDAY,
JUNE
Banks.
A tlantic......................
A tla s...........................
Blackstone.................
B oston ........................
Boylston......................
Broadway....................
C ity .............................
Columbian...................
C om m erce..................
Eagle...........................
E lio t ............................
Exchange....................
Faneuil H all...............
Freeman’ s ..................
G lo b e ..........................
Granite.......................
Grocers’ ......................
H am ilton....................
Howard Banking Co...
M arket........................
Massachusetts.............
Mechanics’ .................
Merchants’ ..................
National......................
New England.............
North...........................
North America...........
Shaw m u t....................
Shoe and Leather___
State...........................
Suffolk........................
Traders’ ......................
Tremont......................
U n io n .........................
W ashington...............
W ebster......................
5, 1854.
Capital Loans and Specie in
stock.
discount.
bank.
$500,000 $813.82*2 $60,443
500,000
855,864
44,036
472,700
821,565
29,459
900,000 1,636,525
133,318
400,000
770,043
17,599
100,000
153,226
4,149
1,000,000 1,497,814
68.585
500,000
838.774
37,252
2,000,000 2,950,379 172,620
700,000 1,183,529
76,660
300,000
516,796
32,546
1,000,000 2,013,633 134,149
500,000
945.291
42,719
350,000
698,904
30,644
1,000,000 1,477.867
127,962
900,000 1,492,910
25,071
600.000 1,004.354
90.560
500,000
842,755
65.202
500,000
840,727
60,416
560.000 1,078,217
42,275
800,000 1,000,130
43,796
200,000
388,469
15,416
4,000.000 5,725,967 398.223
455.300
664,463
42.899
1,000,000 1,431,390
67,690
750,000 1,288,455
51,639
750,000 1,128,4*25
47,458
500.000
78.419
954.558
1,000,000 1,529,285
60,565
1.800,000 2.651,747
109,013
1 000,000 1,477.327 292,404
600.000 1,013,420
52,931
1.250,000 1,989.466
104,542
1,000.0 0 1,480,038
72,347
500,000
873 312
53.171
1,500,000 2,340,045
74,099
Due
Due
from other to other
banks.
banks.
Deposits. Circulal’n .
$232,035 $106,466 $316,028 $205,219
41,354
114,193
211,226
150,777
169,819
388,494
265,597
216,087
693,564
232,168
44,885
69,015
274,194
263
189,477
24.393
39,446
51,341
136,326
168,503
255,764
180,457
47,003
13,778
285,086
170,512
896,608
839,842
656,870
412,408
176,111
22,508
435,330
208,619
83,914
137,963
153,170
31,739
552,481
616,010
348.890
563,983
325,408
217,911
123,257
81,256
170,440
267.547
62,246
320,594
168,064
252.572
272,734
218.689
188.117
180,069
317,682
277,039
254,314
356,692
478,043
215.901
158,088
68.329
179,324
108,831
170.119
119,826
199,079
281.566
88,169
161,112
200,024
117,611
9,392
203.925
152,289
114,959
76,922
6,419
157,784
1,073,565
810,504 1,381,348
625,623
178,915
54,524
196,172
203.025
101,457
170,126
341,104
161,236
41,234
72,906
371,419
218,436
192,508
98,572
289,341
193.406
152,191
136,361
278,261
184,599
169,664
260,480
199,445
264,181
312,736
576,869
221,479
237,305
1,329.647
679,463 1,058,266
411.092
209,942
185,213
113,756
124,287
429.008
268,183
637.567
368,656
198.534
295,859
162,110
167,718
170,639
28,335
39,175
241,415
224,690
116,896
569,643
413,364
The following is the aggregate condition o f the above-named thirty-six banks in Boston:—
Capital stock of banks in B oston..............................................
Loans and discounts..........................
Specie in ban k .............................................................................
Due from other ban ks...................
Due to other banks......................................................................
D eposits........................................................
Circulation.....................................................................................
$30,388,000
48,369,49*2
2.860,277
8,715,843
6.651,825
13,270.002
8,277,019
S e c r e t a r y ’ s O f f ic e ,
June 6th,
1854.
In the foregoing abstract, the cents in the various items, as submitted by the banks,
are not given.
In the returns made by the several banks in Boston, o f which the foregoing is the
abstract required by the law to be published, there exists a want of uniformity under
the particular of “ amount due from other banks
a portion of the returns, including
the bills and checks on other banks, while others omit these altogether. As there is
no other head under which these items can appear in conformity with the provisions
of the statute, and as it was the manifest intent of the Legislature that so important
an element iu the condition of these institutions should not be excluded from the re
turns, the several banks hereafter will include under the head “ Due from other banks,”
the average amount of bills and checks on other banks held by them during the pe
riod covered by their respective returns.
E. M. WRIGHT.
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
99
CONDITION OF TH E BANKS IN TH E D IFFER EN T STATES IN 1 8 5 0 -1 AND 1 8 5 3 -4 .
In the following statement are included, it is believed, all the incorporated banks
that were in operation in the beginning of 1851 and the beginning of 1854, a few scat
tering ones excepted, and these consisting chiefly of banks that had but lately com
menced business. In the State of Texas there is one bank, doing a small business, from
which no returns have been received. In the States of California, Florida, Arkansas,
and Iowa, and in the Territories of New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and
Minnesota, there are no incorporated banks.
In the returns from some of the banks o f Pennsylvania, and those of some other
States, a considerable amount of specie is believed to be embraced under the head of
“ specie funds,” but the exact amount cannot be ascertained.
Date.
Banks. Branches. Cap’l paid in. Loans & discounts.
Stocks.
M aine............... 1850, Oct.
32
$3,248,000
$5,830,230
1854, Jan.
60
5,913,870
11,166,519
New Hampshire 1850, Dec.
22
2,375,900
3,821,120
35
3,376,000
1853, Dec.
6,518,183
Vermont........... 1850, Aug.
2,197,240
27
4,423,719
$40,500
1853, Aug.
33
2,914,010
6,840,932
117,125
36,925,050
Massachusetts.. 1850, Sept. 126
63,330,024
1853, Sept. 137
43,270,500
77,172,097
63
11,645,492
Rhode Island . . 1850, Sept.
15,492,547
151,277
1853, Sept.
77
15,917,429
22,844,911
121,414
.1850,
April
41
2
9,907,503
Connecticut. . . .
15,607,315
13,164,594
1853, April 63
2
24,601,165
644,962
1
48,618,762
New York . . . . .1850, Sept. 197
107,132,389
13,177,944
1
70,018,980
1854, Feb. 312
203,008,077
21,453,585
..
New Jersey . . . .1851, Jan.
26
3,754,900'
7,158,977
..
1854, Jan.
38
5,147,741
10,663,627
974,895
17,926,222
Pennsylvania.. - .1850, Nov.
53
5
39,430,145
1,428,354
1853, Nov.
61
5
19,765,864
48,656,884
1,141,649
6
D elaw are......... .1851, Jan.
3
1,293,185
52,986
2,264,313
6
1854, Jan.
3
1,343,185
2,915,602
62,681
M aryland......... .1851, Jan.
23
2
8,123,881
14,900,816
760,417
1854, Jan.
25
9,558,409
18,358.441
825,339
V irginia........... .1850, Oct.
6
31
9,824,545
19,645,777
269,914
1854, Jan.
16
39
12,796,466
24,913,789
2,259.812
5
North Carolina. 1850, Nov.
13
3,789,250
6,056,726
150,000
1853, Dec.
9
16
4,818,465
10,366,247
64,175
12
2
South Carolina. .1851, Jan.
13,213,131
23,312,330
963,611
1854, March 16
16,073,580
2
24,365,690
2,775,059
Georgia............. .1850, Dec.
11
10
13,482,198
11,421,626
1,574,349
1853, Dec.
11
12,957,600
7
13,567,469
2,193,848
2
A la b a m a ......... .1851, Jan.
1,800,580
4,670,458
70,361
..
1854, Jan.
3
2,100,000
5,865,142
471,156
Louisiana......... .1851, Jan.
5
20
12,370,390
19,309,108
1854, Jan.
9
17,359,261
10
29,320,582
842,000
Mississippi . . . . .1851, April
1
..
118,460
112,275
..
1854, Jan.
1
240,165
362,585
Tennessee......... .1851, Jan.
4
19
6,881,568
10,992,139
432,902
1853, Oct.
19
9
6,599,872
11,846,879
538,042
K entucky......... . 1851, Jan.
5
21
7,546,927
12,536,305
694,962
1854, Jan.
9
26
10,869,665
21,398,386
802,124
Missouri........... .1851, Jan.
1
5
1,209,131
3,533,463
1854, Jan.
1
5
1,215,405
3,958,056
Illinois............... .1851, Jan.
None.
.
.
1853, April 23
1,702,456
586,404
1,780,617
Indiana............. .1850, Nov.
2
13
2,082,950
4,395,099
1853, Dec.
31
13
7,247,366
5,524.552
3,257,064
..
Ohio.................. .1850, Nov.
57
8,718,366
17,059,593
2,200,891
.
.
1854, Feb.
68
8,013,154
17,380,255
2,808,337
Michigan........... .1851, Jan.
1
5
764,022
1,319,305
420,521
1854, Jan.
6
1
1,084,718
2,199,093
637,725
Wisconsin......... .1851, Jan.
None.
1854, Jan.
10
600,000
1,163,066
578,721
..
..
100
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
Date.
,1850.
1854.
New Hampshire .1850.
1853.
V e rm o n t...........1850.
1853.
Massachusetts . .1850.
1853.
Rhode Island. . . .1850.
1853.
Connecticut . . . .1850.
1853.
New York . . . . .1850.
1854.
New Jersey___ .1851.
1854.
Pennsylvania.. . .1850.
1853.
Delaware......... .1851.
1854.
Maryland......... .1851.
1854.
V irg in ia ........... .1850.
1854.
North Carolina. .1850.
1853.
South Carolina. .1851.
1854.
Georgia............. .1850.
1853.
Alabama........... .1851.
1854.
Louisiana......... .1851.
1854.
.1851.
1854.
.1851.
1853.
Kentucky.......... .1851.
1854.
Missouri...........
1854.
Illinois............... .1851.
1853.
Indiana.............
1853.
O h io .................
1854.
Michigan...........
1854.
Wisconsin........ .1851.
1854.
Date.
M aine............... .1850.
1854.
New Hampshire. 1850.
1853.
Verm ont...........
1853.
Massachusetts ....1850.
1853.
Real Estate.
Notes o f
Due by
Other
Investments, other Banks, other Banks.
fcl 11 905
$778,955
1,581,596
116,812
447,453
43,670
687.859
64,153
1,001,789
94,497
104,768
$16,324 1,301,033
5,335,003
988,235
6,666,412
1,090,463
13,461
441,164
283,844
28,145
1,004,863
264,812
1.657,411
396,035
389,983
1,890,685
713,414
384,800
3,321,589
736,120 10,403,509
5,272,690
151,528 11,529,939
1,578,663
183,468
270,546
432,378
267,804
224,448
1,230,064 4,266,916
1,134,413
5,375,738
652,756
1,007 843
306,545
117,981 *
2,000
852,288
124,262
1,173,200
405,245
768
1,681,026
28,256
321,007
1,925,652
764,282
240,498
756,551
26,259 2,710,180
1,074,793
127,806
18,785
1,842,569
137,154
338,429
266,205 5,020,998
1,611,709
419,870
1,369,582
3,117,468
7,195,063
2,387,715
1,735,422
8,176,932
712,950
960,334
81,000
125,697
362,084
65,321
31,500
2,225,896
2,255,169
2,042,149
2,416,526
1,954,164
2,163,055
302.641
8 400
84,049
9,970
4,742
662 5*>0
1,559,418
67,322
1,443,721
516^980
2,451,155
419,070
440,127
3,284,405
416,192
307,368
66,028
123,928
273,317
152,781
116,151
121,872
None.
880,541
13,202
845,06.2
364,233
108,485
1,985,114
289,673
127,238
451,593
460,692 3,373,272
3,534 970
332,909
404,691
221,626
65,083
742,843
144,998
95,170
None.
325,946
8,461
Specie.
Circulation.
8475,589 $2,654,208
1,132,610
5,317,750
1,897,111
129,399
3,021,579
180,239
2,856,027
127,325
4,764.439
198,173
2,993,178 17,005,826
3,563,782 21,172,369
Deposits.
$1,223,671
2,446,470
566,634
868,357
556,703
734,216
11,176,827
15,067,204
$187,435
365,490
91,444
157,667
127,637
185,999
4,048,521
5,346,161
537,761
844,329
245,349
436,538
3,031,957
3,488,890
42,685
2,591,962
3,804,410
74,600
81,511
965,796
158,827
552,158
1,271,453
483.947
643,821
810,895
645,639
535,593
603,957
63,865
111,296
Specie
Funds.
$2,376
103,614
202,204
10,498.824
18,175,670
32,849
2.864,944
3,879,120
51,022
177,293
78,552
1,595,092
199,848
73,324
306,909
141,300
247,852
1,200,000
13,309
729,186
451,396
550,879
1,115,780
37,610
282,590
126,890
543,978
233,576
224,842
715,305
1,195,655
1,438,342
109,096
108,941
128,860
93,460
171,865
195
4,282
151,154
20,136
Due to othei• Other liabanks.
bilities.
$48,006
146,879
$38,285
99,202
32,984
22,136
6.549,929
8,608,238
442,084
474,051
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
Date.
Rhode Island. . . .1 8 5 0 .
1853.
Connecticut. . . . .1 8 5 0 .
1853.
New Y o r k ......... .1 8 5 0 .
1854.
New Jersey . . . . .1 8 5 1 .
1854.
Pennsylvania . . . .1 8 5 0.
Delaware
1853.
........ .1 8 5 1 .
1854.
M aryland..........
1854.
V irginia.............
1854.
North Carolina..,.1 8 5 0 .
1853.
South Carolina.. .1 8 5 1 .
1854.
Georgia............... ..1 8 5 0 .
1853.
Alabam a...........
1854.
Louisiana........... ..1 8 5 1 .
1854.
1854.
Tennessee..........
1853.
Kentucky..........
1854.
Missouri.............,.1 8 5 1 .
1854.
Illin o is...............,.1 8 5 1 .
1853.
Indiana..............
1853.
O h io...................
1854.
Michigan___
.
1854.
W isconsin......... .1 8 5 1 .
1854.
Specie.
$297,661
359,699
640,622
1,145,857
10,045,330
14,169,905
622,825
805,533
4,327,394
4,331,656
159,773
133,367
2,709,699
3,405,090
2,928,174
3,721,042
1,645,028
1,856,048
2,218,223
1,621,973
2,112 446
1,576,813
1,998,820
1,125,954
5,716,001
7,468,460
5,669
1,456,778
1,983,790
2,794,351
4,596,249
1,198,263
937,835
Circulation.
$2,553,865
4.895,529
5,253,884
10,224,441
26,415,556
32,573,189
3,046,658
4,917,412
11,798,996
17,420,348
833,960
1,286,933
3,523,869
4,918,381
10,256,997
14,298,792
4,249,883
7,320,667
11,771,270
9 ,7 1 5 ,7 8 ^
9 ,8 9 8 ,8 2 f
9,518,777
3,568,235
3,171,487
5,059,229
6,969,807
161 390
234,745
6,814,376
6,821,836
7,643,075
13,573,510
2,522,500
2,487,580
Dae to other
Deposits.
banks.
$ 650,560
$1,488,596
1,062,615
2,238,856
468,768
2,395,311
7 16,770
3,542,935
50,774,193 21,873,928
75,554,481 20,227,967
373,453
2,411,861
4,133,454
486,561
18,484,779 5 ,857,740
22,747,991
4 ,640.970
502,755
170,873
860,947
107,075
5,8.38,766 1,923,206
8,622,052 2,348,791
308,841
4,717,732
635,127
6,513,027
60,682
942 ,09 8
186,993
1,808,587
3,665,6S6
3,035,893
1,878,291
3,752,260
2,580,826
483,422
724,035
2,523,227
1,474,963
196,911
6 63,164
1,671,448
1,884,232
8,464,389
11,743,152 2,022,636
4,500
142,390
33,393
61,638
1,917,757
2,200,922
108,470
1,256,589
2,323.657
3,102,159
2,809,031
1,098,981
76,280
1,313,744
228,945
None.
None.
None.
419,531
1,1 9 7,88 0
1,820,760
2,750,537
2,319,064
125,722
357,672
1,351,788
3,422,445
7,116,827
11,059,700
9,839,008
897,364
1,270,9S9
522,476
630,325
1,764,747
5,310,555
7,693,610
416,149
1,075.606
None.
None.
None.
182,482
485,121
554,423
None.
315,441
112,175
445,359
1,305,839
1,866,172
42,589
82,496
None.
101
Other liabilities.
$ 133,733
362,729
38,961
829,581
2,984,727
5,848,627
.........
156,878
86,647
9,895
71,645
5,495
4,825
51,013
23,260
159,193
1,452,121
1,039,935
660,732
2,348,859
10,000
447,425
100,807
None.
14,161
100,622
343,856
249,887
138,930
438,488
None.
710,954:
SPECIE AS BAGGAGE.
The. Ataianta, (Georgia y) Intelligencer, contains a long letter from Mr. Hutchings, of
the firm of Hutchings & Co., bankers, of Louisville, in relation to the treatment received
by him from the officers of the Western and Ataianta Railroad. Mr. Hutchings was
a passenger in one of the train's. He had with him two small carpet bags, weighing
*78^- pounds, which he kept in his possession. The conductor called on him to pay $40
freight on his baggage, contending that it contained $40,000 in gold, and that the
road charged $1 freight for every $1,000 of specie carried on it. Mr. Hutchings pro
tested against this, as he carried his baggage at his own risk, but he declared himself
ready to pay for over-weight of his baggage at the customary rates. The contents
o f his baggage were known to no one but himself, and no one had a right to know
what it contained, as he did not hold any one responsible for it. On the arrival of the
train at Ataianta the superintendent again demanded $40. Mr. Hutchings was willing
to pay it under protest, but this would not satisfy the official, and he detained the
baggage. Mr. Hutchings then obtained a possessory writ to recover his baggage, and
it was brought before a magistrate’s court. The magistrate gave judgment against
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
102
Mr. Hutchings for $17, which he paid under protest. He was served similarly by the
Georgia Railroad Company. He has instituted suit before the United States District
Court to test the question of the right of such taxation by the companies.
SAVINGS BANKS IN TH E CITY OF N EW YORK,
There are in the City of Hew York fourteen Savings Banks. The following table,
compiled from their last annual reports, made near January 1, 1854, shows the time
of their commencement, and the amount of deposits :—
RECAPITULATION OF DEPOSITS, JANUARY, 1854.
Name o f Bank.
Commenced.
Bank for Savings............................................................................
Seamens’ Bank for Savings...........................................................
Bowery Savings Bank...................................................................
Greenwich Savings Bank..............................................................
Manhattan Savings Bank..............................................................
Merchants’ Clerks’ Savings Bank................................................
Emigrant Industrial SavingsB ank..............................................
Broadway ' “
“
......................................
East River
“
“
......................................
Irving Savings Institution...........................................................
Hew York Dry Dock Savings Bank.....................................
Knickerbocker Savings Bank......................................................
Mariners’ Savings B a n k ...............................................................
Sixpenny Savings B a n k ...............................................................
Deposits.
1819 $7,901,808
1829
6,478,677
1834
5,270,519
1833
2,323,071
1851
1,007,828
1848
840,898
1851
841,712
1851
438,509
1851
’ 419,080
1851
291,903
.......
591,024
1852
427,663
1853
36,649
1853
41,061
T o t a l.
26,910,402
The manner of investment of the funds, as far as given, is as follows:—
Bank for Savings.
Seamen’s .............
Bowery.................
Manhattan...........
Merchants’ Clerks’ ,
Broadway.............
East River............
Irving....................
Dry Dock.............
Knickerbocker.. , .
Mariners’ .............
Total..............
Stocks.
$ 5,400,006
2,863,500
2,124,231
574,540
353,055
181,841
143,990
37,690
10,000
154,357
32,615
Mortgages.
$ 2,553,433
3,067,050
2,378,414
3 14,358
395 ,91 0
186,700
250,445
158,565
5 10,850
222,782
Real Estate.
$30,000
1 5 1 ,15 7
125,707
11,476,825
10,038,507
402 ,69 4
Cash.
$ 380,422
352,826
642,165
118,930
91,923
23,907
73,755
14,645
71,741
70,174
50,524
4 ,0 3 4
1,779,216
AMERICAN STOCKS HELD BY FOREIGNERS.
The following general summary of American Stocks, held by foreigners, on the
30th of June, 1853, is derived from the report of the Secretary of the United States
Treasury:—
United States stocks..............................................
State stock s............................................................
113 cities and towns (bonds')...............................
347 counties (bonds)..............................................
985 banks (stocks)................................. ................
75 insurance companies (stocks).........................
244 railroad companies (stocks)...........................
Do.
do.
(bonds)...........................
16 canal and navigation companies (stocks).. . .
Do.
do.
(bonds).. . .
15 miscellaneous companies (stocks)...................
Do.
do.
(bonds)...................
T o ta l.
Total.
$58,205,517
190,718,221
79,352,149
13,928,369
266,724,955
12,829,730
3 09 ,89 3 ,9 6 7
170,111,552
35,888,918
22,130,569
16,425,612
2,858,323
$1 178
«R2
Held by foreigners.
$ 27 ,000,000
72,9 31 ,5 0 7
16,462,322
5,000,000
6,688,996
3 78,172
8,244,025
4 3,888.752
554,900
1,967,547
802 ,72 0
265 ,77 3
$ 1 8 4 ,1 8 4 ,7 14
103
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
I f the estimate of Winslow, Lanier & Co. be preferred, as to the amount of State
stocks held by foreigners, $110,972,108 must be substituted in the second line of the
second column, and the total will then be—
Aggregate o f stocks and bonds..............................................
Aggregate held by foreigners................................................
com mon or
the
banks of n e w
$1,1 78 ,5 6 7 ,8 82
222,225,315
Or l e a n s .
J ohn H. A lpuente, Secretary of State for Louisiana, publishes the subjoined state
ment of the Banks of New Orleans, on the 29 th of April, 1854:—
MOVEMENT OF THE BANKS.
SPECIE PAYING.
,-----Cash Liabilities.----- . .----------Cash Assets.-------,
Circulation.
Total.
Specie.
