The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-03-16
THAT CUT DIRECT.
Postmaster Barratt on the Gov.
eminent Building.
WORKINGS OF THE PoSTOFFICE.
The Big Increase IN the Business is an Index
to the Growth of
Salt Lake.

The ''cut direct" on the Senate appro-
priation of S500,000 for government build
ing is believed by most of the business
men of this city to be a cut in the wrong
direction.
A HERALD reporter called on Postmaster
Barratt and asked him if he had read The
| HERALD's Washington special dispatch in
which the committee stated that if the rule
of allowing only three times the amount
of the yearly pastoffice receipts was applied
to Salt Lake it would reduce the appro-
priation to less than one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars.
Eyes, l read THE HERALD's special, but
that statement depends entirely on what
year they apply it. The last fiscal year,
on which they evidently figured, was
So, 900, but if they figure on the present
basis of the business, it will run up to
$4,000. AT this ratio to 100000 in five
years. This would entitle this city to a
$500, 900 building, and as it is not at all
probable that if the appropriation passes
| it will be completed in less than i've years,
it would be nothing more than business
prudence to take into consideration the
prospective growth of the city,
| This whole thing of rating the work Of
the Office by its earnings is all wrong
This Office represents 500 miles to the
north and the same to the west and the
distance to the south is almost unlimited.
| 1t is the depository of all Utah, part of
Idaho and a section of the state of Nevada
! Another thing. Tere was a system of
false cancellation throughout this terri
tory, in particular, that cut down the rev.
snue of the Office but not the work, for
about $4,000 was collected of this false
cancellation, which simply means
the trading of stamps Cor mer-
chandise by the country mer-
chants. This has been largely cured,
but still there are firms in this city which
l am safe in saying never get stamp at
this Office, and yet their mail is heavy and
must be handled by our working force
"The growth of this city is natural. 1t
| is not forced. No one pretends that there
can possibly be rival to this city within
500 miles. The growth is legitimate, but
| Congress seems to refuse to see things as
they are.
"Our letter cases won't hold our letters;
our paper cases won't hold our papers, and
! there is no city of 100,0 900 population that
has as great general delivery business as
this one. Any person can see the files of
men stretched out in line, and though one
clerk is worked to death, and we all take a
turn at it to relieve him, the string of men
keeps up from morning until night.
The list of advertised letters is a good in
dication the way business is increasing A
year ago the number was 164, and though
we exercise great care and take pride in
keeping the list down, this morning it is
$50. Again, the city with its large terri
tory has but nine carriers, while we abso-
lutely need five more. San slAntonio last
year handled but 2,167, 627 pieces of mail
aud its receipts were $40, 900, while we
handled 3,003,S7S pieces and our earnings
Were $49, 600. Yet San Antonio has eleven
carriers to our seven. The Fort Wayne,
Ind, Office receipts were but $4,000, yet it
has sixteen carriers"
When this matter was under discussion
by the last Congress and I was asked to
forward estimates of the population and
cost Of a lot, Iwent to the most conserva-
tive citizeus, and the lowest estimate given
by any one Of the population five years
from now was $4,000, while the majority
predicted 100000. 1t is more of center
than Denver. Take Ogden, that asks
$3.50, 900, it has a better room than we have,
and all it pays is $50 per month. The gov
eminent is justified in building here, on the
ground of economy in rents alOnei,