The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1857-12-11
THE WASHINGTON UNION.

amply allowed for Il in hh hid and obtained contract
accordingly at a high price.
In the existing contact however or transporting mails
between New Orleans and Cairo there express pro
vision that the contractors should take themselves
all The rak Of failures by physical unavoidable
accidents such as Ice unprecedented low waters logs,
damage to machinery &c and hence due allowance was
TO be made for them In the Of all other contracts
construed and enforced they have been in the long and
uniform practice Of the department "a L H. a W.
Congress the last night Of the last session. enacted
with reference 10 this case That the Postmaster Gene
raj be- and he is hereby authorized TO reexamine and
adjust all questions arising out of fines imposed upon the
contractors for carrying the mails ON the Mississippi
river Act Sd March, 1857, -, .,,..,.-.,,,
Under this law several applications were made for the
remission of fines and fotures under late contracts for
services the Mississippi river but the act seemed
to the department to have been only intended 10 embrace
eag contracts in course Of being carried out such
applications not considered under rule we'll set
tied, not to review reverse the decisions of former
head of the department. unless something existed the
record showing that be himself intended to have
amined the case. u,e ts af "a Is
The act of Congress above quoted, referring to the
present case took it out of this rule, and the decision of
the department is shown by the separate statement mark
cd in the appendix. The amount RENTED may APP
pear large but, according to law and the testimony
taken in the case and the practice in similar the
department seemed not 10 be warranted in making IT
less rsv r u aEnr -. sf5ts fssf, s.sg 81
The irregurity of the service fully ascertaned by
this investigation, would have induced the annulment
months yet to rum found willing to take II,
except at rate double the present compensation and
then 1t required that contract should be
made for years, and not merely for the few months
remaining of the regular term Such contract not be-
ing allowable by law, it found unadvisable TO annul
the existing and in order TO secure its most efficient
execution through the remainder OF the ter the agents
of the department at New Orleans and Cairo were in
struced to engage any boat hand and despatch the
mails in every of failure the part of the contrac
tors to do scat the time requredthe cost OF such tenn
porary service mot exceeding $3.50 the half trip being
chargeable to them The postmaster at Memphis where
commercial connexions have now become vastly import
ant also instructed that whenever the mailboa from
Cairo failed to arrive there in reasonable time he should
transmit mails from New Orleans by any other boat at
the expense the contractors Under these arrangements
being energetcay executed, the hope is INDUCED
that the service for the few months remaining may be sat
sfactorily rendered Na,Ha6 laat 1s3
All the difficulties in relation to this route have been
inherited from former years and the department looks
forward to the day. believed not to be distant when the
great through mails from Chicago, St Louis Memphis,
and other important cities of the West can be transmit
ted New Orleans In less than half the time requ
ed and with the regularity of welconstructed and we'll
managed railroad. ~ l.l #0h ,-a Pc s@an. vi sa.a-
detailed statement will be presented to Congress
showing the fines and deductions which were imposed
upon the contractors for imperfect mail service during the
fiscal year. These fines and deductions will be found to
amount in the aggregate to $8e TAG "a In this amount
of Slss TAG 81 is included the of STA 598 49, being
portion of the deductions made from the contractors
pay the New Orleans and Cairo route during the third
and fourth quarters of 1885, which has since been remit
ted to them in pursuance of the 18th section of the act of
Congress passed on the Sd March, 1857. ~ tiatsAa Pay
SETTLEMENT or CLAIM GEORGE cnoRpESSISG, yR.
BY an act of Congress March s. 1851 the Postmaster
General required to adjust and settle the claim of
George Chorpenning r, surviving partner Of Wood
ward Chorpenning and in his right for carrying
the mails by San Pedro and for supplying the post Office
in Carson Valley, and also for carrying part of the In
dependence mail by California allowing pro rata in
Of compensation for the distance by San Pedro for
the service to Carsons Valley and for such part of the
eastern mail as carried by California during all the
time when said services performed " and to adjust
aud settle the claim Of said Chorpenning or damages
account OF the annulment suspension of Woodward
Chorpennings contract for carrying the United States
mail from Sacramento in California to Salt Lake in Utah
Territory shown in the ahdavits and proofs file
IN the House of Representatives " also to allow and pay
said Chorpennng his full contract pay during the
pension Of their contract from 18th March to LIST July
1883 and thereafter to pay him at the rate of thirty
thousand dollars per annum which sum was to be in lieu
of the contract pay under both the contract with Wood
ward Chorpenning, which expired June 80, 1854 and
under his (Chopenning present contract which runs
four years from July j. 1854 The contract pay under
the first was sl4 600 for monthly service between Sacra
uento oity and Salt Lake. by Casons Valley and under
the present, sl2, 500 year. for the same number OF
trips from San Diego San Pedro to Salt Lake by San
Bcrnardino In obedience to this law, and on the proofs
and adavits file in the House of Representatives to
which was by the terms of the law, restricted have
allowed
For damages on account of the annulment suspen
@ sion of the old contract --- $50, 600 90
2. For five months service TO Carson's VAL
Icy---------- -------- ------- 1,l53 80
g. For increased distance from Sacramento,
in carrying the regular California and
Salt Lake mail, by San Pedro, ten
months ------.--- ------- S6,4l0 90 ~
And independence mails eight
of same months ---- 1854 81
a U1 ~ 2I,794 50
4 For carrying Independence mails eight
months between San Pedro and Salt
Lake (all the above being under old
: contract) -.--------e---------- $4,000 90
s. For carrying Independence mails under
present contract, from July I 1854, 10
October l. 1856 Observation-Disclosures 2s, I25 90
In the aggregate ----- ------- -I0e, orr 95
Iu making the pro rata allowances, the act of Congress
being specific this point have taken the basis
of the calculations the original pay under each contract
instead of the higher of $50 000 to which as above
observed the compensation has been raised But, even
upon this lower basis the allowed it will be per
ceived is very considerable independently of the further
increased compensation of sixteen thousand dollars under
the old and thousand five hundred dollars per
annum under the contract.
The settlement Of this claim has not been made with
out considerable embarrassment The act of Congress
pcreptory to adjust and settle not according to the
proofs that might be taken before the final action but
as shown by the proofs and adavits file in the House
of Representatives These TO be the sole guides
in the settlement and neither the records of the depart
ment nor any contradictory explanatory testimony
could be taken by the government TO assist in attaining