The New York herald., 1870-02-28

If they do--as 1t IL to be hoped they will-the
Italians will bs taught the force Of the
English adage OF
| The lion and the unicorn lighting for the crown.
Up comes the ittle dog and knocks them both down.
Archbishop Spalding is wise and prudent
man. Let the hatters Of Baltimore, New York
and Cincinnati look out for new patterns.
Tho Postal Telegraph BnI-Ths ArSament
Of MIR. Orten.
Mr. Orton, President Of the Western Union
Telegraph monopoly, continued his speech in
opposition to the Postal Telegraph bill before
the Senate Committee on Post Offces ON
Saturday. He claimed that It was unjust to
reduce the rates Of teegraphy In this country
to the basis Of rates where the wires are under
governmental control In Europe, and held that
as the telegraph was Essential" only to- the
fow here, legislation could be better directed
to lowering the prices of food and clothing for
the many As to European governments
assuming control Of the wires he claimed that
the system Of government in Europe gave
privileges to the people rather to keep them
quiet and in subjection than to extend any
benefit to them; and as ours Ia not .
paternal government we should leave 1t
to the people not only to govern them
selves, but to promote in their own
way everything requisite for social intercourse
or business interests. As to the proposed
consolidation Of competing lines, he held it
to be the true policy of Congress to favor
competition and thereby encourage cheap
rates, rather than to control all the wires itself
by the proposed postal system. Mr.. Orton's
speech is somewhat lengthy, but we reprint it
elsewhere, and refer at present to his main
arguments, which we have summarized above.
II is merely begging the question to say
that reducing the price of food and clothing
for the many should be the object of Congress
sional legislation rather than reducing the
rates Of telegraphy for the few. Congress
can very easily attend to both matters without
rushing its business. The one is a. question
merely of tariff, and is always affected by
prices in Europe and the duties imposed on
imports, in order either to protect our own
manufacturers or to obtain q revenue for the
government. But the rates of internal tele-
graphing are not affected by imports,
and are not at present source of much
government revenue. In the event of
government taking control of the wires, how
at such reduced rates as will make them
accessible, as they are already essential, to
the many. As to Mr.. Ortons idea that we
should leave the people to promote their own
social and business intercourse, 1t is a true
and good one, but it is his own monopoly
which prevents their carrying out the idea.
Our government is government of the peo-
pie, and while they could promote their own
business and social intercourse through the
government telegraph, they are debarred from
doing 80 through his monopoly. The imperial
autocrat OF France, to whom Mr.. Orton refers
as extending only the minor privileges Of
cheap telegraphy to the people, while he is
held upon his throne by the bayonets Of his
soldiery, is prototyped here not by our gov
ernment, but by such monopolies as the West
ern Union, except that the latter does not
extend even such privilege to the people.
But Napoleon finds this very privilege Of cheap
teIegraphy the deadliest weapon against his
soldiers bayonets, and the Western Union seem
to think it equally deadly against their mono
poly AS to the fostering of consolidation by
the purchase Of the wires for the use
Of the government, Mr.. Orton, as President
of the Western Union Company, can certainly
enter no just protest. He cannot seriously
argue against it on the grounds Of monopoly
in the same breath in which ho says that his
company would be able to get control even Of
the governmental organization proposed in one
of the postal telegraph bills. His company
has been regularly in the habit Of buying up
smaller lines and weaker companies, and now
own three -fourths or more of all the lines.
They will admit of no healthful competition.
A monopoly of telegraphlng by the govern
ment would be peoples monopoly, if one at
all, like the present postal system, cheap and
efficient, and not what it is under the Western
Union, essential to the few and inaccessible to
the people at large.
The Opening Of tho Campaign In New
Hampshire.
The Hon. Henry L. Dawes, the great econo-
mical agitator in Congress, opened the poll
tical campaign in New Hampshire on Saturday
night by speech at Nashua. He reviewed
only in general way the political records o.
the opposing parties, but went deeply into the
| Nrnroa of tba administration He elaine ad