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H UN T’S
MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE.
E s t a M is lie d J u l y . 1839*
BY FREEMAN HUNT, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR
VOLUME X X V II.
NUMBER V-
N O V E M B E R , 1 85 2.
C O N T E N T S OF NO.
V.,
VOL.
X X V II.
ARTICLES.
A rt.
page.
I. COMMERCE OF FRANCE IN 1851.—A GENERAL SYNOPSIS OF THE COMMERCE
OF FRANCE WITH ITS COLONIES AND WITH FO EIGN POWERS DURING
THE YEAR 1851
II. THE REGULATION OF LIFE INSURANCE. By E l izu r W r ig h t , Esq., o f Mass.......
III. TOBACCO: AND THE TOBACCO TRADE....................................................................
IV. TRADE AND COMMERCE OF CINCINNATI IN 1851-52............................................
V. COMMERCE: A N D COMMERCIAL BIOGRAPHY. By W . l l ia m A r t h u r , A . M
VI. MORAL V IEW OF R A IL R O A D S ......................................................................... *.........
541
546
556
570
577
J O U R N A L OF M E R C A N T I L E L A W .
Insurance—Total loss of merchandise..........................................................................
Action to recover for services of a minor shipped in vessel on a whaling voyage
Claims for difference in value of cotton sold as“ ordinary.” .....................................
Libel for collision............................................................................................................
Obtaining goods under false pretenses.—Bank checks—overdrawn account.........
Assumpsit against the maker o f a promissory note indorsed in b lan k ..................
Promissory notes—indorsers..........................................................................................
Decision on the law o f usury in New Jersey..............................................................
585
586
588
589
590
591
591
592
C OMME RCI AL C HRONICLE AND R E V I E W :
EM BRACIN G A FIN AN CIAL AND COMMERCIAL R E V IE W OF THE UNITED STATES, ETC., IL L U S T R A
TED W IT H T A B L E S, E T C ., AS F O LLO W S :
General aspect of commercial affairs—The demand for money, and its influence in checking
undue speculation—Indications of general prosperity—The influence o f Commerce upon the
foreign relations of the country—Position of the banks, with particular illustrations at New
York and New Orleans—Deposits and coinage at the Philadelphia and New Orleans Mints for
September—Imports of foreign merchandise at New York for September, and from January
1st—ciassiflcatiou of imports, including dry goods, with a quarterly statement for nine months
—Receipts for duties at New York—Summary statement of the receipts o f duties at New
York, Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, and New Orleans—Exports from New York for Sep
tember-Quarterly statement of exports for nine months—Classification o f exports, including
the principal articles of produce—Prospects o f the foreign trade for the remainder o f the
year ..............................................................................................y y V......................................... 593-000
V O L . X X V I I .-----N O . V .
34
V \ >‘
530
CONTENTS OF NO. V ., VOL. X X V II.
JOURNAL
OF B A N K I N G ,
CURRENCY,
AND FIN AN C E.
PAGE.
Shipments of gold from San Francisco from January 1 to July 1, 1852 ..........................................
Capital and dividends o f Boston banks in October, 1852....................................................................
United States Treasurer’s statement of deposits, & c — Bank notes o f the olden tim e ...................
Statistics o f the debt of England from 1822 to 1852 ...........................................................................
Revenue of the Province of New Brunswick.—Dividends of the Bank o f England......................
Statement of the debt and revenue of Pennsylvania...........................................................................
Finances of Canada for the year ending January, 1852.................... ................................................
Taxes paid by corporations in Lowell, Mass..........................................................................................
The laws of the currency o f Ireland......................................................................................................
Scarcity of silver coin in Europe............................................................................................................
British consols and the national debt....................................................................................................
Assay office at Adelaide for Australian g o l d ........................................................................................
The small note law of Maryland.—Condition o f the banks of South Carolina...............................
Finances o f the Roman States................................................................................................................
Arithmetical accumulation o f m on ey...................................................................................................
COMMERCIAL
601
602
603
G04
605
606
607
607
608
609
610
611
612
612
613
STATISTICS.
Statistics o f the trade and Commerce of Cincinnati........................... ...............................................
Quantity and value of imports of articles into Cincinnati in 1852 ...................................................
Exports from Cincinnati in 1851-52......................................................................................................
Average prices o f merchandise in Cincinnati in 1851-52....................................................................
Rates of freight from Cincinnati to New Orleans and Pittsburg.......................................................
Exports of rice from Savannah for the last twelve years....................................................................
Leading exports o f Charleston (S. C.) in 1851-52 ........................... . .................................................
Exports of cotton from Savannah in 1850-51 and 1851-52 ................................................................
Lumber trade of Savannah for twelve years........................................................................................
Breadstuff's exported from the United States in 1851-52 ....................................................................
Production of sugar throughout the world in ’51.—Statistics of the mercantile marine o f the world
Value of produce received at New Orleans from the interior for the last three years....................
613
614
616
617
617
617
618
619
619
620
620
621
'
COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
Tariff o f duties in Province of New Brunswick until December, 1854............................................
Revised tariff of Calcutta on imports................ - ..................................................................................
Tariff of taxes on trade, &c., in Memphis, (Tennessee)......................................................................
Annual report of the Baltimore Board o f Trade..................................................................................
622
624
625
626
NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE.
Light-houses on the north coast o f Spain............................................................................................. 629
Bell buoy in the Bay o f Fundy.— Ascertaining the currents of the ocean.......................................630
Revolving light on the east end o f Kangaroo Island.—Port Patrick harbor light............................ 630
R A I L R O A D , C A N A L , A ND S T E A M B O A T S T A T I S T I C S .
Railroad system t)f the W e s t................................................................................................................. 631
Steamboat navigation of Cincinnati for 1852............................................ ........................................... 635
Louisville and Frankfort Railroad.......................................................................................................... 635
Tolls and tonnage o f Canadian canals................................................................................................... 636
S T A T I S T I C S OF P O P U L A T I O N .
Past, present, and prospective population of the United States.........................................................
Population and Commerce of Australia.................................................................................................
Mortality of commercial cities—New York, Baltimore, Boston, and Charleston............................
Of the population o f the globe..............................................................................................................
637
637
638
638
J O U R N A L OF M I N I N G A ND M A N U F A C T U R E S .
Manufacturing towns of the United States.—No. i. Clinton, Mass...................................................
The manufacture of thermometers—the Kendalls at New Lebanon.................................................
The manufacture of glass—No. h i . The curiosities o f glass making. By D eming J a rvis , Esq.,
o f Massachusetts............................................................................................................ ....................
Dom e’s gold mine in South Carolina....................................................................................................
Trade o f the United Kingdom in manufactures..................................................................................
639
643
645
646
647
MERCANTILE MISCELLANIES.
Consular duties.—American enterprise at Sydney.............................................................................
“ Competition in trade” not “ the life o f business.” —Prizes for commercial articles....................
Hints to merchants on advertising.—The cloves of Commerce.—Commerce of Sicily..................
Dr. Paley on the fishery question.—Philosophy of money.— A benevolent banker....... ...............
Pearl fisheries in Panama Bay.—Effect of reduced customs duties in Austria.................................
647
648
649
650
650
T H E BOOK T R A D E .
The book trade of F rance...................................................................................................................... 651
Notices o f 43 new Books, or new Editions........................... .......................... ......................... 651-656
-
HUNT’S
MERCHANTS’ MAGAZINE
AND
COMMERCIAL REVIEW.
N O V E MB E R , 1 852.
Art. 1.— C O M M E R C E
OP F R A N C E
A GENERAL SYNOPSIS OF THE COMMERCE OF
I N 1851.
FRANCE WITH ITS COLONIES
AND WITH FOREIGN POW ERS, DURING THE YEAR
1851.
W e have given an annual review o f the results o f French Commerce, in
the Merchants' Magazine, for every year since 1843. This review we have
uniformly derived from the annual Tableau General published by the D i
rection Generate des Douanes, at Paris.* W e are again indebted to the
kindness and attention o f our friend and correspondent at Paris, Mons. D . L.
Rodet, o f the Paris Chamber o f Commerce, for a copy o f this voluminous
document, for the year 1851.
For explanations o f the French system o f classification o f the various ar
ticles which enter into Commerce, and which are distinguished as animal,
vegetable, mineral, and manufactured; o f the distinction between general
Commerce and special Commerce, and between official and actual values,
we must refer the reader to the volumes o f the Merchants' Magazine, cited
below. It will be sufficient for our present purpose to say, that the term
G eneral C ommerce includes all imports, o f whatever origin or destina
tion, whether coming from a colony or foreign power, and whether intended
for home consumption, warehousing, re-export, or transit, and all exports, o f
whatever origin or destination, French, foreign, or colonial. S pecial C om
merce on the other hand, embraces only imports for home consumption,
and exports o f articles produced in France or nationalized by paying duties,
and afterwards exported.
The total aggregate o f the general Commerce o f France with its colonies
* See Merchants’ Magazine, vol. xviii, p, 497, yol. xxii, p, 259, vol. xxiv. p. 284, for similar reviews
o f previous years.
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
532
and foreign powers, in 1851, including imports and exports, amounted in
value to 2,787 millions francs, official value. This is 82 millions, or 3 per
cent, more than the total o f the preceding year; and 320 million, or 13
per cent, more than the average o f the five previous years.^
The course o f the foreign Commerce o f France, during the last fifteen
years, is exhibited in the following table, in official values and in periods of
five years.
FIRST PERIOD.
Years. Imports. Exports.
Million francs.
S08
758
1837
956
1838
937
1,003
947
1839
1 ,0 1 1
1840 1,052
1,066
1841 1 ,1 2 1
Total 4,865
4 ,794
SECOND PERIOD.
Total.
T n iR D PERIOD.
1,566
1,893
1,950
2,063
2,187
Years. Imports.
Million
1842 1,142
1843 1,187
1844 1,193
1845 1,240
1846 1,257
Exports.
francs.
940
992
1,147
1,187
1,180
Total. Years. Imports. Exports.
Million francs.
2,082 1847 1,343
1,271
2,179 184S
862
1,153
2,340 1849
1,142
1,423
1,174 1,531
2,427 1850
2,437 1851 1,158
1,629
9,659
Total 6,019
5,446 11,465
Total 5,679
Increase 2d period over 1 s t.............................................
Increase 3d period over 1 s t .............................................
Increase 3d period over 2d...............................................
19
31
11
7,007
Total.
2,614
2,015
2,565
2,705
2,787
12,685
percent.
percent.
percent.
According to the rate o f actual values fixed for the year 1851, the trade
o f France has altogether increased only to the amount o f 2,614 million
francs. This is 173 million francs, or 7 per cent less than the above total
o f 2,787 million.
O f this total amount o f 2,787 million francs, the imports are 1,158 mil
lion francs, the exports 1,629 million francs. The value o f inports is 16 mil
lion francs less than in 1850, and 2 million francs more than the average of
five years. In exports there has been an increase o f 98 million francs, or 6
per cent, compared with those o f 1850, and 318 million francs, compared
with the average o f five years.
Taking actual values instead o f official values, we have a total o f imports
o f 1,094 million francs, instead o f 1,158 million francs, and o f exports of
1,520 million francs, instead o f 1,629 million francs— a difference o f 64
million franc3 and 109 million francs, or 6 and 7 per cent.
These comparisons apply to general Commerce.
The total value o f special Commerce is 2,020 million francs. This is 116
million francs, or 6 per cent, more than that o f 1850, and 271 million francs
more than the average o f the five preceding years.
In actual values the total o f 2,020 million francs is reduced to 1,923 mil
lion francs, which is 97 million francs, or 5 per cent, less.
O f the total official amount o f special Commerce, 781 million francs are for
i m p o r t s , and 1,239 million francs are for exports. The corresponding amounts
of last year, and the average of five years are, imports 781 million francs
and 803 million francs; exports 1,124 million francs and 947 million francs.
The excess o f exports is 10 and 30 per cent.
The total actual value o f the special Commerce o f the year is 765 million
francs imports, and 1,158 million francs exports; this is 2 and 7 percent
less than the official values.
COMMERCE BY SEA AND LAND.
O f the total official value o f 2,787 million francs, the proportion o f goods
conveyed by sea and by land was 72 and 28 per cent. This is the same
proportion as in 1850, and also for the average o f five years. The imports
by sea, however, have fallen off, as compared with those by land, while the
reverse is the case as to exports.
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
533
IMPORTS.
Official value.
Commerce by sea......................... ..................... francs
Commerce by land..........................................................
Actual value.
734,000,000
424,000,000
694,000,000
400,000,000
1,265,000,000
365,000,000
1,180,000,000
340,000,000
EXPORTS.
Commerce by sea............................................................
Commerce by land..........................................................
The proportion in official value is 63 to 37 per cent in imports, and 78 to
22 per cent in exports. The proportion was nearly the same for exports in
1850. In imports the proportion was 66 to 34 per cent— a difference o f 3
per cent.
MARITIME TRADE.
O f 1,999 million francs, the official amount o f trade by sea, the amount
o f goods under the Fiench flag was 953 million francs, or 48 per cent. Un
der foreign flags 1,046 million francs, or 52 per cent.
This is the same proportion as in 1850, and for the average o f five years.
O f the total o f 953 million francs, the value o f trade under the French
flag, 271 million francs belong to privileged trade, which is an increase 22
per cent, compared with 1850, and o f 12 per cent compared with the aver
age o f five years.
There has been a falling off o f 5 per cent from 1850 in the trade under
the French flag open to foreign competition, but on the average o f five years,
there has been a gain o f 10 per cent.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS TOGETHER.
O f the total trade o f France with her colonies and foreign powers, the
share o f the following countries placed in the order o f their importance was
70 per cent:— England, United States, Belgium, Sardinia, Spain, the Ger
man Customs Union, Turkey, and B razil; the share o f the French colonies,
9 per cent.
IMPORTS, COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.
The imports into France from Belgium (in general Commerce) amounted
to 181 million francs, which is 15 per cent more than the previous year, and
37 per cent more than the five years’ average.
The value o f products from that country which entered into domestic
consumption, was but 101 million francs. This is a falling off o f 3 per
cent on the previous year, and an increase o f 7 per cent on the average o f
five years.
Switzerland comes next to Belgium in general imports, which amounted
to 134 million francs. This is within 1 million of the same amount as in
1850, and an advance o f 19 million francs, or 17 per cent, on the average
o f five years. The special import trade from Switzerland remained the same
as in 1850, and as the average o f five years, the amount being 24 million
francs.
The value o f imports from the United States in general Commerce fell off
from 137 million, in 1850, to 129 million, in 1851, a decrease o f 6 and 15
per cent. The amount o f special Commerce with that power was 1224million against 123 million, in 1850, and 128 million, the average o f five
years.
The general trade with England increased to 109 million francs, and the
534
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
special trade to 661 million francs.
The figures for the preceding year are
122 million and 105 million francs, general Commerce, and 691 million and
62 million francs, special Commerce. This is a decrease, compared with
1850, o f 13 million francs and 3 million francs. A n increase, compared
with the average o f five years, o f 4 million francs, in both general and spe
cial trade.
There has been a falling off since 1850 in the general import trade from
Sardinia o f 2 per cent, from Turkey o f 16 per cent, from Spain o f 9 per
cent. The imports from the Customs Union have increased 10 per cent.
In imports for home consumption, the trade with Sardinia has increased 6
per cent, but with Turkey, Spain, and the Customs Union, it has fallen off 4,
11, and 12 per cent.
The amount o f Algerian products consumed is 16 million francs, instead
o f 5 million francs, which is an increase o f 206 per cent; that o f the pro
duce o f the Isle o f Reunion amounted to 30 million francs, or 1 million
francs less than in 1850.
The amount o f imports from Guadaloupe is 31 million francs instead o f
25 million francs; from Martinique 12 million francs against 11 million
francs in 1850.
EXPORTS OR COUNTRY OF DESTINATION.
In the export trade, England stands first. The value o f goods o f all
kinds exported from France to that country is 354 million francs, o f which
278 million francs are for articles o f French production. This is an increase
o f 20 per cent in general and 23 per cent in special Commerce.
The United States come next. They took o f French exports o f all kinds
237 million francs, and o f the products o f France 134 million francs. This
is a falling off on the past year o f 13 and 24 per cent.
The exports to Belgium, which stands third in the order o f importance,
amounted to 136 million francs (general Commerce), and 124 million francs
(special Commerce), which is an increase o f 16 and 23 per cent.
There has been an increase o f 3 and 9 per cent in the official value o f the
exports to Switzerland : 108 million francs and 61 million francs against 105
million francs and 56 million francs.
The total exports to Sardinia increased from 82 million francs and 58 mil
lion francs, the amount in 1850, to 87 million francs and 65 million francs
or 7 and 12 per cent. There was a falling off o f 20 million francs and 9
million francs or 19 and 13 per cent, in exports to Spain.
Exports to the German Customs’ Union amounted to 54 million francs,
o f which 47 million francs were French products. The results differ a lit
tle from last year.
Exports to Brazil increased 49 per cent in general and 51 per cent in spe
cial Commerce, or from 33 million francs and 22 million francs to 49 m il
lion francs and 33 million francs.
The total value o f goods sent to Turkey in 1850 was 36 million francs.
In 1851, it fell to 32 million francs or 10 per cent. The export o f French
products to that power was about the same as in 1850, 23 million francs.
To Chili, Mexico, the Low Countries, the Two Sicilies, the Hanseatic
towns, Peru, the Spanish American Possessions and Austria, the export o f
o f French products has increased in different degrees ; but the exports to
Prussia, Tuscany, Hayti and Egypt, have fallen off.
The general export trade to Algeria which amounted to 88 million francs
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
535
in 1850, and the special export trade, which amounted to 76 million francs,
have increased 11 million francs and 18 million francs or 13 and 25 per cent
A ll the French colonies, excepting the possessions in India, have imported
more freely from the mother country. The increase in official values was
66 per cent for Martinique, 51 per cent for Guadaloupe, 7 per cent for Reu
nion, and 4 per cent for Cayenne.
COUNTRIES IMPORTED PROM AND EXPORTED TO.
The following is the debit and credit account o f the trade o f France in
185T with the ten powers with which it has had the largest dealings, takingspecial Commerce as the basis o f comparison, and including imports and
exports :—
Official Values,
Debit.
Credit.
England................. francs
United States.................
Belgium...........................
Sardinia...............................
Spain....................................
Switzerland.....................
Customs U nion.................
Turkey................................
Brazil...................................
Two Sicilies........................
66,000,000
218,000,000
123,000,000
134,000,000
101,000,000
124,000,000
78,000,000 65,000,000
31,000,000 62,000,000
24,000.000
61,000,000
33,000,000 47,040,000
39,000,000 23,000,000
13,000,000 33,000,000
18,000,000 17,000,000
Actual Values.
Debit.
Credit.
69,000,000
110,000,000
114,000,000
74,000,000
27,000,000
23,000,000
38,000,000
34,000,000
12,000,000
21,000,000
293,000,000
145,000,000
123,000,000
59,000,000
54,000,000
55,000,000
44,000,000
20,000,000
28,000,000
15,000,000
This table shows that the value o f merchandise o f French production ex
ported to the principal powers, and particularly to England, Belgium, 43pain,
Switzerland and Brazil, is considerably greater than the value o f products
imported. The difference in favor o f France as regards the United States
is less, while the imports from Sardinia, Tuscany and the Two Sicilies are
greater than the exports.
NATURE OF IMPORTS.
O f the aggregate o f imports 1,058,000,000 francs (official value),
1,094,000,000 francs (actual value), the value o f raw materials was 697 mil
lion francs (official value), 687 million francs (actual value). This is 60 per
cent of the total amount given above, in official values. In 1850, the pro
portion o f raw material was 61 per cent official value. O f this total import
o f raw materials 76 per cent was for the supply o f the factories against 77
per cent in 1850.
The value o f articles o f consumption in the natural state has fallen from
189 million francs (official value), and 173 million francs (actual value), in
1850, to 181 million and 103 million francs in general trade. In special
trade the results are as follows : 1850, 137 million (official value), 131 mil
lion francs (actual value); 1851, 144 million francs (official value), 129 mil
lion (actual value).
There has been an increase in the official value o f the general trade in
manufactured articles from 263 million francs, the amount in 1850, to 280
million francs.
But in special trade there has been a falling off o f 1 million francs, from
42 million francs to 41 million francs. The actual value o f these products
was 219 million francs and 41 million francs, in 1850, 244 million francs and
41 million francs.
O f the articles the special import trade in which has undergone the most
536
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
fluctuation, there has been a decrease o f 12 million francs or 21 per cent in
wool, o f 4 million francs or 4 per cent in silk, o f 3 million francs in raw
hides, indigo, copper, lard and tallow. O f this last amount o f 3 million
francs, the proportion o f the first article is 7 per cent, o f the second 41 per
cent, o f the third 21 per cent, o f the fourth 78 per cent. On the other
hand, the value o f leaf tobacco delivered to government exceeded by 10 milmillion francs that o f last year, and the value o f gold dust 9 million francs.
O f articles o f consumption in the natural state, coffee, table fruits, oleag
inous seeds, nuts, show an increase of 1 million to 2 million francs each. Co
lonial sugars, a decrease o f 2 million francs.
Linen and hempen fabrics and straw hats are the only articles presenting
any noticeable change; and in these the diminution is 1 1-2 million francs,
13 per cent, and 1 million francs, 24 per cent.
NATURE OF EXPORTS.
W e have seen that the total official value o f exports o f goods o f every
kind was 1,630 million francs, or 6 per cent more than in 1850. In this
amount the proportion between natural products and manufactured articles,
is about the same as in 1850, 32 per cent to 68 per cent. The actual val
ue differs but little from the official in natural products, it is 521 million
francs instead o f 526 million francs; but in manufactured articles it falls
from 1,104 million francs to 999 million francs.
Since 1850 there has been an increase of 9 per cent in the first and 5 per
cent in the second class o f articles.
In special Commerce the official value o f articles in the natural state was
386 million francs, that o f manufactured articles 852 million francs ; this is
an increase o f 19 per cent and 7 per cent. Here the actual value o f natu
ral products is greater by 5 millions (391 million francs) than the total o f
official values, but the actual value o f manufactured articles is less by 85
million francs, (767 million francs.)
Almost the whole o f the increase in the export o f the natural products o f
France, is in cereals and wines. O f this increase, 22 million francs is for the
cereals (96 million to 74 million francs), 10 million francs for wines (80 mil
lion to 70 million francs), 7 million francs for brandies and spirits o f wine
(30 million to 23 million francs).
In manufactured articles there is an increase o f 26 million francs in cotton
fabrics (165 million to 139 million francs); o f 6 million francs in woolen
fabrics (132 million to 126 million francs); o f 6 million francs in prepared
skins (37 million to 31 million francs); and on the other hand a falling off
of 4 million francs in silks (204 million instead o f 208 million francs). This
last result corresponds with the loss o f 1 million francs in silk in the export
o f natural products.
In the aggregate, the actual rates o f valuation are higher than the official
as regards silks, bareges, manufactures of metals, hides prepared, tanned and
dressed, hardware, toys, horses and cattle. They are lower on cotton, linen,
woolen and hempen stuffs; on grains, glass, refined sugars, dyes, hair for
spinning and hat making, grains and oil seeds. From these differences we
have the following results in products exported :
1. Actual values higher than official values :—
Silks............................. francs. 35,000,000
Wines, <Ssc.................................. 20,000,000
Manufactures of Metal........
15,000,000
Prepared Skins. . .
Hardware, &c___
Horses and Cattle
francs.
14.000.
000
17.000.
000
7,000,000
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
531
2. Actual values less than official values:—
Cotton, Woolen, Linen FabI Refined Sugars...........francs.
rics, Ac...................... francs. 128,000,000 | Dyes........................................
Cereals.....................................
6,000,000 I Hair........................................
15,000,000 | Grains and Oil Seeds.. . . - .
Glassware...............................
1,000,000
6,000,000
8,000,000
6,000,000
BOUNTIES.
The amount o f bounties on export or for drawback, paid out o f the trea
sury in 1851, was 26,582,412 francs. On this account, the amount in 1850
was but 25,458,512 francs. This increase o f 4 per cent is almost exclusive
ly in cotton and woolen fabrics, soaps and woolen yarn. There has been a
slight decrease in refined sugars, a decrease o f 9 per cent in sheet lead, 1
per cent in tanned and dressed skins, o f 8 per cent in cotton thread.
Compared with the average of five years, the increase affects only plate
lead, refined sulphur, cotton thread and sulphuric acid. Inm ost other goods
there is a marked increase. The total comparative value o f goods exported
during the last two years, with benefit o f bounty, is as follows :—Official Values.
Actual Values.
1851........................... .'francs. 301,395,356 [ 1851...............................francs. 191,543,880
1850........................................ 268,222,392 | 1850........................................ 185,929,480
139,112,964
5,614,400
COD AND WHALE FISHERY.
The cod fishery produced 403,171 metrical quintals o f fresh and dry cod
o f oil roes, which is 7 per cent more than in 1850, and 4 per cent more
than the average o f five years. This increase applies to all except the roes,
in which there is a falling off o f 15 per cent.
The results o f the whale fishery in 1851, are but 11,411 quintals o f oil
and whalebone, which is 13 per cent less than the product o f 1850, 20,157
quintals; and 22 per cent less than the average o f five years.
The export o f cod with benefit o f bounty increased 38 per cent, or from
62,010 quintals the amount to which it fell in 1850, to 85,410 quintals ; the
greater part o f this increase applies to exports to Martinique and Italy. W ith
Spain, this branch of trade has amounted to absolutely nothing.
WAREHOUSES.
The quantity o f goods warehoused in 1851 was 7,968,928 metrical quin
tals, o f the total official value o f 565 million francs, which is 3 per cent on the
weight and 9 per cent in value less than last year ; and 24 per cent and 13
per cent less than the average. The chief differences are, as to weight, in
cereals, foreign sugars, olive oil, raw wool, lard and tallow ; as to value, in
foreign sugar, indigo, cereals, woolens, and olive oil.
The total actual value o f goods re-warehoused was 514 million francs against
563 million francs in 1850. This is a decrease o f 49 million francs; of
which 20 million francs are on cottons, 14 million francs on foreign sugars,
and 8 million francs on woolens.
The warehouses o f Marseilles and Havre stand first in the amount o f bu
siness done, as regalds both the weight and value o f the goods warehoused;
62 per cent in weight and 61 per cent in official value o f all goods ware
housed were entered here ; this is 4 per cent and 2 per cent less than in
1850. The warehouse o f Bordeaux is third as regards the weight, and
538
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
fourth as regards the official value o f the goods entered. There has been a
falling off at this place since 1850, o f 5 million francs or 15 per cent in offi
cial value, and a gain o f 2 per cent in weight. The business at the ware
house at Nantes has increased 19 per cent in weight and 49 per cent in
value. But at Paris there has been a falling off o f 8 percent in weight and
1 per cent in official value.
TRANSIT TRADE.
The amount o f transit trade in weight was 386,067 metrical quintals,
which is 66,343 quintals or 21 per cent more than in 1850, when the
amount was 319,724 quintals. The value o f this trade at the fixed official
rates established in 1826, was 264 million francs ; in 1850, it was 258 mil
lion francs, increase 6 million francs or 2 per cent. Taking actual values as
the basis o f comparison, we have a difference in favor o f 1851, of 18 million
francs or 7 per cent (253 million to 235 million francs).
The transit trade in silk fabrics which, in 1850, amounted to 74 million
francs (official value) increased to 78 million francs ; that in cotton fabrics,
amounted to only 39 million francs instead of 50 million francs; that in
woolen fabrics increased from 29 million francs to 34 million francs. The
transit o f silk fell from 22 million to 16 million francs, and that o f cotton
wool from 14 million francs to 11 million francs. The transit o f coffee in
creased 68 per cent, from 2 1-2 million francs to more than 4 million francs.
Finally, the transit o f wool amounted to 4 1-2 million francs, which is 38
per cent more than the previous year, and 267 per cent more than the ave
rage o f five years.
Switzerland stands first among powers from which the largest amount, in
value, o f the transit trade through France has been derived. This amount
is 98 million francs (official value), and 167 million francs (actual val
ue). The corresponding amounts for 1850, are 99 million francs and 97
million francs. The difference between the actual and the official values is
in silk and silk fabrics.
Belgium and England still stand second and third, but the results are
very different from those o f last year. W hile the transit o f Belgian prod
ucts across the French territory has increased 33 per cent, official value, (81
million francs to 61 million francs), the transit o f goods from England has
fallen off 28 per cent, (25 million to 35 million francs).
The German Customs Union, the Sardinian States, and the United States
come next, with nearly similar results to those of 1850, excepting the Uni
ted States, where there has been a falling off o f 22 per cent, or more than
2 million francs out o f 10 million francs.
The United States stands first, as in 1850, among countries to which
goods in transit have been exported. Their value is 85 million francs or
32 per cent o f the whole transit m ovem ent; this is 5^^-j- per cent more than
in 1850. England, which was only third in 1850, now takes the place as
second. The amount o f goods she received in transit through France was
60 million francs, 13 million francs more than in 1850.
Switzerland now stands third, the value being 48 million francs. This is
500,000 francs more than in 1850.
Brazil has advanced from the seventh to the fourth place, with a total o f
12 million francs instead o f 4 million francs. Spain, Belgium, the Sardinian
states, and the German Customs’ Union come next to Brazil, and show a
decrease varying from 15 percent to 37 percent.
539
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
The following table exhibits, in weight, for the years 1850 and 1851, the
comparative importance o f the import and the export transit trade, with
the four principal powers with which this trade has been carried on.
COUNTRIES EXPORTING.
Switzerland.................
Belgium.......................
E n g la n d .....................
United States............
1851.
1850.
21,836
40,068
37,279
44,633
25,836
28,852
39,428
51,653
COUNTRIES IMPORTING.
United States............
England.......................
Switzerland.................
Belgium.......................
1851.
1850.
25,104
23,770
250,365
20,683
20,255
19,151
206,319
11,941
DUTIES.
The total duties collected by the department o f customs was 14V,833,95V
francs : o f which, import duties 11V,152,812 francs ; export duties 3,081,141
francs; navigation duties 2,965,354 francs; incidental duties 2,822,241
francs ; tax on consumption o f salt 21,812,409 francs.
These receipts are 6,193,463 francs less than in 1850. The difference is
confined exclusively to import duties, o f which nearly 2 million francs are on
foreign sugars, 3 million francs on wool, 1 1-2 million francs on olive oil,
and 1 million on lard and tallow together.
The receipts at the principal custom-houses, and the proportion to the to
tal aggregate, of the amount received at each, were as follows :—
1850.
Marseilles.. . .
Havre.............
Paris............... ..................
Bordeaux ......... ..................
Nantes........... ..................
Dunkirk.........
Rouen............. ...................
Other Custom Houses____
12,109,000
12,047,000
11,498,000
5,563,000
48,240,000
or 21 percent.
17
8
8
n
“
4
31
“
31
1851.
30,677,000 or 21 percent.
18
26,164,000
8
11,570,000
11,460,000
71
“
10,817,000
7
6,817,000
44
“
4,184,000
3
46,145,000
31
This comparison shows, that o f the decrease o f 6,193,463 francs, nearly a
third is at Marseilles, and nearly a fourth at Rouen, and also that the re
ceipts at Havre have remained the same and those o f Dunkirk have increa
sed a sixth.
SHIPPING.
The maritime trade o f France with colonies and foreign powers employed
steam and sail vessels in 34,636 voyages. The total tonnage employed was
4,088,000 tons. This is 8 per cent more than the voyages, and 9 per cent
more than the tonnage o f the preceding year. Compared with the average
o f five years, the increase is 12 per cent and 11 per cent.
44 per cent o f the voyages and 42 per cent o f the tonnage were under
the French flag. There is here a falling off' o f from 1 to 3 per cent in the
number of voyages and the tonnage from the amount o f last year and from
the average.
Passing to details, we notice an increase since 1850 in the tonnage of
French ships, as follows :—
540
Commerce o f France in 1851 .
O f 23 per cent in the trade with the colonies.
O f 14 per cent in the trade with other French possessions out o f Europe,
including Algeria ; and 1 per cent in the trade open to competition.
O f the total foreign maritime movement, o f 11 1-2 per ct. were privileged
navigation ; in 1851, it exceeds 12 per cent.
The increase o f 9 per cent and 11 per cent, above noticed, in the total
tonnage employed, is divided as follow s:—
French flag....................... increase.
Foreign flags...................................
1S50.
Ave. o f Five Years.
5 percent.
13
“
8 percent.
13
“
Comparing navigation by sails with steam navigation we find, that o f the
former, 47 per cent of tonnage belongs to France, which is 4 per cent more
than in 1850, and 9 per cent more than the average o f five years. In 1850
it was 48 per cent: the average was 45 per cent.
The French steam marine has increased particularly in open trade. The
tonnage was 39,000 tons against 24,000 tons in 1850, and 27,000 tons the
average o f five years.
The share o f French shipping in the aggregate trade between Sardinia
and France, although larger than that o f last year, was but 51 per cent. In
1850, it was 59 per cent or 8 per cent more. There has also been a loss of
2 per cent in the trade with the Roman states. W ith these two exceptions,
the French flag has sustained with more advantage than in 1850 the contest
with the foreign flag in the trade between French ports and those of Southern
Europe. Thus in 1851, it covered 68 instead o f 58 per cent o f the tonnage
employed in the trade with Portugal, 37 instead o f 35 per cent with Spain,
65 instead o f 48 per cent with Tuscany, 38 instead of 29 per cent with the
two Sicilies, 78 instead of 76 per cent with Turkey. But the total o f French
tonnage in the trade with the greater part o f the rest o f Europe was pro
portionally less than in 1850. Thus in the trade with England, the French
flag covered only 24 instead o f 29 per cent o f the tonnage employed. In
the trade with the German Union, 5 instead o f 10 per cent.
The share o f French shipping fell from 7 to 4 per cent, and from 20,419
tons to 15,368 tons (or 5,000 tons) in the trade between the French ports
and the Atlantic ports o f the United States o f North America.
In the trade with the other powers o f Africa, Asia, and America, the
share o f the French flag has not sensibly varied. The following, placed in
the order o f importance, are the twelve powers with which maritime inter
course has been most active in 1851 : and the share of the French flag in
the trade with each :—
England...............................
U. States, (Atlantic coast).
Sardinia...............................
N orw ay...............................
Two Sicilies.........................
Turkey.................................
Spain.....................................
Russia, (both seas)...............
Low Countries.....................
Tuscany...............................
Sweden.................................
Brazil....................................
Total Tonnage,
1,657,983
355,400
170,096
141,317
129,714
129,523
118,420
S8.55S
70,185
67,807
64,346
62,102
Share of the French
24 per cent.
4
51
3
38
78
37
28
“
44
65
“
6
“
SO
“
The Regulation o f L ife Insurance.
541
Art, II.— THE REGULATION OF LIFE INSURANCE.
L ife I nsurance, having originated in the development of the mathemat
ical doctrine o f chances, has been supposed to have some affinity to gam
bling. But the analogy is shallow. It may more justly be considered a
method o f delivering human life from the tyranny o f chance. In society,
as it is, a man whose productive energy is equivalent, while he lives, to the
income o f a handsome fortune, runs a chance o f leaving his wife and chil
dren to that least tolerable species o f poverty which aggravates the destitu
tion o f means by the abundance o f wants. Whatever may be said o f life
itself, cultivated tastes are no blessing without certain physical means for
their gratification. Those who, possessing them, fall into poverty, suffer
pangs o f which those who have never risen from it are happily ignorant.
The possibility o f leaving cherished and comparatively helpless dependants
to such destitution in such a world, is to be avoided by any honest means.
Mutual Life Insurance, to most persons, is the readiest and most effectual.
It so combines accumulation and guaranty that it is equivalent, for the pur
pose in question, to an instantaneous creation o f wealth to the individual,
while the enjoyment o f its present security is not purchased by an extortion
ate tax* upon the future. W hen conducted upon honest and scientific prin
ciples, it is not a game at which one wins what another loses— the short
liver drawing a prize, and the long liver holding a blank. On the contrary,
it is an arrangement by which all the insured at once become possessed, for
the benefit o f their survivors, of accumulated property, and in which no one,
in any contingency, can be considered a loser. For, if it be said that the
long liver leaves his heirs at last less than if his premiums had been devoted
to individual accumulation, it is to be replied that he has, from the first, en
joyed the certainty o f leaving a large sum whenever his death should occur,
and this, to a right feeling man, is a consideration o f inestimable import
ance. Men o f action, in the prime o f life, find little difficulty in meeting
liberally the present wants o f themselves and families, but security for the
future is another affair. Individual accumulation is slow ; and sudden death,
possible in a hundred ways. This imhitters the sweets of life for the whole
spring-time, and perhaps the summer, or even the ripening autumn. A n
insured man, therefore, enjoys during his life a solid satisfaction, which may
safely be reckoned worth the sacrifice he makes in paying his premiums.
H e owns the amount for which he is insured. He is worth it. H e toils for
the blessing, but does not have to wait for it till his brow is wrinkled and
his heart toughened.
In Life Insurance security is everything. A nd it is precisely because, by
the mathematical principles which govern the subject, a good degree o f cer
tainty may be obtained, that the business is justifiable and beneficial. W hile
hardly anything seems more uncertain than individual life, aggregate life is
almost as fixed in its laws as the everlasting hills. Its rate o f decrement
from the mass, from birth to the outer frontier o f four-score-and-ten, has
been the same, for aught we know, in all ages and countries. The differ
ence, to say the least, is confined to narrow limits, and the effects o f un
healthy climate and sweeping pestilence do not disturb it by any means so
much as might be supposed. I f there is any change in general longevity
it is very slow and not very considerable. Taking ten thousand persons
alive o f any given age, the number o f those who will die each year till there
542
The Regulation o f L ife Insurance.
are no more, can be predicted from experience with a remarkable approach
to precision. The question on which this article proposes to submit a
thought or two is, how the law o f the average decrement o f life, as devel
oped by observation thus far, is to be applied to the regulation o f Life In
surance, or in other words, how the public is to be satisfied that any Life In
surance company is reasonably safe.
First, however, it deserves to be settled, what expression of the law we
will accept as the highest authority. Observations, more or less extensive,
on the mass o f the population in various localities, as at Northampton, Ches
ter, and Carlisle, in England, were the foundation o f the first rates o f Life
Insurance. The rates charged in this country are generally conformed to
the mortality at the latter place. But population taken as it rises may not
be an exactly fair representation o f the body o f insured lives. A s those
who feel their tenure o f life most doubtful will naturally most seek insurance,
the company must, o f course, guard itself by selecting the best of those who
apply. W hether the result will be a body o f insured lives above or below
the average longevity is a question. As experience is always better than
theory, the leading English companies, some fourteen years ago, turned their
attention to a practical investigation o f this question.
They very justly
deemed that the actual experience o f the past would be the best guide for
the future. Seventeen o f the oldest offices united their experience,.reach
ing back, in a number o f cases, for several generations. The particulars o f
more than 80,000 policies, that had been terminated by death, were contrib
uted to a common stock, and after rejecting those that did not answer gene
ral conditions, such as bad lives, taken at extra rates, 62,535 were taken as
the basis o f a table o f rates. The result was, as might have been expected,
favorable to life on the whole, but more so on the earlier than the later ages.
That is, the mortality o f selected insured lives is rather less for some years
than that of the Carlisle table, but rather greater afterwards. But the de
crement, as given by this combined experience o f insured lives, is more uni
form, and exhibits fewer anomalies than the Carlisle, or any other table,
based on the mass o f the j:>opulation. This extensive average o f lives actu
ally insured— the very class o f lives that are to be provided for— undoubtedly
furnishes the most authoritative expression, within the present boundaries of
science, of the law o f mortality, as applicable to Life Insurance.
The values of life annuities and premiums o f insurance deduced from this
table of mortality, may be found in the small work o f Mr. Jenkyn Jones.
But, as he gives the annuities only to three places o f decimals, and the last
is not always the nearest figure, the writer has recomputed, with some care,
the annuities and premiums, carrying them two places further. The result,
together with the logarithms most convenient in practice, may be found at
the close o f these remarks.
Life risks differ obviously from those o f fire and marine disaster, by ex
tending over a far longer duration o f time, and by terminating in certain loss.
The business also differs from fire and marine insurance, in that accumula
tion by interest playing a more important part in it, a company in its
earlier years is sure to have on hand a considerable amount o f funds beyond
current losses, and with these it can make a good show o f prosperity,
whether or not it is so husbanding them as to be able to pay its larger ul
timate losses. As the conformity o f the premium to the requirement o f the
law o f mortality is no more than a right outset, and does not secure a right
progress afterwards, it is important to have some gauge or line by which the
The Regulation o f L ife Insurance.
543
accumulation may be tested afterwards, and how this is to be had, may be
best illustrated by an example. The average age at which insurance is ef
fected is probably somewhere between 37 and 38, at which age the expec
tation or average o f future life is 29 years. For the sake o f having a me
dium example, let us suppose that a company insures for life 5,000 persons
at this mean age, each paying $30 per annum for a policy o f $1,000. Taken
one with another, each will pay twenty-nine premiums o f $30, amounting to
$870, and will receive by his heirs $1,000. The $130 and its expenses the
company is to provide for by the interest. And more than this it may easi
ly do, for the premium charged is about $6 higher than that which would
be sufficient to amount to the $1,000, at compound interest at 3 per cent,
taking the losses one with another as they occur in the table. This excess
is designed to meet necessary expenses and extraordinary mortality, and
under the mutual system of insurance it returns, so far and so fast as
it is not needed for these purposes, to those who have paid it.
How
far and how fast it may return is to be decided. Pursuing our example, we
see that the company will the first year receive from its 5,000 insurees
$150,000, and we will suppose that this sum is increased by interest to
$150,000. According to the law o f mortality above referred to, it may ex
pect to lose the first year $49,000 by 49 deaths. Suppose it should so lose,
it will still have $107,000 le ft; or, what is quite probable, it may experi
ence no more than 30 losses, amounting to $30,000, and leaving $126,000,
(to say nothing o f more interest in this case.) But this large amount is not
entirely profit or surplus. I f not the whole, the greater portion o f it must
be retained productively invested for the future, to meet engagements cer
tain in amount and, in the aggregate, certain in time. If the company has
had to pay only $30,000 for losses, then the other $19,000, which it might
have paid according to the table, it has still to pay. It has not gained the
principal, but only the opportunity o f acquiring more interest. The favor
able contingency is doubtless beneficial to the company, and will enable it
to return more than it otherwise would. But how much more ? is the
question. Here a vital practical rule, founded on the law o f mortality, conies
in, and it is, that a company must always keep its available assets equal to
its matured liabilities. The matured liability on each policy is its value,
according to the law o f mortality, and such a rate o f interest as may be
considered permanent and certain, or it is the difference between the single
premium, which the holder of the policy would have to pay to insure the
same amount at his present age, and the present worth o f what he will pay,
at the aforesaid rate of interest in both cases, having entered into the en
gagement at an earlier age. This difference, or value o f the policy, the
company is bound to hold in trust, productively invested. If it be returned,
or otherwise expended, it must be made good by a robbery o f the future,
or the company will, some time or other, fail to meet its engagements. The
aggregate o f these values or differences, calculated to any given time, is the
matured liability o f the company at that time, or it is just what it would have
to pay in equity to be released from its engagements.
Let us suppose, which will not be far from the fact, assuming 3 per cent
as the permanent rate o f interest, that each o f the policies in our example
has a value at the close o f the first year, and before the second premium is
paid, o f $15. In case, then, 30 policies have expired by death, $74,550
will be the matured liability o f the company, and reserving this, it will have
$51,450, minus its expenses, to return. If it has had the medium loss o f
544
The Regulation o f L ife Insurance.
$40,000, then it must reserve $74,265, and will have $32,735, minus ex
penses, to return. If, again, the losses have amounted to 60, it will have to
reserve $74,100, and, supposing the extra losses not to have diminished the
income from interest, it will have only $21,900, minus expenses, to return.
It is quite plain, so far as this example represents the truth, that a company
must be very fortunate indeed to be able, after paying 10 per cent commis
sions to agents, office rent, salaries, printing bills, postage, &c., to return 33
per cent o f its premiums. It is true that companies do add to the surplus
to be divided something from the profits o f lapsed policies and temporary
assurance, but not often a considerable per centage o f the receipts by pre
miums.
A t all events, our example makes it perfectly clear that a company can
never know how much it has a right to return, without first accurately as
certaining the values o f all its policies to a certain day. As policies are
dated all the working days o f the year, and change their value from day
to day, and as the ages o f the insured are various, calculating all the poli
cies of an extensive company to a given day requires a good deal of arith
metical labor. But it must be done, or a company cannot be sure o f its
solvency any more than a merchant who neglects to balance his books. A
navigator might as safely be ignorant o f his latitude and longitude in mid
ocean. It is a business in which all the accuracy which the nature o f the
case admits should be secured at whatever cost.
By some companies in this country, policies are carefully estimated, and
assets balanced against matured liabilities yearly. B y others, there is reason
to believe that the liabilities have been rudely and lumpingly guessed at,
and by some others still, it is probable no such estimation has been made or
attempted in one way or another. As the principal executive officer o f one
company lately expressed to the writer o f this article his doubt as to the
possibility of “ fixing a value to an uncertainty,” meaning by an “ uncertain
ty ” a life policy, it is pretty certain that that company gets on without cal
culating its policies. In this state o f things, it is not without good reason
that several State Legislatures have interested themselves to guard their con
stituents against the mismanagement o f Life Insurance offices. New York
has required o f each company doing business in that State, wherever
chartered, to deposit $100,000 with the State Controller, for the benefit o f
the insured in that State. This safe-guard is o f very doubtful utility, and
surely very awkward. The sum held may be too much or too little, and
requiring it tends to discourage the business and confine it to narrow limits,
whereas its safety lies in expanding over a broad surface. Massachusetts has
for several years required o f insurance companies chartered in other States, and
doing business within her limits, a statement o f their affairs, to be sworn to,
and lodged with the Secretary o f State, but unfortunately such a statement
as was conclusive o f nothing in the case of Life Insurance companies 1 It
got merely a sort o f puff advertisement, the figures o f which indeed might
all be true enough, and yet the company be worthless. Her last Legisla
ture has passed a more stringent enactment, and in it required a return of
the real liability of the company as well as its assets. It is curious, how
ever, to observe, and it argues the imperfect acquaintance with this subject,
which prevails that this act not only requires a return o f the aggregatevalue o f the policies on the first o f July o f each year, but also the present
value o f the fu tu re premiums at the same date ! This latter return, having
nothing to balance against it, is of no significance whatever to the public.
The Regulation o f L ife Insurance.
545
The father o f the act, by attempting to show a little more knowledge than
he possessed, imposed a quite needless labor on the companies. This act,
however, hits the nail on the head, notwithstanding. It is an “ Assembly’s
shorter catechism,” which no company can honestly answer without inform
ing the public whether it has been safely and correctly managed up to the
date o f the return.
Such a balance o f its assets against its matured liability, as estimated by
a mathematician known to be competent and trustworthy, every Life Insu
rance company should feel required, by a regard for its own credit, to make
annually. And the insured should no more allow the directors to go on
from year to year without reporting this balance than the stockholders o f a
railroad would allow their directors to report their receipts without reporting
their running expenses.
e. w.
VALUES OF LIFE ANNUITIES, AND SINGLE AND ANNUAL PREMIUMS OF ASSURANCE, FOR ONE
DOLLAR, ON SINGLE LIVES, BY THE “ COMBINED EXPERIENCE ”
RATE OF MORTALITY, AT 3
P E R CENT INTEREST.
Living at
Age. each age.
10 . 100,000
99,324
11.
12 .
98,650
13 .
97,978
14 .
97,307
15 .
96,636
16 . 95,965
17 .
95,293
18 .
94,620
19 .
93,945
20 .
93,268
21 .
92,588
22 .
91,905
23 .
91,219
24 .
90,529
25 .
89,835
26 . 89,137
27 . 88,434
28 . 87,726
29 .
87,012
SO . 86,292
31 . 85,565
84,831
32 .
33 ., 84,089
34 .. 83,339
35 ., 82,581
36 .. 81,814
37 . 81,038
38 . 80,253
39 . 79,458
4 0 . 78,653
41 . 77,838
42 .
77,012
43 . 76,173
4 4 . 75,316
45 . 74,435
46 . 73,526
47 .
72,582
48 .
71,601
49 . 70,580
50 .
69,517
51 .
68,409
Logarithm o f
Value of Logarithm o f Logarithm of
Annual
premium. annual prem.
annuity.
annuity.
14- annuity.
.0 1 1 9 3 1 7 ■-2 .0 7 6 7 0 2 2
2 3 .3 5 5 8 7 :L .3 68 3960 1 .3 8 6 6 0 3 5
.0 1 2 1 6 1 6
.0 8 4 99 0 7
.3 6 5 8 6 7 3
.3 8 4 1 7 7 9
2 3 .2 2 0 2 7
.0 1 2 4 0 0 8
.3 8 1 6 6 9 4
.3 6 3 2 4 1 1
.0 9 3 4 4 9 7
2 3 .0 8 0 2 7
.0 1 2 65 2 3
.1 0 2 16 9 5
2 2 .9 3 5 7 3
.3 6 0 5 1 2 7
.3 7 9 04 6 7
.0 1 2 91 4 1
.1 1 1 0 6 4 2
.3 5 7 6 8 1 6
.3 7 6 3 3 4 4
2 2 .7 8 6 7 1
.3 7 3 5 2 4 4
.0 1 3 1 8 7 0
.1 2 0 1 4 6 0
.3 5 4 7 4 7 9
2 2 .6 3 3 3 0
.0 1 3 47 1 8
.3 7 0 6 1 0 8
.1 2 9 4 2 5 6
2 2 .4 7 5 2 8
.3 5 1 7 0 5 2
.1 3 8 8 9 2 9
.8 6 7 5 9 4 3
.0 1 3 7 6 8 7
.3 4 8 5 5 3 9
2 2 .3 1 2 7 9
.0 1 4 0 7 8 5
.3 6 4 4 6 9 2
.1 4 8 5 5 6 4
2 2 .1 4 5 6 4
.3 4 5 2 8 8 3
.0 1 4 4 0 1 5
.1 5 8 4 0 7 7
2 1 .9 7 3 9 0
.3 4 1 9 0 7 2
.3 6 1 2 3 4 7
.0 1 4 7 3 8 4
.1 6 8 4 5 0 3
2 1 .7 9 7 4 1
.3 3 8 4 0 4 8
.3 5 7 8 8 5 5
.3 5 4 4 1 9 8
.0 1 5 0 8 9 9
.1 7 8 6 8 6 3
2 1 .6 1 6 2 1
.3 3 4 7 7 9 6
.0
1
5
4
5
6
6
.1 8 9 1 1 3 9
2 1 .4 3 0 1 8
.3 3 1 0 2 5 6
.3 5 0 83 2 7
.0
1
5
8
3
9
8
.3
4
7
1
1
6
6
.1 9 9 74 9 7
2 1 .2 3 9 0 7
.3 2 7 1 3 5 5
.2 1 0 5 7 8 0
2 1 .0 4 2 9 8
.3 2 3 1 0 7 2
.3 4 3 2 7 0 4
.0 1 6 2 3 9 7
.0 1 6 6 5 7 8
2 0 .8 4 1 7 0
.3 1 8 9 3 3 2
.3 3 9 2 8 6 4
.2 2 1 61 7 7
2 0 .6 3 5 0 6
.3 3 5 15 8 1
.0 1 7 09 5 1
.2 3 2 8 7 1 6
.3 1 4 6 0 5 7
.0 1 7 5 5 2 5
.2 4 4 3 3 9 0
2 0 .4 2 3 0 7
.3 1 0 1 2 1 0
.3 3 0 8 8 1 7
.0 1 8 0 3 1 3
.2 5 6 0 2 7 0
2 0 .2 0 5 5 3
.3 2 6 44 9 1
.3 0 5 4 7 0 3
.0 1 8 5 3 2 6
.2 6 7 9 3 6 3
.3 0 0 6 4 9 1
.3 2 1 8 5 6 6
1 9 .9 8 2 4 7
1 9 .7 5 4 1 3
.0 1 9 0 5 7 0
2800545
.2 9 5 6 5 7 9
.3 1 7 1 0 4 5
.0 1 9 6 0 8 8
.3 1 2 1 5 8 9
.2 9 2 4 5 0 9
1 9 .5 1 9 1 3
.2 9 0 46 0 5
.3 0 5 06 3 2
1 9 .2 7 8 6 9
.3 0 7 0 3 9 8
.0 2 0 18 6 7
.2 8 5 07 7 5
.0 2 0 7 9 3 4
.3 1 7 9 2 5 5
1 9 .0 3 2 2 2
.3 0 1 72 9 1
.2 7 9 4 9 0 5
.0 2 1 4 3 0 8
.3 8 1 0 3 8 3
1 8 .7 7 9 6 5
.2 9 6 2 1 8 6
.2 7 3 6 8 7 5
.0 2 2 10 1 1
.3 4 4 4 1 3 8
1 8 .5 2 0 8 4
•29049S5
.2 6 7 6 6 0 7
.3 5 8 0 9 1 0
.2 8 4 5 4 4 6
.0 2 2 8 0 8 2
1 8 .2 5 5 0 5
.2 6 1 3 8 3 0
.3 7 2 0 4 9 9
.0 2 3 5 6 3 2
1 7 .9 8 2 7 5
.2 5 4 8 5 6 1
.2 7 8 35 9 1
.3 8 6 3 2 0 6
.2 7 1 9 2 0 6
.0 2 4 3 4 0 0
1 7 .7 0 3 4 0
.2 4 8 05 6 8
.0 2 5 1 7 1 6
.4 0 0 9 1 0 8
1 7 .4 1 6 9 5
.2 4 0 9 7 2 2
.2 6 5 2 1 7 7
.0 2 6 05 2 1
.2 5 8 23 1 8
.2 3 3 5 8 1 6
.4 1 5 8 4 2 7
1 7 .1 2 3 0 7
.0 2 6 9 * 1
.4 3 1 1 4 0 1
1 6 .8 2 1 4 2
.2 5 0 9 4 2 3
.2 2 5 8 6 2 7
.0 2 7 9 7 7 8
.2 4 3 3 3 3 2
.4 4 6 8 1 3 6
1 6 .5 1 1 9 0
.2 1 7 7 9 7 0
1 6 .1 9 4 5 8
.0 2 9 03 0 7
.4 6 2 85 7 5
.2 0 9 3 6 9 8
.2 3 5 3 9 8 6
.0 3 0 1 4 9 8
1 5 .8 7 0 2 2
.2 2 7 1 2 0 7
.4 7 9 2 8 4 4
.2 0 0 5 8 3 0
1 5 .6 3 9 8 0
.0 3 1 3 3 4 0
.4 9 6 0 1 5 8
.2 1 8 5 3 0 2
.1 9 1 4 4 5 4
1 5 .2 0 3 8 8
.0 3 2 5 8 7 4
.1 8 1 9 5 4 4
.2 0 9 6 1 9 0
.5 1 3 04 9 7
.1 7 2 12 6 1
.0 3 3 9 1 0 9
.5 3 0 3 3 9 2
1 4 .8 6 3 6 7
.2 0 0 40 3 7
1 4 .6 1 9 3 3
.0 3 5 31 0 9
.1 6 1 9 4 6 6
.1 9 0 86 3 7
.5 4 7 90 8 7
.0 3 6 7 8 8 0
1 4 .1 7 1 2 5
.1 8 1 0 2 1 3
.5 6 5 70 6 2
.1 5 1 4 0 8 0
1 3 .8 1 9 5 8
.1 7 0 8 3 6 2
.0 3 8 3 5 2 0
.5 8 3 7 8 8 0
.1 4 0 4 9 4 8
1 3 .4 6 4 7 2
.6 0 2 14 3 6
.1 2 9 1 9 7 4
.1 6 0 3 0 9 0
.0 4 0 00 7 7
V OL. X X V II.---- NO. V .
