Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-08-30
SUNDAY MAIL MATTER.

Plans were perfected Wednesday,
says Washington Associated Press
dispatch, whereby the administration
Of the new law prohibiting the deliv-.
cry Of mail on Sundays will have no
serious effect upon the handling of i'm
portant mail matter.
Holders of lock boxes at first and
second-class postoffices will have ac-
cess to them as usual, although no
mail deliveries will be made by car
riers on the street or at postofflce win
dows. Mail for hotel guests and news
papers will be delivered. to them
through their lock boxes by a simple
arrangement of having that mail sort
ed on the railway mail cars before II
reaches its destination. Such mail Will
be regarded as transit matter" and
will be distributed Immediately upon
It's arrival at the offices Of destination.
thus practically insuring speedier
delivery to the addresses than here
fore has been the case.
This distribution will require min
imum Of Sunday work and the distri-
button Of other mail received on Sum
Sunday so that It may be delivered by
the carriers on their first tour on Mon
day.
After all-day conferences with the
experts Of his department, Postmaster
General Hitchcock tonight issued a
statement explanatory Of his admins
tration Of the new law His assurance
Is that there will be no embarrass-
ment to the business public and that,
through the arrangement he outlines,
urgent mail matter will reach its des-
tination promptly. Orders necessary
to carry Mr.. Hitchcock's plans into ef-
feet will be issued Immediately. The
postmaster generals statement fol-
lows:
There appears to be some misap-
prehension as regards the provision In
the postal bill relating to the delivery
Of mail on Sundays. This provision
does not require the closing of post
Offices on Sundays, which would be
quite impossible owing to the fact that
the transit mail has to be sorted and
also the mail collected in cities for dis
patch to other destinations. To stop
the movement of this mail would
mean a serious clogging OF the whole
system Of mail transportation and con-
sequent inconvenience to the public.
"At present most Of the mail re-
ceived on Sunday for delivery by car
rier Monday morning Is worked after
midnight on Sunday and therefore the
law will not affect this mail. It will
be delivered as promptly as hitherts.
Mail received up to midnight on Sat-
urday for lock boxes will be distribut-
ed to the boxes and will be available to
box-holders on Sunday as usual.
There Is at present no street de-
livery of mail by letter carriers on Sun
day and therefore the law makes. no
change in this regard. In short, the
only mail that will be affected under
q reasonable construction Of the new
law Is that received at the pustofflces
on Sunday and hitherto sorted on that
day for distribution to lock boxes.
"As the purpose Of the law. which
was clearly enacted in the interest of
employees Is to reduce as far as practi-
cable the amount OF Sunday labor.
the work Of distributing Sunday mail
to lock boxes will be limited to certain
classes of mail that can not be held un-
til Monday morning without serious
inconvenience to the addressee.
This mail will include that for
and hotel guests. The
latter is peculiarly transient in char
acter and should not be delayed. This
mail, like the special delivery mail will
be sorted out at the offices Of dispatch
on the railway IHdH trdlnS III Orucr 10
simplify the work Of distributing 1t In
the postoffices on Sunday.
"As practically all business houses
are now closed on Sunday they do not
object to the plan, which has been in
force for q year, Of holding their mail
until Monday morning, realizing the
benefit the house conferred on postal
employees who are thereby relieved
from Sunday labor.
IN order to give the new provision
as liberal q construction as possible |
postmasters will be instructed on ap- |
plication to have their employees sort
out in emergency cases on Sunday |
letters of special Importance. This will
the present privilege Of
having all mail delivered on Sunday |
that carries q special delivery stamp. |
"By the proposed changes In the
method of putting up mail in the Of