The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-12-11
MAILS OF THE NATION
REPORT or pOsTMAsTER GENERAL
 cORTELYOU.
Less Concerned About the Deficit Than He h Aboak the Emcieney of
 Aaminlstartion of the

A0manl9torth0n 0f the Sesvice.
 Washington. Dec. 10.--Postmaster
 General Cortelyou. in his annual report
 for the past fiscal year. says that while
 self sustaining condition on tha post office department would. be gratifytne
 he is less concerned about the deficit
 than the efficiency of administration; For the fiscal year 1905, the total receipts from all sources were $152.- s2s.5s5. and total expenditures. $751; 1S1.959, leaving deficit of $14.572.5S4 Tn connection with these figures. the postmaster general directs attention to the increased amount of free matter
 handled. which he says averaged l2.ss per cent of the entire weight carried or loss in revenue of s19.s22.ooo. ''Manifesty." he says. had matter now carried free been required to have been prepaid, notwithstanding the large expenditures for the rural free
 delivery service. there would have been no deficit"
 Answering some of the criticisms
 which he says have been directed against the postal service, he says that much of 1t overlooks the unusual con- ditions existing in this country. Its great extent of territory and it's wide- ly scattered population. With the in- troduction of rural free delivery unfin- tbuSus anu. ONnGt Qctdito VI PRSkdA 9CN velopment incomplete. he thinks 1t the part of wisdom to proceed conserva- lively until the present service Is more nearly perfected.
 Tn other words" he says. 1t is be- lieved for the time being attention can be more prof:tably devoted to an irn- provement in the service already adop- ted than the immediate consideration of such questions as the reduction Of rates of postage. parcel post. postal savings depository. postal telegraph. and kindred subjects
 As a remedy for the franking evil of which he complains, the postmaster
 general says tAere are sound adninis- trative reasons why 1t would be busi-
 ness policy for each department to pay
 postage on its mall matter according to
 it's class than to return to the practice of requiring government matter to be
 prepaid by postage stamps in the same
 way as similar matter mailed by the
 public. The weight of opinion, he says, is in favor of the plan suggested. so modified as to eliminate the necessity of affixing stamps. but maintaining
 the principle that each department be charged with whole expense of con-
 ducting it's business.
 From this change" he adds, there
 would come some great advantages;
 the tendency to use the malls for mat
 
 ported would be restrained. Merchant
 disc. including heavy quantities of
 printed matter not requiring expedi-
 tious hauling. would be sent By cheap
 modes Of conveyance; only matter re-
 quiying expeditions delivery and on
 which the postage can be properly paid
 as for government business would be
 sent by mall and the true relations of
 the postoffice department to the other
 departments as regards actual receipts
 and expenditures would be more accu.
 rately determined.
 Discussing the appointment of post
 masters, the postmaster general says
 that, under instructions recently issued a careful rating based on inspectors re-
 ports is given each postoffice and that
 this rating carries its weight in deter
 mining the question of- re-appoint
 mining the question of re-appoint-
 masters will be retained during satis-
 factory service, while the case of spe- cial postmasters will be determined by
 the rating given them.
 The work of purifying the malls Is not confined to frauds and lotteries, but includes as well the exclusion there- rum IIie oEscene. iI!Aczssnt end spur rilous matters and the punishment Of those who have deposited such for transmission. He adds that more strict enforcement of these statutes have re- gently brought about a highly satisfac- torily result
 The work of the postofice inspectors is praised and the opinion Is given that most of them are underpaid. A similar view is expresed with respect to post office clerks and letter carriers, city and rural.
 An increase of 5.77 per cent in the amount of ordinary mali handled as compared with 1904 Is noted in the railway mail service, which the Post master General says shows a normal
 maintenance of efficiency.
 During the year eleven clerks were killed while on duty and 125 seriously injured. Every effort has been made to provide the clerks every possible safe guard. The arduous and hazardous duty incident to the service, he de- clares calls for some action that will make provision for clerks worn out in the service, and maintain its efficiency by the gradual elimination or superan- nuated clerks. The present method of determining the rates of pay to transportation com panies for carrying the mails is not regarded by the Postmaster General as altogether satisfactory, and he says that while he Is not at present prepared to recommend specific changes, he be- lieves that certain inquiries made by
 him will afford data on which to base future recommendations.
 He thinks worthy of serious consid- Ieration a suggestion that a substantial saving would be effected in railway l'maiI transportation by forwarding bulky periodicals and mail merchandise , by fast freight. but when transported by what ordinarily is known as fast maiI'' should pay extra postage. Interest in the enactment of legisla-
 ton looking to the upbuilding and en-
 couragement of the American Merchant
 Marine Is set forth as reason for ini-
 proving the transportation Of the mails
 to foreign countries and the Postmaster
 General says that fast mall steamers of
 other countries leaving ports of the
 United States will more and more ab-
 sorb our foreign mail transportation
 until such time as the United States
 provides an adequate compehsation for
 the outward voyage of steamers of
 equal speed and regularity of schedule.
 The Postmaster General says an ef-
 fecttve domestic parcels post system
 could be organized on the sarno lines
 substantially as express companies con
 duet their service and as parcels post
 service is conducted in other countries.
 While he does not deem 1t wise at this
 time to ask Congress for such a sys-
 tenn. he earnestly suggests that third