Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-04-30
Steam on The Pacific Ocean.

An attempt was made in the e,.,"r OF 1873,
BY the American House OF RusseII ~ : e, so
long and favorably known in the Chin trade,
to establish line of steamships between
Hongkong and San Francisco, in connection
with their steamers on the coast and rivers
OF China. Their steamer, the Robert Lowe.
of twelve hundred and sevcnty-seyen tons and
eighty horse power, made trip from San
Francisco in March, stopping for few hours
at Honolulu, although her captain did no;
see fit to enter the harbor, and, Of course, OBJ
tanned no supplies Of coal there. Inc greater
part Of the way was made under sail, and her
passage to HOngkorg was not particularly
brilliant. So little encouragement was met
with on this preliminary trip, that neither she
nor the Scotland (Of seven hundred and MY.
nine tons, and one hundred and fifty horse
power,) which was to have been the second
steamer in the line, were sent back. and, As
freights were very much depressed III the
Chinese waters, and steamship owners could
scarcely find employment for their regular
vessels she remained idle in the WGoSag
river throughout the summer, and the project
was abandoned. There were many reasons
for this failure. The vessels Of the line were
old, unreliable, and VIGOROUSLY slow, 80 that
no one had much faith in their beating the
clippers By many days; it was understood
to be an experiment, and some degree OF per
manency is necessary to form business for L
steamship line on so long route; !reIgnts
from San Francisco were not plenty at the
moment, and several small and fast barns
were loading, which had the preference;
while, at any time, there is not much valn-
III n+ca -
charges, except bar silver and Mexican do
lars, and for some time TO come it is not TO be
expected that this will be otherwise.
But it is not to be inferred from one tenn
porary failure in favorite project of AmerI-
cans in California and China, that the import
ance of a steam line on the grand ocean i:
| undervalued; or that very long time Will
elapse before it will be an established fact, as
regularly in operation as the Cunard or PENN
sular and Oriental lines. We may look upon
this pioneer voyage 4 promise fOr the
future, to be fulfilled with the first active re-
sumption Of trade, after the settlement OF ouE
civil war.
A mail contract from the United States
Government, ensuring 100000 to $4,000
per annum for three or four years would lead
to the establishment Of permanent line I'M
mediately and even without such aid, in Il
very few years, the rapid growth of California
and Of her trade with China, already con-
siderable, will make such line pressing
necessity, profitable without the help of Coy;
ernmcnt contracts. To start it now such aid
would seem TO be necessary.
1t is needless to comment oil the great aL-
vantage that would accrue 10 San Francisco
with the growth of her China trade, and the
importance of placing her in as close com
munication with China as is possible, If we
desire her to retain the commercial slpre-
macy Of the eastern shore Of tie Pacific. san
Francisco papers often aIlude to it, and San
Francisco men are full Of It. Steam on the
Pacific comes after the Pacific Railway only,
in their estimation, and they are 81 sure that
they will have it shortly, that much more Of
their attention is engrosscd by the Railway.
H!mtS' Merchants Magazine.