According to the statement of Lord Sheffield, the customs from the 5th of January 1768, when the board was established, to 1775, when the war be gan, amounted to about 290,0001. or about one million three hundred thousand dollars, in a little more than seven years, out of which the expense of collection was to be deducted.
It is difficult, as Mr. Pitkin justly observes, to ascertain the value of the trade of the colonies pre vious to the year 1776. As a very extensive com merce was carried on without regard to British regulations, the custom house hooks do not furnish a full account. They must, however, be referred to, as the best source of information. Table No. 54 gives the official value in sterling money of the ex ports and imports from each of the colonies, now states, for the year 1769. From this it appears that the exports'amounted to X2,852,411, or about thirteen millions of dollars, and the imports to X2,623,412,or about twelve millions of dollars. Of the exports, more than one half were to Great Britain, a little less than one fifth to the south of Europe, something more than a fourth to the West Indies, and a small amount to Africa. Of the imports, nearly two thirds were from Great Britain, and more than one fourth from the West Indies. The imports from Africa amounted to upwards of Those from the north of Europe to little more than 5340,000. This was after the restrictive acts were passed by the British parliament. In previous years, the propor tion of tratle with different countries must have been different.
The tables of Lord Sheffield, in his tions on American Commerce," taken undoubtedly from the custom-house books, show the value of the trade between Great Britain and that part of America now the United States, from 1700 to 1780, to have been as follows: This is the British official valuation, which, for most articles, is much below the market valuation.
Table No. 55 contains an account of the princi pal articles exported from the North American co lonies, including the islands of Newfoundland, Ba hama, and Bermuda, with their official value and places of destination for the year 1770. "As little," says Mr. Pitkin, " was exported from the other pro vinces and the islands, except fish from Newfound land, the value of the exports from the colonies, now the United States, in that year, must have been at least three millions sterlIng, or about thirteen and a half millions of dollars."
It is not easy to ascertain the amount of tonnage employed in .the trade of the colonies, and particu larly the amount owned by the colonists themselves.
The author of a work published in London, in 1731, entitled " The Importance of the British Plantations in America," estimates the amount of tonnage employed in bringing tobacco from Virgi nia and Maryland to England at 24,000 tons. "The trade of these two provinces to all other parts than Great Britain is," he adds, "inconsiderable, not employing above one thousand tons of shipping to the sugar islands and in all other trades, on their own proper account. Yet there is a great number of vessels that trade to both provinces, of and from our other continental colonies." " The Pennsylvanians build about two thousand tons of shipping yearly for sale, over and above what they employ in their own trade, which may be about six thousand tons more." " New England employs about 40,000 tons of shipping in its foreign and coasting trade, and above six hundred sail of ships, sloops, C.c., about one half of which shipping trades to Europe. Their fisheries have been reckoned annually to produce 230,000 quintals of dried fish. By this fishery, and their other commerce, they are said to employ at least six thousand seamen. There is, moreover, their whale fishery, employing about one thousand three hundred tons of shipping." This account is very imperfect. When the author speaks of New England, he has special reference to Massachusetts ; and we have no account of the shipping employed in the trades of New York, New Jersey, and the Carolinas.
The amount of tonnage entered from January 5, 1770, to January 5, 1771, was 331,644, and the amount cleared 351,686 tons. This includes the en try of the same vessel two or three times, or as of ten as the voyages were repeated in the course of the year. " Although," says Mr. Pitkin, " the ton nage, as registered, is generally less than the real amount, yet the tonnage, as entered and cleared, is probably much above its real amount." In 1769, the vessels built in the colonies, which afterwards formed the United States, amounted to 20,000 tons ; in 1770, to 20,610 tons ; and in 1771, to 24,068 tons. In 1772, the number of vessels built was 182, the aggregate tonnage of which amounted to 26,544 tons.