Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1834-06-11

Established Steamboat lines Tor the tfahspoi.
l ia.;on of the mail, by private contract a. an
la Noymous expense, and without authoriy Vi
No"' Resolved, That the public credit mas peen
,Saoed for the benefit of individual contractors,
PJ That contractors have been sohclteo ana IN
anu d 20 aid with their personal credit, the bu-
JUS JUS of the Department; and that all such
snI"sactions are unjustifable and improper.
o Resolped, That it does appear that mail
- have been established to run more frequent
~ ,ban once a day, at a very heavy expense,
Sghere no adequate public object required such
orovlsion
very irregular nature are proved to have ia
len place between the contractors and some OF
,he chief officers of the Post Office Department.
II. Resolved, That the Post Office Depart
rent is now deeply in debt; its affairs In dlsor-
der; its accounts and reports irregular and unsa-
tsactory; that it is Justly the subject OF public
complaint, and demands radical reform.
70. Resolred That the incidental expenses
and secret service money of the Department
mas increased, is increasing, and ought to be d.
ninshed.
10. Resolved, That it does appear that an
agreement was entered into between two COM
nanies OF mail contractors, the express OBJECT
If which was to put down competition In the
transportation of passengers in their respective
mail routes; that said agreement was drawn by
an officer of the Department, and entered into
al his pressing instance, and that it was sane
toned by the Postmaster General; and that such
agreement, so sanctioned, is an interference with
the honest pursuits of the free citizens OF these
United States that it tends to establish an odious
and oppressive monopoly, and is an unjust IN
yasion Of private rights.
r4th Resolved That it does appear that Mail
have allow
ances, and have, about the time ofreceiving such
allowances become the proprietors or contrac-
tors ofnewspaper presses, of partiZan character.
Ialso appears, that newspaper editor, IN the
State of New Hampshire, is a contractor Tor
carrying the mail on numerous routes, 1cih
paper privilege" and that every such act or ar
tfce, tending to unite the press with the POST
Office Department, is dangerous abuse and
ought to be corrected.
The answer to this Report and these resolu-
tons on the part of the minority of the Com
mittee, Messrs. Grundy and Robinson, is SAID
to be drawn up with considerable ingenuity in
excavation of the Post Office Department. On
motion relative to printing these Reports, Mr..
Southland said that they presented matter OF I'M
usual interest to the public. They exhibited,
perhaps, more misconduct and mal-admininis-
tration than was ever known to exist in any de-
partment of any Government. He did not
mean to enter into any discussion on the sub
iect of the misconduct which was exhibited by
those reports, and which showed the insolvency
of one of the Departments of the Government
to the amount of more than 100000, which
was, of itself, enough to show the necessity of
circulating them as widely as possible. He was
nerfactlv aware that the minority committee did
not go that extent; but it struck him as singu-
lar circumstance, that that minority should have
discovered an insolvency to the amount Of
something less than 100000, when the Head
of that Department should have asked for the
sum of $450,00O, saying that he could not get
along without it.