Show WAShINGTON 1 JI J I Chatty Collections from the f Capital i Washington 12 Secretary Evarta report concerning the progress of negotiations with China turns out to be just what was expected both in its excuses for delay and its predictions 01 success in future but there ia considerable con-siderable comment in Pacific Coast circles concerning his laying stress upon tbe fact that the joint reioution referred to by Willis resolution was not passed while at the same time he makes illusion to the similar resolutions which were parsed by tbe same Congress and is equally careful to say nothing about the passage of the fifteen passenger bill which had been sent to the President and vetoed before he gave his first instruction to Minister Seward on this subject Berry today introduced a bill foreshadowed in last nights dispatches dis-patches concerning California lien lands for school sections Congressman Murch on the strength of Horace Davis letter which wag telegraphed list Saturday baa agreed to report favorably to the full committee on Dvia hill for anew a-new poitoffice for San Francisco The Sfczr this tVomiig says It ib i reported that Senator Grover ol Oregon is seriously ill at Wilmington Wilming-ton Del Hia ailment is paralysis Representative Whittaker today introduced ajoint resolution instructing instruct-ing tae secretary of the navy ti appoint a commission of three officers whose duty it shall be to visit Oregon and Washington Territory and examine and report upon the propriety of establishing a navy yard at some suitable point on tbe Pacific Coast t north of the fortysecond parallel The House committee on postoffices And post roads nt their meeting to day instructed Chairman Money to move a suspension cf tbo rules in tho House to put upon its passage the bill regulating the manner of expediting ex-pediting tbe schedule of mail routes The committee subsequently gave a hearing to T W Park president of the Panama Railroad Company in regard t3 the difficulties ucder which Ameican foreign commerce labors ir competition with foreign steamship companies He related his experience particularly since ho became president of the Panama Railroad Company he said that at first he bad found tile whole trade of tbo western coast of Soutli America in the hands principally of an English Eng-lish steamship company but rust since that time by an arrangement ruth tbat company ball ot the trade from Call to north to Panama with the exception of the articles of cotton wool sugar and copper ore was BOW allowed to come by way of Panama and that consequently the tonnage of that road has increased enormously enor-mously He said that the trade oi tbat region was over 200000000 a year and tbat owing to the monopoly which the English steamship companies com-panies bad of the trade almost all of it went to Europe although the distance was GOCO mile against some 3000 to the United State He spoke of the importance of this great trade and 01 the immense benefit it would be to American manufacturing and agricultural agri-cultural interests if a lair portion of it could be diverted to this country He then went on to show wby it was impossible for American steamship companies to compete with Eurupenn steamship companies He saId for instance that if tne Panama Railroad Company were to attempt to estab hah a line of steamships to do this trade it would require at least eight steamships and that the cost of those eight steamers of from 2000 to 2500 tons each would be at least 1600 JOO more than the cost of the like steamship company Besides tbe original diflerenco in the cost the American company would have to pay 6 per cent insurance on that difference and an annual depreciation deprecia-tion ol 10 per cent on same difference differ-ence eo that if the two companies were to do exactly the same amount of business and at tho fame rates the English company could pay a dividend to its stockholder while the American company would be losing los-ing money In this same connection he alluded tj tbo disadvantage under which American steamship companies I bored illustrating the case of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company of New York which has had to pay in local texts in the city of New York between 600000 and 700000 within the last ten years while it did not pay a single dollar in the shape of dividends divi-dends Such a state of things could not exist in England where tUition was only upon net profits He also nlludcd to the additional cost of running run-ning tho American steamship lines in the way of large pay to tho officers and crews and in the way of the duty paid upon all aitilcB of consumption con-sumption from which duty English lines of steamships are free As Park had net concluded bis statement state-ment when the hour of 12 arrived the committee adjourned until tomorrow to-morrow after ha vin arranged to give further hearing upon the subject I |