THE NEW CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ROOMS IN MILWAUKEE.

ADDRESS OF THOS. WHITNEY, ESQ., AT THE OPENING.

We have frequently referred to the many advantages to be derived from well organized Boards of Trade in all our cities, by cultivating identity of interest and establishing unanimity of action in all great and important movements or enterprises effecting the trade and commerce of the country. Any new movement, therefore, indicating energy and life in an old organization we are glad to see. About four years ago a Board of Trade was established at Milwaukee, in a basement room, with about fifty members. There was doubt whether it had sufficient vitality to drag through its first year's existence. Two other unsuccessful attempts had been made on previous occasions to organize a similar institution, and it was therefore with fear and trembling that this new fledgeling was put upon its legs. But this time the undertaking seemed animated with a new life. Probably old failures taught wisdom, and very likely, too, the leaders in this third movement indoctrinated it with a larger proportion of Western energy and perseverance than blessed the former efforts. At all events, it proved a success and advanced one step after another until now it boasts two hundred and seventy live members, with new and elegant rooms for their meetings. On the occasion of opening these new rooms, (February 3, 1863,) THOMAS WHITNEY, Esq., delivered an address, which is full of interesting facts, well put together. We are persuaded that the wealth and power of the West is not appreciated by the mass of people East. An able article will be found in this number of the Mer chants' Magazine, showing a few of its resources and giving some idea of its future. We now add quite extensive extracts from Mr. WHITNEY's address, furnishing, as it does, an excellent resumé of the State's past history. In speaking of the trade of the State, he says:

Its origin and growth are not only within the recollection of many of our citizens, but within the experience of quite a number. It is only a few short years since the entire domain, stretching west from the shore of Lake Michigan, was one vast uncultivated tract, with scarcely a furrow upon the surface of this great area to break the quiescent state in which nature had left it. Since the only pursuits followed by the inhabitants of this section of the country were those of hunting and fishing, and the only commerce of our State was that with the red man of the forest.

Surprising as it may seem, no longer ago than 1836, only twenty-seven years since, this entire State, which has an area of soil greater than that of Maryland, New Hampshire, Vermont, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Con

necticut, and Delaware combined-greater than that of New York, Connecticut, and Delaware, and equal to the combined area of Ohio, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, which now numbers its 800,000 souls, only contained a population, all told, of 11,686 persons.

Six years previous, in 1830, thirty-three years ago, there were but 3,245 persons within the length and breadth of what was then the Territory of Wisconsin.

From 1840 to 1850 the growth of our State in population was unprecedented in the history of this nation. Never since the foundation of this government was there increase equal to it. Our sister States of Illinois and Iowa did nobly during the decade referred to, but it was left to Wisconsin alone to outstrip all of those States which had gone before her.

The ratio of increase in Illinois from 1840 to 1850 was 79 per cent; of Iowa, 346 per cent; that of Wisconsin, 887 per cent from 31,000 in 1840 to 305,000 in 1850. Only in two instances since 1800 had 50 per cent of this increase ever been reached by any State or Territory in or of the Union. Indiana increased from 1810 to 1820, 500 per cent, and Michigan, from 1830 to 1840 571 per cent. With these two exceptions, no State had ever before grown with half the rapidily of our own from

1840 to 1850.

Since that time, however, our extraordinary growth, which I have just described to you, has been entirely eclipsed and obscured by our sister State of Minnesota, whose ratio of increase, from 1850 to 1860, was 2,761 per cent.

The ratio of increase in the whole United States from 1850 to 1860, was but 35 per cent. In the Northwest, 68 per cent; in Wisconsin, 150 per cent, and in Minnesota, as I have just stated, 2,761 per cent, leaving Wisconsin the second State in the Union distinguished for rapidity of growth.

Massachusetts has 158 inhabitants to the square mile; we have as yet only 14,4. Massachusetts has a little over 4 acres to each inhabitant; we have 441.

The entire product of our agricultural, mineral, and manufacturing interests in 1840, which is as early as we have any data respecting the condition and growth of our State, was but $4,149,946; in 1860, it was $75,658,640-a gain in the product of our State, in twenty years, of $71,508,694. The value of our agricultural products alone has increased from $2,689,959 in 1840, to $47,149,730 in 1860-a gain in our agricultural products in twenty years of $44,459,771.

