The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-09-15

African Steamships.



Mr.. Editor have Just seen three articles from :
cent numbers OF your journal, ~ which you commtpts
large The report OF the Naval Committee 4 ~
House oil Representatives in favor OF the estbsEmt,,
line OF mail steamships to the coat OF ArsaS
submitted by the Hon Frederick r. Stanton, OF Tepns
see, chairman, on The lei August, 1850. The main e
lures OF the report and us recommendations mel win
my hearty concurrence; and now desire 10 submit r.
you some OF the reasons which induce me "a supper n,
measure. and al The time TO address my self 10 en-
tain objections which you urge 10 your alJcs agaG.
the plan. Fuly 10 appreciate this measure, is neSps
ny TO take view OF the whole scope and nature Of H.
great project
Those who support this undertaking design 80 ma
the emigration OF Tree persons OF color from II.
United States TO Liberia, to increase the steam navy AMI
10 ex END the OF the United States" while Nm
sir, seem 10 entertain the opinion that not one Of ile
objects be attained BY the proposed means One Il
The other OF us, then, must be entirely 10 The wrong ier
do mol hesae to assert that all oil these objects can h
advanced in eminent degree BY the means Proposed
and although the report oil the Naval Committee Itself
fruitful in facts ami arguments sustaining my positoD
yet as that document does not appear in your arcesn
have commanded such share oil your attention as from
All impartial commentator i certainly deserved
will briefly review the objections which yon have urged
Your article OF 2Dih August last requires but yen
brief notice. inasmuch as II consists chiefly Of srcm
upon the original memorial OF the projectors, which da
mol specify how the home vos age was 10 be mace a3
contained, moreover variety OF particulars that the com
mlllee thought tit TO reject; yet find you INK up e
rejected particulars Mn the report itself IN such way
10 present strange and unnteg bic mass, calculated
TO bewlder your readers and induce them to believe that
the Naval Committee had reported in iavor Of an in
practicable project
In this first article you assert that is proposed d
carry IN each ship on each voyage 900 negroes-lbe
fact being that the estimate is 2,500 although IL n
thai the memorialsts proposed 10 build SHIPS capable
cary ing 200 Hanspor OH being fitted up IN tine
for that purpose. he next point IL that the Of lie
ships would be considerably below the eslnae and liz
inferred that the co tractors would pocket the balance
Fhls blunder proceeds from the erroneous assumption
that the government pay iur the huding OF lie sIrs
whereas the truth is that the con!racols 10 bGiI
them their expense, and The is onI 10
loan portion OF The money on mortgage in the way
has done 10 tie contractors Tor lie New York and
Liverpool and other lines OF mail steamers All The com
your article OF the Goth August are a. unbound
ed as this Oh The subject OF the cost o the ships Thu,
the very next objection Is thai, according To lii, con
saton fixed by the DUo per yuyaae--,he
pay will be about S40O Tor each letter. Ths cacna,uas
founded upon the idea that the only postage 10 BE- re-
ceiyed is Tor the Liberia mails The postage on the
homeward voyage, via The Mediterranean, ii i, poEu
gal, France, and Engand IS reckoned b. you nothing
|, on the contrary hazard The opinion tnat In, postage
will Tor the first live years pay probably half ihe govern
ment allowance, and afterwards the whole Of it,
Your article goes on 10 object 10 The terms proposed by
the memorallss with respect the amount to be paid
by the Cove rnent Tor the ships il taken Tor par
poses, and also 10 the commercial privileges demanded
tor the steamers IN the trade with Liberia As 10 III
price 10 be paid Tor the ships the committee recommend
thai il should be the actual yane (npi in any eyen bow
ever, exceed the COST and they report against any
special commercial privileges, prelering that The remu
neraion tor the services rendered should be direct, OF
course The neTorlasls would have been willing 10 r..
