Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1845-12-23


reaching every, ghborhood-ii tendan
cy to enlarge the circle of It's operations
ana TO increas, its power and patronage
now SO large as 10 be q source Of Jealous,
among the peopIe-require that every re
s'rction should be thrown around it tina
VIII not impair lis usefulness, or interfere
with lis legitimate functions. Among thu
best restrictions that can be imposed in thl
limitation of the expenditures TO its income
Should II be thrown upon the treasury fol
It's support, there is great danger that the
demands fer an extension of the service
may be made-as much with a view tc
distribution of the revenues in The different
sections OF the country, as TO the necessary
mail accommodations - that the same
watchlu! supervision of lis concerns now
required 10 maintain its credit NAV not be
Kept up, nor the usual and necessary ure-
cautions against wastofuI expenditure Of
lis resources be observed.
So far as calculations can be relied or,
from the returns TO the department, of the
operation of the new postage law, for the
quarter endlnr 30th September last, the de.
| hcicncy for the current year will exceed
a million and quarter of dollars; and
there is no reasonable ground to believe
| that, withou: some amendment 81 that law
il will fall short OF million OF dollars fer
the next year.
As the public interests and convenience
viii no, admj OF such curlai!ment Of the
present service Us materially 10 reduce the
expenditures, and, in the opinion of the IN
dersigncd,t the deficiency should not be made
permanent charge upon the treasury, the
revenues must be increased, so a5 10 pro-
ducc the desired amount Of money, by re.
vision and modification Of the act of the Sd
March, to which, in great degree, the de-
ficicncy may be attributed
The rating of letters by weight, instead
Of the single sheet, as formerly, has led 10
practices little less injurious to The rete-
nues than the expresses which were kept
up prior 70 the passage of the act just refer
red 10. Applications were made to the de-
partmenj, shortly after its passage, for per-
mission to take letters out Of the mail over
routes, the applicants proposing to go to the
post Office and prepay the postage by i8hl
The consent Of the department was sought
to avoid the penalties for taking letters out
oftho mails over post routes. These pro
positions were rejected. The right was
then claimed of envclopng letters address
cd to particular individuals, and directing
them TO their agents for distribution, and
iply,ng the postage by the half ounce, and
probably receiving pay by the single letter
This ptactice is believed 10 prevail cXton-
siVely il some Of the cities, producing great
profit TO those engaged in probably more
than the former express lines realized, as
the department is now burdcnod with the
transportation, and those engaged in it re-
ccivc tic profits Of The distribution. An
incident recently occurred which will for
chilly illustrate the injurious chcc;s Of such
practice upon the revenues of the depart
mcnt. A large bundle of letters was en-
vclopod and sealed, marked "postage paid,
81 Co." BY some accident in the trans,
poitas;on, the onvelop was so much injured
as TO enable the postmaster 20 see that il
contained 100 letters to d Hcrent individuals
evidently designed for distribution by the
person 20 whom directed, and should have
been charged ton dollars. The coaInu-
ance OF This practice would, ina short time,
deprive the department Of a large proportion
OF lis Legitimate income. The department!
has no pvwor to suppress it fiI'taor than to
direct the hostages to be properly charged
whenever such practices are detected
This has also introduced species Of thin,
GIT paper, by which five Or six letters may
be placed under one cover, and still be IN
de; the hali'ou 1t, in tTuth,makcs fee
tie transmission OF notes, bills Of exchange,
acccp,anccs, drafts, receipts, and small par
ces OF money, the letter alone paying tic
postage. l. rondeas the postage tax more
unequal upoa the different classes Of socic-
ty than the loimer mole Of rating by the
single sheet. These devices TO cvadc tic
law may be easily suppressed, or rendered
much less injurious 20 the icycEuc, by os-
t1bl sh ,ng one-quaHer oFan ounce iastcaj
Of the ha!founce, o. by by directing tic lcl-
tcrs to be rated as formerly, by he single
shcct-whch is decidedly better for the
revenues Of The department, and more con
vonien' in practice for the deputy PCS mas
ters.
The practice Of sending packages ofle;-
tcrs through the mails TO agents, for d'sir.
button, has not enti'ely superseded the
transmission OF Letters, over post roads, out
of the mails, by the express. The charac-
Ter Of his offence is such as-lo render de-
lection very uncertain. fuIl proof almost i'm
possible, conviction rare. The penalties
I are seldom recovered after conviction, and
the department rarely secures enough 10
meet the expenses Of prosecution. II lie
officers Of the department were Authorized
in proper cases TO have the person engaged
! in these violations ofthc law arrested, tacr
packages, trunks, OF boxes, seized and cx-
ahmed before a proper judicial otIicog, aud
when detected in violating The law, reta't;-
ed for the examination Of the court, aud iu-
~ ii is Lelje,cd that the practice could be
a; cncc suppressed. There seems no Just
reason @hy individuals engaged in snug
Cling l2ucts andfobbjng lie department Of
/ its leg innate revenues shout not be pun
shed, IN the same way and 70 the same cz-
tent IS pc sors gully Of smuggling goods;
nor Why tie same means Of detection
shoald not be given the Po9l Office Depart
mcnt WHICH are now gwen TO the Treas
uFy.
Weightard bulk Of the mails add much
10 the cost Of transportation, which con