On a dispersion of this nature, a dispersion of those brave men who had contributed to the preservation of the empire, I shall not comment; but it should not be forgotten, that they who are thus driven abroad are generally lost to their country for ever, and are so scattered among the vessels of the nations which employ them, and not unfrequently of our enemies, as to have little left but to remain and to obey.-Page 44 to 56. No. XXVII. Extracts from a Work * intituled—" Remarks on the probable Conduct of Russia and France towards this Country, also on the Necessity of Great Britain becoming independent of the Northern Powers for her Naval Supplies, and recommending (as the only Means of attaining that most important Object), the Encouragement of the British Shipping Interest, and the Cultivation of Naval Stores in Upper and Lower Canada, &c."-Edition 1805. BUT far distant, we hope, is the day, when our naval pre-eminence will be obliged to strike its colours to our enemy; for the privileges we enjoy at sea are the very life, and soul of our naval superiority, skill, and discipline, the great stimulus to the heroic actions of our brave tars, and the fundamental principle of all our greatness. Destroy them, and then indeed will the Sun of Britain be setnever to rise again. Let us therefore rally round the great pillar of the State, and let us not be trifling away our time in party squabbles and dissensions, but unite with one hand and heart in adopting the best means to support our hitherto invincible Navy, and to defy the united attacks of our most malicious and inveterate foes. Having thus far shewn that the great aim both of France and Russia, as well as every other naval power in their interest, is not only to rival but destroy our naval dominion, the object of these remarks will now resolve itself into two distinct heads-First, the necessity of alleviating the oppressed state of the British Shipping Interest, and encouraging by every possible means the carrying trade of this country. Secondly, supplying the navy with stores from our own Colonies and other parts of the British Empire, in order to render ourselves independent of the Northern Powers. Previous, however, to any observation on the first point, it may * The name of the author of this Tract is unknown. perhaps be not unnecessary for the clearer elucidation of the subject to lay before our readers an extract from the minutes of the proceedings at a general meeting of the Society of Ship-owners of Great Britain, held at the London Tavern, on Thursday the 22d day of March, 1804*. It must appear to every unprejudiced mind, on viewing the preceding report of the Committee of Ship-owners, how very beneficial their exertions and enquiries must prove to the general interests of British shipping; and that very important objects have not only already been investigated by them, but that many, equally momentous, still remain to be enquired into. Great praise is due to the Society for their indefatigable exertions to overcome the prejudices of certain interested individuals, as well as recommending to his Majesty's Ministers the repealing of many obnoxious and oppressive duties which, though but of triiling consideration to the revenue, is a most material object to the Shipping Interest in its present depreciated state." The Committee," say they, "forbear commenting on the present depressed state of the Shipping Interest and the causes which have occasioned it, because they are already too obvious to need enumeration.” These causes are evidently the oppressive taxes for various purposes, which have hitherto and still continue to burthen the British Shipping; and it is a lamentable fact that, from those causes, the freights for our ships become so extravagant, that the merchants naturally enough employ neutral foreigners, so that our vessels, excepting coasters and those for the colonies, remain in the river unemployed, till at length the owner, despairing of their being taken up, sells them to the ship-breakers, while, at the same time, foreign vessels in great numbers are daily bringing and carrying away freights to an enormous extent. Every man concerned with shipping confesses, that it is at present a most ruinous concern, and will not pay the insurance; few ships are building in the River, except for Government, but numbers are daily broken up; and so profitable is the latter employ, that new ship-breakers are starting up every day, and lining their wharfs alongshore with the wrecks of our commercial Marine. It being a much safer venture to "turn the penny" upon copper bolts, fastenings, old *Vide Report of the Committee of Ship-owners for the port of London. Ante page xcii, which this writer inserts at length in his work. iron, knees, planks, timber, &c. than upon cargoes of merchandise, coals, or timber, while subject to heavy duties, insurance, damages, and a variety of losses. Thus our Mediterranean, Levant, East Country, and other trades that train our