The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1916-09-27
WEIGHT OF EQUIPMENT,
TRANSPORTATION COST
OVER SG,000,000 WILL BE SAVED
ANNUALLY IN THE TRANSPOR-
TATION OF THE MAILS.
Changes Made in Bags and Locks
Make Enormous Reduction
OF Expenses.

All departments OF the government
are OF interest to the people, and the
activities and industries of each are
matters Of great and vital concern, for
the welfare Of the nation depends upon
the manner in which these great pub
lie enterprises are conducted and
administered.
The postoffice department being il
close and constant touch with ali
classes, necessarily occupies large
share of public attention, and anything
relating to it's projects and purposes
is always of special interest. The
adoption of measures calculated to
lessen expense and broaden the field
of usefulness may easily come within
that category.
The principal cost in the postal
service is that of transportation. With
an annual expenditure exceeding $685.
100000, which is the price the govern
ment pays for this service, it may be
naturally assumed that the men who
now manage our postal affairs were
concerned to know if it was not poss-
ible to lessen this cost without impair
ing the efficiency of the service. The
first question which suggested itself
in this connection was whether the
weight of equipment, a matter of very
considerable concern, could not be re-
duced, since the government pays as
much per pound for the weight of the
bag as it does for the mail within it.
There was a time-away back in the
early history of the department-wh
these questions did not count for
much. The service was then restrict
ed to the more populous sections and
but little money spent for equipment
The bags were then made of leather
Leather was king for this great pub,
lie need and the cry there's n0thirg
like leather" was firmly held and he.
lieved by the postal officials of that
period, and the cry was industriously
echoed back by the contractors, who
received good round sum for what
they furnished, and naturally wanted
it to continue. These bags were heavy
clumsy things of a barrel pattern,
some fastened with an iron chain,
yeritable curiosity when compared tC
the light and handsome productions
of today. One of these cumbersome
pouches which carried the entire
Southern mail from New York to New
Orleans in these early days may be
seen in the National Museum in Wash
ington. The troublesome question o.
expense and weight were not consid-
cred then but when in recent years
the service grew by leaps and bounds
both these subjects became of supreme
Importance, for the rapidly increasing
cost consumed large part Of the pos
tai revenues, and a reform in both
direction was an immediate and i'm
perative necessity.
The first step in this needed reform
inaugurated by the fourth assistant
postmaster general was the withdraw
al of ali heavy equipment and the sub
stitution in its stead of lighter and
more suitable material, disseminating
the further manufacture of the equip
ment then in use with a very consid-
erable saving of both cost and weight.
Many experiments were made and
tried out in actual service to find the
best and most serviceable kinds, ex
pense and durability considered, and
to the present postal administration
belongs the credit of having produced
something in this direction combining
not only all the essential needs of such
equipment, but lessened in cost and
from 40 to 60 per cent reduced in
weight 1t is believed that these i'm
proved models of bags and locks will
meet all requirements for years to
come The actual introduction of
these new and better styles began in
the spring of 1914 and the results
may be summarized as follows:
Reduction in weight accomplished
with
Pounds
22.500 new style catcher
pouches, at lbs. each As, 900
10000 new style ordinary
pouches. at 3 lbs. each----390,OO0
10S00O light weight No.
sacks, at IS lb. each 9l,S00