The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-07-12
OLD POSTOFFICE PAPERS
MIR. OvERSTREET RECEIVES A
BATCH AT WASHINGTON.
Throw Light ON Management of Local
OGce I'm Days Before
the War.

Recently the auditors division Of the
Postoffice Department at Washington has
been cleaning house and burning many Of
the old papers. Representative Overstreet
requested that any of the old papers relat-
ing to the Indianapolis postoffice be re-
turned to him and yesterday he turned over
to Postmaster Hess bundle of old official
papers relating to this office. The papers
date back to 1s45 and are yellow with age.
The oldest of the papers covers the term
of Livingston Dunlap. AT that time there
seems to have been an arrangement by
which subscriptions to Eastern publications
were taken by the postmasters and entered
upon their accounts and reports to the
Postoffice Department. Such entries are
only found, however, during Mr.. Dunlap's
term.
One OF the interesting documents in the
collection is the bond of William W. Wick.
signed April %, 1853. before Justice of the
Peace James McCready. The bond was for
5000 and the sureties offered were Slough
ton A. Fletcher, James p. Drake. Dennis
L. Mcfarland. Edmund Browning and Her
vey Bates. The volume of business done
during the quarter ending Dec. 81, 1856.
amounted to s., 605.92, of which s., Use was
for stamps sold and $2ol.56 for the post
masters salary. AS an indication of the
finances OF the Indianapolis postofice at
that time the following letter. written by
Mr.. Wick to the auditor of the treasury
for the Postoftice Department, Is offered:
THE balance due me on my general ac-
count, prior to and independent OF the
balance above stated on my returns for the
quarter ending Dec. 81, is S65l.47. Add the
balance on quarterly returns. $20l.56, makes
a balance due the p. Nj. TO date sS5S03
"For want Of funds / am paying l per
cent. a month for money to carry on the
office-say S4oo-hence, l hope renewal
of my former request to place funds at my
disposal TO the extent of six or eight hum
dred dollars will not be deemed unreason-
able. The presumption relied on by the
third assistant in his letter of response to
my former request is now set aside by
facts" There is no record among the pa
pers on file of the department having
placed the money at Mr.. Wick's disposal:
WiclS 70 1.-The the department. the period shortly
before the opening or the civil war must
have been one of panic, so far as the banks
lowing letter, written Sept. %. 1857. which
involves the question OF the safety of the
deposit of SO small a sum as two hundred
or three hundred dollars, indicates the way
the local financial institutions were regard
ed by Mr. Wick. The letter is one to the
postmaster general and Is as follows:
when / left the postoftice in this city
j sold my safe to my successor. To keep
cash in my house Is dangerous, for thieves
break through and steal To keep it in
bark is dangerous for much the same rea-
son. If Winslow, Lanier & Co., Of New
York, were to break, all OF our banks would
break. Two or three are gone and the rest
have nothing but credit. Be pleased, there
fore. to draw on me for 500 or $500 imme-
diately, and for my final balance at the
earliest possible moment.