the London arrived in April, 1774. The master of the ship assured the Vigilance Committee that he had no tea in the cargo; nevertheless, they went on board and demanded that all tea should be delivered to them. The captain repeated his previous denial, but was told in reply that they knew there was tea on board. At length, he admitted he had a little, but asserted that it was simply a private venture of his own. Taking the master and the owner with them, the committee withdrew and held a consultation; the crowd of people meanwhile anxiously waiting for the result. It was soon learned that they had declared the tea forfeited; and then the throng rushed on board the vessel, broke open the hatches, hoisted eighteen chests of tea to the deck, knocked in the lids, and emptied the contents into the harbor amid the shouts of the multitude.

New-York and Massachusetts were fast friends during the contest for independence. When the news of the battle of Lexington reached New-York, the people forthwith responded to Massachusetts by the patriotic resolve "to stand or fall by the liberties of the continent."

Speaking for the merchants of New-York, I might further remind you that it was a New-York merchant, ALEXANDER MCDOUGALL, who, abandoning his counting-house, took command of a regiment, and, in the disastrous battle of Long Island, distinguished himself by his valor in the field and masterly retreat across the East River, in the face of a victorious enemy of overwhelming numbers. After having risen to the rank of Major-General, and served throughout the war, winning universal confidence and respect, he returned to his commercial pursuits, became a leading member of the Chamber of Commerce, and the first president of the Bank of New-York.

Sharing with him in patriotic duty and devotion were such merchants as ELBRIDGE GERRY, of Massachusetts; WILLIAM WHIPPLE, of New-Hampshire; GEORGE CLYMER, of Pennsylvania; JOSEPH HEWS, of North Carolina; BURTON GUINNETT, of Georgia; PHILIP LIVINGSTON and FRANCIS LEWIS, of New-York, and a host of others all over the land.

It is pleasant to remember that the heart of the English people was with us; and it was natural that the assertion by the colonists of the home-born rights of every Englishman should find sympathy in the mother country; and so it was that the utterances of HANCOCK, ADAMS, and Oris were eloquently echoed by such statesmen as CHATHAM, BURKE and BARRÉ.

CHATHAM "rejoiced that America had resisted;" BURKE saw the glory of England in the establishment of the British colonies" on principles of liberty;" and BARRE went to a daring length in the declaration of his sympathies with the founders of this Republic.

Pardon me, Mr. President, for detaining this distinguished audience so long. With such a record before me, bearing directly on the early commerce and general business of the country-a subject which, in advance, your committee kindly assigned me to speak upon to-day, how could I say less?

I would not over-estimate the services of the merchants; but posterity will never forget their zeal and fidelity, their deeds and trials

in the perilous struggle for personal liberty and national independence.

A century has passed since that chill April day when these plains were stained with the first blood of a conflict which ultimately gave us the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. What a memorable epoch in the world's history have been these one hundred years! How grand, beneficent, and cheering the progress of affairs in our own country! I sha!ĺ not open this most instructive volume in the annals of mankind.

Let us indulge the fervent rope that when our children's children shall assemble to celebrate the second centennial of the auspicious event which has drawn us hither, they will find this republic occupying a foremost position among the nations of the earth, and containing within its borders myriads of people, united, prosperous, virtuous and free. Then, indeed, shall the patriotic blood which flowed at Lexington and Concord not have been shed in vain.

RESOLUTIONS.

Mr. A. A. Low alluded, in appropriate terms, to the service rendered to this community by Mr. ELLIOTT F. SHEPARD, in securing the establishment of the Court of Arbitration for the Port of NewYork, and offered the following resolutions, which were unanimously adopted as the sense of the Chamber:

Resolved, That the Chamber of Commerce gratefully recognises the efficient services of ELLIOTT F. SHEPARD, Esq., in advocating, before the recent Legislature, the amendment to the act establishing the Court of Arbitration, which services were peculiarly valuable, forasmuch as Mr. SHEPARD had drafted the act comprising originally the same important element now at length conceded by the Legislature. It is well known that his advocacy of the amendment had the more influence, because of his early connection with and constant devotion to the movement to establish, in this great emporium of commerce, a court of justice, to which merchants and others may freely resort, unobstructed by unnecessary forms and hurtful delays. The Chamber of Commerce, therefore, takes the first opportunity to render to him its appreciative thanks for the generous aid and eminent influence by which he has contributed so much to the successful establishment, on a proper basis, of the Court of Arbitration.

Resolved, That the foregoing resolution be suitably engrossed and signed by the officers of the Chamber, and transmitted to Mr. SHEPARD.

Mr. GEORGE W. BLUNT offered the following preamble and reso. lution:

Whereas, In the judgment of this Chamber, the towing of the

canal boats and barges down the North River and around the Battery is not only unnecessary, but adds much to the hazard of navigation; therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Dock Commission be requested to construct a breakwater and piers on the North River, between Gansevoortstreet and Twelfth-street, on property belonging to the city, for the sole use of canal boats and barges.

Mr. BLUNT submitted, for the information of the Chamber, a memorial addressed to the Legislature, and signed by several of the principal grain dealers of the city, favoring the project. He also exhibited a diagram of the locality for the proposed breakwater.

