HOME FRIEND; A WEEKLY MISCELLANY OF AMUSEMENT AND INSTRUCTION. No. 16.] PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY, BY THE SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE, [PRICE 1d. IT is a merciful provision of the Almighty, that, in time of dearth, one country is frequently enabled to supply the deficiencies of another, and that one year often supplies a redundance to help out the scarcity that may follow, or has preceded it. When the famine was "sore" in the land of Canaan and in the adjoining countries, Jacob said to his sons, "Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for VOL. L R us from thence; that we may live and not die." In this case the famine had been foretold, and the resources of Egypt had been wisely husbanded by Joseph during the years of plenty which preceded the time of dearth. And even now, seasons of comparative scarcity, though not foretold, are in some measure anticipated and provided for, either by government, as in foreign countries, or, as at home, by a class of persons who, in seeking to promote their own interests, are really serving the interests of the nation at large. 'In Sweden, Prussia, Spain, Denmark, &c., magazines or storehouses of grain are erected in different places, in order to guard against bad seasons. In Spain alone, there are upwards of five thousand of these depositories, called positas. Every occupier of land is obliged to bring a certain quantity of corn, proportionate to the extent of his farm; the following year he takes back the corn he has thus deposited, and replenishes the empty garner with a larger quantity; and thus he continues annually to increase the stock by these contributions called 'cresus,' till a certain measure of grain is deposited; then every one receives back the whole corn which he has furnished, and replaces it by an equal quantity of new corn. Whenever a scarcity happens, these repositories are opened, and the corn is dealt out to the people at a moderate price. In some places seed-corn is distributed to necessitous husbandmen, who are bound to restore as much in lieu of it the next harvest. The institution of such a system as this is no doubt highly necessary in a country only in an imperfect state of civilization; but that which requires the authority of government to accomplish abroad, is in England brought about by less questionable The commercial and enterprising spirit of our countrymen induces them to enter into speculative purchases, which in the end answer very much the same purpose. Our corn merchants purchase largely in years of plenty when prices are low, and store up wheat in expectation of an advance in the price. Thus, without intending to promote any other interest than their own, they really become the benefactors of the public, by providing a relief stock, which is of the greatest importance in a time of scarcity, and also by laying up what might otherwise be wastefully consumed while plenty lasts. Instead, therefore, of joining in the common cry against such persons, we have reason to be thankful that there are men of sufficient capital and experience to make these purchases, and that they are, generally speaking, disposed to sell immediately they can realize a fair profit. And if there are some who hold their corn in the hope of realizing enormous gains, and wait until the market begins to decline before they sell, it is often to their own shame and loss that they do it. The scarcity they create induces importation, and is thus more than compensated by the good eventually done. The immense amount of capital required to store corn largely, and the waste to which it is liable in the granary, also greatly check the desire to withhold corn too long. Whatever may be the precautions employed by merchants and others in laying up for the future, there will be times and seasons when, as at present, we must look to other nations for a large amount of help as it regards our supply of corn. A total failure of crops scarcely ever happens throughout even one kingdom, for the weather which is unfavourable to one description of soil is generally advantageous to another; much less does it happen at the same time throughout the whole earth, in the various parts of which * Dimsdale. seasons and climates so greatly differ. Thus in 1846, when Europe suffered in many parts a great deficiency in her harvests, it was so arranged by the bounty of the Creator that America should receive an overflowing supply. How important then the continuance of peaceful commerce and rapid communication between all nations, that the deficiencies of one country may be supplied by the abundance of another! Hence during seasons of scarcity at home we feel the value of our foreign commerce, and eagerly inquire whence we may most speedily and safely obtain our supplies. At the same time it must be remembered, that our grand supply is as a general rule produced at home; for in no case can a numerous people, like that of the United Kingdom, be wholly or principally dependent on the soil of other lands for