The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1847-02-01
THE UNION.


ciently for want of resources"
We do not believe in the correctness any extent OF
either of bese assertions But supposng both to be true
how does appear that either the fault of the Postmas
Genera' He does not make the laws which regulate
either the number of clerks post Offices the
" resources" of contractors. Every one at all
SAINT with the subject knows that the number of clerks
which postmaster afford to employ depends upon
the amount of his commissions postage received
From that fund, and from other does the law make
provision for the salaries of those clerks Yet this very
aultnder praises the liberal and wise reduction in the
rates OF POSTAGE" which the recent act of Congress has
eeced forgetting, disregardng the fact that this very
reduction Of postage has reduced the COMMISSIONS and
consequently crippled, to some extent the fund from
which clerks to be paid To blame the Postmaster
General for this, thing beyond his power and above his
CONTROL and yet to laud the law which produces it, pal
pably absurd So with the resources" OF contractors
If by that term is meant the amount they receive for
transporting the mails The law compels the Postmas-
ter General to advertise for bids and to accept the lowest
bidder: and if men, in the excitement of competition
sometimes take contracts at lower price than they
afford to perform them, and thus able to act ef-
centy for want of resources" it is neither his fault
nor has he the power to remedy the evil We believe
however that the entire assumption, in relation to this
matter, grauitous; that the very great majority of the
contractors amply remunerated for their services and
that they do not lack enable them promptly
and faithfully to supply those services.
bu II seems tnat from o. LOUIS instance,
are" [werel nine ten mails due" and this sup
pose the writer considers Gaping the climax of his in
stances to prove the ncompetency or nefciency of Mr.
Johnson.
AS this allegation seemed at least to present tangible
fact have taken pains to ascertain from the proper
source whether that fact existed, and if SO, its cause
and have had difficulty in procuring, in both
spects, the desired information That there have been
great and amentabe interruptions of the mails, not only
from ST. Louis but from very large portion OF the
Great West is most true; and it is equally true that
neither the efficiency the nefciency OF Mr. Johnson
had anything more to do with them than with the last
solar eclipse. Those Interruptions owng entirely
TO the unprecedented floods wh arhch the yesern country
has recently been psted and rhich rendered the trans
portation Of the mails physically impossible OF this
| adduce the following proofs:
Extract of letter from the postmaster at Evansville hrdians
of the 9Th instant.
"The whole country is delu ged with water and there
now and must be for some time to come great deranee
ment of the mails in the west
Extract Of letter from The postmaster at Pncen"es, Of the
"Never before has there been known in this country any
thing like the present time by the oldest inhabitants The
ceived; the destruction Of property is immense
Every cra that could be procured, and large numbers
Mates and yet numbers have not been relieved
ing. will most likely be recedng scarcely expect
regular mails for some days to come"
From the same, under date of the 18th instantl
"The slowly recedng, but it be several
days before can look for regularity in the arrival and
departure Of mails am just informed that the mail on
finding impossible to get along for high water and Ice"
The postmaster at Terre Haue Indiana reports under
date of the 18th instant.
pn Monday the 4h of January 1877 route ANA
the only arrival up the llth same month, the mail
having failed TO arrive on the ls 3D. 3d. 5th 6h 7h sh
place from St Louis the above named route during the
days specified, account OF high water the routelos
of bridges and ice running in the Wabash river this
place.
i offhe 18th instant.
An unprecedented flood has visited our section of con
nialroucs impossible. send herewith general report
for each route which the mails stopped
ing necessary report the failures of each trip lost as
connexions were not broken, all being stopped"
| From tho Louisville Morning Courier of the 10th instant
i 'WAsHINGToN, Indiana, January 9, lS47.
81 am still waterbound, and from present Appearances
likely remain for time. White river perfect
forty years The usual mail road is covered with water
for four miles, and il is with difficulty that they carry
-, 'rhe ruin occasioned by the inundation immense
Thousands Of hogs cae horses &c, &c, have been de-
with Se so sudden Was the s Ma "eE eed Is
Ron s m and for es
ance and daring in forwarding the mail under such danger
'Thc bearer of this is just from vincennes and he re-
ports the Wabash "a, equally as high as White river Travel
S he s e fs
a skiff-a distance of three hundred miles.
MANY places on the river eight and ten miles wide,
and the destruction to property terrible The fences in
several places, are broken, and the water rushe through
like the rolling of heavy 1t is estimated that the
of property the rivers will be than $500 900
Wabash still rising White river has fallen Is inches
two days"
After perusng this evidence, cheerully leave to
our readers to determine how much blame is due either
to the Post Office Department, its present able head
any connected with it, for these interruptions of the
mails.
/ The following article appears in the Baltimore Clip
per- OF this morning, which has produced interest
and inquiry on our streets:
"We indebep friend who arrived here last night
from New Orleans for important intelligence if
He says he perused letter just before leaving New Or
leans written by an intelligent gentleman with the amy
that the Mexican Congress had agreed peace pro-
posals, and had adopted resolution by decided major
y, TO receive an American minister TO form treaty Of
peace, and conclude the
can express from Santa Anna had reached Gen WORTH
bearing lit is supposedly the above intelligence. The
press rider stated that the resolution handful FORM had
| been posted up at San Luis
sour informant places much reliance in the above
than dothough it may be We humbly trust
| We are not advised Of any such report having been
officially received at Washington. If it had come to
Gen. Worth from San Louis de Potos it would most
probably have reached Gen. Taylor at Victoria. But
dispatches received from him late the 18th of
January from Victoria He is not only silent about any
such report but states that the last accounts from Next
co to the 10th December which time the Congress
Of Mexico had taken action in regard to the war In
fact our previous advices from Mexico are later than
those which he had received