In 1850 (we have no report of our farms in 1840,) we had 2,976,658 acres in farms; in 1860, 7,889,170 acres—a -a gain in the area of our farms, in ten years, of 4,922,512 acres. The area of our farms exceeds that of the area of the entire State of Massachusetts.

The value of our farming lands in 1850 was $28,500,000; in 1860 $131,000,000-a gain in the value of our farms, in ten years, since 1850 of $102,500,000.

Our agricultural implements used in tilling the soil have increased in value $4,117.279 in ten years; from $1,641,568 in 1850, to $5,758,847 in 1860. In 1850 we had 1,046,000 acres of land under cultivation; in 1860, 3,746,036 acres-an increase in ten years, since 1850, of 2,700,036 acres of cultivated land in our State. Our cultivated land equals that of the entire area of the States of Connecticut and Rhode Island combined.

In 1840 we had 40,682 acres of land devoted to cereals; in 1850, 490,735 acres; and in 1860, 1,966,500-1,925,818 acres more in 1860 than in 1840, and 1,475,765 more than in 1850.

The tillage of wheat-our chief agricultural staple and article of export -was, in 1840, 815,151 acres; in 1850, 306,152 acres; and in 1861, according to our Secretary's report, 1,112,600 acres-an increase of 1,097,449 acres of wheat since 1840, and of 806,448 acres since 1850.

Michigan, which had a larger population in 1830 than we had in 1840, and Iowa, which was in 1840 double our size, each now have about the same population, and yet the wheat product of neither equals that of Wisconsin at the present time, within about 50 per cent.

Our cereal crop has grown from 1,020,000 bushels in 1840 to 56,051,000 in 1861-a gain of 55,031,000 bushels since 1840, and of 45.991,000 bushels since 1850, when our cereal crop amounted to but 10,060,000 bushels.

Our cereal crop of 1861 was 31,414,000 bushels greater than the cereal crop of all the New England States in 1860.

Our wheat crop in 1840 yielded 212,000 bushels; in 1850, 4,286,000; in 1860, 15,812,000; and in 1861, according to our State report, 27,316,000. Wisconsin is now the second wheat producing State in the Union. Illinois alone grows more wheat than we do. Our wheat crop for 1861 was 3,000,000 bushels greater than that of Ohio, New York, and all the New England States combined for 1860; greater than the entire wheat crop of Canada of the same year.

The increase of our wheat crop from 1850 to 1861-over 23,000,000 bushels-was equal to one-third of the increase in all the States and Territories of the Union from 1850 to 1860. The increase of the whole Uni- . ted States, including the Territories, from 1850 to 1860, was but about 70,000,000 bushels, or about 70 per cent-from 100,000,000 to 170,000,000 of bushels-while the wheat crop of Ohio showed no increase from 1850 to 1860; and while that of New York showed a decrease of 40 per cent during this period, that of Wisconsin showed an increase of 275 per cent.

The average of our wheat crop in 1850 was fourteen bushels to the acre, while in 1861, according to our State returns, it was twenty-four and-a-half bushels to the acre. The largest known yield of Ohio was about seventeen bushels; of Michigan, nineteen; of Massachusetts, sixteen.

The average of the wheat crop of France is thirteen bushels; England twenty-one; Flanders, twenty-three; Scotland, thirty. So we see that with a mere nominal comparative cost of production, the average crop of Wis consin, for 1861, exceeded that of either France, England, or Flanders, where wheat culture is carried to a very high state of perfection, and was only exceeded by that of Scotland.

But it must be borne in mind, in looking over these figures, that our crop of 1861 was a very prolific one, and one such as is seldom harvested in any of our wheat growing States.

Our corn crop increased from 379,359 bushels in 1840, to 7,565,290 bushels in 1860. The increase from 1850 to 1860 was 5,576,000 bushels. Although not a corn State, yet in but four States-Kansas, Minnesota, Oregon, and California-has the ratio of the increase of this crop been greater since 1850, than in our own.

Our oat crop was 406,514 bushels in 1840; 11,059,270 in 1860. The increase from 1850 to 1860 was 7,644,598 bushels; from 1840 to 1860 10,652,756. The ratio of increase in this crop has been exceeded since 1850 in but five States-Minnesota, Kansas, Oregon, California, and Texas. Wisconsin is the fifth oat producing State in the Union.

Our rye crop increased from 1,963, bushels in 1840 to 888,584 in 1860. But six States grow more rye than we do. Barley from 11,062 bushels in 1840 to 678,992 bushels in 1860. But five States grow more barley than ours. We grew but 419,608 bushels potatoes in 1840; 3,848,505 bushels

in 1860.

