Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1896-06-12


Should any postmaster refuse TO ac-
cept speeches in properly franked enve-
lopes offered them for mailing, VIII issue
the necessary instructions, II you VIII
| call my attention to the matter.
| Very respectfully, +. III. JONES.
First Assistant Postmaster-GeneraL'
NEWSPAPERS.
TN regard to certain newspapers, which
| II IL purported were sent over our line
| in April: as / understand IT, regular
| postage was paid, and there Is no law
! which would prevent advertising matter
from being forwarded through the mails
at any time, and the Postmaster-Genera
can make no just complaint about that,
for we send out quantities OF paid ad-
vertising matter all the year round. and
there Is no legal or equitable reason
why we should withhold matter from the
| mails during the weighing period. The
month selected by the government for
/ the weighing Of mails is one I'm which the
smallest business is done, and 49, per
cent. is deducted from the totals. In order
that the minimum sum may be paid for
| carrying mails throughout the four years.
"The Seaboard Airline railroad re-
| ceives much less mail pay per mile than
any other road OF its length in the United
! States, and as / can show from a COM
parison of their published reports, has
| been for years unjustly treated in these
matters
I'VE received notice from the depart
/ ment on January 23d that mail would be
weighed on all routes on our lines south
| Of Weldon for thirty consecutive work
| ing days, commencing February 26th, and
| on March Goth we received the following
| letter, bearing date of March 18th:
'Sir,-Your telegram of the 18th in
/ gfont Genera i-Cuuarfpfpudouf White
relative to continuing the weighing on
| your lines for an additional ten days,
| has been referred TO this Office.
In reply, you are informed that It is
| the uniform rule of the department to
| weigh the mails on railroad mail routes
/ in a State or section al the same time,
/ and for thirty successive working days,
| as required by law.
This being the case, the department
| could not do as you request, without
| throwing itself open to the charge Of
| doing for your company that which 1t is
| frequently compelled to refuse to do for
| other companies. That II must decline to
! do
The reports of the weighing, so far
as received, indicate that II is progress
| ing satisfactorily. and that the results
/ are likely 10 be as favorable to the rail-
road companies as can be reasonably
| expected. Very respectfully,
(Signed C.. NELSON,
" Second Assistant Postmaster General
"In confirmation OF the above. / re-
ceived at my office on March Ath, the
/ following:
Railway Mail Service,
Office of Superintendent,
Third Division.
" Washington, March .. 1896.
" Subject: Completion Of mail-weighing.
| ~ T.. McBee, Esq, General Superin-
tendent, Portsmouth. Va:
'Sir.-The weighing OF mails on all
| Seaboard AIRLINE routes will be discon-
| tinued after Tuesday the 3lst instant
Kindly have scales kept in mail and
| baggage-cars on all trains departing from
any point on the line up to II o'clock mid
night of the Slst instant
Very respectfully.
| (Signed) " CHARLES w. VICKERY,
Superintendent
THE REWEIGHING.
"On receipt OF the above official notice.
we arranged for the adoption OF our sum
! mer schedule. and on March 18th discon-
| tinued two trains which had been car
| rying mail for over two years, for which
| service we had received no pay from the
government. Under these circumstances,
1t was a matter Of much surprise when
received on March 3lst 1.-TWO days
| after the change of our schedule)
| a telegram from the department stating
| that the weighing would be continued for
| thirty days more. On the Sd OF April
called at the Office Of the General Super
| intendent OF Railway Mail Service and
asked him why he proposed TO continue
| Weighing mails after notifying me that he
would not do So and his reply was, Be
bal cIa I acf
ed him If il was usual to reweigh every
time schedules were changed. He said IL
was not Now. do not object TO weighing
every month In the year, but | claim the
right of proper notice, and the privilege
| OF re-establishing the two trains which
were taken Off. / was not given the pro-
| per notice. but, on the contrary. was de-
ceived, as shown by the Second Assistants
| letter, and thereby lost 1000 pounds Of
mail per day, which he arbitrarily divert
| ed from the Seaboard Airline. l had ad-
vices from the department the latter part
| OF April however. that the weighing
would be discontinued on the 9Th of May.
and | have received tabulated statements
OF the weights over our line for April,
which are signed by the Second Assistant
| Postmaster General. and certified to by
| the superintendent Of Railway Mail Ser
| vice. as follows:
&" i do hereby certify that the foregoing
statement Of weights Of mail is correct,
| according TO daily returns made by sworn
employees of the department and the
statement of service is correct to the best
Of my knowledge and belief.
(Signed
CHARLES w. NICKERY,
Superintendent Railway Mail Service,
Third Division
(signed) "L. NJ TERRELL.
Superintendent Railway Mail Service,
Fourth Division
1--WE have had no notice from thu POST
Office Department 10 the contrary that
| the weights were not correct and we are
| entitled to our pay, under the legal me-
thods OF computing weights and their
sworn certificates Of the correctness of
| the same.
1.-THE published statement alleged to have
| been authorized by the Postmaster-Gene-
raj is unbecoming and libellous. and / am
| prepared TO court full. free, and fair in
| vestigation throughout with a further in
vestigatlon Of other lines. including the
different methods and prevailing customs
| by which the mail-pay is adjusted, or
will the Postmaster-G General authorize the
publication Of another statement and give
| his reasons why the Seaboard Airline
| was singled out and made the object Of
unjust criticism. or why We are discredit-
ed for carrying public documents. when 1t
was known to him that other lines had
carried tons Of public documents in March,
which had been shipped and reshipped.
weighed and rewelghed. besides thousands
Of pounds Of other matter. including ex-
ira carload lots OF patent-medicine adj
vertisements, all OF which passed appa-
| rently unnotlced by him: or could he have
been deceived by a lack of vigilance on
the part OF his inspectors, or were re-
ports withheld from him? II is certainly
a new departure for the head OF one OF
the chief departments of the government
10 use the great powers OF his Office,
through authorized statements in the
press, 10 injure a railroad company.