St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-11-29
POSTAL AFFAIRS.
Resume of the Last Two Years of
PrOGreSS,

WASHINGTON, Nov. 2S.-The annual
report of Postmaster General Wana-
maker for the fiscal year ended June 80,
1890. was made public tonight. In the
administrative methods of the depart
ment itself he says, some changes for
the better have been made A new
series of smaller stamps, criticised, and
justly criticised, at first, so far as the
twO-cent stamp was concerned, are now,
it is believed, quite acceptable to the
public. Over two hundred thousand
dollars have been saved on the contract
for postal cards, which, though they
were properly criticised at first, were
quickly brought up to the re-
quired standard by the contractor
Four hundred thousand dollars
has been saved On the contract for
stamped envelopes. Two hundred
thousand dollars or more has been saved
on certain letting of contracts for car
rying the mails, and at the same time
the mail routes have been extended all
over most 100000 miles of railway and
steamboat and stage lines. The
Anti-Lottery Legislation
has entailed much extra labor upon the
Inspector force, but, Oh the other hand
the temptation to thieving among en-
plOYeS of the department has much di-
miniShed by the same means. The past
year has been made very disagreeable
to the 'green goods" swindlers. Ne
gOtiatiOnS with the German authorities
looking to the establishment of sea
commission of postmasters has exam
ined 900 models, designs and sugges-
tions of house letter boxes to find some
thing which. if universally adopted,
would save a quarter part of the
time of the carrier force of the depart
ment. A few figures given illustrate
how much the business of the depart
ment has grown. The gross revenue is
nearly S5,000,000 larger than it ever was
before. Almost 5000 new postoffices,
more than in any one year before, have
been established upon the portions of
communities which have needed them.
The stage route mileage has increased
over 100000 miles, and the railroad
mileage over 100000. The railway
postal clerks have reduced the number
of pieces usually sent to the dead-letter
Office by 100000.
The One Idea
which has dominated the department
this year is, he says, to make the-mailS
go faster, more safely and more fire.
quently. He submits few illustrations
OF the enlarged service in the West. In
fifteen months 1,149,706 miles of mail
service were added in the state of
Washington alone. Four years ago
the service was not so large
by 100000 miles. In Wyoming
in fifteen months have been
added about $4,000 miles of service, and
in Idaho. In fifteen months, 100000
miles. In one form or another, says the
postmaster general. the public imper-
atively demands cheaper telegrapbv.
and the postoffice department can sup
ply it at less cost than any corporation,
unless the latter has rent, light and
fuel free, and carriers and clerks with
out pay. This statement is supported
by an extended argument on the same
lines as the argument made by the post
master general before the committees
of congress. The postmaster general
recommends the establishment of postal
savings banks in states having no laws
regulating savings banks, and in other
o'"0Oo uPoi pOuIloi vi Il cOilSlueTdUle
number of residents of any one locality.
The recent lottery legislation is briefly
reviewed. Concerning the exclusion of
The .sKreatzer Sonata.
from the mails the report, after review
ing the law on the subject at length,
says: IA translation of a questionable
book was, as matter of fact, presented
some months since at the postoffice in
Western city for transmission in the
mails. 1t was held and referred to this
department. The assistant attorney
general, finding 1t indecent under any