Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-07-10
Fourth Annual Meeting of Heads
OF Utah Offices Opens To-
day at Manti.
PRESIDENT THOMAS ADDRESS
Growth OF Postal Business illustrates
pcvelopment of Nation Not Equaied
In the History of the World.

Tho fourth annual convention Of the
Utah postmasters convention at
Manti, opened today. as per program
with gratifying attendance.
President A. l.. Thomas of this city
made the opening address, in which
he congratulated the postmasters on
the holding Of their fourth annual
convention. which promised to be as
successful as the three preceding ones.
He said the postmasters of the state
and the postal employees Of every
rrade and class had reason to be
thankful for the generous policy of the
national administration and Congress
\ In the passage of the recent law maxi
ing appropriations for the postal ser
vice. and said the credit for the pass
age of the law was mainly due to First
4 Assistant Postmaster General Hitch
cock. who had proven to be one of the
ablest executive officers the postal
department has known.
AMAZING NATIONAL. GROWTH.
Speaking of the growth of the postal
department. President Thomas said ii
was one of the amazing evidences of
our national growth and development,
not equaled in the history OF any other
nation. The 100 postofiices of 1890
had increased 10 IS, 600 in 1907. with
over 205,300 employees. In 1890 about
1000 pieces of mail were handled daily
as against 31.l26,276 handled daily IN
1907.
FREE DELIVERY SYSTEM.
President Thomas spoke Of the
growth of the free delivery system.
which was first commenced in cities
Of large population in 1868, and was
now in operation In over lisa cities,
Free delivery was next extended to
The rural districts, commencing In 1892
with 81 routes. Today there are 35,-
7G6 routes, with 1855 carriers In
1902 free delivery on star routes not
available for city or rural free deiiv-
cry was commenced, supplying about
$4,000 families In 1907.
CARELESS WITH THEIR MAIL.
The speaker alluded to the careless
ness of people in the handling of their
mail He said on one day In Febru-
AIRY, 1907, 1853 pieces of mail were
dropped in the Salt Lake City postoffice
deficient either in postage or address,
entailing great deal OF unnecessary
work upon the postal force. He said
the postofiice was good school in
which to learn human nature. and II
was almost an invariable rule that the
man who made the loudest complaint
was the most careless in the handling
of his mail. He related an incident
where man had claimed the Salt Lake
City office had cost him a financial loss
because of failure to dispatch re-
gistered letter TO a Wyoming office 1t
subsequently transpired that the man
had absentmindedly addressed the let
ter in error sending It TO a man who
had no connection with the matter
whatever.
WHAT THEY MISS.
President Thomas said the postmas-
ters OF Utah were to be Congratulated
upon escaping some of the troubles
which beset postmasters in other por-
lions of the country. 1t was published
recently that a postmaster in Florida
had to post a notice that he would not
accept live alligators for mailing over
ten feet IN length, and n Nevada post
master had to give notice that dyna-
mite would be mailed at owners risk