Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1872-12-05
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
T0IHIu7 NST-TT1H1 & IIi
! n ear public debt and Taxation.
Postal Statistics and Our Internal Reia
ffOnE.

| Postal Statistics and Our Internal Eeia
tiOns.
We gave on Tuesday very fair synOp
sis of the Presidents message, transmitted
by telegraph Monday night from the origi
nal document and not from bohemian
speculations. We give to-day an addition
al synopsis embracing points not fully
given by telegraph. The message opens
as follows: s1oEE7fTEFk-E g9-T 4
| To the Senate and House of Representatives:
In transmitting to you this, my fourth
| annual message, it is with thankfulness to
the Giver of all good that, as nation we
have been blessed for the past year with
peace at home, peace abroad, and general
prosperity vouchsafed to but few peoples.
With the exception of'the recent devas-
tating fire which swept from the earth,
with breath as it were, millions of accu-
mulated wealth in the city of Boston,
there has been no overshadowing calamity
within the year to record. 1t is gratifying
to note how, like their fellow-citiZens of
the city of Chicago, under similar circum-
stances year earlier, the citizens of Bos-
ton are rallying under their misfOrtunes,
and the prospect that their energy and
perseverance will overcome all obstacles,
and show the same prosperity soon that
they would had no disaster befell them.
Otherwise we have been free from pesti-
lence, war, and calamities which often
overtake nations; and as far as human
Judgment can penetrate the future, no
cause seems to exist to threaten our pres
ent peace.
On the reduction of the public debt, the
President says: -s.~
The Treasurer's reports show reduction
of the public debt from the first of March,
1869, to the present time, as follows
From March l, 1859, to March
/, 1870. SS7, ,1S4 782 81
From March l, 1870, to
March l, 1871 ................. 117,619,6 $50 .
From March l 1871, to March
1, 1872. 1886, ,34S "a
From March /, 1872 to No
vember1, 1872, tSnlonths) y64,047, ,297 S4
Total 1858, ,696, ,999 81
His policy for the Treasury Department
is thus tersely expressed:
The preservation of our national credit
is of the highest Importance; next i'll i'm
portance to this comes a solemn duty to
provide national currency of fixed un-
value as compared with gold and as
soon as practicable, having due regard for
the interests of the debtor class and the
vicissitudes of trade and commerce, con
ycrtble into gold at par. I'LL t#-t
POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT..
, The report of the Postmaster General
furnishes full and satisfac 'Ory exhibit of
the operation of the PostOf1ice Department
during the year. The ordinary revenues
of the Department for the fiscal year end
ed June so, 1872, amounted to S21,915,-
426 81, and the expenditures to S26,65S,-
1872 81. Compared with the previous fis:
cal year the increase of revenue was ST.
S78, $50 90, or 9,37 per cent, and the in |
crease of expenditures 50, ,26S ,08S 80, or 9.29 |
per cent. Adding to the ordinary revenues
the annual appropriation of S700,000 for |
free matter, and the amounts paid to the |
mail steamship lines from spe-
cial appropriations, the deficiency paid out |
Of the general treasury was SIS, 3,317, ,765 81, |
an excess of $3.50, 707 20 over the deficiency |
for the year 1871. Other interesting sta |
tistical information relating to our rapidly |
postal service is furnished in |
this report The total length of railroad |
mail routes on the 30th of June, 1872, was |
81, oil miles, S,077 additional miles Of such |
service having been put into operation |
during the year. Eight new lines of rail
way post offices have been established with |
an aggregate length of 2,909 miles.
The number Of letters exchanged i'll the |
mails with foreign countries was "a ,362, |
500, an increase of 4066, ,502, or twenty per |
cent. over the number in 1871, and the pos
tage thereon amounted to S1,S71 ,257 25. |
The total weight of the mail exchanged |
with European countries exceeded $40 |
tons. The cost of the United States trans
mail steamship service was $780, |
301 20. The total cost of the United States
ocean steamship service, including the |
amounts paid to the subsidized lines OF
mail steamers, was 81 ,027 ,020 81. EEEt
SOBER WORDS FOR THE SOUTH.
In referring to the condition of the ku-
klux prisoners and the circumstances Of
heir trials, &C., he says: .....
I look with confidence to the time, not |
Ear distant, when the obvious advantages
Of good order and peace will induce an
of all combinations prohibit
ed by the acts referred to, andwhen it will |
be unnecessary to carry on prosecution or
ntiict punishments to protect citizens
from the lawless doings of such combina-
lions. Applications have been made to me
10 pardon persons convicted Of violation
Df said acts, upon the ground that clemen
cy in such cases would tend to tranQuilize
.he public mind and to test the virtue of
that policy. am disposed, rs far as my
sense Of justice will permit, to give to
these applications favorable consldera-
ton, but any action thereon is not to be
as indicating any change in my
determination to enforce with vigor such
acts SO long as the conspiraces and COM
Dinations therein named disturb the peace
Of the country. 1t is much to be regretted,
and is regretted by no one more than my
self, that a necessity has ever existed to
execute the reinforcement act" No one
can desire more than 1 that the necessity
Of applying it may never again be demand
ed
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
The attention of Congress will be called
during its present session to various enter
prises for the more certain and cheaper
of the constantly increasing
surplus of Western and Southern products
to the Atlantic seaboard. The subject is
one that will force itself upon the legisla-
tive branches of the Government sooner or
ater, and suggest that immediate steps
be taken to gain all available information
m insure pnua hle and inst laoicIofiop