except at remunerating prices, a decision which caused
some of the Eastern buyers to retire from the market in disgust.
Almost the entire press of Michigan supported the views of the farmers
on this occasion, and declared that they could see no reason why the
war in Italy should affect the prices of wool in America, especially
as all the domestic clip, and a very large quantity of foreign wool
would be manufactured in this country. Michigan produces excellent
wool. There are numerous flocks of French, Spanish, and Saxon Merinos
in this State, which have been selected or bred with the greatest
care, and the wool produced by them cannot be surpassed in any of the
Western States. There are also flocks of coarse-wooled sheep which
produce heavy fleeces, and when fattened for the butcher make
excellent mutton. In 1840 the wool clip of this State was about
150,000 lbs., in 1850 something over 2,000,000 lbs., and 1859 it
amounted to nearly 4,000,000 lbs. It will be seen by these figures
that it has nearly doubled during the last nine years. There are but
few woolen manufactories in Michigan, and the most of the wool clip of
this State is purchased by Eastern manufacturers. A considerable
portion of it goes to Boston and other parts of Massachusetts. We want
a large woolen factory in Detroit, where everything that is necessary
for its operation can be easily procured. We want more manufactories
of every kind in Michigan.

Our city is largely interested in the shipping business, and its trade
gives employment to a larger number of side-wheel steamboat lines than
any other three cities on the entire chain of lakes. During the last
season, the following regular lines of steamers were in successful
operation:

Detroit and Cleveland.
Detroit and Toledo.
Detroit and Sandusky.
Detroit and Saginaw.
Detroit and New Baltimore.
Detroit and Maiden.
Detroit, G. Bay and Buffalo.
Detroit and Lake Superior.
Detroit and Port Huron.
Detroit and Chatham.
Detroit and Wallaceburg.
Detroit and Gibraltar.

Two of the above routes sustain opposition lines, and to the list
might be added the line of lake steamers to Buffalo, and the line to
Goderich, which though not run last year, will probably be in
successful operation the coming season, making in all sixteen lines.
It is significant that the late financial revulsion, which fell with
such crushing weight upon the shipping interest all over the country
did not occa