New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-10-08
THE RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE.

by postmaster-G General Creswell. Previous TO that
time there were distributing offices in the larger
cities of every State where the mail was assorted
made up" and forwarded in locked pouches not
10 he opened until another office OF TINS klnd was
ro,chsd The four distributing offices IN this State
were at New-York, Albany, sJraruse ana builhi"'
tn illustrate the working OF the old system. letters
sent from here to Camden, New-York, were delayed
at Albany several hours and again at Rome. reach
ing their destination in about twenty-tour hours
paners were OF course delayed much longer than
Letters. Under tie present system, the New-fork
papers reach Cauden--distance 800 mlles-at p
n, nm the dav thcy are printed. Thirteen years ago
il took from twenty 10 twcntythree days Tor letters
and thirtv-fye days for papers to go IRON New
York to San Francisco. The time now is SIX ana
half DAYS for all mail matter. The time TO Chicago
has been shortened from forty-one to thlrty-thrce
bonrs while from here to Washington 1t has been
reduced one-half, from twelve to SIX hours. In
fact letter now altogether uOes not lie III an once
an hour from the time 1t IS mailed until 1t IA ready
for delivery be the distance across the Hudson OF
around the globe
Their, are nine divisions ia the service, covering
every mail ronte and pOstoiiicc IN tho Chlteu
States Each division has superintendent WIN
an Office in the city where the most OF its business Is
conducted There is also n general superintendent
having his office II Ne aShlngton' VINO III tli iIi
cc,rs hi. lructiou, from the Postmaser-6rnciai
n q Iac.sou IL IT,, superintendent OF the SeC1nu
division which includes the Middle States anu nv
eastern shuT5 u. NHr anu Ills once anu wv V''.
OF one of the clerk examiners lor tliiS IN s'on io
in the general Yy.tuCo IN this city Inefs Is asp
a large dormIto'v ~ the same binding. eNcluslNcN
for the 81 tie mln enpioyea III 'ns ~ tboiI
where most OF them sleep wArh AT TINS en- % tnoi
rnItes For the care OF the room each clerk rays
LoIf a dollar a month. Two OF the clerks on tach
train usually sleep in one OF the cars NJ tHe u "t'
m bruu work carrier tldil VI they
silent 80 far from the train. IrnnSl wanna mas Hu.
offices than any other state IN the uu"h Tue
FOREIGN ma pa ,sing through tins city Is very tA-
tenslye; these two FACTS make tn,s uNIS''h '"o
hardest and the most important IN inc service -.
An important feature OF the WORK Is ine "'''',
ton 81 safety secured IN sending REGISTERED ml.it.
II is not sent in urdInrTy mdll bags put ui'h'I
specIal cover III the custody 90 IN" head 'eIA on
tb, train He accompanies the last load on IAili
g., The nnst.oucr to the train assumes charge Oi
thc registered matter at he Office. ana gives re-
CENT for H. At the end of his trip he carrie all o
n,rEag.s then i'm hs care 10 the pnst-oilce ana
- - a r, ceint for Them lie also makes an entry
of avery pockagr rrcciy ed 10y hun while on the
tTan a $50 observing aud recording the 'ondloh oi
the seals. An acc rae account % every r'e'stIe'
latter il Tins kept from the tlmr II Is registered
uuti il is delivered to the person to whom IL is
addressed, Owing 10 the eAtraorillIhty care lhh.n
,,tb Tins class OF lei ters 10 usually requires lew
more hours for them to ue delivered thah Ordinary
letters as SAFETY il considered before celGIif ana
a delay sometimes occnts IN ordrr 70 ontaih lhe
necessary receipts when tuc pd'NdR' ~ udh'le'i'"
Smnrrinteud mt Jackson recently gave a IR BUNE
reporter special PERMISSION 10 rae III Z p",la, or
Albany in order 10 SEQ how the uhtIs are caught
dI.tribnted and thrown out while on the way.
'lh.re orc seven trains with postal cars attached.
I.,yiu.y The Grand Central Druot daily for Albany.
