Polynesian., 1852-08-14
REPEAL OF THE BRITISH
NAVIGATION LAWS.
KEoNI ANA.

4
REPEAL OF THE BRITISH
= NAVIGATION LAWS.
The overthrow of the restrictive or protective
system of Great Britain, and especially the repea
& of Ter navigation laws, were accomplished il
the face'of great opposition, and of many dire
full forebodngs of ruin the best interests of the
nation. A change so unexpected and momentous
arrested the attention of the whole mercantile
world. 1t has drawn many Governments to ex.
anime their Tariffs and among others even Spair
whose fixed system had been such as 10 beggal
the nation and enrich the organized smugglers
whose operations radiating in all directions from
the coast and frontiers of the Peninsular pervade
the whole Kingdom.
The following official latter will be read with
interest.
Mr. Fonblamq"e to Lord Stanley Of .alderley.
Statistical Department, Board Of Trade,
May 1851.
My Lord,
HAVING been directed by the Lords of
the Privy Council for Trade to transmit to
the Foreign Office, for the use Of Her Ma
jesty's Minister at Madrid, all possible in
formation as TO the working of the new
Navigation laws as regards national vessels,
l have herewith the honor Of forwarding the
annual accounts for the year 1850, contain
ing the complete returns oIthe same, inclu-
sive of ballast, and of the vessels built and
| registered in the year 1880; and the last
quarters account of shipping, exclusive of
ballast. As there may appear to have been
some delay in furnishing this information,
beg to explain that information Cor an earlier
period would have been wanting in complete
ness, and calculated to mislead
Ii appears from the accounts transmitted
that the tonnage of shipping Of the United
Kingdom, employed in the Foreign Trade,
| entered inwards in the year 1850 has de-
creased, as compared with the year lS49,
IS4 oil tons and increased, as compared
with the year 1913, l3l ,666 tons.
The tonnage Oft the shipping of the United
Kingdom employed in the Foreign Trade,
| which cleared out in the year 1850, has de-
creased. as compared with the year lS49,
43 0S3 tons and has increased, as compared
with the year lS4S, 1878.
The aggregate tonnage of shipping of the
United Kingdom, employed iu The Foreign
Trade, which entered in and cleared out in
the year 1850, has decreased as compared
with lS49, 227, ,09t tons and increased, as
compared with the year 1913, I52, ,9Sl.
1t does not follow, from the disappearance
of227 ,O94 tons of British Shipping from the
inward and outward returns. that the en-
ployment ofvessels Of the United Kingdom
declined to that amount
One of the good consc quences reckoned
on from the repeal Of the Navigation Laws,
which favored the Direct Trade, was the
increase of the Cross Trade, and ships en-
ployed in The distant Cross Trade must, so
long as they are so employed, disappear
from the accounts Of Entries and Clearances
in the ports ofthe United Kingdom A large
extension of the Cross Trade must thus con-
siderably diminish the accounts of tonnage
in our home ports, and present false appear
ance Of decline in the employment Of our
shipping in the Foreign Trade. And that
there has been an increase OF the Cross
Trade is certain, it appearing from returns
relating to the American Trade and Naviga-
iion for the first six months of the year 1850,
during which time the Free Trade system
was in force, that the British Shipping, with
cargoes, from foreign ports, which would
have been shut out under the former system,
the trade in the second half-year to cores
pond with the first, our ships, through the
abolition of the Restrictive system, will have
found new trade with our country amounting
to 136 900 tons yearly, and accounting for
the three-fourths ofthe deficien cy in our ac-
count sof entries in the ports of the United
Kingdom.
There is thus good reason to believe that
there has been no decline in the employment
of our shipping /; and that, on the contrary,
the supply of British Shipping has not been
equal to the demand.
Last autumn, Messrs. Higgins of Liver
pool, stated in thei" circular ''The contin-
ued scarcity of British Shipping in this port
(LiverpooD obIiges many Foreign vessels TO
be taken for the Brazils and other ports,
which would not otherwise be the case (;
whilst so entirely employed elsewhere are
our A ships that great difficulty is found
in procuring vessels for which 800 or 400
tons is only admissible.
And this deficiency of supply OF British
Shipping has not been confined TO the second
port of the kingdom it has been experIencedi
also abroad and Her Majesty's Consul al
Galatz stated in a despatch OF September
last, ''The Grain Trade is likely to suffer
very much lromwant of shipping, ana ex-
travagant freights may rule. AT least 2UO
vessels are wanted for England, perhaps
800 may be wanted, and it does not appear
that 100 are on their way to the Danube"
From subsequent despatch from the
same authority it appears that the supply
of shipping for the United Kingdom proved
so much short Of the demand, that grain des-