New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-01-17
THE POSTAL CAR DISPUTE.
CLAIM OF TIE RAILROADS FOR EXTRA
COMPENSATION.

TR,oRpIYARY EXPENSES OF TIE POSTAL CAR
sysTEM-GoyERNMENr FAvORTES HAVE FREE
PASSES A. PoST-OFFICE AGENTs-1HE RAILROAD,
INSIST UPON An ADJUDICATION OF THEIR
CLAIM.
While the attention Of the general publlc Is
beng specially directed 10 the question OF the eNped
ency or practicaby Of the Federal Government under
taking to regulate transportation effected through the
agency OF Interstate" railway communications, an
other the Government and the railroads
is impending which il hardly less interesting. whether
II Is regarded from a constitutional point OF vie" or
from its hearing on the efficiency and management OF
one OF the important departments OF the puDlc
service This has taken the form OF controversy
between the Post Office Department and several OF inc
great railroad companies In respect TO the postal ear SET
vice. the history OF which Is substantially IA follows
Previous to 1867 and. with few exceptions previous TO
1863 the entire railroad mail OF the country con
sisted of transporting freight in baggage cars man
matter incosed bags. from one PosOce to ano'her
distributions or remane taking place ut tho different
Offices according to circumstances. But since thoSo
dates. with u view to economizng time ana increasing
facilities the leading railroads of the country py re-
quest OF the Post Office, at their own expense anu III
addition TO all ordinary and prior facilities by thehi
Afforded have caused be constructed, aud incorpo
rated with fast passenger trains what are 10 All
intents trareIg Post OGees. These movable PostOces
or as they are generally termed postal are from 40
to Sc feet correspond to cost and fttng' WIN
rstcass passenger and necessltate the carving
OF from two i've pOstOfce employees or CLERKS IL "
not to be understood however that postal cars as ''
described upon all the railroads oi the Uhtru
States On the contrary their il yet restricted 10
the trunk lines connecting the centers OF popua
ton and on many of these lines compartment or por
ton of a car only fitted up postofce while upon
probably thrceourtbs OF the railroads OF the country
the mails are set carried old, freight IN baggage
uisa,so worth while for full understanding Of the
case 10 glance for a moment at what may De termeu
the internal economy the postal Thus upon the
great lines connecting New-York and Washington, the
ais ont of NewYork amounting to tons III weight, are
put into the postal in bags at Jersey oy AT tne
latest practicable moment before the departure Oh the
train where they are received by clerks whose business
II il 10 open the bags assort their contents ana then
dstribne the same nclosed fresh bags at the stations
on the line the terminus of the road nearest 10 the
place of destination of the mail matter IN question
Local mail, are in like received ~ local sta
lions and similarly distributed and 40 the work OF re-
ceying and distributing mail matter goes on constantly
day and ght. during the whole time that the trains
are in motion-reays OF fresh clerks being provided al
suitable intervals.
Thus ont Of the whole number OF letters. newspapers
postal cards, and separate packages-now upward OF
750 Opo opD-annuay distributed through the mails OF
the United States It il probable that about 10 cent
are at present time primarily handled sorted ana
prepared distribution while in the process or trans
poraton the postal car system resulting IN an
economy OF tme-for example, in the OF letters
passing from Chicago Boston. OF from one to two
DAYS by obvlang the necessity Of breaking the transit
connection of the mails by OBTAINING them for dstrlbu
ton AT the Intermediate Offices In tho testimony given
before the Senate Committee on Transportation AprL
1879 it was stated on the authority OF MI Bangs DE-
parment superintendent of the railway mail service
that the effect 1.-the trunk lines suspending the run
png OF postal would be TO force the Government
in the CITY OF New hire three four large ware
houses TO do the mail distribution that they now do upon
the railway trains and that the confusion, owing TO
the large accumulation OF postal matter rs compared
with ten years ago, would be great as TO delay the de
livery OF letters and newspapers where from two
to four days, and sometimes a week.
As a further illustration OF the extent 10 which the
Post Once Department relieved from the expense OF
providing permanent space accommodations for ma
distribution. by reason Of ts utilization OF railroad
nroperty il msy he stated that i'll Of the large
cities it no the custom for the PostOce carriers TO
attend at the railroad stations and take the mai matter
for their respective districts from the posacar direct
thus obviaiug to very great extent any necessity
whatever for the intervention of the local postohces
and for the consequent occupation of their employees and
accommodations
From these considerations 1t is therefore evdent-rst
mat the postalcar service United states Is not
only OF great Importance, but also thai tS continuance
and progressive development upon our great railroad
lines have matter OF absolute necessity TO the
entire business interests the country and second.
that the mere carrying OF mail bags III baggage car ana
the throwing out of the the different stations,
constitute a work so entirely different from that
performed by q travelling railway post-ofice that the
two forms OF service scarcely admit OF comparison.
THE GRIEVANCE or The RAILROADS.
The grievance OF the railroads 49, that for all this
comparatively new and great service they not aud
never have been paid Thus for example the Philadel
pha Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad, in ls50-the
days Of specie currency low speeds and or two light
mails per day transported exclusively baggage
received for mail service $3.50 per annnn In 1873
the road carrying an average OF ten tons OF mails
per day exclusively in postal cars incorporated win
fast trains and with from three TO five clerks III each
ear riding free received for such service $3.50 In
1873 the New-Jerscy Railroad, carrying Is mails
aggregating II tons III weight per day and
running four trips OF postal cars four Of apartment
cars and ten trips mails put in baggage cars
with IL Office employees riding free, exclusive or all
OF her so-caled officials paid according TO basis
established in 1885, when but one mail per day was car
ried between NewYork and Philadelphia. and IN a sum
which, the President OF the road testified before the
Senate Committee, does not amount to "onequarter
the actual cost OF doing the business
Again in 1855, the Connecticut River Railroad carry
ing twice a day in baggage mail small " that
one man could always have lifted it," received $3.50
annual compensation. In 1873 1t received exactly the
same amount for carrying mail averaging u tons per
dav two free employees postal apartment Il feet in
length on trains, besides mails for intermediate
trains between the larger stations and the free trans
port OF numerous special agents
In reality the compensation given 10 the railroads by
the Office is much less than the figures above
gwen would to indicate. Thus the Philadel-
phla Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad the regular
fares OF the clerks carried free 1872 postal cars
IL paid would have amounted TO $1,000. The actual
the road for Its mail service was there
fore In fact f37 500 but to5OO per frac-