Total.
Citizens’ Bank, (Banking Department). $ 2,064,615 $4,068,207 $1,963,441 $ 5,575,116
Canal Bank.............................................
1,713,547
3,398,742
1,348,247
645,917
Louisiana B a n k .....................................
1,397,284
4,859,261
1,575,892 7,289,287
Louisiana State B a n k ........................... 1,568,915 5,972,051 2,126,393 7 ,128,932
Total............................................
6,744,361 18,298,261
7,014,973 25,452,652
FREE BANKS.
Mechanics’ & Traders’..................................................
Bank o f New Orleans.............................
5 92,795
Southern Bank.........................................
336,570
Union Bank.............................................
308,955
Total............................................
1,238,320
1,303,168
1,703,790
744 ,91 0
902,699
635,373
5 6 6 ,44 4
214,683
236,842
2 ,234,314
2,634,277
2,076,603
1,881,454
4,654,568
1,653,343
8,826,646
5,101
1,373
1,376
IN LIQUIDATION.
Consolidated Association.......................
4,125
TOTAL MOVEMENT ANO DEAD W EIGHT.
SPECIE PAYIN G.
Citizens’ Bank, (Banking Department.).
“
“ (Mortgage Department.)
Cp.nal <St Banking Company....................
Louisiana B a n k ........................................
Louisiana State B a n k .............................
Total..............................................
Liabilities,
Exclusive o f Capital.
$ 4,068,207 04
500,000 00
3,398,842 03
4,859,261 43
5,972,051 05
18,798,261 55
Assets.
$ 5,671,724
6,292,661
7,817,000
10,024,543
8,437,019
43
81
64
98
74
38,242,950 60
FREE BANKS.
Mechanics’ & Traders’ Bank......................................
Bank of New Orleans................................................
Southern Bank............................................................
Union B a n k .................................................................
Total................................................................
1,303,168
1,703,790
744,910
1,196,148
10
82
23
18
2,368,931
2,668,513
2,103,259
1,954,929
31
69
50
69
4,948,117 33
9,095,634 09
1,435,024 97
1 ,1 8 4 ,9 0 3 62
IN LIQUIDATION.
Consolidated Association................
.......................
TH E TH REE-D 0LLA R GOLD COIN OF TH E UNITED STATES.
It will be recollected that an act of Congress of February, 1853, directed the coin
age o f three-dollar gold pieces at the mint and branches. These coins are now in
circulation.
104
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
The obverse of this coin represents an ideal head, with the feathered cincture sym
bolic of America, the word “ liberty ” appearing on the band encircling the head, the
inscription, “ United States of America,” surrounding the whole. On the reverse is a
wreath composed o f some o f the staple productions of the United States, viz. wheat.,
cotton, Indian corn,and tobacco; the denomination and date being in the center.
As compared with the other gold coins, the devices and arrangement are novel, but
perhaps not less appropriate, and, together with the difference in the diameter of the
piece, will make it readily distinguishable from the quarter eagle, which approaches
it most nearly in value. It is 16-'20ths of an inch in diameter, and weighs 17.4 = oz.
16.125.
BANK STOCKS OF TH E STATES HELD BY FOREIGNERS,
The following summary statement of so many of the banks as have made returns
o f the amount of capital paid in, and of the amount thereof held by foreigners, on the
30th of June, 1853, is derived from the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, in an
swer to a resolution of the Senate calling for the amount of American Securities held
in Europe and other foreign countries:—
Number of
banks.
41
32
82
32
107
28
39
53
50
168
29
16
37
8
12
14
3
44
22
South Carolina....................................
13
G eorgia................................................
13
Alabam a..............................................
4
Louisiana..............................................
3
1
Tennessee ............................................
23
Kentucky.............................................
33
Missouri ................................................
6
Illin ois.................................................. .
17
Indiana.................................................. .
23
.
68
Michigan...............................................
6
8
State.
Maine................................aa..................
Vermont................................................
New Hampshire......................... '___
Boston ................................................
Other Massachusetts banks...............
Providence ...........................................
Other Rhode Island b a n k s...............
Connecticut.........................................
New York c it y ....................................
Other New York banks.....................
New Jersey.........................................
Philadelphia........................................
Other Pennsylvania banks.................
D elaw are.............................................
Baltimore..............................................
Other Maryland banks.......................
District of Columbia...........................
Virginia................................................
Total banks, including branches ..
985
Capital paid
in.
$4,352,625
2,793,000
3,142,458
25,005,800
19,755,000
10,511,100
3,402,161
13,795,734
43,340,482
24,861,699
4,739,580
10,900,000
8,521,970
1,140,000
7,523,693
2,211,210
847.568
11,004,915
4,443,015
13^033^27 5
4,585,400
2,211,300
9,145,520
240,165
'7,682”1*77
10,511,525
1,215,405
1,378,432
2^953^263
9,794,905
1,201,578
480,000
266,724,955
Held by
foreigners.
$48,500
16,145
100
381,410
56,740
7,000
23,500
1,734,645
40,350
2,760
153,320
14,110
323,436
26,015
26,000
165,925
55,550
604,100
2,548,400
341,500
79,200
40,800
6,688,996
In this summary are included, it is believed, all the banks that, on the 30tli of
June, 1853, had among their stockholders foreigners residing beyond the bounds of
the United States. From some twenty or thirty banks returns could not be obtained,
but they were, with a few exceptions, such as were very small, or had but recently
commenced business.
105
Commercial Statistics.
C O M M E R C IA L STATISTICS.
EX PO R TS OF TH E PRODUCTS OF TH E FO REST FROM TH E U NITED STA TES.
W e compile, from the report of the Register of the Treasury, the following state
ment of the quantity and value of the products of the forest exported from the United
States during the year ending 30th June, 1853 :—
Quantity.
Staves and heading.............................................................. 11.
Shingles.....................................................................................
Boards, plank, and scantling.....................................11. feet.
Other lumber.............................................................................
Masts and spars.........................................................................
Oak barks and other d y e s ......................................................
A ll manufactures of w o o d ......................................................
barrels.
Tar and pitch............ ....................................................barrels.
Resin and turpentine................................................ ...........
Fot and pearl ashes...........................................................tons,
Skins and furs....................................................
Ginseng........................................................................
lbs.
28,693 '
41,932
78,599
Value.
$2,578,149
123,743
129,628
118,894
2,294,122
59,144
454,715
3,421
230,726
1,406,448
334,321
796,101
133,813
The total products of the forest during the year ending June 30th, 1853, are valued,
according to custom-house returns, at $7,915,259.
EX PORT OF TH E PRODUCTS OF AGRICULTURE FROM TH E UJVITED STATES.
W e compile from the annual report of the Register of the Treasury the subjoined
statement of the export from the United States, for the year ending June 30th, 1853,
o f the various products of agriculture:—
BREADSTUFFS AND OTHER VEGETABLE FOOD, AND PRODUCTS OF AGRICULTURE.
Quantity.
W h ea t............................................................ bushels
3,890,141
F lo u r...............................................................barrels
2,920,918
Indian corn ........................................................ bush
2,274,909
Indian m ea l.....................................
bbls
212,118
Rye m eal........ .........................................................
8,910
Rye, oats, <&c.............................................................
Ship bread, <fcc......................................................bbls
121,281 )
“
“
kegs
56,089 j
Potatoes.............................................................. bush
225,905
Rice...................................................................tierces
67,707
Cotton, Sea Island................................................ lbs
11,165,165 )
“
other than Sea Island...............................
1,100,405,205 ]
Tobacco...............................................................lihds
159,853
Flax seed............................................................. bush
3,932
H em p.................................................................... cwt
2,413
Indigo..................................................................... lbs
36
Sugar, brown.
672,274
Hops...............
245,647
W a x ...............
376,693
Sugar, refined
5,155,057
Grain spirits.......................................................galls
360,633
Chocolate............................................................... lbs
73,851
Spirits from molasses........................................ galls
1,065,396
M olasses...................................................................
Vinegar......................................................................
Beer, ale, porter, and cider, bottles................. galls
133,979 )
casks .........................
17,390 j
Oil, linseed
18,266
Value.
$4,354,403
14,783,394
1,374,077
709,974
34,186
165,824
554,020
152,569
1,657,658
109,456,404
11,319,319
7,719
18,195
36
33,854
40,054
113,602
375,780
141,173
10,230
329,381
17,582
20,443
64,677
15,468
106
Commercial Statistics.
The total value of exports of the growth, produce, and manufacture of the United
States for the year ending June, 30th, 1853, according to the report of the Register of
the Treasury, was $213,417,697. The value o f the three leading products of the South
ern States, cotton, tobacco, and rice, amounted to $122,433,381, leaving a balance of
$90,984,316 for all other products and manufactures. ¥ e have omitted in this state
ment sugar, chiefly from Louisiana, as- only 672,274 lbs., valued at $33,854, was ex
ported during the year. The gold and silver coin exported amounted to $23,548,535,
which, if taken from the balance, ($90,984,316,) after deducting the value of the cot
ton, tobacco, and rice, leaves $67,435,781 for all other exports of the growth, produce,
and manufacture o f the United States. A portion of the tobacco exported, we know
not how large, is the product of the Northern and Western States. The leading agri
cultural exports of the northern and western ports of the Union consist of breadstuffs,
and including wheat, flour, Indian corn, Indian and rye meal, amounted in the year,
ending as above, to $21,256,034.
IM PO RTS OF BREADSTUFFS INTO GREAT BRITAIN.
THE TOTAL IMPORTS IN GREAT BRITAIN OF GRAIN, MEAL, AND
FLOUR, FOR
FIVE YEARS
PAST, AS MADE UP FROM THE OFFICIAL RETURNS, W E R E '.----
1850.
1851.
1852.
Kussia, Northern ports.
Do. Biack Sea ports.
Denmark & Duchies.. .
Prussia...........................
Hanse T ow n s................
Other ports of Germany
H olland.........................
France ...........................
Italian States................
Wallachia & Moldavia.
Other Turkish ports.. .
E g y p t............................
British N. Am erica.. . .
United States...............
Other countries.............
Quarters.
340,633
572,735
1,311,086
1,354,691
595,673
416,023
586,739
1,919,410
406,034
325,128
423,976
392,727
181,622
1,816,425
925,759
Quarters.
363,779
589,250
1,077,735
1,343,780
392,853
4 57 ,84 4
495 ,61 4
1,328,922
210,249
217,505
276,528
558,083
95,860
1,082,755
528,853
Quarters.
572,257
762 ,16 0
843,007
930,168
143,476
336,691
153,774
1,591,377
555,905
624,242
474,937
958,995
143,378
1,211,365
316,294
Quarters.
343,949
957,877
770 ,19 4
554,703
167,858
339 ,73 4
221,563
745,162
193,974
713,876
200,021
777,745
126,240
1,400,420
233,353
Total.......................
10,669,661
9,010,590
9,618,026
1849.
From
THE FOLLOWING IS AN OFFICAL STATEMENT
OF
THE: IMPORTS
From
Russia, Northern ports.
Do. Black Sea ports.
Denmark <fe Duchies...
Prussia...........................
Hanse T ow n s...............
Other ports o f Germany
H olland.........................
France ...........................
Italian S ta tes...............
Wallachia & Moldavia.
Other Turkish ports... .
E g y p t ............................
British N. America___
United States...............
Other countries.............
Quarters.
47,716
446,501
241,751
616,612
329,369
167,448
306,411
7 3 8 ,83 3
279,680
46,9 72
116,415
128,273
141.266
613,601
481,627
Total.......................
4,802,475
1859.
1851.
10,173,135
7,746,669
OF W HEAT
FLOUR INTO GREAT BRITAIN FOR FIVE YEARS
1849.
1851
Quarters.
634 ,40 4
1,070,483
947,015
1 ,177,764
305,044
363,075
170,762
714,242
237,755
665,106
744 ,08 4
643,129
189,357
1,821,484
489 ,36 3
AND W HEAT-
:—
1852.
1851
Quarters.
69,084
669,529
162,207
835,650
222,289
158,655
293,465
1,145,146
117,323
70,035
65,523
247,235
80,394
537,080
256,698
Quarters.
35,700
663,984
168,768
696,175
100,987
163,734
66,414
1,193,433
241,852
164,374
175,565
533,191
129,680
911,855
84,700
Quarters.
27,112
706,622
218,834
452,293
49,487
130,144
124,963
459 ,41 8
65,104
86,139
40,841
394,668
110,133
1,231,893
67,562
Quarters.
252.242
818,930
294,926
1,145,845
223,914
185,417
57,732
341,444
164,255
227,143
251,343
357,906
168,021
1,582,641
164,100
4,830,263
5,330,412
4,164,603
6,2S5,86U
107
Commercial Statistics.
D O TIES COLLECTED AT BOSTON.
The annexed statement exhibits the amount of duties collected at the port of Boston
in each of the past sixteen years, distinguishing the amount paid on merchandise
brought in American and foreign vessels:—
American,
1 8 3 8 .....................
1 8 3 9 ................... .
1 S 4 0 ..................... ..............
1 8 4 1 ................... .
1 8 4 2 .....................
1 8 4 3 .....................
1 8 4 4 .....................
1 S 4 5 .....................
1 8 4 6 .....................
1 8 4 7 .....................
1 8 4 8 .....................
1 8 4 9 .....................
1 8 5 0 ..................... ..............
1 8 5 1 ......................
1 8 5 2 ......................
1 8 5 3 .....................
44
26
2,364,306 75
80
18
84
70
52
64
65
45
68
3,903,440 17
85
25
32
Total.
$2,411,155
3,294,829
2,456,926
3,226.683
2,780,186
3,491.019
5,034,945
5,249,634
4.872,510
5,448,361
4,908,827
5,037,310
6,127,817
6,496,527
6,293,050
7,696,193
Foretell.
$ 105,958 51
160,315 38
92,419 47
213,599 33
236,437 86
757,884 98
1,234,067 44
1,222.297 48
1,241,825 52
1,512,036 16
1,118,559 75
1,429,702 16
2.224.377 29
2,596,704 50
2,466,622 38
3,137,415 68
95
65
21
13
04
82
14
00
16
82
20
84
45
35
63
00
In the year ending June 30,1853, the amount of duties was upwards of a million of
dollars more than in any previous year. The foreign trade of Boston has increased
very rapidly since the Cuuard steamers commenced running to that port.
EX PO R TS AND IM PO RTS OP CHILI.
The official custom-house report of the foreign trade of Chili for six months of 1853
shows a total of $5,152,900 imports, against $6,501,000 exports. England stands first
in importance, the United States next. The totals to England, France, the U. States,
Germany, <fcc., were as follows:—
Imports.
England and dependencies.....................
France and dependencies.......................
United States (Atlantic).........................
California...................................................
Germany....................................................
Brazil..........................................................
P e r u ...........................................................
A ll other countries...................................
Exports.
$2,117,472
430,928
1,446,771
913,865
302,148
59,008
657,511
576,297
907,432
Total, six months.............................
$6,504,000
SH IPS CLEARED FROM LONDON TO AUSTRALIA.
Mr. R. P. Mitthofer, shipping agent at London, furnishes the following statement of
the amount of “ register tonnage ” of ships cleared from the port of London for Aus
tralia from the 1st of January to the 31st of March inclusive, compared with the ton
nage for the same period in 1853:—
A delaide..........................................tons.
Melbourne................................................
S yd n ey....................................................
Launceston..............................................
Hobart T o w n ..........................................
Geelong....................................................
Melbourne, Sydney, Ade. and Geelong.
Total
Loading
April 1.
1854.
Loading
April 1.
Jan. 1 to
March 31.
1854.
J a n .1 to
March 31.
1 853.
7,679
20,190
15,952
15,962
2,401
3,367
4,211
1,250
5,678
26,393
14,142
1,492
2,369
1,726
1,694
4,024
9,240
11,039
1,876
4,789
2,530
2,195
1853.
5.291
17,205
10,287
1,165
3,381
2,451
1,730
55,050
53,494
35,693
41,463
108
Commercial Statistics.
The total for the first three months of 1854 includes 13,262 tons cleared in January,
18,845 in February, and 22,943 in March. The total cleared from London for Aus
tralia during 1853 -was 287,332 tons, (559 ships,) and in 1852, 155,787 tons, (277 ships.)
PRICES OF GRAIN IN ENGLAND AND OTHER PA R TS.
AVERAGE PRICE OF W HEAT AND OATS PER QR. IN ENGLAND AND W ALES FOR TW EN TY-SIX
YEARS, ENDING
Year.
1 8 0 2 ........................
1 8 0 3 ........................
1 8 0 4 ........................
1 8 0 5 ........................
1 8 0 6 ........................
1 8 0 7 ........................
1 8 0 8 ........................
1 8 0 9 ........................
1 8 1 0 ........................
1 8 1 1 ........................
1 8 1 2 ........................
1 8 1 3 ........................
1 8 1 4 ........................
1 8 1 5 ........................
1 8 1 6 ........................
1 8 1 7 ........................
1 8 1 8 ........................
1 8 1 9 ..................... .
1 8 2 0 ........................
1 8 2 1 ......................
1 8 2 2 ........................
1 8 2 3 ........................
1 8 2 4 ........................
1 8 2 5 ........................
1 8 2 6 ........................
1 8 2 7 ........................
1853,
Wheat.
8. d.
9
1
57
5
1
87
76 9
1
78 11
94 5
3
5
8
106 6
1
72
63 8
76 2
0
8
72
3
11
2
7
5
0
7
9
9
AND W H E AT SINCE
Year.
1 8 2 8 .................
1 8 2 9 .................
1 8 3 0 .................
1 8 3 1 .................
1 8 3 1 .................
1 8 3 3 .................
1 8 3 4 .................
1 8 3 5 .................
1 8 3 6 .................
1 8 3 7 .................
1 8 3 8 .................
1 8 3 9 .................
1 8 4 0 .................
1 8 4 1 .................
1842 ...............
1 8 4 3 .................
1 8 4 4 .................
1 8 4 5 .................
1 8 4 6 .................
1 8 4 7 .................
1 8 4 8 .................
1 8 4 9 ............
1 8 5 0 .................
1 8 5 1 .................
1 8 5 2 .................
1 8 5 3 .................
PRICES OF W HEAT IN FOREIGN PORTS, PER QR., IN
8
Dantzic...................................
Dantzic, high mixed............... ___
Leghorn .................................
Rostock...................................
Trieste.....................................
H am burg...............................
Petersburg.............................
G enoa......................................
N a p le s....................................
Konigsberg
....................... ___
B ordeaux...............................
Marseilles...............................
Nantes.....................................
Odessa.....................................
Ancona...................................
Stettin.....................................
Bilboa......................................
Gal at z .....................................
New Y ork............................... ____
Philadelphia...........................
Montreal.................................
Taganrog....................... ........
Alexandria.............................
Constantinople.......................
Archangel...............................
.
52
42
43
____
....
____
____
____
1802.
Wheat.
s. d.
5
3
66
3
4
8
52 11
2
4
9
55 10
4
6
66 4
64 5
5
2
3
9
9
____
____
5
69
50
6
6
4
7
-0
41
1852-3, MOSTLY
1852.
d.
8.
d.
0 to 51 6
0
54 6
48 0
0
0
48 0
43 0
0
0
46 0
0
39 0
42 0
0
0
43 0
6
51 0
46 0
0
46
0
0
0
43 0
4
32 10
40 0
0
0
49 0
46 6
0
0
27 0
0
47 4
0
44 8
0
40 0
0
34 6
0
35 9
6
34 6
0
34 0
0
Oats.
8.
d.
22 6
22 9
24 5
25 4
20 5
18 5
20 11
22 0
23
1
23 1
22 5
26 6
25 9
22 5
19 3
18 3
20 7
22 6
23 8
28 7
20 6
17 6
16 5
18 7
19 1
20 11
TAKEN IN DECEMBER.
8
.
67
71
62
70
62
64
40
66
65
56
SO
56
7S
39
66
66
70
21
56
54
58
30
36
40
28
1853.
d.
d.
8.
0 to 70 0
0
73 0
0
70 0
73 0
0
0
70 0
75 0
0
43 0
0
68 0
0
68 0
0
63
0
0
84 0
0
0
67 0
0
81 0
4
46 0
70 0
0
0
70 0
74 0
0
25 0
0
0
62 0
60 0
0
60 0
0
0
32 0
38 0
0
46 0
0
0
30 6
109
Commercial Regulations.
EXPORTS OF THE PRODUCTS OF THE SEA FROM THE UNITED STATES,
W e compile from the Report of the Register of the Treasury, on the “ Commerce
and Navigation of the United States for the year ending June 30th, 1S53,” a state
ment of the quantity and value of various products of the sea, exported during the
year above mentioned. This statement, it will be seen, embraces the products of the
whale, including whale and other fish oil, spermaceti, whalebone, and candles, fish,
dried, smoked, and pickled.
Value.
Quantity.
$1,418,845
1,131,098
321,989
223,247
1,063,705
2,825,069
112,600
343,992
131,665
371,607
14,807 )
89,409
2,027 j
Oil, spermaceti.......................................... gallons.
Oil, whale and other fish........................................
W halebone.........................................................lbs.
Spermaceti candles................................................
Fish, dried or sm oked.................................... cwts.
Fish, pickled, in barrels..........................................
Fish, pickled, in kegs...........; .................................
The total value of the products of the sea exported during the commercial year
ending as above stated is, $3,279, 413.
EXPORT OF ANIMALS AND THEIR PRODUCTS FROAI THE UNITED STATES,
COMPILED FROM THE REPORT OF THE REGISTER OF THE TREASURY FOR THE YEAR
ENDING JUNE 30TH, 1 8 5 3 .
Quantity.
.bbls.
. .lbs.
..No.
B e e f...................
Tallow ................
Hides................
Horned cattle. . .
Butter.................
Cheese . . . . . . .
P o r k ...................
Hams and bacon
L ard...................
Live hogs...........
Horses................
Mules.................
Sheep.................
W o o l..................
lbs.
bbls.
..Ibs.
No.
Value.
126,041')
8,926,598 !
25,955 j
1,076 J
2,658,911 >
3,763,932 )
129,881 ■)
18,390,027 !
24,435,014 f
22 J
1,390 )
1,337 )
3.669
216.472
$2,214,554
862,343
6,202,324
246,731
17,808
26,567
The total value of animals and their products for the year ending June 30th, 1853, is
______________________
$7,915,259.
PRICES OF WHEAT AT ALBANY FOR 61 YEARS.
