And how often does the acceleration of the public despatch facilitate the duties and contribute to the lessening of the expenses of Government? Instances are not unknown where the rapid transit of a despatch has saved an expenditure for warlike supplies and operations, to the amount of many hundreds of thousands of pounds. That facility of intercourse and transit creates and increases commerce, is a fact which experience has abundantly established. A circumstance strikingly illustrative of it, and connected with one branch only of this Company’s operations, was stated in evidence before the Parliamentary Committee of last session on the Steam Navy, and is as follows,--viz.: _Extract from the Evidence of Mr. Anderson, M.P., a Member of the Committee._ But I wish to remark that, to estimate the value of these communications merely by the postage of the letters carried, I consider to be a very erroneous estimate; there are incidental public advantages arising from those communications which I consider far to overbalance the cost of them; for instance, by facilitating the communications with those foreign countries and dependencies, you promote the increase of your commerce. And I will mention one fact, which I think will illustrate the opinion I am now giving. About some six or seven years since, the merchants connected with Constantinople and the Levant were very desirous of having steam communication established with those places, and the Company with which I am connected were willing to establish such communication; but the returns being rather uncertain, while the expenses were certain and very heavy, they considered they were scarcely warranted in entering upon such an enterprise without some assistance. It was proposed to the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. Goulburn, that he should make some allowance, some few thousand pounds, for an improvement which was proposed to be made in the postal arrangements with Constantinople, and which would have reduced the post between London and Constantinople to thirteen days, instead of twenty-four. Mr. Goulburn objected to entertain the matter, but subsequently the communication was established. I find, in looking to the statistics of our export trade, that comparing the amount of our exports to the quarters to which those steamers run, previous to their establishment, with the amount at the end of the year 1846, there was an increase of about £1,200,000 a year. I find also that the actual value of the goods exported in those steamers from Southampton last year amounted to within a very trifling fraction of one million sterling. And referring to several Greek merchants connected with the trade, of much intelligence, for the cause of that increase, they told me that they felt perfectly certain that the establishment of the steam communication had been the great cause of the increase of the trade. I asked them on what grounds they formed that opinion, and they said it