The decade ending with 1860 was one of the most extraordinary in the history of commerce.

principle of protection was finally disavowed, of extended sales of foreign merchandise. and that of revenue only admitted as a rule The competition was now, however, far more of action. This reduction of duties naturally severe with the home manufactures, which gave a spur to importation, at a moment were so far advanced as not only to mainwhen the exports were very large. There tain themselves against new competition, but was at that time, however, no speculative to drive out those which had long held the action in this country, nor much inflation of field in particular goods. The balance of the credit, by which large quantities of goods ten years' business was, notwithstanding, very could be suddenly placed; and the sales of small. The period closed, however, with produce were so prompt, as to throw a large one of the most remarkable discoveries cash balance in favor of the country: hence, of modern times. We allude to the gold of the imports of 1847, $24,121,289 were in discoveries in California. The war, which specie the largest amount ever imported carried Americans to California, gave them from abroad in one year-a fact which im- the opportunity to discover, and the "dust" parted much activity to trade; and in the was soon detected in the neighborhood of following year, when the exports of farm Captain Sutter's fort. The intelligence was produce declined, $15,841,616 of that specie received with great incredulity. The learned returned whence it came. That re-export said the location and character of the gold was, however, much stimulated by the ex- was contrary to all precedent; but soon the traordinary political convulsions that over-metal came, and was satisfactorily assayed. took Europe in February, 1848. The pecu- Each successive arrival brought stronger liar theories avowed by the successful rev-confirmation, and about $9,000,000 worth olutionists in relation to property, which was received in 1850. Since then, the was declared to be "robbery," greatly alarm- amount received has been nearly $50,000,ed the public mind, and tended to make 000 worth per annum. French property utterly unsaleable for the moment. The consequence was the most active shipment of money, silver particularly, with which to purchase the cheap goods of France. The panic soon passed, but depression continued under the provisional government, which, in order to encourage industry and employ workpeople, gave the manufacturers orders for goods, and allowed a drawback of 10 per cent. on merchandise exported out of France. This state of affairs caused the importation thence into the United States to be larger. Among the goods so imported was a quantity of Lyons silk, which had been ordered by the government with the view to employ the operatives. As the government had given no directions as to colors, the whole was made up, to the extent of 10,000,000f., in tricolor. A large portion of this was bought by a New York house, and gentlemen's coats for a long time had tricolor sleeve linings. With the institution of the new government in France, confidence returned, and new branches of trade were opened with France, as well as other countries of the continent, which began to be rivals for the American trade. The Germans and Belgians had so far advanced in the production of certain manufactures, as to dispute the French and English pretensions to supply the United States, and credits began once more to form the medium

It commenced with a confirmation of the astounding gold discoveries in California, followed by as important a discovery of the same nature in Australia. These events deeply stirred the commercial mind throughout the world, coming, as they did, at the moment when the political difficulties of Europe had settled down in a manner to win public confidence in continued peace and security. The discovery of such large supplies of gold induced the general belief that the metal would depreciate, as compared with commodities and silver, and that the depreciation would manifest itself in a rise in prices of all industrial products. Serious apprehensions were entertained through this superficial view of the case, particularly in Europe, where a large class are rich on fixed annuities, or in the receipt of a fixed amount of money per annum. If all property was to rise in value, leaving the amount of rents the same in money, it would be equivalent to ruining creditors for the benefit of debtors. Thus, if a farmer had mortgaged his farm for say $5,000, the annual interest at 6 per ct. would be $300; at an average price of $1 per bushel for wheat, it would require 300 bushels per annum to pay the interest, and ultimately 5,000 bushels to pay the principal. If the mortgage run five

Capital sent to California.

spent in 20,000 miles of railroad.
expended in land operations

expended by newly-arrived immigrants
at fifty dollars each...

$600,000,000 720,000,000

500,000,000

125,900,000

Total extraordinary expenditures...... $1,945,900,000

years, he would be required to give, alto- states, in subscriptions to stocks and bonds. gether, 1,500 bushels for interest, and 5,000 These have not all turned out well, but the bushels for principal-together, 6,500 bush- capital expended remains in the shape of els. If, through the influx of gold, prices railroads that are now ready and efficient came permanently to be $2 for wheat, it means of developing future trade. The would at once reduce the quantity per annum speculative investments in lands and western that he would have to pay to 150 bushels, property also ran to an inordinate extent in and the ultimate amount for principal. to the same period, and nearly $500,000,000, 2,500 in other words, he would save half the best estimates, took this direction, his grain, at the expense of his creditor, and tollowing the trail of American migration, the money value of his farm would be from the eastern to the western states, imdoubled. This would be of no benefit to pelled by the large immigration from Europe. him, beyond the discharge of his debt, be- As we have seen elsewhere, 2,518,054 percause the value of all that he had to purchase sons arrived from abroad in the period here would rise in the same proportion. All mentioned. These persons brought with creditors would lose half that was due them. them, at the usual estimate of $100 per head, This was an important consideration for the $251,805,400 in capital, as money and goods. debt-covered countries of Europe, where so A large portion of this was expended in large a portion of the people are creditors transportation expenses and in settling new of the governments. In Holland, to avoid homes. We have, then, the following estithis, they passed a law doing away with mated items of extraordinary expenditures gold as a legal tender, and making silver the in the ten years, 1850 to 1860:only medium of payment, under the impression that silver would rise in the same proportion as other commodities. In the United States, the same impressions were entertained, but the event showed that the fears were groundless. But this view naturally stimulated the production of commodities that were to rise in value, and industry became unusually active, since all classes wished to profit by the anticipated risc. Above all, commercial enterprise and migration tended strongly to the gold countries, the direct source of the anticipated benefits. A vast amount of capital was sent to both California and Australia. The United States shipped to the latter country, in 1853, a large amount of goods; and to California the drain While these large expenditures took place continued on a very extensive scale, with in the United States, Europe incurred a small remuneration to the shippers. The heavy loss in the failure of her corn harvests, production of California gold has been that she was obliged to make good from $600,000,000, and it has cost an equal the corn crops of the United States. She amount of capital. In other words, there has been no profit on the production. The capital that it cost exists in the gold itself, and in the cities and property of California. From nearly all nations the capital that now constitutes the wealth of California, flowed thither in exchange for the gold. While this great enterprise of gold digging has been in direct prosecution, another equally as extensive was undertaken, viz.: the construction of 20,000 miles of railroads, at a cost of $720,000,000. The capital for the enterprise was drawn from Europe, in the shape of money and iron, and from the eastern

