The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-02-12
yame, River and kanaw In Canal.

James River and kannwha Canal
In the pressure Of other subjects demand
ing more immediate attention, we have undniy
neglected the proceedings of the James h'Sef
and Kanawh a Company, AT their last meet
ing We will, therefore, briefly state, that
the President of the company, Colonel ELLIS,
made a mos, satisfac tory statement Of affairs,
in connection with the execuiory agreement
entered into with the Brothers DE BgLLor DIES
MtxIEKxs. He submitted all the letters
eeived from NJ. ERNEST DE BEILor since his
arrival in France. They were,of most sat.
isfactory character. and clearly established
the disposition, rs well as ability of the par
ties concerned, TO do everything they had
promised. The requisite amount of capital
has already been secured in France in man
ner which NJ. DE b. esteems perfectly salts
factory. The parties have been engaged in
discussing matters affecting their own organ
izafion. They avow q perfect readiness 10
comply with the contract, as it now exists, in
all its particulars, as soon il shall have
been ratified by the Legislature. Al the
same time, they express hope that that
body will modify ii in some particulars,
which they think bear hard upon them
Everything being ready, they are only de
layed from proceeding farther by the startling
events that have been following each other
with such rapidly in this country. They
profess, in the strongest terms, their ability
TO do every thing they have undertaken TO do,
provided they be not interrupted by general
civil war In the mean time, the Secretary of
the Commonwealth has prepared charter, in
which all the laws upon the subject have
been carefully considered, and modified to suit
are deemed necessary in view of the foreign
influence brought to bear upon the question,
have been made, and the whole is under con
sideration by the proper committee OF the Lee
gisIature, by whom il has been ordered to be
printed President ELLIS also laid before the
Board report by NJ. ALFRED PAIL, the
French Consul, to his Government.
This report does great credit to the ability
and industry of Mr. PAUL. He appears to have
made himself acquainted with all the details
connected with the history of the canal, nu-
merous and tedious as they necessarily are,
and has given the results of his inves legations
with great accuracy and clearness. Very
many of our own people, We suspect, might
learn from Mr.. PAIL what they do not know,
although they have been living all their lives
in sight of the canal. Judging from his report
even, than some of the Directors. OF course
Mr.. PArL sees al once the immense importance
Of the work TO the commerce of Virginia, of
the West, of France and of the world ANY
stranger can see it At glance. 1t is so pal
pable that nobody could miss it, except people
born on the spot. They are slow to it
but even they begin 10 open their eyes. We
recommend Mr.. PAuL's report to all persons
who wish TO learn, in the shortest space of
time possible the most of their own great
State improvement 1924
Mr.. PAIL reiterates an opinion formerly eX-
pressed by him, in a communication To which
he alludes, that until Virginia shall have COM
pleted her lines OF communication with the
great West projects for direct trade will be
premature and Ill considered. This great OBJ
Ject having been once accomplished, however,
by the completion OF the James River and
kanawha Improvement on an expanded scale,
Virginia must at once become the commercial
point OF most interest 10 France-he might
have said TO Europe. The arguments by
which he supports this proposition incon-
tovertible, springng, as they do, out of UNI
deniable facts and the inc vi Bile laws of trade
VI the three routes by water now in exist
ence, for the trade of the West-that of New
York by the Erie Canal, that of New Orleans
by the Mississippi, and that of Canada by the
Lakesand the st. Lawrence the shortest is
farther by several hundred miles from the
grand centre-Cincinnati-tha the James
River and Kanawha route will be. For ex-
ample, the dis lance from New York by way
of the Miami Canal, Lake Erie, the Erie Ca
nal and the Hudson, is 1888 miles. The dis
lance from New Orleans by way of the Ohio
and Mississippi, is l ia miles. The distance
10 the mouth of the ST. Lawrence, (Monireal,
Canada, route.l by way OF the Miami Canal,
Lakes Erie and Ontario, the Welland Canal
and the St Lawrence River, is ego miles
The distance from Norfolk by the river the
canal and the Ohio, is 1872 miles Norfolk is
two hundred and ninety miles nearer than N
York, nearly a thousand nearer than New
Orleans, and nearly nine hundred nearer than
the mouth Of the ST. Lawrence. 1t should
not be forgotten, too, that while the nayiga-
lion OF the Mississippi is one of the most dan
serous in the world, and while the M vgation
Of the lakes is also beset with innumerable diff
eulties, the route from Norfolk TO Cincinnati is
almost entirely Invested of risks. Who ever
was cast away on the raging canawlg' III
you shorten the trip by stopping here, there
is no conceivable risk whatever, except the !
very slight one between the Kanawha and
slOftntsS OF dis
lance are elements in commercial travelling
Sufficient of themselves to determine a choice
OF routes in almost any conceivable case
But these are very far from being all The
route 10 the Kanawha will be open for at
least eleven months, on an average, in every
year. Five months the shortest period |
which the Erie Or Weland Canal ever is |
frozen in year. The lower Mississippi is |
deserte almost entirely during the summer
and fall months. Little business is transacted |
In New Orleans from August to November
The business season here LASTS from the first |
day of January to the last day Of December
All the year, except Christmas week, is bust
ness time with us.
We hope the Legislature will put lthe |
finishing stroke TO this important bust i
ness, which we feel assured is destined to have !
most beneficial and a most permanent in /
huence upon the destinies OF Virginia We
shall recur to the subject.
Gov. Wise..The aid ON Washington.
The letter Of Gov. WISE drives the last nail |
in the coffin Of this gigantic hambug Yet it /
As ON the transparent pretext Of conspiracy
Inn nd xts. a a.