The National Intelligencer And Washington Advertiser

From the AUGUSTA HERALD.

Mr. Bunce,

You mentioned in your paper some weeks past, on the authority I suppose of a private letter, that the removal of the postmaster here was immediately to take place. On Monday last the official notice on that subject was received from the Postmaster-General. His letter, together with my reply returned by the mail, I submitted to some of my friends for their private satisfaction, who suggested the propriety of making them public; having no objection to this, I herewith enclose them, and you are at liberty to publish one or both of the letters, as you think proper.

W. J. HOBBY.

General Post-office Jan. 16, 1802.

SIR,

Upon entering on the duties of this office, my mind was impressed with an unusual anxiety and solicitude. Knowing as I did, that most of the officers under me, from their official stations, had been in the habits of associating and corresponding, as well on politics as on business, with those lately in authority, from whom the people had withdrawn their confidence; and elevated to office men whose political principles they believed better calculated to preserve the constitution and public prosperity, and having a general knowledge of the most prominent recent events, it occurred to me that some removals would become necessary, as well to effect an equal participation and enjoyment of office by the two great classes of citizens, who are designated by the terms federalists & republicans, as to preserve and maintain confidence in the department. The idea of exercising the powers delegated in such a manner as to produce any temporary evil or unhappiness to any of my fellow-citizens, to me was as unpleasant as distressing. While on the other hand it was my determination, as it was my duty, to answer the public expectation, and to make such changes as the state of the country, as well as of the office, appeared to require. From repeated complaints from the country, and from opinions which are entertained by persons who have been long in office, together with the reasons upon which their opinions are founded, I was soon convinced that as a general rule, the printers of newspapers ought not to be employed as postmasters, because they have a special interest in suppressing for a time the intelligence forwarded to rival printers, which generates suspicions, mutual recriminations and party bickerings, unfriendly to social intercourse and civil order. And because they have an uncommon interest in using the right of franking to an extent never contemplated by law, if not to the destruction of a fellow craftsman. I have therefore refused to appoint a republican printer postmaster, in every instance where applications have been made, although they have neither been few nor badly supported. Cases may exist in which it may be proper to employ the printer of a paper as a postmaster. These however, will only form exceptions to a general rule. Influenced by these considerations, as you are the printer of a newspaper, my duty compels me to inform you, I have deemed it proper to dispense with your further service as postmaster at Augusta, and that I have appointed John B. Watkins, Esq. to that office, as your successor. When he has taken the oath prescribed by law, and executed with good surety the proper bond, and forwarded the same for this office (which bond and oath I have forwarded to him) I request you to deliver over to him all such property as you may have in your possession, belonging to the General Post-Office. I am, sir, your most obedient servant,

GIDEON GRANGER.

Wm. J. Hobby, Esq.

Augusta, February 1, 1802.

Sir,

I this day received yours of the 16th ultimo, and as soon as the oaths are taken, and the bond properly executed by the person appointed my successor, I shall proceed to comply with your instructions—in the mean time, I take the liberty of making a short reply to your obliging favour.

If the 'anxiety and solicitude' with which your 'mind was impressed' on entering your present office, produced, or confirmed a determination impartially to discharge its duties, you have my best wishes for the uniform success of your exertions. As you assert from your own knowledge, that 'most of the officers under you had been in the habits of associating and corresponding with those lately in authority,' it might not be proper to question the accuracy of your statement, even though the attainment of this knowledge, presupposes an intimacy of communication between you and those officers, hardly to have been expected between persons, who, as you insinuate, had no confidence in each other. But admitting the fact to be as stated, your letter gave me the first intimation I ever received, that in a country boasting of freedom, it was a crime, meriting either punishment or censure, to associate or correspond with the 'public servants' of the people. For myself
though I have uniformly held the characters of the late administration in the highest estimation, yet having no personal acquaintance with them—and my correspondence with the Post-master-general, I believe, wholly related to the business of the Post-office department—

if it did not, my letters are now probably in your office and I shall have no objection to your making the whole, or any part of them, public, as an evidence of the accuracy of your statement as applied to me—to whom, by making the observation, you no doubt intended to apply it—at the same time, although the insinuation of your letter in its present application is altogether unfounded, yet,

I by no means assent to the opinion you seem to have adopted; that in our country it is improper for any free citizens to correspond with the officers of their government on political subjects—and if it is the determination of the present administration to deprive them of this right, I have no hesitation in assuring you, I am one among the number of those, not disposed to relinquish it. I have heard indeed, the late administration proscribed as a political sect, unworthy of public esteem—I now hear it intimated, that to have associated or corresponded with them was improper—

and hereafter perhaps, we may be told that it is unjust to live in the same country with them, or to suffer them to live in the same country with those, who claim the merit, of enjoying exclusively the public confidence. If it was unwarrantable to associate or correspond with the officers of. the late administration, it must be equally unwarrantable to associate or correspond with those of the present—and then the heads of departments in the true stile of eastern despotism, excluded from an intercourse with the people over whom they preside, may consider their own opinions as the standard of perfection, may require servile submission to their will, and may finally proceed to assert with a high officer of the United States, that any 'disrespect' towards them or any deviation from the principles they establish, constitutes, 'treason and rebellion' against the government.

I have most assuredly been in the habit of approbating the policy of the illustrious characters, who have heretofore administered the American government, because I believed it calculated to produce, what I saw it actually did produce, the prosperity, and happiness of the American people. If to slander those characters by representing them contrary to the constitution, is your delight, I have no inclination to interrupt your enjoyment, or to share in your pleasure—if you resolve to consider as your enemies those who venerate the characters of such men as Washington and Adams, I hope never to be included in the number of your friends.

Believe you even from sensations "inpleasant or distressing," permit me to assure you, that the exercise of your powers respecting myself, neither produces "temporary evil or unhappy pangs"—I with cheerfulness relinquish the office to one more agreeable to the head of the department, and feel a pleasure in believing, it passes into the hands of a person who will discharge its duties satisfactorily to our citizens, and faithfully to the government.

Your observations respecting Printers being post-masters, are, on general principles, no doubt correct—the only objection to them in the present instance is, their being totally inapplicable—and as you mention, that numerous applications have been made for appointments, by those you call republican printers, I hope few, if any departures will take place from the "general rule," for their exclusion. as I can hardly suppose by the offices being in their hands, an impartial circulation of news papers would be promoted—and with the general rule respecting them, I should rejoice, that any one could be adopted to secure to you correct information. A letter from Mr. Milledge, received here about five or six weeks since. mentioned, that himself, general Jackson, and Mr. Baldwin, had waited on you, and that my removal was resolved on—of the determination of some of these gentlemen on this subject, I was apprised previous to their leaving this state—but well knowing that they could not possibly attach any improper conduct to this office, and knowing their desire for change was founded on my differing in opinion from them, on political subjects, on which, I claim, and mean to exercise, the right of thinking for myself, I feel perfectly indifferent as to the result of their exertions; I think it however proper to mention, that whether these gentlemen collectively, or any one in particular, informed you that I was the "printer of a paper," the information was not true. I am not, nor was I ever, the printer of a paper: nor am I, or was I ever interested in any printing-office, or concerned in any way, with any printer in the United States— this, though not very important in itself, may serve to evince that perfect correctness will not always attend that information which flows from pre-determinations, to effect a particular object, and to your informants I leave it to reconcile the variance, between their information and facts.

I am, with respect,

Your obedient servant,

WM. J. HOBBY.

Gideon Granger, Esq. P. M.

General of the U. States.