The national Republican., 1867-12-06

day. A continuation Of the work with like on.
ergy will verify the promise Of the railroad com
panies by the year 1870 to span the continent.
OFFICES ESTABLISHED AND DISCONTINUED.
Tho number Of post offices established during
the year, was l, ,sS5; number discontinued, O. Ill;
decrease Of Offices, 1925 number Of post
offices in operation on the 30th Of June, 1865,
including suspended Offices In tho Southern
States, 20, ,3sQ; total number in operation on
the 3Oth of June, 1867, 25, 1922 number Of
Offices subject TO appointment by the President,
| S37; number by the Postmaster General, "a, 326.
| A large majority Of Offices discontinued are
In tho Southern States, the service at which
was suspended by the Postmaster General In
| May, 1861, and were not in operation therraf-
ter, bat not regularly discontinued,
Those offices were reported by the Auditor to
the appointment Office Rs having failed to make
returns for five years and their discontinusnee
recommended as necessary to enable that officer
to close the accounts OF the late postmasters
on the books Of his Office, and for that reason
II waa deemed aiyisable to formally discontinue
them.
FREE DELIVERY OF LETTERS.
Tho free delivery Of letters by carriers has
been in operation during the past year In forty.
seven Of the principal cities. Tho number Of
carriers employed was 94j, at an aggregate con-.
pensatiOn OF 5000, 93i "a.
This mode of delivery continues to grow in
public favor, as Is shown by the increase of
postages on local matter the reductions Of the
number Of post Office boyos, and the large de.
crease Of advertised letters in several Of tho
cities where the system has been moro efficiently
conducted. Experience, so far, justiies the be.
lief that It will supersede tho present system
Of box delivery, increase correspondence, es.
pecially in large cities, apd not only pay its
expenses, but yield q revenue to tho depart.
ment
IMPROVEMENTS
The details Of postal service have been re.
vised and carefully analysed in all their bear.
ings upon the transmission and delivery Of let.
tiers to their address, and also upon the means
employed for tho return Of dead letters to tho
writer's thereof The improvements which In.
vostigation and experiment suggested are too
numerous to be included in this report.
DEAD LETTER OPFICE.
Like Improvements have been made in the
arrangements and labOrs of the Dead Letter
Office, Statistical records have been umpli6ed,
and now cover all important details. The let.
ters received and their miscellaneous enclosures
have been thoroughly classified. The most np.
proved safeguards Of valuable letters have been
introduced, and all available measures have
been adopted 10 secure tho speedy return to
proper owners Of oil mail matter sen. to the
Department for FINAL disposition.
Special aud constant attention has been given
to tho reduction Of the number Of dead letters
In large cities and thickly populated districts
improved modes Of delivery have been attended
with beneficial results, but In general the obsta.
cles in the way Of reduction frequently men.
toned in the annual reports since 1859, present
difficulties which no official action can remove
These are, in substance, the migratory habits Of
our people, tho great territorial area over which
our mail service extends, and the pertinent fact
that fully three e-fOuTths OF the letters returned
as dead become so through circumstances exclu-
sively associated with the parties Immediately
concerned. Mistaken address, "ilegibls y
removed dead are reasons found on
thrce.fou Of the letters, tested In this re.
spect By repeated examination II is evident
that no efforts Of the department can reach such
difficulties, and hence it follows that the dead
letters from year to year will retain a somewhat
uniform proportion to the whole number mailed.
MONEY ORDERS
The whole number Of money order post Offices
now in operation Is ], ,22I, Of which s5s have
been established since the date Of the last an.
nual report. This increase has occurred mainly
in the Western and Southern states, where the
facilities Of the system for the Transmission Of
money appear at present to be most needed
Exce's over expenditures, s2G 26O.6l.
To forge or counterfeit n money order is made
penal offence by the act of May II, 1864 But
one instance Of this kind has happened since
the establishment Of the system.
By existing law a postmaster at money or.
der ofhoo Is not authorized to issue an order
payable by himself Hence money order Offices
cannot at present be c5tabli'hed at tho stations
or sub. post Offices Ia the large cities, although
in scme instance these stations furnish Or1i.
nary postal facilities to larger population in
their vicinity than that Of many considerable
towns Il Is evident that the convenience Of
residents within ths delivery of such stations
would be sensibly promoted if they were al.
lowed to purchase and receive payment Of
money orders at these stations, instead Of be.
ing compelled, as now to resort for such facil-
itics to the central post CiiCe Of the city. The
latter would moreover be relieved, % some ex.
tent, of great aud constantly iucIeASing pres.
sure Of applicants for the purchase ana pay.
ment Of orders. II would also prove useful in
the sparsely Eettlcd 'tates where the county
town usually has money order Office, through
which, under the proposed modification, small
debts could readily be paid in any part OF the
county by means Of money orders Issued and
payable at the post Office In the county town,
which Is habitGclly visitel by resideRts Of the
cOunty.
THE TELEGR 'PHIC sYsTEM.
The subject of connecting the telegraphic
system Of the county with the postal service h. !
| attracted publi, attention, and II received TO
some extent the confederation Of my predecss.
sOr. 1t has recently transpired that the tele-
graphic system Of Great Britain has been put In
cEArBo oil the bIltlsl pos, ONCE department. II
Is matter Of very great importance, aud its
propriety and prso,icabiity ought to DO thor.
oughly Investigated by Congress.
ABUSE OF THE rRASNISG PRIVILEGE.
The Postmaster General calls attention to tho
gross frauds rerpetrated upon the Department
by violation Of tho frauking privilege, in almost
all parts of tho country. The fac Slmtk frank.
Of different members Of Congress are freely
used to circulate obscene books and paIors, lot
terry circulars business cGrds, Sc, and to cove
all kinds of business and domestic correspond.
ence Of per5ons not authorized by law to frank
mailable matter. Unless something 10 done
speedily by Congress to check this serious mis-.
chief, the annual appropriation to cover the
transn sion Of free matter will have to bo in.
creased from 800, 900 to at lenst s 600 600.
To avoid the continuation Of this serious abuse
ip the use Of the names Of members Of Congress
without their knowledge or consent, he again
urges that the low be so changed as to require
tho written signature Of the person exercising
the Thanking privilege upon tho matter frnnked,
and to relieve the heuds Of department and
bureaus rf Rrea. labor, that frahking clerk be
authorized by law for each Department of the
Government, with tho authority to frank all
ma,sr pertaining to the department for which
ho is 20 appointed.
INTER OCEANIC POSTAGE.
Tho aggregate amount Of postage upon the
c,rTesIORdence exchanged with foreign coun,