the different legislatures of the American States, in the duties imposed by them on British ships, by way of tonnage duties, and upon British merchandize, previous to the passing of the late general Impost and Tonnage act; inasmuch as American vessels have obtained a preference in consequence of them in British ports, and to such a degree, that British ships could procure no freights, whilst American ships were in the way to receive them, except in the trade to Pennsylvania, where neither restrictions nor distinctions did exist, and British vessels had even a decided preference.

Though the duties imposed by the late Impost and Tonnage act of Congress may not be higher upon an average than those exacted under the legislatures of the different States; yet that clause in the late act of Congress, which remits ten per cent. of the duties upon wares and merchandizes imported in American vessels, bears harder upon British ships than any thing which existed in the American laws before, and will prevent them from obtaining freights from Great Britain, whilst American vessels offer to receive them.

ANSWER TO QUESTION III.

It is believed, that a duty upon goods imported from America in American ships to Great Britain would not be found to answer the intention to equalize the bounty of ten per cent. allowed on the duty on goods imported into America in American shipping:-Additional duties upon naval stores, timber, &c. would check the importation of those articles, and operate to lessen the consumption of British manufactures in those places, particularly in North Carolina, where they have scarcely any thing else to pay for them;-Additional duties in general would be a heavy clog upon the re-export of American produce from Great Britain.-To meet the ten per cent. bounty allowed on the duty on goods imported into America in American bottoms, the two following schemes are, with all due deference, submitted:

First-That a duty be laid upon all goods shipped on board of American vessels bound to America, equal to the ten per cent. bounty allowed on the duty in America, to be paid by the shipper of such goods, whose correspondent in America will have the same allowed to him there.

Or,

Secondly-That all goods entered outwards on board American vessels, bound to America, be entered free of any new duty to the shipper of such goods; such shipper or exporter of them specifying very exactly the contents of his entry; and in case they be goods which pay duty ad valorem in America, he to ascertain the value of such goods upon oath; that, on such American vessel clearing out, the captain shall pay the exact amount of the bounty,

which will be allowed in America by the discount of ten per cent. on the duty payable inwards; this to be paid, exclusive of the tonnage, to be paid as hereafter specified.-To meet the tonnage duty imposed by the Americans, a tonnage duty might be imposed on American vessels, equal to that laid extra upon British shipping by Congress, say forty-four cents of a dollar, which is exactly equal to two shillingssterling per ton, and will perfectly countervail that duty. We may here, perhaps, be allowed, with all due submission, to observe, that the nearer British shipping and that of the United States can be put upon a state of equality, the greater is the probability that the trade between the two countries will be cemented by a friendly and lasting intercourse; and that for this purpose, it might possibly be found very expedient to put the shipping of the. American States, which resort to the British dominions in Europe, and return to the United States, upon the same footing as British vessels in regard to all port charges, whether of light money, river dues, dockages, pilotage, or by whatever other name such duties or payments are called, asked, and received by law from shipping, and which the American vessels pay at present in a greater pro portion, being considered as foreigners; provided always, that such American vessels return direct to the United States, and not, if they proceed to ports or places not belonging to the American States. Such measures as these, we humbly presume, might lead to a treaty of commerce mutually advantageous, and secure to the shipping interest of this country the share it ought to enjoy in the trade between Great Britain and the United States of America; and we conceive, that the Americans by this means would not be induced to carry their produce to other places in preference to this country, or to seek in foreign countries those articles of merchandize, which they are accustomed to procure from Great Britain.

ANSWER TO QUESTION IV.

We conceive that the acquiescence of this country in those distinctions now made by Congress in favour of American shipping, is no security against a future increase of the tonnage duty on British vessels in America: for this tonnage duty is imposed there, purposely to give the northern States a monopoly of the carrying trade of the southern ones, which the present duties are not sufficient to effect; and they are only preparatory to higher duties which will inevitably be imposed, if not prevented by contravening duties here, which alone can deter them from the object they have in view, and is part of their system to increase their naval power.

ANSWER TO QUESTION V.

The Americans, who, previous to the late revolution, were precluded from going direct with their tobacco and rice to foreign markets, have since been tempted to make the experiment; but

these speculations have in general proved fatal adventures, and would have been more checked ere now, had not the late distressing famine in France, for a time, caused a brisk demand there for all the rice that arrived: As to tobacco, the quantity sent direct to foreign ports bears a small proportion to that sent to Great Britain.

ANSWER TO QUESTION VI.

We conceive that British ships, employed in the American trade, do not carry American produce to foreign ports in any considerable degree; nor do they carry it in preference, unless from the temptation of a much higher freight or a better market.

N° V.

Report of the Merchants and Ship Owners of GLASGOW, in Answer to the foregoing Questions.

