The Newhampshire gazetteer — Exeter, N.H., 1792-03-14 00:00:00, page 2

cf paffengers,nnd in refpe& to retard
ing, the mail,as some part of the new
proposed route is coafiderably more
liable to be blocked up with fnow,for
want of traveling to keep it open, than
the.old route.
Pprcfmoath being a place of coafi
datable commerce and navigation, it
Is important that the mail should ar
rive at its proper times, and as early
as possible. The letters for Exeter
are few, compared with the number
for Portsmouth. The post-master
has fteted .the amount of the pottage'
of letters for Exeter, passing thio' his
Office at Portsmouth, to be about 15
dollars and an half,in 11 months from
rhe firft January, 1791; a sum very
inconsiderable indeed compared to the
amount of postage received for let
ters delivered in Portsmouth during
the fame period. >.
Mt.Thatche r—l feel myfelf,fir,
as little interested in the prelent ques
tion as is possible for :the gentleman
just now up fromN.H. (Mr. Livermore
—indeed I have no other interest in
this matter than what arises from a
desire to accomodate the greatest num
ber ofpeople—and io far 1 confefs 1
feel interested ; for any general mea
sure that does not effect this gives a
certain degree of pain. If the fads
that have been Rated be true, and the
arguments drawn from them in fop
port of the amendment, be conclusive,
I certainly ffiould be interested in fa
vour of it: because it must immedi
ately effect my constituents.—But, fir,
the fads are not true, nor the reason
ing just. Sir, the real matter in dis
pute between Portsmouth and Exeter,
has not yet been understood—and 1
conceive it to be limply this : (hall the
mail from Boston arrive at Exeter a
bout two hours Earlier, on the fame
day, than at Portsmouth ; or (hall it
arrive at Portsmouth firft, & togxeter
the next day, or within fix or seven
days after ? This, fir, is the real ques
tion— for whether it passes through
Exeter, or through Hampton as it
now does,it will reach Portsmouth on
the fame day it leaves Boston, and a
bout the fame hour. If the hour of
arrival at Portsmouth be fixed at 8
o'clock in the summer time, the post
may accomplish the route through
"Exeter with case—and he will do no
more if he passes through Hampton :
this brings us to an examination of
the reasons offered in favour of the
amendment, which go altogether to
shew that if the route be eßablifhed
through Exeter, the mail will not ar
rive at Portsmouth on the fame day it
leaves Boston—and consequently the
merchants at that place will be injur
ed— and not only so, but 'tis faid,the
Portland mail will be delayed another
day. Did 1 believe, fir, there wa
the least Shadow of reason for this ap
prehension, I should be the firft for
agreeing to the amendment ; but,fir,
'tis all a pretence, a whim invented
for no other reason, than to prevent
the mail's arriving at Exe;cr before
it does at Portsmouth.
The gentleman (Mr. Livermore)
has said the route from Boston to
Portsmouth through Exeter, is about
five miles farther, than through
Hampton—he does net pretend to
fay it is more ; I verily believe the
difference is not more than three
miles—if it is so much as that ; but
for the fake of the argument I will
admit there is the difference contend
ed for by the gentleman ; we will ex
amine the question on that fappofiti
on and fee if there arises a probability
that the increased distance will pre
'Went the arrival of the mail at Ports-.
mouth on the day it leaves Boston.
It seems to be agreed that rhe old
route from Boston to Portsmouth is
about sixty four or five miles ; now
'tis a fad fir, that prior to the build
ing the bridges across Mystic and Be
verly rivers the Rage passed this route
in a day—although at Beverly Ferry
it was detained from thirty to forty
minutes where it now passes in two,
and it was obliged to go round by
the town of Mystic—which is two
miles farther than where it now crof-
fes on the bridge ;by these bridges
then we may tonfider five miles ta
ken off the whole distance—so that
admitting the objection five miles,
as the gentleman - wishes to have it
the mail may now pass in.a day,
from Boston to Portsmouth through
Exeter, with the fame ease and cer
tainty that it didfoeforc the eredion of
those bridges, thro' Hampton Fail —
the rqpte contemplated by the amend
ment ; and 1 mult beg leave further
to observe, that a bridge is about to
be thrown across Merimack River,
which will considerably add to the
facility of passing ; and may well - be
counted upon as a further deduction
of the distance.
