The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1835-03-06 00:00:00

THE LIVERPOCrL STANDARD.

THE AMERICAN PACKETS.

It is rather fortunate that we did not resume this sub-
ject on Tuesday last, for a second article in the last num-
,:sr of the Liverpool Times gives us an opportunity of
"killing two birds with one stone."

Me writer denies that the author of the first article is
I party unconnected with the newspaper. We know the
~leaning of this, and in future shall consider him identi-
fied with the Liverpool Times. Perhaps he will not
think himself in a wore enviable situation by this cour-
teous concession. •

We return to the first article. Sotne of our statements
have been pronounced false by a person who rests his
evidence upon the following authority :-

" As it respects materials, I will venture to assert that there
is not a red pine ship in the whole mercantile marine of the
United States. The best class of United States ships are
built alive oak, which is imperishable! Those not built of live
oak are of common white oak, with locust and red cedar top—
the two latter kinds never decvy ! !"
There is no mistake about this. The contributor of
this valuable information to the advocate of the packets
is evidently a Yankee, who can "go the whole hog."
He informs the voracious'Xviiter that live oak is imperish-
able, which, although conveying a falsehood, is perhaps
intended for a pun, the former beit'g, the staple of wit in
the United States. "Locust and red cedar top never de-
cay." Another specimen of falsehood passing for wit.
Locusts, like mosquitoes, perhapS, never die! This sort
of equivocation might deceive a Charleston negro, but it
should not be attempted in England. •
A great deal of angry, thin-skinned, and, consequently,
national feeling has been exhibited on the ground that
vt;e have asserted that the American packets are built of
"red pine." The hireling:svlio is our accuser must have
been worked up to something like madness, causing ob-
liquity of vision, or he never would nave written his
abuse without being first convinced by 'ocular demon-
stration that the LIVERPOOL STANDARD had asserted
what he affirms. We have given him line enough; but
he has not yet discovered his error, or, having discovered
it, he. has not the candour to avow it. Now, what we
did say on 'the 20th February is this :—" We have many
ships in Liverpool decidedly superior in every respect to
the red pine ships of America." This-is all we did say,
and we defy the writer, who is not 'unconnected with the
Times, to point out another word upon the subject. There
is not a syllable about the,packets, and yet this disinge-
nuous and paltry assumption forms the only text for his
intemperate vituperations. Such an advocate is a very
dangerous friend.
. But he goes too far. He says, " I will venture to as-
sert that there is not a red pine ship in the whole mer-
cantile marine of the United States." We should be
extremely sorry if the bread of this writer, like his re-
putatiOn, depended on the truth of his assertions. If
there be no red pine ships in America, there must be
more of them at the bottom of the ocean, and skink, too,
within the last twelve months, than the number of Bri-
tish ships which pave the deep and float like lumber upon
the surface of the sea, thereby exposing the American
skippers to imminent hazard. But we suspect that as
usual, and ,as is natural to an American, there is some
sort of equivocation at the bOttom of this bold denial.
He is, perhaps, upon the weather-side of the law. He
probably means that there are no ships which are built
entirely of red pine. If this he his meaning, we give
him credit for a sort of low cunning, which, in a justice-
of-peace court in America,. would 'be called ingenuity,
but which we, on this side of the water„ would'term a pi-
tiful and contemptible subtetfuge. A ship may be called
" a red pine ship" although all. her timbers, beams, and
planks are not of •red pine. We place under that sore
designation, which republican pride cannct stomach, all
vessels whose planks, and sides, and tops are of red pine.
There are such ships in Liverpool at this moment, red
pine, or pitch pine, or, what you please to call it, shin-
ing most conspicuously above the bends. In fact, it is
notorious that the outward planking of almost every
American ship is formed of this ill-used and much-
abused material. How very silly, then, is.such vapour-
ing about.ltbothing The advocate of the skippers seizes
.upon a getino, and seriously, and in a great rage, sets
to -work,. in order to knock it to pieces. We used the
terns" red pine" as it is universally understood here ps
well as in the United States,' by ship builders.
In the second article we find the following :

"If the editor can prove that a first-rate British-built ship
remains A I.at Lloyd's four times longer than a first-rate ship
of the United States Ave wid admit that our asser.ion is not tine;
but until then we shall continue to believe and assert that his is
false."

We are glad to find something tangible. It will not
be difficult to.atrord the required proof. The following,
to the honour of Liverpool, are ships belonging to this
port, most of them built in it, all of them British-built :
The Bridget, the Richard Walker, the Vere, the Wil-
liam Rathbone, the Heywood, and the James. These
six ships, which we take at random, and there are. four
times as many, are of the average age of thirty years—
they have constantly been in the African or West India
trade—they zt.t! large vessels built of BritishAak, and,
what will astonish Jonathan, they stand A 1 at Lloyd's
to this very hour, and are regularly insured at the. lowest
premium!

