The Portland daily press., 1872-12-03
DEPARTMENT REPORTS.
The following are abstracts of the Depart
ment Reports: .t
POSTMASTER GENERALS REPORT,

The following are abstracts of the Depart
ment Reports: , .sE
POSTMASTER GENERALS REPORT.
The report of John A j. Cresswell, Postmas-
ter General contains full return of the trans
actions of the year ending June 30, 1872. The
increase of revenue over the previous year was
$1,878, 3S0.95, and the increase of expenditures
~, 26S, 0SS.23 There was an increase in length
OF routes of 1909 miles. The railroad routes
have been increased in length S077 miles, The
number of complaints of missing letters was
1898, about half of which were registered For
violation of postal laws 1876 persons have been
arrested and SO convicted. The total number
of letters exchanged during the year with for
eign countries was "a, 362, 800, an increase of A.
066, 502 over the number reported for 1871. Of
this number 12,774,064 were sent from, and H.
5SS, 436 were received in, the United States.
The Postmaster General renews the recon-
mendatons made in his report of last year for
an increase of service from monthly to semi
monthly trips on the mail steamship route to
Brazil, and also for moderate subsidy in aid
of the establishment and maintenance of an
American line of mail steamers between San
Francisco and New Zealand and Australia, by
way of the Hawaiian Islands.
There are 30,045 Postmasters in the United
States, and the total service, contractors agents,
etc., give employment to 954 persons. The
number of letter carriers is 1443, distributed
through 50 of the principal cities The Dead
Letter Office has received "a, 374 letters, of
which 244, $50 were foreign; these contained
upwards of $67 900, and all but 1887 20 was re-
turned to the rlghtful owners. The number of
letters, without Enclosures, remailed to the
writers, was 1,529 107, of which 1 ,210, 507 were
delivered, and 1920 were returned to the
office and destroyed. The number in which the
writer's name and local address were omitted,
or were illegible, and of letters containing cir
culars, &C., and consequently destroyed, was
2, 294 57j.
The number of raoney-orier Post Offices in
operation during the last year was 2452. On
the 10Th of July, 1872, 324 additional offices
were established and one was discontinued, so
that the whole number is now 2775.
The number of domestic money-orders
issued during the year was 2,5f3,349,
OF which the aggregate value was, $4S, 1852 ~
The number of such or
ders paid was 2,56S $50.
amt in value to- III, Oi2, 405 SO
To which Is to be added
the amt of orders
paid to the RENTERS. 1929 90
Total of payments .................. 4S,419,6A 81
Excess of issues over payments. 1897 70
The exchange of money orders with Switzer-
land has worked WELL and the same between
this country and the United Kingdom has been
initiated with promise of success
The Postmaster renews his recommendation
to abolish the ranking privilege, and thinks
the reform is absolutely necessary to an eth
Gent, economical and vigorous administration
year would have yielded an income of three
and half millions.
The Postmaster also suggests that a Govern
ment telegraph is the only safeguard against
the high rates charged by telegraph companies,
and that as a rival of the Post Office it should
be controlled by the Government, and that the
Associated Press enjoy monopoly which
ought not to exist. He believes that the time has
come when the benefits of Government tele-
graph should be secured by the people, and asks
that the act of 1866, which gives possession
of $4,000 miles of telegraph line, carrying about
100000 miles of wire should be enforced. There
was nothing compulsory about the act; its ac-
ceptance BY the companies was purely volun-
tary.. It looked toward future postal tee-
graph, set at a time after which the CO mpanies
might expect to see one established, and offer
ed inducements, which it seems were sufficient
for the companies to agree to yield up their
facilities upon the expiration OF the time desig-
mated,
Mr. Creswell also ronews his suggestion re-
garding Post Office Savings Banks.