Great pressure was subsequently brought to bear on Congress in order to obtain a subsidy for an American mail service to Great Britain. Those in favour of the subsidy argued that it was humiliating to their pride as a great maritime people, that foreigners and commercial rivals should wrest from them the virtual monopoly of ocean steam conveyance, especially between the United States and Europe, and they complained that the ocean mails along their southern coasts had been placed in the hands of foreign carriers, sustained and protected by the British Government under the forms of contract to carry the British mails; while the Cunard Line, between Liverpool and Boston, via Halifax, constituted the only medium of regular steam navigation between the United States and Europe. [Illustration: BRITANNIA. Cunard Steamship Co.] It may be appropriate to state here, that in addition to carrying the British mails from Liverpool to North America, the Cunard Company, early in 1850, obtained a contract from the British Government for the conveyance of the mails between Halifax, New York and Bermuda. The steam packets employed in this service were the ALPHA, BETA and DELTA, small vessels each of 350 tons and 80 horse-power, and fitted with a proper space for mounting an 18-pounder pivot gun. The arrangements for carrying on the service were as follows:—Twenty-four hours after the arrival of the packet from Liverpool, one of these vessels left Halifax for Bermuda; at the same time another left for St. John’s, while the third conveyed the mails monthly between Bermuda and New York. The payment for these services amounted to £10,600 per annum, equal to 3s. per mile, while on the main line it was 11s. 4d. per mile. The following year the British Government made another contract with the Cunard Company for a monthly conveyance each way of the mails between Bermuda and St. Thomas, upon such days as might be fixed by the Admiralty, the one vessel engaged in it being in all respects similar to those engaged in the Halifax and Bermuda service. The amount of subsidy was £4,100 per annum, or equal to 4s. per mile. This service connected the West Indies with the United States and the North American provinces.