Intelligence and Miscellanies. 373 



referred to the Philosophical Transactions, the Transactions 

 of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, the Traite de Phys- 

 ique by Biot, the article Optics in the Edinburgh Encyclo- 

 poedia, and the article Light in the Encyclopoedia Metropo- 

 litana ; this last is not yet completed, but from what has been 

 pubhshed, it appears to be the most full and accurate treatise 

 on the subject, that has yet appeared. There are also many 

 interesting papers on polarisation in several of the English 

 and foreign periodical journals. 



12. Progress of the American Post Office Department. — 

 With the report from the Postmaster General is exhibited a 

 comparative view of the gradual increase of that establish- 

 ment, from five to five years, since 1792 till this time, in the 

 number of Post Offices, which has grown from less than two 

 hundred to nearly eight thousand ; in the revenue yielded by 

 them, which, from sixty seven thousand dollars, has swolleii 

 to upwards of a milHon and a half, and in the number of miles 

 of Post Roads, which, from five thousand six hundred and 

 forty two, have multiplied to one hundred and fourteen thou- 

 sand five hundred and thirty six. While, in the same period 

 of time, the population of the Union has about thrice doub- 

 led, the rate of increase of these offices is nearly forty, and 

 of the revenue and of travelled miles from twenty to twenty 

 five for one. The increase of revenue, within the last five 

 years, has been nearly equal to the whole revenue of the de- 

 partment in 1812. 



The expenditures of the department during the year which 

 ended on the first of July last, have exceeded the receipts by 

 a sum of about twenty five thousand dollars. The excess 

 has been occasioned by the increase of mail conveyances 

 and facilities, to the extent of near eight hundred thousand 

 miles.* It has been supplied by collections] from the Post- 

 masters, of the arrearages of preceding years. While the 

 correct principle seems to be, that the income levied by the 

 department should defray all its expenses, it has never been 

 the policy of this government to raise from this establish- 

 ment any revenue to be applied to any other purposes. The 

 suggestion of the Post Master General, that the insurance 

 of the safe transmission of monies by the mail, might be as- 



* Viz. the whole amount of additional miles travelled by the mail, reckon- 

 ing the travelling of all the days of the year in one aggregate. 



