New-York daily tribune., 1863-12-31
MAIL DERANS.EnENT.

TIE Mails are in q horrible condition all over
the couutry-worse, we think, than they have
been for many wears before. We receive scores
of letters daily running thus: "Your paper
reaches Us 50 irTegulahy, and so long after II Is
printed. ihat voa viii lose some Subscribers j
this cannot be amended" We believe our
friend all know that the fault is not with us
our editions being all mailed promptly and in
good order. And it seems TO Us but just 10 say
that we think the Postmaster-t'oncral blamed
unjustly. or at least excessively, An tie prem
iscs. He might, perhaps, do something to rem
edy the crying evils from which we oil suffer:
if so, VIC trust lie viii be quick about it, but the
chiefcause of our troubles is this:
TIE great Railroads are overcrowdcd with
business, especially in the line OF freight. Most
Of them are but partially or not at oil double
tracked; even those that are wholly 70 are
unable TO move their freight so fast as is desired.
Their tracks being choked, they cannot, or at
least do not, run their heavy passenger train so
fast as their timetables promise; and one
inevitable consequence OF this is failure to
make connections rs advertired Start from
this city for st. Louis or Galena, and you viii
pretty certainly miss the train you expected to
ake at Buffalo or Dunkirk, and must lie over;
tarting again, you miss at Cleveland, or at
Toledo on the one route and at Cincinnati on
other; 50 that you viii reach your destination
twenty-lour to forty-eiglt hours later than you
had expected. OF course, the Mails share this
delay, ard are sometimes detained when the
nimbler passengers are not. And then our mail
subscribers send up h0ilstOre chorus Of COM
plant, and tell us they must look elsewhere for
news if We do not send them their pepcrs in due
season.
We run 10 railroads, nor even stagc5; and Of
course can only send our papers as fast AZ the
mails VII carry them. We hope for aspecdy
Improvement in Railroad promptitude end regG-
lari,yi but We are powerlcss to effect it.
There is one cause Of special vexaGon to Us
which The General Post-Oflice ought to have The
genius to remedy, and which We for the frst
time commend to the public attention.
The Department has at all times in Use many
thousands Of bags for tie transmits N Of is
newspaper mails; and these ore mainly required
at the great 5eaboard cites, while they tend to
accumulate (and stagIate) elsewhere PrOba-
bly, three thousand bags Cull Of newspapers are
weekly sent ont from our City, while rot one
third 50 many come into it, On he other hand,
Denver, Placcryille, Virginia City, Sioux City,
Santa Ft, st. Cloud, Omaha, salt Lake City, &c,
receive twice as many bags full of newspapers
as they send away. Many Of these are careless
ly (or ulpably) retained where they are received
in excess; and this speedily creates scarcity
in the great centers Of publication. In vain will
the Department order new bags by the thousand
if those that leave New York, Boston, Philadel-
phia, Washington, are not promptly re-
turned from the points where they are relieved
Of their contents. Yet too many Of them are
not 80 returned; SO that, when our Weekly goes
to press and an nrmy OF folders ard mailers
spring to work upon the edition so fast as
printed, they are appalled, by the cry Of "No
bagsi The Post-Oiiice can't give us another"
And so we prepare for mailing, but cannot send
forward.
Now, the Department ougM to be able to de-
wise O remedy for this mischief. If il is a.
problem for genius-how to make Marysvillc,
and Provo City, and Oregon City, return their
empty mail bags fully and promtly, or pay for
them, let genius be imPelled to undertake It.