Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1858-05-18
THE PORT OF PETERSBURG AND THE
PORT OF RICHMOND.
From the Petersburg Inteligencer

EtohA 49,
d. Civ Point ia the port Of Petersburg, and has been
90, We believe, ever since the organization Of the Go.
yernment. 1t is in every way adapted to the purposes
of a sea port. 1, has a good harbor, is a fine location,
and has been improved in a way to render it a most
desirable stopping place for ships engaged in the
James river trade. There is no other spot between
Hampton Roads and the head of tide water that pre-
SCENTS the same facilities and advantages to shipping.
Consequently, captains Of sea going vessels, especially
tbose crossing the Atlantic, have generally preferred
wing at CITY Point whilst dischargiDg and taking in
carpoee. The Richmond Wig speaks of this proce
dure as q %veIatious and into!erable grievances: and so
II has been represented by the Richmond press over
and over again in time past. IL. appears" ssya the
Whic, I. that If a Richmond merchant has consigned
10 him a cargo of foreign goods, which ia unloaded at
City Point, where vessels of large tonnage usually
stop, the Captain caDno; enter his vessel at the Gus.
tom House here, lin Richmond but both the entry
and payment must be in the Custom House at Peters
burg. The inconvenience resulting from this state of
things Is az apparent AZ the injustice Of it"
This is an altogether one.sided view of the CASE,
aud, with due Difference we say 1t, a very erroneous
one. II 10 true, that the Richmond consigneee ia
snbiec,ed TO the inconvenience stated but is he as
BADLY of in this respect as would be the captain,
crew and ship If they were deprived OF the superior
accommodations of deep water. safe anchorage, port
hospital and the various facilities required for the dis
patch of business, which are 10 he found at City
Point Is every thing to be sacrit ed to the conve
nience Of The consignee, because be lives in Rich
mond7 1t is 10 be regarded as an intoleraele griev.
ance that the Port of Petersburg, which happens to
possess greater attractions and advantages than the
Port of Richmond, ia preferred by sea captains.
and that they avail themselves, 40 they constantly
do, and have long been doing. Of those advantages7
The Wig does not deny the better ~accommods.
lions of City Point, but thinks II a mons.rous hard.
ship that a Richmond cargo should be subjected to
the necessity of being discharged there and entered
in the Petersburg Custom House, and that a Rich
mono merchant TO whom it may be consigned should
be compelled 10 pay :he duties in said Custom House.
In o,her wnrda the thj1 cnntande that Allhouvh IN.
case is wholly WITHIN the Collection District of Peters.
burg. and therefore subject to all the terms and cun.
ditions prescribed ty law to vessels entering and ly
ing in that district, yet il is u huge wrcng 20 Rich
mopd TO be thus dealt with! That is to say, it is a
sham.ful thing that Richmond cannot enioy the full
benefit of q Petersburg barbor, without a recoeni.
ton of the claims Of her Custom House to its legal
and proper duties. This has always been a source
Of much needless veIaiion and disturbance 10
our Richmond neighbours and effort after effort
has been made to get the government 10 abolish the
rights Of Petersburg in the matter, and throw the
district entirely into the lap of Richmond. But the
government, seeing the injustice of the complaints
and petitions which have been presented to 1t on this
head, has steadily and properly refused to yield to
them. AgsiU, We are told by the Wing, this same
old scheme for injvring Petersburg ia TO be revived.
and the metropolitan representative in Congress has
been addressed upon the subject, with a view, no
doubt, to make a vigorous movement in Washington
against 'this unjust and absurd discrimination against
Richmond IN favor of Petersburg. as the Wing very
9traDR6ly Cdu6 ~ tSHuiotUhS "'N' .S1uuV Ntcsrls
stopping at City Point to enter at the Petersburg
Custom House and the duties, tchererer may bs the
residence Of the copsignees, to be paid there too. If
the case was reversed and a Petersburg merchant was
the inconvenisnced party, we doubt whether Rich.
mond would listen to the cry OF "absurd discrimina.
tom if raised.
We feel pretty sure that neither the Treasury De-
pertinent nor Congress will give a more favorable
ear than heretofore to the proposition of our metro.
politsn ~neighbors for q circumscription or disorgani
1afion of the Petersburg District, in order to save a
little trouble TO importers and consignees over there,
aud to swell the receipts ct their Custom House. AZ
we'll and better might the Wig complain and ~
monstrste against the payment to the New York
Custom House of duties upon goods for Richmond
entered there, which is almost an every day occur.
renee. We cannot discern any material difference, in
point of principle, between the two cases.
we say. therefore, that if vessels coming in With
o,rsoas for Richmond choose to stop at City Point
and unload there. it is nothing more than right that
thew should conform to the regulations Of that port as
they are directed by Law TO do.
rs But, the Wing is for having those regulations ahol.
ished. We have yet to See the argument 10 behalf of
this proposition which would not be equally deetruc.
tive Of the same regulations in every. other District u
under the excitemeuts Of commercial rivalry and Jeal.
Quay between neighboring cities, the same movement
was made by one against the other that the Wing 10
now % warmly advocating.