Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1859-06-17

When our system Of mails was established.
one OF its peculiar features was the creation
of what are called distributing Offices. The
packages of letters and newspapers intended
tor Il large district We're sent in Il mass to
some considerable town, and there overlook
cd and assorted, and thence sent to the re-
moter post Offices. This plan Of many CEN
tres OF distribution was thought to be most
convenient for thinly settled country, and
II has continued to this day.
The circumstances of the country have in
the meantime greatly changed. Our popu-
lation has grown dense steamers and rail
ways, IN carrying the mails have taken the
place Of coaches and Of post-boys on horse
backs we have become accustomed to rapid
travelling and the rapid transmission of in
telligence, and can no longer bear the least
delay that may possibly be avoided. The
process Of opening and asserting the mails at
distributing Office occasions, it is admitted
by the Post Office Department, a delay of
from twelve to twenty-four hours, and hence
it is that II traveller often carries news
paper of Il given date into a remote neigh
borhood a day earlier than the mails bring
1t. But this is often not the only delay. 1t
frequently happens that the person employed
TO assert the contents Of the mails is necli-
gent, or worse than negigent-packages are
overlooked and lie by till the next mail or
the work of distribution, or part of it, is
perhaps postponed or packages of news
papers not friendly to the administration,
are detained, and sent on after they lose all
their interest. We know of no other way
to account FOR some remarkable delays in the
arrival of letters. and still more remarkable
detentions of newspapers, than to suppose
the existence Of causes like these. From be-
ing public convenience, the distributing
system has become public nuisance.
When we inquire why they have been so
long tolerated, we find that the is u commits
sion of twelve and half per cent paid to the
postmasters at the distributing offices on the
postage OF the letters distributed This is
sufficient to create an interest in favor of
keeping up what has become an abuse We
are glad to see that the present Postmaster.
General is beginning to think of getting rid
OF the distributing system, and of causing all
letters and papers to be dispatched directly
to their destination, with a few exceptions.
The Washington Constitution of Yesterday
has an article ofsome length on this subject,
Of a semi-ofhcial character, written probably
in the Postofi &c department, stating the con-
clusion to which Mr.. Holt has arrived in
these words:
ut has long been apparent to the depart
ment that the causes which rendered distr-
buting offices necessary have generally ceas-
ed to exist, and that the time was not distant
when the system must be abolished, except,
perhaps, in a few OF the larger cities, where
facilities always exist for limited and rapid
distributionl without delaying correspon-
dence."
II this be done, one great cause of the ir-.
regularities and delays that now exist would
be removed. For our part, we should be
glad to have the distributing system abolish
ed altogether, SO that not vestige of it
should remain.