Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1906-07-18
New Service will be lnausurated
in the City in February.
1907.
GREAT INCREASE IN RECEIPTS
Three Carriers and One Additional
Clerk will be Employed
BY the Office.

Free nrail delivery will be in
augurated in Alma early in the COM
ing year, probably in February. The
preliminaries for establishing the new
service have already been carried out
but it will take at least six months
longer to make the necessary changes
in the postoffice and to reorganize the
present system.
Before the postoffice department
will undertake to deliver mail in the
city the streets must be properly
designated by signs and the houses
must be numbered The city council
has this matter under consideration.
Householders will be obliged to keep
the walks leading to their dwellings
in good repair The routes of the
carriers will be laid out by an in
spector, who will divide the city into
three districts, one for each carrier
The location OF letter boxes will also
be decided by the Inspector
Positions for three and one sub
stitute carriers will be provided by
Uncle Sam when free mail delivery is
started. These jobs are all under
civil service rules and can be secured
only after competitive examination.
When the postoffice department is
ready To- employ carriers in Alma the
examination will be conducted by the
postmaster at Mt. Pleasant 1t is the
practice of the department to assign
to the nearest classified postoffice the
duty of conducting civil service ex-
aminations for positions in the postal
service in a town where classified
postoffice has been newly organized.
Thus the Alma office would conduct
the examination at St. Louis if free
delivery should be inaugurated there.
Mail carriers receive 5000 the first
year and $3.50 per year thereafter Ac-
cording to rule that applies to near
ly all classes of government employees
their working day is eight hours long
and nothing will be paid for overtime
In fact, mail carrier is not allowed
to work longer than eight hours Re
Gently one was suspended at Mime
apolis for doing so.
The postoffice will be furnished
with an entirely new set of fixtures
after it is placed on the classified list
Many boxes will be taken out, allow
ing more space in the rear of the
apartment Another clerk will be
added to the force The assistant
postmaster will act as superintendent
of delivery. At present three clerks
are employed.
The business of the Alma postoffice
has doubled in volume since 1898,
when c. +. Brown was appointed
postmaster. During the year com
mencing April l, 1898, and ending
March 81, 1899, the income of the
office was $5,264.9O. For the same
period in 1905 and 1906 the total of
the receipts was $1094s.69. When
the receipts reached the $4,000 mark
The postoffice was entitled to free de
livery service. In accordance with
the rules of the department, the office
was on probation for three months
from April /, the end of the fiscal
year. The quarter ending June 30
brought an income of $2,519.0s, which
was slightly in excess of the sum re-
quired Considering the fact that
business is always light during the
months of April, May and June, the
test was thorough and shows beyond
doubt that free delivery can be
maintained.