Evening star., 1923-03-21

last year they totaled s7.509.7S1. an
increase OF S4S94,927. Money orders
paid here increased from S4.247 .614.1O
to S16,06S, S90.50, an increase of s11.-
S21,2l6.40. partly to be explained by
the war risk insurance
In the time since Mr.. Chance has
been postmaster the population served
by the local office has increased from
365.000 persons to 417.000. and the
square miles served from sixty-nine
to eighty. When he assumed the Of
flee of Washington city postmaster
the Office delivered by automobiles
4Ol 900 parcel post Packages. Last
year 1t delivered 1.16s.496. The num-
ber of automobile trucks used by the
office has increased from 9 to l46
trucks.
Called One of Two Best.
Perhaps no man in the civil service
can be said to have wider acquaint-
ance with its ins and outs than Mr.
Chance. who entered 1t as an assist
ant messenger. and worked his way
up to chief clerk of the Post Office
Department and then to postmaster Of
the National Capital, in which posi-
tions he was called "one of the two
States" the other having been Post
master Purdy of Milwaukee, who re-
signed last year.
Postmaster Chance. who has been
responsible for several innovations
in the post offices of the country. no.
tably the use of rest bars for dis
tributors. was born at Salem. ILL.,.
July 26. 1869 He was appointed as
assistant messenger in the Post Of
flee Department by First Assistant
Postmaster General Stevenson De-
ccmber 10, 1883. taking the civil
service examination in 1889, when he
was appointed clerk. He was pro-
NOTED from time to time in all the
clerkship grades, and in July, 1899.
was made chief clerk to Fourth AS
under the Mckinley administration.
Secretary to Root.
In 1900 Mr.. Chance was appointed
private secretary to Secretary Root
Of the War Department. On March
4, 1904, he was made superintendent
of post office supplies, and later chief
clerk Of the department under Post
master General Payne.
He was made auditor for the Post
Office Department in 1908. In 1911
he was appointed by President Taft
as secretary to the Presidents COM
mission on economy and efficiency. He
was appointed as a member of the
commission July 1. 1912.
Named by Wilson.
Mr.. Chance was made chief clerk of
the Post Office Department by Post
master General Burleson March 10,
1913. He was appointed postmaster at
Washington by President Wilson.
September 1, 1915, and reappointed
postmaster here January %, 1920.
When the present administration
came into power, there was much
talk Of change in postmasters here,
but the successive Postmasters Cen
eral made 1t plain that no change was
contemplated until Mr.. Chances COM
mission expired, in 1924.
Postmaster Chance was active in the
affairs of the National Postmasters'
Association. During the war he was
chairman Of local draft board, No 8,
and had the distinction of inducting
the first man in the country to be a
member of the national Army. He
was Harry Chapman Gilbert Of this
city. AS chairman of the draft board,
Postmaster Chance was the first in
the country to complete the registra-
tion of the twenty -one-year- men.
Member of Many Groups.
Mr. Chance was married to Miss
Euterpe Fitzgerrell of Mount Vernon,
ILL.,, in 1895. Mt. and Mrs. Chance
have one son, Gordon NJ. F. Chance of
this city. He is a member OF Temple
Noyes Lodge, No. 80, F. A. A. NJ, and
of the City Club, Cosmos Club. Ma
tional Press Club, Loyal Legion, the
Chamber of Commerce and the Board
of Trade He is a director in the Y
NJ c. A. and a yestryman in the
Church of the Epiphany.