The following table, showing the price of wheat per bushel at Albany, New York,
on the first of January in each year, from 1793 to 1854, has been prepared from
tables kept at the office of the Van Rensselaer Manor at Albany :—
1 7 9 3 ...
1 7 9 4 ...
1 7 9 5 ...
1 7 9 6 ...
1 7 9 7 ...
1798 . .
1 7 9 9 ...
1 8 0 0 ...
1S01__
1 8 0 2 ...
1 8 0 3 ...
1 8 0 4 ...
1 8 0 5 ...
1 8 0 6 ...
1 8 0 7 ...
1 8 0 8 ...
. . $0 75
. . 1 00
. . 1 37*
. . 2 00
. . 1 50
. . 1 25
.. 1 18f
.. 1 56*
.. 1 81*
.. 1 00
..
..
..
2 00
1 43*
1 37*
1 8 0 9 ...
1 8 1 0 ...
1 8 1 1 ...
1 8 1 2 ...
1S 13...
1 8 1 4 ...
1S15. . .
1 8 1 6 ...
1 8 1 7 ...
1 8 1 8 ...
1 8 1 9 ...
1 8 2 0 ...
1 8 2 1 ...
1 8 2 2 ...
1 8 2 3 ...
1 8 2 4 ...
..
..
..
1 56*
1 76
1 87*
..
1 87*
..
..
..
..
1
2
1
1
75
25
871
75
75
..
1 25
1 8 2 5 ...
1 8 2 6 ...
1 8 2 7 ...
1 8 2 8 ...
1 8 2 9 ...
1 8 3 0 ...
1 8 3 1 ...
1 8 3 2 ...
1 8 3 3 ...
1 8 3 4 ...
1 8 3 5 ...
1836 . .
1 8 3 7 ...
1 8 3 8 ...
1 8 3 9 ...
1 8 4 0 ...
. . $1 00
..
..
..
..
..
1
1
1
1
1
00
00
75
00
25
..
..
..
.i.
..
1
1
1
1
2
25
00
00
50
25
..
1 75
1841___
1842___
1843___
1844___
1845___
1846___
1847___
1848___
1849___
1850___
1851___
1S52___
1853___
1854___
*
$1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
00
25
87*
00
93*
18*
12*
31 *
18*
18*
12*
00
18*
75
Commercial Regulations.
110
COMMERCE OF GLOUCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.
During the year ending June 30tb, 1853, there arrived at Gloucester, from foreign
ports, 24 American vessels and 183 foreign vessels. Total number of arrivals from
foreign ports 207. These vessels brought cargoes of molasses, sugar, coffee, cocoa,
salt, coal, wood, lumber, Ac., Ac. In the same time 204 vessels cleared for foreign
ports. Gloucester owns nearly 31,000 tons of shipping; being 500 tons more than
the port o f Salem, and 5,000 tons more than Portsmouth, N. H. 41 vessels were
built last year, being more in number than in any district in New England, except
Waldoboro’, Bath, and Boston. The vessels built at Gloucester averaged a little
more than eighty tons each. The present season will show a great increase of ton
nage built in that district. Newburyport and Boston are the only places in Massa
chusetts that exceed Gloucester in the amount of tonnage built last year.
C O M M E R C IA L R E G U LA TIO N S.
NEW INSPECTION LAW OF MARYLAND.
The provisions of the law passed at the late session of the Maryland Legislature, to
“ regulate inspections in the city of Baltimore,” are as follows:—
S ection 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland, That from and
after the first day of May next, on which day this act shall go into effect, any free
white citizen of the State of Maryland, on application to the clerk of the Court of
Common Pleas in the city of Baltimore, and paying to the said clerk, as the case may
be, the sum hereinafter named, shall be entitled to receive a license to act as inspector
of the article mentioned iu the license, and the several sums to be paid for licenses
shall be as follows: For a license to act as inspector of leather, $150 ; for a license to
act as inspector of lumber, $150; for a license to act as a gauger of casks and in
spector of liquors, $150 ; for a license to act as inspector and corder of firewood, $150;
for a license to act as inspector of lime, $150; for a license to act as inspector of
ground black oak bark, $100 ; and for a license to act as inspector of coal, $150; and
no license shall authorize any inspector to act as such out of the limits of the city in
which the same may have been granted ; and any person licensed to act as inspector
in said city, and who shall act as such in any city in which he has no license, shall
subject himself to the penalties hereinafter provided for the punishment o f persons
acting as inspectors without license; and no license shall continue in force for a longer
period than one year from the day of its date.
S ec. 2. And be it enacted, That any person not having a license to act as such in
spector, who shall act as inspector of any of the articles named in the first section of
this act, shall forfeit and pay to the sheriff of the city, as the case may be, a sum
equal to double the price of the license to act as inspector of said article, as prescribed
in the first section of this act, and penalty to be imposed as a fine by the court having
criminal jurisdiction iu the city on presentment or indictment by the grand jury, and
conviction iu due course of the law, and one-third of the penalty shall be paid by the
sheriff to the informer, who is hereby declared competent as witness, and the residue
shall be accounted for by the sheriff to the treasury of the State, as other fines and
forfeitures are required to be accounted for: provided, however, that nothing in this
act shall be construed to forbid the manufacturer or the actual and bona fide owner
of any article or merchandise from marking or stamping thereon, or on the package
containing the same, the quantity or quality of the same.
S ec. 3. And be it enacted, That any person or persons may buy or sell, export or
otherwise dispose of any of the articles mentioned in the first section of this act, with
out having the same inspected, measured, or gauged by any inspector, but in all cases
of difference between the buyer and seller, as to the quantity, quality, or measure
ment of any of the said articles, either party may call in any inspector of the article
authorized to act in the city where the article may be situated, and the judgment o f
the inspector shall bind the parties.
S ec . 4. And be it enacted, That the fees for inspections shall be the same as those
now fixed by law; no person shall be entitled to license or inspect, or shall act as in
Commercial Regulations.
Ill
spector of any article in the manufacturing, vending, or trading in which he is engaged
individually or as a partner, or as an agent, clerk, or employee of a trader, vender, or
manufacturer, and that before any person shall act as inspector under the provisions
of this act, he shall take and subscribe an oath in the usual form, that he will hon
estly and faithfully discharge the duties of said office, to be administered to him by
the clerk of the court granting the license at the time said license is granted.
S ec. 5. And be it enacted, That fish imported into the city of Baltimore, which has
been inspected in any other State o f the Union, shall not be subjected to re-inspection,
unless expressly required by the buyer or seller.
S eo. 6. And be it enacted, That all sums of money received by the clerk o f the
Court of Common Pleas of the city of Baltimore for license under the provisions of
this act, shall be accounted for and paid into the treasury at the times and in the
manner required in regard to moneys received for licenses to retailers of merchan
dise.
S eo . '7. And be it enacted, That the qualities heretofore existing by law in any
kind o f lumber or timber sold in the city of Baltimore, shall be abolished, and hereaf
ter it shall be sold by measurement.
S ec . 8. And be it enacted, That the licenses hereinbefore required to be issued by
the clerk of the Court of Common Pleas' o f the city of Baltimore, shall be prepared
and countersigned by the controller o f the treasury department, and the said clerk,
shall, on or before the first Monday of May in each year, and as often thereafter as
may be necessary, make application to the said controller for such number o f said
licenses as may probably be signed by the said clerk for one year.
COMMERCIAL REOULATIOiyS AT SAN FRANCISCO.
Important changes have been made in the schedule of charges on sales, forwarding
insuring, etc., merchandise. The following are the rates of commissions, charges, etc.,
as revised, corrected and adopted by the Chamber of Commerce, San Francisco, No
vember 3, 1853:—
SCHEDULE
1 st .---- KATE OF COMMISSION ON BUSINESS W IT H
FOREIGN
COUNTRIES, AND
W IT H THE ATLANTIC STATES, W H E N NO SPECIAL AGREEMENT EXISTS.
Sale of merchandise with or without guaranty........................................per cent.
10
Purchase and shipment of merchandise with funds in hand.................................
5
Without funds in h a n d .............................................................................................
74Goods received on consignment and afterwards withdrawn on invoice c o s t.. .
5
Indorsing bills o f exchange when desired.
....................................................
24Purchase or sale of vessels........................................................................................
24
Collecting freights......................................................................................................
24
Collecting general claim s....................................................................... .. ; ...........
5
Purchase and sale of specie, gold dust, or bullion................................................
1
Entering, clearing, and transacting ships’ business on vessels with cargo from
foreign ports............................................................................................................
$200
Entering, clearing, and transacting ships’ business on vessels with cargo from
the United States ports, where no other commission is earned......................
200
Do. on vessels in ballast...........................................................................................
50
Collecting and remitting moneys on sums over $500............................ per cent.
5
Collecting and remitting delayed or litigated accounts........................................
10
24
Disbursements of vessels with funds in hand........................................................
Do. without funds in h an d.............................................................................................
5
Do. of vessels in distress...........................................................................................
5
Receiving and paying, or remitting moneys from which no other commission
is derived................................................................................................. per cent
Landing and reshipping goods from vessels in distress, on invoice value, or in
its absence, onmarket value.................................................. ..............per cent.
5
Receiving, entering at the custom-house, and forwarding the goods, on invoice
amount.....................................................................................................percent.
Effecting commission marine insurance, on amount insured.................................
1
Collecting general average on sums less than $5,000 .................................
10
Do. on sums over^ 5,000.................................................................................................
5
24
24
Commercial Regulations.
112
SCHEDULE 2D.— KATE OF COMMISSION ON BUSINESS W IT H IN THE STATE, W H E RE NO SPE
CIAL AGREEMENT EXISTS.
Sale of merchandise with guaranty.......................................................... per cent.
Purchase and shipment of goods, with funds or security in hand.......................
Do. without funds or security in hand....................................................................
Sales of bills of exchange with indorsement...........................................................
Do. without indorsement.........................................................................................
10
5
3
1
S a le o r p u rc h a se o f v e s s e ls .......................................................................................................
2J
Purchase or sale o f specie, gold dust, or bullion....................................................
Chartering of vessels or procuring freigh t............................................................
Collecting freights......................................................................................................
Outfits of vessels, of disbursements.........................................................................
Collecting moneys, when no other commission is earned......................................
Receiving and forwarding g o q d s .............................................................................
Collecting bills protested, or delayed and litigated accounts.............................
Brokerage....................................................................................................................
1
5
5
5
5
2J
10
2£
SCHEDULE 3 d .— KATES OF STORAGE ON MERCHANDISE.
Measurement goods per month $2 per ton of 40 cubic feet. Heavy goods $1 50 per
ton o f 2,000 pounds—or in either case the amount actually paid. The consignee to
have the option o f charging by weight or measurement. A fraction of a month to be
charged as a month.
SCHEDULE 4 t h .— CONCERNING D ELIV ERY OF MERCHANDISE, PAYMENT OF FREIGHTS, ETC.
When no express stipulation exists, per bill of lading, goods are to be considered de
liverable on shore.
Freight on all goods to be paid or secured to the satisfaction of the captain or con
signee of the vessel, prior to the delivery of goods.
Goods must be received by the consiguee after notice being given of the ship’s readi
ness to discharge in five days, when not otherwise stipulated in the bill of lading.
After the delivery to the purchaser of merchandise sold, no claims for damage, de
ficiency, or other cause, shall be admissible, unless made within three days, and no such
claims shall be admissible after goods sold and delivered have once left the city.
SCHEDULE 5 t h .— CONCERNING FOREIGN BILLS OF LADING.
When foreign bills o f lading do not expressly stipulate the payment of freight in a
specific coin, loreign currency shall be reckoned according to the United States value
thereof, and payment may be made in any legal tender of the United States.
Where foreign bills of lading expressly stipulate that the freight shall be paid in a
specified coin, then the same must be procured if required, or its equivalent given, the
rate to be determined by the current value at the time in San Francisco.
SCHEDULE 6 t h .----CONCERNING RATES OF TARES.
To be allowed as by custom in New York.
The Chamber of Commerce of San Francisco was organized May 1, 1850; Incor
porated November S, 1851. Officers for 1853 : President, Beverly C. Sanders; First
Vice President, Geo. Lewis Cooke; Second Vice President, Geo. Clifford; Secretary,
Treasurer, and Librarian, Lewis W. Sloat; Committee of Appeals, D. L. Ross, S. B.
Thomas, J. J. Chauviteau, Edwin Herrick, W. T. Coleman, I. Friedlauder.
BIACUQUUV0 CURRENCY, ISLAND OF PORTO RICO.
TO COLLECTORS AND OTHER OFFICERS OF THE CUSTOMS.
T reasu ry D epartm en t,
Slay 1st, 1854.
Since the date of the General Instructions, No. 21, transmitted to you on the 10th
ultimo, this department has been advised by the consul of the United States at St.
Johns, in the island of Porto Rico, that the authorities of that island had determined,
on the 20th March last, that, after that date, the value of the silver dollar of the United
States of the coinage of 1853 and after, should be at the rate of one hundred and eighty
cents Macuquino, or eight per cent premium over the Macuquino currency o f the said
island of Porto Rico.
You will be regulated accordingly, in your estimate of duties on invoices of goods
from said island arriving at your port.
JAMES GUTHRIE, Secretary o f the Treasury.
r
Journal o f Insurance .
JOURNAL
OF
113
INSURANCE.
LIFE INSURANCE,
CONSTRUCTION OF INSURANCE POLICY----CREDITOR’S RIGHT TO INSURE HIS DEBTOR’ S LIFE.
The Supreme Court of New York (City) made iu April, 1854, the following decision
in the case of the Mutual Life Insurance Company o f New York vs. Ambrose Wager,
Judge Mitchell on the bench :—
This was an action to recover back the amount of a policy of insurance paid to de
fendant, on the ground that the policy was fraudulently obtained. It appeared that
in the year 1845 the defendant effected with plaintiffs a policy of insurance on the life
of W. Frisbee, of Rhinebeck, for $2,500. Frisbee lived for about six years after the
policy was effected, aud then died, and the plaintiffs paid the amount of it to the de
fendant." They now seek to recover it back, on the grounds that when the policy was
effected, and for some time before, Frisbee was in consumption, and also that he was
not indebted to the defendant to the amount of the policy, or to any extent.
Medical and other witnesses were examined at both sides, as to Frisbee’s health at
the time the policy was effected, and afterwards; from which it appeared that for
many years before his death he was affected with chronic bronchitis, and that he some
times spit blood; but it did not appear that the spitting of blood was of such a char
acter as to denote consumption, or disease of the lungs. It also appeared, that when
the policy was made the plaintiffs were informed that he had a chronic bronchitis. As
to his not being in debt to the defendant, several witnesses, who were intimate with
Frisbee, testified that they were not aware that he was indebted to the defendant.
But the negative testimony was met by the positive testimony of other witnesses, who
deposed that defendant was constantly in the habit of advancing money to Frisbee.
The court charged the jury. The two most important questions for them to deter
mine were, first, had Frisbee a spitting of blood within the meaning of the policy, or
any disease that would shorten life ? If he had either of those diseases, the plaintiffs
were entitled to recover. If he had neither of those diseases, the plaintiffs cannot re
cover on that ground. Or if he had either or both of those diseases, and that defend
ant had no knowledge of it, then the plaintiffs cannot recover. There must have been
one or the other of those diseases, and it must have been known to defendant. As to
the meaning of “ spitting of blood,” the definition I give of it is, any spittiug of blood
which would tend to shorten life, or be as dangerous to life as any one of the diseases
mentioned in the policy, being rupture, fits, dropsy, asthma, or spitting of blood. But
it must have existed at the time the policy was effected, or antecedent to it.
The only other question of law is, as to the rights of the company to recover, be
cause the defendant had no interest in the life of the person insured. It is said that
he had an interest in it, because he was his creditor. If he informed the company,
when the insurance wa being effected, that it was made for what was then due to him
by Frisbee, and also for what advances he would afterward make him, then those ad
vances would be protected by the policy. But if the whole of those advances did not
amount to $2,500, then he would be entitled to no more than he advanced; and if he
recovered $2,500, and there was not so much due to him by Frisbee, then the company
would be entitled to the difference. In regard to Frisbee’s state of health, there was
no doubt that in 1841 he had a chronic bronchitis, and that from that time to his death
he had a severe cough in the morning, and threw up mucus, and was relieved; but it
was not very frequent or severe, as it only required the attendance of a doctor twice.
But that does not come within the medium of the policy, and I think the fair conclu
sion is, that at the time the policy was made, Frisbee was not in consumption. If
after the policy was made, defendant had knowledge of Frisbee’s state of health, that
would not affect the policy. If it were a mere'Wager policy, the plaintiffs are entitled
to recover. But if the jury come to the conclusion that advances were made by de
fendant to the amount of the policy, and that Frisbee, at the time the policy was made,
had no disease within the meaning of the policy, or that if he had it was unknown to
defendant, then they should find for defendant.
Verdict for defendant. The court also awarded $100 to the defendant, on the
ground that the suit was improperly brought.
9
x VOL. XXXI.---NO. I.
8
114
Journal o f Insurance.
PR O PERTY DESTROYED BY F IR E IN SAN FRANCISCO,
A late number of the A lta C alifornia contains an elaborate account of the third
annual celebration o f the San Francisco Fire Department. After the reading of an
ode written for the occasion, the Hon. E dward S tanley delivered an oration, from
which we make the following extract, showing the loss o f property by fire since
May 4th, 1850:—
$
“ With all the energy of our people, aided by some of the best from other climes—
by the lively, impetuous, enterprising countrymen of Lafayette— by the indomitable
energy and resolute spirit of the English and Irish— by the industrious and steady
German, much was still wanting. This want was supplied by the organization of our
fire companies. For in 1849, when men of foresight and judgment began to believe a
city would be founded here, when stores were erected and dwelling houses built, the
fire came, and in a few hours how many bright prospects were blasted 1 How many
houseless and unprotected heads were wandering here, that a few hours before were
comfortable, and calculating on long years of happy enjoyment? How many millions
o f property were destroyed by fire in a day, before your organization ?
Let a few facts, which an intelligent gentleman, an active member of one of your
companies, has furnished me, answer:—
On December 24, 1849, fire destroyed property amounting to...............
May 4, 1850, property amounting to..........................................................
June 14, 1850, property amounting to........................................................
September 11, 1850, property amounting t o ............................................
October 81, 1850, property amounting to..................................................
December 14,1850, property amounting t o ..............................................
$1,250,000
4,250,000
8,500,000
1,000,000
250,000
1,000,000
In one year.............................................................................................
On May 4, 1851, property amounting to....................................................
June 22, 1851, property amounting to........................................................
$11,250,000
,
2,500,000
In eighteen months...............................................................................
Fires since that time ...................................................................................
$26,150,000
1,500,000
T ota l............................................................................... ........................
$27,250,000
12000.000
In a period o f eighteen months, more than twenty-five millions were destroyed;
since that time, more than two years, not two millions! not as much as was destroyed
at a late fire in New York. And may we not now, when with pride we behold what
our city now is, may we not say, if you seek for any monument of what our firemen
have done— ‘ Walk through our streets and look around you V ”
STOCKS IN INSURANCE COMPANIES HELD BY FOREIGNERS.
No. o f companies.
Place.
B oston................................................
Other Massachusetts.........................
New York and Brooklyn................. ............
Philadelphia......................................
Baltimore............................................
Charleston, South Carolina___ ___ ............
M obile................................................
32
Capital paid
iu.
$2,7 86 ,4 5 0
981,100
5,S46,000
2,042,820
586,280
2
Held by foreigners.
$ 3 ,0 0 0
None.
192,352
101,020
None.
None.
350,000
81,800
Richmond, Virginia...........................
Frederick, Maryland.........................
190,080
97,0 00
None.
None.
Total............................................
$12 ,82 9 ,7 3 0
............
3
$ 378,172
The number of insurance companies in the country is not known; but it is to be
presumed that few, if any of them, except in the cities above-mentioned, have any
foreign stockholders.
Nautical Intelligence .
115
MARINE LOSSES BY BOSTON COMPANIES,
The new ship Troubadour, of Boston, Capt. Pedrick, from Newburyport for New
Orleans, was lost on Berry Islands, 26th of March, 1854. She was a good ship, of
1,200 tons, and was on her first voyage. She was owned by Messrs. Fisher & Co.
There was insurance to the amount of $95,000 on vessel and freight, at the following
offices in Boston :—
Vessel.
Alliance.
China . .
Neptune.
Freight. Total.
$15,000
15.000
15.000
Vessel.
$5,000 $20,000 H o p e ..........
5,000
20,000 Washington
3,000
18,000 Warren . . .
$15,000
10,000
T o ta l.......................................................... ....................... $70,000
Freight.
Total.
$2,000 $17,000
........... 10,000
10,000 10,000
$25,000 $95,000
The ship Saxony, of Boston, from Halifax for Mantanzas, has also been wrecked off
Cape Florida. The vessel is insured in Boston for about $20,000.
The brig Salisbury, of Newburyport, lost on Berry Islands, is insured in Boston at
the Alliance office.
POLICY OF INSURANCE— AVERAGE LOSS— SE T-O FF.
3
Where the claim of a plaintiff i for an average loss on a policy of insurance on
goods, the defendant cannot set up a counter demand for other matters, or, in technical
language, cannot plead a set o ff; it being a rule of law that a plea of set-off cannot be
pleaded to a demand for unliquidated damages, and it has been invariably considered
that a claim for an average loss on a policy of insurance is a demand for unliquidated
damages.— Castelli vs. Boddington, 20, Law Times Rep., 64.
NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE
NOTICE TO M ARINERS.
EXHIBITION OF A NEW REVOLVING LIGHT AT NORTH RONALD3HAY, AND ALTERATION OF
THE START-POINT LIGHT FROM A REVOLVING LIGHT TO A FIXED LIGHT.
1.
NORTH RONALDSHAY LIGHTHOUSE.
The Commissioners of the Northern Lighthouses hereby give notice that a new
lighthouse is being built upon the Island of North Ronaldshay, in Orkney, the light
of which will be exhibited on the night of Friday the 1st September, 1854, and every
night thereafter, from the going away of daylight in the evening, to the return of day
light in the morning.
The following is a description of the lighthouse and the appearance of the light, by
Mr. David Stevenson, Engineer to the Commissioners :—
The lighthouse is in N. lat. 59° 23' 15" and W. long. 2° 23' 38" ; it stands on the
northern point of the Island of North Ronaldshay, and by compass it bears from
Moul head of Papa-Westra W. N. W. £ N., distance 15 nautic miles; and from StartPoint of Sanday Lighthouse, S. S. W. £ W., distance j miles.