support. This might, perhaps, take place without much danger or inconvenience in the case of a small state or colony, but not with such a dense population as ours. For it is an ascertained fact, that " to supply these islands with the single article of wheat would call for the employment of twice the amount of shipping which now annually enters our ports, if indeed it would be possible to procure the grain from other countries in sufficient quantity; and to bring to our shores every article of agricultural produce in the abundance we now enjoy, would probably give constant occupation to the mercantile navy of the whole world." But while our grand dependence will always be on our own resources, and on the advancing skill of our agricultural men, who, by improved systems of tillage and drainage, have of late years wonderfully increased the productiveness of the soil, yet there are times when a concurrence of circumstances will drive us to seek very extensive aid from other countries. The deficient harvest of 1846, and the pressure occasioned by the failure of the potato crop, produced in our own country and among many of the continental nations severe calamities, and great anxiety respecting the future. Through the mercy of God we have the prospect of a favourable harvest generally; but in the interval, we are naturally led to review the chief sources we have been accustomed to look to for our foreign supplies of corn, and to see how many of these remain available to us at the present time. To begin then with Europe, as the quarter from whence we have obtained, until lately, nearly the whole of our foreign supplies of corn. At the head of all the corn-shipping ports, not only of Europe, but of the world, is Dantzic, situated on the left bank of the Vistula, about three miles from the sea (the Baltic). This is the grand emporium for the countries bordering the Vistula, both in its passage through Poland, and through part of Prussia. The soil in the neighbourhood of this river produces luxuriant crops, and is in every respect highly fruitful; but so extensive is the region from which corn is brought, that in seasons when there is a brisk demand, Dantzic is partly supplied from provinces from five to seven hundred miles inland. A large proportion of the corn-trade at this port is in our hands, therefore it is interesting to ascertain all particulars respecting the collection and mode of transit of these valuable stores. The careless and wasteful plan on which grain is conveyed from the corngrowing districts of the Vistula to Dantzic is much to be regretted. From Cracow, where the Vistula first becomes navigable, down to the lower parts of the stream, the corn is chiefly conveyed to Dantzic in open flats. These are made on the banks in seasons of leisure, and are left to be floated when the rains of autumn, or the melted snows of the Carpathian mountains in spring, have raised the river far beyond the ordinary level. These barges are about seventy-five feet long, twenty broad, and two feet and a half deep. They are made of fir, put together in a very rough manner, and fastened with wooden trenails; the corners being dovetailed and secured with slight iron clamps-the only iron used in their construction. A large tree the length of the vessel runs along the bottom, to which the timbers are secured. This tree rises nine or ten inches from the floor, and hurdles are laid down upon it, extending to the sides. These hurdles are covered with matting made of rye-straw, and serve the purpose of drainage, there being a vacant space beneath to receive the water which leaks through the sides and bottom of the ill-constructed vessel. This water as it accumulates is dipped out at the ends and sides of the vessel. The cargo usually consists of from one hundred and eighty to two hundred quarters of wheat, which is simply thrown on the mats piled up to the gunwale, and left uncovered, exposed to all the inclemencies of the weather and the pilferings of the crew, which consists of six or seven men. The barge is carried along at a slow pace by the force of the stream, and is preceded by a small boat with a man in it, who is employed sounding in order to avoid the shifting banks. The men on the barge merely use oars at the head and stern to direct the vessel in passing under bridges, or in avoiding sand-banks. Their progress in this way is very slow, so that several weeks, and even months, may be employed in the voyage. During this time, if the weather be rainy, the natural consequence is that the wheat begins to grow, and the barge speedily assumes the appearance of a floating meadow. The more rapidly this takes place the better, for the shooting of the fibres soon forms a thick mat, and prevents the rain from penetrating more than an inch or two. At the sacrifice of the whole upper surface of the wheat a covering is thus provided for the great bulk of the grain, which on the removal of its green roof, is often found in very tolerable condition. When the cargo is deposited at Dantzic the barges are broken up, and |