Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1851-12-25

vailing westerly winds Of the direct route.
And then Charleston ceased to be
halfway house, and WIS made an outside
station
= rom l'76 dates new era in tho po-
'''ca' affairs OF the country. and from 1896
-zo years after, and 10 ON at Intervals Of
twenty years--da'cs regularly new Cru
in commerce and navigation. In 1906 was
the era tho water thermomcrcr4-in 1916
the era Of the Packet system commenced.
In TINT year, Jeremiah Thompson, Isa,y
Wright aud others, put three vessels Of
three or four hundred tons each On the
line 10 Liverpool, 10 sail. on stated DAYS.
regularly once a month. The Croakers
said they were entirely too large. and that
often the day Of sailing would arrive when
there would be neither passengers nor
freight 10 take. But the LINERS" ns they
were called, went on increasing In size, III
numbers, and in favor with the mcr,
chants, until the sea became white with
their SAILS and opposition lines were got
up TO Liverpool, independent ones TO Lor-
don and Havrc, and lines Off packet ships,
packet briggs, and packet schooners. wero
established between New York and eve.
~ seaport town ofthc U. s. The packet
ships carried the mails across tho Atlantic.
They made New York the point of COM
munication with the Ola World, and thew
controlled the business of dis atch for the
whole country. SO completely had they
monopolIaed for Now York every thing
in the way offorclgn business, travel and
correspondents, that in the year 1887, tho
end of another period of 20 years. there
was not Il single vessel that cleared from
Boston for Liverpool.
| IL 1897 commenced The era of Ocean
Steam Navigation, though 20 years before
the South had sent out an Irant Conric,
from Georgia. The South however res
ted content with the honor orbcing the first
to stride across the Atlantic under steam.
For though at that very time various Con.
vent'ons were held at the South, binding
the merchants of The South like the oath
Neptune administers to Sailors crossing
the line, "ncvor to kiss the maid when
they can kiss the mistress. unless they like
The maid the best" the South stood still,
while Great Britain by means of tho
"Srius," the "l.ivcrpool" and the Great
Western" actually and practically demon
stratcd the great problem of ocean stcdm
navigation.
Sui another opportunity was presented
,othe South ofcntoring upon the great race
for commercial supremacy aud iudepcn-
dcnce, but only 10 be neglected. France
was looking for port in the United States,
from which to establish an opposition line.
and 1t was proposed that the South should
take stock If France would select Norforlk
as the terminus of the line. Application
wis made to the Legislature of Vrginia
to grant only a charter for that purpose,
but they refused to grant it, aud so it was
established at New York, but il was soon
abandoned. 1.-THE charter had been gran
ted Norfolk would at this day have bccnthc
centre of stcnin mitigation for the ". S.
The lines TO the lsthmus would have be-
logged to Norfolk and probably the lines
to 1lavrc aud Bremen. But Boston got
It's hnc OF stcamcrs-sent IT'S ships 10 Liv.
crpoolj and recovered all the trade and
more too, thanl had when the Steamers first
began 10 ply.
New York for 10 years looked quietly
On, feeling the way with English capital
US Norfolk might have done with French
until she got the federal government com
miiicd for many millions 10 her steamship
enterprise, aud then tht launched her O.
cean steamers, and now she leads the
world in that navigation
Al first the direct trade Of Charleston
was greater than that Of New York, and
oil the New England states togciher.-
station, and the Atlantic coast, In COM
mcrcial point of view, had been turned up
side down. The philosopher v ih no 9TH
Of INSTRUMENT than the water thermometer
did all this, In 1910, the packet system
was established which is at the bottom AMI
top ofihc commercial asccndancy Of New
\ ork. The water thermometer mud the
packet syst en- enabled New York to un-
derakc the Erie Caml--io remove the
COMMERCIAL mouth Of 81. the Lawrence
from the Straits Of lcllisIc to Sandy Hook
10 extend her back country from the Set
10 the Lases-from the waters Of Long
Island Sound to the waters Of the Gulf Of
McSco---io place the mouth ofrhe Missis-
sipp as much at Sandy Hook as il is a.
the Balize.
The rislng generation Is now crowding
upon us of the Occan stcnm nnrieati0n FRA,
and before 1851 the end Of another dou-
bic decade, we hope 20 see the lsthmus
pierced with commercial thoroueIfarcs
and gteat national highways, and The Poet
who now sketches in dim perspective his
magnificent picture, while
Dreaming Of cnch mighty Jrthf
Which shall dny be born
From marriage Of the Western Earth,
With nations % the noru'
will wake 10 find that the marriage bae
been solemnizcd, and To behold the miRA-
~ birth OF "A new commerce ind new civ.
IlzaIion spring forth like Pallas from tho