The North Ronaldshay Light will be known to mariners as a revolving light, pro
ducing a bright flash of the natural color once in every 10 seconds. It will be visible
all round the compass. The lantern is elevated 140 feet above the level of the sea;
and the light will be seen at the distance of about 18 nautic miles, and at lesser dis
tances, according to the state of the atmosphere.
6
2.
START-POINT LIGHTHOUSE.
The Start-Point Light, which is
miles from North Ronaldshay Light, being at
present a revolving light, producing a bright flash once in every minute, the Commis
sioners further give notice, that on and after the night of Friday, the 1st September,
1851, when the new revolving light at North Ronaldshay is to be exhibited, the pres
ent revolving light at Start Point will be changed to a fixed light o f the natural
color. By order of the Board,
A LEX . CUNNINGHAM, Secretary.
N autical Intelligence.
116
NAVIGATION INTO SPITHEAD,
NOTICE TO MAKINEKS.
Tin m t v H ouse, L
ondon
, 3d
May,
1834.
Pursuant to tlie intention expressed in the Notice from this House, dated the 5th
ultimo, a floating light vessel has been moored on the west side of the channel, near to
the Warner shoal, and a light is now exhibited therefrom every night from sunset to
sunrise, for the purpose of facilitating the navigation of vessels into and out of Spithead during the night-time.
The light at this station is of the natural color, revolves, and- shows a bright flash
once in every minute, and the vessel is moored in 13 fathoms at low-water spring tides,
with the following marks and compass bearings:—
The water mill at St. Helen’s, half its breadth open of St. Helen’s sea-mark, S. W.
by W. -1 W. The outer end of Ryde Pier, between the towers of Osborne, N. W. by W .
Noman’s Land Buoy, N. W. by N. Horse Elbow Buoy, N. E. £ N. Dean Tail Buoy,
E. S. E. Bembridge light-vessel, S. f E.
By order,
.1. HERBERT, Secfetary.
INVENTION FOR R EEFIN G SAILS OF V ESSELS,
The Portsmouth Journal says: Mr. Wni. H. Foster, of that city, has perfected his
invention for reefing sails, and that it is satisfactory to scientific gentlemen and expe
rienced seamen who have witnessed its operation. The yard does not revolve like
that which was tried in England many years ago, but is fastened to the barrel in the
usual manner. The sail is also attached to the yards in the old way. It works en
tirely upon the principle of the pulley. It is simple, but exceedingly ingenious. The
weight of the topsail yard, in being lowered by loosening the halyards, is directly ap
plied to the reefing and furling of the sail at the same time. A single hand on deck,
however incredible it may seem, is enabled to take in each reef, even to close reef,
and furl any sail in less time than a single minute.
LIGHTHOUSE AT W 1N TER T0N ,
%
NOTICE TO MARINERS.
T r in it y H o u s e , L
on d on ,
May 4,1854.
Notice is hereby given that, with the object of rendering the lighthouse at Winterton more distinctly visible from vessels at sea during the daytime, the tower is about
to be colored red. The buildings around it will continue white, as they are at present.
By order,
J. HERBERT, Secretary.
M Y STE R IES OF TH E OCEAIV,
A paper containing the results of various observations made in the coast survey by
A. D. Bache, was read before the Scientific Association at its late session in Washington.
Among other interesting passages was one relating to the shape of the floor or bottom
o f the ocean, showing that some extraordinary depressions exist along our own coast.
The following outline of the remarks upon this subject is quoted from the N ational
In telligen cer ; —
For instance, on the seaward line abreast o f Charleston, from the shore to sixty miles
out, the depth increases pretty gradually, till at that distance it has acquired a depth
of one hundred fathoms. But it soon deepens with great rapidity, as if on the side
o f a mountain, until at about eighty miles out the ocean bottom is more than six hun
dred and fifty fathoms from the surface. This continues forward less than ten miles,
when the depth as suddenly decreases to not more than three hundred and fifty fathoms,
which so goes on only a few miles, when it again deepens to about five hundred fathoms,
with subsequent fluctuations. There is, therefore, a submerged mountain peak or
ridge between these poiuts, of a truly remarkable character. The differences in the
temperature of the water vary almost precisely according to the change of contour of
the bottom, showing that the temperature at great depths is much modified by the
propinquity of the ocean’s bed. It appears that the Gulf Stream, whilst certainly not
Buperficial, does not run to the bottom, for off Cape Florida, at twelve hundred fathoms,
^ e water in summer is of a temperature of 38° Fahrenheit, a degree below the
ayerage Winter temperature much further north.
117
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS.
RAILROAD STOCKS HELD BY FOREIGNERS.
The following is oDe of the tables communicated to the Senate of the United States
by the Secretary of the Treasury, for the purpose o f showing the amount of American
securities held by foreigners on the 80th of June, 1853
From returns made, with a few exceptions, by their own officers, (222 railroads:)—
C a p it a l a u t h o r iz e d ..........................................................................................
C a p it a l p a id i n .................................................................................................
C a p it a l h e ld b y f o r e i g n e r s ........................................................
B o n d s o u t s t a n d i n g ..........................................................................................
B o n d s h e l d b y f o r e i g n e r s ............................................................................
T o t a l o f c a p it a l p a id in a n d b o n d s o u t s t a n d in g ............................
T o t a l o f c a p it a l a n d b o n d s h e l d b y fo r e ig n e r s ...........................
$ 3 8 0 ,2 0 1 ,1 0 0
2 5 6 ,7 5 0 ,4 2 2
7 ,0 4 4 ,0 2 5
1 4 3 ,9 5 8 ,8 6 8
3 6 ,1 2 5 ,1 7 2
4 0 0 ,7 0 9 ,2 9 0
4 3 ,1 6 9 ,7 7 7
American Rail
R e tu r n s fr o m 2 2 o t h e r r a ilr o a d c o m p a n ie s , p a r t o b t a in e d fr o m th e
a n d p a r t o b t a in e d f r o m b r o k e r s :—
road Journal,
C a p it a l p a id i n ....................................................................................................
B o n d s o u t s t a n d i n g ............................................................................................
$ 5 3 ,1 4 3 ,5 4 5
2 6 ,1 5 1 ,6 8 4
S u p p o s in g th e p r o p o r t io n o f c a p it a l s t o c k a n d b o n d s h e l d b y fo r e ig n e r s in th e s e
c o m p a n ie s t o b e th e s a m e as in th e c o m p a n ie s fr o m w h ic h re tu r n s h a v e b e e n d i r e c t ly
r e c e iv e d , w e h a v e th e f o l l o w i n g r e s u l t s :—
C a p it a l p a id i n .................................................................................................
$ 3 0 9 ,8 9 3 ,9 6 7
Capital held by foreigners........................................................
B o n d s o u t s t a n d i n g ...............................................
B o n d s h e ld b y f o r e ig n e r s ............................................................................
T o t a l o f c a p it a l p a id in an d b o n d s o u t s t a n d in g ..............................
T o t a l o f c a p it a l a n d b o n d s h e ld b y fo r e ig n e r s .............................
8,025,990
1 7 0 ,1 1 1 ,5 5 2
4 8 ,8 8 8 ,7 5 2
4 8 0 ,0 0 5 ,5 1 9
5 1 ,9 1 4 ,7 4 2
T H E RAILROADS OF TH E STATE OF NEW YORK.
*
In the Merchants’ M agazine for May, 1854, (vol. X X X ., pp. 631-8,) we published
very complete tabular statements of operations of all the railroads of Massachusetts
•for the year 1853, carefully compiled for our magazine from the annual reports made
to the Legislature o f that State. AVe are now indebted to W il l ia m J. M c A l p in e , Esq.,
State Engineer and Surveyor, for an official copy of his Report on the Railroads o f the
State of New York, for the year 1853. It is a very able, full, and complete document.
The manner adopted by Mr. M c A l pin e of preparing these tables, furnishes the means
o f detecting many of the errors; and it is believed that the publication o f the errors
will be found one of the most effectual means of inducing more care in the preparation
o f the reports hereafter.
We. w ill n ow la y b efore our readers M r. M c A l p in e ’s a dm irable abstract o f th e re
p ort, w h ich cov ers 4 24 o cta v o p ages, and in a future nu m ber o f th e Merchants' M aga
zine w e shall g iv e the m ost im portant tabular statem ents o f the operations o f the dif
ferent roads in the State.
The length o f all the railroads in operation in the State i s ................... miles.
2,432
The length of railroads laid is about....................................................................
2,497
The length o f double track in addition to the above is .....................................
664
The number of locomotives in use is.............................................................. No.
586
The number o f passenger cars in use i s ..............................................................
834
The number o f baggage and freight cars in use i s ............................................
6,895
The number of miles run by passenger trains is a b ou t................... miles.
6,594,963
The number of miles run by freight trains i s ............... .............................
4,227,807
Total number of miles r u n .....................................................................
10,822,770
118
Railroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
T h e w h o le n u m b e r o f m ile s t r a v e le d b y th e p a s s e n g e r s is a b o u t ..........
T h e w h o le n u m b e r o f m ile s e a c h to n o f fr e ig h t w a s m o v e d , o r th e
^ n u m b e r o f ton s m o v e d o n e m ile , i s .......................................................................
The
The
The
The
5 8 1 ,5 7 2 ,2 9 8
2 4 6 ,5 5 4 ,4 9 2
c a p it a l s t o c k o f w h ic h is a b o u t ..................................................................
$ 1 1 2 ,0 3 8 ,1 8 1 4 5
c a p it a l s t o c k p a id in is a b o u t ....................................................................
6 1 ,2 3 8 ,8 2 9 2 2
a m o u n t o f fu n d e d a n d flo a t in g d e b t i s ..................................................
5 9 ,6 6 9 ,4 7 8 8 8
a m o u n t p a id fo r c o n s t r u c tio n a n d e q u ip m e n t i s ...........................1 1 7 ,7 0 7 ,6 2 0 5 8
T h e a v e r a g e d is t a n c e w h ic h e a c h p a s s e n g e r t r a v e le d w o u ld a p p e a r , fr o m th e fo o t in g
o f th e r e p o r t , t o b e 4 4 £ m ile s , an d th e a v e r a g e d is t a n c e w h ic h e a c h to n o f fr e ig h t w a s
m o v e d w o u ld a p p e a r t o b e 6 5 £ m ile s . B u t th e s e a v e r a g e d is ta n c e s s h o u ld b e s lig h t ly
in c r e a s e d , in c o n s e q u u e n c e o f a p o r tio n o f th e p a s s e n g e r s a n d fr e ig h t b e in g c a r r ie d o v e r
t w o o r m o r e r o a d s , a n d th e n u m b e r o f p a s s e n g e r s a n d t o n s o f fr e ig h t b e in g in t h o s e
c a s e s r e p o r t e d o n e a c h r o a d . T w e n t y -t h r e e r a ilr o a d c o r p o r a t io n s h a v e m a d e f u ll r e
p o r t s , fr o m w h ic h th e fo llo w in g s ta te m e n ts a re m a d e :—
The length of railroads is .............................................................miles.
The capital stock as per charter............................................................
“
“
subscribed..................................................................
“
“
paid i n ......................................................................
The amount of funded debt i s ..............................................................
The amount of floating debt..................................................................
The amount expended in grading and bridging.................................
The amount expended on superstructure...........................................
The amount expended in station buildings..........................................
The amount expended in engine houses and machine shops.............
The amount expended for land damages and fences.........................
The amount expended for engineering and agencies.........................
The amount expended for locomotives and cars.................................
The total amount expended in construction and equipment, includ
ing grading and superstructure..........................................................
The total amount expended in construction and equipment, includ
ing grading and superstructure, during the y ea r...........................
The whole length of road i s ....................................................... miles.
The whole length of second track laid on the above i s .....................
The number of locomotives............................. .......................................
Number of passenger and emigrant cars..............................................
Number of baggage and freight cars....................................................
Miles run by the passenger trains for the year...................................
Passengers carried in the cars, as reported*.......................................
The number of miles traveled by all the passengers.........................
Number of miles run by the freight trains..........................................
Miles of movement of the freight..........................................................
2,103
$54,748,800 00
50,137,263 03
47,480,865 04
43,346,781 27
7,111,590 64
35,457,962 75
7,681,097 75
3,214,424 73
1,209,205 76
7,781,299 73
3,254,501 64
9,686,520 77
The cost of maintenance of way (17 roads only reporting this item)
Charged to passenger business...............................
$874,895 50
“
freight business...................................
606,893 08
$1,447,876 65
T h e c o s t o f r e p a ir s o f m a c h in e r y on 18 r o a d s r e p o r t in g is
C h a r g e d t o p a s s e n g e r b u s in e s s ........................................
$ 8 1 7 ,5 7 0 51
“
fr e ig h t b u s i n e s s ............................................
5 6 4 ,7 7 1 35
1 ,4 0 3 ,1 5 4 8 1
T h e c o s t o f o p e r a t in g o n 19 r o a d s r e p o r t in g i s .............................................
C h a r g e d t o p a s s e n g e r b u s in e s s ........................................
$ 2 ,1 5 5 ,5 9 7 9 2
"
fr e ig h t b u s i n e s s ............................................
1 ,9 4 5 ,9 9 0 6 4
4 ,1 5 9 ,3 1 0 51
95,466,243 59
19,130,411 44
2,093
554
490
595
5,388
5,234,963
2,841,147
397,272,298*
3,564,807
219,454,492
T h e r e c e ip t s o n 19 r o a d s r e p o r t in g a r e : —
F r o m p a s s e n g e r s ..........................................................
f r e i g h t ....................................................................
o t h e r s o u r c e s .................................. ..................
$ 6 ,7 9 9 ,9 5 3 82
5 ,8 9 0 ,6 3 8 10
6 0 2 ,2 9 8 4 6
--------------------------
1 3 ,2 9 2 ,8 9 0 3 8
The actual number o f Passengers carried is considerably less than the number above stated.
119
Railroad , Canal, awe? Steamboat Statistics.
The payments, other than for construction, on 19 roads were:—
----------------------- § 1 1 ,2 7 9 ,9 7 6 38
T h e a v e r a g e c o s t o f co n s tr u c tio n a n d e q u ip m e n t p e r m ile o f r o a d o f t h o s e r a ilr o a d s
w h ic h h a v e r e p o r t e d th e s e ite m s , h a s b e e n a s f o l l o w s :—
F o r g r a d u a tio n , m a s o n r y , a n d b r id g e s fo r 2 ,0 6 6 m il e s ......................................
S u p e r s tr u c t u r e , in c lu d in g iro n , fo r d o . . ......................................................................
S ta t io n b u ild in g s fo r d o ......................................... *....................................... ....................
E n g in e h o u s e s a n d m a c h in e s h o p s fo r d o ..................................................................
L a n d a n d fe n c in g f o r d o ................ .....................................................................................
T o t a l ^exp en se p e r m ile o f c o n stru c tio n a n d e q u ip m e n t fo r 2 ,1 0 5 m ile s
o f r o a d ............................................................................................. .......................................
T h e a v e r a g e c o s t p e r m ile o f sin g le t r a c k :—
F o r g r a d u a tio n , m a s o n r y , a n d b r id g e s f o r 2 ,6 6 3 m i l e s .....................................
S u p e r s tr u c tu r e , in c lu d in g iron , fo r d o ..........................................................................
S ta t io n b u ild in g s fo r d o . ....................................................................................................
E n g in e h ou ses a n d m a c h in e s h o p s fo r d o .................................................................
L a n d a n d fe n c in g fo r d o . , . ..............................................................................................
A l l e x p e n s e s o f c o n s tru c tio n a n d e q u ip m e n t fo r 2 ,7 2 3 m il e s ........................
$ 1 7 ,1 6 2
1 1 ,9 1 5
1 ,5 5 5
585
3 ,7 5 L
61
61
87
29
30
4 5 ,0 9 1 8 4
$ 1 3 ,3 1 5
9 ,2 4 4
1 ,2 0 7
450
2 ,9 2 2
3 5 ,0 5 9
04
30
00
96
00
32
T h e n u m b e r o f l o c o m o t iv e s o n 2 ,0 7 6 m ile s is o n e t o 4-J- m ile s o f r o a d .
“
p a ssen ger cars
u
“
4£
“
it
a
r\ o o i f\f\ «
“tt
freight cars
“
“
0 38-100 “
The average mileage of the passengers for each mile run by the trains, 76. The
average distance traveled by each passenger is nearly 48 J miles. The average speed
o f the express trains when in motion is 40 miles per hour. The average number of
tons o f freight for each mile run by the trains is 62. The average distance each ton
o f freight was moved is 72£ miles. The average speed of the freight trains when in
motion is 16 miles per hour. The average weight of the freight trains, exclusive of
the freight carried, is 160 tons.
The roads reporting the amount of freight carried show an aggregate of 2,831,336
tons passing over those roads, but as the same freight is frequently'carried over two
or more connecting roads, on each of which it is reported, the footing of these several
amounts does not show the true aggregate of the tonnage harried. As near as can be
ascertained, about one and a half millions of tons of freight were carried on all the
railroads of the State.
The reports furnish the number of tons of each classification o f freight carried, but
as the aggregate returns must necessarily contain the errors above mentioned, these
aggregates are only useful to show the proportions of each description of freight ship
ped, which are nearly as follow:—
The tonnage of the product of the forest is i per cent of the whole tonnage; product
o f animals,
per cent; vegetable food,
per cent; other agricultural products,
per cent; manufactures,
per cent; merchandise,
per ceht; unclassified articles,
17 per cent.
20
12
22
4
11
THE AVERAGE COST OF MAINTENANCE OF WAY PER MILE OF ROAD.
Charged to the business of
Passengers.
Freight.
For
For
For
For
repairs of road bed..............................................
repairs of buildings.............................................
repairs of fences..................................................
ta x es...............
$374
22
11
46
31
87
38
87
A ll expenses of maintenance of w ay. . . .......... ..
$455 43
Fur all expenses, both passengers and freight, $699 12.
$259 61
17 62
83
38 75
6
$322 81
THE AVERAGE COST OF REPAIRS OF MACHINERY PER MILE RON BY THE TRAINS.
Cents.
Cents.
repairs o f engines..................... ' .............................
repairs of cars..................................................................
repairs o f tools............................................................
oil and waste....................................................................
8.78
6.07
0 .6 4
0.97
7.70
7.30
0.70
1.10
For all repairs o f machinery.............................................
16.45
16.80
For
For
For
For
120
Railroad , Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
THE AVERAGE COST OF REPAIRS OF MACHINERY PER PASSENGER AND PEE TON OF
FREIGHT CARRIED ONE MILE.
Mills.
Mills.
1 .1 0
1 .2 0
F o r r e p a ir s o f e n g i n e s ...................................................................
F o r r e p a ir s o f c a r s ..............................................................
0 .8 0
1 .2 0
F o r r e p a ir s o f t o o ls . . . . ..........................................
0 .1 0
0 .1 0
F o r o i l a n d w a s t e ..................................................................................
0 .1 1
0 .1 0
F o r a ll r e p a ir s o f m a c h in e r y ............................................
2 .1 1
2 .6 0
THE AVERAGE COST OF OPERATING TEE ROADS PEX MILE RUN BY THE TRAINS.
Charged to the business o f
Passengers.
Freight.
Cents,
Cents.
F o r o ffic e e x p e n s e s , s ta t io n e r y ...... ........
0 .9 0
1 .1 0
A g e n t s a n d c l e r k s ...............................................................................
4 .3 0
5 .5 6
....
9 .3 3
L a b o r , lo a d in g a n d u n lo a d in g .......................................................
P o r t e r s , w a t c h m e n , a n d s w itc h m e n ...... ....................................
2 .6 0
2 .3 3
W o o d a n d w a t e r s ta tio n a t t e n d a n c e ........................................
0 .9 3
0 .1 9
C o n d u c t o r s , b a g g a g e , a n d b r a k e m e u ........................................
5 .0 0
6 .1 0
E n g in e m e n a n d f i r e m e n .................................
5 .0 0
6 .1 0
F u e l — co s t, a n d l a b o r o f p r e p a r i n g ...........................................
1 3 .6 0
1 5 .5 0
O il a n d w a s te fo r e n g in e s ..............................................
1 .8 3
2 .2 4
O il a n d w a s t e f o r c a r s ............................................ .........................
0 .6 9
1 .3 0
L o s s a n d d a m a g e t o g o o d s a n d b a g g a g e ................................
0 .5 1
1 .3 0
D a m a g e s f o r in ju r ie s t o p e r s o n s .................................................
1 .2 0
0 .2 2
D a m a g e s t o p r o p e r t y a n d c a t t l e ....................
0 .4 8
0 .4 4
G e n e r a l s u p e r in t e n d e n c e .................................................
1 .2 0
1 .3 8
C o n t in g e n c ie s ....................................
4 .5 0
3 .9 0
A ll expenses o f operating.............................................
42.80
51.61
THE SAME PER PASSENGER AND P E R TON CARRIED ONE MILE.
For office expenses and stationery......................
Agents and clerks.........................................
Labor, loading and unloading.................. ........................
Porters, switchmen, and watchmen..................................
Wood and water station attendance................
Conductors, baggage, and brakemen................................
Engine and firemen...........................................................
Fuel— cost, and labor of preparing..............
Oil and waste for engines..............................
Oil and waste for cars........................................................
Loss and damage to goods and baggage . . . ...................
Damages for injuries to persons........................................
Damages to property and cattle..........................
General superintendence....................................................
Contingencies.............................................
A ll expenses of operating..............................................
Mills.
0 .1 0
0.54
....
0.34
Mills,
0 .2 0
0 .9 0
1.50
0 .3 0
0.64
0.64
1.10
0 .2 3
0.10
0.10
0.32
0 .0 6
0.11
0.52
1 .0 0
2 .5 0
0 .3 0
0 .2 0
0 .2 6
0.05
0 .1 0
0.20
0 .6 5
5 .5 6
9 .2 0
0.10
0.10
1.00
The average receipts per mile of road, are as follows:—
From passeDgers-........................................................ ................................
“ Freight ................................................................................................
“
Other sources.......................................................................... .. — .
$3,210 18
2,833 40
289 10
6,393
The receipts per mile ran by the trains are as follows:—
From passengers...................................................................................................
“ F r e ig h t ....................................................................................................
“ Passengers, freight, and other sources.........................................
