New Orleans Republican., 1875-11-19


| of the republic after the fall Of Macmillan,
there were scarcely two years OF consecu-
tive peace. 1t this period fifty six changes
of government or rulers occurred. IN such
a state of public affairs both life and prop.
erty were so insecure, taxes aud forced
loans and army levies and bandit plunder.
ing were so frequent, and agriculture aud
mining SO prostrate, that all commerce
must necessarily have languished, and all
efforts to revive it been only partially sue
cessful. No country can long sustain
profitable foreign commerce without
reciprocal exchange of products; neither
should a rich agricultural country like
Mexico depend entirely upon its mines for
that exchange. The total exports for 1873
were S3l SOL $50 81, of which amount
$25,373,673 7S were metals, and only
| S63l7,417 O6 were other products and ar
ticles. This small export trade may not be
| surprising in view of past disorders. But
there must be an increased production,
both from mines and agriculture, 10 make
| profitable and desirable commerce; and
now, more than ever in its history, is there
a bright promise of better times. Peace,
let us hope, is assured. The mineral nro-
| ductions can be multiplied tenfold. rhe
agricultural capacity OF the country il
enormous. And with the completion of the
railroad system we may expect the COM
| inerce from the interior to be large.
Second-The government of the United
States has done very little to promote this
| trade.
think am correct in saying that Con
| gress has only once. and that more than tif-
| teen years ago, made any appropriation 10
| establish line of cOmmu nication or to aid
| those who have been bold enough to inau-
gurate lines OF steamers to Mexican ports
and l doubt whether, at any time in the
| adjustmt mt of the tariff on imports, has the
idea been considered of favoring the pro-
ducts of our neighbor and sister republic,
while we have subsidized lavishly lines of
steamers to reach the commerce of the fur
ther aide of the globe in China and Japan.
and beyond the Equator, in Brazil: have
had our treaty of reciprocity with our
monarchical neghbors in Canada, and are
very properly contemplating another, aud
with distinguished honors have received
the king of 10000 subjects living in circum-
scribed islands 5000 miles away from our
tar-off Pacific coast, and formed with
him liberal treaty of reciprocity.
Let US contrast this with the conduct of
the Mexican government. There are now
seven lines of steamers visiting the ports
of Mexico from foreign countries -
five on the Gulf counting the New
York and New Orleans lines as sepa-
ratel, and two on the Pacific coast. OF
these seven lines, three are subsidized by
the Mexican government. and all of these
three are American lines-the New York,
the New Orleans. and the San Francisco
and Panama Pacific Mail, while both the
French and English governments subsidze
line from their respective countries. But
ior the aid which the American steamers
are now receiving from the impoverished
treasury of Mexico none of these lines
would probably maintain themselves in
their respective trades.
While the Southern Pacific railroad,
which would open TO the United States the
boundless wealth of precious metals hidden
in the upper Sierra Madre and the agricul-
tural advantages of the northern States OF
Mexico, halts and languishes for want OF
government aid, and while the Information.
al, of Texas leading to the Rio Grande,
has been embarrassed for want of or delay
in the legislation of that State, Mexico has
given substantial evidence of it's desire to
aid every feasible railroad project looking
toward connection with the United
States, or having a tendency to develop
commercial relations with u.s. At the
last session of its Congress concession
was granted to the International Railroad
Company, of Texas, represented by Hon.
| Edward l., Plumb, to construct a railroad
from it's junction with the Rio Grande to
the city of Leon, a distance through Mex
I leo of between 600 and 700 miles, where
it will connect with the trunk system OF
railroads OF that country, and the govern
ment agrees to pay as subsidy to the com
pany $l5,2SS per mile with large addi.
tional premium if the Dad is completed be
fore the time fixed in the concession, as
well as exempts the road from taxation and
admits all its materials free of duty.
The Congress- at the same session
granted concession TO Mr.. d. b. Blair and
others, of California, to construct railroad
from Guaymas in the State of Sonora, to
! the United States boundary, leading in the
direction OF Tucson, the capital of Arizona
Territory. To aid this project the govern
ment proposes the magnificent donation oil
alternate sections of thirty five square miles
OF public lands of that State per lineal
mile of road. with exemption from taxation
and other privileges similar to the former
1t has also, for the fourth time, extended
the Tehuantepec railroad concession to an
American company, to construct q railroad
across that isthmus, granting it a subsidy
OF $2,OO0,000, with special privileges as to
precious woods, exemptions etc; and this
for the purpose of opening up to New York
and all the sea bord and gulf cities an ad
ditonal connection with our Pacific States
with China, and the islands of the ocean.
All these CONCESSIONS are to American
companies, and l trust that this liberal
legislation will be made available by Amer.
lean capitalists, and that even In this time
of commercial pr0stration and stagnation
in railroad enterprise, all possible encour.
agement will be extended to those initiatives
and offers by Mexico to give to us the bene.
tits of her yet undeveloped riches.
What l have said is perhaps enough on
this point, and sufficient to satisfy you that
very little, if any encouragement and aid
has been extended by our own government
to secure the trade of Mexico; and that the
government of that country, although ex-
Ishausted by more than half a century of
revolutions, struggling with poverty, and
staggering under q large domestic and
foreign debt, is really affording the only
government aid which the trade between
the two countries is receiving.
1t may be inappropriate for me to indi.
cate at this time what our government
should and can do in this direction; bat
it may be safe to affirm that it can do as
much as the government of Mexico, and In
similar manner. The same pecuuiary aid
as that given by Mexico, by way of mail
subsidy, would secure to the Gulf cities
weekly line of steamers to Vera Cruz
direct, or to the leading Gulf ports of Mex
leo, and to San Francisco q semi-monthly
line to the Mexican ports of the Pacific 10
place of the present monthly line. This
communication will of itself do much to
one of the necessary conditions precedent
to it.
Third-A third reason why our commerce
with Mexico is so insignificant ia because so
little mercantile, company and individual
effort has been put forth to obtain it.
After all, the most favorable action of the
government can only aid and facilitate in.
dividual effort. 1t ia not the proper function
OF the government to engage in commerce
The enterprise of American merchants and