The application of steam power to transportation brought about an economic revolution throughout the world, but nowhere was this more marked or beneficial than in the United States. The canal boats and crude steamboats which came into use during the two decades following the war of 1812, were superseded by the river packet and railroad train after 1830. By means of improved facilities for transportation, the markets were brought nearer to the farmer, so that his cotton, corn or cattle were easily delivered and converted into cash, and in return he was supplied with manufactured goods at far lower prices than formerly, owing to lower carrying charges. Travel also began to become something of a pleasure instead of a serious task, as it had been in the days of the stage coach, and the movement of the people broke down provincialism, improved the general intelligence and led to the social and industrial upbuilding and advancement. In 1830 there were but 23 miles of railroad in the United States, but by 1840 the mileage had increased to 2,775. In a journey of two hundred or three hundred miles a passenger was liable to be compelled to change cars several times, and the accommodations were far from luxurious, but they represented a step in the onward march of civilization. In 1850 the mileage of the railroads had increased to nearly 9,000 and in 1860 to nearly 30,000. Another valuable invention, closely connected with the railroads, came out about this time and added vastly to the facilities of commerce, the telegraph invented by Morse in 1844. Congress in that year made an appropriation of thirty thousand dollars for the purpose of constructing a wire from Washington to Baltimore, in order to practically test the invention. The National Whig Convention was holding its session in Baltimore, and over this wire came the news of the nomination of Henry Clay for the Presidency, The construction of telegraph lines then proceeded with great rapidity, especially in the Eastern states. In 1856 the various lines were combined under the corporate name of the Western Union Telegraph Company. The telegraph not only proved to be a wonderful addition to the facilities for transacting the business of the country, by affording quick communication, but also made the safe and rapid operation of the railroads possible, thus accelerating the transportation of goods and people. In 1858 the first telegraph cable was successfully laid upon the bed of the ocean, and thus rapid communication between the old and the new worlds became possible.                     -In 1845 Texas was admitted into the Union, and thereby was added 376,163 square miles to our broad acres, a large part of which is rich prairie, well adapted to grazing or tillage. The vast herds of cattle maintained upon these ranges have furnished the country with a considerable portion of its supply of meat and hides. A dispute with the Mexican government over the boundary of Texas furnished a pretext for war with that country, the real object of which was the acquisition of the vast sunny land stretching from the Rocky Mountains away to the Pacific. The war was a series of victories for the United States, and Mexico, poor, misgoverned and distracted by numerous revolutions, was overpowered, and compelled to cede to the United States the territory which we coveted. Americans can never take pride in the story of this war, which had for its real object the conquest of a peaceable though weaker neighbor's territory. The Mexicans were forced to make what terms they could. They accepted the Rio Grande as their border, and surrendered all land north of it, embracing New Mexico and California, extending northward to the border of Oregon. The United States assumed the unpaid claims of American citizens, amounting to $2,500,-000, and paid $15,000,000 for the territory. But like all ill-gotten gains, this territory led to difficulty at once, and a severe dispute arose over the slavery question, which culminated a few years later in civil war. In 1853 an additional tract of 44,064 square miles of land was purchased from Mexico, called the Gadsden Purchase.

At the time of the Mexican Cession the presence of gold was not known, but by accident the discovery was made in the following year, and as soon as the news spread throughout the middle and eastern states, a great rush set in for the Pacific coast, both overland and by water via the Isthmus of Panama. The population of California in 1847 was 15,000, and the output of gold is estimated to have been about $890,000. This amount was increased to $10,000,000 in 1848, to $40,000,000 in 1849, to $50,-000,000 in 1850, to $55,000,000 in 1851 and to $65,000,000 in 1853, when the population had increased to over 100,000 of a motley mixture of nearly all races and tongues, bent upon the one mission, that of getting rich quickly. The discovery of gold on the Pacific coast gave a new impulse to the mining industries of the country, and besides developed the trade of that portion of the country very rapidly. The harbor of San Francisco was filled with shipping, and thrifty towns and cities sprang up where only straggling villages existed before.

Following the example of England in the erection of its great crystal palace and exposition at Hyde Park, London, in 1851, the first international exhibition in this country was held in New York in 1853. It was fitting that this new and thriving nation, then a little more than a half century old, should measure its progress in the arts and sciences by a comparison with the best the world produced. Never before had such a display of the products of the hand and brain of man been attempted in the Western Hemisphere. In the departments of machinery and tools, agricultural implements, hardware, mineralogy and mining, as well as the fine arts, America made a very extensive and creditable display, rivaling in many respects the productions of Europe. Not only our choicest products in almost infinite variety were presented for exhibition, but from other countries and climes, from distant parts of the globe, came exhibits represented by countless contributors. England and France made superb offerings of their works of art and manufacture, and the Sultan of Turkey fitted out a steam frigate especially to convey the splendid fabrics of the Ottoman empire, richly carved cabinets, rugs and carpets of wonderful elaboration and beauty. This exposition did much to stimulate the spirit of invention and discovery, and improve processes of manufacture throughout the country, and was the beginning, the formal opening as it were, of what has proven to be a half century of the greatest achievements in mechanic and industrial arts the world has ever witnessed.