The morning news., 1899-11-11
OVER A TON OF MAIL A DAY.
SHOWING OF sAVANNAH's POST
OFFICE TO THE DEPARTMENT.

OfHeinI Record Kept for ThiFty-ive
Days of the weights of Each Class
of Mail by All POstORces ThrOugh-
out the Countrywide Information
Desired for Statistical Uses by the
Department savannah's Total
76,OIS POundS-WOuId Have Been
30 Per Cent. GreOter for septem-
bcr-POstonice Receipts Promise TO
Exceed Those of Last Year.
Few people have any idea of the i'm
mense amount of mail handled daily by
the Savannah postofice. In fact, the
postofice people did not realize It them
selves until recently. A recent order. IS
sued by the department, to each postof-
flee, large and small throughout the coun-
try, directed that all the mail matter orig
mating in each Office during each day.
from Oct 10 Nov. 6, inclusive, should
be weighed, each class being weighed sep
arately, and a detailed report furnished
the department for the period named
Why the department chose a period of
thirty-five days instead of an even month
is not known 10 the postofice people and.
pose the figures are wanted. 1t is suppos-
ed, however, that it is in the line of sta
tistical Information collected for the pur-
poses of the department The reports
viii show the amount Of work conducted
at each Office, and win furnish a basis for
calculations as TO the amount of stamps
which should be sold by it.
The results of the first days Weighing at
the Savannah office showed total of 2,O1s
pounds Of mail Of all classes, or a little
more than one ton. The next day 1908
pounds were handled, while Oct. showed
2TS pounds. On Oct. there were 2,542
and on Oct p, 2,546 pounds. The results
showed that the amount of mail handled
is much greater during the first half of
the month than during the latter half.
This is attributed In part to the fact
that merchants and business men general
iy make a practice of sending out state>
ments to their customers during the early
part of the month. As the month grew
older the weights decreased. Oct. 13 show
ing only 1887 pounds, and Oct 20 only !. .7Ss.
being the lowest weight taken during the
period. With Nov. l the amount of NAH
matter again rapidly increased and the
last day on which the weighing was con.
Quoted showed the heaviest mail of any
the amount being 1904 pounds. The total
weight for the thirty-five days was 7601s
pounds, or over a ton a day This was
OF matter originating at the Savannah Of
ice and does not include matter dispatched
here from other Offices. OF the amount
stated, 74,454la pounds We're dispatched bv
railroad, leaving only a little over 500
pounds for distribution in the city. AS
this was largely in the shape of letters and
postAs, however, its handling was no
small item.
The total weight of first class matter
was l3,427 pounds u ounces, while that of
second class matter was 30 $50 pounds. OF
third and fourth class matter there was
s'e62 pounds 1S ounces. while government
free matter amounted to 2447 pounds 70
ounces Equipment including sacks and
pouches. weighed 2O,4i915 pounds
Had the weighing begun a month ear
ller, - said Postmaster Doyle yesterday
Il think our total would have reached 100 =
900 pounds, September was the heaviest
month we have had this year. due to the
immense amount of matter sent out by the
railroads during that month and to the
further fact that it is the month in which
the business houses send out their fail an
nouncements and distribute advertising
matter to their customers"
The work of weighing the mail was con-
Quoted by Mr. T. II. ODonovan. chief
mailing clerk and was performed with
mathematical accuracy. This is the first
time in Mr.. Doyle's experience as post
master that an order of this kind has been
issued though Mr.. Donovan remembers
similar order some ten years previously
1t is customary TO weigh the mail matter
for short periods of time about once a
year in order to obtain basis for max
ing contracts with The railroads, but the
purposes of this order are not believed to
have had the railroads especially in view
II was noticed that almost invariably
| that Sundays showed the smallest amount
of mail matter of any day in the week. In
| fact, were il not for the Morning News
| Sunday edition. with its larger size and
/ increased circulation over the daily issue,
| the postoffice receipts in avoirdupois
| weight, would be very light on that day.
! With the aid of The Morning News, how
ever, the weight of the Sunday receipts is
brought almost to the average of the other
! days of the week
While there is evidently an increase in
the weight of the mail handled the post
Office receipts are easily keeping pace with
| this increase. Notwiths anding the fact
! that the presence of many thousand sol
diers here last winter hefped to swell the
postofiice receipts for the last fiscal year
| in excess of any previous year the re-
ceips for the present year so far are i'm
excess Of those OF last year and
| il the present rate of increase
| is kept up viii surpass all pre-
vious records Of the office During eight
days recently the average receipts of the
| Office were 500 a day. Postmaster Doy2e
attributes the increased receipts 10 i'm
proved business condi ions, and the fact
that Savannah is doing a larger business
| with the outside world than ever before
In fr1 yet Will H. 2 0nf
pounds, the postohlce at Monteith shows
| UP with 800 hounds Tor the same psrlol.