The receipts per passenger per mile carried, was.....................................
“
ton of freight carried one mile.........................................
8®
$1 34
1 IS
1 56
1.15 cents.
“
2.8
Railroad , Canal, awe? Steamboat Statistics.
121
By comparing the foregoing average expenses with those furnished in the last report,
it will be observed that the cost of the repairs of the track per mile of road, exceeds
that of the preceding year nearly fifty per cent, but that the repairs of machinery per
mile run by the trains is about the same. The better condition of the track has pre
vented the expense for repairs of machinery from increasing with the increased rates
of speed which are now adopted. The expenses of operating the roads have increased
about twenty per cent over those of the preceding year, owing to the increased speed
of the trains, and to the higher price of labor.
The following statements, which are exhibited by the tables, will show how widely
the cost and expenses of the various roads differ from each other:—
Highest.
'Lowest.
Cost o f graduation and masonry.............per mile. $35,099 38
Superstructure........................................................ 25,218 02
Land and fences.......................................................
6,448 93
Construction and equipment................................... 81,812 16
Graduation and masonry, single track.................. 21,501 10
Superstructure, d o ........ ......................................... 12,150 50
Land and fences, do................................................
5,573 76
Construction and equipment, do............................ 50,131
68
Maintenance of way per mile run by passenger trains.
“
“
“
freight
“
Repairs of machinery per mile, passenger trains........
“
“
“
freight
“ .....
Operating machinery per mile, passenger trains..........
“
“
“
freight
“ ........ .
Repairs of machinery per mile run by passenger t’rns.
Repairs of engines..............................................................
“
cars..................................................................
“
tools................................. J............................
By freight trains, repairs of engines..'...........................
“
“
cars ....................................
“
“
tools ................................
COST OF OPERATING,
P assen g er a g e n ts.
F u e l ...........................
Conductors, etc . .
E n g in e m e n ...............
F r e ig h t a g e n t s . . . .
F u e l.....................
Conductors, etc . .
Enginemen...........
$5,540
5,040
1,080
16,848
5,200
4,896
1,140
16,040
Average.
57 $17,162 61
14 11,915 61
28
3,750 30
98 45,091 84
...............
52
32
...............
23 ...............
41
...............
Highest.
cents.
Lowest.
cents.
31.39
56.39
25.57
27.58
72.69
226.79
10.98
8.05
4.31
7.93
22.48
30.12
14.44
9.29
1.59
17.68
18.02
0.85
3.27
0.70
0.03
1.69
2.54
0.16
Average.
cents.
BY TRAINS.
Highest.
cents.
Lowest.
cents.
Average *
cents.
10.85
29.15
10.49
8.33
67.86
52.75
48.12
40.12
1.17
3.89
4.30
13.60
5.00
5.00
5.56
15.50
0.86
2.96
1.84
5.58
3.05
2.75
6.10
6.10
To obtain an accurate average, it has been necessary to reject some of the lowest
results, ami such of the reports as appeared to be evidently erroneous.
The tables, in some cases, show pretty plainly that these errors are caused either
by carelessness or design, probably for the purpose of reducing the expense of some
particular item.
The number of passengers carried on the cars, as reported by 20 roads,
w a s ................................................................................................................
The number of miles traveled......................................................................
The whole number of passengers injured....................................................
Of whom were k ille d .....................................................................................
The whole number of employees injured....................................................
Of whom were killed .....................................................................................
The whole number of others injured............................................................
Of whom were killed..................................................................
Making the total number injured..................................................................
Of whom were killed...................................................
5,172,154
390,677,283
19
11
97
56
90
67
203
130
122
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
One passenger was killed for every 35,516,116 miles traveled, and one passenger
was injured for every 48,834,660 miles traveled.
The classification of these accidents is as follow s;—
Passengers.
Employees.
Others.
Killed. Injured. Kil’d . . Injured. Kil’d. Inj’d.
Jumping on or off trains while in motion...
Fell or ihrown from the trains.....................
Collision of trains.........................................
Trains thrown from the track.......................
Run over while walking or standing on the
track............................................................
Collisions at road crossings...................
A t work on, or standing by trains...............
Standing on platform ...................................
Defective machinery.....................................
Other accidents.............................................
5
3
1
1
2
5
•
1
.
.
.,
1
9
4
16
,7
7
5
7
5
9
1
1
4
14
2
3
1
11
8
20
57
..
,.
.,
..
..
..
••
••
16
46
2
2
2
8
1
..
2
2
42
..
4
6
1
65
23
The whole number of passengers carried in the cars on
railroads, was
8,174,363
The number o f miles traveled.......................................* .............................. 397,272,298
19
The whole number of passengers injured.....................................................
Of whom were k ille d ......................................................................................
11
The whole number of employees injured......................................................
97
O f whom were killed........................................................................
56
The whole number of others-injured............................................................
93
Of whom were killed.......................................................................................
70
Making the total number injured...................................................................
209
O f whom were k ille d .....................................................................................
137
O n e p a s s e n g e r w a s k i l l e d 'f o r e v e r y 3 6 ,1 1 5 ,6 6 3 m ile s t r a v e le d , a n d o n e p a s s e n g e r
w a s in ju r e d for e v e r y 4 9 ,6 6 9 ,0 3 7 m ile s t r a v e le d .
The classification of these accidents is as follows:—
Killed. Injured.
Jumping on or off trains in m otion...............................................
Fell or thrown from trains.............................................................
Collisions of trains..........................................................................
Trains thrown off the tra ck ..........................................................
Run over while walking, standing, or lying on the track........
Colli; ions with vehicles at road crossings...................................
At work on, or standing by trains................................................
Standing on platforms....................................................................
Defective machinery........................................................................
Other accidents...............................................................................
14
19
9
5
57
10
5
3
7
7
Total....................................................... ...................................
136
5
8
13
5
17
2
16
4
3
73
It will be observed how few accidents have occurred to passengers from causes be
yond their own control. One passenger was killed from such causes for every
198,636,149 miles traveled, and one passenger injured for every 66,212,050 miles
traveled. Twenty-one per cent only of the accidents causing death, and thirty-three
per cent of the accidents not causing death to the employees, were from causes beyond
their control. By a comparison of the ratio of accidents and miles traveled in 1852
with that o f 1853, it will be observed that during the last year the passengers traveled
nearly three times the distance traveled in the former year before meeting with an
accident causing death, and one quarter farther before meeting with an accident not
resulting in death. These evidences of the increased safety of railroad traveling, both
to the passenger and the workman, will be as gratifying to the passengers of railroads
as they are to the public, especially when it is remembered that the speed of trains
has been greatly increased during the past year.
This is partly due to the better condition in which the track and machinery are now
maintained, and partly to the observance of greater care on the part of the travelers,
and to the exercise of greater skill on the part of the managers and workmen.
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics .
123
RATES OF TRANSPORTATION ON CANALS AND RAILROADS.
A correspondent of the Toledo Blade states that there exist great errors of opinion
and action in reference to the value of these modes of conveyance. For passengers,
the railroad has no rival in the canal; and for the transportation of most kinds o f
heavy freight, the canal is not less pre-eminent over the railroad. One great cause
of error lies in the fact, now becoming apparent among well-informed railroad men,
that many of our railroads, for the purpose of making a great show of business, have
carried freights at a loss. This is notorious in reference to the Northern Railroad be
tween Ogdensburg and Rouse’s Point, and o f the connected lines thence to Boston.
The through freights on the New York and Erie Railroad have, undoubtedly, been
below the cost to the company.
The following are the rates, according to the New York State Engineer, Mr.
McAlpin, of transportation between the seaboard and the West, by the various rail*
roads and water lines as now used :—
FROM BOSTON.
FROM NEW YORK.
PER TON OF
2,000
TER TON OF
POUNDS PER MILE.
2,000
POUNDS PER MILE.
Mills.
Hudson R iver..................................
Erie Canal.......................................
Western lakes, short voyage.........
Western lakes, long voyage..........
New York & Erie Railroad...........
Hudson River Railroad.................
New York Central Railroad.........
Western Railroad from Buffalo to
Chicago— average
7
11
10
5
24
31
Mills.
New England Railroad, from Bos
ton to Rouse’s Point.................
Northern, Rouse’s Point to Ogdens
burg............................................
Lower Ontario & Welland Canal
Western Road, Boston to Albany-
23
FROM QUEBEC.
25 St. Lawrence River & Canals
6
FROM PHILADELPHIA.
FROM NEW ORLEANS.
g Pennsylvania Canal to Pittsburgh.
6
9 Pennsylvania R. R., estimated___
10 Ohio River
9
Wabash
Erie Canal
Illinois Canal.............
Illinois River . . . . . .
20
7
19
35
8
FROM BALTIMORE.
14
12
24
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad . .
30
The charge on the Wabash and Erie Canal is probably based on information ob
tained o f the business of 1852.
Mr. McAlpin, in his late report to the Legislature of New York, says that his full
examination of the subject of railroad and canal transportation “ resulted in showing
that the aggregate cost of. the Central and Erie roads was much greater than that of
the Erie Canal, when its enlargement is completed, while their capacity was less than
one-fourth as great; and also, that the cost of transportation on these roads was three
times that of the Canal, and the charges more than double.”
His conclusion is, that railroads are not rivals of canals in the carriage of freight,
but auxiliaries, giving them more freight than they take away; and that no line of
railway is better located for a paying business, other things being equal, than in the
neighborhood o f a canal.
TH E CANALS AND OTHER PUBLIC WORKS OF NEW YORK.
NUMBER I.
PROGRESS OF INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS IN TIIE STATE.
The last annual report of W m. J. Me A l p i n e , Esq., who retired from the office o f
State Engineer and Surveyor, at the close of 1853, is a document of more than ordi
nary interest, furnishing, as it does, a brief retrospect of the public works of New York,
their past history, their present condition, and the effects, of their completion. The re
port is at once systematic, concise, and comprehensive, and we propose in the present
and subsequent numbers of the Merchants' Magazine, to embody under general heads,
the substance of the report, adopting the facts and generally the language of the au
thor. W e begin with t h e p r o g r e s s o f in t e r n a l im p r o y e m e n s t i n n e w y o r k .
124
Railroad , C a n a l awe? Steamboat Statistics.
The canals of this State have mostly been constructed at the expense of the State
government, and the railroads by private capital, aided in some instances by loans
and donations from the government. These works are more remarkable for their ex
tent than for the natural obstacles overcome, and required in their execution more
ability from their financial than from their engineering managers. The latter have, in
most cases, been restrained by the former from expenditures for any purpose not de
manded by the most rigid utility, and hence no opportunity has been afforded for
those exhibitions of engineering talent which have distinguished the profession in other
countries.
The State works, especially, have been constructed with an economy of expendi
ture that is hardly credited by the engineers of Europe. In some instances this econ
omy has been carried to such an extent as to require the works to be re-built in a
more permanent manner. Yet this policy has seldom proved injudicious, as the con
struction of the first works lessened the cost of those subsequently built, by facili
tating the transportation of the materials used, and by developing the resources of the
country and demonstrating the value of the improvement.
Thti State works exhihit the best specimens of the construction of earthen banks for
the retention of water, and of well arranged and durable masonry, which are to be
found in the world. In this respect, the enlarged Erie Canal and the Croton Aqueduct,
(built by the City of New York,) surpass any similar undertakings in the judicious per
manency of their various works.
The works of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, built by an incorporated company,
and those of the Chenango Canal, built by the State, furnish the most favorable speci
mens of a rigidly economical application of expenditure suited to the circumstances of
the respective cases.
The railroads of New York State show every variety of construction, from that
which involved the largest expenditure, to that which was executed with the most rigid
economy. The former has been chiefly caused by the progressive improvements which
have been made in the construction of this species of internal improvement. The en
gineers of this country began the construction of railroads by following the plans laid
down by their European brethren ; as the latter had unlimited command of capital, so
long as their plans were followed in this country the progress of the railroad system
was comparatively slow, because capital could not be obtained, and roads thus con
structed were not remunerative.
The Albany and Schenectady Railroad, in New York State, and the Baltimore and
Ohio, in Maryland, were commenced on these expensive plans, copied mainly from those
o f the Liverpool and Manchester Road, in England. The substitution of a gravel road
bed and wooden cross-ties for the expensive foundations of McAdamized stone, timber,
and cross-ties of the English roads, is due to an engineer of this State. This substitu
tion has caused a radical change in the system of railroad construction, not only in this
country but in Europe. The railroads of New York now furnish the best specimens
of large wooden bridges, locomotives, engines, and cars, and we hope soon to be able
also to record the successful application of wire suspension bridges to railroad pur
poses, which has been pronounced impracticable by European engineers.
The project o f improving the navigation of the Mohawk, and extending a waterline
across the portage to Lake Ontario, attracted the attention of the public men of this
State at a very early day.
The cost of transportation of furs and the Indian supplies between the interior lakes
and the Hudson was alluded to by the surveyor general in 1724, and the improve
ment, by means of a canal, of the rapids of the Mohawk, by the governor in 1768.
Immediately after the Revolution this subject was again brought forward. In 1784
a plan lor improving the Mohawk was proposed to the Legislature, and in 1791 they
directed surveys and estimates to be made for building canals across the portage from
the Mohawk to Lake Ontario, and from the Hudson to Lake Champlain. The follow
ing year they chartered a company who built canals and locks at the Little Falls, the
German Flats, and at Wood Creek, at a cost of $400,000.
In 1808 the surveyor general was directed to survey a route for a canal from the
Hudson to Lake Erie. He employed James Geddes, who reported that canals could
be made from Oneida Lake to Lake Ontario, around the Falls of Niagara, and on a
direct route from Seneca River to Lake Erie. Three years later a commission reported
that a continuous canal, on an inclined plane, from Lake Erie to the Hudson was prac
ticable, and would cost $5,000,000.
The Legislature of that year, 1811, directed the construction of the Erie Canal, but
the war prevented any further action until 1816, when a new commission was formed,
Railroad , Canal, atitf Steamboat Statistics.
125
■who employed Messrs. Broadhead, Wright, and Geddes, to commence the construction
of the Erie, and Mr. Garvin, that of the Champlain Canal. The following year the
dimensions of these canals were fixed at forty feet surface and four feet depth, with
locks ninety feet long and fifteen feet wide. The estimated cost of both canals was
stated at $7,750,000. (The actual cost was about $8,500,000.) Work was commenced
on the Erie Canal by the ceremony of breaking ground, July 4, 1817.
In 1819 the Canal Commissioners appointed Benjamin Wright principal, and Can
vass White and Nathan S. Roberts chief engineers. To Mr. White is due the arrange
ment of some of the most important plan and details of the works of the Erie Canal,
and also the discovery of the hydraulic cement rocks of Onondaga, which have con
tinued to furnish the supply of that article for the State works. A portion of the
middle section of the Erie Canal, and also of the Champlain Canal, was open for nav
igation in the fall of 1819, and the Erie Canal was completed in the fall of 1826.
In 1825 the Legislature directed the construction of the Cayuga and Seneca, and the
Oswego Canals, and surveys for fifteen other canals, amounting to seven hundred and
fifteen miles in length. The Oswego Canal was completed in 1828, and the Cayuga
and Seneca in 1829.
In 1829 the construction of the Chemung and Crooked Lake Canals was authorized.
The former was completed in 1833, and the latter in 1836, under the direction of
Holmes Hutchinson, as chief engineer.
The construction of the Chenango Canal was commenced in 1833, and completed in
1837, under the charge of John B. Jervis, as chief engineer. The Black River and the
Genesee Valley Canals were commenced in 1836. The two last named works are yet
unfinished.
In 1825 the Canal Commissioners stated that “ the great press of business on the
eastern end, before long, will exclude packet (passenger) boats from this section of
the canal.” * * * “ and it is presumed that the experience of two or three years
more will satisfy the public that it would be proper to commence the construction of
another parallel canal on the eastern section.”
The Legislature of 1834 passed an act directing double locks to be constructed east
of Syracuse, and in the following year directed the enlargement of the Erie Canal for
its whole extent.
The Canal Board determined the dimensions of the enlarged canal at seventy feet
surface and seven feet depth, with locks one hundred and eighteen feet long and eigh
teen feet wide.
The work was commenced in 1836 and prosecuted until 1842, when the embarrassed
condition of the treasury and the financial difficulties of the country induced the Legis
lature to direct a suspension of the work. A small amount of work has been per
formed annually since that date, chiefly for the purpose of bringing into use structures
and portions of the canals which had been nearly completed previous to 1S42, and
those which were necessary to replace the decayed sturctures, and those portions of
the canal the navigation of which was most embarrassed.
The Delaware and Hudson Canal Company was incorporated in 1823, and the work
was commenced in 1825, and completed in 1830. The canal is one hundred and eight
miles long, and as originally constructed had a surface width of forty feet and a depth
of three feet, with locks seventy-six feet long and eight-and a-half feet wide. Its di
mensions were enlarged in 1848, so as to allow the use of boats of nearly three times
the tonnage of those first built.*
In 1827 the Legislature loaned the company $500,000, and in 1829 $300,000 to aid
the completion of the work. Mr. Wright was, at first, the chief engineer, and was suc
ceeded by Mr. Jervis.
The Legislature, in 1825, directed William Campbell, who was afterwards surveyor
general, “ to locate and survey a good road from Lake Erie to the Hudson, through
the southern tier of counties.”
In 1826 the Legislature gave the first charter for a railroad from Albany to Schenec
tady, seventeen miles long, which was completed in 1830, by John B. Jervis, as chief
engineer.
In 1829, Dewitt Clinton, Jr., published a pamphlet giving a sketch o f the route for
a railway to connect the navigable waters of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiina,
Illinois, and Michigan, with those of the valley of the Mississippi. This route started
from Piermont, on the Hudson River, followed nearly on the line on which the New
3
• This was effected at a cost of $2,500,000, and a saving o f one-half the expense o f transportation.
,
126
Statistics o f Population etc.
York and Erie Railroad has since been built to the Alleghany River, and thence
through Northern Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, to the junction of Rock River and the
Mississippi, and thence to Council Bluffs on the Missouri *
The New York and Erie Railroad Company was chartered in 1832, and a survey of
the road made by Mr. Clinton at the expense of the general government. Another
survey was made in 1834, by Mr. Wright, at the expense of the State government.
In 1836 the Legislature loaned the company $3,000,000, which sum was subsequently
(in 1845) donated to them. The work on the road was commenced in 1835, but was
soon suspended. In 1838 it was resumed ; very little was however accomplished un
til 1845, when new parties took hold of it aud opened one-half of it in 1840, and com
pleted it to Lake Erie early in 1851. lloratio Allen was prominently connected with
this work as consulting, and T. S. Brown as chief engineer, during its construction.
The first link in the Central Line of Railroad wa completed in 1830, but it was
not until 184 3 that the whole line between the Hudson and Lake Erie was finished.
The continuation o f this line from Albany to New York was commenced in 1847, and
completed in 1851. The line through the northern part of this State was completed
in 1850. The other railroads of the State are generally tributaries of these main
trunk lines.
In 1838 the legislature made loans to the Ithaca and Owego, the Cannjohavie and
Catskill, and the Auburn and Syracuse Railroad Companies, to the amount of $637,700,
and in 1S40 to the Auburn and Rochester, the Hudson and Berkshire, the Tioga, the
Tonawanda, the Schenectady aud Troy, and the Long Island Railroad Companies, to
the amount of $648,000.
By the last returns made to this office of the several railroad corporations, and from
other sources, it is ascertained that there has been expended on all the railroads of
this State, the sum of $117,707,020 58, and that the number of miles in operation is
2,432.
3
STATISTICS OF PO P U L A T IO N , & c.
RESULTS OF THE CENSUS OF GREAT BRITAIN.
N U M B E R II.
L A W OF POPULATION IN GREAT BRITAIN.
The increase of population depends on many vaning elements; but it is not in
tended here to discuss at any length what is termed the Law of Population.
The increase or decrease of a people depends upon the age of marriage, the age of
parents when children are born, the numbers who marry, the fertility of the mar
riages, the duration of life, and the activity of the migration flowing into or out of the
country. These influences act more or less upon each other. The report here indi
cates the effect of a change in each element w hile the others remain constant.
. The numbers of the population bear a definite relation to the duration of life, or
to the mean lifetime. Thus, if the mean lifetime of a population is 30 }ears, then if
a year, and remain unifoim, the population will be 80 times
the births are
,
, or 3,000,000. Now, the births remaining the same, let the lifetime be gradu
ally extended to 40 years, then the population will become 4,000,000 ; or if the life
time is extended to 50 years, the population, fiom the extension of life alone, will rise
from three to five millions. The death-, upon this hypothesis, will be equal to the
births, and the some in number w hen the population is five as when it is four or three
millions. It is probable that the mean lifetime of the great body of the population
did increase from the year 1801 to 1821, when the inciease of population was great
est in Great Britain.
. I he interval from the birth o f one generation to the birth of their descendants of
the generation following, bears also a definite relation to the numbers, which increase
as the interval is shortened. Thus, if the population increases at the rate of 1.329
annually, and if the intervening time from generation to generation is 83£ years, it
1
100000
100,000
2
* Connected lines o f railroads are now completed or in rapid progress on the whole length o f the
route, and nearly on the line described by Mr. Clinton.
,
Statistics o f Population etc.
127
follows that the increase from generation to generation is 55 per cent, or that every
1,000 women are succeeded, at the interval of 33J- years, by 1,553 women; every two
couples, male and female, by three. If the interval is contracted, and the increase
from 1,000 to 1,553 takes place in 30 years, the annual rate of population increases
from 1.329 to 1.477 percent; and as we assume by hypothesis that the births and
the lifetime remain the same, the population would be ultimately one-ninth part more
numerous than it was under the former conditions. Early marriages have the effect
of shortening the interval between generations, and tend in this way to increase the
population.
.
3. An iucrease in the fertility of marriages will evidently cause an increase in the
population.
4. In ordinary times, a large proportion of the marriageable women of every coun
try are unmarried, and the most direct action on the population is produced by their
entering the married state. Thus, in the Southeastern division, comprising Surrey,
Kent, Sussex, Hants, and Berks, the number of women of the age of 20 and under the
age of 45, amounted at the last census to 290,209, of whom 169,806 were wives, and
120,403 were widows or spinsters. 49,997 births were registered in the same coun
ties during the year 1850, or 10 children were born in 1850 to every 58 women living
in 1851. Of the children, 46,705 were born in wedlock, 3,292 were born out of wed
lock; consequently, 36 wives bore in the year ten children, and of 366 unmarried
women of the same age, (20-45,) ten also gave birth to children. A change in the
matrimonial condition of a large proportion of the 120,403 unmarried women, out of
the 290,209 women at the child-beariog age, would have an immediate effect on the
numbers of the population; and, if continued, by increasing the rate of birth to the
living through successive generations, would operate on population like a rise in the
rate o f interest on the increase of capital.
