The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1879-12-23
THE posTAL ENG.

Eastern Democratic papers almost
without exception, and few Repub-
lican papers like the New York Times,
are going for tine Postal Ring pretty
lively. Less than year ago Congress
appropriated $1,000 600 for carrying the
mails over star routes. Star routes are
those on which the mails are carried by
stages, blackboard wagons, and on horse
back. The appropriation of nearly SIX
millions was for the fiscal year beginning
July lst, 1879, and ending June 30th,
1850. Before six months of the year
have expired the Postoffice Department
demands an appropriation of $2,0OO,O00
more to carry on the Star Service. This
caused an inquiry, which, though super.
ficial has resulted in startling dis
closures 1t is found that there is an
understanding between certain COM
bination OF contractors and the corrupt
Postoffice officials by which the number
of trips and the schedule time on Ger
tain routes are fixed before proposals
are advertised for. The trips
are few in number, and the
schedule time from one to three miles
an hour. Then the ring con-
tractors either put forward straw men
to bid very low. Persons who would
aud could perfom the service, honestly
at fair price, are either deferred from
bidding because of the small amount OF
service advertised for, or bid what they
know it to be actually worth. This re-
suits in having the contracts awarded
to the straw bidders put forward by the
ring. Then the ring men ask that the
number of trips over the routes which
they have contracted for be increased
and the schedule time shortened This
furnishes a pretext for increasing the
compensation, and the contractors and
officials divide the spoils. Tyner and
Brady, the First and Second Assistants
of the Postmaster General have con-
troll of these contracts. They went to
Washington poor, and are now, ON
salaries of less than $1,000 year,
building mansions at cost of $50, 000
EACH and demanding more of the
peoples money from Congress to enable
them to live in style.
The papers give examples of the man
rer in which the people are plundered
liy these thieving officials. On route
No l,454, from Fort Worth, Texas,
to Fort Yuma, Arizona, the contract
price has been increased from Sl34, 010
TO 1929, COO a year; ON route 50, 100,
from Las Vegas to Las Cruces, New
Mexico, the contract price was Sl4, 900,
which was increased to $9l,4I4 on
route No. 35,05l, from Bismarck to
Tongue River, Dakota, the contract
price YVES 81, $50, which has been in
creased to $50, coo year; on route No.
80, 1903, from Santa Fe to MesiIla, New
Mexico, the schedule time was seventy
two hours, or fraction of over two
miles an hour, and the contract price
was S2G, 200 a year; the speed was IN
creased from seventy two to fifty nine
hours and the compensation from $26,-
900 to S67, ,04l year.
Ii is said that Key pretends to be
ignorant OF the plt.ndering carried
on in his Department by his subor-
dinates, and that he will demand an
investigation by Congress. Possibly
that may be the fact, as his great mind
has been devoted for several months to
studying the changes recently made in
the postal regulations by which post
masters and route agents ON railroads
are not permitted to deliver paper OF
letter unless the superscription covers
the Whole envelope.
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