seamen, are rapidly on the decline, and will, ere long, be totally lost, unless some measures are speedily adopted to enable our Ship-owners to navigate their vessels upon an equal footing with foreigners. Another evil of the greatest magnitude likewise attends the depreciation of these trades, which is the " emigration of many brave native seamen, who are either now in the employ of America, or in the service of the enemy;" not that we can suppose there are any great number of our seamen in the enemy's fighting ships, although every inducement is held out by Napoleon to make them enter his service; but there are no doubt many in their merchants' service, and neither is that service so despicable as this country endeavours to represent it; for notwithstanding our vast superiority at sea, they still contrive to carry on a considerable traffic in different parts of Europe, especially in the Mediterranean; and it is a fact, that no less than 200 merchant vessels entered the port of Bourdeaux in the course of one of the last months; the greatest part of which were French. But if the number in the enemy's service is upon the whole inconsiderable, and which, for the honour of British seamen, we hope is the case; yet we much fear that their numbers are great in the American service, particularly as it is difficult to distinguish one from the other; and in several instances we have known of English sailors being impressed in the river, but were discharged under the idea of their being Americans, particularly if they happened to have an American pass, which is not difficult to procure if they have been a voyage to that country. It is therefore evident, that the depreciation of our shipping not only impoverishes the nation, but destroys the nursery of our finest seamen on whom we depend for the protection of the Empire. The next important object pointed out by the Committee, and which they fortunately attained, was the exemption from the Bell Rock Light-house Duties, which would have produced upwards of £10,000 per Ann. to that Lighthouse, and this enormous tax too would have been levied entirely on the Baltic trade*, although that very trade to the Baltic and East Country is more rapidly falling off than any other, except the Mediterranean. But thanks to the Committee for their timely interference. which happily relieved the most important branch of our Shipping Interest from such an impolitic and oppressive tax. Can Ministers suppose that our Merchants and Ship-owners will be able much longer to withstand such exorbitant imposts? Can they think it possible that men will continue to send their ships to sea at a certain loss? For such is now, with very few exceptions, the case. It is astonishing that men of sense, and of more than ordinary abilities, will continue so blind to the interests of their country, and at a time too when they are calling forth all its resources, yet they still will neglect and impoverish one of its most productive and important supplies. *The Duty proposed to be levied, by the Bell Rock Light-house bill in 1803, upon all British Ships crossing the Line of the Latitude of the intended Light-house, altho' it would not have been in the Track of any Ship coming from or sailing to the Baltic which theretofore had never paid any Lights to the Northward of the Spurn- -was one penny halfpenny per Ton out, and the like Duty home: and on Foreign Ships threepence per Ton out, and threepence per Ton home: and the Tonnage of British and Foreign Ships clearing outwards and entering inwards to and from Great Britain, in 1801, to the Baltic and other Places mentioned in the Bill, were as follows, viz. British Ships inwards 345,315 outwards 259,113 Tons 604,428 at 14d. per Ton is £3777 : 13 : 6 Foreign Ships inwards 377,386 outwards 440,244 Tons 817,630 at 3d. per Ton is £10,220 : 7:1 Amount of Lights Dues on the above Tonnage £13,998 : : 0:7 This calculation is on the aggregate Tonnage of 1801, including all the Ships and their repeated Voyages to the above Places therefore it is calculated on the British Ships at 1 d. per Ton instead of 3d.per Ton, and on the Foreign Ships at 3d. per Ton instead of 6d. per Ton-and which was made at the particular request of the late Sir William Pulteney, who introduced the Bill, and who was well satisfied with the propriety of the Exemption claimed by the Committee for Ships employed in the Baltic Trade, &c. which he agreed to and which was inserted in the Act, viz.—“ Provided also, and it is hereby fur"ther enacted and declared, that nothing in this Act contained shall extend "6 or be construed to extend to subject or charge any Ship or Vessel trading to "or from that part of Great Britain called England, to the Baltic, Denmark, "Sweden, or Norway, or to any of those Countries, or to or from any of "them to Ireland when going South about, to or with the Payment of any "of the Rates or Duties of Tonnage by this Act imposed, but that all such "Ships so trading shall be wholly freed, &c." |
