Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1881-11-23

under investigation or closed as lost,
including losses by fire, highway
robberies and ordinary thefts> By
comparing this number with the en-
tire number of letters registered,
8,33S,919, the security and certainty
of the registry system is clearly
demonstrated.
The money order system is dis
cnssed at length and its efficiency
demonstrated by clear presentation
of facts. Its operations are multi>
plying and are highly satisfactory to
the country. The number of domes
tic orders issued during the year was
1868, 232, aggsegating in value
S105,0T5, 769.35. The total amounts
of payments and repayments during
the year was S104, 924,S53.61, leav>
in, an excess of issues over pays
ments of s160,915.74. The increase
in orders issued, over the preceding
year, was 475 percent.
The Postmaster-General makes
the following important recon
mendations
My immediate predecessor, on the
9th of January last, in response to
Senate resolution of June Is, 1880,
calling for reports as to changes that
might prove beneficial in the laws
regulating the management of the
the post office and other departments
transmitted to the President of the
Senate the draft of BILL to modify
the Postal Money Order System and
to provide for reduced scale of fees
on domestic money-orders; also the
draft of a bill entitled "A bill to
provide for the disposal of the
amounts of money-orders remaining
five years unpaid. These bills
failed from lack OF time to receive
consideration during the short ses-
sion of the Forth-slXth Congress. I
respectfully commend to the con-
sideration of Congress the sugges-
tons of the superintendent of the
money order system which are EN-
bodied in the above named drafts,
viz: that the unclaimed amounts of
money orders remaining unpaid after
a certain number of years from the
date of issue, be covered into the
treasury for the service of the Post
Office Department; that the fee
charged for the issue of money OF
ders for sums not exceeding five
dollars be reduced from 10 cents to
cents, while, at the same time, the
maximum limit of the amount of
money order be made 500, in place
Of 500; and finally, that the COM
pensation to postmasters for the issue
and payment Of money orders be
fixed at 3 cents for each transaction,
instead of the present rate of enc
third o. the fees received and one
fourth OF one per cent. on the gross
amount Of orders paid As the labor
of issuing and of paying a small
order IS as great as that OF issuing
and paying u large one, it not infre-
quentiy happens that postmasters
who issue and pay orders for small
Sums mainly, receive less compensa
ton for the same amount of work
than others who issue and pay orders
chiefly OF the higher denominations
He also calls attention to plan
submitted by the Superintendent of
the Money Order System, relative to
issuing postal orders for sums of
less than five dollars, to take the
place OF postal currency, and thinks
it entirely practicable and well cal
culated to meet popular demand.
On the subject of Postal Savings
Depositories he says:
AS early rs 1871 Recommendation
was made by one of my predecessors
for the establishment OF a system of
savings repositories in connection
with this department, and in several
subsequent annual reports this re-
commentator has been renewed.
December Is, 1873, ga bill to
establish and maintain a National
Savings Depository as branch of
the Post office Department was in
troduced in the House of Repre-
sentatives by Hon. Horace Maynard,
of Tennessee. From time to time
since that date, the measure has oc~
cupied the attention of Congress,
and many bills have been introduced,
but without securing definite action.
A system of post Office savings
banks went into operation IN Dreat
Britain September Is, 1861. At the
close Of It's first complete year, the
number Of open accounts was 49,
1875, and the amount standing to the
credit of depositors was tl,696, 22I,
being an average of 50 los. Sd. to
each account. Since that time the
institution has grown rapidly in pop
ular favor, and on the 3lst of Cecem
Der, 1879, the number of outstand-
ing accounts had risen to 1,9SS,477
and the amount of the credit of de-
positors G32, 012,134, an average of
GIG Is. 1lad. to each. The interest
paid to deposltors is only two and
one-half per centum, rate so low as
practically to exclude the post-office
savings-banks from competition
with other banking institutions, as
the history of the rise and progress
of savings institutions in Great Brit
ain has demonstrated, the object of
the government being to offer to the
depositor security rather han profita>
be investment for lis earnings, and
to promote trugality, steady habits
and conseuent thrift amonu tha