New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1873-02-06
what Has Been CaIaedi


Ailer the ;h.rtieth DAY Of June next The
Thanking privilege will cease absolutely No
officer OF the Government, no member oil
Congress. no one to whom the privilege has
been granted by special act will be permitted
TO use i, after that date. Every branch OF
the Government will be required to pay Its
own postage on all its official correspond
ence. Congress must either make appropri-
atious for paying the expense OF this cores
pondence directly from the Treasury or the
Lusines. Of the Government must be -us-
pended.
Even the correspondence Of the thirty
thousand postmasters of the country on ON
cisl business must be paid by them ana De-
come a charge upon the Treasury. 1t Is not
to be presumed that either they or any other
officer will be required to pay the expense
incurred in the discharge Of their official du-
ties. 1t would bankrupt the Postmaster
General or his chief clerks in day TO be re-
CURED to pay the postage OF his Department
The result must therefore be, as we nave
stated, an appropriation by.Congress Tor '''a'
purpose, OF the suspension OF all correspond
ence.
And then what will have been gained:
TWENTY-FIVE thousand dollars, as an iIlustra-
ton. must be drawn from the Treasury ior
postage on the official correspondence oil the
Sixth Auditors Office. The next amman
report of the Postmaster General VIII sho"
deficiency of that amount less than 1t would
If the matter for which it was paid had been
carried free. and the drafts upon the treasury
will he TWENTY-FIVE thousand dollars more.
In other words, twenty-five thousand doiialS
have been taken out of one Of Uncle sam
hands and put in the other. He is no richer
and no poorer by the operation. But MS
servants have been put to great deal Oh
extra labor in making the change.
The same useless and expensive transfer
Of funds from one hand to the other will have
to be gone through with in every bureau OF
every branch of the Government. Now the
chief clerk Of each franks its correspondence
and the Post Office Department carries II
free of expense. Ther it must he paid IN
cash drawn from the Treasury, and at the end
of the year that Department Will be just as
much poorer as the Post Office Department
is richer. As Uncle Sam is compelled 10
foot the bills, whether there be deficiency
of one million or five millions, we are puzzled
to know what has been gained by this pro-
cess of robbing Peter to pay Paul.
In regard to the saving from taking the
Thanking privilege from members OF Congress
we have already shown it humbus ana
fraud. Not one dollar will be saved to the
Government in consequence OF its repeai,
and no one has attempted to dispute our po-
sition, because no one could. 1t has been
abolished in Difference to the clamors OF a lew
reform" demagogues and in utter ignorance
of the whole subject-not upon the demand
of the people. They have never asked Its re-
peal.
We congratulate the country press, which
have united in this clamor for reform, upon
the great victory they have gained. Here
after they must either pay postage on all
their exchanges or go without them, and be
denied the privilege of sending their papers
free in the counties in which they are pub
Iishpd