Total amount of merchandise in bond, June 30, 1850, is valued at..$118,132 00 Total amount of duties on merchandise in bond, June 30, 1850.... 38,948 50 Total amount of merchandise withdrawn for exportation, from November 12, 1849, to June 30, 1850, inclusive, valued at. Total amount of duties on merchandise withdrawn for exportation, from November 12, 1849, to June 30, 1850.. Total amount received for duties from November 12, 1849, to June 30, 1850... 236,242 00 75,569 85 889,542 93 The following is a schedule of the American and foreign vessels arriving in the port of San Francisco, from May 1 to July 29, together with their tonnage and number of passengers that have arrived during that period: Total number of vessels, 467. Tonnage, American, 96,083; foreign, 36,784. We present the following interesting statements in regard to the progress, capacity of boats, and present arrangement of ocean steamers between the United States and Europe. "Three years ago ocean steam navigation was entirely in British hands. Two years since the only line of American steamships afloat suited to ocean navigation in the merchant service, consisted of the two small boats running between New York and the Bremen line. There are now six large steamers running regularly between New York and Chagres. There are an equal or greater number on the Pacific side, and existing projects contemplate twenty in all within a year for the Pacific seas. There are lines also to New Orleans, Havana, Savannah, Charleston, in addition to those named in the above list, and every shipyard and machine shop in New-York city is tasked to its utmost capacity in this branch of service. There are no less than 17 ocean steamers on the stocks at the present time in New-York city. "The competition between the American and English lines will soon call into use the best skill of both countries. The recent voyages of the Atlantic, the first of Collins' line, and of the Asia, the last of Cunard's boats, show that an increase of speed may still be expected in ocean steamers.-That route, or that line, which shall reduce the voyage to Europe to the shortest period of time, will be the most successful. OCEAN STEAMERS TO RUN BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND EUROPE IN 1850. 11.-BRITISH AND AMERICAN STEAM SHIPS. We published a few months ago in our pages an article upon the progress of American steam navigation across the Atlantic, which showed very unfavorably towards our countrymen in comparison with the English. We are glad now to have an opportunity of extracting from a paper in the New York Herald, many facts and statistics of a more satisfactory and gratifying character. We have from the commencement felt a deep interest in the subject of ocean steam navigation, and have kept ourselves informed from time to time of the precise state of affairs connected with it. With the view, therefore, of placing our readers in possession of the exact state of this trial of skill and enterprise, we place before them the results up to this time-that is, the comparative speed of the steamship Atlantic, and the vessels of the Cunard line, in their passages to and from Liverpool. According to the official register of the Cunard Company, the average length of passage of those vessels, was, in the year 1849: Days. Hours. From Halifax to Liverpool.. The average length of passage from New York to Halifax, was. Average passage from New York to Liverpool of the Cunard steamships in 1849.. The American steamship Atlantic on her first trip to Liverpool, and with a broken engine for five days and a half, made the passage in... 13 21 Difference in favor of the Cunard steamships under favorable circumstances, and against the Atlantic under the reverse...... The actual time lost by the Atlantic was at least forty hours on her trip to Liverpool; and when we add to that her decrease of speed on account of her broken engine, it must be admitted that her outward trip was an extraordinary one. Now, let us investigate the comparative homeward passages of the Atlantic and the Cunard steamships during the year 1849, and also the comparative pas sage of that vessel and those of the Cunard steamships which left Liverpool a short time before she did, and the one which left after her. By the official records of the Cunard Company, it appears that during the year 1849 the average length of the passages of the steamships of that line, was From Liverpool to Halifax... From Halifax to New-York. Average passage from Liverpool to New-York. Passage of the Atlantic from Liverpool to New-York, with a head wind and sea all the time, and a gale a good portion of it..... 2 5 45 Difference in favor of the Atlantic over the average passage of the Cunards in 1849..... Now for the trip of the two Cunard steamships, which left Liverpool a short time before she did and the one that left that port after her : The steamship America left Liverpool on the 25th of May, and arrived at New-York on the 6th of June at 6 o'clock A.M., thus making the trip in.. Days. Hrs. Min. 11 20 30 The Atlantic left Liverpool on the 29th of April, and made the passage in.... 11 Difference in favor of the Atlantic... 16 +19 4 The Asia left Liverpool on May 18th, at 1 P.M., and arrived at Boston May 28th, at 1 30 P.M., thus making the trip to the latter port in.. Difference between Boston and New-York... Time that would have been occupied by the Asia if she had come to New-York instead of to Boston.. Difference in favor of the Asia... In comparing the passages of the Asia and the Atlantic, it must be borne in mind, that from the time when the latter left Liverpool, until she arrived at New-York, she experienced, with the exception of eight hours, a succession of head winds, which increased at times to gales, and had to encounter an extraordinary rough head sea, which retarded her progress, at the lowest calculation, twenty-four hours; whereas, on the contrary, the Asia had fair winds almost all of the way, and used her sails. The result, then, is this :— Passage of the Asia with fair winds almost all of the distance, and using sails... Passage of the Atlantic, with head winds and gales and seas, all of the distance, with the exception of eight hours... Difference in favor of the Asia under these circumstances.... Days. Hrs. Min. 10 21 30 11 4 15 6 45 Let us take the Canada, the Cunard steamship, which left Liverpool after the Atlantic, and arrived at Boston on Wednesday :: To sum up all, therefore, and to come to the point, we have established by the above figures, which are taken from official