102 CAPTAIN ZACHARY G. LAMSON 



and fear of an insurrection. 1 The North 

 was the commercial portion of the country, 

 and built, owned and manned the vessels of 

 the young nation. 



There were built in the United States in 

 1800, exclusive of ships sold abroad, fifty 

 thousand tons of shipping. In 1806 the 

 tonnage built rose to 126,393 tons, falling 

 to 99,783 in 1808, the year of the embargo, 

 and rising again in 1811 to 146,691 tons. 

 The entire tonnage built in all parts of the 

 British Empire during any year for the 

 same period was not over 135,394 tons. 2 



1 The terrible scenes in Hayti beginning in 1791 

 occasioned the liveliest apprehension in the Southern 

 States. In 1784, twelve ships, one bark and two brigs 

 arrived in Charleston, bringing three thousand slaves. 

 By 1798 the slave trade was prohibited by every state in 

 the Union except New York. That this sudden change 

 in the laws of South Carolina was due to fear lest the negro 

 insurrection in Hayti might lead to negro revolt in our 

 Southern States is shown by the fact that in 1803 South 

 Carolina again legalized the slave trade. History of 

 Charleston, p. 102. 



2 Pitkin's Statistics. 



