Baltimore daily commercial. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1865-1867, 1865-12-28
THE ADVANTAGES JUST NOW CON-
GEDED TO BALTIMORE.

We find from various sources of informa-
ton lately at our command, that the convic-
ton is widespread at the North, that more
and more the tendencies of trade must be in
this direction; that here around Chesapeake
Bay there is to be concentration of trade
relationships such as never existed in all the
past Many things have lately tended to beget
this view of the case, and if any desire to see
how far the acts of the outside world keep
pace with these foreshadowings, let them OBJ
serve the general crowdng of freghts in this
direction; the readiness to recognize our great
channels Of intercommunication as those best
adapted to meet the wants of a vast territory,
west and south.
The cost of water carriage-let it be OBJ
Served-has so far in the history of trade,
borne no comparison to that by railway; and
especially for all heavy freghts; and when in
connection with this reminder, we find the
great cities to the north of us discovering with
feeling kindred to alarm that they are on
lines of longitude far to the eastward of us.
necessitating terrible consumption of fuel
and rolling stock to place their goods for the
Great West on the same line north and south
with ourselves, this disadvantage in the growth
of trade and commerce is so obvious, that
they may well look with feelings of something
like envy at our position as a city, so far to-
ward the interior of the continent, and as we
have already intimated, so much nearer to the
freights on which depend great ocean COM
1Rerce.
Taking this view of the case in connection
with the places with which she must compete
for trade, Boston is already moving earnestly
10 give herself more commanding position in
that new and gigantic eaterprize-the ''Norh-
ern Pacific Railway and New York is pro
.jecting new line Rorthward and a little west
ward, to tap the commerce of the lakes. All
that can be done will be done, we may be
assured, by the cities named, to maintain the
vantage ground already theirs by cirtue Of
greater capital and haJ1HM eaergy; but with
full faith iii the splendid position we occupy
and determination to leave no effort untried
to add TO our chances, our future cannot but
be bright beyond all that was ever realized il
the past.
That we have already done all that is practi-
cable we must not suppose. Instead of being
satisfied with the advantages already ours.
these should only stir us to new endeavors.-
10 be sure, our present Western communica-
tons are such as insure continued and vast
trade; but then we must finish the line which
is to connect us with Pittsburg; and above all.
we must push our interior communications
with Tennessee and the Southwest. to reap
fuller benefits from our position
We have considered briefly our command
ing position with regard to the cities of the
seaboard-lCt US remember that looking South.
west, the great Baltimore and Ohio railroad
can have no competitor on a parallel line,
southwark, the mountains of Kentucky run
ming towards Cumberland Gap in the manner
OF vast promontory into the sea, effectuallv
preventing any railroad on lines east and west
at points between.
Constituted thus by nature herself masters
of the great interior line southwest and north
east between this point and New Orleans
every effort should be made to develop the
almost invaluable trade aIoRq and continuous
to this line; and we are glad to linow-whilst
dwelling briefly upon this portion of the sub
ject,-that much has already been done by our
city to secure the trade in question. Then let
none abate their efforts to secure to Baltimore
the ultimate advantages that may be hers with
a little timely eXertion. With everything al
ready done for us to give us splendid start,
not only for the new and direct traffic betwiNt
the Great West and Europe, but for all other
points as well, it will be the fault of the most
criminal supineness, if we do not speedily |
make this one of the greatest commercial
centres of the whole continent.