The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1847-08-14
SELECTIONS FROM THE PRESS.
From Elhu Burritt's Christian Citizen.
The Bea utlcs Of KestrictIon.

From Burtt's Christian Citizen
The Beauties OF Hestriction.
The English navigation laws are now undergoing .
thorough sitting and, from the evidence which has al
ready TRANSFERRED they almost TO be condemned
and abolished as contrayenng al the laws o. trade
countries, the proeetice policy has received it,
death blow in Great Britain. The is now impending
that branch OF the system which has been sustained
by the English navigation laws. Some remarkable de-
veopments of the working OF this unnatural system are
occasionally brought 10 light in course of the nyestga
readers one full of illustration of the mischevous
character OF this curious commercial policy when mas
solong prevailed in Chrstendom Among ohSrS o wno
ion, an English officer relates his experiences WHICH
substantially thus o,
He had been engaged in the service in China and, being
about to return home he purchased few specimens OF
and Chinese manufactures, tor the use OF his family
in Europe of the value OF about $3.50 These he had
shipped TO London; and returning 10 England himself by
The overland route he arrived at that port about the same
time with his packages from China He Immediately d.
Enssh custom house and then despatched to Bou1ogne
in France where his family residing After waiting
months for his packages without hearing anything
of their fate, he began inquire after the OF their
delays and them for the first time, heard of the mysterious
navigation laws. BY the beautiful code existing IN France,
no goods OF the produce or manufacture OF any country
ASIA Africa, America, admissible INTO France
from England, except for the purpose OF beng again
exported. And now this officer, who had served IN
open field indicted into the mous operandi OF
the noselcss but destructive civil OF commerce, by
which the trade of the world is placed under martial
law. Simple minded man it took him long to compre-
bend the machinery of that underground belgerence
which laying its embargo his packages of tea, sc.
But by dint of many patient explanations, he was made
TO understand the condition OF things. France was at
with Engand-a defensive war, for England was
the aggressor-a of restrictions. And these French
navigation laws, which prohibited the admission of his
tea INTO France for consumption there's were merely acts
OF retaliation upon England for her restrictive policy, and
did not apply to Belgium. So to Belgium his tea had
been shipped whence il might be admitted into France.
After long delay at Osend, the packages shipped
II ere wa n n n IL
logne He now heard that they were in Havre waiting
orders, rather waiting for clearance at the French
custom house Disappointed and vexed at the accumat-
ing difficulties that beset their path, especially by the
ordinary channel OF conveyance they ought not to have
occupied more than IL hours in their transit from Eng
land 10 Boulogne he determined to have no more trouble
with them, and therefore-smpe man he ordered
them to be sent back to London But he not to
cape from the restrictions Of the navigation laws in this
way. Every league OF blue covered with their
subtle net work. and in their meshes his tea and Chinese
curiosites BECAME more and more entangled He would
in that thought He would outreach the French policy
after all. He soon with his family to Lon
dom and there he would be under the protection of Brit
ish laws. "The flag that, for thousand years. had
bTaved the battle and the breeze would the safe
conve. ance Of his packages to that port So thought
this IMMERSED Englshman, until he aroused from his
sef-decepion by the following letter from his agent in
London.
sln. It will not be to import your packages from
oa Asia, Africa, America, be imported
ito Great Britain to be used therein from any country IL
route for bringing them from Hav,s 10 London, that they
should be shipped in the first instance for N~ York.
whence they could be legally imported into England by
agent at New York pay the United States duty which
would be returned to him again the production of
suar Certificate accompanied by proper adavts to den
N.Y. Of ae landing Of the packages in this country n the
Troublesome plan would be, toilet the packages be again
c'tta, whence they might be returned by Engsh ship
TO London and would be received with all the privileges
which attended them when they arrived from China
We &C.,
And this is the condition of in the nine
teenth century, And these the laws of trade, fixed
by the consderate legislation of grave and thoughtful
statesmen These packages Of tea now, probably,
their way from London to New York, the shortest
route from Havre TO Londona distance that is
IN twenty four hours by steam! And, perhaps, the
owner OF the tea in London when it arrived and
was to re-export ii to New York. Perhaps he even
touched the curious canister and got aectonae peep
at his Chinese curoses just before they resumed their
way to his door BY NeW York Perhaps he took his
daughters on hoard the ship, just TO what he had
bought for them in China If he did this it is than
probable that the Children after capeng around the in
terestng tokens of parental affection in the ecstasy of
aprons with the little maDdarlns, and other ingenious
knlck knacks OF Chinese manufacture when they
interrupted by the policeman of the custom house, and
informed that although the presents all very nice,
they could not be taken from the ship until they had
made voyage of six thousand miles; that, although
they in one OF the docks OF the Thames, and
sight OF ST. Pauls, they were still SIX thousand miles
from London " But is not thus London p ask the chill
dren, looking at each other and at the with sur
prse-is not this London and is not that fathers house
the street. and this fathers porter, who has come
to carry the things home Tor us and does not father Of
fer to pay the captain all he asks for bringing them here
in his ship? Whymay not take them noww ssBc-
il is contrary to the navigation as, replies the
official OF the custom-house. f.. b.