Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1896-12-10
AboIishing the Fee System.
THE POSTAL SERVICE.
Work of That Department During
the Past Year Reviewed.


Our Postoffice department is in good
condition and the exhibit made OF It's oper-
ations during the fiscal year ended June
80. 1896 if allowance is made for imper-
fections in the laws applicable to 1t, is
very satisfactory. The total receipts DUR
ing the year were $82, 499, 20S.40. The total
expenditures were 500, 626 1864, exclu-
sive of 81, 559, S9S.27, which was earned by
the Pacific railroad for transportation and
credited on their debt to the government.
There was an increase of receipts over the
previous year of $5,516 ,03021, or IL per
cent, and an increase of expenditures OF
So. 1856, 124O2 or 442. The deficit was 81
679. 95619 less than that of the preceding
year. The chief expenditures OF the postal
service are regulated by law and are not
in the control of the acknowledgements.
All that he can accomplish by the most
watchful administration and economy is
to enforce prompt and thorough collectlon
and accounting for public moneys ana
such minor savings in small expenditures
and in letting those contracts, Tor post
office supplies and star service, when are
not regulated by statute
An effective cooperation between the
auditors office and the postofflce Depart
ment and the making and enforcement OIL
orders by the department requiring I'M.
mediate notification to their suretles OF
any delinauencies on the part of postmas-
make more frequent deposits OF postal
funds have resulted in prompter audit
ing of their accounts and much less de-
fault to the government than heretofore.
Abuses of the Mails.
The years report shows large extern
sions both of star route service and rail-
way mail service, with increased postal
facilities. Much higher accuracy in hand
ling mails has also been reached, as ap-
pears by the decrease Of errors in the
railway mail service and the reduction OF
mail matter returned to the dead letter
office.
The deficit for the last year, although
much less than that of the last and pre-
ceding years, emphasizes the necessity for
legislation to correct the growing abuse
OF second-class rates, to when the DELL
cheney is mainly attributable. The trans
mission at the rate of l cent pound OF
serial libraries, advertising sheets, house
organs periodicals advertising some par
ticular house or institutionO sample cop
les and the like, ought certainly to be dis
continued. A glance at the revenues re-
ceiyed for the work done last year VIII
show more plainly than any other state
ment the gross abuse of the postal service
and the growing waste of it's earnings.
The free matter carried in the mails for
the department Offices ETC., of the govern
ment and for Congress, in pounds amount
ed to 94,4SO, 1879. If this is offset against
buildings for postofices and stations, the
rental of which would more than COM
pensate fer such free postal service, we
have this exhibit:
Weight of mail matter (other than above
transmitted through the mails for the year
ending June 80, 1S9o)
Glass. Welght IDS. revenue.
Domestic and foreign let
tiers and postal cards a. ,o- go 900 40, 90 !.
Newspapers and periodi-
Gals. cent per pound. 34S,9SS,61S 299o, 4V5
Books. seeds, etc, cents -
per pound dS.tol,lto lo''-H'ooS'
a pound ........... 19e5o.1s7 3129.s21
Totals :. .512. e77. s2s s77o44 257
The remainder Of our postal revenue,
amounting to something more than $5,000,
600 was derived from box rents, registry
fees, money order business, and other
similar items.
The entire expenditures of the depart
ment, including pay for transportation
credited to the Pacific railroads was $92,
1856 1851, which may be considered as the
cost of receiving, carrying and delivering
the above mail matter. 1t thus appears
that though the second-claSS matter con-
,,tituted more than two-thirds of the total
that was carried, the revenue derived from
if was less than one-thirteenth of the total
expense.
The average revenue from each pound
of ffrst-class matter was SO cents; from
each pound of second-class 81 mills-(Of
the second-class 52,34S,297 was county
free matter'); from each pound of third
class 13.1 cents; from each pound of fourth
class 1876 cents.
/ The growth of weight of second-class
matter has been 299, COG, 900 pounds in 1894
to $4,000 900 in 1895, f.1d to almost S49,
coo 0C0 in 1896 and it is quite evident
this increasing drawback is far out
- any nOSSihlp growth of postal
revenues.