Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-01-20
MAIL CARRIERS.
Mr.. Hoar Begins Movement
Against Gripping the Service.
All That is Needed, the Massachusetts
Senator Said, is An Appropriation
of SI5o,ooo.

bate was precipitated in the senate to-
day by the introduction of resolution
by Mr.. Hoar of Massachusetts, provid- /
ing for am inquiry by the committee ON
post offices and post roads, concerning
! the recent order of the postmaster gen
eral reducing the force Of letter carriers |
| in several cities of the country. Mr.. |
Hoar declared that the order had had
the effect of a dynamite bomb in Great |
/ ing CONSERVATION among business men
throughout the country, while appar-
! entity all that was needed by the post
office department was an appropriation
Of $l50,O00 fully to maintain the eff
cheney of the carrier service.
! The debate took a wide range, Mr..
| Wolcott chairman of the committee ON
/ post offices, insisting that many New
| England people represented by Mr..
Hoar were responsible for the deficiency
/ in the funds Of the post office depart
ment, because they insisted that the
| government should carry second-claSs
mail at an enormous loss; and Mr.. Allen
of Nebraska charging that the govern
ment was annually defrauded out of
millions of dollars through the under
! weighing of mail matter. The reSoll1-
| tion in a modified form is still pending.
| Mr.. Hoar asked immediate considera-
| ton for his resolution. Mr.. Wolcott,
| chairman of the post offices and post
roads committee, objected to the refer
ence of the resolution to his committee.
| He said that the committee was utterly
powerless to afford relief for the trouble
| at which the resolution was directed.
! He thought the resolution ought by all
means go to the committee on appro-
priations. The committee on post offices
and post roads, he added is anxious to
extend and make more efficient the let
ter-carrier system, but is powerless.
Mr.. Hoar thought the question was a
most important one, affecting as it did
hundreds of thousands of people who re-
ceived mail. By the order of the post
master general, his own city Of 100000
population was startled by reduction
of ten in it's force of carriers New York,
Boston and other cities had suffered a
reduction in their forces of letter car
riers in about the same proportion.
Mr. Carter said that the committee had
considered the subject, and reached the
conclusion that what was needed was
simply an increase in appropriation for
the carrier branch of the service. He
thought the pending resolution ought to
go to the appropriation committee.
ut is absolutely i1tolerable," said
Mr. Hoar that this great branch Of the
public service should stop or be Grip
pied. Many of the smaller cities are to
/ be deprived practically of mail delivery
facilities, and it is time that something
| be done to avoid business enlbarrass-
ment."
Mr.. Allison said he had reason to be-
lieve there was a deficit in the free de-
livery system. Congress could not say
how many letter carriers should be as
signed to the various cities. That was
solely within the province of the post
master general
'eThe postmaster general is anxious to
give the people of the United States a
1 good carrier service, interrupted MI
Hoar. ''but he has mot Athe money"
'fThe point is" resumed Mr.. Allison,
sthat the postmaster general has pre-
scented estimates to congress too low TO
cover the expenses of his department"
! Mr.. Allison urged that the postmaster
general be sent a resolution lnquirlng
why the issuance of such an order as
| had provoked this discussion was nec-l
essary, and what remedy was neces-
sary. MIR. Wolcott said it was well I'M
| derstood that the second-class mail OF
the country absorbs So per cent of the
| expenses of the post office department
and supplies only about 3 per cent OF
| the revenue.
If congress should enact into law the
measure relating to second-class mat |
| ter, which will be laid before congress,
| the recurrence of the present difficulty
will be obviated.
Mr.. Wolcott called attention to the |
opposition of the publishers of New
England to the bill restricting second /
class matter, and pointedly intimated to
Mr. Hoar, that, if New England bust
ness men desired excellent free deliv
cry service, they ought to be willing toI
prevent the government from being i'm
posed upon by the second-class mail
| fraud
cit is opportune,'' said Mr. Wolcott,
Ito call the senate's attention to the tre-
mendous loss which is being sustained
| by the government in carrying second
class matter at one cent a pound
After some good natured sparring be-
tween Mr. Hoar and Mr.. Allison, as tol
the terms of the resolution, the former
agreed to change it, so that the post
master general should be instructed
forthwith to inform the senate what
amount Of money was necessary to
maintain the excellence of the carrier
service.
Mr.. Allen spoke sarcastically of the
good times the people of New England
We're having under the Dingley law
with their strikes and lockouts. Hel
| thought that good many of them
would now have time to go to the post
| offices to get their mall if it was not
promptly delivered by a carrier. He
thought the great point involved in the
discussion OF post office finances was the
| charge that there was an annual leak
age of from eight to ten millions of dol
lars on account of the underweighing of
mail matter.
1T is most remarkable" said Mr. AL
| len, that charges of such gravity
should be made in the public prints, and
yet that party in power should remain
! with reference to them as silent as the
grave. If we only had the nerve to
eradicate these frauds, we should have
money enough to put corps of efficient
land
| Mr.. Chandler objected to the use of
| the word forthwith in Mr.. Hoar's res
oution and as the Massachusetts SEN
ator declined to eliminate it, he object
ed to the resolution, and it went over
until tomorrow.
! Mr.. Chandler secured passage of a
resolution directing the committee on
interstate commerce to inquire whether
the fund provided for in rules 16 and
| II of the joint traffic association is law
| fully in existence; to examine the details
of it's expenditures as to whether or not
poses; and whether any illegal or inn
proper use of the funds could be prohib-
tied and punished by law.
| Mr.. Vest gave notice that he would
move tomorrow to take up for consid-
! Grafton the Teller resolution reported by
| the finance committee, providing that
! bonds of the United States may be re-
deemed in standard silver dollars. Mr..
Vests notice seems to indicate an in
tention on the part of some senators to
| ddsplace, temporarily, the Hawaiian an
| nexation treaty, as 1t is evident, as Mr..
White of California said, that the con-
| ~