If a comparison were made between the relative employment of British and French tonnage in the whole trade of France and the United Kingdom, respectively, direct as well as indirect, it would appear that, in 1857, the total amount of British tonnage in French ports was equal to two-thirds of the French tonnage in its own ports; while, in the same year, the total French tonnage in British ports was, of course, in a very small proportion, indeed, to the amount of British tonnage in British ports, and considerably less than one-half of the amount of British tonnage at French ports. Similar results were shown in the case of Spain. [Sidenote: Coasting trade.] Previously to the opening[182] of the coasting trade of the United Kingdom, British ships were admitted on equal terms with the National ships in the coasting trades of Hanover, Belgium, Oldenburg, Mecklenburg, Holland, Turkey (except foreign steamers for the Bosphorus), Monte Video, Paraguay, New Granada, and China. But, in consequence of that measure, the coasting trades of Norway and Sweden, Denmark, Prussia, Sardinia, and Tuscany were, likewise, opened to British ships on the same footing as national vessels. [Sidenote: Non-reciprocating countries.] The coasting trade, however, of the following countries was still withheld from British ships, and reserved for the national flag, viz., France, Papal States, Two Sicilies, Russia, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Greece, United States of America (as regards goods), Mexico, Peru, Chili, Brazil, La Plata, Venezuela, and Hayti. As in the case of foreign trade, the Queen, in the exercise of the powers vested in her, might, doubtless, with perfect justice, exclude the shipping of these countries from the coasting trade of the United Kingdom; but, in this branch of trade, even more than in that of foreign trade, such a measure would have proved almost wholly valueless to the shipping of the United Kingdom. The tonnage of each foreign State, engaged in the coasting trade of the United Kingdom in the year 1857 was absolutely insignificant, and, for all practical purposes, is still virtually monopolised by British shipping.[183] It will be observed that, both in the foreign and in the coasting trades, the countries which have reciprocated the liberal policy of the United Kingdom are those which have most benefited by the repeal of our restrictions, while the countries which continue to maintain unequal restrictions on British ships, and against which, alone, any measure of retaliation could have been directed, are those which have derived little or no advantage from the opening of British trade. There is one other case noticed in the Board of Trade Report to which it is desirable again to advert, in considering the question of reciprocity, as this case has been made the subject of frequent complaint, viz., the exclusion of British ships from the trade between the Atlantic and Pacific ports of the United States of America.