184 



COMMERCE. 



the rebels, however, were totally defeated. In 

 December a body of rebels was in the vicin- 

 ity of Amoy, but no danger was apprehended 

 from them. 



COMMERCE. The commerce of the year 

 with Europe was limited in consequence of the 

 increased duties on imports and the favorable 

 harvests abroad, which diminished the demand 

 for breadstuifs. The official statement of the 

 Treasury Department gives the following re- 

 sults of the trade of the country for the fiscal 

 years 1863 and 1864. The fiscal year ends on 

 June 30th. The specie export for 1863 should 

 be increased $18,207,879, to embrace a large 

 unusual shipment made from California to Eng- 

 land for safety of transit. 



Importt. 1SSS. 



Goods ..................... $252,131,939 



Specie .................... 9,555,648 



Total ............... $262,287,537 



Domestic produce .......... $249.856,649 



Foreign " .......... 17.796,200 



Specie ................... 64,156,610 



1864. 



$328,514,568 

 13,155,708 



$341,670,265 



$320,292,171 



20,373,449 



105,125,750 



Total $331,809,459 $445,791,870 



The import valuations are in specie, being 

 the invoice value. The export values are in 

 legal tender prices. The advance in gold, as 

 compared with legal tender notes and the in- 

 crease of taxes, has seriously affected the prices 

 of articles sold for consumption. The following 

 is a comparative table of the prices of sixteen 

 articles which will serve as an illustration : 



This average aggregate rise has been as fol- 

 lows : 



sion of consumers, are far less than in ordinary 

 years. 



The revenue of the port of New York dur- 

 ing 1864, shows a gain of about $8,000,000 

 over the corresponding figures of the previou- 

 year : 



This table shows that the price of commodi- 

 ties keeps always in advance of that of gold. 

 Thus the premium on gold is 125 per cent., 

 and the advance in the articles has been 150 

 per cent, on the gold price of those articles. 

 These higher prices include the duties, the cost 

 of gold with which payment is made, the price 

 of exchange, the stamps and other taxes, and 

 all the expenses and profits of the importers. 

 Before the goods reach the consumers they are 

 thus loaded with expenses, charges, taxes, and 

 profits, which therefore necessarily diminish 

 the ability of the consumers to take the usual 

 quantities. The home manufacturers have had 

 less to contend with. They have been charged 

 with three per cent, tax, and other charges, 

 and the rise in raw materials and wages, but 

 they have been sustained by a large and effect- 

 ive demand from the Government for most 

 materials of clothing, munitions, etc., at rates 

 which have left a considerable profit. The 

 manufacturing sections have indeed never been 

 so prosperous as during the past year. It is 

 the case, nevertheless, that the stocks of mer- 

 chandise generally, as well in first hands as 

 those on the shelves of stores, and in posses- 



In the previous year the imports were con- 

 siderable, and the entries were large, under 

 the apprehension of higher duties. By the 

 act of Congress in May doubling the duties, 

 the merchandise taken out of bond was very 

 large in value, thus making the revenue from 

 January to May $35,296,890.09. These duties 

 represented a large amount of goods taken out 

 of bond, and put on the market at lower rates, 

 and which continued to supply it during the 

 year. The revenue of the last eight months 

 was about 90 per cent, of that of the first four 

 months. The duties of the last eight months 

 being at much higher rates, represent a muoh 

 smaller amount of goods, and the quantity la 



