Mexico and Its Religion: With Incidents of Travel in That Country During Parts of the Years 1851-52-53-54, and Historical Notices of Events Connected With Places VisitedWilson, Robert Anderson
Religion
Mexico and Its Religion: With Incidents of Travel in That Country During Parts of the Years 1851-52-53-54, and Historical Notices of Events Connected With Places Visited
Wilson, Robert Anderson
Mexico -- Description and travel; Mexico -- Religion
This town, although it has been the terror of seafaring men for the
last three hundred years, has, for a like period of time, enjoyed an
enviable commerce. Nearly three-fourths of all the silver that has been
shipped to Europe from America during that long period has been sent
from this port, besides the other productions of the country, such as
cochineal, vanilla, wood of Tobasco, sarsaparilla, and jalap. To all
this we must add that all the trade of Spain with Japan, China, and the
Philipine Islands, was carried across Mexico from Acapulco, on the
Pacific, to be shipped from Vera Cruz to Spain. During the long period
we have named, this was the only port on the Atlantic side where
foreign commerce was allowed; and this was restricted to Spain alone,
and to a single fleet of merchant ships that came and went annually,
until about fifty years before the Mexican independence, when free
commerce was allowed with all the Spanish world. From a history of the
commerce of Vera Cruz, just published at Mexico, I find that its annual
average did not vary greatly from $12,000,000 importations against
$18,000,000 exportations. The extra $6,000,000 being about the annual
average of the royal revenue derived from New Spain, as this country
was then called. Silver constituted the bulk of this $18,000,000, both
in weight and in value. During the last fifty years of Spanish
dominion, this commerce, extended, as we have said, to all Spanish
possessions, was monopolized by a company of merchants styled the
Consulado of Vera Cruz. Under the management of this company it
averaged as high as $22,000,000. The revolution broke up this monopoly,
and almost annihilated the commerce of this port, but it rapidly
revived after the Spaniards were driven out of the castle, and from
this time it has gone on increasing, until now it amounts to
$26,000,000; the imports and exports being equal, as there is now no
King's revenue. This commerce is now carried on principally with the
United States, since the establishment of a line of steamers to New
Orleans. The most important article of importation is raw cotton, for
the supply of the great manufactories in the interior of Mexico. The
silver goes principally to England, and is drawn again in favor of the
cotton purchaser. There is also a large import trade in agricultural
implements, steam-machinery for the sugar-mills and the silver mines,
besides heavy importation of silks and wines from France and Spain.
With this hasty notice we are compelled to quit a subject which is the
theme of a most interesting volume.
A NORTHER.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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