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meeting, at which thanks were voted to the leading men who had taken part in procuring their repeal; among whom Mr. Thornely, the present member for Wolverhampton, had particularly distinguished himself by his activity and zeal. Unfortu nately, the concession came too late. War against England was declared by the American Government in the same month, of June. In the course of this war, which lasted more than two years and a half, the losses of both nations were enormous, while their successes were so nearly balanced that they were both heartily glad to accept the mediation of the Emperor of Russia to put an end to the strife. In the course of the conflict, from eight hundred to a thousand English merchant ships were taken by the American privateers and ships of war; and at least an equal number of American merchantmen were taken by British cruizers. In the latter part of the war, the risk of capture was so great, that the freight on cotton from Savannah to France rose to 10d. a pound. At the close of the contest, upward of 200,000 bales of cotton, which was more than a year's supply, were piled up in the warehouses of America; while in this country, that great article of consumption was sold at prices ruinous to trade. The Liverpool Mercury of May 7th, 1813, quoting from an American insurance list, says: "The following is a statement of the premiums of insurance on the coasting trade of Boston, on the 3d ult.:-To Eastport, 7 to 10 per cent; other eastern ports, 2 to 5; to New York, £6 to £7 10s.; to Philadelphia, £10; to the Chesapeake, £12 to £15; to North Carolina, £17 to £18; to South Carolina, £21 to £28; to Savannah, £22 to £25. With regard to foreign trade, it is emphatically stated in the insurance list that there is none remaining, except to France, and the premium upon voyages to that quarter is 30 to 50 per cent!" On the other side of the account it appeared, from a return made to the House of Lords, that from the 1st of October, 1812, to the 1st of May, 1813 332 British ships were captured by the Americans, of which 66 were retaken and 20 restored, leaving a loss of nearly 300 British ships in seven months.

MAXIMS FOR YOUNG MERCHANTS.

Keep good company or none. Never be idle. If your hands cannot be usefully employed, attend to the cultivation of your mind. Always speak the truth. Make few promises. Live up to your engagements. Keep your own secrets, if you have any. When you speak to a person, look him in the face. Good company and good conversation are the very sinews of virtue. Good character is above all things else. Your character cannot be essentially injured except by your own acts. If any one speaks evil of you. let your life be so that none will believe him. Drink no kind of intoxicating liquors. Ever live, misfortune excepted, within your income. When you retire to bed, think over what you have been doing during the day. Make no haste to be rich if you would prosper. Small and steady gains give competency with tranquillity of mind. Never play at any kind of game of chance. Avoid temptation, through fear you may not withstand it. Earn money before you spend it. Never run in debt, unless you see a way to get out again. Never borrow if you can possibly avoid it. Do not marry until you are able to support a wife. Never speak evil of any one. Be just before you are generous. Keep yourself innocent, if you would be happy. Save when you are young to spend when you are old. Read over the above maxims at least once a week, and adopt the maxims and examples of mercantile morality inculcated and exhibited from time to time in the pages of the Merchants' Magazine, and success will crown your efforts in the battle of life.

PHILLIPS' PATENT FIRE ANNIHILATOR.

We learn from the Liverpool Chronicle that Lord Derby has put the efficacy of the machines to a severe test. He had the building in the park, at Knowsley, known as the dairy, which his Lordship is about to pull down, prepared for the purpose. The building is circular and of considerable dimensions, with windows and doors all round, all of which were taken out, admitting a strong current of air, which was increased by a sort of funnel ventilator opening through the roof. This was filled with a very large body of dry poles, pine boards, a large quantity of dried faggots, and the place well bedded with shavings, &c. For the purpose of keeping up a fierce fire, a dozen tar barrels were placed in the center of this pile. Mr. Francis Morton, of the firm of Francis and H. J. Morton, of North John-street, the sole agents for the patent, attended and minutely described the invention and the machines to Lord and Lady Derby. The fire was allowed to burn for some time when his Lordship gave the word, and the

machines were struck off. From the moment the vapor was brought to bear upon the burning pile, the flames became instantly controlled, and were extinguished with the marvelous rapidity which characterizes the invention, and in a few minutes the whole body of fire was put out. All present expressed their satisfaction at the complete success which had attended the trial.

