Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-10
Departmental Postage.

To the Editor of The Star:
Apropos of the suggestion of the Post Of
fee Department that there should be a re-
vival of the old department stamp system
few suggestions might be In order.
In the first place, your correspondent ap-
preciates fully the fact that the Post Of
nee Department, under the present system
of penalty envelopes. is doing an immense
carrying business without any check of ac-
counts or recompense for the government
and its various departments it Is perfect
~ natural then, that Mr.. Madden, the third
assistant postmaster general, should sug-
gest some plan by which his department
should be recompensed for this work and
1t Is also natural that his mind should re-
vert 10 the old system Of department
stamps. Now, your correspondent was from
1873 TO 1879 the time In which these de-
partment stamps were used by the gov
ernmenO, IN its departments in position
to see the workings of this stamp system,
being at that time, and for many wears
subsequently,, chief of the mail division in
the pension bureau; the postage of the pen
sion bureau alone during that period was
between $1,000 and 81 600 a month
Now, here is a suggestion. which Is sim
pie and cheap, and In every practicable way
answers the intent and purpose of the Post
Office Department, and at the same time
does away with all the extra expense in
| cident to the cumbrous stamp system, which
| required the purchase Of fes the emnIoy-
ment of extra clerks, not to mention the
| great expense of the printing and prepare
| tion of the stamp itself.
Let the government simplify the present
penalty envelope, so that each envelope
| would indicate simply three things: First.
| the department and bureau from which II
! issued; second. the fact that it is a penalty
| envelope and third and lastly, the denomi-
| nation, twos or multiples of twos. at the
| top right-hand corner in oval. This sugges-
| ton will practically be without any incl
| dental expense. The penalty enveIopes
| would come from the government prin tin q
| office to the departments. They would be
| flee Department could easily reckon ca ch
| day, by the denomination, clearly printed
| on the envelope, the amount of mail ma t.
ter received from each department of the
government 90 not think that this sys-
| tenn, which would, of course, bear down
| heavier on the Washington city post Office
| than any other post Office in the United
| States. would be found to be difficult In
| any sense. or course the government Off
| cials scattered over the United States would
| be furnished with these envelopes, as they
| were with stamps, and as they are now
| with the penalty envelopes; practically the
same plan would work with the mall OF
! the senators and members of Congress
| do not believe that the above suggestion
| is open to single objection. At least, If II
| IS | cannot see one.
1t was urged by Horatio King. at one time
| Postmaster General, in letter to The
| Star written in 1878, that This depart
| ment stamp system was simply an arrange.
! ment by which Uncle Sam would be tax.
| ing money out of one of his pockets and
putting IL into the other This Is exavtly
| what the old system did; he might have
| added, as do now, and very properly that
1t Is a very expensive piece OF oiroumIocu.
| ton. For one, cannot help thinking thai
| to revert to the old system would be a ster
backward, aud that. too. in the light of ar
experience of over six years with It.
DAVID L. GIFT.