Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1860-03-02
The Franking Privilege.

The Franking Privilege.
| am not INDUCING in any extra sclf-con-
+ graduation when | say tina, ours is an opu-
lent republic We have had our day. Of in
fancy, and small beginnings With crcum-
stances analogous to those surrounding tho
rising man, we have struggled through. and
fairly emerged from state ofpreseure, hard
ship and poverty, into one Of ease and aflu-
enee What at that time Of narrowncss Of
affairs might have been prudent and necc~sa.
", may te now niggarliy, and in the result
Improbable The expenses Of the prosper
ous, influential man Of fortune, should
not bc guagcd By the same strict rule tha,
governed him when cOntending with pcnu-
~. His position demands larger life, and
a more literal expenditure. s., We believe.
should i; b with nation aud the career
of our own has tecn one Of such unexsm-
pied prosperity that if the literal rule shall
apply to any, it applies - u There is
hardly greater difference between Astur the
hardy Young beginner. packing his own bun
Gle Of fur, and .As,9r the millionaire Of New
York, than Is shown in the circumstances Of
our infant republic and the United States
Of to-day and 1t would IL strange if our
wants had not KEEP; Eaee with our growth.
HaFdly res05n!hi then Is a nation we strug-
ele even for an existence Now. i; needs no
Fourth 81 July oraions nor patriotic ,5as,s
to tell Of our rank among the nations Of the
earth Our map speaks Tor itself We are
IN a position where governmental literality
not running + the borders Of cxtraya-
5aaec-ls duty. provided that the recipi-
cats Of such iii-raiity arr the People We
believe that the ranking privilege properly
guarded, Is one Of the institutions which
should Is the SUBJECT Of government patron
age 1t was made an incident 10 our postal
system which, whatever hardy rvformcrs may
say on the subject, We think the only eth
cient and impartial methed Of circulating
intelligence, and the b.,st medium for cor
rsspondcncc that can fc established in
land - broad as our. What was deemed
essential in the day OF rigid economy, can
hardly Is assailei now on the ground of
waste provided the expense Of thi. par
tieular institution has not more than
kept up with our national advance in popu-
lation, wealth, and all the means of sus
tanning powerful government. We have no,
the figures At command, but are sure there
has 1cn no such disproportionate increase.
II were hardly P'ssibe when our population
Is about ten times larger than when the con-
stitution was adopted, and our wealth has
accumulated in still greater ratio. We
confess to not being Of the number 50 easily
appalled, by an exhibit Of statistics, showing
how much more money is needed or exr-nd-
ed now for national purposes than was need
81 seventy years ago. We have no doubt tina,
the present administration is one Of the
mos; reckless and lavish ever existing on the
face OF the globe, but tie simple compari-
son OF expenses with those Of the admins
trati0n Of Washington or the elder Adams.
d5s not prove the fact. The real waste ia
properly aseeriainei-after leaving our i'm
meiise allowance for altered situations. Ey-
cry extravaganoe and unthrihlyness should
lie closely watched and put down a, once
bat We need b. no such watch dogs II the trea.
.ury as those whose bark is the loude~t be-
cause an institution which confer. ten,Sss
upon thirty millions of people, costs moro
than II 1t extended 10 only three millions.
nat these benefits are, We may mention
more fully HEREAFTER. We speak here chiefly
for reasonable generosity on the par, of tho
government In It's departments where the
whole people are affected and we do not wish
10 80 such generosity result in lavish and
prohtless expense We do not ask the
wealthy citizen who owns houses and lands,
and hank~stock, and paying railway shares
topnt on the purple aud fine linen Of ROYALTY,
nor do We expect him 10 continue exactly the
same 'homespun plain and holden gray"
that he wore when he earned his bead
from day to day The Jannc-., have a curl.
Gus custom that is not uninstructive. On
every letter that Is transmitted through their
mail routes there is stamped small piece of
hsh-skin, 10 remind each person writing or
receiving letter, that the ancestors of the
people Who now number forty millions, were
poor, fugitive fishermen. The lesson is
good one, but We have never learned that
modern Japanese economists propose abol.
iShlng the entire system To show that their
fathers were fools LIBERAL,
AeGrsTA, Feb. 9th, 1860.
This has been an exciting week here
The Paris and Norway case has caused much
feeling, and was entered into by both sides
with q determination 70 carry their noints