Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1859-03-24

CoaNrNlCATED.
The Post Office Dspartmsnt-The Evidences Of
Debt-Ths Constitutional Subject

COANUNiCATED.
The Post Office Departmsnt-Ths Evidences Of
Debt-The Constitutional Subject.
How much of trouble aud Of questionable
action would be saved in the general admin.
istration of our Governments, National,
State, and Municipal if their adopted Char
tiers were more rigidly pursued, or, in their
silence, the laws, or rules of action ma
tured from time.honored precedents. There
! is more or less disposition, everywhere,
from the high point of Federal Government,
/ to the least Of our representative and execu-
/ tive relations, To depart from known usage
ard right and it proceeds, to a great degree,
from the tendency TO look for guidance else
where, than in the true or safe direction.
On our laws, there is often either an effort
| to place forced construction above more usual
! and general Interpretation; or, in the absence
of these, where there is only precedent, to
ignore it, even though of acknowledged vir-
tue and safety, upon any fimsy pretext.
Whence proceeds such an unwholesome
state of things Docs it not betoken an I'M
! heathtul action in the public mind, which
il becomes us to look to, that, ifpossible, some
remedy may be applied to such scattered and
irregular proceedings, that are productive Of
disorder and irretrevable Inconsistencies!
! The Administration will offer to an obser-
yer OF our political status, many subjects to
illustrate the condition to which reference Is
now had: and the question now exigent be-
lore the ueherai government OF the MAN
Service, presents to our minds not IN inapt
Illustration IN point, as 1t does, 100, another
instance OF the want ol harmony In our IaDi-
net ut Washington:
n letter from Washington: from writer
OF signal observation ana ability, supposes,
on general authority, that the mail service
will be sustained on perhaps a reduced scale,
without the o'ofdfto" OF the Constitution or
the Law, and then holds the following lam
gua9e: 1T may not yet be positively decided
to dispense with IA called session, but it is
crrfuin that no effort to do it is to be made,
niM the assent and cooperation of the Post
Master General" If the mail service is
sustained, it must be by the issue of .'certif-
Gates of service to mail agents. Here it
would seem that called session is not yet
i'll truth abandoned, ercept by the Post Mas
ter General; and the inference, presume, is
regular, that call may be resolved upon by
the President and others of the Executive
Department. Is this uncertainty of call for
the reason that time may be afforded to as
certain outside opinion Oh this subject? Is
this division of Cabinet sentiment disguised,
to afford. ostensiGly q sounder reason for
DELAY? And are the opinions of Messrs.
Phelps and Hunter, that certificates of SER
vice may be coasiitutjonoly and keq,lly is
sued, obtained and submitted to harmonic
public sentiment with proceeding at least
questionable as to authority? NAV we not
enquire how are le.ui certificates of service
to be issued without law! Does the Depart
mcnt possess such function? Whence is de-
rived such an authority by mere department
of one of the branches of the Government,
every feature of which we presume is regu-
lated fundamentally by Congress, 80 far as it
NAV have leyal power to act?
II the authority in this, or any other of
the Ererutjre DEPARTMENTS of Government,
exists to issue such certificates of service,
that afterwards must exist as certificates of
debt and currency, wherefore should there
be ut any time the necessity that Congress
should make provision for such Department,
in the way of appropriation? Let such cor
tificates be cashed by the Treasurer of the
United States
Now. evidently there does or does not eX-
ist this mower. If il does. whence il II de-
rived. and where is it, and wherefore all this
talk Of an extra session? If it does not, tho
Constitution provides the remedy.
Again, if there be no authority for such
emission. is it not to say nothing Of the cur
renew unjust in the highest degree to issue
10 those who are laboring in the service of
the Government. certificates having No leqal
validity-the market value of which is 10 be
based on the floating measure of confidence
that bankers and brokers' NAV give to the
prohable and contingent redemption by the
Government of an illegal issue the claim to
the REDEMPTION of which. if any, must be
founded upon sympathy by the Iaw.making
power in behalf of those whose labor has
been thus acquired? Nav this safely and
certainly he icpended on: for this is to form
a measure of value. How far does it not
hanp ON the predominance of party in the
neyf Conrress5 And is II nor TOO often and
tno sadly the policy of one marty TO embar-
rass the character of other administrations,
TO promote its own success?
But it is conceded by the Government or
gan that such concession does not bind the |
Government las bv contract" and the con-
clusion is inevitable that unless it does, it is
neither constitutionally nor legally issued !
the ouinun of Messrs Phelps and Hunter to |