Saint Paul weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1858-1859, 1858-10-23
DisuniOn..The Cost.
Correspondence Qfths N. Y. Tribune.
WASHINGTON Sent. %, 1858.

WASHINGTON, Sept. %, 1858.
There is not the least doubt that the Dis
unonists of the South, as party, are rapidly
gaining strength and power The extreme
| readers, such as Yancey of Alabama, are
bold in prOclaiming their views and intentions
too much so, in fact, to enlist at once any
large portion of the Southern politicians, but
in all the addresses delivered by members of
Congress who have been on the stump before
their constituents since the adjournment of
| Congress-, that have come under notice of the
press, YOU will find a vein of Disunion senti-
ment running through them The latest
speech of this. kind was from the Hon. Senat-
or Brown of Mississippi, who intimated that
| Slavery and the Union, were incompatible"
and that in the event of Slavery being en-
croached upon, she did not care how soon
Disunion came" 1t has probably never en-
tered into the heads of these gentlemen who
are so fond of calculating upon the blessings
that would attend separate and distinct
Southern cOnfederacy, the cost in dollars and
cents to them of such government, as COM
pared with what it costs them under the pre-
sent confederacy The Southern States, be-
ing in favor of Free-trade as a principle in go
vernment, of course would resort to direct
taxation for support, and | desire merely to
| show the cost to their people of one single
| item of their expenses under a Southern con-
| tederacy, as compared with the present cost.
| | allude to the mail Service-that service
| in which all the people, high and low, rich and
poor, feel more direct interest than in any
other branch of the Government. For the
| facts and figures which are given, | refer to
the last report made to Congress by Mr.. Post
Master General Brown of Mississippi, who, |
hope, entertains different sentiments from the
other Mississippi Brown before quoted. Ac-
cOrding to this report, the expenditure, in
round numbers, for 1857, was ST., 5O7, go !;
and the revenue was S,O53,951.
Being less than the expenditures by the
sum of $3,453,719. OF this expense account
the sum of $9,533,OS7 is found in the items
Of transportation, compensation to postmas-
tees, and incidental expenses. The balance
of the expenses for the steamship lines from
New York, New Orleans, etc. | omit from
these calculations as my object is to show
the receipts as compared with the expenses in
each State of the Union.
| The total expense in the fifteen Slave States
for the mail service dnring 1851, 092 1884
Total Revenue from Observation-Disclosures. 1,646, 4t1
Excess of expense over revenue ... $2446, ALB
| was............... $544O153
Total revenue from Observation-Disclosures. 346, 494
Excess of expense over revenue. 500, $50
| Minnesota is included in the calculation.
Thus demonstrating that the seventeen
Free States only lacked the sum of 500, $50,
in paying for their mail privileges, while the
fifteen Slave States lacked $2,446,473.
| During the year 1857, but five States in
the Union yielded net revenue to the De-
partment, viz: Massachusetts, Rhode Island,
Connecticut, New York and Pennsylvania.
1t will thus be seen that the National Treasu-
ry pays deficit to the Post Office Depart.
ment in its receipts for service performed in
seventeen Free States of only $93,659 and
for the fifteen Slave States of So, 446,472.
If, therefore, Southern Republic should
be organized, and the same mail facilities be
granted their people that they now enjoy, a
| direct tax would have to be levied on them
for the following sum:
Present cost of mail service in the States 9s4
Add cost of steamship service (half) 456,Ig'
Deduct receipts. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. lo4o,4ol
Deficiency .......... 81 9Os, 966
Let the Southern fre-eaters then " calcu-
late" the cost to their people of going out of
the Union, and they will find that not only in
the mail service, but in numerous ways, the
Free States pay all their own expenses of 60
vernment, and have to pay out of the joint
| Treasury of the nation the deficiencies of the
| Southern States.