Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1902-03-27

This petition, when properly signed,
should be sent to the Representative in
Congress or one of the Senators, with the
request that he endorse thereon his recon-
mendation Of the service asked, and for
ward the petition to the department.
CONDITIONS OF THE SERVICE.
1t must be borne in mind that the inten-
ton of Congress in authorizing the free
delivery of the 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 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 investigation.
No route can be established under or
binary circumstances that is less than from
twenty to twenty-five miles in length, or
which serves less than one hundred families.
The route should be so arranged that the
carrier will not be required to travel over
the same ground twice in the same day.
Those desiring the delivery must here
after be prepared to put up, at their own
expense, appropriate and secure boxes in
accordance with the orders of the Depart
ment.
The price of boxes range from 81 to So.
After the route is established and the boxes
put up, they are entitled to the protection
of the United States Government.
The carriers are not required to deliver
mail to houses standing back from the main
road except in case of registered mail,
special delivery and pension papers.
Patrons are expected to afford such facil-
tiles as good roads kept clear of snow.
An intimation of intentuoI on the
part of petitioners to comply with all con-
ditions of the Department. will greatly
facilitate the Investigations and establish
ment of the service.
Carriers are paid 5000 salary the first
year, are obliged to give bonds in the sum
of $500 each.
Rural carriers are requested to carry
stamps, stamped envelopes and postal
cards, for the accommodation of their
patrons, in fact are travelling post offices,
money order and all, on wheels.
FREE RURAL DELIVERY NOTES.
Next Tuesday another route will be
added at Sewell, with VIM. Pierce, of
Hurffville, as carrier. This route will be
known as Sewell Route No. 3, aud will
practically complete the circuit of Wash
ington township from Sewell to Cross Keys
and Turnerville
The people Of Thorofare and vicinity
want delivery established there. On
investigations lead to the conclusion that
system of free deliveries to cover Dept
ford and West Deptford townships could
more readily be secured if petition was
made to make Woodbury. the distributing
Office.
into effect here June l, will be quite an
innovation and mark an epoch in Wood
bury's history. The city has been divided
into three districts and carrier will have
charge of each. The First Ward will COM
prise one district. The Second Ward north
of Glassboro avenue another district, and
the ThiEd Ward and that portion of the
Second south of Glassboro avenue a third
district. There will be two deliveries
daily in the residence portion, and three
daily in the business section of the city.
The Rural Free Delivery will go into eff
feet from Mullica Hill on the LIST of April.
Joseph Dilks is the carrier of Route No. 1,
covering distance of 22S miles, an area of
8 square miles, Number of houses on the
route, 80, population Ala. Route No. 2,
P. Howard Avis, carrier, covers distance
of % SIG miles, and area of 8 square
miles; number of houses, 100, population,
$50. This amount of driving daily, in all
kinds of weather, cannot Justly be called
light employment.
Rural free mail delivery will go into
effect at Swedesboro on April l, with Harry
B. Shoch as carrier for Route No l and
Howard Moore as carrier for Route No. 2.
Route No. 1 will begin at the toll-gate,
taking in all territory north as far as Tom
Inns station and halfway to Bridgeport
and connecting with the Mullica Hill and
Clarksboro route, returning by the new
road to Swedesboro. Route No. begins
at the Henry Mitchell farm and running
to Russell's Mill, thence to Cloverdale
school house, to the Auburn road, to Centre
Square and return to Swedesboro, covering
all intermediate territory. Ninety boxes,
of the most approved pattern, will be
placed on each route at the start, with
probably more to follow soon. The carriers
have furnished themselves with the latest
improved mail wagons The salaries of
the carriers, which was at first placed at
$500 per year, has been increased to $780,
There are to be no half days, no holidays
and no spostponement on account Of the
weather" Augustus Sparks has been en-
gagged as a substitute for Moore. Shoch
has none as yet.