The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-04-24

.h. prove % meet the foregoing sEProPr.ss
ons any dshesney that may thu. arise sh. be pad
ted pyosidsd That nothing herein contained shall be con
strued authorize any payment to supply dsneiehe' IN
| the appropriation for compensation oil postmssten
Mr.. MCKAY moved the following amendment: .s
i Amer the word mails, in 9Th line, LIST section,
insert, "ncludng S25 900 for the line Of mail steam
ers from New York to Bremen" and strike out
80" and insert ''25, 600"
In support Of this amendment,
| Mr.. MCKAY said, IL would be recollected that at
the last Congress, law had been passed authorlz-
ing the Postmaster General to make a contract for
mail steamers. A contract had been made. Ia a
communication which the Postmaster General had
addressed to the House. No. 237 he stated that fact,
and asked an appropriation ofs25,OOO. Mr.. Mex.
would not take up the time Of the committee in
reading the communication; gentlemen could ex-
anime II for themselves.
Mr.. T. b. KING said he would greatly prefer
that the subject, which had thus come very sud
denly upon the committee, should be more thor
oughly examined before an appropriation was
made sanctloning any contract by the Postmaster
General He (Mr, X was by no means prepared
TO give his sanction TO this contract. IL might be
wise and proper he was not about either to con.
denim or approve IL at present, But he doubted
whether IL was expedient that the particular meas
ure recommended by the Postmaster General
should be adopted. If the Postmaster General
i thought that the department would be reimbursed
by the transportation Of the mails, he Mr.. k.)
thought he would be mistaken. He Mr.. X was
not at this moment prepared TO show the advan-
tsges to be derived, the difficulties to be encoun
tered in the particular route recommended What
he desired was that the House should not act pre-
cipitatey and when they did act, he wished TO see
such measures adopted as would secure all the OBJ
jects sought to be accomplished. He thought the
subject had not yet been sufficiently Investigated
and he desired therefore that the bill should be laid
aside for few days. He wished il to he under
stood that he had feeling Of hostility TO the route
| recommended; but he had his doubts in relation
toit.
MIR. MCKAY was surprised that the gentleman
| should object TO taking up the bill at this time,
slderng that we were in the fifth month of the ses-
sion The Postmaster General had made his re-
port the subject early in March. II was referred
to the Committee on the Post Office and Post Roads
and elaborate report IN faver Of confirming the
contract with Mr. Mills was made by the gentle
man from Alabama, Mr.. HmLIARD That gentle
man could furnish ali the facts which the gentleman
! from Georgia wished
Mr.. T. b, KING had not been surprised at the
bill ITSELF but at finding this proposition in 1t.
Mr.. billiard believed (he said that the gen.
! eman from Georgia was mistaken in some Of his
views on this subject, and that he could set him
| right. The gentleman approved Of the object, but
| wanted general system and wished particularly to
have line to Liverpool and to the Pacific ocean.
IL not fair TO make the Atlantic line depend on
the success of other enterprises, and we must begin
somewhere. The committee had believed that this
inc would reimburse the government almost imme-
dately, and ought not to be attached to any other
system. Should the enterprise fail, il would be
drown back for halfa century As to the question
| why the British Queen did not succeed, he could
speak very positively, for he in Belgium when
the experiment was made and when il failed. No
steamer constructed so badly; and il was risk
ing ones life to sail in her. The Belgian govern
ment, finding that she unsafe, took her TO
pieces, and sold the machinery. Another reason
| vas, that but single vessel selected for this
communication, and the enterprise was not con.
Quoted with sufficient skill and perseverance,.
| What advantage, (asked Mr. h. would there
be IN entering into contest with the large lines to
| Liverpool? Cowes was as accessible Liverpool,
and was nearer to London, and possessed many ad-
vantages for speedy communication with all parts of
| Europe. No route could possibly possess so many
important advantages as that which the Postmaster
General had selected. What was the aspect Of the
question: Proposals were offered and bids made
| under law Of Congress, and the Postmaster Gene
raj had entered into contract, with guarantees for
certain line Of steamers, and he submitted it the
| House for confirmation. 1t had been examined by
the committee and approved; and now, for the first
| ume, objection was made TO il. Why embarrass
this with any other liner We were not here to sub.
serve any private individual interests. s25 600
was the whole amour, Of the appropriation now ask.
ed and il to fulfil the contract for the first quar-
Ter after the first steamer should be put on the line
The whole amount to be paid for the service Of four
steamers was S400, 900. The British government
paid $3.50 600 10 the Cunard line, and il more than
paid its expenses; and he did not doubt that this line
| would yield ample returns, not only in pecuniary
profit, but in intelligence, in the promotion Of COM
mercial enterprise, and in the diffusion Of knowl.
edge of American institutions.
| Mr.. McCLERNAND here asked whether the
steamers under contract and when this line
was to be put in operation? He wished to know
| too, whether were TO advance the money for
building the steamers'
| Mr. billiard explained that one of the steam
would be ready next spring. and that the govern
ment did not advance one cent towards their con.
struction. The Postmaster General did not ask the
contractor to build the steamers until the appropra
| tion made.
Mr.. McCLERNAND. Then the object is to
| ratify the contract
Mr.. T. B. KING asked for the reading of the
contract. He had he said never seen it, and could
not say that he would vote for its ratification until
| had been examined He wished TO have the con-
tract read for the information of the committee.
| Mr.. HOPKINS explained that several bids were
offered, according to the proposals, and that the
| lowest accepted.
| Mr. BARCLAY MARTIN begged leave to state
that the document containing the contract had been
IN the gentleman's box for days. and that it was
| his own fault If the gentleman was not better in
formed as TO the terms Of the contract. He did not
|
this subject account of the objections of the
gentleman from Georgia. The gentleman was not
opposed to the object contemplated, but he opposed
the bill because the line did not connect directly with
Liverpool Should the House delay their action for
the accommodation of gentleman who had not in.
formed himself on the subject, though he had at
tempted TO enlighten the House upon III
Mr., +. B. KING said the gentleman had misun-
derstood him. He had not said that he was opposed
to the bill. On the contrary, he inclined to sus.
tain IT, and he had professed no great ignorance
about the measure. He had merely desired a tenn.
porary delay.
The clerk here read that part of the report which
relates to the contract with Mr.. Mills
Mr.. T. b. KING said, he found the con-
tract to be much the as he had supposed. He
would contrast il in some respects with the British
mail-steamer service. The British mail steamers
were built under direction Of the admiralty; they
were required to carry an armament on board; they
were commanded by navy officers; and they were
obliged to carry a certain number of persons con-
nected with the government. He did not find that
apv IF oh, aruero l. 4