Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-04-18
TILE POSTAL SERTICE.

The letter of Postmaster General Cfes-
well, giving information in relation to the
postal service, contains many interesting
facts connected with the distribution of
the mails. The railway post-ofiice system
is the outgrowth Of necessity and the re-
suit of years of study and practical ex-
perience in this and other countries. Be-
fore railroads were introduced, the mail
for all Offices upon route was placed in
one pouch, each postmaster asserting the
whole contents and taking out such part as
belonged to his office. Between offices of
importance, direct pouches were inter-
changed under special lock. But all this
had to be changed as railroads came into
existence and the growth of the country
demanded enlarged and better mail ia
cilities. In relation to this we copy the
following from the letter of the Postmas-
ter General. lie says:
With the growth of the country, construc
ton Of railroads, reduction of postage, increas-
ed speed in transit, and consequent Increase
Of mails, it became necessary to establish
mail communication by means of direct pouch
81. The office at the terminus of one, or the
junction of several railroads would receive,
assort, and forward the mail for the offices
upon these railroads in direct pouch to each,
and each Office would forward to these "head"
or distributing" Offices their outgoing mail
in the same manner, and. in addition, these
distributing offices would exchange with each
other. Mail between points where there was
no direct exchange was sent to come distant
distributing post Office, there redistributed and
forwarded, and reached its destination by a
circuitous route and after repeated delays. As
Offices increased in size and number, these d.
rect pouches correspondingly increased. 1t
became absolutely necessary to provide some
system of mail service that would do away
with this multitude of pouches, containing In
. majority of cases q small amount of mail,
and passing in all directions over the country
under the charge of no particular person, or
ct least of no person wholly responsible to
the Department; meeting on every hand with
neglect, and causing great delay, loss, and
coEfusion. To accomplish this, the route
agent system was adopted.
Under this system these ''head" Offices
would send to the route agent all mail for
Offices upon his particular route or road. The
agent would assert the mail while in transit
and exchange with each Office and the "head"
or distributing" post-office, sending to the
latter all mail for points not upon his road.
While under this system perfect mail com.
munication was established between all Offices
upon the line of any one road, still for points
beyond that line, the mails remained precisely
~ before, meeting with repeated delays at the
different distributing post offices.
In order that this delay might be overcome,
clerks from distributing post-ofhces, familiar
with the general distribution of the mails,
we're detailed to travel upon the cars, making
the proper separation and distribution for all
connecting roads and routes, thus avoiding
the delays in "head" or distributing" post
Offices, having the mails ready for dispatch
Immediately upon arrival at the terminus of
route. The experiment Of detailing clerks as
here stated was successful, and resulted in
the establishment. Of the railway post office
system. BY this system all Offices through
out the country have an interchange with each
other more frequent and etfectual than if every
Office in the land should make up and forward
. direct pouch to every other Office for which
it might have mail. Virtually the railway
post Office has become ''traveling distributing
post Office" giving all post offices its benefits,
and, most of all, saving and taking advantage
Of every moment that, without il, would be
lost in transit.