Glasgow, 27th October, 1789. AT a meeting, in the city hall, of the merchants and ship owners of Glasgow, concerned in the trade to the United States of America, called by public advertisement, the lord provost of Glasgow laid before the meeting a letter to him from William Fawkener, esq. secretary to the lords of the committee of privy council for trade and foreign plantations, together with two acts of the said United States, imposing duties of impost and tonnage, and also sundry queries for the consideration of the said merchants and ship owners of Glasgow; to every part of which their lordships desire that full and particular answers may be returned them by the said merchants and ship owners. And the meeting having taken these papers into consideration, resolved, that Messrs. James Ritchie, Alexander Oswald, Henry Riddel, and Robert Findlay, merchants in Glasgow, and William Fullarton, merchant in Greenock, be appointed a committee to prepare answers to said queries, and to report; of which committee the said Robert Findlay to be convener.

(Signed) John Campbell, jun. Provost.

Glasgow, 26th November, 1789.

The committee, appointed as above, having this day met to consider the queries from the lords of the committee of privy council for trade and foreign plantations, to the merchants and ship owners of Glasgow, concerned in the trade with the United States of America; and there being present Messrs. James Ritchie, Alex[B]

ander Oswald, Henry Riddel, and Robert Findlay, sundry opinions were delivered upon the subjects of these queries; and the said committee resolve to submit these different opinions to the consideration of the whole merchants and ship owners of Glasgow, concerned in the trade to the United States of America, for their final decision, as to the answers to be returned by them to the lords of the committee of privy council for trade and foreign plantations.

(Signed)

Ro. Findlay, Convener.

Glasgow, 10th December, 1789. At a meeting, in the city hall, of the merchants and ship owners concerned in the trade to the United States of America, called by public advertisement, to receive the report of their committee, appointed on the 27th October last, two reports were delivered to the meeting by said committee; which reports being read and considered, and the question being put, it was resolved by a majority, that Report, No. I. hereto annexed, be approved of by this meeting, and transmitted accordingly by the lord provost to William Fawkener, esq. secretary to the lords of the committee of privy council for trade and foreign plantations:-Resolved also, that Report, No. II. should likewise be transmitted by the lord provost to the said William Fawkener, esq. that the lords of the committee of privy council for trade and foreign plantations may have an opportunity of judging of the different arguments made use of by the merchants and ship owners of this city upon the subject of these queries.

(Signed) John Campbell, jun. Provost.

REPORT I.

ANSWER TO QUESTION I.

NO doubt the merchants and ship owners of Great Britain, who carried on trade to the United States of America, have sustained a loss in proportion to the additional duties of impost and tonnage, which were laid upon British ships, and goods imported in them, by the different American States, more than were laid upon American ships and goods imported therein.

These additional duties varied in the different States, and therefore we cannot say with precision what may have been the loss upon the whole; but, in general, there was a difference of 1 to 2 per cent. of Impost, in favour of goods imported into the United States in American ships.

As to the Tonnage duty again, the variation was more considerable in many of the different States.

In Pennsylvania, the Tonnage Duty on American ships was only about 4d. sterling-on foreign ships in treaty, 8d.—on foreign ships not in treaty, 2s. Id.

In Maryland, the Tonnage Duty on their own ships was 8d. sterling-on foreign ships in treaty, 1s.-on British ships, 3s. 6d. -and on other foreign ships not in treaty, 1s. 7d.

In Virginia, the Tonnage Duty on American ships was about 1s. 3d. sterling; and on British ships it was 4s. 6d.

In New York again, the Tonnage Duty on British ships was no more than 4d. or 5d. and on their own ships we believe it was the same; though we are not certain as to this point,

Upon the whole, however, we suppose that, upon an average of all the United States, British ships were subjected to a duty of 2s. to 2s. 6d. sterling per ton more than American ships.Say 2s, 3d.

As to the degree, therefore, that the merchants and ship owners of British ships have suffered by the distinction of the duties of Impost and Tonnage against them in the United States, it can be only guessed at; but it may perhaps be nearly as follows:

• £. 13,500

Suppose 600 British ships annually employed in the trade to and from the United States-these may be estimated at 200 tons burthen each, which is 120,000 tons in all, and at 2s. 3d. per ton, is Suppose again, that each of these British ships carried, at an average, 2,000l. value of goods into the United States, this would be 1,200,000 value of goods, which, at 2 per cent. the average distinction of the impost is

£. 24,000

Upon this estimate, therefore, the annual loss to the merchants and ship owners of Great Britain, previous to the late Impost and Tonnage Acts of Congress, was 37,500l. or 627. 10s. sterling upon each British ship on every voyage to the United States.

ANSWER TO QUESTION II.

British ships will be upon a better footing under the late general Impost and Tonnage Acts of Congress, than they have hitherto been upon an average in the United States; because the comparative duties betwixt them and Ainerican ships are thereby reduced.

For instance, the difference betwixt the Tonnage on American and British ships in the United States is now only 44 cents. of a dollar, which may be reckoned 2s. sterling per ton; whereas for