The evening times., 1898-11-24
Kings Palace Department Stores, ssa m s . M n,. Ssse' e

ity to make the clerk hire appropriation
for clerks in all classes of postofiices. AT
present an allowance for clerk hire can
only be given to first and second class
postmasters It is stated that many
third-class postoffices. which only escape
by a few hundred dollars OF receipts from
being included In the second class. Lave
so much business that it is Impossible Tor
any one person to properly attend to II.
and the postmasters are constantly COM
pelled to pay for such clerical help rs
they need out of their own salaries.
There are 2.9lO third-class postottices in
the United States 790 second-ciass post
offices. and l76 first-class postoffices Au-
thority to employ clerks is only given TO
postmasters of the two last-named class
es IL is contended that if authority were
given to assign clerks to third-ciass post
offices where necessary, the temptation
for postmasters to pad their receipts
or to fraudulently increase their appar-
ent revenues so as To get into the second
class would be eliminated.
Free delivery was extended during the
fiscal year to fifty-nine offices. The re-
port of the auditor for the Postoffice De-
partment shows that there are 10 addi-
tional offices entitled to free delivery.
During the current fiscal year service
has been established at thirty-four OF
these offices. leaving seyenty-six to await
the consideration of the department. The
First Assistant Postmaster General rec
ommends modification of the eight-hour
law as applied to letter carriers, so as to
provide forty-eight hours for six days
work and only many hours on Sun
day within the eight-hour limit as are
absolutely necessary for the require
ments of the service. This recommended
ed by the convention of pOstmasters re-
Gently held at Detroit. and it is believed
| it's adoption would meet the approval of
| the letter-carrers themselves Mr.. Heath
recommends an additional grade of car
| riers, to be known as carrier sergeants,
| in all cities having fifty carriers or more.
and that these positions be assigned by
competitive examination among carriers
| who have served five years or more. The
| duties of these sergeants would be TO su-
| pervise the work of letter-carriers on
| their routes, and TO investigate COM
| plants.
He asks an appropriation for salaries
| of carriers at established offices for the
| next fiscal year of 81, ,691, 200: for the sala-
! ries of letter carriers at new Offices. $780,
| 600: for horse hire allowance. $40 000; car
fare and bicycles, $ls5,000: all other Incl
dentals, $l5O,C00. making a grand total for
| this service of l4,512. 200
He recommends a repeal of the law re-
| quiring the use of the present form of
| money order, in the interest of safety and
| simplicity. He also recommends authori-
| cation for the use of a postal check pay
| able to bearer.
A detailed report of the operations of
| the rural free delivery will be presented
| within fw days. Congress increased the
| appropriation for this purpose from $780,
/ 900 to Sl50000. and Mr.. Heath recon-
mends, in view of the success of the eX-
! tension of the service and the satisfaction
it has given, that an appropriation OF
$4,000 be made for rural free delivery
during the next fiscal year.