The National tribune., 1906-12-20

service by the actual dollars revertine
thru that service to the Public Treas
ury? Is this the precedent established
in voting hundreds of thousands an
nually for extra fast service on mai
trains? Is this the precedent establish
ed in paying bonuses to steamship lines
for carrying few pounds of mail tc
remote and com paratively unimportant
points in Central and South America foI
the accommodation of a few isolated
American citizens? Is this the prece-
dent in voting hundreds of thousands
of dollars for pneunatic-tube service
for the exclusive accommodation of GER
tain sections?
The 1abOrer Worthy of His Hire.
The friends of the rural carriers in
sist that they should not be required Il
wait until their part of the system is
self-sustaining before receiving ade-
quate compensation. The laborer is
worthy of his hire.
Nobody seems to feel that the city
letter carrier receives TOO much salary
On the contrary, vigorous efforts are
made at every session of Congress to
pass a long-pending bill for the in
crease OF his compensation. The city
letter carrier, after two years service
in the larger post offices, receives $1,000
per annum, with an extra allowance
(usually $500 per annum) for horse
hire to such carriers as require the use
of vehicle. The rural carrier, who
always requires horse and buggy, now
receives s720. This seems to be a very
wide discrepancy in compensation, but
is accounted for by the facts that not
only personal services are cheaper in
the country than in the city, but the
cost of keeping a horse on the farm is
less than in a city or town.
But sometimes these two classes OF
carriers are brought into close cOnnec-
ton under circumstances which vividly
disclose the injustice of their classifica-
ton. In one enterprising city, for in
stance, there is a postal station located
near the city limits which sends out
every day two mounted city letter
carriers and two rural free-delivery
carriers. The city carriers leave the
station at 8 o'clock every morning, trav-
el about 10 miles per day, making their
deliveries and collections within the
corporation boundaries, but chiefly
among farmers and market gardeners,
returning from their trips between 4
and o'clock in the afternoon, their
period of daily work being strictly linn
tied by law to eight hours. They re-
ceive 1900 a year each. The two rural
carriers start from the station at the
same hour, travel about % miles each
day, working from 10 to IL hours day
and receiving for what is practically
the identical service rendered the Gov
ernment s720 a year each.
This discrepancy naturally excites at
tention, and stimulates controversy not
only between the carriers themselves,
but between the patrons of the reSpec-
tive routes. If the efforts of the city
carriers to secure additional compensa-
ton should succeed, the two mounted
carriers who serve only city CD patrons
would get 1900 a year each, while tho
rural carriers receive only 1920 each.
Sentiment ia Congress.
At the last session Of Congress
much sentiment was exprest in favor of
a fair increase in rural carriers pay.
Representative Aiken advocated raise
to $500. He said: "It may be stated,
without fear of contradiction, that no
class of men in the Government service
do as much hard work for as little
money. There are no reasonable
grounds on which the Government can
justify a parsimonious policy toward
these men, whose duties. thru Winter 5