Year: 1859

themselves, without any aid from me, yet
will briefly correct some of the errors, in
fact, which find in the report of bis speech
at Placerville. He says:


"I shall now hasten to give short history of
the measures before the Senate of interest to
California and on which differed from my col
league, DR.. Gwin."


The first point on which we differed he
Federal officers in this State. As a general
statement this is not true. If he had made
himself familiar with the subject be would
have known that the late Secretary of the
Treasury, Mr.. Guthrie, framed bill to re-
duce the expenses Of collecting the revenue
in this State, and that it was pending before
Congress when took my seat in the Senate
| was in favor of that bill. The present Sec
retary of the Treasury prepared bill still
further reducing these expenditures and re-
ducing salaries. | was in favor of that also;
and it was supported by every democrat in
the Senate and only failed to become law,
from the difficulty that resulted from the
disagreement of the Houses on the Post Of
fee Appropriation Bill. We did differ in
regard to the repeal of the act of 1854,
which gave the Post Master General the
power to give additional compensation to
Postmasters in this State. contended then
as do now that the Postmasters especially
in the remote mining and agricultural dis
tricts were entitled to this additional COM
pensaion. But the main point on which we
had direct issue was the expense of livinr
in this State. He asserted that the cost of
living here was as cheap as in the Atlantic
States. This denied, and | am willing to
leave that question to be settled by those
who have to rent houses, hire servants, pur-
chase provisions, and provide for the sup
port of themselves and families. The sal
aries of Federal officers in this State were
offensive to Mr.. Broderick it seems, from the
personal relations which he held toward the
occupants When he had friends, for in
stance in the Branch Mint, where am told
he has many devoted friends, am not
aware that he ever made any movement to
have their salaries reduced, although they
are the best paid employees of the Govern
ment in this State.


am in favor of reducing the salaries of every
Federal officer in the State. where it can be done
without injury to the public service, but not that
ndiscriminate reduction that will bring them
down to the same standard with those in the
Atlantic States, on the assertion of MIR. Brode
ri or any other man, that the expenses Of
living are no greater here than there.


Lime Point follows next in his speech, and
this is the great gun of his campaign. My action
on this question can be told in few words.
few days after | took my seat in the Senate.
voted. rs did every member of the Senate, for the
appropriation of S300000, to purchase site
and continue the Notifications of the boy of San
Francsc" and afterwards urged the commence
ment of the works with the least practicable de-
lay. wished the harbor to be speedily fortified,
to make it as impregnable as Gibraltar, and thus
protect us from the danger of attack by any for
eign power. | should have been gratifed if the
site could have been purchased for $4,000, and
more so if it could have been purchased for $500,
or if it coull have been obtained for nothing
Mr. BrOderick, in commenting on the proposed
purchase of the site, denounced it as ian cnor
nous fraud" and at the next session made the
same charge. The charge of fraud involved the
purchaser as well as the owner of the property
and on this reiteraton of the charge, l offered
resolution instructng the committee on Military
Affairs, of which Mr.. Broderick was member, TO
investigate the subject. The result of that inves
tgation proved that, so far the officers of the
Government were concerned. the charge was ab-
soutely false. and had not the shadow of truth to
rest upon. They commenced the negotiation for
the site in October, in 1855, when the owner de-
manded $200,O00 for the tract he proposed to sell
or any less quantity that the Government might
require, and he has persistently adhered to this
sum Notwithstanding the utmost eXertiOns on the
part of the War Department and its subordinates
to make the purchase for Il less amount.


The insane policy OF the Mexican Government
in not reserving from the grants oflands made to
individuals, such points as might be required for
the purposes of defence or commerce. has invOlv-
ed u in constant difficulties in regard to our for
tifcations, light houses and navy yard. Appro-
priations for seven light houses our coast have
or are likely to ''lapse" back into the Treasury,
and in almost every instance resulting from the
difficulty about the title to the sites. For one of
these, at Point De los Reyes, mere tongue of
land running into the ocean, and presume ut
terly useless except for light house, the owner
charged $25000, (the entire appropriately for
three and two-thirds of an acre, or eighty three
acres, asking no more for the large than the small
quantity. One of the owners is, am told, the
Republican nominee for Judge of the Supreme
Court, yet we see no charge of fraud heralded
against him for this attempt to absorb the entire
appropriation for the purchase of the site and
construction of the light house. AS this part of
Mr. BrOdercks speech will no doubt be fully
noticed by others, will proceed to the last sub
iect of difference he states to have existed be-
tween us. and thai is the overland mails, and here
again he makes two grave mistakes in the outset
of his remarks. He says: "Previous to my elec-
tion to the Senate, felow-ctizens, bill had been
passed by Congress making an appropriation for
an overland mail to California" This bill not
only did not pass before his election to the Senate
but the signature of the President to the law was
scarcely dry before Mr.. Broderick took his seat
in the Senate. He says "PreviOus to this, how
ever, the Postmaster General made contract
for mail from San Antonio, Texas, to San Diego
California" This contract was made after and
not before the passage of the law. In making
statements upon which allegations of malfeasance
in office are based against high officers of the
Government, the accuser should know that his
statements are true


We did differ radically on the question Of the
Overland Mail. l care not whether the Ell Paso
route is one mile or thousand miles longer than
that By Salt Lake, it is one Of the great enter