Our hay crop, which was but 30,938 tons in 1840, was 853,799 tons in 1860. There are but six States in the Union whose hay crop exceeds that of Wisconsin.

The value of our live stock in 1840 was $2,019,000; in 1850, $4,807,385, and in 1860, $17,807,366-a gain in our live stock, since 1850, of $12,909,981; and since 1840, of $15,788,366.

We grew but 6,777 pounds of wool in 1840; in 1860 we grew 1,011,915 pounds an increase of over 1,000,000 pounds in twenty years. We had but 3,462 sheep in 1840; 332,454 in 1860. Our sheep growth has increased 207,558 head since 1850, and our wool crop 757,952 pounds.

We made 13,651,053 pounds of butter in 1860-an increase of 10,017,303 pounds since 1850, and over 13,000,000 pounds since 1840. Our butter product is greater than that of the great State of Virginia; 50 per cent greater than that of Massachusetts; and more than double that of New Hampshire.

The entire product of our industrial pursuits in 1840, from our mines, fisheries, and manufacturers, (aside from our agricultural interests,) including the cost of constructing our houses, was, according to the census report of that year, but $1,409,987; in 1860, according to the same authority, it was $28,500,000-a gain of over $27,000,000 in twenty years; an increase by no means discreditable, when we consider that ours is a new State of comparatively limited means, and whose people are mainly devoted to the culture of the soil.

I will speak of the growth of but a few of the interests included under this head, and then pass on.

In 1840 we had but four flouring mills, turning out 900 barrels of flour annually, besides 29 wind and water grist mills, yielding an annual income of but a few thousand dollars only.

In 1860 we had 371 establishments, turning out 2,250,954 barrels of flour, and yielding an annual income of $11,073,586-a gain in the product of this interest, over that of 1850, of $7,537,293, and since 1840 of over $11,000,000.

In 1840 we had but one tannery, with a capital of $2,000, employing three men and turning out 300 sides of leather annually, valued at less than $1,000; in 1850, the product of our tanneries was $181.010; and in 1860 $498,268-a gain since 1850, of $317,258, and since 1840 of $497,268.

The coming season, the product of two alone of the tanneries of our State, owned and carried on by enterprising merchants of this city, fellow members of this Board, will fall very little, if any, short of $600,000, so

that by the close of 1863, the product of this interest will reach very nearly, or quite to, $1,000,000.

In 1840 we had six distilleries and breweries, producing 8,300 gallons whisky and 14,200 gallons beer, valued at $12,000; in 1860 we had 136 distilleries and breweries, producing 4,000,000 gallons beer and 531,000 gallons whisky, (the first instance on record where whisky ever got laid out,) valued at $804,158-an increase in the yield of this interest, since 1840, of over 4,500,000 gallons and of $792,000.

The value of the product of our lumber establishments in 1840 was but $351,000; in 1850, $1,218,516; in 1860, $4,836,159; showing a growth in this very important branch of our industry of $3,617,643 in ten years, and of $4,485,159 in twenty years.

We had but one furnace in the State in 1840, turning out three tons of castings, valued at less than $500. The product of our furnaces in 1850 was $115,214; and in 1860, $377,301-an increase of $263,087 since 1850, and over $375,000 since 1840.

We had no woolen factories as early as 1840; in 1860, we had 16, whose product was $167,600.

Our manufacture of agricultural implements, in 1850, was $187,335; in 1860, $563,855—a gain in our manufacture of agricultural implements, iu 10 years, of $376,520.

The manufacture of boots and shoes in our State is not a bootless one by any means. The product of this branch of manufacture, in 1860, was $902,000—a gain over that of 1850 of $612,000, and over that of 1840 of almost $900,000.

The first manufacturing enterprise of note instituted in this section of the country, was in the shape of a saw mill, erected within, what is now, the city limits, in the year 1835, by a Mr. DARLING, better known in the community at that time by the not very euphonious, though perhaps more appropriate, name of "Old Fixings." This mill was located on the Milwaukee River, a short distance above the present dam, and is reported to have done a very flourishing and successful business for the times. To-day, we have no less than nine large flour manufacturing establishments in this city alone, with a capacity for turning out not less than 1,200 barrels of flour daily, valued at over $6,000.

These figures give a very good idea of the growth of the resources of Wisconsin during the past twenty years.