The southern press., 1850-09-05

most respectable and substantial men in the
country, and the payments from subscribers and
advertisers have always been far in advance of
the expenditures of the paper, and are now.
And as the Press is rather faS5rite-of ours il
it should ever languish fir want of subscriptions,
We have more property Of our own than would
buy two such establishments as the, Post to
bring into the cause Hence the Soo contract
is about as likely 10 be quartered on the Press,
as the Press on the contract. Certain il is the
Press has never received one dime from the
contract, nor does it ever expect it,
1t is true that We were amongst the early advo-
Gates not only Of the New Orleans and Chagres
line of mail steamers, but of the system itself of
Ocean Naval Mail Steam Service-and are yet
1t is system which will stand the test of rigor-
Gus scrutiny, and will triumph.
At the session of Congress in 1916, when this
system was first thoroughly examined, there
was II bill reported to the Senate by Mr.. ArHER-
TON, Chairman of'the Naval Committee, to build
twelve war steamers exclusively for Govern
ment use, and at its expense. This was an Ad-
ministration measure, presented by one of its
regular organs-and was insisted on as an indis-
pensible augmentation of naval steam power, to
meet, to some extent, the change in naval power
produced by the prodigious increase Of steam
ers in the British and French navies.
If that bill had passed it would have caused an
expenditure in their construction, of seven mil
lions of dollars; and it would have required an
expense of three millions of dollars al least an
nually, to keep them in service, or in condition
ready for service-as will be seen by examining
the accounts in the Navy Department, of the
cost of building and supporting the steamers
Missouri and Mississippi.
The present Ocean Mail Contract system pro-
vides for the construction Of seventeen steamers
adapted to naval service in war, and to mail ser
vice in peace, and to the transportation Of pas
sengers and freight besides.
The Government advanced for their construc-
ton one years mail pay, or Sss74,OOo instead of
seven millions, which would have been required
for the twelve war steamers. And this annual mail
pay is also, instead of an annual expenditure Of
more than three millions; and the Government
receives already from the principal lines large
part of the mail pay back, in postage on letters
and papers, and there is little doubt that before
the expiration of the contracts, the total of mail
pay will be equalled or exceeded by the total of
postages.
Here then will be seventeen Ocean Steamers,
supported in time of peace without any nett ex-
pense to Government, carrying its mails along
ocean routes fifteen thousand miles in length,
between Europe and America, between New
Cuba and Chagres. and between Panama and
San Francisco-on the greatest thoroughfares
Of trade travel and migration in the world, on
terms originally lower than any similar contracts
had ever been made, and with results more eco
nomical to Government than any others have
achieved.
We know it is by some denied that steam is
applicable TO ships of war, us it probably once
was denied that sails would answer instead of
the previous naves of row boats, triremcs, and
ofquinquremes. Weknow it is by some doubted
whether the qualities of speed required for mail
and mercantile service, are compatible with the
strength and thickness necessary in seventy
fours and frigates, to withstand the effect of
shot But If this We're so-if vessels, in order
to stand cannon shot must be so heavy that
they must run slow, it would destroy the eff
cheney of the old system of naval war; for if
seventy -fours, frigates, and heavy war steamers
cannot overtake mail steamers, the latter can
carry on the commerce, the correspondence and
intercourse of nations safely, in contempt of ma
vies-or instead of adapting the new system to
the old-instead of making ocean steamers slow
and heavy, war steamers will have to be built
light and swift-to destroy the very commerce
that mail steamers could otherwise carry on.
But it is not true that mail steamers are not
built so heavy and strong as war steamers or sew
enty y-fours. The former arc superior in strength
Enormous strength and stability of hull, are
indispensable to the safety and regularity of the
immense engines that are required for great
speed, and hence steamers must be stronger fol
mail purposes, for speed, than for the endurance
of cannon shot-and they are.
The Ohio and Georgia have now been run
ming, the former nearly twelve months, the lat.
ter eight, along the tempestuous and dangerous
coasts of the South Atlantic sea-board-they
have encountered the storms of Cape Hatteras
and of the coast Of Florida, where such vast
losses of life and property are annually suffered
by sailing vessels. Yet these steamers have
never had an accident. Iftheir strength were not
immense how could they withstand the force Of
wave and wind, contending with engines of a
thousand horse power! They must be Of i'm
mense power. If their hulls were not more in
flexi BILE than seventy-fours, their engines would
be thrown out of line and broken.
Before the present system of Ocean mail
service in this country was established, our letters