Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1835-04-02
[vo1. xXXvI---No. g.

I Postmaster General, and sealed nv H.. rsrt,n,
pursuant TO law and usage. There can be no owes
ton o. personal faith, nor should there be q per
sonai favor on the subject The law allows I'M,
officer to enter into contracts and law and ne ays
prescribe the manner in which those contract,
shall be entered into and executed. And
neither the Postmaster General or his as
sistant has any authority TO yield by con
versation what is the right OF tho public
by contract, But when were these con.
yersations held, in which Messrs. Reside
and Siaymakcr say that il was understood
that the newspaper mail was TO be carried
IN the slow line 2 Were they before OF
alter the bids II before, II establishes a
charge that has often been urged against
Tue department, namely that Of advertising
differently from the manner in which il
IS Intended the mail should be carried
agreeing with some favorite contractor
mat he should put in an improved bid,
which Il was understood should be acccp.
ted, and the improvements ordered before
.ne services commenced thus putting il
IN ms power TO get the contract on his
own terms. and without competition.
The letter OF Reside and Slaymaker on
which this extra sum Of 10000 dollars a
year was allowed, states that the mail was
so heavy between Philadelphia and PITTS
burg, as to exclude passengers on the rap.
I'd line for three days of the week. The
paper purports 10 have been signed on the
18th day Of July, A ID. 1882, and the
POSTMASTER General Gays II was presented
10 HIM, and the allowance thcreupon made.
See Doc. No. 81.
lonrcommittee with view Of ascertain.
ing the actual safe OF things at the time Of
making this large and extraordinary al
lowance, called several witnesses before
them. all OF whom speak Of very heavy
mails, so heavy as 10 exclude passengers
from the rapid line one or two days ia the
week during some part Of The year 1882.
though they do not all agree as 10 the time
oil the year when passengers were so ex-
Guided. Fortunately, record was kept
by The agent for the company at Cham
bersburgh, ON this route. showing the
number oil passengers that actually passed
that place each day in this rapid line aud
from this book, and the testimony Of Wi
liam Thompson, the agent in whose pos
session II is, your committee, were able TO
get at SO much OF certainty as TO avoid lie
danger Of being mls!ed by any very gross
AtrSttdNtUs Attt tfNt. NO 10
There certainly can be no doubt, that The
coptractors were able to carry on this line
on each and every day as many passen
gers as they did in fact carry; but il is by
no means certain, on the other hand, that
they were unable TO carry any more for
from the testimony Of John w Weaver,
one ofthe partners, we find that they had
not always full freight of passengers.
On that subject he Gays.
"Our travel from the East generally
commenced about the LIST Of February,
and we ran full until about the LIST OF NAV,
and often had 10 employ extras then the
travelling gradually fell of until about the
LIST Of October, during which time one line
and half would carry the passengers.
From Isl Of October. 10 LIST Of December,
we were full again; then We ran very
light till February a line and half would
be more than sufficient 10 carry all the
passengers during that season Of tie Year"
William Thompson, the agent OF the
company, brought his books before the
committee, and in answer TO The inquiry,
/" Are you able from your books to desig
nate at wha, times it was, you were not
able 10 carry passenger ?" says,
I'm the year 1889. find eighteen blank
trips. most of them from Isl October 10
3lst December. In the same year there
were fifty eight trips Of not more than one
or two passengers" This he afterwards
corrects. and says there were twenty blank
trips instead Of eighteen.
II appears by the examination Of This
witness and his books, hat seven Of the
twenty blank trips which he speaks Of,
took place in the month Of January, and
six in the month Of December, and those,
il will be recollected, are the months in
which J. w. Weaver says there were hut
few passengers. leaving but seven blank
trips for the other ten months of this year;
that is d stage wiihou, passengers one trip
in forty three. The allegation of Reeside
and SIaymaker, 10 their letter TO the Post
master General. or the I2th July, 1889,
in these words. For three days In the
week we are compelled to exclude all pas
sengers," is not at all supported by their
own books, or the testimony Of their own
partners and agents.
On re. examination OF William Thomp,
son, and by exact reference TO his books,
we find that there was one blank trip in
the month Of April westward. and none
eastward. In the same month there were
six tips with not more than two passen.
gers westward. and three with no more
than that number eastward. Ia the month
Of May there were two blank trips west
ward, and one eastward: in the same
month ten trips in which there were no
more than two passengers westward, and
five with not more than two easiwau. In
the month Of June there were three blank
trips westward, and three eastward In
the same month there were ten trips OF
not more than two passengers westward.
aud nine Of not more than two passengers
eastward. The whole number OF passen-
gers westward, in those three months, v as
337 i-2, and the whole number eastward
was 1877 4 making adherence Of sixty
passengers in three moths, equal 10 two