Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1890-01-16

lASAtlAShi WIN bD1bHN
and gives employment to more than
$50, 200 people. 1t touches every COM
munity in the land. Its agents are
passing and re-passing over all the
leading lines of travel. They embrace
one half the civil list. The messages
it cerries to and fro between citizens is
beyond computation. The capital it
uses is equal 10 81 for every man, wo-
man and child in the country. And
yet it is not money making concern,
and it was not intended that it should
be, and in fact it is not self-sustaining
nor is it expected that it will be until
its methods of operation approximate
perfection. The post-ofiiee is the vis-
ible form of the Federal Government
to every community and to every citizen.
Its hand is the only one that touches
the local life, the social interests, and
business concern of every neighbor-
hood. The aim Of the post-oiiice de-
partment is TO serve as a grand agency
for the enlightenment of the people. II
is constantly striving TO do its work
with greater efficiency and with less
cost 10 the people. The business of
the department has grown enormously.
In twenty years its transactions have
doubled. In ten years more by all the
ordinary laws of growth it viii double
again. The complaint is that with all
this growth the routine forms and meth
ODDS of operation are not much better
than in the beginning. Other grounds
of complaint are the too frequent chang
es in the office OF postmaster-General
and his immediate subordinates. Ii re-
quires a great deal of time for new men
TO learn routine duties. So much work
that could be done by subordinates falls
to the portion of the Postmaster-Gen-
eral that little time is left him to orig
mate plans, or to study the means of
developing the system or improving the
service. There is need of a new officer
The best educated postal man in the
country should be called into the SER
vice and made general manager, and
kept in his position, whatever changes
may be made among other officers so
long as he shows himself equal to his
work. He should be called Controller |
or General Secretary. lie should be |
a sort of red-tape annihilator, bringing |
in reforms 10y going straight at abuses
and kicking them out of the way Sew
eral little things that such an officer
would be likely to take in hand are |
suggested. There are $4,000 post-of-
fees in the country. These offices and |
the Department have grown uninten
tionally into a sort of hostile relation
towards each other. The postmasters
are generally wanting something which
the Department does not seem able or
willing to grant. 1t is proposed to di-
vide the country into twenty-six postal
districts. each under the care of SUI
pervisor who shall visit every office in
the district AZ stated times. inquire in
to the capacity of the postmasters, the
needs of the office, and examine the
records required TO be kept. along with
other things enioined in connection
with the supervisory system. The idea
Df Mr.. anamaker seems TO be to re-
ieve himself, or the office which he
holds, from the drudgery of common
lffairs so that the chief officer of the
Department can apply himself TO the
work of planning, originating and ap-
living new ideas to the increasing bus
ness of the organization. There are
multitude of things that might be
lone for which at present there is no
ime. Mr.. Wanamaker has large ideas
f the Importance and work of the Of
ice he holds. The difficulty is it takes
good deal of money to run such a !
nan, and vet, no doubt, it would pay f,
est in the end Mr.. Wanamaker is a {
nan of immense business capacity and 5
is Judgment should carry great infu-
nee. The report covers a great vari-
y Of matters that may afford themes
II future consideration. f
To what base uses have we come 9