OUR MAIL SERVICE.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 1, Issue 48, 2 December 1867, Page 297

OUR MAIL SERVICE.

(Prom the Sydney Morning Herald,-, sth Nov.) It has been proposed in more than one quarter to transfer the American terminus of our trans-Pacific line of steamers from Panama to San Francisco. It is contended that this would .form an equally good, if not better, route for mails to Europe, and would make a still better connection with the United States. The Californians are naturally in favor of this idea, and they are anxious to make their port the? great maritime rendezvous on the east shore of the'Pacific. It will be time enough, however, to discuss this question .when the trans-con-tinental railway from New York to San Francisco |is completed. Till then the passage of mails across the mountains will be liable to interruption, and the f journey for passengers will be tedious and toilsome. ; But tliis great work is being pushed on as fast as Yankeeeriergy can hasten it. The Government has. for some time-been extremely solicitous to see its completion for military purposes. The .civil war demonstrated the inconvenienee of the comparative isolation of California and Oregon from the rest of the Union ; and it was increasingly impressed oh the minds of the military authorities at Washington that in case qf a war with a great naval power, the western coast was dangerously cut off from succour;' Assoon, therefore, as the civil war was-over, American energy was concentrated on this great national work. So great is its importance in a national point qf view, that it was. time, contemplated to makefile railway a Governmentundertaking, under the general powers which enable the 'Administration to construct military roads. But there were two objections to this course. Inthe first place it was-not desirable to exhibit the‘undertakingsbefore the world too osten-sibly-as a military work, and, secondly, -the Government at Washington has hitherto-" kept itself disembarrassed of all possessions.- ;of railway .property, and. it was ; anxious;, to remain free in that respect-, /Whatever! tendency there, may be'in European countries to., accumulate all- railway property into the hands of the State, . the .Amepolicy: Has iron roads tovbe. ! to devolve all the 'responsibilities- of earribrsmpon privatefindividnals, and to leave the risks of. the investment and;the'troubles of, competition to private speculators. . Urahts immoney,; grants ; in land, guarantees r of,bonds.hav t e -been freely;, given, but,;.ijhe! Government declines to be'dirpqtly. a possessor of railway, property m' a constrictor -i of railway wbrlqs:"• .* '■ ?[■/."* •r This - policy Inis'/Been" adhered : 'to : even with" respect to‘the"great ! T^ i iray; ; aorbss : tKe ; continentj notwithstanding the.temptation to depart ;-from 4ft But:in.order / the allotted to., fwbj.oommssippi, md Pacific. . ]The* sop|tiqhiimidna : ani^mohey|tq::ewsh they ececut&s \ ajb^hrefeach^^brS^ngf' pmaflast

junction, is : effected- will land and the-largest are both pressing forward report of which seems with - our. Australian rate. of rWfSiy progress. The most troublesome part of the tfork—the passoge of . the Bocky 'Mountains-r-has yet to be accomplished, but- in four, or at most ‘five, years, there seems every probability that the work will be completed. ; '• ■ ' Though military reasons have: spurred the Government on to foster this enterprise; it may, and we trust wiU, be long before its military value-is practically demonstrated. Its great employment will be in the peaceful service of commerce. Taken in conjunction with the line,of steamers now running from San Francisco to Japan, and China, it will be the route by which Eastern produce will Aud its way into the h#tt It will also become a favorite line of travel, for it traverses some of the grandest and most remarkable scenery the American continent presents. It is true that a very long railway journey is very fatigueing, but in spite of this it is preferred to "ocean travel by those who suffer from sea-sickness or who dread the dangers of the seas; and where time is not an object fatigue may be lessened by frequent halts. It is not only possible, but we may say that it is a matter of certainty, that this route will one day become the favourite one between Australia and England. But though a line of steamers may connect Port Jackson with San Francisco, it is not so clear that they will supersede the connection with Panama. For both postal and passenger services, Panama has some advantages which the other route can never present. It is a great centre ol traffic to which converging lines come from all quarters of the world. A passenger landed at

, Panama can take ship pretty directly to nearly every part of the civilised globe. He can go t southwards to Valparaiso, or northwards to Cali- , fornia. He can go to the northern and eastern ' ’ coasts of South America, to the West Indies, to 1 a Mexico, to the Southern States of the Great He- - public, to England, to France, and even to the Mediterranean. Nothing can ever take away 1 from Panama this advantage; and the sanitary i condition of the Isthmus is capable of such indefis nite improvement, that, the risks of fever may be practically annihilated. t Meanwhile, whether Panama or San, Francisco is to be permanently the terminus of our transn Pacific line, another question has been started which deserves the immediate attention of our Government, and that is whether Auckland or o Mongonui would not make a better port of. call r, than Wellington. The Auckland papers contend ti that there would be a saving of from two to four e days in the passage if a more northerly route were d substituted; for that through Cook’s Straits. If such a saving of time were possible, it is certainly very desirable. Even when the inward mail is y punctual, the time allowed for replying to correspondence is very short, and when it is unpunctual, !; as it has been too frequently of late, the course of 3 post with America is lost altogether. - The Go1, vernment of this colony has an equal voice with ’ that of New Zealand, determining the line- of a route, and it is entitled to see that the is not shorn £of any advantage that could- be conferred. The acquiescence in the Cook’s Straits’ route, was due ie to a desire to conciliate Victoria, but as that i- colony, for the present, declines to he conciliated, )e the reaseh'no ldiiger operates; and if-Sydney could get-its mails some days quicker via Auck’s land, it is entitled to insist upon that route. The tn question, therefore, whether this is possible is one d, which, if it has not been investigated by the Government, ought to be.