National Republican., 1885-11-19

A very Cursory examination Of the map OF
the Pacific ocean and the countries border.
ing II ON the cast, west, aud south will
show that the Sandwich islands are so sit
uatcd aS 10 form the natural point Of con.
centuton for steamers leaving China AMI
Japan, Australia and New Zealand and
Tacoma, the terminus Of the Canadian Pa
clnc railway. II is but little over four
thousand miles from Honolulu to Hong
Kong, while to the Fit Islands, whore
steamers from Melbourne aud New Zealand
meet, the distance Is considerably less. From
Tacoma 10 Honolulu It Is slightly over
three thousand miles.
Steamers sailing from Melbourne, by way
q the Fiji islands; from Hong Hong, by
way of Yokohama, and from Tacoma could
meet In the harbor Of Honolulu, exchange
passengers and frolghts, coal, reyctual, and
return.
This "a precisely what the Australian gov
crument proposes shall be done by the John
Elder line, 10 which Il offers TO grant a sub
yeutlon Of Il, 10000 per annum.
How long will these nrst-class English
ships, meeting every week, carrying the
closed mails 10 aud from London aud Aus
tmlia, aud between London and Hong
Kong, he permitted by the English govern
mcut 10 meet In a foreign portY To change
the form of the question little, how short
a time will the English government permit
90 clapsc before Il makes an English colony
~ the Sandwich lslandsY
Only few years at most and the blood
red cross u -. George will fly over an i'm.
/ preguahle fortress at Honolulu command
ing the commerce of the Pacific, whose
every wave will be Swallowed by an Eng
I lish merchantmen.
American enterprise was trying to pre-
vent the absorption Of this trade by Eng
I lish merchants aud English shipbuildcrs,
hut the American government, at least the
executive part Of u, Instead OF endeavor-
Ing 20 AID individual enterprise IN lts efrorts,
deliberately and ruthlcssly strikes It down
Not even economy can be alleged as a
reason for the efforts TO drive the vessels Of
the Pacific Mail Steamship Company from
the ocean. The gross receipts Of the mail
transported By this line for the fiscal
| year ending the 3Oth Of next June
would have amounted TO nearly, n not
/ quite, two hundred thousand dollars. The
British postonlce paid In the last fiscal year
/ 10 the American postoillcc one hundred aul
three thousand dollars for Transporting the
| closed mails between London aud Australia,
aud forty-two thousand dollars postage was
/ collected by the department on letters sent
I by the Pacific Mail stcGmers-a total Of one
hundred aud fofty.nvc thousand dollars
/ postage received Ia the last fiscal year be.
cause Of the sailing Of the American steam.
SHIPS from san Francisco. with the rapid
increase Of trade aud travel between the
eastern countries and America aud Europe,
two hundred thousand dollars is not high
estimate ~ the receipts Tor the present fiscal
year. The Postmaster General was author.
iztd to pay out four hundred thousand dol.
lars 20 American steamers. Here was q line
which brought him IN half the sum. lie re,
fused to give II a dollar, and in so doing la.
imperilcd rapidly growing American com
merce almost os seriously US II war had been
declared with some foreign government pos
sossing powerful navy.
For mail matter going 10 the Atlanti,
ports Of South America during the last fisca
year, the PostOillce Department collected
forty thousand dollars There was on,
American steamship line trading to thes,
| Iorts. The Postmaster General refused e
pay that line any part Of the sum voted b,
Congress, preferring 10 send the mail by
"oceon tramps,n or 10y one Of the twenty
one lines which cross the Atlantic from
Europe TO South America.