National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-02-23
RA1LwAY MA1L CLERKS.
Money Kept from Them That Is justly
Their Due.

Wash. Correspondence New York Tribune.
Compared with the wages they receive
the railway postal clerks perform duties
more exacting and laborous and requiring
higher degree Of intelligence and ac
tiylty than any other class of government
employees. BY severe, and as members Of
Congress who participated Ia its enactment
maintain, an unwarranted construction Of
the law, the Postmaster General has de-
termined that $Sl 800 of the money appro-
priated to pay the salaries Of railway mail
clerks must not be paid to them, but must
be returned to the treasury. The facts in
brief are as follows: In 1874 the clerks were
divided into three classes, the members Of
which respectively were to receive annual
salaries Of $1,000, 81 200, and 81 400 each
In 1876 Democratic House cut down the
appropriation, so that the Postmaster GEN
eral was compelled TO reduce the force or
the salaries. As IL was impracticable to do
the first without impairing the efficiency Of
the service, the wages were reduced.
= In 1852 Republican Congress divided the
clerks into five classes, the minimum salary
not to be less than $500, and the highest
"not to exceed" 81 400 O year. In 1884,
upon the recommendation of the general
superintendent Of the railway mail service,
approved by the Postmaster General the
full amount necessary to restore the salaries
Of the clerks TO the scale authorized by law
was appropriated for the fiscal year begin
ming July l, 1885. The intention Of the
House committee which framed the bill
and OF the Congress which passed II, was
that the pay Of the clerks should be so re-
stored. The clerks so understood 1t, and
they had been instrumental In securing ia
vOrable action upon the recommendation of
the railway mail superintendent Their sur
prise and disappointment were great, there
fore, when they were Informed that the
money was not to be paid to them, and
when they discovered the reason, as set forth
IN the following extract from the report OF
the railway mail superintendent for 1856
1.-THE annual appropriation for the pay Of
railway postal clerks for the current fiscal
year Is Si,0s2, 800 OF this amount ISL 800
was presumably appropriated for the
special purpose OF increasing (restoring)
the salaries of clerks Of the fourth aud fifth
classes to the rates Of compensation paid
prior to July /, 1876; but inasmuch as the
appropriation bill, as approved, does not
state specifically that such was the inten-
tion Of Congress, the Postmaster General Is
Of the opinion that this fund cannot be
drawn upon for that purpose"
Mr.. Villas seems to have supposed that
Congress did not intend to perform an act
OF Justice but had appropriated merely "for
fun,h and In order that he might afford an
other exhibition Of ECONOMY and reform
by refusing to pay II TO the men who earned
II and are entitled to II. Efforts are making
to have this wrong righted by Congress-
and they may be successful, as members Of
the present House who were members of the
appropriation committee of the last Con-
gress, and therefore are familiar with the
facts, have given assurances that they will
do everything they can to effect that object.