Is not this strong proof of durability ? We place our
proof before the public, and we now call upon the writer
in the Liverpool Times not to question our feet', for that
he dare not do, but to point out a single ship, built in
Acne' ica, capable.of enduring the wind and weather, the
climate, or the heavy burdens of the African or West
India trade, for a sixth part of the time. Will be be
pleasedoto tell us the average durability of his splendid'
packets? Will he claim for them a servitude of seven
years on the Atlantic ? We arc greatly misinformed if
of the whole number of American packets trading be-
tween the United States and Great Britain an average
durability of six years can be proved. We do not believe
it can; at any rate the onus probandi is with hini, and
we give him an opportunity of attempting it.
With respect to the comparative rates of insurance we
take .that to be a most fallacious test. But as he has
adopted it we do not shrink from it. 'We give all that ha
says on the. subject; for, being perfectly able to show that
his averments are false, we shall be saved the trouble of
replying to his arguments. •
" In the Spermaceti whale fishery, whiCh comprises one-
tenth of the whole foreign and domestic tonnage of the United
States, the rate of insurance is 6 and 7 per cent. for tbe voyage,
which is from three to /our years. British ships iu the Caine
fishery pay per voyage 12 to 15 guineas percent. !!! About 140
ships from the port of London are embarked in its voyages
ihree a'ri'd four years. United States ships pay to and from Can-
ton 3 and 31 per cent. British ships from England 6or 7 per cent.
United States ships to and from the East Indies 2,1 and 3 per
cent 'British ships 5 and 6 per cent. It will he found that
promiums are from 25 to 50 per cent, less on United States
ships than on. British ships to the same ports; and,.as premiums
are based on experience, it follows that the losses of British
ships must be in a greater ratio than United States ships. 'T_L4
stock of nearly all the American insurance offices is high, and
the dividends from 7 to 20 per cent. per annum, and marine
insurance stock is much sought after."

It is quite possible that the writer of the above knows
more about the rates of insurance than we do. -But unless
the New York commercial list impose upon us most
egregiously, he is guilty of very grass misrepresentation.
He states that the American ships engaged in the sper-
maceti fishery are insured during a three years voyage
fur six or seven per cent. We have before us the New
York Price Current of the 7th of February last, in which
we find that the rates of insurance for these identical. whale
ships is from six to seven per cent. PER ANNUM ! !
We scorn to say another word On this subject. A man
wllo can make such gross assertions, in the teeth of the
most notorious facts, is not a man whom we should like
to have any dealings with—except, as in this peculiar
instance, through the medium, and under the protection,
of our contemporary of the Times.

He says that American ships to and from Canton pay
three and three and a half per cent., white British ships
pay six or seven per cent. This also is a
_mistake, to use
a gentle term, although a much harsher one would :be
justifiable. We have vessels insured in Liverpool from
this port to Calcutta, thence to Canton, and borne again
for five per cent. ! As with these, so with all his other
statements. They are false from beginning to end—
false in degrce—abotninably false in comparison.
Now for a sorer subject. Even on ships of the same
order-trading to India, China, or the South Seas, owing
to the intricacy of our • navigation in our narrow chan-
nels, q here the danger is greater, the rate u-f insurance

might naturally be-expected to be higher. But with the
advantage in this repect. in favour of America, we have
shown that- it is not so. _Even:nominally, as far as
figures go, it is not so; bat in reality, when we consider
the quality and value of American insurance, a vast ad-
vantage is in favour of England. Why so ? Simply
because the rate at which insurance is done does nut
indicate its value. For instance, there are very few
marine insurance offices in America whose stock is not.
at a discount, and still fewer who could meet any very
serious loss.

Of the seven insurance companies, the value of whose
stock is given in the Price Current, we find three above
par and four under it. Fur instance—

The Ocean . 13.31
The National
The Union. Bll
The Atlantic.... 146
The Neptune ll5
The Sta:e • 7Ol

The Jackson (!) .93

What would the people of England think if their in-
surance companies were in this beggarly and wretched
state ? But in America the shipowners and brokers are
generally share owners, and they are compelled to re-
sort to them for their o..vn interest and in their own
defence. In short, they are little better than half bank-
rupt establishments. It is easy to prate about low rates
of insurance, but is it to be wondered at ? We would
not insure a dog's life or a washing tub, let alone a ship,
in the best office in the United States.

