increased the building; of vessels, and induced sonic 

 English houses to contract for the building of Prussian 

 vessels to be employed in distant voyages. 



The effect, however, of the low prices of agricul- 

 tural produce, is more experienced in the Provisions 

 for the Crew, than in the cost of the constructions of 

 the ships. This may be seen in the cost of the food 

 for a Prussian ship in the Appendix, No. 13. It is 

 true that our seamen are accustomed to better food 

 than the Prussians, but their superior professional 

 skill makes up for the difference. Besides, as the 

 Baltic is frozen several months in the year, the loss of 

 time seems to lie more than a compensation for the 

 differences in the price of food. 



In pursuance of the instructions that were given to 

 me by your Lordships, I made every attempt in my 

 power to ascertain the actual cost of the Wheat to 

 the growers of that Grain in Prussia. Whoever has 

 made similar attempts in this country, however well 

 he may have been acquainted with all the practical 

 details, even if he could obtain, with most scrupulous 

 -accuracy, the amount of seed sown and harvested, 

 has found them attended with such difficulties, as to 

 afford no great degree of confidence in the results 

 obtained. 



Thus, for instance, in our common four years' 

 course of Turnips, Barley, Clover, and Wheat, though 

 it may be easy to ascertain the whole expenditure in 

 rent, taxes, labour, manure, interest of capital, and 

 deterioration in the working cattle and utensils during 

 the four years, yet scarcely any two persons will agree 

 in the apportioning that expenditure to each of the 

 four crops. The relative value of those crops to one 

 another, will vary in every year ; one will be good, 

 another indifferent, another very bad. The value of 

 the feed to the cattle fed on the' produce of the first 

 and third years, will be very differently estimated by 

 different persons. The proportions of the expense of 



