20.

Manufactures and Trade of the United States

(1790)

BY JEAN PIERRE BRISSOT DE WARVILLE

(ANONYMOUS TRANSLATION, 1792)

For Brissot, see No. 14 above. — Bibliography: J. L. Bishop, History of American Manufactures; Channing and Hart, Guide, §§ 148, 153.

MAN

[ANY publications give, as an incontestible maxim, "A nation must import as little as possible, and export as much as possible." If they mean by this that she ought to produce as much as possible at home, it is true; but if they understand that a nation is necessarily poor when she imports much, it is false. For if she imports, she either consumes, and of consequence has wherewith to pay, or she re-exports, and consequently makes a profit. This maxim, like most of the dogmas of commerce, so confidently preached by the ignorant, is either trivial or false. The importations into the United States have much increased since the peace, as you will see by the following account of them ...

The following is the statement of the principal articles:

Besides the above articles, the importations of dry goods amount to more than twenty millions of dollars annually.

This general estimate is calculated from the custom-house books at New-York for three years. Taking for basis that New-York makes onefifth of the general importations of the United States, it is believed that most of these articles are estimated much too low; and this idea is supported by the amount of duties collected since the new federal system has begun its operations. . . .

If any thing can give an idea of the high degree of prosperity, to which these confederated republics are making rapid strides, it is the contemplation of these two subjects [exportations and manufactures]. It is impossible to enumerate all the articles to which they have turned

their attention; almost one-half of which were unknown before the war. Among the principal ones are ship-building, flour, rice, tobacco, manufactures in woollen, linen, hemp, and cotton; the fisheries, oils, forges, and the different articles in iron and steel; instruments of agriculture, nails, leather, and the numerous objects in which they are employed; paper, paste-board, parchment, printing, pot-ash, pearl-ash, hats of all qualities, ship-timber, and the other wood of construction; cabinet work, cordage, cables, carriages; works in brass, copper and lead; glass of different kinds; gunpowder, cheese, butter, callicoes, printed linen, indigo, furrs, &c. Ship-building is one of the most profitable branches of business in America. They built ships here before the war; but they were not permitted to manufacture the articles necessary to equip them; every article is now made in the country. A fine ship, called the Massachusetts, of eight hundred tons, belonging to Mr. Shaw, had its sails and cordage wholly from the manufacture of Boston; this single establishment gives already two thousand yards of sail-cloth a week.

Breweries augment every where, and take place of the fatal distilleries. There are no less than fourteen good breweries in Philadelphia. The infant woollen manufactory at Hartford, from September 1778 to September 1789, gave about five thousand yards of cloth, some of which sells at five dollars a yard; another at Watertown, in Massachusetts, promises equal success, and engages the farmers to multiply their sheep.

Cotton succeeds equally well. The spinning machines of Arkwright are well known here and are made in the country.

We have justly remarked in our work on the United States, that nature invites the Americans to the labour of the forge, by the profuse manner in which she has covered their soil with wood, and interspersed it with metal and coals. Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, and Delaware, make annually three hundred and fifty tons of steel, and six hundred tons of nails and nail rods. These articles are already exported from America; as are machines for carding wool and cotton, particularly common cards, which are cheaper than the English, and of a superior quality. In these three States are sixty-three paper-mills, which manufacture annually to the amount of 250,000 dollars. The State of Connecticut last year made five thousand reams, which might be worth nine thousand dollars.

The prodigious consumption of all kinds of glass, multiplies the establishment of glass works. The one on the Potowmack employs five

hundred persons. They have begun with success, at Philadelphia, the printing of callicoes, cotton, and linen. Sugar refiners are increasing every where. In Pennsylvania are twenty-one powder-mills, which are supposed to produce annually 625 tons of gun-powder.

Among the principal articles of exportation are wheat and flour. To form an idea of the augmentation of exports in the article of flour, take the following facts: Philadelphia exported in the year

In this commerce [trade to the East Indies], my friend, you may see displayed the enterprizing spirit of the Americans; the first motive to it, was the hope of ceconomizing in the price of East-India goods, which they formerly imported from England, and this economy must be immense, if we judge of it by the great consumption of tea in America, and the high price it bears in England. In the year 1761, the English American colonies sent to England 85,000l. sterling in Spanish dollars for this single article, and since that time the consumption of it has at least tripled.

