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canal projected in central America, it might, I 

 think, be even less than the depth of the Cale- 

 donian canal. Such is the change which the 

 new systems of commerce and navigation have 

 produced within 15 years, in the capacity or 

 the structure of the ships most commonly em- 

 ployed in the intercourse with India and China, 

 that in examining with attention the official 

 list of vessels, which during two years (from 

 July 1821 to June 1823), have traded from 

 London and Liverpool to those two countries, 

 we find, on a total of 216 vessels, two-thirds be- 

 low 600 tons, one-fourth between 900 and 1400 

 tons, and one-seventh below 400 tons *. In 

 France, the mean tonnage in the ports of Bor- 

 deaux, Nantes, and Havre, of vessels trading to 

 India, is 350 tons. The nature of the opera- 

 tions undertaken in the most distant latitudes, 

 determines the capacity of the vessels employed ; 

 for instance, to bring indigo from Bengal, it 

 may appear sufficient, and even preferable, to 

 send a vessel of 150 to 200 tons. The system 

 of small expeditions is preferably adopted in 

 America, where all the advantages are felt of 

 prompt lading, and a rapid circulation of capi- 

 tal. The average size of the American vessels 



* East India Shipping — return to the order of the House of 

 Commons, London, 1823. I have reduced the English into 

 French tonnage, the latter being 10 p. c. less. 



