186 COMMERCE OF THE U. S. 



CONGO FREE STATE. 



The total number of clearances from ports on 

 the Gulf coast for United States ports north of 

 Cape Sable was 563, with a total of 961,892 tons. 

 These comprised 291 American steam vessels, 

 with 644,015 tons; 117 American sailing vessels, 

 with 97,182 tons ; 147 foreign steam vessels, 

 with 215,046 tons ; and 8 foreign sailing vessels, 

 with 5,649 tons. 



The volume of foreign trade for the year was 

 less by $143,660,794 than that of the preceding 

 year, and a corresponding decrease occurred in 

 the entries and clearances, both as to the num- 

 ber of vessels and the amount of tonnage. 



The following table shows the values of the 

 imports of the United States carried in cars and 

 other land vehicles, in American vessels, and in 

 foreign vessels, from 1859 to 1893. inclusive, 

 embracing merchandise, coin, and bullion to and 

 including 1879, and merchandise thereafter: 



The values, and modes of carriage of the ex- 

 ports during the same period are given in the 

 following table : 



The total value of the imports and exports of 

 the United States in the fiscal year of 1859 was 

 $695,557,592, of which amount C6'9 per cent, was 

 carried in American vessels. In 1860 the trade 

 amounted to $762,288,550, of which American 

 vessels carried 66'5 per cent. In 1861, the first 

 year of the civil war, the trade decreased to 

 $584.995,066, and the percentage carried in 

 American vessels was 65'2. In 1862, owing 

 principally to the blockade of Southern ports, 

 there was a further decline of about $150,000,000 

 in the volume of trade, and the percentage car- 

 ried in American vessels dropped to 50. From 

 that time forward there was a steady increase in 

 the amount of imports and exports, but a rapid 

 and almost uninterrupted decline in the per- 

 centage carried in American vessels. This per- 

 centage dropped to 41 -4 in 1863 ; 27'5 in 1864 ; 

 and was 27'7 in 1865. After the close of the 

 war the volume of trade still further increased, 

 and there was an increase for a few years in the 

 percentage carried in American vessels. This 

 was 32-2 in 1866, 33-9 in 1867, 35-1 in 1868, 331 

 in 1869, 35-6 in 1870. From this it dropped to 

 31-9 in 1871, 29-2 in 1872, 26'4 in 1873, 27'2 in 

 1874, 26-1 in 1875, 27'7 in 1876, 26-9 in 1877, 

 26-3 in 1878, 23 in 1879, 17'4 in 1880, 16-5 in 

 1881, 15-8 in 1882, 16 in 1883, 17-2 in 1884, 15-3 

 in 1885, 15-5 in 1886, 14*3 in 1887, 14 in 1888, 

 14-3 in 1889, 12-9 in 1890, 12-5 in 1891, 12'3 in 

 1892, and 12'2 in 1893. 



CONGO FREE STATE, a sovereign monar- 

 chical state created in Central Africa by the 

 general act of the International Conference of 

 the Congo, signed at Berlin, Feb. 26, 1885, which 

 declares the perpetual neutrality of its territories. 

 Leopold II, King of the Belgians, assumed the 

 sovereignty personally and independently of the 

 Belgian Government after obtaining the consent 

 of the Belgian Legislature to the personal union, 

 and was proclaimed Sovereign of the Independ- 



