Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-07-03
HOW WE GROW.
Postoffice Statistics Show Fort Worth
to be Growing Rapidly.
Figures for the Quarter Ending June 80, 1883,
and for the Same Time in 1888-POstal
Clerks Paid Here.

Nothing so clearly indicates the growth
of city up to certain point as the bus
mess done by the postofice The sales
of stamps indicate the amount of bust
ness done and the number of people in a
city, and when compared with statistics
covering a like period in previous year,
show the increase in business and popu-
lation. If Fort Worth continues to i'm
prove as it has recently done, it will not
be long until the postoffice here will be
rated a first-class office, on a par IN
rating with offices in Chicago, st. Louis
and the other large cities. A year ago
the sales of stamps in day amounted to
$50 to $40, now they range from Sl25
to $3.50. The sales of stamps alone
yesterday aggregated Sl37, and of spec
ial request envelopes SIT. Postmaster
Field yesterday very kindly gave THE
GAZETTE some very interesting facts and
figures about the business of the office
here. For the quarter ending June 80,
80, the sales of stamps aggregated
1896 SO. For the previous quarter end
ing March 81 they were S938G 50, while
for the quarter ending Tune 50, '8S, the
sales were S1326 81, an increase for 1889
of S2370 so, and. this in spite of the fact
that many merchants and others were
using Spring Palace envelopes, which
cut down the sale of the special request
envelopes several hundred dollars. A
first class office is one at which the sales
for quarter aggregate ten thousand
dollars or over; so it will be seen that
Fort Worth is now very near
that point. The salary of
the postmaster is regulated by
the amount of stamps sold and the
probabilities are that within the next
year the Fort Worth office will pay better
than at any time in the past. General
Inspector Dice, who was here not long
ago and who carefully investigated the
business done, said that the delivery here
was very large and that it had greatly
increased.
Before the headquarters of the
Eleventh railway mail division had been
established at Fort Worth something
like 100 registers were handled daily,
while now from four hundred to FIVE
hundred are handled in the Office here
every day, and the number is constantly
increasing. Large quantities of supplies
for the division now pass through the
postofice here, and in fact the office
is in part government ware
house. Formerly some ten or twelve
railway postal clerks came to Fort Worth
and lived here, while last month Post
master Field paid off at Fort Worth
sixty one postal clerks, all of whom run
to Fort Worth and live here. While this
constant increase in the business done at
this office has been going on no additional
help has been provided, and this has
compelled the force of clerks to work
very hard. The Fort Worth postoffice
should be, and probably will be, made
depository Office, the smaller offices in
the country tributary to Fort Worth
sending the money collected to the Office
here. AS it is at present the expendi-
lures here in pay ing off the little army
of clerks are so heavy that drafts
have to be made on the national
treasury monthly. 1t is the general
opinion that it is good thing govern
ment officials have moved so slowly in
regard to the erection of a government
building, for an additional appropria-
ton of $3.50 1000 at least will be necessary
to provide such a building as is needed
to accommodate the business of the
government. Congressman Abbott is
said to have his eye on this matter and
to realize the necessity of an additional
appropriation.