took it to sea, they tried it, and to their surprise and delight they found that, with the knowledge it afforded, the remote corners of the earth were brought closer together, in some instances, by many days' sail. The passage hence to the equator alone was shortened ten days. Before the commencement of this undertaking, the average passage to California was 183 days; but with these charts for their guide, navigators have reduced that average, and brought it down to 135 days.
Between England and Australia, the average time going, without these charts, is ascertained to be 124 days, and coming, about the same; making the round voyage one of about 250 days on the average.
These charts, and the system of research to which they have given rise, bid fair to bring that colony and the mother country nearer by many days, reducing in no small measure the average duration of the round voyage.[1]
At the meeting of the British Association of 1853, it was stated by a distinguished member—and the statement was again repeated at its meeting in 1854—that in Bombay, whence he came, it was estimated that this system of research, if extended to the Indian Ocean, and embodied in a set of charts for that sea, such as I have been describing, would produce an annual saving to British commerce, in those waters alone, of one or two millions of dollars;[2] and in all seas, of ten millions.[3]
- ↑ The outward passage, it has since been ascertained, has been reduced to 97 days on the average, and the homeward passage has been made in 63 under canvas alone.
- ↑ See Inaugural Address of the Earl of Harrowby, President of the British Association at its 24th meeting. Liverpool, 1854.
- ↑ . . . " Now let us make a calculation of the annual saving to the commerce of the United States effected by those charts and sailing directions. According to Mr. Maury, the average freight from the United States to Rio Janeiro is 17⋅7 cts. per ton per day; to Australia, 20 cts.; to California, also, about 20 cts. The mean of this is a little over 19 cts. per ton per day; but to be within the mark, we will take it. at 15, and include all the ports of South America, China, and the East Indies. "The sailing directions have shortened the passages to California 30 days, to Australia 20, to Rio Janeiro 10. The mean of this is 20, but we will take it at 15, and also include the above-named ports of South America, China, and the East Indies. "We estimate the tonnage of the United States engaged in trade with these places at 1,000,000 tons per annum. "With these data we see that there has been effected a saving for each one of these tons of 15 cents per day for a period of 15 days, which will give an
