Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-05-20

the unnecessary delay occasioned by send
ing the documents back across the CONT
nent without investigation of the charges
that the Postal Department had yolun-
tarily made its own, Mr.. Wilder addressed
Postmaster Stephens at Sacramento as fol-
lows:
RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE.
OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT EIGHTH DIyN.
SAN FRANCISCO 5, II, 1890.
Respectfully referred to Pc .tmaster, Sacra-
mento. Caiitornia-Will you kindly call upon
the RECoRD-UNIoN people, and ask them to fur
nish the evidence concerning delays as COM
planned of. Return these papers with such re-
marks as you may wish to make
JAMES L. WILDER, Superintendent.
Postmaster Stephens thereupon placed
all the documents before the Managing
Editor of this paper, and the following re-
ply was attached to them and the whole
returned to him, to be forwarded to Mr..
Wilder:
SACRAMENTO, May 10, 1890.
r. d. Stephens, p. w.: In re. request to furnish
evidence of de ay in mail matter from San
Francisco. the editorial in the RECORD UNION of
April II, which is attached to correspondence,
stated the facts without exaggeration. will
state the particular case which caused tie pub
iication, but it is only one OF twenty similar in
stances could have reported. On the 9th of
April, about noon. received this telegram from
San Francisco: Get letter by mail tonight, on
$3.50 Overland" On the arrival of that train
and the distribution of its mail, l was at the
postoffice. The letter looked for did not come,
though received other letters mailed in San
Francisco at p. NJ. then waited for the mail
arriving here at $40 p NJ, and was again disap-
pointed, though again getting letters from san
Francisco. When the IL 40 mail arrived at the
Postofiice at midnight was again on hand, ac
eompanied by Mr. ]. A. Woodson. The first
letter got from that mail was postmarked in
the San Francisco Office at P NJ, and about A.
NJ. got the letter l had been waiting for all
night, and which it was of the utmost import
ance should have early. at once and before
leaving the Office, called the attention of the
distributing clerk to the poStmarks, showing
that one OF the letters (the one / had been adj
yised of was postmarked in the General Office
in San Francisco at P. NJ, and the other in the
same office at p NJ, and both were stamped on
the back as received at Sacramento at II mid
night. am positive that they both came in on
that MAIL tor both Mr.. Woodson and myself saw
the young man take them from the pouch You
will remember that on the day following took
both OF the envelopes to you and showed you
the postmarks. You stated that there was no
question but that the letter had been delayed
i'll the San Francisco Office. / kept the en-
VeIopes for some time to show to my San Fran
cisco correspondent, as evidence that had not
received his letter at the proper time, and they
have since been mislaid. so that l cannot now
hand them to you; but both you and the young
man who distributed the mail that night viii
remember the circumstance perfectly, as l re-
member stating the case rather forcibly., As
these papers are 10 go back to Washington, /
hope you and the distributing clerk viii add
particular instance. If Mr.. Wilder requires fur
Their evidence, think shall be able to find
many others who have had similar experience
Very respectfully, E. B. WILLIS,
Managing Editor RECORD UNION.
As stated, the purpose of such extended
publication of this case is to bring about
needed reform in the matter of the
mail service between this city and San
Francisco. We repeat, for emphasis, that
the midnight mail to Sacramento should
be abandoned or the San Francisco office
compelled to forward Sacramento mail
matter by the evening trains and in the
order of deposit. Letters that are posted
in the San Francisco Office in ample time
for the morning mail via Benicia should
not be held, as has been and is still done
occasionally, for dispatch via Stockton,
thus delaying their arrival here nearly
three hours Postmarking should not be
made, as is sometimes done, over the post
age stamp, thus rendering it all but i'm
possible to read the date of deposit in the
mailing office.
1t is to be regretted that business men
who make similar complaints to that pre-
ferred by the RECORD UNION have not
pressed these matters upon the attention
of the department, and that they have not
preserved the evidence of the Delinquent
cies of the mailing department of the San
Francisco Office. They say that they shave
not thought it would be of any use to do
so;" they dislike extremely to be involved |
in the red tape ENHANCEMENT that the
REcoRD-UNIoN case proves to be necessary
to secure action on the part of the Pacific |
coast representatives of the general depart
ment. So far as this paper is concerned,
however, it is prepared to substantiate its
charges by testimony that is irrefutable,
and it proposes to assist the Washington
department in its praiseworthy endeavor
to instill some vitality into its supervising
representatives upon this coast, since,
upon the promptness of dispatch and de-
livery of mail matter large business inter-
ests are dependent.