The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1782-10-26 00:00:00, page 2

Fxrrad from an Ordinance passed by the United States of America in Congress Assembled, October 18, 1782, entituled
An ORDINANCE for Regulating the POST-OFFICE of the United States of America.
WHEREAS the communication of intelligence with regularity and dispatch, from one part to another of these united Rates, is essentially requisite to
the fafety as well as the commercial interred thereof ; and the united states in congress assembled, being, by the articles of confederation, veiled with
the sole and exclusive right and power of establishing and regulating poft-offices throughout all these united states: AND WHEREAS it is become
necessary to revise the several regulations heretofore made, relating to the poll office, and reduce them to one aft:
Be it therefore ordained by the united hates in congress assembled, and it is hereby ordained by the authority of the fame, That a continued com
munication of ports throughout these united Bates, (hall be established and maintained by and under the diredion of the postmaster general of thef^
united states, to extend to and from the Rateof New-Hampshire and the date of Georgia inclusive, and to and from such other parts of these united states as from time
to time he (hall judge neceffiry, or congress (had direct'
And be it further ordained by the authority aforefaid, That the postmaster general for the rime being, shall, from time to time, superintend and direst the poll-office
in all its various departments and services throughout the extent aforefaid, agreeably to the rules and egula fions contained in this ordinance- and shall have full Pow
er and authority to appoint a clerk or affirtant to nimfeh, and such and (o many deputy poflmaflers as he dull think proper, for whose fidelity he shall be accounta
ble; each of whom shall reside at such place as the poflmafler general shall judge best suited to maintain a due and regular transportation and exchange of mails And
the said postmaster general shall be and hereby is authorifed to allow, from time to time, to his Aid deputies refpedively, such commissions on the monies to arise from
podage in their^rfpedive departments, as he fh^l think their refpeHive services may m rr it, so as that the said commissions shall not in the whole exceed twenty per cent
And shall, by pimfelf or his said deputies ref^dively thereunto regularly authorifed by him from time to time, appoint the necessary poftriders meffeneers and
presses, with such fabrics and allowances as he or his said deputies refpediveiy shall think meet. P 1 r ' menengers and ex-
And be it further ordained by th^e authority aforefaid; That the ponmaher general, his clerk or a ffiflant, his deputies, and poll and express-riders and meffen^rs or
either of them, shall not knowingly or willingly open, detain, delay, fecrere, embezzle or deflroy, or cause, procure, permit or fuller to be opened ' detained delayed
ferreted, embezzled or deflr yed, any letter or letters, packet or packets, or other dispatch or dispatches, which shall come into his power, hands or cußodv' bv rex'
son of his employment in of relating to the poll-office, except by the confect of the person or persons by or to whom the fame shall be delivered or direded cr bv
express warrant under thehand of the president of the congress of these united states, or in time of war, of the commander in chief of the armies of these united states
or of the commanding officer of a Separate army in these united hates, or of the chief executive officer of one of the said states, for that purpose or except in such nth^
cafa wherein he shall be authorised so to do by this ordinance (Provided always, that no letter, franked by any person authorised by this ordinance to frank thefame
shall be opened by order of any military officer, or chief executive officer of either of the fates) And that the postmaster general, his assistant, deputies and
press-riders, and messengers, and each and every of them, shall, without delay, take and fubferibe the following oath, to wit, “ I, A. B. do folemnlv'and fince/eIJ
swear declare or affirm (as t! e case may require) that I will well fed faiihfully do, execute, perform and fulfil every duty required of me, and abfiain from every aft
^nd thing forbidden by a certain ordinance passed by the united states of America in congress assembled, on the 18th day of O&ober, 1782 entitled “ anordinancZ
for regulating the poll-office of the united dates of America." Chance
And be it further ordained byjhe authority aforefud, That if the poftmafler-general shall be guilty of a breach of the said oath or affirmation or anv thereof
be thereof convid, he ^ll forfeit and pay one thousand dollars, to be sued for a,id recovered in an adion o' debt, in the date where the offence fhall^ cofotted by
the tr-afurer of the united states for the time being: and if any port-marter, poll-rider, or other person employed in the post office department shall beeuiltv of a b^ch
of the said oath or affirmation, or any part thereof, and be thereof convift, each one so offending shall forfeit and pay three hundred dollars to be sued fcr and record
