Amador weekly ledger., 1857-10-31
THE STEAMSHIP COMPANY.
We take the following from the San 10

qnn Republican OF the ZIth instant
"The agents of the Pacific Mail Steam
ship Company in San Francisco, have, we are
informed, determined to "crushp every news
paper in the State that has the temerity to
censure the consolidated monopoly for the loss
of the four or five hundred people who per-
ished by the sinking of the George Law
The Herald, we are told, was the first to fall
under the mighty ban of the mighty monop-
oily. The subscription to the paper was
stopped, and the advertisements Of the Com
pany peremptorily ordered out. This, of
course, Jared the Herald terribly, but at last
advices that pertinacious journal was abso-
lutely making arrangements with two or three
banking houses, to enable it to issue another
number. But seriously, we think that the
Company will discover, by the time it gets
through with its prescribing business. that
the press and the people can get along with
out the Company, mnch more easily than the
Company can get along without the press and
the people With the exception Of the San
Francisco Gle5e, every journal in the State,
whose opinions on any question are entitled
to notice, that has TINS far spoken on the
subject, has condemned without qualification,
the whole course and policy Of the consolida-
ton, as well as eensnrcd il for the wholesale
massacre on the Central America, formerly
the George Law"
The Pacific Null Steamship Company,
powerful as they are, will have a sweet time
in the crushing" business. The press of
this State is but little indebted to this COM
pany; in fact we do not know who is, GER
tainly not the people of California, for not
one of them who mas patronized the company
has ever received the value of his money paid
them, save when they were forced by opposi-
tion to be decent in their demands When
they have had the power they have practiced
sytem of extoTtion as great as the people
would bear; and now when by the unseawor-
thness of one of their line FIVE hundred hu-
man beings have been sacrificed to their ne
glect and penuriousness the press, forsootb,
must not speak out their condemnation
But their threats will fall harmless to the
ground The press is not so easily muzzled
and we are happy to know that the papers
in this State are nearly unanimous in their
censure Of this heartess, soulless company.
The Pacific Mail Steamship Company en-
deavor to screen themselves under the plea
that they should not be held responsible for
the acts of the Steamship Company on the
Atlantic side This would be a defense if
the Pacific Company sold tickets to Panama
only; but they agree to carry passengers
safely through to New York or New Or
leans and require the cashin advance for their
services. In so doing they render themselves
liable at law for the whole trip The fact is,
the two companies are consolidated and are
partners in fact in the transportation of pas
sengers, and each is liable not only for its
own negligence but also for that of the other
The people are horr6ed, appalled, at this
wholesale slaughter, aud well they may be-
The loss of even one life, under tragic circum-
stances shocks the community from one end
of the land to the other; and here are five
hundred who, after days of torture, are con-
signed to violent death! When the oppor-
tunity arrives, that is when the public can
have a choice between different lines of
steamers, the present lines will have meted
out to them the just reward for their past
carelessness and avarce.