THE AUSTRALIAN STEAM LINE.

Westport Times, Volume IV, Issue 645, 14 April 1870, Page 2

THE AUSTRALIAN STEAM LINE.

The Alta California in a lengthened article discussing the advantage accruing to San Francisco from the establishment of a steamer and railway route from Australia and New Zealand to London, via San Francisco, refers to a statement having reached that city that the proprietors of the Cunard line are about to transfer certain of their steamers from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, with a view to occupy the proposed route from San Francisco to Australia, and that it had been positively asserted thatthe first steamer would be quietly despatched from Ireland in a day or two. The two other competitors who, are stated by that journal to be already in the field, are Messrs Holladay and Bresham of San Francisco, and Mr H. W. Webb of New York. The latter gentleman proposes to put the following steamers on the route : —Nebraska, 2143 tons ; Nevada, 2145 tons : Dacotab, 2150; Santiago de Cuba, 1G27 tons. The Nebraska is now in San Francisco, awaiting orders to proceed to Australia, and the only thing that delays the matter is to ascertain what the Government at Washington may do in the way of granting a subsidy for carrying the mails. Seeing that all, or nearly all, that is required would be returned in the shape of postage, it would not be a very great stretch of liberality to vote that which will come back in another shape. To further this matter of subsidy the following resolution has been proposed by General Betge, in the United States Legislature:—" Be it resolved by the Senate, the Assembly concurring, that our Senators in Congress be instructed and our representatives be required to use such influence as shall cause .National aid to be granted in shape of a liberal subsidy, commensurate with the importance of the project for a term of years, to any responsible company who will contract to perform a monthly mail service in vessels not less than two thousand tons burden, between San Francisco and Melbourne."