The record-union., 1897-01-20
LOW-PAID LETTER CARRIERS,
They Are Among Uncle Sans Best En-
plOyeS.
Favorable Report on the Bill Now
Before Congress to Increase
Their Pay.

! If there is one class of poorly paid men
in the service of the Government it is
those who distribute the letters that
| come in the mails-commonly known as
| letter carriers-and it is hoped the bill
now before Congress which provides for
something approaching adequate pay
| for their services will become a law.
| A man to be eligible to the position
of letter carrier must be able to pass a
a rigid examination before a Civil Serv-
| ice Board, must be young, active, intel
| ligent, sober and honest Such men are
certainly deserving Of decent compensa-
| ton for their services, and only that
class are employed in this city They are
| deeply concerned in the success of the
| bill now before Congress-
| At the last session of Congress a bill
| to increase the pay of letter carriers was
passed to print in the House, and Mr..
| Sperry, from the Committee on Post
offices and Post-roads, submitted the
| following favorable report thereon:
The Committee on the PoStoffice and
| Post-roads, to whom was referred the
bill (II. r. 260 for increased pay and
adjustment of the salaries of letter car
riers, report as follows:
I'VE have had the bill under consid-
Grafton and recommend the passage of
the same.
THE bill provides that the pay of let
ter carriers in cities of more than $4,000
| population for the first year of service
| shall be $780, for the second year of
service $500, for the third year of sery-
| ice, 81 900, for the fourth year of serv-
| ice and thereafter, $1,000 After June
| 80, 1896, the pay of letter carriers in
cities under 10000 population shall be
for the first year Of service 5000, for the
second year of service $500, and for the
third year Of service and thereafter,
! 81 900.
The free delivery service is now a
source of quite large income to the
Government, and should this bill become
a law it would still be more than self
| sustaining. 1t is believed that the car
riers, who are faithful and who are to be
advanced under the provisions Of this
| BILL having full knowledge Of their
/ duties and the residences of those they
serve, would be willing to continue in
| the discharge of their duties and would
not be looking for other positions if this
| change in salaries could be obtained. 1t
would put the service on a more stable
| foundation and the benefits intended to
| be derived from the civil service laws
would be realized in part should this bill
| become a law.
| "A carrier enters the service as sub
stitute at d salary Of 81 per year and
| the pro rata salary Of the carrier whose
route he serves. Several years may
| elapse before he receives a regular ap-
| pointment, and is entitled to the lowest
pay provided by this bill.
| The carriers life is a hard one. He is
| exposed to all kinds of weather, the
summers heat and the winters cold
The service they perform is a severe tax
upon their constitutions, and they grow
old very fast in the service.
I'VE quote from the report of Post
master-G General Wanamaker for the f1s-
cal year ended June 80, 1889:
4" From the inauguration Of the free
| delivery system. July /, 1863, until
June 30 1874, the cost Of the service ex-
ceeded the receipts from local postage.
On June 30 1915, the system had become
| Self-sustaining. with a balance over Of
S6l,511 30. From that day the balance
on the credit side increased from year to
year until, on June 80, 1889, it had
reached the sum of S2,57S,9 ,979 92. an
amount far in excess of the expectations
Of its founders. 1t will be noticed that
the number Of pieces of mail handled by
carriers during the last fiscal year was
3,0S5, 800, $40, an increase over the pre-
| ceding year of 454 943 1872. Notwith-
standing this almost fabulous result it
&c. iy1f=
which reach this office on account of
| misdelivery Of mail, delay in delivery,
delivery to wrong address, and other
errors of the carrier will not exceed 300
per year.
TT is believed that the amounts named
in this bill for their salaries are not too
large when we take everything into con-
sideration. We therefore believe the
bill to be just and proper one and
cheerfully recommend its passage"