b o o k peace o f 1774» four merchant-ihips, fitted out for this
purpofe, failed from Peteriburgh, and not, as might have been
expedited, from the ports o f the Black Sea: they were laden
with iron, flax, hemp, hides, fail cloth, and coarfe linen, at
the foie expence o f the emprefs, who granted all the profits
arifing from the fale o f their cargoes to the faid houfe.
This plan, however, was not attended with the fuccefs it
feemed to promife; and its failure arofe from the jealoufy
of the Turks. The fhips were, under fpecious pretences,
prevented from pafling the Dardanelles; the cargoes were
fold in the Levant and the Mediterranean; and they returned
to the Baltick without having effedted the main objedt of the
voyage. Before the Ruffians could make any further attempts
to opeo this channel o f commerce, diflenfions took
place between the emprefs and the grand-iignor, concerning
the independency of the Crimea, and the free eledlion of a
khan, which threatened an immediate war, and fufpended all
commercial exertions in regard to the Black Sea, until a new
pacification was concluded between the two rival powers on
the 31ft of March, 17 79 .
Since that period, befide feveral Greek veflels, which
failed from the Sea o f Azof and the Euxine under Ruffian
colours, and were allowed to pafs the Dardanelles, a Ruffian
ihip, manned with feamen in the fervice of government,
and laden with falted beef, taking its departure in 1780
from Kherfon for the port o f Toulon, was allowed to pafs
the Dardanelles. Soon afterwards five others, freighted with
iron, made fuccefsful voyages to the Archipelago : ajfo four
fmall veflels, and a fifth o f 400 tons juft launched, laden
with hemp and tobacco, were expedled to fail from Kherfon
for France, in the month o f November, 1 78 1 .
C O M M E R C E OF T H E B L A C K S EA. 2JX
Such, in 1 7 8 1 , was the infant ftate o f that commerce, which CHAP-
fotne authors have defcribed as capable o f producing an im ., V' ■
mediate revolution in the trade o f Europe* : and in this, or in
a itili more fluctuating ftate, it will probably continue, as long
as the Turks retain the dominion o f their own feas. For
that jealous people will either openly oppofe, or at leaft will
clandeftinély obftruót, the progrefs o f the Ruffians in
thofe parts ; and will never readily give a frée paflage
through the Dardanelles to a powerful rival, though they
confented to it in the humiliating peace o f 1 7 7 4 . Per-
* “ C a th a r in e I I . v a donc ouv rir un e
“ ancienne route d u Commerce le p lu s Uafle
11 isf le plu s riche, qui t e foit f à i t f u r la terre.
U Ses ports, dans la mer d ’A z o w & fu r la
“ mer N o ire, peu vent de venir le cen tre de
** tous les échange s du nord & du midi ; &
4‘ les provinces méridionales de Ton empire
jouiront d ’ un débouché avan tag eu x & fa-
*| cile, dont elles o n t man qué ju fq u ’ ic ip o u r
“ l’écoulement de leurs produ ctions.” E£-
fai fur le Ç om . d e RuiT. p . 109.
“ Concluons q u e , de q ue lqu e maniéré
tc <ïue la Ruflie, e x p lo ite fon commerce de
“ la mer N o ire , foit p a r e lle-tnéme, foit p a r
“ le fecours des é t ran g e r s , fon avan tage le
“ plus folide & le plus réel do it confliler
“ dans un écoulement facile e t rapide de
41 fes produétions méridionales. C e s p ro -
“ duétions font les fu ifs , le c .c ire s , les ch an-
“ vres, le lin , les co rd ag es , les tab ac s, le
44 fer & le cu iv re. L a plus grande p a rt ie ne
“ fera plus le to u r 'd e l ’E u ro p e , pou r p a r-
“ venir en Efpagne , en I ta lie , & dans les
“ ports de la Méditerranée ; e t ' l e petit
‘ nombre des au tre s formera de nouveaux
“ objets de débit p o u r ce s pa ys, q ui n’ont
‘ pas eu ju fq u ’ ici l ’ufage de s’en fou rnir,
* comme le fer & le cu iv re ,” p . 12 7 .
A il thefe v aû projeéis are in a manner
annihiiated b y th e follovvin.g refleétion :
lt ^ u. re^®* ^eB befoins 8c les facu ltés d ’ une
tt nat'9n étant naturellement bornés, le
„ gouvernement RulTe devra m ettre des
limites à fes communications par la mer
Vol. II.
“ N o ire , afin q u ’ elles ne prejud icien t po in t
<c a celles de la B a ltiqu e. C e s d e u x com-
t f merces doivent fe b a lan c e r , fe comb iner
ct fans .fe nu ire, & ils doivent ê tre dirigés
“ de forte q u e la prééminence re lié tou j
o u r s a tta ch é e aû plus an c ien ,” p . a 2 7 ,
128.
M an y pèrfohs aré o f opinion, th a t th e
ob ila c le s to th e r ilin g comme rce o f the B la c k
Sea are b y no means injurious to the in te -
refts o f R u lîîa . F o r h e r commodities and
produétions b e in g artic le s „o f neceffity, not
o f lu x u r y , no fa c ility g iv en to th eir e x p o r tation
co u ld add to th e ir g en e ral cou fum p -
tion ; and th e inc reafe o f ex p o r ta tion from
th e Black Sea w ou ld have diminiihed th a t
from S t. P eteribu rgh, and the oth e r ports
o f the B a lt ic k , and n ea rly in th e fame p ro p
o r t io n . B y the fa c ility and cheapnefs o f
lan d -ca r r iag e , and th e improvements o f the
inland n aviga tion , th e produétions o f the
re mo te ll provinces are readily fen t to th e
po rts o f the B a ltick w ithout ra ilin g th eir
price too h igh . A n d as th e goods w h ich
Ruffia produces are e ith e r pecu lia r to this
emp ire, o r fu ch as o th e r nations mult pu r-
ch afe, th e y can n o t pa fs through too many
hands before th e y are e xpo rted : to dimi-
niih th erefo re, b y fa c ilita t in g th e ir e x p o r ta
tion , th e price o f fu ch goods w h ich ihe
already fells ch eape r than o th er nations,
wou ld be to in cu r a manifeft lofs, and to
g r a t ify the foreign trader at h e r own expen
ce.
O 0 haps