Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1875-11-20

no Whnt nu mducntcd Nations Corre-
sPoutence Esas Grown- f,n0o, zoo Dead
Letters -Curiosities OF the Newspaper
Postage law.

postmaster general, has completed hi
annual report. 1t contains many facts o
interest. The number Of official letter
received In that bureau in the last iisca
year was 695, 900. These were opened
classified, indcxed and distributed b,
four clerks. The figures show that TIL,
postal cards were very popular during
the year. There were issued l07, GIG, ,00(
of them, Of the value of $1,076, l60. In
the month of October last there were
issued Of the new cards 20, ,238 900, which
is one-fifth of the entire amount sold
during the fiscal year. The estimate OF
the number necessary for the next fiscal
year is 154, ,067, 900. The amount Of pub,
lie ordinary postal stamps issued to post
masters during the fiscal year was 682,-
s4e, 200, q yalue q Sls. ~ ,479' The
ynlne q Z hnstaat sl'' L 1ioa:eal stamps
vas 81 I, BOZ, the punk I; lvAic'AI s.tIlll \
Issued tosthe executive departmeits was
1S, ,495, 900, of value Of $S34,970ss The
total number of stamps of all kinds issued
was 973, 3,275,025, of value Of $25, ,476,-
oil. The increase in the number of
ordinary stamps is about ten per cent.
The increase, including official stamps,
is about seven per cent. The postage
stamps sent through the mails by regis
tered pouches to postmasters numbered
359, ,452. Of this entire amount there
were lost only ten packages, of an aggre-
gate value of $3.50. The statistics Of the
dead letter service are of quite romantic
interest. The number of dead letters
handled during the year was about
100000 OF these, 31,799 contained
money aggregating $6l, 900; 1925 let
ters contained drafts, notes and bills of
exchange of the value 50, 1897, ,S47; 1885,
OPT letters contained samples of mer-
chandise, postage-stamps, and miscella-
neous articles; 3,740, 900 contained moth
ing of value. There were mailed to for
eign countries from the United States,
12,500, 900 letters. OF these, LOG, 200 were
returned undelivered. The number of
letters received from foreign countries
was 11,S00,000 of which 2l9,1O0 were
returned undelivered. These figures
show the advantage which this country
will derive from the new postal treaty of
Berne. That treaty provides that each
country shall retain the postage on all
letters mailed in its own territory. and
that no account shall be kept between
countries. The excess of letters mailed
from this country over the number re-
ceived from foreign countries is nearly
100000. The net gain to the United
States from the treaty, therefore, pre-
suming all letters to be only single
weight, is five cents on 100000 letters,
or $4,000 The result of the operations
of the new law, which requires prepay
ment of newspaper postage, presents a
curious paradox.
While the aggregate receipts from this
source have not been as large as they
were under the old system, the net gain
to the government is greater. The post
office department estimated that the new
law would yield $1,500,000 annually.
This estimate was based upon the returns
from fifty-fve leading offices fora uniform
period; but the postmasters either erred
or did not make truthful returns. Re-
ceipts from this source are less than ST.
100000. The government makes gain
however, from the fact that this sum is
mainly collected in advance, at a few
Offices where no commission is allowed
upon the sums collected. The amount
received under the new system is nearly
$500, 900, about the sum received under
the old system in 1873. OF the entire
amount collected, commissions were paid
upon only about 100000. Newspaper
prepayment stamps have been supplied
to 340O Offices, the total number of places
in the United States where daily news
papers are published. The increase in
the number of registered pouches during
the year was fifteen per cent. The sys-
TEN Of registered through-pouches works
satisfactorily. They have been used
upon all the principal routes Postmas-
ters generally testify to their usefulness
The special rates from France on and
after January 1st, at which date France
joins the postal union, there will be levied
and collected in France the following
general union rates of postage: For pre-
paid letters, 20 centimes per Is grammes;
for unpaid letters, 60 centimes per 15
grammes; for postal cards, Is centimes
per l50 grammes; for printed matter and
samples, centimes per so grammes. In
addition, the French government will
impose special charge, "sea postage"
of 10 centimes per 15 grammes, for let
ters; 5 centimes per 10 grammes for postal
cards, and 3 centimes per so grammes for
other matter, thus making the single rate
ofpostage on prepaid letters to the United
States 40 centimes, or cents. The charge
in this country on letters for France and
all other parts of Europe will remain at
5 cents only. The charge of sea postage
is made under paragraph in the Berne
treaty, which was inserted because some
of the delegates feared that sea trans
portation could not be obtained at the
low general rate fixed by the treaty. This
apprehension has proved groundless, all
the ocean steamship lines having ac-
cepted the general union rates, and
France is the only country that takes
advantage of the precautionary clause.
This action of France Is much regretted,
as it will cause a great deal of complaint
on the part of residents of France. 1t
should also be noted by persons who write
letters to France that, under the newly
established rates, an unpaid letter from
the United States will be charged in
France with postage of seventy cen
times, or about IA cents.
The postoflice department has just con.
cluded arrangements for the arrival oi
New York mails in this city in time fol
their distribution by one o'clock in the
afternoon. They are now received about
three o'clock, and communications OIL
letters do not reach the departments
until after business hours. Colonel Scott
has always been prompt to further fast
mail projects of the department between
New York and Philadelphia, and be-
tween Baltimore and Washington, and
Mr.. Hinckley, the president of the Phil
adelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore
railroad company, has given ready SUI,
port to the new arrangement, which will
so into effect between the twentieth and
the twenty-fifth instants.
An apparatus for washing smoke
q. "A u - n. 4. a d.