The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-12-04
UNCLE SANS
MAIL SERVICE
HAS BEEN IMPROVED DURING
THE WEAR JUST
ENDED.
LESS MONEY PAID RAILROADS
Many Other Reforms and Betterments
According TO Report Of Second
Assistant Postmaster
FF General.

Washington, Dec 4.-EXclusive OF
registered matter, the railway mail ser
vice during the last fiscal year handled
2i,650,s49, ,745 pieces of mail matter, ac
cording to the annual report of Second
Assistant Postmaster General Stewart
Because of practically llegible al
dresses 35,565,36l. pieces required
special attention, with the result that
1S,9SS,626 were returned to senders OF
corrected and forwarded.
A new division of the railway mail
service, embracing the states of Ore
gon, Washington and Idaho and the
Territory OF Alaska, is recommended.
Favorable consideration of congress
Is asked to a recommendation that
postal clerks be allowed travelling eX.
penses while away from their homes
and also that postal clerks who have
become unfit for active service by rea'
son of, advanced age or physical disa.
hility Incurred In the line of duty be
retired With suitable pay. 81.
For the, transportation of all classes
OF man. matter the department during
the year expended $S1I57 ,720, A con.
siderable saving was effected In con.
.nection. with the weighing OF mails In
the southern states. In consequence
of the use of the new diyisor the rail
roads Received $434, ,734 less than would
have been paid under the old system
Altogether the new system OF weighing
has resulted so far in a net saving OF
$2,229,10S per annum. Because of the
equalization of the rates OF pay to
transportation companies, the report
states, a more equitable basis of com
pensation has been reached, with re-
suits mutually satisfactory TO carrier
and the department
Still further economies are recorded
A review of the railway postoffice car
service resulted in the readjustment OF
the car space on a number of routes
thereby effecting saving OF $272, 2,04O
during the year.
So-called half lines OF railway post.
Office cars-that is, where the postal
needs In one direction warranted the
authorization, but in the opposite direc
ton did not-are dealt with at length
Numerous protests arose over the ac-
tiOn Vi Tue department reducing Ger.
tain lines to half lines, and these led to
the appointment of commission to in.
yestigate the whole subject. The post.
master general approved their recon.
mendation that full pay be allowed for
a line of 40-foot cars in all cases where
a 40-foot car must be run and returned
The report calls attention to the fact
that provision has been made to trans
port additional weights of mails from
Valdez to Fairbanks, Alaska, in the
four mid-winter months, so as to allow
$4,000 pounds increase. The weights
on other main lines in Alaska also have
been augmented.
Efforts of the department to estab.
lish semiweekly sailings between New
York and Porto Rico. 1t is stated,
failed, the steamship companies refus.
ing to make any changes in their prac'
tice OF having sailings only on Satur.
days.
During the year additional parcel.
post conventions were negotiated with
the Netherlands, Uruguay, Italy
France and Austria, and the parcel
post rate OF 20 cents a pound to
Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador and Peru was
reduced TO IL cents pound.