as eager to maintain a protectionist policy in shipping as any of their rivals in the same business on this side the Atlantic.
Great influence of the shipowners. Though the shipowners of the Northern States exercised for a time considerable influence over the Legislature, a committee of the House of Representatives passed a resolution which went no further than to recommend to the House, "That so much of the several Acts imposing duties on the tonnage of ships and vessels, and on goods, wares, and merchandise imported into the United States, as imposes a discriminating duty of tonnage between foreign vessels and vessels of the United States, and between goods imported into the United States in foreign vessels and vessels of the United States, ought to be repealed, so far as the same respects the produce or manufactures of the nation to which such foreign ships or vessels shall belong, such repeal to take effect in favour of any foreign nation whenever the President shall be satisfied that the discriminating or countervailing duties of such foreign nation, so far as they operate to the disadvantage of the United States, have been abolished."
This important resolution, opening the door to reciprocal measures, was declared to be more consistent with the true interest, as well as with the peaceful disposition, of the United States than any retrograde movement. Although no legislative action followed this enunciation of the principles of reciprocity, it formed at a future period the basis of both negotiation and legislation with foreign powers. The time, however, had not then arrived