5. The effect o f migration on the numbers of the population is evident. It is prob
able that the emigration of Irish has contributed to the increase of the population in
England, and it is certain that the emigration from the United Kingdom contributes
largely to the increase of the population of the United States. The emigrants are a
self perpetuating body in healthy climates, and they increase faster abroad than the
general population at home, as they contain an excess of the population at the repro
ductive age; so that if their numbers are added together it is certain that we get, in
the aggregate, a number much below the actual number of survivors. . The popula
tion.of Great Britain and Ireland, including the army, navy, and .merchant seamen,
wa» 21,272,187 in 1821, and about 27,724,849 in 1851 ; but in the interval, 2,685,747
persons emigrated, who, if simply added to the population of the United Kingdom,
make the survivors and descendants of the races within the British isles in 1821, now
(in 1851) 30,410,595.
. The numbers of the population are increased by the abundance of the necessaries
of life, and reduced by the famines, epidemics, and public calamities affecting the
food, industry, and life of the nation. The pestilences of the middle ages—the fam
ine, the influenza, and the cholera of modern times—are examples of one class of these
agencies; the security and freedom which England has latterly enjoyed, are exam
ples o f the beneficent effect of another class of influences, not only on the happiness
of the people, but also on the numbers which the country can sustain at home and can
send abroad to cultivate, possess, and inherit other lands.
The extent to which all these causes affect the increase of the population of Great
Britain, will ultimately be known by means of a continuous series of such observations
as have been commenced at the present census.
6
DECLINE OF THE POPULATION OF SPAIN.
The Clamor P u llico , a Spanish journal published at Madrid, presents in the follow
ing statement a deplorable picture of the decline of Spain:—
Under the Moors, the population of Spain was 30,000,000; it is now 15,000,000.
“When Granada was conquered, in 1787, it was defended by walls flanked by 1,030
towers. The kingdom, of which it was the capital, was 70 leagues long by SO broad,
ar.d possessed 32 cities of the first rank and 97 of the second. Granada, before its
fall in 14S7, contained 400,000 inhabitants, of whom 60,000 bore arms ; it now con
tains about 60,000 souls, all counted. The population of the whole kingdom of
Granada was 3,000,000. Malaga, in the seventeenth century, contained 80,000 in
,
Statistics o f Agriculture etc.
128
habitants; it now possesses only 60,000. Madina del Campo, in the seventeenth cen
tury, contained 60,000 inhabitants ; it now contains ,
.
Merida, at the same epoch, possessed 40,000 inhabitants; it now possesses only
5,000. In the sixteenth century, the diocese of Salamanca had 127 cities and villages;
it now has 13 only. Segovia, in 1725, had 5,000 families ; now 2,000. Seville, in the
seventeenth century, had a population of 300,000, of which 130,000 were employed
in manufactures; it now contains 96,000, all told. Toledo, in the fifteenth century,
had 200,000 inhabitants ; it now has 15,000. Valence, which in the year 1600 counted
a population of 600,000, now hardly numbers 60,000. In 1778, thei% were counted
1,511 abandoned villages in Spain, and the number has been increasing from that
time to this.
6000
CENSUS OF THE SANDWICH ISLANDS.
The Polynesian of March 18, 1854, furnishes the following summary of the census
returns, taken December, 1853:—
NATIVES.
Island o f Hawaii.................
“
Maui.....................
“
M olokai...............
“
Lanai...................
“
Oahu...................
“
K auai...................
“
Niihau.................
T o ta l.........................
Men.
12,443
8,995
1,799
317
9,551
3,672
392
Women.
11,750
8,425
1,766
282
8,264
3,054
398
Total.
24,188
17,330
3,565
600
17,S15
6,726
790
37,079
33,940
71,019
FOREIGNERS.
Island o f Hawaii................. .........
........
.......
T o ta l.........................
Natives.....................
259
244
42
Island of Oahu .
«
Natives and foreigners—grand tota l.......................................................
1,311
264
2,118
71,018
73,137
In 1778, Cook estimated the population of the group at 400,000; but probably the
real number was not over .300,000. In 1850, the number of inhabitants was 84,165.
The rapid diminution of population since 1849 is partly explained by the existence of
measles and smallpox, which were very fatal; but, aside from these extraordinary
causes, there is a gradual and regular falling off, which by many is supposed to amount
to as much as per cent yearly.
The district in which Honolulu is situated contains not for from 9,000 inhabitants,
o f whom 1,180 are foreigners.
8
S T A T I S T I C S O F A G R I C U L T U R E , & c.
AGRICULTURE IN GERMANY.
The Berlin correspondent of the London Times, writing to that journal, says:—
Among the earliest subjects that will engage the attention of the Zollverein con
ferences will he the reduction of the duty on iron— which the South German States,
particularly Wurtemberg, are preparing to oppose'energetically— and, even more
urgently than this, the facilitation of the internal traffic in grain, so as, if possible, to
obtain an internal free trade in corn. The excessive emigration that is now taking
place from the South of Germany— we may with propriety call it a Teutonic Exodus
— is mainly attributable to the dearness o f provisions, though there are of course
other troubles, of a political and social nature, which contribute to fill up their cup of
, .
129
Statistics o f A griculture etc
bitterness to overflowing. From Bohemia and Moravia we hear of hundreds of fami
lies constrained to live on grass and roots. In the Palatinate and Rheinhessen, for
merly remarkable for cheap living, the complaints of dear provisions have become
general. Potatoes cost six times, hay five times as much as they did thirty years ago.
Even in Prussia the price of corn (rye) in some parts has risen to sixty thalers (£9)
the wispel (*24 bushels)
Representations were lately made to the President of the Ministry and Minister of
Finance, stating that in Berlin, with the population over 400,000, there are at present
wispels o f rye on hand, of which
are already sold, and that prices
only about
have been rising steadily for many years past, and the supply not increasing. The
local statistics Of Berlin show that while house rent ha increased from certain local
causes, the octroi levied at the gates on meat and all cereals, whether converted into
food or not, had not increased in proportion to the increase of the population. By
some authorities on this subject, this diminution or want of extension in the supply is
attributed to the increased cultivation of tobacco ; in some parts of the South of Ger
many two thirds of the land that formerly produced wheat and potatoes now bears
tobacco. Many years ago the annual consumption of tobacco in Germany amounted
to 3 lbs. per head of the whole population, while in England it only amounted to
£ lb. The difference now is doubtless still greater than it was then. In Silesia alone
there are more than 4.000 acres devoted to the growth of this plant, which offers this
great attraction, that its conversion into cigars supplies labor for a number of hands
during tlie winter.
Another cause for the insufficient production o f corn may be found in the enor
mously increased cultivation of beetroot for sugar purposes— a subject of so much im
portance to England and Ireland that I shall return to it specially <n another occasion.
Agriiulture in general seems to be ilniving in Prussia. The aggregate value of the
annual produce of grain has increased by 50,000,000 thalers since the year 1820; that
o f cattle breeding by 60,000,000; taking both together as the produce of the land in
general, the present annual value amounts to 500,000,000 thalers, against 300,000,000
in 1820. 'Hie great increase is doubtless due to the number of railways, which admit
of the produce being brought to market; where there is no railway, the land has so
little value, that it does not pay the proprietor to manure or drain it. If he wants to
increase bis produce for any purpose, it pays him better to purchase a few hundred
acres more thau to spend money on those he has.
1,200
200
3
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIONS IN CALIFORNIA,
W e learn from the Pacific , that Mr. William Wolfskill, of Los Angeles, has fifty
acres of land, which affords the following quantity and variety of products:—
Thirty-five acres of grape-vine*, with about 1,000 plants to the acre, produce each
about 1,100 bbls., or 34,650 gallons of wine. Three acres of peach-trees, with 100
trees to the acre, average 40 lbs. to the tree, 12,000 lb*. Seventy pear-trees average
1,000 lbs. to the tree, 70,000 lbs. Forty apple-trees, 240 lbs. each, 76,000 lbs. Twen
ty orange trees, bearing about 2,000 each. Twenty-five fig-trees, about 300 lb . to the
tree. 'J en apricots, about 100 lbs. each. Ten citron-bushes, with about 20 each. Sixty
English walnut-trees, just beginning to bear. An olive-tree, and a few quinces.
The value of these pruducts on the ground is as follows:—
3
750 bbls. of wine distilled make 4,725 gallons of brandy, at
80 per gallon................................................................ .............
11,025 gallons wine, at $1 i er gallon....................................... ..
12.000 lbs. of peaches at 5 cents per lb.............................................
70.000 lbs of pears at 4 cents per lb..............................................
1.000 lbs. of apricots at 4 cents per lb..............................................
9 , 6 0 0 lbs. of apples at 10 cents per lb...............................................
40.000 oranges at 5 cents ea ch ..........................................................
200 citrons at 50 cents each................................................................
Figs, walnuts, and quinces, no sale....................................................
$1
Total....................................................................................................
$8,505
11,025
600
2,800
400
960
2,00C
100
$26 ,38 0
Mr. Wolfs-kill’s ranch is about 700 miles by land from his garden or vineyard, on
Punta Creek, in the valley of the (Sacramento. There, about 3,U00 head of cattle, and
VOL. XXXI.--- NO. I.
9
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
130
a hundred or two of horses range. And to amuse himself while herding his stock, he
has planted a fine vineyard which will begin to bear s o o d , and set out near 1 ,0 0 0 trees
o f various kinds of fruit. Among them he has some fine olive-trees. He is now deliv
ering a thousand head of cattle to the buichers at ?40 a head.
Mr. John Wolfskin has on the l’ unta some orange-trees that have lived through the
cold weather of this winter, and he is not without hope of getting them to bear.
JO URNAL OF M IN IN G AND M ANUFACTURES.
IRON MANUFACTURES OF THE WORLD.
The following statistics, so far as (hey relate to great Britain, are compiled from the
returns of I860, and from the recent trade and navigation returns:—
In 1850 there were 459 furnaces in the United Kingdom, nnd the annual yield of
iron was 2,380,000 tons. The following figures are said to represent the produce of
the respective countries named :—
United Kingdom .
.tons. 2,380,000 Austria............................ tons.
160,800
United States.. .
400.000 Sweden....................................
133,500
France................
348.000 Prussia.....................................
112,000
Russia.................
189.000
Total..............................................................................................................
3,123,300
In 1850, therefore, while Great Britain produced 2,380,000 tons, and imported
28,000 tons, her total export of iron and hardware amounted to 809,100 tons. She,
therefore, had left for home maikets, over 1,500,0(0 tons. In 1196, the quantity of
British iron made was 125,000 tons. The quanti'y of foreign iron retained for home
consumption was 45,600 tons. The total exports of iron and hardware amounted to
408 tons ; the total home consumption 110,000 tons. The contrast in 1850 is striking
indeed, as calculated to show the progress of this manufacture, the figures stand thus :
British iron made.............tons.
Foreign iron retained.............
2,380,000 I Iron it hardw’re exported, tons.
28,000 | Iron consumed at h om e.........
809,100
1,598,900
In connection with the foregoing, the following table will show not only the rate of
increase in the exports of iron, steel, and machinery, but also the gradually increasing
proportion which, in the periods given below, the value of these exports bore to the
total exports o f the country. In 1814 they amounted only to 4.0S per cent of the
per cent, amount
whole ; whereas in the present year they will probably exceed
ing as they do to 18.85 per cent in the first ten months of the year:—
20
Total value o f
exports.
Total value o f
iron, steel, haidware
and machinery.
1814............................................
£43,447,000
£1,772,000
1821............................................
35.826.000
2.900.000
1831............................................
37.102.000
3.514.000
1841............................................
51.634.000
5.062.000
1850............................................
71.367.000
9,033 000
1853, 10 months, end’g Nov. 5.
73.155.000
13,795,000
In 1825, the United Kingdom exported as follows:—
Iron and steel, wrought and unwrought......................................
Hardware and cutlery.....................................................................
Machinery and mill-works. ........................................................
Proportion p. ct.
to total revenue.
4.08
8.01
9.46
9.78
12.65
18.85
£1,048,000
1,392,000
212,000
T o ta l..............................................................................................
£2,652,000
The increase since that period may be inferred from the following figures, which ah
lude to the ten months ending Nov. 5, 1853:—
Iron and steel, wrought and unwrought......................................
£9.231,000
Hardware and cutlery.....................................................................
2,990,000
Machinery and mill-works..................................
1,574,700
Total
£13,795,700
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
131
Of countries which received the largest portions o f this enormous mass of exports,
the United States took not only by far the largest quantity of iron and steel, wrought
and unwrought, but also the largest quantity of pig-iron— the quantity exported in
1850 being 67,000 tons. Next to the United States stands Holland, 13,100; France,
11,710; Prussia, 10,950; Canada, 10,890; Denmark, 7,570; Italy, 7,400; and the
Hanseatic towns, 7,370 tons. Russia takes only 812, and Turkey 930 tons of pig-iron.
Of bar, bolt, and rod iron, the United States is also the largest customer— taking, in
1850, 263,530 tons. Next in order stands Canada, 46,340; East Indies, 36,200; Italy,
26,770; Turkey, 14,890 ; Hanseatic towns, 10,440; Holland, 9,350; and Portugal,
6,890 tons; Russia taking only 706 tons.
The following table gives the total values of these three branches of iron manufac
tures exported to each country:—
Countries.
Value of iron and
steel, wrought
and unwrought.
United States......................
British North America-... ____
East Indies.......................
Hanseatic towns...............
I t a ly ................................. ____
Holland.............................
Australia...........................
T u rk e y ..............................
West Indies............... . .
Brazil................................. ____
Spain .......................................
France................................
Prussia...............................
Portugal...........................
Belgium............................. ____
Russia................................
Denmark............................
4 79 ,22 0
222,670
78,100
39,570
Value of
hardware
and cutlerv.
£ 1 ,0 9 4 ,9 0 0
138,630
135,070
151,170
57,060
52,810
115,530
40,8 70
62,1 30
80,970
43,980
9S.480
9 ,640
17,960
41,600
58,740
13,570
Value of
machinery.
£ 2 7 ,3 1 0
6,150
49,9 70
84,530
59,910
18,720
20,290
14,170
36,270
29,000
73,150
59,108
5,860
13,770
22,680
173,920
20,610
Total.
£ 3 ,4 62 ,6 2 0
624,000
560,320
472 ,87 0
339,540
271,130
280,100
167,100
173,800
188,070
194,400
227,370
82,690
96,830
103,800
268,710
56,760
THE MINES OF NEW JERSEY.
Mr. Miller, in his discourse before the Historical Society, mingles geological and
historical information in it very agreeably and profitably.
The war of the Revolution had made terrible ravages in the State, yet her means
for defence had not been exhausted ; her mines and minerals were safe in the depths
of the earth, beyond British power. At the call of liberty, these were poured forth
from her mountain caverns to arm the soldier for battle. The Andover Works were
held by the government till the close of the war ; the mines of New Jersey for five
years furnished iron and steel for the continental army. Peace came, and with it the
ill fortune of these mines began. They were forsaken by the government, and heaps
of ruins mark the places where a thriving business once flourished. A t length, in the
course of events, but owing to no favor or wisdom o f the government, these sterile
mineral regions are occupied again. The revolutionary mine, for fifty years a neglected
waste, has been transformed by the magic power of modern art into a deposit of min
eral wealth more valuable than gold, and has sent during the last five years, upon
railroad and canal, 160,000 tons of its rich ores to the banks of the Delaware. "Within
the mineral region of New Jersey there were raised during the last year about 175,000
tons of ore, which will probably be augmented the next year to 250,000 tons. In the
year 1851, one o f the largest iron manufacturing establishments in the County of Morris
was compelled, by the ruinous state of the iron trade in this country, to undergo the
mortal process of a sheriff’s sale. In the hands of its new owners, and under a more
auspicious state of the market, its fires were re-kindled in 1852, and during the last
year “ Boonton Iron W orks” used 11,600 tons of Jersey magnetic ore, consumed
23,000 tons of anthracite coal, 3,000 tons of limestone, 6,000 tons of pig-iron, employed
in its operation 600 men, paid out for wages $
per month, and manufactured
6,500 tons of nails and railroad spikes. Other establishments in the State consume
a Btill larger quantity of ore, while the demand from abroad is daily increasing.
To these mineral productions are about to be added extensive veins of Franklinite,
which are to be opened and worked. In 1852, about one hundred years from the
time when the first cargo of colonial bar-iron made its appearance in England, there
22,000
132
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
was placed at the door of tlie Crystal Palace in London, because it was too large to
enter, q mineral rock, which for its size and quality commanded attention at the World’s
Fair. This was a pebble specimen of our Jersey mountain of zinc, for which the New
Jersey Zinc Company gained the prize medal over France and Belgium. The learned
committee also pronounced the oxide of zinc as a white paint in place of salt lead to
be one of the remarkable events in the recent history of chemical art. It has attained
a distinction uncommon for an American production ; for it embellishes not only the
rooms of our democratic houses, but one of the apartments in Windsor Castle, where
it may be distinguished from all other pigments by its glossy whiteness, peculiar to
Jersey zinc paint. New Jersey, with her magnetic and Franklinite iron mines, and
inexhaustible zinc deposits possesses the richest field of mineral wealth in America;
In 1610, the 59 neglected forges o f Great Britain produced only 17,000 tons of iron ;
in 1852, her thousand protected furnaces and mills rolled out about 3,000,000 tons.
Prior to 1776 she imported her iron from the colony of New Jersey to supply her
home market. In this 78th year of independence she exports to the United States
500,000 tons of manufactured iron. Her mines constitute the most productive source
of national wealth in the world. This element of power and opulence, so triumphantly
developed in England, is also- possessed by New Jersey.
Hitherto we have not
been able to improve it, and our mines have neither advanced the fortunes of their
owners nor the prosperity of the State; but the time is now upon us when we can
compete on more equal terms with English capital and cheap labor, and when our
State becomes what Wales is to England.
COMPOSITION OF THE SHEATHING OF SHIPS.
M. Bobierre has paid considerable attention to this subject, and has arrived at the
following conclusions as to the cause of the rapid destruction of some copper and
bronze sheathing:—
1. When unalloyed copper is employed, the presence of arsenic appears to hasten
its destruction.
2. All bronzes which appear to have stood well, contained from 4J to 5 } per cent
of tin, that quantity being necessary to form an homogeneous alloy. When the per
centage of tin is only 2.5 to 3.5, which is very frequently the case, no definite alloy is
produced, and the mass is of unequal composition, and being unequally acted upon,
is soon destroyed.
3. When impure copper is employed, the alloy is never homogeneous, and is un
equally acted upon in consequence. We thus see that the so frequent destruction of
the sheathing of copper bottomed vessels arises from the tendency to use inferior brit
tle copper, and, by diminishing the proportion of tin, to economize the difference be
tween the price of that metal and copper, at the same time that the cost of rolling i
also less, in consequence of the greater softness of the poor alloy.
3
Bobierre thinks that the addition of a very small portion of zinc very much im
proves the bronze, by producing a more perfect and uniformdistribution of the posi
tive metals, and consequently a much more definite alloy.—Comptes Rendus.
TO MAKE OXIDE OF GOLD.
Figuier, who tested the several methods of preparing this oxide, now so extensively
used in electro-gilding, has determined the best to be as follows; Dissolve 1 pt. gold
in pts. aqua regia, evaporate to dryness, redissolve in water, add a little aqua regia
to take up the traces of metallic gold and of protochloride remaining undissolved.
Evaporqte again, redissolve in water, and mix with pure potassa perfectly free from
chloride, until it gives an alkaline reaction with turmeric paper. Turbidity immediate
ly ensues, when it is mixed with chloride of barium; aurate of baryta precipitates as
a yellow powder. When the precipitate begins to assume a whitish appearance, the
addition o f chloride o f barium must be discontinued, as all the gold oxide has gone
down and the alkali commenced to act upon the baryta of the chloride. The aurate
of baryta is then to be washed until the waste-waters cease to be precipitated by sul
phuric acid. The aurate is then heated to boiling, with dilute nitric acid, in order to
eliminate the oxide of gold. By washing until the water no longer reddens litmus
paper, the oxide becomes pure, and must be dried between the folds of bibulous paper
by exposure to air,— Jour, de Pharm .
4
Journal o f M ining and M anufactures
.
133
COTTON MANUFACTURES IN THE UNITED STATES.
The following statements and remarks touching the cotton manufactures o f this
country, are taken from the special report of Mr. G eorge W allis , one of the Commis
sioners to the World’s Fair in New Y ork :—
The New England establishments are conducted upon a similar principle to the
largest cotton factories of Great Britain, and spinning and manufacturing are carried
on as one concern. This, however, is not the characteristic of the mills in the above
States, as they are, in many instances, employed in spinning only, and in Pennsylvania,
Georgia, and Tennessee, yarns are produced chiefly for the purpose of domestic manuficture by hand, which still obtains in many parts of the older States of the Union.
Thus, while in Pennsylvania the capital invested amounts but to about one-seventh
o f that of Massachusetts, the quantity of cotton consumed is one-fifth, the value of the
raw material not quite one-fourth, the number of operatives (male and female) onefourth, the value rather more thin one-fourth, the number of pounds of yarn spun and
sold as yarn, is above thirty times greater in Pennsylvania than in Massachusetts.
This, to a certain extent, gives a key to the differences in the modes of manufacture in
the two States, and illustrates the distinction already alluded to. There can be no
doubt, however, that domestic weaving is gradually giving way, and those manufac
turers, especially in Pennsylvania, who formerly did a prosperous business as spinners
only, now find that the Eastern States supply the piece goods at a rate so little above
the cost o f the yarn, that it is not worth the while of the farmer to continue this prim
itive custom of weaving his own cloth. Thus the domestic loom is fast following the
spinning wheel of the early settlers, and those manufacturers who until recently have
spun yarn only, are gradually introducing the power-loom as the only means of sus
taining their position in the market. This was illustrated by a visit to the Eagle Cot
ton Mill, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Formerly the proprietors spun yarn atone, and
did a successful trade; but, by a return with which they favored me, I find that in six
establishments under their direction, they have introduced already 540 looms to the
26,000 spindles, and were manufacturing sheeting at the rate of ,
yards per
annum, together with twilled cotton bags, batting, and yarns, from 5s. to 18s., and this,
in order to make the latter pay by consuming the surplus yarns themselves. Iu the
Penn Cotton Mill, Pittsburgh, the more modern system had become the rule of the
establishment, and with 7,000 spindles and 207 looms, 2,730,000 yards of shirtings
were produced annually, besides 240,000 lbs. weight of colored yarns for cotton warps
and cotton rope.