The gentleman (Mr. Livermore)
has laid it is a principle of the bill,
that the mail Ihall be carried in the
most direct road from place to place,
and that it will be a deviation from
this principle to go thrOughExeter ;
This, fir, is not ftridly true—no fu:h
principle has been adhered to but in
a qualified sense, and it has been
departed from whenever it would ac
commodate any considerable number
of people. I wi(h here to remind
the House of Springfield in Massa
chusetts—and Middletown, in Con
nedicut ; in the former instance the
dired route from Worcester to
Hartford is not through Springfield ;
but a deviation of near ten milts is
made to accommodate that town ;
and in passing from Hartford to New-
Haven a deviation of four or five
miles (if I am mistaken, gentleman
from that State will correct me) is
made for the purpose of accommo
dating the town ofMiddletown ; ma
ny other instances of this, nature
might be adduced—and why shall not
a small deviation be now made in fa
vor of Exeter, especially since no
inconvenience will zrefult therefrom
to Portsmouth ? I can fee ne reason.
. In order to convince this House
It has been said by the gentleman
from Ne- Hampfhire(Mr. Livermore)
that the road from Portsmouth to
Newbury-Port is a good road ; f a
gree with him iu this point ; I am
as perfectly acquainted with the toad
from Portsmouth to Newbury-Port
as he can be — I know every patch
of sand, or rack in the way, that can
impede a carriage ; but as good as it
is, I presume he will acknowledge
there is more sandy, heavy road for
wheel carriages, in this part of the
line than all the rest of the way to
Boston ; so that something ought to
be carried to the credit of the Exeter
route because it avoids- this sand.
'Tis said the road through Kenfing
toh to Exeter, is blocked up with
snow in the winter time—granted as
to some particular feafors ; but the
fame is also the case as to Hampton
road; I have often known the Ham
ton road so blocked up that thullage
could not run for several weeks, this
was the case daft March, And 1 was
then informed that - the road
through Kenfingten and Exeter was
passable for the stage earlier than the
Hampton,and it ought here to be no
ted there is a caufway near half a
mile in length at Hampton, over
which the passing is not only difficult
in the winter time, but very danger
ous if passable at all, as fume tides
flow it two feet and more ; I passed
it lad March in this fitoation ; This
inconvenience however will be avoid
ed bypassing through Exeter—and
no part of that route is so bad in the
winter time as this caufway ; 1 have
heretofore travelled in the winter
time through Kensington and Exeter
on being advised it was the bell road
of the two; and though -there was
much snow on the ground we found
no difficulty in getting along—Hence,
lir, 'tis evident to me that the mail
may easily be carried from Boston,
through Exeter to Ponfmouth in a
day—and that the objection , founded
on the increase of distance is a mere
pretence originating inan unwilling,
nefs, in the minds of some people,
that the mail should arrive an hour or
two sooner atExeter than Portsmouth.
that the mail, in passing fiom Boston
to Fortfmoeth, ought not to be car
ried through Exeter, the gentleman
has read a letter from the Post-Mas
ter at Portfmouth,Mating the num
ber of letters that pass in a year by a
crofs.poft, from Portfraouth to Exe
ter ; by which it appears the num
ber indeed is very small. Hence he
would draw an argument that the
business between Boson and Exeter
is trifling, and not of confequcncc
enough to juftify so small a deviati
on in the raail line of three or four—
or, as the gentleman contends of five
miles. But Mr. Speaker, ihis is
Grange logic ! and a very different
conclusion results in my mind from
tbeccmtents of letter. The letter,may
be evidence how little business bear
ded on between Portsmouth andExe
ter,&ihat confitquently there is no real
need of a post between these two pla
ces— but it does: not contain the Sha
dow of evidence that there is no com
mercial business between Boston and
other places in Maffacufetts &Exeter.
If a gentleman in thofeplaces wished
to write to Exeter, he would never
I think of putting hls letter into the
IPortfmouth mail—he must know that
..it is liable to lay fix days in the poft
office at -Portsmouth and perhaps
longer-—while various opportunities,
Iby a private conveyance, would pre
fect within thaetime.
I have hitherto admitted the addi
tional distance, by going through
Exeter, to be five miles—but, fir,
fiQce the mail stage passes Merrimack
river,; about four miles above the old
ferry (the gentlemen of the house ac
quainted with that part of the coun
try knew the places I refer to) 1 can
not agree that this additional distance
will be more than three miles, if so
much. But, however this may be,
I trust I have shewn to the fatisfadi
on of the house, that whether it be
five or three, it cannot produce Any
inconvenience to Portsmouth, but
must be highly beneficial to Exeter.
There is another consideration,
fir, that ought to have some weight
in deciding this question—which I
will mention, and fay no more—lt
is this ; A letter that goes from Bos
ton to Exeter, thro' Portsmouth, will
Band charged twenty-five per cent,
more than if the mail was carried
dire&ly from Boston toExeter—while,
on the other hand, the postage of a
letter from Boston to Portsmouth is
the fame, whether the mail pass
through Hampton orExeter—becaufe,
in both of these routes, the distance
from Boston to Portsmouth is more
than sixty miles, and short of the
next grade of postage. For these rea
son,, fir, I hope the house will disa
gree to the amendment.
