CALIFORNIA COMMERCIAL RESOURCES FOR THE YEAR 1866.*

The past year has been a marked one in the bistory of California. While great wealth has been developed from natural and commercial causes, a severe revulsion in the financial circles of Europe and the East, put a strain upon our resources which very few mercantile communities could have success fully met, but which had no other effect upon San Francisco than to demonstrate her ability, under any and all circumstances, to meet, without effort, whatever demands are made upon her. In the past year, for the first time in her history, she became a creditor to the East, by lending gold, to perhaps too great an extent, at the high rates which the vicious currency of that section made current. The only inconvenience which the merchants and people here suffered was momentary, through the disposition to lend too much, and money for a short time was very scarce. The leading bankers and money reservoirs promptly applied the proper remedy, and the channels of circulation once more filled with the necessary circulating medium. During the year the banking capital of the city has been increased by the addition of $3,000,000 to the Bank of California, making it $5,000,000 of local capital, which, added to that of the other local institutions, has had the effect of reducing the rate of money to the regular level of one per cent. per month. This figure, at a time when the rate of money in London and at the East rose nearly to the same point f r specie funds, had the effect of curtailing the employment of foreign capital here, and some British capital has been withdrawn. The capital of the State has accumulated considerably. First, through the abundance of the crops, which for the present year give a surplus of wheat barley and oats of $7,000,000 more than in 1864. The mines have been more prolific, and those of Nevada, instead of drawing assessments, have given handsome dividends. Manufacturers have prospered, and the popu lation of the State has increased 3,683, against a loss of 1,244 persons in the previous year. The prosperity of the people has manifested itself in the large increase in the savings deposits, which have reached about $10,000.000-an average of $711 each depositor, against $250 average in New York. The insurance companies have done a good business, and paid handsome dividends. The manufactories have prospered in a gratifying manner. The woolen factories alone have taken this year 3,189,500 lbs. of wool, against 2,350,000 lbs. in the year before; and these mills are under so great pressure of business that constant enlargement is necessary. A small cotton factory shows some promise of success, and a variety of establishments for the manufacture of textile fabrics, including silk, are in progress. The effect of this prosperity of agriculture and manufacturing is that the demand for Eastern and imported goods shrinks up. The Atlantic States particularly are losing their markets here. Provisions, butter, fish, cordage, etc., are now better supplied here, and manufacturers, under

*The following review of the trade of California for 1866 was prepared by Thos. P. Kettell, Esq., for twenty years one of the editors of the MERCHANTS' MAGAZINE, and now financial editor of the Alta Californian.-Ed. HUNT'S MERCHANTS' Magazine,

the present state of currency and laws at the East, come better from abroad even at the enormous gold tax of 56 per cent. average charged upon dutiable goods. The aggregate amount of goods coming here is, however, less each year. The amounts imported and the payments made, may be approximated as follows:

This is an approximation to the state of the trade. The amount of treasure exported is that on mercantile account. There has been shipped in addition $12,000,000 by the United States Treasury. In this amount is included the $7,189,763 paid in for duties, as in the table, and which constitutes a part of the cost of the imported goods. The remainder of the government shipment was on hand from the amounts paid in for duties last year. The merchandise exports embrace $5,221,248 Eastern and foreign re-exported, and the remainder, $11,945,648, is the value of domestic produce. The result is an apparent adverse balance of $5,392,955, which we have paid away without equivalents; a portion of this is for profits on goods sold here, for money carried away by passengers, and money drawn by absentees, for rents, dividends, etc. There has been some offset to those items by capital brought into the State by passengers, and sent here for mining investments. The expenditures on this coast by the Federal Governinent have declined last year, while the internal revenue taxes have increased. The aggregate disbursements in 1864 was $9,670,656 ; in 1865 $15,930,451, and this year $10,689,130. These items have helped the adverse balance. The aggegate results are, however, highly favorable to the State, which was never in a better position to inaugurate its connection with China by steam than it was at the close of the year, when that great event took place, whereby passengers leaving New York December 11th were landed here in twenty days, to take their departure in the Colorado January 1st, 1867.

The receipts of treasure, it will be observed, show a decline during the past year of, in the aggregate, $2,607,893. Of this amount the decline in bullion from the northern and southern mines was $2,603,799. The receipts from the State of Nevada remain about the same; but the State of the roads kept back some bullion. To the aggregate amount of bullion reported, observation has made it necessary to add twenty per cent., in order to cover the sums in private hands and approximate the true sum, which will thus reach $60,000,000.

The receipts of coin from the interior and the export thither have been

as follows, quarterly:

Sums remitted. Excess remit'd

This large amount sent inward increased as the year progressed, and the sale of crops threw more money into the hands of the farmers.

