Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/49

 EXPEESS EXTRADITION 41 express line last named had been created about a year previous by John Butterfield. These three concerns, when united, were called the "American Express Company." William F. Harnden, the founder of the express business, died in 1848, leaving little or no property. In the mean time numerous short express routes and local expresses had come into successful operation throughout New England. Messrs. Pullen, Virgil, and Stone, who by their effi- cient services had contributed largely to the success of Harnden's business in its infancy, aow started an express between New York and Montreal, and laid the foundation of the "National Express Company." Wells, Fargo, and co.'s California express was created in the city of New York in 1852. Adams and co.'s California express, established in 1849, was succeeded in 1855 by that of Freeman and co. In 1854 Adams and co., the Harnden express (then owned by Thompson and Livingston), Kinsley and co., and Hoey and co. were con- solidated in a joint stock institution, now fa- mous as the " Adams Express Company." The " United States Express Company " was com- menced in 1853. It runs a through express twice a day to Buffalo, over the New York and Erie railway, and thence to numerous western cities, towns, and stations. Between New York and Dunkirk, and at all the stations upon its route, the New York and Erie rail- way company does an express business which was first established by the regular express company last mentioned. The " Hope Express Company," the "New Jersey Express Com- pany," and the "Howard Express Company," established as joint-stock concerns since 1854, were founded upon successful individual enter- prises of some years' standing prior to that date. They serve every part of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The " Eastern Express Com- pany" also is a union of several individual en- terprises, consolidated Jan. 1, 1857. Its prin- cipal office is in Boston, whence its lines diverge by various railroad and steamboat routes into Maine and New Hampshire. Fiske and co., and Cheney, Fiske, and co., are proprietors of expresses which have been very useful in Massa- chusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Mas- sachusetts is remarkable for the number of its expresses, the most of which have short routes, and are operated by individual enterprise ; 238 run from the city of Boston alone. The "American-European Express and Exchange Company," created in New York, July 1, 1855, was founded upon the business of Livingston and Wells, and Edwards, Sandford, and co. It sends and receives an express by every regu- lar line of foreign steamships, and transacts business in London, Paris, and all the European cities. The principal companies which are at present (1874) doing business in the United States are the Adams express company, the American, the United States, Wells, Fargo, and co., the southern express company, the national express company, the New Jersey, the eastern, the United States and Canada, and the Texas. The railroads covered by the expresses are about 60,000 miles in length, but as they are traversed in both directions and often sev- eral times each day, it is estimated that the express messengers travel more than 300,000 miles daily. The whole number of men em- ployed in the United States by all the expresses is over 18,000, the number of horses is about 3,500, and the number of offices about 8,000. The amount of capital employed in the business is estimated as being not less than $25,000,000. The whole of this amount is not needed for the purpose of supplying material or for carrying on the business, and the larger part is held by the companies as a provision against any losses that may be sustained. The public in its deal- ings with the companies has therefore the pro- tection of a large guarantee capital in addition to the individual liability of the shareholders. Confidence is reposed in express companies to such an extent that in times of financial panic, when merchants and others have for the time lost confidence in their banks and bankers, they trust the express companies in their fiduciary capacity and make use of them for the purpose of making their remittances and collections. A peculiar feature in trade has grown out of express facilities, called the " Collect on deliv- ery business." Merchants whose wares are ad- vertised or known now receive orders from strange firms in distant parts of the country to send goods to them by express, to be paid for on delivery. The merchant fills the order and sends the goods with his bill addressed to the consignee, marked 0. O. D., and the amount to be collected, on the outside of the package. This is sent to its destination by the express company and tendered to the consignee, with the bill. Upon payment of the latter the goods are delivered to the new owner, and the money received is carried back to the consignor, who pays for the collection, while the consignee pays the freight on the package. The amount of business transacted in this way is very large and rapidly increasing. EXTRADITION, the delivering up of fugitiyes from justice by the authorities of one country or state to those of another. This subject may be considered under two heads, as it relates to the surrender of offenders to each other by the several states of the American Union, or to the like mutual surrender between sovereign nations. I. BETWEEN THE STATES OF THE UNION. This is provided for by the constitu- tion, art. IV. 2 of which declares that a person charged in any state with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice and be found in another state, shall, on demand of the executive authority of the state from which he fled, be delivered up to be removed to the state having jurisdiction of the same. An act was passed by congress in 1793 to carry this provi- sion into effect, and to establish the like regula- tion for the territories ; and the several states have also statutes on the same subject. The