Indiana Palladium, Volume 7, Number 31, Lawrenceburg, Dearborn County, 6 August 1831 — Page 1

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Post Office Department.

7b Postmasters and Mail Contractors. Post Office Department, July 12fi, 1831. Gentlemen: Within the last two years, the condition of this Department hag been much improved. In many parts of the country, mail routes have been extended ; stage accommodations have been added; the frequency of trips ha3 been increased ; and on many of the leading routes, greater celerity has been given to the transpor tation of the mail and to the expedition of the traveller. On the routes most important to the intercourse of the country, and especially to its mercantile interests, greater improvements Lave been secured in the more rapid transmission of the mail. Two years since, the contracts then in operation involved an expense of more than a hundred thousand dollars a year; beyond the amount of the current revenue of the Department. At present, its current revenue does not vary materially from the current expenditureThese results could not have been produced by any efforts on my part, had they not received the energetic co-operation of postmasters and contractors. That much of the success which has attended those efforts, is due to the vigilance and fidelity which have characterized most of you, is deeply felt and acknowledged. The number of persons employed in the various branches of this Department, comprehending postmasters and their assistants, contractors and their various agents, is upwards of thirty" thousand. Among these, it is scarcely to be presumed that every individual would prove entirely faithful to hi3 trust; and recent developments have shown, that errors exist among them which call for correction. Nor can it be expected, that in a community embracing an extensive nation, every individual should be so far governed by the dictates of honor and integrity, as to preclude all fraudulent practices; but as it is the duty of every good citizen to discountenance them, so it is especially incumbent upon every agent of this Department to exercise all possible vigilance in detecting and preventing them, wherever they are found to bear upon its interests. Your particular attention is therefore called to the following points. It is the duty of every Postmaster to be careful in locking the mail; to see that it is secured; and to regard the mail key as a sacred deposit. The most extensive depredations ever committed upon the mail, have been perpetrated by means of improper persons obtaining the mail key. It should be carefully secured under a lock; and no person, who is not under the oath of office, should ever be permitted to have access to it, or to use or keep the key. j That disregard for the safety of the mail which will permit a postmaster to lose a key, is without apology. It is equally important that you examine well the bags in which you place the mail for transportation, and be sure that they are whole and secure, When new ones are needed, the postmaster should make the requisition on the Department, and when those forwarded are not returned with the mail, he should send an enquiry along the route to ascertain the postmaster by whom they are detained, and report the facts to the Dapartment. There is, with some postmasters, a want of proper care in receiving and changing the mail. Packets of letters and bundles of newspapers are often left in the mail to pass beyond their destination, or to take a wrong destination, through the inattention of the person whose duty it is to separate them. Your especial attention is called to this subject. At all connecting points, or at places from which other mails branch, it is the duty of the postmaster to examine carefully the packets in the mail; to separate from them those which belong to his office, and all such as should be sent by the branching mail, and to give them their proper direction, to go by the earliest conveyance. It will be of little avail to the public, to form connections and provide for the expedition of the mail, unless postmasters carefully attend to their duties in this respect. Neglect .on this point brings reproach upon the Department, and often casts it upon those who least merit the censure. Whenever this duty is neglected, it is required of the Jirst postmaster who shall discover it, to return such packets to the postmaster who has giveu them a wrong direction,

or whose neglect has suffered them to wander, and report the (acts to the Department. It is expected that this injunction will be strictly regarded. It will enable the Department to detect the errors and carelessnessof delinquents, and to ascertain through what offices packets of this description may have pased, by want of proper vigilance to arrest them. In such cases, the most effectual corrective will be promptly applied. An evil prevails, it is apprehended, with the smaller post offices, and with some of the intermediate offices, on routes much travelled which may,

