Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-10-06
midway IN THE LEAD
People There Beat Us All as
Letter Writers.
DISTRICT RANKS THIRD
Office Here Ahead of New York in Per
Capita Revenue.
SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS
How the States Of the Union and Our
Possessions Stand in Regard to
the Use of the Mails.
SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS


offices in the various states and territories,
where do you suppose Is situated the small
est post office in the United States or its
possession, judged as such upon this basis?"
asked a post office inspector of Star re-
porter.
well, you would never guess" continued
the inspector, nor anybody else offhand. OF
course. there are any number of little
out the various states, of which the gross
yearly receipts are very small. only few
dollars, though the rural free delivery has
wiped off the face of the postal map a
whole lot of these diminutive postal apol-
ogies for the real thing, and do not refer
to these small rural post offices.
1.-THE tiniest separate piece of United
States territory-I don't mean a territorial
government. but a separate piece or sub
division Of land-upon which is situated a
post office, wide awake and doing busi-
ness, is Midway Island, way OFF in the far
Pacific, en- route to the Philippines and ia
pan-a tiny bit of white sand, scarcely
above the level of the cerulean waters
which lazily roll upon its white beach in
calm weather and make 1t uncomfortable
when 1t is the typhoon season for the
bakers dozen of telegraphers and others
miles from the nearest shore.
But the United States post Office Is there
all right with flag flying daily and its gross
receipts last year amounted to the princely
bucketful of white sand Uncle Sans baby
territory and post Office. And we can tell
to n man its population and what the in
habitants spent each on an average in pat
ronizing the mails. by taking the average
expended for this purpose per capita. which
was $4.66. or more per capita than any
other state or territory in the United States
or its possessions. So, while it Is our baby
territory and post Office, it Is the topnotcher
Of all the other land subdivisions on average
per capita expenditure. which means that
the exiles do lot Of writing home per man
as compared with the patrons of the mails
in other Subdivisions.
Smallest Postal Subdivisions.
Midway Island. therefore, has conferred
upon 1t some distinction. after all, if it is
only as large as good-sized dishpan. Ne
rada comes next highest in the average
amount expended per capita in the use of
the mails, with $3s7, while Porto Rico is
the lowest. with only IL cents per capita
expenditure. Our post Office at Tutuila Sa-
moa. does a yearly business of about $500,
with per capita expenditure Of IA cents,
while the post Office at Guam receives about
81 $50 a year. with per capita rating at Is
cents The post Offices in Alaska do about
$4,000 worth OF business a year, and each
inhabitant up In our frozen northern regions
contributes 81 cents year toward the
gross receipts. The Hawaiians are coming
around our way in literally patronizing the
mails, with yearly expenditure of about
Sl0,7OO, or 65 cents per capita.
And these are our smallest subdivisions
as regards the subject under discussion
What are the largest? Well, they make a
int two nDt1.
ment, especially in comparison with the
whole number of post offices in each, and
the relative rank in the number of post
offices therein. This information will be
generally known. If you were to ask the
average representative or even senator to
give you offhand the total number Of post
offices in his state, with the gross receipts,
Der. ETC., he would have to ring for his sec
rotary and have the information dug I'D,
though he will tell you as regards his
own district
Relative Rank Of Large States.
Il have arranged these facts and figures
for The Star so that they may be readily
grasped by the busy reader. Some persons
might think that the states with the largest
number Of post Offices therein would be
in the lead, but that is where
they would be mistaken.
Let US begin with the District of Co.
lumbia, which has but one post Office within
Its limits. though there are a number of
stations The District ranks third, being
preceded by Midway Island. and Nevada in
the average amount expended per capita
in the use Of the mails, though its gross
receipts were $1,041 800, as against New
York state, which state, Of course, leads
all others in postal revenue with $26, $685.
OOO, and which ranks next to the District
or fourth In per capita expenditure at 1888,
as against the Districts $343, New York
state having 1889 post Offices within it's
limits, and ranking fifth in this regard
among the states.
$50 1t will be seen that the District or
to be more literally correct as to mail usage
the city of Washington, would be one of the
blue ribbon prize winners among the states
and territories were trophies offered to per
capita headliners. OF course, won't ven
ture the opinion that we are more intel
It cannot be gainsaid that we beat them
when 1t comes to finish on per capita use
Of the mails
pennsylvania ranks first in having the
largest number of post offices within her
borders, the number being 4.377, but she is
twentieth in per capita expenditure, with
$1.s9. and third in the gross receipts of her
post offices, with $12.9O0.OOO. Illinois fol-
lows New York as second in this respect,
with SIC, 10000 and Is fifth in per capita
with $3.04, but ranking eley-
enth In the number OF post oh1ces. having
2.127.
Nearby and Southern States.
''These three states are the only ones
In the Union whose total post Office re-
ceipts 60 over 100000 each per annum
Ohio ranks next in gross receipts, with
IS, So. 900, ranking eighth in the number
Of post. Offices. having 2,461. and fifteenth
In per capita expenditure. with $196. The
Old Bay state is bound to show up well in
some respect. and 1t does In per capita
with a relatively small number
OF post Offices. the latter numbering only
TIA. or thirty-fourth in relative number of
post offices, while it ranks seventh in per
capita expenditure. with $2.6s. Its gross
receipts nearly approximate those of Ohio,
being about $8,3O0,O0O although the Buck
eye state has about three times as many
post offices.
Virginia ranks next to Pennsylvania. or
second, in having the largest number OF
post Offices, with 3,420. In per capita,
1t ranks only fortieth, with $1.04,
and its total post Office revenues are about
81, 100000. Kentucky ranks third in total
,har ~ Off xuhfc WHO 1ood