Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1867-12-03


torn ~ not dc.iyersd, withou, ac di. maj cos.
Inc ,-sDe % THIS e.sss OF Gu eiopes during tae
Iesr As increased 1oc per eeni. over tnst OF
1sto.
Ire prediction in last 5ear's rspors thar the
pss OF such envelopes Touli tend largely TO
reduce the punbar of dead IL ters - been
verified. The statistics gIven, under L head
OF dead letters. show TIA: the uumner has III
mini bed nearly ore m'lhon during The pas
y'sr. ano that this gratifying resllt IA att-,bU-
table 10 the nss Of envelopes with reQnest
for th- return 70 the writers Of uGcIaimrd let
tiers directly from the post OH % addressed. II
J. estimated that fully nifty millions OF these
envelopes were used during the year, the de-
psTtment supplying sbou, one-tbird OF the
| Iumeer. The sales OF postage stamps and
stamped envelopes dnrirg tue year amounted
10 s12 ses. 1874 %, leaving unsoId in the hands
| OF pos m SISTERS S3l2.
Experiments are Ia progress with a postage
stamp printed on embossed paper, which
! seems TO sfsrd good security against fraud.
| 4 be nbres Of the paper being broken. cancel
| ing MARKS almost penetrate. so tls. ;uey can
40, easily be removed without destroying the
stanp. The adhesive properties are also pro-
| NOTED. aud other advantages secured which
| commend the invention to fsvorabs uo,,ce.
| The length Of rontes has been increased over
| me preces ding wear ~ 32i miles; the annual
| transportation, 7,1u,s75 mile; and coat,
sl,7o6sl2: TO which add increased cost for rail-
| way postal clerks, route, local, and. other
agents, s2ii,7i. makes 81 aggregate OF
$3.50 Ga
1ne condition of the overland and territorial
| msii routes are fuliY aud clearly Set forth. in
| th- report, ard very carefu tabular Statements
OF the rates OF pay and weigh. = OF mail rail-
/ roao routes are given.
Comparsd with the records kept osfore &c 2
! rebellion the services on the South ~estsrn
! ute eX hIoIis 4 marked impr 0vrIUsnt, both
WITH regard 10 speed and regularity, The aver
age lirne IN IS n direction bsing red ,-o about
/ twenty. TWO hours. and he proportion OF trip
performed In scbedule time being il creased
IT m about one half the whole num DER then 20
pctriy nve-sevenths now, reckoning The
schedule time n three ana half DAYS until
: the 18Th OF June. ano a. three snd Il fourth
/ days after tina: ds,e, gong south. and 81 three
and half days for he whole psriod z DING
nCr, b.
There are now In operation in the United
! Staes eighteen railway postal routes, extend
ing In The sgRreElts over fonr Thousand tour
! huntrec and thirty-fv miles. upon eight
] hundred and seventy nine miles or which
/ - ice daily seryiee rs performed, making a to-
/ tal equal TO i've Thousand three hundred aud
] fourteen miles of railway pos tai service daily
! each way: Twelve, twenty -four, and often
! forty EIGHT hours are saved in the transmits
, OF all the mails passing over these 1000 miles
/ AT the date OF the last animal report Juuc-
ton City, Kansas, i39 miles west OF Wyan-
dotte, and Ais miles west Of vi Louis, Missouri,
was the furthest pOist 10 which "A continuous
railroad line from the eastern cities 10 ard the
Paeihc was completed, gap existing, east OF
Omaha City, Nebraska, in the line from
Chicago TO kearney This gap has since been
filled up by the compile ton of the CHI cago and
+ Northwestern Railroad 10 Council Bluffs
opposite Omaha, and the Union Pacific Ratl.
read ltbe Platte route) has been extended be.
yond kearDey 329 miles to Cheyenne, at the
base OF the Rocky Mountains, $40 miles west
OF Omaha, and Job miles west of CHICAGO
Illinois. The Junction City or Smoky Hill
route, Union Pacific Railroad, eastern di vi.
sion,) has also been extended Ij3 miles to
hays City, making the length Of the railroad
ronte west of st. Louis 81 miles The mails
are carried daily on these routes west from
! Wyandotts and Omaha, and on the Pacific
m ilS pah xrfoo
tween Sacramento and Cisco, a distance of o.
miles, under contract with the Central Paci.