Nor is it 'surprising that these kind Of securities should
be at so low an ebb. Look at the state of their banks.
Of these 169 are enumerated in the latest price current,
but of the whole number there are only ten whose paper
is at par. There are 126 whose paper is at a discount
from three-eighths to six per cent. The paper of one
bank in. Alabama is at 50 per cent. discount; H bile no
less than 33 of these banks appear in the list with the
,consolatory and brief explanation attached—" BaorcEN." !
We believe that the number of banks which fail in Ame-
rica averages about seventy per annum. If, then, the
banks be in .this condition, in what state must be the
insurance offices ? The writer in the Times tells us
that " marine insurance stock is much sought for." If
he had said " sought after" he would have been nearer
the mark, for much is sought and little found. The fact
is, bank stock, canal stock, and insurance stock in Ame-
rica, is purchased by a bill at ninety days, in the way
that the customs' duties used to be paid. Paid did we
say? the bills seldom are, as the manufacturers in Eng-
land know to their cost.

In the second article we find that the Rev. EDWARD
HULL is dragged into this controversy by his injudicious
friend. This is really cruel, and in charity we pass it
over; but we do not retract one single syllable of any
one charge we ever made against the institutions, the
morals, or'the manners of the people of America. Does
our adversary challenge us to enter into details ? We
have then at hand in bundles, in packages, in bales, in
shiploads, but such details we have no wish to publish.
If compelled to the task—then, out they come, but the
blame will rest with those who challenge us. As to
infamous charges, we fling back the libel in the face of
our accuser. We have stated nothing but the plain
and simple truth—we shall continue to do so fearlessly.
One word as to the advertisements. It is unjustly
and untruly represented that our attacks upon America
have been caused by the American merchants with-
drawing their advertisements from the STANDARD.
This is false; for we never had them, and we are not
quite sure if it is creditable to have them. Our reasons
are these. 'ln the paper which contains the attacks
upon this journal we find about one short column occu-
pied with packet and American advertisements, the
Messrs. BROWN, Messrs. SANDS and Co., Messrs. BA-
RING BROTHERS and Co., Messrs. CRARY and Co.,
giving it all their ships and lines. But in the paper in
question, a weekly one, we only find about fifty adver-
tisements in all, whereas, in the LIVERPOOL STANDARD,
the excluded and denounced paper, we find an average
of nearly two hundred advertisements per week !
Thii we take to be something like proof that the ad-
vertisements of these foreigners have au injurious ten-
dency, and are calculated to bring the paper which enjoys
them into popular disrepute. We have, therefore, after
all, to thank these narrow-minded people for their distin-
guishing hatred of the LIVERPOOL STANDARD. But if
we are not misinformed they have resolved to carry their
hatred of us still further. It is intimated that they will
not in future shiß any goods in any vessel advertised in
this journal!

Be it so—«e defy • all their malice. There is spirit
enough in the inhabitants of Liverpool to resent such
mean and malignant conduct. We throw ourselves upon
the people; and we plead in our defence that an attempt
has been made to injure us because we advocate the in-
terests of the British shipowner—because we prefer our
native land to the United States—because we uphold
Liverpool ships to be superior to American ships, as we
have proved them to be—and because we lay claim to a
portion of that trade isitich has hitherto been, but we trust
will not be much longer, a monopoly to the shipowners
of the United States.

We re-assert that British ships, being stronger and
more durable, are more safe. There is not one of the
very best of the American packets which would put to sea
in rough weather heavily laden. In proof of this we quote
the Liverpool Times of Tuesday last, the 3d of March.
Alluding to the weather our contemporary observes:—
"The wind having veered round to the eastward ou Saturday
night, nearly one hundred vessels proceeded to sea on Sunday.
Yesterday it got round to the westward again, so that a number
of vessels is still detained, including the New York packet-ships
of the 24th ult. and Ist inst."

Now it is well known that on Sunday last, two da►•s
before the above was written, nearly an hundred vessels
sailed from the port of Liverpool, bound to all parts of
the world. The New York packets, however, did not
sail ! if they be the fine, the strong, the swift, the well-
manned, and the superior vessels which they are repre-
sented to be, why did they skulk in our .harbour when
they had an opportunity to put to sea ? Other American
vessels sailed, but the packets, though detained more
than a week beyond their hour of boasted punctuality,
did not sail. This little fact explains a great secret.

The truth is, that these packets have been greatly
overrated. They have been puffed by the advertisement
mongers into an importance which they have no claim to.
They have been represented to be perfect models of naval
architecture, the admiration of gaping weavers and
courteous gentlefolks, who know just as much of a ship
as' they do of the moon, with this difference, that the
beauty of the moon has been extolled by poets, while,
unfortunately for the gilt and gingerbread packets, there
are no poets in America. The romance of the republi-
cans is confined to business.