perhaps more than any of the greater derelictions of duty, contribute to injure the reputation of the Department. It is this: The opening of mails by a postmaster or assistant, in a public store or other room, within the reach of persons not sworn in violation of an ex press instruction. This must be wholly avoided. In the smaller offices, too, where the letters and newspapers re maining on hand are few, there is sometimes great carelessness in not preserving them well under lock and key. They should be kept in a secure case, or desk, and no person not officially sworn, allowed to have access to them. And the practice which obtains in some offices of lending newspapers, must be abandoned altogether. Injuries of this kind will be promptly redressed. Postmasters are also more strictly enjoined, to give due notice to publishers, when their papers or periodical are refused, or not taken from the post office. A wilful neglect of this injunction by a postmaster, may subject him to private damages on the suit of a publisher, who can establish the fact, besides the consequence of a complaint to this Department. It is required by law, that every person employed by the Department, whether postmaster or clerk, contractor, carrier or driver, shall take the oath prescribed. It has lately come to the knowledge of the Department, that in some instances this has been neglected, both in post offices and with mail carriers or drivers. You will enquire into this; and ifit has ever been neglected by any person in your employment, you will have the error immediately corrected. A wanton disregard of this requirement in future, will be considered ample cause for removal from office, or for annulling a contract. It is required of every contractor to be scrupulously punctual, in his times of arrival, at the specified points with the miil. In every case of delinquency in this respect, the fine will be imposed and rigidly enforced; and a repetition will incur a forfeiture of the contract. If insurmountable obstacles intervene, the contractor must lose no time in procuring the best evidence of the facta which the nature of the case will admit, and forward it by the earliest mail to the Department. A delay in doing this will prevent the excuse from being considered; and no obstacle which is not absolutely insurmountable, will be considered a sufficient apology. It is required of all postmasters at the beginning and ending of each route, and at any other points named in the schedule of each contract, to report to the Department every failure of a contractor to arrive within ten minutes of the time specified. In this respect there is no discretion with the postmaster. He is required absolutely, in every case, to report the delay, with the cause when known; and the discretion ofenforcing or remitting the fine is reserved to the head of the Department; who will be governed by the facts alone. If the times fixed by the contract are not known to the postmaster, he should apply to the Department, and they shall be given. Contractors are required in all cases, to convey the entire mail ; well secured from rain or bad weather. If on horseback, it must be covered with an oil cloth or bear skin. If in a stage, the letter mail must be in a safe and well covered boot under the driver, or u the body of the stage. When the newspaper mail is large, and separate from the letter mail, it may be carried on the back of the stage, provided it shall be well secured from rain; but in no case must it be exposed to the weath er. Nor is a contractor permitted on any occasion to leave bags of newspa pers, or pamphlets, or any part of the mail, at any place on the road. His doing 60, will inevitably subject him to the forfeiture of his contract. It is also required of postmasters in every in stance, when a coutractor shall fail to

comply with any of these requirements, to report the case specifically to the Department; and a neglect lo do so, will subject him to the imputation and consequence of being a participator in the offence. It is the duty of every postmaster, to be in readiness (in person or by his assistant) at his office, to receive the mail wheu it arrives, and despatch it with all possible expedition. It sometimes happens that carriers and drivers are unnecessarily detained, and sometimes a neighborhood is disappointed in not receiving intelligence, by a postmaster failing to be at his post to receive the mail. In all such cases, it is the duty of the contractor to report the facts to the Department, that the proper corrective may be applied; and a failure to do so, will subject nim, also, to the penalty of delinquency. There is cause to apprehend, that the revenue of the Department suffers much by abuses of the franking privilege. Your attention was called to this subject two years since, with good effect. But there is reason to fear that in many instances, the unremitted vigilance which the interest of the Department exacts, is not generally continued. Your special attention is called to the subject . Let no elevation of character, or office, deter you from bringing to the test of legal investigation, any person against whom evidence of this offence may be procured. It is of essential importance to the Department; and in no case, when the fact can be established, must the offender be permitted to escape with impunity, it is scarcely necessary to say that a violation of the law, by postmasters themselves, will in no case be pardoned. They are reminded of the obligation of their oath ol office. Every person having charge of a boat or craft, is required by law, under a heavy penalty, to deposit all letters conveyed by his boat, in the post office at each place of arrival; and all letters conveyed by steam boat, on waters where steam boats regularly ply, are subject to the same postages as those carried the same distance in the mail. There Is ground for belief, that in some parts, this provision of the law is in a great measure evaded. You are required to use all diligence in striving to correct this evil. If it be permitted to exist, the Department will be deprived of much of its lawful revenue at places wh"e"re steam boats touch. In every instance, you can discover, of the violation; of this section of the law, Section 19, whether on the water or uy land, you are to cause a prosecution to be instituted. The law prohibits mail carriers, or stage drivers, from carrying letters, sealed or unsealed, out of the mail; except Euch as are received at the distance of one mile from a post office, and then the carriers are required to deliver them to be mailed, in the first post office at which they arrive. From reports recently made to this office, it appears that this part of the law, has, in many instances, been grossly violated, lo the injury of the Department. This is an evil that cannot be tolerated. If done by carriers and drivers without the knowledge of their employers, the contractors, in this respect, must be held responsible for the conduct of the agents whom they employ. It is their duty to know them; and it is expected of each contractor that he will find the means of preventing frauds of this de

