A. D. 1794. 321 



The following brief fketch of the fyftem of commercial policy adopt- 

 ed by the United ftates of America, and of the ftate of their commerce 

 and manufidures at this time, is extraded from a feries of papers, 

 written by Mr. Coxe of Philadelphia between the years 1787 and 1794. *. 



The United ftates admit every foreigner to the right of carrying on 

 any bufmefs or manufacture, and buying lands or houfes, free of any 

 corporation monopolies, or payment of taxes of any kind, from the day 

 of his arrival : and a refidence of two years confers upon him the right 

 of eleding, or being eleded into the legiilative body, and every office 

 of profit or truil f . Non-refident foreigners are alfo permitted to pur- 

 chafe lands, to fell them, and exercife all the rights of property in them, 

 though they fhould never fet a foot in America. 



They admit foreign veffels into all their ports, and in every branch 

 of trade, not even excepting the carriage of goods from one ftate to 

 another, fubjedl to a duty of 44 hundredth parts of a dollar (about two 

 fhillings fterling) per tun more than is paid by their own veffels, and a 

 furcharge of ten per cent on the duties payable upon their cargoes. — - 

 They do not impofe any extra light-duties on foreign veffels ; nor do 

 they make any inquiry, where they were built, or whether they are 

 navigated by lubjeds of the country they failed from, or by others. 



They admit the commodities of all countries, without ever queffion- 

 ing whether the vefiel importing them belong to the country producing 

 them, or whether they may have been previoufly imported into that, 

 from which they are carried to the ftates. 



They permit the exportation of every article of their produce and 

 manufadure, free from any duty whatever. And they admit the im- 

 portation of all foreign produce, manufadures, fiffi and other produce 

 of fiftieries, in their own or any foreign veflTels whatever, on duties, 

 which are in general much lower than thofe impofed by any other na- 

 tion on goods imported. The higheff; duties are thofe on wines and 

 other liquors, and 15 per cent ad valorem on fuch articles as may gen- 

 erally be deemed luxuries, no article except foreign-made wheel car- 

 riages paying fo high as 20 per cent. They lay no extra tax on fales 

 made by any foreigner on his own account in their ports. And they 

 do not prohibit the confumption of any foreign article whatever. 



which will carry much more than the whole of, pers were collcfted in one volume, and publifhed 

 them, can be navigated by a commander, three in the later end of the year 1794, before Mr. Jay's 

 mates, and 20 or 22 feamen. Thus there is a dif- negotiation In London had brought about the 

 ference of from 35 to 40 feamen in carrying the above treaty, or at lead before the concluiion of 

 fame quantity of goods in the one large, or in the it could be heard of in America, 

 ten, or more, fmall veffels. And the difference is \ In the year 1793 the congrefs, vi'arned by the 

 much greater to the national, or political, interefl, infurreftion at Pittfburgh, of the evils to be drcad- 

 than to that of the owners of the veffels, as the ed from too great a proportion of heterogeneous 

 fmaller are fooner difpatched, and make more fre- matter in the body of their community, enadfed 

 i^uent x'oyages, than the larger. that foreigners arriving after the aCt was paffed, 

 * Mr. Coxe was commiffioner of the revenue muft have refided five years in their territories be- 

 in Philadelphia, and confequently his information fore they can be naturalized and admitted to the 

 may be received as perfectly authentic. His pa- right of voting at ekftions. 



Vol. IV. S f 