35
Single
premium.
.2 9 0 6 0 6 3
.2 9 4 5 5 7 3
.2 9 8 6 2 0 0
.3 0 2 8 4 3 0
•3071S33
.3 1 1 6 5 2 4
.3 1 6 2 5 4 1
.3 2 0 9 8 6 9
.3 2 5 8 5 5 3
.3 3 0 8 5 7 5
.3 3 5 9 9 8 0
.3 4 1 2 7 5 6
.3 4 6 69 4 1
.3 5 2 2 6 1 8
.3 5 7 9 7 1 5
.3 6 3 8 3 4 3
.3 6 9 8 5 2 7
.3 7 6 0 2 7 3
.3 8 2 3 6 3 4
.3 8 8 8 6 0 3
.3 9 5 5 1 1 0
.4 0 2 3 5 5 7
.4 0 9 3 5 8 9
.4 1 6 5 3 7 4
.4 2 3 8 9 3 9
.4 3 1 4 8 2 0
.4 3 9 1 7 3 1
.4 4 7 1 0 4 6
.4 5 5 2 4 0 9
.4 6 3 5 8 4 2
.4 7 2 1 4 3 7
■4S09296
.4 8 9 9 4 5 0
.4 9 9 1 7 9 1
.5 0 8 6 3 4 5
.5 1 8 2 5 8 4
.5 2 8 04 2 5
.5 3 7 95 1 3
.5 4 7 9 9 0 4
.5581191
.5 6 8 36 1 6
.5 7 8 6 9 8 6
546
Living at
Age. each age.
52 .
67,253
53 .
66,046
54 .
64,785
65 .
63,469
56 .
62,094
57 . 60,658
58 . 59,161
59 . 57,600
60 .
55,973
61 . 54,275
62 .
52,505
63 . 50,661
64 . 48,744
65 . 46,754
66 . 44,693
67 . 42,565
68 . 40,374
38,128
69 .
7 0 . 35,837
71 .
33,510
72 .
31,159
73 .
28,797
74 .
26,439
75 .
24,100
76 .
21,797
19,548
77 .
78 .
17,369
79 .
15,277
80 .
13,290
81 .
11,424
82 .
9,694
83 .
8,112
84 .
6,685
85 .
5,417
86 .
4,306
3,348
87 .
88 .
2,537
89 .
1,864
90 .
1,319
892
91 .
570
92 .
339
93 .
94 .
184
95 .
89
96 .
37
13
97 .
98 .
4
99 .
1
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
Value of Logarithm of Logarithm of
Annual Logarithm o f
annuity.
annuity.
premium. annual prem.
1 + annuity.
1 3 .1 0 7 0 5
.1 1 7 5 0 4 8
.1 4 9 4 3 6 2
.6 2 0 7 6 3 4
.0 4 1 7 6 0 3
1 2 .7 4 6 6 8
.1 3 8 19 7 8
.0 4 3 61 8 6
.1 0 5 40 7 1
.6 3 9 67 1 7
1 2 .3 8 4 9 4
.0 9 2 89 3 8
.1 2 6 6 1 6 4
.0 4 5 5 8 4 6
.6 5 8 8 1 8 2
1 2 .0 2 0 9 9
.6 7 8 2 7 1 6
.0 7 9 94 0 1
.0 4 7 6 7 2 9
.1 1 4 6 4 3 7
1 1 .6 5 5 8 0
.0 6 6 5 4 1 9
.6 9 8 0 0 4 8
.1 0 2 2 8 9 6
.0 4 9 8 8 9 0
1 1 .2 8 9 6 8
.0 5 2 68 1 6
.0 5 2 24 2 9
.7 1 8 0 2 7 2
.0 8 9 5 4 0 5
1 0 .9 2 2 6 1
.0 3 8 3 2 6 6
.0 5 4 7 4 8 0
.7 3 8 3 6 8 3
.0 7 6 3 7 1 3
1 0 .5 5 5 2 1
.0 2 3 4 6 6 4
.0 6 2 7 7 7 8
.0 5 7 4 1 4 8
.7 5 9 0 2 3 9
1 0 .1 8 7 8 5
.0 4 8 7 4 6 6
.0 6 0 2 5 0 5
.7 8 0 0 0 3 9
.0 0 S 0 8 2 7
9 .8 2 1 7 8 0 .9 9 2 1 9 0 2
.0 6 3 2 8 0 0
.8 0 1 2 6 6 5
.0 3 4 2 9 8 7
9 .4 5 7 4 7
.9 7 5 7 7 4 9
.0 1 9 4 2 6 6 . .0 6 6 4 9 9 2
.8 2 2 8 1 6 4
9 .0 9 5 7 6
.9 5 8 83 9 1
.0 0 4 1 3 9 0
.0 6 9 9 2 5 3
.8 4 4 63 4 3
8 .7 3 7 0 8
.9 4 1 3 6 6 5 0 .9 8 8 4 2 8 7
.0 7 3 5 7 4 0
,8 6 6 7 2 4 4
8 .3 8 2 2 6
.9 2 3 3 6 1 0
.0 7 7 4 5 7 9
.9 7 2 3 0 7 4
.8 8 9 0 6 5 7
8 .0 3 1 8 4
.9 0 4 8 1 4 8 ' .9 5 5 7 7 6 2
.0 8 1 5 9 3 2
.9 1 1 6 5 3 9
7 .6 8 6 3 9
.8 8 5 7 2 2 2
.0 8 5 9 9 6 4
.9 3 4 4 8 0 3
.9 3 8 8 3 9 3
7 .3 4 6 6 1
.8 6 6 0 8 7 0
.9 2 1 5 1 0 1
.0 9 0 6 8 2 9
.9 5 7 5 2 5 4
7 .0 1 2 7 6
.8 4 5 8 8 8 8
.9 0 3 78 2 1
.0 9 5 6 7 4 8
.9 8 0 7 9 7 6
6 .6 8 4 9 0
.8 2 5 0 9 4 9
.8 8 5 6 3 8 2
.1 0 0 9 9 9 1 - 1 .0 0 4 3 1 7 5
6 .3 6 3 5 9
.1 0 6 6 7 7 0
.8 0 3 7 0 2 3
.8 6 7 0 8 9 6
.0 2 8 0 7 0 7
6 .0 4 9 0 5
.7 8 1 6 8 6 9
.1 1 2 7 3 6 8
.8 4 8 1 3 0 6
.0 5 2 0 6 5 7
5 .7 4 1 5 6
.7 5 9 0 2 9 9
.8 2 8 7 6 0 4
.1 1 9 2 0 7 4
.0 7 6 3 0 3 2
5 .4 4 1 2 4
.8 0 8 9 6 9 5
.1 2 6 1 2 3 4
.1 0 0 7 9 5 7
.7 3 5 6 9 7 7
5 .1 4 8 4 1
.7 1 1 6 7 3 3
.7 8 8 7 6 2 8
.1 3 3 5 1 7 4
.1 2 5 5 3 7 8
4 .8 6 3 1 5
.6 8 6 9 1 7 4
.7 6 8 1 2 9 8
.1 4 1 4 3 1 0
.1 5 0 5 4 4 5
4 .5 8 5 3 3
.6 6 1 3 7 0 7
.7 4 7 0 4 8 9
.1 4 9 9 1 4 2
.1 7 5 8 4 2 6
4 .3 1 5 4 0
.6 3 5 0 2 0 7
.1 5 9 0 0 6 5
.2 0 1 4 1 4 8
.7 2 5 5 3 5 7
4 .0 5 3 5 3
.6 0 7 8 3 3 2
.2 2 7 2 5 7 4
.7 0 3 5 9 4 7
.1 6 8 7 5 5 3
3 .7 9 9 3 6
.5 7 9 7 1 0 2
.2 5 3 4 2 2 8
.6 8 1 1 8 3 1
.1 7 9 2 3 5 0
3 .5 5 2 5 5
.2
799659
.5 5 0 5 3 9 7
■65S2544
.1 9 0 5 3 1 1
3 .3 1 2 1 3
.5 2 0 1 0 7 8
.6 3 4 69 2 1
.2 0 2 7 7 7 6
.3 0 7 0 1 9 9
3 .0 7 6 8 1
.4 8 8 1 0 0 2
.6 1 0 3 2 0 0
.3 3 4 7 8 3 1
.2 1 6 1 6 3 9
2 .8 4 5 6 0
.4 5 4 1 7 3 6
.5 8 4 96 3 9
.2 3 0 9 1 1 3
.3 6 3 44 5 1
2 .6 1 7 0 4
.4 1 7 8 1 0 4
.5 5 8 3 5 3 3
.2 4 7 3 4 2 9
.3 9 3 2 9 9 4
2 .3 9 1 0 4
.3 7 8 5 8 6 3
.5 3 0 3 7 5 1
.2 6 5 7 3 9 9
.4 2 4 4 5 6 7
2 .1 6 7 4 7
.3 3 5 9 5 2 9
.5 0 0 7 1 2 3
.2 8 6 5 8 3 3
.4 5 7 2 5 0 9
1 .9 4 6 1 5
.2 8 9 1 7 6 1
.4 9 1 7 8 1 8
.4 6 9 2 5 4 7
.3 1 0 3 0 0 0
1 .7 2 8 2 7
.2 3 7 6 1 2 4
.4 3 5 8 8 6 2
.3 3 7 4 1 2 4
.5 2 8 1 6 1 0
1 .5 1 5 6 5
.1 8 0 60 0 1
.4 0 0 6 5 0 8
.3 6 8 3 8 4 8
.5 6 6 3 0 1 6
1 .3 0 S 7 5
.1 1 6 8 5 7 2
.3 6 3 3 7 7 2
.4 0 4 0 0 8 3
.6 0 6 3 9 0 3
1 .1 0 9 2 5
.0 4 5 0 3 0 6
.6 4 8 3 3 5 8
.4 4 4 9 7 5 2
.3 2 4 12 S 7
.9 2 0 8 4 - 1 .9 6 4 1 8 5 2
.2 8 3 4 9 1 6
.4 9 1 4 7 8 8
.6 9 1 5 0 4 7
.7 4 7 8 1
.8 7 3 7 9 1 4
.7 3 4 8 1 4 5
.2 4 2 4 9 4 2
.5 4 3 0 1 8 4
.5 9 2 4 2
.7 7 2 6 2 7 6
.2 0 2 0 5 6 8
.7 7 7 3 1 8 1
.5 9 8 8 5 0 0
.4 6 7 7 5
.6 7 0 0 1 7 4
.6 5 2 1 8 6 8
.1 6 6 6 5 3 3
.8 1 4 3 7 1 9
.3 7 1 2 4
.5 6 9 6 5 1 6
.1 3 7 1 1 2 5
.8 4 5 1 8 6 4
.7 0 0 1 4 2 4
.2 4 2 7 2
.3 8 5 1 0 2 6
.0 9 4 3 7 2 6
.7 7 5 5 6 1 6
.8 8 9 6 1 6 3
.0 0 0 0 0
.0 0 0 0 0 0 0
.2 7 0 8 7 3 8
.0 0 0 0 0 0 0
.9 8 7 1 6 3 2
Single
premium.
.5 8 9 11 5 2
.5996115
.6 1 0 14 7 6
.6 2 0 74 8 2
.6 3 1 38 4 6
.6 4 2 0 4 8 4
.6 5 2 7 3 9 7
.6 6 3 44 0 6
.6 7 4 14 0 3
.6 8 4 80 2 6
.6 9 5 41 3 6
.7 0 5 9 4 8 9
.7 1 6 3 9 5 8
.7 2 6 7 3 0 4
.7 3 6 93 6 8
.7 4 6 9 9 8 4
.7 5 6 89 4 9
.7 6 6 6 1 8 7
.7 7 6 1 6 8 0
.7 8 5 5 2 6 6
.7 9 4 0 8 7 9
.S 0 36 4 4 0
.8 1 2 3 9 1 1
.8 2 0 9 2 0 2
.8 2 9 2 2 9 2
.8 3 7 3 2 0 6
.8 4 5 1 8 2 7
.8 5 2 8 0 9 9
.8 6 0 2 1 2 9
.8 6 7 40 4 7
.8 7 4 4 0 4 0
.8 8 1 2 5 8 1
.8 8 7 9 9 2 3
.S 9 4 6 4 9 4
.9 0 1 22 2 3
.9 0 7 7 4 3 7
.9 1 4 18 9 9
.9 2 0 5 3 6 0
.9 2 6 72 8 6
.9 3 2 75 4 8
.9 3 8 5 6 5 5
.9 4 4 0 5 2 7
.9 4 9 0 9 2 9
.9 5 3 6 1 9 0
.9 5 7 24 9 9
.9 6 0 0 6 1 0
.9 6 3 8 0 4 4
.9 7 0 8 7 3 8
Art. Ilf.— TOBACCO; AND THE TOBACCO TRADE.
Ir is said that the name Tobacco was given by the Spaniards to the plant,
because it was first observed by them at Tabasco or Tabaco, a province o f
Yucatan in Mexico. In 1560, Nieot, the French ambassador to Portugal,
having received some tobacco from a Flemish merchant, showed it, on his
arrival in Lisbon, to the grand prior, and on his return into France, to Cath
erine of Medicis, whence it has been called Nicotiana by the botanists. A d
Tobacco: and tlic Tobacco Trade.
54 7
miral Sir Francis Drake having, on his way home from the Spanish Main,
in 1586, touched at Virginia, and brought away some forlorn colonists, is
reported to have first imported tobacco into England. But according to
Lobel, this plant was cultivated in Britain before the year 1570 ; and was
consumed by smoking in pipes by Sir W alter Raleigh and companions so
early as the year 1584. The first time Sir W alter Raleigh smoked, as re
ported, it was in private; he had called his servant for a ju g o f water; when
the man brought it in, he saw the smoke coming out o f his master’s mouth,
and naturally supposing he was on fire, as naturally threw the ju g o f water
over him, to put it out. W hether this anecdote be true or not is imma
terial.
The introduction and use o f tobacco form a singular chapter in the his
tory o f mankind ; and it may well excite astonishment that the discovery in
America o f a nauseous and poisonous weed, o f an acrid taste and disagree
able odor, in short, whose only properties are deleterious, should have had
so great an influence on the social condition o f all nations; that it should
have become an article o f extensive Com m erce; and that its culture should
have spread more rapidly than that o f the most useful plants. A t the time
o f the discovery o f America, tobacco was in frequent use among the Indians,
and the practice o f smoking was common to almost all the tribes; and by
it they pretended to cure a great variety of diseases.
Its introduction into the Eastern Continent was everywhere marked with
ridicule and persecution. A book was written against it even by the king
o f Great Britain, James I., and perhaps a hundred others o f the same char
acter were published in various languages. Pope Urban V III. excommuni
cated all who took tobacco in churches, and the empress Elizabeth also pro
hibited the use o f it in churches. In Transylvania, an ordinance was pub
lished, in 1680, threatening those who should plant tobacco with the confistion o f their estates. The Grand Duke o f Moscow and the king o f Persia
forbade its use under penalty o f the loss o f the nose, or even o f death.
A t present, the aspect o f affairs is so much altered, that all the sovereigns
o f Europe, and most o f those o f other parts o f the world, derive a consid
erable part o f their revenues from tobacco. Having been introduced into
England by Raleigh and other young men o f fashion, its use rapidly spread
in that country, as it previously had done among the Portuguese, Spaniards,
and French. During the reign o f George III., the practice o f smoking,
which had previously been exceedingly prevalent, went out o f fashion, and
was nearly superseded, among the higher and middle classes, by that of
snuff-taking. Latterly, however, smoking has been revived in that country.
The practice of smoking has become so general, especially in Holland and
Germany, that it constitutes a daily luxury with nearly all the peasantry of
those countries, as well as with the more indolent and wealthy classes.
Tobacco is a powerful narcotic, and also a strong stimulant, and taken in
ternally, even in small doses, it proves powerfully emetic and cathartic. The
oil is celebrated for its extreme virulence, and when applied to a wound, is
said, by Redi, to be as fatal as the poison o f a viper. The decoction, pow
der, and smoke are used in agriculture to destroy insects. The article is not
only used for smoking, but for snuff. In the manufacture o f the latter, va
rious matters are added for giving it an agreeable scent; and hence the nu
merous varieties o f snuff'.
Virginia has been famous for the successful cultivation o f the tobacco
plant. It became the staple o f that province, but it is now giving way to a
548
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
much wider cultivation o f wheat. The tobacco plant, when full grown, will
rise to six feet in bight. The stem is pretty straight, rather hairy and clam
my. The leaves are o f considerable length, o f a yellow green ; those near
est the ground are the largest, but they make the coarsest tobacco. As the
plants grow they require much attention, to keep the ground between the
rows clear from weeds, and to pull off all the lowest and coarsest leaves from
the plant itself, in order to feed more fully the upper ones. The laborious
work is done by negroes. W h en the leaves turn brown the plant is ripe.
The plants, as they ripen, are cut down, and laid in a heap to heat, after
which they are hung up separately to dry, in houses built on purpose. The
tobacco o f Cuba, for smoking, is the best raised. Recently, the exportation
o f cigars from that island is said to have amounted to 200,000 boxes a
year.
It is stated that as early as 1050, the fields, gardens, streets, and public
squares of Jamestown, in Virginia, were planted with tobacco, which was
used as a currency in that as well as many other o f the Southern States.
A s a sample o f this, in 1669, by enactment in Virginia, heinous social crimes
were punished by a fine o f from five hundred to one thousand pounds o f
tobacco. For the thirty years preceding 1775, the annual export o f tobac
co from the United States was 40,000,000 pounds. In the next seven years,
which embraced the Revolutionary W ar, the entire export was 86,000,000
pounds, but 34,000,000 o f this was captured by the British. In the three
succeeding years the export was about 90,000,000 pounds. The whole crop
o f tobacco in the United States in 1847 was estimated at a little over
220,000,000 pounds, which, at the low price o f five cents the pound, amounts
to the sum o f $11,000,000.
The use o f tobacco has vastly increased in France since the last Duke o f
Orleans set the fashion o f smoking in the streets, in order to lend a hand
to government sales. Tobacco, a filthy weed, the vestibule o f the drunk
ard’s home, assaults one at every step here— not in the form o f chewing, but
in puffing bad cigars. Its sale is a rigid monopoly, and to retail it, is a
privilege which requires a friend at court. Throughout France the little to
bacco shops all look alike— boxes on the counter with separate lids, marked
one sou and upwards— prices fixed for the cigars by the government, to
which must be added snuff, but never chewing tobacco. The profit the
government derives from this borders on a hundred million francs.
An at
tempt has been made to raise tobacco in Algiers, which may not be uninter
esting, in the following details, to our growers:— In 1851, the number of
planters was only 137, whereas, in 1852, it was 1,073. The number of
hectares (a hectare is about 2 f acres) under the tobacco plant was 446 in
1851, and 1,095 in 1852. The government has announced that it will
purchase this year 720,000 kilograms o f this tobacco, whereas the quantity
last year was only 303,000. The total o f the present year’s crop is estima
ted at 1,780,000 kilograms, o f which 700,000 have been grown by the na
tives, and the rest by Europeans.
There is a considerable increase in the product o f Connecticut seed leaf,
but in most o f the other States, particularly Virginia and Louisiana, there
was a marked decline, corresponding with the exports o f the following years,
thus testing in some degree the accuracy o f the census reports.
The census returns of the United States for 1840 and 1850 show in the
latter period a considerable falling off in the production, as follow s:—
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
549
POUNDS OF TOBACCO RAISED IN THE UNITED STATES PER CENSUS.
M aine..........lbs.
New Hampshire
Vermont............
Massachusetts..
Rhode Islond...
Connecticut......
JNew Y ork . . . .
.New Jersey . . .
Pennsylvania...
D elaw are.........
Maryland.........
D. o f Columbia.
V irginia...........
N. Carolina.. . .
S. Carolina........
Georgia.............
F lorida.............
Alabama..........
1840.
1S50.
1840.
30
.... Mississippi. . lbs.
83,471
115
119,824
50 Louisiana.........
585
64,955
119,306 Arkansas...........
184,439
317
Tennessee......... 29,560.432
1,383,932 Kentucky......... 53,436,909
471,657
744
70,222 Ohio...................
5,942,275
1,922
... Michigan...........
1,602
325,018
857,619 Indiana.............
1,820,30G
272
Illinois...............
564,326
24,816,012 21,199,281 Missouri...........
9,067,913
55,550
15,000 Iowa..................
8,076
75,347,106 56,516,492 Wisconsin.........
115
16,772,359 12,058,147 California.........
51,519
73,235 Minnesota..........
162,894
420,123 Oregon...............
75,274
982,584 Utah..................
273,302
163,605 New Mexico___
1850.
48,349
23,922
60,770
224,164
20,144,380
55,765,259
10,480,967
2,225
1,035,146
844,129
17,038,364
2,012
768
1,000
325
1,118
Total................................................................................. 219,163,319 199,532,494
STATEMENT EXHIBITING TIIE NUMBER
OF
HOGSHEADS OF TOBACCO EXPORTED FROM THE
1790 TO 1835, INCLUSIVE, AND THE AVERAGE PRICE PER POUND, AND
GROSS VALUE FROM 1802 TO 1835, INCLUSIVE ; ALSO THE NUMBER OF POUNDS OF MANU
FACTURED TOBACCO AND SNUFF EXPORTED FROM 1791 TO 1835, INCLUSIVE, AND GROSS
VALUE FROM 1817 TO 1835, INCLUSIVE.
UNITED STATES FROM
Years.
...
1790
1791
..
1792
..
1 7 9 3 * .........
1 7 9 4 ............
1 7 9 5 ............
1 7 9 6 ............ .
1 7 9 7 ............
1 7 9 8 ............
1 7 9 9 ............
1 8 0 0 ............
1 8 0 1 ............
1 8 0 2 ............ .
1 8 0 3 ............
1 8 0 4 ............
1 8 0 5 ............ .
1 8 0 6 ............ .
1 8 0 7 * ......... .
1808^;...........
1 8 0 9 ............ .
1 8 1 0 3 ...........
1 8 1 1 ..............
181211..........
1813
..
1814
.
1815
.
1816
.
1 8 1 7 ............
1 8 1 8 ............
1 8 1 9 ............
No. hhds.
leaf
tobacco.
Average
price
per lb. Total value.
101,272
72,958
61,050
68,567
96,070
78,686
103,758
77,721
86,291
83,341
71,251
83,186
oct-
3
Ui
re
o
3p
CO
re
6|
6
n
n
6i
n
9,576
53,921
84,134
n
51
5
5
26,0 94
3
3,125
5
6£
69,241
84,337
69,427
8
15£
121-
10
10*
B
P
$ 6,220,000
6,230,000
6,000,000
6,341,000
6,572,000
5,476,000
838,000
3,774,000
5,048,000
2,150,000
1,514,000
319.000
232.000
8.235.000
12,809,000
9.230.000
10,241,341
8,874,167
* French Revolution.
+ Berlin and Milan decrees.
decreed.
I War with Great Britain.
Manufactured
tobacco,
lbs.
81,122
117,874
137,784
19,370
20,263
29,181
12,805
142,269
406 ,07 6
457,713
472,282
233,591
152,415
298,139
428 ,46 0
381,733
274,952
36,332
350,835
529,285
752,553
588,618
283,512
79,377
1,034,045
576,246
1,115,874
1,486,240
926,833
X Embargo.
Snuff,
lbs.
Value o f
manufac’d
and snuff
P
ER
P
P-
B
P
B
B
P*
re
<3
Bc*-
s
re
ore
o
B
cOTre
B
P
CO
re
P_
fu
C l.
5,080
5,513
13,710
$281,509
373,875
237,192
§ Regie in France
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
550
Years.
1 8 2 0 _____ ____
1 8 2 1 _____ ____
1 8 2 2 ____ ____
1 8 2 3 _____ ____
1 8 2 4 ____ ____
1 82 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 _________
1 8 3 6 ____ ____
1 8 3 7 ____ ____
1 8 3 8 ____ ____
1 8 3 9 ____ ____
1 8 4 0 ____ ____
1 8 4 1 ____ ____
1 8 4 2 .. . . . . . :
1 8 4 3 ____ ____
1 8 4 4 ____ ____
1 8 4 5 ____ ____
1 8 4 6 ____ ____
1 8 4 7 ____
1 8 4 8 ____ ____
1 8 4 9 ____ ____
1 8 5 0 ____ ____
1 8 5 1 ____ ____
■No. hhds. Average
leaf
price
tobacco.
per lb. Total value.
83,940
8
8,188,188
66,858
5,798,045
n
83,169
6,380,020
H
99,009
6,437,627
6f
77,883
5,059,355
H
75,9 84
5,287,976
64,098
5,347,208
6-3100,025
6,816,146
5f
96,278
5,480,707
4f
77,131
5,1 S5,370
of
83,810
5,833,112
H
86,718
4,892,388
4f
106,806
5,999,769
4f
83,153
5,755,968
6f
87,979
6,595,305
61
94,353
8,250,577
71
10,058,640
109,442
7t
100,232
5,765,647
41
100,593
7,892,029
H
10f
9,832,943
78,995
119,484
6f
9,883,657
147,828
12,576,703
7
158,710
9,540,755
4i
94,454
4,650,979
4*
8,397,255
163,042
4f
147,168
7,469,819
41
147,998
8,478,270
4}
7,242,086
41
7,551,122
130,665
4f
101,521
5,840,247
41
9,951,023
145,729
5f
8
9,219,251
95,945
Manufactured
tobacco,
lbs.
593,358
1,332,949
1,414,424
1,987,507
2,477,990
1,871,368
2,179,774
2,730,255
2,637,411
2,619,399
3,199,151
3,639,856
3,456,071
3,790,310
3,956,579
3,817,854
3,246,675
3,615,591
5,008,147
4,214,943
6,787,165
7,503,644
4,4 3 4,21 4
3,404,252
6,046,878
6,312,971
6,854,856
7,844,592
6,698,507
7,159,397
5,918,5S3
7,235,358
Snuff,
lbs.
4,996
44,552
44,602
36,684
45,174
63,920
61,801
45,812
35,655
19,509
29,425
27,967
31,175
13,453
57,826
36,471
46.018
40,883
75,083
42,467
37,132
68,553
42,668
20,455
28,668
44,399
52,458
37,051
36,192
49,888
44,690
37,422
Value o f
manufac’d
and snuff.
149,589
149,083
157,182
154,955
203,789
172,353
210,134
239,024
210,747
202,396
246,747
292,475
295.771
288,973
328,409
357,611
435 ,46 4
427,836
577,420
616,212
813,671
873,877
525,490
278,819
636,600
538,498
695,914
658,950
668,435
6 13,044
648.832
1,143,547
The tobacco trade, which for some years was under a depression, has,
within the last two, somewhat improved, as far as an increased average price
per hhd. goes. In order to observe the operation o f this trade through a
series o f years, we have compiled from official sources the number o f hhds.
and export value sent out o f the United States annually. W e have divided
the last twenty-four years into three periods o f seven years each, and the
last ten years. This division embraces the operation o f each tariff. The
seven years up to 1828, were o f comparative low duties; 1828 and up to
1834, was the period o f the highest. The reductions under the compromise
began in 1834, and continued down to 1841, inclusive. In 1842, the duties
its operation, and in 1847, the present tariff.
The result is as follows;—
EXPORT OF TOBACCO FROM THE UNITED STATES.
Years.
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 .............................
Ilhds.
96,271
77,141
83,810
86,718
106,806
83,153
87,979
Value.
$5,296,960
4 ,982,974
5,586,365
4,892,388
5,999,769
5,755,968
6,595,305
Value
per hhd.
$ 5 4 73
64 60
66 65
56 4 0
56 18
69 29
74 96
A v e ra g e 7 yea rs.
85,982
$5,583,247
$63 25
Total
Value o f
value o f
snuff and
tobacco
manufactured. exported.
$5,480,707
$210,747
5,185,370
202,306
5,833,112
246,748
5,184,863
202,745
6,295,540
295,771
6,043,991
288,973
6,423,714
828,408
$265,061
Duty in England lowered from 4a. to 3s. per lb.’
$5,849,749
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
Years.
1835...............................
1836...............................
1837...............................
1838...............................
1839...............................
1840...............................
1841...............................
Hhds.
Value.
94,353
109,442
100,232
100,593
78,995
119,484
147,828
$3,250,577
10,058,640
5,765,647
7,392,029
9,832,943
9,883,657
12,576,703
Value o f
Value
snuff and
per hhds. manufactured.
$87
91
57
73
124
81
85
01
54
82
48
47
05
09
$357,611
435,464
427.836
577,420
616,212
813,671
873,877
Total
value of
tobacco
exported.
$8,608,188
10,494,104
6,223,483
7,969,449
10,449,155
10,697,628
13,450,570
Average 7 years.. . .
107,275
$9,112,928
$85 92
$586,013
$9,698,941
1S42...............................
1843...............................
1844...............................
1845...............................
1846...............................
1847...............................
1S48...............................
1849...............................
1S50...............................
1851...............................
$158,710
94,454
163,042
147,168
147,998
135,762
130,665
101,521
145,729
95,945
$9,540,755
4,650,979
8,397,255
7,469,819
8,478,270
7,242,086
7,551,122
5,840,207
9,951,023
9,219,251
$60
49
51
50
67
53
57
52
68
96
11
24
53
75
25
40
75
75
25
00
$525,490
278,819
636,600
530,498
695,954
658,950
568,435
613,044
648,832
1,143,547
$10,066,245
5,929,298
8,933,855
8,008,317
9,174,184
7,901,036
8,119,557
6,453,251
10,599,855
10,362,798
Average 10 years. . .
132,010
$7,834,076
$59 25
$620,006
$8,454,082
$73
63
85
54
59
$183,788
265,061
586,013
529,065
620,006
$6,084,073
5,849,749
9,638,941
8,335,689
8,454,682
RECAPITULATION.
Average 7 years ending—
1827...............................
1834...............................
1841...............................
1847, 6 y e a rs...............
1841-51, 10 years........
81,003
85,892
107,275
141,189
132,060
$5,864,277
5,583,247
9,112,928
6,629,866
7,834,076
53
25
92
04
25
The destination o f the tobacco exported from the United States, in the
last few years, has been as follow s:—
EXPORTS OF TOBACCO FROM THE UNITED STATES.
1819.
Russia.........................................
Sweden.......................................
Hanse Towns.............................
H olland.....................................
Belgium......................................
Great Britain.............................
“
colonies...............
France.......................................
S p a in .........................................
Portugal.....................................
Italy and Trieste.......................
Africa..........................................
Elsewhere.................................
..........................
...........................
...........................
21,857
7,995
14,081
...........................
1,582
Total hhds..................... ..........................
Total value................ . .
101,621
1850.
1851.
613
1,542
46,399
22,683
4,232
30,926
3,657
15,552
5,299
S05
9,814
1,746
3,363
1,856
1,408
22,506
11,871
523
23,698
2,681
10,101
8,953
550
7,651
2,197
1,953
145,729
$9,951,023
95,945
$9,219,251
As compared with the year 1849, the tobacco trade has been very good.
That is to say, for 5,000 hhds. less tobacco, the United States apparently
get $3,400,000 more money. This return, however, does not show the
losses sustained by consignors to foreign markets, growing out o f the ma
chinery of advances, forced sales, slaughtering, buying in, and reclamations ;
by which process it has been said that American tobacco may be sent from
here and come back for the manufacture o f cigars, paying duty, and under
552
Tobacco : and the Tobacco Trade.
selling the home-made article. It is known that German cigar-makers in
New York can sell cigars, made from American tobacco imported from Ger
many, cheaper than to make them from the tobacco before it has been sent
abroad. A good deal is to be allowed to adulteration, which, as seen in the
above table, affects, in connection with smuggling, the manufactured tobacco
which pays duty in Great Britain.
The change in the duties on general articles o f consumption seems in
England to have promoted the consumption o f tobacco, on the general prin
ciples which prompted the change o f policy under Sir Robert Peel’s ad
ministration in 1812, although the duty charged upon tobacco has remained
the same. The English official returns show that the consumption fell year
by year until 1842, which was the year o f the greatest depression, and
when the financial crisis o f the government brought Sir Robert Peel into
power. From that year, when the duties were removed on many articles,
in order to promote their consumption, as well as that o f those on which
the tax was untouched, the consumption o f leaf tobacco has continued
steadily to increase.
TOBACCO ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION IN GREAT BRITAIN.
Years.
1 8 3 8 ............
1 8 3 9 ............
1 8 4 0 ............
1 8 4 1 ............
1 8 4 2 .............
1 8 4 3 ............
1 8 4 4 ............
____
____
____
____
____
Leaf,
Manufactured,
lbs.
lbs.
Years.
23,356,246
190,148
1 845..............
22,971,406
196,304
1846..............
22,902,398
193,912
1847..............
213,613
184S..............
22,013,146 225,202
1849_______
263,840
1850..............
24,535,116
240,602
1851..............
____
____
....
____
____
____
____
Leaf,
Manufactured
lbs.
lbs.
26,076,311
245 ,94 0
26,737,001
264,707
26,220,240 20S,913
27,061,480
205,927
27,350,120
201,450
27,538,104
196,681
27,853,390
209,588
The progress o f this consumption was checked by the fluctuation o f prices.
W h en it was the highest, the export to Europe direct, instead o f through
England, was the greatest.
The years 1 8 4 1 -4 2 show the smallest consumption in England. The
first year was, however, one o f large sales and high prices by the United
States. In the year 1842, however, the prices fell ruinously. In 1844,the
English consumption was larger than ever, but the price by no means so
high as formerly.
W e learn from the Cincinnati P rice Current that, as a market for man
ufactured tobacco, Cincinnati has for years past been a port o f considerable
importance to manufacturers, and the statistics o f the trade presented below
show a very rapid increase in the receipts and sales for consumption. This
trade has, in a great measure, been a branch of the grocery business, but
within the last few years Tobacco Commission Houses have been established
here, who act as agents for manufacturers, and through these agencies the
wholesale trade is chiefly supplied.
The merchants o f Cincinnati, interested in the tobacco trade, are now
making preparations for the erection o f the necessary accommodation for a
tobacco market. The City Council, some months since, passed an ordinance
to establish tobacco inspection in the city o f Cincinnati, and the same body
have appointed an inspector, and also granted a license for a Tobacco W are
house. The latter is already constructed, on an extensive scale, on Pearlstreet.
The following are the sections o f the Cincinnati ordinance relating to
warehouses :—
Sec. 2. That warehouses shall hereafter be licensed by the City Council of the city
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
553
of Cincinnati, for the storage, inspection, and sale of tobacco in hogsheads or boxes.
Such warehouses shall be built of brick or stone, with safe and substantial roofing of
shingles, tin, or copper, or other materials considered safe, and otherwise constructed
as to keep securely, and guard against fire, and the weather, as far as practicable, all
tobacco stored therein ; and such houses shall at all times be kept in good repair and
condition, for receiving, storing, inspecting, selling, and delivering tobacco in hogsheads
or boxes. The owner or owners shall have the right to close or discontinue their ware
houses at pleasure, after having given written notice of such iutention to said City
Council at least sixty days before the time fixed by them for closing said tobacco
warehouses.
S ec. 3. Such warehouses shall be used for the storage, &c., of tobacco as aforesaid,
and shall be kept open and in proper condition, with the necessary conveniences to re
ceive, inspect, sell, and deliver, hogsheads or boxes of tobacco. The proprietor or
proprietors of each tobacco warehouse shall provide and continually keep in order
scales of sufficient size and strength to weigh at least one ton weight, which shall be
tested at least once in every year, and oftener, if required, by the standard of weights
and measures; and shall provide one or more coopers and able-bodied men to do all
the coopering, and to handle the tobacco stored, inspected, and sold in such ware
house, and to do all things needful in receiving, storing, inspecting, selling, coopering,
and delivering hogsheads or boxes of tobacco. He or they shall likewise provide and
keep in said warehouse a well-bound book of proper size, in which he shall enter the
marks, numbers, gross, tare, and net weight of each hogshead or box of tobacco re
ceived at his warehouse, when received, when inspected, when sold, and when deliv
ered, the owner’s or planter’s name, the name of the purchaser, the price, and fees of
each hogshead or box of tobacco inspected and sold at such warehouse. He shall
make out bills for the planter, weigh, and mark each hogshead or box of tobacco.
S eo. 4. The proprietor or proprietors of a warehouse, shall be responsible for the
safe keeping and delivery of tobacco stored in their warehouse, except in case of fire
or unavoidable accidents, and shall deliver all tobacco to the owner on the side-walk
within a reasonable time after demand at the warehouse, and presentation of the re
ceipt thereof to one of the proprietors of the house or his clerk, and the tender of the
fees due the warehouse upon such tobacco.
S ec. 5. The proprietor or proprietors of a warehouse shall enter into bond with
good security, to be approved by the Mayor of Cincinnati, payable to the city of Cin
cinnati, in the penal sum of one thousand dollars, well and truly to do, perform, and
comply with all the provisions of this act, and any person injured by the said ware
house men, may sue thereon, and recover as in other cases, in any court having juris
diction in such case, for any failure, refusal, or neglect of duties herein required.
Section 8 regulates the charges as follows:—
S ec. 8. The fees to be collected by the proprietor or proprietors of each warehouse,
shall be as follows:— Two dollars and five cents per hogshead or box for receiving,
storing, weighing, coopering, marking, selling at public outcry, or at private sale, at
the request o f the owner of the tobacco, collecting and making out bills of sale, and
twenty cents for the inspection. Of this amount, the planter or owner of the tobacco
shall pay one dollar, and the purchaser or holder of the note of inspection, payable
upon the execution and delivery of said note by the proprietors, one dollar and twen
ty-five cents.
The tobacco manufacturers o f Lynchburg, Ya., have called a convention
o f all the manufacturers o f the article in that State, and o f all the agents
throughout the United States, to assemble at Richmond on some day not
yet designated, to consider the propriety o f suspending operations during
the winter months— that is, that no tobacco shall be put up for market du
ring the months o f January, February, and March. It is contended that
under the system now pursued, the tobacco put up during those months is
forced on the Northern markets in April and May, and must either be sold
at a sacrifice, or held over until the fall, when it becomes moldy, and unfit
for chewing purposes.
Tobacco is packed in hogsheads for shipment: it is done with the great
est care; and the pressure applied is so great that a hogshead 48 inches in
length, and 30 or 32 inches in diameter, will contain one thousand pounds
554
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
weight. Upon the arrival o f the tobacco in England, it is conveyed to
bonding-warehouses, examined, charged with duty, and sold to the manu
facturers.
The manufacture o f the tobacco-leaves into the numerous varieties of to
bacco for smoking in pipes is commenced by loosening and opening the
bundles, and sprinkling the leaves with water. The stalks are then stripped
from the leaves; this is effected by women or boys, who fold the leaf along
the middle, and, by means o f a small instrument, separate the stalks from
the leaves, and lay them aside in different heaps. To prepare them for be
ing cut into shreds, the leaves are pressed together in large numbers. W hen
removed from the press to the cutting-engine, the cake o f leaves is as hard
as a board; yet it retains a slight degree o f clamminess or moisture from
the leaves having been previously sprinkled. In cutting the tobacco, the
cake o f leaves is laid upon an iron bed, which is susceptible o f a slow pro
gressive motion by means o f a screw, which passes beneath it, and is con
nected with a cog-wheel in such a manner that, while the machine is mov
ing, the bed is constantly urged forward. Another part o f the mechanism
gives motion to the knife, which has a sharp blade, rather longer than the
width o f the cake, and is pivoted on a hinge or fulcrum at one end, the
other rising and falling with the action o f the machinerjn
The kind called pig-tail tobacco is produced by a process similar to spin
ning, and requires the simultaneous aid o f a man and two boys. A bench
several yards in length is made use of, with a spinning-wheel at one end,
turned by one o f the boys. The other boy arranges a number o f damp
leaves, with the stalks removed, end to end upon the bench, taking care to
lay them smooth and open ; and the man immediately follows •him, and
rolls up the leaves in the form o f a cord by a peculiar motion o f his hand.
A s fast as this is done, the finished tail is wound upon the spinning-wheel.
It is transferred from the spinning-wheel, by the action of the machinery,
to a frame connected with it; and subsequently it is wound or twisted up
into a hard close ball.
For the following years the consumption o f tobacco in the United K ing
dom, and the duty thereon, were—
Years.
1801...............lbs.
1811....................
1821....................
Consumption. Duty per lb. Years.
16,514,998
14,923,243
12,983,197
Is. Id.
2s. 2d.
4s.
Consumption. Duty per lb.
1831............... lbs.
1841.............. ........
15,350,018
16,000,000
3s.
3s.
Seven-eighths o f all the tobacco brought into Great Britain is grown in
the United States. The duties payable are 3s. I f d. per lb. on unmanufactured
tobacco; 9s. 5 fd . per lb. on cigars and manufactured tobacco ; and 0s. 3 fd .
per lb. on snuff
The imports in the two years in the United K ingdom were—
1819.
Unmanufactured....................................................lbs.
Manufactured and snuff..............................................
42,098,126
1,913,474
1890.
33,894,506
1,532,829
The British home consumption is about 28,000,000 lbs. annually, the
rest being re-exported. The gross duties realized in the two years, was
£4 ,425,040 and £4,430,134 respectively.
The Cincinnati Gazette furnishes some facts which are designed to show
that Cincinnati is by far the most desirable point in the W est for a tobacco
market, and that, with proper warehouse facilities, and satisfactory munici
Tobacco: and the Tobacco Trade.
555
pal regulations, Cincinnati must, within a few years, become the leading
market west o f the Alleghany Mountains.
In the first place, says the Gazette, Cincinnati is the center o f a very ex
tensive tobacco region, where greater varieties are produced than in any
other section o f the country. In Eastern Ohio is grown the “ yellow leaf,”
which is in great favor with the Russian and French governments, and Ger
man States. The “ seed leaf ” is raised on the Miami River. The “ Mason
County leaf ” is produced in the vicinity of Ripley, Ohio, and Maysville,
Kentucky, and this is a quality always in active request. The “ heavy le a f”
is grown on the Kentucky River, and in the vicinity o f Carrolton and W a r
saw. The sections in which these descriptions are produced are all adjacent
to Cincinnati, and a considerable portion o f the products pass through Cin
cinnati, and this trade may o f course be controlled here, if we can only es
tablish a market. Besides, continues the Gazette, we may secure the greater
portion o f the tobacco raised on the Big Kanawha, in Indiana, and on the
Green, Cumberland, and Tennessee Rivers.
Thus it is seen there exists all
around Cincinnati the materials with which to establish a most important
tobacco market, and thereby bring to Cincinnati a large and valuable trade.
“ The planters who have been accustomed to sell in the interior markets, con
venient to their respective forms, or to ship to New York via New' Orleans or
Louisville, will naturally inquire, before entertaining an idea o f seeking a market
here, what our advantages are, and if Cincinnati merchants can offer greater in
ducements than those o f other Western or Southern cities.
“ In order to meet the inquiries which may be raised on this point, we will re
mark that we claim advantages which will enable a purchaser of tobacco in this
market to pay a higher price than the same article will net the seller in any other
market.
“ From the moment a hogshead o f tobacco is packed until it reaches the man
ufacturer, every day it is delayed during the transportation, and every time it is
handled, adds to the first cost o f the article, and this, with the freight, insurance,
and other charges, all have to be paid indirectly by the producer. This is a plain
principle o f political economy. Now, if by bringing tobacco from Tennessee, Ken
tucky, Ohio, and Indiana, to this point, and hence distributing to New York, Boston,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, and European countries, it can be delivered in less time,
and at less expense, than when forwarded via New Orleans, or to Louisville,
thence to be shipped to this city and the Eastern seaboard cities; is it not clear
that the first cost o f the article may be reduced, and this would, o f course, in
crease the profits o f the planter, while it will not diminish those o f the dealer.
To this there can be but one reply. But can it be done? Let us see.
“ The following is a close estimate o f the cost o f the transportation of a hogs
head o f tobacco from Louisville to the North via New Orleans:—
Drayage in Louisville.......... ....................................................................................
Freight to New Orleans.........................................................................................
Insurance to New Orleans........................... .........................................................
Charges to New Orleans.........................................................................................
Freight by sh ip .......................................................................................................
Insurance to New Y ork...........................................................................................
Total...............................................................................................................
?0
3
0
1
7
2
50
26
62
75
00
00
$15 12
“ The time occupied in this route varies from forty-five to sixty days.
“ The cost of transporting by two o f the Northern routes from this city to
New York is as follows, per hogshead of 1,200 lbs.:—
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1852 .
556
B y railroad to Cleveland, lake to Dunkirk, and railroad thence to New York,
time six to eight days—
Drayage in Cincinnati..............................................................................................
Freight to New Y o r k .............................................................................................
Insurance on lake................................................................................. ....................
$0 25
8 16
0 15
Total...............................................................................................................
88 56
“ Showing a saving o f six dollars and fifty-six cents per hogshead in freight
and other expenses, and from one to two months in time.
“ The figures which we have set down as the charges from the city include
the commission of the forwarding merchants here, so that there cannot be any
additional charge to shippers or consignees.
“ Via railroad to the Lake, steamer to Buffalo, canal to New York, expense is
as follows, and time eighteen days:—
Drayage in Cincinnati..............................................................................................
Freight to New Y o r k .............................................................................................
Insurance on Lake...................................................................................................
$0 25
6 90
0 30
Total...............................................................................................................
|7 45
“ Being about one dollar less than b y the other Northern route, and seven dol
lars and sixty-seven cents less than by New Orleans.
“ Via railroad to Cleveland, steam to Ogdensburg, and railroad thence to Bos
ton, the expense i s :—
Drayage in Cincinnati..............................................................................................
Freight to Boston.....................................................................................................
Insurance on Lake...................................................................................................
|0 25
9 00
0 15
Total........................................................................ ’. .....................................
$9 40
“ The foregoing facts show that, taking Louisville as the starting point for the
Southern route, and Cincinnati for the Northern route, the saving in actual ex
pense in fiivor o f the Northern routes is about 50 per cent. In addition to this,
w e must take into consideration the. time occupied on the several routes, and the
heavy damages that all tobacco suffers while being transported to the North, or
any other point, via N ew Orleans. This is a point which planters fully under
stand, as they do also the advantages o f the saving in time, and w e need not,
therefore, dwell upon these features.”
Art. IV.— TRADE AND C O M E R C E OF CINCINNATI IN 1 8 51 *
I n accordance with a plan we have adopted for a year or two past, we
lay before the readers o f the Merchants' Magazine a valuable “ Review o f
the Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati f o r the year ending A ugust 31 st,
1812, as reported to the Cincinnati Chamber o f Commerce and published in
the Cincinnati Price- Current, by R i c h a r d S m i t h , Superintendent o f the M er
chants' Exchange."
The Chamber o f Commerce in Cincinnati deserve the
thanks of the commercial and business community throughout the country
for their efforts to diffuse correct information touching the trade and Com
merce o f an important portion o f the country, by the employment o f a
* For a similar review of the Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati for the year ending August 31st,
1851, see Merchants' Magazine for October, 1851, (vol. xxv., pages 429 to 445.) For statistics o f the
Trade and Commerce of Cincinnati for 1852, see our department in the present number devoted
to “ C om m ercial
St a t is t ic s .”
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1852 .
557
gentlemen every way qualified for the task o f exhibiting clear and compre
hensive statements of the commercial affairs of the great and growing W est.
It is a matter of regret that the New York Chamber of Commerce, repre
senting as it does, or should, the great commercial emporium o f the nation,
has not seen fit to adopt a similar plan.
In our number for October, 1852, we published the annual statement of
the “ Trade and Commerce o f New Orleans” as furnished to our hands by
the intelligent editor o f the Price-Current of that citv. The character of
our Journal as a book o f reference, gives an historical value to the publi
cation of such articles in the pages of a work like the Merchants' Magazine,
the volumes o f which are to be found in every judiciously constituted public
library in our own country, and in most o f the great libraries o f Europe.
THE TRADE AND COMMERCE OF CINCINNATI FOR THE COMMERCIAL TEAR ENDING
august 31 st , 1852.
In our last annual report w e had occasion to notice the general commercial
prospects o f the country as being highly favorable, and in presenting our annual
statement at this time upon the recurrence o f a new commercial year, it is grati
fying to be able to state that the expectations entertained at the commencement
o f the season have been realized almost in their fullest extent. This favorable
result is to be attributed in a great degree to the abundant crops produced in
1851, and the absence o f a falsely based speculative movement in the leadng
staple products o f the country. The apprehension o f a commercial crisis en
tertained prior to, and at the close o f the last commercial year were removed
early in the fall by continued heavy and increased receipts o f the precious metal
from California, and during the last eight months monetary affairs have been
unusually easy. Capital in all the Eastern cities has been abundant and cheap.
F or several months loans were freely made in New York at 31 and 4 per cent
per annum. Notwithstanding this abundance o f capital, the markets for produce
generally maintained a quiet appearance, and breadstuff's throughout ruled low ,
and for all leading articles the demand was chiefly o f a strictly legitimate char
acter, and the value o f the several staples, for the most part was regulated by
supply, and the regular consumptive demand— thence the present healthy con
dition o f trade.
In our prospective remarks at the close o f the last commercial year we took
occasion to express the opinion that the h og crop o f 1851-2 would not vary
materially in extent from that o f the preceding season, and the result proved
that w e were not very much astray. In a reported crop o f equal to 268,000,000
pounds there was a deficiency o f 16,000,000. In the same connection we re
marked, that with an increase o f one-fourth or one-fifth over the crop o f 1850-51
the prospects were not unfavorable as regarded prices o f the manufactured ar
ticle, although it was ev:dent hogs would command over $ 4 50. This opinion was
based upon the great deficiency in the stocks o f old products; upon this point
the course o f the market has shown that we were entirely correct. From the
commencement o f the season prices steadily advanced until they reached an un
usually high p o in t; where, with but slight variations, they have been sustained
throughout. It was not expected at the commencement o f the year that there
would be any considerable foreign demand for hog products. In this respect the
trade has resulted as was expected, with the exception o f lard, for which there
has lately been a very active demand, and the amount exported is considerably
in excess o f last year’ s shipments.
W ith regard to the market for cereal products we remarked that in conse
quence o f two abundant harvests in succession in this country, and an average
yield throughout Europe, the tendencies o f the trade favored prices very little
above, if not below a producing point. Such precisely has been the result o f
the season’ s business— prices throughout having averaged but a trifle over $ 3 00
per barrel for flour— being nearly fifty cents below the average o f last season.
558
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1852 .
Notwithstanding the average supplies o f home and continental wheat in the
markets o f England, the low prices current on this side the Atlantic induced a
moderate foreign demand for our wheat and flour, and the exports show an in
crease o f about three hundred thousand barrels o f the latter, as compared with
last year. O f Indian corn, however, the exports to Great Britain and Ireland
show a falling off o f six hundred thousand bushels. The consumption o f this
article in England and Ireland increases and diminishes in proportion as the
value o f flour rises and fells—consequently, while the latter rules low, the for
eign demand for the former must be limited.
In this country corn has been relatively dearer than flour, owing to the high
price o f hogs, and the probability is that the relative value will continue in about
the same proportion during the ensuing six months at least.
In accordance with our usual custom we will, before closing this branch o f
our general remarks, glance briefly at the prospective condition o f trade gener
ally, but more especially with reference to the leading W estern staples.
In our last annual report we had occasion to notice a large yield o f cereal
productions in the seasons o f I860 and 1851 which, in the absence o f more
than a very moderate foreign demand, and with a comparatively low currency
in the home markets, has added largely to the surplus stocks in the country.
This year the harvests that have been garnered up to this time have been, as
regards quantity and quality, fully equal to those o f either o f the two preceding
seasons, and the yield o f oats and barley is said to be larger than ever before.
It was also believed that wheat would be greatly in excess, but this expectation
has been realized in but few localities, ow ing to the rapid progress o f vegetation
in the spring and early summer months having made a large quantity o f straw.
The fields while standing looked well, but the yield was not equal to the ap
pearance. There was, however, a full average crop, which added to the already
large stock in the granaries, increases the supplies in the country for beyond
what they have ever before been. O f corn a full average stock is held over
from last year’s crop, but it is quite probable that the growing crop will fall
somewhat short o f an average yield. The season for planting was cold and
wet, and perhaps one-half the ground had to be replanted. Thus the season
was two or three weeks later than usual. Then again, before the plants were
fairly in tassel a severe drought commenced, which continued in two-thirds o f
the corn growing sections o f the W est for fully six weeks, and about three
weeks ago the prospects for even half a crop were decidedly unfavorable. C o
pious and general rains have, however, since materially changed the appearance
o f the plants, and although the product per acre will be one-fourth below an
average, the yield throughout the W est will not be this much short, as tire in
creased breadtli o f land planted will make up in part the deficiency.
W ith regard to the crop o f hogs we cannot speak with as much certainty as
o f the supply o f grains. But from all the information in our possession, and
we have endeavored to inform ourselves pretty fully, we have arrived at the
conclusion that there will be an increase in number and weight, as compared
with last season, that will in products be equal to fifteen or twenty-five per cent
o f last year’ s crop. There are no dealers, so far as we are advised, who antici
pate a supply smaller than that o f last year, while the majority, perhaps, predi
cate their transactions upon an increase, The low prices that were obtained for
hogs for some seasons prior to 1850-51, and the relatively higher value o f corn
in the same seasons, induced formers to reduce their stock o f hogs, and thus a
rapid decline has been experienced in the crop until the stock o f provisions has
been reduced very low , and the value o f hogs greatly enhanced. N ow the in
ducements to increase the supply o f hogs, and to make those on hand as heavy as
possible are much stronger than those which induced an opposite course. But
it is not believed to be possible for supplies to be increased much, if any, beyond
the per centage mentioned above. Beyond this season, however, dealers look
for a rapid increase until an over-production will cause a change in the trade
similar to that which has led to the present comparative scarcity and high prices.
O f b e e f cattle there is in the W estern country, unquestionably, a great scarcity,
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1852 .
559
and the packing business o f the ensuing season will fall at least one-third or
one-fourth short o f last year’s business, and in this section o f country it is sup
posed the supply will not be much more than equal to the demand for local con
sumption. In the Western States the constant tide o f emigration to California
has greatly reduced the supply, and in every section o f Illinois and Iowa steers
are extremely scarce, and unusually dear.
From the statement presented above it appears that the supply o f wheat in
the W e st at this time is unusually large, and that with a favorable fall for the
maturing o f the grain there will be a full average supply o f corn. W hat then
are the prospects as regards prices ? Unless a very large foreign demand is ex
perienced during the season for wheat and flour, prices in the home markets
must rule low— certainly not above— but perhaps below the average o f the past
season. The prospects for such a demand are not certainly favorable. Within
the last few weeks prices have advanced in England in consequence o f the re
appearance o f the potato rot, and unfavorable weather for harvesting— and or
ders have been sent to this country from both France and England, but these
orders were sent, principally, when flour in New York was below $ 1 for good
brands— a price that would not justify $3 in this market. Since then flour has
advanced, and freights have also improved, in consequence o f which the demand
has fallen off. A t the last date from Europe the trade was in a state o f sus
pense— the weather was at the time unfavorable, and the potato rot was pre
vailing in some districts, but nothing definite was known. A few weeks, how
ever, will determine this whole matter, and it is useless, therefore, to speculate
upon it. W e repeat, however, that the prospects do not favor any better prices
than were obtained last year. Corn will, doubtless, rule relatively higher than
wheat, owing to the high price o f hogs, and it is not likely that the foreign ex
ports will be much, if any, greater than last season.