The exports of treasure in the table have exceeded those of last year, in the aggregate, $10,662,031 41. This excess is due altogether to the large shipments made by the Treasury, and which are suppressed from the manifes s of the steamers, on the responsibility of the Assis ant Treasurer. The shipment on Treasury account last year was about $1,500,000, and his year nearly $12,000.000. Deducting these amounts, the movement on mercantile account has been nearly the same. The movement to England direct has been less; and also to China there has been a falling offwhile the state of affairs in New York, by which gold was made artificially scarce, commanding high rates of interes, drew thither more than usual. The kinds of treasure which have been shipped during the six months ending Dec. 31st have been as follows:

It will thus be seen that the exports of gold bars reached about onehalf the aggregate export; that silver bars make rather more than onethird, one-quarter of which goes to China and the remainder to London, where the price of silver in the last year has varied from 60 to 62d. The price of sterling bills in New York, where the proceeds of the silver are made available, has also varied largely. During the panics of the summer the rates were such as to check silver shipments, but these have latterly been resumed. In addition to the above, the steamer Colorado carried: Gold bars, $63,698; $55,276 gold coin, 100,815 Mexican dollars, and other lots. Total, $581,287. But as she sailed on the first, her report belongs to the year 1867.

The aggregate exports of merchandise from this port have reached this year the large sum of $17,166,896. A table of the leading items for many years, in another column, will be found to be of great interest. As compared with former years, this aggregate has been composed as follows:

These figures show results that are in the highest degree satisfactory, since there has been a regular development of the trade in domestic products-the amount reaching in 1866 150 per cent. more than in 1860. Few countries can show such rapid progress with such small increase in the number of the producers. It will be observed that the export of foreign and Eastern has been nearly stationary in the last four years. This has been the effect of the war, bringing with it paper money at the East and enormous duties upon imported goods. The taxes, delays, oppressions, expenses, and vexatious obstacles thrown in the way of importers have prevented the growth of the carrying trade. The Mexican and other channels for the legitimate commerce of this coast have been choked by the increasing expenses and disabilities imposed upon this port. The high taxes and paper money at the East have made the goods there less able to contend with imported goods here for general consumption, notwithstanding the high duties. Both these have made this port less eligible as a port of supply. It has also been the case that many California productions have taken the place of imported goods for outward manifests, and have thus swollen the figures under the head of domestic exports.

The exports of domestic produce in the past year have in the aggregate shown very satisfactory results, being an increase of $3,229,834 over those of the previous year. This is due mainly to the increase in breadstuffs and grains, which have been comparatively as follows:

If we reduce the flour to wheat, the quantity exported has been 3,240,654 sacks, against 744,255 sacks in the previous year. The average price for the year has been, it appears, $1 80 per sack against $2 for the previous year, which began with large importations at famine prices. The year closes with, in round numbers, 14 million sacks on hand at the ports, and as much more in the interior, against about 600,000 sacks the same time last year. The year began with an active demand for breadstuffs and grain for Australia, where the crops were short. That country has taken 623,036 sacks wheat and 118.071 bbls. flour; togetl er, 977,249 sacks wheat, or about 30 per cent. of the whole export. That demand gradually died out as the year advanced, and it became certain that the Australian crops would be good. China has taken about 520,000 sacks in wheat and flour; but latterly the demand has declined. In June and July it began to be apparent that prices in England and the Eastern States would be high, and they have reached such rates as were seldom attained before. In England, the advance was 20s. per quarter, touching 71s., equal to $4 per sack for fine California. The same price was reached in New York. Under these circumstances all the tonnage that could be commanded was taken up to transport wheat in that direction. To Great Britain, 1,033,735 sacks and 23.279 barrels flour, equal to 1,103,572 sacks wheat, have been sent; to the East, 364,098 sacks wheat and 3,520 barrels flour; together,

374.658 sacks wheat. The aggregate tonnage employed to transport the whole of the grain has been 102,961 tons register, ranging, to Australia, £2@£2 10s.; to Liverpool, from £2 in the spring to £3 10s., which was the rate recently for the Kingfisher to London. The rate to New York has been $18@19, currency, per 2,000 lbs. Australia has been by far the largest customer for barley and oats, having taken four-fifths of the quantity shipped. The East has taken some barley. While the grain trade has been thus advanced there has been a decline in the export of hides, wool, copper ore and quicksilver. These four articles diminish the export figures by $2,019,966.

In tallow there has been an increased movement to Peru and Great Britain.

There has also been a gratifying increase in the exports of California wines, the amount having doubled in the year. The progress has been as follows:

Those figures indicate the progressive trade which results from the grow. ing appreciation of these wines at the East, and also in the Western States, whence increasing orders are received by the leading houses. The Vinicultural Society's champagne asserts its own value. That this is to be a very important branch of California industry is a foregone conclusion. The exports of provisions have taken very large proportions, reaching $236,373 against $21,596 in 1863. Lumber has not done so well this year. The business had been overdone to an extent which involved the trade in difficulties through too active competition. This has now been remedied, and the matter is on a fair foundation. The table of lumber receipts, it will be observed, shows the effects of the same causes. There has been a diminution of 38,728,789 feet in the supply. There have been a number of vessels loaded direct from the northern mills abroad, a circumstance which has lessened the quantity passed through San Francisco. The fisheries have greatly improved, and the value of salmon exported is three times that of last year.

The receipts of produce from the interior at this port show the results of the large crops and improved condition of the agricultural interest. The receipts of flour show an increase of 100 per cent. in the quantities received from the interior, and this quantity now exceeds the aggregate capacity of the city mills, and has supplied two thirds the quantity taken for export. The receipts of wheat have been very large. The disposition of wheat and flour may be thus approximated: