The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1888-12-21
THE DEMoRALIzED POSTAL SER
VICE.

Not the least remarkable statement In
the Presidents very remarkable mes
sage to Congress is that relating to the
postal service as follows:
II is gratifying to note from the care
fully prepared statistics accompanying
| the Postmaster Generals report, that
Notwithstanding the great expansion OF
the service the rate of expenditure has
been lessened and efficiency has been
improved IN every branch; that fraud
| and crime have decreased; that losses
from the mails have been reduced, and
that the number of complaints made to
postmasters and to the department are
far less than ever before.
A similar claim was made by the cam.
paign text book of the Democratic party
for 1888, and its unblusliing falsity was
exposed by Senator Chace, of Rhode
Island, in speech in the Senate Oct.
IL and ~, and published in the Record
of Oct. IL. Mr.. Chace gave figures from
the official report Of the department
which showed conclusiyely that, so far
from any improvement, there had been
a marked falling of in the efficiency OF
the postal service since it passed into
Democratic hands. HIS contrasts were
drawn between the last two years of Re-
publican administration and the first
two years of Democratic administration.
Though the report of the year ending
June 30, 1885, was signed by Demo-
cratic Poet moctar Gana.aI :, A
mainly the closing postal transactions of
President Arthur's administration We
now have figures later than those Access
sible 10 Mr.. Chace at the time his speech
was made and the subject NAV be pur-
sued with interest in view of Cleveland's
astonishing statements. Among the pa
pers accompanying the message the
country is furnished with tract in the
shape of the report of the Postoffice De-
partment for the year ending June 80,
1883, bearing the impressive signature of
that accomplished political and official
romancer, the Hon. Don Manuel Dick
insOn, present Postmaster General. Let
us examine some of his Carefully pre-
pared statistics" in contrast with those
in the previous department reports to
see how far they sustain Mr.. Cleveland's
claim that notwithstanding the great ex-
pansion of the service y efficiency
has been improved in every branch"
Such an examination will be of interest
at this time just as Mr.. Cleveland, on
the eve of his enforced departure from
office, seeks, with loud protestations of
his devotion TO the public good, to throw
around his political henchmen whom he
had rewarded with places in the railway
mail service the protecting cloak of civil
service reform by tardily placing them
within the ranks of the classified service.
First we will look into the tabular
Statement of errors" made by postal
clerks and by postmasters. 1t will be
found that the number of pieces of mail
matter handled by postal clerks in 1882
was 3, 443 1870, 4S0; in 1885 1t was4 ,94S .O59,-
400; in 1888 it was 6,545, SIC, POP. This
was an increase of l ,5l4, 663 800 pieces or
A per cent. for 1885 over 1882, and of
1897 ,Sl6, 1902 pieces or 80 per cent. for
1888 over 1885. These figures do not in
dictate an unusually great expansion of
the service" during the past three years
of Democratic administration.