miles for the summits of the Andes and the southern extremity of Patagonia. These make an aggregate of 3,900,000 square miles, which, deducted from 13,900,000, the whole surface of the American continent, leaves 10,000,000 square miles as the quantity of useful soil. Now, what relation does the fruitfulness of the ground bear to the latitude of the place? The productive powers of the soil depend on two circumstances, heat and moisture; and these increase as we approach the equator. First, the warm regions of the globe yield larger returns of those plants which they have in common with the temperate zones; and, next, they have peculiar plants, which afford a much greater proportion of nourishment from the same extent of surface. Thus maize, which produces 40 or 50 for 1 in France, produces 150 for 1, on an average, in Mexico; and Humboldt computes that an arpent (five sixths of an acre), which will scarcely support two men when sown with wheat, will support fifty when planted with bananas. From a consideration of these and other facts, we infer that the nutritive powers of the soil will be pretty correctly indicated by combining the ratios of the heat and moisture, expressing the former of these in degrees of the centigrade scale.

Thus the same extent of ground which supports four persons at the latitude of 60° would support fifteen at the latitude of 45°, and 100 at the equator. But the food preferred will not always be that which the land yields in greatest abundance; and the power of the human frame to sustain labor is greatly diminished in hot climates. On these grounds, we shall consider the capacity of the land to support population as proportional to the third power of the cosine for the latitude. It will therefore stand thus:

Latitude,.........

0° 15° 30° 45° 60° Productiveness,...100 90 65 35 12 Assuming that the number of persons whom a square mile can sustain without pressure is 150 at the latitude of 50°, we have 26 as the sum which expresses the productiveness of this parallel. Then, taking, for the sake of simplicity, 35 as the index of the productiveness of the useful soil beyond 30° in America, and 85 as that of the country within the parallel of 30° on each side of the equator, we have about 4,100,000 square miles, each capable of supporting 200 persons, and 5,700,000 square miles, each capable of supporting 490 persons. It follows that, if the natural re

sources of America were fully developed, it would afford sustenance to 3,600,000,000 of inhabitants. a number five times as great as the entire mass of human beings existing at present upon the globe. And, what is more surprising, there is every probability that this prodigious population will be in existence within three, or, at most, four centuries. The imagination is lost in contemplating a state of things which will make so great and rapid a change in the condition of the world. We almost fancy that it is a dream; and yet the result is based on principles quite as certain as those which govern the conduct of men in their ordinary pursuits. There are many elements of disorder now operating in Spanish America, but these are merely the dregs left by the old Spanish despotism; and the Anglo-American republic is a polestar to guide the people in their course towards freedom and prosperity. Nearly all social improvements spring from the reciprocal influence of condensed numbers and diffused intelligence. What, then, will be the state of society in America two centuries hence, when a thousand or two thousand millions of civilized men are crowded into a space comparatively so narrow, and when this immense mass of human beings speak only two languages! We take for granted that the Portuguese will merge into the Spanish; and it is clear to us that the Russian will never obtain a footing in the new world. Such a state of things may be said to undo the curse of Babel, and restore the great mass of mankind to their pristine facility of intercourse; for the languages spoken by the communities of Europe and Asia will be as unimportant then, in the general scale of the globe, as the dialects of Hungary, Finland and Bohemia are in Europe at this day. History shows that wealth, power, science, literature, all follow in the train of numbers, general intelligence and freedom. The same causes which transferred the sceptre of civilization from the banks of the Euphrates and the Nile to Western Europe, must, in the course of no long period,carry it from the latter to the plains of the Mississippi and the Amazon. Society, after all, is in its infancy; the habitable world, when its productive powers are regarded, may be said hitherto to have been an untenanted waste. If any one suspects us of drawing on our fancy, we would request him to examine thoroughly the condition and past progress of the North American republic. Let him look at its amazing strides in wealth, intelligence and social improvements; at its indestructible liberty; and, above all, at the prodigious growth of its population; and let him answer the question to himself, what power can stop the tide of civilization which is pouring from this single source over an unoccupied world."

1795

Total Value of the Exports from the U

States.

Dollars.

