SHIPPING. The extension of the British Empire and of its influence is developed largely through the instrumentality of British shipping; and the maintenance of a merchant navy is considered an essential feature of Great Britain's commercial and Imperialistic policy. The rise of British shipping dates from the time of the Mercantilists. ( See COMMERCE above.) The series of Naviga tion Laws in the seventeenth century were in tended to give Britain's vessels a maximum of the carrying trade. Fishing was encouraged in order to train men in a seafaring life, and great pains were taken with marked success by the Government to develop skill in ship-building. The naval victories in the wars with Napoleon gave British vessels almost a complete monopoly in the carrying trade of the world. About that time, however, British shipping began to have a formidable rival in the American mer chant fleet. Favored by superior American forest resources, our fleet developed very rapidly, until its tonnage in 1860 almost equaled that of Great Britain. The American Civil War and the change from wood to iron in the construction of vessels resulted, however, in greatly benefiting the shipping of Great Britain and almost ruin ing that of the United States.
At present the tonnage of Great Britain is over ten times that of the United States, and is larger than the combined tonnage of all the rest of the world. In 1897, 57 per cent, of the ocean carry ing trade of the United States was in British ves sels. Over 40 per cent. of the external trade of China is carried in British ships, and they hold foremost rank also in the trade with Japan. Two-thirds of the vessels passing through the Suez Canal are British. In 1900 there were en gaged in the home and foreign trade, not including vessels employed on rivers and in inland navi gation, 7480 sailing vessels, with 1,989,000 ton nage, and 7455 steam vessels, with 7,405,000 ton nage. The sailing vessels decreased from 11,570
during the decade, but the decrease in tonnage was not so great. The steam vessels increased in number during the same period from 5855, and the tonnage from 5,021,000. The' number of seamen afloat on British ships is estimated at 235,000.
In 1902 two. of the British steamship lines, representing but a small part of the total British shipping, entered a combine controlled by Ameri can capital. They will continue to sail, however, under the British flag. The incident gave rise to significant questions as to whether this was the beginning of a policy that might later in volve a large part of British shipping, and what the attitude of the British Government would be toward this transaction. Shipping has been greatly facilitated by extensive river and harbor improvements—as, for instance, by the broaden ing of the river Clyde to Glasgow, and the con struction of the ship canal to Manchester. London continues to hold supremacy, not only over Brit ish, but over all the ports of the world. It has an advantage in being the best railway distribut ing centre in England. it receives and distrib utes the greater portion of the Continental and Oriental trade. Cardiff, as a result of its grow ing exports of coal, is now next to London in the amount of its annual shipping tonnage. Liv erpool, ranking next, is favored by its position for the trade with America, of which it has the greater part. Other important ports are New castle, North and South Shields, Hull and Grims by, Leith, Glasgow, and Southampton.