in the foreign trade of this country, so that, while the intercourse with other countries had very materially increased, the loss of life had been only a fraction more than it was in the three years previously to 1818.
First official return of wrecks, 1856. But as we have no accurate and continuous official record, even of the wrecks happening on our own coasts, till 1856, when the Board of Trade for the first time published its return, and, as there is no official record of the wrecks of British ships in other parts of the world until 1865, little reliance, beyond an approximate comparison, can be placed on the full extent of the casualties at sea till that period. In some measure they were guess work, and, as numerous vessels were no doubt lost of which no record of any kind had been kept until about the year 1836, the probabilities are that the loss of life was greater than the estimates of it made out by the Committees of 1836 or even of 1843.
Loss of life and ships, 1862 We have, however, a return[1] for the three years previously to 1863 much more complete and accurate than any earlier ones, on which reliance may be placed, showing that, on an average in each of these years, 1004 ships, of 251,000 tons, belonging to the British Empire, and 1316 lives were lost. The average number of ships on the register in these years belonging to the whole Empire was 38,932, of 5,882,565 tons, and the British ships entered and cleared in the foreign trade of the United Kingdom were 56,997, of 15,094,105 tons.
- ↑ See Appendix to 'Final Report of Unseaworthy Ships Commission,' p. 600, and Summaries, p. 781, where this and other similar returns will be found.
