New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1854-12-07

greater security 70 valuable iepe's ~ 1900,
esithout assuming any liability for their u,un"'s
To-. nv our present system, all letters m7ned AZ
given date at one post office Tor deh'ery VI u.s. =.
bntop at another, entered IN gross accoruus re
their several rates of postage, upon one
letter Of great value be embreced IN rue oin' ueIe
s address nor any other description OF IL Is en,Sseu
on the post-bi by shehit can De distinguishes uou'
other letters Of the same grade or rate Oh P's.as
Nor is the address or description Oh any SUI. -,
entered ON the Postmssters account oil mfiis ssu,
nor indeed upon any other record kept ID the once
from which il is sent The only account kept oy 'ue
nos,nasfer il n0RSy account, made up eacn Gay va
the several aggregates oil poseas nnnsid I. will
no seen that under such a system OF accounts,
missing letter can never be traced WIN 'aly ~,
the account neither furnishes evidence tha patcu
lar letter reached the place Oh us ~,
even that il left the office OF mailing behe'lus SHa
This imperfecti,n in our system can only De reeiel
by the adoption of general and UNIFORM pan ol Iea
israon for all valuable letters, have after consult
ing the experience OF ober countries on 'Lo -.
devised plan Of registration which thlhk sul.eu "
onr circumstances and likely to add greatly 10 tue
security Of the mail a. ainst depreciation. I'LL.
II nrovdes tia receipts shall be given for vsluaoe
letters when posted, and that dupnea'es 9i 'ueSo
CENTS shall be kept for reference at the once OF mt
;ng that the full ADDRESS of sach letters sht DO en-
tered on separate post bill, which shau DC coPeu
al large upon account to be kept oil 'os
ters sent This post bull s TO be forwarded III d seaeu
erveop separate from the package OF letters 20 WHICH
II ,lates and its receipt at the office OF its deslna-
ton is 10 be Acknowledged by duplicate thereof re-
turnedsto the office of maling-marSed eo!Tee'' 9I
otehrwse, As it may be foudd on COMPARISON it
nrovides that al the large offices valuable letters saa
be received at one window only and that the receiy,
ing clerk shall check them 10 the register CLERK, snd
he TO the mailing clerk. IL is, In snort, Designer 70
fix responsibility and TO furnish means which do not
now Exist for tracing missing letter rom the point
of its reception to that of its disappearance 10 car
~ this plan into effect it will be required thai new
and expensive blanks be prepared aud dlstroutea
and that an increased clerical force be employed Ia
the principal Post Offices. lhave not therefore, ieN
al liberty 10 adopt il without the sanction oil Con-
press and authority to establish such addio1 AL rate
Of postage on this class of letters as may be deemed
adequate to the e1pense of registration: -,
In Great Britain the registration fee on lnland
and most foreign letters is siIpence sterling laoout
10 CENTS in ado tion to the ordinary rates OF postage
and IL il expressly provided that "such registration
"sbal not render the Postmoster-Gen or ths
:" Post Office revenue in any manner naoe LOT tus
Gloss of auy such post letters, or the contents
az ereof" 1t is believed that authority to establish
an additional rate of five cents on each le'er regis
cred and 10 require the postage on al e1
tiers 10 be pre- paid, would enable the Department 10
carry into effect the plan mere suoni''eu "n'" pre-
iudce 10 its revenues.
II il not proposed TO make the registering OF vaua
bic letters compulsory, nor that the Government shah
become liable for such letters when lost, but only 10
enable each person mailing valuable letter 10 do so
in the ordinary manner or add something to it, Sc
curty by the payment OF a small registration fee.
have no doubt that the registration OF valu lbie
letters az proposed, would be hShly apprecla,eu as
means of security by the large commercial classes
OF the community whose collections and exchanges
are made prr cipally through the mails, and who
have from time to time urged in vain upon TINS De
psrtmeIt the adoption of some such plan Zoe tnelr
protection. | believe, too, that such system OF
r.ei,traon would relieve this Department from the
imputaiion of numerous losses not properly charge,
able upon it-cases in which valuable letters alleged
10 have been lost through the mails either never
I'D af.nfg
irving at the places of their destination.
The cost Of the service for the last fiscal year on
the several United States Mail steamship lines, ana
across the Ishmus of Panama, is as follows;
New s"rn n%E 70 $4,000 90
New Yo,I via soathau pton, to Bremen, eleven 49,, -
ss%YoI IA Cove: to Ha1re round trips 1880 %
NewYork and New Orleans TO Aspinwall, twenty
between New Yor and New Orleans via Havana 5000 90
Astoria via San Franc,co, 10 Psnapa twenty four go oo
ensI, $50 ,o wa tonps 5000 90
New oi.sps to Vera Gu, twenty foar round tslps
omitiiDs ,az,y ~
Aspnwa u Panama ''''.'''''''''''''''''''''' 49, "
.........................s2o23Oi O p
Nv the act of Congress- approved the Sd of NJ arch,
lsii the President authorized to contract for the
construction and equipment Of four hrstcl4ss sea-
going steamships 10 be attached to the Navy OF the
United Sta es 1t was by the sec0nd section made
the duty of ibe Secretary OF the Navy To accept on
the part Of the Government of the United States the
proposals Of L. X. Collins and his associates for the
transformation Of the United States mail between New
York and Liverpool The steamships TO be employed
were to be constructed TO render them cOnvertl
BILE at the least possible cost, into steamships of
the first class BY the fourth section OF the same act
il likewise made the duty of the Secretary of the
Navy TO contract with A. g Soo for the Transports
ton of the mail from NewYork 10 New Orleans twice
a month and back touching at Charleston, if practi-
cable, Savannah, and Havana, and from Havana to
CbsRres and back twice month"; The fifth section
authorized him to enter into contract 10 carry the
mail from Panama TO Oregon once month. The sixth
section made it the duty OF the Secretary OF the Navy
provide in the contracts authorized by The act that
the Navy Department shall at all times exercise control
said steamships and at any time have the right to
take them for the exclusive and service oftheU
States due provision being made in the tracts ofthe
mode of ascertaiIDg the proper compensation to the
contractors therefor. On the first Of March, 1877
the Secretary Of the Navy entered into contract
with f. X. Collins and his associated. The contract
contains all the stipeatons required by the act of
Congress; the service TO be performed was twice
each month for eight mORths Of the year, and once
month during the ether four months. The SUN to be
paid wss s3e5,O00, or sl9 $50 trip, aud the
contract to continue in force for ten years from
the date of the commencement of the service. A. g.
Sloo was contracted with, by the Secretary of the
Navy on the Goth of April, I5i7 to perform the
vice mentioned in the fourth section. Tne ser rice
was 10 be twice month; the sum 20 be paid, $780,
000 and the contract 10 continue in force for ten
years from the commencement of the service. This
contract lib ewise contains all the spulatons required
by the Act Of Congress, and was assigned by
A. G.. SlOo TO George Law, Marshall o. Rob-
erts. and b. K: Mcllvain, on the Sd of Sep.
TENDER, 1s47. The contract to transport the mail
from Panama to Oregon was entered with Arnold
Harris on the 10th Of November, l547. The service
was TO be once month; the price to be paid was
sl93 0OO and the contract 10 continue for ten years
from the lst of October ls4s. All the stipuatioas
required by the act Of Congress contained in this
contract slso, which was assigned on the 10Th No
vtmber le47, to William Aspnwall. On the 18th