Mr. SHERMAN. I regret very much the remarks made by the Senfrom Missouri, because I know them to be unjust, so far as this bill is concerned. I know that Governor Dennison, the present PostMGenl, desires to promote the very object the honorable Senfrom Missouri desires to promote, the extension of the telegraphic system and its eventual absorption by the Government of the U.S.; and therefore all his remarks on this subject are very unjust. The PostMGenl was called upon for information by a resolution of the Senate, I think introduced by the honorable Senator himself. Where would he et that information? He sent letters to all the leading persons engaged in the business, to the men themselves who had interest, on both sides. He addressed the persons who were interested in this very project of creating new competition. The whole of their replies were sent to him, and he communicated them to Congress. He has iven, himself, no opinion on the subject. e has stated that on account of the urge cost of establishing a Government sys tem he does not think it should be done now. He shows by the figures he sends us that it would cost from ten to 20 million dollars, and perhaps more, to establish this system now, and he thmks we have not sufficient information to engage generally in the business. In that opinion he may be wron; but upon the information that he gathered it: probably was not wrong. He sends the whole of that information to us. I desire to state further that I submitted this very bill, reported from the special committee on the subject, to governor Dennison, and it meets his hearty approval. He examined it carefully, and thong t we ought to do that much, and be prepared to do more from time to time, as the system might develop itself. The whole system is new; it is but a little over 20 years since the 1st telegraphic message was sent across the wires between Baltimore and Washington. We must 1st get a rival or private competition with the existing company to reduce prices, and then, perhaps, after awhile the Government may do as the republic of Switzerland has alread done, assume the whole telegraphing. In the little republic of Switzerland tel egraph messages are sent by the Government preciselylike postal letters, at a uniform charge of one franc permessage. The British government are now considering whether in GreatBritain they will notdo the same thing by government, and I have no doubt that in a year or 2 telegraphic messages will be sent by the Government, precisely as the Government sends a letter of the citizen all over GreatBritain; and eventually I hope we shall come to the same thing. As it is now, it costs 2 dollars to send a message from Washington city to my home, in the center of the State of Ohio. It costs now more than it did the 1st year the telegraph was established in this country. The great company that has now nominally 50 millions of capital, probably represents ten or 15 millions of property ali)the rest is accumulated profits or watere stock. It is manifest, therefore, that this bill or some measure to create comp'etition ought to ass. gut I only rose now to reply to what I consider an unjust personal remark on Governor Dennison, in this connection. He, I have no doubt, favors the object of this bill; indeed I know that he favors this bill itself, and he favors the object which we all seek. The remarks of the Senator, so far as Governor Dennison is concerned'in this connection, are un'ust. Mr. BROWN. I said nothing about governor Dennison favoring this bi l, but I said he had thrown the whole weight of his position as PostMGenl against this re form of the ostal service.