, 1862-06-21
An Unmitigated Farce.

Dalles to this place is ended the contract is let.
Dr. R. H. Lansdale is the contractor As we an
ticipated the remark in the proposals that bids
for more frequent service, would be considered
by the department, was simply carrying out the
stereotyped form of proceeding when decreased
mail service had been determined upon. We are
aware that bids for a trweekly and semi-weekly
coach service were submitted to the department
by responsible parties, but we do not believe that
they were even considered. The contract with
Dr. Lansdale calls for mail service once in two
weeks, and gives the contractor six days in which
to make the trip between this place and the
Dalles- evidently intending the service to be by
single Cayuse horse in the country but could eas-
ly make the trip in half the time hence if this
description of stock was alone intended to be
used, the time allowed is too much by three days
We congratulate the people of Walla Walla
county and of the upper country, the efficiency
of her representative in Congress, lover the eft)
Judging only by this one result in our postal af-
fairs, we are forced to the conclusion that COL
Wallace is not man who is exercising an efeeti
i've influence at Washington in our behalf Years
ago, when it was not particularly essential wheth-
er we had any mail facilities, we could have. dpr
weekly service, at a vast expense to the govern
ment; now, when all our interests demand mail
at least twice week, and when such service could
be made profitable to the government, it is cut
down beloV what it was when the matter was com
paratively unimportant And if we give our del
egate credit for common intelligence, he must
have been aware of the procedure, and it seems
to us should have been able to have produced such
statistics and arguments bearing upon the case, as
would have prevented the result announced Pc
titions for more frequent service, carefully pre-
: pared papers showing the extent of the immigra-
ton to the upper country and the comparative
importance of extended mail facilities. have all
been sent forward to our delegate with letters So
hcung his attention tEeleto but we have never
been able to learn as yet whether these facts were
ever laid before the proper department forits con
sderaton. Neither through public or private
source have we heard of a single movement on
the part of our delegate tending towards the ben
eft of the upper country the Territory at large
3 He may have done something. but if he has il
seems strange that we have no record of it. We
do not believe that under proper efforts and rep
reservations, the government would have persisted
in Gripping and cutting off entirely the mail fa-
cilities of the upper country. She is not accus-
toned to treat her loyal citizens with contempt in
: refusing those things to which they are entitled
A and rather than mpugn the federal government
we are inclined to the opinion that our delegate
$ has been extremely dilatory in presenting the
facts and arguments showing our claims to an ad-
vanced instead of decreased mail service The
service, such as it is, will be of scarcely any ben
eft to the people, and will be a vast expense to
; the government.
The following petition for an increase in the
mail service and the establishment of new routes,
is being circulated throughout the upper country
for signatures 1t is to be hoped that every in
habitant east of the Cascade mountains may have
the privilege of signing it, when it will be prompt
ly forwarded to the department:
To the honorable Post Master General Of the
United States Of .4merica
We the undersigned, residents of Washington
Territory east of the Cascade mountains, do re-
specially beg leave to represent that we are now
supplied by a sem-monthly mail extending fom
the Dales to Waileptu, or Walla Walla, which
has hitherto been delivered irregulary and udcer-
{ tainly, and is totally insufficient for the wants of
this region. We would respectfully present the
following facts for your consideration
The WalIa Walla valley contains over 2)OO
inhabitants. ShoshOne, Nez Perce and Idaho
2 counties contain 25,000 inhabitants, and include
{ the gold region recently opened in Washington
Territory; and we do urge upon the post Office
department the increase of tie service between
the Dalles and Wailepta to a tri- weekly mail and
, would further urge upon the department the Gre
alton of the following new routes at as early aday
as possible;
A route from Walla Wala to Lewiston dis
: tance, so miles; semi-weekly service. A Stage
line is now running tri-weekly between the two
points.
A route from Lewiston to Orc Fno, in Sho-
shone county, SO miles, a weekly service.
) route from Lewiston to Elk City, in 'Nez
r Perce county, 142 miles, weekly service.
A route from Lewiston to Florence Citt, in
Idaho county, 1 10 miles, weekly service.
The FLOOD IN PoRTLAND.--The Portland
Times has the following gloomy picture Of the
/, condition of the city:
The entire business portion of the city is sub
merged while the river is still rising rapidly On
Front street, between the Pioneer and Columbian
hotels, the water last night, 10th instant, was full
fifteen inches deep Below that locality, the
planking on the street is all afoat, while the side
walks under water. The stores are mostly
closed, and business almost entirely suspended.
Below Stark street, the water has spread out over
the entire northwestern portion of the city We
noticed yesterday quite number of families en-
gagged in moving various articles of furniture to
higher and dryer quarters.
The Oregonian of the 10th instant, comments
as follows on the effects of the high water
The condition of our principal streets north
from Aldar is sad indeed, while the store and
ware houses, hotels, dwellings, shops and saloons
are truly distressing to behold, many of the lower
floors of which are covered from one to ten inches
deep in water. As before remarked by us, the
food has done great deal of damage, and must
unavoidably prove very disastrous to nearly all
our merchants and traders who have stores filled
with valuable goods which are liable to become
damaged, besides the tearing up of floors and
sidewalks, and the entire drowning out of gar
q