Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1831-03-21

and Others incident 60 this Department has
been betrayed by IT'S own RESOURCES, whhou
any appropriation, nj any time, 10 meet then
from the TIeasut, - But in addition 10 this
lac admits that Timoihv Pick r,ng, Joseph liza
oersham, GIDEON Granger, Return }. MIegs
and job" VI Lean, had ",tuslly pad into IA
Treasury Of this nalion the sum at 81 LOB, uo3
no par, Of which had ever been drawn bs The
Department, but which had remaiaed IN the
treasury - augment the revenue and strength
en- The arm OF the Government. Then IA the
same Document he informs the Commute that
- noe III" greatest possible nngalty IL neees-
SafY IN The management OF the concerns al the
Department, and without any considerable
Improvement 10 mail facilities, Tor, II Ia -
ii"Vei, al least ihIer years To CUM, 10 make ih-
Department sustain Itself IN as preseniOpefatlog,
without ANY increase IN the numbrr Of mail
routes = Tie proceeds 10 ,Hfotm them thai lie
two hnn Ire nv mai routes tnen called Tor,
would coat $4,000 (h' Ttcasury ofeourso 10
pay for then, Us the DepnI tmeot could not h
concludes thu rhrapraph by saying. IL Is not
however, Appreciated that the erisiing state oil
'ha Department., and coni innalion Of the ae-
Communications already in operation, though its
expenses, for the present. greatly exceed its
csTfent ntome, i'll require any assistance
beyond what will arise from Its prog in
crease Of revenue, but as befare stated, with
partment ara belle we'd TO be equal TO its prestat
exigencies." Here thenwe see, that ia March
last, such was The embarras s,nent of the De
Partment that Tor The FIRST time in the history
OF us administration its funds were equal only
to It's then eristing exigsncie<, without a cent To
detray the expense OF the mail routes which
were called Tor from all parts of the country.
Before III time We all know that " all the
expenses OF transportation were betrayed
(and promptly too) from its own resour-
COS" Then II could only, by great frogai-
ny, !" sustain usclf IN its operations" with
out being Bile to pay for any new mail routes
or mail facilities Tor three years to come
Alter this, Sir. comes the important qoes-
ton, hare Tie funds oCLhe Department in
creased since The date Of mas documcnif So FAR
from u, your Postmaster General IN his last an-
oual report, tells YOU that since that time aud
during the year ending nn the LIST day OF July
1880, ns expenditures bave exceeded it's income
YS2, l24 80, aud the S2S000O winch his prede-
ces-or had lett were then reduced down 10
Sli5, oOO-From tho Posmasier Generals an.
swer 20 call of the oiher Houae made last
year To ascertain ihe excess Of expenditure
which occurred in the three tGsi quarters Vt M, =.
Mcl.ean's administrative, II appears that the
excess for the first quarter OF the new admins
trat,on which commenced on The LIST of April
aud ended on the lst July 1879, was 49, 900,
VIII CHI, added 10 the S92 900, the excess for the
ensuing year, shows that IN the first fifteen
moplhs Of his administration, the fUnds oil the
Department were reduced SllIO0O com
mend the gentleman of " dates and figure"
To an examine ion of these stubborn f,cts and
when he mas learned them | uny pray his o.
p'hion on the question, whether from the re-
cords before rs the Department is not veigIng
to Insolvency aud already rendered inadequate
TO the purposes OF Its crenton. Sir. he And his
friend from Tennessee may PAIN an inch Mirk.
vet to this compl 1ion II must come nj lasi
unless they mean 10 conlend that the Postma.-
ter GenofaI has either wilf1lly or ignuraniIy
the state Of The funds-snd
leave them 10 choose which branch of tins
comfortable dilemma may to them appeA,
mos, expedeu, 10 hang upon In his further
defence.
At the same time SIR, let me by no means
be understood 10 admit that the present Post
master Generals statement OF the available
funds left by his predecessor Is correct. HIS
predecessor stated the amount of these availa.
BILE funds TO have been on the first dav OF Ju-
", 1928, $50 900 dollars, after deducting all
desperate accounts. Bot his successor, la his
report TO Congress, reduced thls sum (by de-
Quoting for l,ssess SINCE dscertutHed aud for
eIpenditures) TO $2SO 600 on the li day of
April, 1929. Wheiher this does not eIhibir
these funds AT the time his predecessor LEFT
the office ia an unfair gin. yet Remains TO be-
ascertained. What these newly discovered
losses consisted Of whether they had Uoi been
previously taken into the estimate by his pre-
decessor-and upon what principle that esti-
mite was made. all remdlo TO be examined,
aud hope we shall ascertain ihem yet, al.
though the gentlemen from tennessee and
New Hampshire have, MS We nave seen br-
tore. refused to hear the evidence of the Soil
cItor the Department on this important
branch of the subject. II these funds have
been incorrectly represented To Congress by
the present Postmaster General, | shtll not
stop TO inquire whet Ter his dimlnuiOn ol them
was made ith n view To dIsparagr his pre-
decpssor, upon whose official Teputa iOn he eyl-
dently put a slight estimate IN his first report
nor whether h. purposes 10 place the sum he
has deducted from Nj. McLeaD's estimate fn-
turely 10 his own credit "A, Gnancier; but II
the funds do erit, IN spite OF his rrpoit 10 the
conirary,U Why do al his friends Ia bon House,
oppose tue passage Of the post route I'LL, OF
the ground That he nas not the money 10 de
fray the expense of establishing the voules
But further, Sir--my position being fully
sustained by the Postmaster Geaerhls own
statements. | ask the gsnIlemen who uudrl.
take 10 decide the matter refrrfed 10 u, ia hi
favor, before investigation Is begun, Why rs a.
that now for the frsi time IN the history oi the
Department, it is unable TO defray tue eIpen
SEES OF mail transportation OF the NV route
which the public have demanded by their pc
,itions here, aud which have s~elled to about
three hundred II IS 10 isted by the genta-
man, that the Postmaster General had colleo-
ted more revenue last year. than Was ever o
tanned before in single year. And the mem
her from Tennessee dwclt with heartfelt dt
light upon The fact that The prescott Po,''nas
ter OF lnis city, who was appointed 10 fill the
vacancy occssioned by the removal OF Mr.
Monror, had collected u larger sur, IN given
tms, than the latter, did ia the corresponding
time preceding it. This, sir.with deie,e"ce IL
tue gentleman is SO smaH a business, although
the Postmaster General has, "a We see, fount
a friend here to make the call for the 'niorma
ton with n view 10 effect, that | should not no
tce IL bu, for the ,mputauon attempted To b'
cas-, upon the excellent officer who was re
In. IA MIN