The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-05-11

| delsv. there il a detachment Of Southern men in
the Senate, but particularly in the House. who are
determined, by all means, TO defeat the admission
of California as a State at this session. The con-
test will be severe and the chances about equal
that California will be reduced to the condition Of
| Jim in the Ethiopian melody
"That you, sambosn
mo, 'tis JIM
| "Well. you is right good looking
But you can't come inn
WASHINGTON, May z, 1850.
The Patent Office Agioulf,Ual Hmbug-Ms
Cost Of Printing Wsnt,corth's Committee on
Father Ritchie-Erpenses of the Post Office De-
partmemt-General Expenses Of the Government
The Tariff Movsmsmt aud the Pennsylraniam
Counter Position of the Nao York1s-Ihe
DopntaH Of the Whig Party.
There was quite lively debate in the Senate to-
day, on the motion to print 10000 extra copies of
the Patent Office Agricultural Report, for the use
of the Senate. We have given you some general
account of the contents of this report. 1t consists
of visionary lectures and transcendental treatises
the natural history of various bugs and beetles, pa
rasitic fungi, mushrooms, &C., with illustrative
plates-copious statistics from the newspapers and
prize essays, and lot of commercial statistics
from variety OF sources-a mere waste of paper
and money, when we consider that the document
on commerce and navigation will give them all
In fact, the agricultural magazines the newspapers
of the country, and the document on commerce
and navigation, we take il, would amply supply the
place of this Patent Office document and save the
expense to the treasury.
MIR. Butler, Mr.. Jefferson Davis, and Mr. Foote
ably exposed the fallacies of this document. Gen.
Foote, particularly, considered it as ridiculous
humbug, associated, as Mr.. Ewbank appears to be,
with that prince of humbugs and socialism, Ho-
race Greedy. But the document carried-it is good
for Buncombe-it will amuse the farmers at lie asst,
and that is enough. But let look at the cost =
The House have ordered. 100000 extra copies
Inc senate 40 10 VVVvV uo w
Add the ordinary number for both
houses, say. %oW copies.
Total. .............. $4,000 copies.
There is good reason to fear that the old party
press patronage system will be revived, or, at least
the prices of the old party system, under which,
with all the plates and the bindings we may expect
this report to cost 81 so per copy which will bring
the cost of this single document to very nearly
$500, 600. Including the first part of this Patent
Office report-the part relating to mechanics steam
propellors, patents, &c.-we suppose the document
000 when, for all useful purposes, it might be safely
cut down to SO 600.
We expect something from the Committee on
Printing-Wentworths SPECIAL committee Of nine,
work was taken as follows The composition at
less than they pay to the journeymen; the paper
and press work at the cost of the paper that the
young printers thus taking work. do it in the Union
office, and upon the materials of Richie & Burke
Wentworth is acting upon this idea:-That the
contractors took the work upon speculation with
Rltchle " Burke-that the design was 10 get tne
work the lowest bidders, and then to let it accu
mulate till Congress raised the compens alton.
Wentworth charges further, that while the docu-
ments that are laid upon the table, which the MEM
bers see and have chance to examine, are printed
upon middling good paper, and are tolerably well
bound and that the documents which go to the
folding to be put in wrappers for distribution,
and which the members do not see, and which con-
stitute the mass OF the work, are printed upon
wretched paper, and that the binding is of the
est kind, altogether different from the documents
laid upon the tables of the House.
Such are some Of the discoveries Of Wentworth,
and such are the results OF contract system, un-
der which the work is taken at less than COST with
a view Of securing good prices afterwards. But
whatever the printers may have done, they ought
to be paid for ii, and Congress cannot honestly
take advantage of a contract which they accepted
with a full knowledge that the work could not be
done at such prices.
At fair prices for good work, the printing Of this
session of Congress will probably reach as high as
100000. Upon this mass of work, the q per cent
profit Of the old prices would give a profit of
300, 600 TO the printers. And this is the measure
of reform now before the Senate. But anything is
better than the present execrable system, though
the government will at last be driven to printing
| Office Of its own.
From report Of the Postmaster General, the
will be as follows
| For transportation Of the mails, including
the service in California and Oregon. 81 900
For transportation Of the mails in
two steams ships from New Yorkby
Southampton, to Bremen at $780,
600 for each ship, under the con-
tract with the Ocean steam Ma
visation Company Of New York. $4,000
And for transportation by two ships,
under the same contract, from
| New York to IIavre, at s75 oooeach 10000
100000
| Deduct the amout Of former appro-
pristions for the same object,
| which IL Is estimated will remain
unexpended on the 3oth June,
| lI5O. HSsooo
Leaving to be appropriated the Of. .'d667
| For transportation Of the mails between
Charleston and Havana, by way Of Key
| West, calling at Savannah, under the con-
| tract with NJ. Q. Mordecai. ........... $4,000
| For transportation OF the malls across the
| isthmus Of Panama. 3b,OV
For compensation to postmasters. mann. O0f
| For ship, steamboat and way letters. 5000
Tor ONCE furniture (in the post ofaces). 80. 5000
| For ADVERTISING. ................... 900
| For mail bags OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 5000
For blapks .................. 2sOoS
For mail locks keys and stamps 49,. 1905
For mail depredat ions and special agents. 3000t
For clerks for Offices lin the post ofces)... $1,000,
| For miscellaneous. ................ 10000
For publishing new editions Of the post once
| laws and regulations, and Of the table OF
| post ofhces, those published In 1slI having
| been exhausted some time since. ei5Vl
| Total. s5.2i51o7
This expenditure is derived almost entirely from
the Post Office receipts, and is not generally counted
| with the expenses of the Treasury. From the ex-
| travsgant manner in which things are working
| from the apparent reckessness in the squandering
Of the public money all around US, the high tariff
| people will have abundant apology for increased
taxation and loans, before this session is through.
The Pennsylvanians are warning for more pro-
| lection, and II is even limited that they are quite
| willing 10 90 for compromise OF the negro ques-
ton, il they get 10 per cent on coal and iron.
| That is, they in the market for 10 per cent
they arc willing TO cell themselves at that price,
and some even 20 so far as to say that they will
| only support a compromise upon such bargain and
sale. We can hardly believe the Pennsylvanians
| have sunk quite 50 low that and they might as
well agree TO make the most Of the bill OF 40 toi
il is altogether absurd 10 expect anything better for
| some considerable time TO come.
| The New Workers on the other tack, anyhow
| They are with old lack, and against Henry Clay
| Thirty members, understand, of the New
| York delegation are in favor Of the Presidents
| policy, and opposed 10 the compromise. The
| Southern wings are for Clay-some few in the
/ North are with him and thus. the WhiQ narfY be