records, three points in the result, viz. : That the steamship Atlantic, with a broken engine, and against head seas, made the outward trip to Liverpool within twenty hours of the average passages of the Cunard steamships during the year 1849, which certainly was doing better than could have been reasonably expected under the circumstances. That the Atlantic made more than an average passage of the Cunard steamships in 1849, on her trip from Liverpool to New-York, the difference in her favor being two days and six hours. That she beat the steamship America, which left Liverpool four days before her, sixteen hours. That she beat the Canada, which left Liverpool three days after her, twentytwo hours and forty-five minutes. That the Atlantic, with heavy head seas, head winds and gales all the passage, with the exception of eight hours, was beaten by the Asia-which experienced favorable winds almost all of the way, and used her sails almost all the passage-only fourteen hours. In whatever way we view this subject, Mr. E. K. Collins, the enterprising originator of this splendid new line of American steamships, the stockholders and the public of the United States, have every reason to rejoice at the result, thus far, of their performances. With such a commencement, under such unfavorable circumstances, what may we not reasonably expect of those steamships hereafter? Let it be borne in mind, too, that the Canada and America, whose passages we have compared with that of the Atlantic, are the fastest of the Cunard line, and are the two vessels which made the shortest passages from Liverpool to Halifax, from Liverpool to Boston, and from Liverpool to NewYork, in the year 1849, as well as from Boston to Liverpool, and New-York to Liverpool, according to the official statement, as published by the Cunard Company, through their agent at Halifax. DEPARTMENT OF INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. We are indebted to the Rail-road Journal, edited by Henry V. Poor, Esq., whose personal acquaintance we had the pleasure of forming last summer in New-York, for much of the following interesting matter, relating to Southern Rail-road enterprise. His paper is deserving of a very wide circulation, and we are glad to learn is obtaining it. 1.-MOBILE AND OHIO AND ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAIL-ROAD. We are gratified to see that this bill, granting lands in aid of these important roads, has passed Congress and become a law. It grants alternate sections of land for the whole length of the two roads, (which is not far from 1,000 miles,) provided they can be found within 15 miles of the line of the road. This bill secures the early construction of a rail-road from Lake Michigan to the Gulf of Mexico, in an almost straight line. It opens to the great lakes the shortest possible communication with the gulf, and brings the products of the tropics and of high northern latitudes within close proximity. Its line is identical with that of the direction of trade, and must ever constitute one of its great channels between the extremes of the Union. Without this grant these roads could not have been built for many years. With it their early construction is certain. They will traverse sections of the country far removed from navigable waters, which, for the want of suitable means of transportation, have attracted but little attention, and which are but thinly peopled, though of great fertility. These roads will put a new face upon the condition of things at the south, and impart to that section the stimulant which the steam engine always administers to a people among whom it is in troduced. They will give a new importance to Mobile as a seaport, and make it one of the leading commercial towns of the south. The country will reap a much greater benefit from these roads, than the value of the grant which has secured their construction. This great line of railroad will give to Cairo the importance of position, which has been claimed for it by those who have been endeavoring to build up a city at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi. It will make it the entrepot of trade for Southern Illinois, and the shipping port in the winter for the produce of that great State.-It will be the point where the travel will leave the Mississippi for the land route north. From the junetion of the Ohio, the Mississippi is always navigable for the largest class boats. For a greater part of the year Cairo can be reached by railroad much cheaper than by steamboat. Below that point the river will always offer the cheapest carriage. This will constitute that place the shipping point of an immense amount of produce. Its proximity to the coal fields of Illinois is another fact in its favor. As we said before, the completion of the above roads is all that is wanted to make it what its friends claim it is capable of becoming, the commercial capital of Illinois. 2.-ALABAMA AND TENNESSEE RAILROAD. ` A large convention of the stockholders in this road was held at Shelby Springs on the 13th ult., for the purpose of considering the steps to be taken in relation to the commencement and prosecution of this work. By the report of the committee in the business of the convention, it appears that the subscriptions to the capital stock of the company are as follows: To which should be added the appropriation of the legislature, variously estimated at from $260,000 to $300,000. By the act of the legislature this appropriation was divided into three parts, pro rata, according to the distance, viz: from Selma to the Coosa river in Shelby county, from the Coosa river to Gadsden, and from Gadsden to Gunter's Landing. This division would give from $206,965 to $238,806 of the appropriation to be applied to the two divisions from Selma to Gadsden, making the total present means of the company to build the road from Selma to Gadsden equal to from $1,129,965 to $1,161.806. In this estimate of the means of the company, the value of the grading already done, is not included; this is estimated at $60,000. By the report of the chief engineer it appears, that the total cost of the road on one of the routes surveyed complete for the reception of its furniture and motive power, is as follows: The following table shows the proportion, in this estimate of the cost of the road, between the grading or work, which may be executed by the common labor of the country, and the iron, engineering, and mechanical labor: Grading or work which Iron, enginering, and mechanical labor. $527,770 843,333 Selma to Talladega.. 66 Gadsden.. |