Early in the summer contracts were made for hogs as low as $ 4 75, but very
little was done below $ 5 00, and, tw o or three weeks since, when it was ex
pected there would be a very short crop o f corn, some contracts were made as
high as $ 5 50, and considerable was done at $ 5 25. A t this time, however, the
feeling is decidedly less favorable to sellers, and it would be difficult to effect
sales at over $ 5 , although at this price there are not many persons willing to
sell. From the condition o f the market, and all attending circumstances, it i3
evident that prices will open at or over 85 per 100 lbs. net, and unless the crop
should prove much larger than is anticipated, the business will justify the figure
w e have named. A s we have already stated, the stocks o f hog products have
been for several years steadily diminishing, and this season there will be very
little old stuff in any o f the markets o f the country, when the new product be
gins to go forward.
The market for b eef cattle will be influenced by the price o f hogs, and it
is evident that very full rates will be realized from the commencement o f the
season.
As the agricultural interests underlie every branch o f trade, we are enabled,
knowing the present condition o f the former, to form a pretty correct opinion as
to the prospects o f business generally, during the ensuing year. Although
breadstuff's do not, nor are not likely to command high prices, yet the supply is
so large, that even at low rates, the aggregate receipts therefor will be heavy,
while the consuming classes will be supplied with cheap food. Then the price
o f hogs and cattle is fully 50 per cent above the average value, in ordinary sea
sons, and the increased income from this source will make up fully whatever
may be deficient in other branches. Upon the whole, therefore, the farming in
terests are in a healthy condition. T he effect o f this will be experienced in
trade, and already it is beginning to be felt. The country merchants are dis
charging their liabilities very well this season— much better than for several years
past.
This results from the payment o f long-deferred debts by consumers,
whereby the country merchant is able, in time, to remove his liabilities. This
condition o f things will open the way for an increased consumption o f groce
ries, hardware, dry goods, etc., and in these departments a large business may,
therefore, be expected.
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1852 .
560
Before closing these general remarks we will devote a short space to a notice
o f the railroad interests o f Cincinnati.
In our last annual report we noticed that the Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton
Railroad was nearly completed, and that roads connecting therewith and ex
tending into Indiana were also progressing rapidly. The former road was opened
to Dayton in the month o f September last for passengers, and in November it
commenced carrying freight. The number o f passengers carried over the road,
earnings, etc., for nine months, ending June 30th, were as follow s
m
Ten days in September
.
November....................... ,.
December....................... .
January,.......................... .
February........................ .
M arch............................. ,.
A p ril............................... .
M ay................................. .
J u n e ............................... .
No.
Pass.
2,916
18,1864
13,716|
14,493i
11,401
12,311 J
16,265^
17,038
18,096|
19,3894
Pass.
Earnings.
82,502
16,306
11,832
11,445
8,736
9,893
13,557
14,314
15,386
16,315
80
76
51
45
95
15
53
72
61
16
Freight
Earnings.
Ex. Bag.
and Exp.
8345
4,771
5,921
4,241
6,357
5,865
8,133
8,394
$14
532
262
116
87
135
152
301
180
104
97
78
36
95
10
26
62
31
Total........................ . 143,814-1 120,291 64 44,031 35
45
08
75
72
14
40
66
30
92
55
1,887 97
Total.
$2,517
16,838
12,441
16,333
14,715
14,270
20,067
20,481
23,701
24,814
25
84
23
95
45
50
29
28
15
02
166,210 96
Since the first o f July the road from Hamilton to Eaton has been opened, and
also the road from Dayton to Greenville, both o f which are doing a large local
business. Another link o f the Eaton road, extending from Eaton to Richmond,
will be completed the ensuing fall, and the Greenville road will be extended and
connected at Union with the Indianapolis and Belfontaine Railroad on the 1st o f
Decem ber next, thus making a continuous route from this city to Indian
apolis, which will be run in nine hours. The road from Dayton to T roy, in Mi
ami County, will be completed within six months. The stock o f the Cincinnati
and Dayton road sold early in the-season as low as 8 0 ; but the rapid increase in
the business o f the road soon enhanced its value, and it is now worth, in this mar
ket, 97 a 98. The company declared a cash dividend o f 4 per cent, out o f the
earnings o f the road up to the 1st o f July. This is the only instance recorded
in the history o f W estern railroads o f a company declaring a cash dividend out
o f the earnings o f the first nine months o f its existence.
T he Little Miami Railroad has continued to do a large freight and passenger
business, and its earnings are immensely large. In June a semi-annual dividend
o f five dollars per share, payable half in cash and half in stock was declared.
This stock advanced 110, and it is n ow worth 108, or $ 5 4 per share o f fifty
dollars. A s this was the first road from this city, its history is w ell calculated
to show the progress o f business, and the rapid advances which have been
made within a few years. For such a sketch we have not room here, but one
fact connected with the matter is worthy o f notice. Soon after the first links
o f the road were opened several parties who had subscribed to the stock o f the
company became anxious to realize, and it was freely offered at $12 50 on the
share; and in one instance that we heard of, it sold as low as seven dollars. N ow
the same stock is more saleable ai fifty-four dollars than it was then at the ex
tremely low price mentioned.
The Ohio and Mississippi Railroad is making satisfactory progress, and since
our last report has been placed under contract for its entire length, 335 miles.
Messrs. H. C. Seymour & Co., the contractors for the road, have sublet that por
tion o f the line extending from this city to its intersection with the Jeffersonville
Railroad in Indiana, and also the W estern Division extending through the State
o f Illinois from Vincennes to the Mississippi River opposite St. Louis. E ngi
neering parties in large force are preparing the remainder o f the line, (about 120
miles,) which will, doubtless, be sublet in a few weeks. Already the laborers
are at work at various points in the three States, and additional grading forces
are daily being added to those already on the ground. N ew vigor has been im
parted to the enterprise, and with the present prospect it is confidently antici-
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
501
paled that ears will be running in connection with the Madison and Indianapolis
Railroad in twelve months, and the entire distance between this city and St.
Louis within three years.
The survey, as made, establishes the important fact that this route is nearer to
an air line than that ofi-any other in the United States. The intersection lines
in Indiana and Illinois, which are built, or will be finished within three years,
are a valuable feature in the future productiveness o f this road, and the comple
tion o f the routes east from this city will offer a choice o f roads to the traveler,
or shipper, o f great, value. The Parkersburg route o f the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad will, when completed, give a continuous line o f rails from St. Louis to
Baltimore, and this latter road is in a state o f vigorous prosecution, with hopes
o f completion in two years from this time.
W e confidently anticipate that funds will not be wanting to complete this im
portant line o f communication between our city and St. Louis. Our neighbors
o f the South are moving with spirit in bringing up the lines from Mobile and
New Orleans, which will supply the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad with an in
calculable amount o f travel.
The Covington and Lexington Railroad is progressing rapidly, and a portion
o f the road from Covington will be opened early in the spring. This road, as
we remarked in our last annual report, will prove of great importance to the
trade o f Cincinnati, connecting, as it must very soon, with the great system of
railways which are being constructed in the Southern States.
During the year a road has been projected from Louisville to Covington, the
route o f which is now being surveyed, and it will, doubtless, be constructed at
no distant period.
The Cincinnati, Hillsborough, and Parkersburg Railroad is now in operation
from Hillsborough to Morrow, where it connects with the Little Miami Railroad
to Cincinnati. Two hundred thousand dollars in cash was subscribed in this city
to this road a few days since to aid in the construction of a line into the coal
and iron regions, and in extending the road to Parkersburg. This road will, it
is now generally conceded, form the Ohio link o f the Baltimore and Ohio
Raihoad, and as this will insure to it a heavy passenger and freight business, it
will greatly enhance the value o f the stock. Aside from this consideration, a
great interest has been taken in the road in this city in consequence o f its pene
trating the coal and iron regions. As already remarked, the road at present con
nects with the Little Miami Railroad at Morrow, but it is the intention o f the
company to construct an independent road into the city, entering through the
proposed Walnut Hills Tunnel, by which route five miles will be saved, and de
pot accomodations obtained very near the center o f business.
The route o f the Cincinnati and Dayton Short Line Railroad has been sur
veyed during the year, and about six months ago the company was organized,
since which time vigorous and successful efforts have been made to obtain sub
scriptions. The company held a meeting a few days since, at which time the
subscriptions had reached nearly eight hundred thousand , dollars— being more
than one-half the estimated cost of the road, exclusive o f the rolling machinery.
A resolution was passed to put the work under contract immediately. A tunnel
is to be constructed through a portion o f Walnut Hills, and four tracks are to
be laid down from the depot, corner o f Court and Broadway to Sharon, thence a
single tract to Dayton. The work at the tunnel will be prosecuted vigorously
during the ensuing winter.
With reference to the Commerce o f our city wTe have no space for extended
remarks, but its extent, as compared with last year, is fully exhibited in the an
nexed tables. Tw o hundred and sixty-seven different steamboats arrived at the
wharf during the year, the registered tonnage o f which was 60,543 tons and
their capacity may be set down at 120,000 tons. The total number o f arrivals
during the year was about 3,700. This show’s only a slight increase as com
pared with 1850-51, but the aggregate tonnage shows a considerable increase
in favor o f this year, a greater number o f large boats having been engaged in
the trade. The following is the number and tonnage for each year:—
V O L . X X V I I .----- N O . V.
b6
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
562
Boats engaged in the trade.....................................
Registered tonnage..................................................
1850-51.
1851-51
223
51,443
267
60,543
The steamboat interests have been comparatively prosperous. During the
business portions o f the year freights were plenty, and prices, as shown by the
average, were higher than in either of the two preceding years.
During the year a very strong effort has been made by our business men to
obtain the passage by Congress o f a bill making an appropriation for the con
struction o f a canal o f enlarged dimensions around the falls of the Ohio River,
but so far, without success. The session o f Congress which terminated with
this month has, as is always the case preceding a Presidential election, been
chiefly occupied in advocating, in both the Senate and House, the claims o f the
various aspirants to the highest office in the gift o f the people ; and it was not
until last month that the friends o f this measure, which is o f so much impor
tance to the whole W est and South-west, were permitted to make a report upon
the subject. An amendment to the River and Harbor Appropriation Bill was
offered, providing for the canal, but it was defeated. In a word nothing has
been done, except to bring the matter before the people, and now that they are
awake to its importance, we may hope for favorable action by Congress, at an
early day.
W e shall now proceed to notice under respective heads the articles which en
ter most extensively into our Commerce.
H o gs a n d C a t t l e . The market for hogs opened at a price considerably
above the highest rate o f the preceding season, and fully fifty cents above the
average rate for that year, and, with the exception o f about a week in the early
part o f the season, prices throughout exhibited a buoyant and upward tendency,
closing at 45 cts. per 100 lbs. above the opening rate.
The following statement shows the daily extreme and average prices during
the packing season, also the weekly average rates for three seasons:—
1850- SI.
1S51-S2.
e.
Extrem e rate.
21. $4 50 a .
..
22. 4 50
24.
25.
26.
27.
29.
Dec.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
15.
16.
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
50
50
55
50
50
50
50
50
50
50
55
55
50
50
50
55
60
60
60
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
60
65
60
60
60
55
55
55
55
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
60
60
60
60
60
65
70
75
Average.
84
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
50
50
50
65
50
55
55
55
65*
52*
524
52*
55
55
55
55
55
55
62*
65*
67*
Average.
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
95
88
75
75
85
80 Jan.
90
00
07
10
10
10
10
10
1850-51.
1851-52.
Date.
Extrem e rate.
83 75 Dec. 17. $4 65 a 4
4 00
18. 4 65 4
4 00
19. 4 70 4
4 00
20. 4 75 4
4 no
22. 4 80 4
4 00
23. 4 85 4
4 00
24. 4 85 4
26.
27.
29.
30.
81.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
85
80
82
85
85
85
80
90
90
90
90
85
85
75
75
so
85
85
95
95
4 90
4 90
4 90
. ,,
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
4
4
90
90
90
00
00
00
00
90
95
Average. Average.
$4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
70
70
75
79
82
90
90
87*
85
87
85
85
85
85
95
95
95
87
90
90
$4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
WEEKLY AVERAGE.
W e e k ending
November
November
December
December
2 1 ...
2 8 ...
5 ...
1 2 ...
1851-58.
1850-51.
$4 52
4 53
4 55
$3 62
4 00
3 89
3 93
1849-50.
!>2
2
2
2
2
65
70
70
72*
86
08
10
10
05
10
05
10
05
10
05
15
15
20
20
20
20
25
26
20
20
563
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
W eek ending
December
December
January
January
January
19..................................
27...........................
5 ...........................
11...........................
17...........................
Season’s average.....................
1851—52.
4 69
1850-51.
4 10
4 08
4 09
4 22
4 21
1819-50.
2 84
2 94
4 07
3 32
3 30
84 70
84 00
82 91
The number o f hogs packed in the West, according to the statement pub
lished in the Price Current at the close of the season was deficient as compared
with the preceding year 182,021 head. In weight however the deficiency was
equal to only about 77,000 head. The hogs the past season were better fatted
than those o f 1850-51, and the increase in weight ranged, as nearly as could be
ascertained, from 5 to 10 per cent, and in this way the decrease in number was,
in part, made up. Although reliable statistics of the pork trade are obtained
with great difficulty, yet the movements o f products show our statement to have
been sufficiently correct for all practical purposes.
The supply o f beef cattle throughout the year has been comparatively light,
and prices have ruled considerably above the average currency o f ordinary years.
The range o f prices for the season has been wide, say $3 50 to $6 00. During
the packing season $4 to $5 per 100 lbs., net, were the leading rates, but since
the close o f the winter the retail market has been sparingly supplied, and city
butchers were seldom able to purchase below $5, while for prime cattle $5 75
a $6 per 100 lbs. net was paid. The closing rates for the year are $1 75 a 5 75,
embracing ordinary and choice. As remarked in another place, the supply in
the West is unusually light, and this, with the high price of hog products, will
continue to sustain prices above the average o f last year’s currency, and it is
not likely that packers will get any good cattle the ensuing season for less than
$5 to $5 50 per 100 lbs. net.
P r o v is io n s .
At the close o f the last commercial year prices o f hog products
ruled high, as the stocks throughout the country were unusually light and rates
then current were pretty well maintained up to the commencement o f the new
season, when figures receded to a point corresponding with the price at which
the hog market opened. Throughout the past season the tone o f the market
has been generally very firm, and a comparative statement o f the average prices
for hogs and their products for three years past shows that during the.year
just closed large advances were realized upon the first cost o f the several manu
factured articles, and the season upon the whole has proved by far the most
profitable that has been experienced for many years. The high prices which
prevailed for hogs at the commencement of the season induced packers generally
to move cautiously, and there were few operators in the market who were not
agreeably disappointed by the result o f the business. The healthy tone which
the market maintained throughout, and the high prices at which the old stocks
are likely to be closed off are attributable fully as much to the deficiency in
supplies at the commencement o f the year as to the falling off in the number
o f hogs. As we have remarked in another place, the stocks for three years past
have been steadily diminishing, and last fall the surplus was smaller than at any
time in several previous seasons, and had the number o f hogs proved as large
as in 1850-51, the products would have been disposed o f at very fair profits.
The high prices undoubtedly caused a very material falling off in the consumption,
as they did also in the foreign demand; but the supplies were no more than ade
quate to the requirements o f home consumers, and the year closes again with very
small stocks, and the aggregate in the whole country on the 1st o f November next
will be no greater, if so large, ihan at the corresponding date in 1851. The
course o f the market for the ensuing year must, therefore, be directed almost
entirely by the supply of hogs, and with a crop o f fourteen hundred thousand, (at
the leading points,) against twelve hundred thousand last year, prices must con
tinue to rule comparatively high. The following statement o f the weekly aver
age prices shows the course o f the market during the year :—
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
564
W eek ending
September 1 1 ............
((
1 8 ................
it
2 5 ................
o
October
>«
(«
u
November
((
it
it
December
“
“
January
“
“
«<
«
February
il
it
«
March
it
((
((
April
u
“
«
May
il
((
“
June
t(
«
“
July
ft
((
ti
it
August
1 6 ................
2 3 ................
3 0 ................
6 ................
1 3 .................
2 0 ................
2 7 ................
4 ................
1 1 ................
1 8 ................
1 ................
8 ................
1 5 ................
22............
3 0 ................
6 ................
1 3 ................
2 0 ................
2 7 ................
6 ................
1 3 ................
2 0 ................
2 7 ................
3 ................
1 0 ................
1 7 ................
2 4 ................
1............
8 ................
1 5 ................
2 2 ................
2 9 ................
5 ................
1 2 ................
1 9 ................
2 6 ................
3 ................
1 0 ................
1 7 ....................
2 4 ....................
3 1 ....................
1 ...................
“
((
8 ................
1 5 ................
ti
22............
31............
il
Mess
$15
15
15
14
13
13
12
11
12
15
12
12
12
12
12
12
12
12
13
14
14
13
14
14
14
15
15
15
16
17
17
16
16
16
16
16
17
18
19
19
20
Pork.
25
50
50
87
00
50
00
50
50
00
00
00
00
00
50
50
70
75
75
50
00
00
87
00
50
00
50
50
50
00
50
00
50
37
37
00
50
00
00
00
62
00
20 00
20 00
19
19
19
19
19
19
K eg Lard.
io i
104
10
10
Plain
Bacon.
Bacon.
lianas.
9
9
9
9
Sides.
114
114
10
Shoulders.
84
84
84
8
’ s4
94
8
8
64
64
84
7
64
9
9
84
8
7
8
74
74
. .
, .
7}
74
74
74
74
7f
74
7
74
74
74
74
7£
8
Si
Si
Si
Si
84
9
94
94
9f
9£
9£
10
10
104
104
104
104
104
104
104
10
10
10
10
84
9
9
9
9
Sf
8f
Si
Si
9
84
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
9f
94
50
50
50
50
25
104
n
94
94
94
94
94
94
00
l i
94
n
114
H 4
74
74
74
74
74
74
8
8
84
9
9
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
64
64
64
64
64
64
64
64
64
7
7
74
74
74
74
74
7f
74
74
7-4
74
74
74
74
74
7i
7£
n
74
9i
74
8
8
8
8
94
94
94
94
94
94
94
74
8
8
For the receipts and exports at this port for a series o f years, as well as the
comparative average monthly prices, we refer to the tabular tables annexed. A
considerable increase will be noticed in the imports and exports, compared with
the number o f hogs packed in the West. This is accounted for by the heavy
purchases at Louisville, St. Louis, Madison, on the Wabash, and at other points,
a large portion o f which was brought here, and also to receipts for reshipment
via canals and railroads to eastern markets.
B r e a d s t u f f s . The market for flour during the past year has been almost
entirely free from excitement, and, excepting a few weeks early in the fall,
when a demand sprung up on European account, the operations were mostly o f
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
565
a legitimate character. So steady has been the course o f the market that it is
not necessary to give a statement o f the weekly average prices, or to refer par
ticularly to the slight variations which occurred, or causes thereof. The ex
treme prices o f the year were $2 90 and $3 45, and in the tables annexed will
be found a statement of the monthly average, which figures also indicate with
sufficient accuracy the daily and weekly currency. Supplies have been regulated
throughout pretty much by prices, and consequently, although the stocks o f
wheat in the country are known to have been larger than over before, we find
but a slight increase in the receipts at this port, and this remark applies equally
well to New York and other Eastern markets. Should anything occur during
the ensuing year whereby flour may be enhanced, the receipts at all the leading
ports would be greatly increased over those o f the year just closed. Wheat has
ranged during the year from 59 to 63 cents. As the value o f this article is
regulated entirely by that o f flour, our remarks relative to the latter are applica
ble to the former. The receipts sliow a slight falling off as compared with last
season, being 377,037 bushels, against 388,660. Although the number o f mills
has been reduced by the conversions of two o f the Miami Canal Mills into
paper manufactories, the receipts of wheat indicate but a slight falling off in the
aggregate business o f the city mills. For corn prices have ruled, until within
the last month, considerably lower than during the season o f 1850-51. During
September, October, and November prices ranged from 30 to 34 cents, but from
December 1st, until July 1st, prices varied from 31 down to 25 cents. The
severe drought experienced in July, affecting very seriously the prospects of
the growing crops, caused an advance, and in several instances 45 cents was paid
by distillers, but since the crops have been improved by recent rains, the market
has given way, and 40 a 42 cents are the closing rates. The value o f this arti
cle, owing to the high price o f hogs, is relatively higher than that o f wheat, and
the probability is that the market will retain this feature during the greater por
tion o f the ensuing season. The receipts this season were 653,788 bushels,
against 489,195 last year. Owing to the heavy consumption o f corn in this
State, by distillers, prices hero are generally maintained above a shipping point,
and surplus stocks above Dayton, and along the line o f the Wabash and Erie
Canal are taken through the Northern channels to the Eastern seaboard. The
exports during the year comprise 51,231 sacks against 20,137 sacks same time
last year.
C h e e s e . The trade in this article, which is a staple product o f our State, has
continued to increase, and the receipts of the past year exceed those o f 1850-51,
by about 40,000 boxes. It has become very evident that as the population in
the Southern and South-western States increases, the cheese trade o f this city
must advance, this being the only distributing point for those sections o f coun
try. W e are now in connection by railroad with the cheese-producing counties
o f this State, and very soon there will be railroad connection with the cheese-con
suming States o f the South, and this will greatly facilitate the trade in this, as well
as in all other perishable articles. The range of prices indicates but a very slight
variation from last year’s currency, and the season’s business has, upon the whole,
resulted favorably to manufacturers. Increased attention seems to have been
given to the quality o f cheese, and although there is still room for improvement
in this respect, rapid advances have been made within a few years. As the
quality affects the consumption o f this article, as well as the price, it is impor
tant to the producers that all tastes should be suited. In our last "annual report
we intimated that too much attention had been given to the production o f fancy
qualities. W e have now to notice a great falling off in this branch o f business,
and we may add that the interests o f manufacturers have been advanced by the
change. The great mass o f consumers prefer choice Western Reserve Cheese to
any tancy brand that can be produced, especially at the extra price always de
manded for the latter. For the monthly average prices, and the receipts and ex
ports, we refer to the tables which will be found under “ Commercial Statistics ”
in the present number o f the Merchants' Magazine.
G r o ceries . The trade in two o f the leading staples comprised in this branch
o f business, namely, sugar and molasses, shows a very great increase as com
566
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
pared with the previous season; and it now appears that o f the entire products
o f sugar in the United States, one-fifth is received and sold at this port, and
while New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore received during the year
thirty-three million pounds of New Orleans and Texas Sugar, nearly forty-four
million pounds were received at this port. In our last annual report we had oc
casion to refer to the internal improvements of our State as having given the
first and great impetus to this trade, and we may now remark that continued
extensions o f these inland channels o f communications in our own and the
neighboring States are constantly opening new markets to our merchants, and
very soon the cities and towns on the Northern Lakes, as well as all the leading
places in Indiana, which hitherto have been cut off from market during the
winter months, will be in communication by railroad with this city. This will
obviate the necessity which the merchants o f these places have been under o f
taking their winter and spring supplies before the closing o f lake and canal
navigation. With the railroads referred to, our city may be reached in a few
hours, and sugar and molasses from the plantations o f Louisiana may be de
livered in any o f the Lake cities in less than two weeks.
The fluctuations in prices during the year have been very slight in both sugar
and molasses; and coffee has also been comparatively steady. There has been
little or no speculative movement, and the uniformity in prices is attributable in
some degree to this fact. Last September, the average price for sugar was
6 1-16 cents, and for molasses 33 J cents. The highest average was in Novem
ber, when sugar was 6J and molasses 37J; but with the first receipts o f the
new crop, prices began to give way; and in December sugar was 5§, molasses
35, and prices continued to go down until the 1st o f March, when sugar was
5 cents, and molasses 27-J. Since that time, sugar has ranged from
to 5f,
closing at the latter, and molasses at 30 to 34, closing at 33L For coffee, 9 cents
was the lowest, and 10J the highest average point reached during the year— the
former in October and the latter in April. For the last two months, 91 a 9 f
have been the average rates, closing at a range o f 9J a 9 f for common and
prime Rio. The amount of sugar and molasses imported and exported indicates
heavier stocks than at the close o f the last year; but there is everything to favor
a heavy fall demand. In the first place, the stock being ample, prices will be
kept in check. In the next place, there is in the W est an abundant crop o f ap
ples, and a fair supply of other fruits suitable for preserving, while last year
there was comparatively none. Then, in the next place, prices of sugar are
three-eighths of a cent per pound lower than on the first o f last September, and
in view o f the ample stock, we may safely set down the difference for the whole
fall at three-quarters o f a cent in favor o f this season in sugar, and two to three
cents per gallon in molasses.
C andles. The production o f candles during the year diminished, in conse
quence o f the disproportion of the price o f the raw material to that o f the manufac
tured article, and the apparent impossibility, while stocks were kept up, of obtaining
remunerative prices for the latter. This has caused a great reduction in the
stocks here, and as a similar course was adopted in other parts o f the country,
prices have everywhere simultaneously advanced. As the season is now at hand
when consumption will rapidly increase, and as materials are both dear and
scarce, stocks must continue light for some time to come ; and operations o f the
ensuing season will be commenced upon a comparatively bare market. Star
candles now command 22 cents, which is 2 a 3 cents above the average for the
season. This is a branch o f the manufactures o f Cincinnati which has increased
very rapidly within a few years. The exports during the season o f 1846-47
comprised 16,622 boxes. Within the year just closed there were exported
121,727 boxes, showing an increase in five years o f over one hundred thousand
boxes. Our export tables do not show perhaps much over one-half the products
o f the city, but they are the only correct indication we have o f the growth o f
the trade. W e may add that within the last two years the aggregate capacity o f
the manufactories o f the city has been considerably increased; since which time,
owing to the causes mentioned above, none o f the establishments have produced
an average quantity.
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
5G7
O il s . In our annual report on last September, we remarked, relative to lin
seed, that, with a pretty full crop o f seed, there would be sufficient Western
oil to keep prices at a point that would prevent importations from the Eastern
ports, or from Europe, whence a portion o f our supplies for the previous year
had been derived. The result has proved our observations on this point to have
been correct. The market for the year just closed opened at G9 a 70, and be
tween the latter rate and 58; prices have since fluctuated, being the most of
the time, however, below 65 and above 60. The consumptive demand since the
opening o f spring has been heavy, but although the stock in this market has
been pretty well reduced, the supply was at all times equal to the demand, and
that buoyancy which would indicate a healthy trade was seldom observable.
Very recently prices advanced in New York, and this caused a demand for the
North which enabled dealers here to establish an advance from 58 a 60 to 65 a
68, the market closing at the latter. The probability is that during the ensuing
year prices will fall below the average o f the past season. The crop of seed in
the W est is larger than for several years past, and with a corresponding produc
tion o f oil prices will be very likely to give way. W e do not, however, look
for very low rates, as a large quantity o f the seed that will be required by millers
has been laid in at a costof 81 a $1 05, although the present market value is only
90 cents, and oil pressed from seed purchased at these rates will make a loss, if
sold, much below 60 cents. In lard oil an advance o f 10 a 15 cents per gallon
has been establishd on last year’s currency, and for five or six months past 70 a
85 has been the range for good No. 2 to pure No. 1, and at these rates the mar
ket closes. Two occurrences contributed to this result. The first was the ad
vance in lard to a point above a manufacturing price. This at once checked the
production o f oil. The other was a deficiency in whale oil, with a large advance
in the price o f that commodity. This created an increased demand for lard oil,
while, as stated, the production was reduced, and thus stocks have been dimin
ished, until they are now unusually light. The operations o f the ensuing season
will, therefore, be commenced upon a comparatively bare market.
W ool. In our last annual report we noticed that the market opened under
considerable excitement, and at high prices, but subsequently to the close of the
commercial year, the trade reacted, and early purchasers made heavy losses. The
past season opened differently from that o f the preceding year, and it promises
to close at prices that will fully remunerate purchasers. Before the incoming o f
the new clip a seemingly united effort was made to depress prices. Eastern deal
ers, who had their agents throughout the West, withdrew, and resolved to await
the receipl o f the wool in the respective markets. This had, for a time, a decided
influence upon prices; but the demand soon became active, and from a point 10
eents below the opening rates o f 1851, prices have advanced from two to three
cents above the highest price o f that season. The following were the current
rates on the 31st o f August, for three years:—
Full blood........................................
|
“
i
“
|
“
Common..........................................
1850.
1851.
1852.
35 a 38
33 35
30 33
28 30
27 28
38 a 40
37
38
84
85
31
32
29 31
39 a 42
36 38
34 35
32 34
30 32
A new feature in the trade this year is the importation of foreign wool. One
o f our dealers, A. D. Bullock, Esq., has received lately 122,000 lbs. This de
scription, we are informed, is required by Western manufacturers.
W h is k y . The imports o f this article show an increase o f 28,774 barrels, as
compared with last year, and the exports are 276,124 barrels, against 231,324.
The exports exceed the imports about 4,000 barrels. This is accounted for by
the fact that the whisky manufactured in the city and brought in by wagons is
not included in our imports, while it o f course gets into our export tables, as it
is sent forward. The average prices have fallen below those o f last year— being
$6 75 per barrel against $8 in 1850-51, and 89 in 1849-50. The imports and
value were as follows:—
568
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
Barrels.
1851-52.......................................
1850-51.......................................
1849-50.......................................
272,788
244,047
186,687
Value.
$1,773,122
1,952,376
1,680,102
On the first o f September, 1851, the price was 17} cents; now the market
closes at 18} cents. The apprehended failure o f the corn crop a few weeks since
caused an advance of fully two cents per gallon, which is still maintained, though
the prospect now is that we shall have a fair crop o f corn. But the excitement
caused a falling off in the production, distillers having been unable to procure
grain, and just at this time there is a scarcity in some o f the markets.
T obacco.
The market for manufactured was steady, with a good demand, at
the close o f our last annual review; but as was then stated, the crops in the
Western States promised well, and resulted in an abundant yield, which produced
a downward tendency in prices of lower grades. The market, during the winter,
continued dull, and prices gradually declined, until about the middle o f June,
when the indications o f the growing crop became very unfavorable, in the
Western States, and this, along with a very active foreign demand, caused a
material advance in prices of leaf; and, in Virginia the finer qualities commanded
higher rates than ever before realized; several parcels having sold in the leading
markets in that State at prices ranging from $90 to $150 per hundred pounds.
These extravagant rates were obtained in consequence o f an unusual scarcity o f
the finer qualities, and indeed o f all the good to prime working descriptions, there
being a failure o f the crop o f 1851 throughout all the Eastern States.
The crop in the West was very abundant, and the amount cultivated was lar
ger than any previous season, as will be seen by the imports o f leaf tobacco at
New Orleans, which were in 1850-51, 63,318 hhds., and in 1851-52, 87,338;
showing an increase of over twenty-four thousand hhds., so that the trade has
proved very profitable to the West, and paid a large profit to the agriculturists.
The crops in Virginia promise well this season, but in the W est the late, cold
spring, and the dry weather in July, has left but little hope of realizing anything
near an average yield; but, notwithstanding, should the fall weather continue
warm and favorable, and no early frost come, a fair crop may be realized. This
is, however, hardly to be expected. The prices for leaf and manufactured closed
very firm in all our domestic markets. The stock o f manufactured in our mar
ket is very light, the sales the past month having been immensely large, and the
high rates ruling in Virginia prevent manufacturers sending on the usual supplies
to this market. The trade at this point continues rapidly to increase.
The exports this season have been 24,064 boxes, against 17,751 last
season, and the imports 22,142, against 19,273 last season.
In connection
with this, our manufacturing facilities have been greatly extended, and there are
now twenty-six establishments in this city and the neighboring counties o f Ken
tucky, who sell all their manufactured articles here, as well as one or two estab
lishments in Louisville who make great consignments to our tobacco factors
during the season.
M o s e y and E xc h an g e .
The money-market for the past year has presented
more variety than we have hitherto had occasion to chronicle. W e have had
money scarcer, and rates said to be higher than ever before; and we have also
had money more plentiful and rates lower than for a good many years. In con
sequence of the extreme scarcity o f water in the river last fall, and the unheard
o f event o f its being twice closed by ice in the winter, the demand for money
for several months was so much greater than the supply, that those whose neces
sities were urgent had to submit to such rates as the lenders chose to ask; but
since then, in consequence o f the high prices o f provisions, and the facilities with
which they were disposed of, combined with the great abundance o f money at
the East and in Europe, which enabled our railroad projectors to dispose o f their
securities at full prices, and thus carry on their works with unexampled rapidity,
the tables have been completely turned; and although money can hardly be
said to have become a drug, it has yet been easier o f attainment, and the rates
have ruled lower than at any time since the suspension o f specie payments in
1837. And the system o f paying high rates of interest on current deposites, by
Trade and Commerce o f Cincinnati in 1 8 5 2 .
569
the hankers and brokers, which has so extensively prevailed in this city during
the last few years, has received a check from which it may never recover. The
actual capital o f our city has largely increased, business generally has been re
munerative, many have made large fortunes, and from borrowers have become
lenders o f money; and upon the whole, we cannot but congratulate our readers,
both at home and abroad, upon the unusually healthy state o f things which now
prevails in our midst. It is true, our banking capital is now smaller than it has
been since 1832, but the capital o f our business men has largely increased, and
the absence, therefore, o f banking facilities is not felt to so great an extent as
it would otherwise be.
The system o f taxation which was adopted by the Legislature at its session of
1850 and 1851, severe though it was, was yielded to by the banks with but few
exceptions— a few however did resist and brought the matter before the courts
and the decisions so far have been in their favor. At the session o f 1851 and 1852,
however, still more stringent laws were, passed, which operate so severely that
some o f the banks have actually closed up, and others are in progress, while
those who continue to do business have determined to resist, and there is but
little doubt o f their success, as the amount o f tax required to be paid by the last
law ranges from about double to at least four times the amount guarantied to
them by their charters, and is generally considered as unconstitutional and void.
What the wisdom o f this is we are at a loss to determine. Every business man
knows that the growth o f our city, large as it is, has been materially retarded by
the want o f banking capital, and during the last few years many large orders for
machinery, &c., have been driven away from this city to Louisville and other rival
points, because the small capital o f our banks did not enable them to take bills
having over three months to run, while the more liberal and wise policy o f the
neighboring States, where banking accommodations are larger, has enabled those
institutions to discount bills as long as four and six months. This is not mere
theory, but plain, honest, unvarnished truth, based upon facts which have actually
occurred, and will again while we have such short-sighted legislation. Other in
terests have also suffered in a similar way, and large quantities o f our great
staple, (as it used to be called,) pork, were packed and cured in other cities,
because there four and six months’ bills could be negotiated with full as much
readiness, as those o f half that length could be here. W e might extend this
subject ad infinitum, but sufficient has been said to draw attention to it and show
how such legislation operates, and how it always will do. As a State we are old
enough to know better, but while we make questions o f such importance party
tests, there is but little hope o f improvement.
Exchange has ruled low during the whole year, ranging on the East between
J a f per cent premium, and on the South at from 1 per cent down to par.
Specie has also been low— gold bringing from J to f , with a supply fully
equal to the demand; while silver, except for purposes o f change, has been much
more inactive than during the previous year.
As we have already occupied more space than we usually allot to this subject,
we will only congratulate ourselves and our readers upon the healthy condition
o f our monetary affairs. As a State, and nation, we are becoming more wealthy
and prosperous, and if our present prosperity do not lead to further extravagance,
we have but little to fear. The clouds that obscured our Eastern horizon when
we made our last annual report, have, as we then hoped, all long since disappeared;
the golden sun o f California has been, if not eclipsed, at least rivaled by his
powerful competitor in Australia, and ships laden with gold plow the bosoms o f
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, scarcely creating more commotion than the pas
sage o f one o f our steamers upon the surface o f our own river.
S t e a m b o a t B u il d in g .
In our last annual report we had occasion to notice a
very marked improvement in this branch o f business, and we have now the grati
fication to be able to report continued activity. Although there is but a slight
increase in the number or tonnage o f boats constructed and completed up to the
close o f the year, the business exhibits a very active appearance, ten large boats
being still on the stocks, and four afloat, nearly finished. The latter, and a por
tion o f the former, will be ready for the early fall business; but our statement
510
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
includes only those boats which have been constructed and registered within the
commercial year. Comparing the number o f boats finished during the year
ending with August, 1851, and the number being constructed at that time, with
the number built the past season, and those now constructing, a very considerable
increase in favor o f this season is shown. By glancing at the annexed list of
boats, and registered tonnage, it will be seen that but few small class boats have
been built, while several are of the largest size, carrying as high as eleven hundred
tons. In this connection it may be proper to remark that the Custom-house
measurement, or registered tonnage which we give, does not indicate the actual
capacity o f the boats. The latter exceeds the former fully 100 per cent. The
capacity o f the tonnage constructed the past season is, therefore, about nineteen
thousand tons.
Registered
Registered
Names of boats.
tonnage.
Names of boats.
tonnage.
200
Steamer Sydonia...........................
235 Steamer Fanny Sparkawk...........
Norm a.............................
380
Post B oy.........................
158
Col. Drennon.................
125
W ilc o x ...........................
260
Floating Palace.............
231
General Pike...................
367
White River...................
100
Pearl................................
184
Wash. McLean...............
142
R. H. Winslow...............
335
J. H. Clienoweth............
310 Barge Kate Hays..........................
240
Alabama..........................
298
Buckeye..............................
328
Cincinnatus.........................
224
R u b y ...............................
145
I o n ......................................
230
Louisa.............................
394
Lewis Whiteman...........
317
Joe Torrence.....................
211
Cusseta , .......................
Bob Green...........................
100
201
J. P. Tweed.....................
315
Total...............................
8,896
501
Delaware.........................
R. M. J o n e s ...................
8,206
193 1850-51, No. 31 ..............................
4,560
Moses Greenwood........
267 1849-50, No. 16..............................
7,281
Major A . H arris.. . . . . .
103 1848-49, No. 23.............................
D. J. Day.........................
212 1847-4S, No. 29 .............................. 10,233
8,268
593 1846-47, No. 32..............................
James Robb...................
7,657
L. M. Kennett.................
598 1845-46, No. 25..............................
E liza................................
349
It is seen that the business o f the past season exceeds that o f any previous
year, except 1847-48, when the construction of boats was greatly stimulated by
the extraordinary demand for steamboat tonnage, consequent upon the active for
eign demand for breadstuffs, which existed at that time.
The construction of large boats at this port continued to be greatly retarded
in consequence o f the insufficiency o f the Portland Canal. With the removal of
this obstruction boats o f the largest size will be constructed for the lower trade,
which change would greatly facilitate the shipping interest— both as it regards
boat owners and business men— and it would also greatly increase the business
o f builders, as the cost o f constructing vessels below is necessarily greater than
here. With regard to the efforts which have been made to secure a new canal at
the falls of the Ohio, and the prospects o f success in the undertaking we have
spoken fully elsewhere.
Art. V.— COMMERCE: AND COMMERCIAL BIOGRAPHY.
i; Still let thy mind be bent, still plotting where,
And when, and how, the business may be done.” —H e r b e r t .
C o m m e r c e is not one o f the Muses.
A bargain is not so beautiful a
thing as a poem, an oratorio, a picture, or a flight o f eloquence. Y et the
bargain holds no mean place in the frame-work o f this present world. It is
the first material bond o f human society. B y it, the individual acquires
what he could not produce, and is relieved o f what he could not employ.
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
571
B y it, the best fruits o f a skill possessed by one alone are distributed through
out the community; and the one, in serving the community, is advancing
himself. B y it, nation is linked with nation, in a thousand beneficial con
nections. B y it, the dissimilar produce o f climates lying wide apart, meet
in a single h o m e ; the temperate zone gathering winter comfort from the
pole, and summer luxury from the equator. Much as we should regret the
departure from our world o f the poem, the picture, or the oration, that
would not leave mankind so utterly at a loss as the departure o f the less
beautiful bargain. W ithout it, we could never behold a shop, a public
conveyance, a factory, a ship, a railway, or an extensive town.
“ The Iliad for war,” cries the author o f ‘ Friends in Council,’ “ and the
Odyssey for wandering ; but where is the great domestic epic ?” A very fit
question. And where is the great Commercial epic ? Arms, agriculture,
love, travel and adventure, all have had their ample offerings o f s o n g ; but,
in spite o f Dyer’s “ Fleece,” and Granger’s “ Sugar Cane,” and Phillips’
“ Cyder,” with minor attempts to give Commerce a poetic status, it has thus
far held on its course in the world without any notable obligation to the
lyre. A ny subject, in its vulgar aspect, appears below the dignity and inteterest o f poetry ; but once that it has been seen by the eye o f the poet, and
that his numbers have set it forth, all will recognize its higher aspects. Com
merce, in its petty details, is very far from poetry ; so is a brigade o f recruits
on drill, lifting up and setting down first one foot and then the other, as the
sergeant cries, “ L e ft! r ig h t!— le ft! righ t!” But Commerce, on the grand
scale, is connected with the chief events o f history, with all the noted terrestial discoveries, all the scenes of nature, all the spheres o f enterprise, all
the triumphs o f invention, all the manners o f the nations. It is by the light
o f Commerce, that far away on the misty frontier o f history, we first catch
sight o f Phoenicia careering on the ancient seas; o f Greece receiving her
colonies and her lights; o f Carthage, spreading enterprise around the w est;
o f Ancient Britain emerging out o f the unknown, and holding in her hand
as her modest gift to the common store o f mankind, a goodly supply o f tin.
It is Commerce that first tells us o f bright rich lands in the distant east, be
yond the range o f western politics and wars; that brings thence gem, and
spice, and silky robe, which, to northern eyes, look as if they came from some
strange realm o f light; that displaying these, stirs up her first-born offspring
enterprise, to stretch her flight for their native lands ; that, at length placing
enterprise on her own wings, bears her across the wide Atlantic, and lets her
gaze on a new continent; then, carrying her round the African cape, unfolds
the real scene whence the great excitement came— the Taproban^, the Golden
Chersonesus, the lands o f cinnamon and peacocks ; o f pearl, ivory, and dia
mond ; o f muslin, sandal-wood, and silk. It is Commerce which presides at
the inauguration o f the new age, when Europe founds empires beyond the
sea, and east and west meet together in new rivalries and friendships, till the
devotees o f trade cover every eminence o f Columbia with foreign standards,
and transfer the gorgeous realm of the Great Mogul to masters who confess
the creed o f the Nazarene. A nd sweeping her course from Tadmor to San
Francisco, what magic communities spring up in her train 1 Solomon’s fair
city, in the wilderness; the queenly daughter of Alexander, by the mouths
o f the N ile; Venice, emerging from the flat isles of the Po, beyond the
range o f the barbarians who then overswept all Italy’s ancient glory ; Bussorah, springing up by the Tigris, under the auspices o f the crescent; the
Low Countries, rising out o f the sea, gathering the wealth o f the Eastern
572
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
Archipelago, striking down the banner o f Spain, and lifting- up the paralyzed
arm o f Protestant England; the city of Clive and Hastings by the ancient Gan
ges ; with wonders endless on the bays and streams o f yonder new world,
and here, in our Lancashire vales, on our Yorkshire hills, or in the districts
where the great wise Hand has stored up our iron and our coal.
Again, her course amid the paths o f nature is not less wonderful than
among those o f history. How she is overwhelmed in the simoom, now re
freshed on the oasis; now hemmed in by the icebergs, now drenched by the
water-spout; now lashed by the monsoon, now enchained by the calm ; now
steadily wafted by the trade-wind, now broken upon the rock ; now joyfully
riding in the haven, now away on the open main, where sky and sea alone
can meet her ey e; now hasting through the hollow tunnel, where cloud,and
tree, and wave, are alike unseen ; now chasing an invisible land by the mys
terious track o f the magnet; now reading in the conjunction, the transit, the
eclipse, or the culminating sun, her instructions how to travel upon earth.
A n d all the feats whereof poetic rapture ever sang, are surely to be match
ed by those which are daily displayed in the service o f Commerce. The
huntsman chasing the tiger, elephant, lion, bear, ostrich, and kangaroo; the
diver seeking p ea rl; the fisherman vanquishing the whale ; the miner undo
ing the bolts and bars o f nature’s treasure-vaults; the mariner wrestling with
both wind and sea; the engineer scooping the hill or spanning the strait;
the caravan daring the sands; the fleet braving the w aters; the bullocktrain encountering the k lo o f; and all that ancient poets could find to originate
ideas o f Cyclops and supernatural powers, was little to the flaming wonders of
one night’s survey from Dudley Castle, or one day’s study o f the magic
hives o f Manchester.
Then Commerce mounts her upon every steed; now on the camel, patient
as a thing inanimate; now on the ship, active as a thing o f life, with the
canvas for her wing, and the magnet for her scen t; now on the fleet horse,
now on the drowsy buffalo ; now on the toiling wain, now on the flying en
gine; now on the steadfast mule, now 6n the quivering steam boat; now fol
lows the fleet foot o f the reindeer, now loiters on the dank can al; now skims
in the slight canoe, now rolls in the thundering train; now whirrs on the
wing o f the carrier-pigeon, now clings to the writhing catamaran.
Commerce, too, has done much toward fulfilling its mission. It was or
dained to bind man to man, province to province, and nation to nation, by
the solid tie o f common interests. “ Had all nations found at home every
thing necessary and agreeable, it is impossible to conceive to what extent
their mutual alienation might have proceeded. China and Japan help us to
an idea o f that which, in such a case, would have constituted nationality. ”
But God gave each individual a relish for all that is charming in creation, yet
distributed the productions which all enjoy, over the various zones o f earth.
Consequently, if the people o f one land would partake of all they coveted,
it was necessary to know and to deal with the people of other lands. Thence
came that exchange o f services, by which we now see the beverage of English
men depending on the rains in China, the wealth of many a Chinese on the
markets o f England, the bread of many a family in Manchester and Lowell
on the weather in Carolina, the comfort of many a house in Leeds on the
sheep o f the Cape and Australia, the welfare o f many a Spanish vine-grow
er on the rents o f the English squire, the value o f Norwegian pine on a vote
at St. Stephen’s, the prosperity o f the Russian hemp-grower on the prosper
ity o f England, and the robes o f the Swedish ladies on the silk-worms of
the south.
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
573
Commerce is the appointed medium for making that universal in benefit
which is local in production ; for preserving in men a sense o f dependence
upon other men ; and thus, for giving the most favored nations a knowledge
of the condition o f others, an interest in their welfare, and a facility for that
intercourse by which they may teach and elevate. It is not a spiritual or
sentimental tie, but a material bond— a chain o f gold by which the hand o f
Providence has linked the interests o f all men in a connection, which the
most carnal eye may see; but which, when recognized, tends to facilitate
all the errands o f Christianity among the nations. It was through Com
merce, that Carey and Swartz were enabled to know China and to reach it ;
that Morrison had his path made to China ; that the fetich-tree o f Guinea and
the kraal o f South Africa were laid open to the eye o f Christian p iety ; that
the heart of zeal was told o f cannibal feasts in New Zealand, and infant
murder in the Polynesian isles. O f old, we see her ships and her drome
daries bearing the gold and the gems o f the richest lands to lay them as
her offering at the gate o f God’s glorious temple on Zion. Thus may she
be seen often twining ties of international am ity; often calling forth the en
lightened to teach the dark; and now convening all earth’s tribes under one
pure dome o f crystal. But often, too, she appears perverted from her pur
pose— stirring man against man with a pitiless rivalry ; rousing nation
against nation, for lucre; letting loose all the bloodhounds of war; and,
alas 1 alas ! the whole curse of the slave yell falls upon her head, the whole
blood o f the slave-trade lies upon her skirts. Surely, if Commerce could
find her poet, the poet could find his materials. Y et we have no Commer
cial ep ic!
And, what is far more wonderful “ in a nation o f shopkeepers,” we have
no commercial biography. Our power abroad, our quiet at home, the sta
bility o f our government, the security o f our towns, the value o f our crops,
are all so dependent upon Commerce, that, nationally, it is our first interest
and our leading characteristic. Our merchants have been a race o f vast en
deavor and incredible achievement.
They have built up a fabric that as
tounds us all, and our neighbors more than us. They have had, in their
individual careers the most wondrous vicissitudes, the highest romance of
real life. They have ever furnished the noblest, the meanest, the most un
accountable, the most exemplary, the most eccentric specimens of character.
Many of them have influenced contemporary history more than reigning
princes; many of them have displayed more comical peculiarities than the
queerest oddity o f fiction. There is scarce a town o f note, to which some
one o f the race has not bequeathed a tradition o f wonderful success, accom
panied by hated parsimony, by envied sumptuousness, or by benevolence
universally extolled. Here, you have a mansion and park; there, a set o f
almshouses ; yonder, a church or sch o o l; each with its short but pregnant
tale o f a remarkable man. Yet, with such a race in the midst o f us, and
such tokens o f what they have been doing, we seek in vain for the Lives o f
the British Merchants. Booksellers look uncommonly wise when you ask
for a volume o f commercial biography. Johnson has taken care o f the po
ets ; Allan Cunningham, o f the artists; Campbell, o f the lord chancellors ;
but no one has thought o f the lord mayors, except, indeed, that worthy
scribe who regaled our childhood with the pleasant story o f “ Whittington
and his Cat.” Divines, orators, men o f science, o f letters, of art, statesmen,
generals, admirals, yea, even play-actors, have abounded in biographers ; but
the men who have reared factories more costly than a castle, who have giv
574
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
en bread to more men than an ancient chieftain led out to war, who have
created fleets that are sailing under every sky, who have raised an entire
neighborhood from indigent inaction to gainful enterprise, who have presi
ded over the destinies o f a whole exchange, who have built up a financial
power before which foreign cabinets often bend suppliantly. N o one has
cared to trace for commercial posterity, the course wherein these kings of
Commerce struggled and achieved.
W h en biographers have taken up a commercial man, they have dropped
business as a leaden thing, a dead weight that would sink the b o o k ; and so
you float away with a fragrant cargo of philanthropy or public life. Mr.
K night gives us Gresham ; but Gresham dealt in state finance and the high
service o f kings. In the edifying biography of Allen, you see much of the
beauty o f holiness, nothing o f the stern struggle o f profit and loss. In the
almost faultless biography o f Buxton, you are now and then permitted to
have a distant peep o f the brewery, far away in the recesses o f Brick Lane ;
and one day you are positively taken inside the gates^ but it is to eat beef
steaks with the premier and lord chancellor. In nearly all the religious bi
ographies o f those who have been in business, you see the inner man alone.
Had Jacob’s life fidlen into the hands of a modern biographer, he would
never have thought o f telling us the contrivances by which he multiplied his
cattle. That would not have been sufficiently intellectual, sufficiently ethe
real,— or, indeed, sufficiently to Jacob’s credit.
Arkwright produced an invention by which the British people have been
more influenced politically, socially, and morally, than by all the expeditions
in search o f the northwest passage, all the orations o f Curran, all the poems
o f Burns, all the pictures o f W e s t; yet, the aspiring apprentice who would
trace that wonderful (I do not mean noble) man, must hunt in the “ Beau
ties o f Derbyshire,” among the Cyclopaedias, or in the faithful annals of the
“ Gentleman’s Magazine,” for some faint outline o f his career. Should he
g o to a circulating library and ask for the life o f Arkwright, perhaps he may
be favored with an offer o f the life o f Charles Matthews. The first Sir Rob
ert Peel, from an ambitious laboring lad became a baronet, who employed
fifteen thousand men, spoke often in Parliament, published political pam
phlets, when the country was threatened with invasion gave ten thousand
pounds to aid the overladen finances, raised half a regiment o f volunteers,
and bequeathed to England a son who became her most powerful states
man. Y et if a Lancashire boy feels as he felt, that he has the capability of
raising himself to station and power, he may g o to the library and instead o f
the life of the founder o f the Peels be offered one o f Lady Hester Stanhope.
Rothschild began by buying prints at Manchester, and ended by wielding a
power which was felt by every king in Europe. Y et the young merchant
who would study his habits o f business, may, possibly, if he inquire for his
biography, be offered that o f Theodore Hook.
Nothing tends to form the rising members of any profession, more than
the biographies of those who have been eminent in the same line. The ad
vantage o f the finest models has long been before the eye o f all the alumni
o f the theological, military, political, and artistic schools. Not so with the
young men o f Commerce. Those o f their predecessors who have accom
plished the greatest wonders are known only by a stray anecdote or a slight
sketch. Every boy in the navy knows how Captain Broke took the Chesa
peake ; but what boy in the merchant service knows anything of 'the way in
which Mr. Green created his superb mercantile fleet, with its noble accom-
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
515
paniment, bis sailor's home ? Every young author can learn precisely how
many pounds a day Scott earned while writing the life o f Bonaparte, how
much Byron received from Murray for Manfred or for the Corsair; but though
points so mercantile are worthy of record in the high regions o f poetry, none
can tell by what transactions, successes, and plans, the Barings built up their
power. Turn where you will, you see wonders o f Commerce, the origin of
which is recent, the history o f which would be instructive, but which are
known only by flying traditions. A t Leeds, you see Marshall’s mills rising
up as by magic, giving employment directly or indirectly to thousands, rais
ing many to comfort, some to affluence, spreading competence and education
around, giving that great borough a representative, and adorning the banks
o f Conistone and Ullswater with new mansions and demesnes. Yet, who of
us can tell how that wonderful structure arose ? But we are all well taught in
the momentous fact that Lord Byron kept his figure slim by living on pota
toes and vinegar. A t Stockport, we see the mills o f another Marshall, per
forming, in cotton, prodigies akin to those o f the former in flax ; yet what
working-man who wants to rise, can con over the narrative o f how the foun
der o f that establishment began, and rose, and weathered the storm, and
pressed on till he was the largest cotton manufacturer in Europe ? But wre
are all instructed in the portentous truth, that when Oliver Goldsmith pre
sented himself to a bishop for ordination, he was arrayed in scarlet breeches.
“ Commerce is a dirty thing,” we have heard literary lips say. Yes, in
dirty hands, it is a dirty thing ; and in rude hands, a rude th in g ; and in
covetous hands, a paltry, pelfy thing. Nevertheless, it is a thing on which
those who despise it are largely dependent. W ithout it, the author would
have no market for his works ; the intellectual gentleman, no bookshop ; the
grand lady, no sumptuous furniture ; the fop, no finery ; the idler, no dain
ties. And, what is far more important, it is the thing in which the bulk o f
our countrymen are spending their lives, and in which the bulk o f future gen
erations will spend their lives too,— the thing on which their earthly hopes
will depend, in which their souls will be tempted, exercised, chained down
to the dust, or prepared for immortal joy. If literature has any work in
this world at all, it is to refine and elevate every sphere of human life ; to be
the companion, and friend, and teacher o f every rank o f men. It cannot there
fore, without being faithless to its mission, pass lightly over that sphere where
in the most numerous and most energetic class o f the community are trained
in youth and tried in manhood. No theme is dull, if not handled with dull
ness ; no theme low, if the writer exalt it. The pen of W ordsworth can
chain you to the track o f an old Cumberland beggar, until you almost count
the nails in his footprint, and feel the dust from his meal wallet. The moss
trooper, the smuggler,the bucaneer, are all chosen subjects o f lofty authors;
but tO’ depict an actual man, whose life has been spent in the struggles, the re
verses, the glossy frauds, and the sordid triumphs, o f downright purchase and
sale, seems a task far too practical for a pen from the ethereal plume o f ge
nius. Galt, even when undertaking to portray the curious life of Grant
Thorburn, must needs enshroud it in the fiction o f “ Laurie Todd.”
