Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1830-06-03
TW ESTY FIRST CONGRESS-
FIRST SESSION
SPEECH OF MR.. HOLMES, OF NAME
IN SENATE UNITED. oTtTES,--

| ana hbertleS question OF proht and loss. Bui
even making IL mere matter Of calculation.
repeat the qusston-phat hare ue gained 7
Draw your comparisons between the present
and last years expenditures and with all The
suhleiy and cunning which belongs To the head
ofthe Treasury. aud what do you make The
u temptto siihe the truth has been detected n nd
obs manifest even 10 the eye of superficial
| OBSERVER. that your expenditures. are, and aust
be, necessarily mole. The fact has been proved
IS yoad controversy But whether less OF moie,
c1noi the question. The question is, have the
expenditures. be hey what they mRy, been
prudent or prodigal. more, or JUST rs much, rs
hie public exgencles reqnirel lfmy agent
las, year expended ! 100 900, all for my bene-
lar have no right To- b'ame HIN II he. this
year has expended less than half that sum, and
has wasted IN this expenditure one hall OF this.
II IS lame apology 10 tecur 10 n comparison
II tine two years. We ask you, then. uhdt
~as WHsied in The last year OF Mr. Adams s
administration ! Pot your finger upon The
single item. DO yuu trtort the question We
ATT ready with the answer. In the removal
aud appointment OF foregn ministers in the re-
eess Of the Senate, forty thousand dollars have
heeH drawn from the Treasury against The law
| nd the Constitution, without any earthly bene-
1T aud Tor no other osensible purpose but to
| reward partlsans, lar less qualified than their
PREDECESSORS. In The collecting ofthe revenue,
lhat" searching operation, what have you
| gained Finy additional officers in I'll is 6ingle
Department.
| SIR, IN the faiihts execution Of this duty of
| collecting money aad payment INFO lhe treas.
| NY 10 meet the exlgeucleb OF the government
| and discharge the national debi, the people
! have = deep interest. This duty requires no
'nly perfect fidelity, but Ioag experience
| iht complicated machinery Of the system is not
| o be lea,ut ~ day--ll requires years. NoU,
| II Won make "A general change here. even II
| YOU supply the place III those removed with
| he best men, II IS morally certain haI. from
ih'if want of experience, nolbing but u HiGaete
| can save you from lossrs
| lake the case AZ New York whore more
'han Que third OF your whole revenue is coliec.
| ted /, all you, pincipsl aud tweuly -Gye Of YOU
subordinate officers displaced. and about the
! same numbrr nave been added Here, besides
! the chel officers, YOU hnd 6lty new ones, oil
without experience, 10 manage that vast coa
cein, 30 important 10 The interests OF the Cpun-
Try. WI any ono say, IN sober taTnesf, TINT
all this was iOr the public good Under the
arr angemeut aud severe discipline OF Mr.
thompson, every lune was doneiwilh perfect
syslem-scaiteIy an error escaped--lhe Go
VeTnmenl WINS perfectly saie. aud no one but he
who wished ior an opportunity TO violate the
| laws had the least disposition TO complain.
NV, why is lhs whole y stem suhycfl.d
why Is this dangerous experiment attempted,
when all was so well before : II IS for no rea-
sou under heaven but TO reward the mlnions oil
the present administration.
SIR. il your party had taIrnls, aud, Hs a gen
| efal remark, DO not think my are oya bur
deued, is It possible that msehine, 30 eom
plIceled as The Treasury Department., eau be
successfully managed with raW hands Can
mere land lubbers' navigate the snip put
'his question 10 experienced statesmen, TO Sen-
aiors and ask them frankly, IT, IN all this,
they can see any thing Of public good
What has been gained, ask, in removing
one thousand Connected with the Post Olhce
Department Nj. M'Leau was no partisan.
and certainly he had done nothing 10 throw
HE iutlneuce Of ms Department INTO the hands
81 the late Administration. What good 100
| tive could have induced this universal pro-
| scription' Livery post officer whose emoln.
| ments are worth even less than len dollars a
year, il he has not huzzaed for the Chieitain. ID
hunted down as fefoeious wild beast aud
every hole, every corner. is searched ior the
.mall game. All thus. suppose. IS " r. lIench.
| lneni, aud yet We learn HAT more officers
| must he provided, or this sapieni chief OF tins
new department cannot make the machine
work. Now, this is not sfaoge at all The
General Post Office is ia ulter confusion EVERY
thing is in eTroi, AT " siH and sevelB,' tnr
Assistants and C,erks have been runnlng "a
gsinst each Other, aud have got into such Gun
fusion that they don't know wbeIe TO go OF
what TO do, aud very ptudeully conclude,
therefore, 10 stand StiH, and do noihiHg.
But this Is not all they are asking Jor money.
Mr.. Mclean bad made the Pos Office s0pport
rs If and II has hitherto produced Il surplus
! A f. al, = Al 81 A,
deficit OF SlOO000. Now how does this come
IN pass This question ~ easily answered-t
is removing the experienced aud faithful and
placing, IN their stead those who cannot or
will not fulfil their duties. Ii is reported too,
that contractors have beeH Temuneraled be-
yond their contracts AT any rate, We are re
duced TO TINS we must add QUE hundred thou
sand dollars ~ the funds OF THIS Department, or
strike of some forty or fifty inall routes, aud
thus deprive the people 10 the scattered settle
menls of the nieuns Of information, or The ma
hing nlua SOP. IhIs is another oil the ri
frcis OF tins Ietrenchlng, reforming Admins
trstion.
Two or three examples viii serve 10 illustrate
this conduct OF this Administration. FLORIDA it
q territory not ten years old. The PtesIdens
was II, frs, Governor, aud when he lsfi the go
yernment, it Is 10 be presumed the officers we're
satisfactory. At the last election this terrific
nv had no political influence whatever IL had
no vote, uor could il command one any where
else. lrs preferences ior one or the other Of
the candidates could therefore hove 40 effect
on the election. Yet, we fad that removals
bere have been made with the same relentless
prescription as if il had been M Us power 10
settle the contest. RemopGts-Nsyy Agent and
Store keeper al Pensacola Surveyor of live
oak timber, and Agent for lis Preservation (;
Postfnasfefat Pensacola, and Marshal, iva Com.
maaders OF Revenue Cuiors Law Agent In
dian Agent, United States Attorney, Collector
aud Mar shall, nj Key West Surveyor Of Fer
uand,a, Postmaster al st. Augustine. and Col
| iecior at Apalachicoia-sirieen and four other
Executive appointments made since the 4th of
| March last, TO supply vacancies created by his
| own removals Now, what other motive could
| have induced all this, bur that OF rewsrding
hungiy ekpectsnts, who could no, be provided
| for auy where else