The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-02-07


THE tg WA
! UNITED STATES POSTAL GUIDE.
IND OFFICIAL ADVERTISER.
r 10 shoc sphat is donr, and phai should be DONE
ia qtliee.-kU ths
CHARLES M 1 W"ssso Editors and Preprieors
Terms. Is The United States Postal Guide and
Official .4drertissr conlainiag about 81 srpsr-royai
ocsscs pages, 10 Pubiished monthiy for ONE DOL
LAR ONLY, per aMnups, payable in adronce--or fire
dollars FIR sir copies ordered at amy time
PREPARATORY NOTICE.
4 The enterprise in which we now embark, and
Of which this paper is at once the commencement.
and sampIeof the papers that are 10 follow, has
for its aim no less purpose, than to impsrt in
struction, in the general and detail, the Officers
and Agents of the American public in respect both
to their duties and their rights, and to make them
and the people at large, acquainted with the organ
zation, decisions and action Of the Executive de-
partments Of their Government. There has hith-
erto Teen no vehicle for the regular and proper
communication Of information oR0this kind The
publication of the LAWS aud the issue Oflnstruc-
tons, or less comprehensive, and at intervals
fmore Or iss1-extsndsd, have proved wholly inade-
quate in the absence Of the construction Of those
Laws as applied to particular cases. and Of details
and illustrations to make the regulations and in
strIctons Ineligible. The valuable documents
annually reported to Congress- are too vOuminOus,
and printed in quantities too small for general
crculation; whilst the debates in Congress and
the commentaries of the press upon their proceed
ings, and the proceedings of the Executive branch
: Of the Government, besides turning mostly upon
general principles, address themselves only TO
marty ends, and TO matters of national policy
These publications in their various forms
highly useful in themselves as far as they go, and
some of them Indispensable; but there is much
that do not reach the hands Of all, if they did,
do they furnish those rules, methods, and exam
PIES for the despatch Of the public business which
can render the discharge of public duty either safe
easy, whether in respect TO the incumbent him.
self, or the department bureau under which he
acs. We shall make honest effort to supply
{ this vacuum, and to provide for these necessities.
If we succeed in rendering the functions of the
primary Offices more uniform, methOdIcal, and ex-
act, we shall make the administrative duties of the
departments more easy and effective, and thereby
d promote the real and substantial interests of the
country. And this we expect to do, to some ex-
: tent at east-apart from, and independently of
= any party personal interest or question what
ever. e
! 1t is known to most Of those 10 whom this pa
j. per will be SENT that the Senior Editor Audi
II tor Of the PoslOfce Department until the month
of November last; with by far the larger portion
!. Of both postmasters and contractors, he has had
direct intercourse, in person or by letter. he en-
tered the department fourteen years since, and for
many years previously, had been, first in the War
He has therefore had the best opportunities for
e understanding the arrangements OF business in all
il the departments, and being acquainted with those
is who carry Since his offical connection with
the Government ceased he latters himself he has
preserved the respect and regard Of most Of the
present incumbents of the departments, and is on
- becoming terms Of intercourse and civity with
m them all The Junior Editor has been asssduously
)e engaged for several years, in studying, by per-
e. sonal inquiry and examination, the practical and
4 : - - n r A. H.. -.
other branches Of the public business. II III with
this stock Of experience, and these advantages ol
le reaching the various of administrative
ton, and for imparting minute and illustrative in
" structon, and valuable periodical and statistical
N information, that we challenge your confidence
and solicit your support and patronage.
D. We have fixed upon the 18th Of each month an
the day for the publication of our paper, to
afford time for obtaining from the departments,
all the ORDERS notices and changes issued, made
N by them during the preceding month Tables Of
N Post Offices, and compilations Of the Laws and
n Regulations are issued by the Post Office Depart
NJ ment only once in two or three years. 1t is a
N matter of inconvenience and complaint, for which
N hitherto there has been no remedy, that in one
N month from the time of these issues there are Of
N fees in the tables which longer in ope alton,
and Offices in operation which are not in the tables.
AT this time there are perhaps three thousand
n Offices Of the two descriptions. In like manner
NJ laws have been passed and regulations established
NJ since the Of the last volume Of regulations,
Of which many postmasters and others are wholly
n ignorant. We propose to prevent, for the present,
any increase OF the evil Of either kind, and from
the time another issue shall be made, our paper
will furnish the additions corrections, and modlh-
& cations, made IN each month, and by being filed
a and preserved, will afford to postmasers full and
N exact information upon both subjects, up TO and
n for Time being How much of the present msdi-
~ rection, remaling, doubt, confusion, error, and
n imposition, will be saved by the progressive state
N Of full and exact knowledge for which we have
n provided and for which we engage, every lntell-
N gent postmaster can estimate for himself.
N These advantages alone and independently of all
n others, are worth many times the price we charge
a for the paper, and will, II is hoped, induce every
NJ postmaster who feels Just pride in his Office,
= patriotic regard for the credit prosperity, and
N efficiency Of the whole Post Office system-at once
q to subscribe The same considerations apply to
the orders and notices, decisions, and instructions
Of the War, Navy, Treasury, State, and Interior
: departments, and the same course il ntenced in
respect to them. Notices Of the decisions Of the
Supreme Court, in cases turning upon questions
Of official duty national interest, will find place
in this laISef,
A department Of our paper addressing itself not
" merely To pustmnsters and other officers Of the
" Government, but to all other citizens who give at
tention to the affairs Of the nation and the progress
and development of the {, unry, will embrace IN a
condensed form the matters submitted to, or arts
:, valuable information is communicated to Con-
gress. by the several departments and their subor-
q dinae bureaus, and profound and comprehensive
!, reports are made by committees Of both Houses.
y But the great mass of the community know moth
+, ing of the contents of these documents and re-
. ports, except the brief notices of them, which
q from time to time appear in the public papers
: The standing number printed Of each document
!, and report is only twelve hundred III the Senate
: and fourteen hundred in the House of Representa-
(, ,iyes, which Mt once shows the impracticabty OF
n their dissemination. The Advertiser will con-
= tain short abrdgments or analysis Of all these
9 documents and reports, and the compend will
therefore not only prove exceedingly useful and
instructive in ITSELF but will furnish nm easy index
TO those interested whenever il is found desirable
!, to obtain and examine the document at large.
There is a large field before us, the materials are
> ample II will be jealous care 10 eoIlsct and
arrange them in the proper form. We have every
: confidence that the subscriptions will be ample to
n~.li. "a. IA coromptisl, n all The information