Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1892-12-10
1Ae POSTAL SERVICE.
Its Improvement as Noted by Postmaster
General Wnnnmnkor,a Rennrt

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6--The postmaster gen. |
eral mentions at the beginning of his annual re-
port TO the president the chief developments OF |
the year as follows:
Five million dollars added 10 tho gross rcve.
nue.. |
The deficit reduced nearly 100000
Money-order offices increased two-thiras or |
from 1000 to l66So, |
Eighty-twa otiea supplied with free de-
livery. |
Twenty-scvep hundred and ninety new offices |
established
Two hundred and sixty-three offices advanced
TO the presidential grade
Fifteen hundred and ninety new mail routes
established, embracing $50 miles Of new
service.
Ocean mail service extended
l. Pneumatic-tube service introduced
II appears that In the last four years 5,50l
new mail routes have been established travers-
| ing $3.50 miles; that the number of post Offices
| has grown by over $500, the number of money
| order offices over $500 and the number Of free
delivery offices has almost doubled. The post
master general adds:
| ~ give you undoubted evidence in the midst
| OF all this wonderful growth OF the steady i'm
provement OF the service and. every postal
worker may rightfully feel it to be personal
| compliment to himself"
Mr.. Wanamaker then mentions the 60 psr
cent. increase In money order Offices the use CT
stamp-canceling machines, the establishment
OF postal museum, the SO per cent. increase IL
| free delivery offices. the new Washington post
| Office o compilation of postal laws and regula.
| tions, a saving of 81, 100000 mail contracts
| and OF Sl5oOO0 on stamped paper, the sorting O.
| mails In transit on the cars, the simplicity OF
| book. k.keeping methods for all the post oflces
| three new kinds of postal cards and new Sc.
| ries OF stamps, safer registry of mails and
| surer collection Of periodical postage.
The new ocean mail service applies to eleven
| lines, comprising, when completed, forty-ono
ships of s5, 800 tonnage. The total outlay up to
| July 1, 1892, for the foreign mail service per-
| formed and expedited under the new policy was
Sl205'9, and the cost Of the service fo-' tao
| present fiscal year will be greater.
On free delivery the postmaster general says:
| 1.-THE experiments have related to villages,
| but it has been daily service, and II has
| cleared Il profit. 1t is easy enough, therefore,
| to say that the free delivery can be extended
| further and further, and it ought to be done
| whether 1T pays u profit to the department or
| not"
In the matter OF the collection of mail fron
| letter boxes at house doors, Mr.. Wanamaker
says:
I'm Washington city, where the test of one of
these boxes was made for one month, an hour
or more day was saved to the carrier, and IL
| St Louis where the test of another one of these
| boxes was purposely made as hard possible,
| 1t was found that there was actually no loss Of
| time, and the poStmasterS of ST. Louis and
Washington promptly and unqualifedly de-
| clared that the collection OF mail from houses
could be undertaken by the present carrier
forces. The work of introducing the house
letter box is now vigorously under way
or his proposition to divide the country into
postal districts Mr.. Wanumaker says:
"Ths, like other great postal reforms can
be only question OF time. The proposed sys.
TEN would accomplish in practical way the
purpose of the bill to select fourth-cass post
masters without political intervention We
snail soon grow to 1000 900 post offices and to 20
600 or 1000 postal employees. There must be
concentration, consolidation and simplitication,
and with it all the extension of facilities every.
where will be not only possible, but perfectly
easy and natural"
The postal telegraph and postal telephone arec
OF course, strenuously advocated. as formerly.
or one-cent postage Mr. Wanamakcr says:
I'm my report Of year ago said, and have
now tosay, that one-cent letter postage is near
possibility
The postmaster general also advocates q
classification of clerks and submits bill for
the purpose, urgcsaregular pay for substitute
carriers ana Il certain payment to carriers for
! leave of absence; advocates the abolition OF
box rents and private letter Offices; urges tn
reduction OF money order fees the simplifica
tion OF the postal note, so that II better sup
plies the need Of fractional currency, and sug-
gests how applications for money orders can be
made easier.
The report closes with the following:
my ideal for the American postal service is o
: system modelled upon district plan with fewer
Offices, and these grouped around central oifices
| and under thorough supervision. BY this means
ut least 10000 offices could be abandoned that
produce nothing to the department, and in the
place OF every non-money order and nonregis-
ter office abolished might be put an auto
matte stampselling machine and u letter
box to receive mail With the money saved
should be instituted system OF collection and
= delivery by mounted carriers bicycles and
Star route and messenger contractors and grad
, ually spread the delivery oil over the country.
The classes OF postage should be reduced to
three and the rate OF postage the world over to
one cent for each half ounce for the average
l weight OF letter is now threeeighths OF an
ounce. wo lid indemnify to the extent OF SIC
for evsry lost registered letter,
The organization of the department should
be permanent, except In the case OF the post
4 master scneral and the fourth assistant, and
r would add three new Offices: deputy post
master general, 10 be stationed at New York: q
deputy postmaster general, to be stationed nj
San Francisco, and comptroller, to be sta
toned at tn, department in Washington Al
postmasters, presidential and fourth class, and
= all employees IN all branches OF the department,
: should have specific term OF four years, er
$ | good behavior, and their reappointment shoule
be subject to the comptroller OF the department
/, | whose judgment should be based upon records
would unity the work, hold 1t up by q stront
e controlling hand, reduce the hours of labor q
4 almost all points, equalize and advance the pay
, make the promotions in every branch for meri
. alone and retire old or disabled clerks perhaps
on a pension fund TO be provided by an annua
S payment Of one-half of per cent out of eacl
q months salary.
q IA postal telegraph and telephone service
the postal savings repositories, pneumatic
tubes or some electrical device between cit,
;, sub-stations and main oiiices, ferries railroat
l. stations and central offices in oil large cite
=. should be employed without delay The erection
Of immense costly buildings for post offices
y ought to be stopped and the department ough
n TO be allowed to expend fixed sum, o
from 100000 to s5,0oO0OO each year in tn
erection OF buildings upon u fixed plan, sucl
as Postmaster General Villas recommended.
r would grant larger discretion to the head OF tn
~ department to experiment with postal inven
tions and fix stated periocs in the order of bus
. ness of the house and senate post ONCE CON
Y mittees to call upon the postmaster general 70
f information and censure alike, at which time
n too, he could have an opportunity, within righ
limitation, TO present postal subjects. l woul
modify the system of fines and deductions upo
l. railroads and establish system OF compcnss
% | tiOn based SDeel-a 70