Omaha daily bee., 1906-09-16
srArUs OF POSTAL EMPLOYEES.


Postal employees throughout the
country seem to be wrought up over
the issuance, or rather reissuance. in
the form of an order of that portion OF
the last annual report of the postmas-
ter general relating to organizations Of
postal employees and their relation to
the department. Under the fren1ied
distortion OF opposition newspapers
this has been construed to mean that
no employee Of the Postofice depart
ment is to be permitted to petition con-
gress for any legislation increasing
their remuneration or lettering the
conditions of their service.
If this were the real import of the
order, it surely would merit round de-
nunciation irrespective of the fact that
It would be an absolute nullity because
conflicting with the constitutional
guaranty of the right of petition to
every citizen irrespective of his en-
ployment Careful reading of the
order, however, does not seem to war
rant the strained Interpretation thus
put upon 1t. The order. among other
things, says:
Organizations within the department, to
receive its sanction in any degree, must
have for their object Improvements in the
service or be OF a purely fraternal or BEN
eficlal character.
The department operates under the law.
Its limitations are clearly defined. Within
/ Al AZ \, H. A,,N.v
policy of the postmaster general to secure
for every employee such recognition for his
services and compensation therefor as he
finds possible and consistent with the pub
lie interest. 1t must be clearly understood
that the officials Of the department and
not the officials or members of any organl-
cation are the proper persons to present
the departments needs to congress
Your officials must be employees OF the
department. Your discussions should be
characterized by good sense and conser-
vatism, and you must keep ever before you
the fact that over the organization is the
authority of the department, an integral
! part of the government to which you owe
your supreme allegiance.
To any one familiar with the growth
of the Postoflce department and the
VI the CldbbSo VI
postal employees within 1t, this would
simply mean that the Postofice depart
ment does not intend to sanction or en-
courage the hiring of paid lobbyists
either as officers or otherwise to be-
labor congress for specially demanded
| legislation in the name of postal en-
| ployes. This, unfortunately, has de-
veloped in several cases in the past to
the detriment of the service and the
discredit of the department. The post
master general seems determined that
postal employees organizations shall be
oficered by employees or the department
and not by hired lobbyists, and that
they shall present their claims first to
their superior officials, although with
the reserved right to appeal to con-
gress in case their representations are
refused endorsement.
In assuming such a position the
postmaster general would be sustained
I by public sentiment in which, how
ever, he would create a revulsion
should he attempt to adeny to postal
employees the right to make known
their wishes to the department or to
congress either as individuals or as
organizations, the same as is enjoyed
| by every other citizen.