The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1852-04-24
srEEoa or iios. a. a. snowS.
OF MISSISSIPPI.


aon of fhe JOINT Comtee IN iokiag a. from hs CON
s~sor and diuiiag Il beireeenhe Union and The RsPub
nc mwspdpHS'
NJ, BROWN said: | do not intend to detan the House
by anything like an elaborate speech upon me subject OF
,5s pabc printing. In the few remarks which propose
,asubmlt shall endeayor to conhne myself as nearly
= o,sbe TO the subjects directly before nor should
have asked the indulgence OF The House 70 say word
h io The agency which have taken heretofore in this
"a,,sr Ua When heard that the Committee on Public
puntog had done than by the explanation OF the
honorable chairman am now induced 10 think they IN
,nled 10 do thought they had exceeded the authority
vso Them by law, and that they had done that which
Az House oug nj not to sanction by lis sence much less
hv s e1press assent With the explanation which the
honorable chairman mas gwen, am saiished me com,
mee have intended TO conne themselves TO the letter o
,he law; but am just well satisfied that their action
viii lead 10 an abuse OF the law. The Committee on Pub
lie Printing have right. according to one construction
ol the statute OF 1885, 10 take so much OF the public
nnlng from the present employee he fails or refuses
10 execute Under this authority we now learn IRON The
chairman that they propose to take IRON me pubic
nIinier-~whatl The work which he has refused or
failed to execute and this alone No, SIR for in the
of his remarks the honorable chairman tells you
ihat they have in their possession now considerable
quantity of work which has never ye, oeen saomea ~ , 70
mee 10 the conclusion that the printer woud either fail
or refuse 10 execute the work. when it had never been in
his hands Was it not stralnng conclusion to deter
mine that he had failed 10 execute, and would not
cute work which they had never ntrused to his care,
and never asked him to executed The honorable chair
man OF the committee says that the public printer has
failed TO execute OF The work heretofore intrused 10
his care But does the conclusion necessarily follow
that he will continue 10 fail that having failed in one
kind OF printing, he would fail in all others'
Was expected that the public printer could exc
cute the printing OF This House Instantly upon lis deliv-
cry to him Has there been any extraordinary delay in
The delivery OF this work According 10 my recollec-
lion the lubLc printing is about as forward, about as
near TO completion, usually at this oil the
year. We have the first part of the Presidents message
bound and laid upon tables. copy for each
be and what matters il whether the extra copies shall
be printed this month. the next month"; three months
hence When was the last part OF the Presidents mes
sage and accompanying documents printed during the
long session Of the last Congress According to my re
collection we were getting along towards the dog days
before il laid upon tables Was the then
able and highyrespecled public printer Mr.. Rchie
hauled the Goals for failure 10 perform his duty
Was Mr.. Rilche--agalnst whom have no word OF com
pain utter here-held up the country defaulte
10 the discharge of his duties All some gentleman an
swers low tone, Yes Ii is well the tone is low. NJ
gsnteman ought TO answer Yes in a loud voice. The
House knows what the action taken upon that sub
ct years ago At the close OF the session OF 1850
there was found TO be in one house of Congress lag
majority no, only ndisposed 10 call Mr. Richie to an
count Tor any failure to comply with his contract but actu
ally disposed and determined give him some sixty or
eiy thousand dollars OF the public money extra
pensaon Mr. Rtche paid every dollar that be claim
ed under his contract and his friends xious Il
gye him great deal more. never understood that b,
did the work any better any more rapidly than III,
uO,ract called for; and ye, there was large party
this House ready 10 vote him sixty thousand
d01s or more over and above what the contraci
akd for; and 1t only, according to my recol-
trtlon, by parliamentary manguvring that the thing
vas prevented. You bad two or three committees OF
conference the subject and the subject pressed
upon our attention other subject was ever pressed
upon us And let me remind certain gentlemen, who
are enforcing very rigid observance OF the law agains;
Mr. Hamilton that the journals show them to have been
more than liberal towards Mr.. Richie. Now, sir de
sire 10 kHow why It is IN This land OF laws, in this
land o equality and before this democratic House Of
Representatives this kind OF distinction made between
one employee and another! | know nothing Of Mr..
Boyd Hamilton; have never seen him II TO
meet him 10 day should know him from any other
man IN Chrlsendom. not one single solitary farlh
ing about iim, but | do care Tor justice | will not
willingly make myself party 10 transaction so unjust
as thus. Will not say 10 one n-who wieids a pow
erul party presswe will pay you the u amount Of the
bond, wink at your shortcomings, and pay you sixty
thousand desrs extra and then 10 anotherwho has
press, no power, no induence-we will crush you be-
au,e you have not lived 10 the very letter o the la
Mr. G0RMAN want the gentleman distinctly to
arow whether he cbsrges-tha as motive operating
upon the committee,
Mr. BROWN. Not at all
Mr. G0RMAN. Your words do. r.s g..#e-es .t
Mr. BROWN. dlsavow any personal application
but This w say II the House OF Representatives shal
pepelrae such act OF gross injustice, IT will merit
and will asuredly receive, the repobaton OF every jus
man IN the nation We hear continually that the con
Tract system has proved failure do not think 30. The
contract system has had fair trial There has been
what seemed TO determination from The beginning
70 bring this system into disepuenever 10 give II fa
play. Powerful parties. holding the most influential po
ahons, have engaged 10 this work The system has op
Grated against Their interest," and they have labore tC
break down It's triumph is not complete, but IT has
not Jailed. Let US see how the system has worked SC
lar. Your hrst contractors Wendell 4 Van Ben.
huysen. Did they execute their coniracti under.
stand they did am forced 10 ths, conclusion because
here has been no suit entered upon their bond for fail
ue to execute their contract Thus far the syste
we-ai least II did not fail You received the work and
paid for II; and iii not well done, il was because
you did not require II TO be well done. During the
lal Congress, the then venerable editor OF The Union
tMr. Rlichie) bad the contract Did he execute IL!
understand he did Ii Is my understanding that he ex
ecued 10 the satisfaction OF the Committee on Printing
and The satisfaction OF Congress so understand, be.
cause no suit has been instituted upon his bond Tor a
shufe TO execute the contract You again receive the
Votg and paid for II, and shall presently thai
certain gentlemen proposed to do great deal more
surely here coald bave been no failure, when you moi
opp received The work and paid for H. bui waned io
hNe lsige extra compensation Then Mr A. Boyd Ham,
ou mas The contract for this session The only spec
suon according my present recollection. which the
9aofaoe Chairman makes against him is that portion
- pe paper Is some twelve pounds IN the ream lighter
% uIal lhe contract requires. This find MIR Hamilton
Iunls lor in the printed paper lying upon tables
e says That Tor brief during the past winter
we account OF The closing OF naviyaiion he was un
w 10 get better article OF paper. The cold weather
ag suspended steamboat and railroad operations, he
V.l ~. MOI procure transportation.
H' STANTON, OF Kentucky | wish 10 make a
.aement; and il is this understand from the chair
a % o he Senate committee, rather the late chairman
a. 'oe senae committee, that he has rejected nearly all
work sent 10 the Senate by the printer, and rejected
aao solely Tor the reason that the paper not
n4eiof arhcle, but because the whole committee
Ss ~ The idea that great fraud had been practised
ION me government il this paper should be received
Ie quality OF paper which he has now furnished, II
in han W hat n n