Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1850-11-08
British and American statistics.

The New York Courier and Enquirer furnishes
the following valuable abstract of British and Amer
statistics of commerce and transit &C.:
A long communication in the London Morning
Chronicle from MIR. Mayhem, whose accuracy is I'M
questionable contains interesting details in reference
to British navigation and the ofnternal tran
sit in the United Kingdom, from which gather
many of the following statistics;
The number of British vessels in 1848, trading
with foreign ports, was 25 1000 having aggregate
tonnage of 100000, manned by 10000 persons.
and occupying space in the water equivalent to %
square miles. The number of foreign vessels that
annually visit the shores of Great Britain is about
13, 900, manned by 100000 persons.
We have not the means at hand to draw exact
comparison in these particulars with coun-
try, but we are confident they would not show much
difference in the commercial operations of Great Brit
tain and America. According to the last report of
the Register of the Treasury on Commerce and Nav
gation, the number of entrances Of American ves-
sells into American ports for the year ending June 3d.
1849, was IL ,2OS, with tonnage (American meas
urement) Of 1858, 32l, and manned by 100 OH per-
sons of foreign vessels, 2O;2O0, with tonnage of
1868 1885, and manned by 1913, 831 persons.
According to the last Parliamentary returns, made
in 1848 thenumber ofsteamboats in the United King
dom is 100, with an aggregate tonnage of2553
and aggregate horse power of 90 SG2 If all were
placed abreast, they would reach twenty three and
half miles. The number Of steamboats, upon the
waters Of the valley of the Mississippi alone,
stated the other day, is at the present time over
400. The entire value of the vessels belonging to
the mercantile marine of the British Empire is about
S193, 100000; their annual earnings for freght is
| about $40 O0O 900; and the value of the articles
they annually transport to and from the shores Of
the Kingdom is about $500 100000. Full onefourth
of the of the country is carried at Lon
don One in about every 40 the British ships
nually wrecked, causing loss Of 1000 lives per year
out of every 203 persons engaged in gation
The sailing vessels employed in the carrying trade be-
tween the different ports of Great Britain and Ireland
in 1S49, numbered 1878 they made 251, 900 voyages
and possessed the capacity of carrying % 900 600 of
tons. London has four times many sailing vessels
and ten times much tonnage asany other port in the
Kingdom, but has only one-third as many steamers
as Liverpool.
There are now about 5000 miles of railroad in
ferent lines irrespective of branches; about 1,50O
1913 railways with total length of 5000 miles au-
thorized to be constructed, and not yet commenced
In the United States there now about 1000 miles
Of railroad in operation. The last number of the
Westminster Review states that the average cost OF
railways in the United States has been about SO 00O
a mile; while that Of the English roads has been
nearly 100000 per mile; including the sums squan-
dered during the mania of 1845. The annual ex-
pense of railroad in England is in fact than
the original cost of one in the United States The
entire cost of constructing the British railways VS.
| about S1,750,000. Above 63.000,000 passengers
travelled upon these railroads last year. equivalent
to two trips Of 17b miles each to every man, woman
and child in the Kingdom. These passengers in the
aggregate traversed over million of miles, paying