Page:History of merchant shipping and ancient commerce (Volume 3).djvu/32

 had to contend at their port of export against the predominant interests of a country whose settlers for a long time greatly outnumbered the native Americans resident in New Orleans. Indeed, so late as 1820, a long memorial was presented to Congress from twenty-four captains of American vessels then lying at New Orleans, stating that they "cannot earn a competent livelihood, owing to the fatal discriminating duties established in France in favour of its own vessels in the exclusive importation there of the staples of the United States." The memorialists further alleged that on some articles the duty was "ten times" in favour of French vessels, and that the "aggregate importation in French vessels at the port of New Orleans exceeded very much in quantity the amount imported by American vessels;" being in the proportion of "nearly four to one." In confirmation of these statements the memorialists furnished a return from the Customs which demonstrated that the carrying trade between New Orleans and France was being then rapidly transferred from American to French vessels; and they stated that the only reason why the French did not absorb the whole trade, was that they had not a sufficient number of vessels to undertake it. The petitioners further insisted that nothing but "a positive tonnage duty," graduated according to the amount of the differential duties levied in France on the chief American staples, would avail to keep their trade in their own hands.