The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1868-09-15
STARTLING REVELATION.
A Bold Scheme for Plundsring the Treas
ury--ImplicatiOn Of High Officials.
Especial Dispatch to the Boston PO't.l

1
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10.
| One Of the bodest schemes for plumber.
ing the public treasury which was concoct-
eddy the late stump" has come suddenly
TO grief at the hands Of the postmaster geu.
eral. ltmay be remembered that Senate.
Pomeroy engineered through congress a bill
empowering the postmaster general 10 con.
tract with the New York Navigation Com.
pany--a corporation organized under the
laws Of the state of New York--ior the
transportation Of all the foreign mails. The
bill at the time Il was under consideration,
excited some very earnest discussion. The
| proposition 70 give this new company all the
| foreign mails, and to have these mails to
lie over TO suit their trips, was so monstrous
that proviso was inserted that mo mail
matter should be detained in consequence
Of this contract"
The bill itself, however, is a curiosity rs
illustrating the boldness with which at
tempts are made in high places to rob the
people, and to appropriate to private purpo'
SEES the funds of the government. 1t en-
powers the postmaster general to contract
with company that does not own a skill or
a scow, and TO enable the company to build
seven frstclass steamers within one year
| (something which is next to an impossible
ty, and never intended), the postmaster gen
aral is required 10 endorse S3,0OO,OOO oil
their bonds, and thus guaranty their pay
inent tDithom a particle ofsecarity that one
dOllaT WiU eCer be appropriated t0rdrds me
construction Of steamships. And why
| should it be thus appropriated The gov.
ernment has become, in the estimation OF
these gentlemen, 'the subject of Legitimate
pluuder" and with three millions of bonds
Endorsed By tie government, to DO thrown
upon the market, why should they not pOck
ct the money and allow the mails to be car
red as at present? 1t IS easily shown that
the parties to this scheme never contempIa.
ted building a ship or transporting a single
bag Of mail matter
The bill provides that the interest on
these bonds shall be paid ont Of tie pOSta.
ges on the mail matter transported. This |
is the only provision, whatever, in the bill, |
to secure the payment of either the interest |
or the principal Of the three millions of
bonds authorized to be issued. What eyi.
denee had Senator POmeroy, or any other
congressional friend of the bill, that the
hostages to be received would he sufficient
to meet the interest on these bonds, much
less form a Sinking fund rs it is styled in
the bill, for the payment Of the principal
Information could have been easily obtained
at the proper department Of the government,
and the fact there learned that the maxi.
mum amount of hostages which the new
company could hope to receive would fall
below fifty thousand dollars per annum,
while they were attempting to bind the gov.
for the payment of three millions,
with an annual interest of one hundred and |
Fifty thousand dollars. according to the pro-
visions of the bill. These facts show plain
y the ear.marks of speculation, fraud and |
somewhere.
But Postmaster General Randall has |
brought the Spectators to grief Mr.. j. G.
Jewett, Of New York, n brOken.down opera
TOR in steamboats, and river craft, is now |
here urging the department to close the con- |
tract and endorse the bonds of the company. |
So confident have these gentlemen been in
the success of their schemes, that they have |
had their three millions of bonds engraved |
and printed in the finest style of the art -
aud they are now actually ready to receive |
lHc huul slHuhluIG VI the pOSJlnhStCA BChCA' |
al-who respectfully declines attaching his
signature thereto, for the reasons, first |
that there is no security that the money will |
be used for the construction of o mail steam.
ship; second, there is no individual respon. |
sibiity among the parties protesting to con- |
stitute the new company; third, that the |
whole proposition is impractiCable fourth, |
he believes it an attempted fraud on the gov
eminent and lastly, that the law is not
mandatory, but only empowers him to
make the contract.
AS might well be expected, this decision
of Postmaster General Randall has produ
ced fearful bu2zing in the hive of govern.
ment plunderers, and vast amount of vir
tuous indignation is expended, as the bright
vision OF S3,000,000 in "endorsed bonds"
begins to vanish from view. 1t would be
exceedingly interesting to learn the names,
residences, politics and official position of
all the secret partners in the daring attempt
to plumber the treasury Of three millions Of
dollars at a single dash, and also what pro-
portion of the amount had been promised
"Schenck's committee" as radical cleo
tioneoring fund. There arc some further
facts connected with the transaction which
may be made public through the postmas.
ter general, who has, for the present, refer
red the parties to the attorney general for
an opinion on the proper construction and
prsctcablity of the law.