Amador ledger., 1900-06-29
RURAL DELIVERY SERVICE
Instructions From the De-
partment.
HOW 70 OBTAIN RURAL FREE DELIVERY SERVICE
The Form of Petition Used and the
Method Of Procedure Upon
Application.

In response to numerous inquiries the
following instructions have been issued
from the Post Office Department at
Washington by the First Assistant
Postmaster General:
HOW TO OBTAIN RURAL FREE DE-
LIVERY.
Present a petition, addressed to the
first Assistant Postmaster General,
signed by those who desire the service.
This petition should be signed only by
heads of families, and should mention
the number in each family. 1t should
set forth the nature OF the country
where the delivery is desired, whether
densely or sparsely populated, the prin-
cipal avocations of the people, the
the character of the roads, and the
distances which, under existing con-
ditions, each patron has to travel to re-
ceive his mail, and should be accom-
panied, wherever possible, by a rough
map indicating the route or routes pro-
posed.
This petition, when properly signed,
should be sent to your Representative
in Congress, or to one of your Senators
with request that he endorse thereon
his recommendation of the service
asked, and forward the petition to the
Department.
CONDITIONS OF THE SERVICE.
1t must be borne in mind that the in
tention of Congress in authorizing the
free delivery of mails in rural districts
was not to grant suburban delivery
to cities included in the Free Delivery
Service, nor to establish village free
delivery. The purpose of the Rural
Free Delivery System is to give postal
facilities to those who have none; to
carry the mails daily to remote rural
communities, the residents of which
would otherwise have to travel from
two to twelve miles to receive their
letters and newspapers.
The roads must be good. This is an
essential prerequisite to any investiga-
tion.
No route can be established that is less
than from twenty to twenty-five miles
in length, or which serves less than 100
families.
The route should be so arranged that
the carrier will not be required to
travel over the same ground twice on
the same day. Those desiring the de-
livery must be prepared to put up, at
their own expense, at some convenient
location which can be reached by the
carrier without dismounting from his
buggy, appropriate and secure boxes
for the reception of the U. S. mails.
Rural carriers are not required to de-
liver mail to houses standing back from
the main road. The service is one of
mutual accommodation, and the pa
irons are expected to meet the Depart
ment half way in affording facilities for
it's establishment.
FORM OF PETITION.
AS an indication of the form of appli-
cation which meets the requirements of
the Department the following petition,
upon which Rural Free Delivery Ser
vice was established, from South Whit
ley, Whitley county, Indiana, on Octo-
Der 2, 1899, is cited:
SOUTH WHITLEY, Whitley County, Indiana
May IS, 1892
First Assistant Postmaster General, Washing
ton, D. c.
The undersigned petitioners would show
that they are residents OF Whitley county, Indi-
ana, south Of the town Of South Whitley, in said
county, in a thickly settled farming community;
that farming is the leading svocation of resi-
dents Of said community; that the roads are
graveled and in good condition over the pro.
posed route, and they ask for the establishment
Of Rural Free Delivery Of mails for said COM
munity over the route described as follows:
Starting at the post ONCE of South Whitley;
thence southwest to Webster's corners, dis.
tance Of miles; thence west IA miles TO Kin.
zie's corners; thence south mile; thence east
~ miles; thence south mile; thence west az
miles; thence south mile; thence east IL
miles; thence south Z Of a mile, and return to
Reelhorn school house; thence east IN miles to
Lees corners; thence northwest along the
Goshen gravel road miles to South Whitley,
the place of starting, making total distance
Of twenty-five (22) miles.
SIGNATURES SIGNATURES