The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-03-09
PHILADELPHIA's WAY TO COMMERCE.

From, the Wilmington (Dei.) Commercial
AS a manufacturing city Philadelphia is
already great but her press and people long
also for commercial greatness. This desire,
we believe, may be gratifed, and never was
there q time more auspicous for successful
effort in this direction than the present. Her
great rival, New York, is almost throttled by
the Thugs who control her municipal govern
ment; her business is crippled with lack of
public confidence in her commercial honor,
caused by the insolent disturbance of her
money market by speculative gamblers and
financial charlatans; while her carrying trade,
to and from the West, has come to be con-
sidered the legitimate spoil of warning rail
road and canal rings.
Philadelphias commercial honor, on the
other hand, is beyond reproach; her fnanciers
are men of national reputation and known
integrity, while her Western carrying trade is
in the hands of a giant corporation, which
fouls not its hands with speculating in its own
stocks, but confines itself to its legitimate
business and brings to the prosecution of that
business a far-reaching, comprehensive saga
city which pours the traffic of half a conti-
nent over its rails.
But to be great commercial city, Philadel-
phia must have foreign trade. Here New
York has the inside track, and believes she
can keep it forever. Why Because New
York has good harbor, accessible at all sea-
sons of the year, and Philadelphia has not
Philadelphians, as rule, either fly into
passion and Indignantly deny this fact, or
quietly ignore it, in discussing the question
Of their commercial future This is not the
part of wisdom. There is no commercial
future for them until they look this appa-
rently disagreeable fact squarely in the face,
and shape their policy accordingly. They
must strip themselves of the narrowness and
provincialism with which they have too Justly
been reproached, and extend at once their
ideas and their sphere of action. They
must regard the Delaware river as a whole,
and utilize whatever portion of its magnif-
cent harbor is best adapted for comm cree,
whether that portion lie within or with out
their present municipal limits
We know that such a policy would be at
once denounced by many as building up other
places with Philadelphia capital without any
return to that city, but little reflection
will convince any thinking person that this
would not he true. Philadelphia can, if she
chooses, forever remain the centre of the
trade and commerce of the whole Delaware
river region, not on account of her location
for that is probably a mistake but because
she has the start, and has the capital to main-
tain that advantage. Situation Is important,
without doubt, but New Yorks fine harbor did
not alone make her the commercial metropo-
lis of the Republic; Norfolk has as good q
harbor, and yet she languishes, and Beaufort
has better, it is said, and is little more than
village. New York by canals first, and
railroads afterwards, made her harbor the
point where the products of the interior most
readily met the commerce of the
ocean. and became at once the first
of American citizens. The other places as
we'll situated had not the energy or the capi
tai necessary to accomplish this, and theil
greatness is thing too far in the future to
be even matter of interesting speculation
to the people of this generation.
Philadelphia had, however, the energy and
the capital to establish as great avenues tC
the trade of the interior as did New York
and she did it. Her mistake was that sh,
failed to make this inland traffic meet he
ocean commerce at the most accessible point
and her commerce died When she has tn
courage and the wisdom to correct her mis-
take that commerce will revive.
All things, at present. combine TO give he
magnificent opportunity, and her action il
this steamship project will show whether o
not she has gained the wisdom to achiey
greatness If she subscribes lberally, if sh
builds her ships in whatever American yard
they can be built best and cheapest, wit
Pennsylvania's own iron, and if, when he