The indicator., 1894-12-01

shows that the postal telegraph en-
tails total annual loss of about $2,-
100000. He points out that in coun-
try where the territory is so large the
cost of postal telegraph would far
exceed nny possible receipts or ben
Gifts.
MIR. E,ssell gives the following daily
average business rf the department
-.'hich shows the vastness of .be pos
tai service,
Number OF mir, Of post route run.
1,10O,0OO. Humber of stamps fhhhuiac-
tured, 100000; number of envelope
manufactured. 100000; number Of
postal cnrds manufactured, 100000
htiinhcr of pieces mailed, 15,IO0.OoO;
number of letters mailed, 100000;
number of pieces of mail matter als-
tributed and rcdistributcd by railway
postal clerks. 2T,500,000; number of
pieces handled In dead letter office, III
900; daily transactions in money order
| business, S1,1O0,0yU, dsilY expens"s,
S221 100
The postmaster general believes in
civil service in the jostGfice depart
ment He says:
"If the system has produced such
good results in tic clerical force Of the
department, 1t is reasonable 20 III.
quirc whether something like 1T couiu
not be applied with advantage TO the
lower grades of postmasters. For more
| than one generation the American pcD-
pie have been trained 10 regard thn
postotiicc rs inseparable from the vary
| ing fortunes of the two great political
parties. md In conc instances, even
as leGitimatcly following the vlclssl-
tudes of mere factions within Il party.
This fallacy is TO be dcplored. The
intelligence Of our people has long out
grown tllc iiOt'On that any one pcliti-
cal party enjoys II monopoly of admin
istrativc talent. The local pOsto!tice -
closely connected with the everyday
life OF the people who patronize it,,
and nothing is further from the prin-
ciples of home rule and majority rule
than 10 fOfcS snv change whatever.
Yet this is what happens ithH is bound
to happen rs long as the postoliices tt.
main in the public mind, and hence in
the practice of the government assO-
cintcd with politics.
"'rhe postal service must either be
taken out of the political field alto
gether and surrounded with the same
conditions which conduce to the health
of private business. or be divided,
for administrative purposes, into two
sections. the one political and the
other non-political, each under Il sep
arate head, so the executive authority
on the non-political side shall not be
required to give any of his Thought to
the improvement of the postal sys-
tenn"
Mr.. Bisscll refers to the bill now
pending in congress to rciicSc the Uost-
master general of the responsibility
of postoliice appointments. Comment
ing upon this bill, the postmaster gen.
eral says:
"Whether such plan is, or is not,
the best plan that can be devised, it Is
at least the formulation of plan
which is entitled to the most earnest,
careful and immediate consideration
and may become Il foundation upon
which to build. What is earnestly de-
sired and what daily appears more of
Il necessity. is legislation of some kind
which will insure an Improvement
upon present methods"
Mr.. Bissell closes his report with q
request that Il new building be pro.
yided for the postottice department.
He says interest on the cost of an ad-
equate building would be less than
the amount of rent paid.