A t two establishments at Richmond, Virginia, the consumption of the yarn in the
manufacture of piece goods was also the rule; and this being the extent of my journey
southward, it became a matter of interest to inquire as to the progress of the cotton
manufacture in the cotton growing States. Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina
were quoted as those iu which the greater progress had been made, while Virginia,
South Carolina, and Alabama were the next. In Tennessee spinning would appear to
be the rule, and manufacturing the exception. In Georgia and North Carolina equal
attention is paid to both, while in Virginia, South Carolina and Alabama the manu
facture of the piece goods is decidedly more extensively carried on than spinning only.
Slave labor is said to be largely used, with free whites as overseers and instructors.
In the two establishments above named, free white labor alone is employed. The
males are heads of departments, machinists, dressers, Ac., and the females are spinners
and weavers. The latter are chiefly adults, though children from twelve to fifteen are
employed. The average hours of work here are twelve, but vary a little with the
season, very full time being the rule. At least such is the statement of the manager
of the James River Company’s Mill. This establishment, as also the Manchester Cot
ton Company’s Mill, is at Manchester, Chesterfield County, Virginia, and situated op
posite to Richmond, on the Janies River, from the falls on which the water-power
used for driving the machinery is derived. The James River Mill produces a large
weight of work for the extent of its machinery. The goods manufactured are coarse
cottons, and average about £ yards to the pound; shirtings, 28 inches wide (osnaburgs,) summer pantaloons for slaves, and bagging for export to the Brazils for sugarbags, running about three yards to the pound. Bagging of a lighter character, for
grain, and 36 inch osnaburgs, two yards to the pound, are also produced. The Man
chester Company manufacture sheetings, shirtings, and yarns, and employ about 325
operatives, the children being of the same average age as at the James River Mill
The manager, Mr. Whitehead, is an Englishman, as is also the chief mechanic. The
6000,000
2
134
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
former has just perfected a patent “ speedfr,” of which the latter expressed a very
high opinion. Its advantages are a greater speed, a more even roving, and a bobbing
of any desirable size, which never becomes spongy in the winding.
The small development of the cotton manufacture in the States of Indiana, Missis
sippi, and Arkansas, or even Ohio and Kentucky, required no special inquiry. In
Maryland, however, there were twenty-four establishments in 1850, chiefly engaged in
the manufacture of piece goods, such as drillings, sheetings, ducks, osnaburgs, and bag
ging. The yarns produced for domestic purposes bear but a small proportion to those
manufactured into cloth, and these are chiefly sold within the State for the home
weaving of mixed fabrics of wool and cotton, forming coarse linseys. The wool is
mostly spun by hand in the farm-houses, and the fabrics, when made, are intended en
tirely for domestic use. In Maryland, too, bleaching is carried on to a considerable
extent.
Having thus endeavored to illustrate the position of the cotton manufacture in the
form in which it has developed itself in the South, and, so far as the circumstances
would permit of an inquiry, in the Middle States, bordering on the West, the manu
facturing system as manifested in the cotton trade of New England, demands consid
eration. If the illustrations given show the early progress and j osition of this manu
facture in the United States, so far as daily-recurring improvements and ever-increasing
wants have permitted it to remain in its original form, the manufacturing towns of
Lowell, Manchester, and Lawrence, strikingly demonstrate the results of the energy
and enterprise of the manufacturers of New England.
At Lowell, Mass., the cotton manufacture has been developed in a form which has
been a theme for many writers on the economy and social bearings of the factory sys
tem ; and the plans so successfully put into operation here and carried on since 1822,
have led to the erection of large establishments, with their attendant boarding houses,
at Manchester, N. H., and more recently at Lawrence, Mass., whilst a commencement
has been made at Holyoke, in the same State, by the Hadley Falls Company, which
promises a result of a more extraordinary character than anything yet achieved in the
United States. Each of these localities presents features peculiar to themselves, and
besides the manufacture of cotton goods, other branches of production in textile fabrics
are carried on.
The falls of the Pawtucket on the Merimack River and the Pawtucket Canal, which
had previously been used only for the purposes of navigation, and connecting the
river above and below the falls by means of locks, presented to the original projectors
of Lowell a site for the solution of an important problem, not only in American indus
try, but to a great extent in that of Europe itself. This was the combination of great
natural advantages with a large and well-directed capital, resulting in extensive and
systematic operations for the realization of a legitimate profit, while the social position
of the operative classes was sedulously cared for, and their moral and intellectual ele
vation promoted and secured. The example has not been lost, even in Europe, and
the possibilities of the manufacturing system of a country being carried on without de
terioration, but on the contrary to the consolidation and promotion of the best interests
of the laboring classes, having been so unmistakably proved, many improvements in
the larger manufactories of Englmd, not only of those engaged in the manufacture of
cotton, but in other branches of industry, have resulted from the enlightened and prof
itable system commenced barely thirty years ago by the founders of Lowell, which is
now a city containing nearly 35,000 inhabitants.
In that place there are eight manufacturing corporations exclusively employed in
the manufacture of cotton goods, two of which print and dye their own fabrics, and
one company (Lowell Manufacturing Company) which manufactures cotton osnaburgs
in addition to its staple production of carpets. There are thirty-five mills, besides the
print-works above named, belonging to these companies. They produce 2,139,000 yds.
of piece goods per week, consisting chiefly of sheetings, shirtings, drillings, and print
ing cloths, varying from No. 13 to No. 40. The greater portion, however, are Nos. 13
and 14. The consumption of cotton is 125,000 lbs. per week, spun and manufactured
upon 320,732 spindles, and 9,954 looms. The average per spindle is 1£ yards per day,
the medium produce of a loom being, in 14s, 45 yards, and 30s, 33 yards per day.
The number of operatives employed in the cotton manufacture by the eight corpo
rations exclusively engaged therein, is 6,920 females, and 2,388 males. This, however,
does not exclude those employed by the Lowell Manufacturing Company in their cot
ton mills, as the returns only show the gross number of hands engaged in the cotton,
carpet, and other departments of that establishment. The average wages of females,
Mercantile Miscellanies.
6
135
clear of board, is $2, or about 9s. d. sterling per week, whilst the wages of males
show an average of $4 80, or about £1 s. sterling per week. The average hours of
labor per day, exclusive of meals, is 12, the mills commencing at 5 A. M., and closing
at 7 P. M.
Of the quality of the goods produced, it will be sufficient to say that they are gen
erally excellent o f their class, and uite equal, sometimes superior, to similar goods
manufactured in Great Britain. Those o f Lowell may be taken as fair examples of
other cotton mills in the United States, possessing the same advantages as regards
power, improved machinery, and intelligent operatives. In spinning, it will be seen
that the numbers are low, the finer quality of cotton goods not being produced— the
No. 40s “ priuters ” mmanufactured by the Merrimack Company being of the highest
class. These, when printed, are of a firm and excellent quality. The Lowell Manu
facturing Company produce a very cheap, well-looking fabric for cotton trowserings at
17^c. or about 9|d. sterling per yard. These are made up of dyed yarns in checks and
and stripes, and are woven upon gingham looms.
M E R C A N T ILE
2
M ISC E LLA N IE S.
TEA AMD COFFEE TRADE.
In three particulars, tea and coffee strikingly resemble each other. They are nearly
all void of smell and taste in their natural state, and only acquire their peculiar flavor
or aroma from a volatile oil produced in them during the processes of drying the leaf
or roasting the berry. They all contain a peculiar, slightly bitter principle, very rich
in nitrogen, which is called theme, and which has the property of lessening the natural
wear and tear of the human body, and thus saving food to a certain extent. They all
likewise hold in solution tannic acid . the action of which on {he system is not com
pletely understood. In addition to these three substances, a considerable portion of
gluten is contained in both tea and coffee; but owing to the leaves in the one case not
being drank, nor the grounds in the other, this is wasted. In tea, the volatile oil evap
orates with age, so that the older the tea is, the less intoxicating. To this volatile oil
is owing the paralysis which frequently attacks persons who have been, for several
years, engaged in packing and unpacking teas. But on the contrary, the theine in
coffee increases with the age of the berry. This substance, if taken in excess, accele
rates the pulse, wakes the imagination, and predisposes to visions.
Coffee resembles tea in the effect which it produces, because it also contaius theine,
tannic acid , and volatile oil. In coffee, however, they are combined in different pro
portions, and hence the reason why many persons prefer it as a beverage. The best
coffee grows on the driest soils. Yet the worst coffee, if kept ten or fourteen years,
will acquire the flavor of the finest Mocha. The principal art in preparing coffee lies
in roasting, for in this process it is that its peculiar arom a is produced. The heat
should never be greater than is sufficient to impart to the berry a light-brown color
— for if carried beyond this point a disagreeable secondary smell mingles with the
aroma.
By the common process of drinking coffee, that is, without the grounds, a good deal
of nutritious matter is wasted. Many of the Oriental nations drink the grounds inva
riably. Not less than a hundred millions of the human race drink coffee, it is computed,
as a daily beverage. In France, Germany, Sweden, Turkey, and a large portion of the
United States, it is used by almost everybody, just as tea is in England, Holland, Rus
sia, and China.
Tea and coffee become more indispensable as nations advance iu intellectual activity.
Whether this is a cause or effect, is not yet demonstrable, though the writer in B lackvjood inclines to consider it the former. Perhaps the extraordinary popularity of these
beverages, however, among the moderns, arises principally from the extension of Com
merce, and the consequent cheapness of tea and coffee. Experience teaches people
that tea and coffee, used moderately, prevent the waste of the tissues, afford positive
happiness, and increase the nervous activity, enabling men, as the writer in question
forcibly remarks, “ to show mire blood and spirit in the face of difficulties.”
With some persons, indeed, these beverages do not agree. But to the great mass of
mankind they are almost indispensable.
r
Mercantile Miscellanies.
136
“ COMMERCE IS KING.”
Tliis proverb, says Hiram Fuller, the clever editor of the New York M irror , is too
widely accredited as true. In this country, whose Commerce is, prospectively at least,
greatest among the nations, I ndustry is king. Industry, indeed, is shared by Com
merce, yet Commerce is not the basis of our wealth and power, but o d I v a collateral.
Industry is king on American soil and over the seas; the industry that digs from the
earth the many ores and fabricates them for Commerce; which plants our fields with
grains and fruits and reaps rich harvests for Commerce; which rears the humblest
and the proudest homes, hamlets, villages, and cities, as markets for Commerce; and
which, finally, builds the careering ships and the whirling cars by which Commerce
moves and thrives.
The farmer, plodding along his furrow in some far away field, looks towards the
sea in vision, and beholding the great ships, freighted with .-ilks, and spices, and gold,
and the seaport glittering with warehouses and palaces, indicative of every luxury,
feels that Commerce must be an enchanter— must be king— and he treads more heavily
and sadly in his furrow. But let the farmer consider before he yields the throne and
scepter. Let him ask what would become of shining Commerce, if his plow, the
miner’s pick, the reaper’s sickle, the artisan’s hammer, and the weaver's shuttle were
abandoned From the use of these simple weapons— the glorious aimor of creative in
dustry— the garniture of Commerce springs. Commerce is only an agent, over whose
shoulders the trophies of Industry are laid, to be borne around the woild for ex hange.
Strip her of the tribute of Industry from a thousand unvaunting handicrafts, and what
a skeleton would remain. Commerce is glorious as an agent, but its splendor is bor
rowed from the hands that guide the plow, hold the sickle, wield the axe and spade,
and strike home the hammer, shuttle, and plane.
Aye, let the farmer consider before he yields his throne and scepter, and let men of
all honorable labor consider, for to them belongs the sovereignty of the earth. The
sum of the world’s wealth and power is measured by their brov\n hands and sinewy
arms. They are the creators of Commerce, and their industry is king. Let no man be
faint or sad whose labor is creative for good purposes, be it ever so humble in its out
ward show. The ocean were a parched and arid desert, but for the streams pouring
ever into its bosom— myriads of them obscure and liiddeu—and Commerce were but
a sailless sea, but for the industry of earth, which shapes its keels and freights them
with the wealth of nations. Industry is regal, arid in the language of the poet—
“ The noblest men I know on earth,
Are men whose hands are brown w ith toil,
W ho, boasting no ancestral birth,
Hew down the woods and dig the soil,
And win thereby a prouder name
Than follows king’s or warrior’s fame.”
OVERTRADING, AND GIVING LARGE CREDIT.
There are two things which may be properly called overtrading in a young beginner,
and by both of which tradesmen are often overthrown :—
. Trading beyond their stock;
2. Giving too large credit.
A tradesman ought to consider and meacure well the extent of his own strength ;
his stock of money and credit is properly his beginning, for credit is a stock as well as
money. He that takes too much credit, is really in as much danger as he that gives
too much credit; and the danger lies particularly in this— if the tradesman overbuys
himself, that is, buys faster than he can sell, buying upon credit, the paymeut perhaps
becomes due too soon for him; the goods not being sold, he must answer the bills upon
the strength of his proper stock— that is, pay for them out of his own cash; if that
should not hold out, he is obliged to put off his bills after they are due, or suffer the
impertinence of being dunned by the creditor, and perhaps by servants and appren
tices, and that with the usual indecencies of such kind of people. This impairs his
credit, and if he comes to deal with the ame merchant, or clothier, or other tradesman
again, he is treated like one that is but an indifferent paymaster, and though they may
give him credit as before, yet depending that if he bargains fur six months he will take
eight or nine in the payment, they consider it in the price, and use him accordingly ;
and this impairs his gain, so that loss of credit is indeed loss of money, and this weak
ens him both ways.
1
6
Mercantile Miscellanies.
137
« THE BIBLE CLERKS.”
A young man, says the Philadelphia Merchant, joined two others as a clerk in the
same establishment, and as room-mate, in a certain city. When the first Sunday
morning came after he had entered his new situation, he thought of the old custom at
home o f reading a portion of Scripture as a preparation for the day, but he hesitated
to take his Bible from his trunk because of the presence of the other clerks. Still he
could not be easy. He went towards his trunk and then returned to his seat, till his
uneasiness was noticed by one of his companions, who said— “ What’s the matter ?
You are as restless as a weathercock.” He hesitated in answering, but conscience got
the better of his pride, and he told the truth; and, as though the moral feeling of the
young man was contagious, the other clerks exclaimed that they had each a Bible in
their trunks, but had not taken it out for fear of each other— a fear of ridicule, the one
from the other. The three Bibles were now taken out, and a portion was read in con
cert ; the practice was continued, its influence was felt, and when the story got out
and their habit was known, they went by the name of the B ible clerks.
And what were their characters ? Did the influence of the Bible prevent the devel
opment of any of the true mercantile qualities? They were young men of integrity,
of method, order, precision, and dignity. By familiarity with the Bible they were in
constant intercourse with the best models of character, and they proved that the Scrip
tures not only kindle lights of guidance when philosophy and reason fail, but they
hold up and stimulate to the imitation of the highest order of manliness.
A manufacturer and merchant related to us one day the history of two young men
who, in his establishn ent, became “ free” at the same time, the one a “ Bible clerk,”
and the other not so. They both married early after their “ freedom,” and the one
valuing the Bible, valued its institutions, and thus honored the Sabbath and the sanc
tuary, and brought up his family in virtue and prosperity. The other “ couldn’ t afford
to pay church rates;” his employer offered to furnish a pew, but he was too proud to
accept the favor— spending the Sabbath here and there he was known as no church
goer, and became an object for the vicious; and to nothing but his waste of the Sab
bath could be traced the habits of expenditure and dissipation that ruined the man.
“ Now,” said the employer, “ the one lives in his own house, virtuous and happy; the
other needs charity to keep him along.”
A CAMEL MARKET: BARGAINING BY PANTOMIME,
Hue, in his Travels in Tartary, says:— The Blue Town is especially noted for its
great trade in camels. The camel market is a large square in the center of the town.
The animals are ranged here in long rows, their front feet raised upon a mud eleva
tion constructed for that purpose, the object being to show off the size and hight of
the creatures. It is impossible to describe the uproar and confusion of this market,
with the incessant bawling of the buyers and sellers as they dispute, their noisy chat
tering after they have agreed, and the horrible shrieking of the camels at having their
noses pulled, for the purpose of making them show their agility in kneeling and rising.
In order to test the strength of the camel, and the burden it is capable of bearing, they
make it kneel, and then pile one thing after another upon its back, causing it to rise
under each addition, until it can rise no longer. They sometimes use the following
expedient. While the camel is kneeling, a man gets upon his hind heels, and holds
on by the long hair of its hump ; if a camel can rise then it is considered an animal
of superior power. The trade in camels is entirely by proxy: the seller and the buyer
never settle the matter between themselves. They select indifferent persons to sell
their goods, who propose, discuss, and fix the price; the one looking to the interests
of the seller, the other to those of the purchaser. These “ sale-speakers ” exercise no
other trade; they go from market to market to promote business as they say. They
have generally a great knowledge of cattle, have much fluency of tongue, and are,
above all, endowed with a knavery beyond all shame. They dispute by turns, furi
ously and argumentatively, as to the merits and defects of the animal; but as soon
as it comes to a question of price, the tongue is laid aside as a medium, and the con
versation proceeds altogether in signs. They seize each other by the wrist, and be
neath the long wide sleeves of their jackets indicate with their fingers the progress of
the bargain. After the affair is concluded they partake of the dinner, which is always
given by the purchaser, and then receive a certain number of sapeks, according to the
custom of different places.
138
Mercantile Miscellanies.
TRICKS OF TAILORS.
The Home Journal , in a pleasant homily upon the ways of tailors, shows np some
o f the tricks of trade.
Tailors must live; at least they think so, and we have no objection. Y et they are
great tyrants, and have ingenious ways of torturing their victims. One way is this:
They invent a fashion which is strikingly peculiar, and get it into vogue by various arts
best known to themselves; for example, very short overcoats, with long waists, which
look well on men like Count Rossi whose figure is faultless. Their next movement,
after everybody is overcoated for the winter, is to bring out a garment which differs
as much as possible from the one in fashion; that is, an overcoat with skirts to the
heels and waist under the armpits. They get half a dozen men of high fashion, who
look well in anything, to parade this new invention in Broadway, and make the shortcoated majority appear out of date. The maneuver succeeds; all the dandies are
driven to the extravagance of ordering a superflous coat; the tailors smile and the
dandies bleed, or their fathers do. Some time ago our tailor tyrants put us all into
long waistcoats, and, consequently, into continuations that just lapped over the hips.
Suddenly the waistcoats were abbreviated four inches. What was the consequence i
Why, of course, the continuations “ failed to connect,” and he who would not exhibit
to mankind a broad belt of white around his waist, was compelled to discard all his
store of well saved unnameables. And in vain shall the oldest customer protest and
order garments of the last fashion. Consider my reputation, sir, says the tailor, with
the air of offended majesty.
A HINT FOR THE UNSUCCESSFUL.
The following, from Claxton’s “ Hints for Mechanics,” will apply with equal force
to mercantile m en:—
As to luck, as I have said before, there is more in the sound of a word which peo
ple have got used to than in the thing they are thinking of. Some luck there is, no
doubt, as we commonly understand the term, but very much less than most persons
suppose. There is a great deal which passes for luck which is not such. Generally
speaking, your “ lucky fellows,” when one searches closely into their history, turn out
to be your fellows that know what they are doing, and how to do it in the right way.
Their luck comes to them, because they work for it; it is luck well earned. They
put themselves in the way of luck. They keep themselves wide awake. They make
the best of what opportunities they possess, and always stand ready for more ; and
when a mechanic does thus much, depend upon it, it must be hard luck indeed, if he
do not get, at least, employers, customers, and friends. “ One needs only,” says an
American writer, “ to turn to the lives of men of mechanical genius, to see how by
taking advantage of little things and facts, which no one had observed, or which
every one had thought unworthy of regard, they have established new and important
principles in the arts, and built up for themselves manufactories for the practice of
their newly discovered processes.” And yet these are the men who are called the
lucky fellows, and sometimes envied as such. Who can deny that their luck is well
earned, or that it is just as much in my power to “ go ahead” as it was in theirs?
INDUSTRY THE ROAD TO SUCCESS.
It is a proverbial remark, founded on experience and common sense, that Satan will
employ him who does not find employment for himself. Industry will secure the
confidence and encouragement of good men. What is it that we first inquire after
respecting one who is just coming forward on the arena of public life ? Brilliant tal
ents may be desirable; respectable connections may have an influence; property
may serve as an outfit; but, after all, our real judgment of the man, and our readi
ness to commit important trusts to'his keeping, will depend on something more in
herent and personal. We must know that he is industrious and faithful. Without
these abiding qualities, capacity, and family, and fortune will seem light as air and
empty as a bubble.
It is instructive to ask who they are that rise to the highest distinctions both in
Church and State. Flashes of genius and outbursts of efforts usually accomplish but
little. We hear much of fair openings and happy beginnings; but in a great majority
of instances, the men of persevering diligence bear away the palm. The best talent
on earth is that of assiduous application.— Spring time o f L ife.
The B ook Trade
.
139
THE BOOK TRADE.
1.
— Select Speeches o f Kossuth. Condensed and abridged, with Kossuth’s express
sanction, by Francis W. Newman. 12mo., pp. 445. New York: C. S. Francis
Co.
No man in so short a time ever made so many speeches, (little more than half a
year,) as Kossuth. The number, great and small, exceeded five hundred. His ora
tions, it is well remarked, are a tropical forest, full of strength and majesty, tangled
in luxuriance. Unsuited to form a book without abridgment, they contain materials
adapted equally for immediate political service, and for permanence as a work of
wisdom and of genius. Mr. Newman has in the preparation of the present volume
cut short what is of temporary interest, condensed what he considered too amplified
for his limits and for written style, pruning down the repetitions which are inevitable
where numerous audiences are addressed by the same man on the same subject.
