Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1912-09-03
BOX HOLDERS To
GET SUNDAY MAIL
HITCHCOCK PERFEcrs PLANS SO
IMPORTANT MATTER WILL
NOT BE DELAYED.
LAW NOT TO EMBARRAss.
Business Public Remembered-Letters
To Be Sorted on Trains
Hotel Guests Pro.
vIded For.

Washington, Aug. %, - Plans wer'
perfected by Postmaster Genera
Hitchcock whereby the administra
ton of the new law prohibiting thu
delivery of mail on Sundays will have
no serious effect upon the handling o.
important mail matter.
Holders Of lock boxes at first and
second class postoffices will have &C
cess to them as usual, although nc
mail deliveries will be made by car
riers on the street or at postoffice
windows. Mail for hotel guests and
newspapers will be delivered to them
through their lock boxes by simple
arrangement of having that mail sort
ed on the railway mail cars before II
reaches the destination. Such mail
will be regarded as transit matter "
and will be distributed Immediately
upon its arrival at the offices OF
destination, thus, practically insuring
! speedier delivery to the addresses
than heretofore has been the case.
This distribution will require mini
mum of Sunday work and the distribu-
lion of other mail received on Sunday
will be made after midnight of Sun
day so that 1t may be delivered by
the carrier on their first tour on
Monday.
After all day conferences Postmas.
ter General Hitchcock issued state
ment explanatory Of his administration
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 Mr. Hitch.
socks plans into effect will be issued
Immediately. The postmaster generals
statement in fact follows:
HItcheoek's Statement. -.
"There appears to be some misap.
prehension concerning the provision in
the postal bill relating to the delivery
Of mail on Sunday. The provision
does not require the closing of post
offices on 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 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.
!ier Monday morning is worked after
midnight on Sunday and therefore the
law will not affect this mail. 1t will
be delivered as promptly as hitherto.
Mail received up to midnight an Sat
arday for lock boxes will be distrib-
tied to the boxes and will be available
20 box holders on Sunday as usual.
No Street Delivery.
There is at present no street deliv.
cry of mail by letter carriers on Sun
lay and therefore the law makes no
change in this regard. In short, the
only mail that will be affected under
J reasonable construction Of the new
law is that received at the postofflces
pn Sunday and hitherto sorted on that
lay for distribution to lock boxes"
Attention to important Letters.
I'm order to give the new provision
is liberal a construction as possible,
postmasters will be instructed on ap.
plication to have their employees sort
put in emergency cases on Sunday let
ters of special Importance. This will
supplement the present privilege Of
having all mail delivered on Sunday
hat carries special delivery stamp"