Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-01-13
FEW ARE DISHONEST
A LETTER CARRIER TALKS OF
HIS ASSOCIATES.
Shows How the Percentage of Dismis-
sails "For Cause" Has Been
Reduced.

sentenced a few days ago to prison for the
theft of money from letters addressed to
prisoners in the Tombs prison. he having
been the carrier upon the route which In
Guided the famous city jail of the metrop-
Oils said an old Washington carrier as
he paused In his delivery and chatted with
a Star man for moment this morning.
THE general improvement in the person
mel and efficiency in the great army of let
ter carriers doing faithful duty all over the
United States is such that the offense for
which the New York letter carrier was sent
to swell the ranks of imprisoned men from
whom he himself stole is year by year be-
coming gradually lessened.
when the grand total of the army of the
men in gray is considered, the vast amount
annually appropriated to maintain them
and their service and the billions OF letters
they so accurately distribute. the public,
am sure, will be gratified to learn how the
separations from the service, both for
cause and other reasons. have rapidly and
perceptibly decreased, until now the letter
carrier force of the country may be said to
be composed as an entirety of body OF
honest. Woodworking, efficient men.
'While the average citizen knows that
there are many thousands of letter carriers
in the United States, few realize that the
total strength of this army of plodders in
all weathers numbers under the estimates
of the department for the ensuing Iscai
year, 1902 men, and fewer still have any
idea how this big corps is divided into bril-
gades as regards pay and grade. Thus
go carriers receive 5000 a year; 9SS re-
ceive $500: $3.50 receive $3.50 and 9,S42 receive
s1.c0o. From his bank roll in the United
States treasury building on 10Th street I'm
Gle Sam will part next year with $l9,U2SOO0
in good money to keep these men in his
service.
gray 1874 receive $1,000 and $3.50 year,
and 1908 draw salaries under the last
named figure. The carriers have contended
for years that their maximum pay should
be 81, 200, and that $500 is too low mini
mum pay for the service they perform.
There is at present a bill before Congress to
increase their pay, and the now famous or
der of the President prohibiting persons IN
government employ from attempting to In
fiuence legislation in their own behalf was
largely intended to prevent the different
letter carriers associations from particlpat-
ing actively at the Capitol, and with repre-
sentatives and senator's in behalf OF their
bill.
Uncle Sam and the Mails.
Uncle Sam appropriates annually $780,
600 for temporary letter carriers at summer
resorts, and it is out Of this sum that the
additional men are hired who serve the
millions of visitors at the watering places
along the eastern coast in the summer,
when the postal business Of these offices
keeps pace with that of large inland cities,
and falls off practically to nothing in the
winter Then the department spends $780,
600 year for additional carriers for the
improvement and extension of service at
established offices. SO rapidly is the free de-
livery system being extended and is grow
ing in the cities where already in force.
"Citizens Of Washington have noticed
men repairing and painting street letter
boxes The department employs twenty
two mechanics, who are engaged exclusive
ly in repairing, painting and erecting street
letter boxes. who are paid salary OF 500
each, and this seemingly trivial service
costs the government about $20,oOO year.
The three-quarters of a million is annually
appropriated for horse hire for carriers who
go about the streets in their little wagons
collecting mail. In time this street letter
box emptying will be done by auto ma
chimes in less than half of the time it takes
under the present out of date horse sys-=
TEN, and at probably little more. perhaps
not so much expense, once the initial stage
of cost Is passed. and auto machines come
down in price For so small a trifle as car
fare and bicycle allowance for the letter
carriers of the United States the depart
ment allows the large sum of $4,000
year.
Remarkable Efficiency Of the Men.
Now, I want you to show how the men
have improved during the past eight years.
Last year out of 1900 letter carriers in
round numbers, 52S left the service for all
causes, and of these only forty-eight were
dismissed for intoxication, indicating that
letter carriers are now pretty sober lot OF
men. Only twenty were dropped for arrest
for viola tions Of the postal laws and regu-
lations, further indicating that. while let
tiers carriers occasionally yield to tempta-
ton and steal money letters, the percentage
to the whole is very small. Eight old car
riers. who had probably given the best part
of their lives to the service of the govern
ment, were dismissed for physical disabili-
ty Eighty nine were dropped for various
VII nj nf q
lions other than such as l have already
named while 1872 died, and 231 resigned
during the year
Il contend that this is a showing that
cannot be equaled by any other army Of
1900 men engaged in any one pursuit in
the United States. and speaks volumes for
the system itself and the way it is man.
aged. Again, there were twenty-one less
removals from the service during the past
year than in the year previous, despite the
fact that there was an Increase of a whole
regiment of new carriers, 400 and fur
Their, last year less than nne-tenths Of 1
per cent of the carriers were subjects of re-
mOval
A Record to Be Proud Of.
Now, eight years ago." continued the old
carrier. he swung his pouch over his
shoulder. and prepared to resume his
tramp, 1.-The removals for all causes. includ-
ing deaths and designations, was 6.3 per
cent, and the removals for cause alone was
per cent. In 1902 the removals for all
causes dropped in these eight years 63 per
cent to less than one-half, 3 per cent, and
the removals for cause alone from per
cent to $500 of 1 per cent. If these few
figures are not a triumph for civil service
reform in the postal system. for discipline
the absence of political influence, good
management. and a corresponding rectitude
on the part of the whole letter carrier
force of the United States. then documen-
tary proof fails.
in brief. the free delivery service is
rapidly advancing in all lines. Sixty-seven
new offices have been established during
the year. with 210 carriers, and it is ex-
pected that the system will be extended to
seventy-five new offices this year. If Sena-
tor Nelson's bill to allow free delivery sery-
Ice to cities of 5000 Inhabitants. or where
the postal receipts amount to s., 600 year.
passes. one-haf Of the present minimum of
population and receipts, the free delivery
system will be extended to 1000 new Offices
and, with the rural free delivery system
the best part of the people Of the entire
country will be served with their mail di
rectly at hand by carriers.
How many clerks in Washington RIM
this great system of rural and city free de-
livery? Well. not as many as you would
think. There are 26S clerks, messengers
and laDorers in Washington. twenty-eieht
clerks and laborers at the different division
headquarters, sixty special agents, seven
ty-five route inspectors and seventeen high
er officials. There are now 1913 cities receiy-
ing free delivery and four In, our ;rc,,J,r