New-York tribune., 1874-11-30
messengers, amounting to s2si o2 the aggregate an
nual cost will be Sl8. 707 ls6.


Length, 67,73I miles annual transportation, u l6O5io
miles annual cost including sS2s 5l7 for readusimen
above. So 390-ab0ut IL SO cents per mile sean
boat routes length 1880 miles; annual transporta-
ton. 407s725 miles; annual cost, ss90oi-aDout 2oo
cents per mile.
Other routes upon which the mails required 10 be-
conveyed with celerty certainty, ana secnrl6y o;e
miles: annual cost 3oOabout li7 cents per mile
There was an Increase over the preceding year In
Of s7ss2s miles and in cost Of sl7Ss6. Adding the
Increased cost for railway postolce clerks, route local
s2,O53 3Ol.
miles, aud in cost 467 against increase last year
OF 65i6 miles In length and $75ii25 In cost Tns dispro-
portOnate increase 10 cost owing to the
is7, IS pay unaef inc ac' 0' congress app''''1 '
READJUsTMENT OF PAY ON RAILROAD ROUTES.
BY act OF Congress approved March g. s13 the Post
master General was "auhorizei and directed to re-
adjust the compensation hereafter to be paid for the
transportation of mails railroad routes" upon conf
tons and at rates prescribed in the act The principal
consideration upon which the rates OF pay we're to 6e
determined was the average weight VI the mals To DO
ascertaned by actual weighing Tor number OF snc
cessiye working days not less than thirty, the law d
rectng the weights TO be taken June 80 so
as to AVOID including therein the mass or free matter
sent through the mails for the few months preceding
the expiration or the raUking privilege at the date
named call had been made in Fe6rHary' Tsp upon
England section for weighing ln March 1873, Win
To the adjustment Of their for tho new con-
tract term commencing on the lst OF July OF that year.
The act rendering the returns submitted under thaG
call useless, another weighing was asked for, 10 com
mence Oct. i, 1873, not only In New-f0rk ana New
England, but throughout the country. IDs call
was very generally responded to, aud the results are
exhibited In Table III the appendix 70 tins report
Upon the returns submitted the pay from July 1873,
increased 327 and decreased 49, the net result
being OF s25327 6 in the amount OF annual
pay To include In the rcadjustment the routes yet %
DC heard FROM 1t is estimated that further increase OF
$3402 81 Will be necessary, making the whole amount
Table in tue appendix together with Tue auJustIhenI
OF the 80 new routes The authorizing the re-
adjustment appropriated 100000, or so much thereof
may he necessary for the OF pay which 1t
expected to occasion Besides this specific sum,
may be regarded as including an allowance lor
the usual Increase caused by the readJustment
progress for number OF years before the passage
the OF the act or March 1873 The increase on this
amounted to Sj5i s65 o. Tue only
$23o2J 55 but the falling OF from the amount FOR the
preceding year thus apparent from the fact that
III consequence OF the passage OF the act OF March
S73 the readustment OF routes In the ewY0rk
mencing July Of that year was postponed to await tho
receipt OF the new returns required by nat act TEe
than for 1872. Adding the percentage TO tho
$5 "a increase by readustment for 1872 the increase
1873 it mad been competed that year, would have
amounted to Ssj020 81. The appropriation for finland
trans pOratlOn" for 1874 apart from the half million
railroad routes $50 per cent more thaa the cost
for Adding this latter percentage to the S}S529 81
which the increase by readjustment for 1873 would
have amounted, the usual Increase 1or 1874 may
down $4,000 48. Adding THIS TO the $jOOOO0
whole amount applicable the increase by reaijUst
ment boh specific and usual for 1874, may be stated at
$4,000 49, But tins amount falls short by the sum or
$685. 2s6 % covering the increase shown in Table f.
