Year: 1876

and also to disregard the bids of failing contractors
and bidders.


No contract for carrying the mail shall be made
with any person who has entered, or proposed to
enter, into any combination to prevent the making
of any bid for carrying the mail or who has made
any agreement, or given or performed, or promised
to give or perform, any consideration whatever to
induce any other person not to bid for any such
tract.


No bidder for carrying the mails shall be released
from his obligation under his bid or proposal, not
withstandng award made to a lower bidder, until
contract for the designated service shall have been
duly executed by such lower bidder and his suretes
and accepted, and the service entered upon by the
contractor to the satisfaction of the Postmaster
General.


By regulation of the Department, no carrier can
be employed who is under sixteen years of age and
no bidder will be accepted who is under twenty-one
years of age or who is married woman.


IS. The bid should be sealed, superscrbed " Mail
Proposals State of DELI addressed Second Assist
ant Postmaster General Contract Office"


49, Every proposal must be accompanied by a bond
with two sureties approved by postmaster,
and in cases where the amount of the bond exceeds
five thousand dollars ($5 OOO) by postmaster of the
first, second, or third class Bids for service, the
pay for which at the time of advertisement exceeds
five thousand dollars, t85OOO) must be accompanied
by certified check draft payable to the order of
the Postmaster General some solvent national
bank, of not less than five per centn the amount
of the annual pay such route, and in case of
or modified service not less than five per centum Of
the amount of the bond, accompanying the bid, if
the amount of said bond exceeds ($5000) five thous-
and dollars.


present paw when it exceeds ($5OOO) five Thousand
dollars are stated in the advertisement under the ap


Sureties on the bond of bidder must take an oath
before officer qualified to administer oaths that
they are the owners of real estate, worth in the
create, sum double the amount of said bond, over
and above all debts due and owing by them and all
judgments mortgages, and executions against them,
after allowing all exemptions OF every character
whatever.


20 All checks deposited with bids will be held
until cntract is executed and the service COM
menced by the accepted bidder. Checks will then
be returned by mail on the written request of the
bidder. or delivered to any one on his order.


81. The 1ntraots are to be executed and returned
to the Department by or before the 10Th day Of Sep
considered as having failed, and the Postmaster
General may proceed to contract for the service with
other parties, according to law.


Assignments OF contracts, of interest in con-
tracts are forbidde by law, and consequently can
not be allowed Neither bids interest in bids,
be tansferred or assigned to other parties Bidders
will therefore take notice that they will be expected
to perform the service awarded to them through the


o. Section 2is of tho act of June 8, 1872 provides
that contracts for the transportation of the mail





sufficient guarantees for faithful perform nee, with
out other ference to the mode of such transporta
tion than may be necessary to provide for the due
celebrity, certainty, and security thereof" Under
this law bids that propose to transport the mails with


celerity, certainty, and security, having been de-
cded to be the only legal bids are construed as pro-
vdng for the entire mail, however large and what
ever IN y be the mode of conveyance necessary to
insure its celebrity, certainty, and security" and
have the preference over all others and no others
are consid red, except for steamboat routes.


3D. modification of bid in of its essential
te ms is tantamOunt to bid. and cannot be
received to interfere with regular competition
Making anew bid in proper rm is the only way to
modify previous one.


"a Postmasters are cautioned, under penalty of
removal not to sign the approval of the bond of any
bidder before the bond il signed by the bidder and
his suretes and not until entirely satisfied of the
sufficienoy of the sureties.


No postmaster, assistant postmaster, or clerk
employed in any post office, shall be contractor or
concerned in contract for carrying the mail
25 Postmasters are also liable to dismissal from
office for acting agents of contractors bidders,
with without compensation, in any business, mat
ter, T. ing, relating to the mail service. They
the trusted agents of the Department, and cannot
consistently act in both capacities


26 In case the route is not fully supplied with
pouches, locks, and keys, reqnisiton must be made
upon the Second Assistant Postmaster General for
the same before the date ofbeginnng service


gB- Proposals. altered by erasures or interlnea-
tons Of the route, the servce the yearly pay the
name Of the bidder, will not be considered,