The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1860-12-05

I'CtitS from theIl, shown by the table
accompanying this report. do exceed S2964C9 II
view of this extremely limited revenue as compared wit
ne outlay and Of the fact that these routes were esiaI
iiEhea an" are maintained mainly for the advancement
OF certain national objects not at all postal in thef
character respectfully but earnestly renew the recon,
mendaton contained in my annual report that the
shall be at once put upon the public treasury.
The following table of postages received from aud ev
pendtures made upon these several routes will indicat
the postal YaIue Of each during the last year:
Expenditure Receipts
l. From n York to S. Francisco $3.50 90 SI70 s254
: Overland, via FL Paso &c..... GOO COO 90 II9766 7
5 St Joseph to Salt Lake City,. 125.OO0CO 4305 6
l. Salt Lake City to PlaCcrvillc.. S3,2lIO0 g7S5
. San Antonio to Camp Stockton 10 Zoo 90 5034
1t thus appears that the revenue accruiug from tn
service between St Joseph and Pldcervile via Salt LAX
City, amounted to but 2S4 A. yet upon this rouead
ding thereto the short distances between St Louis
Joseph and San Francisco and Placervllc-a bill nov
pending before Congress proposes the establishment of
daily service under the deusive eXpectaon of crrv,
through this vast desert and mountains for
months of the year covered with snow and impossible
the mails weighing tons, which safely rapidly
and regularly transported by other that opeI
and unobstructed throughout the year
me enterprise in its practical operation would, nc
doubt result in complete failure owing to the charac
yer OF te road the rgors OF the winter. and the bulk
weight OF the mails 1t could not be maintained
cost than S6OOOOO per annum and while disastrous tn
ast degree TO the postal interests, this lavish outla
would prove beneficial only to the contractors If thei
and the opportunities of their friends
not De wihstood by the Government it would be far bet
ter that they and their descendants for an indefinite pe
rod should be pensoned from the treasury, than TIA
THIS unparalleled waste of the public money should b
allowed.
CHARLESTON, SAVANNAH, AND KEY WEST SERVICE
Under the provisions Of the act approved June 25 1850
proposals were invited for transporang mails semi
monthly in steamships between Charleston and Savannah
and Key West, and on the third day of October 1860
contract was concluded with the owner of the steamer
Isabel to continue for four years from the 1st July 1860
at an annual compensation OOO Whether the service
10 De performed be viewed in its commercial postal
poets the sum agreed to he paid for it be regarded
as cXtravagant.
MISSISSIPPI RIvRR MAIL.
1t appears from the last annual report that the
cost Ot the service between st. Paul f,
the year ending June 30 1859 was PTS The reduc
on Of SAT 2i3 made above the mouth of the Ohio opc
rated to bring the expenditure for the last fiscal yea
down to S2Sl 065 The tri-weekly river mail between
Memphis and New Orleans has been discontinued
WHICH mas resulted IN further retrenchment OF S16bOC
per annum so that the total outlay upon the route for thu
current fiscal year will be 1901 465 The dscontinuancc
last referred to was made in consequence of the heavy
through mails having been transferred to the railroads
OF which continuous line exists between Memph.
and New Orleans.
YORK AND NEW ORLEANS MAIL.
The suhoined table will exhibit the character of the
service during the past year between New York and
New Orleans the Central Knoxville route and on
Southeastern Rouie ria KnorriIe, Tennessee
Schedule time, to March inclusive, AZ days; from
April, days.
Actral average, 5 days hours
Arrivals in schedule time. $40.
Arrivals out of schedule time, $50.
, AHgnttc Ro'ds riG Wilmington, North Carolina.
Schedule time, 81 days.
Actual average days, l9hours.
Arrivals in schedule time, 43I.
Arrivals out of schedule time, 1856.
Near the close Of May last, mails from New York for
New Orleans and from New Orleans for New York ceased
to be Transmitted via Wilmington. They have since
been sent wholly by the other route
1t thus appears that while the average time upon the
central route is II hours less than that by Whining
ton yet the arrivals upon the latter regular
much more frequently within the schedules upon
IN former Both of these routes however, show mark
ed Improvement, alike in regularity and speed as com
pared with the returns of the preceding year
ndcT the authority Of the jane H. 1853 con
has been entered into for The transporatin f the
md ~
and the Florida time liv guaranteed
60 hours. The present schedule me between New YorR
and Charleston is IS hours, which would give, by th
route from New ork to New Orleans, los hours. or
daysbCine Il hours less than the average time by tn,
Central and 81 hours less than that by the Wilmington
route The expectation however is confidently induged
that the service between Charleston and New Or
leans will be performed in from 50 to 50 hours in which
event there will be thus offered advantages for the con
vcyanca of the great Southern mail much superior to
those hitherto afforded by other route In this con
ncctinu may he mentioned the recently established
NIGHT MALL BET| EEN NEW YORK AND BOSTON.
the value and necessity Of postal communication be
tween these barge commercial mart at later hour tn
the department bat various difficulties have intervene,
TO prevent its attainment. All the lines connecting thu
two cities composed oC three and four distinct compa
mes deriving their charters from as many dih,ren
states and having each its interests and local pu
poses to advance. Recent negotiations, however. hrv
resulted IN arrangements for an interior night train
leaving New York at p m and running through New
iiaytn, Hartford, Springfield and Worcester, reaching
Boston in not more than nine hours aud returning iron
Boston to New ork at similar hours.
