The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1859-01-26

British exports AsH Second History 81 Eare C. fa.
lsaOas 1893, lo4. los -, 80
- Cd 81
sEIF-sUsTAINlNG POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT
There is no greater fallacy than that which has
been recently started for selfsusaining postal sys
TEN In the United States at the present time That
the Post Office Department viii ultimately sustain
itself and yield a revenue 10 government, when the
whole country becomes densely settled no one can
reasonably doubt Without resortipg to the postal
statistics Of the densely peoped countries of Europe
to sustain this belief, have the evidence for it in
the returns made from the States Of Pennsylva
MIA, New York, Connecticut Rhode Island and Mas
sachusetts. Although these States are not developed
to more than half their capacity for population, they
yield surplus or profit to the Post Office Depart
ment Of about seven hundred Thousand dollars be-
You'd the expenditures They are, therefore, more
than sefsustaining. fglAE7IA S8a0a 81Ea1JC
On the other hand. several Of the iess-pccpled
western and southern States require appropriation
from the treasury of about three and n half millions
of dollars 20 meet the actual deficiency in their re-
turns their receipts falling that much short of the ex-
pendtures made within them for postal service
This appropriation, large as il may appear. is real
ly Insignificant when measured by the results it
is producing. 1t is The rapid means of communica-
ton established by this expenditure, which is peo-
ping the West and supplying purchasers for the
public lands, thus extending agricultural products
and exports, and forming the basis for that com
merce the impost duties upon which supports not
only the whole system, but all other departments of
The present able head Of the Post Office Depart
ment fully comprehends rs uses aud dssfies 10 the
country and when called upon by the committees Of
Congress for plans Of 'selfsustainment. he has
frankly told them that such attempts may be made
by reducing the service TO skeleton of routes,
raising the hostages and abolishing the franking
privileges; and that when they have accom-
plished this they will have 5ta a skeleton with
out ssnews or flesh, that must drop out Of exist
ence for want Of vital principle He has ex-
tended the same siatesmanlike views to the ocean
mad service. pointing out such may be made
selfsustaniug by proper care and those which must
receive direct appropriations. Those which can
sustain themselves are the lines to Europe, so ar
ranged as to give departures which viii secure both
bulk of the American letters but il can only be by
a term Of contract sufficiently long to make this an
object, and by making the three or four first years
of such contract certainty that able parties be
induced to enter upon the service Such contract
might provide that whatever advanced beyond
the roceiptso of The FIRST four years should be de-
Quoted from the last years Of the contract thus
king the service self.sustaining FOR the contract
term. sse3 asH ssssst. 81 ssaf 1881
Direct appropriations should be given lines up
on we-chosen, but new routes. The most important
of these are on the east coast of South America to Rio
aud the west coast to Valparaiso. These routes
would open up commerce TO our people, the profits
on Which would more than fourold repay the
sary mail appropriation. There is now sufficient data
to show that mail pay Of about three dollars per
mile is absolutely required sustain the extra steam
expense Ger ocean mail the contractor even
then being obliged TO look exclusively 10 his freight
aud passenger receipts for general expenditures aud
for any profits upon his investment and enterprise
aud it requires at least ten years TO fully develop
new ocean mail route TO a selfsustaning point
Let Congress, then, act upon the ascertaned data
for oceau service upon the sound principles OF in
land mails which have been so instrumental in de-
veloping the country, aud we predict that in less
than ton years time The department win prove self
sus aiming in al its branches. ~ %
To abolish the Thanking privilege would be TO cut off
all communicated between the Representative and
his constituents ,s licensing corrupt course Of ac
ton IN tlie halls Of Congress- and enabling the rep
resentstive pursue it with bur sle chauce Of de-
tections8 s, ilts ~ ieas p
TO longer neglect fostering ocesn mad service, is
to abandon 1t to Great Britain and France thus
making our merchants subservient TO, and our Post
Once Department dependent upon, their steamers.
Thcpecple win moi tolerate any such experiments
and IL is therefore useless 10 attempt them. "a
II would be about as wise Cor Congress TO require
the Secretary Of War and the Secretary Of the Navy