But amid all these liberties, he has, we think, retained not only the true sentiments
and arguments of the speaker, but his words and forms of thought and all that is
characteristic of his genius. The compiler may be regarded, to some extent, a trans
lator as well as reporter; and we are assured that he has received Kossulh’s written
approval and thanks. The volume has a fine engraved portrait of the Hungarian
patriot.
12
2. — A D efence o f the E clipse o f Faith.
By its Author.
mo., pp. 208. Boston
Crosby, Nichols & Co. New Y o rk : Evans & Dickerson.
W e noticed in this department of the Merchants? Magazine , soon after its publication
in this country, the “ Eclipse of Faith,” by Henry Rogers,one of the ablest Edinburgh
reviewers. That work was regarded by many as the most effective attack that had
been made, on the sceptical philosophy o f modern times. Prof. F. W. Newman, the
leading advocate of English rationalism, whose “ Phases of Faith ” had been so re
morselessly criticised by Mr. Rogers, has thought proper to issue a new edition of his
work, in which, besides some modifications in the original text, he has introduced a
“ Reply to the Eclipse of Faith,” and a chapter on the “ Moral Perfection of Jesus,” all
having reference to the arguments of his antagonist. Both the reply and the addition
al chapter have been included in the American edition of Mr. Rogers’ “ Defence,” in
order that the reader may have the fairest opportunity to judge of the merits of the
controversy. The discussion has been conducted with great ability on both sides.
3. — P o e m s : Descriptive, Dramatic, Legendary, and Contemplative. Bv W illiam
G ilmoke S imms, Esq.
In
vols. 12mo., pp. 346 and 360. New Y ork : J. S.
Redfield.
These volumes contain most of the poetical works of the author, including Norman
Maurice, a tragedy; Atalantis, a tale of the sea ; Tales and traditions of the South ;
the City of the Silent; Southern Passages and Pictures; Historical and Dramatic
Sketches ; Scripture Legends ; Francesca da Reminicli. “ Atalantis ” is an imagina
tive story, in the dramatic form, its plot simple but effectively managed, and, like
many of his poems, contains much beautiful imagery and fine description. As a poet
and novelist, Mr. Simms seems to have been equally successful; and his productions
are worthy of the beautiful and enduring form in which they are now being re
produced by Mr. Redfield, the publisher. W e prize them as a most valuable addition
to our library of standard American authors.
2
4. — E g e r ia : or, Voices of Thought and Counsel, for the Woods and the Wayside*
By W. G ilmore S imms, Esq., author o f “ Katharine Walton,” <tc. 12m o.,pp. 319*
Philadelphia : E. H. Butler tfe Co.
The collection embraced in this volume, we are told by the author, has been the un
premeditated accumulation of years. It consists of aphorisms, in prose and verse— a
body o f sentiment and opinion hastily derived from excursive reading, but the greater
portion grown out of the author’s purely individual experience, from patient as well as
passing observation. Many of the sentiments and opinions will find a response in ev
ery reflecting mind.
140
The B ook Trade .
5. — Homeopathic P ractice o f M ed icin e: Embracing the History, Diagnosis, and
Treatment of Diseases generally, including those peculiar to Females, and the Man
agement of Children. Designed as a text book for the Student, as a concise Book
of Preference for the Profession, and simplified and arranged for Domestic Use. By
Dr. M F religh, late Resident aud now Visiting Physician to the New York Ho
meopathic Dispensary Association, etc. 12mo., pp. 577. New Y ork: Lamport,
Blakeman &, Law.
We are not disposed to dispute the statements of the author, that the success of H o
meopathy over every other system of medical practice is so well established that it
requires no vindication. That we leave to the old school Allopathists. It is certainly
a philosophical system, and has been adopted bv some of the most enl’ghtened minds,
in Europe and America. The present work is highly commended by some of the most
distinguished practitioners (some of whom are authors) in the United States. A l
though an ardent disciple of H dinernann, the author departs in some respects from the
strictness of his teachings, as. for instance, in the matter of external applications. The
most clear, concise, and explicit language is used throughout, and technical terms and
phrases are explained for the benefit of domestic use.
6.
— A Year with the T u rks; or Sketches of Travel in the European and Asiatic
Dominions of the Sultan. By W arrington W. S mith . 12mo., pp. 251.
The design of Mr. Smith is to give a plain, unvarnished account of a journey through
Turkey, and the character of her population. A t the present state of affairs, all that
relates to this country is invested with, more than ordinary interest. The author
writes from his own experience, having visited most of the Turkish provinces, and his
intercourse with many individuals belonging to that region, gives him an opportunity
to judge of the present condition of its inhabitants. This he seems to have done
fairly. While exposing the evils existing in this empire from the oppression of the
government officials and the lawlessness which prevails in some of the provinces to a
great extent, he still has faith in their capability of improvement and elevation, and
claims for the people considerable industry and patriotism. His adventures, while
sojourning in Turkey, are written in a spirited style. A map is prefixed to the vol
ume, which will aid the reader in fixing the localities, and adds to the value of it.
Such a woik must be more than usually acceptable, as the attention of the reading
public is turned in that direction.
7.
— The Catacombs o f Rome, as Illustrating the Church of the first Three Centuries.
By the Right Rev. W m . I ngraham K i p , D. D. 12ruo., pp. 212. New York: J. S.
Redfield.
The'Rev. Dr. Kip, the new Missionary Bishop of California, is known in the Church
and in the literary world as the author of a number o f popular works connected with
the literature and religion of the Church. The Catacombs of Rome are full of inter
e s t; but the account of their inscriptions has heretofore been mostly locked up in
ponderous tomes in other tongues. Dr. Kip, when in Rome in 1845, became exceed
ingly interested in the study of these antiquities, and although in the preparation of
the present volume be disclaims all attempts at originality, he has imparted to his
descriptions the freshness of his own recollections. The volume is copiously illus
trated, and published in a creditable style.
8. — C rystalline: or, The Heiress of Fall Down Castle.
A Romance.
By F. W.
S helton, A. M., author of the “ Rector of St. Bardolph’s,*’ &c. 12mo., pp. 202. New
Y o rk : Charles Scribner.
The poweiful imagination and vivid fancy of the author seem to have found in the
present production the greatest scope for expansion. A cotemporary, who has proba
bly read the story, says the author has given it the appellation of a romance, and the
illusion created by the title is so well kept up that, as we understand, many persons
have already read it by mistake for a romance—as in Pope’s preface to the Rape of
the Lock, many ladies are said to have read the Comte de Gabalis. It has several
very pretty and appropriate illustrations.
9. — Advanced L atin Exercises, with Selections f o r Reading. American Edition.
Revised, with Additions ISmo., pp. 162. Blanchard & Lea.
The universal commendation bestowed upon this series of educational classics by
teachers and those competent to judge, renders anything more on our part than the
mere announcement unnecessary.
The Boole Trade.
141
10. — Documents o f the Constitutions o f E ngland and A m erica. From Magna Charta
to the Federal Constitution o f 1789. Compiled and edited, with Notes, by F r a n cis
B o w e n , Alford Professor o f Moral Philosophy and Civil Polity in Harvard College.
vo., pp. 142. Cambridge: John Bartlett.
Professor Bowen has brought together in this volume, to illustrate the rise and
progress of the English and American constitutions, the following documents, v iz.:
Magna Charta; Confirmatio Chartarum; the Statute of Treasons; the Petition of
Rights; the Habeas Corpus Act; the Bill of Rights; the Massachusetts Body o f
Liberties; Confederacy of the New England Colouies; Franklin’s Plan o f Union of
the Colonies; Declaration of Independence; the Virginia Bill of Rights; Aiticles of
Confederation; the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights ; and the Constitution of the
United States. It forms a most valuable compend of reference for the statesman,
and a text-b^ok of constitutional law, on England and America.
8
11. — Old Sights with New Eyes. By a Yankee. With an Introduction by Robert
Baird, D. D. 12tno., pp. 372. New Y ork: M. W. Dodd.
The production of a young New England clergyman, whose modesty constrained
him to send it forth without his name. To those who desire to read well written and
appropriate notices of the places of chief interest in Old Europe,” Dr. Baird recom
mends the book without reserve. It is evidently the production of a highly cultivated
mind. The style is pure and beautiful, and the descriptions of places and things are
exact, concise, and highly interesting.
41
12. — The M yrtle Wreath ; or Stray Leaves Recalled. By M inn ie M y r t l e . 12mo.,
pp. 380. New York : Charles Scribner.
A delightful volume, containing some seventy tale* and sketches, with a few simple
and graceful verses, on a variety of topics. The subjects o f this anonymous and un
pretending writer are drawn mostly from lowly life. The sketches disclose a truth
ful eye and a skillful hand, and appear as transcripts of actual incidents, characters,
and emotions, all evincing true womanly feeling, tilled with worthy thoughts and
generous stntiments. It is an excellent book to while away the tedium of travel.
13. — H istory and Rudiments o f Architecture. Edited by John Bullock, Architect,
Civil Engineer, and Editor of the “ American Artisan.” 12mo., pp. 254. New Yoik :
Stringer ifc Townsend.
The present work is divided into four parts, embracing— 1st, the orders of architec
ture ; 2d, architectural styles of various countries; 3d, the nature and piinciples o f
design in architecture; and 4th, an accurate and complete glossary of architectural
terms. It is adapted to the use of architects, builders, draughtsmen, machinists, en
gineers, and mechanics. It is a concise, but at the same time very comprehensive
tieatise.
14. — F ield Booh f o r R ailroad Engineers. By J ohn B. ITexck, A. M., Civil Engineer.
18mo., pp. 243. New York : D. Appleton & Co.
This volume, which is done up in the form of a pocket-book for the convenience of
railroad engineers, contains formulae for laying out curves, deteimining angles, leveling,
calculating earth-work, and all other matters connected with railroad suiveying. It is
copiously illustrated with the usual tables, and appears to be a very complete manual
o f its class.
15. — The W inter L o d g e ; or Yow Fulfilled. An Historical Novel, the sequel to
“ Simon Kenton.” By J ames W e ir . l mo., pp. 231. Philadelphia: Lippiucott,
Gram bo
Co.
An American novel, the scenes laid in the Far West,” if indeed we have at tl is
time any f a r West. Those who read and admired “ Simon Kenton,” from the same
pen, (and this is a sequel to that tale,) will fully appreciate the meiits of this last
production of Mr. Weir.
s
2
44
44
16. — Little Ferns f o r Fanny's L ittle Friends By the author o f Fern Leaves” With
Original Designs, by F r e d . M. C offin . 18m o., pp. 297 . New York: J. C. Derby.
W e noticed the “ great” Ferns in a former number <4 this Magazine. Strong, good
common sense, and wit without vulgarity, runs through every page and paragraph of
this popular writer. T he sale of some thirty thousand copies oi the present volume iu
leas than a twelvemonth is no slight complunetit to the genius of the author.
The Booh Trade.
142
17. — Narrative o f a Voyage to the Northwest coast o f A m erica in the years 1811,
1812, 1813, 1814, on the First Am erican Settlement on the Pacific. B y G a b r ie l
F ra n ch e re . Translated and Edited by J. V. H untington . 12mo., pp. 376. New
York : J. S. Redfield.
This narrative, though written many years ago in French, is now for the first time
translated. The author is still living; and in 1846 the Hon.Thomas H. Benton, in hie
speech on the Oregon boundary question, quotes it, and pays a high tribute to its mer
its. Mr. Huntington, the translator, has preserved the Defoe like simplicity of the
original narrative. The narrative is vivid, and the descriptions picturesque. The per
sonal adventures of the narrator and the varying fortunes of a great enterprise, the
fur trade, happily mingle. The clerkly minuteness of the details is not without its
charm, and their fidelity speaks for itself. The misstatements and inaccuracies of
Irving's Astoria are alluded to and corrected by the author at the close of the vol
ume.
18. — The Workingman's W ay in the W o rld : Being the Autobiography of a Jour
neyman Printer.
mo., pp. 359. New York: J. S. Redfield.
This book lias one merit at least— the author writes what he has seen; and we think
it will be found to possess a still higher merit— that what he has seen and been in the
course of his life is worth writing about. It is, on the whole, an exceedingly interest
ing and withal instructive piece of autobiography. The author is an Englishman, and
touches upon the social condition, Ac., of the working classes. He does not think that
the evils under which workingmen at times so grievously suffer are to be redressed by
a recourse to the socialistic practice.
19. — The Y em assee: A Romance of Carolina. By W illiam G ilmore S imms , Esq., au
thor of “ The Partisan,” “ Guy Rivers,” “ Martin Faber,” “ Border Beaglee, Ac., Ac.
12mo., pp. 455. New York : J. S. Redfield.
The Yemassee was originally published nearly twenty years since. The present is
a new and revised edition, unifotm with several of the author’s works recently repro
duced by Mr. Redfield, in a handsome library style. Mr. Simms’s portraits are true
to the Indian of the South as his ancestors knew him at early periods, and as in certain
situations he may still be known.
12
20. — The H ydropathic Cook Book. With Recipes for Cooking on Hygienic Princi
ples, Ac. By R. T. T r a l l , M. D. With numerous illustrative Engravings.
mo.,
pp. 226. New York: Fowlers A Wells.
Dr. Trall has given in this little volume, in the smallest possible compass, a sum
mary o f the principles and facts, in chemistry and physiology, which apply to the
philosophy of diet. It also furnishes the details of cooking on hygienic principles,
plain formulas for preparing an ample variety of dishes with due regard to the laws
o f life and health.
12
21. — The Christian W orld Unmasked. By J ohn B r id g e , A. M., Yicar of Ereston,
Ac., Ac. With a Memoir of the Author by the Rev. Thomas Guthrie, D. D., Mem
ber of St. John’s Free Church, Edinburgh. 18mo., pp. 207. Boston: Gould A
Lincoln.
The author in this work, written seme hundred and fifty years since, handles the
Bible cleverly, giving his idea of the sacred text with marked clearness and force.
The style is quaint, and we regret to notice that the American editor has seen fit to
expunge some words “ on account of their excessive quaintness.”
22.
12
— Busy Moments o f an Idle Woman.
mo., pp. 285. New Y ork: D. Appleton A Co.
Contains several stories. The first one, “ Edith,” shows how one with true energy
of character can rise above all reverses of fortune. The characters are well sustained.
The authoress gives an insight into fashionable society. Such true pictures of life can
not fail to interest her readers.
23. — Hashes o f A m erican Humor. By H o w a r d P au l . Illustrated by John Leeck.
12mo., pp. 306. New York : Garrett A Co.
These “ Dashes o f American Humor ” were originally published in London. The
volume consists of a series o f sketches designed to exhibit the laughable and ridicu
lous side of American life and character. If the book is Dot a very instructive one, it
will, we have no doubt, pass in some circles as a very humorous and amusing one.
The B ook Trade.
143
24. — A n E p ic o f the Starry Heaven. By T homas L. H a r r is . 12mo., pp. 210. New
Y ork: Partridge A Brittan.
This poem, we are told in an ingenuous, well-written, and philosophical introduction
from the pen of Mr. Brittan, “ was spoken by Thomas L. Harris in the course of four
teen consecutive days, the speaker being in a trance state during its delivery; and
further, that “ from 125 to 250 lines were dictated at each session, of which there were
twenty-two in number, and the precise time occupied in communicating the whole was
twenty-six hours and sixteen minutes” It is not our province to discuss the merits of
the statement, or decide upon the source of inspiration; but we are free to say that it
has passages o f marked power and beauty, and more than ordinary poetic merit.
25. — P a rtridge and B rittan!s Spiritual L ibrary. The “ Telegraph Papers.” Edited
by S. B. B rittan. Yol. 1. 12mo., pp. 465. New York: Partridge A Brittan.
The present volume contains a series of papers, published from time to time in the
“ Spiritual Telegraph.” They are published in the present more durable and conve
nient form, as affording a reliable record of the interesting phenomena which charac
terize the present age. Those who take an interest in these “ manifestations,” or feel
a desire to investigate the subject, will find much in the present volume calculated to
satisfy the interest and aid in the investigation.
26. — S pirit M anifestations Exam ined and Explained. Judge Edmonds R efu ted : or
an Exposition of the Involuntary Powers and Instincts of the Human Mind. By
J ohn B ovee D ods, author of “ Philosophy of Electrical Psychology,” “ Immortality
Triumphant,” Ac., Ac. 12mo., pp. 252. New York : Dewitt A Davenport.
The design o f this work will appear from the author’s title-page, as quoted above.
It is written with considerable ability, and should be read by all who take an interest
in the investigation of “ spiritualism.”
27. — V a ra : or the Child o f A doption. 12mo., pp. 316. New Y ork: Robert Carter
A Brothers.
A pleasantly written romance. The heroine of the story, born of missionary parents
in one of the isles of the Pacific Ocean, and sent home to be educated. She is adopted
by some friends of the mission, and having received an education suitable to a refined
state of society, she rejects all offers of ease and affluence, to return to her island home
for the benefit of the poor natives, whose condition was so vividly impressed upon her
childhood. The story is well told, and has a good moral.
28. — The P ra ctica l Surveyor's G uide: Containing the necessary information to make
any person of common capacity a finished Land Surveyor, without the aid of a
Teacher. By A n d r e w D uncan, Land Engineer. 18mo., pp. 121. Philadelphia:
Henry Carey Baird.
A concise synopsis of the whole subject, furnishing in a comprehensive form from
the best practical information hitherto published and scattered through many eminent
authors. Mr. Duncan was well fitted for the preparation of such a manual, having had
more than thirty years’ experience as a surveyor.
29 — Hand-Book o f German L iterature , &c. By G. J. A dler . 12mo., pp. 550. New
York : D. Appleton A Co.
This volume contains Schiller’s Maid o f Orleans; Goethe’s Ipbigenia in Tauris;
Tieck’s Puss in Boots; and the Xenia, by Goethe and Schiller, and a variety of speci
mens o f German prose writers, from the middle of the sixteenth to the middle of the
nineteenth century. It is one of a most excellent series of text books for the study of
the German.
30.— New M u sic:
William Hall A Son, 239 Broadway, have published the following pieces of music
since our last number :—Fantasie de Salon eur l’Opera Ernani; Norma ; II Don Giovani, all by Wm. Vincent Wallace. These pieces form part of a series in course of
publication under the general title of “ Souvenir de l’Opera.”
Samuel C Jollie has recently published Le Yiolette Polka, composed by Mrs. R.
Gonzalez; Head with the Idle Tales, by Thomas Baker, music by Jullien; Lilly
Waltz, composed by Miss Lizzie Y . Trail; the Flowers are Sleeping, poetry by J. W.
Lake, music by Thomas Baker.
144
The Book Trade\
81.— Theological Essays, and Other Papers. By T homas D e Q uincey, author o f
“ Confessions of an English Opium-Eater,” etc. 2 vols., 12mo., pp. 810 and 276
Boston : Ticknor, Reed & Fields.
The admirers of modern English literature are indebted to the Boston publishers for
a very complete and beautiful edition of the writings of De Quincey. The two vol.
umes before us are the eighteenth and nineteenth of the series, and comprise a number
of theological essays, viz., Christianity as an Organ of Political Power— Protestantism
— On the supposed Scriptural Expression of Eternity— Judas Iscariot— On Hume’s
Argument against Miracles—Secession of the Church of Scotland, <fcc. The other pa
pers in the volumes relate to Milton, Charlemagne, Modern Greece, Lord Carlisle on
Pope, Greece under the Romans, <fcc. This edition is worthy of a place in the library
of every “ gentleman and scholar.”
32. — Musical Letters fr o m A b r o a d : including detailed accounts of the Birmingham
Norwich, and Dusseldorf Musical Festivals of 1852. By L ionel M ason. 12mo.
pp. 312. New York: Mason Brothers.
Mr. Mason is well known in the musical world as a composer and teacher of music,
He visited Europe in 1852, and the present volume contains a series of fifty-four let
ters relating almost exclusively to musical subjects, and more particularly to the
department of church music, or to the service of song in religious worship. Many of
these letters were published in the periodicals of the d a y; but in their collected
form they will doubtless prove highly acceptable to all persons who have an ear or
taste for music.
33. — Critical and Miscellaneous W ritings o f T. N oon T alfourd, author o f “ Ion.”
Third American Edition, with Additional Articles never before published in this
vo.} pp. 176. Boston: Phillips, Sampson &. Co. New Y ork: J. 0. Derby.
country.
The present volume contains papers contributed by the author from time to time to
the leading reviews and magazines of Great Britain, his celebrated speech in the
prosecution of the Queen vs. Moxon for the publication of Shelley’s works, and several
c f the author’s speeches while a member of the British Parliament. It is the most
complete edition of the miscellaneous productions of this distinguished British essayist
that has yet been published. The recent death of the author renders the publication
at this time particularly opportune.
8
34. — The W orth o f the W orth less: A Christmas and New Year’s Story. By JonN
Ross Dix.
Mr. Dix is well known to our readers as the writer of a number of very clever works,
and particularly as the author of “ Passages from the History of a Western Life,” in
which he relates much of his own sad and sorrowful experience. The present tale,
published under the direction of the Shakspeare Division of the Sons of Temperance,
iu Boston, illustrates the law of kindness in redeeming the inebriate from the sorrows
and sufferings of his malady. The pure and correct literary taste of the author lends
a charm to his narrative.
35. — D a ily B ible Illu stra tions: Being Original Readings for a Year, on subjects from
Sacred History, Biography, Geography, Antiquities, and Theology. By J ohn K it to , D. D., F. R. S. A.
This is the closing volume of Kitto’s entire series of Daily Bible Illustrations. These
readings relate to the Apostles and the early church. The author has gathered up,
and interwoven the historical intimations contained in the Epistles, with the leading
matter from the Acts of the Apostles. His conclusions are based upon a critical read
ing of the sacred text. These volumes are quite popular, we believe, among the more
“ evangelical” portion of the Christian cjiuren.
— P urple Tints o f P a r i s : Characters and Manners in the New Empire. By B ayle
S t. J ohn. Author of “ Village Life in Egypt,” “ Two Years’ Residence in a Levan
tine Family,” etc. 2 vols. in one, pp. 446. New York: Riker, Thorne & Co.
36.
Mr. St. John is an Englishman, but, judging from his descriptions of Parisian habits,
manners, and character, not by any means a bigoted one. The institutions of France
and the peculiarities of the people are discussed with apparent candor and fairness,
and on the whole the present work is calculated to impart much valuable information
in relation to the condition of the Empire under Napoleon the H id.
@FedFRASER