The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1873-05-24
The Congressional Blow at the Newspaper
Press.

fTeHSs
In the expiring hours of the last Con-
gress, blow was struck at the newspaper
press which may yet rebound and crush its
authors. Some of the leaders in Congress,
especially the Senate branch thereof, be-
came angered at the persistent appeals of
the newspaper press of all political shades,
for repeal of the Thanking privilege, and
partly in retaliation, partly in the hope of
checking the agitation, the Senate Commit
tee surreptitiously engrafted the following
clause in the bill to repeal:
Provided, That all laws and parts of
laws permitting the transmission by mail
of any free matter whatever it be, and the
same are hereby repealed from and after
June 30, 1878.
With this appended the bill passed both
Houses, and not until after its passage was
its object generally known, even to those
whose breath gave it the force of law
This il shown by the subsequent action of
the popular branch of Congress, which
attempted to pass an explanatory bill con-
tinuing the postal freedom Of the press.
A strict construction Of the act as it now
stands compels subscribers, to county
papers, to pay postage thereon, even if
they receive them in the counties where
published-and compels payment of post
age at the Office Of delivery on all newspa-
per exchanges Elsewhere we give COM
plete schedule of the rates of postage, OIL
and after June Both, on all classes of mat
ter sent through the mail, [see first page of
The Whig.l These rates, with the e1cep-
lions above named, are the same as hereto
fore, but careful re. statement is needed
to rid the question of postage of the con-
fusion which now surrounds it.
fo ho oh fo1 h1yf bo
act repeating the Franking Privilege, we
assume this position, and hope newspapers
generally will impress it upon the proper
authority-that. under all circumstances,
the Postmaster General, whose duty it is to
construe acts affecting his Department,
should at once consider tie validity of the
clause quoted, and if a reasonable doubt is
raised, should give newspaper publishers
the benefit of it. The object of the act, as
stated in the title and throughout the dis
cussion, was simply to repeal the Franking
| Privilege. No other question was raised.
1t was not the intention of other than a
| few of the lawmakers to impose new bur-
dens upon the newspapers of the land, and
since at least one branch of Congress at
tempted to rectify the mistake, there is
abundant ground for setting aside that
clause of the act until the incoming of
another Congress. The Postmaster Cen
eral has this power; the question of inten-
tton is plain in at least one Of the compo-
nent branches Of government, and intention
is after all the main ingredient in the cor
rect construction of law. Here is Cres-
wells opportunity. He should imme-
diately improve it, and when this is done
there need be no fear of the action of the
Congress which meets in December next.
/ The above timely and very sensible
article on the postal law juggle is from
the AMERICAN JOURNALIST, monthly
review of American Journalism, pub
lished by Coe Wetherell 4 Co., adver-
Using agents of Philadelphia We hope
that the Postmaster General with his
universally conceded business tact and
ability will take this view of the clause
in the postal law which was surrepti-
tiously struggled into the bill, and do
what the entire press of the country
and public opinion demand and will
justify, and what Congress will not
dare to hesitate about endorsing as a
proper construction of the act. The
construction of the Department charg-
ing double rates on unprepaid postage
was severely censured by the country
and declared not to be the intention of
the law, by committee of Congress,
although the letter of the law seemed
to justified the construction placed upon
it by the Postmaster General. We
hope that Mr. Creswell will be warned
by the outbreak of public opinion and
the press, against giving validity to
clandestne clause of o law which contra
venes both public opinion and the will
Of Congress. No member Of Congress
will dare to rise in his place and defend
this repugnant provision in the law
This blow at the newspaper press will
cost the authors dearly if they are dis