STEAM NAVIGATION. 425 possessions in and the within half the distance, morally speaking, that they now are to . It is this giant that may enable Eng¬ land to grasp more effectually the vast resources of her maritime colonies,—and those of the Canadas,— and, west of the great lakes, those of the regions of Athabasca and Assinboins.* Since the establishment of steam navigation along the coasts of Great Britain, and between England and the continent, and particularly between England , Scot¬ land and Iz-eland, the consequent advantages are too well known, and too justly appreci ated, to be questioned. If we visit the United States, we find all their coasts and rivers navigated by innumerable steam- vessels. There are more than 300 navigating the Mississippi and the Ohio . The magnificence of the steam-vessels on the Hudson is not surpassed, if equalled, in ; they are, in fact, splendid floating movable hotels. A few years ago, small sloops, bateaux, and canoes, were the only vessels that navigated the Lawrence between Quebec and , and British manufactures were usually sold from twenty to forty per cent higher at the lat¬ ter than at the former place. At present there are eight or ten powerful steam-vessels, equal in beauty, swiftness, and magnitude, and superior, in accommo¬ dations for passengers, to our steam-ships in these kingdoms, plying between Quebec and , and commodities are, in consequence, now purchased at equal prices at both places. It is not long since the * Note AA.