Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1894-05-25
The Bennington Post Office.
FIRST WALL.

Postmaster Robinson took possession
of his Office Monday morning, taking an
inventory of stock on hand and giving a
receipt therefor. He at once appointed
ii. W. Martin as assistant, Herbert Rob
inson as stamp clerk and John P. Guilt
imam as postal order clerk. OF course the
carriers remained undisturbed by virtue
of the civil service rules. The appoint
ment of Mr.. Martin, who created all
there is to this Office while he was post
master, is most happy one. Mr.. Mar
tin made certainly one of the most eff
ficient officials that ever held similar
Office anywhere. He took the office
when it was a fourth-rats concern, with
poor postal connections and without
free delivery. He removed the Office to
its present location, fitted it up with
every convenience found in the first-class
offices, brought the receipts up to the
sum required by law to constitute sec
ond-class Office, induced the authorities
to establish free delivery system before
the population required under the rule
warranted it, got postal connections
down to a perfect nicely, and all of this
largely at his own expense. Indeed, it is
understood that the years that Postmas-
ter Martin held office his income little
more than covered all the expense he had
incurred. He was at one time from two
to three thousand dollars behind in the
operation, but finally recOuped the loss
and came out slightly ahead.
SECOND PLANT.
1t may have been noted that when
Postmaster Pierce went out of Office he
was presented by the employees with a
honHGnnnn nhair Not vuhar
Postmaster Martin laid down the burden
of official position. Here may be drawn
the parallel. Postmaster Marian selected
at his own option--no civil service ex-
animation then being required-the very
men who failed to remember him at the
end Of his term with any token whatever
of the favors he had personally bestowed,
but did not forget the man who could
not remove them at his own option, the
civil service rules being then in force, or
bestow upon them any favor whatever,
Postmaster Martin made the Office more
than it is today-furnished it at his own
expense $2400,-with the aid of
friends, made the positions possible and
appointed these very men to them and
paid their salaries out of his own pocket
for more than nine months. Perhaps his
favors were not appreciated Perhaps it
was an oversight entirely.-the failure to
recognize benefits bestowed. But it
was ever thus. The undeserVing are
very apt to gobble up the greater reward.
Mr.. Pierce has run the Office for all it was
worth, got out of it all there was in ii, let
it retrograde for the want of little en-
ergy and brain work., and for this he has
reaped all that was to be garnered, being
remembered at the end-for what?
These excerpts are from the Benning-
ton Reformer of succeeding dates and in
dictate that Deputy and ex-Postmaster
Martin is furnishing Editor Livingston"
with data to Substantial his claim to
having been tone of the most efficient
officials that ever held similar Office any
where" And yet, after furnishing the
material, and editor Livingston" hav-
ing worked it up in his best vein, the
ex-Postmaster does not seem entirely
happy. Let us add a few facts:
1st. The civil service rules, upon which
so much stress is laid, have not been in
force much more than year, and even
under these there is no difficulty in dis
charging clerk or causing the removal
of a carrier the appointment to the po-
sition is where the rules apply in the ar
bitrary sense referred to.
End. The removal of the Office from
Library building to its present location
was largely through the endeavors of the
late John V. Hall and ex-Postmaster
Pierce, backed by the people living west
of North and South streets. Fully $1,000
of the said S2400 lin round numbers),
was raised by subscription, and the larg-