The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1858-11-25

lhsa AZ pNt 70
Nothing certainly could DO more pccu
liar" than this elaborate computation. Ac.
cording TO this ingenious calculation. the
tonnage in the ST. Paul trade ihis year, was
tseo hundred and thnfy-oas thousand ninc
hundred aud cghty-iour tons custom house
measurement, mind you! nothing shorter !
II this estimate be correct and IL il the
peculiar province" Of tho Afmnssot,an 10
be correct Saint Paul Is the third CONNER
cial city in the Union. and possesses n steam
marine more than twice M large as New
York itself--the entire cnrolIcd tonnage Of
whose steam vessels, Is only l07 SECTIONS.
From statement OF the tonnage Of tho
several districts Of tho United States. Oh the
last day Of June. 1856, compiled under the
direction Of the Secretary ofthc Treasury, We
find the aggregate enrolled tounagc Of the
st. Louis collection district, stated at 49, i5
tons that Of New Orleans at bl,7bi
that Of Pt,sburg at 37.tOa that Of Louis
vile at 81 .92A; while according 10 the o.
fetal statement Of the M,nnssoiian, aud by
"cus.om house measurement" the tonnage of
the steamboats, IN the 81. Paul trade IL
greater than the entire tonnage Of the whole
Mississippi river and Of all its tributaries TO-
gcthor, more than twice w great M the
steam marine OF the largest commercial city
on the continent and more than four times
ns great as the largcst commercial city in
the valley Of the Mississippi. Boston only
beats us by counting liz sailing vessels its
steam tonnage don't amount 10 anything.
We are some forty thousand tons ahead
OF the aggregate tonnage Of the entire ship
ping of Philadelphia Of all sorts. IIalii-
more, with its fifteen thousand tons Of
steamships, sinks into insigniicance beside
us-aDd lis entire marine IL less than ours
by fifty thousand tons. Buffalo and Chi
cago are no where, --Detroit Ia mere baga.
tclle and the Wanted glory Of San Fran.
cisco don't amount 10 hill Of beans beside
us
Wonderful place, tbis 81. Paul But
perhaps the most extraordinary feature Of
this magnidccn, array Of steamboat ton.
mage, is that this total Of 23l .9si tons Ia
tbc aggregate capacity OF sixty three boats
80 that the average tonnage Of the vessels
in this trade would be nearly JoW hou,and
tons each. Yet il il u fact showing the
perfection which we have reached 10 naval
architecture IN these waters. that these
enormous ships only draw from two 10 Eve
feet of water, and have been lifted over
Beef Slough ere now by the aid OF zap.
stan.
Now. VIZ are certainly willing 10 concedc
TO onr negbbor nn entire monopoly Of the
peculiar province exhibited IN it, steam.
boat statistics epd Am0ny .be. Irregularities
Of II. province ::slsa: :atla. nd r,nbi..
ton ia initiate. !. ~ mode 4 ;crd,.itas
tonps..,;; u sll ii.'srr ,c PERCEIVED. by.
our rcadcts tla,Ir hs!ca,sd.'s r.:.I! abby:
announced is arrived at by multiplying The
tonnage Of each vessel by the number ~
i,s arrivals at 81 Paul. SO that, by this
method Of calculation, the Northern Light.
registered at 407 tons, would, by the Nm
nesotrans custom house measurement"
be estimated at over ~ 600 tons while the
Antelope, Of 81 tons. would have grown 10
the enormous siy, 0f 7,545 tons by the
same mode u calculation, 10 order 10 com
pu,e The diameter Of the sun. the astronomi-
cal estimate should be multiplied by oil the
sanrisss since Creations dawn.
The following figures, compiled from the
Wharlmas,ef's books. though not on quite
~ extensive a scale NJ those OF our neigh
Dor, will give somewhat better idea u
the actual tonnage Of the vessels employed
10 the 81. Psnl trade during the past year