Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1906-01-25
ROASTS MAIL SERVICE.
Conditions in Buffalo Hump
Almost Uncomfortable.

express business CO0u0CtcO buere-
with in different parts Of the county |
a few facts regarding the conditions |
and present mail service the
people Of this camp are receiving,
may not be out of place, and may
perhaps wake up enough interest
among the proper officials, who ap-
pear to be in a state of coma for
an investigation of how the postal
laws governing mail contracts, are
executed. 1t seems now demon
strated fact, that the supposed
manager (W. E. Travis) obtained
this contract, through his hirelings,
from Concord to Adams for the
purpose, and on q mere chance
that the business of the camp would
develop to such an extent, that
with his grating system in express
and passenger traffic, he could
make it profitable one. On the
other hand, if it did not prove to
to be what his great(?) mind con-
ceived, he could find some outsid-
er with just brains enough to be
impressed with one of his fairy tales
of the honor and Importance of the
high sounding title Of sub mail
contractor to take the job off his
hands, giving himself the privilege
to step down and out, and play the
role of injured innocence when
facts are presented of a rotten SER
vice.
For proof of this statement, l
give the following reasons, first,
this contract was taken for about
one third less money than it can be
honestly and satisfactorily execut-
ed; second, there has never been a
time that the mails were carried
and delivered on any thing like
schedule time when it depended
wholly on the part Of the contrac-
tor to keep a snow road open; third
the existence of the aforementioned
sub, now pretending to carry the
mail, when as matter of fact, is
generally to be found at Sites
when it looks a little stormy, leav-
ing the citizens the pleasure of see
ing that the mails are carried, or
going without.
Fourth the unpaid expense bills
contracted on this route from the
time it was established by each and
every one of these subs, proves the
perfection of the system by which
this great "pin head" as manager
of the Idaho, Nevada and Califor-
MIA Stage Co., does business at the
cost of the people, whom he is
paid, by the government, to serve.
No doubt there a great many
not familiar with the internal me-
chanism Of this partially decayed
official grub VINO would ask the
question, why do they tolerate such
impositions when they have the
post Office back Of them, and why
don't they collect their bills through
the courts? Answering the last
question first, they are now resi-
dents and SO nicely arranged in
their positions of security that the
head appears where the tail ought
to be and vice versa, /. e. their
bondsmen in New York, the man
ager in Portland, (rumor goes) the
contractor, in name only, in Lewis
ton and the real thing, the sub
contractor, in Sites waiting "Till
the clouds roll BY" From the best
information obtainable the largest
single account against one Of these
sub. contractors is something less
than 5000. and to start suit with
even chances Of ultimately getting
q judgment worth more than Their
promises, would cost more than
the bill would amount to, hence it
would not be consistent with sound
business policy to waste time and
more good money, on a doubtful
issue.
The postoffice dep .rtment lie,
their contract to the lowest bidder
regardless of existing conditions or
route, or what An honest mar
could do it for and meet his bills.
Hence the opportunity is open fol
these side steppers' with thei,
agents scattered all over the
country, and at Washington, tr
work their shell game on the
people, legalized by official inaction
There have been numerous petit
tions and protests sent to both
Washington and the districts Off
cial at Spokane regarding the poor
mail services and genel al indiffer.
ence shown by the contractors and
their subs on this route and W.
are led to believe they have beer
notified at different times with a
demand to give their atten ton to
the matter but it seems to have
ended there, why, or for what rea-
son, we are unable to say, but tht
fact remains that the service il
NOW the poorest it has been in thu