^ an aftion of debt in the Bate v^re the offence shall be commi ted, by the politer general for the time being Jail which forfeitures 'whe^
Shall accounted for by the persons recovering the fame, and applied towards defraying^ necessary expences of the p o st office - and every person employed in the
post office department, who shall be guilty of a breach of the said oath or affirmation shall, besides paying the abovementioned forfeitures be rendered incapable hereof
ter of holding any office or place of trod or profit under these united states: Providcl always, That th! foregoing oath Ihall not b!^
messenger, to be appointed at the request of any particular person or persons, in ihe manner herein after directed unless the fame shall bethought nectary by % p'oft
mailer general or his deputy, who shall have appointed him ; which oath shall, without delay, be made by the postmaster general, before the president of the co^refs of
these united states; and by each of the said cerk or assistant, deputies and p^ftriders (except as is a bove provided with refpeft to special expresses and meffenaers)
fore the postmaster general, or before any civil magistrate nominated by him for that purpose ; all which persons are hereby rfolively authorifed to adminifler the said
oath ; and shall refpeflively make and sign certificates thereof: the certificate to be signed by the president to be lodged in the office of the
^e^in'rfrafo certifi^^ Certificates refpeftively to be returned into the office of the pofimafter general; there to be kept as evidence of the several qualifications
L "° d ^it/u^er ordained by the authority aforefaid, That the poflma tier-general of these united Rates for the time being and his deputy and deputies thereunto
by him fufficiently authorifed, and his and their agents, post-riders, expresses and messengers respectively, and no other person whatsoever, fall have the Ireceiving taking
,p, ordering, difpatchmg fending post, or with speed, carrying and delivering of any letters, packets or other dispatches from any place within these united Rates for
!? r % re ^rd, ° r oth , Profit °r advantage for receiving, carrying or deliv ring such letters or packets re^edively ; and any other person or persons prefumine so to do
mail forfeit and pay for every f^ch offence, twenty dollars, to be sued for and recovered in an aßion of debt with costs of suit by the postmaster general o P r his depot; in th^
Rate in which the offence shall be committed ; and fuc^fums as shall be thus recovered and received shall be accounted for by the postmaster general and applied to
wards defraying the necessary expences of the poft-office. Provided nevertheless, That nothing herein contained shall be conflrued to extend toany ^ffen^r purpose
ly teuton any private affair, and carrying letters or packages relating to such affair only ; or to persons sent officially on public service. And provided also That no
thing herein contained shall in any manner affidany private cross pottrider that may be employed by any of the citizens of these united Rates with the con'fent of
postmaster general or hie deputy until a public rider can be eflablifhed on such cross road.
And be it further orjaioed by the authority aforefaid, That if any person, not being a post or express- rider in the service of the general post office, (hall carry anv let
ters, packets brother dispatches from one place to another within these united Rates on any of the post roads to any place within these united Rates for hire or reward
except in cates as is herein before excepted, or shall not, when bringing letters from beyond sea for hire or reward, deliver the fame at the poft-office, if any there be at the
h f ^' s ° r , erarr ™ a 3 ', or ^e shall, in each of the before mentioned cases, forfeit and pay, for every such offence, twenty dollars- to be' reco
''er'|d the , p °, mßft ! r ^"e,;' cr ,%° f h ", deputies, in an adion of debt, in the fiate wherein the offence shall have been committed, with costs of suit• and
applied towards the expences of the poft-office, and oe accounted for accordingly : and if such offence shall have been committed by any person holding a civil or military
coinmiffion under these united ^tes^ he shall, 011 conviction thereof, forfeit his commission. And for every letter, packet or other dispatch from beyond sea, which anv
person shall so deliver at the port office, he shall receive of the postmaster, at the port-office, for the delivery of the fame, one ninetieth of a dollar '
And be it further ordained by the authority aforefaid, That the poftmafler-general shall cause the mail to be carried with all care and dispatch, at least once in eve
ry-Jnt 'p. a °f d e p a f C ^A' tbe , ated p °" office'' and his deputies shall keep and transmit to him, regular, particular, just and quarterly accounts of the incomes and
ex ,. nc , ures of J heir refpettive offices; and from those and such other imperials as shall be necessary for the purpose, the postmaster general (hall form and keep regular
and just accounts of the incomes and expenditures of the general post other, winch tie thall annually deliver to the comptroller of accounts of these united Rates, at
