154 
Indiana University Studies 
the order in council of July 27, 1826, continued to remain 
closed to American vessels. 
Nevertheless the situation of American commerce and 
navigation was not so bad as, at first blush, it appeared. A 
considerable amount of American produce still continued to 
find its way to the British West Indies indirectly. Two 
routes were open: one by way of the British North Ameri- 
can provinces, the other by way of the foreign West India 
ports. Trade which went by the former route helped to swell 
the total British tonnage; that by the latter fell principally 
into the hands of American merchants. Quite naturally there- 
fore the British Government favored the former route and, 
early in 1827, passed an act admitting masts, timber, staves, 
wood, hoops, shingles, lathwood, cordwood for fuel, ashes, 
raw hides, tallow, fresh meat, fresh hsh, horses into Canada 
by land or inland navigation duty free. By the same act the 
seven first-named articles, which were special necessities in 
the British West Indies, when imported from Canada into any 
British possession in America were to be deemed produce of 
Canada. Kingston and Montreal were made additional free 
warehousing ports in an apparent effort to accommodate the 
trade which was expected to spring up between Canada and 
Western New York.^-^“ Obviously, the purpose of this act was 
to make the British North American provinces depots in an 
indirect trade between the border states of the United States 
and the British West Indies, and to check the other indirect 
trade which was being carried on thru the foreign West 
Indies.^®^ 
This indirect trade thru foreign ports in the West Indies 
still continued, for, even tho some of the North American 
provinces petitioned the Privy Council to interdict it, ‘‘ex- 
cept in extreme cases”, Great Britain apparently dared not 
subject her colonies in those islands to the distresses which 
would be sure to follow such an interdict. On the contrary, 
the British inspector-general of the customs instructed the 
customs house officials in the British West Indies to permit 
American articles to enter in British vessels, subject to the 
same duty only as if brought direct from the United States 
Niles’ Register, XXXII, 409. 
153 National Advocate (N.Y.) in Richmond Enquirer, May 29, 1827. 
154 Petition of Chamber of Commerce of St. Johns, N.B,, in Niles’ Register, XXXII, 
246, 247. 
155 St. George’s Chronicle and Grenada Gazette, Feb. 2, 1827. 
