Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-07-29

tuat oHCef OF the POST Ornce department VINO
administers and controls. among other matters,
the star route service. Mr.. Brady, now on trial
at Washington In company with ex-senator
Dorsey and a number Of others Tor conspiracy
to rob the government, held this vitality import
ant place during the whole administration OF
President Hayes He seems to have held it by
surprisingly secure tenure. The Congress of
1889 having given him five million nine hun
dred thousand dollars Gall he asked, for star
route and steamboat expenditures in January,
1850, Mr.. Brady brought in a deficiency bill for
two millions more, and being asked how in vio-
lation of specific law he had dared to spend ia
nine months the money given him for year, he
replied that If Congress did not give him the
additional two millions he would stop the whole
star route service. Thereupon several repub-
lican and democratic Congressman waited on
President Hayes, presented the acts of Mr.,
Brady and asked for his dismissal. as he showed
no disposition to obey the acts Of Congress.
But Mr. Hayes payed no attention TO their rep
reservations and kept Mr.. Brady In place until
he himself retired to private life.
President Garfield on the recommendation OF
Senators Conkling and Platt. appointed Mr..
Richard A. Elmer in Mr.. Brady's place. Presi-
dent Arthur. finding him capable, courageous
and honest officer, has kept him there. And we
propose now to compare the administration of
Mr.. Elmer, who entered office in May, 1881. with
son will throw needed light on the conduct OF
the star route robbers who are now on trial in
Washington, and have been until lately so open
ly and impudently confident of acquittal as To
lead to very general public suspicion that
they still control powerful influences to bend
public officers of the law to their protection.
just as under President Hayes administration
they were able to find friends in the surround
ings of the White House.
What, then, are the facts shown by this COM
4 II
General? Mr.. Elmer, Mr. Brady's successor. re-
ported to his chief. Postmaster General Howe
few days ago, that taking only the part of
the star route service which is now under dis
cussion in the star route trials, he is getting
that service done at this time for O trffe less
than a half what Mr.. Brady made it cost-forty-
nine and seventy-eighth hundredths per cent
cheaper. Further, the cost per mile carried
once week has been reduced forty-five and
| thirty-nine one hundredths per cent from what
it was In Brady's last year. That is to say, Mr..
! Elmer is doing the same work for q very little
| more than half the money, and that, too on the
very routes for which Brady, Dorsey and Others
are now on trial. Moreover there has been no
| cutting down of necessary service, and there
have been no complaints that Mr.. Elmer has in
jured the people by slow or inadequate SER
vice. He has simply, being an honest and cour-
ageOus as well as capable officer. got the
work done for what 1t is really worth, and has
| neither stolen himself nor has allowed others
| ness capacity OF his predecessor, Brady. On
the contrary, his friends have always boasted
| that he was IAN uncOmmOnly smart business
| man" Yet Mr.. Elmer's first years work result
ed In saving to the government on star routes
| at the rate Of one million seven hundred and
| seventy-eight thousand dollars per apnum, he
coming Into the Office when the greater part OF
! the fiscal year was already spent. For the sec
| ond year the figures are two million eighteen
thousand six hundred and thirty-fve dollars
of fpnr mil min md airr
| hundred and twenty-fo dollars in the last but
| not the heaviest year of Brady; and as the pres
ent years lettings are for four years this is a
| saving of two millions Of dollars per annum. or
Just one-half of Bradys expenditures that
for four years to come. We repeat that there
| have been no complaints from the people Of in
adequate star route service, and it is fact that
on some Of the routes now under trial the first
knowledge the people had OF the extravagant
and corrupt expedited" service was when no.
tlce came through the press that Ii had been
taken off. They had never had 1t. 1t had been
clean, or rather very dirty steal" Nor has
there been any breakdown in the service, not
even 30 much as the average under Brady.
The saving Mr. Elmer has effected on the star
route service alone is more than enough to make
the whole postal service self-supporting That
is what the public gains BY the labOrs Of an
honest man In the place formerly filled by
Brady, and it enables the Postmaster General to
say that for the year ending July !, 1883, the
supporting, but will have surplus of one and a
half million dollars.
How did Mr. Elmer do this work? He served
the country honestly and forced others to do so.
Brady made contracts at low rates for poor ser
vice, only to raise them enormously afterward
for his favOrtes. Mr.. Elmer consulted with the
representatives OF states and territories and
with other well informed persons and made con-
tracts adequate to the real necessities Of the
country at proper prices. He made no adver-
tisements for low time, to be expedited" soon
after the letting, but advertised for a schedule
OF the fastest time that could be made i'm the To-
cality to be served. The old ring of contractors
thought he would get only costly service, but
the result is an economy of nearly fifty per cent
Also where new or increased service is asked it
was the custom under Brady to take the single
affidavit of a cOntractOr-the man in interest
as to the cost of theincrease. Mr.. Elmer insists
on the careful investigation OF competent agent
of the department.
The results in detail are amazing. Here is q
statement of the comparative cost of star service
in the Pacific section under Brady and now:
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