The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-12-03

port says:
At the close of the preceding FISCAL year there
were 1,454 letters containing 81, 890.51 on hand
in the office Nv aiting final disposition; also 1928
letters containing $3.50. 81 in money, and 969
letters containing 160,S97.81 in drafts, checks,
etc, outstanding i'll the hands of pOStmasters.
OF the letters and parcels which were opened
during the year for the purpose of restoring them
to the writer's, 1901 were found to contain
money, amounting TO S32, 647. %; 1905 con-
tanned drafts. checks, money-orders. etc, repre-
senting n value of 81, 1881, 991.47: 96,90S con
tanned merchandise, SAMPLES, books aud miseel-
la1eous articles; 66,137 contained postage
stamps; 40,215 contained receipts. paid notes.
Cancelled drafts, insurance papers, etc; 35,l6O
contained photographs. From letters for which
the Department FAILED to find owners the sum of
S7,7S2.16 was separated and deposited IN the
United States Treasury. This sum included b.
040.30 of uneurrent money which had been sep
arated from undelivered letters in previous
years, hut converted into depositable funds since
The beginning of this fiscal year. The proceeds
of the dead-letter office sale in December last
amounted to S4,49767, which sum was deposited
Department. The value of stamps received to
pay postage upon parcels of third and fourth
class matter returned to the seDders, and upon
insufficiently prepaid letters forwarded to the
addresses, was SO, 1898. 27.
The number of letters and parcels sent through
the registered mails during 6he year was 10,594,-
ZIG. The amount of registry fees collected was
S926, $40. 70, an increase of $780, or 1910
per cent. over the previous year. The actual
ana estimated losses IA number of cases still be-
ing under 1nvestigationl, were only 627, or, say,
one out of every 1887 letters and parcels for
warded. This small proportion of loss is unpre-
cedented.
The report discusses the subject of foreign
mails and ocean service at some length. and
urges the Importance of frequent. regular and
rapid mail communication with Central ana
South America, the Australian colonies, and the
populous countries of eastern ASIA.
DRoP.LETTER POSTAGE.
Concerning the proposed reduction of postage
on drop letters the report says:
Some desire has been expressed for a reduction
of postage on drop-letters, from two cents TO one
cent. That two cents should be charged for de-
llver1ng a letter in the city where it is mailed,
while the same price will transport it across the
continent, is said to be anomalous. Whatever
force there may be in this argument might be
urged against charging the same price for car
rying a letter from New York TO Brooklyn as for
carrying one from New York to San Francisco.
The plan of rating postage according to the dis
tance of the carriage was wisely abandoned al
most forty years ago. IL might be said that ii is
an anomaly to charge two cents for carrying a
letter weighing half an ounce when that sum viii
carry two ounces of merchandise or four ounces
of books. 1t might be plausihly urged as equally
inconsistent for the government to hire a carrier
in one city to deliver letters at a charge OF one
cent each, and in another city compel the PEG
pie to go to the postofice for their letters on
which a similar charge is eXacted. If the pro-
posed change is made, two cents will he charged
for carrying a letter from the New York post
office to Jersey City, and only one cent for car
rying a letter from the New York postof1iee to
Westchester county, within the delivery limits
of that office.
The free-delivery system was established on
the LIST of July, 1868, leaving the drop-letter
rate uniform at one cent at all offices. This rate
was maintained until the act of June 8, 1872,
increased it at carrier offices to two cents, in
order to defray the cost of the carrier service.
That cost had heretofore largely exceeded the
receipts from local postage, though the system
was confined to ffty-tWO OF the principal cities.
For the year ended June 80, 1872, the amount
of postage collected on local matter was S9O7,-
| 351 90, and the expenditure Of carrier service
| 1.3SD .OG5.T6 If tine charge for 6rnn-lpttprS
is made uniform at all offices, without
regard to this service at a portion of
them only, the cities and towns not
by carriers VIII not long remain
quiet under the discrimination. 1t Is true that,
at the Offices where the carrier service is in
operation, the tOJal postage on local matter ex
ceeds tile total cost OF the service; but to claim
the entire receipts from local matter as due TO
the carrier system is manifestly unfair. AT the
close of the last fiscal year that systsm was in
operation at 154 postOffices. The postage col
lecued on local matter at these Offices during the
year amounted to "a, 1875, 230.52, and the total
cost of the service was $3, 173, 1861, an excess
of postage of 81 ,021, 1914. OF. AT fourteen offices
only did the local postage exceed the cost of the
service. At the remaining 14O offices the
amount of local postage collected was $685.
1877 70, while the cost of the carrier service at
the same offices was 81 ,519,l02.9S. At eighty
seven offices the amount of local postage col
lected was less than One-half of the expenditure
for carrier service. These eightv-seyen offices
in the aggregate collected 1920. $50. "a on local
matter, and expended S5S3,356 SO for carrier
service, an excess of expenditure of $780,
1868.
A reduction of the local rate to one cent, on
the present volume of business, would leave the
carrier service a heavy charge upon the general
revenues of the department at every office save
that at New York.
1t is true that an increase of business is to be
expected, but that would require additional car
riers, and thus augment the present expense.
At few offices, if any, is such an increase proba-
BILE as would compensate for the loss by a redue-
ton of the rate. Certainly. at "a great majority
of the offices, where the system is now conduct
ed at a loss, a lower rate woeld only increase
the charge upon the general fund.
The proposed step would lead to a clamOr for
the extension of the carrier system to an indefi-
mite number OF the smaller cities and towns,
where its maintenance would be almost wholly
at the expense of the general revenue. Such
extension will not be urged on the score of
profit, and if it be put upOn the ground of public
convenience it will be difficult to assign a reason
for making determinations, when the local rate
is uniform at all offices. A large deficiency of
revenue from the carrier service would, it is
feared, be followed by scant appropriations for
this service, with the result OF impairing its
efficiency. even at the places where it is now
conducted at a profit.
An important reduction of postage has lust
been effected by changing the domestic letter
rate from three cents to two. This change, un-
like the one proposed, is of benefit TO all the peo-
pie of the country in proportion to the extent
which they patrDnize the mails. For a time at
least, it will senslbly diminish the postal rev.
enue and impose a burden upon the general
treasury.
II would seem to be prudent to wait until the
deficiency shall have been recovered, or at least
more definitely ascertained, before making a
further inroad upon the revenues through a re-
duction of the present rates of postage. Tie
carrying of the mails should not be looked to as
a source of revenue, but the service should be
rendered as nearly self-sustaining as possible.
FIRST AND ~THIRD-CLAss MATTER.
After careful consideration, l am of opinion
that the unit OF weight for rating frst-class
matter should be changed from one-half an
ounce to one ounce. This change, in connection
with the recent reduction of letter postage from
! RI ran = n fuvn nhnfa uJOIlA rlaon fhin R,r,ru -
an equality with any other in respect OF cheap
postage. Great Britain maintains a more liberal
unit of weight for rating letters and packages
than we do.
The postage on third class matter, embracing
newspapers and periodicals sent by others than
the publishers, is one cent per two ounces. Some
ounces. There Gems TO be a popular impression
that one cent per copy is the uniform rate for all