COMMERCIAL STATISTICS.

ARRIVAL OF VESSELS AT NEW YORK IN 1849.

Col Thorn, of the New York custom-house, furnishes the following list of arrivals at the port of New York from foreign ports, from the 1st of January, 1849, to the 31st of December, 1849, inclusive:—

The total number of the above, 5,773, added to the foreign, 3,231, makes a total for ̧ the year of 9,004. In the above there are no sloops included, which, if added to the many schooners from Virginia and Philadelphia, with wood and coal, which, though consigned here, discharge their cargoes at Brooklyn, Williamsburg, Jersey City, and the adjacent towns on the Hudson, and are not boarded, owing to the remoteness of those points for general business, would make the number much greater. We estimate the schooners that arrive at the above places, and are not reported, at six per day, which we think a small estimate; this would give for the year, 2,190 additional schooners to be added to the coasting trade, making the whole number of coastwise arrivals for 1849, 7,963.

COMMERCE WITH CALIFORNIA.

The following table shows the number of vessels, as far as ascertained, that have left the different ports of the United States for California, from the commencement of the excitement to about December 25, 1849

The total arrivals, up to the latest dates, of vessels is 279. The vessels sailed during last month of 1849, of all classes, amounted to 181.

Whole number of clearances at different ports in the United States for California, since January 1, 1849, has been 698, as follows:

Isaac S. Hone, Esq., Assistant Collector of the port of New York, furnishes the following statement of California clearances :

CUSTOM-HOUSE, NEW YORK, COLLECTOR'S OFFICE, 5th January, 1850. Number, description, and tonnage of vessels which cleared from the port of New York, during the year 1849, for San Francisco:—

RECEIPTS OF FLOUR AND CORN AT PORTLAND, MAINE, IN 1849.

The whole quantity of flour received at the port of Portland, (Maine,) in 1849, was 153,814 barrels. The quantity of corn, during the same period, amounted to 194,267 bushels. A great increase over previous years, and nearly double the amount received in 1847.

LUMBER TRADE OF BANGOR, MAINE, IN 1849.

We published in the Merchants' Magazine for May, 1848, (vol. xviii., pages 518–519,) an abstract from the returns of the Deputy Surveyor at Bangor, embracing a tabular statement of the quantity of lumber surveyed in each year from 1832 to 1847, and in February, 1849, (vol. xx. page 210,) the quantity surveyed, with the name of each surveyor, for the season of 1848. These statements were compiled from the books of the Surveyor General, expressly for our Magazine, by SAMUEL HARRIS, Esq., of Bangor We are indebted to the same gentleman for the following statement of the lumber surveyed at Bangor during the season of 1849, and likewise a list of the vessels which have sailed from the port of Bangor for California loaded with lumber :—

AMOUNT OF LUMBER SURVEYEd at bangor, MAINE, SEASON OF 1849.

The green lumber surveyed from rafts in the season of 1849, consisted of pine 74,176,591; of spruce, 23,619,349; of hemlock, 2,562,757; total, 100,338,697. The total amount surveyed during the season was, as will be seen, 160,418,808.*

SHIPMENTS OF LUMBER FROM BANGOR for CALIFORNIA.

Total amount of lumber exported to California, 5,043,819 feet.

* Mr. Harris states that probably more than 50,000,000 feet was piled out last season, (1848,) and resurveyed this, (1849.)

ARRIVALS AND CLEARANCES OF VESSELS, PORT OF BOSTON, IN 1849.

We are indebted to the editor of the Boston Journal for the following carefully prepared statement of the arrivals and clearances at and from the port of Boston, during the year 1849. For the number of foreign and coastwise arrivals at Boston, for each year, from 1830 to 1848, inclusive, our readers are referred to a table published in the number of this Magazine for December, 1849 (vol. xxi., page 668.)

