The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-12-08
AMERICAN POSTAL AFFAIRS.
Annual Report OF the Postmaster General
for 1854.
Posr orrIer DErAnrxESr, Dec 4, 1852


Annual Report OF the Postmaster General
for 1854.
Posr oFFIcE DEPARTMENT, Dec a. 1852
sr-In discharge OF . duty devolving me have
the honor TO report that the whole humber Of post oo
In the United States the cose the fiscal year ended
June 80 1852 was % 9cl The number Of postmastsrs
appointed durr that year ass Of these 726
appointed to fill vacancies occssoped by resignstions
256 ill ciss occAsioned by death changing
the tee Of oces; SO the removal Of prior incum-
bents and l,7le ON the establishment Of new offices
There 10 post Offices established and GA discon-
tinued during the year.
From the end OF the fiscal year to November l. lSs2
S2s post Offices have been established and $50 dscon-
tnued, that the whole number in operation at the
latter Date was IL i9 At its close there in opera
ton in the United States 6ll mail routes their agyrs
gate length being 2s4 miles and employing 400
tractors The transportation Of the mails these
routes was 5s,ss5,72s miles, at an annual cost OF
s. $50 p7I being about 10 cents per mile; OF these
72s miles OF annual APPROPRIATION IL 78s miles
required to be performed upon railroads at cost Of
81 2yS $40 being about IL per ms $50 miles
in steamboats, at cost Of S506 sl5 being about
per mc; 20 sos $50 miles in coaches. at a cost Of
being about bk cents per mie and 20 $50 GIL
miles In modes not specified at cost Of 81 $50 being
about 9-l0 cents per mile.
at the of the preceding year. stated in the last
snnua report from this department shows
Of II oe4 miles in the length of mail routes of 47S
in the miles of transportation and of S5lS PIT In
the Of transportation OF such increase of
transportation the railroad service amounts to sl4o8l
miles ut increased cost Of S2905oi being increase
Of shout twenty nine per cent both in the service aud In
Its aggregate COST the steamboat service to sos at
miles increased cost of $50 923 being increase
of about sixteen and half per cent in service, and
eleven per cent in cost the coach service to 02 3i2
miles, at incieAsed csst Of s27 being increase
about Eve per cent in service and eight per cent in
32S 646 miles at increased cost of ss4 967 being
increase Of about per cent in service and
1 ; cent in cost
impaired with the transportation and its cost at the
If the fiscal year ended June So 1882 it shows that
Nh railroad and steamboat service had increased in the
years 13,01l 9l5 miles, at increased cost of
a. e54, being about 294 per cent increase in service
LA per cent in cost the coach service / 93i S94
at decreased cost of $571,s2i being about ten per
Increase in service, and thirty three and third
rent decrease In cost the service in modes spe
g. T. POS 92S miles at increased cost of S29l045
b. about seventy pine per cent increase in service
or:y per cent in cost.
msy proper in this connection to remark that the
tua increase Of cosch service performed greater and
Il at Of service performed horseback and in other
.odes not specified is less than the above stated
the that the act Of 1s45 much coach
pertrmed under contracts not specifically requiring
that grade Of service but only that the mails be carried
with due celebrity, certainty and security" The
rice under such contracts reported in modes
not specified although coach service is performed under
them for q large portion of, the entire year.
There in operation the 30th day Of June last
Elk feregn mail routes of the estimated aggregate length
Of Is $40 miles-the number Of miles Of annual trans
poration thereon Is estimated ct 652 6 The service
three Of these routes under contract with this depart
ment the annual transportation thereon is estimated ct
geo 592 miles, at cost Of S4o0 oo0 being about 81 % per
mile The service the other three routes is under
contract with the Navy Department The annual trans
poratien thereon estimated at ASS o34 miles ut au an
busl cost OF 81 496250 Gncluding tho additional com
)ensaton voted to the Collins line t the last session Of
bengTess being about SO &c per mile.
TIE annual cost of conveying the mails across tbs
Isbmus of Panama is uncertain 1t depends on their
Eeghtthe cost or the last At ~ cents per pound
be price paid was S4sG39 1t is estimated that for
arge portion of the contents Of these mails beng print
ed mster the amount received in hostages under the
Act Of August 3lst 1852 does not exceed i've cents
pound in Of the whole transportation FROM the
port Of mailing TO that Of delivery As that Act did not
20 until the 30th OF September last relisble
es innate be made of the increased cost Of ms
service tn 1shmus under its operation but there
can be no doubt that such increaee will be large
The temporary arrangement for this service, which
into the first of December last vi tho
Panama Railroad Company is stu In Iofce ana Is 1onul
TO be great mproveuent the previous arrangement
though not yet entirely satisfactory The com oletou Of
the railroad is locked forward to the remedy for most
OF the existing delays and defects in the servics between
New York and San Francisco
Under the general head OF Transportation Of the Mas
chsrgesbs the comps Of route and local agents
ard mail messengers. The smount payable on this ac-
count at the close OF the last fiscal year vas $95 93j
per snnum
The extent and annual cost Of the entire mail service
the control Of this department ut the close OF the
fiscal year ended the Both OF June last we'll its
division among the States and Territories and the mode
OF Its performance required by the thes existing
tracts viii fully appear by the annexed table far
nbed by the second Assistant Postmaster General and
marked A.
As the railroad service is daily hesoming more impor
tsnt and expensive, table showing the extent and
a cost service in each OF the States ia opera
ton the 3oth day Of June in each from S4s TO
1s52 inclusive has been prepared and Is hereto annexed
marked b.
Our ocean steamer service commenced in June 1ss7.
1e great and rapid increase Is shown by the folio ~ing
tabular statement OF its cost for each fiscal year
follows
lSie " ............ Gs1lo