National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1875-01-16

may be avoided.
PosTMAsTERs are required to make themseIve!
familiar with these laws and instructions thai
they may be able to inform and direct others.
PosTMAsTERs, CLERKS, ETC, CANNOT BE CON
TRACTORS.
Sec. IS. That no postmaster, assistant post
master, or clerk employed in any post office, shall
be contractor or concerned in contract for car
Eying the mail.
Persons in the employ of the Post Once De
partment Including pOstmasters) cannot become
interested in mail contract, nor act as agent Of
contractors or bidders.
Sec. u. That person employed in the Post
Once Department shall become interested in an >
contract Tor carrying the mail or act as agent
with or without compensation, for any contractor
or person Offering to become contractor in any
business before the Department; and any person
so offending shall be immediately dismissed from
ofice, and shall be liable to pay SO mucn money
as would have been realized from said contract
to be recovered in an action Of debt, for the Of
the Post Office Department
BY regulation of the Department, no carrier
should be employed who is under sixteen years oil
age; and no bidder will be accepted who is under
twenty-one years OF age, or who is a married
woman.
CONVEYANCE OF LETTERS OUT OF THE NAIL
PRIVATE EXPRESSES, ETC.
Sec 227. That any person concerned in carrying
the mail who shall collect, receive, or carry any
letter or packet, or cause or procure the same to
be done, contrary to law, shall, on conviction
thereof for every such offence, forfeit and pay not
exceeding fifty dollars.
Sec. Us. That no person shall establish any
private express for the conveyance Of letters or
packets, or in any manner cause or provide for
the conveyance Of the same by regular trips or at
NAV be ANY bIy Ct d 6Gu5 to WhG9 Is t or
town or place to any other city. town or place be-
tween v hich the mail rs regularly carried; and
every person so offending, or aiding or assisting
therein SHALL for each offence, forfeit and pay one
hundred and fifty dollars.
Sec 20. That the owner OF every stage coach,
railway car, steamboat or other vehicle or vessel
which shall, with the knowledge of any owner in
whole or in part, or with the knowledge or con-
nivance OF the driver conductor, master or other
person having charge of the same convey any
person acting or employed as a private express
for the conveyance OF letters packets and actu-
ally in possession OF the same Tor the purpose Of
conveying them contrary to the spirit, true in
tent, and meaning Of this law, shall, for every
such offence forfeit and pay one hundred and fifty
Sec. go That no person shall transmit by pri-
Tate express or other unlawful means, or deliver
to any sgent OF such uni awful express or deposit
or cause to be deposited, at any appointed place
for the purpose of being transmitted, any letter
or packet, and for every such offence the party
Sc offending shall forfeit and pay fifty dollars.
Sec. 81. That no stage-cOach, raiIWay-car
steamboat, or other vehicle or vessel which regu-
larry performs trips at stated periods on any post
route, or from any city, town or place to any
other city, town or place between which the mail
is regularly carried, shall carry, otherwise than
In the mail, any letters or packets, except such
as relate to some part Of the cargo of such steam
boat or other vessel, to some article carried at
the same time by the same stage-cosch, railway
car or other vehicle, except provided in section
two hundred and thirty nine; and for every such
offence the owner OF the stage-coach raiIway-car,
steamboat or other vehicle or vessel shall forfeit
and pay one hundred dollars and the driver
conductor, master or other person having charge
thereof and not at the time owner of the whole
or any part thereof shall in like manner forfeit
and pay for every such offence fifty dollars
(SectlOn 2S9 permits conveyance of letters in
Stamped envelopes otherwise than by mail)
THE MANNER IN WHICH PROPOSALS SHALL BE
MADE, AND THE LIABILITY OF PosTMAsTERs.
Sec. 2+5. That every proposal for carrying the
mall shall be accompanied by the bond Of the bid
der, with suTeties approved by postmaster, and
in cases where the amount OF the bond exceeds
s second or third oas in sum 10 be 81 Ie! sRe
nailed by the Postmaster General in the adVer-
tisement Of each route: to which bond q con-
dftiOn shall be annexed, that ii the said bidder
shall, within such time after his bid is accepted
as the Postmaster General shall prescribe enter
into contract with the. United States
Gent sureties, to be approved by the
Postmaster General, to perform the service pro-
posed in bis said bid, and, further, that he shall
perform the said service according to his contract
then the said obligation to be void otherwise to
be in full tOrce and obligation in law; and in
Of failure of any bidder 10 enter into such contract
to perform the service, or, having executed con-
tract, in Of failure to perform the service &C
cOrding to his contract, he and his sureties shall
be liable for the amount Of said bond as liqui-
dated damages, to be recovered in an action Of
debt on the said bond. No proposal shall be con-
sidered unless 1t shall be accompanied by such
bond, and there shall have been afixed to said
proposal the oath OF the bidder, taken before an
officer qualified TO administer oaths, that he has
the ability, Lecuniarly, to fulfill his obligations
and that the bid is made N good faith, and with
the intention TO enter into contract and perform
the service in case his bid Is accepted.
Sec 246. That before me bond OF a bidder pro-
vided for in the aforesaid section is approved,
there shall be indJrsed thereon the oaths Of the
sureties therein, taken before an officer qualified
to administer oaths, that they are owners Of
real estate worth, 10 the aggregate, sum double
the amount Of the said bond, over and above all
hrrs ham and oil ind
mortgages and executions against them, after
allowing all exemptions Of every character what
ever.
See 247. That any postmaster who shall afix
his signature to the approval OF any bond OF q
bidder or to the certificate Of suticiency Of sure
ties in any contract before the said bond or con-
tract is signed by the bidder or contractor and
lis sureties, or shall knowingly, or without the
exercise of due diligence, approve any bond Of a
bidder with insufficient sureties or shall know
iugly make any false or fraudulent certificate,
shall be forthwith dismissed from office, and be
thereafter disqualified from holding the office OF
postmaster, and shall also be deemed guilty of q
Inisdemeauor, and, on conviction thereof, be pun
fshed by ine not exceeding five thousand dol
lars, or by imprisonment not exceeding one year,
or both.
SERVICE TO BE.AwARDED TO THE LOWEST BIDDER
BIDS OF FAILING CONTRACTORS MAY NOT BE
CONSIDERED.
Sec 2i9. That all contracts for carrying the
mails shall be in the name OF. the United states,
and shall be awarded to the lowest bidder tender
ing sufficient guarantees for faithful perform
ance without other refeTDce to the mode Of trans
portatiOn than may be necessary to provide for
the due celebrity, certainty and security thereof;
but the Postmaster General shall not be bound
to consider the bid OF any person who has willtuly
or negligently failed TO perform a former con-
tract.
COMBINATIONS TO PREVENT BIDDING PRoHtB-
TIED.
Sec go. That no contract for carrying the mail
shall be made with any person who has entered,
or proposed to enter into any combination to pre-
vent the making Of any bid for carrying the mail,
or who has made any agreement, or given or per-
formed, or promised 70 give or perform, any con-
alteration whatever to induce any other person
not TO bid for any such contract; and II any per-
son SO offending is a contractor for carrying the
mail his contract may be annulled; and for the
fTst offence the person so offending shall be dis
qualified to contract for carrying the mail for i've
Years, and for the second offence shall be forever
disqualified.
y.1rrxG RIppERs AND CONTRACTORS con-
TRACTS MAY BE EXTENDED, AND TEMPORARY