The 300,000 persons who went to California to consume the capital sent thither, returned $600,000,000 worth of gold, of which a large portion went to Europe, whence goods came. The railroad expenditure results in effective investments in trade. The land investments are not "active," for the present, but are not entirely lost. The immigrants are mostly at work, producing capital in new states.

also incurred a heavy expense in the Russian war, which returned very little for the investment, but which required a larger supply of American produce, particularly pork, whiskey, but of gold, above all. The loss of her vine crops, also, brought American whiskey in demand, as a substitute, and thereby, possibly, cut off permanently a supply of genuine grape liquors for the United States. Those events caused a larger demand for produce, at a time when the expenditures for gold, rails, and land were so active. It is not a matter of surprise, under all these circumstances, that the gold diggers, road

builders, speculators, and emigrants, so well in addition to war and short crops, demanded supplied with money, should require a larger more raw materials. The import and export quantity of goods, both manufactured and table, therefore, shows higher figures than imported, while similar activity in Europe, ever before, as follows:

$2,766,799,881 $226,950,036 $2,993,749,917 $3,004,591,285 $507,306,493 $76,156,730

The imports rose steadily to over $300,- | buyers of food. Thus the wheat crop of 000,000 in 1854, under the first Australian the United States in 1850, by census, was and Californian excitement, and took larger equal to 22,000,000 bbls of flour. The averdimensions as the railroad operations pro- age export price in that year was $5, giving gressed. Railroad iron figured largely in to the crop a value of $110,000,000. In the amount in exchange for bonds. The 1855, the average price was $10, giving a imports of silks rose from $13,731,000, in value of $110,000,000 greater. This sum 1850, to $30,636,000. The most remarkable was taken out of the pockets of the food rise in the importation was, however, in buyers, to the profit of the food sellers, at sugar, which, from $11,000,000, rose to the moment when the latter were enjoying nearly $55,000,000, in 1857, in consequence so large an expenditure for other purposes. of the failure of the Louisiana crop, at a The export value of agriculture rose from moment of very active demand. So high a $24,309,210, in 1850, to $77,686,455, in figure to be paid for sugar at a critical mo- 1856. The great activity of the years ending ment went far to disturb the exchanges, and with 1857 was, then, due to heavy expenditure aid the panic of 1857. We find that the of capital at the west simultaneously with whole amount of importations for the ten profitable sales of its crops. The panic of years reached $3,004,591,285, exceeding, by that year caused not only a total cessation $1,736,807,503, the importations of the pre- of the expenditure, but an earnest desire to vious ten years. This excess of expenditure recover capital invested at the west. Railcorresponds with the estimated amount of road building stopped, migration ceased, capital expended for extraordinary purposes, speculation was at an end, and, at the same since a considerable portion of the expendi- moment, European crops being good, prices tures was applied to domestic manufactures. of produce fell in face of very poor western The operation of the treaty with Canada pro- harvests. With this combination of circumduced a somewhat larger receipt of foreign stances, the decade closed under a sort of goods. These also swelled proportionately paralysis. There was no exhaustion of capithe aggregate imports. The excitement man- tal, since it was apparently more abundant ifest in the United States in regard to gold and cheaper at the great eastern reservoirs and railroads, was also present in England than ever before; but the stimulus to its and Europe. The production of manufac- employment was gone, and it accumulated tured wares to send to the gold countries, in first hands. The broad lands of the west and to avail of the local demand for goods, required more raw material, at a moment when the short harvests and war enterprise enhanced general wants. The effect of these was equivalent to a large transfer of capital If we bring together by recapitulation to the west, not only from Europe, but also the aggregates of the seven decades since from those eastern states that are usually the formation of the government, we shall

are well settled; they are well supplied with means of communication, and are ready to throw out limitless supplies of capital, when the wheel is once more in motion.

have a very interesting synopsis of the national | agricultural products and manufacturing inprogress in respect of commerce. The trea- dustry at corresponding periods. If we add sury department has also caused to be pre- them to the table, it will be so much the pared, with great care, the annual value of more complete, as follows:

765,748,752

892,889,909 199,451,994 1,092,351,903 1,302,476,084 483,278,215 $621,163,977 1,131,458,801 129,105.782 1,260,564,583 1,267,783,782 1,055,595,899 994,093,842 2,766,799,881 226,950,036 2,993,749,917 3,004,591,285 2,000,000,000 1,910,000,000

$6,466,990,519 $1,476,222,947 $7,943,203,466 $8,581,113,879