Arkansas true Democrat., 1858-01-05
Postal Affairs

3Oth of June last:
 The total number of post offices in the Uni- ted States on the 3Oth, J une was 26.5S6. The total number of post offices created during the twenty years from 1927 to 1847, was but 8, ,146; the number established in half that length of time. from 1S47 to 1857, was Il ,444. On the 3Oth June, 1927, the whole number of post off ces in the United States was 1000; in 1887, 1l.767; in 1847 l5, l46, and on the Both June, 1857. 26. 586 During the last fiscal year there have been 1,725 offices established. and 7O4 discontinued being a net increase of l,O2l - The total number of offices at this time is 27, l4S. of which 369 are of the class denominated Presidential The number of postmasters ap- pointed during the year was 0,6oO.
 The transportation statistics show that on the Roth June last there were in operation 7,0oS mail routes with a length of 242, 6O1 miles, of which P, ,530 are railroad lines The total an- nual transportation was "A, 9O6,O67 miles, cost ing SC, ,622 ,O46, giving an average of about ten cents and five mills mile by railroad, and by steamboat about twenty two cents mile. The increase in the length of mail routes over the previous year is about 2,959 miles with an ad dition of about 7-1O per cent to the annual cost. The tabulated results of the new service, to the 2Oth of September, are as follows-Mlles in length, 27 ,4O8; miles of annual transporta- ton, 15, 454, SIP; cost, Sl,O98, 749. Compared with the service on the 3Oth of J June last there appears to be a decrease of 791 miles iu the length of routes and 823,034 miles in the all, nual transportation, while the cost is increased S12OO44
 On the 3Oth of June last there were in ser vice 406 route agents, at compensation of s3lO 900; 45 local agents, at S28, ,488, and 1885 mail messengers, at Sl6O, 424-making total of S499,8l3. This amount, with the increased cost of service, commencing 1st of July, under new contracts (S12O,O44) added to the cost of service as in operation on the 3Oth of June last, CSC, ,622, ,046,) makes the total amount for the current year $7,241 1903. This is inde- pendent of the cost of ocean mail seryice.- There should also be added the estimated cost of improvements made since the 1st of July l last, including the San Antonio and San Diego route, S587, 1925.
 The net expenditure of the fiscal year end ing June 30, including, payments to letter car rers and foreign postages; amounted to $ll ,5O7,- 670 16
 The gross revenue for the year 1857, inclu- ding receipts from letter carriers and from for eign postages, amounted to S9O53 951 76, be- ing S3,453,7l8 40 less than the expenditure. The estimated expenditures for the year 1858 amount to SIP 2O53,243 The means applicable to defray this sum amount only to S1O 584, ,074, leaving $l, ,469, 173 to be appropriated from the treasury to defray the expenditures of the year 1858, as they have been authorized by law
 The report again brings under the notice of Congress the expediency of adopting a money order system like that of Great Britain. The taI in + biS +b British pot offices in the year 1856 is stated to have been fl1 ,8O5, ,562, furnishing profitable source of revenue to the English post office.
 The ocean steamships and foreign mail ar engagements of the department may be thus br eiy summarised:
 In connection with the Pacific service, the only recommendation made by the report is that having reference to the Pacific. mail steam ship company. By its terms the contract with this company for semi monthly service from Astoria, by San Francisco, etc, to Panama, eX- pires on the 1st October, 1858, while, under the decision of the Navy Department, the contract of the connecting lines on this side runs until lst October, 1859. Therefore, to keep up the connection with the Pacific line, as provided by law, and as originally contemplated, 1t will be necessary to extend the contract on the Pacific one year; and as the Pacific mail steams hip company have performed their service general l ly ill highly creditable and satisfactory mau- ner, the Postmaster General recommends an appropriation for such extension.
 The aggregate amount of postage (sea, inland and foregu) on mails transported during the year by the steamers of the New York and Liverpool (Collins) line was S21O,46 03, which is heavy decrease as compared with the amount l (S46l, ,575 94) of the previous fiscal year. It should be observed, however, that the addition al allowance to this line authorized by the act of 2lst July, 1852, having been terminated on the 20th of February, 1857, and six yearly trips dispensed with from and after that date, twenty round trips only, instead of twenty six as formerly, were performed during the year.
 The postages upon mails conveyed by the New York and Bremen line were S137,754 78, and by the New York and Havre line S97,- $50 O5; being decrease of 5491 "A by the Bremen, owing to the fact that much of the time, there have been several foreign steamers running and carrying ship letters on this line and all increase of S2, ,l25 O2 by the Havre line as compared with the fiscal year ending 30th June 1856
 1 The amount of letter posta, ,es upon mails ex- changed during the year with Great Britain was $874, l94 75; Prussia S326,872 57; Bre men, S52O82 99; France (from 1st April to 30 June, 1857,) S41l l98 19; Hamburg, ST. O59 60: being decrease on British mails of S23,453 95 on Bremen mails of S3, 7O6 S6; and an increase on Prussian closed mails of S27 : 4O6 66, compared with the preceding year.
 Of the amount of poStages on mails exchang- ed with Great Britain, S574 194 75 was collect ed in the United States, and $500, 133 30 in Great Brtan--the excess of the United States and British postages thus collected in the Uni ted States being S274,O6l 45. In like manner, an excess of S95, ,397 90 of the postages upon mails exchanged with Prussia and of S32- 494 l5 on mails exchanged with Bremen, was collected in this country.
 | The gross amount of United States postages sea and inland-on mails transported during year, was:
 By the Collins line, (twenty round WlpS).. SISJ, ,40O bl By the Bremen line, (twelve round trlrs). )......... .124, 193 81 By the Havre line (twelve round trlps) ................ 9OO42 42 The ocean postage upon mails conveyed by the Collins, amounted to-. S154, ,445 93 By the Bremen line. ............. 84,23l 19 by the Hayre llne. e............... 73,716 37 The Postal conventions concluded and put in operation during the year were, one with France, in force since the list of April. and another with Hamburg, which went into effect on the 1st of July. The report states that ne- gotiations are pending for a radical change of our postal arrangements with Great Britain; but as the proposition of the British office, in it's present shape, cannot be acceded to, and as it involves, also; preliminary agreement requir- ing the sanction of the treaty making powers, definite action upon it has been necessarily post poned for the present.
 On the subject of city posts, the report, after recapltulating the efforts made to facilitate the receipt and delivery of letters in New York, Boston and Philadelphia, recommends modif- cation of the present laws relating to carriers, so as to give the Postmaster General authority to have the delivery made at one cent a letter, whether the carriers receipts are sufficient to meet the expenses or not. If the improved ,. Ill tl Il.