ess than $4,000 per trip, II they had got the lE
ege asked Tor and there can be discogeie
whatever Tor Tie parade made in your article about The
portion OF the memorial referring 10 this point
In the next article (tha OF The 23d August you very
property stale that the report OF The Naval COMMITTEE
omts the various matters you object 10, abo'e
toned but you contend thai the line ought noi 10
tabsbed, because The revenue from postage wou oea
mere nothing .Who," you ask .sSouid think Of sind.
ing leffe IN he nj
land By steamers gong 10 Liberia? The mere slgges
lion OF ii EXHIBITS most ameniable ignorance lhe
whole course OF trade and correspondence oil the county,
and vi the existing faclites Tor the latter Even sailing
vessels would lake them 10 all those points in less lime
&c Unfortunately Tor the reproof intended By yOal
charge OF "lamenable ignorance, il is not expecel thai
anything will be received for letters mailed in the Unite,
States 10 go beyond Lisbon but upon reaching Liteta,
all mail matter for and between the niermed porls
Tar London and back to the United States, will be
veyed. As 10 the mails 10 and from Liberia The committee
look upon them as being unimlortan that no au'i0a
made 10 any amount OF revenue whatever expected
that source, although il is probable that The Lbel
mails will ere long yield much more than the Ore
gon mails at The present moment II is easy 10 conut
up such imaginary propositions, and expose Their iul
out would NOT be quite SO easy TO reiute the reasoning
oil the report.
After dwelling upon and enforcing the objection TO The
OF tue mails from the United States 10 Lon
don, &c, via LIBERIA, you proceed 10 say that lhe
objection though ID less degree, would exist against
any large return mall when leaving London. either iron
ohtlhehia OF Drlush correspondents, as passage IRON
that port would always lie longer than IRON Liverpool
from whence there is already weekly steamer"
To me IL appears, on the contrary, u nj the steamer
leaving London would bring the letters i1g The Lon
don Post Office, even though they could have been Tor
warded two or three days previous By The wee.g
steamer from Liverpool 10 New York. And 40 reasopai
DC seen 10 doubt that these American steamers would h
o London, and 10 all intermediate ports al which III
might STOP the Mediterranean mails ready aud waiting
II the tine oil their respective arrivals They would ao
bring to this country direct all the mails from lie various
continental ports
You are pleased 10 ridcule the idea hat these steamers
should be running from port 10 poi-Gbia to Cajz,
cadiz 10 Lisbon, Lisbon TO Bres, Brcst 10 L0nion'
Ind you inquire what quantity or kind Of freight could
bese steamers expect 10 receive al Gibraltar, Ca2, Is
,on aud Bees, for the United States !" The bare paiiig
Jf the question shows that You have not carefully Goa
deted the whole subject You might as well ask, wla
reights the steamers bring from Bienen or LiYe.
,ooli Suppose The ships 10 Hayfe IN lieu of BTesi
Ind the words Of he report 10 Biest "or ohG
,or OF france. 10 be designated &c,woud you s4G
luire what freight could be brought from that pm!
ms is a matter for the consideration oil the conra
md they understand Il er interest we'll eaough log,a
uch ports in France as give the most prOhls
You disposed, iii. 20 be quite acriious the sub
ect If the proposed seameis running into many polls
md suppose that The committee calculate on a ''coa-tH
rade" between them. II quite probable thai the ca
FACTORS would prefer running STRAIGHT from Liberia Y
Ivte, ard thence {, New Orleans: but il j. par u
he great fcheme contemplated hy thr co nmse 10 sHod
dtona facilities ~ commercial obpfalpfs with Tie
Mediterranean and the peninsula.
he boson Post, psier ~el informed on cormJ
ia questions, observes
I" it not cpnruunca ion with il,r coIst IT Atca
lone TINT s % b. on flied by lb,: J. ol canrr loI
rade OF the Mediterranean yraiy .ing satn. h
npJiiance, II thus 70 u brought uLder IAt utDg"r
team. Entering tie .uans ~ GiJslt.t thr ue ID. o. "
ast aud commod tOts boats fitted - take th1 rfcu' hH
aarseh'es TO Consonnnollc AMI smyrna u "NHt ~ ~