at Britain.

I desire to return my sincere acknowledgments for many courtesies
received from Mr. Charles Atherton, of London, England; Robert Murray,
Esq., Southampton; and Hon. Horatio King, of Washington, D. C.

THOMAS RAINEY.

New-York, _December 9, 1857_.

THE ARGUMENT.

1. _Assumed_ (Section I.) _that steam mails upon the ocean control the
commerce and diplomacy of the world; that they are essential to our
commercial and producing country; that we have not established the
ocean mail facilities commensurate with our national ability and the
demands of our commerce; and that we to-day are largely dependent on,
and tributary to our greatest commercial rival, Great Britain, for the
postal facilities, which should be purely national, American, and
under our own exclusive control:_

2. _Assumed_ (Section II.) _that fast ocean mails are exceedingly
desirable for our commerce, our defenses, our diplomacy, the
management of our squadrons, our national standing, and that they are
demanded by our people at large:_

3. _Assumed_ (Section III.) _that fast steamers alone can furnish
rapid transport to the mails; that these steamers can not rely on
freights; that sailing vessels will ever carry staple freights at a
much lower figure, and sufficiently quickly; that while steam is
eminently successful in the coasting trade, it can not possibly be so
in the transatlantic freighting business; and that the rapid transit
of the mails, and the slower and more deliberate transport of freight
is the law of nature:_

4. _Assumed_ (Section IV.) _that high, adequate mail speed is
extremely costly, in the prime construction of vessels, their repairs,
and their more numerous employees; that the quantity of fuel consumed
is enormous, and ruinous to unaided private enterprise; and that this
is clearly proven both by theory and indisputable facts as well as by
the concurrent testimony of the ablest writers on ocean steam
navigation:_

5. _Assumed_ (Section V.) _that ocean mail steamers can not live on
their own receipts; that neither the latest nor the anticipated
improvements in steam shipping promise any change in this fact; that
self-support is not likely to be attained by increasing the size of
steamers; that the propelling power in fast steamers occupies all of
the available space not devoted to passengers and express freight; and
that steamers must be fast to do successful mail and profitable
passenger service:_

6. _