scription upon his own route, or sustain, himself, the injury that may result. An apprehension is entertained, that some contractors, in other respects well approved, have permitted these frauds to exist upon their lines. If so, the evil must be effectually eradicated, whatever sacrifice of individual' interest it m;iy involve. No contractor will hereafter be continued in the service of the Department, who shall permit this practice. However highly he may be estimated in other respects, he will be deprived of his contract. Postmasters are required, in all cases, to inform the Department, when these abuses come to their knowledge. It is highly satisfactory to feel assured, that by the great majority of you, gentlemen, all the evils here noticed are decidedly discountenanced; and the strongest confidence is therefore reposed in your readiness still to co-operate in giving effect to the injunctions of the Department, so essential to its future prosperity. W. T. BARRY.

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'These twi lines, whch look so solemn, "Wfcie jusi put, here 10 make trie column

Baltimore, July 13. Bu Steam. We learn form the Patriot mat the transportation of passengers upon the Baltimore and Ohio Rail road, will hereafter be by Locomotive Steam Engines. The Cars will now be conveyed by the Engine constructed by Mr. Davis, of York, Pa. which, after various alterations, has been rendered efficient, and is fully capable of transporting 20 tons, (including the weight of the cars) or 150 passengers, at the requisite or desirable rate of velocity. We understand it is intended that this Engine shall make two trips to the Mills daily, leaving the Depot at Pratt street at half past 9 in the morning and at 3 in the afternoon. The prolongation of the Rail-road into the City is now advancing with energy; and there is every reason to believe that it will be extended at least to tide water, before the 1st of October.

OT Since the above was put in type, we learn that the Locomotive, "The York," left the Depot at Pratt street, yesterday evening with a common car as a temporary tender, and having the large double car Columbus on eight wheels, and another passenger car, attached , with about seventy-five persons. The York proceeded to Eilicotts' Mills in handsome style, at a speed varying from ten to twenty miles the hour, and performing the last, which besides being much curved, is of an ascent of thirteen feet to the mile, in four minutes. The Columbus was left at the Mills, and the York brought the whJc evening train of five cars, and perhaps one hundred and fifty persons, to town. Including the Yoik & tender, the train moved consisted of seven cars. A short stoppage occurred on the west of the deep cut, but the train came to town in very good style, performing the last mile in a fraction less than three min utes. Considering the length of the train, and the curvature of the road, the experiment was highly satisfactory; proving conclusively the adaption of steam to all the general purpo:ses of the Kail road, as the character of the coun try has limited its constuction here. The maker Mr. Davis, wrs not present, and the Locomotive was managed by ethers, not quite so experienced with its use, but with a facility and skill highly gratifying, as shewing the command under which this application of steam may be reduced. It is understood that the York will be constantly employed in the transportation of passengers, for the future. American. IIydrohiodia. extraordinary case. A painful and singular event has lately taken place in a commune near Pithiviers. A lad about 15 years old ; of the name of Lesourd, burn at Meung, near Orleans was bitten a year ago, by a mad dog, and immediately afterwards symptoms of hydrophobia were preceptible. lie was taken to the hospital at Orleans, where he was attended by Dr. Leveque, Sz. in a short time he was sent away as was supposed perfectly cured. List Sunday, Lesourd came to Marsin villiers, where he commenced begging with his brother. Either want, or the fatigue of a long journey had opened his wounds afresh, or his cure was not complete, for all on a sudden the unfortunate boy was seized with a violent paroxysm ol madness, Sz. attacked his brother, who frightened as he was, managed to beat him i)ff with a stick. He then threw himself on a cow and calf which were passing, and lacerated both in an extraordinary manner. The cries of his brother and the roar of the animals, compelled him lo let go his victims; and he crept along the road till he came to a quicket hedge, the roots of which he gnawed with the greatest avidity; and next, getting up he ran into a neighboring wood. The national guard being'called out, in consequence of information given by his brother, went in search of him and he was found near a tree, his eyes in-fl-imed, his mouth covered with foam and with blood, his features changed 8z haggard, biting deliriously at the branches within his reach. Every one was afraid to go near him, and some new accident was apprehended; but whilst those in pursuit of him, were consulting as to the best method of securing him, the expression of his countenance changed, he wept bitterly and went up to his brother, asking him for bread. To avoid further danger, he was tied down in a wagon, which took him to Pithiviers. Here he was placed in an airy room, and every attention shown to him, thai his situation required. He related to