“ W h o would ever think of writing the life of the moiling pelf-worm, who
works and wriggles through the dust, thinking o f nothing but making his
w a y !” True, who would ? But who would think of writing the life of the
common-place soldier, who wheels to right or left, loads, presents, fires, and
fixes bayonet ? or o f the scribbler who pawns a book upon the world ? or o f
the spouter who perpetrates dull speeches ? The ignoble is ignoble in any
.5 7 6
Commerce: and Commercial Biography.
sphere ; the great is great in any. Commerce, like other spheres, has had
its marvelous m e n ; and to the moralist, no class he could handle would
afford such innumerable points on which important light might be shed up
on life’s actual ways, wherein the plodding and the practical are ever tempt
ed to sell truth and integrity for gold. But from them the literati seem to have
turned away. The t e r r a i n c o g n i t a o f the learned, is ordinary life. Hunt's
Merchants' Magazine and Commercial Review, the Chronicles o f the Stock
Exchange, the H istory o f Banking, the Bankers' Magazine, and some prints
devoted to economical questions, all show that literature has at length set
out to explore that region o f reputed desert.*
For business men, as a class, literature has done little. They can lay their
hands on few books that are not likely to estrange them from their avocacations just in proportion as they charm them. The young men of any oth
er profession, besides the dry study o f principles, may at the same time re
lax their minds and rouse up all their professional aspirations, by the lives of
some who have trodden the very path on which they are starting, and found
it the way to eminence. N ot so the young merchant, o f whatever grade.
For the lives of the great, he must go out o f his own line, and perhaps
learn to despise it, when he might have learned its value and had all his
views ennobled. Thus many business men dread books, just as literary
men dread business. The two things have been at enmity.
The lite
ratus has looked down on the man of figures and facts, with counting-house
taste and cash-box imagination. The merchant has looked down on the
man of lofty ideas and light pockets, redundant in sentiment but lacking in
common sense. Y ou can hardly ever find a business man who has any just
notion of the mercantile value o f genius, or a literary man who has any ap
preciation o f business. How seldom does a millionaire take any pains to
encourage letters ; or a scholar care to analyze the life o f a merchant, what
ever mental power he may have displayed, whatever impulse he may have
given to the improvement o f international or internal relations, whatever
influence he may have exerted on the history o f a kingdom ! Consequent
ly, little light has been shed into the recesses o f Commerce from higher
spheres. Men o f business have been left to form their own codes o f morals,
with a millionth part o f the criticism, from the erudite, on the moral correct
ness o f this principle and o f that mode o f transaction, that has been spent
on the letter “ h,” the Greek article, or the digamma. The politics o f Com
merce are now, per force, a favorite study; but the morality o f purchase
and sale, the effect o f business upon character, the relation which art, sci
ence and literature bear to Commerce, are points on which business men are
little indebted to those whose calling it is to instruct. H ad it been other
wise, the mercantile class might have been great gainers, in enlarged views,
in refined pleasure, in appreciation o f the efforts and the utility of the high1
er orders of mind, and also in clear views o f the moral principles o f trade.
But more attention to practical life on the part o f literary men, would be
as rich in benefit to themselves as to men in business. In handling that
subject they would grow wiser and would impart more wisdom. They
would have an endless variety o f theme. They would discover that fictitious
•When the Merchants' Magazine and Commercial Review was started in 1839, some fourteen
years sinqe, there was not a single periodical devoted either to the Literature or Statistics o f Com
merce. Since its establishment in 1839, a Bankers’ Magazine has been started in London, and an
other in this country. The present year (May, 1852) a monthly identical in name has made its
appearance in London. W e alludo to “ Lawson's Merchants' Magazine Statist and Commercial
Review."
,
,
M oral View o f Railroads.
bW
characters were no more necessary to furnish interest, pleasure, amusement,
surprise, and sadness, than fictitious landscapes are necessary to furnish
mountain, forest, water, and sky. They would constantly find moral prob
lems which might engage the most subtle dialectitians, and yet would inte
rest the stock-jobber and the shopman.
•
To the lawyer who has constantly to handle commercial transactions, to
the judge who has to pronounce upon them, to the statesman who has to
balance conflicting mercantile interests, to the schoolmaster who has to train
men for business life, a knowledge o f all its aspects would be invaluable.
But to the preacher, above all, who has constantly to deal with men immer
sed in trade, it is of an importance not to be calculated that he should know
the life which all the week long his hearers are leading—-its temptations,
its glosses, its rivalries, its depressions, its joys ; its anxieties, which cast the
care o f the soul into the shade; its ambitions, which outweigh the claims of
truth and right. Ignorant of these, he must leave many to flounder in
temptation whom he might be the means o f extricating; many to be wor
ried with care, when he might win their attention to better things ; many
to sink under their load, to whom he might have given a timely solace ; ma
ny to go on in a course o f gainful sin, whose conscience he might have reach
ed and aroused. Too often, the man o f business feels that the remarks
from the pulpit only show that his case is not at all understood. There are
few preachers o f whom it could be said, as I have heard it said o f Dr. M’Neile,
that after some o f his sermons, his hearers felt as if he had served his time
to every trade in the town. Dr. Chalmers, too, endeavored worthily to bring
the strong light of his Christian eloquence to elucidate the pathway which
is ever so crowded, however it may be forgotten by the learned.
Art. VI.— MORAL VIEW OF RAILROADS.
I n France they have a custom, not without its beauty and propriety, of
publicly and formally giving names to the locomotives of a new Railway, on
the opening o f the line, and of pronouncing a religious benediction upon
them. The ceremony, performed by a Bishop perhaps, or priests, in-their
canonicals, has the imposing effect which the Catholic Church knows how
to give to its rites, and makes that practical appeal to the religious sympa
thies of men which it often has recourse to with effect. The same sense of
the moral and even religious import o f the railroad movement o f the day,
animated the eloquent preacher o f the discourse before us, as it led to its
delivery.*
In February last, the Railroad connecting Columbus, the capital o f Ohio,
with Cleveland, on Lake Erie, was completed. The Common Council of
Cleveland, by resolution, invited the Legislature o f the State, then in session,
and the corporate authorities o f Cleveland and Cincinnati, to unite with them
in celebrating the completion o f a work in which the three cities are directly
interested, placing them as it does in direct communication, and furnishing
* A discourse delivered on Sabbath morning, February 23d, 1851, on the occasion o f the opening o f
the Cleveland and Columbus Railroad, by Rev. S. C. Aiken, D. D., Pastor o f the First Presbyterian
Church.
VOL. X X V I.---- NO. V .
37
*578
M oral View o f Railroads.
a line across the entire State, from the Ohio to the Lakes. The Legislature
accordingly adjourned, and the first train of cars passed over the road on
Friday the 21st o f February, with a large party, legislative, municipal and
official, and many ladies and gentlemen besides. The guests celebrated on
the following day at once the completion o f this great work, and the birth
day o f Washington, whose practical spirit would have delighted could it
have “ seen this day” in such public works as the Columbus and Cleveland
Railroad more than in the triumphs of the field. The guests of Cleveland
remained until the Monday following. Dr. Aiken, the worthy pastor of the
1st Presbyterian Church, full of the memories o f a previous glorious occasion,
when, on the completion o f the Erie Canal, he preached before D e W i t t
C l i n t o n and the Commissioners, determined to “ improve” the event, with
which every mind was full, in his sermon on Sunday, by directing the
thoughts which would have been likely to wander from any theme not con
nected with the event o f the hour, to the moral and religious bearings of
that event. How ably and forcibly he has pointed out these bearings o f the
Railroad enterprises o f the day, our readers shall judge for themselves from
our ample extracts. N or in considering his subject from the higher and
more abstract points of view which are natural to the pulpit, does Dr. Aiken
lose sight of matters o f more direct practical importance. W hile urging
the value o f Railroads as promotive o f peace among men, union between
States, as levelers in the best o f ways by raising the low, he does not forget to
urge the opportunity they afford to aid the cause o f Temperance along the
lines o f Railroad and among those employed, and the duty and policy of
a proper observance of the Sabbath by Railroad Companies. There is one
point suggested by this discourse which we wish to advert to, by way of
contributing our quota to the moral improvement o f the occasion, and
preaching one lay sermon on Railroads.
Commerce builds ships and railroads, and traverses the earth on the wings of
wind and steam, ransacking every corner to discover the wants o f mankind and
to satisfy them. It studies the necessities o f every nation and clime, and
seeks to supply them. I f the motive o f the merchant were a purely disin
terested one, if his single aim were the good o f men, in what way could it
be more effectually promoted than by relieving the wants o f every clime and
people, and supplying its luxuries, by multiplying its comfort and enjoyments
from the surplus stores of other portions o f the globe? Now it is not
necessary to disguise the fact, that the primary motive of the merchant is
not a disinterested one. H e does not thus toil and travel out o f pure care
for his fellow men. It is his interest to supply their wrants ; his motive is
gain. But what is there to prevent the merchant from combining with the
calculations o f the ledger, the considerations o f profit and loss, those higher
considerations o f unity, peace and brotherhood o f nations which his calling
so nobly subserves, subserves none the less because its primary motive is
more selfish ? The merchant should make it a pleasure, as it is his interest,
to labor in the cause o f unity and concord among the nations. He is at
cosmopolite by profession, let him be one in heart and spirit also. To a
merchant o f this stamp, a thousand opportunities o f doing good present
themselves in the course o f trade. A well known China inerchant-of the
city o f New York, lately deceased, always gave free passages in his ships to
missionaries going out to China, and brought them back also, free o f ex
pense. This man was a merchant and something more, or rather he pursued
his calling in that high spirit which made it an agent o f unity and good
M oral View o f Railroads.
579 ’
will among men, and a missionary of civilization. So when men build their
steamships and their Railroads which are to unite nations, and bind the
ends o f continents together, they may look to their dividend as sharply
as they please, but let them give some thought to these higher purposes of
civilization also, which their enterprises subserve ; let them be ever prompt
and on the watch to seize upon and profit by the numerous incidental o p
portunities afforded o f promoting the good o f the race ; and let them remem
ber that the great process of human progress which they are perhaps the
unconscious instruments and agents of, is a greater and a better thing than
the largest fortune of gold and silver ever got together.
“ The chariots shall rage in the streets: they shall justle one against another in the broad w a y s ;
they shall seem like to rch e s : they shall run like the lightnings.” — N a u u m ii, 4.
In a moral and religious point of view, as well as social and commercial, to me
there is something interesting, solemn, and grand in the opening o f a great
thoroughfare. There is sublimity about it—indicating not only march o f rnind
and a higher type o f society, but the evolution of divine purposes, infinite, eter
nal— connecting social revolutions with the progress of Christianity and the com
ing reign o f Christ.
To overlook such an event— to view it only in its earthly relations, would be
to overlook a movement o f Providence, bearing directly upon the great interests
o f morality and religion—the weal or woe o f our country, and of unborn millions.
It is the duty of Christians, and especially of Christian ministers, to watch the
6igns of the times— to see God, and lead the people to see Him, in all the affairs
o f the world, whether commercial, political or religious, in the varied aspects in
which He is presented to our view in His word.
The history of roads is one of the best commentaries upon the intellectual and
social state of society. O f course, it will not become the time and place, to go
into it any further than is needful as preliminary to my subject.
A road" is symbol o f civilization— the want o f it, a symbol o f barbarism. By
its condition we may ascertain, with considerable accuracy, the degree o f the one
or o f the other. “ Let us travel,” says the Abbe Raynal, “ over all the countries
o f the earth, and wherever we shall find no facilities o f traveling from city to
town, and from a village to a hamlet, we may pronounce the people to be barbar
ous.” The government is weak— the inhabitants poor and ignorant. The road,
then, is a physical index o f the condition and character of any age or nation.
Viewed from this stand-point, its history may correct one o f our errors, and lead
us to see, that we are not quite so far in advance o f antiquity as we are apt to
imagine.
If we look back to the earliest period o f the world o f which we have any
record, we find that roads were the dividing line between civilization and barbar
ism. The first country, o f which we have any definite knowledge, distinguished
for the arts and sciences, was Egypt. Could we read its lost history, we should
see that under the reign of its Pharaohs, it rose to a pitch o f civilization and
grandeur o f which, probably, we have no conception. The fact is indicated by
its pyramids and magnificent remains, which clearly show its former glory. If
Thebes had its hundred gates, it is likely, that it had also its paved and spacious
avenues leading from it into every part of the kingdom, on which the chariot of
its kings and nobles rolled in splendor.
Nor was the Jewish commonwealth without its roads, constructed in the most
durable manner, under the reign o f Solomon. Those leading to and from the
cities of refuge, have probably never been excelled. But in the uncivilized sur
rounding nations, we hear nothing o f roads.
Mark also the Roman empire at the period o f its highest prosperity and gran
deur. The famous “ Appian Way,” celebrated by Horace, built three hundred
years before Christ, remains o f which are still visible after the lapse o f more
than twenty centuries, is familiar to every reader of history. Two-thirds of it,
from Capua to Brundusium, were built by Julius Cmsar— and formed one of the
580
M oral View o f Railroads.
most splendid memorials o f that Emperor’s reign. Its entire length was nearly
four hundred miles— graded so far as practicable to a level— paved with hewn
stone in the form o f hexagonal blocks, laid in a durable cement— with a surface
spacious and smooth. Besides this, there were other roads, constructed by dif
ferent emperors, such as the Salernian, Flaminian, Ostian, and Triumphal, leading
from the capital— one o f which extended four thousand miles from Antioch on
the south, to Scotland on the north— at one place tunneling a mountain o f
rocks,* at another, stretching over ravines and rivers by bridges and aqueducts,
interrupted only by the English channel and the Hellespont.
Nor were the Romans so greatly behind us as to speed. History records the
fact, that “ one Cesarius went post from Antioch to Constantinople— six hundred
and sixty-five miles, in less than six days. The modern traveler in his rail-car
smiles at the statement ; but he forgets, that the Roman horse was neither fire
nor steam, and that he is indebted for his speed to the discovery o f a new and
wonderful power of which the ancients knew nothing.
Now turn and consider the old Saxons. Look at the Feudal age of compara
tive barbarism, when each community or county had its Baron and castle, built
upon inaccessible rocks;— when the people dwelt in walled cities, with sentinels
upon the towers;— when there were no roads— no wheeled vehicles, except a
few, and those o f the most cumbersome kind;— when the mode o f travel was on
foot or horseback, through fields and streams and forests. Then it was, that the
arts, sciences,'and religion were at a dead stand. There were no ducts for Com
merce— no life or motion. Day and night, the people lived in fear of robbers,
and their only hope o f safety lay in having no intercourse with one another, nor
with distant neighborhoods and provinces. So it has always been. So it is
now. Point me to a country where there are no roads, and I will point you to
one where all things are stagnant— where there is no Commerce except on a
limited scale— no religion, except a dead formality— no learning, except the
scholastic and unprofitable. A road is a sign o f motion and progress—a sign the
people are living and not dead. If there is intercourse, social or commercial,
there is activity; “ advancement is going on— new ideas and hopes are rising.
All creative action, whether in government, industry, thought, or religion, creates
roads,” and roads create action.
To an inquisitive mind, it is extremely interesting and instructive to mark the
progress of mechanical invention. T o one accustomed to trace effects to their
causes, it is more than interesting. He sees something besides human agency at
work in the provision of materials— in the adaptation o f means to ends— in the
wisdom, order, and regularity o f general laws, which the practical mechanic has
learnt to accommodate to his own purposes. But he is not the originator of those
laws, nor o f the materials on which he operates. He has discovered that certain
agents will serve particular ends. O f these agents he skillfully avails himself,
and the result he aimed at is produced.
The elements o f water-power have been in existence since the world was
made; and yet, there doubtless was a time when there was no water-wheel
applied to a dashing current, to propel machinery. W hy did not the human
mind grasp at once the simple law, and dispense with animal power to grind
meal for daily bread ? On the principles o f philosophy, this question is not so
easily answered. To say that mind is slow in its development, does not solve
the difficulty. From the earliest ages, it has accomplished wonders in the arts.
It has built cities and pyramids— aqueducts and canals— calculated eclipses and
established great principles in science.
The truth is, there is a providence in mechanical invention as well as in all the
affairs o f men. And when God has purposes to accomplish by this invention, he
arouses some active spirit to search for the laws already in existence, and to
arrange the materials with reference to the end.
In past ages, for all practical purposes, the world has done well enough with
* The underground tunnel of Pozzuoli, near Naples, is said to have been half a league, or in
American measure, one mile and a half. The passage was cut through solid rock fifteen feet square.
M oral Vieio o f Railroads.
581
the mechanical powers it possessed. The water-wheel has moved the machinery
attached to it. The stage-coach has trundled its passengers along, contented and
happy with the slow pace, though not always convenient or comfortable, because
they had no better mode of conveyance. The merchant has cheerfully commit
ted his goods to the sail boat, because he knew o f no more powerful agent than
the winds. But the human mind has received a new impulse. It is waked up to
unwonted energy. It is filled with the great idea o f progress. It is leaving the
things that are behind, and pressing onward.
Nothing has contributed more to wake up the mind from its sleep of ages— to
draw out its powers and to set it on the track o f discovery, than the invention of
the steam-engine. This event occurred about eighty years since, and the name
of the inventor is inscribed on the tablet of immortality. It was no freak of
chance— no random thought o f human intellect, unaided by that Infinite Intelli
gence, at whose disposal is all matter and mind; and who,in his own time and
way, makes them subserve his own purposes. Was Bezaleel raised up by God
and filled with wisdom “ to devise cunning work— to work in gold and silver and
brass”— to aid Moses in building the tabernacle ? Was Hiram afterward endowed
with great mechanical skill in the erection of Solomon’s temple? So was Watt.
God raised him up to invent the steam-engine; and, when “ he gave it to man
kind in the form in which it is now employed for countless uses, it was as if
God had sent into the world a legion o f strong angels to toil for man in a thou
sand forms o f drudgery, and to accomplish for man a thousand achievements
which human hands could never have accomplished, even with the aid o f such
powers of nature as were previously known and mastered. The earth with the
steam-engine in it, and with all the capabilities which belong to that mighty in
strument for aiding the industry and multiplying the comforts of mankind, is a
new earth,— far better fitted in its physical arrangements for the universal estab
lishment of the kingdom of Christ, or in other words, for the universal prevalence
of knowledge, liberty, righteousness, peace, and salvation.”
The application o f steam, as a mechanical power, to locomotion on land and
water, forms a new era in invention, and in the history o f the world. Twenty
years ago, the first successful experiment with the locomotive, was made between
Liverpool and Manchester. Now, we can hardly compute the number o f rail
ways. Forty-three years ago the Hudson was first successfully navigated by a
steamer. In the summer of 1838 the Atlantic ocean was crossed for the first
time by vessels exclusively propelled by steam power. Now look at the progress.
The steamer plows our navigable rivers, our great lakes, our coasts; and
asserts its supremacy over all other craft, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, and
from the Atlantic to the Indian ocean. The changes in the moral and physical
condition of our world, by means of this wonderful agency, are what no one can
witness, without mingled emotions o f admiration and wonder. That the hand of
the Almighty is in it; that he has some good and grand design to accomplish
through its instrumentality, must be evident to all who believe Him to be the
moral Governor o f the world. Were a new planet to start into existence, I
should as soon think it the result o f a fortuitous conglomeration o f atoms, as to
disconnect the present revolutions by steam, from the wisdom and power o f God.
Some good people, I am aware, look with a suspicious eye upon the irotihorse. They fancy there is a gloomy destiny in it— a power to subvert old and
established customs: to change the laws and ordinances o f God and man; to in
troduce moral and political anarchy, ignorance and impiety, and to make our de
generate race more degenerate still,
Now, I am not troubled with such specters. I look for evils to be multiplied
with the increase o f travel. But order will reign, law will reign, religion will
reign, because there will be an increase also of counteracting agents. If the
effect should be the increase o f wealth only, we might well predict fearful conse
quences. To look upon the railroad simply as an auxiliary to Commerce ; as a
great mint for coining money; is to take but a superficial and contracted view of
it. If we would contemplate it in all its bearings, we must consider it as a new
and vast power, intended by Providence to act upon religion and education; upon
the civilization and character o f a nation in all the complicated interests o f its
582
M oral View o f Railroads.
social organism. This is a great subject, and while I have neither time or ability
to do it justice, I can see in it matter that may well employ, and will yet employ
the best heads and hearts which God has bestowed on mortals. Without anti
cipating evils, there are certain benefits to follow, which will prove more than an
antidote. To name a few—
The increase of Commerce and wealth is a consideration which 1 leave to the
political economist. In no country should they be overlooked, much less in our
own. Wealth is power, and when properly used, is a source of unspeakable
good.
As to Commerce, there are two aspects, aside from its bearing on wealth, in
which I love to contemplate its connection with the rail-road.
One is, as a preventive of war. This remark applies more to Commerce as
now conducted by steam on the ocean. It is bringing the nations together, and
making them feel the sympathetic throbbings o f one family heart, o f one great
brotherhood. Would the idea o f a W orld’s Fair have been conceived, had it not
been for steam navigation? It was a noble thought! Let the people o f every
tongue, and kindred, and nation from under the heaven assemble. Let them
gather under the same magnificent crystal palace, and through its transparent
dome, raise their eyes to the same God, and feel that he has made them all of
one blood, and united them, by one common tie o f interest and affection, to the
same father and to one another; and we may expect to hear that a motion has
been made and carried by acclamation, to “ beat their swords into plow-shares
and their spears into pruning-hooks.”
The other view o f steam Commerce is, its tendency to unite more closely the
States; bringing them into more intimate relations, and subjecting them to the
influence of mutual intercourse.
Owing to emigration, we are becoming a heterogeneous people; unlike in
habits, language and religion, and scattered over a vast territory, from the Atlan
tic to the Pacific. How States, formed out o f such a population, thus widely
dispersed, can be held together and consolidated, is a question vitally interesting
and important. One thing is certain ; it cannot be done by law, nor by military
power alone. Sectional interests and jealousies will spring up against which the
Constitution and brute force will form no barrier. Under circumstances so un
precedented in the history of nations, our only hope, it seems to me, lies in the
general diffusion o f religion and education, and in the kind and frequent inter
course which the railway is calculated to promote,— bringing distant portions of
the country into the relation o f neighborhoods, and 1hus removing sectional jeal
ousies and animosities, and inspiring mutual confidence and affection. It is for
this reason, as well as others, I rejoice in the construction of a railroad, connect
ing us, I may say, with the Southern States. The influence, according to all the
laws o f our social being, cannot fail to be peaceful and happy. On a little bet
ter acquaintance, our brethren o f the South will feel more kindly towards us,
and we towards them; and, possibly, some mistakes and misapprehensions, on
both sides, will be corrected and removed. By means o f recent intercourse with
foreigners, the Chinese begin to think it doubtful whether the earth is a plane,
and they in the center o f it, and all upon the outside barbarians. By a law of
our nature, minds in contact assimilate, and, for this reason, we hope to see good
result from the intermingling o f the North with the South; and, could a railroad
he extended to the Pacific, it would do more to promote union in the States— to
circulate kind feelings— to establish our institutions in California, Oregon, Utah,
and New Mexico, and to consolidate our glorious confederacy, than all the legis
lation of Congress from now until doomsday. A new and vast trade would at once
spring up between the parent States and those more recently formed, also with the
numerous islands o f the Pacific, and with the populous regions o f eastern Asia.
In its tendency all legitimate Commerce is peaceful and happy, because its
benefits are mutual and reciprocal. Every new railway, therefore, constructed
in our country, is another link in a chain o f iron, binding the States together.
Another benefit. In one respect, the railroad is a leveler, but it levels up,
not down. Its tendency is to place the poor on a level with the rich, not by
abolishing the distinction o f property— it is no socialist— not by depressing the
M oral View o f Railroads.
583
~'ch, but by elevating all to the enjoyment o f equal advantages. It is like the
Press. Before the art o f printing, the poor had no books. Now, the possess
ion of books is no very distinctive mark o f wealth. Manufactories are leveling
in the same way, by bringing to the fire sides and wardrobes o f the poor, articles
o f comfort and luxury, which once were attainable only by the rich. So with
the railway. The poor can travel with as much ease, rapidity, and cheapness
as the rich. They are not doomed, as formerly, to’ spend life within the limits
o f a parish or a city; but, can take their seat beside the millionaire, breathe
the pure air o f the country, recreate and recruit health and spirits in its valleys
and on its mountain tops. But there are other advantages still greater.
One is the general diffusion o f education. “ Many shall run to and fro, and
knowledge shall be increased.” The motion o f the body quickens the mind.
The rapid passing of objects, the active interchange of commodities in commer
cial intercourse, is attended with the interchange o f ideas. Then, possibly, such
active intercourse may be unfavorable to education. In a passion for travel,
there is danger o f cultivating the senses more than the intellect. Should knowl
edge degenerate into mere sight-seeing, and become superficial, the effect will
be deplorable. But as an offset to this evil, which we hardly anticipate, we see
everywhere the multiplication o f schools and a disposition in the people, and
especially in our rulers, to patronize and encourage education. Happily for the
world, rulers are beginning to see, that they qre invested with power not for
themselves, but for the people; that the interest o f one is the interest o f both;
and, that in shaping their policy so as to advance general knowledge, industry,
equal rights, and privileges, they are laying a broad foundation in the intelligence
and affection o f the masses for permanent peace and prosperity. In political
science, this is a great advance from the old gothic notion that God made the
people for the king and the king for himself. This branch o f my subject I can
not close better, than in the words o f an eloquent writer. Speaking o f govern
ments, he says:— “ Having it for their problem to make every man as valuable as
possible to himself and to his country, and becoming more and more inspired, as
we may hope, by an aim so lofty, every means will be used to diffuse education,
to fortify morals and favor the holy power o f religion. This being done, there
is no longer any danger from travel. On the contrary, the masses o f society, will
bv this means, be set forward continually in character and intelligence. As they
run, knowledge will be increased. The roads will themselves be schools, for
here they will see the great world moving, and feel themselves to be a part of it.
Their narrow, local prejudices will be worn off, their superstitions forgotten.
Every people will begin to understand and appreciate every other, and a common
light be kindled in all bosoms.”
The effects to result from the great facilities for travel, in regard to the gen
eral interests o f religion, is another subject on which a large portion o f commu
nity feel a deep interest. And well we may. Whatever tends to loosen the
bonds that bind us to our Maker, tends also to loosen the bonds that bind society
together— to uproot law and order— to introduce anarchy and misrule, guilt and
wretchedness.
There is one fact, however, which encourages us to hope that the influence of
railways will be favorable to religion. As I have already said, they mark a new
era in the world. They are destined to effect a great revolution in all the depart
ments of society. Now, if we look back on the past half century, we see nothing
hut a succession o f revolutions in government, in the arts and sciences, in the
condition o f political and social life; and yet, where is there one that has not im
mediately or remotely favored the extension o f Christianity— given prosperity
and power to evangelical truth, and caused the heart o f Christian philanthropy to
beat more intensely for the happiness o f universal being 1 On that one. I cannot
place my eye. It is not in memory. It is not on record. Wrongs deep and dread
ful there have been, and are still; but every attempt to perpetuate them, as is
obvious to the nice observer, is working out, slowly it may be, but surely, their
removal.
584
M oral View o f Railroads.
When railroads were first projected, it was predicted, and not without some
reason, that they would demolish the Christian Sabbath. But what has been the
result? So far as ascertained, I confess I see no occasion for alarm. True, this
sacred season o f rest, given to man by his Creator, and which his physical nature
imperiously demands— beingable, as has often been demonstrated, to do more labor
with it than without it— is shamefully desecrated by steamers, rail-cars and other
modes of conveyance. But, so far as railroads ore concerned, experience both
in this country and in England is gradually deciding in favor of remembering the
Sabbath day to keep it holy. , If correctly informed, several lines are already dis
continued and others will he. Wherever the voicg of the community favors it,
Directors are not backward to let their men and enginery remain quiet on this
day; for it is found that nothing is gained and much lost by running. All the
business can be done in six days o f the week; while not only one-seventh part
o f the expense is saved, but the hands employed are refreshed and invigorated by
rest, and better prepared with safety and fidelity to discharge their duty. Thus
the evil is working out its own remedy. The truth is, the law o f the Sabbath is
written, not only in the Bible, but upon the constitution o f man ; and such are
the arrangements of Providence that it cannot be violated without incurring loss.
The penalty will follow, and if religion does not enforce obedience, self-interest
will. All that is necessary is, to direct the attention o f considerate men to the
subject, and leave it with conscience and common sense to decide. This done, I
have no fears of the result.
Another thing. When a railway is managed as it should be, and as I confi
dently believe ours will be, it is found to be an important auxiliary to the cause
o f temperance. In a concern involving so great an amount o f life and property,
it is worse than folly to employ men who are not strictly temperate. The pub
lic expect and have a right to demand, for the sake o f safety if nothing else, the
most scrupulous adherance on the part o f directors to the principles of temper
ance, in the appointment o f their agents. This will inspire confidence in the
traveling community, and secure patronage; and if no higher motive actuates, its
influence will be good, at least upon a large class o f persons necessarily connec
ted with such an establishment.
But it is in the power o f directors— and that power can be easily exercised, espe
cially at the first start o f a railroad'—to extend the healthful influence o f tem
perance along the whole line; operating benignly upon the population at large,
through which it passes. They can and ought to control the eating-houses and
depots maintained for its accommodation ; and if this be so, the prohibited use of
intoxicating liquor in them, by its example, will do good to the whole State. If
this wise and practicable measure be adopted, as it has been on some other roads,
and with entire success, it can readily bo seen how powerfully it will aid the
cause o f temperance. For years past, one prolific source o f intemperance has
been the taverns and grog-shops upon our great thoroughfares. Persons who
drank but little at home, under the excitement or fatigue p f traveling have
thought it pleasant if not necessary to indulge in the intoxicating cup, especially
where none but strangers could be witnesses to their delinquency. As these
sources will in a great degree cease to corrupt, if others are not opened on the
railroad, incalculable good, will result to the public. May we not hope that the
noble stand will be taken and maintained, and that our railway, so big with pro
mise to other interests, will apply its mighty fires and forces to dry up the poi
sonous fountains o f intemperance ? It will be an achievement worthy of the age.
It will reflect honor upon our State. Its example will tell upon other railroads
and upon the nation. In a few years, it will save money enough to repay the
building o f the road. It will scatter unnumbered blessings o f contentment,
peace, prosperity, and religion over our great commonwealth!
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
585
JOURNAL OF M E R C A N TILE LAW .
INSURANCE— TOTAL LOSS OF MERCHANDISE.
In the Second District Court, New Orleans, March, 1852; Judge Buchanan,
presiding. Rugley, Blair & Co. vs. Sun Mutual Insurance Company.
Judge Buchanan.— The claim o f plaintiff is for a total loss o f one hundred
and twenty-five bales o f cotton, insured in defendant’s office, and valued at $G0
per bale.
The cotton was shipped on board the schooner Velasco, at Matagorda, bound
for New Orleans, on the 20th June, 1851.
On the 24th June, at 8 o’clock, A.M., the Velasco went to sea, and proceeded
on her voyage with a head wind. On the 25th June, at 1 P. M., having tried the
pumps and found they would not suck, and the water gaining fast from a leak,
as was afterwards discovered, the master o f the vessel put her head about and
made for the bar o f Matagorda Bay, his point o f departure ; which he reached
at 9 o’clock next morning, the 26th June, and reached the wharf at Decro’s
Point, Matagorda Bay, at 11 o’clock, making just twenty-two hours from the first
discovery of the leak and change o f course.
The vessel being completely water-logged, was beached at Decro’s Point with
in a few yards o f the wharf, and her cargo landed. On the 3d of July, a survey
was called upon the cargo o f the Velasco, by a notary public.
On the same day, the surveyors appointed by the notary gave it as their opin
ion and report, that the cargo o f the Velasco should be sold at auction, as adver
tised, for the benefit o f all concerned. On the same day the cargo o f the Velasco
was sold at auction, including the one hundred and twenty-five bales insured by
plaintiffs.
On the same day, the master o f the vessel, and Thomas Decro, who had fur
nished hands to assist in getting the Velasco from the bar to the landing, enter
ed into an agreement to appoint arbitrators to assess salvage to the said Decro
for his said services.
On the same day, the arbitrators reported a salvage o f 33J- per cent on the
net amount o f the sales at auction; and assessed the schooner Velasco, as she
lay, at $2,000 for her portion or contribution o f salvage. The net proceeds of
sales of the one hundred and twenty-five bales o f cotton, insured by plaintiffs,
being $1,766 31 as per average statement in evidence, the salvage on the same
was according to the award, $588 77.
The said cotton was purchased (or rather one hundred and twenty-two bales
o f the same) by one John Rugely, and shipped to New Orleans by the steamer
Fuselier and the schooner Star, for account o f the purchaser.
The plaintiffs made a demand upon the defendants for indemnity, who, on the
31st July, 1851, replied that they could not recognize the claim, because the sale
o f the cotton insured, and the other proceedings at Decro’s Point, were contrary
to the terms and rules of insurance.
On the 6th o f August, 1851, plaintiffs made an abandonment in writing as for
a total loss ; which was rejected by the defendants. And this suit was brought
on the same day.
In their answer filed, the defendants take the same grounds as in their note of
the 31st of July; and in addition, plead unseaworthiness.
In my recapitulation of dates above— as to the time o f the first discovery of
the leak, the change o f course, and the arrival o f the Velasco at Decro’ s landing
on her return to port— I have followed the protest. I must remark that there
is, however, a singular discrepancy from this date of the latter event, in some
portions of the evidence. For I find that the copy o f the notice o f survey on
the vessel, furnished by the notary, is dated the 24th o f June, when, according
to the protest, the vessel was at sea; and the average statement declared that
586
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
the Velasco was beached on Decro’s Point the 25th June, 1851, although the
protest makes out that event to have occurred on the 26th.
The policy of insurance sued upon, contains the following clause:—
“ The insured are not to abandon on account o f the boat grounding, or being
otherwise detained; and in case o f the loss o f the boat or vessel, or part of her
cargo, or o f damage to the whole or part thereof, it shall be the duty of the
master or agent o f said vessel to forward such part o f the cargo, as shall be sa
ved in a condition fit to be shipped to its port o f destination, by the best convey
ance obtainable at the place where the shipped goods may be, or at any other
place within a reasonable distance ; and the enhanced expense thereof, not ex
ceeding the amount insured, shall fall on the insurers.”
The practicability o f procuring a conveyance to forward the cotton in ques
tion, is proved by the fact, that the cotton was forwarded to New Orleans, its
port o f destination, within a few days after the auction sale, by the purchaser at
said sale.
There is proved to have been a weekly communication by steamboat between
Matagorda Bay and New Orleans; and the proceedings o f the sale o f the cotton
under the circumstances, appear to me to be a manifest violation o f the clause
in the policy copied.
Judgment for defendants with costs.
PLAINTIFF TO RECOVER FOR THE SERVICES OF HIS MINOR SON WHO SHIPPED IN
d e f e n d a n t ’ s VESSEL ON A WHALING VOYAGE.
In the Supreme Judicial Court o f Massachusetts; before Judge Bigelow.
John Carnes vs. John Parkhurst, et al.
This was an action of assumpsit brought against the defendants, owners o f the
ship Kutosoff, by the plaintiff to recover the sum alleged to be due him on ac
count of the services o f his minor son, who shipped in the defendant’s vessel,
and was absent on a whaling voyage thirty-four months. The plaintiff commen
ced his action May 10th, 1851, three days after the arrival o f the Kutosoff, and
claimed in his writ to recover at the rate o f $16 a month for the whole time,
amounting to $544.
It was contended by the counsel for the plaintiff that the father might recover
the value of the son’s services at home to himself, or might elect to take the lay
the boy earned at sea as evidenced by the shipping articles; and that in the lat
ter case no deduction whatever could be made for advances, necessaries supplied
the minor, or ship charges o f any kind, as none o f these were binding upon the
father, but that he was entitled to the gross lay.
The defendants contended that the father, in this action, was only entitled to
recover o f them the actual value o f the services o f the minor while in their em
ploy, he having disavowed the special contract in the shipping articles, and that
they were entitled to deduct from this gross value the customary charges made
in whaling voyages, and also such sums o f money as were paid by them for ne
cessaries furnished the minor preparatory to and during the voyage.
There was also a question raised as to an implied assent and ratification on the
part o f the father. On this point the evidence was that the minor ran away from
Lowell where his father resided, and remained a few weeks in Boston without
any employment, and that his father knew he was in Boston, and then shipped at
an office in the city for a whaling voyage. That his father came down to New
Bedford after the boy, and arrived some six hours after the ship sailed, and neither
assented nor dissented from the shipment when made known to him. Defend
ants contended that he was bound to dissent therefrom, so as to give them an
election to send for the boy and return him.
The case was argued by B. F. Hallett, Esq., for the plaintiff, and R. C. Pitman,
Esq., for the defendants.
Bigelow, J., charged in substance as follows :— This is an action by the father
for his son’s services. It is an equitable action. It is not an action for tort. In
an action for enticement, which is an action for tort, you would not be limited as
you now are by the worth o f the son’s services. But in this case, by declaring
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
587
in assumpsit, the father recognizes an implied contract. He cannot recover dam
ages for any wrong, if there be any in the case. It is wholly immaterial whether
there exist any wrongful practice in New Bedford, or not. The father asks the
value o f the minor’s services. He can only recover that. It is o f no conse
quence in this action, why the defendants shipped the minor. If he had chosen
to bring an action for enticing or harboring the minor, and the facts would sup
port the action, the rule would have been different.
As to the preliminary question o f assent on the part o f the father, which has
been raised in the case, the burden o f the proof is on the defendants. It is un
doubtedly true that if a father stands by and having power to dissent, does not,
the law will infer he means to assent. It does not appear that the father distinct
ly assented or dissented when at New Bedford. The defendants contend that he
should have demanded that the boy should be returned at Fayal. But there is no
evidence that the father was told by them that the ship would stop there, or that
he knew that fact. If you can infer any assent on the part of the plaintiff from
the evidence, and that he knew what the contract was, he is bound to it, but the
defendants must satisfy you on this point.
As to the measure of damages in this case, my opinion is, that the value o f the
services at sea rather than the previous services o f the minor at home should be
taken as the standard. The legal rule is, the value o f the services at the time
and place and under the circumstances under which they were rendered. The
value o f the precise services rendered— that is what the father sues for.
He is not bound by the contract. The lay given in the shipping articles is only
evidence o f the fair value o f such a boy’s services. It is not conclusive. And
on the other hand, as the contract is not to govern, you may take into considera
tion the conduct o f the boy and deduct anything for unfaithfulness if you deem
it right. You are to pass on the whole question of the value o f his services.
If you give the boy 1-190, which is what the captain testifies is the usual lay
in such a ship for green hands, his share will amount to $315. That is the gross
value o f his services, if you take the standard. Whatever sum you assume, from
this you are to deduct such sums as have been paid by defendants for necessaries
furnished during this period, either as outfits or as supplies from the slop chest.
This rests on the ground, that the father can recover in this action precisely what
he could if he had shipped the minor himself, without any express contract.
As he is to rely on this kind o f service, you are to consider that he is relieved
from furnishing board and clothing during this time. In estimating the value o f
the sea service, you are to consider what is needed to support the minor while in
it. The kind o f employment determines the amount and nature o f necessaries.
Inasmuch as the father recovers wages based on expenses, this is equitable. As
he claims benefits he must take burdens o f the service. Wages are graduated
according to these necessaries. You must deduct then what the defendants have
paid, that the father ought to have paid, so that he may have the same as if he
had sent the boy himself.
But the law only allows necessaries. You must judge what is reasonably ne
cessary. The father is not bound by the orders or the bills. Only what is reas
onable as to kind, quantity and prices o f articles furnished, can be allowed. Cer
tainly some articles are not necessaries, and the money furnished on the voyage
can hardly be called necessary, though this question must be submitted to you.
It is claimed there should be another deduction on account o f the conduct o f
the boy and his temporary desertion, and this on the ground that the services of
such a boy are less valuable. You are to take all the evidence into consideration
and say whether any deduction ought to be made from what boys usually have.
The defendants also claim that certain deductions should be made for fitting
and discharging ship, etc., and for medicine chest. This is claimed on the ground
that it is the universal understanding that these charges are to be made against
a seaman’s voyage, and that his lay is graduated with this understanding. If this
be so, it is for you to say how much you will allow. You are to consider and
pass upon the reasonableness o f these charges. The outfitting of a whaler un
doubtedly requires much more expense than that o f a merchant vessel. But af
588
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
ter all you may think it comes back to the understanding; and if persons are
always shipped with the understanding that these charges are to be made, it is for
you to say whether you are not to take the customary amounts in estimating the
value o f services according to the lay usually given. After all, this is a practical
question, and in my opinion the best tribunal to settle it is a jury o f twelve men.
Under the rules laid down, you are to say what the real value o f the minor’s ser
vices were; and then add interest from the date o f the writ.
The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff in the sum o f $189 60.
CLAIMS FOR DIFFERENCE IN VALUE OF COTTON SOLD AS “ ORDINARY.”
Decision o f New Orleans Chamber o f Commerce; before a Special Commit
tee. Present, Chas. Briggs, Second Vice President, Messrs. M. Greenwood, Wm.
Mure, W . S. Pickett, G. A. Holt. Prehn, Clegg & Co. vs. Wright, Williams &
Co.
This is a claim for JS90 7s. 3d. sterling, the alleged amount o f difference in
value between ten bales, part o f a lot of sixty-nine bales of cotton sold as “ or
dinary” by defendants to plaintiffs; but which, the latter assert, turned out to be
false packed and deceptive, and the sale o f which resulted in a loss o f the sum
now claimed.
It appears by the documents submitted to the committee, that the whole pur
chase, o f which the ten bales in question formed a part, consisted of two hundred
and forty-three bales, which were classed by the broker, Mr. Schmidt, as follow s:
Twenty-three bales fully middling, sixty-eight good middling, seventy-three good
ordinary, sixty-nine ordinary, six stained, and four low ordinary.
The plaintiffs assert that the spinners in England for whom the cotton was pur
chased, on opening the sixty-nine bales of ordinary, found the ten bales complain
ed o f fraudulently packed, so as purposely to deceive the buyer— a very small
quantity o f the good cotton being on the top and bottom, while the bulk o f the
bale was gin dirt and dust not worth the carriage.
The plaintiff’s claim is supported by a certificate o f the foreman o f the spin
ners for whom the cotton was purchased, who declares these ten bales to be false
packed, and worth only twopence half penny per pound, while the remainder of
the lot was worth seven pence per pound; also by a certificate to the same effect
by a person named Richard Wright, who is described by the plaintiffs as a respec
table merchant in the trade. This latter certificate is not sworn to, and there is
no consular certificate to any o f the papers. The only testimony offered on ei
ther side is that o f Mr. Schmidt the plaintiffs’ broker, who bought the cotton, and
the samples drawn by him at the time o f the purchase, together with the samples
o f the ten bales in dispute returned from England. Mr. Schmidt testifies that in
classing cotton purchased by him, he never puts mixed cotton in any regular class,
but either altogether rejects it or classes it by itself, dependent on the terms of
the contract. lie further testifies that the difference in value between the lowest
and the best cotton in each separate sample exhibited o f these ten bales, does not
exceed three to four cents per lb. in this market.
The committee have carefully examined the samples and the testimony present
ed to them, and are of opinion that they are altogether insufficient to establish the
identity o f the cotton. The plaintiffs’ own witness, Mr. Schmidt, distinctly states
that he never would have put “ mixed cotton,” such as is contained in these ten
bales, among “ ordinary” cotton, nor in any other regular class, and yet in no oth
er way could they have possibly got into the lot o f sixty-nine bales, among which
they are said to have been found, hut by his own act. There are two qualities in
each o f the samples o f these ten bales, one, which if they were false packed,
would o f course have been placed outside, fully middling quality, the other be
low ordinary, and by no method o f drawing samples known to the trade here
could these bales, thus constructed, have found their way into the ordinary class
o f this purchase. The whole declaration o f the foreman o f the spinners is at
variance with the testimony of the plaintiffs’ broker here, and with the evidence
o f the samples themselves, he says that “ each bale was merely coated with the
Journal o f M ercantile Law.
589
description it ought to contain, whereas if they were coated at all for the purpose
o f deceiving, it could not have been with the description it ought to contain, for
there was none such in the bales, but with a class either better or worse, for as
before stated, these ten bales, if correctly represented by the samples, contained
cotton either entirely above or entirely below the class “ ordinary” to which they
are said to have belonged. That part of the declaration of this witness in which
he asserts, there is a difference of four and half pence, or nearly nine cents, per
lb. between the ten bales and the other cotton in the shipment, is equally at vari
ance with the evidence of Mr. Schmidt, who testifies that the difference does not
exceed three to four cents per lb., and the appearance o f the samples exhibited
to the committee, and under these circumstances the committee unanimously
award:
That the claims o f the plaintiffs be dismissed, and that they pay the costs o f this
arbitration.
LIBEL FOR COLLISION.
In United States Circuit Court, Philadelphia; before Judges Grier and Kane,
Sept. 13th, 1852. The Delaware— appeal in admiralty. Palmer and all owners
o f the bark Delaware vs. the Osprey.
Grier, Judge.— Taking all the other circumstances o f these cases together, and
omitting the fact o f almost total darkness, and that the bark could see the steam
boat while the steamboat could not see the bark, the steamboat would have
clearly been held liable for the damages o f the collision. Jt is true there is no
law requiring vessels navigating the high seas after night to carry signal lights,
and I concur with the District Court that it is to be much regretted.
The case before us is briefly this: A steamboat and a sailing vessel are meet
ing one another on a very dark night in the Delaware Bay, six or seven miles
within the Capes. The bark has the wind free. They are approaching each oth
er at the rate o f sixteen, or at the least calculation, fifteen miles an hour, and
therefore approximate in a right line at the rate of a mile in four minutes. The
steamboat has three lights out; the bark has none. The bark sees the steamboat
approach. Sailing before the wind, she has the power to give the steamer a wide
berth and obviate all possible danger o f collision.
Now, if the steamer had the same opportunity o f observing the course o f the
bark, the latter, knowing this fact, would have a right to expect a consequent
caution on the part o f the steamer. But I think it is plain from the testimony,
that the light shown by the bark was too late to be of any benefit or to warn the
steamer of its approach, till the very moment of the collision. The warning giv
en of the approach of the bark by her sails intercepting the light from the light
house, like that o f the lamp from the bark, was also too late, as well as too un
certain, to justify the steamboat in taking any other means of escaping a collision
than slie did take. The order to starboard the helm before stopping the boat
and reversing the engine, may have been wrong, and it may be true that these
latter orders were not fully executed at the time o f the collision. It maybe true
also that the order o f the bark to starboard her helm, and disregard that o f the
steamboat captain to port it, was correct, and the only way o f avoiding collision
which would have destroyed the bark. But these considerations cannot affect the
case. It was the fault of the bark and not o f the steamboat that the vessels were
brought into such proximity that such mistakes might be made in the dark, when
the pilot o f the steamboat could neither judge of the distances between the ap
proximating vessels, the rates of their approach, or the relative angle o f their re
spective courses. It was the duty o f the bark, which could see, to give a wide
berth to the boat, which could not see; and not to leave it in the power o f her
pilot by a mistake in a moment of surprise to cause a collision.
The rule o f passing to the right, or porting the helm, in cases of vessels meeton the same line, is founded on the supposition that each party can see the other.
But where one is blinu, and the other knows it, he should not put himself with
in reach of injury by any mistake of the blind, or run over him or knock him
down for not observing the rule.
590
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
The court cannot establish any rule to bind vessels navigating the high seaa
after night, to carry signal lights; but where one party dees this and the other
does not, we can and will treat (in a case creteris paribus) the dark boat as the
wrong doer and liable to make reparation. In rivers and narrow channels, and in
harbors, there are generally local regulations requiring it. But if there be not, it
would still be advisable for vessels sailing either in close or open channels, to
keep proper signal lights on dark nights, if they expect a remedy in courts in case
o f collision.
The decree o f the District Court in these cases is therefore affirmed.
OBTAINING GOODS UNDER FALSE PRETENSES.
The following case o f obtaining goods under false pretenses, was heard and
decided, in Cincinnati, by Judge C a r t e r , o f the Court o f Common Pleas :—
McCullough, Morris & Co. vs. J. H. Einstein. This was an action o f replevin
for the recovery o f certain merchandise in the defendant, under following cir
cumstances :—
A Mr. Einstein, a merchant in failing circumstances, Attica, Indiana, purchased
by false representations the merchandise o f the plaintiffs. This same merchant
was a debtor to many creditors in this city about that time, and informed o f his
condition, these creditors pursued him, and compelled him by way o f settlement,
to give up to them at the rate o f ninety cents on the dollar the greater part o f
his stock o f merchandise. The defendant, as a creditor o f Einstein, thus came
into possession o f the property got from the plaintiffs by Einstein.
A jury was waived; and the premium, on extended argument, submitted to
the court.
Judge Carter held:—
1. That the weight o f the evidence manifested, that Einstein obtained these
goods from the plaintiffs by false representations.
2. That, therefore, as against the plaintiffs, he acquired no right o f property
in the g ood s; and replevin might be well maintained against him.
3. That when in a purchase, though made by false representations on the part of
the vendee, the vender intends at the same time to part with the right of property
and of possession—in a word, if there is a complete sale o f the property— then
the rights acquired by an innocent purchaser, in the ordinary course of trade, are
not to be affected by the rights of the original vender.
4. But then, creditors, so far as the weight o f testimony goes, are not to be
considered in the light o f truly innocent purchasers, without notice in the ordi
nary course o f trade : they were pursuing their debtor, and were well aware o f
his condition— and being so, they took the property at their own peril, so far as
the right of others were concerned.
Besides, it is shown by the evidence, that the property in question in this case
was in possession o f the defendant under concealment; and if so, the court con
siders thi3 is an especial item o f testimony to show, that the defendant does not
truly stand in the light o f an innocent purchaser, without notice.
Judgment for plaintiffs.
BANK CHECKS— OVERDRAWN ACCOUNT.
In the Supreme Court, city o f New York, May 26, 1852; before Judge San
ford. Metropolitan Bank against William & James Currie.
This is an action to recover an amount alleged to have been overdrawn by de
fendants, as account stood between the parties, August 20, 1851.
It appeared that a check o f Maretzek, for $4,400 on the Mechanics’ Banking
Association, dated August 20, 1851, was deposited by defendants in the Metro
politan Bank, and credited at first to them. It was sent in the course o f bank
business to the Mechanics’ Banking Association, the next morning, and returned
dishonored; notice of which, it is alleged, was sent to defendants the same day,
which, it does not appear, they received. The same morning, the 21st, the de
fendants gave Maretzek a check for $5,300, which was certified by the teller o f
Journal o f Mercantile Law.
591
the Metropolitan Bank, and intended, as alleged, to enable Maretzek to take up
his check on the Mechanics’ Banking Association ; it was credited hy them to
Maretzek, and afterwards payment was countermanded by defendants.
The plaintiffs contend, that it is the practice with the banks to receive checks
from their customers without examination, and credit them until they send and
find whether they are g ood ; and if they are not good, they return them and re
quire the depositors to make up the deficiency, and'the defendants knew o f this
usage. They also maintain, that the certified check was delivered and credited
to the Mechanics’ Banking Association before the order o f countermand.
The defendants deny that their account was overdrawn; they claim that the
certified check was paid, notwithstanding they had countermanded it; and
that the funds o f Maretzek in the Mechanics’ Banking Association were paid out
after the check of $4,400 was sent to the bank.
The court having summed up the evidence, reserving the questions o f law, in
structed the jury to return answers to the following questions on the facts o f
the case.
1st. Have the Metropolitan Bank assumed and taken the check o f 84,400 as
their own ? Answer, No.
2d. Was the check o f 85,300 credited by the Metropolitan Bank to the Me
chanics’ Banking Association, in the pass-books o f the latter, before the Curries
notified the Metropolitan Bank not to pay it ? Answer, Yes.
3d. Was the check o f 85,300 credited by the Metropolitan to the Mechanics’
Banking Association, in the ledger o f the Metropolitan, before the Curries gave
notice not to pay it? Answer, Yes.
Whereupon the court ordered judgment to be entered for plaintiffs, for
$4,315 67.
E. Sanford for plaintiffs. C. P. Kirkland for defendants.
ASSUMPSIT AGAINST THE MAKER OF A PROMISSORY NOTE INBORSED IN BLANK.
In the Supreme Judicial Court o f Massachusetts, March term, 1852. Mechan
ics’ Bank vs. Dexter Hildreth.
A firm o f two individuals had sold out to the defendant, and received from him
six promissory notes for their stock; four o f which were divided between the
partners, each taking two as his share and property. One o f them received the
note in suit as his, and indorsed it in blank in the firm’s name. The other imme
diately went into insolvency and the note was thereafter sold. The time o f in
dorsement being in dispute, the jury found at the trial below that it was made
before the publication o f the notice o f insolvency. It was contended that no
valid title was shown in the plaintiffs.
The opinion o f the court was delivered by Bigelow, J. He said it was unne
cessary to go into the question, whether a note on which the firm’s name is indor
sed before dissolution, and which is negotiated after by one o f them without
authority, is vested in the holder by a valid title, because it appeared that in this
case a perfect title was vested in one o f the partners before the dissolution by
insolvency. There was an agreement by two partners to divide their joint prop
erty, each taking his share; and this they may do. Colyer on Part. J 174. Hav
ing exercised this right, it followed, that while the co-partnership continued, each
might act in the name o f the firm, to vest his share in himself, and might so in
dorse a note for that purpose. The jury having found that the note was indor
sed before the dissolution, it followed that he thereby vested the title abso
lutely in himself, and might transfer a good title. Exceptions overruled, and the
judgment of Court o f Common Pleas for the plaintiff atfirmed.
PROMISSORY NOTES— INDORSERS.
In the Supreme Court, city o f New York, May 21, 1852; before Judge San
ford. Henry L. Van W yck and another against John McIntosh.
The defendant in this action is sued as indorser o f a promissory note, made
by Thomas McIntosh & Co., for goods sold to them by plaintiff. The note is
dated November 14, 1850, for $2,045.
Journal o f M ercantile Law.
592
The defense is, that the indorsement is a forgery.
The plaintiffs contend that the indorsement is the actual signature o f the de
fendant ; that oven if it is a forgery, the defendant, by his subsequent conduct,
acquiesced in the signature and adopted it as his own, which amounted to an im
plied authority trom the defendant, to McIntosh to sign his name in his stead.
The court charged the jury to find in the first place, whether the indorsement
was in the actual handwriting o f defendant. In the absence o f any witness to
the act o f signing, they must consider the evidence o f witnesses, who, from their
previous acquaintance with the handwriting o f the defendant, were competent
to decide upon the genuineness o f this signature. On this point very many wit
nesses have been examined, and there is a great discrepancy in their testimony:
though it may, perhaps, be said that the balance is in favor of the defendant.
