The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-07-15

TUEsDAy 49,. !. !. uIIy u.s. 1879
y Free Exchanges--E ranking I
We suppose no one entertains q doubt,
that CONGRESS WIN resume the franktng.
privilege Atats next session, and Try 70 ptr-s
chase the Silence OF the watchdogs OF the
press by restoring 70 them the privilege Of
receiving their- exchanges irse through the
mails. ,FnsobIsos Of the last Congress in
repeating the law granting these two
privileges was TO wreak It's spite upon
the newspapers and secure their alliance
when the two should again be re-
stored. We are ashamed to say that
BEAST Butler aud his clan have succeeds
ed. From the impecunious press all over
the country comes the cry that the, prlyi-.
lege ofre> living exchanges free through the
mails must be restored; and the saD,e papers
are Of course ominousiy silent as TO the frauds:
of the ranking privilege. Even State as
ISOLATION has been caught in this trap. The
Georgia Press Association" has passed.
has printed In circular form, and has sent to
us and we suppose to Thousand Of editors
throughout the country, resolutions calling
for the restoration Of this free-exehapge
privilege, and asking all the editors in tue
country to form national press association,
whose objects shall be OF the same praise.
worthy character. We have so often ex-
pressed our hostility to nil such privileges
that we have not felt much like doing 80
again-- especially in view of the fact tn
it is a settled point that the old law is
to be restored. Yet our silence has not
been due to any dimiuution of our zeal in
the good cause Of having the mails made
"cheap 10 oil and free to none." Nothing
can be sent through the mails that somebody
will not have to pay for transmitting. The
only question is, shall congressman and edi-
tors pay for the transmission of their mail
matter, or shall they transfer the tax to the
people? And as has been often remarked
before, the newspaper which is not able to
pay postage upon It's exchanges, and the
weekly paper whose patrons will not
pay FIVE cents quarter In the shape
of postage upon It, are excrcscences
that cannot too soon perish. A paper
that is thus by law pensioned upon the pub
alc is nuisance. 1t ought to be abated as
such. A paper that advocates the resump.
ton of the Thanking privilege by Congress
in order that 1t may have restored to 1t the
privilege Of receiving its exchanges free is
disgrace to Journalism. In the name of rea-
son, why should any paper be supported by
acts of Congress? Why should OUR law
makers feed with pabnlum from the public
table these paupers that were better banished
from existence? Why sustain out Of the
public treasury papers which are 50 poorly
,atronized that they cannot pay q hundred
dollars per annum in the shape of postage
ON their exchanges, and lives-papers upon
which their so.called patrons, but who are
really their victims, are unwilling to pay
twenty cents per annum in postage? 1t
would he ludicrous if it were not SO serious
a matter.
Bv how much does the reader suppose
the new law has diminished the number Of
exchange papers sent to the city of New
York? We believe the diminution Is stated
at eighteen thousand per week, counting six
Der week for dailies, three for tri-weekiies,
two for semi.weeklies, and one for weekleS.
Think of the infiuite amount Of labor that
has been lifted from the shoulders of the
clerks. Think how much better the busi-
ness of the large offices will be conducted.
Think how many letters win be saved that
used to be lost. Think how many tons
of matter used to be carried and paid
for that will not hereafter cumber the
coaches. Think over how many a country
route single horse may hereafter curry the
mails over which formerly stages had to be
run to curry franked documents and free
newspapers. Think of the hundreds Of
thousands of dollars that would be saved at
the next letting of the contracts for carrying
the mails if the contractors could only know
that they would have TO carry no matter not
paid for. , oa. u aa.":tT'l lac
The fact is that il is shame that there are |
50 many impecuniouS editors publishing
worthless papers, and u greater shame that |
there should be congressman SO base as to
be influenced by them. There can be no
good reason given for pensioning either class
upon the public treasury. go s#