THE TRICKS OF TRADE.

It would seem, from the following lines by "Eunice," a fair contributor to the colums of the "Carpet Bag," that the "tricks of trade" are not confined to the "goods, wares, and merchandise" of the merchant and mechanic, but that the D. D. and the M. D., and even " Eunice," are not exempt from their influence.

THE TRICKS OF TRADE.

BY EUNICE.

"There are tricks in all trades," says the worthy So I'll give him this powder to weaken him

divine,

"But professions are held to be free,

And mine is a holy calling-at least

They can find no fault with me."

Then other men's sermons are preached as his

own.

And the author no credit is paid:
Of course it is only a sad mistake-
But it looks like a "trick of trade."

"Tis the tricks of trade and the gift of gab
Fills the lawyer's purse with gold,
And little he cares, if 'tis gain to him,

Though a hundred hearts are sold.

He can take the poor, honest widow's last mite,
And the orphan's last loaf of bread,
And still his conscience, (if any he has,)
With "it is only a trick of trade."

The skillful M. D. some patient has,

Who is gaining in strength each day'Tis a pity, sighs he, such a chance to lose In a family able to pay;

down,

And his friends will all think he must die, And I'll visit him often, till on my books His father stands pretty high.

I can easily raise him at any time,

And 'twill add to my practice, I'm sure,
For the case will be told of for miles around
As a most miraculous cure.

What matters it if, by some schemes of mine,
Some few in their graves are laid?
They only take their chance with the rest-
It is only a "trick of trade."

So goes the world. I know a young man
Who is worth his thousands to-day,
And thousands more will be added to that
When an uncle steps out of the way.

I scraped an acquaintance the other night,
And siege to his heart I laid-
And if I win it, you may rest assured,
It is only a "trick of trade."

COMMERCIAL PROGRESS OF THE AMERICANS.

An English cotemporary thus describes the social and commercial phenomena which the United States now exhibits, for which, as the writer justly remarks, it would be in vain to seek a parallel in the past history of the human race.

In an interval of little more than half a century it appears that this extraordinary people have increased above 500 per cent in numbers; their national revenue has augmented nearly 700 per cent, while their public expenditure has increased little more than 400 per cent. The prodigious extension of their commerce is indicated by an increase of nearly 500 per cent in their imports and exports, and 600 per cent in their shipping. The increased activity of their internal communications is expounded by the number of their post-offices, which has been increased more than a hundred fold, the extent of their post roads, which has been increased thirty-six fold, and the cost of their post-office, which has been augmented in a seventy-two fold ratio. The augmentation of their machinery of public instruction is indicated by the extent of their public libraries, which have increased in a thirty-two fold ratio, and by the creation of school libraries, amounting to 2,000,000 volumes. They have completed a system of canal navigation, which, placed in a continuous line, would extend from London to Calcutta, and a system of railways which, continuously extended, would stretch from London to Van Dieman's Land, and have provided locomotive machinery by which that distance would be traveled over in three weeks, at the cost of 14d. per mile.

They have created a system of inland navigation, the aggregate tonnage of which is probably not inferior in amount to the collective inland tonnage of all the other countries in the world, and they possess many hundreds of river steamers, which impart to the roads of water the marvelous celerity of roads of iron. They have, in fine, constructed lines of electric telegraph which, laid continuously, would extend over a space longer by 3000 miles than the distance from the north to the south pole, and have provided apparatus of transmission by which a message of 300 words dispatched under such circumstances from the north pole might be delivered in writing at the south pole in one minute, and by which, consequently, an answer of equal length might be sent back to the north pole in an equal interval.

