The morning call., 1893-11-26

bilities remarkably we'll. Bissell's mind is
an analytic one. He gets at the nut of a
question at once, and he doesn't bother
himself over details.
The new Postmaster-General works per-
| haps Just as hard. but he seems TO do his
work more easily. He gets to the office at
$50 in the morning and he works away
| here until 8 80 at night. putting in twice as
many hours as any Of his clerks. Still
| he does not look overtred. He is a we'll
| dressed, healthy looking giant, with a big
| head fastened to broad, fat shoulders by a
strong neck. He stands over feet in his
stockings. and j venture that he weighs
300 pounds. He is clean-looking
man and he seems to be as healthy
IN mind as be is in body. He is noted
for his reticence concerning himself and
| his department, and he is one of the
| few public meh who do not like TO see
| their names In the newspapers. He will
talk freely enough, provided be knows he
will not be quoted, and he is not an aristO-
| crat / sat some time and watched him as
he received his callers. A number of them
were business men, and among others
were some who had questions to answer
| or PROFOUND concerning contracts. / was
surprised to see how quickly he seemed to
grasp each situation as il came UP, and
how positively and quickly be passed upon
them. l find that he is making many
| radical changes In the organization of the
Postoffice Department. de is cutting
down expenses to the lowest notch where
ever they do not impair the efficiency of
| the mails.
The Postmaster-General finds it impera-
| tive TO reduce our postal expenses. The
hard times have considerably lessened the
postal revenues. There Is no business
barometer more sensitive than the post
Office. The mail increases or decreases
in proportion TO the amount of business
done, and il is safe TO say that there has
ia off in,
postal receipts. For the past thirty oil forty
years there has been an average Increase of
about per cent year in the postal reve-
nue. over that of the year preceding.
This increase has been so regular that
when Congress has made its appropriations
it has allowed for it. 1t did that last year.
Well, the revenues went along all right
up TO the 1st of June. ana during the first
three months of Mr.. BisselPs term the
percentage of increase was more than
eight per cent over the receipts of the cur
responding months of last year. In July
the hard times began, and the percentage
of increase dropped during that month
from eight per cent to three per cent. At
the close of August it was found that the
receipts were four per cent less than they
were during the August Of 1892. This
was decrease of eleven per cent over
what bad been anticipated, and the same
story will probably be told as TO the other
months Of this fall. The result is that the
appropriations will not equal the ex-
peuses, and the Postmaster General is
having his hands full in trying to make
the ends meet.
1t is interesting to note how the Post
masterGeneral is economizing. In big
business like that of the postoffice it is the
little things that count and 100000 has
just been saved by cutting off an order for
billion of the big Columbian stamps.
There is little difference between the or
m h 10 N
stamp in size, but the difference is big
enough to make the Columbian stamp cost
just about one-hundred:h of cent
more than the red stamp. The Colum-
han stamps cost just about II cents a
thousand, while the red stamps cost only
7H cents thousand. The change means
a saving of ten cents on every thousand
stamps, or OF S10c on a million stamps, and
of 100000 on a billion stamps. The last
admin nistratiOn made a contract for three
billions OF these stamps at seventeen cents
thousand. 1t was thought that there
would be great demand for them, but
they did not sell. The people did not want
them, and 1t was to the interest of the de-
partment to be released from their con-
tract. After considerable negotiation the
American Bank Note Company agreed to
let the Postmaster-General off from the
last billion. he consenting to take up 10
the amount of two billions of the stamps.
| The contractors could have held the de-
partment, but they did not, and thus Uu-
Gle Sam will have just 100000 profit OFF
| the operation.
| Another economy has just been inaugu-
rated in the making of the postal cards.
During the past few years we have been
using three different styles of cards. There
was a little white card for a cent for the
| ladies, yellow barn door az the same price
| for the big business man, and a middle
sized card for general use. 1t has cost con-
siderably more to make the three different
styles than one. and the Postmater- Cen
| eral has decided to use but one card, and