The Bessemer indicator., 1893-03-04
c. QuackenbuSh & Son.
THE STAR ROUTE SERVICE.

THE STAR ROUTE SERVICE.
'v'iion' Undergone by the Mounted
Nnil Cirrie = o the Kur South.
The star route mall service of this
country has made many men rich and
kept many men poor. The mail car
rier who jogs along the muddy country
roads in this state generally has not
an extra coat to his back and few ex-
ira dollars in his pocket The big
contractor. on the other hand-the
man who buys up many routes from
tho go 'einment-frequently has more
money than he knows what to do with.
At least other persons especially the
humble mail carrier sometimes think
so. However. says the Louisville
Coirier-Journal the profit in this
business is not what it once was by
great deal. for competition that lev
eller OF incomes, is now close
Every route must be bid for
separately and separate bond Civ
en- for each. The government is
very particular in this respect.
The bids are made according
10 the weight of the mail to be car
ried, the distance OF the route and the
numoer of times per week it has to be
carried. In few If any cases does the
man who makes the successful bid
carry the mail himself for generally
one man or one firm gets several hun
dred of the contracts The contractor
then sub-lets the routes to men who
agree to carry it for so much per year.
There is generally vast difference
between his idea Of what IL costs to
carry the nail and the governments.
1t is said that some carriers who have
to work every day do not make SO
cents per diem. Besides they have to
furnish their own conveyance. 1t is
generally carried on horseback though
buggy. a bus, or stage may be
used. This. in fact is the distinctive
characteristic of star route as differ
ent from other forms OF mail service.
The government does not specify how
it shall be carried.
The hardships OF the street car
driver are nothing compared with the
suffering that some Of the mail carri-
ers in this state have to undergo In
rain. snow, sleet and hail they have
10 take their long daily rides. The
thermometer may get SO low that cat
tie freeze in the field, but the mail
carrier is supposed TO be invulnerable
for the pay of SO cents day. He has
to catch trains, on pain of losing his
contract and thereby FORGETTING his
bond when the roads are little less
than beds OF quicksand. He has to
feed his horse. feed himself and family.
not to mention clothing and the ex-
pense OF keeping his vehicle in order,
II he uses one, for SO cents a day.
They must be wonders of economy,
these mail carriers. In some portions
OF the state especially in the
southea tern part the mail car
rier has to go only once week.
There are places not fifty miles from
Louisville where mail is received only
three times week. The carrier,
however has one thing to compensate
for his small pay, where mail is dis
tributed only once week. He Is
very important parsonage there, out
ranking the country 'squire except
when the examining trial Of MUIR
dcrer is to be held An eager crowd
who have not heard from the outer
world for six days await his arrival
The first sight OF him, as bis horse
turns bend in the country road. is q
village sensation. the greatest prob
ably since he made his last trip. In
addition tn the mail he carries the
gossip OF other neighborhoods and
the news from the entire outer world.
When he alights from his horse and
stretches bis limbs. he Is quickly the
confer Of crowd OF eager inquirers
Thus his small pay and many priva-
ti0ns arc not without their reward.
Our National statue OF Liberty.
The bronze statue OF liberty which
has crowned the dome OF the capitol
building at Washington for the past
twenty nine years is 10 feet 9 inches
high and weighs IA. 9s5 pounds. The
figure was cast in five sections, the
heaviest being Of 4. .740 pounds weight
The statue was all completed except
the head piece prior to December 2.
1858. the finishing being reserved for
that day. Crawford. who designed
the Hgure. submitted his model With :
liberty cap" but Jefferson Dsvl1
then secretary Of war objeotAd 70
such head covering. saying that the
old Phrygian emblem was . relic Of
dsersdSd people The sscrstary's OBJ
jsctions we're sustsiged end the we'll
known Indian head -dress wss substi-
tuted fov tAs Gap. Crawford got y. 600
for ths plsstes medsl Of Liberty; Clark
Mills ~ -, 100 fay castias her u
bronze; money espsedsd for labce aad