The train stating ~ =. M having i"ur r"Ntal
carS-oue for the storage al pouches gong DrFphH
Buffalo. one tor papcrs. ana TWO LOT tne "l''r'Ou-
non oi the maiI-cIrilrs most oi the through mail;
INN the first train IN the morning, consisting oil Two
cars and an cngin., aud starting at hall past !
o,.Iock vas selected as best Illustrating the work
ing of the service. IL Is called the paper tram cas-
If carries the morning papers. one car being entirely
devoted 10 the u5r .! the Union News company:
Arriving at the depot NJ a. NJ NE reporter louhd
- clerks i'm the front car bu-y engaged lu AS
sorting aud piling up mailhags whch hid acculhu-
lated since the departure OF the Iast man IihIh.
They had then already been ut work Two hours In
a few minutes wagons from the several newspaper
offices drove NJ ANA unluaucd large packages oI
papers for different points ~ NtN-lo huH west
srn states. The papers designed Tor ncWscalffS ~
the yar:ous stations along the Hudson not supplied
by the American News Company, ~" not sent Ia the
post office all but are forwarded direct from ne
,ucr of notification 10 tie ram done mp m small
narkayrs The address Is printed on the wrapper
with the additional wOfd-: Throw Oh al depot.
outside Of mail bag These packages are thrn
arranged near the door of the car, h' clerk Il"
must not only know the name, oi All the stations on
th. road in tuelr consecutive order but also Know
al which side Of the track rach "e"' H. IN otu'r !"
nave the papers piled at the door nearest tho
,tatlon Til bead clerk IN charg" OF the registered
letters arrived ten minutes before the tram was to
start. and collected the letters from a luall uoA
placed near the baggage room for the convenience
of those who wish 10 tcnd Letters on certain trains
but are too late to have them taken from the post
Thc letters come from tho post-ofllcc tied In
packagcs of 100 letters each. Each package also
contains slip of paper, on which n stamped th'
name Of the clerk who tied u up. also the da'c. IN
case the package Is sent wrong or any other error
occurs the mistake can bc readily traced Ia the
proper person. The letters are Enclosed III leather
pnuchcs which are locked with peculiar nadlock.
There Is n heavy penalty for any unauthorized per-
son possessing a KEY htuu2 thrSc locks II lac unIS
one he must either send II 10 ashlugon himself,
or py, It To postmaster no will forward II 10 the
Posi- Office Department there. Papers sent through
the mail are uclosed IN heavy canvas sacks Sc
curely tied with stout cord
The puuches and sacks are each tagged CT
labelled at the pO,t-oiro 10 fId the clerks IN
sortiug them. tag r. a lIttlc block of wood
Got / inchrs long AMI an inch square Upon Que
side are burned yar.Ous cahalisilc figures such ~
Albany No. ." Albany No. ., or Ogdcn,burg
and Rome AGENT" The explanation Of these term,
is rs follows Albany No. means that the mail
i'm that bag belongs on the liudSun RIVER Railroad
below Poughkecpac, and must bc distributed ~
0uickly as pos bic after being received IA the postal
car ;,s some OF The mail may be Tor stations not ten
miles from tl's city. "Albauy No. . Indicates
that the incluscd mail he ong, on the same route
between Poughkccpslc and Albany and must ho
handled rs soon rs the No. BAGS are finished.
OQdcnsburg and Rome Agent bags aic not Ia he
distributed until the tram reaches Rome, where
they are 10 he transferred To the clerk on the
OgdensJurg road. Each tag is also marked
one SIDE Return to Il. VI. =, New York, \. "
Ar Syracusr Rochester aud Buffalo the tags are
collected ncloscd IN sacks, aud returned to this
city for further use.
The tram did not stop below Poughkecpsc, but
ran the seventy miles in an hour aud half. As II
approached q station the cnJrneer blew the whistle
10 inform the clerk whose auty II was 10 throw of
the bags for each station aad catch pouch which
hung suspended on iron frame about ten ert
from tho ground. An iron arm fastened 10 he
door is turned by the clerk, winch catches the
pended bag without inIuIln9 any Of the contents.
and holdg 1t until released 10y the clerk. The bag
i, quickly unlocked, and the packages assorted, ~
there may be letters III 1t for the next office not
three miles from where It was caught, which must
be placed in the bag Tor that place, the bag locked
aud ut the door ready to he thrown on when the
next whistle blows. Sometimes, though rarely, n
letter IS carried past its destination When this is
done it is sent back by the irst train going III an
opposite direction.
Though the bags are kicked out by the clerk it is
I.llln Ll.r I'm frnlII i.1nl