The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-09-09

gence to st. Petersburgh is prompti We know the
Russians have establishment at fein but 1t is Of a
religious and educational rather than of diplomatic
character. N]i ~ 1.sae f tfl saiW
1t was we believe never suspected that high road
and chain of posts existed between the two distant cap
itas that constant communications kept up be-
tween the Pekn college and the cabinet of the Car
Some time ago We're given cause Tor conjecture by a
passage in Pein Gazette which informed Us that an
embassy sent to condole with the Russian Court the
death of the Emperor Nicholas had just returned but
that information did not necessarily imply smooth roads
aud easy intercourse. Here we have instance of six
Thousand miles taversed ia fifty days We will
that the despatch arrived Mt Pein in the form of tele
gram, and that Moscow was the nearest point to which
ii was carried.
1t is still rapid work, II Is not that ten miles an
hour for twelve hours day or five miles an hour
for twentyfour hours day very fast work for Tar
tar couers over prepared country But our surprise
is to find that tho country is 50 prepared The courier
if he took the direct route must have struck notbwas
from Pe>in, and crossing the Great Wall Of China must
have advanced into the vast sandy desert which inter-
poses between the inhabited parts of China and those
mountain ranges that separate the Russian ffo the Chi
| nese domnions
He must have traversed this desert in an oblique d
rection, and surmountng the hills that form its north
western boundary he must have ridden the seppes
of the Khirghs stopping perhaps, for short rest in
Turkstan. Couing down the vllds of the tributaries
to the of Aa and passing to the north Of the Cas-
pan he would thus reach the frontier of Russia proper
and might water his horses in the Volga and the Don as
routes to the capital
Was this his road Or did he strike up northwards
from Pekn until he reached Russian settlement
the winding and mysterious Amoo about which we hear
so much and know tleY The Americans tell us of q
great commerce growing at its mouth, and Of many ships
plying its waters know that by great and most
unucky bend it descends to within eight degrees of the
latitude of Pekin and that the Russians have approp
ated tho great portion of the Chinese territory which is
included by that southwark sween. lga98s qsso
1t was by that route Count Putatin arrived in China,
30 may be assured that it is shorter and not much
laborous than the route by suez Russia, it is
plain, has found out northern vulnerable point and
has already secured covered way into this great found
| ering, deenceless empire.
The moral Of this is that westerns must bestir
selves, we shall be shut out of the game. We
| must become Understanding people We have let
every nation get ahead of in this matter In England
don do things because they useful, still less be-
cause they beautiful but there is nothing the
earth under the that cannot accomplish if it Of
| fors good dividend on large capital.
There to have been hesitation about the chance
of making profits by carrying messages, and meantime
every one has oustripped The French have covered
all Northern Africa with their wires how far Russia has
yet carried hers do not know But this China telegram
gives ground to suspect that they pushed long
way towards Moscow. The American States talk hourly
with each other with these tongues OF lightning yet
to whom rapid communication is the breath of our
empire have not yet begun even to lay down wires to
Calcutta. s
Nudged and ebowcd by Brother Jonathan have
thrown line across TO America but let any one
pare the Atlantic ocean, which, far IL was an Inn
pedment to conversation, have practically abolished
with the Red Sea and the Straits of Bah mandeb and
the Arabian Sea- and the Bay of Bengal and the Straits
Of Malacca and the China Sea. There be diff
Guilty in any Of these We have Alden and Gale and
Singapore and Hong Kong as stations-what is to pre-
vent us from paying out lines of wire and working
telegrapbsi There really is nothing to prevent this
except that the official mind isnot yet quite that the
Atlantic telegraph is fact and not dream, and
not yet believe that work is easy it has been
proved to be-