New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-02-24

islands TO St. Thomas and shipped thence
to England by vessels of the Royal
British Mail Steamship Company, who
-, heavily subsidized by the British
government and are thus enabled to
maintain :, line of steamers that runs by
that circuitous route with connections to
V,upicO. Sisal, Campcachy, and all or
uaa, " ali the ports named i'll this bill The
effect OF this subsidized line has been to re
d;,c our trade with Mexico from so, 600 coo
twenty Years ago. TO less than S',oou,u'"'
two or three wears before the war. The
last wear. it is true. we have increased it TO
twelve or fifteen millions; but this increase
was principally IN specie and was owing to
an extraordinary expectation of specie by
Alexander & Companys line, line that Is
largely sustained to-day by subsidy
granted them by tnc government of Mexico
to the amount of twenty-five hundred dol
lars i'll gold per round trip.
This he follows up with an exposition
of the postal relations between Mexico
and the United States. and says:
There was no service AZ the end OF the
| war because interrupted by the war. and
| no regular service for Il year or two after;
bus in 1863 we commenced to pay S3l $50
| Il wear for monthly steam service from BAL
timorr 70 New Orleans via Key West. Be
fore the war paid S.;o.ooo Il year tor
| monthly steamers running from New cr-
leans to the ports OF Tampico and Vera
Cruz.
After al extended argument to show
thai Mexico has valuable trade with
other nations, of which We might secure
a large part by adopting the same means,
he expresses the opinion that an increase
of only two millions of imports would
add nearly million of dollars to our Gus
toms revenues. This excites the tin.n ial
hero OF the Senate, who rolls down regu-
lar avalanche OF figures, comprehending,
of course. some fragments of fallacy He
says:
The great body OF our commerce with
| Mexico Is OF no Value 10 uS i'll the money
sense of the word the silver of the mines OF
! Mexico passing through our country with
out yielding us any revenue. | stated that
the great body OF our commerce with Mex
| leo was simply in receiving this silver and
| transporting II.
We can not admit such reasoning The
passage of this money pays our insurance
offices. express steamship and railroad
companies, i, deposited in our banks. and
in every respect promotes the commerce
between the two countries But the Sen
ator from Cincinnati. being put on his
mettle, begin, TO look, apparently for the
first time. into these facts. rather, as it
would appear subsequently, for opposi-
ton than conviction. He says:
find. on looking at the documents, that
| ,S 70 Iu |
entire amount Of importationS from Mexico
into this country during the last year WAS
Sl2.Ti.liS, of which in silver. which WAS
altogether The largest in'anount. there were
50 ,oH3 o.. or nearly :l0.000.G0o. The
amount OF gold was s233.1T. The total
amount of goods admitted free of duty from
Mexico into this country was Slo,906 413
The total amount of dutiahlc goods comn.
from Mexico, OF every kind. was s., $4,000.
and about on"halt of those duties has since
been repealed The great body OF our trade
with Mexico is in Iut"
Nj. Kellogg: "ut our trade: but what
is the great bulk o. the trade of Mexico
with foreign nations
NJ Sherman: W. received from them
a1ou. SIX hundred thousand dollars worth
OF iutc, and We received from them II lot o.
dive woods and atutf1 OF that kind which
We have made duty free. | believe that,
with the singh exception o; iute and a few
MINOR articles. nearly everything that
comes from Mexico comes into this coun
try tree OF duty.
But this t.u-ea ,onable assault upon
bill for tle relief OF tle farmer, and snip
yards OF the Mississippi valley excites the
sympathy Of other Senators. Strangely
enough, it comes from the Pacific States,
,rLoso g9'a s.j,syae1f'y passes the bill .
Senator Stewart, OF Nevada, makes a
practical inquiry:
MI Stewart: The great pon: should
like to know - what we send them. Be
cause if we get silver we can send them
something tor i.
The representative Of Cincinnati, which
makes annually Sl20, 900, 900 of manllfac-
lures, and j, poking her way into Red
river for market. says:
Mr.. Sherman: Il have not looked into
that.
Mr.. Stewart adds, in the tone of a MAI
determined not to be thrown Oft
That i, the important point.
The Senator from Cincinnati stasser,
on in pursuit Of information:
Mr.. Sherman | simply wished to show
that the idea that should give this sub
sidy which for ten. years will be 81 DOC. 900
for the purpose OF building up postal ser
vice. with the expectation of getting Il pos
tai service with Mexico, is dclusion. Ii il
is for the purpose of building up our com
melce with Mexico we have it now; for all
these articles that are brought here are
brought in American bottoms. All olIl
commerce with MEXICO is in American bot
toms and not in foreign bottoms. OF onl
Sl3 5000 0() commerce with Mexico, Sl2.43l .
900 were brought i'll American bottoms and
only SG61 900 upon foreign vessels. If it Is
intended 20 increase our commerce. and in
ducc the trade of Mexico to be transported
in American vessels rather than British,
say it is not needed. for that trade is now
transported practically i'll American vessels
And this brings down upon his devoted
head the ponderou, pick of Senator Nye
of Nevada who asks:
Mr.. Nyc: Does the honorable Senator
mean to say that the whole commerce o
Mexico il in our bottoms from Mexico.
Mr.. Sherman is clearly at bay. H'
responds:
Dir. Sherman: Between this country ant
Mexico.
Mr.. Nye: That is a very small portion I"
the whole ! suppose the object is to sc
the balance.
Mr.. Sherman: l understand that: but
should like to know how this measure Il
likely to increase it. How will this subsidy