tended with the quarterly accounts of each office, and vouchers for his examination and passing. '
And be it further ordained by tlte authority aforefaid, That the postmaster general's deputies refpeQively, shall regularly publish at the expiration of each quarter
( ' f A " ^conveniently be done) in one of the mofl convenient public ne^paperß, for three successive weeks, aHR of all letters at that time remaining in their offices -
and at the expiration of the subsequent quarter, shall fend such of the letters so published as then remain, as dead letters to the general port office- where they shall be
opened and infpetttd by the postmaster general, who shall carefully preserve them, with the papers therein r<fpe&ively contained, and shall inftrt in a book to be kept
for that purpose, the date of such letter, and the name and place of direction on the fame, together with a particular account of the enclosures contained therein - and
at the expiration ofeach quarter, the postmaster general shall cause to be published, in one of the newipaper: of the Rate in which the owners of inch valmble papers are
m'lf^r \: 1 /" p ''"i p f r " p , n 'f d '" s uch ' e '" ' ie m ° ft c °" v ^ nt P^ er > an adverufement, informing that such papers are in his possession, and
flail deliver such l ett 'r an, enclosures to the person or persons to wcom the fame shall be diredel, or his, her, or their order at the port.office, he fh^ or th^y firfl pay
ing tee PORT for the ff, at the rates from time to time eflablifhed by these united Rates in cougrefs assembled, and the necessary expence of such publications as afore
faid; and in case of neglefl to,take up such letters, the.neceffary expence Ihall be charged to tne unted Rates,
A ^ d be " o . rdai ,d b y the authority aforefaid That the postmaster general, and his deputies refpeftively, shall, and they are hereby authorifed, whenever
the danger of robberies of the mail, shall in their refpeftive judgments ren^r the fame necessary, to hire occasional expresses for carrying thepublic dispatches and
uc , A "% e ^ all ^'" ^ Post ° ffices ; wh °,^ n ^ be c^md to fixed days, to travel the usual post roads but shall, id t^ofe refpe%
be fubjeft to the order and direction of the port mafler general and his deputies refpeaivHy. And to the end that the expwuce of several expresses deflin-d to the fame
E ac 4 .T? 7 ay be l '^u ed : f ° rt ^ r ° r l d '"°'' d by the authorit y af ° ^^ that al extraordinary expreffc. in the public 'fervice, shall, if a port-office
be ,abbfhed at tne place from which they shall severally take their departure, be hired by the poßmafier general or his deputy, and set out from, and return 'o such
port-office witn the letters, packets and dispatches, to be carried by them refpe&iv e ly. r 3 ircm, ana return.o luca
.J': d ,!? e 'Vn r h b ",°: da oi''^ ' auth ? rl 'y aforefaid, That the portage of all letters, packets and dispatches, to and from the different poft-offices within these uni
ted Rates, shall be at the following rates, in penny weights and grains of silver, eftimatinge^ch penny-weight, as at present, at five-ninetieths of a dollar to wit
h X ' y A "^^ °" e F eon y- w eight s eight grains; upwards of sixty, and .not exceeding one hundred, two penny weight upwards of one
hundred and not exceeding two hundred, two penny-weight lixteen grains, and so on, sixteen grains advance for every hundred miles - and for all fingte letters to or
from Europe, by packet or difpa ch yeffels, four penny-weight : the above rates to be doubed for double letters, trebled for treble letters, 'and a packet we^hinz an ounce
to . be charged equal to foyr single lettered in that proportion, if of a greater weight: and to the foregoing rates (hall be added, a sum not 'exc^
of a dollar, upon every letter, packet or dispatch wiiich shall come into the post office from.beyond sea, by any other conveyance than packets or difoatch vessels - and
may and ^" ^^^ in ^ e ° ffice ^^ lne ^ ^ l)ave ^^^ ^^ ^o^^
n ^^^^ ^ret^^^^^^ ^^±^^^ ^^
:^^^i ^ for ' uch prop ° rt ^ ° fthe m ^ s ^^ ^fo as
^lihf; fe the , c ° me 1 t |ie ^^ ^% in any year, exceed the expences thereof, the postmaster general
funror/of the general i P '" '""" ° mo "ey heretofore advanced, or which shall be hereafter advanced by the united dates, for the
T'r a T^ """ be ^^ after "bich such farphts shall be appropriated and applied to the
eflablifoment shall exceed the profits arising from Ute post offi^ '^ch'ex'c?'^^ '^'T'f $ "r^f "'^ " '"'y be ; a "! " ^ necessar y expences of that
' he ^%^ e ^d^ 0 fr^ t^^ f UPer in tendant of finance, by
ing congress, t'o and f'rom'the cLma'nd'eri^^ of 'thefe tithed dutches, to and from the members and secretary of congress, while Anally attend.
„fc, -of J, and of foreign affair, of the United ftatel^l^^p^T^f^ '° ^ fr ° m the ^^ ° f the de ^ rt ^ ts of fr
ft.% furt , r #% ™^,^ Ifor, fo.fbe r P fo
And be it further ordained by the authority aforefaid. That all former and Lrl „
made, relating to the office, be, and t mafob ^ ^^
By order of the Postmaster General,
JAMES BRYSO N, Affiants
General P OST-OFF ICE, October 24th. 1782.