Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1901-03-31

|of his four y4afs servlee ii must have
amounted to at least }p0 I have heard
he was one Of those members who con-
stantly use their committee stationery
and draw their allowances in cash"
What was the most difficult shipment
you have known" inquired the Sun cor
respondent
We'll, we have had many difficult and
peculiar jobs in that line responded the
postoffice employe Probably the worst
job ever had to tackle was when a retir
ing senator franked home a safe. In his
committee-room at the capitol he had a
very fine and large safe which had been
purchased for the use of his committee.
but which had been condemned and sold
to him at an infinitesimal price. II weigh
ed about COCO pounds. All the senator did
was to place an address and a frank upon
it and notify the postoffice to send for it.
They got it all right, but the getting was
accompanied by much sweating and many
cuss words. What the clerks in the post
office where it was shipped said when it
landed / have never heard. | don't think
it was delivered by a letter carrier.
I'VE used to have considerable diff
Guilty" he continued, with household
furniture. "A folding bed or lounge is
not a desirable object in a postal car. 1t
is bad enough to have the car filled with
bags of documents or boxes of goods. but
when it comes to handicapped tables,
boxes of bric-a-brac and other things
of that character, including china closets
and kitchen utensils, ones patience is
strained to the limit. l have heard of
a member of Congress who once franked
an upright piano home. The clerks We're
SO enraged at his presumption that a
heavy box was allowed to drop-accident-
ally of course-upon the lid, which was
split open. Then a leaky lamp was hung
right over the piano, and by the time it
reached it's destination it was very badly
damaged OF course. the member had no
recourse, as he could not make a com
plant about the treatment his piano re-
ceived when he was clearly violating the
law
A Terrier by Mail.
I'VE have had some queer requests in
regard to shipping of ranked matter.
Just a few days ago representative from
a western State brought handsome fox
terrier to the office which he wished to
frank to his home We persuaded him
the dog might suffer from inattention en-
route and he sent it by express. There
is member of the Senate who was once
accused. according to the public press,
of Thanking home his horses and car
riages. / am not saying whether this is
true or not but the hullabaloo which was
raised by the publication of the charge
put a stop to most of the abuses of the
Thanking privilege.
= he nIrfg bac ra-
spectacle record in that line. Over 1000
boxes have been, or will be, shipped to
different parts of the country, together
with more than that number of bags of
public documents, which will be distrib-
uted by the members and ex-members dur
ing the summer season. Their total
weight will approximate 100000 pounds,
and the shipments average 20,G00 pounds,
or ten tons a day. AS it costs cents a
pound on an average, you can see that the
postoffice department expends a consider
able sum every year in moving the effects
of the member of Cogress-''
How is it that no complaint is made?
1t would seem that the employees or some
of the department officials would call at
tention to the situation"
You see, it's this way: Congress makes
the laws and Congress appropriates the
money to run this department. Now, it Is
a matter of small concern to me, to any
other employee of the department or to the
postmaster general if congressman
wants to ship house home under a
frank, while it is very important matter
that Congress should be satisfied with the
administration of the postoffice depart
ment Suppose | should complain that
Congressman Blank is using his frank
improperly and the complaint reaches the
ears of the congressman. He might dis
cover that the department could do with
out my efficient services and I might
be turned out to hunt a new job, which
at my time of life would be very incon-
venient, to say the least"