The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1862-01-23
Tne rralaKalsE PrLviIege.

Xme Er@AA4AA4& EGAVAAe8SsN
SPEECH OF HON. ALBERT G. PORTER OF IEDI-
ANA.
l. Mr.Perter.-We are incurring an expendi-
ture of over million of dollars day in
endeavoring to suppress this unnatural re-
bellion. It is indispensable, in order to
maintain the public credit, that we shall
raise additional revenue, and alleviate, as
far as possible, the burdens upon the Treas
ury 's
i If wescan find productive tax which is
voluntary and not coercive, and which will
bring an immediate return to the tax payer
| of more than the tax which he pays, such a
tax ought to receive special favor.
From the foundation of the Government
until within the last few years, it has been
the policy to make the Post-Office Depart
ment self-susteining. Our Treasury has
been so full, and the facilities for raising
1 revenue have been so great within the last
/ few years, that there has been temporary
/ departure from this policy. But now,
when our sources of revenue have become
so inadequate to the wants of the Govern
| ment, and since we are compelled to resort
| to additional sources of taxation, it is indis-
| pensable that we should now return, as far
as possible, to the original policy of the
i Government. a II.
We find that large number of people
/ inconsiderabIe, however, in proportion to
cur whole population-ha the right to re-
ceive from certain privileged persons CORES
pondence on ztheifSowR business exempt
from postage. We find too that public docu-
ments are published by the Government at
great expense to the people, and distributed,
/ free of postage, by certain privileged per-
sons to others who receive them free from
1 a nd al hat ra
| purchased at the expense of the people by
agents selected by the Government and are
distributed by privileged persons to the re-
| cipients exempt from postage. Probably
| 81 100000 year would be added to the
| postal revenues If all the persons who are
| thus exempted, were required to pay it.
Now, sir, the question is presented, whether
| il is better that those who are the recipients
of this public matter, and those who are the
recipients of mere business correspondence,
should pay the postage upon it, or the ex-
/ pense of transmission should be a charge
upon the whole people; whether these pub
lie documents that are paid for by the
whole people should be distributed free of
expense, or,,spostage should be charge
upon the recipients7
1t has been said that if you pass the bill
under consideration it will stop the channels
| of public information. This was the point
made by the gentleman from Illinois, Mr.
kellogg. But sir, do not hesitate TO say
that we publish no documents that are
worthy of going to the people for which
those who receive them would not cheer
fully pay the postage. The Patent Office
| report, and other public documents which
have been published, have been much dis
| paraged by many gentlemen here in oppo.
sition to this bill.
Mr.. Diven-Will the gentleman permit
me to say a word
Mr.. Porter-I cannot yield now, as my
time Is so limited.
Now, sir, so far from those public docu-
ments being regarded of inconsiderable val
ue, they are highly valued by the people.
The gentleman from New York Mr.. Roscoe
Conkling1 referred to the fact that these
public documents were distributed to bar
Der shops and bar-rooms. | have never
seen any such document in my district in
bar-rooms; but if one should have found
its way into barber shop, / do not per-
ceive that that woald be very forcible ar
gument against their distribution. / can
not forget that zArkwright was a barber,
and it may be, for aught know, that some
public document struck the spark which
kindled that genius, the productions of
which have been so beneficial to mankind.
These Patent Office reports are distributed
| to the farmers and mechanics of the coun-
try, and they are held by them in high esti-
nation. There is not afarmer or mechanic
who ever received one of these documents
who would not have been willing to have
paid for them more than the very light
postage i'm posed by this bill; and l have
no doubt il it were understood that Patent
Office reports could always be procured by
merely inclosing postage to member of
| Congress, we would have a demand for
more than ten times the numbeg of copies
that are annually published. So In relation
| to the other reports.
Allusion has been made to the Covode
report. The report was issued during
period of high political excitement, The
| opponents of the Administration were
charging that the Government was cor
ruptly administered. The friends of she
/ Administration were defending it earnestly
against the charge, and the active friends
and enemies of the Administration, in
/ every neighborhood, would have been will
ling to pay ten times the postage to procure
that document. If public document is
not popular enough to induce the people to
pay the postage upon it, then it is not worth
i publishing as a matter of public informa-
tion. Where is the person to whom we
send public documents, if they are distribu-
ted intelligently, that would not cheerfully
/ pay the trifing sum of FIVE or ten cents for
the Patent Office report, the CoVode report,
the Pacific Railroad report, the Coast Sur
vey report, Mordecars report, Delafeld's
report, and other documents like these
There is no better way to put a stop to the
waste of public money in printing useless
public documents than to show that the
people refuse to pay postage upon them.
i A book for which they will not pay FIVE or
ten cents ought not to have been printed at
the public expense. So, too, with seeds
distributed by the Patent Office. They are
of no uncomfortable value, and believe