Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1903-08-21
TRAINS TO CARRY MAILS
Federal Plan to Improve the
Postal Service.
RAILWAY MEN TO HANDLE BAGS

Responsibilities For All Packages
Intrusted TO Employees of the
Railroads-Protectio Against vto-
lence VIII He Accorded.
Postmaster General Payne has de-
cided on an important step which will
practically put the railroads of the
country under the protection Of the
United States government and prevent
interference with interstate commerce
by strikers, says a Washington special
TO the Chicago Tribune. This will be
accomplished by making every railroad
train a mail train and by commission
ing railroad conductors, baggage mas
ters and other trainmen as employees
of the United States postal service and
empowering them to handle mails.
The agitation which really led to the
adoption of the new policy has been
growing for several years and is the
result of the tremendous growth Of the
rural free delivery service. This serv-
Ice has resulted in more than quadru-
pling the circulation Of newspapers
throughout the country in the period
of six years
Protests were received at the depart
ment from the entire country regard
service. Officials have endeavored to
devise means Of relief. After long
consideration ii was thought impossi-
ble to arrange any plan which would
prove satisfactory to the government,
railroads, publishers of newspapers
and the millions Of subscribers The
fact that the government requires all
mails to pass through the post offices
and handles them only in sealed pouch
es was the greatest drawback to the
quick service desired and, In fact, to
the sending of United States malls on
any except mail trains.
The postal officials declined to enter
into an agreement whereby they would
be responsible for mails not carried in
closed pouches and handled by sworn
employees. Nothing was done until
Mr.. Shallenberger gave the matter his
personal consideration and devised a
new plan. 1t is really an ampliication
of the system used by the publishers Of
newspapers IL sending out their mail
editions. 1t has been the practice Of
publishers to intrust bundles of papers
to trainmen on trains which do not
carry mail, with instructions to throw
off the packages at certain points. This
system has not been entirely satisfac-
tory.
The government has now decided to
assume the responsibility for the car
riage and delivery of these newspapers
and will commission and pay salaries
to the trainmen over and above the
compensation received for the regular
work. In putting into effect this far
reaching policy each case where addi-
tional facilities are needed will be con-
sidered separately. When the request
for additional mail train facilities is re-
ceived at the department an employee
of the railway mail service will be as
signed to the case and will attend to
the preliminaries of looking to the COM
IulSoloLihS Va tiuilAiSh oo Sihpios Geo
Of the postal service and of arranging
the schedules.
Any train---passenger, local or freight
will be empowered to carry mails,
and the United States will hold itself
responsible for their delivery. This
means that in case of strike every
train which carries these special malls
will be Just as much under the author
ity and protection of the federal gov
ernment as through and local mail
trains which run on regular daily
schedule, and when all the arrange
ments have been made and the plans
of the department put into effect there
will be few trains which are not either
regular or special" mail trains.
In case of interference with any of
these specials during the time of strike
or mob violence the United States must
under the statutes afford 1t the same
protection, by federal troops If neces-
sary, that has been and will be given
to the regular mail trains.
The government will be permitted to
settle upon the salary to be paid to the
trainmen. At the coming session Of
congress Postmaster General Payne
will ask for a special appropriation to
pay the salaries Of these special EN-
ployees.