Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 182?-183?, 1832-05-04
From The National htelligencer.
THE COLONIAL TRADE.

Aresolution was sent TO the Treasury De-
pnrtment from the United States Senate as
longago as last December, requiring a state
ment of the effects OF the late British West
India arrangement, concocted by Mr.. Van
Buren, on the Navigating interests of the u
nited States. The inform alton has at last
been furnished, and is now printed, so that
we can see how this matter has worked, since
"AMERICAN PRETENsIoNs" were surren-
dered at the feet of the British Ministry
1t is we'll known that while the British West
India ports were closed upon us, Cur ship
owners drove the trade through the Swedish,
Danish, and other neutral islands, and the
Northern provinces, where the English re-
ceived our produce and transported it 10 their
Islands. The long voyage and the profits
were urs,-the short ones and the losses
theirs. The Treasury Department has sent
a statement from the Registers Office Civ
ing, the tonnage employed during the last
year since the opening of the ports on Mr.
Van Buren's terms, Cor, as some call it,
since we "gained the West India trade,'')
in the intercourse of this country with the
British, Swedish, and Danish islands, and
the Northern provinces; and some vessels
clearing for the West Indies generally, may
have gone TO British Islands, the Register
has added all those clearances to swell the
list. But let that pass. According 10 this
official document, there were in the whole
trade under MIR. Van Buren's Arrangement,
during the last year, l56 ,776 tons of Ameri
can vessels entered, and ITO, S99 of foreign
(nearly all British J and of departures
lG6, l34 American tons, and no. 1893 of
British or foreign. Now let us see how the
account stood before the surrender of feA-
merican pretensions." Take the year 1880.
In that year the American tonnage in the
same trade was of entries 204, 416, and the
foreign tonnage but 5,S42 the departures
were ofAmerican 1919 ,476, and of foreign but
$500.
Thus it will be seen that since Mr.. Van
Buren, gained the colonial trade for us, the
American tonnage employed in it, has fallen
off nearly % per cent, and the British ton
mage has increased in the same nearly two
thousand per cent Mark too, this is but the
first year. The next year will show much
greater disparity in favor ofthe British ship
ping, and the next greater still. The adj
vantages surrendered TO the British, now
enable them to take freight from New York
TO the islands, in many instances at one half
cheaper than can be done by our own vessels
stripped as they have been of the 'epreten-
sions" which formerly enabled them to drive
prosperous trade. The whole matter has
in short been surrendered 10 John Bull on
his own terms. The only question in dis
pute from the beginning having been who.
should carry? The British contending from
the first, from the peace of 'S3, or soon after
it, that their vessels should do the Carrying.
We maintained our ground under every ad-
ministration till the late Secretary of State
persuaded the President 10 sanction, and in
sist upon the disgraceful instructions which
he penned, on their being submitted to the
Cabinet. And the documents now certified
to, by the very Minister who conducted the
negotiation, contain the damning evidence
that the effects of the arrangement are not
less disastrous TO our shipping interests, than
the tone of the instructions we're disgraceful
TO our honour M