Evening star., 1908-01-30
HONEST CIVIL SERVICE
Most Efficient Business Or
ganization in the World.
WHAT THE REPORTS SHOW
Infnitesimal Cost of Collecting the
Revenues
CLERKS HANDLING MILLIONS
Burglaries Committed by Post Office
"Yeggmen," Who Have Replaced
Old-Time Safebreakers.
WHAT THE REPORTS SHOW
CLERKS HANDLING MILLIONS
BY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.


BY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
Herald.
II is often said. and the official record of
the last half century will prove it. that
the civil service of the government of the
United States is the most honest as well
as the most efficient business organiza-
ton in the world. Any gloomy pessimist
who may have doubts as to the honor and
integrity of his fellow-men should read
the reports of the Treasury, the Post
Office Department and other branches of
the government. They will give him
cheerful encouragement to think better of
mankind. The records of the internal
revenue bureau and the customs service
will demonstrate not only the honesty
but the economy of the Treasury Depart
ment. and will show that the cost of coll
lecting the revenue is almost infintesimal
compared with the vast amounts of money
that are handled. The reports of the
treasurer of the United States and the
several auditors contain similar testimony
concerning the disbursement of the pub
lie funds. The recent report of Mr.. Ernest
G. Timme. auditor for the Post Office De-
partment, is astonishing in its dSclos-
ures. Mr.. Timme says:
THE marve'ouS growth of tlie postal
service continues. In all probability both
the receipts and expenditures for the en-
suing fiscal year will exceed S2O0,DO0, OG0
In 1890 the receipts we're sixty millions
expenditures sixty-six millions, with d
deficit of about five and half millions;
by 1907 this had increased threefold re-
ceipts being one hundred and eighty
three millions. expenditures one hundred
and ninety millions, while the deficit was
only about six and one-ha'f millions 1t
IS gratifying to note that while the ex-
penSeS are three times great, the deficit
remains substantially the same as it was
seventeen years ago. The loss during
1907 by bad debts, burglary, etc, was
only two one-hundredths of / per cent
which emphasizes the untiring and sue
cessful efforts of this office in collecting
balances due the United States. Substan-
TALLY the whole postal revenue is de-
rived through the post offices. mainly from
the sale of stamps, envelopes, etc. postag>
on second-class matter. box rents and
money order fees, while about two-thirds
of the cost of the service is disbursed by
postmasters directly from the revenues of
their Offices.
Clerks Handle Millions.
In the auditors office at Washington are
recorded the names of 10000 persons
who are employed in the postal service
of the United States. OF these about
34.OOO are clerks in the g.. $50 post Of
fices. 14,1S4 are employed in the railway
mail service. 2i.517 are employed in the
city free delivery service and 81 $50 in
the rural free delivery service. a card
system is used for all but the postmasters
who have individual ledger accounts The
number of postmasters has been largely
reduced by the extension of the rural
free delivery service. which has made
about 1000 country offices useless and
they have been discontinued. High water
mark was reached in 1906 when thera
were 76.691 post offices and the same
number of Dostmasters on the rolls. Sine
then there has been gradual falling off.
The total number of employees in the
service. therefore. is about 1I2,oGO men
and women.
Last year those people handled nearly
a billion dollars in cash. as follows:
Receipts .S1S:i.5S3, ,005
WnnaH endsr .ssd ~, ~ ~
Foreign money orders paid d----.. lS.l23,9S9
Total. .-.....-.......--...... 1855, $50, 43.
In addition to that vast sum in cash.
the employees of the postal service handled
many millions of packages of registered
matter of a value unknown and impos-
s.ble to estimate: but it must have be IN
very nearly equal to the total given above
II may have been many times greater,
and nobody can estimate the amount r-p
resented by checks. drafts and other
forms of money which pass daily through
the mails
net loss was only S3S, I4S.1 40. of which
S25.0tI.5I was due to burglary and nre
and the balance. s15,693. l3, to other
causes.
The sales OF postage stamps during
the wear 1907 alone amounted 10 Sl6o,-
142. .013: the city free delivery service cost
s2}.niS535: the rural free delivery servic
cost S26.6,'3.30i. and the railway mail
service cost S15,115,7SI. These were tn
chef items of expense among the dis
bursemants for the year.
The accuracy of the clerks in post Of
fees may be judged by the reports of Tn
money order department. which show
that there were only 2.nI6 errors commit
ted. amounting TO S9.6G9.5i. in 65, iH919
transactions. which repr scented a yalu
OF S.lti:, T3l .0-s3. The auditor says that
more than a. per cent of the losses caused
by these errors have already been recov
cred. and predicts that the rest of the
amount will be in the near future.
The average sales of money orders Tor
every business day OF the year 1897 wer
si.SDo.o0 in round numbers. and tbs
average amount of government money in
the hands of postmaste at all times was
about Sf2JO0.OO0.
Arrest of Postal Employees.
The report of Mr.. w. J. Eickery, chief
inspector of the Post Office Department
shows that 1.3Si arrests were made last
year. OF these $50 were postal employees
as follows: One hundred and twelve post
masters. 10 assistant postmasters. 6
clerks in post offices. l6 railway postal
clerks ~ letter carriers. ~ mail car
riers and - other employees. There were
ial post office burglars arrested and lis
other persons in no way connected witt
the service. OF all those arrested 81.
were convicted, 142 released because til
grand luries failed to indict them. 13S
were discharged because no case was
made against them at the pre- 'iminary
hearing and ~ were acquitted after du
trial. In % eases proceedings were dis
missed because OF inability 10 obtain evil
dence; Il of those indicted ran away to
avoid trial and forfeited their bail: de-
PENDANTS died while awaiting trial. and
one escaped from custody. There were
627 cases still pending at the close OF the
year.
All matters concerning losses stealing
destruction, delay and missend!ng. non
delivery and wrong delivery of mail re-
ported TO the Post Office Department ar
referred to the office of the chief inspect
who refers them TO his sUbordinates.
and they are expected to trace the trou-
BILE to its source. to fix responsibility and
il possible. TO apprehend the thief or EN-
bezz'er. During the last year 1906 COM
paints were mauv and sent out TO tha in
spectors, which was decided increase
from the 12.t42 in the year 1906, because
OF the burning of several postal cars and
the destruction of great many regis
tered letters.