The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1865-05-20
letter from boston.

on joint account, while he was running s. schooner
between this and Matamoras. The other parties in
terested brought suit to gain possession Of the cotton.
but the Captain gave bonds, and finally procured
authority to sell. This was in 1864, and during this
delay Of about three months cotton went up from -
cents TO S1,54-a rise Of eighty-two cents per pound
Would not this have sounded like an Arabian Nights
| tale a few years ago, and could any Southern cotton
/ planter have been brought 70 credit such q Tale for
the Marines ," Captain Law is looking well, and is
hourishing like s green bay tree" and from all
appearances will gain his lawsuit. particularly as he
has the funds arising from sales of cotton snugly
invested in Government Bonds. and therefore, having
the whip hand of his opponents, does not worry him
self greatly about the result.
About Cotton.
Our latest Geographic adyices from Honolulu stated
that the Islanders were going extensively into cotton
planting. | see that the staple is now quoted at
about so cents for Middlings, with a dull market.
Why did not we all drop all other kinds Of business
ut the Islands when this war commenced, and go
into cotton planting (? They did so in India, and
now look at the. gigantic fortunes made in Bombay.
Even the down-trodden ryots have bags on bags OF
rupees, and for countless generations they have been
greater slaves than our negroes ever were. Had we
gone into cotton at the Islands, to-day would have
seen US with baskets Of gold, trunksfui of green
backs, and closets slowed TO OVERLOOKING with Uncle
Sans Bonds. We all made the great mistake Of be-
lieying that the war would be ended in a few months,
and then everything 60 back to its old routine.
Father Abraham's first call for $4,000 volunteers
seemed enormous, and when the first lot of 7-3O
Bonds, amounting to only a few millions, were is-
sued, We all quivered with fears Of taxation and ma
tional bankruptcy. We did not then know our own
strength, nor the india rubber resources Of this great
NJ r~- a"I
navy alone, we spend two millions a day, and since
the war commenced the North has lost in killed Ito
say nothing of wounded 100000 men, and yet this
great number of men has been more than made up
by immigration. On this subject l could go on Gd in
fnitum, and when once mounted on this steed it is
difficult TO get to the ground again. 1t is most re-
freshing to look far away out in the middle of the
Pacific, and see so many out-and-out truly and thor
oughly loyal Union men, while we have sc much
secession III our midst here at home.
Wendell Phillips.
Wendell Phillips said one or two most remarkable
things the other evening, in one Of his always re-
markable speeches. He alluded to the justice of n
cause which has now nearly riumphed. " notwith-
standing the drawback of two years Of Mcclellan
He also said, Any man who lives fifty years and
sees the private letters of 1862 will find that JEFF
fersou Davis never intended TO rebel-he was never
weak enough TO rebel-nor did he ever intend TO quit
Washington. Davis relied upon Breckenridge TO re-
fuse to count the votes for Lincoln, and then to make
himself or Bell President. Thus by gigantic fraud
the Rebellion was TO have put on the garment of law.
South Carolina, Charleston, the gun pointed against
Sumter-kicked out of the traces and thus dragged
JEFF. Davis down into the trenches, made him n rebel,
and guaranteed his defeat
Petroleum.
Petroleum still continues to be the great card of
speculation all over the country, and almost every
body has more or less Petroleum stock. Our daily
newspapers are crowded with advertisements of new
companies forming, besides which New York has five
weekly newspapers devoted exclusively TO Petroleum,
and one monthly magazine. From Venango county,
in PENNSYLVANIA. near Erie. where the OIL excitement
first commenced, on Oil Greek and the Allegheny
River, down through Ohio and Western Virginia,
and also in Canada, new discoveries of oil lands are
being constantly made. Perhaps your readers may
be interested TO know how a Petroleum Company Ia
started, and so l will state the modus operandi.
Some individual goes to the oil regions, and either
buys or gets the refusal Of n piece Of oil land-we
will say, for instance, for SO, 600. He then runs up
to New York and let's his particular friends into this
good thing, at the rate of $4,000 or $4,000.
These original owners are IN on what is called the
hard pun, and they then go ahead and issue attract
i've prospectuses, giving most interesting details and
calculations Of the probable or uudoubted richness
of the scheme-adverise largely, and write subscrip-
tons to o capital stock of 10000 hares-par value
Sd per share, and n limited number of shares TO
be sold at the original subscription price of s. per
SHARE. \ handsome sum is reserved for 90 working
capital each hard plnner shOves of his stock
among his friends, and thus gigantic fortunes are
made. Statistics go to show that but one company
in one hundred ever makes u dividend. Expenses
are heavy, and unless q well Of extraordinary rich
ness is struck, the great mass Of stockholders never
get back a cent of their investments. l had a chance
to 60 in as a hard pan man not long since, but was
obliged to decline on grounds Of financial disqualif-
cation.
War Items.
This g cruel war; is about over, in my opinion,
and | feel as if any morning may bring the news
that JEFF. Davis and his congenial crowd have ske-
daddled over the border 20 protecting Mexico.
Blockade running is now so etfectually ended that
they could not get away in any other manner. 1t is
useless for me to tell you that we have Savannah,
Charleston, Wilmington, and a host Of towns of mi
nor Importance, for the swift telegraph and the clip
per banks of Admiral Smith and Commodore Patty
will carry the Dews to you long before my scrawI
Massachusetts colored regiment was the first to enter
Charleston after its evacuation, and that the original
flag hauled down by Major Anderson now floats over
the walls Of Fort Sumter.
Gold and Finances.
Our gold bearing bonds are eagerly bought up in
vast quantities by the thrifty and far-seeing German
capitalists. Our new tax-bin is estimated 10 bring
In a yearly revenue of four hundred millions, and,
the war once ended, i. will not take long for US to
create a handsome yearly sinking-fund, and our pa
per will equalize with gold. Our new Secretary of
the Treasury is greatly in favor OF a specie basis, and
in a late speech said that the specie basis should
never have been departed from. The new issue of
Z 80 bonds (to be converted into six per cent. gold
bonds at maturity, at the option of the holders, } is
being rapidly absorbed. and doubtless will soon
command a premium. My own opinion is in favor
of the popular loan Of legal tender notes in small
sums, bearing compound interest at Eve per cent.
A large quantity of such were issued a year since,
for a few months passed from hand &c hand in
regular course of trade; but now not one is TO be
with. j poor fellow can stow away a ten or a
twenty, when q ffy or a hundred would be out of
the reach of his moderate means. In proof of the
policy Of thus issuing a popular loan in small sums,
will mention the fact that one Of our interior towns
advertised for n loan of thirty thousand dol