food. Salt horse and worm-eaten biscuits are no longer "good enough for sailors." He is looking forward towards better treatment and better accommodation. This is nothing but the natural result following on the good accommodation, good wages, and good treatment always found on good steamers. His old improvidence has given place to financial thoughtfulness. He has not, and is not likely to enter into forms of co-operation for conducting maritime affairs, similar to those that are at work on shore; but that the sons of the waves should enjoy in their fullness those blessings of progress which have already so materially increased the happiness and comfort of their brethren ashore will be gainsaid by few.

OUR GREAT PORTS.-LONDON.

Or all cities, ancient or modern, the metropolis of England is the most remarkable for its wealth and extent. To reproduce in a short notice its progress as a trading community is the present object.

It is said to have been founded by the Romans, A.D. 49. It was then named Augusta, on what account is disputed, and how long that name endured is not exactly known. During the Heptarchy it was called by various titles, such as Caer-Lundain, Lundain-Byrig, &c. In the famous Welsh Triads it is called Llundain; but for centuries past it has been universally known by its present appellation.

Even under its Roman conquerors it became a place of great extent and power. Tacitus states that, in the time of Nero, it was famous for its commerce. He terms it the nobile emporium. It was, however, destroyed by fire by the Britons under Boadicea in the year 61. Having no fortifications it suffered severely in those times from the effects of war. It was afterwards restored by the Romans, and Herodian records that, in the time of Severus, it became "a great and wealthy city." For more than a century it remained in a defenceless state, when a wall of stone and brick was raised around it. Then its extent measured from Ludgate Hill to a little beyond the Tower. Its breadth was scarcely equal to half its length and narrowed at each end.

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During the long dark period from the first to the twelfth century the breath of trade appears to have been stifled, not only in England but on the Continent. Commerce, indeed, seems to have had a revival in Italy during the eleventh century, and, in the twelfth, the famous Hanseatic league was formed. It was not until the dawn of the Reformation that London appears to have enjoyed any great progress in that respect. We are indeed told by FitzStephen that, under Henry II., "no city in the world exported its merchandise to such a distance." Perhaps the first

great impetus given to the trade of the capital was by Edward III., who has been accounted by some as our first "Free Trader." He it was who invited the Flemings over to develope the woollen manufacture. There is little doubt that the commerce of England owes much to that enlightened monarch. Previous to his time it had flourished to some extent, for Customs were first levied by his grandfather, Edward I.-namely, by the 3rd Edward I., record of which is lost; but the right saved and established by 25 Edward I., cap. 27. However, it is equally true that Edward III. entertained the most enlightened views regarding "Free Trade;" a letter of his upon the subject being yet extant, and his policy was only checked by the men who now would be first to back him-viz., the merchants of of this kingdom.

In the year 1355, the first statistical gleam of light is thrown upon the value of our imports and exports-the former being valued at £38,978, and the latter at £294,184. The goods sent out of the kingdom consisted of wool, coarse cloths, and leather; whereas those imported were fine cloths, linen, mercery, wine, wax, and groceries. About this time a stimulus was given to the trade of London by the immigration of a number of Lombards. The city of Lucca was then governed by a tyrant named Castrucci Castracani, who, in 1310, banished 900 families from that flourishing place, so famed for its manufactures of silks, velvets, and brocades. Of this exodus, thirty-one families are said to have settled in Venice, and the rest were scattered over Europe, some finding their way to our metropolis, where they found a welcome and secure asylum, and where they conferred, by their great industry and business capability, as great a benefit as they received. During the two following centuries, nearly all the trade of Europe was in their hands, and still, long after their decline, the name of Lombard Street is famous and continues to perpetuate their memories. At an early period, London adopted the plan of incorporation for the benefit and extension of particular trades. So early as 1296, the company of " Merchant Adventurers" was formed first by the Duke of Brabant. It extended to England in Edward III.'s reign, and was incorporated by Charter in 1564. Another famous company was that of the "Merchant Tailors," of which no less than seven of our kings have been members. Others, such as the "Drapers," "Fishmongers," &c., have a history of their own intimately intertwined with that of our great city.

One of the most interesting measures of those early times were the "Navigation Laws," which were first decreed by Richard I. of England, in 1194, at Oleron, in France, hence commonly called the "Laws of Oleron." These early statutes have been much admired. Others have followed, from time to time, variously affecting the well-being of our maritime relations. In 1881, 1541, 1646, 1786, 1883, the

extensive Acts have been passed, till their final repeal in 1849, and the introduction of an entirely new policy.

In the meantime, various schemes have been put forth by some of our kings to foster the Mercantile Marine. In 1449, Henry VI. granted several privileges to one John Taverner, of Hull, who had built the largest ship then seen in England, which the King named the Grace Dieu Carrack. A licence was granted to this person, and its tenour was as follows:-That he be allowed to export "wool, tin, skins, leather, and other merchandise, from the ports of London, Southampton, Hull, and Sandwich, belonging either to English or foreign merchants; and freely to carry the said merchandise through the Straits of Morocco, into Italy, he paying alien's duty on the same, and upon firm expectation that he would, in return, bring such merchandise of other nations as were most wanted in England, as bow-staves, wax, &c., whereby a great increase of the duties and customs to the Crown would ensue, and much gain to the subject." At that time, according to Hakluyt, the value of shipping was about 30s. per ton, at which price merchants of the present day would, doubtless, like to purchase. In the reign of Henry VI., a London company sent a number of ships, with general cargoes, valued at £24,000-a large sum then-to trade with Morocco, but the expedition was destroyed by the Genoese, who were jealous of the interference with their trade. At the commencement of the reign of the next Henry, i.e., 1485, London merchants first began to trade regularly with Italy, and a Consul was thereupon appointed for the protection of their interests at Florence. But, according to the testimony of Sir William Cecil, a London merchant, there were not above four merchant vessels exceeding the burden of 120 tons, belonging to the Thames, up to the time of Henry VIII., and that "there was not a city in Europe, having the occupying that London had, that was so slenderly provided with ships." In this reign an Aet was passed to encourage the art of shipbuilding, by means of a Government bounty, paid to the owners, of 12s. per month, when such vessels were used for the purposes of war.