Still, in weighing this evidence, you must make allowance for the fact, that even
the best judges have widely differed as to the genuineness o f the signature-' which
have been presented to their examination on this trial. It has also been proved,
that defendant was in the habit o f indorsing notes in blank for his son to fill up,
and in his examination at the police office he did not say that this was not his
signature.
In the next place, if you find that the name was not signed by defendant, you
must unavoidably conclude that it was signed by T. McIntosh the son ; and you
will then consider whether it was done by defendant’s authority, express or im
plied. There is no evidence o f express authority or of express ratification in
this case, although it has been shown that in the case o f other notes, on which
it is alleged there were forged indorsements o f defendant’s name, he had then
declared that they were all right, and would be paid. If you find that the in
dorsement is not in the actual handwriting o f the defendant, and that it was
written without his authority or ratification, he is not liable.
Verdict for plaintiffs, $2,190 09.
DECISION ON THE USURY LAW IN NEW JERSEY.
A correspondent o f the New Jersey Herald, furnishes the subjoined sketch o f
a case o f usury recently decided in that State —
The law upon this subject provides not only that all usurious contracts are
void, and makes that a good defense where it can be proved, but also that any
person who shall, directly or indirectly, take, accept, or receive more than lawful
interest on any loan, shall forfeit the full amount o f the money loaned, one-half
to the use o f the State, and the other to the prosecutor, to be recovered with
costs by action o f debt on the case, in any court o f record having cognizance
thereof.
It is not simply making the usurious contract which subjects the lender to this
penal action, he must not only contract for unlawful interest, but afterwards re
ceive it in pursuance o f the contract.
On the 15th o f October, 1846, a citizen o f Frankford, in this county, loaned
to one o f his neighbors $300, and took his note, with two friends as sureties,
for $350, payable in two years with interest— making a shave o f $50 on $300
lent. When the note became due, the lender sued the three makers upon it.
There was no witness to prove the usury except the borrower, and he being su
ed with the others, it was out o f their power to set up usury as a defense to the
note, for want of evidence to prove it. The securities then paid the $350 and
interest, and the costs o f the suit; and one o f them turned around and sued the
lender under the law above referred to, for the penalty of $300, being the
amount loaned. The suit was tried in the Circuit Court o f this county, before
Judge Ogden, August term o f 1850. The usury was proved by the borrower,
and the jury found a verdict for the plaintiff for $300, besides the costs. The
defendant moved in arrest o f judgment, which the Judge refused, and then re
manded the suit by writ of error to the Supreme Court. The cause was argued
at the last February term o f the Supreme Court, and at the term just closed the
court unanimously affirmed the judgment.
593
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
COM M ERCIAL CHRONICLE AND R E V IE W .
GENERAL ASPECT OF COMMERCIAL AFFAIRS— THE DEMAND FOR MONEY, AND ITS INFLUENCE IN CHECK
ING UNDUE SPECULATION— INDICATIONS OF GENERAL PROSPERITY— THE INFLUENCE OF COMMERCE
UPON THE FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE COUNTRY— POSITION OF THE BANKS, WITH PARTICULAR
ILLUSTRATIONS AT NEW YORK AND NEW ORLEANS— DEPOSITS AND COINAGE AT THE
PHIA AND NEW ORLEANS MINT FOR SEPTEMBER— IMPORTS OF FOREIGN
YORK FOR SEPTEMBER, AND FROM JANUARY 1ST— CLASSIFICATION
MERCHANDISE
PHILADEL.
AT NEW
OF IMPORTS, INCLUDING DRY
GOODS, WITH A QUARTERLY STATEMENT FOR NINE MONTHS— RECEIPTS FOR DUTIES AT NEW YORK
— SUMMARY STATEMENT OF THE RECEIPTS
BALTIMORE, AND
NEW ORLEANS— EXPORTS
OF DUTIES
AT NEW YORK, PHILADELPHIA, BOSTON,
FROM NEW YORK
FOR
SEPTEMBER— QUARTERLY
STATEMENT OF EXPORTS FOR NINE MONTHS— CLASSIFICATION OF EXPORTS INCLUDING THE PRIN
CIPAL ARTICLES OF PRODUCE— PROSPECTS OF THE FOREIGN TRADE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE
YEAR.
A s w e approach the close o f the year, the amount o f maturing business ob
ligations, in all o f our large commercial cities, is found to be increasing, but the
chief demand for money has not been from that source. Since our last, a por
tion o f the surplus capital loaned on call has been withdrawn, and this has
created quite a stir among the class o f borrowers who were obliged to meet the
demand.
The securities upon which the loans were based, were mostly o f that
class not recognized b y banking-houses and leading capitalists, and consequently
some little difficulty was experienced in obtaining the funds, and it was only ef
fected b y a considerable increase in the rates o f interest, or by selling out, at a
loss, the fancy stocks, upon which the credit was wanted. This excitement in
the money market has not seriously affected legitimate business transactions. It
has raised the rates o f interest tw o or three per cent per annum upon business
paper o f a moderate grade, and one or tw o per cent upon prime signatures; but
it has not at all diminished the supply for the regular demand. Neither has it
created any increased inquiry for capital from the mercantile portion o f the com
munity. In Boston, Philadelphia, N ew York, and Baltimore, the banks discount
with a liberal spirit, and no scarcity o f money is felt, as generally apprehended.
This check to speculation will prove very useful. W henever capital is freely
obtained for a succession o f months, at a low rate o f interest, speculators are en
couraged to engage in doubtful projects, and men o f small means doing even a
legitimate business, will advance beyond their depth. Capitalists are not want
ing, who will countenance such desperate adventures, tempted thereto by the
hope o f realizing a larger per centage for the use o f their money. A ll goes
swimmingly for aw’hile until the check is given, when the reaction fully reveals
all the recklessness o f the enterprise.
Credit continues unimpaired, and thus far there have been fewer failures dur
ing the season, than for many years.
The demand for merchandise to distribute
through the interior has been very active, and the large supplies have not greatly
accumulated at any single point. There can, perhaps, be no better evidence o f
the general prosperity, than the fact that unseasonable or rejected styles o f goods
are unsaleable at any price.
Purchasers are unusually discriminating in their
wants, a state o f things which exists only when a saving o f cost affords no in
ducement for the sacrifice o f taste.
T he foreign relations o f the country are watched by our capitalists with
VOL. X X V II.—
no. v .
< 18
a
594
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
jealou s eye, and more solicitude is felt just n ow in regard to them, than to any
difficulties likely to grow out o f the development o f our own resources, even
though the latter be in some respects disproportionate and premature.
Commer
cial interests have often been sneered at, by those who have nothing to lose but
everything to gain from a public calamity, as standing ingloriously between
the people and a proper vindication o f the national honor; and those most
valorous for martial glory, speak with a cool contempt o f cotton and sugar, and
bales o f dry goods, and contend that the acquisition o f dollars and cents is a
pitiful pursuit for one who is fitted to shine in the panoply o f war.
W e would
not advocate a sordid spirit, but we do maintain that if the commercial aspects o f
a rupture with a foreign power had been oftener considered, the history o f the
past w ould have been quite as glorious, with fewer sad and sorrowful records.
The mercantile community is ever alive to a proper sense o f what is due to the
national honor, and no country struggling for the right, has ever found its mer
chants among the last to make sacrifices for the public good. A t the same time,
Commerce has done more to preserve the peace o f the w orld than all other in
fluences com bined; and as commercial ties are multiplied, the nations o f the
earth will be drawn into that band o f common brotherhood, when they will
learn war no more.
The banks are generally in a healthy condition.
The unauthorized private in
stitutions nominally located in W ashington, D. C., to which we called attention
in a previous number, have, most o f them, failed as we expected, and the public
are fleeced out a portion o f their circulation. W e are happy to know that our
warning saved not a few o f our readers from serious loss. The legitimate insti
tutions throughout the country, have in no degree lost the public confidence.
T he Board o f Currency at N ew Orleans report the follow ing condition o f the
banks in that city on the 25th S ep t.:—
Circulation.
Louisiana..................
Canal and Banking.
Louisiana State___
Meehan’s’ & Trade’s.
Union.......................
Citizens....................
Consolidated............
T o ta l...............
Specie.
$1,083,404
1,062,931
1,114,130
112,660
25,520
6,028
6,138
$2,292,633
1,091,255
1,510,838
954,949
95,193
105,665
33,382
$4,012,011
$6,083,915
Cash Assets.
Liabilities.
$6,118,882
3,989,969
5,114,159
3,241,314
208,014
101,261
33,382
$4,428,606
2,641,382
4,516,684
2,290,195
48,516
85,319
8,130
$18,819,641
$14,025,096
B y comparing this with a similar statement for the previous month, published
in our last number, (page 482) it will be seen that the aggregate circulation has
decreased $172,913, the specie $356,818, while the cash assets have increased
$1,497,798, and the liabilities only $373,415.
The Controller has called for the statement o f the New York, banks to be made
up to the 4th September, thus going back a month, instead o f selecting a recent
date.
The banks were taken by surprise, and the statement will be less favor
able than would now be made, but still as far as known will possess no objec
tionable features. The New York city banks have completed their returns, which
have been hastily compiled, sufficiently accurate for a comparison, although the
aggregate is not official.
the regular returns.
The figures for the previous quarters are taken from
595
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
RESOURCES.
Loans and discounts except to Directors,
and Brokers............................................
Loans and discounts to Directors...
Other liabilities of Directors............
Due from Brokers.............................
Real estate.........................................
Bonds and mortgages.......................
S tock s................................................
Promissory n o te s .............................
Loss and expense account................
Overdrafts..........................................
Specie.................................................
Cash items..........................................
Bills of solvent banks on hand . . . .
Due from suspended banks.............
Due from solvent banks...................
Total resources.....................
September 4.
June 26.
March 27.
$79,378,717
3,909,457
578,421
5,866,129
2,702,424
248,611
5,245,245
45,961
319,034
44,935
8,702,908
11,824,207
1,218,513
103,777
4,186,864
$72,802,007
3,575,807
658,695
5,443,646
2,708,372
242,361
6,191,745
11,636
391,122
42,065
12,152,048
11,889,613
1,423,412
4,347,711
$64,828,061
3,704,001
788,580
3,017,992
2,539,345
242,427
4,954,068
30,336
357,958
40,600
9,716,070
11,385,439
1,052,666
4,108
4,407,359
$123,647,798
$120,236,080
$106,290,528
LIABILITIES.
C apital..............................................
Profits.................................................
Circulation of unregistered notes...
Circulation of registered notes........
Due Treasurer New York S ta te.. .
D eposits............................................
Due individuals and corporations . .
Due banks on demand.......................
Due on cre d it...................................
Due others.........................................
5,464,534
256,845
8,421,830
187,201
49,661,360
711,268
21,646,796
166,984
169,842
$35,528,250
6,107,491
270,124
7,868,106
205,347
50,110,110
290,064
18,160,081
1,422,684
273,741
$35,187,870
5,534,138
270,841
7,401,139
218,743
43,415,125
298,658
13,593,732
180,000
190,231
Total liabilities.....................
$123,647,798
$120,236,080
$106,290,528
T he foregoing shows an increase in the loans and discounts o f over $7,000,000,
a decrease in specie o f over $4,000,000, an increase o f capital o f nearly $1,500,000,
in the circulation o f $500,000, and a falling otf in the deposits o f $448,780.
W ere the statement to be repeated to day, a large portion o f the loss in specie
w ould be made up, and the loans exhibit a decrease.
W e annex a statement o f the deposits and coinage at the Philadelphia and
N ew Orleans mints for the month o f Septem ber:—
DEPOSITS FOR SEPTEMBER.
NEW ORLEANS.
From California.
G old .......................... ........
S ilver.........................
$40,037
Total....................
Total.
PHILADELPHIA.
From California.
Total.
$42,594
143
$4,169,300
26,000
$4,254,000
26,000
$42,737
$4,195,300
$4,270,000
GOLD COINAGE.
Double eagles............
Pieces.
Value.
Pieces.
1,000
$20,000
$3,747,200
245,500
306^650
323,277
192,526
$4,815,153
Half-eagles................
Quarter-eagles...........
Gold dollars...............
40,000
187,360
24,550
6l|330
129,312
192,526
Total...................
$60,000
695,077
Value.
596
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
SILVER COINAGE.
Quarter-dollars.................
Dimes...................................
Halfdimes...........................
Three-cent pieces...............
180,000
Total...........................
ISO,000
Total coinage..........
221,000
$18,000
$18,000
78,000
13,000
100,000
43,500
1,566,900
$3,250
10,000
4,350
47,007
1,723,400
$64,607
2,318,477
4,879,760
There has been no copper coinage during the month. The receipts o f gold
in California, or at the mints, show no symptoms o f a decline, notwithstanding
there has been a large emigration from our Pacific coast to Australia.
In our last we asserted that the imports for September would show a consid
erable increase over the corresponding montli o f last year. T he official entries
have since been completed, and w e are enabled to present our usual summary,
which fully corroborates our statement.
The imports at some o f the lesser ports
show a trifling decrease, but not sufficient to prove o f any account in a general
comparison.
T he follow ing is a comparison o f the receipts at N ew York.
FOREIGN IMPOSTS ENTERED AT NEW YO RK FOR SEPTEMBER.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Entered for consumption.................
Entered for warehousing.................
Free goods..........................................
Specie.................................................
$8,192,761
928,125
1,273,878
2,406,306
$8,384,172
864,916
366,153
115,550
$11,095,827
623,260
834,343
66,789
Total entered at the port . . . .
Withdrawn from warehouse.. .
$12,801,110
1,117,262
$9,730,791
1,669,304
$12,620,219
1,254,358
T o guard against misapprehension, wo repeat our former explanation, that the
specie received from California, up to November, 1850, was mostly cleared from
Chagres on the Isthmus, and entered here as from a foreign port. T he receipts
o f free goods have increased from last year nearly half a million o f dollars, but
are less than for the same month o f 1850.
The imports, exclusive o f specie,
were divided between dry good s and general merchandise as fo llo w s :—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE AT NEW YO RK FOR SEPTEMBER.
185(1.
1851.
1852.
Drygoods.............................................
General merchandise...........................
$5,291,690
5,103,114
$5,106,054
4,509,187
$6,659,318
5,894,112
Total merchandise......................
$10,394,804
$9,615,241
$12,553,430
It will be seen from the foregoing that the total receipts o f foreign merchan
dise for the month were $2,939,189 greater than for September, 1851, and
$2,158,626 greater than for the same month o f 1850. This increase has not
been sufficient to compensate for the falling o ff noticed earlier in the year, and
the total foreign imports, exclusive o f specie, at N ew Y ork since January 1st,
are $7,921,337 less than for the same period o f last year, and $535,946 less
than for the first nine months o f 1850, as will be seen from the follow ing state
ment :—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN MERCHANDISE AT N EW YORK FOR NINE MONTHS.
1850.
1851.
1851
Drygoods.......................................
General merchandise...................
$53,509,498
47,041,285
$54,546,862
53,758,737
$49,533,493
50,481,344
Total merchandise...............
$100,550,783
$108,305,599
$100,014,837
597
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
H ad the receipts o f general merchandise borne the same proportion to those
o f dry goods as in former years, the total for the current year w ould show a
still greater decline.
W e annex further particulars o f the foregoing imports, with
the amount o f specie from foreign p o rts :—
IMPORTS ENTERED AT
NEW
YO RK
FROM
FOREIGN
PORTS
FOR
NINE
MONTHS, ENDING
SO.
SEPTEMBER
1851.
1851
Entered for consumption..............
Entered for warehousing.............
Free g o o d s ...................................
Specie.............................................
§S0,481,533
12,587,769
7,481,481
14,928,519
1839.
§90,426,070
10,709,917
7,169,612
1,782,529
§83,305,277
6,539,890
10,169,670
2,151,954
Total entered at the port . .
Withdrawn from warehouse.
§115,479,302
8,211,418
§110,088,128
9,801,534
§102,166,791
12,206,926
It will be noticed that the value o f goods entered for warehousing is
$4,000,000 less than during the same period o f last year, and $6,000,000 less
than for the same time in 1850; while the withdrawals from warehouse show a
corresponding increase. This might have been expected from the brisk demand
which had been maintained for foreign goods, which has taken all fresh arrivals,
which were at all desirable, directly for consumption, and drawn largely on the
surplus stock left in bond from former seasons. T he imports have increased
during the last quarter, so that in order to show the progress o f the foreign
trade since January 1st, w e have compiled a quarterly statement which will be
found o f much interest.
[QUARTERLY STATEMENT OF IMPORTS ENTERED AT NEW YORK.
QUARTER ENDING
March 31,1852.
June 30, 1852.
Sept 30, 1852.
Entered for consumption.............
Entered for warehousing.............
Free goods......... .........................
Specie....................................... ..
§24,911,287
3,201,496
3,996,343
740,450
§22,133,625
1,826,253
3,348,442
1,137,731
§36,260,365
1,512,141
2,824,885
273,773
Total, 1852............................
Total, 1851............................
Total, 1850.............................
§32,849,576
40,608,975
32,088,726
§28,446,051
31,780,382
34,954,052
§40,871,164
37,698,771
48,096,524
Withdrawn from warehouse ’52.
Withdrawn from warehouse ’51.
Withdrawn from warehouse ’50.
§4,979,498
2,992,121
2,320,775
§3,547,279
2,720,220
2,113,199
§3,680,149
4,089,193
3,777,444
W e also annex our usual summary o f the imports o f dry goods, the totals o f
which are included in the above statement:—
IMPORTS OF FOREIGN D RY GOODS FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER.
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
1850.
Manufactures of w o o l.. .
Manufactures of cotton .
Manufactures of silk. . . .
Manufactures of flax . . .
Miscellaneous dry goods.
Total........................
1851.
1852.
§1,380,24S
546,523
1,874,495
483,040
342,998
§1,293,205
600,073
1,553,943
477,742
331,601
§2,085,397
950,820
2,070,823
742,596
446,681
§4,627,304
§4,256,564
§6,296,317
Commercial Chronicle and Review,
598
W IT H D R A W S FROM WAREHOUSE.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Manufactures of w ool.........................
Manufactures of cotton.......................
Manufactures of silk...........................
Manufactures of flax..........................
Miscellaneous dry goods....................
$361,100
117,801
126,316
65,715
23,816
$494,484
107,154
245,100
44,778
31,059
$166,667
69,448
97,148
56,955
35,601
T o ta l............................................
Add entered for consumption . .
$694,748
4,627,304
$922,575
4,256,564
$425,819
6,296,317
Total thrown on the market .
$5,322,052
$5,179,139
$6,722,136
ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Manufactures of w ool.........................
Manufactures of cotton......................
Manufactures of silk...........................
Manufactures of fla x .........................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ...................
$232,783
116,729
232,520
56,833
25,521
$277,963
159,998
184,289
137,148
90,092
$96,804
59,597
88,150
56,732
61,718
Total.............................................
Add entered for consumption.. .
$664,386
4,627,304
$849,490
4,256,564
$363,001
6,296,317
Total entered at the p o r t.. . .
$5,291,690
$5,106,054
$6,659,318
30-
IMPORT OF FOREIGN D R Y GOODS AT N E W YO RK FOR NINE MONTHS, ENDING SEPTEMBER
ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Manufactures of w ool.........................
Manufactures of cotton.......................
Manufactures of silk...........................
Manufactures o f f la x .........................
Miscellaneous dry goods....................
$13,527,083
9,020,422
17,110,790
6,270,651
2,112,874
$11,965,958
8,448,367
19,828,556
5,161,925
3,087,479
$12,079,080
7,906,679
17,020,256
4,781,272
3,475,820
Total.............................................
$48,041,820
$48,492,2S5
$45,263,107
W ITHDRAW N FROM WAREHOUSE.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Manufactures of w ool.........................
Manufactures of cotton.......................
Manufactures of silk...........................
Manufactures of flax...........................
Miscellaneous dry g o o d s ...................
$1,538,667
1,072,811
962,064
370,711
120,851
$1,688,155
1,237,340
1,225,715
507,477
311,647
$1,467,303
1,291,003
1,638,467
714,607
296,552
T o t a l............................................
Add entered for consumption...
$4,065,004
48,041,820
$4,970,334
48,492,285
$5,407,932
45,263,107
Total thrown on market........
$52,106,824
$53,462,619
$50,671,039
ENTERED FOR WAREHOUSING.
1850.
1851.
1852.
Manufactures of w ool.........................
Manufactures o f cotton......................
Manufactures of s ilk .........................
Manufactures of f la x .........................
Miscellaneous diy goods....................
$1,903,973
1,654,493
1,208,605
600,197
358,675
$1,939,209
2,342,205
1,794,381
620,107
358,675
$1,098,877
745,479
1,812,847
300,384
312,799
Total.............................................
A dd entered for consumption...
$5,467,678
48,041,820
$6,054,577
48,492,285
$4,270,386
45,263,107
$54,546,862
$53,509,498
$49,533,493
Total entered at port.............
B y the above tables it will be seen that the total value o f foreign dry goods
received at the port o f N ew Y ork for the month, was $1,553,264 greater
than for the same month o f last year, and $1,367,628 greater than for the same
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
599
month o f 1850. But the total receipts o f foreign dry goods since January 1st
are $5,013,369 less than for the same period o f last year, and $3,976,005 less
than for the same period o f 1850.
The cash duties for the year are in excess o f the government estimates, and
the balance in all the depositories is quite large. The follow ing will show the
comparative revenue at the port o f N ew York for the month, and for each quar
ter since January 1st:—
CASH DUTIES RECEIVED AT THE PORT OF N E W YORK.
Total for nine m onths........ .
$2,495,242
6,996,656
6,033,253
10,190,324
1852.
1851.
1850.
In September...............................
Quarter ending March 31............
Quarter ending June 3 0 .............
Quarter ending September 30 ..
77
48
57
37
$23,220,234 42
$2,609,832
9,295,257
7,357,408
9,402,997
97
30
30
30
$26,055,662 90
$3,156,107
7,617,887
6,632,425
10,281,190
29
72
16
03
$24,531,502 91
The total revenue o f the United States for customs, for the last quarter o f the
year, may he set down in round numbers as fo llo w s :—
From the district of New York.......................................
From the district of B oston ............................................
From the district of Philadelphia...................................
From the district of New Orleans.................................
From the district of Baltimore........................................
From the district of Charleston.......................................
From all other districts....................................................
$16,215,000
1,888,000
1,397,000
436,000
211,000
141,000
500,000
Total for three months, ending Sept. 30, 1 8 5 2 ...
Total for three months, ending Sept. 30, 1 8 5 1 ...
814.788,000
14,754,909
The current quarter o f the year, will show a much larger gain in the revenue,
and it will soon become a serious question as to what is to be done with the
money.
Turning now to the exports from the same port, we find an increase for the
month o f $691,197, as compared with last year, although the shipments have
not reached the amount which cleared during the same month o f 1850.
EXPORTS FROM NEW YORK TO FOREIGN PORTS FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER.
1850.
Domestic produ ce...................
Foreign merchandise, free___
Foreign, dutiable.....................
Specie.........................................
1851.
$2,593,986
134,271
316,047
3,490,142
1851
$3,289,429
128,184
317,888
2,122,495
T o t a l.................................
$6,534,446
$5,857,996
Total, exclusive of specie.
3,044,304
3,735,501
This increase for the month brings the exports for the year (exclusive o f
specie) up to just about the same value as for the corresponding period o f last
year, but leaves it about $2,000,000 behind the amount for the first nine months
o f 1850.
EXPORTS FROM N EW YO RK TO FOREIGN PORTS FOR NINE MONTHS, ENDING SEPT. 30.
1850.
1851.
1851
Domestic produce....................
Foreign merchandise, free.........
Foreign, dutiable.....................
Specie......................................... .
$32,273,100
479,850
3,778,199
6,447,466
$31,498,446
530,901
2,916,735
31,261,271
$30,741,612
716,626
3,294,173
20,653,836
Total....................................
Total, exclusive of specie ,
$42,978,615
36,531,149
$66,207,353
34,946,082
$55,406,247
34,752,411
The exports o f specie, it will be seen, are far behind the shipments o f last
year. W e also annex a quarterly statement o f the exports since January 1st:—
600
Commercial Chronicle and Review.
QUARTERLY STATEMENT OF EXPORTS FROM NEW YO R K .
QUARTER ENDING
March 31, 1852.
Domestic produce...........
Foreign merchandise, free
Foreign, dutiable.............
S pecie................................
Total, 1852...........................
Total, 1851...........................
Total, 1850...........................
•Tune 30, 1852.
Sept. 30 1852.
$10,085,484
221,182
1,037,746
7,032,495
$12,060,337
300,037
1,381,829
5,591,514
$8,595,791
195,407
864,598
8,029,827
$18,376,907
15,533,650
9,813,588
$19,333,717
28,369,791
13,981,894
$17,685,623
22,303,912
19,183,133
W e also annex a comparative statement o f the shipments o f some o f the
leading articles o f produce, from New York to foreign ports, from January 1st
to October 1Gth:—
1851.
1852.
Ashes— Pots ...b b ls .
18,289
14,950
Pearls............
1,511
731
Beeswax.................lbs. 233,707 234,742
Bread duffs—
Wheat flour.. .bbls. 1,029,082 1,091,194
Bye flo u r ...............
7,085
8,086
Cora meal...............
33,638
38,237
W heat...........bush.943,848 2,063,034
B y e ........................................... 236,460
Oats.........................
3,418
9,968
Barley.......................................
367
C o r n ....................... 1,438,893 735,324
Candles— Mould, bxs.
30,297 47,722
2,583
3,141
Sperm........
Coal....................... tons
4.834 30,739
Cotton.................bales 248,560 293,370
H a y ............................
5,939
6,650
H op s...........................
189
499
1851.
1852.
Naval stores__ .bbls. 299,538 354,646
Oils— W h a le.. . galls. 1,033,398
37,838
Sperm .. . . ........ 496.977 549,572
L a rd ........ ____
204,181
23.679
Linseed.. . ____
5,899
10,838
Provisions—
Pork............... bbls.
88,444
29,965
B e e f ...............____
37,541
29,107
Cut meats. . . ..lbs. 2,823,905 1,357,262
Butter..............____ 1,818,092
541,317
C heese........... . . . . 4,638,967 784,108
L a rd ............... ____ 4,679,702 3,879,669
R ice................... . . tcs.
23,276
22,959
T allow ............... . lbs. 1,896,977 366,115
Tobacco— Crude pkgs.
13,686
20,841
Mail’d. .lbs. 2,874,949 3,498,739
Whalebone......... . .lbs. 1,700,144 626,773
This comparison exhibits some changes in our export trade worthy o f notice.
The exports o f flour have increased only about 60,000 bbls., while the shipments
o f wheat have increased 1,119,186 bushels, or about 120 per cent on last year’s
exp orts! The shipments o f corn have fallen off 700,000 bushels. The exports
o f whale oil, ow ing to its scarcity in consequence o f the damage to the whaling
fleet, have been comparatively nominal. Provisions have gone forward less freely,
as a general thing, in consequence o f their high prices, but b e e f has been more
freely shipped. T obacco has been taken in larger quantities. The prospects for
the export trade are quite flattering, and an increased demand for prime grain
and many other domestic products, may reasonably be expected. W e gave in
our last a complete statement o f the shipments o f cotton down to the close o f
the commercial year (A ugust 31.) Since that date the exports have slightly in
creased as compared with last year. There can be but little question but what our
previous estimate o f the quantity o f breadstuff's to be exported, will be fully
realized. W e have a large surplus o f cereals, and at some price or other, they
must be sold. The present price is not so great as to hinder a large consump
tion in Great Britain, and that country will doubtless continue to be our best
customer.
T he import trade must continue large down to 1he close o f the year; the
stocks o f goods in first hands are quite small, and the demand is not yet satis
fied. The receipts o f foreign merchandise for the last quarter o f 1851 were not
heavy, and there is every prospect that the same period o f this year will show a
considerable excess in comparison. Should the exports prove as large as antici
pated— particularly should cotton go forward free]}'— no inconvenience will re
sult from this increased business, while our marine will be fully employed at
profitable rates.
Journal o f Banicing, Currency, and Finance.
601
JOURNAL OF B A N K IN G , CU RREN CY, AND FINANCE.
SHIPMENTS OF GOLD DUST FROM SAN FRANCISCO.
O ff ic e
To
of
A
dam s
& Co., S an* F rancisco ,
August 14, 1852.
Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine: —
D ear S i r :— W e take the liberty of inclosing to you our semi-annual statement of
the gold dust and treasure shipped from this port. You will notice quite a discrep
ancy between the amounts shipped by our table and the reports from the custom
house books. This can be easily understood when the fact is known, that the shipping
manifest is invariably guessed at, and the ship cleared before all the treasure is shipped.
This, with the companies’ steamers, may not be done on purpose— with others, it is
often done so. Quite a quantity of ingots have been shipped as dust, and no mention
made of them separately. We shall obtain, however, by and by, a partial return.
The bars included in the dust shipment should be properly included there. Not so the
ingots, which might thereby be twice reckoned in estimating the product of gold for
this year.
Yours truly,
F
reem an
H
unt,
A D A M S & CO., BY J. C. W
ood s.
The following tables contain full statements of all treasure, in dust, Federal and for
eign currency, forwarded hence by steamers and sailing vessels, each in separate or
der, from January 1 to July 1, 1852, with the particular amount, date, and destination
of each shipment—being a direct sequence o f similar tables compiled by the same
firm, (already published,) for the period ending January, 1852. These statements are
compiled very carefully, and may be received as perfectly reliable :—
STATEMENT OF GOLD DUST MANIFESTED
AND SHIPPED FROM SAN FRANCISCO, BY STEAMERS,
FROM JANUARY
Date.
January
1 ....
16___
«
17___
“
31___
Februarv 1 . . . .
“
14-___
«
16___
March
1___
u
2 ...
u
15 . . .
it
16___
“
20 . . .
April
1 ...
«
5 ___
((
15___
it
18___
3 ___
May
5 ___
u
16___
u
18___
June
1___
U
1 ___
Ci
16___
ti
2 5 ....
Name o f vessel.
Oregon................
California............
Independence.. .
North America..
Tennessee...........
Panam a.............
Independence. . .
Northerner..........
California...........
New Orleans . . .
Tennessee..........
Pacific................
Golden G ate.. . .
Independence. . .
Northerner..........
Columbia...........
Winfield Scott.. .
Oregon................
Pacific................
Independence.. .
Tennessee...........
California...........
Winfield Scott...
T ota l.. . .
1
TO JULY
Destined for
New York.
$1,028,409
1,500,000
41,000
23,000
1,206,017
194,000
1,235,760
27,500
1,022,160
631,173
9,676
97,061
24,000
1,620,000
15,472
1,343,288
1,494,727
45,500
1,375,223
17,968
24,391
1,670,173
1,642,335
100,000
1, 1852.
Destined for Destined for
London.
N. Orleans.
$233,153
237,047
$3,102
8,499
211,401
3,705
160,786
12,113
214,973
144,364
3,598
Monthly
total
$3,074,210
2,182,680
32,175
223,091
3,113,782
....
50,125
269,747
342,118
16,570
212,358
4,784
3,562,293
...........
3,492,678
199,783
258,670
....
76,788
5,303
§16,478,833 $2,739,666 $184,587
3,977,443
$19,403,086
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
602
STATEMENT OF TREASURE MANIFESTED
AND
SHIPPED FROM SAN FRANCISCO, BY SAILING
VESSELS, FROM JANUARY
1
TO JULY
Total
amount of
treasure.
Name of vessel, destination, and nation.
Feb. 5, Brig Argyle, Hong Kong, American. §16,000
9, Ship Comet, Hong Kong, American
7,213
19, Bark Sophia, Valparaiso, Hamburg. 18,000
28, Ship St. Lawrence, Manilla, Amer.. 49,850
28, Sword Fish, Hong Kong, American.
3,115
Mar. 1, Sch. Diana, Valparaiso, Dutch........ 11,000
17, Brig Marion, Punta Arenas, A m e r..
4,000
19, Ship Hannibal, Calcutta, American.
2,500
9,549
24, Bark Mazeppa, Valparaiso, A m e r..
Apr.l 3 Ship Hamburg, Hong Kong, British. 28,000
22, Bark Walter, Ports in China, Germ. 20,100
27, Ship Challenge, Hong Kong, Germ. 20,000
May 10 Ship Sartelle, Calcutta, German.. . 60,000
11, Brig Zoe, Honolulu, German*......... 11 000
i |o o o
14, Maid of Julpha, Isle of Pacific, British
15, Ship Invincible, Hong Kong, Amer. 16,250
17, Bark A. Gracia, Guaymas, Amer . .
1,000
26, Brig Sabrina, Java, Britishf............. 15,000
28, Ship Witchcraft, Hong Kong, Amer.
8,000
June 2, Ship Tarolinta, Shanghae, American 15,000
15, Sir Geo. Pollock, Hong Kong, British
5,000
July 1, Bark Palmetto, Shanghae, American 17,000
Date.
T o t a l .............................................................. 338,577
1, 1852.
Prem.on
Gold
dust.
§4,215
18,000
Mexican
dollars.
§16,000
2,998
20,000
1,100
19,000
60.000
.........4£ a 5
.........5 a 6
........ 17 25
§44,000
5
.........5 a 6
.........17 25
4,000 ____
.........17 40
.........17 25
.........17 26
.........17 25
1,000 5 a 6
.........5 a 6
1,000
16,250
1,000
5,000
8,000
15,000
5,000
17,000
.........
5
........ 5 a 6
.........5 a 6
5,000 5 a 6
.........
5
.........5 a 6
.........
5
.........5 a 6
5,850
3,115
11,000
.....
2,500
9,549
8,000
19,000
....
doll. &.
Doub- pr oz. for
loons.
dust.
.......
.....
.....
72,264 196,313
54,000
CAPITAL AVI) DIVIDENDS OF BOSTON BASKS, I S OCTOBER, 1852.
S t e p h e n B r o w n & S o n s , Stock and Exchange Brokers, Boston, report the follow
ing table of semi-annual dividends, declared and payable by the several Banks in
Boston on Monday, October 4th, 1852:—
Divi-
Divi-
Banks.
Capital, dends, Amou’t.
Banks.
Capital, dends. Amou’ t.
A tla n tic................. §500,000 4 §20,000 M arket................. §560,000 5 §28,000
24,000
Atlas..................... 500,000 3£
17,500 Massachusetts. . . .
800,000 3
6,000
Blackstone............. 250,000 4
10,000 Mechanics’ (S. B). 150,000 4
Boston................... 900,000 4
36,000 Merchants’ .......... 3,000,000 4 120,000
40,000
Boy Iston................ 250,000 4-£ 11,250 New England.. . . 1,000,000 4
City....................... 1,000,000 3| 35,000 N orth ................... 750,000 Si 26,250
20,000
% Cochituate......... 250.000 4
10,000 North Am erica.. . 500,000 4
20,000
Colum bia.............- 500,000 3
16,000 Shawm ut............. 500,000 4
40,000
Commerce............ 1,500,000 4
60,000 Shoe tfc L’r Deal’s*. 1,000,000 4
54,000
E a g le ................... 500,000 3J 17,500 State...................- 1,800,000 3
50,000
Exchange............. 1,000,000 4
40,000 Suffolk................. 1,000,000 5
Fanueil Hall......... 500,000 4
20,000 Traders’................. 600,000 Zi 21,000
40,000
Freeman’s ............ 300,000 4J- 13,500 Tremont................ 1,000,000 4
40,000
G lo b e ................... 1,000,000 4
40,000 U n ion ................... 1,000,000 4
15,000
500,000 3
§ Granite............... 750,000 4
30,000 Washington........
Grocers’ ............... 300,000 4
12,000
§24,660,000
§952,000
H am ilton............. 500,000 4
20,000
The Randolph Bank pays a semi-annual dividend of 5 per cent, on Monday, Oct. 4.
The amount of capital of all the banks in Boston in October, 1851, was §23.660,000.
The amount as above stated, §24,660,000, shows an increase of bank capital since Oc
tober, 1851, of §100,000,000.
* 11,000 ingots.
+ 5,000 sovereigns.
t The Cochituate Bank pay on $100,000 increase capital since last dividend.
I The Granite Bank also pay on $100,000 increase capital since last dividend.
Journal o f Banking , Currency, and Finance.
603
UNITED STATES TREASURER’ S STATEM EN T, SEPTEMBER 27, 1852,
t r e a s u r e r 's s t a t e m e n t , s h o t t in g
the
amount
at
h is
c r e d it
in
the
t r e a s u r t , w it h
ASSISTANT TREASURERS AND DESIGNATED DEPOSITARIES, AND IN THE MINT AND BRANCHES,
BY RETURNS RECEIVED TO MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1852 ; THE AMOUNT FOR WHICH DRAFTS
HAVE BEEN ISSUED, BUT WERE THEN UNPAID, AND THE AMOUNT THEN REMAINING SUBJECT
TO DRAFT. SHOWING, ALSO, THE AMOUNT OF FUTURE TRANSFERS TO AND FROM DEPOSITA
RIES, AS ORDERED BY THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY.
Drafts
heretofore drawn
Amount on but not yet paid,
Amount
deposit.
though payable, subj. to draft.
T rea su ry o f U n ited S ta tes,'W a sh in g ton . .
§1 5 1 ,83 7 97
§ 4 3 ,0 9 5 25 § 1 08 ,74 2 72
A ssistant Treasurer, B oston, M a s s ................ 1,785,592 01
23,078 83 1,762,513 18
A ssista n t Treasurer, A e w Y o r k , N. Y ......... 6,718,689 29
862,883 89 5,855,805 40
A ssistant T reasurer, P h iladelph ia, P a .......... 1,268,375 31
78,034 96 1,190,340 35
60,577 29
56
A ssistant T reasurer, C h a r le s t o n s . C ..........
78,9 00 85
48,915 24
42
A ssistan t T reasurer, N e w Orleans, L a ......... 1,105,099 66 1
89,273 24
75
A ssistant Treasurer, St. L ouis, M o................
518,683 99
10,451 85
85
D e p osita ry at Buffalo, N e w Y o r k ................
26,397 70
39,529 95
D e p osita ry a t B altim ore, M d ..........................
44,701 33
5,171 38
18,180 59
72
D e p osita ry a t R ich m on d , V a .......................
18,404 31
3,668 43
36
D e p osita ry at N orfolk , Y a ..............................
65,812 79
172 84
44
D e p osita ry a t W ilm in g ton , N . C ..................
4,646 28
37,473 97
121 66
D e p osita ry at Savannah, G e o rg ia ................
37,595 63
9,947 55
48
D e p osita ry a t M ob ile, A la b a m a ..................
15,413 03
3,779 37
63
D e p osita ry a t N ashville, T en n essee............
21,565 00
66,113
71
61
D e p osita ry a t Cincinnati, O hio......................
68,512 32
40
2,116
11
D e p osita ry at P ittsburg, P e n n s y lv a n ia .. . .
2,633 51
3,301
37
3,301 37
D e p osita ry at Cincinnati, ( l a t e ) ....................
569,241 55
52
D e p osita ry at San F ra n cis co.........................
886,100 07
522 86
02
D e p osita ry at D u b u q u e ...................................
2,017 88
7,747 21
35
16,041 56
D e p osita ry at L ittle R o ck , A rk a n sas.........
22,039 01
40
D e p osita ry at J efferson ville, I n d ia n a .........
35,544 41
82,740 32
00
83,293 32
D e p osita ry at C hicago, Illin ois......................
18,861 38
50
D e p osita ry at D etroit, M ich ig a n ..................
24,354 88
623 02
99
D e p o s ita ry at T allahassee, F lo r id a ............
4 ,5 9 4 01
66
S uspense a ccou n t.............................§ 2 ,4 8 6 66
..................
Branch Mint of U. S., Charlotte, N. C . . . .
Branch Mint o f U. S., Dahlonega, Ga.........
Branch Mint of U. S., New Orleans,La...
32,000 00
26,850 00
1,100,000 00
Deduct suspense account.
5,629,170
32,000
26,850
600,000
00
00
00
00
00
34 16,240,698 80
2,486 66
§16,238,212 14
1,477,500 00
14
§17,715,712 14
Net amount subject to draft..............................................................,.§17,715,712
§700,000 00
100,000 00
400,000 00
Transfers ordered to Assistant Treasurer, New Orleans, La
180,000 00
Transfers ordered to Depositary at Norfolk, V irginia........
100,000 00
,. §1,480,000 00
Transfers ordered from Mint of the U. S., Philadelphia, Pa.
2,500 00
BANK-NOTES OF TH E OLDEN TIM ES.
There lies before us, says the Commercial Advertiser, a bank-note for fifty dollars,
o f the Bank of Rhode Island, dated at Newport on the 8th o f January, 1796, and
signed “ Chris. Champlin, President”— “ M. Seiscas, Cashier.”
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
604
The history of this note is remarkable. About three years ago, this and another
bill for the same amount were presented at the bank for payment, having been placed
in the Suffolk Bank, Boston, for collection. One of them was dated in 1795, and was
the first bill ever issued by the Bank of Rhode Island. Ho bills of the kind had been
issued for thirty-five years previously, and the presentation of these at the bank was
of course unexpected. They were, however, promptly redeemed, and their history
elicited. They were found among the effects of an old man, who had recently died at
Salem, Mass., who lived in poverty, and who probably believed the bills to be worth
less, as they were found in a package o f others of broken banks.
The presidency and cashiership of the Bank of Rhode Island have been held in the
same family for half a century, Mr. Peleg Clarke being now president, and Mr. W. A.
Clarke cashier. W e know of no older incorporated institution in Hew England,* ex
cept the Washington Insurance Company of Providence, chartered in 1787, of which
the venerable Sullivan Dorr is still the president.
We have also before us another money relic, dated April 12, 1760, being a bill for
“ three pounds,” which “ by law shall pass current in Hew Jersey for eight ounces and
fifteen pennyweights of plate.” It is printed in red ink, on thick paper, and is about
three inches and a half long by an inch and three-quarters broad. The signatures are
nearly effaced.
STATISTICS OF TH E DEBT OF GREAT BRITAIN,
The London Times publishes the following statement relative to the national debt
o f Great Britain
A Parliamentary return in relation to the public debt gives the following particulars
of its variations during the last thirty years, both as regards the amount of principal
and the annual cost for the payment o f interest. It will be seen that the reduction in
the principal effected during that period has been only £50,000,000, or 6 per cent, but
that as regards the annual charge for interest, in has been £3,826,424, or nearly 11
per cent. The lowest point at which the national debt ever stood of late years was
m 1834, when it had declined to £772,196,849, or to ten millions below the sum at
which it now stands, the emancipation loan in 1835, and the Irish famine loan in 1847,
having far more than counterbalanced all subsequent reductions. It is to be remarked,
however, that owing to the conversion of the three-and-a-half per cents, and the low
rates paid upon the unfunded debt, &c., the actual cost o f these obligations is now
smaller than at that period.
During the next seven or eight years this charge will experience a further diminu
tion of £2,207,500, of which £600,000 will take place by the three-and-a quarter per
cents becoming three-per-cents in October, 1854, while the cessation of the remain
ing will occur through the expiry of the long annuities in January, I860, for £1,293,500,
and of other annuities, amounting to £1,314,000, during the intervening time. The
annuity held by the bank for £585,700 does not terminate till 1867. The unfunded
debt, which is included in the subjoined totals, was less in 1851 than in any other
year of the series, its amount being £17,742,800.
In 1822 it was as high as
£36,281,150:—
Year.
1822........
1823 ___
1824 ___
1825 ___
1826 ___
1827 ___
1S28___
1829 ___
1830 ___
1SS1___
1832 ___
1833 ___
1S34___
1835 ___
1836 ___
Amount.
Cost.
___ £832,811,295 £31,343,551
___
826,443,364 29,978,454
___
813,521,672 30,166,421
___
806,122,467 29,197,187
___
808,367,590 29,228,967
___
805,023,742 29,417,543
29,309,052
___
796,742,482 29,156,611
___
783,096,646 29,118,859
___
781,095,234 28,341,416
___
779,796,549 28,323,752
___
779,565,783 28,522,507
___ 772,196,849 28,504,090
___
787,526,406 28,514,610
. . . 7S8,398,570 29,243,599
Year.
1837.........
183S.........
1839........
1840.........
1841.........
1842.........
1843.........
1844.........
1845.........
1846.........
18-17.........
1848.........
1849.........
1850.........
1851........
Amount.
...
...
...
...
786,319,738
785,373,740
786,512,734
787,448,075
...
...
...
...
791,250,440
790,576,392
787,598,145
785,053,022
...
791,809,338
...
...
787,029,162
782,869,3S2
Cost.
29,489,571
29,269,238
29,454,062
29,881,718
29,450,145
29,428,120
29,269,160
30,495,459
28,253,872
28,077,9S7
28,141,531
28,563,517
28,323,961
28,091,590
28,017,127
* The Massachusetts Bank, in Boston, is an older institution, having been chartered in 1784; and
the Union Bank, in Boston, in the year 1792.—E d itor .
Journal o f Banking , Currency , and Finance.
605
REV ENUE OF TH E PROVINCE OF NEW BRUNSWICK.
S t . J ohn . September 20,1852.
F r e e m a n H unt,
Editor o f the Merchants’ Magazine, etc. :—
D e a r S i r :— I f the inclosed is of any service to you please publish it. The pound
is eifual to four dollars American. The Loan Fund is to pay ofF the Province debt,
and is raised by levying 1 per cent upon all British and foreign manufactured articles,
also pepper and spice3 imported into the Province. The Auction Tax is a duty of
1 per cent upon all goods sold at auction, except sheriffs’ sales, household furniture,
effects of deceased persons, underwriters’ sales, salt and coals.
Your obd’t serv’t,
r . s.
ABSTRACT OF THE REVENUE OF THE PROVINCE OF NEW BRUNSWICK FOR THE TEAR
THE LAST
Saint John...
M ira m ich i. . . .
Dalhousie.. . .
Bathurst.........
Shippegan....
Richibucto___
Shediac...........
Dorchester.. .
Bay Y erte. . .
H opew ell. . . .
Fredericton . .
Grand F a lls..
"Woodstock....
St. Andrew’s.
St. Stephen . .
St George . . .
Grand Manam.
t e a r 's
Loan
Import
duty.
Fund.
£ 4 ,8 2 4 12 £ 5 5 ,8 2 4
3,912
336 6
193 12
2,710
986
84 7
39
6
336
1,722
1S4 17
15
4
216
29 18
40
3 15
48
17 19
113
0
1,307
8
10
105
7 6
165 11
2,397
98 19
1,302
45 8
524
Total . . . £6,146
1850,
REVENUE AS TET RETURNED.
Export
duty.
4 £ 1 0 ,9 0 3
11
1,942
O
1,231
3
399
13
24
10
949
266
1
5
63
1
9
89
13
7
2
o
9
17
16
13
16
15
Light-house
dutv.
£ 2 ,6 9 8 18
164 12
86 4
41 13
5 17
92 16
28 10
30 8
6
11
Sick
seamens’
duty.
£876
9
287 13
82 5
38 15
3 18
85
1
25 4
0
5
£ 79 ,46 9
6,647
4,309
1,550
410
3,034
324
346
43
168
1,420
8
113
3,056
2,153
1,087
1
11
17
19
16
11
19
17
0
17
12
13
17
11
13
14
13
1
8 £104,089
9
5
1 11
1
137
158 8
114 19
1 1
83 2
100 11
75 16
4
14
16
13
212 0
492
1
326 17
8 £71,447 12 £16,901
8£3,571 18 £1,665
Total.
Increase of revenue over 1849 is £8,552 12 2.
In addition to the revenue received from the sources specified above, that derived
from other sources for the entire Province is as follows:—
Casual R evenue............................................................
Supreme Court F ees.....................................................
Auction T a x ..................................................................
Pedlars’ Licenses............................................................
Emigrant Duty................................................................
£2,500 00 0
1,084 7 0
200 4 10
9 0 0
563 7 6
These sums are included in the column o f “ total” in the above table. "We have
also omitted, for the sake of convenience, the pence in the table which will make a
trifling difference in the totals.
DIVIDENDS OF TH E BANK OF ENGLAND.
The semi-annual dividend of the Bank of England was 31 per cent, as declared on
the 16th September, which is a reduction of 1 per cent from the previous six months.
The reduced dividends is said to be owing to the cheapness of money, and the diffi
culty of lending it except at very low rates. There was a rumor prevalent in London
that loans as government securities would be reduced from 2 per cent to 11 per cent
per annum. The Bank of England was making arrangemeuts to augment the stock of
silver for circulation, which had recently become very much reduced by the emigra
tion to Australia and elsewhere. A t the meeting of the Bank of England, the ques
tion of electing a permanent governor, was under discussion.
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
600
DEBT AND R EV EN U E OF PENNSYLVANIA.
From a circular addressed to the foreign loan holders of the State of Pennsylvania,
by J ohn J. McCahen, Commissioner of loans for that State, we extract the subjoined
statement of the debt and resources of the State:—
The whole debt of Pennsylvania is forty millions of dollars, or about eight millions
of pounds sterling. The State has the right to pay off the same at the periods desig
nated in the following table
A t the present time, (and will be paid duriug this year,)....................
In the beginning of the year 1853, (will be paid as soon as the peri
od arrives,)...............................................................................................
Loan made in 1841....................
Bank-charter loans, payable at any time................................................
During the year 1853, and January 1, 1854...........................................
During the year 1854 ...............................................................................
August 1, 1855...........................................................................................
July 1, 1856...............................................................................................
March and July 1,1858.............................................................................
July and August 1, 1859...........................................................................
July 1, I860.................................................................................................
The remainder of the loans are payable in 1861, 1862, 1863,1864,
1865, 1868, and 1810, $400,000 due in 1819, and $850,000 in 1882,
amounting in all to.................................................................................
Total.................................................................................................
$3,314,325 20
688,419
650,163
119,500
2,144,051
2,146,529
4,418,040
2,131,190
1,022,233
1,209,999
2,582,386
51
00
00
83
83
26
49
01
59
48
13,062,000 00
$40,148,905 20
It will be perceived by the foregoing that the State has the right to pay off, during
the year 1852, $3,314,325 20; during the year 1853, $4,202,200 34; during the year
1854, and August, 1855, $6,624,610 09 ; and July 1, 1856, $2,131,190 49; the first
half-year of 1S58, $1,022,233 01; in two years after, $4,392,386 01; making an ag
gregate of $2S,281,005 20, payable in less than eight years.
The following exhibits the comparative revenue of the State of Pennsylvania for
the years 1843 and 1851, and the estimated revenue of 1852, from general and regu
lar sources. The fiscal year terminates on the 30th of November:—
Loans.......................................................
Auctioneers’ commission and duties.. .
Tax on banks, corporations, and their
dividends............................................
Tax on loans, offices, enrolments, &c. .
Tax on real and personal estate,.........
Tax on collateral inheritances..............
Licenses, retailers’, tavern, &c.............
Public works, railroads, and canals.. .
Other sources, ordinary receipts,.........
Balance of available funds at end of
fiscal y e a r ..........................................
Total............................................
1848.
1851.
$8,254 03
88,912 28
$43,162 96
11,316 41
61,040
43,844
654,452
22,337
119,952
1,010,401
10,573
55
03
06
05
34
15
81
115,466 91
$2,040,294 21
392,830
202,612
1,312,170
150,625
291,999
1,119,188
10,853
1851
$45,000
70,000
61
95
37
48
90
54
21
420,000
225,000
1,400,000
100,000
300,000
2,000,000
100,000
543,919 21
$4,865,389 10
1,000,000
$5,660,000
The prosperity of the State cannot be retarded, unless by some improbable casu
alty ; the completion of the last link of her improvements has been provided for, and
it is expected that in one year the North Branch Canal will pay a revenue upon more
than three-and-a-half millions of dollars, hitherto entirely unproductive. The rail
ways are now improving, and, being adapted to increased business and celerity in
transporting passengers and freight, we may confidently predict that, in less than two
years, the receipts upon our public works will exceed two-and-a-half million dollars
per annum. The single article of anthracite coal will illustrate the productive wealth
of the State:—
In 1843, there were sent to market from our eastern coal-fields.. . .tons
In 1851...............................................................................................................
Showing an increase of production of...................................................
The amount mined in 1852 will equal..................................................
1,340,110
4,383,130
3,142,020
5,300,000
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
607
FINANCES OF CANADA FOR T IIE YEAR ENDING JANUARY 3 1 , 1852,
From the public accounts recently submitted to the Legislature o f Canada, it ap
pears that the finances of that country during the year ending January 31, 1852, were
as annexed:—
Balance to credit of consolidated fund, January 31, 1851................
Received one year’s revenue..................................................................
£199,882 13
842,184 5
4
2
And expended.........................................................................................
£1,042,066 18
631,666 6
6
8
Balance now on hand on 31st January, 1852.........................
£407,400 11 10
The revenue arises from the following items :—
Customs.......................... .........................................................................
Excise.......................................................................................................
Territorial...............................................................................................
Light-house duty, C. W .......................................................................
Bank impost............................................................................................
Militia fines, <fcc........................................................................................
Fines, forfeitures, and seizures..............................................................
Casual.......................................................................................................
Law fee fund...........................................................................................
Total.............................................................................................
£703,700 14 0
20,180 13 8
19,961 5 10
937 6 10
15,832 7 7
8 2 6
1,364 0 0
11,138 2 11
4,052 12 2
£842,184
5 2
The following are items of expenditure:—
Interest on d e b t .....................................................................................
Schedule A .............................................................................................
Schedule B .............................................................................................
Permanent charges by legislative enactment, C. E ...........................
“
“
“
“
C. W ...........................
“
“
“
“
United Canada..........
Charges under estimate, 1850.............................................................
“
“
1852.................. .............................................
Sinking fu n d ...........................................................................................
£223,561
29,230
33,547
4,655
10,573
125,355
8,770
125,972
73,000
14
18
8
8
0
0
1
14
0
8
2
9
2
0
7
4
5
0
Total.............................................................................................
£634,466
0
0
It appears by this that there was a surplus in hand of over four hundred thousand
pounds, notwithstanding the increase in the sinking fund for the year, of seventy-three
thousand younds. In the revenue and expenditure accounts for the year, it appears
that there was a surplus of £207,518. This surplus the previous year was £199,882.
TAXES OF CORPORATIONS IN LOWELL.
A LIST OF CORPORATIONS IN LOW ELL, (MASSACHUSETTS,) W H O P A Y FIFTY DOLLARS AND UP
W ARDS OF TAXES ON PROPERTY IN THAT CITY.
Appleton Bank.........................
$122 40
Proprietors of South Congrega
tional Meeting-house...........
102 00
Lowell Institution for Savings.
207 40
Boston and Lowell Railroad . .
370 60
Nashua and Lowell Railroad..
95 20
Nashua and Lowell and Lowell
and Lawrence R ailroad.. . .
149 60
Lowell and Lawrence Railroad
54 40
Lowell Gas Company.............. 1,088 00
Appleton Corporation.............. 3,264 00
Boott Manufacturing Company 6,528 00
Hamilton Com pany................. 6,528 00
Lawrence'Company.................. 8,160 00
Lowell Bleachery...................... 1,632 00
Lowell Corporation................. 5,974 84
Lowell Machine-shop................ 3,264 00
Massachusetts M ills................. 9,792 00
Merrimack River Lumber Co..
188 60
Merrimack Com pany............... 13,600 00
Middlesex Company.................. 6,440 00
Suffolk Company................
3,264 00
Tremont Com pany................... 3,264 00
Proprietors of Locks <Ss Canals. 1,142 06
Journal o f Banking, Currency , and Finance.
608
TH E LAWS OF TH E CURRENCY OF IRELAND.
