Early and Growing Commerce of the United States [pp. 365-378]

376 EARLY AND GROWING COMMERCE OF THE UNITED STATES.
chandise. The latter being in general one-third or one-quarter, but
sometimes one-half of the whole export.
In regard to navigation, which is so important in its connection with
commerce, we may remark, that the two are not necessarily co-existent
in the same degree in every country. The one applies to all the various
transfers of commodities from hand to hand, and the other to their
transportation from place to place by watcr. This transportation may
be between different portions of the same country, or between one country and another, and receives accordingly the designations of coastwise
or foreign. The former will, in most countries, be the greater in amount,
though not always. Both may be in the hands of foreigners, to a very;
considerable extent, and usually are. The shipping of one nation may
conduct the trade of another. Some nations are more especially maritime than others, and from peculiar advantages are enabled to build and
man shipping at a much lower expense; and, as ship-room, or freight,
is governed by the rules of all other commodities, it can, of course, be
afforded less where it costs less. There is no patriotism in any country
which will employ its own shipping in preference to foreign at a higher
cost. The cheapest vessel will get the freight.
As the possession of shipping is a great source of national pride, independent of the substantial advantages in supporting the naval or war
power, and an immense source of profit and wealth, in the same manner
with commerce or manufactures, it is not surprising that most countries
have endeavored, in every way, to build up this interest among themselves, and, as far as possible, limit it among others. The utmost jealousies have been, and are still evinced. Legislation has exhausted its
thousand expedients, in navigation systems, countervailings, retaliations,
bounties, et omne genus. Treaties upon treaties have been made and
broken. Every other trade in the world has flourished but free trade.
The weaker nations regard this as fatal to them, and the stronger are
timid in its adoption.
As early as 1670 the increase of shipping in New England was complained of by Sir Josiah Child, an English writer. The whole amount
of tonnage employed in the colonial trade in 1770, is estimated at three
hundred thousand tons. A report of the lords' privy council shows that
the proportion owned by British merchants to that owned by the colonial, was as thirty-four to fifteen, in all the colonies. Seven-eights of
the southern shipping was British. At that period we were in the habit
of selling colony-built ships in Great Britain, as a source of profit. In
1772 the colonies built one hundred and eighty-two vessels-twenty-six
thousand five hundred and forty-four tons. Of these, New England
built one hundred and twenty-three, Maryland, Virginia and the Carolinas and Georgia, twenty-five.
After the peace and before the adoption of the constitution, our shipping regulations were conflicting, and without regular system. Most of
the States imposed duties upon foreign vessels, but New York, being
most liberal, laid the foundation of her immense foreign commerce. No
better proof can be alleged of the illiberality of all restrictions, and their
positive injury.
Congress, however, in 1789, took the matter in hand, imposed heavy
discriminating duties against foreign tonnage, prohibited the coasting