authorizing Post Masters at county seats of Justice to receive subscriptions for Newspapers and periodicals to be paid through the agency of the Post Office Department; and for other purposes

M^r Kaufman made the following Report.

The Committee on Post Offices and Post roads to which was referred a ^the following ^ Resolution of the House of Representatives, “(here quoted ^entitled An act’^)” beg leave to submit the accompanying Bill with this report.

The committee have reason to believe that a general wish pervades the community at large, that some such facility as the proposed measure, should be granted by ^express^ law, for subscribing through the agency of the Post Office Department, to newspapers and periodicals ^which^ diffuse[...?], daily, weekly, and ^or^ monthly, intelligence of passing events. Compliance with this general wish, is deemed to be in accordance with the principles of our Republican institutions, which can be best sustained by the diffusion of knowledge and the due encouragement of a universal national spirit of inquiry ^and discussion of public events^ through the medium of the public press. The committee, however, ^has^ not ^been^ insensible to its duty of guarding the Post Office Department from ^against^ injurious sacrifices for the accomplishment of this object, whereby its ordinary efficacy might be impaired or embarrassed. It has therefore been

a subject of much consideration; but it is now confidently hoped, that the bill herewith submitted, effectually guards against obviates all objections which might exist with regard to a less [matured?] proposition.

The Committee learned, upon inquiry, that the Post Office Department, in view of meeting the general wish on this subject, made the experiment through one of its own internal regulations, when the new postage system went into operation on the first of July 1845; and ^that it^ was continued until 30^th Sept^r 1847. But this experiment, for reasons hereafter stated, proved unsatisfactory; and it was discontinued by order of the Post Master General. As far as the Committee can at present ascertain the following seem to be ^have been^ the principal grounds of dissatisfaction in this experiment:

1^st: The legal responsibility of Post masters receiving newspaper subscriptions, or, of [their sureties?], was not defined.

2^nd: The authority was open to all postmasters instead of being limited to ^those of^ specific offices.

3^d: The consequence of this extension of the authority, was, that, in innumerable instances, the money, without the previous knowledge or control of the officers of the Department who are responsible

for the good management of its finances, was deposited in offices where it was improper such funds should be placed; and the ^re^payment was ordered, not by the financial officers, but by the post masters, at points where it was inconvenient to the Department so to disburse its funds.

4^th The inconvenience of accumulating uncertain ^and fluctuating sums^ funds at small offices, was felt seriously in ^consequent^ overpayments to contractors on their general ^quarterly^ collecting orders; and, in cases of [?] mail routes service ^routes^, in litigation concerning the misapplication of such funds to the special service of supplying mails.

5^th The accumulation of such funds in draft offices, could not be known to the financial clerks of the Department, in time to control it; and, too often ^this^ rendered uncertain all their calculations of funds in hand. [...?]

6^th: The orders of payment [became?] were, for the most part, issued upon the principal officers, such as those at New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, &^c where the large ^offices of^ publishers reside ^are located,^ causing an illimitable and uncontrollable drain of the Department’s funds from those points where it was essential to husband them for its own regular disbursements. In Philadelphia alone, this drain averaged $5000 pr quarter; and in other cites of the seaboard, it was proportionate.

7^th The embarrassment to the Department was increased by the illimitable, uncontrollable, and irresponsible scattering of its funds from [concentrated?] points suitable for its distributions, to remote, unsafe, and inconvenient offices, where they could not be again made available till collected by special agents, or ^were^ transferred at considerable expense into the principal distributing [dispensing?] offices again.

8^th There was a vast increase of duties thrown upon the limited force ^before^ necessary to conduct the business of the Department; and, from the delay of obtaining vouchers, impediments arose to the speedy settlement of accounts with present or retired postmasters, causing postponements which endangered the liability of sureties under the act of limitations, and caused1 a [probable?] tendency to the ^much danger of an^ increase of suit cases.

9^th: The most responsible Post Masters (at the large Offices) were ordered by the least responsible (at small offices) to make payments, upon their vouchers, without having the means of ascertaining if genuine, whether the signers were in or out of office, or solvent or a defaulter.

10^th: The transaction of this business for subscribers and publishers, at the public expense, and the embarrassment, inconvenience, and delay of the Departments ^own^ business occasioned by it, was partial and not justified by any ^sufficient^ remuneration of revenue which could have sustained the to sustain the Department, as required in every other respect with regard to its agency.

The Committee in view of all these objections, has been solicitous to frame a bill which would not be obnoxious to them in principle or ^in^ practical effect.

It is confidently believed, that, by limiting the offices for receiving, subscriptions, to less than one tenth of the number authorised by the experiment already tried, and designating the county seat in each county for the purpose, the control of the Department will be rendered satisfactory; particularly as it will be in the [power?] of the Auditor, who is the Officer required by law to check the accounts, to approve or disapprove of the deposites, and to sanction[,?] not only the payment, but ^to point out^ the place of payment. If these payments ^should^ cause a drain on the principal offices of the sea board; it is ^will be^ compensated by the accumulation of the funds at county seats, where the Contractors ^on those routes^ can be paid to that extent, by the Department’s drafts with more local convenience to themselves contractors than by drafts on the sea-board offices.

The legal responsibility for these deposites is defined; and the The accumulation of funds at the points of deposite, and the repayment at points drawn upon, being known to, and controlled by, the Auditor, will not occasion any such embarrassments as were before felt: the The record kept by the Auditor on the passing of the certificates through his hands, will enable him to settle accounts without the delay occasioned by vouchers being withheld: all Alt doubt and uncertainty as to the genuineness of certificates or the propriety of its ^their^ issue, will be removed by the Auditors’ examination and approval: and there can be no [?] of loss of funds by transmission, as the certificate is ^will^ not be payable till sanctioned by the Auditor; and, after his sanction, the payor need not pay it unless ^it is^ presented by the publisher or his known clerk or agent.

And The main principle, of equivalent for the agency of the Department, is secured by the postage required to be paid upon the transmission of the certificates; augmenting, adequately, the post office revenue.

The committee conceiving, that, in this report all the difficulties of the subject have been fully and fairly stated, and that they ^these difficulties^ are obviated by the plan proposed by ^in^ the accompanying bill; and believing that the measure will satisfactorily meet the wants and wishes of a very large portion of the community, beg leave to recommend the its adoption. of the bill.