Washington telegraph., 1853-10-26

'iaue VI tne Pacific seaboard, and by the in
valuable Oriental trade, secured bv this
road and Pacific lines of steamers in con.
nectlon with it. will be immensely enhanced
In their importance and revenues. She is
TO have her troops, provisions and munitions
OF war transported the cost of which trans
portation even in time of peace is enormous.
and IN time of war must be effected over a
foreign, perhaps hostile, territory. or over
a route either impracticabIe. Or So diffienlt
and tedious as to be unavailable for purpos-
es of defence. But it is perhaps upon this
point sufficient to say, as it is evidently true
that besides all the other indispens bic ad-
vantages. the government would, upon the
terms to which the company is willing to
accede, be able in a few years to make a
clear pecuniary profit Of no inconsiderable
amount from her mails alone.
For all these reasons / think it fair to
conclude as / do, that the scheme for build
ing the Pacific Railroad presented by the
New York company, is the hest, if not the
only practicable plan, by which any of those
now living may reasonably hope to see that
great work achieved 81 q
@ 1t will be perceived that have treated
the subject simply as contract, in which
the government, as one party, has the power
to and may with advantage contract with
the other .0TI
The probable effects of this great enter
prise upon the trade politics, and even religion
of this country ard the world, is theme
too stupendous for this modest letter, or
my feeble pen to trace. There have been
notable epochs in the past history of the
world, in which events Of great magnitude,
apparently independent of each other, have
yet consDired to produce revolutions whose
consequences bave endured through all sue
ceeding centuries. As for example, some
thing over three centuries ago the invention
of printing, the discovery and settlement of
this Continent, and the Reformation in Ger
many, conspiring with other events, produc-
ed revolution in thought, in religion, in
social organization, in politics, the conse-
quenccs Of which are only yet partially
known. ~
We seem to live in an era perhaps even
more wonderful l will not refer back to
the advances in art and science contempora-
neous with and subsequent to our American
Revolution, which set free. human energy.
nleHeCtudi anu puysi upon tiiiS cOntlncHl
the most magnificent theatre for his en-
terprise ever yet given to man But in our
own day, Just as California became our own,
we have seen the gold discovery. apparently
only likely to enrich few adventurers. yet.
like that similar discovery which fastened
the peopling of America, occasion an en-
pire to spring up upon the Pacific seaboard
like the palace of Aladdin, as it we're, in a
night And just as we are extending our
hand to grasp the trade Of Asia-which
has been the great prize sought after by cv-
cry commercial nation since the beginning
of history-a nation of hundreds of millions
upon that distant shore who have slept for
centuries through the long hideous night of
superstition, barbarism, and slavery, have
aroused themselves and hurled from their
temples their false gods, and from their
thrones their falser tyrants-almost literal
ly fulfilling the poetry of the ancient pro-
| phet who sang of nation born in day
and they open their arms to receive our
trade, our religion, and perhaps even our
( institutions The star of Christian civliza-
ton which arose over the wise men who
came from the East has kept its westward
way as steadily and inevitably as the sun in
the heavens, and its orbit must encircle the
earth have the honor to be. &c.
PRESLEY EWING.