The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-08-28
Hitchcock Works to Avoid Inconvenience to Busi-
 ness Public
TO SECURE MINIMUM
 OF WORK ON SUNDAY
Newspapers and Hotels Will Get Their Mail as Usual-Holders of Boxes Will Have
 Access to Them

Washington. August 27.--Plans were perfected by Postmaster General Hitch cock today whereby the administration of the new law prohibiting delivery cf mail on Sundays will have no serious effect upon handling important mall matter
 Holders of lock boxes at first and second class postoffices will have &C., cess to them as usual, although no mail deliveries will be made on the street or at postoffice windows. Mail for hotel guests and newspapers will be delivered through their lock boxes by simple arrangement of having the mall sorted on the railway mall ears before il reaches It's destination. Such mail to be distributed immediately upon its arrival at the offices of des- tination.
 This distribution will require min- mum of Sunday work and the distri- button of other mail received sunday will be made after midnight Sunday so it may be deiverel by carriers on their first tour Monday
 Hitchcock Explains
 After all-day conferences with ex- perls of his department Postmaster General Hitchcock tonight Issued a statement explanatory of his admin istration of the new law. His assurance Is that there will be no embarrassment to the business public and that. through the arrangements he outlines. urgent mail will reach its destination promptly. Orders necessary to carry MT. EIitchooek's plans into effect will be issued immediately. The Postmaster Generals statement follows: There appears to be some misap- prehenson as regards the provision in the postal bill relating to the delivery of mail on Sundays. This provision does not require the closing of postoffices on Sundays, which would be quite i'm possible, owing to the fact that the l transient mail has to he sorted and also the r.itll collected In cities fcr l dispatch 10 other desttifations To stop l the movement of this mail would mean a serious elogging of the whole sys- tenn and consequent inconvenience to the public.
 At present most of the mail received Sunday for delivery by carrier Monday | morning is worked after midnight on Sunday and therefore the law will not affect this mail II will be delivered as promptly as hitherto. Mail received up to midnight on Saturday for lock boxes will be distributed to the boxes and will be available to box holders on Sunday as usual.
 There is al present no street delivery of mail by letter carriers on Sunday. and therefore the law makes no change in this regard In short, the only mail that will be affected under reasonable eonstFuc- tion of the new law Is that received at the postoffces on Sunday and hitherto sorted on that day for distribution to lock | boxes.
 Papers to Get Mail
 AS the purpose of the law which was clearly enacted in the interest of em- ployes, is to reduce as far as practicable the amount of Sunday labor the work of distributing Sunday mail to lock boxes will be limited to certain classes of mall that cannot be held until Monday morn Ing without serious Inconvenience to the addresses. This mall will include that for newspapers and hotel guests. In order to give the new provision as liberal a construction as possible post
 
 1 tion. to have their employees sort out. in emergency cases on Sunday. letters of l special importance. This will supple ment the present privilege of having all i mail delivered on Sunday that carries a special delivery stamp.
 By the proposed changes in the meth l od of putting mp mall in the offices of l origin and in it's handling on the railway mail trains. if Is believed that satsfac- l tory distribution can be made in post offices on Sundays with far less work than | fig now required
 Minority Leader Mann of the House author of the provision prohibiting the delivery 10 the general public of mail on Sunday. said there was no intent upon l the part of Congress so to restrict the ac- l tivitles of the postoffiee department as to l inconvenience seriously the business pulp l lie. .
 i "It Is absurd he declared for any l body to assume that Congress meant to close postoffices as tight as q wedge on Sunday We simply required that there should be no delivery of mail 10 the l general public on Sunday in order that letter carriers and postoffice clerks might 1 enjoy a reasonable respite from their la l hors