The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-02-21
BALTIMORE.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 81, 1859.

MONDA1, FEBRUARY 81, 1859.
The best conquest we could possibly make of
Mexico would be commercial one. The best fleet
we could possibly send TO assault her ports would
be fleet of steamers making regularly weekly
circuit of the Gulf and discharging at every avail
able point not cannon balls, nor any other sort of
destructive missiles but the more desirable products
of American labor. The true teeth of CADMUs
were not armed men, but letters, and the most
honorable cartel of all, is that which courteously
demands not an exchange of Shots but an inter-
change of commodities. Copper captains and fire.
eaters generally, full of strange oaths, may swear
that there is more sovereign virtue in hard knocks
than in friendly greetings, but the world is begin
ming to know better The most peaceably dis
posed of men or nations are those whose pecuniary
interests will not permit them to quarrel with each
other. The cotton bales upon Liverpool wharf
oppose a stronger rampant against a new invasion
of Louisiana than earth works thrown up in the
vicinity of New Orleans even though the latter
were defended by dozen regiments of sharp shoot
ers of n courage as indomtable as JACKsoN's old
Tennesseeans. eff you desire to civilize and
'Christanize Africa - writes the brave missionary
DAVID LIVINGSTONE, to his friends in England,
'the first step to be taken is to establish CONNER
'cial relations with the native tribes.' The same
advice will apply to our relations with Mexico.
If we are really anxious to promote good under
standing with Mexico, and at the same time to
put her in a position to pay off her public debt,
we must encourage her to develop her industrial
resources. No sensible man will say that this re-
culf l., IN ha cbad Inv hat in
sulting her, or by a summary and forcible occupa-
ton of her territory. 1t would be still less likely
to be attained by war, for there people out
side of Ireland-where it is a qualification to fight
'.jus for the fun of the thing''-who can be beat
en- into loving successful antagonist. 1t is quite
possible TO secure serviceable neighbor by put
ting him in the way of benefing himself and of
rendering himself useful to others, while it is
equally certain that cannot do this by stripping
him of his dilapidated possessions, or by perfora-
ting his viscera But how, as regards Mexico, can
we effectually soften down existing antago-
nisms, and benefit ourselves whilst help
ing her? The in which this may
be accomplished, is set forth in the memorial
of Colonel BUTTERFELD which is now before Con-
gress, and in the Report of the Senate Committee
on Post Offices and Post Roads, to whom the SUBJ
ect matter contained in the memorial was referred
Many years ago we had large and lucrative trade
with Mexico, nearly all of which we have lost
partly by our own negligence and partly by rea-
son of the unfriendy feelings which have been en-
gendered towards us in that Republic during the
last twenty years. The trade that we have thus
carelessy or inconsiderately suffered to slip from
Our hands Enulo nd hoe racnod or tIot ,,b;Jo bor
exports to Mexico amount annually to twelve mil
lions and a half of dollars those from the
UNITED STATES do not for the same period of time
exceed four millions and half of dollars OF the
imports from Mexico, nearly four-ffths of which
consist of gold and silver coin and bullion, Eng
land also obtains the lions share The statistics
presented in the pamphlet that accompanies the
memorial of Colonel BUTTERFELD, show that not
withstanding the advantages we possess, in geo.
graphical position and in variety of production,
our entire commercial transactions with Mexico
have not averaged sight millions of dollars per
annum for the last twenty years, whilst those of
England amount in value to between twenty-eght
TO thirty millions yearly. But it may possibly be
imagined that the chief articles of foreign produc
ton required by Mexico are such as we cannot
readily supply. The very reverse of this is, how
ever, the fact. Not only are we able TO furnish
them, but we can do it at q cheaper rate than any
other nation. For example:-The total value of
goods annually imported into that Republic, in
GLIDING the cost of placing them at the port of des
tnation, is estimated at twenty-six millions of dol
lars. OF those imports more than one-half of the
whole consist of and manufactured cotton
and of manufactures of iron. IF it be asked why
it is that Mexico purchases of England the bulk of
these commodities, the explanation given by
Colonel BUTTERFIELD is as simple as il is concu-
sve. England has established a regular system of
steam communication with the ports of the
Mexican Gulf; whereas we have been hitherto
content to rely, for the most part, on transient
sailing vessels for keeping up commercial relations
between the two countries, and all that we require
to enable TO recover the bulk of the trade that
is now diverted to Europe, is to establish line of
steamers, which shall ply weekly between New
Orleans and Mobile, and the principal ports in
the Gulf of Mexico. Starting from one
or the other of these two ports Colonel But
TERRIFIED proposes to make regular weekly cir
cult of the Gulf touching at Galveston Matagorda,
Brazos de Santiago, Tampico, Vera Cruz, Alva-
lduo, coatHiCodlCOS, anu ldDtScO, CLOSING WIFI
Ssal, in Yucatan, and stretching thence across the
Gulf to the point of departure.
In furtherance of the object he has in view, he
has already succeeded in obtaining an independent
contract from the Government of Mexico for the
transportation of mails, passengers and freight,
and has also had granted him, in compensation for
this service, an annual subsidy of one hundred and
twenty thousand dollars He now asks, in con-
sideraton of the expenses which will be involved
in an enterprise of so much magnitude, and in
view of the commercial advantages which the
UNITED STATES would derive from regular weekly
communication with all the ports in the Gulf, that
Congress should authorize for carrying the mails
of the UNITED STATES, an appropriation TO
amount equivalent to that conceded by Mexico on be-
half of the interests of her own citizens The SEN
ate Committee on Post Offices and Post Roads have
already reported favorably, and the merits of the
project so unquestionably great that there Ger
tainly ought to be but one opinion ON the part of
the Government with regard, not merely to the
proprety of making the concession required, but
of its absolute commercial Importance. 1t is
measure which is dictated alike by just view of
our relations to the nearest neghboring Republic,
and by considerations of sound policy. Indepen-
IDENTIFY, moreover, ofthe many and obvious CONNER
cial advantages that would accrue to us, it must
be evident that the UNITED STATES would be great
ly benefited by the establishment of a regular line
OF postal communication with the different ports of
Mexico, inasmuch it would tend to bring us
into closer and more familiar intercourse
with the people of that country and
would thus tend to remove many of the
prejudices they have imbibed against u.s. and
to soften those asperties which we have not al
ways been guiltless of provoking. Looking, then,
at the project of the memorialist in every aspect
its importance, both TO the Government and to the
people of the UNITED STATES individually and COL
ectively, is so clearly apparent that there ought TO
be no hesitation on the part of Congress to con-
cede the sum, which is asked to put the scheme
in motion
The return of IFUTZE the artist to This conn try