Mr. SMITH (N. H.) observed,
that he was sorry to find his colleagues
differing in opinion on the fubjeft
under consideration. He had no pre
judice in favor of one of the towns
(Portsmouth and Exeter) above the
other. —He only wished the bill
might establish that route which would
belt accommodate the Rate at large.
He conceived, when the situation of
New-Hampshire was considered, it
would be evident that the bill as
passed by the House, was better cal
culated to answer this purpose, than
it would in case the amendment pro
posed by the Senate should be adopted.
He remarked that the trade of the grea
ter part of that state had been, and
probably would continue to be with
Bofton —that if the. genearl line
of the post-road should be established
through Exeter, it would be to the
people in the interior part of New-
Hampshire, a saving of at least 25
miles in the distance between them
and Boston—that the trade of Exeter,
though within 15 miles of Portsmouth,
was principally with Boston—that if
the amendment proposed by the Senate
should be adopted, they would be de
prived of any benefit from the eftab
hfhment of poft-road#—that the route
would be so circuitious, that the peo
ple in the interior parts of the state
would probably in future, as they had
'''Order isHbaven's first law."
.NEATNESS the SECOND.
ORDER is the handmaid of neat
ness. See the order of ihe neat
husbandman, his well stored barns. . is
well swept threlking floor; his entire
fences, his well finished house, every
thing about him difeov'.r that he is
thriving. See the correct merchant,
whose goods are arranged in an o?der
most pleasing to the eye, whole Irene
is neat, and whose books are written
carefully without a blot. See the
lawyer, whose library is in the molt
co red order, and who, in a moment
can lay his hand on any paper of mo
ment. See the young lady, who re
solves that her dress lb all be kept with
care, aad retain its beauty, always
has it ready for use, end together.
Go into a fcbool, where the fchotars
are neat, silent, obedient, and indus
trious, under the care cf a mafler, io
a neat room, applying, without con
fufiou, to their various parfuies, their
books all correct, and entire. Can
any thing be more pleasing than this
combination of order and neatness ?
and with what ease may it all be com
passed by a fiagle resolute exertion—
how perfedly may it prevail, in all
our schools, and how numerous must
be the advantages refusing from it.
Neatness is as important in the coun
try as in town ; for the pradice is not
to be .dictated by the paobabiliry of
our being seen, but by the principle
of being always fit 10 be ken. .Raf
ters being highly interested in this ar
rangementtwill feelevery inducement
to give example as well a? precept,
and so to arrange all the bofinefs, as
that the scholars feeling the influence
and benefits of order, shall be induced
to that neatnefs,without which it can
not be preserved.
To preserve this,a fcift obfervar.ee
of hours should be observed, the busi
ness laid out; so that all urdeiftand
it—every thing conduced with a per
severing slowness ; particular days or
hours appointed for speaking, or any
other particular perfuit—privileges
allowed to those who excel, unlefy
they have appeared slovenly, or ne-'
gleded the known order of the fchooL
These arrangements, with many Ga
thers of a like kind, have been found
practicable in every refpecl, and in
the school, where they have been cri
tically adopted, scholars have impro
ved rapidly, to the great fatisfa&ioH
of masters, patents, and the public.
Let it ever be remembered that if
toe would cultivate neatness, order,
diligence, virtue or religion,the feeds'
sown in the spring of life, are most
likely to take deep root, and bring
forth abundance.
in times pad, fend their letters to
Boston, and to the louthward,by pri
vate conveyance, rather than by post '
—lt was easy to fee that the revenue
by this means would be Injured —that
this cia cumflance would serve to ac
count for the statement read from the
poll-matter at Portfmouth.Gf the Imal!
number of letters sent from his cfice
to Exeter. It was his opinion that
(he revenue, would be greatly increal
ed, by taking Exeter into the ina'n
poll-toad ; and that a coolr^A for car
ryi°g ( ^ e ma ilfrom Portfeouxh ;
Bofton,might in that case be obtained
for as fma)l a fomas by the road, no^
tied — He could not fee how this woui^
injure .Portfmouth,' though it might
not prove advantageous to the pod
maHer at that place—How far the
House might think it their duty to
consult he particular interest of that
officer, he would not pretend to fay.
He had reason to belike (though he
could speak altogether fiom his own
knowledge) that the account given of
the road by one of hrs colleagues and
the gentleman from Maffachuietts,was
a just cue.— Upon the whole, colour
ing the amendment as net calculated
to promote the advantage of the state
he had the honor to reprefeir, he
should vote against it. r
. On NEATNESS.