The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-07-15
THE POSTAL CLERKS.
Their Reply to the Statements of POST
master General Villas

master General Villas
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind, July &c. G
Meade, chief clerk, and R. E Robb, secre-
tary of the Brotherhood of Postal Clerks,
have prepared response to the statements
of Postmaster General Was. In substance
they say that the postal clerks expected
very generally on the incoming of the pres
ent administration to be removed; that in
such anticipation some resigned and others
got their houses in order to go; that Post
master General Villas, by his circular of
March 81, 1885, gave them to understand
expressly that there should be no removals
without cause, and none for merely polite
al reasons; that efficient and valuable men
would not be disturbed so long as they rem
dered faithful service; that they accepted this
assurance in good faith, and so continued
i'll the service, rendering faithful and ZEAL
Gus service; that soon, however, their fats
was shaken by the reported and frequent
removals of good men without cause; that
by reason of such removals increased work
was imposed upon them: that they were
required in addition to the regular and
onerouS duties to teach new men; that new
men were often promoted over them; that
in some Instances these new men were
given leave of absence and devoted their
time to political work without complaint or
rebuKe, while old clerks were being re-
moved for alleged political work done years
before; that they felt they were being i'm
posed upon by having additional duties and
work put upon them, and by favorltism
i'm To int
that they had a pride in the efficiency of
the service and found that these things
tended to destroy that efficiency: that they
objected to removals being made
upon secret charges unknown to them, and
to which they had no opportunity of reply
ing or being heard; that their organization
was founded upon these things looking to
the good and efficiency of the public service
and to prevent, if possible, its destruction
by constant and frequent removals without
cause; that under the professions and
promises of the Postmaster General the
public would infer that the removals were
made upon good and sufficient cause, thus
leaving stigma upon the persons removed,
and unjustly so; that their protest was that
injustice was done to those removed, and
they only asked that the cause of removal
be made known; that while as public
servants they recognized their duties to
the public and faithfully and zeaIously
performed them, for proof of which
they pointed with plide to the service it.
self; that they felt as men and citizens
that they were entitled at least to fair and
just consideration by the Postmaster Gen
eral; that what they did was not in any
spirit of INSTRUMENTATION or obstruction, but
on the contrary was in the highest interest
of the postal service on behalf of the pub
lie and in their own interests as men and
citizens wishing the good opinion of the
public and the maintenance of the high eff
cheney of the postal service, and that they
intended TO wait upon the Postmaster Cen
eral and submit these things to his cOnsid-
Grafton when he hurriedly removed large
number of clerks without hearing. This
they believe he did to avoid being con-
fronted with his record on removals.