The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1881-12-03
REPORT OF POSTMAsTER-G ENER.
AL JAMES.
MAsn1,nrnr. Nnvemher


inc features of Postmaster-Gener
James report:
The total expenditures during the fiscal
year ended June 30, last, were SS9, 25l, 49,
.46; total revenues, 500, 7sj, S07.97. Excess
Of expenditures, 8, iGG,33S 40; other def
cts. on account Of bad debts" and "com-
PROMISE" accounts, S1i,79). S6-making the
total excess OF expenditures, S2,4Sl, 100. 81.
The number Of postage stamps, postal
cards, stamped envelopes, etc, issued dur
ing the year was ,542, amounting
in value to 4,625, 49, 81, against a total
value during the previous fiscal year Of $751;
0S7,3l2.46.
The total amount Of postage collected dur
ing the year on newspapers and periodicals
mailed to regular subscribers from known
offices Of publication and from news agen-
cies, at two cents per pound, was Sl,3O9,O4S-
ga, an increase Of Sl72, 596.06, or little over
IA per cent.
The weight OF second -class matter mailed
was So, 1852, 432 pounds, or "a, go tons The
number Of postoflices at which the matter
was mailed was 1921, an increase of 39S over
the number for the previous year.
DEAD LETTERS.
BY careful reckoning based upon an actual
count made in every post office in the Unit
ed States during the tlrst week in Deem
Der, 1880, it has been ascertained that the
whole number of letters mailed in this
country in the last fiscal year was 1885,
107, 3iS. The number reaching the Dead
Letter Office during the same period was
3,323,G2l, or one in every 315. The total
number Of letters and Of packages that
were Of sufficient value to be recorded and
filed, received during the year ended June
30, 1881, was 1874, POS, an increase of 354, =
G23 over the number received during the
preceding year. For convenience OF treat
ment they were classified as follows: I'm
claimed domestic letters 2,791,05O; held for
postage, 279, pa; misdirected, 242,5j6 mot
including 81, 1S4 foreign letters with imper-
feet or erroneous addresses; without any
superscription whatever (the majority of
them bearing stamps to pay POSTAGE, 9,471;
letters addressed to foreign countries, and
containing articles (coin, jewelry, ETC.
which are forbidden to be sent in the inter.
national mails, 1 ,292; letters of foreign orr
gin, 2S4, l27 (of which 81, 1874 were sent to
the Dead-L Letter Office on account of erro-
neous or imperfect addresses); foreign par
GELS (unOpened), 1866; and domestic pack
ages, 1851.
OF the letters and packages opened, IS, =
G17 were found to contain money amount
ing to $40, 5S7.S0; 22,012 contained drafts,
money orders, checks, notes, etc, the ag-
gregate face value Of which was 81, 500, 062-
81; 1878 contained receipts, paid notes
and cancelled obligations OF all sorts; SO, 73l
contained photographs; 61,556 contained
small remittances of postage stamps; and
in 70, 213 there were found valuable articles
Of third and fourth class matter in endless
variety. The amount of money separated
from dead letters for which no claimant
could be found was So, 5S4.4O, which was
deposited in the Treasury. The amount OF
postage collected upon short paid matter
forwarded to destination, and upon UNI
claimed packages of third and fourth class
matter returned to owners was SO, 100. "a.
The records OF the Department show that
S33S,9iS registered letters and packages
were mailed in this country during the
year. OF this number only 2,614 reached
the Dead Letter Office; and of these 9, 13l
were finally delivered to the owners, the
balance being placed on file awaiting iden-
tihcation by the parties interested.
THE POSTAL MONEY ORDER SYSTEM.
ne 'JtIuNlDlS Vi the IuO0eN-OfuGr system
are multiplying yearly under the impulse OF
prosperous trade and the influence of immi-
grafton, with the rapid development Of the
newer States and Territories, and the de-
mand for additional means of ntercommu-
nicatiOn and exchange. At the commence
ment OF the last fiscal year the total number
or post offices authorized to issue and Ia
pay domestic mOney-orders was 4S29.
During the year 3il additional money order
offices were established, and seven wore
discontinued, leaving 3, 1853 in operation on
the 3Oth day Of June. 1881. Since then 33s
new offices have been established, making
the whole number of money order offices in
operation at date OF this report 5,499. The
number of domestic money orders issued
during the year was 1868 232, OF the aggre-
gate value OF NlO0 .O75, 7693 50; number of or
derS paid, 1921, 10, amounting in value ia
SlO4,2l9, S1l.G5; to which must be added the
amount OF orders repaid to remitterS 1904,
0S9.06, making a total OF S104, 924, S53. 81 ;
the excess Of issues over payments was
Sl0O,9l5.4; the total amount OF fees paid
by tn public to postmasters for the issue oil
domestic orders was 1856, 1872. Is.
Seyenty-seven cases OF alleged lost remit.
tances Of surplus money -order funds
amounting to SlJ,75 were under investiga-
ton during the year, and claims were lied
In thirty-siN cases on account OF alleged i'm
proper payment OF money orders. The
amount Of all these claims was S767.O7.
Their number, compared with the tOta
number Of payments made during the year
is as one to S21l ,SSl.
Nnety-nine cases Of alleged Improperly
paid money orders, amounting to -, 1913. 40
were investigated during the year. In thir-
ty-three instances the amounts, the total Of
which was S477 70, were recovered by post.
office inspectors and paid over to the right,
ful owners; in aeven cases, in which thu
orders altogether amounted to SS4. 10, the
paving postmasterS were, after due investi
held
PAYMENTS; in four, where erroneous pay
mant was directly attributable to careless,
ness on the part Of remitters, payees, or in
dorsees, they were required to sustain tn,