Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1860-03-09
HOW DEMOCRATIC PAPERS ARE
SUPPORTED AT THE WEST.

Mr.. Chandler, of Michigan, in speaking on
the Post Office Bill in the Senate, presented
some statements that are worthy of a lasting
record. He speaks from personal knowledge
Of the facts. He says;
We have witnessed its effects in Detroit.
/ Our Postmaster, knowing that the Constit1t-
ton was subsidized from the Post Office
blank printing fund, and owning a sound
/ Lecompton newspaper himself, supposed he
/ had perfect right to subsldize that paper by
| placing it upon the revenues of the Post Of
/ fee Department. The example before him
/ bewildered his moral sense, and he created
/ Sinecures in the Post Office for services to his
news aper. In process of time his political
faith was not deemed sound, and he was not
only turned out, but prosecuted, ostenslbly for
subsidi2ing press, in imitation of one who
holds the high Office of President of the United
States
There is another newspaper in my city
which is not very well sustained 1t is the
leading democratic press Of mv State but it
cannot very well afford 70 pav It's editors. In
that city there is an ofhce-I ctl it an Office
of porter or messenger t. tho Post Office
1t is a salaried office. the duties IF which are
to transport the mails from the Post Office to
the cars. A gentleman conn cted with the
democratic Free Press is this salaried Post
Office porter. He receives 81 200 a year as
porter to the Post Office; but he hires Il cart
man for twenty dollars a month to do the
work Four times year, at the end of each
quarter, he draws his $500 and pays over his
sixty dollars to the man who does the work
He thus pockets his salary from the Post OF
fee Department of s 200 a year, less S240
which he pays to the man who performs the
service Nine hundred and sixty dollars per
annum are therefore paid for no other earthly
service than the partisan support Of cor
rupted press.
In the summer Of 1887 man in the town
of Lexington. in the State Of Michigan, was
detected in rohbing the mail 1t appeared
that he was a Deputy Postmaster that is to
say, the Postmaster lived some mile or two
away from the Office, and deputiz1d him to
act as Postmaster under the plea that
owning the democratic paper, he must receive
the revenues Of the Office to enable him to
run his press The facts Of the case were set
forth at the Postofice Department. How
was the guilty man treated The Postmas-
ter Of Lexington was removed, and the iden-
teal man who had robbed the mail was ap-
pointed to succeed him. | supposed that
this was mere mistake. | supposed that
they had taken the Postmaster who had been
removed for the thief, and | applied at the
Postoiice Department 10 have the mistake
recufied. | brought the papers along and |
submitted them TO the Postmaster General, |
and said, "this is clearly mistake, and l /
ask that it be rectifcd, and that this man be |
lie said. VERY well | will |
have it investigated. This was during the !
first session Of the Thirty-hfth Congress, and |
some months after the man had been detected. /
went to the Postofice Department from
time to time but | was turned away and sent |
TO one of the Assistant Postmaster Generals |
to see what progress was made in the inves- |
tigation Finally, the Assistant Postmaster /
General drew out a large quantity of letters /
from leading Democrats in my State and said |
that it was necessary for the Democratic par
ty that this man should be kept in Office |
- But said |, d" this man is a Post Office |
robber, thief; and demand that you have .
him removed. | do not aels chat Ben"hi'
co. l. i--s ri MS place, but That you nave
Democrat appointed who viii not steal
Well, sir, the demand was deemed unreasOn-
able. Laughter lie was not removed;
he was retained in Office; and more, sir, he
was promoted-he was promoted to be the
deputy United States Marshal for that dis
trict after these charges were made and prov
ed. 1t was a very lucrative place for him.
[ nder the Postmaster he could rob the mail,
and being deputy United States Marshal, hrs
very first act was to establish an immense
Of counterfeit money laughterl;
but he held his Office there for two years after
these facts were established. True, he was
a liberal man he owned newspaper press,
and they could not have democratic press
there without giving it the patronage Of the
Post Office. He spent his money freely, and
he could afford to do so, for he made it him
self Tlaughterl, or all beyond what he got by
robbing the mail