It was, however, in the time of "good Queen Bess," that commerce began really to bud into life. In 1559, when she began to reign, an Act was passed to regulate the collection of the Customs' duties, by compelling the landing of goods at certain places; and about the same time a new Custom House was built west of the Tower.

The next great lever to lift up the trade of London was the settlement, at Spitalfields, in the sixteenth century, of a number of French silk manufacturers. After that, the fine cloth manufacture was introduced from Flanders. In 1559, the East India Company was formed in London, and opened up that immense commerce with the east, which

has given it such an incalculable amount of wealth. It was started with a capital of £30,000, in 101 shares. On the 31st December, 1660, its Charter of privileges for fifteen years was obtained. In May of the following year, its first adventure, consisting of five vessels, measuring 1,330 tons, of the value of £27,000, sailed from Torbay, with cargoes of bullion and merchandise, amounting to £50,000. The expedition succeeded, and for years the profits amounted to 150 per cent. on the capital invested. A rival association was formed in 1693, but in consequence of the inconvenience arising from competition, an amalgamation was effected in 1701, under the title of "The United Company of Merchants of England, trading to the East Indies." At the close of the reign of Elizabeth, cotton, the king of our manufactures, was introduced; and, although it has not settled down kindly in London, it must have yielded its quota of success to the city, which is the trading heart of the kingdom, benefiting so much by its manufacture. In 1651, coffee was first introduced, and 20,000 cloths were said to be sent annually from London to Turkey in exchange. The sugar trade was also established about this time, and, as everyone knows, forms a fruitful source of revenue to the Government, work to the labouring class, and profit to the merchant. One of the principal seats of sugar-refining is at Whitechapel. As an index of the immensity to which this trade has grown, it may be stated that, in 1870, the quantity of refined and raw sugar, and molasses imported into the United Kingdom reached the surprising total of 692,780 tons, of the declared value of £17,524,215. The major part is brought from the West Indies, and, supposing a vessel to make two voyages annually, this traffic would employ 692 ships of the average carrying capacity of 500 tons. In that year the Customs' duty collected amounted to £3,999,294, of which £1,152,295, or about one third, was received in the port of London. It may not be amiss to mention here that, in the year 1660, an important feature was introduced into the departmental administration of the Government, which, especially in the metropolis, where it held its seat, exercised a most beneficial influence over the fortunes of commerce there. This was the establishment of a "Council of Trade for keeping a control over the whole commerce of the nation." This was the origin of the present Board of Trade. Previous to that time many of our Sovereigns had been in the habit of granting "charters of incorporation" and "monopolies "-notably, King John, Henrys III. and VII., and Elizabeth. These things, though meant to foster, only cripple trade and paralyse enterprise. But, since the formation of the "Council," such mistakes have been avoided. In a recent article, in one of our best conducted provincial newspapers, bearing on this subject, these remarks occur:-" "It was in the year 1660, that these trading fetters received their knock-down blow. In that year

a Board of Trade was instituted for the purpose of consulting on, and protecting, the interests of commerce. The power of monopoly has been gradually broken since that time." It is not surely too much to say that the mode in which that Board is now conducted fully bears out this encomium and its own noble traditions.

The next great feature in the commercial history of the metropolis was the establishment, in 1694, of the Bank of England, the honour of proposing which belongs to a Scotchman named William Paterson. Six years after that the prohibition of importing lace from Flanders was taken off, in order that English woollens might be admitted there. This caused a considerable stimulus to those branches of business. During the first half of the eighteenth century, trade was much checked owing to the bubble South Sea scheme, the rebellion of 1715, and the Spanish War.

After the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668) commerce in London revived with wonderful rapidity, and this prosperity continued until the breaking out of the American War, when it languished until peace again infused new life into it. A period of success again ensued until 1790, when the French War broke out, and then the exports fell £2,000,000 below the preceding year. Many bankruptcies followed, and great commercial distress, until the Legislature interfered and voted £5,000,000 Exchequer Bills for the use of such persons as could give sufficient security.". This allayed the trouble, and, in the course of a few years, the elastic limbs of commerce had received fresh strength by spreading out into new channels.debro.J to troq sit q havolo 7

In 1802, a new era was inaugurated at London in the shape of the docksthe first of which--the West India Docks were opened on the 27th August of that year. Others were added from time to time, though most of them were created in the first twenty years. After the above, the London Docks followed. Then the East India, St. Katharine's, Commercial, and others, in more recent times. These immense works monuments, as they are, to the enterprise of the citizens of London comprise upwards of 300 acres of floating room, and have cost more than ten millions of capital. The dues were very heavy at first, but, on the lapse of the Parliamentary privileges, about the year 1827, they were much reduced. In 1803, a most important measure was carried, commonly known as the " Warehousing Act." Previously, goods liable to duty on importation were paid by the merchant on landing from the ship, except in the case of British plantation rum, which, for a number of years, had been allowed to be warehoused free of duty only for the purpose of being again exported as ships' stores. From that year, however, the merchant could land certain goods, warehouse them, and pay duty when required for use or sale. The boon thus afforded was immenso, especially to the London men, who import such large quantities of high duty goods. In many

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