Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-05-04

that such a movement Is now bein(
considered. This would place thu
Provisioning of those men whose ad
vanced years incapacitate them TO-
service, on the shoulders Of the EN-
ployes. He asserted that the presen
salaries Of employees Is not sufftcien
to warrant deduction. Dr.. Granf1ele
also named three ways in which thu
government Is enabled to secure funds
for this pension. The first Is unpaid
money orders. Thousands of dollar
worth of money orders are issued eacf
year by the department that are never
{ presented for collection. Lapse sal
aries, where employees are Off duty
for time without pay nets the gov
eminent saving Of from 100000 tc
$500, 900 each year. This could be
placed in the pension fund, says DR.
Granfield. Then the postal savings
bank is going to create revenue, DR.
Granfield believes, through the failure
of depositors to claim their deposits.
Daniels Argues for Pension.
Inspector in Charge George Daniels
of st. Louis was the next speaker to
enter approval for civil pensions fol
superannuated employees. He said IN
part: ut happens to be our fortune
to live in a country SO strong and
magnificent and so busily engaged In
the accumulation of wealth, that we
have given little thought to the great
question that other countries and the
corporations of our own country have
taken up. 1t probably has not occurred
to you postmasters that the $4,000
postmasters in the United States can
secure measures of Importance by
their influence. 1t is quite possible
participate in civid pensions, but you
are interested in it, and you have men
who will some time be superannuated.
These men have given their life to
the postoffice department and they
have but little or no time for making
fortunes as they are making from
$500 to $1,000 annually, they have
little chance to lay away any of their
wages. A man in the postal service
has many things to look after and can
not put his mind into money making
adventures. I predict that within a
short time, postmasters will be in
Guided in the classified service. They
will be in the service as their LIES
work. In such a case, you postmasters
will be interested in retirement condi-
tons. You will want to be pensioned
after you have passed the age of eff
cheney.
"At the present time the postoffice
department Is humanely endeavoring
to take care Of its men. Go into the
big cities and in the postoffices you
will find old men Of no service to the
department, and in fact, of no use to
the office. They are simply placed on
the pay roll to keep them. went into
postoffice one time where thirty
men were employed. The postmaster
wanted more help. found three Of his
men past the age of seventy-one years
and one Of Them carrying mail could
not lift his feet from the ground. We
put these three men on a route that
one young man could cover. Simply
did 1t to pension them. Now II we had
the civil pension provision, these men
could leave the service and new,
young, efficient men could take their
places and save expense to the de-
partment as we'll as give better
service.
Now It depends upon you post
masters to begin to talk. to your con-
gressmen, to everybody. You may say
these men who have entered the serv-
Ice can let 90 when they want to and
go at something better and make more
money, but, gentlemen, there are men
in the service who cannot let loose.
They have to stay and plug away. And
we don't want them to let loose be-
cause we want efficiency, and effi-
cheney comes through experience. So
1t is up to the postmasters to get civil
pensions"
Takes Up Parcels Post.
Following the suggestion of Presi-
dent Law, Postmaster Charles A. Rey-
nolds of Harlan, took up the parcel
posts question. He said, ~ believe in
parcel post firmly. The troubles of the
retail merchants of our cities will van
ish when 1t comes to pass. I do not
believe in sending an automobile or
sewing machine through the mail, but
we ought to have means Of sending
parcels, small parcels. through the mail
at a reasonable cost. I am not afraid
of this butter and milk parcels post
n jne %ho poNva HIT IN