Nc Railroad Company. The lines are thus ex-
tending east and west 10 meet each other: the
average progress on the Platte route the mast
year. Sundays excepted, exceeding one mile
per day. continuation Of the work with
like energy will verify the promise OF the rail.
road companies by the year $50 10 span the
continent.
The aggregate amount OF postage upon tae
correspondence exchanged with foreign coun-
Tries was ~, "A PIP So an increase of Sl52,(rI3
:. over the previous year.
The number Of letters exchanged with for.
eish countries exclusive of the British North
American provinces) was 10, POS Pa, OF which
5,312,3Ol Were sent from, aud 49,, s33 received
in the United States. OF this number 9,4i2,Ill
were exchanged with European countries An
increase Of -11,2tf as com pared wirh the pre-.
V1ous year. The estimated lumber exchanged
with the British Provinces was s,sO5, 900, max.
Ing q total OF over 10, 100 600 letter. exchanged
In the mails with foreign countries.
Following The notice given by the British
Government for the terminatisn Of the postal
convention of 18th OF December, 1888, between
The United States and the United Kingdom, a
preliminary basis Of a new convention, redn-
cipg the inteTnationa al letter postage from
twenty -fonr 10 twelve cent?, and establishing
moderate charges for sea and territorial transit
of correspondence in closed mails, WAS agreed
upon between This department and the BRUSH
Post Office, the leading features OF which were
stated in The last report. As the details Of this
Lew convention were yet TO be discussed anu
formally adjusted win the British office, a
favorable opportunity was presented 10 estab-
lish enlarged facilities OF mail communication
with reduced and Uniform rates OF postage 70
the con tinent OF Europe.
Win this object an view, the Hon. John A
hasson was Appointed q special CONT issioner
OF behalf of this department, with Instructions
70 proceed 10 Europe and negotiaie, in per
son, al the respective post departments, sub
Ject 10 revision and approval by the Postmas-
Ter General, the details OF new postsi conven-
tiCns, in conformity with the general basis OF
International postal Intercourse recommended
by The Paris conference OF IS63-tbe main
points being the reduction OF rates on interna-
lional mail communicate rs, written and
printed, the reduction or total abolition of ter.
riiorisl transit charges on correspon dence in
closed mails; the establishment, as nearly as
possible, Of uni form postage rates 20 all parts
OF Europe, and generally TO simplify and rem
DER uniform the rules governing the exchange
OF correspondence with other countries.
Mr.. kasson was selected for this important
mission because of his knowledge OF postal
details obsained during his connection with
general, snd particularly on account OF his
familiarity With the postal questions TO be
dealt with, which We're fully discussed al the
Paris conference, In which he took a proml-
nent part as the delegate from this department
His success thus far in accomplishing the OBJ
lecte OF MS mission has been all that conld
have reasonably expected. considering the DIFF
ferent internal systems and variety of postal
Interests to re con suited, and the DELAYS en-.
countered in conducting such negotiations.
Liberal postal conventions, with general
uniformity Of principles and detail have been
concluded with the United Kingdom Of Great
Britain and Ireland, Belgium, Switzerland
the Netherlands. the n orth German Union
and Iialy, securing important reductions of
postage, and introducing other valuable i'm.
provements in our postal intercourse with
those countries. Negotiations are also in pro.
gress with the French post department for q
similar arrangement, which il 10 hoped NAV
term nate with like success.
The Leading features OF the postal conven.
ton with the United Kingdom, which goes
into full effect on the LIST of January, IS6s, are
I. reduction Of the International letter rate
from twenty -four TO twelve cents.
2. The standard weight for letters one half
onnce in the United Kingdom, or fifteen
erammes in the United Sta,ee, with uniform
progression from that basis, one additional rate
for each additional weight or fraction OF it.
,. Prepayment Of letters optional, but un-
paid letters 10 be su beet 10 a fine OF delivery
4. Prepay ment of all other postal packers
compulsory in the mailing country. at rates to