The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-05-24

South but we do not apprehend, in consequence,
any corresponding decline Of the traffic and bust
ness of this city until the South shall be able
to compete successfully with the facility and
cheapness with which our carrying trade. in
Guiding our coastwise transfers, is conducted.
Under a separate confederacy, the South, by
discriminating tariff system, might draw off
at once to themselves all that foreign trade
which now goes to the South or comes from the
South through New York and other Northern
seaports. But under this Union, with the same
schedules Of duties in Charleston and New York,
and with our superior facilities for shipbuild-
ing and navigation, whatever the South may
do. we may still hold for an indefinite time to
come. the mass OF the Southern exporting and
importing trade in our hands. Such to us are
the incalculable advantages of this union of the
Northern and Southern States.
Direct lines Of steamers between the Southern
for yet some years to come, inexpedient because
of their expense. Direct trade in sailing YES
sells is a more practical thing but we persist in
the assertion that it cannot be successfully es-
tablished between our Southern ports and Eu-
rope until Southern shippers can carry their
goods hither and thither at New York prices.
They are quite welcome to make the expert
ment at Memphis. Competition is the soul of
business. and always results in beneftting the
whole community.
Home manufactures, however, open up the
largest field of enterprise to the South. In the
working up of cotton into the various fabrics
into which it is wrought, the Southern States
have almost every advantage in their hands for
an absolute monopoly of the raw material, as
lar at least as the United States are concerned.
And there are thousand other branches of
manufacturing industry in which the South
might certainly as cheaply supply their own
wants as they can be supplied by the North.
In word, there is such an opening in the South
ern States for the establishment of an extended
and diversified system Of home manufactures, as
would speedily fill up their waste places by the
heavy current Of the manufacturing classes
which would flow in upon them from all sides.
The idea of educating Southern students in
".
doubtless is due to the abolition notions which
have crept into many Of our Northern institu-
tons of learning to their own immediate preu-
dice and to the distrust of Southern men, In
fact, the various objects and projects Of this
Memphis Convention may be largely credited
to the abolition movements of the day and to
the desire of the Southern people to render
themselves independent, even Of any business
intercourse with the North, as far as possible,
now that they have the means by railroads of
the necessary facilities of intercommunication
among themselves.
We shall look to this Memphis Convention
for some practical results. because it will be
largely composed IMPRACTICAL men. and is called
to consult upon practical things. But what
ever they may do to secure their own foreign
trade directly, or to extend their home manu-
features to the exclusion of Northern competi-
ton, or to withhold their young men from
Northern colleges we have no very serious APP
prehensions that New York will be damaged
by their proceedings. We rather think that we
shall gain by anything and everything under
this Union, which will tend to develope the re-
sources Of the South, and populate its vast ag-
gregate of uninhabited territory. Let the
Memphis Convention, therefore, do the best
they can. Let the South help themselves, and
God help us all.