The times., 1897-04-16
Limited Indemnify Favored Tor
Letters That Go Astray.
COMPLAINTS OF LAST YEAR
OF Actual Losses Involved Many
cideDts-Few Dep tdntiOnS by
Postal Countries That
Indemnify Losers.

:
toward proposition which has frequently
| been recommended by his predecessor, that
| limited indemnity be allowed for rrgis-
| tered matter lost in the mails. lie viii
doubtless ask that authority be granted
! tile department by law to indemnify the
owners of lost registered matter to AN
extent not exceeding 81 0 In any one case
| The records of the office OF the chief
| postoffice Inspector shua that during the
| last year the number OF complaints rela-
| tive TO registered matter originating in
| this country and addressed to domestic
| offices 5,S17. or the total number
| OF complaints, 4,50l were fully nvesti-
| gated and Investigations into the remain
| ing ,316 cases are proceeding OF the
| cases investigated only $50 We're found
| to involve actual losses, and OF this number
1855 were chargeable to the burning ana
wrecking of postoffices and postal cars.
steamboats,, and other unavoidable acci-
dents.
One hundred and ninety losses were due
TO depredations committed by postal Of
ficials; 23l were due TO depTedations com
mitted hy outside persons, and in 1872
cases OF loss the responsibility could not
be fixed. The recoveIies made through
the office of the chief inspector, through
the dead letter office and through outside
parties was 99S, leaving the number of
cases In which recovery was found TO be
impossible but 500 According To the rec
ords of the office of the Third Assistant
Postmaster General the losses amounted
to but one piece of registered mail in
every 1921
or the irrecoverable losses, 232 involved
official matter, such as postage stamps
and stamped paper dispatched TO post
masters, leaving $50 private losses AS
compared with other years the losses were
heavy, due mainly to the greater number
of railroad and steamboat accidents
During the first session of the last
Congress a bill was introduced in the
House Of Representatives favoring in
demnty for losses of first-cass registered
mail matter TO the extent of actual values,
in no case, however, to exceed SO for
one registered piece. This hill was favor
ably reported by the House Committee ON
Postoffices and Post Roads, but no further
action was taken
Twenty seven OF the principal countries
OF the postal uaion pay limited indemnity
neStic mail service. These countries are:
Austria Hungary, Belgium, Bulgaria, CO.
lomhia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican
Republic. Egypt, Spain. France, Germany,
Great Britain, Greece, Haiti, Italy, Luxcn-
burg, Norway, Netherlands. Persia, PoFtu-
gal, koumania, Russia, ,servia, Siam, swct en-
Switzerland, and Turkey The loves: in
demuity guaranteed isthat by Persia, which
T.. q bn iut
guaranteed by Great Britain which is from
f5 70 ESQ, or from S2433 to $243.30.
In the United Kingdom an extra registra-
ton fee is required for an indemnity
above 60 The average indemnity allowed
by the other countries is about SO
The countries which make no guarantee
are: United States, Bolivia, Brazil, Chila,
Congo, British India, Japan, Paraguay, and
Uruguay.
The failure of this country to pass an
il demnity law has deprived us here of in
ternationaI indemnity for registered letters,
as provided for in the Postal Union con-
ventiOn.
4 small indemnity should be strong in
ducement to senders to Use the registry
system for the transmission of money,
where almost certainty of detection deters
the weak aud wicked from crime. Because
of the speedy dispatch and delivery Of mai.
matter it is expected by the postal officials
that money will continue to be sent through
the mails They urge that if money let
ters are sent in the ordinary mails they
are a constant source Of temptation, and a
considerable portions of the fund for salar-
les and expenses of postoffice inspectors
is used for the detection of depredators
upon such letters in the ordinary mail.
If the sworn value of each piece )f
private registered matter lost last year
was the proposed maximum indemnity of
$40, the department would have had TO
pay for these losses only So, $50.