; wide, flat, naked, sand-wastes stretch on every side as far as the eye can reach. The only inducement that I can imagine to have attracted colonists to this desert, is the advantage of a harbour formed by a small gulf, or arm of the Baltic stretching into the land. The whole Courland coast, from Memel to Cape Domesnaes, consists of a monotonous chain of sandhills, which is only twice broken, once in the north by the river Windau, at whose mouth lies the seaport of that name, and once by the gulf or lake of Libau, into which flow several small streams.
The long narrow opening of thi-s lake has been smrounded by wharfs and quays, and serves as a most excellent and safe harbour for all small ships ; but for large vessels it is not deep enough, and for those of a middling size it can only be kept serviceable by constantly clcaiing out the sand which the west wind drives into it. The lake itself, which is only seven miles long, and two miles broad, is called by the inhabitants of Libau, ' the little sea." In spring, indeed, this little sea is often large enough to flood the whole of the surrounding comitry, and to render access to Libau from the land side very difficult.
The sand -banks that stretch along the whole coast of Courland are more injurious to the Libau shipping than the imperfections of the harbour, which can with labour and some difficulty be got over. As every storm alters their size and position, stopping the old channels and maldng new ones, and often giving the sand -banks the appearance of a double and triple row of barricades, it is very difficult for the pilots to guide the vessels through them, and many of the Libau ships, generally uninsured, lose the reward of long and arduous voyages when already in sight of their destined port.
The harbour of Libau possesses, however, the important advantage of being the most southern Baltic seaport belonging to Russia, and therefore becomes navigable earlier in spring than any other. The lake of Libau very soon throws off its winter covering, whilst the harbours of the Riga and Finland gulfs continue ice-bound for several weeks longer. Libau is usually open three weeks before Riga, and six before St. Petersburg. Of course this is a great advantage ; Libau can earliest profit by the high prices of corn abroad, and many articles that do not admit of delay arrive at Riga and St. Petersburg over Libau. The first Messina ship usually anchors here, laden with the deHcate fruits of Sicily, which are rapidly despatched to the northern capital in sledges over the glassy ice.
The trade of Libau would, however, be much more extensive than it is, if the town were not so very limited as to its privileges of importation. Herrings, salt, wines, and a few similar articles, are alone allowed to be imported here. As therefore most ships coming in search of corn have to arrive in ballast, they naturally prefer a place where they may import the produce of their own coimtry, and the trade of Libau suffers much in consequence. Libau, however, takes the first rank among the smaller Baltic seaports of Russia, and far exceeds Abo, Reval, and Helsingfors, in importance. The arrivals of ships in the course of a year generally amount to from 300 to
At St. Petersburg every tiling may be imported which the Russian tariff does not regard as contraband. At Riga many tilings are excepted, at Libau, Reval, &c., many more, and a fourth class of cities may import only salt and herrings. The importation of the two last-named articles is permitted to all towns because they are among the first necessaries of life in the Baltic provmces. The great commercial privileges of St. Petersburg may account for the fact, that in all the small towns of the Baltic provinces branch establishments are met with of the great fancy shops, &c., of the capital.
350, and the capital yearly employed in trade exceeds 6,000,000 of rubles banco. The trade of Libau compared to that of Riga, is as one to eight ; to that of Reval, Abo, and Helsingfors, as one to one-half; to that of Pernau, Narva, &c., as one to eight. It is of the western part of Courland and the northern part of Lithuania that the trade passes through Libau, which exports the flax and corn of this district, and supplies it with wine, salt, and herrings. Samogitia (the nortliern part of Lithuania), would naturally belong to the territory of Memel, but the political boundaries are so unfavourably fixed for this town as to draw fi-om it a considerable portion of its natural trade. If Libau and Memel should ever belong to the same province^ Libau would certainly decline and Memel rise.