G i l b a r t , F. R . S., the author of a “ Practical Treatise on Banking,”
“ Lectures on Ancient Commerce,” Ac., published in former volumes of the Merchants'
Magazine, and General Manager of the London and Westminster Bank, recently read
before a meeting of the British Association, at Belfast, Ireland, a paper on the laws of
the currency in Ireland, as exemplified in the changes that have taken place in the
amount of the circulation of bank notes in Ireland, since the passing of the A ct of
1845. W e give the following abstract of Mr. Gilbart’s paper, as we find it reported in
the Belfast Mercantile Journal:—
J
ames
W
il l ia m
In 1845, the average amount of notes that had been in circulation during the year
ending May 1, 1845— £6,854,594— was made the fixed or authorized issue. For any
amount beyond its authorized issue, each bank was required to hold an equal amount
in gold or silver coin, the silver not to exceed one-fourth of the gold coin. The Act
came into operation on the 6th December, 1845 ; and from that period each bank has
made returns to the Government, stating the average amount of notes in circulation
during the preceding four weeks, distinguishing the notes under £5 from those of £5
and upwards, and stating the amounts of gold and silver coin it held in its vaults.
These returns were made by all the banks of circulation in Ireland. These are— the
Bank of Ireland, the Provincial Bank of Ireland, the .National Bank of Ireland, the
National Bank of Clonmel, the National Bank of Carrick-on-Suir, and the three banks
of Belfast, v iz : the Northern Bank, the Belfast Banking Company, and the Ulster
Banking Company. We possess returns for every four weeks from January, 1846, to
the present time. By adding together all the returns made during each year, and then
dividing by thirteen, we obtain, of course, the average amounts in circulation from
1846 to the year 1851, inclusive. The proportion per cent these averages bear to the
certified circulation of £6,854,494, is also dated hereunder.
Ave. Circulation.
1846 ..................................
1847 ................................
1848 ...................
1849 ....................
1850 .................................
1S51....................................
7,259,949
6,008,881
4,828,S49
4,810,283
4,512,442
4,462,908
Proportion to Certified
Circulation.
114.25
94.55
76
67.83
71
70.25
From this table it appears that if the authorized issue be represented by the num
ber 100, the actual circulation for the six years, 1846 to 1851 inclusive, will be repre
sented by the numbers, 114,94, 76, 67, 71, 70.
The question naturally occurs to us, what is the cause of this great falling off in the
annual circulation since the passing of the Act of 1S45 ? The amount of notes in cir
culation does not correspond with the amount of gold in the bank of England ; for the
amount of gold in the Bank of England is, at the present time, much higher than it
was on the 1st of May, 1845 ; although the Irish notes in circulation are much less.
There were three negative laws of the currency in Ireland, namely, that the amount
of notes in circulation is not regulated by the Act of Parliament, nor by the wishes of
the Irish bankers, nor by the stock of gold in the Bank of England. Notes are issued
in Ireland chiefly for the purpose of purchasing agricultural produce; it would seem
to follow that the amount of notes put into circulation will be regulated mainly by the
quantity of that produce and by the price at which it is purchased.
I f then, we found that in the years since 1845, the quantity of agricultural produce
has been less, or the price at which it has been sold has been less, and especially if both
these circumstances should have occurred, then have we an adequate cause for a re
duction of the amount of bank notes in circulation. The annual productiveness of the
harvest would affect the amount of notes in circulation. Again, a bad harvest in one
year may, by the distress it produces, cause a less production of commodities in seve
ral following years, and hence there may be a less demand for bank notes. A bad
harvest produces distress among the farmers, and this distress affects the amount of
the circulation in two ways :—
First, the farmer consumes his own produce instead of selling it, and thus requires
not the use of notes. Secondly, the distress of the farmer diminishes the instruments
of reproduction.
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
609
I f he has no potatoes, he can rear no pigs. An abundant crop of potatoes produces
in the following year an abundant crop of pigs. After the failure of the potato in
1846, the exportation of swine was reduced from 480,827, in 1846, to 106,407. The
potato crop again failed in 1848. The number of swine exported in 1848 was 110,787,
in 1849 it was only 68,053. The destruction of pigs which took place in 1846, would
doubtless affect the circulation of notes in subsequent years, especially in 1847, 1848 and
1849, and probably to a certain extentin the years 1850 and 1851. A reduction in the
quantity of commodities produced may be caused by a reduction in the number of
producers, and this would occasion a less demand for bank notes; and the amount of
notes that circulate in a country will also be affected by the quantity of commodities
exported and the quantity imported. We find that the reduction in the amount of
notes in circulation in Ireland had been preceded or accompanied by a reduction in the
amount of commodities produced, occasioned by a reduced productiveness in the land
actually cultivated, a destruction in the instruments of reproduction by the distress
thus occasioned, a reduction in the number of producers by deaths and emigration, and
the exportation of an increased portion of its capital in exchange for food.
But there was another circumstance that concurred in powerfully producing the
same effect, that is, the price at which the commodities brought to market were sold.
From the whole we infer, that the difference between the amount of bank notes cir
culating in a country at two different periods, cannot be regarded as any correct test
of the condition of its inhabitants at those two periods, unless we take into account
all the circumstances by which that difference is attended— that the decline of the cir
culation of bank notes in Ireland from the year 1845 to 1851, is no accurate measure
of the distress that has existed in the country, or that now exists, as other causes be
sides distress have concurred in producing that effect— that in comparing the circula
tion of 1845 and 1851, we are making a comparison unfavorable to the country, as the
year 1845 was a year remarkable for the high amount of its circulation—and that we
should indulge in no desponding inferences as to the condition of the country, even if
the circulation should never recover its former amount. Even the permanent reduc
tion of the circulation to its present amount would be no conclusive evidence of the
distressed condition of the country; for though distress first caused this decline, yet
from the new circumstances which that distress introduced, the same amount o f bank
notes are not now necessary for conducting its operations.
Among the causes assigned for the circulation of the English banks, are the estab
lishment of the penny postage, the introduction of railways, the decline in the price
of corn, and the extension of the practice of keeping banking accounts. These causes
have also operated in Ireland, while there are other causes, such as consolidation of
small farms, and the cultivation of flax instead of corn, that will tend to produce the
same effects.
Even increasing prosperity will not always increase the amount of notes in circula
tion— sometimes the reverse, for as nations become wealthy they learn to economize
the currency. Large transactions are settled by checks on banks or bills of exchange,
and notes are employed only in making payments of small amount. W e cannot here
enlarge on these topics. W e can only recommend the study of the variations on cir
culations of bank notes in Ireland, since the year 1845, as one fruitful illustration of
most important principles, and suggestive of many practical lessons. Here the man
of business may obtain guidance, the man o f science may gather wisdom, and the
statesman may receive instruction.
SCARCITY OF SILVER C0UV I S EU ROPE,
The same scarcity of coin experienced in the United States, prevails throughout the
European Continent, as will be seen from the subjoined paragraph which we copy
from the London Times: —
There never was known for many years so great a scarcity o f silver currency as at
present, in consequence o f the very large exportations of silver that have recently ta
ken place to Port Philip, Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, and other ports of Australian
colonies for the convenience of the adventurers at the “ gold diggins.” Not a vessel
leaves the ports of London, Plymouth, Bristol, Liverpool, die., but takes out a consid
erable amount of both gold and silver specie, either by speculators who are proceeding
to the above colonies for the purpose o f making large purchases of gold from the emiVOL.
X X V I .—
NO.
V.
39
610
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
grants now working at the diggins, or consigned by capitalists and bullion dealers to
their agents at Port Philip, <tc., for the same specific purpose. It is with much diffi
culty that the bankers in the city and West End can obtain silver currency to any am
ount either at the Bank of England or at the Royal Mint, to accommodate their corre
spondents in different parts of the United Kingdom with silver coinage.
A t Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, and other large commercial towns, the de
mand at the various banks for silver is so great, that they are unable to supply parties
with more than £100 to £200, as not only is a vast quantity being shipped off to Aus
tralia and India, but the demands for silver bullion and specie for France, Belgium,
Holland, Hamburg and the Continent, are also very extensive.
In consequence of this immense call for silver, it appears that the authorities at the
mint intend having a considerable snm coined into specie, and likewise gold currency of
half sovereigns and sovereigns for the convenience of the emigrants, who are placed, in
great difficulties from the want of a small circulating medium in exchange for their gold.
B R ITISH CONSOLS AND TH E NATIONAL DEBT.
W e copy from the London Illustrated News the following interesting statement
touching British Consols and the reduction o f the national debt of England.
Last week Consols were called at par, the Three per Cents were at 100, and there
was great cheering on the Stock Exchange. Only once before in the present century
has this circumstance happened, and only three times before since the national debt
became a great national burden.
We will lay before our readers a few interesting
particulars connected with the subject.
The practice of borrowing money for a perpetuity, or on interminable annuities, was
begun in the reign of William III. Previous sovereigns were borrowers; but their
loans were for a limited period, and were repaid when their wars were at an end.
He and his immediate successors borrowed without any intention to repay, and began
a debt that has since been increased to the amount, in 1851, exclusive o f unfunded
debt, of £769,272,562. Instead of borrowing moneyas private individuals do at some
current rate of interest, it was from an early period customary with the government
to fix the rate of interest, generally at 3 per cent., and as the market rate was high
or low to promise to pay a larger or smaller amount of principal. Hence the mass
o f the debt was contracted in a 3 per cent stock, and the amount.of the debt was
augmented nearly two-fifths more than the sum actually lent to the government.
In 1751, the different Three per Cent Stocks were consolidated into one stock, which
has ever since been known by the name of consols, and, with successive additions has
ever since formed a portion of the national debt. Prior to that consolidation the Three
per cents rose in 1837 to 107, the highest point they ever reached. Again, in 1749,
they rose to 100, and from that time to 1844 they were always below par. In 1844
consols were at 101J, and on Friday last they reached 100, being only the second time
consols have been at par since they were created, and only the fourth time within 160
years that a 3 per cent annuity in perpetuity has been worth £100, or more than
£ 100.
The funds have undergone some fearful vicissitudes. In 1700, on the death of the
King of Spain, they fell to 50 per cent, “ whereby,” says the historian, “ great distress
ensued to many.” After the peace of Utrecht, in 1715, they rapidly rose; and be
tween 1730 and the rebellion in 1745, they were never below 89 ; but during the re
bellion iu 1745 they sank to 76. They fell to 53J in 1782, at the close of the American
war ; and, mounting afterwards to 97^ in 1792, fell, in September, 1797, to 47$. This
was the lowest they ever reached. Between that and the highest point, 107, attained
in the year 1737, the difference was equivalent to 117 per cent, sufficient to annihilate
many fortunes, or to confer great wealth on those who purchased when the funds were
at the lowest.
It is customary to speak with approbation of the high price of stocks, and it is
advantageous to stockholders wishing to sell; but it is the reverse of advantageous to
those who wish to buy. To possess one hundred pounds in the 3 per cent, means a
right to claim from the government a perpetual annuity of £3, The price of annuities
varies with the interest of money; and as that is high, as a sum doubles itself in four
teen or twenty-one years, a proportionate less sum paid down will purchase an an
nuity. A high price of the funds, or the necessity of giving a large sum for an
annuity, is equivalent to a low rate of interest for money; and, as a high rate of inter
est is a proof of high profit and of successful industry, a high price of the funds is
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
O il
not considered a good sign by political economists. The security offered by our gov
ernment has undergone no change for the last thirty years, and as it gave £3 a year
to receive £75 or £96, the interest of money in the market was comparatively high
or low. To all borrowers a low rate of interest is advantageous ; to all lenders, the
reverse ; and thus, as we are borrowers or lenders, we speak of a high price of the
funds as advantageous or disadvantageous.
A high price of the funds being equivalent to a low rate of interest, whenever the
funds have risen to par or above it, the interest of the national debt has been reduced,
or an expectation has prevailed that it would be reduced. It is now talked of, but
apparently without reason, as consols have declined, and their immense amount (about
£380,000,000) will prevent the reduction of interest upon them, unless the interest
o f money remains permanently low, and consols rise and continue above p'ar.
The first reduction of interest was made by Sir Robert Walpole in 1716, when, be
ing enabled to borrow at a low rate, he induced the national creditors to accept a
lower rate than they had lent their money at. In 1791 a similar operation was
carried into effect by Mr. Pelham, a brother of the then Duke of Newcastle. No
similar reduction was possible from that period almost to our own times. In 1822
Mr, Vansittart reduced the interest on a 5 five per cent stock to 4 per cent; and in
1824, Mr. Robinson, the present Earl of Ripon, reduced the 4 per cent stock to 3J.
In 1830 Mr. Goulbum followed the same course, and reduced the new 4 per cents to
Si ; and in 1844 he reduced the 34 to 3f, to become 3 per cent stock in 1854. By
the several reductions of interest, it is estimated (what Sir Robert Walpole saved is
not stated) that—
Mr. Pelham saved per year......... ..........................................
Mr. Vansittart
“ “
Mr. Robinson
“ *
Mr. Goulburn, in 1830...............
“
“ 1844..........................................
£655,000
1,230,000
875,000
778,000
625,000
T o ta l,............................... ...........................................
£3,563,000
To which must be added the prospective saving to take place in 1854 of £625,000,
and making a total annual reduction of charge by a reduction in the rate of interest of
£4,188,000. Notwithstanding that reduction, the annual charge was not less in 1850
than £27,902,572; and we cannot flatter our readers with the hope of any further
reduction at present. Californian and Australian gold has had no effect in raising
price, very little effect in lowering the rate of interest, which was lower in 1844 than
in 1852, and giving no reasonable prospect of, as some persons have said, facilitating
the liquidation of the national debt.
ASSAY OFFICE AT ADELAIDE FOR AUSTRALIAN GOLD.
The government of Great Britain has appointed an assay office at Adelaide, at
Which gold, of a not less quantity than twenty ounces, shall be received and weighed,
and a receipt given for the weight; the same shall then be assayed, converted into
ingots, stamped, and delivered at a bank, to be named in the receipt, to, or to the
order o f the owner, for the weight deliverable ; two parts out of every hundred to be
taken; one for the expense of the assay, and the other to be deposited in the treasury
in case of the correctness being disputed. It may afterwards be reassayed. In ex
change for such assayed and stamped gold, the banks shall pay at the rate of £3 11s.
per ounce in notes, which they may issue to the value of the gold bullion they shall
so acquire. The banks are allowed to issue notes to three times the value of their
coin: so that for every £100 of coin they may issue £300 o f notes. These propor
tions are to be strictly adhered to, under a penalty of £100 for every failure. Accounts
to be furnished to the treasury every week of the notes in circulation, and the coin
and bullion held. The notes of banks to be a legal tender, so long as they pay on de
mand in coin or bullion, by all except the banks themselves. Ingots stamped at the
assay office shall be a legal tender by the banks in payment of notes, bills, and checks,
at the rate of £3 11s. per ounce. Forgery, &c., to be punished with imprisonment and
hard labor, for a period not more than fifteen years, and not less than two years. The
act to continue in force for twelve months.
C 12
Journal o f Banking, Currency, and Finance.
TH E SMALL NOTE LAW OF MARYLAND.
The following is the law passed at the last session of the Maryland Legislatu re
“ to prevent the circulation o f notes or bills of a less denomination than five dollars.”
S ection 1. Beit enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland, That on and after
the first day of October, eighteen hundred and fifty-two, it shall not be lawful for any
person, firm, or association of persons, corporation or body politic, to pay out, circulate
or receive in payment of any debt, any bank note, promissory note, or other obliga
tion, payable to bearer, or indorsed in blank or to bearer, or any other note, token,
scrip, or device whatsoever, devised or intended for circulation as currency, issued out
o f the limits of this State, of a less denomination than five dollars, under the penalty
of five dollars for each and every offence, to be recovered by an action of debt in the
name of the State, before any justice of the State.
S eo . 2. And be it enacted, That one-half of the penalty recovered in any case under
the act shall go to the informer, and the residue shall be paid to the collector of county
or city taxes for the use of the county or city where the same may be prosecuted for;
and in all cases the informer shall be a competent witness.
S ec. 3. And be it enacted, That in case any person against whom any judgment
may be rendered for the penalty provided by this act, shall not immediately pay the
same and costs of the prosecution, or give security satisfactory to the justice rendering
the judgment, for the payment, he shall be committed to prison, there to remain until
the same shall be paid, or until the expiration of ten days from the date o f the commit
ment, whichever shall first occur.
S ec . 4. And be it enacted, That from and after the first day of March, eighteen
hundred and fifty-three, it shall not be lawful for any bank, savings institution, corpo
ration, or body politic, of this State, or for any person or association of persons, to
make, issue or pay out any note or device, of the nature and character described in the
preceding section of this act, of a less denomination than five dollars, under the pen
alty prescribed in the said section for each offence, and to be recovered in the same
manner.
CONDITION OF TH E BANKS OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
The circulation, deposits, specie, and discounts of the Banks of South Carolina, ac
cording to the official statement of August 81, 1852, have been as follows: —
Bank State South Carolina........
Branch Columbia.......................
Branch Camden.........................
S. W. Railroad............................
Planters’ and Mechanics’............
Union Charleston........................
Bank South Carolina..................
State Bank, South Carolina.. . .
T o t a l............................... .
Circulation.
Deposits.
Specie.
$1,575,021
$484,297
119,727
27,547
221,247
270,547
173,372
263,506
291,598
$92,233
4,577
2,493
86,613
167,172
106,463
144,468
114,326
$2,196,460
1,105,588
430,685
409,989
1,045,270
700,187
860,956
936,187
$3,406,293 $1,851,841
$721,345
$7,685,322
438,954
354,020
218,355
360,162
459,285
Discounts.
FINANCES OF TH E ROMAN STATES,
In the Budget for the current year the income is stated at 60,000,000 francs, the
expenditure at 69,300,000 francs. The income, divided by the number of the popu
lation, gives an average of 19 francs 65 centimes of taxes per head.
The Pope’s civil list, the keeping in repair of his palaces, of the muse
ums, the expenses of the noble guard, the Swiss troops, the salaries
of the Sacred College, of the Nuncios, and the Roman diplomatic body,
cost annually.......................................................................................francs
The public debt amounts to............................................................................
The army costs.................................................................................................
Public works....................................................................................................
Public instruction.............................................................................................
The pensions amount t o .................................................................................
3.300.000
21, 000,000
10, 000,000
2.800.000
500,000
5,000,000
613
Commercial Statistics.
ARITHMETICAL ACCUMULATION OF MONEY,
K ellogg, in his “ Labor and other Capital,” forcibly illustrates the accumulation of
capital from various rates of interest. A late French writer says, that a sum of mo
ney, invested at 5 per cent, compound interest, is doubled in fourteen years and some
months, quadrupled in less than thirty years, octupled in less than forty-five years, and
so on. From this it would appear that if a centime had been placed out at such inte
rest, pro bono publico, in the year 800, when Charlemagne was crowned Emperor of
the. West, the 30,000,000 Frenchmen inhabiting the country at the revolution in 1830,
would have enjoyed an income o f 100,000,000,000 francs.
Such a-ithmetically true and economically impossible results of old deposits, are
made the groundwork o f some work of fiction; but writers of another class are obli
ged to attend to the obvious fact, that in order to effect such an accumulation of capi
tal the business of the bankers and the wealth of the community would require the
increase in the same proportion. Money does not breed spontaneously. The party to
whom it is entrusted must use his money in such a way as to enable him not only to
pay the interest, but to derive a profit from the transaction.
COM M ERCIAL STATISTICS.
STATISTICS OF TH E TRADE AND COMMERCE OF CINCINNATI,
In another part of the present number of the “ Merchants' Magazine and Com
mercial Review ” will be found a review of the Trade and Commerce rof Cincinnati
for the year ending August 31st, 1852. W e give below tabular statements of the
imports and exports, destination of specified articles, value o f principal products, and
prices of the same for the year ending August 31st, 1852. For similar statistics, for
previous years, the reader is referred to the Merchants’ Magazine for October, 1851,
(vol. xxv., pp. 485-489,) and the volumes o f this Magazine from its commencement
in 1839:—
. DESTINATION OF SPECIFIED ARTICLES EXPOETED FROM THE PORT OF CINCINNATI DURING
TIIE YE AR 1851-52, COMMENCING THE FIRST DAY
LAST OF AUGUST.
Commodities.
B eef.................... . .bbls.
Beef.....................
Butter.................
Butter . . .firkins it kegs
Corn.....................
Cheese.................
Candles.................
C otton.................
Coffee................... . sacks
Flour......................bbls.
I r o n ..................... pieces
Iron.....................
Iron.....................
Lard.....................
Lard..................... ..kegs
Lard oil............... ..bbls.
Linseed o il...........
Molasses...............
Pork.....................
P o r k ...................
P o r k ....................
P o r k ...................
Soap.....................
Sugar...................
Whisky................ ..bbls.
To New
Orleans.
16,614
7,789
1,731
25,045
7,398
60,119
53,164
25
5
309,589
4,673
738
62
26,749
87,769
10,120
3,181
22,577
12,422
117,007
1,556,010
5,486
6
148,848
OF
SEPTEMBER, AND
To other down
To up
river ports. river ports.
393
29
755
4,551
2,364
79,178
33,188
35
13,749
85,712
87,306
21,598
2,079
482
4,863
2,977
2,089
4,294
2,351
760
2,968
581,385
14,266
2,005
46,736
1,021
941
90
648
38,331
4,746
17,615
6,912
9,081
11,107
9,226
2,464
1,642
6,099
5,910
4,951
1,391
25,154
14,917
12,373
5,173
1,471,358
4,278
8,144
4«736
ENDING THE
Via canals &
railways.
1,987
264
430
1,151
3,138
6,646
17,760
1,838
20,810
1,803
71,204
11,568
7,546
14,535
17,303
6,782
2,716
19,418
4,088
8,843
6,412
575,230
4,003
10,205
8,520
By flatboats.
16
10
1,049
1,320
4,073
717
23
135,466
66
270
410
5,697
11
727
260
2,095
575,230
219
27,440
614
Commercial Statistics.
VALUE OF THE PRINCIPAL ARTICLES IMPORTED INTO THE POET
THE YE AR ENDING AUGUST
Articles.
Apples, green.....................
Beef..................................... .
Beef.......................................
Bagging................. ..............
Barley...................................
Beans....................................
Butter....................................
Butter...................................
Blooms.................................
Bran, & c ...............................
Candles.................................
Corn......................................
Corn meal.............................
Cider....................... . . . . . . .
Cheese...................................
Cheese...................................
Cotton....................................
Coffee......................... . . . . .
Codfish.................................
Cooperage.............................
E ggs......................................
Flour......................................
Feathers...............................
Fish, suud............................. ..................bbls.
Fish........................................
Fruit, dried...........................
Grease....................................
Glass......................................
Glassware....................... ....
H emp................... ................
Hides, loose..
.................
Hides, green......................... .................... lbs.
H ay........................................
Herrings...............................
Hogs.....................................
H ops......................................
Iron and steel.......................
Iron and steel.......................
Iron and steel.......................
Lead......................................
Lard..................... ..................
Lard.......................................
Leather.................................
Lemons.................................
L im e .....................................
Liquors.................................
Molasses................................
Malt......................................
Nails......................................
Oil .......................................
Oranges....................... .
Oakum..................... ..............
Oats........................................
Oil cake................................. ...................lbs.
Pork and bacon.....................
Pork and bacon.....................
Pork and bacon.....................
Pork and bacon.....................
P ota toes...............................
Pig metal...............................
OF
CINCINNATI
DURING
31ST, 1852.
Total imports. Average value.
$1 60
71,182
1,609
9 00
15 00
1,145
2 00
71
45
49,994
1 60
14,137
25 00
10.203
13 00
13,720
60 00
4,036
50
131,014
2 00
653
30
653,788
40
8,640
3 00
874
12 00
46
2
40
251,753
50 00
12,776
17 00
95,732
25 00
431
60
135,118
4 00
10,544
3 20
611,042
12 00
6,716
9 50
20,076
2 00
1,075
2 00
24,877
15 00
1,936
2 25
44,004
4 40
36,602
25 50
18,334
2 40
54,647
54,905
2 50
9,270
50
5,149
9 00
410,210
60 00
1,591
1 45
194,107
3 75
54,078
24 00
10,111
3 12
54,733
21 00
36,047
4 25
32,283
9 60
11,384
5 00
4,434
80
64,817
90 00
3,162
13 00
93,132
60
33,220
3 00
64,189
28 0O
8,395
6 00
4,547
12
00
1,843
25
00
197,868
247,400
i
45 00
10,338
22
00
1,987
15 00
22,501
6
16,532,884
1 25
20,739
24 00
22,605
Total value.
8106,844
14,481
14,885
142
40,447
21,219
265,075
178,360
201,800
65,507
1,632
196,136
3,456
2,622
552
604,141
638,800
1,627,444
10,775
81,070
42,166
1,635,334
80,592
190,722
2,150
49,754
29,040
99,009
18,265
467,517
27,269
1,557
23,195
2,574
3,691,890
95,460
291,160
202,729
242,664
171,040
756,987
137,201
102,456
22,170
51,853
284,580
1,117,584
29,889
192,667
232,540
27,280
22,116
49,467
1,237
465,214
43,714
337,515
991,973
25,923
543,570
Commercial Statistics.
Articles.
Pimento and p e p p e r ...........
R ye..................................... .
Rosin, tar, A c..................... .
Raisins.................................
Rope, twine, <fcc...................
Rice.....................................
Sugar...................................
Sugar....................................
Sugar...................................
Seed, flax.............................
Seed, grass.........................
Seed, hemp.........................
Salt.......................................
Salt..................................... .
Shot.....................................
Tea.......................................
Tobacco...............................
Tobacco...............................
Tobacco...............................
Tallow........ , ......................
Wines................................... ,. bbls. & ^ casks
Wines...................................
Wheat.................................
W ool...................................
Whisky...............................
Yarns, cotton.......................
Yarns............., ....................
615
Total imports.
1,425
58,317
14,184
28,417
3,203
3,782
39,224
15,237
2,259
48,0 74
10,819
304
91,312
58,020
1,688
12,810
11,469
1,996
23,060
5,930
4,482
8,822
377,037
4,562
272,788
10,836
167,002
Total value.............
Average value. Total value.
13 00
18,525
50
29,168
3 50
49,644
2 00
68,834
5 00
16,015
25 00
94,550
58 00
2,274,992
14 00
213,318
SO 00
67,770
3 00
144,222
11 00
119,019
1 50
456
1 30
118,705
1 50
87,030
17 1 0
28,596
25 00
320,250
46 00
527,160
4 00
9,984
20 00
461,200
15 00
88,950
35 00
156,870
10 00
83,220
226,422
60
50 00
228,100
6 75
1,773,122
1 50
16,254
1 75
622,507
$24,715,331
[N ote.— In the above, we have not included dry goods, hardware, queensware, and
sundry miscellaneous articles which, with those mentioned, come under the head of
merchandise. It would be utterly impossible to make an estimate of these articles,
coal and lumber are also omitted— no correct statement of the amount imported being
obtainable. In the above calculation we have given as nearly as possible the correct
average value, and we believe the aggregate is below rather than above the actual
amount. The value of the total imports at this port is not less than forty millions.—
E ditor.}
IMPORTS INTO CINCINNATI FOR THE YEAR COMMENCING SEPTEMBER 1ST, 1 8 5 1 , AND
END
ING AUGUST 3 1 s t , 1 8 5 2 .
.. ....... bbls.
Beef............... ..
Apples, green
Bagging...........
Barley..............
Beans...............
Butter............... ...............bbls.
Butter...............
B loom s.............
Bran, &c
Candles
Corn
Corn meal
Cider
bbls.
Cheese
Cheese
Cotton
Coffee
Codfish
Cooperage
......
.......
..........
....
......... ........
.......
.......
........
........
.......
....
71,182
1,609
1,145
71
89,994
14,137
10,203
13,720
4,036
131,014
653
653,788
8,640
874
46
241,753
12,776
95,732
431
135,118
Eggs...............
Feathers........
Fish, sund___
Fish.................
Fruit, dried.
Grease............. ...............bbls.
Glass.............
Glassware.
Hemp
.bdls. & bales
Hides
Hides, green.
H ay
Herring
Hogs
Hops
Iron A steel
Iron
ste e l.
Iron & steel..
Lead............... ........................- p i g s
.
..
....... .
.......
..........
......
.........
........
..
<fc
.
10,544
511,042
6,716
20,076
1,075
24.847
1,936
44,004
36,602
18,334
54,647
54.905
9,270
5,194
160,684
1,591
194,107
54,078
1 0 ,1 1 1
5 4 ,7 7 3
616
Commercial Statistics.
Lard...............
36,041 Raisins........
Lard............... ................kegs
82,288 Rope, Twine, A c .. .
Leather.......... ...............bdls.
11,384 Itic e .............
Lemons...........
4,434 Sugar...........
Lime............... .................bbls.
64,811 Sugar...........
Liquors............
3,162 Sugar...........
Merchandise and sund.
. . pks.
458,103
Seed, fla x .. .
Merchandise and sund. . . tons
1,958 Seed, grass .
Molasses.........
93,132 Seed, hemp..
Malt.................
33,220 Salt...............
.Nails.............
64,189 Salt...............
Oil................... .................b b k
8,305 [.S h ot...........
Oranges...........
4,541 Tea...............
1,843
Oats.................
191,868 Tobacco. . . .
Oil cake...........
241,400 T obacco.. . .
Pork <fc bacon.
10,333 Tallow.........
Pork bacon.
1,981 Wines........... . bbls. <fc i casks
Pork <fc bacon. ...............bbls.
22,501 Wines........... . basket <fc boxes
Pork in bulk.. ...................lbs. 16,532,884 Wheat...........
Potatoes........... ...............bbls.
20,139 Wool............
Pig metal___
22,605 Whisky........
. . . bbls.
Pimento & pepper...........bags
1,4 2 5 : Cotton yarn.
. . pkgs.
R ye.................
58,311 Cotton ya m .
Rosin, &c........ ................bbls.
14,184 |
• EXPORTS FROM CINCINNATI FOR THE TEAR COMMENCING SEPTEMBER
INNG AUGUST
ST,
.
31
Apples, green.
A lco h o l.........
B eef...............
B e e f...............
Beans...............
Brooms...........
Butter............. ................bbls.
Batter............. firkins tfekegs
Bran, <tc...........
Bagging...........
Corn.................
Corn meal__ _
Cheese.............
Cheese.............
Candles............
Cattle...............
Cotton.............
Coffee...............
Cooperage__ _
E ggs.................
Flour................
Feathers...........
Fruit, dried . . .
Grease............. .............. bbls.
Grass seed .. . .
Horses.............
H ay.................
Hemp...............
Hides............... .................. lbs.
Hides...............
Iron...................
Iron................... .............bdls.
Iron...................
Lard................. ............. bbls.
Lard................. ..............kegs
1,223
1,601
20,015
9,023
1,611
1,934
3,066
31,395
10,543
12,918
51,231
928
11
150,689
121,711
1,840
8,810
43,654
64,219
9,160
408,211
1,816
6,413
4,132
1,581
944
554
3,616
142.823
31,115
112,409
36,368
11,329
41,862
115,845
1852
28,411
3,203
3,182
89,224
15,231
2,259
48,014
10,819
304
91,312
58,020
1,688
12,810
11,410
1,996
23,000
5,930
4,482
8,322
311,031
4,562
212,188
10,836
161,002
1ST, 1851, AND END-
Lard oils..................... ...b bls.
Linseed oil...................
Molasses......................
Oil caks.......................
Oats...........................
Potatoes.....................
Pork & bacon.............
Pork <fe bacon .............
Pork & bacon............. ..bbls.
Pork & bacon, in bulk . . ..lbs.
Pork............................
Rope, <fec..................... . .pkgs.
Soap.............................
Sheep...........................
Sugar...........................
Salt.............................
Salt.............................
Seed, flax..................... ..bbls.
Sundry merchandise. . •pkgs.
Sundry merchandise.. . . tons
Sundry liquors.............
Sundry manufactures. .. pcs.
Sundry produce........... ..pkgs.
Starch........................... . boxes
Tallow .........................
Tobacco.............boxes & kegs
Tobacco....................... .hhds.
Tobacco.......................
Vinegar....................... ..bbls.
Whisky........................
W ool.............................
W ool.............................
White lead................... .kegs
Castings....................... .pieces
Castings.......................
24,380
9,311
48,866
1,601
2,118
23,844
43,933
84,398
131,560
2,312
3,912,943
9,365
28,033
45
20,360
21,022
16,314
3,620
656,193
11,241
49,348
66,200
42,333
18,293
3,039
24,161
10,821
629
5,965
216,124
3,404
2,912
65,514
33,942
1,629
Commercial Statistics.
617
1 8 51 -52.
AVERAGE PRICES OF MERCHANDISE IN CINCINNATI,
AVERAGE PRICES OF NEW ORLEANS MOLASSES AND SUGAR, WESTERN RESERVE CHEESE,
RIO COFFEE, MESS PORK, WHEAT, FLOUR, LARD, HAMS, ETC.
Months.
N. O. W. R. Rio N. O.
mol’s, che’e. coffee, su’ r. Corn.
September...........................
October..................................
November............................
December.............................
January...............................
February.............................
March....................................
A p r il.....................................
M a y ......................................
June.....................................
J u ly ......................................
A u gu st.................................
33£
34*
37*
35
28
27*
30
31
33
34
34
35*
6*
6£
6f
6*
6*
6£
7
6|
6*
6
6
6£
9£
9*
9*
9f
9£
9f
10*
10*
10J
10
9*
9J-
6-*
6
6£
5f
6*
5
5*
6f
5f
5*
5*
5£
34
34
31 -*
29
28
28
28
27
28
30
32£
39*
Mess
pork.
Prime
keg Plain
Flonr. Wheat, lard. ha's.
15.28 3.14 59
13.30 3.15 59
12.50 2.99 58
12 25 3.04 58
12.61 3.09 59
13.84 3.30 594
14.75 3.26 62
16.30 3.12 62
16.45 3.20 61
17.62 3.21 63
19.75 8.19 62
19.00 3.19 69
10* 9
9
8
7* 8
7*
..
7f
..
8£
8*
8* 8£
9f 9
10£ 9£
10
9*
10
9£
11* 9£
RATES OF FREIGHT FROM CINCINNATI TO NEW ORLEANS.
RATES OF FREIGHT FOR FLOUR, PORK, AND WHISKY FROM CINCINNATI TO NEW ORLEANS,
AT THE CLOSE OF EACH MONTH THE PASJ TWO YEARS.
Flour.
Pork.
Whisky.
50-51. 51-52. 50—51. 51-52. 50-51. 51-52.
September........................... per bbl.
October................................................
November...........................................
December............................................
January................................................
February ............................................
March...................................................
A p ril...................................................
May......................................................
J une......................................................
July......................................................
August.................................................
§1 00
75
50
45
60
55
40
35
35
40
75
60
40
75
60
60
50
30
30
45
75
75
,.
,,
..
60
65
75
75
50
50
40
60
90
90
60
1 00
80
75
65
35
35
1 50
1 00
75
75
1 00
1 00
50
60
50
65
1 00
1 00
,,
,,
..
2
2
1
1
1
1
50
00
75
25
00
00
85
50
45
75
1 50
1 50
RATES OF FREIGHT FROM CINCINNATI TO PITTSBURG.
RATES OF FREIGHT FOR WHISKY AND OTHER MERCHANDISE FROM CINCINNATI TO PITTS
BURG, AT THE CLOSE OF EACH MONTH FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS.
Whisky per bbl.
4 9 -5 0 J 0 -.il. 51-51.
September
October. . .
November.
December..
January . .
February .
March........
A pril........
May...........
June..........
J u ly ..........
August... .
,.
50
35
35
40
35
30
35
35
75
60
65
50
50
35
30
40
40
45
40
33
75
40
33
1 00
1 00
30
45
50
45
50
40
37
60
1 50
1 00
Pound freight, per 100 lbs.
4 9 -5 0 .5 0 -5 1 .5 1 -5 2 .
..
55
12*
12*
12*
10
10
10
10
20
20
20
15
15
12*
12*
12*
12*
14
12*
10
25
12*
12*
37
30
12
18
15
14
15
12
10
15
50
20
EXPORTS OF RICE FROM SAVANNAH.
The exports of rice in casks from Savannah, (Georgia,) according to a statement in
the Republican, have been for the last twelve years as follows:—
1851-52 ___
1847-48.......... . . . 30,136 1843-44.......... . . . 28,543
1850-51 ........ . . . 35,602 1846-47..........
1842-43.......... . . . 26,263
1849-50 ........ . . . 42,792 1845-46.......... . . . 32,147 1841-42.......... . . . 22,065
184S-49 ........
1S44-45.......... . . . 29,217 1840-41.......... . . . 23,587
618
Commercial Statistics.
LEADING EXPORTS OF CHARLESTON.
The Charleston (S. C.) Courier furnishes the subjoined statement of the export of
cotton, rice, and lumber from that port during the year ending 31st August, 1852 :—
EXPORTS OF COTTON AND RICE FROM SEPTEMBER 1 S T , 1 8 5 1 , TO AUGUST 3 1 s T, 1 8 5 2 .
Liverpool..........................
Sea Island.
Bales.
15,635
Scotland...............................
Other British ports..........
179,650
8,516
8,419
Rice.
Trcs.
5,678
5
7,206
Upland.
Bales.
Total Great Britain
15,635
191,585
12,889
Havre..............................................
Marseilles........................................
Other French ports.......................
3,373
3,100
....
35,389
1,482
3,706
Total to F r a n c e ,.,..........
3,373
40,577
4,299
....
2,622
5,346
8,272
2,867
6,714
18,714
....
....
16,240
37,265
22,025
19,008
270,427
65,253
92
21
3,192
19,901
715
144,045
24,548
10,336
4,101
20
21,506
5,041
3,563
17,274
19
H olland..........................................
Belgium.................... ......................
North of Europe.................
Total to North o f Europe
South of Europe............................
"West Indies, <Sic........................... .
Total to foreign ports___
B oston ...........................................
Rhode Island, <fec...........................
New York............................ ........
Philadelphia............................... .
Baltimore and Norfolk................ .
New Orleans, itc ......................... .
Other United States ports..........
...
....
...
1,199
20;770
....
—
Total coastwise................
Total foreign....................
3,305
19,008
199,605
270,427
61,524
65,253
Grand to ta l.........
32,313
470,032
126,777
EXPORTS OF ROUGH RICE AND LUMBER FROM SEPTEMBER 1 s t , 1 8 6 1 , TO AUGUST 31ST , 1 8 5 2 -
Liverpool................
London .................
Other British ports
Total to Great Britain
Havre....................
Bordeaux..............
Other French ports,
Total to France
North of Europe,
South of Europe
West Indies, (fee.
Total to foreign ports.
Rough rice.
Bush.
38,856
142,857
.............
Lumber.
Feet.
378,866
...............
263,523
181,713
642,389
53
18,484
..........
60,018
7,360
15,064
18,538
82,442
210,289
.............
.............
421,559
1,568,706
1,960,980
4 1 0 ,54 0
4,676,076
Commercial Statistics.
610
Lumber.
Feet.
1,811,778
4,818,429
1,585,848
1,781,749
2,370,162
1.256,724
Rough rice.
Bush.
7,874
Boston.................... ............
Rhode Island......................
New Y o r k .........................
Philadelphia.......................
Baltimore and Norfolk.......
Other United States ports.
44,1 78
Total coastwise.. . .
Total foreign ports
52,050
410,540
13,624,690
4,676,076
Grand total
462,590
18,300,766
EX PORTS OF COTTON FROM SAVANNAH,
The exports of cotton from the port of Savannah (Georgia) for the two years end
ing on the 1st of September, 1851 and 1852, have been as follows:—
1851-52.
1850-51.
Upland.
Sea Island,
Upland.
Liverpool.........................................
Other British ports.........................
96,364
6,461
7,410
397
122,228
7,108
Total Great Britain.................
102,825
7,807
120,336
H a v re ..............................................
Other French p o r ts .......................
11,541
690
10,546
590
Sea Island.
Total France...........................
Other foreign ports......................... —
—
11,541
2,483
.............
690
—
11,136
4,678
116,849
8,497
145,150
Boston..............................................
Providence.......................................
New York.......................................
Philadelphia...................................
Baltimore and Norfolk. . ..............
Charleston........................................
Other United States ports.............
80,291
3,074
145,877
17,951
4,527
17,638
5,600
205
22,632
1,633
118,828
10,835
8,366
3,308
40
Total coastwise...................
Total foreign ports.............
224,958
116,849
3,145
8,497
160,642
145,150
341,807
11,642
805,792
Total foreign ports......... .............
Grand total.............. .............
7,605
11,261
2,599
....
....
341
—
TH E LUMBER TRADE OF SAVANNAH.
The lumber business at the port of Savannah, (Georgia,) according to the Republi
can., has increased rapidly within the last few years; and it will be seen by the fol
lowing table that the exports for the past year have exceeded those of any previous
one by several millions of feet. W e would remark that each year closes on the 1st of
September:—
1851-52. .feet
1850-51.........
1 8 4 9 -5 0 ......
1848-49..........
25,508,500
17,764,300
17,719,100
15,380,300
1 8 4 7 -4 8 ..feet
1846-47..........
1845-46..........
1844-45..........
16,449,558
10,731,388
18,585,644
8,270,582
1843-44..feet
1842-43........
1841-42........
1840-41........
5,933,351
7,519,550
8,390,400
14,275,200
The market is well supplied with timber at present, and the mills are all busily em
ployed sawing out planks of all descriptions. There are at this time six large steam
saw mills in the immediate neighborhood of the city in successful operation. The fol
lowing are the quotations for timber, die. ::—
l
Commercial Statistics.
020
88
14
9
14
9
10
6
4
16
Steam-sawed refuse, per 1,000 feet,
Steam-sawed merchantable............
River lumber, refuse.......................
Merchantable to prim e...................
Ranging lumber for export.............
Mill ranging.....................................
Timber...............................................
Shingles, cypress...............................
Sawed cypress shingles...................
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
a i n 00
a 18 00
a 10 00
a 16 00
a
a 13 00
a 11 00
4 50
a
a
BREADSTUFFS EXPORTED FROM UNITED STATES IN 1851-52,
The Shipping List furnishes the subjoined statement of the exports of breadstuffs
August, 1852, distinguishing the leading ports from which the exports were made
Meal,
bbls.
Wheat,
bush.
Corn,
bush.
Hew Y o r k .....................................
New Orleans.................................
Philadelphia...................................
Baltimore........................................
Boston..............................................
Other ports......................................
70
60
1,680
1,933,319
4,311
507,963
193,848
18,135
54,544
857,035
481,896
45,828
125,080
21.626
45,384
Total....................................
Same time last y e a r .........
1,810
6,553
2,712,120
1,523,908
1,576,749
2,368,860
Decrease.................
3,743
Flour,
bbls.
—
1,188,212
792,111
PR0DUCTI0N OF SUGAR THROUGHOUT THE WORLD IN 1851.
375.000
160.000
153.000
145.000
117.000
100.000
78.000
60.000
55.000
30.000
22,500
Cuba and Porto R i c o ....................................................... tons of 2,000 lbs.
European beet-root.........................................................................................
British West Indies.........................................................................................
United States, (including maple sugar)........................................................
Brazil.................................................................................................................
J a v a ................................. ................................................................................
B en ga l..............................................................................................................
French Colonies................................................................................................
Mauritius..........................................................................................................
Manilla, Siam, Ac., A c.....................................................................................
Dutch and Danish Colonies...........................................................................
1,295,500
Total
THE MERCANTILE MARINE OF THE WORLD.
The following authentic and highly interesting tables are from the Belfast (Ireland)
Mercantile Journal:—
NUMBER OF VESSELS AND TONNAGE BELONGING TO THE FOLLOWING COUNTRIES.
Countries.
Tons.
Great Britain............. 4,144,115
Prance.......................
5 95,344
Norway.......................
337,058
Russia.........................
G reece.......................
150 ,00 0
N aples.......................
100,000
Hamburg...................
82,053
Belgium.....................
22,7 70
Cape of Good Hope .
4,080
Vessels.
34,0 90
13,679
3,064
750
4 ,0 0 0
286
161
34
Countries.
Netherlands.............
Austria......................
Denmark tfc Duchies.
Canada......................
Ceylon.......................
Mauritius.................
Tuscany.................
Prussia......................
Tons.
396,924
178,000
168,978
133,402
68,552
30,828
10,020
27,598
133.658
Vessels.
1,793
10,118,841
67,184
4 ,710
1,520
983
609
125
773
977
3,536,451
Total................
Commercial Statistics.
621
THE SHIPPING AND TONNAGE ENTERED INWARDS AND CLEARED
FOLLOWING COUNTRIES.
Countries.
Tons.
Entered.
Vessels.
Great Britain........................
France.....................................
Netherlands..........................
Hamburg...............................
Canada....................................
Spain.......................................
India........................................
Prussia...................................
United States.......................
Russia...................................
Norway....................................
Sardinia............................... .
A ustria...................................
Sweden....................................
Belgium...................................
31,249
15,264
6,959
4,094
1,699
5,206
868
4,690
21,643
6,401
7,969
6,000
China........................................
Other countries.......................
6,707
2,424
2,019
531
15,915
T o ta l...........................
139,638
E g y p t .............................................
OUTWARDS FROM THE
Cleared.
Vessels.
Tons.
5,906,978
1,430,085
1,136,864
729,1S6
636,407
470,973
522,056
823,456
4,361,002
1,177,994
806,766
700,000
662,722
562,294
349,638
432,696
163,717
1,965,867
22,738,801
29,011
13,868
7,017
4,114
1,732
4,622
1,128
4,635
21,805
9,197
8,160
6,000
6,347
2,368
1,707
528
17,163
136,402
VALUE OF PRODUCE RECEIVED AT N EW ORLEANS FROM TH E IN TERIO R.
The following comparison of the value of the principal products of the interior, re
ceived at the port o f New Orleans from 31st August to 1st September, is compiled
from a series o f tables which the editors of the New Orleans Price Current have
yearly prepared for their “ Annual Statement.” It will he found to exhibit some in
teresting facts in regard to the Commerce of New Orleans with the South and W est:
1851-52.
Cotton........................................................
Sugar..........................................................
Tobacco.......................................................
Flour..........................................................
P ork............................................................
Lard............................................................
L e a d ..........................................................
Molasses....................................................
Bacon..........................................................
Corn............................................................
Whisky........................................................
W heat........................................................
Bagging......................................................
B eef............................................................
H em p.........................................................
Bale rope....................................................
Butter.........................................................
Hay..............................................................
Hides...........................................................
Coal.............................................................
Potatoes......................................................
Staves........................................................
Tallow ........................................................
Feathers....................................................
Oats.............................................................
Corn meal...................................................
Other articles............................................
Total...............................................
§48,592,222
11,827,350
7,196,185
3,708,848
5,250,541
3,925,845
878,964
4,026,000
6,348,622
1,790,663
1,097,640
129,836
780,572
669,657
267,235
677,040
411,628
160,303
247,374
425,000
456,190
287,122
26,140
72,275
347,454
7,542
9,453,461
§108,051,708
1850-51.
§48,766,164
12,678,180
7,736,600
4,234,977
4,134,632
3,381,404
1,041,616
2,625,000
5,879,470
1,726,881
1,261,928
177,594
903,800
541,511
452,088
804,180
342,835
144,843
140,338
350,000
325,844
315,000
147,936
127,535
479,741
10,986
8,202,409
§106,924,083
1849-50.
§41,886,150
12,396,150
6,166,400
3,403,919
0,632,554
5,024,340
1,257,558
2,400,000
2,992,787
1,599,302
1,059,777
115,016
816,494
685,120
695,840
688,832
239,672
225,032
54,427
270,000
332,006
210,000
97,240
177,000
325,795
14,264
7,132,198
§96,897,873
Commercial Regulations.
622
Total in
“
“
“
1848-49...............
1847-48...............
1846-47...............
1845-46...............
$81,989,692
79,779,151
90,033,256
77,193,464
[ Total in
|
“
I
“
|
“
1844-45...............
1843-44...............
1842-43...............
1841-42...............
$57,196,122
60,094,710
53,782,454
45,716,045
From the above table it results that the total value of all the products received at
New Orleans from the interior, from September 1st, 1841, to September 1st, 1852, a
period of eleven years, amounts to $867,658,164.
COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.
/
T A R IFF OF DUTIES Iff TH E PROVINCE OF NEW BRUNSWICK,
UNDER THE ACT FOR RAISING A REVENUE, PASSED IN THE SESSION OF 1851, AND IN FORCE
UNTIL 31ST DECEMBER, 1854.
SPECIFIC DUTIES.
Apples, per bushel..........................................................................................
Axes, each, of three pounds weight and upwards......................................
Butter, per hundred w eigh t............... ..........................................................
Beans and peas, per bushel.............................................................................
Barley, per bushel...........................................................................................
Barley meal, per hundred weight..................................................................
Buckwheat, per bushel...................................................................................
Buckwheat meal, per hundred weight..........................................................
Candles of all kinds, except sperm and wax, per pound...........................
“
sperm and wax, per pound........................................................ . . .
Cattle o f all kinds over one year old, each..................................................
Cheese, per hundred weight................................... .......................................
Cider, per gallon............................................... .................. ............................
Clocks or clock cases of all kinds, each....................... ............... .
Coffee, per pound........................................................ ....................................
Coals, per ton...................................................................................................
Chair, per dozen, (in addition to any duty imposed on chiirs and parts
of chairs by this act,)..................................................................................
Corn meal, per barrel of 196 pounds.................................................... .....
Fruits, (dried,) per hundred weight..............................................................
Horses, mares, and geldings, each..................................................................
Lard, per pound................................................ ............................................
Leather— sole, upper leather, harness, and belt leather, per pound.........
Sheep skins, tanned and dressed, per dozen.................................................
Calf skins, tanned, per dozen..........................................................................
Malt liquors of every description, (not being aqua vita:, otherwise charged
with duty,) whether in bottles or otherwise, per gallon.........................
Meats, fresh, per hundred weight..................................................................
“
salted and cured, per hundred weight..............................................
With an additional duty of Is. 2d. per hundred weight on and after the
first day of April, 1852, and a further increase of duty of Is. 2d. per
hundred weight on and after the first day of April, 1853.
Molasses and treacle, per gallon.......... ............. ...........................................
Oats, per bushel...............................................................................................
Oatmeal, per barrel of 196 pounds...............................................................
Eye, per bushel................................................................................................
Eye flour, per barrel of 196 pounds ...........................................................
Soap, per pound...............................................................................................
Spirits and cordials, viz.:— brandy, per gallon.............................................
“
“
rum, for every gallon thereof of any strength
under and not exceeding the strength of
proof of 26 by the bu b b le.........................
“
and for every bubble below 26 in number, by
the bubble, an additional, per gallon. . . . .
£0
0
0 1
0 9
0 1
0 0
0 2
0 0
0 2
0 0
0 0
2 0
0 H
0 0
0 15
0 0
0 1
6
6
4
6
6
0
6
6
1
4
0
0
3
0
H
0
0 10
0
1
0 9
2 0
0 0
0 0
0 8
0 6
0
0
4
0
1
24
0
0
0
0
0
0
9
7
6
4
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
1
0
8
1
3
4
2
0
04
4
0
1
0
0
0
1
Commercial Regulations.
Spirits and cordials, viz.:—lemon syrup, per gallon...................................
“
“
gin, whisky, and all other spirits, (not here
inbefore enumerated,) per gallon................
Sugar, refined, in loaves, per pound............................................. r . ............
“
refined, crushed, and white bastard, per hundred weight...............
“
of all kinds, except refined, crushed, and white bastard, per hun
dred weight...................................
Tea, per pound.................................................................................................
Tobacco, manufactured, except snuff and cigars, per pound.....................
Wines, per gallon.............................................................................................
“ and on every one hundred pounds of the true and real value
thereof, in addition...............
Wheat, per bushel................................
Wheat flour, per barrel of 196 pounds............................ ..........................
623
£0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
9
6
1$
4
0
0
0
0
6
0
0
2
0
2
1J6
10 0 0
0 0 2*
0 3 0
AD VALOREM.
On the following articles, for every one hundred pounds of the true and real value
thereof, viz.:—
Anchors, ashes, barilla, burr-stones, canvas, cordage, (except Manilla
rope,) chain cables, and other chains, for ships’ use, cotton wool and
cotton warp, copper and patent metal, in sheets, bars and bolts, for
ship building, dye-wood, felt, hemp, flax and tow, hides, green and
salted, iron, in bolts, bars, plates, sheet, and pig iron, oakum, ores of
all kinds, pitch, sails and rigging, for new ships, sheathing paper, silk
plush, for hatters’ purposes, tallow, tar, tobacco, unmanufactured,
w ool....................................................................................................... ..
1 0
0
On the following articles, for every one hundred pounds of the true and real value
thereof, viz.:—
Castings, viz.:— steam-engines and boilers, and parts thereof, mill-ma
chinery, ships’ castings, composition, rudder-braces, Ac., machinery of
every description, square stoves, known and designated as Canada
stoves............................................................................................................
Bread and biscuit, bricks, Manilla rope, ready-made clothing...................
Y 10
10 0
0
0
On the following articles, for every one hundred pounds o f the true and real value
thereof, viz.:—
Iron castings, viz.:— Cooking, close, box, and round stoves, and parts
thereof, apparatus for cooking stoves, Franklin stoves, register grates,
fire frames and parts thereof, kitchen ranges, boilers, cast-iron furna
ces and parts thereof, cast-iron plows........................................................
Boots, shoes, and other leather manufactures, chairs and prepared parts
of or for chairs, clock wheels, machinery and materials for clocks,
household furniture, (except baggage, apparel, household effects, work
ing tools and implements, used and in use, of persons or families ar
riving in this Province, if used abroad by them, and not intended for
any other person or persons, or for sale,) looking-glasses, oranges and
lemons, whale oil, (except the return cargoes of vessels fitted out for
fishing voyages from ports in this province,) brushes, hats and hat
bodies, pianofortes, snuff and cigars..........................................................
Carriages, wagons, sleighs, and other vehicles, veneered and other mold
ings for looking-glasses, picture and qther frames, made of wood,
wooden wares of all kinds, matches, corn brooms, and all agricultural
implements, except plows...........................................................................
And all other goods, wares, and merchandise, not herein otherwise
charged with duty, and not hereafter declared to be free from duty,
for every one hundred pounds of the true and real value thereof.. . ,
15
0
0
20
0
0
80
0
0
7 10
0
ARTICLES EXEMPT FROM DUTY.
Baggage, apparel, household effects, working tools and implements, used and in use
o f persons or families arriving in this Province, if used abroad by them, and not in
• Whest may be considered free o f duty, as a resolution was passed by the Legislature on the
th of April, to refund, all duties paid on that article under the Revenue Law, and the Treasurer
s been instructed not to exact the duty.
624
Commercial Regulations.
tended for any other person or persons, or for sale, books, printed, carriages o f travel
ers, not intended for sale, coins and bullion, corn broom brush, Indian corn, rice, ground
and unground, eggs, manures of all kinds, lines and twines for the fisheries, oil, blub
ber, fins and skins, the produce of creatures living in the sea, the return of vessels
fitted out in this Province for fishing voyages, oil— seal, cod, hake, porpoise, palm and
rape— plants, shrubs, and trees, printing paper, types, printing-presses, and printers’
ink, rags, old rope and junk, rock-salt, sails and rigging saved from vessels wrecked,
salt, soap-grease, wood and lumber of all kinds, (except cedar, spruce, pine, and hem
lock shingles,) block-tin, zinc, lead, tin plate, bar and sheet steel.
