The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-07-09

Cancelled at the rate of 10000 an hour.
The mail comes from the cars. and af-
ter it enters the post-ofiice it goes al
most without stopping TO the letter
carrier who is TO deliver It.
II is the same with other things We
are sa ?iI Z, on freight by cutting down
the weight OF the mail bags. We are
saving in the rural delivery by study
ing the country for ourselves and put
ting the routes where they will serve
the most people instead of allowing a
Congressman to locate them for politi-
cal purposes. When we establish n
new carrier delivery We make the .town
where 1t goes give us the best arrange
ments for handling the mail We in
sist on Improving the streets. and that
every house shall have its own letter
box for receiving its mail. In this
way the postman drops in his letters
without stopping and ringing the bell.
expect to- see the time come when
that will be required In all of the
cities.
We have also improved the railway
mail service" continued Mr.. Hitchcock
1T used to be u sort of an indepen-
dent bureau. which did not work in
harmony with the rest of the service.
We have made IL closer part OF the
whole organization, and the railway
mail clerks do what they can to aid the
post offices and to hurry the mails. We
have also better arrangements for get
ting the bags off the cars
Making Each Postmaster Help.
you speak of the harmony OF the
service. Mr.. Postmaster General Is II
we'll organized?'
1T is rapidly Incoming so. We are
unifying it and getting better work out
of the individual than ever before
When came into this office wrote
Thousands of letters TO each of the city
Dostmasters announcing our plans for
improving the service and asking him
to do all he could In the work of re-
form. In cutting the expenses. and at
the same time of improving the mails.
7 urged him to think for himself, and
do what ne could to help the department
along. AS a result of this the letters
began to come in by the bushels. There
were so many that they kept my secre-
taries busy, and ] could only look at
the most important of them They
brought about the saving Of vast deal
of money. and at the same time made
the men feel that they were a part OF
the government, and that II was their
duty to do all they could to help in the
work We have now good esprit de
corps among our employees, and ! ex-
pect this to grow as time goes on.
Civil Service for Postmnsters.
81 should like to see the entire postal
service taken out of politics." con-
tinued Mr. Hitchcock "This changing
postmasters at every administration
discrepancies the business and causes
the loss OF millions of dollars, We
have to train the new postmasters. and,
being appointed through political in
fluence. they do not feel their respon-
siblity to the department They are
often inefficient and the principal Is a
bad one, | would have all the presi-
dental postmasters In the classified
service. and would have the only rea-
son for changes be the good of the
service. would send the best post
masters to the more responsible places,
and would have system by which the
post office clerks could rise from grade
TO grade and finally. become postmas-
tiers. I would not make the selection
altogether a matter OF geography, az II
is now. but would nut the men In the
places where their past work has
shown they would do the most good"
One-Ccnt Letter Postage.
will we ever be able to send let.