In tins manner, correspondence prepared i'm either ct
to the close Of the latest business hours is taken rou
and delivered at early hour of the succeeding mornire
connection is also made at New York with the morn
ing mail from the South-which is thus expedited som
thirteen hours-So that letters taud pnsscHgprs Ieayiu
washington IN tHe morning, arriveaG Boston in less lha
twenty three hours and from Baltimore in about twenty
one hours Go"""r~r1y: CORE Sponduce leaving Boston
eight O'Clock evening is received and delivered n
Washington before the same hour the next evening
The arrangement is for three months only il being a,
experiment to result IN permanent organization, shou
1t prove successful postal measure ami remVneraF
to the contractors as passenger conveyance.
PREPAYMENT.
After the act or March g. 1880, making prepaymcn
compulsory had gone into operation it found tina
large numbers Of unpaid letters continued be posted
Surprising that this the result Of a lack Of snowl
edge on the part of the public requirements of h
new law the Department directed that in all such
the parties addressed should be advised by the posmas
er that such letters had been deposited for transmission
and would be forwarded receipt of the postage Th
practice has been continued for than five years but
the evil which it established to still
tnues.
The fact that the postal laws exact the PIE payment oil
all domestic letters is certainly notorious any gov
ernmental regulation can possibly be made. and yet
these letters not only continue be lodged unpaid il
the different post Offices hut several points they have
Of late been on the increase In New York their average
number IS htty nine daily, and 1t is presumed that il
like proportion they received at the other post office
throughout the country. Regarding this as cvidenCnI
a determination the part Of portion of the cores
pondents using the malls to evade the postal laws the
practice of notifying the parteswhich has been
volving much labor and eXpense-has within few
sent at once to the deadetter office This appropriate
disposition Of them will it is believed be promptly fol
lowed by general compliance with the law.
The ndiSpostiOn to obey the postal laws has
manifested by the nonpayment of the carriers on
letters collected from the boxes for the mails in .hos
cities in which this feature the pennypost been
troduced The act of July 8, 1886 is imperative in
quirng the prepayment of this fee, and concurrng
do, fully in its policy, have felt justified in suspend
ing or in any degree modifying its operation As, how
ever, the date Of its enforcement is recent it beer
deemed advisable topursue for limited period the
already mentioned having been adopted in reference
another class OF letters after the passage of the act
March g. 1855. The letters retained for the pay
ment Of the carriers fee and the parties addressed
notified in order that if they choose to do they
make the payment, which should have been made By
the writers.
Through the press and by pacards on the letter boxes
every possible publicity has been given to this law
yet from nadYertence fraud other cause numerous
letters continue to be deposited in the boxes which thu
carriers fee is not paid The courtesy of the department
in giving the notice alluded towhch has imposed upor
it heavy burden-nsead of being eciaed has beer
madverson the part Of those who find themselves
taken by the unpleasant consequences of their own
gec or fraud or of that of their correspondents To al
this, it is sufficient reply that the postal auhorte
but performing plain and simple duty in enforcn,
this law, and if embarassments it is but prope
that they should fall upon by whose wfu or heed
less conduct they have been superinduced.
PENNY POST.
In the last annual report it recommended that tn
provision Of the act of 1852, levying postage Of on
cent on drop ctters shOuldbe repealed in order tina
the department by reduction of its might be ena
bled more success fully to compete with private
IN the delivery Of the local correspondence of the cities
This repeal was made but Congress further and de
cared that thereafter the charge each letter devere
by carrier should be not exceeding The eGec
Of this to take from the department the discretion
regulating the charge which had been conferred upon
by the acts Of July 2 1896 and March g. 1851 II ha
been satisfactorily aScetancd that in the smaller an,
sparscy populated cities and towns the compensation
fixed by the recent act is wholly insufficient supper
the carrier system.
Yet in this class of cities and the public deman
the delivery of their letters by carriers ana entr
willing to pay for the service rate Of compensatio
which would render it Temunerative As the discrctio
previously existing upon the subject has never bee
abused, and as there is probability that the rate wOul
ever be raised beyond what would be necessary to rende
the carrier system sefsustainng, beyond what wou
be Cheerfully submitted to by the public, rccUmmen
and that the department shall have authority to cOec
such postage all letters delivered by carriers shal
be deemed necessary OcOmpensae them for the service
provided that it shall not exceed two cents per letter
The acts Of July > 1896 and March g. 1851 contempa
ted that the charge should be made for the delivery
Of letters into the post office for their delivery th
domicile Of the citizen. From unexplained cause
this provision of the law executed and the
vice OF delivering letters into the post Office for transmits
sion has been gratuttousy performed No cou,
be urged in support OF this usage since this service, thu
rendered without any return has always to the extent
its performance, the Department much that oI
which compensation has been cNactcd. Orders have ac
COrdngy been given for the enforcement of this view
the law and the revenue derived from this source added
the other pts of the carrier system viii give it a
eQuate support in the large cities a the low Of on
established by the existing law provided it
mand the entire local correspondence for delivery. Th
can be accomplished only by placing the postal system
the same footing in the cities that occupies in the rura
districts.
That such necessity would arise was clearly forescel
by Congress aud in the tenth section of the net Of March