Isles of Guernsey, Jersey,
Alderney, and Man

351,612

318,609 330,017

Totals

344,036 324,634 317,496 335,934 360,665 329,428 36,812,756 38,271,597 37,164,372 36,450,594 39,667,347 41,649,1911 47,372,270 53,368,572 42,070,744

Remarks on the above Tables.- Foreign Competition.-It is seen from the last of the above tables, that the falling off in the exports in 1837 was almost entirely owing to the decline in the exports to the United States, which fell off from 12,425,6057. in 1836, to 4,695,225%. in 1837. But this extraordinary decline was wholly owing to accidental causes, or to the pecuniary difficulties in which the mercantile class in the United States were involved in the latter part of 1836 and 1837, through the previous abuse of credit, and the revulsion occasioned by the universal stoppage of the banks. It was clear, that how severe soever in the meantime, any check to commerce originating in such circumstances would be of a very evanescent description; and, in point of fact, its influence has already almost ceased We to be felt, and our exports to the United States were last year almost as large as ever. subjoin An Account of the Real or Declared Value of the principal Articles of British and Irish Produce and Manufactures exported in 1837 and 1838.

It is obvious, from this and the previous tables, that the statements that have recently been put forth with so much misplaced confidence, as to the influence of foreign competition on our trade, and the consequent decay of our exports, if not wholly unfounded, are, at all events, very grossly exaggerated. Provided tranquillity be maintained at home, and that Britain continues to be exempted from that political agitation that is the bane of industry and the curse of every country in which it prevails, we have nothing to fear from foreign competition. Our natural and acquired advantages for the prosecution of manufactures and trade, are vastly superior to those of every other country; and though foreigners do excel us in a few departments, and may come to excel us in others, so that the character and

channels of our trade may, in consequence, be partially changed, there is not so much as the shadow of a foundation for supposing that its amount will be at all affected. On the contrary, it is all but certain that it will continue to augment with the augmenting wealth and population of the innumerable nations with which we have commercial relations.

Our restrictive regulations are the only thing from which (supposing tranquillity to be preserved) it is at all reasonable to apprehend any serious injury; and though their influence has been much modified during the last few years, it were much to be wished that it were still further diminished. They not only tend to lessen exportation, by diminishing importation, but give a handle to all sorts of misrepresentation, and enable a clamour to be raised when there is really little or no foundation for one. This has been very strikingly evinced in the recent discussions as to the Corn Laws. All parties, manufacturers and agriculturists, seem generally to entertain the most erroneous notions as to the influence of these statutes. The truth is, that, in ordinary years, it is now, thanks to the spread of agricultural improvement, all but imperceptible. During the six years ending with 1837, the average price of wheat in Great Britain was 50s. 2d. a quarter; and we are bold to say, that not a tittle of evidence has been, or can be produced, to show that this price would have been reduced 58. a quarter had the ports been all the while open to unconditional importation from abroad. Hence, were our manufactures really declining, or in a perilous state, which happily they are not, it is idle to suppose that this decline or danger could be obviated by the repeal of the Corn Laws. The influence of the latter is now nearly restricted to years when the home crops are deficient, and then, certainly, it is very injurious. Seeing, therefore, that the agriculturists have nothing to fear from the opening of the ports, sound policy would. suggest that foreign corn should be admitted at all times for home consumption, under such a reasonable constant duty (58. or 68. on wheat and other grain in proportion) as may be required to countervail the burdens peculiarly affecting the land; and were this done, and the timber duties equalised, the sugar duties placed on a fair footing, and some of the more oppressive duties in our tariff, as those on brandy and hollands, adequately reduced, the foreign competition to which we might be exposed would be productive of nothing but advantage. Such competition is, in reality, the vivifying principle of industry, curis acuens mortalia corda. It gives a new stimulus to the inventive powers, at the same time that it supplies new products and new modes of enjoyment to reward the labour of the industrious. It must ever be borne in mind that the amount of the exports from a country always depends upon, and is, in fact, measured by the amount of its imports; and while the magnitude of the latter continues to increase, and we freely open our ports to the products of all countries `and climates, we may be sure that our exports will equally increase, and be found in every market.-Sup.)

[The tables which follow (and which give a very interesting and satisfactory view of the commerce of the United States), with the exception of what is expressly stated to have been copied from Mr. Hazard's Commercial and Statistical Register, are derived from the reports to Congress of the present Secretary of the Treasury.

It was intended to have added to them a table exhibiting a comparative view of the commerce of our principal ports; but to prepare such a table with the desirable degree of accuracy has been found impracticable; and the reader must be left to gather the information on the subject, afforded by this work, by consulting the articles relating to each of those ports separately.-Am. Ed.

A Statement exhibiting the Value of Imports into and Exports from the United States, during the Years 1834, 1835, 1836, 1837, 1838, and 1839.

