The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1842-08-18
LETTER FROM THE POSTMASTER
GENERAL
PosT OFFICE DEPARTMENT,

August 18th, 1912.
SIR have examined and duly considered the
communication of Messrs. Pomeroy s. Co., of the
9th of July, which you did me the honor, some few
days since, to hand me.
These gentlemen propose to act as the sworn
agents of the Department, to take charge Of disri
butte forward and deliver all the mails the route
daily from New York, Albany Troy, and Buffalo, each
way to furnish the number ofcompeten per-
sons not exceeding ten, who shall act as travelling
agents. to perform this service to provide the requl-
site number of local and stationary agents. will ex-
ert themselves to the utmost to increase the revenues
of the Department and will give bonds for the faith
full discharge of these duties the entire SERVICE in
Guiding the employment and payment of all the ira
yelling agents. and the employment of local and resi-
dent agents, for the of thousand five hun
dred dollars per annum" These gentlemen, as an
inducement to the Department to close in with their
offer, were pleased to accompany the proposal with
the expression of their opinion that the same business
which they propose to do will cost the Department.
according to the arrangements and plan now in use,
tloenty thousand dollars per If this suppose
ton Of fact be true then, indeed would it be not
only the interest of the Department but its duty, to
adopt the proposition submitted by them
| When l assumed the duties of this Office found
in the employ Of the Department, on the railroad
line of conveyance, between Albany and Buffalo, six
agents engaged in the management of the mails on
the railroad l very soon became satisfied the
service equally demanded that agents should accom-
pany the mails on the steamboats, between New York
and Albany, and | have recently appointed two for
that purpose; making the whole number eight, and
the whole cost rs, 400 per year, eleven hundred dol
lars less than Messrs. Pomeroy s. Co. Offer so that,
upon the principle of employing the cheapest agents
and accepting the lowest bid should be compelled
to decline the offer of service at the cost of $500,
which is now very well performed for $6,4OO If the
present plan cost the same or little more than
the sum bid by Messrs. Pomeroy & Co., | should
be dsinclined to dismiss the present agents, who,
so far as | have information, perform well an
acceptable service to the Department, and appoint
Mr.. Pomeroy and his agents.
You will pardon me, sir, if in replying to MIR.
Pomeroy's proposition through you you requested,
avail myself of the occasion to disabuse the public
mind upon the subject of the recent arrangement,
and the assignment of additional responsible duties to
the agents of the Department.
had received the highest evidence of the contin-
ana increasing VlOldllOuS VI Vic OSt CuCc law
of 1926 upon this route, well as the other impor-
tant post routes the northern and eastern sections
of the Union, by what termed private expresses
Letters from Postmasers and the special agents of
the Department, well as from private individuals,
gave the evidence of these acts of violation. have
heretofore refrained from instituting prosecutions
against the individuals engaged in transporting letters
over post road and in the conveyances employed
by the Government for the transportation of the
mail
The quarterly returns of the Postmasters present
ed me with diminished revenue along these great
lines of mail communication, which satisfied my
mind that unless step was taken by the Gov
eminent arrest the evil the income of the Depart
ment would fall short of its expenses, and that the
General Post Office would soon become annual
pensoner upon the public Treasury. Charged with
the responsibility of experimenting the interests OF
the Department, it behooved me to do all the laws
would allow me to arrest this growing encroachment
upon its revenues.
The complaints at New York, Philadelphia, Bos
ton, &c., were, that the reception of letters at
these offices to be sent by the mail each day, ceased
about one hour before the mail left the place of de-
parture they were deprived of the opportunity, al
ways desirable, of communicating through the mail
the latest intelligence consequently they COM
PEELED to use these private expresses by which they
sent their letters. To satisfy myself of the truth of
these complaints, and also of the extent of the in
roads which these "private letter expresses" were
making upon the Department, travelled these
lines and made my own personal observations.
saw the evil, and recognized in great degree the
difficulties which gave rise to and succoured it.