El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-12-12
MUCH MONEY SAVED
IN POSTOFFICE
DEPARTMENT
But There Is Still a Deficit.
To Make Magazines
Wipe 1t Out

Washington, D. c., Dec. I'm the
space of IL months reduction has
been made in the deficit of the post
office department of s11,500, 900, ac-
cordtng to the annual report of post
master general Frank II. Hitchcock.
While a year ago the fiscal records
of the postal service disclosed a de-
felt of s17,5OO.000, the largest in the
history OF the country, the excess Of
expenditures over receipts for the year
ended June Goth last amounted TO only
s5.S4S,566. In commenting upon this
reduction postmaster general Hitchcock
says in his report:
THE policy of the present admins
tration has been to wipe out losses by
increasing the postal business along
profitable lines and, while thus enlarg-
ing the departments income. to reduce
as far as possible the rate or expendi-
ture by cutting out waSteful processes,
by simplifying and rendering more eff
fective the methods of handling postal
business, and by raising TO the highest
possible standard, the efficiency of Off
GERS and employees.
1.-The more quickly mail matter can
be handled the less expensive is the
process. The department accordingly
has devoted itself with great earnest
cheney of the mail service, considering
this the surest method of making the
postal establishment self-supporting."
The Service Grows.
Fifteen hundred new postoffices were
established during the past year and
SIS new rural delivery routes travers-
ing altogether 1925 miles, were in
stituted Nearly 5000 new employees Of
various CLASSES were placed up>n the
rolls of the department, whose aggre-
gate salaries were more than $4,000
900 annually. In addition to this sum
S1,750,000 was added to the salaries or
postoffice clerks. s1.226.OO0 to the sal
aries of letter carriers, and s250,v00 90
the salaries OF railway mail clerks. All
increases in salary were based upon
efficiency ratings.
Second Class Rates.
In the discussion of second-class
mail, postmaster general Hitchcock
points out the constant growth of this
class of matter. 1t is carried at a loss,
and he urges that a remedy should be
promptly applied by charging more
postage.
In Ievying the higher rate. the re-
port suggests, cit is believed that
distinction should be made between ad-
legitimate reading matter.
..Under present conditions an increase
in the postage on reading matter is
not recommended. The department
that the proposed increase
in rate be applied only to magazine
advertising matter
I'm view of the vanishing postal de-
felt IL is believed that if the maya
zines could be required to pay what it
costs the government to carry their adj
vertising pages, the departments rev.
enues would soon grow large enough
TO warrant one cent postage on first
class mail.
.Newspapers are not included in the
plan for a higher rate on advertising
matter because, being chiefly of local
they do not employ the
mails to any such extent as the widely
magazines.
Rural Delivery Costly.
While the loss resulting from the low
postage rate on second class mail is the
greatest in the postal service, the loss
On rural delivery service is very con-
siderable.
Consolidation during the last year of
the star route and rural delivery sys-
TEN has been the means Of effecting a
large saving and of increasing the
efficiency of the service.
All of the offices selected for the
rial of the postal savings bank are of
the second class. wage earners being
benefited. 1t is expected
that the new postal savings system