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The Mirror, a cleverly-conducted "folio of four," published at Bath, in the State of Maine, furnishes the following illustration of that perseverance and industry which is generally pretty sure to command success :

There is nothing more true than that success in life is sure to follow any well-directed efforts, which do not clash with the immutable laws of nature. Luck" is a word that has no place in the vocabulary of the successful man, and is used only by those who are so blind or ignorant as to be unable to trace effects back to causes. We do not propose an argument from this text to-day, but merely wish to present the idea to our readers for them to discuss. There are feelings of despondency prevalent among mankind, which the consideration of the subject will dissipate, and many who believe themselves doomed to poverty and toil, by giving earnest heed to the faith which this truth will create, will find themselves rising at once from misery they so much fear. Fear of bad luck operates as a continual check on many, crushes enterprises and prostrates energies. It is the "conscience" that

"doth make cowards of us all,"

and only by taking a rational and common-sense view of the operating causes that change our position and affect our well-being, are we enabled to profit by them, and shake off the chains that our weakness and irresolution have permitted us to become enslaved with.

The luck doctrine places an erroneous estimate on exertion, and consigns success to the care of the

"Divinity that shapes our ends,"

and makes a machine of man's immortal nature. We have seen many a poor devil resigned to the hopelessness of his poverty, sit for hours with his pipe, cursing the tardy divinity that should enrich him, and wasting the moments which alone could do it. As ye sow, so shall ye reap," is as true to-day as ever it was, and he who would suc ceed in becoming wealthy, learned or moral, must labor, study, watch.

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We are every day reminded by forcible illustrations of the power of exertion. In this city (Bath) there are many examples in proof. We have before us one remarkable case, where, unaided save by their own hands and the friends their own energies naturally drew around them as their business increased, two poor men in a very few years amassed one of the largest fortunes in the city. Their ships are in every sea, and at home their houses and stores line every street, and the busy hum of scores of mechanics speak their increasing wealth. Unable to obtain a liberal education, and with talents no more than ordinary, they had nothing to boast but the determination to succeed. It was not luck but common sense which told them that a dollar put at interest would be worth more at the end of the year than it would be if expended for rum and cigars, military parades or dancing. It was not luck but natural accumulation of the investment that, in a few years made the one dollar two dollars, the first hundred two hundred, and the first ten thousand twenty thousand. It was as natural for the "pile" to grow as it is for grain to take root. There was no chance about it—it must be so. Industry and economy were their only aids to obtain the first few thousands, the last few were obtained by the first. There is nothing marvelous in all this, nor any thing which any person of common sense might not avail himself of. It is plain matter-of-fact business, and no god of fortune can rub it out; and no god of ill fortune can overstep proper guards erected to secure you in possession of what you have thus got your hand upon.

We might give innumerable instances, but leave that labor to the reader, contenting ourself with having called his attention to the subject.

NEW METHOD OF EXTRACTING SUGAR FROM THE CANE.

Dr. Shier, agricultural chemist to the colony of British Guiana, has discovered a method of extracting an extra quantity of sugar from the juice of the cane by substituting subsidence and filtration for skimming, in the clarification of the juice. By this means he obtains nearly 20 per cent more than by the ordinary process, and the juice yields from 1 lb. 4 oz. to 1 lb. 10 oz. of muscovado per gallon.

ORIGIN OF THE PENNY POSTAGE SYSTEM IN ENGLAND.

A traveler sauntering through the lake districts of England some years ago arrived at a small public-house just as the postman stopped to deliver a letter. A young girl came out to receive it. She took it in her hand, turned it over and over, and asked the charge. It was a large sum-no less than a shilling. Sighing heavily she observed that it came from her brother, but that she was too poor to take it in, and she returned it to the postman accordingly. The traveler was a man of kindness as well as of observation; he offered to pay the postage himself, and in spite of more reluctance on the girl's part than he could understand, he did pay it, and gave her the letter. No sooner, however was the postman's back turned than she confessed that the proceeding had been concerted between her brother and herself; that the letter was empty, that certain signs on the direction conveyed all that she wanted to know, and that, as they could neither of them afford to pay postage, they had devised this method of franking the intelligence desired. The traveler pursued his journey, and as he plodded over the Cumberland fells he mused upon the badness of a system which drove people to such straits for means of correspondence, and defeated its own objects all the time. With most men such musings would have ended before the close of the hour, but this man's name was Rowland Hill, and it was from this incident and these reflections that the whole scheme of penny postage was derived.

