The Arkansas banner., 1845-05-14

'0iA' III "hlCh iio IeluSes to acceed to thel requests. It gives strong evidence of q de termination on his part to carry out fully an, faithfully the new law, and promises well Go an able, economical and energetical admins tration of the Post Office Department
 WASHINGTON, April l5, 1845.
 To THE COMMITTEE OF THE CoNTR AcroP,
 ofhe NeD Fork and Ne Nelo Englaad Sates-
 Gentlemen: Yours, dated the 18th April was handed to me on Sunday morning. b1 NIT. Chapln. l expressed to him at the tlm, very decided opinion that your requests could not be compiled with, but promised hlm to examine your letter carefully, an( give you the reasons for my opinion when
 had had more leisure. The law of the 3e March, l845, and the proper steps to be taker for Its execution, were subjects of the mos careful and anxious consideration before tbt issuance of my circular ef the 8th ut. Int great objects of the law was a cheap postage system. To attain the object Congress fore saw that the rates of postage n the bill woult necessarily produce great diminntion oftht Department, and not being willing wholly te abandon the former policy of the Govern, ment sustain itself, provided also for reduc. ton of the transportation of the mail by linn iting the discretion of the Postmaster General in making contracts to the lowest bidder con- sistent with the safety and speed of the mails, and directing him to disregard the mode ol transportation. Apprehending that the re- duction in the prics of transportation might not be so great as to make up the deficiency in the revenues, they provided for the def- ciency to be paid out of the Treasury. This act was to take affect upon its passage, with the exception of section or two relating to postage. In the 18th section, giving direc- tions to the Postmaster General as to con- tracts, the following expressions ale used :: ''that in all future lettings of contracts, he shall take the lowest bid,o Ssc., stnor shall
 any new contractor hereafier be required to take the stock" &c., of a previous contractor evidently designing that the law should operate upon the contracts to be made in May next, to go into operation the 1st July next, in your section of the Union. By the law the Unitee States is divided into four dis tricts, and contracts are to be made in each section once in four years It so happens, that the contracts to be made this spring are for your section of the Union, comprising N. Y ork and the New England States: There could hav9 been no sufficient reason for Con- gross postponing the operation of the law upon those contracts which are to last for four years, and permitting the experiment, as 1t is often called, to be tried first in the mid dle or Western States. Indeed, the reasons are strong why the friends of ihe measure should desire the experiment. first to be tes- ted in the old States, where the population is dense, the roads cood, and cheap transport tation of the miles more easily 10 be obtain ed, and therefore better chance for the sue cess of the experiment. The expressions above quoted from the 18th section, show this to have been the intention of Congress on the passage of the bill. The joint reso- lutons postponng the operation of this law till the 1st of July, the very day on which contracts for your section of the Union are to be put into operation, cannot, with propriety, be SO construed as tc.permit contracts to be made under the old law, for four years, by means of winch the people of New Y ork and New England would enjoy for four years all the advantages of cheap postage, without the corresponding reduction in the price of the mail transportation service, which was evi- dently designed by Congress. The selection of the same day for the new law and the new contracts to be put into operation, would seem to imply that the services under the new contracts should be subjected to the opera ton of the new law The making olc ontfacts now, to be put into operation under the new law for such period, would be disregarding the wishes of Congress, and justly subject the head this Department to public censure l would not willingly place such construc- ton upon the joint resolution as would .ub- ject members of Congress, or any olits mem bers, to the suspicion of seeking 10 give N York and N England the advantages of the law, and relieving them from the inconve- niences and hardships, if any there be, fol such length of time. The fair and proper construction of the joint resolutions and law taken together, is, that all the mail service tc be performed after the first July, and the con tracts for that service though made prlor tc that time should be made with view to tho service under the new law. l think tha there is no ground for the objection that th' twelve weeks notice required by the act o 1925, should be applied to my circular, Th' acquisitions of that law were fully compiled with by the notice published in December and l should have proceeded to make th' contracts, had my circular never been issued The law itself was legal notice to the bldder of the proposed changes in the contracts, ye I thought the Department would be benelltte' by calling the attention of persons deslrous t' contract to the provisions of the new law There can be no pretext for holding the De partment pledged to give the contractors tn
 same advantages now which had been givel them at former leltings-any more than you had made bad bargain your faith woul
 be pledged to renew it if called upon to do s'
 by the Departmsnt, at its expiration. Con
 gress or the Department might choose to dls
 continue any or all of your routes at the expl
 ration of pressnt contracts, or the Departmen
 might have superseded the service, rendern
 your stock and vehicles unavailable, aud ther
 could be no pretext for calling upon them t
 take your stock on hand, or indemnity yo
 for any losses you might sustain. The con
 dition requiring new contractor to take 'h
 property of prior one, was a regulation
 the Department attached to the advertisement
 and not exacted by any law, and can have n
 bearing on any other contract than the on
 made nnder it. Your written contracts Wit