2. With regard to the trade with the countries beyond the commercial League, the goods which pass through Hamburg to or from Bohemia go either up or down the Elbe, without paying the proper land duties, or they take the land way by payment of the existing transit duties. In the first case the duties to be paid on the Elbe, and in the other, the transit duties between this and the Prussian frontier, and, finally, the import duty on the Bohemian frontier, do not come into consideration here, because they would not be diminished by the accession of Hamburg to the League. Through this accession the transit dues in the countries of the Union would give place to the import and export duties established by the League. As, however, the first outlay, 15 sil. gr. the cwt., is beyond all proportion smaller than the last, there is not the slightest doubt that, as soon as Hamburg unites herself to the League, the goods to and from Bohemia will be sent through a port not in unison with the League. The trade, then, of which we now speak, would go from Hamburg away to Altona, if the latter remains a free port, or even to Harburg, if Hanover remains excluded from the League; and only in the event, which, as we have said, is very improbable, of the two neighbours of Hamburg joining the League, would Hamburg not suffer from joining the League with respect to her trade with Austria. Nearly the same thing is applicable, under a different name, to the goods which pass through Hamburg to, or from, Switzerland, only that these would without ceremony be transferred to the Dutch and Belgic ports, where the greatest part of them is already in a great measure fixed: so that here, likewise, Hamburg would in both cases be a loser, whether the neighbouring states joined the League or not.

3. Those German countries, finally, which lie on this side the boundaries of the League, offer to the trade of Hamburg no unimportant field. These countries are the United States of Hanover and Brunswick, the Duchies of Holstein and Laenburg, and the two Mecklenburgs; Oldenburg is by natural position so connected with Bremen, that here, where the question regards Hamburg only, it will not come any farther under consideration.

Let us suppose that Hamburg had joined the League, her trade with Hanover and Brunswick would, (under the improbable case of this Customs' Union leaguing itself with the other,) by analogy with what has been said before of the leagued countries, gain nothing and in the probable case that both would remain unconnected with the League, she would lose very considerably, as by far the greatest part of the Hanoverian and Brunswick trade would be withdrawn, if not even to Harburg, (the situation of whose harbour may still remain a project in the air, as it has done for the last hundred years,) at least to the Belgic ports; which by railways from Antwerp to Cologne and Minden, and finally to Hanover, will be brought as near to this state as Hamburg is by nature. The trade of the latter to the German States of Denmark would gain nothing, if these were united to the League; in the opposite case, all would be lost, to the advantage of the neighbouring free ports, and finally, as far as regards Mecklenburg, there are three cases to decide upon, either that she alone, or in union with Holstein (Altona), or that neither of the two, would join the League: in the two first cases, Hamburg could, by what has been above said, gain nothing by herself joining the League; whereas in the last case she must lose all. We have only spoken here of the peculiar trade of Hamburg to those parts of the Continent which we consider as the natural domain of its land trade-in so far as the trade beyond the seas, and the trade with Denmark, Sweden and Russia, is not identical with the former, or is not inseparable from it, in so far as its increase or decrease must depend upon the increase or decrease of the land trade, in so far would this foreign trade, if all impediment, such as high duties, levying of tolls, the above-named increase of payments in ready money, &c. be thrown in its way, necessarily suffer throughout, and under this point of view Hamburg would be again a loser. To reckon the near amount of all probable loss is beyond our power, for want of sufficient data. It could only be reckoned by detailed export lists for Hamburg, which are not known to exist, and by as detailed import reports from all the before-named states. That which, however, results beyond a

doubt from all that has been said seems to us sufficient, viz. that Hamburg, by a union with the League, could, as far as regards financial and commercial interests, in no case be a gainer, and in many above-mentioned cases she might lose very considerably. The uncertain prospect of partial advantage, in an industrial point of view, is not inviting enough to induce us to decide, to venture upon the very hazardous leap from a system of perfect freedom of trade into one shackled by every sort of oppression.

MORAL STATISTICS OF RUSSIA,

FROM THE

OFFICIAL STATEMENT DRAWN UP BY C. F. HERMANN,

ST. PETERSBURGH.

The portion of Russia investigated is the western part of the central provinces of the empire, commonly called the plateau of Oka, which includes both the capital and province of Moscow; the years to which the tables refer are 1821 and 1822, and the immediate subjects of inquiry are suicides and homicides.

In the year 1821 the population was 10,593,251, and the number of proved suicides 520-doubtful (non constatés) suicides 132.

In 1822 there were proved suicides 505, doubtful 168. The homicides, in 1821, were 223; and, in 1822, were 200.

Taking the mean of both years, it appears that there was one suicide for every 16,000 inhabitants, and one homicide for every 50,000; and, consequently, that the suicides were three times more numerous than the homicides. On examining the separate provinces, it appears that suicides and homicides are proportionably greater in the province of Moscow, where the population is most dense, and both are least in the province of Kostroma, which is the most thinly populated. The number of doubtful suicides is greatest in the provinces along the Volga, and those bordering on the steppes of Tartary.

The next head of inquiry is the sex of those who committed suicide; in 1821 there were, of proved suicides, 428 men, 92 women; in 1822, 406 men, 99 women; whence, taking the mean of both years, the proportion of male to female suicides is as 43 to 1.

Of proved suicides there were, in 1821, 111 men, 21 women; in 1822, 146 men, 22 women; whence, taking the mean, it appears that the proportion of male to female in this class is nearly as 6 to 1. And, combining both classes of suicide, the proportion is as 4 to 1.

The interest of these details increases when we come to investigate the class of life in which these suicides were committed.

Peasants (gleba ascripti) in 1821, 387 men, 71 women, total 458; in 1822, 400 men, 98 women, total 498; mean amount for both sexes, during the two years, 478.

Merchants, traders, and freemen, in 1821, 77 men, 22 women, total 99; in 1822, 77 men, 16 women, total 93; mean amount for both sexes, 96.

Soldiers, in 1821, 57 men, 17 women, (soldiers' wives and suttlers we presume) total 74; in 1822, 53 men, 6 women, total 59; mean amount for both sexes, 66.

Nobles of every grade, in 1821, 15 men, 3 women, total 18; in 1822, 17 men, 1 woman, total 18; mean term for both sexes, 18.

Clergy, in 1821, 3 men, no women; in 1822, 5 men, no women; mean term, 4.

It is obvious that, in order to apply these tables, we should know the proportion of these classes to the bulk of the population, but this is very difficult to be ascertained. Mr. Hermann, however, calculates, from data which appear tolerably exact, the following table of the classes of population in these provinces:- Peasants, 8,000,000; middle class, 2,000,000; nobility, 200,000; soldiers, 200,000; clergy,