N ote .— The 1 per cent duty upon all British and foreign manufactured articles, also
on pepper and spices, under the Loan Act, is in addition to the rates above specified.
Ships’ stores allowed to be taken from bond duty free.
By His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor’s proclamation of 3d April, 1850, is
sued under the authority of “ An Act relating to the Trade between the North Amer
ican Possessions,” passed 18th March, 1850, the following articles, being the growth,
production, or manufacture of either Canada, Nova Scotia, or Prince Edward Island,
may be imported into this Province free of duty, that is to say:— Grain and breadstuffs of all kinds, vegetables, fruits, seeds, hay and straw, animals, salted and fresh
meats, butter, cheese, lard, tallow, hides, horns, wool, undressed skins and furs of all
kinds, ores of all kinds, iron in pigs and blooms, copper, lead in pigs, grindstones and
stones of all kinds, earth, coals, lime, ochres, gypsum, ground and unground, rock-salt,
wood, timber and lumber of all kinds, firewood, ashes, fish, fish-oil, viz.: train oil,
spermaceti oil, head matter, blubber, fins and skins, the produce of fish or creatures
living in the sea.
[Tfp The above articles may be imported free via the United States, if accompa
nied with proof of origin.
This scale of duties applies alike to British and foreign goods.
REVISED TA R IFF AT CALCUTTA.
COMPARATIVE VALUATION OF AMERICAN IMPORTS AND EXPORTS UNDER CALCUTTA TARIFF
REVISED 1 s t JULY, 1 8 5 2 .
IMPORTS.
Tariff
12th Dec., 1849.
Brimstone, roll.................................................. rs.
Brimstone, crude....................................................
Candles..................................................................
Cochineal..............................................................
Flour......................................................................
Copper, sheet and sheathiDg.............................
Tile...........................................................
Pig and slab............................................
O ld ..........................................................
Lead, pig and sheet..............................................
Cotton flannel........................................................
Pitch........................................................................
Raising....................................................................
Red lead.................................................................
Soap, b a r ..............................................................
Tobacco..................................................................
V erd igris..............................................................
Tariff
1st July, 1352.
3
10
0
4
8
0
2
0
0
8
0
0
0
0
9
6
0
8
6
0
0
4
0
0
10
0
0
12
0
0
36
0
0
31
0
0
34
0
0
30
0
0
29
0
0
28
0 0
34
0
0
30
0
7
0
0
6
8 0
0
3 6
0
3
2
8
0
3
8 0
10
0
0
7
0
0
10
0
0
9
0
0
2 0
0
1 9
0
0
3
22
8
0
20
0
0
30
0 0
35
0
0
11
0
0
10 4
0
4
0
0
3
8
0
10
0
0
9
0 0
8 0
0 0
EXPORTS.
Gunny Bags........ ............................................... T3.
Gunny C lo th ........................................................
Buffalo h orn s........................................................
Jute.........................................................................
Lac dye..................................................................
Munjeet ................................................................
Castor oil...............................................................
Safflower...............................................................
Turmeric................................................................
9
0
9
8
20
0
0
25
3
0
0
2 0
10
0
0
7
30
0
0
25
2
8 0
0
0 0
0
0
1 8
0
Commercial Regulations.
625
TA R IFF OF TAXES OX TRADE, ETC,, IX M EM PHIS.
The following ordinances were adopted September 14th, 1852, b y the city govern
ment of Memphis, (Tennessee.) They, as will be seen, fix the rate of taxation upon
real estate and other property, and also licenses for transacting various mercantile and
business pursuits:—
Be it ordained by the Mayor and Aldermen o f the city o f Memphis, That the tax on
real and personal property subject to taxation within the corporate limits of said city,
shall be one and one-quarter of one per cent on the assessed value thereof for the
twenty-sixth corporate year, with the school tax of one-eighth of said tax added
thereto, except free persons of color, who shall be exempt from school tax.
Be it further ordained, dr., That all persons pursuing or exercising any of the privi
leges, occupations, or callings hereinafter mentioned, shall be required to take license
previous to commencing such use or exercise, and pay the sum or sums specified herein
for all licenses taken or to be taken out after the publication of this ordinance, except
such licenses as have been running and are sought to be renewed, and expired previous
to the publication of this ordinance then in force at such expiration. In all cases the
school-tax of one-eighth will be added, and also the fee o f the Recorder, one dollar.
Cotton brokers and agents dealing in cotton, per annum...........................
$75 00
Grocers and commission merchants, per annum..........................................
100 00
Dealers in goods, wares, and merchandise, to pay, per annum, as follows:—
On under....................... $3,900............................................................
15 00
Over $3,000 and under 5,000..........................................................
22 50
5,000
“
7,500..........................................................
31 25
7,500
“
10,000..........................................................
50 00
10.000
“
15,000..........................................................
62 50
15.000
“
20,000..........................................................
90 00
20.000
“
30,000..........................................................
125 00
30.000
“
50,000..........................................................
150 00
175 00
A ll over....................... 50,000..........................................................
Brokers and exchange offices to pay, per annum........................................
150 00
Foreign insurance.............................................................................................
150 00
Banks end branch banks.................................................................................
250 00
Livery stables....................................................................................................
75 00
Retailers of spirits, wines, A c........................................................................
25 00
(and $10 on every $100 over $250.)
Porter, ale, and beer houses...........................................................................
25 00
Theaters, per month.........................................................................................
25 00
Concerts, shows, Ac., where money is taken, per 24 hours.......................
10 00
Circuses, per 24 hours.....................................................................................
75 00
Double drays and carts...................................................................................
15 00
Single drays and carts.....................................................................................
12 00
Peddlers, per month.........................................................................................
7 00
Auctioneers, per annum.................................................................................
250 00
Cigar and fruit sto re s.....................................................................................
25 00
Pool tables, (all over one to pay $50)............................................................
100 00
Ten pin alleys, “
“
“
..........................................................
100 00
Bagatelle tables...............................................................................................
25 00
Negro traders...................................................................................................
250 00
Be it further ordained, dbc., That all persons taking out a license under this ordinance
to retail spirits, wines, Ac., shall, before obtaining the same, make oath to the amount
of stock on hand at the time of procuring said license, and give bond and security to
render an account on oath of the amount purchased by him or them during term of
said license, and no new license shall be granted or renewed until this requisition is
complied with, and on every one hundred dollars purchased in addition to their stock
on hand at the issuance of their license they shall pay ten dollars in addition to the
sum paid for their license.
Be it further ordained, &c., That any person or persons who may be deemed liable,
or who are required to take a license under the foregoing revenue ordinance, and who
fails or refuses to take the same, shall, upon the conviction of the same before the
proper authorities, be fined in sum equal to the license so omitted or refused, with all
costs accruing hereby. Approved September 14th, 1852.
V O L . X X V I I .-----H O . V .
40
626
Commercial Regulations.
TH E BALTIMORE BOARD OF TRADE.
AVe have great pleasure in laying before the readers of the Merchants’ Magazine,
the third annual report of the President and Directors of the Baltimore Board of
Trade, together with the act of incorporation and a list of the officers elected at the
annual meeting, which took place on the 4th of October, 1852. The following report
o f the proceedings of the Board during the past year, was presented and read by its
able and efficient President, J ohn C. B rune; Esq. W e are pleased to notice that the
members of this Association have again re-elected Mr. B rune President for the ensu
ing year.The report itself will illustrate in a clearer manner than anything that we could say,
the eminently practical and useful character o f the aim and action of the Board :—
~,
O ffice of B oard of T r ad e , B a ltim o re , O ctober d 1&52.
THIRD ANNUAL REPO RT OF PRESIDENT AND DIRECTORS.
The members o f this association will find appended a copy of the charter granted
by the Legislature of Maryland at its recent session, being in its own language :
“ AN ACT OF INCORPORATION, IN ORDER THAT THEREBY ITS EXISTENCE M AY BE RENDER
ED MORE SECURE, AND THAT IT M AY BE ENABLED TO CARRY OUT W IT H GREATER EFFI
CIENCY THE IMPORTANT AND LAUDABLE OBJECTS FOR W H ICH IT W AS FORMED.”
This instrument is believed to convey the right to all powers which the Board of
Trade is likely to be called upon to exercise.
During the past year a number of subjects of interest have been brought before the
Board of Directors, who have bestowed upon them their best attention and judgment;
passing silently over some of minor importance, they beg leave briefly to allude to
such as they deem worthy of mention.
Among the topics upon which correspondence has been held with Chambers of Com
merce in neighboring cities, and joiDt action taken in bringing the same before Con
gress, are the following:—
A memorial asking legislation to endeavor to prevent or lessen the fearfully frequent
destruction of life, to say nothing o f loss of property, by explosions o f boilers, cbe., on
board o f steam vessels. It is hoped the act passed will prove efficient.
In reference to a reform in the light-house system generally, the Board cheerfully
lent their aid, and much is expected from the deliberations of the commission to whom
Congress has intrusted this subject, alike important on the score of humanity as well
as commercial utility.
The assistance demanded from various quarters in procuring the passage o f the act
known as the River and Harbor Bill, was readily furnished, and the appropriation of
fifty thousand dollars for the improvement of the navigation of the Chesapeake Bay
and its tributaries the Patapsco and- Susquehanna rivers, is welcom e; though it was
generally conceived that our claims on the aggregate fund were larger, considering the
amount of revenue collected at this port and the extent of navigation upon which it is
to be expended.
A correspondence was held with the Chamber of Commerce of New York, in refer
ence to a large accumulated fund, (said to exceed one million of dollars,) derived from
seamen in the shape o f a hospital tax, the result of which was, the cordial concurrence
of your Board in a memorial to Congress, praying that such might be expended for
the benefit of invalid seamen in foreign ports, through our consuls or otherwise. It is
believed, however, that no action was had on this subject.
A recommendation to preserve the Wheeling Bridge was more successful, and that
costly structure having been declared to be a national post-route, will doubtless be suf
fered to remain.
A committee was dispatched to “Washington to use proper exertions for the mainten
ance of a daily mail communication between Baltimore and Norfolk, and through that
place with a large Southern section. It is thought that to the effort thus made, in a
great measure is owing our present enjoyment of this benefit.
Our State Legislature during its last session was memorialized by the Board in ur
gent terms, praying the abolition of the act known as the stamp tax, it being regarded
by our citizens as partial, vexatious and onerous, and it being believed that the neces-
\
Commercial Regulations.
02 7
sity under -which it was imposed no longer exists. But the efforts to procure its repeal
have thus far been unavailing.
The attention ot the Directors having been drawn to the very important subject of
the extension o f the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from Three Forks to Parkersburg,
and of the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad from the northern terminus of the
York and Cumberland Railroad to Sunbury, resolutions were passed and published
approving strongly of these extensions as of great value to the general interests of Bal
timore.
By invitation of the Board a committee appointed by the Directors of the Central
Ohio Railroad Company visited this city in August last, and in public meeting furnish
ed much valuable information in respect to its purposes, position, and prospects, and
exhibited the advantages which would accrue to Baltimore by the extension of said
work eastwardly from Zanesville to the Ohio River, at some point to connect with the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The committee likewise invited subscriptions from our
citizens in aid of this valuable connection, and books have been opened to enable them
to be made.
A weekly journal entitled the Cotton Plant having been established at'Washington,
whose object is to foster and encourage “ direct trade, manufactures, agriculture, and
the development of Southern resources,” was recommended to our merchants liberally
to encourage the same by subscription and advertising, in the belief that it would
prove a powerful auxiliary in augmenting their business.
In connection with this point it may be well to mention, that it is contemplated in
December next to hold in Baltimore a Commercial Convention, at which Southern and
Western interests it is thought will be fully represented ; also that by an interchange
of views at such a meeting, a larger share of the Commerce of the South and West
than we have hitherto enjoyed may be induced to Baltimore. It is especially deemed
auspicious that said Convention should be held at that time, as it will be nearly con
temporaneous with the expected opening of our great work of internal improvement,
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to the Ohio River at Wheeling.
A communication was received at the meeting held 6th ult., from a committee of
the Maryland State Agricultural Society, asking the co-operation o f the Board of
Trade for the “ purpose of aiding them in their investigation of the entire system o f
inspections under the existing laws of Maryland, an impression prevailing among the
agriculturists of the State that their interests would be materially advanced by a rad
ical change in the present system of inspects.” A special committee o f five was at
once appointed to consider and report upon the subject in all its bearings. It is under
stood that it is engaged in this investigation, not only with reference to the systems ex
isting at present in this State, but also comparatively with those prevailing in neigh
boring agricultural and commercial communities. From the joint deliberations of these
committees, a valuable and interesting report may be anticipated shortly.
While on the topic of inspections it may not be inappropriate to remark, that at the
almost unanimous request of buyers and sellers, the City Council at their last session
adopted the license system of inspection of beef and pork, which will shortly go into
operation. In regard to butter and lard the “ voluntary system” prevails, although an
inspector is appointed whose services may be obtained. A strong remonstrance against
a bill proposing a tax of forty cents per ton for the inspection of guano was addressed
to the Senate, stating that it was an unnecessary increase in cost of this extensively
used manure which must be borne by the planter or farmer, and that the effect would
be to drive a valuable trade from Baltimore to Hew York or other ports where no
such charges are exacted. The bill did not pass.
A modification of the laws regulating the gauging o f domestic distilled liquors was
made by the Legislature on application of the Board, which abandons the old mode
of marking by proofs, and substituting therefor, marking the numbers of degrees
above or below proof, (as the case may be,) thus conforming with the custom of other
large markets.
It is a source of congratulation that at length some steps have been taken towards
deepening our ship channel; the City Councils at their last session made an appropri
ation of fifty thousand dollars, to be expended under the supervision of a Board of
Commissioners. It is understood that the gentlemen thus appointed have organized
and taken the initiatory measures for the disbursement, of this fund to best advantage.
Included in the River and Harbor Bill recently passed by Congress, (as before stated,)
there is a sum o f fifty thousand dollars for the improvement of our waters, of which
twenty thousand dollars are for the construction of a dredge boat, and twenty thou
sand dollars for the improvement of the navigation of the Patapsco River and Chesa-
Commercial Regulations.
628
peake Bay, while the remaining ten thousand dollars are intended for the Susquehan
na at its mouth. With the object of obtaining the most benefit from the application
of these two appropriations, it is hoped and believed that the Board of Commission
ers, constituted by the councils, and the officer of engineers, under whose direction the
general government will cause its funds to be expended, may act in concert.
It will thus be seen that the United States, as well as the city of Baltimore, have
recognized the necessity of removing the obstructions that exist in our river and bay,
preventing the ingress and egress of first class ships when deeply laden— such as our
large and increasing Commerce demands. The amounts derived from these sources
will suffice for a commencement, but to obtain the average depth of water to be de
sired— say twenty-five feet— they will prove altogether inadequate.
In view of this fact, it is the intention of the Board of Trade to make a strong ap
peal for aid in carrying out this all important work to the Legislature of Maryland, at
its ensuing session, and the directors feel confident that honorable body will liberally
respond. It can be proven that every agriculturist in the State is equally interested
with every citizen, whether engaged in Commerce or in any of the various mechanical
pursuits, in placing this— their market—on a footing to compete fairly with Northern
ports in conveying their produce to consuming countries at the lowest rates of freight,
and thus enabling the buyers here to pay for their tobacco, grain, flour, or other com
modities, prices equal to those obtained in New York or Boston. It is unnecessary to
advert, in this connection, to the vast coal interest of Maryland, of which the develop
ment has scarcely commenced. A ll concerned in it are too fully aware that cheap
freights are an essential element required to bring into activity this important feature
of the future wealth of Maryland.
But it may not be improper to draw attention to the consideration of the direct ad
vantage which must ensue to the State by the increased returns from the value of
large investments in the several works of internal improvements, consequent upon
opening a sufficiently deep and unimpeded channel to the ocean, for the large quanti
ties of heavy agricultural and mineral productions which ere long must reach Balti
more by the various roads and channels constructed in part by the money and credit
of the State— and provided that they canhe brought here, and carried to points o f con
sumption on as favorable terms as by other rival routes— otherwise a portion of this
immense trade will be dormant, and a large share be driven into more fortunate and
economical channels.
Reference is asked to the accompanying report of the treasurer of the association
for its present financial condition, and all is respectfully submitted to your considera
tion, by order of the Board of Directors.
JOHN C . BR U N E , President.
AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE BOARD OF TRADE OF THE CITY OF BALTIMORE.
Whereas an association of citizens has for several years existed in the city of Balti
more, under the title of the “ Board of Trade of the City of Baltimore,” having for its
object the encouragement and advancement of the interests of Commerce and manu
factures in said city ;
And whereas said association has applied for an act of incorporation, in order that
thereby its existence may be rendered more secure, and that it may be enabled to
carry out with greater efficiency the important and laudable objects for which it was
form ed; therefore—
S e c . 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly o f Maryland, That the president of
said association, John C. Brune; the vice-presidents, Wm. McKim, Hermann II. Perry,
Henry Tiffany, and Nathan Rogers ; the treasurer, Edward B. Dallam ; the secretary,
George U. Porter; and the directors, Thomas C. Jenkins, William P. Lemmon, Joseph
C. Wilson, Patrick H. Sullivan, James George, Enoch Pratt, Daniel Warfield, Gustav
W . Lurman, William G. Harrison, William R. Travers, Albert Schumacher, Alexander
Rieman, David S. Wilson, Josiah Lee, Thomas Wilson, William Bose, Benjamin C.
Buck, Chauncey Brooks, Thomas W. Levering, George B. Hoffman, John J Abrahams,
Hugh Jenkins, Enoch A. Courtney, and George K. Walter, and such other persons as
now are members of said association, and their successors, be and they are hereby
created a corporation by the name o f the “ Board of Trade of the City of Baltimore,”
and by that name may sue and be sued, answer and defend in any Court of law or
equity, and may ordain and establish such by-laws, rules, and regulations as shall ap
pear necessary and proper for conducting the concerns of said corporation, and shall
not be contrary to law ; and the same may change, alter, and amend as shall appear
proper; and may have, use, and at pleasure change a common seal, and generally
N autical Intelligence.
629
may do any act or thing necessary and proper to carry into effect the provisions of this
act, and to promote the designs of the corporation.
S ec . 2 . A nd be it enacted, That the said corporation shall have the power of receiv
ing subscriptions, donations, devises, and bequests of money or real or personal prop
erty, in trust or otherwise; and of purchasing or otherwise acquiring aud holding such
property, to be applied by it for the promotion and encouragement of the Commerce,
trade, and manufactures of the city of Baltimore; provided, however, that the prop
erty to be held by said corporation, at any one tune, shall not exceed in clear annual
value the sum of thirty thousand dollars.
S ec. 3. And be it enacted, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to
authorize said corporation to issue any note, token, scrip, or device, or other evidence
of debt to be used as currency.
S ec . 4. And be it enacted, That this act shall have effect from and after its passage,
and the General Assembly may at any time alter or repeal this act of incorporation.
After the report was read a resolution was adopted, directing the printing of four
hundred copies for the use of the members. The election of officers for the ensuing
year was then had, and resulted as follows:—
F or P resident—JohnC.Brune.
F or V ice-P residents— William McKira, Thomas C. Jenkins, Henry Tiffany, Chaun-
cey Brooks.
F or T reasurer— E. B. Dallam.
F or S ecretary— G. TJ. Porter.
F or D irectors— Wm. P. Lemmon, P. H. Sullivan, James George, Enoch Pratt, G.
W. Lurman, Wm. G. Harrison, Wm. R. Travers, A. Rieman, William Bose, Thomas W.
Levering, George B. Hoffman, J. J. Abrahams, E. S. Courtney, William Kennedy, C.
D. Culbertson, Robert Leslie, Robert Howard, John H. Duvall, Galloway Cheston,
Robert R. Kirkland, B. F. Newcomer, Robert W. Allen, F. B. Graf, S. K. Burkholder.
N AUTICAL
IN TE LL IG E N C E .
LIGHT-HOUSES 031 TH E NORTH COAST OF SPAIN.
The Hydrographic Department, under date July 17th, 1852, has issued the follow
ing notice to mariners, descriptive of three new light-houses on the North coast of
Spain:—
1 st.
LIGHT ON THE POINT OF 3IACHICHACO, PROVINCE OF BISCAY.
From the 21st of August a new light house will be lighted every night, established
on the Point of Cape Machichaco, on the north coast of Spain, from the setting to the
rising of the sun. This light-house is situated 14 miles east of the Point of Fuerte de
la Galea, latitude 43° 28' N., and longitude 3° 22' 50" E. of the Observatory of San
Fernando, (Cadiz.) The apparatus is of the 1st catadioptric order of Fresnel’s sys
tem, with fixed lights, and flashes at intervals of four minutes. This light, which is of
the natural color, is at an elevation of 285 Castilian feet above the level of the Equi
noctial high tides, and produces a tangent of 18.8 miles.
2 d.
LIGHT ON THE POINT OF THE FUERTE DE LA GALEA, PROVINCE OF BISCAY.
This light-house, established on the coast to the east of the Bay (Concha) of Portugalete, is situated 14 miles west of Cape Machichaco, in latitude 43° 22' 26" N.,
and longitude 3° 8' 14" E. of the Observatory o f San Fernando. Its apparatus is of
the 4th catadioptric order; the light fixed and of the natural color, at a hight of 416
Castilian feet above the sea iu the Equinoctial high tides, and is distant 5,200 f»et of
the same measure from the Punta de la Galea. This light in strictness produces a
tangent of 22.66 miles; but it can only be distinguished at this, or even at a less dis
tance, under favorable conditions of the atmosphere.
N au tical Intelligence.
C30
3 d.
LIGHT CAPE PENAS, PROVINCE OF OVIEDO.
It is situated in latitude 43° 42' 20" N., and longitude 22' 28" E. of the Observatorj'
o f San Fernando. The hight of the luminous focus above the level of the sea is 8*70
Castilian feet, and its apparatus, which is of the first catadioptrie order of Fresnel,
produces a light with eclipses which follow each other at intervals of 80 seconds, with
a tangent in clear weather o f 20 miles. This light will be first illuminated on the
15th of August.
BELL BUOY IN TH E BAY OF FUYDY.
St . J ohn , N. B., September 22,1852,
To F re em an H unt , Editor o f the Merchants’ Magazine:—
D e a r S ir :—I beg leave to communicate to you, for the information of the readers
o f your useful Magazine, that a bell buoy is about being moored not under one-and-ahalf and not over two miles directly south of Patridge Island, at the entrance of this
harbor. The dimensions are as follows, namely,— length over all, thirty five feet ;
breadth, twelve feet; extreme hight of mast, fifteen feet, on top of which is the b ell;
the least swell will cause the bell to ring; there are four clappers. The buoy is bal
lasted with eight tons of pig iron, and was built in England, of boiler-plate, in a sub
stantial and workmanlike manner. Half-way up the iron mast there is a cage for the
protection of any person shipwrecked who can reach it.
The prevalence of fog in the Bay of Fundy renders the buoy absolutely necessary.
It is the first of the kind ever used this side of the Atlantic. Yours, respectfully,
R. S.
ASCERTAINING TH E CURRENTS OF TH E OCEAN.
A bottle containing the following note was picked up July 29th, 1852, in Galeon
Bay, on the N. E. part of the Island o f Martinique, in latitude 14° N., longitude 60°
56' West.
H. M. S. R a pid , Tuesday, February 24, 1852.
In latitude 80' S., longitude 22° 34' 30" W., experienced a strong current, running
FT. W., at the rate of 30 miles per day ; two days previous, but in the above latitude
and longitude, we had no currents, which induces me to send this bottle. Should it be
picked up, note the day of month and date, together with your latitude and longitude,
and forward it to me.
'ALFRED MESSUM, Master II. M. S. Rapid.
REVOLVING LIGHT ON TH E EAST END OF KANGAROO ISLAND.
W e are indebted to G. J. Abbot, Esq., of the State Department, Washington, for the
subjoined notice to mariners. It is dated, Hydrographic Office, Admiralty, July 15th,
1852:—
Mariners are hereby informed, that on the 10th of January, 1852, a revolving light
was established on Cape Willoughby, the eastern extremity of Kangaroo Island, in
35° 49' 20" S. and 138° 12' 30" E. o f Greenwich.
The light appears at intervals of a minute and a half, and being elevated 241 feet
above the level of the sea. may be seen at the distance of twenty-four miles, from the
deck o f a moderate sized vessel, and on all bearings, from N. E. by E. J E. round to
S. by E. i E.
PO R T PATRICK HARBOR LIGHT.
Notice is hereby given that, by order of the lords commissioners of her majesty’s
treasury, the Harbor Light of Port Patrick, in Wigtonshire, will, from and after the
1st of January next, 1853, cease to be exhibited.
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
631
RAILROAD, CANAL, AND STEAMBOAT STATISTICS.
RAILROAD SYSTEM OF TH E W EST.
Under this title, a -writer in the Toledo Republican in an interesting article, consid
ers what outlets the new system of railroads in the Western States will have towards
the east, and in which directions their freights will most profitably be carried. The
railroads now projected in the Western States amount to nearly ten thousand miles,
2,000 of which are nearly finished, and the remainder will probably be so, before the
end of 1853. A t about the same time, Baltimore and Philadelphia will each have
completed a single line railroad to the Ohio. The New York and Erie Railroad will
probably then be double-tracked, as well as the roads between Buffalo and Albany.
The side roads in New York, together with the Ogdensburg, may be considered
equivalent to a continuous single-track. This would give the Northern route, five
tracks of railroad besides the Erie Canal; leaving to the Southern route, two tracks
of railroad and the Pennsylvania Canal.
The following Western roads are considered as depending on the Pennsylvania Cen
tral and the Baltimore and Ohio roads for an outlet.
IN W ESTEEN PENNSYLVANIA.
The Hempfield road, Greenburg to Wheeling................. ..............................
Pennsylvania and Ohio road from Pittsburg west...........................................
Pittsburg and Steubenville road.........................................................................
Miles.
78
44
35
Total in Pennsylvania...................................................................................
157
IN O H IO .
The Ohio and Pennsylvania State line to Crestline.........................................
Cleveland and Pittsburg......................................................................................
Columbus and Wheeling.....................................................................................
Cincinnati, Circleville, and Zanesville................................................................
Little Miami, Cincinnati to Springfield...................................................
Columbus and Xenia...........................................................................................
Cincinnati and Dayton.........................................................................................
Cincinnati, Belpre and Wheeling.......................................................................
Central Ohio, Columbus to Steubenville............................................................
Dayton and Western...........................................................................................
Bellefontaine and Indianapolis...........................................................................
Ohio and Indiana, Crestline to State line..........................................................
Greenville and Miami.........................................................................................
Eaton and Hamilton............................................................................................
Cincinnati to St. Louis.........................................................................................
Springfield and Columbus...................................................................................
Total in O h io...............................................................................................
136
99
150
130
84
55
60
250
175
40
118
113
30
27
22
35
1,524
IN INDIANA.
The Indianapolis and Lawrenceburg.................................................................
Indianapolis and Bellefontaine...........................................................................
Indianapolis and Terre Haute............................................................................
Lafayette and Indianapolis.................................................................................
Central Indiana, Dayton to Indianapolis.........................
Madison and Indianapolis...................................................................................
Cincinnati and St. Louis.......................................................................................
Hamilton and New Castle...................................................................................
New Castle, Logansport and Chicago................................
Ohio and Indiana, State Line to Ft. W ayne....................................................
Shelbyville, Knightstown and Municetown......................................................
86
163
40
174
18
13
Total in Indiana...........................................................................................
641
90
83
*72
70
12
632
Railroad,
Canal, andSteamboat Statistics.
IN ILLINOIS.
Miles.
The Sangamon and Morgan,...............................................................................
Cincinnati and St. Louis.......................................................................................
Terre Haute and Alton........................................................................................
Terre Haute and Springfield...................................
54
150
160
150
Total in Illinois.............................................................................................
514
IN MISSOURI.
The Pacific Railroad, St. Louis to Independence.............................................
Hannibal and St. Joseph.....................................................................................
300
300
Total in Missouri...........................................................................................
600
IN KENTUCKY AND TENNESSEE.
A b o u t....................................................................................................................
800
RECAPITULATION.
"Western Pennsylvania....................................................................
Ohio...................................................................................................
Indiana................................................
Illinois...............................................................................................
Missouri............................................................................................
Kentucky and Tennessee................................................................
151
1,524
941
514
600
800
Total.....................................................................................
4,536
This is the superstructure of the two single tracks from Philadelphia and Baltimore,
Depending on the Hew York channel there will be—
IN CANADA.
The Great "Western Railroad..............................................................................
270
IN MICHIGAN.
The Michigan Central...................................................................
Michigan Southern...............................................................................................
Michigan Southern Branches..............................................................................
Detroit and Pontiac..............................................................................................
228
133
45
25
Total...............................................................................................................
431
IN OHIO.
The Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula.........................................................
Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati................................................................
Toledo, Norwalk and Cleveland.........................................................................
Junction Railroad, Cleveland to Maumee..........................................................
Erie and Kalamazoo, Toledo to Adrian.............................................................
Northern Ohio, Toledo to State Line..................................................................
75
135
96
120
33
70
Total...............................................................................................................
529
IN INDIANA.
The Northern Indiana...........................................................................................
165
IN ILLINOIS.
The Galena and Chicago.....................................................................................
Aurora Branch and Extension............................................................................
Rock Island and Chicago..........................
Central Military Track................................................................
Jonesville and Chicago.......................................................................................
Lake Shore............................................................................................................
132
60
180
84
78
40
T otal..............................................................................................................
574
,
Railroad Canal
,<m
c?Steamboat Statistics.
033
IN WISCONSIN.
Miles
The Lake Shore.................
40
90
170
Joiiesville and Fon du Lack.
Milwaukee and Mississippi..
Total
300
RECAPITULATION.
Canada...........................................................................................
Michigan™.......................................................................................
Ohio.................................................................................................
Indiana...........................................................................................
Illinois™...........................................................................................
Wisconsin.......................................................................................
270
431
529
165
674
300
Total........................................................................ : ............
2,269
This is the extension of the fire Hew Tork tracks.
the following North and South roads:—
In addition to these, there are
IN OHIO.
Columbus and Lake Erie, Newark toMansfield...............................................
Mansfield to Sandusky........................................................................................
Mad River and Lake Erie, Dayton toSandusky.............................................
Dayton and Michigan, Dayton to Toledo................
Portsmouth and Chilicothe................................................................
Scioto and Hocking Valley, Portsmouth to Newark.......................................
64
56
181
150
45
110
Total...............................................................................................................
603
IN INDIANA.
Indianapolis and Peru...........................................................................................
New Albany and Salem.......................................................................................
Jeffersonville and Columbus...............................................................................
Evansville and Vincennes...........................................................
Vincennes and Terre Haute................................................................................
Fort Wayne and Muuicetown.............................................................................
Goshen and Peru...................................................................................................
78
345
68
50
56
65
65
T o ta l..............................................................................................................
727
IN ILLINOIS.
Illinois Central.....................................................................................................
Springfield and Alton...........................................................................................
Fox River Railroad...............................................................................................
640
72
45
Total...............................................................................................................
757
RECAPITULATION.
Ohio.................................................................................................
Indiana...........................................................................................
Illinois...........................................................................................
Total......................................................................................
603
727
757
2,087
The writer in the Republican considers, that the Philadelphia and Baltimore works
are incapable of accommodating the enormous trade of the west, and what is even
equally fatal, denies, that when the products of the west are there, that they have
reached their natural market. It is asserted, that the principal home market of the
United States may be found within a circle, of which Alban)- is the pole ; to include
Lake Champlain on the north, Boston on the east, New York on the south, and Syr
acuse on the west. Here are found the consumers, those who consume aud fashion
the products of the W est; those who in return furnish the West in clothing, tools, and
manufactured articles. Here are the workshops and manufactories of the Union, and
here the raw materials tend.
634
,
,
Railroad Canal and Steamboat Statistics.
Examine the great courses of trade, and it will be found tbey all point to this vor
tex. The cotton of the South goes there to be manufactured. The products of the
West go there to be consumed. The lumber and grain of Cauada, and the Commerce
o f oceans, all face this common centre. If northern Canada and the great northwest
were as well settled as our Southern States, and if State governments permitted trade
to pursue an untrammeled course, then, we would see great thoroughfares radiating
from this circle; a northern one through Montreal and Quebec; a northwestern one
through Lake Ontario, and by the north shores of Huron and Superior; the western
through Canada, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa; the southwestern, through Ohio, In
diana, Illinois, and Missouri; and the southern, through Philadelphia, Virginia, Caro
lina, aud Georgia.
A ll this is very forcible, and the further argument, that the natural tendency is to
try the home market before attempting the foreign, is undeniable. This accounts for
some of those trade currents, that otherwise seem inexplicable. The fact is, that in
dustrial wants and the laws of economical science, govern more potently than any
others, the movements of production. The bulkiest articles will climb mountains to
reach a market, while a diamond will hardly tumble to the foot of a hill, if there is
no one there to purchase it. The capitalists of New York are reminded, not to waste
their money on lines, that will not even enrich their rivals, while they strip them
selves of the means to open up the communications between the teeming West and the
home of the consumers, so much of "which lies territorially within their borders, and
all the approaches to which must traverse their State. The particular plan recommended
as best calculated for the present to accommodate the freights of the West is, the con
struction o f an angling road from the vicinity of Erie, Pennsylvania, towards Zanes
ville, Ohio, to interest the trade of the Pennsylvania and Ohio Piailroad, the Ohio Cen.
tral, the Columbus and Wheeling, and the Cincinnati and Belpre roads. The impor
tance of the St. Louis and Erie Road is also strongly insisted on.
It is a striking instance of the power of local interest to influence the opinions of
men, that those members of the Legislature of Pennsylvania from the northern tier
of counties, who did the most to force the lake shore line through the State free of
taxation, w7ere the very men who strove the hardest to load down the Pennsylvania
Central Railroad with restrictions. They contended that the Central Railroad would
injure the State Canal, but that the New York and Erie Railroad wrould not injure it.
Their argument was that we should treat our neighbors better than ourselves. For one,
I deny both the premises and the conclusion. It is not a contest between the Penn
sylvania Railroad and the Pennsylvania Canal; it is a contest between our old K ey
stone State, rich in her position and her natural advantages, (which has been called
by some one “ a blind giant,”) and the Empire State of New York, with which she is
contending on the one hand, while with the other she struggles with the restless com
mercial activity of Maryland.
I am a Pennsylvanian by birth and education. My home is in Philadelphia and
my interests are concentrated there. For twenty-five years I have labored as a civil
engineer to aid in improving our internal communications. Nothing short of thorough
work will now answer the purpose, and the very competition that renders it necessary7
will compel its accomplishment. I saw the first railroad made in the State, and I
hope before long to see such a line completed, from one end of her territory to the
other, as may challenge competition with any other in the Union.
I know what an interest this question excites in Ohio; for Ohio is the battle-ground
on which the Eastern cities contend for the trade of the West. I know that I am ad
dressing an intelligent audience, and that there is no use in endeavoring to evade the
question or to conceal the facts. W e know that you are wide awake, and we are stri
ving to arouse our citizens and to make them equally vigilant. W e know that the
railroads running from the Lake shore, already reach to Cincinnati in southwestern
Ohio, and to Zanesville and Wellsville in the southeastern part of the State. Go
where we will, on your broad plains, we must meet Northern competition ; and my
opinion is, that it cau best be done by perfecting the line from Pittsburg to Philadel
phia.
W e regard the Ohio aud Pennsylvania railroad as a (/olden link in the chain of
internal improvements, which binds the agricultural industry of the West, with an
Eastern home market of consumption—a union of interests, both agricultural and com
mercial : alike sources of national prosperity.
Railroad, Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
035
STEAMBOAT NAVIGATION OF CINCINNATI,
In the “ Merchants’ Magazine and Commercial Review ” for October, 1849, (yol. xxi.,
page 468,) we published a tabular statement of the arrival and departure of steam
boats for the port of Cincinnati, for the years 1841 and 1848, and in November, 1850,
(vol, xxiii., page 469,) a similar statement for the years 1849 and 1850, and in the num
ber for October, 1851, a statement of the same for the year ending September 1st,
1851. W e now subjoin a similar statement for the year ending September 1st, 1852,
as follows:—
A COMPARATIVE MONTHLY STATEMENT OF ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES AT THIS PORT FOR
THE YE AR ENDING AUGUST
31ST, 1852.
ARRIVALS FROM
Months.
September..................
October.......................
Novem ber..................
December...................
New Orleans.
3
1
o
J an u a ry ........................
10
23
February ...................
March..........................
A p r il..........................
M a y ...........................
Jun e...........................
J u l y ......................... ..
A u gust.......................
42
38
29
23
12
3
Total...............
219
Pittsburg.
29
32
56
33
24
56
11
63
61
50
39
48
514
St. Louis.
10
14
30
19
6
11
24
29
28
18
11
12
218
Other ports.
208
225
286
148
106
243
216
219
231
240
246
220
2,654
Total.
250
212
314
220
169
343
419
349
361
331
314
283
3,615
DEPARTURES FOR
Months.
September................
October.....................
November................
December.................
January ...................
February .................
M arch.......................
A pril.........................
M ay...........................
J u n e .........................
July............................
A u gust.....................
Total.............
New Orleans.
Pittsburg.
St. Louis.
Other ports.
Total.
14
14
4
14
24
31
82
19
52
68
66
15
50
29
32
17
18
21
8
3
19
36
83
24
19
16
21
202
203
246
145
191
224
260
216
240
245
239
225
240
248
336
201
236
334
401
343
364
328
298
282
326
498
241
2,536
3,611
3
26
16
23
39
31
28
LOUISVILLE AND FRANKFORT RAILROAD.
This road extends from Louisville to Frankfort, (Kentucky,) a distance of 65 miles,
where it connects with the Lexington and Frankfort Railroad, which is 29 miles in
length, both roads making a distance of 94 miles. The fare between Louisville and
Frankfort is $2, a fraction more than three cents per mile.
The fourth annual report of the president and directors of the Louisville and Frank
fort Railroad, submitted to the stockholders at their annual meeting, July 5th, 1852,
presents the condition of the work. The capital stock is made up of a subscription of
the city of Louisville of §510,815, paid by taxation on the property of the citizens
during the years 1848, 1849, and 1850; 8300,000 paid in city bonds on time, and
842,812 50 individual subscriptions, to this to be added 851,443 42 interest on the
payments for stock, making in all §905,130 92.
,
Railroad Canal, and Steamboat Statistics.
636
The report of the engineer and superintendent of the road, Charles N. Warren,
Esq., exhibits the construction and working of the road for the year ending June 30th.
The total receipts since the first locomotive was put on the track have been $222,786 18,
and the total expenses $130,338 64, including the hauling of iron and other material.
Within the year, the road has been connected with the Lexington Road, side tracks
laid at Frankfort, Pleasureville, and Smithfield, water stations put up along the line,
the depot at Louisville built, and engine-houses put up at that place aud Frankfort.
The passenger business for the present June has exceeded that of the corresponding
month in 1851, by 16 per cent. A t this rate of increase the receipts for the coming
'year will be $195,000. There are 10 eight-wheeled and one six-wheeled locomotives
on the road, two freight engines of ten wheels are to be delivered during the month
of September. The total mileage of the engines was 135,000 miles, and they aver
aged 18,000 miles each.
The receipts per mile run was............................................................................
Expenses................................................................................................................
“
deducting items above mentioned......................................................
$1 24 4
0 73 4
0 61 1
The total cost of the road, including interest in cash and stock up to the 1st of July,
is $1,358,764 43.
The receipts for the year were for—
Passengers.
Froight.
Mails.
$99,971 42
$63,402 81
$5,546 02
Total.
$167,920 25
The expenses....................................................................................................
Less one half for repairs..............................................................
$12,600
Wood on h a n d .............................................................................
4,000
----------
$99,134 19
Leaving the expenses a t .......................................................................
Balance in favor of receipts..................................................................
$84,534 19
85,386 06
12,600 00
TOLLS AND TONNAGE OF CANADIAN CANALS.
The subjoined statement of tolls, trade, and tonnage of the several canals, during
the year 1851, is derived from a Parliamentary document:—
VESSELS PASSED THE SEVERAL CANALS IN THE YE AR 1 8 5 1 .
FOREIGN.
BRITISH.
No.
Tonnage.
Tolls.
No.
Tonnage.
Tolls.
Welland Canal..........
St. Lawrence Canal..
Chambly Canal........
Burlington B. Canal..
St. Anne’s Lock . . . .
3,357
6,656
1,517
1,993
1,926
363,221
505,197
81,594
380,649
99,561
£1,628
1,447
193
280
309
2,336
278
210
535
61
409,402
21,013
9,147
101,261
2,846
£2,436
64
27
61
Total..................
15,454
1,430,172
£3,809
3,420
5b3,669
£2,598
8
18,874
1,973,841
£6,407
Total British and foreign vessels.
Tons.............................
T o l l .............................
The total movement on the canals for 1851 and three years previous, is as follow s:
W ELLAND CANAL.
18 48 .
Tons...............................
Passengers.................
Tonnage of vessels.. . .
307,611
2,487
372,854
1849 .
1850 .
1851 .
351,596
1,640
468,410
899,600
1,930
5S8,100
691,627
4,758
772,623
26,997
288,103
35,932
6,169
450,400
33,407
6,934
ST. LAWRENCE CANAL.
Tons..............................
Passengers.................
Tonnage of vessels__
o
,071
Statistics of Population, etc.
637
CHAMBLY CANAL.
1848 .
Tons...........................
Passengers................
Tonnage of vessels.. .
1849 .
1850 .
77,216
8,430
1,264
109,040
278
2,878
1851 .
110,720
1,860
1,727
£76,216
12,286
48,241
21,276
The receipts o f 1851
Expenses...................
Of the gross tolls, the Welland produced.................
The St. Lawrence___
STATISTICS OF POPULATION, & c .
PA ST, P R E S E A T , AND PROSPECTIVE POPULATION OF TH E UNITER STATES.
W e have published in former volumes of the Merchants' Magazine similar state
ments of the progress of population in the United States. The following was recent
ly communicated to the National Intelligencer by W i l l i a m D a r b y , a venerable statis
tician. “ The two tabular views which follow,” says Mr. Darby, “ will show that data
are not wanting which enable us to demonstrate the certainty of cause and effect. With
these remarks the two inclosed tables are submitted to your disposal. I find, let me
observe, that one thing has prevailed through every decennial period of our history.”
TABLE I.---- POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES, AS RECORDED IN THE TABULAR V IE W OF THE
SEVEN ENUMERATIONS MADE BY THE DECENNIAL CENSUS,
1790.
1800.
3,929,872
5,305,952
1780
TO
1850,
INCLUSIVE.
1810.
1820.
1830.
1810.
1850.
7,239,841
9,638,131
12,866,920
17,063,353
23,144,126
TABLE II.— PROSPECTIVE V IE W OF THE POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES FROM
1950,
1860
TO
INCLUSIVE, ON THE RATIO OF ONE-AND-A TH1RD DECENNIALLY, AS FOUND BY TABLE I,
V E R Y NEARLY.
1860
1870
1880
1890
1900
....................................
....................................
....................................
....................................
....................................
30,958,000
41,145,000
54,559,000
73,144,000
97,525,000
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
..................................
..................................
..................................
..................................
..................................
120,034,000
160,045,000
213,360,000
284,480,000
379,307,000
POPULATION AND C03I.1IERCE OF AUSTRALIA.
British Parliamentary papers, recently published, furnish statements of the population
trade, &c., of the Australian Colonies, to the beginning of 1851. A t that date the re
spective position of each Province was as follows:—
New South W a les..
South Australia.. . .
West Australia........
Van Dieman’s Land.
Imports.
Population.
192,000 )
£2,078,838
77,360 f
845,572
76,430
52,351
5,886
1,282,272
Tonnage.
Exports.
Inwards.
Outwards.
£2,399,580
234,215
263,849
570,816
22,134
1,172,530
86,583
15,988
203,081
87.872
14.748
203,978
The population of Van Dieman’s Land is not given for a later period than 1S47,
•when it was 70,164, including 24,188 convicts.
The total value of wool exported in 1850 from New South Wales and
Victoria was..................................................................................................
Prom Western Australia.................................................................................
From South Australia......................................................................................
From Van Dieman’s Land..............................................................................
From South Australia the export of minerals was.....................................
£1,614,241
15,482
131,780
451,203
362,568
Statistics of Population, etc.
038
MORTALITY OF COMMERCIAL CITIES.
RATIO OF DEATHS TO POPULATION IN NEW YO RK , BALTIMORE, BOSTON, AND CHARLESTON.
The following comparative table of mortality of the cities of New York, Baltimore,
Boston, and Charleston, for the year 1851, has been prepared by Dr. J. G i l m a n , of t h e
Baltimore Board of Health:—
New York.
Charleston.
Baltimore.
Boston.
679
10,649
234
10
100
21
260
99
23
156
2,450
669
262
50
88
63
145
210
141
32
79
2,044
56
26
33
31
470
20,734
4,167
3,855
922
Consumption.................................
Inflammation of lungs.................. ..........
Scarlet fever..................................
Typhus fever....................... . . . .
Small p o x ......................................
M easles.........................................
Dropsy............................................
Convulsions.....................................
A poplexy.......................................
Old age...........................................
All other causes............................ ........
1,263
00
Total................................. .............
120
35
21
36
4
The following table shows the sex, condition, and age of the above:—
Males.............................................
Females..........................................
Free co lo re d ............................... .
Slave colored.................................
Still born........................................
Under one year........................... .............
One to ten......................................
Ten to twenty...............................
Twenty to thirty...........................
Thirty to fo r ty .............................
Over fifty......................................
New York.
Baltimore.
Boston.
1,966
1,889
484
4 38
....
533
5,604
2,179
1,988
070
229
370
1,039
1,196
206
429
291
593
*
251
335
1,004
210
518
386
611
Charleston.
...
*
•149
166
53
103
113
242
By the above table it appears that the ratio of deaths to the population is as fol
lows :—
P o p u la tio n .
New Y ork ..................................................
Baltimore....................................................
Boston.........................................................
Charleston..................................................
515,607
169,054
136,871
42,985
R a tio o f m orta lity.
1
1
1
1
in2,485
in4,057
in3,550
in4,662
OF TH E POPULATION OF TH E GLOBE.
The population o f the globe is supposed to be under a thousand millions, or, accord
ing to M. Hassel, 937,856,000. If, then, says a French writer, all mankind were col
lected in one place, every four individuals occupying a square metre, the whole might
be contained in a field ten miles square. Thus, generally speaking, the population of
a country might be packed, without much squeezing, in its oapital. But the mean
idea this give3 us of the number of the human race, is counterbalanced by its capabil
ity of extension. The new world is said to contain of productive land 4,000,000
square miles o f middling quality, each capable of supporting two hundred inhabitants ;
and 6,000,000 of a better quality, capable of supporting five hundred persons. A c
cording to this calculation, the population of the new world, as peace and civilization
advance, may attain to the extent of 4,000,000,000. If we suppose the surface of the
old world to be double that of America, (and notwithstanding the comparative pover
ty of the laud, this calculation may be accepted, if we say nothing of Australia and
the various archipelagoes,) it would support 8,000,000,000; and thus the aggregate
population of the entire globe might amount to 12,000,000,000, or twelve times the
present number.*
* Not reported.
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
639
JOURNAL OF M IN IN G AND MANUFACTURES.
MANUFACTURING TOWNS OF TH E UNITED STATES,
NUMBER I .
CLINTON, MASSACHUSETTS.
LOCATION
AND
BRUSSELS
POPULATION
CARPETS---- E .
B.
OF
CLINTON— GINGHAM
BIGELOW ,
AND CARPETING IN ENGLAND---- LANCASTER
FORK, AND COMB FACTORIES— IRON
MANUFACTORY— MANUFACTURE
THE INVENTOR---- NOTICES
(JUILT
OF
COMPANY---- CARPET
HIS
OF
STEAM-LOOM
BAGS-----WOOLEN,
FOUNDRY— BOARDING-HOUSES OF THE OPERATIVES
---- W AGES---- CHURCHES, ETC.
W e recently passed a day at this village in visiting the several manufacturing es
tablishments, and with the aid o f E dwin B ynner, Esq., the editor o f the Clinton
Saturday Courant, Mr. A. S. Carleton, and the brothers Bigelow, we are able to lay
before the readers of the Merchants' Magazine a comprehensive and tolerably accu
rate sketch of this interesting manufacturing village.
Clinton, geographically speaking, is a small town in the County of Worcester, Mass.,
contains less than 5,000 acres, including highways and all surfaces covered with water,
and was set off from Lancaster in 1849. It is bounded on the north and west by Lan
caster and Sterling; south by Boylston; east by Bolton and Berlin; all o f which
towns were originally integral portions o f old Lancaster, or, as it was termed, the
Nashaway Plantation, which dates back as far as 1643, being the oldest and one o f
the most beautiful towns in the county, and was ceded to the whites by Sholan, Sa
chem of the Nashaway tribe of Indians. It is conveniently situated about thirty-five
miles west from Boston, and thirteen miles north from Worcester, having direct rail
road communication with both cities, and contains about 2,800 inhabitants.
The town is chiefly celebrated for its manufactures—which are extensive and unique
in their character— for the rapidity of its growth, the excellence and exteDt of its sys
tem of common schools, and the public spirit of its inhabitants. Clinton is “ virtually
the creation of a single mind,” that o f E rastus B. B igelow , Esq., the celebrated inven
tor and adapter of machinery for numerous woven fabrics ; whose genius may be said
to have been cradled in its lap. W e shall have occasion to speak of the character and
genius of Mr. Bigelow in a future number of the Merchants' Magazine.
The most important manufactures produced in Clinton are the fabrics known through. out the States, and elsewhere, as Lancaster ginghams, Brussels carpets, coach lace,
figured counterpanes, tweeds, yarns, fancy cassimeres, carpet bags, combs, and ma
chinery. First in importance, and deservedly rated as the most perfect establishment
in the United States, is the “ Gingham,” or “ Lancaster Mills.” This immense estab
lishment, entirely built of brick, wa3 erected in 1843, on the banks of the Nashua, in
the easterly portion of the town, and contains 21,000 spindles, and 600 looms, with
necessary machinery for carding, spinning, &c. The driving power consists of three
breast wheels, 26 feet in diameter, with 14 feet backets— on one line o f shafting, with
which is connected a steam-engine of some 200 horse-power, to insure a sufficient
power in dry seasons, giving an entire propelling force of 600 horse-power; the whole
o f which, however, is seldom or ever required. The large dye-house connected with
this establishment, is supposed to be the most perfect of the kind in the world One
great and desirable result from the erection of this mill is the reduction effected in the
price of its fabric; as, while ginghams of the quality here made, were formerly as
high as from 16 to 18 cents per yard; the average price of those of this company
i s about 1 0 i , wholesale.
640
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
The capital invested amounts to $900,000. The number of hands employed averages
about 800 ; of which two-thirds are females, whose wages, exclusive of board, range from
$2 to $4 per week. The entire range of buildings is heated by steam, in the produc
tion of which 1,600 tons of anthracite coal are annually consumed.
The whole surface covered with the buildings of this establishment exceeds 4 acres;
one room alone, in which the weaving is done, covering nearly two, or to be more ex
act, 1J acres. About 70 large tenements o f a handsome and uniform appearance, are
occupied by the operatives. The daily product of the mill exceeds 18,000 yards, or
between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000 annually. Its entire arrangement is of the most
perfect description, and in its vast completeness, it stands as a splendid monument to
the genius and masterly power of the mind of its projector. The Clinton Company,
with a capital of $400,000, ranks second among the incorporated establishments. Like
all the larger manufactories of the town, this also was designed and completed by the
Messrs. Bigelow. Here is woven coach lace of the most beautiful patterns ; tweeds,
cassimeres, and pantaloon stuffs of an excellent fabric, and constantly in demand.
About 200 hands are usually employed, turning out 1,200,000 yards of coach lace and
800,000 yards of the other description of goods, annually. This company has also a
machine shop, in which the greater portion of the machinery working in Clinton has
been manufactured. This mill was commenced in the spring of 1838.
The “ Bigelow Carpet Company” was commenced in the fall of 1849. Though the
youngest of the establishments which give to Clinton her growing importance, it is
perhaps the most interesting, and destined to be one of the largest of the number.
Though now but in its infancy, 500 yards of Brussels carpet, of a quality heretofore
unequalled, of the most varied and beautiful patterns and colors, are daily produced
from 28 looms ; consuming 100 pounds of worsted, and about 400 pounds of linen
yarn in the same length of time. This building is also of brick, two stories and attic,
200 feet long by 42 wide. The machinery is propelled by a steam-engine of thirty
horse-power, and the consumption of coal is equal to 400 tons, annually. One hundred
hands are employed— about half of which number are females. The dying, weaving,
and finishing are the only branches now performed in the present building ; the spin
ning, &c., being done elsewhere.
During the time it has been in operation, the works have been constantly employed;
so great has been the demand for the new fabric, which heretofore has been woven
solely by hand, by which means five yards was the maximum of the product of a
day’s labor. By the beautiful loom of Mr. Bigelow, from 20 to 25 yards are easily
obtained by the attendance of one girl. The beautiful process by which the wires are
taken from, and uniformly replaced in the warp, in the manufacture of this fabric, is
the theme o f universal admiration ; the machine working as though gifted with almost
human intelligence. Like all the products of Mr. Bigelow’s wonderful inventive power,
the machinery of this establishment is of the most perfect description; and to those
who delight in the marvelous triumphs of science, no greater treat can be afforded than
to witness its operation.*
It is eminently worthy of note in this place, that five of the leading carpet manu
facturers in England have taken licenses to run looms for the manufacture of carpets
under the patents of E. B. B igelow , Esq., and are now erecting extensive works.
The steam loom invented by Mr. Bigelow, for the manufacture of Brussels carpet
ing, is thus noticed in the Worcester (England) Herald, (March, 1852 :— )
“ Several manufacturers and foremen from carpet establishments in Kidderminister
♦ The Carpet Factory is not an incorporated company, but is owned by E. B. & F. Bigelow, and
H. P. Fairbanks.
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
G41
have visited the premises of Messrs. Crossley, at Halifax, and inspected Bigelow’s
steam loom. The universal report is that the loom complies with the two main conditions
of success— cheapness in the working and excellence in the work. It makes two
yards of good Brussels in the hour, and thus equals the united exertions of four men.
What effect this loom will have upon the town and trade of Kidderminster has be
come an important problem The loom makes two yards per hour. Suppose the at
tendant receives 3d. per hour, and the cost of engine power, and extra power, and in
terest of extra capital above the cost of four hand looms (which would make the same
quantity of carpet) be 3d. more, the carpets which would cost 10Ad. per yard for
weaving in the hand loom will cost 3d. only. Add to this another Id. per yard for
better quality of material, which the weavers insist is necessary in the steam loom,
the utmost expense to be set against the hand loom 10-&d. is 4d. If the weavers on
the average earn 20s. per week at present when receiving 104d., it is plain they can
not earn more than 7s. 6d. at 4d.; therefore it is impossible for them to compete with
the steam loom. But there are circumstances which will save them from utter and
immediate ruin as a class. First, the patentee will require a royalty of 4d. per yard.
