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position of our country gave an opportunity for a profitable transit
trade, our territory being used for storing purposes. During the
European wars caused by the French Revolution, our country also
derived great advantages from its neutral position, until we
ourselves, in the year 1807, were drawn into the war. During this
period several reforms were introduced in our commercial
legislation, greatly benefiting the economic condition of the country, e.g.
the repeal of the Danish grain monopoly on Norway, the release
of the commerce on Finmarken (1787), the decree of 1793 relating
to credit storage and a less burdensome customs tarif (1797).
At the beginning of the 19th century, however, the bad condition
of the state finances necessitated some new imposts which
nevertheless were not so heavy as to prevent a further improvement
in our commerce, the timber-export to England being especially
large. Our whole timber-export during the years from 1804
to 1806, some especially brisk trading years, amounted on an
average to 35,000,000 cubic feet, while the grain import during
the years 1799 to 1808 amounted on an average to 2.6 million
bushels.
The last part of the 18th century was a period of growth
in Norwegian shipping, sufficient to mark it as an epoch in its
development. In 1792 the Norwegian mercantile marine had grown
up to 860 vessels with a total of about 110,000 tons’ burden.
In 1806 our mercantile marine even counted 1,650 vessels with
an aggregate burden of about 180,000 tons, some of which,
although not very many, properly belonged to foreign countries.
As a consequence of the rapid growth of the Norwegian
mercantile marine, trade with our country, towards the end of the
18th century, was carried on in Norwegian vessels to a much
greater extent than it had previously been. Whereas even as late
as about 1770, most of the timber exported from the chief port
of export, Drammen, was shipped in Dutch vessels, during the last
few years of the 18th, and the first few years of the 19th
century, about one half or more of our timber-export was carried on
in Norwegian vessels. A large part of the fish-export about the
vear 1800 was also carried on in Norwegian vessels.
The flag of the Dano-Norwegian monarchy, the old Danish
colours, was well known in most European countries, and might
be seen in Asia, America and Africa. During the years 1800 to
1803, the European ports outside the monarchy were visited
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