Another motive which encouraged them to push this commerce, was the hope of being able to supply South-America, the Spanish and other islands, and even the markets of Europe, with the goods of the East; and to obtain every where the preference, by the low price at which they might be afforded. And this project is not without foundation. The nature of things invites the Americans to become the first carriers in the world. They build ships at two-thirds of the expence that they are built at in Europe: they navigate with less seamen, and at less expence, although they nourish their seamen better: they navigate with more safety, with more cleanliness, and with more intelligence, because the spirit of equality, which reigns at home, attends them likewise at sea. Nothing stimulates men to be good sailors like the hope of becoming captains.

The productions of their country are more favourable to this commerce than those of Europe. They carry ginseng to China; plank, ship-timber, flour, and salted provisions to the Cape of Good Hope, and to the isles of France and Bourbon. They are not, therefore, obliged to export so great a proportion of specie as the Europeans, who have

establishments in the East. They are not obliged like them, to maintain, at an enormous expence, troops, forts, ships of war, governors, intendants, secretaries, clerks, and all the tools of despotism, as useless as they are expensive; of which the price must be added to that of the articles of this commerce.

No sea is impenetrable to the navigating genius of the Americans. You see their flag every where displayed; you see them exploring all islands, studying their wants, and returning to supply them. . . .

A sloop from Albany, of sixty tons and eleven men, had the courage to go to China. The Chinese, on seeing her arrive, took her for the cutter of some large vessel, and asked where was the great ship? We are the great ship; answered they to the Chinese, stupified at their hardiness.

. . . Our papers have resounded with the quarrels of the English and Spaniards for the commerce of Nootka Sound. The Americans make no quarrels ; but they have already made a considerable commerce on the same coast in furrs and peltry. They were there trading in the year 1789, in good intelligence with both parties. In the same year, no less than forty-four vessels were sent from the single town of Boston to the northwest of America, to India, and to China. They bound not their hopes here they expect, one day, to open a communication more direct to Nootka Sound. It is probable that this place is not far from the head waters of the Missisippi; which the Americans will soon navigate to its source, when they shall begin to people Louisiana and the interior of New Mexico.

This will be a fortunate epoch to the human race, when there shall be a third great change in the routes of maritime commerce. The Cape of Good Hope will then lose its reputation, and its afflux of commerce, as the Mediterranean had lost it before. The passage which the free Americans are called upon to open, which is still unknown, which however, is easy to establish, and which will place the two oceans, the Atlantic and Pacific, in communication, is by the passage by the lake of Nicaragua. Nature so much favours this communication, which is destined to shorten the route to the East-Indies, that the obstinacy of the nation which now possesses the country, cannot long withstand its being opened. . . .

J. P. Brissot de Warville, New Travels in the United States of America (Dublin, 1792), 461–473 passim.

21. Internal Transportation (1791)

BY ELKANAH WATSON

Watson was an agriculturalist, a traveller, and an active promoter of public enterprises. He was one of the forefathers of the Erie Canal. His descriptions are notable for accuracy and for the display of keen insight. - Bibliography: McMaster, History of the United States, I-II passim. — See also ch. xxv below.

'EPTEMBER 4 [1791]- We proceeded on our journey with a

SEPmiserably covered wagon, and in a constant rain, till night, which

brought us to Maj. Schuyler's mills, in Palatine . .

September 7 ... At Eldridge's tavern, near Fort Herkimer, we overtook our bateaux, all well, and embarked the same evening, stemming fourteen miles against a strong current, with an awning spread over our heads. Each boat was manned by three men, two in the bow, and one in the stern to steer. They occasionally rowed in still water, setting with short poles, at the rapids, with surprising dexterity. In this mode, their average progress is three miles an hour, equal to truckschute travelling in Holland; but it is extremely laborious, and fatiguing to the At night we encamped in a log-hut on the margin of the river. September 8.A pleasant sail of ten miles this fine morning, brought us to old Fort Schuyler. Here we were joined by Gen. Van Cortlandt and Mr. Bayard, who were waiting for us, which completes our number to thirteen.

men.

From Little Falls thus far, the river is nearly competent to inland navigation, with the exception of a serious rapid, and a great bend at the German-flats, called Wolf-riff, which must be subdued either by a cut across the neck of land, upwards of one mile, or by removing the obstructions.

An Indian road being opened from this place (now Utica,) to the Genesee county, it is probable the position at Fort Stanwix and this spot will become rivals as to the site of a town, in connection with the interior, when it shall become a settled country.

. . . In the afternoon we progressed thirteen miles, meeting many obstructions in consequence of the cruel conduct of the new settlers, (who are wonderfully increased since I was here,) filling the river with fallen trees cut on its margin, narrowing it in many places, producing shoals where the deepest waters had been accustomed to flow, and impeding the progress of our boats. We pitched our camp on the right bank of the river, in the midst of woods. All hands fell to work,