20,205,156

19,012,041

20,753,098

1796 40,764,097 26,300,000 67,064,079 1797 29,850,206 27,000,000 56,850,206 1798 28,527,097 33,000,000 61,527,097 1799 33,142,522 45,523,000 78,665,522 1800 31,840,903 49,130,877 70,971,780 1801 47,473,204 46,642,721 94,115,925 1802 36,708,189 35,774,971 72,483,160 1803 42,205,961 13,594,072 55,800,033 1804 41,467,477 36,231,597 77,699,074 1805 42,387,002 53,179,019 95,566,021 1806 41,253,727 60,283,236 101,536,963 1807 48,699,592 59,643,558 108,843,150 1808 9,433,546 12,997,414 22,430,960 1809 31,405,702 20,797,531 52,203,233 1810 42,366,675 24,391,295 66,757,970 1811 45,294,043 16,022,790 61,316,833 1812 30,032,109 8,495,127 38,527,236 1813 25,008,152 2,847,845 27,855,997 1814 6,782,272 145,169 6,927,441 1815 45,974,403 6,583,350 52,557,753 1816 64,781,896 17,138,556 81,920,452 1817 68,313,500 19,358,069 82,671,569 1818 73,854,437 19,426,696 93,281,133 1819 50,976,838 19,165,683 70,142,521 1820 51,683,640 18,008,029 69,691,669 1821 43,671,894 21,302,488 64,974,328 1822 49,874,079 22,286,202 72,160,281 1823 47,155,408 27,543,622 74,699,030 1824 50,649,500 25,337,157 75,986,657 1825 66,944,745 32,590,643 99,535,388 1826 53,055,710 24,539,612 77,595,322 1827 58,921,691 23,403,136 82,324,827 1828 50,921,669 21,595,017 72516786 1829 55,700,193 16,658,478 72,358 671 1830 59,462,029 14,387,479 73,849,508

The following statement for the year 1831 shows the nature of the domestic exports:

Product of Wood

Staves, shingles, boards, and hewn timber,

Other lumber, Masts and spars,

.

304,441

554,440

53,526 133,842

.217,830

Oak bark and other dye-stuffs, 99,116 All manufactures of wood, . . 275,219 Naval stores, tar, pitch, rosin,

and turpentine, Ashes, pot and pearl,

397,687 935,613

:. 595,434

2,016,267

4,892,388 25,289,492

216,376

26,664

10,105

Statistical View of the Commerce of the United States, exhibiting the Value of Imports from, and the Value of Articles of Export to, each Foreign Country; also the Tonnage of American and Foreign Vessels arriving from, and departing to, each Foreign Country, during the Year ending on the 30th Day of September, 1829.

COMMERCE.

NAVIGATION.

remarks are from a report of a committee and the enrolled 615,301. The following the registered tonnage was 576,475 tons, tonnage is stated at 1,191,776, of which and fishery. In 1831, the amount of the eign trade, and 610,655 in coasting trade of which 650,143 was employed in for making the correction, was 1,260,798 tons, 1,818,490; but the real aggregate, after correction, for the year 1829, was apparent aggregate of tonnage, without and condemnations for several years. The an omission to deduct the losses, sales of the U. States until 1829, on account of regard to the real amount of the tonnage that there was a slight misconception in of the treasury department; but it appears This table is that furnished by the records

that the magnitude and extent of the other nations. It may be remarked here, fifth gain, to 1,512,957 tons of that of American shipping as equivalent, at one gant to estimate the 1,260,798 tons of British); so that it would not be extravatheir most judicious competitors (the freighting business, at least one fifth over duty, and the preference obtained in the in celerity, in the performance of effective it may be inferred that the U. States gain ers in the despatch of business; whence country a decided advantage over all othburdens with fast sailing, have given this years, by combining the carriage of large improvements made in shipbuilding of late domestic industry (1831):-"The great of the New York convention of friends of

18,667 13,325 12,217

241

363

Dutch West Indies,

England,

Scotland,

23,892,763 21,281,334 1,767,457 169,207 179,843 61,011 60,722 1,024,215 895,315 19,493 2,275 2,609 9,908 7,699 362,511 327,728 366 6,113 4,833 6,185 2,502

247,471

301,132

160,130 5,718

8,701

7,290 10,894 4,429 7,735

2,274,375 1,998,176 1,278,984 12,862 21,962 8,248,921 8,008,923 2,105,573 54,425 73,862 590,057 886,122 748,777 9,458 18,843 777,992 1,056,639 15,768 40,516 65,019 9,344 4,317

10,502 1,799,809 814,987 327,409 545,753

160,171 21,370 18,164 3,205 2,988 139,732 7,806 12,719 167 1,550