Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1844-03-16
EAtrnct OF n Letter from n Yankee i'm Lon
don, TO his friend Mt home.

DEAR Cousin II suppose you know how
much our folk, have complained at the York
shire folks who have imported their goods un-
dcrfnished into the United States, and sworn
to invoices, too, an all true; and yet somehow
the laws of the Tari(fwere exactly not answer
ed,-that is, make 9 thing hdD ,oay, and only |
requiring finishing to make it complete, bat |
leave The finishing till after the duty was paid.
Well, was considering anxionsly about that |
and seeing no way 10 correct it by the law, | !
thought would try my hand in seeing how
the matter would work in the shape Of rstaIia.
iion and that comes as nigh reciprocity as the
rrme Minister can make it.
got safe here on the packet on sth ultimo,
and landed my cases Of clocks. The duty was
p per cent on the value and put down on
the invoice sic shiIings and nincpence ster-
ling, each clock The officer started, and
looking at the invoice; and then at my clocks.
! what" SAYS lie, "only 6s. Cd for those clocks
mahogany cases, three feet high, and warran-
| tod 10 90 ;" "That's no co." says he l must
seize en-" every well" says ], do.-But the
law says you must pay the invoice price and
Ten per cent; additional and that is all | care
! for, so 90 ahead" And so I left him.
Not caring to seem very anxious about it,
didn't 20 back to the Custom House for nigh
upon three wcehs-for this is such an etarnal
big city, it takes nigh upon three weeks 10 walk
about it and find out any thing consuming the
clock tradc--so went back Well says J. Mr.
Officer, what have You concluded on regarding
them clocks of mine, are you ready to pay me
the invoice price of 6s. Cd, and ten per cent
according TO law--or what say | ? He walked
aside with me for a spell, and SAYS he, "are you
any relation Of Mr.. Slick of Slcksvillc ? Yes
! SAYS |, considerdLlc--on the mothers side, for
she is the second cousin to Sam Slick" "Now,"
| really think those clocks are worth no more
than six shillngs and nine pence for If that is
the case, the duty is only one shilling and eight
rcnce halcpcnny" Well saws them clocks,
ir properly tWcrafrd, are ralv worth more
hut | don't think if Sir Robert Peel, or tho
Duke OF Wellington, or even the Queen herself
and Prince Albert, We're to try, they make them
worth more as they now stand" We'll, says
he, 10 tell YOU the truth, have had them eNa'
mined by some OF our CIocb-mdlcrS, and they
say they are like Pindcr's razors, "made tC
SELL "Why," snys !, "you cunning crtter dc
tell now," saysl, 81 want to know"
= So YOU see these English Custom House Off
GERS are up to a thing or two This critte'
, now had been trying my clocks, by some o
their experienced clock makers, and TO use hi:
saving, it was mo go."-Well, says !, Mr.. Off
Ger, what do YOU conclude on Why, says he
pthe Lords Commissioners of her Majesty
> Treacgry conclude you may pass your clock
nt ycur invoice" And so paid the duty ac
K cordnrly and carried my clocks 10 the city
Now, it seems, that all the Custom House oih
! GERS, eli the clock makers, and all the Lords O
o the Treasury, did moi see that only one smaI
e wheel not bigger than shilling, was wantin
n each of these clocks, and that | had in m
! chests, and without it, the clocks, was "no go,
e but with il, every man, women and children ca
tell where the sun is, a great deal more accG
rately than they can thro' the fog and SMOKE
u this city; for if it hadn't been Cor my clocks
never could have told day from night her
-, We'll, i; warn't long after pot ny cloc
through the Custom House before they were q
- going as true as the sun. And the way til,
r. regulated the lime here is a caution 10 Ro
p kH
IS There Is no people on airth cen beat US
II clock making. cent one ofmiuc to the Quee
ana she is tcRled most desperately with It, al
c. regulates all her business, by it, aud don't I
u low any body to winu Il up but Prince Alber
n | am going to send one to Rcu. S, Smith,
raj soon as can get ". d, painted on it, in hon
Wv of old onnecticut--mcaniEg no debtS. b
at !e IS considerable ried up Just now about t
iI' qua4ers of Pennsylvania. lie lost forty r
al cent, on his investment in Pennsylvania stoc
"a but hope after he gets one of my stock,
NC will regain hsconfdence in American tikS.
,r This business about State debt is very
,ilt here for all hmericnus,-and makes MS fl
aw small and goes considerable against my bu
uld ness and all kinds of business with Ameri'
believe could sell twenty clocks where
sell one, if all our States paid up prompt
on Folks here have gotta notion there is no dep'
ny dence upon us and that our clocks can't ke
-" Good time, if our States don't keep good u
also
Nations are like families. You know h