The Express.
London, England, 1850-09-26 00:00:00

THE WEST INDIA MAIL PACKETS.

The next West India packet will be due at South-
ampton on the 4th proximo. As this packet will he the first
homeward one that will perform the new route, and as the
time for the arrival home of some of the mails brought by
the West India stamen will now for the first time be
altered, some interest and curiosity are felt about the 4th
proximo stammer. According to the now packet aheme she
will coats from Viagra, calling at Carth a aaa and St.
Thomas. She shield Meg home a Mexican mail, but no
mail from liavannah, Jaciael, or the Bahamas. The fol-
lowing should be the dates of the principal mails she ought
to bring home, via., Chasms, Sept. 11; Vera Crud, 8 ; Ja-
maica, 13; Demerara and Trinidad, 12. The hat date from
Van Crux was the 15th August, and from Charm the 28th
August. Mexican news will no longer reach Liverpool by
way of New Orleans and New York through the medium of
the West India packet&
The West India Company's steamers commenced running
1.1843. Chapel at that time was en unimportant place,
and the company's ships used to touch there by a circuitous
route in thirty-four days after they left Southampton. It is
now the principal foreign port of the company. All their
main line steamers run donee in a direct line to it in twenty
four days, and next year they are to ran to it in twenty
days. When the West India Compsny's steamers com-
menced tanning, nothing in the shape of a steamer ran re-
gularly along the western *oast of America, and the isthmus
of Panama was rarely traversed. Even so late as 1848,
letters for Chili and Peru, if sent by the West Ind'a
steamers, tiled to be consigned to the British consul at
Panama, who forwarded them es opportunities offered, by
selling vessels. No one dreamt at this time of any steam
mmununication with the north-western coast of America.
In the latter part of 1846, a government contract wr,
entered into with the Paeillo Steam Navigation
Company then recently formed for the convey-
ance of melts to and from Panama and 4tl ow
Granada, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Chill. In
1847 the first batch of specie (or England from the Chilien
and Palmist' mines was seat across the Isthmus of Panama,
and fond its way to Southampton from Chasms by the
West India packets. So important and regular is the
traMe now aerate the isthmus 131 the seuth-western coast,
that the West India Company have entered into an arrrogo-
sent with the Pacific Steam Packet Company to book pas-
sengers boss Southampton to Valparaiso, via Chapel, and
at every intermediate port between Valparaiso and Panama.
Soon after a steam packet communication wee established
with the south-western coast of America, gold was discovered
is California, and now the northwestern coast is become of
as much importance ea the southwestern. Numerous
steamer, ply between Penman and California. The whole
of the correspondence from Europe and America for 01
places between Ssn Francisco and Valparaiso, a distance of
nearly 7,000 miles, passes through Cies ;res. The West
India Company do not at present book to C dif)rals, but one
of the principal American Steam Packet Company's rums
steamers in connexion with the company's steamers. The
West India Company's mainline steamers from Southampton
to Cheers may new he omiddered principally as feeders to
those crowded packets whisk kiosk off north and south
of Panama to coast slang 7,000 miles of the richest
countries In the world.

Mil/10NT.
The city of Turin hes voted B,ooolr. for the relief of
Brescia; the divisional council of Alm xtidria6o,ooofr.,
and that of Vercelli 6,000 fr.
Name, SEPT. 13.—Firs per Cents, 991 cub.