"The following table, compiled from Witworth's 'Trade of Great Britain,' Macpherson's 'Annals of Commerce,' and Anderson's History of Commerce,' exhibits an interesting view of the trade between the American Colonies and the mother country, from 1697 to 1776, which, in fact, formed almost the only commerce of this country, prior to the Revolution."-Hazard's U. S. Com. and Stat. Reg., vol. i. p. 3.

6,621

Years.

New England.
Exports.

New York.

Pennsylvania. Virgin. & Maryland. Carolina.

Georgia.

1697

1698

1710

1711

£ £ £ 26,282 68,468 10,093 31,254 93,517 8,763 25,279 1699 26,660 127,279 16,818 42,792 1700 41,486 91,918 17,567 49,410 1701 32,656 1702 37,026 1703 33,539 1704 30,823 1705 22,793 i 1706 22,210 1707 38,793 1708 49,635 115,505 10,847 26,899 1709 29,559 120,319 12,259 34,577 31,112 106,338 8,203 31,475 26,415

£

£

4,579

86,322 18,547 31,910

64,625 7,965 29,991

59,608 7,471 17,562
74,896 10,540 22,294
62,501 7,393 27,902

2,430

Imports, Exports. Imports. Exports. Imports. Exports. Imports. Exports. Imports. Exports. Imports.
£ £ £ £
£ £
3,317 2,997 227,756 58,796 12,374 5,289
2,720 10,704 174,053 310,135| 9,265 18,462
1,477 17,064 198,115 205,078 12,372 11,401
4,608 18,529 317,302 173,481 14,058 11,003
5,220 12,003 235,738 199,683 16,973 13,908
4,145 9,342 274,782 72,391 11,870 10,460
5,160 9,899 144,928 196,713 13,197 12,428
11,819 264,112 60,458 14,067

£

57,050 2,849 31,588 120,631 14,283 29,855

1,309 4,210 786 2,120

137,421 12,193 28,856

617 1,277 38 1,471 178 2,663 5,461 5,193 4,499 5,588 6,564 7,928 8,037 6,882 8,332 4,057 11,981 5,960

