The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1916-08-22
U, s, FORCED TO SAVE
ON MAIL EQUIPMENT
New System Introduced Makes Bags
Cost One Half of Former Price.
Repair Own Bags.


The people who see mail bags load
| ed on postal cars from the mail wag
ons of the government, or see then
can form no idea of the immensely Of
| this branch of the public service. Sta
tistics and tables of figures may have
little interest for the ordinary reader
but when it is stated that the total
number of mail bags used for trans
porting the mails amount to about
five millions, and if placed end to end
would stretch from Boston to San
Francisco and extend into the Pacific
ocean, some estimate may be formed
of the tremendous mass of such equip
ment needed in the dispatch of public
business.
At the beginning of this administra-
ton an inventory was taken to learn
what equipment for railway postal
transportation the government had on
hand 1t was discovered that the
grand total of such property was
3,549 ,489 pieces, of which 468,846 were
mail pouches, 2,592,479 were sacks,
and 488,164 were mail locks. Since
this inventory was made the growth
of the service required the purchase
Of over one million and a half mail
bags to meet the steadily increasing
demand
The money required from time to
lime for the purchase of this great
supply and the price to be paid, so as
matters of grave concern to those i'll
charge. In the summer of 1913, the
department was paying $1.44 for its
ordinary mail pouches. This price
was deemed too high, and experts
we're set to work to devise something
which would be of equal capacity,
equal durability, at a less cost. A
pouch was designed which the depart
ment contracted for and purchased for
less than 60 cents each. Experts were
also placed on the proposition of de-
signing cheaper but equally effect
We pouch for the exchange of mails
~ moving trains, at a saving of zoe.
The repair and proper maintenance
Of mail bags is provided for in an es-
adjustment located at Washington.
The number repaired and placed in
good condition during the past year
vas over one million.
One of the difficulties connected
With this repairing process, was the
accumulated dirt and dust which at
ached to these bags when returned
rom the service and which was a
menace to the health of those so en-
lloyed. No attention had ever been
paid to the dangerous and unsanitary
lone. No attempt to cleanse these
Bags from the foul impurities they
gathered and collected had ever been
made The official in charge saw the
need of a change to better methods,
md steps were at once taken to dis
cover it. A system was finally adopt
ID consisting of large tumbling bar
els, each having a capacity for hold
.ng several hundred bags. Driven
apidly by electric power, the dust
confined to tightly constructed room
md carried off by blowers and lodged
immense canvass receptacles, re-
embling a dirigible balloon when in
lated, this process was found tho
'oughly suitable, for careful tests
bowed that all dust was completely
emoved. Four thousand day are
low treated by this process.
The life of a mail bag is about six
ears, but the rough usage renders
many of them unfit for repair. Such
jags pass into the hands of expert
Inspectors who utilize such parts as
till have some good material left in
making what is known as "pieced
,ags." Many are thus reclaimed and
eturned to service, constituting with
he sale of condemned material, the
alvage of the mail bag repair shop.
Fhe bags or parts of bags which can
lot be utilized are sold under yearly
contract to the highest bidder. The
amount thus realized and turned into
he treasury for the past year was
10000.
The advent of the parcel post and
he great increase in postal business
has made it necessary to enlarge the
cope of the repair shop. A manu-
acturing feature was therefore added
md during the past two years over a
quarter of a million bags have been
produced without additional expense
or labor or hardship to the employees.
Postmaster j. w. Moore has said
hat he received orders from Wash
ngton to send back old files, money
| orders and old envelopes to the post
office department in Washington. This
;hows that money is being tried to be
| saved on paper also, for it looks as
if there will be paper shortage this
winter.
Alto ACCIDENT.