The republic., 1851-01-02
Africa and Sleanlships.

Our letters from China indicate a strong proba-
biity that line of mail steamships to China will
be authorized and provided for by Congress at its
| present session. That may be well, and probably
IS, though the must be heavy and the ilnmcdi-
benefits moderate. Ii is long route from San
| Francisco any other american port to Canton
while the fuel required to steamships of ade-
quate power must for years be costly in every part
| OF the route. The ends TO be attained more
rapid intercourse with China and more extensive
trade with her people. That charming Aurora,
% securing the trade of the world,' s not to be
realized while mountain barrier separates our
vessels in the Pacific from those in the Atantc-we
doubt that even the completion of the Panama rail
road would accomplish It, A capacious and easily
travcrscd ship canal from to might possibly
answer the purpose well managed free railroad
across the middle Of North America pretty surely
would But must wait little for either of these,
and meantime we cannot perceive how any great
commercial change is to be accomplished by line
of steamships to China. Such line would un-
-doubtedly accommodate our merchants trading
thther but great political or social melioration
would necessarily result from it.
Ii but single line Of steamships 10 to be author
zed this sessonand the state and prospects of the
finances must counsel frugality and cauton--we
think line to Africa fairly entitled TO the prefer
ence. That continent on its western eide is com
paratvely proxmate and accessble;> it is filled
with inhabitants who need The articles we cal
abundantly abricate, and it is the ancestral soil of
more than three millions of people--of a race
on whose account deeply debtors to justice
and to Heaven That race is more plastic and less
conservative than the Chinese; their soil produces
in spontaneous profuson many articles which are
to comforts and luxuries; while nearly every
thing produce is in eager demand amongst it's
inhabitants, If they but find the wberewithal TO
pay for them Instead of being detriment and a
depr .sson to our own manu- utacturing and mechani-
cal industry. the trade induced by costly
steamship lines to Liverpool, Bremen, and Havre
mainly s, all the commerce with Africa which
more intimate communication with her would
cure would be advantageous to every department Of
American labor. Her surplus products di-
verse from ours that no collision of interests be-
tween her producers and could ever be real
lied, while millions worth of her tropical products
which will not endure the slow and capricious
transportation which is now their only recourse
uld come to in good order by steamships, and
richly reward the labor of the gatherers and the
enterprise of the importers.
But the social and moral aspects of this subject
are still more important. We are now expending
life and treasure, in concert with other nations 10
suppress the African slave trade, and it is now gen.
orally conceded that such suppression can never be
effected by the means hitherto relied on The colo
nzation OF the slave coast, with direct reference to
its christanzation and civilization. is the only sure
means of putting end to this inhuman traffc.
And this colonization, all who interested in the
work seem heartily to agree, would be immensely
accelerated by the establishment OF a line of Afri-
can steamships. Liberia, now practically distant
as Buenos Ayres, would by such line be brought
as near us as Bremen, and the ports regularly
visited by steamers could not fail rapidly
sumo importance centres of commerce and Of
increasing intelligence and industry
OF the kind OF steamships required for this SER
vice and justified by Importance, ignorant,
as OF the precise points to be connected by them
either side, the manner OF establishing the service,
&c; but we do trust that the next line Of mail
steamships authorized by Congress will connect
this continent with the west coast Of Africa.
Neto York Tribune.