Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1847-07-02
Dedicated 10 Cave johnson and his Deputies

We give below an extract from letter
lately received. 1t will be seen that our friend
wakes warm. We beseech him TO bear the
Affections that our admirable Post Office man
agement, under the immortal Cave johnson, be-
slows upon him. like a hero and martyr. 1t
is always the darkest just before day, and as the
mails and post offices are, just now, in consid-
erably worse condition than we have ever before
known or heard of, we are chccred by the hope
that " there is a good time coming!" AS to
mhere the fault is, it is ercry chere; all orcr
Cave Johnson's Post Office dominions. We
don't believe there are many more Post Masters
in the Country (from Cave do,cn or up, as the
case may beg who are competent to the per-
formance Of their duties, than there were right
eous men in Solom.
We claim to be good-naturcd man, but. as
the peaceful spectator in the crowd said, when
he was knocked over by brick-bat we think it
is about time these people were spoke 10. The
Post Master General interprcts and alters the
law precisely as he plcascs, and appears to be
aiming to render his entire Department as in
convenient and oppressive TO the people, whose
servant he is, as his limited capacity will enable
him to; while his subordinatcs are, to a very
great extent. fit instruments of official insoence
and petty tyranny.
The PosT OFFICE was designed and created
solely and exclusively for the accommodation and
convenience of the business of the PEOPLE and
the Post Master General was created, by the
People, and invested with power and authority,
and fed with a fat salary, for the purpose of so
managing its concerns as best to carry ont that
design. lie has nothing 0egtimate!y) to do
either with making or interpreting, and least OF
all has he authority 10 alter, the laws regulating
his Department. In the better days of the Re-
public, when we had our MEIGs' and our GRAN
GERS at the head of the Post Office, its true and
and beneflcent design was efficiently carried
out Post Offices, in those days, were places
where people could get what belonged to them,
and to nobody else, without being treated as
though they were receiving some extraordinary
favor and without being subjected to the neces-
sity of asking for it on Bonded knee and with
bated breath, for fear of offending some official
undcrstrapper, or of violating some arbitrary
rule made with no respect whatever to the pub
lie convenience.
But we are likely to get led astray from our
purpose by such reflections. We meant simply
to introduce the following extract to our read
ers, and TO inform them (what good many
painfully know that it is but specimen of the
species of remonstrancc that we and other edit
ors in this widespread country, are almost daily
receiving. We have lost some subscribers on
account Of the Irregularities" complained of I;
and when we have endeavored to clean our own
skirts of blame, we have been assailed by the
impairment slang Of those whom we have proved
to have been at fault 1t is one Of the easiest
things in the world to have good Post Offices.
wel-managcd by gentlemanly. competent, and
accommodating mon; and the good time is COM
ing. we believe, when we shall have.
We implorc our thin-skinned contemporary
of the Sentinel not to imagine that we have in
tended these remarks exclusively for the Bur-
lington Post O1ice-thouyh, at the same time,
we have not the slightest hesitation in saying
might, by Iierculcan effort, be slightly i'm
proved.
June &c, 1917
FRIEND CLARKE:-I have been long vcxed and
have contemplated writing you for some time to send
your bill and stop the Free Press. The sole Of
my vexation has been the rreguarity Of its arrival
| | have Just come to -, and find n Free Press of
the 18th OF June the first for four tccekS last past