The Lexington progress. (Lexington, Tenn.) 1884-current, 1922-06-02
RURAL MAIL CARRIERS
MEET IN LEXINGTON.

The Rural Mail Carriers Associa-
tion of Henderson county met in Lex
ington last Monday afternoon-Dee ee-
oration Day, and holiday. In the abs
sence Of President R. L. Johnson, Car /.
rier ]. L. Holmes Of Juno, Route Nc
/, presided and Ben H. Deere, the req
ular Secretary Treasurer was present
to perform his duties. !.
Before the association went into
regular business, several talks VIA
made. Outsiders were called on and
in response, w. v. Barry stated that
the rural delivery of mail was the
greatest move ever made to liberate
the people from ignorance-that to-
day, the citizen who remains in ig-
norance of the affairs and current
events of the country and the world, is
voluntarily in that condition, since the
government, if permitted will deliver
to the door of practically every citi-
zen the means of enlightment.
County Judge L. B. Johnson spoke
on the benefits to be derived from or
ganization-an when Judge Johnson
makes a talk it is generally a good
one.
Carrier ]. l.. Holmes, of Route 1,
Juno, spoke on the responsibilities of
the rural carrier and Mr.. Holmes
talk showed that he properly and full
ly appreciates the responsibilities
which rest upon the man who brings
the news, merchandise and letter mail
to the boxes of his patrons.
But the principal speaker of the day
was Carrier j. l. Wood, of Spring
Creek, Madison county, spoke on the
changes that had been brought about
by the rural delivery of mail, as well
as the future possibilities of the
system. Mr.. ood is intensely practi-
cal in his ideas and is eminently cor
rect in his claim that the rural mail
carriers ought to be paid as much as
other departments of the mail service
in which the employees have to stand
the same examination as that of the
carriers.
Carriers j. R. Roby and Bob Smith
were appointed committee to draft
resolutions and made the following
report:
Resolved, That we approve the eff
forts of our Postmaster General, Mr..
Works., and his assistants to better
the working conditions of all postal
employees and to improve the service
of the largest and most important
business aggregation in the world, to
which we pledge our hearty co-opera-
tion.
That we approve the recent execu-
tive order requiring postmasters to
inspect and report to the Department
conditions on rural routes each April
and October.
Whereas, The most adverse condi-
tions affecting rural delivery of mail
is the conditions of private and some
times public roads over which many
rural routes traverse, many such pri-
vate and public roads being unfit for
the passage Of any kind of vehicle.
The parcels post system has added
greatly to the weight of rural mails
and mail of all classes has greatly in
creased. A rural route vehicle must
be covered to protect carriers and mail
from inclement weather;
We, Therefore, request that Sec
tion 716 Postal Regulations, which
provides that rural route roads must
be kept in good passable condition at
all times, be more rigidly enforced.
We suggest that when a route or part
of route is reported to the Depart
ment by the postmaster or other Off
cial as being in badly kept condition,
that service on such routes or part of
such routes be suspended until such
route or part Of route is put in good
and passable condition and approved
by the Post Office Department, or the
routes or parts of routes be changed