790

1,974 5,931

18:18

89

89

Total number of arrivals during year 1849 406

Of the arrivals, 10 ships, 41 barks, 472 brigs, and 1448 schooners were British; 1 bark Russian; 1 bark Austrian; 1 bark Lubeck; 4 barks, 2 brigs, Hamburg; 2 barks, 1 brig, Bremen; 4 barks, 1 brig, 2 schooners, Prussian; 2 ships, 1 bark, 1 brig, 1 schooner, Danish; 8 brigs, Sweedish; 3 barks, 1 brig, 2 schooners, Dutch; 2 barks, 1 brig, Norwegian; 1 ship, 3 brigs, French; 2 brigs, Spanish; 1 bark, 3 brigs, Sicilian; 1 bark Genoese; 1 schooner Venezuelan; and the remainder American.

768

1,575

3,301

34

Total number clearances during year 1849 413

Of the clearances, 11 ships, 52 barks, 483 brigs, and 1,467 schooners were British; 1 bark Russian; 1 bark Austrian; 1 bark Lubeck; 5 barks, 1 brig, Hamburg; 1 bark, 2 brigs, Bremen; 3 barks, 2 schooners, Prussian; 2 ships, 1 bark, 2 brigs, 1 schooner, Danish; 7 brigs Sweedish; 2 barks, 3 schooners, Dutch; 2 barks, 1 brig, Norwegian; 1 ship, 2 brigs, 1 schooner, French; 2 brigs Spanish; 1 bark, 3 brigs, Sicilian; 1 bark Genoese; and the remainder American.

The above statement of clearances is exclusive of a large number of wood coasters

and other vessels sailing under a coasting license, which neither enter or clear at the custom-house, except when they carry "foreign merchandise in packages as exported, the value of which exceeds $400." A large proportion of the coastwise arrivals in the above table, did not enter or clear at the custom-house, which will account for the disparity between the arrivals and clearances.

In addition to the above, the Royal Mail steamship America has entered and cleared at the custom-house, during the year, four times; the Caledonia, five times; the Niagara, twice; the Hibernia, twice; the Europa, four times; the Canada, once; and the Cambria has entered four times, and cleared three times, and now remains in port, to sail on the 9th instant.

STATISTICS OF CHICAGO AND TOLEDO.

As these places are soon to be connected by a railroad, their citizens and others who take an interest in the lake business will be glad to see a comparison instituted of their commercial business. This can only be done in a few articles, as full tables of the business of Chicago for 1849, to the close of navigation, have not come to hand. The receipts of Toledo, by railroad, are also wanting for 1849.

We will first compare the receipts by canal. Those of Toledo came down to November 15th; those of Chicago to November 1st:

The shipments of these articles from Chicago were as follows:

This shows how great is the amount of wagon trade still enjoyed, in addition to the business of the canal and railroad, by the great prairie city.

It is difficult to say which of these lake ports excels in amount of exportable values. In imports Chicago is undoubtedly ahead. The commercial business of Cleveland, Toledo, and Chicago, during the season of navigation which has just closed, will, we think, be found very nearly equal, taking all the articles into the account. Detroit might also be brought in as about on a par with the others named in her navigation business. In tonnage, Chicago, by reason of her long voyages and great lumber trade, must greatly exceed the others. In wheat exported, she also stands at the head of all the primary exporting lake towns. Detroit is the great flour market; Toledo is far ahead of the others in her receipts of corn. Cleveland leads in exports of beef, and is next to Detroit in flour exported.

The population of these cities is nearly as follows:-Chicago, 24,000; Detroit, 22,000; Cleveland, 21,000, including Ohio City; Toledo, 4,000,

The railroad, in course of construction, to unite Toledo and Chicago, will be a little short of 260 miles in length, with a maximum grade, eastward, not exceeding 30 feet to the mile, and with no curvatures worth naming. The agricultural capabilities of the country through which it passes are equal to those of any section of like extent in the west. In addition to which it has extensive beds of iron ore, which is being worked at one point, Michawauke, to some extent. Water-power is also abundant, through much of the route. Limestone is quarried at several points on the line. As these are at long intervals, lime will form an important item in the transportation account. So of