Dr. Auge, alLthat be had suffered during this paroxysm if madness, & was extremely distressed in mind. He asked to be taken back to the hospital at Orleans, where he said Mr. Levequa would cure him again. Notwithstanding he now appears so much better, there is reason to fear that he will eventually sink uuder a disorder of which the seeds are evidently in his blood. The perfect of Pithiviers ha3 ordered that the cow and calf bitten by Lesourd, should be kept separate from other animals, and taken care of. Paris paper. From the Indiana Democrat. Chcsnut Ridge, July 18 j 1831. Mr. A. F. Morrison-: Through your paper, I wish to inform all persons concerned iu taking the fifth Census or enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States, for the district of Indiana, that the law extended the time until the fu st day of June, 1 831, to the Assistant Marshals, to complete and make their returns to the Marshals, and the Marshals, until the first day of August, 1831, to make their returns to the Secretary of State. Several of the Assistants made small mistakes in their return, and they were returned for correction ; consequently I have not been able to adjust my account with the Department, until those mistakes are corrected. Very respectfully, WM. MARSHALL.

The following resoTution, voted at the meeting in Georgetown, Dist. Cola, by about two hundred and fifty persons, who have witnessed ttie course oi" the President, directly contradicts tte Telegraph' misiepresentation, that the Chief Magistrate had endeavored to control "the private intercourse of society." It was signed, moreover by fifty-one gentle, men of the most respectable standing. The Editor of the Telegraph republishes the proceeding without seeming, in the lest sensible, that it questioned his veracity ! ! ! And yet he originated the malign story. Globe. lltsolved, 'J hat this meeting have seen with surprise, and contemplate with feelings of deep displeasure and disapprobation, an attempt in the proceedings, of the late meeting held in this town, to impress a belief abroad, that the President of the United States has interfered with, and endeavored to control, at the seat of Government, the private intercourse of society;' that no member of this meeting has the most distant belief of the fact, and that the assertion is in the opinion of this meeting, based solely on idle rumor, and without the shadow of foundation." The above resolution was unanimously adopted. Thunder and Liuutnig. A Sleepy Family. A gentleman from Bradford gives us the following information of the effects of a thunder storm last week. He says a house in Bradford wag struck by lightning, while the whole family, consisting of a man, his wife and two dughters, were under the dominion of Morpheus that the electric fluid entered the roof passed thro' a bedpost, shivering it lo atoms, destroyed an old bureau and several other articles in the room where slept the two daughters that it then descended, without further ceremony into the bedroom, where were in bed the husband and wife. Here the lightning played some "fantastic tricks," by tearing the bedstead, destroying furniture, and committing other riotous acts; but still amid this "wreck of matter," the whole family continued to snore; unconscious of the chaos around them, or their half inch escapes from death. Our informant states that they awoke about sunrise, and were startled at the smell of brimstone and the appearance of their habitation. On examination they found large splinters which had been torn from the furniture and thrust into bed. They considered it a miraculous escape. JVezo Haven Palladium. This is somewhat akin to the story told of a man cutting straw in a machine on a chilly day, when one of his fingers were clipped oil so smoothly that he did not discover the accident till one of his companions seeing it on the barn f oor, aeked him whose it was, Hodge looked at his own hand and exclaimed, "ly jirgo iCs mine.'From the Jew England Farmer. Prolific Cow. There is a cow in this town, owned by Mr. Jonathan Hall, but five years old this season, which haa had nine calves; three when she was two years old, two when she wa3 three years old, one when she was four, aud three xiheo she was five years eld. Plymouth. Com June 13, 1631.

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