and adding the s3 OIL 81 estimated to be necessary to
include in the rcadIstment routes yet TO De heard fro
the wnOie deficiency or In other words, the whole ex
OF cost over the appropriations applicable TO the
will amount 10 695O5 52 Tnis excess results from
that the weights OF mails taken subsequently 10
June 80 lS73 the basis for the reaGjustment, were
much larger than the weights previously taken, upon
which the estimates for the appropriations were Dased
In 1867, the first year that mails were weighed, the
largest weight carried on any road was 23OOO pounds
ami there were about $40 miles OF road Transporting
10000 pounds and upward 1874 the largest weglt car
pe on any road was pounds %ne on 6
upward and on over OO0 miles OF road are trans
ported 80 00J pounds and upward In 1858 the average
pay railroads mile Sis II; IN 1867 II was
SIP 0S; IN 1873 t STA 80; but III the mean time the
the space occupied on the cars was at least doubled.
The law of lSij was so framed that the maximum pay
allowed to any railroad was 1915 per mile. This maxi
pay was given roads transporting lS5OO pounds OF
mail and over.
As shown above the mails were continually increas
ing. Additional facilities were demanded, especially
roads where railway post-oGice service was estdb-
Used. In return no additional compensation could be
given 10 railroads, roads receiving tue maximum
pay. but roads receiving less than the maximum were
car fciies That additional could not be
allowed to roads already receiving S375 per mile was
Just aud growing cause OF complaint on their part,
aud serious source ot enoarrassmeht " 1hs Depart
men
Tns the law of March 1873 intended to obviae.
II intended prOportOnately TO compensate those
railroads that transporting more than the weight
necessary to obtain the maximum COMPENSATION so tha
tic Department could obtain the additional
facilities hat were 50 lmperatvely demanded By the in-
creasing malls.
Posr-ROUTE MAPS
The work OF the topOgrapher has been continued and
extended. Beside two editions during the year OF
all the maps hitherto issued four sheets of map Of
Arkansas aud part Of the Indian Territory have been
finished and distributed. aud sheets completed and
will be issued at an early day, forming maps Of Virginia
and West Virginia, of North Carolina and South Caro-
of AIul .anHN nnn M
Texas Maps of the other Middle and Southern states
will be prepared early as practicable. Owing 70 the
States greater difficulties Will be encountered III com
ping the maps, aud delay may occur on hat account
FINES AND DEDUCTIONS.
The amount fines imposed upon contractors and de-
ductons made from their pay for failures and other
for the year, s72,1is AZ, and the
amount remitted during the period s. 524 q,
leaving the net amount OF fines and deductions,
S53,62j IL.
THROUGH MAILS.
The usual throagh-mai tables, nun bered from to 32
presented in the appendix They show that for the
year ending Sept 3O 1874 the time TO San Fran
cisco from New York l73 hours 80 minutes. against
l79 hours the previous year, gain OF hours
80 minutes and to NewYork from San francisco, III
hours minute against IT'S hours 2s minutes the previous
year- gam of hours "a minutes TIE number Of mails
carried through weslwady between the same points In
schedule time this year was 597 and behind time A,
again, I57 in time and 05 behind time last year and
eastwardly 527 IN time and 3S behind time this year,
against 2S5 IN time and 100 behind time, last
mail. were sent at tne beginning OF the year.
in both ,direcuons via Bristol, Knoxville Cleveland.
Dalton Cdlera. Montgomery, ana Mobile III November.
.53 they were diverted South. To after
uIssing Cleveland. via Grand Junction, and, golpg
poTth after passing Montgomery, via Atlanta aud
NAV 1874 they changed to run IN both directions
vi, Atlanta. The tables show the effect OF these
changes on running time. the average via Atlanta
being the shortest The average time going south this
wear was hours 4S minutes against 81 hours As nn-
utes last ycar gaiu U! hours 81 minutes; and going
against SO minutes last year-a gain or hour
50 mi.utrs And most OF the other great through
mail route, there il percepble improvement both III
speed and regularity compared with the tables for the
preceding year
NAIL nEPRrDATIO rs.