Evening star., 1901-11-13
FEVER POSJMASTERS
Effect of Extension Of Rural Free
Delivery.
REFORM OF ADMINISTRATION IN CUBA
Report of Fourth Assistant Post
master General Bristow
WORK OF THE INSPECTORS

| w ohh Of LIE In SI EC1OTSo
The annual report Of Joseph L. Bristow,
fourth assistant postmaster general, for
he fiscal year ended June 80, 1901, made
public today, contains many features Of
interest.
| The work of the bureau has increased pro-
portionately with the enormous increase in
the postal business of the country, Mr..
| Bristow says
Postal Reform in Cuba.
The reform Of postal affairs in Cuba has
been thorough. Inspector NJ. c. Fosnes
was continued throughout the entire year
as director general of posts of Cuba and
still holds that position, and Inspector F.
M. Hamilton remained as acting chief spe-
cial agent. Inspector J. r. Harrison was
acting postmaster at Havana during the
greater part of the fiscal year. The serv
ices of these inspectors merit special COM
| rnendation. By their untiring work they
have firmly established the Cuban postal
service upon sound and economical basis
and ably carried out the plans of reor-
| ganization inaugurated during the latter
part of the fiscal year 1900. The crafty
| ing results of the reorganlzato and the
economical and honest administration Of
| the postal affairs of the island are shown
by a comparison of the receipts and ex-
| penditures of the fiscal year 1901 with
those of the fiscal year 1900 as follows:
Revenues, 1900, S24o. o.9l2 81; 1901 s367.-
654oo Increase $120, 722 10, or 4S,S9 per
| cent
Expenditures, 1900 s59s, 97.69; 1901,
S4ol 1873 Decrease, $147 ,059.s0, or 4.57
| per cent.
Deficit, 1900 $3.50, ,5S5 IS; 1901, $50, ,S03. &c.
Many expenditures were necessitated be-
cause of unwise contracts that had been
entered into by those in charge of the pos
tai service of the island during the pre-
cedtng fiscal year and which could not be
| abrogated. The increase In revenues is not
due to an increase In the postal business
| but to proper accounting for moneys re-
| celVed. The expenses Of the Havana Of
| flee have been reduced from $13O, 26O per an
mum to less than 100000, despite great i'm
| proVements effected
Porto Rico and Alaska.
The Island of Porto Rico formed into
division of post office inspectors, with an
! inspector-in-c charge one inspector and one
clerk, the headquarters of the division being
at San Juan 1t is necessary to main ain
an office at that place for the reason that
so many postmasters In the island are un-
able to correspond with the department
| direct on account OF their inability to write
the English language. The correspondence
between the poStmaSters and the depart
| ment passes through. the office of the in
spector-in-charge, and postmasters' ac-
| counts and reports are examined by him,
and If found to be incorrect postmasters
| are required to correct them before send
| ing them to the department, thereby saw
| ing great deal of delay in adjusting their
accounts.
division, with an Inspector in-charge
| and one clerk, for the territory of Hawaii
was established at Honolulu. The same
conditions which made such action neces-
| sary in Porto Rico exist in Hawaii and the
| business is handled in the same manner
The general conditions in Alaska have
become more settled and the postal service
| has been fairly well organized during the
last four years throughout the Yukon and
/ the very remote sections along the north
coast Of the Bering sea But one arrest was
| made in that territory during the wear
which speaks well for the integrity of the
service, especially in view of the remote
ness of the territory and the unusually
| large amounts of money that have been
| handled at the more important post offices.
A post office was established at Point Bar
row, which is, doubtless, the northernnost
post office in the world
Decrease in Post Offices.
There were 1924 post offices established
during the year, decrease as compared
with the previous year Of 300. There were
| 3.037 post offices discontinued during the
year, being 1,125 more than the preceding
year The principal causes for the large
increase in the number of post offices dis
continued have been the extension of the
rural free delivery service and the establish
ment of rural free delivery stations in lieu
of fourth-class post offices; the extension of
city delivery service SO as to include post
| offices adjacent to large presidential offices,
| and the improvement Of the public high
ways. The extension of rural free delivery
has resulted in the discontinuance of 1,226
post offices during the year. the salaries of
| postmasters of these offices aggregating
| $79, 1886.
On June 30, 1901. there were 7e,945 post
| offices in the United States, divided as fol-
| lows: First class, 20S; second class $40;
third class, 3,31S; fourth Glass; 72,479.
Work of the inspectors,
| During the fiscal year a larger number
of post Office inspectors was employed than
during any other year in the history OF the
postal service. Numerous irregularities
were discovered in remote country post Of
| fees which inspectors have been unable to
reach in former years. There were 17s.514
! cases referred to the inspectors division
during the year for investigation. The en-
| tire number investigated was 179,0S4, but
| there were left over from the fiscal year
| 1900 81, ,S97 cases, SO that the department
had on hand on July l, 1901. 87,327 cases
| The number of offices inspected during the
| year ended June 80, 1901, was 23,O32. while
| the number of money order offices in exist
ence June 30, 1901, was 80, 529. It will thus
be seen that 7,497 money order offices were
| not inspected Congress has been asked
| by the department to make an appropria-
tion for increase In the number of in
| spectorS
Thefts of Registered Mail
| The total number Of complaints relating
| to registered mail received during the year
was S,O33, of which 1927 related to letters
| and 400 to packages OF these cases 1894
were investigated and closed, and actual
| loss was sustained in only 314 cases, be-
| ing 5.S per cent of the cases investigated
| This same percentage applied to the total
number of complaints @q83) would indicate
a total of 466 caseg iii (which actual loss
| occurred The total number of registered
| pieces handled by the department during