she stoops to subserviency
and begging, for even so much as the postal charities of other
enterprising and commanding nations.

It has been suggested that the Government could secure the transit of
the mails on the receipts, taking both ocean and inland postage; and
indeed a temporary arrangement was made with two of our contending
companies running to Europe, to transport them on these terms; but
such arrangements are temporary only, and can not be made the basis of
regular action. They would operate most unequally on different lines.
While on the European lines they would pay probably one half the sum
of subsidy required, on many other, and especially on new and untried
lines, they would not at first pay probably one tenth. And granting
that on a given line, the receipts during fifteen years would amount
to as much as the whole subsidy required for that time; yet no company
could live on them, as for the first few years the receipts from the
mail would be very small, while the general income of the line from
passengers and freight would also be smaller than at any other time.
Moreover, almost every steam company has to borrow money largely
during its first years, in anticipation of the larger income from
increased trade during the last years of its existence. Thus, while
the system of the receipts would operate most unequally, the same
aggregate sum given in the form of a regular annual subsidy operates
as an assurance for the company and keeps it alive. But the postal
receipts are not adequate to the support of any ocean line. In the
report before cited, the Committee say, at page 5, that the sum of
subsidy then paid was L822,390 per annum, whereas the postal receipts
were only L443,782, or but a fraction over one half. There is probably
no regular service in the world where the postal receipts would pay
for the transport, especially where competition existed.

In making our contracts common-sense must dictate the lines necessary,
and the general treasury should pay for them. There is no good reason
why the sums of subsidy to be paid for mail transportation should be
chargeable on the Post Office Department. Nor is it really of much
consequence where the account is settled, as the general treasury must
after all meet the bills. It may create some misapprehension as to the
services on which the sums annually voted are bestowed. But the
service, whether sea or inland, is alike incapable of sustaining
itself, and is