7,206 116,768 174,322| 2,698 19,788 11,037 149,152 58,015 8,652 4,001 14,365 207,625 237,901 23,311 10,492 6,723 213,493 79,061 10,340 11,996 5,681 261,668 80,268 20,431 28,521 8,594 188,429 127,639 20,793 19,613 19,408 273,181 91,535 12,871 20,406 8,464 297,941 134,583 29,391 20,015 17,037 206,263 76,304 32,449 23,967 14,927 280,470 128,873 31,290 23,712 17,182 174,756 199,274 29,158 16,631) 21,842 281,343 179,595 46,287 27,272 22,505 296,84 215,962 41,275 25,058 22,716 316,576 191,925 46,385 15,841 27,068 332,069 164,630 50,373 19,630 24,531 331,482 110,717 62,736 18,290 21,548 357,812 127,376 61,858 17,703 26,397 283,091 172,754 79,650 34,374 15,992 287,997 123,833 78,103 42,246 30,324 277,344 161,894 90,504 37,839 201,768 24,976 70,650 42,209 214,730 195,884 91,942 39,182 200,882 38,307 84,866 57,634 324,767 185,981 93,453 43,934 187,277 31,617 67,452 12,823 31,979,421,588 192,965 96,055 23,254 191,590 21,141 81,634 15,230 37,478 413,089 171,092 91,175 33,067 161,102 15,833 64,760 7,434 29,799 386,174 108,931 113,329 58,366 208,196 8,740 64,356 10,582 48,592 346,823 150,931 151,739 64,785 1731 49,048 183,467 20,756 66,116 12,786 44,260 408,502 171,278 159,771 71,145 1732 64,095 216,600 9,411 65,540 8,524 41,698 310,799 148,289 126,207 58,298 1733 61,983 184,570 11,626 65,417 14,776 40,565 403,198 186,177 177,845 70,466 1734 82,252 146,460 15,307 81,758 20,217 54,392 373,090 172,086 120,466 99,658 1735 72,899 189,125 14,155 80,405 21,919 48,804 394,995 220,381 145,348 117,837 4736 66,788 222,158 17,944 86,000 20,786 61,513 380,163 204,794 214,083 101,147 1737 63,347 223,923 16,833 125,833 15,198 56,690 492,246 211,301 187,758 58,986 1738 59,116 203,233 16,228 133,438 11,918 61,450 391,814 258,860 141,119 87,793 1739 46,604 220,378 18,459 106,070 8,134 54,452 444,654 217,200 236,192 94,445 1740 72,389 171,081 21,498 118,777 15,048 56,751 341,997 281,428 265,560 181,821 1741 60,052 198,147 21,142 140,430 17,158 91,010 577,109 248,582 236,830 224,270| 1742 53,166) 148,899 13,536 167,591| 8,527 75,295 427,769 264,186 154,607 127,063 1743 63,185 172,461 15,067 134,487 9,596 79,340 557,821 328,195 235,136 111,499 1744 50,248 143,982 14,527 119,920 7,446 62,214 402,709 234,855 192,594 79,141 1745 38,918 140,463 14,083 54,957 10,130 54,280 399,423 196,799 91,847 86,815 1746 38,612 209,177 8,841 86,712 15,779 73,699 419,371 282,545 76,897 102,809 1747 41,771 210,640 14,992 137,984 3,832 82,404 492,619 200,088 107,500 95,529 1748 29,748 197,682 12,358 143,311 12,363 75,330 491,852 252,624 167,305 160,172 1749 39,999 238,286 23,413 265,773 14,944 238,637 434,618 323,600 120,499 164,085 1750 48,455 343,659 35,632 267,130 28,191 217,713 508,939 349,419 191,607 134,037 1751 63,287 305,974 42,363 248,941 23,870 190,917 460,085 247,027 245,491 138,244 1752 74,313 273,340 40,648 194,030 29,978 201,666 569,453 325,151 288,264 150,777 1753 83,395 345,523 40,553 277,864 38,527 245,644 632,575 356,776 164,634 213,009 1754 66,538 329,433 26,663 127,497 30,649 244,647 573,435 323,513 307,238 149,215 1755 59,533 341,796 28,055 151,071 32,336 144,456 489,668 285,157 325,525 189,887 1756 47,359 384,371 24,073 250,425 20,091 200,169 337,759 334,897 222,915 181,780 1757 27,556 363,401 19,168 353,311 14,190 168,426 418,881 426,687 130,889 213,949 1758 30,204 465,694 14,260 356,555 21,383 260,953 454,362 438,471 150,511 181,002 1759 25,985 527,067 21,684 630,785 22,404 498,161 357,228 459,007 206,534 215,255 6,074 15,178 1760 37,802 599,647 21,125 480,106 22,754 707,998 504,451 605,882 162,769 218,131 12,198 1761 46,225 334,225 48,648 289,570 39,170 204,067 455,083 545,350 253,002 254,587 5,764 24,279) 1762 41,733 247,365 58,882 288,046 38,091 206,199 415,709 418,599 181,695 194,170 6,522 23,761 1763 74,815 258,854 52,998 238,560 38,228 284,152 642,294 555,391 282,366 250,132 14,469 44,908! 1764 88,157 459,765 53,697 515,416 36,258 436,191 559,508 515,192 341,727 305,808 31,325 18,338) 1765 145,819 451,299 54,959 382,349 25,148 363,368 505,671 383,224 385,918 334,709 34,183 29,165] 1766 141,733 409,642 67,020 330,829 26,851 327,314 461,693 372,548 293,587 296,732 53,074 67,268 1767 128,207 406,081 61,422 417,957 37,641 371,830 437,926 437,628 395,027 244,093 35,856 23,334 1768 148,375 419,797 87,115 482,930 59,404 432,107 406,048 475,984 508,108 289,868 42,402 56,562 1769 129,353 207,992 73,466 74,918 26,111 199,906 361,592 488,362 587,114 306,600 82,270 58,340 1770 148,011 394,451 69,882 475,991 28,109 134,881 435,094 717,782 278,907 146,273 55,532 56,193 1771 150,381 1,420,119 95,875 653,621 31,615 728,744 577,848 920,326 420,311 409,169 63,810 70,493 1772 126,265 824,830 82,707 343,970 29,133 507,909 528,404 793,910 425,923 449,610 66,083 92,406 1773 124,624 527,055 76,246 289,214 36,652 426,448 589,803 328,904 456,513 344,859 85,391 62,932 1774 112,248 562,476 80,008 437,937 69,611 625,652 612,030 528,738 432,302 378,116 67,647 57,518 1775 116,588 71,625 187,018 1,228 175,962 1,366 758,356 1,921 579,349 6,245 103,477 113,777 365 73,226 13,668

A greater portion of imports were exported before 1819, or during the long wars in Europe, as may be seen in the next table.

The practice of making regular reports of the value and quantity of each article imported, did not commence till 1821. Previous to fiat, therefore, only detached returns can be obtained for a few articles and a few years. The value has been estimated agreeably to the prices current returned by collectors of the customs in their quarterly abstracts of exports for each year.

The exports of coffee in 1802 equalled D.6,015,939; in 1803 22334 462, and in 1804, D.12,185,948. The exports of sugar and teas were near half the imports, though below that proportion.

Imports into the United States from the 1st of October, 1789, to the 30th September, 1838.-continued.