Arizona republican., 1899-01-05
THE RURAL DELIVERY
Reports Upon Its Operation
 on inc South Side.
The Only Complaint riade is That Carriers Are Not as Well Paid as They Deserve fO be.

Washington, Jan. 4.-(Spscial )-The first assistant postmaster general for the fiscal year contains the following on the working of the rural free deIiv cry service in Arizona
 Postoffice, Tempe, Maricopa County
 Ariz., October ,, 1898.
 A majority of people served appreci- ate the service and desire it's continu- ance.
 The amount of mail matter handled by carriers has increased. The aggre- gate number of pieces of mail matter both collected and delivered by rural carriers of this office Nor the last fiscal year was 1O9, ,791. The aggregate num- Der of pisces both collected and deliV- cred during the first two months of the present fiscal year was 18,908.
 The newspaper delivery increased during the war.
 The boxes used are of various do- seriptiOns. from a cigar or soap box tC a more elaborate one with lock and key. The majority of boxes have no locks.
 For the improvement of the service would suggest compensation consis- tent with the rates of wages and living in the respective localities and the number of miles traveled daily consid- cred. For instance, farm hand, young man, may be hired in Kansas or any of the states at from S10 to $15 per month. and found, while board and lodging may be had fer about $10. Such farm laborer betters his condition when he takes the position of rural carrier at $25 per month for covering a circuit of ten miles daily, while ill Arizona a farm laborer receives from $50 to $35 per month and found. the rates for board and lodging being con sidered at 9z5 Such a farm hand can not be induced to accept a rural car lier's position at S25 and cover a cir cult of thirty miles daily and keep horsss for the business. This has been our chief annoyance here-too snail salary-and the cause of so maIly changes JOHN J. HODNETT',
 Postmaster,
 Tempe, Ariz., Oct. 25, 1898.
 Rural delivery changes the entire en- vironment of farm life The great question evcI since the clcse of the civil war has been, What can be done to keep our boys on the farm? City life seems to draw them. Early in the Gay we now receive the daily and the news from all c2rts of the world. and five or six times as much reading mat ter as is wanted The result is, the young people have something to look forward to when the postman caul.S in sight and are contented with home or farm life. More rural delivery all over the land is the thing to preach from the housetops.
 We have no defects that I can see. The only thing to suggest is that the pay is t5o small; S3O per month would be low enough. As it now is, it is hard to get good men to hold on to the job.
 HENRY c. YAEGER.
 Tempe. Ariz., Oct 21, 1898.
 With me and my neighboIs rural de- livery is highly satisfactory, and we should very much regret to have it dis. continued. I have been taking three daily papers all summer Had it not Deen for the rural delivery I should not have had any, bsing seven miles from 3 p0stoff1ce. The Cnly fault 1 can hear is that you do not pay your men living wages. c. A. SAYLOR. Patents have been granted as fol- lows: John c. Wilt of Phoenix for pressure regulator. Pensions have been granted to Ari- | zonians as follows: Original-John | W. Selsor, Jerome, $6; Peter R. Dobbs. l Tempe, SIP; William Holiday, Pres eCtt, $6; Cylurus w. Logan, Williams. | }; William A. Mcfarland, Yuma, $S.
 Mrs. Lottie Define of California, who | vas appointed assistant matrCn of the | Fort Mojave Indian school, Arizona las declined the position.
 Richard McGhee, matrcn of the Klo- lolb Indian school, Oregon, has been transferred to Fort Apache Indian school HUNT.