BRITISH CUSTOMS DUTIES-1850-51.

A return has been laid before the British Parliament of the gross amount of the customs dues received at all the ports of the United Kingdom, exclusive of London, in the year ending January 5, 1851. The gross amount received in the ports of England in that period was £6,961,629; in the ports of Scotland, £1,251,981; and in ports of Ireland, £2,055,925; making a total of £10,960,535.

THE BOOK TRADE.

1.-The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations. By his Grandson, CHARLES FRANCIS ADAMS. Vols. 2, 3, 4, 5, 8vo., pp., 542, 576, 588, and 496. Boston: Little and Brown.

The second and third volumes are chiefly filled with a diary of Mr. Adams, which commences with his first entrance into responsible life, and continues through a large part of his great career. It is somewhat broken and partial in its character, but it develops so much of the tenor of his life as to enable the reader easily to detect its leading principle. The second volume closes with passages from an autobiography of Mr. Adams. Those are marked by superior animation in style. They also supply some of the details that are wanting in the diary. These two volumes apar to have been prepared with great judgment and discrimination. The diary is fairly and faithfully presented, even without regard to its bearing. Indeed the main purpose seems to have been, to present to the public a fair and unbiassed picture of the mind and heart of an individual so far as this can be of interest. The diary extends to 1778. That portion of the autobiography covering his Congressional life as then commenced. It includes all the notes taken of debates in the Continental Congress. These, meager as they are, constitute almost the sole remaining memorial of the kind that hrs come down to us. Some of them relating to the state of trade, the authority to institute governments and the formation of the articles of confederation, although fragmentary, possess an intrinsic value for every one who desires to understand the true history of the Revolution. The remaining volumes contain the very able work of Mr. Adams entitled the "Defence of the Constitutions of the United States against the attack of M. Turgot in his letter to Dr. Price, 22d March, 1778." This is the chief performance of the author as a writer. It is worthy of his high fame in other respects.

2.-Appletons' Dictionary of Machines, Mechanics, Engineer-work, and Engineering: Designed for Practical Working Men, and those intended for the Engineering Profession. 2 vols. 8vo., pp. 960 and 960. New York: D. Appleton & Co.

of

As a work for mechanics, engineers, and practical men, who are interested in any the branches of mechanical industry, this is unquestionably the most important that has ever been published in this country. The progress which those pursuits have made within a few years has been wide and rapid; at the present moment they may be regarded as scarcely inferior in importance to any other departments of industry. It is to furnish a text-book, and a convenient and compendious work of reference for such a vast field, that those two volumes have been brought out. They may be regarded as particularly American and national in their character; for while they contain the experience and knowledge of Europe on mechanical subjects, they are enriched with all the important details of American ingenuity. The plates and cuts of machinery, many of which are working-drawings of machines, exceed four thousand in number; these are generally made with such distinctness and intelligibility that a mechanic can successfully construct a machine from them. In its pages are embodied complete practical treatises on mechanics, machinery, and engine-work. The appearance of the work, originally in numbers, has attracted to it a very general and favorable notice. In its present form, it comes within the means of all who are interested in mechanical subjects, by all of whom it should be patronized.

3.-The Ladies of the Covenant. Memoirs of distinguished Scottish Female Characters, embracing the Period of the Covenant and the Persecution. Ry Rev. JAMES ANDERSON. 12mo., pp. 494. New York: J. S. Redfield.

These are sketches of the lives of women who were distinguished by their zeal and their sufferings on account of of religious belief during the reign of James 6th and of his grandsons, Charles II. and James VII. The notices are not historical, but contain such illustrations of their personal piety, and such portions of their domestic history, as time has spared. They are written in an interesting and animated manner, and afford much insight into the customs and habits of social life in those days, as well as delineate the spirit of piety which prevailed among the covenanters.

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