Stralsund is the first commercial port on the Po ' meranian shore of the Baltic. Its harbour is inclosed by jetties, but its access it; dangerous and difficult; on account of sand-banks. It has a considerable ex port trade in brandy, starch, and linens. Stettin, on the Oder, succeeds. Vessels of moderate burden go up to it, but large ones discharge at Swinemund, on the channel into the Gros-Haff, which separates the Islands of Usedom and Wollin. Between the years 1787 and 1796, the annual or whole exports were 3714 tons. The imports are manufactured goods from , England, salt, wines, and fruits from France, &c. and linseed from Russia. About 160 vessels, manned by 1000 seamen, belong to it. From Politz, near the mouth of the Oder, are exported several thousand bushels of hops, chiefly to Sweden.
The principal islands of the coast of Pomerania are Rugen, Usedom, Ruden, and Wollin. Rugen is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Gellen. It is of a very irregular shape, and consists of the Island Proper, and three peninsulas. It is supposed to contain 142,000 acres. Two of the peninsulas terminate in promontories, composed of chalky cliffs, ene of which is 430 feet high. There is no port on the island, but from the roads are exported herrings, cattle, corn, and salted geese. The coasts are very dangerous, scarcely a year passing in which several vessels are not stranded, and several ancient regula tions are still in force respecting the assistance which the inhabitants are bound to give in case of ship wrecks. The islands of Usedom, Ruden, and Wol lin, are formed by the alluvium of the Peene and the Oder ; they are very low, and in general sandy.
Dantzic is the principal commercial place in Prus sian Poland. It is situate on the western branch of the Vistula, five miles from its mouth, and at the con fluence of the rivulets Modell and Radaune. These form its port, to which there is an entrance by a canal giving a new channel to the Vistula, the old one being choked up. Dantzic has long justly been considered as one of the principal granaries of Eu rope. Its annual exports of corn average about 700,000 tons. Its other exports are timber, beer, brandy, horse-hair, hogs'-bristles, feathers, wool, amber, honey, wax, Hopp, masts of ships, cork wood, and flax, potash, salt, tar, skins, fruits, &c. Its imports are English manufactures, and Lon don porter, herrings, fruits, lead, coffee, tea, sugar, indigo, wines, &c.
Pillau, whence there is a considerable export of timber, stands on a peninsula washed by the Fresch Haff on one side,. and the Baltic on the other. From
Koningsbergh, on an island at the mouth of the Pregel, are exported nearly the same articles as from Dant zic, in between 600 and 700 vessels annually. Elbing, at the mouth of the river of the same name, corn, starch, linseed-oil, soap, cordage, sail-cloth, saltpetre, potash, and timber, are exported in be tween 300 and 400 vessels annually. The port of Memel„ formerly the mouth of the river Dange, is liable to be encumbered with mud ; its chief exports are, ship-timber, masts, linseed of a superior quality, hemp, flax, hides and tallow.
The first Russian river of consequence that falls into the Baltic is the Western Dwina. It is navigable from its source to within a few miles of Riga, where ridges of rocks form fourteen falls. These, however, do not prevent the floating down of immense quan tities of timber. It is frozen from the end of Novem ber to the beginning of April. It separates Courland from Livonia, and, after a course of 180 leagues, falls into the gulf of Livonia before Riga. The Narrows, which is the only outlet of Lakes Peipus and Plaskoff, falls into the Gulf of Finland at Narva, but its navi gation is obstructed half a-league above that town by a fall. The Neva, which issues from Lake Ladoga, empties itself by several branches at Petersburgh, . above which it is from 150 to 200 fathoms broad. It is shallow, and is frozen from the end of October to the end of April. The principal rivers in Finland are the Wuoxen, which falls into Lake Ladoga; the Kymene, into the Gulf of Finland ; and the Kumo, Uleo, Kemi, and Torneo, which fall into the Gulf of Bothnia, at the towns of their respective names. In Courland, Russia has only two ports of any commercial consequence, Liebau and Windau.1 Fromythe former, on a river of the same name, in the year 1800, 111 vessels cleared out, and 113 entered it; and the value of its export as 1,065,700 rubles, and of its imports 620,000. Riga and Pernau are the principal ports in Livonia. Riga is one of the most commercial cities of the Baltic, and the second of Russia in this respect. Its port can only receive small vessels, large ones being obliged to lie in the roads. The exports consist of corn, hemp, flax, ship timber, pitch, potash, hides, tallow, iron, &c. The imports are woollen and cotton goods, hardware, wines, oils, and spirits, and colonial produce.