Evening star., 1912-08-28
Sunday Closing of Offices Not
Required, Says Hitchcock.
HARDLY CHANGES SYSTEM
Important Matter to Reach Destina
ton Just as in the Past.
B0xH0LDERs STILL TO BENEFIT
Means Less Work for Employees on
Sabbath, While Public Does Not
Suffer, He Adds.

The new law prohibiting the delivery
Of mail by first and second class post
omces Sunday will not deter the
postal officials from handling important
mail on that day. according to Postmas-
ter General Hitchcock. Holders of lock-
boxes in these Offices will have access to
them Sundays as usual and all mail
matter received in the offices up to Satur-
day at midnight will be distributed to
these boxes.
Hotels and newspapers will receive spe-
cial consideration. They of course will
get their mail by the lock-box route
assortments being made at the offices of
dispatch and on the railway mail cars be-
fore II reaches its destination
There appears to be some misapprehen-
sion as regards the provision in the pos
tai bill relating TO the delivery of mail
a statement This provision does not
require the closing of post offices Sunday,
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 dispatch to other destinations. To
stop the movement of this mail would
mean a serious clogging of the whole sys-
tenn OF mail transportation and conse-
quent inconvenience to the public
Boxholders to Get Mail.
AT present most OF the mail received
Sunday for delivery by carrier Monday
morning is worked after midnight Sunday.
and therefore the law will not affect this
mail Ii will be delivered as promptly as
lithvrto. Mail received up TO midnight
Saturday for lock boxes will be distribut-
cd TO the boxes and will be available to
boxholders Sunday as usual.
There Is al present no street delivery
Of mail by letter carriers Sunday and
therefore the law makes no change in this
regard. In short. the only mail that will
be affected under reasonable construc-
tion OF the new law IS that received at
the post offices Sunday and hitherto sort
ed on that day for distribution to lock
boxes.
LAS the purpose of the law, which was
clearly enacted in the interest of en-
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 mail
that cannot be held until Monday morn
ing without serious Inconvenience to the
addresses. This mail will include that for
newspapers and hotel guests The latter
is peculiarly transient in character and
should not be delayed. This mail, like the
special delivery mail. will be sorted out
at the offices of dispatch and on the rail-
way mail trains in order to simplify the
work of distributing ii in the post office
on Sunday.
Business Houses Do Not Object.
"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 Mon
day morning. realizing the benefit thus
conferred on postal employees who are
thereby relieved from Sunday labor
In order to give the new provision as
liberal a construction as possible, post
masters will be instructed on application
to have their employees sort out in emer-
gency cases on Sunday letters of special
Importance. This will supplement the
present privilege Of having all mail de-
livered on Sunday that carries a special
delivery stamp.
by the proposed changes in the method
Of putting up mail in the offices Of origin
and In its handling on the railway mail
trains, IL is believed that satisfactory
distribution can be made in post offices
sundays with far less work than is
now required. Thus. the law can be made
TO confer great benefits on postal en-
ployes without inconvenience to the pub
uc"