After some discussion, the preamble and resolution were, on motion of Mr. FRANCIS B. THURBER, referred to the Committee on the Harbor and Shipping for report. The Committee were instructed to hold open meetings, for the purpose of giving to parties opposed to the measure an opportunity to be heard.

Mr. HENRY F. SPAULDING offered the following resolutions, which were unanimously adopted:

Resolved, That the thanks of this Chamber are due and are hereby tendered to Hon. WILLIAM B. WOODIN, WILLIAM H. RoBERTSON, JAMES W. BOOTH, JOHN A. KING and JESSE C. DAyton, of the Senate, and to Hon. L. BRADFORD PRINCE, JAMES W. HusTED, LEWIS C. WAEHNER and JOHN R. KENNADAY, of the Assembly, for their interest in, and maintenance of the act of the late Legislature establishing the Court of Arbitration on a permanent basis.

Resolved, That the Court of Arbitration has demonstrated its great usefulness in this commercial community, and his Excellency Governor TILDEN is respectfully asked to give the amended Arbitration Act his approval.

Resolved, That in the opinion of this Chamber, the above resolutions embody the unanimous sentiment of the mercantile and commercial classes of this metropolis.

On motion of Mr. Low, the Special Committee on a New Building for the Chamber were authorized to add to their number.

Mr. FRANCIS B. THURBER offered the following preamble and resolutions, which were adopted, and referred to the Committee on Internal Trade and Improvements for consideration and report:

Whereas, The statistics of our foreign commerce, which are col

lected through the machinery of the National Government, have been found of great value to merchants and others interested; and

Whereas, Our domestic commerce has, through the agency of steam and electricity, largely extended its borders and increased in amount during the third quarter of the preesnt century, and at this time is estimated to exceed in amount that of our foreign commerce in the ratio of at least ten to one; and

Whereas, The progress made in this direction has heretofore been marked only at each decade by our national census, and is then presented to the public in such form that its usefulness for business purposes is greatly curtailed; therefore,

Resolved, That this Chamber deems it of vital importance to the material interest of the nation, that a more complete and frequent collection and dissemination of the statistics of our domestic commerce should be made, and upon a scale commensurate with the importance of the interests involved.

Resolved, That the value of such statistics for commercial purposes depends largely upon their freshness, and also upon their being presented so concisely that they may be comprehended at a glance, and that, therefore, the agency of electricity should be employed in their collection and dissemination in a manner similar to that inaugurated by the Signal Service Bureau in their reports.

Resolved, That these resolutions be referred to the Committee on Internal Trade and Improvements, with instructions to examine and report upon the subject, and also that our delegates to the National Board of Trade be requested to consider the same, and to take such measures as may be practicable to secure for them the support of that body; and further, that copies be sent to the other commercial bodies of this city, with a request for their consideration.

Mr. THURBER laid before the Chamber a copy of a pamphlet containing the proceedings of a public meeting held in the Tobacco Exchange, Richmond, Va., on the 4th May last, to consider the financial condition of the country, and on his motion it was referred for consideration to the Committee on Finance and Currency:

PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE BY-LAWS.

Mr. ELLIOTT F. SHEPARD proposed the following amendments to the By-Laws of the Chamber, and on his motion they were referred to the Executive Committee for consideration:

First. Strike out of Article VII. the words, “A Committee of Arbitration and Appeal," and also the words, "except the Committee on Arbitration and Appeal.”

Second. Strike out in Article VIII. the Section entitled "Of the Committees of Arbitration and Appeal," [as the same becomes obsolete, under the provisions of the Act establishing the "Court of Arbitration of the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New-York."]

Third. Insert as Article XIV., "Members of the Chamber are recommended to avail themselves of the facilities furnished by the Court of Arbitration of this Chamber, for the settlement of disputes arising on commercial and mercantile questions in this port. The jurisdiction of this court extends to all such questions, whether arising between members or non-members.

Fourth. Change Article XIV. to XV.

Fifth. Add, at the end of Article III., "The President, Chairman, or other Chief Executive officer of the following associations or corporations, shall be ex-officio a member of this Chamber, and the Executive Committee shall have authority to add to the list similar officers of other commercial or mercantile representative associations or corporations whenever they may deem it expedient, viz.:

President of the Produce Exchange.

President of the Importers' and Grocers' Board of Trade.
President of the Cotton Exchange.

President of the American Exchange.
President of the Merchants' Exchange.
President of the Stock Exchange.

On motion of Mr. JACKSON S. SCHULTZ, Mr. SHEPARD was requested to prepare an address to the merchants and business men of this city, explaining the objects of the Court of Arbitration, and the method by which disputed questions may be brought before the court for adjudication.

The President gave notice, that the regular meetings of the Chamber for the months of July, August and September would be suspended, according to custom.

COMMUNICATIONS.

of

A communication was read from the Secretary of the National Board of Trade, dated Chicago, May 12, 1875, giving notice that the Seventh Annual Meeting of the Board would be held at Philadelphia on Tuesday, June 15th, at 12 M., and enclosing a copy the official programme of subjects proposed for consideration. Both documents were referred to the delegation appointed by the Chamber to attend the meetings of the National Board.