Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1858-07-28
rhe atlantic steann Ferry.

Mr. A. DUpIEY MANN, to whose hands the
s,oro;ect of establishing line of steamers rom
Milford Haven to the Chesapeake was COM
mitted. has written letter to the Richmond
Suat, expressing the greatest confidence inthe
eventual success of the enterprise. de mas
been actively engaged for about three years
in the promotion of its interests, and thus
refers to his progress:
ION the 18th day of March last, the Vir-
pinia Assembly. with singular uDanimity. if
not unanimously, granted me precisely such
a charter as | desired-passing, in fact, my
bill word tor word. as had prepared it, The
conditions therein imposed upon me nave
been duly complied with so far. Pr. vious to
Its enactment number or stockhofders had
b zen procured, (no individual being permit
ted 10 subscribe for more than one share,)
embracing many Of the largest names in the
land. among which may be found JAMES BUcH-
ANAw, JOHN TYLER HENRY A. WISE, HOWELL
COBB JOIN Il. FLOYD, AARON V. BROWN,
JACOB THOMPSON, and w. w. BOYcE.
The act requires that the Board of Directors
shall consist of thirty-six members, who may
serve for term of five years. l have been
engaged from time to time for several months
in selecting q arsons in all respects suitable to
constitute such a Board. The task is DIFF
judicioas designations. it is tolerably certain
that they will be confirmed by the stock
holders in the formal organization of the
Company.
In view of the probable amount of stock
that will be taken in each of the slaveholding
States it is believed that the following APP
portionment of the Directory will not be far
from correct one: Virginia 20; Maryland
aud Delaware 2; North Carolina 2; South
Carolina 1: Georgia l; Alabama l; Florida l.:
Louisiana /; Texas l; Arkansas L; Mississippi
l; Tennessee /: Missouri /; Kentucky /; Dis
trict of Columbia /. As soon as the list OF
names is perfected, it will be published, when
the controlling agency which have exercised
in the enterprise will cease.
The Comp my is authorized to employ capt.
tai of $50. 600 coca larger amount toy SIo,-
600 900 than ever was before authorized in
the United States-and the Charter Is per-
u, tual, if its provisions are not violated.
There is not a material interest of the South
that this Company may not assist III advan-
cling. If well directed. with such privilege r
as are secured to it, it cannot fail I" command,
after a while, as much of the surplus capital
of Europe as it can use to advantage Ii may
not only establish the Steam Ferry, but IL
may establish lines of vessels to Rio, Vera
Cruz Havana, Charleston, Savannah, New
Orleans or, in short, to whatever foreign or
domestic port it thinks proper, provld, d such
vessels are propelled by steam or other motive
power
Nevertheless Mr.. Mann will have to show
that the proposed ocean Ferry" will pay.
That is the touchstone, at last, by which all
these matters of commerce and navigation
are tested. He intimates that passengers,
mails and merchandise may he conveyed
from Europe. era the Chesapeake and the
Gulf Of Mexico. to Australia, China, Japan
&c, in twenty days less time than by the
Isthmus of Suez, and upon this bases the Sill
evitable complete contamination" of the pro-
ject. If this be positively true, there is no
thing, but Mr.. MAINS favorable charter, to
prevent the great shipping interests and en-
ergies of New York and New England, from
coming forward and clutching the advantages
and benefits, giving Mr.. DUDLEY MANN, the
Chesapeake, and the entire Southern coast,
the go-bye. To our mind Mr.. MANN is opera
ting on very imaginative basis. If he had
commenced just twenty-five years ago, building
up Southern shipping interest, making
sailors of Southern men and boys, had
southern money invested in Southern ships,
aud by this time had obtained large aggre-
gate of Southern bulls and bottoms in active
competition with those of our North and East,
he would have been in condition to have
awaited himself of the discovery which he has
now made. He has, however, begun at the
other end of the process, and hence his lin
evitable complete contamination" Will in all
probability turn out all ''inevitable complete
chimera