Polynesian., 1863-02-28
Navigation of the Mississippi.

The people and press of the Western States,
representing the great agricultural interest of that
region, beginning to manifest spirit of restive-
ness at the embargo which the blockade of the
Mississippi imposes upon their commerce, and de-
mand that prompt measures shall be taken by the
government to remove this obstacle. They very
pertinently declare there are nine millions of loyal
people at the West who have quite as important an
interest in the conduct of the war as those of the
Eastern States, who are crying out for emancipa-
tion proclamatiOns. and seeking to mould the mill
tary policy of gOsernment in reference to its bear
ings upon slavery. The West has already furnish
ed over four hundred thousand volunteers, and is
continually sending forward the best and bravest
of her population to swell the armies of the Repub
lic
But while no hostile foot has been allowed to in
wade the soil of the Middle and Eastern States. and
all their avenues of trade are kept open, our West
ern friends from the outset of this war; have Ia
bored under grievance almost as depressing to
their industry as the presence of an enemy within
their borders. They come In for liberal share OF
the taxation imposed upon the people to iur-
nsh the government with the sinews of war. But
this is but trihe in comparison with the indirect
tax upon tn cir resources to which they Obliged
to submit account of their being cut off from
their natural means Of communication with the
seaboard, via the Mississippi River, and being
compelled to send their products to market and re-
ceVe thelr supplies OF foreign commodities py the
way Of our Atlantic ports.
Let US cite an example which will serve TO prac-
ticaly illustrate the extra expense-not to speak of
incOnvenience-to which they subjected from
this cause. The flour mills at Belleville, Illinois,
annually purchase a million bushels of wheat,
which is the almost exclusive product of the single
county Of ST. Clair. The difference in the cost of
transportation of each bushel of this wheat, after
being converted into -four, is thirty cents more by
70 t,an hv tn
leans. Thus, upon the single article of wheat, the
blockade of the Mississippi imposes upon the
farmers of st. Clair County extra cost OF ship
meut equivalent to tax of three hundred thousand
dollars.
Before the rebellion, they argue, most Of the
flour used at Rio Janeiro and other South Amer
lean ports, went from New Orleans, and was the
product of the West the ships carrying out the
-four brought back the coffee and other tropical
products, for the South and West, and as a result
of this trade coffee always cheaper In New Or
leans than in New York.
Since the blockade flour still goes to Rio. but it
has to go to New York by rail and then down past
New Orleans aud the coffee has to pass New Or
leans on its way to New York, and then be shipped
West by rail for consumption, thus diminishing
the value of -four and increasing the cost of coffee
by the driving Of trade from Its Legitimate channel.
Before the rebellion, they also say, New York
had but little of the -four trade with the tropics,
because Northern -four would not keep In the hot
climate Wheat of Southern Missouri, Southern
Illinois. Southern Kentucky, and Southern lndi-
ana, was always in demand to make flour for that
market. Now New York is proiting by this trade,
and the railroads increasing their dividends derived
from this additional tax on the products of the
West.
Our Western friends declare if the free nayiga-
tion of the Mississippi is guaranteed them, they
can pay their war tax for the support of govern
ment out of what they will save in the transporta
tion of their products and return supplies and
that if allowed the privilege of the detail of one
third of their quota of troops for that purpose,
with such naval cooperation as is now available in