f the
General of the Army in full. The recommendations therein contained have
been well considered, and are submitted for your action. I, however,
call special attention to the recommendation of the Chief of Ordnance
for the sale of arsenals and lands no longer of use to the Government;
also, to the recommendation of the Secretary of War that the act of 3d
March, 1869, prohibiting promotions and appointments in the staff corps
of the Army, be repealed. The extent of country to be garrisoned and the
number of military posts to be occupied is the same with a reduced Army
as with a large one. The number of staff officers required is more
dependent upon the latter than the former condition.

The report of the Secretary of the Navy accompanying this shows the
condition of the Navy when this Administration came into office and the
changes made since. Strenuous efforts have been made to place as many
vessels "in commission," or render them fit for service if required, as
possible, and to substitute the sail for steam while cruising, thus
materially reducing the expenses of the Navy and adding greatly to its
efficiency. Looking to our future, I recommend a liberal, though not
extravagant, policy toward this branch of the public service.

The report of the Postmaster-General furnishes a clear and comprehensive
exhibit of the operations of the postal service and of the financial
condition of the Post Office Department. The ordinary postal revenues
for the year ending the 30th of June, 1869, amounted to $18,344,510, and
the expenditures to $23,698,131, showing an excess of expenditures over
receipts of $5,353,620. The excess of expenditures over receipts for the
previous year amounted to $6,437,992. The increase of revenues for 1869
over those of 1868 was $2,051,909, and the increase of expenditures was
$967,538. The increased revenue in 1869 exceeded the increased revenue
in 1868 by $996,336, and the increased expenditure in 1869 was
$2,527,570 less than the increased expenditure in 1868, showing by
comparison this gratifying feature of improvement, that while the
increase of expenditures over the increase of receipts in 1868 was
$2,439,535, the increase of receipts over the increase of expenditures
in 1869 was $1,084,371.

Your attention is respectfully called to the recommendations made by the
Postmaster-General for authority to change the rate of compensation to
the main trunk railroad lines for their services in carrying th