The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1848-12-25

to about nine ana half miles Engish) OF silver
groschen equal to and half cents, increasing by
sroschen for each interval from five to ten miles.
German. with il ter venng half rate. reform in
hostages has been decreed by recent postal congress
at Dresden, fixing two rates in substitution OF the
foregoing-one IF five kreutzers, (old German con-
vention money! about equal to five cents Tor any
distance not exceeding ninety five miles (EnglsnD
and the other ten or cents for any distance
The following are quite anomalous In France,
I:was Informed, the postmaster, instead Of giving
bonds with suretes deposits with government the re-
CURED amount money ne @ from t II, mnss
rate and receives back the capital on retiring from
office, provided he has faithfully accounted for and
paid over all the government In Prussia the
General Post Office opens accounts with the posmas-
tiers only the letters they receive and deliver The
amounts prepaid letters rent are accounted for by
the sending pc. masters to the receiving and deliver
ing postmaster who is held liable therefor by the gene
raj office In Austria where the posting OF travellers
is as elsewhere the continent a part of the post
Office monopoly, the postmaster Is prohibited from
furnishing unless the party exhibit post
ing ticket from the State Chancery giving permission
to travel
But the greatest anomaly of the present day the
Thurn and Taxis Posts. This constitutes the only
general post office power Of Germany IL is held
hereditary fef by the German Emperor Matthias
confirmed after Buopspsrte had abolished it, by the
Congress of Vienna Its central office is at Crank
fort with postm and offices in the different Ger
man towns separate and independent of the local
mail establishments II compes che railroads to carry
its mails for nothing as part of the restitution which
1t holds that modern improvements should MAKE Tor
infringing upon Its prescrptve rights in furnishing
better mode for public travel than existed Two centu
ries ago. Its attributes tbose OF private mono
poly and 1t Is managed as to make the largest pos
sbe income for its fluent proprietor the Prince Of
Thurn and Tsxis.
TX ORoANIzArroS OF FOREIGN Posr DEPARTMENTS.
In the chief Of its organization andi its re-
lstive i'm at home the British Postofee widely
differs from those the continent. In France and
in the German States the Postofhce Is but branch
Of the Treasury Department The Directeur General,
at Paris is bureau Office under the Minister of
Finance But in Great Britain, as in the United
States the Postocs constitutes one Of the great de-
nanfo ~ tlla nov
master General is a member Of the Cabinet, holding .
seat in the House of Peers Thus through its head,
and lie directly through the channel to
the influences Of the popular WILL so far as their form
being made party engine all interference with, or
participation in the elections on the part OF any
officer Postmaster or other subordinate prohibited
by law, under naties All appointments, from
the principal officers and postmasters down to the
letter carriers and mail guards ordered by the Post
officers and postmasters the appointment is made
the nomination Of the Lords of the Treasury. In
France, the principal appo Of Postmeterssnd
other officers made by the Minister of Finance,
with the consent Of the council The Directeur Gene
raj in such cases and makes the appoint
ments himself inferior class of Postmasters and
subcrdin In the German States, appointments
in the principal class are made by the King in
the inferior by the Postmaster General. In Eng
land, the tenure of office Is " during pleasure
and not for life, as rome have enormously sup
posed, during good behaviour - removals,
however ordered but for assigned cause,
and as to promotions, find the following me moran
clerks promoted in rotation, provided they
ported by the head Of the Office to which they belong
vded their official conduct is such as to warrant the
promotion. The head Of each office is selected an
count Of his ability and fitness not by rotation The
drtt clerk. however, Is appoi nted. II qualified"
The entire business Of the post Office department Of
Great Britain is done in the Of the Postmaster
General The chief functonary for the Transaction
of this business the Secretary whose salary $4,000
year There il assistant secretary, at $500 and
a solicitor of the department, receiving the
Postmaster whose
IL to receive but FL 500 per The fol-
lowing are the bureau officers -Superiatendent Of
Mail Coach Office. salary f9Co Receiver General ap.
pointed by the Lords Of the Treasury, $780, Account
ant General feo0; President Of the Money Order Of
fee, f500 Inspector of Dead and Returned Let
ters f400 There central offices for Scotland and
Ireland respectively at Edinburgh ond Dublin subor
dinato 10 that at London and on q smaller scale.
Trsnesetions with the Chan Of the Excho-
quer and Secretary for Foreign Affairs, in respect
and rstters of appointments. belong TO the files
Of the Secretary the Postmaster General and
now flied by and created for, believe the ceebrs-
ted Rowland Hill The salaries of the clerks range
from $50 to f5oO per aunrT AS to tae salaries OF
elooo s40) and the lowest is $50 year, (s14S 2o
Receiving postmssteIs get f3-some instances f5-
and in one as high as $40 per annum In France
and Germany the higher grades of aaries range much
lower than in England but am unable to give them
with precision.
The post Office had no existence, as an institution
for general use till towards close OF the 18th
century. The establishment of posts we trace
far back the Persian empire, and the reign
of Darius the lst. The correspondence between
Julius Cesar ard Cicero makes memorable those es-
tablshed by the great Trumyr between Britain and
Rome. His skill in such arrangements acquired pos
sibly whilst surveyor OF the AppiaH Way, gave them
speed urpa.sed In times till the introduce
ton Of steam Augustus and his successors maintain
Dictated BY the fact that the head Of this mail e.ab-
hsbment the captain of the Praetorian Guards.
and the army Military posts the relays that
performed the services and whether they did not also
confer their upon it is matter that the exicogrs
piers who derive II from the past participle Uf Latin
verb have setle with the historian Posts Of
like character the Spanish adventurers found under
the Incas Of Peru The University of Paris and the
sfauept merchants of Italy and Germany, following
the example of their sent their own
sengers for the conveyance OF letters But with the
dawn Of liberty in the italian states and especially in
the Duchy Of Milan the post office first entered upon
the duty Of serving the citizens as well as the govern
5th ystemstzed it for his vast domnions on the ba
sis Of public and social accommodation He created
the first Postmaster General known to history In the
person of Leonard Count of Taxis
The post Office wa. introduced into England from
Nuncio the chief functionary. 1t was but little
used in this form and was At length flung aside as
of the papa sncroachments. The office of Post
master General in England enjoys the honor Of being
created by Elizabeth who conferred ii upon Thomas
Randolph, s.ntensn OF di,tncton In the foreign
may presume, q knowledge OF the mail establshments
Of the Continent.
1t is a notable circumstance, that in the 18th
century the poet office establishment was given
away In Germany, as feudatory monopoly to
the family Of Js8sn France, 1t was set up at auc-
ton and fsrned out for term Of years and so con-
tinued till the cose Of the 18th century, 1I9l
And the same deposition was made Of IL during the
Commonwealth in England In the reign Of Queen
Anne the post Office department for the British EN-.
pire recognized undr astatute OF
embraced the American Colonies and provided for the
estab hme Mt Of chief letter once in New iork
with others convenient places in the other provinces
But long anterior to thisas early "a the reign
Of Charles IItbat the popular movements brought the
post Office into existence in America, as q conven,
isnce Of the people, character In which 1t had
never origin ated in any nation country before.
post ofhce established In Boston under John Hey-
ward by the Colonial Court in 1877; and in Phadel.
phia under Henry wsldy, by order OF William Penn,
in 1858 The Virginia Assembly gave MT Neal pa
tent a. Postmaster eneral in 1892 which never wen