I f they manufacture Brussels themselves they will be able of course to undersell those
who have to pay a royalty, but it would not be their policy to do s o ; therefore the
cost of weaving steam Brussels may be fairly reckoued at Sd. per yard for the un
expired portion of the fourteen years’ patent. Secondly, the steam loom under its
present arrangement of parts requires a higher room than those in the present factories,
and there must be a great outlay in this respect before power looms can be introduced
at all. Then the manufacturers have no market in which to sell their hand looms,
and, generally speaking, no loose capital, and therefore they cannot buy the expensive
steam looms, engine, and necessary apparatus. Many of them -will be consequently
driven to compete with the power looms, by means of reduced profits and reduced
expenditure in the shape o f wages; and there can be no doubt that until the
monopoly created by the patent expires there will be an existence for the hand looms.
After that time it must be given up. Of course the progress of invention may in
troduce a loom which will be as efficient as Bigelow’s, much more compact, and much
less costly. In that case an earlier destruction of the hand loom will occur. But
there is another contingency to be thought of. Should the continent be disturbed by
war, and a general and long-continued stagnation of trade arrive, the hand-loom
weavers will be driven by hunger and despair to accept such terms as will only find
them the barest existence, and then their work may drive the steam Brussels, bur
dened with the royalty, out of the market. W e hope, however, that no such dismal
alternatives may occur, but that the trade may revive to such an extent as to create
a demand that neither steam nor hand loom may be able to supply. The poor weav
ers are already in a pitiable case, and the heart must be hard indeed that does not feel
sorrow at their present sufferings and melancholy prospects.”
The London Morning Chronicle of October 15th, 1851, in noticing “ carpets, floor
cloth, <fcc.,” (class xix.,) says:—
“ A t the eleventh hour, power-loom manu Pictured Brussels was deposited in the
American division— the merit of the invention and application of this important dis
covery being due to Mr. Bigelow, of the United States. Evidence of the successful
application of a much-wished-for invention is all that could be desired.”
From the same journal of later date, we extract the following notice of the carpet
weaving of Mr. E. B. Bigelow :—
“ The American department has again received an important accession of strength
in the shape of some specimens of Brussels carpet, woven upon power-looms. A l
though various attempts have been made to adapt the power-loom to carpet weaving
in this country, there is not, we believe, at this moment, any machinery perfected for
that object. Our American brethren have, therefore, gained another step ahead of us,
and have won another laurel on this well-contested field of the industrial arts. The
looms upon which these carpets were woven have been for some time in use; and up
wards of 800—the majority of which are at work in the manufactory of Mr. Bigelow,
the inventor— are employed in the States. Each loom requires only the attendance of
one girl, while, in the ordinary mode of carpet-weaving by hand, a weaver is required,
and a boy or girl to ‘ draw.’ In addition to this saving of labor, the power-loom is
stated to be capable of producing four times the quantity in the same space of time
YOL. X X V I I ---- NO. Y .
41
642
Journal o f M ining and M anufactures.
as could be woven upon the hand-loom. As many colors can be used in weaving as
in the ordinary Brussels carpet; and the specimens shown are, we are informed, with
out exception, the most even and regular in the threads of any exhibited. The speci
mens only arrived last Saturday.”
The Lancaster Quilt Company, in Clinton, was commenced under the management
of the Brothers Bigelow in the spring of 1837. It is operated by water-power mainly;
employs a capital of about £200,000,— 100 hands, male and female, and produces an
nually about 10,000 counterpanes, from 10 to 13 quarters in width, from 36 looms.
Prior to the establishment of this mill, the quality of quilts produced by them— com
monly known as “ Marseilles ” were worth at wholesale from £6 to $9 each ; they are
now retailed at about one-third of those prices. Large quantities of anthracite coal
are also used by this establishment.
A. S. Carleton’s Carpet-Bag Factory, though in operation but little more than one
year, is becoming an important item of the manufacturing interest of Clinton. The
bags made by them are destined to supersede the coarser and clumsy-looking article
heretofore sold as carpet-bags. They use only the beautiful fabric of the “ Bigelow
Company,” to the amount of about $30,000 annually ; which is woven in patterns ex
pressly adapted to that purpose. The sewing is done by one of Lerow and Blodgett’s
machines.
Fuller’s Mill, for the manufacture of Woolen Yams and Fancy Cassimeres, is also
located in Clinton, and is driven by water-power. About 30 hands are here employed
— much of the time night and day— consuming about 600 pounds of wool daily, and
turning out between 60,000 and 70,000 yards of cloth annually. This mill has been
in operation some 10 years.
Gaylord and Company’s Fork Factory, in the north part of the town, is an estab
lishment of some note, chiefly for the excellence of the article manufactured. From
6 to 10 hands are constantly employed, making hay and manure forks, of which every
variety is produced in a manner which has procured for them much celebrity. Water
is the driving power, and upwards of 1,000 dozen forks are annually sold by this firm.
A large amount of freight is furnished to the Worcester and Nashua Railroad, and
those which connect with it, including some 6,000 tons of coal, which constitutes but
a small portion of the aggregate amount.
There are several manufactories of Combs in the town, the most important is that of
Mr. Sidney Harris, on Harris Hill. Mr. Harris is largely engaged in the manufacture
of dressing, redding, and pocket combs, employing in the various branches of the bu
siness about 30 hands, male and female, and has built up around him, in the portion
of the town in which he resides, quite a thriving little village, remarkable for its neat
ness, and the appearance of prosperity so generally pervading it. Some $20,000 to
$25,000 worth o f combs are sent to market annually from his workshops. Mr. Harris
owns largely of real estate in other portions of the town, in addition to a tract of some
300 acres surrounding his homestead, and furnishes employment to many persons
other than above enumerated, in agricultural and other industrial pursuits. The man
ufactory of Mr. H. McCullum, in the same branch of industry, is also located in Clin
ton, using water-power, and doing a large amount of business annually.
Beside these, Clinton has an Iron Foundry, in which a large amount of business is
transacted by Mr. G. M. Palmer.
W e were struck with the air of neatness and comfort evinced in the dwellings oc
cupied by the operatives. The buildings are owned by the several manufacturing
companies, or the proprietors, and rented as boarding-houses, at a low rate. The price
of board is $1 34 per week, and the girls earn from $2 to $3, after deducting their
board.
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
643
Clinton has six religious societies. The Congregationalists, Baptists, and Catholics,
have each a neat and appropriate edifice for public worship, with settled ministers, as
also the Society of Second Adventists, who hold services in a hall, erected mainly for
their use. The Unitarians are erecting a suitable building, and the Methodists have
just completed a substantial brick edifice.
Some idea of the stirring and active business habits of the population may be
formed from the fact that between 1,400 and 1,500 letters pass through the post-office
weekly, affording a revenue to the department of between $2,700 and $2,800 annu
ally. This is exclusive of newspapers, pamphlets, <Sic., of which an immense number
is received.
One of the handsomest, most commodious, and best conducted hotels in the county
is to be found here, beautifully situated in the central village, which is enjoying an en
viable reputation among the traveling community.
A very handsome cemetery has recently been laid out, which is rapidly improving
in appearance ; and on many cultivated plots, beautiful monuments have already been
erected. For its general beauty and judicious arrangement of its streets, <fec., the
town is chiefly indebted to Mr. H. N. Bigelow, for years sole agent of the various cor
porations, who, in all public matters, has ever taken an active part, whenever his ser
vices have been required for the public benefit, and contributed largely, both in time
and money, to the advancement of any feasible scheme for the promotion of the pub
lic weal.
TH E MANUFACTURE OF THERM O M ETERS,
In the month of July, 1852, we passed a few days at New Lebanon Springs, and
visited, while there, the Thermometer Manufactory of the K endall B rothers. The
thermometer made by these gentlemen has acquired a well-earned celebrity for its
superiority over all others now in use. Indeed, it has been pronounced by Professor
S illiman and other distinguished savans, the most accurately graduated instrument
produced at home or abroad.
The history of the founder of this establishment, and the discovery of a system o f
graduating the thermometer, as simple in its details as it is perfect and complete in
its results, will not, we presume, be uninteresting to the readers of the Merchants'
Magazine. After returning to our editorial labors, (or rather after our return to the
city, for our labors, since the establishment of our Journal in 1839, have been unceas
ing,) we received a letter from Mr. C. S. K endall, containing an interesting sketch o f
the “ trials and triumphs ” of his father, the elder Kendall. The letter was not de
signed for publication, but, as will be seen, was written at our request, with a view
merely of furnishing us with the data for a few editorial paragraphs on the subject:—
F reeman H unt, Editor o f the Merchants' Magazine, etc. :—
D e a r S i r :— I n c o m p lia n c e w it h y o u r r e q u e s t , I w i l l s ta te s o m e fa c ts in r e fe r e n c e
t o t h e c o m m e n c e m e n t o f t h e t h e r m o m e t e r b u sin e ss b y m y fath er.
My father, Thomas Kendall, Jr., was the son of the Rev. Thomas Kendall, a chaplain
in the Revolutionary War, and afterwards missionary among the Indians. Father at
tended school only about four months in his life. His only apprenticeship was at
making wrought nails.
By reading the Edinburg Encyclopedia he acquired a knowledge of the theory of
mechanics. He constructed two cotton-mills while a young man, and became interest
ed in one of them, investing about a thousand dollars. The depreciation that ensued
immediately after the war of 1812 in cotton fabrics, caused a failure of their cotton
enterprise.
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
644
Father was thrown out o f business, and with nothing to d o in those times of gene
ral depression, his curiosity was excited to try to make a thermometer—an article sel
dom seen at that time. He called at a thermometer manufacturer in Boston, and told
them that he thought he could make one, and asked the favor of a small piece of tube.
They repulsed him, told him he could not make a thermometer, and refused the tube.
His pride was aroused, and he went to the glass-works and begged a few pieces of
refuse tube. The thermometer was made— shown, I think, to those who denied his
capacity to make one, and sold for eight dollars.
Thus encouraged to persevere, he found sale for quite a number of thermometers,
and was enabled to support his family by the proceeds of this and his watch and clock
repairing business.
You must know that he made thermometers very slowly then, consuming more
time in making one than we do in making four dozen now.
Meanwhile, his creditors of the cotton-mill saw fit to imprison him for debt. Gov
ernor Lincoln gave him the liberty of the yard, however, and father sent for his tools.
Our J. K. remembers carrying them to him one very dark night, and going repeatedly
to and from the jail, carrying things to father, and taking the proceeds of his labors to
his family, by which they were supported during his confinement. He told his cred
itors that if they would release him he would pay their debt as fast as he could earn
the means.
He was released, and soon after took his watch and clock tools, and, a-foot, set out
to see the “ West,” as this region was then called. (Our family are from Millbury,
Worcester County, Massachusetts.) The trip resulted in a family move to New Leb
anon. Father was very poor. Soon after coming here, he took some thermometers
to Albany, and when he crossed the ferry to enter the city, four cents was all the mo
ney he had in the world. Spencer, Stafford & Co. bought his thermometers, and en
gaged to take all that he could make, and from that time his prospects brightened. About
this time he perfected the process of graduating the thermometer scale, sent a de
scription of the same to Professor Silliman, and received from him a high recommen
dation. Thenceforward, father’s reputation as a thermometer maker and theoretical
mechanic was established.
This process we have aimed to keep secret in the family.
Father paid his mill debts, supported a large family, and gave liberally to all be
nevolent movements.
He was induced by the citizens of the town to establish a boarding-school. He did
not, however, relinquish the thermometer business. When the school had been in suc
cessful operation for some little time, father was taken sick at Albany, on his return
from New York, and died, in 1831, aged 45 years.
The richest legacy that he left us, after all, was his memory and character. I re
member hearing an old gentleman say, as father’s remains were exposed in the church,
after the funeral:— “ I had rather be Thomas Kendall in that coffin than President of
the United States.” Perhaps the purest joy that I have ever known has been in ref
erence to my father’s memory, although I was only five years old when he died, and
I am certain that it has shed a pure and holy influence around my pathway hitherto.
The thermometer business continued in the family— but after a little while was al
lowed to run down, and the work was carelessly and incorrectly done, so that for a
while our thermometers were scarcely in the market. For the last six years we have
been bringing the business up again, and have now a decided predominenee in the
market. My brother John, who was the only one of the boys that learned the trade
directly of father, remained in the business only a short time after father’s death, was
in Illinois for about ten years, returned about five years ago, and is now in business
with me. He has made several important improvements for facilitating work, and
that, together with the improved shape in which we now obtain materials, enables us
to make thermometers at a rate vastly ahead of former times. We make from 20,000
to 25,000 thermometers during the present year, and our business is constantly in
creasing. There are several manufactories in the country.
*
*
*
*
V e r y t r u ly y o u r s ,
N e w L ebanon , New York, August, 12th. 1852.
*
*
*
C. S. K E N D A L L , o r
K endall B r o t h e r s .
Journal o f M ining and Manufactures.
645
TH E MANUFACTURE OF GLASS,
N U M BER H I.
CURIOSITIES OF GLASS MAKING.
"We gather from the ancient writers on glass making, that the workers in the article
had, at a very early period, arrived at so great a degree of proficiency and skill as to
more than rival, even before the period of the Christian era, anything within the range
of more modern art. The numerous specimens of their workmanship still preserved
in the public institutions of Europe, and in the cabinets of the curious, prove that the
art of combining, coloring, gilding, and engraving glass was perfected by the ancients.
Indeed, in fancy coloring, mosaic and mock gems or precious stones, the art of the an
cients has never been excelled. Among the numerous specimens, it is remarkable
that all vessels are round: none of ancient date are yet found of any other form. And
no specimen of crystal glass of ancient date has yet been found.
Among the numerous antiques yet preserved, the “ Portland V ase” must hold the
first place. Pellat, in his[work on the incrustation of glass, states: “ The most celebra
ted antique glass vase is that which was during more than two centuries the principal
ornament of the Barberini Palace, and which is now known as the “ Portland Vase.”
It was found about the middle of the sixteenth century, inclosed in a marble sarco
phagus within a sepulchral chamber, under the Monte del Cfarno, two-and-a-half miles
from Home, in the road to Frascati. It is ornamented with white opaque figures in
bas relief upon a dark blue transparent ground. The subject has not heretofore re
ceived a satisfactory elucidation, but the design and more especially the execution are
admirable. The whole of the blue ground or at least the part below the handles,
must have originally been covered with white enamel, out of which the figures'have
been sculptured in the style of a cameo with most astonishing skill and labor.” The
estimation in which the ancient specimens of glass were held, is demonstrated by the
fact that the Duchess of Portland became the purchaser of the celebrated vase which
bears her name, at a price exceeding nine thousand dollars, and bore away the prize
from numerous competitors. The late Mr. Wedgewood was permitted to take a mould
from the vase, at a cost of twenty-five hundred dollars, and he disposed of many copies,
in his rich china, at a price of $250 each.
The next specimen of importance is the vase exhumed at Pompeii in 1839, which is
now at the museum at Naples. It is about twelve inches high, eight inches in width,
and of the same style of manufacture with the “ Portland Vase.” It is covered with
figures in bas relief raised out of a delicate white opaque glass, overlaying a trans
parent dark blue ground, the figures being executed in the style of cameo engraving.
To effect this, the manufacturer must have possessed the art of coating a body of trans
parent blue glass with an equal thickness of enamel or opal colored glass. The diffi
culty of tempering the two bodies of glass with different specific gravities, in order
that they may stand the work of the sculptor, is well known by modern glass
makers. This specimen is considered by some to be the work of Roman artists ; by
others it is thought to be of the Grecian school. As a work of art it ranks next to the
“ Portland Vase,” and the figures and foliage, all elegant and expressive, (and repre
sentative of the season of harvest,) demonstrate most fully the great artistic merit of
the designer.
Among the numerous specimens of ancient glass now in the British Museum, there
are enough of the Egyptian and Roman manufacture, to impress us with profound re
spect for the art as pursued by the earlier workers in glass. Among them is a frag
ment considered as the “ ne plus ultra” of the chemical and manipulatory skill of the
ancient workers. It is described as consisting of no less than five layers or strata of
glass, the interior layer being of the usual blue color, with green and red coatings, and
each strata separated from and contrasted with the others by layers of white enamel
skillfully arranged by some eminent artist of the Grecian school. The subject is a fe
male reposing upon a couch, executed in the highest style of art. It presents a fine
specimen of gem engraving. Among the articles made of common material, are a
few green vases about fifteen inches high, in an excellent state of preservation, and beau
tiful specimens of workmanship. In the formation of the double handles and ciirves,
these vases evince a degree of skill unattained by the glass blowers of the present
period.
The specimens taken from the tombs at Thebes are also numerous. Their rich and
varied colors are proofs of the chemical and inventive skill of the ancients. These
specimens embrace not only rich gems and mosaic work, but also fine examples of the
Journal o f M inina and M anufactures
646
.
lachrymatory vase. Some of the vases are made from common materials, ■with very
great skill and taste. The specimen of glass coin, with hieroglyphical characters,
must not be omitted; as also a miniature effigy of the Egyptian idol “ Isis”— a spe
cimen of which proves that the Egyptians must have been acquainted with the art of
pressing hot glass into metallic molds, an art which has been considered of modern
invention. English glass makers considered the patent pillar glass a modern invention
until a Roman vase was found, (it is now to be seen in the Polytechnic Institution in
London,) being a complete specimen of pillar molding. Pillat states in his work, that
he had seen an ancient drinking vessel of a Medrecan form, on a foot of considerable
substance, nearly entire, and procured from R om e; which had the appearance of
having been blown in an open-and-shut mold, the rim being afterwards cut off and
polished. This is high authority, and, with other evidences that might be cited, goes
far to prove that the ancients used molds for pressing, and also for blowing molded
articles, similar to those now in use.
Specimens of colored glass pressed in beautiful forms for brooches, rings, beads, and
similar ornaments are numerous. Of those of Roman production many specimens
have been found in England. Some of these were taken from the Roman barrows.
In Wales glass rings have been found; they were vulgarly called “ snake stones,” from
the popular notion that they were produced by snakes, but were in fact rings used by
the Druids as a charm with which to impose upon the superstitious. W e find, too,
that the specific gravity of the specimens referred to, ranges from 2,034 to 3,400,
proving that oxide of lead to have been used in their manufacture— the mean gravity
of modern flint glass being 3,200.
From what we gather from the foregoing facts, we are inclined to the belief that,
in fine fancy work, in colors and in the imitation of gems, the ancient glass makers
excelled the modern ones. They were also acquainted with the art of making and
using molds both for blown and pressed glass, and forming what in England is now
called patent pillar glass.
A ll these operations, however, were evidently on a
very limited scale, their views being mainly directed to the production of small but
costly articles. Although in the time of the Roman manufacturers vases of extra size
were made, requiring larger crucibles and furnaces than those used by the glass makers
of Tyre, yet it is evident that they produced few articles except such as were held
sacred for sepulchral purposes, or designed for luxury. And while they possess
ed the knowledge of the use of molds to press and blow glass by expansion, it
does not appear that they produced any articles for domestic use. If it were not
thus, some evidences would be found among the various specimens which have been
preserved.
j. d.
DOME’S GOLD MINE IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
A correspondent of the Dahlonega Signal furnishes the subjoined statement of the
monthly receipts of the gold mine of William B. Dome, in Abbeville District, South
Carolina:—
In the month of March 8 hands yielded............................................. .. dwts.
28,430
........................................................
17,172
“
“ April “
“
“
“ May “
“
.........................................................
14,4 201In June, and to 23d July 8 hands yielded.................................................
14,039
Total
84,061$
Making in all, from the 1st of March last, to the 23d inst., the sum of 84,0614 dwts.
with only eight hands, and a small circle mill, propelled by two mules, which only
pulverize about fifteen bushels of ore per day. I have no doubt that one of our best
pounding mills in Lumpkin in one day, in such ore as this mine produces, would make
twenty-five or thirty thousand dollars.
The vein widens as they go down and retains its usual richness. They are not yet
within forty feet of water level. Should it pass water level and retain its present
size and richness, the probability is that its end will never be reached by the present
generation. I f the rich shoot that he is now operating out at water level, he has
then got the best gold mine that I know anything about. The vein shows plainly on
the surface, a distance of three-quarters of a mile in length, and has been tested in
various places, which shows a width of something like four feet, and tests to be worth
from one to two dollars per bushel, and seventy or eighty feet of that above water
level.
Mercantile Miscellanies.
647
TRADE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM IN MANUFACTURES. ETC.
The home trade of the United Kingdom, in produce and manufactures of every de
scription, according to B raithwaite 1’ oole, Esq., comprises about 290,000,000 tons in
weight, and nearly £600,000,000 in value per annum, including the agricultural pro
duce of the country, which amounts to 180,000,000 tons and £240,000,000; the ordi
nary amount of farming stock on hand being £'200,000,000.
The foreign imports average 6,000,000 tons, and £100,000,000 in value, of which
250,000 tons are re exported, equivalent to £9,000,000.
The exports of British and Irish produce and manufacture, from the United King
dom, amount to 5,000,000 tons, equivalent to £65,000,000.
MERCANTILE MISCELLANIES.
CONSULAR DUTIES.
W e see evidences, on all sides, of a growing interest in our consulate abroad, with
a better understanding of their duties, and a more just appreciation of their impor
tance. These institutions have respect to the life, safety, and comfort of Americans in
foreign countries; they are essential to our commercial interests; they may be made
the instruments of bringing to us important information, and of diffusing just impres
sions in regard to our country and its inhabitants among foreign nations. Lord Pal
merston declared in the British Parliament, a few years since, that he had read every
communication from the British consulates, and that he deemed their correspondence
to be the most important that was received by the government.
An illustration of the scope and capacity of our consulates is presented by our con
sul at Paris, Mr. Goodrich. Although discharging his ordinary duties in a manner
which has merited and received the approbation of all parties at home and abroad,
and at the same time, he has lately published a geographical, statistical, and historical
view o f the United States, in the French language, which will probably do more to
make our country known abroad, than any other work, (if we except the Merchants'
Magazine,) which has ever been published. It has not only been noticed with com
mendation in the leading journals of Paris, but referred to by the President of the
French Republic, as well as other persons of eminent political and scientific position
in France.
W e trust the attention of Congress will speedily be directed to the subject of re
modeling our consular system, and especially to the importance of having our consuls
placed on a proper basis ; and that men specially qualified to fill their office, may be
always selected. Consuls should be familiar with the language and manners of the
country to which they are sent; they should be men of large and varied information,
and of sober and prudent character. Without these qualifications they cannot be
safely intrusted with the important and delicate duties belonging to their office.
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE AT SYDNEY.
The following is an extract of a letter to a gentleman in London, dated Sydney,
Jan. 27, 1852:— “ The Yankees will soon get masters of this market if we do not get
a better line of ships or steam communication between here and England. The first
clipper-ship from the United States arrived here last week. She left Boston five days
after the news of our discovery was known, and made the passage here in 95 days,
bringing news from England up to the 4tli of October, whilst, by the direct way, we
have no later dates than the 18th of Sept. A portion of her cargo consisted of
‘ wooden buckets’ for the miners. I think we shall soon be sufficiently supplied with
this article direct from America. Please, therefore, not to send us any buckets of this
description.”
Mercantile Miscellanies
G48
.
“ COMPETITION IN TRADE ” NOT “ THE LIFE OF BUSINESS.”
The Commercial Register, a well conducted sheet, in a recent editorial has some
sensible remarks touching the oft-repeated maxims—“ Competition, the Life of Trade ’
and “ Live and let Live,” and as they are too good to be lost, we transfer them to the
pages of the Merchants' Magazine.
Competition in trade is considered the life of business. AVe do not pretend to set
up our opinions in opposition to the established and acknowledged proverbs of our
fathers, but we do differ, in some particulars, with the spirit of the adage quoted
above. It might be qualified and amended. Honorable competition is a means of
creating trade, and develops the capacity of men. But that competition that seeks
every means in its power to monopolize trade, by reducing prices, is far from the life
of business, but is, in fact, its very death. Fair, upright, honorable dealing, will
always be sure to meet its reward— although the returns may not be immediate, and
it is better to compete fairly and openly, than secretly and covertly. We live in ex
citement, and life is a constant battle. In this country, where competition does not
exist to the extent that it prevails in Europe, we have but a faint conception of its
injurious tendency, when carried to excess, and know but little of the schemes, resorted
to there, to secure trade. In the great battle of existence, as seen in the old world,
men resort to every species of trick to secure success in business, and every device is
used to obtain custom. This spirit is, unfortunately, on the increase in this country,
and men undersell each other oftentimes, to the injury of themselves as well as those
whose trade they seek to destroy. W e are of those who hold to the sentiment, “ Live,
and let l i v e a n d we consider it a golden rule. It is at variance with that motive
which prompts a man to undersell his neighbor, for the purpose of obtaining his cus
tomers, and deserves to be practiced more than it is. There is no selfishness in i t ;
but, on the contrary, a spirit of liberality and Christianity, worthy of our attention
and adoption. If business men were to study their true interest, there would be less
competition among us than there is at present, and there would be fewer complaints
about dull times, and not so many failures as now. The spirit of competition when
carried to excess, tends to degrade men, and make them heartless, selfish, aud even
cru el; and if not checked, leads to distrust, enmity, aud uncharitableness. A disposi
tion to {air dealing does much to destroy it, and makes our situation less irksome than
if we engage in it with full determination to advance our own interests, to the injury
of others. There is a living, and more, for all of us, without endeavoring to deprive
each other of the means of livelihood, and if we throw aside that spirit of selfishness
that prompts to excessive competition, we will benefit ourselves as well as others, and
“ do unto others as we would they should do unto us.”
PRIZES FOR COMMERCIAL ARTICLES;
Mr. W. Parker Hammond, of the firm of Messrs. Hammond & Co., London, offers
the following premiums— £50 for the best “ Essay on China,” embracing the following
points : The capabilities of that empire to consume the manufactures of Britain, and
existing impediments thereto. The effect of the present British tea duties on its con
sumption, and oft the China trade generally, and the probable influence thereon on a
reduction of duty. The opium trade, and its effect upon the commerce and morals of
China and India. General remarks on the empire of Japan, and the prospects of the
trade therewith. Suggestions as to the most efficient mode of extending Christianity
in China. £50 for the best “ Essay on the Eastern Archipelago,” including the Philip
pines and the Gulf of Siam, embracing the following points: Piracy, its extent and
effect on the price of Straits produce and the consumption of British manufactures.
The best means of suppression or prevention. The commercial capabilities of the
countries alluded to, and existing impediments to their expansion. Christianity— the
best means of its extension therein. The object of Mr. Hammond in offering these pre
miums is, to promote the interests of religion and commerqe in the China seas and
eastern Archipelago, in connection with the design of the great exhibition. He pro
poses that the rewards should be given in cash, or in gold medals of equal value, at
the option o f the successful competitors. Judges are to be appointed to decide on the
merits of the essays,— and the last day of next October is fixed on as the limit within
which manuscripts must be sent in. It is further proposed that a selection of the
manuscripts be made, and the copyright of them be disposed of, and published with
the name of each essayist attached, and the net proceeds ratably allotted to the
Mercantile Miscellanies.
G49
writers, or, with their consent, disposed of as may be considered by the judges most
likely to promote the objects treated on. Detailed statements of the conditions to be
observed in competing for the premiums can be obtained from the Secretary of the
Society of Arts.
HINTS TO MERCHANTS ON ADVERTISING.
W e cut from an exchange paper, and publish for the benefit of the two parties the
most interested—the merchants and the “ mediums”— not knocking— the subjoined
homily on advertising.
“ Our merchants are doing the handsome thing, in informing the people where the
good bargains can be made, for proof of which see our advertising columns. It is just
ns certain that the man who advertises freely will do the business, as it is that every
body likes to buy cheap and good goods. If a man has got goods that are not fit to
be seen nor bought, it is sensible in him not to inform people of what he has got, nor
invite them to look at his stock. The same thing is true of all branches of business,
mechanical trades, etc. People look in the papers now adays, if they waut informa
tion in relation to all these matters, and the mau that wants their custom must get it
by reaching them through the public print.
“ ‘ Oh, Fudge !’ says some old granny of a man, ‘ that is all to get a few dollars out of
me for advertising. Pm too smart for that. If anybody wants my goods or work, I
think they will find me, advertise or no advertise. I think I’d save that money/—
Very w ell; the printer is not half as much a loser as yourself. Try it for a year, and
then come to a painful realizing sense that your neighbor has entirely outstripped you
in business, and wonder why it is that everybody is running to him when your goods
are as good as his. Ah ! * there’s the rub/ People won’t believe that a man has got
good Goods, if they are not good enough to be advertised. ‘ That’s the way they all
do now/ and if any man pleases to be singular, let him do it at his own cost: we have
warned him in due season.”
THE CLOVES OF COMMERCE.
The article known in commerce as cloves, are the unopened flowers of a small ever
green that resembles in appearance the laurel or the bay. It is a native of the Molucca,
or Spice Islands, but has been carried to all the warmer parts of the world, and is
largely cultivated in the tropical regions of America. The flowers are small in size,
and grow in large numbers in clusters at the very ends of the branches. The cloves
we use are the flowers gathered before they are opened, and whilst they are still
green. After being gathered, they are smoked by a wood fire, and then dried in the
sun. Each clove consists of two parts, a round head, which is the four petals or
leaves of the flower rolled up, inclosing a number of small stalks or filaments. The
other part of the clove is terminated with four points, and is, in fact, the flower-cup,
and the unripe seed-vessel. A ll these parts may be distinctly shown if a few leaves
are soaked for a short time in hot water, when the leaves of the flowers soften, and
readdy unroll. The smell ot cloves is very strong and aromatic, but not unpleasant.
Their taste is pungent, acrid, and lasting. Both the taste and smell depend on the
quantity of oil they contain. Sometimes the oil is separated from the cloves before
they are sold, and the odor and taste in consequence is much weakened by this
proceeding.
COMMERCE IN SICILY.
The official journal contains a variety of decrees more or less interesting. Those
relating to commerce are important. The trade of the free port of Messina has been
crippled for a long time, owing to the vexatious regulations of the custom-house,
which even after the full restoration of the freedom of the port of Messina, prohibited
goods to be freely circulated from that depot throughout the kingdom of the two
Sicilies. A royal decree, bearing date April 20, 1S52, (Palermo) permits the exporta
tion o f foreign goods to all parts of the royal dominions. This is highly favorable to
the interest of merchants and British interests generally, as nearly the whole of the
trade of Sicily is in the hands of English houses. Priuce Satriano, the lord-lieutenant,
has insisted on these new arrangements, to which the ^Neapolitan Minister of Finance
was long opposed.
650
Mercantile Miscellanies
.
DR, PALEY ON THE FISHERY QUESTION,
In the Bridgeport edition of P aley , 1827 ; p. 64, chap. xi. occurs the following
under the head of “ General Rights of Mankind” :—
“ I f there be fisheries which are inexhaustible, as, for aught I know, the cod fishery
on the Banks of Newfoundland and the herring fishery in the British seas, are, then
all those conventions, by which one or two nations claim to themselves and guarantee
to each other the exclusive enjoyment o f those fisheries, are so many encroachments
upon the general rights o f mankind.”
“ Upon the same principle may be determined a question which makes a .great fig
ure in books of Natural Law, ‘ Utrum mare sit liberum,’ that is, as I understand it,
whether the exclusive right of navigating particular seas, or a control over the navi
gation of those seas, can be claimed consistently with the law of nations by any nation ?
What is necessary fo r each nation's safety, we allow ; as their own bays, creeks, and
harbors, the sea that is contiguous to— that is within cannon shot, or three leagues of
the coast. And upon the same principle of safety { i f upon any principle) must be
defended the claim of the Venetian state to the Adriatic, of Denmark to the Baltic,
o f Great Britain to the seas which invest the island.
PHILOSOPHY OF MONEY.
The Dutchman very justly observes that the moment money becomes cheap, up
goes the price of beef and potatoes, so that it makes but very little difference to any
body save gold diggers and borrowers, whether the yield of gold mines be one ton a
year or one thousand tons. Since the discovery of gold in California, interest has fal
len some.40 per cent, while rents have gone up seventy-five. The idea that the quan
tity of comfort in the world depends on the quantity of money in it, is, therefore, all
moonshine. Double the present supply of gold, and we would double the price of
every article for which gold is given in exchange— so that it makes “ no difference to
nobody ” whether half the mountains in California are composed of precious metals
or not. Things will find their level, and if an hours labor in California will produce
an ounce of gold, the time will soon come when an ounce of gold will be given for an
hour’s cobbling. The quantity of labor necessary to produce an article determines its
value. Make gold dust as common as gravel, and it would bring the same price per
peck.
PEARL FISHERIES IN PANAMA BAY,
The Panama Herald, of a late date, gives an interesting account of the pearl fish
eries in Panama Bay. About fifteen hundred persons are engaged in the business,
and the value o f the pearls obtained varies from $80,000 to $150,000 per annum, sel
dom less than $100,000. The best divers remain under water from fifty-eight to sixtv-one seconds, and generally bring up from twelve to fifteen pearl shells. The price
of pearls varies according to their purity, shape, and weight, say from ten to five thou
sand collars per ounce. From five hundred to fifteen hundred are very frequently
paid in Panama for a single pearl, not weighing more than three-sixteenths of an ounce.
EFFECT OF REDUCED CUSTOMS DUTIES IN AUSTRIA.
The returns from the department of customs for the month of March are of a nature
to discourage all sticklers for prohibition. Instead of a falling off in the revenue, con
sequent upon the new tariff, the imports have increased more than in proportion to the
reduction o f the duties. The custom-house receipts for March, 1852, exceed the returns
for the same month in 1851, by 66,282 florins, (convention currency,) and the increase
is on the very articles the duty upon which has been most lowered.
A BENEVOLENT BANKER,
The Staunton (Ya.) Spectator states that Mr. Corcoran the wealthy Washington ban
ker, was recently informed by the lady philanthropist, Miss Dix, of the destitute con
dition o f a deaf and dumb orphan girl of Washington, who had been unable to obtain
a place in the Northern institutions. Mr. Corcoran immediately sent to Miss Dix, a
check for a sufficient amount to maintain and educate the girl, with the distinct condi
tion that she should be taken to the Virginia institution, where she is now comfortably
located.
The B ook Trade.
C51
THE BOOK TRADE.
TH E BOOK TRADE OF FRANCE.
From the last number of the Journal de Vlmprimerie for 1851, we gather the fol
lowing statistics of the productions of the French printing houses during the last ten
years. Seven thousand three hundred and fifty works in living and dead languages,
published in 1851, thus :—
1851........................
1850........................
1849........................
1848 .......................
1847 .......................
1 8 4 6 .......................
1845................................... ___
1844...................................
...
1843........
........
1842...............................
6521
6 477
6 009
6*445
In 10 years................ .........
64,568
5 riSO
or an average per year of 6,436 works. The same presses printed in 1S51, 485 musi
cal works, and in the ten years, 3,336, or an annual average of 333.
There has also been published 1,014 engravings and lithographs, and during the 10
years, 13,085, or an average of 1,308.
Two hundred and fifty-three maps and topographical plans have also been pub
lished during the year; during the ten years, 1,005, or a mean of 100 a year.
Thus it appears that nearly in every department of press-work, the year 1851 is in
advance of the average of the last ten years. The grand total of works published in
France during these ten years, engravings, musical works, maps, and plans, is 81,994.
1. — Ancient Egypt under the Pharaohs. By J ohn K eneick, M. A.
pp. 427 and 448. New Y ork : J. S. Redfield.
2 vols., 12mo.,
The aim of the able author of this work has been to present to the historical stu
dent a comprehensive view of the results^of the combined labors of travelers and ar
tists, interpreters and critics, during the whole period since the discovery of the hieroglyphical characters. It describes, as known to us at present, the land and the peo
ple of Egypt, their arts and sciences, their civil institutions and their religious faith
and usages, and relates their history from the earliest records of the monarchy to its
final absorption in the empire of Alexander. The sources, both ancient and modern,
from which the information has been derived, are indicated, and no accessible mate
rials have been intentionally neglected. Idle geography of the country, its popula
tion and language, its cities, agriculture, navigation, Commerce, arts, science, learning,
manners, customs, religion, rites, theology, dynasties, <fcc., <fec., form the subjects of its
pages. The reader will find it prepared with great intelligence and ability. Embra
cing the contents o f a vast number of volumes, and the results of arduous labors, it
has a value and importance beyond any single work on this interesting subject.
2.
— The Master Builder, or Life at a Trade.
322. New York : J. S. Redfield.
By D ay K ellogg L ee.
12mo., pp
Presuming that there is a romance in every true character and in all the great labors
o f life, this is an attempt to describe the romance of those simple yet sublime pursuits,
which are the hope of our Republic and the glory of her people. “ Life at a Trade ”
is here represented, as some mechanics may perhaps think, in too glowing colors. The
scenes of nature are described with much minuteness and fidelity, and the interest of
the story is generally well sustained.
3. — Life o f Franklin Pierce. By N athaniel H awthorne. 12mo., pp. 144. Boston
Ticknor, Reed, & Fields.
This is not a political work, but a tribute of friendship to one who, at the present
moment, engrosses a large amount of public attention. Of course it is well clone, as
anything from the pen of Hawthorne is sure to be— even the most confirmed political
opponents of this presidential candidate, who possess literary taste, might find in the
subject as here presented, charms such as they never before anticipated.
652
The Book Trade
.
4.— Japan; an Account, Geographical and Historical, from the Earliest Period at
which the Islands composing this Empire were known to Europeans, down to the
Present Time, and the Expedition fitted out in the United States, d'c. By C harles
M c Farlane. With numerous illustrations. 12mo., pp. 365. New York: George
P. Putnam.
It has often been asserted that very little is known by us of Japan. This is not
strictly true. Our information respecting the people of that island is nearly as ex
tensive as of the people of almost any one of the countries of the East. But it is
scattered through a large number of volumes which have been written between 1560
and 1838. The writers have been chiefly Germans and Dutch, whose works are quite
voluminous. The Portuguese, Spanish, and Italians have also in their languages many
original works on the same subject. It is from these sources, and the conversation of
intelligent travelers, that the materials of this interesting volume have been obtained.
It is extensively illustrated, and furnishes a very satisfactory account of the general
character and customs of that secluded people.
5. — A New England Tale, and Miscellanies. By C atherine M. S edgwick , author of
“ Clarence,” “ lied wood,” “ Hope Leslie,” <fcc. 12mo., pp. 388. New Y ork : George
P. Putnam.
The principal tale in this volume made its appearance some thirty years ago, at a
time when the stock of Native-American literature was scanty. It was received with
great favor, and passed through several editions in the course of a year or two. Time
has not diminished its reputation, either as a faithful delineation of New England char
acter, or an agreeable and instructive story. The publisher deserves the thanks of the
American public for his reproduction of the works of Miss Sedgwick in a style that
cannot fail of securing for them a place in every well-selected family library. The
additional tales embraced in the present volume, “ are now for the first time resusci
tated, after a decent interment in the magazines. Thus we have in one volume the ear
lier and the later writings of one of our best novelists.
6. — Walks and Talks o f an American Farmer in England in the years 1851 and
1852. Part 2. 12mo., pp. 192. New Y ork: G. P. Putnam.
Rustic and rural manners, as they strike a party of young Americans walking
through some of the western and southern parts of England, compose the contents of
this interesting book. The author writes in a simple, unaffected style, describing much
that is novel to the American reader, and presenting very pleasant pictures of rural
life in the old country. The volume is one of the recent numbers of Putnam’s SemiMonthly Library, the first part of which was issued some time since.
7. — Crimes o f the House o f Austria against Mankind, proved by Extracts from the
Histories o f Coxe, Schiller, Robertson■,Grattan, and Sismondi, with Mrs. M .L. Pu t
nams History o f the Constitution o f Hungary, and its Relations with Austria,pub
lished in May, 1850. Edited by E! P. P eabody. Second Edition. 12mo., pp. 230.
New Y o rk : G. P. Putnam.
As the title indicates, so the reader will perceive that this volume consists chiefly of
passages of Hungarian history. They are very important ones, which have been col
lected from unquestionable sources, and tend to show the necessity and justice of the
Hungarian cause. This second edition has received some improvements upon the
former one.
8. — Glossology: Being a Treatise on the Nature o f Language and on the Language
o f Nature. By C iias K raitzir , M. D. 12mo., pp. 240. New York : published for
the author by G. P. Putnam.
This is a treatise which is far more learned than wise. The author aims to intro
duce some new and striking views respecting the elements of language and education,
but his subject is presented in so uninviting a manner that we fear his book will meet
with a neglect to which it is not justly entitled.
9. —S icily; a Pilgrimage. By H enry T. T uckerman. 12mo.,pp. 188. New York :
G. P. Putnam.
Putnam’s Semi-Monthly Library, number sixteen, consists of thi3 pleasant and ad
mirably written tour in Sicily by Tuckerman.
10. — Virginia and Magdalene ; or, the Foster Sisters. A Novel.
S outhwortii. 8vo., pp. 158. Philadelphia: A. Hart.
By E mma D. E. N.
The Booh Trade
11. — Pioneer Women o f the West.
Charles Scribner.
.
By Mrs. E llett.
653
12rao., pp. 433.
New York:
This admirable volume may be regarded as a supplement to the memoirs of the
“ Women of the Revolution,” by the same author. It is the story of the wives and
mothers who ventured into the Western wilds, and bore their part in the struggles
and labors of the early pioneers. The materials of the volume have been gathered
from the most authentic sources in the Western States, and thus the sketches exhibit
not only the character of many a pioneer matron, but afford a picture of the times in
the progressive settlement of the whole country from Tennessee to Michigan. They
embrace domestic life and manners, illustrative anecdotes, with a notice of such polit
ical events as had an influence on the condition of the country. The number of wo
men noticed is nearly seventy; their lives would not be presented with the fullness of
the pages, without spreading before the reader a very distinct picture of early life in
the Western wilds. As a volume it is written in the best style of the author, and the
interest of the reader, ever arrested, is retained throughout.
12. — Anglo-American Literature and Manners.
From the French of P iitlarete
C harles, Professor in the College of France. 12mo.,pp. 312. New York: Charles
Scribner.
This is the work of a French author who has undertaken a survey of American lit
erature and manners, without possessing sufficient sympathy and familiarity with the
subject to render justice to it. He thus exposes himself to assaults and obloquy from
which his talents and merits should shield him. His views are novel aud striking, and
worthy to be read by all who desire to see how some writers think of us. There is a
vein of French egotism, the most insipid o f all egotism, interspersed in his pages. The
translation is well rendered.
13. — The Lives o f Winfield Scott and Andrew Jackson. By J. T. H eadley. 12mo.,
pp. 341. New York: C. Scribner.
Every political design is disavowed by the author in commencing his book with the
life o f one of the candidates for the Presidency, inasmuch as it was written before the
nomination was made. The work speaks in high terms of praise of botli heroes. It
is written in that bold, somewhat exaggerated style which is calculated to make an
impression upon the popular mind.
14. — The Clifford Family ; or, a Tale o f the Old Dominion.
ters . 12mo., pp. 425.
New York: Harper cfc Brothers.
By O ne
of her
D augh
Virginia life and manners possess many of the elements for elevated romance.
These have been well used in this volume, and we are presented with many truthful,
genial, and charming pictures of life in the Old Dominion. The story is well told, is
excellent in sentiment, and will find a multitude of admirers.
15. — The School f o r Fathers. A n old English Story.
205. New Y ork: Harper & Brothers.
It is a plain and quite entertaining story of olden times.
and clear style, full of gracefulness and attraction.
By T. G w y n n e .
12mo., pp.
It is written in a pure
16. — The Portrait o f Washington. New York: William Stearns.
This is a very fine and beautiful engraving from the only original portrait of Wash
ington, by Stuart. The correctness of the likeness has always been beyond a question.
The execution c f the painting was in the finest style of the art, and the engraving by
T. B. Welch has received the highest encomiums from the best qualified judges. As
a work of art and a portrait of the noble Washington, it should find a place in every
American family.
17. — The Geral-Milco: or the Narrative o f a Residence in a Brazilian Valley o f the
Sierra Paricis. By A . R. M. P ayne. 12mo., pp. 264. New Y ork: Charles B.
Norton.
An entertaining picture of a tour into parts of South America, with descriptions
o f scenes and characters—quite strange. It is written in a lively style and forms
quite an agreeable book.
18. — The Guerrilla C h ief; or, the Romance o f War.
New Y ork: H. Long & Brothers.
Illustrated.
8vo., pp. 233.
654
The Book Trade
.
19. — Lives o f Wellington and Peel. From the London Times. 12mo., pp. 207. New
Y ork: D. Appleton & Co.
This volume forms one of the numbers of “ Appleton’s Popular Library of the best
Authors,” a series of works which are winning the highest place among the popular
publications of the day. The pages of this volume contain the very able biographi
cal sketches in the London Times of Peel and Wellington, published soon after their
decease, and the leading articles of the paper on the day of their deaths. They are
admirable papers, and amply repay a careful perusal.
20. — Poems. By M attie G riffith . N ow first collected. 12mo., pp. 167. New
York : D. Appleton & Co.
This is a volume of sweet and charming poetry. The author writes with a pen
touched with the true poetic inspiration, and the lovers of the Muses will find great
pleasure in her pages.
21.— Men’s Wives. By W m. M. T hackeray. 12mo., pp. 273. New York: D. Ap
pleton & Co.
This is another of those works of unsurpassed humor, of which the graceful pen of
Thackeray is so fertile. It is published as a volume of Appleton’s Popular Library,
and is an exceedingly agreeable book.
22. — Contentment Better than Wealth. By A lice B. N eal. 12mo., pp. 186. New
York : D. Appleton & Co.
This is one of those graphic and genial tales which absorb the feelings of the
youthful reader, while they convey to the mind the purest and most disinterested
sentiments. It cannot fail to impart gratification to all.
23. — Stories from “ Blackwood.” 12mo., pp. 261. New York: D. Appleton & Co.
This volume forms one of the numbers of Appletons’ Popular Library. It consists
of some of the most agreeable and entertaining papers of Blackwood's Magazine—
such as the “ The First and Last Dinner,” “ Malavatti,” “ The Avenger,” &c., <fcc.
24. — Borne and the Abbey. By the author of “ Geraldine.” 12mo., pp. 408. New
York : D. J. Sadlier &, Co.
The chief features of this tale consists in presenting to the reader, the course of a
young religeuse from her entrance into the Roman Church. The various ceremonials
etc., are interwoven with an interesting tale, and the growth of religious impressions
in her mind is very fully delineated.
25. — Literature and A rt. By S. M argaret F uller. With an Introduction, by H or
ace G reeley .
12mo., pp. 320. New York: Fowlers &, Wells.
Margaret Fuller, afterwards the Countess d’Ossoli, is well known to all by the mel
ancholy fate of herself and family. She had acquired by her writings an extensive
and substantial reputation. This volume is one which was originally prepared by her
self for the press. It contains quite a number o f essays upon literary subjects; to
many of these she is in part entitled for her reputation, although her other works have
obtained high success.
26. — Waverley Novels. Abbotsford Edition. Yols. 5 and 6. 12mo., pp. 264 and 296.
Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co.
These volumes contain “ The Monastery ” and “ Ivanhoe.” This is a very fine edi
tion, and published at a very low price.
27. — Stories o f Ancient Pome. By T. W. R ic o n d . 12mo., pp., 305. With Illustratrations. New York: M. W. Dodd.
In these pages we are presented with a sketch of Roman history from the founda
tion of the city to the expulsion of the Kings. The outlines of the characters of the
chief personages, such as Romulus, <&c., are drawn in a style suited to the understand
ing of youthful readers. It is attractive, useful, and instructive.
28. — The Spirit W orld; or, the Caviler Answered. By J o e l H. Ross, M. D.
18mo., pp. 285. New York: M. W. Dodd.
This is a volume written under a strong religious influence, with the design to stimu
late all to walk carefully, watchfully, and prayerfully through this dark valley to the
religious world.
The Book Trade
.
655
29. — The Lost Senses, Deafness and Blindness. By J ohn K ith, 1?. D. 12 mo., pp.
37 V. New York : Robert Carter cfe Brothers.
The author of this volume and several others of importance, was, at an early period
of his life, afflicted with blindness and deafness. His intellectual acquisitions were
almost entirely made subsequently to this misfortune. Having thus suffered for a
long period of his life from these evils, they necessarily became prominent subjects
before his mind. He has consequently collected and arranged in these pages a large
mass of facts in relation to individuals suffering under the loss of either of those senses.
These are interspersed extensively with genial thoughts and reflections, all of which
breathe a grave and devotional spirit. They are written in an interesting style and
will afford both improvement and profit to a large number of readers.
30. — Daily Bible Illustrations; being Original Readings f o r a Year on Subjectsfrom
Sacred History, Biography, Geography, Antiquities, and Theology, especially designed
f o r the Family Circle. By J ohn K ioto, 1). D. Evening Series. Isaiah and the
Prophets. 12mo., pp. 418. Robert Carter &, Brothers.
This volume completes the series of illustrations of the Old Testament by this au
thor. It forms a very interesting compilation, and in the family circle is worthy to be
regarded as one of the most valuable of the works in explanation of the subjects of
sacred history.
31. — Lectures on the Works and Genius o f Washington Alston. By W illiam W ane .
12mo., pp. 142. Boston: Phillips,Sampson
Co.
The theme and the writer of this volume possess attractions of no ordinary interest.
Alston the eminent painter, and Wane the accomplished scholar, are in conjunction.
The contents are three lectures upon the genius of Alston and his “ Lesser and Larger”
pictures. They are given to the public as they were left by the author at his decease.
The criticism is an expression of the result of a long and delightful study of the sub
ject, and conveys the candid impressions of the author. Every lover of the fine arts,
or of true manliness and refined scholarship will delight to peruse these pages.
32. —Autobiography o f Rev. Tobias Spicer ; Containing Incidents and Observations,
also some Account o f His Visit to England. 12mo., pp. 309. New York: Lane
<feScott.
A t the Annual Conference of the Methodists at Troy, in 1847, a request was made
that the author should prepare this volume with special reference to his experience,
opinions, and observations, in relation to Methodism. His labors have been confined
mostly to that conference, and the incidents related in the volume have occurred within
his experience in those limits. The public is here presented with an intelligent outline
of the practical operation of Methodism, and the general views entertained by the mass
of those who conform to this system of religious faith.
33. — The Upper Ten 7'housand; Sketches o f American Society. By. C. A stor B ris ted.
Second Edition. 12mo., pp. 275. New York : Stringer Townsend.
These sketches originally appeared in Frazer's London Magazine, and are reprinted
here with the presumption, upon good evidence, that the name prefixed is that of the
real author. They are lively, graphic delineations of high life in New York drawn
with a pointed pen.
34. — Meyer's Universum, in Half-Monthly Parts, Illustrated with Drawings by the
First Artists. Parts 5 and 6. New York: H. J. Meyer.
This is a very tasteful and elegant work. The illustrations are finely executed, and
the literary matter is entertaining and instructive. These parts contain plates of
“ Notre-Dame Cathedral,” “ Plato’s School,” “ Hudson River near Newburg,” and
“ Calcutta;” “ Roman Aqueduct in Segovia,” “ Chamouni Village and Valley,” “ Civita
Castellina, Italy,” and “ The Castle and Monastery of Block, Hungary.”
85.—Boydell's Illustrations o f Shakspeare. Nos. 46, 47, 48, and 49. New York : J.
Spooner.
The wonderful engravings, of the elegance of which we have often spoken, are
further continued in these numbers, which consist of a representation of Falstaff and
Hal, in King Henry I V . ; Southampton and Henry, in King Henry V . ; Shak
speare nursed by Tragedy and Comedy; the Death of the Cardinal in Henry V I .;
King Richard III. and the Prince, from the play of Richard III.; Desdemona Sleep
ing; a Field of Battle, from Henry V I.; and another view of Desdemona asleep.
656
The BooJc Trade .
36. — Northwood; or, L ife at the North and South. By Mrs. S a r a h J. H a l e . Illus
trated. 12mo., pp. 999. New Y ork: H. Long & Brother.
This work is written in that genuine spirit of Christian philanthropy which knows
“ no Nortli and no South,” except as forming parts of one great and glorious Union, of
which all the citizens, in every quarter, are brethren. It is marked by strong and ex
cellent sense, is written in an animated and interesting style, and delineates with great
fidelity and justness many of the striking traits both of Northern and Southern char
acter. It does justice to the peculiar and embarrassing circumstances of the South,
and sets forth many important principles, the practice o f which would cement the
Union, and foster the prosperity of all portions of the country. W e are gratified, for
the sake o f the “ good and gifted ” author, to learn that there is a very extensive sale
o f this work.
37. — The National Portrait Gallery o f Distinguished Americans, with Biographi
cal Sketches, Containing upwards o f One Hundred and Twenty Engraved P or
traits o f the Most Eminent Persons in the History o f the United States. 8vo.
Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4. Philadelphia : 11. Peterson. New York: Wm. Terry.
The portraits contained in these numbers are those of Gen. Washington and his
wife Martha, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, Chas. Carroll, W. Irving, Wm. White,
John Marshall, Gen. Scott, Gen. Anthony Wayne, and Commodore MacDonough.
They are executed with much taste and skill, and generally the resemblance to the
best paintings of the originals is very correct. The biographical sketches are general,
yet embrace all the leading incidents in the lives of each individual.
38. — The A rt Journal fo r September and October. New York and London: Geo.
Virtue.
This unrivaled organ of the fine arts is embellished in its usual admirable style,
and rich in artistic intelligence. The plates in the September number are “ Lady
Gadiva,” from a picture in the Vernon Gallery; “ Napoleon’s Mother,” from the statue
by Canova; and the “ Infant Bacchus,” from a picture in the Vernon Gallery. In the
October number the plates are “ The Tired Soldier,” and “ Cupid Bound,” from pictures
in the Vernon Gallery; and the “ Faithful Messenger,” from the statue by Geefs at
Antwerp— with numerous illustrations also of German art.
39. — The Waverley Novels. Library Edition. Vols. X . and X I. Boston: B. B.
Mussey.
These volu mes embrace “ Kenilworth ” and “ The Abbot.” The illustrations on
wood are in the highest style of the art, and altogether this is one of the most desir
able editions of the Scott novels that has yet been published.
40. — Waverley Novels. “ Black Dwarf ” and “ Old Mortality.” 8vo., pp. 124. Phila
delphia : A. Plart.
This is the cheapest edition of the Waverley Novels at present published. The ap
pearance, typography, &c.t is quite fair.
41. — The Old Engagement. A Spinster Story. By J u l ia D a y . 1 2 mo., pp. 215.
Boston: James Munroe Co.
This is a simple narrative, the attraction of which must be chiefly sought for in the
gracefulness and spirit with which it is related.
42. — The University Speaker; a Collection o f Pieces Designed f o r College Exercises
in Recitation, with Suggestions on the Appropriate Elevation o f Particular Pas
sages. By W i l l i a m R u s s e l l . 12mo., pp. 528. Boston: James Munroe tfc Co.
The pieces in this volume consist o f rhetorical, oratorical, and poetical extracts.
They are selected with judgment and good taste, forming a book as meritorious as
any of the kind.
43. — Philosophers and Actresses. By A r s e n e H o u s s a y e . 2 vols., 12mo., pp. 411 and
406. New York: J. S. Redfield.
These volumes should be regarded as a second part of the “ Men and Women of
the Eighteenth Century ”— a work by the same author, which has recently appeared.
They are written with the same taste and interesting style of narrative. Intermingled
with the lives are prominent events of an influential kind, which were remarkable in the
career of individuals. The volumes contain sketches of Voltaire, Mademoiselle Gaus6in, Callat, TardifF, Chamfort, Madame Parabere, Prudhon, and very many others.
